Artistry Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Components
• Objective
• Art Types
• Setup
• Playing the Game
  • Acquiring Material Tiles
  • Inspiration Cards
  • Purchasing Pattern Cards
  • Gaining Artisans
  • Passing
• End of Round
• End of Game
  • End Game Bonuses
  • Winner
• Solo Rules
  • Difficulty Levels
  • Setup
  • Game Play
  • Scenarios
• Credits & Thanks

Game Components

• 1 Market Board
• 1 Renown Tracker Board
• 45 Artisan cards — 4 Apprentices, 4 Journeywomen, and 1 Master for each of the 5 Art Types
• 80 Material tiles
• 70 Pattern cards
• 25 Inspiration cards
• 4 Renown trackers
• 1 First Player marker

Objective

Earn the most Renown by gathering Materials, acquiring Patterns and Inspirations, and gaining new Artisans.

Art Types

There are 5 Art Types in the game, each with a corresponding color, symbol, and Material tile: Ceramic, Glass, Metal, Paint, and Textile. You will find the symbols and colors for each Art Type on the Material tiles, Pattern cards, Artisan cards, and Inspiration cards used in the game.

Setup

Market Board: Place the Market Board in the middle of the table, making sure to leave enough space for each player's play area.

Artisans: Sort the Artisan cards into face-up piles by Art Type (5 piles in total) with each Art Type's Apprentice cards on top, then the Journeywoman cards, then the Master card. Place the Artisan piles near the Market Board. There are 4 Apprentices, 4 Journeywomen, and 1 Master for each of the 5 Art Types.

Starting Artisans: Take 1 of each type of Apprentice, shuffle them face down without looking, and deal 1 to each player. This will be each player's starting Artisan. Return the unused Apprentices to their respective Artisan piles. Each player places their Artisan face-up in front of them.

Pattern cards: Shuffle the Pattern deck and place it face-down above the Market Board. Draw 5 Pattern cards and place them face-up next to the Pattern deck to form the Pattern Market.

Inspiration cards: Place the Inspiration deck face-down to the right of the Market Board. Draw 3 Inspiration cards and place them face-up next to the Inspiration Deck.

Renown Tracker Board: Place the Renown Tracker Board to the left of the Market Board. Each player chooses a Renown Tracker Token in the color of their choice and places it near the Renown Tracker Board.

Material tiles: Place the Material tiles in the Material tile bag. When Material tiles are used during the game to purchase Pattern cards, place them in a "Remnant Pile" next to the Market Board.

First Player: Give the First Player marker to the player who last created a work of art.

Playing the Game

Artistry is played over a series of rounds. In each round, Material tiles are added to the Market Board, then players take turns performing actions until all players pass, ending the round. Once a player has earned at least 20 Renown at the end of a round, the game ends and bonus points are scored. The player with the most Renown wins.

Start of Round: At the start of each round, draw Material tiles from the Material tile bag, and place them on the Market Board based on the number of players:

• 2 players — 16 tiles in a 4x4 grid
• 3 players — 25 tiles in a 5x5 grid
• 4 players — 36 tiles in a 6x6 grid

Note: If there are no Material tiles left in the Material tile bag, place the Material tiles from the Remnant Pile in the Material tile bag, mix them well, then continue placing Material tiles on the Market Board until the round setup is complete.

Turns: Starting with the player who has the First Player marker, the players take turns going clockwise around the table, skipping over any players who have already passed this round, until all players have passed.

On their turn, each player may do one of the following:

1. Acquire Material tiles
2. Purchase a Pattern
3. Pass

Acquiring Material Tiles

When a player chooses to acquire Material tiles, they first choose 1 of the Artisan cards in front of them (if they have more than 1), then choose which tiles to take from the Market Board in any combination of colors. The tiles they choose must exactly match the number and shape shown on the chosen Artisan card.

The player may not take tiles if an empty space on the Market Board prevents them from matching the number and shape exactly, but blank spaces can be "jumped over" if the Artisan's shape allows (i.e., blank spaces in the shape can be empty or tiles).

Players may rotate or flip the Artisan's shape any way they would like when acquiring Material tiles, as long as the shape and quantity of tiles are available to be picked up.

Acquired tiles are placed in the player's play area. Players may not have more than 10 tiles in their play area, so they may not choose this action if it would bring their total to more than 10.

Acquiring materials example: On Amy's turn, she chooses to use her Journeywoman Metalsmith to gain tiles matching that Artisan's shape. Next, on his turn, Dusty uses his Apprentice Textile Artisan's shape and he rotates and flips the shape to gain tiles matching it.

Inspiration Cards

Inspiration cards are special cards that players can earn by acquiring the last tile of a specific color on the Market Board in each round.

