How To Play: The Flood

Overview

I once thought I had the patience of Noah, but after trying to wrangle my friends for a round of The Flood, I learned otherwise. If you want to build your Ark and come out on top, you’re in the right place. This guide gives you a quick outline of the game rules and (most important) the best strategies for winning. Let’s save those animals—and maybe your pride.

What’s in the box

• 1 Game Board
• 4 Player Boards
• 120 Resource Cards
• 55 Animal Tokens
• 80 Wood Tokens
• 60 Stone Tokens
• 40 Gold Tokens
• 16 Ark Miniatures
• 32 Worker Meeples
• 24 Event Cards
• 1 Flood Marker
• 1 Rulebook

How To Play The Flood: Rules Summary

Setup: Grab Your Umbrellas!

1. Each player picks a color and grabs their ark board, some workers, and resource tokens.
2. Place the main board in the center and shuffle the event cards—don’t peek!
3. Deal starting resources: wood, stone, sheep, and food. I always want two more sheep, but rules are rules.
4. Everyone puts their arks on their starting spots. Put the flood marker at the beginning of the track.
5. Place resource tiles and the dice where everyone can reach. My buddy Dave likes to guard the dice—don’t let Dave do that.

Gameplay: Herd Sheep, Build Arks, Don’t Panic!

1. Each turn, roll dice for resources. All players collect what their lands give, unless the dice hate you that round.
2. Spend resources to build parts of your ark or trade with players or the market.
3. Send out workers to gather extra stuff from the board, but watch out for sneaky random events!
4. Draw a flood event card each round. If you hear thunder, don’t worry—just me making sound effects.
5. Advance the flood marker as stated on the card. Prepare for some parts of the board going underwater. You can’t swim, so get moving!

Winning: Who Can Float First?

1. The first to finish building their ark (all sections done) and load the required resources/animals wins.
2. If two players finish at once, the one with the most leftover resources is the best Noah and wins.

Special Rules & Conditions: Twists in the Tides!

1. If the flood marker reaches the end, and your ark isn’t finished, your sheep get wet. You lose. The flood waits for no one.
2. Some event cards mess up resource collections or force trading. Don’t throw a fit—read the card and follow its chaos.
3. Trading is allowed anytime, but no reneging! My pal tried it once. He’s now banned from the sheep pen.
4. If you ever can’t pay a cost, you must discard what you can and skip that action.

That’s it! Now you know How To Play the flood without getting totally soaked. Good luck, and remember, sheep don’t like water.

Best The Flood Strategies

Resource Management and Trading: Outsmart, Outlast, Outtrade

Don’t Hoard Like a Squirrel

First, you must avoid hoarding. Storing too many resources can slow you down, just like when I try to carry groceries in one trip.

1. Use resources when you need them.
2. Plan 2–3 moves ahead for key upgrades.
3. Leave space for more valuable trades.

Trade Like Your Beard Depends On It

Trading is my favorite part! I once swapped all my stone for one precious sheep and the win. Here are my top tips:

1. Always offer resources your rivals need.
2. Don’t be afraid to say no.
3. Keep an eye on what they stockpile.

Adapt When The Waters Rise

The flood changes everything fast, so stay flexible. Don’t get caught with useless resources when the waves hit.

1. Trade risky goods before they lose value.
2. Rebalance your stocks each turn.

For more advice on how to play The Flood, remember: resource management and clever trading separate the true winners from soggy losers.

Ark Building Skills That Actually Save You From The Flood

Plan Your Parts

1. First, always check what Ark parts you need. There’s no point collecting random pieces. Stick to your plan.
2. Next, grab the parts that are hardest to get early on. You won’t wanna fight for them later when chaos hits.

Upgrade Smart

1. Don’t upgrade your Ark just because you can. Wait for the best moment—like after a lucky trade or a flood-free turn.
2. If you have to choose, upgrade parts that give you an extra bonus, not just ones that look shiny.

Keep An Eye On Rivals

1. Watch what others are building. If someone races for the same Ark parts, grab what you need before they do!

How To Play the flood without efficient Ark building? Simple: you lose. So, follow these tips and maybe you’ll float and not sink. I learned this the hard way when my buddy Dave snatched the last hull piece. Ark envy is real, folks.

Stay Afloat! Outsmarting Disaster in The Flood

Stay Alert for Flood Warnings

1. Check the card deck often. Flood events sneak up on you.
2. Remember, the closer you get to mid-game, the more floods show up.

Keep Your Workers Safe

1. Move workers to higher ground right before a flood hits.
2. Spread them out so you don’t lose everyone at once.

Prioritize Safe Resources

1. Grab key resources from safe zones before they sink.
2. Trade extra wet resources fast before they become useless.

Don’t Panic When the Waters Rise

1. Stick to your plan, don’t scramble when a flood card comes.
2. If you get hit, adapt! The winners in our games act first, not last.

After many game nights, I learned surviving flood events in The Flood takes a cool head and quick moves. That’s how I finally beat Dave! For more “How To Play the flood” tips, stay tuned.

Final Thoughts Before The Big Splash

Look, by now you should be more than ready to teach your friends How To Play the flood and hopefully not go down with the ark. After many evenings yelling at my own sheep and hoarding wood like a beaver on espresso, I can say this game rewards planning and teamwork (even if you plan to backstab later). Keep an eye on your opponents—they’re sneakier than you think, and their arks might float better! So grab your meeples, crack a few bad puns, and remember: when all else fails, blame the flood. Good luck!

Want to know what we think of The Flood? Read our detailed review of The Flood here