The Great Wall
The Great Wall Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Component List
- Setup
- Icons to Know
- Game Overview
- Tea Track
- Your General
- Advisor Cards
- Shame Tokens
- Overarching Rules
- Clerks and Location Types
- Advanced Activation
- Flow of the Game
- Defeated Hordes
- Killing Soldiers
- Breach
- Rest Zones
- Production Locations
- Overseers
- Locations
- The End of the Game
- 2 Player Mode
- Reed Clan Rules
- Solo Mode
- Introduction
- Setup
- Goal of the Game
- Qin Jiushao Card
- Qin Jiushao's Command Cards
- Solo Mode Rules of Thumb
- Playing Command Cards
- Moving Qin Jiushao's Clerks
- Qin Jiushao Location Activation
- Attacking & Wounding with Qin Jiushao's Soldiers
- Qin Jiushao as Overlord
- Other Rules
- Artifact Scoring
- Betrayal Command Card
- End of the Game
- Difficulty Level
- Co-op Mode
- Credits
- Index
Component List
1 Game Board
Miniatures (depending on your version, your game will contain meeples or miniatures):
- 32 Clerks (8 per Player)
- 40 Spearmen (10 per Player)
- 16 Archers (4 per Player)
- 8 Horsemen (2 per Player)
Cards:
- 24 Horde cards
- 24 Command cards (in 4 colors)
- 1 Reed Command card
- 20 Tactic cards
- 5 Artifact cards
- 44 Advisor cards
- 13 General cards
- 2 Reed Clan General cards
- 12 Event cards
- 12 Emperor's Request cards
- 24 Co-op Horde cards
- 8 Co-op General cards
- 12 Co-op Tactic cards
- 1 Solo General card
- 6 Solo Command cards
Others:
- 4 Player's Screens (1 per Player)
- 9 x Barricades
- 2 x Stickers Sheet
- 3 x 1st Wall level
- 3 x 2nd Wall level
- 3 x 3rd Wall level
Tokens:
- 4 Tea track markers (in 4 colors)
- 4 Honor markers (in 4 colors)
- 5 two-sided universal Honor tokens
- 50 x Wood tokens
- 50 x Stone tokens
- 50 x Gold tokens
- 50 x Chi tokens
- 30 x Wound markers
- 50 x Shame tokens
- 1 x two-sided Time Token
Setup
The following setup rules apply for a 3- or 4-player PVP game only. Remove the following components from the game:
- Remove the "Reed Clan" cards from the game, they are only used in a 2-player game.
- Remove the 'Teal Command cards' and the Solo General from the game – they are only used in a Solo game.
- Remove the cards (General, Horde, Event, Emperor's Request, and Tactic) depicting the Co-Op Symbol from the game – they are only used in a co-op game.
See page 15 if setting up for a 2-player game. To set up a Solo game, see pages 16 and 17. To set up a co-op game, see page 18. To set up a 3-4 player game… read on!
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Place the main board in the middle of the play area showing the player count (found on the Time track, in the top-left corner of the board).
- For a 3-player game: the 3-player side.
- For a 4- or 5-player game: the 4-player side. (Stretch Goals box is needed for a 5-player game.)
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Place the Time token on the Time track's spot that matches the player count, blank-side up. In a 2-player game, place it on the 3-player icon.
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Shuffle all Artifact cards, then place 1 face up randomly above each Artifact spot found in the top left corner of the board, for a total of 3. Return the rest to the box.
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Shuffle all Horde cards to create the Horde deck and place it face down above the Horde deck icon (at the top of the board).
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Place 1 Horde card, from the top of the Horde deck, face up in the bottom Horde spot of each Wall Section.
In a 4-player game only, add a 4th Horde card by doing the following: Draw the top card from the Horde deck, then place it face up in the Wall Section shown by the Invasion indicator on the top card of the Horde deck.
E.g., this indicator tells you to place the Horde card in the leftmost Wall Section, because the icon is in the leftmost box. Always place new Horde cards in the closest empty Horde spot to the Wall (i.e., the southern-most empty spot).
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Place 1 Barricade on each Barricade spot.
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Shuffle all Tactic cards together to create the Tactic deck; place it face down on its spot (in the right bottom half of the main board).
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Each player chooses a Clan and takes all components of that color: Depending on your version, your game will contain meeples or miniatures.
- 10 Spearmen
- 8 Clerks
- 4 Archers
- 2 Horsemen
- 1 Screen
- 1 Honor (points) marker
- 1 Tea marker
- 6 Command cards
Identify and collect all General and Advisor cards.
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Shuffle all General cards; deal 2 randomly face down to each player. Return the rest to the box.
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Shuffle all Advisor cards together to form the Advisor deck; place it face down near the main board's bottom right corner (there is no marked spot to place it).
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Deal 2 random face down Advisor cards to each player, from the top of the Advisor deck.
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Each player looks at the 4 cards they receive – then simultaneously – chooses 1 General to place in front of themselves face up; the remaining General is returned to the box.
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Each player chooses 1 Advisor to place face up, to the right of their General, as their Active Advisor.
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The remaining Advisor is placed face down, under their General card, as their Supporting Advisor, with the Supporting Advisor icon showing (shown here).
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Set up the supply of the following components nearby:
- Add 10 Shame tokens per player (return the rest to the box).
- Add all Wood, Stone, Gold, Chi, and Wound markers; and all Universal (cardboard) Honor tokens.
- Add all Walls, organized by level.
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The bottom of each General shows "Setup"; according to what is shown on a player's General:
- Each player takes the shown number of each resource, from the supply, and places them behind their screen.
- Each player draws the shown number of Tactic cards, from the top of the Tactic deck, adding them to their hand.
- The shown Tea value determines Tea order (ignore it until step 19 below).
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Deal 4 Advisors face up to create the Advisor display, from the top of the Advisor deck, 1 below each marked spot at the bottom of the main board.
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Each player places their Honor marker on the first space (showing a dragon) of the Honor (points) track, found along the outer-edge of the mainboard.
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Each player stacks their Tea marker on the Tea track space, according to the Tea value printed at the bottom of their General card. The markers are stacked in numerical order, with the highest Tea value at the top of the stack, and the lowest at the bottom.
E.g., if Blue, Red, and Yellow have Tea values as shown on their General cards, they stack their Tea markers as shown above.
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Each player places 3 of their Clerks on the Clerk space of the main board, found in the bottom-right corner, to the right of the Advisor Display.
That is the end of setup!
Icons to Know
- Wood
- Stone
- Gold
- Chi
- Wood, Stone, or Gold
- Any Resource
- Wood Overseer
- Stone Overseer
- Gold Overseer
- Chi Overseer
- Any Overseer
- Clerk
- Spearman
- Archer
- Horseman
- Soldier
- Honor
- Wound
- Shame Token
- Horde card
- Advisor card
- Supporting Advisor
- Tactic card
- Command card
- Tea
- Wall
- Defense value
- Offensive Power
- Barricade
- Player number
Game Overview
The game is played over a series of Years, each divided into four Seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Try to gain the most Honor (points) to win the game!
Spring and Summer are skipped during the first Year of the game!
Spring is a maintenance phase, where the Time track token advances, and new Horde and Advisor cards are placed.
