Joan of Arc Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• 1.0. Goal of the Game
• 2.0. Presentation
• 3.0. Components
• 4.0. Game Board
• 5.0. Setup
• 6.0. Game Turn
  • Sequence 1: Treasury
  • Sequence 2: Political State
  • Sequence 3: Distribution of Battle Cards
  • Sequence 4: Purchases
  • Sequence 5: Random Draw for Player Order
  • Sequence 6: Events and Foreign Interventions
  • Sequence 7: Player Turns
  • Sequence 8: Claimant Points and Influence Points
• 7.0. Disappearance of One of the Players from the Board
• 8.0. End of the Game
• 9.0. Games with 3 and 2 Players
• 10.0. Optional Rule
• New Optional Rules
• Historical Background
• Historical Figures

1.0. Goal of the Game

The winner is the player who has scored the most CLAIMANT POINTS to the throne of France. He becomes the undisputed sovereign of the kingdom at the end of the Hundred Years' War. To achieve this, the players, who each embody one of the 6 warring powers (England, France, Navarre, Brittany, Flanders and Burgundy), must succeed in controlling PROVINCES (e.g. Artois, Provence) at the end of each turn. To control a province, one must control all of its towns. Each province is worth 1 Claimant Point (1PP), except the Île de France, which is worth 2 (2PP). In case of a tie, players are ranked as follows: the winner is the player who owns the most fortresses, then the player who owns the most provinces, castles, and finally the player who owns the most money in his treasury.

2.0. Presentation

Each player sets out to conquer the various provinces by conquering TOWNS. When, at the end of a Turn, all the towns of a single province belong to the same player, that player controls the province. Conquered towns bring in COINS for their owner. This number of coins is greater the higher the town's FORTIFICATION level. Coins are used to build fortifications (CASTLE or FORTRESS) and to buy BATTLE CARDS. Fortifications allow territories to be defended better. Battle cards allow players to attack and defend. Each player, in turn, moves and fights to seize new towns.

3.0. Components

• 1 rulebook
• 1 game board
• 2 dice
• 1 deck of 74 battle cards and 6 hero cards
• 20 castle figures
• 10 rampart figures
• 4 counter sheets: 120 garrison counters (20 per nation), 6 Country counters, 36 Influence Points (6 per nation), 12 event markers, 10 pillage markers, various game markers, coins (gold, silver and bronze). Each nation is recognizable by its coat of arms and by the background color of its counters: red for England, blue for France, green for Navarre, white for Brittany, yellow for Flanders and finally black for Burgundy

4.0. Game Board

The game board represents the kingdom of France in the middle of the 14th century, at the start of the Hundred Years' War. It is made up of Provinces (zones outlined in red) containing one, two or three towns linked to each other by roads. The Île de France is a province worth 2 Claimant Points; that is its only advantage — its revenue and its Combat Points in defense are never doubled. There are 2 types of terrain: plains and mountainous regions, which are harder to access. Mountainous regions bring a defense bonus. Some towns are located on the coast and have a port (marked on the board by the presence of a ship). Such towns allow landings in any other coastal town. After spreading the board out at the center of the table, place on their spaces the Turn Track, the chart showing the Player Order, and the summary chart of the Political State of France.

5.0. Setup

Players may choose the country they wish to play. If they fail to agree on this distribution, countries are assigned by random draw. Each player receives the 20 GARRISON counters in his color (the round counters with his coat of arms), the 6 Influence Points in his color (the 6 triangular counters with the 2 crossed swords) and 2 Political counters (Peace and War). Separate the 6 HERO cards from the rest of the cards. Give each player the Hero card of his country; discard the Heroes of the countries not assigned. These Hero cards are inactive for now and can only be activated by the intervention of an Ambassador (cf. 6.0, Sequence 3). Place the deck of remaining cards face down on the space provided for it on the game board. The Turn counter is placed on the first space of the Turn Track. For the start of the game, the Player Turn Order is pre-established. The 6 Country counters are placed on the Player Order chart on the board in the following order:

• NAVARRE
• FRANCE
• ENGLAND
• BRITTANY
• BURGUNDY
• FLANDERS

At 5 players, Navarre is removed. At 4 players, Navarre and Flanders are removed. After setup, the first game turn begins. Each player places 2 garrison counters of his color on the starting positions of the power he plays, following the Player Turn Order: Navarre 1 garrison at Pamplona, 1 garrison at Rouen or Caen. France 1 garrison at Bourges, 1 garrison at Clermont or Montpellier. England 1 garrison at Pas-de-Calais, 1 garrison at Bordeaux or Bayonne. Brittany 1 garrison at Brest, 1 garrison at Rennes or Nantes. Burgundy 1 garrison at Besançon, 1 garrison at Dijon or Mâcon. Flanders 2 garrisons of choice at Bruges, Ghent or Brussels. Once all players have made their placement, each may, in the same order, place 1 additional garrison on the town of his choice, provided it is connected to one of his starting garrisons. The game may begin.

