Tallinn
Tallinn Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
Components of the base game (Spelmateriaal van het basisspel):
- 50 cards, consisting of:
- 6 starting cards with starting factions and a score overview.
- A set of 11 cards per player, consisting of:
- 10 influence cards (numbers 1 to 10). Each influence card has a faction side on the front and a city-wall tower on the back. Each influence card is divided into two halves, and each half shows faction symbols.
- 1 Victory Point (VP) marker card.
- 4 silver coins.
- 4 gold coins.
Note: the influence cards are numbered. Check that each player has a set from 1 to 10.
Setup
- Each player takes a VP marker card and places it in front of them with the 1-15 side visible. Each player places one silver coin on space 4 of the track (= 4 VP).
- Shuffle the starting cards and deal one to each player. Each player places their starting card in front of them as the beginning of their faction row. Unused starting cards go back into the box.
- Place the gold coins within reach, to the side.
- Each player takes a set of influence cards, shuffles them face down, and draws three random cards into their hand.
Round Structure
The game lasts up to 10 rounds. Each round consists of the following phases:
- Simultaneous, secret choice of an influence card.
- Simultaneous playing of the cards just chosen.
- Disputes and building towers.
- Drawing a new influence card.
1. Choosing an Influence Card in Secret
Each player simultaneously and secretly chooses an influence card and chooses which of its two halves they would like to add to their faction row in phase 2.
Influence cards are divided into two halves, only one of which can be activated. Place the card you want to play this round face down and sideways in front of you, so that one half is clearly the chosen side. The right side of the card will become active.
Examples: "You have chosen 2 Merchants." and "You have chosen 1 Knight and 1 Monk."
When all players have chosen both their card and its orientation, the next phase begins.
2. Playing the Chosen Cards
The players now play their chosen influence cards by turning them face up simultaneously and adding them to their faction rows.
Only the right side of the card is used! Slide the card under the rightmost card of the faction row, so that only the chosen right half remains visible.
Note: for convenience, players may change the order of the cards in their faction row so that each faction is grouped together. Take care that the orientation of the cards never changes!
3. Disputes and Building Towers
If a new card added to a faction row shows a coin image, a dispute (an influence check) arises for the faction shown next to the coin.
Example: you cause a dispute among the Merchants. Only Merchant symbols are compared to determine a winner.
Players who played a card without a coin skip this part of the phase.
Count the faction symbols in your own faction row for the faction in the dispute. One by one, compare your total with the total for the same faction of each other player. For each individual opponent, you score 2 points if your total is higher. If the totals are equal, you receive 1 point. Otherwise you receive nothing.
Note: the cards played this round were already added to the faction rows in phase 2 and are therefore counted in a dispute, including the faction symbol on the coin card just played. Other players never score points during your count, even if they have as many or more symbols in the dispute.
Move your coin further along your marker card for each point you score. When your score goes above 15, turn the marker card over.
When your score goes above 30 points, turn the card back to its front side and replace your silver coin with a gold coin from the supply. The gold coin shows that you have 30 more points than the value shown on your card.
When your score goes above 60 points, stack a silver and a gold coin on top of each other on your card to show that you have 60 more points than the total shown.
Note: if a player has resolved an influence check in a dispute, move the coin shown on the card further under the faction row so that the coin symbol is covered. This keeps the faction row tidy.
Resolve an influence check in this way for each player who played a coin card. More than one player may cause a dispute in the same faction. Resolve each dispute individually, and remember that all comparisons are made from the point of view of the player who played the coin card, and that only that player scores points.
Once all disputes have been resolved, each player who caused a dispute may use a card to build a tower for scoring at the end. When building a tower you may choose between two options:
- Option 1: Remove a card already played from your own faction row (never your starting card!). Any card may be chosen, including the card played last in the current round. Turn the card over to its tower side and place it back among your played cards with the tower visible.
- Option 2: Place a card you have in hand face down on its tower side at the back of your faction row. Keep the factions on this card hidden from the other players. In this case you play the rest of the game with one card fewer in hand, so you may run out of cards before the last round.
You may also choose not to use an influence card for a tower. A player can never play a tower card without having used a coin card to cause a dispute!
If more than one player caused an influence check in this round, all of them must decide at the same time whether (or not) they will play a tower card. All involved players keep their index finger ready, and on the signal of the eldest they simultaneously point to the card in their faction row they want to use for the tower construction. Point to the starting card if you prefer to use a card from your hand. Point to an empty spot on the table if you do not want to build a tower.
Variant: the player with the most points must first decide whether to build a tower and which card to use for it. Continue in descending order of score. In case of a tie, the player with the most (already built) towers chooses first. If there is still a tie, the players decide among themselves who goes first.
4. Drawing a New Influence Card
At the end of the round, all players draw one new influence card from their stack. If a player can no longer draw cards, they continue playing with the cards remaining in their hand.
Note: players may not have the same number of cards in hand, since some players may have used cards from their hand to build towers.
End of Game and Final Scoring
The game ends when all players have played all their cards (at most 10 rounds).
