turtler7Lost cities is about trying to spend the most time exploring the 5 ruined civilizations. On your turn you may play a card to explore part of the ruins (below the middle board is your side above is your opponent's) or discard a card you do not want (on the middle board) but be careful as at the end of each turn players draw from the main deck or pick up the top card from any stack in the middle. You don't want to give your opponent cards they want. 2archivecontrol_editmode_centercomment000
turtler7Each city can only be explored by a card with a larger value than the previous you have played there. So it is best to start with low cards in a color you have more of. I started my first turn with a blue 2.Most of my other cards are rather high so I am going to start red next. To play the red 3 you want to click the card (blue) and then the play pile (blue) below the board and NOT the discard pile (red). Play the red 3 to continue.1archivecontrol_editmode_centercomment010board_stack_5 1 expedition_surface_background 2 player_hand_item_37 2
turtler7After you play or discard a card, your turn does not end immediately. You must draw a card from the top of a discard pile or from the main deck. Draw a card now to continue.1deck_action010round_count 1 deck_count 1
turtler7You lose 20 points each time you start a new excavation but gain the face value of all cards played on that excavation. I started my yellow since my hand of 5+8+10=23 and will give me at least 3 positive points. Hopefully I draw more yellow cards that will be playable.1archivecontrol_editmode_centercomment000
turtler7Now that the yellow 8 is down and I have the only cards larger, I can safely play them over my next turns without skipping any numbers. Each card I draw at the end of those turns will give me more options for where to play next.1archivecontrol_editmode_centercomment000
turtler7My yellow 7 is useless to me and could be a somewhat safe discard since the remaining 1+2+3+4+6+7 is only worth 23 points if my opponent got all of them. But I am going to continue red and keep putting active points down for now.1board_stack_4000
turtler7Starting green is a risk if he has the highest cards and has been hoping for some low ones. But it is my first opportunity to use a multiplier card this game (marked in red). This card doubles my risk (-40 points) but doubles all gains from cards placed there. A second multiplier card makes it -60 and triple score. It is possible to have up to 3 multiplier cards on a single stack making 4x total score the highest possible for that stack. I am going to accept the risk and hope green draws work out.1archivecontrol_editmode_centercomment000player_hand_item_53 1
turtler7I had planned to play the green 4 and 5 immediately but as the blue 3 is the next one in the sequence there is no reason to delay playing it and it lets me potentially draw an even lower green card to add to my stack. If I draw another green multiplier that would be ideal.1archivecontrol_editmode_centercomment000
turtler7The round ends when the last card is drawn from the main deck (16 remaining currently) and there is no opportunity to play that card. All cards are a part of each round. Any card not in play, discard, or your hand must be in your opponents hand or the main deck waiting to be drawn.1deck_card000
turtler7I have one remaining card to play and a possible 9 to draw from the deck. I wouldn't be able to play the 9 unless my opponent draws on the board to stall the game but I will see if it is the next draw to maximize my score potential.
It is worth noting that if you have many cards left in hand you plan to play towards the end of the deck you might draw from the discard piles just to delay the end of the game and give time to play them all.1archivecontrol_editmode_centercomment000player_hand_item_32 1
turtler7My opponent did stall the round end to let him play another card but he had the red 9. If I draw the 2nd to last card and he draws on his turn, I will not have a chance to play again so need to put my 10 down now.1archivecontrol_editmode_centercomment000
turtler7This was the single round (quick) rules variation. A standard long game is 3 rounds of play with cumulative score.There is a 20 point bonus to any player who can get 8 or more cards into a single expedition play pile during one round of play. This game is simple to learn and fun to play. Players are forced to take risks early in the rounds betting on cards they have not yet drawn but watching your opponent can give you clues to colors they are confident in or can play multiple small cards to gain a chance to draw.1archivecontrol_editmode_centercomment000