Emerge Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Setup
• How to Play
  • Ship Phase
  • Modifier Phase
    • Modifier Tile Rules and Recommendations
  • Discovery Phase
    • Making Discoveries
    • Purchasing Research Tokens
  • End of Round
• Discovery Spaces
  • Tectonic
  • Land & Sea Animals
  • Birds
  • Plants
• Final Scoring
  • Scoring Islands
  • Biodiversity Bonus
  • Unused Research Token Bonus
  • Goal Cards
  • Determining a Winner
• Research Tokens & Goal Cards
  • Research Tokens
  • Goal Cards
• Sample Rounds
  • Round One
  • Round Two
• Credits

Components

• 14 Goal Cards
• First Player Anchor
• Sail Boat Round Marker
• 32 Research Tokens
• 40 Player Dice (10 Per Player Color)
• 82 Meeples (42 Plant, 16 Crab, 12 Turtle, 8 Seal, 4 Bird)
• 4 Player Boards (1 Per Player Color)
• 48 Island Pieces (12 Per Player Color)
• 24 Modifier Tiles (4 of Each Tile)
• 16 Goal Tokens (4 Per Player Color)
• Game Board

Setup

1. Give each player a Player Board. Player Boards have artwork on the back that indicate each player's color. Give each player all the Island Pieces of their color (12 total per player, 4 of each size) and 6 of the Player Dice of that same color. Finally, give all players the 4 Goal Tokens of their color.

   Take a moment look over the Player Board. This rulebook will explain the function of each of these areas in detail:

   • A Discovery Spaces
   • B Discovery costs
   • C Dice placement
   • D Discovery maximums

2. Place the Game Board in the middle of the table. Notice the research station on one end and the mainland on the other.

3. In a 2 player game (3A), each player places their first small Island Piece on one of the volcanic vent spots on either side of the word START (the side of the board closest to the mainland). In a 3 or 4 player game (3B), players can place their first small Island Piece on either of the spots closest to the mainland or either of the spots closest to the research station. Assuming players are seated near the 4 corners of the board, it may be most convenient for them to place their first small Island Piece on the volcanic vent closest to the corner where they are seated.

   NOTE: Each player only places one small Island Piece during this step. The location of islands has no effect on scoring.

4. Gather all the Research Tokens and pile them face down near the Game Board.

   4A. Turn 4 of the Research Tokens piled near the board face up to create the Research Token Market (see Purchasing Research Tokens).

   4B. Randomly place one face-down Research Token on each of the volcanic vents that were not claimed by the players in step 3.

5. Sort the Modifier Tiles into stacks, with each type (Plant, Tectonic, Seal, etc.) stacked together.

6. Determine the 4 goals players will be trying to achieve this game. There are 7 types of Goal Cards (Plant, Crab, Turtle, Seal, Tectonic, Bird, and Research). Shuffle the Goal Cards together into a single face-down deck. Flip the top card of this goals deck face up and place it next to the Game Board. Flip the next top card over and place it next to the first. If this second card is the same type as the first (the artwork matches), discard it and draw a new card until you draw a different type. Repeat this process until you have 4 Goal Cards, all of a different type, arranged in a column near the board. Discard the rest of the goal deck.

7. Create separated supply piles of the various animal/plant meeples off to one side of the game board. (7A)

   7B. Place 4 Bird meeples from this supply on the mainland.

   7C. Each player places one Plant from this supply on the small Island Piece they placed in step 3.

8. Place the Sail Boat meeple on the word START.

How to Play

Players have 8 rounds to learn as much about the islands as possible. Players will roll dice each round and earn Victory Points (VP) by using those dice to make Discoveries about the islands and the plants and animals that live on them.

Players may also use their dice to gather Research that will help them make future Discoveries. Modifier Tiles, which players can add to their Player Boards between rounds, grant special powers and the ability to control which Discoveries can be made by spending specific dice.

Players will also be racing to complete goals that provide another source of VP. At the end of the game, players will calculate the total VP they have earned, and the player with the most VP wins.

Each round has 3 phases: Ship Phase, Modifier Phase, Discovery Phase.

