Objective of the Game

7 Wonders: Armada is an expansion of the base 7 Wonders game that adds naval elements. Players still aim to build the most successful civilization, but now they also develop fleets on their Dockyard boards and compete in Naval Conflicts. The victory conditions are the same as in the base game: at the end of the third Age, the player with the highest total of Victory Points (from buildings, wonders, guilds, naval tokens, and island effects) wins. If a player’s total is lower than every other player’s, they lose.

Preparation (Setup)

1. Sort the base game cards by Age according to the number of players. Return any unused cards to the box.
2. Sort the Armada cards by Age and shuffle each deck. For each Age, randomly take as many Armada cards as there are players, then shuffle those with the corresponding Age cards from the base game. For a 3‑player game, return the 5 Armada cards with the double‑arrow icon (Western Emporium, Eastern Emporium, Dock, Quay, and Jetty) to the box.
3. Sort the Island cards by level (1, 2, 3). Shuffle each level and place the decks face‑down near the middle of the table.
4. Place the Naval Conflict tokens, Incursion tokens, and the extra Ground Conflict tokens next to the base game’s Ground Conflict tokens.
5. Combine the extra Coins with the base game’s bank. Each player starts with three 1‑coin tokens, which they place on their board.
6. Place the game aids in the center of the table so everyone can access them.
7. Give each player a Dockyard board (vertical, to the right of their Wonder board) and one Ship figure of each color (Red, Yellow, Blue, Green). Place each figure on the Start space of its color.

Game Flow

The game proceeds in the usual three Ages, but with a few new steps.

1. Card Dealing: At the start of each Age, each player receives a hand of eight cards (instead of seven).
2. Turn Sequence (for each player, in clockwise order):
   1. Pay all construction costs (card, Wonder stage, and any optional Naval Construction).
   2. Move the Ship corresponding to the Naval Construction, if any.
   3. Apply all card effects, except Coin losses.
   4. Resolve Island Exploration if a Green Ship reached an Exploration space.
   5. Resolve construction of cards from the Discard (no Naval Construction allowed).
   6. Resolve Coin losses (Taxes and Pirates).
3. End of Age:
   1. Resolve Ground Conflicts as in the base game.
   2. Resolve a single Naval Conflict by comparing each player’s total Naval Strength (Naval Shields from the Red fleet, islands, and any other sources). Tokens are awarded according to the chart on page 8: the weakest player receives a Naval Defeat token, the strongest receives a Naval Victory token, the second‑strongest receives a smaller Victory token, and the third‑strongest may receive a 3‑point Victory token in Age III.

Actions and How to Play

Naval Construction

After building a Red, Yellow, Blue, or Green card or a Wonder stage, a player may pay the Naval Construction cost listed on their Dockyard board for that color and move the corresponding Ship one space up. The cost is paid in addition to the card’s normal cost. If the card is built for free (e.g., via chaining or a Babel token), the Naval Construction cost still applies. Cards built for free from the Discard do not allow a Naval Construction.

Naval Conflicts

At the end of each Age, after Ground Conflicts, compare all players’ Naval Strength. The weakest player receives a Naval Defeat token (-1, -2, or -3 depending on the Age). The strongest receives a Naval Victory token (3, 5, or 7). The second‑strongest receives a smaller Victory token (1, 3, or 5). The third‑strongest may receive a 3‑point Victory token only in Age III. Ties are resolved as described in the rulebook (all tied players receive the appropriate token for the rank they occupy).

Discarding a Card

When a player discards a card, they may either gain 3 Coins or move their Yellow Ship one space upward for free (no Naval Construction cost).

Scoring Guilds

At game end, each Guild card is capped at a maximum of 10 Victory Points, regardless of the number of matching colors a player has.

Other Actions

All other actions (building cards, constructing Wonder stages, using special effects of Armada or Island cards) follow the standard 7 Wonders rules, with the additional effects described in the expansion’s card texts.

End of Game and Scoring

The game ends after the third Age. Each player tallies Victory Points from:

• Buildings and Wonder stages (base game).
• Guild cards (capped at 10 VP each).
• Naval Victory tokens earned in Naval Conflicts.
• Island cards that grant Victory Points at game end.
• Blue fleet Victory Points (based on the final position of the Blue Ship).
• Any additional Victory Points from Island effects (e.g., Wondrous Harbor, Rainbow Archipelago).

Subtract any Naval Defeat tokens (negative values). The player with the highest total wins. If a player’s total is lower than every other player’s, they lose.

Tips for Winning

• Prioritize upgrading your Red fleet early to boost Naval Strength and secure Naval Victory tokens.
• Use Yellow fleet upgrades to collect Coins and levy Taxes, which can cripple opponents’ economies.
• Explore Islands strategically: solitary exploration gives you a full choice of four cards, while group exploration forces you to settle for the best of the shared pool.