Limit
Limit Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Glossary
The rulebook and player aids use a set of pictograms. Their meanings:
- Financial crisis, Military crisis, Environmental crisis — the three types of global crisis
- Money, World Bank, Disruption, Social unrest, Pollution, Excess pollution
- Population, Population level, Standard of living
- Highest social class, Median social class, Lowest social class
- Play a card, Pass, Permanent effect, Instant effect, Draw, Hand
- Nation (a single target nation), All nations
- Alliance, Break an alliance, Buy from marketplace, Sell to marketplace
- £ boxes (the game's unlimited token reserve), Give, Your choice of production
- Industrial resources production, Industrial resource
- Military resources production, Military resource
- Renewable resources production, Renewable resource
- Fossil resource, Territory, Shortage
- Demographic shift
Throughout this transcription, these pictograms are written out as plain words (e.g. "renewable resources" instead of the resource icon, "standard of living" instead of the icon) to keep the text readable — the manual itself uses pictograms throughout.
Author's Intention
Twenty years ago, I came across the famous Meadows Report, The Limits to Growth. I also discovered the World3 model and its 375 variants, which underpin the scenarios in the report. As a physics student, I was fascinated by the richness of the model and hit by a striking reality: constant growth in a finite world is impossible.
Various physical systems reflect this reality: an overflowing jar, an exploding bomb, an invasion of parasites... All growth reaches a saturation point when it gets to the limit of its environment. And the study of physics leads to an important supplementary precision: the quicker the rate of growth, the faster you reach that saturation point. While I was discovering these principles, industry continued its race for production, politicians were advocating growth for our happiness, and we all bought new cellphones.
Why is this not taught in grade school? Why is it that the conclusions from the Meadows Report are not talked about in banks and start-ups? What do we do with the time we have left?
In your hands you hold my reaction to this problem: a boardgame. Limit is a sandbox game with simplified interactions from the World3 model (production causes pollution, education raises living standards, etc.) and others that had to be added, such as the global marketplace and social and military interactions. In Limit, you choose which political doctrine you want to apply. It could be dictatorship, reasonable, expansionist, consumerist. The game reacts to your policies and together you follow a common future for the planet, good or bad—but for who?
Limit is a reduced, and highly simplified, simulation of the World3 model. It is not intended to be true at all points and in all regards; it should be tested and challenged. Although we worked hard to ensure that the in-game effects are as fair as possible, you may not necessarily agree with a certain card or a certain rule. In which case: change it.
Most importantly, discuss the games you play and compare them to reality. Replay and experiment, and make different political choices. It is about time that these ideas, which are already 50 years old, finally found their way into society. That is the goal of the game.
— Alexandre Poyé
Source note: Meadows, D. H., Meadows, D. L., Randers, J., et Behrens, W. W. (1972). The Limits to Growth: A Report for the Club of Rome's Project on the Predicament of Mankind. New York, NY: Universe Books. See also: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World3.
Goal of the Game
Limit is a competitive game of global evolution that takes place between the years 1850 and 2060—from the start of the industrial revolution to a near future—in our world system, constrained by limited planetary resources.
You are the head of a nation. Each of your political decisions will not only have an influence on your own population and your resource production, but also the global balance of power with other nations. You will suffer environmental, financial, and military crises. Will you prioritize sustainability or seek to dominate others? Will you lead your country to your chosen ideal, or will you adapt to the evolving situation? The choice is yours.
Each player begins with identical starting conditions. You are not playing as real nations, but, depending on your decisions, there may well be similarities between the nation you create and an existing country.
You play 7 rounds, called generations, after which you calculate your points. However, the game can end before the 7th round, if you and your opponents trigger at least 4 global crises. The nation with the highest score wins the game.
How to play a generation
A generation is played in 3 phases:
- The Political phase, when you make decisions.
- The Social phase, when your population reacts to those decisions.
- The International phase, when global crises may occur.
The way a generation unfolds often depends on your population's standard of living.
A note about scoring
The score you end up with at the end of the game is representative of your nation's durability, power, and negative impact on the world. It is framed within a contemporary, Western viewpoint. It could have been done differently, and it is the only aspect of the game with any form of morality—everything else is completely free of moral judgment. This is discussed in greater detail under End of the Game.
Components
- 1 marketplace board
- 6 nation boards (front/back: the two sides differ only in design, choose the one you prefer the look of)
- 6 player aids
- 9 storage boxes. Before your first game, assemble the boxes and add the components to them as shown in the manual. After each game, put them away in the same manner.
International box
Contains elements to be shared by all nations:
- 1 green renewable resources price cube, 1 blue industrial resources price cube, 1 red military resources price cube
- 3 renewable resources stock level 10s markers, 3 industrial resources stock level 10s markers, 3 military resources stock level 10s markers (each front/back: 0/1, 2/3, 4/5)
- 1 black fossil resource price cube
- 5 fossil resource tokens
- 6 pollution tokens
- 1 leadership tile
- 6 disruption tokens
- 1 territory token
- 1 alliance card
- 1 demilitarization tile
- 7 generation tiles (front: current generation, back: past generation)
- 12 crisis tiles: 4 financial, 4 military, 4 environmental
- 1 colonization reserve tile
- 1 pollution reserve card and 1 disruption reserve card
Nation box x6
Each box contains the elements for one nation:
- 3 decks of politics cards: 12 society cards, 12 military and economy cards, 13 production cards
- 3 pollution tokens, 2 disruption tokens
- 3 renewable resources stock level 10s markers (front/back: 0/1, 2/3, 4/5), 10 fossil resources tokens, 6 territory tokens
- 3 industrial resources stock level 10s markers (front/back: 0/1, 2/3, 4/5), 5 demographic shift tiles, 5 social class cylinders
- 3 military resources stock level 10s markers (front/back: 0/1, 2/3, 4/5), 1 social unrest cube, 1 population cylinder
- 3 production plant cubes, 1 military alliance token and 1 economic alliance token (negotiation side is the black icon, agreement side is the white icon)
- 1 step tracker
- Important: the star box contains the elements for solo mode — 8 event cards and 1 star nation card
- Bill tokens: 3 of value 1, 3 of value 2, 3 of value 5, 3 of value 10, 3 of value 20
£ boxes
These boxes contain the elements you will use in a game if you exceed the limits. The number of tokens in the £ boxes is meant to be unlimited — if you run out, keep a record of what you add to the game.
- 2 £ boxes
- 6 bill tokens of value 20, 12 bill tokens of value 50
- 9 disruption tokens, 6 disruption tokens of value 5 (used as a value-5 disruption marker)
- 21 excess pollution tokens, 9 fossil resource tokens
Setup
Marketplace board and shared elements
Place the marketplace board in the center of the table and take out the components from the International box.
- Place the renewable resources, industrial resources, and military resources stock level 10s markers on their (0) side at the 3 value of the marketplace stock level indicator. Place the other resources stock level 10s markers near the marketplace board.
