Montanara
Montanara Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 80 playing cards
- 9 crystals (yellow border)
- 23 dwarfs (green border)
- 48 action cards (blue border)
- 1 game board
- 4 overview cards in 4 languages
- 1 rulebook
Setup
- Each player receives an overview card.
- The game board is placed between the two players so that they sit along its long sides.
- Two dwarf cards are picked out of the cards. Each player receives one of these dwarfs and takes it into hand.
- The remaining cards are shuffled well. Each player receives 3 cards face down, which they take into hand together with their dwarf. The cards in a player's hand form their "home mountain" (huisberg).
- The remaining cards are divided into four piles and placed face down on the four spaces on the game board. These piles are the four "mountains". Together they form the "mountain range" (gebergte).
- TIP: For the first game, make piles of 12, 16, 20 and 24 cards and place them on the spaces in ascending order.
- In later games, players can try other combinations and orders.
- The players decide who begins.
Playing the Game
On his turn, a player may carry out one of the following three options. Afterwards, the other player takes a turn.
The three options are:
- A. Take a card
- B. Play a card
- C. Dig
A. Take a Card
The player takes the top card of a mountain from the mountain range. He takes the card into hand without showing it to his opponent.
Throughout the game, players may hold any number of cards in hand.
B. Play a Card
The player may play a card with a blue or green border from his hand. Cards with a blue border are action cards. Cards with a green border are dwarfs.
- TIP: Crystals have a yellow border and cannot be played.
When the player plays an action card, he must carry out the action shown on the card. He then places that card beside the game board, forming a discard pile. Cards on the discard pile are out of the game. A description of the cards can be found at the end of the rulebook.
When the player plays a dwarf, he must place it on his side of the game board. In this way each player forms his own display (etalage). Cards in the display are always face up.
- IMPORTANT: When a player already has 4 cards in his display, he may not play a dwarf.
It is not permitted to discard hand cards without effect, for example to get better chances when digging in the home mountain. Action cards must be carried out, dwarfs may only be played when there is still room in the display, and crystals of course cannot be placed on the discard pile.
C. Dig
A player may choose to dig only if he has at least one dwarf in his display. Only by digging can a player lay crystals in front of himself.
The player may choose any mountain from the mountain range, or his home mountain, in which to dig.
If he wants to dig in his home mountain, he hands his hand cards to his opponent. The opponent shuffles them without looking at them and hands them back to the player in a small pile. This pile is now treated as an ordinary mountain when digging. After digging, the player takes the remaining cards back into hand.
- TIP: A player can, of course, dig in only one mountain per turn. Digging in the opponent's home mountain is not possible.
When digging, the player turns cards over from the chosen mountain. He must turn over as many cards one at a time as he has dwarfs in his display.
When digging, the player must watch for cards with a yellow border.
All other cards he turns over must be placed on the discard pile, without carrying out their action. This also applies when digging in the home mountain.
- When the player turns over a crystal, he must end the digging. He exchanges the crystal for a dwarf in his display. The dwarf goes onto the discard pile.
- When the player turns over a cave-in card (Instorting), he must end the digging. All dwarfs in his display run away. They are placed on the discard pile together with the cave-in card. As consolation, the player may look at a mountain.
Looking at a Mountain
The player may choose any mountain from the mountain range and look at all the cards in it. He takes the pile and leafs quickly through the cards without showing them to his opponent. He may not change the order of the cards. Afterwards he places the pile back in its original place.
End of the Game
The game ends immediately when a player has dug out his four crystals.
The game also ends as soon as the second-to-last card pile of the mountain range has been used up. Then the player with the most crystals in his display wins.
If the number of crystals is equal, the player with more dwarfs in his display wins. If that is also equal, the game ends undecided and the winner of a following game will be determined.
The Cards
The original Dutch card names are given in italics after each English heading.
Dwarf (Dwerg, 23x)
When a player plays a dwarf, he places it in his own display. Dwarfs make digging for crystals possible.
Important: A player may not have more than 4 cards in his display.
Only when a player has at least one dwarf in his display may he choose the "dig" option. For each dwarf in his display he must turn over one card.
