Captains of the Gulf
Captains of the Gulf Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 Main Game Board
- 4 Player Boards
- 90 Game Cards
- 16 Round Cards
- 12 Seafood Cards
- 12 Loan Cards
- 4 Wooden Boats (one each in four player colors)
- 4 Wooden Action Track Markers (one each in four player colors)
- 15 Wooden Discs (three each in four player colors, 3 white discs)
- 12 Wooden Bonus and Fuel Tank Markers (three each in four player colors)
- 56 Coins (20x "1", 12x "5", 16x "10", 8x "20")
- 84 Seafood/Cooked Seafood Tiles (28 each for shrimp, oyster, and crab)
- 3 Port Bonus Tiles
- 6 Port Sales Track Reward Tiles
- 8 Reference Sheets (four each in English & German)
- 8 Cargo Box Tiles
- 8 Fuel Tank Tiles
- 24 Depletion/Repopulation Tiles
- 16 Bonus Tiles
- 16 Small White Circular Tiles (for gluing to the Player Boards)
Main Game Board
The game board consists of different areas. In the top left is the Towing Penalty Chart, around the central playing area (the Gulf of Mexico) are three Ports, the initial Fishing Locations on the playing area are marked with buoys. Some of the buoys are marked for setting up games for a certain number of players: buoys 1-8 used for setting up games for 2+ players, buoys 1-10 used for setting up games for 3+ players, and buoys 1-12 used for setting up games for 4 players.
To the right of the playing area is the Round Timer Tracks (1 each for 2, 3, or 4 player games), directly below is the Main Action Track, at the top are the three Port Sales Tracks, and at the bottom the Seafood Track, the Repopulation Location Track, and the Bonus Action Spaces.
Player Boards
The Player Boards can be upgraded by adding Game Cards which are tucked under the appropriate side of the board; Licenses are tucked under the top, Crew Members are tucked under the left, and Boat Upgrades are tucked under the right.
Two Bonus Action Spaces are available on each Player Board.
The Seafood Storage Area is used to store the Seafood Tiles a player fishes. Default maximum Seafood Storage is two tiles. The player's Fuel Storage is tracked on the bottom of the Player Board. Default maximum Fuel Storage is 6 fuel.
HINT: If you want, you can glue the small white circular tiles below the Player Boards, so these are slightly raised. This makes it easier to slide the Game Cards below the Player Boards.
Game Cards
The very bottom of the Game Card has icons showing if the card is for games with 2+, 3+, or 4 players.
The Game Cards are divided into four sections. The top, left, and right sections of the cards are Licenses, Crew Members, and Boat Upgrades that the players can buy to add to their Player Board.
The center section is the Fishing action area that shows a type (or types) and quantity of Seafood that can be fished by discarding the card.
Round Cards
The Round Cards either give a bonus or charge a penalty that affects all players. Round Card effects are either during the round OR affect players after the current round, during the Reset Phase.
Reset Phase cards have a stop sign in the upper left. "During the Round" cards have an hourglass in the same area. Round Card's effect is shown in the lower area.
Round Cards with an "A" on the back are early game cards. Cards with a "B" on the back are late game cards.
Seafood Cards
Seafood Cards are used to populate the initial Fishing Locations marked with buoys during Game Preparations. After Game Preparations, they are also used to repopulate in the Reset Phase when needed.
The bottom of the Seafood Card shows the quantity of Seafood. The top section of the card shows the number of spaces to move the marker on the Seafood and Repopulation Location Tracks during repopulation.
Some of the Seafood Cards have icons in the top section, showing if the repopulation values are used for games with 2 & 3, or 4 players, and on the bottom right, showing if they are used in games for 3+ or 4 players.
Loan Cards
During the game, the players may need to take loan cards, if they cannot afford to pay the Towing Penalty or Round Card cost.
Reference Sheets
Each player gets a Reference Sheet showing the Main Actions, payments for Seafood and the Final Scoring. The Reference Sheets are both in English and German.
Wooden Components
The wooden components in the four player colors are used for the following:
The boats are used to track the locations on the Main Game Board. The Action Track Markers are used to select actions on the Main Action Track. The Bonus Action Markers and Fuel Tank Marker are used to select bonus actions and to track the fuel for the ships. The discs are used to track the progress on the Port Sales Tracks.
The white discs are used on the Round Timer Track, the Seafood Track, and the Repopulation Location Track.