Ship Phase

During the game, a boat sails from the coast of the mainland on one side of the board to the Research Station on the other side of the board. The path this ship travels along serves as the round marker. The movement of the Ship also controls when and how certain gameplay elements change:

1. At the beginning of each round, the ship moves one numbered space farther away from the mainland. When the Ship arrives at a new space, flip any face-down Research Tokens on either side of it so that they are face up.

   NOTE: You will reveal the first two Research Tokens at the start of round 1 of the game.

2. Whenever the Ship passes over the Add Die icon, each player receives one die of their color to add to their total number of dice. Because of this progression, players start the game with 6 dice and end the game with 10 dice.

3. All games of Emerge last 8 rounds. When the Ship reaches the 8th spot from the mainland, play that round to its conclusion, then determine the winner by calculating which player has earned the most VP.

Modifier Phase

Modifier Tiles are placed on top of existing Discovery spaces on a Player Board to change the function of the associated die. For example, with an unmodified Player Board, making discoveries about Turtles requires dice showing 3s and making discoveries about the Tectonic history of the islands requires dice showing 5s. Covering the Turtle Discovery space with a Tectonic Modifier Tile allows a player to make discoveries about Tectonics with either dice showing a 3 or a 5 or even a combination of the two!

After the Ship has moved, all players have some ways to modify their Player Boards with these tiles.

As a free action, players MAY remove ANY Modifier Tiles from their Player Boards. This free action is optional. Return any removed Modifier Tiles to their matching stacks near the Game Board.

After optionally removing Modifier Tiles, players MAY choose ONE of the following two ways to modify their boards further:

1. Players MAY take ONE Modifier Tile from the Supply and use it to cover ONE of the Discovery spaces on their Player Board.

   NOTE: All players should spend their first modifier action covering their Seal Discovery space with either a Plant or Tectonic Modifier Tile. This will make it easier for players to start making Discoveries. If all players are experienced Emerge players, ignore this recommendation.

2. Players MAY move ANY Modifier Tiles they have on their board to cover up a different Discovery space. This can be moving a single Modifier Tile, moving multiple tiles, or swapping the locations of tiles (Move Modifier Tile / Swap Modifier Tiles / Move 2 Modifier Tiles).

Modifier Tile Rules and Recommendations

1. Players may have multiple Modifier Tiles on their Player Board at once.

2. IMPORTANT: Players CANNOT have more than TWO matching images on their Player Board at any one time. This means that players cannot have multiples of the same Modifier Tile on their Player Board at once.

3. Once a player places a Modifier Tile on their Player Board, it will remain there for the rest of the game until the player chooses to remove it.

4. HINT: Each Modifier Tile grants a special power. When in doubt, you can always place a Modifier Tile over the matching Discovery space. Players should probably have at least one Modifier Tile on the Player Boards at all times.

5. HINT: There are three main ways to think about using Modifier Tiles: preparing for the current turn, using the dice saved from previous turns, and using Modifier Tile powers.

   A. Preparing for the current turn - Modifier Tiles allow players to control the probability of being able to activate specific Discovery spaces.

   For example, a player with an unmodified Player Board who wants to make a Discovery about Crabs has to hope to roll 2s. However, if they cover up their Plant space with a Crab Modifier Tile, now they can use 1s, 2s, or a combination of both to discover Crabs!

   B. Using dice saved from a previous turn - Players may keep unused dice on their Player Board between rounds. Those dice can be used in future rounds. If players modify their Player Board while keeping in mind the dice already there, they can guarantee themselves the ability to discover something on their turn. For example, if a player has saved two 4s and two 1s from previous rounds, they can cover their Plant with a Seal modifier to guarantee themselves the ability to make a Seal Discovery this round since they will be able to spend the four dice (two 4s + two 1s) required.

   C. Using Modifier Tile powers - Each type of Modifier Tile has a power that can be used to alter dice after they have been rolled. Players may choose to add Modifier Tiles to their board just to gain access to these powers.

