Bharata 600 BC
Bharata 600 BC Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Story and Objective
- Components (Basic Game)
- Components (Advanced Game)
- Game Versions
- Setup (Basic Game)
- Important Concepts
- Important Concepts (continued)
- Start the Game
- Turn Rules (Basic Game)
- How to Earn VP & Win (Basic Game)
- Battle Rules
- Personality Cards
- Advanced Game
- Setup (Advanced Game)
- Important Concepts (Advanced Game)
- Turn Rules (Advanced Game)
- How to Earn Extra VP (Advanced Game)
- Ability Cards (Advanced Game)
- Highlighted Rules
- Component Care
Story and Objective
Backstory
The end of the Vedic period in the Indian subcontinent saw the rise of the 16 Mahajanapadas. These powerful monarchies and republics stretched across the Indo-Gangetic plains from modern-day Afghanistan to Bangladesh.
In a struggle for supremacy, many of the Mahajanapadas engaged in territorial expansion and control. Between the 5th–4th centuries BC, wars and alliances had merged the 16 Mahajanapadas into four major ones. Ultimately, only one Mahajanapada emerged as the dominant power in the ancient Indian subcontinent.
Game Objective
You are a ruler of one of the 16 Mahajanapadas (Great Kingdoms). Your goal is to make your kingdom the most predominant power in the ancient Indian subcontinent.
You get to explore and conquer regions, build and deploy armies, manage resources, and protect your land and people from rivals and natural disasters.
Along your journey, you earn Victory Points (VP) when you conquer regions, achieve VP Conditions, and reveal Hidden Tokens.
Winner
The winner is the first player/team who reaches:
- 25 Victory Points (VP) in a 2-player (or 2 teams) game
- 20 Victory Points (VP) in a 3–8 player (or 3–4 teams) game.
You also win if all your opponents lose all their Armies and Home Capital Cities.
Players
This is a 2–8 player game. As the game focuses on 4 rival kingdoms, if you are more than 4 players, form teams of maximum 2 players each. Each team represents one kingdom.
If you are 3–4 players, play individually or form 2 opponent teams.
How to Earn VP
Ways to get 25 (or 20) VP to win!
You can earn VP when you conquer new regions (other Mahajanapadas or Provinces). You can earn extra VP when you achieve VP Conditions. You can also discover VP when you reveal Hidden Tokens found on the map.
Conquer Regions — for 1 to 6 VP
Earn 1–6 VP when you conquer regions. A region's number = VP value (1 VP, 3 VP, or 6 VP shown as examples).
VP Conditions — for 1 to 2 VP
Earn extra 1 VP for any of the following:
- Control 4 Harbours
- Own simultaneously 1 Black Pottery, 1 Spices, & 1 Silk
- Win 3 Battles
Earn extra 2 VP for any of the following:
- Control 6 Provinces
- Control all the neighbouring regions around your Home Capital City
- Conquer another player's Home Capital City
Hidden Tokens — for 1 to 3 VP
Reveal Hidden Tokens to discover 1–3 VP (Hidden Tokens: +1 VP, +2 VP, +3 VP).
Components (Basic Game)
- 1 Game board with map
- 4 Quick-Start Cards
- 4 Player Trackers
- 16 Personality cards: 4 x Daredevil, 4 x Conqueror, 4 x Leader, 4 x Influencer
- 32 Resource Modifier cards
- 80 Army cards: 40 x Infantry, 25 x Cavalry, 15 x Elephants
- 5 VP Condition Prize cards
- 8 Armies (handcrafted in wood): 4 x Army I, 4 x Army II; 2 x Red, 2 x Green, 2 x Yellow, 2 x Brown
- Army I has one line
- Army II has two lines
- 40 Forts (handcrafted in wood): 10 x Red, 10 x Green, 10 x Yellow, 10 x Brown
- 16 Tracker pegs (handcrafted in wood): 16 x Orange
- 30 Trade Objects: 18 x Black Pottery, 6 x Spices, 6 x Silk
- 80 Coins (of the same value independent of design)
Components (Advanced Game)
The Advanced Game has 5 extra Components. You can play Bharata—600BC as a Basic Game or as an Advanced Game. The Advanced Game version has all the Components of the Basic Game plus 5 more Components: Ability cards, Ability Action Completion Tokens, Event cards, Event Tokens, and Hidden Tokens.
- 36 Ability cards: 4 x Perceptive, 4 x Fearless, 4 x Generous, 4 x Versatile, 4 x Clever, 4 x Revengeful, 4 x Ingenious, 4 x Psychic, 4 x Resilient
- 16 Ability Action Completion Tokens
- 70 Event cards: 2 x Tsunami, 4 x Cyclone, 4 x Earthquake, 5 x Riots, 6 x Wild Animals, 8 x Festival, 9 x Landslide, 9 x Flooding, 9 x Drought, 9 x Disease, 5 x No Event
- 88 Event Tokens: 5 x Tsunami, 7 x Riots, 9 x Cyclone, 9 x Festival, 9 x Landslide, 9 x Flooding, 9 x Wild Animals, 10 x Drought, 10 x Earthquake, 11 x Disease
- 25 Hidden Tokens: 5 x 1 VP, 3 x 2 VP, 1 x 3 VP, 1 x Black Pottery, 1 x Spices, 1 x Silk, 2 x Medicine, 2 x Festival, 2 x Riots, 1 x Drought, 1 x Disease, 5 x Empty
Game Versions
Play the Basic Game first!
