How to Play

The Great Zimbabwe

2-5 players 90-150 min 7.8 Board Game Geek Rating

Ancient African tribal leaders compete to build impressive monuments honoring their chosen god. Players develop logistics networks to transport ritual goods, using craftsmen and resources strategically. Each god provides unique benefits but demands different victory requirements. Success requires balancing economic development, technology, and worship while optimizing limited actions per turn in this race.

Published 2012

Get Ready

Setup the game with these step-by-step instructions before diving into your turn.

Understand resource types

Cattle, clay, wood, ivory, diamonds, and gold are considered resources; ritual goods (both primary and secondary) are not classified as resources

Note component limitations

Only cardboard pieces are limited (3 craftsmen of each type, shaman resources, water tiles); wooden pieces like monument discs, cattle, and resource usage tokens are unlimited

Respect starting locations

Starting locations block resource placement, craftsman placement, water tile placement, and monument placement

Set Victory Requirement cap

VR is limited to 40 maximum; no action can raise VR above 40, though Victory Points themselves are unlimited

On Your Turn

What you can do during your turn.

Take technology cards

When taking a technology card, you must also pay for and place that craftsman on the board during the same turn; multiple cards can be taken at once

Observe craftsman restrictions

One player can never place both the first primary and a secondary craftsman of the same type (color) on the same turn, nor take both technology cards of a single type (e.g., both potters)

Place craftsmen legally

Place craftsmen within range (without hub use) of a required resource not already in reach of another craftsman of the same type

Understand secondary craftsman effects

Placing a secondary craftsman immediately obsoletes all primary craftsmen of that type for upgrading; they only function to produce secondary ritual goods thereafter

Produce secondary ritual goods

Secondary craftsmen require both a primary ritual good (which needs a resource to create) and a resource of their own to create the secondary ritual good

Raise prices optionally

You may take a "place a craftsman" action solely to raise prices without actually placing craftsmen

Calculate range for resources

Range can never be extended via hubs for resources; you can count range through monuments without paying hub costs

Calculate range for ritual goods

Range can be extended via hubs for both primary and secondary ritual goods; when tracing delivery routes for ritual goods through any monument, you must use it as a hub and pay the bank

Select specialists or gods

You can only take either 1 specialist or 1 god card on a single turn

Activate specialists

When taking a specialist card, you must pay to activate them on the same turn regardless of whether you use their ability

Benefit from god discounts

Gods with discounting effects pay back retroactively any discount on items already taken (e.g., Gu grants a VR rebate on technology already owned)