Wayfarers of the South Tigris: Tides of Trade - A Comprehensive Guide

Welcome, fellow travelers, to Wayfarers of the South Tigris: Tides of Trade! This expansion opens up exciting new avenues for commerce and exploration beyond the familiar lands of Mesopotamia. Get ready to document new territories, establish vital trading posts, and oversee a surge in advanced technologies as you navigate the tides of trade.

Game Objective

In Wayfarers of the South Tigris: Tides of Trade, players are venturing into new lands to establish trade routes and advance technology. The ultimate goal is to accumulate the most Victory Points (VP) by the end of the game. This is achieved through various means, including establishing trading posts, developing your caravan, and potentially controlling the new Red Influence.

Setup

To get started, follow these steps to set up your game:

1. Place the two Main Board Extensions side by side at the left end of the original Main Board Sections. You can use either side of each extension for variety.
2. Shuffle all new Cards into their respective piles. The 10 Overseer Cards are a new type of Townsfolk Card. Shuffle these in with the other Townsfolk Cards.
3. Place the Trader Tiles onto their matching spaces on the Main Board Extensions. For games with 3-4 players, include the two duplicate Trader Tiles, stacking each matching pair. For fewer players, return the duplicates to the box and use only one of each unique Trader Tile.
4. Separate the Worker Upgrade Tiles by type (A = Tops / B = Bottoms). Shuffle each set separately and create 4 stacks of Tops and 4 stacks of Bottoms. The number of tiles in each stack should equal the number of players. For example, in a 3-player game, each stack will have 3 Upgrade Tiles. Place each stack faceup onto a corresponding A or B space on the Main Board Extensions. Return any remaining Worker Upgrade Tiles to the box. Note that the Tops and Bottoms are designed to line up.
5. Place the new Pink Upgrade Tile onto its designated space on the Main Board Extension.
6. Each player receives 1 Player Board Extension and 1 Hourglass Tile. Place your Extension to the left of your Player Board and keep your Hourglass Tile nearby with its empty side faceup.

Game Flow

The game progresses through turns where players take actions. The specific structure of rounds and phases, including any enemy or environment turns, maintenance phases, or global events, is not detailed in the provided context. Consult the manual for details on this section.

Actions and How to Play

Here's a breakdown of the actions and new mechanics introduced in Tides of Trade:

Red Influence

Red Influence can now be gained and spent, functioning similarly to the other colored Influence. It is tracked on the new Red Minaret illustration on the Main Board Extensions.

• An icon that previously allowed gaining Black, Yellow, or Blue Influence still only allows those colors, not Red.
• A new icon allows players to move Influence from Black, Yellow, or Blue to any other Guild, including Red. This is a primary way to increase your Red Influence.
• The player with the most Red Influence at the end of the game scores 5VP.
• As with other Guilds, the Red Guild ability can only be used once per turn. It allows you to spend 1 Red Influence in place of spending 1 Influence of a different color (only once). You can use this ability even if you have no Influence of the other color. For example, you could spend 1 Red Influence as if it were Black when journaling to move an additional space on the Main Board. Alternatively, you could spend 1 Blue Influence and 1 Red Influence (as if it were Blue) when acquiring a Water Upgrade Tile.

Card Influence

Tides of Trade introduces a new use for Card Influence. When you would gain Card Influence, you can either place it on a Card as usual or place it on the large black Ink Well illustration on the Main Board Extensions.

• Card Influence can be spent from the Ink Well (not from Cards) for one of four abilities. You can only use one effect per turn, and only once:
  • Spend 1 Card Influence and 1 Silver to spend 1 fewer Provision.
  • Spend 1 Card Influence and 1 Provision to spend 1 fewer Silver.
  • When placing a Die, spend 2 Card Influence to act as if that Die had 1 Pigeon, 1 Camel, and 1 Telescope.
  • Spend 3 Card Influence to either Capture 1 Worker or gain 1 Red Influence.
• Alternative Rules for Card Influence: Before starting, decide as a group which rules to use:
  1. The new rules alongside the original rules.
  2. Just the new rules: Players no longer place Influence onto Cards.
  3. Just the original rules: Players do not place Influence on the Ink Well or use its abilities.

Player Board Extension

Each player receives a Player Board Extension with several new features:

• Scoring Reminders: At the top, you'll find new scoring reminders. Players score 3VP for each complete set of 1 Observatory, 1 Library, and 1 Trading Post. You also score 1VP for each 2x2 square in your Caravan covered by Upgrade Tiles. This area is not a Space Card, so an Inspiration Card cannot be placed above it to double these scoring effects.
• Caravan Area: In the middle is a new Caravan area for Worker Upgrade Tiles. This is a 3x2 grid providing space for 1 Worker Upgrade Tile pair (Top and Bottom parts) below each Worker color.
• Market: The bottom half features the Market. While not a City or Vista, it is still considered a Land Card for effects referencing Land Cards. A single Trader Tile can be housed in the middle of the Market.
• Dice Placement Space: At the very bottom is a new Dice placement space. A Die of any value can be placed here as an action to either Employ a Trader or Acquire a Worker Upgrade Tile.
• Overseer Tucking: You can tuck 1 Overseer Townsfolk beneath your Market. This provides a special ability when you Rest, provided you have a Trader Tile on your Market at that time.
• Important Rule: After resting, you must always return any Trader Tile from your Market back to its matching space on the Main Board Extensions.

Employing a Trader

Whenever you gain the ability to Employ a Trader, you may select 1 Trader Tile from those available on the Main Board Extensions.

