Cards & Components

Every Bone Wars component face: species, team and paleontologist cards, award, patron, grant, paper, minor find, bonus and dig site action tiles, specialists, Theodore's solo cards, bone and reputation tokens, boards and pieces.

Every distinct face, grouped by type, with a link to the rule that uses it. Pictures come from the publisher’s rulebook, which shows only some faces of the larger decks: faces it does not show, and details too small to read in its pictures, say check against the physical component. Components are grouped by type, with links to their rules. Pictures are from the publisher’s rulebook and the linked photograph beside Plotosaurus.

Boards

Board	Use
	Game board — dig sites, universities with grants, bookshelf, loyalty and profession tracks, awards, minor finds and round track. Dig Deeper at an empty site is unclear in the rulebook; the FAQ notes a community view that bones must remain, not an official ruling (FAQ); Teach the Game. The profession track has two spaces per row so the passing spaces alternate columns each round (FAQ).
	Player board — action slots, crates, archive envelopes, base camps and the locket for the patron tile (Playing a card).
	Player aids (2 per colour) — reminders of the actions and of passing (Passing).

Cards

Species cards

48 cards, each a different species. Cards in your archive stay there at round end; only cards played into action slots are discarded (FAQ). A full matching archive envelope blocks publication unless that paper’s prize first frees a space (FAQ). A card shows its discoverer by the colour of the name banner (red Marsh, blue Cope, green Leidy — this matters only for type A awards), its category in the round badge ( reptile, mammal, bird, amphibian), the skull and limb its skeleton needs, its prize bonus and its minor find icon. Play it for one paleontologist action or for team actions (The three kinds of cards); publish it with bones (Publish Papers). Torso and tail fit every species.

28 species are shown below. The other 20 species: To be added.

Card	What it needs and gives
	Archaeotherium — Leidy, mammal. Either skull, paw. Prize: 2 bones from the bag. Minor find fossil.
	Champsosaurus — Cope, reptile. carnivore skull, flipper. Prize: reclassify an archived card. Minor find fossil.
	Cimolopteryx — Marsh, bird. carnivore skull, wing. Prize: 3 dig site actions. Minor find hammer.
	Diatryma — Cope, bird. carnivore skull, wing. Prize: reclassify an archived card. Minor find bug.
	Dimetrodon — Cope, reptile. carnivore skull, paw. Prize: team upgrade. Minor find hammer.
	Dryptosaurus — Marsh, reptile. carnivore skull, claw. Prize: 2 bones from the bag. Minor find bug.
	Edaphosaurus — Cope, reptile. herbivore skull, claw. Prize: remove a cover tile. Minor find footprint.
	Hadrosaurus — Leidy, reptile. herbivore skull, paw. Prize: 3 dig site actions. Minor find bug.
	Lystrosaurus — Cope, reptile. herbivore skull, paw. Prize: team upgrade. Minor find footprint.
	Megacerops — Leidy, mammal. herbivore skull, paw. Prize: 3 dig site actions. Minor find plant.
	Ornithomimus — Marsh, reptile. Either skull, claw. Prize: remove a cover tile. Minor find hammer.
	Plotosaurus — Cope, reptile. carnivore skull, flipper. Prize: reclassify an archived card. Minor find hammer. Photograph: lucky_3_17.
	Name not legible — Marsh, mammal, a striped horse. herbivore skull, paw. Prize: 2 bones from the bag. Minor find fossil. Name: check against the physical component.
	Name not legible — Cope, mammal, a whale. carnivore skull, flipper. Prize: 2 bones from the bag. Minor find hammer. Name: check against the physical component.
	Name not legible — Cope, reptile, a sea turtle. Either skull, flipper. Prize: reclassify an archived card. Minor find footprint. Name: check against the physical component.
	Name not legible — Marsh, reptile, a spiny dinosaur. herbivore skull, paw. Prize: remove a cover tile. Minor find fossil. Name: check against the physical component.
	Cope, reptile, a long-necked sea reptile. Carnivore skull, flipper. Prize: team upgrade. Minor find footprint. Check against the physical component.
	Cope, reptile, same art as Dryptosaurus. Carnivore skull, claw. Prize: team upgrade. Minor find footprint. Check against the physical component.
	Leidy, reptile, a slender theropod. Carnivore skull, claw. Prize: 3 dig site actions. Minor find footprint. Check against the physical component.
	Marsh, reptile, a sea reptile. Carnivore skull, flipper. Prize: team upgrade. Minor find plant. Check against the physical component.
	Cope, mammal, a spotted cat. Carnivore skull, claw. Prize: 2 bones from the bag. Minor find plant. Check against the physical component.
	Cope, amphibian, a striped salamander. Carnivore skull, flipper. Prize: remove a cover tile. Minor find footprint. Check against the physical component.
	Marsh, reptile, a pterosaur. Carnivore skull, wing. Prize: remove a cover tile. Minor find plant. Check against the physical component.
	Cope, reptile, a long-necked sauropod. Herbivore skull, paw. Prize: reclassify an archived card. Minor find fossil. Check against the physical component.
	Cope, amphibian, a yellow ribbed creature. Carnivore skull, flipper. Prize: team upgrade. Minor find bug. Check against the physical component.
	Marsh, bird, a heron-like bird. Carnivore skull, wing. Prize: team upgrade. Minor find fossil. Check against the physical component.
	Marsh, reptile, a green swimming reptile. Carnivore skull, flipper. Prize: 2 bones from the bag. Minor find footprint. Check against the physical component.
	Leidy, reptile, a pale swimming reptile. Carnivore skull, flipper. Prize: reclassify an archived card. Minor find fossil. Check against the physical component.

