Age of Inventors

Age of Inventors Rulebook

Table of Contents

Clarification on What This Game Is and What It Is Not
Component List
Setup
Game Structure
Game End
Upkeep Phase
Player Phase
Iconography
The Three Scientific Tracks
Retiring an Inventor
Additional Free Actions
- Instant Conversions
- Inventor Abilities
End of the Round
Player Labs
Abel Prize
Playing Solo
Educational Variant
End of Game Scoring
Game Modes
Invention Years (Back Cover)

Clarification on What This Game Is and What It Is Not

Age of Inventors is a fun, family board game. Its goal is to help the players enjoy quality time together while competing on an interesting theme. Although you are bound to learn some things by playing this game, this is not the primary goal of this game.

Our aim is to capture the spirit of the Age of Invention and spark curiosity in our players. The information in this game is inspired by real history but may not always be historically precise. Many academics continue to debate who truly invented certain technologies or the exact dates of their discoveries.

Component List

Main Board
Player Labs x4
Abel Prize Tokens x7
Inventor Hex x24
Invention Hex x48
Equipment Tokens x25
Experiment Tokens x26
Breakthrough Tokens x16
Breaking News Cards x17
Reference Cards x4
Inventor Cards x24
Lab Assistants (wooden components) x16
Books (wooden components) x24
Engineering (wooden components) x30
Chemistry (wooden components) x30
Physics (wooden components) x30
Turn Order (wooden components) x4
Ingenuity (wooden components) x4
Industrial (wooden components) x4
Economic (wooden components) x4
Academic (wooden components) x4
Ideas (wooden components) x30
Medal Tokens x3
Pouch
Common Supply Insert
Player Insert x4

Setup

Assembly Instructions

Punch out all Tokens from the punchboards.
Take a Lab and attach a rivet and two Fund Indicators (gears), one on each side. Repeat for all four double-sided Labs.
Take a Lab and attach four rivets and four Switches on each side. Repeat for all four double-sided Labs.
Take the Center Hex indicating the clock component and attach a rivet and the hand.
Put all Breakthrough Tokens into the pouch.

Player Lab Setup

There are four Labs available, one for each player: Government Lab, Corporation Lab, University Lab, and Innovator Lab. In order to decide who gets to choose their Lab first, the players can either randomly distribute them or test their knowledge on the great Inventions. In that case, draw a random Invention Hex; each player guesses the year in which it was invented. Check the back cover of the rulebook to learn the date, then choose Labs based on whose response was the closest.
Having selected Labs, each player now gets to choose which side they will use. Each side has different attributes and different abilities. Players can learn more about the special abilities of each side on page 19. Players should place their Lab in front of them with the selected side facing up.
In the order the Labs were chosen, each player chooses a color and takes the player insert and Wooden Components of that color.
Each player takes one of the four identical Reference Cards and places it somewhere where it will be easy to reference.
Each player collects 1 of each Scientific Resource (Physics, Chemistry, and Engineering), 1 Idea, and sets their Funds dial to 5.
Each player draws 2 Inventor Cards, choosing 1 Inventor to place face up next to their Lab. They then draw 4 Inventions Hexes, keeping 2 in their hand. The remaining Inventors and Inventions are all shuffled back into their respective decks.
Each player collects any additional Wooden Components indicated on their Lab (shown underneath the initial Position in the Ingenuity Track).

