As per our last post, when you are At the Gates of Loyang, you can ply your trade solo. The primary difference between a multi-player game and a solo game, particularly if you don’t use the nine lantern helpers, which we won’t to keep the game simpler, is that, during the distribution round, the courtyard is pre-populated with a 4*3 grid of 12 action cards and discards are only shuffled back into the deck after the first field is emptied. Although one variant allows you to select two cards from the courtyard, we will stick with the one card from your hand and one card from the courtyard rule to keep the game simple and consistent with the multi-player version, and also ignore the buy a “two-pack” option to not only make the gameplay simpler, but allow for easy repeat game-play.

Note that, when selecting cards in the courtyard, cards in the top row are free, cards in the second row cost 1 Cash each, and cards in the third and fourth row cost 2 Cash each.

For those of you who want a multi-media run-through of basic game play, check out the three part series by Rahdo Runs Through:

1. Gameplay Run-through
2. Extended Run-through
3. Final Thoughts

Since we think we’re so smart, and able to fly by the seat of our pants, we’re going to jump right in. We’ll buy and plant Wheat, for 3-Cash, in our 9-plot field in the set-up phase, since we obviously need lots of it by the fact that the shop stocks one more wheat than it does any other vegetable, populate the courtyard, and start the game.

Before we start, note that:
C.C. – Casual Customer
R.C. – Regular Customer
M.S. – Market Stall

Round 1:

Harvest Phase: Harvest: 1 Wheat Acquire: 5-plot Field Prosperity: 1 Vegetables Wheat Pumpkin Turnip Cabbage Beans Leaks Cash Store 2  2  2  2  2  2    Storehouse               Cart 1            7

Fields Field Planted Remains 9 plots Wheat 8 5 plots 0

Helpers Helper Ability	Market Stalls Stall Vegetable 1 Vegetable 2 Vegetable 3
Regular Customers Customer Wants Buys Left Pays	Casual Customers Customer Wants Pays

Hand:

C.C. 2 Pumpkin / Bean 9 4-Plot Field

R.C. Wheat/Leeks 5/6/7/8 Helper Merchant – buy 1 vegetable from the shop for 1 Cash if it must be delivered at least twice to regular customers this round

Courtyard:

Helper Saleswoman satisfies all R.C. or all C.C. give +2 bonus	C.C. Pumpkin/Turnip/Leeks 10	Helper Shopper 2 Cash discount on 1 veg. at Shop
C.C. Wheat/Turnip/Beans 9	R.C. Beans/Leeks 7/8/9/10	M.S. Pumpkin/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2
3-Plot Field	C.C. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Beans 10	M.S. Wheat/Pumpkin/Leeks 1/1/1
Helper Squire up to 3 cards from courtyard	Helper Ploughman re-sow a non-home field with 2+ vegetables	M.S. Turnip/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2

Card Phase:
1) Hand: Helper Merchant, because we can’t plant leeks (for R.C.), can’t afford to plant in two fields (and don’t need the 4-Plot field), and don’t have pumpkins or beans (for C.C).
2) Courtyard: Wheat/Turnip/Beans 9 for 1 Cash (leaving us with 6 Cash), since the top-row helpers don’t help us now and the C.C. doesn’t need wheat.

Action Phase
1) Buy Turnip for 5 Cash (leaving us with 1-Cash) since the C.C. requires Turnip
2) Sow Turnip in 5-plot field (as that’s what we have)
3) In the Storehouse, store 1 Wheat
4) Advance up the Path of Prosperity 0 space(s) for 0 Cash (as we only have 1 Cash)

Round 2:

Harvest Phase: Harvest: Wheat, Turnip Acquire: 6-plot Field Prosperity: 1 Vegetables Wheat Pumpkin Turnip Cabbage Beans Leaks Cash Store 2  2  1  2  2  2    Storehouse 1              Cart 1    1        1

Fields Field Planted Remains 9 plots Wheat 7 5 plots Turnip 4 6 plots 0 __ plots

Helpers Helper Ability Merchant  buy 1 veg. to be delivered twice to RC for 1 Cash	Market Stalls Stall Vegetable 1 Vegetable 2 Vegetable 3
Regular Customers Customer Wants Buys Left Pays	Casual Customers Customer Wants Pays 1  Wheat/Turnip/Beans  9

