Innovation Ultimate
Innovation Ultimate Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- What's New
- Learning Innovation
- Teaching Innovation
- Setup
- Your Civilization
- Parts of a Card
- Your Turn
- Draw Action
- Meld Action
- Dogma Action
- Dogma Keywords
- Dogma Concepts
- Dogma Action Triggers
- Achieve Action
- Game End
- Large Games (4+)
- Strategy Tips
- Innovation Expansions
- General Expansion Rules
- Cities of Destiny
- Echoes of the Past
- Artifacts of History
- Figures in the Sand
- The Unseen
- Credits
What's New
Innovation Ultimate extends the original game by adding Age 11 to the base set and each expansion, representing the recent past and the speculative near future.
The Prudence Age is a period of human history where, after great and rapid technological advances, the world needs to be cautious about how quickly it continues to leap forward. If it doesn't, Age 12 might look a lot like Age 0!
In addition, each of Innovation's expansions have been streamlined in ways that make teaching easier, and simplify their inclusion in a game. Hundreds of cards have seen changes or balance updates as a result. We're excited about everything new in Ultimate and hope you enjoy it as much as we do.
We've created new illustrations for the card backs, depicting architecture and construction concepts throughout history and across many civilizations around the world. We've also enhanced readability and layout on the card fronts so that they're easier to understand across the table.
Innovation Ultimate's insert is designed to accommodate all of its cards sleeved or unsleeved. You can also use the insert's 12 wells to display the 11 decks vertically (one well for achievements) during play, if table space is at a premium.
Refresh/New Rules
For players experienced with 3rd edition or earlier, here is a list of new rules to be aware of:
- The Junk keyword, which replaces Remove (p 12).
- The existence of Age 11.
- A seventh standard icon type, appearing in ages 10-11 and on Figures cards.
- A fourth splay direction, Aslant (Reveals 4 icons).
- Parley rules for 4+ player games (p 18).
- Self-execute and Super-execute as keywords (p 13) and the resulting Chain Achievement rule (p 16).
- Many changes to each expansion's rules.
Learning Innovation
Innovation can appear daunting at first, but much of its complexity arises from strategy and combinations of cards rather than difficult-to-learn rules. Since we've taught it to countless people over the years, we have some tips for both learning and teaching the game!
The first and most important law of learning and teaching Innovation: Do not use expansion sets in games with first-time players!
Learning From Scratch
Note: The instructions below assume you're learning on your own. You can also learn as a group, with one player demonstrating the actions. Keep in mind that learning from scratch as a group will often take significantly longer than a typical playtime, especially with more than 3 players.
Brand new to Innovation? Our first piece of advice is to read the Introduction over on the left. Seriously. It'll put a picture in your head of the basics. Next, go through the steps for Setup (p 5).
Read about the Draw action (p 8), and then take a Draw action. Next, read about the Meld action (p 9), and then take a Meld action with one of the cards in your hand.
With those two simple actions out of the way, choose one of your cards (ideally one without a Demand if solo; nobody else is playing!) to use with a Dogma action. Read up on the Dogma action (p10), and see how sharing and demands would work in an actual game. Don't worry about learning the full list of keywords yet. It's easy to reference them as they come up.
Try a few more turns, and work your way out of Age 1. If it helps, you can even set up a pretend player to play against. If you haven't had an effect splay a color, read about the Splay keyword (p 14), and try it out. It's one of the core concepts of Innovation.
With a few turns of real play experience under your belt, you're now ready to read through the rest of the rulebook. Learning about the expansions is a journey best left for later. They add a lot of fun flavor once you've played a few times!
Innovation is a game best learned by playing. There are an incredible number of possibilities that emerge as you work your way through a game, and figuring them out is much of the fun.
Teaching Innovation
Teaching
When teaching Innovation to others, it can be easy to overwhelm new players with information. They don't need to know every single keyword and potential card effect; although, it's good to preface a teaching session by letting them know that their board states can change very rapidly, for better or worse!
Staging
A great way to teach new players is to set up a simple board for two of them with several cards. Good cards to use include Writing, The Wheel, and Archery. Make sure all five colors are present across the two boards. If you are teaching more than two players, still only set up for two players for the demo turns.
Overview
Either read the 2nd and 3rd paragraphs of Introduction on pg 2 out loud, or paraphrase it.
Gameplay (Teaching)
Demonstrate the four actions and core concepts.
Draw: Have each player take a Draw action. Explain how empty piles would work, if there are any.
Meld: Have each player take a Meld action. Be sure to show that cards meld on top of the pile of the same color and that they'll create stacks.
Dogma: Have one player take a Dogma action with non-demand effects, walking them through sharing. Then, have the other player take a Dogma action with demand effects, explaining how that works.
Dogma Keywords: Talk about Splaying, and mention simple keywords like Tuck, Return, Score, and Junk if they haven't already come up.
Achieve: Explain the Achieve action and that points are a threshold (not a cost).
Victory: Finally, discuss how to win. Mention that Achievements are just one way to win the game. Going beyond Age 11 will end the game immediately, as will certain late-age cards.
EXPANSIONS: Throughout this rulebook, rules relevant only to expansions will be marked with the expansion's symbol. Small notes will be in parentheses within text, larger notes will be in boxes like this one. These are rules that are only relevant when playing with the expansion in question. When learning for the first time, you can safely ignore them entirely!
Reset & Play
For most groups, that's sufficient information to begin a playthrough. Shuffle all the cards back into their decks, and start a game for real, as described in Setup (p5). Innovation is often best learned as an "as you go" game, especially if you set expectations for it to be an interesting journey through the unknown.
Some tips for a successful "first game":
- Play with 2-3, if possible. A 4-player game with teams is okay, but 5+ is asking for trouble.
- Keep things moving. There are a lot of possibilities, and that can be overwhelming. Taking Dogma actions just to "see what happens" in a learning game is part of the fun.
- Strategic mistakes are okay. Don't tell people what to do unless they ask!
- Let people take back simple errors. For example, if someone tries to demand without any valid targets, don't hold them to the action choice.
- Start mentioning Special Achievements and game-end conditions around Age 4-5.
- Don't play with expansions yet! Seriously, this isn't one of those games where you should ignore the advice: Play the base game first. Use just the Base Set (Brown) cards, as shown in the diagram on the next page.
- Have fun! It's why you're here playing this great game, after all. As Innovation rulebooks have stated since the beginning of time (2009), "Fun is mandatory."
Setup
Fig. 1 shows the base-set setup: the eleven decks (Ages 1-11) arranged in a clock formation around the central Achievements area, with the Junk info card and each player's starting cards and Reference Card nearby.
Set up the Supply Area (1-4) and then each player's area (5-7). For expansion info, see Expansion Setup (p 20).
- Split the base set cards into their eleven decks, shuffle them, and arrange them like a clock, as shown above. If space is an issue, you can arrange them differently.
- Take one card from each of the shuffled Age 1 through 10 (not Age 11) decks, and place them face-down at the top of the clock, under the Achievements info card. These are Standard Achievements and are not looked at during setup or gameplay.
- Place the base set's five Special Achievements nearby.
- Place the Junk info card nearby.
- Each player takes a Reference Card and places it in front of them. It provides both useful information and a home for your Score and Achievements.
- Each player draws two cards from the base set Age 1 deck. Then, each simultaneously chooses one and melds it (places face-up on table), to form their board. The other card is kept to form each player's hand.
- The player who melded the card with the title that comes first in alphabetical order will be the first player.
- The first player (or the first two players in a four or more player game) will take only one action instead of two on their initial turn. Subsequent turns are normal, and play proceeds clockwise.
Special Achievements (base set)
- Monument: Claim this special achievement at the end of any action if you have at least four top cards with a DEMAND effect. May also be claimed via Masonry, from Age 1: Prehistory.
- Empire: Claim this special achievement at the end of any action if you have at least three icons on your board of each of these six types: Castle, Lightbulb, Leaf, Factory, Clock, Crown. May also be claimed via Construction, from Age 2: Classical.
- World: Claim this special achievement at the end of any action if you have at least twelve Clocks on your board. May also be claimed via Translation, from Age 3: Medieval.
- Wonder: Claim this special achievement at the end of any action if you have five colors splayed on your board, and each is splayed either right, up, or aslant. May also be claimed via Invention, from Age 4: Discovery.
- Universe: Claim this special achievement at the end of any action if you have five top cards, and each is of value at least 8. May also be claimed via Astronomy, from Age 5: Exploration.
Junk (info card)
If a card is Junked, place it in a face-down pile under this card. Cards here are out of play, and their fronts may not be looked at, nor can they be affected by any cards except those specifically mentioning the Junk.
Reference Card (info)
ACTIONS: You must take two actions on your turn. You may perform the same action twice.
| Meld | Draw | Achieve |
|---|---|---|
| Place a card from your hand onto your board, on top of a matching color pile if present. If the pile is splayed, continue it. | Take a card from a deck into your hand, of value matching your highest top card. If empty, instead take one from the next available higher deck. | Claim an achievement if you have 5x its value in points, and a top card of equal or higher value. Points are not spent. |
DOGMA
Choose a top card on your board and execute each of its effects, one by one in order. Players are vulnerable if they have fewer of the featured icon than you, or eligible to share if they have at least as many.
- An I DEMAND effect is read out loud to each vulnerable player, going clockwise. They must perform the effect.
- A non-demand effect is performed by each other player eligible to share, going clockwise, and then you. They must perform the effect.