Main Board Setup

Place the board in the middle of the table where all players can easily reach it.
Set the round counter to 1.
Each player places their Ingenuity Wooden Components on the Ingenuity Track. Your Position in the Ingenuity Track is indicated under your Player Lab's name.
Shuffle the Experiment Tokens into a stack and place the stack face down on its position at the top and center of the board.
Shuffle the Equipment Tokens into a stack and place the stack face down on its position at the top left of the board.
Populate the Equipment Offer by drawing Equipment Tokens from the stack and placing them in the Offer starting with the position with the 0 icon. Place as much Equipment Tokens as the number of players plus 1.
Shuffle the Breaking News Cards into a deck and place the deck face down on its position at the left of the board.
Shuffle the Invention Hexes into a stack and place them on the Invention Offer at the bottom left of the board. Then populate the Offer by placing the top Invention Hex face up on the position indicated by 1, then the next one on the position indicated by 2, and the last one at the position indicated by 3.
Shuffle the Inventor Cards into a deck and place that deck on the Inventor Cards Offer at the bottom of the board. Then populate the Inventor Cards Offer by placing the top Inventor Card face up on the position indicated by 2, then the next one on the position indicated by 4, and the last one at the position indicated as 6.
Players may keep the Inventor Hexes in their insert or, if there is enough space, lay them out face-up on the table. Whenever a player gains an Inventor Card, they should also claim the matching available Inventor Hex and place it face-up next to the Card. Players should now claim the Inventor Hex corresponding to the initial Inventor Card they selected.

Game Structure

The game is played in Rounds, each consisting of two phases: the Upkeep Phase and the Player Phase.

Each Round begins with the Upkeep Phase, which consists of seven steps, most of which are performed simultaneously by all players. Once the Upkeep Phase is complete, the Player Phase begins. During the Player Phase, players take turns performing actions. When all players have finished their turns, the Round ends.

Game End

The game ends when either of the following conditions is met:

The fourth and final Round is concluded.
A player places an Inventor or Invention on the last empty Hex of the Hex Grid. In this case, the game immediately ends, even if players still have actions remaining.

At the end of the game, players total their points from Tracks, Experiments, Breakthrough Tokens, and Ingenuity. The player with the most points wins. (See Page 21 for details.)

Upkeep Phase

Turn your Reference Card so the Upkeep Phase side is up. The Reference Card can guide you on the steps that take place during the Upkeep Phase. During the first round only, skip steps 1 to 5 and start the game at step 6. For every other round, follow all steps in the following order:

1. Collect your Lab Assistants and Turn Order Wooden Components (simultaneous)

Collect any of your Lab Assistants you used the previous round and place them on your player insert. Also collect your Turn Order Wooden Components.

2. Reset your Switches and Inventor Abilities (simultaneous)

Reset your Switches so they all are on the OFF position, pointing on the left. Reset any Inventors you triggered last turn so they are again placed horizontally under your Lab.

3. Increase the Round Counter (simultaneous)

Move the clock hand from the current round to the next one.

4. Draw a Breaking News Card

Each Breaking News Card consists of the card's title, lore (historical fact that made the news at the time), and two gameplay options that will alter the way this round is played. Players will choose one of the effects to take place for the current round. Each Breaking News Card is discarded at the end of the round.

In order to decide which effect will be applied, the players vote. To vote, read the card's two options. First, read the option on the left, then the option on the right. Players who want the first (left) option will vote with thumbs up; players who want the second (right) option will vote with thumbs down.

After reading both options, all players should extend a closed fist over the main board and count to 3. On 3, each player should show either a thumbs up or a thumbs down sign with their hand, indicating their choice. The option with the most votes will affect the game this round. The player with the highest Ingenuity rating breaks ties.

5. Earn Funds based on Ingenuity (simultaneous)

Increases the funds at your Lab by the amount indicated by your position on the Ingenuity Track.

6. Draft Equipment

First, slide any remaining Equipment Tokens to the right and re-populate the Track's empty positions starting from the right (least-expensive) to the left (most-expensive). Remember you should have face up Equipment Tokens equal to the number of players plus one.

Then, starting with the player that is the first on the Ingenuity Track, look at the different Equipment Tokens and select the one you would like to purchase. Immediately pay the appropriate cost in funds indicated under the Equipment Token's position, and move your Turn Order Wooden Component from your player insert to the slot where the Equipment Token was.

Important: This will determine turn order in the Player Phase. The order is determined from left to right.

You may then place the Equipment Token into a position on your Lab. Each slot has a different bonus. By placing the Equipment Token in a slot, you immediately gain that bonus, if applicable.

