Aquaretto Game Rules

Hey there! So you’re interested in learning how to play Aquaretto, huh? Well, you’ve come to the right place. I’ll break it down for you step by step. Are you ready? Let’s dive in!

First things first, let’s talk about the goal of the game. In Aquaretto, your main objective is to create the most successful zoo possible. Sounds exciting, right? I mean, who doesn’t love a good zoo? But here’s the catch – we’re not just talking about any old zoo. We’re talking about an aquatic zoo, a zoo that specializes in all things water-related.

Now, let’s get into the nitty-gritty of how to actually play the game. To start, each player will receive a zoo board. This is where you’ll build your fabulous aquatic zoo. Think of it as a blank canvas just waiting to be brought to life. Exciting, isn’t it?

Next, it’s time to fill your zoo with some amazing animals. You’ll have different enclosures to house your aquatic creatures – like dolphins, penguins, and even sharks. And let’s not forget about those beautiful fish tanks, filled with colorful and exotic fish. You’re going to have quite the collection!

But hold your seahorses, because here comes the twist. In Aquaretto, you’re not just managing your animals, you’re also managing the zoo visitors. That’s right, you’ve got an entire crowd of people to please. They’ll come to your zoo expecting to be wowed, entertained, and maybe even learn a thing or two. So you better be prepared to show them a good time!

You’ll score points in the game by attracting visitors to your zoo. The more visitors you attract, the higher your score. And trust me, you want that score to be sky-high. After all, who doesn’t want to be known for having the best aquatic zoo around?

Now, let’s talk about how to actually attract those visitors. One way to do this is by having a variety of animals in your zoo. People love diversity, you know? So the more different types of animals you have, the more visitors you’ll attract. Makes sense, right?

But it’s not just about having a diverse selection of animals. Oh no, we’re not stopping there. You’ll also need to take care of your animals and ensure they’re happy and well taken care of. Think of it as a hospitality service for underwater creatures. Just like you and me, animals also need to be fed, cleaned, and provided with a comfortable environment. Happy animals equal happy visitors. Simple as that.

As you play the game, you’ll have the opportunity to expand your zoo, add new enclosures, and attract even more visitors. It’s an ever-growing and ever-evolving experience. So get ready to unleash your creativity and show the world what you’ve got.

So there you have it, the basic rules of Aquaretto. I hope this guide has given you a good understanding of how to play the game. Remember, it’s all about creating the best aquatic zoo you can, attracting visitors, and having a blast while doing it. Have fun and happy gaming!

• There are 16 offspring tiles
• There are 88 animal tiles
• There are 10 coin tiles
• There are 16 coworkers
• There are 30 coins
• There are 5 water zoo boards
• There are 5 delivery trucks
• There are 5 depot boards
• There are 10 small expansion boards
• There are 10 Large Expansion Boards
• There is 1 round wooden disc

The Goal: Get as Many Visitors as Possible

I, as the owner of a water zoo, want to attract as many visitors as I can. My aim is to have lots of visitors in my zoo and earn points for each visitor. To make my zoo interesting, I need to have a collection of animals.

Hey there! So, you know when you’re playing this super cool game, and you’ve got this awesome water zoo going on? Well, sometimes you might feel like expanding it, right? I mean, who wouldn’t want a bigger and better zoo? But here’s the thing – if your animal basins are already full, you need to put any extra animals in your depot. And guess what? That’s gonna cost you some points when the game ends. Bummer, huh?

Setting Up

• If you’re playing with 3 players, take out two types of animal and offspring tiles from the game.
• If you’re playing with 4 players, take out one type of animal and offspring tiles from the game.
• If you’re playing with 5 players, keep all the tiles in the game.

Note: Don’t remove the dolphins, orcas, and sea lions – they’re here to stay!

First, I place the offspring tiles in the middle of the table. These tiles have a circle on both the front and back. Then, I shuffle all the remaining tiles face down. I count out 15 tiles and set them aside in a face-down stack for later in the game. To mark this stack as the reserve, I place the round wooden disc on top of it. After that, I build several face-down stacks with the rest of the tiles. These stacks can be of any height, and players will draw tiles from them during the game.

Next, I place the delivery trucks in the middle of the table. The number of trucks should match the number of players. If there are any remaining trucks, I put them back in the box.

Now, it’s time for each player to set up their play area. I take a water zoo board and a depot board, and I place them both in front of me on the table. Additionally, I grab 2 large and 2 small expansion boards, which I place face down in my play area. If there are any extra boards that I don’t need, I return them to the box.

