The Board Game 1.

Heikki Harju Expansion 1. 1

 PREFACE: Standby to Land on Planet Irata!
In 1983, a small gaming firm named Ozark Softscape, led by Dan (aka
Dani) Bunten published a breakthrough multiplayer computer game that
took its inspiration from board games. After more than 30 years, it is still
frequently cited as one of the best computer games ever made. Playing
together was Bunten’s vision and just like a board game, M.U.L.E. was
always at its best when played with a group of good friends, physically
gathered together.
When I started designing this board game together with my childhood
friend Tuomo Mattila, we did it to play M.U.L.E. as a board game
ourselves. To us and many others, M.U.L.E. already felt like a great board
game, but one that required an obsolete computer to play. M.U.L.E. was
crying to become a real board game.
It was very important for us that the game would feel like original
M.U.L.E., with its special thematic elements and competitive but fun
atmosphere. However, it was just as important to make M.U.L.E. a great
board game in its own right. We knew the game would not be fun if we
just reverse-engineered the computer game algorithms and replicated
them in a board game. Instead, we have tried to identify the original
purpose of each element in M.U.L.E. and then consider how the same
intent could be achieved with fun board game mechanics.
It was a joy and honor to work with top-notch artists like Tuuli Hypén,
Jere Kasanen and Ossi Hiekkala. They were able to catch the essence
of what I imagined Planet Irata and its residents to look like and then
improve it to something far better than I could have imagined. There
have been far more people helping us along the way than I could name
here individually, though some have been listed below under the Special
Thanks header.
Finally, I want to Thank You, dear reader, for taking the time to read this
preface and (as the case might be) for buying this game. We hope you have
fun playing M.U.L.E. The Board Game, together!

- Heikki Harju

Credits
Game Design
Heikki Harju (Game Design and Editing), Tuomo Mattila (Design Assistance)
Art
Jere Kasanen (Art Direction, Graphical Design, Store and Additional Art),
Tuuli Hypén (Card, Map, Character Art), Ossi Hiekkala (Cover Art)
Production
Toni Niittymäki (Production) and Jere Kasanen (Production Assistance)
Special Thanks to
The entire crew of Ozark Softscape for creating a such a great computer game. A personal thanks to Janne Hirvonen for games
we played together. Melanie Bunten for coaching and suggestions throughout the publishing process and Jussi Autio, Mikko
Lapinlahti and the rest of the crew in Tuonela Productions as well as Sean Brown from Mr. B Games for believing in the game
during its initial publishing effort. Paul Grogan (Gaming Rules!) for proofreading and suggestions. Playtesters: Tatu Koskela,
Eija Myötyri, Jussi Pakkanen, Juhani Simola, all the curious gamers in Ropecon, Spiel, Maracon, Grand Cru Games, to name
just a few. And to all you wonderful people who played and contributed to this game over the years of its design!
M.U.L.E. The Board Game is © 2015 Lautapelit.fi
The original M.U.L.E. computer game that inspired this board game was designed and developed by Dan Bunten with
Bill Bunten, Jim Rushing and Alan Watson.
M.U.L.E. is a trademark of Ozark Softscape

2 Preface
OBJECTIVE OF THE GAME
M.U.L.E. (abbreviated from “Multiple Use Labor Element”) is a
warmhearted game of cutthroat capitalism where Players (also
called “Colonists”) are settling the remote Planet Irata on behalf of a
Galactic Federation. They claim plots of land and install mechanical
robots (M.U.L.E.s) to work on them. M.U.L.E.s produce Goods that
Colonists can use, stockpile, or (hopefully) sell for profit.
There will be unexpected surpluses and shortages of different Goods,
causing market prices to fluctuate. Players must plan ahead while
maintaining flexibility to change their plans as conditions change.
The player with the biggest amount of Galactic Dollars (money) in
the end wins, and is declared the First Founder of the Colony.

THREE WAYS TO PLAY THIS GAME

Beginner Game
Recommended for your first game(s) of M.U.L.E. It is nearly the same
as the Tournament (yes, including Crystite), but the set-up is a little
more forgiving and it leaves out some rules that are easier to grasp
after playing the game at least once. The Set-up for the Beginner
Game is shown on pages 6-7.
NOTE
Tournament Yellow boxes of this Rulebook,
The complete set of rules and a flexible starting point, recommended such as this one, contain rules
for players who seek more challenge and hard decisions. Additional that only apply when using
rules introduced for Tournament are shown in yellow boxes (see the Tournament rules. Skip these
margin of this page for an example). The Set-up for Tournament is sections if you are playing the
shown on pages 8-9. Beginner Game.
Optional Rules
Introduces different ways to customize the game for Players who
want more variety, more predictability, or more video game nostalgia.
Suggestions for Optional Rules can be found on pages 22-23.

Component List
Large Components Cards
Rulebook 1 Lucky Event Cards 12 Land for Sale Cards 8
Game Board 1 Unlucky Event Cards 9 Player Species Cards 8
Player Boards 4 Production Cards 24 Package From Home World cards 6

Wooden Counters
1-Food Counters 40 5-Energy Counters 8 1-Crystite Counters 30
5-Food Counters 4 1-Smithore/M.U.L.E. Counters 70 5-Crystite Counters 12
1-Energy Counters 40 5-Smithore Counters 8 Auction Tracker 1

Punchboards and Stickers

$1 Counters 32 Sequnce of Play Summaries 4 Meteor Crater Tiles 2
$5 Counters 24 River Tiles 4 Ranking Tokens 8
$10 Counters 24 Plains Tiles 24 Buyer/ Seller Tokens 4
$50 Counters 24 Low Mountain Tiles 8 Sheet of M.U.L.E. Stickers 1
$250 Counters 2 High Mountain Tiles 8

Objective of the Game 3

 Planet Irata
The Game Board
The Board Game

Price Track
corral

2.
Ranking

8.
GAME COMPONENTS
5. +1 5. Gives
> Lucky Event
-1

The Game Board

2. ≤6

2. are
shipped off planet
and immediately
removed

5.

-1 per in
5.

-1 1.
is divided into “Planet Irata” and “The Store” sections. Planet Irata
is a map, used to set up the Land Tiles that Colonists claim during
Land Grant
6.
2. Priority to
buy from

≤
6.
Market
Sequence

the game. The central square of Planet Irata symbolizes the location
Mule_Gameboard_2015-08-10.indd 1 10-Aug-15 14:05:27

3. Spoilage:
3. Spoilage:
3. Usage: 3. Usage:
of The Store. The right side of the Board zooms the view inside The
Store and has four trade posts for different Goods, the Price Track
>12 >12 2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =

Spoilage: Spoilage:

>12 >12

Smithore Crystite Food Energy

for those Goods and four small houses that are used for Ranking the
2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3

Player Boards Colonists, also called the Ranking Track.

Player Boards
Packer

...from the Silicon system.

Packers love food and make
excellent farmers when they
don’t gobble their crop!

are distributed to players, one for each. They are used to keep track
Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 5 09-Jun-15 12:45:57

of everything the players own. Player Boards contain a smaller map

Land Tiles (both sides)
Plains Low Mountain grid for claiming Lands, four Stocks for storing Goods and a picture
Public Secret Public Secret of a Colonist species.
Land Tiles (Lands)
represent plots of land that Colonists can claim to produce Goods.
There are four basic Land types present on Planet Irata at the
High Mountain beginning of the game: Rivers, Plains, Low Mountains and High
Public Secret Mountains. In addition, Meteor Craters can enter play later through
a Production Card effect.
Each Land has Production Values for the four Goods in the game,
except Rivers which only have Production Values for Food and Energy.
River Meteor Crater
Production Values can range from zero ( ) to three ( ),
depicted by colored icons on the four sides of the Land. Each Land
can be used to produce only one type of Good at a time, which can be
changed during the game. Only a Land with a M.U.L.E. installed to
work on it and having sufficient Energy may produce Goods.
Land Production Values
All Plains and Mountains have two sides: a Public Side and a Secret
Side. Only the Secret Side shows their Crystite Production Value,
Unknown (?) while the Public Side has a Question Mark ( ) in its place. The
Crystite
Secret Side of a Land can only be viewed by Assaying the Land or by
trying to produce Crystite on it (which will be explained later in the
Zero (0) Two (2) rules). Rivers and Meteor Craters only have a Public Side.
Smithore Food
Goods counters
Three (3) represent the four Goods in the game: Smithore, Crystite, Food and
Energy Energy, each with their own unique function:
Smithore
Goods Counters is a metal that cannot be used by players directly, but can be sold to
/ The Store. The Store uses Smithore to manufacture M.U.L.E.s. Since
1 Unit
players need M.U.L.E.s to produce all their Goods, they must sell
Smithore to The Store to be able to buy M.U.L.E.s. High Mountains,
Meteor Craters, and to a lesser extent Low Mountains are well-suited
for producing Smithore. Smithore cannot be mined on Rivers.
Crystite
is a luxury mineral with a highly volatile price. It is not needed for
5 Units anything on Planet Irata, but can be exported to other worlds for
great profits (unless stolen by Pirates – you have been warned!). Both
Plains and Mountains may harbor variable Crystite deposits, but this
information is initially hidden on the Secret Sides of the Land Tiles.

4 Game Components
Crystite can be discovered by either Assaying a soil sample from the
Cards
Land or by trying to produce Crystite on it and hoping to succeed
by chance. Meteor Craters always contain high amounts of Crystite. Lucky and Unlucky
Event Cards Hand Cards
Like Smithore, Crystite cannot be mined on Rivers.
Food
is needed by players to take Development Actions, such as Assaying
Lands or Installing/Refitting M.U.L.E.s. Rivers are best-suited for
producing Food.
?

