GigaWatt Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Goal of the Game
• Components
• Concepts
• General Setup
• Player Setup
• Round: Quick Overview
• Phase 1: Technology Cards
  • CO2 Tax Cards
• Phase 2: Construction
  • Power Plants
  • Connection Upgrades
• Phase 3: Income
  • Roll Demand Dice
  • Determine the Weather
  • Receive Electricity Cubes
  • Earn Income
  • Replenish External Markets
• Phase 4: Trading and Storing
  • 1. Buy and Sell Electricity Cubes
  • 2. Store Electricity Cubes
  • Pay Penalties
• Phase 5: Auction
  • The Auction
  • Closing Down a Coal or Gas Plant
• Levels I, II and III
• End of the Game
  • Victory Condition
  • Elimination
• Variants
  • Shorter Version
  • Solo Version
• Rulebook Update (2022.01.12)

Goal of the Game

You win the game if you've managed to close down all of your polluting Coal Plants and Gas Plants and your Electricity Production meets or exceeds your Electricity Demand (at the end of Phase 3: Income).

Components

• 1 Game Board
• 80 Technology Cards
• 18 Player Pawns
• 140 Power Plants
• 16 Connection Upgrades
• 95 GigaMoney
• 6 Construction Sheets
• 160 Electricity Cubes
• 6 Dice
• 1 Phase Marker
• 1 Power Plant Tray
• 1 Rulebook

Concepts

Construction Sheets. On your Construction Sheet, you will find the following information for each of the types of Power Plants: their construction cost, electricity production in GigaWatt (GW), and storage capacity for Electricity Cubes. You'll also notice the 3 levels, which unlock new types of Power Plants and upgrades when you reach them. Each region also has a discount for one particular type of Power Plant: its column is highlighted in the region's corresponding colour (see Phase 2: Construction).

Power Plants. There are 8 types of Power Plants. Each type has different amounts available depending on the level you're in. The Power Plants are double-sided and show different levels on each side.

Production & Weather Pawns. Your Production Pawn is used to track the Electricity Production of your region, in GigaWatt (GW). The Weather Pawn is used to adjust your Electricity Production depending on the results of the Sun Die and Wind Die during Phase 3: Income.

Demand Pawns. Each player has a unique Demand Pawn, which is used to track the Electricity Demand of their region in GigaWatt (GW).

GigaMoney. The currency in the game. You will receive a certain amount of GigaMoney in Phase 3: Income. You will spend GigaMoney to purchase excess energy from other regions, and to purchase or upgrade new Power Plants. GigaMoney is also used to bid for Closing Rights in Phase 5: Auction, and to pay for penalties if you fail to balance your production and demand in Phase 4: Trading and Storing.

External Markets. These are the regions that weren't chosen by any of the players at the start of the game. Russia, Türkiye and North Africa can't be chosen, and are automatically considered External Markets. At the end of Phase 3: Income, the starting player rolls the External Market Die to add Electricity Cubes to empty External Markets.

Technology Cards. At the start of the game, set the 2 Player Aid Cards aside and place them next to the Board for quick reference. There are 3 types of Technology Cards: Strategy Cards have a light blue text box and grant you a direct benefit. Block Cards have a dark blue text box and negatively influence your opponents. CO2 Cards have a red text box and require all players to pay taxes as soon as they are drawn (see Phase 1: Technology Cards).

General Setup

1. Place the game board in the centre of the table.
2. Place the Phase Marker on the leftmost spot of the Phase Track.
3. Set aside the 2 Player Aid Cards and shuffle the 3 remaining types of Technology Cards together. Place them in a face-down draw pile next to the board. Leave room next to it for a discard pile.
4. Take the top 4 cards from the draw pile and place them face-up on the Technology Market. If a CO2 card is drawn during this step, place it on the discard pile and draw a new card to replace it.
5. Separate the Power Plants by type and place them in the Power Plant Tray. The number of Biomass and Hydro Plants used in the game depends on the number of players. Example: in a 3-player game, use 6 Biomass Plants and 6 Hydro Plants.
6. Separate the red and green Electricity Cubes and place them in a general reserve next to the board.
7. Place the Connection Upgrades next to the Electricity Cubes.
8. Sort the GigaMoney by value and place the notes in separate piles near the board.

