Ys - English Rule

A game by Cyril Demaegd Illustrations by Arnaud Demaegd Design by Cyril Demaegd

The Board

Ys and more...
Ys is for 2 to 4 players. The following rules explain in details the 4-player version of the game. The changes needed to play 2-player games, 3-player games and 2 variants can be found at the end of this booklet. The Kings Favor variant, which adds a drop of tactics is for experienced players who can play it at once. The Ys Express variant, for those who are in a hurry, can be played in a shorter time. Finally, Ys can also be played by 5 or 6 players. This is why some squares of the board are there, even if they are not mentioned in this booklet ! More info on the official site : www.ystari.com/ys

Once upon a time... Contents

1 board In remote times, King Gradlon had the magnificent city of Ys erected for his daughter Dahut. Gargantuan sea-walls protected the city from the violent waves. Dahut decided to make Ys the most powerful place in Brittany; thus, she dispatched dragons to seize merchant ships loaded with jewels which sailed on the open sea

Goal of the Game

The players embody merchant-princes of Ys. By skillfully using their network of brokers, they speculate on the purchase of precious stones, thus amassing gold (represented by victory points). At the end of the game, the winner is the player who has accumulated the most gold.

4 screens 24 Character cards (4 with a blue edge, 20 with a yellow edge) 24 Ship cards

56 cylinders / brokers (14 for each color) 5 markers (1 for each color + 1 turn marker) 145 gems (cubes) (30 for each color, 20 black, 5 white) 1 board of 56 stickers (14 for each color)

Setup
The board is placed at the center of the table. The turn marker is placed on the first square of the turn counter (13), and the ship cards are placed face down on the side of the board. Each player picks a color and takes a screen as well as 11 brokers (thus leaving three brokers of value 2 in the box) and the score marker (the valueless pawn) which suits their choice. They place the marker near the starting point of the score track (15) which will allow them to count victory points. A player shuffles the four Order cards (the cards with numbers ranging from 1 to 4) and randomly distributes one to each player. Players place their card face up in front of their screen. Shuffle the 15 yellow-edged Character cards. Deal three cards face down on each of the four places on the board (7). Put the remaining cards back in the box without looking at them. The four blue-edged Character cards are placed near the board. Put one colored gem on each starting square of the quotation table (11).

6 Order cards These rules.

Before starting to play, unstick the stickers and stick one per cylinder of the corresponding color. Fold the screens along the black line.

Principles of the Game

Each players team is composed of 11 brokers, each with a value ranging from 0 to 4. These numbers represent the efficiency of the brokers. Thus, a broker with a 0 value is incompetent (but not useless, as we shall see), whereas a broker with a 4 value is a cunning negociator At the beginning of each turn, ships filled with gems land in the citys ports. In order to obtain gems, make the market prices rise and be able to draw cards, the players must get majorities on the board by placing brokers (whose values are added up) in carefully chosen places. Brokers can be displayed either face up or face down, so you can try to bluff your opponents.

Game progress
A game is divided in four turns. Each turn is divided in four phases.

Phase 1 - Setup

Characters : reveal the top card of each of the four decks. Players take a look at them. To get these cards, the players will need the majority in the corresponding palace area (see example on the right). The powers of the cards and the way to use them are explained at the end of the rule booklet. In the last turn, all the yellow-edged cards are exhausted. At this point, the four blue-edged character cards are put into play. There is a white gem on each. The players who obtain the majority in the four palaces will take these cards and exchange them immediately with a blue, red, green or yellow gem taken from the bank.

The board is composed of two different parts where you can place your brokers, the City and the Market. The City of Ys : The City of Ys : The city is divided in four neighborhoods. In order to win the gems brought by the ships, you must be in one of the top three places in a neighborhood (your rank is calculated by adding up your broker points). Furthermore, each neighborhood is composed of three areas with specific characteristics. When you put a broker in a neighborhood to get gems, you can be granted interesting bonuses depending on the area the broker is in. Port area : On the hazy docks, brokers can find real treasures. A player who obtains the majority in the port area by adding up the values of their brokers wins a very rare black gem. Those special stones which are exclusively sold there (illicitly, most of the time !) can yield huge amounts of gold at the end of the game. Commercial area : In the shops of the commercial area, you can make good bargains. Brokers make a lot of profits there. A player who obtains a majority in this area by adding up the values of their brokers instantaneously earns a small amount of gold. Palace area : Mysterious and influential people live in the citys palaces. A player who obtains a majority in the palace area by adding up the values of their brokers immediately wins a Character card, and will consequently be able to use this character and take advantage of it. The Market : The price of gems is determined at the market. A player places a broker at the same time on a line and a column. At the end of each turn, according to the brokers placed in the columns, you determine the fluctuations in the price of each type of gem. The lines allow you to get gems.

