Description
America in the 19th century. You are a rancher in the Far West and want to get rich by delivering the finest cattle to the East. In Great Western Trail you drive your herd along the trail to Kansas City again and again and load it onto a train there: the farther the train takes it, the more you earn. Cowboys, builders and engineers help you along the way.
How to play Great Western Trail
A turn has three steps: you move your herder forward along the trail, use the location where it stops, and refill your hand. On neutral buildings and your own you take actions: you buy cattle, hire workers, build, move your engine or remove hazards. On other players' buildings you may only take a modest auxiliary action, and to pass some of them you pay their owner a fee.
Your herd is a deck of cards. When you reach Kansas City, you reveal your hand: each different breed of cattle counts once, so you want as many different and valuable animals in hand as possible. With your earnings you send the herd to one of the cities along the railway and start the trail again. Over the game you reach Kansas City about five to seven times. A filled job market triggers the end, and all points are added up only at the very end.
Why you'll love it
- Three paths to victory: cowboys for a better herd, builders for your own buildings, engineers for the railway.
- You shape your hand for the arrival in Kansas City - duplicate cards have to be got rid of in time.
- Your buildings make the trail longer for others and charge them a fee.
- The second edition adds a solo mode and a variant with Simmental cattle, which you raise in three stages.
Who is Great Western Trail for
The game is for 1 to 4 players aged 12 and up and lasts 75 to 150 minutes. It is a heavier strategy game; players on BoardGameGeek recommend it most with three. This is the Slovenian edition of the game's second edition, and there is no text on the components. It will appeal to experienced players who enjoy building their deck and planning several rounds ahead. It is not suitable for beginners or for those who want a short game: there are a lot of rules and the first game takes a while.
What's in the box
- game board and 4 player boards
- 92 cattle cards and 24 Simmental cattle cards
- 54 worker tiles, 18 hazard tiles and 22 outlaw tiles
- 7 neutral and 48 private buildings
- 24 objective cards and 4 starting objective cards
- 9 station master tiles, 12 exchange tokens and 56 coins
- discs, herders, engines and markers for 4 players, 3 bags
- solo mode components, a scoring pad and the rules
