Eldertide: A Thousand Lights Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Current Events
• Game Components
• 1. Overview
  • Technical Overview
• 2. Game Setup
  • 1. House Selection
  • 2. Storm and Ports
  • 3. Ship Placement
  • 4. Supply Board
  • 5. Beacon Reward Board
  • 6. Token Pool
• 3. Fundamental Concepts
  • 3.1 Houses Introduction and Dashboard Setup
  • 3.2 Navigation Dial
  • 3.3 Ports and the Capital
  • 3.4 Resources and Facilities
  • 3.5 Round Overview
• 4. Player's Phase
  • 4.1 Initiative
  • 4.2 Sail Action
  • 4.3 Main Action and Bonus Action
  • 4.4 Icons and Available Actions
    • Export Resource
    • 4.5 Specialization Track
    • Increasing the Tank Cap
  • 4.6 House Perks
  • 4.7 The Capital
    • Building Facilities
    • Fill Qi Energy Tank
• 5. Storm Phase
  • 5.1 Storm Movement
  • 5.2 Invalid Destination
  • 5.3 Broken Ports
  • 5.4 Ships Hit by the Storm
  • 5.5 Enraged Storm
  • 5.6 End of Storm Phase
• 6. Beacon Parts
• 7. Game End
• 8. Solo Mode - Challenges
  • 8.1 Challenge Card Rules
  • 8.2 Double-House Variant
• Outpost Beacons
• Houses Breakdown
• Entire Round Example
• Ports Breakdown
• Iconography

Current Events

1. Trial Disaster

The last Tribe Chief trial for the Zenith Kingdom, held eight decades ago, ended in catastrophe. One ambitious contestant, consumed by envy, struck a bargain with an equally greedy spirit. The spirit, massively empowered, tried to gain control of the weather, but the divine spirit reigning over it was young and powerful, and repealed the contestant.

The Spirit, consumed by rage, transformed into an oceanwide storm that wreaked havoc on crops and fisheries, tearing apart villages. The most insidious aspect of the Storm was its effect on navigation: a cursed fog distorted nautical maps, rearranged the positions of islands, and swallowed most ships that dared to explore.

2. The Forever Storm

For the past many decades, the once-seafaring nation languished in fear and starvation. The archipelago, once a thriving community of hundreds of islands, was now isolated.

Yet hope emerged with a new generation: bold, inventive, and driven by a thirst for adventure. These pioneers sought to reclaim the seas. They developed technologies to predict the Storm shifting patterns and navigate the treacherous waters.

Some spirits, moved by the determination and resilience of humanity's youth, began to see them in a favorable light. In an unprecedented act of unity, these spirits offered to empower the young pioneers, granting them enhanced abilities and Spirit-infused ships to navigate the perilous seas.

3. The Qi Beacons

Armed with powerful tools, unwavering resolve, and the blessings of the spirits, daring expeditions to reunite the scattered islands were launched.

The Storm's destruction revealed ancient paths to the ruins of the lost civilization—alongside vast deposits of Qi crystals, artifacts impossible to craft in the current age. The explorers quickly noticed that the Storm's fog was repelled by these energy deposits, creating a safe oasis in the chaos.

They slowly developed a way to harness these crystals, leading to the ultimate defense system, the Qi Beacons—structures able to emit a powerful repelling force against the Storm, preventing it from reaching the shores of the island where they are installed.

Each of the most prominent Houses founded an Outpost on the edges of the Capital, serving as the hub for its efforts in this defining moment of history: the reclamation of the Zenith Kingdom.

To achieve this monumental goal, they will have to deploy Qi Beacons across a thousand islands, ensuring that no land remains unprotected.

Game Components

• 1x Supply board
• 5x Player Dashboards
• 1x Beacon Reward Board
• 12x Port tiles
• 1x Capital tile
• 12x Export Cards
• 5x Challenge Cards
• 1x Storm Die
• 5x Foundation ship standees
• 1x Storm token
• 10x Toolkit tokens
• 1x Round tracker token

Remove protective film from all acrylic standees before use.

• 10x Storage Block tokens
• 5x Qi tokens
• 12x Damage tokens
• 5x Tank tokens
• 8x Block tokens
• 5x Multiplier tokens
• 100x Resource tokens (25x Green Food/Farm; 25x Blue Crystal/Excavation; 25x Red Wood/Town; 25x Yellow Engine/Power Station)
• 20x Specialization Track tokens
• 10x Outpost Beacon tokens
• 5x Navigation dials
• 25x Beacon Parts tokens
• 10x Reputation Points tokens
• 15x House Perk tokens
• 12x Beacon Reward Tokens
• 1x Ancient Tech token
• 1x Favor token

1. Overview

Eldertide: A Thousand Lights is a competitive strategy game for 2-5 players. Each player commands a House striving to rebuild a Kingdom devastated by a mysterious, ever-shifting Storm. By navigating their ships, players must cross treacherous seas, establish Towns and Farmlands, trade and export Resources, and work together to undo the Storm's damage.

The game is played over ten rounds. On each turn, a player may either sail to a Port or return to the Capital to refill. Reputation Points are earned in different ways, such as exporting Resources, expanding Outposts, building Beacons, advancing on the Specialization Track, or repairing Broken Ports.

At the end of the tenth round, players add the bonuses acquired during the game to their endgame score. The House with the highest score becomes the winner, representing the one that contributed the most to the Kingdom's expansion.

Technical Overview

In this pick-and-deliver board game, with elements of market fluctuation and civilization-building, each player controls a Foundation Ship, sailing across several locations to collect and transport resources. These resources can be either exported for immediate points, or invested in constructing Facilities on the player's own Outposts, leading to more explosive endgame opportunities. The Storm acts as a hindrance, breaking Ports that can later be rebuilt, besides posing a direct threat to ships themselves. Careful route planning and resource management are essential to succeed.