Player Setup

9. The most energetic player will be the starting player. Give them a battery or any other object to indicate this.
10. Beginning with the starting player and continuing clockwise, each player chooses a starting region on the map. The regions are identified by Hubs in the shape of a T. You may choose any of the 6 European regions, as long as it connects directly to the region of at least 1 other player via the black lines on the board.
11. Any empty regions that remain are considered External Markets. The starting player rolls the External Market Die for each External Market, to determine the colour and amount of cubes that need to be added to them.
12. Each player places 2 Level I Gas Plants (3 GW) and 2 Level I Coal Plants (4 GW) on the top 4 Construction Spaces in their region. The number of Biomass and Hydro Plants used in the game depends on the number of players.
13. Each player places their Demand Pawn on the START space of the Demand Track (the outside track).
14. Each player takes the Weather Pawn of their colour and inserts it into their Production Pawn. Place them both on the START space of the Production Track (the inside track).
15. Each player receives 14 GigaMoney, as well as the Construction Sheet that matches their region.

Board elements: Technology Market; Technology Card draw pile and discard pile; Player Aid Card; Biomass Plants / Hydro Plants; Demand Track; Production Track; End of demand track; Phase Track; Connections; Construction Spaces; Player Hub; External Market (a region not played by a player); Demand Pawn, Production Pawn and Weather Pawn; External Market Die, Wind Dice, Sun Dice; Start of Level II marker.

Round: Quick Overview

The game is played over a series of rounds until one or more players win the game in Phase 3: Income. Each round consists of 5 phases:

1. Phase 1: Technology Cards. Each player may purchase 1 Technology Card, which can help their strategy or block other players. Technology Cards depict the phase they can be played in.
2. Phase 2: Construction. Purchase Power Plants to increase your Electricity Production, or buy Connection Upgrades to increase your Trading Capacity.
3. Phase 3: Income. Earn income and receive (red or green) Electricity Cubes based on your production, demand, and sometimes the weather. Note: at the end of this phase, one or more players can win the game if they meet the victory condition. See 'End of the Game'.
4. Phase 4: Trading and Storing. Earn additional income and avoid paying penalties by trading your Electricity Cubes with other players or External Markets, or by storing excess cubes on your Power Plants.
5. Phase 5: Auction. Obtain a Closing Right in the auction to close down 1 of your Coal or Gas Plants. Remember that closing down polluting plants is your main goal in the game.

Phase 1: Technology Cards

In this phase, each player will purchase at most 1 Technology Card, which can help their own strategy or block their opponents.

There are always 4 face-up cards in the Technology Market. The starting player first chooses whether to purchase at most 1 Technology Card - paying the cost listed in the bottom right corner in GigaMoney - or to pass. Then, the next player clockwise either purchases a card or passes, and so on.

After someone purchases a card, slide all of the remaining cards to the right. Draw a new card from the deck and place it face up on the leftmost empty space of the Technology Market.

Keep Technology Cards you purchased face up in front of you. Each card contains: Title; Category: Strategy or Block; Phase to play; Effect: One time (1x) or permanent (infinity symbol); Cost; Action text; Energy Nugget (flavour text).

Cards are always activated during your turn and in the phase listed on the card. Place cards with a one-time effect on the discard pile after you've used them. If the draw deck runs out, shuffle the discard pile to form a new face-down draw deck.

After each player has had a chance to purchase a card or pass, discard the rightmost card, slide the remaining cards to the right, draw a new card, and place it face up on the leftmost empty space. Move the Phase Marker 1 space to the right and proceed to Phase 2: Construction.

CO2 Tax Cards

When someone reveals a CO2 Tax Card, it affects all players. Everyone must pay the indicated cost for each of their Coal and Gas Plants. Your CO2 tax depends on the level you are currently in (see 'Levels I, II and III'). After everyone has paid, the card is discarded and replaced by a new Technology Card. If another CO2 Tax Card pops up in the same round, no additional costs have to be paid: discard it immediately and draw a new card.

CO2 Tax table (as printed on the Player Aid Card; tax to be paid if a CO2 Tax Card is drawn), per Power Plant:

Power Plant Type	Level I	Level II	Level III
Coal	1	3	8
Gas I	-	2	4
Gas II	-	3	8

Phase 2: Construction

In this phase, players will construct Power Plants to increase their Electricity Production, and purchase Connection Upgrades to increase their Trading Capacity.

