Museum: The World's Fair
Museum: The World's Fair Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 3 Pavilion Boards
- 40 Player Clips (10 per colour)
- 20 Collection Cards
- 3 Expert Cards
- 3 Favour Cards
- 5 Headline Cards
The Principle of the Pavilions
The principle of the Pavilions is based on the addition of a common objective to the game. The Pavilions are large international exhibitions that any curator may take part in. Each Pavilion will be requesting a Collection of a certain theme: the more items you contribute, the more your establishment will stand out in the crowd!
Instead of placing Objects into their museums, players can choose to contribute them to a Pavilion Collection to receive Prestige and Victory points. The player who contributes the most Objects to a Pavilion gets a big bonus at the end of the game!
Rules
Setup
Place a number of Pavilions equal to the number of players -1 next to the Main board (1 if there are 2 players, 2 if there are 3 players, etc.).
Draw a Collection card for each Pavilion, which will determine the 5 Objects to be placed in the Pavilions based on certain criteria (Value, Civilisation, Domain…) as well as the precise order in which they must be placed.
Players may place Objects into the Pavilions during the Action Phase of their turn, according to the following rules:
- You must pay the value of the Object placed by discarding cards from your Personal Reserve (your hand) into your Common Pool (your discard), according to the basic principle of Museum. You may also use Prestige points or an appropriate Favour card.
- You must respect the order in which the Objects must be placed stated on the Collection card.
- You do not score the value of the Objects placed in a Pavilion on the score track because they are not being exhibited in your Museum. Placing an Object in a Pavilion does not score you any victory points during the game. However, each time you place an Object in a Pavilion, you receive the reward indicated on the Collection card in Prestige points.
- You may not remove or exchange an Object placed in a Pavilion.
- You cannot place any Objects into a Pavilion if you choose to perform an Inventory on your turn.
- Each Object you place in a Pavilion is identified by a clip of your player colour.
Example: Jamie wants to put the first 2 Objects into a Pavilion with the "Pathway to the Stars" Collection card. The Collection requires that he place first a Theology Domain card, then a Polynesian Civilisation card. Jamie puts his colour clip onto a Theology card (value 2) from the Mayan Civilization in his hand, and places it into the Pavilion, by discarding a Celtic card (value 2). He receives the reward indicated in Prestige points (3 in this case). Jamie then puts his colour clip onto his second card: a Polynesian card (also of a value of 2) and pays for it using 2 Prestige points. He places it into the Pavilion and receives the reward of 2 Prestige points as indicated on the Pavilion's Collection card. Jamie contributed 2 Objects to the Pavilion, but did not move forward on the score track, because they were not placed into his museum.
Scoring
Players can only gain victory points from a Pavilion at the end of a game if it has been fully completed.
Once a Pavilion's Collection is completed, it is opened to the public and players earn points from it according to the following rules:
- The player with the highest number of items in the Pavilion scores the maximum bonus (in this case: 13 victory points). In case of a tie, the first player to have placed an Object in the Pavilion is considered to have the highest number.
- The player with the second highest number receives the secondary bonus (in this case 6 points). In case of a tie, the first player to have contributed an Object in the Pavilion is considered to have the highest number.
- If 1 player places all 5 Objects into the Pavilion without the contribution of another player, they score both the primary bonus and the secondary bonus! In this case, that would be 13 + 6 = 19 victory points in total.
Example: At the end of the game, Raphael has managed to place 3 Objects in the Pathway to the Stars Pavilion, whereas Olivier and Jean François have only placed one each. Raphael will score 13 victory points. As Jean François placed the fourth Object and Olivier the fifth, it is Jean François who will score the secondary bonus of 6 points. Olivier scores zero!
Tips for playing the Pavilions
Beware of the value of Objects you place in the Pavilions. Placing high-value Objects (of a value of 4 or 5) is both difficult and unprofitable, as you will not score their value in victory points during the game. However, as players can only score points from completed Pavilions, this may sometimes prove necessary.
By placing an Item in a Pavilion a little later on in the game, you can attempt to obtain the secondary bonus. On the other hand, you will be helping your opponent to complete it...so choose wisely!
