LOST Numbers Explained -- Island Secrets Revealed

Alex Eaton-Salners

(mitnachtKAUBO-I)

United States
San Diego
California

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Did you know that J.J. Abrams and the other LOST writers are big boardgame players? Although many fans of the series know about Lost: The Game, few people realize the depth of the relationship between BGG and LOST.

The show's creators were so inspired by their favorite games that they derived the well-known LOST numbers from the BGG database. The revelations below are based on information hidden deep within DHARMA Initiative training materials. Proceed at your own risk.

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Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 9:34 am

1. Board Game: Tal der Könige [Average Rating:6.66 Overall Rank:1663]

Alex Eaton-Salners

(mitnachtKAUBO-I)

United States
San Diego
California

BGG GAME ID 4
Tal der Könige (Valley of the Kings) is reportedly J.J. Abrams' favorite game. The bluffing and bidding mechanics inspired him to delve into a formal study of the depths of the human psyche. One of the results was LOST. Additionally, the cryptic messages on the game board and the strong connection to ancient Egypt mysticism were important influences on the LOST universe.

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Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 9:34 am

2. Board Game: Lords of Creation [Average Rating:6.20 Overall Rank:3104]

Alex Eaton-Salners

(mitnachtKAUBO-I)

United States
San Diego
California

BGG GAME ID 8
In Lords of Creation, players guide a tribe of people trapped on an island. The tribes compete with the "Others" on the island and sometimes band together to overcome various challenges. This game inspired the writers to create an island controlled by supernatural forces where several bands of people strive for supremacy and control. On LOST, the divine nature of the island is a source of inspiration for Locke. Locke's fascination with games (such as Backgammon) also contributes to his affinity for the island.

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Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 9:34 am

3. Board Game: Cosmic Encounter [Average Rating:6.99 Overall Rank:361]

Alex Eaton-Salners

(mitnachtKAUBO-I)

United States
San Diego
California

BGG GAME ID 15
The writers of LOST prefer the Avalon Hill version of Cosmic Encounter. The variable alien powers in the game shaped many of the island's features. The formation of changing alliances and the attitudes towards the supernatural are reflected in the relationships and throught processes of major characters. Walt and his special powers are also based on this game.

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Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 9:34 am

4. Board Game: Marracash [Average Rating:6.85 Overall Rank:772]

Alex Eaton-Salners

(mitnachtKAUBO-I)

United States
San Diego
California

BGG GAME ID 16
A late night game of Marracash provided the basis for the character of Hurley and the idea for the numbers. One of the more portly writers invested early in a cluster of shops near one of the entrances after J.J. Abrams kept muttering "Buy Shop Many Early Color Win, Buy Shop Many Early Color Win". The subsequent windfall prompted the victor to remark that the reason he had "won the lottery" was listening to J.J. Abrams' ramblings. As work on the series progressed, "Buy Shop Many Early Color Win" became "4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42".

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Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 9:34 am

5. Board Game: Divine Right [Average Rating:6.89 Overall Rank:1218]

Alex Eaton-Salners

(mitnachtKAUBO-I)

United States
San Diego
California

BGG GAME ID 23
The spiritual quests of Mr. Eko and Charlie originate from the religious battles of Divine Right. Their project to build a church on the island and their investigation of the Nigerian plane are based on some of the special cards included in the game.

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Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 9:34 am

A. C.

(A.C.)

Canada
Toronto Area
Ontario

The "Isle of Fright":

Like driftwood, beds of white bones litter the beaches of this remote volcanic island. As the focal point of mysterious spiral currents, everything that falls into the sea comes to these accursed shores.

Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 7:01 pm
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A. C.

(A.C.)

Canada
Toronto Area
Ontario

The LOST character "Boone" has his name taken from this game, too - if a unit is sacrificed, the player gets a "Boon of Greystaff".

Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 7:18 pm
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6. Board Game: Tigris & Euphrates [Average Rating:7.89 Overall Rank:15]

Alex Eaton-Salners

(mitnachtKAUBO-I)

United States
San Diego
California

BGG GAME ID 42
The internal and external conflicts in T&E are reflected in the struggles of Kate and Sawyer. Additionally, the character of Sayid was influenced by the setting of this game (Iraq). Originally, the show was going to include a Puerto Rican army veteran. Even though J.J. Abrams really enjoyed writing lines for the character, he wrote too many and eventually got sick of it and decided to move on to a Reiner Knizia game. Another Knizia game, Die Insel (The Island), also provided the setting for LOST.

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Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 9:34 am

7. Board Game: TAMSK [Average Rating:6.82 Overall Rank:673]

Alex Eaton-Salners

(mitnachtKAUBO-I)

United States
San Diego
California

BGG GAME ID 108
Playing with time is at the heart of both TAMSK and LOST. The frenetic pace of the series and the countdown in the hatch (starting of course with 108) originate with this game's sand timers. The ideas of "reversing" time and resetting the countdown also come from TAMSK. Furthermore, the capitalization of LOST is based on the all-caps names of the GIPF series.

3 comments [Hide]

Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 9:34 am

Mike Kollross

(MK-Ultra71)

Canada
Carvel
Alberta

Pew pew pew!!!

I'm a member of the Game Artisans of Canada

108 is of course the total of all the previous numbers. Premier is tonight (season 3). I can't wait.

Posted Wed Oct 4, 2006 3:35 pm
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Eric Buhr

(Vorocano)

Canada
Gladstone
Manitoba

Well, Mike, you officially blew my mind. I always thought there was some significance to the 108 minutes, but I never knew what it was. It's so much clearer now. I feel dumb.

Posted Thu Oct 5, 2006 8:02 pm
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Staffan Åberg

(Staffie)

Sweden

There are a few other numbers that are used in the show like 7418880, 540 and 325.
In the last episode of season 2 Ben the leader of the Others tells Michael that he have to go of a bearing of 325 Degrees so he'll get of the island with their boat. And whats the 325:th game at BGG? http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/325
hmm, pretty good theory I must say!

Posted Fri Oct 6, 2006 10:20 pm
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8. Board Game: Chrononauts [Average Rating:6.27 Overall Rank:1215]

Alex Eaton-Salners

(mitnachtKAUBO-I)

United States
San Diego
California

BGG GAME ID 815
The writers were also inspired by Chrononauts. The numerous intersections between the characters in their flashbacks (such as Jack's chance meeting with Desmond) derive from this game's use of linchpins and ripple points. Chrononauts' mission cards are also reflected in the series by the varying motivations and goals of each of the characters on the island. This game is alluded to in the series by Oceanic Flight 815.

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Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 9:34 am

9. Board Game: Flashback [Average Rating:5.20 Unranked]

Matt Kruczek

(matt_k)

United Kingdom
Colchester
Essex

Inserted at a crucial point in the narrative structure of the list to provide depth and motivation to the character of the central list compiler.

Likely to contain a a chance meeting with another list compiler, and a background cameo of another character who's already appeared as a background cameo in three other flashbacks.

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Posted Wed Oct 4, 2006 3:14 pm

10. Board Game: Pyramids & Polar Bears [Average Rating:0.00 Unranked]

Joshua Harris

(Cornbread46)

United States
Oshkosh
Wisconsin

I think this is obviously the source for one of the more talked about concepts in the show.

0 comments

Posted Fri Oct 6, 2006 4:40 am

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(Stena)

United States
San Diego
California

Yeah, but what about the polar bears? surprise

Posted Tue Oct 3, 2006 12:19 pm
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Lucas Kenall

(lukerk)

United States
DuPont
Washington

...and if you lite any one (one is not a number from the show, stay focused!)... any one of these games on fire, you'll get the infamous smoke cloud! robot