Rival Kings Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Summary
• Set-Up
• Course of the Game
  • 1. Playing Character cards
  • 2. Resolving conflicts
    • Conflict between equal-ranking characters
    • A lower-ranking character in conflict with a higher-ranking character
    • Overview of the Character cards and their actions
  • 3. Carrying out actions
  • Combinations of subjects and buildings
• End of the Game
• Scoring
• The Subjects and Their Abilities
• Explanation of the Card Symbols

Components

• 8 crests
• 12 Character cards
• 32 Building cards
• 32 Subject cards
• 30 Conflict markers

Summary

The player who accumulates the most victory points wins. To this end, you have to cleverly use as many of 4 different actions as you can (give away Conflict markers, take money, recruit a subject, buy a building). Players receive actions by simultaneously playing character cards (members of the court) and using those cards in rank order (A-F). The latest addition to your subjects usually allows you to carry out an extra action. Whoever acquires the best combinations of buildings and subjects and have as few Conflict markers as possible lying in front of him at the end of the game, has a good chance of victory.

Set-Up

Shuffle the 32 Building cards; then count out two piles of 8 cards each and place the piles face up in the middle of the table. Do the same with the 32 Subject cards.

The remaining Building cards and Subject cards will be used as money during the game. The card backs always show 1 or 2 coins. Put one of these coin cards with the value of 2 below each of the four piles.

Besides this, each player gets one coin card worth 2 and three coin cards worth 1; that means your seed capital is 5 coins. Put out the remaining coin cards as a supply (divided into 1-coin cards and 2-coin cards with the coin side facing up). In addition, each player takes 2 crests of one color and 1 Conflict marker. The remaining Conflict markers form a supply.

Now shuffle the 12 Character cards, face down, and deal 3 cards to each player as his hand.

In the three-player game, 3 cards are left over. They are not needed in the current round; therefore, they are put aside unseen and not used before the next round.

In the two-player game, 6 Character cards are left over per round. These cards are put in the middle of the table as a face-down pile. After playing the Character cards, reveal one of the cards from this pile (see below).

Each round, you go through 2 cycles; that means, you use 2 of the 3 Character cards from your hand per round – one in the first cycle, one in the second. After that, all Character cards are collected and reshuffled. Then you begin the next round with 3 hand cards again.

Course of the Game

Each cycle consists of the following phases:

1. Playing Character cards (all players simultaneously)
2. Resolving conflicts (if applicable; one after the other, from the highest-ranking character to the lowest-ranking)
3. Carrying out actions (one after the other, from the highest-ranking character to the lowest-ranking)

Additionally, once per round, you have the possibility at any time during your turn to use the ability of your currently active subject (see "The Subjects and Their Abilities" below). (Sic: the printed text says "once per round" here; the subject-ability sections below say "once per cycle".)

1. Playing Character cards

There are 12 different Character cards. Each character has a rank (A, B, C, D, E, F) and one or more possibilities of action. In addition, the characters (except for F) have the ability to steal an action from certain lower-ranking characters. Higher ranks have fewer possibilities of action, but have their turn earlier. You can't steal from characters of the ranks A or B.

At the beginning of each cycle, each player chooses one of the characters from his hand and places it face down in front of him. Once all players have laid out a card, they turn them over simultaneously.

In the two-player game, now reveal the top Character card from the pile. It plays a role only in phase 2 ("Resolving conflicts").

2. Resolving conflicts

Now players check whether any conflicts occur among the characters played. A higher-ranking character comes into conflict with one of lower rank, but characters of equal rank do as well. First, the conflicts between equal-ranking characters are resolved. After that, the other characters are checked as to whether there are conflicts between characters of different ranks.

If there are no conflicts in a cycle, the character with the highest rank begins carrying out his actions.

In the two-player game, you check whether the character revealed from the pile is in conflict with one of the characters played (equal or higher rank). The respective player gets a Conflict marker. That's all that happens. The revealed card serves only for the allocation of Conflict markers.

Conflict between equal-ranking characters

If two players have played characters of the same rank, these characters come into conflict. In this case, each of the players involved gets a Conflict marker from the supply. They may no longer steal from any lower-ranking characters that other players might have played. And both players may carry out only one action of their Character card. They are free to decide what action they want to play.

Example: The two Traders (rank F) have been played and are now in conflict. Each of the two players involved gets a Conflict marker. On their turn, both may carry out only one of the 4 given actions.

However, it can also happen that two equal-ranking characters that are already in conflict with each other additionally are deprived of an action by a higher-ranking character. Since the higher-ranking character has his turn earlier, he chooses one action from each of the two lower-ranking characters that he wants to steal, and covers each of these actions with one of his two crests. Consequently, these actions are no longer available to the lower-ranking characters on their turn; they may select and carry out only one of the remaining actions. In this case, they get 2 Conflict markers overall – one due to the conflict with the higher-ranking character and the other due to the conflict with the equal-ranking character.

