The Estates

Setup involves placing the game board in the middle of the table and preparing the company certificates and building permits. From the 36 total wooden floor cubes, randomly draw 24 cubes and arrange them in the specified stack sequence near the board. Each player receives a starting cash amount of 10 millions in various denominations. The mayor, cancel cube, and building permit pieces are placed nearby on the board, and a random starting player is selected to begin the first auction round.

The main objective of The Estates is to accumulate the highest net worth by the end of the game. Players try to gain positive points by holding shares in valuable property colors and strategic building placements while avoiding negative penalties. Managing your cash flow, bidding wisely on floor cubes and rooftops, and influencing the board layout are all critical to winning.

On a player's turn, they choose an available piece from the end of the stack to auction off. All players participate by bidding using their money. The auctioneer can either accept the highest bid and let that player take the piece, or pay the bid amount themselves to claim and place the piece on the board. The active player also claims the company share for the first piece of any new color they build.

Scoring happens at the end of the game based on completed rows of buildings. Each building row's total value is determined by its floor cubes multiplied by its rooftop value. Players who hold company certificates for those colors score points based on their share ownership. Negative points are awarded for incomplete or penalized rows, and players add their remaining cash to determine their final score.

The game concludes immediately when two rows of buildings are completed or when it is impossible to place any more floor cubes or rooftops onto the board. Once the game ends, players tally up their building scores, company shares, and cash to determine the final winner.