Alma Mater
Alma Mater Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Components
- Game Setup
- Player Setup
- Research
- Prestige Points
- Additional Masters
- How to Play?
- Action Spaces
- Special Action Spaces
- Hall of Fame
- Final Scoring
- The Winner
- Rules for 2 Players
- Appendix: Chancellor Cards
- Appendix: Professor Cards
- Appendix: Student Tiles
- Appendix: Glory Tiles
- Appendix: Bonuses
- Appendix: Costs
- Credits
Components
- 1 game board (double-sided)
- 24 setup cards
- 10 chancellor cards
- 12 bust cards
- 16 Ignotus cards
- 20 research cards (4 per letter)
- 48 student tiles (4 different per faculty)
- 4 University boards
- 48 professor cards (4 different per faculty)
- 9 glory tiles (3 for each type)
- 28 bookshelves (7 per color)
- 100 textbooks (25 per color)
- 20 dictionaries
- 24 masters (6 per color)
- 6 tutors
- 1 round marker & 1 phase marker
- 9 price tiles (6x 2/4, 3x 3/3)
- 50 coins (30x 1, 10x 5, 10x 10 ducats)
- 12 markers (3 per color)
Game Setup
- Turn the game board to the side matching the number of players and place it in the middle of the table.
- Sort the research cards by the letters on their backs. Shuffle each pile of cards separately and randomly place one card with the appropriate letter face up on each corresponding space to form the research track.
- Sort the student tiles by their front side and place a stack of 3 (only 2 in a 2- or 3-player game) identical tiles face up on a student space of the campus with a matching faculty symbol (art, law, medicine, mathematics).
- Sort the professor cards by their front side and randomly choose two different professors per faculty. Stack 3 (only 2 in a 2- or 3-player game) identical cards of each of these chosen professors face up on a professor space of the academy with a matching faculty symbol.
- Sort the glory tiles by the letters. Shuffle each set of tiles separately and randomly place a tile with the appropriate letter face up on each corresponding space of the hall of fame.
- Place a set of bust cards (a, b and c) per player on each corresponding space of the hall of fame.
- Shuffle the 10 chancellor cards. Draw 2 cards and place them face up on top of the bust cards 'b' and 'c' in the hall of fame. Then draw one more chancellor card than the number of players and place these cards face up next to the game board.
- Place the round marker on the 1st space of the round track and the phase marker on the leftmost space on the phase track.
- Each player chooses a color and takes 1 university, all 7 bookshelves and 4 masters in that color. Then place the 4 masters on the archive space of your university.
- Shuffle the setup cards and place them as a stack face down next to the game board.
- Place one marker of each player's color on the 0 space of the prestige track. Then place one marker of each player's color on the turn order track and another one below the research track (the order of these markers is determined during player setup).
- Form a supply with the remaining 2 masters and all textbooks in your player color, as well as all tutors, price tiles, coins and dictionaries next to the game board.
- In a 2-player game perform the additional setup rules (see "Rules for 2 players" below).
- Put all unused cards as well as any pieces in unused player colors back into the box.
Player Setup
1. Setup cards
Each player draws 4 setup cards from the stack. Then secretly choose one of them and pass the other 3 cards face down to your left neighbour. Then again secretly choose one of the 3 cards you received and pass both the other cards face down to your left neighbour. From these 2 cards, you secretly choose one and pass the last card face down to your left neighbour. Now each player has 4 cards again. Secretly choose 3 cards to keep and discard the 4th card back into the game box.
Simultaneously lay down your 3 setup cards and add up the value of the white numbers on the top of the 3 cards. The player with the lowest total places their marker on the 1st space of the turn order track (ties are broken by the lowest card number in the bottom right corner on a single card). The player with the second lowest total places their marker on the 2nd space, and so on. Place all markers on the start level at the bottom of the research track in the same order, so that players with lower totals are on top of those with higher totals.
Example - Setup: Martin is keeping these 3 setup cards. The sum of the numbers on his cards is 20 (9 + 7 + 4). He is 3rd in player order; behind Alex and Laura but in front of Julia who kept higher numbered cards.
2. Chancellor cards
In turn order, each player chooses one of the face up chancellor cards that are next to the game board and places it next to their university. Place the remaining chancellor on top of the bust cards 'a' in the hall of fame.
3. Display
In turn order, each player arranges their bookshelves with the colored side face up. Place 6 of them in any order into your display and the 7th bookshelf near them.
4. Starting resources
In turn order, each player then gains the starting resources indicated on their setup cards.
If you gain:
- A research step, advance your marker the corresponding number of steps on the research track. If you reach the first milestone, immediately gain the indicated bonus (see "Research" below).
- Ducats or a dictionary, place them in your storage next to your university.