- If any opponent shared any non-demand effect and that caused something to happen to a card, take one free Draw action after the Dogma action ends.
Example: Clothing (Age 1, Base Set)
CLOTHING (card B 007, value 1)
- Meld a card from your hand of a color not on your board.
- Draw and score a 1 for every color present on your board that no opponent has on their board.
Your Civilization
As you play, you will accumulate face-up cards of five different colors in an area in front of you called your board. The most important cards on your board are the top cards of each color, as they can be activated for their effects through a Dogma Action. Cards that you cover up over time are still part of your board and are still useful, because some effects will allow you to splay a color in a direction. Splaying will reveal additional icons from your covered-up cards.
Visible standard icons on your board help you share in other players' actions, demand from opponents, and also defend against their demands.
Next to your board sits your Reference Card. It is a source for information about the game and, importantly, also houses your Score and Achievement piles, which are tucked under the left and right edges, respectively.
Each card in your Score pile is worth points equal to its value (age), and your total score is the sum of those values.
Each card in your Achievements pile is a single achievement, bringing you closer to victory.
ECHOES: Foreshadowed cards are tucked face-down under the top edge of your Reference Card.
UNSEEN: Secrets are tucked face-down under the bottom edge of your Reference Card.
Fig. 2 — Example Cards on Your Board / Your Hand
ARCHERY (card B 001, value 1)
- I DEMAND you draw a 1, then transfer the highest card in your hand to my hand!
- Junk an available achievement of value 1 or 2.
AGRICULTURE (card B 004, value 1)
- You may return a card from your hand. If you do, draw and score a card of value one higher than the card you return.
CLOTHING (card B 007, value 1)
- Meld a card from your hand of a color not on your board.
- Draw and score a 1 for every color present on your board that no opponent has on their board.
TOOLS (card B 011, value 1)
- You may return three cards from your hand. If you do, draw and meld a 3.
- You may return a 3 from your hand. If you do, draw three 1s.
MYSTICISM (card B 015, value 1)
- Draw and reveal a 1. If it is the same color as any card on your board, meld it and draw a 1.
Can I Look?
The chart below tells you what cards in play you can look at. Other players' cards aside from those on their board are hidden, and nobody can look at the identities of achievements. If playing with teams, teammates are considered Others. The backs of cards are quite important though, as you can determine their value and set!
Be polite, and ask when looking at others' cards on their boards or counting their score pile. Trying to keep track of every card everywhere can slow things down and doesn't always provide much benefit.
| YOURS | OTHERS | |
|---|---|---|
| Hand | Front/Back | Back |
| Board | Front/Back | Front/Back |
| Score Pile | Front/Back | Back |
| Claimed Achievements | Back | Back |
| Forecast (Foreshadowed) | Front/Back | Back |
| Secrets (Unseen) | Back | Back |
| Display/Museums (Cities) | Front/Back | Front/Back |
| Unowned Cards | |
|---|---|
| Decks | Back |
| Standard Achievements | Back |
| Special Achievements | Front/Back |
| Junk | Back |
Parts of a Card
Card Layout
Fig. 3 — Example card: MEDICINE (card B 029, value 3)
- I DEMAND you exchange the highest card in your score pile with the lowest card in my score pile!
- Junk an available achievement of value 3 or 4.
- Title: Unique for every card in Innovation.
- Value: A card's value matches the age of the deck it came from.
- Dogma Effects: Each card has one or more effects. Demand effects have dark boxes, and attack opponents. Non-demand effects help you advance your civilization. A Featured icon precedes each effect. It is always the icon occurring most frequently on the card.
- Icons: Each card has four slots along its left and bottom edge for icons. They help you defend against demands and share in other players' dogma effects.
- Card Image: One of the four icon slots on each card is instead filled with a hexagonal image depicting the innovation. It does not provide any benefit and effectively blocks one of the four slots.
- Card Number: A small code with the set letter (B for Base, E for Echoes, etc) and card number.
- Card Color: The background of each card is either Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, or Purple. The shape around the value and the pattern of the latticework are unique per color, as shown on the right.
BLUE cards have these: circular/dot icon shapes and a circle value badge. GREEN cards have these: square icon shapes and a square value badge. PURPLE cards have these: diamond icon shapes and a diamond value badge. RED cards have these: octagon icon shapes and an octagon value badge. YELLOW cards have these: star/sunburst icon shapes and a star value badge.
Card Icons
There are seven standard icon types that appear on cards in Innovation. In the base set, some standard icons only appear in certain ages. Some expansion cards (including all Figures cards; each has a Figures icon) defy these restrictions. The number of standard icons you have affects sharing and demands during a dogma action, and generally having more is better.
STANDARD ICONS
Leaf, Lightbulb, and Crown: these appear in all ages, 1 through 11.
Castle: Age 1-3. Factory: Age 4-11. Clock: Age 7-11. Figures (people icon): Age 10-11.
ICONS: EXPANSIONS
- Your highest visible bonus icon is worth its value in points. Each other visible bonus is worth one point.
- Visible Echo Effects are executed during a Dogma action, before dogma effects.
- You can Auspice during a Dogma Action to change the featured icon to the Figures icon.
- Cities have many special icons, instead of dogma effects.
Your Turn
Each player must take two actions on their turn. There are four types of actions: Draw, Meld, Dogma, and Achieve. You can perform the same type of action twice, or choose two different actions. These are your First Action and Second Action.
DRAW: Take a card into your hand.
MELD: Place a card from your hand onto your board.
DOGMA: Use the effects of a top card on your board.
ACHIEVE: With enough points, claim an Achievement.
NOTE 1: The first player (or first two in a 4+ player game) takes only a single action on their first turn.
NOTE 2: The free Draw Action you receive for sharing during a Dogma and the free Dogma Action you get for an Artifact on display do not count as your First or Second Action.
FIGURES: Use a Decree action to issue a powerful Decree by junking your hand (p 30).
Draw Action
A Draw action lets you add a card to your hand. Draw from the base set deck of age matching your highest value top card. The value of a card is the age number in the top right corner.
An age is empty if there are no cards in the base set deck of its value. If you would draw a card from an empty age for any reason, you draw from the next higher age instead. If multiple ages are empty, continue skipping as necessary.
If you attempt to draw an age 12 or higher card, the game ends immediately. If you attempt to draw a card of an undefined value, draw a 0 (which will result in going up an age to a 1, and so forth). This can happen in the rare case that your board is empty, or via certain dogma effects.
Example: You take a Draw action, with the board below to the left. Your highest top card is Philosophy, from age 2. Even though a 4 is visible on a splayed purple card, it is not at the top of that pile. You attempt to draw a 2, but age 2 is empty - its deck has no cards. Instead, you draw a 3.
ARCHERY (card B 001, value 1)
- I DEMAND you draw a 1, then transfer the highest card in your hand to my hand!
- Junk an available achievement of value 1 or 2.
AGRICULTURE (card B 004, value 1)
- You may return a card from your hand. If you do, draw and score a card of value one higher than the card you return.
PHILOSOPHY (card B 025, value 2)
- You may splay left any one color of your cards.
- You may score a card from your hand.
Draw: Expansions
Three expansions have draw rules that cause you to draw an expansion card instead of a base card, whether from a Draw action or an effect. If more than one would apply at the same time, Figures takes priority, then Echoes, then Unseen. For more information on drawing expansion cards, see p21.
FIGURES: With your free Draw action from a shared Dogma, draw a Figures card instead (p 28).
ECHOES: If you have a unique valued highest top card on your board, draw an Echoes card instead (p 24).
UNSEEN: The first card you draw each turn is an Unseen card instead (p 31).
Meld Action
Choose a card from your hand and place it on your board. If your board has cards of that card's color already, stack it on top of them. If that color is splayed (p 16), continue the splay.
Examples: Coal and Mysticism get melded onto existing stacks of cards. Purple is splayed right, so Mysticism continues the splay.
COAL (card B 046, value 5)
- Draw and tuck a 5.
- You may splay your red cards right.
- You may score one of your top cards. If you do, also score the card beneath it.
MYSTICISM (card B 015, value 1)
- Draw and reveal a 1. If it is the same color as any card on your board, meld it and draw a 1.
Meld: Expansions
When playing with expansions, there are triggers that happen after a Meld action. They are listed below in the order they occur if several are triggered by the same action. Note that these triggers only happen because of a Meld action, not a meld caused by an effect. If after any of these triggers resolve, the melded card is no longer a top card on your board, skip any remaining triggers.
CITIES: Perform the City's special icon effect (p 22).
CITIES: Draw a city, if you melded a new color and don't have a City in your hand (p 22).
ARTIFACTS: Perform a Dig Event, if you melded over an equal or higher card, or a card with matching Card Image location (p 26).
FIGURES: Execute any "When" Karma Effect triggered by the Meld (p 28).
ECHOES: If any card in your Forecast is equal to or lower than the melded card, then you must Promote one such card from your Forecast (p 25).
Dogma Action
The Dogma action allows you to use the effects of cards on your board, and is split into four steps. Two examples below walk through each of those steps in detail.
Choose a Card
To start a Dogma action, you must choose one of your top cards to activate. This represents your civilization turning its main focus to one of the innovations you have discovered. All of the effects on the card you choose will be executed, regardless of anything else that happens to it or other cards during the action.
CITIES: You may choose to Endorse your Dogma action (p 23).
FIGURES: You may choose to Auspice your Dogma action (p 28).
4+ PLAYERS: See the Parley rules (p 18).
