Overview

Laborigines are strange creatures born as by-products of mysterious scientific experiments, struggling to survive and escape a laboratory full of dangers. Players model their laborigine from plasticine, then move around a circular board of trap tiles, managing energy tokens to be the last one standing. The game combines memory, tactics, and luck as players try to remember trap locations while navigating encounters with other laborigines and the dangerous Moa creature.

Components

• Plasticine (multiple colours for modeling laborigines)
• Stands for laborigine figures
• Moa figure (dangerous creature)
• Two-sided trap tiles (form a circular board)
• 2 ordinary dice
• Energy tokens (20 per player, in player colours)
• Lightning markers
• Disease markers
• Disease cards
• Immunity flag
• Acid marker
• Rules overview

Setup

1. Arrange trap tiles randomly in a circle on the board.
2. Place Moa on a random, unoccupied tile.
3. Shuffle disease cards and place them face-down in the middle.
4. Each player takes a stand, plasticine, and 20 energy tokens of one colour.
5. Each player shapes their laborigine from plasticine and places it on a random tile.
6. Players vote on the nicest laborigine. That laborigine receives the immunity flag and goes first. (If no consensus, the laborigine made by the heaviest player is “nicest.”)

Turn Structure

Each player’s turn has 4 phases:

Phase 1: Dice Roll

• Roll 2 dice.
• Decide which die moves your laborigine and which moves Moa.
• If you rolled a 1 on at least one die, you obtain the immunity flag.

Phase 2: Disease Manifestations

• If you are infected, the disease’s negative effects apply now.

Phase 3: Movement

• 3a. Moa Movement: Move Moa clockwise by the assigned die value.
• 3b. Laborigine Movement: Move your laborigine in your chosen direction by the assigned die value.
• Each tile may only hold one piece. If a piece lands on an occupied tile, resolve the encounter, then repeat the movement.

Phase 4: Triggering Traps

• Collect any energy tokens on the tile you arrived at.
• Flip the tile to reveal its trap and apply the effect.

Actions

Encounters

• Moa vs. Laborigine: The laborigine spends 2 energy tokens, or loses the immunity flag instead (if owned).
• Laborigine vs. Laborigine (attacker wins): 2 energy tokens transfer from the defeated to the victor (victor’s choice of colour). If the defeated laborigine owns the immunity flag, it transfers instead. A disease may also transfer between them.

Spending Energy

Energy tokens are spent alternately: first token goes on the tile the laborigine occupies, second leaves the game, third goes on the tile, fourth leaves, and so on.

Transferring Energy

When energy transfers between laborigines, the colour of transferred tokens is chosen by the player currently taking their turn.

Manipulation

Any player may spend 3 energy tokens (matching the moving laborigine’s colour) to determine the direction of that laborigine’s movement. Must be declared before Phase 3b. If multiple players want to manipulate, the nearest player clockwise has priority.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

The last surviving laborigine wins the game. A laborigine is eliminated when it loses its last energy token, immediately leaving the game. All energy tokens of that colour are removed from the game entirely (including tokens held by other players or on the board).

Once the first laborigine is eliminated, the immunity flag is permanently removed from the game.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

Immunity Flag

• Protects the owner from losing energy (not from diseases or lightning).
• Only one flag exists; gaining it means the previous owner loses it.
• Exception: The Inferiority Complex disease bypasses immunity.
• Obtained by: rolling a 1, encountering a flag-carrying laborigine, or revealing the flag trap tile.

Diseases

• Leprosy: Spend 1 energy token each turn.
• Inferiority Complex: If you rolled a 1, spend 2 energy tokens (immunity does NOT protect).
• Limping: If your laborigine’s die is even, spend 2 energy tokens.
• Immunity Loss: Cannot hold the immunity flag while infected.
• Hyperactivity: Your laborigine’s movement is doubled.
• Benign Mutation: Spend 1 less token whenever spending energy.
• Malign Mutation: Spend 1 more token whenever spending energy.
• Energy Storage Disorder: Cannot gain energy in any way.

Trap Effects

Trap	Effect
Footprint	Continue moving (re-enter Phase 3b)
Disease	Contract a disease; draw new disease card
Charity	Give 3 energy tokens to the laborigine with the smallest stockpile
Radiation	Spend energy equal to the number of revealed green tiles
Lightning	Take a lightning marker; ALL laborigines spend energy equal to their lightning count
Acid	Next move: spend 1 energy per tile crossed
Small Explosion	Spend 4 energy tokens
Huge Explosion	Spend 8 energy tokens
Cure	Gain 1 energy token from each other laborigine
Immunity Flag	Obtain the immunity flag
Danger	Nothing happens (warning: other side is Huge Explosion)
Green Tile	Nothing happens

Variations

• Team Play (4-6 players): Teams of 2; each team shares a colour. 5 neutral + 15 team-colour energy tokens per player.
• Twins (2-3 players): Each player controls 2 laborigines sharing 20 energy tokens. No Moa. One twin must move clockwise, the other counter-clockwise.

Player Reference

Turn Phases:

1. Roll 2 dice; assign one to laborigine, one to Moa; roll of 1 = get flag
2. Disease manifestations (if infected)
3. Movement: Moa first (clockwise), then laborigine (your choice of direction)
4. Collect energy on tile, flip tile, resolve trap

Elimination: Lose last energy token = immediate elimination. All tokens of your colour removed from game.

Energy Flow:

• Spending: alternates between tile and out-of-game
• Transfer: colour chosen by active player
• Manipulation: 3 tokens of target’s colour to control their direction