Shogun no Katana

Introduction

Feudal Japan—land of mystery, tradition, honor… and sharp steel!

Katanas have always been fundamental to the outcome of the battles that have elected or overthrown the noble and powerful families that dominate the different regions of Japan. But behind these beautiful masterpieces lies a millenary art made of technique, discipline, and sweat poured into the most ancient forges scattered around the country.

The master smiths, keepers of ancient secrets, have the fate of entire families and the history of the country in their hands. Now it’s up to you: You have been called upon to carry on this ancient tradition. Will you be able to offer your masterpieces to the most powerful Daimyo in Japan and even to the Shogun himself?

Game Overview

In this game, you will be in the shoes of a master swordsmith in feudal Japan. You must manage your workers and materials well and, above all, master your forge in the most efficient way.

Theme and Game Terms

For this rulebook, we decided to keep some terms in ancient Japanese and to translate some others. The reasons of our choices are in the historical handbook, where you will also find some details about the theme, as written in the footnotes.

Components

• 1 Main Gameboard which shows part of the Japanese territory with villages and castles
• 1 Family Member token
• 48 Sashimono tiles (12 per type with 4 types) to identify the region where the Swords have been commissioned
• 4 Starting Sashimono tiles
• 7 Palace Room tiles
• 28 Market cards
• 16 Honor cards
• 64 Daimyo cards
• 1 First Player card
• 1 Wooden Round marker
• 64 Coins worth 1
• 32 Coins worth 5

• 50 Sword tiles which show the swords to be forged
• 136 Base Resources as follows:
  • 40 Wood
  • 40 Steel
  • 32 Stingray Leather
  • 24 Lacquer
• 88 Decorated Resources as follows:
  • 24 Wood
  • 24 Steel
  • 20 Stingray Leather
  • 16 Lacquer
• 4 sets of Player Pieces (in 4 colors), each including:
  • 1 Forge board where the swords will be crafted
  • 1 Washitsu board to keep track of your game progress
  • 1 SHOGUN NO KATANA (Shogun’s Sword) tile
  • 7 Workers, to perform actions during the game
  • 3 Family Members, who will be sent to the Shogun’s Palace to obtain benefits during the game
  • 2 Monks, to perform advanced actions during the game
  • 4 Decorators, to decorate the swords
  • 1 Score marker

Setup Steps

1. Place the main gameboard in the center of the table.
2. Give each player 1 Forge board, 1 Washitsu board, 1 SHOGUN NO KATANA tile, 1 Score marker, and all the miniatures of their chosen color.
3. Give each player 2 Wood and 1 Steel. Place your Resources on the matching areas of your Forge board.
4. Place the following elements on your Washitsu board:
   • a. 4 Workers in the Available Worker spaces.
   • b. 3 other Workers in the Blocked Worker spaces.
   • c. The 3 Family Members in their designated area.
   • d. The SHOGUN NO KATANA in its designated area.
5. Place the following elements on the main gameboard:
   • a. Your Score marker on the “0” space of the Score Track.
   • b. 4 Decorators at the Academy.
   • c. 2 Monks at the Temple.
   • d. The Round marker on the “1” space of the Game Round Track.
6. Shuffle the 7 Palace Room tiles face down, then randomly draw 5 of them and place them on the designated spaces of the main gameboard. Return the 2 unused tiles to the box. For your first game, we recommend you use the ones shown in the picture.
7. Shuffle the Sword tiles face down and place the stack near the main gameboard. Turn over tiles and place them face up on the main gameboard until enough of the Sword tile spaces are filled, according to the number of players.

8. Shuffle the Daimyo cards, divide them into 4 16-card decks, and place them face up in the 4 spaces near the Houses on the main gameboard.
9. Shuffle the Market deck and place it face up on one of the 3 Market spaces. Take the top 2 cards and place them on the other 2 spaces so that 3 cards are visible (the one on top of the deck and the other 2).
10. Place the Resources, Coins, and Sashimono tiles near the main gameboard.
11. Shuffle the Honor cards and reveal a number of them equal to the number of players (so, 4 in a four-player game). Place them near the gameboard and leave the others in a deck nearby.
12. Randomly determine the first player, who receives the First Player card and the Starting Sashimono with no Coins. The other players receive Starting Sashimonos in increasing order (1, 2, 3 Coins), going clockwise.
13. Reveal a number of Sword tiles from the stack equal to the number of players. Starting with the last player (who has the Starting Sashimono with the highest number of Coins) and going counterclockwise, each player chooses and takes 1 Sword. The first player will have to take the only one remaining.
14. Place your chosen Sword on your Forge board, in the leftmost space of the row corresponding to the first Resource shown on the tile (see the “Movement Rules for Swords on Your Forge Board” on page 10).
15. Take the number of Coins shown on the Sword tile plus the number of Coins shown on your Starting Sashimono for your starting funds.
16. Place your Starting Sashimono on your Sword’s Coin icon to cover it, as shown in the picture. (It won’t be necessary from now on.)