6. Players can use as many Modifier Tile powers as they would like each round, but each Modifier Tile can only be used once per round (some Research Tokens allow players to break this rule). Flip a Modifier Tile over to show that the power has been used. Modifier Tiles are refreshed (flipped back over) at the start of each round.

Discovery Phase

Once all players have chosen how to alter their Player Boards using Modifier Tiles, they will simultaneously roll some or all of their dice, then place the rolled dice on the matching areas of the Player Board. If players saved any dice from a previous round, they must decide now whether they would like to change their mind and roll them instead of keeping them on their Player Board.

NOTE: Players DO NOT have to reroll the dice they chose to leave on their Player Board in previous rounds. In other words, at the start of the Discovery phase, players collect all of their dice they want to roll. If they have dice already matching a Discovery space they would like to continue working towards, they may keep the slotted dice there and roll the others they own.

After players have rolled and arranged their dice, they have two ways to spend them:

1. Making Discoveries
2. Purchasing Research Tokens

Making Discoveries

Players discover new things about the islands by using their dice to activate Discovery spaces. This is the primary way players earn VP.

1. Starting with the player with the First Player Anchor, players take turns activating ONE TYPE of Discovery space if they have the required number of dice present on their Player Board. Move the dice used to activate the space off the Player Board.

   A. Players may have all the dice they need located in one area of the Player Board.

   B. However, remember that Modifier Tiles change which dice are required to activate a Discovery space. For example, players need 6s to discover Birds, but if they cover their Seal space with a Bird Modifier Tile, now they can use 4s, 6s, or a combination of 4s and 6s to discover Birds.

2. Even if a player has the dice required to make the same type of Discovery multiple times, they can only spend one set of dice each turn.

3. When a player makes a Discovery, they always add something to the Game Board:

   A. Plant, Seal, etc - The player places the matching meeple on one of their islands.

   B. Tectonic - The player places an Island Piece on the board.

   C. Bird - Move a Bird from the mainland or an island to another island and add a Plant to the island.

4. If activating a Discovery space allows a player to complete a Goal Card, the player that completed the goal should immediately place a token of their color on the highest available point value.

   The same goal can be completed by multiple players, but they are worth fewer and fewer VP the more times they have been completed (5/3/2/1). Players should always place one of their Goal Tokens on the highest unclaimed point value when they've completed a goal. Each player may only complete each goal once.

5. Play will proceed around the table clockwise, each player taking a turn spending dice to make Discoveries. If a player is unable to take any more actions or chooses not to, they can start using their remaining dice to purchase Research Tokens.

Purchasing Research Tokens

1. Players may spend 2 of their dice to purchase one of the 4 face-up Research Tokens in the Research Token Market. Remove the spent dice from the Player Board. After purchasing a Research Token, flip over a Research Token from the face-down stack to take its place in the Market. If there are no more tokens left in the stack, gather the spent tokens from each player and shuffle them to create a new stack to draw from.

2. Once a player has purchased a Research Token, they cannot go back to spending dice to activate Discovery spaces that round.

3. Similar to how players may only make one Discovery each turn, they may only buy one Research Token from the Market each turn. Even if they have enough dice to buy multiple Research Tokens, they must do this over multiple turns.

4. Players cannot use Research Tokens during the same round they were purchased.

5. Once a player is unable to or chooses not to buy any more Research Tokens, they must pass their turn to the next player clockwise. A player who has passed cannot take any more actions this round.

End of Round

The round ends when all players have passed on buying Research Tokens. All dice not used to make Discoveries and purchase Research Tokens should remain on the matching areas of the Player Boards. Players will be able to decide which dice to reroll at the start of the next round.

Pass the First Player Anchor to the next player clockwise, then start the next round, remembering to move the Ship one space farther from the mainland/closer to the Research Station. Repeat all processes explained in this How to Play section through the eighth and final round, then proceed to Final Scoring.

Discovery Spaces

Tectonic

Study the geologic history of the islands by making discoveries about the tectonic activity responsible for their growth. Island Pieces come in three sizes: Small, Medium, and Large.

Islands emerge from volcanic vents. Players may place a small Island Piece on any vent that does not already have an island growing from it. There are no other placement restrictions.

