Joraku

"Joraku" is a Japanese term which means advancing to the capital. In Japanese history, sometimes local warlords will lead their armies and move to the capital, claiming that they are there to protect the Emperor from evil forces. In truth, they want to take control of the Emperor and rule the nation. The game Joraku has an interesting combination of two popular game mechanisms - trick-taking and area majority. This combination works well in presenting the whole concept of joraku. 

The game is played over three rounds. There are seven regions on the board, with Kyoto on the left and the other six regions being numbered 1 to 6. There is a little scoring table in each region, specifying the points you can score at the end of each round. You'll score the most points if you have the highest strength. Second and third places will score points too. In the first round, regions far away from the capital are worth more points and Kyoto itself is worth nothing. However by the third round this switches over entirely. In the early game you will compete in regions further away from Kyoto, but throughout the game you will advance towards Kyoto. 

During game setup you will place your daimyo (your clan leader). Everyone will start in a different region. During the game you will deploy troops, move them, move your daimyo, and your can also kill enemy troops. All of this is done through card play. This is where the trick-taking comes in.

There are three suits, and the cards are numbered 1 to 6, matching the regions on the board. In each suit there is one ninja, which is like a joker. At the start of a round cards are dealt out to all players. You will play one card at each trick, and someone will win that trick. Once all your cards are played, the round ends and you do scoring. Most of the trick-taking rules are standard. You must follow suit if you have cards in the lead suit. The largest card wins the trick, regardless of suit. If anyone has played a 6 and another has played a ninja, the ninja wins the trick. The ninja has no value, but it can beat the 6. 

Whenever you play a card, you perform an action. You do this when playing that card, not when resolving the trick. One of the most important things you can do is to deploy troops. You can deploy up to three soldiers, and you must deploy them in the region matching the card value. The number of soldiers you have is limited, so you don't always deploy the maximum number. You need to think about where you want your soldiers to be. If you play the ninja, you can deploy troops anywhere. If you do not deploy troops, you can use the card value to perform actions. You can move your daimyo or soldiers. Your daimyo can kill enemy soldiers. 

When comparing strength, your daimyo is strength 2, and soldiers strength 1 each. In the early game these regions far away from Kyoto are worth more points, so more soldiers will be crowded here. 

Most cards are dealt out at the start of a round, but there are some which are not known. You can somewhat count cards, but you do not have perfect information. Since you have to follow suit, you are not entirely free to do what you want. You can make use of this to limit what your opponents can do. If you can quickly get rid of one suit, you will have more flexibility. There is card passing before a round starts. That can help you adjust your hand, and the cards your opponents give you will offer some insights too. You know that if you don't have a certain card, it is quite likely one of your opponents has it. Most of the time you plan how to play your hand assuming others do have cards that can spoil your plans. The card play part of the game is quite strategic. 

The area majority plays a big part in this game. You must optimise your resource usage. You don't need to win by a lot, you just need to win by a little, but you want to win in as many regions as possible. That's efficiency. 

Winning tricks matters, even though you already perform your action when you play your card. One important reason is, of course, being able to lead the next trick. This gives you some control. Also, when you win a trick, there is a small evaluation done in the region where your daimyo is. You score points based on relative strengths. You want to make sure you are strongest where your daimyo is, because otherwise when you win a trick, you are helping someone else score more points. You can make use of this to take advantage of other players. Let them win the trick, but move your soldiers in to the region of their daimyo so that you can steal some points. It's not a lot, but it can add up.

The green daimyo is in Kyoto now

By game end all daimyos have arrived

Joraku combines trick-taking and area majority, and both mechanisms play important roles in the game. This is a game with much strategic planning and tactical manoeuvring. You have to think carefully about what cards your opponents might have and how they might be used against you.