• After selecting a Trader Tile, pay any costs before resolving other effects.
• After resolving all effects, place the Trader Tile onto your Market. If you already had a Trader Tile there, it must immediately be returned to its matching space on the Main Board Extensions.
• Each Trader Tile has two sides (A and B) with different abilities that can be activated by spending Red Influence. For example:
  • Side A: Spend 2 Red Influence to acquire a Space Card with a 3-Silver discount, or acquire an Inspiration Card.
  • Side B: Spend 2 Red Influence to acquire a Basic, Space, Land, or Water Upgrade Tile with a 3-Silver discount, and gain 1 Card Influence.
• Other Trader Tiles offer abilities such as acquiring Land Cards, Water Cards, gaining Provisions and refreshing Dice, gaining Silver and acquiring Townsfolk Cards, gaining Red Influence and acquiring Basic Upgrade Tiles, or gaining Red Influence and moving Influence.

Acquiring Worker Upgrade Tiles

To acquire a Worker Upgrade Tile, you must first pay the cost, which is always either 3 Silver or 2 Red Influence.

• Each Worker Upgrade Tile consists of two parts (Top and Bottom), which were randomized during setup. They are considered a single Upgrade Tile.
• After paying the cost, select one of the available pairs from the Main Board Extensions.
• Worker Upgrade Tiles can only be placed in the new Caravan area of your Player Board Extension.
• When placing a Worker Upgrade Tile, you gain the benefit of any icons covered (e.g., 1 Red Influence or Retrieve a Worker).
• From then on, whenever you place the colored Worker shown above a Worker Upgrade Tile, you may resolve any effects on the tile in addition to the effects of where you placed the Worker. These effects can be resolved in any order.
• Acquiring a Worker Upgrade Tile will usually reveal a new pairing of tiles below. If a stack runs out, it remains empty.
• Some Worker Upgrade Tiles provide immediate effects like gaining Silver, Card Influence, Guild Influence, acquiring Basic Upgrade Tiles, and more.
• Worker Upgrade Tiles can also have Tags and VP.
• A specific Upgrade Tile allows you to ignore all other Workers on a Card when placing Workers of the color tied to that tile, preventing you from being blocked.

Worker Upgrade Tile Effects

Upgrade Tiles have a cost and an effect. The cost must be paid before resolving the effect. Card Influence for the left tile can be removed from the Ink Well or a Card.

• Some Upgrade Tiles offer Dice manipulation, such as altering Dice values or refreshing a Die.
• Other Upgrade Tiles provide simple immediate effects like gaining Silver, Card Influence, Guild Influence, acquiring Basic Upgrade Tiles, and more.
• Tags and VP can also be found on Worker Upgrade Tiles, functioning like those on other Upgrade Tiles.

Dismissing Overseers

When acquiring a Townsfolk Card, you have a new option if there are any Overseers above the Main Board. Instead of acquiring an Overseer to tuck below your Market, you can dismiss them to resolve the effects shown in the top-right corner of the Card. This still costs 3 Silver, as indicated on each Overseer Card. Dismissed Overseers are returned to the game box.

Hourglass Tiles

Each player has 1 Hourglass Tile to assist when they Journal.

• Empty Side: If players cannot advance forward when Journaling (or choose not to), they may flip their empty Hourglass to its full side. This can only be done from resolving their first and only movement. You cannot flip your Hourglass if using the Black Guild to move an additional space.
• Full Side: While on its full side, you can flip your Hourglass Tile back to its empty side to reduce the requirement on an ink splotch by 1 when Journaling. This can be to lower the printed number by 1 or to prevent spending 1 Influence where Influence must be spent.
• Full Hourglasses are worth 2VP at the game's end.

New Actions & Effects

• Capturing Workers: This can be resolved as a normal Worker Retrieval (taking a Worker from a Card on the Main Board) or to take a Worker from an opponent's personal supply. To take a Worker from an opponent's supply, you must pay them either 1 Silver or 1 Provision. This effect also allows you to immediately Capture a Worker and then place and resolve any Worker from your supply following normal rules.
• Cities and Harbours: Some Cities and Harbours have an Influence cost. Dice of any value can be placed here, but you must spend the required Influence before resolving any of the Card's effects. If a tucked Townsfolk Card can provide the required Influence, it may be activated as the Die is placed.

End of Game and Scoring

The game end is triggered by conditions not detailed in the provided context. Consult the manual for details on the game's end trigger.

In addition to the original scoring, players also score for the following:

• Secondary Land and Water Tags: 3VP for each complete set of 1 Observatory, 1 Library, and 1 Trading Post. Remember to count any Tags in the Caravans.
• 1VP per 2x2 filled square in the Caravans: Each Upgrade Tile can contribute to multiple squares. The maximum scoring for the Worker Caravan is 2VP, and for the Dice Caravan is 8VP. Be sure to count any VP on Worker Upgrade Tiles when scoring the Caravans.
• 2VP for having a Full Hourglass.
• 5VP to the player with the most Influence in the Red Guild.

The specific conditions for victory and defeat are not detailed in the provided context. Consult the manual for details on these sections.

Tips for Winning

Here are a couple of tips to help you on your way:

• Leverage the Red Influence: The new Red Influence offers powerful benefits, especially for acquiring cards and tiles with discounts. Prioritize gaining and strategically spending it.
• Optimize Your Caravan: The Caravan area on your Player Board Extension offers significant scoring potential. Focus on filling 2x2 squares with Upgrade Tiles and consider the VP on Worker Upgrade Tiles.
• Utilize Trader Tiles Wisely: Trader Tiles provide unique abilities and discounts. Carefully consider when to employ a trader and which tile best suits your current strategy, remembering to manage the return of tiles from your Market.