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- 7.5
Alhambra: Big Box
- 2–6 players
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Rules assistance for Alhambra: The Thief's Turn
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–6 players
- 60 min
- 8+
- Complexity 2.3/5
Rules assistant for Alhambra: The Thief's Turn
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Alhambra: The Thief's Turn is an expansion for Alhambra released in 2005 for 2–6 players, 60 minutes per game, and ages 8 and up. It was designed by Dirk Henn and Wolfgang Panning and its main mechanics are Hand Management, Set Collection, and Tile Placement.
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About the game
The third extension to Alhambra called Die Stunde der Diebe (The Hour of the Thieves) is a collection of four separate extension modules that can be mixed with the base game in any combination (like in Die Gunst des Wesirs). Module "Change" introduces coins into the game. When overpaying for a building, players now get partial change back in coins, which you can use as normal money cards. With the module "The Thieves," thief cards are dealt to players in the beginning. The thieves allow players to take available money cards out of turn. With the module "The Walls," wooden walls become available. Players can extend their city walls or close existing holes with them. To build walls, a player must first get an appropriate wall card from the money deck. With the module "The Traveling Merchant," buildings in Alhambra begin to get populated by meeples! The new residents give extra points during the scoring rounds. To get the residents, players must do a little planning ahead with their city layout by using merchant tiles. Expands: Alhambra
Designers
Publishers
- Piatnik
- Queen Games
Questions and answers
Alhambra: The Thief's Turn supports 2–6 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 Alhambra: The Thief's Turn is 60 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 Alhambra: The Thief's Turn for ages 8 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.
Alhambra: The Thief's Turn has a complexity rating of 2.3 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-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.
Alhambra: The Thief's Turn belongs to these categories: City Building, Arabian, and Expansion for Base-game. Its main mechanics are Hand Management, Set Collection, and Tile Placement. 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 Alhambra: The Thief's Turn are: Dirk Henn and Wolfgang Panning. 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 Alhambra: The Thief's Turn as an expansion for Alhambra. Expansions add new content, rules or scenarios to the base game and usually cannot be played on their own, so you need Alhambra to use it. Check that your edition of Alhambra is compatible, as some expansions were revised between editions.