Jackal Archipelago Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• About the Game
• Components
  • Ability cards
• Setup
• Turn Sequence
• Moving a Pirate Without a Coin
• Moving a Pirate With a Coin
• Swimming as a Pirate
• Sailing the Ship
• End of the Game and Victory
• Pirate Abilities
• Next Islands
• Two-versus-Two Game
• Tricky Situations
• Islands of the Archipelago

About the Game

You steer a ship and command three brave pirates. You are to explore islands full of mysteries and treasures.

Each turn you move one pirate across the island or move your ship around the island. The island consists of tiles. You put a pirate on a tile and turn it over: under each one an adventure or a treasure awaits you.

The game ends when the whole island has been explored and all the gold coins found are on ships. The winner is the one who hauls the most coins to his ship.

Components

• 55 adventure tiles - from them you build the islands.
• 4 ship tiles - your pirates sail on them around the island.
• 12 pirates - 4 pirate crews in all, 3 pirates in each.
• 16 coins, which your pirates must carry from the island to the ship.
• 9 ability cards, which you can get if you collect at least 3 coins on an island.
• 4 bottles with messages, which help you get out of trouble.
• 1 missionary token, who can become your helper.
• Stickers for marking pirates' abilities.
• 1 six-sided die, for choosing the way at a crossroads.
• A reference sheet with the meaning of the tiles and a short summary of the turn.
• These rules.

Ability cards

Each card's back says which island it belongs to. Card texts as printed on the component page:

• Beachcomber (Пляжник): This pirate cannot be beaten while he is on beach tiles. But on forest tiles he cannot beat anyone.
• Musketeer (Мушкетёр): This pirate cannot be beaten just like that - the die is needed. When he steps onto a tile with an enemy pirate, or an enemy pirate steps onto his tile, both roll the die in turn. Whoever rolls lower is beaten and flies off to his ship. If it is a tie, re-roll the dice.
• Ship's Boy (Юнга): This pirate can climb out of the sea onto land by himself, even without a ship (but he cannot jump into the water by himself). He climbs out only onto open and unoccupied tiles. Also, he does not know how to steer a ship, so he cannot sail on it alone.
• Woodsman (Лесник): This pirate cannot be beaten while he is on forest tiles. But on mountain tiles he cannot beat anyone.
• Black Spot (Чёрная метка): This pirate bears the black spot, and everyone shuns him like fire. He cannot be beaten and cannot beat anyone himself. But at the same time the properties of pirates (the "ловкач" (nimble one) and others) act on him.
• Swimmer (Пловец): This pirate can dive into the sea, swim and come out onto land without a ship. If he comes out onto land, it is only onto open and unoccupied tiles. He cannot beat anyone.

(The rulebook's component picture shows nine ability cards, but only six have legible text in the file; the other cards' text is not printed in the rulebook PDF.)

Setup

1. Give everyone three pirates of one color and the ship tile of the same color.
2. Take all tiles with the number 1 in the corner - this is the future first island. Turn them face down.
3. From them pick at random and put back in the box four tiles with a gray back (these are mountains), three tiles with a green back (forest), two tiles with a yellow back (beach).
4. Build the island as in the picture, without turning the tiles over: everything you meet must be a surprise.
5. Place your ships as in the picture and put your pirates on them.
6. Next to the island put the pile of coins, the bottles and the die. Everything else in the box is not needed for now.

Start playing, looking into the rules as you go!

Turn Sequence

The youngest captain goes first. After him everyone goes in turn, clockwise.

On your turn you move your pirate one tile across the island or move your ship around the island. When you step onto a closed tile (that is, it lies face down), you turn it over and read the description of the adventure in the reference sheet. You do what is written, and that ends your turn.

Your task is to find the tiles with coins and carry as many coins as possible to your ship.

The game ends when there is not a single coin left on the island. The richest pirate crew wins.

Moving a Pirate Without a Coin

Move any of your pirates across the island one tile in any direction. Remember that a pirate cannot jump from a ship or from land into the water.

If the tile is closed, turn it over and read in the reference sheet what happens to you.

If there is an enemy pirate on the tile, you have beaten him: he immediately flies off to his ship (without all the things he was carrying, if he carried any). Were there several pirates? They all fly off.

After this pass the turn to the player on your left.

Moving a Pirate With a Coin

As soon as you find a treasure, try to carry as many coins as possible to your ship. To carry a coin, simply move your pirate with one coin to an adjacent open tile. When a pirate with a coin steps onto the ship, take the coin and put it in front of you. Now it cannot be taken away. A coin on the island can be picked up by any pirate.