During Summer, you can collect Resources from your Overseers, and pay to discard Shame tokens. You can also reclaim used Command cards, or gain Honor instead.
During Fall, you will play a Command card, move Clerks to and from Locations, and some Locations will Activate. There are 10 Locations, so a lot can potentially happen during Fall! You might attack Hordes, gain more Resources, or build up the Wall's defense (among other things). See pages 11-14 for details about all Location actions.
During Winter, Archers get a chance to finish off Hordes before they Breach your walls. At the end of Winter, the game may end: If any one (or more) of the following conditions are met:
- All 3 Walls are built to their 3rd level, (or 2 Walls, in a 2-or-3-player game).
- The Shame token pool is empty.
- The Time token is at the end of the Time track (i.e., it was moved to the last spot during the Spring of this year).
If none of the above conditions are met, the current Year ends, and a new one begins with Spring!
Next, some important concepts will be discussed that are relevant before you even take your first turn. (Other key concepts will be introduced as they become relevant during the Seasons.)
Tea Track
The Tea track represents the relationship between the Generals and the Emperor – it affects player order.
The stack of players' Tea markers is called the Tea order.
When any game effects involve more than one player (and player order is relevant and/or important to the players): Involved players perform their actions in Tea order, starting with the player at the top of the stack, then proceed down the stack.
E.g., as shown above, Blue goes first when they perform any action; then Red; then Yellow.
The Tea House (see page 14) allows you to manipulate the Tea order.
Draws/Ties
If there is a draw/tie for any effect, the advantage goes to the player who is higher on the Tea track.
Your General
Your General has a unique ability; its strength is determined by how many Supporting Advisors you have (shown here is the Supporting Advisor icon). I.e., it is based on how many Supporting Advisor ICONS you have showing.
For Example, if your General shows: "You gain 2 Honor for each Supporting Advisor you have." — with 2 Supporting Advisors, you'd gain 4 Honor.
Advisor Cards
Whenever you gain a new Advisor card, you must immediately – and permanently – choose to make it an Active Advisor or a Supporting Advisor.
A. Active Advisor:
- Place it face up to the right of your General. This is the only way to use its printed ability.
B. Supporting Advisor:
- Place it face down under your General, with the icon on its back visible.
Shame Tokens
You have disgraced the Emperor…
How to gain Shame tokens
A. For Each Horde who Breaches (page 8): If you have no Soldiers on it, gain 1 Shame token.
B. When a location showing this icon Activates: If you are the only player with Clerks placed there (any number), gain 1 Shame token.
Where to Place Them
When you get a Shame token, you must immediately place it in one of the following spots:
A. Under any Soldier in your available pool, that doesn't already have a Shame token.
- Soldiers with a Shame token cannot be used in any way.
- At the end of the game, you lose 5 Honor for each Soldier with a Shame token.
B. On a vacant Horde Shame spot. (The back side of a Horde card has 2 Shame spots.)
- Horde cards with 1 or 2 Shame tokens provide zero Honor at the end of the game.
When you gain a Shame token:
- If the Shame token pool is empty, you immediately lose 5 Honor (instead of taking a Shame token).
- If you cannot place it (under a Soldier or on a Horde), remove this Shame token from the game (return it to the box), and immediately lose 5 Honor.
Getting Rid of Shame
During Summer, you may discard 2 Chi to discard 1 Shame token (from anywhere, to the supply); you can do this any number of times.
"Remove": When you see this wording, the Shame token is always returned to the supply (except for a Raid, but this is detailed in the Raid Wall Section in Spring, so don't worry about forgetting this).
Overarching Rules
Privacy Concerns: Anything behind your Screen, and the cards in your hand, is private information. Everything else in the game is public to all players, including discarded Command cards.
Discarded Command cards: They are public information, so keep all Discard Command cards in a face-up and fanned-out pile at the top of the board so they can be easily seen by all players.
Soldier: Soldiers refer to any non-Clerk miniature/meeple.
Honor vs Points: Honor is the thematic name for the points you gain in this game.
Paying: You must have the required resources when you pay. Discard them to the supply.
Leaving Wounds: Any time a Soldier is removed from a Horde card (for any reason), place a Wound marker in the Vital spot it was occupying. (Ignore when a Horde is defeated.)
Resources: Resources are not limited; if you run out, use any suitable replacement.
Clerks and Location Types
For Activating Locations – see Fall, pages 8-9.
There are two types of Locations:
Regular Locations:
- Have Clerk spots that fit one Clerk each. (If there is no empty spot to place a Clerk, you can't place it at that location.)
- Regular Locations can only Activate if all of its spots are occupied by Clerks.
Special Locations:
- Have one big spot that any number of Clerks may be placed at.
- Special Locations can Activate if there is 1 or more Clerks placed there.
The Location's spots are graphically joined by Gold rope to remind you of this.
When instructed to move a Clerk (typically found on Command cards), you have two options:
- Take one from your pool, and place it in any Location on the board.
- Move one of your already-placed Clerks (those already placed at any location on the board), to another Location.
Exception: If all spots at a Regular location are occupied by Clerks (owned by any player), you cannot move a Clerk out of that location. (I.e., when a location is filled, it is 'locked-down'.)
Advanced Activation
A special Location Activation, found on the Despotism Command card, and more.
An Advanced Activation functions in the same way as a 'normal' Location activation (see 'Locations Activate' in Fall, pages 8-9), except for the following two changes:
- Shame tokens are not gained from a player being alone at the Location, (see 'Shame tokens: How to gain Shame tokens' above).
- Regular Locations may be chosen to Activate, even if all its Clerk slots are not filled. (Special Locations Activate as normal.)
Flow of the Game
Spring
Skip Spring during your first year!
During Spring, new barbaric hordes invade the fields in front of the Great Wall and prepare to launch an assault. Their Invasion occurs as follows:
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Advance Time track: Move the Time token to the next slot on the Time track.
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Place new Horde cards: Place a number of new Horde cards equal to the number above the Time token. E.g., here, you place 3 Horde cards.
When placing new Hordes, draw and place them one at a time, checking the following steps for each to determine where to place it. Horde cards are placed on the closest empty Horde space to the Wall.
a. First, fill from left to right, placing a Horde in each empty Wall Section (those containing 0 Horde cards).
b. When each Wall Section has 1 (or more) Horde cards, place the next Horde card according to the Invasion indicator shown at the top card of the Horde deck (not the card you are placing).
E.g., below, the indicator tells you to place the next Horde card in the leftmost Wall Section, because the icon is in the leftmost box.
Raid: If you are required to place a Horde card in a full Wall Section (that already contains 3 Horde cards), discard the Horde card instead, then immediately remove a number of Shame tokens equal to the number of players from the game (from the supply, to the box). If there isn't enough to remove, ignore the rest.
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Refresh Advisor display: Discard the 2 leftmost Advisor cards (in the display), slide the remaining 2 cards left, then place 2 new cards to the right of them (face up, from the top of the Advisor deck). (The board reminds you what to do.)
Summer
Skip Summer during your first year!
In Summer, prepare for the Assault and mobilize your forces.
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Overseer Income: For each of your Overseers, gain Resources, as indicated above their boxes. More on Overseers, see page 11. E.g., if you had an Overseer in this box, gain 2 Gold.
