Brass: Birmingham rules – how to play and how to score

Brass: Birmingham quick rules

The goal

The game is played over two eras, the Canal Era then the Rail Era. At the end of each, your Link tiles and flipped Industry tiles score victory points. The player with the most after the Rail Era wins.

Your turn

Each era has 8 rounds with 4 players, 9 with 3 and 10 with 2. On your turn, you perform two actions, only one in the very first round, and discard a card for each, even to pass. Then refill your Hand to 8 cards while the Draw Deck lasts.

Money and turn order

Money you spend goes on your Character tile. At the end of the round, whoever spent the least goes first next round. Everyone then takes their income, or pays it if negative; if you can’t, you sell industries for half their cost, then lose a point per pound short.

Your network

A location is part of your network if it holds one of your industries or is next to one of your links. Locations are connected through anyone’s links: that’s how coal and beer travel.

Building

Only Build needs a specific card: a Location card builds in that location, even outside your network; an Industry card builds that industry in your network. You place the lowest level tile and pay money, coal and iron. In the Canal Era, only one of your industries per location.

Coal, iron and beer

Coal comes from the closest connected Coal Mine, otherwise from the market if you’re connected to a Merchant. Iron comes from any Iron Works, no connection needed. Beer comes from your Breweries or a connected opponent’s Brewery. An emptied tile is flipped and gives its owner income.

Selling

Sell flips your Cotton Mills, Manufacturers and Potteries connected to a Merchant that buys that good, for the beer shown. The beer next to the Merchant also gives its bonus.

The other actions

Network: a canal link for £3, or a rail link for £5, or two for £15 and a beer, each rail costing one coal. Develop: remove one or two tiles from your Player Mat, one iron each. Loan: £30, income down 3 levels. Scout: three cards for two Wild cards.

The end of an era

When everyone has played their last cards, each link scores one point per link icon in the two locations it connects, then each flipped industry scores its points. After the Canal Era, level 1 industries leave the board.

Beginner traps

Don’t be afraid of loans: final income scores nothing. Level 2 and higher industries score in both eras. Keep access to beer, and get a Coal Mine and an Iron Works going during the Canal Era.

How to score Brass: Birmingham

Links

At the end of each era, each Link tile scores 1 point per link icon in the two locations it connects: on flipped Industry tiles and on Merchant locations. Links then leave the board.

Flipped industries

Next, each flipped Industry tile scores the points in its bottom left corner. Unflipped tiles score nothing.

Merchant beer bonuses

During the era, selling with the beer of the Nottingham or Shrewsbury Merchants scores points.

Points lost for a shortfall

Negative income you can’t pay, even by removing your industries, costs 1 point per pound short.

Tiebreaker

Tied on points: highest income wins, then most money. Otherwise, those players draw.

Worked example

End of the Canal Era: Emma’s canal link connects two locations showing 2 and 3 link icons, so 5 points. Her three flipped industries are worth 5, 3 and 7 points: 15 points. Emma scores 5 + 15 = 20 points for the era. Her level 2 Cotton Mill stays on the board and will score its 7 points again after the Rail Era.

Common mistakes

• Scoring an unflipped industry: it’s worth nothing.
• Scoring industries before removing links: links come first.
• Forgetting that level 2 and higher industries score again after the Rail Era.
• Thinking final income scores points: it only breaks ties.

How to set up Brass: Birmingham

Setup takes about ten minutes. With 2 or 3 players, start by removing the cards and Merchants for missing players.