Next, distribute the remaining goods markers into five piles. Each pile should be roughly equal in size. You will place these piles onto the supply spaces located in the lower right-hand corner of the game board. Look at Example 2 for a visual representation.

There’s a corner on the Game Board called Supply Spaces, and it has five sections. This is where the remaining Goods Markers go, and they’re placed facedown in piles. The order of the piles matters during the game, and the arrows between them show the sequence. So, the first pile is the lower-left one, and the last pile is the upper-right one. The Merchant Ship should be placed at Copenhagen, and the Talers should be set next to the Game Board. Each player should receive the following items: 15 Market Booths in one color, a matching Moneybag Tile to hold their money, and 3 Talers from the bank to start off. Now, it’s time to choose a Start Player, and it’s important to remember who that is for later. This is the initial setup for the game.

Before we start playing, we all have to pick a city where we want to put our Market Booths. But we can’t choose Copenhagen, and during this setup phase, we can’t place any Market Booths there.

We start with the Start Player, and then we take turns going clockwise. Each of us takes two Market Booths from our supply and puts them on a city of our choice. To make it easier to keep track, we stack our Booths on top of each other.

Once we’ve all placed our first Booths, we move on to the second and third rounds. It’s the same as before, except this time we have to choose different cities for our Booths. But it’s okay if there are other players’ Booths in the same city.

Once we’re all done with our placements, the setup phase is over. (See Example 3)

Example 3: Here’s how to set up a 3-player game.

Tip: New players should avoid clustering themselves in one area of the board.

How to Play

To start the game, the Start Player goes first and gameplay continues clockwise. Each player goes through four Phases during their turn.

Phase 1: Get Money

At the beginning of my turn, I collect 3 Talers and put them on my Moneybag Tile.

Phase 2: Refill Goods Markers

If there are any empty Warehouse Spaces, I can refill them now. Just remember, I can’t fill empty Warehouse Spaces during Phases 3 and 4.

To get this done, you need to give the bank 1 Taler. Once you do that, pick up the Goods Markers one by one from the first Supply Space where there are still markers and put them face up on the empty Warehouse Spaces. Remember to do this in numerical order. If a Supply Space runs out of markers while you’re filling the Warehouse Spaces, keep going with the markers from the next Supply Space.

Here’s really important: Once you decide to fill the empty Warehouse Spaces, you have to fill all of them. No skipping!

You can choose not to refill the Goods Markers (Phase 2) if there are still things in the Warehouse Spaces. But if all the Warehouse Spaces are empty, you have to refill.

Now onto Phase 3: you have three options for what you can do next.

If you want to become a successful merchant, there are a few important steps you need to take. First, you’ll need to purchase your goods. This is essential because you can’t sell anything if you don’t have anything to sell! Once you have your goods, the next step is to set up a market booth. This is where you’ll display and sell your products.

Once you’re all set up, you can start selling your goods. Make sure you have a variety of products to offer and be ready to interact with customers. Remember, customer service is key!

When it comes to performing these actions, you have some flexibility. You can move your ship before, after, or in between actions. Just keep in mind that you can only perform an action in the city where your ship is currently located. So, plan your moves strategically.

There’s one more thing you need to keep in mind. You can only perform one action in each city. If you want to do more, you’ll need to move your ship to a different city. However, make sure you have enough funds to cover all the actions you want to perform. You don’t want to overspend!

Now, let’s talk about the order of actions. You have the freedom to choose the order in which you perform your actions. You can also repeat the same action multiple times if you need to. For example, if you need to restock your booth, you can do it more than once in the same turn. However, keep in mind that you can also choose not to perform any actions if you want to take a break.

Example 4: Now it’s my turn. The Ship is hanging out in Lubeck, and I decide to do something there. Then I head over to Aalborg and do something there too.

Next, I sail the Ship to Copenhagen, but I decide not to do anything there. I quickly move it along to Danzig and take action there.

Just like I’m supposed to, I only did one thing in each City.

Journeying on the Ship: To travel on the Ship, simply follow the designated paths, moving only in the direction indicated by the arrow. If I want to sail from one City to another, it will require a payment of 1 Taler, which needs to be paid to the bank. This example will illustrate it for you:

Example 5: I found a Ship in Copenhagen! It’s a pretty cool ship because it can only sail to Danzig, Lubeck, or Tonsberg. Unfortunately, it can’t go to Aalborg or Kalmar, because the arrows on those routes point in the wrong direction.

I realized that the Ship can’t go to any other cities either, because Copenhagen isn’t directly connected to them.

Note: Even though goods are transported overland between Tonsberg and Stockholm, the Ship still moves along this route.

Note: It’s actually possible for the Ship to visit the same City more than once during my turn. If that happens, I get to perform another action in that City.

Note: Moving the Ship doesn’t count as an action in a City.

In Phase 3, I can move the Ship as many times as I want, as long as I have enough money – I can move it before, after, or in between my other actions.

The Actions I Can Take

Purchasing Goods

When I want to buy goods, I need to take a Goods Marker from a Warehouse Space in the City where my Ship is. I’ll put the marker in front of me where I can see it.

But, before I can take the marker, I have to pay 1 Taler. I give this Taler to the player who has the most Market Booths in that City. If no one has any booths or if there’s a tie, I pay the Taler to the bank.

If I have the most Market Booths myself, then I don’t have to pay anything! I can get the Goods Marker for free.

It’s important to note that I can’t buy both Goods Markers in one City at the same time. That would be like doing two actions in one City, and I can’t do that.

Setting Up Market Booths

Now, I have the option to set up Market Booths in the City where my Ship is. I can choose to set up one, two, or three booths.

