Niña & Pinta
Niña & Pinta Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Overview of Game Play
The game finishes at the end of the sixth era. Points are awarded for Settlers, Towns, Cities, Benefits and gold. The player who scores the most points will win the game.
Components
The map
This shows the three worlds - Nina World, Pinta World and Santa Maria World. They are known collectively as the New World and might sometimes be referred to simply as 'worlds' (as opposed to the 'Old World', which is effectively the area in front of each player). Only the appropriately initialled ship may sail to each world. e.g. The SM ship may only ever sail to Santa Maria world.
Storage triangle
This is placed in the centre of the map and houses components that are used by all players.
Land tiles
Land tiles will begin the game face down, and are known as 'unexplored lands'. As the game progresses, these will be turned face up and become populated, or sometimes left empty.
Settlers
Settlers are carried by ship to the New World where they may generate revenue, be replaced to build Towns and Cities and score points during Scoring. Settlers may never sail back to the Old World (but may be recovered from the New World during Loading).
Towns
Towns increase revenue, score points during Scoring and cannot be attacked. Once placed on the map, a Town may never be removed.
Cities
Before playing, please stick one of the City labels to each City disc.
A 'City' is made up of a City disc (labelled with the name of a land) and a Town; the Town is placed on top of the City disc, thus showing who owns the City. A City functions in the same way as a Town, but provides more revenue and points. A maximum of three Cities may be built in any one New World.
Note: A player never receives revenue or scores points for the 'Town' once it has become part of the City.
Captains
A Captain is used to explore unexplored lands and to attack other players' Settlers. Unlike Settlers, a Captain may sail back to the Old World (at no cost) and can then sail to the New World in subsequent eras. A player may only ever have one Captain in each world. There may never be more than one Captain in a land.
Collective terms: Settlers, Towns and Cities are referred to as 'settlements' when they are on the map. Settlers and Captains on ships are referred to as 'crew'.
Ships
Each ship has two sides, one showing three crew, the other showing four. This is the maximum number of Captains and Settlers that a ship may carry. Spain, Portugal and France begin the game with their ships showing three crew, whilst England shows four.
Screens
Two screens are used - one to hide a player's gold and Benefits, and one to conceal ships during Loading. Reference charts are shown on the screen reverses.
Turn Order markers
Each player will play a nation during the game and has a marker which is used on the Turn Order track.
Grow or Build tokens
These help the different worlds to develop. Grow tokens increase the number of settlements that may occupy a land, whilst Build tokens allow the building of Towns and Cities in that world.
Gold
Gold is available in 'ones' and 'fives'. It is obtained from the Grow and Build tokens, from certain Discoveries, from some Bonus Benefits and from revenue generated by settlements. It is used to load ships, to build Towns and Cities and to select Benefits.
Arts World, Science World and Religion World markers
These markers are used to show which group of Benefit (Arts, Science or Religion) is associated with each world.
State of War markers
State of War markers are placed to show the worlds in which attacking is possible.
Benefits
These are chosen during the Select Benefits phase. There are two types of Benefit. Bonus Benefits (circular counters) provide advantages during the course of the game. Progress Benefits (square counters showing Arts, Science, Religion and Military Benefits) score points at the end of the game. Military Benefits are kept in full view of all players; all other Benefits are kept hidden behind the players' screens.
Benefit Cost marker
This marker is moved on the Gold track to show the increasing cost of Benefits during Benefit selection.
Set-up
- Lay out the map and position the storage triangle in the centre.
- Shuffle the five land tiles marked 'Caribbean', and place one face-down onto each of the three Caribbean spaces; return the two remaining land tiles to the box. Repeat this for Appalachia, Rockies, Isthmus, Amazonia, Andes and Patagonia.
- Shuffle the six Grow or Build tokens and place them face down in a stack on their space in the triangle.
- Place the Cities and gold on their spaces in the triangle.
- Place the Arts World, Science World, Religion World markers and the three State of War markers on their spaces on the map.
- Place the Benefit Cost marker on the Era 1 space of the Gold Track (0 Gold).
