Colorado County Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Our Equipment (Components)
• We Explore the Unknown Valley (The Board and Key Concepts)
• We Settle In (Game Setup)
• Life in the New World (Course of Play)
• Our Reward for Labour (The Valuations)
• We Let Go of Our Land (Land Sale)
• From Pioneer to Major Landowner (End of the Game)
• How We Can Do Even Better (A Few Tactical Tips)
• Rules in Brief

Our Equipment (Components)

• 1 Colorado County game board
• 6 lake tiles of different sizes
• 4 screens (privacy screens)
• 66 cowboys (the cards with a cowboy hat; the original text gives their values as "1 t/m 6", but the rules elsewhere number them 1 to 66, and the rules are followed here)
• 4 pawns (one each in orange, red, black and brown)
• 160 marker stones (forty each in the same colours as the pawns)
• 16 "For Sale" land sale cards
• 48 land cards
• 12 flag stones with 12 flag stickers stuck on them
• 1 bag
• 1 rulebook

We Explore the Unknown Valley (The Board and Key Concepts)

• The game board shows Colorado County as we found it. It is divided into ten times fifteen parcels, so 150 spaces in total. 128 of these can be claimed; we call them land spaces. The others are covered with water after game setup. Around the edge of the board runs the success track; these are the playing spaces with the numbers on them. You start on the "Go!" space.

• The land spaces at the foot of the mountains, that is on the edge of the playing area, are called border spaces.

• To take possession of a land or border space, place one of your marker stones on it. Note: there may always be only one marker stone on each land space. It can neither be attacked nor displaced in any way.

• If a player occupies exactly two spaces that border each other horizontally or vertically, this is called a double space. For example:

  [Diagram in original: examples of a double space ("This is a double space"), a second valid double space ("This also"), and an invalid one ("This not").]

  Everyone may own several double spaces (that do not border each other).

• If a player owns three or more spaces that each border each other horizontally or vertically, this is a connected land area. For example:

  [Diagram in original: examples of a connected land area ("This is a connected land area"), a second valid area ("This also"), and an invalid one ("This not").]

  Again, a player may own several connected land areas.

• Each lake borders several horizontal or vertical spaces. For example:

  [Diagram in original: a lake bordered by six spaces horizontally or vertically ("Six spaces border this lake horizontally or vertically").]

• As soon as a player occupies one or more of these horizontally or vertically adjacent spaces with one or more of their marker stones, the lake also belongs to them. So that everyone knows who owns the lake, this player immediately places an extra marker stone on the lake. For example:

We Settle In (Game Setup)

• Lay out the game board.
• Distribute the small and large lake tiles over the board, so that they lie exactly on land spaces; sometimes they cover two spaces, sometimes five. For a first game, use the following game setup (see the illustration on page 5 of the original; ways to distribute the lake tiles differently are described on page 10).
• Each player takes a screen and places it in front of them.
• The small cards with the cowboy hats (these are our cowboys) go into the bag. Then each player draws fifteen cowboys "blindly" from the bag and places them behind their screen.
• Distribute the marker stones: each player takes all stones in one colour and places them next to their screen; the pawn of the same colour is placed on the start space (GO!) of the success track.
• Each player receives five "For Sale" land sale cards (with four players, four cards). They are also placed next to the screen. (With two or three players, some of these cards are left over; they do not take part and go back into the box.)
• Sort the land cards by their flag colours, shuffle each set, and place four face-down, colour-separated stacks a little away from the board. Then draw the top three cards of each stack, shuffle them together, and place them face down next to the game board as a "stack of twelve".
• Distribute the flag stones (the colours play no role here); they indicate which twelve spaces can be occupied up to the next valuation. With two players each player gets six stones; with three players, everyone gets four; with four players, everyone gets three stones in as many different colours as possible. In turn, one after another, these stones are placed on random spaces. The rule is: flag stones are always placed on random, free spaces, and two flag stones may never be placed directly next to each other horizontally or vertically.

Life in the New World (Course of Play)

Life in the New World has its own laws entirely. Whoever wants to get anywhere here must absolutely observe the following four articles. They divide the course of play and are repeated until all cards from the "stack of twelve" have been turned over, distributed, carried out and removed from the game. The first of a total of four valuations then follows. The four articles are, each in turn:

Article 1

The top cards of the face-down "stack of twelve" can be turned over and laid face up side by side on the table, namely:

• two cards with two or three players, and
• three cards with four players.

Article 2

The cowboys are deployed. They stand by us helpfully and are sent into the land to take possession of it for us. In secret, each player takes an arbitrary number of their cowboys into their hand; for tactical reasons, a player may also take no cowboys into their hand at all, thus bidding zero cowboys. At the same time all players reveal their hand, and it becomes visible who is the most powerful with their cowboys, then the second most powerful, and so on.

