TIGRIS & EUPHRATES

Hi there! Let’s talk about Tigris & Euphrates. It’s a really cool game where you get to build your own civilization in four different areas – politics, religion, agriculture, and trade. You’ll use leaders, create kingdoms, build monuments, and resolve conflicts. And of course, you’ll earn victory points in all four areas. But here’s the catch – you need to make sure your civilization is well-balanced and strong in all areas if you want to win!

SETUP

Okay, let’s get this game set up. Start by placing a temple tile and a treasure on each of the ten winged sphinx squares on the map. The rest of the civilization tiles go into a bag. You’ll also need to have victory points, monuments, and the junction tile next to the game board. Now, each player:

• chooses a dynasty. You’ll have a special symbol to represent your dynasty.

After gathering the necessary materials, I secretly draw six civilization tiles from the bag and keep them hidden behind my screen. This way, none of the other players can see which civilizations I have.

Unused leaders, screens, and catastrophe tiles are taken out of the game and set aside. We won’t be needing them for this round.

GAMEPLAY

Hey there, let’s dive into the thrilling world of gameplay! In this game, we use the term “kingdom” in a very specific way. As we play, we’ll be placing leaders and civilization tiles face up on our map. When these tiles are adjacent to each other on a straight side (not at an angle), they create a territory. And when that territory has at least one leader, we have ourselves a kingdom!

Now, here’s the interesting part: a kingdom can have multiple leaders from the same player or different players. It’s like a bustling community filled with different people! As the game progresses, our kingdom can grow by adding more civilization tiles or leaders to it. Sometimes, our kingdom may even join forces with another kingdom, merging into one mighty realm. However, there may also be times when our kingdom gets divided, splitting into separate parts.

But we must be careful! It’s all fun and games until two leaders of the same color end up in the same kingdom. That’s when conflict arises. We’ll need to strategize and make sure our leaders are of different colors to avoid any trouble. Strategy and diplomacy are key to maintaining harmony in our vibrant kingdom!

Course of a Turn

The game starts with the first player and continues in a clockwise direction. As I take my turn, I have the option to perform up to two actions, in any order I choose. I can even choose to perform the same action twice if I want. Here are the actions that I can choose from:

1. Placing or moving a leader: This action allows me to either place a new leader on the board or move an existing leader to a new location.

2. Placing a civilization tile: With this action, I can add a new civilization tile to the board. This helps me expand my civilization and gain more points.

3. Placing a catastrophe tile: If I want to disrupt another player’s progress, I can place a catastrophe tile on the board. This can hinder their civilization and give me an advantage.

4. Exchanging up to six civilization tiles: If I have too many civilization tiles of one type and not enough of another, I can exchange up to six tiles. This helps me balance my resources and strategy.

Remember, I can choose any combination of these actions, as long as I only take up to two actions per turn. By strategically planning my moves, I can outsmart my opponents and lead my civilization to victory.

Hey there! Let me tell you about the leaders in the game. Each player has their own set of leaders: a King (black), a Priest (red), a Farmer (blue), and a Merchant (green). You can only use and move your own leaders, so keep that in mind!

When it comes to placing leaders on the map, here’s what you need to know. First off, you can place a leader on the map, move them around, or even take them back. But there’s a catch! You can only place a leader on an empty space, and it has to be next to a temple. Oh, and make sure not to place a leader on a river or a square that connects two kingdoms – that’s a big no-no!

During the game, temples might get flipped over or removed completely. When a leader doesn’t have any temples adjacent to it anymore, the owner has to take it back. It’s a little sad, but that’s just how the game goes.

Now, here’s something important to remember. Placing a leader doesn’t earn you any victory points, but you can’t earn any points at all if you don’t have any leaders on the map. So make sure you’ve got those leaders in play if you want a shot at winning!

2. Placing a civilization tile

A civilization tile is like a piece of a puzzle that I take out from my secret stash and carefully put on the game board. Blue tiles have to be placed near rivers, while other tiles can go anywhere except on rivers. It’s a little tricky, but that’s what makes it fun!