For final scoring, each player performs a final dispute for each faction (Knights, Merchants and Monks), and then values their towers.
Final dispute for the Merchants: first count the number of Merchants in your own faction row and compare this with the number of Merchants of each other player. For each opponent whose number is lower than yours, you score 4 points. If the numbers are equal, you score 2 points.
Note: if in these final disputes your faction total is at least 5 higher than an opponent's, that opponent must pay you one victory point. The opponent subtracts 1 point from their score, and you score one additional point for that influence check.
Theoretically a player could end with a negative total, but this is highly exceptional.
Each player then does the same for their Knights and their Monks.
Tower valuation: turn all influence cards used to build towers face up. Each player counts all faction symbols on their tower cards (both halves) to determine which faction is most present. Each player uses only this one faction in the tower valuation, which may differ from player to player.
Compare the total of your highest faction with the highest faction of each other player. For each player whose total is lower than yours, you score 6 points. If the totals are equal, you score 3 points.
Note: players do not receive points for a tie in a dispute if they do not have the actual faction (Knights, Merchants or Monks), even when compared with an opponent who also has none. The same applies to the tower valuation for players who did not build any towers.
Winning the game: the player with the most points wins. In case of a tie, the player with the most faction symbols in total (Knights + Merchants + Monks) on their tower cards wins. If there is still a tie, the players share the victory.
Final Score Example
During the game, Malte triggered 4 influence checks and scored 8 points. Heike triggered influence checks (2 Knights, 1 Monk and 1 Merchant) for a total score of 5 points.
Malte has 9 Merchants, 3 Knights and 6 Monks in his faction row. His only tower card contains 1 Knight, 1 Merchant and 4 Monks.
Heike's faction row shows 3 Merchants, 7 Knights and 6 Monks. She also built 2 towers with a total of 5 Knights, 4 Merchants and 1 Monk.
Malte wins the last Merchant dispute and scores 4 points. In addition, Heike must give him one extra point from her own score, because Malte has at least 5 more Merchants than Heike. The last Knight dispute is won by Heike for 4 points. The last Monk dispute is a tie, which gives both of them 2 points. Current standing: Malte 15, Heike 10.
In the tower valuation, Malte compares his 4 Monks on his tower card with the 5 Knights on Heike's tower cards. Heike wins this check and scores an additional 6 points.
Heike wins the game with a score of 16 (against 15).
Expansion: The Imperial Envoy (De Keizerlijke Gezant)
Components
- 4 influence cards "Imperial Envoy" (1 per player).
Setup
Each player shuffles their Imperial Envoy card into their stack of influence cards. The game can now last up to 11 rounds.
Draw 3 random cards into your hand. You may now choose to exchange a number of cards from your hand, once. Pay one VP per card, place these cards back under your stack in an order of your choice, and take the same number of cards back from your stack.
Changes to the Round
- Adding the half of the card with 3 ordinary faction symbols to the faction row counts as usual, as 1 Monk, 1 Knight and 1 Merchant.
- Adding the other half of the card, with the 2 envoy symbols (purple), allows a player to trigger a dispute for any faction. The 2 envoy symbols count as an additional symbol of the chosen faction. The 2 symbols count only in the dispute that the player triggered by playing the Imperial Envoy, and not in disputes triggered by other players.
- The envoy symbols are otherwise ignored until final scoring.
Final Scoring
- If the envoy symbols are in your faction row, add the 2 symbols directly to your smallest faction total in your row. If there is a tie between factions, choose simultaneously with the other players (who also have a tie) which faction you assign the envoy symbols to.
- If the Imperial Envoy card was used to build a tower, add the 2 symbols to the smallest faction total of the tower factions after you have turned the tower cards face up.
Expansion: The Chronicles (De Kronieken)
Components
- 6 "Chronicle" cards (Kroniek). Each card is marked with a number, and the cards are used in two levels: level I and level II.
Setup
Shuffle the 6 Chronicle cards and place two random cards face up next to each other, one as card I (left) and one as card II (right). Take a third card and place it face down on top of the two face-up cards, so that one half of both face-up cards is covered (card III).
Divide your cards into two stacks: one with 4 cards and another with the remaining cards.
Note: the printed rule does not say explicitly which cards are divided into the two stacks ("Verdeel je kaarten"). The rule is transcribed as printed.
When, in phase 4 (drawing a new influence card), your first stack runs out, the scoring of the left Chronicle card (level I) begins. When the second stack runs out, the scoring of the right Chronicle card (level II) begins.
Interim Scoring
There are two types of Chronicle scoring, depending on the card:
a) Score points if your influence cards cover at least the indicated number of faction symbols on the Chronicle card. The number of points to score is either once or twice the number of players, depending on the Chronicle card and the total. (One coin on the card means once the number of players; two coins mean twice the number of players.)
b) You may remove influence cards from your faction row with at least as many symbols as indicated on the Chronicle card, in order to score points. The number of points is either once or twice the number of players, depending on the Chronicle card. Return removed cards to the box.