The more Discoveries a player makes about the same island's tectonic history, the more their understanding of that island grows, allowing them to stack medium and large Island Pieces beneath their starter small Island Piece! (Level 0 through Level 3.)

If there is a Research Token covering the vent a player chooses to place their small island on, that player takes that Research Token for free. These tokens will be face down if the Ship has not yet reached this area of the board.

Tectonic Discoveries are important because at the end of the game, each island is scored by multiplying the height of the island by the number of meeples placed on that island.

Example: 2 Islands x 3 Meeples = Total: 6.

Land & Sea Animals

Study the creatures that call these islands home. Land and sea animals cannot be added to an island unless there is already a Plant there. Land and sea animals on each island must be discovered in order of size (Crabs first, then Turtles, then Seals). Players cannot skip steps.

When a player discovers an animal on an island, they place a matching meeple on that island. These meeples do not replace any pieces already on the island.

IMPORTANT: Players can only place animals on their own islands.

Players can only have one of each animal on an island.

Players can earn 3 bonus VP if they discover every type of land and sea animal on an island. Birds are not required for this Biodiversity Bonus.

Birds

Unlike land and sea animals, Birds can move from place to place on the Game Board. It costs a player 2 dice to move a Bird from the mainland to one of their islands and 3 dice to move a Bird from one island to another. Players can even steal Birds away from an opponent's island to one of their own.

Birds carry seeds! Whenever a player adds a Bird to one of their islands, they also add a Plant to that same island. This can happen when a player moves a Bird from the mainland to one of their islands, when they move a Bird from one of their islands to another one of their islands, or when they steal a Bird from another player's island.

NOTE: The maximum number of Plants on an island is 4, so if there are 4 Plants on the new island already, ignore this free Plant bonus.

A Bird will never move to an island that already has a Bird on it - these Birds are territorial!

IMPORTANT: Birds do not have to wait for other animals or plants to be placed on an island. A Bird can be placed on an island as long as there are no other Birds there.

Plants

Learn about the different plant species thriving on the islands.

Plants (represented by the tree meeple) are the only meeple players may have multiples of on the same island. However, players can only have a maximum of 4 Plants (Trees) on a single island.

Plants come onto an island in one of two ways:

1. Discover Plants Using Dice

   A. First Plant on an island: Pay 1 Plant die to place 1 Plant meeple.

   B. Second Plant on an island: Pay 2 Plant dice to place 1 Plant meeple on an island with 1 Plant meeple.

   C. Third Plant on an island: Pay 3 Plant dice to place 1 Plant meeple on an island with 2 Plant meeples.

2. Discover Birds - Use Birds to bring Plant seeds (see Birds section).

   NOTE: This is the only way that an island can get a 4th Plant, which is the maximum number of Plants on an island.

Final Scoring

After the final player's turn on the 8th round, the game ends and players compare how many victory points (VP) they have earned during the game to determine the winner.

Scoring Islands

Each player combines the VP earned from all their islands. To determine the VP earned from each island, count up the total number of meeples (land and sea animals, birds, and plants) on the island and multiply it by the size of the island (the number of stacked Island Pieces).

Example: 1 Island x 3 Meeples = 3 points; 2 Islands x 2 Meeples = 4 points; 3 Islands x 4 Meeples = 12 points. Total Score: 19 points.

Biodiversity Bonus

Every island with a Plant, Crab, Turtle, and Seal on it grants a bonus 3 VP.

Example: 1 Island x 4 Meeples + Biodiversity Bonus = Total: 7.

Unused Research Token Bonus

Any unused Research Tokens are worth 1 VP at the end of the game.

Goal Cards

Each player tallies the points they earned from completing goals.

Determining a Winner

Players combine the VP earned from the above scoring categories to determine their total VP. The player with the most VP wins. In the event of a tie, the winner is the player who earned the most points from Goal Cards. If there is still a tie, the winner is the player with the most meeples spread across all their islands. If there is still a tie, the winner is the player with the most large islands.

