I, Spy
I, Spy Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Component List
- Game Overview
- Game Set-Up
- Nations and Alignments
- Influence
- Power
- Rounds
- Player Turn
- Actions
- Using Action Cards
- The Map
- Capitals
- Supply Tokens
- Assets
- Politicians
- Controlling and Manipulating Politicians
- Scoring Phases
- Clarifications, and Rules for Special Cases
- Optional Rules for Experienced Players
- Basic Strategy and Tips
- Example of a Game Round
- Example of a Scoring Phase
Component List
- Spy Figures — 4
- Influence Counters — One: 48 (small); Five: 36 (large)
- Power Markers — 6
- Action Cards — 48 (12 per player)
- Asset Cards — 35
- Politician Tiles — 39
- Control Tokens — 84
- Alignment Tokens — 6
- Supply Tokens — 30
- Tag Tokens — 12
- Round Marker — 1
- Initiative Card — 1
- Special Action Cards — 6
- Player Aids — 6
Game Overview
At the start of the game, you receive an Alignment Token, which tells you which one of the competing European Nations you secretly work for.
The rest of the game unfolds over the course of 14 rounds, with each player (spy) performing 3 actions per round. These actions include moving your figure around the map, acquiring resources in the form of Supply Tokens, improving your abilities by recruiting Assets, manipulating the otherwise-random Politicians to your advantage, or even directly harassing opposing spies.
But any action you take will directly affect at least one Nation, in the form of gains or losses in Influence points. Your mission during the game is to generate Influence for your own Nation, while at the same time preventing your opponents' Nations from gaining too much—if you can deduce which Nations they are!
Influence is tallied and compared during Scoring Phases, which take place at set intervals throughout the game. In a Scoring Phase, each Nation receives Power points, based on how much Influence it has accumulated so far.
At the end of the game, players reveal their Alignment Tokens, and the player whose Nation has the most Power is the winner.
Game Set-Up
Board Set-Up
- Place 1 Supply Token on each of the 5 Supply Cache regions. Then, give 3 Supply Tokens to each player. Put the remaining tokens aside as 'the bank'.
- Shuffle the deck of Asset cards. Put 6 face-down at Berlin, 3 below Budapest, and 1 next to London. Before playing for the first time, set aside the 6 Asset cards marked with a star, as these are an optional component intended for experienced players.
- Shuffle the Politician tiles. Put one face-down in each of the 20 empty spaces around the map.
- Put 4 matching 1-Influence cubes in each nation's Influence Pool.
- Put the 6 Power Markers on the '0' space of the Power Track.
Player Set-Up
- Randomly assign each player a number from 1-4. Then, give each player the Action Cards (12) and Control Tokens (21) associated with their number. At this time, each player also takes a spy figure.
- Give the Initiative Card to the lowest-numbered player.
- Shuffle the Alignment Tokens and give 1, face-down, to each player. Each player should look at his or her own token, but must not reveal it to another player.
Game Start
- Each player chooses a different Politican in the "In the shadows" column, and marks it with one of his or her Control Tokens (by pushing the token into the hole). A player may inspect the Politician he or she has marked, but should not show anyone else.
- Place the Round Marker on the first space of the Round Track.
The first round begins. At the start of a player's first turn, that player deploys his or her figure to any of the vacant Start Regions in the center of the map.
Nations and Alignments
European powers with a chance to gain dominance
A Nation is a potential winning side in the game, in the form of a European state.
At the start of the game, each player (spy) receives an Alignment Token, which tells that spy which Nation he or she is loyal to. This is referred to as a spy's Alignment.
At the end of the game, the spy whose Alignment has the most Power points is the winner.
Power is awarded to Nations every few turns, based on the amount of Influence a Nation has compared to its rivals.
The Nations are: The Kingdom of Italy, The Republic of France, The Russian Empire, The British Empire, The German Empire, and The Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Emily's Alignment Token says that she is loyal to The British Empire. This means that Emily will win if Britain can earn more Power than anyone else's Alignment.
For reasons that will become clear later on, it's very important that spies keep their Alignments secret!
Influence
The political will and military intelligence of a state
Influence points are represented by colored wood cubes, and are gathered in matching areas called Influence Pools.
Influence Counters come in values of 1 (small) and 5 (large).
A Nation receives Influence points if a spy performs an action associated with that Nation. This represents the sensitive intelligence which is traded or leaked to that Nation as a cost or consequence of receiving their aid.
Making use of a German Overnight Line lets a spy quickly travel long distances. But it also leaks information to German agents, which will give The German Empire 3 Influence, as indicated by the 3 symbols on the Overnight Line card.
