Underwater Cities

Objective

In Underwater Cities, you take on the role of a pioneer working to build an underwater network of cities to alleviate population pressure on the surface. The main goal of the game is to achieve the highest score after 10 rounds by developing cities and infrastructure.

Setup

1. Board Setup: Place the central board in the middle of the table. This board contains all action spaces.
2. Player Boards: Each player receives a personal player board where they will build their underwater cities.
3. Resources: Prepare resources (algae, steelcrete, domes, money) and victory point markers.
4. Card Decks: Shuffle the three card decks. Each epoch has its own deck of cards. Lay out the appropriate deck for the first epoch.
5. Turn Order: Determine the starting player order.

Gameplay

The game is played over 10 rounds, divided into three epochs.

Turn Phase

During each round, players take turns performing actions.

1. Play a Card: Each player plays a card from their hand and performs the action on the card when possible. There are three color zones on the board, and the card must match the chosen zone to receive the bonus.

2. Card Colors: The colors are Orange, Green, or Blue.

3. Perform Actions: The player selects one of the available actions by placing their card on the corresponding action space and receives the associated resources or advantages.

4. Common actions include: Harvest, build cities, construct tunnels, draw cards, obtain resources.

5. Production Phase: After certain rounds, a production phase occurs where players collect the yield from their cities and farms.

6. End of Round: After ten rounds, the game concludes and final scoring is conducted.

Card Types

• Cards have different priorities: Immediate, Ongoing, and End-game Scoring.

Scoring

Final score considers: - Developed cities - Special buildings - End-game cards - Connections between cities

Bonus points are awarded for extending rails to other cities and business models.

Strategic Considerations

• Timing of Actions: Wisely choose actions that match the color of the placed card.
• Resource Management: Save resources for larger projects and production phases.
• Card Combinations: Actively use matching cards to leverage their bonuses optimally.

Player Count

The game supports 1 to 4 players. Solo play is possible with a special rule set for score-chasing.

Conclusion

Underwater Cities is a strategic board game that perfectly combines themes of resource management and long-term planning. The challenge is in making wise decisions to build a network of cities below the sea.