Mercante
Mercante Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Object
- Components
- Setup
- How to Play
- Turn Order
- Agent Actions
- Upkeep
- Game End
- Other Rules
- Sample Turn
- Appendices
- Reference
Object
Designed for 3–5 players, Mercante is a game of economic warfare. At the beginning of the game, each player controls one warehouse and two agents with which to build an economic powerhouse.
Each turn, players compete to purchase goods, reselling them for a profit or using them to fulfill valuable hidden contracts. Bid aggressively to drive up prices, but be careful not to get stuck buying a commodity you don't want!
Contracts, cash on hand, and purchased victory points are worth points at the end of the game, but be careful—unfulfilled contracts will count against you. The player with the highest score will control all trade and profit in the City-State of Tempest!
Components
Your game of Mercante should include the following. If it does not, contact [email protected] for assistance.
Boards
- 1 market board
- 5 merchant ledgers
- 3 reference tracks (1 each for 3, 4, and 5 players)
Note that the reference tracks vary by the number of players. The 3-player and 4-player reference tracks can be found on the back of a merchant ledger.
Cards
- 9 house power cards
- 32 shipment cards
- 38 event cards
- 20 contract cards
- 8 contracts for 6 crowns each
- 4 contracts for 8 crowns each
- 8 contracts for 10 crowns each
Goods Tokens
- 72 goods tokens of 16 different commodities
- luxuries: 2 each art, gems, silk, and spices
- precious metals: 4 each gold, mercury, silver, and tin
- raw materials: 4 each dyes, ore, textiles, and timber
- foodstuffs: 8 each coffee, grain, livestock, and wine
Markers & Crowns
- 1 reference track marker
- 2 upkeep markers
- 20 agent markers
- 15 warehouse markers
- 40 victory point tokens
- 140 coin tokens
- 90 one-crown coins
- 40 five-crown coins
- 10 twenty-crown coins
Setup
Place the market board in the center of the table. Find the reference track corresponding to the number of players in the game and set it by the market board. Place the reference track marker on the first space at the top left (the one with the scales in it).
Shuffle the shipment cards and place them face down near the market board to form the shipment deck. Do the same with the event cards and the contract cards. Note that the contract cards have different backs; this is intentional, just shuffle them all together and cut the deck at the end.
Reveal the top card of the event deck. If it is a Fleeting event (i.e., it has the keyword "Fleeting" just below the title), discard it and draw again. If it is an Enduring event, place it by the market board. This area is called the calendar (see page 8 for details). The game begins with this event in play. The other spaces of the calendar begin empty.
Place five shipment cards face up in a row next to the market board. This area is called the harbor. Each shipment card displays various goods icons. These are the materials the ships have for auction. Place the goods tokens near the harbor to form a supply.
The player who most recently bought or sold something (in real life) gets to be the first player. The tiebreaker goes to the person who has known the owner of this game the longest. Give the upkeep marker to the person sitting to the first player's right.
Each player receives a number of crowns equal to 8 plus twice his or her turn order (thus the starting player receives 10 crowns, the player to the left receives 12 crowns, and so on). Place the remaining crowns in a pile nearby, forming the bank.
Deal a random house power card to each player. If a player does not want the power card he or she has been dealt, that player can discard it and instead take the top card of the house power deck, sight unseen. Each player can only do this once.
Deal two random contract cards and two random event cards to each player. Each player selects one contract card to keep, and receives crowns equal to the value of that contract card. Return all remaining contract cards, shuffle them back into the contract deck, and cut it.
Each player takes a merchant ledger. Each player takes a warehouse marker and places it on his or her merchant ledger. Finally, each player takes two unassigned agents markers and places one on the unassigned agents area (top left) of the ledger and the other on the Security seal for his or her warehouse.
Merchant House Powers
Each player receives a house power card during setup. The house power card describes a unique ability available to that player. Some house power cards provide bonuses during setup. Be sure to read your house power card carefully.
How to Play
Mercante is played in a series of turns. During each turn, each player has a chance to purchase goods and play events to influence the market.
Overview
Players buy goods tokens from the ever-changing array of shipment cards in auctions. The winner of each auction places those goods tokens in any of his or her warehouses. These goods can later be sold either to the appropriate market (for example, art is sold in the luxuries market) or to the bazaar.
Each player has a number of agents, each of which is represented by an agent marker. On a player's turn, each agent can perform one agent action, like hiring dockworkers, recruiting new agents, negotiating additional shipping contracts, etc.
Key Concepts
These are essential to understanding the game.
Agents
Each player begins the game with two agent markers, although up to two more can be purchased during the game. These agents are the players' operatives, undertaking various tasks each turn. Since there are eight different agent actions available, some of which can be taken several times, players will never be able to do everything in one turn. How players plan and execute strategies with their agents can spell the difference between victory and defeat.
