Coffee Roaster Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Materials
• Set-up of the Game
• Course of the Game
• Phase 1: Roasting
  • 1. Increase the temperature
  • 2. Draw tokens out of the cloth bag
  • 3. Remove moisture
  • 4. Use tokens for effects (optional)
  • 5. Roasting: Increase the roast levels of the Bean tokens
  • 6. Decision: cancel or continue the roasting process
• Phase 2: Cup-testing
• Scoring
• Next Game
• End of the Game
• Appendix
  • Immediate effects
  • Flavor effects
  • Cup effects
• App
• Credits

Game Materials

• 1 double-sided Roast board (standard side and light/simplified side)
• 1 double-sided Thermostat and Roast-counter board (standard side and light/simplified side)
• 1 game round marker
• 1 Roast marker
• 103 Bean tokens: 14 hard bean, 81 roasted bean (18 roast level 0, 18 roast level 1, 18 roast level 2, 15 roast level 3, 12 roast level 4, 8 burned bean)
• 16 Flavor tokens: 5 body, 5 acidity, 5 aroma, 1 wild flavor
• 19 other tokens: 8 moisture, 5 smoke, 6 defective bean
• 1 cloth bag
• 5 Cup-effect tokens: 1 extra bean, 1 sweetness, 1 selection, 1 exchange, 1 cardboard tray
• 2 sets of 22 double-sided Coffee cards (German, English)
• 2 overview cards (German, English)
• 2 information cards (German, English)
• 1 score pad
• 2 instruction booklets (German, English)

Set-up of the Game

In what follows, the rules always refer to the standard version of the game: Here, the Roast board and the Thermostat and Roast-counter board are laid out in such a way that 2 weights are visible at the top right of the standard side. When you play COFFEE ROASTER for the first time, you can also try out the simplified version: In this case, you lay out the boards so that the light side is facing up. Additional aids make the roasting and the cup-testing easier, for quicker success.

1. Lay out the large Roast board in front of you on the table.
2. Place the Thermostat and Roast-counter board above the Roast board, as shown in the illustration.
3. Then lay out the round Cup-testing board in such a way that it fits into the recess on the right of the Roast board.
4. Put the Roast marker on space "0" of the Roast-counter track.
5. Mix the 5 square Cup-effect tokens face down on the table and place them on the empty square spaces of the Roast board; then reveal them.
6. Place the "wild flavor" token on the empty oval space in the center of the Roast board.
7. Put as many "smoke" tokens on the thermostat spaces highlighted in red as indicated; on the standard side, 2 and 3 tokens.
8. Select a type of coffee from the Coffee cards: For a single choice, you choose any one Coffee card and play only this one card. During a roast challenge, you roast 3 different varieties of coffee. For your first game, select a Coffee card of roast level group I (light brown), which is a suitable difficulty level for a beginner. What card to select for your second and third games depends on your results (see Next Game).
9. The Coffee cards show how many of which tokens you need for the current game. Take these tokens out of the box and place them face up in front of you.

On the light side of the Roast board, you pick 1 Flavor token of each type from the tokens lying in front of you (1x "body," 1x "acidity," and 1x "aroma") and place them at the top left of the board. These Flavor tokens will automatically be available to you during the following roasting rounds, as if you had just drawn them. You can use them for effects during the roasting procedure, leave them on the spaces, or throw them into the cloth bag at the end of the roasting phase.

The Coffee card shows the roast level group, the difficulty level, the roast points scale, and the starting bag contents.

10. Now put the tokens that are still lying in front of you into the cloth bag.
11. Place the game round marker on the thermostat as follows: The number of "moisture" tokens that are in the cloth bag (as indicated on the Coffee card) determines the position of the game round marker.

Example: Andrea has chosen a Coffee card of a variety that starts with 7 "moisture" tokens. Consequently, the game round marker is set on the space with the "7."

The roasting procedure can begin!