7. Activate Lab Equipment (simultaneous)

Last, activate all your Lab Equipment. You gain Lab Equipment every time you place your chosen Equipment Token on an empty slot on your Lab. In the first round, you will only have 1. In the fourth round, you should have four. Activate them and gain their bonus (if able) in any order.

Once all players have concluded all steps, everyone flips their Reference Card to the Player Phase side and proceeds to the Player Phase.

Player Phase

In the Player Phase, all players act based on the order of their Turn Order Wooden Components, with the player whose Turn Order Wooden Component is farthest left taking their turn first.

During your turn, you can either Place a Lab Assistant or use a Switch. There are also two free actions that you can take at anytime during your turn. When you have either placed a Lab Assistant or used a Switch, you end your turn and it is the next player's turn.

Assign a Lab Assistant

You can place your Lab Assistants in several locations. By doing this, you effectively lock the location so that no other Lab Assistant can be placed there for the rest of the round.

Activate Lab Equipment: Place a Lab Assistant on an Equipment Token in your Lab and gain the benefit or perform the action allowed by that Equipment Token. You can also assign a Lab Assistant to the position that grants ANY Scientific Resource.
Benefit from Available Inventor Hexes Conversions: Place a Lab Assistant on an unoccupied Book Base (i.e., a Book Base that does not already have a Lab Assistant placed on it, which would mark it as occupied). Then do the printed conversion by giving the Book Base's owner the needed resources and gaining the benefit from the common supply. If you own the Book Base, give the needed resources to the common supply.
Increase Your Position on the Ingenuity Track: Place a Lab Assistant on an unoccupied location in the Ingenuity Track and pay the indicated number of Ideas to the common supply. Then your Ingenuity Wooden Component exchanges positions in the Ingenuity Track with the next higher Ingenuity token. You are allowed to use this action even if you are occupying the first position in the Ingenuity track. While it might not increase your Position in the Ingenuity Track, it does make it more expensive for other players to move you from this prestigious position as the next available location will be more expensive.
Collect an Experiment Token: Place a Lab Assistant on any empty spot in the Experiment Tokens area. Then, pay 2 Funds to draw the top Experiment Token from the Experiment Token Pile and place it face-down next to your Lab. While it remains face-down, the Experiment Token is considered Unverified and is worth 1 Victory Point at the end of the game. You may not look at the other side of an Unverified Token. When you reach the position with the Experiment icon on any of the three Scientific Tracks, you may flip one Unverified Experiment Token to its Verified side. The token is now Verified and will be worth the number of Victory Points printed on it. If you have no Unverified Tokens at that time, draw a new Experiment Token from the Experiment Token Pile and place it face-down, Unverified, next to your Lab.

Alternatively, you may Verify any number of Experiment Tokens at the end of the game by spending 4 Funds per Unverified Experiment Token to Verify them. At the end of the game, Verified Experiment Tokens score the number of Victory Points printed on them, while Unverified Tokens that remain face-down score only 1 Victory Point each.

Use a Switch

To use a Switch, rotate it from the left OFF position to the right ON position.

You can use one of your active Switches to do one of the following:

Recruit an Inventor
- Pay the indicated cost in Funds, as shown beneath the Inventor Card on the Main Board.
- Choose and gain an Inventor Card from the Offer to your hand. You may not place the Inventor yet; keep the recruited Inventor face up next to your Lab. You may also take the corresponding Inventor Hex and keep it also face up next to your Lab.
- Slide all remaining Inventor Cards in the Offer towards the least expensive position and repopulate the missing position with the top card from the deck.
Conceive an Invention
- Pay the indicated cost in Ideas, as shown next to the Invention Hex on the Main Board.
- Choose and gain an Invention Hex from the Offer to your hand. You may not place the Invention yet; keep it concealed in your hand.
- Slide all remaining Invention Hexes in the Offer towards the least expensive position and repopulate the missing position with the top Hex from the stack.
Scientific Fields
- Inventor Hexes can feature up to three different Scientific Fields, each represented by a distinct color. These fields indicate the types of Inventions an Inventor is capable of inventing. The three Scientific Fields are:
  - Engineering, represented by the color red
  - Chemistry, represented by the color green
  - Physics, represented by the color blue
- An Inventor Hex may feature one or two of these Scientific Fields.
- Invention Hexes are also categorized by Scientific Field. Each Invention Hex features a single color, corresponding to one of the three aforementioned Scientific Fields.

