Claim: Alliances
Claim: Alliances Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
The expansion adds the following cards for the cooperative variant:
- 37 cards for the cooperative variant:
- 4 Commanders
- 7 Hourglasses
- 2 Catapults
- 12 Easy Enemies
- 12 Hard Enemies
- 20 cards for 2 factions:
- 10 Ursid cards, numbered 0 to 9
- 10 Insectoid cards, numbered 0 to 9
- 2 summary cards
These new factions can be used to replace other 10-card factions.
Setup
The play area is divided into the combat area and the alliance area. Setting up the combat area is the same as setting up a standard 2-player game.
To set up the alliance area, first choose the difficulty you want to play. Start with the easier levels and work up to the epic battle at the end:
| Difficulty | Hourglasses | Easy Enemies | Hard Enemies | Commanders | Catapults |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Recruit | 7 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Normal | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| Hard | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 |
| Epic | 1 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 2 |
Place the corresponding number of Commander, Hourglass and Catapult cards face up between the players. For the enemies, shuffle the Easy Enemy cards and the Hard Enemy cards into two separate piles. Take the corresponding number of cards from each pile and place them face up between the players as well. Return the remaining Commander, Hourglass, Catapult, Easy Enemy and Hard Enemy cards to the box, as they will not be used in this game.
Let the battle horns sound!
Example of a battle on Recruit difficulty.
Overview
Work together to defeat the enemy. The game is played in 2 phases. In the first phase, you recruit followers and choose alliance cards. Alliance cards work differently from Enemy cards or Hourglass cards (which give you time to think about your strategy). In the second phase, you gather cards from the different factions and, of course, try to meet the requirements of the alliance cards. If you manage to take control of certain factions and defeat your enemies, you win the game together and can then return to fighting each other.
Playing the Game
In Claim: Alliances, the players follow the same sequence as the original game. The game is played in 2 phases. Instead of winning the most factions, you must now work together to defeat the enemies and win the favor of a pair of factions. The cooperative variant has the following changes in each phase:
Phase 1: Recruit Followers and Choose Alliance Cards
In Phase 1, players recruit followers following the base game rules. After playing the trick, the winner must choose 1 of the alliance cards that lie between the two players. Commander, Hourglass, Catapult and Enemy cards (Easy and Hard) are all considered alliance cards. Choose the card after the special effects have been resolved and both players have collected their cards. The player who won the trick may keep the chosen alliance card or give it to their ally.
The alliance cards have the following effects in play:
- Commander: When you place the Commander card in front of you, choose a faction card from the discard pile and place it face up on top of the Commander card. You must now win the favor of this faction to win the game. You cannot select a faction that is already placed on top of another Commander card. At the end of the game, both players must have the same number of Commander cards in front of them.
- Hourglass: If you choose the Hourglass, discard the card, which gives the players some extra time. This can be useful when you are not sure which alliance card to choose and prefer to wait.
- Catapult: Remove the Catapult card and one of the Enemy cards from the game. You cannot remove an enemy that is in front of a player.
- Enemy: The players must defeat the enemies in front of them. Each enemy is defeated in a different way. The number of hearts (lives) shows how many cards you must discard at the end of the game. The number on the scroll shows which cards can affect it.
For example, to defeat this Hard Enemy, you must play 2 cards (2 lives) with the number 3 and/or 8.
Phase 2: Gain Sympathizers
There are no additional rules for the cooperative variant in this phase. Play it as in the base game, but remember that you must defeat the enemies in front of you and gain the support of the factions placed on top of the Commander cards (1 or 2 factions).
Limited Communication
Although the game is cooperative, the players may not communicate with each other. They may not talk about the cards in their hands or in their scoring piles, so you will need to pay close attention to the cards played and won by your ally in order to keep track and claim the victory.
End of the Game
Once all the cards have been played, the game ends. In Claim: Alliances, the players win or lose together. Both players first check whether they have won the favor of the factions on top of the Commander cards. Then, both players must defeat the enemies in front of them. Each player must face their own enemies and cannot help their ally.
Note: The players may not share cards from their scoring pile. The faction cards in your scoring pile are yours alone.
If both players have controlled the correct factions and defeated the enemies in front of them, you have won the game. Otherwise, you have lost.
Special Faction Powers
Each faction has a special power that affects the game. These powers are:
- Ursids: In Phase 1, if you win a trick with an Ursid, you may place the next revealed card at the bottom of the deck and draw a new card. If you win the last trick of Phase 1 with an Ursid, nothing happens.
- Insectoids: At the end of the game, the players check how many Insectoid cards they have in their scoring pile. To keep an Insectoid card in your scoring pile, you must have at least one other Insectoid card with a value 1 or 2 points lower or higher (for example, if you have the 4, you must have the 2, the 3, the 5 or the 6). If you do not meet this condition, the Insectoid card passes to your opponent's pile. This must be done at the same time, so that one player cannot take advantage of the other player's cards.