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Discard Shame tokens: Each player, in the Tea Order, may pay 2 Chi to discard 1 Shame token (from anywhere, to the supply); you can do this any number of times.
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Discard Command cards: Discard all Command cards on the Command track, to the discard pile in the top-right corner of the board (marked with the discard icon).
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Reclaim Command cards: In the Tea order, each player must choose one of the following options:
a. Take all of your own Command cards from the discard pile into your hand, or
b. Gain 2 Honor for each of your own Command card in the discard pile.
Note: The 'Betrayal' Command card stays in the discard pile permanently (see the 'Betrayal' card for more information).
Fall
Resolve Command cards, Activate Locations, and defeat Hordes!
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Choose the Command card: Each player chooses 1 Command card (from their hand) to place face down in front of themselves. After everyone has chosen, all cards are revealed simultaneously.
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Choose the Order: In the Tea order, each player places the card at an empty Command Track spot (located at the top-right edge of the main board). Cards are resolved one at a time, in numerical order, starting with the card at the '1' spot.
When playing a 4-player game, ignore the spot marked with the 5-player icon.
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Resolve Cards in Command Track Order: When your card is being resolved, you are considered the 'Active player', and it is considered 'your turn'.
When your card is being resolved, perform the following steps, in order:
A. Card Effects: From top to bottom, resolve each box's effect (on the Command card). Each box must be fully resolved before moving on to the next box – but all actions are optional!
Boxes with a 'dark background' are performed by the card's owner only. Boxes entitled 'Other Players' are performed by each other player in the Tea Order.
Example — the Despotism Command card: "Move up to 4 of your Clerks to any Locations. For each Economy card on the Command track, Move 2 additional Clerks." / "Other Players: Move up to 2 Clerks to any 2 Locations." / "You may perform an Advanced Activation in any 1 Location."
Many "Other Players" effects allow you to "Move 2 Clerks to 2 different Locations"; in these cases, the 2 Clerks cannot be moved to the same Location, but they may originate from the same or different Locations; and/or from your Clerk pool.
B. Activation step: After all effects on the card are resolved, check what Locations Activate now. The Active player chooses the order in which each Location Activates (regardless if they have any of their own Clerks at the Location).
Regular Locations Activate only if all of its spots are occupied by Clerks. They are graphically joined by Gold rope to remind you of this. Special Locations Activate if there is at least 1 Clerk placed there.
When a Location Activates — In the Tea order: Each player with any Clerks at the Location resolves its effects; after that, return all Clerks from the activated Location to their owner's pools. If you have more than one Clerk there, you resolve all of their combined effects at once. It doesn't matter if the Clerks were used or not, they still return. When a Location Activates, you may choose not to receive the Location's effect (for any reason), but you still must return those Clerks back to your pool afterwards.
If playing a 2-player game, the Reed Clan Clerks are not removed.
When a location showing the Shame icon Activates: If you are the only player with Clerks placed there (any number), gain 1 Shame token.
C. Defeat Hordes: Check which Horde cards are Defeated, one at a time, from left to right, one row at a time, starting with the bottom row closest to the Wall, then proceeding away from the wall. Perform all steps of Defeated Hordes (on the next page), then proceed to the Next Card step below.
D. Next Card: The next Command card in numerical order is resolved (go back to step A. Card Effects above).
If there are no more cards to resolve: Fall ends: proceed to Winter. Leave the Command cards on the Command track for now.
Winter
During Winter, the last layer of Defense is activated: Archers present on Firing spots shoot at incoming Hordes. Then, the Hordes try to assault the Walls.
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Firing phase:
a. Shooting step: Starting from the leftmost Wall Section, in the Tea order: Each Archer placed on a Firing spot must place one Wound marker on any Horde card in their Wall Section (if able).
b. Defeat Hordes: Perform all steps of Defeated Hordes (see page 10), then proceed to the Assault phase (below).
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Assault phase: Starting from the leftmost Wall Section, determine if each Wall holds, or the Horde Breaches:
- Defense Value: Start with the Wall's base defense, then add 2 for each Barricade built in that Section.
- Offensive Power: Add the Offensive Power of all Horde cards in this Wall Section together.
Remember to check the Hordes Abilities since they may affect this step.
For each Wall Section, Compare the total Wall Defense value with the total Offensive Power:
- If the Defense is equal to or greater, the Wall holds (nothing happens).
- If the total Offensive Power is greater, each Horde card in that Wall Section Breaches (see Breach page 10).
After all Wall Sections are resolved, discard all Barricades.
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End Game check. If any one (or more) of the following conditions are met, during the End of the Game check during Winter only, the game immediately ends (proceed directly to the End of the Game section).
- All 3 Walls are built to their 3rd level, (or 2 Walls, in a 2-or-3-player game).
- The Shame token pool is empty.
- The Time token is on the last slot of the Time track.
If none of the above conditions are met, the current Year ends, and a new one begins with Spring.
Clerks at Locations stay there and do not return to players until a Location Activates.
Defeated Hordes
Each Horde with all Vital spots covered (by Soldiers or Wounds) is Defeated. For each Defeated Horde, perform the following steps in order:
- Each player that has 1 (or more) Soldiers on the Horde gains 2 Honor.
- Each player gains 2 Honor for each of their Archers (on Firing spots) in the Horde's Wall Section.
- Check which player covers the most Vital spots (ignore Wounds, and Tea order breaks ties); they will take the Defeated Horde card and place it face down in front of their screen after Soldiers are Killed during the next step. If a Defeated Horde has zero Soldier on it, discard it during step 6 below instead (no one claims it).
- Kill Soldiers on the taken Horde card: See Killing Soldiers below. Regardless of how many Soldiers are Killed, the player who covered the most Vital spots before Soldiers are Killed takes the Horde card.
- Soldiers that are not Killed are moved to the Rest Zone of the Horde's Wall Section. Return any Wounds on the taken Horde to the supply.
- As checked during step 3 above, a player claims the Horde card.
- Move other Horde cards in this Wall Section (if any) closer to the wall.
Note: Hordes are Defeated only during Defeat Hordes steps in Fall and Winter, both found on page 9. I.e., a Horde is not automatically and immediately Defeated when all of its Vital spots are covered. Each Defeated Horde is considered a separate triggered event. This is relevant for Tactic cards, see page 14.
Killing Soldiers
A number of each player's Soldiers are Killed, equal to the Lethality, the number below the Time track token.
E.g. the Lethality number below Time track token shows "2", so each player must Kill 2 Soldiers.
- Killed Soldiers return to their owner's pool, unless you Save them, see below.
Saving Soldiers
Anytime a Soldier is Killed, you can pay 2 Chi to 'Save' that Soldier, moving it to the Rest Zone of the Wall Section it would have been Killed in.
Please note that Saved Soldiers are not considered as "Killed" for the sake of game mechanics and effects! Whenever Soldiers are Killed, they all die simultaneously (they are not separate instances among the different Horde cards). This means all Killed Soldiers (and possibly Archers) could all be Saved by a single (Boosted) "Withdrawal" Tactic card.
Breach
When a Wall Section is Breached by Hordes, perform the following steps in order:
- Gain Shame: Each player gains 1 Shame token for each Horde card in this Wall Section that they have zero Soldiers on.
- Kill Soldiers on each Horde card in this Wall Section: See Killing Soldiers on this page.
