Objective of the Game

Welcome, fellow cartographers, to the northern lands of Nalos! Queen Gimnax herself has tasked us with a grand mission: to map this wild territory and claim it for the kingdom. But beware, for the Dragul lurk, contesting our every claim. Your goal is simple yet challenging: outmaneuver your rivals, satisfy the Queen's ever-changing demands, and become the most renowned cartographer in the land!

In Cartographers, players compete to earn the most reputation stars over four seasons. Each season, you'll be drawing on your personal map sheets, earning reputation by fulfilling the Queen's edicts. The player with the most reputation stars at the end of winter will be declared the greatest cartographer in the kingdom and win the game!

Preparation (Setup)

Getting ready to map the wilderness is quick and easy. Here’s how to set up your game:

1. Give each player a blank map sheet. As a group, decide whether to use the wilderness side (A) or the wastelands side (B).
2. Each player gets a pencil. If you're playing with more than four, you'll need to rustle up some extra pencils!
3. Have each player write a name for their cartographer at the top of their map sheet. Feel free to add a fancy title or family crest if you're feeling creative!
4. Arrange the four edict cards face-up in a row in the center of your play area, making sure they're in alphabetical order (edict A, edict B, etc.).
5. Separate the scoring cards into four stacks based on their card backs. Shuffle each stack individually, then randomly draw one card from each stack. Place one of these drawn scoring cards face-up below each of the edict cards. The rest of the scoring cards go back in the box.
6. Place the four season cards in a face-up stack, ordered by the progression of seasons (spring, summer, fall, winter). The spring card should be visible on top.
7. Shuffle the four ambush cards to form a face-down deck, then set this ambush deck aside.
8. Shuffle the explore cards to form a face-down deck. Take the top card of the ambush deck and shuffle it into this explore deck without revealing it. Finally, place the explore deck next to the stack of season cards.
9. And just like that, you're ready to begin your cartographic journey!

The Turn of Play

The game unfolds over four seasons, and each season is a series of turns. Every turn has three exciting phases:

1. Explore Phase

Time to see what the wilderness has in store! Reveal the top card of the explore deck and place it face up in the center of the play area for everyone to see. Stack new cards on top of any already revealed explore cards, creating a column so all the time values are visible.

• If the first card revealed is a ruins card, immediately reveal another card from the explore deck and place it on top.
• If that second card is also a ruins card, you guessed it! Reveal yet another card and place it on top of both ruins cards.

2. Draw Phase

Now for the fun part – drawing on your map! Simultaneously, each player independently chooses one of the terrain types and one of the available shapes depicted on the revealed explore card. Then, you draw it on your map with your pencil.

• Your chosen shape cannot overlap filled spaces or the edges of your map. (Remember, mountain spaces and wasteland spaces are considered filled!)
• The shape doesn't need to be drawn adjacent to anything you've already drawn.
• Feel free to rotate and/or flip your chosen shape as needed before drawing it.
• After drawing the outline, fill the shape with your chosen terrain type.
• If you can't legally draw any of the available shapes, don't fret! Instead, you must draw a 1x1 square anywhere on your map and fill it with your chosen terrain type.

Keep an eye out for these special situations during the Draw Phase:

• Surrounding Mountains: Each mountain space has four adjacent spaces. If you surround a mountain space by filling all four adjacent spaces, you get to fill in the next coin symbol on your coin track!
• Shapes with Coins: Some shapes come with a coin symbol. If you choose one of these shapes, you immediately fill in the next coin symbol on your coin track.
• Rift Lands: If a rift lands card is revealed, each player draws a 1x1 square anywhere on their map and fills it with any terrain type shown on the card. All normal rules and restrictions still apply.
• Ruins: If one or more ruins cards are revealed, each player must draw one of the available shapes (from the *next* explore card revealed) so that it overlaps a ruins space on their map, if possible. If you can't legally overlap a ruins space, or there are no unfilled ruins spaces left, you must instead draw a 1x1 square anywhere on your map and fill it with any terrain type.
• Ambush: Uh oh, it's an ambush card! Check the direction of the arrow on the card. Each player immediately passes their map sheet to their neighbor in that direction. Then, each player draws the depicted shape on their *neighbor’s* map and fills it with the monster terrain type. If you can't legally draw the shape on your neighbor’s map, draw a 1x1 square anywhere on their map and fill it with the monster terrain type. After everyone has drawn, pass all map sheets back to their owners and discard the ambush card back to the game box. (Note: If an ambush card is revealed right after a ruins card, the ambush is resolved normally, and the ruins effect applies to the *next* explore card.)

