Crisis Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Components
• Setup
• Gameplay
  • 1. Event
  • 2. Loan Interest
  • 3. Planning
  • 4. Operations
    • 4.1. Shady Business
    • 4.2. Government Subsidy
    • 4.3. Leadership
    • 4.4. Initiative
    • 4.5. Loan
    • 4.6. Domestic Industry
    • 4.7. Temp Employee
    • 4.8. Foreign Employees
    • 4.9. Employees
    • 4.10. Companies
    • 4.11. Imports
    • 4.12. Energy Exchange
    • 4.13. Production
      • 1. Necessary Employees
      • 2. Resource Input
      • 3. Bonus Employees (optional)
      • 4. Production
      • Production examples
    • 4.14. Exports
      • 1. Export Resources
      • 2. Sell to the Black Market
      • 3. Pass
      • Exports example
  • 5. Evaluation
    • Evaluation example
• End of the Round
• End of the Game
  • Surviving the Crisis
  • Bankruptcy
• FAQ
• Index
  • 40 Employees
  • 20 Foreign Employees
  • 1 Temp Employee
  • Export Contracts
  • Companies
  • Round Structure
• Acknowledgments

Introduction

Axia, a country with a long and storied history, did not enter the modern age easily. After several wars, social upheaval, and through much hardship, it managed to appear stable enough to join the Economic Union that was being formed by its neighboring countries.

However, its economy now lies in ruins; it was not ready to compete on the world stage and has been plagued by corruption, inefficiency, and bureaucracy. The Union has agreed to temporarily support Axia, as long as it follows an Austerity Plan. Salaries have fallen, living standards have declined, and many Axian professionals and scientists are seeking to build their futures abroad.

Fortunately, there may yet be some hope. Capable and enthusiastic new entrepreneurs, having identified that in a crisis there is also opportunity, decide to invest in Axia. While the economy is being rebuilt, they are ready to pick up the pieces and strive to achieve growth and renewed prosperity – as long as they can meet the Economic Union's requirements. However, not all may play by the rules, and rewards – as well as risks – await those who cut corners.

In this game of economic survival and smart business decisions, the winner is the entrepreneur who can outlast the crisis while besting their rivals, seizing victory by any means necessary!

Components

• 1 game board
• 1 cloth bag for use with Employee tiles
• 165 wooden tokens
  • 120 resources: 30 Energy, 30 Food, 15 Minerals, 15 Chemicals, 15 Industrials, 15 Machines
  • 45 player tokens: 25 Managers (5 per player), 5 Turn Order tokens, 5 Money tokens, 5 Loan tokens, 5 VP tokens
• 128 cards
  • 48 Companies: 18 Level I, 18 Level II, 12 Level III
  • 30 Events: 10 green, 10 yellow, 10 red
  • 9 Austerity Plan/Reference
  • 28 Influence
  • 5 Warehouses
  • 8 Reference: Round structure, Price table
• 137 tiles
  • 40 Employees: 15 Workers, 6 Farmers, 4 Workers/Farmers, 10 Engineers, 5 Bankers
  • 1 Temp Employee
  • 52 Export Contracts: 24 Level I, 16 Level II, 12 Level III
  • 20 Foreign Employees: 5 Foreign Workers, 5 Foreign Farmers, 5 Foreign Engineers, 5 Foreign Bankers
  • 5 Money track +50/+100 tiles
  • 3 Multiplier tiles
  • 2 Out of Service tiles
  • 3 Status tiles
  • 11 Penalty tiles

The Out of Service tiles are used when one or two locations are not available due to an event.

The multiplier tiles are used in case there is a shortage of resource tokens, which are considered to be inexhaustible. To use a multiplier tile, place a single resource token on the tile, and return any excess tokens to the supply.

Setup

1. Place the game board in the middle of the table. Separate the resource tokens by type, and place them next to the board. Place the Penalty tiles next to the game board.

2. Separate the Company cards into three decks according to their level (I, II, III), shuffle them separately, and place them face down next to the board. Draw the top 6 Level I cards and place them face up on the 6 Company spaces.

3. Separate the Event cards into three decks according to their type (red, yellow, green), shuffle them separately, and place them face down next to the board.

4. Shuffle the Influence cards and place them in a face-down deck next to the board.

5. Place the Temp Employee tile in its position on the board. Separate the Foreign Employee tiles by type, placing all tiles in stacks on their positions on the board. Place the other Employee tiles in the cloth bag and draw 5 at random to place on their positions on the board.

6. Separate the Export Contract tiles according to their level (I, II, III), and randomly remove 8 Level I tiles and 8 Level II tiles from the game without looking at them. Shuffle the remaining tiles separately by level, place them in three stacks, draw the top 12 Level I tiles, and place them face up on the Export Market spaces (8 current and 4 future).

