Dreams Come True
Who among us does not dream of gold or diamonds? Turns out you don't have to win the lottery to make those dreams come true. It is enough to get the game "Magnificence", released by the Rebel publishing house. In the game that I will tell you about, we return to the time of the Renaissance, acting as rich merchants selling precious stones. And as it should be for traders, we are fighting for maximum profit. The winner is the player with the most prestige points shown on the playing cards.
The game is designed for a maximum of four people, no younger than 8-9 years old. The approximate time of one full game is about 30-40 minutes. For me, this is a great advantage, because we do not need to be in a big company or have a lot of free time to relax and experience true magnificence.
A solid cardboard box contains an equally solid molding with clear instructions and accessories necessary for the game:
• 10 tiles with images of aristocrats;
• 90 cards of development (40 cards of the I level, 30 - II and 20 - III);
• 40 gem markers (seven black onyx, blue sapphires, green emeralds, red rubies, white diamonds and five yellow gold markers that play the role of wild cards in the game).
As soon as the cards are laid out on the table in accordance with the attached instructions, the game begins with the youngest participant. Each turn, you can take one of four actions: draw three gems of different colors, draw two gems of the same color (if there are at least four in the pile), reserve one development card and draw one gold token, or - if you have enough gems - buy a card development from those laid out on the table or one of the reserved ones. Consecutive players join the game in clockwise order. It must be remembered that when taking a development card from the table, replace it with a card from a pile of the same level. When one of them ends, leave an empty space on the table.
Our task is to collect gems and gold. Since we are starting the game without any financial background, it is worth rationally investing the acquired gems. We can use them to buy development cards that give us a permanent source of gems, and some of them also prestige points (each development card gives one type of gem that we already have on a permanent basis). After our turn is over, it's worth checking if the aristocrat "comes" to us (we must have the appropriate number of cards with gems in the color that matches what is on the card). Buying such a card gives you 3 prestige points, and since we only have four such cards in the game, there is something to fight for. When one of the players managed to score 15 prestige points, it is time for the last round. The winner is the one with the most points after the end of the last round.
In order to win, it is worth having an idea for the game, because players often go head to head. You can focus, for example, on collecting development cards, and then easily buy more expensive cards with more points, or score points from the very beginning.
If you want to know all the secrets of the Splendor game, you will definitely need it. This card game made our picnic evenings very enjoyable. I recommend playing both small and large because my family is passionate about it.
