Settlement
Settlement Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Object of the Game
In Settlement, you have to efficiently manage your settlers and resources to earn the most victory points at the end of the sixth round.
Game Contents
- 1 Game Board
- 4 Player Boards
- 48 Hero Cards
- 14 Artifact Tiles
- 36 Building Tiles (3 of each type)
- 1 Scoring Notepad
- 24 Basic Settlers
- 24 Bonus Settlers
- 36 Monsters (9 of each of the 4 colors)
- 36 Fortification Tiles
- 36 Terrain Tiles (12 for each of the 3 regions)
- 48 Basic Resource Tokens: 16 Clay, 16 Stone, 16 Wood
- 32 Rare Resource Tokens: 16 Diamonds, 16 Gold
- 1 Round Marker
- 1 First Player Marker
Setting Up the Game
- Place the Game Board in the center of the table within easy reach of all players.
- Place the Round Marker on the first space of the round track.
- Create 3 stacks of Terrain Tiles (one for each level - I, II and III). Shuffle them separately and place them face down on the corresponding spaces on the game board.
- Shuffle Building Tiles, create 3 approximately even stacks and place them face down on the corresponding spaces of the game board. Take 9 tiles from any stacks and place them face up on the Market.
- Shuffle all Hero Cards and put them in a face down deck on the corresponding space on the game board. Place the 4 topmost Hero cards face up in a row below the game board.
- Shuffle all Artifact Tiles. Draw as many tiles as there are players, plus 3, and place them face up near the game board. (For instance, in a 2-player game, draw 5 Artifacts.) Put the remaining Artifact Tiles back in the box.
- Each player receives 1 Player Board and places 6 Basic Settlers and 3 Basic Resources (one of each type: Wood, Clay, and Stone) in their reserve.
- All the remaining Basic Resource Tokens, Diamonds and Gold Tokens, Bonus Settlers and Fortification Tiles are placed near the game board forming a general supply.
- Choose the first player at random. That player receives the First Player Marker.
- Starting with the player to the right of the first player, then counterclockwise, each player choses an Artifact Tile and places it face up on the corresponding space on their Player Board.
How to Play
The game lasts 6 rounds. On each round, players take turns in clockwise order, beginning with the starting player.
On your turn, you can take one action and/or invite one hero. Usually, you will take an action first, but the order doesn't matter. You can invite a hero first and then take an action.
If you don't want to (or can't) take any action, nor invite a Hero, then you must pass. You can also pass right after you have completed your turn. After you have passed, the round is over for you.
The round is over when all players have passed (see Passing).
Player Board
The Player Board has the following areas:
- Hunting Area
- Fortification Area
- Exploration Area
- Building Area
- Artifact - shown at the bottom of the board.
- Region Activation Area - alongside the Wildlands (Region III, Region II, Region I).
- Street Activation Area - alongside the Settlement (Upper Street, Middle Street, Lower Street).
The upper part of your Player Board represents the Wildlands, divided into three Regions (I, II, III), each with a Fortification, a Fortification Activation Area, and Terrain spaces. To the right of the Wildlands are the Basic Resources and Rare Resources storage spaces, and the Standard Resources Exchange Rate reminder.
The lower part of your Player Board is your Settlement, divided into three rows - the Streets (Upper Street, Middle Street, Lower Street). Each Street has three Building spaces. To the right of the Settlement are the Basic Settlers and Bonus Settlers storage spaces.
1. Take an Action
On your turn, you can take one of the following 7 actions using your Settlers:
- Construct a Building
- Explore a Terrain
- Hunt a Monster
- Build a Fortification
- Activate a Region
- Activate a Street
- Activate a Fortification
Using Settlers
To perform an action, you have to use a certain number of your Settlers. When you use Settlers you place them in the corresponding area of your Player Board. Depending on the chosen action, you will use one or several Settlers.
Note. If there is already one Settler in a Region, a Street or a Fortification Activation Area, you can no longer activate this Region, Street or Fortification in this round. Other zones don't have such restrictions.
When taking actions, you can use Basic Settlers, Bonus Settlers, or both.
1. Construct a Building
Move 1 Settler to the Building Area.
Buildings provide you with resources, Bonus Settlers and Victory Points.
Choose a Building from the Market. Pay its cost (shown in the upper left corner of the tile) by discarding the required resources to the general supply. Then, place this Building on an empty space of any Street in your settlement. Take a new Building Tile from any stack and place it face up on the empty space that you left in the Market, if any. If there is no free space in your Settlement, you cannot construct any new buildings.
