Credo!: the Game of Dueling Dogmas

Credo! Rulebook

Table of Contents

Object of the Game
Components
Set Up
The Game
- Event Card
- Article Card
General Councils
The Debate
Results
Game End
Miscellaneous
Church Cards
Special Church Cards
Article Cards
Event Cards
- Event Card Definitions
- Special Event Cards and the Tables
Tables
Card List
Article Cards (129 cards)
Event Cards (111 cards)

Object of the Game

Each player represents a Church with a set of doctrines (Creed).

The object of the game is to have:

the flock with the greatest number of Followers when the Creed is complete; OR
a flock of 11 million Followers; OR
117 votes amongst your Bishops and Laity.

The first person to realise one of these conditions wins.

Components

120 Church cards (blue): 68 Followers, 45 Bishops (including 5 Patriarchs), 7 Laity
129 Article cards (yellow)
111 Event cards (yellow)
1 central gameboard with 18 boxes: 10 numbered Article boxes for the Definitive Creed, a Church Cards box, an Event/Article cards box, a Church Card Discard box, an Event/Article Card Discard box, an Event Card Permanent Discard box, an Article Card Permanent Discard box, a Jerusalem and Constantinople Patriarchs box, and an Emperor Out-Of-Play box
6 Church mats with 9 boxes: 3 each for Articles of Faith, Firm Beliefs and Customary Practices
1 booklet of rules and historical notes
2 six-sided dice

Set Up

Each player takes a Church mat.
Deal 9 Article cards to each player.

Each player determines which Articles he will defend in the doctrine of his Church. The selected Articles are placed on his Church mat. The Articles can be placed in any category of the player's choice, but according to the following rules:

a. Only one Article of any given Article Number is permitted. All other Article cards of the same Article Number are discarded except exact duplicates of an Article placed on his Church mat, which are secretly kept in his hand for later Teaching. If he is defending an Article card which has two Article Numbers (e.g. "Articles 1 & 2", "3 & 4" or "3, 4 & 5") then this counts as belonging to both/all such Articles, and all other cards bearing those numbers must be discarded.

b. He must place as many Articles as possible on his Church mat.

c. He may only discard Article cards having the same number but not the same doctrine as those placed on his mat.

d. Article 1, if held, must be placed as an Article of Faith.

e. He can only place an Article in a category if the three places in the category above it are filled. Thus to place an Article as a Firm Belief, he must already have placed three Articles as Articles of Faith.

f. If possible he must have three Articles of Faith.

g. No player can have more than three Articles of Faith, three Firm Beliefs and three Customary Practices.

h. When an Article causing the loss of Followers or Bishops is placed on the central board, the player must suffer the indicated loss from the Church cards dealt to him in #3 below.
Remove the Patriarchs of Jerusalem and Constantinople cards from the Church card deck and place them in the Patriarchs of Jerusalem and Constantinople box on the central gameboard.
Deal all the Church cards evenly into a number of piles equal to the number of players plus one. The extra pile and any cards left over are placed on the central mat in the Church Cards box. As these cards are played during the game they are placed in the Church Card Discard box. When the pile of Church cards is exhausted, shuffle the Church Card Discard pile and place it in the empty Church Card box.

The Game

The game is played in turns, starting with the player to the dealer's left and continuing clockwise.

On his turn, the player draws an Event/Article card from the Event Card box. His actions following this will depend on the card drawn.

Event Card

Play Immediately: Cards so labelled must be immediately played, affecting either the drawing player or the player(s) indicated on the card.
Play Immediately on Another Player: Cards so labelled must be played immediately by the drawing player on another player of his choosing.
Other Event cards can be kept and played at any time, including on another player's turn.