7. Place a Status tile on the space marked "31" of the Crisis track.

8. Place the Austerity Plan card that corresponds to the correct number of players and chosen difficulty level (Easy, Medium, Difficult) on the Austerity Plan space. Place a Status tile on the row marked "1" on the card. Place a Status tile on the number of the VP grid corresponding to the goal of the first round.

9. The players each choose a color and take the following components in their chosen color:

   • 1 Warehouse card
   • 1 Loan token
   • 1 Money token
   • 4 Manager tokens
   • 1 Turn Order token
   • 1 VP token, placing it on the "15" position of the VP grid

   The most frugal player becomes the Starting Player. The players may also use any other method to determine the starting player. Place the Turn Order token of the starting player in the space marked "1." of the Turn Order track. Place the Turn Order tokens of the other players in clockwise order onto the other spaces.

   Each player's remaining Manager token is kept next to the game board until it is obtained during the game.

10. Each player places their Money token on the Money track according to their position on the Turn Order track. The starting player receives 22 credits, the second player receives 24 credits, the third player receives 26 credits, the fourth player receives 28 credits, and the fifth player receives 30 credits. If a player ever has more than 50 credits, use the +50/+100 tiles provided.

    1 credit represents 1 million units of the local currency – Economic Credit Unit (ECU).

Gameplay

The goal of Crisis is to survive, and even thrive, in business while everything else is collapsing around you. The recent economic crisis has forced the government to privatize, putting critical pieces of infrastructure on the market. Furthermore, recently bankrupted firms are also putting their assets up for sale, offering many opportunities for investment. Each turn a number of such investment opportunities appear, in the form of Company cards.

The players must make hard decisions in a very unforgiving economic climate, which is made worse by the government's obligation to meet the goals of the Austerity Plan imposed by the Economic Union. If they collectively do so, then the economic situation improves. If they fail, then it deteriorates, with serious consequences.

The current economic situation is represented by the Crisis track, which measures the financial status of Axia. If the status falls below 0, then the country has gone bankrupt, and the game ends early.

The player with the most VP at the end of the game is the winner, having managed to progress the most in these troubling times.

If the game ended early because Axia went bankrupt, only players who have met the goal of the current round are eligible to win.

Crisis takes place over 7 rounds. The rounds are grouped by Level (I, II, III) which is shown on the Austerity Plan card. This indicates which Company cards and Export Contract tiles are used. In each round there are 5 phases:

1. Event: Draw an Event card, and resolve its effects.
2. Loan Interest: Each player pays interest on previously taken loans.
3. Planning: Players place their Manager tokens on the board.
4. Operations: Locations are resolved according to the order printed on the board.
5. Evaluation: The Axia Financial Status is adjusted based on the current VP (Value Points) of each player in comparison to the goal of the round.

At the end of the 7th round, the game is over. Otherwise, the game is prepared for the next round.

1. Event

At the beginning of each round, an Event card is drawn from one of the Event decks. The card is drawn from the deck that matches the current Axia Financial Status (red, yellow, green), and its effects are applied to the current round.

2. Loan Interest

Each player pays 1 credit per loan that they currently have, as indicated on the Loan track on the game board. A player unable to do this must take a 1 VP Penalty tile for each credit of unpaid interest.

3. Planning

Each player, in turn order (indicated by the Turn Order track), places one of their Manager tokens on an available action space on the board.

This process is repeated until all players have placed all of their Managers.

Only one Manager may be placed on each action space, with the exception of the first two locations (4.1. Shady Business, 4.2. Government Subsidy) where the players may place any number of Managers, including multiple Managers of the same player.

In location 4.14. Exports, Managers must be placed on the action spaces in order from left to right.

4. Operations

All locations with at least 1 Manager token are activated and resolved in order of the number printed on them, starting from 4.1. Shady Business and ending at 4.14. Exports. Any locations without a Manager token are ignored, except for 4.13. Production. Resources and credits obtained from earlier locations may be used on the same turn (e.g., using funds from a loan to invest in Companies).

Whenever a location is resolved, any Manager tokens placed there are removed from the board and are returned to each player's play area.

Whenever a player gains or loses VP, they adjust their VP tokens on the VP grid. Whenever a player earns or spends credits, their Money token is moved up or down the Money track.

The locations, in order, are:

• 4.1. Shady Business
• 4.2. Government Subsidy
• 4.3. Leadership
• 4.4. Initiative
• 4.5. Loan
• 4.6. Domestic Industry
• 4.7. Temp Employee
• 4.8. Foreign Employees
• 4.9. Employees
• 4.10. Companies
• 4.11. Imports
• 4.12. Energy Exchange
• 4.13. Production
• 4.14. Exports

For some locations, if a player is unable or unwilling to perform any part of the function of a space, the player must take one or more Penalty tiles. These tiles represent negative long-term effects on the economy due to inefficiency and are only counted at the end of the game; they do not affect Axia's Financial Status during the game.

The Penalty tiles are double-sided and may be turned to their "-3 VP" side if there is a shortage of tiles.

