Historical Conquest: The Card Game
Historical Conquest: The Card Game Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Introduction to Historical Conquest
Historical Conquest: The Card Game is an epic strategy game that combines historic figures, armies, events, and technologies on the world stage. Two or more players, each with decks of at least 50 cards, take turns exploring the globe and having fantastic battles with leaders and prominent figures from throughout history. When you take all of your opponent's Countries or increase your nation's morale to 3000 points, you are crowned the winner!
Card Layout (Parts of a Card)
Card Category: This description tells you what kind of a card it is: Land/Country, Character, Army, Explorer, Event, or Technology. These categories include subtypes. For example: "Attila the Hun" is a "Conqueror" character subtype.
History Plate: This section tells you something about the life and times of the true, historic figure, country, event, item, etc.
Ability Plate: This section lists the special abilities of your card. Abilities can be used: only once, once per turn, or continuously. Each cards will specify the Ability's duration. If the card offers any Morale Points, they will be listed here. Specialty instructions are also listed in the Ability Plate.
Strength (Attack/Defense): The Attack Number on the left represents the amount of damage your card does when you attack another player's country. The Defense Number on the right represents how much damage your Character or Army must take in a single turn to be defeated. There are no Strength Points associated with Land Cards.
Reference, Date, and Illustration: These sections give you additional information about your card that may affect the way that card may be played. They are important because some card's Abilities reference these attributes. For example, continent names are listed at the bottom of each Land Card.
Card Types
Land or Country Cards: Land Cards serve as the foundation for your civilizations. Land Cards and Character Cards are played together in a vertical column on the Battlefield with the Land Card on the bottom row; at least one Land Card per civilization to be in the game. Each Starter Deck contains six distinct countries, one from each continent. Each Land Card lists the specific county or continent's name, population and land size, interesting historical fact and the specific card's abilities it can add to the Character Cards that players place above it. Each Land Card can support up to four Character Cards, except when it specifically states more are allowed. Card Color and Pattern: Green / Map
Character Cards: Character Cards are comprised of real historical figures, each with a unique skill set based on his or her true to life abilities and experiences. Each Character Card gives the person's name, title or profession, date or era from history, important facts, his or her specific game contributions, Morale and Strength Points.
There are 20 distinct subsets of Character Cards:
- Activists, Author, Explorer, Philosopher
- Army, Businessman, Inventor, Politician
- Artist, Conqueror, Leader, Scientist
- Assassin, Entertainer, Musician, Spiritual Leader
- Athlete, Economist, Outlaw, Warrior
All Character Cards are placed in the land directly above the Land Cards they occupy on the Battlefield. Each Land Card can support up to four Character Cards (including the Explorer Cards) OR three Character Cards and one Army Card. Special exceptions can apply. Card Colors and Patterns vary by subcategory.
The Army and Explorer Cards are considered Specialty Character Cards with distinct playing characteristics separate from the other Character Cards subsets.
Specialty Character Cards - Army Cards: Army Cards are comprised of several famous historical groups, armies and/or units that can add significant strength or abilities to your civilization in an attack. An Army Card's ability is constantly in effect and often improves your fighting capability. Only one Army Card is allowed above a particular Land Card. Card Color and Pattern: Brown and Gold/Metal Plating.
Specialty Character Cards - Explorer Cards: Explorer Cards have four special subcategories:
- Explorer-Sea
- Explorer-Land
- Explorer-Air
- Explorer-Space
All Explorer Cards discover new lands when initially player on to your Battlefield. There are other specialty cards that also discover new lands. Explorer Cards facilitate battles between Lands on different continents and can escort one Character Card (including an Army) between continents at the end of a turn. Explorer Cards are the first Character Cards placed above a Land Card on the Battlefield. Card Color and Pattern: Blue / Watermark.
Event, Technology, Knowledge, Location, Organization and Document Cards: These action cards are all non-human playing cards that effect both the Land and Character Cards on the Battlefield. These cards are played at the beginning of a turn and have an instant impact on the game for a single turn or over multiple rounds. The card's influence is described in its Ability Plate. The cards that have an immediate (not lasting) effect maybe place in the Discard Pile at the end of a turn. The cards with a continuous impact on the Battlefield are placed in the Active Pile directly above the Draw Deck at the end of a turn. Once this card's ability is satisfied, it is moved to the Discard Pile.
