Neanderthal Rulebook

Table of Contents

A. Summary
B. Components
C. Setup
- C1. The Two Player Game
D. Phase 1, Events & Culture Auction (player order)
E. Phase 2, Hunter Assignment (player order)
F. Phase 3: Negotiations, Attacks, & Gathering
G. Phase 4, Roll for Hunt (least hunter order)
H. Phase 5, Domestic Animals (any order)
- H1. Animal Husbandry (Tribal Only)
I. Phase 6, Portal, Neolexia, & Elder Actions (any order)
J. Game End & Victory
- J1. Lazarus Species
K. Legacy Variants
L. Solitaire Variant "Alien Intervention" (by Jon Manker)
M. 3-Player Co-op Variant "The Brink" (by Jon Manker)
N. Neanderthal Scenario Module (by Jon Manker)
- N1. The Hominids
- N2. Giant Würm
Glossary of Tribesmen Roles

A. Summary

The three players represent the Archaic Man (Player Green), Neanderthal (Player Yellow), and Cro-Magnon (Player Red) species fighting to survive in Europe during the last glacial maximum from 45,000 to 35,000 years ago. You begin the game vocal (i.e. words for speech but not ideas) and with a sexuality (promiscuous, harem, or pair bonding). Your repertoire of orange, black, and white disks represents your vocabulary of social, technical, and nature words. Use them to establish immature Elders or Husbands, or to bid on cultures represented by daughter cards. Regain vocabulary by hunting Ice Age megafauna, which also gives you Babies for the next generation. Your cultural daughters open up mental portals, eventually sparking a cultural revolution converting you to a tribal culture. Historically, by the end of the game all the species died out except the descendants of Cro-Magnon (that's us!).

A1. Neanderthal Sequence of Play (Six Phases per Turn)

Event and Culture Auction (Part D). Reveal a daughter card to begin the turn. This indicates the first player (A2) and the turn's event icons (see player aid), applied top to bottom to all players. Then auction the daughter shown on the bottom (D7).
Hunter Assignment (Part E). All players assign their unassigned tribesmen to hunt biomes (E1), become Elders (E2), or perform courtships (E3).
Negotiations, Attacks, & Gathering (Part F).
- Bribes. As long as one of the negotiators has a Chief, players can bribe others to peacefully withdraw Hunters from contested biomes, including marrying them to their daughters (F1).
- Attack Roll. Players must use their Hunters to attack other Hunters on the same card (F2).
- Gathering species add one Baby for each gathering biome (F3) they occupy.
Roll for Hunt (Part G). All players make hunt rolls, rolling one dice for each of their assigned Hunters. If the number of hits rolled is at least equal to the number of "hit dice" icons, add new Babies (i.e. unassigned tribesmen for the next generation) and/or free dedicated disks of the color indicated into your vocabulary.
- The single-hit-dice icon means each "1" rolled is a hit. The double-hit-dice icon means each "1" or "2" rolled is a hit.
- Hunter Attrition. The frostbite and animal-bite icons show which dice-rolls kill off Hunters, regardless of whether the hunt is successful or not (G0).
- Courting. Successfully courting a foreign mature daughter places a Husband (G1).
- Inventions. Having certain Cards (inventions) allows a die rolling a "3" to be counted as a "1" (G2).
- Contest. On a contested biome, the first to hunt successfully sends all others home empty-handed (G3).
- Predators. After a successful big game hunt, move the Hunters to the closest predator in the row for a second hunt (G4).
- Trophies. Biomes with trophies can be added to your tableau (G5), and aren't replaced, leaving a gap in the row. Biomes with inventions or domesticable animals can be taken into your hand (G6), but are replaced in the row.
- Survivors. Surviving Hunters are returned to your unassigned tribesmen (B0).
Domestic Animals (Part H). Each mature Domestic Animal Card in your tableau gives you the Babies and frees the disks specified.
Elder Actions (Part I). You may perform one action:
- Portal Action (vocal only) adds one portal disk from your vocabulary to your brain map (I1). This can flip your Placard to tribalism.
- Neolexia Action (vocal only) frees one dedicated disk to your vocabulary (I2).
- Elder Action (tribal only) adds one Domestic Animal or Invention Card (as specified) from your hand to your tableau (I3). To perform an Elder Action, you need an Elder of the proper rank (i.e. row on your Placard). You also must dedicate a vocabulary disk of the specified color by placing it on the Domestic Animal or Invention Card.

A2. Player Order — Phases 1 & 2

The leftmost icon in the middle of the turn's daughter card shows the color of the first player, and the color of the next one shows the second player. For the first two phases, the first player performs the phase first, then the second player, and finally the last player.

Council of War. If this turn's card designates you as the first player and you have a rank 4 Elder (Warrior) at the start of the turn, you may designate other players as the first and second player for the entire turn.

A3. Negotiate/Attack Order — Phase 3

Any Hunters remaining on a contested card after negotiations must attack (F2) Hunters of other players. The player with the most black vocabulary disks attacks first. If tied for the most black disks, go in player order (A2).

Attack First. The totem woman allows you to attack first in any contested card. If tied, go in most black disk order.

A4. Hunt Order — Phase 4 Hunt or Court Biomes in This Order

Uncontested rolls. Each player rolls for each of his uncontested courtships and non-predator biomes, in an order of his choice.
Contested rolls. Roll for each contested courtship and non-predator biome, in an order specified by the first player.
Predators. Roll for all predator biomes (G4), in an order specified by the first player. Note: Some Hunters may have been transferred to the predator biome per G4. First Hunter rules apply if multiple Hunter groups are on a predator.

Least Hunter Order. On a contested card, the player with the least number of Hunters there hunts first. If tied, go in player order (A2).
Hunt First. The Totem Woman allows you to hunt first. If tied, go in least hunter order.

Note: The remaining phases (5 & 6) go in any order.

B. Components

54 Tribesmen represent Elders if on a Placard, Husbands if on the husband box of a daughter, and Hunters if anywhere else. There are 18 in each of the player colors (Cro-Magnon = Player Red, Neanderthal = Player Yellow, Archaic = Player Green). You must keep your unassigned tribesmen separate from the common deadpile.
3 Large Tribesmen. Each player has a larger tribesman, used for his Alpha Hunter (E5).
15 Orange Disks represent social words. Use these to raise daughters with social skills and to promote tribesmen into Husbands, Warriors, or Chiefs. Your vocabulary (disks of all 3 colors) help keep your tribe unified and not wandering into chaos.
15 White Disks represent nature words (including the use of bone, antler, and ivory). Use these to raise daughters with nature skills, promote tribesmen into Shamans and Trappers, to invent bone tools, and domesticate animals.
15 Black Disks represent technical words (especially for making and using stone tools). Use these to raise daughters with technical skills, promote tribesmen into Fire Starters and Knappers, attack first, and to invent flint tools.
60 Cards (see the side of the box). There are 21 daughter cards, 18 North Europe biomes, 18 South Europe biomes, and 3 Sexuality Cards.
3 Placards (each player starts with one, see the side of the box). You start on the "vocal" side, depicting the Brain Map. Disks placed on your Brain Map indicate portals between your three brain domains. Tribesmen on the vocal side represent up to 4 kinds of Elders, each with the abilities shown. Flip to the other side if you convert to tribalism, allowing two more Elders.
10 Six-sided dice (10d6). Use for attacks, hunt rolls, and Elder die-off.
1 Player aid.

B1. Biome Type and Climax

The biome icon in the upper right corner of a biome describes the biome type: either (warhead icon) big game hunting, (spear icon) small game trapping, or (club icon) courting/flint collecting.

Climax. The number next to the icon is the climax. The lower the number, the more likely it is to be replaced by global warming or cooling (D1).