Acquiring Inspiration cards: If a player acquires the last Material tile on the Market Board that matches the Material tile color shown at the top of an Inspiration card, that player may take that Inspiration card and place it in their play area. If there are multiple Inspiration cards with the same Material tile color requirement, the player chooses 1 of the matching Inspiration cards, and the other matching Inspiration cards are placed on the bottom of the Inspiration deck. Do not replace the Inspiration card at this time (it is only replaced at the end of the round — see End of Round).

Note: If the last tile of a specific color is placed from the board into the Remnant Pile by a player, this does not count as acquiring the last tile of that color, and the player does not gain any of the matching Inspiration cards.

Using Inspiration cards: A player may use any number of Inspiration cards they have during their turn. However, each Inspiration card can be used only once per round. To use an Inspiration card, follow the text on the card, then turn the Inspiration card face-down to show that it has been used that round.

Purchasing Pattern Cards

When a player chooses to purchase a Pattern card, they may choose any 1 of the 5 face-up cards in the Pattern Market to buy. To purchase the Pattern card, they must pay Material tiles from their collection that exactly match the colors shown on that card. Place the spent tiles in the Remnant Pile next to the Market Board.

Substitute any 3 tiles for 1 tile: If a player does not have all the necessary Material tile colors and quantities to purchase a Pattern, they may pay 3 Material tiles of any color to equal 1 Material tile color required by the Pattern.

Gaining Pattern cards: The acquired Pattern card is placed in the player's play area. The player gains Renown equal to the point value shown on the Pattern card, and moves their Renown tracker up the Tracker Board by the number of points gained. Gaining a Pattern card may also allow the player to gain an Artisan card as part of the same action (see Gaining Artisans).

Refresh face-up Pattern: After a Pattern has been purchased, draw a new Pattern card from the top of the Pattern deck and place it in the empty space in the Market.

Purchasing example: Ronan wants to purchase a Pattern that requires certain Material tiles. He pays the required Material tiles into the Remnant Pile, places the Pattern card in his play area, and gains 3 Renown, moving his Renown tracker on the Renown Tracker Board.

Gaining Artisans

If a player has collected the required number of Pattern cards of the same Art Type, they automatically gain an Artisan card of the matching type with a new skill level. A player may only have 1 of each level per Artisan type. Artisans gained in this way are added to the player's play area.

Gaining Apprentice Artisans: When a player gains their first Pattern card of each Art Type, they gain an Apprentice Artisan of that Art Type if they do not already have that Apprentice. (Remember that each player can only have 1 Apprentice-level Artisan of each type, and each player starts the game with 1 Apprentice already.)

Gaining Journeywoman Artisans: If a player has 2 Pattern cards of the Artisan's Art Type, they gain a Journeywoman Artisan of that type.

Gaining Master Artisans: If a player has 4 Pattern cards of the Artisan's Art Type, they gain the Master Artisan of that type. (There is only 1 of each Master available in the game, so only the first player to reach 4 Pattern cards of that type can gain that Master.)

Gaining Artisan example: Aurora has 1 Ceramics Pattern card and acquires 1 more Ceramics Pattern card. That means she has a total of 2 Ceramics Pattern cards and gains a Journeywoman Artisan with the Ceramics Art Type.

Tip: You can stack your Artisan cards by Art Type with their Material tile shape showing for each card to easily see which shapes you have available when acquiring Material tiles from the Market Board. You can stack your acquired Pattern cards by Art Type with their Art Type symbol showing to keep track of how many Pattern cards you have of each Art Type.

Passing

If a player does not want to or cannot acquire Material tiles or purchase a Pattern card, then they must pass their turn. Once a player has passed their turn, they do not take any more turns this round. Once all players have passed, the round ends.

End of Round

At the end of the round, follow the steps below to prepare for the next round.

Remove uncollected tiles: Remove all tiles remaining from the Market Board and place them in the Remnant Pile.

Draw Inspiration cards: Draw Inspiration cards and place them face-up next to the Inspiration deck until there are 3 face-up Inspiration cards.

Reset player Inspiration cards: Each player turns any used Inspiration cards in their play area face-up.

Game end: At the end of the round, if any player has 20 or more Renown, the game ends and the players earn bonus points as described in the End of Game section. If no player has 20 or more Renown, pass the First Player marker clockwise to the next player and begin the next round.

End of Game

End of game scoring: Once the game has ended, each player earns bonus Renown based on the number of Artisan cards and Inspiration cards they have acquired (see End Game Bonuses) and the winner is declared.

End Game Bonuses

Apprentice Artisans: Each player earns Renown based on the number of Apprentice Artisans they have:

• 1 or 2 Apprentices: 0 Points
• 3 Apprentices: 2 Points
• 4 Apprentices: 3 Points
• 5 Apprentices: 4 Points

Journeywomen: Each player earns 1 Renown for each Journeywoman Artisan they have.

Masters: Each player earns 4 Renown for each Master Artisan they have.

