Century: Eastern Wonders (2018)

How to Play Century: Eastern Wonders

Setup

1. Prepare the Map – Sort all market tiles by trade symbol, remove one tile of each symbol, shuffle the rest, and build the map. First-time players should use the standard starting layout.
2. Place Port Tiles – Set the four port tiles at each corner of the map.
3. Prepare VP Tiles – Shuffle the VP tiles (excluding the Closed Port tile) and place one face-up on each port. Shuffle the Closed Port tile into the top five tiles of the VP pile, then place this stack near the board.
4. Bonus Tiles – Sort all bonus tiles by type and stack the VP bonus tiles in ascending order (6 VP on top).
5. Player Setup – Each player receives a player board, a matching boat, and 20 outposts. The first player is the one who was most recently on a boat or choose randomly.
6. Starting Cubes – In reverse turn order, each player chooses starting cubes out of 4 combinations from the supply and places their boat on any market tile.

Turn Structure

On your turn, you may move your boat (or not) and then take one action.

Movement

• Move to an adjacent tile for free.
• Continue moving by placing one cube from your cargo hold onto each tile you leave.
• If you end movement on a tile with another player’s boat, you must pay them one cube from your cargo.
• Collect any cubes on the tile after paying other players.

Actions

• Port – If your boat stops on a port, you may fulfill the requirements on the VP tile at the port to claim it. If the Closed Port tile is revealed, it will block that port until moved.
• Harvest – Take two yellow cubes from the supply.
• Market – If you’re on a market tile (an island), you may build an outpost (paying cubes based on the number of outposts already there) and/or trade cubes according to the market’s exchange rate. Please remember that you can only trade when you have your outpost on that market tile.

Cargo Limit

At the end of your turn, you may only keep as many cubes as your cargo hold allows (starting at 10).

Game End

When a player claims their 4th VP tile, the game will end after finishing the current round. Players total their VP from tiles, uncovered spaces on their board, bonus tiles, and non-yellow cubes in their cargo hold (each worth 1 point). The highest score wins; ties go to the player who took the last turn.

Why Century: Eastern Wonders Delivers a New Breeze to the Engine-Building Experience

Both Century: Spice Road and Century: Eastern Wonders revolve around the same core idea — building an efficient system to turn spices into points. But where Spice Road asks you to assemble a powerful deck of trading cards to chain the right conversions, Eastern Wonders moves that “engine” onto the map itself.

In Eastern Wonders, your efficiency is shaped by the route you sail across the islands, choosing the best sequence of stops to gather and upgrade spices while spending as little movement as possible. The entire map of islands is visible from the start, making it more of a strategic puzzle with open information, while Spice Road layers unpredictability into both the scoring row and the ever-changing market of cards.

Player interaction also takes a new form. In Spice Road, competition happens in the card market — snapping up the trade cards your rivals want or stealing a key Point card right in front of their eyes. In Eastern Wonders, it’s all about positioning: reaching valuable islands first, forcing opponents to spend extra movement or resources, or claiming an outpost early to raise their building costs later.

The result is two closely related games that reward different strategic instincts: Spice Road prizes deck synergy and market timing, while Eastern Wonders challenges players to master spatial logistics and positional advantage — all while keeping the elegant core of spice trading intact.

From Sand to Sea – The Ultimate Century Experience

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to merge the smooth engine-building of Century: Spice Road with the tactical movement and area control of Century: Eastern Wonders, From Sand to Sea delivers exactly that — and more.

In this combined mode, your cards don’t just live in your hand; they fuel your movement and interactions across a sprawling, modular island map. Every decision matters — should you sail to a nearby island for an immediate trade, or push farther for a lucrative port before someone else claims it? The familiar satisfied feeling of trading spices and fulfilling point cards is still there, but now it’s paired with the fun of moving your ship, building outposts, and becoming a nuisance in your rivals’ route.

The synergy between the two games creates endless strategic depth. You might focus on building a lean, efficient card engine while keeping your ship agile to scoop up opportunities. Or, you could expand your presence across key islands to control the flow of resources. Timing becomes even more critical — one well-planned turn can chain together movement, trading, and scoring in a way that leaves your opponents scrambling.

With a modular board setup and the variability of card draws, no two plays of From Sand to Sea will ever be the same. Each session feels fresh, unpredictable, and full of tense decision-making moments.

Final Thoughts

Century: Eastern Wonders takes the familiar elegance of the Century series and gives it a bold, nautical twist. By shifting the focus of engine-building from managing a hand of cards to navigating a living map, it delivers a fresh layer of spatial strategy without losing the smooth, accessible gameplay fans love.

Whether you enjoy plotting efficient trade routes, outmaneuvering opponents for key positions, or experimenting with new map layouts, Eastern Wonders offers replayability that will keep your table coming back for “just one more game.” And for those who own other titles in the series, the ability to combine them into epic hybrid experiences like From Sand to Sea opens up even more ways to explore the world of spice trading.