The Cardboard Tiles
The game contains several different cardboard tiles:
The Cargo Box Tiles are used to increase the Storage Capacity of the boats. The players get Bonus Tiles, when they use certain Bonus actions. The Coins are the currency of the game. The Seafood/Cooked Seafood Tiles can be fished in the Gulf of Mexico, and are cooked when players already have a certain Boat Upgrade. The Port Bonus Tiles give bonuses when certain Seafood is sold at the port where the matching tile is present. The players get Port Sales Track Reward Tiles when they are first to reach certain spaces on the Port Sales Tracks. Finally, the Depletion/Repopulation Tiles are used to track the fishing activities on the different Fishing Locations.
Game Preparations
A. Place the Main Game Board in the center of the table. Place the money, Seafood Tiles, Bonus Tiles, Depletion/Repopulation Tiles, and Loan Cards near the Main Game Board to form the reserve pool.
B. Choose a starting player at random. The starting player gets $4, the second player gets $5, the third player get $5, and the fourth player gets $6.
C. Each player chooses a color and takes the Player Board, all wooden components, both Fuel Tank Tiles, and both Cargo Box Tiles for that color. Each player gets a Reference Sheet.
D. Each player places one disc on the first space of each of the three Port Sales Tracks, and the Fuel Tank Marker on the "6" space of the Fuel Tank at the bottom of their Player Boards.
E. Each player places their boat in the Morgan City port hex at the top of the Main Game Board.
F. Shuffle the Game Cards to be used depending on the number of players, and place them facedown near the main board to create the draw pile. Deal six Game Cards to each player, which they take in their hand without showing them to the other players.
G. Separate the Round Cards into two stacks: one stack with the cards showing an "A" on the back for the early game and one stack with the cards showing a "B" for the late game. Shuffle these two stacks separately, and discard four cards from each stack blindly to the box. Place the remaining four "A"-cards face down as a draw stack, and reveal the topmost card, which will be active for the first round. Place the remaining four "B"-cards as a face down draw stack, too, and place each player's second bonus action marker on top of it.
H. Place a white disc on the darker space of the appropriate Round Timer Track based on the number of players. Place a white disc on the Shrimp space of the Seafood Track. Place the last white disc on the top "Same Hex" space on the Repopulation Location Track.
I. Populate the initial Fishing Locations in order. Do not use the Repopulation Location Track for this initial population:
- For a game with 2 players, only use the eight fishing locations that are marked with numbered buoys.
- For a game 3 or 4 players, add the additional fishing location hexes marked with the matching icons.
Shuffle the appropriate Seafood Cards based on the number of players and reveal the top card. Move the marker clockwise on the Seafood Track a number of spaces as shown on the top of the card. Then, populate the first Fishing Location with the quantity shown on the bottom of the card and the type of Seafood shown on the track.
Reveal the second card and populate the second Fishing Location accordingly. Continue this moving from buoy to buoy from left-to-right, top-to-bottom until all of the initial Fishing Locations are populated (8 locations for 2 players, 10 for 3 players, and 12 for 4 players).
EXAMPLE: In a three player game populate the first buoys in this order.
J. To create the Repopulation Deck, shuffle again all of the Seafood Cards (excluding any cards removed for a 2 player or 3 player game) and place it face down next to the main board.
K. Shuffle the Port Bonus Tiles. Place one each on the spaces next to the three Ports.
L. Shuffle the Port Sales Track Reward Tiles and place one face up on the 7th and 11th spaces (marked with a square) of each Port Sale Tracks.
M. Finally, beginning with the starting player, each player chooses 1 Fishing License from their starting hand, pays the license costs to the reserve pool, and tucks the card under the appropriate license area at the top of their Player Board. Then, they draw 1 Game Card to refill their hand back up to 6 cards.
EXAMPLE: Marion pays $4 to the reserve pool and adds a crab license to her player board.
Now, the game begins
Sequence of Play
Captains of the Gulf is played over eight rounds. Starting with the first player, play proceeds clockwise. The game's timing is controlled by the combination of the eight Round Cards and the appropriate Round Timer Track based on the number of players.
Each Round Timer Track is divided into a number of spaces equal to the number of players in a game. Any time a player's Action Track Marker passes the wheel spoke marked with the ring bouy tile (between the Commercial Market and the Fuel Dock actions on the Main Action Track), the disc on the Round Timer Track moves forward one space clockwise. It does not matter what space the player's Action Track Marker started or ended on; only that it crossed over that spoke.