- A textbook with a star, you may place them either in the storage or place them in your own display (see "Arranging textbooks in your display" below).
- One or more students, place them in the next free lecture hall respectively (see "Campus" below).
- Textbooks (without a star), place them in your storage.
- Prestige points, advance your marker the corresponding number of spaces on the prestige track.
Thereafter, return all setup cards to the game box and begin the first round.
Example - Setup: After choosing a chancellor, each player takes their starting resources one after the other. Martin gains 4 prestige points and 1 green research step and advances his markers on the corresponding tracks. He chooses to place the 2 blue textbooks in his display and he places 1 red textbook in his storage. He places the student in the next free lecture hall and gains 1 ducat from the student's ability. Because of his chancellor's ability, he now gains 3 ducats and 1 dictionary. Adding the 3 ducats from the setup cards, he now has a total of 7 ducats in his storage.
Book supply limit: The book supply is considered unlimited. If a supply should be exhausted, use something else as a substitute.
Storage: Store books and ducats in your storage, next to your university. At the end of a round, the storage may only hold a limited number of books (see "Check storage size" below).
Arranging textbooks in your display
When you gain textbooks with a star, take the corresponding number of textbooks in your own player color and you may place them into your display. They must always be placed from right to left. You may only place 1 textbook in each bookshelf. You may not place a textbook in the 7th bookshelf that is near your display.
Note: You are not allowed to move textbooks from your display directly to your storage, and vice versa.
Example - Arranging textbooks in your display: As a first action, Martin places a master on his student's action space and pays 4 ducats to gain 4 blue textbooks. He places 2 of them in his bookshelves and places the other 2 in his storage. He skips the opportunity to take a black research step.
Textbooks
Textbooks are books in the player colors, including your own color. When you gain textbooks, you must place them in your storage.
Textbooks with a star on them are textbooks only in your own player color. When you gain them, you can either place them directly into your display or place them in your storage.
Examples for multiple textbooks: 3 textbooks of any colors (red, red, blue); 3 textbooks of the same color (red, red, red); 3 textbooks of different colors (red, blue, green).
Dictionaries
Dictionaries are special books that you can use to recruit professors and the best students.
Note: You may not use dictionaries when textbooks are required.
Research
The research status of your university is recorded on the research track.
If you get a green research step, you may advance your marker one level on the research track, without having to meet the requirements shown there and without paying the cost.
If you get a black research step, you may advance your marker one level on the research track if you meet the requirements shown there or pay the cost.
If there already is a marker of another player on the next level, place your marker on top of that marker.
It is possible to get a combination of green and black research steps during the same turn. If that is the case, you can choose when to use a green or when to use a black research step in that turn. It is not possible to keep a research step for a future turn.
Milestones
The top level on each research card is a so-called milestone. When you reach the level below a milestone, you will automatically advance to the milestone and gain the depicted bonus immediately. This doesn't require a research step.
If you are the first or second player (or third in a 4-player game) to reach the 5th milestone, place your marker on the corresponding symbol. If any more players reach the 5th milestone, their markers remain on the top spaces of the research track.
Example - Research & Milestones: Alex gains a black research step. Since he doesn't have any professors, he must pay 1 textbook of any color and spend 3 prestige points to advance his marker on the research track. This way, he reaches the level below the milestone, so he advances his marker again. He immediately gains the depicted bonus, allowing him to recruit a professor without paying any ducats.
Tip - Research: Doing research has several advantages. You will gain valuable bonuses by reaching milestones. Additionally, a good position on the research track increases the reputation of your textbooks. You also gain additional prestige points through research in the final score (see "Final Scoring" below).
Prestige Points
The majority of prestige points are scored during the final scoring. However, it is common to score and spend points during the game. You cannot spend more points than you own, so your marker cannot move below the 0 space on the prestige track.
Additional Masters
There are 3 ways to obtain additional masters:
- Meet the requirement of the 'a' glory tile (see "Hall of Fame" below).
- Reach or exceed 15 prestige points.
- Place a student in your 6th lecture hall (see "Campus" below).
As soon as you fulfill one of these conditions, immediately obtain an additional master from the supply and place it on the archive space of your university. You can gain a maximum of 2 additional masters, even if you have fulfilled all 3 conditions.
Note: You do not lose the master you obtained by gaining 15 or more prestige points if you subsequently drop below 15 prestige points, and you do not obtain another master when you reach 15 prestige points a second time.
How to Play?
Alma Mater is played over 6 rounds. Each round consists of the following phases:
a) Action phase b) Administrative phase c) Income phase
Move the phase marker to the corresponding space of the phase track to indicate the current phase or step.