- Turn the Benefits face down and shuffle them. Place the appropriate number of Bonus Benefits onto each circle of the Benefit Storage (making sure that those showing 'Era 1' are placed on Era 1, 'Era 2's on Era 2, and so on). Place the appropriate number of Progress Benefits onto each square of the Benefit Storage (these can be placed in any Era). Place any unused Benefits back in the box.
| Players | Bonus Benefits | Progress Benefits |
|---|---|---|
| 4 players | 7 | 7 |
| 3 players | 6 | 6 |
| 2 players | 5 | 5 |
- Decide who will play which nation. Each player takes the appropriate set of components (three ships, a Turn Order marker, three Captains, twenty Settlers, ten Towns and two screens).
- Players place their markers on the Turn Order track in the following order: Spain - Portugal - England - France.
- Each player collects 3 gold, and places it behind their screen.
National capabilities
- Spain - begins the game as the 1st player (a very useful advantage).
- Portugal - may secretly look at three lands in any one New World before play begins.
- England - begins the game with all ships flipped to the '4 crew' side.
- France - may make one attack per era in a world that is not in a State of War (its Turn Order marker shows a banner in the top right-hand corner; begin each era with the banner face up, then flip the counter when used).
Note: An icon reminder of each capability is shown on the front of players' screens.
Sequence of Play
The game is played over six eras. Each era is made up of six phases, each consisting of a series of actions. Some phases are carried out simultaneously; others are carried out in a series of rounds, one player at a time.
- Phase 1: Establish the new era - reveal a Grow or Build token; award gold; place new Benefits; place State of War markers.
- Phase 2: Loading - load ships; pay gold.
- Phase 3: Sail and populate - three rounds of player-turns. Each player-turn may contain the following actions: Explore or Consolidate or Attack; Migrate; Reduce.
- Phase 4: Govern - three rounds of player-turns. Each player-turn may contain the following actions: Revenue; Build Towns and Cities; Sail back.
- Phase 5: Select Benefits
- Phase 6: Complete the era - discard remaining Benefits; reset Benefit Cost marker; remove State of War markers.
Note: a chart showing this sequence is on the reverse of players' screens.
Phase 1: Establish the New Era
Reveal a Grow or Build token
Reveal the next token in the stack of Grow or Build tokens and place it on the space above the named world. Each token supports the development of a particular world.
- Grow increases the population capacity of each land in that New World by +1 settlement.
- Build allows the building of Towns and Cities in that New World.
Award gold
Each player collects the amount of gold shown on the Grow or Build token for that era, and places it behind their screen.
Place new Benefits
Place the Benefits for this era face up on the circles and squares of the Benefit display (the column of circles and squares next to the Benefit Storage). e.g. In a four-player game, place seven Bonus Benefits and seven Progress Benefits.
Place State of War markers
A number of worlds must be placed in a State of War in each era:
- Era 1 - no worlds
- Era 2 and Era 3 - 1 world
- Era 4 and Era 5 - 2 worlds
- Era 6 - all 3 worlds
Note: this is shown by the banners above the Benefit Storage.
If one world must be in a State of War, the marker is placed by the player who has most types of Military Benefit (ignoring any duplicates). If two worlds must be in a State of War, the first marker is placed by the player who has most types of Military Benefit, and the second by the player who has second most types. If three worlds are in a State of War, a marker is placed for each world.
In the case of a tie for most types of Military Benefit, the player earliest in the Turn Order is considered to have the most.
A marker is placed on the compass of each world that is in a State of War. Attacking may only take place in a world that is in a State of War.
Note: Military Benefits are always kept in full view of other players.
Phase 2: Loading
Load ships
Players load ships behind their screens. Ships may be loaded with any combination of a Captain and Settlers up to each ship's maximum crew size. Empty ships may also sail to the New World.
Note 1: Two captains will never be loaded onto the same ship (because a player may never have more than one Captain in the same New World). Note 2: Gold can never be carried from the Old World to the New World.
Each player arranges their ships in order of sailing. The ship with the most crew must sail first, the ship with fewest crew must sail last. If two ships have the same number of crew, the player chooses the order of sailing. Place the ships in such a way as to indicate the order of sailing.
Recovering Settlers
In the later eras, a player may not have enough Settlers to load (because they are all in the New World). That player may instead place one gold (in place of a Settler) on a ship. When ships are revealed, that player must recover a Settler from the New World, place it on the ship and place the gold back behind their screen. A player may choose to recover more than one Settler in this way.