A spy in Paris can gain benefits by contacting Maximilian Ronge, the Austro-Hungarian agent stationed there. However, doing so generates 2 Influence for Austria-Hungary, representing the intelligence traded for their aid.
Each Nation has 3 associated actions-- 2 represented by cards, and 1 on the map, in a capital area. These 3 actions constitute a Nation's main source of Influence.
The 3 actions associated with Britain are the Evade card, the Courier Line card, and making contact with Sidney Reilly, the agent in St. Petersburg. You can tell this because they all have brown Influence symbols.
If your Alignment is The British Empire, these are the actions you would use to ensure that Britain consistently has a large amount of Influence. Of course, doing so too often may reveal your intentions!
Adding and Subtracting Influence
Changes to Influence levels are based on the color and number of the symbols that accompany actions. When adjusting Influence, simply add or remove the appropriate number of cubes from the Influence Pools.
- A flag symbol means Influence that is immediately gained.
- A hand symbol means Influence that will be gained (from cards).
- A burst symbol means Influence that is immediately lost.
Whenever possible, use a 5-Influence counter. A Nation's Influence level may never exceed 38, or fall below 0.
Scoring your actions
When a Nation is awarded Influence from a spy's action, that action is said to be 'scored'.
- Actions found on the map (called Contact Actions) are scored individually, as soon as they are performed.
- Actions represented by using cards (Card Actions) are scored every few turns, during an event called a Scoring Phase.
Zachary uses the Smuggle card, which represents seeking aid from the French to provide him with supplies in exchange for information. Now, let's say it's time to score Influence for that Action. The 3 blue symbols on the Smuggle card signify that France is owed 3 Influence. Zachary takes 3 small blue cubes and adds them to the French Influence Pool.
Whether or not scoring an action is beneficial to you depends on your Alignment, and the Alignments of your opponents.
If Zachary's Alignment is France, blue actions like Smuggle are all upside. If it's not, he might be giving Influence to an opponent. He has 5 rival Nations, but only 2 of them are real opponents...
Power
A nation's military fortitude and readiness
Power is awarded to Nations during Scoring Phases, which occur every few turns. This type of 'Power-award' is called an Advantage.
In each Scoring Phase, 5 Advantages are given out to the Nations with the most Influence.
Spies can also directly contribute small amounts of Power by recruiting Assets.
Gains (or occasionally, losses) in Power are recorded on the Power Track, by moving that Nation's Power Marker. However, a Nation's Power level may never exceed 38 or drop below 0.
Scoring Phase 1 Advantages: First +5, Second +4, Third +3, Fourth +2, Fifth +1.
It's the start of the first Scoring Phase. The players have all used a lot of Italian Actions, and as a result, Italy now has the most Influence. The reward now for having the most Influence (the 1st Advantage) is +5 Power. Adam moves the Italian marker up the Power Track 5 spaces. Russia has the second most Influence, so it receives the 2nd Advantage of +4 Power, and Adam moves the Russian marker up 4 spaces. This continues until last place— Britain has the least Influence, so it receives no Power.
Rounds
The game is divided into 14 rounds, with each spy taking 1 turn per round.
The spy who holds the Initiative Card takes the first turn in each round, followed by the spy to the left, continuing clockwise.
Also, at the start of each round, whoever has the Initiative Card should move the Round Marker one space up on the Round Track.
In The Wind
The Initiative Card may moved by performing actions which feature the In The Wind icon, such as the Misdirect card.
In The Wind: Choose a player. That player takes the Initiative Card.
Player Turn
Every turn for each spy has the same basic structure:
Step 1: Flee Capital
Before you begin operating, you must elude any local authorities who might be tracking you—
If you start your turn in a Capital Region, you must relocate (for free) to an Outlet Region. (If you start outside a Capital, ignore this step.)
Step 2: Perform Actions
During the rest of your turn, you must conduct 3 Actions, and may also visit a Capital. These are each separate events, and they may be performed in any order.
- You must perform 2 Card Actions, which means playing 2 Action Cards. These cards are put down in front of you, in an area called your Agenda.
- Once per turn, you may move your figure into a Capital, and may later choose to exit.
- You must either perform a Contact Action or attempt a Retrieval Action. (These are described on the following page.)
Step 3: Update Records
Your Records contain your used Action Cards, which keeps track of the Influence you will have 'leaked' to each Nation.
If you performed a Retrieval Action earlier, whichever card you selected is returned to your hand at this time.
Then, announce you are finished, and put your played Action Cards aside, in a pile called your Records.
It's the start of Adam's turn. He ended his last turn just outside Berlin, so he doesn't need to relocate anywhere now.
