Ethnos: 2nd Edition Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Overview
• Game Components
• From Ethnos to 2nd Edition
• Initial Setup
• Playing the Game
• Beginning of a New Age
• Playing Through an Age
  • Recruiting Allies
  • Dragon Cards
  • Playing a Party of Allies
• The End of an Age
  • Allies Disperse
  • Prestige for the Regions
  • The Clans' Influence
  • Prestige for the Party Size
• A New Age Dawns
• The End of the Game
• Playing with 2 or 3 Players
  • Setting Up the Game
  • Playing a Party of Allies for 2-Player Games
  • Special Scoring for 2-Player Games
• Recruitment Mode
• Solo Mode
  • Preparation
  • Solo Mode Explained
  • Chief Bruno Playing a Party
  • Player Rules Differences
  • Changing Solo Mode Difficulty
• The Clans of Ethnos
  • Owl Summoners Clan
  • Rabbit Scientists Clan
  • Red Panda Sages Clan
  • Bear Stonewards Clan
  • Raccoon Merchants Clan
  • Koi Sea Spirits Clan
  • Tiger Samurai Clan
  • Monkey Nomads Clan
  • Dog Townsfolk Clan
  • Fox Ninjas Clan
  • Deer Wind Knights Clan
  • Raven Wizards Clan
• Rules Summary
• Credits

Game Overview

1 to 6 players compete to become the next Emperor of Ethnos. Control Regions of Ethnos by recruiting Parties of Allies, scattered members of the 12 Clans, and playing them to gain dominance in Regions.

But be careful! Alliances can be fickle. Any cards not used when creating a Party must be discarded, creating opportunities for rivals.

Players must also wisely choose who will be the Leader of each Party, as only Leaders can use their special abilities.

The player who gathers the most Prestige over 3 Ages will be crowned Emperor of Ethnos and win the game!

Game Components

• 1 Game Board
• 6 Monkey Settlement Boards
• 144 Ally Cards (12 per Clan)
• 6 Player Reference Cards
• 12 Setup Cards
• 18 Prestige Tokens
• 6 Fox Tokens
• 14 Raccoon Coins
• 1 Double-sided Koi Board
• 1 Double-sided Bear Token
• 3 Dragon Cards
• 3 Solo Mode Cards
• 156 Control Markers (26 per Player Color)

From Ethnos to 2nd Edition

Ushering in a new Age in the land of Ethnos brings about change. It is time for a new Emperor to be crowned. For veterans of the 1st edition of Ethnos, here is what is new in this edition:

• Glory to Prestige. Rebalanced Prestige values
• Kingdom to Region
• Tribe to Clans
• Band to Party
• New Clan Names and New Clan — Raccoon Merchants
• Recruitment Mode
• Solo Mode

Initial Setup

1. Place the game board in the middle of the table.

2. Shuffle the Prestige tokens facedown and place 3 in each Region. Then, flip them faceup and arrange them in ascending order on that Region's Prestige spaces, with the lowest Prestige token in the I space and the highest in the III space.

3. Each player chooses a color and takes the matching Control markers. Each player places 1 of their markers on the 0 space of the Prestige Track (on the outer edge of the game board). This marker keeps track of player Prestige.

4. Shuffle all the Setup cards and reveal 6 of them, determining the Clans used for the game. Take the corresponding Ally cards for those 6 Clans and shuffle them together. This forms the Ally Deck. Return all unused Ally and Setup cards to the box. They will not be used in this game.

   Note: If this is their first game, players are recommended to use the following 6 Clans (any of these 5 for 2-3 player games): Monkey, Bear, Tiger, Red Panda, Raven, and Fox.

5. Depending on which Clans are chosen, players will need to perform the following additional setup:

   • Koi: Place the Koi board next to the main game board with the side matching the number of players in the game faceup. Each player places 1 of their Control markers near the Koi board.
   • Fox: Place all 6 Fox tokens next to the game board.
   • Bear: Place the Bear token next to the board with the side matching the number of players faceup.
   • Monkey: Give each player 1 Monkey Settlement board.
   • Raccoon: Place all 14 Raccoon Coins next to the game board.

