Discover Sun Tzu: A Strategy Game of Ancient Chinese Warfare

Welcome to Sun Tzu, a thrilling game where I become a wise and cunning Chinese general vying for dominance on the battlefield. My mission? Conquer more territory than my rivals, and I’ll be rewarded with victory points. But beware, it’s not just about brute strength – cleverly dividing my troops into the five regions each turn will pave the path to glory. Can I accumulate 9 points by the end of the 3rd or 6th turn? Or will I emerge as the victor with the most points at the end of the 9th turn?

Let the Battle Begin: Setting Up the Game

To embark on this ancient conquest, I place the magnificent game board in the center of the table. Its allure brings the battlefield to life!

Now, it’s time for the crucial element of luck. I draw five Score cards at random, and they take their place next to the names of the provinces on the board’s short edges. These cards hold the key to unraveling the secrets of victory. The remaining Score cards patiently wait in the box, ready for another showdown.

Markers, both green and determined, are now placed. One green marker proudly claims the first square of the turn track. Watch as it advances, marking the passage of time and strategy. The other marker, a beacon of ambition, stands in the middle square of the score track, observing each decisive moment.

But that’s not all. Now, it’s my time to prepare. I gather my forces – 18 armies painted with my chosen color – my fierce and loyal reserve. Three brave armies are held back, waiting for their moment to shine. I take a deep breath, for I sense the tension of the impending battle.

Now, let the conquest begin!

• 18 armies are reserved for me, standing ready to make history on the battlefield.
• As a player, I start by selecting 3 Strategy cards that match my color. I must be careful not to reveal them, so the other two go back into the box.
• Next, I take the 6 Action cards from my suit, which are numbered 1 to 6.
• To create my draw pile, I shuffle the remaining 14 Action cards of my color.
• After that, I draw 4 cards from my deck and add them to my hand, so I have a total of 10 cards to begin the game.

Let’s Play!

I’m going to tell you all about the gameplay. So, get ready for some fun!

1. Step 1: Moving the Turn Marker

First things first, we need to move the turn marker. Just slide it one square at the start of every turn.

Step 2: Preparing Actions

Now, it’s time to get strategic! Each player picks an Action card and puts it face down in front of each of the 5 province names on their side of the board.

Step 3: Revealing Actions and Resolving Battles

This is where things get exciting! We reveal the cards and compare them to see who wins the battles! Don’t worry, I’ll explain how battles are resolved.

Step 4: Scoring

We’re almost there! It’s time to calculate the scores and see who’s winning. This part is crucial, but don’t worry, I’ll guide you through it.

Step 5: Drawing

One last step! We draw new cards to get ready for the next turn. It’s like getting a fresh start.

See? Playing this game is a breeze! Just follow these steps, and you’ll have a blast. Now, let’s get started!

When we start the game, we need to follow a specific order for revealing the cards. First, we reveal Qin’s card, then we move on to the other locations in order, up to Wu. But after the first turn, things change a bit. We determine the order of revealing the cards based on who has the fewest armies on the board at the beginning of Phase 3. This means that the player with the least number of armies gets to decide the order. But what if there’s a tie? In that case, the player who had the privilege of deciding the order last gets to keep it. And if no one has had this privilege yet, we simply continue using the order from the first round until someone wins the privilege.

Now let’s talk about how the battles are resolved:

When it’s time to resolve the battles, we compare the cards played by each player for each province. The card with the highest value is the winner of the battle. And the difference between the two cards shows us how the forces have evolved between the players.

When I win a battle, I have to put armies in the province. The number of armies depends on the battle’s outcome. If I don’t have enough armies, I have to bring them from my other provinces, starting with the ones next to the battle.

If there are enemy armies in the province where I put my armies, both sets of armies fight. We remove as many enemy armies as the number of armies I placed. The armies that are left belong to the winning player and control the province. Any eliminated armies go back to the player’s reserves.



Okay, here’s what’s going on in this example:

I’m already here with my armies, and I can see what cards have been revealed. Based on that, a few things are happening:

• I’m taking over Qin with 4 of my armies. It’s mine now!
• The Red player still has control of Chu, but they lose one of their armies there.
• Jin-Yan becomes neutral territory. The Red player loses their army there.
• The Red player takes Han-Qi with just one army.
• I still have control of Wu, but unfortunately, I lose two armies there because of the plague.

Let’s talk about special cards now!

Some of the Action cards have special effects instead of just a number:

• The first card is really powerful. If you use it, you get to draw 3 cards at the end of the round instead of just 2.

I’m a player in this game, and I have a card that I want to use. This is what I need to do: I have to put one of my army pawns on the small square next to the province that the card is for. The province is on my side of the board.

There are also cards with a plus sign on them. The value of these cards is the value of my opponent’s card, plus the value on the card. But there’s a special case for the +2 and +3 cards. If I use one of those, I have to sacrifice one or two of my armies, respectively.

Then there are other cards that have a value, but without a plus sign. For these cards, the value is deducted from my opponent’s card.

Lastly, there are plague cards. With these cards, instead of having a battle, there’s a plague epidemic. This kills half of the troops in the province, rounding down. And the opponent’s card is canceled.

So, these are the different types of cards and what happens when you use them. Now, let’s talk about exceptional reinforcement.

When we begin the game, we all start with 3 remaining armies. Throughout the game, we might have the chance to add more armies by using special action cards. However, if we choose to, we can also take any of these armies back from the game and put them in our reserve. To do this, I just need to discard one of my action cards (not cards 1 to 6) and also show the discarded card to my opponent. It’s an interesting strategic decision to make.

Now, let’s talk about scoring.

At the end of each set, which happens on the 3rd, 6th, and 9th rounds, there is a countdown. The Score card shows three values, which represent the points given by the province at the end of each set. If you have one or more armies in a province when the set ends, you will earn the corresponding points. When scoring, you need to calculate the difference in points between you and your opponent. Then, you move the score marker in the direction of the player with the most points. For instance, if you (Red player) score 3 points (2+1) and your opponent (Blue player) scores 6 points (3+2+1), the difference is 3 in favor of your opponent. As a result, the score marker moves 3 squares towards your opponent on the score track.

5 – Drawing

When we play the game, we all get our cards back from the round – the ones with values from 1 to 6, you know, the ones in the fancy frames. And we take out the rest of the cards that were played in the round. Then, each of us picks two more cards from the top of our deck. We check them out, decide which one we want to keep in our hand, and put the other one under our deck. If we only draw one card, well, we keep it. Simple as that.

Now let’s talk strategy.

Remember that strategy card we each choose at the start of the game? Well, we can play it whenever we want, unless it says otherwise. So keep that in mind!

And that’s how the game ends.

So, you’re playing this game, right? Well, let me tell you about how you can win. At the end of the 3rd and 6th round, if you reach 9 points (that’s the big square at each end of the scoring track), you win! Simple as that. But if no one reaches 9 points, don’t worry. The player with the most points, the one whose score marker is on their side of the score track, wins. Oh, and in case of a tie, the player with the most armies in their reserve takes the victory. Exciting, isn’t it?



Try Something Different

Hey there! Looking to switch things up and try a new game? I’ve got just the thing for you – Variations. It’s a beginner-friendly mode that offers a fresh twist on the classic game.

Beginner Mode

Let’s start with a simpler version of the game. In this mode, we’ll remove a few cards and give each player more armies to start with. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Take out the +2 and +3 Action cards, as well as the 6 Strategy cards.
• Each player will begin the game with 21 armies instead of the usual amount.