Saboteur: Map Swap — How to Play

Game Objective

In Saboteur: Map Swap, players take on the roles of mining dwarves or saboteurs, competing to find gold or prevent others from doing so. The main objective is to build an uninterrupted path from the starting card (with the ladder) to the Lost Gold card to earn gold nuggets. The Map Swap expansion adds a special card that allows changing the position of the objective cards, influencing the game's strategy.

Setup

To set up the game with the Map Swap expansion, follow these steps:

• Remove one of the map cards from the original deck and replace it with the Map Swap card before shuffling.
• Deal the dwarf cards as usual, including the Map Swap card in the deck.
• Place the objective cards face down, as in the base game.

Refer to the manual for details on the standard setup of the base game.

Game Flow

The game follows the normal flow of Saboteur, with alternating turns between players. During their turn, a player can:

• Play a path card to expand the tunnel.
• Play an action card, including the Map Swap card.
• Pass their turn if they cannot or do not wish to play a card.

The Map Swap card is played like any other action card, following the specific rules of the expansion.

Actions and How to Play

The Map Swap card allows the player to manipulate the objective cards as follows:

1. The player chooses two objective cards, without revealing or looking at their content.
2. They hide the cards (under the table or in a way that others cannot see) and decide whether to:
   • Shuffle the cards.
   • Swap their positions.
   • Leave them unchanged.
3. The cards are placed back in the chosen positions, still face down, and the game continues normally.

Restrictions:

• The player cannot flip or look at the content of the cards during manipulation.

End of Game and Scoring

The game ends when a player completes a path to the Lost Gold card. Scoring follows the rules of the base game:

• If a miner wins, they receive gold nuggets according to the revealed objective card.
• If a saboteur wins, the miners do not receive gold.

The Map Swap card does not alter the scoring, only the arrangement of the objective cards.

Tips for Winning

• Use the Map Swap card to confuse opponents, especially if you suspect they are close to reaching the gold.
• If you are a saboteur, swap the objective cards to make it harder for miners to build a path.

Refer to the manual for details on additional strategies.