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Energy Production Cards Colonist Cards

is needed to power M.U.L.E.s. The only exception to this rule is that
M.U.L.E.s producing Energy do not use Energy themselves. Plains
are ideal for producing Energy. Flapper
Set-up:
$10 and an extra!
Start with extra the Home WorldAny
Phase (no
Leggite

Package from Phase:Privately inspec cost):

8. Personal Events t the Secret
an UnluckySides of any Lands that
If targeted by alread
and y on your are
another one

Event Cards and Production Cards

Event, draw you. Player Board
card affects .
choose which
Beginner species

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are drawn during each Game Turn. They contain personal news,
1
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major colony-wide events, and “fun” planetary disasters. Some of Tokens and Trackers
these events also help to keep the game balanced, making it hard for Ranking Tokens Buyer/ Seller Tokens
one player to dominate the game.
Hand Cards
are held by Players and used at their discretion. There are two kinds
of Hand Cards in the game: Package From the Home World! and Auction Tracker
Land for Sale! The latter are used under Tournament rules only.
Colonist Cards
are available as an Optional Rule under Tournament rules. They
add Special Talents to the Colonist species. Each species is featured
in two color schemes to enable two Players to play that species Money
simultaneously.
$1 $5
Ranking Tokens
are used to track the Colonists’ wealth on the Ranking Track.
Ranking affects play order in some Phases. It also affects how
different random events affect the Colonists, usually to the $10 $50
advantage of Low-ranking Colonists. Each Ranking Token is
featured in two color schemes, matching the Colonist Cards.
Buyer/ Seller Tokens
may be used to indicate that a player has already Bought or Sold a $250
Good during an Auction, and therefore can no longer do the opposite
in the same Auction.
The Auction Tracker
is used to track progress of the Market Phase from one Auction to Turn Se
q uence
1. Ex
another. It is also used to mark which Land is being sold in a Land pan
2. Dev
sion

Auction when playing with Tournament rules.

elop ment -
Use up
to Up to 3
und. Pa Rounds
per Ro
Buy/Re
fit a ss to en
d Phas
White in the e
Buy/Re Zone
fit a

Galactic Dollars (Money)

in the Re
Refit d/Blue
Zone

Turn
on Two
Adjace
Move a nt Land

are used to Buy Goods from The Store or other Colonists. Goods may to Any s
Assay Other La

Sequence Any Tw nd
o Land
s

also be sold to The Store or other Colonists in exchange for Dollars.

Hunt th
e Wam

Summaries
pus: ga
Gambl in $10 if
e at the succes
Pub: ga sful

The player with the most Galactic Dollars at the end of the game wins! 3. Usa
ge and Sp
in $5, end
Phase

oilage
4. Pr
oductio

Turn Sequence Summaries

n
5. Pr
icing

show the sequence of Phases in each Game Turn for quick reference 6. M

7. Ra
arket

during play. The reverse side of the Turn Sequence Sheet can be used 8. Pe
rson
nkin g

by Players to signal that they have finished a Phase (e.g. Development

al Even
ts

Phase) or an Auction (e.g. Land Auction or Food Auction). MULE_

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Game Components 5
1. Game Boards & Sequence of Play
Open the Game Board on the middle of the table.
SET-UP
Each player picks one Player Board featuring a
Colonist species (do not use the special talents of BEGINNER GAME
Humanoid and Flapper if this is your first game) For Your First Game(s) of M.U.L.E.
and one Turn Sequence Summary sheet.
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2. Planet Irata
Mule_Lan

you.
or ) than ing
( nd
Good the correspo a smaller

Select randomly the following Lands to be placed

s
stock of Colonist ha or deciders and efficient doers!
er mutation. Mechtrons are quick
if no oth gain either ist Acts:
Play to e any Colon Phase, ...evolved from a robotic
befor opment
2. Devel

on Planet Irata:
rld!
me Wo
the Ho Mechtron
e from
Packag

Land Type Quantity

Plains 18
Round 3 Round 2 Round 1
Food Usage 2.
Energy Food Crystite Smithore
>12 >12

Low Mountain 6
Spoilage: Spoilage:

= Round 3 Round 2 Round 1

Food Usage 2. >12 >12
Usage: Usage: Spoilage: Spoilage:
3. 3. 3. 3.

High Mountain 6

Planet Irata
Some Lands will be left over: this is intentional. The Board Game
Put all of them except Rivers and Meteor Craters Price T
back into the box without looking at their Crystite
production values.
Turn all the Lands you picked so that their Public
Side is showing, (the side with a (?) symbol).
Shuffle the Lands on the table and place them on
Planet Irata (still with their Public Sides up), one
Land per square, into squares showing the same
type of Land. Note that River locations are left
empty in the Beginner Game, as all players already
start with a River Land. The center square (The
Store) is also left empty.
When setting up Lands, check that their Public Market
6.

Sides are up.

Sequence

Mule_Gameboard_2015-08-10.indd 1

3. Event Cards
Shuffle the Lucky and Unlucky Event cards into
separate decks and place them next to the Board,
face down.
?

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4. Production Cards
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Separate the four (4) The Ship is Back! cards from

other Production Cards. Pick one random The 3. Spoilage:
3. Spoilage:
3. Usage: 3. Usage:

Ship is Back! card and (without looking at it) put

>12 >12 2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =

Spoilage: Spoilage:

it on the table in front of you, face down. Put the Smithore Crystite
>12

Food
>12

Energy
other three The Ship is Back! cards back into the 2.
Round 1
Food Usage
Round 2 Round 3

box (without looking at them).

Shuffle the other 20 Production Cards and deal
five (5) of them on top of the one The Ship is
Back! card you just separated, face down (without
looking). This deck of six (6) cards is the deck of Packag
e from

Production Cards that will be used in the game.

Spheroid the Ho
me Wo
rld!
2.Develop
befor ment
...from the Rolldoe system. Play to e any Colon Phase,

Place it next to the Board, face down.

Spheroids are well-rounded if no oth gain either ist Acts:
er
pioneers who hate square stock of Colonist ha or
s
corners and straight lines! Good the correspo a smaller
( or nd
) than ing
you.

Put the remaining Production Cards back into the Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 1 09-Jun-15 12:45:20
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box (again, without looking at them).

10-Aug-1
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6 Set-up: Beginner Game

 5. Price Track
Place four different Goods counters on the Price
Track to mark the starting Price of each Good. All
Prices start at minimum values: 5/3 for Smithore,
6/4 for Crystite, 3/1 for Food and 3/1 for Energy.

6. The Store
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Mule_Lan

( or
you.
) than ing
nd
Good the correspo a smaller
Place the following amounts of Goods into their
respective trade posts within The Store:
s clouds and legs everywhere!
stock of Colonist ha or the ground, heads in the
er
if no oth gain either ist Acts: Leggites have their feet on
Play to e any Colon Phase, ...from the Afcany plains.
befor opment
2. Devel
rld!
me Wo
the Ho Leggite
e from
Packag

Goods & M.U.L.E.s 3 Players 4 Players

M.U.L.E.s 12

Round 3 Round 2
Food Usage
Round 1
2. Smithore 4 8
Energy Food Crystite Smithore
>12 >12

Spoilage: Spoilage:

Food 6 8
= Round 3 Round 2 Round 1
Food Usage 2. >12 >12
Usage: Usage: Spoilage: Spoilage:
3. 3. 3. 3.

Energy 6 8

Ranking Note: The Store example in the adjacent picture is

corral showing the set-up quantities for 4 Players.
2. 8.
Track 5. 5. See last drawn
Starts if
> 6 in
Gives
Lucky Event
Production Card

≤6
All
No stocks
sold to are
7. Players
shipped off planet
and immediately Pick Ranking Tokens representing the Colonists
featured on the Player Boards. Shuffle the Tokens
removed

and place them in a random order on the Rank

Track to form the initial Ranking.
Place one River Land on each Player Board, on
any square showing a riverbed (both squares are
5. +1 per in each Colonist’s
stock below
5. +1 per in each Colonist’s
stock below their number of
equally good). Place a M.U.L.E. counter on the
-1 per in -1 per in
Starts
Land Grant
1.
River and rotate it so that the green icons are
2.
6.
Priority to
buy from
facing up: this Land is now producing Food.
Starts if
≤ 6 in
All players start with the following:

10-Aug-15 14:05:27
Items Quantity

Food 4

Energy 3

Money $30
Package from Home World! Card 1
3. 3. 3. Usage: 3. Usage:

Buyer/ Seller Token 1

Spoilage: Spoilage:
>12 >12 2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =

Spoilage: Spoilage:

>12 >12

Smithore Crystite Food Energy

2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3

8. Money and Other Counters

Place all Money not belonging to
Colonists, the Auction Tracker, the
Meteor Crater Tiles and all extra
Packer
Packag
e from
Goods counters as neutral stacks
somewhere near the Board, within
the Ho
me Wo
rld!
2.Develop
befor ment
...from the Silicon system. Play to e any Colon Phase,

easy reach of all players.

Packers love food and make if no oth gain either ist Acts:
er
excellent farmers when they stock of Colonist ha or
s
don’t gobble their crop! Good the correspo a smaller
( or nd
) than ing
you.

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Set-up: Beginner Game 7

1. Game Boards & Sequence of Play
Open the Game Board on the middle of the table.
SET-UP
Each player picks one Player Board featuring
a Colonist species (note that Flappers receive TOURNAMENT GAME
bonuses, while Humanoids incur penalties) and For the Full M.U.L.E. Board Game Experience
one Turn Sequence Summary sheet.
10-Aug-15 14:08:02
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2. Planet Irata Good ( or ) than you.

stock of the corres
ponding

Select randomly the following Lands to be placed

er deciders and efficient doers!
ist has a small mutation. Mechtrons are quick
if no other Colon or
either ...evolved from a robotic
Play to gain ist Acts:
before any Colon Phase,
Development 2.

on Planet Irata: Home World

10-Aug-15 14:09:00
!
Package from
dd 14
the
cards_2015-07-29.in
Mule_LandforSale_
Mechtron

or Withdraw.

