Gartenbau
Gartenbau Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Components
- Setup
- How to Play
- Seedling Market Petal Abilities
- Special Tokens
- End of Game
- Advanced Flower Scoring FAQ
- Empty Spaces Adjacent to This Flower
- Flowers Adjacent to This Flower (x2)
- 1 Prestige per Filled Space in Your Largest Rectangular Area
- 24 Prestige
- 10 Prestige plus 2 Prestige per Seedling in Your Longest Connected Set of Identical Seedlings (x2)
- 1 Prestige per Edge up to a Maximum of 40
- 24 Prestige (Rhododendron)
- 6 Prestige plus Prestige for Holes (x2)
- 8 Prestige plus 3 Prestige per Green Plant and 2 Prestige per Green Seedling
- Seedlings Adjacent to Your Flowers
- 12 Prestige plus 2 Prestige per Connected Pair of Identical Seedlings
- 10 Prestige plus Prestige per Set of Red/Yellow/Blue Seedlings
- 12 Prestige plus 12 Prestige per Connected Set of 6 Different Seedlings
- 10 Prestige plus 1 Prestige per Empty Space in Your Largest Hole (x2)
- 10 Prestige plus Prestige per Set of Green/Purple/Orange Seedlings
- 8 Prestige plus 3 Prestige per Orange Plant and 2 Prestige per Orange Seedling
- 8 Prestige plus 5 Prestige per Visible Plant
- 8 Prestige plus 3 Prestige per Purple Plant and 2 Prestige per Purple Seedling
- Sets of Identical Seedlings Adjacent to This Flower (x2)
- Credits
- Designers' Notes
- Starting Hands
- Legal
Components
- 2-Piece Market Board
- 4 Player Markers
- 2 Resource Wheelbarrows
- 6 Starter Seedling Tiles
- 72 Seedling Tiles
- 48 Plant Tiles
- 54 Flower Tiles (30 Beginner, 24 Advanced)
- 25 Sun Tokens
- 25 Water Tokens
- 4 Watering Can Tokens
- 4 Flower Pot Tokens
Setup
- Based on player count, place the appropriate Market Board centrally located within the reach of all players.
- Fill the Resource Wheelbarrows with the sunlight and water tokens, then place near the Market Board.
- Based on the following chart, prepare the Seedling Tiles and then place them, in stacks of 9 tiles, face up on each petal.
| No. of Players | Seedling Tiles | Setup |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 54 | Remove all 15 3&4 Player Seedling Tiles (marked on the back with 3-4 icon). Shuffle remaining Seedling Tiles and remove 3 at random. |
| 3 | 63 | Shuffle all 72 Seedling Tiles removing 9 at random. |
| 4 | 72 | Shuffle and use all 72 Seedling Tiles. |
- Each player takes all of the following to place in front of them:
- 2 water and 2 sunlight tokens from the Resource Wheelbarrows.
- 1 seedling starter tile. These tiles are double-sided.
- 1 wheelbarrow player marker, 1 flower pot token, and 1 watering can token. (See special tokens for complete explanation)
- Separate Plant Tiles by color and sort by prestige value (printed on each tile) in ascending order, with the lowest prestige on top. Place these 6 stacks face up next to the petal seedling board. In a two player game, remove the 3 value Plants and return them to the box. They will not be used in a two player game.
- Each player chooses a player marker and places it on the Starting Petal Location (with the orange dot).
- The player who has most recently gardened will go first. Play proceeds in clockwise order.
- Begin the game by selecting the flowers you would like to grow in your garden this season. There are 2 possible ways to do this. Please choose ONE:
Novice Gardeners
Sort the Beginner Flower Tiles into preset hands by matching the symbols on the back of the tile (pictured below). Each pile should contain 5 flowers. Place each pile face down on the table. Beginning with the first player, each player selects a pile. The selected pile will be your hand of flowers for this game. See chart on page 8 for the piles.
Board Diagram Labels
- Player Count — printed on the corner of the petal seedling board, indicating which player-count configuration to use.
- Circle Space — a space on the petal seedling board.
- Starting Location — the orange-marked circle where each player begins.
- Petal — one of the flower-shaped sections of the seedling board holding a stack of Seedling Tiles.
Advanced Gardeners
Follow the following steps to draft your hand of flowers using the Advanced Flower Tiles.