The six prize bonuses printed on species cards (Prize bonuses). A paleontologist card’s named bonus applies to only one paper, even if you publish several; resolve bonuses in printed left-to-right order, finishing one paper before the next so a bonus may change your patron (FAQ, FAQ, FAQ):

Prize	Effect
	Receive $3.
	Draw up to 2 bone tokens from the bag.
	Remove a cover tile, then $2 or 1 RP.
	Upgrade a basic team card, or take a specialist.
	Reclassify an archived species card.
	Up to 3 dig site actions, at any sites.

Team cards

Six per colour: 3 basic cards (3 team members) in your starting hand and 3 advanced cards (6 team members) in your reserve. Top to bottom a card shows its cost, its action points and its digging depth (Action points and depth). Which cards have the torn photo that takes a specialist: check against the physical component. An upgraded card already in a slot leaves that slot used this round; its specialist returns too (FAQ).

Card	Cost, action points, depth
	Basic. $1, 1 action point, any depth.
	Basic. $2, 2 action points, top or middle slot.
	Basic. $3, 3 action points, top slot only.
	Advanced. $0, 2 action points. Depth: check against the physical component.
	Advanced. $1, 3 action points. Depth: check against the physical component.
	Advanced. $2, 4 action points. Depth: check against the physical component.

Swap a basic card for an advanced one with an upgrade bonus (Upgrade your team).

Paleontologist cards

24 cards with 12 paleontologists. Each gives one paleontologist action, plus a bonus when that action is the one named on the card (Paleontologist cards). A bonus applies to one paper per turn, even when you publish several (FAQ).

Card	Action and bonus
	Arthur Lakes — Claim an Award: put the loyalty on either patron, or split it; Awards can be claimed again after you leave and return (FAQ).
	Charles Sternberg — Debunk Papers: put the loyalty on either patron, or split it.
	Edward D. Cope — Claim an Award: take any round bonus instead of the current one; choose this instead of the current bonus when you resolve the action.
	George Peabody — Make a Minor Find: use a space whose tile is gone and still take its bonus; you may repeat Minor Find after leaving and returning, but normally need a matching tile (FAQ, FAQ).
	John Wesley Powell — Make a Minor Find: archive the card in any envelope, within its limit.
	Joseph Leidy — Debunk Papers: one bone counts as any type.
	Oramel W. Lucas — Claim an Award: use an occupied space (still one marker per tile).
	Othniel C. Marsh — Publish Papers: one bone counts as any type.
	Samuel W. Williston — Publish Papers: +1 loyalty when you use 3 bones or fewer.
	William E. Carlin — Publish Papers: put the loyalty on either patron, or split it.
	William H. Reed — Debunk Papers: +1 loyalty when you use 3 bones or fewer.
	William Parker Foulke — Make a Minor Find: take any available tile and its column’s bonus; this bypasses the normal matching-icon requirement.