The game will end during the administrative phase of the 6th round, when the round marker is moved to the end space. Then a final scoring will occur, and the player with the most prestige points wins.
a) Action phase
In turn order, each player choses one of the following two options:
- Send masters: Take one or more of your masters from the archive space of your university and place them either on one action space on the game board or on the action space of one of your own students (see "Action Spaces" below). Then perform the indicated action.
- Give a lecture: Choose one of your ready professors. Pay the required book cost to perform the action (see "Academy" below). Then exhaust your professor.
Repeat this in turn order. If you cannot or do not want to perform either of the above actions, you must pass and you may not take any further actions this round. Exhaust all your ready professors and move all your available masters on the dormitory space of your university.
Since players might have different numbers of masters and professors and can also place several masters on one action field at the same time, it is possible for one player to take several turns even though another player has already passed. After all players have passed, the action phase ends.
b) Administrative phase
During the administration phase, players perform the following 6 steps in sequence, as indicated on the phase track:
1. Determining the turn order
The player who has the most masters on the bishop space becomes the new start player. Place the marker of that player on the 1st space of the turn order track. The player with the second-most masters on the bishop space becomes second, and so on. In the case of a tie, the player who first placed one or more masters on the bishop space wins the tie. If more than one player do not have masters on the bishop space, they remain in the same relative turn order to each other.
Example - Determining the turn order: During this round, both Julia and Martin have placed 2 masters each on the bishop space. Since Julia has placed one of her masters on the bishop space first, her marker is moved to the first place of the turn order track, and Martin's marker is moved to the second place. Alex and Laura have not placed any masters on the bishop space. Both of their markers are moved to the 3rd and 4th space, maintaining the same relative order they had this round.
2. Check storage size
Your storage size for books is determined by the rightmost occupied 'A' lecture hall in your university, and can be increased by the depicted student on the right. At the end of a round, if there are more books in your storage than your storage size allows, you must return the excess books back into the supply.
Example - Storage size: Laura has a storage size of 7 and must therefore return one of her 8 books to the supply. The 6 textbooks in her display do not count towards this limit.
3. Book reputation
During the 1st round, there are no books on the book reputation track.
At the end of the first round, determine the order for the first time by taking one book of each player color from the supply. Place the book of the player whose marker is highest on the research track on the 1st space of the book reputation track. Then place the book of the player whose marker is the second highest on the research track on the 2nd space of the book reputation track, and so on. In case of a tie on the research track, the marker which is the topmost is considered the highest.
In subsequent rounds, these books are rearranged in the same way.
Example - Book reputation: At the end of the first round, the book reputation track is set up for the first time: Alex has moved highest up the research track. Therefore, a black book from the supply will be placed in space I of the reputation track. Martin is behind Alex, and a blue book is placed in space II. Laura and Julia are in the same space. In this case, the marker which is on top (Laura's) determines the highest reputation. Accordingly, a green book is placed in space III and a red book in space IV.
4. Ready the professors
Ready all your professors.
When you give a lecture with a professor, you must exhaust its card, i.e., rotate the professor card 90° clockwise. You cannot give a lecture with an exhausted professor.
During the administrative phase, all players ready their professors, rotating their professor cards 90° counterclockwise. The professors are now ready again and can be used to give lectures.
5. Take back masters
Take back all of your masters from the action spaces and your dormitory space and place them on the archive space of your university.
6. Advance the round marker
Move the round marker to the next space on the round track.
Note: If the round marker is moved to the end space, the game ends immediately and the Income phase does not occur.
c) Income phase
During the income phase, perform the following steps in turn order (experienced players may perform these steps simultaneously):
- Display clean-up: First, gain 1 ducat for each book in your display. Then, using the 7th bookshelf that is near your display, slide all bookshelves from right to left so that the leftmost bookshelf falls out of your university board. If the bookshelf that falls out contains a book, place the book back into the supply. The shelf that was pushed out of the display is placed on the spot near the display. When doing this, make sure the same side remains face up.
- Gain ducats and/or books from any students with the income symbol.
- Gain ducats according to your position on the book reputation track.
Example - Income: Laura gains 6 ducats for the 6 books in her display. She then slides the bookshelves to the left, using her 7th bookshelf. The book that was pushed out of the display is returned to the supply and the pushed out bookshelf is placed near her display. One of her students provides her 1 ducat and 1 dictionary. Finally, since she is ranked 3rd in book reputation, she gains 2 ducats.
Tip - Income: Money is an important resource, so you should make sure you generate a steady income of ducats. Placing textbooks of your color in your display is a good source of income.
Action Spaces
Masters
During the action phase, you may place one or more of your masters on an action space on the board or on one of your students to perform the corresponding action.
The following rules apply to all action spaces except the bishop space and the colloquium space.
To use an unoccupied action space, you have to place 1 master. If there are already one or more masters on the action space, you must place one more master than the highest number of masters of a single color already on that space. You are not allowed to use an action space if there are already one or more of your masters on it or when you cannot perform the associated action.