4.1. Shady Business

Each player draws 1 Influence card from the Influence deck for each of their Managers placed here.

Influence cards provide a way for players to get ahead in the race to survive the crisis. If used at the right time, they can help make the most of a bad situation... or make a bad situation worse for someone else.

Each player may only use one Influence card per round.

In the unlikely event that there are no Influence cards to draw, shuffle any discarded cards to form a new deck.

4.2. Government Subsidy

Each player collects 4 credits for each of their Managers placed here.

4.3. Leadership

The player who placed a Manager here becomes the first player in turn order and earns 1 VP. The relative turn order of all other players remains unchanged.

This action may be picked by the player currently first in turn order, leaving them first.

4.4. Initiative

The player who placed a Manager here becomes the second player in turn order and draws 1 Influence card. The relative turn order of all other players remains unchanged.

This action may be picked by the player currently second in turn order, leaving them second. A player taking both 4.3. Leadership and 4.4. Initiative will end up second in turn order.

4.5. Loan

The player who placed a Manager here receives 10 credits from foreign banks and loses 1 VP for increasing Axia's trade deficit. If this is the first loan a player has, their Loan token is placed on space "1" of the Loan track. If the player takes additional loans, the token is moved to the next space. Each player may have a maximum of 4 loans at any time during the game.

Loans incur interest, which must be paid during Phase 2. Loan Interest of each round. A player can pay back a loan at any time in the game by paying 10 credits and moving their Loan token down one space on the Loan track (or removing it from the track if they only had 1 loan). If a loan is paid back, the VP that was lost from taking the loan is not regained.

At the end of the game, loans can be repaid before calculating the final VP score of each player.

Players can pay back loans at any time, including right before having to pay interest.

4.6. Domestic Industry

The player who places a Manager here must buy any one resource, paying the normal cost for it as per the price table, without having to spend the VP.

A player unable or unwilling to do this must take a 1 VP Penalty tile.

4.7. Temp Employee

The player who places a Manager here receives the Temp Employee tile, keeping it until the end of the current round. This Employee may fulfill the role of any needed type and has a skill level of 1.

4.8. Foreign Employees

The player who places a Manager here must hire one Foreign Employee, paying the appropriate cost: 1, 3, or 5 credits, depending on the state of the economy, which is represented by the Axia Financial Status being in the red, yellow, or green zone, respectively.

A player unable or unwilling to do this must take a 1 VP Penalty tile.

The player may choose any available type of Foreign Employee to hire; all such Employees have a skill level of 1.

4.9. Employees

Employee tiles represent the workforce available for hire. They have varying levels of skill and can do a variety of jobs. Companies need Employees to operate them, and highly skilled Employees make Companies run more efficiently.

There are 5 action spaces in this location, each of which corresponds to an Employee tile. Each player may have more than one Manager here (on different action spaces), each of which will allow that player to claim the corresponding Employee tile.

When resolving this location, players take the claimed Employee tile along with their Manager.

There are five types of Employee tiles:

• Worker – with skill level of 1
• Farmer – with skill levels of 1 or 2
• Worker/Farmer – with skill levels of 2 (as a Worker) and 1 (as a Farmer)
• Engineer – with skill levels of 1, 2, or 3
• Banker – with skill levels of 1 or 2

All types of Employees (including the Temp Employee and Foreign Employees) work in the Companies in which each player has invested. During the 4.13. Production they may be assigned to Employee slots and bonus Employee slots in Companies.

4.10. Companies

Companies are the main way to generate VP, credits, and resources. The players invest in Companies, which are then added to their play area, immediately gaining them a number of VP. Employee tiles, Foreign Employee tiles, and the Temp Employee tile may be placed on the Company cards in order for those Companies to function. Most Companies also require some sort of input.

Anatomy of a Company card: name (top), investment cost, VP gained, level, necessary Employee, extra Manager icon, input (left side), output (right side), and bonus Employees (along the bottom).

Each of the 6 cards present in this location is a separate action space upon which a Manager may be placed. Each player may have more than one Manager here (on different spaces), each of which will allow that player to claim the corresponding Company.

To claim a Company, the player pays the cost of the investment, immediately gains the VP printed on the card, and takes the Company card, placing it in their play area.

Some Company cards contain 1 or 2 Extra Manager icons. When a player has invested in Companies that collectively contain at least 3 such icons, the player may then take their 5th Manager token from the supply and use it in future rounds.

A player unable or unwilling to do this must take Penalty tiles equal in value to the VP printed on the Company card.

4.11. Imports

Each of the 8 action spaces in this location can have one Manager placed on it to purchase imported resources.

A player may have more than one Manager here (on different spaces).

As the importing of goods into Axia causes the trade deficit to increase, each resource imported will also cause the player buying it to lose VP.

