Overview

Brass: Lancashire is an economic strategy game set during the Industrial Revolution in Lancashire, England (1770-1870). Players build and develop industries (Cotton Mills, Coal Mines, Iron Works, Shipyards, Ports), establish canal and rail networks, and sell cotton to earn victory points. The game plays over two eras (Canal and Rail), with scoring at the end of each. The player with the most VPs after the Rail Era wins.

Components

• 1 Game Board
• 4 Player Mats
• 4 Character tiles
• 4 Income Markers, 4 VP Markers
• 66 Location and Industry cards
• 12 Distant Cotton Market tiles
• 1 Distant Cotton Market Marker
• 1 Deck tile
• 4 Player Aids
• 148 Industry tiles (37 per color)
• 56 Link tiles (14 per color)
• 24 Coal cubes, 16 Iron cubes
• 67 Money tokens

Setup

1. Place board. Set up Coal and Iron Markets. Place Distant Cotton Market tiles.
2. Each player takes: Player Mat, 30 pounds, Character tile, Link tiles, Industry tiles (stacked by type on mat), VP marker on 0, Income marker on 10.
3. Deal 8 cards to each player.
4. Shuffle Character tiles randomly on Turn Order Track.
5. Remove Location cards by player count: 2P remove blue + teal; 3P remove teal; 4P use all.
6. Set up Deck tile during Canal Era setup (cards beneath it are reserved for Rail Era).

Turn Structure

Eras and Rounds

• Canal Era then Rail Era, each played in rounds.
• Rounds per era: 4P = 8 rounds, 3P = 9 rounds, 2P = 10 rounds.
• First round of Canal Era: each player performs only 1 action.

Player Turn

1. Perform 2 actions (discarding 1 card per action).
2. Place all money spent on Character tile (for turn order).
3. Refill hand to 8 cards from Draw Deck.

End of Round

• Rearrange turn order: least money spent goes first.
• Return spent money to Bank.
• Collect income (positive or negative).
• Exception: No income after final round of the game.

Actions

Build

Place an Industry tile from your Player Mat onto a board location.

• Location card: build at named location (even outside network).
• Industry card: build matching industry at a location in your network.
• Pay money cost. Consume required coal and/or iron.
• Coal Mines/Iron Works: place resource cubes. Shipyards: flip immediately when built.

Network

Place a Link tile for canal (Canal Era) or rail (Rail Era).

• Canal: costs 3 pounds. 1 Link per route.
• Rail: costs 5 pounds + 1 coal per link. 1 or 2 Links per route.

Develop

Remove 1 or 2 Industry tiles from Player Mat (consuming iron), to access higher-level tiles.

Sell (Cotton)

Flip Cotton Mill tiles by selling to the Distant Cotton Market or through connected Ports.

• Distant Cotton Market: Draw a tile; if the arrow points down, the market price drops. Cotton sells if the marker hasn’t passed the red zone.
• Port: Flip a connected Port tile to sell cotton through it.

Loan

Take 10, 20, or 30 pounds. Move Income Marker back 1, 2, or 3 income levels respectively.

Pass

Skip an action but must still discard a card.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

Scoring at end of each era:

1. Score Links: Each Link tile scores 1 VP per beer barrel icon in adjacent locations. Remove Links after scoring.
2. Score Flipped Industry Tiles: Score VPs from bottom-left of flipped tiles.

End of Canal Era additional steps:

• Remove all level 1 Industry tiles from board.
• Reset Distant Cotton Market. Shuffle deck (including cards under Deck tile) into new Draw Deck with Deck tile inserted near bottom.

End of Rail Era additional scoring:

• Score 1 VP per 10 pounds remaining.

Winner: Most VPs. Tiebreaker: highest income, then most money.

How Tiles Flip

| Industry | How it Flips | |———-|————-| | Cotton Mill | Sell action (Distant Market or Port) | | Port | Sell action (used to sell cotton) | | Coal Mine | Last coal cube removed | | Iron Works | Last iron cube removed | | Shipyard | Immediately when built |

When flipped, advance Income Marker by spaces shown on tile.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

Connected Locations

Traced through Link tiles (any player’s). Required for Industry card builds, coal consumption, and Port-based selling.

Coal Consumption

• From closest connected unflipped Coal Mine (free).
• If no connected mine, purchase from Coal Market (requires connection to market trade icon on Ports or board edges).

Iron Consumption

• From any Iron Works on board (no connection needed, free).
• If none available, purchase from Iron Market.

Distant Cotton Market

• When selling cotton, draw a Distant Cotton Market tile.
• If the arrow points down, move the market marker down one space.
• If the marker passes the red line, cotton cannot be sold to the Distant Market.

Overbuilding

You may overbuild your own lower-level tiles or opponent’s lower-level Coal Mines in your network.

Negative Income

Pay the negative amount to the Bank. If unable, remove Industry tiles from board at half cost. If still short, lose 1 VP per pound.

Deck Tile

During Rail Era, the Deck tile is inserted near the bottom of the Draw Deck (2 cards per player beneath it). When reached, it signals the final rounds.

Canal Era Restrictions

• Only 1 Industry tile per location during Canal Era.
• Rail Era allows multiple tiles per location.

Market Mechanics

When Coal Mines or Iron Works are built connected to market trade icons, cubes move to market spaces (most expensive first), earning money.

Player Reference

Turn Summary:

1. Perform 2 actions (1 card discarded per action)
2. Place spent money on Character tile
3. Refill hand to 8 cards

Starting Resources: 30 pounds, Income level 10, 0 VP

Action Quick Reference:

Action	Cost	Card Required
Build	Tile cost + resources	Location or Industry card
Network (Canal)	3 pounds	Any card
Network (Rail)	5 pounds + 1 coal per link	Any card
Develop	Iron (1-2)	Any card
Sell	None (may need Port connection)	Any card
Loan	-1/-2/-3 income levels	Any card
Pass	Nothing	Any card (still discard)

Rounds per Era: 2P=10, 3P=9, 4P=8

Industries in Lancashire:

• 12 Cotton Mills
• 8 Ports
• 6 Shipyards
• 4 Iron Works
• 7 Coal Mines