Invention Abilities

Each Invention offers a unique instant ability that immediately resolves after placing an Invention. Each ability is displayed with a list of symbols explained here. X and Y correspond to various numbers of the specific abilities.

Chemistry X: Refers to X amount of Chemistry Wooden Components. If found in an Invention Ability text, it means you gain that many Chemistry Wooden Components.
Engineering X: Refers to X amount of Engineering Wooden Components. If found in an Invention Ability text, it means you gain that many Engineering Wooden Components.
Physics X: Refers to X amount of Physics Wooden Components. If found in an Invention Ability text, it means you gain that many Physics Wooden Components.
Engineering X / Engineering Y: The player who placed the Invention Hex gains X Engineering Wooden Components; all other players gain Y Engineering Wooden Components.
Physics X / Physics Y: The player who placed the Invention Hex gains X Physics Wooden Components; all other players gain Y Physics Wooden Components.
Chemistry X / Chemistry Y: The player who placed the Invention Hex gains X Chemistry Wooden Components; all other players gain Y Chemistry Wooden Components.
Idea: Refers to the Idea Wooden Component.
Idea X: Refers to X amount of Idea Wooden Components. If found in an Invention Ability text, it means you gain that many Idea Wooden Components.
Innovative Ideas: The player who placed the Invention Hex gains a number of Idea Wooden Components equal to 1 + the number of players below them on the Ingenuity Track. For example, in a two-player game, the person who is first on the Ingenuity Track would gain 2 Ideas, 1 + 1 for the one player below them. If they were second, they would only gain 1 Idea, 1 + 0 for the zero players below them. In a four-player game, the person in the second place on the Ingenuity Track would gain 3 Ideas, 1 + 2 for the two players below them.

Iconography

Innovative Lab: The player who placed the Invention Hex resets a number of Switches equal to 1 + the number of players below them on the Ingenuity Track. For example, in a two-player game, the person who is first on the Ingenuity Track would reset 2 Switches, 1 + 1 for the one player below them. If they were second, they would only reset 1 Switch, 1 + 0 for the zero players below them. In a four-player game, the person in the second place on the Ingenuity Track would reset 3 Switches, 1 + 2 for the two players below them.
Innovative Funding: The player who placed the Invention Hex gains a number of Funds equal to 1 + the number of players below them on the Ingenuity Track. For example, in a two-player game, the person who is first on the Ingenuity Track would gain 2 Funds, 1 + 1 for the one player below them. If they were second, they would only gain 1 Fund, 1 + 0 for the zero players below them. In a four-player game, the person in the second place on the Ingenuity Track would gain 3 Funds, 1 + 2 for the two players below them.
Innovative Resourcing: The player who placed the Invention Hex gains a number of Scientific Resources, in any combination, equal to 1 + the number of players below them on the Ingenuity Track. For example, in a two-player game, the person who is first on the Ingenuity Track would gain 2 Scientific Resources, 1 + 1 for the one player below them. If they were second, they would only gain 1, 1 + 0 for the zero players below them. In a four-player game, the person in the second place on the Ingenuity Track would gain 3, 1 + 2 for the two players below them.
Innovative Engineering: The player who placed the Invention Hex gains a number of Engineering Wooden Components, in any combination, equal to 1 + the number of players below them on the Ingenuity Track. For example, in a two-player game, the person who is first on the Ingenuity Track would gain 2, 1 + 1 for the one player below them. If they were second, they would only gain 1, 1 + 0 for the zero players below them. In a four-player game, the person in the second place on the Ingenuity Track would gain 3, 1 + 2 for the two players below them.
Innovative Physics: The player who placed the Invention Hex gains a number of Physics Wooden Components, in any combination, equal to 1 + the number of players below them on the Ingenuity Track. For example, in a two-player game, the person who is first on the Ingenuity Track would gain 2, 1 + 1 for the one player below them. If they were second, they would only gain 1, 1 + 0 for the zero players below them. In a four-player game, the person in the second place on the Ingenuity Track would gain 3, 1 + 2 for the two players below them.

