Lords of Waterdeep is a classic worker placement game from Wizards of the Coast that pits two to five Lords or Ladies of Waterdeep against each other in an intrigue-filled quest fest for victory points. In this game, players recruit adventurers and complete quests to gain the most victory points.
To set up the game, place the game board in the center and create a supply of Adventurer Cubes in the middle of the board. Each cube color represents a different type of adventurer: orange for fighters, purple for wizards, white for clerics, and black for rogues. Also, create a stash of gold and victory point tokens nearby. Place three victory point tokens on each of the eight spaces on the rounds track, which is the main timer of the game.
Each player chooses a color and takes the corresponding player board, scoring marker, and a number of agents based on the amount of players in the game. They also place one additional agent on the round five space of the rounds track for each player in the game. After shuffling the Lord Cards and dealing one face down to each player, players receive their secret objectives, providing bonus end game victory points if they fulfill their mission.
The game play occurs over eight rounds, during which lords take turns assigning agents to various locations on the board. At the beginning of a round, take the victory point tokens from the current space on the rounds track and place one on each building tile in Builder’s Hall. Starting with the first player and proceeding clockwise, players take turns assigning agents until all agents have been assigned. After which, the round ends.
During a player’s turn, they may take one of their available agents and place it on a location, gaining the benefits listed. They may also complete one quest per turn, paying the indicated cost in Adventurer Cubes or gold and gaining the VP listed. Some quests are plot quests that provide an ongoing benefit to the player throughout the rest of the game. Play then passes to the next player.
After all players have assigned their agents, if any agents are still in the Waterdeep Harbor location, they are reassigned in order, starting with the first action space. Once they’ve all been reassigned, the round ends, and players gather their agents back to their board. This continues until eight rounds have been completed. Then, players proceed to final scoring.
The Field of Triumph, Blackstaff Tower, The Grinning Lion Tavern, and The Plinth are some of the locations in the game, each providing the Adventurer Cube types listed. Visiting Aurora’s Realms Shop provides the Lord with four gold. Castle Waterdeep allows the Lord to take the first player token, meaning they’ll go first next round and draw an Intrigue card.
Intrigue cards can be played with a visit to Waterdeep Harbor. This location has three action spaces, any of which allows the player to play an Intrigue card. The Building Hall allows a player to pay the cost of a building tile in the hall to construct that building on one of the empty spaces on the board. They also gain any VP tokens on that building tile, incentivizing players to construct buildings that may have lived in the hall for several rounds.
Cliffwatch Inn spaces allow a player to take a quest from one of the four available, along with either two gold or an Intrigue card. Or, they may reset the available quests, discarding the four and replacing them from the deck and then taking one of the new quests revealed.
At the end of the game, in addition to victory points from completed quests, each player will also score one VP per adventurer in their tavern, one VP for every two gold, bonus VP from their Secret Lord Card, which they reveal at this time. The player with the highest score wins the game.
Lords of Waterdeep is a fun and engaging game that requires strategy and tactics. With its unique theme, it provides players with the opportunity to immerse themselves in the world of Waterdeep and become a powerful Lord. So, gather your friends and start playing!