When the disc on the Round Timer Track returns back to the darker space, it triggers the next Reset Phase. The player finishes their turn including any bonus actions, before play is interrupted by the Reset Phase. The player triggering the Reset Phase lays down their Action Track Marker to show that they were the player to end the round. The next player in turn order will take the first action of the following round.
The last full round of the game begins when the last (eighth) Round Card is revealed during a Reset Phase. After that, when the disc on the Round Timer Track moves back around to the darker space, it signals the last turn. The player whose move on the Main Action Track triggered the last turn then finishes their main action and any available bonus actions.
The players perform a final Reset Phase - skipping the Repopulation. Then, in turn order, each player who still has Seafood tiles on their boat is allowed to take a final Market action to sell it - forfeiting advancement on the Port Track where they sell it. If their boat is offshore when the game ends, they must first sail to the Port of their choice, paying the appropriate fuel, and sell their remaining Seafood. After this, final scoring is done based on players' positions on each Port Track.
The Main Actions and Bonus Actions in Detail
Starting with the first player, each player takes a turn by placing their Action Track Marker on any space on the Main Action Track and taking the appropriate action. There is no cost for the first placement on the track, but depending on the action selected, there may be a cost for the action itself.
On all turns after the first, players take their turn by moving their Main Action Marker CLOCKWISE to any desired space on the track. On their turn, they MUST move to a new space on the track. Depending on the number of spaces moved, there may be a movement cost associated, see the table.
HINT: The players can move their Action Markers at maximum 6 spaces.
Players cannot take loans to pay for track movement. If through poor planning, the player sets theirself too far away from the next space they need to move to and cannot afford to pay for the movement, they will have to move to a space they can reach and either take the action there (if possible) or land there and forfeit their turn.
If a player hires a First Mate of any kind, the cost to move 3 - 6 spaces on the Main Action Track is reduced by $1; which would mean moving 1 - 3 spaces would be free, 4 spaces would cost $1, 5 spaces would cost $2, and 6 spaces would cost $3. This discount increases if a player hires additional First Mates. The lowest cost for movement is always $0.
The Main Actions on the Main Action Track
The actions Fuel Dock, Shipyard, and Commercial Market can only be used if the player's boat is at one of the three Ports.
When using the actions Fishing, Sail to Port, and Fishing OR Sail to Port, the player moves their boat from hex to hex to reach fishing locations or to get back to any of the three ports.
Fuel Dock: The player moves their marker on the Fuel Tank of their Player Board to the current maximum allowed. There is no cost for the fuel. Default maximum Fuel Storage is 6 fuel.
EXAMPLE: Marion gets fuel at the Fuel Dock and moves her marker to 6.
Fishing: The player moves their boat to a Fishing Location that has Seafood present, and pays 1 fuel per hex moved (in addition to any other modifiers from Upgrades or Round Cards).
If at the start of this turn, the player's boat was already on a Fishing Location that they previously fished on and the player wants to fish on again, they idle with their boat and pay 1 fuel for the Idle Cost.
Then, the player discards 1 Game Card from their hand to pick up the quantity and type of seafood on the card that matches the seafood on the fishing location. The Licenses the player added to their Player Board determine the type and quantity of Seafood that they can fish at one time. Additionally, the player can never have more Seafood tiles on their boat than what their maximum Seafood Storage allows (limited to 2 if they have no additional Cargo Box Tiles).
For each Seafood Tile the player picks up, they put down a Depletion Tile on the Fishing Location they fished.
The player finishes the Fishing action by drawing Game Cards to refill their hand back up to six cards.
EXAMPLE: Angelika already added two Shrimp Licenses and two Oyster Licenses to her Player Board but did not upgrade her Seafood Storage with additional Cargo Boxes. Thus, she plays one Game Card allowing her to fish two Shrimp, which she also can store (alternatively, if the fishing ground has the Seafood tiles, she could also fish two Oysters, or 1 Shrimp and 1 Oyster). She cannot fish or store any Crab, nor can she fish or store more than 2 tiles of Shrimp and/or Oysters total in a single Fishing action. Angelika places two Depletion Tiles on the fishing location and draws one Game Card to refill her hand back to six cards.
Some more rules for Sailing during actions Fishing and Sail to Port:
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The minimum cost of fuel when Sailing is 1 fuel. If a player has the Improved Propellor Upgrade and only needs to move 1 hex, they cannot move for free. The player must always pay at least 1 fuel whenever they move their boat. The only exception is the Improved Engine Upgrade, which allows a player to idle without paying the cost of 1 fuel.