Course of the Game

COFFEE ROASTER is divided into 2 phases:

In the 1st phase, the roasting takes place in several roasting rounds during which you draw tokens out of the cloth bag. Bean tokens are roasted, and you can use various effects to influence the roasting. After each roasting round, you can choose to end the roasting phase and to proceed to the 2nd phase, the cup-testing. (You must end the roasting phase at the latest when you can no longer move the game round marker ahead.)

In the 2nd phase, you do the cup-testing. Here, you keep drawing tokens out of the cloth bag until all ten oval spaces of the Cup-testing board are occupied. The values of the coffee beans and the composition of the Flavor tokens in the cup determine how well you have proven yourself as a roaster.

Phase 1: Roasting

Course of a roasting round:

1. Increase the temperature
2. Draw tokens out of the cloth bag
3. Remove moisture
4. Use tokens for effects (optional)
   • a. Use immediate effects
   • b. Use flavor effects
5. Roasting: Increase the roast levels of the Bean tokens
   • a. Increase the roast level
   • b. Clean up
   • c. Operate the roast-counter (optional)
6. Decision: cancel or continue the roasting process

1. Increase the temperature

The thermostat also acts as your gauge for the round. It determines:

• how many tokens are drawn in the current round.
• to what level the coffee beans are being roasted.
• whether additional "smoke" tokens have to be put into the cloth bag.

To begin with, move the game round marker on the thermostat one space to the right.

This step is omitted in the first roasting round, since the game round marker is placed for the first time according to the "moisture" tokens on the Coffee card.

Whenever you move the game round marker to a space with "smoke" tokens on it, you immediately add these tokens to the cloth bag.

2. Draw tokens out of the cloth bag

The thermostat indicates the number of tokens to draw out of the cloth bag for the current roasting round. First mix the contents of the cloth bag thoroughly, then draw the required number of tokens and lay them out in front of you. (In doing so, you may not look into the cloth bag!)

If the number of tokens in the cloth bag is lower than the number indicated on the thermostat, draw all tokens left in the bag.

3. Remove moisture

If there are "moisture" tokens among the tokens you have drawn, remove these from the game by putting them back into the box. They are no longer needed for the current game.

Tip! In order to get a better idea of what is left in the cloth bag, we advise you to put all tokens removed for good (this does not include the roasted coffee beans) on the Coffee card instead of back into the box.

4. Use tokens for effects (optional)

This step is optional. If you choose not to use any effects in the current roasting round, simply put the Flavor tokens back into the cloth bag at the end of the roasting round.

It is up to you whether to use the effects currently available or not; but if you use both, you have to observe the following order: first, immediate effects, then, flavor effects.

a. Use immediate effects

Place the token required on the space next to the desired immediate effect on the left section of the Roast board. On a space showing the colors of all three types of Flavor tokens, you are free to place any one Flavor token.

Carry out the respective effect immediately (see Appendix, Immediate effects).

In order to obtain the "wild flavor" token, use 1 bean with a roast level of 0 plus 1 bean with a roast level of 1. You can collect these on the Roast board over several rounds and, once they are complete, immediately exchange them for the "wild flavor" token.

There is no limit on the use of tokens during this step. However, each effect can be used only once per game. Used tokens remain in place until the end of the game, indicating the effect shown next to them has been used.

b. Use flavor effects

Use your Flavor tokens for the following flavor effects (see Appendix, Flavor effects):

• "body" for "concentration"
• "acidity" for "preservation"
• "aroma" for "dispersion"

Bean tokens that are applied to a flavor effect are not roasted.

You can carry out a flavor effect only if you are then able to place the token used for this on an unoccupied space for the activation of a cup effect.

To activate a cup effect, place the token on a color-matching space on the right section of the Roast board. On a space that shows the colors of all three types of Flavor tokens, you are free to place any Flavor token.

The "wild flavor" token can be used for any flavor effect. But after that, it has to be placed according to the type used. If it is used for the "concentration" flavor effect (i.e., as "body"), for example, you then have to place it on a red space or a space showing all colors. If there is no suitable space available, you cannot carry out the flavor effect.

