How to Play Everdell: Emerland

How do you play Everdell: Emerland?

Everdell: Emerland is a standalone jungle city-building board game. You collect resources with Critter Workers, build cards in your city, improve them with upgrades and send an Archaeologist toward the Lost City. The goal is to finish with the most Victory Points from city cards, bonus effects, artifacts, Realms, exploration and leftover resources. The original Everdell box is not required.

Unlike classic Everdell’s smaller action menu, Emerland gives you six possible actions each turn: place a Worker, place a Helper, play a card, use an Artisan, excavate or prepare for the next season. You select one action on your turn. Players advance through seasons individually rather than waiting for a shared round to end.

The most important early rules are these: your hand holds at most six Jungle cards, your city begins with capacity for 12 cards, every Realm increases that capacity by one, and a Helper can either double a Worker space as a guide or let a Worker enter an occupied space as a negotiator. Those are different functions and sometimes require two Helpers.

This is a playable rules walkthrough, not a repetition of our Everdell Emerland game overview. The details below have been checked against Tycoon Games’ official Collector’s Edition rulebook. The publisher’s Emerland Digital Resources page includes that rulebook and a card index. Use the rules for your particular edition when any components differ.

Everdell Emerland setup: board, cards, workers and starting resources

Prepare the central board, market and personal supplies before anyone takes the first turn. Emerland’s board changes with player count, and the exploration path can be displayed with either the supplied 3D ruin or the flat Lost City track.

1. Set out the board and overlays. Use the board configuration for your player count. The 3-player and 4-player overlays add the spaces specified by the publisher; those spaces should not be used in a 2-player setup.
2. Build the Lost City area. Lay out the exploration path. Add the 3D Ruins if desired, or use the flat path without the large assembly.
3. Prepare shared supplies. Put the Artifact pieces into their cloth bag and place Bamboo, Leaves, Figs, Marble, Emeralds, Harps and point tokens within reach.
4. Create the Plateau. Shuffle Jungle cards with their basic side faceup and show six different card names in the public display. If duplicate names appear, stack them together and refill until there are six distinct offerings.
5. Prepare Realms and the market. Reveal three Realm cards beside their deck. Roll the four orange River Market dice and put the results on their locations.
6. Place exploration rewards. Set point-token piles on the Lost City track as indicated. In a 2-player game, use the reduced stacks prescribed by the setup diagram.
7. Prepare each player. Choose a color. Put one Worker on the first space of the Lost City track as your Archaeologist. Start with two available Workers, two available Helpers and one Emerald. Set the other Workers and Helpers on their indicated future-season positions.
8. Deal opening hands. The first player gets 3 Jungle cards, the second 4, the third 5 and the fourth 6. Then begin play.

Why different starting hands? The later player has already seen earlier choices take place before their first turn, so the setup grants a progressively larger opening hand. Do not simply give every player six cards: that changes the publisher’s prescribed start.

Setup check: the Archaeologist is a separate Worker committed to the Lost City track; do not accidentally treat it as a third Worker available for an ordinary placement action. If you prefer not to construct a 3D centerpiece, the official resources also provide a Ruins assembly sheet and a flat alternative.

Your turn: the six possible actions

You do not perform all six actions in a round; they are alternatives available on your individual turn. Some require particular components already in your city or a legal space to visit. The pace differs from a shared phase structure because players can be in different seasons at the same time.

Example: You have enough materials for an inexpensive Construction but also an unused Worker. A Worker placement might collect additional resources, whereas playing the Construction now could activate a Production card and make later turns more efficient. Both are legal one-action choices; you cannot do them together unless a card specifically provides an additional effect.

Workers and Helpers: guide versus negotiator

Emerland’s Helper insects are more than extra worker pawns. Used with a Worker, a Helper can provide a second activation or access to an occupied space. Used alone, a Helper can take certain independent actions.

Worked example: a crowded resource space

Another player has taken the space that gives two Figs. You can still place your Worker there if you bring a Helper as a negotiator. That single Helper enables the placement but does not turn the reward into four Figs. To double an eligible ordinary space already occupied, you would need a second Helper acting as guide. Check location restrictions before attempting that combination.

Can you send Helpers by themselves? Yes, but only to permitted Helper spaces: for example, the dedicated Upgrade space, Mooring space or eligible Critter Destination cards. A Helper placed alone is its own turn action; it does not automatically follow a Worker from a prior turn.

This distinction explains much of the game’s tempo. Sometimes sacrificing one Helper for occupancy access is essential. At other times saving it to double a high-value Worker location later is more rewarding.