- Soldiers that are not Killed are left on the Horde.
- All Soldiers in a Breached Wall Section are Killed at once.
- Leave Wounds: Each Soldier removed from a Horde Card (for any reason, Killed or Saved), leaves Wound markers on the Vital spots they were removed from.
- Archers Die: All Archers on Firing spots in this Wall Section are Killed. (Soldiers in the Rest Zone of this Wall Section are unaffected.)
Rest Zones
Soldiers here are steady and waiting for attack orders. They are also safe from Breaches. Each Wall Section has its corresponding Rest Zone.
- Saved Soldiers are always placed in the Rest Zone of the respective Wall Section.
- Soldiers in the Rest Zones may be Moved to other Rest Zones (see Logistics Center, page 13).
- Soldiers may Attack from the Rest Zone, but only Hordes in the same Wall Section (Archers have to be placed in Firing spots first).
Production Locations
There are 4 Production Locations: each produces one type of resource (as shown at the Location).
- Lumber Mill – Produces Wood
- Quarry – Produces Stone
- Gold Mine – Produces Gold
- Temple – Produces Chi
When a Production Location is Activated: Each of the following steps are resolved in order, one at a time, each separately in the Tea order (e.g., all players Gather Resources in the Tea order first, then Upgrade in the Tea order, etc.). Each step must be fully resolved by all the players before going to the next.
- Gather Resources
- Upgrade Overseer (optional)
- Donate 1 Resource (optional)
1. Gather Resources
Gain 1 Resource, from the supply, for each of your Clerks at the Location.
- If you have an Overseer at the Location, gain additional Resources equal to the box your Overseer is in. For example, if you had an Overseer in this box, gain 2 additional Gold.
- If you have zero Clerks at a Location, you gain zero Resources at that Location, regardless if you have an Overseer there or not.
2. Upgrade Overseer (optional)
Only if you gain any Resources from the activated Location, you may Upgrade your Overseer once. If you don't have an Overseer at a Location, placing your first one there is still considered an 'Upgrade' (i.e., Upgraded from not having one).
If you don't have an Overseer at this Location:
- Pay 2 Resources (of the shown type 'pointing' into the leftmost Overseer box).
- Choose any Soldier (not a Clerk) from your pool, and place it in the leftmost Overseer box. This is still considered an 'Upgrade'.
E.g., at the Lumber Mill, you must pay 2 Chi to place your first Overseer.
If you have an Overseer at this Location:
- Pay the cost to move your Overseer to the next box to the right.
- The cost is shown to the right of your Overseer's current box (between the current box, and the box you are moving it to).
E.g., here the Yellow player must pay 3 Chi to Upgrade his Overseer (move him) to level 2.
3. Donate (optional)
Only if you gained any Resources from the activated Location, you may Donate once.
If you choose to Donate:
- Place one Resource (of the type you just received) in the Warehouse, then immediately gain 2 Honor.
See the 'Donate reminder' arrows (A) on the main board pointing to the Warehouse (B). Note that Chi cannot be Donated, as there is no 'Donate reminder' for it (always skip the Donate step at the Temple).
Overseers
Once you place a Soldier as an Overseer, it can never be removed.
- Each player can only have one Overseer at each Production Location.
- Overseer boxes can be shared by any number of player Overseers.
Overseer Level
If this term is referred to by any text, the level is equal to how many additional Resources it produces. E.g., an Overseer in this box is considered 'Level 2'.
What are Overseers Used For?
- During Summer, you gain Overseer Income: For each of your Overseers, gain Resources, as indicated above their boxes. E.g., if you had an Overseer in the box above, gain 2 Gold.
- Overseers allow you to gain additional Resources when Gathering Resources at Production Locations.
Locations
Barracks
Take Soldiers from your Pool and place them on the battlefield.
When this Location Activates, in the Tea order, you may Recruit 1 Soldier (of any type) for each Clerk you have here.
When you Recruit a Soldier, you must:
- Choose one Soldier from your pool (of any type) for each Clerk you have at this Location.
- Pay the cost for each chosen Soldier. (The cost is shown on the main board. E.g., one Archer costs 2 Chi and 1 Wood.)
- Any time you Recruit a Soldier, do the following with it:
- Immediately Attack with it (see Attack below), OR
- Place it in any Rest Zone (1 of 3 available).
Clarifications: If you have multiple Clerks here, Recruit all Soldiers at once: this means any 'Recruit bonus' you might have will only Activate once. Each Soldier you Recruit may Attack the same or different Hordes and/or be placed in the same or different Rest Zones. Each Recruited Soldier may be a different type.
Spearmen can only attack the closest Horde in their Wall Section (A). Horsemen can be placed on ANY Horde card in their Wall Section (B). Archers can place Wounds on any Horde(s) in their Wall Section! (C). Soldiers in a Rest Zone can only Attack Horde cards in their Wall Section, i.e., those in a column directly above.
Attack
A Horde card shows its Ability, its Offensive Power (bottom left) and its End-of-game Honor (bottom right).
To Attack with a Recruited Soldier, as a result of a Barracks action, do the following based on its type:
Spearmen:
- Place it on any unoccupied Vital spot on a Horde directly next to the Wall (those in the bottommost spot only).
- When you place a Spearmen on a vital spot immediately gain the Reward printed on the spot you covered.
Horsemen:
- Place it on 2 adjacent unoccupied Vital spots (not diagonally) on any Horde card.
- When you place a Horseman on vital spots immediately gain the Rewards printed on both spots you covered.
Archer:
- Place on any unoccupied Firing spot then immediately place 1 Wound marker on any unoccupied Vital spot on any Horde in their Wall Section. (Do not gain a reward for anything you cover with Wound markers, ever.)
Some effects outside of Recruit tell you to ATTACK. Soldiers Attack similarly to above, with the following limitations:
- Soldiers already on a Vital spot cannot Attack again, or be moved off the Vital spot.
- ONLY Soldiers in REST ZONES and Firing spots can Attack from the Attack keyword.
To Attack with a Soldier in a Rest Zone, do the following:
Spearmen:
- Place it on an unoccupied Vital spot only on the closest (in the first row) Horde card in their Wall Section only.
Horsemen:
- Place it on 2 adjacent unoccupied Vital spots (not diagonally) on any Horde card in their Wall Section.
Archer:
- Place on an unoccupied Firing spot in their Wall Section, then immediately place 1 Wound marker on any unoccupied Vital spot on any Horde in their Wall Section. (Do not gain a reward for anything you cover with Wound markers, ever.)
To Attack with an Archer already on a Firing spot:
- Place 1 Wound marker on any unoccupied Vital spot on any Horde in the Archer's Wall Section. Leave the Archer on the Firing spot. (Do not gain a reward for anything you cover with Wound markers, ever.)
Builders' Encampment
Build Walls and Barricades to defend against the Horde!
When this Location Activates, in the Tea order, you may perform one of the following options, for each Clerk you have here:
Build a Barricade
- Pay 2 Wood/Stone/Gold, in any combination, to: Place a Barricade on any empty Barricade spot, and gain 2 Honor.
Barricades: Temporary defensive constructs that add to the total Defense value of their Wall Section. Each Barricade adds 2 Defense to its Wall Section.