6.0. Game Turn

A GAME TURN consists of 8 SEQUENCES:

• Sequence 1: Treasury
• Sequence 2: Political State
• Sequence 3: Distribution of Cards
• Sequence 4: Purchases
• Sequence 5: Random Draw for Player Order
• Sequence 6: Events and Foreign Interventions
• Sequence 7: Player Turns: Phase 1. Expansion, Phase 2. Combat
• Sequence 8: Claimant Points and Influence Points

At the end of the turn, all players' cards are discarded. It is important to respect the order of the game sequences.

Sequence 1: Treasury

Players receive as income 1 coin per garrison, 2 coins per castle and 3 coins per fortress that they own. Exception: a pillaged town yields no coins to its owner. Pillaged towns are recognizable by the PILLAGE marker covering them. Remove these markers after the Treasury sequence.

Sequence 2: Political State

At the start of each new turn, players secretly determine their nation's policy by choosing one of the 2 Political counters (Peace or War). This choice is secret, and everyone reveals their policy at the same time. The Political State of the whole Kingdom of France depends on the choices of each nation: France is at war if at least half of the players voted for War. The Political State marker is then placed on the War space of the Political State chart on the game board (or on the Peace space otherwise).

State of WAR: each player will receive 6 battle cards, 2 EVENT counters will be drawn at random, there will be 1 FOREIGN INTERVENTION, and players will be able to carry out as many attacks as their cards allow.

State of PEACE: each player will receive only 4 battle cards, 1 single Event will be drawn, there will still be 1 Foreign Intervention, and players will only be able to carry out a single attack during their combat turn.

Sequence 3: Distribution of Battle Cards

Each player receives 4 or 6 battle cards depending on the political state. Battle cards are valid both in attack and in defense. A player may combine several kinds of cards in a single combat. At the end of the turn, all players' cards are discarded. There are 2 kinds of battle cards:

THE "YELLOW" CARDS

Cards on a yellow parchment background (called "yellow" cards) represent siege techniques and yield COMBAT POINTS (CP): Siege Ladders have a value of 3 CP, the Battering Ram has a value of 4 CP, Sapping Work has a value of 5 CP, and finally the Cannon has a value of 6 CP. During combat, the CP of the yellow cards are added to the value of a die (and, in defense, to the value of the town's fortification) to determine a side's Combat Capacity (CC).

THE "RED" CARDS

Cards on a red parchment background represent special powers (Retreat, Engineer, Traitor, Ambassador, Raider, Sign of God) that give an advantage to whoever plays them. Here are the effects of these cards:

RED CARDS PLAYED DURING A COMBAT

Engineer: lowers a fortification by one fortification level, for the current combat only. After the combat, the fortification returns to its previous level. A fortress becomes a castle; a castle becomes a garrison; a garrison is worth nothing more. Played at the same time as its yellow cards. Only one card of this type may be played per combat. An Engineer can be canceled by another Engineer card.

Traitor: cancels all combat points contributed by a fortification. Played at the same time as its yellow cards. A player holding the Traitor card may choose to play it in defense against an attacker to make him lose one of his yellow cards; it is then drawn at random by the defender. The attacker is left with a single yellow card in the attack. This action takes place after the attacker has placed his hand face down and before the defender has placed his.

RED CARDS PLAYED AFTER A COMBAT

Sign of God: multiplies by 2 the value of a yellow card played by 1 player. The same player may not play more than one card of this type per combat. This card is played after the players' cards have been revealed.

Retreat: allows a player to take back a card he played in combat before it is discarded. Played after the combat is resolved. Several Retreat cards may be played per combat. Only yellow cards may be recovered. An attacker may not reuse his yellow cards for a new attack.

RED CARDS PLAYED DURING ONE'S GAME TURN

Raider: this card allows a town to be pillaged for its owner. The player chooses a free town or one belonging to an opponent, anywhere on the board. He then rolls the die; for a pillage to succeed, the result must be higher than the fortification level. A Fortress can never be pillaged. A town attacked by raiders never benefits from any terrain bonus. The player who succeeds in a pillage immediately receives 1 or 2 coins depending on the town's fortification level and places a pillage marker on it. During the next Treasury phase, the player who owns the town will know that it will yield him nothing that turn. This card may be played at any time during the player's turn.

Ambassador: the player who plays this card must roll two dice to find out the outcome of his embassy. This card may be played at any time during the player's turn. 2 to 5: Corruption: a player chooses a town belonging to an opponent, anywhere on the board, then rolls a die: the result must be higher than the fortification level for the town to betray. If the town betrays, the player takes possession of it by replacing the opposing garrison counter with one of his own color. A fortress can never be corrupted. 6 to 8: Outside Help: the player takes 2 additional battle cards for free from the draw pile. 9 to 10: Hero: the player activates his country's hero card and adds it to his hand. This hero gives a bonus of 2 CP to all combats he takes part in. The player decides combat by combat whether to bring his hero into play. To use his hero, he simply plays the card at the same time as his yellow cards. Warning: a hero is killed as soon as he loses a combat or there is a tie (the card becomes inactive again); a hero is usable until he is killed. The hero represents several great military strategists; only the best known is depicted on the card. A hero may, however, come back into play several times over the course of the same game. 11 to 12: Court Intrigue: the player chooses an opponent and makes him lose a card drawn at random.