Note: If more than one player has chosen to recover a Settler from the New World, resolve this in Turn Order.
Players now remove their screens simultaneously.
Pay gold
Payment is made for each Settler and Captain sailing to the New World. It costs one gold per Captain and one gold per Settler.
Phase 3: Sail and Populate
This phase consists of three rounds of player-turns. Each round begins with the 1st player taking their first ship, sailing it to its named world and then carrying out various actions from the sequence: Explore or Consolidate or Attack, Migrate, Reduce. The 2nd player then sails their first ship and carries out actions, then the 3rd player and then the 4th player.
The second round is resolved in the same way, with each player sailing their second ship, and likewise the third round. The phase ends when all ships have sailed.
Explore ...
The ship is placed touching a land 'at harbour'. Only two ships may harbour at the same land.
A ship carrying a Captain may explore an unexplored land. Place the ship touching the land, turn over the tile and place the Captain (and any Settlers) on that land.
The first land to be explored in each New World must be the Caribbean (as shown by an anchor on the unexplored face). If another ship sails to a subsequent unexplored land, then that land must be adjacent to a land that has already been explored.
Map note: The following pairs of lands are not adjacent: Isthmus/Amazonia, Caribbean/Andes, Rockies/Appalachia.
Some lands have a Discovery printed on them. The effect of a Discovery is applied immediately.
Discoveries
- Gold Mine - Place the specified amount of gold on the Mine. As part of the Revenue action, each Settler belonging to that player may mine 1 gold in the land; the gold is collected onto the ship or into a connected Stronghold. Settlers in that land belonging to other players may mine the gold in their own Revenue phase. When all the gold on the Mine has been collected, the Mine is exhausted.
- Note 1: A player may choose not to mine, leaving gold in situ.
- Note 2: A Settler that has been used to mine will also generate revenue.
- Note 3: A Town or City may NOT mine gold.
- Civilisation - The Captain in the land steals the gold shown, which is placed onto that player's ship. The Captain is then placed on the Civilisation site, and may not sail back to the Old World until the following era.
- Stronghold - One Settler in the land must occupy and become the sole occupant of the Stronghold. A Settler in a Stronghold may never be attacked. That player may also store up to 3 gold in the Stronghold (see: Revenue). Note: A Settler may never be moved out of a Stronghold nor can that Settler be replaced to build a Town or City.
- Natives - The player takes one Settler from their supply and places it in the explored land or in an adjacent explored land.
- Gold - The player places the specified amount of gold onto their ship.
Note: A Discovery happens just the once. e.g. in the case of a Gold Mine producing 4 gold, only those 4 gold will ever be placed on the Mine.
... or Consolidate
The ship can sail to any land that has already been explored, and all crew are placed onto that land. The only restriction on consolidation is that just one Captain may ever occupy a particular land. If a Captain cannot be placed on the land, he is returned to the player's supply.
Note: If a ship cannot harbour in the New World, then it must return to the Old World. Any Settlers are removed and returned to the player's supply.
... or Attack
This is the only time a player may remove Settlers belonging to other players.
A player may attack by sailing a ship carrying a Captain and at least one Settler to a 'target' land. The land must be in a world that is in a State of War (i.e. there is a State of War marker on that world's compass). The land will have one or more Settlers belonging to one or more other players.
Note 1: A Settler occupying a Stronghold may not be attacked. Note 2: Once per era, France may attack in a world that is not in a State of War.
The attacker removes a pair of Settlers - one Settler of their own and one belonging to another player. Several pairs can be removed in this way.
e.g. It is Spain's Sail and populate phase and Pinta World is in a State of War. Appalachia contains two Settlers belonging to France. The Spanish player sails a Captain and three Settlers there, and proceeds to remove two Spanish Settlers and two French Settlers. Appalachia now contains just a Captain and a Settler, both belonging to Spain.
Migrate
The player may move one Settler (only) from any one land to an adjacent explored land. Either land may contain settlements or Captains of any player.
Note 1: Migrate always happens after Attack (which means the Settler may not be moved to join an attack). Note 2: A Captain may never migrate.
