LÜBECK

A Card Game by F., B., & G. Meetze

Players: 1 - 4 Compenents: Standard 52 Card Deck Ages: 10+

GAME OVERVIEW GAME LAYOUT

Lübeck is under the heavy influence of regional During the course of the game, cards are laid out in
nobility. Will you have what it takes to establish the following arrangement. This layout example is
Lübeck's financial independence? In order for this only intended to give the player a reference for each
city to thrive, you must rise above kings! of the game’s components which are described in
more detail later on.
Lübeck is a variant of the solitaire game Royal
Assassin by Mark Brown (copyright 1996-2004) in a
friendlier setting. Lübeck can be played using a
standard 52-card deck and one Joker.

Players must work together to complete as many

trades as possible before all the trade opportunities
are gone. Whether working cooperatively or
competitively, the goal is to secure the highest score
in prestige by the end of the game.

HOW TO PLAY SOLITAIRE This is an example of the game midway through.

The main feature and opponent in Lübeck is the A. A shuffled card deck is placed to one side of the
market! Players can familiarize themselves with the table. This deck is called the Market.
rules by first playing a few solitaire games against
the market. B. Cards are drawn from the market deck and placed
into two stacks on the left. These reserve stacks are
As new trade goods are revealed by the market at called the Dock. The dock will contain goods that
the beginning of each round, players use these the player will use to trade with.
goods to trade with nobles who are in the
warehouses. As trades are completed with each C. To the right of the market are four columns of
noble, the noble and their trade goods are removed cards called Warehouses. There is one warehouse
from play. column for each card suit: Spades, Hearts, Clubs,
and Diamonds.
The goal is to complete a trade with all 12 nobles
before the game ends while building and maintaining D. Above one of the warehouses sits a Manager
prestige. Failure to complete all 12 trades will have a who provides special advantages to the player while
negative effect on the player's prestige and ending working in that warehouse.
score.
E. A card may also be placed above a warehouse as
Completing trades isn’t an easy task, as the market Leverage for scoring completed trades.
is very unpredictable and very rarely produces
everything needed. The player will need to make F. To the right of the warehouse columns is a discard
many compensations, constantly adapting their stack called the Boat. Trades that are completed
strategy to succeed. within the warehouses are discarded to this stack.
G. To the right of the boat discard stack is the 4. DEAL THE PURSE CARD: Once the setup is
Prestige stack. This is a collection of score cards complete there should be 2 to 10 noble cards in the
won by the player by successfully completing warehouse columns. Take the rest of the revealed
leveraged trades. cards, shuffle them and remove one card randomly,
placing it to the side. This is the player's purse card.
H. Lastly is the player's Purse. The purse consists
of one card which the player can exchange with 5. MERGE REMAINING CARDS: The rest of the
other cards during the course of the game. cards that were just shuffled should be returned face
down to the bottom of the deck. This newly formed
deck is the market.
SETUP
1. SHUFFLE AND REVEAL A NOBLE: To set up a THE GAME ROUND
game of Lübeck take a standard 52-card deck and
one Joker, shuffle them together and place the stack Game progress is tracked by rounds. There are three
face down on the table. Now reveal one card at a phases during each round that are performed in this
time from the top of the deck, placing the revealed order: Phase One: the Market, Phase Two: the
cards face up beside the deck. Do this until a Jack, Player’s Action, and Phase Three: the Warehouse
Queen, or King is revealed. These three types of Fee.
cards are referred to as nobles in the game of
Lübeck.
PHASE ONE: The Market
2. POPULATE THE FIRST WAREHOUSE: Now
move the revealed noble card into one of the four Supplying Goods to the Docks: The dock
empty warehouse columns. contains two stacks of cards. At the beginning of
each round, starting at the left and proceeding
Nobles are always grouped together by their rightwards deal a card from the top of the market
matching suit: Spades, Hearts, Clubs, and Diamonds. deck face-up creating two stacks of cards. This
Each of the four warehouses are dedicated to one represents the arrival of new goods from the market.
suit. A noble is always placed in a warehouse with If any of these cards are nobles, they are
other nobles matching their suit. If no nobles of the immediately moved to a warehouse, as explained
same suit are in a warehouse, the noble is placed below.
into an empty warehouse column. The cards in each
warehouse column should be fanned downward so Tip: All cards on the dock are public knowledge. The
that all are visible, each overlapping the previous last few cards can be fanned in each dock stack so
card added. that they are easy to see but must remain in the
order placed there.
3. FINISH POPULATING THE WAREHOUSES:
Continue revealing cards one at a time from the deck Nobles: Any nobles on the dock are immediately
and add all discovered noble cards to a warehouse moved to a warehouse column matching their suit,
column. After there are two or more nobles placed in otherwise a new warehouse column is created.
the warehouse columns, keep looking at the next When one or more nobles are moved to a warehouse
number card revealed. If the number card is less column, this may leave an empty dock or unlock
than or equal to the number of nobles revealed, the cards placed during previous rounds.
setup is complete.
Warehouse Manager: In most cases when a Joker
is revealed and placed on the dock, players will want
to move that card to a manager position above one
of the four warehouses. This is not considered a
player action. A warehouse must be occupied by one
or more nobles before a manager can be placed
there.

