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Goal

Score the most points from your expeditions. The game is 1 round or 3, and the player with the highest total at the end wins. Players tied for the highest total share the win. With 4 players you play in partnerships and each team scores together. With 1 player, score as many points as you can.

Cards

Use a standard deck without the Aces and Jokers: 48 cards. Each suit is one expedition.

• 2 to 10 are the numbers, worth their face value.
• J, Q, and K are that expedition’s 3 investment cards. They’re worth nothing themselves and multiply the expedition’s score.

With 4 players, add the 2, 3, and 4 of every suit from a second deck: 60 cards.

Starting hand

Deal 6 cards to each player. With 1 player, first set half the shuffled deck aside unseen, 24 cards. They’re not used in the round.

Setup

Each suit has one discard pile in the middle of the table. Each player builds their own expedition of each suit on their own side, and with 4 players partners share one side.

Play

1. Play one card, then draw one. Every turn is exactly one of each, in that order.
2. Add the card to an expedition, or discard it. A card goes only to its own suit’s expedition or discard pile. A discard goes face up on top of that suit’s pile.
3. An expedition only goes up. Each number must be higher than the highest number already in it. You can skip numbers, but a skipped card can no longer go into that expedition.
4. Investments go down first. You can put up to 3 investment cards on an expedition before its first number. Once it holds a number, it takes no more investments.
5. Draw off the deck, or the top card of any discard pile. You can’t draw the card you discarded this turn.
6. The round ends when the last card is drawn off the deck. It also ends if 8 turns in a row for every player (16 turns with 2 players, 32 with 4) each discard a card and then draw off a discard pile. Score every expedition.

Scoring

Score each of your expeditions on its own:

1. Add up its numbers and subtract 20.
2. Multiply by 1 more than the investment cards in it, so ×2, ×3, or ×4. This applies to a negative score too.
3. Add 20 if the expedition holds 6 cards or more, investment cards included. This comes after the multiplier.

An expedition with no cards in it scores 0, not −20. One that holds only investment cards scores −20 times the multiplier. Add your expeditions together for the round, and add the round to your total.

Examples

One player’s expeditions at the end of a round, each laid out in the order it was played:

• 12 points 6 + 8 + 10 = 24, and 24 − 20 = 4. Two investment cards make it ×3.
• −24 points 3 + 5 = 8, and 8 − 20 = −12. One investment card makes it ×2, a bigger loss.
• 46 points 4 + 5 + 7 + 8 + 9 = 33, and 33 − 20 = 13. One investment card makes it ×2 for 26, and 6 cards add 20 after the multiplier.

The fourth expedition was never started, so it scores 0. The round is worth 12 − 24 + 46 + 0 = 34 points.

Variants

4 players. Partners sit opposite each other and build one set of expeditions together. Either partner can add to any of the team’s expeditions. Instead of playing and drawing, you can spend your turn handing 2 cards face down to your partner, if you hold at least 6 cards. You can’t do this on two of your turns in a row.

1 player. A discarded card is out of the game, so you only ever draw off the deck. The round doesn’t end when the deck runs out. You keep playing a card each turn, drawing nothing, until your hand is empty.

Playing with your own deck

You need paper and a pencil to keep score. Write down each player’s or team’s points for every round and their new total.

How this version differs

This version is adapted from Lost Cities by Reiner Knizia to a standard deck.

• Four expeditions, from 48 cards. The published game has five expeditions and 60 cards, 75 with 4 players. Each expedition still holds 9 numbers and 3 investment cards.
• Hands are 6 cards. The published rules deal 8. With 4 players you can pass to your partner from 6 cards, where the published rules need 8.
• The 20-point bonus needs 6 cards in an expedition. The published rules pay it at 8.
• With 4 players you can’t pass on two of your turns in a row. The published rules set no limit.
• A round where nothing moves ends. After 8 turns in a row for every player that only discard and draw off a discard pile, the round is scored as it stands. The published rules have no such limit.