Sharing Eligibility & Demand Vulnerability
Each dogma effect is preceded by a small version of the icon most prevalent on the card, indicating that it is the featured icon for the card. Before any effects are executed, each player counts how many of that icon are visible on their board. Any player that has at least as many as you is eligible to share in the use of your innovation. Any opponent that has fewer than you is vulnerable to demands from your innovation.
Locking In
The list of effects to be executed and eligibility for sharing and vulnerability to demands are only determined once - at the start of the Dogma action. Even if the card is moved or covered up during the action, continue with the Dogma action until all of the effects are executed. No other aspect of the game or its cards is "locked in", always evaluate boards, hands, icons, etc at the moment of effect execution.
Execute Effects
Many cards have multiple effects. You must execute all of them during a Dogma action. Always complete an effect entirely before you move on to the next effect.
Before you execute a non-demand effect (any effect that does not start with "I Demand"), each player who is eligible to share must first do so. Starting to your left and going clockwise, each eligible player must follow the effect's instructions. After they are all done, you must perform them.
Demand effects are in darker boxes and all start with "I demand." Read demand effects out loud to make it clear what your opponents must do. Starting to your left and going clockwise, each vulnerable opponent follows the instructions. Other opponents do nothing.
If you can only perform part of an effect, do as much as you can and ignore the rest. If any effect forces you to choose between multiple cards (such as "highest top card", and two cards are tied), you decide which one to use.
Effects or parts of effects preceded by "you may" are optional. All others are mandatory, even if detrimental!
Sharing: Free Draw Action
If one or more opponents that were eligible to share your effects did so, then you take one free Draw action after the Dogma action is complete. This only occurs if an opponent's use of the shared effect causes them to do something with a card. This includes anything (splay, meld, tuck, exchange, transfer, draw, achieve, etc.) except for revealing a card, which does not count for sharing.
You do not get a free Draw action due to vulnerable players' execution of demand effects.
Note: You cannot splay a color with zero or one cards, nor can you splay a color in the direction it is already splayed. Attempting to do these does not count for sharing.
FIGURES: Your free Draw action will draw a Figures card instead of base (p 28).
Example 1
You choose Writing, which has only one dogma effect on it.
Lightbulb is the featured icon. You have 3, Ivy has 3, and Cygnus has 1. Ivy is eligible to share, and Cygnus is vulnerable to demands. In this case, there are no demand effects, so Cygnus' vulnerability does not hurt her.
Before you execute the first (and only) effect, Ivy must do so because she is eligible to share. She draws a 2. Then, you draw a 2.
Ivy (a player that was eligible to share) caused something in the game to change when she executed her effect (in this case, drawing a 2). This means that you receive a free Draw action. Your highest top card is Gunpowder, a 4, so you draw a 4.
Example 2
You choose Gunpowder, because it makes you feel like a pirate. Gunpowder has two effects on it. Both will be executed during this Dogma action.
Factory is the featured icon. You have 2, Ivy has 0, and Cygnus has 3. Cygnus is eligible to share, and Ivy is vulnerable to demands.
The first effect is a demand effect. You read it aloud, demanding that Ivy transfer a top card with a Castle from her board to your score pile. She chooses to give you Oars, which you tuck face-down under the left edge of your Reference Card, as points.
The second effect is a non-demand effect. Cygnus performs it first, because she is eligible to share. Since a card was transferred during the demand, Cygnus draws and scores a 2. Then, you draw and score a 2.
Cygnus (a player that was eligible to share) caused something in the game to change when she drew and scored a 2. This means that you receive a free Draw action. Your highest top card is Gunpowder, a 4, so you draw a 4.
If, instead, both opponents had been vulnerable to demands, you would not have received a free Draw action. Demand effects do not count as sharing.
Cards used in the examples
GUNPOWDER (card B 037, value 4)
- I DEMAND you transfer a top card with Castle from your board to my score pile!
- If any card was transferred due to the demand, draw and score a 2.
WRITING (card B 012, value 1)
- Draw a 2.
COMPASS (card B 030, value 3)
- I DEMAND you transfer a top non-green card with Leaf from your board to my board, and then meld a top card without Leaf from my board!
PHILOSOPHY (card B 025, value 2) — Ivy's board
- You may splay left any one color of your cards.
- You may score a card from your hand.
OARS (card B 003, value 1) — Ivy's board
- I DEMAND you transfer a card with Castle from your hand to my score pile! If you do, draw a 1, and repeat this effect!
- If no cards were transferred due to this demand, draw a 1.
ALCHEMY (card B 032, value 3) — Ivy's board
- Draw and reveal a 4 for every color on your board with Castle. If any of the drawn cards are red, return all cards from your hand.
- Meld a card from your hand, then score a card from your hand.
COLONIALISM (card B 036, value 4) — Cygnus' board
- Draw and tuck a 3. If it is green, junk all cards in the 5 deck. If it has Factory, repeat this effect.
BANKING (card B 050, value 5) — Cygnus' board
- I DEMAND you transfer a top non-green card with Factory from your board to my board! If you do, draw and score a 5!
- You may splay your green cards right.
Dogma Keywords
Dogma effects use a variety of keywords and terminology to describe various things you must do with cards. A comprehensive list is below. If you are learning the game, you do not need to know the entire list of keywords in advance! Referencing them as they come up is sufficient.
Non-demand effects are written in the imperative; the card is telling the player executing the effect what to do.
Demand effects are written to be read aloud separately to each vulnerable player. First-person pronouns (I, me, my) refer to the player issuing the demand. Second person pronouns (You, your, yours) refer to the player being demanded of.
1 2 etc: Values in boxes refer to cards from the appropriate deck.
Action Verbs (Draw, Meld, Achieve): Some effects instruct you to draw, meld, or achieve. These do not count as an action of that type. It does not count as one of your two actions per turn and triggers that specifically depend on an Action do not resolve.
"All cards": Effects that instruct you to do something to "all cards" in a location or satisfying a condition affect one card at a time, and continue until no such cards remain. Each card is only considered once - if a karma prevents it from moving, or moves it such that it would be considered again, ignore that card.
Available Achievement: An available achievement is an achievement currently owned by no player. It can be one of the Standard Achievements set aside at game start or added by an effect during play, or one of the Special Achievements placed during setup. Museums, Decrees, and Secrets are not considered available achievements.
Bottom: The bottom card in your pile of a color. If you have only one card of a color, it is both the bottom and top card of that color.
Card Image: The image in a hexagon on a card, depicting the innovation. The location of the image affects which splays are most effective, and is used by the Artifacts of History draw rule.
Claim: Claim is always referring to a card that will be tucked under your reference card as an achievement. Some expansion cards allow you to claim cards from places outside the Standard Achievements. Eligibility for claiming such a card is the same as if it were an available Standard Achievement.
Deck: The stack of cards in the center of the table of the specified value.
Draw / Draw and X: Many dogma effects instruct you to draw cards, or to draw a card and then do something to it (Meld, Score, etc). First, draw a card from the deck of the specified value, skipping empty ages as appropriate. Then, do whatever X is (tuck, score, meld, etc.) to the card you drew. 'Draw and reveal' effects place the card in your hand, unless the effect takes it away afterward. Echoes and Unseen draw rules apply to cards drawn due to effects.
Empty: An age is empty if the base deck for it is empty.
Exchange: Swap cards from the two locations given, even if one half of the exchange is empty. An exchanged card has not been scored, (or melded, drawn, etc.) for the purposes of Special Achievements or karma effects.
Foreseen: A card was foreseen if it is currently being executed during an extra Dogma Action after a foreshadow promotion.
Foreshadow: Put the card in your Forecast, tucked face-down under the top edge of your Reference Card.
Highest / Lowest: Refers to the value (age number) of the cards in question. If multiple cards are tied and you need to choose the highest or lowest card, you may choose freely between the tied cards.
If / If you do / etc: See page 15.
Junk: A junked card is placed out of play, in a pile under the Junk card. If an effect calls for a specific deck to be junked, that base deck is junked, not expansion decks. If base cards of that value are subsequently returned, the deck will no longer be empty, as normal.
Lose: If a player loses, they are eliminated from play. Junk all cards belonging to them. They are skipped in turn order, and no longer count for player adjacency.
Meld: Place a card onto your board, as you would during a Meld action. Triggers on Meld actions do not apply when cards are melded due to effects.
Non-demand effect: Any dogma or echo effect that does not begin with "I Demand" or "I Compel".
Return: A returned card is placed at the bottom of its deck, face-down. If multiple cards are returned at once, choose the order. If you return a base set card of an empty age, it is no longer empty.
Reveal: A revealed card is shown to all players, then remains where it was (hand, score pile, etc). Note that if a card specifies a player do something with hidden cards (such as in their hand) and they cannot, they are required to reveal all necessary cards to prove it is impossible (all cards in their hand, for example).
Rotate: Move an Artifact (and the Museum it is on, if any). Rotation is not a Transfer.
Safeguard: Put the card in your Safe, tucked face-down under the bottom edge of your Reference Card.
Score: To score a card, place it in your score pile, face-down. Your score is the total value of all the cards in your score pile.
Secret: A card in your Safe. The front side of a Secret may not be looked at by any player.
Self-execute: Some effects instruct you to self-execute another card. When you do, you execute all the non-demand effects on that card. Demand effects are ignored, and you do not share non-demand effects, regardless of icon count. The card remains wherever it was, unless moved by the effects executed.