Note: The biggest potential risk can occur when you play the Trader, since F can come into conflict with the equal-ranking second F as well as with the higher-ranking C and E. In the four-player game, it can happen in an extreme case that players get 3 Conflict markers at once.

Turn order for equal-ranking characters: The player who has fewer Conflict markers in front of him goes first and carries out his one action. If both players have the same number of Conflict markers, the player who has the card with the symbol shown in the printed rules (a small figure icon) takes the first turn.

A lower-ranking character in conflict with a higher-ranking character

If, for example, one of the players has played the Knight (rank D) and another one has played the Diplomat (rank E), the higher rank takes one action from the lower rank, as soon as the higher-ranked character has his turn. If the Knight is the highest-ranking character in this cycle, he is the first to have his turn. Before carrying out the actions of his own Character card, he steals one action from the Diplomat. To this end, he takes one of his crests and covers the action on the Diplomat card that he wants to steal from his rival. For example, he chooses the Take money action, marks it with the crest and immediately carries out this action. The crest is a reminder for the Diplomat that he may not carry out the respective action on his turn.

The character that has the lower rank in a conflict always gets a Conflict marker from the supply.

Usually, a character can be deprived of an action by no more than one higher-ranking character. An exception is the Trader (rank F): C and E can steal from him. However, he can lose a maximum of 2 actions through theft, since equal-ranking characters are already in conflict with each other. So, if two characters of rank C were played, these characters would primarily have a conflict with each other and the conflict would not reach the Trader. In this case, lower-ranking characters can't be deprived of an action any more (see above).

As soon as the lower-ranking character has his next turn, he may carry out all remaining actions (i.e., all those that are not covered on his card by another player's crest), one after another.

Overview of the Character cards and their actions

(Explanation of the actions see below.)

• Rank A steals from characters of rank D (Bursar and Knight)
  • Lord Protector: buy a building
  • Queen: recruit subject
• Rank B steals from characters of rank C (Courtier and Priest)
  • Duke: settle conflict + recruit subject
  • Count: settle conflict + buy a building
• Rank C steals from characters of rank F (Trader)
  • Courtier: give Conflict marker to rival + take money
  • Priest: give Conflict marker to rival + take money
• Rank D steals from characters of rank E (Countess and Diplomat)
  • Bursar: take money + buy a building
  • Knight: take money + recruit subject
• Rank E steals from characters of rank F (Trader)
  • Countess: settle conflict + take money + recruit subject
  • Diplomat: settle conflict + take money + buy a building
• Rank F doesn't steal from anybody
  • Trader: settle conflict + take money + recruit subject + buy a building

3. Carrying out actions

The Character cards allow you to carry out 1 to 4 actions. They always have to be executed in the preset order from left to right. That means, for instance, that you may not first carry out a Buy a building action and then a Take money action (that means, for instance, that you may not first carry out a Buy a building action and then a Take money action).

These are the actions:

• Settle conflict action: Return one of your Conflict markers to the supply.
• Pass on conflict action: Characters of rank C may give one of their Conflict markers to any rival.
• Take money action: Take the money that is lying below one of the 4 piles. You are not allowed to look through the cards in order to see where the most money is (which can be accumulated there due to the Recruit subject and Buy a building actions – see below).

Note: If all 4 money piles are depleted when a player has to carry out a Take money action, refill the piles with coin cards worth 2 from the supply (as long as supplies last).

As long as there are enough coins left, you may also change money in order not to overpay.

• Recruit subject action: Acquire a subject's services. Pay the price indicated by putting the applicable amount below the respective Subject card pile (if needed, on top of money that is already lying there, with the coin symbol facing up) and take the card. Add the new Subject card at the bottom end of the row of Subject cards you have already collected. This card is now the active Subject card. Each subject has a special ability. Once per cycle, you may use the ability of your currently active Subject card at any time (exceptions: Gardener and Watchman – see below).

Example: You may use the "Carry out a Take money action" ability at any time during your turn – before, after or during your actions.

• Buy a building action: Acquire a building. Pay the price indicated by putting the applicable amount below the respective Building card pile (if needed, on top of money that is already lying there, with the coin symbol facing up) and take the card. Add the new Building card at the bottom end of the row of Building cards you have already collected. Buildings do not have a special function; but in the end, you can score points for them in combination with subjects.

Keep the Subject cards and the Building cards you have collected in 2 separate piles in front of you; the cards of each pile, from top to bottom, should overlap slightly so that the last one (at the bottom end of the row) is fully visible but you can also still see a part of the other cards.

Depending on how the cards were shuffled at the beginning of the game, some subjects and buildings might come up twice in the game, others only once or not at all.

Note: The numbers shown on the Building cards and Subject cards not only indicate the costs of the respective card but also their potential point value.

