# Merchants Cove: The Innkeeper ## General Info - **Year Published**: 2021 - **BGG Rating**: 7.7 - **BGG Rank**: — - **Players**: 1-5 (Best with: 2) - **Duration**: 60-90 min - **Weight**: 2.83 / 5 - **Designers**: Carl Van Ostrand, Drake Villareal, Jonny Pac - **Artists**: Mihajlo Dimitrievski - **Publishers**: Final Frontier Games, Devil Dice Games, Fabrika Igr, Galakta, Mosaico Jogos, Pegasus Spiele, Super Meeple, TCG Factory, TLAMA games - **Categories**: Economic, Expansion for Base-game, Fantasy - **Mechanics**: Commodity Speculation, Turn Order: Time Track, Variable Player Powers, Worker Placement ## Verdict Perfect for those looking to spice up the base game with a speculation-heavy character. Great for players who love predicting opponent moves.Refreshing new gameplay dynamicTight speculation mechanicsGreat 'grumpy innkeeper' themeIncreases overall game varietyRequires the base game to playLearning curve for the new roleRECOMMENDED ## Description Ever met that grumpy innkeeper who promises a soft bed but delivers a swift kick to anyone starting trouble? Meet Mr. Nasty. In 'Merchants Cove: The Innkeeper', you step into his shoes and run the local boarding house. While other merchants are fighting for pier space to sell bulk goods, your business model is different: providing room and board to exhausted adventurers after the markets close for the day. However, running an inn isn't just about handing out keys. The core of this expansion is a clever speculation game. Your goal is to prepare your rooms to match the most common types of adventurers present at the end of each round. If your planning is spot on and your guests are happy, your income will skyrocket. But beware: failure leads to chaos. If you can't accommodate the crowd, brawls will break out, and a tavern fight is the last thing your business needs if you want to stay profitable. This expansion introduces a brand new playable character, shifting the focus from the traditional logistics of the base game to a high-stakes game of demand and supply. Instead of hauling cargo, you'll be managing space and reading your opponents' moves to anticipate guest needs. It's a game of risk and reward where careful preparation is the key to success. If you enjoy economic games with a fantasy twist and love the thrill of predicting market trends, playing as the Innkeeper adds a fresh, competitive dynamic to your Merchants Cove experience. ## How to Play Game Objective As Mr. Nasty, the infamous Innkeeper, your goal is to provide room and board to tired adventurers after the markets close. Unlike other merchants, you do not sell large goods at the piers. Instead, you manage your Innkeeper Shop board to accommodate customers in Bedrooms. Your objective is to successfully host customers to earn Gold and gain Loyal Customers, while avoiding the negative consequences of the Brawl. Setup Place the Innkeeper shop board, staff board, and sale rack in front of you. Add one extra Customer of each color to the main Adventure bag (resulting in 13 Warriors, 13 Bards, 9 Nobles, and 9 Wizards). Keep the Drinks (small Goods) and Beds nearby in your supply. Place the Innkeeper figure onto the Activate Staff action space. Game Flow The game progresses through specific phases, with the Innkeeper following a unique sequence: Market Phase: During this phase, you may sell Drinks at the Grand Plaza (center) Pier or Black Market (right) Pier. Note that your Shop board contains no Market Phase Sponsorship icons. Accommodation Phase: This occurs after the core Market Phase and follows these steps: Customer Arrival: From each Pier, take 1 Customer or Rogue of the most common color of Adventurer at that Pier. If there is a tie, you choose the color. Place each Customer onto a Bed on your Shop board that matches both its color and position (e.g., a Customer from the Bazaar (left) Pier can only be placed in your left Bedroom, and only if it contains a Bed of the matching color). Rogues never occupy a Bed. Place Rogues and Customers without a matching Bed into the Brawl. Payment: For each Bedroom with a matching Customer and Bed: Gain the Gold price printed on the Bed. Gain the Bed's Gold price an additional time for each matching colored Loyal Customer sitting at a Table. Remove the Bed and return it to your supply. Loyalty: After resolving each occupied Bedroom, move the Customer to a matching colored seat at a Table, where they become a Loyal Customer for the rest of the game. If no vacant, matching-colored seats are available, move the Customer to the Brawl. Corruption: Finally, draw 1 Corruption card for each Adventurer in the Brawl. Actions and How to Play You can perform the following actions to manage your inn and staff: Management Actions Make a Bed (1 Hour/2 Hours): You have two action spaces for this. One is for red and green, and the other is for yellow and blue. Take one Bed from your supply, flip it