B2. Tableau and Hand Management

You will manage a faceup row of cards alongside your Placard called your tableau. Your starting tableau will contain your Placard and a sexuality card. During the game you will add daughters, trophies, domestic animals and inventions.

Hand. Biomes with the hand icon can be taken into your hand per G6. While in your hand they represent unrealized ideas, and so are not in play and their abilities and VP are not activated until played into your tableau as an elder action (I3). Daughter cards you purchase in auction go directly into your tableau (alongside your Placard).
Hand Size. Your hand size is equal to the number of your mature Elders. (Before the advent of literacy, only Elders were able to pass information between generations.)
Hand Size Reckoning. If you acquire a new hand card and your hand is full, you must choose one to discard. If your hand size drops (e.g. you lose an Elder), you must discard hand cards until your hand size is reached.
D or I Cards. Biomes that can be taken into your hand are marked with a purple band and a domestic-animal icon, or a brown band and an invention icon.

B3. Disk Management & Maturity

You are strictly limited to the 5 orange, 5 white, and 5 black disks you start with. You will never gain, trade, change color, or lose any disks. Your disks will always be either free (i.e. in your vocabulary) or dedicated.

Vocabulary. This is the number of disks in your pool. Use your vocabulary for bidding in the culture auction, precondition tools for hunting, and establishing immature Elders, Husbands, and domestic animals. Finally, a large vocabulary promotes social cohesion by preventing chaos.
Portals. These are disks in your brain map. Use your portals for neolexia and as preconditions for Elders of ranks 3, 4, and 5. Portal disks are not freed until you have a certain number, whereupon you convert to tribalism.
Immature Elders and Husbands. A disk dedicated to establish an Elder or Husband is placed under his meeple to indicate he is not yet mature. This disk may be freed by neolexia (I2), hunting (G3), or domestic animals (H1).
Immature Daughters, Cards, and Cards. Disks dedicated to bid on a daughter, to domesticate an animal, or create an invention are placed on the card to indicate it is not yet mature and its abilities are inactive. These disks may be freed by neolexia (I2), hunting (G3), or domestic animals (H1). The card is mature once all the disks are removed.
MPI Disks. If you have harem-holding or promiscuous sexuality, place disks, called MPI disks, on your sexuality card where indicated. These disks are removed from your vocabulary and are not freed unless you change sexuality.

B4. Token Management

You are limited to the 1 Alpha and 18 tribesmen of your color provided. You may use your Alpha as an ordinary Hunter. He has no special abilities unless you have one or more Elders of ranks 3, 4, or 5 (E2).

Alpha-Hunter Swap. During any phase, you may swap your Alpha with an unassigned tribesman, if your Alpha is in the deadpile or permanently assigned as an Elder or Husband.

C. Setup

Events. Separate the daughter cards, and randomly place 10 of them into a shuffled facedown stack. Set aside the remainder for possible use later.
Draw Decks. Separate the North Europe biomes (as stated on the card back), which go into a shuffled facedown deck. Do the same for the South Europe biomes, in a deck just below the North deck.
European Biomes. Reveal the top six cards of the North Europe deck and spread them into a row to the right of the draw deck. Do the same for the South Europe deck. These are the North and South rows.
Starting Placards. Randomly assign each player to a Placard (red, yellow, or green). Place your Placard in front of you on its vocal side (showing the brain) to start your tableau; see the side of the box.
Sexuality Cards. Distribute each of the three double-sided cards with a sexuality icon in the upper right corner randomly to each player. Each player chooses a sexuality by placing this card either facedown or faceup into his tableau.
Starting Tribe. Each player gets the 18 tribesmen and the large tribesman (Alpha) of his color. Place 6 tribesmen below your Placard; these are your unassigned tribesmen. Put another tribesman into the elder spot in the lower left corner (marked with a downward arrow); this is your Fire Starter. Put your Alpha and your remaining tribesmen together with the Alphas and tribesmen of the others into a communal deadpile. It's best to use a small bowl to keep the common deadpile separate from the living tribesmen.
Starting Disks. Start each player with 5 disks of each color. Store these 15 disks next to your Placard. This is called your vocabulary.
- Starting Portal. From your vocabulary, place one disk of the color specified in the portal spot marked with a downward arrow on the brain map.
- Fire Starter. From your vocabulary, place one black disk under your Fire Starter. This indicates he starts immature.
- MPI Disks. From your vocabulary, place the number of disks indicated on your sexuality card (B3).

C1. The Two Player Game

Pick two random cultures, and the cards of the third culture are not used.

First Player. If a player color who is not in the game is assigned to go first, the color of second icon designates which player actually goes first.
Conversion to tribal occurs with 6 instead of 5 portals.

D. Phase 1, Events & Culture Auction (player order)

First Player. Reveal the daughter card and determine the first player per A2.
Events. Apply from top to bottom each of the card's event icons to all players (D1 to D6).
Culture Auction. Vocal players auction the card as a daughter per D7.

D1. Global Cooling and Warming (Sun Icon)

The global cooling icon means to take the top card of the northern Europe deck and, without revealing it, use it as an ice-sheet (i.e. facedown) to replace the lowest climax (B1) card in the north row. The card which has been replaced shifts directly south, replacing the card already there, which is discarded from the game.

Ice-sheets. Consider ice-sheets to be very high climax, so they are not affected by climate change other than "Glacial Melt" (next bullet). If the north is entirely ice during global cooling, shift one ice-sheet directly south (into a gap if any, or displacing the lowest climax southern card if no gaps) to make room for another northern ice-sheet.

$$Example: Global cooling occurs. The existing three cards in the North Row are climax 12, 23 and 27. The climax 12 card is displaced to the south and replaced with a new facedown card drawn from the north deck, representing the growth of a northern ice-sheet. The displaced card shifts south, and replaces the card immediately below.

The global warming icon means to reveal the top card of the southern Europe deck and use it to replace the lowest climax (B1) card in the south row. Shift the replaced card directly north, either into a gap if there is one there, or displacing the card there which goes out of the game. However, if the card already there is an ice-sheet, then instead flip it over to reveal its non-ice side, and discard the shifting card out of the game.

Glacial Melt. After the new card is placed, global warming melts any ice-sheets in southern Europe. Indicate this by flipping these cards faceup.

D2. Würm Glacial (Glacier Icon)

Take another daughter card at random from the unused deck, and without looking at it, place it on the bottom of the game's event deck. This adds one more turn to the game.

D3. Elder Die-Off (Dice-Skull Icon)

Each player rolls a number of dice equal to the number of "dice-skull" icons, and kills off each Elder of the rank rolled, if he has any (A1.6). He consigns the dead Elder to the deadpile, and if it is immature, returns the disk to his vocabulary. If he has no Elder of the affected ranks, there is no effect.

D4. Chaos (Comet Icon)

If the "comet" icon appears, all players remove at least half their unassigned tribesmen, i.e. all the tokens in your pool including your Alpha and foreign Wanderlusters (D6). You also lose exactly one Elder (of your choice, mature or immature) if you have any. Place the removed Elder into the deadpile.

Chaos Immunity. You are safe from chaos if the number of your unassigned tribesmen is less than or equal to your vocabulary (B3). If tribal, you are also safe from chaos if you have a mature Chief in the rank 1 spot. This anti-chaos protection is shown by its own icon.
Fire Starter. If you have a mature Fire Starter in the rank 6 spot, your chaos losses are rounded down instead of up, and you do not lose an Elder.
Sexuality Decision. If you suffer any losses during this chaos event, you may flip your sexuality card to its other side, releasing any MPI disks (B3) that were on it. If the new sexuality requires MPI disks, these must be added or the sexuality change fails. Note: If you change to promiscuous, you are no longer allowed to place Husbands, but Husbands already placed remain married.

$$Example: In a chaos event, Archaic has 3 unassigned tribesmen (including his Alpha), but has only 2 vocabulary. He is vocal, and has the Fire Starter, allowing him to round losses down and ignore the elder loss. He therefore loses one tribesmen to chaos. If he did not have the Fire Starter, he would lose both his tribesmen, leaving only his Alpha. Because of his tribesman loss, he may flip his sexuality.