- Place 3 fossil resource tokens in the fossil resources stock.
- Place the green cube on the 3rd position of the renewable resource price chart.
- Place the blue, red, and black cubes on the corresponding resource price charts, in the 4th position.
- Place the 7 generation tiles above the board in chronological order, current generation side up.
- Place the 12 crisis tiles near the generation tiles.
- Place the disruption reserve card, the pollution reserve card, and the colonization reserve tile near the marketplace board.
- Place the 6 pollution tokens on the pollution reserve card.
- Place the 6 disruption tokens on the disruption reserve card.
- Place 2 fossil resource tokens and 1 territory token on the colonization reserve tile.
- Place the leadership tile next to the marketplace board.
- Place the £ boxes within easy reach. Use these boxes to store tokens you discard over the course of the game.
- If you are playing the Alliance step (see Alliance (optional)), place the demilitarization tile directly next to the alliance card and put both of them next to the marketplace board.
Price of resources. The positions of the resources price cubes show the buy and sell prices of the corresponding resources. The price goes up when you buy resources (move the cube up one position to the right), and goes down when you sell resources (move the cube down one position to the left). This is the marketplace law of supply and demand. For more detail, see Transactions.
Resources stock on the marketplace and nations boards. The quantity of a resource in stock on the marketplace board and the nation boards is shown by the resource stock level 10s markers on the stock level indicators. Example: if you have 23 renewable resources, 36 military resources, and 8 industrial resources, and you manage to get more than 59 resources of the same type, combine multiple stock level 10s markers.
Pollution reserve. If you need more pollution tokens and there are not enough on the pollution reserve card, use the excess pollution tokens from the £ box.
Disruption reserve. If you need more disruption tokens and there are not enough on the disruption reserve card, take any extra disruption tokens from the £ box.
Nation board
Each player: Choose 1 of the 6 nations and receive the board and the matching nation box, and a player aid. Note that each nation has a different shape to differentiate them. Shapes are on each nation board, card backs, and alliance tokens.
- If you are playing the alliance step (see Alliance (optional)), place your 2 alliance tokens next to your nation board. If not, remove them from the game. The step is optional. You are not advised to play it in games with only 2 or 3 nations, or in your first game.
On your nation board:
- Place your green renewable resources production plant cube on the 2nd position of the renewable resources production level indicator.
- Place your blue industrial resources production plant cube on the 1st position of the industrial resources production level indicator.
- Place your red military resources production plant cube on the 1st position of the military resources production level indicator.
- Place the population cylinder on the 2nd position of the population level indicator.
Levels. Your production and your population go up or down in "levels". Moving the position of the production plant cubes or the population cylinder means increasing or decreasing this level. So, when you have a population of 10, increasing the population by 1 means moving up to 20 population, and decreasing the population by 1 means moving down to 5 population.
- Place the renewable resources stock level 10s marker on value 2 of the personal stock level indicator, (0) side up.
- Place the industrial resources stock level 10s marker on value 1 of the personal stock level indicator, (0) side up.
- Place the military resources stock level 10s marker on value 0 of the personal stock level indicator, (0) side up.
- Keep the other resource stock level 10s markers near your board.
- Place 8 fossil resource tokens in your personal fossil resource stock.
- Place 5 money next to your nation board.
- Place 5 territory tokens in the territory zone. This represents the size of your territory and limits your maximum production of renewable resources.
You should start the game with a stock of 8 money, 2 renewable resources, 1 industrial resource, 0 military resources, and 5 territory tokens.
Production plant. There are 3 production areas: renewables, industrial, and military. Your nation produces a resource in quantity equal to the value indicated by the position of the production plant cube. This will increase your personal stock level by that value. From the 4th position onwards, industrial and military resources require fossil resources and generate pollution. The renewable resources production plant cube may not go further than the last available territory. You cannot move your renewable, industrial, or military production plant cubes out of their production levels indicators.
Standard of living
Social classes are divided from A to E, each representing 20% of your population. Social class A is the highest and social class E is the lowest.
Each social class has a standard of living, ranging from 1 to 4, indicated by the position of the corresponding cylinder. As the game progresses you may increase or decrease the standard of living of each of the 5 classes by moving the cylinders to the left or the right. You can distribute these increases and decreases among the different classes as you wish.
Important: Higher social classes always increase their standard of living before social classes below them. Lower social classes always decrease their standard of living before social classes above them. In other words, the cylinder of any given social class may never be ahead (further to the right) of the cylinder of a higher social class.
Example: Decreasing the standard of living by 2 means 1 cylinder may be moved 2 positions to the left, or 2 cylinders may each be moved 1 position to the left. Increasing the standard of living by 2 means 1 cylinder may be moved 2 positions to the right, or 2 cylinders may each be moved 1 position to the right.
Each social class line contains 1 demographic shift tile. When a social class marker reaches level 3 for the first time, remove the demographic shift tile from the line and place it in the demographic shift zone, then move the cylinder onto the 3rd position.
Social unrest. The social unrest indicator shows the stability of your nation and your population's capacity to accept change—or reject it. Each time you have to increase social unrest and your social unrest cube is already at the maximum (the farthest right position on the indicator), do not move the cube. Instead take 1 disruption token from the disruption reserve card for each increase you are unable to make. If the cube is at the minimum (the farthest left position on the indicator) and you are required to lower it, there is no effect.
Starting positions for all tokens and markers
Continuing the setup:
- Place the 2 remaining fossil resource tokens on the colonization reserve tile. Place the other bill tokens (a total of 109 money) in the World Bank. Place the 6th territory token on the colonization reserve tile. Place the 3 pollution tokens and the 2 disruption tokens on their respective reserve cards (pollution and disruption) next to the marketplace.
- Place the 5 social class cylinders on the 1st position of the standard of living table.
- Place the 5 demographic shift tiles on the 5 social class lines, covering the 3rd position.
- Place the social unrest cube on the central position of the social unrest indicator.
- Place the step tracker on your player aid.
Decide randomly who will be the starting player. They receive the leadership tile.
Politics cards
Each nation forms 3 decks of cards, differentiated by their backs:
- Society — these cards mainly influence standard of living, social unrest, and the way your population consumes.
- Military and economy — these cards mainly influence your relationship with other nations, the marketplace, and disruption.
- Production — these cards influence plant production and its impact in terms of pollution and fossil resources.
Politics cards relate to the decisions you take over the course of the game in each of these 3 areas.
Note: There is a list of cards on the player aids, and more detail is given at the end of the rules (see Card Descriptions). We recommend you read through them before your first game.
Remove the 4 cards that make up your starting hand: Education, Public Expenditure, Industrialization, and Craftsmanship. These cards have a starting-card symbol on the bottom right.
Also take out the following cards: Market Access, Robotization, and Mass Destruction. These cards feature the financial-crisis, military-crisis, and environmental-crisis symbols on the bottom right. Place them next to your nation board.
