Kingdomino

01Discover the game

Kingdomino entrusts you with a castle and dominoes of landscapes. You choose the land that will enlarge your kingdom, but your choice also determines your place for the next round. Taking a lot rich in crowns can therefore force you to choose later on the next round.

We explain Bruno Cathala's classic Kingdomino, original notice ©2016 available at Blue Orange, with a kingdom of 5 × 5 boxes. Extensions, Origins and Queendomino are excluded. The duel in 7 × 7 is presented as a separate variant. The overall difficulty is Medium: you have to manage the space, bring the land together and decide when to sacrifice the order of choice. Two to four people play a game of about 15 to 25 minutes.

02Equipment

The box contains 48 dominoes, four square starting tiles, four castles in volume and eight King pawns, two in each of the four colours. Each domino has two landscape squares on the front and one number on the back. Some squares of land bear one or more crowns.

At two, each uses the two kings of its color. At three or four, each one uses only one. The starting tile counts as a square in the dimensions of the kingdom. The castle makes it identifiable; it does not bring up points itself and does not transform all the land into a single region.

03The goal

Build the kingdom that earns the most points. Each region continues on the same land gives its number of squares multiplied by the total number of crowns it contains. A large forest without crown is therefore worth zero; a smaller forest with several crowns can be worth a lot.

We add the different regions separately. Two pieces of distant forest do not group together for the score, even if they belong to the same player. Lots that only touch one corner do not form a single region either.

04Set up the market

Each one sets his original tile in front of him and his castle on it. Mix the 48 dominoes without looking at the landscapes. On two, hold 24 dominoes at random; on three, 36; on four, the 48. Unretained dominoes remain in the box without being consulted.

Prepare a first column of dominoes: four to two players, three to three players, four to four players. Sort them by increasing number, then turn them on the landscape side keeping this order. Draw the kings at random to determine the initial order of reservation. Each king is placed on a free domino. On two, therefore, each person reserves two dominoes with his two kings; the two choices are not necessarily consecutive.

Then prepare a second column, with the same number of dominoes and the same ranking. The first column contains the kings and represents the dominoes to be built; the second represents those that are reserved for the next column.

05Build and reserve

Order depends on kings

The king installed on the smaller domino plays first. His owner takes this domino, he adds to his kingdom, then moves this king on a domino still free from the new column. We pass to the next king of the old column, always from the smallest number to the largest.

When all have moved their king, prepare a new column and repeat. The new order comes only from the reserved numbers; one does not retain a fixed hourly meaning. At two, the same person can act twice in a row if his kings occupy two consecutive places.

Field connections

To place a domino, at least one of its cells has to touch on one side an identical terrain already present, or the starting tile. This one is a universal connection. The other sides of the domino domino do not need to match all the surrounding terrain: unlike some tiles, only one correct connection is enough.

The two cells remain attached; the domino is not cut off. It can be turned before placing it. It must not overlap any already occupied square or exceed the 5 × 5 frame of the kingdom. This frame is not materialized by a board: it is built as it goes. As soon as your kingdom reaches five wide squares, you can no longer lie down in this direction.

The castle does not have to end in the center in the basic rule. You can leave holes, but you will have to be able to fill them with entire dominoes. You do not move a domino already installed to make room for the next.

An impossible domino

If your domino can't really be placed respecting connection and dimensions, discard it. You don't get any replacement land, but you still reserve your next domino with your king. If a legal pose exists, you have to do it; you don't deliberately throw a domino because it brings little back.

At three and four players, there are twelve towers of choice-construction, normally giving twelve dominoes per person. On two, the 24 dominoes are used in six columns of four; each player always takes twelve dominoes thanks to his two kings. When the last column has been reserved, each one performs a last construction without new reservation.

Alternatives, apart from

The Grand duel with two uses the 48 dominoes and kingdoms of 7 × 7, always two kings each. Do not apply 7 × 7 to a duel of only 24 dominoes by presenting it as the normal rule.

The official optional Kingdom of the Middle and Harmony bonuses give ten points respectively for a castle in the center and five points for a complete kingdom without defeated domino. Decide to use them before the game. The basic rule of this tutorial does not add any of these bonuses automatically. Dynasty consists of adding three successive parts.

06An example of terrain and choice

Your kingdom contains an area of five boxes of forest with two crowns. You add a domino whose box is a forest without a crown and the other one a lake. The forest touches that already built: the connection is legal if the domino fits within the frame. The forest area increases to six boxes and is now worth 6 × 2 = 12 points, instead of 5 × 2 = 10.

The lake can start a separate area; it does not become a forest because it shares the same domino. Later, a lake with a crown can join it to enhance this land.

In the market, you hesitate between a small number without a crown and a large number that completes your region. The small number will allow you to choose early in the next column, but no points bonus is given for its number. The number is only an order of choice; only landscapes and crowns are used for counting.

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07Counting the Kingdom

Mentally separate the regions by type and by continuity. For each, count the boxes connected by their sides and then all the crowns of this region. Multiplies and adds the results. An area of six forests with two crowns gives twelve; three fields with one crown give three; four lakes without crown give zero. The total of these regions would be fifteen.

The holes, the starting tile and the defeated dominoes do not give any points. In total, the person with the largest area in number of boxes wins; if necessary, compare the total number of crowns. If equality persists, share the victory. Optional bonuses are added only if they were announced.

08Frequent errors

• Always take the same order of turns instead of following kings.
• Forget one of the two actions: build, then book.
• Require that all neighbouring sides have the same ground, while a correct connection is sufficient.
• Connect regions only by a corner or through the castle to count them together.
• Exceeding five boxes because a printed frame had not been fixed.
• Count crowns alone or size alone instead of multiplying both.

09Tips for starting

Look at the place available before choosing the richest domino. A good land that will not return to your kingdom is worth nothing. Try to keep several accessible sides for the large grounds.

Approximately count the winnings: adding a crown to a large area can be worth more than several squares without a crown. Also observe the needs of others to choose between an immediate good pose and a better order to the next market. At the beginning, prefers clear connections rather than a perfectly centered castle, unless the corresponding bonus is active.