Next Stop: The Alhambra

Last year I studied abroad in Granada, Spain, and one of my finest memories from my trip was the Alhambra, a 14th Century Moorish palace and one of the treasures of Spain. Many people are surprised to learn that Muslim empires extended as far as the Iberian Peninsula, and though the country is predominantly Catholic, the culture the Moors left behind still has a significant mark on cities throughout Southern Spain.

Don't take my word for how beautiful this palace is: Take a look for yourself.

It's inevitable that after my trip, I had to go out and buy the game inspired by the Alhambra and those who constructed it centuries ago.

Alhambra is a tile-laying board game for 2-6 players. Though the game takes place in Spain, it is actually a German game designed by Dirk Henn. Over the course of the game, players will have the opportunity to build their own palace, adding in buildings like pavilions, towers, and gardens. Like Monopoly, buildings come in many different colors, but diversity is the key to winning this game. Over three scoring rounds, players score points based on the person who has the most buildings of a certain color, and the person with the most points wins!


Players start out with a hand of currency cards. The market board lists four different markets (each with its own currency) offering four building tiles for purchase. In addition, four currency cards are laid out on top. On a player's turn, he/she can TAKE MONEY or BUY A TILE.

A player who takes money can select from the face-up currency cards, and take any one card, OR any combination of cards not exceeding 5 money. When a player takes a currency card, it's replenished immediately so the next player has four cards to choose from as well.


When a player has enough money, a building tile can be purchased from one of the four markets and added to the Alhambra. The cost is listed on the tile, while the market board tells you what currency you need to buy it. For example, the Chambers here costs 9 Blue currency.


However, players do not get change if they overpay. In addition, if players pay with exact change, they get an EXTRA turn! It's always a good idea to pay with exact change whenever possible.

Once a player buys, it's time to add it to the Alhambra! Purchased tiles can either be put aside and placed later, or can be laid on the table next to a player's starting fountain. There's a lot of freedom to place tiles, as there's only one rule: an imaginary man must be able to walk from the fountain to any tile in your Alhambra.

Walls on your tiles can be tricky. Here is an example of an illegal placement.

In this case, there is a black wall on the right side of the tile, so it's impossible to walk to this tower from the fountain without running into the wall! There must be another way to place it...


Much like Monopoly where a player collects sets of properties (Boardwalk, Park Place), Alhambra rewards players for collecting sets of the different color buildings. This board tells you how many points players get each scoring round for having the most buildings of a certain color.



For example, in the first scoring round, a player with the most brown (Arcades) tiles will score three points. In later rounds, players can score points for having the second and third most. Alhambra rewards diversity, and generally players with a focus on three or four colors will beat out those who only focused on a few.

Here, the green player has two towers, while red only has one. In the 1st scoring round. In future scoring rounds, assuming green still had more towers than red, green would score 13 points, but red would also get points for having the second most. If players tie, they both share the points!

THOUGHTS:
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Alhambra is a game that's easy to pick up, in part because it shares some of the elements of Monopoly while offering its own twists and opportunities for strategy. There's not a lot of direct conflict in the game, because everyone is focusing on his/her own palace. However, competition can get fierce for the tiles, and you'll often have to decide between getting the tile you want or stopping someone from getting a tile that will let them soar ahead.

This is a family game at heart, in part because no one is directly harming another. At the end of the day, it's all about that early bird who gets the worm - or in this case, the game-winning Seraglio.

What do you think about Alhambra? Leave a comment and tell me what you think.