Next Station: Berlin
Next Station: Berlin Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
GAME CONTENTS
- 5 Station cards "Bear"
- 5 Objective cards
- 1 pad of 100 maps of Berlin (double-sided)
- 5 Station cards "Crown"
- 5 Effect cards
- 4 colored pencils
- 1 Station card "Double Switch"
- 4 Round cards
SETUP
Each of you takes 1 map of Berlin and 1 colored pencil of your choice and places both in front of you.
- With 3 players: place the remaining pencil between 2 players of your choice — you will need it later.
- With 2 players: place one of the remaining pencils to your left and the other to your right, between you — you will need them later.
- Solo game: see Solo Mode.
Shuffle all 11 Station cards together and place them face down as a stack in the middle of your playing area.
The Objective cards, Effect cards and Round cards are only needed for the Advanced Game. We recommend playing your first games without these 2 modules.
MAP OF BERLIN
In the large area of the map you draw your U-Bahn lines by connecting stations with each other. In the lower area you note your scores.
Berlin is divided by yellow lines into 12 city districts:
- 8 main districts, each with several stations
- 4 outer districts, one in each of the 4 corners, each with 1 station
The river shown on the map, the Spree, has no significance in this game.
GAME OVERVIEW
You always all play simultaneously. A game runs over 4 rounds. Each round is divided into 4 phases, carried out in this order:
- Phase 1: Find starting stations
- Phase 2: Draw U-Bahn lines
- Phase 3: Determine points
- Phase 4: Prepare the next round
After the 4th round, the game ends with a final scoring.
PHASE 1: FIND STARTING STATIONS
In each round you draw 2 new U-Bahn lines in a different color. To do this, each of you has 2 personal starting stations in every round. Your 2 starting stations for the current round are the two stations that share the same color as your current pencil.
Example: the starting stations of the player with the green pencil; the starting stations of the player with the pink pencil.
In the left half of the map lies the starting station for your "Bear" U-Bahn line, and in the right half of the map lies the starting station for your "Crown" U-Bahn line.
PHASE 2: DRAW U-BAHN LINES
In this phase you use your pencil to draw, over the course of several turns, 2 U-Bahn lines, each made up of one or more sections of track of the same color joined end to end. A section of track is a direct connection between 2 stations, with no other station lying in between.
SEQUENCE OF A TURN
This phase consists of 5–9 turns, depending on which Station cards are revealed. On each turn, you first reveal the top Station card from the stack and lay it face up. Then all of you simultaneously draw 1 section of track on your map with your pencil. As soon as everyone has drawn a section, the next turn begins with revealing the next Station card.
Drawing is voluntary. If in a turn you cannot or do not want to draw a section, you simply pass for that turn.
Leave all revealed Station cards of a round visible. As soon as you have revealed the 5th "Bear" Station card or the 5th "Crown" Station card, you may draw one last section of track for the current round (or 2 last sections in the case of a Double Switch). After that, this phase ends.
STATION CARDS
Most Station cards show 1 of these 4 station symbols:
- Square
- Triangle
- Pentagon
- Circle
The section of track you draw on a turn must lead to a station with the same station symbol as shown on the revealed Station card.
In addition, most Station cards show 1 of these 2 line symbols:
- Bear
- Crown
The line symbol on the revealed Station card indicates for which of your two lines you draw the section of track on that turn. The first section of track of a line must start from your corresponding starting station. Every further section of the same line must start from one of the two ends of that line.
Example A: You are playing the green pencil this round. As the first Station card you reveal a Square for the "Bear" line. You decide to connect your "Bear" starting station to the Square station in the upper right. Your next section of the "Bear" line must start from either the Square station or the starting station, because these are the two current ends of your "Bear" line.
Example B: As the 2nd card you reveal a Circle for the "Bear" line. From the two ends of the "Bear" line you can reach 3 different Circle stations in total. You decide to draw a section from the Square station heading right to the blue "Crown" starting station.