Warehousing
Each player begins the game with one warehouse where goods are stored until they are taken to market. Ownership of a warhouse is indicated by placing a warehouse marker on the crate image in the warehouse manifest, as shown below. During the game, each player can purchase up to two additional warehouses (see Improve House Assets, page 15).
Each warehouse has its own manifest on the player's merchant ledger, and has enough space to hold three goods tokens. Whenever a player acquires one or more goods tokens, that player places them immediately in spaces in any or all of his or her warehouses. If the player's warehouses are all full, the player may either discard goods tokens from any warehouse back to the supply, and/or discard the newly purchased goods tokens.
Important: Players may not rearrange goods tokens between warehouses! Players must take into account the placement of new goods when acquiring them (considering their future security needs, for example).
The Calendar
The calendar is the area that holds Enduring event cards that affect the markets. When an Enduring event is played, add that event to the calendar. As long as that event card remains on the calendar, it continues to affect the game for good or ill.
The calendar is composed of three spaces: "A," "B," and "C." When adding a new event card to the calendar, always place it on the "A" space. If there is already an event card in this space, shift the old event into the "B" space, which may, in turn push a card into the "C" space. When a card is pushed out of the "C" space, discard it. It has no further impact on play.
In contrast, Fleeting event cards do not go on the calendar. Discard them as soon as their effects have been resolved.
Contracts
A contract card represents an agreement to deliver one or more specific goods tokens in exchange for an up-front payment.
Each contract card shows an amount of crowns on the back of the card. This represents the payment that a player receives for taking on that contract. When a player selects a new contract card from the contract deck (see Select a Contract, page 16) that player immediately receives from the bank the number of crowns shown on the contract card. There is no limit to the quantity of contract cards a player can hold.
Contract cards are a valuable source of money for players who need to raise some capital. However, this quick infusion of funds comes with a risk: each contract card shows a victory point penalty. If a player fails to fill the order shown on the contract card before the end of the game, that player loses the victory points shown on the card (see Game End, page 19).
If a player sells all of the goods tokens shown on a contract card in his or her hand during a single turn, that player reveals and discards the contract card, and gains the victory point tokens shown.
Contract Cards
When a player takes a contract, that player receives the contract's value in crowns (A). The contract card shows what sort of goods token(s) the player must sell in a single turn to complete the contract (B).
If the player completes the contract, that player gains the victory point(s) shown (C). If the player does not complete the contract before the end of the game, that player suffers a loss of victory points shown (D).
The sale of a single goods token can only be applied toward the completion of one contract.
Turn Order
Mercante is divided into player turns. The "active player" is the person whose turn it currently is. On each turn, the active player completes the following phases, in the order shown:
- Phase 1: Upkeep (performed only if the player holds the upkeep marker)
- Phase 2: Shipment Auction
- Phase 3: Collect Agents
- Phase 4: Assign Agents
For your convenience, the turn order is printed on each player's merchant ledger. When the active player has completed the Assign Agents Phase, play passes to the left and a new turn begins.
Upkeep
Upkeep is only performed during the turn of the player who possesses the upkeep marker. Ignore this phase on other players' turns.
Since upkeep will not take place until after several players' turns, upkeep actions are described later in the rules. See Upkeep on page 17 for the steps that must be taken during the Upkeep Phase.
Shipment Auction
The active player chooses one of the five face-up shipment cards in the harbor to be auctioned. The active player also decides whether to auction the goods tokens all at once (as a "single lot" auction), or individually (one goods token at a time).
Each shipment card shows the minimum bid for each individual goods token. If a shipment contains multiple goods, a minimum bid for the whole shipment is also shown on the barrel on the right of the card.
If the active player chooses a single lot auction, only one auction is held. If the active player chooses to auction the goods tokens individually, conduct a series of auctions with each auction finished (paid for and warehoused) before the next begins. Goods tokens are auctioned as they appear on the shipment card, top to bottom.
Shipment Cards
A shipment card carries one to three goods tokens. In this example, there are two goods tokens—one silk token and one ore token.
The active player may start a single lot auction for 5 crowns (A), or else may auction off each goods token individually, in order (first silk, then ore) with the minimum bid for each token shown in the wax seal (B & C).
Goods are auctioned in a once-around fashion. That is, each player can bid exactly once in each auction. The player to the left of the active player has the first opportunity to bid, followed by the next player to the left and so on. When bidding, a player must either bid higher than the current high bid or pass. Players cannot bid more money than they can pay. The active player is always the last player to bid, and thus can always win the auction if he or she has enough money to beat the current high bid.
The highest bidder in the auction pays the bid to the bank, takes the goods token(s) won from the supply, and places them (or it) in his or her warehouse (see Warehousing, page 8).
