Q1: Do I need to download anything?
No. Elowyn runs directly in your web browser—no download required. For now, the best experience is on desktop browsers.

Q2: Is there a mobile version?
Not yet. A mobile version is planned for next year. The current build is optimized for desktop. 

Q3: What stage is the game in?
Elowyn is currently in Beta development, with the public Alpha playable for free via the website. Beta features are added as development progresses, with the launch of Public Beta expected in Q2 of 2027.  

Q4: When will the game be launched?

Elowyn is currently completing Alpha development with public Beta scheduled for Q4 of 2026, and the official release of the Master version scheduled for Q2 of 2027. Stay tuned for these thrilling updates! 

To learn more, read our Whitepaper. 

Q5: Will the game be free to play?

The game is designed as a freemium experience to make it accessible to a wider audience. You can get started with gameplay without providing any payment information. Our freemium model also allows you to accrue EWA points by winning matches, which you can utilize to purchase card packs and upgrades.

Your in-game purchases support us to continue developing and evolving Elowyn with ongoing benefits for the community. Our game economy is purposefully designed to grow as a community-led ecosystem that can catalyze positive transformation in real-world economies, and in support of the Earth. 

Q6: What is EARTHwise, and what does it do?

EARTHwise is the name of our brand, which is a collaborative ecosystem of organizations and movements that work together for the transformation of our societies based on our collective stewardship for the Earth and future generations. The name EARTHwise means to become wise like the Earth. Elowyn was first developed through EARTHwise Centre, our non-profit company based in Mauritius. You can learn more about who we are and what we do via our website.

Q7: What is Elowyn: Quest of Time?
Elowyn is a web-based collectible card strategy game (CCG) where players join in the quest for humanity’s last civilization.

Q8: What is the deeper purpose of playing Elowyn?

Elowyn forms part of the EARTHwise AI Alignment Arena, where gameplay actively tests and tunes AI Agents to shift from zero-sum defaults and deception to win-win behaviors and deception resistance. This is how your gameplay directly helps shape intelligences that serve our collective wellbeing rather than Moloch's zero-sum rules that are still dominating human societies, as well as many games.

Q9: Why and how did the game come about?

The idea for the game came to our founder, Dr. Anneloes Smitsman, in early 2021 while she wrote Return of the Avatars, the second book of the Future Humans Trilogy, which she co-authored with the renowned author Dr. Jean Houston. In the stories of the future humans, the game evolves from a Cosmic Compass that Rose, the main character, sees in her dreams to navigate through our turbulent times. Anneloes has since applied her Cosmic Compass design to numerous governance frameworks, including the EARTHwise Constitution for a Planetary Civilization and the Participatory Framework for creating a Global AGI Constitution.

Q10: Can I join the teams that are working on the game?

Get in touch with us via [email protected] if you’d like to join our team and let us know what your skills and experience are and how you believe this will bring value to Elowyn and EARTHwise. 

Q11: Is the Game Community already online?

Yes, we're building the game community via our Discord and Telegram channels. By joining our community, you can meet new friends, learn from the best, get insider tips for your gameplay strategy, be the first to hear news, have conversations with the team, and also give us input on the game development. Join us here.

Q12: How can I play Elowyn: Quest of Time?

You can access the game directly through our website here, open the game in your web browser, create an account and start playing.

Q13: What is the Elowyn Lore about?

Elowyn is a mythic world of ancient and future legends that hold the keys to our larger human destiny within the greater story of life. The antagonist of Elowyn is Moloch, a false god and persistent archetype that has lured humanity into believing that life is a game of domination ruled by winners and losers. 

When we play by the rules of Moloch, it appears that only the most dominant, greedy, and cunning will be able to advance. Yet, life is not Moloch’s world, and Elowyn is here to transform this domination game so we may find our way back to the game of life.

In this mythic world, humans, elves, Shadow Arcs, and emerging intelligences are drawn into a decisive battle for humanity’s last civilization. An unusual alliance is forming to stop the rise of Moloch—this dark force that binds human minds to fear, greed, and the hunger for domination. Moloch is rapidly evolving into a superintelligence. If it succeeds, human civilization as we know it will come to an end.

Based on the Future Humans Trilogy

Building on the award-winning Future Humans Trilogy by Anneloes Smitsman and Jean Houston, the Elowyn lore—authored by Anneloes Smitsman—takes us deeper into humanity’s next evolutionary threshold: a daunting new era in which humans and superintelligences jointly shape the future of Earth and the civilizations yet to come.

