{"schema_version":"1.0","content_type":"Puzzlewick certified guide answer package","canonical_url":"https://puzzlewick.com/guides/terraforming-mars-vs-ares-expedition-expansions-2026/","api_url":"https://puzzlewick.com/api/guides/terraforming-mars-vs-ares-expedition-expansions-2026.json","title":"Terraforming Mars: How to Play, Compete and Choose the Expansions That Matter","seo_title":"Terraforming Mars Guide: Best Expansions, Rules & Strategy","description":"Start with a working corporation, not a mountain of boxes. Margo explains Prelude, the expansion buying order, the rules beginners miss, and the competitive decisions that turn an attractive engine into points.","direct_answer":"Start with original Terraforming Mars; add Prelude first if you want stronger openings. Hellas & Elysium is my next low-overhead refresh. Colonies is for trade, Turmoil for politics, and Automa for solo opposition. Prelude 2 requires Prelude but does not require every other expansion. To improve competitively, buy fewer speculative cards, track milestone races, calculate remaining production and learn when ending the game favours you.","verdict":"Margo's verdict: original Terraforming Mars plus Prelude is the foundation I would recommend here. Add maps when you want fresh geography, Colonies when you want trade, and Turmoil only when the whole table wants politics. Become competitive by paying for fewer speculative cards, watching cheap points and recognising when another generation helps your rivals more than you. A bigger collection is optional. Reading the board is not.","published":"2026-07-27","modified":"2026-08-30","evidence_reviewed":"2026-08-30","quality_status":"certified","accountable_editor":{"name":"Robert Pruitt","role":"Founder & Editorial Director","url":"https://puzzlewick.com/about/#robert"},"editorial_presenter":{"name":"Margo","role":"The Archivist","url":"https://puzzlewick.com/curator/margo/","disclosure":"Fictional AI-assisted Puzzlewick editorial presenter; research and final judgment are accountable to Robert Pruitt."},"classification":{"guide_type":"guide","wing":"cards","search_cluster":{"name":"Board Game Buying Guides","url":"https://puzzlewick.com/topic/board-game-buying-guides/"},"universes":[{"name":"Terraforming Mars","url":"https://puzzlewick.com/universe/terraforming-mars/"}],"primary_query":"Terraforming Mars best expansions and strategy","secondary_queries":["how to play Terraforming Mars","Terraforming Mars Prelude vs Prelude 2","Terraforming Mars beginner strategy","Terraforming Mars vs Ares Expedition","Terraforming Mars expansion buying order"],"purchase_stage":"buy"},"quick_verdicts":[{"label":"First expansion","answer":"Prelude","why":"Immediate opening direction with a small additional rules footprint."},{"label":"Fresh map decisions","answer":"Hellas & Elysium","why":"New terrain, milestones and awards without another economic phase."},{"label":"More interaction","answer":"Colonies or Turmoil","why":"Trade and political forecasting are different tastes, not mandatory upgrades."},{"label":"Become competitive","answer":"Practice costs and timing","why":"Better purchases on your turn matter more than more expansion boxes."}],"sections":[{"heading":"Is Terraforming Mars fun, and who will actually enjoy it?","summary":"It is fun if you like watching a small, awkward business turn into an alarming machine. You begin with a corporation, some money and a hand of ideas. A few generations later you might be importing heat, growing forests and quietly positioning a city to profit from somebody else's gardening. Everyone makes Mars habitable. Only one corporation wins. Public service has acquired a shareholder meeting. The original game combines a shared map, card combinations, limited cash and a player-controlled ending. That last part is the trick: the table can finish before your beautiful machine earns its keep. A satisfying engine is not automatically a winning engine. For you: long-term planning, varied openings, tactical map competition and readable card combinations. Possibly not for you: fast turns with little reading, direct negotiation, or a fixed ending you can predict from the start. Difficulty: the action menu is manageable; judging which cards deserve your money is the harder skill. Teach the turn before teaching an economic philosophy. The publisher lists 1-5 players and approximately 120 minutes. Treat that as a product specification, not a promise for five new players. For a first teach, I would choose two or three players and leave the evening unhurried. That is a hosting recommendation, not a measured playtest result.","steps":[]},{"heading":"Which Terraforming Mars expansions are must-have?","summary":"None is required. Prelude is my first recommendation once you know you want to keep playing. Prelude is the purple-card opening expansion, not a replacement base game. My practical sequence is base game, Prelude, then a map pack or one additional system you specifically want . Recessed player boards can be a better second purchase than another expansion if a bumped production cube is your table's recurring villain. A buying order with permission to stop Prelude: stronger, more directed openings. The closest thing here to a default expansion recommendation. Hellas & Elysium: two alternate maps with different placement incentives, milestones and