Players are now ready for the First Age to begin!

Playing the Game

Ethnos: 2nd Edition is played over 3 Ages. In each Age, players try to collect Parties of Allies that will help them control the Regions of Ethnos. At the end of each Age, players earn Prestige for the Regions they control and the Parties they have assembled.

2-3 Player Games: If playing a 2 or 3-player game, the game ends after the Second Age (see "Playing with 2 or 3 Players").

For the First Age, choose a player randomly to be the first player. In the Second and Third Age, the player with the least Prestige (on the Prestige Track) will be the first player. If there is a tie, the tied player closest to the player who drew the 3rd Dragon card in the previous Age (starting from that player and going clockwise) is the first player.

Beginning of a New Age

Follow these steps to begin each Age:

1. Each player draws 1 card from the Ally Deck and adds it to their hand.
2. Reveal Ally cards from the top of the Ally Deck equal to twice the number of players in the game and place them in a row, faceup, next to the game board (2 players = 4 cards / 3 players = 6 cards / 4 players = 8 cards / 5 players = 10 cards / 6 players = 12 cards). This forms the Ally Pool.
3. Split the rest of the Ally Deck into 2 roughly equal halves. Shuffle the 3 Dragon cards facedown into the bottom half. Then, place the other half on top to recreate the Ally Deck so the Dragon cards are all in the bottom half of the full Ally Deck.

Playing Through an Age

During each Age, players take turns, starting with the first player and going clockwise.

On a turn, a player must either:

Recruit 1 Ally or Play a Party of Allies

Recruiting Allies

To recruit an Ally, a player may either pick any 1 faceup Ally card from the Ally Pool, or draw the top card of the Ally Deck.

If they draw from the Ally Pool, do not replace it with a new card from the deck. This means that the Ally Pool could possibly run out.

Note: The hand limit is 10 cards. If a player has 10 Ally cards in their hand, they cannot Recruit an Ally and MUST Play a Party of Allies, instead.

In order to get the most out of Allies, players need to collect groups that are the same color or from the same Clan. Parties can't mix them both.

Example: Hiroshi has his eye on the Green Region, so he needs at least 1 green Ally. He already has a couple of Rabbits in his hand, so he takes the faceup green Rabbit card. Soon, the Green Region will be his!

Emi is the next to go. She sees Hiroshi plotting to take over the Green Region and really wants to compete with him there, but none of the faceup cards in the Ally Pool are going to help her, so she draws the top card from the deck instead. Will it help her? The other players don't know…

Dragon Cards

If a Dragon card is drawn from the Ally Deck, the player MUST immediately reveal it. Set the Dragon card beside the game board where all players can see it. The player then draws another card from the deck, hopefully not getting another Dragon!

The first 2 Dragon cards have no effect. But when the 3rd Dragon is drawn, the Age immediately comes to an end (see The End of an Age). Keep the 3rd Dragon card next to the player who drew it to help determine the next Age's first player in case of a tie for least Prestige.

Playing a Party of Allies

A Party is a set of 1 to 10 Ally cards that are played together from a player's hand. All of the cards in a Party must belong to the same Clan (i.e., have the same Clan Symbol) or have the same color.

To play a Party, a player must follow these steps:

1. Lay down the cards they want to include in the Party faceup in front of them. Remember that they must all be the same Clan or color.

2. Choose 1 card in the Party to be the Leader and place it at the top of the Party.

3. The player places 1 of their Control markers in the Region that matches the color of the Party's Leader card.

   Note: Players can only place a Control marker in a Region if there are fewer Control markers of their own color there than the number of cards in the Party just played (e.g., a player only needs 1 card to place their 1st marker, 2 cards to place their 2nd marker, and so on).

4. The Leader's Clan ability may now be used. Other cards in the Party have no effect except for the Dog Clan.

5. Discard all remaining cards in their hand to the Ally Pool faceup after playing the Party. These are now available for all players to Recruit on their turns.

