• Azul - Summer Pavilion — product image 1
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Next Move Games

Azul - Summer Pavilion

Low stock
$50.00
$50.00 RRP $60.00

Azul: Summer Pavilion is a standalone tile-drafting board game for 2–4 players, recommended for ages 8+, that plays in about 30–45 minutes at a medium-light complexity. Draft tiles from shared factories, then spend matching sets to complete the numbered star patterns on your pavilion board, with one colour wild each round.

Players
2–4 players
Play time
1h
Age
All ages
Complexity
Medium

About the Game

Azul: Summer Pavilion returns to 16th-century Portugal, where master artisans compete to build the royal pavilion King Manuel I never lived to see. Across six rounds, you draft colourful tiles from factories and the table centre, then spend matching sets to fill the numbered spaces of the seven stars on your board, earning bonuses for enclosing pillars, statues and windows while avoiding wasteful leftovers.

A game for 2–4 players runs about 30–45 minutes at a medium-light complexity, recommended for ages 8 and up. Key mechanics include open drafting, set collection, pattern building and tile placement, with the twist that one colour is wild each round.

Released in 2019 by Next Move Games, it is the third standalone title in Michael Kiesling's Azul series, following Azul (2017) and Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra. It keeps the signature drafting but replaces the 5x5 wall with star patterns and wild colours, and no original game is required.

History

Azul: Summer Pavilion was released in 2019 by Next Move Games as the third standalone instalment in Michael Kiesling's Azul series, following the original Azul (2017, Plan B Games) and Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra. Returning to the Portuguese tile-laying theme, it reworks the original's drafting with star-shaped player boards and rotating wild colours, and requires no other Azul title to play.

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Shipping details

Azul - Summer Pavilion

$50.00

Watch: How to play

Rules of Azul - Summer Pavilion

  • Setup: Give each player a star board, lay out factory displays (5 for 2 players, 7 for 3, 9 for 4), place four random tiles on each, and mark the first wild colour on the round track.
  • Each round, the colour shown on the round track is wild and can substitute for other colours when filling spaces.
  • Draft: On your turn, take all tiles of one colour from a single factory display or from the centre of the table; any tiles left behind on a factory slide into the centre.
  • The first player to draft from the centre takes the starting-player marker, which carries a small point penalty but grants the first turn next round.
  • Place: Spend matching sets of tiles to fill the numbered spaces on your seven stars — the number shows how many tiles that space costs, and wild tiles can help complete a set as long as at least one tile matches the star's colour.
  • Score: Placed tiles earn points, with extra points for connecting to adjacent tiles, plus bonuses for enclosing the printed pillars, statues and windows on your board.
  • Tiles you cannot place are mostly wasted — you may only store a few between rounds, and excess leftovers cost points.
  • After six rounds, add final bonuses for completed stars and patterns; the highest total wins.

Strategy

  • Fill cheap, low-numbered spaces early — they cost few tiles and start the adjacency chains that make later placements worth more.
  • Track the round's wild colour and hoard a few wild tiles to finish expensive spaces, remembering each space still needs at least one tile of its true colour.
  • Draft with a specific space in mind rather than grabbing tiles and hoping; unplanned leftovers quickly turn into penalties.
  • Watch the centre pile — taking the starting-player marker can be worth the penalty if it secures a colour you badly need or sets up your next round.
  • Glance at opponents' boards and consider drafting a colour they need when the cost to you is low.
  • Build towards enclosing pillars, statues and windows as you place tiles instead of chasing them at the end of the game.
  • Balance finishing whole stars against spreading out; completed stars pay off at the end, but overcommitting to one star can leave you short of a colour.