You can play Bharata—600 BC in two ways: as a Basic Game or as an Advanced Game. We recommend that you first play the Basic Game. (The Advanced Game is a variation of the Basic Game, with a few extra components and rules.) Jump in the Basic Game and start playing to see how things work. Refer to the rules as you go along.
| Basic Game | Advanced Game | |
|---|---|---|
| Components | 12 | 17 (Basic Game components + 5 extra: Ability cards, Ability Action Completion Tokens, Event cards, Event Tokens, and Hidden Tokens) |
| Game duration | 30–60 min. | 60–90 min. |
| Game type | Strategy | Strategy and chance |
Setup (Basic Game)
1. Board Setup
- Board: Place the game board with the Bharata map on a table or the floor. Arrange only the following components as illustrated below.
- Coins: Place the opened box of the Coins on the board placement marked 'Coins'. This is the general supply for Coins.
- Resource Modifier and Army cards: Shuffle the Resource Modifier cards and the Army cards, respectively. Place them, face down, on their board placements.
- Trade Objects: Place the opened box of the Trade Objects on its board placement. This is the general supply for Trade Objects.
- VP Condition Prize cards: Place the VP Condition Prize cards on their board placement, face down.
Coins: All Coins have the same value, independent of shape and design. Coins are considered unlimited. If, by any chance, the game runs out of Coins, use something else as a substitute.
Empty Decks: If any card deck becomes empty during the game, reshuffle the discard pile to create a new deck. If both the deck and discard pile of Army cards are empty, no Army cards can be drawn.
2. Player Setup
- Armies and Forts: Each player/team selects one color—red, green, yellow, or brown—and takes 2 Armies and 10 Forts of their color. For example, if you choose red, take 2 red Armies and 10 red Forts.
- Personality cards: Each player/team takes a set of 4 Personality cards—Daredevil, Conqueror, Leader, and Influencer—of their color, as indicated by the border color of the cards. Read the text on the back of your cards and choose one Personality card. Return the remaining 3 Personality cards to the game box.
Personality cards give players unique powers throughout the game. Multiple players/teams may choose the same Personality cards; this is perfectly fine. You may reveal or hide your Personality card from your opponents.
- Start location (Home Capital City): Start Locations are mentioned on the back of each Player Tracker. Each player/team randomly picks one Player Tracker. Look on the back of your Player Tracker to find out your Start Location. This is your Home Capital City.
Place your 2 Armies and 1 Fort on your Start Location on the board map. Keep all remaining Forts next to your Player Tracker. Forts are considered unlimited. If, by any chance, you run out of Forts during the game, use something else as a substitute.
There are only 4 Start Locations (Home Capital Cities) on the map: Ujjain, Rajagriha, Ahichhatra, and Taxila (belonging to the Mahajanapadas of Avanti, Magadha, Panchala, and Gandhara respectively).
- Player Tracker and Tracker Pegs: Place your Player Tracker in front of you, face up.
Set up your Player Tracker as follows (also illustrated at the bottom of this page):
Each player/team takes 4 Tracker Pegs from the game box. Tracker Pegs help you keep track of your Resources and Victory Points (VP) on your Player Tracker.
Each player/team starts with the number of Resources and VP illustrated on their Home Capital City on the map. All Home Capital Cities have identical Resources and VP. Hence, all players/teams mark on their Player Trackers: 4 Iron, 4 Wood, 4 Food, and 4 VP, by inserting the Tracker Pegs into the corresponding numbers.
Each player/team draws 2 Army cards (unless you have the Conqueror Personality card, in which case you draw 3 Army cards) from the Army deck on the board. Place the 2 Army cards, face down, one on each Army placement on your Player Tracker. You can look at your Army cards at any time (before and after placing them), but keep the content of your cards secret from the other players.
As you gain or lose Resources, move the Tracker Pegs accordingly. You cannot have more than 15 Iron, Wood, and Food on the Tracker. If you gain more than 15 of a Resource at any time, the excess gets wasted and it can never be regained! For example, if you gain 20 Iron, place your peg on 15 Iron (the remaining 5 Iron is lost and cannot be regained).
If you have zero (0) of any Resource, move its respective peg outside the Tracker. Place the peg back on the Tracker as soon as you gain back the Resource.
Important Concepts
Regions
A region is a bordered territory on the map. There are 2 types of regions: Mahajanapadas (16 kingdoms) and Provinces (all other regions).
- Mahajanapadas: yellow borders on all sides, with yellow circle numbers.
- Provinces: at least one black border segment.
Provinces have 3 terrain types: Inland, Harbours, and Export Harbours.
- Inland: black circle numbers.
- Harbour: blue circle numbers.
- Export Harbour: dark blue circle numbers with dotted line and ship.
Resources
Resources—Iron, Wood, and Food—are marked with corresponding symbols (iron ore, wood log, and halved coconut) on every region of the map and the Resource Modifier cards. On every turn, players gain Resources via Resource Modifier cards. Resources marked on a region can be acquired only at the time of conquering (or reconquering) it. Do not collect the Resources of your Conquered Regions on every turn!
- 1 Iron
- 1 Wood
- 1 Food
Trade Objects
Trade Objects—Black Pottery, Spices, and Silk—are marked with corresponding symbols on some of the regions on the map. When you conquer (or reconquer) a region you may collect its Trade Objects (if it has any). Once you control an Export Harbour, you may trade your objects for Coins. (For trade rates, see your Quick-Start Card or Trade Rates section on page 8.)
