Trailblazer: The Arizona Trail Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Setup
• Introduction
  • Journey's Goal
• Gameplay Overview
• Getting Started
  • Terrain Trackers
  • Player Boards
  • Superstition Gold and Arizona Grit
• Planning
  • Gateway Resources
  • Crossed Arrows
• Gila Monster (hee·luh)
• Saguaro (suh·waa·row)
• Journey
  • Travel
  • Poison
• Terrain Track
• Lost Dutchman
• Passages
• Flora & Fauna
  • Flora Cards
  • Fauna Cards
  • Flora and Fauna Polyominoes
• Arizona Mural
• Elevation Ladder
  • Weather Cards
  • Adventure Marker
• Spirit of the Desert
• Crossed Arrows
• Gateway Resources
• State 48 Cards
• RECOVERY
  • Determine Turn Order
  • Retrieve Adventure Markers
  • Replace Gila Monster and Saguaro
  • Refresh Cards and Polyominoes
  • End of JOURNEY/End of GAME
• Final Scoring
• Glossary (Pronunciation Guide)
• Icon Reference Guide
• Credits

Components

• 1 Game Board
• 72 Passage Cards
• 32 Fauna Cards
• 32 Flora Cards
• 29 Gateway Cards
• 25 Weather Event Cards
• 16 Spirit of the Desert Cards
• 12 State 48 Cards
• 32 Flora Polyominoes
• 32 Fauna Polyominoes
• 12 Poison Discs
• 4 Saguaro Blossoms
• 4 Terrain Markers
• 24 Card Cubes
• 6 Lost Dutchman
• 1 Rulebook
• 4 Arizona Trail Kits
  • 1 Player Board
  • 1 Trail Marker
  • 4 Adventure Markers
  • 10 Trackers
  • 1 Superstition Gold Marker
  • 1 Arizona Grit Marker
  • 3 Currency Cubes
  • 3 Resource Hexes
  • 1 Player Aid Card

Spirit of the Desert Characters:

• Jackalope
• Gila Monster
• Roadrunner
• Javelina
• Desert Tortoise
• Saguaro

Setup

1. Place the Game Board in the center of your playing area.
2. Separately shuffle each of the 4 Passage Card decks then place them face down near the Game Board. Turn over the top 4 cards of the first deck (Gold) and place them face-up on the 4 Passage Card Locations.
3. Shuffle the Flora Cards then place them face-down near the Game Board. Turn over the top 4 cards and place them face-up on the 4 Flora card Locations.
4. Repeat Step 3 for the Fauna Cards.
5. Shuffle or Mix the Flora Polyominoes by size (2, 3, 4, & 5) then place 2 of each size on the corresponding spaces of the Game Board. Stack the remaining Flora Polyominoes to the side of the Game Board near their respective sizes.
6. Repeat Step 5 for the Fauna Polyominoes.
7. Shuffle all of the State 48 Cards then turn over cards one at a time, place the first to appear of each category (1st, 4th, 8th) on the matching location on the Game Board.
8. Shuffle the Gateway Cards then place the deck in it's matching location on the Game Board. Turn over the top Card and place it face-up next to the deck.
9. Place all of the 24 Fauna Cubes and 6 Lost Dutchmen in a pile near the Game Board.
10. Shuffle the Weather Cards and place them face-down near the Game Board.
11. Shuffle the 12 Poison Tokens and place them face down near the Game Board.
12. Shuffle the Saguaro Blossoms and place them face up (numbers down) with the 4 Terrain Markers on the Game Board near the Terrain Track.
13. Place the Gila Monster and the Saguaro on their appropriate locations on the Game Board.
14. Place the Jackalope, Roadrunner, Javelina and Desert Tortoise along with their corresponding cards (4 each) in separate spaces near the Game Board.
15. Each Player takes a Player Board and chooses a Player color with all color matching pieces and all components needed to complete their Trail Kit.
    1. Place 1 Adventure Marker in the pile of Fauna Cubes and Lost Dutchmen (#9).
    2. Place your Trail Marker and 3 remaining Adventure Markers near your Player Board.
    3. Place your Superstition Gold Marker on the '0' space of the scoring track and your Arizona Grit Marker nearby.
    4. Place your 3 Currency Cubes and 3 Resource Hexes on the first space to the right of the '0' space on their appropriate Tracks.
    5. Place 4 of your Trackers on the Terrain Track, 1 on space 1 of each Track.
    6. Place 1 Tracker on the starting space of the Elevation Ladder and 1 on the middle Action space of the Crossed Arrows.
    7. Place the remaining 4 Trackers near your Player Board.

Introduction

Trailblazer: the Arizona Trail takes place over the course of 8 Weeks/Rounds that represent roughly 100 miles of actual trail distance per Week. Players can choose to travel by Backpacking, Running, Mountain Biking or Horseback. Through the 3 Phases of each Week, players will acquire and manage their limited Currency and Resources, explore amazing natural sites, observe and interact with the diverse array of Flora and Fauna and most importantly create a personal Arizona Mural displaying memories of their journey.

