Objective of the Game

In Great Western Trail (2nd Edition): Trails to the North, players take on the role of herders navigating the trail. Your goal is to manage your herd, build up your presence through buildings and branchlets, and navigate the complexities of the trail to accumulate the most victory points by the end of the game.

Setup

To prepare the game, follow these steps:

• Place the Extension Board above the base Game Board.
• Randomly place 6 of the 10 Town Tiles on the spaces on the Extension Board.
• Randomly place 7 of the 11 Station Master Tiles on the spaces on both boards.
• Randomly place the 7 Neutral Building Tiles on the Game Board.
• Place the Job Market Token on the top dashed circle space on the 2nd row of the Job Market.
• Draw 7 '1' Tiles and place them on their appropriate spaces on the Game Board.
• Draw '2' Tiles and place them in the Job Market row by row until the row is filled to the right, repeating on the 2nd row up to the space before the Job Market Token.
• Fill the 6 Foresight spaces in Kansas City with the indicated numbered Tiles.
• Optional: Add Simmental or Brahman Cards to the Cattle Card deck. If doing so, add the Orange Market Tile to the Game Board and the card to the starting Objective Card deck.
• Shuffle the Cattle Cards into a facedown Market deck. Draw the indicated number of cards for your player count and display them under the Cattle Market.
• Shuffle the 28 Objective Cards into a facedown deck and draw 4 faceup.
• Each player chooses a color and takes:
  • 1 Player Board (attach Player Count Tile if playing with 2 or 3 players).
  • 1 Auxiliary Add-on Board.
  • 15 Discs (place on Player Board).
  • 15 Branchlets (place on Auxiliary Add-on Board).
  • 1 Certificate Marker (place on the top of the Certificate Track).
  • 1 Engine (place below the start of the Railroad Track in Kansas City).
  • 1 Starting Objective Card (place faceup).
  • 14 Player Cattle Cards (shuffled into a facedown deck).
  • 1 Exchange Token and 1 Herder.
  • Randomly determine the first player. Other players follow clockwise.
  • Players receive starting cash and cards based on turn order:
    • 1st: $6 & 4 Cards | 2nd: $7 & 5 Cards | 3rd: $8 & 6 Cards | 4th: $9 & 7 Cards
  • Discard down to 4 cards.
  • Place your Herder on any Neutral Building Tile and proceed to PHASE B.

  Game Flow

  On your turn, you must carry out the following 3 Phases in this specific order:

  PHASE A: Movement

  Move your Herder at least 1 step forward on the Trail, up to your Step Limit. You may skip empty spaces. Multiple Herders can stop on the same space. If you pass over any green or black hands on Hazard or Outlaw Tiles, pay the amount indicated on your Player Board to the bank (or to the player if the hands are on their Building). If you reach Kansas City, immediately end this phase.

  PHASE B: Actions

  Use the Action(s) of your reached Location. Actions are optional and can be performed in any order.
  • On a Neutral Building or your own Buildings: Use any of the Tile's Action(s) (and Risk Actions) or 1 single Auxiliary Action.
  • On another player's Building or a Hazard/Outlaw Tile: You may only use 1 single Auxiliary Action.
  • On Kansas City: Perform these 5 steps:

  1. Choose 1 of the 2 Tiles in each column in the Foresight spaces and move it to its corresponding section. Workers must be placed on the row with the Job Market Token. If a Worker is placed on the Job Market Token, move it down a row. If the Job Market Token passes a yellow arrow, refill the Cattle Market. If the Job Market Token moves off the bottom of the board, the game ends.
  2. Reveal your hand and sum the values of each DIFFERENT TYPE of Cattle Card. You may add to this Breeding Value with Permanent Certificates or temporary Certificates to gain $. If you reveal Simmental Cards, trash them and gain a Simmental Card of the next highest value. If you reveal Brahman Cards, gain $4 per card (this does not increase Breeding Value). Discard your hand.
  3. Move 1 of your Discs from your Player Board onto an available City Crest (on the City Strip or reached by your Branchlets) with a value equal to or lower than your Breeding Value. Pay $1 for each cross between your Engine nose and the Railroad Track matching the City Value.
  4. Gain immediate bonuses. Note: bonuses between two green arrows require placement on both cities to trigger.
  Note: Each player may only deliver to each City once, except for Kansas City and New York.

  PHASE C: Draw

  Draw up to your Hand Limit (4, 5, or 6) as indicated on your Player Board.

  Actions and How to Play

  Players can perform Single Auxiliary Actions or Double Auxiliary Actions.

  Single Auxiliary Actions

  Consult the manual for the specific list of available actions, which include:
  • Gaining $1.
  • Drawing/Discarding cards.
  • Moving your Engine (forward or backward) for a cost.
  • Placing Branchlets.
  • Trashing cards from the game.
  • Hiring a Worker.
  • Placing a Building.
  • Collecting Hazard or Outlaw Tiles.

  Double Auxiliary Actions

  These can be used at ANY point and include:
  • Discarding the Exchange Token to draw cards.
  • Gaining Permanent Certificates.
  • Gaining $5 or a free Cattle Card.
  • Trashing 2 cards or collecting a Hazard Tile.
  • Hiring a Worker with a discount.
  • Placing a Building for free.
  • Placing a Branchlet.

  Special Actions & Mechanics

  • Cattle Market: Acquire new Cattle Cards by spending $ depending on your number of Cowboys.
  • Place a Building: Choose an unplaced Building and place it on an empty space or replace an existing one (paying the difference).
  • Hire a Worker: Choose a Worker Tile from the Job Market and pay the cost.
  • Upgrade a Train Station: If you stop in a Turnout space or place a Branchlet next to a Train Station, you may upgrade it by paying the cost and placing a Disc.
  • Objective Cards: Can be played into your player area before PHASE A or PHASE B to trigger an immediate action.

  End of Game and Scoring

  End of Game Trigger: The game ends when the Job Market Token moves off the bottom of the Game Board. Each other player gets 1 final turn.

  Final Scoring:
  • 2 VP for each Town Tile you've placed a Branchlet by.
  • 3 VP for every 2 Certificates (permanent or temporary).
  • 2 VP for every Building Tile you've placed.
  • 3 VP for every 2 Hazard Tiles you've collected.
  • 1 VP for every Worker you have.
  • 1 VP for every Cattle Card with a Breeding Value of 3, 4, or 5.
  • 3 VP for every pair of Green and Orange Outlaws collected.
  • 3 VP for every 2 Objective Cards you have (fulfilled or not).
  • 1 VP for every $5.
  • 2 VP if you've collected the Job Market Token.
  • VP from placed Discs on City Crests.
  • VP from Station Master Tiles and Train Stations.
  • 4 VP for every Worker in the 5th and 6th spaces on your Player Board.
  • 3 VP if you've cleared the specific space on your Player Board.

  Tips for Winning

  Consult the manual for details about this section.