Article Card

Article cards for Articles which have already been voted on must be immediately discarded to the Article Card Permanent Discard box. The discarding player draws replacement cards until he draws an Event, or an Article which has not yet been voted on.
Cards for Articles not yet voted on can be placed on the player's Church mat or rejected according to the following rules:
- If he does not yet possess an Article with the same number, the card can be included in his doctrine according to the rules for Article placement during game set-up.
- He can also reject and discard the Article but does not draw a replacement.
- If it is a card exactly identical in number and doctrine to one he already possesses on his mat, he may retain it in his hand for later play with a Church Father Event card.
- If it is an Article whose number (but not doctrine) he already has as a Customary Practice, he can renounce his original doctrine and replace it with the new card. However he must also Lose a Church card at the same time.
- In all other cases, discard the card but do not draw a replacement.
No player may end his turn with more than 4 Event/Article cards in his hand. He must play or discard any excess cards.
A player can play in succession as many cards as he wishes.

General Councils

Note: when a card or rule refers to the Emperor, this is the Eastern Emperor, but may be the Western Emperor if the Eastern Emperor is not in play or has been removed from the game.

The Emperor can if he desires, at the end of his turn, convoke a General Council to determine the content of the next Article of the Creed. Only the Emperor or an Event card can convoke a General Council.
Articles must be debated in ascending numerical order and only one Article can be debated and voted on at each General Council.
Each Church must announce if it has a doctrine for the Article under discussion at the Council. If so, it must vote for its own doctrine. If it has no doctrine it can either not vote, or vote for any doctrine of its choice amongst those proposed by the other Churches. Players can only vote for, and never against, a doctrine.
If only one doctrine is proposed at a Council then it is automatically accepted.

The Debate

The debates between Churches can be particularly lively.

Players can use any of their Event cards to influence the voting of other Churches. Players announce which cards they are playing and these are resolved in the order announced. The Emperor must enforce the resolution of the cards in this order. Once all the cards are played and the debate closed, the vote is taken without further influence being possible.
During the debate the different parties can enlist the support of a neutral party (a player without his own doctrine) in return for promises of subsequent support, Follower cards, etc., but such agreements cannot be enforced.
To be accepted a doctrine must obtain more votes than any one other rival doctrine obtains (i.e. it needs a plurality, not a pure majority). The Winners are those who possess the exact doctrine attaining the plurality on their Church mats. The Losers are those with a different doctrine. All other players are neither Winners nor Losers.
In the case of a tie between several doctrines, the Article is undecided and must be debated again at the next Council.
The Church giving the most votes to any Article that passes receives the honour of moving the Article from his own Church mat to the central board's Definitive Creed.

Results

First, the Losers must discard Church cards in proportion to their attachment to their rejected doctrines: 3 cards if the rejected doctrine was an Article of Faith, 2 cards for a Firm Belief and 1 for a Customary Practice.
Next, the Winners take their spoils from the pile of Church cards, also in proportion to their attachment to the accepted doctrine: 3 cards for an Article of Faith, 2 for a Firm Belief and 1 for a Customary Practice.
In the case of a multiple Article (i.e. 1&2, 3&4 or 3&4&5 together), it occupies a number of boxes in the Definitive Creed according to how many Articles it represents (i.e. 2 or 3). If it passes the vote as an Article of the Definitive Creed, the Losers Lose for each of the Articles they hold which do not correspond to it, but the Winners Win only once per multiple Article. Similarly if an Article is rejected, Losers possessing a multiple Article of the same number Lose only once. In other words, possessors of a multiple Article Win or Lose only once if that article is accepted or rejected. But non-possessors Lose multiple times if the multiple is accepted.