The first round begins.

Example 1: The turn order in the first round is John, Paul, George, Ringo. Ringo is the first to choose a Sword tile, then it’s George’s turn, then Paul’s, and in the end John takes the only one remaining. They all receive Coins as shown in the picture.

Round Overview

The game is played over a series of 4 rounds. Each round is divided into two phases, which must be played in order:

1. Individual Player Turns
2. Restore

Phase 1: Individual Player Turns

Starting with the first player and going clockwise, players take turns placing Workers and/or Monks as described in the Game Areas and Possible Actions section. The players take turns placing one Worker or Monk at a time until all players have placed all of theirs or passed.

Important: You can only use the Workers still on the Available Worker spaces of your Washitsu board.

Important: The spaces where you can place your Workers or Monks on the main gameboard are those with no number or with a number lower than or equal to the number of players.

Using Monks & The Temple

In this area, you can find 2 Monks of your color. On your turn, you may use one of them to take an action instead of a Worker. But to do so, you must make an offering to the Temple by paying the number of Coins written to the right of the current round number (return the Coins to the supply).

Monks follow these rules:

• A Monk must be placed exactly like a Worker. In addition to the chosen action, it will also activate a special effect.
• You may choose not to use all your Monks (or Workers).
• You may choose in which order you want to use Monks among your Workers.
• If you use a Monk, you can still use Available Workers on your next turn. In fact, your 2 Monks are 2 additional actions you can take each round.

Important: You must pay the Monk’s cost immediately when you take it from the Temple. You cannot use a Monk to obtain Coins and then use them to pay the cost.

In the following paragraphs, we’ll describe the effect of playing a Worker in each area and then the additional effects activated by the Monks.

Example 2: At the beginning of the game, John, Paul, and George each used a Worker. Ringo has 8 Coins, so he spends 5 to use a Monk and places it on the Market. On his next turn, since he doesn’t have another 5 Coins, he will use one of his 4 Available Workers.

Passing

If it is your turn and you can’t or don’t want to take any other actions, you must pass. If you do, take one of the available Honor cards of your choice. Until the end of the round, you cannot perform any actions or deliver Swords, but you may still obtain the benefits of the Academy or the Palace if they are activated by the other players.

Please Note: If one of your opponents activates the Academy or the Palace after you have passed, you could receive Coins but you would not then be able to pay to use a Monk. Similarly, you could complete a Sword but not deliver it to unlock a new Worker and use that Worker this round (see page 12).

Four Houses (Han) of the Daimyos

Here live the 4 Daimyos who want to buy your precious Swords. Letting all the regions know your art is a good way to obtain extra points at the end of the game.

The Daimyos will pay you in advance when they commission a Sword, so you can earn Coins with this action.

Worker:

1. Take a Sword tile of your choice from the main gameboard and place it on your Forge board (see “Movement Rules for Swords on Your Forge Board” on page 10).
   Important: You cannot choose a Sword that you cannot legally place on your Forge board.
2. Place your Worker in the space beneath the Sword tile you took.
3. Receive the amount of Coins shown on the chosen Sword tile.
4. Take a Sashimono which corresponds to the House you took the Sword from and place it on the Sword’s Coin icon as in the picture.
5. Take the top Daimyo card from the deck near that House and place it face up near your Washitsu board so everybody can see it.

Monk:

Follow all the steps above as for a Worker then take another Sashimono of your choice (the same or different than the previous one) and place it directly in the Sashimono area of your Washitsu board.

Example 3: For his first action, John takes the Sword shown in the picture. He places one of his Available Workers in the space beneath it and takes 4 Coins, the Sashimono, and the card shown.

The Market

This is where you can buy Resources to forge the Swords and where you can find the least common cards.

Worker:

1. Place your Worker on a Market space not occupied by other Workers or Monks. The available spaces are those with no number or with a number lower than or equal to the number of players.
2. Buy the Resources you wish from the supply: The cost of each Resource is shown in the Market area. Return the spent Coins to the supply.
3. Place the Resources in the designated spaces of your Forge board.
4. Choose one of the 3 revealed Market cards and place it face up near your Washitsu board so everybody can see it. Then replace it from the deck, if needed.

Monk:

Follow all the steps above as for a Worker, then repeat step 4 (take a second card, after having replaced the first one, if needed).