D5. Blizzard (Blizzard Icon)

The "blizzard" icon means that each player discards his choice of dependents he cannot support. You need two unassigned tribesmen (including Alphas and Foreign Wanderlusters) to support each dependent.

Dependents. Each Elder, unmarried daughter, and domestic animal in your tableau is a Dependent. Unsupported Elders go to the deadpile, while unsupported daughters and domestic animals are discarded out of the game. Husbands are not Dependents.
Immature Dependents. Immature Elders, Daughters, and Domestic animals are also Dependents. If lost, this frees their disks which are returned to your vocabulary (B3).

$$Example: In a blizzard, you have 5 unassigned tribesmen, 2 unmarried daughters, 2 Elders, and 1 domestic animal. Your 5 tribesmen can only support 2 Dependents and you choose to lose the animal and both the Elders to preserve the daughters.

D6. Wanderlust (Eye-Wing Icon)

A Wanderluster is a tribesman of one player's color controlled by another player. If you lost the most tribesmen during the chaos event, take one tribesman of your color from the deadpile for each "eye-wing" icon on the event. If tied in the number of tribesmen lost, use player order (A2) to see whose tribesmen wander. You resurrect these tribesmen, called Wanderlusters, to another player's unassigned tribesmen. In a three-player game, you choose which player or players they wander to. Once there, these Wanderlusters are in his service, yet retain your player color. He treats them exactly like his own tribesmen with the following exceptions:

Chaperone. Every Wanderluster assigned to a biome must have at least one non-wanderlust Hunter as a Chaperone. To avoid confusion, place the Chaperone on top of one of the Wanderluster(s).
Wanderlusters cannot become Alphas, Elders, or Husbands.
Victory. Each Wanderluster counts toward victory according to their color, not toward in whose camp they reside.

$$Example: Neanderthal has only three unassigned tribesmen left, and two of them are red Wanderlusters. He suffers chaos (or some other tribesman loss), and must lose two tribesmen. He chooses both of the red tribesmen to die, sent to the common deadpile. (What is being simulated here is assimilation, not that all foreigners are literally the first to die).

D7. Culture Auction (Vocal Only)

After the card's events are resolved, all vocal players may bid for it. Tribal players may not bid (because their tribe's culture has been fixed by their verbal taboos and traditions).

Exception: Tribal players with harem-holding sexuality are treated as vocal during culture auctions, but their bid counts half (without rounding). If a card is not bid upon, discard it out of the game.

Bid Media. You may only use disks in your vocabulary of the color(s) shown in the middle of the card for bidding. All of these disks are of equal value.
Bid Procedure. Any vocal player can initiate the bid by announcing a number of disks and any other vocal player can match this or increase it. When bidding, you do not need to specify the disk color. When nobody is willing to go higher, the high bidder wins and the losers get their bids returned.
Minimum Bid. The minimum bid is one disk.
Ties. If the bid is tied, resolve in player order (A2). The caring woman also breaks ties.
Winner. If you win the auction, add the card as a daughter card to your tableau oriented 180°, so her side reads upright. Place the disks you bid on her, which indicates that she is inactive due to immaturity (B3).

$$Example: The generous woman is up for bid, who requires black or orange bid media. Players Red and Yellow each bid one orange disk, and neither is willing to bid higher. Since Player Yellow is the first player, he wins the bid and places the daughter into his tableau with one orange disk on her. Player Red gets his bid returned to his vocabulary.

$$Example: A daughter with a bid media of orange is up for bid. But Archaic is the only vocal player with an orange disk, so he can buy her for one orange (the minimum bid). This disk is placed on the daughter card in his tableau. Suppose another player is tribal harem-holding and also can bid. If he is the first player, he can bid two orange disks (each count as half) and win the bid. If he is instead the last in player order, he can bid three disks and win the bid.

E. Phase 2, Hunter Assignment (player order)

In player order (A2), each player assigns his unassigned tribesmen by placing it on a card, either a biome (hunting), Placard (promotion), or a daughter card (courting). You may assign tribesmen in any order.

Assignment Limits. You may place as many tribesmen on a biome card as you wish, or leave some unassigned. You are limited to one tribesman per elder slot or daughter card. You may add tribesmen on multiple cards.

E1. Hunting Biomes

To hunt one of the biomes that are revealed, place Hunters directly on it.

Hunting Precondition Tools. You may not place any Hunters on a card unless you have the one or two precondition tools indicated in the hunt results row of the biome card. For instance, to hunt the steppe bison, you need to have a black disk, representing technical jargon. This disk must be part of your vocabulary (B3), and is not expended by the hunt. If you hunt multiple cards with preconditions, you need enough disks for all of them.
Note: Placing Hunters on the card entitles you to make a hunt roll in Phase 4, even if you no longer have the precondition tools in your vocabulary by then.

E2. Elders and Promotion to Elder

Promote an unassigned tribesman to Elder status placing its token on one of the Elder ranks on the Placard. This is a permanent assignment (E4), and his listed benefits are effective as soon as he matures (B3). There are 6 Elder ranks: 1 = Chief (tribal only), 2 = Shaman (tribal only), 3 = Knapper, 4 = Warrior, 5 = Trapper, and 6 = Fire Starter.

Promotion Costs. Unless you have free promotions, you must set a vocabulary disk under the tribesman, of a color the same as the color of the Elder rank icon (orange, white, or black). This disk indicates he is immature. Once mature (i.e. his disk is freed per B3), all his listed abilities are activated.
Limits. You are limited to one Elder per rank, and Elders cannot change ranks.
Phase 1 (Event) Elder Benefits. The Chief protects your tribe from chaos. The Warrior allows you to designate another player to be the first player, if you are the assigned first player. During chaos (D4), the Fire Starter prevents elder loss and allows you to round losses down instead of up.
Phase 2 (Hunter Assignment) Elder Benefits. The Fire Starter gives you cost-free elder promotions.
Phase 3 (Negotiations/Attacks/Gathering) Elder Benefits. The Chief allows your Hunters to negotiate (F1). The Warrior allows War Party formation (F2).
Phase 4 (Hunting) Elder Benefits. The Fire Starter protects your Hunters from frostbite. The Knapper, Warrior, and Trapper give your Alpha special powers (E5).
Phase 6 (Elder Action) Elder Benefits. The Chief lets you perform your elder action without cost. The Shaman, Knapper, or Trapper can perform an elder action (I3).
General Elder Benefits. All tribal Elders increase hand size (B2).
Precondition Disks. If Vocal, you may not promote an Elder of ranks 3, 4, or 5 unless you have a portal (I1) of each of the 3 colors in the specified domain. This is similar to precondition tools (E1), except the required disks are portals instead of vocabulary.

$$Example: You have a black venus portal and two Shaman portals (white and orange). This gives you portals of all three colors in your social domain, satisfying the preconditions for a Warrior (rank 4). During Phase 2, you promote a Hunter into a Warrior by putting its figure on top of an orange disk where indicated in the upper left corner of the Placard. The orange disk indicates the Elder is immature.

E3. Courtship

Each player may assign an unassigned tribesman as a Suitor, to a maximum of one per daughter, placed somewhere on the daughter he is wooing. A Suitor of any sexuality can court any daughter (mature or immature, foreign or domestic, married or single). A Suitor may become a Husband in Phase 4.

