In Splendor, the card that scores immediately is not always the best purchase. A modest card may make every later purchase cheaper and open a route to much stronger cards.

Your four choices

Take one action on your turn. You may collect three gems of different colours, or two of the same colour if at least four of that colour are available in the bank. Taking fewer different colours is allowed only when there are not enough available.

The other choices are reserving a card or buying one. You can buy a visible card or a card you previously reserved. Reserving also gives you a gold token if one is available. Gold substitutes for any colour, even a colour you already hold.

Cards are lasting investments

Each purchased card provides a permanent discount in its colour. The discount is not spent when used. Two cards of the same colour reduce every later purchase requiring that colour by two gems.

You may hold at most three reserved cards and cannot discard them to make room. A card reserved from a deck remains hidden from opponents. After your action, return tokens until you hold no more than ten, counting gold as well as gems.

Welcoming nobles

Nobles look at the cards you have bought, not the tokens in your hand. Meet a noble’s requirements and you receive that noble without paying. If you qualify for more than one on the same turn, choose just one.

Look at their requirements early. A colour that improves your discounts might also bring you closer to a useful noble.

The final round

When a player has at least 15 points at the end of their turn, the round is completed so everyone has taken the same number of turns. The highest score wins. Ties favour the player with fewer purchased cards. If that is also tied, the win is shared.

Avoid gathering gems without a purchase in mind. Ask which card you want next and which discount you are missing. A clear two-step plan is often more useful than waiting for an expensive card you cannot yet afford.