Example 4: Ringo placed his Monk at the Market. First, he spends 3 Coins to buy 1 Wood (cost: 1 Coin) and 1 Steel (cost: 2 Coins) and places them on his Forge board, then he takes the card shown in the picture, revealing the next one from the deck. Since he used a Monk, he can choose a second card from the 3 available (including the one from the top of the deck he just revealed).

Your Forge Board Action

This is the beating heart of the game. The Swords will move on your Forge board and you must manage them well in order to move the highest possible number of them with each action, trying to avoid collisions!

Worker:

1. Place the Worker near the left or top side of your Forge board so that it clearly indicates a single row or column. There’s no limit to the number of Workers (or Monks) you can place on the same row or column.
2. You may then move all the Swords that are in the selected row or column.
   Please Note: The Swords must already be there when you place the Worker.

Monk:

You can move 1 additional Sword, which can be one already activated by the Monk’s placement or another Sword. You may perform the extra movement at any moment, even between two other “normal” moves.

Please Note: You can use the extra movement to move a Sword into the selected row or column that originally wasn’t there, and then move it again because now it’s activated like the others.

See the “Movement Rules for Swords on Your Forge Board” and examples on page 10.

The Academy

Your blade can be sharp and well balanced, but beauty is also important. At the Academy, you will learn how to Decorate Swords with precious ornaments and finishings to increase their value. Of course, the customer will pay you extra Coins for each decoration!

But pay attention! All the tireless craftsmen in the Academy are always at work creating unique masterpieces, so the other players’ Decorators will also be able to create a decoration.

Worker:

1. Place your Worker on an Academy space not occupied by other Workers or Monks. The available spaces are those with no number or with a number lower than or equal to the number of players.
2. Advance one of your Decorators of your choice one step to the right. The position of each Decorator determines how many Coins you will receive when you decorate a Sword with the corresponding Resource.
3. You may now decorate Resources you have already placed on your Swords: carve Wood, engrave Steel, adorn Stingray Leather, or paint Lacquer. To do so, follow these rules:
   • a. With a single action, you may activate each Decorator once. This means that you can decorate no more than one Resource of each kind in total.
   • b. Only the Resources you have already placed on Swords on your Forge board can be decorated.
   • c. You can never decorate two or more of the same Resources on the same Sword (each Resource represents a part of the Sword: once you have decorated it, it doesn’t make sense to decorate it again).
   • d. It’s possible to decorate different Resources on the same Sword, if you respect the previous limits.
4. All of the other players may also activate one of their Decorators of their choice to decorate one single Resource on a Sword, following the rules above (i.e., on a Sword on their Forge, where there isn’t a Decorated Resource of the same kind, etc.).
5. All players receive the total number of Coins corresponding to the decorations they performed.

Important: Even the players who already passed this round can decorate a Resource on a Sword on their Forge if the Academy is activated by another player.

Monk:

Perform Step 2 one additional time. It’s possible to advance the same Decorator twice or two different Decorators once each.

Example 5a: Paul places a Monk at the Academy, advances his Decorator two steps on the Steel row, and then decorates Lacquer on one Sword, Wood and Steel on another Sword, and Stingray Leather on a third one. He obtains 6 Coins in total.

Example 5b: Even though it is Paul’s turn, John can also decorate one Resource. He must choose Lacquer because the Steel is already decorated on his only Sword. He obtains 1 Coin.

Example 5c: At the same time, Ringo can also decorate a Resource. His Sword has all the Resource types, so he can decorate whichever one he likes. He chooses Stingray Leather and obtains 3 Coins.

Example 5d: George could decorate a Resource, too, but the only Resource he has on a Sword is Steel and there is already a Decorated Steel on the same Sword, so he cannot decorate anything.

The Shogun’s Palace

Your Family Members at the Shogun’s Palace can petition him for useful benefits during the game. But in order to preserve the political balance, he will also grant something to your opponents.

Worker:

1. Place your Worker on a Palace space not occupied by other Workers or Monks. The available spaces are those with no number or with a number lower than or equal to the number of players.
2. Add one of your Family Members to a Palace Room where you don’t already have a Family Member. If all three of your Family Members are already at the Palace, skip this step.
3. If you want to, redistribute all of your Family Members in the Palace, respecting the limit of only one per Room.
4. Immediately obtain all of the benefits shown on each Room where you have a Family Member.
5. All of the other players may choose only one of their Family Members at the Palace and immediately obtain the benefit shown on their Room.

Monk:

You may obtain the benefit of a Room with one of your Family Members one additional time.

Important: Even the players who already passed this round can obtain a benefit if the Palace is activated by another player.

Important: Taking benefits from the Shogun is not mandatory. Every time you activate the Palace, you may choose which benefits to obtain and in which order.

The benefits are described on the last page of this rulebook.