2. Game Setup

1. House Selection

• Each player selects a House.
• Take the corresponding Dashboard, Navigation Dial, House Perk tokens, Beacon Parts tokens, and Reputation Points tokens.
• Follow the Dashboard layout explanation on page 8 for a list of all other tokens each player will need and their specific positioning.

2. Storm and Ports

• Shuffle all Port tiles and place them randomly around the Capital and the Storm standee, as shown in the diagram.
• Place the Storm Die within reach of all players.

3. Ship Placement

• Place all the players' Ship Standees on the Capital.
• Place the Ship Standees for any unused Houses in the specific Ports that match their House Icon.

4. Supply Board

Place the Supply Board within reach of all players.

• Collect all the Outpost Beacon tokens. Outpost Beacons are divided into type A and type B, and they come in pairs according to their rewards.
• Type A tokens are always used in the game. The number of Type B tokens used varies based on the player count.
• Shuffle the Type B tokens, randomly select the required amount (listed below), and place each one under its corresponding Type A token.
• 1 player: 0 · 2 players: 0 · 3 players: 1 · 4 players: 3 · 5 players: 5.
• Place 1 Resource token of each type on the Demand Chart (leftmost side) following this order: Yellow (7), Green (5), Red (4), Blue (2).
• Place the Round Track token on the round 1 slot (rightmost side of the board).
• Shuffle the Export Card deck, draw 3 cards and place 1 in each matching available slot (center bottom of the Supply Board).
• 1-3 Player Game: Cover the 4 box on top of each Export Card slot with a Score Block token.

5. Beacon Reward Board

• Shuffle all Beacon Reward tokens. Place them face-up on the Beacon board, but leave all slots showing a higher player count empty. Return the remaining tokens to the box.
• 1-3 Player Game: Cover the 8 box (rightmost side) with a Score Block token.
• 2 Player Game: Take 4 Beacon Part tokens from an unused House. Place one in each of the following Ports: Ancient Library; Farport; Floating City; and Power Guild — with the bottom-part side facing up.
• 1 Player Game: Take 1 Beacon Part token from an unused House. Place it in the Ancient Library - with the bottom part side facing up.

6. Token Pool

• Create a shared pool with all Damage tokens, Toolkit tokens, Food tokens, Crystal tokens, Wood tokens, Engine tokens, Multiplier tokens, and Score Block tokens.

3. Fundamental Concepts

3.1 Houses Introduction and Dashboard Setup

There are five Houses in the game, and each player chooses one before the game begins.

Royal Company — The Royal Company is the glue that holds the Zenith Kingdom together, making sure no house grows too greedy and no law goes unenforced. Good at: Building facilities.

House Farath — Farath coax gardens from sand, and they never take more than the earth can give. Their wisdom is old, their patience endless, and their loyalty deep as roots. Good at: Stocking resources and producing lots of Food and Crystals.

House Darkma — The Darkma love machines, loathe bureaucracy, and believe that knowledge is power... and power should be upgraded regularly. Good at: Navigation and Technology.

House Horath — If it dazzles, sings, dances, or sells — Horath is behind it. Their architects harness the power of electricity to bring joy to all. Good at: Building a Power Station network.

The Enclave — The Enclave rose from the cracks, built their own path in the shadows, and now they are always two steps ahead of all other Houses. Good at: Explosive well-calculated rounds that can shift the game.

The following list provides an overview of the Player Dashboard and details which tokens must be placed in each area.

1. Outposts: 1 Main Outpost (the central 6-slot recessed area) and 2 Bonus Outposts, to its left and right. Printed in the center of the Main Outpost is the Main Beacon Perk, each House's starting asymmetric ability.
2. Ship's Storage: holds up to 7 Resources. Each player starts with 1 Food, 1 Crystal, and 1 Wood token. Place 2 Storage Lock tokens on the 2 rightmost slots.
3. Qi Tank: Qi Energy serves as your ship's fuel. This track represents a player's supply of Qi Energy. Place 1 Qi token (light blue) on the 10th slot of the Qi Tank, and 1 Tank Cap token (white) covering the 11th/12th slots.
4. Specialization Track: Represents a House's development in various fields of knowledge and limits the number of Facilities a player may build in each color. Take one Specialization Track token of each color and place it on the lowest row of the track (row 1).
5. House Perk: A unique ability specific to each House that is unlocked by completing an objective. Each player selects one of their 3 available House Perks to use for the game. Place the chosen Perk token in this slot, with the colored side facing up, and keep it secret from the other players.
6. Toolkit tokens: Each House can carry a maximum of 3 Toolkits. These are spent to repair Broken Ports, discard Damage tokens, or build Beacons on Ports.
7. Ancient Tech token: Give this token to The Enclave player. If this House is not in play, return the token to the box.
8. Favor token: This token is used to break ties during the game. Give it to the player who most recently boarded a boat (or choose a starting player randomly).
9. Beacon Parts tokens: Each player takes the 5 double-sided Beacon Part tokens of their House color and places them beside their Dashboard.

3.2 Navigation Dial

Each House has a Navigation Dial, which displays numbers and a Capital Icon — in between all numbers. At the start of each round, players secretly set their Dial to one of the following:

• A number (1–8) ➔ This represents their Channel Value, used to Sail, or
• The Capital Icon ➔ This indicates that they are traveling to the Capital instead of sailing.

The chosen number (Channel Value) determines a player's Initiative, Sail Points, and Action Power (think of it as their planned investment for the round).