The first thing he does is enter Berlin. While there, he decides to perform a Card Action to commit Sabotage. He puts the Sabotage card on the table, and resolves its effect, which is to remove Influence from Germany.
He also decides to contact Marthe Richard, a French agent in Berlin who can provide him with two rail tickets. (This is a Contact Action, so he scores the Influence immediately.)
Next, he exits Berlin to the south, and uses the two tickets he's just acquired to travel 2 rail routes. He still has to take one more Card Action, so he uses his Trace card to track Emily, who is in a nearby region.
He has finished all his actions, so his turn is mostly over.
The last thing he does is move his Sabotage and Trace cards aside, and say he's done.
(For more examples of turns, see page 11.)
Actions
Almost everything a spy does in the game (move, interact, acquire resources) is a result of the Actions taken by that spy.
Each spy must take 3 Actions per turn: 2 Card Actions, and also either a Contact Action or a Retrieval Action.
Choosing which Actions to take
All Actions share the common characteristic of giving an immediate benefit to the acting spy, while also affecting the levels of Influence. When selecting which Actions to take, spies need to consider not only the short-term effect on the board (like moving), but also who will gain or lose Influence as a result.
Emily, whose Alignment is Britain, would like to move quickly from Rome to Berlin. The best way to do that is by Airship Line over the Alps. However, doing so would give 2 Influence to Italy, which is already in the lead. So Emily uses Overnight Line instead, since Germany doesn't have nearly as much Influence. It's a longer route, but at least she won't be helping her biggest rival.
Similarly, a major point of strategy is being able to discern which of these two results is your opponent's main reason behind choosing a particular Action.
Zachary notices that Adam—when given the choice— always travels by Private Line rather than Overnight Line, so he begins to suspect that Adam's Alignment is Austria-Hungary. In response, Zachary quietly avoids using any more Austro-Hungarian Actions.
Icons
Some Actions have circular icons which symbolize common procedures. When resolving the effect of such an Action, treat each icon exactly as if it was the bit of rules text that defines it.
- In The Wind
- Recruit
- Empower
- Resupply
- Control
- Scandalize
(For definitions of each icon, refer to the relevant sections on pages 3, 7 or 8)
Prerequisite Conditions for Actions
If you cannot do what an Action Card requires, you may not choose to play that particular card.
Because his Alignment his Germany, Zachary would like to play the Extort card, which steals supplies from a nearby spy. Unfortunately, there are no other spies close to Zachary, so he'll have to play a different card.
This rule extends to icons, as well. If you are unable to complete Recruit, Control, Empower, or Scandalize, you may not perform Actions which require you to resolve them.
However, a Retrieval Action, can (and occasionally must) be attempted even if you have no cards in your Records to retrieve.
Card Action
Common activities in a Spy's reperatoire
Each spy starts with an identical set of Action Cards. Using one is called a Card Action. Your Action Cards begin in (and can only be played from) your hand.
To perform a Card Action:
Choose a card from your hand of Action Cards, and put it into your Agenda. Then, immediately resolve its effects, along with any choices they require.
At the end of your turn, the cards in your Agenda are moved to a different pile, called your Records. During a Scoring Phase, the cards in your Records are scored for Influence, and then returned to your hand.
Contact Action
Seeking out a local agent and trading information for aid
A Contact Action is possible only if you are in a Capital.
Each Contact Action offers a choice of two possible rewards.
To perform a Contact Action:
While in a Capital, announce that you're making contact. Score the Influence, and choose which of the rewards you want to receive.
This Contact Action allows a spy to award 2 Influence to Britain, in exchange for supplies or political control.
Retrieval Action
Falsifying or recovering leaked intelligence
A Retrieval Action allows you to pick-up a played Action Card for reuse on your next turn, or to avoid scoring it.
To perform a Retrieval Action:
Choose a card in your Records and rotate it sideways. At the end of your turn, return it to your hand. (If your Records are empty, simply do nothing.)
Using Action Cards
The playing and resolving of Action Cards constitutes most of the activity in the game, and spies will move, interact, and alter the balance of power based on which cards they choose to play.
Action Card Types
There are 3 types of Action Cards: Travel, Counter, and Espionage. Card-type has no inherent effect during play, but certain Assets or Politicians may affect a specific type of card. Some cards (Misdirect, Incite Sedition, Airship Line) count as 2 types.
Travel cards are used for movement, Counter cards have negative effects for your opponents, and Espionage cards typically move around tokens and counters.
Each Action Card shows the Influence generated, the card's Name, its Effect text, and its Card Type.
Movement
Movement is accomplished by spending Tickets, which are most commonly provided by Travel-type Action Cards.
