So, Kashgar is one of those things we all hate - a card game in a big box! But believe, me this deserves a big box (plus, there are quite a lot of cards!) This is one of those games I played then ran away to find my own copy of. In theory, it’s simple, you only ever have a choice of three actions, but that can be a really tough decision at times - don’t let this ‘card game’ fool you!
The game includes a lot of cards and some other stuff!
- 13 Patriarch Cards (with Matriarch on the back)
- 12 Starting Cards
- 12 Special Cards
- 12 Expansion Cards
- 76 Standard Cards
- 40 Order Cards
- 20 Spice Tokens (four in each of 5 different types)
- 4 Mule Tokens
- 4 Gold Tokens
- 4 Player Boards
Shuffle each of the card stacks separately and place the decks on the table. So you should have a deck of start cards, a deck of standard cards, a deck of special cards, and a deck of order cards.
Draw four order cards and place them face-up, next to the order deck.
Give each player a player board and a token for each resource. Place them on the space marked 3 for each of your resources, this is what you will start the game with. Give each player three random starting cards and three Patriarch cards. Place a starting card behind each of the patriarch cards so you have three rows, these represent your caravans in the game. Place any leftover player components back in the box.
The starting cards have a number on the bottom right of the card, the player with the lowest numbered card will play first.
In a turn you can do one of three actions:
Caravan Action
Caravan actions are on the card with a light coloured background. Sometimes there will be a cost to pay, in which case, move your markers down the resource track. Perform the action and move the card to the back of it’s caravan. If you have taken another card that will also go at the back of the caravan, behind the one that you just used.
Parting Action
These are similar to caravan action, but they have a red background. Pay any costs shown, however, you must now remove the card from the game. Again, any cards gained through this action are placed at the back of the appropriate caravan.
Pass
If a player cannot or does not want to play an action, they may choose just to move a card to the back of its caravan. Cards marked with a ‘!’ may not be passed (matriarch, patriarch)
Orders may only be fulfilled when a specific card allows them to. You must always have the amount of mules shown on the left of the card (if any) although you do not have to pay them. Pay the goods shown on the bottom of the card, receive any bonuses shown, and place the card in your playing area so all players can see the points value in the top right corner. Refill the order cards so there are four available again.
The game end triggers when a player reaches a total of 25 or more points through a combination of caravan cards and/or orders. Play to the end of the round, whoever has the most points wins!
