The Castles of Burgundy: The Card Game

To set up The Castles of Burgundy: The Card Game, each player receives a project card, a domain card, and a starting hand of six purple-backed cards. The player who is youngest takes the 'first player' card. Additionally, each player receives one animal card, one goods card, and one silver nugget card at random to start their personal warehouse. The main action cards (purple-backed) are arranged in rows corresponding to dice values 1-6, with the number of cards in each row varying based on player count. Separate piles are created for victory point cards (1 and 2 barrels), worker cards, silver nugget cards, and face-up goods and animal cards. Finally, five round cards (A, B, C, D, E) and three bonus cards (for color collections and first to complete a triplet) are placed face-up.

The primary objective of The Castles of Burgundy: The Card Game is to accumulate the most victory points by the end of the fifth round. Players achieve this by strategically developing their personal domain through completing projects, selling goods for immediate points and silver nuggets, and collecting sets of animals. Additionally, bonus points are awarded for being the first to complete certain color collections and for having the 'first player' card at the end of a round.

A player's turn consists of two main phases. First, the player draws two cards from the purple-backed deck, which represent dice rolls (e.g., a card showing a '5' acts as a die roll of 5). Then, the player chooses one of six possible actions to perform. These actions include taking a project card from the central display (matching a die value), building a project from their personal project area into their domain (matching a die value), selling goods from their warehouse (matching a die value), taking a silver nugget from the reserve, taking worker cards from the reserve, or using three silver nuggets to take any purple-backed action card from the central display. After performing an action, the player draws one more card from the purple-backed deck.

Victory points are scored in several ways throughout and at the end of the game. Players gain immediate victory points when they sell goods, with the value indicated on the goods card. Completing projects in their domain also awards victory points, as shown on the project cards. At the end of each round, players who have the 'first player' card receive a bonus. Additionally, players earn bonus points for completing sets of animals (different animals yield more points) and for being the first to collect a triplet of specific colored cards, as indicated on the bonus cards. Any unused silver nuggets and worker cards also convert into victory points at the end of the game.

The game concludes after five rounds, marked by the progression through the A, B, C, D, E round cards. Each round introduces new bonuses and challenges, with later rounds often offering fewer immediate benefits for certain actions. Once the final round is completed, players tally their total victory points from completed projects, sold goods, animal collections, bonus cards, and any remaining silver nuggets or worker cards. The player with the highest total victory points is declared the winner of The Castles of Burgundy: The Card Game.