How to Play Isle of Skye: Journeyman

Objective of the Game

In Isle of Skye: Journeyman, you're trying to become king by running your kingdom effectively. This requires the help of warriors, merchants, and heralds. You'll manage your clan territory, advance on various tracks, and unlock benefits to gain victory points. The game ends as described in the base game rules, and the player with the most victory points wins.

Preparation (Setup)

1. Each player takes the components in their color.
2. Turn the progress board to the appropriate side (front for 2-4 players; back for 5 players).
3. Place a marker at the start of each of the three tracks on your progress board. These are your progress markers.
4. Shuffle the bonus tiles face down and distribute them on the designated spaces of the progress board, matching the Roman numerals. Then turn them face up.
5. Place one of the remaining markers on the appropriate bonus tile (as shown in illustrations). Keep the other two markers nearby; these three are your waypoint markers.
6. Place your journeyman pawn on your castle.
7. Set three roads and a “50/100 VP” tile aside.
8. Add the 7 “1 gold” coins to the other gold.

If players dislike the random setup of the bonus tiles, one player can set up their board, and others can copy that distribution.

Fluxo do Jogo

The game progresses through several phases. The journeyman's movement is planned and executed in phase 5, after players have added the landscape tiles they bought.

Phase 1: Income

You may gain additional income of 2, 4, or 7 gold (2, 5, or 7 gold in a 5-player game) if unlocked on the Merchant track. Only the rightmost income symbol counts.

Phase 2: Setting Prices

If you have the "No Axe" bonus tile, you may set a price for all three of your landscape tiles.

Phase 3: Discarding Tiles

If you have the "No Axe" bonus tile and set prices for all three tiles in phase 2, you do not discard any tiles in this phase.

Phase 4: Buying Tiles

When another player buys a tile from you, you may immediately advance on the Warrior track (but no other track), regardless of the requirement shown.

Immediately after you buy a landscape tile with the journeyman symbol (including tiles you must keep because no one bought them), even before placing it, you may advance on a track of your choice, regardless of the requirement shown. This applies even if you cannot place the tile in your clan territory. Advancing on the Herald track may require a fee.

If you have the "Two Buys" bonus tile, after all players have had a chance to buy a landscape tile, you may buy a second one. If multiple players have this ability, make second purchases in turn order. If you also have the "Bank Pays" bonus tile, the bank will pay for both purchases.

If you have the "Bank Pays" bonus tile, you no longer pay for tiles bought from other players; the bank pays for you.

Newly unlocked benefits from tracks may not be used before the next phase (Golden Rule).

Phase 5: Journeyman Movement

This phase occurs after adding the landscape tiles you bought.

1. Planning Your Movement: All players simultaneously plan their movement by placing waypoint markers in their clan territory.
   • You start with two waypoint markers (a third can be unlocked via a bonus tile).
   • You may only place one waypoint marker per landscape tile.
   • You must be able to visit all placed waypoint markers within your limited movement points. You can place fewer waypoint markers if needed.
   • You start with 4 movement points, as shown on the Merchant track by the shoe symbol.
   • Your journeyman moves orthogonally. Moving from one landscape tile to another costs 2 movement points.
   • If both tiles are connected via a continuous road (printed or placed), moving between them costs 1 movement point instead of 2. Dead ends do not count as continuous roads.
   • Collecting waypoint markers does not consume movement points.
   • You may place a waypoint marker on the tile with your journeyman. You can collect it at the start of his movement or later.
   • You are allowed to travel through the same tile multiple times if you have enough movement points.
2. Executing Your Movement: In turn order, each player demonstrates their movement.
   • Move your journeyman as planned, collecting the waypoint markers one by one in an order of your choice.
   • Each time you collect a waypoint marker on a landscape tile, you may advance on exactly one of your progress tracks if that landscape tile meets the requirements of the next space on the track.
   • Even if a landscape tile meets the requirements of multiple track spaces, you can only advance once per waypoint marker.
   • Advancing on the Herald track occasionally costs a fee (5, 8, or 12 gold).
   • Your movement ends when you collect the last waypoint marker, even if you have movement points left (which are lost).
   • If you made a mistake during planning and cannot visit one or more waypoint markers, remove the wrongfully placed markers and end your movement at the last waypoint marker you could collect (or stand still).
   • Advancing on a track with a waypoint marker is optional. You may place and move to a waypoint marker at the end of your movement to position yourself for the next turn without advancing on a track.

Phase 6: Scoring

You will get additional victory points from the Warrior and Herald tracks in this phase, before evaluating the current scoring tiles. Score the two tracks separately. Only the rightmost victory point symbol on a banner counts for each track.

Ações e Como Jogar

Journeyman Movement (Phase 5)

As detailed in the "Fluxo do Jogo" section, players plan and execute their journeyman's movement in phase 5. This involves placing waypoint markers and moving your journeyman pawn to collect them, spending movement points.

Advancing on Progress Tracks

When you collect a waypoint marker on a landscape tile, you may advance on one of your three progress tracks (Warrior, Merchant, Herald) if the tile meets the requirements of the next space.