When we start the game, each of us gets a coin. We keep our coins in our play area. Any coins that are left go in the supply on the table, which we call the bank. We also put the coworkers on the table, so we can use them later. Finally, we decide who goes first. You can use any method you want to choose the starting player.

When we start playing the game, each of us has our own set of items – 1 coin, 1 water zoo board, 1 depot board, 2 small expansion boards, and 2 large expansion boards. We place these items in our play area to keep them organized.

Let’s Begin the Game!

The game consists of several rounds that we will play.

On my turn, I have to choose one action from the following three:

1. Add a tile to a delivery truck
2. Take a delivery truck, which will end the round for me
3. Do a money action

We take turns in a clockwise direction. Once all players have taken a delivery truck, the round comes to an end, and a new round begins.

Action A: Add a Tile to a Delivery Truck

For this action, I can draw the top-most tile from any stack and place it face up on any empty space in a delivery truck. I have to make sure that the truck I choose is not already taken by another player. That’s all I do for my turn.

So here’s the deal: On the delivery trucks in the middle of the table, you can have a maximum of 3 tiles. If all the delivery trucks in the middle have 3 tiles, then you can’t take any more tiles from them. You’ll have to pick action B or C instead.

Oh, and by the way, there’s a rule: you can only take tiles from the stack with the wood disc when all the other stacks have been used! Just something to keep in mind.

Action B: Take a Transport Wagon and End Your Turn

Okay, so if you choose this action, you take any delivery truck from the middle of the table and put it, along with the tiles on it, in your play area.

Right away, you take those tiles and place them in your water zoo. Easy peasy, right?

But hey, don’t forget: you can only take a delivery truck if it has at least 1 tile on it. Can’t be empty!

Once you’ve taken a delivery truck, that’s it for your turns this round. You’ll have your regular turns again in the next round.

If I grab a delivery truck during this round, it stays in my play area for everyone to see.

When I add tiles to my water zoo, I need to follow these rules:

Animal Tiles

If there’s an empty space in my water zoo, I can put an animal tile there and start a new basin or make an existing one bigger.

If there’s no empty space, then the animal tile goes into my depot. A basin is made up of neighboring tiles with the same animal.

A basin can only have tiles with one type of animal.

Start a New Basin

If I don’t have any animal tiles to place, I can create a new basin. To do this, I choose an empty space in my water zoo and place the tile there. It’s important to make sure that the new basin is at least one space away from any other basin, meaning it can’t be placed adjacent to any existing tiles.

Just a quick note: two tiles that only touch at their corners are not considered adjacent. And here’s something important to remember: there’s a limit to the number of basins I can have in my water zoo.

Expanding an existing basin

If you already have a basin with this type of animal, you’ll need to add the new animal tile next to it, either horizontally or vertically. This will make your basin bigger. But remember, when you enlarge your basin, it needs to be at least 1 space away from all the other basins. If you enlarge your basin to have 3, 6, 9, or 12 tiles, you’ll get a bonus of 1 coin. If you enlarge your basin to have 5 or 10 tiles, you’ll get a bonus of 1 coworker. You can learn more about these bonuses in the “special situations” section.

Add a tile to your depot

If you can’t or don’t want to put the tile in your water zoo, you can put it in your depot instead. If you already have tiles in your depot, just put the new tile on top to make a stack. It doesn’t matter how many different types of animals are in the stack. Unlike the water zoo, there’s no limit to how many different types of animals you can have in the depot.
But remember, these tiles won’t be next to each other.

Hey there! Want to know something cool? In our game, you can take a peek at the tiles in everyone’s depots whenever you want. How awesome is that? But here’s the deal – you can’t rearrange the tiles in your own depot. They have to stay in the same order. Oh, and here’s a little tip: you can totally add tiles to your depot, even if there’s still some empty space in your water zoo. Pretty neat, right?

Special Tiles

When I’m playing, I get to put my coin tiles alongside my other coins. It’s important to remember that a coin tile is basically just a coin and doesn’t have any special game advantages.

Now, let’s talk about how money actions work. When I want to take a money action, I have a few options to choose from. I can pay for the action using coins or coin tiles, or a combination of both. Here are the possible money actions:

1. Move: This allows me to move my pieces around the board.

2. Purchase or discard a tile: I can buy new tiles or get rid of ones I don’t want.

3. Expand the water zoo: I have the option to make my water zoo bigger.

It’s important to follow the rules for placing the tiles when carrying out these actions. And here’s a tip: I can only take one money action on each turn. So if I want to make big changes to my water zoo, I might have to use money actions over multiple turns.

Now, let’s dive into the first money action: moving my pieces.

I want to talk to you about the different actions you can take in the game of Water Zoo. Let’s start with the first action: making a move.