Shuffle the remaining 10 society cards and place the deck, face down, next to your nation board. Do the same with the 10 military and economy cards and the 10 production cards, so you have 3 decks.
Politics card layout. Each card shows: the name of the policy; its playing cost; its type (permanent effect or instant effect); its target, if it targets another nation; a flavor quote; its effect; any withdrawal cost; and whether it is a starting card or one placed to one side to unlock later.
Teaching the game (expert summary)
This section is for players who already know the rules.
How do I explain the game? An expert game is usually explained to others by the person who bought it (for which we thank you). You have the responsibility of explaining the rules to your fellow players. This section is designed to help you do just that.
Start by setting up the game, either in a group or beforehand.
Quickly explain the history and goal of the game. Start each nation with 4 money instead of the usual 5.
Start the first round directly at the Decide policy step of the Political phase. Ask everyone to play their cards based on what they want to do. Then explain the way cards are played: 2 by 2 until everyone passes. Encourage your adversaries to trust their instincts and just play, right from their first game.
Each card played offers a simple explanation of one aspect of the game:
- Craftsmanship: using the resources stock level 10s markers.
- Public Expenditure: social unrest indicator.
- Industrialization: production level indicators.
- Education: social classes and the associated standard of living.
The Education and Public Expenditure cards let you demonstrate the population level indicator.
Move on to the Social phase, and play through step by step. At each step, you can go into detail using the player aid and giving context. Remember to explain the concepts of levels and shortages.
Point out that consumption, and demographic and economic growth, are greatly affected by the standard of living of your social class C.
Save an explanation of crises for the end of the second round. When the first round is over, start the second one straight away.
Explain transactions when your opponents receive their Market Access cards.
Explain the difference between the 3 decks of cards for the New Policy step of the Political phase by highlighting the significance of the word "resist" on the military and economy cards that relate to war.
For your first game, do not use the rules for the alliance step.
How to Play
The game is played over a maximum of 7 generations. Each generation, or round, takes place over 3 phases, starting with the nation who has the leadership tile:
- Political phase — you make decisions. As your nation's strategist, you must make the decisions that will shape the future, according to your political vision.
- Social phase — your nation reacts to those decisions. Political decisions come with consequences that impact your population's standard of living, demographics, production, etc.
- International phase — crises arise and alliances are made. You will face crises that affect the entire population of the planet. Making alliances could be an interesting option.
01 Political Phase
During the Political phase you earn and draw cards, manage your hand and play Politics cards in the order of your choice.
The course of this phase may change from one generation to another and may differ by nation. It is determined by the position of the social class A cylinder in the standard of living table on your Nation board. The cylinder may be in position 1, 2, 3, or 4.
Use your player aid to follow the steps by placing your step tracker in the column that corresponds to the position of the cylinder in social class A. When a step has been completed, move the step tracker down to the next step.
The first 3 steps of this phase (Technological advancement, New policy, and Political action capacity) are played simultaneously by all nations. Only the Decide policy step takes place in turn order.
Perform the following steps in this order:
1. Technological Advancement (Simultaneous)
During the setup, put these 3 cards to one side. You will gain access to these cards progressively over the course of the game, according to the standard of living in your Social class A.
At the start of a generation, if your social class cylinder A is in position:
- 1: Nothing happens.
- 2: If you have not done so already, add the Market Access card to your hand.
- 3: If you have not done so already, add the Market Access card and the Robotization card to your hand.
- 4: If you have not done so already, add the Market Access card, the Robotization card, and the Mass Destruction card to your hand.
Note: Once you have received these cards they are always available, even if there is a drop in the standard of living in your social class A.
Remember: At the start of the first generation, your social class cylinder A is at position 1 and you have the 4 starting cards in your hand.
2. New Policy (Simultaneous)
Choose one of the three decks: Society, military and economy, or production. You will draw from the chosen deck and keep one or more new cards to add to your hand, which will give you new choices for this generation.
Attention: the choice of deck will have a significant impact on the policies you may implement, and therefore your strategy.
At the start of a generation, if your social class cylinder A is in position:
- 1: Draw 5 cards, select 1 and add it to your hand.
- 2: Draw 5 cards, select 1 and add it to your hand.
- 3: Draw 5 cards, select 2 and add them to your hand.
- 4: Draw 10 cards, select 2 and add them to your hand.
Place the cards you did not keep on the bottom of their original deck, in the order of your choice. Do not shuffle the deck.
3. Political Action Capacity (Simultaneous)
You must ensure your hand is within the card limit.
At the start of a generation, if your social class cylinder A is in position:
- 1: Your hand can have a maximum of 5 cards.
- 2: Your hand can have a maximum of 6 cards.
- 3: Your hand can have a maximum of 7 cards.
- 4: Your hand can have a maximum of 8 cards.
If you have extra cards, discard whichever you want and place them at the bottom of their respective decks.
Note: the starting cards and the Market Access, Robotization, and Mass Destruction cards may be discarded and placed at the bottom of a deck, as any other cards. They are not put to one side.
At the end of this step in the 1st generation, you should have in your hand the 4 starting cards, plus one card that you chose from one of the 3 decks in the previous step.
4. Decide Policy (In turn order)
Starting with the nation that has the leadership tile and proceeding in turn order, each player takes 1 of the following 3 options:
- Play 2 cards from your hand, one after the other. Pay the costs and apply the effects.
- Play 1 card from your hand. Pay the cost and apply the effect, then pass.
- Pass.
Passing is definitive unless you are the target of a card played by another nation. In that case, at your turn, you may choose from the 3 options above.
Then it is the turn of the nation on your left to pick from the three options mentioned above. This step repeats until all nations decide to pass.
Card details:
- You may not play a Politics card unless you are able to pay its full cost. Attention: cards with a social-unrest cost must be paid without receiving disruption.
- If the cost of a card is money, pay it by placing the money tokens in the World Bank. If the cost involves taking money and there is not enough in the World Bank, you may not play that card.
- Card effects must always be fully realized.
- You do not have to play all the cards you have in your hand.
Instant effect cards. As soon as you play this type of card, apply its effect. When all nations have decided to pass, all the played cards of this type that you played are returned to your hand.
Permanent effect cards. When you play a card of this type, it does not have an immediate effect. Instead, it modifies certain game rules. Once all nations have decided to pass, all the cards of this type that were played remain on the table. Note: the effects of permanent effect cards last until the end of the game with the exception of the Intensive Farming and Policy Planning cards, which may be withdrawn at a cost. Playing these cards frees up space in your hand for the next generation.
Example: On your turn, you decide to play the Public Expenditure and Green Production cards. In order to play Public Expenditure, you must pay 1 money per population, a total of 5 money. Your social unrest decreases by 1. In order to play Green Production, you must decrease production of industrial resources by 1 level. The card effect is not instant, it is a permanent card that you keep in front of you. From now on, for each step with industrial production, you receive 1 less pollution than usual.