The Three Scientific Tracks

The Industrial, Economic, and Academic Tracks represent humanity's advancement in the respective fields. All players start outside of the three Scientific Tracks. The first time an ability would advance them to one of the three Tracks, they enter the Track and advance counting the first movement on the first position of that Track. After placing an Invention, you immediately get to advance on the appropriate track based on the icon on the right side of the Invention. When you reach or cross a Milestone Bonus, you get that bonus immediately. All players who cross a Milestone Bonus gain the bonus.

If, after advancing on a Track, you are now the player who has advanced the farthest on that Track, take the corresponding Track Medal. Track Medallions grant a unique passive effect that is effective immediately.

The Industrial Medal allows you to use Engineering Wooden Components as any other Scientific Resource when paying to place Invention Hexes.
The Economic Medal allows you to use Chemistry Wooden Components as any other Scientific Resource when paying to place Invention Hexes.
The Academic Medal allows you to use Physics Wooden Components as any other Scientific Resource when paying to place Invention Hexes.

The three Medals offer their bonuses only when placing Invention Hexes. You cannot use this substitution on a conversion or in any other circumstance.

It is common for Medals to frequently swap between players during the game as players compete on the three Tracks.

It is important to climb the Tracks in order to win Victory Points. At the end of the game, the player who has advanced highest up a Track wins 8 Victory Points. Once a player has reached the top position on a Track, they are locked in and cannot be passed. 2nd and 3rd place could be locked as well if enough people are playing. The second highest player wins 4, third highest wins 2, and lowest wins 1. Note that in order to gain Victory Points from a Track, you must have made it onto the Track at some point during the game.

Retiring an Inventor

When an Inventor Hex is completely surrounded by other Hexes, they are considered Retired. Three things happen when an Inventor is retired:

The player who owns this Inventor Hex must remove the Book Base from that Inventor Hex. Lab Assistants can no longer be assigned to that Inventor's Hex.
The player who owned that Inventor Hex must also discard the matching Inventor Card from their Lab if able. They can no longer use the Inventor Card's ability.
The player who placed the last Hex and retired the Inventor Hex gets to take the pouch and randomly select a Breakthrough Token from it. Look at it, then place it face down next to your lab. Do not show it to the other players. These are hidden Victory Points!

Thus, to retire an Inventor has threefold importance. You deny your opponent the resources gained from Inventor conversions, you deny them access to the Inventor ability, and you gain hidden Victory Points.

Additional Free Actions

Additionally, during each player's turn, they can do the following actions as many times as they want:

Instant Conversions

There are three different resource conversions you can do for free. You can convert...

...any 3 matching Scientific Resources into 1 Idea
...any 2 matching Scientific Resources into any 1 Scientific Resource
...any 1 Scientific Resource into 1 Fund

Inventor Abilities

As soon as you place an Inventor's Hex on the Hex Grid, also place that Inventor's Card below your Lab. While an Inventor's Card is in your Lab, you can automatically benefit from that Inventor's ability. Some abilities are automatically activated when a certain condition happens.

For example, Charles Wheatstone's ability states, "You may place [Physics Invention] next to any Inventor." This ability automatically takes place when you are placing an Invention Hex and negates the placing restriction of all Physics Invention Hexes (for you). You can now place Physics Inventions next to Inventor Hexes of any type.