When playing with Echoes, if the self-executed card is a top card on any board, first perform all echo effects in that color on that board. If it is not a top card, first perform all echo effects on that card only.
Splay: See page 14.
Super-execute: Identical to self-execute, with one difference. When you super-execute a card, you also execute all demand effects (but not compel effects on Artifacts cards). All opponents are considered vulnerable regardless of icon count or parley rules.
"This effect" / "This action": A dogma effect referring to something happening during "this effect" means anything since the start of specific execution of the effect. One mentioning "this action" would count anything happening since the current player started the current action.
Top: The top card of each color is the card on top of its pile. If you have only one card of a color, it is both the bottom and top card of that color.
Transfer: Move a card from one area in play to another. Transferring a card does not count as melding, achieving, scoring, etc. A card transferred to a board becomes a top card on that board.
Tuck: To tuck a card, place it on the bottom of the matching color pile, continuing a splay if possible. If no cards of its color are on your board, it forms a new pile.
Value: The value of a card is its age number. If a card refers to the value of something you don't have, like your top purple card if you have none, treat the value as 0. If an effect asks you to choose a value of card, you can only choose a possible age value of a card (from 1 to 11).
Visible: A card is visible if it is a top card, or if it is in a splayed pile and you can see any part of it. An icon or echo effect is visible if it is on a top card or can be seen due to a splay.
Dogma Concepts
Splaying
Many dogma effects will instruct you to splay a color in a direction. At any given time, a color is either unsplayed, splayed left, splayed right, splayed up, or splayed aslant.
To splay a color, take the top card and slide it in the direction indicated, revealing one icon on each card in the stack if splaying left, two icons if splaying right, three icons if splaying up, and four icons if splaying aslant. If there are more than two cards, repeat the process so that all cards in the color are splayed. If the color was already splayed, unsplay it before splaying it in the new direction.
If a color contains zero or one card, it cannot be splayed. If a splayed color is reduced to zero or one card, it does not remember that it was previously splayed.
If a color is splayed, it cannot be splayed in the same direction again. Attempting to do so means that nothing happens, including anything that would trigger from a splay.
PAPER (card B 031, value 3) — example of Splayed Left
- You may splay your green or blue cards left.
- Score a top card with Leaf from your board. If you do, draw a 4 for every color you have splayed left.
PRINTING PRESS (card B 043, value 4) — example of Splayed Right
- You may return a card from your score pile. If you do, draw a card of value two higher than the top purple card on your board.
- You may splay your blue cards right.
EMPIRICISM (card B 084, value 8) — example of Splayed Up
- Choose two colors, then draw and reveal a 9. If the drawn card is one of those colors, meld it and splay your cards of its color up, otherwise unsplay that color.
- If you have at least twenty Lightbulb on your board, you win.
ASTROGEOLOGY (card B 106, value 11) — example of Splayed Aslant
- Draw and reveal an 11. Splay its color on your board aslant. If you do, transfer all but your top four cards of that color into your hand.
- If you have at least eight cards in your hand, you win.
Verification
If execution of an effect involves the identity of cards that are hidden from other players but visible to you, you may need to verify. Any time another player would not know if you've accurately executed an effect based on what they can see, you must reveal the relevant cards.
Example: Classification transfers all cards of a specific color from all opponents' hands to yours, and then causes you to meld all cards of that color. Opponents would reveal their hands after transferring cards to show they have no more cards of that color. You would reveal your hand after melding to show you have no more cards of that color.
CLASSIFICATION (card B 060, value 6)
- Reveal a card from your hand. Transfer to your hand all cards of that card's color from all opponents' hands. Then, meld all cards of that color from your hand.
The Golden Rule
An important rule to keep in mind with all Innovation effects is its Golden Rule: Do as much as you can, ignore the rest.
Example: Sanitation's demand effect requires a vulnerable opponent to exchange two cards from their hand to yours. If they had zero or one card in their hand, the exchange would still happen with all of what they had available.
SANITATION (card B 069, value 7)
- I DEMAND you exchange the two highest cards in your hand with the lowest card in my hand!
- Choose 7 or 8. Junk all cards in that deck.
If Clauses / "If you do"
Many effects have conditional wording that change whether part of the effect will happen or not. For the condition to be satisfied, you must exactly (including quantities and values of cards) meet or have just met that condition, and what you did must have amounted to more than nothing.
"If you do" and "If you don't" always refer to the previous sentence in an effect, in its entirety.
ROAD BUILDING (card B 017, value 2)
- Meld one or two cards from your hand. If you meld two, you may transfer your top red card to another player's board. If you do, meld that player's top green card.
Example: Road Building has if clauses in both its second and third sentences. You evaluate them as you go through the effect.
"If you meld two" is checking that you have actually melded two cards. If not, the text "you may transfer your top red card to another player's board" would be ignored.
"If you do" is checking the previous sentence - that you transferred your top red card to another player's board. If that didn't happen, "meld that player's top green card" would be ignored.
SERVICES (card B 094, value 9)
- I DEMAND you transfer all the cards of the value of my choice from your score pile to my hand! If you do, transfer a top card without Leaf from my board to your hand!
Example: Services asks "If you do" about a transfer of all cards from your score pile of a value specified by the player making the demand. If you had none of that value, you would not meet the condition even though you transferred "all" of the zero cards you had of that value. This is because the executed text "must have amounted to more than nothing".
FIGURES: If clauses ignore anything that happened during a triggered Karma effect.
Dogma Action Triggers
With expansions and/or 4+ player games, there can be several decisions required at the start of a Dogma Action. Any or all of them can apply to an action, and they are resolved in the following order:
- 4+ PLAYERS: You may Parley to target a distant player's top card for the Dogma action (p 18).
- CITIES: You may Endorse the Dogma action to double its effects (p 23).
- FIGURES: You may Auspice to change the featured icon to the Figures icon (p 28).
- FIGURES: Execute any "Would" Karma effect triggered by the Dogma action (p 28).
Achieve Action
You may only take an Achieve action if you are eligible to claim an available Standard Achievement. To be eligible for a Standard achievement, you must satisfy both of two conditions.
First, your score must be at least five times the age number of the achievement. Your score is the total value of all cards in your score pile. Second, you must have a top card on your board of equal or higher value to the age number of the achievement.
When you take the Achieve action, claim any one achievement you are eligible for, and put it face-down under the right side of your Reference Card. You do not spend cards from your score pile when taking an Achieve action, your points are merely a threshold for eligibility.
You can only be eligible to claim an achievement if it is available in the center of the table. Once another player has an achievement, it cannot be claimed by anyone else.
Example: You, in the example to the right, have 15 points (4+4+4+3), and your highest top card is a 2. You have already claimed the age 1 achievement.
You are eligible to claim the age 2 achievement, since you have at least 10 (2 x 5) points, and a top card of value 2 or higher.
You are not eligible to claim the age 3 achievement. Although you have at least 15 (3 x 5) points, you do not have a top card of value 3 or higher.
ARCHERY (card B 001, value 1)
- I DEMAND you draw a 1, then transfer the highest card in your hand to my hand!
- Junk an available achievement of value 1 or 2.
CANAL BUILDING (card B 018, value 2)
- You may choose to either exchange all the highest cards in your hand with all the highest cards in your score pile, or junk all cards in the 3 deck.
CURRENCY (card B 020, value 2)
- You may return any number of cards from your hand. If you do, draw and score a 2 for every different value of card you return.
EXPANSIONS: Claiming duplicate achievements requires extra points (p 21).
UNSEEN: You can claim a Secret from your Safe with an Achieve action (p 31).
FIGURES: When you take an Achieve action, each opponent will draw a Figure (p 28).
Special Achievements
Special Achievements each have a condition you must satisfy to claim them, and state when they can be claimed. Claiming a Special Achievement does not use an action, and they can even be claimed during another player's turn. If more than one player could claim the same Special Achievement at the same time, the first such player in turn (clockwise) order starting to the left of the current player claims it.
Like Standard Achievements, once a Special Achievement is claimed by a player, it is no longer available for others to claim.
Chain Rule
If, while self-executing or super-executing a card's non-demand effect, you would perform the keyword "self-execute" or "super-execute", first draw and achieve an 11, awarding yourself a Chain Achievement. There is no limit (aside from the size of the 11 deck) to the number of Chain Achievements that can be awarded during an action.
Game End
Claiming Victory
There are four ways to win a game of Innovation: by achievements, score, card effect, or elimination.
Achievement Victory
To win via achievements, you need to claim a number of achievements depending on how many players are in the game. For a two player game with just the base set, 6 achievements are needed. For each extra player, subtract one. For each expansion included, add one. A minimum of 3 achievements are needed, regardless of player count.
Winning via achievements is checked at the end of each action. This happens after checking for Special Achievements that trigger at the end of an action. If more than one player has enough achievements to win, the player with the most achievements wins. If there is a tie, the first tied player to the left of the current player wins, in turn (clockwise) order.
FIGURES: Fading occurs before checking for Special Achievements or Achievement Victory (p 30).
| PLAYERS | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BASE ONLY | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| 1 EXPANSION | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 |
| 2 EXPANSIONS | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 |
With more players or expansions, the formula for the number of Achievements to win:
8 - (# of Players) + (# of Expansions) (Minimum 3)
Score Victory
To win by score, the game must end due to a player attempting to draw a card higher than age 11. This can happen if the 11 deck is empty, or through various dogma effects. The moment the card would be drawn, the game ends immediately. In this case, each player's current score is more important than achievements, as their relevance has dwindled from the passage of time. The player (or team) with the highest current score wins. If tied, most achievements wins. If still tied, the game is a draw.
