Lost Cities

Description

"Lost Cities" is a strategic two-player card game emphasizing expedition building, risk management, and multiplier investments to maximize scores over three rounds. Key mechanics include: - *Expedition construction* Players play cards in ascending order (not necessarily consecutive) to color-matched expeditions, starting with optional handshake investments lower than 2. - *Turn sequence* Mandatory: play one card to an expedition or discard pile, then draw one from deck or discard top. - *Handshake multipliers* One handshake doubles, two triples, three quadruples expedition value, applied after -20 base penalty. - *Scoring per expedition* Sum of card ranks minus 20, multiplied by handshakes (1+ required), plus 20-point bonus for 8+ cards; negatives possible. - *Game end and rounds* Ends when deck empties; discard hands, score all started expeditions; three matches total scores. - *Optional sixth color* Added in 2019 edition, usable at players' choice. Lost Cities is a Kosmos two-player card game with a deck of ranks 2-10 across five (optionally six) colors and three handshakes per suit, using a board for organized discards. Players alternate turns building expeditions—color suits representing archaeological sites—by playing ascending cards or handshakes (as risky investments), then drawing. Expeditions must score if started: card values sum minus 20 base, multiplied by handshakes (x2/x3/x4), with +20 for eight-plus cards; low totals risk losses, as shown in examples like a 30-point expedition netting +10, a multiplied 40-point (eight cards) yielding +80, or a 17-point with one handshake resulting in -6. Play continues until deck depletion, hands discarded, scores tallied per round across three matches for cumulative victory.