Board Setup

1. Setup the game board by placing hex tiles randomly inside the 3-4 or 5-6 player borders
1. If playing with fish, ensure that each fish lake is surrounded by land
2. Randomly place harbors face down on the outside of game board
1. If playing Seafarers, the harbors can be placed on any sea hex bordering a land hex
3. If playing with fish, randomly place the fix "boomerang" pieces on the outer most land areas, and the piece must not have 2 fish points on an inside corner of hexes
4. Randomly place number chits on all of the hex tiles except the desert, and ensuring that no 6 or 8 numbered chits are within 1 hex of each other
5. Roll a die to determine starting player
6. In clockwise order starting with the 1st player, each player places their 1st settlement & road
7. In counter-clockwise order starting with the last player, each player places their 2nd settlement & road
8. Each player takes resources from the bank for their 2nd settlement only

Special Rules

• You can break an opponents road by building a settlement or knight on an open intersection along his/her road
• If, after a longest road is broken, players tie for longest road or no one has a 5+ segment road, then the “Longest Road” card is set aside until someone qualifies for it
• A knight in any activation state blocks construction of opponents at intersections
• As long as you retain control of the “Merchant”, you gain 1 victory point

House Rules

• A player may build past an opponents settlement or city
• When a road meets a harbor, flip the harbor chit face up to reveal the hidden harbor type
• A single city wall protect your cities from the barbarians, but the wall must be destroyed if the wall keeps the barbarians from pillaging your cities during any barbarian attack.  South Park reference for, "Mongolians keep tearing down my Shitty wall".
• Harbors may be placed in such a position to cross water as long each end of the harbor touches a point of land on a hex
• A settlement on a harbor equals 1 harbor point, a city on a harbor equals 2 harbor points, and a metropolis on a harbor equals 4 harbor points

Turn Phases

Resource Production Phase (in order)

1. Active player may play the “Alchemist” progress card (no other progress cards may be played in this phase)
2. Roll all 3 dice
3. The results of the event die are resolved first
4. If barbarians attack
1. Determine strength of barbarians ( total number of cities including metropolises)
2. Determine strength of all knights (total number of active rings of all player’s knights)
3. If knight’s strength is equal or greater than the barbarians, then the knights win
4. Unless tied, the player with the highest knight strength wins a victory point card
5. If a tie for highest knight strength, then all tied players may draw one progress card from a stack of their choice
6. If knight’s strength is less than the barbarians, then the barbarians win
7. Player or players with the least knight strength all lose one city due to pillaging and is reduced to a settlement
8. A house rule may prevent the pillaging (see house rules)
5. Progress cards are drawn (if any) by all players in clockwise order
6. Victory point cards must be played immediately and do not count as part of your progress card hand
7. If a 7 is rolled (or alternately a “Bishop” is played or a knight is used legally)
1. If any player has more than 7 resource and commodity cards (combined) in their hand, they must discard down to half rounded down…city walls improve this hand size by 2 for each wall
2. If the barbarians have attacked at least once, must move robber to a new hex
3. If the robber moves, the active player steals 1 random resource or commodity card from an opponent with a settlement or city on the new hex
8. Resources are produced for all players
9. Commodities are produced for all players

Active Player Builds or Trades Phase (in any order)

• Play any number of progress cards
• Progress cards may be played on the same turn they are drawn
• Build roads, settlements, cities, or buy city improvements
• Trade resources and commodities with other players or the bank
• May trade resources for commodities or vice versa at any legal ratio
• May not trade like resources or commodities(i.e., 2 for 1 wood) with another player
• May not give away any cards
• May not trade progress cards
• Activate, promote, and/or perform actions with your knights
• Knights may not perform an action the same turn it was activated
• May only be promoted once per turn,
• May not be promoted to a strong knight unless city improvements or progress cards allow the promotion

End of Turn Phase

• If the active player has 13 (14 with fish rules) victory points and the active player declases themself winner then the game is over
• All players discard down to 4 progress cards
• Pass the dice to the next player clockwise
• Once you pass the dice your turn is over

Special Building Phase (5-6 Players Only)

• Opponents may only build anything with resources
• Opponents may only activate or promote knithgs
• Conflicts are resolved by player order, clockwise
• May not trade with anyone or the bank
• May not play progress cards