How to teach "Machi Koro 2"
It's a breezy day in your little town. The air is crisp, and you're on your way to your favorite burger stand. You walk in, raise your hand to say hey to Marcus, so he can get started on your double bacon cheeseburger, but something stops you. Marcus isn't there. Some other person is there and waving back at you awkwardly. You step back outside to make sure you're in the right place. It's a burger shop for sure, but then you look to your left.
Your eyes widen. You then look to your right. There are burger shops on either side. And more next to those ones.
You step back further.
All you see down the road is the exact same burger shop... hope you're hungry.
Game Basics
In Machi Koro 2, you are a mayor who is tasked with building your small town into a bustling city, eventually establishing enough landmarks to show your dad that you actually can accomplish something with your life! Excuse me
On the table you'll have a column of three decks of cards. Each deck has a corresponding row with certain shops and attractions that you will get the chance to build.
On a player's turn they'll either roll one or both of the lovely oversized dice. Then everyone gets to activate the building(s) they have that have the number that corresponds to the result of the die/dice.
After all the merriment of gaining more of those delectable coins or all the tears of having to give up those coins you just received (darn you Kevin and your 3 cafes!), the player who just rolled gets to go shopping for a new establishment or landmark to bless their townsfolks with.
The game immediately ends when someone builds their 3rd landmark.
How to Teach
Setup
While I love the addition of this landmark, you really don't want your first game with people to have someone decide, "You know what, I'm just going to amass coins and win the game with that." while everyone else is trying to figure out the strategy they like best when it comes to shopping for new stores.
It breaks the game in a way that I feel is only fun for the chaotic-neutrals in the world and people who have played the game a few times already.
Set up the rows of stores and landmarks as normal. Set up each player's area by putting the starting amount of coins(5) and a player aid where they are planning to sit.
The Intro
First, start by explaining to everyone the main basics of the game.
Once the understand the main idea, walk them through a basic description of a turn.
Turn Explanation
"On a turn, you're going to start by rolling one or two dice. Then everyone checks to see if they have cards with the same number as the result on the die or dice, and then activates those card(s) effects in a specific order. You'll finish up your turn by either using your coins to build a new establishment or landmark if you want, or if you have no coins to build with then you'll get a coin for free!"
Establishment Activation Order
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Red
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Blue&Green
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Purple
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Orange
Building
This action is pretty simple. Pay the amount indicated on the card you are wanting to build and then put that card in your area.
If the card you build leaves an empty spot on the board, fill it in with a new card from that row's deck!
On Landmarks
Make sure to walk your players through determining the cost of a landmark based on the number of landmarks they have currently in their city. Then make sure to mention the special effects the landmarks can have.
(e.g. "If the landmark you buy has three exclamation points (❗❗❗) then the effect on the card happens immediately. If it has an infinity symbol (♾️) then the effect is ongoing.")
Transactions
Sometimes a situation will occur where a player will owe money to many other players on the same turn. In this case just pay all you have to the players you owe beginning in a clockwise motion and if that player runs out of money then that's just plain unfortunate.
Conclusion
Make sure you are pointing to cards that are available on the table to reference and definitely give everyone some of those wonderful coins to play with while you begin to teach.
Machi Koro 2 is a fantastic little game and the way it improves upon the original makes it a better game to me. The way each game can be so different is really a bonus to this particular version. And the components are still incredible. I wish I could carry those coins in my pocket... you know what? Who's gonna stop me?
As always, if you have any questions please don't hesitate to @ me on Twitter or pop an email in my inbox.
Hopefully, this guide makes it easier for you to get "Machi Koro 2" to the table.
- Cory 🎲
Resources
Downloads + Links