Important: (Lolita Rule) Since courting always fails if the daughter is immature, you should not assign a Suitor to an immature daughter unless you think the daughter will mature by the time the courting roll is made.

Benefits. If your Suitor becomes an immature Husband, he has a limited attack ability per F2. If he subsequently matures (i.e. his disk is freed per B3), he makes his wife into a non-dependent, defends her from suitors, and is worth VP at the game's end. If you are pair bonding, a Husband (mature or immature) is required to unlock your daughter's benefits.

E4. Permanent Assignment

Placing unassigned tribesmen on the Placard (E2) or the husband box on daughters (E3) is a permanent assignment. This means the tribesmen are not counted as unassigned tribesmen (e.g. during chaos) and are not returned to your unassigned tribesmen during Phase 4.

Sultan's Exception. If harem-holding, during Phase 2 you can shift your Husbands in your tableau among your unmarried mature daughters. This can be useful to challenge suitors.
Almost Extinct Exception. If you begin this phase with no unassigned tribesmen, you may reassign one or two Elders or Husbands as unassigned tribesmen. If all your tribesmen are dead, you become a Lazarus Species (J1).

E5. The Alpha

Your Alpha is treated as any other Hunter, unless it acquires special powers by use of Elders (E2). There are three special powers, big game, or small game or club. Your Alpha may have one, two, or all three of these powers.

Creation. You start with your Alpha in the deadpile. If you have an Elder of ranks 3, 4, or 5, you may create an Alpha with an Alpha-Hunter swap (B4).
Big Game. If you have a Knapper, your Alpha on a "big game" biome may consider its hunt roll to be a hit, without actually rolling for it.
Small Game. If you have a Trapper, your Alpha on a "small game" biome may consider its hunt roll to be a hit, without actually rolling for it.
Club. If you have a Warrior, during Phase 3 attack rolls, your Hunters colocated with your Alpha form War Parties (F2). Furthermore, your Alpha on a "club" biome (including daughters) may consider its hunt roll to be a hit, without actually rolling for it. Note that for the Attack Roll (F2), the Alpha must roll like any other Hunter.

Important: You must decide to use a special power before making the hunt roll. If you choose not to use it, then he rolls a dice like every other Hunter.

Victory Points. If he has any special powers enabled, your Alpha is worth VP at the game's end (J0). However, to earn the Alpha VP he must be an unassigned tribesman, not an Elder or Husband.

$$Example: You have a black, white, and orange portal in your "nature domain" on your brain map, and have promoted a Trapper. As long as this Elder is mature and hasn't died, he allows your Alpha to automatically roll a hit in small game hunting.

F. Phase 3: Negotiations, Attacks, & Gathering

F1. Negotiations (Disallowed Between Vocals)

If you either have tribesmen on the same card as an opponent, or have tribesmen on an opponent's tableau card, you may open negotiations with him. One or both negotiating parties must be tribal with a rank 1 Chief. A tribal player can make a proposal for one party to leave a card peacefully: demand, exchange, or offer hand cards or mature tableau cards (including unmarried daughters), offer or demand unmarried mature daughters for marriage (allowing a Hunter to be promoted into a mature Husband in a foreign tableau with an auto-success courtship roll (G1)), or make non-binding agreements about plays on future turns.

Leaving. Your Hunters may leave during this phase only if all other players with tribesmen present allow you to leave. If your Hunter leaves, either return him to your unassigned tribesmen (so he can't do anything this turn), or else marry him to a foreign bride (G1), if agreed to by the player holding the unmarried daughter. Note: In a trade, hand cards must be exchanged with hand cards and tableau cards with tableau cards.
Divorce. Your Husbands may leave daughters during negotiations, joining your unassigned tribesmen.
Oook Rule. During negotiations, a vocal player should say nothing other than "yes" (oook!) or "no" (ook ook).

F2. Attack Rolls

Your Hunters must attack other Hunters on the same card by rolling a number of dice equal to the number of your tribesmen present. Each player is allowed one round of attack rolls per card. Except for War Parties (see below), each will kill a tribesman of the victim's choice.

Most Flint Order. Attacks are performed in most black disks order (A3). That is, the player with the most black vocabulary disks rolls first and applies damage, then the next attacker, etc. You may distribute your kills among multiple defenders.
War Party. If you have a Warrior (E2), the group of Hunters that includes your Alpha is called a War Party. If you have an invention marked as a weapon, all your Hunters form War Parties. All the Hunters in a War Party, including the Alpha, achieve a hit if they roll a "1" or "2".
Jealous Husbands. A Husband can attack and be attacked by Suitors of other players. In combat between a Husband and a Suitor (E3), a mature Husband is considered a War Party while an immature Husband can attack but not as a War Party.

$$Example: Neanderthal is promiscuous and has a Warrior. He sends his Alpha to court a married Cro-Magnon daughter. The Husband has more black disks and attacks first, but fails to roll a "1" or "2". The Alpha is a War Party, and he rolls a "2" and succeeds in killing the Husband. Since the Alpha is on a club biome, in the next phase he is automatically successful in his "hunt" roll and leaves a Baby per G1.

F3. Gathering

If you are a gathering culture (i.e. you are either promiscuous or have wives/daughters with the "gathering" ability), you collect 1 Baby (A1.4) for each gathering biome you occupy with one or more Hunters. These biomes are marked with the basket icon.

$$Example: After combat, you have Hunters remaining on the tyrant sea bear (a "gathering biome"). Because you are promiscuous (so are spending more time collecting nuts than in child care), you gain one Baby in gathering. This Baby is obtained even if the sea bear later kills off all your Hunters.

G. Phase 4, Roll for Hunt (least hunter order)

Tribesmen (large or small) on a biome represent Hunters. When it is your turn to hunt (A4), make a hunt roll by rolling a number of dice equal to the number of Hunters you control on the card. If your roll shows a number of hits greater than or equal to the number of hit dice shown, then it is successfully hunted (see G3 for results). If the hit dice is the single-icon, each "1" is one hit. If it's the double-icon, each "1" or "2" is one hit. After hunting, return all of your surviving Hunters to your unassigned tribesman pool.

Biome Resolution Order. For which cards are hunted first, see A4.
Mandatory Hunt. On your turn to hunt, all your assigned Hunters must make a hunt roll (exception, see G7). If an Alpha has his powers activated (E5), you may consider his roll to be a hit without actually rolling for him.
Modified Roll. The hunt roll may be modified (G2).
Ferocity Attrition. Hunting and courting is dangerous. If the biome shows a bloody dice, any Hunter rolling that result has been killed (eaten by a prey animal confused about the hunter-prey relationship).
Frostbite Attrition. Hunting is dangerous. If the biome depicts a frostbite dice, any Hunter rolling that result has been killed by the elements. If you have a Fire Starter (D4), all your Hunters are safe from frostbite losses.

G1. Courtship Rolls

Each player with a surviving Suitor on a daughter card may use him to make a courtship roll. Each player can make only one courtship roll per daughter card.

