Clans of Caledonia, is an economic game that takes place in 19th century Scotland. At this time, Scotland made the transition from an agricultural to an industrialized country that heavily relied on trade and export. In the following years, food production increased significantly to feed the population growth. Linen was increasingly substituted by the cheaper cotton and raising sheep was given high importance. More and more distilleries were founded and whisky became the premium alcoholic beverage in Europe.
In the game each player takes on the role of a Scottish clan as they work to expand their holdings and increase their wealth. Clans of Caledonia is an area control meets resource management meets market manipulation game. Expanding your holdings requires lots of money and the only way to earn money is by expanding intelligently, fulfilling contracts, and manipulating the common market to buy low and sell high.
Every turn, players can take one of eight different actions:
- Trade
- Obtain 1 export contract
- Expand
- Shipping Upgrade
- Tech Upgrade
- Hire a Merchant
- Fulfill export contract
- Pass
When players run out of money, they pass and collect a passing bonus. The next round is the production phase. In this phase each player collects basic resources, refined goods and cash from their production units built on the game map. Each production unit built makes income visible on the player mat. Refined goods require the respective basic resource. The game comes to an end at the conclusion of the fifth round. At this time players will earn points from several different things and whoever has the highest score will win. Available here.