Example. Jenny uses one Settler to build a Lumber Mill. She pays 1 Stone and places the Building Tile in her Settlement. Then Jenny draws a new Building Tile and places it on an empty Market space.
2. Explore a Terrain (and check for Monsters)
The more Terrains you explore, the more resources you can collect.
The upper part of your Player Board represents Wildlands. They are divided in three rows: the Regions. Each Region has three Terrain spaces. That's where you will put the Terrain Tiles that you explore.
Move the indicated number of Settlers to the Exploration Area. The number of Settlers required to take this action depends on the Region you want to explore: Region I - 1 Settler, Region II - 2 Settlers, Region III - 3 Settlers.
Then place face up a Terrain Tile from the chosen stack on a free space of the corresponding Region. Your first Terrain Tile must be taken from the Region I Stack. Any next tile that you explore must be placed on a space adjacent to an explored Terrain.
Example: Jenny takes her first Explore a Terrain action. She uses 1 Settler to draw a Region I Terrain Tile from the stack and place it on any free Region I space. Any future Terrain Tile must be placed on a space adjacent to an already placed tile (in this example it can be a Region II Terrain Tile or another Region I Terrain Tile).
Checking for Monsters
When you explore a Terrain, a Monster may appear on the tile. Compare the Monster color at the bottom right corner of the Terrain Tile with the Monster colors displayed on all visible Hero Cards below the game board. If the color displayed on the Terrain Tile matches at least one visible Hero Card, then a Monster of that color appears on this Terrain Tile. Even if several Hero Cards match the color of the Monster, only 1 Monster appears. Otherwise, nothing happens.
Example: Jenny's Terrain Tile features a green Monster. Even if there are two available Hero Cards with green Monsters, only 1 Monster appears on the tile.
3. Hunt a Monster
Hunting Monsters provides Rare Resources and clears the Terrain, which then allows you to collect resources from it.
Move the indicated number of Settlers to the Hunting Area and return a Monster to the general supply. The number of Settlers required for this action depends on the Monster color you are about to hunt:
Green Monster - 1 Settler, Yellow Monster - 2 Settlers, Blue Monster - 3 Settlers, Red Monster - 4 Settlers.
After you have hunted a Monster, you immediately gain the corresponding reward: Green Monster - 1 Diamond, Yellow Monster - 1 Gold, Blue Monster - 2 Gold, Red Monster - 1 Diamond and 2 Gold.
Example: On her next turn Jenny uses 1 Settler to hunt a Green Monster. She returns the Green Monster to the general supply and gets 1 Diamond as a reward.
Monsters
- Forest Gnolls (green) are human-like hyenas who steal everything they see into their lairs. They are always ready to beat up a careless settler.
- Steppe Manticores (yellow) are monsters with the body of a lion and the tail of a scorpion. They track lone travelers, attack them and drag them into their dens.
- Water Hydras (blue) live in azure lakes and wide rivers and can easily sink a fishing boat with no sweat.
- Cave Dragons (red) are fire-breathing winged animals that can easily burn down an entire settlement. For some reason, they are fond of gold.
4. Build a Fortification
Building Fortifications allows you to gain resources from Terrains, store basic resources and also keeps monsters away.
Move 1 Settler to the Fortification Area.
Place a Fortification Tile on any empty Terrain Tile. A Terrain Tile is considered empty if it has no Fortification or Monster.
Fortification prevents Monsters from appearing when you activate a Region to collect resources (see Activate a Region). While activated, Fortifications allow you to gain resources (see Activate a Fortification). Fortifications also store Basic Resources when you pass (see Passing).
Example: Using her Settler, Jenny builds a Fortification on a Terrain tile.
5. Activate a Region (and check for Monsters)
Activating a Region allows you to collect several resources at once.
Move 1 Settler to the Activation Area of a chosen Region (I, II or III). Each Region can be activated only once per round. If there is already a Settler in the corresponding Activation Area, you cannot activate this Region again until the next round.
When activating a Region, you can collect resources from each Terrain Tile of this Region (up to three), provided there are no Monsters on this tile.
You can gain a resource from Terrain Tile even if its Fortification has been activated in the same round. However, you cannot collect a resource from a Terrain Tile occupied by a Monster!
