Azul invites you, a tile laying artisan, to embellish the walls of the Royal Palace of Evora.
Introduced by the Moors, Azulejos (originally white and blue ceramic tiles) were fully embraced by the Portuguese when their king Manuel I, on a visit to the Alhambra palace in Southern Spain, was mesmerized by the stunning beauty of the Moorish decorative tiles. The king, awestruck by the interior beauty of the Alhambra, immediately ordered that his own palace in Portugal be decorated with similar wall tiles. As a tile-laying artist, you have been challenged to embellish the walls of the Royal Palace of Evora.
In the game Azul, players take turns drafting colored tiles from suppliers to their player board. Later in the round, players score points based on how they've placed their tiles to decorate the palace. Extra points are scored for specific patterns and completing sets; wasted supplies harm the player's score. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.
In the tactical tile-laying game Azul, the Portuguese King Manuel I commissions craftsmen to decorate the walls of his palace with beautiful mosaics. They can’t just use any old tiles: they need the so-called ‘Azulejos’. Beneath the simple action of laying tiles burns a fierce competition to pick the best tiles from the factories at just the right time. Each turn players have to take all tiles of the same type from one factory. Depending on the position in the mosaic, sometimes the craftsmen need a lot of tiles of one type to expand the mosaic, sometimes fewer. Whoever over-speculates and takes too many tiles will receive minus points. You can earn a lot, however, by tiling connected parts of the mosaic and by having completed rows and columns at the end of the game.
The abstract game 'Azul' combines several supposed contradictions: the almost sober functionality of the game board is in marked contrast to the fabulous aesthetics of the mosaic being constructed. The feel of the tiles themselves increases the impression of value. The game components alone are a pleasure.
The designer Michael Kiesling has succeeded in this masterpiece: giving so much depth to a supposedly simple selection mechanic, that you’ll want to play this again and again and again.