The Second Round of Through the Ages

Ever since it was first introduced, Through the Ages has captivated players around the world. Its unique combination of strategy, history, and civilization-building has made it a beloved classic. And now, with the release of the second edition, the game is better than ever.

So, what sets the second edition of Through the Ages apart? Let me tell you. One of the key improvements is the streamlined rulebook. The rules are now clearer and easier to understand, making it easier for beginners to get into the game. But don’t worry, the depth and complexity that veterans love are still there.

Another great addition is the updated artwork and components. The beautiful illustrations bring the game to life and add to the immersive experience. The new components are also of higher quality, ensuring that your game will last for years to come.

But perhaps the biggest improvement is the rebalanced cards and civilizations. The second edition has taken player feedback into account and made changes to ensure a more balanced and enjoyable experience. Every civilization and card has been carefully fine-tuned to create a more strategic and dynamic game.

And if you enjoyed the first edition, then you’ll love the new content that the second edition brings. It includes new leaders, wonders, and military cards that add even more variety and replayability to the game.

So, if you’re looking for a game that combines depth, strategy, and history, then Through the Ages is the game for you. The second edition improves on an already fantastic game, making it even better. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to experience this classic.

When it’s time for my second turn, there’s a lot to consider. The rules are the same as they will be for all my future turns, but since I don’t have any military cards yet, I have some limitations.

• Replenish the card row.
• Use my civil and military actions during my Action Phase.
• Complete the End-of-Turn Sequence.

Replenishing The Card Row

In the first round, no one needs to replenish the card row. But in every other round, this is how each player starts their turn.

After the first round, I begin my turn by replenishing the card row:

• Remove the specified cards from the front of the card row.
• Slide the remaining cards to the left.
• Deal new civil cards to the empty spaces.

Getting Rid of Cards

To start our game, we need to remove some cards. The amount of cards we remove is based on how many players are participating. You can find this information above the three spaces on the left side.

In a game with two players, I should remove the cards in the first three spaces. For a game with three players, I must remove the cards in the first two spaces. And when playing with four players, I only need to remove the card in the first space.

It’s worth mentioning that you may encounter empty spaces if the previous player has already taken a card from there. If that’s the case, you won’t have to remove a different card to fill the space.

Once a card is removed, it doesn’t return to the game. To keep things organized, you can store discarded civil cards separately to avoid accidentally mixing them back in.

Now, let’s move on to slide cards.

So here’s the deal, I’ve got this row of cards and there are some empty spaces in between them. What we need to do is slide each card through those empty spaces, but only towards the left. And guess what? By the time we’re done, all those empty spaces will end up on the far right, nice and tidy. The order of the cards won’t change though. You see, the cards will always move from the more expensive spaces to the less expensive ones.

Get Ready for New Cards!

Guess what? There are some empty spots waiting for new cards in the card row! But worry not, because I’ve got just the solution for you. All you need to do is deal a fresh card from the current civil deck to each of those empty spaces on the right. See, it’s as simple as that! Once you’ve finished this task, each and every space in the card row will be occupied by a shiny, new card. How exciting is that?

The End of Age A

When I refill the row of cards for the first time, I get them from the Age A civil deck. (If, somehow, I run out of Age A civil cards, I fill the empty spaces by dealing from the Age I civil deck.)

Once I refill the card row for the first time, Age A comes to an end, and Age I begins.

I put the remaining Age A civil deck in the box. Then, I shuffle the Age I civil deck and place it on the lighter side of the current age board. From now on, the card row will be filled with Age I civil cards.

Next, I shuffle the Age I military deck and put it on the darker side of the current age board. During my End-of-Turn Sequence, I will be able to draw cards from this deck.

When Age A comes to a close, the only task left is to place Age I decks on the current age board. However, Age I and Age II have some additional steps that take place at their endings, which I will explain later.

Keep in mind: The player who transitions from Age A to Age I is considered the starting player. But after that, there is nothing special about being the starting player during the game. Regardless, on your turn, you always begin by replenishing the card row, even if you are not the starting player.

Action Time!

Now it’s your chance to take action on your second turn! You have a total of 6 actions available to you: 4 civil actions and 2 military actions. Use these actions wisely to further your objectives. Let’s take a look at what you can do:

Feel free to perform your actions in any order, switching between civil and military actions as you see fit. You can repeat the same action multiple times, as long as you have the resources for it. Don’t feel obligated to use all your actions if you don’t need to.

Tip: In this initial phase, it’s best to focus on civil actions. You don’t need to worry about military units just yet. By keeping your military actions unused, you can benefit by drawing military cards at the end of your turn.

Here are the civil actions available for you:

I’ll go through the available actions you can take in the game. Here they are, along with the key terms you should know:

1. Take a card from the card row

2. Increase population

3. Build a farm or mine

4. Build an urban building

5. Upgrade a farm, mine, or urban building (*)

6. Destroy a farm, mine, or urban building (*)

7. Play a leader

8. Build a stage of a wonder

9. Develop a technology (*)

10. Declare a revolution (*)

11. Play an action card

When it comes to potential military actions, you have a few options:

1. Build a military unit

2. Upgrade a military unit (*)

3. Disband a military unit (*)

4. Play a tactics card (**)

5. Copy a tactic (**)

Please keep in mind that actions marked with (*) are less likely to be performed on your second turn, but it’s essential to familiarize yourself with them in their proper context.

