How it plays
In Calico, choose one of the two patch tiles in your hand and place it in an empty quilt space. Then take a replacement from the three-tile market. Each patch has both a color and a pattern, so one placement participates in different scoring systems at the same time.
Color groups earn buttons, and the selected cats reward particular pattern arrangements. Three design goals also inspect the patches surrounding them. Your board has fixed space rather than room to expand outward, so a tile that helps one target may use a position another target needed.
Decisions you’ll make
Compare a tile’s color with its pattern before assigning it to a gap. The color can finish a button while the pattern breaks the arrangement required around a design goal.
Decide whether to secure a smaller reward or preserve a difficult goal. The next market tile is uncertain, and leaving a very specific final requirement limits your options.
Learning the game
Moderate: the turn is simple, but teach three scoring systems and how design goals check color and pattern separately.