Greenland Third Edition is a board game designed by Phil Eklund and published by Sierra Madre Games. It is a historical simulation of survival and cultural development in Greenland. The game is known for its complexity, thematic depth, and unique mechanical approach.

Greenland (Third Edition) is a historical strategy game set between the 11th and 15th centuries, during a period when the peoples of Greenland struggled to survive under increasingly harsh climatic conditions. Players lead one of four historical cultures: Tunit, Norse, Sea Sámi, or Thule, competing for food, resources, technology, and survival. Throughout the game, they face events such as global cooling, animal migration, tense intertribal relations, and the extinction of natural resources.

Each round represents a single generation in which elder deaths, the arrival of trading ships, conflicts, or extreme weather conditions may occur. The theme of survival is strongly present and deeply woven into the experience — the game portrays the fragility of life during the “Little Ice Age” and the persistent struggle of tribes for long‑term prosperity.

Greenland is primarily a worker placement game with tableau development and a significant degree of randomness, reflecting the brutal reality of survival.
Key mechanisms include:

• Assigning hunters to various hunting grounds, gathering resources, or colonizing the New World.
• Negotiations and conflicts: if multiple tribes occupy the same hunting ground, they must reach an agreement — or fight.
• Rolling dice for each hunter, modified by inventions, marriages, technological bonuses, or elders. Hunts often fail, increasing the level of risk.
• Managing livestock and paying upkeep to ensure the tribe survives winter.
• Elder actions such as inventing, domesticating animals, spreading religion, or converting to monotheism, all of which influence final scoring.
• Event phases that represent animal migrations, climate cooling, trading ships, elder deaths, or conflicts.

Each round proceeds through six phases carried out by each player in order, until all steps are resolved. The game lasts for 10 generations (10 rounds).

Greenland Third Edition is a demanding yet deeply thematic survival game that transforms harsh historical reality into a tense strategic experience. ❄️