Steamopolis
Steamopolis Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Introduction
This RULEBOOK contains everything you need to learn the basic rules of Steamopolis. The TECHNICIAN'S HANDBOOK (Technikerhandbuch) contains an overview of the districts and tiles. Read the RULEBOOK first and keep the TECHNICIAN'S HANDBOOK at hand while playing to look up the short version of the effects. If the information in the TECHNICIAN'S HANDBOOK is not enough, the index (page 39) or the page references in the component list (pages 2 and 3) tell you where to find the detailed rules.
A few example turns that illustrate the course of play in detail and with which you can learn the game are found with the solo rules on page 36. Take a look at them before your first game so you can better explain the course of play to your fellow players.
THE GOLDEN RULE: Effects of game components take precedence over the rulebook.
Components
- 1x Rulebook, 1x Technician's Handbook
- 8x Character tiles (all with the same back) (see page 6)
- 5x Starting machine tiles (double-sided, all with the same back) (see page 6)
- 1x Starting player zeppelin (see page 6)
- 4x Base pressure markers (1 per player colour) (see page 30)
- 4x Score markers (1 per player colour) (see page 4)
- 20x Pressure stones (5 per player colour) (see page 8)
- 12x Parasite markers (3 per player colour) (see page 32)
- 20x Capacity tiles (double-sided, same back) (see page 30)
- 4x Player boards (airships) (see page 7)
- 5x Sponsor tiles (double-sided, all with the same back) (see page 29)
- 9x Bonus markers (8x white, 1x pink for character 7) (see page 22)
- 8x Charity gala tiles (4 tiles per resource) (see page 29)
- 44x Machine tiles (double-sided, banner on the back: 10x rank 0, 11x rank 1, 12x rank 2, 11x rank 3) (see page 18)
- 2x Passenger figures (see page 16)
- 30x Resource markers (15x crystals, 15x gears) (see page 29)
- 8x Statue tiles (see page 25)
- 16x Passenger tiles (all with the same back) (see page 16)
- 1x Game board (double-sided for 1-3 or 4-5 players) (see page 5). Board parts: Level, District, Market, Statue space (market), Statue space (top).
- 1x Sticker sheet: before the first game, stick an arrow on one side of each pressure stone, a number on one side of each bonus marker, and a gauge on one side of each base pressure marker.
- Also included: 7x blank tiles for custom creations; 4x symbol machines for the separately available solo campaign expansion.
Material limitation
All game components are limited in number. A game effect through which you would receive a game element that is no longer available in the supply lapses without replacement. If a game effect requires you to give up something that you do not own, you cannot use the effect.
Overview and Goal of the Game
"Captain on deck!"
In turn order, each of you performs exactly 1 action before the next player is up. Your goal is to collect the most votes (counted in vote points (VP, or the 1 symbol)) in order to be elected mayor. The citizens give you their VP when they are enthusiastic about what you have done.
You receive VP for flying to certain parts of the city, for transporting the banker passenger, for machines that you build into your airship, for banners that you hang on your airship, and through the use of certain machine effects.
When it is your turn, you can either increase the steam pressure in your airship and thus reach higher levels of Steamopolis, place a pressure stone to designate a district as your target (and reserve it), or start your flight and fly to the set targets in any order.
Only when you start your flight can you use the effects of the districts. So think carefully about when you take off!
As soon as you receive VP, move your score marker forward by the corresponding number of spaces on the score track.
Setup
"Steamopolis rises!"
- Place the game board in the middle of the play area so that the side matching your number of players is visible (recognisable by the number of airship symbols at the marked spot).
The game board shows Steamopolis with its 8 levels. A level is a horizontal row on the game board and contains 2 districts (a left and a right one), a market for tiles or bonus markers, as well as numbers that indicate the number of the level.
4 players: In the game with 4 players, levels 1, 2, 3 and 8 contain a further selectable district, and levels 2 to 4 contain an additional market.
- Place 1 statue tile on each statue space of the markets.
- On the upper 7 city levels (levels 2 to 8), place 1 machine tile of each rank at random on the corresponding spaces in the market (see the illustration and description below). Return the tiles not needed to the box.
Tip: This is the fastest way to distribute the machine tiles: Shuffle all tiles face down (banner side up) in one large stack (not sorted by rank). Then draw one tile after the other and place it, starting from the bottom, at the correct spot of each market of each level that does not yet contain a tile of that rank. (The rank 3 machines lie on the statue tiles.)
Rank 0 lies face up (machine side up) at the far left, the others in ascending order face down (banner side up) to the right of it. (Market illustration: the front is the machine, the back is the banner; the rank is shown at the top of the banner as 0, 1, 2 or 3 bars.)
4 players: In the game with 4 players, also lay out 1 rank 0 machine face up on the markets to the left of levels 2, 3 and 4. The game board marks which ranks belong at which spot.
- Lay out the bonus markers on the market on level 1: place the markers in 2 rows that each contain 1 bonus marker of each number. Place each bonus marker on one of the octagonal spaces of its row. The numerals above the spaces indicate which bonus marker goes where ("5" at the far left, "2" at the far right on the statue).
- Place the banker (blue figure) on level 6 and the stoker (orange figure) on level 4.
- Shuffle the passenger tiles and place them as a face-down stack on the game board. Reveal the top tile and place it on top of the stack.
- Place all crystals and gears as the general supply. These are the RESOURCES of the game.
- Place the charity gala and sponsor tiles on the corresponding supply spaces on levels 6 and 7. Place the capacity tiles as a general supply next to the game board (not shown).
Perform the following steps individually, each on its own:
- Draw 1 random character tile. The starting player is the player whose character has the lowest number. Give them the starting player zeppelin. Return the remaining characters to the game box.
- Take 1 airship and place it in front of you. Choose a player colour and receive all game materials of this colour: 5 pressure stones, 1 score marker, 3 parasites, 1 base pressure marker.
- Place your score marker under the 1st space of the score track.
- Place the base pressure marker on the space with the corresponding symbol.
- Place 2 pressure stones next to your airship and place the remaining 3 on the first 3 spaces of the pressure gauge (A) to the right of the base pressure marker (1, 1, 2), so that their arrows are NOT visible.
- Place your 3 parasites on the parasite charging spaces of your airship - they form your personal supply.
- Randomly draw 1 starting machine tile and take 1 capacity tile. Carry out the effect of your character tile from top to bottom (see Technician's Handbook) and place your capacity tile and your starting machine in your machine room (B). You may choose the position and visible side yourself (further possible spaces are marked with X).
Your first game
If this is your first game and you received character 5, 11 or 15, put it back in the box and draw a different one. We also recommend building your airship as shown in the picture (back side of the starting machine in position 1, capacity tile to the right of it).
Course of Play
"Let the race begin!"
Increase the pressure in your airship, create your flight plan and steer to the districts of Steamopolis where there is what you need!
The game is played in rounds. In each round you take your turns one after another. The starting player begins.
On your turn you must perform 1 of the following 3 actions:
- A. MAKE STEAM
- B. SET 1 TARGET
- C. FLY TO ALL TARGETS
The end of the game is triggered as soon as the 3rd statue is erected (by 3 markets having been bought out) or as soon as the passenger stack is used up: the round is played to its end and the FINAL ROUND follows (see page 25).