Example C: As the 3rd card you reveal a Circle for the "Crown" line. You decide to draw a section from your "Crown" starting station to the Circle station directly above it.
CONNECTING BOTH STARTING STATIONS
If you manage to connect your two starting stations of the current color together during a round, you receive 10 additional points for this in Phase 3.
This usually happens by connecting your current "Bear" and "Crown" lines to each other. In rare cases it can already happen with your first line, before you have even started your second line, because several Station cards with the same line symbol were revealed in a row.
Once you have connected both starting stations, for the rest of the round you draw every further section of track from an end of your choice, regardless of the line symbol revealed.
Example D: Two turns later you reveal a Square for the "Crown" line. You draw a section of track from the Square station of the "Crown" line to the Square station of the "Bear" line. Now both starting stations are connected. From now on you may draw every further section at any of the 3 ends of your choice, no matter which line symbol is shown on the revealed Station card.
Example E: A new round. The first 4 Station cards revealed this round were all for the "Crown" line. Chris was able to connect both starting stations. For the rest of the round, Chris draws every further section independently of the line symbol on the revealed Station card. If a "Bear" card were revealed next, Chris could draw the next section either at the "Bear" starting station or at the "Crown" starting station, because these are the two current ends of the connected U-Bahn line.
SPECIAL SYMBOLS
The Station cards include 2 special symbols: Joker + S-Bahn, and Double Switch.
Joker + S-Bahn: if the revealed card shows these symbols, you may freely choose which station symbol your section of track leads to. (As usual, still respect the "Bear" or "Crown" line symbol.) The station that your new section leads to now becomes an S-Bahn station. Circle it with your pencil. If the station is already circled as an S-Bahn station from an earlier line, do not circle it again. (For the significance of S-Bahn stations, see Interchange Possibilities.)
Double Switch: if the revealed card shows this symbol, first reveal 1 additional Station card for this turn, since the Double Switch card carries no station symbol itself. The 2nd card determines the station symbol for the sections of track drawn this turn (this can also be a Joker, more on that below). You may now draw 2 new sections of track, one each for the "Bear" and "Crown" lines. Because of the Double Switch, you may branch off on both U-Bahn lines. This means that, optionally, you may start each of these 2 sections not only from an end of your current lines but from any station of your choice that is already connected to your respective current U-Bahn line. Respect the station symbol of the 2nd revealed card in each case. (The line symbol of the 2nd card has no meaning.) Branching off creates additional ends from which you may extend your current lines for the rest of this round.
Example F: You reveal the Double Switch and then a Triangle. (That the 2nd card shows a "Crown" has no meaning here.) Kim branches off on both lines and draws a new section to a Triangle station on each. From the next turn on, Kim has 3 ends available on each line to extend it.
Even if you have already connected your two starting stations when the Double Switch is revealed, you may still draw 2 sections of track, both of which may branch off. Both sections may start from the same station of your line, or they can be 2 different stations from which you draw the sections.
Example G: You reveal the Double Switch and then a Triangle. (That the 2nd card shows a "Bear" has no meaning here.) You have already connected your two starting stations. You decide to branch off at 2 different stations of your line and draw a new section to a Triangle station at each.
If, after the Double Switch, you reveal "Joker + S-Bahn" as the 2nd card, you may freely choose for both new sections which station symbols they lead to; these may also be different symbols. (The line symbol of the 2nd card has no meaning in this case either.) Note that both new stations become S-Bahn stations — circle them accordingly!
Example H: You reveal the Double Switch and then a Joker + S-Bahn. (That the 2nd card shows a "Bear" has no meaning here.) You have already connected your two starting stations and decide to branch off at 2 different stations of your line, once to a Triangle station and once to a Square station. You then circle both new stations as S-Bahn stations.
Note: if you reveal the Double Switch during the first turns of a round, no branches may yet be possible. Nevertheless, you still reveal a 2nd Station card and may draw 1 section of track for each of your two lines.