The Channel Value is the most important gameplay element players must consider throughout the game. If they overspend, they will need to pause their actions to recharge their tank. If they move too slowly, other players may overtake their strategy. Finding the perfect balance between rounds is key to victory.

3.3 Ports and the Capital

Ports are the main locations where players perform Actions to gain Resources, Reputation Points, Beacons, Ship upgrades, and more.

Each Port has three Actions: Weak, Mid, and Strong. The Actions available to a player depend on their Channel Value at the start of the round. Each Action has a minimum Channel Value required to perform it.

The Capital is a special Island that cannot be reached by normal movement. To return to the Capital, a player must choose the Capital Icon on their Navigation Dial at the start of the round.

On their turn, they resolve the Capital Action, where they will refill their Qi tank, gain a few benefits and build facilities within their Outposts.

3.4 Resources and Facilities

There are four main Resources in the game: Crystal (blue), Food (green), Engine (yellow), and Wood (red). During the game, players may build Facilities by converting Resources from their Storage into permanent structures on their Outposts. To do this, the Resource token is flipped to its "Facility" side and placed in a slot around a Beacon. These constructed Facilities are known as: Excavation Sites (blue), Farms (green), Power Stations (yellow), and Towns (red).

There are two limitations to how many facilities a player can build in their Outposts: Beacons and Specialization.

Outpost Beacon tokens represent the structures that protect a location from being wrecked by the Storm. All players begin with 1 Beacon already built in their Main Outpost. To expand into their second or third Outpost, players must first build a Beacon in that location.

Beacon tokens also provide players with end-game bonuses, being a key aspect of a victorious strategy.

The Specialization Track represents a player's management capability and expansion limits. The rule is simple: a player's current position on a Specialization Track determines their building capacity for that specific type. Because all tracks begin on the first row, players are limited to building 1 Facility of each type at the start of the game.

3.5 Round Overview

Eldertide: A Thousand Lights is played over 10 rounds, and each round is divided into two phases:

• The Player Phase: Where players will declare their Channel Value and Sail; or go back to the Capital and perform that action instead.
• The Storm Phase: Where The Storm moves; the Favor token passes to the next player; and the Round Track advances.

4. Player's Phase

At the beginning of each round, every player secretly sets their Navigation Dial to a number from 1 to 8, or to the Capital Icon. Once all players are ready, everyone reveals their Dial simultaneously.

If a player has chosen a number, that number becomes their Channel Value for the round. The player immediately spends Qi Energy from their Qi Tank equal to that number.

To spend Qi Energy, players simply move their Qi token down the track a number of spaces equal to the amount being spent.

This is the only moment during the round in which players reduce their Qi Energy. However, certain actions may increase the amount of Qi in their tank; when this occurs, players move their Qi token up the track accordingly.

If a player has chosen the Capital Icon, they perform the Capital Action (see 4.7). This takes place independently and simultaneously to the other players' taking their Sail action.

4.1 Initiative

Turn order is decided by the players' Channel Values: The player with the highest Channel Value goes first. If two or more players are tied, the Favor token holder goes first.

If none of the tied players possess the Favor token, the tied player positioned closest to the player holding the token (in clockwise order) takes priority.

4.2 Sail Action

After determining Initiative, each player not going back to the Capital takes their round in order. The first step is to Sail (move) their Ship.

Ships move through Adjacent Ports. A Port is considered adjacent if it is directly connected to the Port the Ship currently occupies.

Every Port a Ship moves to costs 1 Sail point, though this cost may increase if the path contains obstacles. The max Sail points a player can spend is equal to their Channel Value.

A player is not required to use all of their Sail Points. They may stop moving earlier.

Obstacles:

If another Ship occupies a Port a player intends to move to, the Sail Point cost to enter that Port is increased by +1, to a total of 2 Sail Points.

Entering Broken Ports (see 5.3) also costs +1 Sail Point.

Both of these costs stack, so, for example, if 2 Ships belonging to other players are on a Broken Port, the cost to enter that location becomes: 1 (normal move cost) +2 (1 per Ship) +1 (for the Broken Port), to a total of 4.

( ! ) Ships in the Capital count as obstacles.

( ! ) If, due to obstacles, a player has no valid Port to move to at the start of their round, they must move to the Capital and perform the Capital Action instead of sailing.

EXAMPLE: At the start of its turn, Yuu sets his Navigation Dial to 2, immediately paying 2 Qi Energy for it. That means that during his Sail Action, he has 2 Sail Points to spend.

First, the Ship moves to an Adjacent Port, and then to his final destination. In this case, he could not have moved through the Port containing the Darkma Ship, since the total Sail Points required to reach his desired destination would be 3 (1 for the base move + 1 for the obstacle + 1 for the final Port).

4.3 Main Action and Bonus Action

After Sailing, a player may perform one action on the Port where they ended their movement. This is referred to as the Main Action.

Each Port has three actions listed on the left side of its board: Weak, Mid, and Strong. The chosen action's value must match or be lower than the player's Channel Value.

After performing the Main Action, players may perform a Bonus Action. Players can use the Bonus Action to build a Port Beacon (see 6) or to gain the reward of a Weak (1+) action from a Port adjacent to their current location.

( ! ) A player cannot return to and perform a Main Action on the same Port where their turn began their round.

EXAMPLE: Yuu ends his movement at the SHAPERS GARDEN with a Channel Value of 5. Since the Strong Action requires a Channel Value of 6, he may only perform the Mid Action (or the Weak Action).

Afterward, he performs his Bonus Action, choosing the Weak Action from the adjacent Beacon Smith Port.

4.4 Icons and Available Actions

During the game, players will encounter icons representing different rewards. This section outlines all available rewards and their associated game mechanics. When reading reward boxes, always process the icons in order: from left to right, and from top to bottom.