Trade at an Export Harbour: If you control an Export Harbour, you can exchange your Trade Objects for Coins (from the general Coins supply on the board).
Army Cards
There are 3 types of Army cards: Infantry, Cavalry, and Elephants. Army cards have different Army Strengths. An Infantry card has an Army Strength of 1, a Cavalry card has an Army Strength of 2, and an Elephants card has an Army Strength of 3. As you buy Army cards, your Armies (represented by your two Army pawns) will be as strong as the Army Strength you accumulate. You need at least one Army card in an Army for its Army pawn to remain on the map. If you lose your last Army card (when you conquer a region or lose a battle), your respective Army pawn goes off the map (it respawns in your Home Capital City when you add one Army card to it).
Important Concepts (continued)
Move
You can move from one region to any neighbouring (adjacent) region, using one of your Army pawns. This counts as one Move Action. You can take up to three Move Actions per turn. You can move the same Army up to three times or you can move both your Armies, one Army per move.
An Army can move from one region to any neighbouring (adjacent) region (any region with a common border).
Exceptions: In special situations, Personality cards and VP Condition Prize cards allow Armies to speed march (jump from one region to a battle region) or to jump to another region on the map.
Conquer
To conquer a region, you must have your Army pawn on the region and pay for the region, or battle your opponent, whichever applicable, as follows:
Regions not controlled by another player:
- Pay in Coins (if it is a PROVINCE) or discard Army Strength (if it is a MAHAJANAPADA) equal to the region's number inside its color circle.
Regions controlled by another player:
- Unprotected regions: If the player's ARMY pawn is NOT on the region (Province or Mahajanapada), discard Army Strength equal to the region's number inside its color circle to remove your opponent's Fort and replace it with your Fort.
- Protected regions: If the player's ARMY pawn IS on the region (Province or Mahajanapada), you can conquer the region only through battle. If you win the battle, replace your opponent's Fort with yours.
Examples:
- Conquer a Province: If a Province's number is 3, pay 3 Coins to conquer it (return 3 Coins to the general Coins supply).
- Conquer a Mahajanapada: If a Mahajanapada's number is 3, discard 3 Army Strength (onto the discard cards pile) to conquer it.
- Conquer an unprotected region: If the unprotected region's number is 3, discard 3 Army Strength (onto the discard cards pile) to conquer it.
- Conquer a protected region: If the player's Army pawn/pawns are on the region they control, battle to conquer the region (For Battle Rules, refer to pages 11–12).
Once you conquer a region, place a Fort on it to mark your presence. A Conquered Region belongs to only one player at a time and can have only one Fort.
When you conquer (or reconquer) a region, you gain Victory Points (VP) equal to the region's number inside its color circle. You also gain all the Resources (Iron, Wood, Food) and Trade Objects (Black Pottery, Spices, and Silk) illustrated on the region. Collect a region's Resources and Trade Objects only at the time when you conquer or reconquer it. Do not collect a Conquered Region's Resources and Trade Objects on every turn!
If you lose a region to another player, remove your Fort from the region and subtract the region's VP number from the VP score on your Player Tracker. You do not lose the Resources and Trade Objects of the region.
Control
A player controls a region as long as they have a Fort on that region. When you lose a Conquered Region to another player, you lose control over it.
Start the Game
Quick-Start Card
Quick Start: Each player/team takes one Quick-Start Card. This card helps you to kick-start the game faster and keep key information handy during the game. It contains all the essential information you need about Start and Turn Rules on one side, and Costs, Exchange rates, and VP conditions on the other side.
Keep the Quick-Start Card next to you when you play, to access turn rules and other main information without having to memorize any. Refer to the Rulebook when you need more details.
Gameplay: You collect Resources on every turn. On your turn, you may exchange your Resources for Coins and buy Army cards with your Coins. You will use your Armies to move on the map, conquer regions, collect more Resources and Trade Objects, and battle other players. Work your way up to gain the required Victory Points (VP) score to win.
Turn Rules (Basic Game)
Start: The oldest player goes first (or determine a first player using any method of your choice). Turns proceed clockwise from there until one player/team wins. Each turn has two Phases. On your turn, first complete Phase I and then Phase II (in sequential order).
You have to complete both Phases in your turn before the next player takes their turn.
Phase I—Resource Management
1) Collect Resources
Draw a Resource Modifier card from the top of the deck on the board. This card applies to all the players in the game. Show the card to the other players and read the text on the card out loud. Make sure that all the players, including you, modify the Resources—Iron, Wood, and Food—on your Player Trackers according to what the Resource Modifier card says. Once you play a Resource Modifier card, place it on a discard pile at the side of the board.
You cannot have more than 15 of any Resource at any time. If a Resource Modifier card results in you having more than 15 of any Resource, the excess is wasted and can never be exchanged for Coins.
2) Exchange Resources (Optional)
You may choose to exchange Resources—Iron, Wood, and Food—for Coins. The reverse is not possible—Coins cannot be exchanged for Resources.
Subtract any number of Resources that you want to exchange from your Player Tracker as per the Exchange Rates below. Then move the Tracker Pegs to reflect the exchange outcome and collect the corresponding number of Coins from the general Coins supply on the board.
Resources Exchange Rates
- 2 Iron = 1 Coin
- 3 Wood = 1 Coin
- 4 Food = 1 Coin
3) Trade (Optional)
You may exchange your Trade Objects for Coins if you control an Export Harbour. Once you trade an Object, remove it from your Player Tracker and place it in the general supply of Trade Objects on the board. You can trade multiple Objects at once.