Beginning with the starting player and proceeding clockwise, each player may perform any, all or none of the following 2 actions as many times as they can afford.

Power Plants

Constructing Power Plants. You may construct as many Power Plants as you want, as long as you have enough GigaMoney to pay for them. Refer to your Construction Sheet to choose which Power Plants you want to purchase, based on their cost, Electricity Production and storage capacity for Electricity Cubes.

You may only construct Level II and Level III Power Plants if your Demand Pawn is in that level or higher.

Pay the costs in GigaMoney indicated on your Construction Sheet and advance your Production Pawn on the Production Track by a number of spaces equal to the GigaWatts indicated on the Power Plant you constructed.

Note: when a certain type of Power Plant runs out, you can no longer construct it.

Example: Rafal constructs a Level I Gas Plant. He pays 5 GigaMoney and advances his Production Pawn by 3 spaces (3 GW).

Construction Spaces. You may place the constructed Power Plant on any available Construction Space in your region, unless the space shows a specific technology symbol (see below).

For some Construction Spaces you have to pay extra, regardless of the type of Power Plant you construct there (+1, +2, +3 or +4 GigaMoney, as depicted on the board).

Dedicated Construction Spaces. Each region has 4 dedicated Construction Spaces, in which you can only construct a specific type of Power Plant.

Electricity Cube Storage. Some Power Plants allow you to store Electricity Cubes (see 'Phase 4: Trading and Storing' or refer to your Construction Sheet).

Regional Advantages. Due to geographical advantages, each region has a lower construction cost for 1 type of Power Plant, as depicted on its corresponding Construction Sheet.

Power Plant types: Coal, Gas, Biomass, Hydro, Nuclear, Solar, Wind, Storage.

Upgrading Power Plants. If your Demand Pawn has reached a higher level, you can also choose to upgrade your existing Power Plants. The upgrade cost is equal to the difference between the construction costs of the Power Plant's current level and its next level (as indicated by the value on the arrow that arcs between them on your Construction Sheet).

Notes: Don't forget to advance your Production Pawn a number of spaces based on the additional GigaWatts you receive from Power Plants you've built or upgraded this round. You are allowed to construct an upgraded Power Plant immediately, without purchasing its basic counterpart first. In that case, pay the full cost indicated to the right of the arcing arrow.

Example: Rafal has reached Level II and decides to upgrade his Level I Gas Plant to a Level II Gas Plant. He pays 4 GigaMoney (5 + 4 = 9) and advances his Production Pawn by 4 spaces.

Closing Down Power Plants. In this phase, you may also close down any Power Plants you have constructed, except for Coal or Gas Plants, which can only be closed down in Phase 5: Auction. The cost to close down one of your Power Plants equals its original construction cost, as stated on your Construction Sheet.

To close down a Power Plant, pay the costs, remove the Power Plant from the board, and move your Production Pawn backwards on the Production Track a number of spaces equal to the GigaWatts that were produced by the Power Plant you just closed down.

Connection Upgrades

Connection Upgrades are used to trade your Electricity Cubes with other regions (see 'Phase 4: Trading and Storing'). At the start of the game, every connection has a Trading Capacity of 1 GW (1 red or 1 green Electricity Cube).

You can upgrade a connection between 2 Hubs on the board by constructing a Connection Upgrade. This will increase the Trading Capacity of both regions it's connected to, to 4 Electricity Cubes.

The cost for constructing a Connection Upgrade is 4 GigaMoney, as shown on your Construction Sheet. Place the constructed Connection Upgrade on the black lines that directly connect your region's Hub to that of another region, or to an External Market.

Note: if you decide to construct a Connection Upgrade between your region and that of another player, you decide together how to share the 4 GigaMoney cost between you. Both players need to agree.

Example: Sophie (Carpathian region) can only trade 1 Electricity Cube with Shubham (Adriatic Sea region) and with Türkiye (External Market). She constructs 1 Connection Upgrade between her region and Türkiye, for 4 GigaMoney. She constructs a second Connection Upgrade between her region and Shubham's. Both players agree to pay 2 GigaMoney each to construct the Connection Upgrade. Both connections now have a Trading Capacity of 4 GW.