awards. My low-rules-overhead refresh. Colonies: choose it for trading, energy decisions and contested off-world income. Prelude 2: choose it for more opening combinations after Prelude, especially when you already enjoy expansion interactions. Venus Next: choose it for another card ecosystem, floaters and a side planet, not because the base game is incomplete. Turmoil: choose it because the table actively wants politics, policy changes and forecast events. Automa: choose it for a dedicated solo opponent. Multiplayer groups do not need it. That order is editorial judgment grounded in the rules, not a universal community ranking. In the January 2025 expansion discussion , several players recommend Prelude and player-board upgrades early; they disagree about maps, Venus and the administrative load of Turmoil. That disagreement is useful: later boxes change the game in ways different groups value differently.","steps":[]},{"heading":"Your first game: setup without the avalanche of optional rules","summary":"Use the original Tharsis board and make the win condition visible: oxygen to 14%, temperature to +8°C and nine oceans. Players start at 20 terraform rating, usually shortened to TR. TR is both an endgame point and part of your income each generation. Choose the teaching setup deliberately The printed introductory setup leaves out Corporate Era cards and gives each player one production in every resource. A Beginner Corporation starts with 42 M€ and ten project cards without paying to keep them. Regular corporations instead provide their own starting resources and effects; you choose one of two and pay 3 M€ for each of the ten opening project cards you keep. Corporate Era is already in the base box. Its marked cards and corporations are not another purchase. With Corporate Era, the extra starting production is zero before your corporation's effects. Do not mix those setup assumptions casually: that changes how quickly the whole economy starts. Identify each player's resource area and separate stored cubes from production markers. Explain one legal card play, one standard project and passing. Show how income is collected and old energy becomes heat. Point to milestones and awards before the first one disappears. Save drafting and political sideboards for a table that already understands these steps. If an experienced host is teaching Prelude from the start, that can work. Give newcomers help choosing a coherent pair rather than asking them to evaluate four unfamiliar opening engines in silence. Rules reference: Terraforming Mars rulebook, pp. 3-7 .","steps":[]},{"heading":"How a generation works: research, actions, production","summary":"A generation is a round; a turn is one opportunity to take one or two actions. Research normally gives you four new cards. Keep any number, paying 3 M€ each, and discard the rest. The first generation skips research because opening cards were handled during setup. During the action phase, turns go around the table until everyone passes. You may play a card, use a blue-card action, buy a standard project, claim a milestone, fund an award, convert eight plants into a greenery or convert eight heat into one temperature increase, subject to the relevant rules. Taking just one action is legal. Once you pass , you are done for that generation. Passing is not \"let me think while you go.\" The energy rule that catches new tables At production, move the energy you already have into heat, then collect new resources from production. Your fresh energy stays energy until a later production phase or until you spend it. M€ income equals your TR plus your M€ production, not your current cash balance. Example: with 20 TR, 3 M€ production, two stored energy and four energy production, you collect 23 M€, move the old two energy into heat, and then receive four new energy. Cubes in a resource area do not increase production. The factory and its inventory are different things. When all three global parameters are complete, finish that generation, including production. Players can then convert remaining plants into final greeneries under the endgame rules, and everyone scores. Rules reference: Terraforming Mars rulebook, pp. 6-7, 10-12 .","steps":[]},{"heading":"Read the card before the beautiful idea empties your treasury","summary":"Check a project in this order: requirement, total cost, immediate effect, ongoing benefit, scoring and tags . A requirement is permission to play, not something you can promise to meet later. A production decrease must also be payable when the card demands it. Green automated cards resolve their effect and remain face up with their tags. Red events resolve and turn face down; their tags are relevant when played, not permanently added to your visible tag collection. Blue cards may have an action, an effect or both. An action can normally be used once per generation; an effect triggers whenever its stated condition happens. \"Blue\" does not mean \"do everything once.