Overview

Lotus is a card game where players grow mystical flowers in a shared garden to score points. By playing petal cards to build flowers, placing guardian insects for control, and completing flowers at the right moment, you accumulate scoring tokens. The player with the most points wins enlightenment over the Lotus Garden.

Components

• 4 Player decks (31 Petal cards each): 26 with one Guardian symbol, 5 with two Guardian symbols
• 20 Wildflower cards
• 7 Winter Lotus cards (solo mode)
• 8 Insect Guardians (2 per player)
• 4 Elder Guardians (1 per player)
• 16 Special Power tokens (4 types, 4 each)
• 30 Scoring tokens
• 4 Player aid cards

Flowers come in 5 types: Iris (3 petals), Primrose (4), Cherry Blossom (5), Lily (6), Lotus (7).

Setup

1. Each player selects a Guardian colour, takes their deck, 2 Guardians, and player aid.
2. Shuffle each player deck; draw 4 cards as starting hand.
3. Shuffle Wildflower deck; place face-down. Draw top 4 face-up.
4. Set aside Elder Guardians and Special Power tokens.
5. Set aside Scoring tokens.

Turn Structure

On each turn, take 2 Actions (may be the same or different), then draw back up to 4 cards.

Actions

1. Play Petal Cards: Play up to 2 cards on a single flower (matching flower type). Cards may start a new flower or add to an existing one.

2. Exchange Petal Cards: Place up to 2 cards from your hand on the bottom of your deck, then draw an equal number from the top.

3. Move a Guardian: Move one of your Guardians from your supply or from another flower to any incomplete flower.

Completing a Flower

When a flower has all its required petals, it is scored:

• The player with the most Guardian symbols (on cards + physical Guardians) on that flower controls it and takes the scoring tokens.
• The controlling player also earns a Special Power token (if any remain of that type).
• Completed flowers and their cards are removed.

Wildflower Cards

On your turn, instead of playing from your hand, you may play Wildflower cards from the face-up display. They work like petal cards but have no Guardian symbols.

Actions

Action	Details
Play Petals	Up to 2 cards on 1 flower
Exchange	Swap up to 2 hand cards with deck
Move Guardian	Relocate 1 Guardian to any incomplete flower

Scoring / Victory Conditions

When any player’s deck runs out, finish the current round. Score remaining incomplete flowers.

Scoring tokens are worth the number printed on them. The player with the most total points wins.

Special Powers (permanent once earned)

| Power | Effect | |——-|——–| | Elder Guardian | Gain your Elder Guardian (worth 2 Guardians for control) | | Enlightenment | Increase hand size to 5 cards | | Infinite Growth | Play 3+ cards on a single flower during Play Petals action | | Pluck | New Action: Pluck and score 1 petal from a flower |

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Guardian symbols on petal cards count toward control even after the card is played.
• Physical Guardian figures also count (1 each; Elder = 2).
• Ties in control: no one scores the flower.
• Wildflower cards have no Guardian symbols, so they don’t help with control.

Player Reference

Turn: 2 Actions → Draw to 4 cards

Flower Sizes: Iris (3), Primrose (4), Cherry Blossom (5), Lily (6), Lotus (7)

Control = Most Guardian symbols on the completed flower (cards + figures)