Note: On the 2-3 player board, there is 1 action space associated with 2 actions. If you place one or more masters on this space, you must choose either one of those 2 actions.
Example - Action spaces: On his turn, Martin has placed 1 master on this action space. Julia uses the same space on her turn. To do so, she has to place 2 masters on this space. If a third player wants to use the same space this round, they would have to place 3 masters on that space.
Tutors
Tutors are special masters that you may gain from a certain professor. They are considered as masters for all game effects. If you place a tutor on an action space, return him to the supply after resolving the action. This way, it is possible for you to use an action space multiple times per round. At the end of each round, all tutors must be returned to the supply.
Note: Tutors that have been placed on the bishop space do not affect the player order (see "Bishop" below).
Campus
There are 4 campus spaces on the board. If you use one of these spaces, chose one of the students in the corresponding row and pay the cost based on the faculty (column) of the student. The costs are indicated above the student display on the board. The book reputation determines which different textbooks you have to pay in the appropriate quantities.
For example, to recruit a law student you have to pay the following books: 2 textbooks of either rank I or II of book reputation, 1 textbook of either rank I, II or III (and of a different color than the first 2 textbooks) and any single textbook of a third color.
Note: In the first round, the book reputation has not yet been determined and you may use any textbooks in appropriate quantities in this round.
Place the student in the next free lecture hall of your university. The lecture halls are numbered. A student must always be placed in the lowest-numbered available lecture hall. If this is an 'A' lecture hall, your storage size increases as indicated above the corresponding hall. If you place the 6th student, immediately obtain an additional master from the supply.
The lecture halls 7-11 are only available for an additional cost (1-5 ducats). If you want to recruit a student and place it in one of these lecture halls, you must pay that cost first. If you can't pay the costs, you cannot recruit the student.
If all lecture halls are occupied, you are not allowed to recruit a student.
Note: You may not recruit the same student multiple times.
Some students trigger an immediate effect after they have been placed in a lecture hall. The effects of all students are explained in the appendix (see "Appendix: Student tiles" below).
Example - Campus: On his turn, Martin places a master on a campus space to recruit a student. To do this, he must pay 2 identical textbooks of the color indicated in space I or II of the book reputation track, plus 1 other textbook of the color indicated in space I, II or III of the book reputation track, and any 1 other textbook. He places 2 blue, 1 black and 1 green textbook in the supply and places the student in the next free lecture hall of his university.
Action spaces on your own students
You may use action spaces on your own students. There are 2 students in the game that have an action space and both give you the option to buy textbooks in your own player color from the supply and to get a black research step. You start the game with one of those students printed directly on your university board.
Academy
There are 4 (only 2 in a 2- or 3-player game) academy spaces on the board. If you use one of these spaces, choose a professor corresponding to that action space. You will have to pay a different cost depending on whether the chosen professor has already been recruited.
- If no other player has previously recruited the professor, you must pay ducats and books (you may spend dictionaries) as indicated to the left of the professor. In the example on the right, the player has to pay 5 ducats and 2 books of one color, 1 book of another color and 1 book of a third color. Afterwards, take the professor card and place it next to your university. Place one of each kind of book you have just paid with onto the corresponding spaces next to the professor. These indicate the future cost of the professor for this game.
- If another player has recruited the professor before, you must pay exactly the same books that player has paid, but you do not have to pay any ducats. Then take the professor card and place it next to your university. In this case, all the books that you used to pay the professor are returned to the supply.
After you have recruited a professor, you may immediately give a lecture with this professor, free of charge. If you choose to do so, perform the corresponding action and exhaust the professor.
Finally, take a book of the color that you paid the most of from the supply, and place it on the bookmark icon on the professor card. This book shows the color of the book you need to pay if you want to give a lecture with this professor in future rounds.
Note: You may not recruit the same professor multiple times. The effects of all professors are explained in the appendix (see "Appendix: Professor cards" below).
Example - Academy: Martin has placed one master in the academy action space in order to be the first to recruit a professor. In addition to paying 6 ducats, he decides to pay 3 blue textbooks, 2 red textbooks and 1 dictionary. He places one of each of the books on the space next to the professor, and returns the remaining books back to the supply. Martin places the professor next to his university. He uses the free lecture and exhausts the professor to gain a green research step (the ability of the professor). He then places a blue textbook from the supply on the bookmark of the professor card. When he wants to give a lecture with this professor in the following rounds, he has to pay a blue textbook from his storage.
Antiquarian
When you use this space, choose one of the following three options to buy books from the supply and resolve it once this turn:
- Pay 3 ducats for 1 textbook.
- Pay 6 ducats for 1 dictionary and 1 textbook.
- Pay 9 ducats for 2 dictionaries and 1 textbook.