River Market, Fountain spaces and player-count overlays

The River Market is a flexible Worker location. Rather than receiving a single fixed resource, you choose the outcomes of two of the four visible market dice. When legally doubled by a guide Helper, you receive both selected results twice. The dice display does not reroll every time someone uses this space; first-to-season transitions are one of the events that change the market.

Fountain spaces work differently. For example, the Realm location lets you pay two Emeralds to obtain one faceup Realm or draw a facedown Realm. The Song location exchanges one Emerald for a Harp and lets you refill your hand up to its limit. Fountain spaces cannot be doubled with a guide Helper, although a negotiator can sometimes let you enter one that is occupied by another player.

At three and four players, the setup overlays add further Fountain options, including routes to cards, Artifacts, Emeralds and combinations of River Market die outcomes. Check your board configuration before using any of these; in a smaller game they are not automatically available.

Why does this matter strategically?

Buying a Realm early is partly a capacity decision: it adds room for an additional city card, but costs Emeralds and a Worker action that might otherwise obtain immediate construction materials. The Song location is more valuable when your hand is empty and you can use both the Harp and card-draw effects. A River Market trip is most powerful when the visible dice solve two separate resource needs in one placement.

Playing Jungle cards and managing a smaller city

You may play one card from your hand or the public six-card Plateau by paying its cost. The cards are double-sided: basic faces show their purchase cost, while upgraded faces show stronger effects. Normally, a card enters your city on its basic face. Certain legal effects can later upgrade it.

Emerland has a strict six-card hand limit and starts with a 12-card city limit. Each Realm adds one more card space. This is smaller than the classic Everdell city’s initial 15-card capacity, making every early card slot more consequential. There is no general unique-card restriction: Emerland lets you build duplicate named cards in the city.

When you play a Production or Traveler card, resolve its immediate ability; then resolve any applicable effects from Governance cards already in your city. If the played card came from the Plateau, replenish the public display afterward. Duplicate cards of the same name in the Plateau remain stacked, keeping six different names visible when possible.

Example: You have already played a blue Governance card that rewards playing Constructions. You buy a green Construction from the Plateau. First you pay its price and put it in your city; then apply the newly played Production effect and qualifying existing blue triggers. Only after those steps do you replenish the Plateau. The precise benefits depend on the printed cards.

Drawing from the deck when your hand is full is not a way to discard and replace unwanted cards by default. The hand limit is hard, and you only draw what you are permitted to hold unless an effect gives explicit instructions.

The six Jungle card colours: what each does

Which cards should beginners prioritize? Early green Production and blue Governance can be easier to evaluate because their future effects may recur. Tan Travelers help with immediate shortages, while purple Prosperity cards become more predictable after your city develops. There is no automatic best color: a cheap card aligned with your resources and available turns may be better than an expensive high-value card you cannot activate.

For specific names and upgraded powers, Tycoon Games has published the complete Emerland Card Index. That resource is more reliable than a speculative card ranking when you need exact card text.

Upgrading cards: when to flip and when effects trigger

Upgrades are one of Emerland’s defining systems. When an action or ability tells you to upgrade a city card, flip one eligible basic card in your city to its upgraded face. It now uses the new ability and is worth one additional printed base point compared with its basic face.

Upgrading does not always mean waiting until your next turn for the new benefit. The official rules describe immediate effects for certain categories:

• Production: activate the upgraded Production ability.
• Traveler: activate the new one-shot ability.
• Governance: switch to the ongoing upgraded behavior.
• Destination: players currently on the destination may activate it under the printed timing, owner-first condition and card rules.
• Artisan: use the updated text on future activations; cards already tucked underneath remain counted.
• Prosperity: its final scoring condition or reward becomes more favorable.

How do I upgrade with a Helper?

As a one-action turn, send an unused Helper to the dedicated Upgrade location and pay one Emerald. Choose a card in your city to flip. Other card powers may also allow upgrading with different costs or circumstances.

Example: Upgrading a green resource-producing card can create three kinds of value: the extra printed point, its stronger printed ability, and the chance to apply that new production effect immediately. But if the enhanced ability grants a resource you cannot use, another card’s upgrade might be a better choice. This is an economic comparison, not a fixed card tier list.

Harps and free upgraded Critters

A Harp is a special way to play a Critter without paying its ordinary resource cost. You must first have an upgraded Construction in your city. As your card-play action, put a Harp onto that Construction and add a Critter from your hand or the Plateau directly on its upgraded face.

The Critter does not need to match the Construction’s color or name. However, you may use only one Harp per color of upgraded Construction you have built. The Harp remains on the chosen Construction rather than returning to your supply after use.