Crystal, Food, Engine, or Wood token: Gain 1 Resource token of that type from the common pool and immediately place it in your Ship's Storage.

Any Resource: Gain 1 Resource token of any type and place it in your Ship's Storage.

( ! ) If the Ship's Storage is full, the player may either leave the new Resource behind or discard a Resource they already have to make room for it.

Farm / Excavation Site Action: Gain Resource tokens equal to the number of Farms or Excavation Sites you have in all your Outposts.

Town Action: Gain rewards based on the number of Towns you control (these can be either Reputation points or Qi Energy).

Power Station Facility: When calculating gains from Facilities, a Power Station counts as the same type as any adjacent Facility. For example, a Power Station next to a Town counts as an additional Town.

A Power Station next to another Power Station does not cause them to mirror each other.

A Power Station positioned between 2 Facilities of the same type, only counts as 1 extra Facility of that type.

Pay a Resource: Spend one Resource (generic or specific) to gain the rewards listed after the arrow. If there is a "different" symbol on the cost, the paid Resource must be of a different type than any Resources gained as a reward.

Toolkit: Place a Toolkit token from the common pool on an empty, matching slot on the Dashboard (their usage is explained in the following chapters).

Outpost Beacon: Gain 1 Outpost Beacon.

Outpost Beacon tokens: When gained, Outpost Beacon tokens are placed into an empty slot of a Secondary Outpost. They score endgame Reputation Points and allow Facilities to be built around them. Outpost Beacon tokens cannot be replaced.

( ! ) A player cannot own a type A and B Outpost that offer the same endgame reward.

Export Resource

When a player performs an export action, they check the amount of Reputation Points on it. They may take one Resource per that value from their Ship's Storage and place it on the top of a free matching slot of any Export Card.

For each Resource placed on an Export Card, that player immediately scores Reputation Points according to the Demand Chart located in the leftmost area of the Supply Board.

The Supply Board always displays 3 Export Cards. If your Resource fills the last open slot on a card, take the card and gain extra points equal to the highest value listed in the boxes on top of that card slot.

After scoring it, cover the scored slot with a Score Block token. That bonus is no longer available for the remainder of the game.

Whenever a card is acquired, players must also adjust the Demand Chart. Lower the value of the Resource shown on the bottom of the Export Card by one space, swapping its position with the Resource below it.

If there is more than one option for the Resource to be lowered, choose one. If the Resource on the card (or the chosen Resource) cannot be lowered, nothing happens.

Finally, draw a new Export Card to refill the board.

If the value-change symbol is shown together with the export symbol in the action box, choose any of the available Resources and increase their position by one space, swapping its position with the Resource above it. Do this before exporting the Resources.

Increase Blue, Green, Yellow, Red Track: Advance the matching color Specialization Track by 1.

Increase Generic Track: Advance any Specialization Track by 1.

4.5 Specialization Track

The Specialization Track not only determines how many Facilities of each color a player may build, but also provides bonuses and end-game points.

Specialization Bonuses: When a Specialization token moves into a row with a Bonus Icon, the player immediately gains the bonus shown. Bonuses are asymmetric and vary by House (See House Abilities on page 17).

End-game Reputation Points: At the top of the tracks, there are 2 end-game bonuses related to how many of a specific type of Facility a player has in their Outposts. Each Facility matching the color of a Specialization Track token (represented by the equal sign "=") scores:

• 3 if the matching token is in the top row (7),
• 2 if the matching token is in the second-to-last row (6).

As the Specialization Track reaches higher levels, the number of available spaces in each row reduces. This means that there is a bottleneck to the knowledge players can acquire. If there are no empty spaces in a row for a token to occupy, that token cannot move up.

Increasing the Tank Cap

Whenever this reward is collected, move the Cap token up a number of slots equal to the reward value.

When recovering Qi Energy, you may now hold a higher amount, up to the new Cap level.

When the Cap token passes slots 13 and 16 on the Qi Tank Track (whenever this icon becomes visible on the track), remove one Storage Block token, expanding the Ship's Storage capacity.

4.6 House Perks

Every player has access to 3 House Perk tokens: powerful abilities they can take advantage of during the game. These start locked and are unlocked by completing the objective listed on the front of the token.

At the start of the game, players must choose 1 of the 3 unique House Perks available to their House. These are kept secret from other players until they are activated.

There are 3 variations of House Perks: End-game score, End-of-turn bonus, and Immediate bonus. The unlocking requirement for all the 3 tokens of each House is the same.

As soon as a player meets the condition on the back of the token, they can flip it to make the ability active.

Immediate bonus: The player gains the listed reward immediately. These simply have a reward listed.

End-game score: These will have a requirement and the Reputation Points icon on them. These are scored at the end of the game, triggering as many times as the listed objective was completed.

End-of-turn bonus: These will have an icon on them. This means the ability is triggered at the end of a player's turn rather than immediately. Trigger this after its owner finishes playing their Bonus Action.

( ! ) The complete list of House Perks and their individual descriptions can be found in the Houses Breakdown section.

4.7 The Capital

When a player decides to perform the Capital Action, they place their Ship Standee on the Capital tile. This movement happens before other players play their Sail Actions.

The Capital Action consists of 4 steps, played in this order:

• Advance 2 different Specialization Tracks.
• Build Facilities.
• Fill the Qi Energy Tank.
• Gain 1 Toolkit token.

All players performing the Capital Action do it at the same time, while the other players play their Sail Actions.

( ! ) Players may Sail through the Capital, but cannot stop there without choosing the Capital Action.