Sequence 4: Purchases

During the purchase sequence, players are not obliged to spend all their money and may keep their coins from one turn to the next. Coins allow players to buy additional battle cards or to build new fortifications. The 1st player according to the Player Turn Order announces his purchases and serves himself first, then player n°2, etc. 1 battle card costs 2 coins, 1 Castle costs 6 coins. 1 Rampart costs 8 coins. In short games (6 turns), the costs of Castles and Ramparts decrease: 1 Battle card costs 2 coins, 1 Castle costs 4 coins, 1 Rampart costs 6 coins. Warning: a player can never have more than 12 battle cards in hand at the end of the purchase sequence.

FORTIFICATIONS: A player may decide to turn a garrison into a castle or a castle into a fortress. Only one new castle may be built per turn. A tower is then placed on the town in question with the garrison counter on top of it. The number of castles a player may build over the course of the game is limited only by the number of game turns and the number of figures available in the game (20). To build a fortress, simply add a rampart beneath the tower. The number of fortresses a player may build is limited only by the number of figures available in the game (10). A player cannot build a fortress directly from a garrison; he must first build a castle, and on the following turn he will be able to build a fortress. Players may nonetheless capture and take over the Castles and Fortresses of other players. The Combat Point value of a fortification varies: a Garrison is worth 2 CP, a Castle is worth 4 CP, a Fortress is worth 6 CP. Mountainous zones give a bonus of 1 CP for the defender.

Sequence 5: Random Draw for Player Order

Shuffle face down the Country counters of all players, then draw them one after another without looking to determine the Turn Order (place the counters in this order on the Player Turn Order chart). The player drawn first immediately receives 1 Influence Point (IP) and will draw the events. A player cannot be first two times in a row. In that case, a new draw is made.

Sequence 6: Events and Foreign Interventions

The first player of the Turn Order is responsible for drawing the turn's events and the foreign intervention at random.

EVENTS

The first player of the Turn Order draws at random 1 event if France is at Peace, or 2 events if France is at War, and determines the order in which he will resolve them. There are 11 different events; here are their effects:

Uprising: roll a die, divide the die result by 2 and round it up (Maximum: 3 uprisings) to find the number of towns attempting to rise up. The 1st player then designates these towns one after another and rolls a die for each town to see whether the uprising succeeds (die higher than the fortification value). Towns that successfully rise up lose one fortification level. A castle becomes a garrison, and the garrison disappears, leaving the town free. The player does not take possession of the towns that rise up.

Ravages of the Free Companies: same procedure as the Uprising, except that the towns are treated as pillaged and will not yield coins the following turn. Place a pillage marker on each town ravaged by the Free Companies. The player who played this event gains no coin.

Black Death: the plague prevents military campaigns: advance the Turn marker one space and go directly to the next turn, without distributing Claimant Points. All cards are discarded and players do not receive IP. The Black Death event can only occur once during the game. Do not forget to discard the Black Death counter after it is drawn.

Chevauchée: the Great Chevauchée allows the player to attack, once during this turn, an enemy town with no terrain penalty and regardless of its distance on the map. This Great Chevauchée counts as one attack, and the 1st player must designate the town from which the attack starts, which may not launch another attack during the turn.

Treaty: the 1st player immediately regains a town that was conquered from him the previous turn (no effect if no town was lost the previous turn).

Truce: next turn the Political State will automatically be Peace.

Confiscation: the 1st player chooses an opponent, who loses 1 card at random if he has 6, and 2 cards if he has more than 6.

Intervention of the Pope: the 1st player designates a province or a town of his choice that cannot be attacked for the whole turn. Place the Intervention of the Pope marker on this town or province.

Bad Seasons: all income next turn will be divided by 2, rounded up.

Naval Battle: the 2 players owning the most ports face off for naval dominance (random draw in case of a tie). Each wagers a battle card, with an optional additional stake of up to 3 Influence Points (IP), and rolls a die: the stronger side wins and immediately receives 1 Claimant Point. The loser's battle card is discarded; the winner keeps his. The winner's card is returned to his hand. A Traitor card or a Sign of God card may be played during this combat. As Master of the Seas, the winning player may prevent any landings he wishes for the rest of the turn. He must announce his opposition as soon as a player has declared his intention to land and before the combat takes place. A failed landing counts as an attack.

Great Battle: players form a coalition by random draw and face off in duels (2 vs 2, i.e. 2 duels, or 3 vs 3, i.e. 3 duels). Players take their hero cards and shuffle them, then draw them one after another, forming coalitions. Coalitions are always evenly made up: 2 vs 2 or 3 vs 3 (example: the first 2 cards form coalition 1, the next 2 form coalition 2). The procedure is the same as for a naval battle, except that the winner of each duel receives 1 Claimant Point and each player belonging to the winning coalition receives 1 additional Claimant Point. If the number of players is odd, one of them, chosen at random, does not take part in the battle.