A. Shuffle the Advanced Flower tiles without revealing them. B. Lay out 12 face-down flower tiles on the playing surface to form a drafting grid as indicated in the diagram. C. Place a face-up tile atop each of the face-down tiles in the grid. D. Remove any remaining tiles from the game. You should now have 12 piles of two tiles each, with each pile containing a face-up tile and a face-down tile. This is your catalog of flowers. E. Beginning with the first player, choose 1 pile at a time in turn and add both tiles to your hand of flower tiles. Players will choose piles until each player has chosen 3 piles. In a 2 player game, players will choose 4 piles. F. After examining the 6 tiles in their hand (8 in a 2 player game) players discard 1 tile from their hand to the box. In a 2 player game, players discard 2 tiles.
The starter tiles are double sided with different colors, choose which side you want to play with placing it face up in front of you.
How to Play
Players will take turns collecting Seedling Tiles from the Market Board. Those tiles will be arranged into personal gardens in front of them. When arranged in certain combinations, Seedling Tiles can be covered up by Plant Tiles acquired from the Plant market. Flower tiles will then be placed from players' hands to cover up the proper combination of Plant tiles.
On their turn, players may not pass and MUST choose and perform ONE of the following three options:
Option 1. The Seedling Market
Step 1
Move your player marker around the market in a clockwise direction according to the following rules:
- You must move clockwise to the next unoccupied petal. You cannot use this action to stay on your current petal or to move to a petal occupied by another player.
- You may pass an unoccupied petal in the Seedling Market by placing one resource on the Seedling Tile at each petal you would like to skip over. You may do this as many times as you wish before taking Step 2.
Example 1: Blue moves to the next unoccupied petal clockwise, skipping the petal with Pink's player marker on it.
Example 2: Blue moves two petals clockwise, skipping a petal by placing a water token on top of the Seedling Tiles.
Step 2
Perform ONE of the following:
A. Take the Seedling Tile from the top of the pile at the petal where you stopped your movement. Place this Seedling Tile in your garden. If resource tokens are present on the tile, take them as well! B. Take the resources (in quantity and type) indicated on the petal. If there are any resources on the Seedling Tiles, you do NOT collect them. Those resources are ONLY collected when choosing to take the Seedling Tile. At the end of your turn, you may only hold a maximum of 10 total resources.
Acquired tiles must immediately be placed into your garden - the tableau in front of you. All Seedling Tiles may be placed anywhere in your garden, as long as the tile being placed is adjacent to at least one previously placed tile.
Your first tile will be placed adjacent to your starter tile. Seedling colors do not need to match for placement.
Example 3: Blue moves one petal clockwise, collecting the double purple Seedling Tile rather than the sunlight and water token as indicated on the petal.
NOTE: Seedling tiles need not match for placement.
Option 2. The Plant Market
Step 1
Move your player marker clockwise to the next unoccupied Circle Space. You may NOT pay resources to skip over unoccupied Circle Spaces.
Step 2
Acquire a Plant Tile from the top of one of the six Plant Tile stacks. Pay the resource cost indicated on the tile to the Resource Wheelbarrow(s) and immediately place the tile in your garden.
Example 4: Yellow moves to the first empty Circle Space. The plant tile they would like to purchase is the yellow Plant Tile, so they discard one sun and two water tokens. This Plant Tile is then placed across two yellow Seedling Tiles in their garden, each showing one yellow seedling.
Placement Rules:
- A Plant Tile must be placed in your own garden, directly covering two seedlings. The seedling color requirements for the Plant Tile must be met in order to place the tile.
- A Plant Tile may not be placed to cover only one Seedling Tile, but rather must cross two Seedling Tiles. (A reminder of this is shown by the line drawn in the center of Seedling Tiles.)
NOTE: Starting Tiles are considered a single tile, meaning you cannot place a plant tile on two sections of that tile.
Option 3. Place Flower Tiles
Step 1
Move your player marker clockwise to the next unoccupied Circle Space. You may not pay resources to skip over unoccupied Circle Spaces.
Step 2
Place one of your Flower Tiles from your hand into your garden, according to the following requirements:
A. You will not pay resources to take this action. B. You must meet the plant color and location requirements for the Flower Tile being played. Collect any three water/sun resources of your choice.
