Lost Cities

You fund archaeological expeditions in five colours, and each one you start costs 20 points before it earns anything. Cards run from 2 to 10, and a round ends when the deck runs out and each expedition is totalled. Three rounds, highest sum wins. On your turn you play one card, onto one of your expeditions or onto the discard pile of that colour, then draw one from the deck or any discard pile. Cards on an expedition must rise, so a red 7 played early locks out the red 2 through 6. Handshake cards laid before the numbers multiply that expedition's result, for good or ill. A quiet, tense duel, among the lightest on our two-player shelf. It teaches in three minutes and rewards restraint; too many expeditions is how everyone loses their first game. Good for a couple who want something calmer than 7 Wonders: Duel.