Lolita Auto-Fail. If the daughter is immature, the courtship roll cannot be rolled.
Courtship Roll Procedure. Roll 1d6. The roll is successful if a "5" or "6" is rolled. If a "1" is rolled, the Suitor is killed (as indicated by the bloody dice).
Auto-Success Courtship. Unless the daughter is a Lolita, a Warrior Alpha always succeeds and a Suitor courting an uncontested and unmarried daughter in his own tableau always succeeds without rolling. If the courtship is contested (next bullet), a Suitor in his own tableau must compete for her hand like everyone else, with no "home court" advantage.
Multiple Suitors. If there are multiple Suitors, each rolls for success in most vocabulary order, counting only the vocabulary colors shown on the bid media in the center of the daughter card. (This represents a verbal wooing.) If tied, the daughter's father decides between them. The first successful courtship roll must install a Husband if it is possible to do so (next bullet), and sends all other Suitors home unrequited.

$$Example: The singing woman has just matured in the Neanderthal's tableau, and all three players assign a Suitor to court her. The singing woman's bid media is orange. Assuming they all survive the attack phase, the Cro-Magnon has the most orange disks and rolls first. He fails to roll a "5" or "6", and Neanderthal has the next most orange disks. His courtship roll automatically succeeds, because he has a daughter in his tableau (the Singing Woman herself) who has the "poetry" ability to auto-succeed courtship rolls. Neanderthal however, is promiscuous, so even though his roll succeeds, he cannot place a Husband. Because the courtship is in his own tableau, there is no rape baby and the only effect of his successful courtship is to send the suitor of Archaic Man home unrequited. If instead Neanderthal was monogamous, he would not have the auto-success courtship, because Singing Woman's abilities are deactivated if she is unmarried. If he rolls a "5" or "6", he must install an immature Husband, assuming he has an orange immaturity disk.

Successful Courtship. Only one Husband (mature or immature) is allowed per daughter. A successful Suitor returns the former Husband (if any) to the unassigned tribesmen of whichever player owns the tableau, and places the Suitor in the husband box as the new Husband. This is a permanent assignment (E4). If you cannot place the Husband, either because you lack a required orange disk for an immature Husband or because the Suitor is promiscuous (next 2 bullets), the Suitor returns to his unassigned pile and the husband box is left vacant.
Husband Maturity. If in a foreign tableau, your new Husband starts mature and immediately gains the daughter's abilities and portal actions (I2), with her "father" sharing these benefits. If in your own tableau, your new Husband starts immature, and you must place an orange disk under his token. Except for a limited attack ability (F2), his abilities are not activated until he matures (B3).
Promiscuous Courting. If your successful Suitor in a foreign tableau is promiscuous, he cannot become a Husband and instead you add a Wanderluster of your color from the deadpile to the victim's unassigned tribesmen, representing your genetic legacy. Your Suitor returns home, leaving his consort behind as a single mom.
Alpha Husband. If your Alpha becomes a Husband, see B4.

$$Example (fog of love): An Archaic daughter married to a Neanderthal is being courted by Archaic and Cro-Magnon. All three players unsuccessfully roll for combat in Phase 3. Then, in vocabulary order they each make a courtship roll in Phase 4. Archaic goes first, and rolls a "6", a success, which immediately ends the contest. He becomes the new Husband and the Neanderthal ex-husband goes into Archaic's unassigned tribesmen (as a Wanderluster). The unsuccessful Cro-Magnon suitor sadly goes home to red's unassigned tribesmen.

G2. Hunt Modifications Due to Inventions

If you have an Invention card in your tableau with a Phase 4 dice modifier for the biome type (B1) being hunted, then dice showing "3" become "1" instead.

$$Example: You have played and matured the "cordage snare" in your tableau. This has a phase 4 dice modifier with the "javelin-point" icon, indicating that all 3's rolled in small game hunts become 1's instead.

G3. Results of a Successful Hunt

If your hunt roll is successful, add the indicated number of Babies (taken from the deadpile, including your Alpha if he is dead) to your unassigned tribesmen. You must add these tribesmen if you have any available (B3). You also may free the number and color disks specified per B3. A successful hunt (i.e. generates Babies or trophies) returns your Hunters to your unassigned tribesman pool, unless there are predators (G4).

Note: Unless you claim it as a trophy (G5) or take it into your hand (G6), the hunted card remains in the row.

Limits. You may gain the benefits of a hunted card only once per turn, even if you roll multiple successes. For instance, if you roll three 1's when hunting rabbits you get one Baby, not three.
Competitive Hunt. If a card is contested, see A4 for the hunt sequence. The first player to succeed in the hunt roll gains the benefits, and all the other players go home unsuccessful (i.e. winner-take-all).
Attaining Authority. If the disks freed by a successful hunt are used to mature an Elder, the powers of that Elder can be applied to the next hunt, but not retroactively to this hunt.

$$Example: Three Cro-Magnon and two Archaics are hunting wolves. The Archaics, with fewer Hunters, go first and are successful with one hit. The Cro-Magnon automatically go home in disgrace (with no attrition). They cannot attempt to domesticate the wolves, for instance.

G4. Predator Attack

If your hunt roll succeeds in a big game hunt, you attract predators, i.e. cards with a red icon in the upper right corner. To find out which predator attacks, look at all the cards in the same row to see which one is the closest to the biome being hunted. Do not consider a predator on the other side of an ice-sheet in the row, i.e. predators can hop "gaps" but not ice. If two are equally close, both attack, starting with the lower climax.

Procedure. If the big game hunt is successful, move the surviving Hunters onto the card of the attacking predator, and make a second hunt roll. This hunt is resolved the same way as the first, and so may cause additional casualties or if successful may give the Hunters more resources or Babies.
Predator Piracy. If your Hunters do not get at least one hit on the second hunt roll against an attacking predator, then the predator steals the big game you successfully hunted, so that you lose all the Babies, disks, trophies, and domestic animals you gained in the hunt. Note: Some predators may be taken as trophies (G5), while others may be domesticated (G6).

$$Example: In South Europe, you have 7 Hunters on the horse, and 1 Hunter (actually a Gatherer) on the scimitar cat. You opponent has 19 Hunters on the elephant. Both big game hunts succeed, which puts all your Hunters and all his Hunters on the scimitar cat, joining the one tribesman already there. Your 8 Hunters hunt first. If you roll at least one "1", the cat does not steal your horse. If you roll two "1"s, you successfully hunt the cat, and your opponent must go home without rolling for the cat, and are therefore not at risk for losing their elephant. Regardless of the success of the hunt or the piracy, if you roll quadruples you take the cat card as a trophy.

G5. Taking Trophy Cards into Your Tableau

The antler icon indicates a card that can be added to your tableau as a trophy. If it has two dots, it counts as two trophies. If it has 2, 3, or 4 blank dice on it, your hunt roll must include doubles, triples or quadruples to optionally add it to your tableau. Place it in your tableau rotated so the antlers are at the top.

To claim a trophy, neither surviving Hunters nor a successful hunt are necessary. For instance, if the trophy indicates doubles, a double six is an unsuccessful hunt yet claims the card as a trophy.

Extinct. The removed card has been over-hunted and is not replaced in the row (G7). Unless filled by shifting biomes in climate change, this gap remains the whole game, so that there is one less biome for the rest of the game.

Remember: The Alpha is assumed to have rolled a "1", which can cause "snake eyes", "triple eyes", or "quadruple eyes" to have been rolled. Also weapons can cause 3's to be 1's.

$$Example: Five fallow deer-hunters roll (five dice showing a mix including triples). This is a hunting failure because the deer requires 2 hits, but nevertheless takes the card as a trophy because of the triples. If they have an atlatl allowing "3" to be converted into "1", then the hunt is a success as well as a trophy.

G6. Taking Domestic Animal or Invention Cards into Your Hand

If you have at least one mature Elder, the hand icon indicates a biome that can be taken into your hand. If it has 2, 3, or 4 blank dice shown in the blue field, your hunt roll must include doubles, triples or quadruples respectively to take it into your hand.