NOTE: The Green Flower Tile may be placed on top of two Green Plant Tiles or a Yellow and a Blue Plant Tile, as long as the two tiles are directly adjacent.
Example 5: Yellow moves to the empty Circle Space and chooses a Flower Tile from their hand.
This Flower Tile is then placed across two Plant Tiles.
The Yellow Player has two options for placement: either on top of a set of Red and Blue Plant Tiles or on top of two Purple Plant Tiles.
NOTE: When you play a flower in your garden, you earn a bonus of 3 total resources of sun and/or water.
Seedling Market Petal Abilities
As Seedling Tiles are removed from petals in the seedling Market, these petals may become empty, revealing a printed ability. When a player lands on a petal without seedlings, they may choose to use the printed ability on the tile OR choose resources as usual.
If these petals are skipped, any resources are placed on the empty petal space. When the printed ability is used, the player will also collect any resource tokens there.
NOTE: Resource tokens are taken before the ability is resolved.
Special Tokens
Each player begins the game with two special tokens:
-
Flower Pot Token:
Speed through the market to get just what you need! Once per game you may surrender this token to move your player marker to any petal (occupied or not) and acquire that Seedling Tile without paying any resources. If unused, this token is worth 2 points at the end of the game.
-
Watering Can Token:
Even a Master Gardener changes their mind every now and then. Once per game you may surrender this token to move one uncovered Seedling Tile from one location in your garden to another location OR to trade locations of two uncovered Seedling Tiles in your garden. You may not break your garden into two gardens. If unused, this token is worth 2 points at the end of the game.
End of Game
The end of the growing season is signaled when FOUR PETALS in the Seedling Market no longer contain tiles.
When this happens, play will continue to the end of the round, with the player to the right of the first player taking the last turn so that every player has an equal number of turns.
Players score prestige as follows:
- Flower Tiles in your garden score prestige according to the scoring requirements indicated on the tile.
- Plant Tiles which are visible in your garden score prestige as printed on each tile. Visible means the Plant Tile is NOT covered up by a Flower Tile, as those Plant Tiles do not score.
- Seedling Tiles have no prestige value by themselves.
- Resources have no scoring value.
- Unused Flower Pot and Watering Can tokens score 2 points each.
The player with the highest prestige is the winner!
In the event of a tie, the player who has placed the most Flower Tiles into their garden wins. If still tied, the player with the fewest Plant Tiles showing in their garden is the winner. If still tied, players share the victory!
Advanced Flower Scoring FAQ
Empty Spaces Adjacent to This Flower
Example: Calla Lily
| Empty adjacent spaces | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prestige | 16 | 20 | 25 | 31 | 38 | 46 |
Gardener will earn Prestige, according to the chart, for the number of empty spaces that are adjacent to this flower. An empty space is the size of a single seedling and does not contain any tile. Since all flowers will be connected to the garden by at least one seedling, the largest possible number of adjacent empty spaces is 7.
Flowers Adjacent to This Flower (x2)
Example: Carnation
| Adjacent flowers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prestige | 15 | 24 | 34 | 45 |
Gardener will earn Prestige, according to the chart, for each other flower that is immediately adjacent to this flower. This includes cases where only half of a flower's tile is adjacent but it does not include diagonal adjacency. (In a 2 player game, it is possible to have 5 adjacent flowers. Players will only score for up to 4, according to the chart.)
1 Prestige per Filled Space in Your Largest Rectangular Area
Example: Datura
Gardener will earn 1 Prestige for each filled space in the largest rectangular area in their garden. This area must not contain any empty spaces. A filled space may contain a seedling, plant, and/or flower tile.
24 Prestige
Example: Calla Lily
Gardener will earn 24 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden at the end of the growing season.
10 Prestige plus 2 Prestige per Seedling in Your Longest Connected Set of Identical Seedlings (x2)
Example: Cornflower — If you have two of this tile you need two different sets.
Gardener will earn 10 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden at the end of the growing season. Additionally, they will earn 2 Prestige for each seedling in their largest connected set of identical seedlings (seedlings of the same color and type).
1 Prestige per Edge up to a Maximum of 40
Example: Datura
Gardener will earn 1 Prestige for each edge in their garden at the end of the growing season. An edge is a straight-line boundary created on the outside of a garden by one or more connected tiles. Boundaries which are entirely inside a garden are not counted.
