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Five Tribes: The Djinns of Naqala

103 questions players ask about Five Tribes: The Djinns of Naqala. Pick one for the answer. See also the full rulebook.

Updated 2026-11-04.

  • Setup and bidding
  • Moving meeples and tile control
  • Tribe actions
  • Tile actions and markets
  • Djinns
  • Scoring and end of game
  • Hidden information and components
  • Solo play (Yazid)
  • Five Tribes: The Artisans of NaqalaExpansion
  • Five Tribes: Whims of the SultanExpansion

Setup and bidding

  • What happens if I must pay for a turn-order spot but have no gold?
  • What if all three 0 spots are taken when I bid?
  • How is the starting bid order decided, including in a 2-player game?
  • How do turn markers work in a 2-player game?
  • How much gold does each player start with?

Moving meeples and tile control

  • Is a move legal if the last meeple's colour only gets onto the final tile during the move (for example in a loop)?
  • Can a move pass through a tile it already visited this turn to make a loop?
  • Can you refuse to move meeples or skip the meeple action if the only legal move helps an opponent?
  • What happens if you have no Camels left when you empty a tile?
  • If your move and your Assassins would each take a tile but you have only one Camel left, which tile do you get?
  • Can a tile change owner, or hold a second Camel?
  • Does the tile you pick the meeples up from count as a step of the move?
  • Is there a limit on how many meeples can be on one tile?

Tribe actions

  • Can a Red Assassin kill a meeple on the tile where your move ended?
  • How is Assassin range counted, and can it go around corners or diagonally?
  • How many meeples does an Assassin action kill, and what happens to the unused range?
  • Which meeples can Red Assassins kill outside the board?
  • Is the Red Assassins kill mandatory when a legal target exists?
  • Can Red Assassins take control of a second tile in the same turn, and do you get its tile action?
  • If your Assassins kill the last meeple on the tile you ended on, do you still get that tile's action?
  • When you kill a meeple with Assassins, do you get the action of its tile or tribe?
  • Can Assassins kill other Assassins?

Tile actions and markets

  • Can you use the same tile action more than once in a turn?
  • Do you get the tile's action if you end your move on a tile without controlling it?
  • Which tile actions are compulsory?
  • Must you place a Palm Tree or Palace when you end on an Oasis or Village you do not control, and who scores it?
  • Can a tile hold several Palm Trees or Palaces, and what if the supply runs out?
  • Can you take cards from further down the line at a Small or Large Market?
  • At a Large Market, can your second pick be a card that moves into the first six after your first pick?
  • Can you sell two different sets of Merchandise in the same turn?
  • Can you buy market cards after picking up Green Merchants?

Djinns

  • Must you end your move on a Sacred Place to buy a Djinn, and how many can you get this way?
  • Does Echidna double the Slaves/Fakirs you add to a Builders action, or only the Builder meeples?
  • When during my turn can I activate a Djinn's power, including right after buying it or before moving?
  • How many Djinns can I use in one turn, and can the same Djinn be used twice?
  • Can another player activate or use a Djinn that I control, or can I use mine on their turn?
  • In a 2-player game, can a Djinn be used once per round or once per turn marker?
  • Is the cost printed on a Djinn card paid when I buy it? Can the Elders I spent to buy it also pay for its power?
  • If two of my Djinns have the same activation cost, do I pay it twice to use both?
  • If I buy a Djinn at a Sacred Place, can it change my meeple actions from the same turn, such as Echidna doubling Builders?

Scoring and end of game

  • When the last Camel is placed or no legal move remains, does the game end immediately?
  • If the game end has been triggered and a Djinn such as Anun-Nak creates new legal moves, does the game continue?
  • If a player believes no legal move exists but one does, must the others tell him?
  • When a player places their last Camel, do the other players still get their turn?
  • How is unsold Merchandise scored at game end, and is it the same as selling it?
  • Do Fakirs/Slaves count as a good in a Merchandise set or score at game end?
  • Is each Gold Coin worth 1 VP, or its face value?
  • How exactly are Viziers scored, and what happens with ties or zero Viziers?
  • Who scores Palm Trees, Palaces and tile values at game end?

