# Wyrmspan: Dragon Academy ## General Info - **Year Published**: 2025 - **BGG Rating**: 8.4 - **BGG Rank**: — - **Players**: 1-5 (Best with: 3) - **Duration**: 90 min - **Weight**: 2.85 / 5 - **Designers**: Connie Vogelmann - **Artists**: Clémentine Campardou - **Publishers**: Stonemaier Games, 999 Games, Feuerland Spiele, Ghenos Games, Maldito Games, Matagot, MINDOK, Rebel Sp. z o.o. - **Categories**: Animals, Card Game, Expansion for Base-game, Fantasy - **Mechanics**: End Game Bonuses, Hand Management, Once-Per-Game Abilities, Open Drafting, Solo / Solitaire Game, Track Movement, Turn Order: Progressive ## Verdict A must-have for Wyrmspan fans looking for more strategic depth and card variety.Amazing new dragon speciesGuilds add tactical layersSmart new income systemVisually stunning artworkRequires base game to playIncreases management complexityHIGHLY RECOMMENDED ## Description If you've already fallen in love with the idea of managing habitats in Wyrmspan, get ready to level up your dracology! In 'Dragon Academy', you step into the role of a dedicated mentor, opening a specialized academy to help fledgling dragons discover their full potential. It's not just about owning dragons anymore; it's about educating them and guiding them toward excellence. This expansion breathes new life into the base game, injecting a generous dose of variety. You'll find new dragon species to collect and new caves to expand your sanctuary. However, the real shift lies in the strategic depth: the introduction of additional objective tiles and the arrival of Dragon Guilds, which create new layers of interaction and goals to pursue throughout the match. Furthermore, the game's timing dynamics have been enhanced. A new round tracker has been implemented, and it's not just for counting turns. Now, when you decide to pass your turn for the round, you are presented with an income choice, forcing you to decide between immediate efficiency or long-term preparation. It's the kind of addition that makes you rethink the timing of every move, making resource management even more tense and rewarding. With Connie Vogelmann's signature design and the stunning artwork by Clémentine Campardou, the expansion maintains the visual elegance of the original while expanding tactical possibilities. If you enjoy optimization, card combos, and the feeling of watching your ecosystem grow, Dragon Academy is the logical next step. It's the perfect chance to turn your dragon refuge into a center of academic excellence, where every new creature brings unique abilities that can completely shift the course of your strategy. ## How to Play Goal of the Game In this Wyrmspan: Dragon Academy expansion, you take on the role of a novice dracologist who has opened an academy for young dragons to reach their full potential! The goal is to manage your academy to attract and train dragons, accumulating the highest possible score at the end of the game. Setup To integrate this expansion into the base game, follow these steps: Permanently replace the round tracker board with the updated round tracker board. Replace the following 5 dragon cards with their updated versions: Chameleon Coatyl, Mosaic Guardian, Titanic Coatyl, Lilliputian Fae, and Customary Grazer. Permanently replace cave card 50 and cave card 51 with their updated versions. Add the 45 training tokens to the game and place them within reach of all players. Add all other expansion components (80 dragon cards, 25 cave cards, 5 dragon guild tiles, and 7 objective tiles) to their respective component types. Perform all other base game setup steps as per the original manual. Game Flow The game progresses in rounds. The turn and phase structure follows these specific expansion rules: Passing and End of Round In rounds 1, 2, and 3, when you decide to pass to the next round, you must place your adventurer on a space on the updated round tracker board corresponding to the current round (you do not receive the income benefit immediately). Once placed, no other player may occupy the same space during that round. If you choose to pass (because you lack coins or wish to save them), this is your complete turn; you cannot perform an additional action. When all players have passed, follow this order on the round tracker board: Activate all "once per round" dragon abilities. Score the round objective. Update the cave card and dragon card displays. Rotate the starting player marker clockwise. All players collect the income shown on the space they selected and