Laboratory
When you use this space, choose one of the following two options:
- Get 3 black research steps.
- Get 1 green research step.
Park
When you use this space, pay 10 ducats and get 7 prestige points. You may resolve it only once this turn.
Special Action Spaces
There are two large action spaces on the board: the bishop and the colloquium. The previous rules for placing masters on action spaces do not apply here. You can use both the bishop and the colloquium space multiple times per round and the number of masters that are already on that space has no effect.
Bishop
When you use this space, you can place several masters at the same time:
- If you place 1 master, you gain 2 ducats.
- If you place 2 masters, you gain 5 ducats.
- If you place 3 masters, you gain 8 ducats.
You may use this space several times per round, however, only the masters you have placed on this specific turn will be counted to determine the ducats you gain.
Note: The total number (and possibly the order) of the masters in this space determines the player order for the next round (see "Determining the turn order" above). Therefore, place the masters from left to right on this space.
Example - Bishop: Julia places 1 master on the bishop space and gains 2 ducats for it. On his turn, Martin then places 2 masters and gains 5 ducats. Later in the round, Julia once again places 1 master on this space and gains 2 more ducats.
Colloquium
When you use this space, you must place 1 master and choose one of the following two options:
- Buy textbooks from another player: You may buy any number of textbooks from another player's display and pay them the amount indicated above their display. Textbooks must be bought from left to right (ascending in cost). If you would like to buy more than a player has in his display, you may buy additional textbooks of that color from the supply for 4 ducats each (the ducats for these will go into the supply, not to the player). Then select exactly 1 bookshelf from which you bought a textbook this turn and immediately gain the prestige points indicated. The bookshelf is then flipped over to its darker side, but remains in the same position. If all the bookshelves you bought textbooks from have already been flipped over, you will not gain prestige points. Once one of your bookshelves is flipped over to its darker side it may not be flipped back again, but you can still place a book on that shelf.
- Buy dictionaries: You may buy any number of dictionaries from the supply for 4 ducats each.
Example - Colloquium: On her turn Julia places 1 master on the colloquium space to buy 2 textbooks from Laura. She pays 5 ducats to Laura and gains the two leftmost green textbooks from Laura's display and places them in her storage. She then chooses the rightmost of the two bookshelves and gains 2 prestige points. The selected bookshelf is then flipped over to its darker side.
Hall of Fame
The 3 glory tiles in the hall of fame provide optional objectives to all players. Reaching an objective will give you access to an additional chancellor ability, resources and prestige points.
During your turn, if you have met the requirements on any of the 3 glory tiles, you can take a bust card of the corresponding letter from underneath the chancellor card. This serves as a reminder that you can use the ability of the corresponding chancellor from now on, in addition to the ability of your own chancellor. You will score prestige points for your bust cards during the final scoring. When you take a bust card, you also immediately gain the specified bonus (1 master / 2 dictionaries + 1 textbook / 2 green research steps).
Note: You cannot take a bust card and the corresponding bonus multiple times. However it is possible to get the 'a', 'b' and 'c' bust cards as well as the corresponding bonuses.
The abilities of all chancellors as well as the requirements on the glory tiles are explained in the appendix (see "Appendix: Chancellor cards" and "Appendix: Glory tiles" below).
Chancellors
Chancellors give you access to a special ability. Some of them may only be activated once per turn/round/game (when mentioned on the card). However, activating those abilities is not considered an action and can be used at any point during your turn.
You can benefit from up to 4 chancellors during a game.
Final Scoring
As soon as the game ends, each player performs the following steps:
- Exchange each textbook in your storage for 1 ducat from the supply.
- For every 4 ducats in your storage gain 1 prestige point.
- For every dictionary in your storage gain 1 prestige point.
- Gain 12/7/3 prestige points according to your position (1st/2nd/3rd) on the book reputation track. In a 2- or 3-player game, gain 12/5 prestige points according to your position (1st/2nd) on the book reputation track.
- Multiply the total number of milestones you reached on the research track by the number of your professors and gain the resulting number of prestige points.
- Gain the prestige points indicated on the top right of your professor cards.
- Gain the prestige points indicated on your mathematics students.
- Multiply the number of students in your 'A' lecture halls by the number of students in your 'B' lecture halls and gain the resulting number of prestige points.
- Gain 12/7/3 prestige points if you have 3/2/1 bust cards respectively.
The Winner
The player with the most prestige points is the winner. In the case of a tie, the tied player who has the highest priority in turn order, determined at the end of round 6, is the winner.
Rules for 2 Players
Game Setup
For a game with 2 players, a third player, named Ignotus, is added. His moves are dealt with automatically.