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If a player takes an action to sail to a Port and does not have enough fuel to cover the cost, they have to pay a Towing Penalty. First, the player calculates the Fuel Cost required, taking any Boat Upgrades and the active Round Card into account, if applicable. Then, they pay however much fuel they have on their Player Board. Any remaining Fuel Cost that they did not have fuel to cover, they pay $1 per hex. A player cannot be towed to a Fishing Location, only to a Port.
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If a player has to pay a penalty from a Towing Cost or Round Card and does not have enough money to pay it, they must take a Loan Card. For each Loan Card they are forced to take, the player gets $5 from the reserve pool. The player can pay back loans at any time on their turn at a cost of $8 per Loan Card. When a Loan Card is paid back, the player places it back to the reserve pool.
A player can never choose to take a Loan Card voluntarily to get money to add Game Cards to their boat or pay to move on the Main Action Track. Loans can only be taken when a player cannot afford to pay a Towing Cost or Round Card Cost.
Sail to Port: The player moves their boat from a Fishing Location to one of the 3 Ports, and pays 1 fuel per hex moved (in addition to any other modifiers from Upgrades or Round Cards).
EXAMPLE: Angelika moves her ship to the Port of Tampa. As she moves 2 spaces, she pays 2 fuel for this Sail to Port action.
Fishing OR Sail to Port: The player either uses the Fishing or Sail to Port action - as explained above.
Shipyard: The player adds 1 or 2 Game Cards to their Player Board as Fishing Licenses, Crew Members, or Boat Upgrades.
If the player adds only 1 card to their boat, they pay the cost of the item on the card and tuck the card under the appropriate area of their Player Board so that only the item they added is showing. If the player chooses to add 2 cards in a single turn, they pay the added costs shown for both items plus an extra $1 total.
The minimum cost when adding a card to your Player Board is $1.
The player finishes the Shipyard action by drawing Game Cards to refill their hand back up to 6 cards.
EXAMPLE: Angelika decides to buy a Fuel Engineer, and a Crab License. She pays a total of $9 for both cards: $4 for the Fuel Engineer plus $4 for the Crab License plus an extra $1 total for buying two cards at once.
Commercial Market: The player sells any or all Seafood Tiles currently stored on their Player Board in exchange for money, along with advancing on the Sales Track for that port. For each Seafood tile they sell, the player receives the appropriate amount of money listed below, adjusted for any Round Card or Port Bonus Tile in effect, as explained in the Glossary starting on page 10.
Then, the player advances their disc on the Port Sales Track for that port. How far is determined by how many Seafood Tiles the player sells and if they are mixed of more than one of the three types of Seafood.
The player moves their disc one space to the right on the track for the appropriate port for each Seafood Tile they sell. For selling two different types of Seafood, the player moves their disc one additional space to the right, for selling all three types of Seafood, they move their disk two additional spaces to the right.
Additionally, the three First Mates also give one additional space on the tracks when the player sells the type of Seafood that matches the First Mate.
If a player's disc is the first one to reach a space on a track that has a Port Sales Track Reward Tile, the player can use it once immediately, receive the benefits, and discard the tile afterwards. Each reward tile offers a one-time use only benefit, as explained in the Glossary on page 11.
EXAMPLE: Angelika sells two Shrimp at Tampa, which has the matching Port Bonus Tile. She gets a total of $6 for this sale, $2 for each Shrimp tile, and an additional $1 each, as the people's special taste in Tampa is Shrimp. Angelika moves her disc on the Port Sales Track for Tampa 2 spaces to the right. She is the first to reach the Port Sales Track Reward Tile. She immediately uses the tile to draw a Game Card.
At the end of the game players potentially score additional money depending on where their disc finishes on each port's Port Sales Track. Additionally, only one player's disc can occupy the last dark space of each port's Port Sales Track. Reaching this space gives the player a $3 bonus at the end of the game.
Bonus Action Spaces
There are two types of Bonus Action Spaces: Port and Boat. The player can only take Port Bonus Actions if their boat is at a Port. They can take Boat Bonus Actions if their boat is at a Port or at Sea on any Fishing Location.
The players start the game with only one Bonus Action Marker. Their second Bonus Action Marker is placed on the stack of "B"-Round Cards. At the start of the fifth round, the players get that second Bonus Action Marker and the ability to take two Bonus Actions per round for the second half of the game in rounds 5 - 8.
If a player has not already used their Bonus Action Marker(s) in the current round, they may take a Bonus Action either before or after they take their Main Action, but they always must take them during their own turns, never in another player's turn.