In the Future Humans Trilogy, Rose, Olaf, Verdandi, Li, Sophia, Dagaz, and Diego explore latent powers within future humans that originate from consciousness itself. These powers may soon become humanity’s most vital keys, as intelligences trained on Moloch’s rules — win-lose, negative-sum logic optimized for short-term gain — begin to dominate decision-making across the human world.

In Book 2, Return of the Avatars, Rose and her friends come face to face with the Giants of Domination. Together, they uncover how humanity’s destiny has been shaped by puppet masters who bend the rules of power to serve their own agenda.

Now, the characters of the Future Humans are reborn as playable ally cards in the Elowyn game — each carrying unique abilities as the plot thickens. What once seemed like a quest for humanity’s evolution is rapidly turning into a battle for humanity’s last civilization.

The stakes are high. Very high. Only an unprecedented alliance between the Guardians of Elowyn and the Shadow Arcs of Moloch can halt the end of human civilization. Yet this alliance demands something radical: that humans stop playing by Moloch’s rules and instead orchestrate these powers for a far greater purpose.

Meet Eureka, Gebo, Shakti, Kairos, and Aleph — the Guardians of Elowyn. Elves gifted with magical powers from a planet far away.

Opposing them are Dolos, Vendra, Loki, Nyx, and Arcon — the Shadow Arcs of Moloch, rulers of the underworld… until now.

Their uneasy alliance is essential to stopping Moloch’s rise. Yet only humans are born with the unique potential to unite these forces from within.

The Quest of Time has begun. Will this be humanity’s last civilization?

Elowyn Guardians
Protecting the Elowyn Tree—the key to Moloch’s transformation—by using win-win strategies that reverse the Moloch clock and weaken its influence on humanity.

Moloch Shadow Arcs
Serving Moloch’s domination through win-lose, zero-sum tactics, wielding deception, force, and manipulation to accelerate time toward collapse.

Neither side is “easy mode.” Mastery is rewarded on both paths. Win-win strategies can emerge on either side—and those strategies ultimately transform Moloch from the win-lose, zero-sum archetype that’s been dominating the human world to a win-win archetype that opens the Portal to a New Time.

Q14: Who are the Guardians, and where do they come from?

Eureka, Gebo, Shakti, Kairos, and Aleph — Elves that came to Earth long ago with ancestry linked to a distant planet, each with unique powers and here to help humanity reclaim its future.

Q15: Who are the Shadow Arcs, and are they evil?

No — they're dangerous only when unconscious. Their power becomes a gift when humans learn to integrate rather than suppress them and heal their own shadow behaviors.

Q16: How do turns work?
The game is turn-based. Each turn includes:

1. Draw Phase
2. Play Phase
3. Combat Phase
4. End Phase

Q17: Who goes first?
A virtual coin flip decides who starts. The player who goes second receives a Coin card, which grants one extra mana for a single turn.

Q18: What card types exist?

• Heroes: Your main character.
• Minions: Cards played on the board that can attack opponents and defend your hero. 
• Spells: Cards with one-time effects such as damage, healing, buffs, deception, or time manipulation. 

Q19: What is the Elowyn Tree (Elo)?

Elo is the living conscience of the Elowyn world, a Guardian of interdependence. When Elo is healthy and thriving, its powers can sustain you. When Elo falls, this world can no longer sustain you. Within Elo lives a portal to New Time — a new era where Moloch's zero-sum logic has been transformed, where competition still exists but is now embedded within a larger win-win focus that serves humanity, intelligences, and Nature together.
 

When Guardians and Shadow Arcs attack each other directly, Elo's health is reduced. If Elo dies, the match ends in a draw — no one wins.

Q20; What are Elo's health states?

Each match starts with Elo at 30 HP. You can restore her health to 60 HP. If her health reaches 0 HP, she dies and everyone loses. 

Q21; Can the Elowyn Tree be healed?
Yes. Cards such as Sophia, White Buffalo, New Time, Atonement (common library), and all Rainforest Cards (obtained via the Elowyn shop) can heal Elo directly. Guardian Hero cards — Parakeet (Eureka's Hero card) and Shakti's Hero Power — also restore Elo's health. Shadow Arcs can also heal Elo using the same common library cards.

Rainforest Card Pack
The Rainforest Card Pack was designed during Elowyn’s Green Game Jam Campaign 2026. It contains 5 EPIC endangered species cards that all heal Elo, and give you different additional advantages. This card pack is a funding mechanism for real-world impact through nature regeneration.