Land Type 3 Players 4 Players

Raise the
Bidding proce bid by $2
eds
Irata. Your openi clockwise:
any unclaimed ng bid is $8.
Place the AuctiLand on Planet
on Track
after Land Grant er on
1. Expansion :
Phase
Land for Sale
!

River 3 4
Round 3 Round 2 Round 1
Food Usage 2.
Energy Food Crystite Smithore
>12 >12

Plains 18 =
Spoilage:

Round 3
Spoilage:

Round 2
Food Usage
Round 1
2. >12 >12
Usage: Usage: Spoilage: Spoilage:
3. 3. 3. 3.

Low Mountain 6

High Mountain 6
Planet Irata

The Board Game

Price T

Some Lands will be left over: this is intentional. Put

all of them except Meteor Craters back into the box
without looking at their Crystite production values.
Turn all the Lands you picked so that their Public
Side is showing, (the side with a (?) symbol in all
Lands except Rivers). Shuffle the Lands on the
table and place them on Planet Irata (still with
their Public Sides up), one Land per square, into
squares showing the same type of Land. The
center square (The Store) is left empty.
When setting up Lands, check that their Public 6.
Sides are up. Market
Sequence

Mule_Gameboard_2015-08-10.indd 1

3. Event Cards
Shuffle the Lucky and Unlucky Event cards into
separate decks and place them next to the Board,
face down.
?

4. Production Cards Mule_Cards-backs_2015-08-26.indd 15

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Separate the four (4) The Ship is Back! cards from

other Production Cards. Pick one random The
Ship is Back! card and (without looking at it) put 3. Spoilage:
3. Spoilage:
3. Usage: 3. Usage:

it on the table in front of you, face down. Put the

>12 >12 2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =

Spoilage: Spoilage:

other three The Ship is Back! cards back into the Smithore Crystite
>12

Food
>12

Energy

box (without looking at them). 2.

Round 1
Food Usage
Round 2 Round 3

Shuffle the other 20 Production Cards and deal

six (6) of them on top of the one The Ship is Back! Land for Sale
1. Expansion
Phase
!

card you just separated, face down (without

:
after Land Grant er on
on Track
Place the AuctiLand on Planet
any unclaimed ng bid is $8.
Irata. Your openi clockwise:
eds

looking). This deck of seven (7) cards is the deck

Bidding proce bid by $2
Raise the
or Withdraw.

of Production Cards that will be used in the game. Spheroid

Mule_LandforSale_
cards_2015-07-29.in
Package from
the
dd 14

Home World
10-Aug-15 14:09:00

Place it next to the Board, face down.

!
2. Developme
before any Colon nt Phase,
...from the Rolldoe system. Play to gain ist Acts:
Spheroids are well-rounded either or
if no other Colon
pioneers who hate square ist has a small

Put the remaining Production Cards back into the

stock of the corres er
corners and straight lines! Good ( ponding
or ) than you.

box (again, without looking at them). Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 1 09-Jun-15 12:45:20

Mule_LandforSale_
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8 Set-up: Tournament Game

 5. Price Track
Place four different Goods counters on the Price
Track to mark the starting Price of each Good. All
Prices start at minimum values: 5/3 for Smithore,
6/4 for Crystite, 3/1 for Food and 3/1 for Energy.

10-Aug-15 14:08:02
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09-Jun-15 12:45:49 Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 4
6. The Store
Good ( or ) than you.
stock of the corres
ponding clouds and legs everywhere! Place the following amounts of Goods into their
respective trade posts within The Store:
er
ist has a small the ground, heads in the
if no other Colon or Leggites have their feet on
either
Play to gain ist Acts: ...from the Afcany plains.
before any Colon Phase,
Development 2.

! Leggite
Home World the
Package from
Mule_LandforSale_
cards_2015-07-29.in

Goods & M.U.L.E.s 3 Players 4 Players

dd 14
10-Aug-15 14:09:00

or Withdraw.
Raise the
Bidding proce bid by $2
eds
Irata. Your openi clockwise:
any unclaimed ng bid is $8.

M.U.L.E.s
Place the AuctiLand on Planet

12
on Track
after Land Grant er on
1. Expansion :
Phase
Land for Sale
!

Smithore 4 8
Round 3 Round 2 Round 1
Food Usage 2.
Energy Food Crystite Smithore
>12 >12

Spoilage: Spoilage:

Food
= Round 3 Round 2 Round 1

5 6
Food Usage 2. >12 >12
Usage: Usage: Spoilage: Spoilage:
3. 3. 3. 3.

Energy 5 6

Ranking Note: The Store example in the adjacent picture is

corral showing the set-up quantities for 4 Players.
2. 8.
Track 5. 5. See last drawn
Starts if
> 6 in
Gives
Lucky Event
Production Card

≤6
All
No stocks
sold to are
7. Players
shipped off planet
and immediately
removed
Pick Ranking Tokens representing the Colonists.
Shuffle the Tokens and place them in a random
order on the Rank Track to form the initial
Ranking.
All players start with the following:
5. 5.
+1 per in each Colonist’s
stock below
+1 per in each Colonist’s
stock below their number of Items Quantity
-1 per in -1 per in 1.
Starts
Land Grant
6.
2.
Starts if
Priority to
buy from Food 4
≤ 6 in

10-Aug-15 14:05:27

Energy 2

Money $30
Package from Home World! Card 1
Land for Sale! Card 1
Buyer/ Seller Token 1
Players do not start with any Lands or M.U.L.E.s.
3. Spoilage:
3. Spoilage:
3. Usage: 3. Usage: Colonist Cards with Special Talents are available
as an Optional Rule: players pick one Colonist
>12 >12 2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =

Spoilage: Spoilage:

Smithore Crystite
>12

Food
>12

Energy
Card and place it on their Player Board, overriding
2.
Round 1
Food Usage
Round 2 Round 3
the default Species. You may agree that the Rank 1
Colonist gets to pick their Colonist first, followed
Land for Sale
! by Rank 2, and so on.
Phase
1. Expansion :
after Land Grant er on
on Track
Place the AuctiLand on Planet
any unclaimed ng bid is $8.
Irata. Your openi clockwise:
eds
Bidding proce bid by $2
Raise the

8. Money and Other Counters

or Withdraw.

10-Aug-15 14:09:00

Place all Money not belonging to Colonists, the

dd 14
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Mule_LandforSale_
Package from
Packer the Home World
!
2. Developme

Auction Tracker, the Meteor Crater Tiles and all

before any Colon nt Phase,
...from the Silicon system. Play to gain ist Acts:
Packers love food and make either or
if no other Colon
excellent farmers when they ist has a small
stock of the corres er

extra Goods counters as neutral stacks somewhere

don’t gobble their crop! Good ( ponding
or ) than you.

near the Board, within easy reach of all players.

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Set-up: Tournament Game 9

Land Grant Example
(Beginner Game)
TURN SEQUENCE
In the first Land Grant Phase, Ranking
is, from the Highest Rank to the Lowest: A game of M.U.L.E. is divided into Game Turns. Each Game Turn
Packer, Leggite, Spheroid and Mechtron. is further divided into eight Phases. This section describes each of
As the lowest Ranking Colonist, these Phases, with examples in page margins. The Phase order is also
Mechtron picks his Land first and places it listed on the Sequence of Play Summary sheets for quick reference.
on his Player Board, followed by Spheroid,
Leggite and finally Packer. NOTE: Red boxes in this Rulebook, such as this one, contain
In the first Land Grant of Turn 1, Packer reminders of important rules that can be easy to overlook.
picks a Plains tile from the Red Zone.
She must place it on one her squares with
a red border. Packer already had a River
tile on the White Zone from the set-up
and she decides to place the Plains tile
1. EXPANSION
next to it. The Expansion Phase begins with Land Grant, in which each
3. Spoilage:
>12
3. Spoilage:
>12
3. Usage:
2. Food Usage
3. Usage: Colonist claims a free Land. Land Grant is repeated on Turn 1. When
using Tournament rules, Colonists may initiate Land Auctions after
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =

Spoilage: Spoilage:

>12 >12

Smithore Crystite Food

2.
Round 1
Energy
Food Usage
Round 2 Round 3
Land Grant to gain even more Lands (see Land Auctions below).
Land Grant
Starting from the Lowest Ranking Player and proceeding in reverse
Rank order, each Colonist claims (picks) one Land of their choice from
Packer
Planet Irata, for free, and places it on their Player Board and places it
one their Player Board without looking at the other side of the tile.
...from the Silicon system.
Packers love food and make
excellent farmers when they
don’t gobble their crop!

Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 5 09-Jun-15 12:45:57

In the second Land Grant of Turn 1, Do not look at the Secret Side of a Land when claiming it.
Packer picks a High Mountain tile from
the White Zone and places it accordingly. Planet Irata is divided into three Zones: White Zone, Red Zone
3. Spoilage:
3. Spoilage:
3. Usage: 3. Usage:
and Blue Zone, defined by the border color of the squares. The
same Zones are also depicted on the Player Boards. A claimed Land
>12 >12 2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =

Spoilage: Spoilage:

must always be placed on an empty square on the Player Board that

>12 >12

Smithore Crystite Food Energy

2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3

matches the Zone of the square the Land was taken from on Planet
Irata. A player cannot claim a Land unless they have an empty square
in a matching Zone on his Player Board. 3. Spoilage:
>12
3. Spoilage:
>12
3. Usage:
2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2

Spoilage:

In addition to Zone restrictions, River Lands can only be placed on the Smithore Crystite
>12

two squares of the Player Board depicting a river bed, just above and
Packer

...from the Silicon system.

below the central square (The Store). This restriction only applies to
Packers love food and make
excellent farmers when they
don’t gobble their crop!

Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 5 09-Jun-15 12:45:57

River tiles: Plains and Mountains on the White Zone can also
The Expansion Phase is now over. From be placed on these two river bed squares. The Store square is
now on, there will be only one Land Grant
per Turn. not in any Zone and cannot have any Lands placed on it.
Once placed on a Player Board, Lands can never be voluntarily
moved. The facing of a Land (that is, the orientation of the colored
Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 5

icons on its sides) is meaningless when claiming and placing

the Land on a Player Board. The facing will be changed when a
M.U.L.E. is placed to work on it, (which will be explained in section
2. Development).
In the late stages of the game there may not be enough Lands left for
everyone. In this case, it is entirely possible that some or all players
are left without a Land during Land Grant.
Second Land Grant on Turn 1
On the first Game Turn only, Land Grant is repeated. That is, on
the first Turn, once everyone has picked one Land, they also pick a
second Land in the same play order.

10 1. Expansion
TIP: When choosing the Land to claim, consider that: Land Grant Example
• Lands on the White Zone require less Food to Develop than (Tournament)
lands on the Red Zone or the Blue Zone (See 2. Development). If the previous example had been the first
• It takes less Food to Refit two M.U.L.E.s on any two adjacent Land Grant in a Tournament, Packer
Lands, regardless of their Zones. (See 2. Development.) would not have had the River and the
M.U.L.E. from the set-up. In all other
• In a Tournament, having Adjacent Lands that produce the
respects, the Land Grant process would
same type of Good increases production. (See 4. Production.)
have been the same.

Land Auctions (Tournament only)

After all Land Grants, starting from the Rank 1 Colonist, any Land Auction Example
player(s) may play one Land for Sale! card if they still have one. (Tournament)
After Land Grant,
Once played, the Land for Sale! card is discarded. Mechtron (as the Highest
The Colonist playing the card places the Auction Tracker on any Ranking Colonist) must
unclaimed Land on Planet Irata and opens bidding for it. The decide first whether he
opening bid must be exactly $8. After the opening bid (and each plays a Land for Sale! -card.
He decides to do so, selects a Land from
subsequent bid) each Colonist can, in clockwise order, either raise the Blue Zone of Planet Irata and places
the bid by exactly $2 or Withdraw. Withdrawn players are not the Auction Tracker on it. Mechtron’s
able to make further bids in the same Auction. Bidding continues opening bid must be exactly $8.
until the highest bidder claims the Land. Bidding continues clockwise, with each
The Colonist who wins the Land Auction pays his bid (to the player either raising the bid by exactly $2
neutral money stacks) and places the auctioned Land on his or Withdrawing. In the end, Mechtron is
the highest remaining bidder and must
Player Board, following the placement rules described under pay what he bid: $22. Mechtron picks the
Land Grant. Land and places it on any square on the
Blue Zone of his Player Board.
After the Land Auction is complete, any
other player could also decide to play one
Land for Sale! -card, or save it for later.

Expansion 1. 11
Development Example 1: 2. DEVELOPMENT
Action Rounds In the Development Phase, Colonists can Buy, Re-fit and Move
This example illustrates an entire
Development Phase with three Colonists. M.U.L.E.s to manage their production, Assay Lands to discover Crystite,
There are 10 M.U.L.E.s in The Store in and either Hunt the Wampus or Gamble at the Pub to earn Money. At
the beginning of the Development Phase, the beginning of the Phase, before any player has taken any Actions,
which is more than half of its maximum The Store starts producing M.U.L.E.s (see page 14). In addition, eligible
stock. Therefore, the Highest Ranking Players may spend a Package from the Home World!. If multiple players
Colonist (Gollumer) acts first. spend this card, its precondition (no other player having a smaller stock)
Action Round 1 is checked only once, before any of the cards takes effect.
Gollumer (Rank 1) Assays 2 Lands. He
looks at the Secret Side of one of his own Action Rounds and Actions
Lands first, then the Secret Side of a Land There can be up to three (3) Action Rounds in a Development
on Planet Irata. This costs him 1 Food. Phase, each with up to two (2) Actions per Player.
As his second Action he Buys a M.U.L.E.
in the White Zone, costing him 1 Food Colonists take turns to perform Action Rounds, starting with the
and $7 for the M.U.L.E. Gollumer sets the Rank 1 Colonist and ending with the Lowest Ranking Colonist.
M.U.L.E. to produce Food, so he rotates However, if The Store has six (6) or fewer M.U.L.E.s in its Corral
its icons to point up. before the first Action Round, this order is reversed.
Mechtron (Rank 2) decides to Hunt the Before taking an Action, the Player must first pay its Food Cost by
Wampus, costing 1 Food. Mechtron
draws an Event Card, sees the Wampus
moving a corresponding number of Food units from their Food Stock
on the top-right corner and collects $10. to their “Food Usage” box. No more than two (2) Food can be used by a
Mechtron declares that he will take no Player in one Action Round. Players without Food must Pass.
other Action on this Action Round.
In one Action Round, each Player can do one of the following:
Packer (Rank 3) decides to Buy a M.U.L.E.
in the Blue Zone. This Action costs her 2 • Take 1 or 2 Actions that cost 1 Food each
Food. She picks a M.U.L.E. counter from • Take 1 Action that costs 2 Food
a M.U.L.E. Pen in The Store, pays $7 and • Pass, costing no Food and ending his Development Phase
places it on her empty Land on the Blue
Zone. Packer rotates the Land so that its Within these constraints, Colonists can take any combination of
icons point up to indicate Smithore Actions described below in one Action Round, in any order.
production.
The Development Phase ends when all Colonists have either
Action Round 2 Passed, Gambled at the Pub or completed three (3) Action Rounds.
Gollumer Refits 2 M.U.L.E.s on Adjacent
Lands, costing 2 Food. He changes one
M.U.L.E. on a Plains tile to produce Food Buy a in the White Zone 3. Spoilage:
3. Spoilage:
>12 >12

instead of Energy, rotating the tile so Planet Irata Start by paying the current Dollar price of a M.U.L.E. to
that its icons point up. He also Refits corral
The Store, (The Store sells M.U.L.E.s at the same Price as
The Board Game

another M.U.L.E on an adjacent Land Price Track 5.

(currently producing Energy) to produce Smithore). After paying both the Food cost of the Action Smithore
+1 for each empty
-1 per in
Crys
5. See l
Produc

Crystite, turning the (?) symbol to point and the Dollar cost of the M.U.L.E., take a M.U.L.E. 2.
2. play order if
All
No
so

up. In the next Production Phase this tile counter from The Store and place it on one of your empty shipped
and im
rem
will be flipped over to its Secret Side, (but Lands in the White Zone.
not before).
Rotate the Land where you just placed the M.U.L.E. so
Mechtron has Food left but decides to
save it for the future and Passes.
that the icons representing the type of Good you want to
produce are facing up, towards the top of your Player3. Board. 3.
Packer does not have any Food left in her Spoilage: Spoilage:

M.U.L.E.s can only be installed to work on Lands, one >12 >12

Stock, so she must also Pass. 5. +1 per in each Colonist’s 5. +1 per in each Co

M.U.L.E. per tile (Players cannot “store” them in their Stocks).stock below
-1 per in
stock below their num
-1 per in

Action Round 3
Gollumer Gambles at the Pub and takes $5. • M.U.L.E.s have the same Dollar Price as Smithore.
Smithore Crys

Since everyone has either Passed or • Colonists cannot produce

6.
their own M.U.L.E.s.
Market
Sequence

Gambled at the Pub, the Development

Phase is over. Regardless of these criteria,
Mule_Gameboard_2015-08-10.indd 1

Refit a in the White Zone

Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 5

Development Phase would have ended

after Action Round 3. Refitting a M.U.L.E. means changing the Good that an
existing M.U.L.E.s is producing. It costs no Dollars to
Refit a M.U.L.E. Simply rotate the Land so that the icons
representing the type of Good you now want to produce
are pointing up.
12 2. Development
 3. Spoilage:
3. Usage: 3. Usage:

Buy a in the Red/Blue Zone

>12 2.
Round 1
Food Usage
Round 2 Round 3 Development= Example 2:
This is the same Action as “Buy a M.U.L.E. in the White Zone”,
Spoilage:
Food Cost
Spoilage:
3. 3. This example3. illustrates how Gollumer
Usage: 3. Usage:

except for the higher Food Cost on the two outer Zones.
Spoilage: Spoilage:

paid his>12
Food costs during the previous
>12 >12 2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =
>12
Development Example 1 by moving Food
Spoilage: Spoilage:

hore Refit a in theCrystite

Red/Blue Zone Food to his Food Energy
Usage -box: >12 >12

Smithore Crystite Food Energy

This is the same Action as “Refit a M.U.L.E. in the White Zone”, 2. Food Usage 2. Food Usage

except for the higher Food Cost on the two outer Zones. Round 1 Round 2 Round 3
Round 1 Round 2 Round

Refit on Two Adjacent Lands 1 3

This is the same Action as “Refit a M.U.L.E. 3. 3. 3. Usage: 3. Usage:

2 3 4
Spoilage: Spoilage:

in the White Zone”, except for the higher

>12 >12 2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =

Spoilage: Spoilage:

Food Cost and the fact that you can Refit any >12 >12

two (2) of your existing M.U.L.E.s that are Smithore Crystite Food Energy
Adjacent to each other, to produce any Goods Action Round 1 2. Food Usage
Packer

(same or different), regardless of their Zones. 1. Buy a in the White Zone

Round 1 Round 2 Round

...from the Silicon system.

Packers love food and make

2. Assay Any Two Lands

excellent farmers when they
don’t gobble their crop!

