In remote times, King Gradlon had the magnificent city of Ys erected for his daughter Dahut. Gargantuan sea-walls protected the city from the violent waves. Dahut decided to make Ys the most powerful place in Brittany; thus, she dispatched dragons to seize merchant ships loaded with jewels which sailed on the open sea…
The players embody merchant-princes of Ys. By skillfully using their network of brokers, they speculate on the purchase of precious stones, thus amassing gold (represented by victory points). At the end of the game, the winner is the player who has accumulated the most gold.