Dragons, Treasures & Mysteries

Play any combination of the dragon, treasure and mystery modules, with optional cave tokens.

Short tag: [DTM]

The expansion contains three independent modules. Choose any one or combine them; each can also be combined with Heroes & Hexes and Dangers & Muisca. These rules add exceptions to the base game, whose other rules continue to apply. The publisher’s expansion page describes the product, and the BGG listing identifies this expansion.

Choose modules and prepare

Use the module-specific setup below after assembling the base route. If using multiple modules, complete each module’s preparation. Their cave-token variants are optional additions to the base cave-token supply; add only the cave tokens for modules being used. Each module has its own tokens and rules.

Dragons

Setup

Add the three dragon action-card piles to the market. Place one dragon on each of four different terrain tiles or strips, never on the starting tile. Each dragon may occupy any space, including a mountain space. Place them lying down: they are dormant.

Awakening and danger

A dormant dragon does not block spaces and cannot be moved. When a playing piece stops on a space containing a dormant dragon, stand the dragon up; it awakens after that piece’s movement. If a piece moves into a space adjacent to a dormant dragon, it must stop there and awaken that dragon. A piece cannot move into or through a space adjacent to an awake dragon. A piece already next to an awake dragon is hiding: it cannot move until that dragon moves away.

Move dragons

Instead of using a played card to move, you may use its color to move the matching dragon: green, blue or yellow moves that color dragon; a purple action card moves the purple dragon. Move it to an empty adjacent space, including a mountain or another terrain tile/strip, but never across a blockade. If the first space entered matches the dragon’s color (black mountain for the purple dragon), it may move one more adjacent space. A standing dragon makes every adjacent space impassable to playing pieces. The Dragon Whisperer moves a dragon this way and then lets you draw one card.

Dragon cards

The Flare Gun places a dragon on any empty space of its current tile or strip, then is removed from the game. The Guide moves your piece to an adjacent empty one-symbol space, including into, out of or within a dragon’s vicinity. The Dragon Whisperer moves a dragon and then draws one card.

Dragon cave-token variant

Add three copies of each of the two dragon cave tokens to the cave-token supply. The first token moves your piece to an adjacent space while ignoring its requirement, but only if the move enters, leaves or stays within an awake dragon’s vicinity; it cannot enter an occupied space or mountain. The second token moves a dragon, following the normal dragon movement rule.

Treasures

Setup

Add the three Metal Detector cards to their market piles. Shuffle the 12 treasure tokens face down and use three per player; return the rest unseen to the box. Place one token on a non-start terrain tile, beginning with the tile nearest El Dorado and working backward. Choose a space on that tile but never a mountain. Repeat the placement passes until all selected tokens are placed, then turn them face up.

Collect a treasure

A playing piece cannot enter a space with a treasure. At the start of your turn, or after completing movement for a card, you may collect a treasure adjacent to your piece. Remove cards from your hand showing the required color/symbol until you meet its printed strength, or remove the indicated number of cards of that color/symbol from the game. Take the token, move your piece onto its space, and continue your turn. The Metal Detector lets you collect an adjacent treasure without meeting its requirement; remove that card from the game after use.

The gray four-card token face is shown in Cards & Components, but its gray symbol’s matching-card rule is To be added; do not infer which cards satisfy it.

Spend a treasure and win

You may spend a collected treasure during the current or a later turn to move your piece up to two adjacent spaces, ignoring their requirements. You may not enter an occupied space or mountain with this move. Remove a spent treasure from the game.

Collecting a fourth treasure triggers the final round, like reaching El Dorado. After that round, every player who reached El Dorado or collected four treasures qualifies. If several qualify, the player with the most blockades wins; break a tie with the highest-numbered blockade. If still tied, the first qualifying player wins.

Treasure cave-token variant

Add three copies of each treasure cave token to the cave-token supply. One swaps any two face-up treasure tokens on the route. The other, when lifting a treasure, counts as power 2 of one matching color shown on that token; it can only be used for collecting treasures. A cave token showing a machete, coin or paddle cannot be used to collect a treasure.

Mysteries

Setup

Shuffle the nine valley tiles face down. Place one face down on each terrain tile other than the starting tile, aligned to cover exactly seven spaces of that tile. A valley tile may cover mountains. Return unused valley tiles face down to the box. Optional open-information variant: place the valley tiles face up and use them as normal terrain tiles; there are then no mysteries.

Reveal a valley

You cannot move onto a face-down valley tile. If, after finishing a card’s movement, your piece is next to one, reveal that tile and put it back over the same seven spaces. Orient it so its small owl icon is next to your piece. The tile’s spaces are then usable normally. Do not reveal it when a movement ends for a reason other than completing a card’s movement.

Mystery cave-token variant

Add three mystery cave tokens to the cave-token supply. Each lets you move up to two adjacent spaces on a valley tile, ignoring requirements; you cannot enter occupied spaces or mountains.

Component reference

The dragon photos show their physical hues, but do not establish which hue corresponds to each color named by the rules. The treasure face that shows four gray cards remains pictured, but its exact requirement is unresolved.