• Warrior Track: Provides an increasing number of additional victory points per round.
• Merchant Track: Increases your income and your journeyman's movement.
• Herald Track: Provides both immediate and repeating victory point boosts.

Requirements on Track Spaces

Most track spaces require the landscape tile from which you take the waypoint marker to have a certain printed feature (barrel, broch, cattle, farm, lighthouse, sheep, or ship). Other requirements include:

• Castle: To advance to a space explicitly requiring your castle, you must collect a waypoint marker placed on your castle. This does not cost anything.
• Distance from Castle: Symbols indicating a landscape tile that is at least 2, 3, or 4 tiles away from your castle. Distance is counted orthogonally, even across gaps.
• Completed Areas: Symbols indicating a completed mountain, water, or pasture area. The waypoint marker must be placed on a landscape tile that is part of the completed area (or contains such). A symbol can also indicate both a completed mountain and completed water area.
• Scroll: A symbol indicating a scroll of any sort. The waypoint marker must be placed on the landscape tile with the scroll.
• Directional Tiles: Symbols for North (top), South (bottom), East (right), and West (left), referring to the topmost, bottommost, rightmost, and leftmost landscape tile in your clan territory. If multiple tiles apply, you can collect the waypoint marker from any of those tiles.

Advancing via the Castle

Separate from spaces explicitly requiring your castle, you can use a castle advancement to advance on any track, regardless of the requirements. To do so, place a waypoint marker on the castle. When you collect it, pay the cost printed at the top of the progress board, above the space to which you want to advance. The progress board is divided into four segments, each with a different cost for using a castle advancement (1, 3, 5, or 8 gold).

Remember, advancing to a space that explicitly requires the castle does not cost anything. You may not place more than one waypoint marker per tile, including the castle tile.

Unlocking Benefits

Advancing on the tracks unlocks various benefits:

• Immediate Victory Point Boosts: Gain victory points as shown by a victory point symbol between spaces. The end of each track allows you to move back and forth to score 3 or 4 victory points repeatedly, indicated by a double arrow.
• Additional Income: On the Merchant track, unlock additional gold income (2, 4, or 7 gold) received in phase 1 of every round. Only the rightmost income symbol counts.
• Additional Victory Points: On the Warrior and Herald tracks, unlock additional victory points received in phase 6 of every round. Only the rightmost victory point symbol on a banner counts for each track.
• Additional Movement Points: On the Merchant track, increase your movement points up to 8 (6 in a 5-player game). Only the rightmost shoe symbol counts. This increase becomes active at the end of the current phase.
• Bonus Tiles: When you unlock a bonus tile, take it off the progress board and place it in front of you.
  • "I" tiles (one-time benefits, then discarded):
    • Third Waypoint Marker: Provides an additional waypoint marker for the rest of the game.
    • Advance on a Track: Advance on a track of your choice (may require a fee on the Herald track).
    • One Road: Get 1 victory point and 1 road to place later.
  • "II" tiles (one-time benefits, then discarded):
    • Extra Movement: Discard for a one-time boost of 4 additional movement points.
    • Five Gold: Take 5 gold from the bank.
    • Two Roads: Take 2 roads to place later.
  • "III" tiles (permanent benefits, kept until end of game):
    • No Axe: Get 3 victory points once. In phase 1 of every round, get 3 additional gold income. In phase 2 of every round, you may set a price for all three landscape tiles and do not discard any in phase 3.
    • Bank Pays: Get 3 victory points once. In phase 4 of every round, the bank pays for tiles you buy from other players.
    • Two Buys: Get 3 victory points once. In phase 4 of every round, you may buy a second landscape tile.

Except for immediate victory point boosts, newly unlocked benefits from tracks may not be used before the next phase (Golden Rule).

Placing Roads

You can get up to 3 roads from bonus tiles. You may place roads at any time, but not before the next phase after you get them (Golden Rule).

Roads are placed across the edge of two adjacent landscape tiles in your clan territory. These two tiles are then considered connected via road. Roads can be placed across water (as bridges) and even over printed roads. There is no limit to the number of roads on a tile.

Fim de Jogo e Pontuação

The game ends as described in the base game rules.

Scoring Criteria (New Scoring Tiles):

• Distance to Journeyman: Count the shortest distance in tiles between your journeyman and your castle, even across gaps. You get victory points equal to double that distance.
• Broch Rows/Columns: You get 1 victory point for each row and each column containing at least one broch. The same broch may count in both a row and column.
• Matching Symbols in Rows: You get 2 victory points for each row (not column) containing at least two tiles with matching symbols (e.g., farm, journeyman, scroll, etc.). Having only a single tile with two of the same symbol does not count.
• Progress Board Bridges: You get 1 victory point for each bridge on your progress board that your progress markers have passed. (The bridges are printed over the vertical lines dividing your progress board into four segments.)

Take a “50/100 Victory Points” tile and turn it to the appropriate side as soon as you achieve 50 and 100 victory points.

Dicas para Vencer

• Strategically place roads to save movement points and to connect whisky barrels to your castle's road network for additional income.
• Consider using a waypoint marker at the end of your movement to position your journeyman for the next turn, even if you don't advance on a track, to optimize future movements.
• Pay attention to the bonus tiles and aim to