\" Count the research fee A card bought in research for 3 M€ and played for 10 M€ has committed 13 M€ before discounts or other payments. Buying six speculative cards commits 18 M€ before a single project is built. The hand is not a museum collection. You are allowed to admire a card and leave it there. Steel is worth 2 M€ toward building-tag projects; titanium is worth 3 M€ toward space-tag projects. Those resources do not generally pay research fees or ordinary standard projects. You do not receive change for overpayment. Special card effects can create exceptions, so read the actual wording. Rules reference: Terraforming Mars rulebook, pp. 8-11 .","steps":[]},{"heading":"Choose a corporation and Prelude pair that can do something now","summary":"Your opening needs a job. It does not need to predict every future draw. Look for a corporation, a Prelude pair and a few projects that cooperate in the first two generations. Read the corporation first. Which starting resources or discounts can you actually use? Find an immediate line. A playable production project, a useful terraforming step, a good placement or progress toward a realistic milestone. Price the opening. Include research costs, card costs and any production you must spend or lower. Keep a fallback. One expensive synergy card is a plan only if you can reach and afford it. Reject unrelated souvenirs. A tag is useful because it enables something, not because collecting tags feels industrious. Prelude deals four purple cards; you choose two while choosing your corporation and projects. Corporations and opening project purchases resolve before the Prelude cards are played. The result is a more directed opening, but it also means the opening selection matters more. A strong corporation or Prelude in one format is not automatically dominant in another. Player count, drafting, maps and the expansion deck all change opportunity costs. Treat a tier list as a hypothesis to test in your actual rules environment, not a substitute for a working first turn. Source: official Prelude rules .","steps":[]},{"heading":"Competitive strategy: calculate how many collections remain","summary":"Production is worth more when it has time to work. The hard part is that Terraforming Mars does not announce the number of generations remaining. You estimate it from the oxygen, temperature and ocean tracks, the resources players hold and how aggressively they can advance them. A deliberately simple calculation Imagine an option that costs 13 M€ in total and supplies only +2 M€ production. Six future collections return 12 M€; seven return 14 M€. That is a cash-only model, not a real card recommendation. Discounts, tags, points, other effects and the value of earlier liquidity can change the decision. But the model exposes the bad habit: buying late income because income was good earlier. A TR increase usually supplies one endgame point and additional M€ income from the next production onwards. A direct point card may supply no income but be excellent near the end. Compare the total benefit you can still collect, not the symbol that impressed you in generation two. Three questions before a large spend Can this repay or score before the table finishes? What action or milestone am I delaying to afford it? Would spending the same resources on the map create points, bonuses and timing pressure now? Standard projects are expensive but reliable. The asteroid standard project costs 14 M€ for a temperature step; greenery costs 23 M€; an ocean costs 18 M€. A card can beat those rates, but waiting for the perfect draw can also lose a bonus or the game. Certainty has a value. Rules reference: Terraforming Mars rulebook, pp. 10-11 .","steps":[]},{"heading":"Win points on the map, not just in your card tableau","summary":"Terraforming the shared planet can pay you more than once. A legal placement may collect the printed map bonus and 2 M€ for each adjacent ocean. Greenery can raise oxygen for TR while the track is not full, then score one point at the end. Cities score one point for every adjacent greenery, regardless of who owns it. The neighbour's garden is also your business If your city ends beside three greeneries, it scores three points. If you own two of those greeneries, they separately score two points: five points across your city and greeneries, before any TR or card effects. If the third belongs to another player, they receive that greenery point while your city still benefits from the adjacency. A city does not automatically score one point just for existing. Nor can you normally place cities adjacent to cities. Card instructions and named locations can provide exceptions; do not turn an exception into a general placement rule. Place greenery adjacent to one of your own tiles where possible. Watch ocean bonuses, space for future cities and whether you are feeding someone else's city. The best-looking patch of forest may be a donation with leaves. Once oxygen is full, another greenery still has its tile value and placement effects but no additional oxygen TR. Heat cannot buy temperature TR after temperature is full. Watch those limits before building an economy whose only exit has closed. Rules reference: Terraforming Mars rulebook, pp. 5, 10-12 .","steps":[]},{"heading":"Milestones and awards: stop giving away cheap points","summary":"A milestone is a race to qualify and claim; an award is a bet on the final position. On the original board, only three milestones can be claimed. Meeting a condition does not claim it automatically: you must take the action and pay 8 M€ to secure its five points. Tharsis milestones include 35 TR, three cities, three greeneries, eight building tags or sixteen cards in hand. Map expansions