Torres (board game)
Encyclopedia
Torres is a German-style board game
designed by Wolfgang Kramer
and Michael Kiesling
and published in 1999 by FX Schmid in German
and by Rio Grande Games
in English
. The game strongly influenced Kramer and Kiesling's Mask Trilogy
of games, but is not considered to be a part of the trilogy. The game has since been reprinted (in 2005).
s set on a grid. Each player is allotted several knight pieces, which are placed within the castles. The higher the knights' placement during a scoring round, the greater the payoff for the controlling player.
The number of points a player receives per phase is based on the height times the surface area of the highest point of the castle that the knight is standing upon. If the knight is on the 3rd level of a castle, and the castle occupies 5 squares on the board, the player receives 15 points. A King piece is also placed on the board and acts as a bonus modifier to any knights that occupy the same level and castle as the King at the end of a phase.
The game is composed of three different phases, with each phase having three to four rounds each depending on the number of players. Each player has five action point
s (AP) to spend during a round. The following moves may be performed during a round:
Players receive three or four stacks of castle pieces per phase with two or three pieces per stack, depending on the current phase and number of players. A player may only use pieces from one stack per phase, but may transfer unused pieces to another stack for the next phase. After the last phase is reached all unused castle pieces are returned to the common supply and points are calculated. The king gives a bonus of five, ten, or fifteen points based on the scoring phase.
The number of victory points per player is kept by individual markers on the edge of the game board. Since no two markers can occupy the same victory point number, the last player to occupy the space will automatically be moved ahead by one victory point. The person in last place after each scoring phase may then move the King piece to another castle.
After the third phase, all victory points are calculated and the person with the highest number of points wins the game.
German-style board game
German-style board games, frequently referred to in gaming circles as Euro Games or Euro-style, are a broad class of tabletop games that generally have simple rules, short to medium playing times, indirect player interaction and abstract physical components...
designed by Wolfgang Kramer
Wolfgang Kramer
Wolfgang Kramer is a German board game designer.Kramer formerly worked as an operations manager and computer scientist, but since 1989 he has worked full-time on game design. He has designed over 100 games, many which have been nominated for or have won the Spiel des Jahres...
and Michael Kiesling
Michael Kiesling
Michael Kiesling is a German board game designer. Many of his games have been nominated for or have won the Spiel des Jahres, a German games award.He is best known for co-authoring the board game trilogy Tikal, Java and Mexica with Wolfgang Kramer....
and published in 1999 by FX Schmid in German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and by Rio Grande Games
Rio Grande Games
Rio Grande Games is a board game publisher based in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. The company primarily imports and localizes foreign language German-style board games.-History:...
in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. The game strongly influenced Kramer and Kiesling's Mask Trilogy
Mask Trilogy
The Mask Trilogy refers to three award-winning German-style board games designed by Wolfgang Kramer and Michael Kiesling. The trilogy is given this name because the box of each game features a mask from the region which gives the game its theme...
of games, but is not considered to be a part of the trilogy. The game has since been reprinted (in 2005).
Game play
Game play revolves around constructing an abstract set of castleCastle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
s set on a grid. Each player is allotted several knight pieces, which are placed within the castles. The higher the knights' placement during a scoring round, the greater the payoff for the controlling player.
The number of points a player receives per phase is based on the height times the surface area of the highest point of the castle that the knight is standing upon. If the knight is on the 3rd level of a castle, and the castle occupies 5 squares on the board, the player receives 15 points. A King piece is also placed on the board and acts as a bonus modifier to any knights that occupy the same level and castle as the King at the end of a phase.
The game is composed of three different phases, with each phase having three to four rounds each depending on the number of players. Each player has five action point
Action point
An action point, commonly abbreviated AP, is a point in games to determine how much action a player, unit, or video game character can do in a single turn.Within computer and video games they are predominantly used in the turn-based tactics genre...
s (AP) to spend during a round. The following moves may be performed during a round:
- Place a new knight (2 AP) All new knights must be adjacent to existing knights, and may only occupy a level equal to or lower than the existing knight on the board.
- Place a new castle piece (1 AP) Castle pieces must be placed next to or on top of existing castle pieces. A castle's level cannot exceed the surface area, i.e., a castle occupying two squares on the map may only reach two levels in height. New castle pieces may not join two existing castles.
- Pick up an action card (1 AP) There are 40 different action cards which allow the player to perform special moves, such as moving the King piece, moving castle pieces, or moving knights diagonally. In the master version, each player begins with a full set of action cards in their hand. Purchasing an action card is no longer a possible action.
- Move a knight (1 AP/square) Knights may move one square per AP point spent, but may only move up one level, and may not move diagonally. Knights can go down any number of levels without spending AP.
- Gain one victory point (1 AP) Action points may be exchanged for victory points on a one-to-one basis.
Players receive three or four stacks of castle pieces per phase with two or three pieces per stack, depending on the current phase and number of players. A player may only use pieces from one stack per phase, but may transfer unused pieces to another stack for the next phase. After the last phase is reached all unused castle pieces are returned to the common supply and points are calculated. The king gives a bonus of five, ten, or fifteen points based on the scoring phase.
The number of victory points per player is kept by individual markers on the edge of the game board. Since no two markers can occupy the same victory point number, the last player to occupy the space will automatically be moved ahead by one victory point. The person in last place after each scoring phase may then move the King piece to another castle.
After the third phase, all victory points are calculated and the person with the highest number of points wins the game.