Trade Rates
- Black Pottery = 2 Coins
- Spices = 3 Coins
- Silk = 4 Coins
4) Buy Army Cards (Optional)
You may choose to buy Army cards from the Army deck with Coins. You cannot sell Army cards for Coins. Keep the content of your cards secret from the other players.
When you buy an Army card, draw the top card from the Army deck. Take a look at the card, then place it, face down, on one of your two Armies on your Player Tracker. If you buy multiple Army cards, you may distribute them between your two Armies as you please. You cannot redistribute your cards from one Army to the other Army at any point in the game.
Army Cost
- 1 Army card = 2 Coins
Phase II—Actions
You may do up to two Actions, in any order. You may do the same Action twice, each time counting as one Action. If you want to take a third Action, pay 1 Coin. A third Action can be any Action.
1) Move
Move any one of your two Army pawns to a neighbouring (adjacent) region. You can move to a Province without having to conquer it (this helps you advance faster on the map).
However, you cannot move to a Mahajanapada or a region controlled by another player unless you attempt to conquer it with your next Action (during your current turn or next turn).
2) Conquer a Region (Without Battle)
To conquer a region, your Army pawn must be on that region.
If no player controls the region, you must pay in Coins (if it is a Province) or discard Army Strength (if it is a Mahajanapada) equal to the region's number inside its color circle.
If another player controls the region (if the player has a Fort on the region), but their Army pawn is not on the region, the region is unprotected and you can conquer it without a battle! Discard Army Strength (onto the Army cards discard pile) equal to the region's number to replace your opponent's Fort with yours. If the player who controls the region has their Army pawn/pawns on the region, you have to battle their Army/Armies to conquer the region.
When you conquer a region, place your Fort on the region and gain Victory Points (VP) equal to the region's number inside its color circle. You also get to collect all the region's Resources—Iron, Wood, and Food—and Trade Objects—Black Pottery, Spices, and Silk—illustrated with symbols on that region.
Cost to Conquer = Region's Number
- Province = pay in Coins equal to the Province's number
- Mahajanapada = discard Army Strength equal to the Mahajanapada's number
- Controlled regions = discard Army Strength equal to the region's number if its Army is not on the region, else battle
3) Battle
A player's Army/Armies can attack another player's Army/Armies if both players' Armies are on the same region. You may attack or defend with one or two Armies, as long as both your Armies are on the battle region. If you lose a battle in a region you control, you lose your Fort as well as the region's Victory Points (VP). However, you do not lose the Resources and Trade Objects of the region.
See Pages 11–12, Battle Rules section, on how to conduct a battle.
If you cannot or do not want to take an Action, the next player starts their turn.
Turn Example
Anita plays against Ajeet. It is Anita's turn. She starts with Phase I of her turn. Anita draws a Resource Modifier card. As the card reads: "Take 2 Iron", both Anita and Ajeet modify their tracker pegs to reflect an increase of 2 Iron in their Resources. Anita decides to exchange some of her Resources for Coins. She exchanges 4 Iron, 3 Wood, and 8 Food from her tracker for a total of 5 Coins. Anita also decides to trade one of her Trade Objects—Silk—for 4 Coins. Now Anita has 9 Coins, enough for her to buy 4 Army cards and be left with a change of 1 Coin. Once Phase I is over, Anita continues with Phase II. She decides to take two Move Actions, moving her Army I two regions forward, into a region controlled by Ajeet. Anita uses 1 Coin to buy her a third Action. With her third Action, she conquers Ajeet's region (by simply discarding a Cavalry Army card equal to Ajeet's region's number of 2, as Ajeet's Army is not on the region to defend it in battle). Now Anita's turn is over. Ajeet's turn starts.
How to Earn VP & Win (Basic Game)
Game Winner
The first player/team to reach 25 Victory Points (VP) in a 2-player (or 2 teams) game, or 20 VP in a 3–8 player (or 3–4 teams) game, is the winner!
You also win if all other players/teams are out of the game (if they lost all their Armies and Home Capital Cities).
Players/teams who lost their Home Capital City stay in the game (and can still win!) as long as they have at least one Army pawn on the board.
Game End: After the winner is announced, the remaining players may choose to continue the game among themselves or consider the game finished.
If the game continues, the remaining players cannot move into the winner's Conquered Regions or reconquer them. However, remaining players can move into, as well as reconquer, regions belonging to players who lost and are out of the game.
How to Earn VP
Ways to get 25 (or 20) VP to win!
In the Basic Game version, you earn VP when you conquer regions (Provinces and Mahajanapadas) and when you achieve VP Conditions.
Conquer Regions — for 1 to 6 VP
Earn 1–6 VP when you conquer regions. A region's number = VP value (1 VP, 3 VP, or 6 VP).
When you conquer a region, add the region's VP number to your VP score on your Player Tracker. When you lose one of your Conquered Regions to another player, subtract the region's VP number from your VP score. If you forget to update your VP score, update it as soon as you remember.
VP Conditions — for 1 to 2 VP
Earn extra 1 VP for any of the following:
- Control 4 Harbours
- Own simultaneously 1 Black Pottery, 1 Spices, & 1 Silk
- Win 3 Battles
Earn extra 2 VP for any of the following:
- Control 6 Provinces
- Control all the neighbouring regions around your Home Capital City
- Conquer another player's Home Capital City
Control: a player controls a region as long as they have a Fort on that region.