Note: There are situations where a player will have claimed enough achievements to win during an action (often with the Chain Rule) but before the action is completed a card higher than 11 would be drawn. These situations result in a Score Victory, and another player might even win!
Card Effect Victory
Several card effects can end the game early. Some allow you to win given a certain condition, which, if satisfied, ends the game immediately. Others let the "single player with X" win. These also end the game immediately, but only if there is no tie for X. If there is a tie, that portion of the effect is ignored entirely.
Elimination Victory
Rarely, an effect can cause a player to lose. If a player loses, all of their cards are junked and they no longer are part of the table for turn order or adjacency. If all players but one are eliminated, the remaining player wins immediately. If a player needs to concede for any reason in a multiplayer game and the rest want to continue playing, treat them as if they lost via an effect.
Large Games (4+)
When playing Innovation with four or more players, things can get a little chaotic! Special rules govern these games, in order to maximize your fun and control the chaos in an enjoyable way.
Player Count
With the introduction of Parley rules in Innovation Ultimate, the maximum player count for a game with just the base set has increased to 5. Each expansion you add increases that maximum by 1.
We recommend not having new players in 4P games, and strongly recommend only experienced players in games with 5 or more.
The number of achievements needed to win is 8, plus the number of expansions, minus the number of players, with a minimum of 3.
Team Rules
You can play Innovation in teams. Team play with larger player counts is less chaotic and more strategic, if that's what you're seeking. The most typical way to play with teams is 2v2, with teammates across from each other. However, you can play with teams of any size and table arrangement if so you desire! An individual can even play as a team of one. A 2v1 game can be a fun way to teach inexperienced players while giving them an advantage.
Almost all rules in a team game remain the same as a normal game. A teammate is never vulnerable to your demands or compels. Any effect that refers to an 'opponent' ignores your teammate, but those that refer to 'other players' affect them. Your team's achievements are counted together for determining victory, but you claim achievements without counting your partner's score.
For team games, the number of achievements needed to win is 8, plus the number of expansions, minus the number of teams, with a minimum of 3.
If an individual player wins, their entire team wins. If an individual player loses, the rest of their team may concede or choose to continue an uphill battle. If the game ends by a player trying to draw a card higher than age 11, the team with the highest combined score wins.
Parley Rules
In games with four or more players, Parley rules are in effect. For the purposes of Parley rules, a player is either a neighbor (adjacent to your left or right) or distant.
There are three situations where a Parley is relevant. The cost to Parley is to return a card from your hand.
- When choosing a card to Dogma, you may Parley to choose a top card on a distant player's board to activate. For the Dogma action, you'll use its featured icon and effects (and all echo effects in its color on that board). Only count icons on your own board.
- If you are eligible to share during a distant player's Dogma action, you may Parley to confirm your eligibility when you're about to execute a shared effect for the first time. If you Parley, you're eligible to share effects for the duration of the action. If you don't, you're not eligible during the whole action.
- If you are vulnerable to a demand (or compel) effect from a distant player's Dogma action, you may Parley to become immune when you're about to be forced to execute the demand. If you Parley, you're no longer vulnerable. If you don't, you remain vulnerable as normal.
If applicable, you may Parley for each of situations 2 and 3 during the same Dogma action, returning a card for each.
If also playing with teams, your teammates are never considered distant for Parley rules.
Strategy Tips
Innovation plays differently nearly every time you take it out of the box. While long-term planning is possible, it is often much more beneficial to seize the best tactical option at any given moment. Splaying and, thus, amassing icons is important, as is spending time to accumulate points. The first few times you play, it is probably easier to focus more on the cards that you have rather than trying to internalize and assess every possible action each player could take. As you become more experienced, you will become more proficient at interrupting opponents' plans.
The tips that follow are mostly designed for the base game. In particular, occasional expansion cards have icons that appear in ages outside their scope. The expansions each also alter the landscape of play in ways that require you to devise new strategies.
Tips
Castle icons (which appear in ages 1-3) are very powerful early, but can quickly be a liability later if not covered, due to cards like Gunpowder and Engineering.
Factory icons begin appearing in age 4. You will want to get some as soon as possible. Being completely shut out of the new technologies can be very painful, as the cards that use Factory can yield many points in the mid-game.
Clock icons arrive in age 7. Late-game effects are very powerful, and having Clock on your board can protect you from demands and help you share in what your opponents are doing.
Figures icons show up at age 10. If you get them first, your effects using Figures will not be shared, and your demands will impact opponents. Age 10 and 11 cards are all quite potent.
If you can take the Achieve action, it is almost always the correct decision. If you don't, you might lose cards from your score pile before your next turn, or someone else could claim the achievement first!
Don't be afraid of sharing! While it's true that you don't want to actively help opponents, it's often a smart play to give another player a small benefit if you'll reap a larger one. Always factor in the free Draw action you'll receive for sharing.
Remember that eligible opponents must share your dogma effects, and they perform their actions before you do. If the age 1 supply pile has a single card left in it, and you share a dogma effect that says "draw a 1," your opponent will get the 1. You'll get a 2, and a share draw!
Age 9 cards and higher are very powerful, and can end the game immediately. If you're trying to win by achievements, you want to finish up before the game reaches this stage. On the other hand, if you're behind in achievements, you may want to get to these cards as soon as possible. They may be your last, best hope for victory! Until the game is over, no lead in Innovation is safe.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, sometimes a little chaos is your friend. Innovation is not Chess, and you cannot perfectly predict or dictate what will happen. Random elements are always present, whether it's the color of the next card, the hidden identities of cards in score piles, the order of decks, or even which cards are pulled during setup to become achievements. Embracing the uncertainty and aiming for generally good outcomes (or even taking a wild risk!) is often rewarding. Good luck, and enjoy the adventures through the ages that Innovation presents to you!
Innovation Expansions
Playing with Expansions
Once you've played the base game a few times, you can add in expansions. Playing with expansions before learning the base game is not recommended. The rules for each expansion are explained on the next several pages.
Once in play, expansion cards behave just like base cards. They can be in score piles, on your board, and have value equal to their age number. Because the backs of expansion cards have different colors than base cards, which set a card belongs to is public knowledge, wherever it is.
For those of you who are Innovation veterans, you should know that all of the expansions in Innovation Ultimate have been significantly revised to streamline their inclusion in the game and maximize fun. It's now much easier to mix and match expansions, and none are dependent on the inclusion of others. If you've played with them before, be sure to review the new rules!
You can play with any number of expansions at once, but using one or two is a good recipe for adding some new Innovation flavor to the mix. Cities of Destiny and The Unseen are probably the easiest "starter" expansions, but you can really begin anywhere.
Expansion Setup
Each Innovation expansion has 115 additional cards that are split into 11 ages, just like the base set. These cards are shuffled and kept as separate decks. Depending on the amount of table space you have available, they can be stacked at a 90 degree angle underneath each base deck, or placed near the base set decks.
Each expansion also has five special cards that are placed by the Special Achievements during setup. For Echoes, Cities, and The Unseen, these are additional Special Achievements. Artifacts adds Museum cards and Figures adds Decrees, instead.
The Age 0 deck is never included with Setup. A specific card in Figures will bring it into play when required, at all other times it should be left in the game box and not looked at!
In games with 8 or more players, each player only draws a single card instead of two, melding it to be their first innovation.
The Five Expansions
ECHOES OF THE PAST (Forecast icon) — was Innovation's first expansion. It introduces Echo Effects, which are small effects that occupy an icon slot and are executed when visible, and the ability to Foreshadow cards from future ages. 5 Special Achievements.
FIGURES IN THE SAND (Figures icon) — revolves around innovative individuals from history. Their Karmas are in effect at all times, and each has a unique impact on the game. The Auspice action will let your Figures influence which featured icon is used. 5 Decrees.
CITIES OF DESTINY (Cities icon) — is the simplest expansion. City cards have six icon slots instead of effects, and when you meld them you'll get an immediate benefit. They'll let you Endorse your dogma actions to double their effects! 5 Special Achievements.
ARTIFACTS OF HISTORY (Artifacts icon) — brings legendary objects into play. Each one is wildly powerful, but you'll need to Dig them up to get them into play. Ultimately, they may belong in a Museum! 5 Museums.
THE UNSEEN (Unseen icon) — is a brand new expansion, premiering in Innovation Ultimate. Its shadowy cards let you amass secrets in your Safe, where they become potential achievements for you only. 5 Special Achievements.
General Expansion Rules
Each individual expansion's rules are explained on the pages that follow, but there are a number of rules that apply to all expansions, which are explained here.
Actions & Modifiers
Innovation's expansions introduce one new action type, Decree, and two Dogma action modifiers: Auspice and Endorse. A Decree action or a Dogma action modified by Auspice or Endorse still counts as one of your two actions per turn.
Bonus Icons
Three expansions (Echoes, Cities, Figures) have cards with bonus icons in one or more slots. Visible bonus icons add to your score. Your highest bonus is worth its value in points. Each other bonus is worth one point.
Example: You have 13 points in your score pile, and visible bonuses on your board of values 8, 4, 3, 3, and 1. Your current score is 13 + 8 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 = 25.
Action Triggers
Many effects in Innovation's expansions trigger off the completion of an action or other occurrence within the game. If a rule or effect references a Meld action, Dogma action, Draw action or Achieve action, it is not triggered by effects that meld, execute, draw, or achieve cards.