The player leaves the played Party, with the Leader on top, laid out in front of them for all players to see. Played Parties remain there until the End of an Age.

Example 1: Hiroshi makes his move. He plays 3 Rabbit cards with the green one on top as the Leader for this Party. With the green Leader, Hiroshi can place a Control marker in the Green Region if the Party is big enough. Since he currently has 2 Control markers there, a Party of 3 Allies allows him to place his 3rd marker, giving him control of the Green Region! But will he keep it? Hiroshi discards the remaining cards in his hand faceup into the Ally Pool.

Example 2: Emi wants to add a Control marker to the Green Region, but she already has 2 markers there and only has 2 cards that can create a green Party. She opts instead to play the Party of 2 Ally cards with a green Leader to add 1 of her markers to the Red Region to gain the lead there. Normally, players are not allowed to add markers when playing a different colored Leader, but her Leader is a Deer, allowing her marker to be placed in any Region! Emi then discards the remaining cards from her hand faceup to the Ally Pool.

Note: A player may play Parties larger than necessary to place a Control marker to gain more Prestige, trigger Clan abilities, or simply prevent cards from entering the Ally Pool. Players can also play a Party smaller than necessary, without placing a Control marker, just to gain some Prestige for that Party.

The End of an Age

Players continue taking turns recruiting Allies and playing Parties until the 3rd Dragon card is revealed.

When the 3rd Dragon card is drawn, the current Age ends immediately. At this point, Allies disperse and Prestige for Regions and Parties are scored. Players move their Scoring marker up on the Prestige Track a number of spaces equal to the Prestige gained.

Allies Disperse

All players must discard all cards left in their hand.

Prestige for the Regions

Players now gain Prestige from the 6 Regions. Score each Region independently by performing the following:

First Age: Within each Region, the player with the most Control markers gain Prestige equal to the value of the Prestige token in the I space.

Second Age: Within each Region, the player with the most Control markers gain Prestige equal to the value of the Prestige token in the II space. Then, the player with the second-most Control markers gain Prestige equal to the Prestige token in the I space.

Third Age: Within each Region, the player with the most Control markers gain Prestige equal to the value of the Prestige token in the III space. Then, the player with the second-most gain Prestige equal to Prestige token in the II space, and the third-most gain Prestige equal to the Prestige token in the I space.

If there is a tie for the most Control markers in a Region, the Prestige awards for the tied players are combined and then divided equally (rounded down).

Example: It's now the end of the Second Age. Despite her best efforts, Emi has been unable to overcome Hiroshi's lead. He earns 6 Prestige (the value of the token in the II space) while Emi only earns 4 Prestige (the value of the token in the I space). Poor Wilfred, with the third-most Control markers, gets nothing.

If Emi had managed to get 1 more Control marker here, she would have tied with Hiroshi and they would have split the Prestige. They would each receive 5 Prestige: 6 + 4 = 10, divided by 2. Wilfred would still be third and get nothing.

The Clans' Influence

Some Clan abilities come into play during the resolution of the End of an Age. Pay special attention when using the Rabbit, Bear, Koi, Raccoon, Monkey, Dog, or Fox (see The Clans of Ethnos).

Prestige for the Party Size

Finally, every player scores Prestige for each of the Parties in front of them. The size of each Party determines the number of Prestige awarded:

Number of Cards in the Party	Prestige Awarded
1	0
2	1
3	3
4	6
5	10
6+	15

Example: Hiroshi has managed to play 3 Parties during the last Age. He scores 1 Prestige for the Party with 2 green cards, 3 Prestige for the Party with 3 Foxes, and 6 Prestige for the Party of 4 red cards: a total of 10 Prestige.

A New Age Dawns

Once all players have earned their Prestige, they must discard all of their Parties.

If the First or Second Age just finished, the next Age begins: Set aside the 3 Dragon cards for a moment and reshuffle all the Ally cards together again to form a new Ally Deck. Then, follow the steps for Beginning of a New Age.

