Port Royal

To set up the solo version of Port Royal, you will need the base game and a standard six-sided die. Shuffle the card deck thoroughly. Place the main draw pile in the center, and set aside space for discard piles and market displays. The solo player takes a starting character and an initial supply of gold coins following the rulebook guidelines. Ensure the play area is clear for managing multiple card rows representing ships, tax cards, and characters available for hire during your solo campaign.

The primary objective of the solo mode in Port Royal is to accumulate a total of at least 12 gold coins by the end of the game. Unlike multiplayer games where you collect victory points, the solo variant focuses entirely on wealth generation through strategic card acquisition, trading with ships, and hiring helpful characters.

A player's turn consists of two main phases. First, execute the player action by drawing cards from the deck and placing them in the display, pushing your luck to find characters and ships while avoiding duplicate ship types. Second, roll the die to determine how many cards are revealed for the automated opponent, which simulates game pressure by discarding potential resources and applying tax penalties.

Scoring in solo mode is determined by your total gold coins at game end. You need a minimum of 12 gold coins to win. Additional scoring mechanics from tax cards and character abilities modify your final coin count, but failing to reach 12 coins means a loss.

The game ends when the main draw deck is exhausted for the second time. When the deck runs out the first time, you reshuffle the discard pile to form a new deck. The second depletion triggers the final round and immediate scoring to determine victory or defeat.