Mykerinos: Special Edition

Mykerinos: Special Edition Rulebook

Table of Contents

Components

Prestige board (with action summary and tiebreak area)
5 museum wings (one for each type of patron)
Museum board
4 prestige markers (1 per player)
100 archaeologists (25 per player)
4 tiebreak markers (1 per player)
1 starting player marker
36 plot cards (35 with a patron on the reverse side and 1 without a patron)

"The Nile" Expansion

12 blocking tokens (3 per player)
9 Nile cards (5 with a patron on the reverse side and 4 without a patron)

There is one plot that grants 5 prestige points but has no patron on the reverse side. If you claim it, score the points and return it to the box.

Setup

Place the museum board beside the table.
Shuffle the 5 museum wing tiles and place them randomly in the museum to complete it.
Place the prestige board on the other side of the table.
Choose a color and:
- A) Take the tiebreak marker and place it in your play area.
- B) Place the prestige marker on the "0" space of the prestige board.
- C) Place your 25 archaeologists together as a common reserve beside the table.
Randomly determine the starting player and give them the starting player marker.
Shuffle the 36 plot cards and place them in the center of the table.

The Cards

Each card in the game represents a plot of land divided into 6 spaces where players place their archaeologists.

Some spaces contain a pyramid, and no archaeologist may be placed there unless using the Explorer patron ability (see "Patrons" below).

In the center of each plot is an information cartouche showing:

The amount of prestige points (0, 2, or 3) gained when claiming it.
The symbol of the patron shown on the reverse side of the card.

Plot cards may also be rotated 180 degrees. This creates many more different regions.

These plots are joined together to create a region where players place their archaeologists in search of treasures.

Important Glossary

Plot: A card containing 6 spaces.
Scoring Area: The group formed by plots that will be scored at the end of each campaign.
Region: The set of 8 plots (4 scoring areas) during campaigns 1-3. In the final campaign, it consists of 12 plots (6 scoring areas).

All spaces in the plots that form a region are orthogonally adjacent (never diagonally adjacent), even if they belong to different scoring areas:

The separation between scoring areas is only a visual aid to indicate which two plots are scored together. It is not an obstacle, and spaces from different areas are adjacent.
The cartouche on each plot is informational and does not block adjacency.

The Regions

At the start of each campaign, create the playing region by grouping plots in pairs to form the scoring areas.

During campaigns 1-3, the region consists of 4 areas (8 plots) arranged in a grid of 2 rows by 2 columns. In the final campaign, the region is larger and consists of 6 areas (12 plots) arranged in 3 rows by 2 columns.

As shown in the illustration, slightly separate the areas so all players can clearly see the boundaries, since each one is scored independently.

How to Play

A game of Mykerinos lasts 4 campaigns, and each campaign is divided into 3 phases:

Phase 1 - Planning.
Phase 2 - Excavation.
Phase 3 - Delimitation.

Phase 1 - Planning

At the beginning of each campaign, prepare the excavation region as described above. Remember that campaigns 1-3 use a region of 4 scoring areas (8 plots), while the final campaign uses 6 scoring areas (12 plots).

Then, each player receives archaeologists from the general reserve according to the number of players:

2 players: 11 archaeologists of your color and 4 neutral archaeologists (see "Two-Player Games").
3 players: 11 archaeologists of your color.
4 players: 8 archaeologists of your color.

If a player does not have enough archaeologists in the reserve, they take as many as possible.

The archaeologists in front of you form your personal reserve, while those beside the table form the general reserve. It is important to distinguish between the two.

Phase 2 - Excavation

The player with the starting player marker begins by performing one of the 4 actions described below, and play proceeds clockwise.

A - Start an excavation
B - Expand an excavation
C - Appeal to a patron
D - Pass

A. Start an Excavation

Place 1 archaeologist from your personal reserve on any empty space in the region. You may not place it on a pyramid space.

You may start an excavation adjacent to your own existing excavations.

B. Expand an Excavation

Place 2 archaeologists from your personal reserve.