Example : the cards drawn from this deck are alloted to the player who has the majority in the corresponding palace.

Ships : Draw the top four Ship cards from the deck. Place them in each of the four ports, following the order indicated on the board (8). These cards indicate which colors are available in each neighborhood for this turn. Every Ship card features two small gems and a larger one. Two stones of this color are available in the neighborhood. The players will consequently be able to win four gems. n.b. : White gems are never available twice on a card.
Example : in this neighborhood, the players who have placed the highest bets can share two blue gems, one white gem and one red gem between them.

Market : Draw a fifth Ship card and take the three colors shown on the card from the bank. Place the corresponding gems on squares 1, 2 and 3 of the market. If there is a white gem on the card, place it on line 1. The order of the other gems is of no importance. The size of the gems on the card is of no importance either.

Players can get gems of six colors : blue, green, yellow, red, black and white. In the freight of ships, you can sometimes find white gems. They are magical, and only take on a definitive color once they have been won by a player. In other words, a player who wins a white gem chooses immediately a gem of their choice among the colors available in the bank (blue, red, yellow and green). At the end of the game, the quotation of each stone on the market and the number of stones owned by the players enable to distribute gold (i.e. victory points) and determine who is the winner. Black gems have no quotation but bring in a fixed amount of gold. The wealthiest player wins the game.

Now, you can discard the Ship card.

Example : the card features a white gem. You have put one on line 1. The other two stones are placed on lines 2 and 3.

Phase 2 - Turn Order

Phase 3 - Placing the Brokers

Following the determined order, the players place two brokers in turn. One of them must be placed face up (the figure on top), while the other one must be face down (the figure underneath).

The players must now bet to determine the order of play for this turn. Indeed, players do not necessarily play clockwise. Each player must choose their order in the game. A player pays their bet with two of their brokers, which will consequently be unavailable for the rest of the turn. Thus, someone who places a very high bet will play first, but will have to do without their best brokers !

Time to bet...

Example : this is the first turn. During the setup, the players were randomly assigned the order cards shown above

n.b. : at the beginning of the game, the players must decide if they have the right to check the number on their own hidden broker (which we advise you to do in your first games). The brokers may be placed either in the market or in the city (both in the city, both in the market or one in each place). In the market, there may be only one broker per area, and they may not be placed on one of the four squares of line 0 (these squares are only used in 5player games). However, in the city, the number of brokers per area is unlimited.
Example : during his turn, Purple places a broker face up in the lower left hand corner of the market, and a pawn face down in the city. In turn, Orange wants to put a pawn in the market, but cannot place it on a square of line 0, or in the lower left hand corner since Purple already occupies it.

Stake : The players secretly choose two brokers. When everyone is ready, they place them simultaneously before their screen. Each player adds up the value of their two brokers. The player with the highest total wins. Solving a draw : Draws can be solved thanks to the players Order cards. The player who owns the card with the lowest value chooses first. The winner of the auction chooses and announces his/her order of play (first, second, third or fourth). The other players, following the order determined through the auction (and thanks to the order cards, in case of draw), choose their order of play. Finally, the Order cards assignation is updated. The player who has chosen the first place takes card 1, and so on The two brokers used in the auction remain in front of the screen. They cannot be used during this turn.

Example (continued) : The players take two brokers and reveal them simultaneously. Blues total is 1 (1+0), Oranges is 5 (4+1), Purples is 6 (4+2) and Yellows is 5 (3+2). Purple, who has the highest total, makes the first choice and decides to take the fourth place (to watch his opponents). Orange and Yellow are tied, but Orange gets the upper hand since the value on his Order card is lower (as you can see above, Orange has card 2, whereas Yellow has card 4). Orange chooses the first place, then Yellow chooses the third place. There is only one place left for Blue : the second one.

