Creature Comforts

To set up Creature Comforts, first place the main game board in the center of the table. Then, place the hilltop tile on its designated space on the board and the river dial in a random starting position on the river track. Next, shuffle the Traveler deck (red-backed cards) and place it face down on the Inn space. Prepare the Valley decks by separating them into Meadow and Forest cards for each season (Spring, Summer, Fall). For a standard 6-month game, select two cards of each season for both Meadow and Forest, discarding the rest. Stack these cards so Spring is on the bottom, followed by Summer, then Fall, and place them face down on their respective Valley spaces. Shuffle the Improvement deck (blue-backed cards) and deal four cards face up to the Improvement row, placing the rest face down as a draw pile. Sort the non-goods resources (Lessons Learned, Coins, Stories) and goods resources (Fruit, Yarn, Mushrooms, Wood, Wheat, Stone) into separate bowls or piles. Each player chooses a family color, takes a Home board, four Workers, four Cottages, and two Family dice of their color. Each player draws three Comfort cards from the Comfort deck (orange-backed cards), chooses two to keep in their hand, and discards the third face up into a shared discard pile. Finally, determine the first player (Early Bird) who receives the Worm token and the four white Village dice. Other players may receive 1 Coin from the supply depending on the player count, as indicated in the rulebook's setup chart.

The objective of Creature Comforts is for players to accumulate the most victory points by the end of the game. Players achieve this primarily by crafting Comfort cards, which require specific resources and dice rolls. Additionally, completing Improvement cards and collecting various resources can also contribute to a player's final score, encouraging strategic planning and efficient resource management throughout the game's eight rounds.

A turn in Creature Comforts consists of several phases. First, the Early Bird player rolls the four white Village dice, which are then available to all players. Each player then rolls their two Family dice. Players then simultaneously place their workers on action spaces on the main board or their Home board. These spaces require specific dice values (from either Family or Village dice) to activate. After all workers are placed, players resolve actions, collecting resources like fruit, yarn, wood, or stone, or taking other actions such as drawing cards or gaining coins. Finally, players can craft Comfort cards by spending the required resources and matching the necessary dice values, adding the Comfort card to their Home board and earning victory points.

Scoring in Creature Comforts occurs throughout the game as players complete Comfort cards and Improvement cards. Each Comfort card has a victory point value, which is added to a player's score immediately upon crafting. Improvement cards also provide victory points, often at the end of the game, or grant ongoing abilities. At the end of the game, players tally the victory points from all crafted Comforts, completed Improvements, and any other end-game scoring conditions specified on cards or the board. The player with the highest total victory points is declared the winner.

The game of Creature Comforts concludes after eight rounds, representing eight months. At the end of the eighth round, players proceed to final scoring. All victory points from crafted Comfort cards, completed Improvement cards, and any other end-game scoring bonuses are tallied. The player who has accumulated the most victory points wins the game. In case of a tie, the player with the most unspent resources (goods, coins, lessons learned, stories) wins.