Moesteiro Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Contents
  • Player Contents
• Setup
• Game Overview
• Beginning of a Round
  • Move Round Marker
  • Roll the Dice
  • Choose a King
  • King's Powers
  • Village Tiles
  • Construction Site
  • Quarry
  • Stained Glass Window
• Placing Dice (Workers and Masters)
• Performing Actions
  • The Forest and Agricultural Fields (I)
  • The Village (II)
  • The Quarry (III)
  • The Construction Site (IV)
  • Stained Glass Window (V)
  • Change Dice Values
  • Gain Pips on the Labour Track
• Building the Monastery
• Finishing the Round
• End of the Game
  • Final Scoring
• Historical Note

Contents

• 1 Game Board
• 40 Construction Tiles (in 2 sets of 20 tiles, A green and B blue)
• 24 Village Tiles
• 14 Stained Glass Tiles
• 21 Stonework Tiles
• 6 King Tiles
• 15 Wood
• 15 Stones
• 12 Lintels
• 12 Columns
• 1 Round Marker

Player Contents

• 8 Big Dice
• 12 Small Dice
• 16 Player Markers
• 4 Scoring Tiles (+50/+100)

Setup

Place the game board in the middle of the table. The game board represents the construction site of the monastery and the surrounding areas: the forest, agricultural fields, the village and the quarry.

Place the wood near the forest area and the stones, columns and lintels near the quarry.

Put the 6 king tiles face up near the board.

Choose one set of construction tiles (A or B) and separate into level I and level II. Shuffle each level separately and place the level I tiles face down on top of the level II tiles, nearby.

Note: when you are familiar with the game you can mix tiles from the 2 sets (A and B) as long the tiles are still numbered 1 through 20.

Shuffle the stonework tiles and place each stack face down near the crane, on the designated spaces.

Shuffle the stained glass tiles and place them in 2 face down stacks beneath the action spaces of the monastery window.

Shuffle the village tiles and place them next to the board in 2 stacks near the village area.

Place the 4 scoring tiles +50/+100 near the board.

Each player chooses a color, takes the 4 markers, 2 small dice and 1 big die of that colour. The remaining dice of each player's colour will come into play from round 3 onwards. From now on, small dice will be called "workers" and large dice will be called "masters".

Each player places one of their coloured player markers on to space 0 of the score track, the top space of the food track, and the number 2 space of the construction track.

The start player is the one who most recently visited a monastery. The rest follow in clockwise order. Player's final markers should be placed in turn order on the central space of the labour track with first player's marker on top.

We are now ready to start the game!

Game Overview

The game is played over 5 rounds. Once all dice have been placed players will perform actions in the order of the action areas, from I to V. After that each player will have an opportunity to help build the monastery. During the game Victory Points (VPs) can be earned from the King tiles, from the village and in helping to construct the monastery. At the end of the game VPs are earned for sets of different unused stonework and stained glass tiles, as well as for their position on the labour track. The winner is the player with most VPs.

Beginning of a Round

Move Round Marker

The player nearest the round track on the board moves the round marker one step to the right and each player follows the instructions for the round.

• 1st round: Take 1 wood and 1 stone.
• 2nd round: Move 1 space forward on 2 of the 3 tracks: food, labour and construction.
• 3rd round: Take 1 additional worker (small die).
• 4th round: Lose 1 worker and take 1 additional master (big die).
• 5th round: Lose 1 worker.

In the first round the marker starts in the first box of the track.

Roll the Dice

All players roll their dice and keep them in front of themselves without changing the values. These will be allocated to action spaces shortly.

Note: As already stated the dice represent workers and masters, the value of each die corresponds to the skill level of each.

In a game with 3 players, roll 2 workers of the colour not in play and, without changing the values, place 1 in the leftmost space of action area I (forest/agricultural fields) and the other 1 in the leftmost slot of the crane on the action area IV (construction site). Additionally, in action area III the rightmost space is unavailable.

