Games Magazine
John J. Mccallion
November 2002
USA

This quick but challenging Knizia creation features adorable artwork by John Kovalic, whose Dork Tower cartoons have appeared in GAMES. Each of the six mines is represented by a card, indicating the group of characters that owns it: Explorers, Sheriffs, Outlaws, Prospectors, Settlers, or Townfolk. To begin, place the mines in a line in the center of the table.

The deck has five Character Cards for each mine, 15 Gold Cards valued from one to eight, and 15 Fool's Gold cards (valued zero). Shuffle the deck and deal three cards to each player, along with three Claim Tokens in his color.

Each turn, either add a Gold or Fool's Gold card before any mine (up to a maximum of five cards for each mine) or add a Character Card above its mine, and optionally invest a Claim Token on the mine. End your turn by replenishing your hand, if possible.

When all 60 cards have been played, a solitary investor in a mine earns the value of all the gold in it; several investors share the rewards. The player with the highest score after several rounds wins.

Timing your investments and knowing exactly the right moment to play your cards are decisions often fraught with surprising difficulty. Out of the Box Games has struck gold once again!

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