Overview of the Actions
Every pressure stone stands for a boiler in your zeppelin. Its position on your pressure gauge indicates how high its pressure is. If the pressure in a boiler rises, you may move the pressure stone to the right on the pressure gauge. Your airship flies by releasing all the steam of a boiler and rising on the steam column. If you do not need the whole pressure, you can also direct it into your machine and thereby receive resources, for example.
Choose exactly ONE of the following 3 actions in your turn and carry it out completely.
A. MAKE STEAM (see page 8). More steam pressure means you can gain height better! With this action you increase the pressure (move your pressure stones) as often as your steam boilers allow.
B. SET 1 TARGET (see page 11). With this action you fix a part of your airship's flight route through the city. To do so, you place 1 pressure stone on a free district of a level that corresponds at most to its pressure. Beforehand you can use steam pressure to power your machines. The effect of the district does NOT take place YET.
C. FLY TO ALL TARGETS (see page 15). Start the flight! With this action you use, in any order, the effects of the districts on which you have placed your pressure stones, or buy on the associated markets. You can transport passengers while doing so.
Note: If you have no pressure stone on your pressure gauge, you must "Fly to all targets".
The Actions in Detail
"Shall I fetch the instruction manual, Cap'n?"
A. Make Steam
"Some problems are best solved by applying just the right amount of pressure ..."
Increase the steam pressure in your airship - more pressure means more options and is also a good way to wait until occupied districts become free again.
When you make steam, you increase the pressure by the number of your steam boilers (see "Increase the pressure by X"). Your airship has 2 permanently built-in steam boilers. Steam boilers on machines in your machine room count as well. You count both steam boilers that are connected to your steam gauge by a pipe and those that have no pipe connection (see picture: Yellow may increase the pressure by 5 when performing the "Make steam" action, since besides the 2 permanently built-in steam boilers (A) they have 3 steam boilers on machines (B)).
After you have increased your pressure, your turn ends. Then the player to your left is up.
Note: Some effects allow you to increase your pressure outside of this action. These effects state exactly by how much you may increase the pressure. The number of your steam boilers is ignored in that case.
You cannot perform the action if:
- you have no pressure stone on your pressure gauge, or
- your pressure stones are already all the way to the right on the pressure gauge and you therefore cannot move any of them anymore.
Increase the Pressure by X
"Normal pressure gauges only go up to seven. But this one ... goes to eight!"
You increase the pressure by a certain number by choosing and moving 1 pressure stone on your pressure gauge that many times. You may also choose and move individual pressure stones several times. You can never move bonus markers.
To move a pressure stone, place it to the right on the next free space. You may skip occupied spaces (see picture on the next page).
Your boilers are connected to each other by a complex, energy-charged apparatus. This allows you to additionally increase the pressure as soon as it would become equal in two boilers.
If you cannot move your pressure stones, or only partly, the excess pressure lapses. That hisses nicely, but brings no further benefits. You cannot voluntarily let part of the pressure lapse: if you use the effect, you must increase the pressure by as much as possible.
Example (page 10): Black may increase the pressure by 6 and moves 4 times the pressure stone lying furthest to the left. Since she has reached the end of her pressure gauge, 2 pressure increases lapse. She could also have moved her pressure stones in a different order, but this was the most effective one for her.
B. Set 1 Target
"We're dropping by. Roll out the banners already. Our Cap'n has prepared a great speech!"
- (optional) CHANNEL PRESSURE INTO THE MACHINE
- PLACE PRESSURE STONE
- STORE RESOURCES
Choose 1 pressure stone from your pressure gauge and place it on a district of your choice. This is how you announce that you want to visit it. The chosen district must fulfil the following conditions:
- The level does not exceed the current pressure value of the chosen pressure stone. (You must be able to keep this promise. What happens with your election promises is another matter ...)
- The district is free. (The citizens do not want to hear more than one political speech a day.)
Both conditions are explained in more detail below and in the illustration on page 12.
The number of the space on your pressure gauge on which the chosen pressure stone lies indicates the current (pressure) value of the pressure stone. It determines on which levels you may place the pressure stone. The number of the level may not exceed the pressure value. The steam is not enough for more. If you place the pressure stone on a lower level, you may use the unused pressure to CHANNEL PRESSURE INTO THE MACHINE in order to activate it (see page 12).
To place the pressure stone on a level, you must decide on 1 district of the level and lay your pressure stone on it, whereby only exactly this one is occupied by you.
As soon as you announce your visit in a district, your election banners are already unrolled there and everything is prepared for you. No one else will be heard there.
You may only place your pressure stone on a district on which no other pressure stone is located. Pressure stones of other players as well as your own pressure stones block the district and prevent another pressure stone from being placed there. By means of the action "FLY TO ALL TARGETS" you remove your own pressure stones from the game board again and carry out the district effects, whereby the corresponding districts can be selected as targets again.
If there is no such district, you must choose a different pressure stone. If no other pressure stone can be placed either, you cannot choose this action. In particular, you cannot choose the action if you have no pressure stone on your pressure gauge.
With the placing of the pressure stone your turn ends. Carry out no effects of the location - you do that only when you perform the action "FLY TO ALL TARGETS".
Example (page 12): Blue takes the pressure stone from space 4; this indicates the current pressure value. Blue can therefore place the pressure stone on level 1, 2, 3 or 4. On the game board, however, some districts are no longer free. Blue can place her pressure stone on one of the marked spaces.
Channel Pressure into the Machine
"It would be a pity to let all this energy dissipate!"
If you want to place the chosen pressure stone lower than its current pressure value allows, you can channel the energy into your machine room beforehand in order to activate machines. (You may also place the pressure stone on a lower level without channelling the unused pressure into the machine - it then simply lapses.)
Move your pressure stone from its current space on the pressure gauge down along the pipe into the machine room (note the arrows on the pipes). If there is a machine with a boiler there, it is automatically activated (see Technician's Handbook). Afterwards you may either PLACE your pressure stone with the reduced current pressure or MOVE it further to the left.
Place: As soon as you decide to place your pressure stone with the reduced pressure, take it from the machine room and place it on the game board as described above. You find the current pressure value for this in small print to the left above the position of the pressure stone (see picture on page 13).
Move: If you move the pressure stone to the left, activate again the machine lying there. (If there is no machine on this space, nothing happens.) Decide again between MOVING and PLACING.
Example (page 13): Black can place the pressure stone with value 3 or move it to the left. If Black moves her pressure stone to the left, she activates the effect of the machine tile with boiler lying there. In addition, the pressure value of the pressure stone drops. - Black has moved the pressure stone to the left and received 1 crystal. She can now decide again whether to place the pressure stone (now with value 2) or to push it to the left once more in order to activate further machine parts.
Note: You can only activate the boiler of a machine part if it is connected with a pipe. Some machines have 2 boilers that are connected with pipes. This means that you may activate both (1 time each).
Note: You may forgo using an activation effect of a machine; a parasite nevertheless profits from it (see page 32).
