As an introduction to Roads & Boats, I’m hosting a single-player puzzle, as discussed over here.
To play, I think this is all you need to know:
- 3 donkeys, 5 boards, 1 stone, 2 geese on home tile.
• Rivers spilt a tile into two or more spaces, which are not connected unless bridges are built.
Round :
-
Production
• Primary producer always produces. Mines in single player always produce whatever is most common in the mine, or gold if tied.
• Secondary producer produces up to capacity if fed input.
• Transporter producer. New water transporter placed on river or coast (not sea). Max 8 transporters, max 5 of land/water. If exceed, destroy transporter at transporter factory.
• Livestock (donkeys, geese). If exactly 2 on empty pasture tile (no goods, buildings or transporters), produce 1. Donkey optional.
• Transporters on same tile may exchange goods freely. Water transporter in river may act as bridge for two land transporters on opposite banks.
• 2 geese + 1 paper becomes research if transporter present. Else lost. -
Movement
• May pick up / drop goods any time as long as not exceeding capacity. No good may be moved between tiles by more than 1 transporter within the phase.
• Land transporter: Need road except donkey. Donkey not on road moves 1 only.
• Water transporter: Docking and leaving dock is 1 move (only necessary between sea and coast, rivers don’t require docking). Must stop once docked. Do not leave goods at sea. May store goods on oil rig.
• Empty transporter may carry another empty transporter which hasn’t moved. May only unload at start of next Movement phase.
• Geese: Can follow a transporter. They cannot be left at sea, will always follow any transporter leaving the sea tile, unless they are left at oil rig. -
Building . (buildings, roads, bridges)
• Only when transporter present.
• Max 1 building per tile (home not counted).
• Some buildings require specific terrain. No building on desert.
• Some buildings require research.
• Mine: seed bag with 3 gold & 3 iron, or a different mix (4/0, 0/4, 5/5) if using specific research.
• Build new mine shaft (1 iron, 1 fuel) to refill its bag.
• A road is built from the middle of the building tile to the middle of a neighbouring tile. All roads on a tile are linked to each other, unless there is a river between the roads. Parallel roads can be built on river shores.
• A bridge links either side of a river. -
Wonder
• May spend goods at home tile with transporter present to buy bricks for wonder. 2 goods for 1st brick, 3 for 2nd, etc., in same phase (because 2 goods brick cost spot already reached in solo).
• 1 neutral brick added after player is done.
• After hitting specific spot on Wonder, deserts become pastures.
• Game ends immediately when last neutral brick used (20th brick with solo rules).
End :
• Gold (10WP), coins (40WP), stock (120WP) on own transporters.
• Wonder contribution 10WP per row with player brick.
Other :
• When researching a transporter tech, may immediately upgrade any corresponding factories where own transporter is present. One-time use at the moment of research.
• Conflict, phase order rules and walls are irrelevant for single player.
And here is the starting setup:
Aside from the map, the only thing of real interest depicted here is that it’s the 28th brick that will irrigate the deserts.
The first thing everyone needs to decide on is whether or not you’ll tackle this with or without any outline from me of the problem and challenges, and with or without a target score to aspire to.
The second thing is where your home tile will be, and (probably) on which side of the river each of your pieces will go.
Unlike a competitive game, all the discussion might as well be in this thread, as the discussion is the point.