Build a Wall Level
- Choose any empty Wall Area, or a level-1 or -2 Wall to build on (they show a cost).
- Pay the shown cost, in any combination of Wood, Stone, and Gold.
- Gain Honor equal to the cost.
- Place the next consecutive level of Wall on top.
(E.g., the order of building a Wall is: Empty Wall Area, Level-1 Wall, Level-2 Wall, then Level-3 Wall on top.)
When paying for Walls and Barricades: Resources in the Warehouse must be used first; then, if needed, pay the rest from your supply.
Clarifications: If you have multiple Clerks here, perform all your options simultaneously. Barricades/Walls may go to the same or different Wall areas. You may choose the same option more than once. If a Wall is placed on top of Archers, simply move the Archers on top of the new Wall (with no additional effect).
Logistics Center
Move Soldiers… Without Attacking.
When this Location Activates, in the Tea order, you may perform the following action once, for each Clerk you have here:
Move Soldiers
- Choose one Wall Section.
- Move any number of your Soldiers from that Wall Section's Firing spots and/or Rest Zone to one other Wall Section (including both its Firing spots and/or Rest Zone). This does not allow Attacking.
Please note the following Archer limitations:
- Archers from a Firing spot: May be moved to empty Firing spots and/or the Rest Zone – in any combination – and they do not place any Wounds.
- Archers from a Rest Zone: Cannot be moved to Firing spots (only to the Rest Zone).
Rest Zones are directly below the Wall placement spot. For example, if moving from the left Wall Section to the right: The Archer on the Firing spot may move to the empty Firing space or the Rest Zone. The Archer and Spearman in the Rest Zone may only be moved to the Rest Zone (from a Rest Zone to a Rest Zone only).
Clarifications: Only Archers can be placed on Firing spots. You cannot interact with Horde cards in any way when moving Soldiers: this is not considered a 'Recruit' or 'Attack'. If you have multiple Clerks here, you may move Soldiers that were already moved this turn.
The Tea House
Change the order actions happen in!
If you have any Clerks at this Location when it Activates, in the Tea order, do the following:
- Move your Tea marker up once (directly above the Tea marker above your marker).
For example, starting with the Tea stack shown above on the Tea House: Red moves their marker first, moving it above Yellow's marker. After, Blue (because they were below Red in the Tea order initially) moves their marker above Yellow's marker.
- If all Clerk spots are occupied by the same player: Instead, that player places their Tea marker directly on the top of the stack.
- If a player's Tea marker is on the top of the stack, their Clerks have no effect. This is because they Activate the Location first, because they are at the top of the Tea Stack, and there is no place to move their Tea marker at that point in turn order. They still return their Clerks to their pool, despite receiving no effect.
The Emperor's Embassy
Gain new Clerks and Advisors.
When this Location Activates, in the Tea order, you may perform one of the following options, for each Clerk you have here:
Hire a Clerk
- Pay 2 Gold to take a Clerk (from the supply) and add it to your pool.
Hire an Advisor
- Pay Gold equal to the total number of Advisors (both Active and Supporting) you have after hiring this one. E.g., to hire your third Advisor, you pay 3 Gold.
- Take any 1 Advisor card, from those on display face up below the main board, then immediately place it as an Active or Supporting Advisor (see page 6).
- Immediately when each Advisor is taken from the display, the remaining Advisors are shifted to the left to fill any empty spaces, and a new Advisor card is drawn from the Advisor deck to fill the empty slot.
Clarifications: If you have multiple Clerks here, perform all your options one at a time, individually, in a row. There is no limit of Advisors (both Active and Supporting) that a player may possess. If buying multiple Advisors, refill the display after each purchase.
War Academy
Gain Tactic cards.
When this Location Activates, in the Tea order, draw 1 Tactic card (from the top of the Tactic deck), for each Clerk you have here.
Clarifications: If you go to draw a card from an empty deck; first, reshuffle the discard pile to form a new deck; then, continue drawing as normal. You have a hand limit of 5 Tactic cards – when you gain any beyond that, choose any Tactic card from your hand to discard until you have no more than 5.
Tactic Cards
Each Tactic card states when you can play it, and you can play Tactic cards during any player's turn.
When you play a Tactic card, you choose one box to gain the benefit from (you can never receive both). If you choose the "Boosted Effect" box, you must pay the cost, or you cannot choose that box.
Each player can play one Tactic card per 'triggered event'.
- During a Breach, each Wall Section – all Hordes and Soldiers in the entire single Wall Section – all die simultaneously as a single triggered event (they are not separate instances among the different Horde cards in that Wall Section). This means that all Killed Soldiers in that Wall Section (and possibly Archers) could all be Saved by a single (Boosted) "Withdrawal" Tactic card.
- When Defeating Hordes (page 9, 10), each Defeated Horde is considered a separate triggered event. Thus, each single Horde is Defeated as it's own triggered event, and all Soldiers that are Killed on each single Horde count as its own triggered event.
The End of the Game
If during the End of Game check (during Winter, on page 9), any one (or more) of the following conditions are met, the game ends:
- All 3 Walls are built to their 3rd level, (or 2 Walls, in a 2-or-3-player game).
- The Shame token pool is empty.
- The Time token is on the last slot of the Time track.
Final Scoring
To calculate your final Honor (points), perform the following steps, in order:
- Lose 5 Honor for each Soldier you have with a Shame token under it. You can never go below 0 Honor this way. If you should, just leave your Honor marker at "0".
- Gain Honor for each Horde card you've gained that has no Shame tokens on it.
- Calculate and gain Honor according to the 3 Artifacts.
The player with the most Honor is deemed the greatest General that has ever lived! If there is a draw, the Tea order determines the winner.
2 Player Mode
For the additional rules required for a 2-player game, see Reed Clan rules next. In a 2–player game, a third, AI controlled faction – the Reed Clan – is introduced. The 2–player mode can be used either with the 'standard' or Co–op mode.
- When playing with only 2 players, consider it as a standard 3–player game (with the Reed Clan as the third player) and perform setup with the following changes:
Setup
- Place the board in the middle of the play area with the 3-player side face up. Place a Barricade in each Horde slot of the leftmost Wall Section. This Section will not be used in the 2–player game. These Barricades are never removed from the board.
- Remove all Horde cards with the leftmost Wall Section on their back from the game. Use the remaining cards to create the Horde deck.
- Draw 1 Horde card for each of the 2 available Wall Sections.
- Place 6 Barricades, one in each Barricade slot of the 2 available Wall Sections.
- Each player chooses a Clan and receives its associated colored components as normal.
- Additionally, take the Reed Clan Command card and General card, and place them face up between you and your opponent.
- Assign the Tea marker, 3 Clerks and all Spearmen from any unused Clan to the Reed Clan. Put the rest of the components from this unused Clan to the box – they won't be used in this game.
- Place 1 Reed Clan Clerk in each of the 3 following Locations: Lumber Mill, Quarry, and Gold Mine.
- Only use 20 Shame tokens in total.
- Stack the players Tea stack markers as normal, but put the Reed Clan at the bottom.
Reed Clan Rules
The Reed Clan never:
- Gains or keeps track of Honor, Shame tokens, Horde cards, or Resources (Resources they gain automatically go to the Warehouse).
- Saves its Soldiers from death.