You always need 2 Flavor tokens. These tokens can be placed on the Roast board in different rounds. Once both spaces next to a cup effect are occupied, you place the respective square token for the cup-testing on the designated target space. However, you can use the effect only during the cup-testing. Once placed, the Flavor tokens remain in place until the end of the game.

The cup effects are explained in detail in the Appendix.

5. Roasting: Increase the roast levels of the Bean tokens

a. Increase the roast level

In the roasting process, you increase the roast level of the Bean tokens you have drawn; you do this in the following way:

Increase the roast level of all Bean tokens by 1. To this end, remove the laid-out Bean tokens from the game by putting them into the box, and replace them with beans with a roast level 1 higher, which you immediately add to the cloth bag. In this process, hard beans are upgraded to beans with a roast level of 0. Coffee beans with a roast level of 4 that are roasted again turn into burned beans. These beans are "overroasted" and give you minus points in the end.

The increase of the roast level runs: hard bean → roast level 0 → roast level 1 → roast level 2 → roast level 3 → roast level 4 → burned bean.

The roasting is always done in descending order, beginning with beans of the highest roast level (for instance: roast level 4 → burned bean) down to the lowest roast level (for instance: hard bean → roast level 0).

When you reach a "red zone" on the thermostat, the roast level increases by 2 levels! This way, even beans with a roast level of 3 can burn.

Exception: Hard beans can never be increased by more than 1 roast level; in both cases (normal roasting or roasting in a "red zone"), they become beans with a roast level of 0.

In the rare event that the token in question is not in the box anymore at the point of increasing the roast level, the roast level of the Bean token is not increased. Instead, it is put back into the cloth bag, "unroasted."

b. Clean up

Put all the remaining, unused tokens back into the cloth bag.

c. Operate the Roast-counter (optional)

After the roasting procedure, you can operate the Roast-counter to check how far the roasting has already progressed; for the game play itself, the Roast-counter track is not relevant. To operate it, move the Roast marker 1 space ahead for every increase of a roast level.

Example: Lily has increased the roast level of 4 beans by 1 level each. Consequently, she moves the Roast marker on the Roast-counter track 4 spaces forward. In the next round, the roasting procedure is in a "red zone." She increases each of her next 4 beans by 2 roast levels and advances the Roast marker 8 spaces.

If the Roast marker arrives at space "39" and you want to continue roasting, set the Roast marker back to "0." From then on, always add 40 roast points to the current position on the Roast-counter track.

In certain cases, you have to set the Roast marker back. For every roast level you have lost, you move the Roast marker back 1 space. If, for example, a bean with a roast level of 4 has been roasted into a burned bean, the Roast marker goes back 4 spaces.

6. Decision: cancel or continue the roasting process

Your roasting round is finished. Now decide whether you want to continue the roasting process or proceed directly to the cup-testing instead.

If you continue the roasting, you'll restart with step 1 in the next roasting round. The Roast-counter can help you to make your decision, since it indicates the total roast level of your beans in the cloth bag.

Phase 2: Cup-testing

Course of the cup-testing

Always draw 1 token after the other out of the cloth bag and decide immediately whether you want to put the token into the cup or into the cardboard tray.

If there are no spaces left in the cardboard tray, you must place the token in your cup.

Keep doing this until either all ten oval spaces on the "Cup-testing" board are occupied or the cloth bag is empty.

With the help of the "selection" cup effect, it can occur that you deviate from this rule (see Appendix, Cup effects).

Only if you place the token in the cup will it be considered for the scoring later on. If you place it in the cardboard tray instead, it won't be scored.

• The placement of the tokens is done from top to bottom and from left to right. Therefore, begin at the top row and place the first token on the first unoccupied space from the left in this row. You can identify the last space that can be occupied by the 5 little red x-marks.
• When "moisture" tokens are drawn, they are immediately removed from the game, as usual.
• The tokens can only be placed on unoccupied spaces. You cannot place more than one token on a space.

The second cardboard tray is only available to you after having acquired the "cardboard tray" cup effect in the roasting phase (see Appendix, Cup effects).