Solo cards (Theodore)

24 solo action cards: 12 basic, 6 advanced (marked I) and 6 expert (marked II). The top half is Theodore’s paleontologist route, the bottom half his team route; the back of the next card picks the half and gives his action points (His turn). The rulebook pictures one card of each kind; the action order on each of the others: check against the physical component.

Card	Use
	Basic — Theodore’s deck at the start. He performs only the first available paleontologist action (unless marked 2×), without discarding a paleontologist card; if none applies, he follows the arrows and spends points on movement rather than switching halves (FAQ, FAQ, FAQ).
	Advanced (I) — replaces a basic card each time he upgrades. He may perform a matching species-card prize even if it has no benefit, and still discards that card (FAQ).
	Expert (II) — used instead of the advanced cards for a harder game. Theodore’s species-card choice prioritizes cards needed for awards, then his rightmost open archive, then alphabetical order (FAQ). If he has no action points, the rulebook ends his turn with free moves left, but the designer permits him to use them (FAQ); for a full matching envelope with a wild grant, the rules give no answer (FAQ).

Tiles

Award tiles

18 tiles, 6 of each type; one of each type is drawn for a game (Claim an Award). Each space shows the condition and the loyalty it pays. The rulebook pictures one tile per type; the exact conditions of the other 5 tiles of each type: check against the physical component.

Tile	Condition
	A — species found by one discoverer (Marsh, Cope or Leidy) in your archive. You may claim again after moving away and returning, but each of your three markers stays on its award tile once placed (FAQ, FAQ).
	B — reptiles, mammals or birds in your archive; amphibians count as any of them. Claim once per tile; the marker stays put.
	C — cards in one archive envelope. Claim once per tile; the marker stays put.

Patron tiles

One double-sided tile per player, in the locket of your board (Loyalty).

Side	Meaning
	Othniel Marsh is your patron: loyalty goes on his track, papers on his half of the bookshelf.
	Edward Cope is your patron.

Grant tiles

14 tiles; 4 are drawn for the universities. Yours is the one above the university space where your team returned (Grant abilities); it lasts until you pass, and two players can keep markers on the same grant (FAQ, FAQ). Printed copies have wild-icon grants for single minor find icons that the rulebook does not show; use the printed tile if it differs (FAQ).

Tile	Ability
	Discover costs 1 action point.
	A minor find icon on your cards counts as any icon: the card may go in the envelope named by its printed icon, but the wild grant lets you archive it in another envelope and use that envelope’s bonus; if Theodore has no room there, the FAQ offers no official answer (FAQ, FAQ, FAQ).
	Take rare bones instead of drawing from the bag; the display does not refill, and an empty display gives none (FAQ).
	Debunking, one bone counts as any type.
	Publishing, one bone counts as any type.
	Your action slots cost nothing.
	Reclassifying pays the envelope bonus once per card now in it.
	A minor find gives the current round bonus instead of the minor find bonus.
	Publishing with 4 bones, take any round bonus.
	Debunking, take 1 loyalty less for a round bonus of your choice.
	Your paleontologist need not move to a different space.
	When you gain the current round bonus, take any minor find bonus instead.
	$1 whenever your team and another team meet at a dig site: it pays once per site, including passing through or when another team enters yours (FAQ).
	Up to 2 extra free moves; free moves unlocked by building a Base Camp begin next turn, because the allowance is set at the start of your turn (FAQ).

Paper tiles

45 tiles, 15 each of value 2, 3 and 4, red Marsh on one side and blue Cope on the other. A paper worth the bones you used goes on your patron’s half of the bookshelf; debunking flips it (Publish Papers, Debunk Papers). Publishing can use any 2, 3 or 4 different parts (the card’s skull and limb are optional), while debunking needs identical bones. Shelf values determine the loyalty threshold to debunk, not scoring; fill bottom-up, place extra papers on the overflow shelf, and slide a higher paper down to fill a gap (FAQ, FAQ, FAQ, FAQ, FAQ, FAQ).

Side	Meaning
	Marsh paper, value 2.
	Cope paper, value 2.
	Marsh paper, value 3.
	Cope paper, value 3.
	Marsh paper, value 4.
	Cope paper, value 4.
	Neutral paper (10). Covers the bookshelf spaces marked for more players in a 2- or 3-player game (setup); never counts for credibility (Scoring).

