Objective of the Game

Welcome, fellow explorers and empire builders, to Age of Empires III: The Age of Discovery! In this game, you'll step into the shoes of a European colonial power in the late 15th century, vying for dominance in the New World. Your ultimate goal is to amass the most **Victory Points** by the end of the game. How do you do that? By discovering and colonizing new lands, building a robust economy through trade, developing your home country with advanced **Capital Buildings**, dominating trade routes with your **Merchant Ships**, and even using your army to defend your claims! It's an age of riches, glory, and strategic decisions, so get ready to leave your mark on history!

Preparation (Setup)

Let's get this grand adventure started! Here's how to set up your game of Age of Empires III: The Age of Discovery:

1. Choose Your Nation: Each player picks a color (Red for England, Blue for France, Yellow for Spain, Green for Portugal, Orange for Holland) and gathers all their corresponding **Colonists** and **Specialists** (Captains, Merchants, Missionaries, Soldiers) into their "unused supply."
2. Starting Resources: Each player begins with 10 **Spanish Dollars** (either 10 silver coins or 1 gold coin) and five basic **Colonists**.
3. Initial Turn Order: One extra **Colonist** from each player is placed in random order in the **Turn Order** area. The player in 1st place gets no extra money. The 2nd player gets $1 extra, the 3rd player gets $2 extra, the 4th player gets $3 extra, and so on.
4. Populate the Regions: In each **Region** on the map (except the Caribbean), place one random **Discovery Counter** face down. The Caribbean is open for business from the start! Additionally, place one **Trade Good** face up in its designated region (e.g., Peru gets a silver **Trade Good**).
5. Capital Buildings: Sort the **Capital Buildings** into three face-down piles by Age (I, II, or III, indicated on their backs). Draw five Age I **Capital Buildings** and place them face up at the top of the board.
6. Trade Goods Pool: Place the remaining **Trade Goods** face down near the board and mix them up. Draw four random **Trade Goods** and place them face up next to the **Trade Goods** event box.
7. Merchant Ship Dock: Place one **Merchant Ship** miniature in the **Merchant Shipping Box**.
8. Colonist Dock Setup: The **Colonist Dock** has limited spaces. The number of available spaces is (2 x number of players) - 1. Place a **Merchant Ship** miniature on the first unused space to block off the remaining slots. For example, in a 5-player game, spaces 10, 11, and 12 would be blocked. The 'X' and 'Y' spaces are special and only available to players with specific **Capital Buildings**.

Now you're all set to embark on your colonial journey!

The Game Turn

A game of Age of Empires III unfolds over 8 turns, divided into three Ages: Age I (Turns 1-3), Age II (Turns 4-6), and Age III (Turns 7-8). Each turn, players will go through a series of phases, strategically placing their **Colonists** and **Specialists** to perform actions. Here's a breakdown of the turn phases:

A. Colonist/Specialist Placement

Starting with the player in the 1st slot of the **Turn Order** box, players take turns placing one of their available **Colonists** or **Specialists** into any of the **Event Boxes** on the right side of the board.

• For **Initiative**, **Colonist Dock**, **Capital Buildings**, and **Warfare** boxes, you must place your unit from left to right, filling the first available space.
• For **Merchant Shipping** and **Discovery** boxes, you can place your unit anywhere within the area.
• The **Specialist** event box allows you to place a **Colonist** in the desired specialist's slot. There are 5 specialists available each turn (one of each type, plus you can pay $5 gold to train an additional specialist of any type).

Keep placing units until everyone has run out. You can't save units for the next round! Remember, some players might have more units due to **Capital Buildings** or previously acquired **Specialists**.

B. Resolution

Once all units are placed, the **Event Boxes** are resolved one by one, from top to bottom:

1. Initiative: Players with **Colonists** here immediately receive income equal to the slot number ($1 for slot "1", $2 for slot "2", etc.). This box also determines the **Turn Order** for the next round! You can only place one **Colonist** here.
2. Colonist Dock: **Colonists** placed here move in order (1st, 2nd, etc.) to a *discovered* **Region** in the New World. You choose which region your unit goes to. Once placed, they can't move (unless a **Capital Building** allows it). The first player to get three of their **Colonists** in a region claims that region's **Trade Good**! This also makes the region eligible for **Victory Point** scoring.
3. Trade Goods: Players with **Colonists** here choose a **Trade Good** from the four available, starting with the player in slot "1". These are placed face up in front of you and stay with you all game, generating income.
4. Merchant Shipping: The player with the highest value of **Colonists** and **Specialists** in this area gains one **Merchant Ship** from the **Merchant Shipping** event box. **Colonists** are worth 1, while **Captains** and **Merchants** are worth 2. Ties are broken by **Turn Order**.
5. Capital Buildings: Players with **Colonists** here take turns (left to right) purchasing a **Capital Building** from those available. The cost depends on the Age: $10 in Age I, $14 in Age II, and $20 in Age III. You can choose not to buy one without penalty. "Immediately" benefits are applied right away!
6. Discovery: In **Turn Order**, players with units in the **Discovery** box can launch an "Expedition of Discovery." Announce how many units you're sending, choose an undiscovered **Region**, and flip its **Discovery Counter**. If your expedition's value (including **Soldiers**) is equal to or greater than the Native American icons on the counter, you succeed! You get a free **Colonist** in the new region, **Spanish Dollars** shown on the counter, and any bonus dollars from **Soldiers**. The **Discovery Counter** is yours for end-game **Victory Points**. If you fail, the counter is returned face down, and your expedition units are removed. Units stay in the **Discovery** box until an expedition is launched. Once all regions are discovered, you'll use the **Discovery Card Deck**.
7. Specialists: Players receive the **Specialist** shown in the box their **Colonist** occupies. If you chose the "training" box, you can pay $5 gold to pick any one **Specialist**. Only one player can occupy a specialist box at a time, and only one specialist can be "trained" per turn. These **Specialists** are for use next turn.
8. Warfare!: If you placed a **Colonist** here, you're preparing for war! You decide if it's a single **Battle** or a full-scale **War**.
   • A single **Battle** costs $0. You choose one region and one opponent to fight.
   • A full-scale **War** costs $10. You choose one opponent, and battles occur in *all* colonies where both of you have at least one **Colonist** or **Specialist**, and at least one of those is a **Soldier**.
   In each battle, each **Soldier** eliminates one enemy unit (your choice). All casualties are simultaneous.