The first archaeologist (1) must be placed in an empty space adjacent (horizontally or vertically) to one of your previously placed archaeologists.
The second archaeologist (2) must be placed in an empty space adjacent to the archaeologist you just placed.

Neither archaeologist may be placed on a pyramid space.

C. Appeal to a Patron

Ask one of your patrons for assistance by rotating its card 90° and performing the action shown on the card. Each patron card may only be used once per campaign, but becomes available again at the beginning of the next campaign. If you have multiple cards of the same patron, you may use that patron multiple times.

This action is only available starting in the second campaign, since no player has patrons during the first campaign.

D. Pass

Place your tiebreak marker on the first available space (the lowest available number) in the tiebreak area of the prestige board. From this point on, you are out of the current campaign and must wait for the remaining players to finish.

Example: Since the "1" space is already occupied by Red, Blue passes and places their tiebreak marker on space "2".

When only one player remains active (that is, when all other players have passed), that player may perform only one more action. After doing so, they must pass.

The Patrons

Curator — Start an excavation (Action A) with 2 archaeologists instead of 1. Place the second archaeologist adjacent to the first one you just placed. Neither archaeologist may be placed on a pyramid space.

Example: After activating the Curator, Blue places 2 adjacent archaeologists.

Colonel — Expand an excavation (Action B) with 3 archaeologists instead of 2. Place the third archaeologist adjacent to the second one you just placed. None of them may be placed on a pyramid space.

Example: After activating the Colonel, Blue expands one of their excavations with 3 archaeologists, allowing them to enter another scoring area.

Explorer — Start an excavation (Action A) or expand an excavation (Action B) by placing 1 archaeologist (and only 1) on a pyramid space.

Example: Red is blocking Blue between two pyramids, but Blue expands their excavation using the Explorer and escapes through one of the pyramids.

Heiress — Take 1 archaeologist from the general reserve and add it to your personal reserve. Immediately afterward, either start an excavation (Action A) or expand an excavation (Action B). If there are no archaeologists left in the general reserve, you may not activate this character.

Example: Blue has run out of archaeologists and does not want to pass, so they activate the Heiress to take one from the general reserve and start an excavation.

Director — Place 1 archaeologist from your personal reserve into the museum, following the placement rules (see "The Museum" below).

Phase 3 - Delimitation

Once all players have passed, this phase begins in order to distribute plot cards and reserve museum rooms.

Examine the scoring areas one by one in the order indicated by the diagram. In each area, determine the reward order according to the number of archaeologists present.

The player with the most archaeologists chooses a reward first, followed by the others in descending order.

In the event of a tie, the tied player whose tiebreak marker is on the lowest-numbered space in the tiebreak area wins the tie.

The player in first place chooses ONE of these rewards:

Take one of the two plots from that area and place it in your play area with the patron side face up. If the card grants prestige points, score them immediately.
Take one of the archaeologists from that area and put them in the museum (see "The Museum" below).

The player in second place also chooses a reward in the same way. If the first player went to the museum, both plots remain available to choose from, or the second player may also go to the museum. If the first player claimed a plot, the second player may take the remaining plot or go to the museum.

Only if a plot remains unclaimed (because one or both previous players chose the museum) may the third player claim it. Likewise, if another plot still remains, the fourth player may claim it.

The third and fourth players may NEVER choose the museum as a reward.

Any unclaimed plots are returned to the box. All archaeologists are returned to the general reserve before proceeding to the next scoring area.

If you have no archaeologists in a scoring area, you cannot receive a reward there.

Example: Although Blue and White each have 3 archaeologists, Blue wins first place thanks to their tiebreak marker. White is second, Red third, and Black fourth.

Blue chooses the left plot (immediately scoring 2 prestige points and placing the card with the Director side visible). White decides to go to the museum. Finally, Red is lucky enough to claim the remaining plot and places it with the Heiress side visible. Black receives nothing, since no plots remain and the museum cannot be chosen.

End of a Campaign

The player in last place on the tiebreak track receives the starting player marker for the next campaign.

Remove all tiebreak markers and return them to their owners' play areas.