After all players have finished constructing and have passed, move the Phase Marker 1 space to the right and proceed to Phase 3: Income.

Phase 3: Income

In this phase, players will receive income based on the Electricity Demand in their region, as well as (red or green) Electricity Cubes based on the difference between their production and demand.

Beginning with the starting player and proceeding clockwise, each player performs the following 4 actions in consecutive order.

Roll Demand Dice

Roll a number of Demand Dice based on your level, to determine how much your Electricity Demand increases. Advance your Demand Pawn a number of spaces on the Demand Track, equal to the total number of pips shown on your die roll.

• In Level I (0-25 GW Electricity Demand), roll 1 die
• In Level II (26-45 GW Electricity Demand), roll 2 dice
• In Level III (46+ GW Electricity Demand), roll 3 dice

(also see 'Levels I, II and III')

Example: Shubham's Demand Pawn (Adriatic Sea) is on 22, which means she's in Level I and has to roll only 1 Demand Die. Sophie's Demand Pawn (Carpathian) is in Level II, which means she has to roll 2 Demand Dice.

Determine the Weather

If you have at least 1 Solar Plant, roll the Sun Die, and if you have at least 1 Wind Plant, (also) roll the Wind Die. These dice reflect the weather in your region and determine how many GigaWatts your Solar Plants and Wind Plants produce.

If you rolled a full circle, the weather conditions are ideal. All your Power Plants of the corresponding type produce 100% of their GigaWatt output this round.

If you rolled a half circle, the weather negatively impacts your Power Plants of the corresponding type, only allowing them to produce 50% of their GigaWatt output this round. 'Unplug' your Weather Pawn and move it backwards on the Production Track a number of spaces equal to the number of GigaWatts your Solar and/or Wind Plants were unable to produce.

Note: your Production Pawn always stays in place during this phase.

Example: Sophie has reached a total Electricity Production of 32 GW. She has 1 Solar Plant, for a total of 4 GW. She has 2 Wind Plants, for a total of 8 GW. She has 3 other Power Plants, for a total of 20 GW. The 4 possible outcomes of rolling the Sun and Wind Dice move her Weather Pawn back as follows: Sun full / Wind full: 0; Sun half / Wind full: -2; Sun full / Wind half: -4; Sun half / Wind half: -2 and -4 (-6 in total).

Receive Electricity Cubes

Receive Electricity Cubes equal to the current difference between your Electricity Demand and Electricity Production. Your Electricity Production is always equal to the position of your Weather Pawn.

If you're producing more electricity than your region's demand, place a number of green Electricity Cubes equal to this difference on the Hub of your region. These represent a surplus of electricity.

If you're producing less electricity than your region's demand, place a number of red Electricity Cubes equal to this difference on the Hub of your region. These represent a shortage of electricity.

After receiving your cubes, plug your Weather Pawn back into your Production Pawn.

Example: Sophie's Electricity Demand is 28. The picture shows 4 possible situations in which she will receive various amounts of Electricity Cubes based on the position of her Weather Pawn.

Earn Income

Receive income equal to the Electricity Demand in your region.

Example: in the example above, Sophie's income is 28 GigaMoney in all 4 situations.

Note: if at the end of the 'Earn Income' step, one or more players has no Coal Plants or Gas Plants left in their region, and their Weather Pawn is ahead of or equal to their Demand Pawn, they meet the victory condition (see 'End of the Game'). If not, proceed to replenishing the External Markets.

Replenish External Markets

After all players have completed the 4 actions above, check if there are External Markets without Electricity Cubes. If so, the starting player rolls the External Market Die to replenish these empty Markets one by one by placing either 5 green Electricity Cubes or 5 red Electricity Cubes on them, depending on the result of the die roll.

If none of the players met the victory condition, move the Phase Marker 1 space to the right and proceed to Phase 4: Trading and Storing.

Phase 4: Trading and Storing

In this phase, players earn extra income and try to avoid penalties by trading their (red or green) Electricity Cubes with other players or External Markets, or by storing excess cubes on their Power Plants.

Beginning with the starting player and proceeding clockwise, each player may perform any, all or none of the following 2 actions.