Example 6: It’s the third round. George places a Monk at the Palace. He obtains 2 Coins and immediately spends 1 to buy a Stingray Leather. He also uses the Monk’s effect to move two Swords instead of one. In the meantime, John chooses to buy a Lacquer at the cost of 2 Coins, Paul moves a Sword, and Ringo advances one of his Decorators at the Academy.

Komainu

This place of reflection is ideal for planning your future actions and finding ideas to obtain good results, even economic ones.

Worker:

1. Place a Worker in the only space (only if it is empty).
2. Obtain 4 Coins from the supply.
3. During the next round, you will take the First Player card and play first.

Monk:

You may use any of the special effects for Monks for any of the other areas.

Example 7: George places a Monk in the Komainu space. He immediately gains 4 Coins, then he can decide which special effect to use. He chooses the one for his Forge, so he moves a Sword.

Movement Rules for Swords on Your Forge Board

Your Forge Board is made up of four rows, each tied to a specific Resource. From top to bottom, they are Lacquer, Wood, Steel, and Stingray Leather. Each row has 5 spaces.

When you take a Sword tile, you must place it on your Forge in the leftmost space of the row tied to the first Resource shown on the Sword tile itself.

Sword tiles can be moved on your Forge board following these rules:

1. Golden Rule: A Sword moves one space each time a Resource is added to it. There are no exceptions: It’s never possible to move a Sword without placing a Resource on it, and it’s never possible to place a Resource on a Sword without moving it.
2. Resources must always be placed on the Swords in the order they appear on the Sword tile.
3. When you place a Resource on a Sword that matches the row the Sword is in, the Sword moves one space to the right.
4. When you place a Resource on a Sword that matches the row above or below it, the Sword moves one space in that direction (so, up or down).
5. Each space can have only one Sword at a time.
6. A Sword can never move into a space occupied by another Sword.
7. When you activate more than one Sword at the same time, you can decide which order to move them, so it is possible to move a Sword which occupies the destination space of another one to empty that space and let the other Sword arrive.
8. Special Case: Sometimes it can happen that two Swords that are in adjacent rows must swap their positions. This movement is allowed if both of those Swords are activated legally at the same time.

Please Note: It’s possible to swap 2 Swords by placing a Monk in the Palace and by taking the benefit of the “Move Sword” Room twice.

Movement Examples

Example 8a: Paul has the three Swords shown in the picture. They must be moved as indicated (each movement corresponds to the placement of a Resource on the Sword).

Example 8b: (For these examples, we’ll call each Sword by the color of the Sashimono placed on it): Paul places his Worker on the first column, so he activates all three Swords. Each one moves one space to the right (at the cost of 1 Lacquer, 1 Steel, and 1 Leather, respectively).

Example 8c: If Paul were to activate all of his Swords now, at least one would be blocked because the red and the blue Swords must both move to the same space. Luckily, John decides to go to the Palace, so Paul can activate his Family Member to place a Wood on his blue Sword and move it one space up.

Example 8d: Now Paul places a Worker on the second column, so he activates all three Swords again. First he places a second Wood on the blue Sword, moving it to the right, so that the red Sword can move down. The white Sword moves one space up.

Example 8e: Then Paul places a Monk on the second row. In addition to the Swords that are in that row, he can also activate the white Sword because of the Monk’s special effect. It swaps positions with the red Sword. The blue Sword moves again to the right.

Example 8f: Paul places his second Monk on the second column, so he can activate all the Swords again. The blue Sword is now ready to be delivered.

Example 9: John’s Swords are in this position. So, if he decides to activate them with a Worker, one of them would be blocked because the red Sword and the blue Sword must go to the same space. He decides to activate them with a Monk so he can perform an extra movement: First he swaps the blue Sword and the green Sword, then he moves the blue Sword again one step on the right. Now, the red Sword can move down.

Example 10: George’s Swords are in this position. George places a Monk on the second row and uses the extra movement first to move the blue Sword up so that it’s in the second row with the other two. Then, he can move all three Swords.

Delivering a Sword

When a Sword is complete—i.e., when it has all of the required Resources on it—you can deliver it by following these rules:

1. Add up the total value of the Sword as follows:
   • a. The points written on the Sword tile itself.
   • b. Points given by Market card n. 5, if you play it (see the last page of this rulebook).
   • c. 1 Point if there is a Decorated Wood on the Sword.
   • d. 2 Points if there is a Decorated Steel on the Sword.
   • e. 3 Points if there is a Decorated Stingray Leather on the Sword.
   • f. 4 Points if there is a Decorated Lacquer on the Sword.
   • g. Points written near the current round’s number on the Game Round Track.

   Advance your score marker accordingly.