If all players pass on an auction, skip to the next goods token on the shipment card.
Once all auctions for the chosen shipment card have been completed, whether or not all goods tokens were sold, discard the shipment card. Draw a new shipment card and add it to the harbor, ready for a future auction.
Once the replacement shipment card has been drawn, the Shipment Auction Phase ends.
Auctions with Three Players
In a three-player game of Mercante, the bidding goes around the table twice. Each player has two opportunities to bid. However, if a player passes during the first round of the auction, that player cannot bid during the second round.
Players are allowed to bid for and purchase goods tokens even if they have no intention of keeping them, just to deny them to the other players. (This can be a shrewd strategy for a clever merchant.) The player must still pay for the goods tokens won. The player then discards those tokens to the supply, without having to make room in a warehouse.
Players cannot give goods tokens to other players.
Collect Agents
The active player takes all agent markers off his or her merchant ledger. This includes any agents currently assigned as well as all agents in the unassigned agents area. Also collect any agents that are still assigned to Skulduggery.
Assign Agents
One at a time, the active player assigns each of his or her agents to carry out an agent action. To assign an agent, the player places the agent marker on one of the agent action seals on the merchant ledger that matches the action desired, and then carries out the action indicated. (Note that in the case of selling luxuries, the active player assigns two agents at once before carrying out the action.)
Each seal can hold only one agent marker at a time, so the player can only take most of the available actions once per turn. For example, there is only one Improve House Assets seal, so the player can only buy either one agent or warehouse per turn, not both.
The various agent actions are described in detail on the following pages. A player can execute agent actions in any order desired. Resolve each agent action before assigning the next one.
The active player must announce each agent action as an agent is assigned to it. This alerts the other players of agent actions that may affect them later, such as Skulduggery.
When the active player has assigned all of his or her agents and completed all agent actions, the turn ends and the player to the left becomes the new active player and begins a new turn.
EXAMPLE: It's Beth's turn. Chris, whose turn is next, holds the upkeep marker.
Beth assigns an agent to Gather Intelligence. She looks at the top contract card and sees that it is for one textiles.
She notes that David has two textiles tokens in an unsecured warehouse. With a smile she places the contract card on top of its deck.
Then she looks at the top event card. It's one she doesn't want, so she places it at the bottom of the event deck. She looks at another event card and, seeing that it will close the luxuries market, she leaves it on top of the deck so it can take effect during Chris's Upkeep Phase.
She assigns her second agent to Select a Contract. She draws the top two contract cards, keeps the textiles contract as planned, and discards the other.
Her third agent goes on Skulduggery, intending to steal one of David's textiles when his Shipment Auction Phase begins.
Finally, she assigns her fourth agent to Security, so she doesn't have her textiles token stolen away again before she has a chance to sell it.
Agent Actions
There are eight agent actions to choose from:
- Buy One Victory Point: Purchase one victory point token and add one to the upkeep marker.
- Gather Intelligence: Inspect one or more decks, and perhaps discard cards you don't like.
- Hire Dockworkers: Deliver goods tokens from the warehouse to the market.
- Improve House Assets: Purchase an additional agent marker or an additional warehouse.
- Manipulate Events: Draw one event card, then either play one event card or draw an additional event card.
- Security: Protect one warehouse from Skulduggery.
- Select a Contract: Draw two contract cards, keep one and discard the other, and receive crowns from the bank.
- Skulduggery: Send an agent to steal goods from another player.
Each agent action is detailed in the following pages.
Buy One Victory Point
The active player purchases a victory point token with this agent action. The cost to buy a victory point token is shown inside the green wax seal next to the current location of the reference track marker.
To purchase a victory point token, the active player pays the current cost to the bank, then takes a victory point token from the supply. Place a second victory point token from the supply on top of the upkeep marker (this second token will be auctioned during the next Upkeep Phase; see page 17).
Finally, advance the reference track marker forward two spaces. This has the general effect of making victory point tokens more expensive and agent markers less expensive. If this would advance the reference track marker to the last space on the reference track or beyond, the game ends at the end of this turn (see page 19).
This action appears twice on a merchant ledger, so players can use it twice per turn.
Hire Dockworkers
To sell goods, the active player must hire guild dockworkers to transport goods tokens from the warehouses to the market.
The active player can sell any number of goods from his or her warehouses to the bazaar without hiring guildsman dockworkers.
Cartage Points
Each agent assigned to Hire Dockworkers grants the active player one cartage point. The class of a given goods token (i.e., luxuries, precious metals, raw materials, or foodstuffs) determines the number of cartage points required to transport it:
| Goods for Sale | Cartage Required |
|---|---|
| 1 Luxuries | 2 cartage points |
| 1 Precious Metals | 1 cartage point |
| 1 Raw Materials | 1 cartage point |
| 2 Foodstuffs | 1 cartage point |
Goods tokens being sold can come from any warehouse or combination of warehouses.