Combinations of subjects and buildings

Buildings without subjects to look after them score as few points as subjects who don't have a location where they can work. Therefore, you try to collect the best possible combinations of buildings and subjects. It is good if you have color-matching Building cards and Subject cards in front of you by the end of the game. It is even better if you have collected perfect pairs, i.e., if you have a subject with a suitable profession for a corresponding building. What subjects belong to which buildings can be recognized by the symbol at the top of the card.

Example: The Miner and the Mine show the same symbol; therefore, they form a perfect pair.

Note: A perfectly matching pair (e.g., Miner and Mine) may not be split up anymore by the Bishop and Court Lady Subject cards (see below).

Yellow cards symbolize an affinity to the court; red ones refer to the life in town. They tend to score more points than blue or green cards that represent village life or are at least set in the rural area; but on the other hand, the latter cards are cheaper.

A round ends after 2 cycles. All Character cards are reshuffled and each player takes 3 news cards into his hand. (Sic: the printed text reads "news cards"; from the context of the set-up this refers to the new Character cards for the next round.)

End of the Game

The game ends as soon as one of the 4 piles in the middle of the table has been depleted. The current cycle is still completed. After that, players tally their points.

Scoring

First sort your cards of perfectly matching pairs. Then check whether you can form color-matching pairs of a building and a subject. The pairs are scored as follows:

• Perfectly matching pairs give you the full point value of both cards.
• Color-matching pairs give you points according to the value of the higher one of the two cards.
• Single cards (buildings or subjects) give you 1 point per card.
• Every 3 coins give you 1 point.
• Each Conflict marker that you have left in front of you at the end of the game gives you 2 minus points.

The player with the most points wins the game.

Example: Mark has collected 8 cards; among them, two perfect pairs: Vineyard and Vintner, plus Garden and Gardener. For these pairs, he scores 3 + 1 = 4 points and 4 + 3 = 7 points. Besides this, Mark has two blue cards: Innkeeper and Forge; for these, he earns 3 points. And he has one yellow card (Prison) and one red card (Sailor); for these two cards, he gets 1 point each. So, all in all, Mark scores 16 points for his cards. In addition, he has 4 coins lying in front of him at the end of the game, for which he earns 1 point, and 3 Conflict markers, for which 6 points are deducted from his score. In the end, Mark has achieved a total of 11 points.

Option: A game of Rival Kings sometimes – especially with four players – can be over pretty quickly. Therefore, you have the option to also play several games in a row and write down your scores at the end of each game. Decide in the beginning whether you want to play a specific number of games or play to a specific number of points.

The Subjects and Their Abilities

Each subject has a special ability. The subject on display at the bottom end of your row of Subject cards is your active subject. Once per cycle, you may use his ability at any time during your turn for free – except for the Gardener and the Watchman: They can be used only at the beginning of the cycle (prior to or during the resolution of conflicts).

Note: Each cycle, you may use the ability of only one subject. If you recruit a new subject on your turn, you need to decide whether you want to use the ability of the old subject one more time or – after you have paid the price – the ability of the new one instead.

• Gardener (Garden) – After the characters have been revealed, exchange your Character card with another player's Character card, before the conflicts are resolved.
• Watchman (Castle wall) – In a conflict with a higher-ranking character, the latter gets the Conflict marker. The Watchman can't fend off Conflict markers that you get from the Herbalist.
• Jailer (Prison) – Take 1 coin from the supply for each Conflict marker you have (as long as there are coins left in the supply).
• Court Lady (Pavilion) – Exchange one of your buildings with another player's building, regardless of the position of this card in his pile. Attention: If a player has already collected a perfect pair, nobody may take the Building card of such a pair.
• Bishop (Cathedral) – Exchange one of your subjects with another player's subject, regardless of the position of this card in his pile. Place both subjects at the bottom end of the respective rows (the two exchanged subjects are active). Attention: If a player has already collected a perfect pair, nobody may take the Subject card of such a pair.
• Scholar (University) – Take 1 coin from the supply for each building in your possession (as long as there are coins left in the supply).
• Troubadour (Tavern) – Exchange one of your cards with one of the cards that are on display in the middle of the table. You may also exchange a building for a subject or vice versa.
• Sailor (Harbor) – If you play a character of the same rank as a rival, you may do the action you have chosen twice.
• Blacksmith (Forge) – When you buy a building, you pay 1 coin less than indicated.

Explanation of the Card Symbols

The printed key pairs an icon with each of these labels (the icons themselves are not reproduced as text): Me; Any other player; Conflict marker; Settle conflict; Pass on conflict; Character card; Buy a building action; Building card; Pile of Building cards in the middle of the table; Recruit a subject action; Subject card; Pile of Subject cards in the middle of the table; Coin; Take money action; Exchange; Stolen action; Display in the middle of the table; Fend off; Choose.