During each market phase thereafter, the warehouse

manager may be relocated to another warehouse.
This decision must be made before the player action
An example starting position with four nobles phase commences.
About this deck: The deck used in these
Market Closure: Once the market deck is empty
illustrations is a traditional North German deck by
and no more cards can be distributed to the dock,
Altenburger und Stralsunder Spielkarten-Fabriken.
the market closes. The game continues without a
The Queen is marked with a “D” meaning “dame”.
market phase. The warehouse manager can no
The Jack is marked with a “B” for bube, meaning
longer be assigned and must remain in place.
“boy”.
PHASE TWO: The Player’s Action

The player can do only one of the following actions

during each round: 1. Conduct Trade, 2. Apply
Leverage, 3. Transfer Goods, 4. Make
Exchanges, 5. Cancel a Trade, or skip their turn.

A trade is started with the Queen of Diamonds. Additional

Spade number cards with a total value of 7 or more are
required before this trade can be completed.

Trades Interrupted by the Market: During the

market phase a noble might be placed into a
warehouse of an active trade. This temporarily
interrupts that trade. The new noble is now at the
bottom of the warehouse column. The trade will not
be able to continue again until a trade is completed
with the new interrupting noble and that noble is
removed.
1. Conducting Trade A new trade is started
by taking a number card from the top of the dock
and placing it on a noble of the opposing color; red
on black and black on red. Spades and Clubs can be
used to start trades with a Diamond or Heart noble
and vice versa. When more than one noble is in a
warehouse, trades may only be conducted with the
bottom most (last placed) noble in a warehouse
column.
The previous trade with the Queen of Diamonds has been
Only one card may be placed on a trade during a interrupted by the Jack of Diamonds during the market
trade action. During subsequent rounds, the player phase.
can continue to add one card at a time (one per
round) to an existing trade. Warehouse Manager: If a trade is completed
inside a warehouse with a manager above it, all
Any additional cards added to an existing trade must cards in that warehouse are moved to the boat
match the suit of the starting trade card. As an discard stack. This will leave the warehouse
example, if a Five of Diamonds was used to start a completely empty.
trade, only Diamonds can be used during the course
of that trade until it is completed. A player may choose not to use a Joker as a
warehouse manager. The Joker may also be used as
Tip: See what advantages are gained by opening a 14 point wild card on any open trade. A Joker used
trades between two opposite suits. Play a Club on a in this way is not considered a manager and is
Heart noble and a Heart on a Club noble. discarded along with the trade.
Nobles have three different contract values: the Jack 2. Applying Leverage Players apply leverage to
is 11, the Queen is 12, and the King is 13. When the their trades to increase their prestige points. Prestige
player has supplied the noble with enough cards points are used for scoring at the end of the game.
summing up to the contract value and any additional
warehouse fees (which are explained later), the trade To apply leverage, a player takes any number card
is completed. The noble and all cards associated from the dock and places it above one of the
with the completed trade are moved to the boat warehouses with an active trade. The leverage card
discard stack. is placed where the warehouse manger would go.
When discarding cards from completed trades, be A number card of any suit may be placed above a
sure to leave any cards not associated with the trade warehouse as long as the space is empty and an
in the warehouse for the next round. active trade is in process there. Only one leverage
card can be placed above each warehouse.
Tip: Cards may be discarded to the Boat face up.
The Player may choose to reference them during the
course of the game.
 4. Making Exchanges The player may
exchange their purse card with the top card from the
dock, the last card played on any open trade or a
leverage card. The player may conduct as many
exchanges as they want using this action.

