The Voyages of Marco Polo

Setup and five rounds: Each player has five colored dice, nine trading posts, two camels, a starting contract, two objective cards, and a character. Venice is the normal starting location, subject to character setup exceptions. Take clockwise turns over five rounds; players without dice receive no further turns that round, which ends when everyone has used their dice.

Dice placement: Normally take one main action per turn, assigning the printed number of dice and resolving immediately. The lowest value usually sets the reward limit. Entering an occupied blue area first costs coins equal to your lowest newly placed die, in addition to the action’s own costs. Brown spaces cannot be stacked. Each player color may appear in an area once per round; black and white dice are not player colors, but mixed placements still respect the colored-die restriction.

Market, money, and Khan: Gold, silk, pepper, and camels are four separate market areas with printed dice requirements and reward tables. Take 5 Coins always gives five, but its occupied-space fee still depends on your die. The Khan gives one chosen good and two camels; fill four spaces in sequence, each new die at least matching the preceding value. It has no stacking fee, but the once-per-color restriction remains.

Contracts: Use one die to take one or two contracts from numbered positions no higher than its value. Keep at most two unfulfilled contracts, discarding old ones if space is needed. Fulfilling a contract is a bonus action: pay all goods and camels, take the reward, and retain the completed record. If only one contract remains on display, take only that one; refill two from the special pile only after the selection ends.

Travel and posts: The main Travel action requires two dice and moves at least one step, up to the lower die’s value. Pay the actual step cost and every route surcharge in coins or camels before moving. Normally place a post only in the destination city, never in cities passed through or oases. Each player has at most one post per city. The eighth and ninth posts immediately score five and ten points respectively, subject to explicit character exceptions.

Cities and characters: A small-city post gives its bonus immediately and at the start of subsequent rounds. The first post in a large city earns its one-time trading-post bonus; from their next turn, players with a post may assign one die to its city card. Each city card can be used once per round by one player. Characters can change die values, costs, starting locations, or travel and post rules; follow their text.

Bonus actions: Before or after the main action, fulfill contracts, spend a die for three coins, spend one camel to reroll a die, spend two camels to adjust one die by one, or spend three camels to buy and roll a black die. Never interrupt a main action, and buy at most one black die per turn. Your last die may take three coins and leave no main action; adjustment cannot wrap between one and six.

Round changes and final scoring: The last player to use the main Travel action starts the next round; if nobody traveled, the starter stays. Pay round city and character bonuses, retrieve and roll dice; an opening total below fifteen gives one coin or camel per missing pip. After five rounds score objective cards, one point per ten coins, and Beijing post-space points. A Beijing post also allows one point per two goods, excluding camels. Each player tied for most completed contracts gains seven points. Most points wins; ties compare camels, then share victory.