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Tikal FAQ: (questions and answers will be posted here to help in understanding the play of this variant)
Q#1: Does the treasure box have to be in the base camp to provide the 5 bonus points? and does an explorer have to "leave" the hexes/tiles to do this?
Answer#1: Yes, this is true. Normally you wouldn't want to move "to" the base camp but in this variant one of the goals is to bring one or more (depending on your playing level) treasure boxes to the base camp and since the treasure boxes don't have legs an explorer must bring it there.
Due to the severe penalty for not significantly moving the boxes to the base camp, if not deliver, you have to determine early how you are going to make this happen. A "6" temple provides some good action points to energize the leader to move towards the base camp but then that is a long way to go for you try and score that "6". There is very much a balancing act going on with your tile placement.
Just a note: if you are able to get the treasure box to the space next to the base camp (between the "1" temples) this is -1 point for being 1 space from the base camp. Each hex distant adds another -1. Mentioned in the rules it is stated that the boxes start out as -7 points to you since they are 7 "direct" spaces away. A volcano can change the meaning of direct so be aware of that fact.
Q#2: Do I have to place the 1st volcano in one of the first 4 columns? or can I place one out further and then place 1 in the first 4 columns?
Answer#2: It is required that you place the 1st volcano in the the first 4 columns and not just meet the overall requirement. Sorry.
During playtesting there was a slight benefit to being able to setup a distant volcano early but this was shown to be too disruptive to the scoring and was dependent on the luck of the draw which I am not a fan of. Therefore the requirement exists.
Q#3: Can I have an explorer move over 4 or more stones? All tiles have a maximum of 3 stones on them.
Answer#3: Your leader is not tied to the tile restriction and can do this whenever the action points allow. Additionally, when a volcano is turned if you have stacked a tile/hex with enough explorers any explorer can cross 4+ stones if it makes sense for you to do it.
In general, I would try to avoid setting up too many 4+ stones to cross. 1 or 2 is where you should keep it where possible.
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- Edited Mon Nov 14, 2011 12:49 pm
Posted Mon Nov 7, 2011 12:46 pm