1. Buy and Sell Electricity Cubes

To avoid having to pay penalties for the Electricity Cubes you received in Phase 3: Income, one option is to trade with connected regions and External Markets.

Two regions - or a region and an External Market - are connected if their respective Hubs are directly linked via black lines on the board, meaning there are no other Hubs in between.

When trading, it's important to know that green and red Electricity Cubes cancel each other out.

Trading With Other Players. The trading players must negotiate on how much GigaMoney each of them is going to pay. They will need to reach an agreement before they can buy from or sell to each other.

Trading With External Markets. When trading with an External Market, the following rules apply:

• For each green Electricity Cube you sell to an External Market, you earn 1 GigaMoney.
• For each green Electricity Cube you buy from an External Market, you must pay 1 GigaMoney.
• For each red Electricity Cube you sell to an External Market, you must pay 1 GigaMoney.
• For each red Electricity Cube you buy from an External Market, you earn 1 GigaMoney.

You're allowed to buy an Electricity Cube from one region and then sell it to another region in the same round.

Note: at the start of the game, all connections have a Trading Capacity of 1 GW (1 Electricity Cube). If there's a Connection Upgrade on the path between the 2 trading Hubs, the Trading Capacity of that connection is increased to 4 GW (4 Electricity Cubes).

Example: Shubham (Adriatic Sea) received 5 green Electricity Cubes in the income phase. Sophie (Carpathian) received 2 red Electricity Cubes in the income phase. Türkiye (External Market) has 2 remaining red Electricity Cubes.

Shubham has 5 cubes left. After negotiating with Sophie, she agrees to pay Sophie 3 GigaMoney and sell 2 green Electricity Cubes to the Carpathian region, because this is still cheaper than having to pay penalties for these cubes. She can only sell 1 to Türkiye, since she doesn't have a Connection Upgrade to that External Market. She receives 1 GigaMoney for this.

2. Store Electricity Cubes

As an alternative to trading, each player can use their Power Plants to store Electricity Cubes. The Electricity Cube storage capacity of a Power Plant depends on its level (see 'Levels I, II and III' or your Construction Sheet).

• Storage Plants allow you to store 6-12 green Electricity Cubes
• Hydro Plants and Gas Plants both allow you to store 1-2 red or 1-2 green Electricity cubes

Place the Electricity Cubes on the Power Plant to store them. The cubes stay there and can be used for trading in the next round.

Pay Penalties

When all players are done with trading and storing, remove all pairs of red and green Electricity Cubes still located on the players' Hubs. Cubes stored on Power Plants remain in place.

Next, check to see if any penalties need to be paid for leftover Electricity Cubes. Each player must pay a penalty of 3 GigaMoney for each remaining red or green Electricity Cube on their region's Hub. After all penalties have been paid, remove these Electricity Cubes from the board.

Example: Shubham still has 2 green Electricity cubes she needs to get rid of. She can store 1 cube on her Gas Plant. Shubham must pay a penalty of 3 GigaMoney because there is 1 remaining Electricity Cube on her Hub. She pays the penalty and removes it from the board. Sophie removes 2 pairs of red and green Electricity Cubes from her Hub, and does not have to pay any penalties. Finally, the pair of red and green Electricity Cubes are removed from Türkiye.

Once all penalties have been resolved, move the Phase Marker 1 space to the right and proceed to Phase 5: Auction.

Phase 5: Auction

In this phase, players will purchase Closing Rights in an auction, so they can close down 1 of their Coal or Gas Plants.

Each round, a number of Closing Rights will be put up for auction. Winning an auction allows you to immediately close down a Coal or Gas Plant. The number of available Closing Rights per round depends on the number of players. Refer to the table below or to the Player Aid Card.

Number of players	Closing rights per round
1-2	1
3-4	2
5	3
6	4

Each player can win at most 1 auction per round, but it could happen that not all Closing Rights are successfully auctioned off.

The Auction

The starting player declares an opening bid of at least 1 GigaMoney, or passes. Going clockwise, players take turns choosing whether to up the bid by at least 1 GigaMoney, or pass.

You are allowed to keep bidding if the bid comes back around to you, but you cannot place a higher bid than the amount of GigaMoney you have available. Once you decide to pass, you are out of the auction.

