Silverwood Grove Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Basic Concepts
• Components
  • Player Board
  • Character
  • Tribe Unite Card
  • Location
  • Employee
• Setup
  • General Setup
  • Player Setup
• Gameplay (Standard Mode)
  • Turn the Turn Phase Token
  • Perform one of the two available actions
  • Actions
• End of the Round
• Final Scoring
• Gameplay Variants
  • Family Mode
  • Family+ Mode
  • Family Mode versus Standard
  • Family Mode+ versus Standard
• Optional Modules
  • Climate Calamity
  • The Hunt
• Appendix

Basic Concepts

• Resources: Grain (Yellow), Vine (Green), Sap (Orange) and Stone (Grey).
• Tribes: Daintree, Flinders and Kakadu. Collecting sets of these three Tribe symbols scores VP at the end of the game.
• Victory Points (VP): During the game you will earn VPs. At the end of the game the player with the most VPs is the winner.
• Action Points (AP): Each action you take costs AP.

Components

Player Board

1. Each resource has its own Resource Track. Whenever you gain or pay resources you will move your Resource Tracking Cube up or down a number of spaces.
2. Every round you have a number of action points (AP) to use. You track your remaining APs on the Action Points Track. Whenever you spend APs, move your Action Points Tracking Cube down.
3. You track your Research on the Research Track. Whenever you Research, move your Research Tracking Cube down to the next Research Level. The Research levels from top to bottom are Insight, Nature and Spirit.
4. You track your Development on the Develop Track. Whenever you Develop, move your Develop Tracking Cube down to the next Develop Level. The Develop levels from top to bottom are Community, Identity and Harmony.
5. Player Board description, has no gameplay effect.

Character

1. Each Character card is part of a specific Tribe. When playing a Character you use the Tribe card matching your Character's Tribe.
2. List of Starting Resources. During Player Setup players will adjust their Resource Tracks so they match the listed Starting Resources.
3. Each Character has a specific Talent that can be used once a player has fully completed Research on the Research Track.
4. Whenever you Research you gain access to a new ability, power or one-time effect.
5. Character name, has no gameplay effect.

For a detailed explanation of each Character please refer to the appendix.

Tribe Unite Card

1. The back of the card shows the Tribe this Tribe Unite Card belongs to.
2. Once you've reached Harmony on the Develop Track, the Unite Ability is available to use whenever you take the Unite action.
3. Lore description of the Tribe, has no gameplay effect.

Location

1. Each Location is affiliated with 0, 1 or 2 tribes.
2. Location cards have a level 1 side and a level 2 side. When you first Build a location, place it with the level 1 side face-up. Whenever you Upgrade a location it will be flipped to the level 2 side.
3. Each Location is worth a number of VP at the end of the game.
4. Shows the Location Cost. Can either be specific resources or any resource. For example: when the cost is any 4 resources you can pay 4 stone or 1 grain, 1 vine, 1 sap or 1 stone (or any other combination of resources).
5. A Level 2 Location can provide a new ability, power or one-time effect.
6. A location can have build requirements, this can be a combination of Skills, Research Level and/or Develop Level.
7. Some locations show an Employee Bonus that comes into play whenever you have the matching Employee.
8. Location name, has no gameplay effect.

For a detailed explanation of each Location please refer to the appendix.

Employee

1. Each employee is affiliated with 0, 1 or 2 tribes.
2. Employee cards have a level 1 side and a level 2 side. When you first Hire an employee, place it with the level 1 side face-up. Whenever you Upgrade an employee it will be flipped to the level 2 side.
3. Each Employee is worth a number of VP at the end of the game.
4. Shows the Employee cost. Can either be specific resources or any resource. For example: when the cost is any 4 resources you can pay 4 stone or 1 grain, 1 vine, 1 sap or 1 stone (or any other combination of resources).
5. An Employee can provide a new ability, power or one-time effect.
6. An Employee provides you with one or more Skills. Skills can be needed to build certain Locations.
7. An Employee can have Hire requirements, this can be a combination of Research Level and/or Develop Level.
8. Employee name, has no gameplay effect.

For a detailed explanation of each Employee please refer to the Appendix.