FOREIGN INTERVENTIONS

In addition to the events, there is one foreign intervention each game turn. Roll a die and refer to the Foreign Interventions chart on the game board to find out the type of intervention you will have to face (sometimes a second die roll will be needed). Players decide at the start of the game whether they are playing with the Foreign Interventions rule. The combat capacities of foreign troops are: In attack, CC is 5 CP + 1D6. In defense, CC is 5 CP + 2 CP of garrison + 1D6. If the town belongs to a player, he defends it normally (cf. 5.0, Sequence 7, Phase 2). The defense of the militias of free towns attacked by foreign troops is 2 CP of garrison + 1D6. If the town is taken, place a foreign garrison counter (a counter showing an armored knight on his horse) on the town.

Sequence 7: Player Turns

Following the Player Turn Order, player n°1 plays the 2 phases of his game turn, then player n°2, etc.

DIPLOMACY: Players may make use of diplomacy at any moment. Players may exchange a town of the same fortification level at any point in the game; the same town cannot be exchanged more than once per turn. Between themselves, players cannot exchange or buy cards from each other; they can, however, give each other money, negotiate attacks, Influence Points, agree on non-aggression pacts, etc. But beware! Keeping one's word is not in the least binding.

Phase 1: Expansion

A player may freely extend his territory by 2 new adjacent towns per game turn, provided that:

• these towns are free
• these towns are linked by a road to one of his own towns

The player places a garrison counter of his color on his new towns. A player cannot carry out both of his expansions from the same town. If he owns at least 1 port, a player may, once per turn, carry out 1 expansion by sea instead of a land expansion, even if he still has territories accessible by land. If no town is accessible, there is no expansion possible.

Phase 2: Combat

A player is never obliged to attack; he is, however, obliged to defend as long as he has yellow cards in hand. A player can never attack a free town. Those can only be taken by expansion. He may only attack towns belonging to other players or occupied by foreign troops. To attack, a player must have at least 2 yellow battle cards. He must also have a territory linked to the territory of the player he is attacking (by a road or by a port). A coastal town that has a port may attempt to attack by landing in any other port town. He must follow this procedure:

COMBAT ANNOUNCEMENT

The attacker announces the town that is attacking and the town that is attacked. A single player may only lead one attack per turn from the same town. A town may only be attacked once per turn by the same player.

COMBAT

The 2 players choose from their hands the battle cards they wish to commit. The attacker is the first to place his cards face down, along with his Influence Points (IP) and those of his allies, then it is the defender's turn to do the same. The attacker chooses 2 battle cards and may add up to 3 Influence Points, each worth 1 Combat Point (CP); he may also add his Hero card if his Hero is activated this Turn, or certain red cards (Engineer, Traitor). For his part, the defender chooses one yellow card and may, like the attacker, benefit from Influence Points and a Hero. He may also play certain red cards (Engineer, Traitor). Each player then rolls a die and the 2 players simultaneously reveal their cards and the number of Influence Points they wagered. The Combat Capacities of the 2 players are then compared:

• the attacker adds up the CP of his cards, his IP and his die.
• the defender adds up the CP of his cards, his IP, his fortification level (possibly modified by his opponent's red cards) and his die.

A player who defends in a mountain zone has a bonus of 1 CP. A town in a mountain zone whose garrison drops to 0 CP (not counting the D6 and the card) because of a Traitor or Engineer card keeps the mountain bonus. A player who defends against a landing attempt has a bonus of 1 CP. A town that undergoes a landing and whose garrison drops to 0 CP (not counting the D6 and the card) because of a Traitor or Engineer card still benefits from the 1 CP defense bonus. These bonuses are cumulative. In light of these results, players may again play one or more red cards (Retreat or Sign of God). If the defender has no more yellow cards to defend with, he adds only the value of his fortification to his die roll (possibly with his hero and his Influence Points). Only the defender's town can be captured in a combat. The attacker's town of origin can never be captured during a combat.

COMBAT RESULT

The player who totals the most Combat Points wins: he seizes the town and its fortifications, if any. A fortification is never destroyed by a combat. The red cards that were played are discarded by both players (except for victorious Heroes). The winner, if he is the attacker, keeps the yellow cards used in this combat, but he can no longer attack with them this turn. He places them face up in front of him and will not recover them for defense until he has finished all his attacks. The winner, if he is the defender, keeps his yellow card and puts it back immediately into his hand. He may replay it as many times as he wishes in defense. He may also use it in attack during his turn. The loser must discard all the cards he committed. Warning: in case of a tie, both players must discard all the cards committed and the defender keeps his town. Warning: remember that cards serve both in attack and in defense; avoid depleting yourself too much during your attacks, as you may no longer have enough cards to ensure your defense! A player who no longer wants to or can no longer attack ends his turn. Once the last player has finished his turn, all cards still in players' possession are discarded and shuffled with the draw pile for the new game turn.