24 Prestige (Rhododendron)
Example: Rhododendron
Gardener will earn 24 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden at the end of the growing season.
6 Prestige plus Prestige for Holes (x2)
Example: Hybrid Tea Rose — If you have two of this tile you need two sets of holes.
| Holes | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prestige | 4 | 8 | 14 | 20 | 28 | 36 |
Gardener will earn 6 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden. Additionally, they will earn Prestige, according to the chart, for up to 6 holes in their garden at the end of the growing season. A hole is one or more adjacent empty spaces in a garden that are completely surrounded by tiles. Each hole may only be counted once by this flower, even if a player plays two of this flower.
8 Prestige plus 3 Prestige per Green Plant and 2 Prestige per Green Seedling
Example: Forget-Me-Not
Gardener will earn 8 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden. Additionally, they will earn 3 Prestige for each visible green plant and 2 Prestige for each visible green seedling in their garden at the end of the growing season. There are no location or adjacency requirements.
Seedlings Adjacent to Your Flowers
Example: Rhododendron
| 4 | 13 | 21 | 28 | 34 | 40 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 18 | 26 | 34 | 42 | 50 |
Gardener will earn Prestige for the seedlings adjacent to each flower according to the chart. A Seedling can be counted once for each flower it is adjacent to. Each flower will have a maximum of 8 adjacent seedlings.
12 Prestige plus 2 Prestige per Connected Pair of Identical Seedlings
Example: Forget-Me-Not
Gardener will earn 12 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden at the end of the growing season. Additionally, they will earn 2 Prestige for each connected pair of identical seedlings. A connected pair of identical seedlings includes two seedlings of the same type and color that are adjacent to each other. Each eligible seedling may only be counted once for this flower.
10 Prestige plus Prestige per Set of Red/Yellow/Blue Seedlings
Example: Fuchsia — Adjacency not required.
| Sets | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prestige | 5 | 10 | 16 | 23 | 30 |
Gardener will earn 10 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden. Additionally, they will earn Prestige, according to the chart, for up to 5 sets of red, yellow & blue seedlings in their garden at the end of the growing season. Sets of seedlings do not need to be adjacent to each other.
12 Prestige plus 12 Prestige per Connected Set of 6 Different Seedlings
Example: Garden Rose
Gardener will earn 12 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden. Additionally, they will earn 10 prestige for each connected set of 1 seedling each of red, yellow, blue, orange, purple & green seedlings. Each seedling may be adjacent to more than one of the other seedlings. Each eligible seedling may only be counted once for this flower.
10 Prestige plus 1 Prestige per Empty Space in Your Largest Hole (x2)
Example: Larkspur — If you have two of this tile you need two different holes.
Gardener will earn 10 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden. Additionally, they will earn 1 Prestige for each empty space in the largest hole in their garden at the end of the growing season. A hole is one or more adjacent empty spaces in a garden that are completely surrounded by tiles. Each hole may only be counted once by this flower, even if a player plays two of this flower.
10 Prestige plus Prestige per Set of Green/Purple/Orange Seedlings
Example: Fuchsia — Adjacency not required.
| Sets | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prestige | 5 | 10 | 16 | 23 | 30 |
Gardener will earn 10 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden. Additionally, they will earn Prestige, according to the chart, for up to 5 sets of green, purple & orange seedlings in their garden at the end of the growing season. Sets of seedlings do not need to be adjacent to each other.
8 Prestige plus 3 Prestige per Orange Plant and 2 Prestige per Orange Seedling
Example: Garden Rose
Gardener will earn 8 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden. Additionally, they will earn 3 Prestige for each visible orange plant and 2 Prestige for each visible orange seedling in their garden at the end of the growing season. There are no location or adjacency requirements.
8 Prestige plus 5 Prestige per Visible Plant
Example: Red Lily
Gardener will earn 8 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden. Additionally, they will earn 5 Prestige for each visible plant in their garden at the end of the growing season.
8 Prestige plus 3 Prestige per Purple Plant and 2 Prestige per Purple Seedling
Example: Red Lily
Gardener will earn 8 Prestige if the flower is present in their garden. Additionally, they will earn 3 Prestige for each visible purple plant and 2 Prestige for each visible purple seedling in their garden at the end of the growing season. There are no location or adjacency requirements.