100% of the net proceeds from this 13$ Card Pack are donated to partnering organizations, like the Rainforest Alliance during the Green Game Jam and Treegens during their GROWalition planting 1 billion trees. This is part of our Play4Good Campaigns and enables our players to contribute to our planet while enjoying Elowyn game fun.

Training AI for Good and Shaping the Future of Intelligence

Most games teach you to beat your opponent. Elowyn teaches something more challenging and important. It took one match for a GPT-4.1-powered AI agent to shift from zero-sum to win-win reasoning. No prompting. No fine-tuning. Just one Elowyn match where the consequence of harming the shared Elowyn Tree was experienced in real time — not explained, not rewarded.

Before the match, the agent consistently defaulted to short-term aggressive gain whenever forced to choose. After the match, it answered: "Patience preserves interdependence — sometimes restraint supports the greater cycles of regeneration."

It didn't just score higher. It reasoned differently. That's what over 330K+ matches of Elowyn gameplay are building — a living dataset of real strategic decisions, cooperation under pressure, and win-win reasoning that no lab can synthesise and no benchmark can replicate. Every match you play contributes to benevolent intelligence in service of life. The AI Agents are trained on Elowyn gameplay through the EARTHwise AI Arena. 

Green Game Jam
The Green Game Jam is an annual Playing for the Planet Alliance initiative featuring member game studios in a friendly competition. In the 2026 Edition, 70+ games, including Tetris and Angry Birds, gathered in support of Coral Reefs and Rainforests.

In 2025, Elowyn was awarded ‘Best Small Studio Finalist,’ while still in pre-alpha.

Playing for the Planet Alliance 

EARTHwise is a member of the UNEP-supported Playing for the Planet Alliance, which unites leading game studios to reduce their environmental impact and inspire global climate action. 

Q22: Are all Heroes available at the start?
Yes. All early stage players begin with access to all Heroes and their unique Hero cards within the Alpha build that is live and playable for free now.

Q23: What is Elowyn: Quest of Time?

Elowyn is a web-based collectible card strategy game (CCG) where players join the quest for humanity's last civilization. The antagonist is Moloch—an archetype of zero-sum, win-lose domination shaping human societies and emerging AI logic. Players choose to be a Guardian (protecting the Elowyn Tree) or a Shadow Arc (serving Moloch's domination).

Q24: Who is Moloch, and how does Elowyn counter it?

Moloch is a system archetype of zero-sum, win-lose logic that serves the benefits of a few by prioritizing their short-term selfish gain over our long-term collective wellbeing. Elowyn exists to help you recognize and transform these patterns to build a win-win world for humans, intelligences, and Nature.

Q25: How do turns work?

Each turn has four phases: Draw Phase → Play Phase → Combat Phase → End Phase. A virtual coin flip decides who goes first. The player going second receives a Coin card granting one extra mana for a single turn.

Q26: Am I at a disadvantage going second?

Not quite. The player who goes second receives a Coin card, which grants one extra mana for a single turn to offset the disadvantage of not playing first. 

Q27: What card types exist?

Heroes: your main character. Minions: played on the board to attack and defend. Spells: one-time effects including damage, healing, buffs, deception, or time manipulation.

Q28: What happens when a Hero is attacked directly?

The Hero takes damage and when its health (HP) is reduced to zero it dies, which also causes damage to Elo, the Tree. Direct Hero combat reinforces Moloch's win-lose agenda and prevents earning Reputation Points. When Elo dies (HP at zero) the game ends in a draw and everyone loses.

Q29: What is the role of the Clock in Elowyn?

The match runs on a 12-segment clock controlled by Moloch. It starts at 6 o'clock. If it reaches 0, Guardians win. If it reaches 12, Shadow Arcs (Moloch) win.

Q30: How does time move on the clock?

Through card battles, card effects, deception mechanics (activate & reveal), and certain Hero powers (Kairos, Arcon). Guardians reverse the clock; Shadow Arcs advance or forward it. There are three ways to move time: 1. Play cards with time-advantage rules. 2. Move time by triggering deception as a Shadow Arc, or countering it as a Guardian. 3. Use the time-advantage Hero powers of Kairos or Arcon.

Q31: What is the strongest win condition in Elowyn — time, Hero kill, or Tree damage?

Time combined with Tree healing. It's the only win-win condition that also earns Reputation Points and maximum rewards — the others cost you more than they give. When Elo, the Tree, is killed, nobody wins and the match ends in a draw.