( ! ) If a Port Beacon (see 6) is completed by another player and the lower part belongs to a player performing the Capital Action, that player must complete the Capital Action in full before claiming the Beacon Reward token.

Building Facilities

This action allows players to convert Resource tokens in their Ship's Storage into Facilities in their Outposts.

To build, flip a Resource token and place it on an Outpost with a Beacon on it.

The number of Facilities of each color you may build is limited by your Specialization Track (on a one-to-one basis). E.g.: A player with a level 3 Specialization on Green can have a maximum of 3 Farms.

Facilities placed next to each other are considered Adjacent. This is especially important for Power Stations, which count as an additional Facility of any one Adjacent Facility's type.

BUILDING FACILITIES EXAMPLE: Yuu chooses the Capital Action. In his Ship's Storage, he has 2 Food, 2 Crystals, and 1 Engine. His Main Outpost is empty, so he begins building there.

• He flips the 2 Food tokens to build 2 Farms.
• He flips the Engine token to build 1 Power Station.
• He flips only 1 Crystal token to build an Excavation Site. The second Crystal cannot be used because Yuu's Blue Specialization token is still on the 1st row of the Specialization Track, limiting him to only 1 Excavation Site.
• Yuu places his Power Station adjacent to a Farm and the Excavation Site, so it will count as both when resolving Actions that depend on Farms and Excavation Sites.

Fill Qi Energy Tank

After building Facilities, the player performing the Capital Action fills their Qi Energy up to the maximum.

If their Tank is damaged (see 5.4), they stop right before the Damage token.

Players gain a Toolkit token in the step following the refill of their Energy Tank; therefore, they cannot use the newly acquired Toolkit to repair their ship before recovering their Qi Energy.

5. Storm Phase

The Storm Phase is when the Storm standee moves and may destroy a Port and damage any Ship caught in its path.

5.1 Storm Movement

Roll the Storm Die to determine the Storm's direction. The six possible cardinal directions are indicated both on the die and in the base of the Storm Standee.

Swap the positions of the Storm and the Port tile in the direction shown on the Storm Die. Flip the Port tile to its Broken side. The Storm now occupies the Port's old location, while the Broken Port takes the space previously occupied by the Storm.

5.2 Invalid Destination

If the Storm Die points towards a direction with no Port, use the arrows printed on the Storm standee to guide its movement. Follow the next counter-clockwise direction (the one closest to the rolled direction) to see if it hits a Port. If it still doesn't, check the next direction following the arrows once again, and keep going until it finally reaches a Port.

EXAMPLE: The Storm die shows West, but no Port exists there.

The next direction following the arrows on the Storm standee's base points Southwest, but there isn't a Port in that direction either.

The following direction points Southeast, where there is a Port. The Storm moves Southeast instead.

A player's Ship was in that Port, so the player takes a Damage token, reducing their Tank capacity.

5.3 Broken Ports

Broken Ports cannot be used for either the Main or the Bonus Actions. Entering a Broken Port costs +1 Sail Point.

A Broken Port can be repaired:

• The player's Ship must be in the Port.
• Repairing a Port costs 1 Toolkit token.
• The player gains 5 Reputation Points and the reward shown on the bottom-right corner of the Port tile (referred to as the variable reward).
• Flip the Port back to its Normal side; the player can then continue with their Main Action.

If the Storm strikes a Broken Port:

• Swap the Storm standee with the Broken Port tile as usual.
• Place an x2 Multiplier token next to the variable reward.

If the Storm hits a Broken Port with a x2 Multiplier token already on it, flip the token to its x3 Multiplier side. If the Storm strikes that Port again, nothing further happens.

When fixing a port with a Multiplier token on it, gain the variable reward as many times as set by the token.

5.4 Ships Hit by the Storm

If the Storm moves onto a Port containing a Player Ship, the Ship stays on that Port during the Storm swap. In addition, the player takes one Damage token.

Place the Damage token below the Cap token on the Qi Tank. This reduces the Ship's Qi Energy limit and might also push down the Qi Energy token (if it stands in the way of the Damage token placement). Multiple Damage tokens reduce the limit further by stacking on the track.

A player can spend a Toolkit to remove 1 Damage token on their own ship. This is a free action, and can be done at any time (without spending an Action or a Bonus Action).

( ! ) The Capital is a safe zone. The Storm cannot destroy it, and any ships docked there won't take damage. If the Storm hits the Capital, swap the position with the Storm as you would normally, but skip the damage.

( ! ) A Ship can only gain 1 Damage token per round. If it gets hit by the Storm twice in the same round, ignore the second one.

5.5 Enraged Storm

From the Storm Phase of round 5, the Storm becomes Enraged. From this point on, roll the Storm Die twice each time. Resolve the first roll completely before the second.

5.6 End of Storm Phase

After resolving the Storm, proceed as follows:

• Pass the Favor token clockwise.
• Advance the Round Track.
• Begin the next round.

6. Beacon Parts

To support the expansion of the Kingdom, players can also build Beacons to protect the Ports they navigate through. Building far from home is a much more complex endeavor and, as such, requires more effort.

To fully build a Beacon, players must place 2 Beacon Parts tokens on a Port: the base and the top. Players must always build the base first.

To build a Beacon Part, players must have their Foundation Ship in the Port they want to build, and use their Bonus Action to perform it. This has two possible costs: 1 Toolkit (if building the bottom part) or 1 Toolkit and 1 Crystal (if building the top part). There is a reminder of these costs on each Dashboard.

Each player has 5 double-sided Beacon Part tokens available in their own color. Once they run out of these, they cannot build any more Beacon Parts.

When the bottom part of a Beacon is placed in a Port, nothing else happens. Once the top part of a Beacon is placed in a Port, both players who contributed to building it gain a Beacon Reward token.