When it’s your turn, you have the option to make a move. This will cost you 1 coin from your supply, which you will pay to the bank. There are two things you can do with a move. First, you can take the top-most animal tile from your depot and add it to your water zoo. This is a great way to grow your zoo and attract more visitors.

Alternatively, instead of adding an animal tile to your zoo, you can also choose to move one of your coworkers. They can help you in different ways and contribute to the success of your water zoo. So, you have the choice of adding an animal tile or moving a coworker when you make a move.

Now let’s move on to the second action: purchasing or discarding a tile. If you have enough coins, you can buy a tile from another player. This will cost you 2 coins in total. One coin goes to the player you are buying the tile from, and the other coin goes to the bank. It’s important to note that the player you are buying the tile from cannot block the purchase, so it’s a fair deal.

On the other hand, if you don’t want to buy a tile, you can choose to discard the top-most tile from your depot instead. This can be a strategy to get rid of tiles that are not beneficial to your water zoo or to create space for new tiles.

Finally, let’s talk about the third action: expanding your water zoo. This is an exciting step because it allows you to grow your zoo even further. Expanding your water zoo will attract more visitors and make your zoo more popular. It’s a great way to elevate the experience for both you and your visitors.

So, in summary, in the game of Water Zoo, you have three main actions to choose from: making a move, purchasing or discarding a tile, and expanding your water zoo. Each action has its own benefits and strategies, so make sure to consider them all when it’s your turn. Have fun playing Water Zoo!

When you’re playing the game, you’ll come across a big expansion board. It’s a special board that’s available for 2 coins, and you pay the bank to get it. Once you have it, you can add it to your water zoo. What’s cool about this board is that it has 4 spaces on it, which means you can have 1 extra basin in your water zoo.

Basically, this expansion board lets you have two more types of animals in your water zoo. So if you’re looking to have a diverse range of animals, this is definitely something you should consider.

Just a quick note: when you’re using the expansion board, you don’t have to start the additional basin there. You have the freedom to choose where it goes.

So, get this: You find this cool expansion board for just 1 coin, and you pay it to the bank. Then, you add the board to your water zoo. Pretty neat, right? But here’s the catch: you don’t get to add another basin with it. Bummer.

Now, to place the expansion board, you have some options. You can put it next to your original board or any of the expansion boards you’ve already placed. The key is to make sure it continues at least one row or column of your water zoo. Gotta keep it connected!

Note: Even if all the other players have already chosen delivery trucks, you can keep taking consecutive turns until you’re the last one to choose.

End of the Round

Once every player has chosen a delivery truck, the round is over.

At the end of the round, all the empty delivery trucks are placed in the middle of the table. The player who last chose a delivery truck will start the next round.

Special Situations

Offspring

I want to tell you about the fascinating world of animals and how they reproduce. It’s quite interesting, so let’s dive right in!

First of all, did you know that there are specific animal pairs that are capable of having offspring? This is true for all different types of animals, and we can spot these pairs using the symbols for males and females.

Now, here’s where the magic happens. When a fertile male and a fertile female are in the same basin, they immediately produce a baby! It’s like a little miracle taking place right before our eyes. And to represent this bundle of joy, we have special tiles that match the animal type.

But what happens if there’s no space in the basin to add the baby tile? Well, in that case, the player places it in their depot. And here’s the thing, you can’t say “no” to taking a baby. It’s all part of the game.

Now, remember, the special pair of animals doesn’t have to be right next to each other in the basin. As long as they are in the same basin, that’s all that matters!

So there you have it, a little glimpse into the world of animals and their adorable offspring. It’s truly amazing to see how new life is created in the animal kingdom!

Have you ever wondered how new animals are born in the basin of a water zoo? Well, let me explain it to you. Each time a fertile female and a fertile male come together, they can only produce offspring once. This means that if a pair of animals has already had offspring in the basin, they won’t be able to have any more. However, if a third fertile animal joins the pair in the basin, then a new offspring is born.

It’s important to note that the fertile pairs can only reproduce in the basins of the water zoo. They can’t have offspring on delivery trucks or in depots.

Now, let’s talk about a bonus for enlarging a basin.

When you decide to enlarge a basin in your water zoo, you have the opportunity to earn a bonus. Isn’t that exciting? Here’s how it works:

Whenever you add the third, sixth, ninth, or twelfth tile to a basin, you will immediately earn one coin from the bank. Cool, right? But there’s a catch. You can only have 12 tiles in a basin if you have at least one offspring there. So make sure you plan your basins carefully!

• Remember, the more offspring you have, the more chances you have to earn bonuses. So, take good care of your water zoo and watch it grow!