Card Colors and Patterns: Event Card - Blue/Desert Landscape, Knowledge Card - Green & Grey/Stone, Organization Card - Mustard/Green Texture, Technology Card - Green/Circuit Board, Location Card - Blue/Desert Landscape, Document Card - Grey/Granite
Card Basics
Land or Country Cards: Land cards go face down into your Land Pile before play. Your first country is played in your first turn; afterwards you'll need an Explorer Card or a special ability to draw and play additional Land Cards. A Land's continent is listed in its Reference Plate. Strength Abilities listed on Land Cards only apply to the cards protecting it (the cards above it on the Battlefield). Land Cards may support up to 4 cards: either 4 Character Cards or three Character Cards and one Army Card unless a Land Card's Ability Plate says that it can support more.
Undefended or Unoccupied Land Cards: A land is unoccupied if there are no Character Cards above it. At the end of your turn, you can confiscate undefended Land Cards from an opponent by using an extra Character or Army Card on the same continent as the undefended Land Card, or by using an Explorer Card to move your Character or Army Card there. See Q & A for suggestions on how to return your opponent's cards after the game is completed.
Character Cards: Character Cards are played to defend your Land Cards and attack your opponents. Once played above a Land Card, Character Cards can only move to other Land Cards or attack an opponent's Land on the same continent as its home Land unless you use an Explorer Card. See Undefended or Unoccupied Land Cards and III. Movement for more information on the movement of Character Cards. Abilities for each Character are listed on the Ability Plate.
Army Cards: Each Land Card may only have one Army Card place above it on the Battlefield unless specifically stated that there may be more. Unless otherwise stated, an Army's Ability is constantly in effect and often improves your fighting capability.
Explorer Cards: Explorer Cards are special Character Cards that when first played enable you to play a new Land Card from your Land Pile. Explorer Cards can be moved to another Land Card on your Battlefield once per turn. Explorer Cards can also transport an Army Card or Character Card with them as they move if the two begin within the same Land Card. Explorer Cards are limited by the way they move, so "Land Explorers" can only transport another Character Card to Land Cards connected by land. "Sea Explorers" can only transport between Land Cards that have direct access or river access to an ocean.
Event Cards: Event Cards are played at the beginning of your turn and their Ability Plate will tell you how the card affects either you or your opponents. Event Cards are placed in your Discard Pile at the end of your turn unless the Event Card's Ability states otherwise.
Technology Cards: Technology Cards are played at the beginning of your turn and have an instant effect on either you or your opponents. After the card is played and its Ability is finished, the Technology Card is placed into your Discard Pile.
Interrupt Cards: A card whose Ability Plate says "Interrupt" may be played at any time and do not count toward your 3 card plays. Interrupt cards may be played during any phase of any player's turn and there is no limit to the number you can play from your Active Hand.
Game Elements and Playing Field Setup
All players should have these 5 areas set up on their playing area in front of them. The cards will come and go as cards are drawn and discarded, lost or gained in battle or expired and discarded.
Land/Country Pile: At the start of your game, all of your Land Cards go face down in the Country or Land Pile. On your first turn, take the top card and put it into play face up in the Country Row. Explorer Cards and other cards abilities are required to play additional Lands.
Draw Deck: All of your non-Land cards are shuffled and put into the Draw Deck face down. This is where you will draw cards at the end of your turn or when directed to draw cards as stated by the Ability Plate on other cards.
Land/Country and Character Rows: When you put your Land / Country Cards into play, they go along the bottom row on your side of the battlefield. Character Cards (including Explorer Cards) and Army Cards that are protecting a Land are played in a column directly above their Land Card.
Event, Document, Knowledge, Location, Organization and Technology Cards: The section above your Draw Deck is where you will play the cards listed above. Play these cards face up until their ability expires, and then place them in the Discard Pile.
Discard Pile: When you are finished with a card, an Army or Character is killed, or you wish to discard a card from your Active Hand, place these cards face up in your Discard Pile. When all cards from your Draw Deck are played, shuffle your Discard Pile and place it face down where your Draw Deck was; this now becomes your new Draw Deck to allow for continued playing.
Playing the Game
Gather Your Deck
To begin a game of Historical Conquest, you'll first need to gather a Deck of at least 50 cards. Your Deck can contain as many cards as you want, but it is recommended to have at least 6 Land Cards - one per continent. You may also want enough Explorer Cards to discover your Lands and move your Character and Army cards. Separate the Land Cards from the rest of your Deck. During the game, every player will have the chance to play at least one Land Card. Remove any duplicate cards from your deck. A starter pack consists of 50 cards and has a recommended assortment of cards for beginner play. It is suggested that different starter packs be used for increased interest and enjoyment of the game. Additional expansion sets of 20 cards can also be purchased.