All Control markers on the game board, the Koi board, and the players' Monkey Settlement boards, if any, remain for the next Age. The Bear and all Fox tokens must be returned to the side of the board. Raccoon Coins used are removed from the game!

If players just finished the Third and final Age, the game is over.

The End of the Game

After the Third Age, the game ends and the player who has the most Prestige is the winner! In case of a tie, the player with the most Control markers on the board wins. If a tie persists, the player with the largest played Party in the last Age wins, then the second largest, and so on.

Playing with 2 or 3 Players

When playing games with 2 or 3 players, play only 2 Ages. All the normal rules are used, except for these changes:

Setting Up the Game

• Before mixing the Prestige tokens, remove the tokens marked with a 4+ and return them to the box. Then, shuffle the rest of the tokens and place 2 in each Region.
• Reveal only 5 Setup cards instead of 6. Only 5 Clans are used for 2 and 3 player games.
• If the Koi or Bear Clan are in the game, use the 2-3 player side of their board or token.

Playing a Party of Allies for 2-Player Games

To place their Control marker in a Region, a player must play a Party with more cards than the total number of Control markers there.

Example: If Hiroshi has 2 markers and Emi has 1 marker in the Blue region, Hiroshi must play a Party with at least 4 cards to add a marker there.

Special Scoring for 2-Player Games

At the end of the First Age, the player with the most Control markers in each Region earns Prestige as normal, which is equal to the value of the Prestige token in the I space of Region.

At the end of the Second Age, the player with the most Control markers in a Region gains Prestige equal to the value of the Prestige token in the II space. Unlike a normal game, the player with the second-most Control markers does not earn any Prestige for that Region. In addition, if only 1 player has Control markers in a Region at the end of the Second Age, that player earns Prestige equal to the value of both Prestige tokens in that Region!

Note: Players will have to consider spending resources in every Region, even if there is no chance of winning control there!

In 3-player games, the Regions are scored normally at the end of both Ages.

Recruitment Mode

Players who want a more methodical game with less reliance on the luck of the draw may want to use this variant. Whenever the Ally Pool has fewer than 3 cards, reveal cards from the top of the deck until 3 cards are in the Ally Pool. If a Dragon is revealed this way, draw another card until there are 3 cards in the Ally Pool.

Solo Mode

Many rules from the base game are used, so we recommend players familiarize themselves with the Ethnos: 2nd Edition multiplayer rules before playing solo. In this Mode, the player will be competing against "Chief Bruno", their virtual opponent.

Preparation

Follow the setup rules for a 2-player game, with the following differences:

A. Place the 3 Solo Mode Cards beside the game board: White/Green card on the left, Yellow/Black card in the middle and Red/Blue card on the right. This forms Chief Bruno's Dashboard.

B. Use these 6 Clans and set aside their respective Setup cards. These will be used to determine the Leader of the Parties Chief Bruno can play: Koi, Rabbit, Raven, Bear, Monkey, and Raccoon.

C. After adding Prestige tokens randomly, swap tokens from other regions to the Red and Blue Regions in a way that the higher value Prestige tokens are in the Red and Blue Regions.

Example: After randomly placing Prestige tokens on the board, to ensure the higher value tokens are in the Red and Blue Regions, Rowan does the following:

1. Checking the highest and lowest values, swaps the lower Red Region (4) with the Yellow Region (12).
2. Alternating to check on the Blue Region, swaps the lower Blue Region (6) with the Black Region (10).
3. Repeating this process, alternating between the Red and Blue Region, until both of these Regions contain the highest-numbered Prestige tokens on the board.
4. Then, all Prestige tokens are arranged in ascending order.

Note: The Red and Blue Regions should end up with Prestige tokens 8, 8, 10, and 12.

5. Draw the top 3 cards of the Ally Deck and place them in their respective color columns on Chief Bruno's Dashboard.

Solo Mode Explained

Chief Bruno's Dashboard has columns for each of the 6 Regions. Whenever a card would be placed on Chief Bruno's Dashboard, place it in its respective column. Each column has its own trigger to play a Party.

