How to Play Cascadia Online
By the Tavernly team ·
Cascadia, by Randy Flynn, won the Spiel des Jahres 2022 award. You can play Cascadia online with the official app, Cascadia Digital by Dire Wolf. We make Heathmere on Tavernly, a free browser alternative with its own art, animals and names.
The short answer
- PC or Mac: buy Cascadia Digital on Steam ($14.99).
- Phone: buy Cascadia Digital through the App Store or Google Play ($9.99).
- Heathmere on Tavernly: free, no account, bots or friends by link.
Which way is right for you?
Choose Cascadia Digital for the official game on your computer or phone. Choose Heathmere on Tavernly for our browser game, with an English hollow and its own animals. Both offer solo play; our guided lesson teaches you during a real game.
| You want to... | Best choice |
|---|---|
| Play on Windows or Mac | Cascadia Digital on Steam ($14.99) |
| Play on a phone or tablet | Cascadia Digital on the App Store or Google Play ($9.99) |
| Play free, with no account | Heathmere on Tavernly |
| Play with friends by link | Heathmere on Tavernly |
| Pass one device around | Cascadia Digital (Pass and Play) |
| Get coached while you play | Heathmere on Tavernly |
Method 1: Cascadia Digital, the official app (paid)
Cascadia Digital is the official digital version, made by Dire Wolf under license from Flatout Games. Steam offers Windows and Mac versions; the App Store and Google Play offer mobile versions. We did not test the app, and prices vary by region and store, so check your store before buying.
You need: the paid app for your device; Steam online play requires a Dire Wolf account.
- Buy the app for Windows or Mac. Steam lists $14.99 for Windows and Mac, with Dire Wolf as developer and publisher.
- Buy the app for your phone or tablet. The App Store lists $9.99 for iPhone and iPad, with no in-app purchases listed; Google Play lists $9.99.
- Pick a mode. For solo or online play, choose Solo & Online Play; for simpler scoring, choose Family Mode. Pass and Play lets you share a device.
- Use a Dire Wolf account for Steam online play. Steam lists this account for online play. The App Store and Google Play pages do not say whether you need one.
- Choose a solo extra. Pick from 15 Solo Scenarios or 14 Challenges, or try Daily Trek. Daily Trek gives you a new objective every day.
A Cascadia alternative: Heathmere on Tavernly
Heathmere on Tavernly is free in your browser, with no account. Play bots or invite friends by link. You build an English hollow, with our own art, animals and names. It has one lesson and four sets of habit cards, but no expansions and no solo scenarios.
You need: a browser; ages 13 and over.
Age screen: choose Month and Year, then Continue.
- Open Heathmere on Tavernly.
- Play against a bot. Under Play against bots, choose Opponents, Bots and Habit cards, then Play now.
- Invite your friends. Under With friends, choose Start now, Seats at the table, then Start a private table. Press Share invite and send the link.
- Start your table. Press Start now: bots take the empty seats.
- Play your turn. Tap a market place, then an empty hex; use Turn and Set down. Tap a ringed tile or Return to bag, then End turn.
On phones, History shows moves; Players shows seats.
Take the guided lesson
- Open the lesson. Learn by playing opens "Your first hollow", with 19 steps and Back, Next and Skip lesson.
- Follow the coach. It teaches the market, tiles, reaches, animals, habit cards, glades, acorns, crowds, the bonus and the end.
- Keep playing after step 19. The coach suggests moves as the game continues; you can choose any move.
Learn the rules of Cascadia (our version)
These are the rules of our version, Heathmere on Tavernly, with our own numbers and names. Over 20 turns you build a hollow of hex tiles and give animals a home on it. You score for animal patterns and for the largest connected area of each habitat: Heath, Wood, Meadow, Reedbed and Brook.
| Plain word | Heathmere's name |
|---|---|
| bear | Badger |
| elk | Deer |
| salmon | Trout |
| hawk | Owl |
| fox | Magpie |
| tile with one habitat | glade tile |
| bonus token | acorn |
| connected group of one habitat | reach |
| animal scoring card | habit card |
| a player's area | hollow |
- Set up your hollow. Start with 3 hexes; each of the 4 market places holds a tile and animal token. Pieces: 85 land tiles, 100 animal tokens, 20 per animal, and 25 acorns.
- Clear a crowd, optionally. Exactly 3 matching market animals let you use Clear the crowd once per turn, drawing 3 replacements. All 4 matching animals clear at once.
- Take a pair, or spend an acorn. Take a market place's tile and animal. Spend 1 acorn to take any tile with any animal, or to swap any number of market animals. You may spend more than one acorn in a turn.