Sequence 8: Claimant Points and Influence Points

CLAIMANT POINTS

Players count the Provinces they own. To own a Province, a player must control all of its towns. For each controlled Province, the player receives 1 Claimant Point (PP), except Paris, which is worth 2. Each player's PP are noted on a score track (cf. p. 12). PP accumulate from turn to turn; the player who has totaled the most PP at the end of the game wins.

INFLUENCE POINTS

These are the triangular counters in each player's color. Influence Points (IP) historically represent barons who, during combats, would come to support the great lords. Players gain a number of IP equal to the number of PP they scored during the turn, divided by 2, rounded up. Example: France, which scored 7 PP this turn (6 provinces controlled + a victory in the Great Battle event), gains 4 IP. 1 IP is worth 1 Combat Point; a player can never play more than 3 at a time in the same combat. Use them with discretion, they are in a way your jokers. Players can never have more than 6 IP. Used IP are discarded until the player earns them back. Unused IP may be kept from one turn to the next. IP may be played in other players' combats, but one must never exceed 3 IP per combatant. Move the Turn marker one space to the right.

7.0. Disappearance of One of the Players from the Board

It can happen, during the course of the game, that one of the players is completely eliminated from the board. In this case, the player comes back into the game from the start of the following turn, taking possession of one of the 3 towns he owned at the start of the game, of his choice. This town may contain fortifications.

8.0. End of the Game

NORMAL GAME (4 HOURS):

Each turn represents about 12 years. The game is played over a maximum of 10 Turns, but the game may stop starting from the end of Turn 8. At the end of Turn 8, a die is rolled: a result of 1 or 2 signals the immediate end of the game. Any other result extends the game by one more turn. In that case, at the end of Turn 9, the die is rolled again: a result of 1 to 4 marks the immediate stop of the game. Otherwise, there will be a final Turn 10.

SHORT GAME (2 HOURS):

The short game is played over 6 or 7 turns. At the end of the 6th turn, the first player rolls 1D6: if he gets between 1 and 3, the game ends immediately, otherwise it ends after the 7th turn. In a short game, the cost of fortifications is lower: 4 coins for a Castle, 6 coins for Ramparts. This version is ideal for competitions and championships.

9.0. Games with 3 and 2 Players

RULE FOR 3 PLAYERS

In the 3-player setup, the powers played are: France, England and Burgundy. The 3 other powers (Navarre, Flanders and Brittany) have the same characteristics as the foreign forces (DEF: 7 + 1D6, ATT: 5 + 1D6); they are called allies. The first player chooses which ally he will control, then the other 2 players randomly draw the remaining allies. A player may choose to play or not play his ally during his game turn: if he brings it into play, he must do so before or after his own power's turn, but not during another player's turn. The ally may carry out an expansion into a new town, on a die roll of 4 to 6. Then, if he wishes, he determines his ally's activity in wartime with 1D6; the player must carry out all attacks obtained, even if they lead him to attack himself:

• 1 and 2: 1 attack.
• 3 and 4: 2 attacks.
• 5 and 6: 3 attacks.

In peacetime, allies are only entitled to one attack; you are not obliged to carry it out. A player may add IP to his ally's combats. The Raider card does not act on allies. Allies do not score points; they only serve to hinder the progress of other contenders. Players may conquer towns or provinces belonging to the allies. Allies' starting positions:

• Brittany places garrisons on Brest, Nantes and Rennes (Brittany), Caen and Cherbourg (Basse-Normandie).
• Flanders places garrisons on Bruges, Ghent and Brussels (Flanders), Liège and Luxembourg (Ardennes).
• Navarre places garrisons on Pamplona (Navarre), Pau and Foix (Béarn), Évreux and Rouen (Haute-Normandie).

RULE FOR 2 PLAYERS

At 2 players, the players play France and England; the other powers (Burgundy, Flanders, Brittany and Navarre) take part in the game, controlled intermittently. They are classed into 2 categories: Allied and Neutral. The rule changes are as follows:

NEW PROPORTION OF CARDS: When playing at 2, a certain number of cards must be removed (the cards must be reshuffled at each new turn). Here is the new proportion of cards your deck must have:

• 15 cards of strength 3,
• 4 cards of strength 4,
• 4 cards of strength 5,
• 3 cards of strength 6,
• 3 Ambassador cards,
• 3 Retreat cards,
• 2 Engineer cards,
• 2 Raider cards,
• 1 Sign of God card,
• 1 Traitor card.

GAME TURN: From turn to turn, France and England alternate the first and second position. Each in turn thus receives an additional IP. The other powers (Allied and Neutral) are drawn at random.

NUMBER OF TURNS: The game is fixed at 5 turns; however, at the end of the fifth turn, a die is rolled: on a result of 5 or 6, one more turn is played.