Each Ticket spent allows a spy to travel once along one Normal Route.
Tickets don't need to be used immediately, and can be spent at any time on the same turn. Any unspent Tickets are lost at the end of the turn.
Emily can spend 1 Ticket to move along any of the 3 routes shown with an arrow. She may not move directly west, because Adam is in that region.
Moving by Airship
When using the Airship Line card, a spy can travel along an Airship Route.
In the example above, Emily can use the Airship Line card to move to any of the 4 other regions on the Airship Route (marked 1-4), including the region occupied by Zachary!
Unlike Tickets, moving by Airship Route must be performed immediately. Also, when moving this way, you may enter regions containing another spy, in which case that spy receives a Tag, and is relocated to an adjacent vacant region of your choice.
Tags
A Tag represents a piece of information that pertains to a spy's true identity. This might be a photograph of their face, a list of associates-- anything that could be useful to an enemy.
Spies usually receive Tags due to the aggressive actions of their opponents-- most often from a Trace. But spies can also gain Tags from their own actions, representing certain particularly risky or reckless operations.
If you receive a Tag, put the token in front of you.
Effects Of A Tag
A Tag has no effect of its own. However, while tagged, you become vulnerable to several disruptive Counter cards-- Blackmail, Extort, and Misdirect. Having 5 Tags can make you subject to the devastating secondary option of Trace.
Coerce
The Misdirect card allows you to Coerce a vulnerable opponent, which is a particularly nasty way to make an opponent spend cards, while you reap the benefits.
How to Coerce an Opponent
- Draw 2 random cards from the opponent's hand.
- Choose which of those 2 cards will be played.
- Choose who (you or the opponent) will play the card.
- Resolve the card as if the chosen spy had played it. However, you make all the decisions it requires.
- Afterwards, put the card in its owner's Records.
Emily plays Misdirect and decides to Coerce Adam. The two cards she draws from his hand are Incite Sedition and Smuggle.
Emily selects Smuggle, and chooses herself to play it. She then returns Incite Sedition to Adam's hand. She resolves Smuggle (gaining 1 Supply Token), and puts the card into Adam's Records.
Zachary Coerces Adam, and draws Private Line and Overnight Line. He could use the Overnight Line to move himself far away, but decides to put Adam on the Private Line instead.
Zachary uses the 3 Tickets provided by the Private Line card to move Adam 3 routes. Furthermore, Zachary decides that Adam will 'choose' to gain 2 extra Tickets at the cost of receiving a Tag (an option allowed by the card). Adam is not amused.
For clarifications regarding Coerce, see page 10
The Map
The operational theatre of central Europe
Each spy is represented on the map by a pawn figure. These figures occupy Regions, which are the various colored circles on the map. Only one spy may occupy a given Region at a time.
The color of each region indicates what country it is part of.
Adjacency
Spies (or Regions) separated by a single Normal Route are said to be adjacent. Spies in the same Capital are also considered adjacent. Adjacency is important when using Counter-type Action Cards.
In the example on the previous page, Emily and Adam are each adjacent to one another. Zachary is adjacent to no one.
Note that spies and Regions are not adjacent through Airship Routes, nor are Outlet Regions adjacent to Capital Regions.
Different Types of Regions
- Normal Region — This type of region has no special effects.
- Start Region — During Round 1, spies may be deployed here. Afterwards, it is considered a Normal Region.
- Supply Cache — This region starts the game with 1 Supply Token, which can be taken by the first spy to enter it. Afterwards, it is considered a Normal Region.
- Outlet Region — This region allows access to and from a Capital.
- Capital Region — While in a Capital, a spy may perform a Contact Action, and engage other spies in that Capital.
The tunnel and archway are two independent routes which cross but do not intersect.
Some Normal Routes traverse sections of water. This type of crossing has no effect on gameplay.
Capitals
The heart of a nation's wealth and influence
Capitals are special areas of the map that are separated from the other regions. A spy might enter a Capital to use the Contact Action there, to commit Sabotage, or to simply pass through.
Entering and exiting Capitals
- Spies can only enter Capitals via the darker, overlapping regions that are connected to them, called Outlet Regions.
- Because of the flow of local traffic between the city and its outlets, you do not need to arrange transport to and from a Capital, so no Tickets are needed. If you are in an Outlet Region, simply announce that you are entering the Capital, and place your figure in a vacant Capital Region.
- To exit, simply say that you are leaving the Capital, and put your figure in any vacant, connected outlet.
Sabotage
Capitals are also vulnerable to Sabotage-- the most important of all Action Cards. If Sabotage is played in a Nation's Capital, that Nation loses a large amount of Influence. The amount lost depends on which Capital is the target, as indicated on the card.