Starting the Game
- Create a log to track the Morale Points of all players during the game. Every player starts the game with zero Morale Points and the game is won by reaching 3000 Morale Points or by capturing all of an opponent's Land Cards. A player that accumulates -2000 Morale Points automatically forfeits and is out of the game. Players are capped at gaining up to 800 Morale Points per turn.
- Have each player shuffle their Land Cards and place them face down in their Land Pile. Shuffle all their remaining cards and place them face down in the Draw Deck area of their playing area or play mat.
- Decide who will go first by flipping a coin or seeing whose top Land Card is the farthest North.
- On each player's first turn, they must turn over the top card on their Land Pile and place it in the Land Card area on the Battlefield. Next, they draw five cards from the Draw Deck being careful not to reveal their cards to their opponents to use as their Active Hand. After these cards are drawn, this turn follows the same order as the rest of the turns in the game.
- The first round is considered a civilization building round and there is no player interaction.
First Round
When it is your turn, you can play up to three cards from your Active Hand (unless cards already in play say otherwise). You play cards by laying them on the battlefield or discarding them to your Discard Pile. Each discarded card counts as a played card. At this time you may also use the Ability Plate of any card in play that you control to affect the morale of you or your opponent, or use any of the special abilities presented on the card to your advantage.
You may only look at the active cards in your hand and the cards already played by each player unless a card is played that says differently.
Place Character Cards in each land directly above the Land Card you choose for them to "occupy". Subsequent Character Cards added to this lad will be laid above each other, forming a column, with the characters "protecting" their land.
When choosing which cards to play, consider that Army Cards and Conqueror Cards have larger Strength Points (or other special abilities) helpful to protect your lands, while other cards (e.g. Musicians, Inventors, Activists, Technologies, Events, etc.) can boost your civilization's Morale Points when played.
Replenish your hand back to five cards by drawing cards from your Draw Deck. As a reminder, cards that are discarded from either the Battlefield or your hand count towards your total of three played cards.
Successive Rounds
Take Your Turn
A person's turn consists of four phases as described in detail below. First, you play your 3 cards, then you attack another person's land if you think that you can win the exchange, then you may move a character card if you want, then finally drawing from your Draw Deck to fill out your Active Hand with five cards.
I. Play 3 Cards
When it is your turn, you can play up to three cards from your hand per the instructions under First Round keeping track of Morale Points gained or lost.
Special Note: Interrupt Cards Cards whose Ability Plate says "Interrupt" may be played at any time and do not count toward your 3 card plays. Interrupt cards may be played during any phase of any player's turn and there is no limit to the number you can play from your Hand.
II. Attacking
After every player has had two turns and you have 800 Morale Points you may declare an Attack and fight an opponent for control of one of their Land Cards. Players must state which Land they will attack from and what opponent-held Land they will attack. As soon as this declaration is made, the only cards either player can play are Interrupt cards. Much like how you have to boost the Morale of your troops in real life for them to fight for you, if it later drops below 800, they will not attack for you and you will have to wait to attack again after you raise their Morale.
Rules of Engagement
Attack Decisions: Once players can begin attacking, each player may attack up to two times during the Attack part of their turn. You can only attack during your turn. To attack an opposing player, you must have a Land under your control that is on the same continent as a Land controlled by your opponent, unless a card in play says otherwise. For example, if you only control Germany then you may only attack an opponent's Land that is also in Europe. A common exception to this rule is attacking with an Explorer Card in your group, which allows a Character or Army Card to attack any land the Explorer can reach.
To attack, declare what Land you are attacking from and what opponent Land you wish to attack.
Add Attack and Defense Points: Add up all of the Attack Points (the left side of the Strength Points section of a card) for the attacking Character and Army Cards from your attacking Land. Include all Attack bonuses from cards and Abilities. Add up all of the Defense Points (the right side of the Strength Points section of a card) for the Land and Army cards for your opponent's Land. Include all Defense bonuses. "Strength" bonuses can be applied to either Attack or Defense. The Country with the highest value is considered the winner.
Results: If your attack is successful, your opponent must choose and discard one Character or Army card defending their Country and they lose 100 Morale points. If your attack is unsuccessful you lose 100 Morale points. If, at the end of the battle there are no more Army or Character cards on a Country you attacked, you may take that land from your opponent with an extra Character or Army Card from the attacking Land or by transporting a character from one of your Lands on the same continent. See Undefended or Unoccupied Lands under Card Basics. Captured Land Cards added to your Battlefield do not count as one of your three "played" cards. See Q & A for further discussion of Morale.
