Trailblazers are the gutsy folks who pave and brave the trails of the great outdoors. Whether by hiking boots, cycling wheels, or river paddle, these tenacious travelers seek to feed their insatiable appetite for adventure. With a scenic wilderness ever ahead and a freshly charted path upon the heels, one must not forget to eventually find their way back to camp. For there are always new environments to explore, further expeditions to undertake, and more trails to blaze. In Trailblazers, players compete to earn the most points by building biking, hiking, and kayaking loops from their campsites of the matching trail type. Each round, players are dealt eight trail cards where they will draft two cards, arrange those cards in their personal area, and pass their hand to the next player three times. Cards must either be placed adjacent to or overlapping other cards. While players can push their luck by aiming to construct long and elaborate trails, only closed loops that start and end at a matching campsite will score points. Players also compete to fulfill Goal cards. After four rounds, the game ends and the player with the most points from closed loops and goal cards wins. The standard edition of Trailblazers features a second deck of trail and player cards so you can play with up to 8 players. The box also contains two expansions (the Animals expansion and Adventurers expansion) that add another challenging layer of strategy and objectives to the experience. Finally, there are three unique solo modes that utilize the goal cards, Animals expansion, or Adventurers expansion. "One of the best new small-box board games!" Quinns and Tom (Shut Up & Sit Down) Awards & Honors 2023 Golden Geek Light Game of the Year Nominee2023 Board Game Quest Awards Best Family Game Nominee Personal Review and Recommendation A fantastic game of solitaire delight. This game will get your head thinking with puzzling decisions on how to make your trail the best. Not much player interaction other than shared goals to be the first. If you are after a strong solitaire puzzle to play with friends this is a great choice. Be warned it is challenging! We leant our copy to our friends for a holiday, since the game claims the cards are waterproof, they ended up playing a game on their stand up paddle board in Fiji to prove the point! This will be a game that will forever stay in our collection, great theme, and a little puzzle addiction. Highly recommended.