Journey's Goal

Trailblazer: the Arizona Trail concludes for all Players at the completion of Week 8 when all arrive at the end of the Trail in Utah. Your goal is to acquire Superstition Gold and Arizona Grit along the way by managing your Currency and Resources most efficiently allowing you the best possible experiences of Exploration and Observation while creating your personal Mural of Arizona. That Traveler who best accomplishes this challenge will be declared... TRAILBLAZER.

Gameplay Overview

Planning:

• Gateway Resources
• Crossed Arrows
• Gila Monster
• Saguaro

Journey:

• Travel
• Passages
• Flora and Fauna
• Crossed Arrows
• Gateways

Recovery:

• Determine Turn Order
• Retrieve Adventure Markers
• Replace Gila Monster and Saguaro
• Refresh all Cards and Polyominoes

Actions taken during the Journey phase of each Week may trigger additional sub-actions which could include one or more of the following: Terrain Track or Elevation Ladder advance(s), Spirit of the Desert, State 48, AZ Stars, Currency or Resource usage or acquisition, Superstition Gold and/or Arizona Grit additions, Mural building, Lost Dutchmen, Saguaro Blossom or Poison.

Note: The terms Player(s) and Traveler(s) will be used interchangeably throughout the Rulebook as well as the terms Week and Round. Arizona may be abbreviated as "AZ" at times :)

Getting Started

The Player who has most recently seen a Jackalope will take the opening Action for the first Week and places their Trail Marker on the topmost position of the beginning section of the Arizona Trail.

After determining the start Player play moves clockwise with each Player placing their Trail Marker in the appropriate position of the first Trail section on the Game Board. All Actions are taken in Turn Order for the entire game.

Terrain Trackers

Refer now to the Saguaro Blossoms and Terrain Markers placed on the Game Board during Setup #12. Turn over a Blossom and place a Marker on the Mountain Track space of the number revealed.

Continue turning over the remaining Saguaro Blossoms and placing a Terrain Marker on each of the Terrain spaces revealed in order- Plateau, Desert then Canyon. When completed place the Blossoms face-up near the Game Board. These will be used later as bonus AZ Mural pieces. (see: Fauna pg 10).

The Terrain Markers will allow Players to obtain Lost Dutchmen as temporary Adventure Markers when reached by their Terrain Trackers. (see: Lost Dutchman pg 9)

Player Boards

This is where you will build your Arizona Mural (a) depicting the Flora and Fauna observed on your journey along the Arizona Trail. You will also keep track of your Currency (b) and Resources (c) here. A variety of instant bonuses can also be triggered along the way (d, e, f).

• a. Place acquired polyomino pieces here triggering instant bonuses along the way.
• b. Track your Currency here (Turquoise, Copper and Silver) with the color matching cubes. Copper are worth 2 Turquoise each and Silver are worth 3 each.
• c. Track your Resources here (Supplies, Health and Water) with the color matching hexes.
• d. Place a Tracker here to claim a completed polyomino goal and receive Superstition Gold.
• e. Place a Tracker here to claim a bonus based on the goal accomplished.
• f. Place a Tracker here to claim 1 of these goals accomplished and receive 3, 5 or 7 AZ Grit. Only one of these may be claimed. Your Resource and Currency trackers must ALL be at or above the bonus to be claimed.

Superstition Gold and Arizona Grit

The Player declared Trailblazer (Winner) at the end of the game will be that Traveler who has the most Superstition Gold after subtracting their accumulated Arizona Grit. Gold and Grit can be acquired in several ways throughout your Journey. Each time Gold is received simply move your Superstition Gold Marker clockwise the number of Gold spaces indicated. Each time Grit is received move your Arizona Grit Marker counter-clockwise the number of Grit spaces indicated.

It is important to note that Grit scoring is worth 2 spaces per unit down the left side of the Game Board, 3 spaces per across the bottom and 4 spaces per along the right side. If a Player continues to score Grit after that, they move only 1 space per across the top of the Game Board. It is possible to end your Journey with a negative score.

Planning

With a journey this long, this diverse and this challenging good and solid planning is going to be essential. Therefore, at the beginning of each Week all Travelers will need to stock up on necessities such as Supplies and Water and regain some Health. A fresh influx of Currency might be nice as well. But, it would be a good idea to keep your eyes open for the Gila Monster and be aware of the Saguaro's location...

Gateway Resources

The Arizona Trail Association has designated 29 locations along the actual AZ Trail as Gateway Communities, each of which is represented in the Gateway Cards deck. To start each week ALL Travelers receive the Resources shown on the face-up Gateway card. This is tracked by moving the appropriate hex(es) on your Player Board.

That card is then placed at the bottom of the deck and the next card from the top of the Gateway deck is now placed face-up in it's place. This allows Players to plan ahead for the next week because they can now see what Resources will be available to start the following Week.