How powerful one is, is shown by the number of cowboy cards held in hand. Naturally: with two one is more powerful than with one, with three more powerful than with two, and so on. If several players have brought the same number of cowboys into play, the most powerful is the one with the highest-numbered cowboy (the numbers run from 1 to 66, by the way). With four players, for example, this might look as follows:

• Nelly has three cowboys with the values 16, 21 and 43 in hand.
• Joe has four cowboys with the values 2, 7, 29 and 32 in hand.
• Daisy has three cowboys with the values 4, 5 and 55 in hand.
• Bill has two cowboys with the values 62 and 63 in hand.

Joe's bid is the highest, with four cowboys. Daisy and Nelly have both bid three cowboys. But Daisy has a cowboy with the number 55, and thus has the second-highest bid, while Nelly only came with the number 43; Daisy is therefore second and Nelly third. Bill's bid is the lowest.

Once the turn order of the bids has been determined, all bid cowboys go into the bag.

Article 3

Occupying spaces. The player who has bid the highest power with their cowboys (see Article 2) may now, as the first, choose one of the face-up land cards. They take it, occupy the matching spaces with their marker stones (stay calm, how this works will become clear), and then set the card aside; the card is removed from the game.

Next, the player with the second-highest bid takes their turn. Just like the first player, they choose one of the remaining open cards, occupy the matching spaces and set the card aside. With four players, eventually the player with the third-highest bid also takes a turn, and takes the last card, and so on.

With three or four players, there is always one player who does not take a turn; this means they get no card and therefore cannot occupy any space. On the other hand, it now becomes serious for the other players: with the help of the land cards it is determined who can take possession of which land.

• The number of stars on the land card indicates how many spaces must be occupied: one star corresponds to one space; two stars are two spaces.
• The position of the stars indicates at what distance the spaces to be occupied must lie from each other.
• The colour of the depicted flag indicates that one of the spaces to be occupied must be a space with a flag stone of the corresponding colour. (With one star, one space with the depicted flag colour must be occupied; with two stars, one space with the depicted flag colour and one additional free space.)

[Diagram in original: an example for Joe ("Let's see what Joe does"). He has chosen this card, which requires two spaces because two stars are shown. The spaces to be occupied must lie at the depicted distance. One of the spaces to be occupied must be a space with a red flag stone, and the other space must be a free space, i.e. without a flag stone or marker stone. Joe occupies the space with the red flag and one of the spaces A, B, C or D of his choice. It is also allowed to jump over a lake, if the distance of the stars on the land card allows it. After Joe has placed both of his marker stones, the flag stone is removed from the board.]

• The card may be rotated before occupying the land spaces (90 degrees to the left or right, or turned completely 180 degrees).
• If there are several flag stones in the colour shown on the land card on the board, one of them is chosen as the one to which the spaces are to be occupied.

Note: if a player has bid no cowboys, they receive no land card in any case and therefore cannot occupy any spaces. If several players (or all of them) have bid no cowboys, some face-up cards may remain. In that case, these are simply set aside; they are no longer needed.

Article 4

Placing new cowboys. The player who brought in the fewest cowboys, that is who made the lowest bid (Article 2), draws one cowboy from the bag and places it behind their screen. If a player has bid no cowboy at all, that counts as the lowest bid; they may draw two cowboys from the bag. And if several players have bid no cowboys, each of these players may draw two cowboys from the bag.

Our Reward for Labour (The Valuations)

Taking land is one thing, owning good land is another... Once all twelve cards of the "stack of twelve" have been turned over, distributed, carried out and set aside, the first valuation follows. How many points one receives for what is listed at the end of this chapter, and once more on the inside of the screens.

According to the number of points, the figures on the success track are moved forward; one space per point.

Then it goes on to the second round: the twelve flag stones are again distributed evenly among the players, and then, just as at the beginning of the game, taken in turn, one by one, and placed on random free spaces. From each of the four face-down stacks the top three cards are again taken, shuffled well and laid next to the board as a new "stack of twelve". The further course of play is also as described above. Once the "stack of twelve" has been used up again, the second valuation follows; in any case, the points one receives for one's holdings change from round to round. The third and fourth valuations follow.

Valuation table

	1st valuation	2nd valuation	3rd valuation	4th valuation
Border spaces	Most: 6 points. Second most: 2 points.	Most: 9 points. Second most: 3 points.	Most: 4 points. Second most: 2 points.	Most: 2 points. Second most: 1 point.
Lakes	1 point per lake.	2 points per lake.	3 points per lake.	The number of points printed on the lake, per lake.
Double spaces	2 points per double space.	3 points per double space.	2 points per double space.	1 point per double space.
Connected land areas	Largest connected land area: 0 points. Second largest: 0 points.

The valuation table is laid out from the four-column table in the original (one column per valuation). The original prints "Voor ieder meer krijgt men het overeenkomende aantal punten dat erop staat" for the fourth lake valuation, meaning the number of points printed on each lake tile.

We Let Go of Our Land (Land Sale)

Sometimes the land that is occupied simply does not turn out as promised... Each player has, in total, five times (with four players, four times) the opportunity to sell land. This may happen at an arbitrary moment, though at most two spaces per round.

The sale procedure

The seller announces loudly and clearly that they want to sell, takes their marker stone from the relevant space, and places their "For Sale" land sale card on it. They now ask all fellow players whether anyone wants to buy this piece of land. It can either be bought by a fellow player or, if nobody is interested, it goes back to the state.