Reduce
Each land has a population capacity determined by the terrain and the number of players in the game.
| Terrain | Three players or four players | Two players |
|---|---|---|
| Mixed terrain | Up to 3 settlements | Up to 2 settlements |
| Plains, Forest, Mountains | Up to 2 settlements | 1 settlement only |
| Inhospitable | 1 settlement only | 0 settlements |
When the Grow token for a New World is placed, the population capacity for each land in that New World is increased by +1 settlement, and remains so for the rest of the game.
If the number of settlements exceeds the population capacity, the player must remove a number of their Settlers until the population capacity is satisfied. A player may not remove Towns and Cities, or Settlers in a Stronghold or belonging to another player.
Note: Settlers, Towns and Cities all count as settlements, but a Captain does not.
Phase 4: Govern
This phase is carried out in three rounds of player-turns. Each round begins with the 1st player choosing a world and carrying out various actions from the sequence: Revenue, Build Towns and Cities, Sail back. The 2nd player then chooses any world (the same as or different to the previous player) and carries out actions, then the 3rd player and then the 4th player.
The second round is resolved in the same way, with each player governing a second world, and likewise the third.
Revenue
Revenue can be collected from each land as follows:
| Source | Revenue |
|---|---|
| Each Settler in Mixed terrain | 2 gold |
| Each Settler in Plains, Forest or Mountains | 1 gold |
| Each Settler in Inhospitable terrain | 0 gold |
| A Town in any terrain | 2 gold |
| A City in any terrain | 3 gold |
This gold must then be stored. It may be stored in one of two places: on the player's ship or in Strongholds. Any amount of gold may be stored on the ship; up to 3 gold may be stored in each Stronghold.
Gold must be moved from the land to the place where it is to be stored. It must be moved through a series of connected lands. Lands are connected if there is a chain of adjacent lands, each containing a settlement or a Captain belonging to that player. A Captain on its own can connect lands in this instance. Gold which cannot be stored is lost.
Note: The only other place where gold will be found on the map is where a Mine has not yet become exhausted.
Build Towns and Cities
A Town or a City may only be built in a New World when the Build token has appeared for that world.
A player may build any number of Towns and Cities in each New World per era. However, there may be only one Town or City per player in each land.
It costs gold to build Towns and Cities. This gold must come from any combination of ship or Stronghold. The gold must be moved through a series of connected lands (each containing a settlement or a Captain belonging to that player) to the land where the Town or City is to be built.
Building a Town
To build a Town, two building conditions must apply:
- a player must have a Settler in that land
- the land must be part of a group of three specific lands.
The three specific lands may be either:
- A group of connected lands in that world containing at least three different types of terrain; each such land must be occupied by at least one settlement belonging to that player. A Captain on its own cannot be used to connect lands in this instance. e.g. In Nina world, a player has a Town in Rockies (Mixed terrain), a Settler in Isthmus (Plains) and a Settler in Andes (Mountains). The player can now build a Town in either Isthmus or Andes.
- The same three named lands in the three New Worlds. e.g. If a player has a settlement on the Andes tiles in Nina World, Pinta World and Santa Maria World, then the player may build a Town in the Andes of the world currently being governed.
To build the Town, the player pays 3 gold and replaces one Settler in that land with a Town. The Settler is placed back in the player's supply.
Building a City
To build a City, both of the above building conditions must apply.
The player then pays 9 gold, removes a Settler and places the City disc and a Town (on top of the disc) in that land.
There are seven City discs in the game, one for each named land. That City disc may be placed in the named land in just one of the three worlds. e.g. If the 'Caribbean' City is placed in Nina World, then no City may then be built in the Caribbean in either Santa Maria World or Pinta World.
IMPORTANT: A maximum of just three Cities may be built in each New World.
Building a Town into a City
If a player has already built a Town in a land, then it may be built into a City by paying 6 gold. The appropriate City disc is placed under the Town.
Note: The land must still be part of a group of three specific lands.
Placing Arts World, Science World and Religion World markers
When a player builds the first City in a New World, that player must place one of the markers - Arts World, Science World or Religion World - on the compass of that world. At the end of the game, the scoring of Progress Benefits will depend on how many Cities there are in their respective worlds - the more Cities, the more those particular Benefits will score.
Sail back
At this point, a Captain may remain in the New World or be moved back to the ship. The Captain must move to the ship through a series of connected lands that are occupied by the player's settlements.