- Places Soldiers in Rest Zones. If you are instructed to do so, return them to the Reed Clan's pool instead.
- Gains or Looses their Clerks (they keep 3 the entire game).
General Location Rules
- If a Reed Clan Clerk is the only Clerk on a Special Location, this Location does not Activate.
- After a Location with a Reed Clerk is Activated, the players remove their Clerks as normal, but the Reed Clan Clerk is not removed (and stays in the Location).
- The Betrayal card cannot be used to copy the Reed Clan Command card.
Command and Clerk Rules
- The Reed Clan has only 1 Command card and plays it every Fall.
- When higher than the players on the Tea track, the Reed Clan Command card is always played to the first available slot on the Command track (closest to activating first as possible).
- The highest player in the Tea order is considered the Overlord, and they 'control' the Reed Clan's actions. During Reed Clan's turn, the player higher on the Tea track becomes the Overlord.
- Reed Clan Clerks are Moved as normal, in the Tea order, by the Overlord, but there can never be more than 1 Reed Clan Clerk in a single Location.
- If a player uses the "Betrayal" card, they cannot copy the effect of the Reed Clan's card.
Specific Location Rules
When a Location Activates, the Overlord (the highest player in the Tea order) resolves the effects of any Reed Clan Clerk placed there:
Lumber Mill, Quarry, and Gold Mine:
- The Reed Clan Donates 1 unit of the Resource they just acquired to the Warehouse.
Temple
- The Active player discards 1 of their own Shame tokens (no effect if the Active player has no Shame tokens, or if the Reed clan is the Active player).
Emperor's Embassy
- The Overlord discards any 1 Advisor from the Advisor track. Slide the remaining cards left and refill as normal.
Builders' Encampment
- The Reed Clan builds 1 Barricade for free. The Overlord places it in any unoccupied Barricade space.
Barracks
- The Reed Clan Recruits 1 Spearman. The Overlord chooses any legal Vital spot to Attack with this Spearman. If there are no legal Vital spots, the Spearman is returned to its pool with no effect. Ignore what the Spearman covers.
War Academy and Logistics Center
- No effect.
Solo Mode
Introduction
Important: Before playing with the solo mode, you should get familiar with the 2–player rules, as the Reed Clan is also used in the solo mode.
The solo mode adds Qin Jiushao, a new, AI controlled General to the game. The solo mode can only be used with the standard game.
Setup
Set up the game as normal, except for the following changes:
-
Place the board in the middle of the play area with the 3-player side face up.
a. Place a Barricade on each Horde slot of the leftmost Wall Section. This Section will not be used in the solo game. These Barricades are not removed at the end of Winter.
-
Remove all Horde cards with the leftmost Wall Section on their back from the game. Use the remaining cards to create the Horde deck.
-
Draw 1 Horde card for each of the 2 available Wall Sections.
-
Place 6 Barricades, one in each Barricade slot of the 2 available Wall Sections.
-
Choose a Clan and receive its associated colored components as normal. Assign the components from 1 unused Clan to the Reed Clan, as described in the 2–player game. Additionally, assign the components of 1 other unused Clan to Qin Jiushao – 8 Clerks, all Soldiers, a Tea marker, an Honor marker, and 6 Solo Command cards.
a. Shuffle the Solo Command cards to create a Solo Command deck and place it next to Qin Jiushao's components.
b. Take 2 Horsemen and 2 Spearmen from the Qin Jiushao's pool and place them as level 1 Overseers in each Production Location.
-
Shuffle all General cards, and take 2 random General cards.
a. Place the Qin Jiushao (Solo mode General) card next to his associated components.
b. Take 1 unit of each Resource and 1 Wound marker. Place them randomly in the slots of the Location track of the Qin Jiushao card – 1 token per slot.
-
Shuffle all Advisor cards and take 2 random Advisor cards.
a. Place 2 random Advisor cards beneath the Qin Jiushao card – these are the first Supporting Advisors of Qin Jiushao.
-
Prepare a Shame token pool consisting of 10 Shame tokens.
-
Place the Qin Jiushao's Honor marker on the '0' space of the Honor track, next to yours.
-
You always start on the top of the Tea track. The second player is always Qin Jiushao and the Reed Clan is the last.
-
Place 3 of your Clerks in the Clerk space of the board. Additionally, place 1 Reed Clan Clerk in each of the 3 following Locations: Lumber Mill, Quarry, and Gold Mine.
Goal of the Game
The goal of the game is to beat the AI opponent through Honor, as in a standard game.
Qin Jiushao Card
The Location track – Qin Jiushao does not gather any Resources. Instead, the Location track on Qin Jiushao's General card is used to indicate the level of each of his Resources (the leftmost space indicating the highest possible level). Each Resource on the track lists a corresponding Location producing that Resource.
Qin Jiushao always tries to gather the lowest (rightmost) Resource on the Location track, so he will send his Clerks to the Location producing that Resource. The Wound marker is linked to the Barracks. When the Wound marker is in the lowest space of the track, Qin Jiushao sends his Clerks to the Barracks.
After a Location containing 1 or more Clerks of Qin Jiushao Activates, move the corresponding token to the highest slot of the Location track. Slide the other tokens one space to the right. Each space of the Location track may never hold more than 1 token.
Qin Jiushao's Command Cards
Though they bear the same name as the standard cards, the Qin Jiushao's Command cards have new, different effects, so be sure to pay attention to them. The player still benefits from any bonus provided by the Qin Jiushao cards on the Command track (for instance, if Qin Jiushao played Economy and the player chose Despotism, the player gets to move 2 additional Clerks).
Solo Mode Rules of Thumb
- Qin Jiushao never gets any Shame tokens.
- Qin Jiushao does not use Active Advisors.
- Qin Jiushao never Saves his Soldiers nor leaves them in the Rest Zones. When any of his Soldiers are Killed, or when a Horde card containing his Soldiers is Defeated, all discarded Soldiers are placed back in Qin Jiushao's pool.
- Qin Jiushao never uses his own Resources. Therefore, he cannot pay to Upgrade Overseers, hire Advisors, build Walls and Barricades, or recruit Soldiers (these are summarized on his card). Note that he can use Resources from the Warehouse to build Walls.
- Qin Jiushao gets Honor as a normal player from each possible source. However, there are some exceptions to this rule, described in further sections.
- When Qin Jiushao builds a Wall, he chooses the Wall Section shown by the current Invasion Indicator. If that Wall Section is fully built, then he builds a Wall on the other Section. Resources from the Warehouse are discarded as normal, and Qin Jiushao gets Honor.
Playing Command Cards
Each Fall, the player chooses their Command card as normal. Then, draw the topmost card from the Qin Jiushao's Command deck – this will be the card played by Qin Jiushao this Fall. Qin Jiushao, as the Reed Clan, always fills the first possible slot on the Command track.
Moving Qin Jiushao's Clerks
Qin Jiushao Moves his Clerks according to the effect of his Command card. When Moving Clerks during the player's or Reed Clan's turn, Qin Jiushao Moves 2 of his Clerks to the 2 different Locations producing the lowest Resources on the Location track. If a Clerk cannot be Moved to the chosen Location (because it's already full, for instance), it Moves to the next Location in order, according to the Location track.
If all the Qin Jiushao's Clerks are already on the board, Move a Clerk from the highest possible Location on the Track to the destined Location.