When it comes to Market Booths, I don’t have to spend Talers. Instead, I use one of the Goods Markers I bought and placed in front of me.

After I spend a Goods Marker, it’s taken out of the game. I can place as many Market Booths in the City as there are barrels shown on the Goods Marker.

If I don’t have enough Market Booths left, I can only set up as many as I have left. I can own as many Market Booths as I want in any City.

Note: To make it easier to see during the game, I should stack my Market Booths on top of each other (Example 6).

Example 6: It’s my turn, and it’s Yellow’s turn too. Yellow has two Goods Markers lying in front of him: one with one barrel and one with two barrels. The Ship is at Danzig, where Gray has 4 Booths and Yellow only has 2.

I’m going to pay for the two-barrel Goods Marker and put two more Booths in Danzig. Now Yellow has as many Market Booths as Gray.

Yellow wanted to build another Market Booth using the other Goods Marker to have control over this City. Sadly, he can’t do two actions in the same City.

Selling Goods

If you want to sell Goods, you must have at least one Market Booth in the City. You also need to have at least 2 Goods Markers of the same color.

You can sell different colors of Goods at the same time if you have at least 2 Goods Markers of each color.

If you decide to sell Goods in a City, you have to take out one of your Market Booths from that City and put it back in your supply.

It doesn’t matter how many Goods you sold, you only have to remove one booth.

When you sell Goods, the markers for those Goods get turned over and stay in front of you until the end of the game. They’re safe and can’t be used for anything else.

Selling Goods doesn’t cost any Talers, but it also doesn’t give you any income. Instead, each Goods marker earns you Victory Points at the end of the game (see Example 7a).

Losses: The other players will lose something if you sell Goods and they have markers of the same color. Each opponent has to give up one marker of the color you sold.

So here’s the deal. Sometimes, things don’t go your way. And in this game we’re playing, that means you might lose something. You know those Goods Markers? Well, every now and then, they get taken away. It’s a bummer, I know.

Now, let’s say you happen to have more than one Goods Marker of the same color. In that case, you actually get to pick which one you lose. It’s a small comfort, I suppose. But hey, it’s better than losing them all, right?

Take a look at Example 7b if you want to see how it works in action. It’s always helpful to have a visual to make sense of things.

Example 7a: Now it’s my turn. I’m selling my 3 Orange Goods Markers and 2 Brown Goods Markers in Danzig (I’ll flip these over and take off one of my Market Booths from the City.

Example 7b: Yellow has 2 Orange and 1 Brown Goods Markers. Because I made a sale, Yellow loses 1 Orange and 1 Brown Goods Marker. Purple only has 1 Brown Goods Marker, so he loses that too.

Phase 4: Taxes And Tolls

Once I’ve done the actions I wanted, I might have to pay taxes and tolls.

I can only have a maximum of 3 Talers and 3 Goods Markers. Any extra Talers and Goods Markers have to go back and are gone. If I have too many Goods Markers, I get to choose which ones to turn in.

Any extra Goods Markers are taken out of the game; any extra Talers go back to the bank.

Note: In Phase 4, you’re only subject to tolls and taxes. At any other time in the game, you can own more than 3 Talers and 3 Goods Markers.

End Of The Turn

You’re done with your turn. Now it’s the next player’s turn.

End of the Game

The game ends when you decide to replenish the empty Warehouse Spaces and start using some of the Goods Markers on the last Supply Space.

We play the current round until each player has had the same number of turns.

Scoring

You calculate your Victory Points like this:

• Each Goods Marker you haven’t sold is worth 1 Victory Point.

When you play the game, every Goods Marker that you sell is worth Victory Points. The more barrels shown on the Marker, the more Victory Points you get. For instance, a Goods Marker with one barrel is worth 2 Victory Points, while a Goods Marker with three barrels is worth 4 Victory Points.

Having Market Booths in different Cities also earns you Victory Points. Each City where you have at least one Market Booth is worth 2 Victory Points. And if you’re the only player with Market Booths in a specific City, you get a monopoly and earn 4 Victory Points.

In the end, the player with the most Victory Points wins the game. However, if there’s a tie, the player with the most Market Booths on the Game Board becomes the winner. And if the tie persists, the players share the win.

Now, let’s talk about the Moneybag Tile.

With Hansa, there are so many ways to move around. If you’re ever in the middle of a turn and wish you had done something differently, it can be tough to go back and change it. That’s why it’s important to plan your turns carefully and think ahead.

The Moneybag Tile comes in handy for this. When you take an action, start by pushing the money off the Tile. Then, once you’ve finished all your actions, you can put the money in the bank or give it to other players, depending on what’s needed.

Strategy Hints:

• If you want to do well in the game, it’s important to understand how to use Goods Markers. These markers help you earn Victory Points and set up Market Booths. And let me tell you, if you don’t build any Market Booths, things will get tough. You’ll find it harder to sell Goods as the game goes on. Plus, you’ll miss out on chances to get extra cash or even free Goods Markers.
• Now, here’s a little tip: it’s usually a good idea to replenish the Warehouse Spaces. Sure, it costs 1 Taler, but it’s worth it. Trust me.
• Another thing to keep in mind is saving your Talers. The more Talers you have, the more flexibility you have in your next turn. It’s always good to have options, right?
• Okay, pay attention to this next point. Think carefully about where you leave the Ship. It might not seem like a big deal, but it actually determines the options for the next player. So choose wisely.
• One last thing before you go. When you buy Goods, pay attention to who gets paid. It’s a little detail that can make a big difference in the game.