Castles of Mad King Ludwig

Players act as contractors adding rooms to an expanding castle, placing tiles one at a time to shape their own floorplan. Each round one player sets prices for a selection of room tiles while others buy rooms; purchases score points for room type, size and placement, and completed rooms grant special rewards. Master Builder duties rotate each round, changing which rooms are available and how much they cost. Endgame scoring awards bonuses for meeting variable kingly demands, most-common room types and other goals to determine the highest-scoring castle.

Players: 1–4 best 4
Playing time: 90 min
Age: 13+
Complexity: 2.6 / 5

7.1 on Ludoya from $45.24Post-NapoleonicEnd Game BonusesTile PlacementSet Collection

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Full stats in Ludoya

784
Plays logged: 520
Players: 1h 5m
Average play: 152
In collections: 22
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7.1/10

from 88 Ludoya reviews

Garfield7.0
#50 Build your castle and score points for building it in a smart way. I like the choosing tile mechanism and how easy the game is. [c] Theme: ★★☆☆☆  Gameplay: ★★☆☆☆  Interaction: ★★☆☆☆  Artwork: ★★☆☆☆  Luck: ★★★☆☆  Strategy: ★★★☆☆  Components: ★★☆☆☆  Play duration: ★★★★☆  Easy to teach: ★★★☆☆  Rules quality: ★★★★☆  Setup time: ★★★☆☆  No downtime: ★★★★☆  Replay value: ★★★☆☆  [/c]

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Rules questions

Answered from the rulebook by Ludoya's rules assistant.

Can I place a room diagonally or with entrances that don't line up?

No — a new Room must connect at least one entrance to an entrance on an already placed Room, may be rotated in 90° increments, may not overlap other Rooms, and you must keep at least one external entrance open (see placement rules) (page 9).

When do connection bonuses and adjacency penalties apply?

You resolve bonuses/penalties immediately when you place a Room — you score the new Room's bonus/penalty and any effects triggered on other already-placed Rooms as a result of that placement (pages 10–11).

If there are coins on a Room when someone buys it, who gets those coins?

Coins on a Room may be used as part (or all) of the buyer's payment to the Master Builder; if the coins on the tile equal or exceed the price, the buyer keeps any coins left over after paying the Master Builder; when the Master Builder buys a Room, their payment goes to the supply (pages 7–8).

Can I buy a Room even if I have nowhere to place it?

No — you may not buy a Room if you have nowhere you can legally place it (page 9).

Where and when can I place Downstairs Rooms?

Downstairs Rooms can only be connected to the darker end of Stairs tiles, to other Downstairs Rooms, or to downstairs Hallways, and you cannot buy a Downstairs Room until you have at least one Stairs tile (page 9; details page 15).

What makes a Room "complete" and what happens when I complete one?

A Room is complete when all of its entrances are connected to entrances on other Rooms (an entrance blocked by a wall prevents completion); when you complete a Room you immediately gain its completion reward, and you may resolve multiple completions in any order (page 12).