ROUTE OF THE TRACK
Every section of track must run straight and may not bend. It must follow the thin, grey dashed track options horizontally, vertically or diagonally.
Every section of track must connect 2 stations, without passing through another station and without crossing another section of track, regardless of color. U-Bahn lines may only cross at stations (see Interchange Possibilities).
Between 2 stations there may only ever be 1 section of track, never 2 in parallel.
You may not lead your U-Bahn line back to a station that you have already connected with the same line — in other words, you cannot form a loop. This is also not permitted with the Double Switch.
STARTING STATIONS
Starting stations have the same station symbols as normal stations. You can use them for U-Bahn lines of other colors as stations, once the matching station symbol is revealed. (This also applies to starting stations whose lines you will only draw in a later round.)
INTERCHANGE POSSIBILITIES
In each round you draw your U-Bahn lines in a different color (see Phase 4: Prepare the Next Round). This means that from the 2nd round onward you can form stations with interchange possibilities. Interchange possibilities are stations connected to 2, 3 or 4 U-Bahn lines of different colors. Such interchange possibilities earn you additional points in the final scoring — the more U-Bahn lines that meet at an interchange, the more points (see Final Scoring).
S-BAHN STATIONS
When you count the number of your stations with interchange possibilities of 2/3/4 U-Bahn lines during final scoring, each circled S-Bahn station does not count as 1 station but as 2 stations. But note: S-Bahn stations connected to only 1 U-Bahn line are not interchange possibilities.
Example I: in the section of the map shown here, Emma has 4 interchange possibilities with 2 U-Bahn lines (A). One further interchange possibility with 2 U-Bahn lines is also an S-Bahn station (B) and therefore counts as 2 stations. In total, Emma would count 6 stations as an interchange possibility with exactly 2 U-Bahn lines in the final scoring.
Emma also has 1 interchange possibility with 3 U-Bahn lines, which is also an S-Bahn station (C). Here Emma would count 2 stations as an interchange possibility with exactly 3 U-Bahn lines in the final scoring.
Emma has 3 further S-Bahn stations that are only connected to 1 U-Bahn line (D). These do not count as interchange possibilities.
ENDING A U-BAHN LINE
As soon as you have revealed the 5th "Bear" Station card or the 5th "Crown" Station card, you may draw one last section of track for the current round (or 2 last sections in the case of a Double Switch). After that, this phase ends.
PHASE 3: DETERMINE POINTS
In this phase you determine your score for the U-Bahn line(s) you have drawn this round, based on their route. For each round you have your own column below in the scoring area to fill in. Here it matters whether you now have 1 connected U-Bahn line or 2 separate U-Bahn lines of your current color.
1 CONNECTED U-BAHN LINE
- City districts: count the number of city districts that your U-Bahn line passes through and write this number in the 1st box. (Reminder: Berlin is divided into 12 city districts.)
- Stations: determine the district in which your line has the most stations. Write the number of stations in this district in the 2nd box.
- Connected starting stations: if both starting stations of this round are connected by your line, you receive 10 points for this, which you write in the 3rd box.
- Score: to get your score for the line, multiply the 1st number (city districts) by the 2nd number (stations) and then add the 10 points for connected starting stations, if applicable. Write this score in the 4th box.
Example J: Emma's brown U-Bahn line from this round passes through 7 city districts. The most stations of this line are in district No. 5, namely 3 stations. Both brown starting stations are connected by the line, which earns her 10 points. Emma's score for the brown line is 7 × 3 + 10 = 31 points.
Example K: In a later round, only all 5 "Bear" Station cards were revealed, but no "Crown" Station card and no Double Switch. Chris's brown line passes through 4 city districts, in one of which 3 stations are connected. For this Chris receives 4 × 3 = 12 points. The "Crown" starting station is not connected to the line, so Chris does not receive the 10 points for it.