When it comes to the actions mentioned earlier, I can’t emphasize enough how important they are. They’re known as military cards, and they play a crucial role in the game. But here’s the thing, you don’t have those cards yet. Don’t worry, though! In the next chapter, they’ll be explained in detail.

Now, onto something else. I just wanted to give you a heads up that the list of all possible actions can also be found on the quick reference sheet. It’s good to have that handy while playing.

Let’s move on to a specific action called “Taking A Card.” This action allows you to choose a card from the card row. The rules for this action are the same as they were in the first round. So, if you’re familiar with those, you’re already ahead of the game! When taking a card, keep in mind that you can choose leaders, wonders, and action cards. But wait, there’s more! You might also have the chance to take technology cards. How cool is that?

Oh, and just a quick note: the technology cards will be explained in more detail later on. So, don’t worry if you’re not sure about them just yet. We’ll get there!

Now that we’ve covered that, let’s keep moving forward. Up next, we’ll talk about technology cards.



When I play the game, I notice that the technology cards come in different colors. Each card has a blue number in the upper left corner that shows how much science it costs. To get a technology card, I just need to spend the right amount of civil actions shown on the card row. But, there’s one rule that I have to follow:

I can’t take a technology card if I already have a card with the same name in my hand or if it’s already in play. When I take a technology card, it goes into my hand, but it doesn’t do anything until I play it later on.

Limit on Civil Cards in Hand

The number of civil cards I can hold in my hand is based on the number of white tokens I have – these are the civil actions I can take. If I already have the maximum number of civil cards in my hand, I can’t add any more cards.

Note: Hey there! Just a quick heads up. Wonder cards are a little different. They go straight into play without you having to hold them in your hand.

Alright, let’s talk about your hand limit. At the start of the game, you have 4 white tokens. This means you can only have 4 civil cards in your hand. It doesn’t matter if you still have civil actions left or not. You won’t be able to hold more than 4 civil cards until you increase your civil actions.

Tip: Remember, it’s best to only take the cards you actually want to play. There’s no easy way to discard civil cards once you have them.

Want More Workers?

You can try increasing your population. This will give you more workers to play with.

To increase your population, here’s what you need to do:

• Spend 1 of your civil actions.
• Take the yellow token on the rightmost spot of your yellow bank.
• Pay the amount of food shown by the white number under that part of the yellow bank.

When you play, you start with a set number of workers. These workers are represented by yellow tokens. Each worker can perform certain actions for you, so it’s important to manage them wisely.

To begin, place the yellow token in your worker pool. This means that it is currently unused and available for you to assign tasks.

Now, let’s talk about paying food. When you want to increase your population for the first time, it will cost you 2 food. You can find this information in the rightmost section of your yellow bank.

To pay the required food, simply move blue tokens from your farm technologies to your blue bank. Make sure you move the correct number of tokens according to the specified amount. This will allow you to complete the action and continue playing.

Managing your workers and resources is key to success in the game. By understanding how to allocate your workers and pay for food, you can build a strong civilization and thrive.





After the first round, you should have 2 blue tokens on your Agriculture card. Each of those tokens is worth 1 food, as indicated by the symbol at the bottom of the card. To pay 2 food, simply move 2 blue tokens from your Agriculture card to the blue bank. Keep in mind that you’re not allowed to use the blue tokens on your Bronze card for payment because they represent resources, not food.

If you don’t have enough food, unfortunately, you won’t be able to increase your population. On your second turn, it’s unlikely that you’ll have enough food to increase your population more than once.

Remember, when you pay, you never give up the blue tokens. Instead, you just return them to your blue bank.

Introducing Your New Worker

Hey there! I just wanted to give you a heads up that you’ve shifted the last yellow token from your yellow bank to your worker pool. This means that you now have an extra worker that you haven’t used yet. Pretty cool, right?

Just keep in mind that because you moved that token, you now have one less token in your yellow bank. So the population density of your civilization has gone up a little bit. But no worries, you still have one more token left in that section of your yellow bank.

Now, when it comes to increasing your population, the next increase will only cost you 2 food because you still have a token in your yellow bank. But once that section is empty, it’ll start costing you 3 food to increase your population. Just something to keep in mind!



When you finally remove that last yellow token from your civilization, something interesting happens. The symbol underneath is revealed, and it signifies that your civilization will consume 1 food at the end of your turn. It’s a small but crucial detail that can have a big impact on your strategy.



When I have more workers, my yellow bank starts to empty. This means I have less land available for expansion. I also need to produce more food to sustain and grow my population. If my yellow bank is completely empty, I won’t be able to increase my population anymore. I will have reached the maximum population density.

Another impact of increasing population is seen in my happiness indicator. It is connected to my yellow bank for a reason. If any subsection of my yellow bank is empty, I need to generate an extra happy face to keep my population happy.

Constructing a New Farm or Mine

If I have unused workers, a good idea would be to build a new farm or mine. This will increase my production of food or resources.

To build a new farm or mine, follow these steps:

• Use 1 Civil Action.

To pay for a farm or mine technology card, you need to follow these steps:

1. Look at the resource cost shown on one of the brown technology cards that you have already played.

2. Take one of your unused workers and assign them to that farm or mine technology card.

Paying for the technology card is similar to paying for food. Just like paying for food, you will need to move blue tokens from your mine technologies to your blue bank to pay for the resources required.



When I talk about an Age, I mean the first turn in the game. On that turn, I have a Bronze card that gives me two blue tokens. Each token is worth one resource, according to the symbol on the bottom of the card. That means I have two resources in total.