EXAMPLE: Beth's warehouse contains one spices token (a luxury), one silver token (a precious metal), and one livestock token (a foodstuffs). She has three agents, and decides to assign all three to Hire Dockworkers. This gives her three cartage points.
She spends two cartage points to sell her spices to the luxuries market. She uses her last cartage point to sell her livestock to the foodstuffs market. Unfortunately, she must waste the opportunity to sell a second foodstuffs token (one cartage point can transport two tokens of foodstuffs), because she does not have a second foodstuffs token in her warehouses. However, she judges that the current state of the market makes it more profitable to sell the livestock now, and waste some of her cartage, than it would be to use the full cartage available to sell her silver.
Selling Goods
In Mercante, there are sixteen types of goods tokens, divided into four classes.
- The luxuries market is comprised of art, gems, silk, and spices.
- The precious metals market deals in gold, mercury, silver, and tin.
- The raw materials market covers dyes, ore, textiles, and timber.
- The foodstuffs market is the place for coffee, grain, livestock, and wine.
The icons and colors on the market board and the goods tokens indicate which goods are sold into which markets.
When a player sells a goods token, place that token in the highest-numbered empty space of the corresponding market. The player receives from the bank the number in that space, as modified by the event cards in the calendar.
Two types of event cards can influence prices:
- An entire market can be depressed or inflated by an event, which reduces or increases the value of all four goods sold in that market.
- A specific type of goods may be depressed or inflated by an event, which reduces or increases the value of that specific type of goods token, but not others in that market.
All event cards in the calendar are cumulative in effect. However, events cannot drop the price of a goods token below one crown.
EXAMPLE: Adam sells one "20" space of the art token onto the luxuries market. The calendar cards read, "Luxuries Market -2," "Luxuries Market +1," and "Art +6." Adam earns 25 crowns for the sale (20 - 2 + 1 + 6 = 25).
When selling multiple goods tokens at the same time, sell each goods token and place it in the market before calculating the sale value of the next goods token. Note that when a space in a market is covered with a goods token, the price of later goods sold into that market will be lower (because each subsequent space has a lower value). Thus goods sold into a flooded market will fetch lower prices.
Reaction Events
Some event cards have the keyword "Reaction." These events can be played to affect the price of the matching type(s) of goods token. Each time a goods token is sold, the active player must give each player, in clockwise order, an opportunity to play one or more Reaction events before calculating the final sale price. The active player can also play Reaction events before selling goods. As with auctions, the active player always has the last chance to play Reaction events.
EXAMPLE: Adam announces that he is selling a silver token. David responds by playing a Reaction event that depresses the value of the precious metals market by 1 crown.
More than one player can play a Reaction, and multiple Reactions can impact the same sale. However, once the sale has begun, the active player cannot fully withdraw the sale. Resolve all reaction events before selling the goods token.
Most reaction events are also Enduring events; add them to the calendar when played (see The Calendar on page 8). This may cause other event cards on the calendar to leave play. Resolve all calendar adjustments caused by the play of Reaction events before the final sale price of the goods is determined.
A Reaction event card can only be played while selling goods if the card itself directly modifies the price of the particular goods token being sold, either by applying bonuses or penalties, or by affecting the quantity of goods tokens in that market. Players cannot play Reaction event cards for the sole purpose of forcing other cards off the calendar.
Closed Markets and Full Markets
A player cannot sell goods tokens into a market if all of the spaces of that market are filled with goods tokens. That market is said to be "full" until one or more goods tokens are removed (either by an event or in the next Upkeep Phase). When a market is full, only the bazaar (see below) accepts that class of goods.
Some event cards "close" a given market. As long as such an event is in effect, no goods may be sold to the closed market. However, the bazaar (see below) is never affected by these events.
Players cannot sell into a closed or full market with the intent of playing an event to reopen it.
The Bazaar
The bazaar is a merchant house's opportunity of last resort for selling goods tokens. A player can always sell goods tokens to the bazaar for 3 crowns each. Event cards never modify the price of goods in the bazaar. Selling to the bazaar does not require an agent.
Usually, players will only sell goods tokens to the bazaar when the normal market is closed or full, but unfavorable markets or a desperate need for cash or contract completion may cause a player to choose to sell goods to the bazaar instead of the market.
Return goods tokens sold to the bazaar directly to the supply. Do not place them on the market board.
Goods sold into the bazaar satisfy the terms of a contract card.
Gather Intelligence
The active player chooses three cards from the top of the event deck, the shipment deck, and/or the contract deck in any combination. The player may look at each card in turn before deciding which deck to draw from next.
After examining all three cards, the player returns them to their respective decks, placing each card on the top or bottom of its deck, in any order.
