Yspahan is played over the course of three seven-day weeks. Scoring occurs at the end of each week.

Each day starts by the current start player (this advances automatically each day) rolling all the dice (they may buy additional dice that only they can use), and distributing them in the Tower based on the values on the dice. Then each player takes turns selecting a set of dice and performing an action.

In three- and four-player games, each player gets one dice action per day and an optional build action after their dice action. In two-player games, the start player gets two dice actions (first and third) per day and there is no optional build action - building has become a dice action. In addition, players may play cards for special actions and abilities during their turn.

Score

There are three sources of points available.

The primary source is by filling souks (collections of shops of the same color) in the various districts.

The completed souks are scored at the end of each week.

There is also a caravan of goods heading out to distant customers beyond the city.

Points are awarded when adding goods to the caravan, when the caravan is full, and at the end of each week if the caravan is not full.

Lastly, there are 25 points available for building up to six special buildings (awarded 0,0,5,5,5,10).

The special buildings give you certain in-play advantages once they are built.

Summary

The game is a balance between luck (what dice are available each day) and strategy (what is the optimal dice action to take given the available dice). There is also a resource management aspect (Do you go for points? Or take coins or camels which can be used later to do additional things?).