There are several types of Imports:

Resource	Quantity	VP lost	Price	Penalty taken if unable or unwilling to buy
Energy	1-2	1 VP per unit	1 per unit	-1 VP
Food	1-2	2 VP per unit	4 per unit	-2 VP
Minerals	1-2	2 VP per unit	4 per unit	-2 VP
Chemicals	1-2	3 VP per unit	6 per unit	-3 VP
Industrials	1-2	4 VP per unit	8 per unit	-4 VP
Machines	1-2	6 VP per unit	12 per unit	-6 VP
Basket #1 (2× Energy & 2× Minerals)	—	5 VP	9	-5 VP
Basket #2 (2× Energy & 2× Chemicals)	—	6 VP	13	-6 VP

Players purchase resources by adjusting their position on the Money track and VP grid. They then take the corresponding resource tokens from the supply and place them in their play area, on their Warehouse card. A player may not import any resources if they do not have sufficient VP to pay for them.

Each player's Warehouse card indicates the maximum amount of resources that can be stored at one time (12 Energy, 12 Food, 12 Minerals, 6 Chemicals, 6 Industrials, 6 Machines). Any excess resources purchased are returned to the supply.

A player unable or unwilling to import the resources available at the space they reserved must take Penalty tiles equal in value to the VP of one instance of that resource type or basket.

4.12. Energy Exchange

Each of the 5 action spaces in this location can have one Manager placed on it to obtain Energy.

Each player may have more than one Manager here (on different spaces).

Each space allows a player to purchase Energy with credits or to convert other resources to Energy:

• Purchase 1-2 Energy at 2 credits per unit
• Purchase 1-3 Energy at 3 credits per unit
• Convert 1 Food to 2 Energy
• Convert 1 Mineral to 2 Energy
• Convert 1 Chemical to 3 Energy

A player unable to do this must take a 1 VP Penalty tile.

When a player purchases Energy, they pay for it by adjusting their position on the Money track or returning the converted resources to the supply. They then take the relevant Energy tokens from the supply and place them in their play area, on their Warehouse card.

4.13. Production

Production takes place in each player's play area; it does not take place on the board. It is recommended that for the first two rounds of your first game, Production is resolved in turn order. Once players are familiar with the game, it can be done simultaneously in subsequent rounds. However, each player is encouraged to check their neighbor's production to help spot any mistakes.

A player may activate their Companies in any order but does not have to activate every Company, does not have to use every Employee available, and may save resources in their Warehouse for use in future turns.

A Company is activated in the following sequence:

1. Necessary Employees: Place the necessary Employees at the Companies you plan to activate.
2. Resource Input: Move the relevant tokens from your Warehouse to the left side of the Companies you plan to activate.
3. Bonus Employees (optional): Place Employees along the bottom of the Companies you plan to activate.
4. Production: Return any resources used as input to the supply, and collect any produced resources into your Warehouse or gain credits and VP.

1. Necessary Employees

The first requirement for a Company to function is to fill any necessary Employee slots, positioned on the left side (input) of the card. Most Companies only need one such tile, while some level III Companies need two. The type of tile needed is depicted as an icon representing one of the four types of Employees.

Important: Players are allowed to reposition all types of Employees freely before they start production, but each Employee may only be used in one Company per round.

2. Resource Input

Most Companies also need the input of resources to function and produce their output. To indicate which resources are being used for which Companies, players move the relevant tokens from their Warehouse card to the left side of the Company in which they are being used as input.

Important: A player must have any necessary input resources at the beginning of the Production phase. Resources produced by one Company may not be used as input for another Company in the same round. This means that players must carefully consider the available resources they have and plan to use them efficiently.

3. Bonus Employees (optional)

Every Company card also has a number of slots for bonus Employees, who lend their skills to the Company in order for it to run as efficiently as possible.

A player may increase a Company's production by assigning Employees with skill levels of 1, 2, or 3 to be bonus Employees, placing them along the bottom of the Company card. When determining a Company's production, the skill levels are added to the base output of the Company.

If the output of a Company has a multiplier icon, the skill level of all bonus Employees is added to each of the multipliers when calculating production.

4. Production

Companies provide resources, credits, and/or VP. The output of all Companies can be modified by the skill levels of bonus Employees.

After activating their Companies, players return any resources used as input to the supply, collect any produced resources into their Warehouses, adjust the Money track, and advance their VP tokens along the VP grid.

More information on specific Companies can be found in the Company Index.

The players may never store more tokens than their Warehouses can fit (12 each of Energy, Food, and Minerals; 6 each of Chemicals, Industrials, and Machines). Any resources produced or otherwise collected in excess of those limits must immediately be returned to the supply.

Production examples

To activate FARM 03, a player needs to employ a Farmer and use one Energy as an input resource. That would normally produce 2 Food, but since that player is also using a Worker as a bonus Employee, then this farm will produce 3 Food.