2. Take the benefits shown at the end of the row and the column the Sword is in, including the permanent benefit of any cards you have placed beneath your Forge board for that row and column (see “How to Play the Cards” on page 13) and those given by Market card n. 3 if you play it (see the last page of this rulebook).
3. Take the Sashimono currently on the Sword tile and place it in the Sashimono area on your Washitsu board, as follows:
   • a. If there are no Sashimonos of that kind, place it in the first empty space from the left.
   • b. If there is at least one other Sashimono of that kind, place the new one on top of it.
   • c. If it’s your Starting Sashimono, return it to the box and take another one of your choice, then place it on your Washitsu board as explained above.
4. Place the Sword in the first empty Sword space on your Washitsu board (from left to right in the top row and then in the bottom row). If there is a Blocked Worker on that space, immediately move it in an Available Worker space. You can use it from now until the end of the game.
   Important: Don’t remove any Resources from the Sword. You will need them during the final scoring at the end of the game.
   Important: Although it’s very difficult, it is possible to deliver more than eight Swords. Place the extra ones near your Washitsu board.
5. When you complete a Sword, you prove that you have the skills to properly work the materials that went into that Sword at the level of quality required for a Shogun No Katana. To represent this, you may choose from 0 to 2 Resources that appear on the completed Sword and add the same number and kind of Resources from the supply on your “Project for the Shogun” space. These Resources can be of the same kind if there are at least 2 of that Resource on the Sword.
   Please Note: There’s no limit to the number of Resources you can put in your Project space, but you will be able to use no more than 7. You will have to discard the excess Resources and pay a penalty (see “Modify the Project for the Shogun” on page 15).

Important: You are not forced to deliver a Sword immediately after completing it. You can leave it where it is and wait to Decorate it and/or deliver it in a later Round to score more Points. However, you don’t earn the benefits described in step 2 until you deliver it.

Important: Delivering a Sword is NOT an action and you can do it at any time during the round (even during an opponent’s turn), but only if you haven’t passed yet that round.

Please Note: You can deliver a Sword, if it’s complete, while you are moving other Swords to free up the space it is in and move another Sword there.

Example 11: John has completed a Sword and wants to deliver it. First he scores the 6 points shown on the tile, then those for the Decorated Resources (4 for Lacquer, 1 for Wood, 2 for Steel), and then 4 points because it’s the third round. He advances his Score marker 17 spaces, then he gains the benefits shown on the row and column the Sword is in: 1 Steel and 1 Coin. Now he removes the Sword from his Forge and places it in the first empty space of his Washitsu board, unlocking a Worker, and places the Sashimono in the area dedicated to them. Finally, he places 2 Steel in his Project for the Shogun space.

Deliver a Sword Summary

1. Add up the value and advance your Score marker. Activate the immediate effect of Market card n. 5.
2. Take the benefits of the row and column the Sword is in, including those shown on any cards placed under your Forge board. Activate the immediate effect of Market card n. 3.
3. Place the Sword on the first empty space of your Washitsu board. If there is a Blocked Worker there, move it to an Available Worker space.
4. Take the Sashimono from the Sword and place it in your Sashimono area.
5. If your Project for the Shogun isn’t complete, place from 0 to 2 Resources on it, matching those on the Sword you delivered.

Crafting the Shogun’s Sword

The peak of each Master Swordsmith’s art can be nothing less than creating their own SHOGUN NO KATANA (The Shogun’s Sword). But to do so, you must be skilled enough in working all of the different types of Resources. Each time you deliver a Sword, you may place on your Project for the Shogun from 0 to 2 Resources from those used for that Sword. You will use them to create your own unique “recipe” for your SHOGUN NO KATANA.

Example 15: Ringo has already delivered the Swords shown in the picture and added 1 Lacquer and 1 Stingray Leather to his Project from the first one and 2 Steel from the second. When he delivers the third Sword, he decides to add only 1 Wood because he’s afraid he won’t have enough actions to complete a 7-Resource Sword, and he wants to add 1 Stingray Leather when he delivers the next Sword.

Putting Your SHOGUN NO KATANA in Play

When you think your Project is ready and satisfies you, you can put your SHOGUN NO KATANA into play, as follows:

1. To put your SHOGUN NO KATANA into play, you must have at least 1 Resource of each type in your Project for the Shogun space.
2. Place those Resources in your Composition area any way you wish, as long as it’s possible to move the Sword through your Forge legally without jumping a row (i.e., you cannot place two Resources adjacent to each other on your Composition if they aren’t adjacent on your Forge board). You’ll have to move this Sword through your Forge by following the Composition you have created.
3. The Sword must be put into play in the first space of the row corresponding to its first Resource, as usual. From now on, you cannot add any Resources to your Project or change the Composition of the Sword.