Example: Executing Sailing (Draw and meld a 1) would not cause you to check your Forecast for cards to promote, because the Forecast promotion rule specifically references a Meld action. It would also not trigger the Cities draw rule or Artifacts dig rule, since those also reference a Meld action.
If multiple triggers would occur from the same action, the charts on pages 9 and 10 (for Meld and Dogma actions respectively) list the order in which they occur.
Achievements
Many expansion dogma and karma effects make additional cards available as potential achievements through a variety of methods. If a card is claimed as an achievement from a board, hand, etc, it is placed face-down on the right side of your Reference Card just like a Standard Achievement. No player may look at its front once it becomes an achievement.
You may have and claim multiple achievements with the same value, but this increases eligibility requirements. Normally, an achievement requires you to have a score of at least 5 times the value of the achievement. If you already have an achievement of that value, the score requirement is doubled. If you have two, the requirement is tripled, and so forth.
Example: You have three Age 2 achievements. To be eligible for an achievement of value 2, you would need 40 points (4 x 10) and a top card on your board of value 2 or higher.
Drawing Expansion Cards
Each Innovation expansion has its own rules governing when its cards will come into play. Some are replacements for normal card draws, others are draws triggered by something that happens in the game.
In either case, you can never draw cards from an empty age. If the base deck of an age is empty, that age is empty for all sets, and thus you cannot draw from expansion decks of that age for any reason. If you would draw a card from an empty age, go up to the next available non-empty age, and draw from the expansion deck of that value. If this would send you beyond the 11 deck, the game ends as if you'd tried to draw a base card of value 12 or higher.
If an expansion deck is empty and you would draw from it, draw a card from the corresponding base deck instead (except for a Dig event, see p 26). Ignore all other expansion draw rules for that draw.
If playing with more than one of Figures, Echoes, and The Unseen, the draw rule for Figures is checked first, then Echoes, then Unseen.
Cities of Destiny
Cities of Destiny adds many of humanity's greatest cities from around the world. City cards don't have any text on them; instead, they have special icons that convey powerful benefits when put into play with a Meld action. Having cities in play will also allow you access to the powerful Endorse action, which allows you to double your dogma effects.
Updates from 3rd Edition
Cities has two main changes, along with various small card updates. First, there are three new City Icons - Junk, Uplift, and Unsplay. Second, endorsing a Dogma action now junks the spent card, instead of tucking it.
Drawing Cities
There are two situations that trigger a City draw. If you already have one or more Cities cards in your hand, ignore these triggers.
- When you take a Meld action to meld a card that adds a new color to your board, draw a City.
- Immediately after you splay a color (on any board) in any new direction, draw a City.
In either case, draw a Cities card of value equal to your highest top card. If the Cities deck of that age is empty, draw a base card instead. A City draw is never changed to another type of draw.
City Card Special Icons
Each city card has up to two special icons on it. If you meld a city with a Meld action, immediate effect icons on it trigger after the meld. If there are two immediate effects, execute the top icon's effect first, then the bottom icon's effect. Cities can also have constant effect icons, which apply while the icon is visible on your board.
Since Cities do not have dogma effects, they cannot be selected with a Dogma action. If a card would cause a City to be self-executed or super-executed, nothing happens.
Immediate Effect Icons
- Plus: Draw a card of value one higher than the city's age.
- Junk: Junk an available achievement of value equal to the city's age, if one exists.
- Search: A Search icon is a standard icon with a magnifying glass in its corner. It also counts as a standard icon of its type. Reveal the top X cards of the base X deck, where X is the city's age. If there are not enough cards in the deck, reveal the entire deck, and do not go up to the next age. Take each card that has an icon matching the Search icon into your hand, and return the rest in any order. The cards taken into your hand from a Search are not draws, and no part of a Search can trigger or be affected by karma effects or any expansion draw rules.
- Arrow: Splay the city's color in the direction indicated by the arrow.
- Unsplay: Unsplay the city's color on all opponents' boards.
- Uplift: Junk the deck of value one higher than the city's age. Then, draw a card of value two higher than the city's age.
Constant Effect Icons
- Flag: While a flag is visible on your board, it counts as an achievement for you if no opponent has more visible cards of the flag's color than you do.
- Fountain: While a fountain is visible on your board, it counts as an achievement for you.
Endorse
When you take a Dogma action, you can use one of your Cities to Endorse it. This will double the action's effectiveness for you. You can only Endorse once per turn.
To Endorse a Dogma action, perform the following steps at the start of the action:
- Note the featured icon of the card chosen with the Dogma action.
- Choose a top city on your board. It must have the featured icon on it.
- Pay for the Endorse action by junking a card from your hand of equal or lower value to the city you chose. The junked card's color and icons are irrelevant.
- Proceed with the Dogma action, as follows:
- Determine eligibility for sharing, vulnerability to demands, and which echo effects are visible as you normally would.
- When you execute a non-demand effect, do it twice.
- When you issue a demand, affect each vulnerable opponent twice (go around the table clockwise once and then a second time).
- When another player shares a non-demand effect, they execute it only once.
- Take only a single free Draw action for sharing, if applicable.
Endorse Example
You take a Dogma action, choosing The Pirate Code, and decide to Endorse it.
You use Jakarta to Endorse The Pirate Code because its featured icon, Crown, is present on Jakarta. To pay for the action, you must junk a card of value 3 or less from your hand (it can be any card of any color).
You then determine eligibility and vulnerability as with a normal Dogma action. You issue the demand twice, then share the non-demand effect, and then execute it twice for yourself. If you shared, you take a single free Draw action.
JAKARTA (City card, card C 028, value 3) — icons: Junk (special), Castle (with Search), Crown, Leaf, Leaf
Example card junked to pay for Endorse: a 2 (Classical) card, value 2.
THE PIRATE CODE (card B 047, value 5)
- I DEMAND you transfer two cards of value 4 or less from your score pile to my score pile!
- If any cards were transferred due to the demand, score the lowest top card with Crown from your board.
Echoes of the Past
Echoes of the Past was Innovation's first expansion, years ago. It introduces echo effects, which let cards contribute game text long after they're covered up, as long as the echo effect is revealed via a splay. It also introduces the foreshadow mechanic, which lets you peek into future ages and reserve innovations to be melded (and immediately used!) once you reach their era.
Updates from 3rd Edition
The draw rule for Echoes cards has been changed. Also, promoting one card from your Forecast is now mandatory for each Meld action. Finally, many effects now include the one-time phrase "If (card name) was foreseen", giving them a one-time enhanced effect if they were just promoted from your Forecast.
Drawing Echoes Cards
Whenever you would draw a base card for any reason, you must check to see if you draw an Echoes card instead. If the highest top card on your board is your only top card of that value, draw an Echoes card instead of a base card. If the Echoes deck you would draw from is empty, draw a base card instead.
Examples: You're about to draw a card, with the boards shown.
- You have a unique highest top card - a green 3. You would draw an Echoes card.
- You have multiple highest top cards of the same value - a blue 4 and a purple 4. You would draw a base card.
- You have only one top card, so it is unique. You would draw an Echoes card.
Echo Effects
An echo effect is a special type of effect that appears where an icon would normally be. During a Dogma action, before executing the dogma effects of a card, first check to see if any echo effects are visible in its color. Execute each of those effects, starting from the card on the bottom of the pile and ending with the card on top.
Echo effects are non-demand effects, and are shared with eligible players (and can result in a free Draw action) just like the top card's dogma effects.
When self-executing or super-executing a card, if it is a top card on a board, execute all echo effects in its color on that board. If it is elsewhere, only execute the echo effects on the card itself.
Example: You take a Dogma action targeting Hot Air Balloon, and first check to see who is eligible for sharing. Then, execute the three echo effects (1, 2, 3) and, finally, Hot Air Balloon's dogma effect (4). Before each effect, players eligible to share would do so.
HOT AIR BALLOON (card E 060, value 6)
- Dogma effect: You may achieve (if eligible) a top card from an opponent's board if they have an achievement of matching value. If you do, transfer your top green card to that player's board. Otherwise, draw and meld a 7.
- Echo effect (revealed at 3 icons / splayed up): Draw and score a 7.
- Echo effect (revealed at 2 icons / splayed right): Score an expansion card from your hand.
- Echo effect (revealed at 1 icon / splayed left): You may meld a card from your hand.
Foreshadow
Foreshadowing allows you to store cards for future use in an area called your Forecast. Cards in your Forecast are tucked face-down under the top edge of your Reference Card. You may look at their fronts at any time, but your opponents may not. When an effect causes you to foreshadow a card, place it in your Forecast, unless you are at your limit.
As with your Safe when playing with The Unseen, your Forecast has a limit that is based on your best current splay. If you have no splayed colors, your Forecast limit is five cards. If you have any color splayed left, your limit is four, any splayed right, three, any splayed up, two, and any splayed aslant, one.
If you would foreshadow a card but your Forecast is already at or above your limit, instead, nothing happens – the card stays where it is. If your limit changes and you have too many cards in your Forecast, leave them there.
Example: Barometer instructs you to draw and foreshadow a card. You have three cards in your Forecast, and since you have a color splayed up, your Forecast limit is two.
Since you are at or above your limit, you draw the card but do not foreshadow it - it remains in your hand. The cards in your Forecast remain there.
BAROMETER (card E 038, value 4)
- Draw and foreshadow a card of value two higher than a bonus on any board, if there is one.
