Next Station: Tokyo
Next Station: Tokyo Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Contents
- 1 pad with maps of Tokyo
- 4 different colored pencils: purple, blue, pink and brown
- 11 Station cards: 6 Street cards (pink background) and 5 Subway cards (green and yellow background)
- 5 Shared Objective cards
- 8 Special Station cards: 4 Symbol cards and 4 Effect cards
Main Rules
Object of the Game
Score as many points as you can by optimizing the routes of the 4 subway lines on your map of Tokyo.
Setup
- Each player takes one Map of Tokyo sheet and one colored pencil and places this in front of them.
- In a 3 player game, place the remaining pencil on the table between two of the players. This pencil will be used later in the game.
- In a 2 player game, place one each of the 2 remaining pencils to the left of both players. These pencils will be used later in the game.
- For the solo game, follow the instructions found at the end of these rules in the section titled SOLO MODE.
- When playing your first game, it is recommended to leave the 5 Shared Objective cards and the 8 Special Station cards in the box. They can be added in the future for a more advanced game after playing several rounds without them. See ADVANCED MODULES.
- The last player to have taken the subway is the controller for the first round.
Game Overview
The game is played over 4 rounds. In each round, all the players draw the specific subway line that matches their pencil color on their Map sheet. At the end of the game, everyone will have drawn their own network of 4 subway lines in the city of Tokyo, one line of each color.
Map of Tokyo
Each sheet shows the city of Tokyo where you will draw your subway lines and a scoring zone where you will note your points.
Districts
The city of Tokyo is split into 13 districts:
- 9 "Main" districts, each containing several subway stations,
- 4 "Secondary" districts, found on the four corners of the city and each containing a single subway station.
Stations
There are 4 kinds of station, each represented by a symbol: Square, Triangle, Pentagon, Circle.
Central Loop Line
A subway line is already drawn on your map of Tokyo: it is the central line of the city, represented by a continuous green line. This subway line forms a loop that connects 8 stations located around the central district of Tokyo. This loop will impose certain restrictions on the construction of your different subway lines: see Construction rules.
How to Play
In each of the 4 rounds of the game carry out the 4 following phases in order:
- Identify your departure station
- Build your subway line
- Score points for your line
- Get ready to build the next subway line
1 — Identify your departure station
Look at your map of Tokyo and find where your departure station (where your line will begin) is marked. This station is the same color as the pencil you are using in this round. Each player has one departure station that is theirs for the round.
Triangle: departure station for the player using the brown pencil for this round.
2 — Build your subway line
This construction phase comprises of several turns (between 5 and 10) according to the Station cards that are flipped over. On each turn, players can draw a line to complete a section of their subway line with their colored pencil to gradually build their subway line.
Sections of a Subway Line
A subway line is made up of several sections joined together. A section is a line directly joining two stations together.
- The controller for the round shuffles the 11 Station cards together and places these face down in a pile in the centre of the table.
- Each turn, the controller flips over the Station card at the top of the pile so it is face up. They place it in the middle of the playing area so that it and all previously drawn cards are visible. All the players then draw a section at the same time, respecting the Construction rules (see pages 7 to 13).
- When the controller flips over the 5th Subway card (green and yellow background) it signals the end of this round. Players can draw one last section on their subway line to link their line to a station with the symbol shown on this final card.
3 — Score points for your line
Each subway line scores you points according to its route through the different districts of Tokyo. Write the number of points you score for your subway line in your score zone (see page 14).
4 — Get ready to build the next subway line
(Skip this phase at the end of the 4th round!)
After you have recorded the points scored for your line, you will change pencils.
- Pass your pencil to the player on your left, and the player on your right will give you their pencil.
- In a 2 or 3 player game, if there is unused pencil to your right, take it instead. The player to your right places the pencil they just used on the table between the two of you.
- In a solo game, simply take the next pencil in order (see Solo Mode).
- Play the new round with the pencil you have just taken to draw a new subway line in this color. The person sitting to the left of the controller for the previous round becomes the controller for this round.
