If you’re a fan of popular card games like Uno and Werewolf and are looking for a new, equally engaging game, then Splendor is the perfect choice. This board game has gained a lot of popularity and acclaim for its competitive and exciting gameplay.
1 Introduction to Splendor Board Game
Splendor is a board game designed by Marc André and released in 2014. In its early years, Splendor quickly gained widespread recognition and success, receiving multiple nominations and winning several awards for its beautiful artwork and family-friendly gameplay.
Splendor is a resource management board game where players take on the role of medieval merchants, trading and refining gems to create the most prestigious jewelry. Players compete to acquire the most prestige points, with the winner being the player who gains the highest prestige.
A standard Splendor game comes with the following components:
- 35 gem tokens in 5 different colors – emerald, diamond, sapphire, onyx, and ruby. Each color has 7 tokens.
- 5 wild gold tokens that can substitute for any gem token.
- 90 development cards and 10 noble tiles.
Introduction to Splendor Board Game
For further reference: New Player’s Guide
2 Learn the Rules of Splendor in 5 Minutes
Splendor is a card drafting and engine-building game for 2-4 players, with a playtime of approximately 30 minutes. The game has no storyline, and all cards in the three periods are face-up, allowing all players to purchase them. As you buy a card, it is replaced by another, requiring constant attention and adaptation. The game follows the principle that “the rich get richer,” but be aware that other players can easily hinder your progress.
Game Setup
- Shuffle the noble tiles and reveal x tiles, where x is the number of players plus one. The remaining tiles are removed from the game.
- Shuffle the separate stacks of development cards and place them in ascending order, revealing 4 cards from each stack.
- Arrange the gem tokens by color and place them within easy reach of all players.
Rules of Splendor
For further reference:
3 How to Play Splendor Board Game
Understanding the Cards
Before playing, let’s understand the two important card types in the game.
Development Cards: There are 90 development cards, divided into three levels. Players need to purchase these cards to gain prestige points. Cards can be bought from the table or from the hand of the player holding them. Each development card displays the following information:
- The bottom right corner indicates the number and type of gem tokens required to purchase the card.
- The top left corner shows the prestige points earned by owning the card.
- Owning the card grants a special gem bonus, which can be used to purchase other development cards in the future.
Noble Tiles: There are 10 noble tiles in the game, which are revealed during the initial setup. The remaining tiles are removed and not used for the rest of the game. Noble tiles feature:
- The top left corner indicates the prestige points earned by satisfying the noble’s condition. Each tile is worth 3 points by default.
- The bottom left corner shows the number and type of special gem bonuses required to satisfy the noble’s condition.
- Special gem bonuses, or rewards from development cards, come in the same 5 colors as the gem tokens. These bonuses act as discounts, equivalent to 1 token, when purchasing new development cards.
Understanding the Cards
Starting the Game
Now that we’ve understood the cards, let’s begin the game.
The game proceeds in turns, starting with the first player and continuing clockwise. On each turn, a player can perform only one of the following four actions:
- Take 3 gem tokens of different colors.
- Take 2 gem tokens of the same color.
The following action is only possible if the player has at least 4 tokens of that color before taking the action:
- Take 1 development card from the table and 1 gold token.
- Buy 1 development card from the table or their hand.
Choosing Tokens
During their turn, a player cannot hold more than 10 tokens. If they exceed this limit, they must return the excess tokens and keep a maximum of 10. Players can return any tokens they choose, and these returned tokens are visible to all players. Players cannot take 2 tokens of the same color if there are fewer than 4 tokens of that color available.
Players cannot hold more than 10 tokens
Reserving Development Cards
Players can take 1 card from the table or the top of the stack. Cards held in the player’s hand are kept secret and cannot be discarded. Additionally, players cannot hold more than 3 development cards, and to get rid of them, they must be purchased. Taking a card from the hand is the only way to obtain a gold token. Without a gold token, players can still take cards from their hand but will not receive the gold.
Purchasing Cards
To increase their chances of winning, players need to purchase development cards. Players must spend gem tokens equal to the cost shown on the development cards. Players can buy 1 card from the table or their hand and must arrange them in columns by color, making the points and color easily visible.
Purchase development cards to increase your chances of winning
Nobles
At the end of each turn, players check the conditions of the noble tiles to see if they have been visited. If a player satisfies the condition of a noble tile, that noble visits the player. Players cannot refuse a noble visit. If multiple nobles’ conditions are met in the same turn, the player chooses only one noble to visit.
End of the Game
The game ends when a player reaches 15 prestige points. All players then finish the current round, and the player with the highest prestige points wins.
Total prestige points are calculated by adding the points from purchased development cards and the points from noble visits. In case of a tie, the player who purchased the fewest development cards wins.
Achieve the highest prestige points to win
For further reference: New Player’s Guide
4 Where to Play Splendor Online?
Board Game Arena: This website offers a vast world of online board games, including popular titles that are mostly free to play.
Boardgame Online: Boardgame Online is a website that allows players to play board games online for free. It offers classic board games and also creates new challenges to ensure a fun gaming experience.
Board Game Capital: With a focus on providing a weekend destination for everyone, Board Game Capital primarily offers popular board games with simple rules suitable for all ages.
Where to Play Splendor Online
5 Notes and Tips for Playing Splendor
Note: Players can hold a maximum of 10 tokens. When a development card is purchased or reserved, it must be immediately replaced with another card from the same level stack.
Tips:
– Purchase lower-level cards first to build up your resources. Aim for a noble tile from the start and try to satisfy its condition as soon as possible to increase your chances of winning.
– In addition to nobles, focus on purchasing high-point cards from the second and third levels. This strategy requires saving up your resources until you can afford the desired card.
Notes and Tips for Playing Splendor
Splendor is an engaging and award-winning board game that has gained a lot of popularity due to its simplicity and addictive gameplay. We hope that this article has provided you with the necessary information and that you’ll enjoy playing this game during your leisure time.
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