A player is limited to one Bonus Action per turn. Bonus Action Markers stay on the space they are used on until the next Reset Phase.
Each player can use all Port Bonus Actions, and during rounds 5 - 8, a player can choose to use the same Port or Boat Bonus Action twice per round.
Boat Bonus Actions: These two actions are available for use at the start of the game. A player can add up to three additional Boat Bonus Actions by adding certain Boat Upgrades to the right of their Player Board. These additional Boat Bonus Actions are explained in the Glossary starting on page 10.
Printer: The player adds one Game Card as a Fishing License to their Player Board and pays the cost of the Fishing License plus an extra $1. Then, the player draws one Game Cards to refill their hand back up to 6 cards.
Radar: The player draws two Game Cards and adds them to their hand. Then, the player discards two Game Cards of their choice from their hand.
Port Bonus Actions: These four actions are available for use at the start of the game.
Day Laborer: The player takes $2 from the reserve pool.
Dockside Improvement: The player adds one Game Card to their Player Board as either Crew Member or Boat Upgrade, and pays the cost of the item plus $1. Then, the player draws one Game Cards to refill their hand back up to 6 cards. The minimum cost when adding a card to your Player Board is $1.
Dockside Market: The player sells a maximum of two Seafood Tiles stored on their Player Board to the reserve pool, for each Deckhand added to their Player Board they can sell an additional Seafood tile. The player takes money for the sale, along with advancing on the Port Sales Track for that port. For each Seafood tile they sell, the player receives the appropriate amount of money listed on the Reference Sheet, adjusted for any Round Card or Port Bonus Tile in effect.
As explained above for the Commercial Market action, the player moves their disc to the right on the track for the appropriate port for the Seafood Tiles they sell.
EXAMPLE: Marion sails back to a port. As she needs some money for the Shipyard action, she decides to sell her Seafood at the Dockside Market. She has a Deckhand, so she can sell two Oyster and one Crab for $10.
Buy Fuel: The player pays $1/$2/$3 to buy 3/6/9 fuel, and moves their marker on the Fuel Tank of their Player Board. The player cannot exceed the current maximum allowed by their Fuel Tank.
Some Bonus Action Spaces are noted with a "B". When a player chooses such a Bonus Action, besides using the effect, they also take one Bonus Tile. The front of these Bonus Tiles shows a single "B", the back shows three "B". If a player has two single tiles, and earns a third, they discard one of the tiles and flip the other over to show that they now have three tiles.
A player can use these Bonus Tiles immediately or on a later turn and can be used in the following ways:
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When taking any Market action, the player can discard a maximum of one Bonus Tile to advance an additional space on the Port Sales Track where they are selling the Seafood.
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When taking any Fishing action, the player can use Bonus Tiles to turn the Seafood symbols on their played Game Card(s) to "wild", so they can pick up a type of Seafood that does not match the icon(s) on the card played. Any Seafood icons on the Game Card that do not match the type of Seafood the player is fishing can be covered with one Bonus Tile each to allow the player to pick up the Seafood even if the card icon(s) are different than what they are fishing. All the normal rules about Fishing still apply as it relates to Licenses and Storage.
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For each Bonus Tile the player discards, they can draw one Game Card. There is no limit to times the player can take this action at one time. After drawing cards, the player may need to discard back down to a hand of six cards.
Reset Phase and Repopulation
When the disc moves back to the darker space of the Round Timer Track, it triggers the next Reset Phase. In each Reset Phase, the players go through the following steps in order:
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Each player retrieves their Bonus Action Marker(s) back, if they used them.
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The players address the current face up Round Card if it has a stop sign icon in the top-left corner and activate its effect. Afterwards, they reveal the next card from the first stack of Round Cards, and place it on top of the last Round Card to show it is active for the next round. At the end of the fourth round, when the first stack is depleted, all players get their second Bonus Marker, and reveal the topmost card of the second Round Stack.
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The players repopulate Fishing Locations where needed, and remove or flip Depletion Tiles where needed. Repopulation takes place in the following order to ensure that the timing of the Repopulation follows the correct flow of a game's progression. The players always check the Fishing Locations starting from the top left and proceed in a left-to-right, top-to-bottom progression.
a) First, the players identify any Fishing Locations that have a Repopulation Tile but have NO Depletion Tile. These hexes trigger a Repopulation action.