Also, note the Action space to the right of the displayed Gateway card. This allows for 1 Player to access those Resources during the current Week as well. (see: Gateway pg 17)

Crossed Arrows

At the start of the Game, in turn order, Players place their Crossed Arrows Tracker on any space of the 12 available locations amongst the 3 sets of Arrows and receive the Currency, Resources, Terrain Advance, Superstition Gold or Arizona Grit indicated.

A Player may go to a space already occupied by another Player or Players. If they do so any Player already at that location receives 1 Turquoise.

During Weeks 2-8 Players MUST move their Tracker in turn order according to the following rules:

1. You can remain in the same set of Crossed Arrows and move to the left or right space of your current location.
2. You can move to a different set of Crossed Arrows but MUST land in the same space as the location they are leaving.
3. You can NEVER move through the center of the set you are currently in.

Apache Trout: Although not actually found along the AZT, this State Fish is included as a nod to David Payne (USFS Ranger d.1996) who reintroduced the native species to the Black River.

Gila Monster (hee·luh)

The dreaded and seldom seen Gila Monster lays hold of it's victim and does not let go. Much the same happens here in the Arizona Trail. Here's how it works...

The Player with the least amount of Superstition Gold now places the Gila Monster on 1 of 5 locations: the Flora polyominos, the Flora cards, the Passage cards, the Fauna cards or the Fauna polyominos.

Place the Monster directly on top of a specific card or polyomino stack. The effect of this action is that during the current Week NO Player may acquire the covered card or polyomino. The other Flora, Fauna or Passages cards or polyominos in the covered grouping can be acquired, but any Player doing so must pay 1 Health for the privilege in addition to whatever other requirements are necessary.

If there is a tie for lowest Superstition Gold then determine which Player is lowest on the AZ Grit track. If still tied then whoever is last in turn order (including at start of game) will place the Gila Monster.

Saguaro (suh·waa·row)

Arizona is home to the unique cactus known as the Saguaro. To honor this stately giant the holder of the Saguaro will receive bonus Superstition Gold for the week held.

To determine who takes possession of the Saguaro look at the Elevation Ladder to see which Player's Tracker is in the lowest position. If there is a tie determine who is lowest on the AZ Grit track. If still tied then whoever is last in turn order takes possession of the Saguaro for that Week. For the first Week no Player will hold the Saguaro.

The holder of the Saguaro gains Superstition Gold if at any time during the Week ANY Player (including the holder) acquires a Flora or Fauna card with an AZ Star displayed on it by immediately receiving and scoring 1 Superstition Gold.

Note: It is possible that the same Player may place the Gila Monster and have possession of the Saguaro in the same week.

Saguaro: Native predominantly to the Sonoran Desert in Arizona, host to the State Flower the Saguaro Blossom and a keystone home, these giants can grow to over 40' tall and have a lifespan often exceeding 150 years.

Journey

Whether you're on foot, riding a mountain bike or going horseback it's a really long way to travel on the 800 mile Arizona Trail that runs from the border with Mexico in the south to the border with Utah in the north. So let's get you all started!

Travel

Movement on the Arizona Trail is broken into 8 segments which equates to about 100 miles each and 8 Weeks represented in game play by 8 Rounds. After determining turn order for the start of the game the following 7 Rounds will be decided by Player choice. Each Player is required to use one of their Adventure Markers each Week to claim a spot in the Turn Order for the following Round. Regardless of the number of Players in your game all 4 action spaces of the Turn Order area are available. Each of the Action Spaces requires a different set of Resources to select. To take this action place 1 of your Adventure Markers on the space of your choice then 'pay' the required Resources posted for that space. Turn order for the next Week will be taken care of during the Recovery phase after all Turns have been taken. (see: Recovery pg 18).

Note: Players MUST use an Adventure Marker to choose their turn order for the following Week. You can NOT use the Jackalope or a Lost Dutchman.

Poison

There may be a situation arise where you are unable to pay the required Resources. When this occurs you must take 1 Poison token for each Resource you are unable to pay. You will then immediately lose 1-3 Superstition Gold as indicated on the face of the Poison token. But that's not all! These dangerous Desert dwellers depicted on the Poison tokens are the gift that keep on giving. Keep them near your Player Board because if you can't get rid of them by the end of the Trail you're going to lose even more precious Gold. (see: Final Scoring pg 19).

Note: If you have the required Resources you MUST pay. You can NOT take Poison on purpose.

Arizona Trail Association: Since 1994 the ATA has trained and coordinated tens of thousands of volunteers to help build and maintain the AZ Trail. Volunteers are the core of the organization and are invited for trail work events, public outreach, numerous special events and many other exciting opportunities. The ATA has numerous Outreach Programs to encourage engagement including Youth Programs, Vets and their incredible development of Gateway Communities. Mission: to protect, maintain, enhance, promote and sustain the Arizona Trail as a unique encounter with the natural environment.