However, some Abilities must be activated, or triggered, in order to be used. You can spot which Inventors' abilities require them to be triggered by the Trigger symbol at the beginning of the Inventor's Card ability. You can trigger any number of your Inventor Cards, but only during your turn. When you trigger an Inventor Card rotate it to the vertical position. You cannot use it again until it is reset, usually at the next Upkeep Phase.

For example, Henry Ford's ability states: "Trigger: Choose either [Engineering Invention] or [Industrial Invention]. Use a Switch to draw the first one for free." When you trigger Henry Ford, state if you are searching for an Engineering or an Industrial Invention Hex. Then draw the top Invention Hex from the stack. If it is of the type you are searching for, you get to conceive it for free. If it isn't, put it at the bottom of the stack and draw until you find an Invention Hex of the correct type.

End of the Round

When you do not have any actions left (you placed all your Lab Assistants and used all four of your Switches) or you do not want to take any more actions, you pass your round. This means that you flip your Reference Card to the Upkeep Phase and wait for everyone else to end their Player Phase. Be careful, however, because if you pass, you cannot change your mind and return to the Player Phase even if something in the game changes in a way that enables you to perform an action that you could not do earlier. When all players have flipped their Reference Cards to the Upkeep Phase, the new round begins.

Player Labs

Government Lab

Choose the Government if you like to break ties and influence the rules of the game. You can benefit from the success of others or prevent their progress by playing a Government Lab in the Age of Inventors!

Government Liberal

Progress: Whenever another players moves you on the Ingenuity Track, you may Steal up to 1 Scientific Resource from that Player. Additionaly, you may pay Funds instead of Ideas to advance on the Ingenuity Track.

Government Authoritarian

Deep State: When resolving a Breaking News card, Steal up to 1 Idea from any player who voted differently than you. Additionaly, before selecting Equipment Token, you may rearrange the Offer.

Corporation Lab

Choose a Corporation Lab if you want to control the money supply and manage hiring. Corporations in the Age of Inventors grew dramatically as more people found it profitable to work there rather than toiling in the fields in traditional jobs.

Corporation Trading Firm

Entrepreneurship: When placing an Invention receive Funds equal to the Engineering, Chemistry, and Physics paid.

Corporation Manufacturing Co

Contracting: Whenever a new Inventor Card, enters the Offer, you may immediately pay the cost in Funds as shown on the main board, under the Inventor Card, to recruit them without using a Switch.

University Lab

Choose a University Lab to gain access to the most Scientific Resources and the brilliance of Inventors working together in synergy. This is where all the magic of the Age of Inventors took place.

University Metropolitan

Open Thesis: When assigning a Lab Assistant to one of your Equipment Tokens you also gain the conversion of one not retired Inventor on the Main Board.

University Polytechnic

Dissertation: When using a Switch to place an Inventor you may also immediately place an Invention adjacent to that Inventor by paying its cost, without using another Switch.

Innovator Lab

Choose the Innovator's Lab if you want to avoid the bureaucracy of big institutions and simply believe in the value of your own ideas. Make things your own way because in the Age of Inventors, some of the greatest achievements did not require the backing of rich patrons but came to life from people who knew how to make something out of nothing!

Innovator Resourceful

Adaptive: When paying costs, you may use any amount of Ideas in place of Engineering, Chemistry, Physics, or Funds.

Innovator Visionary

Eureka: When Conceiving an Invention you may Conceive an additional Invention by paying its normal Idea cost plus 1 additional Idea.

Abel Prize

The Abel Prize is the most prestigious award for mathematicians. It is given every year by the King of Norway to exceptional mathematicians. The prize is named after Niels Henrik Abel, a renowned Norwegian mathematician, and is closely modeled after the Nobel Prizes.

Abel Prizes are symbolized by special Tokens that can be given to players who accomplish specific achievements. The player who successfully completes the achievement gets to keep the token as a prize, regardless of the number of games played. It serves as a lasting reminder of their valuable contribution to the field of science.

