Splendor

Splendor board game box art — English edition.

Become a Renaissance merchant and build the most prestigious trading empire.

Collect gems, build your engine, and attract Nobles for big Prestige points.

Splendor (Base Game)

Players: 2–4 ｜ Playing time: ~30 minutes

Splendor is an engine-building game where you acquire gem tokens (ruby, diamond, etc.), buy development cards, and earn Prestige points. As your tableau grows, you gain permanent gem discounts and can attract Noble tiles for bonus points.

Table of Contents

• 1. Components
• 2. Setup
• 3. How to Play
• 4. End of the Game

< Components >

All Splendor gem tokens including gold wilds.

40 Gem Tokens

• Diamond (white) ×7 / Emerald (green) ×7 / Sapphire (blue) ×7
• Onyx (black) ×7 / Ruby (red) ×7 / Gold (wild) ×5

Development cards separated into three tiers.

90 Development Cards

Noble tiles in Splendor, each worth 3 Prestige points.

10 Noble Tiles

< Setup >

Example of a Splendor setup with 4 players.

1. Sort development cards by tier, shuffle each tier, and stack them in columns.
2. Reveal 4 cards face up from each tier.
3. Shuffle Nobles and reveal players + 1 tiles (e.g., 5 tiles in a 4-player game).
4. Place all gem tokens by color within reach. Return any unused components to the box.

< 2–3 Player Adjustments >

2 players: remove 3 tokens of each color (leave 4 each) · use all 5 Gold (wild) · 3 Nobles in play.

3 players: remove 2 tokens of each color (leave 5 each) · use all 5 Gold (wild) · 4 Nobles in play.

< How to Play >

Development Cards

You buy development cards to gain Prestige points and permanent gem bonuses.

Market display with development cards available to purchase.

Important: When you reserve a development card, you take it into your hand; only you may later buy that reserved card.

Example card: pay 2 white, 2 red, 3 black; gain a red bonus and 1 point.

< Noble Tiles >

At the end of your turn, if your permanent bonuses meet a Noble’s requirement, you automatically claim exactly one eligible Noble. Each Noble is worth 3 Prestige points.

Noble requirement: collect 4 sapphire bonuses and 4 emerald bonuses.

Quick Rules Recap

• Youngest player goes first; play proceeds clockwise.
• On your turn, choose exactly one action:
  1. Take 3 different gem tokens
  2. Take 2 tokens of the same color (if at least 4 remain)
  3. Reserve 1 card (from display or deck top) and take 1 Gold token
  4. Buy 1 development card (from display or your reserved hand)

Reserving Development Cards

You may reserve a face-up card or draw the top of a deck (kept secret). Reserved cards cannot be discarded. Hand limit: 3 reserved cards.

Reserve a card and take a Gold token if available.

Buying Development Cards

Pay tokens equal to the card cost. Gold counts as any color.

Paying tokens to buy a development card.

Return used tokens to the supply. Place purchased cards in your tableau by color, keeping bonuses visible.

Organize purchased cards by color to show discounts and points.

Whenever a card is bought or reserved, refill from the same tier to keep 4 cards face up (leave spaces empty if a deck runs out).

Bonuses

Permanent gem bonuses reduce the cost of future cards.

With enough bonuses, some cards can be bought without paying tokens.

Nobles

Another Noble example with specific bonus requirements.

< End of the Game >

When any player reaches 15 Prestige points, finish the round so all players have equal turns. The highest score wins. If tied, the player with fewer purchased development cards wins.