End of the Game
The game ends at the end of the fourth round when all players have drawn their network of 4 subway lines in different colors. Count up the points scored by your Tokyo subway network as follows:
- Points for the 4 lines: add all the points scored from your 4 subway lines and write this total in the last pink box at the bottom left of your score zone.
- Points for your Tourist Stamps collection: identify all the districts that you have marked during the game on your Tourist Stamps collection mini-map. Add up the values in the relevant areas and enter the total points in the blue box on your score line (see Interchanges pages 12 and 13).
- Points lost by the green central loop line: on your map of Tokyo, count the number of stations in the green loop line that were not connected to any of your 4 subway lines. Multiply this number of stations by 3 and enter the total in the green box on your score line. These points will be lost when calculating your final score. The maximum number of points that may be lost here are 24 points (3 points x 8 stations).
- Interchange station Points: these are the points to be scored for all of your Interchange stations connecting 3, 4 or 5 subway lines (see page 13).
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Count the number of Interchange stations of each type you have across your whole network and write these numbers in their corresponding squares.
Please note: the green central loop must be taken into account in the number of lines of each Interchange station.
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For each type, multiply the corresponding number by the number of points scored for each type:
- each Interchange station connecting 3 lines scores 5 points,
- each Interchange station connecting 4 lines scores 15 points,
- each Interchange station connecting 5 lines scores 30 points.
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Add together the points scored by each type of Interchange station and write this total in the corresponding purple square on your score line.
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- Work out your final score by adding the points of your 4 subway lines with the ones from your Tourist Stamps collection; then, subtract any points lost by the green central loop line and finish by adding the points generated by your Interchange stations. Write this total in the space found on the bottom right of your scoring zone.
Example: Katsuko scored a total of 75 points thanks to her four different coloured subway lines. In addition, over the 4 rounds of the game, she managed to collect Tourist Stamps in three different parts of the city. This collection generated her a total of 20 points, which are indicated on her mini-map. There are a total of 3 stations on the green loop line that Katsuko was not able to connect to her metro network, so she loses 9 points. Finally, she created 1 Interchange station connecting 4 lines: she therefore scores 15 points. At the end of the game, Katsuko has a final score of 101 points (75 + 20 - 9 + 15) for her entire Tokyo subway network.
The player with the highest score wins the game and is named the best subway planner in the town of Tokyo.
In the event of a tie, the player with the highest score for a single subway line is declared the winner. If a tie persists, the players involved share the victory for their brilliant planning!
Construction Rules
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Drawing a section is always optional. If you cannot or do not want to draw a section during a turn, ignore the Station card that has just been flipped over and wait for the next card.
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Each section that you draw must be a single straight line going horizontally, vertically or diagonally following the grey potential lines laid out on the map.
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The first section of a subway line must always be drawn starting from the departure station and must be connected to a station with the same symbol as shown on the card flipped over by the controller.
Example: Bunta is playing his first round with the brown pencil. His departure station is the one with the brown Triangle. The Station card flipped over by the controller shows a Circle. Bunta chooses to draw a section of his subway line going from his departure station to the Circle symbol to the top.
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Each section after this must be drawn from one end of your subway line and must connect to a station with the same symbol as shown on the card flipped over by the controller. Exception: see Station cards - Railroad Switch.
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Each of your sections must always link two stations together without crossing through another station or crossing over a section that has already been drawn, whether for this subway line or any other lines.
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Green central loop line: because the green central loop line is already present on your map of Tokyo, you cannot draw a new section which crosses this loop.
So, you must connect to one of the 8 stations on this green line to be able to extend your current subway line into or out of the central district of the city.
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Departure stations: as well as being the starting points for the different subway lines at the beginning of each round, the 4 stations below are also used like normal stations. This means that it is possible to connect other subway lines to these stations if a card with the corresponding symbol is flipped over.
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You cannot go back through a station that is already part of the same subway line.
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You cannot draw more than one section going between the same two stations. The only exception to this rule is when a Joker and Double Rail Track card is revealed: see Station Cards.
Station Cards
Joker and Double Rail Track card
- If this symbol appears on the card flipped over during a turn, then each player can pick any station symbol they like for the new section of their subway.