You may also channel the pressure into the machines if there is no machine, or a machine without activation effect, under the current space of the pressure stone. Likewise you may push a pressure stone in the machine room to the left if there is no machine, or a machine without activation effect, there. If you do this, you may decide as described above whether you want to place or move the pressure stone. The "activation" of a machine without activation effect has no effect.
You may only channel the pressure into the machine if:
- the pressure stone is not all the way to the left (see picture below), and
- you can still place the pressure stone with the thereby reduced pressure (see example below).
In this way the pressure stone can get below the position of a marker or stone on the pressure gauge. Since you do not move the pressure stone back up, but place it directly on the game board, these are however not in the way.
Picture (page 13): Pressure stones at the positions marked 1 and 2 cannot channel pressure into the machine. Blue can only channel the pressure of this pressure stone into the machine if at least 1 district on level 1 is free. (The pressure would drop to 1 and she must still place the pressure stone.)
Important: After you have channelled pressure into the machine, you MUST still place the pressure stone. Do not move the pressure stone back up onto the pressure gauge for this.
Store Resources
"Where do we put all this stuff, Cap'n?"
Some machines produce resources (gears and crystals) as soon as they are activated. You receive these immediately and may use them for costs arising from activation effects of subsequent machines. After you have placed your pressure stone on the game board, you must either place each resource in your possession on a storage space or return it to the general supply (see picture below). A maximum of 1 resource may lie on each storage space. You may exchange already stored resources for newly gained ones.
Every airship has 3 permanently built-in storage spaces; you get further storage spaces through capacity tiles and certain machines.
Example (page 14): Yellow chooses the pressure stone with pressure value "7" to place. Before she places it, she channels part of the pressure into the machine: she receives 2 gears and 1 crystal and spends 2 crystals to receive 2 VP. Then her pressure stone only has pressure value 2 and she places it on level 1. Finally she stores 2 gears and puts down 1 crystal, as she has no room left for it.
C. Fly to All Targets
"Our course is set, so cast off and up into the skies!"
You fly to all your set targets in any order and at each either give a speech or demonstrate your mechanical skill by buying on the market. On the side you may transport passengers and thus earn additional rewards.
You may also choose this action if you have not placed all your pressure stones. If you currently have no pressure stone placed, you cannot choose this action.
Choose 1 of your pressure stones on the game board and carry out the following steps in order. If you afterwards have no pressure stone left on the game board, your action is finished. Otherwise choose 1 further pressure stone. Do this until you have NO pressure stones left on the game board. Carry out each step completely before you begin the next step.
- Take back pressure stone
- Pick up/drop off passenger
- Carry out district effects OR buy
- Store resources
If you transport at least 1 passenger, you receive the passenger reward(s) at the end of your turn (see page 24).
For these steps, the district in which the chosen pressure stone is located counts as the active district and its level as the active level.
Take Back Pressure Stone
"Target in sight!"
Place the chosen pressure stone on the 1st free space of your pressure gauge to the right of your base pressure marker. (Skip spaces that already contain a pressure stone or bonus marker - see picture below.)
Do not turn over the pressure stone you take back. (A pressure stone with an arrow keeps its arrow.)
If no space is free, return 1 bonus marker from your pressure gauge to the game box to make room. If you cannot do that, you must return the pressure stone to your supply. (Note that your base pressure may reach at most the space with value "4".)
You must always take back all your pressure stones when you perform the action "FLY TO ALL TARGETS".
Picture (page 15): 1: Yellow takes back 1 pressure stone and places it on the 1st free space of the pressure gauge. 2: The next pressure stone that Yellow takes back, she then places on this position.
Pick Up and Drop Off Passengers
"Could you take me with you?"
You may pick up a passenger from the active level or drop one off there (see table below). They will make themselves recognisable for it. With the help of certain machines you can make the guest's flight even more pleasant, which earns you additional bonuses.
Passenger Destinations
"That's where I want to go!"
The face-up passenger tile indicates to which levels the two passengers want to go (see picture below). The blue banker always stays in the upper four levels; his destination is shown in the upper part of the tile. The orange stoker travels in the lower four levels; her destination is shown in the lower part.
Alternate Destination
"Or maybe over there instead?"
Passengers always want to go somewhere and never stay in one place. If a passenger is already at the place that the passenger tile specifies as destination, his destination is instead the alternate destination shown in smaller print above it.
Picture (page 16): The passenger tile shows for each passenger: the passenger reward (banker: 1 gear-with-laurel symbol, i.e. 1 VP-marked reward; stoker: 3), the destination, and the alternate destination (banker: destination 5, alternate 6; stoker: destination 1, alternate 4).
PICK UP PASSENGER: If there is a passenger on the active level, you may take him on board. Place him on one of your two passenger spaces. You must, however, still bring him to his destination in this turn (see right and picture on the next page).
You may only pick up a passenger if you still have a pressure stone on the level to which the passenger wants to go.
A passenger whom you have already transported in this turn cannot be picked up again.
DROP OFF PASSENGER: If you have a passenger on one of your passenger spaces, you must drop him off if the active level is the passenger's destination. Place the passenger on the level, take the face-up passenger tile and place it in front of you. It remains face up and thus still shows the destination of the other passenger. Do not yet reveal a new tile. You may transport each of the two passengers up to 1 time per turn.
You receive the reward for transporting passengers at the end of your turn (see page 24).
Example (page 17), left: Yellow cannot transport the stoker since she has no pressure stone on level 3. She therefore may not pick her up. She can pick up the banker, but only if she first takes back the pressure stone on level 7 and only then the one from level 6 (otherwise none would be left there). Right: Yellow waited with taking back, placed a further pressure stone and can now transport both passengers: she first carries out level 2, then level 7 and picks up the respective passenger. Then she carries out level 6 and then level 3 to drop off the respective passenger.
Carry Out District Effects or Buy
"So much to do, so little time ..."
Decide on exactly 1 of the following options:
- Carry out the DISTRICT EFFECT of the active district.
- BUY on the market of the active level.
- Let the activation lapse unused.
On level 1, when BUYING, you may buy any number of bonus markers (see page 22). On levels 2 to 8, when BUYING, you may buy exactly 1 face-up tile (see page 18).
4 players: In the game with 4 players you have the choice on levels 2 to 4 on which of the two markets you buy the face-up tile (see picture on the next page). You can never buy more than 1 tile.
If you want neither to buy a tile or a bonus marker nor to carry out the district effect, you may also skip this step completely and let the activation lapse.
Example (page 18): By taking back the pressure stone on the right district of level 3, Yellow may decide between these options: use the action effect and take up to 3 resources, buy 1 tile, or do nothing.
Carry Out District Effects
Secure solid support from the residents! The citizens welcome every airship with enthusiasm. They come with goods, let you start up the local factories or promise to help you if only you take them along!
A concise description of the district effects and all other game elements is found in the TECHNICIAN'S HANDBOOK. A detailed version is at the end of the RULEBOOK from page 26. First become familiar with the basic course of play by reading on at this point, before dealing with the district effects. To learn the game you initially only need to know that through the district effects you receive resources, further pressure stones and capacity tiles and thus get the machinery of your airship going.
Buy 1 Tile
"Window shopping!"