• If nobody wants to buy, the seller must take back their land sale card from the relevant space (the space is then free again) and immediately draw two cowboys from the bag; their land sale card is removed from the game.
• If there is a buyer, the seller takes back their land sale card from the relevant space (it is removed from the game), and the buyer occupies the space with one of their marker stones. The seller draws two cowboys from the bag and additionally receives one arbitrary cowboy from the buyer.
• If several players want to buy the land, each of them must bid an arbitrary number of cowboys (at least one) for it, as described in Article 2. The player who has bid the highest cowboy power gets the land. The seller takes their land sale card off the space (it is removed from the game, as always), and the buyer occupies the space with one of their marker stones. The seller then draws two cowboys from the bag and additionally receives all cowboys bid by the buyer. (Players who did not make the highest bid take their bid cowboys back into their hand.)

Very important: directly before a valuation, no space may be sold. Selling is therefore only possible as long as the current "stack of twelve" in a round has not yet been fully used up.

From Pioneer to Major Landowner (End of the Game)

The game ends after the fourth "stack of twelve" has been fully used up and the fourth valuation has been carried out. Whoever is furthest ahead on the success track has won.

How We Can Do Even Better (A Few Tactical Tips)

• If several players own the most border spaces at a valuation, all these players receive the points for the most border spaces. In this case, no points at all are given for the second most border spaces. If one player owns the most border spaces and several players own the second most border spaces, then all these latter players receive the points for the second most border spaces. And what applies to the border spaces also applies to the awarding of points in the case of ties for the largest and second largest connected land areas.
• The points awarded over the four valuations in total change from valuation to valuation. These changes must always be taken into account in your tactical and strategic considerations.
• If it happens that you have a card on which two spaces are marked that can no longer be occupied as shown (because all spaces around the flag stone are occupied), then you occupy only the space with the flag stone.
• Because the cowboys behind the screens sometimes quickly become scarce, do not shy away from occasionally bidding zero cowboys, in order to be able to draw two new cowboys from the bag.
• Selling a space can sometimes be used very effectively to split one's own small connected area again, and in this way gain extra double spaces. Especially in a two-player game, the double spaces have a large, often decisive significance.
• With three or four players it is much more obvious to sell a space that borders directly, horizontally or vertically, on a lake (surrounded by several players). In this way one can at least win quite a lot of cowboys for oneself.
• For your next game of COLORADO COUNTY, distribute the lake tiles in the following way: place the lake with the number 3 over three border spaces, but not in the corners of the game board. Distribute the other lake tiles as evenly as possible over the whole board, but in any case not over border spaces and not so that two lakes border each other. You will see: COLORADO COUNTY becomes even more exciting this way.

Rules in Brief

Game setup

• Lay out the game board.
• Distribute the lake tiles.
• Set up the screens.
• "Blindly" draw 15 cowboys from the bag and place them behind the screen.
• Distribute the marker stones.
• Each player receives five "For Sale" land sale cards.
• Sort the land cards by flag colour, shuffle, and make one stack per colour. Combine the top three cards of each stack, shuffle, and place them next to the game board as the "stack of twelve".
• Distribute the flag stones and place them one after another, in turn, on random free spaces.

Course of play

• A round always lasts until all cards of the "stack of twelve" have been turned over, distributed, carried out and removed from the game.
• Turn over the top cards of the "stack of twelve" and lay them side by side.
• Bid cowboys and determine the turn order of the bids.
• The turn order follows from the number of cowboys bid, or in case of a tie, from the highest cowboy number on the cards.
• The bid cowboys go into the bag.
• The player who has bid the highest cowboy power begins.
• Choose a land card, occupy spaces, set the card aside.
• With three or four players, the player with the lowest bid cannot occupy any spaces.
• The land cards: the number of stars indicates how many spaces must be occupied. The position of the stars indicates the distance between the spaces. The colour of the flag indicates which colour flag stone the space to be occupied must have.
• Land cards may be rotated in any direction.
• With several flag stones of the same colour, the player has a free choice.
• Whoever has bid no cowboys receives no land card. Remaining land cards are set aside.
• Whoever made the lowest bid draws one cowboy from the bag. And whoever bid no cowboys draws two cowboys from the bag.

The valuations

• Once all cards of the "stack of twelve" have been played, the first valuation follows. According to the points obtained, the pawns on the success track are moved forward.
• In total there are four valuations, in which the point values change from round to round.

Land sale

• Per round a player may sell two spaces.
• Express the wish to sell clearly and play the "For Sale" land sale card.
• If no player buys, draw two cowboys from the bag.
• If there is one buyer, draw two cowboys from the bag and receive one cowboy from the buyer.
• If more players buy, the player with the highest bid gets the land. The seller draws two cowboys from the bag and receives all cowboys bid by the buyer.
• Directly before a valuation, no space may be sold.

End of the game

• The game ends after the fourth valuation.
• Whoever is furthest ahead on the success track is the winner.