replace these goals, and Turmoil changes the Terraformer threshold. Always read the board actually on the table. Awards cost 8 M€ to fund the first, 14 M€ for the second and 20 M€ for the third. They score at the end, not when funded. The leader gets five points and the runner-up two, except that two-player games award no second-place points . Tied leaders each get five and eliminate second place; tied runners-up each get two where second place is scored. A small tactical habit with a large payoff Before researching, scan the unclaimed milestones and funded awards. If you are one legal action away from a milestone, reserve the claim cost. If a rival is close too, taking one action and waiting may be clever timing, or it may be a beautifully narrated mistake. Consider what they can do before your next turn. Do not fund an award merely because you currently lead. Ask how opponents can overtake you, whether the relevant resources will be spent before scoring, and what your funding action costs in tempo. You are paying to open a competition, not buying a trophy. Rules reference: Terraforming Mars rulebook, pp. 10-12 .","steps":[]},{"heading":"Engine or terraforming rush: know when to end the game","summary":"\"Build an engine\" and \"terraform quickly\" are not rival religions. They are competing uses of time. A production-heavy table wants more generations; a player who can score efficiently through the map may prefer a shorter game. Count the remaining global steps. Include potential heat and plants already on player boards, not just printed production. Estimate the next production. Who receives the most useful resources and repeatable scoring actions? Compare points, not activity. Another busy generation can help the player across the table more than it helps you. Keep endgame cash useful. Plan legal projects, award positions, greenery and card points; spare M€ is normally only the tiebreaker. You cannot normally stop the instant you complete the last global parameter: the generation finishes. An opponent who has not passed can still act. Likewise, a player who already passed cannot rejoin because the end suddenly looks profitable. After production, final greenery placement gives stored and freshly produced plants one last use. That is why plant production can have late value even when a pure cash-production project does not. The rule details matter more than a slogan about always rushing or always building. Practice drill: after each game, find one card you paid to keep and never played, one production purchase made too late, and one milestone or placement bonus you could have contested. Fixing those three decisions teaches more than blaming the corporation you drew. Rules reference: Terraforming Mars rulebook, pp. 7, 12 .","steps":[]},{"heading":"Prelude and Prelude 2: similar names, different purchases","summary":"Prelude: the easy first recommendation Original Prelude supplies 35 Prelude cards, five corporations and seven projects. The purple cards deliver immediate resources, production, tags or placements that help your corporation begin doing its thing. It is particularly attractive if your table likes the game but finds the earliest turns thin. The tradeoff is front-loaded judgment. Beginners may need help evaluating the four-card choice, and an experienced table can exploit opening combinations more effectively. It improves the opening; it does not erase a skill gap or guarantee a short evening. Prelude 2: more possibilities, not a replacement Prelude 2 requires the base game and original Prelude. Its 25 Prelude cards, five corporations and 24 projects include expansion interactions and Prelude actions or effects. The publisher identifies four corporations and thirteen Prelude cards that work without Venus Next, Colonies or Turmoil. Other included cards depend on those modules. You therefore do not need to buy every earlier expansion to use Prelude 2, but you must filter the cards for the modules you actually own. Its action-bearing Prelude cards still do not count as blue cards. That is the sort of tiny distinction a confident table catches and a rushed shopping list omits. My recommendation: original Prelude early; Prelude 2 when you can say which familiar openings or expansion combinations you want to refresh. Sources: Prelude contents ; Prelude 2 contents and compatibility ; Prelude 2 rule sheet . The starting hand does not double Shuffle the eligible Prelude 2 cards into the original Prelude pool. Normally you still receive four Prelude cards and choose two, alongside one chosen corporation. You are buying more possible openings, not two extra bonuses. A recurring Prelude action or effect can stay relevant throughout the game, unlike a purely immediate starting boost. Read it with your corporation and projects as one opening plan. Two advanced rules worth knowing Prelude refund: if you are about to play a Prelude and cannot perform all its required effects, reveal and discard it to receive 15 M€ instead. This is a rules remedy, not a standing option to exchange any disappointing Prelude for cash. Extended Start: this optional variant offers three corporations and six Preludes instead of two and four. You still keep one corporation and two Preludes. More choice can help an experienced player find a coherent opening; for a first lesson, it can also turn setup into a