Once placed, tokens remain in place; they can be neither removed nor relocated.

The "exchange" cup effect enables you to change the contents of the cup later on (see Appendix, Cup effects).

Once all spaces in the cup are occupied or the cloth bag is empty, the scoring takes place.

If you have acquired the cup effects "extra bean" and/or "sweetness" during the roasting process and placed them in the cup, you cannot occupy the designated spaces with tokens from the cloth bag. But if the spaces are unoccupied, they are filled with tokens from the cloth bag. The spaces for the cup effects "selection" and "exchange," however, are reserved for these tokens and cannot be occupied with tokens from the cloth bag.

Scoring

Determine the score for your cup-testing as follows:

1. Roast points

First determine the total roast level by adding up the roast levels of all Bean tokens in the cup (if applicable, with the "extra bean" cup effect).

The roast point scale of the current Coffee card shows you how many roast points you get for your result. The white numbers indicate the total roast level in your cup; the gray numbers below, the roast points.

Example: Martin's cup contains 3 tokens with a roast level of 2, 1 token with a roast level of 3, and 2 tokens with a roast level of 4. This results in a total roast level of 17 (3 x 2 + 3 + 2 x 4). For this, he scores 6 roast points. The Coffee card "Zambia, Kasama AA" has an optimal roast level of 16, which would result in the highest score (10 roast points).

If the total roast level in the cup is not within the indicated roast point scale, you get no roast points.

On the score pad, record the roast points you have gained.

2. Flavor points

In the area of flavor points, the Coffee card shows you which Flavor tokens best emphasize that type of coffee at the cup-testing. Only Flavor tokens placed in the cup are considered at the scoring.

• The "wild flavor" token can always substitute for 1 Flavor token of your choice.
• A few Coffee cards demand the cup effect "sweetness" as an additional Flavor token. On all the other cards, "sweetness" can replace any Flavor token.
• If 1 Flavor token matches the number of flavor points indicated on the Coffee card, you score 1 point; for 2 matches, you get 3 points; for 3 matches, 6 points; and for 4 matching tokens, you earn 10 points.
• If a Coffee card shows no more than 3 Flavor tokens in the flavor-point area, you can score up to 6 points.
• Any Flavor tokens added to the cup beyond that do not give you any additional points.

Example: The Coffee card requires 2 "aroma" Flavor tokens. Martin's cup contains 2 such tokens. In addition, 1 "acidity" Flavor token is demanded; this token is not in his cup but can be replaced by the cup effect "sweetness." Consequently, Martin scores 6 flavor points for 3 matches.

3. Skill points

You score additional points for 3 or more Bean tokens with the same roast level in the cup. The more Bean tokens with the same roast level are in the cup, the more skill points you get.

For 3 tokens with the same roast level (e.g., 3 Bean tokens with a roast level of 2) in your cup, you earn 1 skill point. Accordingly, you get for:

• 4 tokens of the same level: 2 points
• 5 tokens of the same level: 3 points
• 6 tokens of the same level: 4 points
• 7 or more tokens of the same level: 5 points

Example: For the 3 tokens with a roast level of 2, Martin earns 1 skill point.

4. Minus points

Minus points are subtracted from the total number of points in your cup. They are incurred if the cup contains the following tokens:

Each hard bean, burned bean, and "smoke" token gives you 1 minus point; defective beans, 2 minus points. Any tokens placed in the cardboard tray are not included in the scoring.

Also, you get minus points in the following cases:

• 3 minus points if there is no Flavor token at all in your cup
• 5 minus points if any spaces in your cup remain empty

Example: Martin gets 1 minus point for 1 burned bean.

5. Record the outcome

Enter the type of coffee in the first column on a sheet of the score pad. In the subsequent spaces, write down the roast points, flavor points, skill points, and minus points you got. Add up the roast points, flavor points, and skill points and subtract the minus points from this total. Record the score in the last space of the row. Which Coffee card you may choose for the next game depends on your score (see Next Game).

Example: Overall, Martin scores a total of 12 points.