Bidding continues until the number of players left in the auction equals the number of available Closing Rights. Each of the remaining players pays the last bid they've placed and will get to close down a Coal or Gas Plant in the next step.

Example: in this example of a 4-player game, 2 Closing Rights are up for auction. Sophie is the starting player and opens the auction with a bid of 2 GigaMoney. Shubham raises the bid to 3 and Chiara raises it to 5. Rafal decides this is too much, and passes. The bid comes back around to Sophie, who raises it to 6. Shubham passes. The auction is now over, because there are 2 Closing Rights and 2 players remaining. Sophie pays her final bid of 6 and Chiara pays her final bid of 5. Both players may then close 1 of their Coal or Gas Plants.

Closing Down a Coal or Gas Plant

If you managed to obtain a Closing Right in the auction, immediately remove either 1 Gas Plant or 1 Coal Plant from your region, returning it to the supply. Closing down plants reduces your production. Move your Production Pawn backwards on the Production Track a number of spaces equal to the GigaWatts the plant you closed was producing.

Note: when placing your bid, you should take into account that you'll need to get rid of any Electricity Cubes that are still stored on the Gas Plant you intend to close (see 'Phase 4: Trading and Storing'). Either move the cube(s) to another Power Plant or pay the penalty of 3 GigaMoney each.

Once all auctions for Closing Rights have been completed and players have closed down their Coal and Gas Plants, the current round ends. Pass the battery to the player sitting to the left of the current starting player: they will be the new starting player in the next round. Move the Phase Marker back to the leftmost space on the Phase Track and return to Phase 1: Technology Cards.

Levels I, II and III

The Demand and Production Tracks are divided into 3 levels. Your current level is determined by the position of your Demand Pawn.

The levels represent the passing of time, technological advancement and accelerated growth. Each player starts in Level I. If after rolling the Demand Die your Demand Pawn passes 25 GW, you progress to Level II. Likewise, when your Demand Pawn passes 45 GW, you progress to Level III.

The game continues in exactly the same way when you reach a new level, but 2 things change for you:

• As soon as you progress to a new level, you gain access to that level's Power Plants. You can still construct or upgrade to Power Plants from earlier levels (see 'Phase 2: Construction').
• The number of Demand Dice you roll for your Electricity Demand increases when you move to a new level. Roll 1 die in Level I, 2 dice in Level II and 3 dice in Level III (see 'Phase 3: Income').

End of the Game

You can win the game at the end of Phase 3: Income if you meet the victory condition. There are also a few ways in which you can lose the game.

Victory Condition

If at the end of Phase 3: Income, one or more players has no Coal Plants or Gas Plants left in their region, AND their Weather Pawn is ahead of or equal to their Demand Pawn, they meet the victory condition.

If only one player has met the victory condition, they immediately win the game.

If several players achieve the victory condition at the same time, each of them gets a chance to store any Electricity Cubes remaining on their region's Hub on their available Power Plants (see 'Store Electricity Cubes'). Each pair of red and green Electricity Cubes remaining on a Hub cancels each other out: remove them as usual. No trading is allowed. The tied player with the fewest Electricity Cubes remaining on their region's Hub wins. Cubes stored on Power Plants are ignored.

If there's still a tie, the tied player with the most GigaMoney wins.

If the tie still persists, the tied players share the victory.

Elimination

There are 2 ways in which you can get eliminated from the game:

• Bankruptcy. You're unable to pay the penalty for the Shortage (red) or Surplus (green) Electricity Cubes - either in 'Phase 4: Trading and Storing' or when closing a Gas Plant in 'Phase 5: Auction' - or you're unable to pay a CO2 Tax in 'Phase 1: Technology Cards'.
• End of Demand Track. Your Electricity Demand surpasses 90, which means your energy transition simply took too long.

Note: you can get eliminated this way, even if you reach the victory condition in the same turn.

If you are eliminated, pay any required penalties to the best of your ability and return the cubes on your Power Plants to the supply. The remaining Electricity Cubes on your region's Hub stay on the board, as well as your existing Power Plants and Connection Upgrades. Your region now becomes an External Market. Your opponents continue playing as normal.

Variants

Shorter Version

We recommend this variant when you're playing the game for the first time, or when you simply want to play a quicker game. The shorter version follows the same rules as the regular game, with a few exceptions.

