TRÖK
TRÖK Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
A. 58 Equipment cards, comprising:
- 11 pickaxes (value 1)
- 10 rations (value 2)
- 9 pairs of gloves (value 3)
- 8 lanterns (value 4)
- 7 suits of armor (value 5)
- 6 helmets (value 6)
- 5 hammers (value 7)
- 2 Arcane Stones (wild) B. 27 Upgrade cards C. 1 Market board D. 1 Trade Master token E. 25 coins of value 1 Aare, 15 coins of value 5 Aare, and 15 coins of value 10 Aare
Setup
- Place the Market board in the center of the table.
- Thoroughly shuffle the 58 Equipment cards. Form a deck and place it face down on the Market board's designated space, then reveal its top 3 cards.
- Thoroughly shuffle the 27 Upgrade cards. Form a deck and place it face down on the Market board's designated space. Then form a row of 7 cards, face up, above the board.
- Place the coin supply beside the board.
- Place the Trade Master token on the other side of the board.
We recommend keeping the Aare you have won face down in front of you. You may make change whenever you like.
Course of Play
A game is played over several rounds, each divided into 4 phases:
- SUPPLY | 2. TRÖK | 3. COMBINATION | 4. END OF ROUND
1. Supply
Deal 5 Equipment cards, face down, to each person (it is recommended to deal them one at a time).
Then place, face up, one Equipment card in front of each mine owned by each person.
Take into your hand the 5 Equipment cards you were dealt, plus the cards produced by your mines, plus the cards stored in your carts (concept explained on page 8).
Notes:
- On the first round, everyone has only 5 cards, and this remains true for as long as no one owns a mine or a cart.
- Throughout the game: as soon as the Equipment deck runs out, reconstitute it by reshuffling the Equipment discard pile face down.
2. Trök
Everyone selects 3 cards from their hand. These are placed in front of them, face down.
Once everyone has chosen, the cards are revealed. Each person totals the values of the cards they offered for trade (each Arcane Stone counts as 10 points).
Whoever has the highest total becomes the Trade Master, takes the corresponding token, and places it in front of them.
In case of a tie, the previous Trade Master decides who receives the token. They may not keep it themselves. Note that in case of a tie on the first round, the youngest player becomes the Trade Master.
It is the Trade Master who starts the trading:
From another person, they choose one of the cards offered for trade. They then have a choice:
- EITHER add this card to their hand,
- OR trade this card for a card from the market. The market card is then added to the cards they hold in hand.
Example: Zélia is the Trade Master (she offered 18 points for trade, while Alex offered only 9). Zélia therefore serves herself first. She decides to take the armor of value 5 from Alex. She may either add it directly to the other cards in her hand (1), or trade it for a card from the market (for example the hammer) and add that hammer to the cards in her hand.
It is then the turn of the person from whom the Trade Master just took a card, who chooses a card among those laid face up in front of the others. They too may decide to add this card directly to their hand or to trade it for a card from the market... and so on, until all cards offered for trade have been taken.
DURING TRADES: Whenever a person trades a card with the market such that the 3 market cards become identical, then:
- those cards are discarded and replaced by the top 3 cards of the deck,
- that person gains 3 Aare.
AT THE END OF TRADING, two cases are possible:
- THE LAST CARD WAS TAKEN FROM THE TRADE MASTER: Trading was fair, no problem — proceed to the Combination phase.
- THE LAST CARD WAS TAKEN FROM SOMEONE OTHER THAN THE TRADE MASTER: In this case, that person was shortchanged and holds one card fewer, while the Trade Master holds one card too many. The Trade Master chooses a card from among all the cards they hold and gives it to the shortchanged person.
Special case: It can happen that a person (for example, someone judged a bit too dangerous with regard to the final victory) still has cards laid out in front of them, while all the other players' cards have already been traded. For each of the cards remaining in front of them, they must either take it back into their hand or trade it for a card from the market, which they add to their hand. If they are the Trade Master, the trade remains fair. If they are not, they are short one card, and the Trade Master gives them one from their own hand.
3. Combination
GOLDEN RULES:
- Arcane Stone cards are wilds, replacing the equipment of your choice.
- The same Equipment card cannot be used in 2 different combinations.
Taking turns, starting with the Trade Master and continuing clockwise, present the card collections in your hand to recover precious Aare and/or useful upgrades for the rest of the game.
On your turn, you may perform:
- ONE SINGLE combination of at least 3 identical cards (which will let you earn Aare)
AND
- ONE SINGLE combination of at least 3 different cards (which will let you obtain upgrades).