Doubles, Triples, Etc. If you roll the doubles, triples, etc., you may take the card into your hand even if your hunt roll was unsuccessful.
Full Hand. Cards can be taken into your hand even if your hand is full. But then you must immediately discard down to your hand size (B2).
Annihilation. If a hunt (including predator attack) leaves no surviving Hunters, you cannot take any cards into your hand.

$$Example: A Trapper Alpha and two Hunters are hunting honey bees. Both Hunters roll 1's, and, since this is a small game hunt, the Alpha automatically rolls a "1". The hunt is a success, and furthermore the triples allow them to take the bees into their hand. They may later use an Elder Action (I3) to domesticate it. The honey bee card is replaced per the biodiversity rule (G7).

G7. The Biodiversity Rule

If a card is taken as a trophy (G5), it is not replaced so the row now has one less card with a gap. If a card is taken into your hand (G6), replace it in the same position with the top card drawn from the draw deck of that row, so that the number of cards in the row is unchanged. If this introduces a predator, it is inactive until next turn.

Opportunistic Hunt. If a card is taken into your hand but the hunt was unsuccessful, Hunters of other tribes that were on this card may attempt to hunt the replacement card if they have the proper precondition tools (E2).

G8. Hunt Example

Cro-Magnon (tribal) tries to hunt the horse biome in southern Europe. This big game animal requires two hits to be successful. He is unopposed.

Phase 2 (Hunter Assignment). By dedicating 1 black disk, he promotes a tribesmen to the 3rd rank (Knapper). Then he places his remaining 4 unassigned tribesmen, plus his Alpha, onto the horse card as shown.
Phase 4 (Hunt Roll). Let's assume that Cro-Magnon first makes a successful hunt somewhere allowing him to liberate the black disk under his Knapper, making it mature. This is necessary to enable the Alpha powers for his Alpha Hunter. He rolls 4d6 for his five horse-hunters. Since only his Alpha succeeds and he needs 2 successes, the hunt fails.
Weapon. If he has atlatl spear-throwing technology, a "3" acts as a "1", resulting in hunt success. He gains 3 Babies and an orange and a black disk. Since he did not roll quadruples, he doesn't take the horse into his hand.
Predators. Since the hunt was successful, the closest predator, the gray wolves, attack. The wolves are a "club" biome, and the Alpha is no longer an automatic success since there is no rank 5 Elder. All five Hunters roll their dice. Two Hunters are killed off by wolves, and the rest die from frostbite. Because everyone dies, Cro-Magnon loses the Babies and disks gained from the horse hunt, and furthermore cannot take the wolves into his hand for domestication.
Fire Starter. If Cro-Magnon had a mature rank 6 Elder (Fire Starter), all three Hunters that rolled the frostbite result are saved from frostbite. Since no hits were scored, the wolves still steal the horse carcass, so no Babies or disks are gained. However, the triples rolled with surviving Hunters means that the wolf card is taken into his hand for possible domestication later.

H. Phase 5, Domestic Animals (any order)

H1. Animal Husbandry (Tribal Only)

If you have a mature Domestic Animal Card (B2) in your tableau, collect the Babies and free the disks indicated.

I. Phase 6, Portal, Neolexia, & Elder Actions (any order)

In this phase, choose one action, either Portal, Neolexia, or Elder. Once you convert to tribalism, you can no longer perform either Portal or Neolexia actions!

I1. Portal Action (Vocals Only)

Each daughter card depicts one or two portals, i.e. disks representing metaphoric words that bridge two brain domains. If vocal, for your action you may perform a portal action using a mature daughter either in your tableau or with whom you are married. This action allows you to take one disk of a specified color from your vocabulary and add it to a specified portal spot on your brain map. This portal disk simulates how metaphoric vocabulary can broach adjacent brain domains.

Domains and Domain Colors. Each brain map has three brain domains, for technical (black), nature (white), and social (orange) knowledge.
Portal Spots. The three portal spots are the venus, Shaman, and bison spots. Each portal spot can hold two portals, one of each of the two colors shown. For instance, the venus portal can hold at most one orange and one black disk.
Portal Use. Portals can be used for precondition disks (E2). They can't be used for bidding, precondition tools, or victory. They can be freed only by converting to tribalism.
Conversion. A brain map with 5 portal disks instantly becomes lingually fluid (all 6 portals in the solitaire or 2-player game). Flip it to its tribal side, and add the portal disks to your vocabulary. Transfer Elders (as well as any disks under them) to the equivalent rank on the tribal side.

$$Example: You have both venus portals (orange and black), and one portal (white) on your Shaman. Because your social domain contains disks of all three colors, you may promote a Warrior.

I2. Neolexia Action (Vocals Only)

Neolexia (i.e. creating new concepts) is an action that frees one disk matching the color of a portal you have in your brain. It can be from a daughter, Husband, or Elder. The freed disk goes to your vocabulary.

Exogamy Bonus. If you are married to a foreign daughter, you may perform neolexia using one of the colors already installed on a previous turn in the brain map of the player who owns the daughter. If he is tribal, you have access to all three colors.

$$Example: Cro-Magnon has both Shaman portals (white & orange), and an immature daughter with a white and orange disk on her. On phase 6, he performs neolexia and frees the orange disk. During the next phase 6, he does the same with the white disk, which matures the daughter.

I3. Elder Actions (Tribal Only)

Each player may perform one of the following Elder Actions if he has an Elder in the specified rank and dedicates the vocabulary disk indicated (unless you are allowed cost-free elder actions). An Elder is not expended by performing an action.

Shaman Domestication (rank 2): Play one Domestic Animal card in your hand into your tableau, rotated 180° so the purple text reads upright. Place a white disk on the domestic animal to indicate it is immature.
Knapper Tool-Making (rank 3): Play one Invention card in your hand into your tableau, rotated 180°. Place a black disk on the invention to indicate it is immature.
Trapper Tool-Making (rank 5): Play one Invention card in your hand into your tableau, rotated 180°. Place a white disk on the invention to indicate it is immature.

Tip: It is not necessary to convert to tribalism to win. Even to make the attempt invests a lot of vocabulary, and its possible you will never get access to the right portals for conversion. The advantages of tribalism is that it enables VP in domestics and inventions, and also solidifies your culture against chaos.

J. Game End & Victory

The game ends at the end of the last turn of the event deck, or when Europe is completely ice-filled (no huntable cards remaining). Count up Victory Points (VP) as listed on your Sexuality Card, which may be modified by certain daughters. All tribesmen of your color count toward your victory, even if in the camp of another player. The Alpha counts for Alpha victory only if empowered per E5. Daughters, Elders, Husbands, domestic animals, and inventions count VP only if mature. If tied for victory, you each share the victory.

"Selfish Gene" Promiscuous Victory. Elders, Husbands, daughters, and vocabulary count as 1 VP each. Each unassigned tribesman counts as 2 VP. Trophies and inventions count as 3 VP. The Alpha and domestic animals count as 4 VP.
"Family Values" Pair Bonding Victory. Each unassigned tribesman, daughter (married or unmarried), and vocabulary counts as 1 VP. Each Elder or trophy counts as 2 VP. The Alpha, Husbands, and inventions count as 3 VP. Domestic animals count as 4 VP.
"Big Man" Harem Victory. Each unassigned tribesman, Elder, Husband, and vocabulary counts as 1 VP. Each daughter counts as 2 VP. The Alpha and inventions count as 3 VP. Trophies and domestic animals count as 4 VP.

$$Example: At the end of the game, you are Pair Bonding. In your camp you have 9 unassigned tribesmen, an empowered Alpha, 1 trophy, 2 daughters, and 12 vocabulary disks for 28 VP. You have 1 Wanderluster and 1 Husband in another player's camp, for 4 VP. Your total score is 32 VP.

J1. Lazarus Species

If all your tribesmen are dead, you can no longer hunt or accept Wanderluster, but can still bid in auctions and count victory.

Note: Before becoming Lazarus you may reassign permanently assigned tribesmen, see E4.