• Starting Plants. Each player starts with 2 Level I Coal Plants, 1 Level I Hydro Plant and 1 Level I Biomass Plant.
• No Technology Cards. Play without Technology Cards and skip Phase 1: Technology Cards each round.

Solo Version

GigaWatt also works well as a solo game. The solo version follows the same rules as the regular game, with a few exceptions.

• Starting Position. Choose 1 of the 6 regions as your starting region. All other regions are External Markets.
• Difficulty Level. Choose a difficulty level:
  • Medium: you start with 2 Level I Coal Plants, 2 Level I Gas Plants, 14 Production, 14 Demand and 14 GigaMoney.
  • Hard: you start with 3 Level I Coal Plants, 2 Level I Gas Plants, 18 Production, 18 Demand and 18 GigaMoney.
• Technology Cards. During setup, remove the Technology Cards 'Preferred Trade Partner' (x2) and 'Interconnector Failure' (x2).
• Block Cards. It's not possible to purchase Block Cards. Instead, when a Block Card is drawn, it's used against you! If a card's effect only lasts for 1 round, discard it at the start of the next Phase 1: Technology Cards.
• Auction. There is no auction in Phase 5: Auction. Instead, each time you come to this phase in a round, simply choose whether or not you will pay a fixed price to close down 1 Coal or Gas Plant. This price is determined by your current level: Level I: 6 GigaMoney; Level II: 12 GigaMoney; Level III: 24 GigaMoney.
• Victory Condition. If you meet the victory condition, you are declared an Energy Transition Warrior! If you're able to store all of your green Electricity Cubes in your region as well when you win, you're declared an Energy Transition Expert! In this case, your remaining GigaMoney minus your Demand is your winning score.

Example: at the start of Phase 3: Income, you have 15 GigaMoney. Your Electricity Demand is 60. Your Electricity Production is 80, but due to the Sun and Wind Dice, your actual Electricity Production drops down to 70. You receive 10 green Electricity Cubes (70 - 60 = 10) and 60 GigaMoney (because your Demand is 60). You have a Storage Plant with a storage capacity of 12 Electricity Cubes, so you can store all 10 green Electricity Cubes to become an Energy Transition Expert! You have 75 GigaMoney in total, which means you have a winning score of 75 - 60 = 15.

Rulebook Update (2022.01.12)

(Source note: this section is transcribed from the publisher's separate one-page "GigaWatt Rulebook Update" (2022.01.12), which was issued for an earlier 2021.12.08 rulebook while the game was still in a test phase before manufacturing. It is included for completeness; where it differs from the rulebook text above, the rulebook above is the later (2023/01) document. Several of its items (such as the Solo Version starting positions and Closing Rights per player count) match the rulebook above.)

Changes in the rules you can already play with. Still in test phase, but we expect to incorporate most of these.

• Starting Position is 2 Coal Plants and 2 Gas Plants. Starting GW Demand = Starting GW Production = Starting Money = 14. This means ignoring the "Start field" on the tracks.
• Short Version. First game play, we recommend the Short Version. 2 Coals Plants and 1 Gas Plants. Starting GW Demand = Starting GW Production = 11. But Starting Money = 14. No Tech Cards.
• 5 or 6 Player Game. Considering longer game play with 5P and 6P, we recommend playing the Short Version, but WITH Tech Cards.
• Closing Rights. 3 Players: 2 Closing Rights per Game Round. 5 Players: 3 Closing Rights per Game Round. 6 Players: 4 Closing Rights per Round.
• Players may hide their Money.
• Solo Version Hard: Starting Position is 3 Coal Plants and 2 Gas (18 GW, 18 Money)
• Solo Version Medium: Starting Position is 2 Coal Plants and 2 Gas Plants (14 GW, 14 Money)

Changes that impact design or ideas still under consideration.

• Hydro Protest Card. This card will become similar to the Solar/Wind/Nuclear Protest Card, so active during 1 Game Round and "cannot build or upgrade".
• CO2 Tax. CO2 Tax for Gas Plants is 0 in Phase I.
• Cost changes. Some costs of Tech Cards will be slightly changed.
• We are working on some New Tech Cards.
• Carphathian Region. Nuclear Power Plant Generation I costs 18 and Generation II costs 36.