- You may return all cards in your forecast. If any are blue, claim the Destiny achievement.
| BEST SPLAY | FORECAST LIMIT |
|---|---|
| NONE | 5 |
| LEFT | 4 |
| RIGHT | 3 |
| UP | 2 |
| ASLANT | 1 |
Promoting Cards
At the conclusion of a Meld action, any card in your Forecast of equal or lower value to the card you melded is eligible to be promoted. You must choose one eligible card to promote (meld it). If you do, you must also take a free Dogma action, choosing the promoted card. This free Dogma action does not count as one of your two actions for the turn.
- Take a Meld action.
- Promote an eligible card from your Forecast by melding it.
- Take a free Dogma action, choosing the promoted card.
The condition "if this was foreseen", which is found on many Echoes cards, is satisfied during the free Dogma action for a promoted card. It is not satisfied during subsequent activations of the card. There are some powerful foreseen effects – you will see them coming, and your opponents will not!
Reference Card — Special Achievements (full chart)
This chart appears on the physical Reference Card and lists every Special Achievement across the base game and all four Special-Achievement-granting expansions (Echoes, Unseen, Cities), plus the general achievements-to-win formula and the Forecast/Safe limit table.
| Achievement | Requirement | Alternate Claim via |
|---|---|---|
| Base Monument | 4+ Top Demands | 1 Masonry |
| Empire | 3x Castle/Leaf/Clock/Crown/Factory/Lightbulb | 2 Construction |
| World | 12x Clock | 3 Translation |
| Wonder | 5 Splays (Right or better) | 4 Invention |
| Universe | 5 Top Cards ≥ Age 8 | 5 Astronomy |
| Echoes Supremacy | 3x Same Icon in 4 Colors | 3 Novel |
| Destiny | 5x Forecast cards | 4 Barometer |
| Wealth | 8+ Bonuses | 5 Palampore |
| Heritage | 8+ Card Image in a Color | 6 Loom |
| History | 4+ Echo Effect in a Color | 7 Photography |
| Unseen Confidence | Age 5+, 4+ Secrets | 1 Assassination |
| Zen | Age 6+, No odd Top Card | 2 Meteorology |
| Anonymity | Age 7+, No Std. Achievements | 3 Masquerade |
| Folklore | Age 8+, No Factory | 4 April Fool's Day |
| Mystery | Age 9+, <5 Colors | 5 Secret History |
| Cities Tradition | Meld left on Left Splay | — |
| Repute | Meld right on Right Splay | — |
| Fame | Meld up on Up Splay | — |
| Glory | Junk a City with Junk icon from hand | — |
| Victory | Junk a City with Uplift icon from hand | — |
ACHIEVEMENTS TO WIN: 8 - Players + Expansions (Min 3)
FORECAST/SAFE LIMIT: Best Splay: None-5, Left-4, Right-3, Up-2, Aslant-1
Artifacts of History
Artifacts of History allows you to control powerful objects with dramatic impacts on the game. Each of these Artifacts can swing fortunes in your favor after you dig them up. After discovery, they will enter a Museum's rotation. From there, you could meld them, or build a sizable Museum display that might let you claim a Museum as an achievement!
Updates from 3rd Edition
The rules for Artifacts have been changed significantly. Compel effects and the trigger for a Dig event remain the same, but the way Artifacts are executed and melded is entirely new. The new concept of Museums replaces Relics.
Digging up Artifacts
The way you acquire Artifact cards is different from all other sets. Instead of being drawn into your hand, they go on display, face-up on your Reference Card.
A dig event is triggered after your Meld action if you:
- Covered up a card with a card of equal or lower value.
- Covered up a card with another card, and both cards' hexagonal card image is in the same icon slot.
If either or both are true, the value for the dig event is the value of the covered up card. Take the top card of the Artifacts deck of that value (first skip empty ages as if you were drawing) and place it face-up on your Reference Card. The Artifact is now on display.
Ignore the dig event if you have an Artifact on display already, or if the Artifacts deck you would take from is empty or above age 11.
Example: With a Meld action, a card is melded over a card with its card image in the same slot. This triggers a dig event.
FEUDALISM (card, purple, value 3)
- I DEMAND you transfer a card with Castle from your hand to my hand! If you do, junk all available special achievements!
- You may splay your yellow or purple cards left. If you do, draw a 3.
Seize
If you would trigger a dig event and an opponent has an Artifact of the dig event's value in a Museum, you may seize that Artifact instead. To do so, cancel the dig event and Rotate the seized Artifact and Museum so they are in front of you, near your Reference Card. You can seize even if the dig event would otherwise be ignored.
Rotate
The Artifacts rules use the keyword rotate related to movement of Artifacts and Museums, thematically referring to items being "in rotation" at such institutions. To rotate a card, move it to the indicated location.
You do not need to physically rotate the cards. Rotation is not a meld or a transfer, and does not trigger karma effects or rules related to those keywords.
Artifacts Card Flow
1: Dig Event Triggered — With a Meld action, a card is melded over a card with its card image in the same slot. This triggers a dig event.
2: Artifact on Display — The Artifact drawn by the Dig Event goes face-up on your Reference Card. It is now on display.
ROSETTA STONE (card A 023, value 2)
- Choose a card type. Draw two 2s from that set. Meld one and transfer the other to an opponent's board.
3: Rotated to Museum — At the start of your next turn, you showcase the Artifact. You may take a free Dogma action with it, and then you must tuck a Museum under it and rotate it next to your Reference Card.
Artifact on Display
At the start of your turn, if you have an Artifact on display, you must showcase it. First, you may take a free Dogma action targeting it. Then, whether or not you took the free Dogma action, you must rotate it into storage at a Museum.
Note: A card on display is never considered part of your board or hand, nor are its icons.
If you choose to take the free Dogma action, add the icons on the Artifact to your totals for the purposes of determining sharing and vulnerability only. That moment is the only time the icons on the Artifact are counted, and they are never considered part of your board. The rest of the Dogma action proceeds like a normal action, except that it doesn't count as one of your two actions for the turn. Echo effects are not executed as part of the action.
Whether or not you chose to take a free Dogma action, you then tuck a Museum card from the supply area under the Artifact, and rotate the Museum and your Artifact into an area next to your Reference Card. If there are no available Museums, instead rotate the Artifact into your hand.
After you rotate your Artifact into a Museum, if there are no available Museums in the supply area, you must resolve a Museum Check. The single player (if there is one) with the most Artifacts in Museums claims one of those Museums as an achievement. The current player then returns all players' Artifacts that were in Museums in the order of their choosing, and all vacant Museums are placed back in the supply area.
Museums
Instead of Special Achievements, Artifacts of History includes five Museum cards. During setup, they are placed in the supply area next to the Special Achievements. A Museum is not a Special Achievement, and only counts as an Achievement once it is claimed by a player.
Artifacts in Museums are stored near your board. They are not part of your board or hand, and cannot be activated with a Dogma action.
You may use a Meld action on your turn to meld an Artifact in one of your Museums onto your board. If you do, place the vacant Museum in the supply area.
A card in a Museum is not part of your board or hand and ignores most effects. Its visible icons do not count as part of your board.
Compel Effects
Artifacts contain a special type of demand effect that starts with I COMPEL. A player is vulnerable to compel effects if and only if they would be eligible to share your non-demand effects. Other than this difference, they behave exactly like demand effects. When it is time to execute a compel effect, you read it aloud to each vulnerable opponent in clockwise order, and they perform the instructions.
In many cases, an opponent will be forced to execute the instructions of a compel effect and then share in other non-demand effects on an Artifact card. In a 4+ player game, a distant player may separately Parley to avoid being vulnerable to a compel and to share in non-demand effects.
Remember that to obtain a free Draw action as a sharing bonus, a non-demand effect must be shared. Compel effects are considered to be demand effects for all purposes.
Battleship Yamato
The Battleship Yamato is an unusual looking card in the Artifacts 8 deck. It has value 11 while it is on a board. It has no icons and no dogma effects, and cannot be chosen with a Dogma action.
BATTLESHIP YAMATO (card, value 11): No Dogma Effects.
Figures in the Sand
Figures in the Sand brings individual innovators into the mix. They aren't technologies or ideas to be exploited, instead, they change the very rules of the game! Each figure, instead of dogma effects, has karma effects which are active at all times.
Updates from 3rd Edition
The Figures set has been completely overhauled, with the removal of Inspire effects entirely and cutting Echo effects from Figures cards. Karma effects are now the focus. Each Figure now has at least one Figures icon, which allows you to Auspice to alter a Dogma action's featured icon.
Drawing Figures
There are two situations that cause Figures cards to be drawn.
- When you take a Dogma action and would receive a free Draw action for sharing, draw a Figure instead of a base card.
- When you take an Achieve action and claim a Standard Achievement, each opponent draws a Figure in clockwise order from you.
In either case, the player draws a Figures card of value equal to their highest top card. If the Figures deck of that age is empty, they draw a base card instead.
Figures: Dogma Action
Since Figures do not have dogma effects, they cannot be selected with a Dogma action. If a card would cause a Figure to be self-executed or super-executed, nothing happens.
Auspice
When you select a card for a Dogma action, check its featured icon. If you have a top Figure with that icon, you may choose to Auspice. If you do, use the Figures icon in place of the featured icon when determining sharing eligibility and demand vulnerability.
Karma Effects
Instead of dogma effects, each Figure has one or more karma effects. They are always active while the Figure is a top card. There are four types: "When," "Each," "Decree," and "Would," which are described below.