Worked example: the color restriction

Your city contains an upgraded green Construction. You gain a Harp and use it to play a purple Critter directly in upgraded form. That is allowed: the Critter can be any color. If you later upgrade a second green Construction, you do not gain permission to place another Harp there, because you have already used the green Construction color for a Harp. An upgraded blue Construction would provide a new eligible color.

Harps can produce very large tempo swings, but they require preparation: first obtain or build a Construction, upgrade it, acquire the Harp and choose an eligible Critter to play. A “free” Critter still costs the turn used to play it, and it occupies a city slot unless an effect specifically says otherwise.

Artisan cards: how tucking works

The orange Artisan category supplies repeatable actions. After playing an Artisan into your city, you may later spend a turn to place one card from your hand underneath it and resolve that Artisan’s printed ability. The number of tucked cards it accepts is limited by the icon on that particular card.

This means an Artisan can convert otherwise awkward hand cards into resources or effects, but each activation consumes both an entire turn and a card from hand. It is not an unlimited free trigger whenever you draw.

Worked example: two allowed activations

Suppose an Artisan permits two uses. Over two separate turns, you tuck two different hand cards beneath it and apply its printed ability each time. Once it has reached that limit, you cannot activate it again just by discarding another card. Upgrading the Artisan may improve the ability, but the cards already tucked remain and still count toward its cap.

Artisans are especially interesting when your six-card hand limit is preventing you from drawing useful new cards. Converting one card into something valuable can open hand space, but you should compare that action with simply playing an affordable card or moving your Archaeologist.

Archaeologist, Artifacts and the Lost City path

One of your Critter Workers is reserved as an Archaeologist on the separate Lost City track. To advance it, choose the Excavation action, pay the cost shown for the next space and discard at least one hand card. You may discard more cards in that action if you want more Artifact choices.

After moving one space, collect the best remaining point-token pile at the destination, if present. Then draw an Artifact for each card you discarded and keep only one of those Artifacts, returning the rest to the bag. More discarded cards improve selection, not the number of Artifacts you normally keep.

Progress is also gated by season. In summer you cannot go beyond the first permitted stage. By winter you may have access to several stages even if you skipped earlier excavation; however, each individual Excavation action still moves the Archaeologist one space. Reaching the Lost City grants the final position’s points and ends further movement along that track.

Worked example: why would you discard three cards?

Imagine you must pay the path cost and have three cards that do not fit your city plan. Discarding all three lets you inspect three Artifacts, choose the best of those and return the others. Discarding only one saves hand material for later, but gives you only one Artifact option. The better move depends on your remaining turns, future card supply and whether you need the discarded cards for other actions.

Some Artifacts have immediate effects in addition to endgame points; the special treasure-chest Artifact may grant another Artifact. Keep those printed exceptions separate from the normal one-kept-Artifact rule.

Realm cards: more city space and a scoring target

Each Realm card increases your city capacity by one. If you have no Realms, you can normally fit 12 cards. One Realm makes that 13; three Realms make 15. The effect is cumulative, and Realm cards themselves are separate from the Jungle cards filling your city.

Realms also describe conditional endgame scoring. A Realm might reward you for particular card colors or kinds of developed infrastructure. Its value depends on what you actually build, so buying a Realm can be simultaneously a capacity purchase and a scoring commitment.

Worked example: a Realm that rewards purple cards

Suppose a Realm grants three points for each purple Prosperity card in your city. With two qualifying purple cards, the Realm would provide six points, in addition to its extra city slot. With no purple cards, that condition would provide zero even though the extra slot still applies. This illustrates how the multiplier changes planning; check your specific Realm for its actual condition.

Obtaining a Realm from the Fountain typically costs two Emeralds plus the Worker action. If you are already near the 12-card limit, that may be essential. But buying several Realms very early can reduce the resources available for the cards that would make them score.

Prepare for Season: summer, autumn, winter, spring

Players start in summer and each advances through autumn, winter and spring independently. You may Prepare for Season once all your Workers are placed; you do not need to use all Helpers first. Retrieve your Workers and Helpers from the board and Destination cards, then receive the next season’s listed benefits.

Season preparation itself occupies your turn. You do not retrieve your Workers and immediately take an additional placement as part of the same normal turn. Other players keep following their own schedules, so a table may have one player in winter while another is still playing autumn.

Important tactical consequence: a player who passes after finishing their spring actions leaves their Workers on the board. Other players may still have to use negotiator Helpers to enter occupied spaces. Being first to finish does not remove all of that player’s board presence.