2 SEPARATE U-BAHN LINES
If you have drawn 2 separate U-Bahn lines this round and have not connected them to each other, determine your points for both lines separately using the same principle as for 1 connected line, and then add both results together. (It is best to divide the 1st and 2nd boxes in the scoring area into 2 halves each for this.)
Example L: Kim's pink "Bear" line passes through 2 city districts, in one of which 4 stations are connected. For this Kim receives 2 × 4 points. Kim's pink "Crown" line also passes through 2 city districts, in one of which 3 stations are connected. For this Kim receives 2 × 3 points. In total, Kim receives (2 × 4) + (2 × 3) = 14 points for the pink lines.
PHASE 4: PREPARE THE NEXT ROUND
Now all of you pass your pencil to the left and take the pencil to your right. With 2 or 3 players, also use the pencils lying between you that you did not use this round, so that over the course of the 4 rounds each of you receives every pencil exactly once and can therefore draw lines in all 4 colors.
Shuffle all 11 Station cards again and place them face down as a new stack in the middle of your playing area. Then begin the next round again with Phase 1.
Note: at the end of the 4th round this phase is skipped. The game ends and you move on to the final scoring.
END OF THE GAME
After the 4th round you have all drawn U-Bahn lines in 4 colors and move on to the final scoring.
FINAL SCORING
- U-Bahn lines: add together the scores of all the lines you have noted so far and write the sum in the last box.
- Interchange possibilities: determine the number of stations with interchange possibilities that connect exactly 2 U-Bahn lines with each other. Write this number in the 1st box of the left column. Repeat this for interchange possibilities with exactly 3 and exactly 4 U-Bahn lines and write these in the corresponding boxes below. Note that circled S-Bahn stations do not count as 1 station but as 2 stations (see S-Bahn Stations). Then multiply these numbers by the point values shown to their left:
- Each interchange possibility with exactly 2 U-Bahn lines earns you 2 points.
- Each interchange possibility with exactly 3 U-Bahn lines earns you 5 points.
- Each interchange possibility with exactly 4 U-Bahn lines earns you 9 points.
- Write the results in the right column. Then add these 3 results together and write the sum in the box below.
Now determine your final result: add together your total points for U-Bahn lines and interchange possibilities and write this final result in the last box at the bottom right.
Whoever has the highest final result wins. In the event of a tie, among those tied, whoever scored the highest points with a single U-Bahn line scoring (regardless of whether it was 1 connected line or 2 separate lines) wins. If there is still a tie, you share the victory.
Example M: Emma scored 31 + 28 + 15 + 18 = 92 points with her U-Bahn lines. She has 9 interchange possibilities with 2 lines; 1 of these is an S-Bahn station and counts as 2 stations, so she notes 10 stations in total. A further interchange possibility with 3 lines is also an S-Bahn station, so she notes 2 stations here. Emma thus receives 20 + 10 = 30 points for interchange possibilities. Emma's final result is therefore 92 + 30 = 122 points.
ADVANCED GAME
Once you have some experience with Next Station: Berlin, you can expand the game. Two different modules are available: "Round Effects" and "Objective Cards". Each module is optional — you can freely choose whether to add just 1 module of your choice or play with both modules combined.
ROUND EFFECTS
Setup: lay the 4 Round cards sorted in ascending order in a column in the middle of your playing area. Shuffle the 5 Effect cards, place 1 of them face up to the right of each Round card. Return the remaining Effect card to the box — you will not need it this game.
How to play: each round is assigned exactly 1 effect. During the 1st round, you may all use the effect next to Round card No. 1. At the end of the round, turn the used Effect card face down. During the 2nd round, you may use the effect next to Round card No. 2, and so on.
Explanation of the Round Effects:
- Glimpse into the future: after you have laid out the Station card for the current round, you also reveal the top Station card of the stack for the following round before you draw your current section of track. You therefore always see the card for the following round before you have to decide which section to draw in the current round.