02 Social Phase
During the Social phase, your population will consume resources, grow, pay tax, produce wealth, and possibly rebel. You do not have any decisions to make during this phase. It is played by all nations simultaneously.
The course of this phase may change from one generation to another and may be different depending on the nation. It is determined by the position of the social class C cylinder in the standard of living table on your nation board. The cylinder could be in position 1, 2, 3, or 4.
Use your player aid to follow the steps by placing your step tracker in the column that corresponds to the position of social class cylinder C. When a step has been completed, move the step tracker down to the next step. Even if the standard of living of social class C changes over the course of a step, the column on the player aid stays the same as at the start of the Social phase.
The standard of living of social class C is the median level. It is representative of the type of society in which your population resides. A nation can evolve from an agricultural society to pre-industrial, then to industrial, and then to a service society. Each kind of society will have its own characteristics in terms of consumption, birthrate, development, etc.
All steps of the Social phase are carried out simultaneously by all nations. Perform the following steps in this order:
1. Supply (renewable resources)
Your population consumes renewable resources. Regardless of the position of social class C cylinder, you must spend 1 renewable resource per population. You cannot choose not to supply your population. Your renewable resources stock decreases, so move the resource stock level 10s marker down.
If you have less renewable resources in your personal stock than the value of your population, you suffer a shortage of renewable resources: Famine decimates your population. You no longer have enough workers to run some of your factories. Strikes and demonstrations amplify social unrest.
Shortage of renewable resources: Supply the highest population level that you can. For each level of population that is not supplied: decrease your population by 1; decrease any one standard of living (your choice) by 1; increase social unrest by 3. Any remaining renewable resources are retained.
Example: Your population is 20 (6th level on the population indicator) so you should consume 20 renewable resources, but you only have 6. You therefore suffer a shortage of renewable resources. The highest population level you can feed is the 4th (population 5), so you spend 5 renewable resources. Keep 1 renewable resource in your stock. You did not feed 2 population levels, so decrease your population 2 levels and your standard of living 2 levels. You must also increase social unrest by 6: increase your social unrest to the maximum and receive 3 disruption tokens from the disruption reserve.
2. Conserving renewable resources
When you have supplied your population, check your stock of renewable resources. If it is over 10, lose any surplus. Place your renewable resources stock level 10s marker on value 0 with the (1) side up. Otherwise, nothing happens.
Renewable resources do not keep.
3. Consumption of industrial resources
When social class C reaches standard of living 2, your population starts to consume industrial resources. You will need to take steps to satisfy this need.
If social class cylinder C is in position:
- 1: Nothing happens.
- 2: Spend 1 industrial resource per population of the level directly below yours.
- 3: Spend 1 industrial resource per population.
- 4: Spend 1 industrial resource per population of the level directly above yours.
You cannot choose to not satisfy the industrial resource needs of your population. If you do not have sufficient industrial resources in your personal stock, you suffer a shortage of industrial resources.
As the standard of living rises, so does the cost to society, as well as the planet.
Shortage of industrial resources: Pay for the consumption of industrial resources of the highest population level you can. For each population level that does not get to consume: decrease standard of living by 1; increase social unrest by 2. Any remaining industrial resources are retained.
Example: Your social class C is at standard of living level 3 and your population is 10. You should consume 10 industrial resources but you only have 8. You suffer a shortage of industrial resources. The highest level of population that you can satisfy is the 4th (population 5), so you spend 5 industrial resources. For the population level that was not able to consume, decrease standard of living by 1 and increase social unrest by 2.
4. Population growth
Your population increases.
If social class cylinder C is in position:
- 1 or 2: Increase your population by 1 level.
- 3 or 4: Nothing happens.
When the standard of living is at level 1 or 2, resources limit growth. At levels 3 and 4, a demographic shift has occurred and the population is stable.
Example: Your social class cylinder C is on standard of living 2. Increase your population by one level, from 10 to 20.
5. Lower mortality rate
If you have 2 or more demographic shift tokens in the demographic shift zone, increase your population 1 level (see Standard of Living).
Demographic shift happens at the same time as an increase in living standards. It begins with a drop in the infant mortality rate, linked to hygiene and medical advances. As the birth rate is high, the population grows.
6. Lower birth rate
If you have 1 demographic shift token in your demographic shift zone, place it in the £ box. If you have 2 or more, place 2—and only 2—in the £ box.
Demographic shift continues with a reduction in the birth rate, linked to contraception and women's education. The birth rate drops, stabilizing the population.
7. Economic Growth
Your nation develops and your production varies.
If social class C cylinder is in position:
- 1: Increase your renewable resources production 1 level.
- 2: Increase your renewable resources production AND your industrial resources production 1 level each.
- 3: Increase either your industrial resources production OR your military resources production 1 level.
- 4: Decrease either your industrial resources production OR your military resources production 1 level.
Your nation will evolve from an agricultural society to an industrialized society, and eventually to a service society.
Remember: your production of renewable resources may never go further than the last of your territories. If your renewable resources production plant cube is at the same level as your last territory on the right, do not increase the level. Remember: if you are at the maximum (or minimum) on a production level indicator and you are required to increase (or reduce) your level of production, do nothing.
8. Taxation
As societies develop, they produce more wealth. Thanks to taxes, your population will earn you money that you take from the World Bank.
If social class cylinder C is in position:
- 1: Receive 2 money per population.
- 2: Receive 3 money per population.
- 3: Receive 3 money per population.
- 4: Receive 5 money per population.
All possible economic variants can be modeled, for example fiscal fraud, by a limited stock of money in the World Bank. Destroying money removes it from the real economy, rendering it more fragile. So it is not taxation that triggers a crisis, but a limited supply of money.
World Bank empty: If there are not enough money tokens in the World Bank next to the marketplace board, place a financial crisis tile on top of the current generation tile. Then take the money needed to pay the taxes from the £ box. The crisis will be resolved during the International phase.
9. Production
Production time. Your production is done strictly in the following order: renewable resources, then industrial resources, and finally military resources.
Important: you cannot choose to produce less than the levels of your production plants and your fossil resources stock allows.
Renewable resources: Increase the amount of your renewable resources in your stock by the value shown by the position of your renewable resources production plant cube.
Industrial resources: Increase the amount of your industrial resources in your stock by the value shown by the position of your industrial resources production plant cube. Up to the 3rd level you can produce without using fossil resources or polluting. From the 4th level of production (+5) onwards you must lose as much fossil resources from your personal stock and receive the amount of pollution from the pollution reserve card as the number shown by the position of your production plant cube. Place the fossil resources that you lose in the £ box. Place any pollution you receive near your nation board. If there are no more, or not enough, pollution on the pollution reserve card, take excess pollution tokens from the £ box. If you do not have enough fossil resources in your stock, you suffer a shortage of fossil resources.
Military resources: The production of military resources above works in exactly the same way as the production of industrial resources. In case of a shortage of fossil resources, you reduce military resources production.