When I place a civilization tile in a kingdom where there’s already a leader of the same color, I get a victory point of that color. But if there’s no leader of the same color, and there’s only a king (the black leader), then the owner of the king gets the victory point. If none of these conditions are met, no victory points are given. Oh, and the same goes if the tile isn’t placed in a kingdom or if it connects two kingdoms. I keep track of my victory points behind my screen. Once I put down a tile, I can’t move it anymore. It’s all about strategy and making the right moves!

Now, let’s move on to the next step… placing a catastrophe tile. Sounds intense, doesn’t it?

When playing Catastrophe, it’s important to know how certain actions work in the game. One such action is playing a catastrophe tile. A catastrophe tile can only be played on an empty square or on top of another tile. However, you can’t play it on a square that already has a treasure, monument, or leader. Once the catastrophe tile is played, the covered tile is removed from the game. It’s worth noting that a catastrophe tile can divide a kingdom into multiple parts by interrupting the connection between leaders and tiles on the map.

4. Exchanging Tiles

If you want to exchange tiles, you can discard as many as you want face down before drawing an equal number of tiles from the bag. The discarded tiles are then removed from the game. It’s important to remember that if you choose to exchange tiles, you can still use the newly drawn tiles for your second action.

End of your Turn

Once you have completed your actions for the turn, your turn is over.

When I play this game, I check to see if any of my leaders are in the same kingdom as monuments of the same color. If they are, I earn a victory point of that color. But I can’t earn points of other colors with my black leaders.

After that, I draw tiles from the bag until I have six tiles behind my screen. If the other players have fewer than six tiles, they also draw more from the bag.

Then, it’s the next player’s turn and the round continues.

Throughout the game, there are different events that can happen. These events include conflicts, the construction of monuments, and the allocation of treasures. These events happen as a result of placing or moving a leader, or placing a tile. These events are an important part of the action, and the action is only considered complete once the event has been applied.

Now let’s talk about the construction of monuments.

When you complete a square of four matching tiles, you can flip those tiles face down and put a monument on top. Here are the rules:

• The color of the four flipped tiles has to be one of the two colors of the monument. If there’s no more monuments available in that color, you can’t build a monument and the tiles can’t be turned over.
• If placing the fourth tile creates a conflict, you need to resolve the conflict before building a monument. If, after resolving the conflict, the four matching tiles are still there, you can build a monument.
• If you decide not to turn over the tiles when you complete a square, no one can build a monument on that square later, not even you.

The Importance of Tiles, Monuments, and Treasures in Kingdom Building

When it comes to building a kingdom, there are a few key elements that are crucial for success. Today, I want to talk about the importance of tiles, monuments, and treasures in the process.

The Role of Tiles

Tiles are the building blocks of a kingdom. They connect adjacent tiles and leaders, forming a territory or kingdom. However, their role goes beyond mere connections. Tiles also serve a purpose during conflicts, although their other functions may become less significant in such situations.

The Significance of Monuments

Monuments are a central part of any kingdom. They cannot be destroyed, making them a vital asset for longevity and stability. When constructing a monument, it is important to consider the placement of the four temples that will be turned over. If there is a treasure on one of the temples, it will remain in place on the tile face down, adding value and intrigue to the monument.

The Allocation of Treasure

Treasures play a significant role in kingdom building as well. Allocating treasures strategically can elevate the status and prosperity of a kingdom. However, when four temples are turned over to build a monument, any treasures on those temples are retained and remain in place on the tile face down, creating a sense of mystery and potential reward.

In conclusion, understanding the importance of tiles, monuments, and treasures is crucial for successful kingdom building. By taking these factors into account, you can build a thriving and prosperous kingdom that will stand the test of time.

