A Perfectly Legal Business

Amber is the lifeblood of the city—and the Empire would very much like to tax, inspect and confiscate every last shard of it.

You are, of course, an entirely respectable merchant. The concealed compartments, forged papers and suspiciously well-paid contacts are merely signs of excellent customer service. Move valuable Amber through forest trails, lantern-lit canals and heavily guarded trade roads, keep the patrols guessing and try not to attract more Heat than your competitors.

After all, you are Definitely Not Smugglers.

What You Do

Each round, you secretly prepare a shipment from your Cargo cards. Valuable Amber earns money, while ordinary cargo and hidden compartments help conceal what you are actually transporting.

You then choose a route:

Safer routes offer smaller rewards; dangerous routes pay more; Patrol makes one route harder to use; Demand makes another route more profitable; too many players choosing the same route creates Overcrowding.

Everyone reveals their route at the same time. Your shipment’s Concealment is compared with its total Load, including the route’s Control, Patrols, Overcrowding and your current Heat. A well-hidden shipment passes. A poorly prepared one may need a discreet bribe—or fail completely.

Limited Favor lets you call on useful Contacts. They can reduce Control, hide Amber, change routes after the reveal, exploit overcrowding or interfere with another player’s shipment. Timing matters: every Contact can save a valuable delivery, but you cannot rely on them forever.

Successful Amber deliveries earns Coins based on the chosen route. Riskier routes bring greater profit, while Demand can make an overlooked route suddenly very attractive. Frequent success also draws attention: Patrol and Demand shift between routes from round to round, constantly changing the safest and most profitable choices.

Players may also Lie Low, sacrificing an entire shipment to reduce Heat. It earns nothing—but sometimes looking innocent is more valuable than making money.

After six rounds, the player with the greatest fortune after final Heat penalties wins and is officially declared the city’s most reputable merchant.

Disclaimer: Game material or parts of game material have been enhanced or partially generated with help of AI tools.