The best Alhambra variants⎇ 2026

Alhambra is a strategic board game set in the historical context of the construction of the Alhambra in Granada, Spain, during the Middle Ages. It combines elements of resource management, tile placement, and strategic planning.

Alhambra: The Card Game is inspired by the popular and award-winning game franchise, Alhambra. This version maintains the same core rules but features different themes and minor changes from its predecessor, Stimmt So!. Players acquire shares in various aspects of a large company using a mechanism similar to Union Pacific, with different currencies and stock types rewarding majority and minority shareholders throughout the game.

Players aim to score the most victory points over five rounds, with scoring occurring after the 1st, 3rd, and 5th rounds. Using eight dice displaying six building symbols, players roll three dice each turn to collect symbols for buildings. The player with the highest roll chooses between two buildings or a building and a special token providing additional bonuses, while the second-best player receives the remaining option. Victory points are awarded based on majorities in building categories, similar to the original game.

Many craftsmen, merchants, and entire families have settled at the foot of the Sierra Nevada because the Alhambra Palace promises work, contracts, and prosperity. Players develop the city of Granada by purchasing building tiles to construct a town that earns the most victory points, with dynamic building values based on the number of certain types of buildings present in all players' cities.

The Gardens of Alhambra is an abstract influence game where each player is represented by a specific color. Players place stones, which depict all four colors, on fixed locations on the board, aiming to surround and capture victory point markers. Careful placement of the stones is essential to maximize points while minimizing opponents' scores, as ties result in disqualification, awarding points to the next highest color sum. The player with the most victory points at the end wins.