Now, I have to decide what to do with those resources. I can choose to build either a farm or a mine. Both of these options cost two resources. If I have enough resources, I can go ahead and build either one.

But here’s the catch: if I don’t have enough resources to pay the cost, I can’t take the action. In other words, if I don’t have two resources, I can’t build either a farm or a mine.



Welcome to Your New Farm or Mine!

Hey there! When you place a worker on Agriculture or Bronze, something really cool happens – your worker becomes an Age A farm or mine! Pretty neat, huh? Don’t worry, it won’t have an immediate effect, but at the end of your turn, the card will get one extra blue token. This means that your production will be even higher!

Once you unlock better farm or mine technologies, you’ll have the option to build upgraded farms or mines. But here’s the thing, you can still build Age A farms and mines if you want to – it’s totally up to you!

Time to Build an Urban Building



When it comes to urban buildings, they function similarly to farms and mines. To construct an urban building, there are a few steps to follow:

• First, I use 1 civil action.
• Next, I pay the resource cost indicated on one of the gray urban building technology cards I have.
• I then move one of my unused workers to that specific urban building technology card.
• Finally, I update my ratings, which you can find more information about in the Updating Your Statistics section.

If I want to construct an urban building on either the Philosophy or Religion technology cards, it will cost 3 resources. However, since I only have 2 resources right now, it will be challenging to build an urban building on my second turn, unless I have assistance from an action card. I will learn more about action cards later on.

Introducing Your New Urban Building

When playing the game, each worker on an urban building technology card represents a building of that type and level. At the beginning of the game, you only have two technologies: labs at level 0 and temples at level 0 . As the game progresses, you can develop higher level labs and temples, as well as other types of urban buildings like libraries, theaters, and arenas. All buildings follow the same construction rules.

The symbols at the bottom of the urban building technology card show the contribution of each building, represented by the workers on the card. When you construct an urban building, you should update your ratings, as explained in the Updating Your Statistics section.



Example: So, here’s the deal. If you decide to construct another lab, guess what? It’s going to generate 1 per turn. And that means your science rating marker needs to scoot on over to the +2 space. Boom! Now your science rating is a solid 2. But wait, there’s more. If a temple is what you fancy, brace yourself for it to boost both your culture rating and happiness rating to a sweet 1. And if you really want to double down on that temple action, guess what happens? Both ratings jump up to a glorious 2. Talk about a win-win!

Urban Building Limit



The number in the bottom right corner of your government card shows how many cities your civilization can support. This is represented by the number of buildings of each type that you can have.

The urban building limit on your government card tells you the maximum number of buildings you can have of one type.

An urban building is identified by the icon in the upper right corner of its card. The urban building limit applies to all buildings of the same type, regardless of their level.

You can build one more lab, but then you reach your limit. Despotism has a urban building limit of 2, so you can’t build a third lab (even if you research a better lab technology) until you switch to a government with a higher limit. However, you can build up to two temples, no matter how many labs you have.

If you want to expand your resources in this game, you have the option to construct farms or mines. The best part is that you’re not restricted by any limits on the number of these structures you can create in your urban area!

Crafting Your Own Army



When you’re starting out in the game, it’s not necessary to build a military unit on your second turn. However, if you feel like it, you definitely have the option. Building a military unit is pretty similar to building an urban building, except that instead of using a civil action, you’ll use a military action.

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Spend 1 military action.

2. Pay the resource cost shown on one of the military unit (red) technology cards that you already have in play.

3. Move one of your unused workers to that military unit technology card.

4. Update your strength rating. You can refer to the “Updating Your Statistics” box on the opposite page.

Remember, the resource cost is printed on a red background to signify that building a military unit is a military action, not a civil action.

Now, let’s talk about your military units.

In the game, each military unit adds to your strength rating by the number shown on the card. So, if I add another unit to my Warriors card, my strength rating goes up by 1.

There’s no limit to how many military units of each type I can have.

Playing a Leader

A leader in my hand doesn’t do anything until I play it.

To play a leader when I don’t have one in play:

• I spend 1 civil action.
• I place the leader next to my player board.
• If necessary, I update my statistics. (Refer to the Updating Your Statistics box on the opposite page).

I can play a leader and put it into play on the same turn. Just remember to spend the actions for taking it and putting it into play.

Your Leader’s Effect

As soon as I bring a leader into the game, their impact starts right away. Sometimes, leaders have symbols at the bottom of their cards that affect my stats.

The words on the card explain effects that can give me special choices and advantages.

Here are some examples:



When you have Caesar on your side, you get an extra military action and a boost to your strength rating by 1. But that’s not all – Caesar also brings something special to the Politics Phase, and I’ll tell you more about that soon.



When it comes to managing my civilization, Moses doesn’t change my statistics, but he does adjust the rules for how my population grows.

The Code of Laws has a detailed appendix on the back page that explains some of the other leaders.

Replacing a Leader

If I already have a leader, they retire and leave the game when I bring in a new one. The old leader’s effect no longer applies, and the new leader’s effect takes over. As a gesture of support from the outgoing leader, I gain an extra civil action.

To replace my leader:

• I spend 1 civil action.
• I remove the previous leader from the game.
• I bring the new leader into play.
• I update my statistics, if needed (remembering to subtract the effect of the previous leader).
• I gain 1 civil action back (moving it back onto my government card).

Hey there! I’ve got some interesting information for you about leaders in a game. So, in this game, you have the benefit of a leader, but did you know that you can actually replace that leader on the same turn? Pretty cool, right?

