Vinhos Deluxe Edition – Guide to Rules, Strategy and How to Win
Introduction
Vinhos Deluxe Edition is a game I’ve been playing for a while now, and I gotta say, it’s a pretty solid one. For those who don’t know, Vinhos is a tile-based board game that’s all about running a winery in Portugal. It’s a bit of a brain-burner, but in a good way. The game was first released back in 2010, and the Deluxe Edition, which came out in 2016, added some new features and streamlined some of the rules. It’s designed by Vital Lacerda, who’s known for creating some pretty intense strategy games.
The idea is to manage vineyards, produce wine, and sell it to earn points. You’ve got to deal with stuff like weather and wine quality, and there’s a lot of planning involved. The game is played over six years, with each year having two rounds. You’ve got to be smart about how you use your actions because they’re pretty limited. The Deluxe Edition comes with two sets of rules: the 2010 Reserve rules and the 2016 Vintage rules, which are a bit more complex. I’ll focus on the 2016 rules since they’re the latest.
Quick Tip for Vinhos Deluxe Edition
Don’t ignore the wine fairs! They can be a game-changer if you play your cards right.
Rules for playing Vinhos Deluxe Edition
Alright, let’s dive into the rules. First off, you’ve got a board that represents the different regions of Portugal, and each player has their own estate board. You start with a winery in one region and a few vineyards. Each round, you’ll choose one of the nine actions on the main board. These actions let you do things like buy vineyards, sell wine, hire experts, and enter wine fairs.
You’ve got to keep an eye on the weather too, which can affect your wine production. The quality of your wine is represented by these little wine tiles, and higher quality means more points at the end of the game. Money is super tight in Vinhos, so you’ve got to be careful about how you spend it.
There are also these magnate and renown cubes that you can earn, which give you special benefits and points. At the end of each year, there’s a wine fair where you can showcase your wine for points, but you’ve got to have the right wines to meet the fair’s requirements.
The game ends after six years, and you’ll get points for things like your wineries, vineyards, and how well you did in the wine fairs. The player with the most points wins. There’s a lot more detail to the rules, but that’s the basic idea.
Equipment and Setup for Vinhos Deluxe Edition
For equipment, you’ve got the main game board, player boards, vineyard tiles, winery tiles, cellar tiles, a bunch of different cubes and discs for tracking stuff, and money. The wine tiles are pretty important since they represent your wine.
Setup is a bit of a process. Each player gets their estate board and some starting resources. You place the vineyard tiles on the regions of the main board, and there are specific spots for the weather tiles and wine fair tiles. You’ve got to shuffle some decks of cards and place them too. Once everything’s set up, you’re ready to start playing.
How to Play Vinhos Deluxe Edition and Game Mechanics
The key game mechanics involve choosing actions on the main board, managing your vineyards and wineries, and dealing with the weather and wine quality. You’ve got to plan ahead and make sure you’re ready for the wine fairs.
Setup involves giving each player their starting resources and setting up the main board with all the tiles and cards. Gameplay is turn-based, with each player choosing one action per turn. You’ve got to balance improving your estate with making money and preparing for the wine fairs.
The end of the game comes after six years, and you’ll tally up points from various sources to see who wins.
- Choose an action from the main board.
- Manage your vineyards and wineries.
- Deal with weather effects.
- Produce and sell wine.
- Prepare for and participate in wine fairs.
- End of year scoring and setup for the next year.
How to Win at Vinhos Deluxe Edition
Winning at Vinhos is all about balance. You’ve got to manage your money carefully and make sure you’re producing high-quality wine. Participating in the wine fairs is important, but you’ve got to have the right wines to do well. It’s also worth focusing on getting magnate and renown cubes for the extra points and benefits.
Beginner players should focus on learning how the different actions work and how to manage their estates. Intermediate players can start to plan their moves more strategically and think about how to best use the wine fairs. Advanced players will be looking for ways to maximize their points from all sources and might try to block other players from taking actions they want.
Best Strategies for playing Vinhos Deluxe Edition game
I find the best strategies involve focusing on a few high-quality wines rather than trying to produce a lot of lower-quality ones. It’s also smart to keep an eye on what other players are doing and try to anticipate their moves. You might be able to block them from taking an action they need or beat them to a wine fair.
Sneaky tactics can include things like buying up vineyards that other players want or using your experts to mess with their plans. It’s all fair game as long as you’re following the rules.
Scenarios
If you find yourself with a lot of low-quality wine, you might need to shift your focus to improving your vineyards and cellars to boost your wine quality. If you’re running low on money, you might need to sell some wine or take actions that give you cash.
On the flip side, if you’re doing well with high-quality wine and have a good amount of money, you can start to focus on maximizing your points and maybe even messing with your opponents’ plans.
Frequently Asked Questions about playing Vinhos Deluxe Edition game
Q: How many players can play Vinhos Deluxe Edition?
A: The game is for 1 to 4 players.
Q: How long does a game of Vinhos usually take?
A: It can take anywhere from 60 to 150 minutes, depending on the number of players and how familiar they are with the game.
Q: Can I play Vinhos Deluxe Edition solo?
A: Yes, there’s a solo version of the game with specific rules.
Q: What’s the difference between the 2010 and 2016 rules?
A: The 2016 rules are a bit more streamlined and have some different mechanics, like the simplified bank action.
Q: Is Vinhos Deluxe Edition hard to learn?
A: It can be a bit complex for new players, but once you get the hang of it, it’s really rewarding.
External Links
Vinhos Deluxe Edition Solo Playthrough [Video]
A digital native around since the early days of online gaming communities around 2001. An early contributor to the cult gaming site ClanTemplates, Adam has spent years giving free gaming resources to the community. With BoardCards, Adam is most experienced and commonly writing the articles on Strategy multi-player games like Settlers of Catan and Avalon. His first introduction to board games was via Mancala, an Egyptian-origin stone game and one of the oldest known games still played worldwide. Contact me via email