Inventors: To receive this Token, a Player needs to place 7 Inventor Hexes and win the game!
Inventions: To receive this Token, a Player needs to place 15 Invention Hexes and win the game!
Physics: To receive this Token, a Player needs to have 11 remaining Physics Wooden Components at the end of the game and win! (He can still use these 11 Physics Wooden Components to Verify Experiment Tokens.)
Chemistry: To receive this Token, a Player needs to have 11 remaining Chemistry Wooden Components at the end of the game and win! (He can still use these 11 Chemistry Wooden Components to Verify Experiment Tokens.)
Engineering: To receive this Token, a Player needs to have 11 remaining Engineering Wooden Components at the end of the game and win! (He can still use these 11 Engineering Wooden Components to Verify Experiment Tokens.)
Experiments: To receive this Token, a Player needs to have 5 Verified Experiment Tokens at the end of the game and win!
Breakthrough: To receive this Token, a Player needs to retire 8 Inventor Hexes and win the game.
Victory Points: To receive this Token, a Player needs to win the game with at least 40 points.

Playing Solo

Setup

Select the Corporation: Trading Firm
This solo mode is played as a two-player game in terms of mechanics. You are the first player.
Place the second player's Ingenuity Wooden Component at the top position of the Ingenuity Track.
Place the second player's Ingenuity Wooden Component in Position 8 (marked with the Idea icon).
This player will not act but it is considered to have infinite Scientific Resources, Idea Wooden Components, Invention Hexes, and Inventor Hexes in their possession when resolving other rules.
Follow the rest of the rules for setting up normally.

Special Rules

When drawing Equipment Tokens, draw 3 like in a two-player game.
When gaining the bonus of an Invention Hex that grants you Innovation or Steal, resolve normally for a two-player game.
Do not gain Breakthrough Tokens when Retiring Inventor Hexes.

Scoring

To calculate your Victory Points, add the following:

Victory Points from the Three Scientific Tracks.
Victory Points from any Verified Experiment Tokens.
Victory Points from Funds at the end of the game. Gain 1 VP for every 5 Funds.
Test your score with friends or online to see if you managed to score higher or simply try to beat your own high score!

Educational Variant

You may if you want play a variant of this game by introducing a special rule. Any player placing an Invention Hexes has the option of stating who invented it. If they correctly recall the inventor then they pay one less Scientific Resource. Alternatively, if you are really up for a challenge, they must state also the year the Invention was invented. The previous player may check the last page of the rulebook to see if they are right.

While checking, they might sneak a peek at the inventor and date of one of the inventions they plan to place next. However, they must put the rulebook away immediately after checking the other player.

This variant not only adds more fun to the game, but also teaches the players a few interesting facts about the Age of Inventors.

End of Game Scoring

At the end of the game, each player's score is calculated to determine the winner. Players earn points in four categories, as described below:

Scientific Tracks. Players receive Victory Points based on their position on each Scientific Track relative to the other players.
- 1st player: 8 Victory Points
- 2nd player: 4 Victory Points
- 3rd player: 2 Victory Points
- 4th player: 1 Victory Points
- Any player that did not enter a Scientific Track receives 0 Victory Points for that Track
For example, if you are 1st on the Industrial Track, 2nd on the Academic Track, and outside of the Economic Track you will be awarded 12 Victory Points at the end of the game. 8 Victory Points from the Industrial Track, 4 Victory Points from the Academic Track and 0 Victory Points from the Economic Track.
Ingenuity Track. Players receive Victory Points based on their position on the Ingenuity Track.
- 1st player: 4 Victory Points
- 2nd player: 2 Victory Points
- 3rd player: 1 Victory Points
- 4th player: 0 Victory Points
Breakthrough Tokens. All players reveal the Breakthrough Tokens that have collected during the game and gain the Victory Points written on each one of them. For example, if you have 3 Breakthrough Tokens, two awarding 1 Victory Point and one awarding 2 Victory Points. You would gain 4 Victory Points from your three Breakthrough Tokens.
Experiment Tokens. At the end of the game, Verified Experiment Tokens score the number of Victory Points printed on them, while Unverified Tokens that remain face-down score only 1 Victory Point each. If you want to Verify Experiment Tokens at the end of the game, you can spend 4 Funds per Unverified Experiment Token to Verify them.