Now, here’s the thing: just because you can replace your leader doesn’t mean it’s free. You still have to pay the action to replace them. But here’s the catch: if you don’t have any available actions left, you can’t replace your leader. Bummer, I know.

Let me give you an example to make things clearer. Let’s say you have Moses as your leader. On your turn, you decide to increase your population using one civil action, thanks to Moses’s discount. Then, you spend two actions to take an Age I leader from the card row, and finally, you use your last civil action to play that leader. When you play the new leader, Moses leaves the game, and you get one civil action back. Pretty neat, huh? Now, you can use that action for whatever you want to do next.

But here’s another scenario. Let’s say you already increased your population twice before taking the Age I leader. In this case, you won’t be able to replace Moses this turn because you won’t have any civil actions left. So remember, it’s important to plan your actions wisely!

Summary – Leaders

Once you pick a leader from the card row, you can’t choose another leader from the same age. It’s a one-time deal. Playing a leader requires 1 civil action. If you already have a leader in play, the old leader is automatically removed from play, and you get 1 civil action back. A leader’s effect is active while it is in play.

Now let’s talk about building a wonder. When you start building a wonder, it’s placed sideways to show that it’s unfinished. Each wonder card has a row of numbers at the bottom. Each number represents a stage of the wonder, and the value tells you how many resources you need for that stage.



For example, the pyramids are constructed in three stages. The first stage costs 3 resources, the second stage costs 2 resources, and the final stage costs 1 resource.

To construct a stage of an unfinished wonder:

1. Pay 1 civil action.
2. Pay the resource cost of the leftmost uncovered stage.
3. Take a blue token from your blue bank and use it to cover up that number to show that stage has been built.

You can construct multiple stages of a wonder in the same turn, as long as you have enough resources and civil actions. You can construct stages even if you acquired the wonder from the card row this turn.

The blue tokens on your wonder do not represent food or resources. They simply indicate the progress of construction.

Updating Your Statistics

When it comes to the statistics that shape your civilization, they depend on two things: the cards you play and where your workers are located. The cards with the most impact on your statistics are the ones with symbols at the bottom. There are actually two types of these cards:

• Urban building technologies and military unit technologies won’t do anything when you first play them. They need workers to activate their effects. Each worker adds to the amount shown at the bottom of the card. If you have one worker on the card, the effect activates once. If you have two workers, it activates twice, and so on. If the card doesn’t have any workers, it won’t have any effect on your statistics.
• The other cards, like special technologies, governments, leaders, and completed wonders, don’t require workers. Their effects kick in as soon as you play them, or in the case of wonders, as soon as they’re completed. These effects always apply just once.

Note: An effect can be represented by numbers or by symbols that are repeated. They both have the same meaning, which is a contribution of 2 to the rating they correspond to.

Ratings

Your ratings are the 4 statistics that are monitored by your rating indicators. Your ratings depend entirely on the cards and workers you have in play. The rating indicators keep track of your totals so you don’t have to do the math every time you want to know how much you have.



If a card needs workers, your ratings can change when you move a worker on or off the card. But if a card doesn’t need workers, your ratings can change when the card enters or leaves play. Whenever your ratings change, make sure to update your indicators right away. Keep in mind that some cards, especially leaders, contribute to your ratings based on other cards that are already in play. And some cards can change how other cards contribute to your ratings.

Completing a wonder

If you finish building the last stage of a wonder, that wonder is considered complete. Here’s what you should do:

• Put all of the blue tokens from the card back into your blue bank.
• Straighten the card to show that it’s done.
• If necessary, update your statistics. (Look at the section called “Updating Your Statistics” for more info.)

When a cool thing is finished, all the stuff written on it starts happening, and you change your numbers based on the pictures at the bottom.

Remember: Wonders are different from other stuff like farms, mines, buildings, and armies because they don’t need a worker on them.

Imagine this: You use your last turn to finish the last part of the Pyramids. When that happens, you get an extra turn. Get a white chip and put it on your government card. You can use it this time and every time after.

Rules For Ratings

Your numbers can’t ever go below zero. If all your cards and workers add up to a negative number (which is not common, but could happen), then your number is zero.

When it comes to your happiness rating, it’s crucial to keep in mind that there is a limit. As you play the game and use your cards and workers, you have the potential to generate more happiness. However, there is a cap on how high your rating can go – 8 is the maximum. If your civilization produces more happiness than this, it doesn’t count towards your overall score.



Your science, culture, and strength ratings can keep growing indefinitely. If your rating goes beyond the maximum shown by the indicator, flip your marker over to the other side and start tallying from zero again. To illustrate, if your science rating marker is flipped on space 5, it signifies a science rating of 30.

Modifier for Colonization



When you play certain cards, your civilization may receive a colonization modifier. This symbol is only found on a few cards and it affects colonization, which I’ll tell you about later. You won’t see an indicator for this modifier because it’s easy to calculate when you need it.

Total Actions

The number of white tokens you have represents your civil action total. Your military action total is represented by your red tokens. The government card you have is the most important factor in determining your action totals, but other cards may also contribute. Look for cards with these symbols or at the bottom, as they also contribute. When one of these cards enters or leaves play, or is replaced by another card, your action totals might change:

I’ll give you a quick rundown of how the action total works in the game:If you increase your action total, you grab white or red tokens from the box and place them on your government card. These tokens can be used later.If you decrease your action total, you simply return the corresponding number of white or red tokens back to the box. Make sure to return spent actions first.