POLITICAL STATE: At 2 players, a die is rolled to determine the turn's political state.

TURN	1D6 ROLL
1	automatic peace
2 to 3	1 to 3: peace; 4 to 6: war
4 to 5	1 to 2: peace; 3 to 6: war
6 (random)	1 to 2: peace; 3 to 6: war

"EVENT" MARKERS: The "Event" markers are no longer used.

MERCENARIES:

NUMBER OF MERCENARIES: Each player, during his purchase phase, may try to hire the services of mercenaries. The player rolls 1D6, the result of which is divided by 2 (rounded up). This determines the number of mercenaries he can hire. He uses the Foreign Intervention counters. A player is never obliged to buy mercenaries. Mercenaries are removed at the end of the turn. If you want mercenaries for several turns, you must recruit them each turn.

COST OF MERCENARIES: A mercenary costs 2 coins (he is removed at the end of the turn).

COMBAT: The Combat Capacity CC of a mercenary is 1 CP. A mercenary is only used in defense; he cannot attack. The player places his mercenary on one of his garrisons: either that of his power, or that of his ally. No more than 3 mercenaries may be stacked in the same place. The mercenary is a counter that can move with each attack by your opponent, to reinforce the defense of the town under attack. It moves 2 towns. The towns must be linked by a road, unless it is a matter of ports. The towns crossed may belong to your ally, but never to a neutral. Mercenaries are destroyed if the combat is lost or if there is a tie.

THE ALLIES: At the start of the game, in secret, the players choose the power that will become their ally. France chooses between Flanders and Navarre. England chooses between Burgundy and Brittany. Each reveals his choice; the 2 remaining powers will be neutral.

FIDELITY OF ALLIES: Each turn you are obliged to check the fidelity of your ally. On the first turn, allies are played automatically, without having to test their fidelity. Each turn, players must check the fidelity of their allied power. Players, in turn, respecting the turn order, roll 1D6, to find out whether they will be able to play their allied power:

• 1 to 4 = the ally is played
• 5 to 6 = the ally is not played, he becomes neutral for the turn.

Players may increase their ally's fidelity by paying coins. Each coin paid gives a bonus of +1 to the die roll. Your opponent may also pay coins, in which case each coin gives a penalty of -1 to the die roll. The coins are paid in secret and revealed at the same time. After rolling the die, the bonuses and penalties are added and subtracted. On the die result, 1 is always a failure, 6 always a success. Allies who fail their fidelity roll become neutral; you no longer draw additional cards nor claimant points from these powers. Options: automatic ally: No fidelity roll is made any more, allies are automatically played. However, each turn the players choose in secret, among their 2 proposed possibilities (France chooses between Flanders and Navarre; England chooses between Burgundy and Brittany), which ally they will play.

THE AMBASSADOR: Instead of testing your ally's fidelity, if you hold an Ambassador card you may play it. In that case, the ally will automatically be on your side.

ADDITIONAL CARDS: An ally allows you to receive additional game cards. In peacetime you will receive 2 additional cards. In wartime you will receive 3 additional cards. These cards are added to your hand, and will serve the player and his ally indifferently. When a power has finished playing, it takes back all its yellow cards to play its ally (red cards played are always discarded). Yellow cards used in attack may thus be played again.

CONSTRUCTION: A player may decide to build Castles or Ramparts on an ally.

EXPANSION OF ALLIES: The expansion of allies is limited to 1 town per turn. You may carry out one expansion of choice, by land or by sea.

ATTACKS OF ALLIES: Allies' attacks are limited; they fight like your major power:

• to 1 attack in peacetime
• to 2 attacks in wartime.

TREASURY: An ally brings in 1D6 coins per turn, plus the coins from the Castles and Fortresses the ally controls, if the ally is loyal to you.

THE CLAIMANT POINTS: The ally's "Claimant Points" (PP) revert to the player who controls it, only when the fidelity roll has succeeded. The player receives from the ally half of the PP, rounded up.

THE INFLUENCE POINTS: a player cannot have more than 6 IP even with those of his ally. Excess IP are lost.

THE NEUTRALS: Play uses the same rules as in the 3-player game; one difference, however: each turn, the neutrals are obliged to expand (mandatory Expansion). Their strength is 6 in attack and 7 in defense. The CP of a fortification are added, if there is one. The neutrals must also, each turn, make a construction roll before the expansion. The number indicates what the neutral builds. The player playing the neutral decides where to build. If the neutral owns a castle, it may build Ramparts there.

CONSTRUCTION TABLE:

TURN	1D6 ROLL
1	6
2 to 4	5 to 6
5 to 6	4 to 6

Neutrals bring neither Claimant Points nor coins to the players who control them.

10.0. Optional Rule

To better match history, we suggest you play the following variants:

• Navarre: the player benefits from one court intrigue per turn. He chooses an opponent and makes him lose at random a red card (or a yellow card if the player has no red card).
• Flanders: doubles the income of a town of his choice each turn.
• Burgundy: benefits from one additional battle card per turn.
• Brittany: rerolls a die once per turn, of his choice.
• France: benefits from one free Retreat card per game turn.
• England: when the English player lands, the defender no longer benefits from the +1 CP defense bonus. The player receives 1 additional IP per turn but can never have more than 6.