Market bonuses : As soon as a broker is placed on the market it generates a gold coin through speculation. The player who placed the broker immediately wins one victory point on the score track. If the pawn must be removed afterwards (because of a card effect), the point remains. Each player plays four times according to the order determined in the previous phase (player 1, then 2, 3 and 4, then player 1 again, and so on). Consequently, at the end of this phase, each player will have placed eight brokers on the board (four of them face down, four of them face up). Now, each player has one broker left. It must be placed in front of the screen with the other two pawns. These three brokers will be used to solve a tied score in the fourth phase.

Example : All players have placed eight brokers on the board. Their last broker will be placed with the two pawns used in the previous phase.

The Best Place ?

Most of the time, when players win the auction, they decide to play in fourth place. Thus, they have the opportunity to watch their opponents and give the final blow. However, the fourth place also means you have a poor Order card in case of draw This is a very good place, but it will not secure an easy victory !
Example (end) : now, it is time to update the players Order cards. Orange has decided to start and takes card 1. Blue takes 2, Yellow takes 3, and Purple takes 4. During the next phase (placing the brokers), the players will follow this order.

Phase 4 - Counting up : Now, it is time to count the points on the different parts of the board; first in the city, then
in the market. Counting points in the city : The value of the brokers hidden in neighborhood 1 is revealed. The player with the highest total may choose two gems from the bank, among the four gems proposed in the corresponding port. The player with the second highest total takes one of the two remaining stones, and the third player takes the last gem (if there are only one or two players in the neighborhood, the bank keeps whatever gems are left). Players place the gems they have won in front of their screen (so they can be seen). After having counted points in the neighborhood, the focus shifts to each of the specific areas : Port area : The player with the best total in this area wins a black gem which must be placed before the players screen. If no broker was placed in this area, the gem is discarded. Commercial area : The player with the best total in this area immediately wins three golden coins, and the players marker moves three squares ahead on the score track. Palace area : The player with the best total in this area seizes the neighborhood card that was flipped over at the beginning of phase 1. If no broker was placed in this area, the card is discarded. Draws : In order to settle a draw between players, use the three brokers in front of your screen. The player with the highest total wins. If there is a draw and players have the same total, use the order cards. The player with the lowest card value wins. The account is over for neighborhood 1. Players get their brokers back and place them behind their screen. Now, go through the same counting process for neighborhoods 2, 3 and 4. Then, it is time to count the points in the market. Counting points in the market : First reveal the hidden value of all face down brokers. For each line (1, 2 and 3), each player adds up their brokers. The winner for each line takes the corresponding gem. Draws are settled in the same way as they are in the city (by adding up the brokers placed in front of your screen, then by using order cards if need be). For each column, add up the brokers. The gem whose column has the highest total moves up two steps on the quotation table. The gem with the second highest total moves up one step. The gem with the third highest total goes down one step, and the last gem goes down two steps. Draws are settled as follows : look which column has the most pawns in it (e.g. a column with three brokers has the edge on a column with only two brokers). Still not enough ? Then, the player with the highest total before their screen chooses (again, draws are settled as in the city, using Order cards if necessary).

Example :

Pawns placed in front of the players screens (will be used to settle draws).

Each player adds up their brokers in the given neighborhood. Blue : 4+3+2 = 9 Orange : 4+1 = 5 Purple : 3+3 = 6 Yellow : 4+4 = 8

Blue has the highest total and wins two gems. He chooses a blue gem, and the red one. Yellow comes second. He chooses the second blue gem. Purple is third and takes the last stone, i.e. the green one. Orange gets no gem. Now, we deal with the various areas : Port area : Yellow has the upper hand thanks to his 4 broker and wins a black stone. Commercial area : Yellow and Orange are tied (4 to 4). The brokers placed in front of their screens are compared. Yellow, with 6 points (3+2+1) gets the upper hand of Orange (4+1+0 = 5). Yellow immediately scores three gold coins, and his marker moves ahead three squares on the score track. Orange does not score. Palace area : Blue wins with his 4 broker and takes the corresponding power card. Points count in the market :

Highest bidder on the market : The player with the highest total of brokers in the market must now change the quotation of one of the stones. The player chooses a gem and makes its quotation either move up or go down one step. If several players have the same broker value in the market, draws are settled as they are in the city. Finally, players get all their remaining brokers back (i.e. those which are on the market and in front of their screen) and put them behind their screen. Brokers with a 0 value : A 0 broker placed alone in an area of the city or on a line at the market allows its controlling player to win the area/line. A column with a 0 broker is stronger than a column with no broker. End of turn : The cards used in the port are set aside; the turn marker moves ahead one square, and the next turn begins.

