Mercatores
Mercatores Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 Unloading card (karta Rozładunku)
- 1 Captain card (karta Kapitana)
- 22 special cards (karty specjalne)
- 60 goods cards (karty towarów)
- Rulebook (instrukcja)
Goal of the Game
The goal is to collect as many coins as possible by the end of the game. The game has two phases: the first is the Investment phase, in which players trade, collect various goods and build trading infrastructure. Once one of the players has played a set number of cards, the Profit phase begins. During this phase, players cash in their cards and earn coins for them. The player with the most coins wins.
Setup
Set aside the Captain card and the Unloading card. Shuffle all the remaining cards and place them as a face-down stack (reverse side up) where all players have easy access. This forms the deck. Then reveal the top five cards of the deck face up beside the deck. These cards form the Market.
Each player draws five cards from the top of the deck and holds them in hand, secret from the other players.
The player who was most recently in a colonial goods shop (sklep kolonialny) becomes the first player.
Money
All goods cards and special cards have a coin symbol on their reverse side. When a player receives coins, they draw the corresponding number of cards from the top of the deck and place them beside themselves reverse side up, so that the coins are visible. The Captain card has two coins on its reverse side.
Goods Card Description
Each goods card shows:
- A - the ship symbol;
- B - the type of goods;
- C - the number of cards of this type of goods in the deck;
- D - the profit value: it states how many cards of this type of goods must be cashed in to receive the corresponding number of coins.
Course of the Game
The game consists of two phases, which follow one after the other. After the Profit phase ends, the game is over.
- Investment phase
- Profit phase
1. Investment Phase
The first player begins the Investment phase. Then, clockwise, the other players take their turns.
Player's Turn
A player's turn consists of two mandatory actions, carried out one after the other in the order given: first the Trade action, then the Loading action. A player may not skip either of these actions.
Players keep taking turns until one of them has at least 15 cards in their resources.
Trade Action
During this action, the player must give one of their cards to the Market. They choose any one card from their hand and place it beside the cards already lying on the Market.
- If the card placed was a goods card, the player draws any 2 cards from the Market and adds them to the cards in their hand.
- If the card placed was a special card, the player draws any 3 cards from the Market and adds them to the cards in their hand.
A card that the player has just placed on the Market may not be among the cards drawn.
(Diagram labels: special cards; goods cards.)
Loading Action
During this action, the player places goods on their ships and expands the port infrastructure. The player must choose one of three possible ways to carry out this action.
Option I
The player may play from hand any number of cards of the same goods. The player selects any number of cards showing the same goods from their hand and lays them on the table in front of themselves, in a spread-out pile. If the player already has that goods in front of them, they add the new cards to the existing pile.
All the cards lying in front of a player make up their RESOURCES. A player may have at most five piles of different goods in their resources, plus any number of special cards.
Option II
The player may play two different goods cards from their hand. The player selects two cards showing different goods from their hand and lays them on the table in two separate piles. If the player already has piles of these goods started in front of them, they simply add the cards to those piles.
Option III
The player may play one special card from their hand. The player selects one special card from their hand and lays it in front of themselves on the table. Special cards are not arranged in piles. Each of these cards is independent.
After completing the second action, the player must still replenish the Market: they add cards from the top of the deck to the Market until there are 5 cards on it. Their turn ends at this moment. The player seated to their left then begins their turn.
A player may not play all the cards they hold in hand. At the end of their turn, they must have at least one card in hand. The only exception is the end of the Investment phase (see End of the Investment phase).
End of the Investment Phase
When one of the players has 15 or more cards in their resources at the end of their turn, the Investment phase ends. Each player may still play one more turn. During the end of the Investment phase, a player may bring about a situation in which, at the end of their turn, they have no cards in hand.
2. Profit Phase
The Profit phase is divided into rounds. In each round, every player will be able to take one turn. The player holding the Captain card receives the Unloading card and begins the first round of the Profit phase. Players then take their turns in turn, clockwise.
Player's Turn
A player's turn consists of two steps.
Step 1 (tax)
The player discards one goods card of their choice from their resources. They place this card beside the deck, forming a discard pile.
NOTE: A player holding the Unloading card skips this step.
Step 2 (cashing in resources)
In this step, the player may cash in one of their piles of goods or one special card.
To cash in a pile of goods, the player discards all the cards of that goods from their resources onto the discard pile. They then receive coins according to the profit value of that goods. The player must discard all of the goods cards of that type they hold.
Example of cashing in a pile of goods: A player has 6 tobacco cards. The profit value on this card states that if the player cashes in at least 5 such cards, they receive two coins. The player discards all their tobacco cards onto the discard pile. They then draw two cards from the top of the deck and place them reverse side up in their resources.
To cash in a special card, the player discards it onto the discard pile. They then receive coins according to the profit value of that card.
Special Cards Cashed In by Type
Warehouse (Magazyn)
The player determines how many different types of goods they have in their resources. They then receive coins according to the profit value on the Warehouse card.
Example: A player has 3 tobacco cards, 2 corn cards and 5 cotton cards in their resources. The player therefore has 3 different goods. The player discards the Warehouse card onto the discard pile, and then draws one coin from the deck and places it in their resources.
Quay (Nabrzeże)
The player determines the number of ship symbols on the goods cards of the players indicated by the card. They then receive coins according to the profit value on the Quay card.
NOTE: In a two-player game, if the arrows on the Quay card point left and right, then when this card is cashed in the player counts the ships on the goods cards in both their own resources and the opponent's resources twice.
Example: A player has a Quay card with arrows pointing down and left. This means the player must count the ship symbols on the goods cards in their own resources and on the goods cards in the resources of the opponent seated to their left. In total there are 12. The player discards the Quay card onto the discard pile, and then draws 2 coins and places them in their resources.
Trade Route (Szlak handlowy)
The player chooses one of the opponents. They then determine the number of cards of the goods shown on the Trade Route card in their own resources. To this number they add the number of cards of the same goods in their opponent's resources. They compare the result with the profit value on the Trade Route card and receive the corresponding number of coins.
Example: A player cashes in a Trade Route card for cotton. They have 3 cotton cards in their resources. The chosen opponent has 5 cotton cards in their resources. The total amount of cotton between the two players is therefore 8. The player discards the Trade Route card onto the discard pile and draws 3 coins from the deck.
Note: during a player's turn, they may cash in ONLY ONE special card, even if they have more special cards of that type in their resources.
Further Turn Rules
A player holding the Unloading card skips step one during their turn. They do not pay tax.
If a player has no cards in their resources that they could cash in during their turn, they choose one of their special cards or one pile of goods and discard it without receiving coins.
Once every player has completed their turn, the player holding the Unloading card passes it to the player on their left. The player who has just received the Unloading card begins the next round.
If a player no longer has any special cards or goods cards in their resources, their turn is skipped.
End of the Profit Phase
When no player has any cards left that they could cash in, the Profit phase ends.
End of the Game
After both phases of the game are over, the game ends. Each player counts the coins they have. The player holding the Captain card turns it reverse side up. This card counts as 2 coins.
The player with the most coins wins.