The players draw the top card from the Repopulation Deck. The card shows the number of spaces (0, 1, or 2) to move the discs on the Seafood Track and Repopulation Location Track, so these tracks show the type of Seafood and the Fishing Location that it will spawn to in relation to the Fishing Location that triggered the Repopulation, and the quantity (2, 3, or 4) of Seafood tiles, which the players place on the location.
If the new Fishing Location would not be a legal location, the players move the disc on the Repopulation Location Track one space clockwise until a legal space is selected. Locations that would not be legal are any of the 3 Port hexes, the outer grass hexes, and the bottom edge below the bottom-most row of hexes, which show the South border of the Gulf.
Remove the Repopulation Tile before moving on to the next Fishing Location triggering a Repopulation. The players follow the same steps with the discs on the Seafood Track and Repopulation Location Track starting their movement from the last space they ended at.
b) After repopulating all Fishing Locations that needed it, the players identify any Fishing Locations that have only one Depletion Tile. They flip that tile on that hex to the Repopulation side, showing that it will be repopulated in the next Reset Phase so long as no additional Depletion Tiles are added in the next round.
c) Finally, the players identify any Fishing Locations that have two or more Depletion Tiles present. They remove one Depletion Tile from each of these hexes, and place them back into the reserve pool.
EXAMPLE: Marion checks each Fishing Location. She identifies a hex that has triggered a Repopulation action, and repopulates it before continuing to check the remainder of the Gulf for Repopulation. She draws a card from the Repopulation Deck. After moving both discs one space each on the Seafood Track (to the Oyster space), and on the Repopulation Location Track (to the Up-Right space), Marion places three Oyster tiles on the Fishing Location up and to the right of the hex that triggered the Repopulation.
Next, she removes one of the two Depletion Tiles on the Fishing Locations containing the buoy "7".
The End of the Game and Final Scoring
After finishing the last full round, the players perform a final Reset Phase - skipping the Repopulation. Then, in turn order, each player who still has Seafood tiles on their boat is allowed to take a final Market action to sell it - forfeiting advancement on the Port Track where they sell it. If their boat is offshore when the game ends, they must first sail to the Port of their choice, paying the appropriate fuel, and sell their remaining Seafood.
After the last player finishes their final actions, bonus payments are awarded for positions on the three Port Sales Tracks and Penalties must be paid for unpaid Loan Cards.
First, the players check the three Port Sales Tracks. Depending on their position on these tracks, the players potentially lose or gain money.
- If a player's disc is on one of the light-colored spaces at the start of the track, that player loses $5 for that track.
- If the disc is on the final dark space of a track, that player gets $3.
- Additionally, the player receives money depending on the furthest Star spaces their discs have reached or passed on all three Port Sales Tracks. If they reach or pass a blue Star, they ignore the white Star. The player gets money for the different types of Stars. If they reach multiple Stars of the same type, they get more money!
EXAMPLES: Angelika (blue discs) would get $10: $3 for reaching 1 final dark space (Morgan City), $6 for reaching 1 yellow Star (Morgan City), and $1 for reaching 1 white Star (Tampa).
Marion (yellow discs) would lose $1: -$5 for being on 1 light-colored space (Morgan City), $1 for reaching 1 white Star (Corpus Christi), and $3 for reaching 1 blue Star (Tampa).
Donna (red discs) would get $6: $3 for reaching 2 white Stars (Morgan City & Corpus Christi), and $3 for reaching 1 blue Star (Tampa).
- For each Loan Card, which the player did not pay back, they lose $8.
Finally, the player adds up all their money, which they earned during the game and received for the Port Sales Tracks. The player with the most money is the winner. In the event of a tie, the tied player with the most fuel remaining on their boat is the winner. If there is still a tie, all tied players share the victory.
Glossary
Game Cards
Game cards have two uses: to be added to a player's Player Board OR to be discarded when taking a Fishing action. When adding a Game Card to the Player Board, only the section of the card that is visible is active. Game Cards that are added to a Player Board cannot be removed or discarded.
Fishing Licenses
Fishing Licenses are located on the top section of the Game Cards. There is one license for each type of Seafood. Each license allows a player to fish and/or store one tile of the matching Seafood.
Crew Members
Crew Members are located on the left section of the Game Cards. There are three categories of Crew Members: First Mates, Engineers, and Deckhands. Each of these categories has several special types that provide unique bonuses.
A player can only have one of each of a specialized Crew Member. For instance, a player can have one each of all three types of First Mates, but they cannot have 2 Shrimp First Mates.
