Artifact (2004) Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Parts
• Artifact Cards
• Challenge Cards
• Creative Play Options
• Things to Keep in Mind
• Basic Rules
• Taking a Turn
• Building ARTeams
• Moving Spaces

Game Parts

• 1 game board
• 120 stackable pieces (6 colors)
• 50 gold coins
• 15 second timer
• 2 dice
• 6 Legend cards
• 24 Informant cards
• 72 Artifact cards
• 180 Challenge cards (Surprise, Memory, Quiz)

Artifact Cards

Collect Artifact cards to move around the board.

• There are a total of 24 artifacts (3 matching cards equal 1 artifact).
• The country names and numbers on the Artifact cards match the names and numbers on the board.
• The number of spaces you move is indicated on the Artifact card, below the name of the artifact.
• You are dealt 8 Artifact cards at the beginning of the game. You can obtain more by trading, returning artifacts, or by the luck of the dice.
• You can only hold up to 10 cards in your hand at one time. Immediately discard any cards above this amount.

Artifact card layout (as printed): the card shows the country name and country number running down the left edge (for example "#5 NEW ZEALAND"), the artwork in the centre, and the number of spaces you move, shown beside the artwork and below the name of the artifact.

Challenge Cards

Draw 1 Challenge card to EARN COINS (on your turn).

• MEMORY: You have 15 seconds (use the timer) to turn the card over and memorize the list. When time is up, pass the card to another player to check your answers as you recite the answers back to them out loud. Each correct answer is worth 1 coin.
• QUIZ: Similar to Memory, where you have 15 seconds (use the timer) to look at the back of the card and memorize the answers. When time is up, pass the card to another player and have them quiz you on all the questions. Each correct answer is worth 2 coins.
• SURPRISE: Random dice challenges where you usually earn coins for yourself.

Card notes:

• Acceptable answers are always in bold.
• Text in italics is just a story.

Quiz card layout: the front of a Quiz card carries a story passage, with the instruction "Turn the card over and memorize facts about the Egyptian artifacts. Hand the card to a player to quiz you. Earn 2 coins for every correct answer." The back carries the questions, with the acceptable answers in bold. The sample Quiz card printed on the sheet has these questions and answers:

1. Where did the Michael Carlos Museum get the mummy? Niagara Falls Museum, Ontario, Canada
2. Who was the mummy believed to be? Ramses I, founder of the 19th Dynasty
3. Where was the mummy originally discovered? Near the Valley of the Kings
4. The head of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities appealed to other museums to return its artifacts. Which two in particular did he ask for? The Bust of Nefertiti in the Berlin Museum, and the Rosetta Stone in the British Museum

Creative Play Options

TWO-PLAYER: For a two-player game, we recommend reducing the number of artifacts played in the game to 12. Place unneeded color pieces on countries that will not be built on to help identify which 12 artifacts are not being played.

EASIER PLAY (ages 8 & up):

• (Option 1): Simply play the Surprise cards and bypass the Quiz & Memory challenges.
• (Option 2): Earn coins by rolling 1 die instead of taking a Challenge card. Earn the number of coins equal to your roll.

MEMORY GAME (ages 3 & up): You can play a memory game with the Artifact cards. Remove 1 Artifact card from each set. Turn the remaining 48 Artifact cards face down. After two cards are matched, the player puts a piece on the matching country on the board and keeps the set of cards. If a player makes a match, it stays his/her turn. The player with the most matches wins. For a harder memory game, try matching a set of 3 cards!

Things to Keep in Mind

Countries are strategically numbered and given a value based on probabilities of rolling numbers between 2 and 12.

For example, the Artifact cards with the numbers 2 or 12 are worth 5 spaces because it is harder to roll these numbers. There are more chances of rolling a 7 or 8, therefore, these Artifact cards are worth 3 spaces.

However, the last action in your turn is rolling the dice. Remember, you roll the dice to see if you can earn Artifact cards. Since the numbers 7 and 8 have a higher probability of being rolled, you have better odds of earning Artifact cards if you build an ARTeam on these numbers.

Basic Rules

Objective: Be the first player to travel around the board and make it back to the start square.

1. Each player takes 8 coins and 15 pieces of one color. Each player then places one piece on the start square.

2. Shuffle the Artifact cards and deal each player 8 cards face down. Place the remaining stack of Artifact cards in the middle of the board. All players should take a Legend card as a reminder of actions they can do on each turn. Choose a player to start the game. Play continues clockwise.