Dashboard columns	Trigger
White, Green	Play on 5+
Yellow, Black	Play on 4+
Red, Blue	Always play whenever possible

After each player's turn, if at least 1 column meets the criteria to play a Party that will add a control marker to a region, it must be played immediately. If more than 1 Party meets the criteria at the same time, the leftmost Party must be played. Chief Bruno never plays more than 1 Party at a time.

Example: After the player's turn, since the Party in Black column has 4 cards, meeting the criteria "Play on 4+", Chief Bruno will play that Party.

Chief Bruno Playing a Party

The player chooses 1 of the faceup Setup cards as the Leader of Chief Bruno's Party and flips it facedown. It may not be chosen again until all Setup cards are chosen. Once there are no faceup Setup cards available, flip all of them faceup immediately.

Example: Chief Bruno has 6 cards in a column and must play the Party. Monkeys cannot be chosen as a Leader as it was previously chosen, indicated by a facedown Monkey Setup card. Of the remaining available Setup cards, Koi is chosen as the next Leader.

Rabbit, Bear, and Raven don't have any changes when played in Solo Mode. Simply use the normal rules for them. The other Leaders follow the behavior as explained:

Koi: Chief Bruno will play a Control marker in this order of preference:

1. In a region where they are tied
2. In a region where they are losing
3. In a region where they are winning

Example: Chief Bruno plays a Koi Leader in their Party. Since there are no ties, Rowan can choose any region where they are losing to place the Control marker.

Raccoon: Chief Bruno will play Raccoon Coins in this order of preference:

1. In a region where they are winning
2. In a region where they are tied
3. In a region where they are losing

Note: For Koi and Raccoon, in a scenario where there are multiple options in the same preference ranking, the player chooses where they want to place the Control marker.

Monkey: Chief Bruno will always play a Party in a region where they don't have a Control marker on the Monkey Settlement board yet. After Chief Bruno has a Control marker in every region of the Monkey Settlement board, the player chooses where the Control marker will be played. Chief Bruno always scores the Monkey Settlement board at the end of each Age.

After resolving the Leader's ability, move the Party from Chief Bruno's Dashboard to a play area next to their Dashboard. It will be scored as usual at the End of the Age.

Finally, choose any card from Chief Bruno's Dashboard and discard it.

Player Rules Differences

• The player must play using the Recruitment Mode.
• After the player recruits an Ally from the Ally Pool or the Ally Deck, they choose a card from the Ally Pool and places it on Chief Bruno's Dashboard. Then, add a new card from the Ally Deck to the Ally Pool.
• After playing a Party, if the player discards any cards to the Ally Pool, choose 1 of them to add to Chief Bruno's Dashboard. If no cards are discarded, simply put the top card from the Ally Deck onto Chief Bruno's Dashboard.

Changing Solo Mode Difficulty

The above is described as the regular difficulty level for playing the Solo Mode. To adjust for an easier game, after Chief Bruno plays and resolves a Party, the player may steal a card instead of discarding a card from Chief Bruno's Dashboard.

To adjust for a harder game, whenever the player picks a card from the Ally Pool, the other 2 cards from the Ally Pool are added to Chief Bruno's Dashboard.

The Clans of Ethnos

Each of the 12 Clans has its own unique ability. A player that uses their abilities wisely will soon be the new Emperor of Ethnos! Remember that only the Leader of a Party is allowed to use its ability.

Owl Summoners Clan

The Summoner Clan are master conjurers, weaving a strategic dance that summons various allies and extends their influence with unparalleled precision.

When an Owl is played as the Leader of a Party and the player is able to place a Control marker in a Region, they may immediately play another Party from their hand before they discard the rest of their cards, possibly placing another Control marker and using the second Party's Leader ability. If no Control markers are placed when playing an Owl as the Leader, players cannot play another Party.

Example: Wilfred plays a Party of 2 Allies with a blue Owl Leader. This allows him to add a Control marker to the Blue Region. He can then play another Party, in this case, with a red Monkey Leader, adding a Control marker to the Red Region and using its ability to add another marker in the red space of his Monkey Settlement board.