The Principle of Loans
NB: Loans can only be played by 3 or more players.
Loans allow you to place your Objects into another player's museum! The Loans mechanic follows all of Museum's basic rules, is compatible with other Museum expansions, and brings an additional degree of complexity to the game.
Rules for Loaning an Object
As with any Object in Museum, you must pay its value by discarding a card of the same or higher value into your Common Pool, by paying with Prestige points, or by using an appropriate Favour card. When you lend an Object to another player's Museum, you score the value of the card on the score track because although the Object has not been displayed in your establishment, it still belongs to you!
In order to allow you to easily recognize an Object which you have loaned to another Museum, use one of your Player clips in your colour.
So what's the point of lending an Object to another museum?
Improving a competitor's collections and helping them to score more points may seem odd, but the loan system is based on the idea of differential scoring. This means that by improving another player's collection, they do indeed gain more points, but so do you! It works in the following way:
- The player who received the Object scores their Collections in the normal way.
- The player who loaned the Object scores the difference between the total score of the Collection, and what the Collection would have earned without their contribution.
Example: At the end of the game, Georgina has an Indian Collection of 11 cards, in which there are 2 Objects lent by Eric and 1 lent by Jamie (So in total: 7 cards from Georgina, 2 from Eric, 1 from Jamie and 1 from an Expert bonus). Georgina scores 28 points for her 11 cards. Eric scores 28 – 19 = 9 points (the size of the Collection without his Objects). Finally, Jamie scores 5 points (28-23) for the Object he contributed.
NB: The principle is exactly the same for a Domain Collection:
Example: Jamie has a Collection of 7 Navigation cards (6 + 1 Expert bonus) 2 of which were lent by Georgina. In the end, Jamie scores 25 points and Georgina scores 14 points for her 2 cards (25 - 11)!
Additional rules:
- You cannot refuse a card loaned to your museum or replace it (for example in a Domain Collection).
Example: Olivier received a Greek Navigation card from Eric for his Collection. If he subsequently puts a Greek Navigation card into his museum, it will not score him any additional points, because Eric's card was placed first.
- In the same logic, if a card does not improve the value of a collection, it cannot be lent.
Example: Eric wants to lend a Greek Navigation card to Olivier's Navigation Collection. However, Olivier already has a Greek Navigation card in his Collection. As Eric's card will not improve Olivier's Collection, he cannot lend it.
- You cannot Loan any cards if you choose to perform an Inventory on your turn.
Some Patron, Headline, Favour and Expert cards are specific to the Loans mechanic, so be sure to remove them if you don't want to play with loans.
This expansion is compatible with other Museum expansions. However, players cannot Loan an Object to a Pavilion, because it is a common objective.
Glossary
Collection Cards
- Civilisation Icon: You may place any card of the equivalent Civilisation colour.
- Domain Icon: You may place any card of the equivalent Domain icon.
- Value Icon: You may place any card of the equivalent value.
- Continent Icon: You may place any card of the equivalent Continent.
- Prestige Point Icon: You gain the equivalent amount of Prestige points immediately upon placing the required card into the Pavilion.
Expert Cards
- Amandine Bourdais: You receive 1 Prestige Point each time you place an Object in a Pavillion.
- Thalia Nikorova: Making a Loan to another Museum grants you 2 Prestige Points.
- Andrew Sinclair: Pay 1 less for any Object you place into a Pavilion.
Headline Cards
- International Contest: When the active player exhibits an Object in a Pavilion, they gain 1 Prestige Point.
- Corruption: The active player must pay +1 Prestige Point to display an Object in a Pavilion.
- Ongoing construction: The Pavilions are closed for this round: no Object cards can be displayed.
- Financial crisis!: The active player must pay +1 Prestige Point to exhibit an Object in another player's museum.
- New deal!: The active player may place 1 Object card (value 1-3) from their Personal Reserve (hand) into an opposing museum for free.
Favour Cards
- For Fame and Fortune: You may place an Object into a Pavilion for free.