Each one of the 6 VP Conditions can be achieved only once by the same player. A player achieving a VP Condition does not prevent other players from pursuing it too.
VP Condition Prize Cards
When you achieve a VP Condition, you can take a VP Condition Prize card. These cards give you a certain advantage during your current turn.
Opponent players spread out the VP Condition Prize cards, face down. Pick one VP Condition Prize card, turn it face up, and read the text out loud. Choose one of the two options on the card. You can also choose not to play the VP Condition Prize card. Once played (or not), place the card back into the deck and reshuffle it. Never discard a VP Condition Prize card—it can be played multiple times, even by the same player.
Remember to take a VP Condition Prize card every time you achieve a VP Condition! Choose one of the two options on the card if it suits you.
Battle Rules
How to Battle
Battles take place in regions where opposing Armies meet. Attacking an opponent is always optional, even when Armies cross paths. However, moving into a region controlled by another player that has their Army on it equals to a declaration of attack (as you cannot move into another player's region unless you attempt to conquer it with your next Action). You can never ignore or deny a battle.
Declare Your Intention to Attack
To battle another player, first declare your intention to attack them. You may declare before or after you move into the region where your opponent Army is present.
Select Your Army Strength
If both your Armies are in the battle region, choose if you want to battle with one or two Armies.
Simultaneously and secretly, each player selects a number of Army cards (Army Strength) belonging to the same Army/Armies that will engage in battle. Place the selected Army cards face down, outside your Player Tracker.
- If you battle in your Home Capital City, you have to select all the Army cards in your Army/Armies. If both your Armies are in your Home Capital City, you can still choose if you want to battle with one or two Armies.
- If you battle in a region you control (including your Home Capital City) add the region's number to your Army Strength. For example, if you decide to battle with an Army Strength of 10 and your Conquered Region where the battle is taking place has a number of 3, your total Army Strength becomes 13.
- If you battle in a region you control, except your Home Capital City, you may choose to spend in battle Strength equal to only your region's number without using any Army cards. In regions you do not control, you have to battle with at least one Army card.
Reveal Your Army Strength
Both players reveal their selected Army cards simultaneously. The player with the highest total Army Strength wins. If the battle ends in a tie, the defending player wins.
Winner
- Controlled regions: The winner gains (or retains) control of the region and its Fort. The winner also gains (or retains) VP equal to the region's number as well as the region's Resources and Trade Objects (if any).
- Non-controlled regions: If the battle was in a region not controlled by a player, the winner does not gain control of the region nor its benefits.
In all cases, the winner discards an equal amount of Army Strength as the player who lost the battle. Or, the winner can choose to discard all the Army cards they played in battle if deemed as a more favorable alternative. Lost Army cards go into the discard pile.
The winner gets to keep their Army pawn/pawns in the region, even if they are left with no Army cards in their Army/Armies. However, they will have to add at least one Army card to each such Army on the Player Tracker as soon as possible (in the meantime, Army pawns can still move on the map).
Loser
The loser's Army/Armies retreat to their Home Capital City if they have at least one Army card each on the Player Tracker. A defeated Army with no Army cards left goes off the map. An Army that is off the map can be reestablished in its Home Capital City as soon as the player adds at least one Army card to it.
The loser discards all the Army cards used in battle. If the battle occurred in a region they controlled, the loser subtracts the lost region's number from their VP score. The loser does not reduce their Resources or Trade Objects corresponding to the lost region.
If you lose a battle in your Home Capital City, your respective Army goes off the map. However, you can still win the game with one Army and no Home Capital City! If you decide to reestablish your lost Army, you must first reconquer your Home Capital City with your remaining Army. If you do not have a remaining Army to reconquer your Home Capital City, you lose the game.
Losing your last Army card: If you lose the last Army card in an Army, its Army pawn goes off the map (except for the battle Winner). As long as you control your Home Capital City, you can reestablish your Army pawn there as soon as you add one Army card to it.
Battle Example
Ajeet takes a Move Action, placing his Army I on a region controlled by Anita. Anita has her Army II on the region.
Ajeet declares his intention to attack Anita. Anita has only 3 Army cards in her Army II, while Ajeet has 7 Army cards in his Army I. Anita decides to spend her 3 Army cards to defend her region. Ajeet decides to spend 6 out of his 7 Army cards on this battle.
When they have finalized their decisions, Ajeet and Anita reveal their selected Army cards at the same time. Anita cheers—she won with an Army Strength of 11 against Ajeet's Army Strength of 10. Anita played 3 Army cards comprising of 2 Elephant cards and 1 Cavalry card—a total of 8 Army Strength. On top of this, she added her Conquered Region's number of 3, increasing her Army Strength from 8 to 11.
Ajeet played 6 Army cards comprising of 1 Elephant card, 2 Cavalry cards, and 3 Infantry cards—a total of 10 Army Strength. He lost by 1 Army Strength point to Anita. Ajeet is in disbelief—his 6 Army cards lost to Anita's 3 Army cards, but he understands that winning is not dependent on the number of cards but on the strength of the cards and of the battle region.
Anita gets to keep her region and Army pawn, though she has to discard the 3 Army cards she played in battle (Armies who presumably perished defending the region), equal to 8 Army Strength (as the most favourable option to her, compared to losing an equal amount of Army Strength as Ajeet lost, equal to 10 Army Strength). Ajeet's Army I retreats to his Home Capital City (as he still has 1 Army card left on his Army I on the Player Tracker). He also discards the 6 Army cards he lost in battle (amounting to 10 Army Strength). The battle is over.