Terrain Track

Now is a good time to discuss the Terrain Tracks. We've broken down the diverse Arizona landscape along the Trail into 4 categories: Mountain, Plateau, Desert and Canyon. All Players begin their journey with an Adventure Marker on space #1 of each Track. (see: Setup pg 3)

All Passage, Flora and Fauna cards have a Terrain icon depicted near the bottom right hand corner. There are also Terrain icons on the Arizona Mural on your Player Board as well as this symbol on the Elevation Ladder.

Whenever you take an Action whereby you acquire a Flora or Fauna card or a Passage card, first locate the indicated Terrain icon. This will entitle you to advance your corresponding Terrain Tracker 1 space. You are also entitled to whatever bonus your Tracker arrives at. The Mountain track will earn you more Currency and the Plateau track, Resources. The Desert track gets you valuable AZ Grit and the Canyon track is pure Superstition Gold. It's okay if more than 1 Player's Tracker is located on any given space. But try to reach space #12 of at least 1 of the Tracks as there are LARGE bonuses there and only 1 Player can claim it!

Lost Dutchman

Remember those Lost Dutchman Trackers that you placed along the Terrain Tracks during Setup? At any time when 1 of your Terrain Trackers arrives at a space where a Lost Dutchman Tracker is located you can grab an actual Lost Dutchman from the pool near the Game Board and place him by your Player Board. You now have an extra Adventure Marker to be used during the current Week only. So use him or lose him!

The legendary Lost Dutchman of the Superstition Mountains played by his own rules and then disappeared. Same is true in the Arizona Trail. If you use him to take an action to acquire a Flora or Fauna card or polyomino, or a Passage card he is going to occupy 1 available action space.

If you use him to acquire Gateway Resources or at any of the 3 Crossed Arrows action spaces he does NOT block others from taking that action that is normally available to only 1 Player. Likewise, your Lost Dutchman can go to these action spaces even if another Player's Adventure Marker is already there or if there is already another Lost Dutchman there.

One restriction: You can NOT use a Lost Dutchman to choose a Turn Order position action so plan accordingly.

Note: Say Terrain Track 3 times as fast as you can. :)

Legend of the Lost Dutchman's Mine: Jacob Waltz (who was actually German) ventured out to Arizona in the 1860s to seek his fortune in the Superstition Mountains by looking for Gold. Well he 'found' lots of it! Enough to eventually buy a farm near Phoenix. When Jacob passed away he left a scribbled map to the location of his 'mine' but nobody has been able to find it since then. Thus adding to the Legend of the Lost Dutchman's Mine.

Passages

The Arizona Trail Association has designated 43 sections of the 800 mile long Arizona Trail as Passages. We've chosen 24 of them to be depicted here by the amazing work of award-winning artist Andrew Bosley. There are 72 Passage cards available, 3 for each Passage with scaled costs and rewards for each.

To acquire a Passage card place an Adventure Marker on an available action space. There are 3 spaces in a 2 Player game, 4 in a 3 Player game and 5 in a 4 Player game.

To qualify for acquisition of a Passage card you must first meet the Terrain requirements listed in the bottom left corner of the card. Your Terrain Tracker must be at or above the required levels. You do NOT move your Terrain Tracker. Then pay the required Resources indicated by adjusting levels on your Player Board.

Each Passage card shows, from top to bottom: the Terrain Track Level Requirement, the Resource Payment Required, the Location Name, and the AZ Grit, Currency, Superstition Gold, and Terrain Track Rewards.

For example, on the Terrain Tracks, both the Peach and Green player's trackers meet the Huachuca Mountains Passage Card requirements of Mountain level 3, and Plateau level 2. However, the Blue player has not reached a high enough Mountain level to acquire this card.

Now the fun part! Receive any AZ Grit if shown by moving your AZ Grit Marker the indicated number of AZ Grit spaces. Add any Currency displayed by adjusting the corresponding level on your Player Board. Then advance your Superstition Gold Marker the number of spaces shown. Finally, advance your Terrain Tracker 1 space along the Terrain Track indicated on the Passage card and immediately receive any rewards arrived at on that Track.

After a Passage card is taken, that space is immediately refilled with another card from the deck currently in use so that there are always 4 available to choose from.

San Francisco Peaks: In 1629 Spanish friars founded a mission at a Hopi village and named it and the peaks in honor of St Francis of Assisi. The six highest peaks in Arizona are contained in the range with Humphreys Peak at 12,637' being highest. The Peaks are the home of the only alpine tundra in Arizona and also the SF Peaks groundsel, a rare species of flower in the aster family. The Peaks have significant religious importance to 13 Native American Tribes, forming the sacred mountain of the west called by the Navajo, Dook'o'oosliid.

