12 Rivers cover
2025BGG rank #4,650

12 Rivers

by Romain Caterdjian · Good Games Publishing

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Players2–4
Time45–75m
ComplexityLight
Age10+

About the game

What is 12 Rivers?

You are the leader of a tribe whose people explore the fabled twelve rivers flowing from a mystical lake high in the mountains. Your goal? To find the magical coloured pearls that roll down the rivers in the current. Perhaps a helpful fairy may help you on your quest! Where the rivers converge there is a village where many people and animals live in harmony. There you can make life-long friends and deliver the pearls you have collected, to be used to heal, grow, and ensure another prosperous year for all. In each of 5 rounds of play, take turns paying camp cards (resources) to place your 3 tribe tokens into various slots along the rivers, to get the magic pearls you need. Pay more camp card resources to place higher up the rivers to pick pearls earlier. However, with clever placement and use of camp card powers, you can still get valuable pearls efficiently downstream. Use your Tribe tokens to block then collect magic pearls that flow down the 12 rivers. Collect pearls needed by villagers to ensure prosperity for the village at the bottom of the 12 Rivers. Once all tribe tokens are placed, release the magic pearls to roll down the rivers. Then collect a pearl at each tribe token you placed, and store it on your Alpaca for now. Remaining pearls roll downstream to be blocked and picked at other tribe tokens, or end in the lake. Along the way you will pick up helpful fairy tokens, and try to match Alpaca goals that reward you with points for collecting sets of particular pearl colours first. To score the pearls you collect, transfer them to villagers you recruit from the village, and strive to score their bonus goals too. After 5 rounds the player with the most points wins. —description from the publisher

How it plays

Mechanics

End Game BonusesHand ManagementMulti-Use CardsOpen DraftingPhysical RemovalSet CollectionWorker Placement

On the shelf

Categories

Fantasy

Questions players ask

Questions to bring to BoardGameBrain

  • How do setup and the first turn work in 12 Rivers?
  • When does scoring happen and what ends the game?
  • How should the table resolve an unusual timing or rules interaction?