With /join 3-4 players can join the game. With /start the game begins. alternative, you can use the Game Tool!
Everything looks peaceful aboard this merchant vessel. The cargo hold is nicely filled and the Captain steers his ship to the next Island to sell goods to the natives. But appearences are deceiving, as the mutineer has different plans. With the help of the Deck Hand he tries to overthrow the Captain to take control himself.
The players are trying to gain Victory Points (VP) each round by selling goods to the various natives as well as preventing or preventing a mutiny board. After 8 (9) rounds with 4 (resp. 3) players the game ends.
The captain is always the starting player. He determines the destination for the round, if he is not overcome by Mutineer. The faithful mate stands by his side.
The Mate stands by his captain through thick and thin and will gladly fight against a muntiny. His sword counts for the captain's side in the fight. The Mate scores 1 point as minimum dar, plus whatever bonus the captain sets, even if there is no mutiny!
The Mutineer desires to become the new captain. He is supported by the Deckhand. If the Mutineer succeeds, he determines the next island and becomes captain in the next round. If the Mutineer fails, he gets nothing.
The Deckhand supports the Mutineer. When a mutiny is successful, the Deckhand scores 2 victory points. If there is no mutiny then he does not score.
The merchant gets a bonus when selling goods. When making a sale to an island, the merchant always scores the highest value for that island.
The cargo master gets the advantage in the next round. He gets 3 extra cards to choose from when replenishing his hand.
The crossed out cards are the cards which the Cargo Master still has. You must click on the card(s) you want (leaving three un-selected), select then "OK", so that you end up with five cards.
The game dashboard is located in the centre of the screen. It provides the following information:
At the beginning of each round the Captain sets how many VPs he will give to the Mate for a succesful support against a mutiny.
During each round, players can try to sell their goods to 1 or 2. The active islands have a brown border instead a grey border.
During your turn, you will see a selection window with your cards. Select the one you wish to play and then click on "OK".
If you want to pass, select the ‐Pass Button (no cards can then be selected!)
If you choose to ‘pass, you then will be given the option to select a role. Click on the desired role then click ‐OK.
The captain determines the course (island) for the next round. As soon as he "passes" from hire goods for sale, the number of cards he has remaining in his hand determines the number of spaces forward the goal for the next round will be be. In the above example, the captain had one goods card remaining in his hand, therefore the ship will set sail from Eisfelsen and land at Sandkap next round. Note: Goods can only be sold on the next target island starting from the next round! If the mutineer defeats the captain, he will become the new captain, and likewise, the number of cards left in his hand will dictate the next land fall. His current target is shown with a blue border. Note the selection of the goal island defined by the number of cards in hand in principle the number of remaining hand maps before any swords are played!
If the Mutineer card was selected, players may contribute (either for or against the mutiny) by adding swords to the fight. This begins with the captain and every other player can then contribute to the fight.
Swords already played out during the goods phase are added to the action. The following rules apply:
If the Mutineer and Deckhand play as many swords between them as the Captain and Mate (including the Mate's automatic +1 sword) then the mutiny is successful, and the Mutineer becomes the new Captain. The landfall for the ship in the next round then will be determined by the new Captain's cards in hand. The Mutineer receives the number of victory points shown on the top right of the that island.
The Deckhand gets 2 points, the Captain and Mate get nothing.
If the Mutiny fails, the landfall for the ship in the next round will be determined by the existing Captain's cards in hand. The Captain receives the number of victory points show on the top right of the current island. - less the points given as dars to the Mate.
The Mutineer and Deckhand would then get nothing.
The Mate keeps his points if the Mutiny is unsuccessful.
On most you islands only trade one type of raw material. (Example: on Eisfelsen you can only trade rubies). On the two islands with À? you can trade any type of good. On these islands you may only trade one type. The player(s) who have the most goods to trade at each island are allowed to make the trade and earn victory points as follows:
If all 4 players have the most goods to trade, then no-one scores. If a player selected the merchant, he gets paid the highest score from that island if he has the highest trade.
Goods are traded sequentially, beginning with the captain. You will see the trading window with your played goods shown. You can now decide which island to sell which goods to.
You must toggle each card between two different colours. By clicking once on each card it will have a yellow border. Click again and it becomes red, click once more and no border. Decide for each card the appropriate colour, since both islands involved in the are designated either red or yellow trade.
Click "OK" once you have made all your selections.
Each player then indicates which goods he is selling to each island; in this example two cloth were sold to "Piratennest" and a ruby to "Fingerhut".
Trading is an important, tactic: you can therefore split trades. For example if you have five grain cards, you could trade 3 on a '?' island and 2 on a grain island. This way you would proably score the majority on both islands.
The number of the goods traded on each goods card varies by the type of good. The value is shown on each card.
The game ends after 9/8 rounds with 3/4 players.
If all four players sell the same number of goods, the trader so scores nothing.