Important: Putting your SHOGUN NO KATANA into play isn’t an action: You can do it at any moment during a round (even during an opponent’s turn) before you pass.

Please Note: When you put your SHOGUN NO KATANA into play, you don’t receive any Coins in advance because it’s a present you have decided to give him on your own accord without asking for any payment. However, when you deliver it, you will receive the benefits for the row and column it is in, as normal, as a sign of the Shogun’s gratitude.

Example 16: Ringo has 1 Lacquer, 1 Wood, 2 Steel, and 2 Stingray Leather on his Project. He places them in his Composition in the order shown in the picture. The Sword will move accordingly.

Modify the Project for the Shogun

Shogun no Katana is a complex game, not easy to master. It can happen, especially in your first games, that you realize it’s time to put the SHOGUN NO KATANA in play before it’s too late but you forgot to put the Resources you need on your Project when you delivered your Swords. Or you could realize, instead, that you placed too many Resources on it. In either case, follow these rules:

1. If you forgot to put Resources on your Project in the Moment when you delivered the previous Swords, you can retrace them and place them on the Project, taking from 0 to 2 from each Sword you delivered.
2. If you put too many Resources on your Project and you think you won’t be able to complete the Sword before the end of the game, you can discard the excess Resources from your Project before designing your Composition. You must keep at least 1 Resource of each type.
3. In either case, you immediately lose 1 point for each Resource you added or removed from your Project.

Please Note: You won’t suffer any direct penalty if you don’t complete your SHOGUN NO KATANA before the end of the game, but you won’t receive the benefits and the points given for the round of play. Furthermore, you cannot obtain the Favor of the Shogun (see “The End of the Game” here on the right).

Moving & Scoring Your SHOGUN NO KATANA

The SHOGUN NO KATANA must be moved following the normal rules, like any other Sword.

Its value is calculated as for other Swords, with these differences in steps 1 and 2:

1. There are no points written on the Sword tile: It is worth the total sum of the values of the Resources placed on it (shown at the Market and the Academy).
2. Since there are no points written on the Sword tile, you cannot use Market card n. 5 to double them.

After the delivery, return it to its space on your Washitsu board (not in the spaces for the other Swords). The Resources on it must remain there.

Example 17: Ringo delivered his SHOGUN NO KATANA composed of 1 Lacquer, 1 Wood, 2 Steel, and 2 Stingray Leather. Its base value is 15. In addition, he scores 8 points for Decorated Lacquer, Stingray Leather, and Wood plus 6 because he delivered it in the fourth round. His total score is 29.

Sword Score Comparison

How to Play the Cards

You can obtain cards by placing Workers or Monks in one of the four Daimyo Houses or at the Market. You must keep them visible near your Washitsu board. There’s no limit to the number of cards you can have.

Each card shows a permanent benefit and an immediate effect and can be used as follows:

Activate the Immediate Effect of a Card

Each card shows an immediate effect that you can use one time only. Many cards show the icon for a game area, and can be played only when you perform an action in that area. Others can be played at any time (you can find a list with all the details on the last page of the rulebook). When you use the immediate effect of a card, you must either pay to activate its permanent effect or discard it.

Activate the Permanent Benefit of a Card

Before or after you use the immediate effect of a card, you must decide whether you will discard it or pay the cost for its permanent benefit. If you decide to pay, slide the card beneath your Forge board at the end of a row or a column of your choice so that the benefit remains visible. From now on, each time you deliver a Sword in that row or column, you will obtain that benefit in addition to the one printed on your Forge board.

Please Note: If you just delivered a Sword, you are not forced to place the permanent benefit at the end of the row or column that Sword was in, even if it’s often useful to do so.

Details and Clarifications about the Cards

In this section, we will call a “Moment” any action a player is taking, during their turn or not, i.e.:

• An action on your turn
• Delivering one or more Swords during your or an opponent’s turn (multiple deliveries are possible in the same Moment)
• Activating the immediate effect of a card during your or an opponent’s turn.

A Moment ends when you cannot do anything else.

You Cannot:

• Place more than one benefit on a row or column, unless you activate the immediate effect of Market card n. 4.
• Use Coins obtained from a permanent benefit to pay for the benefit itself.
• Activate the immediate effect of a card and keep it to buy the permanent benefit during a later Moment.
• Buy the permanent benefit of a card without activating the immediate effect of that card and saving it for a later Moment.
• Interrupt the activation of a row or column and then resume it later, even during the same Moment (see Example 14).