Note: A Captain who has stolen gold and is on a Civilisation site must remain in that world until the next era.
When a ship sails back from a New World, it can carry a Captain and any amount of gold at no cost. Place the Captain back in the player's supply, and the gold behind the player's screen.
Phase 5: Select Benefits
The Start cost to select a Benefit from the display is determined by the era being played:
| Era | Start cost |
|---|---|
| Era 1 | 0 Gold |
| Era 2 | 1 Gold |
| Era 3 and Era 4 | 2 Gold |
| Era 5 and Era 6 | 3 Gold |
Note: this is shown on the Gold track.
In turn order, each player selects one Benefit, paying that amount of gold to do so. After each round of selecting, the payment cost rises by one gold. The Benefit Cost marker is moved along the Gold track to show the new cost.
e.g. It is Era 2 so the Start cost is 1 gold. In the first round, players will each pay 1 gold to select a Benefit; in the second round, players will each pay 2 gold; and so on.
Note: After the Benefit Cost marker reaches 7 gold, further rounds of selecting may take place, but the cost will remain at 7 gold.
If a Benefit is not selected, then that player must 'pass'. The player places their marker in any empty Pass space on the Turn Order track and may not select any more Benefits in that era.
Note: The '4th' Pass space is not used in the three-player game; likewise, the '3rd' and '4th' spaces are not used in the two-player game.
Selecting continues until every player has passed and placed their Turn Order marker in a Pass space. All markers are then moved into the boxes below.
A player must keep Military Benefits in full view of the other players; all other Benefits are kept behind the screen.
All selected Bonus Benefits are used before the end of the game and are discarded after use; selected Progress Benefits are always kept, and are used at the end of the game to score points.
Phase 6: Complete the Era
- Discard any unselected Benefits.
- Place the Benefit Cost marker in the space on the Gold track showing the next era.
- Remove any State of War markers from the compasses.
Note: The player playing France should ensure their Turn Order marker shows the banner.
Game End
The game ends after the Select Benefits phase of the sixth era. Scoring then takes place.
Scoring
Points are awarded for the settlements on the map, for Progress Benefits and for gold. Record these on the Score sheet.
Settlements on the map
- Each City scores 3 points
- Each Town scores 2 points
- Each Settler scores 1 point
Players score double points for their Towns and Settlers in lands that contain a Cathedral Bonus Benefit.
Progress Benefit points
Each Progress Benefit belongs to a particular group (Arts, Science, Religion or Military) and is of a particular type (for instance, a Military Benefit could be Infantry, Knight, Artillery, Castle or General). Benefits marked 'Any Type' represent any Benefit within that group.
The number of different types is used to score for Arts, Science and Military Benefits (ignoring any duplicates), whereas the total number of Protestants or Catholics is used when scoring Religion Benefits.
Arts, Science and Religion Benefits
The first Benefit of each group scores a basic value equal to the number of Cities in that world. e.g. if there were three Cities in Religion World, the first Religion Benefit would score 3 points.
The second Benefit of each group scores the basic value +1, the third Benefit the basic value +2, and so on, up to a maximum of five different Benefits. e.g. If there are three Cities in Arts World, and a player has five Arts Benefits, then that player will score 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7, for a total of 25 points.
Note 1: When scoring for Religion Benefits, it is the total number of either Catholic or Protestant Benefits that score. If a player has selected both Catholic and Protestant Benefits during the game, only the larger type will score. If a player has the same number of Catholic and Protestant Benefits, then simply score for one type. Note 2: When scoring Benefit points, it does not matter who owns the Cities.
Military Benefits
Military Benefits are scored slightly differently. The first Military Benefit will score a basic value equal to the total number of un-placed Cities (to a maximum of three). e.g. If two Cities have not been built, then the first Military Benefit will score 2 points.
Just as other Benefits do, the second Military Benefit will score the basic value +1, the third that number +2, and so on.
The table below summarises the points scored for Progress Benefits:
| Basic Value | One of each | Two of each | Three of each | Four of each | Five of each |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 points | 1 point | 3 points | 6 points | 10 points |
| 1 | 1 point | 3 points | 6 points | 10 points | 15 points |
| 2 | 2 points | 5 points | 9 points | 14 points | 20 points |
| 3 | 3 points | 7 points | 12 points | 18 points | 25 points |
Gold
Score 1 point for every five gold behind the player's screen.
