Merchants Cove

About this board game

Merchants Cove is a highly asymmetrical eurogame for 1–4 players, with games lasting around 90 minutes. Each player becomes a different fantasy merchant, running a unique shop in the famous markets of the Five Realms.

Adventurers arrive at the cove’s piers ready to buy goods, and every merchant must work to meet demand while competing for customers. Use your shop’s role-specific components and gameplay mechanisms to produce goods, improve efficiency, and build your fortune.

Although merchants operate independently in their specialized shops, their choices affect the shared contest for success. Players can influence the demands for goods, attract customers, and seek sponsorships from the four faction halls.

• Play as a distinct fantasy merchant with a unique shop.
• Use role-specific components and mechanisms to produce goods.
• Employ local townsfolk as staff to support your shop.
• Take risks with the corrupt lair of rogues to gain leverage.

Staff can help merchants improve their operations, while the rogues offer another way to gain an advantage—though using their influence comes at a cost. The result is a competitive marketplace where players pursue wealth through different specialized approaches.

Merchants Cove unfolds across three days of selling at the markets. When the final day ends, the merchant with the greatest wealth is declared the winner. Released in 2021, it offers a richly thematic fantasy setting alongside strongly differentiated player roles.