Hand:

C.C. Wheat / 2 Cabbage 9 R.C. Wheat/Pumpkin 4/5/5/6

Helper Tenant Farmer (3 Cash to choose next field from private field pile or trade an empty field for another in the private field pile) R.C. Pumpkin/Cabbage 5/6/6/7

Courtyard:

Helper Saleswoman	C.C. Pumpkin/Turnip/Leeks 10	Helper Shopper
3-Plot Field	R.C. Beans/Leeks 7/8/9/10	M.S. Pumpkin/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2
Helper Squire	C.C. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Beans 10	M.S. Wheat/Pumpkin/Leeks 1/1/1
C.C. Wheat/Cabbage/Leeks 10	Helper Ploughman	M.S. Turnip/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2

Card Phase:
1) Hand: R.C. Wheat/Pumpkin 4/5/5/6, as the helper doesn’t help us, the C.C. requires 2 Cabbage we don’t have, and the other R.C. requires 2 vegetables we don’t have
2) Courtyard: M.S. Pumpkin/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2 for 1 Cash (and we are now broke) as we need to trade for that Pumpkin to satisfy our R.C.

Action Phase
1) Trade Wheat for Pumpkin at M.S. 1
2) Deliver W/P to R.C. 1 for 4 Cash
3) Buy Pumpkin for 4 Cash
4) Sow Pumpkin in 6-Plot field
5) In the Storehouse, Store 1 Turnip
6) Advance up the Path of Prosperity 0 space(s) for 0 Cash (as we have no Cash)

Round 3:

Harvest Phase: Harvest: Wheat, Turnip, Pumpkin Acquire: 6-plot Field Prosperity: 1 Vegetables Wheat Pumpkin Turnip Cabbage Beans Leaks Cash Store 2  1  1  2  2  2    Storehouse     1          Cart 1  1  1        0

Fields Field Planted Remains 9 plots Wheat 6 5 plots Turnip 3 6 plots Pumpkin 5 6 plots 0 __ plots

Helpers Helper Ability Merchant buy 1 veg. to be delivered twice to RC for 1 Cash	Market Stalls Stall Vegetable 1 Vegetable 2 Vegetable 3 1  Beans (2) Leeks (2)
Regular Customers Customer Wants Buys Left Pays 1 Wheat/Pumpkin  3 5/5/6	Casual Customers Customer Wants Pays 1  Wheat/Turnip/Beans  9

Hand:

5-Plot Field 5-Plot Field

C.C. Turnip/Cabbage/Leaks 11 M.S. Turnip/Cabbage/Leeks 1/2/2

Courtyard:

Helper Saleswoman	C.C. Pumpkin/Turnip/Leeks 10	Helper Shopper
3-Plot Field	R.C. Beans/Leeks 7/8/9/10	M.S. Wheat/Pumpkin/Leeks 1/1/1
Helper Squire	C.C. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Beans 10	M.S. Turnip/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2
C.C. Wheat/Cabbage/Leeks 10	Helper Ploughman	4-Field

Card Phase:
1) Hand: M.S. Turnip/Cabbage/Leeks 1/2/2 (as we can’t use the fields and the C.C. requires two vegetables we do’t have)
2) Courtyard: C.C. Pumpkin/Turnip/Leeks 10 as we now produce two of the vegetables (and casual customers will wait)

Action Phase
1) Deliver Wheat/Pumpkin to R.C. for 5 Cash
2) Upgrade Storehouse for 2 Cash (leaving us with 3 Cash)
3) In the Storehouse, store 2 Turnip
4) Advance up the Path of Prosperity 1 space(s) for 1 Cash (since we’ve arbitrarily decided 1 Cash is our safety net)

Round 4:

Harvest Phase: Harvest: Wheat/Turnip/Pumpkin Acquire: 4-plot Field Prosperity: 2 Vegetables Wheat Pumpkin Turnip Cabbage Beans Leaks Cash Store 2  1  1  2  2  2    Storehouse     2          Cart 1  1  1        2