At the end of the setup, shuffle the 16 Ignotus cards and place them as a deck next to the board. Ignotus will gain a university, all 7 bookshelves, 3 masters and one marker in one of the remaining player colors. Place the masters on the archive space of the university and the marker on the start level of the research track. Then place the bookshelves sorted by prestige points from left to right in ascending order in the display: 1/1/1/1/2/2 with the 3 next to the display. Finally, add the textbooks of the chosen player color to the supply. Note that there is no third marker on the turn order track so you will only need the first two spaces.
How to play
At the start of each action phase, before the starting player performs their first action, reveal the top card from the Ignotus deck and follow the steps on the card:
- Advance Ignotus' marker the specified number of free steps on the research track.
- Add the specified number of Ignotus' textbooks from the supply to his display, following the usual rules (see "Arranging textbooks in your display" above).
- Place 1 of Ignotus' masters on each of the specified action spaces on the board without performing the action.
When Ignotus' marker reaches the level below a milestone, immediately advance his marker on the milestone. However, Ignotus does not gain the depicted bonus. Advancing on a milestone does not count as one of his research steps.
When a player buys books from Ignotus, the money is paid to the supply.
During the income phase, Ignotus gains no income and no resources. However, Ignotus' shelves are still pushed to the left.
Example - Action phase for 2 players: Reveal the top Ignotus card. Ignotus gains 2 green research steps, and his marker is moved 2 steps up the research track. Add 4 of Ignotus' textbooks to his display. Finally, place 1 of Ignotus' masters on each specified action space on the board.
Appendix: Chancellor Cards
Glarean Player Setup: Draw 3 additional setup cards, keep 1. Whenever you give a lecture: Gain 1 prestige point. Whenever you give a lecture with a professor, gain 1 prestige point. If you choose this Chancellor during player setup, draw 3 setup cards from the deck, choose one of these and place it with your other setup cards, returning the other 2 to the box.
Desiderius Erasmus Once per round, when you place a master on the bishop space: Count 1 master as 2 masters. Once per round: When you place one or more masters on the bishop action space, they may count as though you have placed one additional master for all game effects. This affects both the ducats gained and the turn order. As a reminder, you may take a book of your player color from the supply and place it on the bishop space. Return this book to the supply during the administrative phase.
Leonardo da Vinci Once per turn, when you advance on the research track: Gain 1 black research step. Once per game: Double the bonus of a milestone. Once per turn: After moving your marker up the research track, gain a black research step. Once per game: After you reach a milestone on the research track, immediately gain its bonus a second time.
Paracelsus Once per round: Ready one of your professors. Once per round: Ready an exhausted professor. You may give another lecture with this professor this round. You may not use this ability if you have already passed earlier during the same round. As a reminder, you may exhaust this chancellor. Then, ready this chancellor during the administrative phase.
Georgius Agricola Whenever you place masters on an already occupied space: Place one less master. Whenever you place masters on an action space already occupied, place one master less than usually required. This does not apply to the special action spaces. Example: There are 1 red and 2 green masters on a space. Normally, Martin would need to place 3 masters. With this chancellor, he only has to place 2 masters. Alex would then have to place 3 masters if he wants to use this space as well.
Vannoccio Biringuccio Whenever you place a student in a 'B' lecture hall: Gain 1 dictionary and 3 ducats. Whenever you place a student in your 'B' lecture hall, immediately gain a dictionary and 3 ducats. If you choose this chancellor during player setup, apply its ability to students gained as starting resources.
Nicolaus Marschalk On other players' turns: If a player buys one or more textbooks from your display, each of you gain 1 prestige point. Then, you also gain 1 textbook in the color of that player from the supply. Whenever a player buys one or more textbooks from your display, both you and that player gain 1 prestige point each. In addition, gain 1 textbook in that player's color from the supply.
Nicolaus Copernicus Income phase: Double your income during the display clean-up step. Income phase: Double your income from the display clean-up. You now gain 2 ducats for each textbook in your display.
Duarte Pacheco Pereira Whenever you place a master on the antiquarian, the bishop, the park or the laboratory space, replace the actions marked on the board with the improved actions on this card:
- Antiquarian: Pay 2 ducats for 1 textbook / Pay 5 ducats for 1 textbook and 1 dictionary / Pay 8 ducats for 1 textbook and 2 dictionaries.
- Bishop: Place 1 master, gain 3 ducats / Place 2 masters, gain 7 ducats / Place 3 masters, gain 12 ducats.
- Park: Pay 8 ducats and get 7 prestige points.
- Laboratory: Get 4 black research steps / Get 1 green research step.
Leon Battista Alberti Whenever you give a lecture: Pay no books. You do not have to pay any books to give lectures with your professors. Other costs related to the ability of the professor must be paid as usual. When recruiting a professor, do not place a book on his bookmark.
