Game Objective

In Imperial Settlers: Empires of the North - Barbarian Hordes, players take on the role of leaders of Barbarian Clans, a new faction. The theme involves the arrival of curious and furious barbarians who worship strange gods and perform bizarre festivals, and who now make themselves known to the Empires of the North. Players are trying to protect their precious resources and spread their influence. The ultimate goal and victory conditions are not detailed in the provided context.

Setup

To set up the game, follow the steps below:

1. Shuffle the new Distant Island cards into the appropriate deck.
2. Shuffle the new Nearby Island cards into the appropriate deck.
3. Players can choose a Clan from the new ones available (Boudicca or Urvart).
4. If playing with the Boudicca Clan, follow the special Setup instructions:
   • Instead of 2 Workers, you start with 1 Worker and 2 Axes.
   • Your starting Goods are those shown to the right of the Axe on all your Basic Fields.
5. Refer to the manual for details on the initial setup of other clans and general game components.

Gameplay Flow

The provided context does not detail the structure of turns, rounds, or phases of the game. However, some interactions and phases are mentioned:

• Cleanup phase: During this phase, spent Workers and Boats (Ships and Rafts) return to your supply. Ambush tokens are not discarded from Fields during this phase.
• Action Activation: Players activate Actions on their Fields.
• Passing the Round: A player can "pass" for the round. This affects the placement and resolution of Ambush tokens.

Refer to the manual for details on this section.

Actions and How to Play

The following actions and mechanics are detailed:

Ambush Tokens

Several Urvart Clan Actions allow you to place Ambush tokens on Fields in your opponent's empire.

• When an opponent activates a Field with an Ambush token:
  1. First, the opponent declares they are activating a Field with an Ambush token.
  2. You, the Urvart player, gain 1 Resource from the general supply that matches a Resource the opponent has in their supply. If the opponent has no Resources, you gain 1 Food instead.
  3. The opponent removes the Ambush token from the Field and resolves the action.
• Placement Restrictions: If an opponent has already passed for the round, you cannot place any Ambush tokens on Fields in their empire.
• Resolution with Passed Urvart Player: If an opponent uses a Field with an Ambush token, but you (the Urvart player) have already passed for the round, each step is resolved normally, but the Resource you gain is chosen by your opponent (as usual, it must match a Resource the opponent has in their supply or 1 Food if they have no Resources).
• Discarding a Field with an Ambush token: If a Field with an Ambush token is discarded, resolve the steps as if the Field had been activated, and then discard the Ambush token.
• Cleanup Phase: Do not discard Ambush tokens from Fields during the Cleanup Phase.

Reveal Island

When a card instructs you to Reveal an Island, you can choose to reveal a card from any of the Island decks (Nearby Island or Distant Island). Place the revealed Island on the appropriate side below the Expedition board to indicate that it is now available to all players using the Expedition board.

Boudicca Clan: New Boats

The Boudicca Clan has 2 types of boats: Ships and Rafts. They can be used to Sail or to Harvest.

Sail

When you Sail — either using the Action tile or when instructed by the keyword Sail — you can only use a Ship. You can only place a Ship on the Expedition board when a card specifically allows you to do so. When you place a Ship on the Expedition board, you are not allowed to place Goods on it and, therefore, can only Pillage Nearby Islands when using a Ship on the Expedition board.

Harvest

All Fields in the Boudicca Clan deck require you to spend a Ship or a Raft to Harvest from them. When Harvesting, choose to spend a Ship or a Raft, placing it on your Clan tile. Depending on what you choose to spend, gain the Goods indicated to the right of the Ship or Raft on the Field. Like spent Workers, spent Ships and Rafts return to your supply during the Cleanup Phase.

Urvart Clan Card Explanations

• Welcome Wagon (408), Low-Key Theft (422): Each time you activate one of these cards, you can choose to resolve the full effects multiple times — once for each of your opponents.
• Forgery (433): When you activate this card, you can choose one of these 2 options:
  1. Spend 1 Food and exhaust to EXPLORE.
  2. Spend 1 Food and exhaust to POPULATE.
• Shinto Bandits (434): When this card is activated, the Resource is taken from an opponent's supply.
• Ring Around the Romans (438): To Recover the Worker, you must spend 1 Food to move your Clan action pawn to an adjacent Action tile, activate the tile, and flip your Clan Action pawn to its exhausted side.

Boudicca Clan Card Explanations

• Building Fields (Sakura Ship Ransack (385) or Drowning Dutchman’s Pillage (398)): When you Build a new Field, you do not need to spend a Worker, but you will gain the Goods indicated to the right of the Field when the Field is Built.
• Raft Wrestling (389, 390): When you activate this card, you can choose between the following options:
  1. Recover 1 Raft and gain 1 Food.
  2. Gain 1 Food and move your Raft 1 position up in the Expedition board queue.
• Involuntary Reinforcements (400): When this card is activated, the Ship/Raft that resolves Pillage/Conquest returns to your supply and you can use it again during this round.
• Inspired Planker (403): When activating this card, you can change the Axe to Food and vice versa or recover the same Ship/Raft that you removed and then gain 1 Food.
• Brittania Bridge (404): The spent Ship is placed on your Clan tile in the same way it would have been spent to Harvest.

Inter-Clan Interaction

• Saikoro Clan: When playing with the Saikoro Clan, you cannot use cards related to Ships (Greed Stone (395), Inspired Planker (403), Brittania Bridge (404)). Additionally, if you gain Resources from Boudicca's Fields, you do not spend a Boat and can only gain the Resources to the right of the Field.
• Umineko Clan: When you activate New Delivery (230) and resolve Docking, and there are more than 2 Island cards revealed, gain and assign Goods from each revealed Island.
• Urvart Clan: When you activate a card that gives an opponent a choice, and the choice is not possible, it cannot be chosen (e.g., Art Thieves (409) an opponent has the choice to discard 1 random card from their hand — but they have no cards in hand — they must choose the other option).

Island Card Explanations

• Happy Pigs Island (440), Abandoned Granary (218): Do not spend a boat when you gain Resources from Boudicca's Fields.

End of Game and Scoring

Refer to the manual for details on this section.

Tips for Winning

Based on the information provided, here are some tactical tips for the new clans:

• For the Urvart Clan: Utilize Ambush tokens strategically. Placing them on Fields that your opponents frequently activate can generate a steady flow of Resources for you, as well as potentially disrupt their planning. Pay attention to the Resources your opponents have to maximize your gains from Ambush tokens.
• For the Boudicca Clan: Focus on building and utilizing your Ships and Rafts. The ability to Harvest using boats instead of Workers, and the flexibility to Sail to Pillage Nearby Islands, suggests a strategy focused on maritime exploration and acquiring Resources from the sea. Cards like Involuntary Reinforcements can be crucial for reusing your boats and optimizing your Pillage and Conquest actions.
• Interaction with opponents: If you are playing as Urvart, observe when your opponents "pass" for the round, as this affects your ability to place Ambush tokens. If you have already passed, you can still benefit from already placed Ambush tokens, but the opponent chooses the Resource.