If the same player builds both the bottom and the top part of a Beacon, they gain 2 Beacon Reward tokens.

The player who placed the top part chooses a Beacon Reward token before the player who built the bottom part.

Immediately after a player collects a Reward token, they gain whatever bonus is listed on that token. Normal limitations apply to any of these rewards, such as having available space in Ship Storage. If a player cannot receive a reward, they still take the token and simply ignore the rewards they cannot gain.

Once collected, reward tokens are not replaced, reducing the options available on the Beacon Reward board.

A player may choose to gain 5 Reputation Points instead of collecting a Beacon Reward token. This reward counts as a replacement, not counting as a Beacon Reward token for all purposes. Whenever all Beacon Reward tokens are taken, this becomes the only possible reward.

EXAMPLE: The Farath player builds the bottom part of the Beacon on the Ancient Village Port. They do not gain anything when that action is performed.

A few rounds later, the Enclave player visits the same Port and decides to build the top part of the Beacon.

Both players gain 1 Beacon Reward of their choice. The player who built the top picks the reward first.

( ! ) A Port with both the bottom and top parts installed cannot be broken by the Storm anymore. If it gets hit, shift its position as normal, but do not break it. Ships in Ports with a complete Beacon are not damaged by the Storm.

( ! ) Keep the bottom part of a Beacon in its Port when flipping the tile due to Storm Damage. Players cannot build Beacon Parts on Broken Ports.

The first player to collect 4 Beacon Reward tokens gains a bonus of 16 Reputation Points. Afterward, place a Score Block token on the 16, as a reminder that this cannot be scored again.

In a 4–5 player game, the second player to achieve this also gains 8 Reputation Points. Place a Score Block token on the 8.

7. Game End

At the end of round 10, skip the Storm Phase. Instead, each player may build Facilities one final time, following the normal rules.

Then, calculate Endgame Reputation Points:

• Specialization Track: For each Facility of a color that matches a Specialization token:
  • 3 if the token is in the last row.
  • 2 if the token is in the second-to-last row.
• Outpost Beacons: Score Reputation Points based on the abilities of the Beacon tokens you have in your Outposts.
• House Perks: Score Reputation Points based on the abilities of the active House Perk tokens you have.

The player with the most Reputation Points is declared the Winner for their outstanding contributions to the Archipelago.

8. Solo Mode - Challenges

In the Solo Mode, you play against a series of Challenge cards. There are two solo variants: the Standard (in which the solo player plays with 1 House and 1 Challenge card) and the Double-House (with 2 selected Houses and 2 Challenge Cards, one for each House).

8.1 Challenge Card Rules

• There are 5 Challenge cards, playable with any House.
• Certain Challenges include a Special Setup (described on the card).
• To win, you must complete the listed objective and reach a required Reputation Points value.
• You may either pick a Challenge card of your choice, or randomly select one (for an added test of skill).

8.2 Double-House Variant

For this variant, choose 2 Houses, and 2 Challenge cards, one for each of them. Set up the game using the normal rules, and each House separately - as if they were being used by different players.

Special Rule: When building Facilities, you may build on either House's Outposts (treated as a shared network of 6 Outposts). All normal rules still apply, including Specialization and Beacon requirements on each Dashboard.

Each House must complete its own Challenge independently.

( ! ) DESIGNER TIP: The Double-House variant can also be played cooperatively with 2 players, each controlling one House. This is especially useful when teaching new players the game.

Outpost Beacons

The five Outpost Beacon endgame reward types score as follows: +4/6 Reputation Points per Export Card collected; +3/5 Reputation Points per Beacon Reward token acquired; +4/6 Reputation Points for each Specialization token on the 5th row or above; +10/20 Reputation Points per Outpost containing all 4 different Facilities; +5/8 Reputation Points for each Type of Facility with a set of 5 or more on the above Outposts.

Houses Breakdown

House Darkma

• Starting Perk: You can move your ship to any Port, regardless of your Sail Points. Ignore any Obstacles when moving your Ship.
• Perk Unlock: Remove both Storage Lock tokens.
• House Perk 1: At the end of your turn, advance any Specialization Track by 1.
• House Perk 2: Advance any Specialization track 3 times.
• House Perk 3: Score +1 on the 7th and 6th rows of your Specialization Track (As if your Specialization Track rewarded 4 / 3 per Facility of the respective color).

House Farath

• Starting Perk: You can stack 1 resource on top of another of the same type in your Storage.
• Perk Unlock: Have 8 Resources in Storage.
• House Perk 1: At the end of your turn, gain a Food or a Crystal Resource.
• House Perk 2: Advance either your Green or Blue Specialization track by 4.
• House Perk 3: Score 8 Reputation Points per set of 1 Food and 1 Crystal in your Storage at the end of the game.

House Horath

• Starting Perk: Start the game with the Yellow Specialization Track on the 7th row.
• Perk Unlock: Reach 25 Reputation points.
• House Perk 1: At the end of your turn, Gain 1 Engine or 1 Wood Resource.
• House Perk 2: Gain 2 Power Station Facilities, taking the tokens directly from the supply and placing them on your Outposts. Normal limitations apply. Also, gain 1 Toolkit token.
• House Perk 3: Gain 3 Reputation Points per Power Station connected to any 2 Facilities.

The Royal Company

• Starting Perk: As a Bonus action, you may spend 1 Toolkit token to build any 2 Facilities, taking the tokens directly from the supply and placing them on your Outposts. Normal limitations apply.
• Perk Unlock: Have an Outpost with 6 Facilities built on it.
• House Perk 1: At the end of your turn, Gain 1 Toolkit token.
• House Perk 2: Gain 1 Outpost Beacon token, and 1 Toolkit token.
• House Perk 3: Score 6 Reputation Points per Outpost with 6 facilities.