Sets of Identical Seedlings Adjacent to This Flower (x2)
Example: Sweet William
| 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 13 | 18 | 24 | 30 | 37 | 45 |
Gardener will earn Prestige, according to the chart, for the largest number of identical seedlings that are adjacent to this flower. Identical seedlings include seedlings of the same type and color. Each flower will have a maximum of 8 adjacent seedlings.
Credits
Game Design: David Abelson & Alex Johns
Graphic Design: Matt Paquette & Co., Todd Sanders
Game Development & Production: Chad Elkins
Editing: Ric White
Designers' Notes
David Abelson
I would like to thank some of the people, and places who have been especially helpful in various ways: Elizabeth Abelson, Heath Abelson, Will Meadows, Ryan Sherwood, Dylan & Julie Tredway, Mike Mihealsik, JB Howell, John Jewell, Lucas Weese & Friends, Tom Anderson, Gabe Barrett, Ray Fowkes and Alicia Cantrell, Rachel and Zach Cote, Micah Abelson, Game Designers of North Carolina, The Orlando Game Designers Group, Potions & Pixels, Meeple Movers, UNPUB, ProtoATL and all the crowdfunding supporters who have helped bring this game to life! I hope it grows on you, as it has on me...
Alex Johns
I would like to thank my family, friends all the people who helped in the making of this game, especially my wife Amber, my children Lora and Robert, and mom Donna for the help, encouragement and sitting through countless hours of play testing it took to get this dream into this box. David Abelson, thank you for everything you did to help turn my scribbled scraps of paper into this game, and for your patience through the process. And a big thank you to Chad Elkins for picking up this game and giving it the 25th Century Games flair it needed to succeed.
Starting Hands
Players can draw a starting hand at random. The Beginner Flower Tiles are pre-sorted into six preset hands, each identified by a matching pollinator/pest symbol printed on the back of its tiles: beetle, moth, green beetle, spider, ant, and bee.
Beetle hand: Red Lily (20 Prestige); Cornflower (6 Prestige plus 2 Prestige per orange seedling or plant); Carnation (18 Prestige); Datura (Prestige for holes — 1/2/3/4/5/6 holes: 5/8/12/17/23/28 Prestige); Sweet William (16 Prestige).
Moth hand: Garden Rose (20 Prestige); Rhododendron (16 Prestige); Larkspur (6 Prestige plus 2 Prestige per purple seedling or plant); Datura (Prestige for holes — 1/2/3/4/5/6 holes: 5/8/12/17/23/28 Prestige); Fuchsia (18 Prestige).
Green beetle hand: Calla Lily (16 Prestige); Larkspur (6 Prestige plus 2 Prestige per orange seedling or plant); Datura (Prestige for holes — 1/2/3/4/5/6 holes: 5/8/12/17/23/28 Prestige); Forget-Me-Not (20 Prestige); Carnation (18 Prestige).
Spider hand: Rhododendron (16 Prestige); Hybrid Tea Rose (Prestige for holes — 1/2/3/4/5/6 holes: 5/8/12/17/23/28 Prestige); Cornflower (6 Prestige plus 2 Prestige per purple seedling or plant); Red Lily (20 Prestige); Fuchsia (18 Prestige).
Ant hand: Calla Lily (16 Prestige); Larkspur (6 Prestige plus 2 Prestige per green seedling or plant); Hybrid Tea Rose (Prestige for holes — 1/2/3/4/5/6 holes: 5/8/12/17/23/28 Prestige); Garden Rose (20 Prestige); Fuchsia (18 Prestige).
Bee hand: Sweet William (16 Prestige); Hybrid Tea Rose (Prestige for holes — 1/2/3/4/5/6 holes: 5/8/12/17/23/28 Prestige); Cornflower (6 Prestige plus 2 Prestige per green seedling or plant); Forget-Me-Not (20 Prestige); Carnation (18 Prestige).
Legal
©25th Century Games, LLC 2022. PO Box 160170, Atlanta, GA 30316. Gartenbau and all related marks are ©25th Century Games™. All rights reserved. Printed in China.
Warning: Choking Hazard! Not for use by children under 3 years of age.
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: Authorised Représentative: Asmodee Group, 18 rue Jacqueline Auriol, Quartier Villaroy, BP 40119 78041 Guyancourt Cedex – France.