Refresh all used patron cards so they become available again.

Any archaeologists you do not use during a campaign are kept for the next one. If you know when to pass, you will have more archaeologists available later. Manage them wisely!

The Museum

The museum consists of five wings sponsored by different patrons. Each wing contains two rooms: a 3 value room and a 5 value room. These values indicate how many prestige points each card of that patron will grant at the end of the game.

Between the different museum wings are the 2 value rooms. At the end of the game, these rooms determine the prestige value of the cards belonging to the two adjacent patrons.

Example: Blue wants to score points for their Explorer cards. Since the value 3 room of that wing is occupied by Red, Blue enters the value 2 room, which also scores for the Heiress. This will later allow Blue to reach the Explorer value 5 room (if Red does not occupy it first).

Each museum room may contain only one archaeologist.

When placing your first archaeologist in the museum, it must be placed in a room accessible from the central fountain. As indicated by the arrows, these are the value 2 and value 3 rooms. You may only place an archaeologist in a value 5 room if you already have an archaeologist in an adjacent value 2 or value 3 room.

At the end of the game, players prepare the final exhibition. Each patron card scores according to the highest-value room reached for that patron (see "End of the Game" below).

End of the Game

At the end of the fourth campaign, the game ends and players hold the final exhibition in the museum to calculate prestige:

Each patron card grants prestige points equal to the highest-value room you occupy for that patron (2, 3, or 5 points). The values are not cumulative; only the highest one counts. If you have cards of a patron but occupy none of that patron's rooms, each such card is worth only 1 prestige point.
Each set of 5 different patrons grants 5 prestige points.

The player with the most prestige points wins the game. In the event of a tie, the tied player with the most archaeologists in their personal reserve wins. If still tied, victory is shared.

Example: Blue scores 5 prestige points for each Explorer card (3×5 = 15), 2 points for each Heiress card (2×2 = 4), 3 points for each Colonel card (3×3 = 9). For the remaining patrons, Blue has no presence in their museum wings, so each card is worth only 1 point (3×1 = 3). In addition, Blue has collected a set of 5 different patrons (+5 points), for a total of 36 prestige points.

Variants

Team Game

This variant allows play in teams of 2 versus 2. Seat players alternately around the table: (Team A - Team B - Team A - Team B). The game is played as a 4-player game with the following exceptions:

Phase 1 - Planning. At the beginning of each campaign, receive 5 archaeologists of your own color, and 3 archaeologists of your teammate's color.

Phase 2 - Excavation. You may perform an action normally using your own archaeologists, or perform an action using your teammate's archaeologists. This second option may only be used to start an excavation (Action A), or expand an excavation (Action B). You may not use your patrons to enhance actions performed with your teammate's archaeologists.

End of the Game. Each team's prestige score equals the score of the teammate with the LOWER prestige total.

Quick Game

Play only 3 campaigns. The first two campaigns with a region of 8 plots and the final one with 12 plots. Players begin with 2 patrons in their play area. At the start of the game:

Shuffle the plot cards and reveal 8 patron sides face up. If the 5-prestige-point plot appears, replace it.
Starting with the player holding the starting player marker and proceeding clockwise, each player takes one patron and places it in their playing area.
Then, in reverse order (starting with the player to the right of the starting player), each player takes a second patron and places it in their playing area.
If playing with fewer than 4 players, discard any remaining cards.

"The Nile" Expansion

Setup

Separate the 9 Nile cards according to their reverse sides and create two decks: 5 cards featuring a new patron, the Governor, and 4 cards with a neutral reverse side.

Place the special 8-prestige-point card (the one with 5 river spaces) at the bottom of the neutral deck.

Take the 3 blocking tokens of your color and place them in your play area.

During the fourth campaign, use the remaining 3 Nile cards (2 patron cards and the special 8-prestige-point card).

Nile cards are plot cards that also contain 6 spaces, some of which are land spaces (with or without pyramids) and others river spaces.

Any land spaces covered by the Nile card are not used during the game and are replaced by the land spaces on the Nile card.