Minor Find tiles

20 tiles, 4 of each icon, in the minor finds area. Make a Minor Find removes one matching your card’s icon and pays the bonus under its column (Make a Minor Find). You may claim Award and Minor Find actions again after moving your paleontologist away and returning; a Minor Find with no matching tile is not allowed, though the FAQ answer on claiming only the envelope bonus is not official (FAQ, FAQ).

Tile	Icon
	Fossil
	Bug in amber
	Footprints
	Hammer
	Plant

Bonus tiles

8 tiles: under the columns of the minor finds area and on the round track for rounds 1–3 (Bonus tiles).

Tile	Effect
	Up to 2 rare bone tokens; the display does not refill, and an empty display means the reward gives none (FAQ).
	Draw 3 species cards, keep 1.
	Upgrade a basic team card, or take a specialist.
	Draw up to 3 bone tokens from the bag.
	Receive $3.
	One upgraded action slot tile.
	Remove a cover tile, then $2 or 1 RP; any action that removes one grants the payout, including a profession benefit (FAQ).
	Up to 3 dig site actions, at any sites.
	1 loyalty with your current patron. The rulebook lists this ninth bonus with the tiles, though the box holds 8 tiles: check against the physical component whether it is a tile or printed on the board.

Dig site action tiles

6 tiles, one per dig site. Use one with the Dig Site Action team action at your team’s site or a site with your base camp (Dig Site Action, Dig site actions).

Tile	Effect
	Flip your patron tile.
	Discard a species card from your hand to look at the top 3, keep 1.
	Receive $1.
	Draw 1 bone token from the bag into your crates, if you have room (FAQ).
	Exchange one bone from your crates with a rare bone; your ordinary bone goes into the display, so the display count stays the same (FAQ).
	Take your paleontologist off the board.

Tokens & pieces

Specialists

3 per colour, hired with a team upgrade. One rides on a team card with a torn photo and adds its bonus (Specialists).

Specialist	Bonus
	Miner — reclassify an archived species card.
	Sketch artist — gain the current round bonus.
	Ichnologist — draw a paleontologist card.

Bone tokens

80 tokens in the bag; dig sites and the rare bones display hold them too. Publishing needs different parts, debunking identical tokens (Publish Papers).

Token	Part
	Torso (15) — fits every species; publishing uses 2–4 different parts and the printed skull and limb are optional, while debunking needs identical bones (FAQ, FAQ).
	Tail (15) — fits every species; a torso and tail alone can publish a 2-paper (FAQ).
	Carnivore skull (12).
	Herbivore skull (12).
	Paw (8).
	Flipper (7).
	Claw (6).
	Wing (5).

Reputation tokens

46 tokens; scoring pays in them, and the total wins (Mid-game and final scoring).

Token	Value
	1 RP (20).
	5 RP (8).
	10 RP (18).

Other pieces

Piece	Use
	Cover tile, front (3 per player). Covers 2 crates; removing one opens them and pays $2 or 1 RP, including when removed through a profession action (Other actions, FAQ).
	Cover tile, back.
	Upgraded action slot (16) — over one of your slots or as an extra slot; there is no limit to how many may sit beside your board (Other actions, FAQ).
	Endgame tile — on the profession track in round 4 (Resetting the board).
	Round marker — on the round track (Resetting the board).
	“No Digging” strips (2) — cover the minor finds rows marked for more players in a 2- or 3-player game (setup).
	$1 coin (24).
	$5 coin (8).
	Bag for the bone tokens.
	Team marker — at a university or dig site (Team Actions).
	Paleontologist — on an action space (Paleontologist Actions).
	Profession marker — on the profession track; move to a different row and alternating column when you pass (Passing, FAQ). Theodore also takes the profession and loyalty bonuses when passing (FAQ).
	Base camp (4) — a placed camp stays at its site; it cannot be moved later. New free movement unlocked by building one starts next turn (Establish Base Camp, FAQ, FAQ).
	Award marker (3) — one per award tile; once placed, it stays for the game (Claim an Award, FAQ).
	Loyalty marker (2), one on each patron’s track (Loyalty).
	Grant marker — on your current grant; its ability lasts until you pass, and two players can share one tile (Grant abilities, FAQ, FAQ).

Icons

To be added.