Singapore
Singapore Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 Starting tile
- 6 Land tiles with 6 lots each
- Victory track
- 4 victory point markers (1 for each player)
- 56 Flags (lot markers), 14 markers for each player
- 42 Building tiles (3 eras: I, II, III; each shows its effect, the era when the tile is put into play, and its build cost)
- 8 Colored pawns representing the workers (2 workers for each player)
- 55 Streets
- Raffles tile
- 1 Black hut
- 80 Goods, 20 cubes of 4 types: Tea (green), Opium (yellow), Brick (red), Textiles (blue)
- 26 Silver coins (£1), 22 Gold coins (£5)
- Bag
- 4 Screens
- 16 Black chips and 2 white chips
Setup
Place the starting tile on the table. Place the land tiles adjacent to the starting tile and to each other, so a continuous game board is formed, without any holes. All numbers should face the same direction. No tiles should be placed below or right of the water (blue).
The buildings are sorted into three groups according to the roman numbers on their front. The cards are then shuffled to ensure a good mix. Then the three stacks are put together as one, with the cards face up. The stack with the number 3 tiles is placed at the bottom. Over it goes the number 2 stack and on top, the number 1 tiles. This stack of buildings will be put beside the game board.
Place the goods and the money in a common supply.
Put the black and white chips into the bag.
Each player receives £5, one worker and one set of lot markers. The second worker of each player will be put aside first. This worker will enter the game later.
The victory markers for all players are placed in random order on the number 5 spot of the victory track. The player whose marker is on the bottom of the stack receives the Raffles tile.
Warm Up
This short warm-up precedes the real game: From the stack of buildings, take as many tiles as the number of players and place them in a row on the table. In counter-clockwise direction starting by the player to the right of the player with the Raffles tile, everyone takes one building and puts it on a free lot. Players can only choose lots which are adjacent to one of the starting buildings or to a building already built by another player. The player marks the placed building with his marker and pays the price indicated on the land tile he used. He also connects his building with an adjacent building using a street. When everybody has placed their initial building, the real game starts.
Flow of the Game
The game consists of several rounds. Each round is divided into the following phases:
1 Determine the Raffles player
The Raffles player is determined at the beginning of each round. This is the player whose marker is the last on the victory track. In case of a tie, the player whose marker is at the bottom of the stack is the Raffles player. The Raffles player takes the Raffles tile.
2 Turn up buildings
The Raffles player turns up as many buildings as there are players plus one. If there is already a building from the previous round, he still turns up as many buildings as there are players.
3 Distribution of the lots
Now the Raffles player takes one lot marker from each player (including himself) and distributes them among the free lots. He can only choose lots that are adjacent to an already built lot of a player or adjacent to a starting building. (Lots are either not possible lots, or possible lots; each lot shows its build cost.)
4 Player actions
Starting with the player holding the Raffles tile, the players take their actions in clockwise order. The active player chooses a building and places it on the lot which contains his lot marker. He pays the price indicated on the lot and places the lot marker on the building he erected. Then he connects the new building with an adjacent building using a street.
Special Rule 1: If the player does not have enough money to pay for the lot, he has to go back along the victory point track and receives £2 for each space he moves backwards. He can go as far back as he needs to pay for the lot. If a player has neither money nor victory points he gets the lot for free.
Special Rule 2: A player who builds an illegal (dark) building has to draw a chip from the bag (see "Illegal buildings").
Special Rule 3: The last player can choose to buy the topmost building of the building-stack for £1 instead of choosing one of the remaining two buildings.
After building, a player can move his worker. The player can move his worker up to three steps and use up to three buildings. Putting a new worker on the board (on any building) counts as a step.
The worker can only move using the streets. The player can also erect as many streets during his turn as he wants to. Each street costs £1.
Each building can only be used once by the same player each turn. During a round multiple players can use the same building. If a player uses a building from another player, the owner of the building gets one victory point. If the player uses his own buildings or the neutral starting buildings, no victory points will be awarded. The player can use the building on which he starts his turn.
Example of a turn:
- The blue player starts his turn on the Stone mason and takes two bricks there (1st action).
- Then he moves to the Pawnshop where he can exchange one victory point into £3. He decides to move on to the Architect where he exchanges 3 bricks into £4 (2nd action; red player receives one victory point).
- Blue erects a street (costs £1) and moves again to the Teahouse where he can change any cube into three tea. He decides to change an opium cube (yellow) into three tea cubes (green) (3rd action, yellow player receives one victory point). Blue now has run out of actions and movement steps.
5 End of the round
At the end of this round, one building shall remain unused. The black hut marker is placed on this building. If no one chooses this building in the next round as well, the building will be removed from the game.
If the last player chooses to buy the building from the stack, he decides on which of the two remaining buildings the black hut is placed. The other building will be removed from the game immediately.
Victory Points and Seals
Every time a player receives or loses victory points he adjusts his victory marker on the victory point track accordingly. If the corresponding space is not empty, he puts his marker on top of the markers already there.