Line 1 : Blue and Orange are tied (3+1 = 4 for Blue, which is equivalent to Oranges 4 broker). Brokers placed in front of their screens are compared : Blue has 5 (1+0+4) and so has Orange (4+1+0), but the latters Order card is better (Orange has card number 1). Orange wins the white stone and exchanges it for a green one at the bank. Line 2 : Yellow (with a total of 3) takes the yellow gem (Orange placed a 0 broker). Line 3 : Purple (with a total of 1) takes the red stone. Columns : Three columns are tied (4 points). The number of brokers placed in these columns is counted. The blue column and the red one both have three pawns in them, whereas the green one only has one broker. Among these columns, only the blue and the red one are contenders for the first place. Purple has the final decision (since this player has the best total of brokers before their screen) and he chooses the blue column. Blue gems move up two squares, red gems move up one square, green gems go down one square and yellow gems go down two squares. Finally, Orange is considered as the highest bidder on the market : both Orange and Blue have played a total of 4, and both have a total of 5 in front of their screen. We have to look at their Order cards to decide who wins. Orange, who has a smaller number, eventually gets the upper hand. Orange chooses to move the quotation of green gems up one square.

End of the Game

Once the last turn is over, players compare the number of gems of each color (blue, green, yellow and red) they own. They check the quotation scale, which will allow them to determine their number of victory points thanks to the table below. Gem 1 Pts for the 1st Pts for the 2nd Pts for the 3rd Pts for the 4th 24 18 12 6 Gem 2 20 15 10 5 Gem 3 16 12 8 4 Gem 4 12 9 6 3 Banker : The player chooses a gem and makes its value go up one square in the market, then chooses another one and makes its value go down one square. The player has to do both operations. Then, the card is discarded. Alchemist : After the quotations have been set, the player replaces one of their gems with another gem of their choice. Black and white gems cannot be exchanged. If the player eventually does not want to exchange any gem, he doesnt have to. In both cases, the card is discarded.

So, the player with the largest number of the highest stone on the quotation scale wins 24 victory points. The player with the second largest number of the same gem wins 18 victory points. The third player wins 12 points, and the last player wins 6 points. If a player has no gem, he scores nothing. Proceed in the same way for each color. Gems with equal values : If several gems are on a par on the quotation scale, the leftmost column gets the upper hand. So, when on a par, blue gems beat green ones, which beat yellow gems, which beat red ones.
Example : Blue gems and red gems are at the top of the scale (followed by yellow gems, then by the green ones). Blue gems, whose column is on the left, come first. The player with the largest number of blue gems wins 24 points (the second biggest owner of blue gems wins 18 points, the third wins 12 points, and the last wins 6 points). The player with the largest number of red gems wins 20 points (15 for the second player, 10 for the third, 5 for the last). Yellow gems yield 16, 12, 8 and 4 points, and green gems yield 12, 9, 6 and 3 points.

Captain : The player swaps two Ship cards of their choice among those which are in the ports when the card is played. Then the card is discarded.

Tied players : If several players are tied, they all win the number of points corresponding to the lowest place they occupy.
Example : Blue gems have the highest quotation. Player A has six gems, B and C both have five gems and D owns three gems. A wins 24 points, B and C both win 12 points (i.e. the number of points for the third place). D wins 6 points.

Then, players add up their black stones and win the amount of victory points determined by the table below (a player with more than seven black gems scores 24 points). Black gems Victory points 1 1 2 4 3 8 4 12 5 16 6 20 7+ 24

Bishop : The player may place all of their brokers face down during the broker placing phase (nevertheless, any number of them may be placed face up). The card is discarded at the end of the turn.