Example: Article 1 is being voted on. Player A has an Article 1, Player B has a different Article 1 and Player C has a multiple (in this case double) Article 1&2. Player A's Article 1 is accepted. Players B and C each lose Church cards depending upon their attachments to their own Articles. Player C loses only once, not twice, despite having the double Article. If however Player C's double Article passes, he only wins once, but Players A and B each lose once for their rejected Article 1's, and a second time if they possess Article 2's (which have simultaneously been rejected by the acceptance of the double Article 1&2).
As soon as a Council has voted for an Article, it forms part of the Definitive Creed and cannot be removed or changed in any manner. All other doctrine cards for that Article are discarded.
Finally the Emperor can enforce respect of the decision of the Council against any Churches whose own doctrines Lost the vote. The player holding the Emperor card chooses a Losing doctrine, throws the dice and consults the Respect Table. The result affects any and all players holding the chosen Losing doctrine.

Game End

The game ends:

when Article 10 has been voted on and passed, OR
when one player possesses 11 million Followers, OR
when one player acquires 117 votes in the Council.

All players count their Followers. The winner is the player with the greatest number.

Miscellaneous

If one of a player's Articles is rejected, he cannot replace it with one of any duplicates held in his hand. He must discard all his cards of that Article.
A player cannot Refute one of his own Articles.
Players Losing all their Followers, Bishops and Laity continue to play, praying to draw good cards.

Church Cards

Blue cards represent the members of a player's Church. There are 3 types:

Followers are the ordinary members and come in denominations of between 5,000 and 1,000,000.
Bishops represent historical bishoprics. The 5 Patriarchs are Bishops and all rules pertaining to Bishops apply equally to them.
Laity comprise the Eastern Emperor, Western Emperor, Empress, Magister Militum, and 4 Prefects. All rules for Laity apply equally to all of them.

Bishops and Laity have similar card layouts:

At the top left of each card is the half of the Empire in which they exercise their power (East or West). Laity are rapidly identifiable by the crossed swords beneath this.
At the top right is the number of votes (0 to 20) each individual possesses at a Council.
The right side of Patriarchs and Laity lists the number of intrinsic Followers they possess, which are included along with standard Follower card totals in the final game-tally of number of Followers.

Special Church Cards

The Patriarchs of Jerusalem and Constantinople (marked with asterisks at top left and next to their title) are removed from the deck before the initial deal and placed in the Patriarchs of Jerusalem and Constantinople box. They are only put into play when the corresponding Event cards are played.
The Bishop of Mursa card is considered to belong to both halves of the Empire, because the historic Bishopric of Mursa straddled the frontier between the two halves of the Empire.
The Bishop of Nisibis is marked with an X, because as he lived outside the Empire, he is immune from Laical persecution. Thus he can never be eliminated due to a roll of 12 on the Proselytism or Refutation Tables.

Article Cards

Article cards are yellow, like Event cards, and have the number of an Article or Articles at their top. There are 10 Articles, each covering a domain of theological controversy. Several doctrines exist for each Article and define the different beliefs of the several Churches. Ten Articles are required to complete the Definitive Creed.

Event Cards

Event cards, like Article cards, are yellow. They represent actions undertaken in the course of the game. Event cards can be played at any time, except when another player is in the process of determining the outcome of another Event.

Event Card Definitions

Give: The player gives to another player cards of his own choice from those he himself holds.
Lose: The player discards cards of his own choice from those he himself holds.
Take: The player takes cards of his own choice from another player and puts them in his own hand.
Remove: The player playing the card chooses which cards to discard from those held by the player suffering the event.
Draw: Draw cards from the deck of Church cards.
Permanent Discard: After having been played, the card is placed in the Event Card Permanent Discard box and will not be reshuffled when the Event card box is exhausted. These cards represent unique historical events.
Place aside: Only the Emperor is placed aside instead of being discarded. When the Emperor is removed from the game, he is not placed in the discard piles, but in the Emperor Out-of-Play box, and returns to play when the Event card "New Emperor" is played.
Play immediately: The Event must be played immediately upon being drawn.
Play immediately against another player: The Event must be played immediately upon being drawn. It is played on another player.