Next Game

After your first game, remove all leftover tokens from the boards, empty your cloth bag, and put the tokens back into the box. Prepare the boards and tokens anew: place "smoke" tokens on the thermostat; mix Cup-effect tokens and distribute them onto empty spaces; place the "wild flavor" token.

The 22 Coffee cards are divided into 3 roast level groups. They can be identified by the coloring (light brown, middle brown, and dark brown) and by the Roman numeral on the Coffee card. The groups are subdivided into different difficulty levels: beginner, moderate, and expert. This information is also shown on the Coffee cards. In the first game, you play a Coffee card with the roast level group I; in the second game, a card with roast level group II; and in the third game, a card with roast level group III.

According to your score from the previous round, you may now choose the next Coffee card:

If you have scored 9 points or less, you continue with a card of the difficulty level "beginner." With 10 to 14 points, you pick a card of the difficulty level "moderate"; and if your score has been 15 or more, you proceed with the difficulty level "expert."

Starting with the difficulty level "expert" in roast level group I

This is a privilege you first need to earn! Before you can start with the difficulty level "expert" in roast level group I, you have to acquire at least the rank of a mid-level roaster. From then on, you are always free to begin with the difficulty level "expert" in roast level group I.

Master roaster coffees

There are 5 master roaster coffees in COFFEE ROASTER, i.e., 5 very special varieties of coffee that are not only hand-picked but also present a special challenge and are consequently difficult to play.

Each of these roasts has the difficulty level "expert." If you want to ascend to the level of master roaster, you need to venture on these coffee varieties – only these types enable you to achieve particularly high scores!

End of the Game

The roast challenge ends after 3 games. The scores of all three cup-testings are added up on the score pad and determine the roast rank you have achieved.

Additionally, you can enter on the score pad the date and the roast rank you have achieved, so that you will be able to check your progress later on.

Roast rank

Based on your total score, you can interpret your rank according to the following rank overview:

Points	Rank
60 or more	Master roaster
53 to 59	Top roaster
47 to 52	Best roaster in town
40 to 46	Chief roaster
35 to 39	Mid-level roaster
28 to 34	Journeyman roaster
20 to 27	Assistant roaster
less than 19	Apprentice roaster

Appendix

Immediate effects

"Wild flavor" token

The "wild flavor" token can substitute for any Flavor token. If you don't use it for an effect during the current round, you put it into your cloth bag at the end of the roasting round.

Two additional tokens

Immediately draw 2 additional tokens out of the cloth bag and add them to the already-drawn tokens. If there are less than 2 tokens in the cloth bag, this effect cannot be carried out. "Moisture" tokens are removed immediately, and you don't draw any replacement token for them.

Two new tokens

Select 2 of the tokens you have drawn for the roasting round and put them back into the cloth bag. Mix the contents of the cloth bag thoroughly, draw 2 new tokens and add them to the already-drawn tokens. If you draw "moisture" tokens, they are removed immediately, and you don't draw any replacement token for them.

Two out of five

Draw 5 additional tokens out of the cloth bag and place them separately. Select 2 out of these 5 tokens and immediately remove them from the game. Put the other 3 tokens back into the cloth bag.

• You can remove any type of tokens from the game. You always have to remove 2 tokens; you may not remove only 1 or no token.
• If there are less than 5 tokens in the cloth bag, this effect cannot be used.
• "Moisture" tokens are removed immediately. You don't draw any replacement token for them.

Removal

From the tokens you have drawn, remove all burned beans, "smoke" tokens, and defective beans from the game.

Flavor effects

The flavor effects "concentration," "preservation," and "dispersion" allow you to influence Bean tokens that you have drawn in the current roasting round. The Bean tokens involved are immediately put into the cloth bag; they are not roasted.

Flavor effects can be carried out only if there are unoccupied spaces for the activation of a cup effect where you can place them.

Concentration ("body")

Combine 2 Bean tokens into 1 by adding up their roast levels. Remove the 2 Bean tokens from the game and put them into the box. Take a token out of the box – a token with a roast level matching the total of the two removed tokens; put it immediately into the cloth bag.