Appendix: Professor Cards
Each faculty has 4 different professors (3 copies each). Professors are identified by their faculty symbol and recruiting cost (in ducats), not by individual name.
Mathematics professors (cost 4 ducats)
- Place a textbook of your color from the supply onto each of your empty bookshelves in your display. You do not have to pay ducats for these books.
- Activate one of your masters that you have previously placed on an action space, and perform this action again. You can also choose a single master that has been placed there as part of a group.
- Gain 3 black research steps (see "Research" above).
- Immediately perform the display clean-up step: Gain 1 ducat for each book in your display. Then, using the 7th bookshelf that is next to your display, slide all bookshelves from right to left. During the income phase, perform the display clean-up step as usual.
Medicine professors (cost 6 ducats)
- Immediately recruit a student. Pay one less textbook of your choice. When performing this action, you do not need to place a master on a campus space. Costs may be further reduced by other effects.
- Gain 1 green research step (see "Research" above).
- Place a tutor from the supply on the archive space of your university (see "Tutors" above).
- Gain a dictionary from the supply and one black research step (see "Research" above).
Law professors (cost 8 ducats)
- Immediately recruit a student. Pay one less textbook of your choice and gain prestige points corresponding to the faculty of the recruited student. When performing this action, you do not need to place a master on a campus space. Costs may be further reduced by other effects.
- Choose either: Pay 5/10 ducats to the supply and gain 5/10 prestige points. Or Pay 1/2 prestige point(s) to gain 5/10 ducats from the supply.
- Gain a dictionary, a textbook of any color and a textbook of your color from the supply.
- Gain 2 ducats from the supply for each master currently on your archive space, including tutors.
Art professors (cost 10 ducats)
- Gain 1 prestige point for each master currently on your archive space, including tutors.
- Gain 1 prestige point for each textbook in your display. Books in your storage do not count.
- Gain 1 prestige point for each student in your 'A' lecture halls. This includes the printed student in lecture hall 1.
- Gain prestige points for each of your professors: 1 prestige point for each mathematics/medicine/law professor. 2 prestige points for each art professor (including this professor).
Appendix: Student Tiles
Student printed on the university board
Action space: Use this space to buy up to 6 textbooks of your color. Pay 1 ducat per book and place each of them in your display or in your storage. Gain 1 black research step (see "Research" above).
Art students
- Action space: Use this space to buy up to 8 textbooks of your color. Pay 1 ducat per book and place them each in your display or in your storage. Gain 1 black research step (see "Research" above).
- Immediately gain 1 ducat. During each income phase, gain 1 ducat. Your storage size is increased by 4.
- Whenever you use the bishop space, gain 1 additional ducat for each master you placed this turn. Then, gain 1 black research step (see "Research" above).
- Immediately gain 3 price tiles (2x 2/4, 1x 3/3) and place them above your display to permanently change the costs of 3 of your bookshelves. Decide which side is facing up, but note the restriction that the costs may only increase or stay the same from left to right. During each income phase, you may flip and reorder the price tiles while respecting this restriction.
Law students
- Immediately gain 1 ducat and 1 dictionary. During each income phase, gain 1 ducat and 1 dictionary.
- Whenever you place a master on the colloquium space, you may buy textbooks from two players instead of one. You may only earn points from a single bookshelf. Alternatively, you may buy textbooks from one player and dictionaries from the supply.
- After placing a professor next to your university, immediately gain 1 green research step (see "Research" above).
- Immediately gain 2 ducats. After placing a student in your lecture hall, immediately gain 2 ducats. If you place a student in one of the lecture halls 7-11, those ducats cannot be used to pay the extra cost.
Medicine students
- Immediately gain 1 prestige point for each of your students in a 'B' lecture hall. Immediately gain 4 ducats. During each income phase, gain 4 ducats.
- Immediately gain 1 prestige point for each of your students in a 'B' lecture hall. Whenever you recruit a student, pay one less textbook of your choice. Costs may be further reduced by other effects.
- Immediately gain 1 prestige point for each of your students in a 'B' lecture hall. Whenever you reach a blue-marked level on the research track, immediately gain 1 green research step.
- Immediately gain 1 prestige point for each of your students in the 'B' lecture hall. Whenever you recruit a professor, pay no ducats. This only has an effect if the professor has not previously been recruited by another player.
Mathematics students
- During the final scoring, gain 2 prestige points for each milestone you reached on the research track.
- During the final scoring, gain 3 prestige points for each of your bust cards.
- During the final scoring, gain 1 prestige point for each of your students. This includes the printed student in lecture hall 1.
- During the final scoring, gain 2 prestige points for each of your professors.
Appendix: Glory Tiles
You can take the bust card on your turn when:
- ... you have reached at least 3 milestones on the research track.
- ... you have at least 4 dictionaries and 15 ducats in your storage.