Shortage of fossil resources: In the event of a fossil resources shortage during production of industrial or military resources, produce that resource at the highest level you can. For each production plant level that did not produce: increase your social unrest by 2; decrease your industrial (or military) production by 1 level.
Each resource type in the game represents a wide range of real-world resources. Renewable resources include water as well as food. Industrial resources include clothing, buildings, transport, leisure, etc. Fossil resources include gasoline but also rare minerals, sand, copper, and tin: anything that is of limited quantity and not renewable in our timeframe. Industrial production uses raw materials rather than renewables and generates pollution. For small-scale production, this use is considered negligible for global stock levels. The pollution generated is small enough to be absorbed by the planet.
Example: Your renewable resources production plant produces 5. Add 5 to the value of your personal stock level indicator, moving from 10 to 15. Your industrial resources production plant produces 10. Add 10 to the value of your personal stock level indicator, moving from 9 to 19. Lose 2 fossil resources and receive 1 pollution. Your military resources production plant should produce 10 but you have no more fossil resources, so you suffer a fossil resources shortage. You can only produce 3. Add 3 to the value of your personal stock level indicator, moving from 18 to 21. Increase your social unrest by 4 and decrease your military production by 2.
10. Public order
Depending on the position of the social unrest cube on your social unrest indicator, there are 3 possible scenarios: Uprising, Growth, or Boom.
Uprising. Your nation has an uprising when your social unrest cube is on either of the two positions on the far right of the social unrest indicator.
If social class cylinder C is in position:
- 1: Spend 1 military resource per population 2 levels lower than your current population.
- 2: Spend 1 military resource per population of the level directly below your current population.
- 3: Lose 2 money per population. Place the money tokens in the £ box.
- 4: Lose 3 money per population. Place the money tokens in the £ box.
If you do not have enough military resources, you suffer a shortage of military resources.
A population in uprising will react differently depending on the type of society you lead. An agricultural society is more likely to respond with violence, whereas a service society is more likely to resort to tax evasion.
Shortage of military resources: Spend military resources on the highest population level you can. For each population level you are unable to spend military resources on, decrease a standard of living of your choice by 1 (see Standard of Living).
Example: Your nation is in Uprising and your social class C is at standard of living 2. You must spend 1 military resource per population on the level 1 below your current population. Your current population is the 5th level (10), so treat it as if it were level 4, and spend 5 military resources. As you only have 4, you suffer a shortage of military resources. The highest level you are able to spend military resources on is the 3rd (3). Spend the 3 military resources (you have 1 left), and decrease a standard of living by 1.
Growth. Your nation is in growth when your social unrest cube is on one of the 7 central positions of the social unrest indicator.
If social class cylinder C is in position:
- 1, 2, or 3: Increase 1 standard of living of your choice by 1 (see Standard of Living).
- 4: Nothing happens.
In a peaceful society, your citizens will "naturally" work to improve their standard of living.
Boom. Your nation is in a boom when your social unrest cube is on 1 of the 2 positions on the farthest left of the social unrest indicator.
If social class cylinder C is in position:
- 1: Increase a standard of living by 1 and receive 5 money from the World Bank.
- 2 or 3: Increase a standard of living by 1 and receive 10 money from the World Bank.
- 4: Receive 10 money from the World Bank.
If there are not enough money tokens in the World Bank on the marketplace board, see World Bank empty above. If there is already a financial crisis tile on the current generation tile, add the necessary money but do not place a second financial crisis tile.
The more confident your population, the more they spend, fueling the chain of growth and investment.
11. Class struggle
Work out the difference in the standard of living between your social class A and your social class E. Advance your social unrest cube that number of positions.
Significant differences between population extremes cause public disorder (strikes, uprising, civil war).
Example: Your social class A is at level 4, your social class E is at level 1. 4-1=3, which is the difference in standard of living of the two social classes. You must move your social unrest cube 3 positions to the right, but this is not possible because your cube is nearly at the end. Move it 1 position and receive 2 disruption tokens.
03 International Phase
In the International phase, crises occur and are resolved, alliances may be made.
The 2 first steps of this phase (Cold War and Global Crises) are played simultaneously by all nations. Only the alliance step takes place in turn order.
Perform the following steps in this order:
1. Cold War (Simultaneous)
Excessive militarization puts a strain on diplomatic relations and encourages other nations to do the same. Escalation leads to global conflict.
If you have more than 15 military resources in your personal stock, you undermine international relations. Receive 1 disruption token from the disruption reserve.
2. Global Crises (Simultaneous)
Global crises are the global consequences of the misuse of power by certain nations, and the lack of cooperation between them, causing the whole planet to suffer dramatic effects.
Crises may be triggered in the following order:
1. Financial Crisis. The financial system in Limit is represented by stock rather than the flow of money. So the issues of inflation or currency devaluation are shown in the same way: the stock of money is empty. If the population and standard of living are stable, new money stock should be enough to avoid future financial crises.
Condition: If there is a financial crisis tile above the current generation tile (if there is not enough money in the World Bank this round), apply the following effects in this order:
- Each nation loses 1 money per population for each financial crisis tile on all generation tiles (current and past).
- Each nation decreases 1 standard of living by 1.
- The richest nation—the one with the most money—receives 2 disruption tokens. In case of a tie, each nation involved receives 1 disruption token.
Attention: a financial crisis may lead to a military crisis.
2. Environmental Crisis. Climate collapse and ecological disasters escalate rapidly after a certain threshold is reached. The situation goes back to normal if you go below that threshold again.
Condition: If, when resolving this step, the pollution reserve is empty, now place an environmental crisis tile on top of the current generation tile and apply the following effects, in this order:
- Each nation decreases production of renewable resources by 1 level for each environmental crisis tile on all generation tiles (current and past).
- Each nation loses 1 territory token. Place the territory token in the £ box.
- The nation(s) with the most pollution and excess pollution decrease population by 1 level, increase social unrest by 3, and decrease the standard of living by 1 from their highest social class, following the standard of living rules (see Standard of Living).
- Each nation that now has a population at least 2 lower than the nation(s) that just reduced its population must increase their population by 1.
Migration has a significant impact on population growth in less populous countries. Attention: an environmental crisis may lead to a military crisis.
3. Military Crisis. Tension between nations is so high that any spark could light the fuse. It is your responsibility to not make matters worse.
Condition: If, when resolving this step, the disruption reserve is empty, now place a military crisis tile above the current generation tile and apply the following effects, in this order:
- Each nation must reduce the standard of living of the social class with the lowest standard of living by 1 for each military crisis tile on any generation tile (current and past).
- Each nation spends 1 military resource per population on the level directly below their population. Shortage of military resources: see Public Order.
- Each nation, if they have one, places 1 disruption token on the disruption reserve card.
- The nation(s) with the most population must decrease their population by 1 level.
Note: there may not be 2 identical crisis tiles on the same generation.