The Enclave

• Starting Perk: Once per game, at the end of a round in which you sailed, you may immediately play another full round using the same Channel Value (without paying the Qi Energy again). Flip the Ancient Tech token face-down to represent that this skill has been used.
• Perk Unlock: Build both the bottom and the top part of a Beacon (They do not need to be in the same Port, and the bottom part does not need to be in a complete Beacon).
• House Perk 1: At the end of your turn, gain 3 Qi Energy.
• House Perk 2: Fill the Qi Tank to the maximum.
• House Perk 3: Score 5 Reputation Points per top Beacon Part token you placed on Port Beacons.

Entire Round Example

It's the start of round 6.

Yuu (Farath) and Luca (Horath) start the Player Phase by choosing a number on their Navigation Dial, which determines their Channel Value for that round.

Yuu wants to reach Farport to perform a Mid Action (3+) and export 2 Resources. Although Farport is only 3 spaces away, both possible routes are blocked: one by a Broken Port and the other by a Foundation Ship. To bypass these obstacles and reach his destination, Yuu must set his Navigation Dial to 4 to account for the extra movement needed.

Luca wants to benefit from the Farm Facilities he has built, so he decides to use the Strong Action (5+) of the FARATH FIELDS. Since he has a lot of Qi Energy in his Tank, he chooses a Channel Value of 6 on his Navigation Dial, giving him a high chance to go first.

Both players simultaneously reveal their Navigation Dials. Luca and Yuu then spend Qi Energy equal to the number chosen on their Navigation Dials.

Luca goes first. The FARATH FIELDS is 1 Port away and is Broken. Luca needs 2 Sail Points to reach his destination (1 to reach the Port, +1 because it is Broken). Since Luca has 6 Sail Points, he reaches his destination with ease.

Luca has a Toolkit, so he decides to spend it to Repair the Port. For this, Luca gains 5 Reputation Points plus twice the Variable Reward, since there was a x2 Multiplier token placed there during a previous round. The Variable Reward is any Resource, so Luca takes 1 Engine and 1 Wood.

He flips the Port to the unbroken side. He is now able to perform the Strong Action there.

He gains 3 Food tokens because he has 2 Farms and a Power Station adjacent to them.

As part of his Main Action, Luca then takes 1 of the Wood tokens he just gained and Exports it. He immediately gains 5 Reputation Points, as that is the current value of Wood on the Demand Chart.

Luca still has a Bonus Action, so he decides to benefit from the ANCIENT LIBRARY Port, which is adjacent to his Ship. By performing the Weak Action of that Port (the only one permitted for a Bonus Action), Luca increases his Yellow Specialization by 1 and immediately gains 1 Engine (a bonus provided by his Specialization Track).

Yuu then begins his turn. He sails to FARPORT via the Capital. Passing the Royal Company's Foundation Ship is no issue; he prepared for the extra cost by ensuring he had 4 Sail Points for the move.

Yuu uses a Mid Action to export 1 Crystal and 1 Wood, fulfilling the open slots in the rightmost Export Card. He gains 9 Reputation Points (the combined value of both resources on the Demand Chart).

Since he completed the last slot on the Export card, Yuu also claims it. Then, as instructed, lowers Wood and raises Crystal on the Demand Chart. Because he is the first to acquire the Export Card in the rightmost slot, he scores an extra 8 Reputation Points and marks it with a Score Block token.

The Port becomes Broken and Yuu, who was stationed there, suffers 1 Damage. Yuu places a Damage token on his Tank Track directly below the Tank Cap token.

Yuu skips his Bonus Action because the adjacent Ports are Broken, the Capital does not allow a Bonus Action, and he has no Toolkit to build a Port Beacon where he is.

The Player Phase ends. Luca rolls North-West for the Storm Phase. The Capital lies in that direction but, being immune, it takes no damage.

Because the Storm is Enraged, the die is rolled a second time. The new result is North-West. Luca swaps the Storm token with FARPORT and Yuu's Ship.

The Round Marker advances, and a new round begins.

Ports Breakdown

Shaper's Garden — "Few know the Shapers earned their name for their incredible botany knowledge —long before they could magically turn dust into paradise."

• (6+): Increase your Green Specialization by 2 and gain 2 Food tokens.
• (4+): Increase your Green Specialization by 1 and gain 2 Food tokens.
• (1+): Gain 1 Food token.

Floating City — "The Turtle Shell Company built a floating city to increase the operational range of their construction materials shop. Call it a very solid proof of concept."

• (5+): Increase your Red Specialization by 2 and gain 1 Wood token.
• (3+): Increase your Red Specialization by 1 and gain 1 Wood token.
• (1+): Gain 1 Wood token.

Enclave Bazaar — "The Enclave Bazaar is the royals' hardest puzzle. Shut it down, and the commerce crashes. Leave it be, and you legitimize outlaws. Either way, they'll never admit how much they rely on it."

• (6+): Increase the Blue Specialization by 2 and gain 2 Crystal tokens.
• (4+): Increase the Blue Specialization by 1 and gain 2 Crystal tokens.
• (1+): Gain 1 Crystal token.

Farath Fields — "In twelve months, the Farath turned a desolate island into a Living Farm of splendor—and profit. Turns out beauty and business can thrive on the same soil."

• (5+): Gain 1 Food for each Farm on your Outposts, then export any 1 Resource.
• (3+): Gain 1 Food for each Farm on your Outposts.
• (1+): Gain 1 Food token.