Every time a player lands on top of a seal or moves forward across a seal he receives £5. If he moves backwards over a seal he receives nothing and flips his marker to the side with the black dot to show that he already received the money. If he now moves forward over the seal he turns it back on the side with the trader again. In other words, for each seal flip he receives the £5 only once.
The last seal is at number 60. If he exceeds the number 60 on the victory point track he starts again at 0, but he doesn't receive any more money for crossing seals.
Other Rules
Secret: Money and Goods can be kept secret behind the screen. Only in a raid (see "Illegal buildings") the players have to show their opium (yellow).
Starting buildings: The starting buildings are all connected with each other. Also they are considered to be on the same space - you can reach every starting building with a street that connects one of them. However, it still needs a step to move from one starting building to another one.
Buildings: Also see Examples of Buildings in the Appendix. An arrow indicates that the corresponding items (Goods, Money or Victory Points) can be changed into something else. An arrow with two ends means you can change both ways. White cubes stand for any cubes, black cubes for any goods which have to have the same color. Money is indicated as yellow coins, victory points through the red victory points symbol. If there is no arrow on a card the player receives the thing for free, i.e. without having to trade in anything for it.
Illegal (dark) buildings: A player who uses or builds an illegal building has to draw one chip from the bag. Black chips are put in front of the player.
If a white chip is drawn there will be a raid. Every player must show their opium cubes. Whoever has the biggest total number of opium and black chips must pay £1 per chip and cube. If he doesn't have enough money to pay the fine he has to trade in victory points (1 point equals £2). The player who's been raided puts his black chips back into the bag and he must return half (rounded up) of his opium cubes to common supply. In case of a tie all respective players have to pay the fine and discard the black chips and opium cubes.
New agent: Each player can use this building only once. He receives his second worker, which he can put on the board (on any building) using one step. The player can still only move a total of three steps and use a total of three buildings, but he can distribute the steps and actions among his workers as he sees fit. If a player hasn't a step left he places the worker in front of him and puts it on the board in his next turn (using one step).
Courthouse: The player can return up to three black chips to the bag.
End of the Game
The game ends immediately if there are not enough buildings to begin another round. The player with the most victory points wins the game. In case of a tie, the player whose marker stands at the bottom of the pile is the winner.
Appendix: Overview of All the Buildings
These only apply if a player actively uses a building during his turn. Grouped by era (roman numeral on the tile).
Era I
- Architect: Exchange three bricks into £4.
- Office: Exchange one brick and one textile into two same cubes.
- Market: Exchange any cube into two bricks and one textile, or exchange two bricks and one textile into any cube.
- Stone mason: Take 2 bricks.
- Tea transport: Exchange four tea into £8.
- Tea house: Exchange any cube into three tea.
- Weaving manufactory: Take two textiles.
- Textile transport: Exchange 3 textiles into £4.
- Opium syndicate (illegal): Take £2.
- Opium syndicate (illegal): Exchange any four cubes into £6 or exchange £6 into any four cubes.
- Opium smuggling (illegal): Take two opium.
- Opium slum (illegal): Exchange any cube into three opium or exchange three opium into any cube.
- Card house (illegal): Exchange two opium into two bricks, one tea and one textile.
- Black market (illegal): Exchange any two cubes into £4.
Era II
- East India Company building: Exchange 3 same cubes and £5 into 9 victory points.
- Courthouse: Return up to three black chips into the bag.
- Office: Exchange two bricks and two textiles into £10 or exchange £10 into two bricks and two textiles.
- Street kitchen: Exchange £2 into 2 victory points.
- Textile manufactory: Exchange two bricks into four textiles.
- Tea transport: Exchange four tea into £4 and four victory points.
- Brick manufactory: Exchange any cube into 4 bricks.
- Brick manufactory: Take three bricks.
- New agent: Take 2nd worker.
- Raffles' instructions: Move up to five extra steps.
- Harbor: Take one opium and one tea.
- Opium syndicate (illegal): Exchange 3 opium into £8 and 1 brick.
- Opium smuggling (illegal): Take 3 opium.
- Gambling house (illegal): Exchange 1 opium into £4 or exchange £4 into 1 opium.
Era III
- East India Company building: Exchange 3 same cubes and £5 into 12 victory points.
- East India Company building: Exchange any 5 cubes and £5 into 10 victory points.
- Bank: Exchange £5 into 5 victory points.
- Weaving manufactory: Take 3 textiles.
- Tea transport: Exchange 3 tea and £8 into 18 points.
- Raffles' instructions: Place a worker on any building.
- Harbor: Take 1 brick, 1 tea and 1 opium.
- Harbor: Exchange any 2 cubes into £3.
- Harbor: Exchange any 3 cubes and £5 into 9 victory points.
- Opium syndicate (illegal): Take £5.
- Opium syndicate (illegal): Exchange 3 opium and £10 into 21 victory points.
- Black market (illegal): Exchange any 2 same cubes into any 4 cubes.
- Textile trade: Exchange 5 textiles and £10 into 25 victory points.
- Stone mason: Exchange 5 brick and £10 into 25 victory points.
Note: the Pawnshop (exchange one victory point into £3) referenced in the turn example is not listed in this rulebook's appendix.