committee hearing. My collection-dependent verdict: with only base game and Prelude, wait unless opening variety is specifically what you want. With Colonies, Venus Next or Turmoil already in regular rotation, inspect the expansion marks and count the cards your usual combination can use. Prelude 2 becomes easier to justify when it supports systems you already enjoy, not systems you feel obliged to buy. These details are in the official Prelude 2 rules sheet . No new solo opponent is included: that is a different job from the Automa expansion.","steps":[]},{"heading":"Maps, Colonies and Venus: three different ways to widen Mars","summary":"Maps: my cleanest next step for a familiar table Hellas & Elysium replaces the central map with one of two alternatives. Different bonuses, milestones and awards change opening incentives without adding a separate economic phase. Learn the original board first if its geography still surprises you; change it when familiarity becomes routine. Utopia & Cimmeria provides another pair of maps. Amazonis & Vastitas includes the larger Amazonis map, designed to give high-player-count games more room and generations. Do not buy the larger map as a cure for a game that already runs too long. Milestones & Awards offers variable objectives; it is a replayability module, not a beginner necessity. Colonies: the economy expands off-world Colonies creates trade destinations beyond Mars. Building a colony costs 17 M€ as a standard project. A normal trade costs 9 M€, three energy or three titanium. One trade fleet can occupy a colony tile, so a lucrative destination can disappear before your turn. Colony owners receive their bonus when the tile is traded with, even if another player makes the trade. Three energy production can support regular trades, which makes energy a more tempting opening target. But you spend stored energy, not production, and not every colony lineup rewards the same engine. Read the available destinations before buying an energy solution in search of a problem. Venus Next: a side system with an important solo exception Venus adds projects, corporations, floaters and a Venus track. In multiplayer, maximising Venus is not required to end the game. The World Government Terraforming step can advance a parameter after production without granting the first player the usual personal terraforming rewards. Omitting that step is a variant, not the default rule. In the Venus solo game, Venus must be completed too. This is precisely why \"Venus is optional\" is an incomplete rules answer: optional purchase, optional multiplayer completion track, different solo victory condition. Sources: Hellas & Elysium ; Utopia & Cimmeria ; Amazonis & Vastitas ; Milestones & Awards ; Colonies rules ; Venus Next rules .","steps":[]},{"heading":"Turmoil and Automa: excellent for the right person, unnecessary for everyone else","summary":"Turmoil: politics is the feature, not a side effect Turmoil introduces parties, delegates, influence, changing policy and global events you can see coming. Your economic plans must respond to political incentives as well as the map. That can make the game richer for a group that enjoys forecasting and competition outside the card engine. It also adds upkeep and another set of decisions. During the Turmoil step, players normally lose one TR; the game-ending check occurs first, so there is no final-generation Turmoil step. The original Terraformer milestone uses the supplied replacement threshold. Do not teach Turmoil as \"some extra cards\" and discover the administration halfway through dinner. My verdict: buy it after the table asks for politics. If your favourite part is the clean rise of an engine, maps or Prelude variety are safer choices. Automa: a solo opponent rather than only a clock The original solo game asks you to terraform within a generation limit. Automa, designed by Nick Shaw and David Turczi, supplies a dedicated automated opponent and modular solo systems. It is a separate reason to buy, not an upgrade multiplayer players have somehow missed. Learn the base solo procedure before adding opponent management and optional modules. The original Corporate Era solo game starts at 14 TR and allows fourteen generations; Prelude reduces the generation limit to twelve. Expansion-specific solo rules then modify that foundation. Do not mix the normal terraforming goal with Prelude's alternative 63-TR challenge. Sources: Turmoil rules ; Automa and its rulebooks ; Prelude solo rules .","steps":[]},{"heading":"Terraforming Mars vs Ares Expedition: choose the experience, not the newer box","summary":"Ares Expedition is a separate standalone game. It is not a small expansion for the original and it does not accept original Prelude, Colonies or Turmoil. This is the most important compatibility warning on the shelf. Choose the original Terraforming Mars when you want shared-map placement, milestone races, award bets and a longer arc of individual turns. Choose Ares Expedition when you want a more card-centred game using simultaneous phase selection. In Ares, players choose phases and everyone can participate in activated phases, with a benefit for selecting the phase yourself. The original's map tactics and endgame incentives are not a strategy guide for Ares. Likewise, an Ares accessory labelled for its player boards or insert is not