For pirates carrying a coin, the movement rules are as follows:

• A pirate can carry only one coin.
• You can move only across open tiles.
• To beat a pirate, you must leave all your things on the previous tile and go to the pirate empty-handed.
• If you are beaten and go off to your ship, the coin stays on the tile where you were standing.
• If you end up in the water, you lose the coin forever: put it into the box.

After this pass the turn to the player on your left.

Swimming as a Pirate

If you end up in the water, you need to swim to your own ship. On a turn you can swim one tile along the shore. A pirate cannot climb out of the water onto land.

Try not to get under an enemy ship, otherwise the pirate is out of the game.

Sailing the Ship

Instead of moving a pirate across the island, you can make a move with the ship. For this at least one pirate must be standing on the ship.

Move the ship along the island by as many tiles as there are pirates standing on the ship, or fewer.

• The ship moves together with the pirates.
• If one of your pirates who flew into the water is on the way, he gets onto the ship.
• If it is an enemy pirate, you crush him: the pirate is out of the game for good.
• If there is an enemy ship on the way, step over it.

After this pass the turn to the player on your left.

End of the Game and Victory

When all tiles are open and no coins remain on the island, count your coins. The one who collected the most wins!

Now you can play by the basic rules and can build and explore new islands - see the section "Next Islands" on page 14.

Between islands you can upgrade your pirates - see the next section.

You can also try the two-versus-two game mode - see page 15.

Pirate Abilities

To get a special ability for your pirates, you must collect at least three coins after an island.

1. Take three ability cards (the back of the cards says which island they belong to). Lay them face up on the table. (Cards are grouped as First island, Second island, Third island.)
2. The winner of the island is the first to choose any one ability: he takes the card and puts it next to himself.
3. After him the one who took second place by coins chooses, then the one who took third. If there is a tie, roll the die: the card is taken by the one who rolled the higher value.
4. If there are leftover abilities, return them to the box.
5. Each ability has a corresponding sticker. Find yours on the sticker sheet and stick it on the pirate. Now the ability stays with your pirate forever.

Important:

• Taking an ability is optional.
• You cannot change an ability during the game.
• Abilities are received by only three players, even if four players have accumulated three or more coins.
• If the text of an ability contradicts the rules, the text of the ability is more important.

Next Islands

To set off for the next island:

1. Choose the island - second or third. For the second island take all tiles from the first and second islands. For the third - from the first, second and third.

2. Shuffle the tiles face down.

3. Remove four random mountain tiles, three forest and two beach tiles for the first island, and one random mountain, forest and beach tile for each next island added.

4. Build the island as on pages 18-19.

   For example, you want to build the fourth island. For this you need to shuffle the tiles of the first, second, third and fourth islands. Now remove seven random mountains, six forests and five beaches. And finally, lay out the fourth island according to the diagram.

   Experienced captains can build any islands from any tiles.

   In a game with children younger than eight you can remove in advance the tiles that are hard for them.

5. Collect the coins and bottles from the players and lay them next to the island.

6. Take three pirates of one color and the ship of the same color. You may play with the same pirates as before: their abilities work on every island.

7. Place the ship and the pirates next to any tile of the island.

Start playing!

Two-versus-Two Game

In a two-versus-two game several changes are added:

• Allies may stand on the same tile and step onto friendly ships, including carrying coins onto them.
• You can pull allies out of pits.
• If a pirate is beaten by an opponent, the pirate flies off specifically to his own ship.
• An ally's pirates cannot move your ship. They do not add speed to it.

In a two-versus-two game, after you an opponent from the other team must always move. This means that first the first player of the first team moves, then the first player of the second team, then the second player of the first team and finally the second player of the second team, and so on. An example of the turn order is shown in the picture.

At the end of the game the gold plundered together is counted.

Tricky Situations

A pirate is out of the game when:

• He collides with an enemy ship in the water.
• He is beaten in the water by an enemy pirate.
• He lands on a tile with a cannibal.
• He gets stuck in one place and cannot move anywhere further. For example, between two arrows facing each other. Or when an arrow sends the pirate onto a crocodile or into a fortress with a stranger, and the pirate cannot return.

If a pirate who leaves the game was carrying a coin, the coin stays on the same tile where the pirate started his turn.

A pirate can be returned to the game through a sanctuary tile. For details see the tile's description in the reference sheet.

Islands of the Archipelago

The rulebook shows a map of the archipelago with ten islands, each marked with a compass north arrow (N): Island 1, Island 2 and Island 3 are in the base game; Islands 4-10 (marked with an asterisk) require expansions. The island layout diagrams on pages 18-19 are pictures and are not reproduced here.