How it plays
Forest Shuffle gives you two main actions: draw two cards, or play a card into your forest. Trees create positions for other species. Split cards show different options on opposite halves; choose which half to tuck beside a tree, leaving its relevant effect and scoring information visible.
Cards are also your payment. Playing a costly species sends other cards from your hand into the shared clearing, where opponents may draw them later. Scoring links trees, animals and plants, so a card’s value depends on what else your forest contains. The third winter card ends play immediately.
Decisions you’ll make
Compare keeping a card for its species with spending it to play another one. Payment is not simply lost: it can become a useful public option for someone else.
Build the tree positions and companion species that your scoring cards require before collecting more dependent cards. A promising hand still needs places and resources to enter play.
Learning the game
Moderate: explain trees and split cards, paying into the shared clearing, card bonuses and the winter ending.