Setup

General Setup

1. Shuffle all the Employee cards to form an Employee deck. Draw one more card than the number of players (f.e. in a 3 player game you draw 4 cards) and place them face-up (Level 1) on the table in reach of all players (the number of cards drawn is the Employee Pool Size). This is the Employee pool.
2. Shuffle all the Location cards to form a Location deck. Draw one more card than the number of players (f.e. in a 3 player game you draw 4 cards) and place them face-up (Level 1) on the table in reach of all players (the number of cards drawn is the Location Pool Size). This is the Location pool.
3. Place the Scoreboard on the table.
4. Place the Round Tracker Token on Round 1 of the scoreboard.

Player Setup

Give each player the following components: Player Board, Turn Phase Token, 3x White Tracking Cubes and 4x Resource Tracking Cubes (yellow, green, orange, grey).

1. Place the Player Board in front of you.
2. Place the Turn Phase Token right of your Player Board with the side showing 5 different action sections face-up. Make sure to rotate the Turn Phase Token so that the Collect/Trade action is on top.
3. Shuffle all the Character Cards, deal two to each player. Players choose one and discard the other. Place the chosen Character Card face-up to the left of your player board, next to the Research Track. Return all left over Character Cards to the box.
4. Find the Character token matching your chosen Character and place it on the 0 space of the scoreboard.
5. Place your Resource Cubes on your resource tracks matching the starting resources on your Character card.
6. Take a Tribe Unite Card matching the Tribe listed on your Character Card. Place this Tribe Unite Card face-up next to your Develop Track.
7. Place a White Tracking Cube above the Research Track.
8. Place a White Tracking Cube above the Development Track.
9. Place a White Tracking Cube on space 5 of the Action Points Track.
10. Give the First Player Token to a random player.

Gameplay (Standard Mode)

Silverwood Grove is played over 10 rounds, with each round players taking a turn starting from the player with the First Player Token and continuing in a clockwise direction. Each turn a player spends their APs to perform actions. Whenever a player runs out of APs, if they don't want to take any more actions, or immediately after they have taken the Unite action (see: Unite), their turn ends.

During a player's turn, for each AP they spend, they need to decide between two options:

• Turn the Turn Phase Token, or
• Perform one of the two available actions.

If you're the First Player there is a third option: discard all cards in the Employee and/or Location pools, refilling them with new cards drawn from the respective decks up to their Employee/Location Pool Sizes. Just as the other two options, this option costs 1 AP. This action can be done once per round.

Turn the Turn Phase Token

The player turns their Turn Phase Token one section to the left or right. Each section contains two actions and is marked with a different color.

Perform one of the two available actions

A player can only perform an action if it's currently in the top section of their Turn Phase Token. If they wish to take other actions they should first use the "Turn the Turn Phase Token" option.

Actions

Collect

Gain 1 Resource of your choice out of the 4 different resources available in the game.

Trade

Pay 1 Resource to gain 2 of another Resource. The resources gained must be of the same type and can't be mixed (f.e. you can't trade 1 stone for 1 grain and 1 vine). If you don't have any resources, you can't take this action.

Build

Choose a Location from the Location Pool that you would like to build. Pay the resources that are listed as the Location Cost (Note: the Build Cost is the same as the Upgrade Cost).

To build a Location you must as well meet the skills, research and/or develop requirements. If you can't pay the Location Cost or don't meet the requirements you can't build this Location. If this is the case for all Locations in the Location Pool, you can't take this action.

Once you've built a Location, place the card (Level 1 side face-up) in front of you. There is no limit to the number of Locations you can build. Some Location cards have an Employee Bonus; if you have the matching Employee (or Hire it later in the game) this ability goes into effect.

Location VPs are scored at the end of the game. The Location Pool is only resupplied at the end of the round.

Upgrade

Choose one of the Locations in front of you that has its Level 1 side showing. Pay the resources that are listed as the Location Cost (Note: the Upgrade Cost is the same as the Build Cost). Flip over the Location to its Level 2 side.

Upgrading a location will unlock a new ability and provide additional VPs at the end of the game.

If you have no Level 1 Locations in front of you or can't pay the Location Cost, then you can't take this action.

Hire

Choose an Employee from the Employee Pool that you would like to Hire. Pay the resources that are listed as the Employee Cost (Note: the Hire Cost is the same as the Promote Cost).

To Hire an Employee you must as well meet the research and/or develop requirements. If you can't pay the Employee Cost or don't meet the requirements you can't hire this Employee.

Once you've hired an Employee, place the card (Level 1 side face-up) in front of you. You can't hire more than 2 employees during a game (but this number can be increased by certain character/location/employee abilities). Once you've hired an Employee there is no way to discard/fire an Employee; it will stay with you for the rest of the game.