To activate PORT 01, a player needs to employ a Worker and an Engineer, using two Energy and one Chemical as input resources. The Company would normally produce 2 VP and 4×5=20 credits, but since that player is also using a foreign Worker (1) and a Banker (2) as bonus Employees, then this Company will produce 1+2+2=5 VP and (1+2+4)×5=35 credits.

4.14. Exports

Each of the 5 action spaces in this location can have one Manager placed on it to sell resources.

Proceeding from left to right, in the order in which the Managers were placed in this location, each player with a Manager here may sell goods. The normal turn order does not affect this location.

When it is a player's turn to decide what to do with their Manager, they must choose one of three options:

1. Export Resources
2. Sell to the Black Market
3. Pass

Unlike most other location on the board, only one Manager per player may be placed here.

Once all players have had a chance to take a turn, the first player may again take an Exports action, proceeding in the same way until all players have chosen to pass.

1. Export Resources

Initially, there are 12 Export Contract tiles on display, with the 8 tiles on the left being the current offers and the other 4 tiles being the future offers.

A player may take one of the current Export Contract tiles and fulfill it by selling the resource depicted on it. The number on the tile is the maximum number of resource tokens that may be sold, and the minimum is 1 token. The credits and VP earned per token are calculated using the price table at the center of the board.

The exporting player returns at least one, and up to that number of resource tokens to the supply, receives the corresponding amount of credits per token (adjusting the Money track), earns the corresponding amount of VP per token (increasing their score on the VP grid), and then discards the Export Contract tile, removing it from the game.

The price table at the center of the board lists, for each resource: the VP lost and credits paid when importing it (left), and the VP and credits earned per token when exporting it, plus the doubled credits earned on the black market (right):

Resource	Import: VP lost / price	Export: VP / credits earned	Black market: credits
Energy	1 / 1	—	—
Food	2 / 4	1 / 2	4
Minerals	2 / 4	1 / 2	4
Chemicals	3 / 6	2 / 3	6
Industrials	4 / 8	2 / 4	8
Machines	6 / 12	3 / 6	12

2. Sell to the Black Market

As an alternative to fulfilling an Export Contract, a player may sell to the black market.

Not having to pay taxes, the player earns double the amount of credits they would have earned by exporting but no VP. By selling to the black market, players help themselves in the short run by gaining an edge in credits but hurt the economy and the stability of the country by not generating any VP.

The player selling to the black market returns up to 4 resource tokens of one type to the supply and receives the corresponding amount of credits per token.

A player may sell to the black market up to 4 resources of each type per round.

On a following Exports action, the player may choose to sell a different type of resource to the black market. The types of available Export Contract tiles do not affect the black market, and a player is not obligated to fulfill an Export Contract instead of selling to the black market.

3. Pass

When a player decides to pass, they remove their Manager token from its action space and may not take any further Exports actions this round. Any other players with Managers still on Exports spaces may continue to take turns until everyone has passed.

Exports example

Blue is set to act first and decides to export 4 Food resources using the "4 Food" Export Contract. (+4 VP, +8 credits)

Red also decides to export, using the "3 Chemicals" Export Contract to export 2 Chemicals. (+4 VP, +6 credits)

Green decides to sell 3 Minerals to the black market (out of a maximum of 4), even though there is a "6 Minerals" Export Contract available. (+12 credits)

It is now Blue's turn again. Blue chooses to export more Food, using the "6 Food" Export Contract to sell the remaining 2 Food in storage. (+2 VP, +4 credits)

Red can now choose an action. Red chooses to pass, removing the red Manager from the rotation.

Green also passes.

Blue may now take any number of Exports actions before deciding to pass.

5. Evaluation

Each player compares their VP total on the VP Grid to the goal for the current round of the game (found on the Austerity Plan card). The Axia Financial Status is then adjusted according to how much each player has exceeded, or fallen short of, the current goal.

If a player has more VP than the goal, then the difference will be added to the Axia Financial Status, signifying that their efforts have contributed to economic stability.

If a player has less VP than the goal, then the difference will be subtracted from the Axia Financial Status, signifying that their efforts have hurt economic stability.

The total aggregate adjustment of the Financial Status for all players is then added up. The result is the number of steps that the Status token is moved up or down the track.

When evaluating the 2nd, 4th, and 6th rounds of the game, any player that has reached or exceeded the goal receives one Influence card. In case of multiple players reaching or exceeding the goal, they draw in turn order.

The maximum value of the Axia Financial Status is 45.

If the Financial Status drops below 0, the game ends early.

Evaluation example

The game is played by four players. At the end of the 3rd round, the goal is 29 VP. The Axia Financial Status is currently at 15, and the individual scores stand at:

Blue: 23 VP, Red: 33 VP, Green: 24 VP, White: 28 VP

• Due to Blue, the adjustment is -6 (23 - 29)
• Due to Red, the adjustment is +4 (33 - 29)
• Due to Green, the adjustment is -5 (24 - 29)
• Due to White, the adjustment is -1 (28 - 29)

Therefore, during Evaluation for this round, the Axia Financial Status will be adjusted by -8 (-6+4-5-1), moving the marker to position 7.