- In addition, each Joker card has a Double Rail Track symbol. The use of this Double Rail Track symbol is optional, each player is free to use it or not. This symbol allows each player to draw their section alongside an existing section between 2 stations, including alongside a section of the green central loop line, even alongside a curve.
Example: Hitomi uses a Joker symbol to draw her new section from the Square station down to the Triangle symbol at the bottom left of the central loop line. To do this, she chooses to use the Double Rail Track option, which allows her to run alongside this green subway line and reach the desired Triangle station.
Please note: the double tracks that you can create must be of different colours. In other words, you cannot draw a double track between two stations with the same colour pencil.
Moreover, 2 tracks are the maximum number of sections you may draw between 2 stations. You cannot draw any additional section, regardless of its colour.
Example: in a later round, Hitomi wants to use the Double Rail Track option shown by the revealed Joker and Double Rail Track card. She cannot draw the new pink section shown in the dotted line. Instead, she can create a double track going from the Square station up to the Circle station located above it, or up to the Triangle station located on its right side.
Railroad Switch symbol
Railroad Switch symbol: during a turn where the Railroad Switch card is flipped over, the controller immediately flips over the next Station card in the pile. This one is placed next to the Railroad Switch card and the combination of these two cards allows all the players to draw their new section starting from any of the stations already on their line.
This card allows players to create an additional branch of their subway line onto which players can add future sections until the end of the round.
Special circumstance: if the Railroad Switch card is flipped over by the controller on the first or second turn of the round then it is ignored.
Example: the controller flips over the Railroad Switch card and then immediately flips over the next Station card in the pile. This card shows the Circle symbol. Yasuhide could add a new section of his blue subway line going either to one of the two Circle symbols, as indicated by the respective blue double-arrows. However, he would rather take advantage of the Railroad Switch. He can use his Triangle station as an intermediate station and draw a section linking it to the Circle station located on top right side of it, as shown by the dotted line.
Interchanges
From the second round to the end of the game, it is possible to link several subway lines to the same station. This is called an Interchange station.
Interchange stations and Tourist Stamps collection
When you generate an Interchange station, it can earn you points for your collection of Tourist Stamps, depending on the district in which you create it.
The Tokyo city mini-map in your scoring zone shows you how many points you can earn depending on the district concerned.
- Every time you create a new Interchange station, immediately identify in which district it is located:
- if it is present in one of the 5 districts in the centre of the city, it does not score points for your Tourist Stamps collection. The town centre of Tokyo is already well known to all!
- if it is present in one of the 8 districts in the periphery of the city, then it scores you points for your collection of Tourist Stamps. On your mini-map, immediately color in the district in which you have created this Interchange station. This will increase your collection of Tourist Stamps and earn you points at the end of the game.
Example: at the beginning of the second round, Bunta starts the construction of his blue subway line. He draws his first section from the starting blue Pentagon up to the Triangle station located on its right side. As Bunta had already passed through this Pentagon station during the previous round with his pink subway line, he immediately creates a new Interchange at this Pentagon station.
Because this Interchange station is made in one of the 8 districts in the periphery of the city, it will earn points for his collection of Tourist Stamps. Bunta immediately colors in this district on his mini-map. It should be noted here that the Interchange formed between the blue and the green loop lines at the Triangle station doesn't count towards his Tourist Stamps collection because this station is located in one of the 5 inner districts.
Please note: once you have colored in a district on your mini-map, any new Interchange stations that you create later in this same district will not score you any additional points for your Tourist Stamps collection.
Interchange stations connecting 3 or more subway lines
Throughout the 4 rounds of the game, you may create Interchange stations connecting 3, 4 or even 5 subway lines, thanks to the existing green loop line. All these connections will score you extra points at the end of the game, according to the number of subway lines connected to them. See Interchange station Points (page 5).
Example: during a round, Hitomi connects her pink subway line from the Pentagon station up to the Square station, which she had already connected during a previous round with her brown subway line. As this station is also connected to the green loop line, Hitomi has generated an Interchange station with 3 subway lines, which will score her 5 points at the end of the game. During the following rounds, she may also try to connect more subway lines to this station in order to score more points.
