Manhattan TraffIQ Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Preparation
• Game Objective
• Play
• Actions in Detail
  • 1. Attach City Tile
  • 2. A) Taxi Ride
  • 2. B) Truck Delivery
  • 3. Draw City Tile
• Competing
• How Far Does a Street Go?
• End of Game

Components

• 54 tiles (44 city tiles, 6 action tiles with starting tiles for the scenario "Central Park" on back, 4 starting tiles for either "Times Square" or "Central Park")
• 10 delivery trucks (3 red, 3 yellow, 2 blue, 2 green)
• 25 taxis (8 red, 8 yellow, 5 blue, 2 green)
• 2 rulebooks (German, English)

Preparation

There are two different starting scenarios: "Times Square" and "Central Park". We recommend that beginners start with the scenario "Times Square". To do this scenario, take the 4 starting tiles (the ones printed with city map sections on both sides) and put them in the middle of the table as shown to the right (use the numbers 1, 2, 3 to find the right sides to put together). The scenario "Central Park" is played using the backs of the starting and action tiles. For further details, images and "FAQs" to the game please visit our website: www.muecke-spiele.de (see also the QR Code on the bottom of the box).

The remaining 44 city tiles are placed with the city map side face down on the table, then shuffled and made into a stack from which new tiles are drawn. Every player draws two of these tiles at game start.

There are 6 action tiles: two for the action "attach city tile", one for the action "taxi ride", one for the action "truck delivery" and two for the action "draw city tile". Place these tiles face up on the table.

Every player gets a number of vehicles in their color depending on the number of players:

• 2 players (red, yellow): 8 taxis and 3 trucks each
• 3 players (red, yellow, blue): 5 taxis and 2 trucks each
• 4 players (red, yellow, blue, green): 4 taxis and 2 trucks each

Any taxis and trucks that were not handed out to players are not used in the game and remain in the box.

The player who was last in New York is the starting player (— if this cannot be determined for whatever reason then the youngest player starts).

Game Objective

The aim of the game is to bring as many of your own vehicles into play as you can. The winner is the player who can first place all his vehicles. If nobody is able to do that, the player with the most points at game end wins. A delivery truck on the map always counts as 2 points, a taxi on the map always 1 point.

Play

Players take turns in clockwise order. The player whose turn it is (the "active player") may do 2 of the following 4 actions:

• "attach city tile" action
• "taxi ride" action
• "truck delivery" action
• "draw city tile" action

Actions must be done in a certain order: The action "attach city tile", if chosen, must always be done before any other actions in a turn. The action "draw city tile", if chosen, must always be done last in a turn. The tiles a player draws thus cannot be used until the player's next turn. Both "attach city tile" and "draw city tile" may be done twice in a turn. In these cases the player may do no other actions in his turn, since he may only do 2 actions per turn. The actions "taxi ride" and "truck delivery" may only be done once each per turn. A player may use his two actions to do both a "taxi ride" and a "truck delivery". (He does not attach or draw any city tiles then.) The player may choose in which order to do the "taxi ride" and "truck delivery" actions between each other.

Actions in Detail

1. Attach City Tile

This action consists of properly attaching one city tile to the existing map:

• The city tile must match in both color and symbol with every side it is attached to the existing map. Attaching a tile with only one side to the map is enough.
• If a large square of four city tiles is created through of the placement of a tile, then the player may immediately place one of his vehicles (either a taxi or a truck) that is currently not on the map on the newly created intersection or corner in the center of that "square".
• If the player succeeds in creating more than one of these "squares", then he may place a vehicle of his on every intersection or corner completed thus.
• IMPORTANT NOTE: the placement of a new vehicle is not a separate action but a result of the attaching of city tiles.
• Whenever a player places a new vehicle (taxi or truck), then he may compete with his opponents on the affected streets (see "Competing" below). "Competing" is also not a separate action.

2. A) Taxi Ride

The player may move one of his taxis on the map to any other intersection or corner:

• It may only move through or into intersections and corners on which there are no other vehicles. Both vehicles of his own and that of other players block an intersection or corner and thus limit the possibilities of where the taxi may go.
• Please note: As long as an intersection or corner is incomplete, because not all four tiles, which would touch that tile corner, have been placed there yet, then you may not stop at nor move through that point. A vehicle may also not use "half completed roads" along the edge of the map.
• A player may compete with his opponents from the new position of the taxi (see "Competing" below).

2. B) Truck Delivery

The player may move one of his trucks on the map to an adjacent intersection or corner.

• There may be no other vehicles there (neither one of his own nor that of a competitor).
• A truck moves differently than a taxi. It may only move from one corner of a tile to one of the next ones.
• Please note: If an intersection or corner is incomplete, because there are not four tiles attached to that corner yet, then you may not move there.
• If a player also chooses the "taxi ride" action, then he may do the two actions in an order of his choice.
• A player may compete with his opponents from the new position of the truck (see "Competing" below).

3. Draw City Tile

The player draws one of the face down city tiles:

• Drawing is always the last action of a player in a turn. Newly drawn tiles can thus not be used until the next round.
• A player may draw two city tiles, if he does not do any other action in this round.
• When all city tiles have been drawn, then there are no more "draw city tile" actions in the last round. The player must either choose other actions or forfeit one or two actions (see also "End of Game").

Competing

"COMPETE": This is not an action of its own. If the player placed a new vehicle though the attachment of a city tile, or if he moved one his vehicles using an action, then the active player may "compete" with other players on both of the streets (sometimes it is only one street) that intersect with the position of the moved or newly placed vehicle.

Example: After a "taxi ride" the green taxi is at an intersection with vehicles of other colors. Since green has more points on the horizontal street than both yellow and red, both the yellow taxi and the red truck are removed. On the vertical street yellow has more points, but since green is the active player, his green taxi stays here. Blue is not on either of the two streets that intersect with the green taxi, so he is not competing with green.

• A truck counts as 2 points each, a taxi 1 point each.
• If the player (with the moved or newly placed vehicle) has more points on one of these roads than a competitor on the same road, then the inferior player must remove his vehicles from that road back into his supply.
• The strength of a player on a road is determined individually for each player. This means only the vehicles of one color are counted together each. It can happen that there are multiple inferior players on a street in which case all those players must remove their vehicles from there.
• If there is a tie in points, then no vehicles are removed from the street.
• IMPORTANT NOTE: Players need only remove vehicles from streets onto which the active player moved or newly placed a vehicle. All vehicles on other streets remain standing – even if a player has more vehicles or points there.

How Far Does a Street Go?

For the purpose of this game a street is always a straight line either horizontally or vertically. If there is a turn in the road, then the street ends there and a new one begins. Streets also end at the edge of the map, at parks and bodies of water. A street on the other side of a park or body of water counts as a separate street.

End of Game

• The game ends immediately when a player has placed his last vehicle (this includes all his taxis and trucks, even those which he had to take back during the game).
• If no player is able to place all their vehicles before all city tiles have been drawn, then exactly one more round is played (without drawing any more city tiles). This means every player gets one more turn, the player who drew the last tile being last.

Score: The players get points for their vehicles on the map: every truck counts 2 points and every taxi counts 1 point. The player with the most points wins.