Fathomless Mud of the Swamp
Card data, innate thresholds, special rules, growth options, presence track, and unique-card text parsed via scripts/wiki-fetch.py. Remaining [VERIFY]: Play Difficulty, aspect mechanics, live mindwanderer stats, board ratings.
Strategic framing from taurunti’s notes + Aaron Stevens BGG thread 2959811. No Rei / latentoctopus / Phantaskippy coverage.
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Expansion | Horizons of Spirit Island |
| Complexity | Low |
| Play Difficulty | [VERIFY] |
| Growth type | “one” — pick one growth per turn |
| Power summary (1–5) | Offense 3 · Control 2 · Fear 3 · Defense 3 · Utility 2 |
| Primary Elements | Water (both tiers) · Moon · Earth · Plant (L3) |
| Special Rules | Offer No Firm Foundations (Builds at Sacred Sites add Explorer instead of Town/City) |
| Aspects | None |
| HoSI | Yes |
| Wiki Guides | taurunti Mixed + Aaron Stevens BGG 2959811 |
Spirit Overview — Framing
Mud is a slow oozing blight-control / anti-Build spirit — Offer No Firm Foundations makes Builds at your Sacred Sites add Explorers instead of Towns/Cities (a soft Control lock). The innate moves presence onto new lands — every turn Mud is physically repositioning its Sacred Sites while inflicting Fear + Damage + Push.
Wiki-printed playstyle note:
Presence-in-motion mechanic. Breaks new-player expectations about Sacred Sites being static.
Teaching role: unusual presence-mobility; introduces “Sacred Sites move with the spirit.”
Starting Setup
Put 2 Presence on your starting board, in the lowest-numbered Wetland. You start with your 4 Unique Powers and 0 Energy.
Growth Options (growthtype: “one” — pick one per turn)
| Growth | Effects | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| G1 | Reclaim + Add Presence (R0) | Reclaim + stack |
| G2 | Add Presence (R1) + Add Presence (R1) | Double-R1 spread |
| G3 | Gain 1 Power Card + Add Presence (R2) + +2 Energy | Card + spread + energy |
Presence Tracks
- Energy:
energy1 → plant → energy2 → energy3 → water → energy4 → energy5 - CP:
card1 → card2 → earthX → card3 → moonX → card4
Starting income: 1 Energy, 1 Card Play.
Core Mechanics & Special Rules
Special Rule: Offer No Firm Foundations
At your Sacred Site, Build actions add Explorer instead of Town/City.
Soft Build-prevention — Builds at your sacred sites add an Explorer instead of a Town/City. Every Build turn where a Sacred Site catches a Build = free Fear-upgrade loss prevention.
Innate: Spreading and Dreadful Mire
- Speed: Slow · Range: 1 · Target: Invaders
| Level | Thresholds | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1  Water | Move 1 Presence from the origin Sacred Site to target land. (Required.) |
| 2 | 1  Moon + 2 Water + 1  Earth | 1 Fear. 1 Damage. Push 1 Dahan. |
| 3 | 2 Moon + 3 Water + 2 Earth | 1 Fear. 1 Damage. Push 1 Dahan. |
| 4 | 3 Moon + 4 Water + 3 Earth + 2  Plant | 2 Damage. |
L1 move is mandatory — you move 1 presence off the Sacred Site whether you like it or not, potentially collapsing it. Plan placements.
Unique Cards (all 4, Wiki-verified names)
- Intractable Thickets and Thorns
- Open Shifting Waterways
- Exaltation of Tangled Growth
- Foul Vapors and Fetid Muck
Key Strategic Principles
- Moon + Water is the spine. Earth caps the innate. Only 2 starting cards have Moon — priority draft.
- Every Ravage turn, keep one Sacred Site under a Build land so Offer No Firm Foundations downgrades a Town/City to an Explorer.
- L1 move is required. Plan presence so the move lands usefully.
- Majors are viable via Exaltation (Aaron Stevens BGG 2959811).
- Drop a Dahan defensively via Open Shifting Waterways — shift presence to a future innate target.
Possible Openings
Shared starting state
- 2 Presence in lowest Wetland.
- 4 Uniques in hand.
- 0 Energy, 1 Card Play.
Opening A — taurunti Mixed 🟨
T1 · Growth: G2 (top/top). T1 · Play: Open Shifting Waterways — place Dahan defensively + shift presence. Use innate to reposition.
T2 · Growth: G3 bot (+P1, +P1, +2E). T2 · Play: Minor + Unique (Exaltation or Foul Vapors). Grow into the shifted land to refresh Sacred-Site coverage.
T3 · Growth: G2 bot/bot, play all cards.
T4 · Growth: G1 Reclaim top (keep hand intact, reset energy curve) unless you need extra Moon for innate upgrade.
Target: Sustain innate L2 (M1/W2/E2) every turn after T4.
Opening Decision
- Default Opening A — Aaron Stevens’ “goal build” approach works here.
Card Priority Ratings
Top 10 Minor Draft Picks (Moon + Water + Earth)
| # | Card | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Absorb Essence | 0-cost Water |
| 2 | Purify the Land | 0-cost Moon + Water |
| 3 | Call of the Deeps | Water + Animal |
| 4 | Drifting Into Stillness | Moon + Plant |
| 5 | Pull Beneath the Hungry Earth | 0-cost Moon + Earth |
| 6 | Call to Isolation | 0-cost Water |
| 7 | Gift of Proliferation | Plant + Water |
| 8 | Ravaged Undergrowth Slithers Back | Water + Earth + Plant |
| 9 | Rain of Blood | Moon + Fire + Water |
| 10 | Strange Tales of the Sky | Moon + Air |
Top 5 Major Draft Picks
| # | Card | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tsunami | Water + Earth + Moon |
| 2 | Melt Earthen Flesh | Moon + Earth |
| 3 | Manifest Incarnation | Moon + Water |
| 4 | Trees Radiate Ancient Sanctity | Moon + Plant |
| 5 | Dream of the Untouched Land | Moon + Plant |
Adversary Matchup Matrix
| Adversary | Rating | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Brandenburg-Prussia | ★★★★☆ | Offer No Firm Foundations blunts Build spam |
| Russia | ★★☆☆☆ | Hard — Dahan-friendly Fear Cards clash; Dahan-push |
| England | ★★★☆☆ | [VERIFY] |
| Others | ★★★☆☆ | [VERIFY] |
Board / Map Configuration
Best: interior Wetlands near mixed terrain. Board H’s Wetland layout is excellent.
Common Mistakes
- Forgetting L1 innate is mandatory — you move 1 presence off Sacred Site collapsing it.
- Placing Sacred Sites far from Build lands — Offer No Firm Foundations never triggers.
- Panicking at T1/T2 when only hitting tier 1–2 — don’t draft Fire cards that don’t fire the innate.
Synergy Partners (Multiplayer)
- Ocean’s Hungry Grasp — pushes Explorers (downgraded by Mud’s Offer) into coastline.
- Serpent Slumbering — Explorer-wipe utility.
- Lightning — speeds up slow innate.
- Avoid Volcano — destroys Dahan Mud just placed.
Source Notes
- Mechanics:
data/references/wiki/fathomless-mud-of-the-swamp.json(Wiki-parsed 2026-04-23). - Openings: taurunti Mixed + Aaron Stevens BGG 2959811.