Summary – Wonders:

Let’s talk about wonders in the game:When you take a wonder from the card row, it enters play unfinished. This means that its effects don’t apply until it’s complete.You can’t take a wonder from the card row if you already have an unfinished wonder in play.Wonders have stages, and each stage requires a civil action and resources to complete.A wonder’s effects only kick in when it’s fully completed.If you want to take a new wonder from the card row, you’ll have to pay an additional civil action for each wonder you’ve already completed.

Getting Started with Technology

When you pick a technology card from the row, it doesn’t have any effect until you actually use it. To make use of a technology, follow these steps:

• Spend 1 civil action.
• Pay the science cost shown in the top left corner of the technology card.
• Put the technology into play.

The specific effect of a technology card will vary, and we’ll explain those effects later.

When the rules and cards talk about “your technologies,” they only mean the technology cards you have in play.

Using Science Points

To pay the science cost, move your octagonal science points counter back on the science points track. The number of spaces it moves is equal to the cost. If you don’t have enough science points, you won’t be able to develop the technology.

When it’s my second turn, I won’t have enough science points to develop any new technology. It can be frustrating to not make progress.

Choosing Between a Farm or Mine Technology

Let’s say I decide to develop a new farm or mine technology. When I do that, I place the new technology on top of my existing one of the same type. The cards might overlap on the table, but it’s important that the resource cost of the lower level card is still visible.



Here’s the thing about the fancy new technology I have. It doesn’t magically create stuff like a farm or mine. It’s more like a knowledge upgrade, you know? It only works when you assign workers to it. But hey, here’s the cool part: you can totally build a new farm or mine on this card if you pay the right resources for it. So you still have the option to build the lower-level farms and mines.

Oh, and get this: you can even level up your lower-level farms and mines to a higher level! Yeah, it’s pretty awesome. I’ll explain how that works later, so stick with me.

Urban Building Technologies (gray)

Okay, so when you develop a new urban building technology, you gotta check its type. There’s this little icon in the upper right corner that tells you what type it is. If you already have a technology of that type, just stack the higher level one on top of the lower level one. But hey, if it’s a brand new type, then you put it in its own little column next to your other urban building technologies. Pretty nifty, huh?



Did you know that the new urban building technology doesn’t have any effect until you assign a worker to it? It’s easy to do this by either constructing a new building or upgrading an existing one – I’ll explain how later on.

The Red Technologies: Military Units

Imagine you’ve developed a new military unit technology. Now, take a look at its type. If you already possess a technology of the same type, simply place the higher level technology above the lower level one. However, if it’s a completely new type of technology, just add it to its own column next to the others.



Hey there! Let me tell you about this cool new military unit technology. It’s pretty awesome, but there’s one catch – it won’t work unless you assign a worker to it. Don’t worry, it’s super easy to do this. All you have to do is build or upgrade a military unit, and voila! You’re good to go.

Oh, and I should mention a couple of things. The science cost is printed on a white background, just to remind you that developing this technology requires a civil action. And the resource cost is on a red background to remind you that whenever you build, upgrade, or disband a military unit, it costs you one military action.

Now, let’s talk about Special Technologies (blue)

Special technologies are pretty cool because they give you specialized knowledge that benefits your civilization, without needing to build anything. They have some special rules, though, so listen up:



In the world of technology, new advancements are always on the horizon. It’s fascinating how quickly technology evolves and how it impacts our lives. But have you ever wondered how these advancements come to be? Let me tell you.

When a special technology is developed, its effects are immediate. No workers are needed to make it happen; it’s all done automatically. It’s like magic!

Now, here’s an interesting thing about these special technologies: you can’t have two of the same type. Let’s say you develop a new technology with the same icon in the upper right corner. In that case, the higher-level technology remains in play, and the one with the lower level is removed. It’s a bit like a game, don’t you think?

So, remember, when it comes to technology, there’s always something exciting happening. The possibilities are endless, and who knows what amazing innovations await us in the future!



Did you know that certain advanced technologies can boost your strength and colonization capabilities? That’s right! These technologies can provide you with additional civil and military actions, and even blue tokens. And the best part? When you acquire one of these technologies, it updates your statistics and improves your overall performance.





Construction technologies don’t change your numbers, but they do make building city structures cheaper. If you’re working on an urban building, its resource cost goes down by the amount listed on the construction technology card. (The cost reduction depends on the age of that building’s tech card).

Construction technologies also let you construct multiple stages of a wonder with just one civil action, as long as you have enough resources. You pay the total cost all at once and move the corresponding number of blue tokens from your blue bank to the wonder card.

Governments (orange)

You have two options for advancing government technology. We’ll explain both in the next section.

Changing Governments



I want to tell you about the government in your civilization. You always have one government represented by an orange technology card. Right now, you start with Despotism, which is printed on your player board. But you can get better governments later on. These advanced governments give you more actions and allow you to build more buildings in your city. Some governments also affect your ratings.

If you want to change your government, there are two ways you can do it: peacefully or by having a revolution. Both ways count as “developing a technology” and both cost science points. However, the amount of science points you need is different. That’s why governments have two science point costs in the upper left corner.

Peaceful Change Of Government

Did you know that you can change your government in a natural way? It’s pretty cool how as a society grows and becomes more enlightened, their government can adapt to reflect their new values. The best part is that this peaceful change doesn’t cause much of a fuss among your citizens. It does cost a bit more science points, but it’s totally worth it. Think of it as developing a new technology!