You can also gain bonuses for acquiring 4 of the same type of Terrain on a set of Passage cards or for 4 different Terrain types (1 of each type) as indicated on your Player Board beneath the Arizona Mural. To claim this bonus place one of your 4 remaining Trackers on the appropriate bonus. 4 of the same type will net you 3 Turquoise and 4 different will get you 2 valuable Supplies. It is possible to claim both bonuses if you qualify and have available Trackers, but you cannot use the same card for each set. You would need 8 total cards.

To start everyone's journey along the AZ Trail the first of the 4 Passage card decks was shuffled and 4 cards were placed face-up on the Game Board during Setup. As you can see on the Trail section running up the center of the Game Board there is a Passage card deck icon every 2 Weeks. This indicates which deck of Passage cards that you should now change to and will take place during the Recovery Phase at the end of the 2nd, 4th, and 6th weeks. Remove the 4 face-up cards currently on the Game Board and the remaining cards from the same deck. They will no longer be used and may be returned to the box. Shuffle the next deck to be used then draw and place 4 new cards from this deck to be placed face-up on the Passages card area of the Game Board.

The Passages cards for each 2 Weeks represent the actual locations that would be seen when traveling along these sections of the AZ Trail. Also note that on the AZ Trail portion of the Game Board each Week is color-coded to a Terrain type which indicates the predominant Terrain type represented in that section amongst the Passage cards. Also be aware that with each subsequent deck of Passage cards the required Terrain levels necessary to acquire will increase.

Note: When you get to the 4th Passage card deck this includes the Grand Canyon represented with 9 cards. Each contains 1-3 AZ Grit making for a lot of scoring opportunities so plan ahead...

Flora & Fauna

Now it's time to discover and observe the amazing variety of plant and animal life found in Arizona along the AZT.

There are 4 choices each of Flora and Fauna cards as well as 8 polyominos each at the beginning of every week.

In a 2 Player game there are 2 Action spaces available in each row of choices and in a 3 or 4 Player game there are 3 choices creating a total of 8-12 for both Flora and Fauna depending on your number of Players.

Each Action space gives you the choice of either a Flora or Fauna card or polyomino in that row. The cost is listed above the Action spaces in terms of Turquoise (TQ).

Each Copper is worth 2 TQ and each Silver is worth 3 Turquoise as shown on the Player Boards. Therefore, if for example you choose to take a size 4 polyomino which cost is 3 Turquoise, you could pay for it by moving your Turquoise Currency Tracker back 3 spaces or... 1 space and 1 space of Copper which would total 3 TQ. Alternatively, you could pay with just 1 Silver.

In any transaction requiring the payment of Currency you may over-pay but you never receive change. In other words, if in the previous example you only had 4 Copper and no TQ or Silver, you could acquire the size 4 polyomino but receive no change meaning you would be paying the equivalent of 4 TQ.

As you can see in the example any size 2 poly or card in the top-most position will cost 1 Turquoise, a size 3 poly or card in the 2nd position would cost 2 TQ, a size 4 poly or card in the 3rd position costs 3 TQ and a size 5 poly or card in the 4th position costs 4 TQ. Each Player may only place 1 Adventure Marker per Round at each of the 8 sets of Flora and Fauna action spaces. But don't forget, a Lost Dutchman breaks this rule and as you will see soon, so does the Jackalope!

Flora Cards

After paying the cost to acquire a Flora card you now gain the following rewards: the Resources pictured, a Superstition Gold gain and then an advance along the Terrain Track depicted, which may in turn trigger more rewards or bonuses gained. Display your Flora cards near your Player Board so that the Terrain icons are showing. Each card shows the Name, the Rewards, and a Terrain Track Bonus.

Fauna Cards

After paying the cost to acquire a Fauna card first advance your Terrain Tracker along the Track depicted on the card (which may trigger other rewards gained immediately) then load this card with the number of Card Cubes shown as spaces on the card. This tells you how many times you can take the action or receive the effect described on the card. Each Fauna card shows Card Cube Slots and its Fauna Card Effect.

Note: Any cube(s) left on a Fauna card will be worth 1 Superstition Gold at the end of the journey.

When taking an action or receiving a benefit based on a Fauna card remove 1 of the Cubes from the card to indicate it's use and return it to the pool near the Game Board. Any actions or benefits are available for immediate use on any following actions. You can use any number of abilities from Fauna cards on the same turn just not from the same card more than once.

Very important to note that in Final Scoring you can gain much Superstition Gold for having sets of different Terrain types on your combined Flora and Fauna cards. (see: Final Scoring pg 19)

Flora and Fauna cards are NOT refreshed until the end of each Week during the Recovery phase.

On the upper right corner of several of the Flora and Fauna cards there are the following icons:

Poison: If when acquiring a Flora or Fauna card that has the Poison Delete icon you can immediately return any 1 Poison token in your possession to the pool of Tokens near the Game Board. If you haven't any Poison tokens simply disregard. You may not save the card or it's action for later use.