Research Tokens & Goal Cards

Research Tokens

There are several types of Research Tokens that help players make future Discoveries. Some of these Research Tokens are randomly placed face down on volcanic vents during setup and turned face up when passed by the Ship. Others may be purchased from the Research Token Market.

After claiming a Research Token, players should keep it face up to the left of their Player Board. When a player decides to use their Research Token, they should declare that they are using it and place it face down on the right side of their Player Board.

ALL RESEARCH TOKENS ARE SINGLE USE.

Research Token effects do not count as a separate action, and Research Tokens can be used at any time during a player's turn.

Research Tokens ONLY affect the player who is using the Research Token.

Unused Research Tokens are worth 1 VP each at the end of the game.

The Research Token types are:

• Place a Turtle for 2 dice
• When you place a Turtle, grow that island
• When you place a Turtle on an island, place 1 Tree on that island
• Place 2 Crabs for 3 dice
• Place 1 Crab for 1 die
• When you place 2 Crabs in same round, grow 1 of the islands
• When you place a Seal, place 1 Tree on that island
• Place 1 Seal for 3 dice
• Reroll any number of dice
• Refresh all your Modifier Tiles
• Grow a medium island into a large one for 3 dice
• Grow a small island into a medium one for 2 dice
• Steal a Bird for 2 dice
• When you steal a Bird, grow the island it lands on
• When you steal a Bird, place 2 Trees on the island it lands on
• When you place 4th tree on island, grow that island

Goal Cards

There are 7 total goal card types: Plant, Crab, Turtle, Seal, Tectonic, Bird, and Research. At the beginning of each game, players will randomly select 4 of the 7 types to use for the game.

The first person to complete a Goal Card earns 5 points, the next person to complete that same goal card earns 3 points, the third person to complete that same goal earns 2 points, and the final person to complete a goal earns 1 point.

The same player cannot complete the same goal more than once.

The 14 Goal Cards are:

• Ambitious Turtle - Place a Turtle on a large island. NOTE: The island must already be a large island when the Turtle is placed on it to achieve this.
• Opportunist - Steal 2 Birds in the same round.
• Forest Kingdom - Place 4 Plants on 2 different islands.
• Cohabitate - Place a Turtle and Crab on the same island in the same round. NOTE: The Crab and Turtle must be placed on the same island in the same round.
• Archipelago - Place all 4 small islands.
• Overgrowth - Place 3 Plants on the same island in the same round.
• Crabs Emerge - Place 2 Crabs in the same round.
• Plate Convergence - Place 3 medium islands.
• Strategist - Use 2 Research Tokens on the same turn.
• Age of Crustaceans - Place Crabs on 4 different islands. NOTE: The 4 different islands must all be owned by the same player claiming the card.
• Seals Emerge - Place a Seal on a island.
• Mastermind - Use 3 Research Tokens in the same round. NOTE: Unlike Strategist, which requires both tokens to be used in the same turn, Mastermind requires 3 tokens be used over the course of an entire round.
• Vantage Point - Have 2 large islands with Birds on them at the same time.
• Seal Paradise - Place a seal on 2 different islands.

NOTE: Players cannot "burn" (flip over without using) their Research Tokens to complete the Strategist and Mastermind goals. Players must use the tokens to complete these goals.

Sample Rounds

Beth and Mark have completed setup and are ready to play Emerge!

Round One

Ship Phase

The ship moves one space away from the mainland first and reveals the first two Research Tokens.

Modifier Phase

Both players follow the rulebook's recommendation of placing a Plant Modifier Tile over their Seal spaces during setup. This will make it easer for players to start making Discoveries. If all players are experienced Emerge players, ignore this recommendation. In future rounds, Beth and Mark will be able to modify their boards to fit their strategy.

Discovery Phase

Next, it is time for Beth and Mark to simultaneously roll their 6 dice and place them on the matching areas of their Player Boards.

Beth has the First Player Anchor, so she will decide first how to use her dice.

Beth has two choices: use dice to activate her Discovery spaces or use her dice to buy Research Tokens from the market. However, once she starts buying things from the market, she is no longer able to make Discoveries this round. Beth has the 2 dice needed to discover a Plant, so she decides to use those dice to take that action. She moves those spent dice off her board and places a Plant meeple on her island.

