Old West Empresario Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components & Setup
• How to Play
• Turn Options in Detail
  • Claim a Tile
  • Discard for Income
  • Activate Your Town
  • End of Round
• Game End and Scoring
• Credits
• Character Cards
  • Zebedee the Land Owner
  • Trent the Politician
  • Scarlett the Saloon Owner
  • Michelle the Blacksmith
  • Merle the Moonshiner
  • Nakoma the Translator
  • Royce the Shopkeep
  • Jake the Carpenter
  • Irving the Innkeeper
  • Jesse the Specialist
  • Sister Josephine
  • Sheriff Wen
• Building Reference
  • Native Settlement
  • Other buildings

Components & Setup

• 1 rulebook – read thoroughly before your first game. Keep this in reach of inquisitive players and rules lawyers during the game.

• 1 score pad – use this at the end of the game to tally everyone's score (you'll need a pen or pencil from your office or junk drawer).

• 6 die number tiles – set these in the middle of the play area, in order from 1 to 6. Draw and place two building tiles face up (colorful side showing) in a column under each die number tile, creating a supply of 12 face-up building tiles.

• 14 silver wanted cards – shuffle these and deal 3 face up above the line of die number tiles. These are bonus objectives for this game. Return the rest to the box.

• 14 gold wanted cards – find the three gold wanted cards that match the silver ones you dealt out, and place each one on top of the matching silver wanted card. Return the rest to the box.

• 62 building tiles – mix these in the box lid. You may use the box lid as a draw pile, or you may find it easier to stack the mixed tiles near the line of die number tiles. It does not matter if you stack them face up or face down.

  It's OK that you'll be able to see which building is on top of the stack and will be drawn next. Experienced players can use this information to their advantage.

• 36 money tokens (30 $1 coins and 6 $5 bank notes) – give three coins to each player. Put the rest of the money in a supply pile within reach of all players. You may make change at any time.

  Coins and VP tokens are not intended to be piece limited. You're unlikely to run out, but if you do, use any suitable proxy.

• 66 population (VP) tokens (60 1vp tokens and six 5vp tokens) – create a supply pile of 15 VP per player within reach of all players. Return any unused tokens to the box:

  • 2 players -- 30 VP
  • 3 players -- 45 VP
  • 4 players -- 60 VP

• 9 six-sided dice – use 2 dice per player in the game, plus 1. Return the rest to the box.

• 1 start player marker – give this to a player at random. That player will be the start player for the first round of the game. Start player will rotate clockwise each round.

• 4 Town Hall tiles – place one face up in front of each player to begin their town. Return any unused Town Hall tiles to the box, they won't be needed this game.

• 12 character cards – each with a Standard Empresario side and a unique character side. Deal two cards to each player and return the rest to the box. You may choose either of the two characters, or the Standard Empresario, to use during the game. Return the unchosen card to the box. For your first game, we recommend you use the Standard Empresario.

• Finally, deal each player 3 building tiles from the box lid. Choose 1 of those to place face down, adjacent to your Town Hall tile. This building is under construction. Discard the unchosen tiles. If using a draw stack, discarded tiles can be placed at the bottom of the stack in any order you choose. Otherwise, set them aside, and if the box lid is emptied, mix the discarded tiles back into the box lid.

  Note: Your character card may indicate that you start with a specific building type. Instead of taking 3 tiles to choose from, reveal tiles from the box lid until you find one of the appropriate type, place that tile face down adjacent to your Town Hall, and discard the rest.

You are ready to begin!

How to Play

Old West Empresario is played over a series of rounds. Each round, you will get 2 turns in which to draft a die and use it to either claim a building tile for your town, discard a building tile to gain income, or activate your town. At the end of each round, one die will remain, and each player will get to use it to activate 1 building in their town. The game will end at the end of a round when either one player's town has 15 constructed buildings in it, or the supply of population tokens is exhausted. After the game ends, tally each player's score with the provided score pad to determine the winner.

At the beginning of each round of Old West Empresario, roll two dice per player, plus 1, and place each on the die number tile corresponding to its result. Then take turns clockwise, starting with the start player.

On each of your turns, do the following, in order:

1. Choose one of the remaining dice on the die number tiles and set it aside.
2. Optionally pay 1 coin ONCE to adjust the die value +/-1. You may also change a 6 to a 1 this way, or a 1 to a 6.
3. According to the die value, do one of the following:
   • Claim a tile from that column
   • Discard a tile from that column for income
   • Activate your town

Turn Options in Detail

Claim a Tile

Take one of the two tiles in the column matching the value on your die (remember, you might have paid to change the value +/-1) and place it, face down, orthogonally adjacent (not diagonally) to a constructed (face up) building in your town. This building is under construction, you may not activate it or place new tiles next to it (unless those tiles are also next to a different, constructed building). Immediately replace the claimed tile with a new one from the box lid.