- Lay your tile. Put it on an empty hex beside your hollow; habitats need not match, and laid tiles never move. Tiles have 6 habitat edges and 1 to 3 animal marks.
- Place your animal. Choose an empty tile with its mark, or return the animal to the bag; placed animals never move. A glade has one habitat and one animal mark, and placing an animal there earns 1 acorn.
- End your turn. Refill empty market places with a tile and animal; other pieces stay put.
- Finish after 20 turns each. The game ends when the stack cannot refill the market. You cannot pass.
| Score | Points |
|---|---|
| Habit cards | One A, B, C or D card per animal; score its pattern |
| Reaches | Largest connected habitat group: 1 per tile, for each habitat |
| Widest reach, 2 players | Larger: 2; tied: 1 each, per habitat |
| Widest reach, 3 or 4 players | Largest: 3; second largest: 1, per habitat |
| Acorns kept | 1 each |
| Winner and tie | Highest total; tied totals go to most acorns left |
Two tiles join into a reach when their touching edges show the same habitat. On the A cards, Badgers score in pairs, Deer in lines, Trout in runs, Owls when alone, and Magpies for different neighbours.
Random picks each animal's card, All A uses A cards, and Gentle and Middle score animals by group size.
Solo replaces the widest-reach bonus: score 2 for each habitat whose largest reach has at least 7 tiles.
Tips and warnings
In Heathmere on Tavernly, you can consult your cards, live total and past moves before you finish a turn. Everything is open except the order of the tile stack and animal bag, so you can check the board while deciding.
- Begin with the first-game set. Pick All A for your first game: every animal uses its card A.
- Grow one reach per habitat. Only your largest reach of each habitat scores.
- Make use of glades. An animal on a glade earns an acorn. Use it for a free pick, or keep it for 1 point at the end.
- Undo before you end the turn. Undo works until End turn, but a crowd clear is never undone.
- Check the shuffle. The starting fingerprint and final seed let you Verify a game.
Warning: At a table with other people, turns last 90 seconds. On timeout, the table takes place 1, lays the tile and returns the animal to the bag. Only you and bots: no timer.
Questions people ask
These answers cover Cascadia Digital and Heathmere on Tavernly.
Can I play Cascadia online for free?
Cascadia Digital is paid through Steam, the App Store and Google Play. Heathmere on Tavernly is free, with no account required. You play our tile-and-animal game in a browser, with our art, animals and names, either against bots or with friends who join through your link.
Do I need to download anything?
Cascadia Digital is an app you buy through Steam, the App Store or Google Play. Heathmere on Tavernly runs in a browser, so you do not need to download it. Open the game page and choose how to play there.
Can I play Cascadia alone?
Cascadia Digital has solo play, 15 Solo Scenarios, 14 Challenges and Daily Trek. Heathmere on Tavernly lets you play with bots or choose a private table with 1 seat for a game on your own. For bot opponents, you can select Easy, Medium or Hard before starting your game.
Can I play Cascadia with friends online?
Cascadia Digital offers online play; Steam lists Cross-Platform Multiplayer. Heathmere on Tavernly lets you invite friends through a private table link. You choose the seats before sharing it, and bots take empty seats when you start, so you can begin with the friends who have joined.
Can I play Cascadia on my phone?
Cascadia Digital is available through the App Store for iPhone and iPad, and through Google Play. Heathmere on Tavernly works in your phone browser. Its phone layout puts the market across the top, your hollow in the middle and your animal card scores along the bottom.
How many people can play Cascadia?
The Spiel des Jahres listing gives Cascadia a range of 1 to 4 players. Heathmere on Tavernly also supports 1 to 4 players. Seats at the table sets your private table's size, including a single seat for a solo game.
How long does a game of Cascadia take?
The Spiel des Jahres listing gives the published Cascadia game a duration of 30 to 60 minutes. Heathmere on Tavernly takes about 15 minutes with 2 seats against bots, or about 30 minutes with 4 seats. Each player has 20 turns.
Sources
- Spiel des Jahres award announcement: designer and award.
- Spiel des Jahres, Cascadia: players and duration.
- Dire Wolf, Cascadia Digital: official app and modes.
- Steam: computer versions, price and account notice.
- App Store: Apple devices and price.
- Google Play: mobile app and price.
- Heathmere on Tavernly: our own game.
Heathmere is not affiliated with or endorsed by the owner of Cascadia. Cascadia is a trademark of its owner. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
If you want the physical game, here is Cascadia on Amazon.