Pirates of Maracaibo

Objective and scope: Players collect victory points across three voyages. Typical scoring comes from Improvement cards, Residences, buried treasure, quests, and exploration. dlp games lists the base game for 1–4 players at about 30 minutes per player. This summary covers the base box only; expansion captain powers, alternate maps, treasure races, and shipbuilder modules are excluded.

Setup: Lay out the Caribbean card route and Exploration board, sort the Improvement, Residence, and Location cards, and prepare the Treasure Islands with their matching markers. Set out dice, doubloons, player Ship boards, Ships, Explorers, and player tokens. Each player receives the starting doubloons, ship-board configuration, and quest card specified by the base rules, then places a Ship in the starting area. The last player in turn order places the end-game order marker to show who will take the final turn when the third voyage closes.

Turn and movement: A turn begins by moving the Ship, then resolving the action at the destination. Move one to three spaces along adjacent spaces. Each card, plus the Gulf and Maracaibo on the Exploration board, counts as a space; Treasure Islands do not. The destination must be at least one card column closer to Maracaibo than the column where the Ship began. Entering the Gulf ends movement immediately, so unused movement is lost. Ships may share a space, but ending on a card with opponent Ships normally costs one doubloon to each opponent if the active player can pay.

Improvements and Residences: On an Improvement card, either ignore it and take five doubloons or buy it by paying its cost, reduced by discounts already in play. Replace a purchased card with a Tier II card. Resolve immediate lightning-bolt effects at once; ongoing benefits apply as described, and printed victory points are counted at the end. On a Residence card, choose between taking five doubloons and paying to construct it. Each player may build at most one token on a given Residence. The first builder receives its immediate bonus, while the Residence may provide end-game points based on income or another printed condition.

Locations, raiding, and exploring: Resolve a Location card in the order shown. If it displays a Treasure Value icon, add the matching marker to its Treasure Island; then activate a Black Market tile at that location if you own one, and perform the location’s exploration, raiding, or other action. Raiding usually rolls colored dice and adjusts the result with crew, strength, or other abilities, then converts Raiding Power into points, doubloons, or treasure. An Explore action moves the Explorer along the Exploration board, following a chosen route and resolving reward spaces. Abilities may change movement or trade some movement for a reward. Follow the icons at branches and destinations in order.

Collecting and burying treasure: When gaining treasure, take the top marker from the corresponding island and place it in the matching area of your Hideout board; if the island has no marker, use the supply as the base rules instruct. The markers on an island affect the value of that treasure at the end, so players may add markers before collecting a particular type. To bury treasure, meet the requirements of an available space and resolve its action. Buried treasure generally earns an additional score and may unlock an immediate or ongoing ship-board reward. Ordinary treasure and buried treasure are scored differently, so treasure above ground does not receive the burial bonus.

Ship upgrades, quests, and income: Some locations and the Maracaibo arrival reward let players upgrade the ship board. Upgrading usually places a marker on an available designated slot to unlock rewards, discounts, a figurehead, or other abilities; follow the current upgrade icons. Keep Quest cards hidden until final scoring, then score the higher listed condition met; the same achievements can count for multiple quests. At the end of each round, collect income shown by green banners on acquired Improvement cards, return Ships to the starting area, and begin the next voyage.

Round end and scoring: The first player to reach Maracaibo triggers the end of the round and receives the arrival reward. After the required players finish the round, resolve income. In round three, the player indicated by the end-game order marker takes the final turn; no fourth voyage begins. Final scoring usually includes remaining doubloons, fixed and conditional Improvement points, Residences, treasure values, burial bonuses, quests, and exploration rewards. Every five remaining doubloons convert to one point. The player with the highest total wins; use the exact card text for conditional points and the base rulebook for ties.

Solo mode: The base rules include an automated opponent, which is why the publisher’s player range begins at one. The solo player still follows the three-voyage structure and base personal-board rules, while the opponent’s cards determine its movement and priority action. The automated captain may claim treasure, advance an Explorer, or score according to the revealed card. Use the solo setup, difficulty mix, and priority order printed in the solo rules rather than treating the rival as a passive Ship.