Strategy Tips
Strategy Tip 1: The game is just as much about the threat of a battle as it is about the actual battle. If a player has a lot of Army cards, you are less likely to attack them. Similarly, you might buy a lot of Army cards to protect yourself from another player's attack. However, just because a player has more Army cards than you does not necessarily mean that they will win in battle against you. You do not know how many Army cards and Army Strength they will decide to spend in battle, nor do they know how much Army Strength you have.
Strategy Tip 2: There is so much you can strategize with two Armies! For example, you can use one Army to advance and the other Army to protect your Home Capital City or any of your Conquered Regions. Or, you can use both Armies to advance in two different directions. You can also use both Armies to advance in the same direction—one Army protecting the other Army, or simply threatening the opponent with your combined Army force!
Discarding Army Strength
If you need to discard small-value Army cards but you have only big-value Army cards, you can exchange your Army cards with cards from the Army deck on the board, at the same conversion rate.
For example, if you need to discard an Army Strength of 2, but you have only one Elephant card, you can exchange your Elephant card for 3 Infantry cards (or any other combination of equal value). Use the small-value cards to arrive at the total Army Strength to discard. Reshuffle the Army deck after each exchange.
Personality Cards
Choose Your Character
Personalize your style of playing! Each Personality card gives a unique power to the player/players who choose it. Personality card rules are stronger than the general game rules—they allow you throughout the game to move faster on the board, build a bigger Army, enjoy profitable VP conditions, have better Trade rates, and access powerful defence options.
Personality Card Powers
- Daredevil: faster Movement
- Conqueror: bigger Army size
- Leader: improved VP Conditions
- Influencer: better Trade and Defence
Daredevil
Power: If your Army is at a Harbour or Export Harbour, it can jump to any other harbour on the map (may it be Harbours or Export Harbours). 1 jump = 1 Move Action.
Conqueror
Power: Start the game with 1 extra Army card from the deck. (Place it on any one of your Armies.) When you buy 3 Army cards at once, you get 1 extra Army card free.
Leader
Power: You gain 1 extra VP every time you control 4 regions of the same VP value. (Never count a region twice.) You gain 1 extra VP for every VP Condition that you achieve.
Influencer
Power: In battle, you may negotiate to pay your opponent in Coins (any amount), so that they retreat to their previous location and not reattempt the battle in the next 2 turns. If negotiations fail, battle. In battle, only if attacked, you may speed march (jump) your other Army to the battle region. When you exchange a Trade Object, you get 1 extra Coin.
Advanced Game
How the Advanced Game Works
You can play Bharata—600 BC in two ways: as a Basic Game or as an Advanced Game. Once you played the Basic Game, you are ready for the Advanced Game.
The Advanced Game is a variation of the Basic Game. All the Basic Game components and rules also apply to the Advanced Game. In addition to the Basic Game, the Advanced Game has 5 extra components and their respective rules. That's it!
Advanced Game: Components: 17 (Basic Game components + 5 extra: Ability cards, Ability Action Completion Tokens, Event cards, Event Tokens, and Hidden Tokens). Game duration: 60–90 min. Game type: strategy and chance.
Setup (Advanced Game)
1. Board Setup
- Board: In addition to the Basic Game Board Setup (explained on page 4), arrange the following extra components as illustrated below.
- Event Tokens: Place the opened box of the Event Tokens on the board placement marked 'Event Tokens'. This is the general supply for Event Tokens.
- Event cards: Shuffle the Event cards and place them, face down, on the board placement marked 'Events'.
- Hidden Tokens: Place the 25 Hidden Tokens face down and pick 10 at random. Do not look under the tokens. Place the 10 Hidden Tokens on the board map, face down, one on each region marked with a Hidden Token symbol (red circle with a question mark).
2. Player Setup
In addition to the Basic Game Player Setup (explained on page 5), do the following:
- Ability cards: Each player/team takes a set of 9 Ability cards—Perceptive, Fearless, Generous, Ingenious, Versatile, Revengeful, Clever, Psychic, and Resilient—of their color, as indicated by the border color of the cards. Read the text on the back of your cards and choose 2 Ability cards. Return the remaining 7 Ability cards to the game box.
Ability cards give unique powers to the players who choose them. Multiple players/teams may choose the same Ability cards; this is perfectly fine. You may reveal or hide your Ability cards from your opponents.
Your Ability cards together with your Personality card form your Character.
- Ability Action Completion Tokens: Each player takes 4 Ability Action Completion Tokens. As each Ability card has Actions that can be performed only twice a game, Completion Tokens help you track the number of times you used an Action. Every time you use an Ability Action, place a Completion Token on one of its corresponding markings on the Ability card.
Important Concepts (Advanced Game)
Hidden Tokens
Hidden Tokens contain bonus Victory Points (VP), Trade Objects, Events, Medicine (which functions as Immunity from Disease Events for the rest of the game), and Empty Tokens (with no consequence).
There are 10 Hidden Tokens, face down, on the map. Do not look under the Hidden Tokens. You can flip over a Hidden Token only if your Army pawn is on the region where the Hidden Token is located. You do NOT have to conquer the region to flip over its Hidden Token.