End of the Round

Before beginning the next round, take the following steps:

• If the Temp Employee was taken this round, return it to its space on the board. If it was not taken, it remains on the board.
• Any Foreign Employee tiles still on the board remain there.
• Any other Employee tiles and Company cards remaining on the board are discarded and removed from the game.
• Draw 5 new Employee tiles from the bag and place them face up on the appropriate spaces on the board.
• Remove any remaining Export Contract tiles from the leftmost column of the Exports area. Move the tiles in the two remaining columns to the left, preserving their relative positions. Do not fill any gaps in a column with new tiles.
• Draw the next 4 available Export Contract tiles, and place them face up on the spaces for future contracts (rightmost column).
• Move the Status tile to the next round's row on the Austerity Plan card, and place the Austerity Plan Status tile on the corresponding space of the VP grid.
• Draw 6 new Company cards from the deck matching the new round's level (I, II, or III), and place them on the appropriate spaces on the board.

Note that the 4 next available Export Contract tiles may not match the level (I, II, III) of the current round.

End of the Game

The game can end in one of two possible ways:

• If, after the completion of the 7th round, the Axia Financial Status remains at 0 or above, the game has ended with Axia surviving the Crisis, and the players proceed to final scoring.
• If, at the completion of any round (including the 7th), the Axia Financial Status drops below 0, then the game ends immediately with Axia going bankrupt, triggering significant social unrest, nationalization of Companies, and lengthy legal action.

Surviving the Crisis

If Axia has survived the Crisis, each player has one last chance to pay off any loans they have, and then they adjust their score accordingly:

Remaining money is exchanged for VP at a rate of 5 credits for 1 VP.

Each unpaid loan is worth -2 VP.

Each penalty token is worth -1 VP or -3 VP depending on which side is facing up.

The winner is the player with the most VP, best exemplifying success in a time of crisis!

In case of a tie, the player with the most remaining credits is the winner. In case of a further tie, the player with the fewest VP lost to Penalty tiles is the winner. If there is still a tie, the player with the most valuable Companies (most total VP on Company cards) is the winner.

Bankruptcy

If Axia has gone bankrupt, all players that have not reached the current round's financial goal are considered to have lost. This means that all players may lose the game.

Players that have reached the goal may win, but must first calculate their final score by reducing their current score by -1 VP or -3 VP for Penalty tiles taken, depending on which side is facing up. Because the country has gone bankrupt, credits are worth nothing and loans are written off; neither contributes to the final score.

These players now compare their VP, and the player with the most VP is the winner!

In case of a tie, the same tie-breaking conditions apply as in the case of Axia surviving the crisis.

FAQ

How do I earn & spend credits?

You earn credits:

• by receiving a Government Subsidy.
• by taking a Loan.
• by generating it during Production from some Companies.
• by selling resources through Exports and/or selling to the black market.
• by using certain Influence cards.

You spend credits:

• when resolving certain Events.
• by paying Loan interest.
• by buying a resource from the Domestic Industry.
• by hiring Foreign Employees.
• by investing in Companies.
• by buying resources through Imports.
• by purchasing Energy.

How do I earn & lose VP?

You earn VP:

• by showing Leadership.
• by investing in Companies.
• by generating them during Production from some Companies.
• by selling resources through Exports.
• by using certain Influence cards.

You lose VP:

• by taking a Loan.
• by buying resources through Imports.
• (at the end of the game) by having taken Penalty tiles.

How do I hire Employees?

By using your Managers to hire regular Employees or the Temp Employee, and by using a Manager and credits to hire Foreign Employees.

How do I obtain resources?

By buying them from Domestic Industry and through Imports, or by generating them during Production from some Companies.

How do I get Influence cards?

By conducting Shady Business, by taking Initiative, and by reaching the round's Austerity Plan goal at the end of the 2nd, 4th, or 6th rounds.

Can the same player claim both the Leadership and Initiative locations?

Yes. Since locations are resolved sequentially, that player would end up second in turn order, also having received 1 VP and 1 Influence card.

Can I take a Loan or buy resources through Imports if I do not have enough VP?

No. However, keep in mind that credits and VP generated earlier in the same Operations phase can be used to take a Loan or Import resources.

How do events that reduce output work?

These events reduce a Company's output (located at the bottom right of the card) which is then modified by multipliers to determine the final production of the Company.

What happens when a player is instructed by an event to pay more credits than they currently have?

The player pays all the credits that they can and then takes Penalty tiles equal in value to the amount they can not pay.

