Objective of the Game

Welcome to the charming world of **Agricola: All Creatures Big and Small**! Get ready to roll up your sleeves and transform your humble farm into a thriving animal empire. Your goal is simple yet engaging: become the most successful farmer by raising the most animals and constructing the most valuable buildings. Over eight exciting rounds, you'll strategically expand your farm, build cozy shelters, and grow your animal herds. The player with the most points at the end of the game will claim the title of the ultimate animal whisperer!

Preparation (Setup)

Let's get your farm ready for action! Here's how to set up your game:

1. Place the **Game Board** in the center of your playing area.
2. Each player takes a **Farm Board**. Make sure the forest is at the top and the path is at the bottom.
3. Lay out the 4 **Special Buildings** (Half Timbered House, Open Stables, Shelter, and Storage Building) next to the **Farm Board**. If you're playing with expansions, randomly add 4 more **Special Buildings** from the expansion(s) in play.
4. Place the 4 **Farm Expansions** (5 if playing with expansions), 10 **Feeding Troughs**, and 4 **Stall Tiles** (remember, **Stables** are on the reverse side – 5 **Stall Tiles** if playing with expansions) to one side of the **Game Board**.
5. Sort the **Building Materials** (17 Wood, 15 Stone, and 5 Reed) into neat piles.
6. Sort the **Animals** (22 Sheep, 15 Pigs, 13 Cows, 14 Horses) into their own adorable piles.
7. Grab the 26 **Borders** (those yellow wooden sticks). Each player receives 9 **Borders**. The remaining 8 **Borders** go next to the "Expand" section on the **Game Board**.
8. Finally, determine a **Start Player**. May the best farmer begin!

The Turn of Play

**Agricola: All Creatures Big and Small** unfolds over 8 rounds, each with four distinct phases. Let's break down how a round works:

1. Refill Phase

This is when the goodies appear!

• Each action space on the **Game Board** with a brown "Refill Arrow" gets the goods pictured next to it. These spaces refill even if there are still goods from the previous round.
• If a refill space shows "Good 1/Good 2":
  • If the space is empty, place **Good 1** on it.
  • If the space already has goods, place **Good 2** on it.
• Don't forget to add 1 yellow **Border** to the "Expand" space each round – this helps you keep track of the round number!

2. Work Phase

Time to get your hands dirty!

• Starting with the **Start Player**, players take turns placing one of their three workers on an action space and immediately taking the corresponding action.
• Once a space is occupied, neither player can use it again this round.
• If you choose an action space with goods, you take all those goods:
  • **Building materials** go into your personal supply.
  • **Animals** must be placed directly onto your **Farm Board**. If you don't have space for them, they immediately run away (returned to the general supply).
  • Pro-tip: You can rearrange animals on your farm at any time, and even release them back to the supply to make room for more valuable ones!
• You must be able to perform the action of the space you choose.
• You don't need to completely fill your main board before building on your **Farm Expansions**!

Action Spaces Explained:

Here's a quick rundown of some key actions you can take:

• Start Player and 1 Wood: Take the **Start Player** marker and all **Wood** from this space. You can take this even if you're already the **Start Player** to keep the status.
• 3 Wood / 1 Stone / 2 Stone / Millpond / Pigs and Sheep / Cows and Pigs / Horses and Sheep: Take all the depicted resources or animals from the space. Animals must be placed on your farm or they run away.
• Fences: Add as many **Borders** from your personal supply to your farm as you like, paying 1 **Wood** for each.
• Walls: Add as many **Borders** from your personal supply as you want. The first two are free; additional **Borders** cost 2 **Stone** each.
• Building Materials: Take 1 **Wood**, 1 **Stone**, and 1 **Reed** from the general supply. (This isn't a refill space.)
• Expand: Take one **Farm Expansion** and add it to your farm (left or right, matching edges). You also get all yellow **Borders** from this space. You can't place the **Borders** with this action. You can even take this action if no **Expansions** are left, just to get the **Borders**.
• Stalls: Build exactly 1 **Stall** for 3 **Stone** and 1 **Reed** on any empty farm space. A **Stall** can be built on a space with a **Feeding Trough**.
• Feeding Trough: Build 1 **Feeding Trough** for free. Additional ones cost 3 **Wood** each. Place them on any farm space without a **Feeding Trough**.
• Stables: Pay 5 **Wood** OR 5 **Stone** (not a mix) to flip a **Stall** into a **Stables**. You can do this multiple times. **Stables** hold up to 5 animals.
• Special Building: There are two such spaces. Build exactly 1 available **Special Building** by paying its cost and adding it to your farm.