New Optional Rules

FREE STARTING POSITION:

Each player receives 1 garrison on a starting town, and 2 garrisons to place on towns of his choice, following the same placement procedures described on page 2. In turn order, players place 1 garrison at a time. The sea route may be used to place garrisons. Players' starting positions: Navarre = Rouen; France = Montpellier; England = Bordeaux; Brittany = Nantes; Burgundy = Besançon; Flanders = Bruges.

JOAN OF ARC AND THE SIGN OF GOD:

In the game, when the French player activates his hero, Joan of Arc, for the first time, he receives a Sign of God card. He may use it whenever he wishes for as long as the hero is alive. This power is only valid on the first activation.

SUPPORT OF THE POPE:

At the start of his turn, the player with the lowest number of Claimant Points to the Throne may request the pope's help. He rolls 1D6: on 1 to 3, his request is refused; on 4 to 6, his request is accepted, the player immediately receives a papal ambassador. The papal ambassador is played like an Ambassador card. A player may only request the pope's help once per turn. In case of a tie for lowest Claimant Points, no one may request the pope's support.

BALANCE OF THE GAME TURN:

Over the first 6 game turns, each of the players will take the first position in turn:

• either by following the order of the starting positions on p. 2,
• or by drawing the first player at random each turn (not forgetting to remove those who have already had it).

SUSPENSE FOR THE BARONS:

When, in a combat, players want to play IP, they hold them hidden in secret in the palm of their hand, then reveal them at the same time as their opponent. A player may pretend to play IP while his hand is empty.

PARIS AND ITS PARLIAMENT:

Each turn, the first player checks whether the Parliament of Paris accepts the presence of a garrison. On a die roll, if a 5 or 6 is obtained, an uprising roll is made above the fortification level. If Paris has a fortress, the parliament no longer has any influence.

LONG-TERM STRATEGY:

A player may keep, at the end of his turn, one unplayed red card for the next turn. This card will be deducted from the total of cards the player receives at the start of the following game turn.

SUPER FOREIGN INTERVENTIONS:

Each time a foreign intervention recurs on a town already controlled by the same foreign force, that force increases its fortification level: a Garrison becomes a Castle, a Castle becomes a Fortress.

GRAND MASTER OF ARTILLERY: If a player already has his hero and the draw of an Ambassador card gives him back a hero (dice result of 9 or 10), then for this turn, the player becomes Grand Master of Artillery, which gives him +1 CP in both defense and attack. This bonus can be added to the hero's bonus. Several players may become Grand Master of Artillery in the same turn.

MY COUNTRY IS AN ISLAND:

The English player may carry out his entire expansion phase by sea if he owns enough ports.

THE FORTUNES OF WAR:

Uprising and Ravages of the Free Companies: for these 2 events, roll a die to find out the number of towns that rise up and are pillaged.

THE ENGINEER IN DEFENSE:

The Engineer may also be played in defense; this will give him a defense bonus of +2 CP.

KNOWLEDGE OF THE LAND:

When the French player attacks a mountain zone, the defender no longer benefits from the +1 CP defense bonus.

LIMITATION OF LANDINGS:

Landing possibilities are now limited between geographic zones: the CHANNEL and the ATLANTIC, on one hand, with 12 ports, and the MEDITERRANEAN SEA, on the other hand, with 3 ports. One may only land in the zone where one owns the port of embarkation. It is no longer possible to move from one zone to the other.

HARDER LANDINGS:

Add 1 additional combat point (CP) for the defender during a sea attack; the player then benefits from a total bonus of 2 CP.

SALE OF TOWNS:

On each Peace turn, players may sell one of their towns for a minimum price of 5 coins if it has no fortification, and a minimum of 8 coins if it has fortifications. Paris is the only town that cannot be sold, due to the importance of its Parliament and its population.

