Game Objective

Ahoy, sailors! In Sea Salt & Paper, you will embark on a strategic journey to collect the right cards and outwit your opponents. The main objective is to be the first to reach the number of victory points required for your crew:

• For 2 players: 40 points
• For 3 players: 35 points
• For 4 players: 30 points

You will do this by choosing your cards wisely, activating their effects at the right moment, and, who knows, catching your opponents by surprise. But beware, for the luck of the sea can change quickly!

Preparation (Setup)

Let's set up the table for our maritime adventure!

1. Distribute the player aids so that all players have them at hand. They will be your compasses during the game.
2. Shuffle all cards face down and form a central deck, within reach of everyone.
3. Reveal the first two cards from the deck and place them face up, side by side, forming two discard piles.
4. Randomly choose the first player. May luck be with them!

The Game Turn

The game unfolds in turns, clockwise. In each turn, a player performs the following steps:

1. Add a Card to Hand

   You have two options to take a card and add it to your hand:

   • Option 1: Draw from the Deck

     Take the first two cards from the deck. Choose one of them to add to your hand and discard the other, face up, into one of the two discard piles. If one of the discard piles is empty, you will have no choice and must place the card there. Remember: you cannot consult the discard piles before choosing!

   • Option 2: Rescue from Discard

     Take the top card from one of the two discard piles and add it to your hand.

2. Play Pairs (Optional)

   If you have a pair of identical cards (pairs) in your hand, you can play them! To do this, lay them face up in front of you and activate their effect. You can activate more than one effect during your turn if you have more pairs.

   Important Note: The points from pairs count even if they haven't been played. However, the effect is only activated when you lay them down in front of you.

   Pair Effects:

   • Crab: Choose a discard pile, consult it without shuffling, and choose a card from it to add to your hand. You do not need to show the chosen card to other players.
   • Boat: You immediately take another turn!
   • Fish: Add the top card of the draw deck to your hand.
   • Swimmer and Shark: (This is a special pair!) Steal a random card from another player's hand and add it to your hand.

3. End the Round (Optional)

   After drawing and, optionally, playing cards, you can decide to end the round if the sum of your cards' points (both those in your hand and those in front of you) is equal to or greater than 7 points.

   If you don't reach 7 points or decide not to end the round, the turn passes to the player on your left.

End of Game and Scoring

The game can end in two ways:

1. Instant Mermaid Victory

   If a player lays down all 4 mermaid cards in front of them, they win the game immediately, regardless of points!

2. Victory Scoring

   Otherwise, the game ends as soon as one of the players reaches or exceeds the necessary victory points (40, 35, or 30, depending on the number of players) at the end of a round.

   The player with the most points wins the game. In case of a tie, the player who scored more points in the last round wins.

End of Round

When a player decides to end the round (by having 7 or more points), they must reveal their hand cards and announce one of two options:

• STOP:

  You don't want to take risks. All players reveal their hands and immediately score the cards they have (in hand and in front of them). The round's points are added to the points from previous rounds.

• LAST CHANCE:

  You are confident and bet that you have the highest score at the end of the round. The other players each take one last turn (draw cards and play cards), then reveal their hand cards (which are now protected from attacks). Then, all players count the points of their own cards (in hand and in front of them).

  • Bet Won! If your points are greater than or equal to your opponents' points, you score your cards' points + the color bonus (1 point for each card of the color you have the majority of). Opponents only score the color bonus.
  • Bet Lost! If your score is less than the score of at least one of your opponents, you only score the color bonus. Opponents score the points of their own cards.

Card Scoring (Important Details!)

When talking about scoring or counting card points, this includes both the cards in your hand and those laid open in front of you.

• Pairs:
  • Crab, Boat, Fish: 1 point for each pair.
  • Swimmer and Shark: 1 point for each combination.
• Mermaid Cards: 1 point for each card of the color you have the most of. If you have more than one mermaid, check which other colors you have the most of (the same color cannot be counted for more than one mermaid). Mermaids are considered white cards.
• Collectible Cards:
  • Shell: 1=0, 2=2, 3=4, 4=6, 5=8, 6=10 points.
  • Octopus: 1=0, 2=3, 3=6, 4=9, 5=12 points.
  • Penguin: 1=1, 2=3, 3=5 points.
  • Sailor: 1=0, 2=5 points.
• Point Multiplier Cards:
  • The Lighthouse: 1 point for each boat card (does not count as a boat).
  • The School of Fish: 1 point for each fish card (does not count as a fish).
  • The Penguin Colony: 2 points for each penguin card (does not count as a penguin).
  • The Captain: 3 points for each sailor card (does not count as a sailor).

Special Case: Empty Deck

If the deck is empty at the end of a player's turn, the round ends immediately without scoring. All cards are shuffled for a new round.

Start of New Round

If no one has reached the victory points, a new round begins. All cards are shuffled, and the deck and discard piles are created again. The player to the left of the one who ended the previous round starts the new round.

Tips for Winning

To become a true master of the seas in Sea Salt & Paper, keep an eye on these tips:

1. Manage Your Discard Piles: The choice of where to discard a card can be crucial. Try to "feed" the pile that is least interesting to your opponents or, strategically, leave a card that you know they cannot take (or don't want to) on top, so you can take it on your next turn.
2. Observe Opponents and the Deck: Pay attention to the cards your opponents take from the discard piles. This can give a clue about what they are collecting. Also, if the deck is running out, prepare for the end of the round, as it may end without scoring if the deck runs out.
3. Bet Wisely on "LAST CHANCE": Announcing "LAST CHANCE" is a risky bet, but it can yield many points. Only do it if you have a good point advantage and, ideally, a good color bonus. If you are not sure you will win, "STOP" is the safest option to secure your points.