last had the privilege retains the privilege.

If no one has yet

Dynasties gone first, players continue to use the first turn’s order until
A GAME OF TERRITORIAL ASPIRATIONS IN someone does win the privilege.
ANCIENT CHINA for 2 players - ages 10 to adult ©Alan 3) For each specific province, the difference in the numbers
M. Newman 2005 on the Action cards represents the margin of victory for the
In 506, Sun Tzu marched up the Hwai River where he was combat in that Province. For example, if Sun Tzu plays a "5"
assaulted by Ch'u armies under the command of King Shao. for Qinghai and King Shao plays a "9", the black player then
Sun Tzu and his Wu soldiers were outnumbered and King adds 4 armies to Qinghai or places 4 new armies in Qinghai if
Shao's armies held the high ground. Sun Tzu feigned retreat the Province was unoccupied. If Qinghai was already
and tricked King Shao into spreading out his forces, ready to occupied by white armies, these ai t removed and these are
pursue. With the Wu scattered, Sun Tzu crushed their forces in subtracted from the number of armies the winner gets to
piecemeal fashion at the battle of Bai Ju, routing the Ch' u back place. For example: if the card difference is 4 and there are 3
to their capital of Ying. King Shao fled Ch'u seeking refuge white armies in Qinghai, 4 (difference) - 3 (white armies) = 1.
and asylum across the borders while Sun Tzu remained the The 3 white armies are removed and 1 black army is actually
Master of strategy and tactics. put on Qinghai.
WHAT’S IN THE BOX The limitation of 21 armies for the 5 Provinces means that
A playing board, 2 decks of cards, 8 Warlord cards, 42 cubes players must deploy their forces as efficiently as possible. If a
(21 white & 21 black), 9 scoring tiles, a large pawn and a player has 12 armies in Tibet, he only has 9 armies to deploy
small pawn. for the other Provinces. It is usually a big mistake to over
The eight warlord cards are for a variant and are explained concentrate in any Province!
later in the rules. A player must place as many armies in the Province as he is
PREPARATIONS allowed to. If he does not have a sufficient number of armies in
reserve, he MUST take them from a neighboring Province (one
1) The playing board is placed in the center of the table. 5 of that shares a border) if he can or another Province, if he does
the scoring tiles are chosen at random and placed below the not control a neighboring Province.
names of each province on the side of the board. The other
scoring tiles are discarded and not used in the game. Each SPECIAL ACTION CARDS
player takes a set of cubes in one color. The player with the +1 and -1:
white cubes takes the light colored deck and his opponent When a +1 is played, it represents whatever number the
takes the dark colored deck.. opposing player deployed plus 1. When a -1 is played, it
2} The large pawn is placed on the number "1”. This is the represents whatever the opposing player deployed minus 1.
first Dynasty (turn). The small pawn is placed on the middle In either case, there will only be a maximum difference of 1
space of the scoring track. army.
3) Each player begins play with the six Action cards numbered If both players deploy a +1 or -1, they cancel each other out and
in yellow from 1 to 6. The other cards are shuffled randomly there is no change in the Province.
and each player takes four from his deck. The remaining If one player deploys a +1 and the other player deploys a -1, the
Action cards are placed in a pile within easy reach. player with the +1 must place 1 additional army in the Province
SCORING TILES or reduce his opponent's armies by 1.
There are three values on the scoring tiles. These numbers are The 6:
the values for the province at the end of the 3rd, 6th and 9"' As soon as a “6” is revealed, the player must take 1 of his
(final) Dynasties. If a player occupies a Province with one or armies and mark the Province (directly in front of him, not on
more cubes at the end of those turns, he controls the province the map). If he does not have an army in reserve, he MUST
and scores points. take and use 1 from any Province he controls on the map. A ”6"
The first value listed on each tile is the value during the 3rd can only be used once in each province during the game.
Dynasty. Plague Cards:
The second value listed is the value during the 6"' Dynasty. The Plague card takes precedence over all others and cancels
The third value listed is the value during the 9'h and final the combat entirely and reduces the number of Armies
Dynasty. remaining in the Province by half, rounded down. A plague
PHASES OF THE DYNASTIES (GAME cannot destroy a single army —plagues can never leave a
TURNS) province completely vacant.
1) Both players deploy one Action card face down next to +2 and +3:
each Province listed on their edge of the playing board. These cards are only used in the Expert version and function
2) After cards have been placed, the Action cards are revealed just like the +1, except when the +2 is used, the player must
and compared. For the first Dynasty (turn), the cards are remove 1 army (permanently) from the game and if the +3 is
revealed starting with Xinjiang and going in order to used, the player must discard 2 armies from the game.
Mandarin (this could be left to right or right to left depending SUBSEQUENT DYNASTIES (GAME TURNS)
on which side you sit on). For subsequent Dynasties, the The Action cards numbered from 1 to 6 (in yellow) may be
player with the least armies on the board decides the order of reused on future game turns.
provinces for revealing cards. In case of a tie, the player who
The Action cards with white numbers and the Plague tiles may further one falls behind, the harder it is to make up ground! In
only be used once and are then discarded out of the game. fact, after the 6“' Dynasty, both players will be completely
When all of the provinces have been resolved, players take the aware of exactly which Provinces are needed for victory at
top two cards from their deck of unused cards, look at them and the end of the 9th Dynasty.
add 1 to their hands. The other card is placed on the bottom of The game has many offensive capabilities in the form of the
the deck of remaining cards. Before the ninth and final Dynasty higher numbers like 7,8,9 & 10, but the +1s, -1s and Plagues
begins, the player will have a maximum of 1 Action card can act defensively and provide the leader with a great deal of
remaining in his reserve. If there are not enough cards insurance. For instance, John has 2 armies in Tibet with a
remaining to fulfill the requirements, the player may take scoring round coming up. He can play a -1 or a Plague and
whatever remains. ensure control for the scoring round.
In the Expert version, cards could be left over and not drawn. VARIANT WITH WARLORD CARDS
Note: if the player used his number "1" Action card during the Before the game begins, the player with the white forces takes
previous round, he draws 3 cards instead and adds 2 to his hand the three Sun Tzu cards and the player with the black forces
for subsequent turns. Using the "1” card can allow players to takes the King Shao cards. The variant can be played with
draw their cards much faster and run entirely through the cards, either the regular rules or the "expert" rules.
allowing more opportunities early on while running the risk of Each player selects one of his Warlord cards. This card can be
being out of options late in the game. played (one time only) at any time during the game, subject to
The large pawn is advanced to the next Dynasty and a new turn any restrictions stated on the card. The other two that were not
is started. If the ending turn was the third, sixth, or final turns, a selected are discarded from the game.
scoring round also takes place. SUN TZU’s Cards
SCORING • May place 1 additional army in any region that he already
Scoring occurs at the end of the 3rd 6th and 9th Dynasties. The controls.
first (smallest) values listed tor each Province apply for the 3rd • May remove 1 army from any province during the first 6
Dynasty scoring, the next (middle) values listed for each Dynasties.
Province apply for the 6th Dynasty scoring and the last (largest)
• May choose his attack to be a 6 when playing a 7,8,9 or 10.
values listed for each Province apply for the 9th Dynasty
scoring. • May move 1 of his armies on the board to a neighboring
province during the first 6 Dynasties.
EXAMPLE: A tile says "2-3-5". During the 3rd turn, it is
worth two, during the 6th it is worth three, and in the final KING SHAO’S CARDS
scoring round, it is worth 5 points. • May begin the game with the score marker 1 space to his

