Obsession: Upstairs, Downstairs Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Rule Changes to Obsession Base Game
  • 1st Player Marker
  • Objective Cards
  • Servants' Hall
• Supplemental Service Concept
  • Supplemental Service in Brief
• Upstairs, Downstairs Servants
  • Cook
  • Hall Boy
  • Head Housemaid
  • Useful Man
  • Rule Clarifications (Servants)
• Hiring Rule and Servant Limitations
  • Hiring Servants on a Pass Turn
  • Hiring without Passing?
  • Passing without Hiring?
  • Using the New Rule without Upstairs, Downstairs Servants?
• Upstairs, Downstairs Setup with Servant Draft
  • Player Area Setup with Draft
  • A Visual Look at the Servant Draft
  • Central Play Area Setup
• Unique Rules for 5- and 6-Player Games
  • Player Boards and Organisers
  • Guests, Servants, and Other Components
  • 5 Player—Player Area Setup
  • 5 Player—Central Play Area Setup
  • 6 Player—Unique Rules and Setup
• Competitive Team Play (4 or 6 Players)
  • Setup
  • Cooperative Actions
  • End Game Scoring
• Solo Estate Challenge
  • Setup
  • Gameplay
  • Gameplay, Continued
  • End Game Scoring
• Tableau Obsession
  • Setup
  • Gameplay
  • End Game Scoring
• New and Modified Components
  • New Improvement Tiles
  • Milestones
  • Changed Components

Overview

The Upstairs, Downstairs expansion (and all other components in this box) require the Obsession base game and feature the following:

• Page 2: Three rule changes to the base game.
• Pages 3-7: Rules for the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion, including four new servants (the Cook, Hall Boy, Head Housemaid, and Useful Man), along with an explanation of the servant draft and expansion passing rules.
• Page 8: Rules and additional components for 5- and 6-player games.
• Page 9: Rules for Competitive Team Play.
• Pages 10-11: Rules for Solo Estate Challenge.
• Page 11: Rules for Tableau Obsession.
• Page 12: Four new improvement tiles, modified Obsession components, and rules for new Milestone public objectives.

Rule Changes to Obsession Base Game

The three rule changes below are part of this expansion's own rules. Where the change requires new components, the expansion includes them.

1st Player Marker

New Rule Summary: The 1st player pawn rotates counterclockwise.

Previous Rule: The 1st player pawn rotates clockwise.

Reason for Change: Eliminates downtime (as much as 8 turns in a 5-player game) and better compensates the last player in Season 1 (that player goes 1st in Season 2 and has consecutive turns, a tactical advantage).

Rule Detail:

• Setup: Randomly assign the 1st player pawn.
• Setup: Starting with the person to the left of the 1st player and going clockwise, players choose a family board (i.e., 1st player gets last choice).
• Note (not a rule change): For any given round, the turn order remains clockwise, beginning with the 1st player.
• During the Game: At the end of each season (courtship), the 1st player pawn is passed counterclockwise (to the player's right).

Diagram notes (as printed): after Season 1, the marker is passed. The purple player is 1st. In a five-player game, the large number series near each player represents their turn position for each of the four seasons, and the number series in parentheses represents their position under the old rule. The printed series are: top seat 1, 2, 3, 4 (old 1, 5, 4, 3); right seat 2, 3, 4, 5 (old 2, 1, 5, 4); lower right seat 3, 4, 5, 1 (old 3, 2, 1, 5); lower left seat 4, 5, 1, 2 (old 4, 3, 2, 1); left seat 5, 1, 2, 3 (old 5, 4, 3, 2).

Objective Cards

New Rule Summary: Players evaluate Objective Cards during the game.

Previous Rule: Players choose their objectives before the start of play.

Reason for Change: Objective Card (OC) requirements are variable, some easily granting victory points, others requiring difficult tile groups. The previous rule is that players are dealt five OC at setup, keeping two. However, evaluating these objectives before the game begins involves guesswork and, for many tile objectives, a significant amount of luck in the marketplace.

Rule Detail:

• Setup: For a standard game, players are dealt five OC, keeping them all. For an extended game, players are dealt four OC, keeping them all.
• During the Game: At the end of each courtship, players discard one OC.
• Round Track: During rounds featuring an OC draw, players draw two OC, keeping both.