The player who has the most victory points once both colored gems and black gems have been counted wins the game. In case of draw, the number of gems collected by a player is decisive : the player with the largest number of colored and black gems wins.

Spy : This card allows you to have a peek at three hidden brokers. These brokers may belong to one or several opponents. The cards owner may spread its effect over the whole placing phase. In other words, the player does not have to check three brokers in a go. The card is discarded at the end of the turn.

Character Cards
Character cards allow you to get help from the most powerful people in the city. They have the power to change the rules of the game! Players who win Character cards add them to their hand face down. Character cards can be played from the next turn on. Each player can play up to two cards in a turn. The King card, the Prince card and the four blue-edged cards (which allow you to win a white gem) are different, though : their powers must be applied immediately, and they are not counted in the two cards per turn limit. The sign at the top of the card indicates when the cards must be played : The card is played at the end of the counting phase. This sign alone means the card is played at the very start of the broker placing phase. If the sign is followed by a star, the card is played at a specific moment of the phase (see next pages). The card is played at the very beginning of the counting phase. Cards are played according to the turn order. So, before the beginning of the broker phase and the counting phase, players are asked (according to their order) if they want to play one or several cards. Herald : The player moves one of their brokers from one area to another on the board. If need be, pawns may be moved from the market to the city (with no victory point loss) or conversely (in this case, the player earns a victory point). If the broker is moved from one area of the market to another, the player does not win any point. The state of the broker (face up/face down) must not be altered, and the placing rules must be followed (one broker per square of the market; the Queens area see below is forbidden). Then the card is discarded.

Conjurer : The player may use the brokers placed in front of their screen and play them on the board. The player takes one of these brokers, puts it on the board (face up or face down, in the city or in the market), and replaces it with one of the brokers available behind the screen (this one is placed face up). This operation may be repeated as many times as the player wishes during the placing phase. However, placing rules (two brokers per turn, one face up and the other face down) cannot be departed from. To settle draws in the counting phase, use the brokers remaining before the screen. The card is discarded at the end of the turn.

Intriguer : The player automatically wins in case of draw. This rule does not apply to the columns in the market. However, if players cannot determine in the usual ways (the column with the largest number of brokers) which column is the strongest, the player who has played the intriguer chooses. The card is discarded at the end of the turn.

3-player Game
The 4-player rules are still valid, but : Players must decide at the beginning of the game if they are going to use 4 or 3 neighborhoods (in which case neighborhood #4 will not be used). Using 3 neighborhoods will make the game more strained! There are only three gems to win in each port (i.e. the three gems on each Ship card; the large stone now only counts as one gem). The player holding a majority in a neighborhood now wins two gems; the second player wins one gem; the third player wins nothing. To fill the market, you only use the two smaller gems on the Ship card. These gems are placed on lines 2 and 3 of the market. Brokers cannot be placed on line 1 (which is like line 0 in the 4-player game).

Jeweller : The player takes two gems of their choice (neither white nor black) from the bank. Then, the card is discarded.

Magician : This card must be played during the placing phase, right after one of the four times the player places their two brokers. The player may swap two of their brokers on the board (notice that the magician has no hold on the Queens area see below). These brokers may come either from the market or from the city, and be either face up or face down. Then, the card is discarded.

2-player Game
This version is played like the 3-player game (but you have to play on three neighborhoods). Furthermore : Each player takes the 11 brokers of their color, plus four brokers (4, 2, 1 and 0) belonging to a third color, representing the neutral player. The score token of this neutral player is placed on the starting square next to the markers of both human players. The bet for the turn order is settled normally between the two human players who take the 1 and 2 Order Cards. Each player places their two brokers as usual (one faceup, the other facedown), plus one neutral broker facedown. A neutral broker can be placed anywhere, but once it is on the board, no player can check its value. After the broker placing phase, you start counting points. Here are a few modifications for this phase : The neutral player wins all the ties in which it is involved (there is only one exception: the neutral player can still be beaten by a player who owns the Intriguer card). If the neutral player wins the Prince or King cards, points are normally scored. If the neutral player wins another card, it is discarded and the player immediately gets a gem instead. When it has to choose a gem color, the neutral player automatically takes the strongest color on the market. If several colors are tied, the leftmost gem is automatically taken (blue, then green, then yellow, then red). When the neutral player wins a neighborhood, the two gems with the highest values on the market are chosen among those featured on the Ship card. If a white gem is available, it is automatically chosen first and given the color of the most valuable gem on the market (or the leftmost one in case of draw). If the neutral player has to alter the quotations on the market, priority is given to the colors it owns in the largest amounts. If two or more colors are on a par, the leftmost color is chosen. At the end of the game, if the neutral player has no gem in one color, points are scored as if the player were in the third place for this color. Note: If the players are skilled enough, they can raise the neutral players level by changing the value of the neutral brokers each of them places, to 4, 3, 1 and 0 (and even more, if they want to !)