If you want to go down the peaceful route to change your government, here’s what you need to do:



When playing this game, there are a few things you need to do to keep the game moving smoothly. Here’s what you should do in order:

1. You need to pay 1 civil action. This is important because it allows you to take actions in the game.

2. Next, you need to pay the higher science cost that’s shown on the upper left corner of the technology card. This is important because it helps you advance in the game and unlock new abilities.

3. After that, you need to put your government in play. This means you’ll replace your previous government with the new one. This step is important because it affects how you play the game and what actions you can take.

4. Once you have your new government in play, you need to update your statistics. This means you’ll need to adjust the number of civil and military actions you have available. This step is important because it helps you keep track of your resources and plan your moves.

When you put your new government card in play, you should cover the previous government with it. This means the old government is removed from the game. However, if you have the Despotism government, it will still physically remain on your player board.

If your new government offers more civil or military actions than the old one, you’ll need to take new white or red tokens from the box. These tokens represent your new total and can be used to take actions during the current turn.

Remember, when you declare a revolution and change your government, it’s important to follow these steps in order. By doing so, you can make sure you’re playing the game correctly and maximizing your chances of success.

Let’s talk about an interesting concept in the game – revolution. When you want to change your government, you have the option to start a revolution. Revolution is a big decision because it has both advantages and disadvantages.

Revolution costs less science compared to other methods of changing your government. This means that you don’t need to spend as much time and resources to make the change. However, there is a trade-off. When you declare a revolution, your civilization becomes paralyzed for one turn. This means that you can’t take any other actions during that turn. You have to focus all your attention and resources on the revolution.

If you decide to go ahead with a revolution, here’s what you need to do:



• Make sure to complete all of your civil actions. Don’t try to start a revolution if you still have some actions left.
• Try to reduce the cost of science as much as possible.
• Introduce the new government and remove the previous one from play.
• Keep your statistics updated, especially the number of civil and military actions.
• If you receive any additional civil actions, use them right away.

You need to use up all of your civil actions before you can declare a revolution. It’s not allowed to spend any actions before the revolution, unless you spend one and then get it back (for example, by replacing a leader). This means you won’t be able to take a government technology from the card row and declare a revolution in the same turn.

When it comes to changing the government peacefully, the process follows similar steps. However, there’s a crucial distinction – by the end, you’ll have exhausted all your civil actions, including any you acquired during the revolution.

But don’t worry, your military actions remain unaffected. You can utilize them before or after the revolution, and any additional military actions obtained from the new government will be at your disposal.



Example: If you want to overthrow the Monarchy, you’ll need to use all four of your civil actions and pay 2 science. In return, you’ll receive 1 new white token and 1 new red token.

The red token will be placed on the Monarchy card, along with any unused military actions you had before the revolution. The white token, on the other hand, goes next to your government card and is used as part of the revolution.

Summary – Technologies

• Technologies are like cards. Some of them are already printed on your player board, while others need to be developed.
• When you take a technology from the card row, it goes into your hand. However, it doesn’t have any effect there.
• It’s not allowed to take a technology with the same name as one you already have in play or in your hand.

When you want to bring a new technology into play, you can activate the “develop” action. This will cost you one civil action and a certain number of science points. It’s like putting a new tool into action!

Most technology cards don’t do much on their own. They need workers to make them useful. You can have multiple levels of the same type of technology, each with its own set of workers. Just think of it like having different versions of the same tool.

But special technologies, the ones with a blue color, are different. They don’t need workers to be effective. As soon as they come into play, they start doing their thing.

Take a look at the upper right corner of a special technology card, and you’ll see a type icon. You can only have one special technology of each type in play at a time. If you want to play a new special technology of the same type, you’ll have to remove the lower level one from play first.

When it comes to governments, a new one always replaces the old one in play. It’s like a changing of the guard.

Now, let’s talk about declaring a revolution. It’s a bit more complicated when it comes to developing a technology. The rules are a bit different, but we’ll get there.

That’s all you need to know about putting technologies into play. Now, let’s move on to upgrading farms and mines.

If you want to upgrade your farms or mines in the game, you’ll have to wait until your second turn. However, after that, you can upgrade them at any time. Let me explain how it works.

First, let’s talk about upgrading existing farms or mines. Here’s what you need to do:

• Spend 1 civil action.
• Choose a higher level farm or mine technology card.
• Pay the difference in resources between the two cards.
• Move your worker from the lower level card to the higher level card.

Higher Level Farms And Mines

When it comes to higher level farm and mine technology cards like those from Age A, there are some important things to keep in mind. The rules are similar, but there’s a key difference: a blue token on a higher level card is worth more. Let me break it down for you.

During the Production Phase, each worker on the card produces just 1 blue token. But here’s the twist: that token is worth the value printed at the bottom of the card. So, let’s say you have 1 blue token on Coal. In this case, that token counts as 3 resources instead of just 1. It’s like getting a little extra boost!

Now, take a look at the illustration above. You start with 6 resources. But during your Production Phase, you’ll produce even more. How? Easy! You’ll get two blue tokens on your Age I card and one on your Age A card. That means you’ll get 5 more resources in total. It’s a nice bonus to help you grow your civilization.

Paying Food And Resources

When it’s time to pay food or resources, there’s an important detail to remember. Returning a blue token to the bank is how you pay the amount depicted at the bottom of the card. It’s like giving back some of the extra resources you got during the Production Phase.