After Beth has made this single action, it is Mark's turn. Mark has the 3 dice required to grow his existing island with a Tectonic Discovery, so he decides to do so. He slides one of his medium Island Pieces under his existing island.

It is now Beth's turn again. She still has dice remaining on her Player Board, enough to discover a Crab. She notices the Goal Card requiring Crabs, so she decides to start working toward that goal by using her 2 dice to add a Crab to her existing island.

It is Beth's turn again, but she does not have enough dice to activate any of her action slots. Beth can transition into buying tokens from the market, but she chooses not to. Instead, she passes her turn and leaves her dice where they are to prepare for the next round. She will have a headstart on discovering Plants or Turtles next round (assuming she does not alter her board at the start of the next round with Modifier Tiles).

It is now Mark's turn. He only has one die left, a 6. This is not enough to buy another Research Token, so Mark passes. Since both players have passed, the round is now over.

Round Two

Ship Phase

The ship moves one space away from the mainland first and reveals the next two Research Tokens. Because the ship passed over an Add Die spot on its path, both players get another die of their color. All players now have 7 dice to work with!

It is now Mark's turn again. Mark wants to buy a Research Token. He can use any two dice still on his Player Board to do this. He chooses to use the dice in his Crab and Plant areas. Mark takes the token of his choice from the market and replaces it with a new one from the stack.

Modifier Phase

Beth makes a decision to cover up her Bird Discovery space with a Tectonic Modifier Tile, and Mark chooses to cover his Plants Discovery space with a Crab Modifier Tile.

Discovery Phase

The First Player Anchor has now rotated to Mark (it would move clockwise around the table in games with more than 2 players).

Mark uses the power listed on his Crab Modifier Token to reroll a die, hoping for a 1 or 2 to discover a Crab. He picks up one of his 3s and rerolls it twice. He fails and ends up with a 5.

He uses that 5 to discover a new island. He can place one of his small Island Pieces on any of the unclaimed vents on the Game Board. He chooses to place it on a vent that the ship has already passed, so he knows which Research Token he will get.

Mark ends his turn there, planning to bring a Bird from the mainland to one of his islands with his two 6s on his next turn, which would also allow him to place a Plant on the island the Bird lands on.

Beth uses her Tree Modifier Tile power to change her 4 into a 5 which allows her to use those three 5s to slide a medium Island Piece under her existing island.

It is now Mark's turn again. He and Beth will alternate turns until they both pass, which will end round 2. He and Beth will play until the end of round 8, when they will see who has earned the most VP and wins!

Credits

Game Design - Adam DeYoung Game Developer - Alex Cutler Art - Tom Goyon Graphic Design - Matt Paquette & Co Additional Graphic Design - Peter Wocken Rulebook Editor - Eric Slauson

Special thank you to all the playtesters! Alex Burman, Andrew Gaudet, Amy Sawford, Ashwin Kamath, Bill Appelbaum, Brandon Vieira, Brian Slepow, Bruce Monach, Cory Everette, Danielle Tanielian, David Lamb, Dominic DeCosta, Elizabeth Byrne, Greg Jung, Te Fiti, Gregory Su, Jessica Applebaum, John Hutchinson, Johnny LeGrand, John Zaporteza, Josh Baran, Josh Filina, Kari Lamb, Keith Monach, Mike Mihealsick, Mike Posada, Michael Sawford, Pamela Rastetter, Thomas Byrne, Tim Rastetter, Valerie Naftaniel, Vince Luskin Jr. Also special thanks to Emily Willix for her help with the rulebook!

Imported and distributed in the UK by: Esdevium Games Ltd - trading as Asmodee UK, 6 Waterbrook Road, Alton, Hampshire, GU34 2UD

Imported and distributed in the EU by: Asmodee Nordics, Valseholmen 1, 2650 Hvidovre - Denmark

© 2023 Pandasaurus Games, LLC. All rights reserved. 2028 E Ben White Blvd #240, Austin, TX 78741 www.pandasaurusgames.com