Marco Polo Expedition
Marco Polo Expedition Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- 1 Game Board
- 5 Player Pieces
- 5 Trader Cards, in the 5 player colors
- 55 Playing Cards:
- 40 Goods Cards (in 5 colors each): 2x Oil, 2x Spices, 2x Silk, 2x Fruit
- 15 Caravan Leader Cards (3 each in 5 colors)
- 36 Gold Chests (12 each of the values 1, 2, and 3)
Setup
The game board is placed in the middle of the table.
On every space showing a gold chest symbol, a chest of the corresponding value (1 or 2) is placed there. Each player receives one chest with the value 3, which they set down in front of themselves. The value of a chest is shown both by the number of straps on it and by the number printed on the bottom of the chest.
The remaining chests are sorted and set out ready next to the game board.
The playing cards (goods cards and caravan leader cards) are shuffled well. Each player receives five cards, which they take into their hand so that their opponents cannot see them.
A further five cards are laid out face up next to the game board as the display. The rest of the cards are placed face down next to it as the draw pile.
Each player takes a player piece and the matching trader card in the color of their choice, and places the trader card in front of themselves. On the back of the trader cards is an overview showing the requirements of the individual spaces.
The youngest player is named the start player. They place their player piece on the city of Hormus. Going clockwise, the other players place their player piece on the next free space. Only one piece may stand on each space.
Course of Play
The game proceeds clockwise. On their turn, a player either moves their piece or passes. In either case, the player draws exactly one card at the end of their turn. Then it is the next player's turn.
Moving the Player Piece
To move their piece to the next free space, the player must fulfil the requirements shown there by playing the corresponding cards face up in front of themselves. They then place these cards on an open discard pile next to the face-down draw pile.
Since only one piece may stand on any space during the entire game, occupied spaces are simply skipped over.
During their turn, a player may advance their piece as far as they like. However, they must play the cards required for each individual space they enter (see example below).
If a player is the first to reach a space with their piece on which a gold chest is lying, they may take it and place it in front of themselves. All other players who reach this space later in the game come away empty-handed.
To advance more quickly, each player has the option, once within their turn, to discard ballast. To do this, they give up a chest with the value 1 (at the start of the game, a player therefore exchanges their 3-chest for a 2-chest) and may then move their piece — without having to play any cards at all — to the next free space. However, discarding ballast is only possible once at least one opposing piece has already passed this space. By discarding ballast, a player therefore cannot move their piece to the front of the caravan.
Tip: It is often very advantageous for a player to discard ballast, especially when they are at the back of the caravan. In combination with additionally played cards, they may thereby be able to make a big step forward and save valuable cards for later.
Example: The red player gives up a gold chest with the value 1 and moves to scoring space 2. They then play three spice cards (blue, blue, red) and reach space 5.
Passing
If a player cannot or does not want to move their piece, they may pass.
Drawing a Card
To finish, the player always draws exactly one card, regardless of whether they moved their piece or not. They take:
- either a card from the open display (which is then immediately replenished back up to five with the top card of the draw pile),
- or the top card of the face-down draw pile.
If the draw pile is used up, the discard pile is shuffled well and set out ready as the new draw pile.
Space Requirements
The individual spaces pose the following requirements:
- Any one goods card, of any color (no caravan leader card!), e.g. one yellow spice.
- Matching goods cards in the pictured number, (no caravan leader cards!). The goods do not need to be the same color, e.g. 1 blue and 2 yellow spices.
- One card each of the four goods, in any colors, e.g. 1 blue fruit, 1 yellow oil, 1 blue spice, and 1 red silk.
- Two caravan leader cards, of any colors (no goods cards!).
- Three cards of your choice of one color (goods cards and caravan leader cards are allowed!), e.g. 1 red spice, 1 red silk, and 1 red caravan leader.
- One card each of the five colors (goods cards and caravan leader cards are allowed!), e.g. 1 blue caravan leader, 1 red and 1 yellow silk, 1 green and 1 purple spice.
Intermediate Scoring
If a player reaches the first leg's destination, Kantshou, with their piece, they must end their movement there; however, they still draw a card afterward.
Then the intermediate scoring takes place:
- Every player whose piece stands on one of the six scoring spaces receives gold, in the form of chests, equal to the value shown on the space.
Example: Red player stands on the space Kantshou and receives 6, blue player 5, and green player 3 gold. Orange player receives no gold.
After the intermediate scoring, the pieces placed on the scoring spaces are moved to Kantshou. Pieces that have not reached one of the six scoring spaces may only be placed on Kantshou after they have moved onto any scoring space. Play then continues with the player to the left of the player who triggered the intermediate scoring.
Final Scoring and End of Game
The game ends as soon as the first player piece reaches the second leg's destination, Daidu. The final scoring then takes place:
- Every player whose piece has reached a scoring space of the second leg receives gold, in the form of chests, equal to the value shown on the space.
Whoever now has the most gold is the winner of the game. If there is a tie among several players, the winner among them is whoever's piece reached Daidu, or is closest to it.
Rules for 2 Players
All rules remain the same, with the following changes.
Each player has two colors and receives both corresponding player pieces and trader cards. Starting with the start player, the players alternately place their pieces on the respective next free space of the game board.
The two players take turns. On their turn, a player may only move the piece of one color. However, they may decide anew on each turn which of their two pieces they want to move. At the end, the total gold that a player has collected with both of their pieces counts.
Those who want it to be even more strategic should try the following variant for the 2-player game:
If a player is on turn, they may move either piece, in any order (even switching back and forth several times). Nevertheless, as usual, they may only discard a 1-chest as ballast once during their turn. All other rules remain the same.
The author and publisher thank the numerous playtesters who contributed to the development of this game, in particular Iain Adams, Chris Bowyer, David Farquhar, Ross Inglis, Martin Higham, Kevin Jacklin, and Chris Lawson.