You Can:

• Activate the immediate effect of a card and then discard it, giving up the permanent benefit.
• Purchase the permanent benefit of a card without activating the immediate effect, giving it up.
• Activate the immediate effect of a card and then purchase its permanent benefit in the same Moment.
• Purchase the permanent benefit of a card and then activate its immediate effect in the same Moment.
• Apply the immediate effect of a card to its permanent benefit (already purchased) in the same Moment (see example 13).
• Activate as many immediate effects on as many cards as you want before deciding how many permanent benefits to purchase in the same Moment.
• Use Coins earned from those cards’ immediate effects to purchase permanent bonuses.
• Use Coins earned from the benefit of a row to pay the cost of a benefit on the column (or vice versa) and then obtain those benefits during the same Moment (see examples 13 and 14).

Example 12a: George uses this card when John—during his turn—goes to the Palace. After activating its immediate effect, George must decide whether to purchase the permanent benefit or discard it because he doesn’t have anything else to do in this Moment. He can use the 2 Coins he just obtained by activating the Palace Room (but he must add a third one because the cost is 3 Coins).

Example 12b: Continuing the situation described in example 12a, if George had one or more complete Swords, he could decide to deliver any or all of them at this time, so the Moment would not be over and he could decide to purchase the benefit during or after the deliveries.

Example 13: Paul has completed a Sword and wants to deliver it. He plays Market card n. 3, which allows him to take the benefit of the row or column the Sword is in twice, and Market card n. 5 which doubles the points shown on a Sword tile.

Before the delivery, he decides to purchase the permanent benefit of Market card n. 3 and places it at the end of the row as shown in the picture. To do so, he spends the only 3 Coins he has.

The total score for the Sword is: 5 points as shown on the tile, another 5 thanks to Market card n. 5, 1 point for the Decorated Wood, 2 points for the Decorated Steel, and 2 points because it’s the second round. Then Paul receives 2 Steel and 4 Coins because he used the immediate effect of card n. 3 (which he just placed beneath the board) to double the Benefits given by the third row. Now, he spends 3 Coins to place Market card n. 5 at the end of the fourth column and obtains another 4 Coins (2 printed on the board and 2 on the card).

Please Note: To use the permanent benefit of each card (2 Coins), Paul had to have the 3 Coins needed before placing it under his board. It’s not possible to use Coins obtained from a permanent benefit to pay for that benefit itself.

Example 14: Ringo decides to deliver this Sword and uses Market card n. 5 to score 5 extra points. He doesn’t have any Coins, so he decides to use the permanent bonus printed on the second column of his Forge board to receive 3 Coins. Now, if he wants to, he could spend them to place Market card n. 5 at the end of any row or column. If he decides to place it at the end of the top row, he would immediately obtain 2 Coins in addition to the Lacquer printed on his Forge. On the other hand, if he decides to place it at the end of the second column, he would not obtain the Coins because that column has already been activated in this Moment and he cannot interrupt the activation of a column by purchasing the benefit and then resume it.

Alternatively, Ringo could decide to discard the card and keep the 3 Coins.

Phase 2: Restore

After all players have passed, the Individual Player Turns Phase ends. If it’s round 4, the game also ends. Otherwise, the Restore Phase begins:

1. Move the Round marker to the next space (up).
2. If the KOMAINU space is empty, the First Player card goes to the player on the left of the one who has it. Otherwise, it goes to the owner of the miniature on the KOMAINU space.
3. Return all the Monks to the Temple and the Workers to the Available spaces on the Washitsu boards.
4. Draw new Swords and place them in the empty spaces near the Daimyo Houses.
5. Reveal as many Honor cards as the number of players and place them near the main gameboard.

The End of the Game

The game ends at the end of round 4. Add the following points to your score:

1. Score 1 point for every 5 Coins you have. For this purpose, consider each Resource you have as the number of Coins shown at the Market (for example, 1 Lacquer and 1 Coin are worth 1 point).
2. If your SHOGUN NO KATANA is still on your Forge board, deliver it and score the points given by the Resources that are on it, including those given by decorations, if any. Don’t take any benefits for the row and column it is in and don’t score the points given by the round in which it was completed. Furthermore, you can’t receive the Shogun’s Favor (below).
3. Each set of Sashimono tiles on your Washitsu board gives points as follows:
   • a. 1 kind: 1 point
   • b. 2 kinds: 2 points
   • c. 3 kinds: 4 points
   • d. 4 kinds: 7 points

Example 18: George has the Sashimonos shown in the picture. He scores 12 points.

4. Score the points given by your Honor cards as described on the last page of the rulebook.
   Important: Each Honor card gives at most 12 points.
5. Shogun’s Favor: The player among those who completed their SHOGUN NO KATANA before the end of the game who has the one with the highest total value (see the table on the last page of the rulebook without considering any points given by the round) scores 6 points. In case of tie, the 6 points are divided among the tied players, rounded down.