III. Movement
After all battles are fought, you may move any one of your Character or Army Cards from one Land to another on the same Continent.
Explorer Cards have the Ability to bring one of your Character or army Cards with them, moving both cards to any of your Lands on any Continent as long as the Explorer can reach it through their historical method of travel. For example, a Sea Explorer like Ferdinand Magellan can only travel to a Country that has a direct access to an ocean, through an ocean port or a river like the Nile.
IV. Draw and End
After moving your Character Cards, you must draw cards from your Draw Deck until you have five in your hand unless a card in play states otherwise. After you have drawn your cards, you have one final chance to play any Interrupt cards you want. When done, signal to the other players that your turn has ended.
Winning the Game
There are two ways to win a game of Historical Conquest. The first is through attacking your opponent and taking their Lands. The second is by raising your Morale Points to 3000 points. However, if your Morale Points fall to -2000 you must forfeit and exit the game.
Questions and Answers
Morale
Each player starts the game of Historical Conquest with 0 Morale Points. It's best to keep a log of these points because you can win the game by reaching 3000 Morale points. The log should be kept in plain view of all players. Remember though, that if you go to -2000 points you must exit the game.
Morale can only be increased through cards and abilities.
Players lose Morale Points when they lose a battle, regardless of who attacked or defended. Players can also lose Morale Points through cards and abilities played by their opponents.
Unless a card in play says otherwise, Morale Points are not gained or lost when playing or discarding a card from your Active Hand.
Sample Morale Log
| Event | Player 1 Total Morale | Event | Player 2 Total Morale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Game starts | 0 | Game starts | 0 |
| Beethoven played: +300 | 300 | Michelangelo played: +100 | 100 |
| Salem Witch Trials: -400 | -100 | Battle Lost: -100 | 0 |
| James Madison played: +300 | 200 | Michelangelo dies: +300 | 300 |
| Socrates played: +300 | 600 |
Duplicate Lands on the Battlefield
It is possible that two opponents will have the same Land Cards in their Battlefields. This describes a divided land. When [sic: printed as "on the of players"; read as "one of the players"] one of the players attacks (i.e. a civil war) and removes all Character Cards from their opponent's duplicate Land, then the extra Land Card is moved to its owner's Discard Pile. The conqueror's land is no longer divided but that land is still limited to four Character Cards.
Returning an Opponent's Captured Cards after the Game
Players who want their captured cards returned after the game may request that they be turned sideways on the opponent's Play Mat, list them on the score sheet or sleeve the card to mark it. Once captured, these cards should only be discarded into its owner's Discard Pile.
Customizing Your Deck
Players can add an unlimited number of Land Cards to his or her custom decks. There are ten different types of cards in the Historical Conquest game. Whether playing with a specific Starter Deck or assembling your own custom set, it is recommended each player start with no less than 50 cards with at least six Land Cards, and an assortment of 26 Character Cards, 4 Army Cards, and 5 Explorer Cards, 4 Event Cards, and various Technology, Location, Knowledge, Document and Organization Cards. Just make sure that you only have one of each card in your deck. The Starter decks are not based on themes or eras in time. Each player needs their own Starter Deck to play (minimum of 50 cards). Different Starters make it much more interesting. Booster Decks are based on era in time and have 20 cards in each to enhance or customize a players personal deck. Please see www.HistoricalConquest.com for card pack options.
How many people can play?
You can play up to 10 players but the best games are between 3-4 players. The more players there are the longer it takes to go around the table and with fewer players the less strategy needed as there is only one person to watch.
Specific Card Questions and Strategies
Does the ATOMIC BOMB (Technology card) destroy all cards occupying the County it is played on or just Characters? In other words, are Armies safe? ANSWER: The Atomic Bomb eradicates all cards occupying that Country, even Armies are destroyed.
If the Nuclear Bomb Card is played against a land that is divided (multiple players occupy the same country) do both players feel the effects of the damage? ANSWER: Yes, in this situation, both players take the damage from the atomic bomb.
During the first round are you allowed to play Event Cards or cards of a type that put a hurt on your opponent? Or is this round totally "hands-off" nation building? ANSWER: For the first round you are not able to interact with your opponent's civilization at all.
