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Five Tribes: The Djinns of Naqala box art

Base game

Five Tribes: The Djinns of Naqala

Kritiku rating

Not rated

Published
2014
Reach
Well known
Players
2–4
Play time
40–80 min
Weight
Not enough ratings yet
Ratings
0

How it plays

Score the most points by controlling tiles, collecting goods and Djinns, gathering viziers and elders, and earning coins. Bid coins for turn order, then pick up all meeples from one tile and drop them one by one along a path; resolve the final tribe and tile actions. The game ends when someone places their last camel or no legal moves remain, then all points are totaled.

Main mechanics

  • Auction & bidding
  • Set collection
  • Spatial puzzle
  • Direct conflict
  • Auction & bidding: Value is set by what players are willing to pay.
  • Set collection: Scoring comes from completing the right combinations.
  • Spatial puzzle: Fitting shapes together efficiently is the challenge.
  • Direct conflict: Players attack each other head-on.
Full publisher description

Crossing into the Land of 1001 Nights, your caravan arrives at the fabled Sultanate of Naqala. The old sultan just died and control of Naqala is up for grabs! The oracles foretold of strangers who would maneuver the Five Tribes to gain influence over the legendary city-state. Will you fulfill the prophecy? Invoke the old Djinns and move the Tribes into position at the right time, and the Sultanate may become yours! Designed by Bruno Cathala, Five Tribes builds on a long tradition of German-style games that feature wooden meeples. Here, in a unique twist on the now-standard worker placement genre, the game begins with the meeples already in place and players must cleverly maneuver them over the villages, markets, oases, and sacred places tiles that make up Naqala. How, when, and where you dis-place these Five Tribes of Assassins, Elders, Builders, Merchants, and Viziers determine your victory or failure. As befitting a Days of Wonder game, the rules are straightforward and easy to learn. But devising a winning strategy will take a more calculated approach than our standard fare. You need to carefully consider what moves can score you well and put your opponents at a disadvantage. You need to weigh many different pathways to victory, including the summoning of powerful Djinns that may help your cause as you attempt to control this legendary Sultanate.

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