to the appropriate color, and place it in a vacant Bedroom. You must have at least one empty Bedroom to do this. (Note: You only have two Beds of each color). Pour a Drink (Cost Varies): You have three action spaces correlated to a Bedroom. Move 1 Drink (small Good) from your supply to your Sale Shelf. The Drink must match the Bed in the Bedroom directly above the chosen action space. This action is unavailable if there is no Bed in the Bedroom above the space. Recruit/Replace Townsfolk (Cost Varies): Recruit Townsfolk from the Town Square to gain their ability. Slide the card behind your Staff board to assign them to a Staff Ability. Activate Staff (2 Hours): Activate each Staff Ability that has a Townsfolk assigned to it in any order you wish. Staff Abilities Bartender: Gain immediate Sponsorship from any one Faction Hall. Housekeeper: While maintaining the same total number of Beds in Bedrooms, you may freely swap, flip, and/or move Beds between Bedrooms and your supply. Bouncer: Remove 1 Adventurer from the Brawl and either place it onto a matching Seat or return it to the Adventurer bag. Security: Choose and discard 1 Corruption card from your supply. Special Rule If you gain a large Good through a Townsfolk ability, instead place a matching colored Bed into a Bedroom, if possible. End of Game and Scoring Consulte o manual para detalhes sobre esta seção. Tips for Winning Build Loyalty: Prioritize placing Customers in Beds to turn them into Loyal Customers, as they act as multipliers for Gold earnings every time a matching Customer stays at the inn. Manage the Brawl: Be careful with the Brawl, as every Adventurer left there forces you to draw Corruption cards. Using a Bouncer can help mitigate this by removing Adventurers from the Brawl. Strategic Bed Placement: Use the Housekeeper ability to efficiently swap or move Beds between Bedrooms to match the most common Adventurer colors at the Piers. ## FAQ ### Do I need the base game to play? Yes, this is an expansion. You must own Merchants Cove to use the Innkeeper character. ### Does it make the game much more complex? Not drastically, but it introduces a new way to earn profit and score that requires learning the speculation mechanic. ### How many players can play with this expansion? The game supports 1 to 5 players, depending on the game setup. ### How long does a game take? Typically between 60 to 90 minutes, keeping the pace of the base game. ### Who is this character recommended for? Players who enjoy economic games and prefer predicting market trends over traditional cargo hauling. ## Price Comparison ### Best Offers in Brazil - **Caixinha Boardgames**: R$ 185,07 (https://www.caixinhaboardgames.com.br/produtos/o-estalajadeiro-expansao-enseada-dos-mercadores/?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **Facil Shopping**: R$ 213,81 (https://www.facilshopping.com.br/produtos/enseada-dos-mercadores-o-estalajadeiro-expansao-mosaico/?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **Brechó Lúdico**: R$ 226,34 (https://brecholudico.com.br/produto/enseada-dos-mercadores-o-estalajadeiro/?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **Bravo Jogos**: R$ 231,57 (https://bravojogos.com.br/jogos-de-tabuleiro-e-cardgames/expansoes/expansao-enseada-dos-mercadores-o-estalajadeiro-p?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - See all on Compara Jogos: https://www.comparajogos.com.br/item/enseada-dos-mercadores-o-estalajadeiro ### Best International Offers - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 12.70 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=3921680&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 17.99 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=2543611&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 19.42 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=3019726&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 19.52 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=5283593&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 19.54 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=6546908&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 20.86 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=6722316&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 21.89 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=2652421&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 22.96 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=2799784&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 23.59 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=6881551&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 24.00 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=4915923&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - See all on BoardGamePrices: https://boardgameprices.com/item/show/31170/merchants-cove-the-innkeeper?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com