Improve House Assets
This action allows the active player to invest in the house's operations either by purchasing a new agent or by purchasing a warehouse. Crowns paid to Improve House Assets are always paid to the bank.
Purchase One Agent Marker
The cost of a new agent marker is shown on the reference track. To purchase a new agent, the active player must pay crowns equal to the current agent cost shown inside the blue wax seal below the current location of the reference marker.
After paying the bank, the active player advances the reference track marker forward one space. This has the general effect of making victory point tokens more expensive and agent markers less expensive. If this would advance the reference track marker to the last space on the reference track or beyond, the game ends at the end of this turn (see page 19).
The active player takes one agent marker from the supply and places it in the unassigned agents area. This agent is available for use starting on that player's next turn.
No player may ever have more than four agent markers.
Purchase One Warehouse
It costs 5 crowns to purchase an additional warehouse. When the active player purchases one warehouse, that player takes an additional warehouse marker and places it on the crate of the second (or third) warehouse. The warehouse marker is a reminder that the player now owns that warehouse and can store goods tokens on it.
No player may ever have more than three warehouses. Purchasing a warehouse does not advance the reference track.
Manipulate Events
The active player first draws one event card from the deck into his or her hand. Then the active player can either draw a second event card, or else play one event card from his or her hand.
If the active player plays an Enduring event, add it to the calendar (see The Calendar, page 8). If it is a Fleeting event, resolve it and discard it. It does not affect the calendar.
The active player can play a Reaction event with this action; just treat it as an Enduring or Fleeting event, as noted on the card.
Security
The active player may assign an agent to Security at each warehouse owned. That warehouse is considered "secured," which protects that warehouse from Skulduggery (see next column) and certain event cards.
Any goods tokens stored in a warehouse that does not have an agent in its Security seal is said to be "unsecured." A player may have a combination of secured and unsecured goods tokens, if that player owns more than one warehouse.
Select a Contract
When an agent is assigned to this action, the active player draws two contract cards from the contract deck, keeps one of those cards, and discards the other. The player then receives from the bank the number of crowns shown on the selected contract card.
There is no limit to the number of contract cards a player may hold, but players should be careful about collecting too many. Each contract card has a victory point penalty. If the contract cannot be filled before the end of the game, the player loses the victory points shown (see Scoring, page 19). For more information on contract cards, see page 8.
Skulduggery
The active player places the agent marker on the Skulduggery seal and leaves it there. Between now and the player's next Collect Agents Phase, the player may use this agent to either:
- Steal goods tokens from another player who has more than one goods token in a single unsecured warehouse, or
- Steal a goods token that is being discarded to the supply from a player's warehouse.
After an agent in the Skulduggery seal steals a goods token, move that agent to the unassigned agents area.
Stealing from a Warehouse
After placing the agent marker on the Skulduggery seal, the player may use the Skulduggery action at the start of another player's Shipment Auction Phase. Players can only use Skulduggery against the active player.
The player using Skulduggery selects one of the active player's unsecured warehouses that has more than one goods token stored in it. The player being targeted by Skulduggery selects one goods token in the targeted warehouse and gives it to the player using Skulduggery.
After stealing the goods tokens, the player using Skulduggery places that goods token in one of his or her warehouses.
Players cannot use Skulduggery on themselves. Each warehouse can only be targeted once per turn by Skulduggery, although if a player has multiple unsecured warehouses, different players could each steal a goods token from each one.
Stealing Discarded Goods
Whenever a player needs to discard a goods token to the supply (i.e., that player doesn't have enough warehousing space after winning an auction or selling a goods token), an agent assigned to Skulduggery can steal that token and place it in a warehouse. Goods being returned to the supply may be stolen even from a secured warehouse, because those goods are no longer in that warehouse.
Agents cannot use Skulduggery on goods tokens being returned to the supply due to upkeep or an event card.
Timing
If two players wish to use Skulduggery at the same time, priority goes to the active player, followed by the player seated to the active player's left, and so on around the table.
Why does the active player win ties, when it's not allowed to use Skulduggery on your own warehouses? Because another player might win an auction on your turn and be forced to throw out excess goods, and as the active player, you get first crack at those goods.
Upkeep
When a player who holds the upkeep marker becomes the active player, that player carries out the following actions in order:
- Remove Goods Tokens from Markets
- Apply One Event
- Auction Victory Point Tokens
- Pass Upkeep Marker
For your convenience, the upkeep actions are printed in order on the market board.
Important: If a player does not hold the upkeep marker, do not take any of these actions.
1. Remove Goods Tokens from Markets
The active player receives a number of removal points equal to the number of players in the game minus two. For example, in a five-player game, the player receives three removal points. Removal points must be spent to remove goods tokens from the market spaces, if possible. Goods tokens are removed from the bottom of the market board (that is, remove the goods tokens that were sold most recently).
