And long version!!
Game Board
Terra Mystica has different maps.
'Base Game' is the original and arguably the competitve standard. Interestingly 'Revised Base Game' is named as if it somehow replaces Base map as a v2 but in the Terra community this is generally not viewed as the case and Base Map is preferred.
'Fjords', 'Fire & Ice','Lakes' are all well-loved maps that add variety without overly affecting play. 'Random' picks randomly between the other maps - it doesn't randomise hexes or anything.
Recommended beginner setting: Base Game
High-level competitve play uses: Base Game, Fjords, Fire & Ice, Lakes
Faction board:
'Faction selected in player order' is the standard from the rule book and players make a free choice of faction in player order (although players may not pick the same colour faction). The player order is part of a complicated snake draft order for initial dwelling placement, intial bonus tile selection, and action order in round 1.
'Random faction selection' assigns everyone a random colour and they can pick either faction from that colour. Simple but means some strange/unbalanced colour assignments on the terraforming colour wheel can arise
'Factions selected by auction' lets each player choose one faction to be available in the game, and then all players freely bid victory points for any faction based on their perceived strength in the set up. For experienced players this is arguably the fairest selection process, but it assumes a level of knowledge of the inherent strengths of each faction, so is suggested to introduce only for experienced players
Recommended beginner setting: Faction selected in player order
High-level competitve play uses: Factions selected by auction
Starting VP:
'Standard' starts everyone on the same beginning victory points. 20 I think? Absolute number not important
'Adjusted by Faction' gives each faction more or less starting VP based on their strength (from empirical data). For example Darklings are regarded as generally strong, so start on fewer VP; Fakirs are generally weak, so start higher.
Starting VP is not an option if auction is selected - the auction determines starting VP!
Recommended beginner setting: Adjusted by Faction
High-level/ competitve play uses: N/A - Auction used
Turn order:
'Clockwise from the first player' was standard in the original rules. When one player passes out of the round, they become the start player for the next round. In the next round the play then proceeds clockwise around the table from the start player.
'Variable' was later introduced as an improvement and is a superior system. The first player to pass is the start player as before, but then the second player to pass becomes the second player to act in the next round, and so on. In real life play this involves some complexity in remembering correct player order but virtually it is trivial.
Recommended beginner setting: Variable
High-level/ competitve play uses: Variable
Mini-expansions:
The mini-expansion added:
- Extra, different town tiles
- A temple scoring round scoring tile, with rewards for number of priests sent to cults
- A ship level victory point reward pass tile
These do not overly add to the complexity of the game, are unanimously regarded as improvements so are recommended to turn 'On'
Recommended beginner setting: On
High-level/ competitve play uses: On
Landscapes expansion:
These add a different 'landscape' tile for each faction. When digging a hex they may be placed instead of a dwelling and confer a variety of (sometimes complex) bonuses, different for each faction. They party aim to balance the factions - for example Fakirs landscape is very strong, Darklings less strong. Some people love them, some people dislike them, some are indifferent. For a beginner I would recommend starting without them due to the added complexity and experimenting with them as you progress
Recommended beginner setting: Off
High-level/ competive play uses: On or Off depending on preference
Rules for mini-expansions and landscapes:
https://images.zmangames.com/filer_publ ... -rules.pdf
Fire and Ice - Final Scoring tiles
At the end of the game 18, 12, 6 points are awarded for network. Fire and Ice expansion added an extra scoring condition for 18, 12, 6. It is randomly picked out of four options and emphasise things like greatest distance between connected dwellings, or building on the edge of the mpa. They add an interesting option and variability without too much complexity once you are familiar with the base game. This variability is probably not required for the beginner player, though.
Recommended beginner setting: Off
High-level/ competive play uses: On or Off depending on preference
Fire and Ice - Factions
Adds six extra factions, two each of Volcano, Ice and Variable factions. They ignore or change the colour wheel rules in interesting ways. They are generally more complex than the base factions but add fun variety. Experiment with them once familiar with the base factions. Some experienced players love them, some feel they can be too disruptive to the balance of Terra Mystica. These are currently still in beta mode!
Recommended beginner setting: Off
High-level/ competive play uses: On or Off depending on preference
Fire & Ice expansion rulebook:
https://cdn.1j1ju.com/medias/cd/e5/c5-t ... lebook.pdf