Any card of the same suit as the purse card may be

exchanged with. For instance, an Ace of Clubs can be
swapped out with a Nine of Clubs. If the card is of a
different suit, the purse card must be of equal or
greater value than the card being exchanged.

The Four of Diamonds has been placed as leverage over the When the player exchanges the last card placed on
an active trade, the exchanged card must be valid
trade with the Queen of Diamonds.
for the position it's being placed in – being the
noble’s suit or a suit of the active trade. Nobles can
Leverage can not be applied to a warehouse already
not be exchanged.
occupied by a warehouse manager. Likewise a
warehouse manager can not be assigned to a
Any cards placed in leverage position may be
warehouse where a trade is being leveraged.
exchanged, but managers assigned to a warehouse
can not be exchanged.
The Joker is not used for leverage. It only occupies
this space as a warehouse manager.
5. Canceling a Trade A player may use their
player action to cancel an existing trade. To cancel a
When a trade in the same warehouse column is
trade, move the starting trade card and any
completed, the leverage card is removed from that
additional cards associated with that trade to the
warehouse and placed in the prestige stack. The
boat discard stack. Trades can also be canceled
cumulative value of the prestige stack is used for
when the starting trade card is removed by the
scoring at the end of the game. Some amount of
transfer goods action.
leverage is required to win!
The player loses prestige when canceling a trade.
If a leveraged trade is interrupted by another noble,
One prestige card of the player's choice must be
the leverage card remains in place until a trade can
discarded along with the canceled trade cards. If the
be completed in that warehouse.
player does not have any prestige yet, they may still
proceed with canceling the trade.
Tip: Be careful not to go overboard on prestige. Too
much prestige might hinder the player’s ability to
complete all 12 trades!
PHASE THREE: The Warehouse Fee
3. Transfer Goods The player can use their turn
to move any number of cards from open trades. The After the player action is complete, if any one of the
card being moved must be the last card in the number cards remaining on the dock match the suit
current warehouse column. of a noble in an active trade, this is now considered a
fee card.
Cards may only be transferred to a valid position
between warehouses. For example, new trades can The fee card is moved from the dock to the last
be started with a transfer! Trades may also be position in the warehouse column increasing the
closed by a transfer. Nobles are never transferred. trade’s contract value. If multiple cards can be
applied as fees, only the highest value card is used.

The Seven of Spades can be transferred to the open trade

with the Queen of Diamonds. This completes one trade
while canceling another. The Six of Diamonds has been applied as a warehouse fee.
The player will now need to add trade cards totaling a value
of 13 to complete this trade.
Tip: Careful letting these fees grow! The longer The warehouse manager is assigned by the first
trades take, the more likely there might not be player of the round.
enough resources to finish them!
PLAYER ACTION
Warehouse fees are only assessed for active trades. During the player action phase, each player takes
Trades that have been temporarily interrupted do not one action in clockwise rotation around the playing
acquire additional fees until they are reactivated! area.
Fee cards are always placed on top of the last card Players may perform actions on trades started by
added to the bottom of warehouse column. others. Players may also choose to maintain
separate prestige stacks after concluding trades.
Players may use the exchange or transfer action to
move fees out of a warehouse. THE WAREHOUSE FEE
There are no changes to the warehouse fee. Only
Tip: On your next turn, try exchanging one of the
one fee is assigned during each round.
recently placed fee cards to close out a trade!
After the warehouse fee has been assessed, the first
player marker is given to the person who went last.
HOW TO WIN So each player will eventually have two consecutive
turns to use and should plan their strategy
The game ends when the last (and 12th) noble has accordingly.
left the warehouse. Otherwise, the game ends after
all three of the following conditions are met: (1) the SCORING THE GAME
market has closed, (2) the player uses a skip turn All prestige stacks are gathered and added together
action, and (3) no further warehouse fees can be for the final score. The contract value of any nobles
applied. The score is immediately determined by the left in the warehouse are subtracted from the final
amount of prestige points that have been acquired. score.