Winning
The player with most points wins the game. In the event of a tie, the player earliest in the Turn Order wins.
Miscellaneous: Bonus Benefits
All Bonus Benefits are played immediately unless stated (an hour-glass is shown on these Benefits). Once a Benefit has been played, it is then discarded - and that includes Pirates!
- Native - Place a Settler in any explored land that is occupied by or adjacent to one of your settlements - but so that the population capacity is not exceeded.
- Spyglass - Secretly look at three unexplored lands in any one New World.
- Pirate (use in any future era) - During any Sail back action, take up to half the gold from an opponent's ship, placing the gold directly behind your screen. If two players both wish to play a Pirate Benefit at the same time, the player earliest in the Turn Order gets to do so first.
- Stronghold - Place in one land that does not already contain a Stronghold; a Settler in that land (presumably your own) must immediately occupy it. For rules governing Strongholds, see the Discovery chart and Revenue.
- Gold - Collect the specified amount of gold and place it behind your screen.
- Double Selection (play in any round of Select Benefits) - Select two Progress Benefits at the same time, but pay as if buying just one.
- Turn Order (play when passing in any round of Select Benefits) - Place your Turn Order marker in any Pass space on the Turn Order track. Any marker already in that space is displaced to an adjacent space, and this in turn may then displace other markers.
- Increase: Corn - Place on any Plains land. Every settlement in that land collects 1 extra gold in each Revenue action.
- Increase: Timber - Place on any Forest land. Every settlement in that land collects 1 extra gold in each Revenue action.
- Increase: Iron - Place on any Mountain land. Every settlement in that land collects 1 extra gold in each Revenue action.
Answers to FAQs
- A Captain counts as part of the crew of a ship.
- A ship can sail without a Captain.
- Gold may never be carried from the Old World to the New World.
- After loading, place ships in order of sailing, largest crew first.
- A player may have only one Captain per world.
- There may be only one Captain per land.
- The population capacity of each land is determined by its terrain (and the number of players).
- When a Grow token is placed, the population capacity for each land in that world increases by +1 settlement.
- Gold must be moved to a ship or Stronghold through a chain of connected lands (each containing a settlement or Captain).
- A Town or City may only be built when the Build token has been placed for that world (exception: the Town Bonus Benefit).
- Always remove a Settler when building a Town or City (but not when building a Town into a City).
- Gold used to build Towns or Cities in a New World must have been collected from that world and stored on the ship or in a Stronghold.
- When the first City is built in a New World, the player chooses one of the markers - Arts World, Science World or Religion World - and places it on the compass of that world.
- There is a maximum of three Cities per world.
- A Cathedral must be placed in a land containing a Town (but not a City).
- When scoring for Arts, Science and Military Benefits, duplicates do not score.
- Each player must use either Catholics or Protestants when scoring Religion Benefits.
Solo Game
The Solo game is effectively a two-player game between the Soloist (the player) and Max Planck (Quantum scientist and the Solo Game's automaton). The rules require the Soloist to make some specified 'optimum play' decisions on the part of Planck, usually determined by the option that will generate greatest revenue for Planck. If there are several choices of equal value, then the Soloist makes that decision.
Use all the rules for the two-player game, modified as follows.
Set-up
- Step 2. The land tiles that were returned to the box are now shuffled and placed as a face-down stack.
- Step 5. Randomly place the Arts World, Science World and Religion World markers on the three compasses (rather than wait for Cities to be built).
- Step 7. Place Benefits as indicated: 5 Bonus Benefits and 5 Progress Benefits. The Progress Benefits (square counters) that were returned to the box are now shuffled and placed as a face-down, set-aside stack.
- Step 8. Planck randomly chooses a nation; the Soloist then chooses one of the remaining nations. Planck does not need screens. Planck's Military Progress Benefits should be placed face-up; all his other Progress Benefits are placed face-down.
- Step 10. The Soloist takes 3 gold; Planck takes 0 gold.
National Capabilities
- Spain - Planck begins the game as the 1st player. He scores 2 points for each retained Turn Order Benefit.