Index

40 Employees

Quantity	Color	Name	Skill level
15	Burgundy	Workers	15× skill 1
6	Green	Farmers	4× skill 1, 2× skill 2
4	Burgundy/Green	Workers/Farmers	4× skill 2 (as Worker) / 1 (as Farmer)
10	Blue	Engineers	2× skill 1, 5× skill 2, 3× skill 3
5	Gold	Bankers	3× skill 1, 2× skill 2

20 Foreign Employees

Quantity	Color	Name	Skill level
5	Burgundy striped	Workers	5× skill 1
5	Green striped	Farmers	5× skill 1
5	Blue striped	Engineers	5× skill 1
5	Gold striped	Bankers	5× skill 1

1 Temp Employee

Skill level 1.

Export Contracts

Level	Quantity	Type
Level I (24×)	6	4 Food
Level I	4	6 Food
Level I	2	8 Food
Level I	4	4 Minerals
Level I	2	6 Minerals
Level I	1	2 Chemicals
Level I	1	3 Chemicals
Level I	1	4 Chemicals
Level I	1	2 Industrials
Level I	1	3 Industrials
Level I	1	4 Industrials
Level II (16×)	5	8 Food
Level II	2	8 Minerals
Level II	4	4 Chemicals
Level II	4	4 Industrials
Level II	1	4 Machines
Level III (12×)	4	10 Food
Level III	3	4 Chemicals
Level III	3	4 Industrials
Level III	2	4 Machines

Companies

Name	Level	Cost	VP	Input	Necessary Employees	Bonus Employees	Output	Manager icons
BANK 01	I	10	3	1 Energy	Banker	Worker, Banker	2× 5 credits	2
BANK 02	II	10	3	1 Energy	Banker	Worker, Worker, Banker	3× 3 credits	2
BANK 03	II	15	4	1 Energy	Banker	Worker, Worker, Banker	3× 5 credits	2
COMMS 01	II	15	3	1 Energy, 1 Industrials	Engineer	Worker, Engineer, Banker	0 VP + 2× 5 credits	2
FARM 01	I	5	1	–	Farmer	Worker, Farmer	1 Food	–
FARM 02	I	10	2	–	Worker	Farmer	1 Food	–
FARM 03	I	5	1	1 Energy	Farmer	Worker, Farmer	2 Food	–
FARM 04	I	10	2	1 Energy	Farmer	Worker, Farmer	3 Food	–
FARM 05	I	10	2	1 Energy	Worker	Worker, Worker, Farmer	2 Food	–
FARM 06	I	5	2	1 Energy, 1 Chemicals	Farmer	Worker, Farmer	6 Food	–
FARM 07	II	5	1	2 Energy	Farmer	Worker, Farmer	4 Food	–
FARM 08	II	10	2	1 Chemicals	Worker	Worker, Worker, Farmer	4 Food	–
FARM 09	II	10	3	1 Chemicals	Farmer	Farmer, Engineer	4 Food	–
FARM 10	II	10	3	1 Energy, 1 Chemicals	Worker	Farmer, Engineer	3 Food	1
FARM 11	II	10	4	1 Energy, 1 Chemicals	Farmer	Worker, Engineer	6 Food	1
FARM 12	III	10	3	1 Energy, 1 Chemicals	Worker, Farmer	Worker, Worker, Farmer	8 Food	–
FOOD INDUSTRY 01	II	15	3	1 Energy, 1 Food	Engineer	Worker, Farmer, Banker	4 VP + 3× 3 credits	1
FOOD INDUSTRY 02	III	25	6	1 Energy, 2 Food	Farmer	Worker, Worker, Banker	2× 2 VP + 2× 5 credits	1
FREIGHTERS 01	III	25	6	2 Energy, 1 Minerals	Worker, Engineer	Worker, Worker, Banker	2× 2 VP + 2× 4 credits	1
FREIGHTERS 02	III	25	6	2 Energy, 2 Food	Worker, Farmer	Worker, Worker, Banker	2× 2 VP + 2× 4 credits	1
FREIGHTERS 03	III	25	6	2 Energy, 2 Chemicals	Worker, Engineer	Worker, Worker, Engineer	2× 2 VP + 3× 4 credits	1
FREIGHTERS 04	III	30	7	2 Energy, 2 Industrials	Worker, Engineer	Engineer, Banker	3× 2 VP + 3× 4 credits	–
HEAVY INDUSTRY 01	I	15	4	1 Energy, 1 Minerals	Engineer	Worker, Engineer	2 Chemicals	1
HEAVY INDUSTRY 02	I	20	5	1 Energy, 1 Minerals	Engineer	Worker, Engineer	2 Industrials	1
HEAVY INDUSTRY 03	II	15	3	1 Energy, 1 Food	Worker, Engineer	Worker, Farmer	3 Chemicals	1
HEAVY INDUSTRY 04	II	20	4	1 Energy, 1 Minerals	Engineer	Worker, Worker, Engineer	2 Chemicals	1
HEAVY INDUSTRY 05	II	20	4	1 Energy, 1 Minerals	Engineer	Worker, Worker, Engineer	2 Industrials	1
HEAVY INDUSTRY 06	II	20	4	1 Energy, 2 Minerals	Worker, Engineer	Worker, Engineer	3 Industrials	1
HEAVY INDUSTRY 07	II	20	5	1 Energy, 1 Industrials	Engineer	Worker, Worker	2 Machines	1
HEAVY INDUSTRY 08	III	15	4	1 Energy, 2 Minerals	Engineer	Worker, Banker	2 Machines	1
HEAVY INDUSTRY 09	III	25	6	2 Energy, 2 Minerals	Engineer	Worker, Worker, Engineer	2 Machines	1
MINES 01	I	10	2	1 Energy	Worker	Worker, Engineer	1 Minerals	–
MINES 02	I	15	3	1 Energy	Engineer	Worker, Engineer	2 Minerals	–
MINES 03	I	10	4	1 Energy, 1 Chemicals	Engineer	Worker, Engineer	6 Minerals	1
PHARMACEUTICALS 01	I	15	3	1 Energy, 1 Food	Worker	Worker, Farmer	1 Chemicals	1
PORT 01	III	20	5	2 Energy, 1 Chemicals	Worker, Engineer	Worker, Worker, Banker	2 VP + 4× 5 credits	2
POWER PLANT 01	I	10	3	–	Engineer	Worker, Farmer	2 Energy	1
POWER PLANT 02	I	10	4	1 Minerals	Engineer	Worker, Engineer	4 Energy	1
POWER PLANT 03	II	10	4	1 Minerals	Engineer	Worker	3 Energy	1
POWER PLANT 04	II	5	2	1 Minerals	Engineer	Worker, Worker	4 Energy	1
POWER PLANT 05	III	10	3	1 Minerals	Engineer	Worker, Engineer	4 Energy	1
RESORT 01	I	10	2	1 Food	Worker	Worker, Worker, Banker	2 VP + 2× 2 credits	–
RESORT 02	I	10	2	1 Energy, 1 Food	Worker	Worker, Banker	3 VP + 2× 2 credits	–
RESORT 03	II	15	3	1 Energy, 1 Food	Worker	Worker, Farmer, Banker	2 VP + 2× 3 credits	–
RESORT 04	II	20	5	1 Energy, 2 Food	Worker	Worker, Farmer, Banker	1× 2 VP + 4× 3 credits	1
RESORT 05	III	25	6	2 Energy, 2 Food	Worker	Farmer, Banker	3× 2 VP + 2× 4 credits	1
SPACEPORT 01	III	25	6	2 Energy, 2 Machines	Worker, Engineer	Worker, Worker, Banker	3 VP + 6× 5 credits	2
TRAINS 01	I	8	3	1 Energy	Engineer	Worker, Banker	2× 4 credits	2

