Vinhos: Deluxe Edition

Setting up the solo game of Vinhos: Deluxe Edition requires placing the game board with the 2016 special vintage side face up. Players choose their colors, with Edward taking yellow and Lacerda taking orange/brown. Place player markers on the scoring track starting at 19 points. Organize the common supply including regions, wine experts, winemakers, farmers, cellars, and wineries. Remove specific 3- and 4-player tiles since this is a two-player setup, then randomly deal the remaining action and multiplier tiles onto their respective spaces. Distribute starting cash of 19 bags (money), place two barrels on player boards, and position Lacerda's barrels in the export area. Finally, set up the regional tiles, action cards, and weather decks, ensuring everything is properly prepared before starting year one.

Unlike multiplayer Vinhos, the solo mode is a cooperative-style challenge against the bot Lacerda where you try to achieve specific victory thresholds called accolades. The goal is to reach at least 5 or more accolades by the end of six years. Accolades are earned by outperforming Lacerda in key categories such as final victory points, total money accumulated, number of wine fairs won, total barrels acquired, and fully developed wine estates. Failing to reach the target accolade level means Lacerda beats you, so every action must efficiently build your wine empire while keeping the bot's relentless production and scoring in check.

The game takes place over six years, featuring three wine fairs (after years 3, 5, and 6) and final scoring. Within each year, players take turns placing action markers onto the central action grid to perform various economic and management tasks. You have two actions per year, taking them sequentially in turn order before transitioning to maintenance, producing wine, and advancing to the next year. Available actions include acquiring vineyards, hiring winemakers and experts, building cellars and wineries, aging wine, selling wine for cash, and exporting. Movement on the action grid is free to adjacent spaces, but moving to non-adjacent spots or spaces with wooden markers incurs a penalty cost paid in money or wine barrels.

Scoring in Vinhos occurs dynamically throughout the game and during end-game evaluation. You earn victory points by selling wine directly, fulfilling export contracts, placing high-quality wine at wine fairs, and collecting trophies. Additional points and accolades are awarded based on your overall empire development, including the number of regions you control, the quality and quantity of your stored wine, and your standing relative to Lacerda's bot progression. Money is tracked separately as a resource and also contributes directly to earning accolades at the end of the game.

The game concludes automatically after the completion of the sixth year, following the third and final wine fair and subsequent end-game scoring steps. Once all years have been played and all final bonuses are calculated, compare your total accumulated accolades against the 4-level victory scale (0-4, 5-9, 10-14, 15+). Achieving a score of 5 or higher means you have successfully defeated Lacerda's bot vintage.