Secrets of the Sea
Secrets of the Sea Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 game board
- 1 treasure lamp
- 50 treasure tiles (light blue back and dark blue back)
- 7 wreck tiles (green back)
- 7 bonus tiles (round)
- 2 dice
Object of the Game
All treasures you collect during the game are worth points. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.
Setup
Before the first game, carefully punch out all tiles from the punch-out sheet and insert the batteries (as described on the enclosed instruction sheet) into the treasure lamp.
Place the game board in the middle of the table.
Place the lamp on the boat at the water surface.
Lay the round bonus tiles face up next to each other along the upper edge of the game board, around the boat.
Shuffle all treasure tiles with the light blue back facing up and place them on the designated spaces in the upper part of the game board.
Then shuffle the tiles with the dark blue back facing up and place them on the dark blue spaces in the lower part of the game board.
Place the 7 wreck tiles with the green back facing up, with their treasures facing up, on the wreck at the lower end of the board.
Set the two dice ready.
Playing the Game
Diving begins! The youngest player starts and rolls both dice. Then play continues clockwise.
The number on a die shows how many spaces you move the lamp straight down. If you roll an X, set that die aside. You cannot dive with this die.
If both dice show an X, your turn is unfortunately over.
If both dice show a number, you choose one of the two dice.
When choosing a die, note that the full number shown must be moved.
Choose from which dive buoy you want to make your descent, and move the lamp straight down as many spaces as the chosen die shows. Place the lamp over the tile. Note that in this dive you may only dive at this one buoy. (When you are next in turn, you may redetermine your dive path by again choosing freely between the five buoys.)
Note: The German text refers to "the five buoys" (fünf Bojen) and to the choice of buoy, but the rulebook does not describe the buoys or how they are placed on the board before this point.
Press the button on the lamp and see what lies beneath the tile. The lamp must stand firmly over the tile. Now all players can see what kind of treasure is hidden here. You may also lift the lamp slightly if not everyone can see the treasure symbol. Take care, however, that no neighbouring spaces are illuminated.
Once you have lit up the tile, you do not yet know how many treasures lie beneath it. Now decide whether to take the tile or dive even deeper.
Take the tile: In this case, remove the tile under the lamp, turn it over and lay it face up in front of you. You can now see how many treasures were hidden beneath the tile. Your turn is now over. Return the lamp to the boat, and the next player takes their turn.
Dive deeper: If you are brave, you may continue diving deeper. To do so, roll both dice again. If you rolled an X on the first roll, that die is blocked for the rest of this dive. You may only continue playing with one die. If both dice show an X after this roll, your turn is unfortunately over.
Otherwise, choose a die showing a number and dive the corresponding number of spaces further down in the same column. Note: empty spaces (without a treasure tile) also count. Pick up the lamp again, place it over the new tile and light it. Now you again face the decision: take the tile and turn it over, which ends your turn, or dive even deeper.
It is always a risk to dive further, but the treasures in the lower part of the game board are more valuable. If you manage to dive all the way down to the wreck, you may choose one of the wreck tiles on offer and lay it in front of you.
Bonus Tiles
As soon as a player has the number shown on a bonus tile of a treasure type in front of them, they may take the corresponding round bonus tile.
These bonus tiles cannot be taken away from a player, even if another player later in the game collects more treasure tiles of the same type.
Special Tiles
Sea Monsters
When a sea monster appears in the light of the lamp, you must turn the tile on the space over. You now see how many sea monsters you must fight. You roll again. Again, only the dice are available to you that you did not roll as an X earlier. If one of the rolled numbers is at least as large as the number of pips shown on the sea monster tile, you have won the fight. You may take the tile and lay it face up in front of you. If you fail, you have lost the fight and the tile stays on the space with its blue side up. In both cases your turn is over after the fight.
If another player later in the game lands on this tile, they must also fight the sea monsters.
Example: In the following example you must fight 3 sea monsters.
- If you still have both dice available:
- an X and a 3: fight won
- a 3 and a 1: fight won
- a 2 and a 1: fight lost
- If you may use only one die:
- You must roll at least one die with the required number of pips (3 in this example) to win the fight.
Exchange Symbol
When the exchange symbol appears in the light of the lamp, you have two options:
- You take the tile and lay it face up in front of you. It is worth 2 points at the end of the game.
- You give it to any fellow player and may take any treasure or wreck tile of your choice from that player. The player who received the exchange tile receives 2 points at the end of the game for it.
Note: Sea monsters and bonus tiles may not be "exchanged".
Cave
If you discover a cave, you do not know what is hidden inside: valuable treasures, or perhaps sea monsters.
Seagrass
There is no treasure in the seagrass, so it is worthless. Only the player who first finds seagrass three times receives the seagrass bonus tile for it.
End of the Game
The game ends immediately when the last tile of one tile type (bonus tiles, light blue treasure tiles, dark blue treasure tiles, wreck tiles) has been taken from the game board.
Then all players count their points. Each treasure tile and each wreck tile is worth as many points as the treasures, gold coins or sea monsters it shows. Seagrass is unfortunately worth no points. Each bonus tile is worth 5 points.
The player with the most points at the end wins.