Saguaro Blossom: If when acquiring a Flora or Fauna card that has a Saguaro Blossom on it, you may take 1 of the 4 from the pool near the Game Board and place it on your Arizona Mural following all rules that apply to the AZ Mural and polyomino placement, which rules are coming up soon. If you can't place it or don't want to or there aren't any left to take simply disregard.

Arizona Stars: If when acquiring a Flora or a Fauna card that has an AZ Star first make sure that the Player currently in possession of the Saguaro receives 1 Superstition Gold scored immediately regardless of who acquires the card. At the end of the Game the number of Flora and Fauna cards that you hold that have AZ Stars on them will give you some extra Superstition Gold making them quite valuable.

Flora and Fauna Polyominoes

Now we arrive at what might be considered the heart of your journey along the Arizona Trail and of the game itself - acquiring and placing of Flora and Fauna Polyominoes and the creation of your personal Arizona Mural on your Player Board. This will cause a cascade of actions on most turns and is the only way to move up the Elevation Ladder and get to the Jackalope and his friends - the Roadrunner, Javelina and Desert Tortoise.

Arizona Mural

Whenever you acquire a polyomino piece you will place it on the Arizona Mural section of your Player Board. The first piece that you place must cover the AZ State Flag. All other pieces placed afterwards must join any other previously placed poly orthogonally and never touching only diagonally. All polyominoes MUST be placed with the color bar on each towards the bottom of your Player Board. We can't have any upside down or sideways Flora or Fauna :)

Any icon that you cover with a polyomino piece will earn you that reward immediately. Rewards will be either a Terrain advance, some Currency or Resources, Superstition Gold or Arizona Grit. At times you may cover 2 or even 3 icons gaining them all at once!

It is extremely important to cover as many of the 36 spaces on your AZ Mural as possible because at the end of the game you will lose 1 Superstition Gold for every uncovered space.

But you can also score some bonus Gold for filling every space. If you are able to complete this amazing feat place 1 of your remaining Trackers in the space beneath your Mural to claim 5 Superstition Gold!

Bonus Superstition Gold can also be scored by having specific amounts or combinations of sized polyomino pieces as pictured on the left side of your Player Board. To claim the bonus after meeting the requirements place 1 of your available Trackers in the appropriate space and add to your Superstition Gold immediately.

Three size-5 polys placed will get you 3 Superstition Gold (see example above), four size-4 polys is worth 4 Gold, five size-3 polys pays 5 Gold and six size-2 polys nets 6 Superstition Gold. To earn 8 Gold you must have 1 of each size polyomino of both Flora and Fauna, meaning 8 total pieces.

Elevation Ladder

Anytime that you place any polyomino on your Arizona Mural you are entitled to advance your Elevation Tracker up 1 rung (level) of the Elevation Ladder. As you move up the Ladder you will trigger different bonuses and additional actions.

In addition to your entitled advance you may boost that up to 2 more advances by paying the added cost in Currency shown to the side of the Ladder. At times your 2nd boosted advance may cost more than the 1st. The cost for each added boost will increase as you move up the Ladder. Each paid for advance is a separate transaction and must be paid for and resolved 1 at a time. For example, after placing your very 1st polyomino you move your Tracker to the 1st rung of the Ladder. Now you want to boost that 2 times so that you can gain the Terrain advance on level 3. You must pay for the 1st added advance with 1 Turquoise and the 2nd boosted advance with 2 TQ (or 1 Copper which equals 2 TQ). You could NOT pay for both at once with 1 Silver (which equals 3 TQ). The same rule applies here as with acquiring a Flora or Fauna card or polyomino in that you can always over pay but do NOT receive any change.

Players can score 1 AZ Grit at level 9 and 2 Grit at level 18. If you are fortunate enough to make it to the top of the Ladder gain 3 AZ Grit if you are first to arrive. 2nd Player to arrive claims 2 Grit and 3rd to arrive claims 1 Grit.

You can also gain Terrain advances as indicated by these icons when you arrive at their levels. You may choose any Terrain Track advance desired and in some cases 2 or 3 advances which can be all the same Terrain or mixed however you'd like amongst 2 or even 3 different Tracks. Any bonus that you arrive at is taken immediately and in some cases when receiving 2 or 3 advances you may trigger as many as 2 or 3 bonuses which must be taken in order and resolved 1 at a time.

Weather Cards

When your Tracker arrives at a rung with the Weather Card icon draw 2 Weather cards from the top of the deck, read them out loud to the other Player(s) and choose 1 to play following the directions on the card based on number of Players in your game. Then place those 2 cards at the bottom of the deck.

Adventure Marker

When your Tracker arrives at this level (#15) you are entitled to the Adventure Marker that you placed in the pool during Setup. You now have a 4th (extra) Marker with which to take an action each Week for the remainder of your Journey.

