Nucleum

Officially Nucleum (Board&Dice / Simone Luciani + Dávid Turczi)

HEAVY ECONOMIC + NETWORK-BUILDING GAME by SIMONE LUCIANI + DÁVID TURCZI (2023), publisher BOARD&DICE. 1-4 players are 19TH-CENTURY GERMAN INDUSTRIALISTS building COAL-FIRED + NUCLEAR power infrastructure to POWER a SILESIA (Poland) region during accelerated industrial revolution. Deep RAIL NETWORK + technology unlocking + politics + resource management. 2023 gaming darling, ~14K BGG rank shot into top 100 quickly. 3-4 hours playtime; heavy strategist appeal.

📐Large hex-map of 1860s Silesia (Poland) with cities + coal mines⏱~180 min🌤indoor

Quick facts

How it works

Objective

Score MOST VP through URBAN GROWTH, TECH UNLOCKS, POLITICAL INFLUENCE, INFRASTRUCTURE built across 4 GENERATIONS.

Rules

Basic rules

4 GENERATIONS (rounds); each generation has 3-4 player turns
Signature 4-generation round structure.
TURN: TAKE 1 ACTION + PAY UPKEEP; actions include BUILD RAIL, BUILD FACTORY, UNLOCK TECH, POLITICAL INFLUENCE, FULFILL CONTRACT
Signature 1-action turn.
RAIL NETWORK: build tracks between coal-mines + cities to POWER them; more connections = more VP + more energy production
Signature rail network economy.
TECHNOLOGY: unlock tech tiles → new abilities (nuclear power, cheaper builds, etc.)
Signature tech-unlock system.
POLITICS: 3 FACTIONS (government, workers, capitalists) — influence with each yields bonuses + VP
Signature 3-faction politics.
COAL-vs-NUCLEAR TRANSITION: mid-game shift from COAL (cheap, dirty) to NUCLEAR (expensive, powerful, quiet) — strategic pivot
Signature coal→nuclear transition.
URBANIZATION: cities grow as you supply power → city size = VP multiplier
Signature city-growth VP.
GAME END: after 4 GENERATIONS, VP tallied from urban size + tech + politics + rail-network score
Signature 4-generation game-end.

Scoring

VP from urban size + tech + politics + rail network + contracts fulfilled after 4 generations.

Win condition · Most VP at game end.

Playing area

Called

Large hex-map of 1860s Silesia (Poland) with cities + coal mines

Dimensions

Central hex-map ~90×60 cm + 4 player boards

Equipment

HEX MAP: 1860s Silesia (Poland) with CITIES, COAL MINES, RIVERS
Signature Silesia hex map.
4 PLAYER BOARDS: track TECHNOLOGY unlocks + workers + industrial complexes
Signature player boards.
TRAIN TOKENS: build rail network between cities + coal mines
Signature rail-network tokens.
COAL + URANIUM cubes; POWER PLANTS (coal + nuclear) mini-boards
Signature coal + uranium resources.
TECH TILES: 12+ industrial technologies to unlock
Signature tech tiles.
POLITICS DIALS: track player influence with 3 factions
Signature politics dial.
CONTRACT + BOND cards: contract fulfillment + long-term borrowing
Signature contract cards.

Terminology

Rail network: Connecting coal-mines + cities via tracks — core economic engine.
Coal vs. Nuclear: Mid-game strategic pivot from coal to nuclear power.
Politics dial: 3-faction influence tracker.
Generation: Round; game lasts 4 generations.
Silesia: 1860s Polish coal region — game's setting.
Urban size: City tier — 1x-3x VP multiplier from powering it.
Board&Dice: Polish publisher (also of Tzolk'in, Barrage, Origins).

Major competitions

Essen Spiel 2023 — launch event
annual (Oct) · Essen, Germany · since 1980
Golden Geek 2023 — nominated Best Strategy Game
annual · Global BGG community · since 2006

Where it is played

Governing bodies

Board&Dice (publisher)
Founded 2011 · Warsaw, Poland

Famous names & records

Famous athletes

Simone Luciani (IT, designer)
Dávid Turczi (HU/GB, co-designer)
Aleksander Zawada (PL, artist)

Sources & provenance

BoardGameGeek — Nucleum— BoardGameGeek
Board&Dice — Nucleum— Board&Dice

Last verified 2026-08-28.verified