Fields Field Planted Remains 9 plots Wheat 5 5 plots Turnip 2 6 plots Pumpkin 4 6 plots 0 4 plots 0 __ plots

Helpers Helper Ability Merchant  buy 1 veg. to be delivered twice to RC for 1 Cash	Market Stalls Stall Vegetable 1 Vegetable 2 Vegetable 3 1  Beans (2) Leeks (2) 2  Turnip (1) Cabbage (2) Leeks (2)
Regular Customers Customer Wants Buys Left Pays 1 Wheat/Pumpkin 2 5/6	Casual Customers Customer Wants Pays 1 Wheat/Turnip/Beans 9  2 Pumpkin/Turnip/Leeks 10

Hand:

R.C. Turnip/Turnip 5/6/6/7 M.S. Pumpkin/Turnip/Beans 1/1/1

3-plot Field Helper Bookkeeper (restocks shop as you see fit)

Courtyard:

Helper Saleswoman	R.C. Beans/Leeks 7/8/9/10	Helper Shopper
3-Plot Field	C.C. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Beans 10	M.S. Wheat/Pumpkin/Leeks 1/1/1
Helper Squire	Helper Ploughman	M.S. Turnip/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2
C.C. Wheat/Cabbage/Leeks 10	M.S. Wheat/Beans/Leeks 1/1/2	4-Plot Field

Card Phase:
1) Hand: R.C. Turnip/Turnip 5/6/6/7 (since the helper won’t help us yet, we have unplanted fields, we already have two market stalls, and we need to serve more customers to get more Cash)
2) Courtyard: Shopper (since we need to start planting, take the shopper to get a vegetable cheaper than usual)

Action Phase
1) Deliver Wheat/Pumpkin to R.C. 1 for 5 Cash (taking us to 7 Cash)
2) Deliver Turnip/Turnip to R.C. 2 for 5 Cash (taking us to 12 Cash)
3) Use Shopper to Buy Turnip from Supply for 3 Cash (taking us back down to 9 Cash)
4) Show Turnip in 6-plot Field (since we now need lots of turnip)
5) Buy Beans from Shop for 6 Cash (to eventually appease C.C. 1 and take us to 3 Cash)
6) Sow Beans in 4-plot Field
7) In the Storehouse, Store 1 Turnip
8) Advance up the Path of Prosperity 1 space(s) for 1 Cash (since we have more than our safety net)

Round 5:

Harvest Phase: Harvest: Wheat / 2 Turnip / Pumpkin / Beans Acquire: 4-plot Field Prosperity: 3 Vegetables Wheat Pumpkin Turnip Cabbage Beans Leaks Cash Store 2  1  1  2  1  2    Storehouse     1          Cart 1  1  2    1    2

Fields Field Planted Remains 9 plots Wheat 4 5 plots Turnip 1 6 plots Pumpkin 3 6 plots Turnip 5 4 plots Beans 3 4 plots 0 __ plots

Helpers Helper Ability Merchant  buy 1 veg. to be delivered twice to RC for 1 Cash	Market Stalls Stall Vegetable 1 Vegetable 2 Vegetable 3 1  Beans (2) Leeks (2) 2  Turnip (1) Cabbage (2) Leeks (2)
Regular Customers Customer Wants Buys Left Pays 1 Wheat/Pumpkin 1 6 2 Turnip/Turnip 3 6/6/7	Casual Customers Customer Wants Pays 1 Wheat/Turnip/Beans 9  2 Pumpkin/Turnip/Leeks 10

Hand:

R.C. Pumpkin/Turnip 4/5/6/7 C.C. Pumpkin/Turnip/Cabbage 9

M.S. Pumpkin/Turnip/Cabbage 1/1/1 M.S. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Beans 1/1/1

Courtyard:

Helper Saleswoman	R.C. Beans/Leeks 7/8/9/10	M.S. Wheat/Pumpkin/Leeks 1/1/1
3-Plot Field	C.C. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Beans 10	M.S. Turnip/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2
Helper Squire	Helper Ploughman	4-Plot Field
C.C. Wheat/Cabbage/Leeks 10	M.S. Wheat/Beans/Leeks 1/1/2	M.S. Wheat/Cabbage/Beans 1/1/1

