You are the captain and owner of a large sailing ship docked in Lisbon, Portugal. A wealthy investor from Genoa, Italy, has agreed to fund your voyage. If you bring back rare goods and a high profit, you will become incredibly wealthy. But if you fail or lose money, the investor will back out, leaving you bankrupt and without a ship.

Before you can untie from the Lisbon docks, you must decide what cargo to buy to trade with distant lands. You have a limited amount of gold from your investor.

• Option A: Pack the hold with European wool, iron tools, and dried cod. These goods are heavy and cheap, but every country needs them. It is a safe, low-profit choice.
• Option B: Pack the hold with fine silver coins and Flemish tapestries. These are highly valuable luxury items that wealthy merchants in Asia or Africa might want, but they are expensive to buy and risk attracting pirates.

Your ship sits heavy in the water. You sail south along the coast of Africa. When you dock at the trading port of Elmina, local merchants are eager for iron tools, but they do not care much for your heavy wool blankets in the hot tropical climate. You trade your iron for a modest amount of gold dust, but your hold is still half full of unsold wool.

• Go to Chapter 2: The Route.

Your ship is light and fast. You slip across the Atlantic and down toward the southern tip of Africa. Near the Cape of Good Hope, a massive storm hits. Because your ship is light, you manage to outrun the worst of the waves, keeping your fragile luxury goods completely dry. When you reach the trade ports of East Africa, a wealthy local sultan falls in love with the Flemish tapestries and trades you a small fortune in ivory and gold for them.

• Go to Chapter 2: The Route.

You are now in the Indian Ocean. Word has reached you that the traditional spice markets in Calicut, India, are heavily guarded by rival Arab and Venetian traders who do not want Portuguese competition.

• Option A: Sail directly into Calicut anyway. You have a well-armed ship and can try to negotiate a deal using your remaining gold or goods.
• Option B: Take a risk and sail further east toward Malacca (in modern-day Malaysia). It is much further away and your crew’s food supplies are running low, but it is the gateway to the famed “Spice Islands.”

You drop anchor in the bustling harbor of Calicut. The local rulers are friendly, but the rival merchants pressure the local authorities to charge you massive trading taxes. If you bought safe goods (from Chapter 1), your profits are completely wiped out by the taxes. You return to Lisbon with a half-empty ship and no money—your investor takes your ship, and you are ruined. If you brought luxury goods (from Chapter 1), you have just enough gold to pay the taxes and buy a modest crate of black pepper and cinnamon.

• Go to Chapter 3: The Return home.

Your crew is down to their last barrels of salted beef, and scurvy is starting to spread. Just as mutiny bubbles up, the lush coast of Malacca appears on the horizon! Because few European ships have made it this far east, the local markets are overflowing with cheap nutmeg, cloves, and mace. You easily trade your remaining cargo for a ship entirely packed with priceless spices.

• Go to Chapter 3: The Return home.

You have made the grueling journey back around Africa and finally see the port of Lisbon. It is time to face your Genoese investor at the docks and calculate your final profit.

• The Ultimate Failure: If you brought safe goods to Calicut, you arrive with empty pockets. Your investor takes your ship. You must now work as a low-level sailor on someone else’s boat.
• The Modest Success: If you brought luxury goods to Calicut, you return with just enough spices to pay back your investor and cover your crew’s wages. You break even. Your reputation is saved, but you aren’t rich yet.
• The Renaissance Master Trader: If you risked everything to sail to Malacca, your ship is bursting with rare spices. The Genoese investor is thrilled and makes you an official partner. You are now one of the wealthiest captains in Portugal, and your name will be written in the history books!

(source – one and two)