If you buy on one of levels 2 to 8, decide whether you want to buy the face-up tile of the active level as a BANNER or as a MACHINE, pay the costs and build it into your airship. The citizens are enthusiastic about the complexity of your airship's machinery and the colourful banners; for that you receive their vote points.
4 players: With 4 players you may choose on levels 2, 3 and 4 from which of the two markets you want to buy. You may buy a maximum of 1 tile, even if there are 2 markets on the level and consequently 2 tiles are face up.
You may only decide to buy a tile if you can pay the complete costs. If you cannot, your action lapses without replacement.
Tip: Note that you reveal a new, stronger tile as soon as you buy a tile. This can then be bought by a fellow player.
When buying, always consider only the visible symbols on the market (before you take the tile away) as well as the costs visible on the tile. Depending on the purpose for which you buy the tile, you must observe different symbols:
- Always pay the costs in the 3rd row, marked with the pennant symbol / bottle symbol (the machine-bottle and banner-pennant icons of row 3).
- If you buy the tile as a machine, additionally observe the symbols in the 1st row, marked with the bottle symbol.
- If you buy the tile as a banner, additionally pay the costs in the 2nd row, marked with the pennant symbol.
For higher-ranked tiles, further costs and effects are added. All are explained below.
Depending on the symbol, costs, negative effects and positive effects are shown in this way, most of which take place as soon as you buy the tile. See the examples on the right and on the next page.
AFTER you have paid the costs, take the tile and, if possible, reveal the next machine tile. If by buying the tile you reveal a statue, place it on the tower top. If this is the 3rd statue erected there, you receive 3 VP and trigger the end of the game (see page 25).
Buy as Machine
Costs: RESOURCES; Receive: VP
Pay the resources visible in the 3rd row (and on the tile). (Return the markers from your storage space to the general supply.) Receive as many VP as there are VP symbols visible in the 1st row and then build the tile into your machine room as a machine (see page 21).
Additional costs from rank 1 (machine-removal symbol): To build the more complex machines into your airship, you must cannibalise others. This means you must remove 1 machine tile from your airship in order to buy the chosen tile. For this you must return 1 arbitrary tile in the machine room of your airship to the box. You may also remove capacity tiles (return them to the general supply) or your starting machine.
Additional costs from rank 2 (envy symbol): As soon as you present your great machine, the envious gather ... This means every other player may - after you have built in the machine - place 1 parasite each on any machine in your machine room. (For each parasite the owner may co-use the activation effect or the passive effect of a machine once - see page 32.)
Examples (page 19):
- Pay 2 gears. Receive 1 vote point and the machine tile.
- Pay 2 crystals and 1 machine tile. Receive 2 vote points and the machine tile.
- Pay 3 crystals and 1 machine. Receive 3 vote points and the machine tile. Other players place 1 parasite each on your machines after you have built in the machine.
- Pay 4 crystals, 1 gear and 1 machine. Receive 5 vote points and the machine tile. All other players may each place 1 parasite on you after you have built in the machine. Place the statue on the tower top.
Buy as Banner
Costs: RESOURCES
Pay the resources visible in the 3rd row and on the tile by returning the corresponding markers from your storage to the general supply. Afterwards build the tile in as a banner (see page 21).
Additional costs for banners (pressure stone symbol, -1): Banners are pretty, but it also costs you more energy to defy the wind with fluttering strips of cloth. Every new banner means that a whole boiler must go without in order to compensate for this additional energy consumption.
For this you must return 1 pressure stone to your personal supply. You cannot give up your last pressure stone - after all you still have to get to your new mayor's office, and that is right at the top of Steamopolis ...
Additional costs from rank 2 (envy symbol): Whoever has pretty banners must sit on great machines. That is why such a banner is an invitation to everyone who wants a piece of the cake. Consequently the costs from rank 2 also include 1 parasite. This means every other player may place 1 parasite each on any machine in your machine room. (For each parasite the player may co-use the activation effect or the passive effect of a machine once - see page 32.)
Examples (page 20):
- Pay 2 gears and 1 pressure stone. Receive the banner tile.
- Pay 2 crystals and 1 pressure stone. Receive the banner tile.
- Pay 3 crystals and 1 pressure stone. Receive the banner tile. All other players may each place 1 parasite on you.
- Pay 4 crystals, 1 gear and 1 pressure stone. Receive the banner tile. All other players may each place 1 parasite on you. Place the statue on the tower top.
Building In as a Machine
Choose a free position in your machine room and place the tile there (see page 7). If there is no free position, you must remove 1 other machine tile and place the new one in the position that has become free. You may also remove a capacity tile (back into the general supply) or your starting machine.
If a machine belongs to the costs of the machine tile, you may nevertheless freely choose at which free spot in your machine room you want to place the new tile.
Building In as a Banner
Place the tile with the banner side visible to the right of your airship and then receive vote points depending on the banner type (see table below).
You may have any number of banners on your airship.
| Banner colour | VP |
|---|---|
| Purple (banner/gear laurel symbol) | You receive as many vote points as you own banners (including the one just bought). Note that purple tiles show 2 banners. |
| Orange (machine/bottle laurel symbol) | You receive as many vote points as you own machines. (Capacity tiles and starting machines count as machines as well. Tiles that you have hung on your airship as banners do not count.) |
| Blue (passenger laurel symbol) | You receive as many vote points as you own passenger tiles. You receive passenger tiles by transporting passengers (see page 16). |
Examples: Yellow has built a purple tile as a banner and receives 5 vote points. Red has built an orange banner and receives 4 vote points. Black has built a blue banner and receives 2 vote points.
The background colour of the plaque of the machine tile and the symbol indicate which type of banner is on the back (see picture: the purple plaque on the machine's lower edge corresponds to the purple banner on the back).
Buy Bonus Markers
"With these trinkets the machine purrs!"
Bonus markers represent either mechanical or energy-charged machines that make it easier for you to increase the pressure in your boilers.
You may buy any number of bonus markers at once. For each bonus marker that you want to buy, carry out the following steps (see picture on the next page):
- Pay as many resources as are visible in its row (before you take away the bonus marker).
- You receive as many VP as are visible in its row (before you take away the bonus marker).
- As soon as you buy a bonus marker #2, all other players may each place 1 parasite on one of your machines (see page 32).
- Place the bonus marker on your pressure gauge on the printed position (on any 1 space of the pressure gauge on which the same numeral is printed).
- If there is already a pressure stone there, you may increase its pressure by 1 to make room. If that is not possible, you must put the bonus marker into the box.
- If there is already a bonus marker there, put it back into the box.
Example (page 23): Blue buys the foremost bonus marker of the crystal row. She spends 1 crystal and places bonus marker #5 on the pressure gauge on the space with the 5 (1). As part of the same action she can buy further bonus markers. She spends 3 gears to take bonus marker #2. She additionally receives 5 VP and lures parasites. Blue wants to place the bonus marker on the left space with the 2 of her pressure gauge (2). Since there is a pressure stone there, she may move it. The next free space is the one with the 6, so she moves it there (3). Then she places the bonus marker on the chosen space.
