Cartographers

Cartographers is a game in the style of 'roll and write', but with cards instead of dice. Each player is given a mostly blank map (it has a few mountains and ruins marked on it) and has to fill it in with different types of terrain in different shapes. Each turn, a card is revealed with the options on it - sometimes a choice of terrain and sometimes a choice of shape, and each player decides what to draw onto their map and where.

There are scoring targets that are different for each game - particular configurations of terrain that provide additional points and are scored a different stages of the game. So, you have targets to work towards. You can also get coins that are worth points.

Then there are the monsters! When they arrive, you pass your map to a different player and they are the one who marks the monsters on your map, in whatever way will provide the biggest obstacle or lose you the most points. You can mitigate point loss from monsters later, but enclosing them in additional terrain, but that of course takes your attention away from your grand plan.

It's a fun game, and challenging in just the kind of way I enjoy and am quite good at. I unexpectedly won my first game, and would definitely play this again.