Special Event Cards and the Tables

The Western Emperor is an Event card, but is treated as a Laity card once it comes into play. If there is no Eastern Emperor, the Western Emperor can call a General Council.
The Western and Eastern Invasion of the Goths cards count as Follower cards if they are converted to Christianity by the Evangelisation of the Goths card.
The Heterodox Books cards (Words of Jesus, Gospel of the Infant Thomas, Secret Gospel of Mark and Official Record of Trial of Jesus of Nazareth) can be used to obtain supplementary votes at General Councils.
Church Father cards allow the player to nominate one of his Bishop cards (if he has any) to do one of two things: Refute an Article, or Teach an Article.
- Refute an Article. The player nominates one of his Bishops to carry the message and the Church (player) to which the message will be sent. He can attempt to refute a Firm Belief or a Customary Practice, but not an Article of Faith. The player rolls two dice and consults the Refutation Table. Unless he Loses the Bishop card due to a bad roll on the Refutation Table, he keeps the Bishop card but discards the Church Father card.
- Teach an Article. The player nominates one of his Bishops to teach any Article in the player's Creed a duplicate of which the player holds in his hand, and which the target Church (player) does not possess in his Creed. The Church Father card is discarded, and the Article to be taught is placed on the target Church mat. The targeted player then discards one of his own Firm Beliefs or Customary Practices, replacing it with the new Article.
Proselytism. The player nominates one of his own Bishops to preach to another Church (player), rolls two dice and consults the Proselytism Table.
Exile. Laity can exile any Bishop belonging to their own half of the Empire. Place the Exile card on top of the targeted Bishop. Exiled Bishops cannot vote at a General Council. Followers of an exiled Patriarch cannot fight in a Civil War or an Usurpation, but can be used as Circumcellions and are counted in the total Followers of the owning player at the end of the game. Laity from either half of the Empire can use an Exile card to recall any exiled Bishop.

Tables

Respect Table

Used by the Emperor against a Loser after a General Council.

Roll	Result
2	Take 2 Laity cards.
3	Take 1 Laity card.
4	Take 1 Bishop & 2 Follower cards.
5	Take 2 Follower cards.
6	Take 1 Bishop & 1 Follower cards.
7	Take 1 Follower card.
8	Take 1 Follower card.
9	Draw 2 Church cards.
10	No effect.
11	Lose 1 Follower card.
12	Lose 2 Follower cards.

Proselytism Table

Used with a Proselytism Event card.

Roll	Result
2	Take 1 Laity, & 2 Bishop or 3 Follower cards.
3	Take 2 Bishop & 2 Follower cards.
4	Take 2 Bishop & 2 Follower cards.
5	Take 1 Bishop & 1 Follower cards.
6	Take 1 Bishop & 1 Follower cards.
7	Take 1 Follower card.
8	Take 1 Follower card.
9	Take 1 Follower card. Laity can Persecute.
10	Laity can Persecute.
11	Laity can Persecute.
12	Enraged rioters lynch the Bishop. Lose the Bishop.

Refutation Table

Used with a Church Father Event card. Articles of Faith cannot be Refuted.

Roll	Result
2	Refute a Firm Belief or a Customary Practice.
3	Refute a Firm Belief or a Customary Practice.
4	Refute a Firm Belief or a Customary Practice.
5	Refute a Firm Belief or a Customary Practice.
6	Refute a Customary Practice.
7	Refute a Customary Practice.
8	Refute a Customary Practice.
9	No effect.
10	No effect.
11	Laity can Persecute.
12	Lose the Bishop.

Persecution Table

Used with an appropriate Event card, or as a result of the Refutation or Proselytism Tables.

Roll	Result
2	Remove 2 Bishop cards.
3	Remove 1 Bishop card.
4	Remove 2 Follower cards.
5	Remove 2 Follower cards.
6	Remove 1 Follower card.
7	Remove 1 Follower card.
8	Remove 1 Follower card.
9	Remove 1 Follower card.
10	No effect.
11	Remove 3 Follower cards. The Persecuted Church draws 1 Church card.
12	Remove 1 Follower card. The Persecuted Church draws 3 Church cards.

