Yardmaster Express Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Components
• Game Setup
• Game Turn
  • How to connect your train
• Game End
• Bonus Points for the Longest Cargo Run
• Winner of the Game
• Strategic Variant
• Turn Variant
• Caboose Expansion

Game Components

• 1 Start Player Token
• 4 Caboose Cards
• 5 Engine Cards
• 32 Railcar Cards

Game Setup

• Give each player 1 Engine Card. Put any unused Engine Cards back in the box, they will not be needed.
• Set the Caboose Cards to the side.
• If playing with only 2 players, remove all 8 Purple Cards. Put these back in the box, they will not be needed.
• Shuffle the rest of the deck thoroughly.
• Randomly determine a Start Player and place the Start Player Token in front of that person. It will stay there the entire game.
• Deal the Start Player a hand of cards according to the amount of players playing:
  • 2 Players: 2 Cards
  • 3 Players: 3 Cards
  • 4 Players: 4 Cards
  • 5 Players: 5 Cards
• Place the rest of the cards face down in the center of the play area as the Draw Deck.

Game Turn

Beginning with the Start Player, players will take turns in CLOCKWISE order. On your turn, do the following in this order:

1. Draw 1 card from the Draw Deck and add it to your hand.
2. Select 1 card from your hand of cards.
3. Add that card to your train either face-up OR face-down.
4. Pass the rest of your hand cards clockwise to the player to your LEFT.

How to connect your train

In order to connect a new card to your train, the Railcar on the left side of the new card must match the same value (e.g., 3 & 3), or same color (e.g., blue & blue), as the Railcar on the right side of the last card in your train. Alternatively, you may add any color Railcar to a Wild Card (the back side of all cards). Likewise, you may add a Wild Card to any color Railcar. Note, your starting Engine Cards are considered Wild Cards, which means that at the beginning of the game any card may be added to your Engine.

Game End

The game ends after a set number of rounds according to the number of players:

• 2 Players: 7 Rounds
• 3 Players: 6 Rounds
• 4 Players: 5 Rounds
• 5 Players: 4 Rounds

Each round, each player will take 1 turn. Each turn, you will add 1 card to your train. For example, in a 3 player game, you will add 6 cards to your train, because there are 6 Rounds. After the last round, all players add up the total sum of the values of their train.

Bonus Points for the Longest Cargo Run

In addition to the total value of their train, the player(s) with the longest run of a single type of Cargo (color) gains 1 bonus point for each Railcar in that run. For example, a run of 4 Green Railcars in a row would be worth 4 bonus points if it was the longest run in the game. These bonus points are only awarded to the longest cargo run. Of course, if more than one player ties for the longest run, ALL tied players will gain the bonus points. Note, Wild Cards do NOT count as a Cargo type, and therefore do NOT count toward runs (see example, where the Wild Card breaks the yellow Oil run).

Winner of the Game

After the longest Cargo run is awarded, the player with the most points wins! If two or more players are tied, the tied player who is farthest from the Start Player, in clockwise order, WINS!

Strategic Variant

In this variant, you play two games back to back. Each game is played normally, except for the following. In the second game, the Start Player is the player with the lowest score in the first game. Also in the second game, players will pass cards COUNTER-CLOCKWISE, instead of clockwise. When this second game ends, combine the scores of each game to find a player's overall score. Most points WINS!

Turn Variant

Before the game setup, deal each player one card. During the game, draw one card at the END of your turn instead of the beginning.

Caboose Expansion

Using these cards is optional. It is recommended to only use them after playing at least a couple of times. If you choose to use these cards, randomly choose ONE Caboose Card and place it face up next to the Draw Deck. Only 1 Caboose Card is needed each game. Each Caboose details a condition that all players are working towards during the game. At the end of the game, ALL players that achieve this condition will receive points equal to the value on the Caboose Card. These players will add these Caboose points to their previous point total. Whoever has the most points WINS!