First Mates: There are three different types of First Mates: Specialized on Shrimp, Oyster, or Crabs.
For each First Mate, the player can move their disc one additional space on the Port Sales Tracks when selling the matching type of Seafood during a Commercial Market action or a Dockside Market action. That additional space is for the Market action, not the amount of Seafood Tiles sold.
Each First Mate added to the Player Board gives that player a discount of $1 to move their Action Track Marker around the Main Action Track.
Engineers: There are three different types of Engineers: Specialized on Fuel, Maintenance, or Boat Upgrades.
Fuel Engineer: This Engineer gives a bonus of $1 whenever the player takes any Fuel action, either on the Main Action Track or for one of the Bonus Actions (Fuel Dock or Fuel Line). This money is received at the start of the action. So, it can be used to pay for the Bonus Actions that require $1 to buy the fuel.
Maintenance Engineer: This Engineer gives a discount of $1 for Maintenance including Round Cards and Towing.
Boat Upgrade Engineer: This Engineer gives a discount of $1 whenever the player adds any Boat Upgrade to their Player Board.
Deckhands: These three Deckhands allow the player to use two Game Cards when taking a Fishing action instead of being limited to only using one Game Card. This bonus is only allowed if the player is fishing the type(s) of Seafood shown on the Deckhand they have added to their Player Board. Each Deckhand gives the player this ability for two types of Seafood as noted by the icons.
Each Deckhand added to the Player Board allows the player to sell an additional Seafood Tile to the maximum quantity when selling at the Dockside Market Bonus Action.
Boat Upgrades
Boat upgrades are located on the right section of the Game Cards. A player can only have a maximum of one of each type of Boat Upgrade, except for the Seafood Storage. The player can have a maximum of two of this type of Boat Upgrade.
Crew Quarters: This Upgrade gives a discount of $1 for any Crew Members hired.
Improved Propeller: This Upgrade gives a discount of 1 fuel cost every time the player takes a Sail action.
Tool Box: This Upgrade improves the bonuses given by all Engineers added to the Player Board. The bonus either increases the benefit of the Engineer whose action is being used. Only 1 Tool Box is needed regardless of how many engineers you have hired.
The actions of the Engineers changes as follows:
- The Fuel Engineer gives a bonus of $2 when taking a fuel action.
- The Maintenance Engineer gives a discount of $2 on Maintenance and Towing Costs.
- The Boat Upgrade Engineer gives a discount of $2 when buying Boat Upgrades.
Seafood Storage: This Upgrade increases the Seafood Storage by either one or two Cargo Boxes to a total of three or four boxes, depending on which one the player buys and adds to their boat. The player adds the appropriate number of Cargo Box Tiles to their Player Board.
To get a total of four Cargo Boxes, a player can buy two small upgrades and add one Cargo Box for each of these cards, or he directly buys the big upgrade with two Cargo Boxes. If the player first adds a small upgrade, and later wants to buy a big upgrade, they pay the difference costs between these two cards, add the fourth Cargo Box, discard the small Boat Upgrade Card and replace it with the big Boat Upgrade Card on their Player Board.
Fuel Tank: This Upgrade increases the maximum allowed fuel amount to either 8 or 10. The player adds the appropriate Fuel Tank Tile to their Player Board, but they do not immediately get to move their Fuel Tank Marker to the new maximum. The player will need to either take the Fuel action or buy fuel with the Fuel Bonus Action to raise the fuel to the new level.
The player does not need to add the small Fuel Tank Upgrade for a maximum of eight fuel first. They can directly add the big Fuel Tank Upgrade for a maximum of 10 fuel. If the player first adds the small Fuel Tank and later wants to add the big Fuel Tank, they pay the difference costs, replace the small Fuel Tank Tile with the big Fuel Tank Tile, discard the small Boat Upgrade Card and replace it with the big Boat Upgrade Card on their Player Board.
Bonus Action Boat Upgrades
There are three Boat Upgrades that give additional, unique Bonus Actions which other players do not have access to unless they have also added these Boat Upgrades to their Player Boards. Using these Boat Upgrades works the same as using the Bonus Action Spaces on the Main Game Board. The player places their Bonus Action Markers on the upgrade and performs the appropriate bonus action.
Improved Engine: This Upgrade ALWAYS allows the player to idle without paying the required 1 fuel (no bonus action needed). Also, the player can use it as a bonus action to Sail to Port after taking a fishing action, with a discount of 1 fuel for sailing.