Card List

Church Card Totals

120 Church cards: 211 votes (av. 1.76/card; 4.06/non-Follower); 21,445,000 followers (av. 178,708/card; 268,063/non-Bishop)

Followers (68 cards, 12,895,000 followers, av. 189,632)

2 x 5,000 = 10,000
6 x 10,000 = 60,000
5 x 20,000 = 100,000
3 x 25,000 = 75,000
7 x 50,000 = 350,000
2 x 75,000 = 150,000
16 x 100,000 = 1,600,000
2 x 150,000 = 300,000
5 x 200,000 = 1,000,000
9 x 250,000 = 2,250,000
7 x 500,000 = 3,500,000
2 x 750,000 = 1,500,000
2 x 1,000,000 = 2,000,000

Laity (7 cards, 41 votes, 3,550,000 followers, average 507,143)

Eastern Emperor: East, 20 votes, 1,000,000 followers
Eastern Empress: East, 5 votes, 300,000 followers
Prefect of the East: East, 5 votes, 500,000 followers
Prefect of Illyria: East, 3 votes, 500,000 followers
Western Magister Militum: West, 5 votes, 500,000 followers
Prefect of Italy & Africa: West, 2 votes, 500,000 followers
Prefect of Gaul: West, 1 vote, 250,000 followers

Patriarchs (5 cards, 80 votes, 5,000,000 followers, average 1,000,000)

Alexandria: East, 20 votes, 1,000,000 followers
Antoich: East, 20 votes, 1,000,000 followers
Jerusalem: East, 20 votes, 1,000,000 followers
Constantinople*: East, 10 votes, 1,000,000 followers
Rome*: West, 10 votes, 1,000,000 followers

* = Enters play via Event card.

Bishops (40 cards, 90 votes, average 2.25)

Mursa: East & West, 2 votes
Nisibis: ---, 0 votes
Mediolanum: West, 5 votes
Aquilaea: West, 1 vote
Arelate: West, 1 vote
Carthage: West, 1 vote
Cordoue: West, 1 vote
Hippone: West, 1 vote
Massilia: West, 1 vote
Caesarea: East, 10 votes
Jerusalem: East, 10 votes
Chalcedonia: East, 5 votes
Cyrene: East, 5 votes
Nicea: East, 5 votes
Nicomedia: East, 5 votes
Ancyra: East, 3 votes
Damascus: East, 3 votes
Thessalonica: East, 3 votes
Bethlehem: East, 2 votes
Caesarea in Cilicia: East, 2 votes
Ephesus: East, 2 votes
Gaza: East, 2 votes
Sebaste: East, 2 votes
Sinope: East, 2 votes
Assos: East, 1 vote
Athens: East, 1 vote
Corinth: East, 1 vote
Edessa: East, 1 vote

Article Cards (129 cards)

9 x Article 1 (6 Orthodox, 2 Tritheist, 1 pagan)
10 x Article 2 (7 Orthodox, 2 solar*, 1 Judaic)
2 x Article 1&2 (2 dualist*)
11 x Article 3 (5 Orthodox, 3 Monophysite, 2 Judaic, 1 Manichaean)
13 x Article 4 (4 Orthodox, 3 Monophysite, 2 Manichaean, 2 Arian, 2 Apollinarian)
2 x Article 3&4 (2 Adoptionist)
16 x Article 5 (5 Athanasian, 4 Amonian, 4 Homoean/Semi-Arian, 3 Monotheist)
1 x Article 3,4&5 (1 Mandaean)
13 x Article 6 (4 Orthodox, 3 Nestorian, 3 Monophysite, 2 Apollinarian, 1 Origenist*)
11 x Article 7 (3 Orthodox, 3 Monophysite, 3 Apostolic, 1 Gnostic, 1 Sabellian)
9 x Article 8 (4 Orthodox, 2 Monophysite, 1 Judaic, 1 Marcellian, 1 Origenist)
15 x Article 9 (7 Nicene, 2 Catholic, 2 Pneumatomachian, 2 Marcellian, 1 Gnostic, 1 Orthodox)
17 x Article 10 (9 populist (2#, 2#, 2#, 2# & 1), 5 Nicene, 1 Origenist, 1 Donatist, 1 Gnostic*#)

* = with symbol. # = penalty loss of Followers/Bishops.