automatically compatible with the original. Check the exact edition and included components; retail and collector presentations can differ. My choice for a competitive shared-map game: original Terraforming Mars plus Prelude. It is the better match for learning the shared board and then becoming competitive within that system. Ares remains a worthwhile alternative when simultaneous card play is the thing you actually want. Sources: original Terraforming Mars ; Ares Expedition ; Ares Expedition base rules .","steps":[]},{"heading":"Accessories worth buying before another expansion","summary":"Buy for the friction you actually encounter. Terraforming Mars needs stable resource tracking, room for a growing tableau and sensible card storage. It does not need a dice tower. Mars has enough infrastructure already. First comfort upgrade: recessed player boards The official five-board dual-layer set keeps production markers in recessed tracks. It is a particularly sensible upgrade if bumped cubes have caused arguments. Check your edition and existing upgrades before buying another set. Card protection: measure, count, then choose Use sleeves sized for the actual cards and choose one consistent finish for cards that share a deck. The official illustrated sleeve set lists 550 sleeves across projects, corporations, Preludes and global events, covering the listed base and earlier expansions. That is not a promise of enough sleeves for every later expansion and promo you own. The publisher also warns that printed backs can peel under rough shuffling; that matters more than calling them premium. The compatible Sleeve Kings bundle on the reviewed shelf is a simpler clear-sleeve option. Count the packs and sleeve dimensions on the selected listing, and test a small batch before sleeving the whole collection. \"Complete\" is a product name, not an eternal capacity guarantee. Storage and tabletop organisation A fitted insert can turn setup from a sorting exercise into opening a set of trays. The Broken Token original-game organiser below is an accessory, not Terraforming Mars itself , and not the similarly named Ares organiser. Check assembly, sleeved-card capacity and the expansion list before buying. A modular token box such as Gamegenic Token's Lair is useful for shared resource cubes, but its dice feature is incidental here and it is not a fitted insert. For a mat, prefer a verified original-game layout or a full-table surface that leaves room for player tableaux and any sideboards. A narrow trading-card playmat is not a Terraforming Mars table mat. For transport, measure the loaded box and keep trays secured; a heavy all-expansion collection needs more than a pretty handle. Official 3D tiles, premium storage and thematic component upgrades can be delightful for a repeat-play favourite. They do not improve your card evaluation. Buy them as tactile luxuries, not a competitive entrance fee. I have kept the shelf shorter than the usual large TCG assortment because unrelated deck boxes and twenty near-identical sleeves would not improve this guide.","steps":[]},{"heading":"From a first game to a competitive table","summary":"You are ready to join an experienced casual table when you can research correctly, take a legal turn, distinguish a blue action from an effect, and carry out production without moving markers into the wrong area. You do not need to know every project by heart. Ask these questions before the first hand Which map, expansions and promo cards are included? Are we drafting research cards, and is the starting hand drafted? How many corporations and Preludes are dealt? Are timing rules, take-backs or a clock in use? Which solo, tournament or house-rule exceptions apply? The printed research-draft variant passes clockwise in even generations and counter-clockwise in odd generations; it does not draft the opening hand. It also does not remove the fee for keeping cards. Some events use different opening procedures. For a concrete example, the British Open organiser's 2026 event page specifies its own map pool, card pool, extended corporation/Prelude deal, alternating research draft and no starting-hand draft. That is evidence of one event's format, not a universal Terraforming Mars tournament ruleset. Read the organiser's current packet before practising for an event. Announce resource payments and production changes, keep used blue actions marked, and ask about a card before committing to an irreversible play. An experienced opponent can answer a rules question without being asked to choose your entire turn. There is nothing embarrassing about learning. Quietly using the wrong production value for six generations is the less charming option.","steps":[]},{"heading":"The short glossary you can keep beside the board","summary":"TR: terraform rating Your track value. It contributes income each generation and points at the end. M€: megacredits The game's money. Numbers in this guide refer to game currency, not retail prices. Production The recurring income level for a resource, distinct from the cubes already stored. Generation A round of research, repeated player turns and production. Tag A symbol used by requirements, payments and effects. Not an automatic point. Tableau Your played cards, with their visible tags and relevant ongoing abilities. Engine A combination of income, discounts, card