River spaces do not belong to any scoring area. Instead, all river spaces together form a new area that will be scored during Phase 3.

The land spaces on each Nile card belong to the adjacent scoring area. The left-bank spaces belong to the left scoring area, and the right-bank spaces belong to the right scoring area.

Phase 1 - Planning

After preparing the terrain, draw one Nile card from each deck (one with a patron and one without) and place them plot side up to connect the scoring areas horizontally.

Leave the cartouches of the lower plots visible so the rewards remain clear.

Phase 2 - Excavation

The rules remain the same with these additions:

Players may start an excavation (Action A) or expand an excavation (Action B) by placing archaeologists on river spaces.
Starting in the second campaign, players may appeal to a patron (Action C) to activate the Governor's ability.

Governor — Start an excavation (Action A) or expand an excavation (Action B), then place one of your blocking tokens on an empty space in the region or museum.

For the remainder of this phase, no other player may place an archaeologist or blocking token on that space.

Only you may place something there later during one of your turns. If you do, return the blocking token to your play area so it can be used again later.

Example: During Nile scoring, Blue finishes first with 2 archaeologists and takes the patron card, immediately scoring 3 prestige points. Red finishes second (thanks to the tiebreak) and receives the other reward. Black receives nothing. When removing the Nile cards, the archaeologists belonging to Blue and Black (1 and 2), who were on the right bank, must be relocated onto the spaces of the underlying plots in order to count for the normal scoring.

Phase 3 - Delimitation

Retrieve any unclaimed blocking tokens remaining in the region or museum. Before scoring the plots, distribute the Nile cards by checking all archaeologists located on ALL river spaces in the region:

The player with the most archaeologists chooses one Nile card as a reward.
The second-place player receives the other card.
During this distribution, players may not choose the museum. Third- and fourth-place players receive nothing.
During the fourth campaign, there are 3 Nile cards (2 with patrons and the special 8-prestige-point card), so any unclaimed card is returned to the box.

After scoring the Nile and removing its cards, all archaeologists on river spaces return to the general reserve and the archaeologists on land spaces are moved onto the corresponding spaces of the covered scoring areas. Then, score the scoring areas normally.

End of the Game

Governor cards do not grant additional points directly. However, at the end of the game, they act as wild cards when forming a set of 5 different patrons for the additional 5 prestige points.

Cards without patrons feature a special effect in the blue cartouche. When claiming one, apply the following effect:

Score 1 prestige point and immediately take 1 archaeologist from the general reserve.
Immediately take 2 archaeologists from the general reserve.
Keep this card in your play area. At any moment during Phase 3 of this or a later campaign, you may discard it to win a tie you are involved in.
Score 8 prestige points.

Two-Player Games

Use the same rules as a 3-player game with the following differences:

Setup

Choose an unused color to represent a neutral player. Place a marker of that color on space "2" of the tiebreak area. This ensures that the first player to pass always wins ties and the second player always loses them.

Phase 1 - Planning

At the start of each campaign, each player takes their 11 archaeologists, and 4 neutral archaeologists from the general reserve.

Phase 2 - Excavation

After performing your normal action, you may perform an action with the neutral player. This may be Start an excavation (Action A) using 1 neutral archaeologist, or Expand an excavation (Action B) using neutral archaeologists. Neutral archaeologists cannot benefit from your patron cards.

Example: Blue starts a new excavation (1). Then Blue uses 2 neutral archaeologists to expand an existing neutral excavation (2 and 3), blocking Black.

Phase 3 - Delimitation

The neutral player may never choose the museum as a reward; they always claim a plot and discard it. To determine which plot is discarded:

If the neutral player finishes first, the player in third place chooses which plot is discarded.
If the neutral player finishes second, the player in first place chooses which plot is discarded.
If only neutral archaeologists occupy a scoring area, both plots are discarded.

Example: The neutral player wins the area, so Black decides to discard the Explorer card (the one Blue most wanted to complete a set of 5 different patrons). Blue then uses second place to go to the museum, and Black takes the remaining plot.