Adam is in trouble because his Alignment is France, but it's Russia that has the most Power. He travels to St. Petersburg and performs Sabotage, making Russia lose 6 Influence. This will put a big dent in Russia's prospects during the next Scoring Phase.
However, rural areas are poor targets, and lack the anonymity afforded by crowded cities. If a spy plays Sabotage while outside a Capital (e.g. due to being Coerced), that spy receives a Tag.
Supply Tokens
Resources to fund your espionage efforts
Supply Tokens represent the necessary means to secure loyalty from underworld agents, be it commodities, contraband, or cash.
Each spy starts the game with 3 Supply Tokens, and may accumulate more. They are used for recruiting Assets.
Spies usually gain Supply Tokens by visiting Supply Cache regions, or using actions which feature the Resupply icon.
Resupply: Gain 1 Supply Token from the bank.
Supply Tokens may not be forfeited or traded. Spent tokens are returned to the bank.
Assets
Petty criminals, rebels, and corrupt officials for hire
Time is short, and spies can operate more effectively by enlisting the aid of discontented nationals, who will join your espionage team as Assets.
Functionally, Asset cards usually increase the quantity or the effectiveness of the Actions you can perform.
Recruiting Assets
- Assets are acquired in certain Capitals, using Contact Actions which feature the Recruit icon.
Recruit: Choose 1 Asset available in your location, pay for it, and put it face-up in front of you.
- Each Asset costs between 4 and 10 Supply Tokens.
- The Assets available in a Capital are face-down, and may only be inspected by a spy currently there.
Zachary enters London, and inspects the Assets available for recruitment there. He decides that he wants to hire a Labor Organizer, which increases the powers of his Smuggle card. He announces that he's using London's Contact Action to Recruit, and scores the Influence for this Action.
He gives 5 of his Supply Tokens to the bank, and places the Labor Organizer face-up in front of him. Zachary then decides to play Smuggle, to take advantage of his new Asset immediately.
Using Assets
- Assets may not be traded or voluntarily lost.
- All Asset effects are cumulative, and can be used every turn, including the turn they are acquired.
- At the end of the game, each Asset you have lets you add 1 Power to the Nation of your choice.
Politicians
Leaders, military officers, and troublemakers who can tip the scales
Politicians are the game's major random element, which spies may attempt to control. Their main function is to affect levels of Influence during the Scoring Phase.
It's the start of the last Scoring Phase. Currently, Russia has the most Influence, due to Emily's careful planning and repeated use of Russian Actions. She expects that her motherland will win the 1st Advantage of +10 Power... But wait! The Politicians are revealed! Thanks to the fine leadership of King George, Britain's Influence surges to the top! Now it's Britain who will get the 1st Advantage. Emily is dismayed.
During Set-Up, 20 random Politicians are put (face-down) on the six groups of squares around the map. In each Scoring Phase, the Politicians directly to the left of the Advantage chart are revealed.
Resolving Politicians
Most Politicians affect Influence levels, as dictated by the symbols on the tile. Some have additional effects.
When revealed, this Politician (Ferdinand Foch) gives 3 Influence points to France, 2 to Britain, and 1 to Russia. This particular tile has no other effects.
When revealed, this Politician (Joseph Joffre) causes both Germany and Italy to lose 3 Influence. Additionally, it allows each Spy to lose 2 Tags.
After a Politician has been revealed and resolved, it is discarded.
Controlling and Manipulating Politicians
Politicians can be subject to 3 forms of spy activity— Control, which allows a spy to look at a Politician; Empower, which changes a Politician's position; and Scandalize, which eliminates a Politician permanently.
Control
Since Politicians are face-down, their effects are usually unknown until it's time to resolve them. However, spies can look at specific Politicians by marking them with Control Tokens (representing bribery, threats, or other means of manipulation). This provides advance knowledge of that Politician's effects, which may allow time for a spy to neutralize or exploit those effects.
Control: Mark any one Politician with one of your Control Tokens.
Adam enters Rome and uses the Contact Action there to Control. He chooses a Politician, and pushes one of his Control Tokens into the tile.
Adam sees that it gives 3 Influence to Italy, which is his Alignment. Satisfied, he returns it to the board.
Rules about Control Tokens
- If you have a Control Token on a Politician, you may inspect that Politician at any time.
- Each Politician can hold up to 3 Control Tokens.
- Control Tokens are permanent until the Politican is revealed (even if that Politician is Scandalized).
- You may not use Empower or Scandalize to affect a given Politician if any opponent has more Control Tokens on that Politician than you do. As such, you can 'protect' a Politician from disruption by putting an additional Control Token on it.