Points for Your Line
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First, count how many different districts your subway line passes through. Write this number in the corresponding box.
Reminder: the city of Tokyo is split into 13 districts; 9 main districts and 4 secondary districts.
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Find the district in which your subway line passes through the most stations. Write the number of stations it passes through in that district in the corresponding box.
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To work out the total number of points scored by your line, multiply the number of different districts crossed by this line, by the largest number of stations crossed by this line in one district.
Example: Katsuko went through 5 different districts with her purple subway line. On this line, the district with the most stations crossed by the line has 4 stations. Katsuko scores a total of 20 points (5 x 4) for her purple line.
Advanced Modules
For a new challenge, you can play Next Station Tokyo with its advanced modules. Add either Shared Objective cards or Special Station cards into the mix, or even play with both sets of cards!
Shared Objectives (5 cards)
Setup
- Set up the game as explained in the original rules.
- Shuffle the 5 Shared Objective cards together face down and randomly draw 2 cards from the pile. Place these 2 cards face up next to the pile of Station cards. Any unused cards are placed back in the box.
How to Play
The 2 Shared Objective cards remain visible for the whole game. These are two independent objectives that each player can try to complete over the 4 rounds, and considers their network as a whole. Each objective that is reached by a player scores them 10 extra points at the end of the game.
Description of each Shared Objective card:
- (4+ Tourist Stamps) Draw your subway network such that you collect at least 4 Tourist Stamps in the city.
- (4+ lines Interchange) Draw your subway network such that you create an Interchange station with at least 4 different subway lines going through it.
- (x8 green loop) Draw your subway network such that you connect to all stations of the green loop line.
- (13 districts) Draw your subway network such that it connects to at least one station in every district of the city.
- (8 central) Draw your subway network such that it connects to all 8 stations in the central district of the city.
Final Scoring
- During the final scoring, for every Shared Objective that you have achieved with your subway network, tick a "+10" square in the corresponding zone.
- Add 10 points per objective achieved to your total to get your final score.
Special Stations: 4 Symbol cards (blue) and 4 Effect cards (orange)
Setup
- Set up the game as explained in the original rules.
- Then shuffle the 4 Symbol cards (blue), face down, and place them in a pile next to the Station cards.
- Shuffle the 4 Effect cards (orange), face down, and place them in a pile to the right side of the Symbol cards.
How to Play
- At the beginning of each round, the controller reveals the first Symbol card and the first Effect card from their respective piles.
- These two cards are linked to each other for the current round: each time the controller reveals any Station card with the same symbol as the one indicated by the blue card, then all players can use, if they wish, the special effect indicated by the orange card, in order to draw their corresponding section during this round.
Example: at the beginning of a round, the Symbol card revealed is the Circle and the Effect card revealed is the Railroad Switch symbol. Throughout that round, whenever the controller reveals any Station card with the Circle symbol, players may optionally draw their section that turn as a Railroad Switch, indicated by the orange Effect card.
- All effects are optional: each player is free to use it or not when the corresponding Station card is revealed by the controller.
- Moreover, the effect of an orange card is not applicable when the controller reveals a Joker card.
Description of each orange Effect card:
Railroad Switch: whenever the controller reveals a Station card with the same symbol as the blue card, all players may treat this Station card as if it were accompanied by the Railroad Switch symbol.
Joker and Double Rail Track: whenever the controller reveals a Station card with the same symbol as the blue card, all players may treat this Station card as if it were a Joker and Double Rail Track card.
Extension: whenever the controller reveals a Station Card with the same symbol as the blue card, all players firstly draw their corresponding subway section normally. Then, all players may draw a second section, directly after their first one. This second section must be drawn such that it immediately connects to a further accessible station, whatever its symbol, following a straight line in exactly the same direction as the first section drawn, always respecting the Construction rules.
