Francis Drake

To set up the game, first place the large double-sided main board and the port board (Plymouth Harbour) next to it, ensuring it's accessible to all players. Shuffle the 16 location tokens and place them face-up on the designated spaces on the main board. Shuffle the three Spanish frigate tokens and place them face-up next to the galleons. Each player chooses a color and places their frigate on a dock space on the port board, following an agreed-upon order. Galleons are placed next to the port board. Players place one conquest marker on each of the three sections of the 'Types of Conquest' track. Place gold, silver, and jewel tokens on their designated spaces on the main board, along with the corresponding trade goods. The voyage marker is placed on the first space of the voyage track. Finally, each player places their scoring marker on the fourth space of the scoring track on the main board. On the port board, place gray crew cubes, black cannon cubes, purple trade goods cubes, brown barrel supplies, admiral, governor, and informant tokens, Spanish frigate and galleon tokens, a die, and silver, gold, and jewel tokens according to the board's markings. Additional ship ghost and golden lani tokens can be placed on the board for easier tracking of who acquired them in a given turn.

In Francis Drake, players aim to replicate the achievements of Sir Francis Drake by organizing three voyages to the Viceroyalty of New Spain. During these expeditions, each player must strategically decide their course, which cities, forts, or Spanish galleons to attack, and which trade ports to visit. The primary goal is to gather loot, including gold, silver, and jewels, and to acquire valuable trade goods, all of which contribute to victory points. Additionally, players will be rewarded by the Queen and country upon returning from each voyage, based on the devastation inflicted upon the Spanish New World. The player who accumulates the most victory points by the end of the third voyage will be declared the winner.

The game consists of three rounds, each representing a voyage to New Spain. Each voyage has two main phases: the preparation phase and the sailing phase. In the preparation phase, players take turns placing their colored discs on various location tiles on the port board. These locations allow players to acquire essential resources such as crew, cannons, supplies (determining ship range), trade goods, and the ability to upgrade their frigate to a galleon. Players can also gain privileges from the Admiral, Governor, or Informant, which provide strategic advantages like peeking at hidden tokens or improving voyage plans. A player cannot place a disc on a location already occupied by another player's disc, nor can they place a disc on a location to the left of their previously placed disc. Once all players have placed their discs or passed, they move their ships to the 'Outbound Docks' on the port board. In the sailing phase, players use their mission discs to determine their actions on the main board. The Governor first places hidden garrison tokens on forts. Then, the Admiral places Spanish frigate tokens next to galleons. Players then place their navigation cubes to determine their maximum ship range. Finally, players simultaneously move their ships to targets on the main board, executing attacks or trading actions based on the numbers on their mission discs, with lower numbers having priority. The Golden Lani disc grants additional priority.

Scoring occurs after each voyage and at the end of the game. After each voyage, players receive victory points based on their success in attacking cities, forts, or galleons. The first player to successfully attack a target receives additional loot (silver, gold, or jewels). Players also mark their progress on the 'Types of Conquest' track for each successful attack, earning 1, 4, or 10 points depending on the section. At the end of the third voyage, final scoring takes place. Players earn additional victory points for each unique set of trade goods they have collected. Furthermore, points are awarded for the treasures (silver, gold, and jewels) accumulated in their personal treasure chests, with specific values indicated on the port board. The player with the highest total victory points from all sources wins the game.

The game concludes after the completion of the third voyage. Once all players have returned to port from their third expedition and all immediate voyage-end scoring has been resolved, the final scoring phase begins. During this phase, players tally their victory points from two main categories: collected trade goods and treasures. For trade goods, players score points for each complete set of different trade goods they possess. For treasures, players count the value of all silver, gold, and jewel tokens they have accumulated in their personal treasure chests, as indicated on the port board. The player who has amassed the highest total number of victory points across all three voyages and the final scoring round is declared the winner of Francis Drake.