The number of removal points that must be spent to remove a goods token depends on the market that token is in.
| Market type | Removal point cost |
|---|---|
| Luxuries | 2 |
| Precious Metals | 1 |
| Raw Materials | 1 |
| Foodstuffs | 1/2 (i.e., 1 point removes 2 tokens) |
The active player may freely choose which market to remove goods tokens from, and may remove goods tokens from any combination of markets, as long as there are removal points to spend.
Note: In a three-player game, it costs only one removal point to remove a luxury goods token from the luxuries market. Otherwise, it would be impossible to remove luxury goods tokens from the market in a three-player game.
EXAMPLE: Beth holds the upkeep marker on her turn, so she can remove goods tokens from the market. Since this is a five-player game, she has three removal points to spend. She chooses one precious metal, one raw material, and two foodstuffs. In each of those markets, the removal of the goods tokens makes the prices rise.
2. Apply One Event
The active player turns over the top event card from the deck. If the card is an Enduring event, add it to the calendar (see The Calendar, page 8). If it is a Fleeting event, resolve it and discard it. The active player makes any decisions that must be made for the event card.
3. Auction Victory Point Tokens
If there are any victory point tokens on the upkeep marker (due to the purchase of victory points on earlier turns) they are auctioned at this point.
Each victory point token is auctioned separately. If there are no victory point tokens on the upkeep marker, skip this step.
Victory-point token auctions are different from the shipment auctions for goods tokens. Instead of being a once-around-the-table auction ending with the active player, victory point auctions are resolved by a blind bid. That is, each player holds out a closed hand concealing the quantity of crowns that player wishes to bid. All players reveal their bids simultaneously, and the player who bid the highest wins the victory point. In the case of a tie for high bid, the person sitting closest to the right of the active player wins (the active player wins if he or she is one of the tied players).
No player may ever bid more money than that player has to spend. Players are allowed to bid zero crowns in this auction, but a player can only win the auction with a coin bid of 1 crown or higher.
If all players bid zero crowns on a given victory point token, skip that auction and move on to the next victory point token to be auctioned.
EXAMPLE: Two victory point tokens are available for auction in a four-player game among Adam, Beth, Chris, and David. Adam is the active player, with the others seated around the table in the order listed.
Adam announces the beginning of the first auction. Each player takes a handful of crowns and holds out a closed fist. When everyone is ready, they all reveal their bids. Chris has the high bid at 8 crowns; she takes the victory point token and tosses her 8 crowns into the bank.
Adam announces the beginning of the second auction. Again, all players hold out their hands. When they reveal their bids, both Adam and Beth have bids of 7 crowns. Because Adam is the active player, he wins the tie. He takes the victory point token and pays her 7 crowns to the bank.
Once all the victory point tokens on the upkeep marker have been offered for auction, move to the next step. Any unsold victory point tokens remain on the upkeep marker to be offered for auction again during the next Upkeep Phase.
4. Pass Upkeep Marker
Once the other upkeep steps have been completed, the active player passes the upkeep marker to the player to the right (counterclockwise, or opposite the turn order).
Note that the upkeep marker moves counterclockwise during the game, while the players take turns in clockwise order. As a result, there will be an Upkeep Phase a bit more frequently than once for each full circuit of player turns.
The actions that occur during the Upkeep Phase are important, and can have a large impact on a player's strategy. The wise merchant keeps in mind when the next Upkeep Phase will occur, and plans accordingly.
Game End
Players continue taking turns until one of the end game conditions is met. The players then tally their points and determine a winner.
The game ends at the end of the active player's turn if any of the following occur:
- Any player accumulates 80 crowns.
- The reference track marker advances to the last space on the reference track.
- The last shipment card enters the harbor.
When the game ends, all players sell all their remaining goods to the bazaar. These sales count toward the completion of contracts.
Finally, each player can buy victory points for 10 crowns each.
Scoring
Players tally their accumulated victory points, then subtract the penalties for any uncompleted contracts.
If there is a tie for the most victory points, the tied player with the most crowns remaining is the victor. If crowns are also tied, the player with the fewest unfulfilled contracts is the winner. If there is still a tie, all tied players share the victory.
Other Rules
These rules apply only occasionally.
Public Knowledge
The following information is always public:
- Text on house power cards
- Total number of crowns on hand
- Number of victory point tokens held
- Quantity and type of all cards in hand
- Value on the back of each contract card held
- Contents of all discard piles
The specific names and effects of all cards in a player's hand (both event cards and contract cards) are kept hidden, known only to the player who holds them.
Exhausted Decks & Empty Supplies
If an event card or contract card must be drawn but the corresponding deck has been exhausted, shuffle the relevant discard pile to form a new deck.