In standard play, players acquire a total of seven OC, discarding four, scoring three. In extended play, players acquire eight OC, discarding four, scoring four.

Extended play example (as printed): at setup, players get four Objective Cards (OC). During the game, players discard one after each courtship. Players get two OC on round 7. They get two more on round 18. Players finish with and score four OC.

Servants' Hall

New Rule Summary: A player must expend a servant to 'steal' reputation.

Previous Rule: Players automatically 'steal' one reputation each turn.

Reason for Change: The Servants' Hall was overpowered.

Rule Detail:

• Setup: Replace the Servants' Hall (SH) tiles in 1st printing copies of the base game with the two provided in the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion. Second printing copies of Obsession do not need this upgrade.
• During the Game: At the beginning of a turn (see the Servants' Hall tile), the SH player may place any available servant, the source of rumours about an opponent, onto his SH tile. The targeted player reduces her reputation by one, while the SH player increases his reputation by one. During cleanup, the gossiping servant is placed into Expended Service and rotated normally.

Notes:

• Any servant can be used, including the butler, housekeeper, and underbutler.
• Physically place a servant onto the tile.
• The Servants' Hall MUST be used at the beginning of the turn after the player rotates service. Once Step 3 (Host Activity) begins, the player cannot use the Hall.
• The Servant's Hall is not used on a courtship round.

Supplemental Service Concept

NOTE: This section explains a new game mechanic, which is critical to understanding the new servants. Rules follow this page.

Before beginning play with the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion, it will be useful to review new concepts created by the addition of the Cook, Hall Boy, Head Housemaid, and Useful Man. In the base game of Obsession, all servant placement is mandatory and prompted by an icon on an improvement tile or gentry card. The Upstairs, Downstairs expansion introduces an optional use of servants that does not require a servant icon. The addition of one or more of the four new servants to a tile or card is always optional (called supplemental service) and done for the purpose of enhancing a favour or changing a mechanic. A supplemental servant is physically placed onto a tile or card to activate its abilities, along with any required traditional servants.

Printed example (as described on page 3): a typical Obsession turn for the Howard family receives visitors, which generates £200, four reputation, one 'See 2, Take 1' casual guest invite, and one blind draw invite from the prestige deck. With the new servants added, using the same hand of cards and the same tiles in the organiser, the same player's activity nets £700, 8 reputation, and two 'See 2, Take 1' invites, one casual and one prestige. The cook enables the player to invite guests 1 or 2 levels above her reputation; the hall boy increases the £500 monetary favour to £600; the head housemaid lets the player draw 2 prestige guests and keep one; and the useful man temporarily lowers the prestige rating of the Music Room by one.

Supplemental Service in Brief

• Mandatory Service: Introduced in the base game, it is service prompted by recognisable servant icons (three icons are shown on the printed page). This service is always mandatory! Without the designated servant, the card or tile cannot be used.
• Supplemental Service: Introduced in Upstairs, Downstairs, this service is NOT prompted by an icon. Placement follows a ruleset. Grab the player aid and keep it close. This service is always optional! Plan for certain guests and activities. Use these servants tactically.

Upstairs, Downstairs Servants

Each of the four new servants is represented by a meeple. The Cook is orange, the Hall Boy is light blue, the Head Housemaid is pink, and the Useful Man is brown.

Cook

Description: The Cook is represented by a short, orange meeple and is used to attract elite guests and enhance the family's reputation.

Thematic Material: Like so many Victorian pursuits, dining in society was a showcase event. The elegant setting, the training of the domestic staff, the fine china and exquisite silver would all be for naught without an accomplished cook to impress guests and make dining at the family's estate an anticipated event. The aristocracy delighted in extravagant meals; twelve-course dinners were not uncommon, featuring dishes such as: Pigeons Comport, Lambs Ears Forc'd, Mock Turtle, Sheep's Rump & Kidneys in Rice, Larded Oysters, Ox Pallets, Pork Griskens, Bottl'd Peas, French Pye.

(Mrs. Isabella Beeton, The Book of Household Management, Volume 1, 1861.)