Move a to Any Other Land

Action Round 2
Move any one of your existing M.U.L.E.s to Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 5 09-Jun-15

3. Refit on Two
one of your empty Lands. When you take this Adjacent Lands
Action, you can also choose the type of Good Spheroid
the M.U.L.E. will produce in its new Land. Action Round 3
The Food Cost of this Action is not affected 4. Gamble at the
...from the Rolldoe Pub
system. Packer
Spheroids are well-rounded
by Zones. pioneers who hate square ...from the Silicon system.
corners and straight lines! Packers love food and make

Development Example 3: excellent farmers when they

don’t gobble their crop!

Assay Any Two Lands

Public Side Secret Side
Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 5 09-Jun-15

1 09-Jun-15 12:45:20
Assay Any Two Lands
Privately inspect the Secret Sides of any two Lands, one by one, on
any Player Board or on Planet Irata. You can Assay one Land before
deciding which Land you will Assay next. Put each Land back to
the square you took it from, with its Public Side up. You must try to
remember what you saw: that is, you are not permitted to look at the
Secret Sides of these Lands afterwards without taking another “Assay
2 Lands” Action. Zones have no effect on the Food cost of this Action.

Hunt the Wampus: gain $10 if successful

You try to catch the Mountain Wampus. Draw one Lucky Wampus

Event Card and look at the icon on the top right corner of
the card. If you see a symbol of the Wampus, you catch
him. The Wampus gives you the contents of his treasure
chest to go free: take $10!
However, seeing a “No Wampus” symbol instead, means No Wampus

he got away and you get no treasure. All other effects of

the Event Card are ignored and the card is discarded. If you
catch the Wampus, you cannot hunt him again this turn.

Gamble at the Pub: gain $5, end Lucky

Phase Event
You take your time gambling in the colony pub - and
Your M.U.L.E. wonwin! Take
the colony
tap-dancing contest!
$5. This is also your last Action and ends your Development
Phase. (Note that Passing also ends your Development, but unlike
“Gambling” it costs no Food and you do not get to take $5.)
Effect to target Colonist with
Lucky Event
1-4 Lands: +$5
5+ Lands:
Your +$10
off-world investments in
artificial dumbness finally paid
off. You collected dividends!
Development 2. 13
 M.U.L.E. Production in The Store
Development Example 4: If there are any completely or partially empty pens in the M.U.L.E.
M.U.L.E. Production in The Store Corral of The Store at any time during the Development Phase,
The picture below illustrates what
happened in the Smithore trade post of
starting already before the play order for Action Rounds is
The Store during DevelopmentThe Example
Board Game
determined, The Store immediately uses whatever Smithore it has to
1. At the beginning of the Development build new M.U.L.E.s until all its M.U.L.E. pens are full or The Store
Phase, The Store had 10 M.U.L.E.s and 5 runs out
Price of Smithore.
Track
units of Smithore in stock. 5.
The Store produces M.U.L.E.s by flipping+1 for each empty
A. Before any Actions were taken, The over Smithore counters in its stock onto
-1 per in
Store immediately used two Smithore
to manufacture two M.U.L.E.s to fill their M.U.L.E. side and moving them to 2. play orde

its empty pens in Corral. fill any empty pens in the Corral. Each 2.
B. During the Action Rounds, The Store
M.U.L.E. pen can house two M.U.L.E.s and
made two new M.U.L.E.s to replace must do so if possible. One Smithore unit
the ones it sold to Gollumer and converts to one M.U.L.E. M.U.L.E.s can
Packer. never be converted back to Smithore.
C. Since all M.U.L.E. pens were full at the When buying M.U.L.E.s, take them first from the bottom half of the
end of Development, the remaining Corral. Once that is empty, start taking M.U.L.E.s from the top half
one Smithore was left in The Store.
of the Corral.
Ranking

corral
C
2. 8.
5. +1 for each empty 5. Starts if Gives
See last drawn > 6 in Lucky Event
-1 per in Production Card
B A 5. 5
2. play order if ≤6 No stocks +1 per in each Colonist’s
2. All sold to are
stock below
shipped off planet
and immediately
removed -1 per in

6.
Market
Sequence

5. +1 per in each Colonist’s 5. +1 per in each Colonist’s

stock below stock below their number of
-1 per in -1 per in 1.
Starts
Land Grant
6.
2. Priority to
buy from
Starts if
≤ 6 in

10-Aug-15 14:05:27

14 2. Development
 3. USAGE AND SPOILAGE Usage and Spoilage Example
In the Usage and Spoilage Phase, each Colonist removes the Food Starting point
they used in their previous Development Phase and the Energy that Leggite has 2 Food in her Food Usage box
will be needed to power their M.U.L.E.s in the coming Production and 15 Smithore, 7 Crystite, 1 Food and 9
Energy, in her Stocks.
Phase. After Usage, any Goods with excess Stocks are subject to 3. 3. 3. 3.

Spoilage.
Spoilage: Spoilage: Usage: Usage:
>12 >12 2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =

Spoilage: Spoilage:

>12 >12

Smithore Crystite Food Energy

TIP: Colonists conduct their Usage and Spoilage simultaneously.

2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3

However, you may initially want to do it one player at a time

until everyone has learned how to do it correctly on their own.

Usage Leggite

Food Usage equals the Food you played into your “Food Usage” ...from the Afcany plains.
Leggites have their feet on
the ground, heads in the

box during the Development Phase. Remove the contents of this

clouds and legs everywhere!

box now.
Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 4 09-Jun-15 12:45:49

Usage
Energy Usage equals your number of M.U.L.E.s producing any Food Usage: Leggite’s Food Usage
Good other than Energy. Remove this number of Energy units from equals the 2 Food she has in her Food
Usage box.
your stock now.
Energy Usage: Leggite has 6
TIP: Some players find it helpful to place the consumed Energy M.U.L.E.s, 2 of which are producing
units on top of their energy-using M.U.L.E.s before removing them. Energy. Therefore, her Energy Usage is 4.
3. Spoilage:
3. Spoilage:
3. Usage: 3. Usage:
>12 >12 2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 =

If you have a Shortage of Energy (that is,

Spoilage: Spoilage:

>12 >12

Smithore Crystite Food Energy

you do not have enough Energy to pay for 2.

Round 1
Food Usage
Round 2 Round 3

Energy Usage), you must flip over a number

of M.U.L.E.s equal to your Shortage. You may
choose which M.U.L.E.s you flip, except those producing Energy.
M.U.L.E.s that have been flipped produce nothing in the next Leggite

Production Phase, nor do they contribute to Economies of Scale in ...from the Afcany plains.
Leggites have their feet on

Production (Tournament rules only). You must consume Energy if

the ground, heads in the
clouds and legs everywhere!

Energy is available. You cannot choose to save it.

Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 4 09-Jun-15 12:45:49

Spoilage
Food Spoilage: Leggite has 1 Food
M.U.L.E.s producing Energy do not use Energy. remaining in the her Stock: not enough to
cause Spoilage.
Spoilage Energy Spoilage: Of the 5 Energy
After Usage, for every 2 Food remaining in your Stocks, 1 Food remaining in Leggite’s Stock, 1 is Spoiled.
is spoiled and removed. Fractions are rounded down (for example, if Overstock Spoilage:
you have 5 Food in your Stock after Usage, 2 of them are spoiled). Finally, Leggite’s 3 Smithore that are in
After Usage, for every 4 Energy remaining in your Stocks, 1 excess of 12 units are Spoiled.
Energy is spoiled and removed. Fractions are rounded down (for 3. Spoilage:
>12
3. Spoilage:
>12
3. Usage:
2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3
3. Usage:

example, if you have 3 Energy in your Stock after Usage, none are
Spoilage: Spoilage:

>12 >12

Smithore Crystite Food Energy

spoiled). 2.
Round 1
Food Usage
Round 2 Round 3

Overstock Spoilage: Finally, for each of your Stocks,

any units exceeding 12 are spoiled and removed. This applies to all
Goods (Smithore, Crystite, Food, and Energy).
Leggite

• Always remove any Used and Spoiled units to the neutral ...from the Afcany plains.
Leggites have their feet on
the ground, heads in the

counter piles near the Board - never put them into The Store.
clouds and legs everywhere!

Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 4 09-Jun-15 12:45:49

• Goods in The Store are never spoiled. After Usage and Spoilage, Leggite has 12
Smithore, 7 Crystite, 1 Food and 4 Energy
in her Stocks.

Usage and Spoilage 3. 15

Production Example 1: 4. PRODUCTION
Base Production In the Production Phase, each Colonist produces Goods on Lands
The Production Card Acid Rain Storm!
has been drawn, which modifies Food where they have M.U.L.E.s installed, provided they were not flipped
Production Values by +2 and Energy over due to a shortage of Energy or due to a Production Card effect
Production Values by -2. (explained below).

TIP: Colonists conduct Production simultaneously. However, you

3. Spoilage:
>12
3. Spoilage:
>12
3. Usage:
2. Food Usage
3. Usage:

=
may initially want to do it one player at a time until everyone
has learned how to do it correctly on their own.
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3

Spoilage: Spoilage:

>12 >12

Smithore Crystite Food Energy

2. Food Usage

Draw a Production Card

Round 1 Round 2 Round 3

Start the Production Phase by drawing one Production Card for the
Acid Rain Storm
+2 to
! whole Colony, (not one per player). Read its effects aloud and apply
them for this Game Turn only. Some Production Cards modify the
Production Value
Lands. s of all

–2 to Production Value
Lands. s of all

Production Values of all Lands. These modifiers cannot drop the

Leggite
10
Mule_Production_201 ...from the Afcany plains.
5-05-22.indd
Leggites have their feet on

Production Value of a Land below zero (0).

8
08-Jun-15
the ground, heads in the 09:58:48
clouds and legs everywhere!

Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 4 09-Jun-15 12:45:49

Smithore Base Production is 0. Count Base Production

No M.U.L.E. is producing Smithore. Each Colonist counts their Base Production for each Good by adding
Crystite Base Production is 5. Leggite up the modified Production Values of their Lands producing that
is producing Crystite on four plots with Good (and equipped with M.U.L.E.s that have not been flipped over).
Production Values 1+0+1+3=5.
Food Base Production is 5. The
Lands where Crystite was produced for the first
Production Value of River is 3, modified time (and that still have a M.U.L.E. installed and
by a +2 Production Card effect. Leggite’s not flipped over after applying the Production
second Food-producing M.U.L.E. has Card effect) are now permanently turned over to
been flipped over and produces nothing. show their Secret Side.
Energy Base Production is 2. The After counting your production, take the Goods you just produced
Production Values of the two Energy-
producing lands are each modified by a -2
from the neutral stacks near the Game Board and put them to their
Production Card effect. Hence, the two corresponding Stocks on your Player Board. If you had any M.U.L.E.s
Lands produce 1+1=2 Energy. flipped over due to Energy Shortage, flip them back up after taking
your production.
Production Example 2:
Economies of Scale Add Economies of Scale (Tournament only)
In Tournament, Economies of Scale After counting Base Production, add Economies of Scale bonus to
would be added to Base Production. your production where applicable, as follows: each Path between
two Adjacent Lands that have M.U.L.E.s producing the same
Good (and are not flipped over) provides one additional Good
3. Spoilage:
>12
3. Spoilage:
>12
3. Usage:
2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3
3. Usage:

=
of the same kind. Economies of Scale are unaffected by Zones,
Spoilage:

>12
Spoilage:

>12
Production Values or Production Value modifiers, even if one or
both of the connected Lands have zero Production Value for the
Smithore Crystite Food Energy
2. Food Usage
Round 1 Round 2 Round 3

Good being produced.

Economies of Scale gives +1 to production per Path
between two Adjacent Lands producing the same Good,
Acid Rain Storm
!
+2 to Production Value
Lands. s of all

(not +1 per Land.)

–2 to Production Value
Lands. s of all

Leggite
10
Mule_Production_201 ...from the Afcany plains.
5-05-22.indd
Leggites
8 have their feet on
08-Jun-15
the ground, heads in the 09:58:48
clouds and legs everywhere!

When “The Ship is Back!” Production Card is drawn, it signals

Mule_playerboards_2015-06-08.indd 4 09-Jun-15 12:45:49

Economies of Scale bonus for

Crystite is 4: there are four Paths between that the Game will end in the Ranking Phase of this Game
the Lands producing Crystite. Turn. See section “Game End and Winning”.
Economies of Scale bonus for Food is 0:
The Path does not provide any Bonus
because one of the M.U.L.E.s is flipped over.
Economies of Scale bonus for Energy
is 1: there is one Path between two
adjacent Lands producing Energy.

16 4. Production
 5. PRICING Pricing Example
On the left side of The Store is the Price Track. It shows the possible The illustration below shows the situation
in The Store at the beginning of Pricing
Price range and the current Price of each Good in The Store. During Phase.
set-up, one counter was placed on the bottom of each lane of the
Price Track to mark the starting Prices. Every step of the Price Track Planet Irata

The Board Game corral

Ra

has two Prices associated with it: Price Track 5. +1 for each empty
-1 per in
5. See last drawn
Production Card
2.
Starts if
> 6 in

The higher of the two Prices (on the left of the Price Track) is
≤6 No stocks
2. sold to are
shipped off planet
and immediately

The Store’s Sell Price. The Store sells Goods and M.U.L.E.s to
removed

Colonists at this Price.

The lower of the two Prices (on the right of the Price Track) is 5. +1 per in each Colonist’s 5. +1 per in each Colonist’s

The Store’s Buy Price. The Store buys Goods from Colonists
stock below stock below their number of
-1 per in -1 per in 1.
Starts
Land Grant

at this Price. 6.
2.
Starts if
≤ 6 in

In the Pricing Phase (and only in the Pricing Phase), The Store
Market
Sequence

Mule_Gameboard_2015-08-10.indd 1

checks how many steps the Price of each Good changes on the Price Smithore Pricing
Track, based on the following Pricing Rules. Because there are 3 completely empty
Summaries of these Pricing Rules are also printed on the trade M.U.L.E. pens in The Store, the Price of
posts of The Store for easy reference during play. Smithore increases by +3 steps from $8/6
to $11/9. The partially empty pen does not
Smithore and M.U.L.E. Prices increase by one step for every affect pricing.
completely empty M.U.L.E. pen in The Store. Each M.U.L.E. pen can
house two M.U.L.E.s and must do so if possible. A partially empty Crystite Pricing
Crystite Price for this Turn is taken from
M.U.L.E. pen does not affect pricing. The Prices decrease by one step the latest Production Card, which reads
for each surplus Smithore unit in The Store, (which is possible only if “4” on its bottom right corner. The new
all the M.U.L.E. pens are full). Buy Price of Crystite is therefore $4.
Crystite Price varies randomly. Look at the bottom right corner of Food Pricing
the most recently drawn Production Card to see the The Store’s Buy Players have 1, 2, 3 and 7 units in their
Price for Crystite on this Turn. If the Pirate Ship! Production Card stocks. The total number of Food units
was drawn, the Price remains unchanged. that any Colonist’s Stock is below 4 is
therefore 6 (3+2+1=6), (the fact that some
Food Price increases by one step for each unit of Food that any players may have more than 4 units in
Colonist’s Food Stock is below four (4). Shortages of all Colonists are their Stocks has no impact to Pricing).
added together. It decreases by one step for each unit of Food in The Also, The Store has 1 unit in stock, which
Store. Add these effects together to calculate the net change in Price. causes a -1 modifier to the Price. The net
change in the Price of Food is 6 – 1 = +5
Energy Price increases by one step for each unit of Energy that any steps. Since the Price Track for Food only
Colonist’s Energy Stock is below their number of M.U.L.E.s (regardless has two steps remaining above its current
of what the M.U.L.E.s produce). Shortages of all Colonists are added Price, the Price of Food increases +2 steps
together. It decreases by one step for every unit of Energy in the Store. to $9/7 (the maximum Price of Food in
The Store).
Add these effects together to calculate the net change in Price.
Energy Pricing
Food and Energy can have both positive and negative All players have more Energy in their
modifiers affecting their Pricing simultaneously. Stocks than they have M.U.L.E.s laboring
Deduct all the (-1) modifiers from all the (+1) modifiers affecting on their Lands, which means there are
the Pricing of these Goods. The result is the net total number no effects that would cause the Energy
of steps that the Price counter of that Good moves on the Price Price to increase. The Store has 5 units,
Track, either up (positive total) or down (negative total). which causes a -5 modifier to the Price of
Energy. However, since the Price Track for
Energy only has one step remaining below
the current Price, Energy price drops that
one step to $3/1 (the minimum Price of
Energy in The Store).

Pricing 5. 17
Market Example 6. MARKET
This is an example of a full Market Phase,
proceeding from Smithore Auction to
In the Market Phase, Colonists can buy or sell Goods (but not
Energy Auction. M.U.L.E.s) with other Colonists and with The Store.
Smithore Auction The Four Auctions
Leggite announces that she wishes to sell The Market Phase is split into four Auctions that are always
3 Smithore to the Store at its current Buy
Price ($3). However, Packer offers to buy conducted in the same order: Smithore, Crystite, Food, and Energy.
2 of those units for $7 total and Leggite You may move the Auction Tracker on the area below the Price Track
agrees. After trading with Packer, Leggite to show which Good is currently being auctioned.
decides she does not want to sell her third
unit to The Store, after all. Since no-one Buying or Selling
else wants to buy or sell Smithore, the Colonists may trade the Good being Auctioned with each other
Smithore Auction is declared closed. and with The Store. They can freely choose who they trade with,
Crystite Auction regardless of Prices offered. Trading is always voluntary. Buying and
No-one has any Crystite in their Stocks, selling happens simultaneously. Players also act simultaneously.
(the Store never has Crystite unless a player Deals are considered complete and irrevocable once Goods have
just sold it there during the same Auction).
Since there are no buyers or sellers,
changed hands.
Crystite Auction is declared closed. During an Auction, a Colonist can either Buy or Sell the kind of
Food Auction Good currently being auctioned, but not both. By the act of buying
Spheroid sells 2 Food units to Packer or selling a Good, a Colonist declares herself as either Buyer or Seller
for $6, after which he proceeds to sell 1 of that Good for the rest of that Auction. You may place the Buyer/
Food unit to The Store at its Buy Price Seller Token (applicable side up) on top of your relevant Stock to
($5). Both Leggite and Mechtron offer to
pay $6 for it to Spheroid, but Spheroid
indicate that you have become a Buyer or Seller of that Good.
prefers to sell it to The Store: she takes The Store sells Goods to Colonists at its Sell Price (as long as it has
$5 and places 1 Food to The Store. After Goods in stock) and buys them at its Buy Price. Players may agree
this, both Leggite and Mechtron want to any Prices when trading with each other: they do not even have to be
buy the unit that Packer just sold to The
Store. Leggite has Priority to Buy from within the price range shown on the Price Track.
The Store because her Ranking is lower All Crystite sold to The Store is shipped off-planet immediately after
than Mechtron’s. Leggite pays the The the Crystite Auction and removed from The Store.
Store’s Sell price ($7) and takes the unit
from The Store. The Store has no more Priority to Buy
Food left. Spheroid offers to sell one unit Even though all trading is simultaneous, if there are any conflicts
to Mechtron for $14, which he grudgingly
accepts. No more Food trade takes place, regarding who can buy a Good from The Store first, the Lowest
so the Food Auction is closed. Ranking Player has the first Priority to Buy as many Goods as she
Energy Auction
wants before anyone else, then the next player above her in Rank,
The Store has a large stock of Energy, but and so on, in reverse Rank order. No priority order is needed for
none of the players are interested to buy selling Goods.
or sell any of it. Energy market is closed
and the whole Market Phase along with it. TIP: The following procedure can be used if no-one wants to sell
first or if someone is just stalling: during an Auction, any player
has the right to start a countdown from 10 to 0, taking roughly one
second per number. If no deals are made during this countdown,
that Auction is over. If any deal is made during this time, the
countdown is interrupted but can be restarted from 10 if needed.