Beacon Smith — "Once Tromagar got his hands on custom-forged tools, the molten spirit fell in love with human craftsmanship—and never wandered beyond the village forge again."

• (5+): Gain 1 Beacon and build 1 Facility (taking the token directly from the supply instead of your Storage. Normal limitations apply).
• (3+): Gain 1 Beacon.
• (1+): Spend 1 Crystal to Gain 1 Beacon.

Darkma Shipyard — "We came to the Darkma Shipyard for hull repairs. We left with a ship that could fly."

• (5+): Increase your Cap token by 3 and gain 1 Toolkit token.
• (2+): Increase your Cap token by 2 and gain 1 Toolkit token.
• (1+): Increase your Cap token by 2.

Expedition Bureau — "To explore the Ancestors' Ruins, you need clearance from the Expedition Bureau—who just so happen to control the crystal trade. Coincidence? Absolutely not."

• (5+): Gain 1 Crystal per Excavation Site on your Outposts. Also export any 1 Resource.
• (3+): Gain 1 Crystal per Excavation Site on your Outposts.
• (1+): Gain 1 Crystal token.

Power Guild — "Without Seabreeze Stations harnessing the tides and the wind, expansion beyond the Capital would've taken several more generations."

• (5+): Increase your Yellow Specialization by 2 and gain 1 Engine token.
• (3+): Increase your Yellow Specialization by 1 and gain 1 Engine token.
• (1+): Gain 1 Engine token.

Horath Entertainment Hall — "Nothing fills coffers faster than happy colonizers on fresh soil. Also, nothing drains patience faster." — plaque at the management office of the Horath Amusement Hall

• (7+): Gain 3 Reputation Points per Town on your Outposts.
• (3+): Gain 1 Qi Energy and 2 Reputation Points per Town on your Outposts.
• (1+): Gain 1 Qi Energy and 1 Reputation Point per Town on your Outposts.

Lilac Market — "Opportunity breeds opportunists — and the Lilac Market has made that truth into a spectacle. Stalls multiply each month; before long, there will be more sellers than customers."

• (4+): Trade 3 Resources of the same type for 15 Reputation points.
• (2+): Trade any 1 Resource for 2 of either any 1 Resource (of a different type) or 1 Toolkit token.
• (1+): Export 1 Resource. Gain 1 Toolkit token.

Ancient Library — "A year at the Ancient Library equals a generation of discoveries in the Capital. The difference between hypothesis and field experimentation could not be clearer."

• (5+): Increase any Specialization Track 3 times, divided as you wish.
• (2+): Increase any Specialization Track 2 times, divided as you wish.
• (1+): Increase any Specialization once.

Farport — "After a century lost in fog and rumor, we relit the beacons of the FarPort. Within days, floaters appeared from every horizon—none we recognized. Guess word gets around."

• (7+): Raise the value of any 1 Resource in the Supply Board, and exchange its position with the Resource above it. Export 3 Resources.
• (3+): Raise the value of any 1 Resource in the Supply Board, and exchange its position with the Resource above it. Export 2 Resources.
• (1+): Export 2 Resources.

Iconography

Resources — Tokens in this orientation are Resources. They can be traded, exported, or spent to build Facilities.

Facilities — Tokens in this orientation are Facilities. Once placed, they can never be removed. If this icon is shown as a reward, place the Facility directly from the supply into an Outpost.

Build Facilities — Use this action to convert Resources into Facilities. You may build as many Facilities as your Specialization Track permits.

Outpost Beacons — Beacons are required to build Facilities on new Outposts. Each Beacon grants an end-game score only to its owner. Unlike Port Beacons which require two parts, Outpost Beacons are single pieces.

There are two types: Type A offers better rewards and sits on top of the shared pile, while Type B is placed underneath.

Port Beacons / Beacon Parts — A Port Beacon requires two parts (bottom and top) to protect a Port from the Storm. Once both parts are built in the same Port, each contributing player gains 1 Beacon Reward.

If one player builds both parts, they gain 2 Rewards. The player who placed the top part chooses their reward first.

Specialization Track — Sets the maximum amount of each type of Facility players can have in all their Outposts.

Raise Specialization Track — Advance any Specialization track. If a specific color is shown, advance that track.

If a reward shows the different symbol on it, you cannot choose the same track twice for that reward.

Round Icon — This icon represents a round. When shown as a House Perk, you gain a reward at the end of your own round.

Reputation Points — Reputation Points are your final game score. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.

Qi Energy — Qi Energy is spent to pay your Channel Value at the start of each round.

As a Reward: Move your Qi Energy marker up the Qi Tank track.

With an Up-Arrow: Fill your Energy Tank to its current maximum. This is the space directly below your Tank Cap (and any Damage tokens).

Tank Cap — Limits the maximum Qi Energy a player can restore to.

Tank Cap Up — Increase your Tank Cap by the specified number of points. This increases the total amount of Qi Energy you can store.

Damage Token — Whenever the Storm hits a ship, its owner takes 1 Damage token, reducing their Tank Cap by 3 points. 1 Toolkit can remove 1 Damage token (a free action taken at any moment).

Toolkit — A flexible resource used to: Fix a Port. Remove 1 Damage token. Build a Beacon Part.

Export A Resource — Move a resource from a player's inventory to an Export Card on the Supply board to gain the listed points in the Demand Chart.

If this icon is inside a rectangle, it indicates placing the final material and claiming the Export Card.

Value Change — Adjust the value of one Resource on the Supply board by swapping its position with the resource directly above or below it.

Equal Or Different — Some Facilities and Resources feature Equal (=) or Different (≠) symbols. These indicate specific requirements for rewards: (=) Requires tokens of the same type. (≠) Requires tokens of different types.