The "concentration" effect can be applied only to Bean tokens with a roast level of 1, 2 or 3, combining as follows:

• roast level 1 + roast level 1 = roast level 2
• roast level 1 + roast level 2 = roast level 3
• roast level 1 + roast level 3 = roast level 4
• roast level 2 + roast level 2 = roast level 4

Preservation ("acidity")

Put exactly 2 Bean tokens back into the cloth bag, unroasted. This way, you can, for instance, prevent a token with a roast level of 4 from roasting and thus burning.

In this context, the roast level of the two tokens doesn't play a role and can even be different for each token. But in any case, you have to put 2 Bean tokens into the cloth bag. It is not possible to preserve only 1 or even no Bean token. Hard beans, defective beans, and burned beans cannot be preserved.

Dispersion ("aroma")

This flavor effect disperses 1 Bean token into 2 tokens with lower roast levels.

Remove the chosen Bean token from the game and put it back into the box. In return, take 2 Bean tokens out of the box – tokens with roast levels that, in total, match the roast level of the removed token; put them immediately into the cloth bag.

The "dispersion" effect can be applied only to Bean tokens with a roast level of 2, 3 or 4, dispersing as follows:

• roast level 2 = roast level 1 + roast level 1
• roast level 3 = roast level 1 + roast level 2
• roast level 4 = roast level 1 + roast level 3
• roast level 4 = roast level 2 + roast level 2

Cup effects

Extra bean

The "extra bean" is placed on the target space in the cup. With this, the space is occupied and cannot be filled during the cup-testing with a token you have drawn. The "extra bean" is included in the scoring as a bean with a roast level of 3.

Sweetness

The "sweetness" token is placed on the target space in the cup. With this, the space is occupied and cannot be filled during the cup-testing with a token you have drawn. Some Coffee cards require the "sweetness" cup effect for obtaining flavor points. For all other Coffee cards, "sweetness" functions as any Flavor token, i.e., it can take the place of any Flavor token that is still missing.

Selection

The "selection" token is placed on the target space on the Cup-testing board and applies to the two spaces to the left of that space. The following deviation from the normal rules applies to these two spaces:

Draw 2 tokens out of the cloth bag for each of the two spaces. Select 1 of them and place it on the space in the cup. Put the second token back into the cloth bag.

If you draw "moisture" tokens, they are removed immediately, and you keep drawing until you have 2 other tokens.

Exchange

The "exchange" token is placed on the target space at the right inner rim of the cup. This cup effect is optional; that means it doesn't have to be carried out at the cup-testing. But if you choose to use the cup effect, you have to execute it according to the following rules:

• Always remove and replace 2 tokens. You may not replace just 1 token.
• Once all ten spaces in the cup are occupied, you select 2 tokens in the cup to put back into the cloth bag.
• After that, mix the contents of the cloth bag thoroughly and draw 3 new tokens. To reoccupy the two empty spaces, pick 2 of the 3 tokens.
• If you draw "moisture" tokens, they are removed immediately, and you keep drawing until you have 3 other tokens to choose from.

Cardboard Tray

The "cardboard tray" token is placed on the target space at the edge of the bottom cardboard tray on the right section of the Roast board. With the help of this cup effect, you can sort out 2 additional tokens to place on the spaces in the tray.

For play on the light side, this cup effect makes even 3 additional spaces available for sorting out tokens.

App

COFFEE ROASTER not only exists as a board game, but also in digital form, as an app. You can find this app via the QR code printed in the rulebook.

Credits

Author: Saashi Editing: dlp games, Naomi Oelker Translation: Sybille & Bruce Whitehill, "Word for Wort" Illustration: Andrea Boekhoff Graphic design: Martin Kleinke, www.redlinedesign.de

Programmer of the app: Brettspielwelt GmbH, Porzer Str. 40, D-51107 Köln, Germany, www.brettspielwelt.de

© 2019 dlp games Verlag GmbH, Eurode-Park 86, D-52134 Herzogenrath, Germany, www.dlp-games.de