Legend of the Jackalope: Rumored to be extinct by some, the Jackalope is a cross between a species of killer rabbit and the now extinct pygmy deer. One of the rarest animals in the world, sightings are extremely rare. They are light brown in color, weigh 3 to 5 pounds and move at speeds of up to 90 miles per hour.

The Jackalope was first spotted by John Colter after he had left the Lewis and Clark expedition on its return. His sighting was near what has become Yellowstone National Park. Wyoming has the highest population of Jackalope with the town of Douglas as the "Jackalope Capital of the World".

They possess the amazing ability to mimic human sounds and when chased will use these sounds to avoid capture. One devious way to catch this elusive speedster is to entice it with whiskey, their beverage of choice.

The Jackalope has European cousins in Germany where they are known as Wolpertinger and in Sweden where they are called the Skvader.

Spirit of the Desert

Introducing the stars of the show... the Jackalope, Roadrunner, Javelina and Desert Tortoise. When your Elevation Tracker reaches one of these 3 levels on the Elevation Ladder you are entitled to select one of the 4 Characters if available to aid you in your journey along the AZ Trail. When selected place the Character next to your Player Board along with the corresponding Character card. Then load it with the number of Card Cubes indicated by the amount of Cube spaces on the card. This tells you how many times you can use that Character's ability. Each time you do put into use an ability remove 1 of the Cubes and return it to the pool.

Once all Cubes have been removed from the Character card, which indicates that all available abilities have been used, turn the Character card over. This shows that the abilities are completed and also that you can not select this Character again as you can only obtain each Character once per game. Then return the Character to the area next to the Game Board making it immediately available for acquisition by another Player.

The Jackalope's ability is a free action that can be used only once per Round whereas the other Characters' abilities can be used 3 times each but only once per turn. In their case you can use their abilities in any order. Choose between the reward on the left OR right of the Cube, but NOT both.

Note: An acquired Character is available for immediate use and you can only possess 1 Spirit of the Desert Character at a time.

The legendary Jackalope is all powerful and breaks ALL rules but one. "Jack" can go anywhere he wants regardless of who is already there. The only exception being the Gila Monster. The Jackalope is still restricted from taking the specific card or poly that the Gila Monster is sitting upon. Jack can however take any other card or poly in the section that the Gila Monster is protecting but does NOT have to pay the 1 extra Health Resource that all others would have to when going there.

Jack is a bit of a ghost so wherever he goes he does NOT occupy an action space nor does he recognize any other occupants of action spaces. Simply place him directly on top of the Flora or Fauna card or poly or Passage card desired. To use the Jackalope for a Gateway Resources or Crossed Arrows action, place that Character directly on the card or on the exact reward desired.

You MUST use the Jackalope during the Round acquired and in the following Round as well. Once exhausted, both Cubes having been removed, turn over the Jackalope card near your Player Board which indicates that you can not choose the Jackalope again and that he is immediately available to be claimed by any other Player able to do so.

Hummingbirds: Arizona is home to the highest migratory population of Hummingbirds in America with the Gateway Community of Sierra Vista as the "Hummingbird Capital of the USA".

Crossed Arrows

There is 1 action space available in the center of each set of Crossed Arrows. To take this action place one of your Adventure Markers in the action space centered in the set of Crossed Arrows that you wish to take the action IN. You can also stay at the set of Arrows you are currently located at but would still place your Marker in that action space.

If there is a Lost Dutchman there already or the Jackalope is present, remember they are as ghosts. You can still go there with an Adventure Marker or a Lost Dutchman of your own. Any actions must still follow the movement rules for the Crossed Arrows as described on pg 6.

Gateway Resources

There is 1 action space available at the Gateway Resources display area. To take this action place an Adventure Marker in the action space and receive all rewards pictured on the face-up Gateway card. The card remains there to be used during the Planning phase. All rules regarding the Lost Dutchman and the Jackalope apply here as well.

State 48 Cards

Refer now to the State 48 cards placed on the Game Board during Setup. Much Superstition Gold and Arizona Grit can be earned here. The card labeled 1st means be the 1st to accomplish any of the stated objectives on the displayed card and score that amount of Superstition Gold. Place a Tracker from near your Player Board on your claim. If you are the 2nd Player to accomplish an objective, score the next bonus and if 3rd is available claim the next.

Notice that AZ Grit is awarded only to the 1st Player to reach one of the objectives on each card as denoted by the AZ Grit icon.

Along the Trail sections that run up the center of the map there are icons that indicate that all rows of the designated State 48 card will be immediately scored. The 4th at the end of the 4th Week before proceeding to the Recovery phase and the 8th at the end of the 8th week before proceeding to Final Scoring. There is no need to place Trackers on the 4th and 8th week cards.

Note: These are called State 48 cards because Arizona became the America's 48th state on February 14, 1912.

Grand Canyon: Considered as one of the Wonders of the World the Canyon is valued for its combination of size (278 miles long, 10-18 miles wide and up to 6000' deep!) and exposed layers of colorful, ancient rock. It encompasses 278 miles of the Colorado River and the ancestral homelands of 11 Native American Tribes.

