Overview

Elfenland is a route-planning and hand-management game where young elves race to visit as many towns as possible across Elfenland using various forms of transportation: dragons, unicorns, giant pigs, elfcycles, troll wagons, magic clouds, ferries, and rafts. Players place transportation counters on roads and then play matching travel cards to move along those routes. After 4 rounds, the elf who has visited the most towns wins.

Components

• 1 game board
• 6 Elf Boots (player pawns)
• 120 Town Pieces (20 per player color)
• 48 Transportation Counters (8 each of Dragon, Unicorn, Giant Pig, Elfcycle, Troll Wagon, Magic Cloud)
• 6 Obstacles (red border)
• 72 Travel Cards (12 each of 6 types)
• 12 Town Cards (green backs, for variant)
• 4 Round Cards
• 6 Transportation Charts
• 1 Starting Player Card

Setup

1. Place Round Cards stacked 1 on top through 4 on bottom in the top-right corner.
2. Separate Transportation Counters from Obstacles. Shuffle counters face down in a pile; turn 5 face up.
3. Each player takes a Transportation Chart and one Obstacle.
4. Oldest player receives the Starting Player Card.
5. Each player takes an Elf Boot and 20 Town Pieces of one color. Place all boots in Elvenhold. Place Town Pieces on each of the other 20 towns.
6. Set Town Cards aside (variant only).

Turn Structure

Each round consists of 6 phases:

Phase 1: Deal Travel Cards

Shuffle all Travel Cards. Deal until each player holds 8 cards.

Phase 2: Draw Secret Transportation Counter

Starting with the Starting Player, each player draws 1 face-down counter and keeps it secret.

Phase 3: Draw Additional Counters

Starting with the Starting Player, each player draws 1 counter (face up or face down) and places it face up in front of them. Repeat until each player has drawn 3 counters (4 total with the secret one). When taking a face-up counter, immediately flip a face-down one to replace it (always 5 face up). Maximum 5 counters per player.

Phase 4: Plan Travel Routes

Starting with the Starting Player, players take turns placing one Transportation Counter face up on a road (one counter per road). A counter must be suitable for that road’s terrain type (per the Transportation Chart). Instead of a counter, a player may place their Obstacle (once per game, on a road that already has a counter; not on rivers/lakes). Players may pass; if all pass consecutively, the phase ends.

Phase 5: Move Elf Boots

Starting with the Starting Player, each player moves their boot along roads/rivers, collecting Town Pieces from each town visited. Requirements:

• The road must have a Transportation Counter on it.
• Play matching Travel Card(s) for the counter and terrain.
• If terrain shows a double symbol: play 2 matching cards.
• If an Obstacle is present: play 1 additional matching card.
• Rafts: no counter needed; play Raft cards per the chart (1 downriver, 2 upriver/lakes).
• At turn end, reduce hand to 4 cards max.

Phase 6: Finish the Round

• Remove the top Round Card. Pass Starting Player Card left.
• Each player returns all Transportation Counters except one (kept secret or face up).
• Remove counters from the board; shuffle returned and face-down counters together.
• Used Obstacles are removed from the game.

Actions

Transportation Requirements by Terrain

Transport	Plains	Woods	Desert	Mountains
Dragon	1 card	2 cards	1 card	1 card
Unicorn	–	1 card	2 cards	1 card
Giant Pig	1 card	1 card	–	–
Elfcycle	1 card	1 card	–	2 cards
Troll Wagon	1 card	2 cards	2 cards	2 cards
Magic Cloud	2 cards	1 card	–	1 card
Raft	River only: 1 card downriver, 2 cards upriver/lake

”–” means that transport type cannot use that terrain.

Special Moves

• Caravan: Instead of the matching card(s), play any 3 cards (any types) to travel a road that has a counter. With an Obstacle, play 4 cards instead. Caravans cannot use rivers/lakes.
• Ferries: Cross the great lakes (Mare Magnum and Mare Nebulae) by playing 2 Raft cards per lake segment.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

The game ends after 4 rounds. The player who collected the most Town Pieces wins. Tiebreaker: most Travel Cards remaining in hand.

Early victory: If a player collects all 20 Town Pieces before the end of round 3, they win immediately.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• A player may use the same road multiple times in one turn, paying the full card cost each time.
• Transportation Counters placed on roads may be used by all players, not just the one who placed them.
• Only one Transportation Counter per road; only one Obstacle per road.
• Obstacles cannot be placed on rivers or lakes.
• Players may pass during the route planning phase and still place later, but if all players pass consecutively, the phase ends.
• Players retained from previous rounds may carry over one counter (secret or face up).

Player Reference

Phase sequence: Deal Cards > Draw Secret Counter > Draw Additional Counters > Plan Routes > Move Boots > Finish Round

Hand limit: 8 cards at start of round, 4 cards at end of movement

Counter limit: Maximum 5 per player

Obstacle: Once per game, on a road with an existing counter, adds +1 card cost

Caravan: 3 any cards (4 with obstacle) instead of matching cards, roads only

Winning: Most Town Pieces after 4 rounds (tie: most cards in hand)