
2023 · Animals
Great Western Trail: New Zealand
Manage a sheep station on New Zealand’s South Island around the turn of the 20th century. Players move a runholder along a branching trail, take actions at locations to improve flocks, hire or deploy labourers, and invest in infrastructure and breeds to increase wool value. Reaching Wellington triggers deliveries to domestic or foreign trading posts for income and victory points, then movement continues. Gameplay balances route planning, herd composition, and market opportunities to optimize scoring across multiple deliveries and evolving options.
- Players
- 1–4 best 3
- Playing time
- 75–150 min
- Age
- 12+
- Complexity
- 4 / 5
About the game
- Design
- Publisher
Photos from Ludoya tables
All photos in LudoyaOn Ludoya's tables
Full stats in Ludoya- 274
- Plays logged
- 346
- Players
- 2h 32m
- Average play
- 129
- In collections
- 25
- On wishlists
8.2/10
from 54 Ludoya reviews
Mestremuten9.0 Rating: 5/5 Production value: 3/4 Is the game in my collection/Love to have?: 1/1
First impressions · 1 play
Rules questions
Answered from the rulebook by Ludoya's rules assistant.
If I pass over tiles with a hand (fee) and don't have enough money, do I still have to pay or does it stop my movement?
You may still move even if you cannot fully pay hands; pay as much as you can and continue, and you never pay fees retroactively (you only pay what you can at the moment). (See page 7.)
If I land on a neutral tile or my own private building, can I do the local actions and also an auxiliary action?
You may perform each local action on that tile once (in any order) and only if you perform none of the tile’s local actions are you allowed to perform one single auxiliary action instead. (See page 8.)
At Wellington when I reveal sheep for income, do duplicate sheep types count and can I use certificates to boost the total?
You reveal as many different sheep types as you like but each type counts only once (duplicates in hand don’t add to breeding), and you may add temporary and permanent certificates to your total breeding value before taking pounds. (See page 9.)
When delivering at Wellington, can I use any disc from my board and are there restrictions or extra costs?
You must choose a trading post whose value is ≤ your breeding total and you cannot deliver to a post you already have a disc on (except local 0 and terminal 21); discs must come from disc spaces that meet the white/dark corner restriction and some placements incur transport or disc‑clearing costs that must be paid immediately. (See pages 9–10.)
Can I play deck‑building or bonus cards immediately during Phase C when I draw up to my hand limit?
No — during Phase C you draw up to your hand limit but you may not play any deck‑building or bonus cards until a later appropriate time (e.g., on your next turn). (See page 11.)
If a hired worker or a harbourmaster tile shows an immediate action, am I required to take that action?
No — when you hire a worker or acquire a harbourmaster tile that shows an immediate action, you may either perform that action immediately or forfeit it. (See pages 13 and 15.)
Score sheet by Ludoya
Great Western Trail: New Zealand score sheet
Every scoring category, from the Ludoya kit. On your phone the totals add up by themselves.
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Game facts (players, playing time, age, credits) from BoardGameGeek.





















