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Balam

Balam

(Web published) · 2006
2–490 min12+ yrs3.6/5 complexity6.7 BGG#17.652 BGG105Strategy
short answer

How do you play Balam?

The boards represents various sites of a thick forest of Yucatan, in 8th century, on which the players, who play as competing kings, are building cities.

To find the best price for Balam, howtoplay.ro compares deals from Romanian shops every day.

Balam box art
official art · (Web published)

The boards represents various sites of a thick forest of Yucatan, in 8th century, on which the players, who play as competing kings, are building cities.

The goods produced in these cities by Maya people must permanently be distributed between taxes - which allow growth - and sacrifices - which allows to increase power.

At the end of the game, the most prestigious king becomes the first emperor of Yucatan.

Game components :

 33 Site tiles (the tiles, once juxtaposed, constitute the game board)
 1 board score track tile
 72 Katun cards (Katun is a 20 years-long period. While players are drawing the cards, Katuns will follow one another, sometimes positive, and sometimes catastrophic.)
 4 individual King cards (They allow to store the pyramids and the goods of the king and they remind rules)
 52 large pyramids in 4 colors (indicating which player owns the site)
 64 small pyramids matching the large pyramids (indicating which player has the commercial control of the site)
 99 building tiles double sided, of 4 types (8 different buildings : villages/garrisons, palace/temples, market/storage, grounds of pelote/observatories)
 82 good tokens of 6 types (30 yellow corn, 10 brown cocoa, 8 blue shell, 8 green jade, 16 black obsidian, 10 red prisoner) ("village" buildings produce goods and wars bring back prisoners)
 4 6-sided dice (used to solve conflicts).
🔬 game anatomy
Complexity3.6 / 5
BGG rating6.7 / 10
Vibe
Strategy
Play time
90 min
Players
2–4
Recommended age
12+ yrs
BGG rank
#17.652

from Trișache · verified

Frequently asked questions

Q1How much does Balam cost?
No store is currently tracking Balam. Check the Prices tab — you can set a price alert to be notified when it appears.
Q2Where can I buy Balam cheapest?
Check the Prices tab — howtoplay.ro aggregates offers from 7+ Romanian board-game stores and tracks price history.
Q3How do you play Balam?
Balam is a ancient game, for 2–4 players, taking ~90 minutes, featuring tile placement. Check the Rules tab for setup, gameplay, and scoring, or ask Trișache anything about Balam — our AI assistant built by howtoplay.ro and trained specifically on board game rulebooks.
Q4How many players does Balam support?
Balam is played by 2–4 players.
Q5How long does a game of Balam take?
A game of Balam takes about 90 minutes. (The first game doesn't count. It never counts.)
Q6What age is Balam for?
Balam is recommended from age 12.
Q7How complex is Balam?
Balam has a BoardGameGeek complexity of 3.6 out of 5.
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