- Recurring Double Switch: if you reveal the Double Switch during a turn, shuffle it back into the stack at the end of the turn. If you should later reveal it a second time, do not shuffle it back in again.
- Triple outer districts: every outer district that you reach during this round counts as 3 districts in Phase 3 when determining your points for the current line(s). (For lines of other colors, the district does not count triple. The district also does not count triple for completing Objective cards.)
- Double stations: every station in the district where your line has the most stations at the end of this round counts as 2 stations in Phase 3 when determining your points for the current line. If you have 2 separate U-Bahn lines, this doubling applies to only 1 of these 2 lines, your choice. (For lines of other colors and for the final scoring, stations do not count double. Stations also do not count double for completing Objective cards.)
- Double tracks: during the whole round, you may optionally draw all of your sections of track parallel to sections of track that already exist. Note: parallel lines must always be different colors. A U-Bahn line can therefore never run parallel to itself; likewise the two same-colored lines "Bear" and "Crown" can never run parallel to each other. Note: this effect cannot be used in the 1st round. If you reveal this card for the 1st round, randomly swap it with one of the other 3 revealed cards!
Example N: while drawing your pink lines, you use the Double Tracks effect on 2 turns and draw 2 sections parallel to your already existing green line.
OBJECTIVE CARDS
Setup: shuffle all 5 Objective cards face down, reveal 2 of them and place them face up in the middle of your playing area. Return the remaining 3 Objective cards to the box — you will not need them this game.
How to play: nothing changes about how the game is played. The 2 revealed Objective cards are optional additional tasks that you can complete over the course of the game if you wish. Completed Objective cards earn you additional points in the final scoring.
Final scoring: for each completed Objective card, mark a purple "+10" box on the far right of the scoring area to receive 10 points each. Write the sum of your points for the Objective cards in the box below and add it when determining your final result.
Explanation of the Objective cards:
- Connect all stations in at least 2 main districts to your U-Bahn network. Outer districts are excluded from this.
- Connect at least 1 station in each of all 12 city districts to your U-Bahn network.
- Form an interchange-possibility station in at least 2 outer districts.
- Form at least 1 circled S-Bahn station in at least 6 city districts.
- Form at least 3 circled S-Bahn stations with your U-Bahn network, all of which are connected to 1 continuous U-Bahn line.
Example O: there are 2 S-Bahn stations on your green "Bear" line and 1 S-Bahn station on your green "Crown" line. You have not connected the two lines to each other, so the objective is not completed.
SOLO MODE
Setup: lay out the 4 colored pencils in a random order in front of you.
How to play: nothing changes about how the game is played. When a round ends, set the pencil you used aside until the end of the game and take the next pencil in the order laid out in front of you.
Final scoring: your goal is to score as many points as possible. Check the table to see how the Berlin city administration judges your performance.
Advanced game: you can use all of the advanced-game modules in solo mode. If you use "Objective Cards", subtract 10 points from your final result before checking your rating. If you use "Round Effects", subtract 25 points. (If you use both modules, subtract 35 points accordingly.)
CITY ADMINISTRATION'S ASSESSMENT
| Score | Assessment |
|---|---|
| 0–70 | The train has left! The city of Berlin thanks you, but with a performance like that you will hardly get any more contracts. Best to try again right away and show what you're really capable of! |
| 71–90 | Come on, there's more in you! With a network like that you won't exactly impress the city! |
| 91–110 | Your project is finished, but unfortunately there were a few mishaps in your designs. Still, you've made quite a name for yourself in network planning. |
| 111–130 | You've set the switches very well! A little more effort and you'll soon be the star of U-Bahn networks. |
| 131–150 | Bravo! All aboard! Thanks to your great performance, the Berlin U-Bahn runs like clockwork. And what efficiency! |
| 150+ | Congratulations! The rail network of a major city holds no secrets from you. You are a legend of Berlin's underground public transport! |