RECOVERY

Determine Turn Order

Based on the location of each Players' Turn Order selection during the Week place Travel Markers in the corresponding Map boxes along the Trail Map sections of the Game Board for Turn Order in the following Week.

Retrieve Adventure Markers

Each Player returns all of their Adventure Markers from the Game Board back to near their Player Board. Any Lost Dutchman on the Game Board are returned to the pool. If the Jackalope is in play he either returns to the Player in possession if still available for use or returns to the Spirit of the Desert character area.

Replace Gila Monster and Saguaro

Return the Gila Monster and the Saguaro to their starting positions on the Game Board.

Refresh Cards and Polyominoes

For the Flora and Fauna cards if there is a card left in the 1st (top) position remove it from the Game Board to the bottom of its deck. Move any remaining cards on the Game Board as far upward as possible. Then draw new Flora and Fauna cards to fill any empty spaces. Refill any polyomino spaces back up to 2 pieces each as necessary.

Replace the current Passage cards on the Game Board if indicated on the Trail Map sections by the deck-change icon according to the process described on pg 11.

None of these Recovery steps are necessary after Week 8 at the end of the Journey.

End of JOURNEY/End of GAME

When all Players have completed all of their available actions at the end of the 8th Week immediately score the State 48 card marked 8th and then proceed directly to Final Scoring. Congratulations! You have ALL completed Travel along the 800 mile long Arizona Trail!

Final Scoring

Final Scoring will be calculated from the following criteria. Refer to your Player Aid card for a reminder during the game.

Mural: -1 per open space. Example: 3 open spaces = -3.

Poison: -1 for 1, -3 for 2, -6 for 3, -10 for 4, -15 for 5, -5 each for 6+. Example: 3 Poison tokens = -6.

Card Cubes: +1 for every cube left on cards. Example: 2 cubes = +2.

Arizona Stars: +1 for 1, +3 for 2, +6 for 3, +10 for 4, +15 for 5, +5 each for 6+. Example: 5 Arizona Stars = +15.

Flora & Fauna: sets of different terrain types — 2 different terrain types = +2, 3 different = +4, 4 different = +7. Example: having sets of 4 different, 3 different, and 2 different terrain types = 7 + 4 + 2 = 13.

Superstition Gold & Arizona Grit: Superstition Gold minus Arizona Grit equals your Final Score.

The Winner of Trailblazer: the Arizona Trail will be that Player who has managed to gain the most Superstition Gold factored with Arizona Grit.

Examples: 75 Gold − 56 Grit = 19 Final Score. 85 Gold − 45 Grit = 30 WINNER. 61 Gold − 68 Grit = -7 TRY AGAIN.

Glossary (Pronunciation Guide)

• AJO — ah-ho
• APACHE — uh-pach-ee
• CHOLLA — choy-yah
• COCONINO — ko-ko-nee-no
• COYOTE — kahy-oh-tee
• GILA — hee-luh
• HUACHUCA — wha-chu-kah
• JAVELINA — hah-vuh-lee-nuh
• KAIBAB — khay-bab
• KANAB — kuh-nabb
• MAZATZAL — mah-zot-zall
• MESQUITE — mes-keet
• MOGOLLON — moh-guh-yohn
• OCOTILLO — aw-kaw-tee-yaw
• PALO VERDE — pah-loh vare-day
• PINYON — pin-yuhn
• QUAIL — kweyl
• RINCON — reen-con
• SAGUARO — suh-waa-row
• SAHUARITA — suh-waa-ree-tah
• SONOITA — suh-noy-tah
• TORTILLA — tawr-tee-yah
• TUCSON — too-son
• TUSAYAN — too-sy-on

Icon Reference Guide

Resources: Supplies, Health, Water, Arizona Grit.

Currency: Turquoise, Silver, Copper, Gold.

Terrain Types: Mountain, Desert, Plateau, Canyon.

Game Board Icons:

• Advance one space of any Terrain Track
• Weather Card
• Score State 48 Card
• Gain Spirit of the Desert Character
• Passage Card
• Gain Extra Adventure Marker
• Pay 2 to boost an additional space / Pay 1 to boost one space on Elevation Track

Card Icons:

• Poison / Remove Poison
• Arizona Star
• Take and Place 1 Saguaro Blossom

Credits

Test Players: Scott & Holly Beavers, Kelsey & Mike Topczewski, Steve Pinter, Dion Garner, Allison & Bryce Parkllan, Josh Kocur, Collin & Cindy Pastorius, Billy Indiana, and ALL of the oh so valuable 50+ Demo Players at Dice Tower West and RinCon.

• Dan R Rice III — Designer
• Andrew Bosley — Artwork
• Jon Merchant — Graphic Design
• Rachel Ivanyi — Illustrations
• Jan Vaughn — Game Development