Example: at the beginning of a round, the Square symbol is linked to the Extension effect. During this round, the controller reveals a Station card with the Square symbol. Yasuhide draws a section to connect the Circle station up to the Square station on its left side: this first section is represented in dotted lines. Then he decides to use the effect of the Extension card. Yasuhide draws a second section following a straight line from the first one, in order to reach the next accessible station in this direction, which is a Pentagon station here: this second section is represented by a single arrow.
- If you have not drawn any section during this round, you cannot apply the Extension effect.
- If no further station is accessible following a straight line from your first section, you cannot use this effect.
- Please note: when you benefit from the Extension effect, you cannot use it to create a Double Rail track.
The two examples below show that it is possible to draw a first section up to a Square station shown as dotted lines, but the Extension effect, shown as an arrow, is not applicable here as it is forbidden to create a Double Rail track.
Double Station: whenever the controller reveals a Station card with the same symbol as the blue card, all players firstly draw their corresponding subway section normally. Then all players may circle the station they have just connected to with a dotted line: this indicates that it will count as two stations, instead of one at the end of the round when they will score points for this line.
Example: at the beginning of a round, the Triangle symbol is linked to the Double Station effect. During this round, the controller reveals a Station card with the Triangle symbol. Hitomi draws a section to connect the Pentagon station down to the Triangle station at the bottom. She decides to use the Double Station effect: Hitomi circles this Triangle station, which will count as two, instead of one, when counting the points for her line. At the end of this round, the Double Station effect allows Hitomi to consider a total of 6 stations connected to this line, instead of 5, in the concerned district. She scores a total of 30 points generated by her purple line (30 = 5 x 6).
- Be aware, that this Double Station bonus will only count for the line you are building during this round. It will not count twice for any future lines that pass through this station in future rounds.
End of Round
At the end of each round, discard the revealed blue and orange cards. Then reveal new cards for the next round as described above: you will thus use all 4 Symbol cards and all 4 Effect cards during a game.
Compatibility with Next Station London
It is possible to combine advanced modules from Next Station London or Next Station Tokyo in these ways:
- Either, you can play Next Station Tokyo using the Pencil Power cards from the Next Station London game. To do so, apply the rules for pencil powers as described in the Next Station London rulebook.
- Or, you can play Next Station London using the Special Station cards from the Next Station Tokyo game. These cards are also compatible with the city map of London: apply the rules for Special Station cards as described in the Next Station Tokyo game rulebook.
- In either case, we recommend you don't use both the Special Stations and Pencil Powers modules at the same time.
- Please note also that you cannot swap Shared Objectives cards between the two games, as each objective is specific to the corresponding city map.
Solo Mode
You can play Next Station Tokyo by yourself in the solo mode.
Setup
- Place the 4 colored pencils on the playing area in any order in front of you.
- If you wish, you can add either Shared Objective or Special Station cards, or even both of them! Set up the game as explained above according to each advanced module added.
How to Play
All the rules are the same as for an ordinary game.
The order that you have placed the pencils is the order that you will draw your corresponding subway lines.
Your goal is to optimize your rail network to earn as many points as possible and receive the emperor's congratulations!
Final Scoring
When playing with either or both of the modules, subtract 10 points from your score for each module used before checking the achievement table.
| Score | Result |
|---|---|
| < 70 | LAST STOP! Everybody off! You will need to roll up your sleeves and not sleep between stations! |
| 71 < ... < 85 | Did you take the wrong tunnel on the way? Try your luck again and use the right railroad switch this time. |
| 86 < ... < 100 | That's it! Your project is taking off! Carry on like this and you'll be the head of the construction team! |
| 101 < ... < 115 | Wow, you're a real site supervisor. It's great to see so many satisfied travellers! You're nearly there. |
| 116 < ... < 130 | There's no stopping you! The emperor will certainly hire you to expand the subway network! WELL DONE! |
| > 130 | You know the Tokyo subway network like the back of your hand! You really are the expert! CONGRATULATIONS! |
Credits
© 2023 Blue Orange Edition. Next Station Tokyo and Blue Orange are trademarks of Blue Orange Edition, France. Game published and distributed under license by Blue Orange, 97 impasse Jean Lamour, 54700 Pont-à-Mousson, France. www.blueorangegames.eu