Example: Jenny placed a Settler on the Activation Area for Region I. She gains 1 Wood from the first Terrain Tile (on the left), nothing from the center Terrain Tile because of the Monster, and 1 Wood from the right Terrain Tile (on the right). For her next turn, Jenny will activate Region II to gain 1 Wood and 1 Diamond.
Checking for Monsters
Compare the Monster color at the bottom right corner of the Terrain Tile where you gained resources with the Monster colors displayed on all visible Hero Cards below the game board. If the color displayed on the Terrain Tile matches at least one visible Hero Card, and there's no Fortification on the Terrain Tile, then a Monster of that color appears there. Even if several Hero Cards match the color of the Monster, only 1 Monster appears. Otherwise, nothing happens.
Monster never appears on a Terrain Tile with a Fortification!
6. Activate a Street
Activating a Street is an efficient way to put your buildings to good use.
Move 1 Settler to the Activation Area of a chosen Street (upper, middle or lower). Each Street can be activated only once per round. If there is a Settler in the corresponding Activation Area, you cannot activate this Street again until the next round.
Activating a Street allows you to use all Buildings effects in any order. You are not required to use all Buildings effects.
See Appendix: Buildings for a detailed list of all buildings.
Example: George activates the upper Street of his Settlement. He uses the Quarry to gain 1 Stone. Then, he uses the Bazaar to exchange 1 Stone with 1 Gold. George decides not to use his Alchemist, and ends his action.
7. Activate a Fortification
Activating a Fortification allows you to gain a resource from its Terrain Tile without risking a Monster to appear.
Move 1 Settler to the Fortification Activation Area.
Take the corresponding resource from the general supply and place it in your personal supply. Each Fortification can be activated only once per round. If there is already a Settler in a Fortification Activation Area you cannot activate this Fortification again until the next round.
You can activate Fortification even if you already have activated this Region in current round.
Example: George activates a Fortification. He gains 1 Clay.
Trading Resources
You can exchange your resources with the general supply at any moment of your turn at the following rates:
- Any 2 Basic Resources for any 1 Basic Resource.
- 1 Clay, 1 Wood and 1 Stone for 1 Diamond.
- 2 Diamonds for 1 Gold.
- 1 Gold for any 1 Basic Resource.
(Since 2 Diamonds can be traded for 1 Gold, and 1 Gold for any 1 Basic Resource, you can directly trade 2 Diamonds for any 1 Basic Resource).
II. Invite a Hero
On your turn, before or after taking your action, you may discard resources to the general supply to invite a Hero to your settlement. Heroes bring you Victory Points. Some Heroes will score points depending on the number of your Buildings, Terrains or Fortifications. Also, some Heroes provide you with Bonus Settlers, which can be used immediately.
Once you have invited a Hero and used their Special Effect, place it face down near your Player Board. After that, immediately shift the rest of the Hero Cards one space to the right (if possible) to fill in an empty space. Draw a new card from the Hero Cards Deck and place it face up on the leftmost space of the Heroes Row.
Note: You always have to pay extra costs for the two leftmost Hero Cards of the Heroes Row (2 Diamonds for the leftmost Hero and 1 Diamond for the second leftmost Hero). You need to pay these extra resources to invite these Heroes to your settlement.
See Appendix: Heroes for a detailed list of all heroes effects.
Hero Card Anatomy
- Hero Cost
- Victory Points
- Special Effect (e.g. +1 Bonus Settler)
- Monster color
Example: After paying 2 Wood and 2 Gold to the general supply George invites the Hero who will score 1 VP for each explored Terrain Tile at the end of the game. George also gains 1 Settler.
Passing
After completing your turn, you may immediately pass if you're ready to end the current round. Most of the time, this happens once you have used your last Settler or spent all your resources to invite a Hero.
If you can't take any action, nor invite a Hero in your turn, then you must pass.
When you pass, your turn is over and you're out of the round. If you're the first player to pass, you'll be the first player in the next round.
After passing you should do the following:
1. Discard Basic Resources
Discard all your unused Basic Resources (Wood, Clay, Stone) to the general supply. You can keep one Basic Resource for each of your Fortifications. You don't have to discard Rare Resources (Diamonds and Gold).
Reminder: Before passing, you can exchange any your Basic Resources with the general supply at a standard rate! For example, you can exchange 3 Basic Resources for 1 Diamond!
