Isla Dorada
Overview
Players form a shared expedition exploring a mysterious island. Each round, players bid with adventure cards to control where the single expedition figure moves. Players have secret treasure cards, curse cards, and destiny cards that incentivize visiting certain sites. The game lasts at least 16 rounds (until all exploration markers are placed). The player with the most points from gold, treasures, destiny, and bonuses wins.
Components
- 1 Game board (island map with paths and sites)
- 16 Exploration markers (including 2 red markers for rounds 4 and 9)
- 1 Expedition figure
- Adventure cards (various types: Yak, Kamel, Gonogo, Kayak, Drako, Zeppelin, Shaman, Juju, Ovetos, Sangaia, Bonus, Bongo, and bolt-symbol cards)
- Goal cards (starting treasure cards, standard treasure cards, curse cards, destiny cards)
- Gold tokens
- 1 Leader token
- Bigfoot and Leviathan figures
Setup
- Place the board; put 16 exploration markers on numbered spaces (red on spaces 4 and 9).
- Place the expedition figure at base camp.
- Each player takes 10 gold.
- Separate goal cards by type and shuffle each deck.
- Deal each player: 3 starting treasure cards, 2 destiny cards, 1 curse card.
- Each player keeps 2 starting treasures, 1 destiny card; discards the rest (face down).
- Shuffle and deal 6 adventure cards per player. Place rest as a face-down deck with 4 face-up cards.
- Discard and replace any bolt-symbol cards in starting hands or face-up display.
- Youngest player takes the leader token.
Turn Structure
Each round has 6 phases:
1. Bidding
- Leader places expedition figure on their chosen path, announces bid (number of adventure cards) and destination.
- Clockwise, each player passes or raises the bid. A higher bid for a different path moves the figure.
- Bidding continues until all pass after a bid. Highest bidder becomes leader, discards cards equal to bid.
- Ovetos: Playable when bidding 4+; ends bidding immediately.
- Juju: Played on another player to remove them from bidding this round.
- A player who passed may re-enter bidding later.
2. Moving
Move expedition figure and the lowest exploration marker to the destination site.
3. Being Cursed
Players holding a curse card for the current site must play it face up.
4. Finding Treasures
Players holding treasure cards for the current site play them face up.
- Bonus (+3): Play with a matching treasure card.
- Bongo: Discard to play 1 treasure card of a neighboring site.
5. Cable News (rounds 4 and 9 only)
- Round 4: Each player draws 2 treasure cards, keeps 1.
- Round 9: Each player draws 3 treasure cards, keeps 2.
6. Drawing Adventure Cards
- Starting with leader, clockwise, each player draws 1 free card (from face-up row or deck).
- May buy 1 additional card for 1 gold.
- Maximum hand size: 10 adventure cards (discard excess).
Actions
Adventure Card Types for Bidding
| Card |
Travel Type |
Notes |
| Yak |
Mountain path |
1 card = 1 bid value |
| Kamel |
Sand path |
1 card = 1 bid value |
| Gonogo |
Jungle path |
1 card = 1 bid value |
| Kayak |
Water path (river/lake/sea) |
1 card = 2 bid value |
| Drako |
Air travel / joker |
Value 2, costs 1 gold |
| Zeppelin |
Air travel / joker |
Value 5, costs 3 gold |
| Shaman |
Changes animal card type |
Play with identical animal cards |
Special Cards
| Card |
Effect |
| Ovetos |
End bidding immediately (requires bid of 4+) |
| Juju |
Remove target player from bidding this round |
| Sangaia |
During movement, continue on another same-type path instead of stopping |
| Bonus |
+3 points when played with matching treasure card |
| Bongo |
Play 1 treasure card of a neighboring site |
Makaks, Bigfoot, Leviathan, Antik, Istwa, Marabout, Diawas, Panda, Samedi (each with unique effects).
Scoring / Victory Conditions
Game ends when the last exploration marker is placed (after round 16 minimum). Complete the round, then score:
- 1 point per remaining gold
- Points from played treasure cards
- Points from Bonus cards (+3 each)
- Points from destiny card
- Negative points from played curse cards
Highest total wins.
Special Rules & Edge Cases
- River movement is downstream only; expedition need not stop at first site if river continues, but must stop at lake/sea entrance.
- Air travel can reach any site; cannot bid 0 for air travel.
- Bigfoot blocks land paths; Leviathan blocks water paths.
- Treasure cards for already-visited sites cannot be played until the expedition returns there.
- Cards in hand and gold amount are public knowledge; card contents are secret.
- Drako/Zeppelin can serve as jokers for any path type when paying for non-air travel.
Player Reference
| Phase |
Action |
| 1 |
Bid adventure cards for expedition movement |
| 2 |
Move expedition + place exploration marker |
| 3 |
Play curse cards (mandatory) |
| 4 |
Play treasure cards (optional) |
| 5 |
Cable news (rounds 4 & 9 only) |
| 6 |
Draw adventure cards (1 free + 1 for 1 gold) |
Game length: Minimum 16 rounds (until all exploration markers placed).
Hand limit: 10 adventure cards.