Empower
Empower can be used to expediate or delay Politicians, or utilize those who are "In the shadows".
Empower: Exchange the positions of any two Politicians anywhere on the board.
Emily uses Blackmail to Control a Politician who is "In the shadows". After inspecting it, she decides that she'd like that Politician to be scored as soon as possible. Blackmail also lets her Empower, so she swaps it into the place of one that will be scored soon, moving that tile to "In the shadows".
Scandalize
A spy can use Scandalize to permanently remove a troublesome Politician that is under his or her control.
Scandalize: Choose a Politician with your Control Token, and discard it, face-down. Replace it with a new Politician from the stack.
On his previous turn, Zachary Controlled a Politician and discovered that it's terrible for him; he wants it gone. He travels to Paris, and uses the Contact Action there to Scandalize the offensive tile. Of course, the replacement tile might be even worse, but Zachary's betting it won't.
"In the shadows"
The 6 Politicians to this area represent those who have been removed from power, or are waiting for their moment to rise.
Politicans in this area are never revealed, but are otherwise treated exactly like all other Politicians. Thus, they may be Empowered into scorable areas.
Scoring Phases
Scoring Phases are a period when normal play pauses, Action Cards are scored, Politicians are revealed, and Power is awarded to the most influential Nations. This represents the material gains made from the collected intelligence and national stability.
Put simply, everything a spy does in the game leads up to the Scoring Phase, where that effort may be rewarded.
Scoring Phases occur after Rounds 3, 6, 9, 12, and 14 as shown on the Round Track.
For an example of a complete Scoring Phase, see pg 11
Ties during a Scoring Phase
If two or more Nations are tied for Influence when trying to assess the recipient of an Advantage (during Step 3), all of them receive the higher relevant Advantage. However, for each tied Nation (beyond the first), skip one place when calculating the next Advantage.
The 1st Advantage goes to Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Italy. Skipping 2 places, the next Advantage is the 4th, which is given to France and Russia, thus skipping the 5th. Britain is in 6th-place, so it still receives no Advantage.
If any Nations are tied when resolving the effects of a Politician, (during Step 2) apply the effects to all of applicable Nations.
Alfred Von Tirpitz causes the Nation with the most Power to lose 2 Power. If two such Nations are tied, both lose 2 Power.
If multiple spies are required to act when resolving a Politician, they act in turn-order.
Scoring Phase Sequence
1. Score Action Cards
Each spy inspects their pile of used Action Cards (their Records), and reports the total Influence owed to each Nation.
Start with the Influence owed to Austria-Hungary, sum the number for all players, and make the appropriate adjustment to the Influence Pool.
Repeat this process for each Nation, until all cards in players' Records are scored.
2. Resolve Politicians
One by one, flip and resolve each Politician that is scheduled to be revealed this phase. (Start on the left.)
After a Politician is resolved, discard it.
3. Award Power
Order the Nations from most-Influence to least-Influence. Then, award the Advantages accordingly, advancing each Power Marker along the Power Track by the amounts dictated on the board.
Clean-Up
(After rounds 3, 6, 9, and 12)
- Purge Records: All players now return their Records to their hands.
- Place New Assets: Add 1 new face-down Asset card to each of the stacks available in Berlin, London, and Budapest.
- Simplify Influence: Determine which Nation has the least Influence, and remove all 5-Influence counters from it. Remove that same amount from each other Nation. Then, begin the next round, as normal.
End-Game Sequence
(After round 14)
- Apply Assets: In turn order, each spy who controls an Asset must flip one of his or her Assets face-down, and advance the Power Marker of his or her choice by 1 space along the Power Track. Continue clockwise until all Assets are flipped this way.
- Reveal Alignments: In turn order, each player may reveal their Alignment Token. The player whose Alignment has the most Power is the winner.
In case of a tie in Power, the tying Alignment which currently has less Influence is considered victorious.
If there is still a tie, those Nations are considered to have fought to a standstill and neutralized each other on the field, creating a vacuum of power. If this occurs, those Nations have their Power levels each reduced to 0. Then, repeat this step. If a tie persists, all tying players win. Losers may decide the date of the rematch.
Clarifications, and Rules for Special Cases
Clarifications on Specific Cards
- When taking a Contact Action with Courier Line, score the Influence once, and resolve one chosen reward. Then, choose a reward again (the same or different) and resolve it.
- When using Private Line, the choice to take a Tag and gain 2 Tickets can be made only once, and at any point during the turn.
- Airship Line, Misdirect, and Incite Sedition, each count as 2 types of Action Cards, and are affected by things that affect either type.