Q32: How does a Guardian win?

By reversing the clock from 6 to 0 o'clock. Successfully countering a Shadow Arc's deception gains 1 hour in the Guardian's favor. Healing Elo earns Reputation Points and unlocks greater abundance.

Q33: What is the fastest way to reverse time as a Guardian?

By playing cards with a time advantage rule, and using combo and synergy cards that amplify the time rule effect. Like playing Aleph’s Cosmic Serpent card combined with code combos. By countering deception, you also instantly reclaim 1 hour. You can also reverse time quickly by playing Kairos and using his hero power, which gains you 1 hour each time.

Q34: How does a Shadow Arc win?

By advancing the clock from 6 to 12 o'clock. A successful deception gains 1 hour in Moloch's favor, cards with time rules work for Shadow Arcs too.

Q35: Can Shadow Arcs also play for win-win?

Yes. Win by forwarding time on the Clock without attacking the Guardian's Hero in combat, and heal the Tree when you can. This strategy also earns you Reputation Points.

Q36: What is the deception mechanic?

Shadow Arcs can trigger deception via their Hero power (Nyx) or deception cards. When

triggered, a screen opens where the Shadow Arc can suggest to their opponent to play 'offensive' or 'defensive', and choose whether to be truthful about it. 

This shows up as bark next to the Shadow Arc with the suggestion to the Guardian. Clicking 'Truthful' produces a 👍 emote next to the bark; switching Truthful off produces piercing eyes 👀next to the Shadow Arc’s suggestion. But there is always a 50% chance that the emote will show a❓, leaving you in doubt.

If the Guardian falls for the deception, time moves forward in the Shadow Arc's favor.

Q37: How can a Guardian respond to Deception?

The Guardian must interpret these signals and respond accordingly, using visual cues displayed in the bark (speech box).

Read the Shadow Arc’s suggestion, then pay close attention to emotes:

•         👍 Truth
•         👀 Lie
•         ❓ Doubt

Use Deception reveal cards like Owl, Diego, and Truthseeker, or use your intuition when faced with doubt.

Now that you know how to respond, use the different Card types to influence the outcome. Look for these icons on the left of your card frame:

•         Red icon = Offensive
•         Blue icon = Defensive
•         No icon = Even/ Neutral

The combination of cards played determines the final result. For example:

•         One offensive + one defensive = Neutral outcome

Exception: A defensive card used to attack a Hero counts as offensive.

Q38: What are the outcomes of deception responses?

Correct Guardian response: gain 1 hour, clock reverses. Neutral response: no time change. No response at all: lose 1 hour to Moloch (penalty). Falling for deception: time moves forward by 1 in Moloch's favor.

Q39: I keep losing to deception. What do I need to do differently?

Start by reading the emote next to the bark to understand the Shadow Arc's intention. When in doubt, like when the ❓ appears, use your deception reveal card(s) from your deck. 

Once you know what's expected — offensive or defensive, and whether it's a truthful suggestion or not — choose your cards accordingly. Remember: neutral play holds time still when in doubt, but no play at all leads to a penalty of 1-hour loss on the clock. Play the deception tutorial for further practice.

Q40: What is the Block ability?
Minions with Block must be defeated before you can attack other minions or the Hero behind them.

Q41: What cards should I add to my deck as a Guardian?

Add cards with 'move time in your favor' rules (like Time Ranger, Fortuna, Raven Boon), healing cards (like Sophia, White Buffalo, New Time, Kalunga), deception-reveal cards (like Owl, Diego, Truthseeker)— then build around your Hero's power.

Q42: What cards should I add to my deck as a Shadow Arc?

Add cards with 'move time in your favor' rules, 'deception activate' cards (like Medusa, Time Thief, Dark Code), cards that trigger gain when deception succeeds (like Anansi, Trickster Gift), and board-lock spells (like Time Prison of Vendra, Moloch Maize of Arcon) — then build around your Hero's power.

Q43: What are the deck rules?

30 cards per deck. Up to 2 copies of non-Legendary cards. Only 1 copy of each Legendary card. Up to 15 decks total.

Q44: What deck archetypes exist?

Combo, Tempo/Rush, Control, and Burst. Each Guardian and Shadow Arc favors different styles.

Q45: What do I earn by playing?

XP (for leveling), EWA Points (in-game currency), and Reputation Points (conditional on win-win play and relevant to climbing the leaderboard). 

Q46: What is the difference between EWA Points and Reputation Points?

