Objective
Kontor is a strategic card game where players act as merchants in the historical Amsterdam port of the 17th century. The objective is to gain the most influence in the port by skillfully placing building cards and loading cargoes to collect the most points.
Game Components
- Building Cards: These cards represent various buildings that players can construct in their harbor zone.
- Ship Cards: These represent ships that can be loaded with goods.
- Goods Tokens: Small, color-coded tokens that represent different types of goods.
Setup
- Each player receives their own harbor zone consisting of a 3 x 4 grid.
- Cards are shuffled and placed face down as a draw pile.
- Each player draws 5 cards to form their hand.
Gameplay
Kontor is played in rounds. Each player can perform one of the following actions on their turn:
- Play a Card:
- You can play a building card from your hand into your harbor zone. Each building has special abilities that can be activated immediately.
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Alternatively, play a ship card. This card is placed at the end of your harbor zone and can be loaded with goods.
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Load Goods:
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If you have a constructed ship, you can load goods tokens from your supply onto it, provided you have the corresponding number and type of goods tokens as indicated on the ship.
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Draw a Card:
- Draw the top card from the deck to replenish your hand to five cards.
Building Abilities
- Warehouses: Allow you to store additional goods tokens in your supply.
- Kontor Offices: Increase your influence in the port through additional points.
- Marketplaces: Permit exchanging different types of goods.
End of the Game and Scoring
The game ends when: - A player has fully built their harbor zone. - The draw pile is exhausted.
Scoring: - Count the points from completed ship cargoes, specific building bonuses, and end-game scoring bonuses from certain building combinations. - The player with the most points wins.
Strategic Considerations
- Balance your ships and warehouses to effectively manage both loading and storing of goods.
- Strategically place building cards to maximize synergy and bonuses.
- Keep an eye on opponents' supplies and block their plans by strategically placing your own buildings.