- Portugal - Planck does not look at the three face-down lands; instead, at game end, he scores 3 points for each retained Spyglass Benefit.
- England - Planck begins the game with all ships flipped to the '4-crew' side - see Loading below.
- France - Planck may make one attack per era in a world that is not in a State of War - see Attack below.
Phase 1: Establish the new era
Planck does NOT collect the gold shown on the Grow or Build tokens.
If Planck needs to place a State of War marker, place it on the compass of a world that is not already at war and where Planck currently generates least revenue.
Phase 2: Loading
The Soloist loads ships first, then Planck.
When it is Planck's turn to load, turn over the top Progress Benefit from the set-aside stack. Whichever Benefit group (Arts, Science or Religion) is turned over will determine the world to which Planck sails his first ship. The second ship will sail to the next world clockwise, and the third ship will sail to the remaining world.
IMPORTANT: If a Military Benefit is turned over, Planck takes it and places it face up. Turn over the next Benefit until a non-Military Benefit is drawn.
Planck does not pay gold to load ships. Instead, all three ships are automatically loaded with one Captain and one Settler. Extra Settlers will be loaded according to the amount of gold shown on the Grow or Build token revealed this era:
- If 1 gold - the first ship loads one extra Settler.
- If 2 gold - the first and second ships each load one extra Settler.
- If 3 gold - all three ships load one extra Settler.
Note: If a Captain is unavailable, then that ship will be loaded with another Settler instead.
If Planck's ships are flipped to '4 Crew' then:
- If 1 gold - the first ship loads two extra Settlers (the other two ships load one extra).
- If 2 gold - the first and second ships each load two extra Settlers (the third ship loads one extra).
- If 3 gold - all three ships load two extra Settlers.
Recovering Settlers
If Planck does not have enough Settlers, then Settlers may be recovered from the New World. They may only be recovered from lands containing more than one of Planck's settlements, and the Settler must not generate more than 1 gold in revenue.
Phase 3: Sail and populate
Action priorities:
- If the world is in a State of War (or if Planck is playing France) and Planck's ship has a Captain, then Planck will try to attack.
- If Planck cannot attack but has a Captain, then Planck will try to explore.
- If Planck cannot attack or explore, then Planck will try to consolidate.
- If Planck cannot consolidate, then the ship will sail to the land occupied by the Captain or, if that is not possible, sail to a land that will allow the greatest revenue to be collected. Any Settlers on the ship are returned to Planck's supply.
Attack
Draw a land tile from the bottom of the set aside stack of land tiles and place it on top of the stack (keeping it face-down). If there are Soloist Settlers in that land that can be attacked, then that will be the 'target land'. If Settlers cannot be attacked in that land, then consider the next land clockwise, then the next, and so on (e.g. Isthmus, then Rockies, then Appalachia etc.), until the actual target land is determined or all lands have been considered.
When attacking, Planck will always remove one pair of Settlers. Continue to remove pairs of Settlers until the population capacity is satisfied.
France and attacking
If Planck is France and the world in question is not in a State of War, then Planck will try to attack. Flip the France Turn Order marker after conducting such an attack.
Note: If Planck is unable to attack in that world, then he may try to attack in a subsequent world that is also not in a State of War.
Explore
If Planck's ship is the first to reach that world, then it must explore the Caribbean. If not, draw a land tile from the bottom of the set aside stack of land tiles and place it on top of the stack (keeping it face-down). Provided the land is unexplored and adjacent to an already explored land, then the ship will sail to that land. Otherwise, determine the actual target land (as in Attack).
Consolidate
Draw a land tile from the bottom of the set aside stack of land tiles and place it on top of the stack (keeping it face-down). If at least one Settler can be placed in that land without exceeding the population capacity, then the ship will sail there. Otherwise, determine the actual target land (as in Attack and Explore).
Migrate
Planck will migrate one Settler if this will generate more revenue this era (paying particular attention to creating a chain of connected lands). In the event of there being a tie in choice of lands, then the Soloist decides which.
Reduce
Land population capacities in the Solo Game are:
| Terrain | Capacity |
|---|---|
| Mixed terrain | Up to 2 settlements |
| Plains, Forest, Mountains | 1 settlement only |
| Inhospitable | 0 settlements |
When the Grow token for a New World is placed, the population capacity for each land in that New World is increased by +1 settlement, and remains so for the rest of the game.