Discard for Income

Take one of the two tiles in the column matching the value on your die (remember, you might have paid to change the value +/-1), discard the tile, and collect 3 coins. Immediately replace the discarded tile with a new one from the box lid. If using a draw stack, discarded tiles can be placed at the bottom of the stack. Otherwise, set them aside, and if the box lid is emptied, mix the discarded tiles back into the box lid.

Activate Your Town

Instead of taking a tile from the supply, you may activate ALL constructed (face-up) tiles in your town with activation numbers matching the value on your die (remember, you might have paid to change the value +/-1). You may activate those tiles in any order, and you may choose not to activate all of them. Your Town Hall tile activates on any die value.

Note: You may find it helpful to tilt your building tiles slightly (turn them sideways) as you activate them to keep track of which have been used, especially if you have many tiles with the same activation number.

Activating a building: When activating a building, carry out the effect in the effect block. An important rule applies when activating buildings: A building may never be activated more than once in a turn. This means that a building may be activated at most 3 times per round, once with each die chosen, and once with the leftover die.

Note: See the Building Reference table below for building effects.

Building a building: When building a building, take an unbuilt (face-down) tile in your town and turn it face up. Now it may be activated and claimed tiles may be placed adjacent to it.

Claiming a tile: When claiming a tile with a building action, follow the same procedure outlined above, as if you were claiming the tile with your turn option.

End of Round

After you have finished your turn, play proceeds clockwise. After each player has taken two turns in a round, 1 die will remain. In turn order, each player may use that leftover die to activate ONE of their constructed (face-up) building tiles. You may not +/-1 the leftover die.

Next, check to see if any player has 15 constructed buildings, the population token supply is exhausted, or the box lid is empty. If so, skip ahead to Game End and Scoring. If not, re-roll the dice to start the next round.

Running out of tiles: At the end of a 4 player game, the box lid may become empty. Once the last tile has been placed into the supply, the game will be over at the end of the round. Until then, keep playing as normal. If you claim a tile and there are no tiles left to replace it, leave that space empty. If there are no tiles in a column with a die left, you may still choose that die: you may still activate your town (as normal), you may still take income (discarding nothing), and you may still pay to change the die to another value.

Wanted cards: At any time, if you satisfy the conditions of one of the available wanted cards, you may claim the card. Take the gold card first, if it is available, otherwise take the silver card. If both cards have already been taken, then that objective is no longer available. These wanted cards are worth points at the end of the game.

Stock Icons: There are three scoring icons that can be found on some building tiles. These represent stock in three different industries: Oil (a droplet icon), Rail (a rail-tie icon), and Cotton (a cotton-boll icon). Each of these icons scores in a certain way at the end of the game:

• Rail: 1vp for each Rail icon in your largest contiguous group.
• Cotton: 1vp per contiguous group of Cotton icons.
• Oil: 1vp per Oil icon if you have the most Oil icons. 1vp per 2 Oil icons otherwise.

Game End and Scoring

The game ends at the end of a round if any of the following has occurred:

• Any player has 15 constructed buildings in their town (most common)
• The supply of population tokens has been exhausted (less common)
• The tile supply has run out (less common)

If the supply of population tokens (15 per player in the game) is exhausted, continue to collect tokens as necessary from those returned to the box at the beginning of the game, or use any suitable proxy.

When the game is over, use the score pad to tally each player's score. There is a line for each type of building, the wanted cards, three stock icons, population tokens, and leftover coins. See the Building Reference table below for the effect and scoring condition of each building type.

Credits

Game Design: Stanislav Kordonskiy Game Development: Seth Jaffee Art & Graphic Design: Sergi Marcet

Acknowledgments: We would like to thank everyone who contributed their time and ideas to the development and playtesting of this game, without whom the game would not be what it is today. Special thanks to all the folks in Stanislav's Tuesday playtest group, Patrick Lindsay, Holden Kim and Stan's wife Rachel, as well as Seth's playtesters, David Irving, Russell Knox, Jesse Pelletier, and Bridget Casey.

Character Cards

Zebedee the Land Owner

The patriarchal Zebedee starts with extra money and land! Start with 3 additional coins (6 total), and take 6 building tiles to choose from instead of 3. Choose two of those to start the game unbuilt in your town and discard the rest.

Trent the Politician

This entrepreneur has gone into politics, and his campaigning brings population into your town. Any time you activate your Town Hall, in addition you may pay 1 coin to collect 1 VP token. This can be done on a normal turn when activating your town, or with the leftover die at the end of the round.

Scarlett the Saloon Owner

This saloon owner hasn't lost her gambler's spirit! After choosing a die each turn, you may choose to gamble: re-roll the die and gain 2 coins! But if you do, you won't be allowed to pay to change the value this turn. You'll be stuck with whatever value you roll -- that's the gamble! You may gamble once each time you choose a die, not on the leftover die at the end of the round.