Game Modes

Kid's Mode: Young Assistants

Setup:

Children take a laboratory and cover the Equipment Offer with random Equipment Tokens face-down. They place the Funds indicator at 0 and set all their Switches to the off position.
They take a Book and 4 Lab Assistants.
They place the Round Indicator at 1.

Each round has 3 phases Conception, Progress and Breakthrough. For each one, follow the rules below.

Conception Phase:

The youngest player goes first, and play proceeds clockwise.
Create a stack of 8, 12, or 16 Invention Hexes, depending on the number of players (2, 3, or 4).
Create a stack of 4, 6, or 8 Inventor Hexes, depending on the number of players (2, 3, or 4).
All players take turns acquiring 2 Inventor Hexes and 4 Invention Hexes. Each Player takes 2 Hexes at a time until everyone has the required number.

Progress Phase:

The youngest player goes first, and play proceeds clockwise.
Players place 2 Hexes each time, following the placement rules of the game.

Breakthrough Phase:

The youngest player goes first, and play proceeds clockwise.
Each player places one of their Book Bases or Lab Assistants or Uses a Switch or Uses all the remaining Switches they have.
The Book Base must be placed next to an inventor.
The Lab Assistants must be placed next to their Book Base or next to a previous Lab Assistant of the same color, in an Invention Hex that matches the color of the Inventor Hex.
When Using a Switch, you can take back a Lab Assistant and place them elsewhere at that moment.
When all remaining Switches are played, score by adjusting the fund indicator based on the number of Lab Assistants placed in a row (the Book Bases do not count).

Game Over Condition: The first player to reach 19 points wins immediately, or the player with the most points at the end of the 4 rounds wins. In case of a tie, the youngest player wins.

Kid's Mode: Young Scientists

The game is as normal with these exceptions:

There are no Events in the Game
There are no Inventor Cards in the Game. The Offer has the Inventor Hexes instead.
You do not play your Lab's Abiltiies

Everything else is the same.

Tesla vs Edison Mode

Setup:

The youngest player chooses either Tesla or Edison. Both players take the Inventor Card of their choice.
Each player selects a Lab. Tesla can choose one of the four University/Innovator Laboratories, while Edison can choose one of the four Corporation/Government Laboratories. Both players place their Inventor Card, Edison or Tesla, on their laboratory. The player who chose Tesla goes first.
Follow the normal setup rules as in the regular game for 2 players.

Play:

Same rules apply for the Upkeep Phase, with the addition that players remove any Lab Assistants from their Card or reset it.

For the player phase:

Players can either play a Lab Assistant on their Card or trigger it by spending a Switch (they cannot do both in the same round).
When Edison plays a Lab Assistant on his Card, he can move one of his Equipment Tokens from its current spot to another. By doing so, he gains both the Equipment Token's bonus and the bonus of the new covered spot by paying 2 Funds.
When Edison uses the Switch to activate his Card, he randomly takes 2 Invention Hexes from Tesla's hand and keeps one of them, returning the other.
When Tesla plays a Lab Assistant on his Card, he can place an Invention Hex at the bottom of the stack and take the Wooden Components it costs in his Lab by spending one Idea.
When Tesla uses a Switch to activate his card, he picks up and keeps 2 Invention Hexes from the stack by spending 2 Ideas.

Invention Years (Back Cover)

Used by the Lab-selection guessing game in setup and the Educational Variant. Names and spellings as printed.

Invention	Year	Inventor
Lightning Rod	1749	Benjamin Franklin
Spinning Jenny	1764	James Hargreaves
Water Frame	1769	Richard Arkwright
Steam Engine	1776	James Watt
Vaccine	1800	Edward Jenner
Battery	1800	Count Alessandro Volta
Tin Can	1813	Peter Durand
First Locomotive	1814	George Stephenson