Example: There is a second environmental crisis. Each player decreases renewable resources production by 2 and loses 1 territory token. You have the most pollution, so you decrease your population by 1 level, from 30 to 20, increase your social unrest by 3, and decrease the standard of living of your highest social class by 1 (social class A in the example). Player B has population 10, there is no effect. Player C has population 5, so they increase their population by 1, from 5 to 10.
3. Alliance (optional)
Negotiation is an inherent part of world geopolitics, but it was not mentioned in the Meadows Report (The Limits to Growth) or in the World3 model. This mechanic reflects feedback from playtesting.
This step is optional. We do not advise you to play it in games with only 2 or 3 nations, or in your first game.
During this step you will form alliances with other nations with the use of alliance tokens. There are 2 types of alliance token, relating to the 2 types of alliance: military and economic. These alliances are independent of one another. A nation may form 2 different alliances with separate nations.
Each nation plays once only, in turn order. On your turn, you may take 1 of the following actions:
-
Offer to form an alliance with another nation: your alliance token and the other nation's token must both be negotiation side up. If the other nation refuses, your turn is over. If the other nation accepts, place both of your alliance tokens of the same type in a group in the center of the table next to the alliance card, with the agreement sides up. If you, or the nation you are offering to form an alliance with, are already part of another alliance of this type, all members of any existing alliance(s) must agree before merging or accepting a new ally. If they all agree, group all the alliance tokens of that type for each of the member nations together, with the agreement side up. If not, your offer is refused and there is no effect. To confirm the alliance, 2 money must be paid to the World Bank (either by one nation or shared).
Important: A new alliance, or an alliance that has been modified, may not be altered within the same generation.
-
Leave an existing alliance with one or more nations: take back your alliance token and put it next to your nation board, negotiation side up.
-
Exclude an allied nation from your alliance: this decision must be agreed by all members of the alliance. Return the alliance token to that nation, negotiation side up.
After a leave or exclude action, if there is only 1 alliance token in the center of the table, the nation that owns it takes it back and puts it near their nation board, negotiation side up.
- Do nothing.
Important: Nations whose tokens are placed with the agreement side up are not allowed to offer or accept an alliance of this type.
A nation is part of an alliance from the moment their Alliance token is placed in the center of the table.
When all nations have played, turn all the alliance tokens over to the negotiation side.
Demilitarization. If all nations form part of the same military alliance, demilitarization occurs. Place the demilitarization tile on the alliance card. Demilitarization can only occur once per game.
Each nation with production of military resources equal to or higher than +5 increases their level of production of industrial resources by 1 (unless it is already at the maximum, in which case there is no effect). Then each nation moves their military resources production plant cube down to the lowest level, reduces all their stock of military resources, increases 1 standard of living by 1, decreases their social unrest level by 1, and, if they have any, places up to 2 disruption tokens on the disruption reserve card.
Note: It is possible to leave the military alliance after demilitarization, and to re-start production of military resources.
Example: At the Alliance step, the situation is as follows: nations 1, 2, and 3 are military allies. Nation 1 and nation 4 are economic allies. On their turn: nation 1 offers nation 4 a military alliance, and they accept. All nations are in a military alliance so demilitarization is triggered. Nation 2 offers nation 3 an economic alliance, and they accept. Nation 3 cannot offer an alliance because both of their alliance tokens are agreement side up. They could decide to leave one of the alliances or exclude an allied nation, but decide to do nothing. Nation 4 chooses to do nothing.
Effect of Alliances. Resources and money can only be exchanged in the particular circumstances of each alliance described below.
- Military Alliance. If an allied nation is targeted by a card that may be resisted, that nation may ask the other nations in its military alliance to give them military resources to resist (see War). If an allied nation is about to suffer a shortage of military resources, they may ask the other nations in its military alliance to give them military resources in order to prevent the shortage.
- Economic Alliance. An allied nation may pay for all or part of a card with a money cost instead of another nation in the economic alliance, so that the first nation is able to play it. If an allied nation is about to suffer a shortage of renewable, industrial, or fossil resources, they may ask the other nations in its economic alliance to give them renewable, industrial, or fossil resources in order to prevent the shortage.
Refusing to help an ally. If a nation asks its allies for help and it is refused, they may break the alliance with immediate effect. In that case, all members of the alliance, including the nation that asked for help, each receive 1 disruption token and must take back their alliance token of the type the refusal related to and place it in front of them with the negotiation face up.
4. End of a generation
Turn over the current generation tile to its past generation side, to show that generation has been played. Pass the leadership tile to the nation on your left.
The game is over at the end of a generation, either the 7th, or after 4 crises have taken place. If that has not happened, start a new generation.
End of the Game
You may have managed your nation well so far, but if you came close to the limits, the future may be difficult...
Stress Test
Before you count up your points you must stress test your nation for future generations. To do that, repeat the Supply, Consumption, and Production steps of the Social phase applying the effects of shortages but with no new crises.
Calculating points
Write your score down, or download the scorecard from the publisher's website. Calculate your points by adding your different scores:
a) Gross domestic happiness. Calculate your global standard of living by adding the standards of living from your highest, median, and lowest social classes.
b) Demographic index. Determine your demographic index according to the value at the level of your population cylinder, using the following table:
| Population level | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 50 | 100 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demographic index | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 |
c) Multiply your global standard of living (from a) by your demographic index (from b). Receive this value in points.
Financial strength. Subtract the number of crises that occurred from 5. If the result is negative or 0, money is worth nothing. If the result is positive, receive that number of points for each 10 money you have.
Territory. Receive 5 points for each territory token.
Military power. Receive 1 point for each 3 military resources in your stock.
Historical impact. Subtract 2 points for each pollution or excess pollution token you have. Subtract 1 point for each disruption token you have.
The nation with the highest score wins the game.
Example: Gross domestic happiness — You have a global standard of living of 3+3+2=8 and a demographic index of 4 (your population is 30). Your GDH is 8x4=32 points. Financial strength — There were 4 crises, so the value of currency is 5-4=1. You have 154 money, so your financial strength is worth 154/10x1=15 points. Territory — You have 4 territories, which gives you 4x5=20 points. Military power — You have 4 military resources in your stock, which gives you a military might of 4/3=1 point. Historical impact — You have 5 pollution tokens and 8 disruption tokens, which cause losses of, respectively, 5x2 + 8x1=18 points. Final score: 32+15+20+1-18=50 points.
About the score
We encourage you to discuss what your scores mean in relation to decisions made by the nations involved and the resulting events in the game.
This game tries as much as possible to avoid any moral judgment. It is a tool you can use to experiment freely with particular policies for results that we hope are realistic.
However, establishing a way of counting up points inevitably means making a judgment about the importance of certain moral values. So, in order to avoid this bias, there are various ways to include differing moral axes so as to score in a more balanced manner. If no morals prevail, then we have a certain amorality.
After a few games, you can adjust your scoring method according to what you think is more valuable. For example, if you think that military power is more important, each military resource could be worth 1 point and conversely, if you have a pacifist outlook, military resources could be worth nothing.