Using Bonus Markers
The following rules apply to bonus markers on your pressure gauge:
Skip bonus markers when moving your pressure stones. In this way the bonus markers allow you to increase your pressure very quickly.
You cannot, however, move bonus markers, nor use them for paying.
You may discard bonus markers at any time. To do so, return them to the box. This is sensible in the following situations:
- to push the base pressure marker onto its space,
- to make room for a pressure stone that you otherwise could no longer move, or
- to buy a base pressure marker with the same numeral (and receive points for it).
If you buy the last bonus marker #2 and thereby reveal the statue, place it on the tower top. If this is the 3rd statue erected there, you receive 3 VP and trigger the end of the game (see page 25).
Store Resources
"Do we still have room for it? Before we fly on, we have to stow all the stuff ... or leave it here."
Through some district effects you receive resources (gears and crystals). You must store these after every activation of a district. To do so, you must either place all resources in your possession on storage spaces or return them to the general supply. A maximum of 1 resource may lie on each storage space. You may exchange already stored resources for newly gained ones (see picture below).
For flying to the next district you can keep only as many resources as you have storage spaces in your airship.
Example (page 23): Red triggers the district effect through which she receives any number of resources. She takes 3 crystals and puts down 1 gear in order to be able to store all the crystals.
End of the Turn
After you have carried out your action, end your turn by evaluating effects that take place at the end of your turn - and, where applicable, the passenger transport.
Draw Passenger Tile
"Somebody wants a ride again already!"
If you have transported at least 1 passenger, reveal the top passenger tile from the stack.
If the stack is used up (no new tile can be revealed), the end of the game is triggered (see page 25). For the rest of the game the printed passenger destinations apply. If in this time you transport at least 1 passenger in your turn, you receive all the usual rewards (see below) but no passenger tile.
Evaluate Passenger Transport
"Thanks for the ride!"
There are 2 types of passenger rewards: those that you receive through the passenger tile itself and those that you receive through your machine. You receive these rewards for each transported passenger (see picture below).
The banker grants you 1 vote point, while the stoker allows you to increase your pressure by 3 (see page 9).
After you have received your reward(s), place the passenger tile face down next to your airship. It must be visible how many passenger tiles you have already collected.
Machines with passenger rewards have an orange banner on the back. They allow you to increase your pressure and give you vote points from rank 1 (see Technician's Handbook).
Example (page 24): Yellow has transported both passengers and receives the following rewards:
| Banker | Stoker |
|---|---|
| 1 VP from the passenger tile | 3 pressure increases from the passenger tile |
| 2 pressure increases and 1 VP from her machines | 2 pressure increases and 1 VP from her machines |
In total Yellow therefore receives 3 VP and may increase the pressure by 7.
End of the Game
"The new mayor is decided!"
After you have completely carried out your turn, the next player is up. This continues in turn order until at the end of a player's turn 3 statues stand on the tower top (because 3 markets have been emptied) or the passenger stack is empty. This triggers the end of the game. All players who have not yet had their turn this round may still take their turn. Then the FINAL ROUND follows.
If you trigger the end of the game by erecting the 3rd statue, you immediately receive 3 vote points! If, however, you take the last passenger tile, you receive no additional vote points for triggering the end of the game - unless you additionally empty the 3rd market.
Tip: End the game only if you have enough resources to still buy something with your FINAL TURN that gives you vote points. You may then still fly to exactly 1 target!
Final Round
"Now give it some proper steam once more!"
In turn order, first the starting player and then, one after the other, all other players may carry out 1 FINAL TURN each:
In your FINAL TURN you may carry out all 3 actions one after the other in this order:
- MAKE STEAM
- SET 1 TARGET (also a target already set by fellow players)
- FLY TO ALL TARGETS
When you set your target in the FINAL TURN, you may also place your pressure stone on a district on which the pressure stone of one of your fellow players already lies. (A panel discussion then takes place there.)
Even in the FINAL ROUND you cannot place your pressure stone on a district on which one of your own pressure stones already lies. (A panel discussion against yourself is entertaining to watch, but does not win you the citizens' trust.)
Winning the Game
"Long live the new mayor!"
After you have all carried out your FINAL TURN, the game ends and the winner is determined:
Whoever has the most vote points (is furthest advanced on the vote point track) is appointed the new mayor and wins the game. Let the other players congratulate you on your election victory, announce your first official act as mayor and take care that it does not happen to you as it did to the old mayor!
Tie
The tied player who owns the most machine and banner tiles wins.
If there is still a tie, the tied player who is earlier in turn order wins.
Symbol Explanations
"Hand me the glasses!"
If you are looking for a concise list of all effects of a district or a machine, look in the TECHNICIAN'S HANDBOOK. The following detailed list is meant above all for looking things up, in case a description in the TECHNICIAN'S HANDBOOK leaves questions open.
The following detailed symbol explanations are sorted by type and cover both symbols on the game board and those on the machines and other game material.
Multiple Boilers
Some machines have more than 1 boiler.
If there is a connecting pipe, you automatically activate both boilers as soon as you activate the machine. You may decide to use no effect, only one, or both effects. Players with parasites on the activation effect may likewise decide to co-use no effect, only one, or both effects.
If there is no connecting pipe between them, the lower boiler cannot be activated.
Multiple Symbols
Basically: if you cannot or do not want to carry out the effect, it lapses without replacement. (For machines, parasites are nevertheless activated, see page 32.)
Some effects consist of several partial effects shown in grey or white; with these you may also decide to carry out only some of these effects and let the rest lapse.
Slash Between Partial Effects
If partial effects are separated from each other by a slash, you must decide whether you carry out the partial effects above OR those below the slash.
Example: Place your parasites or activate them.
Costs (Black Symbols)
If an effect contains one of these partial effects shown in black, you MUST carry it out in order to be allowed to use the partial effects shown beneath it:
- Resource costs (gear / crystal with -1) (see right)
- Envy symbol (see page 32)
- Pressure stone -1 (see page 20)
Example: The costs shown in black (1) apply only to the lower effect. You need not pay them if you only want to carry out the upper effect (2). Decide whether you carry out the upper and/or the lower effect (3). To be allowed to carry out the lower one, you must pay the costs.
Resource Costs
These symbols show costs that you must pay (return the indicated resources to the supply) in order to be allowed to use the effects listed beneath them.
Example: Spend 2 gears to receive 1 capacity tile.
Pay as many crystals as you own pressure stones. (Count all your pressure stones, those on the pressure gauge and those on the game board.)
Example: Yellow has 1 pressure stone on her pressure gauge (with this one she triggered the district effect) and 2 further pressure stones on the game board. She pays 3 crystals and receives 1 pressure stone, which she places on the 1st free space of her pressure gauge to the right of her base pressure marker.
Types of Machine Effects
Machines can have 3 types of symbols or effects:
- Activation effects (shown on boilers) - see page 12
- Storage spaces - see page 14
- Passive effects - explained in the following
Passive Effect
You cannot activate passive effects directly - they are triggered as soon as a certain game situation occurs. Every passive effect has a trigger (1) and the associated effect (2). You may use the effect every time the trigger occurs. (The "end of turn" symbol means that you can use the effect only at the end of the turn, see below.)