In a game with 2 players, roll 3 workers of a colour not in play and, without changing the values, place 2 in the leftmost space of action area I (forest/agricultural fields) and the other 1 in the leftmost slot of the action area IV. Additionally, the rightmost space of action area II and the 2 rightmost spaces of action area III are unavailable.

Choose a King

In the order determined by the labour track - from left to right / top to bottom - players choose 1 King tile to support them this round, placing it in front of them.

Turn order for the round is then determined by the number at the top of each King tile, lowest goes first, highest last.

King's Powers

• D. João I: Gain 1 additional strength on the labour track.
• D. Afonso V: Immediately gets 3 victory points.
• D. Duarte: Immediately take 1 stone.
• D. João II: Immediately take either 1 column or 1 lintel.
• D. João III: Immediately climb 2 spaces up the construction track.
• D. Manuel I: Build first during the Building the Monastery phase.

Village Tiles

Draw 4 village tiles from the supply and place them face-up in the village spaces.

Construction Site

Draw 5 stonework tiles from the supply and place them in the spaces above the crane's action spaces. From round 2 move any unselected tiles 1 to the left and refill to 5 tiles.

Draw 4 construction tiles from the supply, taking level I tiles first, and place them face-up on the indicated spaces above the crane.

Quarry

Each round the quarry must be loaded with a limited number of columns and lintels. To calculate that number, add up the value of all player's masters and divide by two (rounded down) for lintels, and divide by three (rounded down) for columns. In the 4th and 5th rounds add up only the values of each player's highest master. While stone is unlimited, lintels and columns are limited in availability for each round.

Example: During this round, we have 3 available lintels (7/2) and 2 columns (7/3).

Stained Glass Window

Draw 3 Stained Glass tiles from the supply and place them in the spaces of the monastery window. From round 2 slide any unselected tiles down to the bottom and refill to 3 tiles.

Note: all players should help clean and place tiles, as well as fill the quarry or roll and place dice in a 2 or 3 player game.

Placing Dice (Workers and Masters)

The player with the lowest value King tile starts the dice placements by placing 1 die, either a worker or master, onto the leftmost available space of the 5 action areas. Then the player with the next lowest value King tile will place 1 die and play proceeds 1 turn at a time until all dice have been placed.

Dice are usually placed in the leftmost space available. However, a worker with a lower pip value must be placed to the left of any already placed worker or master, including those neutral workers in 3-player and 2-player games.

Example: Janet (red player) decides to place a value 2 worker die into area I. She must move the blue value 3 worker die 1 space to the right and places her worker on the space previously occupied by the blue worker.

In the case of a master, this rule also applies but the master also takes the place of the worker of the same value. That is, a master dice will enter to the left of another master previously allocated if it has a value less than this and it will enter to the left of a worker previously allocated if it has a value less than or equal to this.

Example: Janet (red player) decides to place a value 2 master into area I. She must move the blue value 3 worker 1 space to the right and places her master on the space previously occupied by the blue worker. The yellow value 2 master does not move as it has the same value as the master Janet is placing.

Example: Janet (red player) decides to place a value 2 master into area I. She must move both the yellow value 2 worker and the blue value 3 worker 1 space to the right and places her master on the space previously occupied by the yellow worker.

There are a limited number of spaces for placing dice. Once all spaces are occupied it is not possible to place more dice into that action area.

On their following turns players are allowed to place another die, or dice, into an action area they have already placed into.

Example: Janet (red player) decides to place another die into area I in a later turn.

Once all players have placed all their dice into the action areas play proceeds to Performing Actions.

Performing Actions

Beginning in action area I any players with dice placed will perform the action based on the strength of their dice. Players perform the actions in the order of the dice from left to right. Once actioned players remove their die from the action area and place it in front of them for the next round. It is possible to pass and not take the action associated with the action area. Once all dice have been used play then progresses to action area II and this phase continues through to action area V.