When a round is scored, players note the difference in score side.

between the two players. For instance, after the 3rd round, the • May play his 6 twice in any one region (must mark with
white player scores 3 (2+1) and the black scores 6 (3+2+1). additional cube).
The difference between the two players is 3. The black player • May cause the Plague to wipe out all but 1 army in a
then moves the small marker on the scoring track 3 spaces province.
towards him. • May remove 1 army from any province during the first 6
ENDING THE GAME turns.
If either player is ever able to move the small scoring marker
completely to his side (the red space), Victory is immediately Game Design: Alan M. Newman
declared.
• Game Development: Jim Dietz
After the 9th and final round is played and the final reckoning
• Art and Graphic Layout: Jacob Elijah Walker
of VPs is made, the player whose side of the board the scoring
marker is on wins the game. www.elijahart.com
• Playtesters: Carl Kramer, Dale Yu, Dave Andrews, Dave
If the scoring marker ends the game in the exact middle of the
scoring track, the player with the most armies in his reserve Rapp, Erick Dietz, Frank Weiss, Greg Schloesser, Jim Dietz,
wins. Joe Huber, Jordan Wolbrum, Jason Levine, Kevin Maroney,
Larry Levy, Patrick O’Brien, Pat Fantz, Ray Mulford,
EXPERT GAME Shyam Kumar, and Stefan Brueck
The players use the full Action card deck (with the +2 and +3) • Special Assistance: Herb Levy
and begin the game with 18 armies. A player may draw an
• German Rules Translation: Ferdinand Koether
additional army by discarding a white or plague tile out of the
game (before it is played). If there are no more armies to • This game is copyright © 2005 by Jolly Roger Games, all
draw, this option cannot be used. rights reserved. Elements of the rules may be copied and
STRATEGIES AND TACTICS images used for review purposes or with the permission of
Jolly Roger Games.
The scoreboard and the changing values for control of the
Provinces are an essential part of how players should
approach their strategy. The first 3 Dynasties are typically a
juggling of positions and score lowest, since the preferred
tactics are not at all obvious when the game begins. The