Rules of Raising Animals:

Animals need homes! They can live in **Pastures** or **Buildings**.

• Pastures: Must be completely enclosed by **Borders** (Fences, Walls, or building sides). Each pasture space holds two animals of the same type.
• Buildings:
  • Your starting **Cottage** holds 1 animal. Upgrade it to a **Half-Timbered House** to hold 2.
  • **Stalls** (3 Stone, 1 Reed) hold 3 animals of the same type.
  • **Stables** (upgraded from a **Stall** for 5 Wood or 5 Stone) hold 5 animals of the same type.
  • **Special Buildings** have their capacity indicated on the tile.
• Feeding Troughs: These are amazing! A **Feeding Trough** doubles the capacity of a **Pasture** or **Building**. An unenclosed farm space with a **Feeding Trough** can hold 1 animal. You can only have one **Feeding Trough** per farm space.

3. Home Phase

All your hardworking farmers return from the **Game Board** to their farm, ready for the next round.

4. Breeding Phase

Time for your animals to multiply!

• If you have at least two animals of the same type on your farm, you receive one more animal of that type.
• You can get at most 1 Sheep, 1 Pig, 1 Cow, and 1 Horse per **Breeding Phase**.
• Newborn animals that don't have space immediately run away (returned to general supply).

Game End and Scoring

The game concludes after the 8th round. The rounds are counted by adding a yellow **Border** to the board each time. Now, for the moment of truth – scoring!

1. Total Number of Animals: Count all your animals. Each animal is worth 1 point.
2. Animal Bonus Points: Check the table below to see if you qualify for bonus points based on the number of each animal type. You get 1 additional VP for each animal above the top limit for each type!

   	0-3	8-10	11-12	13	14	15	16
   Sheep	0	-3	1	2	3	4	5	6
   Pigs	0	-3	7-8	9-10	11	12	13	14
   Cow	0	-3	6-7	8-9	10	11	12	13
   Horses	0	-3	5-6	7-8	9	10	11	12

3. Farm Expansions: Each **Farm Expansion** where all three spaces are used is worth 4 points. A space is "used" if it has a building, a **Feeding Trough**, or is part of a fully enclosed **Pasture**. Unused **Farm Expansions** are worth 0 points.
4. Buildings: **Stalls**, **Stables**, and **Special Buildings** are worth the points shown on them. The **Storage Building** scores points based on the number of **Building Materials** in your supply (0.5 points per material).

The player with the most points wins! In case of a tie, the player who was *not* the **Start Player** at the beginning of the game wins.

Tips for Winning

Ready to dominate the farm? Here are a couple of pointers to get you started:

1. Prioritize Pasture Expansion Early: Animals are your primary source of points, and they need space! Focus on acquiring **Borders** and building enclosed **Pastures** in the early rounds. Remember, each pasture space holds two animals of the same type, so efficient use of your **Borders** is key to maximizing your breeding potential. Don't let those precious newborns run away!
2. Strategic Use of Feeding Troughs: **Feeding Troughs** are incredibly powerful. Doubling the capacity of a **Pasture** or **Building** can significantly boost your animal count without needing to build more physical spaces. Consider placing them in your **Cottage** early on, or in larger **Pastures** to get the most bang for your buck. They are limited, so grab them when you can!
3. Balance Animals and Buildings: While animals are crucial, don't neglect the value of **Buildings**. **Stables** offer higher capacity, and **Special Buildings** can provide unique abilities and substantial end-game points. Keep an eye on the costs and benefits of various buildings to see how they can complement your animal-raising strategy and contribute to your final score.