FRENCH MUSKETEERS & THE CANADIAN PROVINCE OF QUEBEC both have an ability giving 300 Strength if there is a French leader in the Country. I cannot find any French "Leader" cards. ANSWER: This card challenges the need to learn a little more about the people you are playing. Such as if you play Napoleon then even though he is on a Conqueror Card, he was a French leader to his people and so these abilities may be awarded for his occupying that Land.
For the KNIGHTS TEMPLAR card, when it says, "Christian Leader", does that mean a Christian Spiritual Leader card would work? ANSWER: Yes, Christian Spiritual Leader would work, those are actually the cards specifically thought of when that ability was written.
When cards like BROTHERS GRIMM state "While scaring your opponent's civilization, decrease their Morale by 200 points." Do they affect only one opponent of your choice, or all opponents civilizations? ANSWER: With it written as "opponent's" that is the singular tense indicating one opponent. Now, if it has been written "opponents'", that would indicate plural and would include all opponents.
Is there a limit to how many Event Cards can be on the mat? ANSWER: Event Cards, by their nature are instantaneous cards. When they are played in your Battlefield, their abilities take effect. Due to this, once their ability takes effect they should be discarded, therefore you should not run into an issue of event cards building up on your battlefield.
I have an older Sitting Bull card and my brother has a newer Sitting Bull card and the abilities are different. Does one take precedent over the other? ANSWER: No, you gain the benefits of your individual card, and due to the rule you can only have one of each card in your deck there should be no confusion.
The EDGAR ALLAN POE card says he "scares an opponent" and they lose 300 Morale Points. Does this mean whenever he attacks your opponent loses some morale or when he enters does his effect go off? ANSWER: The effect on the EDGAR ALLAN POE card can only be used once. Due to it not being an INTERRUPT Card, the ability does not have to be used when first played, but can be played once at any time on your turn as long as he is still on the field.
If two cards, each player having one of them, have the same ability (Example: DAVY CROCKETT and PETER SALEM) whose ability wins? ANSWER: If one card's ability is an INTERRUPT, that card wins. If neither card is an INTERRUPT, then it is a draw, both cancel each other out and neither card gets to use its ability.
The ELI WHITNEY card says, "Increase both your morale and strength by 200 points if you discard a Character card (other than Eli's)". Do these bonuses continue to stack and does the player keep them permanently? ANSWER: As for the first part of your question, no, the bonuses do not continue to stack; you get the bonus only once. Second, yes, you keep the one-time bonus even after Eli is discarded.
CHUCK COOPER for instance, says that you gain 300 morale points. Is that just once like an event or is it every turn he is in play on the board? Same for Einstein, one turn only or each turn do you receive the benefit? ANSWER: All card abilities only last one turn or happen once, unless the card says otherwise. Cooper would be a one time increase.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN unities an opponent's character with your army. What if you don't have any spaces free? Does the new card have to reside with the Army that did the attack or can it move to any open space on the battlefield? How is the character chosen? ANSWER: The rules still apply when you add a new character or someone like RASPUTIN is placed in the land by your opponent. You choose which character must be discarded. When it comes to choosing a character from your opponent, you get to choose one of their characters.
If the attack comes out even on both sides, who wins? ANSWER: In a case where the attack points and the defense points are equal, it is considered a draw. Neither player loses any Character Cards, Morale Points, or Land Cards.
Do Strength point bonuses count toward Attack or toward Defense? ANSWER: Strength point increases count toward both Attack and Defense when you are looking at a Land versus Land type battle.
Do you HAVE to place a Land Card onto your battlefield when you play an Explorer card? Or can you just place the explorer on a land that is currently without one? ANSWER: If your explorer finds a land, it is placed in the land when it is pulled. If you play the explorer without using its ability, it may be placed in any country you desire.
When playing a card with an ability that affects your opponent, is that ability used immediately or can it be saved? ANSWER: If the card is an Event Card, has Interrupt in the ability, or if the card states that you use the ability immediately, the ability takes effect when the card is played. If the ability does not use those terms, you may save the ability for a more strategic time.
A couple of cards said "in lands that have slavery". How do we know which ones this applies to since logically this applies to any country before the US in 1865? ANSWER: There are cards that reference slavery such as the actual "Slavery" card, not that the countries at some point had slavery in their history, since there really were not any that could claim they never had slavery.
Our first game we played and played, neither person gaining the winning edge. Is the game generally played so as it is over in fewer than 10 turns or so, or can they take hours? ANSWER: Did you play for Morale, if so games last an hour or so. For world domination, the game could last hours, much like the game of Risk. As you play you will find the best cards to get you a better edge and you can customize your decks with more Starter decks or Expansion packs.