Rabbit Scientists Clan

The Scientist Clan are brilliant minds whose ingenious experiments unlock new realms of knowledge, for a great discovery is its own form of Prestige.

During End of Age scoring, each Party with a Rabbit Leader awards Prestige as if it had 1 more card in it.

Example: Emi plays a Party of 4 cards with a Rabbit Leader. That Party is worth 10 Prestige at the end of the Age as if it had 5 cards in it.

Red Panda Sages Clan

The Sage Clan are guardians of ancient wisdom, resourceful and conserving power for the future, ensuring no resource is wasted.

When a Red Panda is played as the Leader of a Party, the player may keep cards in their hand up to the number of cards in the Party just played, instead of discarding them faceup to the Ally Pool.

Example: Hiroshi has 7 cards in his hand and plays a Party of 3 Allies with a Red Panda Leader. He can keep up to 3 of his remaining 4 cards and must only discard a single card.

Bear Stonewards Clan

The Stoneward Clan are artisans of stone and unyielding strength, anchoring influence by crafting colossal Remnants, each size granting increasingly potent boons.

When a Bear is played as the Leader of a Party, the player checks to see if they now have the largest Party with a Bear Leader. If they do, they immediately gain 4 Prestige on the Prestige Track and must place the Bear token on the Party. The same player may move the Bear token from one of their Party to a larger Bear-led one, gaining another 4 Prestige. Another player can take the Bear token away from them only if they play a larger Party with a Bear leader.

At the End of the Age, the player with the Bear token gains extra Prestige, indicated on the token based on which Age has ended. Then, the Bear token returns to the side of the game board to be used in the next Age.

Example: Hiroshi plays a Party of 3 Allies with a Bear Leader. It is the largest Bear-led Party this Age, so he takes the Bear token to mark that Party and gains 4 Prestige. Later on, Wilfred plays a Party of 4 Allies with a Bear Leader and takes the Bear token away from Hiroshi for their own Party, earning 4 Prestige.

If Wilfred still has the Bear token at the end of the First Age, he earns 4 Prestige before returning the token to the side of the game board.

Raccoon Merchants Clan

The Merchant Clan are sharp-witted traders who strategically exploit markets, accumulating wealth to solidify their influence.

Set aside the 14 Raccoon Coins during setup.

When a Raccoon is played as the Leader of a Party, place the lowest-value Coin above the Prestige token for that Region of the current Age. This increases the Prestige gained during the End of Age scoring for that Region.

Remove all Coins on the game board from the game after scoring them.

In the rare case where a 15th Raccoon is played as the Leader, ignore the bonus.

Example: Wilfred plays a Party of 2 Allies with a blue Raccoon Leader during the Second Age. This allows him to add a Control marker to the Blue Region, since he had only 1 marker there. He can then take the lowest-value Coin available and place it above the Prestige token on the II space in the Blue Region. During the End of Age Region scoring, the player with the most Control markers in the Blue Region gains the combined value of Coins in that Region, in addition to the Prestige earned from the II space.

Koi Sea Spirits Clan

The Sea Spirit Clan are ethereal beings of the deep with a mystical connection to the sea, effortlessly navigating and influencing coastal regions.

When a Koi is played as the Leader of a Party, they move their marker on the Koi board up spaces equal to the number of cards in the Party that was just played. If the marker reaches or passes a space with a Koi symbol, they may also place another 1 of their Control markers in any Region, regardless of the size of the Party just played.

At the End of each Age, the highest-ranking players on the Koi board earn Prestige as if it were its own Region. The Koi board is never reset, so if a player reaches the last space, their marker can no longer be moved.

Example: Emi plays a Party of 3 Allies with a green Koi Leader. She can place a Control marker in the Green Region since she had 2 markers there. She then moves her Control marker up 3 spaces on the Koi board, passing a Koi symbol. She can now place a Control marker in any Region (not just the Green Region) regardless of the number of markers on them!