Even if you forgo using an effect, parasites placed on it are activated (see page 32).
Effects whose trigger is transported passengers you evaluate as part of the passenger transport (see page 24). They follow exactly the same rules as described here.
Example: Purple takes back 2 pressure stones from level 7 and receives 1 VP for each.
You may already use passive effects in the turn in which you bought the tile. The action with which you buy the tile can likewise trigger the effect.
End of the Turn (symbol)
Effects bearing the end symbol are basically evaluated at the end of the turn.
If the effect is on a tile, you may already use it in the turn in which you bought the tile - even if the trigger occurred in this turn before you bought the tile.
Static Discharges
"The thing is not playing along!"
Static discharges of the energy-charged constructions on the higher levels make your sensitive machines go haywire. As soon as you carry out the effect of a district bearing this symbol, you must turn your pressure stone that you took back to the side without an arrow if it had an arrow (otherwise it stays as it is).
Note: If you buy on a market, you ignore this symbol - it only comes into force when using the district effect.
Receive Game Material (White Symbols)
Take the depicted game material from the supply and place it on your airship as described in the following. If a maximum is given in the description, it represents the number of the corresponding game elements in your possession that you may not exceed. If you would receive so many game materials that you would exceed the maximum, the surplus lapses without replacement.
Note: All game materials are limited to the number included in the game. An effect through which you would receive a game element that is no longer available in the supply lapses without replacement.
Resources. Take the indicated number of resources (crystals and/or gears) in any combination from the general supply. Take any number of resources (crystals and/or gears) in any combination from the general supply.
With "FLY TO ALL TARGETS": You must store the resources before you take back your next pressure stone. Resources that you cannot store you must return to the general supply (see page 23).
With "SET 1 TARGET": You must store the resources only after you have placed your pressure stone. Resources that you cannot store you must then return to the general supply (see page 14).
Pressure stone (Maximum: 5). Take 1 pressure stone from your supply. Place the pressure stone on your pressure gauge as if you had taken it back (see page 15).
Sponsor (Maximum: 1). A wealthy sponsor signs up to your election campaign. He supplies you regularly with funds, but also wants to see that you achieve something with his gifts before he lets new ones come to you.
Take 1 sponsor tile from the general supply. Place the sponsor on your airship with a visible side of your choice.
The sponsor needs no storage space. (He has his own pulpit.) You can use the sponsor 1 time per turn (also during a fellow player's turn) when paying, to receive a discount of 1 resource of the depicted type. As soon as you redeem the discount, turn the sponsor to the other side. (Do not discard the sponsor.) You may only use the sponsor if the depicted resource is actually part of the costs.
You may use the sponsor when paying any costs and at any time (for district and machine effects, when buying tiles and bonus markers).
Example: Red has activated this machine and her sponsor lies with the crystal side up. Since she has not yet used her sponsor in this turn, she turns it to the other side, which lowers the costs to 0 crystals. She increases her pressure by 3. In her next turn Red can use the sponsor instead of paying 1 gear.
Charity gala (Maximum: 1). You host a lively charity gala directly on your airship. The guests will certainly part with a good deal of money.
Take 1 charity gala marker from the general supply. Choose which type of donations you would like to solicit (2 crystals or 2 gears) and place the corresponding tile on your airship.
The charity gala needs no storage space - it is celebrated in its own pulpit. You can use the charity gala 1 time when paying: discard the charity gala to receive a discount of 2 resources of the depicted type. (After they have donated, you throw the guests out.) Through this discount the costs cannot fall below 0.
Return the used charity gala to the general supply; you can proclaim a new one later.
You may use the charity gala when paying any costs and at any time (for district and machine effects, when buying tiles and bonus markers).
Example: Purple uses the district effect by discarding her gear charity gala to reduce the costs of 2 gears to 0, and therefore receives 1 capacity tile.
Capacity. Take 1 capacity tile from the general supply. Place the tile on any space in your machine room. If a tile already lies there, remove it from the game.
Capacity Tiles
Capacity tiles count as machines for all purposes and have the following properties:
- Activation effect (1): Increase the pressure by 1. For this you may choose 1 arbitrary pressure stone on your pressure gauge (not the one with which you activated the machine).
- Storage space (2): Through some game effects you receive resources that you must subsequently store on such storage spaces. To do so you must either place all resources in your possession on storage spaces or return them to the general supply. A maximum of 1 resource may lie on each storage space. You may exchange already stored resources for newly gained ones.
Execution Effects (Grey Symbols)
Vote points. You receive as many vote points (VP) as indicated. (Move forward the corresponding number of spaces on the vote point track.)
Look at a machine. Look at the front side of 1 arbitrary face-down machine tile (afterwards put it back face down). In your first game you should ignore this effect so as not to prolong the game unnecessarily.
Base pressure marker. Move your base pressure marker 1 space to the right on your pressure gauge (see picture on the next page).
If there is a pressure stone on the space onto which you move your base pressure marker, you may increase its pressure by 1 to make room. If a bonus marker lies there or it is not possible to move the pressure stone, you must discard it (pressure stone: into your supply next to your airship, bonus marker: remove from the game).
You cannot move your base pressure marker further than onto the space with pressure value "4". (The effect then lapses without replacement.)
As soon as you take back 1 pressure stone, you place it to the right of your base pressure marker on the pressure gauge. Other game mechanics are not influenced by its position. (Even if your base pressure marker has already advanced, you can quite normally SET lower targets and CHANNEL all unused PRESSURE INTO THE MACHINE.)
Picture (page 31): the base pressure marker moves one space to the right; a pressure stone on the target space is moved ahead.
Turn sponsor. You may turn your sponsor to the other side. (Only 1 sponsor, if you own character 5.) No effect if you have no sponsor.
Buy tile. Choose 1 face-up machine tile on any level and buy it according to the normal rules on page 18. (In particular, the costs are calculated in the same way and you can build in the tile as a banner or machine.) With this ability you can only buy tiles, no bonus markers.
Turn 1 pressure stone. Turn 1 arbitrary pressure stone so that the arrow is visible. All your pressure stones with an arrow move at the start of each of your turns (see box).
Turn 3 pressure stones. Turn 3 arbitrary pressure stones so that the arrow is visible. All your pressure stones with an arrow move at the start of each of your turns (see box on the right).
Pressure stone to 8. Place the pressure stone that you took back in order to activate this district on the space with pressure value 8 on your pressure gauge.
Moving Pressure Stones with an Arrow
"Look, Cap'n, I've tinkered something here: thanks to this device the pressure in the boiler keeps rising without us having to stoke. However, it doesn't cope so well with the static discharges on the higher levels ..."
At the start of each of your turns (also your FINAL TURN) the pressure of each of your pressure stones with an arrow increases by 1. Move them in any order before you choose your action.
Pressure stones that lie so that the arrow is visible are called pressure stones with an arrow.
A pressure stone with an arrow loses it in only one way: by using the district effect of a district with static discharges with it. Then you must turn the pressure stone to the side without an arrow (see page 28).
