Rifugio

Overview

What ABG knows about this game

The 1st edition was a 2-4 player game. In a smaller light weight box with a plastic tray inside all made in China. And there were 3 extension sets: 1) 5&6 player, 2) Rivers&Rafts and 3) Helicopter. The 2nd edition (2017) is a bigger box, including material for a 5th player and the Rivers & Rafts extension set, all made in the Netherlands. It has only one separate extension set: Helicopter. Game description: Walking through the Italian Dolomite mountains you can see special Flowers, Animals, Waterfalls, Canyons and Mountain Tops. The player who visits the most of these and builds their Rifugios (Italian for 'mountain cabin') in strategic spots, is most likely to win the game. In Rifugio you place hexagonal tiles every turn with just a few simple rules (meadows next to forest, next to rocky areas, which in turn are the only areas allowed to have mountain tops. No rock next to meadows, and no mountain tops next to forest or meadows. A few special tiles have to match their sides exactly. With your pawn (a hiker with backpack) you move around the placed tiles, visiting those that have special items printed on them (animals, flowers, waterfalls, etc.), and avoiding those with bears. By visiting special places, you collect a victory points card (usually 2 points) for that special place (for a bear however, you get -3 points). There are three items in each category, and collecting the full set earns you a bonus of 5 points. Each turn you have two free actions available, to either move, or place a Rifugio (a mountian cabin). Each time an opponent visits a tile with your Rifugio, you get a card with 2 victory points, but they too rest (which is getting a card with an extra action they can use at any time convenient). Game ends when all tiles have been placed, and whoever gathered the most points in collecting those cards wins.