Mercantile: Founders Edition

Mercantile Beta (Ships June 2026)

Be among the first to step onto the Silk Road.

The Mercantile Beta is a limited community playtest edition of Mercantile, running from June through December 2026. This early version includes the full playable game with beta assets and evolving content as the Mercantile community helps shape the final experience.

During the beta season, players will receive monthly challenges, unlockables, and story elements that expand the world of Mercantile. You'll be encouraged to share feedback, discuss strategy, and help refine the game alongside other players through our Facebook and Discord communities. You can also log your matches on the official website to track your progress and see how you stack up against players around the country.

Mercantile was created independently by first-time publisher and designer Dhillon Welsh, developed over nearly 1,200 hours of design and testing. The project is supported by a growing community of friends, artists, and designers who believe in building something ambitious together.

The beta represents the first chapter in the Mercantile Universe, a planned trilogy of interconnected games featuring new mechanics, factions, and interchangeable card systems.

What is Mercantile?

Mercantile is a 2–6 player asymmetric strategy card game set across the Silk Road.

Each player commands the favor of a powerful city-state faction, each with unique abilities and scoring goals.

Players build their ledger by drafting contracts from a hidden market or the public Passage while secretly placing dangerous Underworld contracts that can later sabotage rivals and steal valuable cards.

Your ledger begins unknown even to you. As cards are revealed and swapped throughout the game, the true shape of your strategy slowly emerges. Every flip is a calculated risk of timing, information, and deception.

The winner is rarely clear until the final contract is revealed.

What’s Included

1 Marketplace Board

6 Player Ledger Boards

131 Cards

50 Scoring Tokens

Rulebook

Unlockable Envelopes that guide players through the world of Mercantile and introduce new elements over time

Important Beta Disclaimer

This is a beta edition designed for community testing.

Components use temporary assets and prototype-quality materials rather than the final production artwork and finishes found in retail board games. The goal of this release is to put the game into the hands of as many players as possible and gather meaningful feedback from the community.

Because of this, the beta is being offered at minimum cost.

The official full production game, Mercantile: Legends of the Silk Road, featuring final artwork and premium components, is scheduled for release in Fall 2027.