Use another district. Use the effect of 1 arbitrary district that you have not activated in this turn and on which none of your pressure stones lies. (If the district is occupied by another player, you can use it nevertheless. You may not use those districts on which a pressure stone lay at the start of your action "FLY TO ALL TARGETS" - even if you only bought on the market with it.) (Symbol: pressure stone 0 with a lightning-bolt.)
Increase pressure of one stone by up to 5. Choose exactly 1 pressure stone on your pressure gauge and increase its pressure by up to 5.
Parasites
Send out these small mechanical bugs so that they attach themselves to the machines of your competitors. There they constantly tap a tiny part of the energy and produce goods - just enough that the owner does not notice. Finally they fly back to you and bring their loot with them!
The following symbols bring the parasites into play; the exact rules for them are explained afterwards:
- Place or move 1 own parasite.
- Place or move any number of own parasites.
- Activate 1 own parasite without taking it back.
- Activate any number of own parasites without taking them back.
- Place or move and immediately activate 1 own parasite, without taking it back.
- Envy symbol: All other players may each place 1 of their parasites on one of your machines. They may wait with this until you have carried out all effects of the district or built in the tile, respectively.
- Shake off parasites: You may shake off all opposing parasites from your airship. (Your fellow players return them to their supplies.)
- Use all activation effects: You may use all activation effects of your machines from right to left (as if you were channelling the unused pressure of a pressure stone INTO THE MACHINE that has pressure value 8 and that you place on level 1). All parasites in your machine room "sleep" meanwhile. They are not activated and remain on their spaces.
Place or Move Parasites
If an effect allows you to place or move 1 parasite, place it on the machine of another player. Place it either on the symbol of the activation effect (boiler) or on the symbol of the passive effect (green background), if the machine has both. For better clarity you may also place the parasites at the lower edge of the tile on the steam (for the activation effect) or on the plaque (for the passive effect).
2 players: You may place up to 2 parasites on the same machine.
3 or more players: You may place several parasites on the same player, but a maximum of 1 parasite on each machine.
You may also place parasites on machines on which parasites of other players already sit.
You may also place parasites on starting machines and capacity tiles.
If a machine is removed on which you have placed a parasite, it is discarded. Return it to your supply without activating it.
You cannot place parasites on storage spaces.
Shake Off Parasites
If an effect allows you to shake off an opposing parasite, choose 1 parasite on one of your machines and give it back to the player to whom it belongs (without activating it). That player must return it to their supply and can only place it again when they use a corresponding effect.
As soon as you remove a machine on which parasites lie, discard them.
Activate Parasites
For each of your parasites on a machine of a fellow player the following applies:
As soon as the machine is activated by the fellow player, you must put the parasite back into your supply.
Afterwards you may likewise use the effect. You may also use the effect if the player who activated it has forgone doing so.
Regardless of whether someone uses the effect - you must always take back the parasite as soon as the machine is activated.
If the machine has both an activation effect and a passive effect, the parasite is only taken back and activated if exactly the effect is triggered on which the parasite lies. (You determine this when placing.)
With a passive effect it does not matter whether you fulfil the prerequisite for the passive effect: carry out the effect 1 time as if you had triggered it (even if the activating player has triggered the effect several times).
If the activation effect requires something to be paid, you must also do so in order to use the effect.
If you receive resources through the effect, you must store or discard them immediately.
Examples (page 34):
- Red activates the machine on which Blue and Yellow have placed parasites. All three receive 1 crystal each. Blue and Yellow must store their crystals immediately if they want to keep them. Red must store the crystal only at the end of her turn. Blue and Yellow return their parasite to their supply.
- Black activates the machine on which Red has placed her parasite by taking back 2 pressure stones from level 7. Both receive 1 vote point for the 1st pressure stone and Red returns the parasite to her supply. Black receives 1 further vote point for the 2nd pressure stone taken back from level 7.
- Blue activates the machine on which Yellow has placed her parasite by channelling pressure into the machine. She cannot pay the costs of 2 gears and therefore cannot use the effect. Yellow pays 2 gears and receives 2 VP. Yellow returns the parasite to her supply.
Activate a Parasite Without Taking It Back
If an effect allows you to activate a parasite without taking it back, activate 1 parasite that you have placed on a fellow player's machine as if the corresponding effect had been triggered. With a passive effect it does not matter whether you or the player fulfil the prerequisite for the passive effect: carry out the effect 1 time as if you had just triggered it. Leave the parasite in its place.
Solo Rules
"The challenging look into the mirror!"
With these rules you can play the game alone. You play against your own shadow: where you place your pressure stones, your shadow also places its pressure stones and blocks these spaces for you for the following round.
Setup
Set up the game on the 2/3-player side, then prepare the pressure stones of an unused player colour (your shadow). At the start of the game you receive 4 vote points. To make the game more difficult you can start with only 3 or 2 vote points. For an easy game, receive 5 vote points instead.
Except for the following changes the game proceeds according to the normal rules.
Time Pressure
"The clock is ticking, Cap'n! And so is quite a lot else. Should this be ticking here? I think I'd better throw it overboard ..."
As soon as you choose either the action "FLY TO ALL TARGETS" or the action "MAKE STEAM", you lose 1 VP. (Move your vote point marker back 1 space.) If you thereby have 0 vote points, you lose the game immediately.
Fly to All Targets (-1 VP)
In the solo game the action "FLY TO ALL TARGETS" has 2 additional steps: at the beginning of the action "PLACE SHADOW PRESSURE STONES" and at the end of the action "REMOVE TILES".
Place Shadow Pressure Stones. "Someone is on our heels ..."
Remove all shadow pressure stones from the game board. Then place 1 pressure stone of your shadow on each district with one of your pressure stones. The pressure stones placed in this way block these districts as usual and are only removed the next time you carry out the action "FLY TO ALL TARGETS".
Example: Blue has pressure stones on the left district of level 3 and the right district of level 5. 4 shadow pressure stones from the previous round still lie on 4 other districts. She places 1 shadow pressure stone each on the districts with her pressure stones and returns the other two to the supply. Until she next "FLIES TO ALL TARGETS", Blue cannot use the two districts.
Remove Tiles. "Gone it is."
Return in each case the face-up machine tile of the destination level of both passengers to the box. On level 1, instead of a tile, remove in each of the two rows the bonus marker with the highest number.
Afterwards return the face-up passenger tile to the box. If applicable, place the statue tile on the tower top (nobody receives VP).
If the market on the destination level of a passenger is already empty, nothing happens (ignore the alternate destination).
When removing, ignore all costs and effects. In particular you may not place any parasites.
Parasites. "Fly, my little ones!"
If an effect allows you to place parasites, place them next to the passenger stack. As soon as you carry out the step "REMOVE TILES" during the action "FLY TO ALL TARGETS", you may take back any number of parasites in order to use the effect of a removed machine in each case. Decide whether you carry out the active or the passive effect.
You may also take back several parasites in order to use the same effect several times.
A parasite stays lying next to the passenger stack until you take it back.
Activate parasite: If an effect allows you to activate a parasite (level 5 right or level 7 left), you may, if you have placed a parasite, use the effect of 1 face-up tile of those levels that are currently the destination of a passenger (ignore alternate destinations).
Envy symbol: Nothing happens.
