The Isle of Cats rules: how to play and how to score

The Isle of Cats quick rules

The goal

Vesh’s armies are coming and you have five days to rescue as many cats as you can. You fit them onto your boat with treasure, like the pieces of a puzzle. At the end, your cat families, rare treasures and completed lessons score points; every visible rat and every room not filled costs you.

Your boat

Every cat or treasure you gain is a tile you place right away: you can rotate and flip it, and it must sit fully on the squares without overlapping another tile. Your first tile goes anywhere; each later tile touches one already placed along a side. A tile can cover several rooms. A cat placed on the treasure map of its color gives you a common treasure.

A day

Each day, the start player fills the two fields on either side of the island with two cats per player in each field; a rare treasure that comes out goes under the island. Then come five phases: Fishing, where everyone takes twenty fish, Explore, Read Lessons, Rescue Cats and Rare Finds.

Explore

Everyone is dealt seven discovery cards, keeps two face down and passes the rest; repeat twice more, then one last card arrives: everyone has seven cards. Pass left on days 1, 3 and 5, right on days 2 and 4. Then keep any cards you want by paying their cost in fish, and discard the rest face down.

Lessons

Lesson cards are blue and must all be played during Read Lessons. A public lesson goes face up and is read out loud: every player can score it. The others stay secret, face down next to your boat, and only score at the end if you completed them.

Rescue Cats

Everyone chooses their green rescue cards face down, then all are revealed at once: they give baskets and speed, and the fastest player goes first. On your turn, you rescue one cat, with a basket and 3 fish from the left field or 5 from the right field. Your permanent basket works once a day, a basket from a card only once.

Rare Finds

Players take turns playing one Oshax card or one treasure card until everyone passes. An Oshax takes the color you choose and counts as a cat of that family. Purple anytime cards can be played at any time during the day.

End of the day and of the game

Cats left in the fields flee, treasures stay under the island, and Vesh’s boat moves one space. You keep your fish and cards for the next day. When Vesh’s boat reaches the hand symbol, at the end of the fifth day, you score.

Beginner pitfalls

A room is only filled when none of its squares are visible. Diagonals never count, neither for placing a tile nor for making a family. Treasure is always optional, but a tile you take is placed right away. A card drawn after its phase waits for the next day.

Solo

Your sister wants to steal your finds. You explore by keeping three cards out of five, twice, plus the top card; each field gets four numbered cats. Her solo basket cards set her speed and turns, and remove cats, treasures or Oshax. She scores for the colors of your cats and her solo lessons, and wins ties.

Family rules

For 2 to 4 players, without discovery cards or fish: everyone keeps two secret family cards. Each day, four cats per player are placed around the island, and players take one each in turn. Rare treasures score nothing, and ties go to the most filled rooms.

With the expansions

Late Arrivals lets you play with 5 or 6, with the same rules. Kittens + Beasts adds three modules: kittens for the fastest player, beasts worth 5 points per friendship with a family, and events with point tokens and royal rats worth minus 3. The Treasure Pack gives a bonus for every rare treasure a cat touches.

How to score The Isle of Cats

Cat families

A family: 3 or more cats of the same color touching along a side. Per family: 3 cats, 8 points; 4, 11; 5, 15; 6, 20; 7, 25; then 5 more points for every additional cat. An Oshax counts as a cat of the color chosen for it.

Rare treasures

3 points for every rare treasure on your boat; common treasures score nothing.

Lessons

The points from your completed lesson cards, revealed at the end.

Public lessons

The points from the public lessons in play that you completed: every player scores them for themselves. Solo, halved and rounded up.

Visible rats

Minus 1 point for each visible rat on your boat.

Rooms not filled

Minus 5 points for each room that still has a visible square.

Fish left

Score nothing: they break ties. If still tied, the tied players share the win.

Sister’s colors (solo)

For your sister: for every cat on your boat, 5 points for the first solo color revealed, then 4, 3, 2 and 1. She also scores her solo lessons, and wins ties.

Family rules

The same families, rats and rooms, plus your 2 completed family cards; rare treasures score nothing. Tie: the most filled rooms.

Kittens + Beasts (expansion)

Beast friendships: 5 points per beast figure. Point tokens from events. Royal rats: minus 3 points each.

Worked example

Emma: families of 3, 4 and 5 cats (8 + 11 + 15 = 34); 2 rare treasures (6); completed lessons (9); one public lesson (4); 3 visible rats (−3) and one room not filled (−5): 34 + 6 + 9 + 4 − 3 − 5 = 45 points.

Common mistakes

• Counting a family through a diagonal: cats must touch along a side.
• Thinking a room is filled while one square is still visible: that’s minus 5 points.
• Scoring common treasures: only rare treasures are worth 3 points.
• Forgetting public lessons: every player who completes them scores them.
• Spending every fish: they break ties.

How to set up The Isle of Cats

Setup takes about ten minutes. Add the expansion steps if you play with them, and the last phase for solo.