How To Play: AuZtralia

Overview

AuZtralia mixes farming, railway building, and monster hunting into one tasty strategy stew. You and your friends race to settle the land, gather supplies, and prepare for some very grumpy Old Ones. This guide contains an outline of the game rules, plus the best strategies for winning. After several games, I learned that a clever plan helps, but a badly timed monster attack can wreck your evening faster than cold tea.

What’s in the box

1 game board
4 player boards
4 player screens
4 player aid cards
4 player turn-order markers
4 player score markers
4 player influence markers
4 player train markers
4 starting settlement tiles
20 settlement tiles
80 railway pieces
20 development cards
20 Ancient One cards
4 player-colour sets of wooden pieces
60 resource tokens
40 military unit tokens
20 enemy tokens
6 combat dice
1 round marker
1 first-player marker
1 cloth bag

How To Play AuZtralia: Rules Summary

AuZtralia mixes railway building, resource hunting, and monster fighting. You lead settlers across a wild land, build an economy, and prepare for the Old Ones. My friends and I learned one hard lesson fast: ignoring the monsters does not make them go away. It just gives them better snacks. Follow these rules to get your colony moving.

Setup: Build Your Colony Before Trouble Arrives

Place the AuZtralia board in the middle of the table. Choose the map side that matches your player count.
Give each player a player board, colour pieces, starting resources, and the workers and soldiers shown in the setup rules.
Place the railway stations, farms, mines, ports, settlements, and military buildings beside the board. Keep the pieces sorted so nobody loses ten minutes hunting for a farm.
Shuffle the terrain, resource, and Old One tokens. Place them face down in the spaces shown on the board.
Place each player’s starting settlement and railway station in the marked starting area. Then place the event deck, time marker, and Old One pieces as the rulebook shows.
Choose the first player. Give that player the first-player marker. Finally, place the action markers and set the time track to the starting space.

Gameplay: Build, Explore, and Fight for Every Turn

On your turn, choose one available action. Use an action disc or marker, depending on the action. Then pay its time cost and move the time marker forward.
Build railways to connect your colony to new areas. A railway lets your people, goods, and troops travel. Without rails, your grand plan becomes a very expensive walk.
Explore a face-down area by sending an explorer or using the correct action. Reveal the token and place it according to its type. You may find useful land, resources, or an Old One.
Build farms and mines on suitable spaces. Farms produce food, while mines produce coal, iron, and other useful goods. Check the board and your player board before you build, because each site has limits.
Recruit workers and soldiers when you need more hands or stronger forces. Workers improve your income and buildings. Soldiers protect the colony and attack monsters.
Use resources to construct buildings, railways, and military sites. Pay every listed cost before you place the piece.
When you reveal or attack an Old One, resolve combat with the required units and dice. Apply hits, remove defeated units, and check the monster’s special power. Strong monsters can ruin a plan quicker than my mate Dave ruins a quiet game with a loud victory speech.
Resolve events whenever the time marker reaches an event space. Draw the next event card, read it aloud, and follow its instructions. Events may change production, move monsters, or create new problems.
Keep track of food and other upkeep costs. If your colony cannot pay what it owes, follow the penalty on the player board or rulebook. Therefore, build your income before you recruit a huge army.
Continue taking turns until the time track reaches the end or the final event tells you to stop. The game may end early if a special loss condition occurs.

Winning: Score Your Work Before the Dust Settles

First, check whether the players met the game’s main loss condition. If the Old Ones overrun the colony or the final event defeats humanity, everyone loses together.
If the colony survives, calculate each player’s victory points. Count points from controlled land, buildings, resources, settlements, and defeated Old Ones as shown on the scoring rules.
Apply any penalties from damaged or lost units, unpaid costs, or unfinished goals. Do not count items that the rules exclude.
The player with the most victory points wins. That player helped the colony grow while also dealing with the monster threat.
If players tie, compare the listed tie-breakers. Usually, the player with more useful resources or stronger remaining forces wins the tie.

Special Rules & Conditions: Watch the Fine Print

Time matters. Every action advances the time marker, so slow plans can give the Old Ones more chances to act. Choose useful actions instead of taking busywork turns.
Railways connect your network. You normally need a valid rail route before you can move goods, workers, or troops between areas.
Each building needs the right space and resources. You cannot place a mine on any random patch of land just because you like the view.
Old Ones follow their own movement and attack rules. Resolve those rules before continuing with normal play. Never treat a monster like an ordinary enemy.
Some discoveries stay hidden until a player explores them. Keep face-down tokens secret, and reveal them only when an action allows it.
Players may trade or help only when the rules allow it. Do not freely swap every resource unless the current action or effect permits that trade.
Combat uses the units and dice available at that moment. Remove casualties as the rules direct, and remember that a winning battle can still cost precious soldiers.
Events override normal play when their text says so. Read the whole card before making a choice, because one small line can turn a safe railway into monster bait.
Resolve effects in order. If two effects happen together, use the rulebook’s timing order or let the first player decide when no order appears.
Keep checking your food, resources, time, and rail links. AuZtralia rewards players who plan ahead, but it punishes anyone who forgets one tiny upkeep cost. I know this because my first colony collapsed while I proudly admired its lovely railway.

Best AuZtralia Strategies

Manage Resources and Railways: Lay Smart Tracks and Turn Supplies Into Victory

Claim Iron Early

Reserve iron income before buying fancy weapons.

Build Short, Safe Links

First, connect mines to towns; then extend only when supply stays steady.

Watch Costs

Each rail piece spends iron and money, so compare routes before placing track.

Move Goods

Next, ship food and iron along your network whenever possible.

Fix Bottlenecks

If one line serves everything, add a second route before monsters wreck your plans.

Time Upgrades

Finally, protect railheads with nearby units; losing a link can waste several turns.

Keep trains moving between turns.

Hunt Smart, Not Heroically: Monster Hunting in AuZtralia

Scout Before Striking

First, reveal spaces with cheap units. Then, record monster strength, distance, and reward before committing.

Choose Profitable Targets

Next, fight monsters an army can handle. Avoid expensive battles unless their rewards unlock points, weapons, or safer movement.

Time Your Attack

Meanwhile, gather troops. Attack together; however, keep wounded units away from danger. One bad roll should not wreck your force.

Stop Chasing Glory

Finally, track victory points, not pride. After claiming a trophy, retreat and protect your lead. I learned this after one greedy hunt ruined my game.

Explore Boldly, Fight Smart: The Winning Rhythm

After playing AuZtralia with friends, I learned that greedy exploration often starts a fight you cannot finish. Therefore, keep your army close enough to help, yet far enough to claim ground.

Scout Before You Commit

Check enemy strength before moving into unknown territory.
If danger rises, retreat early; meanwhile, mark safer routes for your next turn.

Choose Battles Carefully

Attack only when your force can win quickly.
However, delay weak fights, because wounded units waste precious turns.

Use Victory Windows

Explore while threats remain distant, then switch to combat when targets approach.
Finally, after each battle, reposition before chasing another prize.

Build Smart, Fight Hard, and Keep One Eye on the Outback

AuZtralia rewards players who plan ahead, share the workload, and resist the urge to poke every monster with a sharp stick. In my games with friends, the winners built useful railways early, watched their resources, and picked fights they could actually survive. Explore with purpose, save your best troops for the real nasties, and never forget that time is nipping at your heels. You will still suffer the odd rotten draw, because AuZtralia enjoys a bit of drama. Stay flexible, trust your plan, and make every turn count. Then, when the Old Ones wake up, try not to panic. Much.

Want to know what we think of AuZtralia? Read our detailed review of AuZtralia here