Inspiration cards: Each player earns 1 Renown for each Inspiration card they have.

End of game scoring example: Aurora has 21 Renown on the Renown Tracker at the end of the game. She has 4 Apprentice Artisans, so she gets 3 Renown. She has 2 Journeywoman Artisans so she gets 2 Renown. She has 1 Master Artisan so she gets 4 Renown. She has 2 Inspiration cards so she gets 2 Renown. Her final score is 21+3+2+4+2 = 32 Renown.

Winner

The player with the most Renown is declared the winner! If there is a tie, the tied player with the fewest remaining Material tiles is the winner. If there is still a tie, the tied player with the most Artisans is the winner. If players are still tied, the win is shared.

Solo Rules

The solo mode plays exactly like the 2-player game (using the 4x4 grid) with the following exceptions.

Difficulty Levels

Easy: As described below but all Artisan cards gained by your opponent are added to their Artisan deck and none are ever removed.

Standard: As described below.

Hard: As described below but your opponent always goes first (and last) each round.

Setup

Take one of each Apprentice type and shuffle them. Take one for yourself and give your opponent 2 random Apprentices at the start of the game. These will form the opponent's Artisan deck.

Game Play

You always go first at the start of each round, then your opponent (except in hard mode).

Important: Your opponent does not have a Material tile limit.

You will take your turn as normal. On your opponent's turn, reveal the top card of their Artisan deck to determine which Artisan is being utilized. Your opponent will prioritize the action they take on their turn in the following order (if less than 2 tiles remain on the board, skip to priority 3):

1. Your opponent will always first attempt to gain Material tiles. They will do so by using the revealed Artisan's EXACT shape to collect. They will try to match this exact shape starting at the top left of the material board, going from left to right, then down to the next row going from left to right, and continuing this search until they find the first tiles matching this shape (your opponent never flips or rotates the shape).

2. If no shape can be matched, your opponent takes the first 3 tiles (or 2 tiles if only 2 remain) available on the board, going from the top row left to right, then to the next row, and so on. If less than 2 tiles remain, skip to priority 3.

3. If there are less than 2 Material tiles remaining on the board, your opponent attempts to purchase a Pattern card, starting from right-most to left-most using the exact matching tiles (your opponent will only ever exchange 3 tiles for 1 tile at the end of the game — see priority 4).

4. If and only if you or your opponent has reached 20 points on the scoring track and your opponent cannot purchase any Pattern card with the EXACT matching Material tiles, they will attempt to buy a card starting on the right and going left by trading in tiles 3 for 1 to complete a pattern. They will spend from the tile type they have the most of first in order to trade for tiles required (if tied, the player chooses). Otherwise, skip to priority 5.

5. If your opponent cannot pay for a Pattern card, your opponent takes the top card from the Inspiration deck and keeps it face-down in a pile for end-game scoring. If the Inspiration deck ever becomes empty, your opponent gains one point on the scoring track instead.

Shuffle your opponent's revealed Artisans whenever the deck runs out or you are starting a new round.

When a Pattern card is purchased by you or your opponent, slide all remaining Pattern cards to the right and fill the empty space on the left with the card from the top of the deck.

Your opponent earns Inspiration cards just like any player when they take the last Material tile of a color/type. Create a face-down Inspiration pile and ignore the effect or ability.

Your opponent gains Artisans just like any player. Newly gained Artisans go into your opponent's discard pile. However, if your opponent gains a higher level Artisan, all lower level Artisans are removed from their Artisan deck and placed to the side. Your opponent's Artisan deck will always consist of only Artisans of the highest level your opponent has achieved (except in easy mode where all Artisans will be included in their Artisan deck).

If you pass, your opponent continues until they can no longer take Material tiles or purchase Pattern cards. Your opponent will always finish each round by taking an inspiration card from the top of the deck and placing this face down in their inspiration pile.

Scenarios

Once you've played the solo mode several times and are ready for a new challenge, try these tricky scenarios. Play them in order and move on to the next one once you've completed each scenario.

1. Win with at least 1 Inspiration card of each color/style.
2. Win with no Material tiles remaining.
3. Win with 8 or more Inspiration cards.
4. Win using a Material tile limit of 8 tiles throughout the game.
5. Win with 5 Apprentices.
6. Win with 4 or more Journeywomen.
7. Win by only using Apprentices to draft tiles throughout the game.
8. Win with 2 or more Masters.

Credits & Thanks

Game Design: Amy and Dusty Droz

Game Development: Amy Droz, Dusty Droz, and Aaron Kemp

Rule Editing: William Niebling

Art: Most artwork is in the Public Domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or more. Additional art provided by Elizabeth Wakou.

A note from the designers: Artistry is a work of fiction. Most of the art throughout the game is historical. However, the characters and all other content in the game have been created from our whimsy and imagination. We do not have any association with or connection to the actual people or places whose likenesses are represented in said art.