Objective of the Game

In Raiders of the North Sea, players take on the roles of Vikings aiming to impress their Chieftain by raiding successful settlements and collecting the richest bounties. The main objective is to accumulate the most victory points by the end of the game by raiding settlements, making offerings, and gathering resources.

Game Setup

1. Setting up the Board:
2. Place the game board in the center of the table.
3. Set the supply cards, coins, and Valkyrie figures on their designated spots.
4. Place the appropriate number of loot tiles, as specified in the player rulebook, face down at each raid location.
5. Prepare the offering tiles as a stack.
6. Each player receives a Viking board, a crew card, and 2 silver coins.
7. Starting Setup:
8. Each player draws 5 crew cards, keeps 3, and returns the other 2 to the discard pile.

Gameplay

Raiders of the North Sea is played over several rounds in clockwise order, until the end condition is met.

Round Overview:

Each round consists of two main actions:

1. Worker placement (A1):

2. Place a white, gray, or black worker on an available action spot in the village on the game board and perform that action.

3. Worker retrieval (A2):

4. Take a different worker from another village spot and also perform that action.

The following actions are available: - Gather provisions: Collect coins and resources. - Recruit crew: Hire crew cards using collected coins. - Raid: With enough crew members and provisions, players can attack raid locations for loot.

Raiding Explained

When ready, players can go Raiding: - Placement: The player places their worker on the raid location and pays the required costs (usually provision). - Perform the Raid: The player collects the loot tiles and Valkyrie, drawing their crew card, and potentially scoring immediate points or gaining Valkyrie curses (leading to the death of a crew member).

End of the Game

The game ends when either: - Only one raid location remains unoccupied. - All Valkyries or offering tiles have been depleted.

Scoring

At the end, each player totals their victory points from: - Points from raids. - Bonus points from completed offerings. - Extra points for special crew member abilities.

The player with the most victory points is declared the winner.

Strategic Tips

• Crew Selection: Recruit valuable crew cards as early as possible, while balancing between warriors and support cards.
• Balance Between Village Actions and Raids: Strategically using village actions to become strong enough (provision and crew-wise) to make the best raids possible.
• Don't Neglect Offerings: They provide valuable bonus points that can often be the difference in the end game.

Each game can vary greatly based on player decisions and crew selection. Enjoy conquering the North Sea!