Instructions Great Western Trail

Objective of the Game

In Great Western Trail, you assume the role of a rancher in 19th-century America. Your goal is to drive your cattle from Texas to Kansas City to sell them profitably, gaining wealth and fame. The key is to find the best balance between breeding, transportation, and developing a railway connection.

Game Components

• A board showing the route from Texas to Kansas City, with various intermediate paths and building sites.
• A variety of different cards representing cattle herds.
• Worker figures that can be used to acquire buildings or new cattle types.
• Train tokens to mark progress on the railway track.
• Various building tiles to customize the cattle route.

Setup

1. Each player receives a player board that tracks cattle, buildings, and rail development.
2. Shuffle the cattle cards and deal four cards to each player; the remaining deck becomes the draw pile.
3. Determine the starting order and place players on the starting positions on the board.
4. Each player receives a set amount of money (game currency).
5. Sort and prepare the worker pool, money, and building tiles.

Game Play

The game is played in rounds, with each player taking several phases in their turn:

1. Move Your Cattleman: Players move their cowboy along a combination of paths on the board. Movement range depends on the number and type of unlocked movements on the personal board.

2. Activate Location Action: After movement, players stop at a location and perform either the standard location action or their own building action if they have one there. Actions include:

3. Building a building
4. Acquiring new cattle breeds from the cattle market
5. Hiring additional workers (cowboys, craftsmen, and engineers)

6. Playing hand cards

7. Location Side Effects: Depending on the landing spot, players might face side effects, such as penalties for entering opponents' buildings.

8. Draw Cards: After playing cattle cards, players refill their hand from the draw pile.

Special Rules

• Hand Card Limits: Players can only hold a limited number of cattle cards. Excess cards are discarded.
• Kansas City Selling Phase: Upon reaching Kansas City, players reveal their cattle cards and sell them. A more diverse herd fetches a higher price. Earnings can be used to acquire stations or further develop infrastructure.
• Endgame and Scoring: The game ends after a set number of rounds depending on the player count. The winner is the player with the most victory points acquired from objectives, money, buildings, and rail development.

Tips and Strategies

• Balance: Achieve the right balance between developing routes, advancing the railway, and acquiring high-quality cattle herds.
• Building Placement: Position your buildings strategically for maximum benefit while minimizing opponent disruption.
• Cattle Diversity: Aim for a diverse herd to maximize your selling value.

Great Western Trail is a game full of strategic decisions and tactical challenges, offering high replayability due to its versatility and complexity.