When you add the fifth or tenth tile to a basin in your water zoo, you immediately earn a coworker from the supply. You have four areas where you can use the coworker right away. And at the end of the game, you can earn extra points for your coworkers.

Even if you add multiple tiles to a basin at once, you still get the bonus. For example, if you add the 3rd and 4th tile together, you earn a coin. And if you were to add a 5th tile as well, you would also earn a coworker.

Now let’s talk about the different areas where you can use your coworkers. Here’s the first one:

A. Cashier

So, here’s the deal. You’re in charge of this awesome water zoo game, right? Well, listen up! This is how it works:

You start by placing your coworker on an empty checkout booth in the bottom left corner. And guess what? You can have up to two cashiers! Pretty cool, huh?

Now, here’s where the fun begins. With each cashier you have, you earn points for the coins you collect throughout the game. And at the end of the game, for every coin you have, you get a point. Simple, right?

Oh, and don’t forget: you get double the points for each coin if you have two cashiers! Talk about a sweet bonus!

Just remember, you don’t actually exchange your coins for points. You get to keep your precious loot while racking up those points. It’s a win-win!

B. Keeper

When I play the game, I like to put my coworker on the empty feeding station at the bottom left of my water zoo. I can only have two keepers.

If I have a keeper, I earn points for the animal tiles in my water zoo that have a fish symbol on them. At the end of the game, each tile with a fish symbol is worth 1 point. But if I have 2 keepers, I earn 2 points for each tile with a fish symbol.

Remember: only polar bears, penguins, turtles, crocodiles, and hippopotamuses have fish symbols. There are 6 tiles with the symbol for each of these animal types.

C. Trainer

I have the freedom to place my coworker on any empty space in my water zoo. Once a space has a trainer, it’s no longer considered empty. I can have as many trainers as I want.

Now, picture this: when you have a trainer, you can earn points at the end of the game for Dolphins, Orcas, and Sea lions. But here’s the catch – these animals need to be next to the space that houses the trainer, whether it’s horizontally, vertically, or even diagonally. And for every tile that’s adjacent to a trainer, you earn a precious point. And if you’re lucky enough to have a tile that’s adjacent to multiple trainers, guess what? You score points for each and every one of them!

Hey there! Let me tell you about something interesting I discovered while playing a game. So, in this game, there are these tiles with Dolphins, Orcas, and Sea Lions on them. And guess what? On two of these tiles, there’s a lightning bolt! Now, here’s the catch – if you land on one of these tiles, you don’t earn any points for trainers. Bummer, right?

Here’s a fun example to explain the points earned by trainers: If I choose the left trainer, I’ll earn 3 points. That’s 2 points for the two Orcas above and 1 point for the left Dolphin. If I go with the right trainer instead, I’ll get 5 points. That’s 4 points for the Orcas and 1 point for the Dolphin. Both trainers score points from the two Orcas and the Dolphin. But the Dolphin with the lightning bolt won’t earn any points. The male Dolphin at the bottom also won’t score any points since he’s not next to either trainer.

Now let’s talk about the Manager. I need to place my coworker on the lower right of my depot board, and I can only have one manager. At the end of the game, the manager will reduce the minus points for the tiles in my depot by half.

And that’s how you move the coworkers and earn points in this game!

If you want to use money to move a coworker, you can either move them within the same area or into a different area.

For example, you can turn the manager into a trainer by moving a coworker from their depot to an empty space in the water zoo. You can also move a trainer from one spot to another in the water zoo.

The Game’s End

When a player draws the first tile from the stack with the wooden disc, the current round is played until the end. The game ends when each player has taken a delivery truck in this round, and the final scoring begins.

Note: Players can only take tiles from the stack with the wooden disc after all the other stacks have been used!

Scoring

Each player adds up their plus and minus points for their water zoo to determine their final score.

In my water zoo, I earn 1 point for each animal tile I have. Then, I add my extra points for my cashiers, keepers, and trainers. However, if I have different types of animals in my depot, I lose 2 points for each type. If I have a manager, I only lose 1 point per animal type in my depot.

The player who has the most points wins the game! If there’s a tie, the player with the most coins is the winner. And if there’s still a tie, everyone celebrates their shared victory!

Now, let’s talk about the rules for playing with 2 players. We need to remove the tiles for 3 animal types and their offspring from the game.

I’ll start by rewriting the provided text:

• Set up the game by placing 3 delivery trucks in the center of the table. To add some challenge, take 3 tiles and use them to block off spaces on the trucks. Place one tile face down on one space of one truck, and place two tiles face down on two spaces of another truck.

Tips for Strategy