Qin Jiushao never sends his Clerks to any other Location than Production Locations and Barracks.
Qin Jiushao Location Activation
When a Production Location containing one or more Qin Jiushao's Clerks Activates, Qin Jiushao gets Honor equal to the Location's Overseer level for each of his placed Clerks (For example, when a Production Location containing 2 Qin Jiushao's Clerks and a level 2 Overseer is Activated, Qin Jiushao gets 4 Honor). Qin Jiushao never Donates any Resources.
When the Barracks are Activated, Qin Jiushao Recruits 1 Spearman for each of his Clerks in that Location.
After a Location has been Activated, move the corresponding token to the highest space of the Location track. Slide the other tokens one space to the right.
When Activating Locations during his turn, Qin Jiushao always Activates Locations with his Clerks on them first – in the order indicated on the Location track – from the highest to the lowest. The order of Activating all other Locations is up to the player.
If Qin Jiushao has more than 1 viable Location for Activation (for instance, due to the effect of the Qin Jiushao's Despotism card), he Activates the highest possible Location. (To clarify, he sends Clerks to Locations from lowest to highest, but Activates Locations from highest to lowest.)
Attacking & Wounding with Qin Jiushao's Soldiers
When Qin Jiushao Recruits a Soldier, he always Attacks the Horde on the Wall Section pointed by the current Invasion indicator, if possible. If the Spearman cannot Attack any Horde on the indicated Wall Section, it is sent to the other Wall Section. If the Spearman cannot Attack on the second Wall Section, it is not Recruited. Archers: they are placed in a Firing spot on the Wall Section pointed by the current Invasion indicator. If it is not possible, the Archer is not Recruited.
When Wounding, Qin Jiushao always targets the Horde card closest to the Wall. Vital spots are covered from top to bottom and from left to right. Qin Jiushao gets 2 Honor for each Wound dealt, regardless of the spot's reward, or if the Wound is dealt by a Spearman or an Archer.
Qin Jiushao as Overlord
When Qin Jiushao becomes the Reed Clan's Overlord (either by being the Active player or by being higher on the Tea track than the human player), he basically follows the rules applying to his own Clerks and Soldiers.
When Moving Reed Clan Clerks, Qin Jiushao attempts to place them in the lowest possible Locations. First, he Moves Reed Clan Clerks from all the Locations he does not use himself. If it is not possible, he chooses Reed Clan Clerks in higher Locations and Moves them to lower Locations.
When Qin Jiushao is the Overlord, the Reed Clan Soldiers Attack following the rules of the Qin Jiushao Soldiers. Important: Qin Jiushao never gets any benefits from Reed Clan actions!
Other Rules
Refreshing the Advisor track: during step 3 in Spring, instead of discarding the 2 leftmost Advisors, place any 1 of them under the Qin Jiushao card as a Supporting Advisor and discard the other (for a more difficult game, place both under).
Artifact Scoring
At the end of the game, Qin Jiushao always gets 20 Honor for each Artifact card.
Betrayal Command Card
When you play the Betrayal card, you can copy the Qin Jiushao's Command card, but its effects should be resolved by using the player Command card with the same name!
End of the Game
Endgame conditions are the same as in the standard game, with one exception: if the Shame token pool is empty, the game ends and the player loses.
At the end of the game, perform the Final Honor Scoring as in the standard game. If the player has more Honor than Qin Jiushao, they are considered the winner.
Difficulty Level
Players seeking an additional challenge may place the Qin Jiushao Honor marker in the "50" space of the Honor track during setup. For a greater challenge, give a universal Honor token on the 100H side to Qin Jiushao.
Co-op Mode
Goal of the Game
The objective of the game is to fulfil a number of Emperor's Requests, depending on the number of players:
- 6 Requests for a 2–player game
- 7 Requests for a 3–player game
- 9 Requests for a 4–player game
- 9 Requests for a 5–player game
Changes in the Setup
Set up the game as normal, except for the following changes:
- The Time token should be placed with its +1 side up. (This reminds you to place 1 additional Horde during Spring each year.)
- Artifact cards are not used, leave them in the box. Shuffle the Emperor's Request cards and place them face down as a deck near the board. Draw 3 cards and place 1 on each of the Artifact card slots.
- Standard Horde cards are not used, leave them in the box. Shuffle the co–op Horde cards and place them face down as the Horde deck, dedicated to the Co–op mode.
- Draw a number of Horde cards equal to the number of players + 1, and place them on the Wall Sections as normal.
- Shuffle the Co–op Tactic cards with the regular ones to create the Tactic deck, then place it face down in the Tactic deck slot on the board.
- Shuffle the Co–op General cards with the regular ones, then deal 2 cards to each player as normal.
- (New Step) Shuffle all co–op Event cards to create the Event deck, then place it face down near the board.
Emperor's Requests
In Co–op mode, the Emperor's Request cards provide objectives that the players must fulfill to win the game. Active Emperor's Request cards are placed face up in the Artifact slots of the board. Note: You may never have more than 3 active Request cards at any time.
Each Year, right before the End Game check, players may fulfil Requests. For example, if the Request card requires sacrificing Soldiers or discarding Resources, you may only do it at this time (not earlier in the Year).
If a Request requires all players to Sacrifice something, all players need to do it at the same time, and must each fulfil the requirements on their own (you can't share Resources or Kill a Soldier for your partner). When you fulfil all the requirements of an Emperor's Request card, discard it. Payments cannot be delayed or carried over through the Years: a requirement must be fully paid in one single instalment.
Sacrifice
Sacrifice is a unique action, bound to fulfilling Emperor's Requests. To Sacrifice means 'remove from the game'. Sacrificed components do not take part in the game anymore.
Request Step
The Request step takes place at the very end of each Year, during Winter, right before you reveal a new Event card.
Each player gets 1 Shame token for each Emperor's Request still on the board, then place new Emperor's Request cards face up in all empty Artifact slots.
Unresolved Emperor's Requests remain on the board until they are fulfilled or the game ends.
Events
Event cards generate random effects that alter the game. Just after the Request step at the end of each Year, during Winter, reveal a new Event and resolve its effects. Events provide a mix of one–time and passive effects.
Passive effects from Event cards are never discarded, they remain active until the end of the game!
Event Step
Each Year, at the end of Winter (after the Request step), reveal 1 Event card.
- If the Event card has an immediate effect, resolve it straightaway.
- The Event card's passive effect persists throughout the game.
Event cards are not discarded. Place them next to each other, so their effects are always visible.
Special Rules
Command Cards
Like in the standard game, Command cards are chosen in secret and revealed at once. However, once they are revealed, the players may devise strategies together and discuss freely about the card order on the Command track.
Tea Track
Clerk actions are no longer mandated by the Tea track. The players decide collectively of their order. However, the Tea order still applies when a Horde is Defeated: if two or more players have covered the same number of Vital spots, the Horde card is claimed by the highest player on the Tea track.
Shame Tokens
In Co–op mode, players cannot spend Chi to discard Shame tokens during Summer. Instead, a player may choose to lose 10 Honor to discard a Shame token. This may be done at specific times:
- Immediately when you receive a Shame token.
- During Summer, as normal.
Shame tokens in Co-op mode cannot be placed in Horde card Shame slots.