The available Terrain Types are: Forest, Village, Farm, Monster, Water, Mountain.

3. Check Phase

Time to see if the season is drawing to a close! Examine the current season card to find its time threshold (e.g., spring has a time threshold of eight). Add up the time values of all explore cards currently revealed in the column.

• If the total meets or exceeds the time threshold, the current season ends! Proceed immediately to the End of the Season.
• If the total is less than the time threshold, the season continues! Return to the Explore Phase for another turn.

End of the Season

When a season ends, it's time to see how well you've done! Players are evaluated and earn reputation stars based on how well they followed the Queen’s edicts.

Scoring the Queen's Edicts

Look at the current season card to see which two scoring cards to evaluate (e.g., in spring, you evaluate the scoring cards below edicts A and B).

• Each player evaluates their own map to determine how many reputation stars they earn for each of the two scoring cards. Write these numbers in the corresponding boxes on your map sheet.
• Each player earns one reputation star for each filled-in coin symbol on their coin track. Write this number in the corresponding box.
• Each player loses one reputation star for each empty space adjacent to a monster space on their map. Write this as a negative number in the corresponding box. (Even if an empty space is adjacent to multiple monster spaces, you still only lose one reputation star for that single space.)

If the current season is winter, the game is now over! Proceed to the End of the Game. Otherwise, it's time to prepare for the next season.

Preparing for the Next Season

Get ready for new challenges!

• Discard the top card of the season stack, returning it to the game box. This reveals the next season card.
• Reshuffle the explore deck, including all explore cards revealed this season.
• Then, take the top card of the ambush deck and shuffle it into the explore deck, without revealing it. (Heads up: If an ambush card wasn't revealed last season, it stays in the explore deck, and you add *another* one! So, later seasons might have multiple ambushes lurking!)

End of Game and Scoring

Once winter has concluded and players have been evaluated for the fourth and final time, the game is officially over!

• Each player totals up all the reputation stars they earned across all four seasons. Write your final score on your map sheet.
• The player with the most reputation stars is the winner!
• In case of a tie, the tied player who lost the least reputation stars to monster terrain across all four seasons wins. If there's still a tie, all tied players share the victory.

General Scoring Rules to Remember:

• Spaces that share a side are adjacent. Spaces only at diagonals are not.
• A group of connected spaces all with the same terrain type is a cluster. Clusters can be any size, even a single space.
• Monster spaces, mountain spaces, and wasteland spaces all count as filled spaces. Only *filled* ruins spaces count as filled spaces.

Tips for Winning

To truly shine as Queen Gimnax's finest cartographer, keep these strategies in mind:

1. Adapt to the Edicts: The Queen's edicts change each game and each season! Pay close attention to which two scoring cards are active for the current season. Don't just draw randomly; try to place terrains and shapes in ways that maximize your points for *those specific edicts*. Sometimes it's better to score big on one edict than to try and do a little bit of everything.
2. Mind Your Monsters: Ambush cards can be brutal, costing you precious reputation stars for empty spaces adjacent to monsters. Try to anticipate where monsters might appear (especially if an ambush card wasn't revealed in a previous season, meaning more are in the deck!). Strategically filling spaces around potential monster locations can mitigate these losses. Sometimes, it's worth taking a less-than-ideal shape to fill a vulnerable spot.
3. Coin Collection is Key: Don't underestimate the power of coins! Each filled-in coin symbol on your track is a guaranteed reputation star at the end of the season. Look for opportunities to surround mountain spaces or choose shapes that come with coins. These consistent points can add up and give you an edge over your rivals.