Objective:

• To have the most wealth by the end of the game through legal and illegal goods while avoiding penalties from the Sheriff.
  

Setup:

1. Players: 3-6 players.

2. Role Cards: Give each player a Merchant Stand board and a Merchant Bag.

3. Goods Cards: Separate the deck into Legal Goods (apples, cheese, bread, chickens) and Contraband (illegal goods like pepper, mead, silk, crossbows). Shuffle all cards together and deal 6 cards to each player.

4. Gold Coins: Distribute 50 gold to each player.

5. Sheriff Token: Select the first player to be the Sheriff for the first round.
   

Gameplay:

The game is played in a series of rounds, with each player taking turns as the Sheriff. Each round consists of the following phases:

1. Market Phase:

   • Players may discard up to 5 cards from their hand and draw new ones from either the discard piles or the draw deck.

2. Load Merchant Bag:

   • Each player secretly selects 1-5 cards from their hand and places them in their Merchant Bag. These cards represent the goods they are attempting to bring into Nottingham.

3. Declare Goods:

   • Each player declares the type and number of goods they are bringing to market. Importantly, they can only declare one type of legal good (e.g., "I have 3 apples"). They must declare exactly the number of cards in their bag, but they do not have to be truthful about what is inside.

4. Sheriff Inspection:

   • The Sheriff must decide whether to inspect any of the Merchant Bags. The Sheriff may inspect as many or as few bags as they like.

   • Bribery and Negotiation: Players may attempt to bribe the Sheriff to either inspect another player's bag or let theirs pass through without inspection. The Sheriff may accept or reject any bribes.

   • Inspection:

     • If the Sheriff inspects a bag and finds undeclared or illegal goods, the player pays a fine equal to the penalty value of the confiscated goods, which are removed from the game.

     • If the Sheriff inspects a bag and finds that the player was truthful, the Sheriff must pay the player a penalty for wrongfully inspecting their goods.

   • If the Sheriff does not inspect a bag, the player successfully brings all the goods (legal and contraband) into the market and places them on their Merchant Stand.

5. End of Round:

   • After all bags are inspected or passed, the next player becomes the Sheriff, and a new round begins.

6. Game End:

   • The game ends after each player has served as the Sheriff twice in a 5-6 player game or three times in a 3-4 player game.

   • Players then tally their scores by adding the value of all legal goods, contraband, and gold coins. Bonuses are awarded for having the most or second-most of each type of legal good.
     

Scoring:

• Legal Goods: Earn points based on their value.

• Contraband: Earn higher points than legal goods but risk penalties if caught.

• Bonuses: Players with the most and second-most of each type of legal good receive bonus points.
  

Winning:

• The player with the most total points from goods, contraband, and coins at the end of the game wins.
  

Tips for Playing:

• Bluffing: Sometimes it's better to lie about what's in your bag, but be aware of the risk of being caught.

• Bribery: Use bribes strategically to sway the Sheriff or misdirect their attention.

• Reading Players: Pay attention to other players' behavior and try to determine when they are bluffing.