Welcome to Oriflamme!

Oriflamme is an exciting game of strategy, cunning, and unexpected surprises. In this game, you’ll be leading a powerful family, vying to seize control of the kingdom following the recent death of the king. To achieve victory, you’ll need to strategically place your characters and actions, timing your moves just right, and hoping for a little luck to tilt the odds in your favor.

Getting Started

When the game begins, each player:

• Gathers their 10 cards in their chosen color
• Secretly and randomly discards 3 of those cards permanently
• Receives 1 influence token

Next, the first player, usually the oldest, takes the first player tile and positions the Resolution tile (shaped like a banner) in the center of the table, pointing in a fixed direction that cannot be changed.

GAMEPLAY

Okay, here’s how the game goes. I start by placing one of my cards face down.

Then, it’s your turn. You can choose to put your card to the right or the left of my card. Just remember, you can’t squeeze your card between two cards that are already on the table. We all take turns like this, always adding a card to one end of the row.

Now, here comes the interesting part. We have to pay attention to the Oriflamme, which decides the order we reveal our cards. Each player has to make a decision: reveal the card or keep it hidden. If we keep it hidden, we’ll put one influence token on it from the reserve. But if we reveal it, we have to use the power of the card right away.

Now, let’s talk about the powers:

• The Archer: This card lets you eliminate the first or last card in the line, and you gain 1 influence.

I’m here to tell you about the fantastic powers of the Court cards in the game of Influence. These remarkable characters have their own unique abilities, which can be quite useful during gameplay. Let’s take a closer look at each one:

– The Soldier: When the Soldier is played, I can discard a card that’s right next to it and gain 1 influence. It’s a great way to get rid of unwanted cards and earn some power at the same time.

– The Heir: If I have the Heir card and it’s the only Heir visible on the table, I gain a whopping 2 influences. It’s like being the one and only heir to the throne!

– The Spy: The Spy is a sneaky character who can steal 1 influence from a player whose card is right beside it. Watch out for that Spy, they can really disrupt your plans!

– The Assassin: The Assassin is a powerful card that can remove any other card from the lineup. It gains 1 influence in the process and then gets discarded. It’s like a master of espionage and elimination rolled into one.

– Royal Decree: With the Royal Decree card, I can manipulate the lineup by moving any card of my choosing. It’s a great way to shake things up and gain an advantage. After I use it, though, the Royal Decree card gets discarded, so use it wisely.

– The Lord: The Lord is a card that gives me influence and more influence for every card in my family that’s next to it. It’s like having the support of my entire family behind me!

– The Shape-shifter: The Shape-shifter is a special card that can copy the power of an adjacent card, but not its name. It’s like the ultimate chameleon! Just be careful, because if the Shape-shifter is surrounded by two other Shape-shifters, its power is nullified.

So there you have it – the incredible Court cards of Influence. Each one has its own unique ability that can really change the game. It’s up to you to strategize and make the most of their powers. Good luck!

Ahoy! Let’s dive into the mysterious world of card games. Cards can be more than just a deck of fun. Think strategic battles and clever tactics. Today, I want to talk about two special cards called Ambush and Conspiracy, which can turn the tide of the game.

Imagine this: you play an Ambush card, and your opponent tries to eliminate it. But here’s the twist – if they do, you gain a whopping 4 influence points, and they get eliminated instead! Sneaky, right? But wait, there’s more. If you reveal the Ambush card in a classic way, it still pays you 1 influence point, and then it’s discarded, off the board.

Now, let’s move on to the Conspiracy card. Once you reveal this bad boy, it’s double the influence points for you, my friend. And just like the Ambush, the Conspiracy is then discarded, alas.

Now, what happens to all the other cards that haven’t been eliminated or discarded? Well, they remain in their place on the line, patiently awaiting their fate for the next 5 rounds. But hold your horses, there are some new rules for these rounds.

First, the First Player tile passes clockwise to the next player. And here comes the exciting part – you can now put your card on one of your cards already in play. Talk about breaking the rules, right? This special move not only frees you from the usual placement rule but, most importantly, protects your already-in-play cards. A protected card is a safe haven, shielded from influence and untouchable by your opponents’ targeting or power activation.

So, my friend, if you enjoy the thrill of a strategic battle where surprise attacks and cunning strategies rule the day, then you’ll love these two cards. Keep these rules in mind, follow your instincts, and may the cards be in your favor!

• If I choose to show a card that was played in a previous turn, I collect the influence token(s) placed on it.
• Cards that were already revealed and are still in the queue during subsequent turns stay revealed, and their power is applied once more.

As I take a turn in the game,

• I play the Royal Decree card all the way to the right
• The other player, a red player, plays a card to the far left that they don’t reveal
• Another player, the green player, also plays a card to the far left. It’s a Soldier card, but they keep it hidden

Now it’s time for the resolution phase,

• The green player still doesn’t reveal their card, the Soldier, and puts an influence on it
• The red player also doesn’t reveal their card and places an influence on it
• The red player reveals their second card, which is also a Soldier. They target the card to the right of the player. However, that card happens to be an Ambush, which gets rid of the red Soldier card and gives the black player 4 influences

I’ll walk you through what just happened. First, the black player played their Ambush card, which revealed and discarded it. This allowed them to activate their Archer card and target the unrevealed red card all the way on the left. And guess what? It turned out to be a Soldier card! Then, the green player revealed their Shapeshifter card and copied the black Archer card to take out the black card on their right. But wait, there’s more! That card turned out to be a Royal Decree. Exciting stuff, right? Oh, and by the way, the last card in hand doesn’t get played. Just a little side note for you.

Now, let me fill you in on how the game ends. The player who has the most influence by the end of the 6th turn is the winner! Oh, and don’t worry about the influence remaining on the cards in the row – that doesn’t count towards your score. So, give it your all and aim for that victory!