Calimala - Second Edition
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That street you wanted to activate? Marco just blocked it. That contract you were about to close? Giulia snatched it from you. And now you have to decide whether to send your best employee to the council or keep them for another round.
WHAT IT'S ABOUT
Your textile empire in late Medieval Florence
The Arte di Calimala was one of the seven major guilds of Florence: the guild of merchants and finishers of foreign textiles who built the economic power of the Florentine Republic. Fabio Lopiano takes that Renaissance Florence and transforms it into a worker placement eurogame where every move activates not only your actions, but also those of all the discs already present on the same street. The board, illustrated by master Ian O'Toole, recreates the city streets connecting workshops, churches, and construction sites.
You are a merchant with trusted employees to assign to the different streets of the city. Each street connects two locations where you can produce textiles, deliver them, contribute to the construction of churches or decorate them. Your goal: build the most influential commercial empire before the last worker is promoted to the city council. But every disc you place activates all the others on the same street, creating chains of actions that you must exploit or that can benefit your opponents.
What they say abroad
Calimala requires careful planning: your opponents can activate your discs, but you can do the same. It's a game of perfect timing.
— FroGames
The modular setup and secret objectives make every game completely different. You'll never play the same strategy twice.
— FroGames
Calimala
FrogScore · FroGames editorial rating · based on rules, international reviews and play sessionsThe merchant's tools
What you have in front of you during the game
Action Discs
Your trusted employees. You place them on the city streets to produce textiles, deliver them, build churches. When the fourth disc lands on a street, the oldest one is promoted to the council and triggers a scoring round.
Modular Board
Each game the city is different: the streets connect variable locations, the scoring points activate in a different order. You must adapt your strategy to the specific layout of the game.
Action Cards
Bonus actions you can use at key moments to bypass turn limits or enhance your moves. Few, precious, to be played at the right time.
Churches and construction sites
Contribute to the construction and decoration of the great Florentine churches. Those who invest the most gain prestige points and decisive majorities in the final counts.
In an hour you'll know if you calculated well. Or if you activated the right disc at the wrong time.
🧤 BUSTINE
📜 REGOLAMENTO
A game in five acts
What happens at the table
Not the rules. The experience.
The setup that changes everything
The modular board is built, and everyone immediately understands that this game will be different from the last. Roads connect places in a new order, scoring will activate at unpredictable moments. Someone is already figuring out which road to occupy first.
The first discs and the first chains
You place your first disc, activating two actions. Then it's Laura's turn, and she places hers on the same road: now your disc reactivates, and you produce again. That's how it works. Every move made by others can be an advantage or a problem, depending on where you placed your workers.
Saturated roads and promotions
Mid-game. Roads start to fill up, and when the fourth disc arrives on a street, the oldest one goes to the council: immediate scoring. Now you must calculate not only where to place, but when a road is about to become saturated and who will benefit from it.
The perfect timing (or almost)
Marco plays an action card to place a disc out of turn, activates three paths in sequence, delivers two contracts, and gains majority over a church. Or he miscalculates a turn and lets Giulia exploit the chain. Here you see who planned and who improvised.
The last scoring
The last disc goes to the council, triggering the final count. Majorities on churches, secret objectives revealed, points from deliveries. Someone won by two points. Someone else swears that if they had placed that disc one turn earlier, things would have been different. They are probably right.
How to play
The flow of each turn
A turn is very fast: you place a disc, activate actions, possibly promote a worker. But the consequences last the entire game.
Choose a road between two locations and place one of your discs. You can place it on an already occupied road or open a new one. Position matters: the oldest disc will be the first to be promoted.
You activate the two actions of the locations connected by the road: produce fabrics, deliver them for contracts, build churches, decorate them. You can perform them in any order.
Every disc (yours or others') already present on the same road reactivates, allowing the owner to perform one of the two actions again. Chains can trigger powerful combos.
If you placed the fourth disc on a road, the oldest disc (whoever it belongs to) goes to the city council. A scoring round is triggered: points for majorities, contracts, churches. Then the turn passes to the next player.
Why it's different from others
Six mechanics that make a difference
Shared activation
Forced promotion
Extreme modular setup
Majorities on churches
Secret objectives
Pure optimization
How it ends
How to win
The game ends when the last disc is promoted to the council or when all players have placed all their discs. The final score is tallied.
Victory
- Points from majorities on churches and Florentine workshops
- Points from fabric contracts delivered during the game
- Points from secret objectives revealed at the end of the game
How you lose ground
- You place discs that activate opponents more than yourself
- You fail to force scoring when you are in the lead
- You spread resources across too many objectives without dominating any
Calimala is a pure optimization eurogame where every move is a calculation and every path is a gamble. For those seeking tactical depth without frills.
Frequently asked questions
FAQ about Calimala
How complex is it compared to an average eurogame?
The basic rules can be explained in 20 minutes: you place discs, perform actions, reactivate those already present. The real complexity lies in calculating activation chains and the timing of promotions. It's a game for regular players, but it's not a heavy game: medium-high weight, with high tactical depth.
Is it true that every game is different?
Yes. The board is modular: roads change position, locations connect differently, the order of scoring varies. Plus there are secret objectives and variable action cards. You will never play the same strategy twice. Replayability is very high.
How much does direct interaction matter?
Interaction is indirect but constant. You don't attack opponents, but you occupy the roads they need, activate their discs when it suits you, force scoring to cut them off. It's not a multiplayer solitaire: you have to read others' moves and react.
What is the best number of players?
It scales well from 2 to 5. With 2-3 players, you have more control and less chaos; with 4-5, roads saturate faster and timing becomes more critical. Recommended for 3-4 for the best balance between control and interaction.
Is it available in Italian?
It depends on the edition for sale. Calimala has been published in multiple languages by different publishers. Check the product description to confirm the language of the specific edition available on FroGames. The game has text on cards, but predominantly iconography.
Calimala is a strategic eurogame by Fabio Lopiano for 2-5 players, 75 minutes, recommended age 10+. Set in Renaissance Florence, Calimala uses an innovative mechanic of disc placement with multiple activations: each disc you place activates all those already present on the same road, creating complex tactical chains. The modular board and secret objectives guarantee very high replayability. Published by Alley Cat Games and Stronghold Games, with illustrations by Ian O'Toole, it is a game of pure optimization for experienced players seeking depth without randomness. Available on FroGames.it.
Calimala - Second Edition
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