Maui Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Setup
• Goal of the Game
• Game Overview
• Playing the Game
  • 1. Placing a Towel Tile
  • Umbrella Tokens
  • After Placing a Towel Tile
  • 2. Taking Sand Dollars
• Ending Your Turn
• Ending the Game
• Final Scoring
• Sand Crab Variant
• Base Game + Sand Crab Variant

Components

• 4 double-sided Beaches (in 4 player colors)
• 1 Market board
• 1 Score board & 1 Extension (Extension used in Base game + Sand crab variant only)
• 1 Bag
• 20 Score markers (in 4 player colors)
• 60 Towel tiles
• 6 Sand dollars
• 32 Umbrella tokens (in 4 player colors)
• 4 Towel tokens (2 light blue and 2 orange patterns)
• 20 double-sided Penalty tokens
• 1st player marker
• 28 Sand crab tokens (in 4 player colors, used in the Sand crab variant only)

Setup

1. Put all 60 Towel tiles in the Bag and place the Bag within reach of all the players.
2. Place the Market board and the Score board in the middle of the table. Draw 6 Towel tiles from the Bag to fill all the towel spaces on the Market board. When filling the Market, always place the Towel tiles with the stones upwards, as illustrated on the towel space. Also place 1 Sand dollar on each Sand dollar area.
3. For a 3 or 4-player game, place 2 pale blue Towel tokens on the ornate frame space of the yellow pattern score track and 2 orange Towel tokens on the ornate frame space of the fish pattern score track. For a 2-player game, perform the same process with only 1 pale blue and 1 orange Towel token. Unused Towel tokens are returned to the box.
4. Place all the Penalty tokens next to the Market board as a supply.
5. Each player chooses a color and takes the Beach of that color and places it, (side showing the umbrellas) with the dock to their left. Players take the 5 Score markers of their color and 1 Sand dollar.
6. Each player takes a set of 8 Umbrella tokens of their color. Then, each player randomly places each of their Umbrella token, face-down, on matching icons on their Beach.
7. All players flip their Umbrella tokens face-up.
8. Each player randomly draws a Towel tile from the bag and places it vertically on the dock, on the left side of their beach (see setup picture). This is their starting Towel tile. The orientation of the stones on that Towel tile must be the same as the Market board (see picture on the right).
9. The player who has most recently been to the beach is the starting player and receives the 1st player marker.
10. Return any unused Beach, Umbrella tokens, Score markers and Sand dollars to the box.

Important: When placing their Towel tiles on their beach, players must keep the same stone orientation as the Towel tiles on the Market board. Stones are downward for players A and B and stones are upward for players C and D.

Goal of the Game

Place Towel tiles on your beach and create connections with identical patterns to score points and also collect Umbrella tokens. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.

Game Overview

The game is played over a certain number of rounds. During a round, each player takes their turn starting with the 1st player and then going in clockwise order.

On your turn, take a Towel tile from the Market board and place it on your Beach by connecting identical patterns. Instead, you may take Sand dollars to acquire a specific Towel tile later on. The game is played until a player has filled their Beach with 12 Towel tiles to trigger the end of the game.

Playing the Game

On your turn, you must perform one action: 1. Placing a Towel tile OR 2. Taking Sand dollars

1. Placing a Towel Tile

A. Picking a Towel tile and paying the cost, if applicable

The Market board presents 2 rows of Towel tiles and you may pick a Towel tile in either row. After choosing a tile, pay its cost according to its position in that row. The tile in the 1st position is free and the tiles in the 2nd and 3rd positions require you to pay the illustrated cost by placing Sand dollars in the Sand dollar area in the same row where you picked the Towel tile.

Refilling the Market board

After picking a Towel tile, refill the Market board by sliding the Towel tiles toward the Sand dollar area (orange arrows direction). Then, draw a new Towel tile from the Bag to refill the empty towel space (following the stones orientation).

B. Placing a Towel tile

After picking a Towel tile from the Market board, you must place it on your Beach:

• Each Towel tile consists of 3 towel patterns. AT LEAST 1 towel pattern from that tile must match horizontally with another identical pattern from the previous Towel tile inside the play area.
• Only 1 Towel tile may be placed per column. They are always placed face-up on your Beach from left to right with the same stone orientation as the starting Towel tile. They must be aligned with the grid. Towel tiles may NOT be rotated.
• When you cover an Umbrella token, take it and apply its effect (see the Umbrella Tokens section for details).
• You may place a Towel token if you have one (see the Towel Tokens section for details).

C. Moving your Score markers forward

After placing a Towel tile on your Beach, you score points FOR EACH HORIZONTAL MATCH CREATED with the previous tile. Place and/or move forward 1 Score marker per corresponding track on the Score board.

Score markers may be moved forward by 1, 2, or 3 steps according to the row where a match is created. The numbers at the end of each row (right side of your beach) represent that number of steps. Stack the Score markers landing on the same step.

You may move foward more than one Score marker on your turn if you create multiple matches when placing a Towel tile. If one of your Score marker has reached the last space of a track, you may still create connections with that pattern, but you will no longer score it.

Example: Player C has placed a Towel tile that is connecting with two patterns. Then, he places his Score marker on the second step of the first track and advances his marker on the second track by 3. When doing so, he reaches the fish ornate frame space and takes the orange Towel token.

Reaching an ornate frame space

After moving your Score markers foward, if you reached or passed an ornate frame space, pick 1 Towel token (light blue or orange) from that space (see the Towel Tokens section for details).