- While resolving Blackmail (or Seduce), choose and resolve one icon completely before making the second choice.
- Any 'extra' Card Actions allowed by Assets can only be used after fulfilling that turn's normal requirement of 2 Card Actions.
- Resolving a card's effect via Cryptologist never triggers the effects of another Asset.
Limitations on Components
Supply Tokens and Tags are not intended to be limited. If you run out, use a substitute.
Entering occupied Regions
There are only 3 circumstances when a spy may enter an occupied Region. These are:
- A spy travels by Airship Route.
- A spy is forced to exit a Capital at the start of his or her turn, and all connected Outlet Regions are occupied.
- A spy is relocated due to one of the previous reasons, but still has no vacant spaces available.
In each case, the occupying spy is relocated to an adjacent Region, and receives a Tag.
Running out of usable Action Cards
In certain rare circumstances, it is possible to run out of playable Action Cards, and still be required to perform a Card Action. In this situation, play as many cards as you legally can, even those you don't wish to play. At the end of your Perform Actions step, if you haven't completed 2 Card Actions, simply reveal your hand and show that none of the cards are playable in your present position.
Obscure Clarifications On Coerce
- Cards you select from the target's hand should not be revealed to other players unless you wish to do so.
If you chose yourself to play the card…
- Treat the resolution of the card exactly as if you had played the card, with the following clarifications:
- You may take advantage of applicable Assets that you own which trigger as a result of your playing a specific card or type of card.
- If you use an opponent's Misdirect, you may Coerce that opponent again, but you must return the other unselected card (or cards) to their hand before you make the next selection.
- If you use an opponent's Courier Line, its effect on Contact Actions applies to you, but does not compound with your own Courier Line.
If you chose the opponent to play the card…
- Treat the resolution of the card exactly as if the opponent had played the card (but with you making all necessary choices), with the following clarifications:
- Tickets may be spent as though it were the opponent's turn, but must be done so at once, and may not be saved for later in the turn.
- The opponent may not enter or exit a Capital.
- No player may take advantage of Asset cards.
- If you Control with Blackmail, the opponent's Control Tokens are used. You may resolve Empower as if you were the opponent.
- The opponent may not Coerce with Misdirect.
Optional Rules for Experienced Players
Special Action Cards
This option is for players who feel comfortable with the basic Action Cards, and would like a little more variation with their games.
During Set-Up:
Add Soldier of Fortune, Zeppelin Pilot, Photographer, CIWL Agent, Femme Fatale, and Train Robber to the deck of Asset cards.
Take the 6 Special Action Cards and put them aside. They may be inspected at any time.
When a spy recruits an Asset that provides a Special Action Card, that card is added to his or her hand. These cards are played, scored, and otherwise treated exactly like all other Action Cards, with the exception that they may not be selected if the owner is Coerced. Special Action Cards are notable in that they generate Influence for more than one Nation. If a spy somehow loses an Asset that provides a Special Action Card, there is no effect on that card.
Special Action Cards like the Nord Express give spies unique tactical choices, while also providing a way to generate extra Influence.
Final Report
This option provides greater incentives for maintaining secrecy about your Alignment.
During the End-Game Sequence:
Add the following step immediately before the Apply Assets step:
Each spy retrieves his or her Records.
Next, each spy chooses an Action Card from their hand for each opponent, and places that card face-down in front of that opponent. (Each card chosen should correspond to that opponent's suspected Alignment.)
Then, reveal these cards. Each spy earns Power for his or her own Alignment based on the cards in front of them, as follows:
- +1 for each card that does not match his or her Alignment. (i.e. the card's owner was deceived)
- +1 extra if none of the cards match his or her Alignment. (i.e. all of the opponents were deceived)
- +1 if their own cards earned no Power for any opponent. (i.e. all of this spy's guesses were correct)
Basic Strategy and Tips
- Most importantly— familiarize yourself with the Actions available to each Nation. With only 14 turns at your disposal, knowing which Actions to use at what time is a major factor in playing effectively.
- If you're unsure of what to do (or what your goals should be) during your first few turns, try to collect some Supply Tokens or Control the upcoming Politicians, as this will prepare you to react later.
- Keep in mind that you are only directly responsible for a small part of the Influence your Nation accumulates. Your goal should be not only to use Actions of your color, but to manuever your opponents into using those Actions too! For example, consider that using Trace is not only beneficial to Russia, but also Britain, as it encourages use of the Evade card.
- Don't forget— a Retrieval Action isn't just for getting cards back for reuse— it can also be used to deny Influence to a Nation. Retrieving a high-cost card like Overnight Line or Smuggle just before it's scored can be a key blow to a powerful Nation.