Note: Players can't trade resources between each other!
2. Clean all Activations Area from Settlers
Move all Basic Settlers to your personal supply. Return all used Bonus Settlers to the general supply. All unused Bonus Settlers may be kept for the next round.
Note: Players start every new round with 6 Basic Settlers and all unused Bonus Settlers from the previous round. Bonus Settlers can be used only once. After a player have passed, he must return all used Bonus Settlers to the general supply.
3. Take a new Artifact
Choose a new Artifact Tile among the available ones and place it face up on your Player Board. Return your previous Artifact to the Artifacts Row. You can't keep the same Artifact for the next round.
Note: Once you have passed in the last (sixth) round, the game is over for you. However, you still have a chance to trade resources with the general supply.
Example: Jenny is the second player to pass. She must return all unused Basic Resources (2 Wood and 1 Clay) to the general supply. However, Jenny has 1 Fortification, so she can keep 1 unused Basic Resource for the next round. Then she moves all her Basic Settlers to her personal supply and returns Bonus Settlers to the general supply (except one that she did not use). Finally, she chooses a new Artifact Card and returns the previous one to the Artifacts Row.
End of the Round
Once all players have passed, the round is over.
1. Discard a Hero
Discard the rightmost Hero Card from the Heroes Row. Then, shift all the remaining Hero Cards one space to the right to fill the empty space. Draw the top Hero Card from the deck and place it on the leftmost space of the Heroes Area.
2. Renew the Market
If there are several identical buildings on the Market, regroup them in stacks. Do that for every type of building (for example, if there are two Taverns and two Cathedrals, stack them in 2 separate piles). This may cause one or several spaces to become empty. Refill the Market with new Building Tiles drawn from any stack.
If you draw a copy of an existing Building during this step, do not stack it with the others (you will do that at the end of next round, if necessary). For now, simply place one Building Tiles on each empty space, regardless of the rest of the Market.
Move the Round Marker to the next space on the Round Track. The next first player is the one that first passed in the current round.
Exception: In the last sixth round you skip all the above mentioned steps. Once all players have passed, the round and the game are over (see End of the Game).
End of the Game
At the end of the sixth round, the game is over. Add all the points from your Heroes, Cathedrals and Banks. The player with the most Victory Points wins and their settlement becomes the main outpost of the land!
In the case of a tie, the player with the most Gold in their personal supply wins. If players are still tied, the player with the most Diamonds in their personal supply wins. If there's still a tie, players share victory.
Example: At the end of the game George counts his victory points (VP). There are 9 Heroes in his settlement. Two Heroes score 6 VP each, the third Hero - 7 VP, and the fourth - 8 VP. The three other Heroes that George invited score 1 VP for every explored Terrain tile. The last two Heroes score each 1 VP for each constructed Building in his settlement. Finally George has 2 Gold on his Bank Tile (each Gold scores 5 VP) and 4 Diamonds on his Cathedral Tile (each Diamond scores 4 VP). George's final score is 86 VP (6 + 6 + 7 + 8 + 3x7 + 2x6 + 2x5 + 4x4).
Solo Variant
During the setup, shuffle the Artifact Tiles and place 4 of them (3+1) face up. Place all the remaining Artifacts face down near the Player Board. Choose 1 Artifact for the first round.
After you have passed at the end of the round, choose a new Artifact Card for your next round. Instead of discarding your previous Artifact, simply remove it from the game. Place the new Artifact face up in the Artifacts Row. You will always 3 Artifacts to choose from.
Your task is to score as many Victory Points as possible at the end of the sixth round. Improve your personal records! The key to victory is the correct and timely usage of each of the chosen Artifacts.
All the other rules remain unchanged.
| Your VP | Result |
|---|---|
| 0-50 | Settler |
| 51-75 | Mayor |
| 76-100 | Knight |
| 101 or more | Lord |
Appendix: Artifacts
Eternity Clock - Every time you construct a Building, you can immediately activate it.
Explorer's Astrolabe - Every time you explore a Terrain, you gain the corresponding resource from the general supply. After that, check for Monsters.
Mace of Bravery - Every time you hunt a Monster, you gain 1 Diamond from the general supply.
Potion of Power - Every time you build a Fortification, you gain the resource matching the Terrain from the general supply.
Living Chest - When you take this Artifact, gain 1 Bonus Settler for the coming round from the general supply.