One Colonist can either Buy or Sell during an Auction (Market

for one type of Good), but not both.

When selling to The Store, place the sold Goods into the
relevant trade posts in The Store. Likewise, when buying from
The Store, take the Goods you bought from these trade posts.

18 6. Market
 7. RANKING Ranking Ranking Example
After the first game turn,
In the Ranking Phase, all players count their Galactic Dollars and
The Board Game corral

Price Track
2. players reach the Ranking
8.
announce their wealth. The Ranking Tokens
5.
are then rearranged
-1 per in
5.
+1 for each empty
on See last drawn
Production Card
Starts if
> 6 in
Gives

Phase and everyone counts

Lucky Event

the Ranking Track to reflect the new order 2.of wealth: the wealthiest 2. play order if ≤6
All
No stocks
sold to are their Money: Packer has $30,
player becomes the new Rank 1 Colonist and the poorest player Mechtron has $25, Spheroid has
shipped off planet
and immediately
removed

becomes the Lowest Ranking Colonist. If the Colonists’ wealths $25 and Leggite has $8.
are tied, the Colonist whose Rank was higher on the previous Turn Packer becomes the Rank 1
remains higher. Colonist. Spheroid remains at
Rank 2 because he was higher
If The Ship is Back! Production Card5. was drawn in5. the previous
+1 per in each Colonist’s +1 per in each Colonist’s
than Mechtron in previous
Production Phase, the game ends now and the Highest
stock below
-1 per in
stock below their number of
-1 per in 1.
Ranking. Mechtron becomes
Ranking Player wins (see Game End and Winning below). Starts
Land Grant Rank 3 and Leggite becomes
6.
2.
Starts if
Rank 4, the Lowest Ranking
Priority to
buy from

6.
≤ 6 in
Colonist.
PERSONAL EVENTS
Market

8.
Sequence

10-Aug-15 14:05:27

In the Personal Events Phase, Lucky or Unlucky Events can happen Personal Events Example
to individual Colonists, either aiding or hindering their game. Lucky Event
Packer is the Highest Ranking Colonist
Lucky Event (Rank 1). She therefore begins the Personal
The Rank 1 Colonist starts the Personal Events Phase by drawing Events Phase by drawing a Lucky Event Card:
one Lucky Event card. She looks at the card and gives it to another Packer can choose
Player of her choice but he cannot receive it herself. The target the target of the
player reads the card aloud and follows its instructions. Any Money Event (but not
or Goods gained through the Lucky Event are taken from the neutral herself). Packer
decides to target
stacks, not from The Store or any Player. Mechtron,
Some Event Cards have an effect that scales based on the number of making a big Lucky Event

Lands the target player has on their Player Board: a small or no effect deal about her Your M.U.L.E. won the colony
tap-dancing contest!

with 1-4 lands and a larger effect with 5+ lands. generosity.

Mechtron has
Effect to target Colonist with

Unlucky Event fewer than 5 lands 1-4 Lands: +$5

5+ Lands: +$10
and therefore
The player who received the Lucky Event card then draws an receives $5 from
Unlucky Event card and gives it to another player of his choice. The the bank. Mule_Lucky_2015-08-10.indd 1 10-Aug-15 16:24:59

target of the Unlucky Event card reads the card aloud and follows its
instructions. Any Money or Goods lost through the Unlucky Event Unlucky Event
Since Mechtron was the target of the
are paid to the neutral stacks, not to The Store or any Player. Lucky Event, he gets to draw and target
After both Event Cards have been played, put them face up into their the Unlucky Event Card:
separate discard piles. If either one of the Event Card decks becomes This Unlucky
exhausted, shuffle the discard pile of the exhausted deck to re-create it. Event only hurts
Colonists who
• Event Cards must always be given to another Colonist. have developed
mining
• Players cannot ask for any favors when playing Event Cards. M.U.L.E.s. There
are two other Unlucky Event

TIP: Despite being called Lucky and Unlucky, the distribution players who have Your mining M.U.L.E.s have
deteriorated from heavy use and

of Personal Events is actually not driven by luck under default built one mining cost $5 each to repair!

rules, but by Players’ Ranking and their judgment of other M.U.L.E. at this
early stage of the
Effect to target Colonist

Players’ relative strength. Together with the Ranking system, -$5 per your Land in
production
and

game. Mechtron
Personal Events serve to keep the game balanced. However: decides to give
• If your group prefers Players not doing the targeting, you may this card to Leggite because out of these Mule_UnLucky_2014-10-14-ajettu.indd 3 04-Jun-15 11:03:51

try the more luck-based Alternative Personal Event System two players, Mechtron slyly thinks that
described under Optional Rules instead. losing $5 would hurt Leggite more. He
• If your group prefers to skip Personal Events Phase altogether, also hopes he doesn’t need to ask Leggite
for a favor any time soon...
you may also opt to do so.

Ranking 7. Personal Events 8. 19

Colony Success Table
(7-turn Tournament)
GAME END AND WINNING
Colony Colony Once a The Ship is Back! Production Card has been drawn, the game
Total $: Total $: Your Retirement will end in the next Ranking Phase. Conduct the Production and
4 3 Pricing Phases normally. In the Market Phase of the Final Turn,
Colonists Colonists
Colonists sell all their Goods to The Store at its Buy Prices.
Overall, the Colony
delighted the The Colonist with the largest amount of Money in the last
1800 or 1350 or
Federation with Ranking is declared the First Founder and wins the Game!
your exceptional
more more
achievement. Your
retirement will be Colony Success and Retirement (Tournament only)
luxurious! Beating other Colonists is not enough to guarantee you a
comfortable life in the galactic frontier. Your retirement also
Overall, the depends on the success of your Colony as a whole.
Colony succeeded... To see what your future life and retirement in Irata amount to,
1550 - 1162 -
extremely well. You
1799 1349
can now retire in
sum up the total wealth of all Colonists and compare the result
elegant estates! with the Colony Success Table (scaled for a 7-turn Tournament).

Overall, the colony

1300 -
1549
975 -
1161
succeeded. The
Federation is
pleased by your
MISCELLANEOUS
efforts. You will live
comfortably! RULES AND PRINCIPLES
Overall, the Colony The following principles are applied throughout the game, unless a
was a success. specific exception has been written elsewhere in the rules:
You have met
1050 - 787 - the minimum When the game instructs you to do something, carry it
1299 974 standards set by out to the extent possible. Ignore the rest.
the Federation, but
your life will not be Example: if a Colonist loses $10 and he only has $5, he loses the $5 he
easy! has. The rest of the effect is ignored.

Overall, the Colony If the rules do not state a specific play order, the
survived... barely. lowest-ranking Player involved decides it.
800 - 600 - You will be living in Example: During Usage and Spoilage, two Players wish to see which
1049 786 tents. Few trading M.U.L.E.s the other player flips over due to lack of Energy before
ships will come deciding the same for themselves. The lower-ranking Player decides
your way! the play order.

Overall, the Colony Fractions are rounded down

failed... The Example: Mischievous Glac-Elves - Unlucky Event
550 - 412 - Federation will no
799 599 longer send trade Player property is public
ships. You are on Example: When asked, players must tell truthfully how much Money
your own! or how many units of each Good they have.

Overall, the Colony

failed... dismally.
549 or 411 or
The Federation
less less
debtors’ prison is
your next home!

20 Game End – Miscellaneous Rules

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
General Usage and Spoilage
What if we run out of Goods counters or Money? Do I have to use Energy to power a M.U.L.E. on a
You still receive the quantities you would receive if Land that has zero Production Value?
there were enough counters. Write the excess units Yes. Your M.U.L.E.s will consume Energy whether
on a piece of paper. you want or not (except M.U.L.E.s producing
Energy).
Expansion
Do I have to pick a land in the Expansion Phase? Production
Yes. You have to pick a land if one is available and When producing Crystite for the first time on
you have an empty place in the same Zone on your a Land, do I flip it over to its Secret Side if the
Player Board. Radiation! Production Card caused me to lose or
flip over the M.U.L.E. working on it?
Are the Red Zone and the Blue Zone different No, you do not.
from each other?
Other than being located on different sides of the Do I receive the Economies of Scale bonus if
a Production Card such as Radiation! or “Pest
map, no.
Attack!” causes me to lose or turn over a M.U.L.E.
Development working on the linked Adjacent Land?
No, you do not.
Can I sell a M.U.L.E. or a Land to another player
or to the Store? Do I receive the Economies of Scale bonus if the
No, you cannot (unless you develop your own rules Adjacent Lands are different type (e.g. plains
for it...) and mountain)?
As long as the Lands have a Path connecting them
How do I permanently flip a Land to have it’s and M.U.L.E.s producing the same type of Good,
Secret Side up?
you are entitled to the bonus.
The only way to permanently turn a Land to have
its Secret Side is up is to claim the Land and set a Will the “Pest Attack!” Production Card affect the
M.U.L.E. to produce Crystite on it. player on Rank 3 if neither Rank 1 nor Rank 2
have lands that would have produced Food?
What is a good Production Value for Crystite? No, they will not. After the first Production Phase, Pest
Crystite Production Values very between 0 and 3. attack can only affect players on Rank 1 or Rank 2.
Average Crystite Production Value is 1.25, so values
of 2 and 3 are very good. Plains and all Mountains Pricing
have the same odds for finding Crystite. Do the prices of M.U.L.E.s or Goods change
immediately as the stock levels change in The
What is the difference between having zero Store?
Production Value and having no Production
Value for a Good?
No, prices only change once per turn, during
Rivers have no Production Values for Smithore the Pricing Phase, not at any other time such as
and Crystite. Therefore, no M.U.L.E. can be set to Development Phase or Market Phase.
produce those Goods on Rivers. If a Land has zero Events
production value for a Good, a M.U.L.E. can be set
If the Event Card or Production Card I picked
to produce that Good there, possibly even producing has no effect, do I still play it and does it still
something through Production Card effects or count?
Economies of Scale. Yes. All Event Cards and Production Cards must be
What are the odds for catching The Wampus? played and are considered played even if they have
There are 12 Lucky Event Cards, of which 4 show no effect on a Colonist.
The Wampus. Therefore, the odds of catching a
Game End and Winning
Wampus are 1 out of 3.
Do Lands and M.U.L.E.s have value in the last
Turn when the winner is determined?
No, unless you have agreed in advance to use the
“Land and M.U.L.E. Value in Ranking” -Optional
Rule, (see the Optional Rules section).

