Play Sea Builders Online Free with Friends

How to play Sea Builders

1. THE IDEA: Builders, put to sea. Every game deals a NEW WORLD — twenty-nine land hexes scattered at random through a sea of fifty-six, so the islands are different every time. Everything from Builders still holds: roll for resources, build roads, settlements and cities, trade with the bank, harbors and each other, buy development cards, Longest Road and Largest Army. First to 12 points.
2. SHIPS cost 1 wood + 1 sheep and lie on the sea and along the coast (a coast edge takes either a road or a ship; open water only a ship). A ship route grows out of a settlement or from another ship of yours — roads and ships only join through one of your settlements or cities. Your route can then reach another island, where a settlement goes down as usual.
3. SAILING: once a turn you may move the ship at the OPEN END of a route (the end with no settlement and no other ship of yours) to any other edge your fleet can reach. Not the turn it was built, and not while the pirate lies beside it. Ships and roads together count for Longest Road.
4. THE PIRATE sails the sea the way the robber walks the land. On a seven, or with a knight, move either: the robber to a land hex (robbing a building beside it), or the pirate to a sea hex — it robs a card from a ship owner beside it, and nobody may build or move a ship on the edges round it.
5. GOLD FIELDS have a number like any other hex, but when it comes up they pay in the resource of your CHOICE — one per settlement, two per city. The table asks you to pick.
6. A NEW ISLAND: the first settlement you build on any island you did not start on is worth 2 extra points, shown as 🏝️. Your two founding colonies mark your home islands; everything else is out there to be found.
7. Founding: place a settlement anywhere on land, then a road OR a ship out of it. The second colony pays its neighbourhood (a gold hex pays a choice). Play to 12.

Sea Builders strategy

The basics that turn knowing the rules into winning games — what to do first, what to keep, what to avoid.

• Read the map before founding: the New World is different every game. A coastal colony with a ship out of it reaches a second island long before a road does.
• Two ships is a landing. A new island is worth two points on top of the settlement, so a three-card ship route that lands you somewhere fresh outscores a road to nowhere.
• Gold is choice. A settlement on a gold field is a wildcard every time its number comes up — put a city on it and it pays two of whatever you are short of.
• Sail rather than build when you can: the ship at the open end of your route moves for free once a turn. Reach the coast, settle, then swing the last ship round to the next island.
• The pirate is a knight against ships. Park it beside a rival's route and their fleet is frozen — no building, no sailing — until it moves on.
• Roads and ships count together for Longest Road, but only through a settlement of yours. A settlement on the coast is the hinge of a long route.

Sea Builders FAQ

How is the map made?

At random, every game — the New World: twenty-nine land hexes (two of them gold) shuffled into a fifty-six hex sea, with number tokens and harbors placed at random too. The table rejects deals with no island big enough to start on.

How do ships work?

A ship costs wood and sheep and lies on a sea or coast edge, growing out of a settlement or another of your ships. Once a turn the ship at the open end of a route may move for free. Ships and roads count together for Longest Road, joined only through your settlements.

What does the pirate do?

It is the robber of the sea. On a seven or a knight you move the robber onto land or the pirate onto water; the pirate robs a ship owner beside it and stops ships being built or moved on the edges round it.

How do I win?

Twelve points. Settlements, cities, Longest Road, Largest Army and hidden point cards as in Builders, plus two points for the first settlement on each island you did not start on.

Do I need an account?

No. Type a name and play — no signup, no download, nothing to install. Making an account is optional and only exists to keep your stats, nickname and preferences across devices.

Is it really free?

Yes, all of it. Every game on Board Game Universe is free to play, with no premium tier holding anything back.

Can I play on my phone?

Yes. It runs in a mobile browser on phones and tablets as well as on a desktop — there is no app to download.

How do I play with my friends?

Start a table and send your friends the link. They open it, type a name, and sit down. Moves and table chat happen in real time.

Can I play against the computer?

Yes. Add a bot to any table and it plays a proper game — useful for filling a seat while you wait for a fourth.