In 1271; 17-year-old Marco Polo started on a journey to China with his father and older brother. After a long and grueling journey that led through Jerusalem and Mesopotamia and over the Silk Road; they reached the court of Kublai Khan in 1275.
In The Voyages of Marco Polo; players recreate this journey; with each player having a different character from history with a special power in the game. The game is played over five rounds. Each round; the players roll their five personal dice and can perform one action each turn with them. Each action requires the use of one or more dice; and can be collecting resources or money; acquiring contracts or traveling on the board. When traveling; each player begins at Venice and can decide between several routes eastward; all the way to Beijing. When a player stops at a city; they place a trading post there; giving them access to extra actions or resources for the rest of the game. The higher the value of the dice used for an action; the better the options that may be chosen; but also the more money the player must pay if an opponent has already chosen the same action.
After five rounds; the game ends with players receiving extra victory points for having trading posts in Beijing; fulfilling the most orders; and having trading posts in the cities on secret city cards that each player gets at the start of the game.