Some of your Location Cards may have an Employee Bonus that can go into effect when you Hire a specific Employee.

Employee VPs are scored at the end of the game. The Employee Pool is only resupplied at the end of the round.

Promote

Choose one of the Employees in front of you that has its Level 1 side showing. Pay the resources that are listed as the Employee Cost (Note: the Hire Cost is the same as the Promote Cost). Flip over the Employee to its Level 2 side.

Promoting an Employee will unlock a new ability and provide additional VPs at the end of the game.

If you have no Level 1 Employees in front of you or can't pay the Employee Cost, then you can't take this action.

Research

Pay one 1 grain, 1 vine, 1 sap and 1 stone to increase your Research Level. Move your cube down one level on the Research Track to reflect this increase. You always research in a fixed order, from top to bottom: Instinct, Nature and finally Spirit. (Editor's note: the printed text says "Instinct" here, while the Research Track on the Player Board and the Final Scoring step say "Insight". Both are transcribed as printed; the first Research Level is the same level in both places.)

Each Character comes with 3 unique passive or one-time bonuses as you further your Research Level (see the appendix for more info). When you research the first level you unlock the first bonus; researching again will unlock the second bonus. You will keep the bonuses for the previous Research Levels (in other words, the bonuses stack).

Once you have reached the final Research Level, Spirit, you unlock your Character's unique Talent (see: Talent).

You can't take this action if you can't pay the required resources or if you've already reached the final Research level.

Talent

Use your Character's Talent (see the appendix for more info).

You can't take this action if you haven't reached the final Research Level (Spirit) or don't meet the Talent requirements (for example can't pay the required Resource cost).

Develop

Pay one 1 grain, 1 vine, 1 sap and 1 stone to increase your Develop Level. Move your cube down one level on the Develop Track to reflect this increase. You always research in a fixed order, from top to bottom: Community, Identity and finally Harmony. (Editor's note: the printed text says "research" here where "develop" is meant, and "Pay one 1" is read as one of each resource. The printed restriction "You can' take this action" is read as "You can't take this action".)

Developing the final Develop Level (Harmony) will unlock the Tribe Unite Ability.

You can't take this action if you can't pay the required resources or if you've already reached the final Develop Level.

Unite

Use your Tribe Unite Ability. Depending on your Tribe Unite Card this can be one of the following 3 abilities:

• Daintree Tribe: Expand. Gain Resources equal to the number of Daintree Employees and Locations in front of you. The gained resources can be any mix of resources.
• Flinders Tribe: Prepare. Gain Resources equal to the gap between your current highest and lowest Resource. The gained resources can be any mix of resources.
• Kakadu Tribe: Mistrust. Gain Resources equal to the number of Flinders Employees of all other players. The gained resources can be any mix of resources. (In a 2 or 3 player game, also count the Flinders Employees currently in the Employee Pool.)

Taking the Unite action will forfeit the remainder of your turn. Any remaining APs are lost. It's allowed to use the Unite action as the last action of your turn.

End of the Round

If this is the 10th Round, skip this and proceed to Final Scoring. After all players have taken their turn, perform these End of Round steps:

1. Refill the Employee and Location pools to their initial Pool Sizes by drawing cards from the respective decks.
2. Each player resets their APs on the AP track (normally this is 5, but some abilities will increase this number).
3. Pass the First Player Token to the next player in clockwise order.
4. Advance the Round Tracker Token on the scoreboard one space.

Begin the next round starting with the player now holding the First Player Token.

Final Scoring

After the 10th Round perform final scoring to determine the winner. Follow these Final Scoring steps:

1. Sum the total number of VPs on the Employees in front of you (top-right corner of the cards). Do not flip cards during scoring.
2. Sum the total number of VPs on the Locations in front of you (top-right corner of the cards). Do not flip cards during scoring.
3. Receive VPs for your final Research Level: Insight: 1 VP; Nature: 3 VP; Spirit: 6 VP.
4. Receive VPs for your final Develop Level: Community: 2 VP; Identity: 4 VP; Harmony: 6 VP.
5. Gain 4 VP for each set of Daintree, Flinders and Kakadu symbols. This includes the symbols on Employees, Locations and your Character.
6. Gain 1 VP per 3 Resources left on your Resource Tracks.
7. Some Employees provide extra VPs as described on the card (see: Appendix for more details).
8. Some Locations provide extra VPs as described on the card (see: Appendix for more details).
9. Some Locations provide Employee Bonus that provides extra VPs (see: Appendix for more details).

