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Galactic Cruise
- 1–4 players
- 90–150 min
- Complexity 4.0/5
- 2025
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- BGG #4,200
- BGG rating
- 7.1
12 Rivers
2025
Rules assistance for 12 Rivers
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–4 players
- 45–75 min
- 10+
- Complexity 2.0/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for 12 Rivers
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
12 Rivers is a board game released in 2025 for 2–4 players, 45–75 minutes per game, and ages 10 and up. It was designed by Romain Caterdjian and its main mechanics are Hand Management, Set Collection, and End Game Bonuses.
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About the game
You are the leader of a tribe whose people explore the fabled twelve rivers flowing from a mystical lake high in the mountains. Your goal? To find the magical coloured pearls that roll down the rivers in the current. Perhaps a helpful fairy may help you on your quest! Where the rivers converge there is a village where many people and animals live in harmony. There you can make life-long friends and deliver the pearls you have collected, to be used to heal, grow, and ensure another prosperous year for all. In each of 5 rounds of play, take turns paying camp cards (resources) to place your 3 tribe tokens into various slots along the rivers, to get the magic pearls you need. Pay more camp card resources to place higher up the rivers to pick pearls earlier. However, with clever placement and use of camp card powers, you can still get valuable pearls efficiently downstream. Use your Tribe tokens to block then collect magic pearls that flow down the 12 rivers. Collect pearls needed by villagers to ensure prosperity for the village at the bottom of the 12 Rivers. Once all tribe tokens are placed, release the magic pearls to roll down the rivers. Then collect a pearl at each tribe token you placed, and store it on your Alpaca for now. Remaining pearls roll downstream to be blocked and picked at other tribe tokens, or end in the lake. Along the way you will pick up helpful fairy tokens, and try to match Alpaca goals that reward you with points for collecting sets of particular pearl colours first. To score the pearls you collect, transfer them to villagers you recruit from the village, and strive to score their bonus goals too. After 5 rounds the player with the most points wins. —description from the publisher
Categories
Mechanics
Designers
Publishers
- Pegasus Spiele
- GateOnGames
- A-Z kiadó
- Good Games Publishing
Questions and answers
12 Rivers supports 2–4 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for 12 Rivers is 45–75 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists 12 Rivers for ages 10 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
12 Rivers has a complexity rating of 2.0 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
12 Rivers belongs to these categories: Fantasy. Its main mechanics are Hand Management, Set Collection, and End Game Bonuses. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of 12 Rivers are: Romain Caterdjian. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists 12 Rivers as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.