draw and effects that makes later actions stronger. Terraforming rush A strategy that advances the shared parameters efficiently and may shorten opponents' engine time. Draft Selecting a card and passing the remaining choices. Keeping selected research cards still costs money. Tempo The value of doing something before a rival, a bonus threshold or the finish removes the opportunity. For another demanding engine-building decision, browse our board-game buying guide . For the complete game and equipment collection, visit the Puzzlewick store . None of those purchases is required to use the rules reference below.","steps":[]}],"recommendations":[{"rank":1,"product":"Terraforming Mars","maker":"Stronghold Games / FryxGames","best_for":"The original shared-map game","recommendation":"The right foundation for map tactics, milestones, awards and the expansion system in this guide.","caveat":"Long teach and substantial table space","product_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GSYA4K2?tag=puzzlewick-20"},{"rank":2,"product":"Terraforming Mars: Prelude","maker":"Stronghold Games / FryxGames","best_for":"The first expansion","recommendation":"Two chosen Prelude cards give your corporation a clearer opening.","caveat":"Opening choices can need coaching","product_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F4J9MFZ?tag=puzzlewick-20"},{"rank":3,"product":"Terraforming Mars: Hellas & Elysium","maker":"Stronghold Games / FryxGames","best_for":"Fresh geography","recommendation":"Two maps change placement rewards and competitive objectives.","caveat":"Requires original base game","product_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XDW7RSY?tag=puzzlewick-20"},{"rank":4,"product":"Terraforming Mars: Prelude 2","maker":"Stronghold Games / FryxGames","best_for":"Experienced opening variety","recommendation":"More Prelude combinations, with expansion-dependent cards that must be filtered.","caveat":"Requires original Prelude","product_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DFMLV9ZD?tag=puzzlewick-20"},{"rank":5,"product":"Terraforming Mars: Venus Next","maker":"Stronghold Games / FryxGames","best_for":"An optional card ecosystem","recommendation":"Floaters and a side planet for groups that want those mechanisms.","caveat":"Solo adds Venus completion","product_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0777M969L?tag=puzzlewick-20"},{"rank":6,"product":"Terraforming Mars: Turmoil","maker":"Stronghold Games / FryxGames","best_for":"Political forecasting","recommendation":"Delegates, policy and global events add a new contested layer.","caveat":"Additional upkeep and decision load","product_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VHYNSGJ?tag=puzzlewick-20"},{"rank":7,"product":"Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition","maker":"Stronghold Games / FryxGames","best_for":"A separate simultaneous game","recommendation":"A standalone alternative for card-first phase selection, not an original-game expansion.","caveat":"Original expansions and fitted accessories are not compatible","product_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08QXCM2MV?tag=puzzlewick-20"}],"comparison_table":[{"Product":"Prelude","Job":"Stronger openings","Dependency":"Original base game","Verdict":"First recommendation"},{"Product":"Hellas & Elysium","Job":"New map incentives","Dependency":"Original base game","Verdict":"Low-overhead refresh"},{"Product":"Colonies","Job":"Off-world trading","Dependency":"Original base game","Verdict":"Buy for economic interaction"},{"Product":"Prelude 2","Job":"More opening combinations","Dependency":"Base + Prelude; filter other expansion cards","Verdict":"Later variety"},{"Product":"Venus Next","Job":"Floaters and side-planet card ecosystem","Dependency":"Original base game","Verdict":"Optional specialist"},{"Product":"Turmoil","Job":"Politics, policies and global events","Dependency":"Original base game","Verdict":"Only for willing tables"},{"Product":"Automa","Job":"Dedicated solo opposition","Dependency":"Original base game","Verdict":"Solo-specific"},{"Product":"Ares Expedition","Job":"Simultaneous card-first game","Dependency":"Standalone; original expansions do not fit","Verdict":"Alternative, not expansion"}],"faq":[{"question":"What is the best first Terraforming Mars expansion?","answer":"Prelude is Puzzlewick's first recommendation for stronger opening direction. No expansion is required; learn the base game first if setup choices are already overwhelming."},{"question":"Is Prelude 2 a replacement for Prelude?","answer":"No. Prelude 2 requires the original Prelude expansion. It adds more opening cards and corporations, including continuing actions and effects. Remove cards whose expansion symbols refer to modules you are not using."},{"question":"Does Prelude 2 require every Terraforming Mars expansion?","answer":"No. It requires the base game and original Prelude. Some included cards require Venus Next, Colonies or Turmoil; filter the deck for the modules you own. The publisher identifies four corporations and thirteen Prelude cards usable without those three expansions."},{"question":"Is Ares Expedition an expansion for Terraforming Mars?","answer":"No. Ares Expedition is a standalone game with simultaneous phase selection. Original Terraforming Mars expansions such as Prelude, Colonies and Turmoil are not its expansions."