- Learn the strengths and weaknesses of each Nation. Some can accumulate Influence very quickly early on, while some are stronger towards the end of the game. Some gain Influence rapidly and lose it equally rapidly, others gain it slowly but are harder to disrupt.
- Put away your phone and pay attention.
Example of a Game Round
Adam's Turn
Adam holds the Initiative Card, so he takes his turn first. He plays the Overnight Line card, which gives him 4 Tickets. This will allow him to travel 4 routes, which he does. Now, he's in one of Paris's Outlet Regions, and he announces that he's entering Paris, moving his figure to one of the Capital Regions. He uses the Contact Action there (contacting Maximilian Ronge) to Resupply, meaning he gets a Supply Token and Austria-Hungary gets 2 Influence. He decides to stay in Paris, and plays his second Action Card, Smuggle, which gives him another Supply Token. Then, he announces he's done, and moves the Smuggle and Overnight Line cards to his Records.
Turn Summary — Actions taken: Overnight Line, Maximilian Ronge, Smuggle
Emily's Turn
Emily's turn is next. She plays the Private Line card, which gives her 3 Tickets. She moves 1 route, enters Berlin, and inspects the Assets available there. After some consideration, she uses the Contact Action to Recruit an Asset (giving 3 Influence to France in the process). She also decides to use the Sabotage card, which (because she's in Berlin) makes Germany lose 6 Influence. She then exits Berlin via the southern outlet, and spends her 2 remaining Tickets to move 2 more routes. Her turn is then finished.
Turn Summary — Actions taken: Private Line, Marthe Richard, Sabotage
Zachary's Turn
Zachary begins his turn in London, so he's immediately forced to flee to an Outlet Region. Like Emily, he plays Private Line, moves 1 route, and enters Berlin. After weighing his options, he decides not to use the Contact Action, because he doesn't want to give France any more Influence. He then exits Berlin, and uses 1 of his 2 remaining Tickets to follow Emily south and then plays the Trace card, which 'investigates' an adjacent player. Emily is Traced, and receives 2 Tags. Zachary, fearful of Emily's feminine retribution, uses his final Ticket to flee one route west. Lastly, since Zachary didn't take a Contact Action this turn, he must take a Retrieval Action. Zachary picks up the Airship Line card that he used last turn.
Turn Summary — Actions taken: Private Line, Trace, Retrieval (Airship Line)
Example of a Scoring Phase
It's the end of Round 6 for Adam, Emily, and Zachary. The Power and Influence levels look like this right now: Power Track: Italy 6, Austria-Hungary 12, Germany 10, France 12, Russia 7, Britain 11.
Now, it's time to score all those Action Cards they've used.
Emily is showing 1 point for Austria-Hungary, Adam owes 2, and Zachary owes 2. They add this together, and then make the correct adjustment, adding 5 Influence to Austria-Hungary's pool. Next is Germany, which is owed 8. They continue until each Nation is scored. When they're finished, the Influence Pools look like this: (+5, +8, +6, +5, +7, +5) → Italy 11, Austria-Hungary 20, Germany 16, France 17, Russia 14, Britain 16.
Next, they reveal the first Politician for this phase. The tile is Fritz Haber, which instructs them to remove 3 Influence from both France and Germany. Haber also has the effect of giving 5 Power points to the Nation that currently has the least. That's Britain, so Adam moves Britain's Power Marker up 5 places.
The next tile is Leopold Berchtold, who simply gives 3 Influence to Austria-Hungary, 2 to Britain, and 1 to Russia. After resolving both these tiles, the Influence Pools look like this: (+3, -3, +0, -3, +1, +2) → Italy 14, Austria-Hungary 23, Germany 16, France 14, Russia 15, Britain 18.
Time to award Power! Germany has the most Influence, so it gets the 1st Advantage of +5 Power. Second-place is Britain, so Britain gets the 2nd Advantage of +4 Power. Next is Italy, and then Russia, which get +3 and +2 Power respectively. For the 5th-Advantage, France and Austria-Hungary are tied with 14 Influence, so they both receive the 5th Advantage of +1 Power. (In this case, no Nation is in 6th place, so they all are awarded some amount of Power.)
Now everyone picks up their Action Cards, and Adam adds 1 Asset card to each of the 3 stacks. The last thing to do is to simplify the Influence Pools (to free up some counters, and protect the trailing Nations). The smallest pool has 14 Influence, so he removes 10 Influence from it, and then 10 from every other pool. Finally, the Influence Pools look like this: Italy 4, Austria-Hungary 13, Germany 6, France 4, Russia 5, Britain 8.
With Britain having shot straight up to tie for the lead, Round 7 begins!