No Reclaiming Cards
The "Reclaim Command cards" step in the Summer is no longer present; players may Reclaim their Command cards only when building Walls.
Building a Wall
When a player builds a part of the Wall, they can Reclaim 1 of their Command cards from the discard pile.
Additional Horde Cards
During Spring, when placing Horde cards, place 1 more card than the number indicated on the Time track. The +1 side of the Time token acts as a reminder for this rule.
Gaining Honor from Hordes
The player who gained a Horde card gains Honor immediately from Hordes (instead of at the end of the game).
2-Player Rules
During the setup prepare the Emperor's Request deck. Remove Taunt them and prevail, Warriors for Emperor's guard, Glory belongs to the Emperor, Royal escort for Emperor's officials cards to the box. Also draw 2 Requests instead of 3. The third slot will not be used.
Flow of the Game in Co-op Mode
Winter
- Firing phase
- Assault phase
- Request fulfillment step
- End game check
- Emperor's Request step
- Event step
There are no changes to the flow of Spring, Summer and Fall.
The End of the Game (Co-op)
To win the game, the specific number of Emperor's Requests, according to the number of players, must be fulfilled. If this condition is met during the End Game check, the players win. The end–game condition with building Walls, does not apply in the Co–op mode. Whenever a player should get a Shame token and there is none left in the pool, all players IMMEDIATELY lose the game. Additionally, players lose the game if the game ends because the Time token ends up on the last slot of the Time track.
Credits
Game design: Kamil 'Sanex' Cieśla, Robert Plesowicz, and Łukasz Włodarczyk
Art direction: Marcin Świerkot
Tests and Development Lead: Ernest Kiedrowicz
Tests and Development: Krzysztof Belczyk, Bartłomiej Kalisz, Adrian Krawczyk, Łukasz Krawiec, Michał Lach, Paweł Samborski, Jan Truchanowicz
Rulebook: Hervé Daubet, Łukasz Krawiec
Writing: Andrzej Betkiewicz
Proofreading: Hervé Daubet, Jonathan Bobal with the invaluable help of our backers.
Graphic design: Jędrzej Cieślak, Rafał Janiszewski, Adrian Radziun, Jan Truchanowicz
Illustrations: Jakub Dzikowski, Piotr Foksowicz, Patryk Jędraszek, Ewa Labak, Anna Myrcha, Piotr Orleański, Michał Peitsch, Krzysztof Piasek, Pamela Łuniewska
3D Graphics: Jędrzej Chomicki, Piotr Gacek, Mateusz Modzelewski, Jakub Ziółkowski
Production lead: Michał Matłosz, Dawid Przybyła
Rulebook 2.0:
Writing: Jonathan J. Bobal, Wojciech Frelich, Ernest Kiedrowicz
Graphic Design: Jonathan J. Bobal, Patrycja Marzec
Proofreading: Justin Nnorom
Index
General Rulebook Structure:
- Components List, 2
- Components removed for a 3 or 4 player game, 3
- Competitive 3 or 4 player Mode Setup, 4, 5
- Overview and basic concepts to start with, 6, 7
- Flow of the Game, 8, 9, 10, 11
- Spring, 8
- Summer, 8
- Fall, 8, 9
- Winter, 9
- Locations, 12, 13, 14
- End of game, 15
- 2 Player Mode, 15
- Solo Mode, 16, 17
- Co-op Mode, 18, 19
Terms:
- Active player, 8
- Activation step, 9
- Advisor Card, 6, 8, 14, 17
- Active Advisor, 6
- Gain/hire an Advisor, 14
- Refresh Advisor display, 8, 17
- Supporting Advisor, 6
- Archer, 9, 12, 13
- Attack, 12
- Firing Spot, 9, 12
- Moving, 13
- Artifact Cards, 15
- Assault phase, 9
- Calculate Offensive Power and Defense values, 9
- Resolve Assault, 9
- Barricade, 4, 9, 13
- Barricade spots, 4
- Build a Barricade, 13
- Defense value, 9
- Discard all Barricades, 9
- Paying for Barricades, 13
- Breach, 10
- Clerk, 5, 6, 7, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14
- Emperor's Embassy exception, 14
- Gather Resources, 11
- Hire, 14
- in Locations, 7
- Move, 6, 7
- Pool, 7
- Command card, 8
- Donate, 11
- Emperor's Requests, 18
- End game check, 9
- Events, 18
- Firing phase, 9
- Gather (i.e., gain) Resources, 11
- General, 5, 6
- Special ability, 6
- Starting Resources and Tactics cards, 5
- Starting Tea value, 5
- Honor, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15
- Final Honor Scoring, 12, 15
- from Artifact, 15
- from Attack, 12
- from Building a Barricade, 13
- from Building a part of the Wall, 13
- from Defeating Hordes, 10
- from discarded Command card, 8
- from Donate, 11
- from Horde card, 12
- from Shame Tokens, 7
- Horde Card, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 15, 16, 17
- Ability, 12
- Breaching, 9, 10
- Defeat Hordes, 8, 9, 10
- Honor, 10, 12, 15
- Killed Soldiers, 10
- Offensive power, 9
- Place new Horde cards, 8
- Power, 12
- Rewards, 12, 17
- Saving Soldiers, 10
- Shame, 7
- Vital spots, 10, 12
- Wounds, 7, 9
- Horseman, 12
- Invasion, 8
- Invasion indicator, 4, 8
- Kill, 10
- Lethality, 10
- Locations, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14
- Activating Locations, 7, 8, 9
- Barracks, Recruit Soldiers and Attack, 12
- Builder's Encampment, Build Walls and Barricades, 13
- Emperor's Embassy, Gain Clerks and Advisors, 14
- Gain Resources, 11
- Logistics Center, Move Soldiers with NO Attack, 13
- Moving Clerks to, 7, 9
- Production Locations for Wood, Stone, Gold, Chi, 11
- Regular and Special, 9
- Tea House, Change player order, 14
- War Academy, Gain Tactic cards, 14
- Overlord, 15, 17
- Overseer, 8, 11
- Income, 8, 11
- Level, 11
- Upgrade, 11
- Offensive power, 9, 12
- Qin Jiushao, 16, 17
- Raid, 7, 8
- Rest Zone, 10, 12, 13
- Request step, 18
- Resources, 11
- Production Locations for Wood, Stone, Gold, Chi, 11
- Reed Clan, 9, 15, 16, 17
- Starting Resources, 5
- Sacrifice, 18
- Shame, 7
- Soldier, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18
- Archer, 9, 12, 13
- As an Overseer, 11
- Attack, 12
- Cover vital spots, 10
- Final Scoring, 15
- Is not a Clerk, 7
- Killed, 10
- Move, 13
- Recruit, 12
- Saved, 10
- When removed leaves a wound, 7
- Saving, 10
- Spearman, 12
- Tactic Cards, 10, 14
- Tea Track, 6, 14
- Time track, 8, 9
- Advance Time track, 8
- Game end, 9
- Vital spot, 10
- Wall, 12, 13, 15
- Build a part of the Wall, 13
- Game end, 15
- Sections, 12
- Wound, 7, 9, 10, 12
- Archer, 9, 12
- Attack, 12
- Breach, 10
- Firing phase, 9
- Leaving wounds, 7, 10