Welcome to the Bronze Age!
During this exciting period, the size of your army held the key to your destiny. As a colonial leader, your ultimate goal is to ensure a prosperous future for your people. The path to achieving this lies in expanding your territory and establishing a magnificent empire. However, there’s more to it than simply conquering lands. You must also focus on developing your resources, domesticating animals, constructing buildings, and laying the groundwork for a thriving society.
Let the Game Begin!
When setting up the game, we start by placing the starting tile in the middle of the playing area. Next, we randomly add face-down land tiles to the starting tile based on the number of players. The remaining land tiles are set aside, as we won’t need them for the rest of the game. For two players, we reveal a land tile that is closest to the starting tile. For three or four players, we reveal two land tiles.
When we play the game, each of us gets to pick a color that represents us. We collect thirty markers in that color to use throughout the game. If there are only two or three of us playing, we won’t use some of the special cards, so we put them back in the box. The rest of the special cards are mixed up and divided into five stacks. We turn these stacks over so the cards are face-down, and use four of them for the game. We reveal the top cards from those stacks.
Next, we put tokens on the left side of the starting tile. We start with ten-point tokens, then use the six-point tokens, and finally the three-point tokens. On each land tile, we put a province token randomly. We also need to choose someone to start the game and give them a special token. Then we shuffle the city deck and put it beside the game board. Now we’re ready to start playing.
How to Play
When it’s my turn in the game, I follow a specific sequence of actions. First, I draw a technology card from the pool. Then, I activate my technology cards. After that, I place settlements on the board. Finally, I earn trade routes and province tokens.
When I draw a technology card, I have options. I can pick any card from the stacks available in the game pool. I can play it face up or face down. It’s important to reveal the next card in the stack so that everyone can see what technology it holds. I place the card I chose in front of me, in one of the four vertical columns I create in my area.
So, you’ve chosen a card. Now it’s time to activate all the cool technology cards you have! This happens when you place the card in its column. But that’s not all – the cards to the left and right of it, as well as any cards that match and are in the same column, will also be activated. And when all those cards are activated, you can use them to set up a settlement.
Here’s how it works: each activated card allows you to place a settlement marker on an empty space on the board. Exciting, right? But hold on! There’s a catch. The place you choose for your settlement must meet the conditions specified on the activated card. So make sure you pick wisely!
When you place three settlements in a row on a specific type of terrain, you earn the trade route token on the left of the starting tile. If someone else has already earned the token, you can’t get it. As you build more settlements, you can earn higher-scoring tokens like the five-point and seven-point tokens. If you already have a lower token, you return it when you get a higher one.
The Game Ends
The game can end in three ways. One way is if two stacks of technology cards run out. In that case, the game ends after one more round. Another way is if you use all of your settlement markers. Then the game ends after another round. The third way is when all of the settlement spaces are filled.
After finishing the game, we need to add up our points. Whoever has the most Victory Points wins!
Hey there! I’m Ellie, and I live in Northeast Tennessee. I’m a big fan of all animals, whether they’re big or small. I also enjoy reading fantasy fiction novels and spending time outdoors. I have an amazing husband who loves me just as much as our two furry companions. Being a part of this fantastic community brings me so much joy!
Hey there! I’m Ellie, and I live in Northeast Tennessee. I’m a big fan of all animals, whether they’re big or small. I also enjoy reading fantasy fiction novels and spending time outdoors. I have an amazing husband who loves me just as much as our two furry companions. Being a part of this fantastic community brings me so much joy!