Event Cards (111 cards)

With the People symbol (play at any time) (15 cards)

1 x New Basilica: a magnificent church draws converts. Draw 2 Church cards.
1 x New Liturgy: magnificent new ceremonies augment your congregation. Draw 2 Church cards.
1 x Church Historian Refutes Pagan Errors. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Creation of Coastal Theological Chapels. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Demographic Change. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Iconolatry: the adoration of images prevails in your church. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Introduction of Infant Baptism. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Introduction of Silk Vestments. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Itinerant Preacher. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Mass Baptism. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Mass Conversion. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Oppressed Peasants Seek Compassion. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Religious Miracles. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x The Chapel of a Martyr Attracts Pilgrims. Draw 1 Church card.
1 x Your Charity Works Attract Followers. Draw 1 Church card.

With the Empress symbol (play at any time) (2 cards)

1 x Regency: Play this card immediately after a New Emperor card has been played. The new Emperor is a child, and his mother, the Empress, will tutor him. The player with the Empress card takes the Emperor card. If the Empress is not in play, the player who played the Regency takes the Emperor.
1 x Scandal!: The Eastern Empress has not abandoned the vices of her youth. Condemned by the Universal Church, her votes will not be counted by the General Council.

With the Bishop symbol (play at any time) (23 cards)

11 x Proselytism: One of your Bishops can try to convert other Bishops or Followers who have strayed from the path. Consult the Proselytism Table.
11 x Church Father: One of your Bishops famous for his sanctity can teach your doctrines to others or refute their errors. Consult the Refutation Table or Teach an Article.
1 x Evangelic Campaign: One of your Bishops can Proselytise against as many Churches of other players as he has votes. He can only Proselytise once against each other Church.

With the Laity symbol (18 cards)

Play Immediately (1 card)

1 x Fire at the Temple of Apollo: Your over-zealous Followers destroy a pagan temple. The Eastern Emperor is obliged to Persecute your Church. Permanent discard.

Play at any time (17 cards)

2 x Exile in Upper Egypt: One of your Laity can Exile 1 Bishop from the same half of the Empire (East or West), or recall any 1 Bishop from Exile.
2 x Exile in Armenia: One of your Laity can Exile 1 Bishop from the same half of the Empire (East or West), or recall any 1 Bishop from Exile.
2 x Exile in Corsica: One of your Laity can Exile 1 Bishop from the same half of the Empire (East or West), or recall any 1 Bishop from Exile.
2 x Exile in Black Sea: One of your Laity can Exile 1 Bishop from the same half of the Empire (East or West), or recall any 1 Bishop from Exile.
2 x Agentes in Rebus: The Imperial Secret Service discovers seditious activities. The Eastern Emperor is obliged to Persecute the Church against which this card is played.
1 x Odoacer (AD 435-493): The Magister Militum & Odoacer overthrow the Western Emperor, who is removed from the game. The Magister Militum draws 2 Church cards. Permanent discard.
2 x Civil War: The Empire is divided. If you have Laity, you can attack another Church which itself possesses Laity. Whoever possesses the greatest total number of Followers (not just Laic Followers) takes all the Laity of the other.
1 x Iconoclasts: Worship of images is linked to pagan worship of the devil. If you have a greater number of Followers than the Church with Iconolatry, you can Persecute that Church.
1 x Military Intervention: The army, zealous protector of your doctrine, closes down the General Council before any vote can be taken. The player playing this card can Persecute a Church attending the Council.
1 x Corpse Synod: One of your Patriarchs exhumes the corpse of one of his predecessors to try him for corruption. Persecute a Church of your choice. Lose 1 Follower card.
1 x Nika Riots (AD 532): The Emperor's favourite chariot team is beaten. Your Followers (whose team won) can Persecute the Church of the Emperor. The Emperor can Persecute your Church in response.