Remember, any time some portions of an effect are not possible, do as much of the effect as you can, and ignore what you cannot do.
Karma Chains
Importantly, karma effects do not chain or trigger off of themselves or other karma effects.
"Would" and "When" karmas don't trigger during "Would" and "When" karma effect resolutions.
"Each" karmas always look individually at the basic game state, not the game state as changed by other "Each" karmas.
In the rare case that multiple "Would" karmas are triggered by the same game event, the current player decides which karma occurs and ignores the others.
Effects that instruct you to do something to "all cards" in a location or satisfying a condition affect one card at a time, continuing until no such cards remain. Consider each card only once. If a karma prevents it from moving, or moves it such that it would be considered again, ignore the card.
"When" Karma Effects
"When" karma effects begin with "When you meld this card…" Follow the instructions immediately when the Figure is melded, whether during a Meld action or for any other reason.
ALEXANDER THE GREAT (card F 017, value 2)
- When you meld this card, score all opponents' top figures.
- If you would take a Dogma action, first draw and score a 2. If it isn't a 2, score Alexander the Great, instead.
Example: You meld Alexander the Great due to a dogma effect, and immediately execute his "When" karma effect, scoring opponents' top Figures.
"Each" Karma Effects
"Each" karma effects begin with "Each", describe something in the game, and then list a modification to each such thing in the game.
SINUHE (card F 014, value 1)
- You may issue a Rivalry Decree with any two figures.
- Each Figures icon on your board provides one additional point towards your score.
Example: While Sinuhe is a top card on your board, your score is increased by 1 for each Figures icon on your board.
"Decree" Karma Effects
"Decree" karma effects allow you to take a Decree action (p 30) with two Figures in your hand instead of three. They also remove the need to match the color of the Decree to one of the Figures in your hand.
NIKOLA TESLA (card F 079, value 8)
- You may issue an Expansion Decree with any two figures.
- If you would meld a card, first score an opponent's top card with neither Lightbulb nor Clock. If the scored card is the highest in your score pile, draw a 9.
Example: While Nikola Tesla is a top Figure on your board, you would only need two Figures in your hand (of any value and color) to issue an Expansion Decree.
"Would" Karma Effects
"Would" karma effects begin with "If you would…" or "If another player would…" and then have a triggering condition and a reaction. Just before that condition occurs, the karma effect interrupts whatever action or portion of an effect was about to happen. If the reaction starts with "instead," cancel the specified original instruction and follow the instructions of the karma effect, instead. If the reaction starts with "first," follow the instructions of the karma effect, and then continue with the original effect or action.
SHEN KUO (card F 030, value 3)
- If you would score a non-figure of a color or splay a color of your cards left, instead splay that color right.
- Each visible card on your board provides an additional point towards your score.
METALWORKING (card B 002, value 1)
- Draw and reveal a 1. If it has Castle, score it and repeat this effect.
Example: You are executing Metalworking, while Shen Kuo is a top Figure on your board. Each time you would score a card during the execution of Metalworking, you would instead splay that card's color right on your board, and leave the card in your hand.
HOMER (card F 015, value 1)
- If you would dogma a card of a color, first draw and tuck a 2, then return your top card of the drawn card's color if it is different.
- If you would junk or return a Figure from your hand, instead tuck it.
Example: Homer is a top Figure on your board. You take a Decree action, which requires you to junk all the cards in your hand. Each Figure in your hand that would have been junked is tucked on your board, instead. The Decree action then continues.
Note: Figures that trigger from actions will trigger from free actions as well, such as the free Dogma action from promoting a Forecast card or for an Artifact on display, or the free Draw action from sharing. Remember that free actions are not your "First" or "Second" action. If you enhance or alter a Dogma action by Endorsing or Auspicing, Figures that trigger off a Dogma action still take effect.
Decree Action
Instead of Special Achievements, Figures in the Sand includes five Decree cards, one for each color. During setup, place the Decrees in the supply area next to the Special Achievements. A Decree is not a Special Achievement, and only counts as an Achievement if it is claimed by a player.
You may take a Decree action if you have Figures of three different values in your hand. To do so, junk your entire hand (including both Figures and non-Figures). Then, choose a Decree matching the color of one of the Figures you junked.
- If it is in another player's Achievement pile, return it to the supply area, next to the Special Achievements. Do not activate its effect.
- If it is in the supply area, first activate its effect and then claim it as an Achievement.
- If it is already in your possession, activate the effect.
Decrees are very powerful! Using them effectively is key to victory.
Many Figures have a "Decree" karma effect that give extra flexibility for issuing a Decree. They allow you to ignore both the color and age restrictions above.
Decree Example
You have four cards in your hand, including three Figures of different values (one of which is yellow). You take a Decree action to issue an Expansion Decree, which is still in the supply area. You junk your entire hand, splay up your purple cards, and then claim Expansion to your Achievements.
EXPANSION (Decree card)
- Splay any one of your colors up.
Fade
At the end of any action (on any player's turn), if you have more than one top Figure you must fade the excess. Fading happens before checking for end of action Special Achievements and checking for Achievement Victory.
To fade a Figure, score it. You must continue fading Figures one by one until you have only one top Figure. You choose which Figures to fade.
If you meld a card on top of a Figure, the Figure card becomes a part of the pile of that color, continuing to contribute icons and bonuses to your board just like any other card. Figures that are partially visible due to splaying do not count for fading.
Age 0 Cards
The Figures in the Sand expansion includes fifteen Age 0 cards for the base set. There is one Age 11 card that introduces these cards to the game. When this happens, shuffle the Age 0 cards and place them face down as an Age 0 deck besides the other decks. Except at that time, the cards are not part of the game in any way. Do not look at them!
Note: If the Age 0 deck has been introduced to a game, 0 becomes a valid value to choose in addition to 1-11 for dogma effects that let you choose a value, and Figures counts as a standard icon type.
Cards used in the examples
SUN TZU (card F 016, value 2) SUNSHU AO (card F 004, value 1) JOHANNES KEPLER (card F 043, value 4)
PASSWORD (card U 017, value 2)
- Draw and reveal a 2. You may safeguard another card from your hand of the color of the drawn card. If you do, score the drawn card. Otherwise, return all cards from your hand except the drawn card.
The Unseen
The Unseen is a brand new expansion, premiering in Innovation Ultimate. Its cards are innovations from the shadowy corners of history. Including The Unseen in a game of Innovation does not introduce much in the way of additional rules complexity, which makes it a great choice for a first expansion to try out.
Updates from 3rd Edition
The Unseen cards were not visible in the 3rd Edition printing. This error has been corrected!
Drawing Unseen
When you would draw your first card during a turn (your turn, or another player's turn), if it would be a Base card, draw an Unseen card of the same value instead. If the Unseen deck of that age is empty, draw a base card as you would have originally.
Example: With their first action of the turn, your opponent takes a Draw action. They draw an Unseen 1. With their second, they activate The Wheel ("Draw two 1s"), which you are eligible to share. You draw an Unseen 1 and a Base 1, and then your opponent draws two Base 1s, and then another Base 1 for sharing.
Safe / Secrets
The Unseen adds a new zone to your Reference Card called your Safe. The keyword safeguard lets you store cards for future achievement there. These cards in your Safe (called secrets) are tucked face-down under the bottom edge of your Reference Card. Other players cannot look at their fronts, and neither can you! You may keep track of the order cards come into a Safe, which can prove useful.
As with your Forecast when playing with Echoes of the Past, your Safe has a limit. That limit depends on your best current splay. If you have no splayed colors, your Safe limit is five cards. If you have any color splayed left, your limit is four, any splayed right, three, any splayed up, two, and any splayed aslant, one.
If you would safeguard a card but your Safe is already at or above your limit, instead, nothing happens – the card stays where it is. If your limit changes and you have too many cards in your Safe, leave them there.
| BEST SPLAY | SAFE LIMIT |
|---|---|
| NONE | 5 |
| LEFT | 4 |
| RIGHT | 3 |
| UP | 2 |
| ASLANT | 1 |
Achieving a Secret
You may use an Achieve action to achieve a secret in your Safe as long as you meet the normal requirements to do so. They are not "available achievements" for the purposes of effects, and other players cannot claim them (including a teammate if playing with teams).
BURIED TREASURE (card U 050, value 5)
- Choose an odd value. Transfer all cards of that value from all score piles to the available achievements. If you transfer at least four cards, draw and safeguard a card of that value, and score three available standard achievements.
Example: Buried Treasure instructs you to draw and safeguard a card. You have four secrets in your Safe, and one of your colors is splayed right, making your Safe's limit three. Since you are at or above your limit, you draw the card but do not safeguard it - it remains in your hand. The secrets in your Safe remain there.
Credits
GAME DESIGN: Carl Chudyk
GAME DEVELOPMENT: Chris Cieslik
ARTWORK & GRAPHIC DESIGN: Robert Simmons, Alanna Cervenak, Sarah Farooqi, Kairo Binda, Cara Judd
ASMADI PLAYTESTING: Joe Kim, Chris Cieslik
DIGITAL ADAPTATIONS/PLAYTESTING HELP: Micah Stairs, Collin Spencer (BoardGameArena), Wolfgang Leyrer (Yucata)
Also, thanks to everyone over the past 15 years who has played this game in its various prototype and finished forms. Special thanks to those who have loved this game enough to answer questions on various games forums across the Internet, teach it to their friends, and generally spread the word about it!
©2025 Asmadi Games