It is up to you if you want to flip a Hidden Token over when you have the chance to. Once you see a Hidden Token, you have to execute its content (unless you have the Psychic Ability card which gives you the power to look under a Hidden Token and decide if you want to execute it or not).
Reveal Hidden Tokens: You may choose to reveal a Hidden Token only if your ARMY pawn is ON the region with the Hidden Token.
Events
Events are natural and social occurrences—such as natural disasters, diseases, festivals, and riots—that randomly affect regions on the map. Each Event card has one or more Events marked on it. When you draw an Event card (in Phase III of every turn), place its corresponding Event Token/Tokens on the affected region/regions on the map. Once played, discard the Event card on a discard pile at the side of the board.
Each Event has a Cost associated with it. You need to pay this Cost immediately (in your next Action) if the Event/Events occur in your Conquered Regions and regions where your Army pawns are present. To pay an Event Cost, use 'Pay to Remove Events' Action, in Phase II of your turn. Certain Ability Card Actions allow you to remove Events without paying. In this case, use 'Play an Ability Card Action' to remove the Event/Events at no Cost. Until you remove the Event/Events, you cannot take any other Actions in Phase II of your present turn (and subsequent turns).
If you move into a region affected by an Event, you need to remove the Event in your next Action, whether you plan to conquer the region or not.
Once you removed an Event, return its Event Token to the general supply of Event Tokens on the board.
Immunity against an Event (found on your Ability cards) removes the Event, at no Cost. Immunity is not counted as an Action! Any time during your turn, simply remove the Event/Events you are immune to.
How to Play Events
- Draw an Event card.
- Place the Event card's corresponding Event Token/Tokens on the map.
- To remove an Event and its Token from a region, pay the Cost associated with it.
- Example: For an Earthquake Event card with 3 Earthquake Events, place 3 Earthquake Event Tokens on the 3 earthquake-affected regions on the map. The Event symbol points to the event-affected region. Find the corresponding Event Token/Tokens in the Event Token general supply box on the board, and place them on the affected regions on the map.
Event Costs
- Earthquake = 2 Iron + 2 Wood
- Cyclone = 6 Food + 1 Wood
- Tsunami = 2 Iron + 2 Wood + 3 Food
- Landslide = 2 Wood
- Flooding = 4 Food
- Wild Animals = 3 Food + 2 Iron
- Drought = 6 Food
- Disease = 1 Food + 1 Coin, OR Medicine
- Festival = Any 3 Resources
- Riots = 2 Coins
Event Tokens: Earthquake, Cyclone, Tsunami, Landslide, Flooding, Wild Animals, Drought, Disease, Festival, Riots.
Turn Rules (Advanced Game)
In addition to the Basic Game Turn Rules (explained on pages 8–9), the Turn Rules in the Advanced Game include extra Actions in Phase II and a Phase III.
Phase I—Resource Management
Play Phase I in the same way as you do in the Basic Game.
Phase II—Actions
Play Phase II in the same way as you do in the Basic Game. In addition to the Basic Game's three Actions—Move, Conquer a Region, and Battle—you get three extra Actions to choose from:
4) Pay to Remove Events
Pay the Cost of one or more Events to remove the corresponding Event Token/Tokens from the map. To pay an Event Cost, return the Cost—Resources and/or Coins—to their general supplies on the board. For Event Costs, see your Quick-Start Card or Event Costs section on page 16.
You can pay to remove an Event from any region. Each Event Token counts as one Event. You can pay for multiple Events at once in one Action.
If you have Events in your Conquered Regions or in regions where your Army pawns are present, you must remove the Events immediately. Until you remove the Events, you cannot take any other Actions in Phase II of your turn. If required, follow the Actions hierarchy—1st: remove Events that impact you, 2nd: attempt to conquer a Mahajanapada or another player's region that you just moved into.
Immunity against an Event (found on your Ability cards) removes the Event, at no Cost, and is not counted as an Action. Playing an Ability card Action to remove an Event counts as one Action.
5) Play an Ability Card Action
You may play an Action from one of your Ability cards. Ability card Actions can be played only twice a game. Once you play an Ability card Action, place an Ability Action Completion Token on its respective Ability card placement.
Immunity is not counted as an Action! You can play your Immunity at any time during your turn by simply removing the Event/Events you are immune to.
6) Reveal a Hidden Token
You may flip over and execute a Hidden Token if your Army pawn is on the region where the Hidden Token is located (unless you have the Psychic Ability card). Once revealed and executed, discard the Hidden Token, unless:
- a) The Hidden Token is an Event that you cannot remove immediately. In this case, the Hidden Token remains on the map, face up, until it is removed. All Event rules apply to a Hidden Token containing an Event. Like any Event in a region where your Army pawn is present, you must remove it in your next Action.
- b) The Hidden Token contains a Trade Object—Black Pottery, Spices, or Silk—or Medicine. In this case, place the Hidden Token, face up, onto/next to your Player Tracker placement for Trade Objects.
Phase III—Events
Place an Event on the Map
Draw an Event card from the deck on the board. Place its corresponding Event Token/Tokens on the map, on the same region/regions as the ones marked on the Event card. Once you played an Event card, place it in a discard pile at the side of the board.
Never skip Phase III in a turn! Even when you cannot or do not want to take any Actions in Phase II, always end your turn with Phase III.
How to Earn Extra VP (Advanced Game)
Reveal Hidden Tokens
In the Basic Game, you earn VP when you conquer regions (Mahajanapadas and Provinces) and achieve VP Conditions. In addition to this, in the Advanced Game, you can earn extra VP when you reveal Hidden Tokens.