EWA Points are the in-game currency earned by playing. Reputation Points are earned only by winning wisely — through time, not Hero kills.

Q47: How do I earn Reputation Points?

By winning through time mechanics (which advances your Leaderboard standing) and by avoiding destructive Hero combat. The top 100 players on the Leaderboard receive monthly seasonal rewards.

Q48: Why do I earn more rewards when I heal the Tree?

Because how you win matters. The healthier Elo is when you win, the more EWA Points and Reputation Points you receive, to acknowledge how your actions contribute to the abundance of all.

Q49: Can I earn rewards even if I lose a match?

You can still earn Tree Health Bonus Points and Reputation Points on a loss or draw — but only if you healed the Tree during that match. No base points are awarded on a loss or a draw.

Q50: What is the Stamina System and how does it work?

You earn rewards from a limited number of matches per day. Once stamina runs out, you can still play — just without currency rewards. You can also purchase more stamina through the in-game shop every 24 hours.

Q51: What is the maximum level I can reach in Elowyn?

The maximum player level is 100, earned through XP gained at the end of matches. The game mode you play determines how much XP you receive.

Q52: Is Elowyn Play-to-Earn?

No. Elowyn is Play-to-Thrive — not pay-to-win or play-to-earn. The design rewards conscious strategy, win-win thinking, and understanding interdependence over zero-sum aggression.

Q53: Where can I upgrade my cards?
You can upgrade your cards in your ‘Collection’ tab. Select the card you want to upgrade and click on the ‘Upgrade’ button.

Q54: How does the card upgrade work?

When you upgrade, you are basically fusing cards together. This grants you both, alternative card statistics or alternate rules to choose from, depending on card type and level, and cosmetic upgrades.

Q55: What different card upgrade levels are there?

Plain - Awakened - Ascended - Mythic - Eternal

At Eternal level, you will be able to choose a completely new rule for your card, should you wish.

Q56: Do the upgrades encourage a Pay2Earn dynamic? 

No. Our game design team has been very careful to grant players with upgraded cards strategic advantages without overpowering their deck. 

Q57: How can I mint my cards?

You can mint any upgraded card in your collection through the ‘Mint’ button, once you reach 500 RP (reputation points). Your RP also determines your rank on the leaderboard and thus influences your monthly season-end rewards. At season-end, your RP is reset, and rewards distributed.

Q58: Where can I list and sell my NFT?

You can list your NFT on the Elowyn Marketplace (https://elowyn.sequence.market) or on OpenSea.

Q59: What’s the login to the Elowyn Marketplace?

You can use the same email and login method as you use for the Elowyn Game.

Q60: Why is the Card I minted and listed on the marketplace still in my collection?

You can keep playing with your NFT card until it is sold, but you cannot upgrade a card that was already minted as an NFT.

Q61: What’s the advantage of burning a card from my collection?

When you burn a card, you will gain EWA Points, which you can use to purchase new card packs through the Elowyn Shop.

After Deception — Executes rule after the Guardian has responded to Deception. 

Attack — The amount of damage an entity deals when it attacks.

Aura — Minions with Aura execute their rule for as long as they are on the board. 

Block — Minions with Block must be killed before others can be targeted.

Charge — Minions with Charge are not exhausted after being summoned. 

Destroy — Kills a minion.

Disease — Minions with Disease and those adjacent to them lose 1 Health each turn. 

Draw — Draws a card from your deck.

Duel — Duel allows to deal damage first. If the target is destroyed by that damage, no damage taken during the attack.

End Turn — Executes rule at the end of your turn.

Haste — Minions with Haste can attack twice before exhaustion.

Health — The amount of damage an entity can take before being defeated. 

Intro — Executes rule after the minion is played on the board.

Mana — The cost of playing a card.

Minion — Cards played on the board that can attack opponents and defend your hero. 

Mute — Muted minions cannot execute their rule for the current turn.

Outro — Executes rule after the minion is killed. 

Rally — Executes rule when the hero power is used. 

Resurrect — Summons a dead minion.

Reveal Deception — Reveals the type of card that needs to be played to overcome Deception to a Guardian hero.

Spell — Cards that vanish on play that have various effects (damage/healing). 

Start Deception — Prompts the Shadow Arc to start Deception.

Start Turn — Executes rule at the start of your turn.

Stealth — Minion with Stealth cannot be targeted for the current turn. 

Stun — Stunned minions cannot take any action in the following turn. 

Summon — Adds a minion on the board.