Scroll of Luck - Every time you activate a Region, you gain 1 extra resource matching one of its Terrains from the general supply.
Leader's Crown - Every time you activate a Fortification, you gain 1 extra resource matching the Terrain from the general supply.
Cheerful Mug - Every time you invite a Hero, you gain 1 Bonus Settler from the general supply.
Magic Purse - When you take this Artifact, gain 1 Gold from the general supply.
Diamond Ring - When you take this Artifact, gain 1 Diamond from the general supply.
Guiding Star - Once per round, you may activate a Region even if you already activated it in the current round. To do this, place the second Settler beside the first one in Region Activation Area. After that, check for Monsters.
Knowledge Key - Once per round, you may activate a Street in your settlement even if you already activated it in the current round. To do this, place the second Settler beside the first one in the Street Activation Area.
Transformation Mirror - You can exchange your Basic Resources for Basic Resources from the general supply at a rate of 1:1.
Shaman's Mask - Every time you have to check for Monsters, you decide whether a Monster appears or not. You can disregard Monster colors on Hero Cards.
Appendix: Heroes
Adventurers Guild are passionate adventurers beckoned by the wonders of uncharted lands. They willingly leave the civilized world behind and go on a journey of discovery. Each Adventurer gives you 1 VP for each of your Terrains.
Defenders Guild are battle-hardened warriors who are not afraid of the flames of war, nor of the invasion of monsters. They are skilled with weapons, able to command soldiers and know how to effectively organize the defense of even the weakest fortress. Each Defender gives you 1 VP for each of your Fortifications.
Builders Guild are skilled creators and architects, they know the biggest secrets of construction craft, and therefore will provide settlement with reliable homes, strong walls and refined palaces. Each Builder gives you 1 VP for each of your Buildings.
Craftsman Guild can do any job. For decent money they will chase giant rats out of the basement, protect the caravan on the road, and chop wood for the house. Their very presence in the local tavern raises the prestige of the settlement and rises the courage of its inhabitants. Each Craftsman gives you a certain amount of VP.
Some Hero Cards immediately give you 1 Bonus Settler. Others immediately give you 2 Bonus Settlers.
Appendix: Buildings
Lumber Mill - Cost: 1 Stone. Activation: Gain 1 Wood from the general supply.
Clay Pit - Cost: 1 Wood. Activation: Gain 1 Clay from the general supply.
Quarry - Cost: 1 Clay. Activation: Gain 1 Stone from the general supply.
Bank - Cost: 1 Clay. Activation: Place 1 Gold on this tile. Any Gold stored on the Bank can't be used for any other purposes. At the end of the game, each Gold stored on this Building is worth 5 VP.
Diamond Mine - Cost: 1 Gold. Activation: Gain 1 Diamond from the general supply.
Bazaar - Cost: 1 Diamond. Activation: Exchange 1 your Basic Resource (Wood, Clay or Stone) for 1 Gold from the general supply.
Jeweler Store - Cost: 1 Gold. Activation: Exchange 1 your Diamond for 1 Wood, 1 Clay and 1 Stone from the general supply.
Cathedral - Cost: 1 Wood. Activation: Place 1 Diamond on this tile. Any Diamond stored on the Cathedral can't be used for any other purposes. At the end of the game, each Diamond stored on this Building is worth 4 VP.
Alchemist - Cost: 1 Stone. Activation: Exchange 1 your Gold for 2 Diamonds from the general supply.
Warehouse - Cost: 1 Diamond. Activation: Gain any 1 Basic Resource (Wood, Clay or Stone) from the general supply.
Tavern - Cost: 1 Gold. Activation: Exchange 1 your Diamond for 2 Bonus Settlers from the general supply.
Trading Post - Cost: 1 Diamond. Activation: Choose any of your Terrain with a Fortification and gain the corresponding resource from the general supply.
Credits
Game designer: Oleksandr Nevskiy Development: IGAMES Studio Graphic Design: M81 Studio, box cover by Dmytro Kryvonos Editors: Oleg Sidorenko, Sviatoslav Mykhats English Proofreading: Antoine Prono (Transludis) Design and Layout: Andriy Bordun
Special thanks to Artem Yavorskyi, Vitalii Shved, Anton Haiura, Oleg Sidorenko and all the game testers.
© IGAMES. All rights reserved. Reprinting and publication of game rules, game components and illustrations without the permission of the copyright holder is prohibited.