Everything will become clearer in the following details of each action area but, in general, the number of pips on the die being used is spent to pay the cost of performing the action. On the game board and in some tiles red pips are shown to indicate the values required for the different actions.

The Forest and Agricultural Fields (I)

Players can acquire wood, and / or, move along the food track. The options available for spending their pips are:

• Acquire wood at a rate of 1 wood per 1 pip if the die is in the 2 leftmost spaces
• Acquire wood at a rate of 1 wood per 2 pips if the die is in the 3 rightmost spaces
• Advance 1 space down the food track per every 2 pips wherever the die is positioned

Wood acquired is placed in front of the player as their stock.

Example: Janet (red player) uses her value 3 worker die to acquire 1 wood and move 1 space down the food track. She could have chosen to just take 3 wood.

The Village (II)

Players can help develop the village of Batalha by spending a combination of wood and/or stone plus pips. The process is:

• Players select 1 of the 4 village tiles to buy, spending the wood and/or stone plus pips as detailed on the tile. Wood/stone is returned to the general supply.
• The chosen tile is then placed into the village onto any free space in the row adjacent to their player marker, or any row above it.
• Players immediately receive the VPs indicated on the space, plus, in most spaces, an additional bonus. This will be either: 1 wood, 1 stone, 1 lintel, 1 column, move 1 space forward on the food, labour or construction track, or, 1 stonework or stained glass tile.
• Once a player's marker reaches the bottom of the food track any further moves earn them 2VPs for each step.

Example: Janet (red player) on her turn spends two stone to build a tile on the village. For that she earns 5VPs.

The Quarry (III)

Players can acquire stones, lintels or columns. The options for spending their pips are:

• Acquire stones at a rate of 1 stone per 1 pip.
• Acquire lintels at a rate of 1 lintel per 2 pips.
• Acquire columns at a rate of 1 column per 3 pips.

Players may acquire any combination of products up to the total of their pips.

Stone is unlimited but lintels and columns are limited to those in the quarry at the beginning of each round less any already acquired by other players.

Products acquired are placed in front of the player as their stock.

Example: Neil (blue player) spends his 3 pips buying one lintel for 2 pips and 1 stone for 1 pip.

The Construction Site (IV)

Players can acquire a stonework tile and move along the construction track. The process is:

• Players acquire the stonework tile above their dice.
• If their die is in the rightmost space additionally take 1 wood.
• Players advance up the construction track equal to the number of spaces as indicated underneath their die.

The acquired tile is placed in front of the player as their stock.

Note: It is not possible to gain or spend extra pips at the construction site, see Change Dice Values below.

Example: Janet (red player) takes the gargoyle tile and moves her player marker 2 steps up on the construction track.

Stained Glass Window (V)

Players can acquire a stained glass tile. The process is:

• Players use their pips to move upwards, paying for each visible red pip and taking to themselves the acquired glass tile.
• If that tile is the topmost one the player earns an immediate bonus of moving 1 space down the food track.

The tile acquired is placed in front of the player as their stock.

Example: Neil (blue player) takes the first stained glass tile for free, while the red player spends all 2 pips to get the second glass tile.

Change Dice Values

Players may change the value of their dice when performing an action anywhere but at the construction site. The process is:

• Players move their marker to the left along the labour track. For each space moved they gain 1 additional pip.
• Players cannot exceed a value of 6 for their dice.
• The additional pips are spent immediately when taking the action and so do not change the position of a die.

Example: Neil (blue player) buys 1 column and 1 lintel, because he needs 2 more pips he spends pips from his labour track, moving two spaces to the left.

Gain Pips on the Labour Track

Players may convert an unused pip, or unused pips, into 1 step to the right along the labour track.

If a player passes or cannot perform an action with a die they may move 2 steps to the right along the labour track.

If a player is on the rightmost space of the labour track and earns another step, instead he gains 2 VPs.

Note: Players can move to the right along the labour track to increase future changes in dice values and/or for potentially increasing end game VPs.

Example: Janet (red player) decides to not use her die. Instead she moves her player marker on the labour track 2 steps to the right.

