Orchard

Orchard is a solitaire card-layering game where the player aims to harvest as much fruit as possible by overlapping fruit tree cards. The more trees of the same type you stack, the more fruit (points) you harvest.

Game Objective

Earn the highest score by placing cards so that identical fruit types overlap. The game ends when all 9 cards in the deck have been played.

Game Setup

• The game consists of 18 cards, but only 9 cards are used for a single session.
• One card is placed face-up as the starting card.
• The player draws 2 cards as a starting hand.

Gameplay

The game consists of several turns until the hand cards and draw pile are exhausted. A turn follows these steps:

1. Place Card (Overlapping)

• Choose one of your two hand cards and place it on the card(s) already in play. At least one square must overlap.
• Matching Trees: If you place a tree on another tree of the same type (same color/fruit), you harvest fruit.
• Mismatched Trees: You are allowed to overlap different fruit types, but this requires a Rotten Fruit Marker (see "Special Actions").

2. Mark Harvest (Using Dice)

• When fruit types match, place a die of the corresponding color on the square:
  • First Overlap: Place the die showing value 1.
  • Second Overlap: Turn the die to value 3.
  • Third Overlap: Turn the die to value 6.
  • Fourth Overlap: A basket symbol (or value 10) marks the maximum.
• Every time a new card is played, increment the values on the covered squares accordingly.

3. Draw

• Draw a card from the deck to maintain a hand size of 2.

Special Actions: Rotten Fruit

• If you place a card so that a fruit type overlaps a different type, you must place a Rotten Fruit Marker (black marker) on that square.
• Restriction: You only have 2 of these markers per game. Once both are used, you can no longer overlap mismatched trees.
• Penalty: Each rotten fruit on the board scores -3 points at the end of the game.

Categories & Symbols Summary

• Fruit Types:
  • Apple (Red)
  • Pear (Yellow)
  • Plum (Purple)
• Dice: Act as counters for the harvest on specific squares (Values: 1, 3, 6, 10).
• Rotten Fruit Markers: Enable strategic placement despite mismatches but cost points.

End of Game & Scoring

The game ends once the 9th card is placed.

1. Sum all values of the dice currently visible in the orchard.
2. Subtract 3 points for each Rotten Fruit Marker used.
3. Compare your total to the scoring table (e.g., from "Novice" to "Master Pomologist").

Strategic Decision Factors

• Prioritize Higher Tiers: Since the scoring (1-3-6-10) is non-linear, it is often more beneficial to boost a tree to level 3 or 4 than to start many new level 1 squares.
• Marker Management: Only use rotten fruit markers if they allow you to achieve a high-scoring 6 or 10 harvest elsewhere on the same card.