Round Structure

1. Event: Draw an Event card and resolve its effects.
2. Loan Interest: Each player pays interest on previously taken loans.
3. Planning: The players place their Manager tokens on the board.
4. Operations: Locations are resolved according to the order printed on the board.
   • 4.1. Shady Business
   • 4.2. Government Subsidy
   • 4.3. Leadership
   • 4.4. Initiative
   • 4.5. Loan
   • 4.6. Domestic Industry
   • 4.7. Temp Employee
   • 4.8. Foreign Employees
   • 4.9. Employees
   • 4.10. Companies
   • 4.11. Imports
   • 4.12. Energy Exchange
   • 4.13. Production
   • 4.14. Exports
5. Evaluation: The players count the VP (Value Points) generated during the round, and adjust the Axia Financial Status according to how much they have exceeded (or fallen short of) the goal of the current round of the game, found on the Austerity Plan card.

Acknowledgments

Game Design: Pantelis Bouboulis & Sotiris Tsantilas

Development: LudiCreations & Alvin Chen

Illustration: Anthony Cournoyer

Graphic Design: Sami Laakso, Viktor Csete & Heiko Günther

Rules Editing: Paul Grogan

Special Thanks: Falko Sieverding, Kai Mölleken, David Turczi, Toni Heinonen, Maria Kivilaakso, Richard Ham, David Minken, Ken Boyter, Benjamin Taylor, Andreas Buhlmann, Dave Luza, Ryan LaFlamme, Edward & Amanda Uhler, Chris Marling, Luke Hector, Steven Tudor, Andy Lewis, Joel Wright, Tom Westrope, Kurt Van Hoeyveld, André Nordstrand, Anthony Racano, David J. Mortimer, Dimitris "JamesH" Chatzidimitriou

Pantelis would like to thank his wife Yiouli for her ongoing support throughout the development of the game as well as for the many hours she spent with him playtesting. Moreover, he would like to thank another important playtester, Efi Konstantinopoulou.

Sotiris would like to dedicate this game to his loving wife Vicky for being the inspiration to all his endeavors, and to his son Spyros, because he is so proud of him!

Both designers would like to express their gratitude to the people of LudiCreations for their efforts to make the game a reality.

The publisher would like to thank Anniina, who is always there, crisis after crisis.