K. Legacy Variants

K1. Combination Neanderthal-Greenland Game

You can start a Greenland game using the tribesmen leftover at the end of a Neanderthal game. If so, the VPs you attained in Neanderthal are recorded and added to your final Greenland score to determine the overall winner. Setup is per Part C (Greenland), except:

Starting Tribesmen And Disks. You are limited to the tribesmen and disks you had at the end of Neanderthal. You may allocate your tribesmen either as unassigned, polytheist Elders, or (Tunit only) Colonists. This may give you more or fewer than indicated in Part C.
Elders. Exchange your Neanderthal Placard for the Greenland one. Elders transfer to the equivalent rank.
Domestic Animals. Exchange each of your Neanderthal domestic animals with a Greenland domestic animal chosen at random from the appropriate biomes. The Norse choose from the unused Norse animals.
Inventions. Exchange each of your Neanderthal inventions with a Greenland invention chosen at random from the appropriate biomes.
Daughters. Exchange each two of your Neanderthal daughters with a Greenland daughter chosen at random from your side.
Vocal. If you ended the Neanderthal game as a vocal, you are not allowed to start the Greenland game with any Elders, and are not allowed promotion for the first turn.
Ice. For each ice-sheet in North or South Europe, start one of the biomes in North or South Greenland respectively on its cold side.

K2. Solitaire or Cooperative Game

In this variant, either one player plays as all three species, or three players play the three cultures as usual. In either case, the players are equally victorious only if at least two species survive with one or more domestic animals (mature or immature) at the end of the game.

Setup and Game Length. Setup is per Part C.
Negotiation. Each turn during Phase 3, one free disk or mature Domestic Animal card from one species can be swapped with one free disk or mature card from another species, as long as at least one species is tribal. No swapping of population, daughter cards, or Invention cards. The Negotiation Rule (F1) remains in effect.
Mandatory Trophies. In this variant, taking a trophy per G5 is no longer optional if you roll doubles, etc.

K3. Introductory Solitaire Single Species Variant (courtesy the Spurge)

In this solitaire scenario your chosen species attempts to survive an isolationist "inbreeding" period and thereafter return to interbreeding. During this period, one other species will have limited access to your species, during periods of chaos, and possibly to your species' daughters. Setup and gameplay are the same for a 3-player game with these exceptions:

Tribesmen Setup. 8 unassigned tribesmen, 1 immature Fire Starter (Rank 6 on species card).
Event Setup. 8 Event/daughter cards. After the end of the 8th turn, you may choose to add 1 to 3 event cards.
Placard Flip to Tribal. 5 Vocabulary disks required for tribal (species card flip), this replaces the last bullet of I1.
5 Daughter Limit. During Phase 1, you automatically gain the daughter of the event, up to a limit of 5 daughters. Once at the limit, you can replace one unmarried daughter for the new one on the event.
Chaos/Wanderlust. If your species does not suffer unassigned tribesman loss (do not count elder loss), then add another player's (foreign) color tribesman into your unassigned pool (1 or 2 as designated). All Wanderlusters lost from your species go to the deadpile.
Foreign Suitors. During Phase 2 the other species assigns a Suitor to each of your mature daughters not married to a foreigner. During Phase 3, your species is the first player, and this Suitor attacks as a War Party.
Victory. If at the end of the last turn, you have (1) attained 50+ points, (2) gotten to tribal, (3) obtained 4+ trophies, and (4) all your daughters are married.

Note: This game, greatly simplified and much shorter than the multi-player game, is intended to teach you the game mechanisms. Playing time: 0.5 to 1.5 hours.

L. Solitaire Variant "Alien Intervention" (by Jon Manker)

This variant speculates that the cultural revolution of 40-50 thousand years ago may have been ignited by alien artifacts instead of the sapiens-neanderthalensis interchange. These artifacts are scattered across Europe, and your goal is to interact with as many as possible. This signals alien monitors that humans are ready for uplift.

L1. Setup

Setup is per (C) except in C0.3 form a matrix of 4 rows with 5 upside down cards in each row. These represent undiscovered biomes. Use north row cards for the top 2 rows and south row cards for the bottom 2 rows.

a. Home Biome. Choose a species to play. Your starting position, called your home biome, is shown above. Your home biome and the cards adjacent to your home biome are revealed. These represent neighborhoods you are familiar with. Note: In Variants L and M, adjacent means sharing a border, so diagonal cards are not adjacent.

b. Unassigned Tribesmen. In (C0.6) place your unassigned tribesmen on your home biome to start.

c. Difficulty. Choose how many alien artifacts you need to activate in order to succeed: from 2 for an easy game, to 5 for a very hard game.

Important: Treat facedown cards as undiscovered, they do not represent an ice cap.

L2. Sequence of Play

a. Events (L3) & Culture Auction (L4). b. Hunter Movement, Assignment, Discovery (L5). c. Roll For Hunt (L6). d. Domestic Animals, per standard game (H). e. Portal, Neolexia, & Elder Actions, per standard game (I).

Choose how many alien artefacts you need to activate in order to succeed. 2 for an easy game, 5 for a very hard game.

L3. Events

This is per (D) except the biomes effects are expanded to account for the presence of Hunters, artifacts, and unexplored biomes. In general, Hunters follow a moving biome, while artifacts remain rooted to a matrix position.

a. Ice Caps. When placing an ice cap during global cooling, rotate it 90 degrees (landscape orientation) to distinguish it from an undiscovered card.

b. Biome movement. An undiscovered biome is treated in events just as a discovered one. Because in these variants there are several rows, a card shifting downward can push a cascade of cards downward. Similar with upward.

$$Example: During global warming, a discovered card moves north into an undiscovered card. Per D1, the undiscovered card is replaced with the discovered one. Had the card moved into a discovered card it would have pushed it upwards and this card in turn would have followed the movement rules. If a card moves above the top row or below the bottom row it is discarded. Had the card moved into an ice cap, the moving card would be discarded and the ice cap would have melted, rotated back 90 degrees, and become an undiscovered biome.

c. Determining Climax. Consult setup diagram (L1) to see which cards are in the north row, and which are in the south. Consider only the climax of revealed cards, and ignore the event if no cards are revealed. If you run out of one of the card types (north/south) draw from the other deck instead.

d. Tribesmen on Shifting Cards. If a biome is shifted north or south, tribesmen follow the shifted card. If a biome is replaced, tribesmen inhabit the new card.

e. Tribesmen on Removed Biomes. Move the tribesmen to any biome that is adjacent (L1a) and revealed.

f. Artifacts on Shifting Cards. Unlike tribesmen, artifacts are locked to the grid and never move as cards shift. If artifacts are frozen in ice, they become inaccessible until the biome thaws again.

g. Chaos. All Hunters on the map count as unassigned tribesmen for the purpose of determining chaos.

h. Wanderlust. This kills one Hunter.

L4. Culture Auction

To get a daughter you have to pay disks equal to the amount of daughters you already have +1. The following daughters have modified abilities:

a. Fashion Woman. Do not lose a Hunter during wanderlust (L3h). b. Totem Woman. After making a hunt roll (G), you may reroll one dice. c. Caring Woman. Pay 1 disk less for auctioned daughters. d. Singing Woman. You can use any color disk when paying for a daughter.

L5. Hunter Movement & Discovery

First move Hunters on the map, then reveal each inverted biome adjacent (L1a) to your Hunters. Each Hunter has 4 movement options:

a. Remain as is. b. Move to an adjacent revealed biome. c. Migrate to a biome where you have Hunters (including those who have just moved). d. Assignment as a Husband or Elder.

