HARVEST
Harvest is an exciting game created by Kyle King in 2021. It’s all about collecting sets and racing to build four piles of cards with the same suits. The value of each card determines how valuable the pile is. But what’s really cool about this game is the card drafting and passing mechanics that make it an incredibly interesting and engaging experience. Trust me, it’s a ton of fun for both kids and adults alike!
THE CARDS & THE DEAL
In Harvest, you’ll need a standard deck of 52 cards plus two Jokers. Give the deck a good shuffle and deal seven cards to each player, placing them face down. Keep the remaining cards aside for future deals.
THE PLAY
So here’s the deal: I’m playing a card game, and I start by looking at my hand of seven cards. I gotta pick one to keep for myself, and I put it face down in front of me like a secret base or something. We call it my house. That card stays there until the next round comes along. Can’t touch it until then.
But wait, there’s more! I also gotta pick another card from my hand and slap it down face up in the middle of the playing area. We call this special spot the village. The cool thing is that other players can possibly use the cards there. It’s like a little community.
Okay, now it’s time to make my final move. I gotta use one of the cards in my hand to do something cool. I got a few options:
- Plant a field – I can start a discard pile by playing a card from Ace to 5. The suit of the card I play determines the suit for the rest of the pile. Gotta do this before adding any more cards to the pile.
I wanted to share some tips with you on how to play the game. It’s called “Fields of Green,” and it’s a fun and strategic card game.
Here are the basic actions you can take in the game:
1. Tend a field – This means adding 6 to 10 cards of the same suit to a field that has already been planted. It’s important to choose the right cards and make sure they match the suit of the field.
2. Harvest the field – When you have a Jack, Queen, or King of the same suit as a tended field, you can add it to the field to harvest it. This allows you to score points and grow your farm.
3. Use an Assistant – If you have a Joker card in your hand, you can play it to the village area. In return, you get to take one of the village cards and immediately play it to one of your fields. This can be a helpful move to strategize and make the most out of your cards.
4. Discard to the village – If you want to get rid of a card from your hand, you can choose to discard it to the village area. This will free up space in your hand and allow you to draw new cards later on.
Remember, it’s important to plan your moves carefully and think ahead. By following these actions, you’ll be able to build and manage your farm effectively. Have fun playing “Fields of Green”!
Once we’ve all taken our turns, it’s time to lend a hand to our neighbor. We exchange our hand of cards with another player. The player who receives our cards will vary each round, depending on whether we’re playing with three or four people. In a three-player game, it goes alternately left and right. In a four-player game, it goes left, right, and across the table. The cards we receive will be added to our own collection, called our “house.” We then gather up all the cards in our house, including the one we just received, and continue playing. Each player selects a card to keep in their house, a card to play to the village, and performs one action. We keep going until we each have only one card remaining.
In the next round, deal out 6, 4, or 2 cards to each player, depending on how many cards are left and the number of players. If there aren’t enough cards to give every player at least 2, collect the village cards and put them back in the deck. Keep playing rounds until the game’s end conditions are met.
How the Game Ends
There are three ways the game can end. The first way is when a player successfully collects all four fields. To do this, they need to build four piles with cards of the same suit. A harvested field will contain three cards of the same suit: a planting card (Ace – 5), a tending card (6 – 10), and a harvest card (Jack – King).
The second way the game can end is if all of the harvest cards of a single suit have been played. Once this happens, the game immediately comes to a close.
In the game of Harvest, things come to an end when there aren’t enough cards left to give each player at least 2. This happens even after all the village cards have been added to the deck. When that occurs, the game stops right away.
Now, let’s talk about Jokers. They’re like helpers in the game. You can swap a Joker with a card from the village. And if you play a Joker to the village, all the cards in the village get mixed back into the deck at the end of the round.
Scoring is an essential part of Harvest. You earn points based on the cards in your fields. Just remember, a completed field can’t be worth more than 91 points. That’s because each point represents a day of work, and there are only 91 days in a season. If a completed field goes above 91 points, it doesn’t count. Here’s how the cards are valued:
– Aces are worth 1 point each.
When it comes to playing cards, understanding how to score points can be a bit perplexing. But don’t worry, I’ve got you covered!
Let’s break it down:
Numbers 2 through 10 are worth their face value, so if you have a 4, that’s 4 points. Easy enough, right?
Jacks are worth 11 points each. So if you have a Jack, that’s 11 points added to your score.
Queens are worth 12 points each. So if you have a Queen, that’s 12 points added to your score.
Kings are worth 13 points each. So if you have a King, that’s 13 points added to your score.
And the Winner is…
The player with the highest score at the end of the game wins. So keep playing, strategizing, and racking up those points!
Now that you know how scoring works, it’s time to put your skills to the test. Are you ready to take on the challenge?