Once you reveal a Hidden Token marked with a VP number on it, add its VP value to your VP score on your Player Tracker.
Hidden Tokens — for 1 to 3 VP: Reveal Hidden Tokens to discover 1–3 VP (Hidden Tokens: +1 VP, +2 VP, +3 VP).
Ability Cards (Advanced Game)
Stronger Character
Gain more power with Ability cards! Each Ability card gives unique Immunity to Events and extra optional Actions to the player/players who choose it. Ability card rules take precedence over the general game rules. Ability cards increase the replay value of the game: you can build new game characters by combining any 2 Ability cards with any 1 Personality card.
Each Ability card has two components:
- Immunity against a specific Event/Events. Immunity is valid for the entire game duration, and it is never counted as an Action! On your turn, you may remove any Event Token/Tokens that you are immune to, from any regions on the map, at no Cost. You can play your Immunity even when you do not take any Actions in Phase II of your turn.
- Actions that give you an advantage over Events, Hidden Tokens, Resources, or other players' Actions.
Ability cards shown in the rulebook:
- Perceptive — Immunity: Landslides. Action: Twice a game, you may prevent a player from buying a third Action in Phase II of their next turn. (On your turn, announce the player whom you are targeting.)
- Ingenious — Immunity: Flooding. Action: Twice a game, on your turn, you may reposition any Event on the map. (Remove any one Event Token from its current region and place it on any other region.)
- Psychic — Immunity: Earthquakes and Tsunamis. Action: Twice a game, on your turn, you may look under a Hidden Token anywhere on the map. (Do not reveal it to the other players.) If your Army is in the region with the Hidden Token, you may choose to reveal the token and execute its content.
- Fearless — Immunity: Wild Animals. Action: Twice a game, on your turn, you may remove any Event anywhere on the map, at no Cost. (Remove one Event Token from any region.)
Ability Cards (continued)
- Generous — Immunity: Festivals. Action: Twice a game, on your turn, you may remove all the Events in one of your Conquered Regions, at no Cost.
- You can apply the Generous Action to any number of Events present in one of your Conquered Regions. This will remove all the Events in your Conquered Region, at no Cost.
- When you offer a specific Event Immunity to a player for one turn, if they accept your offer, this will remove, on their turn, all the immunity-related Events that affect their Conquered Regions and regions where their Armies are present. You may offer any Immunity to any player, for one turn. This does not count as an Action for you. You can perform this as many times as you like, during any turn.
- For example, if you offer the Cyclone Immunity to a player and 3 Cyclone Events are affecting 2 of their Conquered Regions and a region where one of their Armies is present, on their turn, the player can remove, at no Cost, all 3 Cyclone Events.
- Resilient — Immunity: Diseases. Action: Twice a game, on your turn, you may nullify an Ability Action performed against you. (Revert to the previous state.)
- The Resilient Action works against the Ingenious, Versatile, and Revengeful Ability Actions. When you nullify an Ability Action, revert all the nullified effects to their previous state. Event Tokens return to their previous locations.
- Clever — Immunity: Cyclones. Action: Twice a game, just before Phase I of your turn, you may look under the top 3 Resource Modifier cards in the deck and place them back in the same order. (Use this knowledge to your advantage?) * This counts as 1 Action in Phase II of your turn.
- Use the Clever Action to optimize your Resources and gain benefits by the end of the next 2–3 turns! If needed, plan your Phase II with the Actions hierarchy in mind—1st: remove Events that impact you, 2nd: attempt to conquer a Mahajanapada or another player's region that you just moved into, 3rd: play Clever Action.
Highlighted Rules
- Winner: The winner is the first player/team who reaches 25 Victory Points (VP) in a 2-player (or 2 teams) game, or 20 VP in a 3–8 player (or 3–4 teams) game. You also win if all your opponents lose all their Armies and Home Capital Cities (in this case, your VP score does not matter).
- Victory Points (VP): You earn VP when you conquer Regions and achieve VP Conditions. In the Advanced Game version, you earn extra VP when you reveal Hidden Tokens.
- VP Conditions: There are 6 VP Conditions. You earn extra 1 VP for any of the following: Control 4 Harbours; Own simultaneously 1 Black Pottery, 1 Spices, and 1 Silk; Win 3 Battles. You earn extra 2 VP when you: Control 6 Provinces; Control all neighbouring regions around your Home Capital City; Conquer another player's Home Capital City. Each VP Condition can be achieved only once by the same player. You get a VP Condition Prize card for every VP Condition that you achieve.
- Regions: There are two types of regions: Mahajanapadas (16 kingdoms) and Provinces. Provinces have 3 terrain types: Inland, Harbours, and Export Harbours. Mahajanapadas have yellow borders on all sides and yellow circle numbers. Provinces have at least one black border segment. Inland terrains have black circle numbers, Harbours have blue circle numbers, and Export Harbours have dark blue circle numbers linked to a ship.
- Home Capital City: Your Home Capital City is your . There are only 4 Home Capital Cities on the map: and .
Component Care
The Forts, Armies, and Tracker Pegs are individually handcrafted in wood. As handcrafted pieces, irregularities in the finish, shape, and colour may occur. These irregularities are a part of their intrinsic value and charm, and not a flaw.
Shellac lacquer may soften at 50°C+. Do not keep the wood components in close proximity to heat or flame sources; avoid prolonged exposure to direct sunlight.