After **Trade Goods**, **Merchant Shipping**, **Capital Buildings**, **Specialists**, and **Warfare** are resolved, remove all **Colonists** and **Specialists** from those boxes and return them to their owners' unused supplies. **Discovery** units stay put until an expedition is launched.

C. Income

All income generated from your **Trade Goods** and **Merchant Ships** is collected.

D. Capital Building Benefits

Any recurring benefits from your owned **Capital Buildings** (like extra **Colonists** or **Specialists** each turn) are now applied.

E. Refresh Capital Buildings

Update the available **Capital Buildings** so there are five face-up for the next turn. At the end of Turn 3 (Age I), remove all unpurchased Age I buildings and place five random Age II buildings. At the end of Turn 6 (Age II), do the same for Age III buildings.

F. Refresh Trade Goods

Mix any leftover **Trade Goods** from the previous turn back into the pile, then draw four new random **Trade Goods** and place them face up next to the **Trade Goods** box.

G. Refresh the Merchant Ship

If the **Merchant Shipping Box** is empty, place a new **Merchant Ship** miniature in it. (There can never be two **Merchant Ships** in this box).

H. Take Starting Colonists

All players take five free **Colonists** from their unused supply. These are added to any **Specialists** or **Colonists** received from **Capital Buildings** or the **Specialist Event Box**.

I. New Turn Order

Move the **Colonists** from the **Initiative** box up into the corresponding slots in the **Turn Order** box. Players who didn't place a **Colonist** in the **Initiative** box move their **Colonist** to the back of the **Turn Order**, maintaining their relative positions.

J. Advance Turn Marker

Move the **Turn Marker** forward one turn.

End of Game and Scoring

The game concludes at the end of **Turn 8**. It's time to tally up those hard-earned **Victory Points**! **Victory Points** are earned in a few ways:

• New World Colony Scoring: This is scored three times: at the end of Age I (Turn 3), Age II (Turn 6), and Age III (Turn 8). For a colony to score, at least one player must have three or more **Colonists** or **Specialists** there.
  • The player with the most units gets 6 points.
  • The player with the second most gets 2 points.
  • If there's a two-way tie for first, each tied player gets 2 points (no second place points).
  • If there's a three-way tie for first, everyone gets 0 points.
  • If there's a tie for second, those players get 0 points.
  • If only one player has 3+ units in a region, they get 6 points, and no one gets second place points.
• Discoveries: The red number on your collected **Discovery Counters** and **Discovery Cards** are tallied at the end of the game only.
• Capital Buildings: Some **Capital Buildings** are worth **Victory Points** as indicated on their tiles (e.g., "Navy" grants 4 VPs per **Merchant Ship**).
• Economy: You receive **Victory Points** equal to the amount of **Spanish Dollars** your **Trade Goods** and **Merchant Ships** generated on **Turn 8** *only*.

The player with the most accumulated **Victory Points** wins! **Tie-breakers:**

1. Most **Victory Points** from New World colonies on Turn 8.
2. Most gold.
3. Most **Trade Goods**.

Tips for Winning

Alright, aspiring empire builders, here are a few pointers to help you navigate the New World and come out on top:

1. Don't Put All Your Eggs in One Basket (or Colony!): While controlling colonies for **Victory Points** is crucial, focusing *solely* on one or two regions can make you a target. Other players will notice and might gang up to challenge your dominance. Spreading yourself too thin, however, can also be dangerous as you won't be able to defend everything. A balanced approach, perhaps focusing on one or two key regions for first place and aiming for second in a few others, often proves more effective.
2. Develop Your Economy and Capital Buildings: Money makes the world go 'round, even in the New World! Investing in **Trade Goods** and **Merchant Ships** to generate consistent income is vital. This money can then be used to acquire powerful **Capital Buildings**, which offer a wide array of benefits, from extra **Colonists** and **Specialists** to direct **Victory Points**. A strong economy provides the flexibility to adapt your strategy and purchase what you need when you need it.
3. Warfare as a Tool, Not a Strategy: Don't expect to conquer your way to victory through brute force alone. **Warfare** in Age of Empires III is best used as a surgical tool to tip the balance in a few critical colonies at key moments. Use it to break an opponent's hold on a valuable region or to secure a crucial **Victory Point** lead, rather than as your primary path to triumph.

Good luck, and may your empire flourish!