If there are any nobles left in the warehouses,

combine all their contract values and subtract the
sum from the score. Ignore any warehouse fee cards COMPETITIVE PLAY
from unfinished trades.

As long as the score is positive, the game is won! Apply all the same rules as Cooperative Play with the
following rule changes:

COOPERATIVE PLAY THE PLAYER ACTION

When a player finishes a trade they discard it to their
own boat. Likewise, the player also places any
leverage card attached to the trade into their own
Two to four players can work together to empty all
prestige stack.
the warehouses with the following rule changes:

SETUP SCORING THE GAME

When scoring, each player counts the contract value
During setup wait for three nobles to show up in the
of each noble in their own boat, excluding any trade
warehouses before assessing whether the
cards. The player then adds their prestige cards to
subsequent number cards are equal to or less than
this value. This is the player’s individual score.
the amount of nobles present.
Competitive players must still have at least some
amount of prestige to win the game!
All Players are dealt one purse card during setup. If
there aren’t enough cards available to deal out, deal
Count up the contract values of any nobles left in the
out the purse from the top of the deck while making
warehouses. Subtract this full value from each
sure to place any newly discovered nobles in the
player’s score.
appropriate warehouse.
The player with the highest positive score wins! If
The first player should choose an object as the first
there is a tie, the player with the highest prestige
player marker and place it near them.
wins! If a tie still exists, the player with the fewest
prestige cards is the winner.
MARKET PHASE
When the market supplies goods, there will be one If all players have a negative score, no winner is
more stack created on the dock than there are chosen. So even competitive players must work
players. For a two player game, there will be three together to complete all the contracts!
stacks created and maintained throughout the game.
ADVANCED PLAY Influencing The League
If a player has 1 or more prestige cards they may
choose to use their turn to influence the League.
They can do this by making an exchange with any
THE HANSEATIC LEAGUE non-noble card in a League row. All of the same
exchange rules apply.
Such as life, even careful planning can be foiled by
unforeseen events. Market Closure
Once no more cards are left in the market and all
A League gives the player a glimpse of what will League rows are empty, the market phase is over.
eventually be arriving on the dock. The player can
use the League for better planning or even influence
what eventually arrives on the dock! THE LÜBECK DECK
Advanced players who don’t mind spending a bit The Lübeck deck offers some additional trading
more time planning their next move may want to opportunities to the player.
start expanding the League.
Conducting Trade: A trade can consist of a
Expanding the League combination of both the suit and the trade good
This is a new player action! A Player with 1 or more shown on the first trade card.
prestige cards can use their turn to expand the
League. As long as any additional trade cards match the suit
or trade good, they may be added to an active trade.
Creating New League Rows: Make a new League Suits on the trade cards do not need to match if the
row by dealing out one card from the market placing trade goods match and vice-versa. Aces are not
them from left to right under each dock space. The associated with any trade goods.
League row should be the same size as the dock. In
a solitaire game, there would be two cards placed in
a row underneath the dock.

Players with 1 or more prestige cards can continue to

expand the League by using their turn to add one
additional row. No more than 2 League rows may be
created in single a game.

The trade with the Jack of Spades is still valid. The Three
of Diamonds matches the trade good of the starting trade
card. The Four of Hearts matches the suit. Now only one
more trade card is needed to complete the trade.
A new league row has been created. The player now knows
that the Jack of Spades is coming up during the next market
phase. TRIALS