Hidden information and components

  • Which end of the resource row is the start of the line, and does the deck position matter?
  • Where are the Djinn powers explained?
  • Are my gold, Merchandise cards and Djinns hidden from other players?

Solo play (Yazid)

  • In solo play, what does Yazid do when the rolled tile has no meeples?
  • How does Yazid pay for a Djinn in solo play?
  • Can my Assassins kill Yazid's red meeples?
  • Which board size do I use in solo play against Yazid?

Five Tribes: The Artisans of NaqalaExpansion

  • What happens when the Artisans item pile runs out?
  • What can the Rebirth Ring take from the item discard pile?
  • How does the Enchanting Flute work: adjacency, mountains, and extra turns?
  • Does the Enchanting Flute stop you taking control of the tile your move ends on?
  • Can a magic item or Djinn that creates a move cancel the game end once no normal legal moves remain?
  • Can the Burning Scimitar kill the only meeple on a tile and take control of it, and must it kill two?
  • Does the Burning Scimitar trigger Kandicha's ability?
  • Does the Burning Scimitar trigger Nekir?
  • What happens to meeples removed with the Burning Scimitar?

Five Tribes: Whims of the SultanExpansion

  • Can Utug take control of a Fabulous City while a Whim card is on it?
  • Can Leta take an empty Fabulous City that has a Whim card on it?
  • With Haurvajaj, do Palm Trees by the Great Lake score double?
  • Do I get the Whim card for controlling a Fabulous City, or only by ending my move there?
  • How many points is a Fabulous City worth at game end?
  • Can I play with five players without Whims of the Sultan?
  • Does Kali count when I outbid a marker without landing on its spot?
Can Assassins kill Elders or Viziers an opponent has already collected?
  • Does the Builders coin count include the tile you ended on, and the diagonals?
  • Do the Djinns and resource cards shift forward at clean-up?
  • Where do Elders, Slaves and Fakirs go after I spend them?
  • How many coins does Kandicha give when you assassinate a Builder, and can Slaves add to it?
  • What does Kandicha do when you assassinate an opponent's Vizier or Elder?
  • What does Iblis let you kill, and do the two meeples need to match or be on the Assassins' tile?
  • If I have both Iblis and Kandicha, do I keep both killed meeples?
  • When a Djinn like Nekir pays out, does the money come from the bank, and is it doubled with Iblis?
  • Who pays the coins when Marid triggers on my tile?
  • Do I get Ba'al's coin for buying Ba'al itself?
  • With Anun-Nak, do I choose the empty tile before drawing the three meeples?
  • Can Utug be used between the tribe action and the tile action?
  • Which tiles can Utug take control of?
  • Where can the Djinns that place an extra Palace or Palm Tree on a chosen tile put it, and do I need to control the tile?
  • Can the Djinns that move a Palace or Palm Tree placement to an adjacent tile be used on any tile I land on?
  • With the Djinn that treats a pair of Slaves as wild merchandise, can I use it for several pairs?
  • What does Sibittis cost, and can others see the Djinns it discards?
  • What happens when the Djinn draw pile runs out?
  • At clean-up, is the row of three Djinns refilled even if nobody bought one?
  • Does Al-Amin's wild pair of Fakirs apply when selling a set, or only at game end?
  • Does a Tent count as a Camel for item and Djinn effects, such as the Scimitar or Tempest Talisman?
  • How does the Tempest Talisman work: which tiles, and can it add a new Camel?
  • Where can the Flying Carpet's last meeple be dropped, and does it ignore mountains for the whole move?
  • During setup, must I redo the layout if a tile is walled off by mountains or the chasm?
  • How does the Horn of Plenty work: do you discard the market first?
  • How many items can I play per turn in a 2-player game, and can I pay for several items at a Workshop?
  • Do the Chasm and Mountains block Assassin range?
  • Can Assassins kill Artisan (purple) meeples, including ones another player has collected?
  • Where do collected Artisan meeples go, and how do they score?
  • Can I play the Artisans expansion with only some of its parts?