With the Emperor symbol (11 cards)

5 x New Emperor: The Eastern Emperor rejoins your Church. Take the Eastern Emperor.
1 x Western Emperor: 5 votes. 500,000 followers. Permanent discard.
1 x The Emperor Hesitates: Proceed to a new vote on the Article, without counting the votes of the Emperor who called the Council.
1 x Dynastic Change: Take the Western or Eastern Emperor into your Church.
1 x The Emperor Creates the Patriarchate of Constantinople: The Eastern Emperor creates the Patriarchate of Constantinople, who joins your Church. Can only be played by the player whose Church holds the Eastern Emperor. Permanent discard.
1 x The Emperor Promotes the Bishop of Jerusalem to the Rank of Patriarch: Take the Patriarch of Jerusalem. Discard the Bishops of Jerusalem and Caesarea. Can only be played by the player holding the Eastern Emperor. Permanent discard.
1 x Usurpation: If your Laity have more Followers than do the Laity of the Church holding the Eastern Emperor, you take the Eastern Emperor.

With the Heterodoxy symbols (5 cards)

Play immediately (1 card)

1 x Apostacy!: One of your Bishops announces that he is a secret worshipper of the sun. Unless the doctrine with the sun symbol is among your Articles or forms part of the Definitive Creed, you lose 1 Bishop.

Play at any time (4 cards)

1 x Official Minutes of the Trial of Jesus of Nazareth: This heterodox book supports the doctrine with the open book symbol. If you possess this doctrine, you gain 5 votes at a General Council voting on this doctrine. Permanent discard.
1 x Secret Gospel of Mark: This heterodox book supports the doctrine with the dove and cross symbol. If you possess this doctrine, you gain 5 votes at a General Council voting on this doctrine. Permanent discard.
1 x Words of Jesus: This heterodox book supports the doctrine with the yin/yang symbol. If you possess this doctrine, you gain 5 votes at a General Council voting on this doctrine. Permanent discard.
1 x Gospel of the Child Thomas: This heterodox book supports the doctrine with the sun symbol. If you possess this doctrine, you gain 5 votes at a General Council voting on this doctrine. Permanent discard.

With the PX symbol (play at any time) (1 card)

1 x By This Sign Shall You Conquer: Your Church gives the Emperor victory over his enemies. Take 1 Laity from another Church and draw 2 Church cards.

With the Cross symbol (36 cards)

Play Immediately (18 cards)

1 x Pagan Magician: A magician's tricks convince some of the more credulous of your Followers. Lose 1 Follower. Permanent discard.
1 x Emperor's Mother Finds the True Cross: Empress Helena (c.250-c.330) uncovers relics in Jerusalem. A wave of enthusiasm. Each player draws 1 Church card. Permanent discard.
1 x Goths Invade the East: Place this card beside the Eastern Emperor. This card is worth 50,000 Followers if Evangelised. Each Church loses 2 Followers per Eastern Laity it holds. Permanent discard.
1 x Goths Invade the West: Place this card beside the Western Emperor. This card is worth 10,000 Followers if Evangelised. Each Church loses 2 Followers per Western Laity it holds. Permanent discard.
1 x Barbarians Invade the West: The Church of the Western Emperor loses 4 Followers. The Magister Militum draws 2 Church cards.
1 x Persians Invade the East: Churches with any Eastern Prefects, or the Patriarchs of Alexandria, Jerusalem and Antioch lose 2 Followers per such card.
1 x Evangelisation of the Goths: You can convert the Invading Goths to your Church thanks to your Gothic edition of the Bible. Keep this card, and the converted Goth card in front of you after use.
1 x Demonstration of Unity: A General Council must be called immediately in the course of which your Church gains 5 extra votes.
1 x Scourge of God!: Attila the Hun (406-453) invades the West. The Prefects of Gaul and of Italy/Africa lose 2 Followers each. The Patriarch of Rome loses 4 Church cards. Permanent discard.
1 x Exile for Causing Scandal: Your Bishop with the most votes is Exiled to the silver mines of Sardinia. Place this card on top of him.
1 x Rich Lay Dignitary Renounces your Church: Lose 1 Follower and 1 Bishop.
1 x General Council must be Convoked: A General Council meets now to vote on the next Article.
1 x Neoplatonic Philosophers: The pagan philosophers sow confusion between two of your Bishops with their materialistic logic. Lose 2 Bishops. Permanent discard.
1 x Stylite: One of your Bishops renounces the world to live atop a pillar. Lose 3 Followers but draw 2 Church cards. Permanent discard.

