Vineta

About this board game

Vineta is a board game for 2 to 6 players that plays in about 30 minutes. Players take the roles of angry Norse gods, each seeking to sink the city beneath a succession of pounding waves.

Every player has two secret responsibilities: one of the city’s nine districts to protect and one color of houses to protect. These hidden assignments give every decision a personal stake as the city faces destruction.

Using cards, players send waves against districts. Waves can join together against a threatened area, while houses may be moved in and out of danger. At the end of each round, the district with the most waves played against it is removed, along with any houses still in that district.

• 2–6 players compete as angry Norse gods.
• Secretly protect one district and one color of houses.
• Play through eight rounds of waves, movement, and sinking districts.

As the rounds pass, the city becomes smaller and the consequences of each card grow sharper. After eight rounds, only one district remains, together with any houses it contains.

Players score for houses claimed during the game. Additional bonuses go to the player secretly protecting the surviving district and to the player protecting its remaining houses, if any. In Vineta, survival depends on more than simply watching the waves: players must also pursue their hidden protections while the city disappears around them.