Managing League Rows With the Market Trials were designed to add a little more flavor to the
During the market phase, League cards are all game while helping the player become more familiar
shifted strait upward. The top League row will be with each of Lübeck’s game components. Try
moved onto the corresponding stack on the dock. tracking scores separately for each trial.
League cards do not shift position laterally, but are
moved directly up maintaining the order they were When setting up the game, take note of the first card
dealt. overturned onto the dock. Match the card with a trial
below.
After all League cards are moved up, deal out the
appropriate amount of cards replenishing the bottom For the really ambitious, combine two trials using the
League row. Each League row should always have second overturned card.
the same amount of cards as the dock unless the
market deck is empty.
Ace – Failure to Launch: No warehouse manger Jack – On Strike: No transfers can take place.
can be assigned during the game.
Queen – Exact Change: Prestige is discarded for
2 – Great Expectations: The player can not leveraged trades that are completed with more than
conduct a trade or exchange using a 10. Instead the exact amount needed.
10’s must be applied as leverage if that option is
available. King – Insolvency: If more than one card can be
applied as a warehouse fee to a single trade, apply
3 – The Aristocrat: Each trade can only be the highest and lowest cards to that trade!
conducted with all odd or all even numbers.
Warehouse fees are unaffected. The Joker may be Joker – The Slacker: For any trades leveraged with
placed on any trade as usual. a card valued at 6 or more, the prestige is discarded
to the boat when the trade completes.
4 – Contraband: Before assessing the warehouse
fee, if any Ace is left on the dock place it sideways Tip: Careful of opponents who start exchanging
next to the prestige stack. Subtract the sideways leverage cards!
cards from the final score.
There’s nothing worse than a slacker with great
In a competitive game, subtract this figure from each expectations!
player’s score.
Don’t Give Up Too Early!
5 – The Miser: The purse card dealt to the player
may not be exchanged.
The market might be getting dangerously low and
6 – The Plague: The player can not trade, exchange several nobles are stubbornly clinging to the
or leverage using a card that matches the suit in warehouse. Don’t give up! The best strategies are
their purse. However, the player may exchange out discovered by those who persevere to the end!
their purse card for another suit.

A player may not conduct an exchange with a Joker. The End

However, if a Joker is dealt to a purse during setup it
should be exchanged with a card on the dock on the
player’s very first turn where it is possible to do so.

7 – Merchant Marine: Close at least three trades

by exchanging the purse card before the game ends.
Subtract 5 prestige points for each trade unmet.

In a competitive game, track this feat collectively.

Subtract the full penalty from each player’s score!

8 – Convoy: If the player skips their turn during two

consecutive rounds, the dock is supplied from the
CREDITS
top of their boat stack during the next market phase. The header graphic by an unknown artist depicts “Lüebek
in the Middle Ages”. The image used in introducing trade
Careful! Nobles that go back into circulation have to contracts was painted by B. Rosel depicting “Merchant
be dealt with again! The Convoy is over when the Vessels of the Hanseatic League”.
market closes, and the game resumes as usual.
The original inspiration of this game was taken from the
9 – Famine: During setup, do not consider number patience game called Royal Assassin by Mark Brown.
cards until there is at least three nobles in the
The original portrait images for the custom deck were
warehouse columns. After dealing purse cards, provided by A Whisper in Time Photography, One
completely remove the remaining revealed cards Lucky Guy and Luke Gordon. Other image assets are
from play instead of placing them at the bottom of credited to Scanrail and Saiko3p. The Map of Lübeck was
the market deck. provided by Karl Baedeker, the Vintage Photo Border by
Fay Ratta.
10 – The Reformation: The player can’t trade,
exchange or leverage using club cards. If the player Many thanks goes to my wife Brooke, my son Gavin,
Kevin Privalle, Tony A, Aurthur Wohlwill, Yann Perrin,
is dealt a club card to their purse during setup, they
Alan, Stefan Tymoshyshyn, 1P Matt, Suyog Kamat,
will be unable to make any exchanges. and all the other playtesters. By their collective effort,
Lübeck became a bustling city living in a standard deck of
Tip: The Reformation might seem impossible, but it cards!
requires a very specific strategy to win. Lübeck the Card Game by F. Meetze
is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
Rule Version 1.2
 If multiple cards match active trades, choose the highest