Galley: This Upgrade allows the player as a bonus action to cook all Seafood tiles currently on their Player Board. The player pays $1 and flips all Seafood tiles to show the Cooked Seafood side. Each Cooked Seafood Tile still takes up one space in the Seafood Storage (the same as it would if it was uncooked).
Cooked Seafood pays an additional $1 over the uncooked version of the same type of Seafood. Selling cooked seafood grants the same advancement on the port track where it is sold.
Fuel Line: This Upgrade allows the player to buy fuel, even while at sea. The player pays $1/$2/$3 to buy 3/6/9 fuel, and moves their marker on the Fuel Tank of their Player Board. The player cannot exceed the current maximum allowed by their Fuel Tank.
Port Bonus Tiles
Port Bonus Tiles give bonuses when certain Seafood is sold at the port where the matching tile is present. There are three Port Bonus Tiles. Once dealt to a port during Game Preparations, the Port Bonus Tiles are permanent for the remainder of the current game.
Specific Tastes: These three tiles give a bonus of an additional $1 to every Tile of the specified type of Seafood (cooked and uncooked) that is sold in any Market action in a port where the tile is active.
Port Sales Track Reward Tiles
If a player takes a Port Sales Track Reward Tile, they can use it once immediately receive the benefits, and discard the tile afterwards.
Take Money: The player takes two or three coins from the reserve pool.
Get Fuel: The player moves their Fuel Marker on the Fuel Tank of their Player Board either three or six spaces to the right. The player cannot exceed the current maximum allowed by their Fuel Tank.
Draw a Card: The player draws one Game Card and adds it to their hand. Then, the player discards one Game Card of their choice from their hand.
Round Cards
The current round card is active until the next reset phase. Some round cards affect actions during the round and are identified by an icon in the top left of the card. Other cards either require a penalty to be paid or grant a bonus. These cards are dealt with during the next reset phase and are identified by a stop-sign icon in the top left. If you cannot afford to pay the penalty, you will have to take a loan (or loans if 1 loan is not enough to cover the cost).
Cards Showing "A" on the Back
Boat Show: At the Reset Phase, each player takes a reward of $1 for each Game Card added to their boat (Crew, Boat Upgrade, and Fishing License).
Maintenance: At the Reset Phase, each player must pay $3, plus an extra $1 for every Boat Upgrade they have added to the right of their Player Board.
Provisions: At the Reset Phase, each player must pay $2, plus an extra $1 for every Crew they have added to the left of their Player Board.
Renew Licenses: At the Reset Phase, each player must pay half of the costs (rounded up) of all of their Fishing Licenses they have added to their player board.
Migration: At the End of the Reset Phase, the players move the white discs on the Seafood Track and Repopulation Location Track forward one space. For every Fishing Location with the selected type of Seafood, they move the Seafood Tiles of that type in the direction indicated by the Repopulation Location Track. They ignore all Fishing Locations that have boats present.
Tropical Storm: During this round, each player pays an additional fuel for each Sail action to Fish or to Port.
Coast Guard Inspection: At the Reset Phase, each player must pay either 2 fuel plus $1 OR they must pay $3.
Few Customers: During the round, each player advances their markers one space less on the Port Sales Tracks with each Market action.
Seafood Market: During this round, all Seafood tile pays an extra $1 with any Market action.
Smooth Workflow: During this round, each player gets a discount of $1 to move on the Main Action Track.
Good Weather: During this round, each player gets a discount of 1 fuel for each Sail action to Fish or to Port.
Labor Discount: During this round, each player gets a discount of $1 for each Crew Member they hire.
Fisherman's Almanac: During this round, any time a player draws cards, they may draw an additional card. Afterwards, if necessary they always must discard down to a hand of six cards.
Good Haul: During this round, each player can play an additional Game Card when Fishing. All other rules regarding Fishing still apply.
Delivery Truck: During this round, when a player takes a Market action, they may pay $1 to advance on a different city's Port Sales Track than the one where they are taking the Market action.
Cards Showing "B" on the Back
Natural Selection: At the End of the Reset Phase, the players move the white disc on the Seafood Track forward one space. For every Fishing Location with the selected type of Seafood, they remove one Seafood Tile of the selected type. They ignore all Fishing Locations that have boats present.
Credits
Design: Jason Dinger
Development: Henning Kröpke, Uli Blennemann
Graphics: Harald Lieske
Rules Layout: Filip Stránský
Copyright 2018 Spielworxx, Nielande 12, D-48727 Billerbeck, www.spielworxx.de