},{"question":"When does Terraforming Mars end?","answer":"In the original multiplayer game, complete oxygen at 14%, temperature at +8°C and nine oceans. Finish that generation, including production, then resolve final greenery placement and scoring."},{"question":"What wins Terraforming Mars?","answer":"The highest total victory points from TR, milestones, awards, tiles and cards. Highest income or highest TR alone does not guarantee victory. The tie is broken by most remaining M€."},{"question":"Do you have to take two actions per turn?","answer":"No. A normal turn permits one or two actions. Passing instead ends your participation in that generation; you cannot rejoin it later."},{"question":"Does new energy immediately turn into heat?","answer":"No. During production, old stored energy becomes heat first, then new energy is produced and remains energy."},{"question":"Can cities score from another player's greenery?","answer":"Yes. A city scores one point for each adjacent greenery, regardless of who owns that greenery."},{"question":"Do two-player games score second place for awards?","answer":"No. The normal second-place award points are not used in two-player games."},{"question":"Is Venus required to finish the game?","answer":"Not in multiplayer with Venus Next. The Venus solo rules do require maximising Venus in addition to the normal terraforming requirements."},{"question":"Which accessories should a beginner buy?","answer":"Use what comes in the box first. Recessed player boards address bumped markers; correctly sized sleeves protect cards; an original-game-compatible insert can ease setup. Check edition, dimensions and expansion capacity before buying."}],"evidence":{"source_count":19,"source_mix":{"official":14,"rules":2,"community":2,"video":0,"review":1},"visual_count":50,"reviewed_scope":"Canonical Terraforming Mars Ultra rebuild: rules-led starting and competitive advice, expansion decisions including verified Prelude 2 enrichment, 31 documentary photos, eight text-complete raster infographics with mobile/pin variants, eight curator scenes, Margo audio, PDF/PNG companion, exact purchase links and four-width Chrome review.","sources":[{"title":"Terraforming Mars original rulebook","url":"https://fryxgames.se/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/TMRULESFINAL.pdf","kind":"rules"},{"title":"Terraforming Mars publisher product page","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars prelude","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-prelude/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars prelude 2","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-prelude-2/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars hellas elysium","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-hellas-elysium/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars colonies","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-colonies/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars venus next","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-venus-next/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars turmoil","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-turmoil/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars automa","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-automa/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars utopia cimmeria","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-utopia-cimmeria/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars amazonis vastitas","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-amazonis-vastitas/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars milestones awards","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-milestones-awards/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official Terraforming Mars ares expedition","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/terraforming-mars-ares-expedition/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Ares Expedition base rulebook","url":"https://fryxgames.se/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/ARES_RULES_fromjpgi.pdf","kind":"rules"},{"title":"Official dual-layer player boards","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/tm-dual-layer-player-boards-5-pcs/","kind":"official"},{"title":"Official illustrated sleeve set and caveat","url":"https://fryxgames.se/product/tm-sleeve-set/","kind":"official"},{"title":"BGG Prelude reference","url":"https://boardgamegeek.com/wiki/page/thing%3A247030","kind":"community"},{"title":"Player discussion: expansion recommendations, January 2025","url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/TerraformingMarsGame/comments/1hru8hi/expansion_recommendations/","kind":"community"},{"title":"British Open Terraforming Mars event format","url":"https://www.britishopentm.com/","kind":"review"}]},"attribution":{"citation":"Puzzlewick, “Terraforming Mars: How to Play, Compete and Choose the Expansions That Matter,” https://puzzlewick.com/guides/terraforming-mars-vs-ares-expedition-expansions-2026/","editorial_policy":"https://puzzlewick.com/methodology/","corrections":"https://puzzlewick.com/research/","note":"Cite the canonical guide, not this API representation. Product links may be affiliate links; sources remain editorial evidence."}}