Card Phase:
1) Hand: R.C. Pumpkin/Turnip 4/5/6/7 (as we are producing both vegetables)
2) Courtyard: M.S. Wheat/Pumpkin/Leeks 1/1/1 (as that’s the best stall we can get and we still don’t produce leeks)

Action Phase
1) Deliver Wheat/Turnip/Beans to C.C. 1 for 11 Cash (as we get a +2 bonus for having more regular customers, and now we have 13 Cash)
2) Trade Turnip for Leeks at M.S. 3
3) Deliver Pumpkin/Turnip/Leeks to C.C. 2 for 12 Cash (and now we have 25 Cash)
4) Buy Turnip for 5 (as we need a lot of turnip, and now we are down to 20 Cash)
5) Sow Turnip in 4-plot Field (as that’s our only empty field)
-) Accept that R.C. 1, 2, and 3 are Unhappy (and we’ll lose Cash if we can’t satisfy them in a subsequent round)
6) In the Storehouse, Store nothing (as we have nothing)
7) Advance up the Path of Prosperity 3 space(s) for 12 Cash

Round 6:

Harvest Phase: Harvest: Wheat / Pumpkin / 3 Turnip / Beans Acquire: 3-plot Field Prosperity: 6 Vegetables Wheat Pumpkin Turnip Cabbage Beans Leaks Cash Store 2  1  0  2  1  2    Storehouse               Cart 1  1  3    1    8

Fields Field Planted Remains 9 plots Wheat 3 6 plots Pumpkin 2 6 plots Turnip 4 4 plots Beans 2 4 plots Turnip 3 3 plots 0 __ plots

Helpers Helper Ability Merchant  buy 1 veg. to be delivered twice to RC for 1 Cash	Market Stalls Stall Vegetable 1 Vegetable 2 Vegetable 3 1  Beans (2) Leeks (2) 2  Turnip (1) Cabbage (2) Leeks (2) 3  Wheat (1) Pumpkin (1)
Regular Customers Customer Wants Buys Left Pays 1 (U) Wheat / Pumpkin 1 6  2 (U) Turnip / Turnip 3 6/6/7  3 (U) Pumpkin / Turnip 4 4/5/6/7	Casual Customers Customer Wants Pays

Hand:

R.C. Wheat/Cabbage 4/5/6/7 C.C. Turnip/Cabbage/Leeks 11

M.S. Wheat/Cabbage/Leeks 1/1/1 Helper Messenger-Boy (deliver twice to any regular customer in one action phase)

Courtyard:

Helper Saleswoman	R.C. Beans/Leeks 7/8/9/10	M.S. Turnip/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2
3-Plot Field	C.C. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Beans 10	4-Plot Field
Helper Squire	Helper Ploughman	M.S. Wheat/Cabbage/Beans 1/1/1
C.C. Wheat/Cabbage/Leeks 10	M.S. Wheat/Beans/Leeks 1/1/2	Helper Market Crier refill all market stalls

Card Phase:
1) Hand: Helper Messenger-Boy as we don’t want the regular or casual customer right now, already have 3 stalls, and the messenger-boy might be useful later
2) Courtyard: Market Crier for 2, taking us down to 6 Cash, as his ability will be useful this round

Action Phase
1) Trade Beans for Pumpkin at M.S. 3
2) Deliver Wheat, Pumpkin to R.C. 1 for 6 Cash (taking us up to 12 Cash)
3) Deliver Turnip, Turnip to R.C. 2 for 6 Cash (taking us up to 18 Cash)
4) Deliver Pumpkin, Turnip to R.C. 3 for 4 Cash (taking us up to 22 Cash)
5) Use Market Crier to Refill all Market Stalls
6) Buy Leeks for 6 (and now we’re down to 16 Cash)
7) Sow Leeks in 3-plot
8) In the Storehouse, Store —
9) Advance up the Path of Prosperity 2 space(s) for 9 Cash

Round 7:

Harvest Phase: Harvest: Wheat, Pumpkin 2 Turnip, Beans, Leeks Acquire: 3-plot Field Prosperity: 8 Vegetables Wheat Pumpkin Turnip Cabbage Beans Leaks Cash Store 2  1  0  2  1  1    Storehouse               Cart 1  1  2    1  1  7