Some rulebooks describe the timing of the Plateau refresh and first market reroll in detail. Follow the official sequence when players enter a season at different times rather than rerolling for every player who advances.

Everdell Emerland scoring and tie-breakers

The game ends after all players have finished their final spring and passed. Add the value of several separate categories; do not look only at the printed points on your cards.

Original scoring example

Say you finish with 29 points printed on city cards, 8 bonus Prosperity points, 12 point tokens, 6 Artifact points, 8 Archaeologist points, 9 Realm points and 7 qualifying leftover resources. The leftover resources yield 3 points (three full pairs, with one unused resource left over). Your total is 75 points.

What breaks a tie? First compare the number of upgraded cards, then the position reached on the Lost City track, then the number of Realms, then the remaining resources. If everything is still tied, the players share victory. This ordering is specific to Emerland; do not import tie-breaks from the original Everdell.

Solo mode: playing against Professor Koto

Emerland supports solo play. Its built-in opponent, Professor Koto D. Figsmash III, uses different automation rules rather than a second human-style hand of cards. Set up for two players, but give the human player the prescribed solo opening hand of four cards. Koto starts without a hand or Emerald, and takes the first turn.

Koto’s behavior is driven by Expedition cards when he has pieces to place and Excavation cards when he begins building his city. His placements do not normally collect resources or trigger his cards as they would for a human. Exceptions include receiving Emeralds from the appropriate location and gains granted through the specific solo rules.

His Archaeologist also advances, and his solo framework uses Trick cards to increase pressure. On the normal setting, the Tricks occur at designated season/endgame milestones. On hard difficulty, additional Tricks can occur when Koto moves his Archaeologist. He may eventually reach a 15-card automated city rather than following a human player’s 12-plus-Realms limit.

What should a new solo player learn first? Learn the normal Worker/Helper and card-play rules, then keep the Expedition and Excavation decks separate. The solo page tells you which action to resolve, including fallback instructions when a preferred location or Plateau card is unavailable. Do not randomly select an action on Koto’s behalf; follow the printed procedure.

The official rulebook’s solo section contains Koto’s scoring formulas for normal and hard settings. This guide summarizes how that system operates rather than claiming Koto uses the human scoring table unchanged.

Everdell Emerland versus original Everdell: eight rule differences

The familiar worker-placement and tableau-building foundation remains, but the changes are substantial enough that memorizing the original Everdell rules is not sufficient. In particular, do not use Everdell’s 15-card limit, eight-card hand limit or free-Critter matching rule when playing Emerland.

If you are choosing a game rather than learning the rules, our Everdell Emerland overview compares player fit and editions. The original Everdell guide covers the base game’s season and city-building flow.

A practical first-game plan: three original situations

Situation 1: worker efficiency versus upgrading

You have a Worker and a Helper still available, plus one Emerald. You can send the Worker with the Helper to an eligible space and double its reward, or spend a Helper turn and your Emerald to upgrade a green Production card. Before choosing, ask how many times the improved green ability could still activate. If autumn and spring are both ahead, the upgrade may affect several future moments; if you are nearly finished with spring, an immediate resource placement could be safer.

Situation 2: an almost-full city

Eleven of your twelve city spaces are occupied. You can afford one more card, but you have two other promising cards in hand. Buying a Realm opens an extra slot and may score later, yet costs two Emeralds and a turn. Upgrading an existing card adds its stronger effect and one printed point without consuming a new city slot. The correct choice depends on whether the two future cards can actually be paid for and how many turns remain.

Situation 3: deciding whether to excavate

Your Archaeologist is behind, and you have a hand full of cards that do not support your current city. You could spend an action and the displayed path cost to discard several of those cards, inspect an equal number of Artifacts and retain the best one, while moving one space forward. Or you could play an affordable card now and wait for a later excavation. This is the central exploration trade-off: invest now for position and Artifacts or improve your engine first.

These are editorial decision examples, not official training scenarios or tested optimal plays. Their purpose is to show what matters when comparing a Worker, Helper, card, upgrade and excavation turn.

