2022

Creature Comforts (Kickstarter Edition)

1–5 players 45 min Ages 8+ 2.2/5 complexity 6.2/10 rating

About this game

Creature Comforts: Kickstarter Edition includes the following items not included in retail version of this game: - Talents mini expansion - Dreams Come True mini expansion - Game Trayz storage solution - Wooden Resources Life in the forest is a lot of fun, at least while the sun is shining and the leaves are on the trees. Those days don’t last forever though, and long before the weather starts to change, the wise animals start to harvest for the long cold winter ahead. You will spend many months tucked into your burrow and you want to make it as cozy as possible. A nice bowl of soup, a comfortable rocking chair, and some toys and games will go a long way to make those dark winter days pass by quickly. In Creature Comforts, you spend the Spring, Summer, and Fall gathering different goods from the forest and spending them to collect items that will make your home more inviting while the world outside is covered in a layer of snow. Each round you send family members out to various locations in an attempt to gain supplies. If they fall short of their goal, they’ll learn a lesson and be better prepared next time. The family that has created the most comfortable den wins the game.

What it feels like

Ownership Events Solo / Solitaire Game End Game Bonuses Dice Rolling Contracts Open Drafting Set Collection Turn Order: Progressive Worker Placement with Dice Workers Animals Coziness / Relaxation / Self-Care / Well-being Anthropomorphic Animals

Explore these mechanics in Cardboard

Start an original prototype from reusable design patterns—not this game's content.

Open mechanics workbench

Game intelligence

Learn the game

100% knowledge coverage

Setup

1. Unfold and place the Game Board in the center of the table. 2. Place the Hilltop tile in its designated area. 3. Shuffle and place Valley cards and Comfort cards in their respective areas. 4. Place Traveler and Talent cards (mini-expansion) in their areas on top of the Valley cards section. 5. Place Improvement cards near the board. 6. Place Dream cards near the board (Dreams Come True mini-expansion). 7. Assemble the River Dial and place it on the board. 8. Set up the Resource Caddy (with lid) and fill each embossed pocket with its corresponding resource type. 9. Give each player their Home board, Player pieces, Almanac, and Wheelbarrow. 10. Distribute Village dice and Family dice (Kickstarter Family dice have the animal family's paw print on the "1" face) to players. 11. Place Worm and Multiplier planks in their designated spaces. 12. Refer to the full rulebook for player count-specific setup adjustments.

Turn flow

Each round represents a season. On their turn, players roll their Family Dice and the Village Dice, then draft and assign dice to action spaces on the board (village locations, the hilltop, the river, etc.) to collect resources, draw cards, and fulfill Comfort and Improvement cards. Players use their Wheelbarrow and Almanac to manage resources. At the end of the final season, players score points from fulfilled Comfort cards, Improvements, leftover resources, and any mini-expansion cards (Dreams, Talents).

Scoring and victory

The winner is the player who has best prepared their home for winter, determined by points scored from Comfort cards, Improvement cards, and other scoring sources at game end. Scoring sources: Comfort cards fulfilled, Improvement cards, Leftover resources (via Almanac), Dream cards (Dreams Come True mini-expansion), Talent cards (Talents mini-expansion)

Source: Rulebook

Rules to know

The most useful rules for getting a first game right.

General

Kickstarter Family Dice have a paw print on the '1' face instead of the numeral 1.

In the Kickstarter Edition, each player's Family Dice are customized with their animal family's paw print symbol on the face that represents the value '1'. This is purely cosmetic; the paw print face is treated identically to a standard '1' result in all game rules.

Setup

The Resource Caddy organizes all resource tokens; each pocket is embossed with the corresponding resource symbol.

The Kickstarter Edition includes a Resource Caddy with a lid. Each pocket in the caddy is embossed with a symbol identifying which resource type is stored there (e.g., wood, food, wool, etc.). During setup, sort all resource tokens into their matching embossed pockets. The caddy lid sits on top during storage and is removed during play. The folded Game Board covers the caddy in the box.

Special

The Dreams Come True mini-expansion adds Dream cards to the game.

The Kickstarter Edition includes the Dreams Come True mini-expansion. This adds a deck of Dream cards that are placed near the game board during setup. Refer to the Dreams Come True mini-expansion rules for how Dream cards are acquired and used during play.

Special

The Talents mini-expansion adds Talent cards to the game.

The Kickstarter Edition includes the Talents mini-expansion. Talent cards are placed on top of the Valley cards area during setup, alongside Traveler cards. Refer to the Talents mini-expansion rules for how Talent cards are acquired and used during play.

Setup

Overview of all major component groups included in the Kickstarter Edition and their storage locations in the box.

The Kickstarter Edition box is organized as follows from bottom to top: (1) Improvement cards, Player pieces, Comfort cards, and Home boards in the lower layer; (2) Worm & Multiplier planks, Traveler and Talent cards (on top of Valley cards), and the Hilltop tile in the middle layer; (3) Almanacs & Wheelbarrows, Dream cards, and the River Dial (on top) in another section; (4) the Resource Caddy with its lid sits on top of these components; (5) the folded Game Board covers everything on top.

General

The Kickstarter Edition rulebook shows retail versions of upgraded items; this guide clarifies what has changed.

The printed rulebooks included in the Kickstarter Edition depict the retail versions of certain components that have been upgraded for the Kickstarter Edition. Players should refer to the Kickstarter component guide to understand which components differ from the rulebook illustrations. Key upgrades include: custom Family Dice (paw print on '1' face), the Resource Caddy, and the inclusion of two mini-expansions (Dreams Come True and Talents).

Strategy briefing

Resource Organization

Use the Resource Caddy's embossed pockets to keep resource types strictly separated. Misidentifying resources mid-game is a common error; the caddy's symbols eliminate this. Always return resources to their correct pocket when they are spent.

Mini-Expansion Synergies

If playing with both the Dreams Come True and Talents mini-expansions simultaneously, evaluate Dream and Talent cards early each round — they can provide alternative paths to points that complement your Comfort card strategy.

Family Dice Awareness

The paw print face on your Family Die is a '1'. Low rolls on Family Dice limit your action choices, so plan for contingencies when a '1' is rolled — for example, spaces that benefit from lower die values.

Common questions and edge cases

A player rolls the Kickstarter Family Die and gets the paw print face. What value does it count as?

The paw print face on the Kickstarter Family Die is equivalent to a '1' in all game rules. It is a cosmetic upgrade only and has no special mechanical effect.

The rulebook doesn't mention Dream cards or Talent cards. Are these used in the base game?

Dream cards (Dreams Come True) and Talent cards (Talents) are mini-expansions exclusive to the Kickstarter Edition. They are not part of the base retail game. Each mini-expansion has its own rules insert; include or exclude them as desired.

The rulebook shows dice without paw prints and no Resource Caddy. Are my components wrong?

No. The rulebooks in the Kickstarter Edition depict the retail versions of upgraded components. The paw-print Family Dice and Resource Caddy are Kickstarter upgrades and are correct. Follow the Kickstarter component guide for clarification on any discrepancies.