LÜBECK
•
card

Scoring
RULE SUMMARY – REFERENCE GUIDE
The game ends when all 12 nobles have been removed from play.
Otherwise all three conditions must be met: (1) the market is empty,
Setting Up
(2) the player skips their turn, and (3) no warehouse fees can be
Shuffle a standard deck of 52 cards and one Joker. Reveal one card
assessed. Subtract the contract value of any nobles still in play
at a time face-up.
from the total value of the player’s prestige stack.
• If the card is a noble (a Jack, Queen, or King) move them
to the warehouse column matching their suit. If no
COOPERATIVE PLAY HAS THE FOLLOWING DIFFERENCES :
warehouse matches that suit, place the noble in an empty
warehouse column.
Setting Up
• When two or more nobles are placed in one or more
• Each player gets a purse card
warehouse columns, then when any of the preceding
number cards are equal to or less than the amount of
Market Phase
nobles, this ends the setup.
• There should be one more dock space than there are
players.
At the end of the setup shuffle all revealed cards except nobles
• The warehouse manager assignment is given to the first
together. Deal out one card to the player’s purse before returning
player of each round.
the shuffled cards to the bottom of the deck.
Warehouse Fee
Market Phase
• After the warehouse fee is assessed, pass the first player
1. Move a card from the market to the top of each dock
marker to the player who went last.
• Nobles must be immediately placed in a warehouse
• The Joker can be appointed as a warehouse manager
COMPETITIVE PLAY HAS THE ADDITIONAL DIFFERENCES :
2. A warehouse manger may be reassigned to another warehouse
Player Action
• After market closure a warehouse manager can no longer
• The player finishing a trade discards it to their own boat
be moved
and any leverage card to their own prestige stack
Player’s Action
Scoring
Each player can take one of the following actions or skip their turn:
• Each player adds together the contract value of all noble
cards in their own boat making this their base score.
Conduct a Trade by taking a card from the top of the dock and
• Each player then adds the total value of their prestige to
placing it on a noble in the warehouse.
their base score. Players must have some amount of
• The trade card’s suit must be the opposite color of the
prestige for qualifying to win!
noble; red on black and black on red
• Add together the contract value of all nobles left in play at
• Additional trade cards must match the suit of the first
the end of the game and subtract this figure from each
trade card or the trade good. See the Lübeck deck
players’ score
• Trades are completed by matching or exceeding the
• The player with the highest score wins! The winner must
contract value of the noble (Jack starts with 11, Queen 12
have a positive score
and King 13) and any additional warehouse fees
• Ties are broken with the highest prestige and then by the
lowest amount of prestige cards
When a trade is completed, move the noble and all cards that are
part of the trade to the boat discard.
THE LEAGUE – ADVANCED :
• Any leverage card above the warehouse is moved to the
prestige stack
The league gives the player insight on what is arriving on the dock
• If a manager is present, move all cards in that warehouse
during the next market phase.
to the boat discard, emptying the warehouse completely
Additional Player Actions
Apply Leverage by placing a card from the dock to an empty spot
• A Player with 1 or more prestige cards may use a player
above one of the warehouses
action to expand by dealing a new League row from the
• The warehouse must have an active trade in process
market and placing it beneath the dock or last League row
• Only one card may be used as leverage per warehouse
created
• A warehouse manager can not be present or moved into a
• Each game can have up to 2 League rows
warehouse with a leveraged trade
• A player with 1 or more prestige cards may influence the
• Leverage remains in place when the trade is interrupted
League by exchanging a card from their purse with any
by another noble
non-noble card from one of the League rows
Transfer Goods by moving the last card from one warehouse
Market Phase
column of an open trade to another warehouse column.
• During the market phase, shift all League rows up one
• The card must be placed in a valid position at the end of a
row. Cards from the top League row are placed onto the
warehouse column
Dock. Deal the market to the bottom League row instead
• The player can start, complete, and cancel trades
of directly to the dock
• The player can transfer any number of goods
• The market is considered closed when the market deck
and all League rows are empty
Make Exchanges by swapping the purse card with another card in
play. Dock, warehouse, and leverage cards may be exchanged.
TRIALS – ADVANCED :
• Any card of the same suit may be exchanged
• A purse cards of a different suit must be of equal or higher
Trials are assigned during setup.
value of the card being exchanged
• Take note of the first card overturned onto the dock and
• The player may make multiple exchanges with this action
assign the corresponding trial
• Secondary trials may be added by the using the second
Cancel a Trade by discarding all cards from an open trade to the
overturned card
boat discard along with one prestige card of the players choice if
available. This penalty also applies to trades canceled by using the
Ace – Failure to Launch 8 – Convoy
transfer goods action..
2 – Great Expectations 9 – Famine
3 – The Aristocrat 10 – Reformation
Assessing Warehouse Fees
4 – Contraband J – On Strike
If a dock card matches the suit of a noble involved in an active
5 – The Miser Q – Exact Change
trade, place the card on that trade.
6 – The Plague K – Insolvency
• Only one fee card is added per round
7 – Merchant Marine Joker – The Slacker