Phase 4: Govern
Turn over the top Progress Benefit from the set aside stack. Whichever Benefit group (Arts, Science or Religion) is turned over will determine the first world to be governed by Planck. The next world clockwise will be the second world to be governed, and the remaining world the third.
IMPORTANT: If a Military Benefit is turned over, Planck takes it and places it face up. Turn over the next Benefit until a non-Military Benefit is drawn.
Planck will collect all possible revenue, including gold from Mines. Gold will only be stored in a Stronghold if it cannot be moved to the ship.
Planck will always build one City if possible, or failing that, one Town. The cost will be paid from Strongholds first, then from the ship. The City (or Town) should be built in a land so as to maximise revenue. e.g. a Town should be built in an Inhospitable land if possible.
A Captain will always then sail back if possible.
Phase 5: Select Benefits
Both players take turns to select Benefits. The Soloist pays gold to select a Benefit from the Benefit display in the usual way. Planck always selects the Benefit nearest the 'blunt end' (bottom) of the arrow (and pays for it). Planck will select as many Benefits as possible, until he has insufficient gold. If Planck passes first, place his marker in the '1st' Pass space.
Bonus Benefits chosen by Planck are either played during the game (immediately or in a later era) or retained until the end of the game.
Phase 6: Complete the era
Step 4. Any unselected Progress Benefits are shuffled and placed face-down at the bottom of the set aside stack.
Scoring
The scoring system is very similar to the multi-player game. Most modifications are confined to the Bonus Benefits. However, Planck also receives extra points depending on how many Cities are built in each New World:
| New World status | Points for Planck |
|---|---|
| Any world where no Cities have been built | 6 points |
| Any world where one City has been built | 3 points |
| Any world where two Cities have been built | 1 point |
| Any world where three Cities have been built | 0 points |
These points can be recorded in the New World sections of the Score sheet.
Winning
The highest score wins the game. Victory has a number of gradations:
| Points difference | Victory |
|---|---|
| 1 - 5 points | Cabin-boy's victory |
| 6 - 10 points | Cook's victory |
| 11 - 15 points | Bosun's victory |
| 16 - 20 points | First mate's victory |
| 21 + points | Captain's victory |
Bonus Benefit modifications for Planck
- Natives (play immediately) - Place ONE Settler in an appropriate available land and in one that maximises revenue. e.g. place in Mixed terrain rather than Mountains.
- Spyglass (retain) - This Benefit will score 3 points if Planck is playing Portugal (as opposed to the usual 1 point).
- Pirate (play at the end of the next Sail and populate phase) - Place this Benefit on the compass of the New World which will generate most revenue for the Soloist (prior to any building). Planck takes up to half the gold when the Soloist's ship sails back from that world.
- Stronghold (play immediately, or else retain) - Place in any available land and in such a way as to safeguard greatest revenue. e.g. place in Mixed terrain rather than Mountains.
- Gold (play immediately) - Collect the amount of gold shown.
- Double Selection (play at the first opportunity) - Planck selects the next two Progress Benefits on the track, but pays as if buying just one. Note: This is the only time Planck can 'jump' Benefits on the display when selecting.
- Turn Order (play when passing in the current Select Benefits phase, or else retain) - Place Planck's Turn Order marker in the '1st' Pass space. If Planck is already '1st', then retain this Benefit to score 1 point (2 points if Planck is Spain).
- Increase (play immediately, or else retain) - The Benefit must be placed in a land giving a net revenue advantage to Planck (maximising revenue).
- Larger Ships (play immediately, or else retain) - Flip each ship to the '4 Crew' side. Planck will now be able to load more crew - See Loading. Retain the Benefit if Planck has already flipped his ships.
If it is not possible to play a Benefit, then that Benefit is retained by Planck and will usually score 1 point during Scoring. These points can be recorded in the 'Gold' section of the Score sheet.
The power of Planck
Planck is a worthy opponent at all times. He is most difficult to beat when he plays England and he can be pretty tough when he plays France. If you want an easier game (maybe your first game), then let him play Spain or Portugal. Don't worry; he doesn't mind losing!