Fields Field Planted Remains 9 plots Wheat 2 6 plots Pumpkin 1 6 plots Turnip 3 4 plots Beans 1 4 plots Turnip 2 3 plots Leeks 2 3 plots __ plots

Helpers Helper Ability Merchant  buy 1 veg. to be delivered twice to RC for 1 Cash  Messenger Boy deliver to any R.C. twice	Market Stalls Stall Vegetable 1 Vegetable 2 Vegetable 3 1  Pumpkin (1) Beans (2) Leeks (2) 2  Turnip (1) Cabbage (2) Leeks (2) 3  Wheat (1) Pumpkin (1) Leeks (1)
Regular Customers Customer Wants Buys Left Pays 2 (U) Turnip / Turnip 2 6/7  3 (U) Pumpkin / Turnip 3 5/6/7	Casual Customers Customer Wants Pays

Hand:

R.C. Wheat/Wheat 4/5/5/6 R.C. Cabbage/Leeks 7/8/8/9

C.C. Pumpkin/Beans/Leeks 11 Harvest Helper (harvests 2 vegetables from each field with 4 or more vegetables)

Courtyard:

Helper Saleswoman	R.C. Beans/Leeks 7/8/9/10	M.S. Turnip/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2
3-Plot Field	C.C. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Beans 10	4-Plot Field
Helper Squire	Helper Ploughman	M.S. Wheat/Cabbage/Beans 1/1/1
C.C. Wheat/Cabbage/Leeks 10	M.S. Wheat/Beans/Leeks 1/1/2	Helper Tenant Farmer

Card Phase:
1) Hand: Helper: Harvest Helper, because we don’t want the regular customers or the casual customer because …
2) Courtyard: R.C. Beans/Leeks 7/8/9/10 will generate more revenue

Action Phase
1) Deliver Pumpkin/Turnip to R.C. 3 for 5 Cash (taking us to 12 Cash)
2) Deliver Beans/Leeks to R.C. 4 for 7 Cash (taking us to 19 Cash)
3) Trade 1 Wheat for 1 Turnip at M.S. 2
4) Deliver Turnip/Turnip to R.C. 2 for 6 Cash (taking us to 25 Cash)
5) Buy Beans for 6 Cash from Shop (since we now need more Beans, and now we have 19 Cash)
6) Sow Beans in 3-Plot (as that’s what we have)
7) In the Storehouse, Store —
8) Advance up the Path of Prosperity 2 space(s) for 11 Cash

Round 8:

Harvest Phase: Harvest: Wheat, Pumpkin, 2 Turnip, 2 Beans, Leeks Acquire: 5-plot Field Prosperity: 10 Vegetables Wheat Pumpkin Turnip Cabbage Beans Leaks Cash Store 2  1  0  2  0  1    Storehouse               Cart 1  1  2    2  1  8

Fields Field Planted Remains 9 plots Wheat 1 6 plots Turnip 2 4 plots Turnip 1 3 plots Leeks 1 3 plots Beans 2 5 plots 0 __ plots

Helpers Helper Ability Merchant  buy 1 veg. to be delivered twice to RC for 1 Cash  Messenger Boy  deliver to any R.C. twice Harvest Helper  harvests 2 vegetables from each field with 4 or more	Market Stalls Stall Vegetable 1 Vegetable 2 Vegetable 3 1  Pumpkin (1) Beans (2) Leeks (2) 2  Cabbage (2) Leeks (2) 3  Wheat (1) Pumpkin (1) Leeks (1)
Regular Customers Customer Wants Buys Left Pays 2 (U) Turnip / Turnip 1 7  3 (U) Pumpkin / Turnip 2 6/7  4 Beans / Leeks 3 8/9/10	Casual Customers Customer Wants Pays

Hand:

R.C. Pumpkin/Leeks 6/7/7/8 C.C. Wheat/Cabbage/Cabbage 9

5-Plot Field Helper Official (2-pack action is free)

Courtyard:

Helper Saleswoman	C.C. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Beans 10	M.S. Turnip/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2
3-Plot Field	Helper Ploughman	4-Plot Field
Helper Squire	M.S. Wheat/Beans/Leeks 1/1/2	M.S. Wheat/Cabbage/Beans 1/1/1
C.C. Wheat/Cabbage/Leeks 10	R.C. Pumpkin/Beans 5/6/7/8	Helper Tenant Farmer

Card Phase:
1) Hand: Helper Official (as we don’t want another field, a customer who wants cabbage, or another regular customer when we have 3 already)
2) Courtyard: M.S. Turnip/Beans/Leeks 1/2/2 (as we need the Turnip, Cheap)

Action Phase
1) Deliver Beans / Leaks to R.C. 4 for 8 Cash (and now we have 16 Cash)
2) Deliver Turnip / Turnip to R.C. 1 for 7 Cash (and now we have 23 Cash)
3) Trade Wheat for Turnip with M.S. 4
4) Deliver Pumpkin / Turnip to R.C. 3 for 6 Cash (and now we have 29 Cash)
5) Buy Pumpkin from Shop for 4 Cash (as we are out, and need more, and now we have 25 Cash)
6) Sow Pumpkin in 5-Field
7) In the Storehouse, Store Beans
8) Advance up the Path of Prosperity 2 space(s) for 13 Cash

Round 9:

Harvest Phase: Harvest: Wheat, 2 Turnip, 1 Beans, 1 Leeks, 1 Pumpkin Prosperity: 12 Vegetables Wheat Pumpkin Turnip Cabbage Beans Leaks Cash Store 2  0  0  2  0  1    Storehouse         1      Cart 1  1  2    1  1  12

Fields Field Planted Remains 6 plots Turnip 1 3 plots Beans 1 5 plots Pumpkin 4 __ plots

Helpers Helper Ability Merchant  buy 1 veg. to be delivered twice to RC for 1 Cash  Messenger Boy  deliver to any R.C. twice Harvest Helper  harvests 2 vegetables from each field with 4 or more Official  “two-pack” action is free	Market Stalls Stall Vegetable 1 Vegetable 2 Vegetable 3 1  Pumpkin (1) Beans (2) Leeks (2) 2  Cabbage (2) Leeks (2) 3  Wheat (1) Pumpkin (1) Leeks (1) 4  Beans (2) Leeks (2)
Regular Customers Customer Wants Buys Left Pays 3 (U) Pumpkin/Turnip 1 7  4 Beans/Leeks 2 9/10	Casual Customers Customer Wants Pays

Hand :

C.C. Wheat/Pumpkin/Turnip 7 Helper Book-keeper (re-stocks shop as you see fit)

M.S. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Leeks 1/1/2 R.C. Wheat/Pumpkin 4/5/5/6

Courtyard:

Helper Saleswoman	C.C. Pumpkin/Cabbage/Beans 10	4-Plot Field
3-Plot Field	Helper Ploughman	M.S. Wheat/Cabbage/Beans 1/1/1
Helper Squire	M.S. Wheat/Beans/Leeks 1/1/2	Helper Tenant Farmer
C.C. Wheat/Cabbage/Leeks 10	R.C. Pumpkin/Beans 5/6/7/8	Helper Shopper

Card Phase:
1) Hand: Book-keeper (as we don’t want customers we can’t deliver to)
2) Courtyard: 4-Plot Field (as we don’t want to pay for anything)

Action Phase
1) Deliver Pumpkin/Turnip to R.C. 3 for 7 Cash (and take us to 19 Cash)
2) Trade Wheat for Leeks with M.S. 3 (because we can use Leeks)
3) Use Messenger Boy to Deliver Beans/Leeks twice to R.C. 4 for 18 Cash (taking us to 37 Cash)
4) Advance up the Path of Prosperity 3 space(s) for 30 Cash

End the game on jade stone 15 on the Path of Prosperity and 7 Cash.

This is not too bad for our first game, but considering a careful reading of the rules say a “Good” player will reach stone 17, not too good either. We should have done better. And, had we did our homework and analyzed the game marketplace, we probably would have. That’s why, in our next post, we are going to do an initial analysis of the game and our (potential) marketplace options to see if we can do better next time.

I want to plant
I want to trade
I want to walk down the path
That’s covered in jade
I want to go out
And trade the grain
At the Gates of Loyang