The player with the highest score is the winner! In case of tie, the one with the SHOGUN NO KATANA with the highest value wins. In case of a further tie, they share the victory.

Immediate Effects of the Daimyo Cards

• Card A (Cost: -1):
  • When you can activate it: when you perform a Market action.
  • Effect: Immediately obtain the Resource(s) shown on the card, even if you don’t buy any Resources.
• Card B (Cost: -2):
  • When you can activate it: when you perform a Palace action.
  • Effect: Place your Family Member token in a Room where you do not have a Family Member and obtain that Room’s effect also.
    Please Note: The token can be placed before or after you rearrange your Family Members, but in any case it can’t be in a Room where you already have one.
• Card C (Cost: -2):
  • When you can activate it: when you perform an Academy action.
  • Effect: Advance one of your Decorators one step. It can be the same one you already advanced this action or another one.
• Card D (Cost: -3):
  • When you can activate it: At any moment, even during an opponent’s turn.
  • Effect: Transform up to 3 Resources of a type shown for an equal number of the other type shown.

Immediate Effects of the Market Cards

• Card 1 (Cost: -3):
  • When you can activate it: on your turn, when you decide to use a Monk.
  • Effect: Pay the cost shown on the card instead of the one written near the Temple.
• Card 2 (Cost: -3):
  • When you can activate it: when you perform an Academy action.
  • Effect: Double the Coins you earn with this action.
• Card 3 (Cost: -3):
  • When you can activate it: At any moment, even during an opponent’s turn.
  • Effect: When you deliver a Sword, double the benefits received by a row or a column of your choice.
    Please Note: Even if you deliver more than one Sword in the same Moment, you can apply the doubled benefits only to a single Sword tile.
• Card 4 (Cost: -3):
  • When you can activate it: At any moment, even during an opponent’s turn.
  • Effect: You may play a second permanent benefit at the end of a row or column that already has one (you must pay for it normally; it may even be the benefit on this card).
    Please Note: You cannot place the benefit on a row or column that already has 2.
• Card 5 (Cost: -3):
  • When you can activate it: At any moment, even during an opponent’s turn.
  • Effect: When you deliver a Sword, double the points written on the Sword tile (so, not including those given by Decorations or by the current round).
    Please Note: The SHOGUN NO KATANA has no points written on it, so you cannot use this effect on it.
• Card 6 (Cost: -3):
  • When you can activate it: At any moment, even during an opponent’s turn.
  • Effect: You may decorate a Resource that you have already placed on a Sword in your Forge and receive Coins according to the position of the corresponding Decorator in the Academy.
    Please Note: You cannot decorate a Resource if there is already a Decorated Resource of the same kind on that Sword.
• Card 7 (Cost: -3):
  • When you can activate it: At any moment, even during an opponent’s turn.
  • Effect: Rearrange your Family Members at the Shogun’s Palace.
    Please Note: You can have at most one Family Member per Room.

Effects of the Palace Rooms

• Room 1: Move one of your Decorators one step to the right.
• Room 2: Move a Sword.
  Please Note: If you activate this with a Monk, you can use it to swap 2 adjacent Swords.
• Room 3: Take what is shown on the Room tile (e.g. Resources, Coins).
• Room 4: Pay the indicated Coins to take what is shown on the Room tile.

Actions Summary

Academy

1. Advance one Decorator.
2. If you used a MONK: Advance one Decorator (the same one or another).
3. Decorate at most 1 Resource per type.
4. Earn Coins according to the Resources just decorated.
5. Each other player decorates at most 1 Resource and takes Coins accordingly.

Houses of the Daimyos

1. Take the Sword.
2. Take the Coins.
3. Take the Sashimono.
4. Take the card.
5. If you used a MONK: Take another Sashimono of your choice and place it directly on your Sashimono area.

Komainu

1. Obtain 4 Coins.
2. In the next round, you will play first.
3. If you used a MONK: Apply the special effect of playing a Monk in the area of your choice.

Market

1. Buy as many Resources as you wish at the indicated costs.
2. Take a card.
3. If you used a MONK: Take another card.

Shogun’s Palace

1. If you have less than 3 Family Members here, add one (1 per Room at most).
2. If you want, rearrange your Family Members (1 per Room at most).
3. You may obtain the effects of all the Rooms where you have one of your Family Members.
4. Each other player may obtain the effect of one Room of their choice where they have a Family Member.
5. If you used a MONK: Obtain the effect of one Room of your choice where you have one of your Family Members a second time.

Forge

1. Choose a row or a column.
2. You can move one or more Swords that began the action in the chosen row or column (1 Resource = 1 movement).
3. If you used a MONK: You may move one additional Sword of your choice, including your SHOGUN NO KATANA, at any time during this action (it can be one you already moved or that you will move later in this action).