- ... you have at least 25 ducats in your storage.
- ... you have at least 3 students, each from either the medicine or the mathematics faculties in your lecture halls, and have reached at least 2 milestones on the research track.
- ... you have at least 1 student from each faculty in your lecture halls.
- ... you have at least 7 students in your lecture halls.
- ... you have at least 2 professors, each from either the art or the law faculties.
- ... you have at least 4 professors.
- ... you have at least 3 professors and 4 students, each from either the art or the law faculties in your lecture halls.
Appendix: Bonuses
When you take a bust card, gain the specified bonus:
- Gain 2 ducats.
- Gain 3 different textbooks and a dictionary.
- Gain 3 prestige points.
- Gain 2 textbooks of your choice and gain 5 prestige points.
- Immediately gain 1 dictionary and recruit a student of your choice, without paying costs or using a master. Additional costs for lecture halls 7-11 still apply.
- Immediately recruit 1 professor of your choice, without paying ducats or using a master. Other costs are normally paid (see "Academy" above). You may immediately give a lecture with this professor free of charge.
- Immediately recruit a student from the art or the law faculty, without paying its cost or using a master. Additional costs for lecture halls 7-11 still apply.
- Immediately recruit 1 professor from the mathematics, the medicine or the law faculty without paying its cost or using a master. You may immediately give a lecture with this professor free of charge. If the chosen professor has already been recruited by another player, place the highest paid book color on the professor. If no player has recruited the professor, you may place any book on the professor. In both cases, the book is taken from the supply.
Appendix: Costs
The following costs (for research steps and other effects) are used throughout the game:
- Pay 1 dictionary.
- Pay 2 different textbooks.
- Pay 3 textbooks of any color.
- Pay 2 textbooks of one color and 2 textbooks of a second color.
- Pay any 5 textbooks. Reduce this cost by 2 textbooks for each of your bust cards (to a minimum cost of 0 textbooks).
- Pay 1 textbook for each of your professors.
- Pay 3 ducats.
- Pay 7 ducats. Reduce this cost by 2 ducats for each of your students (to a minimum cost of 0 ducats).
- Pay 5 ducats. Reduce this cost by 2 ducats for each of your masters on the bishop space (to a minimum cost of 0 ducats).
- Pay 1 ducat. Increase this cost by 1 ducat for each of your students.
- Pay 2 ducats for each of your masters in your archive.
- Pay half the ducats in your storage (rounded up).
- Move 1 of your masters from the archive space to the dormitory space. If you do not have masters on the archive space, you cannot complete this research step.
- Move all of your masters from the archive space to the dormitory space. If you do not have masters on the archive space, you cannot complete this research step.
- Remove one of your masters from your archive space and return it to the game box. If you do not have masters on the archive space, you cannot complete this step.
- Exhaust one of your professors without using its ability. This does not count as giving a lecture.
- This step is free if you have at least 3 students in your lecture halls; otherwise pay 2 ducats and 3 prestige points.
- This step is free if you have at least 1 professor; otherwise pay 1 textbook and 3 prestige points.
- Exhaust one of your professors without using its ability; or pay 5 ducats. This does not count as giving a lecture.
- This step is free if you have all 3 bust cards; otherwise move 1 master from the archive space to the dormitory space and pay 4 prestige points. If you do not have masters on the archive space, you cannot complete this step.
- Pay 2 ducats for each player who is behind you on the research track.
Credits
The authors would like to thank all people who playtested the game, for their time, enthusiasm and valuable suggestions, especially: Davide Malvestuto, Chiara Volpini, Luca Ercolini, Livia Ercolini, Davide Pellacani, Jamil Zabarah, Simone Luciani, Samantha Milani, Luca Iennaco, Riccardo Rabissoni, Francesca Vilmercati, Giorgia Pandolfo, Roberto Sartini, Giovanni Cucchiarelli, Franco Mari, Samuele Sabbatin e Fabrizio Grugnaletti. A special thanks to Marco Pranzo, Tommaso Battista and Gabriele Ausiello, without whom our games wouldn't be the same. Finally, the authors would like to thank the whole publishing team, especially Viktor Kobilke and Moritz Thiele.
Designers: Antonio Tinto, Flaminia Brasini, Virginio Gigli, Stefano Luperto
Producer: Sophie Gravel
Development: Moritz Thiele, Andre Bierth, Katja Volk, Sarah-Ann Orymek
Art Direction: Sophie Gravel
Illustrations: Chris Quilliams
Graphic Design: Stephane Vachon
Editing: Moritz Thiele
© 2020 Plan B Games Europe GmbH, Sinstorfer Weg 70, 21077 Hamburg, Germany. Eggertspiele is a brand of Plan B Games Europe GmbH. No part of this product may be reproduced without specific permission.