Umbrella Tokens

When placing a Towel tile, if you cover an Umbrella token, remove it and immediately apply its bonus. Then, place your Towel tile and proceed with the C. Moving your Score markers forward rules. If you do not cover an Umbrella token in a column where you have placed a Towel tile, return that token to the box.

There are 2 bonuses: Pearls and Scoring patterns.

Pearls

Place the Pearl token onto the corresponding color on your Beach dock. During final scoring, score pearl points according to the total number of pearls collected:

• 1 pearl of any color = 2 points.
• 2 pearls of the same color = 5 points.
• 3 pearls of the same color = 9 points.

Scoring patterns

Move your Score marker foward on one of the illustrated Score tracks on the token, then return that token to the box.

You may not move foward a Score marker that has already reached the last space of a track. If both Score markers have already reached the last space of their respective tracks, ignore the bonus of this token.

After Placing a Towel Tile

Towel tokens

Before moving your Score markers forward, you may add a Towel token on this Towel tile to replace one of its patterns. Replacing a pattern this way may be used to create a new match that allows this tile to be placed, to create an additional match, or to plan an eventual match, as long as the tile you have just placed follows the Placing a Towel tile rules. You may add more than one Towel token on a Towel tile. However, you may not add a Towel token on the same turn you have acquired it.

Penalty tokens

If you place towel patterns outside the play area of your Beach, put 1 Penalty token on each of these patterns (ocean at the top and trees at the bottom).

Towel patterns with a Penalty token become inactive and therefore may not be used for a match with the next Towel tile. In the rare case where the supply runs out of these tokens, use appropriate substitutes.

2. Taking Sand Dollars

You may take all the Sand dollars from only 1 Sand dollar area of the Market board. Each Sand dollar still in your possesion at the end of the game is worth 1 point.

Ending Your Turn

After performing one of these two actions, it is the next player's turn in clockwise order. After all players have played, start a new round with the starting player's turn. Continue to do so until a player triggers the end of the game.

Important: On your turn, if none of the Towel tiles from the Market board create a match with the rightmost Towel tile on your Beach, and if there is no Sand dollar in both Sand dollar areas, you must perform the Spare towel action:

Take any Towel tile from the Market board for free and place it in the next available column in the middle section of your Beach (rows of value 1), regardless if there are matching patterns or not. A Towel tile placed this way does not score any points.

If that Towel tile covers an Umbrella token, return it to the box and ignore its effect.

Then, draw a new Towel tile to fill the Market board as described above.

Ending the Game

When a player places its 12th Towel tile on their beach, the end of the game is triggered. Finish the current round and proceed to the Final scoring. Some players might not have completely filled their Beach with 12 Towel tiles at the end of the game.

Final Scoring

Total the points of all your Score markers on the score tracks. Add the pearl points to your total according to the number of pearls you have collected. Futhermore, each Sand dollar is worth 1 point.

The total value of your Penalty tokens is deduced from your score.

The player with the highest score wins. In case of a tie, the tied player with the least number of Towel tiles on their Beach is the winner. If there is still a tie, the tied player with the most Sand dollars wins. If there is still a tie, the tied player who comes last in player order wins the game.

Scoring example: Player C first total the points of all his Score markers on the score tracks (50 points).

Then, he adds the points for the number of Pearls collected and his Sand dollars (3 pearls of the same color = 9 points, 1 pearl of another color = 2 points, and 2 Sand dollars for 2 points, for a total of 13 points).

Finally, he applies the value of his Penalty tokens (-3 points).

Final score: 60 points.

Sand Crab Variant

Need a challenge? Try avoiding the little sand crabs in this variant!

Setup - Set the game up as usual and apply these modifications:

5. Each player places their Beach with the Sand crab variant side face-up, with the dock on their left.
6. Instead of taking their Pearls, they take 7 Sand crab tokens and the 2 Umbrella tokens with scoring patterns of their color. Then, they randomly place the Sand crab tokens face-down on the Sand crab icons and the 2 Umbrella tokens with scoring patterns face-up on the corresponding spaces of their Beach.
7. Skip this step as there are no tokens to reveal.

The rules remain the same as for the base game. However, in this variant there are no Pearls to collect and there is one new feature added to the gameplay.

Covering a Sand crab token

When placing a Towel tile, if a Sand crab token is covered, pick it and place it face-up on the pattern that covers it after moving your Score markers forward.

A towel pattern covered with a Sand crab token becomes inactive and therefore may not be used for a match with the next Towel tile.

You may not place a Towel token on a Sand crab token.

At the end of the game, add the penalty points of each revealed Sand crab token (on each Towel tile). Their value ranges from -2 to -4.

Note: Tokens covered by the Spare towel action are ignored and returned to the box.

Base Game + Sand Crab Variant

As you get comfortable with the base game and the Sand crab variant, you may combine them for a longer game.

Setup - Set the game up as usual and follow these instructions:

2. Add the Extension by placing it at the end of the Score board.

The game is played normally until the end of the game is triggered. Players then head to the first Final scoring to determine a new starting player instead. The player with the lowest score gains the 1st player marker. In case of a tie, choose the starting player randomly between the tied players. Then, players return all the Towel tiles placed on their Beach and the Market board to the Bag and proceed with the Sand crab variant by placing their Beach with the Sand crab variant side face-up.

Current positions on the Score track, collected Pearls, Sand dollars, Towel tokens and Penalty tokens are carried over the Sand crab variant. Players follow the Sand crab variant setup. The Pearls and Penalty tokens obtained previously are placed onto the docks and will only be used during the second Final scoring that will determine the winner.