Here’s how it works: In the previous example, if you owe 2 tokens, you can pay by returning either one blue token from the Age I card or two blue tokens from the Age A card.

When you make a payment, you can choose to exchange a higher-value blue token for one or more tokens that have the same or lower total value. It’s like making change!

But remember, you can only exchange tokens in one direction – from a higher value to a lower value. You can’t trade in lower-value tokens for higher-value ones.

For instance, you can’t transfer 2 blue tokens from Agriculture to your blue bank and put 1 on Irrigation. That’s not allowed.

Improving a city building

If you have two city building technologies that have the same icon in the upper right corner, you can upgrade a lower-level building to a higher-level one by paying the price difference:

To upgrade one of your city buildings, follow these steps:

1. Spend 1 civil action.

2. Choose a city building and a city building technology card that is of the same type and a higher level.

3. Pay resources that are equal to the difference in costs between the two buildings.

4. Move your worker from the lower level card to the higher level card.

5. Update your ratings.

Now, let’s talk about construction technologies and upgrading city buildings.

Certain special technologies, marked with a blue icon “W,” can affect the cost of building or upgrading city buildings. These technologies may make upgrading cheaper, but not always. To calculate the difference in resource costs, apply the modifiers on the card to both costs.



Let’s say you have Masonry in play – this is a card that reduces the cost of Age I and II buildings by 1. Normally, an Age I lab would cost 5 resources, but with Masonry, it only costs 4. However, if you have an Age A lab, it still costs 3 resources to build because the Masonry card only affects Age I and II buildings. So, if you want to upgrade from Age A to Age I, you only have to pay 2 resources instead of the full cost of 5. That’s a nice discount!

But here’s the thing – if you want to upgrade from Age I to Age II, the cost is the same whether you have the Masonry card or not. The discount only applies to the initial construction of a building, not the upgrades.

Upgrading Your Military Units

Upgrading a military unit is similar to upgrading an urban building, but instead of costing a civil action, it costs 1 military action.

To upgrade one of your military units, here’s what you need to do:

• Use 1 military action.
• Select a military unit that you want to upgrade and a military unit technology card that matches the type of unit and has a higher level.
• Pay the difference in resource costs between the two cards.
• Move the worker from the lower level card to the higher level card.

Updating Your Strength Rating

Hey there! Just wanted to let you in on a little secret to help you out in the game. You can actually update your strength rating! Pretty cool, right?

Here’s how you do it:

• Go ahead and click on the “Strength Rating” box on your game board.
• Now, you can increase your strength rating by moving one of your workers from a technology card to the worker pool.

Keep in mind that the type of technology card you choose to move your worker from matters. The one shown in the upper right corner is the important one.

It’s important to know that you can upgrade your warriors to higher level infantry units, but you can’t upgrade them to cavalry or artillery. Just a little heads up!

Destroying a Farm, Mine, or Urban Building

Let me tell you something. Destroying a farm, mine, or urban building isn’t usually the best idea, but there might be some situations where it could be your only way to get an unused worker.

So, if you really want to go ahead and destroy one of these buildings, here’s what you need to do:

• Spend 1 civil action.
• Move one of your workers from the chosen brown or gray technology card to the worker pool.

Okay, now pay attention because this is important: When you destroy a building, you don’t get any resources back. It’s a one-way ticket, my friend!

Disbanding a Military Unit

Guess what? Disbanding a military unit is pretty similar to destroying a farm, mine, or urban building. The only difference is that you pay a military action instead of a civil action.

If you want to disband one of your military units, just follow these steps:

• Spend a military action.
• Move one of your military units from the battlefield to the worker pool.

Now you know the drill! Just remember that disbanding a unit works the same way as destroying a building – once you do it, there’s no turning back. Tread carefully!

Let me walk you through the process of using workers in a game like this. First, you need to pay 1 military action. Then, you can move one worker from the chosen military unit technology card to the worker pool.

When it comes to workers, there are a few things you should know. A worker is a yellow token in your play area, but not in your yellow bank. If a worker is not on a card, it’s considered an unused worker. However, if a worker is on a technology card, it can serve different purposes depending on the card. It can be a farm, a mine, an urban building, or even a military unit. The worker will have the same level and type as the card it is on.

Now, let’s talk about what you can do with these workers. If you have an unused worker, you can move it to a card with a “build” action. But remember, there’s a resource cost involved. On the other hand, if you have a worker on a lower level card and want to upgrade it to a higher level card, you can use an “upgrade” action. However, you’ll need to pay the difference between the resource costs of the two cards.

Lastly, if you want to remove a worker from a card, you can use a “destroy” or “disband” action. When you do this, the worker becomes an unused worker again and can be moved to another card later.

So, that’s how you use workers in this game. I hope this explanation helps you make the most of your workers and strategize effectively.

When it comes to managing resources in the game, there are a few important things to keep in mind. First, you have a limited number of actions that you can take each turn. These actions can be used to build, upgrade, or destroy farms, mines, and urban buildings. Each of these actions requires either 1 civil action or 1 military action.

It’s important to note that the number of urban buildings you can have is limited by the urban building limit on your government card. However, farms, mines, and military units do not have this limitation.

Now, let’s talk about playing action cards. Unlike the other cards we’ve discussed, action cards don’t stay in play. Instead, you play them and they have an immediate effect. However, it’s worth noting that you can’t play an action card during the same action phase in which you took it.

