Marco Polo II: The Caravans
Marco Polo II: The Caravans Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents and Setup
The setup of the base game applies, however, the material of this mini-expansion is added as follows:
Contents:
- 4 characters
- 5 caravans
- 10 route tiles
- 1 score board
Shuffle the 4 new characters together with the ones from the base game. Next, draw characters (number of players plus 1) and pick your characters, as usual.
Attention: In order to get to know the new characters, you can also start playing with just those instead.
Place the caravans, symbolized through boxes, next to the player board of the respective color. The gray caravan is only needed when playing Tartarino. Put all remaining caravans back into the box.
Place the scoring board next to the game board, clearly visible. Also place the route tiles next to the player supply, faceup and clearly visible, to form a supply.
The Routes
In this mini-expansion, you can travel along trade routes.
In order to successfully complete a route, both your caravan and your figure have to stand on the same space. How a caravan enters the game will be explained below. All actions that include a caravan are considered bonus actions (see page 12, base game rulebook).
Playing and Loading a Caravan
If your figure is standing on a city (not an oasis), you may take a route tile with the matching shield icon from the supply. This is your route now. Place your caravan on a city that shows the other shield of the route tile.
Next, you have to load your caravan with (pepper bag / silk bundle / gold bar) from your supply. You may decide which goods it shall transport. However, your caravan must not enter the game empty. If no fitting route tile is available, you cannot play your caravan.
Example: You are in the city of Fuzhou. As your caravan is still next to your player board, you take the route tile with the matching shield of the city. Next, you take your caravan and load it with 1 pepper bag and 1 gold bar. You place the caravan in the city of Chengdu.
Moving a Caravan
Each time, after having used the books (market), you may move your caravan. Using the first book allows you to move your caravan 1 space, the second book 1-2 spaces and the third book 1-3 spaces. In doing so, move your caravan in the same manner as your figure on the game board, save for the following variations:
Attention: a caravan can only travel by water if you have the matching guild seal.
- A caravan never triggers an outpost bonus.
- A caravan does not have to pay coins or goods when traveling.
- A caravan cannot place trading posts in a city.
Example: You use the market and take an action on the 2. book. After having completed the action, you move your caravan up to 2 spaces from Chengdu to Pagan.
Completing a Route
You may complete your route if both your caravan and your figure are standing on the same space.
Attention: Bonus actions must not be taken during another action. This means that you cannot complete your route when passing by, but only after having completed the movement.
You now have the following options regarding your transported goods:
- Double goods - place the goods from your caravan back into your supply and take another additional good of the same kind from the general supply.
- Improve goods - spend 1 pepper bag and take 1 silk bundle, or spend 1 silk bundle and take 1 gold bar. Put the improved goods into your supply. Gold bars cannot be improved!
- Sell goods - put the goods into the general supply and receive points according to the scoring tile.
You may decide separately for each good how you want to use it. After having done so, put the route tile back into the general supply, facedown, and place your caravan next to your player board.
Example: Your figure and caravan are in the same city (Pagan). You decide to sell the gold bar. You put the gold bar back into the general supply and receive 6 points.
Example: You decide to double the pepper bag. You put the pepper bag from your caravan back into your supply and take 1 additional pepper bag from the general supply. Next, you place the route tile back into the general supply, facedown, and place your caravan next to your player board.
Gameplay
At the beginning of each round, flip over all facedown route tiles, so that they are faceup. Those route tiles are now available again.
End of Game
If your caravan is still on the game board at the end of the game, you may sell all remaining goods for half of the usual points. This way, a gold bar is worth 3 points, a silk bundle 2 points and a pepper bag 1 point.
The New Characters - What Are Their Abilities?
Vidal Badoer (can be played in Marco Polo 1 and Marco Polo II alike)
- When completing contracts, you never pay goods or camels; however, you also never receive points for the contracts completed.
- When taking new contracts using the action space on the game board (in Marco Polo 1, as well as II), you only receive 1 contract. All other bonuses or conditions do still apply.
- At the final scoring (points for contracts), your contracts are counted as 4 completed contracts - regardless of whether you have completed more or less.
- Bonus action 1x per round: you may sell 1 set (pepper bag, silk bundle and gold bar) for 5 points.
Example: You complete a contract and take 2 jade pieces from the general supply. In order to do so, you do not have to pay; however, you also do not receive points.
Tebaldo Visconti da Piacenza (can only be played using this expansion and Marco Polo II)
- When moving your caravan, it may travel up to 2 extra spaces.
- When improving a guild seal, you do not have to pay coins.
- On top of that, you receive +1 shield at the final scoring.
Example: You want to move your caravan from Jaipur to Merw. As you possess the tailor's guild seal, the action on the 3. book does suffice. Thanks to your special ability, you can travel 5 spaces instead of 3.
Donata Badoer (can be played in Marco Polo 1 and Marco Polo II alike)
- At the beginning of the game, after all other players have taken their bonuses, you may take 3 remaining figures of different colors. If more than 3 are remaining, you may choose which ones to take. You may place these figures as a 6-value die onto a free action space.
When doing so, you must note the following:
- Each color can be used for all regularly available actions.
- You may use the figure in combination with other dice and/or also with other figures.
- You can also place the figure of your own or your fellow player's color on a city with a trading post of the same color.
- A figure of a color which does not belong to a player can also be placed in cities which do not have trading posts.
At the end of the action, the figure immediately leaves the game, meaning that the figure will never occupy a space.
Attention: If you have already placed all your dice, your turn is over, even if you have not placed any figures yet.
- Through this character's second ability, you receive 2 camels each time after having used an action which is already occupied by at least one other die.
Attention: You will never receive 2 camels for placing the remaining 3 figures, as they cannot be placed on an action space that is already occupied.
Example: You use the red figure in order to resolve an action in a city with a red trading post. You put 5 jade pieces and 5 camels from your supply into the general supply and thus receive 15 points. After that, put the figure back into the box.
Piedro Tartarino (can only be played using this expansion and Marco Polo II)
- At the beginning of the game you receive the 2nd neutral caravan. This means that you can have 2 caravans on the game board at the same time. Therefore, you may also take a second route tile, even if you already have one. Each caravan needs its own route. When moving your caravan, you may move both of your caravans the respective number of spaces (1-3).
- When scoring a caravan, you may put a tile of your choice back into the general supply. This way, you do not have to keep track of which caravan entered the game through which tile.
- On top of this, you receive 3 points and 1 jade for each completed route.
Exceptions
Mailin und Tian Chin, and Niccolo & Marco Polo + Donata Badoer
If your fellow players play characters who enable them to use their 2nd figure while you are playing Donata Badoer, you cannot choose their colors as bonus figure. However, there always have to be enough figures in order to be able to receive 3.
Mailin und Tian Chin in combination with the caravan:
When you play a new caravan, you must not place it in a city in which one of your figures is currently standing.