3. Follow steps A through C. (See TAKING A TURN on page 3 for more details.)

   • A. Either SPEND COINS -OR- EARN COINS.
   • B. Either TRADE ARTIFACT CARDS WITH 1 PLAYER -OR- TRADE ARTIFACT CARDS WITH THE DECK.
   • C. ROLL THE DICE to see which, if any, players get to draw Artifact cards from the deck. Rolling the dice is always the LAST thing you do, ending your turn.

   Additionally, at any time during your turn, you may return matching Artifact cards or play Informant cards as explained in MOVING SPACES on page 4.

4. After the dice are rolled, play moves to the next player.

5. The winner of the game is the first player to move around the board and land on (or pass) the start square. Note 1: If you advance past the start square with another player, the winner is the player who finishes farthest ahead. Note 2: To avoid losing, make sure your turn does not advance another player ahead of you.

Board note: start here and go all the way around the board back to the start square (>>>). The country number and country name identify each country on the board.

Taking a Turn

Follow steps A through C. You may also return artifacts any time during your turn.

A. SPEND COINS: You can spend coins to buy Informant cards and/or to build ARTeams.

1. INFORMANT CARDS: There are 24 Informant cards, costing 2 coins each. Keep the information on the card secret until you are ready to play the card. After playing the Informant card, return it to the bottom of the deck, unless otherwise stated.

2. ARTIFACT RECOVERY TEAMS (ARTeams): You may spend 3 coins to build an ARTeam in a vacant country. ARTeams are important because they must first be built in a country in order for artifacts to be returned. (See BUILDING ARTeams on page 4 for more details.)

   OR

   EARN COINS: You start with a budget of 8 coins. To earn additional coins draw 1 Challenge card from the deck. (See CHALLENGE CARDS on page 5 for more details.)

B. TRADE ARTIFACT CARDS WITH 1 PLAYER: On your turn, you may make a trade with one player. The terms of the trade depend on your negotiating skills. You can choose to trade any number of cards, coins, or anything else you can think of with the one player of your choice.

OR

TRADE ARTIFACT CARDS WITH THE DECK: If you are unable to negotiate a trade or choose not to trade with another player, you may exchange Artifact cards with the deck. The only rule is that you must first discard to the bottom of the Artifact deck. You may draw the same amount of Artifact cards from the deck after your discard.

Note 1: You can only hold up to 10 cards in your hand at one time. Immediately discard any cards above this amount. Note 2: You do not have to trade Artifact cards.

C. ROLL THE DICE: Roll the dice at the end of your turn to see if anyone draws Artifact cards. Match the sum of the roll to the country numbers on the board where ARTeams are built. The players who built the ARTeams on the countries with the matching numbers draw one Artifact card for each match. For example, if the sum of 8 is rolled, any players who built ARTeams on USA, Mexico, Armenia, or Canada get to draw an Artifact card. If you draw an Artifact card at the end of your turn, you cannot play the card that you draw until your next turn.

Note: Always draw Artifact cards starting with the player who rolled the dice and move clockwise. Towards the end of the game, there may not be any Artifact cards left, so you will not need to roll the dice anymore.

Building ARTeams

On your turn, you may build an ARTeam on any vacant country. There are three easy steps to building an ARTeam.

1. Decide the country or countries in which to build ARTeams.
2. Pay 3 coins for each ARTeam you want to build.
3. Place your piece on the stone circle below the country name.

Moving Spaces

Players can move around the board by returning matching Artifact cards and playing Informant cards.

RETURNING AN ARTIFACT: You may only return artifacts during your turn. You need 3 matching Artifact cards in order to have an "artifact." There are six things you must do when returning artifacts:

1. Make sure an ARTeam is built in the country matching the artifact.
2. Lay the Artifact cards face up in front of you to indicate you are returning the artifact.
3. Stack your piece on top of the ARTeam piece in the matching country.
4. Move the number of spaces around the board that is indicated on the Artifact card.
5. Draw 1 new Artifact card from the deck.
6. At this time, the player who built the ARTeam in the matching country will also move forward 3 spaces.

PLAYING YOUR INFORMANT CARDS: Informant cards can be played at any time during your turn. Certain cards allow you to move forward spaces or move other players backward spaces.

Piece note: the top piece represents a returned artifact (3 matching Artifact cards are needed to place this piece). The bottom piece represents an ARTeam (you can build an ARTeam on any vacant country).