Sugar Gliders

A strategy board game for 2 to 4 players by Néstor Romeral Andrés. Published by nestorgames and Grok Games.

Overview & Objective

Each player controls a Sugar Glider leaping through the branches of a lush tree canopy to forage for nectar and fruit. The player with the highest total fruit point value in their reserve at the end of the game wins!

Components & Values

• Tree Board: A hexagonal grid depicting a tree canopy with 61 spaces (or 37 spaces in the 2-Player Compact variant).
• Food Tiles in 5 types:
  • 1 pt (White Seed)
  • 2 pts (Yellow Seeds)
  • 3 pts (Acorns)
  • 4 pts (Red Berries)
  • 5 pts (Purple Fruit)

Setup

1. The center nest space starts empty.
2. All other spaces are randomly populated face-up with 1 fruit tile each.
3. Starting with the first player, each player places their sugar glider on any available space containing a 1-fruit tile. That tile remains under the glider as their initial jumping tile.

Turn Structure

On your turn, you must choose exactly one of two actions: JUMP or TORPOR.

Action 1: JUMP

1. Determine Jump Distance:
   • If you have a tile underneath your glider: You must move in a straight line an exact number of spaces equal to that tile's value.
   • If you have no tile underneath your glider: You must spend and discard one tile from your reserve. You then jump in a straight line equal to the spent tile's value. (The spent reserve tile is permanently discarded and cannot be used again).
2. Take the Used Tile: After leaping, collect the tile from your takeoff space and add it to your reserve (these are your points!).
3. Landing:
   • If you land on a space with a fruit tile, that tile remains on the board underneath you and becomes your new jumping tile for your next turn.
   • If you land on an empty space, you will have no tile underneath on your next turn (requiring a reserve tile to jump).

Jump Exceptions & Movement Rules

• No Leaving the Tree: Sugar gliders cannot jump off the edge of the board.
• No Jumping Over Gliders (Blocking): A sugar glider cannot move through or land on another sugar glider. Placing your glider in front of an opponent to block their straight-line jump paths is a core strategic tactic.
• Center Nest Space Exception: A sugar glider resting on the center space can jump to any unoccupied space on the entire board by spending any tile from their reserve (ignoring straight-line and distance constraints).

Action 2: TORPOR

1. Do not move your sugar glider.
2. If there is a tile underneath your glider, eat it: take it and add it to your personal reserve.
3. On your following turn, since you now have no tile underneath, you may spend any tile from your reserve to jump in any direction, or torpor again.

Game End & Scoring

The game ends immediately when either:

1. Consecutive Torpor: All players take the Torpor action in succession without any player making a jump (e.g. 2 consecutive torpors in a 2-player game).
2. Empty Tree: All fruit tiles on the tree have been collected.

Final Scoring

1. At the end of the game each player also collects the fruit tile their glider is sitting on.
2. Each player's score is the total value of all fruit tiles in their reserve.
3. The player with the highest score wins. In case of a tie, the tied players share the victory.

2-Player Compact Variant

• Played on the inner board (radius 3, 37 total spaces).
• All 5-point purple fruit tiles and 3 tiles of each other value are removed.
• A faster, highly tactical duel.