Combinations of all-identical cards
A combination of 3 all-identical cards gives you as much Aare as the value of the corresponding equipment. But each additional card gives you 3 Aare, regardless of its value.
The Equipment cards used this way are then discarded face up beside the Market board.
Example: 2 + 3 + 3 = 8
Combinations of all-different cards
A combination of at least 3 all-different cards (the numbers do not need to be consecutive) lets you recover a precious Upgrade card from among those still available above the Market board. Choose one of the first X cards in the row, where X is the number of different cards in your combination!
Your choice will be wider the greater your number of different cards is!
With 5 different cards, it is possible to choose the upgrade of your choice from among the first 5 cards in the row.
The Upgrade card obtained this way is placed face up in front of you. Its effect applies immediately, and until the end of the game.
The remaining Upgrade cards in the row are shifted left to fill the gap and are not replaced immediately. Following players will therefore have a little less choice!
The Equipment cards used this way are then discarded face up beside the Market board.
4. End of Round
At the end of this phase:
- Discard ALL unused cards (unless you own carts).
- Activate the end-of-round effects of your dwarves and your improvements.
Complete the row of Upgrade cards so that 7 are once again available.
Notes: if not enough Upgrade cards remain to bring the row back up to 7, or if the deck is empty, play with fewer than 7 cards in the row.
A new round may begin.
End of Game
The game ends at the end of a round if:
- After each person's turn, one of them holds at least 50 Aare. If several people pass this threshold, the wealthiest wins.
- A person reveals THE perfect combination of 8 cards: one piece of equipment of each type plus an Arcane Stone. They then automatically win the game, regardless of the other players' wealth.
Note: in case several people reveal a perfect combination in the same round, the wealthiest among them wins.
Example of a valid perfect combination: the combination shown is valid to grant final victory: the Armor card (value 5) is obtained thanks to the first Arcane Stone, and the Glove card (value 3) is replaced by a Pickaxe card (value 1). This is possible because the person owns a Vein, which lets them treat a Pickaxe card as an Arcane Stone, and therefore as a wild.
Upgrade Cards - Game Aid
Mine
During the Supply phase, receive ONE extra Equipment card at the start of each round. This card is placed face up in front of you, then added to your hand.
Thrud
During the Trök phase, every time the market is renewed because there are 3 identical cards, gain 2 Aare (which means that if you are the one who triggers this effect, gain 5 Aare).
Grid
During each Trök phase, you add +3 to your revealed-cards value for becoming Trade Master, and at each End of Round, you gain 1 Aare.
Aegur
During the Combination phase, for your combinations of identical cards, each card beyond the 3rd earns 5 Aare (instead of 3).
Dagda
During the Combination phase, your combinations of 3 identical green cards (values 2, 3, 4) are all worth 7 Aare. Additional cards still earn you 3 Aare.
Filon (Vein)
During the Combination phase, each Vein card you own lets you treat ONE pickaxe as an Arcane Stone (wild).
Kraal
During the Combination phase, your combinations of 3 identical red cards (values 5, 6, 7) are all worth 10 Aare. Additional cards still earn you 3 Aare.
Idunn
During the Combination phase, if you make a numerical RUN of 5 cards (e.g., 2-3-4-5-6), take 2 Upgrade cards from among the first 5 in the row.
Skaa
During the Combination phase, a combination of 3 all-different cards lets you take the Upgrade card of your choice from among those available.
Mère Dwerg (Mother Dwerg)
During each End of Round phase, gain 1 Aare for each dwarf you own (including herself).
Chariot (Cart)
During each End of Round step, you may store ONE Equipment card, face up, that you would otherwise have had to discard (you cannot store Arcane Stones).
Père Dwerg (Father Dwerg)
During each End of Round phase, gain 1 Aare for each mine, vein, and cart you own.
Zoral
During each End of Round phase, gain 1 Aare for each pickaxe card (value 1) present at the market.
Astrid
During each End of Round phase, gain 2 Aare for each green card (values 2, 3, 4) present at the market.
Ylud
During each End of Round phase, gain 3 Aare for each red card (values 5, 6, 7) present at the market.
Credits
Authors: Bruno Cathala and Serge Laget Illustrators: Jean-Marie Minguez and Pierô Colorist: Bruno Tatti Graphic design: Valériane Holley Development and rules: GRRRE Games Proofreading: Arnyanka Typefaces: Changa by Eduardo; Norse by Joël Carrouché
Acknowledgments: A huge THANK YOU to everyone who made this homage project possible.