Regolamento

Regolamento - Via Gladiola

Via Gladiola

You’re about to take on the legendary 4-days marches of Nijmegen: walking 50 km a day, 4 days in a row. The crowds cheer. A shiny medal lies ahead. And every step counts...
In Via Gladiola, each turn you decide whether to keep walking, rest a bit, or lay down a heavy gladiola. Play your cards in sequence to advance, but watch your pace. Push too far and you'll end up with blisters.
After 4 days whoever has the fewest blisters wins.

Game Components

49
Distance cards (1–49 km, each unique, showing 0–5 blisters (Blister symbol) and 3 pace intervals)
4
Start cards (value 0)
6
Finish cards (value 50, 0–2 blisters Blister symbol)
8
Gladiola cards (1–5 blisters Blister symbol)

Setup

  1. Place the Start card (0 km) marked Day 1 face up in the center of the table. This begins the walk.
  2. Shuffle all 49 distance cards, the 6 Finish cards, and the 8 Gladiola cards together into a single draw pile.
  3. Deal 8 cards to each player. Keep these secret.
  4. The player who most recently went for a walk begins.

Game Play

The game is played in 4 rounds (Day 1 to 4).

Players take turns clockwise. On your turn, choose one of the following actions: Walk, Rest or Play a Gladiola.

Walk

Play 1 card from your hand. It must be of higher value than the top card of the walk pile and cannot be a Gladiola. Place it face up on top of the walk pile.

The more you push yourself (the bigger the difference), the more cards you have to draw. Moving too far is not allowed. The table below shows the ranges:

Up to +5 Safe pace Draw no card
+6 to +10 Pushed too far Draw 1 card
+11 to +15 Overexerted Draw 2 cards
+16 or more Too far Not allowed

If you play a FINISH card (50 km), the day ends immediately. Take the START card for the next day and place it in the centre of the table to begin a new walk pile.

Rest

Draw 1 card from the draw pile. Sometimes resting is better than pushing yourself too far.

Play a Gladiola

Play 1 Gladiola card from your hand (only during Day 4). Place it beside the walk pile. Gladiolas do not affect the walk pile. Playing a Gladiola is a good way to skip your turn without drawing a card.

Gladiola symbol You may only play Gladiola cards during Day 4, the final day of the game.

Empty Draw Pile

If the draw pile runs out, take all cards from the oldest completed day (starting with Day 1), except the START card (0 km). Shuffle these cards to form a new draw pile. If the draw pile runs out again later, repeat this with the next oldest day (Day 2, then Day 3).

Card layout

Each card shows you the following information:

  1. Value (0-50 km).
  2. Blisters Blister symbol (0-5) which count as penalty points toward your final score. Less is better!
  3. Pace indicator shows how far you can advance from that card and how many cards you may need to draw from the draw pile.

Example: the top card of the walk pile is 21.

  • If you play 22-26, you draw nothing.
  • If you play 27-31, you draw 1 card.
  • If you play 32-36, you draw 2 cards.
  • You cannot play a 37 or higher.

Game End

When Day 4 ends, it is time for final scoring:

  • Each player adds up the number of blisters (Blister symbol) on the cards remaining in their hand.
  • The player with the fewest blisters wins.
  • If tied, the player with fewer cards wins.
  • If still tied, players share the victory.

Variant

To add a bit of strategy, you can play with this rule: the game ends immediately when a player plays their last card. Score the game as usual.

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