Questions and Answers 21

STRATEGY TIPS
• Lands acquired early in the
OPTIONAL RULES
game are much more valuable
than those acquired late because
you get to produce Goods on
VARIETY FOR EVERYONE
them longer - assuming you also These Optional Rules provide variety without changing how the
have the Money and the Food to game feels.
install M.U.L.E.s on them.
• Placing Lands in square Colonist Cards and Special Talents
formations enables you to make This Optional Rule is featured under the Tournament Set-up rules.
the best use of the Economies Special Talents enhance variety and role-playing in your games, but
of Scale bonus: you get a total be aware that some species may be more powerful than others.
+4 bonus for having four Lands
producing the same type of Good Random Land Placement
in a square formation. Set up all Lands on Planet Irata in random locations. Rivers may or
• Always try to ensure (at almost may not be randomly placed. If they are, the the requirement to place
any cost) that you have at least River tiles on river bed squares is waived. We recommend this option
two Food in your Stock after the if you want to see a more variety in what Lands get picked and
Market Phase, so that you are developed in the first few Game Turns.
able to install a M.U.L.E. on the
new Land you are going to claim Variable Number of Game Turns
next turn. Having a solid supply If you think that players should not know when exactly the game
of Food also ensures that you ends, do the following: in the set-up, take one card less when
can adjust your strategy when forming the initial Production Card deck (e.g. 5 instead of 6
something unexpected happens.
Production Cards). Instead of placing a The Ship is Back! on the
• If you cannot afford to buy a bottom of this deck, take two other, additional random Production
M.U.L.E. but have extra Food, Cards and shuffle them with one The Ship is Back! card. Place these
try Hunting the Wampus to earn
some cash. three cards on the bottom of the deck.
• When planning your More Game Turns
Development Actions, pay If you think the game is just a little bit short and you want to play
attention to what the other with bigger production, just add 1 or 2 Production Cards to the deck.
Colonists are producing
and consuming. Then try to
That is, instead of normal Production Cards and The Ship is Back!
anticipate how Prices in The card, you start the game with 7+1 or 8+1 Production Cards.
Store are going to change in the
next Pricing Phase.
Land Auctions before Land Grant
In this variant, Land for Sale! -cards must be played just before Land
• Do not Sell when Prices are low Grant. Play of Land for Sale! cards is not allowed on the first Game Turn.
and you do not need the Money.
You only get higher in Ranking. More Land Auctions
Prices could go up later: the
If you like the cash drain and expansion speed effects that Land
stocks in The Store might get
used up or even burned if Fire in Auctions bring to the game, you may agree to give one more Land
The Store! is drawn. for Sale! card to every player, especially if you play with More Game
Turns. If you run out of these cards, use counters placed on top of a
• Give Unlucky Events to players
who are winning and Lucky card to count them.
Events to players who are not. If
you receive an Unlucky Event,
Secret Bidding in Land Auctions
take it as a compliment! The Colonist playing a Land for Sale! card may decide that that instead
of following the normal, public bidding procedure, all players hide
the Money tokens they wish to bid in their hands and reveal them
simultaneously. In case of a tie, the lowest ranking tied player wins.

22 Strategy Tips – Optional Rules

FOR MORE PREDICTABILITY
These Optional reduce the effects of luck and Ranking.
Production Forecast
Draw and reveal the Production Card during the Development Phase,
at the beginning of Action Round 3. The Production Card will take
effect at the beginning of the Production Phase, as usual.
Production Not Affected By Ranking
Some Production Cards have an altered effect on Game Turn 1 (Pest
Attack! and Radiation!). For these cards, always use the ”Effect on
Game Turn 1” only, on all Game Turns. In addition, we recommend
that you use the “Land Auctions Before Land Grant” Optional Rule.
No Personal Events
Skip the Personal Events Phase. Lucky Event cards are only used for
Hunting the Wampus. Shuffle the Lucky Events deck after all the four
Wampuses have been caught.

FOR THE OLD GUARD OF IRATA

These Optional Rules will make your games resemble the original
computer game even more.
Single Action Round per Turn
There is only one Action Round in Development. A maximum of six (6)
Food can be used during each Colonist’s single Action Round.
Declaring Buyers and Sellers
Players have to declare themselves either as Buyers or Sellers before
each Auction if any Player demands it. They do this by simultaneously
showing one side of a Buyer/Seller Token. Once declared, Players
are only allowed to Buy or Sell this Good during the Auction, or do
nothing. That is, if you declared yourself a Seller you are not forced to
Sell, but you are not allowed to Buy that Good in this Auction.
Colonists Preferred over The Store in Auctions
If a player offers to Buy or Sell any Good at a price that at least matches
the price offered by The Store, other players must trade with her before
they can trade with The Store. Players can still choose which players
they trade with, or to trade with no-one at all.
Alternative Personal Event System
All Event Cards have a diagram like this in their upper left
corner. The highlighted number shows which player, based
on their Rank, receives the Event Card in a 3 or 4-player game. Draw
one Lucky Event and one Unlucky Event card and look at the top left
corner of these cards. The targeted player reads the card aloud and
follows its instructions. If you use this rule, we recommend that you
also use ”Inherent Land and M.U.L.E. Value in Ranking” in all Ranking
Phases.
Inherent Land and M.U.L.E. Value in Ranking
In addition to Money, count each Land to be worth $10 and each
M.U.L.E. to be worth $5 in Ranking. Either agree to count these values
in all Ranking Phases, or only in the Game End.

Optional Rules 23
 Set-up Sequence of Play (Expanded)

Beginner Game 1. Expansion - Order: Low to High

Item 3P 4P Each Land Grant: Claim one Land. Repeat on Turn 1
G-board G-board Player
After all Players are done with Land Grant (Tournament)
River – 1 • Land Auctions: You may play one Land for Sale! -card.
• Order of Land for Sale! -card play: Highest Rank to Lowest
Plains 18 –
2. Development - Order: High to Low. if ≤6
Low Mountain 6 –
Before Actions: may play Package from The Home World!
Play up to three (3) Action Rounds
High Mountain 6 – In each Action Round, do one of the following:
• Take 1 or 2 Actions that cost each
M.U.L.E.s 12 1 • Take 1 Action that costs
• Pass at no cost, ending your Phase
Smithore 4 8 – Buy/Refit a in the White Zone

Food Buy/Refit a in the Red/Blue Zone

6 8 4
Refit on Two Adjacent Lands
Energy 6 8 3 Move a to Any Other Land

Money – $30 Assay Any Two Lands

Package from Home World! Card – 1 Hunt the Wampus: gain $10 if successful
Buyer/ Seller Token – 1
Gamble at the Pub: gain $5, end your Phase
Price Track: Place one and counter on the
bottom of their respective columns on the Price Track.
3. Usage and Spoilage - Order: Simultaneous
Production Card Deck: Deal one (1) random The Ship
is Back! card as the bottom card of the deck, face down.
Remove the other three from play. Deal five (5) random Usage: Remove all in your Food Usage box
other Production Cards on top of the The Ship is Back! Usage: Remove for each producing or
card, face down. Remove the rest from play. Spoilage: Remove for each remaining
Event Card Decks: Shuffle all Lucky Event cards into one Spoilage: Remove for each remaining
deck and all Unlucky Event cards into another deck. Ovestock Spoilage: Remove all Stocks > 12

Tournament Game 4. Production - Order: Simultaneous

Item 3P 4P Each Draw a Production Card and apply its effects
G-board G-board Player
Count Base Production of Goods:
River 3 4 –
Add Economies of Scale (Tournament)
Plains 18 –
Low Mountain 6 –
5. Pricing - Order: Simultaneous
High Mountain 6 –
M.U.L.E.s 12 – Adjust Price Track: Move price counters
Smithore 4 8 –
6. Market - Order: Simultaneous
Food 5 6 4
Energy 5 6 2 Conduct Auctions for Goods: Auction order
Money – $30 In all Auctions, lower-ranking Colonists have the priority to
Package from Home World! Card – 1 buy from The Store before other, higher-ranking Colonists
Land for Sale! Card – 1 7. Ranking - Order: Simultaneous
Buyer/ Seller Token – 1
Price Track: Same as Beginner Game. Rank Colonist based on their wealth, measured by Money

Production Card Deck: Same as Beginner Game, but 8.

instead deal six (6) random other Production Cards on top Personal Events - Order: Special, see below
of the Ship is Back! card. Lucky Event: Rank 1 Colonist draws and targets
Event Card Decks: Same as Beginner Game. Unlucky Event: Target of Lucky Event draws and targets