The League of Questionable Scientists (LOQS) – A Competitive Engine-Building Strategy Game

The League of Questionable Scientists

Build a laboratory. Bend the rules of science. Try not to implode.

The League of Questionable Scientists is a competitive engine-building strategy game of escalation, silent bidding, and beautifully controlled instability. You are one of six rival scientists racing to construct Experimental Constructs, install permanent Mods, and complete secret Master Projects before your laboratory collapses under the strain.

Each round, you’ll:

• Compete in a volatile Market with hidden information
• Spend Research Points to win critical components
• Overclock your lab by trading Stability for power
• Assemble persistent engines that grow stronger over time
• Unlock discipline abilities that reshape how you compete
  

But power has a cost.

Push too hard and you risk a Meltdown. Play too cautiously and your rivals will trigger the Final Countdown before you’re ready.

Choose from six forbidden scientific disciplines—Biogenesis, Alchemetrics, Mechatronica, Kineturgics, Electrovation, or Paradoxology—each with a distinct philosophy of progress, risk, and timing. No two laboratories evolve the same way.

Victory isn’t awarded to the scientist who moves first.
It goes to the one whose infrastructure, Market performance, and Stability discipline survive the consequences.

2–6 Players • 30–75 Minutes • Ages 10+

The League is watching.

Are you prepared to be remembered as a Nobel Laureate of Questionable Science?

Or merely as a cautionary tale?

How the Game Plays

In The League of Questionable Scientists, each round unfolds across four escalating phases: a volatile Market Phase where players compete through simultaneous silent bidding, an Experimental Construct acquisition phase, an engine-building Develop Phase, and a Cleanup Phase where Master Project completion is evaluated.

Players manage two core resources — Research Points and Stability — using them to win contested components, power experimental systems, and unlock long-term advantages. Every Experimental Construct remains active once built, creating layered engine synergies that evolve over time.

The game rewards strategic planning, calculated risk, and careful timing. Complete your Basic Master Project to unlock additional discipline abilities. Complete your Advanced Master Project to trigger the Final Countdown — giving opponents one final chance to overtake you before scoring.

What Makes LOQS Different

• Simultaneous silent bidding creates tension without long downtime
• Stability functions as a strategic currency — not just a health meter
• Six asymmetric scientific disciplines create radically different play patterns
• Engine-building systems persist and compound over time
• Hidden Master Projects create shifting endgame timing

Who It’s For

LOQS is ideal for players who enjoy:

• Competitive engine-building games
• Resource management with high interaction
• Strategic bidding and timing decisions
• Moderate complexity with escalating tension
• If your group enjoys games where risk and planning collide — LOQS rewards disciplined ambition.