When the shipment deck is exhausted, the game ends at the end of the turn (see Game End, to the left).
The supply of goods tokens is not intended to be finite. While statistically improbable, it is theoretically possible there might not be enough goods tokens of the appropriate type to fill a new shipment card. In this case, improvise. Usually you can swap an appropriate goods token from the market board with one not being used. Otherwise, use a coin, flip another token upside down, or do whatever works best for you.
Sample Turn
In a four-player game, Adam, Beth, Chris, and David are seated around the table in that order. It is near the beginning of the game, so the markets are not very full.
It is Adam's turn. Since he has the upkeep marker, he begins with the Upkeep Phase.
First, he removes goods tokens from the market. In a four-player game, he receives two removal points. He has silk in his warehouse, so he decides to use both removal points to get rid of a single luxuries token—in this case an art. This increases the price the luxuries market pays for his silk, if he decides to sell it later this turn.
Second, he turns over the top event card. It is Distant War, an Enduring event that closes the raw materials market. He places it in the "A" slot of the calendar, moving the card already there (Visiting Nobility, which boosts the luxuries market by 1) to the "B" slot.
Third, he must auction off the single victory point token that is on the upkeep marker (from an earlier turn). Everyone holds out a closed fist concealing their bid.
When everyone reveals, Adam bid 4, Beth bid 5, Chris bid 4, and David bid 8. Feeling like he overpaid, David pays the bank 8 crowns and takes the victory point token.
Since there was only one victory point to auction, Adam passes the upkeep marker counterclockwise to David, ending the Upkeep Phase.
Adam proceeds to the Shipment Auction Phase by choosing one of the five face-up shipment cards in the harbor. He chooses one that offers two mercury (minimum bid 3) and one grain (minimum bid 2), with a single lot minimum of 4 crowns. He decides against the single lot option, instead auctioning the goods tokens individually.
The mercury is listed on the card first, so it is offered in the first auction. Beth, sitting on Adam's left, has the first bid, but she passes. Chris bids 3 crowns, David bids 4, and Adam buys the token for 5 crowns. He pays the money to the bank, takes a mercury token from the supply, and places it in an empty space of his warehouse.
The grain is auctioned next. Beth bids 4 crowns. Chris passes, David passes, and Adam also passes. Beth mutters darkly because she didn't want it; she was just trying to drive the price up. She pays 4 crowns to the bank and places the grain token in her warehouse.
Because all goods listed on the shipment card have been auctioned, Adam discards it and draws a replacement.
For the Collect Agents Phase, Adam simply picks up all three of his agent markers (he purchased one earlier in the game) and holds them in his hand.
He begins his Assign Agents Phase by allocating two of his agents to Hire Dockworkers. This gives him two cartage points.
He uses them both to move his silk to the luxuries market so he can take advantage of the increased price he was able to create during the Upkeep Phase. He places the silk in the uppermost empty luxuries space, which has a base price of 20 crowns.
In response, David plays Economic Woes, a Reaction event that depresses the price of silk by -6 crowns (among other things). Because the event card is also Enduring, it goes into the "A" slot of the calendar, which moves the two existing calendar events into the "B" and "C" slots. Factoring in all events now in play, the final selling price for Adam's silk is 15 crowns (20 base, plus 1 for all luxuries from the Visiting Nobility event card, minus 6 for silk from Economic Woes).
Adam still has one agent left in his hand. He chooses the Buy One Victory Point agent action, placing his agent marker in the corresponding seal. He pays the bank, takes one victory point token for himself, and places one on the upkeep marker (to auction in the next Upkeep Phase) before advancing the reference track marker two spaces.
Adam's turn ends. Beth's turn is next.
Appendices
Basic Strategy
The key to playing Mercante well is to make carefully calculated bids when goods tokens and victory point tokens are auctioned.
It is relatively easy to get a general idea of how much a given type of goods token can be sold for, but the longer you wait—or the longer you have to wait—before you choose to sell, the lower the price will be. The markets tend to fill up, driving down prices over the course of the game. Obviously, bidding more than you're likely to sell a goods token for is usually not a good move.
Keeping track of the kinds of goods the other players bid on, and have in their warehouses, will help you predict when the other players remove goods tokens in the Upkeep Phase.
Bidding up the prices of goods that you know your opponents want is a good play, if you can make it work. Not only do you force them to spend more of their limited resources, they'll also have less money to use against you during the victory point token auctions—not to mention when goods that you want come up for sale.
This strategy can backfire, of course, forcing you to buy goods you don't want, so be careful.
Completing your initial contract is an important consideration. It's a dangerous play to allow one or two auctions for that commodity to go by without making a compelling bid and winning the auction that will allow you to complete your contract. The number of goods of each type in the shipment deck is limited, and the shipment deck is never reshuffled. If a ship containing the goods you need is available on your turn, it's usually to your advantage to choose that ship because—assuming you have enough money—you are guaranteed to win the auction.