Building the Monastery

Once players have completed all actions and have taken back all their dice it's time to focus on building the monastery.

Any player already at position 9 of the construction track may purchase any 1 item, spending the cost of pips on the labour track, before selecting which construction tile to build. The costs are shown beside the top of the crane.

Players must then move their marker down the construction track the number of spaces indicated in the upper right corner of the construction tile.

Each player can now help build 1 section of the monastery. If any player chose the tile of King D. Manuel I they will go first otherwise player order is determined by whoever is lowest on the construction track. The process is:

• Players select 1 of the empty construction tiles from the game board. From their stock they can place any or all of the required resources onto the tile.
• If the tile includes the food or a pip icon then the player must move 1 space backwards along the respective track to fulfil that requirement.
• If the tile includes a stonework or stained glass tile icon the player must discard the tile.
• If the player has completed all requirements of the tile they immediately earn the VPs as detailed in the upper left corner of the construction tile.
• If the player has not completed all requirements they can still earn 3VPs for each wood, stone, lintel or column they have fulfilled, no VPs are scored for track movements or tiles discarded.

If a player does not have any of the required resources, or chooses not to select a construction tile, they may pass this phase.

After all players have had the opportunity to contribute to building the monastery, all construction tiles, whether fulfilled or not, are flipped and placed onto the monastery construction floor plan, according to their numbers.

Note: this step is only intended to bring the theme of the game closer to the construction of the monastery, having no mechanical or scoring effect. The final image of the monastery on the board corresponds to a possible realisation of one of the building's first plans; what we can see today at the site is very similar with only small differences, especially at the eastern side of the building.

Finishing the Round

After building the monastery players now need to:

• Return their King tiles to beneath the game board.
• Remove any lintels or columns from the quarry back to the supply.
• Remove any unused village tiles back to either a discard pile or the box.

Note: The wooden components are not limited to those provided, in the rare case that the general supply is depleted, other tokens may be used or a note made and items replaced when available.

End of the Game

At the end of the 5th round the building of the monastery will be complete and it is time for the final scoring.

Final Scoring

Players create sets of different stonework and stained glass tiles they managed to collect during the game. These are scored:

• 25 VPs for a set of 5 different tiles.
• 16 VPs for a set of 4 different tiles.
• 9 VPs for a set of 3 different tiles.
• 4 VPs for a set of 2 different tiles.
• 1 VP for a single tile.

Each tile can only be scored once. Add these VPs to those scored during the game.

Players additionally add the VPs indicated on the labour track beside their marker.

Example: Janet scores 7 VPs and Neil scores 3 VPs.

The winner is the player with the most VPs. Ties are broken by the position on the labour track, furthest left/highest is the winner.

Note: Use the +50/+100 scoring tiles if necessary when keeping the score.

Historical Note

Towards the end of the XIV Century, King D. João I, fulfilling a promise he made to thank God for victory over the Kingdom of Castile at the Battle of Aljubarrota in 1385, ordered the construction of one of the most elegant Portuguese monasteries, the Monastery of Santa Maria da Vitória. The monastery was built between 1386 and 1563. During this period numerous prestigious architects, master craftsmen, artisans and apprentices gathered together motivated by financial rewards, prestige and, importantly, the pursuit of knowledge. This construction team and the amount of work generated in the locality also led to the birth and development of the city of Batalha. The continuous search for perfect beauty opened the doors for the establishment of several craft schools with specialisms in carpentry, sculpture, stained glass, and a variety of other important skills.

This moesteiro is one of the most sublime works of Portuguese architecture as well as the most significant gothic buildings in the country. It was overseen and maintained by the Dominicans up to the extinction of religious orders in Portugal in 1834. Nowadays, it is a beloved national monument and, since 1983, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Moesteiro is an old Galician-Portuguese term that means monastery. This word is used in the letter of "The Foundation of the City of Batalha" signed by King D. Manuel I, dated of 18 March 1500.