The King's Favor
This version for three or four players (which we highly recommend) adds a fifth phase after the counting phase. Each player must have three more '2' brokers. These are placed next to the board at the beginning of the game.
Phase 5 - The King's Favor
Right after the counting phase, players get the three brokers placed in front of their screen back. Each player places one of them face down in the throne room (12).
You will not be able to use this broker (sent to flatter the King) until the end of the game. The two remaining brokers are put back behind the screen. Finally, each player takes one of their '2' brokers standing next to the board and puts it behind their screen.
Character Cards
Characters have no power in the throne room (e.g. the herald cannot be used to take away or bring in a broker). However, there are two exceptions to this rule :
Spy : The player who plays the spy may take a look at brokers hidden in the throne room. The spy's three- brokers limit is still valid.
Magician : One of the brokers the magician can swap may come from the throne room.
Final Account
At the end of the game, after black gems have been counted up, the value of brokers hidden in the throne room is revealed. Each player adds up their brokers and wins victory points accordingly (the player with the biggest total takes the first place and wins twelve points, etc)..
| Place | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points won | 12 | 7 | 3 | 0 |
Once each player has added their pawns, if there is a draw, points are shared between players (rounded down if necessary). For instance, if two players share the first place between them, they both score 9 points (12+7, the points allotted for the first two places divided by 2). The third player scores 3 points.
The player with the most points once black and colored gems and the King's favor have been counted up wins the game.
In case of draw, the number of gems collected by each player is decisive (the player with the largest number of black and colored gems wins).
Ys Express
This version for three or four players makes for a quicker game.
Remove a '3' broker and a T broker from the basic pool. As a result, each player has nine brokers. Also remove 'Ship' cards with a white gem.
In the broker placing phase, there are only three placing turns instead of four. The rest of the game is identical.
Continue Reading