Merchant : This card must be played during the counting phase. For the duration of this phase, every commercial area yields five points (instead of three) for players who have the majority in it. In other words, in each of the four areas, the five points may be won by other players than the one who has played the merchant card. The card is discarded at the end of the turn.

Mercenary : This card must be played during the placing phase, right after one of the four times the player places their two brokers. The player puts a marker (for instance, a gem) on one of the brokers they have just placed. In the next counting phase, this broker will have a value of five. The effect ceases right after the counting phase, and the broker recovers its former value. Then, the card is discarded.

Queen : This card must be played during the placing phase, right before one of the four times the player places their two brokers. The card is placed in an area of the city. This area is now locked . No broker can be placed in it anymore until the end of the turn (including the players brokers). Other areas of the neighborhood can be used normally. Brokers which had been placed in the area before it was locked remain where they are. Even the herald and the magician have no hold over them. Points are counted normally in the area. The card will be discarded once the points have been counted in the neighborhood.

Prince and King : Immediately yield four points (for the Prince) or five points (for the King), even if the player has already played two or more cards during the turn. Then the card is discarded. Likewise, blue-edged cards which represent white gems immediately yield a blue, green, yellow or red gem, even if the player has already played two or more cards during the turn. Then the card is discarded.

The Kings Favor

This version for three or four players (which we highly recommend) adds a fifth phase after the counting phase. Each player must have three more 2 brokers. These are placed next to the board at the beginning of the game. Phase 5 The Kings Favor Right after the counting phase, players get the three brokers placed in front of their screen back. Each player places one of them face down in the throne room (12). You will not be able to use this broker (sent to flatter the King) until the end of the game. The two remaining brokers are put back behind the screen. Finally, each player takes one of their 2 brokers standing next to the board and puts it behind their screen. Character cards : Characters have no power in the throne room (e.g. the herald cannot be used to take away or bring in a broker). However, there are two exceptions to this rule : Spy : The player who plays the spy may take a look at brokers hidden in the throne room. The spys threebrokers limit is still valid. Magician : One of the brokers the magician can swap may come from the throne room. Final account : At the end of the game, after black gems have been counted up, the value of brokers hidden in the throne room is revealed. Each player adds up their brokers and wins victory points accordingly (the player with the biggest total takes the first place and wins twelve points, etc.).

Place Points won

1st 12

2nd 7

3rd 3

4th 0

Once each player has added their pawns, if there is a draw, points are shared between players (rounded down if necessary). For instance, if two players share the first place between them, they both score 9 points (12+7, the points allotted for the first two places divided by 2). The third player scores 3 points. The player with the most points once black and colored gems and the Kings favor have been counted up wins the game. In case of draw, the number of gems collected by each player is decisive (the player with the largest number of black and colored gems wins).

Ys Express
This version for three or four players makes for a quicker game. Remove a 3 broker and a 1 broker from the basic pool. As a result, each player has nine brokers. Also remove Ship cards with a white gem. In the broker placing phase, there are only three placing turns instead of four. The rest of the game is identical.

Thanks
Thanks to all the testers for their invaluable suggestions and their infinite patience : Sissy, Bruno, Aurlie, Greg, Seb, Adrien, Dom, Thomas, Fabien, Nathalie, Alain, Nico, William, Nico 2, Anne, Guillaume, Manu, Thierry, Vince, Alexis, Manu 2, Max, Timbre-Poste, Cyrille+Maud+Jade and all of those Ive forgotten (sorry!).