Common Emerland rules mistakes

• Using the original Everdell limits: Emerland begins with 12 city slots and a six-card hand, not 15 and eight.
• Letting a negotiator double a space: the Helper that permits access to an occupied normal space is not also a guide.
• Doubling a Fountain: those locations do not allow guide doubling even if you can enter with a negotiator.
• Putting Helpers anywhere: independent Helper placements require eligible Helper locations.
• Forgetting that upgrading a green card may activate it immediately: the bonus is not delayed until the next season.
• Playing an upgraded Critter with a Harp before upgrading a Construction: the Construction must first be upgraded.
• Using multiple Harps on different Constructions of the same color: only one Harp per color of upgraded Construction in your city is permitted.
• Taking multiple Artifacts from one excavation: normally you keep one, regardless of how many you drew.
• Skipping the card-discard cost to excavate: you must discard at least one hand card when using that action.
• Rerolling Market dice every time someone prepares for the same season: the first player to enter a season triggers the listed shared reroll.
• Giving every player the same opening hand: starting cards are 3, 4, 5 and 6 by turn order.
• Scoring a human solo opponent normally: Professor Koto has distinct automation and scoring rules.

When you encounter an unusual card combination, consult the official Emerland Card Index for its actual basic and upgraded text. It is preferable to guessing how one card interacts with another and calling that guess an official ruling.

Everdell Emerland FAQ: rules and quick clarifications

Is Everdell Emerland a standalone game?

Yes. The base Emerland product does not require Everdell or any of its expansions.

How many people can play Everdell Emerland?

The publisher lists 1–4 players, with solo rules featuring Professor Koto.

How many actions do you take each turn?

One: place a Worker, place a Helper, play a card, use an Artisan, excavate or prepare for season.

How many cards can you hold?

The hand limit is six cards. Do not use original Everdell’s eight-card limit.

How many cards can go into your city?

Twelve by default. Each Realm adds capacity for one more city card.

What is the difference between a Helper and a Worker?

Workers visit many locations directly. Helpers can accompany a Worker to double eligible spaces or access occupied ones, or visit certain Helper-only spaces as their own action.

Can a Helper both negotiate and double a space?

No. An occupied normal space that can be doubled requires separate Helpers for the negotiator and guide roles.

Can I double River Market rewards?

Yes, on a legally doubled Worker activation. Choose two die results and obtain them twice.

Can I double a Fountain action with a Helper?

No. Fountain locations do not accept guide doubling.

Can you play a Jungle card from the Plateau?

Yes. You can play it from the six-card public display or your own hand by paying its cost or using another legal effect.

Can you play duplicate named cards in your city?

Yes. Emerland does not use the usual Common-versus-Unique restriction.

How do card upgrades work?

Flip an eligible basic card in your city to its upgraded side when a legal effect tells you to upgrade. The new side has an improved ability and an extra base point.

Can you use a Harp on any Construction?

No. It requires an upgraded Construction, and only one Harp per color of upgraded Construction in your city is allowed.

Can a Harp play any Critter color?

Yes. The Critter does not need to match the Construction’s color and enters upgraded.

Can I use an Artisan without spending a turn?

No. Using an Artisan is one of your six turn actions; it also requires tucking a hand card beneath it.

How many Artifacts do you keep from an excavation?

Normally one, regardless of how many candidates you draw. Some Artifacts have their own exceptions.

What do Realm cards do?

Each adds one city slot and awards points based on its own endgame condition.

Do players prepare for the next season together?

No. Each player advances seasons on their own turn when they meet the requirements.

When do the Market dice reroll?

When the first player prepares for each new season according to the rules, rather than for every later player entering that season.

How do you score leftover resources?

One point for each complete pair of qualifying leftover resources.

How are ties resolved?

Compare upgraded cards, then Lost City position, then Realms, then leftover resources. If still tied, share the win.

Where is the official Emerland rulebook?

Tycoon Games offers the Collector’s Edition rulebook (PDF) through its Emerland Digital Resources page.

Official rulebook, editorial sources and verification

Primary official rules: Tycoon Games — Emerland Digital Resources, including the Emerland Collector’s Edition Rules of Play (PDF). This establishes setup, player-count overlays, six actions, card effects, Workers/Helpers, upgrading, Archaeologist, seasons, endgame scoring and Professor Koto’s solo system.

Official gameplay summary: Asmodee UK — Everdell: Emerland confirms the standalone 1–4-player release, the jungle city-building theme and the six-action turn structure.

Card clarification: The Tycoon Games Emerland Card Index documents the basic and upgraded effects of individual cards. Use it for precise card text rather than treating editorial examples as a replacement for your actual cards.

Independent editorial disclosure: This is an original rules walkthrough based on publisher materials, with new worked examples and clearly identified editorial guidance; it does not reproduce publisher diagrams, photos, card artwork or long rulebook passages. No first-hand playtesting or verified win rates are claimed. The linked rulebook is labeled Collector’s Edition, so owners of other editions should consult their own box if there is a component difference. Last fact-check: 1 November 2026. See our editorial and corrections policy.