If you intend to take on additional contracts, it's best to do so early in the game so you'll have more opportunities to bid on the goods you need to complete them. If you're forced to take on contracts late in the game, it's wise to use a Gather Intelligence agent action first so you can stack the contracts deck in a way that will give you a contract you know you can fulfill.
Luxuries are often not as good as they seem, because of the cost in crowns and agents, but completing a luxuries contract makes it worthwhile.
Buying additional agents early in the game can be a strong play, since this gives you the advantage of extra agent actions for many turns. However, this is counterbalanced by the high price of agents early on.
Buying victory points early in the game can also be a good move. Victory points are relatively cheap in the early game, and going into the end game with a lead in victory points can give you a strong position with respect to the other players.
It is not necessary—or even wise—to wait to begin buying victory points until after you complete your initial contract. Waiting too long can put you at a serious victory point disadvantage.
Throughout the game, keep an eye on the other players as they accumulate victory points and money. The more they accumulate, the fewer turns you'll have to strike for your own victory. Bid most aggressively when you have a chance to make those with a lead in victory points or crowns pay too much for the goods and victory point tokens they need to win.
Finally, you will find that your group's strategies and tactics will constantly evolve as you play this game; we hope you find many hours of enjoyment in Mercante.
Optional Rules
Add these if you like for extra fun!
Alternate Five-Player Upkeep
Depending on your group's play style, you might find the market gets ugly in a five-player game. In this variant, pass the upkeep marker two seats to the right and resolve all upkeep effects as if it were a four-player game.
Longer or Shorter Games
If you like more tactical games, use the reference track for a game with one fewer player than you have. If you like things to be more strategic, use the reference track for one more player than you have.
Planning Ahead
Rather than assigning agents and resolving their actions one at a time, the active player assigns all agents to their actions first. Once all agents are assigned, the active player resolves those agent actions one at a time, in any order. As each agent's action is resolved, move that agent marker to the unassigned agents area.
Vicious Accounting
If all players agree before the game begins, this optional rule can be used. Player must calculate their own selling prices when selling goods. If a player calculates incorrectly (such as forgetting to take note of a modification from a card in the calendar), the first player to point out the error collects any crowns that the selling player failed to claim (if the player underestimated the price), or may penalize the selling player double the amount that the player overestimated the price (those crowns go to the bank).
For additional treachery, if a player challenges a sale price and the price was right, that player pays the bank three crowns as a penalty.
Variants
Once you've mastered the game, try these variants for a new experience!
Auction Houses
During setup, shuffle the house cards and place a number of them face up equal to the number of players plus one. Each player secretly holds a hidden bid taken from his or her starting crowns. All bids are revealed simultaneously (and spent). The highest bidder takes his pick first from the available house cards, then the next highest bid, etc. If there is a tie, the tied player who most recently bought or sold anything wins.
Contractual Obligations
During setup, players get crowns equal to twice their seating order as usual (the first player gets two crowns, etc.). However, instead of the base 8 crowns that players normally start with, each player draws three contracts and keeps them all.
Drafting House Cards
Deal one house card to each player, then deal two house cards face up in the center of the table. Beginning with the player to the right of the starting player and proceeding counterclockwise, each player decides whether to keep his or her house card, or trade it for one of the House cards from the table. If a player takes a house card from the table, replace it with the one from that player's hand.
Open Contracts
During setup, separate the contract cards by value, and shuffle each stack separately. Turn the stacks face up so everyone can see the top contract of each value. When a player uses Select a Contract, that player draws the top card from one stack and keeps it. Gather Information cannot be used on the contract decks.
Reversed Auctions
Rather than auctioning shipments clockwise around the table, players bid in counterclockwise order. This gives the player whose turn is next the chance to drive the price up.
Talk of Peace
In this four-player variant, players form teams of two. Teammates can complete each others' contracts, and give each other goods and crowns. The winner is the team that reaches 100 crowns or 10 Victory Points first.
Reference
For your convenience, here is a list of the various contracts and shipments in the game:
Shipments
Shipment ladings are given by what is available for each specific commodity in each goods class.
Luxuries:
- 2 shipments each holding 1
Precious Metals:
- 3 shipments each holding 1
Raw Materials:
- 1 shipment holding 2
- 2 shipments each holding 1
Foodstuffs:
- 1 shipment holding 3
- 2 shipments each holding 2
- 1 shipment holding 1
Contracts
10-crown contracts:
- 4 for one luxury
- 2 for two mixed raw materials
- 2 for three of anything
8-crown contracts:
- 4 for one precious metal
6-crown contracts:
- 4 for two foodstuffs
- 4 for one raw material