recover their adventurer. If a cave card or dragon card was recruited, the display is immediately replenished. Note: After round 4, players pass as usual, but do not select an income space. Actions and How to Play In addition to the standard base game actions, the expansion introduces new elements: Fledgling Dragons There is a new dragon size: fledgling. They are adolescent dragons that may require resources from hatchlings (milk or eggs) or adults (meat, gold, or crystal). Unlike hatchlings, they are distributed equally among all three caves. Fledgling Training: Whenever your adventurer passes a fledgling, you may (optionally) train it once. To train, pay the cost shown in the box to the left of the fledgling and place a training token in that box. You must always train sequentially, from left to right. When all boxes are filled, the fledgling is fully trained and its purple ability (bottom) is activated. Dragons with Conditional Cost Some dragons have a blue star symbol. If you meet the condition printed at the bottom of the card, you may ignore the dragon's normal gameplay cost (but you must still perform the attraction process). Dragon Guild Powers The expansion introduces 5 new dragon guilds. Some guild mechanics include: King’s Guild: All abilities require a tithe, which can be any item (resource, dragon card, cave card, or egg). Veterinary Guild: Allows you to choose between placing resources/cards into dragons or gaining a specific resource. Guild of Magicians: Allows you to swap a dragon or a cave card from your cave for a new one from your hand, ignoring normal cave requirements and placement costs. End of Game and Scoring The game ends after round 4. Scoring is calculated as follows: Dragons: Score according to the printed value. Cave Cards: Score according to the printed value. Fledglings: Each fledgling on your player board scores 11 points for every fledgling you possess (including itself). Example: if you have 2 fledglings, each is worth 22 points (total of 44). This occurs regardless of whether they are fully trained or not. Objectives: Victory points from completed public objectives. Dragon Guilds: Fixed victory points on the guild tiles. Automa (Solo): If playing with the Automa, it scores 77 points per dragon, 22 per cave card, 11 for each step beyond the last visited brown space, public objective points, and 11 points for every 2 cache tokens. Tips for Winning Consult the manual for details regarding this section. ## FAQ ### Do I need the base game to play? Yes, this is an expansion. You must own Wyrmspan to use Dragon Academy. ### Does it make the game much more complex? Complexity increases slightly due to the new guilds and income choices, but it keeps the original's essence. ### How many players is it for? It follows the base game's range, supporting 1 to 5 players, including solo mode. ### What changes in the gameplay? You get more card variety, new objectives, and a new income dynamic when passing your turn. ### Does the art match the original game? Absolutely! Clémentine Campardou maintains the same stunning visual quality as the base game. ## Price Comparison ### Best Offers in Brazil - **Amazon**: R$ 240,37 (https://www.amazon.com.br/dp/B0G45F18YK?tag=bgbot26b-20&linkCode=as2) - **Facil Shopping**: R$ 158,01 (https://www.facilshopping.com.br/produtos/wyrmspan-academia-dos-dragoes-expansao-grok-716fq/?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **PlayEasy**: R$ 171,96 (https://www.playeasy.com.br/wyrmspan-academia-dos-dragoes-expansao?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **Space Board Games**: R$ 176,70 (https://www.spaceboardgames.com.br/jogos-de-tabuleiro/wyrmspan-expansao-academia-dos-dragoes?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **TabuLoja**: R$ 179,91 (https://www.tabuloja.com/jogos-de-tabuleiro/expansoes/wyrmspan-academia-dos-dragoes?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **Bota na Mesa**: R$ 180,00 (https://www.botanamesa.com.br/product-page/wyrmspan-academia-dos-dragões?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - See all on Compara Jogos: https://www.comparajogos.com.br/item/wyrmspan-dragon-academy ### Best International Offers - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 33.17 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=6703429&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - See all on BoardGamePrices: https://boardgameprices.com/item/show/121809/wyrmspan-dragon-academy?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com