Play Immediately on Another Player (6 cards)

1 x Dies Irae (Day of Wrath): One of the Bishops of a rival dies in a horrible way. Discard 1 Bishop.
1 x Dethronement: One of your Bishops is caught with his hand in the collection plate. Discard 1 Bishop.
1 x Contested Episcopal Election: A rival Bishop is deposed. His successor joins your Church. Take a Bishop from another player.
1 x Wave of Asceticism: Thousands of Followers of your Church renounce the world for a life of Apostolic poverty. Lose 1 Follower and 1 Laity.
1 x Enraged Worshipers of Serapis: Pagans martyr one of your Patriarchs. Lose 1 Patriarch.
1 x Accounts of Gross Persecution: Informers prove that one of your Bishops renounced his faith under Diocletian. Lose 1 Bishop and 2 Followers.

Play at any time (12 cards)

1 x Emperor's Concubine Intercedes: One of your Bishops can return from Exile.
1 x Mutilation!: Unknown assailants attack the Patriarch of Rome, gouging his eyes and cutting out his tongue. The Patriarch of Rome is removed from the game for 1 Round until his eyes and tongue miraculously regrow.
1 x Julian the Apostate (AD 331-363): The Eastern Emperor renounces Christianity and chooses paganism. The Eastern Emperor and all the Prefects are discarded. Each Church loses 1 Follower. The Church card pile and the Church discards are then reshuffled. Permanent discard.
1 x Plague in the West: The Church holding the Patriarch of Rome loses 2 Followers and 1 Bishop due to the spread of the plague in urban centres. Permanent discard.
1 x Bad Times: 10 Bishops of another player are unable to attend the General Council and their votes will not be counted. The rival chooses which Bishops cannot attend.
1 x Simony: An opponent sells his bishoprics for money. Take a Bishop from another player and give him 1 Follower.
1 x Dock Strike: If the Eastern Emperor does not vote with your Church at the General Council, you can prevent him from resupplying his Followers with grain, and he must discard 1 of his Followers.
1 x Circumcellions: The poor and dispossessed see your Church as a means of social advancement. If you have no Laity you can attack another Church: whoever holds the most Follower cards takes 2 Church cards from the other. Permanent discard.
1 x Interregnum: You can return 1 Bishop from Exile.
1 x Western Delegation: The Bishops of Calaris (Cagliari), Burdigalia (Bordeaux), Lugdunum (Lyon), Divio (Dijon) & Limonum (Poitiers) arrive to support your Church. Gain 5 extra votes at the current General Council. Permanent discard.
1 x Church Reform: Your position of principle against corruption is remarkable. Gain 5 votes at the current General Council. Lose 1 Bishop and 1 Laity. Draw a Church card.
1 x Deathbed Conversion: The Imperial Chamberlain announces his conversion to your Church. Gain 5 votes at the current General Council. Permanent discard.