Michelle the Blacksmith

This tinkerer has opened up shop as a blacksmith. You may treat the leftover die at the end of each round as any value. This does not affect the value for other players.

Merle the Moonshiner

Merle can set up a still just about anywhere! Each time you activate your town, you may choose to treat one of your buildings as if it were a Distillery instead (pay 1 coin for 2 VP tokens). You may do this with a different building each time, including your Town Hall. You may not do this with the leftover die, only when activating your town as your turn action.

Nakoma the Translator

Every town in the old west can use a translator! As Nakoma you may +/-1 your die for free when you are claiming a tile (not when activating your town or discarding for income). You may still pay 1 coin to +/-1 your die once as normal. You may not do this with the leftover die, only when claiming a tile as your turn action.

Royce the Shopkeep

Royce the trader has set up shop! Every time you build a building, for each new color and stock icon you add to your town, collect 1 coin. Only collect a coin the first time each color and each stock icon is added. If one building adds both a new color and a new stock icon, collect 2 coins when you build it!

Jake the Carpenter

The prospector has settled down and become a carpenter, but he hasn't lost his love of gold! When activating your Town Hall, collect 1 coin first. This means your Town Hall can act like either a Carpenter or a Mine! You can use this ability any time you activate your Town Hall, including the leftover die at the end of the round.

Irving the Innkeeper

A friendly face can make anyone feel welcome! You may use the leftover die at the end of the round as if you had an Inn that activates on any number -- pay a coin and a VP token to take a building tile from the appropriate column. You may not pay to change the die value.

Jesse the Specialist

Sometimes it makes sense to specialize... During setup, instead of choosing 1 building out of 3 to start with, choose any color you like. Reveal tiles until you find the chosen color, and start with that tile in your town (unbuilt). Discard the rest. When activating your town, you may choose to ignore the number on the die, and choose a color instead. You may activate your Town Hall and all buildings of that color. You may not do this with the leftover die, only when activating your town as your turn action.

Sister Josephine

When pious Sister Josephine founded your first church, they held mass in your Town Hall! When activating your town, you may pay 1 coin to activate 1 additional building, just as if you had a Church that was activating as well. You may not do this with the leftover die, only when activating your town as your turn action.

Sheriff Wen

As she patrols the town at the end of each round, Sheriff Wen may activate one additional building. Use the value on the leftover die for this activation (you may not pay to change it). This way, you may activate 2 buildings with the leftover die.

Building Reference

This table lists every building tile's name, its activation effect, and its end-of-game scoring condition.

Native Settlement

Native Settlement tiles are built automatically when claimed, and activate once immediately when claimed -- and never again. There are five variants, each with a different one-time effect:

• Collect 1 VP token and $2.
• Collect 1 VP token. You may build 1 building.
• Collect 1 VP token. You may spend 2 VP tokens to claim any building tile from the display.
• Collect 1 VP token. You may pay $1 to activate 1 building.
• Collect 2 VP tokens.

Scoring: 4vp for biggest orthogonally contiguous group of Native Settlements.

Other buildings

Name	Effect	Scoring
Inn	Pay $1 and 1 VP token to claim a tile from the column = this activation number	1vp per adjacent Native Settlement (green)
Mine	Collect $2	2vp if adjacent to at least 1 Inn (pink); +1vp per adjacent Distillery (red)
Distillery	Pay $1 for 2 VP tokens	1vp per adjacent Saloon (blue)
Saloon	Collect $1 for each adjacent constructed building	1vp per adjacent Distillery (red)
Carpenter	Build 1 building	1vp for each adjacent Church (purple); +4vp if completely surrounded with 8 constructed buildings
Church	Pay $1 to activate a building in your town	1vp per adjacent empty space; +1vp per adjacent Carpenter (brown)
Well	No effect	1vp per adjacent constructed building (including diagonal)
Tax Office	No effect	1vp per $2 leftover (max 10vp)
Zoning Office	No effect	1vp for every pair of 2 matching building types in your town
Planning Office	No effect	2vp for each Wanted card you have achieved
Monument	No effect	1vp for each constructed Civic (white) building in your town
Library	No effect	1vp for each activation number represented in your town
Warehouse	No effect	3vp for each set of Oil / Rail / Cotton icons in your town
Census Bureau	No effect	1vp for every 2 VP tokens you have (max 8vp)
Courthouse	No effect	1vp for each tile with a chosen activation number
Native Affairs	No effect	1vp for each Native Settlement (green) tile in your town
Town Hall	Pay $1 to build 1 building OR Collect $1	No effect
Undertaker	Collect 1 VP token. Opponents discard $1, if they can.	-1vp for each adjacent building

Well, Tax Office, Zoning Office, Planning Office, Monument, Library, Warehouse, Census Bureau, Courthouse, and Native Affairs do not activate on any die value. Instead, they only have the end-of-game scoring bonus listed above.