Northwest
Northwest Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 Exploration Board
- 4 Personal Journals
- 64 Memento Cubes
- 12 Pinecone Tokens
- 1 Hiker Pawn
- 1 Cloth Bag
- 1 Score Pad
- 4 Player Aid Cards
- 1 Player Manual
Setup
Randomly shuffle and roll all 64 Memento Cubes onto the Exploration Board and line the Memento Cubes into the 8 by 8 grid. Some Memento Cubes may now display Pinecone symbols on their topmost faces.
Give each player a Personal Journal of their choosing. Set the 10 Pinecone Tokens next to the Exploration Board in a supply so all players may reach them.
Give the Hiker Pawn to the person most recently walked in the woods. This is the first player. You are now ready to begin your Northwest adventure!
Gameplay
Throughout the game, players take turns moving the Hiker Pawn, collecting Memento Cubes, and placing cubes into their Personal Journals.
Pay attention to the Memento Cube taken by the previous player. This cube determines how you can move the Hiker Pawn during your turn.
First player's initial turn
- As the first player, choose a Mushroom Memento Cube anywhere on the Northwest Exploration Board.
- Pick up that Mushroom and replace it with the Hiker Pawn. (The Hiker Pawn now sits in the collected Mushroom's spot on the Exploration Board and guides the next player's movement.)
- Add the collected Mushroom to your Personal Journal, remembering to start your collection in the upper northwest corner. Be sure to keep the Memento Cube's topmost face as it appeared on the Exploration Board.
- If the chosen Memento Cube's topmost face displays a Pinecone, collect a Pinecone token from the supply.
All other turns
- Starting from the Hiker Pawn's location, follow the Exploration Rules for the Memento Cube that the prior player just collected to move along the Exploration Board.
- Choose a Memento Cube to pick up and replace it with the Hiker Pawn. Note: Only the first player must start by choosing a Mushroom on their first turn.*
- Add your collected Memento Cube to your Personal Journal following the Journaling Rules.
- If the chosen Memento Cube's topmost face displays a Pinecone, collect a Pinecone token from the supply.
- Play proceeds clockwise to the next player until the game ends.
*If at any point in the game, the Hiker does not have any Memento Cube options to pick up, the active player must choose a Mushroom cube anywhere on the Exploration Board.
Journal Rules
Each time you collect a Memento Cube, place it into your Journal without moving any cubes that are already there. You must place your first cube in your Personal Journal's northwest corner (marked with a star).
Place subsequent cubes so they orthogonally touch (share a side with) 1 or more of your previously-collected cubes. You may not place a Memento Cube outside of your Personal Journal.
Exploration Rules
Each type of Memento Cube offers a unique path for the active player. On your turn, travel options are based on the Memento Cube selected by the previous player.
For instance, if the current active player selects a Mushroom, the next active player must use the Mushroom rules below to move along the Exploration Board.
Mushrooms
The Pacific Northwest boasts one of the most diverse fungal ecosystems in the world. The region is a forager's paradise.
Active player must choose 1 Memento Cube in any space surrounding Hiker Pawn. (Includes diagonally adjacent spaces.)
Maples
Symbolizing a connection to the land, maple leaves have been used in traditional crafts, art, and ceremonies by many Indigenous peoples.
Active player must choose 1 Memento Cube immediately diagonal to the Hiker Pawn.
Ferns
Ferns form symbiotic relationships with fungi and provide essential habitat for small mammals, insects, and amphibians.
The active player must choose 1 Memento Cube immediately orthogonal (adjacent at a right angle but not diagonal) to the Hiker Pawn.
Bees
Pacific Northwest bees can produce unique flavored honeys, including blackberry honey and fireweed honey, that reflect the diverse flora of the region.
The active player must choose 1 Memento Cube exactly three spaces away from the Hiker Pawn in an L-shape, the same as a Knight's move in chess.
The L-shape movement either moves up or down one square vertically and over two squares horizontally OR up or down two squares vertically and over one square horizontally. You may travel over empty spaces.
Bigfoot
Bigfoot is one of the world's most famous cryptids and is often associated with the forests of the northwestern United States and Canada.
The active player must choose 1 Memento Cube in the same column or row as the Hiker Pawn. You may hop over empty spaces.
Running out of moves
As a legal move, the Hiker Pawn must replace a Memento Cube on the Exploration Board. If the active player does have a legal move, they must either:
- Choose to collect any one Mushroom left on the Exploration Board or
- Choose to use the In-game Pinecone power to reach a Memento Cube. If there are no more Mushrooms left and the active player is unable or unwilling to use a Pinecone power, the game ends immediately.
If there are no more Mushrooms left and the active player is unable or unwilling to use a Pinecone power, the game ends immediately.
Pinecone Powers
Pinecones play a crucial role in forest regeneration. They protect and disperse the seeds of coniferous trees, contributing to the growth of new forests.
If you collect a Memento Cube with a Pinecone symbol on its upward face, take a Pinecone token from the supply. To use a Pinecone, return it to the supply, where it may be collected by you or other players in future turns. If all Pinecone Tokens have been taken, the symbol has no effect.
In-game Power
After moving the Hiker Pawn according to the Exploration Rules, the active player may spend 1 Pinecone to extend the Hiker Pawn's movement by 1 additional orthogonal space (adjacent by right angle not diagonal). The active player can spend as many Pinecone Tokens as they have available to spend.
Incomplete Journals
In rare situations where not all players are able to complete their Journals at the end of the game, players receive 1 Pinecone for each empty space on their Journal (provided that there are Pinecones left in the supply).
VPs & Tie-breaker
In Northwest, Pinecones are worth 1 victory point each. In addition, they serve as a tiebreaker at the end of the game.
Endgame Conditions
The game ends immediately when either of these occur:
A. The active player cannot follow Exploration Rules to move the Hiker Pawn, and no Mushrooms remain on the Exploration Board
B. All players have filled their Personal Journals
Use the score pad to help sum up all the points per Scoring rules. Be sure to count all the Pinecone tokens and account for the Mushroom bonus. The player with the most Victory Points wins! If there is a tie, the player with the most Pinecone tokens wins. And if there is still a tie, the players share the victory!
Scoring
Each type of Memento Cube provides different scoring possibilities.
Mushrooms
1 VP for each Mushroom in your Personal Journal, regardless of where it is located.
The player with the most Mushroom Memento Cubes gains additional points equal to half of their Mushroom score, rounded up.
Example: Player A has 7 Mushrooms, more than any other player, so receives a Forager Bonus of 4. This is because 7/2 = 3.5 rounded up to 4. If there is a tie for the most Mushroom Memento Cubes, no additional VPs are awarded.
Ferns
2 VP for each Fern Memento Cube when they are orthogonally connected in a group of two or more Ferns (adjacent at a right angle but not diagonal). A single Fern by itself is worth 0 points.
Maples
2 VP for each Maple Memento Cube when they are diagonally connected in a group of two or more Maples. A single Maple is worth 0 VP.
Bees
1 VP for each unique Memento Cube that is not a Bee in the immediate spaces around the Bee (including diagonally). Bee Memento Cubes can be used to surround other Bees, but do not count as a unique Memento Cube for points. Each Bee can score up to 4 points.
Bigfoot
5 VP per solitary Bigfoot. If 2 or more Bigfoot Memento Cubes share the same column or row or are immediately adjacent in any direction (including diagonally), they score 0 points.
Pinecones
1 VP per unspent pinecone at game end (see Pinecone Powers).