Similarly, to calculate your standard of living, you could use (highest + median + lowest) × 3 instead of highest + median + lowest if you have a more communist leaning, or even lowest × 3 if you have an ultraliberal slant.
And you can punish the nations that polluted the planet or destabilized world peace in different ways, by increasing or decreasing the penalty on pollution or disruption tokens.
It is also possible to change the value of financial strength by deciding that money has the same value whatever the state of the world, for example 2 victory points for 10 money. You could also increase or reduce the financial inequalities between nations by adjusting the threshold for points, for example 1 point for 5 money or 10 points for 50 money.
You can also give more or less weight to a nation's resilience by not doing the stress test at all—or by doing it twice.
During the game's development, we always considered Limit to be a playful experience, where counting up points was never the most important aspect. Victory is not as important as what you feel while playing, the experience, and the discussions that take place.
Solo Mode
Solo mode is very similar to the game seen so far. You simulate a game between 2 nations. You play one, the other is played by the game (star nation).
Instead of the alliance step, draw 1 event card, apply its effect, and discard it. If there are no cards in the draw pile, shuffle the discard pile to form a new draw pile.
If you play a card that targets another nation, use the values on the table on the star nation card, referring to the first current generation tile. The star nation has some resources as values (population, standard of living, military resources, industrial resources production), and some resources as tokens (fossil resources, territory tokens, money, disruption tokens, pollution tokens).
| Generation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 2 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 50 |
| Standard of living | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Military resources | 3 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 20 |
| Industrial resources production | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 10 |
Note: Other resources can be ignored as they have no effect in solo mode. Resources as values do not vary over the course of a generation, whatever happens. They are shown on the table (note the number of the current generation). However, resources in the form of physical stock can vary.
Setup
Set up the game for yourself using the International box, the nation box of your choice, and the £ boxes. Complete the setup by taking the solo game elements from the star nation box:
- Place the star nation card in the center of the table.
- Place the following on the star nation card: 5 territory tokens + 8 fossil resources + 40 money.
- Place the following on the colonization reserve tile: 1 territory token and 2 fossil resources.
- Place the following on the pollution reserve card: 3 pollution tokens.
- Place the following on the disruption reserve card: 2 disruption tokens.
- Shuffle the 8 event cards and place them face down in a pile, next to the star nation card.
- Place all the unused elements back in the box.
Add up your score as described under End of the Game (stress test and calculating points). If you have a score of more than 100 victory points, you played a very good game—well done!
Card Descriptions
Transactions
A transaction is when you buy or sell on the marketplace board in the center of the table. Use the Market Access and Speculation cards to make a transaction.
During a transaction, you buy or sell only one type of resource (renewable, industrial, fossil, or military). You decide the quantity, but attention: when buying, the quantity is limited by stock in the marketplace, and when selling, by your personal stock.
The World Bank pays or receives the money from the transaction.
With a sale, you cannot sell more resources than the World Bank is able to pay you for. In that case, do not take from the £ box.
The sell or buy price of a resource is shown by the position of the resource price cube on the track that matches that resource.
- After a sale: move the corresponding resource price cube one position to the left. The price goes down. If the resource price cube is on the farthest left position, it is no longer possible to sell that resource in the marketplace.
- After a buy: move the corresponding resource price cube one position to the right. The price goes up. If the resource price cube is on the farthest right position, it is still possible to buy that resource in the marketplace, but the price does not vary, it is 20 money per resource.
Note: Don't forget to adjust your stock and that of the Marketplace and place any fossil resources that were sold into the fossil resources stock.
The market and international trade are absent from the World3 model, which treats the planet as one single system. During the time period covered by the game, financial markets evolved from mass markets to information markets. To reflect this change, we adjust the amount of market access. With little access, the law of supply and demand is dominant, each sale involving a real volume of resources. Increased access leads to speculative transactions, which serve to artificially modify prices. Information increases these price fluctuations.
Example: You play Market Access and decide to sell 3 military resources. Decrease your stock by 3 and increase the marketplace stock by 3. Receive 9 money from the World Bank and move the military resource price cube down 1 position.
War
Conflict is also absent from the Meadows Report and the World3 model. Cards that feature both are some of the simplest in the game. Board games impose certain restrictions that have to be followed to ensure playability.
Annexation of Territory, Mass Destruction, and Military Operation cards represent military conflict between nations. There is a minimum cost in military resources but the attacking nation can always choose to spend more. When the card is played and the military resources have been spent, the targeted nation may choose whether to resist or not. There are two possible outcomes:
- The targeted nation (the defender) resists. They spend the same military resources as the attacking nation, and the attacking nation does not apply the effect of the card.
- The targeted nation (the defender) does not resist. They do not spend any military resources, and the attacking nation applies the effect of the card.
Note: Only the targeted nation can ask for help from their allies in order to resist.
Society cards
Society cards represent political actions that impact your population. They modify social unrest, standard of living, and the way your nation consumes.
- Public Expenditure (starter card) — Cost: Lose 1 money per population. Effect: Decrease social unrest by 1.
- Education (starter card) — Cost: Lose 1 money per population. Effect: Increase 1 social class of your choice by 1 standard of living, respecting the restraints from Standard of Living.
- Investment Policy — Cost: Lose 2 money per population. Effect: Decrease social unrest by 3.
- Graduate Studies — Cost: Lose 2 money per population. Effect: Increase social class(es) of your choice by 3 standard of living, respecting the restraints from Standard of Living.
- Indoctrination — Cost: Decrease 1 social class of your choice by 1 standard of living, respecting the restraints from Standard of Living. Effect: Decrease social unrest by 2.
- Vegetarianism (permanent effect card) — Cost: Increase social unrest by 2. Effect: During the Supply step of the social phase, treat your population as if it was one level directly below in order to calculate the amount of renewable resources consumed. For example, if population=20 you only consume 10 renewable resources.
- Overconsumption — Cost: Spend 1 industrial resource per population. Effect: Decrease social unrest by 3.
- Sustainable Consumption (permanent effect card) — Cost: Increase social unrest by 2. Effect: During the Consumption step of the social phase, treat your population as if it was 1 level lower in order to calculate the amount of industrial resources consumed. Add this level modification to the rules for the consumption step. For example, if your standard of living is at level 2, you consume industrial resources at the level -2 and not -1.
- Surcharge — Cost: Increase social unrest by 1. Take 10 money from the World Bank and put it in the £ box. Effect: Receive 2 money per population.
- Political Reform — Cost: Lose 10 money. Effect: Choose 1 deck of Politics cards, draw 5 cards and keep 1 in your hand. Replace the others in the corresponding deck in the order of your choice.
- Conscription — Cost: Increase social unrest by 1. Effect: Earn as many military resources as your population as if it was 2 levels lower. For example, if your population = 20 you earn 5 military resources.
- Artificial Intelligence — Cost: Lose 10 money. Effect: Bring 1 card back you played this generation to your hand. It has to be an instant effect card. You may play that card again in this generation.
