Trek to Zion
Trek to Zion Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- Game board
- Rules booklet
- 240 plastic colored covered wagons (45 each in 5 colors: purple, blue, yellow, green and orange, plus 3 replacement wagons)
- 15 colored temples (3 of each color matching the wagons' colors)
- 151 illustrated cards including:
- 98 Provision cards: 12 of each (purple, blue, yellow, orange, brown, red, and green, plus 14 wilds)
- 51 Trek cards (6 Long Treks and 45 Short Treks)
- 1 summary card (gives the point values of each trail according to its length)
- 1 Bonus card for the Longest Continuous Trail
- 5 wooden Score Markers
Printed component count note: 5 colors of 45 wagons plus 3 replacement wagons totals 228, not the printed 240. The count is transcribed as printed.
Object of Trek to Zion
The object of Trek to Zion is to score the most points by the end of the game. There are three ways to earn points:
- Claim a trail between two adjacent locations on the map.
- Complete a Trek Card by connecting the two locations listed on the card. (Remember, the trail has to be continuous!)
- Have the Longest Continuous Trail (worth 10 points).
If a player is not able to complete any of his Trek Cards, the point totals from those cards will be deducted from his overall score.
Packing List
Before starting the trek, unfold the game board and set it up so each player can reach it. You will need:
- A shuffled deck of Provision cards, with five cards next to the pile face-up.
Each player will need the following:
- 45 Covered Wagons, 3 Temples, and one Score Marker all in the same color.
- 1 Long Trek card and 3 Short Trek cards. Put the leftover Long Trek cards in the box. (Long Trek cards are worth 19–22 points. Short Trek cards are worth 5–14 points.)
Note: the color of your wagons does not need to match the trails on the board.
Blaze the Trail
Before starting the trek, each player needs to choose which Trek Cards to keep. Each player must keep at least two Trek cards, Long or Short. Return the leftover cards to the box.
- Decide who goes first (rock, paper, scissors always works well).
- Each player takes a turn and can do one of the following:
- Draw 2 Provision cards (unless he qualifies for Temple Blessing #3, in which case he may draw 3).
- Claim a trail between two adjacent locations.*
- Draw 3 more Short Trek cards.
* When a player claims his third trail to (or from) the same location, he may also build a Temple on that same turn.
Draw Provision Cards
Provision cards are used to claim a trail. They come in seven different colors and match the colors of the trails on the board (blue, brown, green, orange, purple, red, and yellow). Each card has a different provision. Once a player has collected the color and quantity of any unclaimed trail, he may claim it by turning in the required cards to the discard pile.
Each player draws 2 cards per turn either from the deck or from the 5 face-up cards next to it. (Players who qualify for Temple Blessing #3 may draw 3 cards. They are still only allowed to draw one face-up Wild card, but they can also draw 2 Provision cards for a total of 3.)
After one of the face-up cards is chosen, replace it immediately with a new one from the top of the deck.
When you run out of cards, reshuffle the deck of discards and start a new pile.
If there aren't any cards left to draw and the player cannot do one of the other options that do not require cards, then he must skip his turn.
Wild Cards
Wild cards are multi-colored with a picture of a wagon. A Wild card can be played with any other color and act as that color. More than one Wild can be played at a time. Only one face-up Wild can be drawn during a turn. However, if a player is lucky enough to draw a wild card from the top of the deck, he may still draw a total of two cards for that turn.
Claim a Trail
A Trail is a set of continuous colored spaces between two adjacent locations. For example, the trail between Salt Lake City and St. George is two spaces long. To claim a trail, the player turns in a set of cards in the quantity and color that matches the trail he wants to claim to the discard pile. If a trail is gray, he may turn in whatever color of cards he chooses, as long as they're all the same color.
To show that he's claimed a trail, the player places a covered wagon piece on each space of the trail. He may claim any open trail on the board (see double trails for exceptions).
The player must claim a complete trail on his turn. Even though he's probably itching to blaze more trails, he can only claim one trail per turn.
Double Trails
Double Trails have two sets of parallel spaces. A player can only claim ONE side of the trail; a different player can claim the other side.
Drawing Destination Cards
Want more trails? During any of his turns, a player may draw three additional Trek Cards. He may discard unwanted cards but must keep at least one. Any Treks that he keeps will be his until the end of the game. Any Treks that he completes by claiming a continuous trail between the two locations listed on the card will be worth the point value on the card, in addition to the points received for claiming Trails.
Building Temples
When a player has claimed three trails that end in the same location, he may build a temple during the same turn. For example, to build a temple in Nauvoo, he needs to have claimed a combination of three trails between Nauvoo and La Crosse, Chicago, St. Louis, or Independence. He then qualifies for the first Temple Blessing in the list below. When he builds more temples, he will qualify for additional Temple Blessings, in the order below, plus any Temple Blessings he has already received.
- Temple Blessing #1 enables the player to use any set of 3 matching cards as one Wild card.
- Temple Blessing #2 enables the player to claim Trails greater than four with one less card than normally required.
- Temple Blessing #3 enables the player to draw 3 Provision cards (or 1 face-up wild and 2 Provision cards) per turn, instead of 2.
Trek's End
The game ends when any player's stock of wagons gets down to two or fewer at the end of his turn. Each player, including the player with two or fewer wagons, gets one final turn. The game is now over, and it's time to tally the final scores.
Tallying the Score
All players need to reveal their Trek cards and add all of the Trek cards that they completed to their total score. Be sure to subtract any points from the total score for the Trek cards that were not completed.
Count the wagons on the board to determine who wins the bonus 10 points for having the longest continuous trail. Remember, you can't count your wagons twice, and you can't count the ones that branch off from the main trail and don't connect back to it. If there is a tie, each person receives 10 points.
Take turns having each person tally their trails totals (see diagram, below for the point values of the trails), recording the totals on the numbers that border the board and then adding the Trek card totals. (Players may also choose to keep a running total of their trail points as they play the game.) The player with the most points wins! In the event of a tie, the person who completed the most Trek cards is the winner.
Point values according to trail length:
| Trail length (wagons) | Points |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1 |
| 2 | 2 |
| 3 | 4 |
| 4 | 7 |
| 5 | 10 |
| 6 | 15 |
| 7 | 20 |