If her marker on the Koi board is the highest at the End of each Age, she'll gain Prestige according to the number listed on the Koi board.

Tiger Samurai Clan

The Samurai Clan are disciplined warriors embodying honor and martial prowess, whose indomitable spirit prevails against numbers larger than their own.

When a Tiger is played as the Leader of a Party, they need 1 fewer card than usual to place their Control marker in the matching Region.

Example: Wilfred has 3 Control markers in the Red Region. He can add a 4th marker there by playing a Party with a red Tiger Leader consisting of just 3 cards.

Monkey Nomads Clan

The Nomad Clan are wanderers who never stay in one place for long, swiftly influencing regions and leaving behind an indelible mark.

When a Monkey is played as the Leader of a Party, the player may place 1 of their Control markers on their Monkey Settlement board in the space that matches the color of the Monkey Leader in addition to any Control marker they're able to place in a Region. A player can only have 1 Control marker in each space on their Monkey Settlement board.

At the End of the Age, a player may empty their Monkey Settlement board to have them migrate, scoring Prestige indicated on the Monkey Settlement board, based on the number of Control markers removed. A player may leave their markers to try to score higher in a later Age.

Example: Hiroshi plays a Party of 4 Allies with a yellow Monkey Leader. He can place a Control marker in the Yellow Region since he had 2 markers there, and a marker on the yellow space of his Monkey Settlement board, since he doesn't have one there yet. At the end of the Age, Hiroshi can choose to have his Monkeys migrate, or keep them where they're at, letting him possibly score more points next Age.

Dog Townsfolk Clan

The Townsfolk Clan are silent observers who prefer the sidelines. Never leading, they peacefully contribute to any Party, then return to their daily lives at an Age's end.

Unlike other Clans, Dogs can never be the Leader of a Party. Dogs are treated as a wild cards and can be added to any Party, regardless of color or Clan. They count towards the ability of the Leader of their Party and for achieving the necessary card number to place a Control marker on a Region, as normal.

At the End of every Age, all Dogs, wherever they are, must be discarded before awarding Prestige for a Party.

Example: Emi plays a Party of 5 Allies that includes 2 Dogs. At the end of the Age, those Dogs are discarded, and she only score Prestige for the 3 cards left behind.

Fox Ninjas Clan

The Ninja Clan are masters of stealth and subterfuge, strategically infiltrating regions and leaving adversaries unaware until it's too late.

When a Fox is played as the Leader of a Party, the player may take any 1 unclaimed Fox token with a value up to the number of cards in the Party just played. Fox tokens have no value in themselves, but are used to break ties for control of Regions and the Koi board at the End of the Age. The tied player with the highest total value of Fox tokens wins the tie. If still tied, the highest numbered Fox token wins the tie. At the End of each Age, all Fox tokens are placed back next to the game board for the next Age.

Example: Wilfred plays a Party of 4 Allies with a Fox Leader. In addition to possibly placing a Control marker in a Region, he can take any available Fox token with a value of 4 or less. If he is tied for control of a Region at the end of the Age, and the total added value of his Fox tokens is higher than the other player's, he wins the higher Prestige for that Region.

Deer Wind Knights Clan

The Wind Knight Clan are noble warriors who command the power of the winds, riding the currents to strategically conquer regions with relentless agility.

When a Deer is played as the Leader of a Party, the player may place their Control marker in any Region on the game board, ignoring the color of the Leader card (the Party must still be large enough to play a marker in the chosen Region).

Example: Emi plays a Party of 3 Allies with a green Deer Leader. She would normally only be able to place a Control marker in the Green Region. But since the Leader is a Deer, she can place her Control marker in any Region where she has 2 or fewer Control markers.

Raven Wizards Clan

The Wizard Clan are wielders of the arcane who strategically manipulate the elements, their mystical insight granting a unique advantage in restoring power to their allies.

When a Raven is played as the Leader of a Party, after the player discards any other cards in their hand, they may draw cards from the Ally Deck equal to the number of cards in the Party just played. These cards must be taken from the Ally Deck and cannot be taken from the Ally Pool.