Crystal (Kristal, 9x)
Crystals can only be dug out. They cannot be played.
When a player digs out a crystal, he places it in his display and must discard one dwarf for it.
Cave-in (Instorting, 7x)
The border of this card is blue and yellow. It can be played as an action card and it is carried out when digging.
When the card is played from hand as an action card, both players must place all dwarfs in their display on the discard pile. Each player may look at a mountain. The opponent of the player who played the card (the player who was not on turn) may look at a mountain first. The player who played the card must take a different mountain.
When a player turns over the card while digging, he must place all dwarfs from his display on the discard pile. The opponent's dwarfs are not affected by the cave-in in this case. This also applies when digging in the home mountain. The player may look at a mountain.
Theft (Diefstal, 9x)
Both players swap their hand cards with each other.
Important: The player may only play this card if he still has at least one other card in his hand.
- TIP: The cards in a player's display are of course not swapped.
Shaking (Beven, 7x)
The player takes two neighbouring mountains and shuffles both card piles together. He then divides the pile visibly into two mountains of roughly equal height and places them back on the two spaces.
He may then look at the top card of each of the two mountains, without showing them to his opponent.
- TIP: If, next to a mountain on the game board, there is a free space because that card pile has been used up, the player may also shuffle this single mountain and then divide it into two piles. One pile goes on the free space, the other on the space of the original mountain.
Tunnel Construction (Mijngangenbouw, 9x)
The player may look at the top 4 cards of a mountain from the mountain range, without showing them to his opponent. He then places them back on top of the pile in random order.
Drilling (Boring, 9x)
The player may, one after another, look at the bottom card of each mountain in the mountain range. After he has looked at a card, he may decide whether to put it back under the mountain or on top of the mountain.
Open-Pit Mining (Dagbouw, 7x)
The player chooses any mountain from the mountain range. He takes the cards one by one from the top of this pile and stacks them again in reverse order, without looking at them. In this way the formerly bottom card becomes the top card, and vice versa.
He then takes the top card of the mountain into hand.
Overview Card
Card Symbols
- Dwarf (Dwerg, 23x): The dwarf is played into one's own display and makes digging for crystals possible.
- Crystal (Kristal, 9x): A crystal can only be dug out. A dwarf from the display goes to the discard pile.
- Cave-in (Instorting, 7x):
- As an action card: both players place all dwarfs from their display on the discard pile. Both players may look at a mountain (first the player who was not on turn).
- When digging: all dwarfs in the digging player's display go to the discard pile; he may look at a mountain.
- Theft (Diefstal, 9x): The players swap their hand cards. Requirement: at least one other card in hand.
- Shaking (Beven, 7x): Mix two neighbouring mountains, divide the pile into two equally high mountains, place them back, and look at the top card of each.
- Tunnel Construction (Mijngangenbouw, 9x): Look at the top 4 cards of a mountain and place them back on the pile in random order.
- Drilling (Boring, 9x): Look at the bottom card of each mountain and, as desired, place it back under or on top of the mountain.
- Open-Pit Mining (Dagbouw, 7x): Reverse the order of the cards in a mountain (without looking at them), then take the top card into hand.
Quick Rules
The original heading is "Verkorte spelregel" (abbreviated rules).
Perform 1 action:
A. Take a card
- Take the top card of a mountain face down into hand.
B. Play a card
- Carry out 1 action card (blue border) and place it on the discard pile, or
- Place 1 dwarf (green border) in your display.
- Display: maximum 4 cards.
C. Dig (only possible with dwarfs in your display)
- Choose a mountain or your home mountain, and
- for each dwarf in your display, turn over 1 card:
- carry out cards with a yellow border,
- place all other turned-over cards on the discard pile.
The game ends when a player has 4 crystals in front of him, or when only one card pile is left.
Source: this rulebook is an English translation of the Dutch-language rules ("Spelreglement", dated 23 March 2007) for Montanara, as hosted by the Belgian board game community site forumfederatie.be. It is a community copy, not a PDF issued by the publisher.