L6. Roll for Hunt

Make a mandatory hunt roll (G) for each biome where you have Hunters.

a. Alien Artifact Discovery. The first time you hunt each biome place a disk on the biome. If the hunt is successful and at least one dice face shows a "6", then you additionally discover an artifact! Indicate this artifact by placing an orange disk. Any other result, place a black disk to indicate the site is busted and will never have an alien artifact on it.

b. Alien Artifact Activation & End of Game. If you successfully hunt 2 biomes with orange disks (or more if you are playing at a higher difficulty) during the same turn, the game ends at the end of that turn. You have activated a signal to the aliens who will travel to Earth and induce uplift. But this encounter is a different story.

c. Predators attack after successful big game hunts if they are on any revealed card that is adjacent (L1a). In the coop game (M), note that predator hunt rolls cannot assimilate a second husband.

d. Trophies. If a biome is taken as trophy, relocate any Hunters to a biome that is adjacent (L1a) and revealed. However, an artifact on the card remains in the gap, and is inaccessible until the gap is filled.

e. Nomads. All assignments are permanent (E4). Therefore do not return Hunters to unassigned tribesmen after a hunt, and place all Babies on the biome where they are born.

L7. Victory

Win if you trigger the artifacts per L6b before the game ends per (J). You can score per (J) to see how well you succeeded.

M. 3-Player Co-op Variant "The Brink" (by Jon Manker)

Genomic data collected and analysed by the ADNABIOARC project indicates a genetic bottleneck close to extinction in Europe before 14,500 years ago. Instead of tribes with 500 members, the tribes were down to 20-30 individuals, with limited genetic diversity between tribes. In this variant, the players each play a small nomadic tribe during this demographic bottleneck. Their goal is not only survival, but to maintain a healthy genetic and cultural interchange of cooperation.

a. Scale. Each hunter represents one family unit, and each turn is 3 years. Total game is 1 generation. b. Setup. Per L1.

M1. Sequence of Play

a. Events (L3) & Culture Auction (M2). b. Hunter Movement & Discovery (M3). c. Roll For Hunt (L6c,d,e). Hunt rolls are mandatory where there are hunters. d. Domestic Animals, per standard game (H). e. Portal, Neolexia, & Elder Actions, per standard game (I).

M2. Auction

The players decide together who will buy the daughter. The recipient must pay disks equal to the amount of daughters he has already plus one. The disks paid are restricted to colors of the bid media (D7).

Abilities. Some daughters have new abilities, see L4.

M3. Hunter Movement & Discovery

This phase is performed per L5 with the following exceptions:

a. Co-Hunting. In this cooperative game there is no fighting between players. Furthermore, you can choose to pool Hunters assigned to the same biome for a combined hunt roll (G). The gains from a hunt (Babies, disks, I/D cards) as well as the losses can be distributed among participating players in any fashion. Note: A biome rewards the same total amount of babies and discs as when it is solo hunted, including any gathering (max 1 baby from gathering per biome per turn).

b. Assimilating Husbands. For each combined hunt roll a surviving Hunter from one of the participating players becomes optionally assimilated with a Husband (either mature or not) from another of the participating players. Indicate assimilation by placing the Hunter with the Husband as a permanent assignment on the daughter card. The two tokens are thereafter treated as a single Husband.

M4. Victory

By the end of the game (J), each player must have achieved the following:

Tribal. Have become tribal with at least 1 Elder and 1 Alpha.
Assimilation. Have at least 2 mature Husbands, one assimilated (M3b) with one player, and the other from the other player.

N. Neanderthal Scenario Module (by Jon Manker)

These rules allow you to construct your own adventures, including asymmetrical situations that benefit or disadvantage specific cultures. This can be used as a handicap system if you have large differences in knowledge between players.

N1. The Hominids

This scenario simulates an earlier period starting at around 250 kya. Each turn is 20,000 years. The climate swings are more accurately simulated.


Setup (biomes)	Normal setup but: Archaic starts with no open brain portals but 12 Tribesmen. Cro-Magnon starts with a mature firestarter and 1 more portal disc of his choice in the brain, but only 4 tribesmen.
Setup (Events)	Sort the event cards into 3 piles: one for global warming events, one for global cooling events and one for the other events. Shuffle them all facedown and draw random cards to build an event pile from bottom up with: 1 global warming card, 3 global cooling cards, 2 global warming cards, 3 global cooling cards, 1 global warming card.
Special Rules	D and I cards need 1 more dice in order to be taken to your hand. To go tribal you need 7 disks in your brain.
Win conditions	Normal win conditions with a 5 VP bonus if you go tribal.

N2. Giant Würm

A longer game encompassing an average of 25,000 years of history. It starts a bit earlier, in the harsher conditions around 55,000 kya. It ends around 30,000 kya.


Setup (biome)	Set the game up normally, except place the 4 middle cards of the north row with the ice cap side up. Players start with only 4 unassigned tribesmen and no Elders.
Setup (event)	Shuffle all 21 daughter cards into the event pile.
Special Rules	All 5 Würm events (D2) will appear, so after the 21 daughters have been revealed, shuffle all discarded daughter cards again and draw 5 of them to form a new event deck. If any of these 5 have a Würm, take cards from the unused ones as normal. After the shuffle (previous bullet) you have entered more modern times. From here on D and I cards require 1 less dice to take domestication and invention cards into your hand. (This is in addition to the paintress ability if you have access to that).
Win conditions	As normal except domesticated animals are worth 5 VP each regardless of your sexuality.

Glossary of Tribesmen Roles

Each Meeple-token is a tribesman, who assumes a role depending upon where the token is located! The "PA" designation means permanent assignment (E4).

Alpha (large tribesman) — anywhere (E5), but with an Elder mentor can have small game, big game, and/or club special powers.
Baby — Unassigned tribesman added from the deadpile by successful hunting, gathering, or domestic animal (A1.4).
Chief (PA) — Rank 1 tribal Elder, prevents feuds (D2) as the tribe grows larger, and allows negotiations (F1).
Dependent — Each Elder, unmarried daughter, and domestic animal in your tableau. Each must be supported in a blizzard (D5).
Elder (PA) — Any tribesman on a Placard. They are ranked from 1 to 6 (A1.6).
Fire Starter (PA) — Rank 6 Elder, prevents loss of Elders during chaos, frostbite, and allows cost-free Elder promotions (C0.6).
Gatherer — Any Hunter on a biome with the basket icon (F3). This adds a Baby if promiscuous or has a gathering wife/daughter.
Hunter — Any tribesman (including Alpha) that makes a hunt roll (G), either assigned to the north or south row, or to a daughter as a Suitor.
Husband (PA) — In the husband box (G1) of a daughter. Obtains her abilities if mature. Makes an attack roll (F2) vs. Suitors.
Knapper (PA) — Rank 3 Elder, enables your Alpha for auto-roll vs. big game. If tribal, invents "I" hand cards using tool-making (I3).
Placard — The square card where Elders are stored (E2). Can be vocal or tribal.
Shaman (PA) — Rank 2 tribal Elder, able to domesticate "D" hand cards (I3). Shaman is also the name of 1 of the 3 portals (I1).
Suitor — Any Hunter on a daughter card outside the husband box (E3), regardless if the daughter is married, immature, foreign, or promiscuous.
Trapper (PA) — Rank 5 Elder, enables your Alpha for auto-roll vs. small game. If tribal, invents "I" hand cards using tool-making (I3).
Wanderluster — Unassigned tribesman of a foreign color (D6). He must be chaperoned.
Warrior (PA) — Rank 4 Elder, enables your Alpha for auto-roll in club biomes, decides the first player (A2), and doubles kills in attacks (F2).
War Party — If you have a Warrior Elder, all your tribesmen in attacks (F2) kill on each "1" or "2".