Overview

Gain as many points as possible over 8 rounds. The player with the most points is the winner!

The Central Board

The central board consists of 9 segments, each with a plaza disk on it--either red, yellow, or white. Each round, you will use the 4 segments in the light area ("Morning"), then the 4 segments in the darker area ("Afternoon"). (The ninth segment shows the round number and is a neutral space.)

This means you will take a total of 16 actions during the game, excluding bonus actions you may earn.

The Player Board

Each player board has 6 rows (in 3 colors) and 6 columns. Each column will be labeled with a die face from 1 to 6, shown above the first row of each color. Depending on your setup options, they may be labeled in order from 1 to 6, or may be in a different order.

Each of the 36 row/column combinations corresponds to a building; all the buildings in a given row are of the same type. They will be described below.

Underneath each colored section is a resource track: Influence in red, Deniers in yellow, and Knowledge in white. When you gain resources, you will circle the resources on this track; when you spend resources, you will cross them off. You start the game with three of each resource.

Scoring

You will gain points by:

• Recruiting citizens, worth 1 point each.
• Building cathedrals, which score points for each building in one row.
• Having resources left over at the end of the game, gaining 1 point for each pair of the same type.

Course of a Round

Each round consists of a morning phase and an afternoon phase, each of which has the same flow:

1. Four dice are rolled; three transparent dice and one black die.
2. Each player simultaneously chooses a colored die from one of the three remaining plazas.
3. Each player performs an action using the die they have chosen.

Dice Setup

After the four dice are rolled, they are arranged in numerical order, then placed in sequence clockwise on the first four plaza disks. If the black die is tied with another die, it is considered to have a slightly lower value and is placed earlier.

Then, the black die destroys its plaza--it cannot be used this round, and that plaza will be flipped to the opposite side for the next round. The transparent dice take on the color of the plaza they are on.

In rounds 1 and 2, the black die destroys only the plaza it sits on, making it unusable. Starting in the morning of round 3, the black die will also destroy plazas on player boards. For instance, if a black 3 is placed on a red plaza disk, players will be unable to build further buildings in the red area of column 3. (They will be automatically crossed out by the game.) Buildings already built stay built, and this effect can be avoided with Fortress buildings (see below).

Die Choice

Each player chooses one of the three colored dice on the remaining plazas. The dice are not exclusive; multiple players may choose the same die.

Taking a die has a cost. The first die (clockwise from the black "Neutral" zone) has no cost. The next die clockwise costs one of any resource when chosen; the next costs one denier; and the last costs two deniers. Note that the black die still counts in this determination; if the black die is the lowest, all dice will have a cost this round.

In the very unlikely case where a player has no resources, and no die is available for free, rather than taking a die they receive one of each resource.

Taking Actions

Before taking actions, the chosen die may be modified by spending resources:

• For two knowledge (white), a player may change the color of the die.
• For each influence (red), the player may increase or decrease the value of the die by one point for each influence spent. (This cannot be used to turn a 1 to a 6 or vice versa.)

Then, each player chooses one of three actions:

1. Gain Resources

Gain resources of the color of the die, equal to the value of the die. This circles extra resources, which become usable in the next half-round. The 6th, 12th, and 18th (last) resource gained also gain a citizen of the same color, which will be circled at the bottom of your player board.

2. Build a Prestige Building

The top row of each color are the prestige buildings--in red, the Fortress; in yellow, the Guild Hall; in white, the Cathedral. The prestige building you build will be placed in the section of the color of the selected die, and the column of the value of the selected die. If you choose to build, that building will be outlined, and you will immediately receive its benefit:

• Fortresses each give one citizen. In addition, the black die cannot destroy your plazas in that column in future rounds.
• Guild Halls give resources or citizens based on the number of dice of one color that are available for choosing. For instance, the first guild hall gives 3 influence for every available red die, up to 9.
• Cathedrals will score points at the end of the game, based on buildings you have built in each row. The Cathedral in the first column will score for each building in the first row, and so on. The first and second Cathedrals built will score 1 point per building in the corresponding row; the third and fourth will score 2 points per building, and the fifth and sixth will score 3 points per building. (A 1, 2, or 3 will be placed in that row by the system.)

3. Build a Work Building

The bottom row of each colored area is a work building: The Count's Palace in red, the City Hall in yellow, and the Bishopric in white. All of these buildings give two citizens of the corresponding color.

Bonuses

Link Bonuses

Some pairs of buildings have a small diamond between them. When a player has built the two buildings on either side of the diamond, they receive the citizens or resources shown in the diamond.

Citizen Tracks

At the bottom of the player board are three colored tracks showing citizens in each color. When you recruit citizens, the system will circle the ones you have recruited, from left to right.

There are several bonuses associated with these tracks:

• When all three colors of citizen in the 3rd column are circled, you gain one of each type of resource.
• When all three colors of citizen in the 6th and 11th column are circled, immediately build a work building of your choice.
• When the 15th column in a single color is circled, immediately build a prestige building (in any column) or one of the other two colors.
• When the 20th column in a single color is circled, immediately gain a citizen of each other color.

Note that if one of these bonuses gains you citizens, it may trigger a further bonus.

End of Game and Scoring

The game ends after the afternoon of the 8th round. Each player receives:

• 1 point per circled citizen.
• Points from Cathedrals, depending on when they were built and how many buildings are built in their corresponding row.
• 1 point for every two leftover resources of the same color. For instance, if the player has 3 deniers, 3 influence, and 1 knowledge, they receive 2 points.

The player(s) with the most points wins! There is no tie-breaker.