Production cards
Production cards represent political actions that impact the development of industry and production, as well as the environment.
- Industrialization (starter card) — Cost: Choose a type of production (renewable, industrial, or military) and lose as many money as the value of that production plant cube's level. Effect: Increase the level of the chosen production type by 1.
- Craftsmanship (starter card) — Cost: Lose 1 money. Effect: Earn 2 renewable resources or 2 industrial resources or 2 military resources. This card gives you stock but does not affect your production.
- Robotization (card available when highest social class reaches Standard of living 3) — Cost: Choose a type of production (industrial or military) and lose as many money as the value of that production plant cube's level. Effect: Increase the level of the chosen production type by 2.
- Recycling (permanent effect card) — Cost: Decrease your industrial resources production by 1 level. Effect: When you consume 10 or more industrial resources in one step, take 1 fossil resource from the £ box. This card does not affect transactions. Remember: resources from the £ box are unlimited.
- Green Production (permanent effect card) — Cost: Decrease your industrial resources production by 1 level. Effect: During the Production step of the social phase, when producing industrial resources, receive 1 less pollution than indicated by the position of your industrial resources production cube.
- Policy Planning (permanent effect card) — Cost: Increase social unrest by 2. Effect: Do not action the Economic growth step during the social phase. You may take this card back at any time by increasing social unrest by 2. Replace the card at the bottom of its deck.
- Intensive Farming (permanent effect card) — Cost: Lose as many fossil resources as the value of the renewable resources production plant cube's level. Effect: During the Production step of the social phase, lose 1 fossil resource, receive 1 pollution, and treat your renewable resources production as if it was one level directly higher when calculating the quantity of renewable resources you produce. If renewable resources production is at maximum, produce 100 renewable resources. You may take this card back at any time by reducing your renewable resources production by 1 level. Replace the card at the bottom of its deck. If you are at the minimum renewable resources production, you may take this card back but you do not reduce your production. If you do not have enough fossil resources, you must take this card back before your production starts.
- Extraction — Cost: Lose 5 money and receive 1 pollution. Effect: Take 2 fossil resources from the £ box. Remember: resources from the £ box are unlimited.
- Cleaning the Planet — Cost: Lose 50 money. Other Nations may help you and contribute to the payment even if you are not in an alliance with them. Effect: If you have any, put 1 excess pollution token in the £ box or 1 pollution token on the pollution reserve card, then each other nation (including you) puts 1 excess pollution token in the £ box or 1 pollution token on the pollution reserve card. Excess pollution should always take priority over pollution. If necessary, swap pollution tokens among yourselves so there are never any excess pollution tokens in play until the pollution reserve is empty.
- Urbanization — Cost: Spend 1 industrial resource per population. Effect: Increase social class(es) of your choice by 2 standard of living, respecting the restraints from Standard of Living.
- Offshore Production — Cost: Target a nation. Give that nation the value of the level of their industrial resources production plant cube in money, then take 10 money from the World Bank and put it in the £ box. Effect: Produce with the industrial resources production of the target nation. You earn the industrial resources. If applicable, any fossil resources are lost from your stock, but any pollution are received by the target nation. The targeted Nation cannot oppose Offshore Production.
- Overproduction — Cost: Increase social unrest by 1. Effect: Produce your choice of industrial resources, military resources, or fossil resources. Lose and receive pollution as necessary.
- Soft Power — Cost: Lose 20 money. Effect: Target a nation. Give them up to 2 of your disruption tokens. The targeted Nation cannot oppose Soft power.
Military and economy cards
Military and economy cards represent various policies that impact other nations, particularly relating to the marketplace and military attacks.
- Market Access (card available when highest social class reaches standard of living 2) — Cost: There is no cost to play this card. Effect: Make a transaction (see Transactions).
- Speculation — Cost: Take 5 money from the World Bank and 5 money from your own stock and place them in the £ box. Effect: Move 1 resource price cube of your choice, then make a transaction (see Transactions).
- Stock Exchange (permanent effect card) — Cost: Take 10 money from your own stock and place it in the £ box. Effect: When you play Market Access or Speculation cards you can make 2 transactions instead of 1, on different resources (see Transactions).
- Humanitarian Aid — Cost: Lose 50 money. Other Nations may help you and contribute to the payment even if you are not in an alliance with them. Effect: If you have any, place 1 of your disruption tokens on the disruption reserve card, then each nation (including you) places 1 of their disruption tokens on the disruption reserve card.
- Political Interference — Cost: Take 10 money from the World Bank and place it in the £ box. Effect: Target a nation. Take the amount of money from them equal to the position of their population cylinder. They increase a standard of living of their choice by 1, respecting the restraints from Standard of Living. The targeted nation cannot oppose Political Interference.
- Development of Tourism — Cost: Take 10 money from the World Bank and place it in the £ box. Effect: Target a nation. Note the number of the standard of living of that nation's median social class. Subtract 1 from that number. Multiply that value by 10 and take the corresponding number of money from them. The targeted nation also reduces their social unrest by 2. For example, if your opponent's median social class is 3, take (3-1)x10=20 money from them. The targeted nation cannot oppose Development of Tourism.
- Mass Destruction (card available when highest social class reaches standard of living 4) — Cost of attack: Spend a quantity of military resources of your choice (at least 10), and receive 2 disruption tokens. Effect: If the targeted nation does not resist (see War), they lose 1 territory token, which they place in the £ box. They reduce production of either industrial or military resources (you choose) by 1 level, and they receive 3 pollution from the pollution reserve card. Attention: sometimes the loss of 1 territory token may also cause a loss of 1 renewable resources production, because you may never have more renewable resources production than territory.
- Annexation of Territory — Cost of attack: Spend a quantity of military resources of your choice (at least 10), and receive 2 disruption tokens. Effect: If the targeted nation does not resist (see War), take 1 territory token from them. They must reduce production of either industrial or military resources (you choose) by 1 level. Attention: sometimes the loss of 1 territory token may also cause a loss of 1 renewable resources production, because you may never have more renewable resources production than territory.
- Military Operation — Cost of attack: Spend a quantity of military resources of your choice (at least 3), and receive 1 disruption token. Effect: If the targeted nation does not resist (see War), take a maximum of 2 fossil resources or 5 industrial resources or 5 renewable resources (your choice).
- Colonization — Cost: Spend 5 military resources and receive 2 disruption tokens. Effect: Take 1 territory token and 2 fossil resources from the colonization reserve, if there are any left. When the colonization reserve tile is empty, both that card and the Colonization tile are of no further use.
- Terrorism — Cost: Spend 1 military resource and receive 1 disruption token. Effect: Target a nation, they increase social unrest by 3. The targeted nation cannot resist Terrorism.
- Police Repression — Cost: Spend as many military resources as your population as if it was 2 positions lower, and receive 1 disruption token. Effect: Decrease social unrest by 2.