Historical Background

From 1337 to 1453, the kings of France and England clashed for control of the kingdom of France. The origin of this war came from the marriage of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine in 1152, which had the consequence of making the kings of England vassals of the king of France, since they owned numerous territories in France, including the duchy of Aquitaine. England tried to free its domains from French dependency. Fighting was then very frequent, but Philip Augustus seized the greater part of these territories. By the 14th century, the English no longer held anything but Aquitaine. Edward III of England claimed the crown of France against Philip VI of Valois. But it was Philip VI who was preferred as the French prince in 1337. War broke out and saw English dominance from 1337 to 1380. Edward III came to support the revolt of Flanders; Philip VI was defeated at the Battle of Sluys (1340), then at Crécy (1346), and Calais was taken by the English (1347). In 1356, the Battle of Poitiers saw the capture of the king of France, John II the Good, by the Prince of Wales. France, beset by numerous revolts and by the pillaging of the Free Companies, signed the Treaty of Brétigny (1360), which gave Aquitaine, Ponthieu and Calais to the English, along with a very large ransom for the king's release. However, under Charles V, Du Guesclin, thanks to bold strokes, won brilliant victories and restored the situation. England lost most of its possessions, keeping only Calais, Bordeaux, Bayonne, Brest and Cherbourg. From 1380 to 1415, there was a truce. Both sides were exhausted and had to face numerous peasant revolts. However, the madness of Charles VI and the civil war opposing the Armagnacs and the Burgundians weakened France. Henry V took advantage of this and allied himself with John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy. The English beat the French at Agincourt (1415) and seized Normandy. They imposed the Treaty of Troyes, which reduced Charles VII to being no more than "King of Bourges." But the intervention of Joan of Arc was to change everything: she rekindled energies and rushed to the king's aid. She freed Orléans (1429), beat the English at Patay (1429) and had King Charles VII crowned at Reims (1429). The legitimacy of the king of France was no longer contestable; the Duke of Burgundy, Philip III the Good, reconciled (Treaty of Arras, 1435) and the French went from victory to victory: Paris (1436), Normandy (1449 to 1450), the Battle of Formigny (1450), Aquitaine (1450 to 1453). Only Calais would remain English.

JOHN IV, Duke of Brittany: after the death of John III in 1341, who left no children, the War of the Breton Succession (1341-1361) broke out. John III had named his niece, Joan of Penthièvre, wife of Charles of Blois, as heiress (1341-1364). John of Montfort, brother of the late John III, supported by the English, raised claims to the duchy. This war saw the famous Combat of the Thirty. 30 French knights, partisans of Charles of Blois, faced 30 English knights, partisans of John of Montfort, in single combat. The French were the victors of the combat. After the defeat at Auray and the death of Charles of Blois, who was supported by the French (1364), Joan of Penthièvre concluded the Treaty of Guérande (1365), by which she renounced the duchy. By this treaty, John IV of Montfort recognized the suzerainty of the king of France. He reigned from 1365 to 1399; his son John V succeeded him from 1399 to 1442; Brittany saw a prosperous civilization flourish.

Historical Figures

JEAN DE BEAUMANOIR: Marshal of Brittany, partisan of Charles of Blois, he fought against the English during the War of the Breton Succession and was one of the heroes of the Combat of the Thirty, near Ploërmel (1351). Taken prisoner at the Battle of Auray (1364) along with Du Guesclin, he then negotiated the Treaty of Guérande and died in 1366. (The Brittany hero card depicts 2 different and important figures: John IV and Jean de Beaumanoir.)

PHILIP VAN ARTEVELDE: Flemish statesman (Ghent 1340 – Rozebeke 1382), leader of the revolt of Ghent against the Count of Flanders Louis II of Male (1381); he was defeated and killed at the Battle of Rozebeke (1382).

CHARLES II THE BAD: (1322-1387). King of Navarre (1349-1381), son of Joan II of Navarre and grandson of Louis X, king of France, he laid claim to the kingdom of France. A troublesome and conspiratorial figure, he supported the revolt of Étienne Marcel and allied himself with Edward III's England in 1358. He was defeated by Du Guesclin at the Battle of Cocherel, near Évreux, in 1364 and no longer meddled in French affairs.

EDWARD: Prince of Wales, called the Black Prince (Woodstock 1330 – Westminster 1376). Son of Edward III, he was one of the most brilliant generals of the Hundred Years' War. He defeated and captured the king of France, John II, at the Battle of Poitiers (1356). He received the governorship of Aquitaine from his father in 1363. In Castile, he supported Pedro the Cruel against Du Guesclin, whom he defeated at the Battle of Nájera (1367).

JOHN THE FEARLESS: (Dijon 1371 – Montereau 1419). Duke of Burgundy from 1404 to 1419, he contested power in France with Louis of Orléans during the madness of King Charles VI. Louis of Orléans was assassinated in 1407 by a partisan of John, which provoked a civil war between the Burgundians and the Armagnacs. The Burgundians allied themselves with the English. John the Fearless triggered the Cabochien revolt in Paris, but he could not control it and had to flee the capital in 1413. After trying to reconcile with the dauphin, he was assassinated on the bridge at Montereau by Tanguy du Châtel, a partisan of the dauphin.

JOAN OF ARC: (Domrémy 1412 – Rouen 1431) French heroine who, according to her own testimony, heard divine voices ordering her to free the kingdom of France from the English yoke. She freed the town of Orléans, which was undergoing the siege of the English troops of Suffolk and Talbot (May 1429). She beat Talbot at the Battle of Patay (June 1429) and freed Auxerre, Troyes and Châlons, thereby opening the road to Reims. She had King Charles VII crowned at Reims, which confirmed his legitimacy over the kingdom of France. She was captured at Compiègne on 23 May 1430 by the Burgundians and sold to the English. She was tried at Rouen as a witch and burned alive (29 May 1431).