Example: Hiroshi has 4 cards in his hand and plays a Party of 2 Allies with a Raven Leader. After he discards the 2 leftover cards to the Ally Pool, he can draw 2 new cards from the Ally Deck.

Rules Summary

Initial Setup:

• Randomly place Prestige tokens, arranging in ascending order within each Region (remove 4+ tokens in 2-3 player games).
• Randomly pick 6 Clans (5 Clans in 2-3 player games), create, then shuffle the Ally Deck.

Beginning a New Age:

• Each player draws 1 Ally card.
• Place faceup Ally cards in the Ally Pool equal to twice the number of players.
• Shuffle the 3 Dragon cards into the bottom half of the Ally Deck.
• Determine the first player. First Age: Random. Second and Third Age: The player with the least Prestige (on a tie, closest player to 3rd Dragon Card drawn).

Playing Through an Age:

Players take turns in clockwise order. On their turn, players may either:

Recruit 1 Ally (max hand size: 10)

• Draw a card from the Ally Deck. If a Dragon card is drawn, place it faceup next to the game board and draw another card.
• Choose a card from the Ally Pool.

OR

Play a Party of Allies

• Lay down a Party of 1 to 10 Ally cards, either of the same color or the same Clan.
• Choose a Leader, placing it on top of the Party.
• Place Control markers, if possible.
• The Leader ability may be used.
• Discard all remaining cards faceup to the Ally Pool.

End of an Age

When the 3rd Dragon card is drawn, the Age immediately ends. Players with the most Control markers in each Region gain Prestige.

• First Age: Gain Prestige indicated in the I space of each Region.
• Second Age: Most Control markers gains Prestige in the II space. Second-most gains the I space (in a 2-player game, the 2nd player gets no Prestige, and the 1st gets both I and II if there are no opposing Control markers in the Region).
• Third Age: Most Control markers gains Prestige in the III space. Second-most gains the II space. Third-most gains the I space.
• If there is a tie, players add together the Prestige rewards and divide it equally (rounded down).

Players earn Prestige for each Party they played, according to their size (as indicated on the game board).

Discard all Ally cards, both from players' hands and from played Parties, and shuffle them into a new deck.

End of the Game

The game ends after the Third Age (Second Age in 2-3 player games). The player with the most Prestige is the winner!

Credits

Game Design: Paolo Mori Solo Mode Development: Fel Barros 2nd Edition Development: Fel Barros (Lead), Rodrigo Sonnesso (Lead), Henrique Garrigós, and Toi von Glehn VP of Design and Development: Guilherme Goulart Lead Producer: Daryl Choo Production: Thiago Aranha, Marcela Fabreti, Rebecca Ho, Isadora Leite, Erwann Le Torrivellec, Nicholas Sia, Kenneth Tan, and Gregory Varghese Art: Davide Tosello Graphic Design: Silvia De Stefanis (Lead) - ManaProject Studio, Irene Tam, Louise Combal - CMON Sculpting: Edgar Skomorowski Director of Plastics: Vincent Fontaine Proofreading: Jason Koepp Publisher: David Doust and Ng Chern Ann Special thanks to Bruno Faidutti 2nd Edition & Solo Mode Playtesters: Leo Almeida, Euclides Ribeiro, Rafael Assaf, Felipe Galeno, Fernando Monteiro, and Marco Saccumani 1st Edition Playtesters: Emiliano "Wentufix" Venturini, Francesco Sirocchi, Andrea Pecora, Dimitri Fietta, Michele Sommi, Giovanni Melandri, Giovanni Taverna, Luigi Mori, Danilo Bersani, Simone Berti, Lorenzo Allodi, Manuel Busi, Andrea Melegari, Luca Chiapponi, Michele Mordacci, Maurizio Besacchi, Fabrizio Giuberti, Lorenzo Tucci Sorrentino, Lorenzo Silva, Luiz Alvarez, Julia Ferrari, Guilherme Goulart, Lucas Martini, Carolina Negrão, Sergio Roma, and Renato Sasdelli

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