When the game starts, ten treasures are placed on the first ten temples on the map. As I play the game, if I finish my turn with a kingdom that has multiple treasures, I get to keep all but one of those treasures as long as I control the Merchant, who is the green leader, in that kingdom. I can keep any treasure I want, but I need to make sure I take the treasures in the four corners of the map first, if possible. If there is no Merchant in a kingdom, the treasures stay put until a Merchant arrives. Each treasure is worth one victory point, and it takes on the color of the player who owns it.



3. Conflicts

Conflict arises when two or more leaders of the same color are in the same kingdom. This can occur in two scenarios:

1.a. Internal conflict: When a leader is placed in a kingdom where there is already another leader of the same color.

1.b. External conflict: When two kingdoms are merged, resulting in the new kingdom having two leaders of the same color.

Unfortunately, you cannot remove your leader to prevent the conflict from happening. The resolution of the conflict depends on the tiles on the map and the reinforcements that the players choose to utilize. Once the conflict is resolved, a kingdom cannot have more than one leader of the same color.

3.a. Internal conflict

When we play this game, I want to make sure we understand the rules of conflict. Here’s how it works:

– The person who puts the new leader on the board is the attacker. Both the attacker and the defender count the temples next to their leader. Sometimes, the same temple can be counted for both leaders.

– After counting, the attacker can put the temples they took in front of them for reinforcements.

– The defender can do the same thing.

– The person with the most temples wins. If it’s a tie, the defender wins.

Let’s talk about what happens after the conflict:

– The person who loses takes back their leader, but the winner’s leader stays on the board.

– The winner gets a red victory point.

– All the temples used as reinforcements are taken out of the game.

That’s how conflicts work in the game!

When you place a civilization tile (not a leader), you can connect two kingdoms together. But remember, you can’t join more than two kingdoms with just one tile. Connecting two kingdoms with a tile doesn’t give you any victory points. The tile that connects two kingdoms is called a “junction” tile. If there aren’t two leaders of the same color in the new kingdom, the connecting tile is removed right away because there’s no conflict. However, if there are multiple leaders of the same color, a conflict happens. If there are multiple conflicts, it’s up to you, the player who placed the tile, to decide the order in which the conflicts are resolved.

If I place a tile connecting two kingdoms in the game, the player who has a leader involved in the conflict becomes the attacker, and the other player becomes the defender. If neither player has a leader involved, then the attacker is the player who is sitting clockwise after the one who placed the tile.

Both the attacker and the defender count the number of supporters they have in their kingdoms. This means counting all the tiles of their leader’s color, not just the ones adjacent to the leaders.

After counting supporters, both the attacker and the defender have the option to add reinforcements from behind their screen. They can only add reinforcements once.

The player with the highest total number of supporters wins the conflict. If there’s a tie, the defender wins.

1. The loser takes all of his followers and leader out of his kingdom.
2. The winner gets one point for the defeated leader and an additional point for each follower removed by the loser (reinforcements behind player screens don’t count).
3. The winner’s leader stays on the board.
4. The loser’s followers and the winner’s reinforcements are removed from the game, face down. Exception: If there was a conflict between two priests, the followers (temples) with treasures or next to a leader who didn’t participate in the conflict stay on the map. Victory points are only given for the leader and followers that are actually removed from the map.



When a tile gets taken off the map due to a conflict, it can split a kingdom. This means that leaders who were fighting before might end up in different kingdoms and avoid more fighting. But if there are still leaders of the same color in the kingdom after the first conflict, then they have to fight again. Once all conflicts are settled, the connecting tile is taken off the map and put next to the game board.

GAME OVER

So, here’s the deal: the game is over when there’s only one or two treasures left on the map after my turn, or if there are not enough tiles left in the bag for me to draw when I need to. Once that happens, I raise my screen and start counting my victory points. The color where I have the fewest points is the one I focus on, and any treasures I have count as wild cards. The player with the highest number of victory points in their lowest color wins. If there’s a tie, we look at the second lowest color, and keep going until we find a winner.



VARIATIONS

Once you’ve played a few games, why not switch things up and try the alternate side of the game board? This side features 14 winged sphinx squares, which adds a new twist and allows for longer, more exciting games.