Gameplay Variants

All variants are based on the Standard Mode.

Family Mode

This Variant is designed for new and younger players.

Player Setup changes

• Step 2 of Player Setup is replaced with: Place the Turn Phase Token right of your Player Board with the side showing 3 different action sections face-up. Make sure to rotate the Turn Phase Token so that the Collect/Trade action is on top.
• Do not deal Character Cards to the Players. Players will play without a Character.
• Do not gain Starting Resources based on their Character. Instead, each player simply starts with 2 grain, 2 vine, 2 sap and 2 stone resources.

Gameplay changes

• There is no Employee cap in the Family Mode; players can Hire as many Employees as they like.
• Research or Develop level requirements for the Build/Upgrade and Hire/Promote actions can be ignored. Play as if you always meet those requirements.
• Locations never provide an Employee Bonus. Simply ignore the Employee bonus on all Location cards.

Family+ Mode

This variant is designed for even younger players and follows the same rules as the Family Mode with these following additional changes.

Gameplay changes

• Skill requirements for the Hire action can be ignored. Play as if you always meet those requirements.
• All resources are interchangeable. For example: when you need to pay 2 Stone you could instead pay with 1 Grain and 1 Sap. Or instead of 2 Stone you could pay 2 Grain.

Family Mode versus Standard

This variant is designed so each player can choose between Family Mode and Standard Mode.

Player Setup Changes

At the start of the game each player decides if they want to play Family or Standard mode. Based on their decision they either follow Family Mode Player Setup or Standard Mode Player Setup.

Gameplay Changes

• Family Mode players start the game with 4 Actions per Round instead of the usual 5. However they can still increase this with certain Employees or Locations.
• Standard Mode players start the game with additional resources (added to their Characters Starting Resources): 1 Grain, 1 Vine, 1 Sap and 1 Stone.

Family Mode+ versus Standard

This variant is designed so each player can choose between Family Mode+ and Standard Mode.

Player Setup Changes

At the start of the game each player decides if they want to play Family+ or Standard mode. Based on their decision they either follow Family Mode+ Player Setup or Standard Mode Player Setup.

Gameplay Changes

• Family Mode+ players start the game with 4 Actions per Round instead of the usual 5. However they can still increase this with certain Employees or Locations.
• Standard Mode players start the game with additional resources (added to their Characters Starting Resources): 1 Grain, 1 Vine, 1 Sap and 1 Stone.
• Standard Mode players start the game with their first level of Develop already completed. So instead of placing the Develop Track Cube above the Develop Track, place it on the first Develop Level (Community).

Optional Modules

Note: all of the optional modules are designed to be played with the standard game mode. Optional modules are exclusive to the Collector's Edition of Silverwood Grove.

Climate Calamity

The Climate Calamity module consists of 18 cards.

Climate Calamity Card

1. Title
2. The effect that is applied this round
3. Descriptive text, no gameplay effect

Setup changes

After completing the General Setup, shuffle the 18 Climate Calamity Cards into a face-down deck and place it next to the Employee and Location decks.

Gameplay changes

At the start of each Round, the First Player turns over a Climate Calamity Card. This card will be in effect for the rest of the round. Climate Calamity also adds a 5th step to the End of the Round phase:

5. Remove the current Climate Calamity Card from the game.

The Hunt

The Hunt module consists of 18 cards.

The Hunt Card

1. Title
2. Objective to achieve
3. VPs earned when objective is achieved

Setup changes

After completing the Player Setup, shuffle the 18 Hunt Cards and deal 2 Hunt Cards to each player. Each player selects one of the Hunt Cards to keep. Players should keep the chosen Hunt Card secret from other players. Return all the discarded and remaining Hunt Cards to the game box.

Gameplay changes

Whenever a player completes their objective as noted on their Hunt Card they can reveal their Hunt Card and gain the VPs as noted on the Hunt Card. Note: some Hunt Cards can only be completed at the end of the game; reveal those during Final Scoring and gain the VPs if the objective is achieved.

Appendix

The official Appendix (Character, Location, Employee and Talent abilities) is not part of this transcription. The revised rulebook directs players to it at https://boardgamegeek.com/filepage/231698/silverwood-grove-official-appendix.