So, as you make decisions and plan your strategy, remember that managing resources requires careful consideration of your limited actions and the limitations on urban buildings. And when it comes to action cards, make sure to time your plays carefully for maximum impact.

When it comes to the action cards in the game, they represent the preparations I make for future tasks in my civilization. They have an important role in helping me plan my next moves. While other players are taking their turns, I can already anticipate the amount of food and resources I will have, as well as the action cards I will be able to use. This means that my next turn won’t be heavily influenced by whether a specific action card is available in the card row.

To play an action card, I need to follow these steps:

1. I need to pay 1 civil action.

2. I need to follow the instructions written on the card. If the effect requires me to perform an action, I can do so without spending an extra civil action.

3. Once I’m done with the card, I discard it. It won’t be used again in the game.

Now, let’s explore the different effects that an action card can have. Some action cards can score points for my civilization in the areas of science and culture.



Let’s get going, shall we? I’ll guide you through the rules of this game. Here’s how you move your octagonal counters ahead – just roll the dice and go that many spaces. Remember, you’re scoring points here. But don’t worry, this doesn’t affect your ratings indicators. So go ahead and roll that dice!

Getting food and resources



When you acquire food, you can transfer blue tokens from your blue bank to your farm technology cards to represent the amount of food gained. For instance, if I move 1 token to Irrigation or 2 tokens to Agriculture, I can gain 2 food. You have the option to place blue tokens on cards that do not have any workers.

Gaining resources follows a similar process.

When acquiring food or resources, you cannot remove tokens from the cards. For example, if you have Bronze (tokens are worth 1) and Coal (tokens are worth 3), you can obtain 2 resources by transferring 2 tokens from your blue bank to Bronze. However, you cannot move a token from Bronze to Coal or add a new token to Coal and then remove one from Bronze.

Performing an Action with a Discount



When you have an action card that instructs you to perform an action during your Action Phase, you simply follow the normal rules for that action. The difference is that you don’t have to spend a civil action to do it. You already paid for it when you played the action card.

You still have to pay the resource cost for the action, but some cards give you a discount. This discount adds up with any other discounts you may have from cards in play. If the discount reduces the cost to less than zero, you don’t have to pay anything.

Note: The Engineering Genius card lets you build only one stage of a wonder, even if you have a technology that would let you build more with one civil action.

If there’s any reason you can’t perform the action described on the card, you can’t play the card at all.

First, Do An Action; Then, Get Something Good



Hey there! Did you know that these cards give you specific instructions to follow? Yep, they tell you what to do, but with a little twist. You don’t have to pay the usual cost for your action! Pretty cool, right? Well, there’s a catch. You still have to pay the full food or science cost, without any discounts. Once you finish the action, though, you get a reward.

But here’s the thing. If you can’t do the action that the card asks for, you can’t play the card. Simple as that.

Now, here’s something special: Breakthrough can actually be used to start a revolution. Whoa! In that case, you have to use up all your civil actions for the revolution instead of paying just 1 for Breakthrough. But hey, there’s a condition. You can only do this when you have all your civil actions available.

Resources For Military Units And A Military Action



This card’s effect will only last until the end of your turn. It won’t give you any physical resources, so you need to keep track of how many you have. When you pay a resource cost to build or upgrade a military unit, you should use these temporary resources first. If you have more temporary resources than you need to cover the cost, you can save the remainder to build or upgrade other units later in the turn. But remember, any unused temporary resources at the end of your turn will be lost.

Similarly, the temporary extra military action won’t be represented by a red token. You just have to remember that you have it. You can use it instead of using a red token the first time you spend a military action. If you don’t use it during your Action Phase, you can use it to draw a military card at the end of your turn, which I’ll explain soon. However, you can’t carry it over to the next turn.

Recommended Player Area Layout



Taking Back Actions

Playing Through the Ages is a daunting task. It’s not easy to plan your moves perfectly in your mind. Sometimes, you have to experiment with different actions before you can determine if your turn will end favorably.

If it seems like your turn is not going well, you should be allowed to retract your actions and try a different strategy. However, you have to be careful not to abuse this privilege. Rewinding too many actions slows down the game, and reversing moves becomes challenging once you have made numerous changes.

Keeping Track of Actions

Instead of putting my spent action tokens next to my government card, I can place them right where I performed the action. If I increase my population, I can show it by placing a white token in my worker pool. When I build or upgrade something, I’ll put the token next to the worker I moved, so I’ll always remember which one it was.

If I take a card from the card row, I can put the tokens that I spent on that space. And if I play a technology, I can place a white token on it… unless it’s a government, of course.

This clever trick of keeping track makes it simple to see what I’ve done this turn, which makes it easier for me to undo actions if I need to.

When I reset my actions at the end of my turn, I’ll gather all my white and red tokens and bring them back to my government card.

Sequence at the end of my turn

On your second turn, things will look similar to your first turn, but there will be some differences. This time, you have the opportunity to draw military cards. Just follow the steps on your player board, in the order they are listed.

There’s no need to get rid of any military cards, and there won’t be an uprising. We’ll explain corruption and consumption in the next chapter, as they’re unlikely to happen now.

You’ll earn 1 science point for your lab, and maybe 2 if you built a second lab. If you made a temple, you’ll earn 1 culture point.

You’ll also produce food and resources. This will be more than last turn if you built a farm or mine.

Getting Military Cards

Once your Production Phase is done, you can draw 1 military card from the current deck for each of your remaining military actions.