Game Summary, Video How to Plays, Reviews
Find out about Small World
How to Play Small World Board Game Rules
Check out our easy to read review of the Small World Board Game Board Game rules. We cover the objective and gameplay to make it easy and quick for you to get your game started.
Players: 2 to 5 | Game duration from: 40 mins | Game Complexity: LOW How to play Small World rules in simple steps | Play Small World Online Link 1
What is the goal?
There is not enough space in Small World. There too many races living off the land.
In Small World, you will:
- pick a fantasy Race and Special Power combination,
- use Race’s unique traits and skills to place troops in various regions and conquer adjacent lands
- occupy Regions and earn Victory Coins
Eventually, your race will become increasingly over-extended (like those you have already crushed!) and you will need to abandon your race and look for another.
Your victory will depend on you knowing when to push your race into decline and look for a new one to conquer the land of Small World!
Game setup
- Pick and place in center, the Small World map that matches your number of players (shown by the symbol next to the Game Turn track).
Place the Game Turn marker on the first spot on the Game Turn track.
The game ends at the end of the turn where the marker reaches the last track position (8th, 9th or 10th turn, depending on the map played). - Pull the removable storage tray with all of its Race tokens out of the box and place it next to the map
- Shuffle all the Race banners; draw five at random and lay them face up (i.e. colored side visible) in a single column. Place the remaining banners face up, in a single stack, at the bottom of the column
- Shuffle Special Power Badges and place one to the left of each Race banner, its round edge fitting into the banner’s round opening. Stack the rest of the badges in a pile to the left of the Race banners stack
- You should now have a total of 6 Race banner and Special Power badge combos visible face-up on the table, including the one on top of the stacks
- Place a Lost Tribe token on each Region of the map featuring a Lost Tribe symbol.
- Put a Mountain token on each Region of the map featuring a Mountain º
- Give each player five “1” Victory coins. Place all remaining coins, including all “3”s, “5”s and “10”s, in a Victory stash next to the board, within easy reach of all players. These coins will serve as your currency during the game, and help determine the winner at the end.
Gameplay
How do you win?
Once the Game Turn marker has reached its final spot on the Game Turn track and all players have had a chance to play a final turn, the Victory coins held by each player are revealed and tallied.
The player with the highest score wins. In the case of a tie, the player with the most Race tokens (Active + In Decline) still on the board is the winner.