Complete TAMNA Strategy Guide

Your two starting settlements are the most important decision in the game. A few key principles:

High-probability numbers first: With two dice, 7 is most common (6/36), followed by 6 and 8 (5/36 each), 5 and 9 (4/36 each), 4 and 10 (3/36 each), 3 and 11 (2/36 each), and 2 and 12 (1/36 each). Settlements on 6·8 tiles produce resources roughly once every three turns. Ideally your first settlement touches at least two 6 or 8 tiles.

Resource diversity: Focusing on a single resource leaves you stuck at key moments. You need clay (송이) + lumber (목재) for roads and settlements, tangerine (감귤) for settlements and cities, and basalt (먹돌) + horsehair (말총) for development cards. Position your starting two settlements to cover as many of these as possible. If you can't cover everything, plan to fill gaps through harbor trading.

Harbors (Naru): A settlement on a 3:1 general Naru or a 2:1 specialty Naru dramatically improves your trading efficiency. Pairing a high-producing tile with a 2:1 Naru for that same resource creates a powerful trading engine. Be aware that Naru positions often have lower probability numbers, so balance production power against trading efficiency.

The numbers on TAMNA's board tiles show how often two dice will produce that sum. Out of 36 rolls, the average frequency per number: 6 & 8 → 5 times, 5 & 9 → 4 times, 4 & 10 → 3 times, 3 & 11 → 2 times, 2 & 12 → once. 7 comes up 6 times but generates no resources — only the Dokkaebi.

Resource priority shifts based on your building target. A road-and-settlement strategy (racing for Longest Road, accumulating settlement points) prizes clay, lumber, horsehair, and tangerine. A city-heavy strategy (upgrading settlements to cities for high points fast) needs tangerine and basalt most. A development-card strategy (General cards, Monopoly, Year of Plenty) requires basalt, horsehair, and tangerine.

If your production is lopsided, trade the surplus at a Naru, or use a Monopoly development card to grab a needed resource from opponents. Keep your hand under 7 cards to avoid losing half to the Dokkaebi — if you're accumulating fast, spend on building, trading, or buying development cards each turn.

Trading isn't just resource supplementation — it's a strategic lever that shapes the flow of the game.

Bank 4:1 is the last resort without a harbor. Four cards for one is inefficient, but in the endgame when you only need 1-2 resources to hit the win condition, don't hesitate. The 3:1 general Naru is useful for early resource diversification. The 2:1 specialty Naru is enormously efficient when you're overproducing that resource.

Player-to-player trades can be win-win but also help your opponents. Avoid trading with the current leader — you're accelerating them. Use counter-offers aggressively to pull for better terms. In the late game, other players often form an implicit coalition against the leader, so trades may dry up if you're ahead.

Know when to refuse. If an opponent can immediately score a VP from the trade, or is one step from placing a settlement or city, declining is correct strategy.

Development cards (basalt + horsehair + tangerine) can change the game in a single turn.

The General card does two things: it moves the Dokkaebi off your tiles to block a key opponent tile (stealing one resource from a neighbor), and accumulating 3+ played Generals claims Greatest Force (+2 VP). The General race matters — the first player to reach 3 takes the bonus; to steal it you need strictly more. If your opponent hits 3 early, you need 4.

Road Building gives you 2 free roads, a decisive expansion tool in the Longest Road race and for grabbing settlement spots before opponents. Year of Plenty pulls any 2 resources from the bank — use it when you're just 1-2 resources short of a key build or city upgrade. Monopoly can net you 10+ cards in one turn if opponents are stockpiling that resource — time it for maximum impact rather than using it immediately.

You cannot play a development card on the same turn you bought it (VP cards excepted), so buy ahead of when you need them. As the deck shrinks, VP card density rises — buying from a deck under 10 cards significantly increases your odds of drawing a VP card.

The Dokkaebi (triggered on a roll of 7, or by a General card) has offensive and defensive dimensions.

On offense: place the Dokkaebi on the leader's highest-production tile (a 6 or 8) to shut down their income. Steal from the opponent holding the most cards. Think ahead — if you put the Dokkaebi on a 6 next to your key settlement, the next player may leave it there and steal from you.

On defense: keeping your hand at 7 or fewer cards is the best shield. When resources pile up, spend them on building, trading, or development cards each turn. Rolling a 7 with 8+ cards means discarding half — that's a tempo loss you can avoid. The desert tile (no number) produces nothing; placing the Dokkaebi there is wasted. If you have General cards ready, use one immediately when the Dokkaebi lands on your key tile — you'll move it and steal a card back.

Both bonus cards are worth +2 VP and require different strategic investments.

Longest Road (a connected road of 5+) follows naturally from a road-and-settlement strategy. Once claimed, you keep the +2 until an opponent builds a longer road (they need strictly more), or until someone cuts your road with a settlement. Use Road Building development cards for big expansions. Create branches so your road can't easily be cut at a single chokepoint.

Greatest Force (3+ General cards played) requires enough basalt, horsehair, and tangerine to buy development cards consistently. It's a race: the first to 3 claims it, and to steal it you need strictly more. If you choose the development-card path, start buying early and let General card stealing supplement your resource income.

Trying to race both bonuses at once splits your resource focus and often results in winning neither. Read your starting resource production and commit to one path early.

TAMNA ends the instant a player reaches the target VP on their turn. Plan your final 1-2 VP ahead of time.

Hidden VP development cards are a powerful closing move. By default, VP cards are hidden from opponents and only revealed at game end. A player who appears to be at 4 VP might actually hold 2 VP cards and win with an apparently sudden jump from 4 to 6.

City upgrades jump a settlement from 1 to 2 VP, a net gain of +1 for 2 tangerine + 3 basalt. Stock those resources and use the upgrade as your winning move when the moment is right. For your last point, calculate whether a road build, a new settlement, or a development card purchase is fastest — sometimes a 3:1 or 4:1 bank trade to complete a city upgrade is the quickest path. Don't forget to count the bonus points (Longest Road, Greatest Force) in your running total — their value can shift suddenly if opponents overtake you.