Description

Overview and Goal:
Conifers is played on a 9x9 square board. Players receive one set of 15, 1 x 2 tiles, in dark green and the other is light green. The tiles are in the following denominations, (1,1) (1,2) (1,3) (1,4) (1,5) (2,2) (2,3) (2,4) (2,5) (3,3) (3,4) (3,5) (4,4) (4,5) (5,5) Fig.1. Players also receive one set of 8 meeples each, one set in dark green and the other is light green.

Setup:
The board starts out empty. One player plays as dark green and the other as light green. Decide who moves first.

Play:
The game is played in two phases.

Phase 1: Tile laying

The first player places a tile covering two empty squares. Hereafter turns alternate.

On a turn, place a tile covering two empty squares. This tile must also touch an opponent's tile either at short edge to short edge or set at right angles short edge to the long edge. Also, trees at the end of opposing tiles that share an edge must match in height. Tiles of equal value must be set at right angles short edge to long edge.

A player unable to place a tile must pass. When both players pass in turn, they move into the Scoring Phase.

Phase 2: Scoring
Areas of empty squares, surrounded by tiles or by a combination of tiles and the edge of the board are called glades.

Players look at their tallest trees bordering a glade. The player with the tallest single tree lays claim to the glade. If the tallest trees in either color are of equal height, then the player who has a majority of these tree sizes lays claim to the glade. If players are still tied, they then look at their next tallest trees and so on. A player will then finalize a claim, by placing a meeple in his color within the contested glade. Players finish by adding up the squares from each of their glades and the player with the highest score wins.

—description from the designer