End of the Game and Scoring
"Did we win, Cap'n?"
The end of the game is triggered as soon as 3 markets are empty, or if the passenger stack is used up. If you triggered the end of the game by buying out the 3rd market, you receive 3 vote points as in the multiplayer game. Play your turn to its end and then carry out your FINAL TURN as usual. You may choose whether you carry out the actions "MAKE STEAM" and "FLY TO ALL TARGETS". If you carry them out, you lose only 1 vote point in total.
Compare your total score with the table to find out how you did!
| VP | Rank |
|---|---|
| 0 VP | Nothing but hot air |
| 7 VP | Hobby mechanic |
| 14 VP | Tinkerer |
| 21 VP | Engineer |
| 28 VP | Chief engineer |
| 35 VP | Airship pirate |
| 42 VP | Master of steam |
| 49 VP | Deus Ex Machina |
Example Turns
We demonstrate the course of play here using the example of the solo game. To learn the multiplayer game, simply ignore the - highlighted text passages -. Set up the game for 1 player with character 13. You only need to keep to the details shown on the right. Carry out all steps yourself in order to learn the game or to explain your game round.
Black has already completely set up the game and carried out her character effect.
The pressure stones on her pressure gauge have the following values:
VALUES: 1 with arrow, 1, 2
- She has 4 VP at the beginning of the game -
Turn 1
Her pressure stones have the values 1, 1 and 2. One of her pressure stones has an arrow. She moves it at the start of her turn.
VALUES: 1, 2, 2 with arrow
Black could already set targets now, but she has her eye on higher levels and therefore chooses the action "MAKE STEAM".
- Black loses 1 VP and now has 3 VP -
She has 4 steam boilers in her airship, so she may increase the pressure by 4. To do so she chooses the left pressure stone each time and moves it over the two others.
VALUES: 4, 5 with arrow, 6
Turn 2
Black begins her second turn by again moving the pressure stone with an arrow.
VALUES: 4, 6, 7 with arrow
Black wants to "SET 1 TARGET". She chooses the pressure stone on space 4 and wants to choose level 1 as target. Before she places the pressure stone, she moves it in the direction of the arrow along the pipe into the machine room. From there she moves it all the way to the left. Thereby she activates the two boilers of the machines and may increase her pressure by a total of 2.
VALUES: 7 with arrow, 8
Finally Black places the pressure stone with the now reduced pressure value of 1 on the left district of level 1.
Turn 3
At the start of her third turn Black could move the pressure stone with an arrow. Since she has reached the end of the pressure gauge, however, she cannot move the pressure stone.
She places the pressure stone with value 8 on level 8 on the left district in order to set it as target.
VALUES: 7 with arrow
Turn 4
At the start of her fourth turn Black moves the pressure stone with an arrow to space 8.
VALUES: 8 with arrow
Black again sets a target: she places her last pressure stone on level 6 on the left. Since she has no machines so far to the right in her machine room, she cannot channel the unused pressure into the machine.
Turn 5
Black has no pressure stones left on her pressure gauge and must therefore "FLY TO ALL TARGETS".
- She loses 1 VP and now has 2 VP. In addition she places red shadow pressure stones on the districts that contain her pressure stones. -
Black first chooses the pressure stone on level 6. She places the pressure stone on the 1st free space of her pressure gauge.
VALUES: 1 with arrow
She wants to buy the face-up tile of the level instead of carrying out the district effects. Therefore the arrow also stays on the pressure stone.
She returns 2 gears from her storage spaces to the supply, takes the face-up tile from the level and builds it in on the 1st free space in her machine room. Black moves her score marker 1 space further. Then she reveals the next face-down tile on the level.
On level 6 the banker is currently also located. The passenger tile gives level 6 as his destination, so he wants to go to the alternate destination: level 8. Since Black has also placed a pressure stone there, she can take the passenger along; she places him on the corresponding space of her airship.
Next she chooses the pressure stone on level 1 and takes it back. She places it on the 1st free space of her pressure gauge.
VALUES: 1 with arrow, 1
She carries out the district effect and may place 2 parasites.
- She places them next to the passenger stack -
There is no passenger on the level, so she cannot take any along either.
Finally Black chooses the pressure stone on level 8 and puts it back on her pressure gauge.
VALUES: 1 with arrow, 1, 2
She may use the effect of this district only at the end of the turn.
So she first drops the banker off on level 8 and takes the face-up passenger tile. Her action is finished, therefore she immediately evaluates the passenger transport. Since she transported the banker, she receives 1 vote point and moves her score marker 1 space further. She turns the passenger tile over and reveals the top tile of the stack.
With that her turn is finished and she may now carry out the last district effect. She may look at a face-down tile. In addition she increases the pressure by 2 and then turns both pressure stones without an arrow to the arrow side.
VALUES: 2 with arrow, 2 with arrow, 3 with arrow
-
Since Black has carried out the action "FLY TO ALL TARGETS", the shadow removes tiles: the passenger tile indicates that the face-up tile of level 2 and level 8 is removed from the game. Black has placed 2 parasites. She takes one of them back to use the activation effect of a removed tile. (She receives 1 crystal, since the activation effect was "Receive 1 crystal.", and stores it.) She leaves the other next to the stack. She returns the passenger tile to the box and reveals 1 new one. -
-
Black must leave the 3 red pressure stones on the game board. These block the districts just chosen for her next turns. -
Turn 6
Black begins her next turn by moving her pressure stones with an arrow.
VALUES: 4 with arrow, 5 with arrow, 6 with arrow
Now it is up to you - what should she do next?
Setup Aid
- Lay out 1 machine of each rank on the upper 7 city levels.
- Rank 0 face up; other ranks face down in ascending order to the right of it.
- 4 players: lay out additional machines on levels 2, 3 and 4.
- Lay out the bonus markers in descending order in 2 rows on level 1.
- Place the banker on level 6, the stoker on level 4. Reveal the top passenger tile.
Each player:
- Draw a random character tile (lowest number is starting player).
- Place the base pressure marker on the symbol at the far left of the pressure gauge.
- Place 3 pressure stones (without arrow) directly to the right of it (spaces 1, 1, 2).
- Draw and build in 1 starting machine and 1 capacity tile.
- Carry out the character effects.
Frequently Forgotten Rules
- When activating your machines as part of the "SET 1 TARGET" action: do not move the pressure stone back up, but place it directly on the game board. What lies above it on your pressure gauge does not matter. You can also place your pressure stone lower than its pressure value if you do not want to move it further to the left.
- You may forgo the effect of activated machines; parasites are nevertheless activated.
- You must take back all pressure stones when you carry out the action "FLY TO ALL TARGETS". You may, however, forgo carrying out the respective effects.
- You only have to turn a pressure stone with an arrow back if you carry out the district effect with the corresponding symbol.
- When buying tiles/bonus markers: pay the resources indicated in the corresponding row before you take the tile/marker. The VP symbol always means that you receive VP. For tiles you always pay the resources in the bottom row and additionally carry out the effects given in the corresponding row.
- Parasites on steam boilers are not activated by the action "MAKE STEAM".
- There is no separate scoring at the end of the game! You always receive VP immediately or at the end of your turn.