While the lady of the house typically planned these elaborate meals, the cook did the lion's share of the work. An aristocratic family treasured an accomplished cook, who possessed the skill to bring off the most intricate meals.

Thematic Note: The cook's prowess is on display for all meals prepared during guest visits to the estate, not just for the activity on which she is deployed.

Gameplay Detail: Placing the cook onto the current activity tile has two effects:

• Always increases the family's reputation by one (even when the cook is used as the mandatory servant in the Renovated Kitchen).
• Optionally permits guests with prestige ratings 1 or 2 levels above the family's reputation to attend that activity.

Printed example: the cook is placed onto the Parlour tile, which allows the player to invite the guest on the far right, who has a prestige rating (PR) of 3 (circled in red). Normally, a player cannot invite a guest with a higher PR than her own reputation. The cook also generates one reputation, which is taken during the Enjoy Favours phase of the player's turn.

Hall Boy

Description: The Hall Boy is represented by a short, light blue meeple and is used to enhance a monetary favour. Alternatively, the Hall Boy may accompany a carriage or attend to elite guests.

Thematic Material: The Hall Boy is typically an older child or younger teenage male domestic worker in a superior house; he is responsible for menial tasks such as carrying coal, attending to the front door, cleaning up, and running messages. He is often an apprentice footman and expected to work in excess of twelve hours a day. The employment of a hall boy demonstrates a family's investment in a robust domestic staff.

Gameplay Detail: The Hall Boy can be used in three ways:

• Place the Hall Boy onto a gentry card showing a pounds (£) favour to increase the favour by £100.
• The Hall Boy may stand in when the butler is the mandatory servant on a gentry card regardless of whether the butler is available. Place the Hall Boy onto the card's butler icon; used in this way, the Hall Boy does not increase any £ favours.
• The Hall Boy may stand in for a footman on the Carriage House service tile regardless of whether the footman is available. Place the Hall Boy onto the Carriage House tile in the player's organiser.

Printed example: to the right, the attentive Hall Boy runs messages for the Marquess of Tetbury. The player receives £600 during the Enjoy Favours phase instead of £500. On the left, see the service requirements. On the right, the Hall Boy may stand in for the butler, even if the butler is available.

Note: When used in place of a butler, the Hall Boy does not increase any monetary favours.

Head Housemaid

Description: The Head Housemaid is represented by a short, pink meeple and is used to screen invitation favours. Alternatively, the Head Housemaid may also attend to elite guests.

Thematic Material: In a word, the housemaid was responsible for cleanliness: changing bed linen, emptying chamber pots, cleaning upstairs fireplaces, and much more. In a superior house, the head housemaid kept watch over the lower housemaids and took on less arduous bedroom duties (in the absence of a chambermaid), such as changing and repairing linen, dusting, and tending to flower arrangements.

Gameplay Detail: The Head Housemaid (HH) can perform two actions:

• Place the HH onto a gentry card or current activity tile with an invite favour to allow a player to screen guests (look at an extra guest card when inviting a guest).
• The HH may stand in when the housekeeper is the mandatory servant on a gentry card, regardless of whether the housekeeper is available. Place the HH onto the card's housekeeper icon; used in this way, the HH does not screen guests. Note: If the player has the Housekeeper's Room service tile (which permits the HH to additionally stand in for the housekeeper on tiles and for the lady's maid in any role), the HH does not screen guests.

Printed example: Lady Turner's favour is to draw a single card blindly from the top of the prestige guest deck. With the addition of the Head Housemaid to the card, the player examines the top two cards, keeping one.

• The Head Housemaid can also be used on a tile, which converts a single draw to a 'See 2, Take 1'. If a tile or card already has a screening ability, the Head Housemaid increases the cards drawn, with the player keeping the same number; in the printed example, the use of the Head Housemaid changes this invite to 'See 5, Take 2'.
• The Head Housemaid may also stand in for the housekeeper, even if the housekeeper is available. Note: When standing in for the housekeeper, the Head Housemaid does not screen guests.

Useful Man

Description: The Useful Man is represented by a short, brown meeple and is used to help with setup and break down of the local village fair and to assist with renovation projects.

Thematic Material: The Useful Man or handyman was a jack-of-all-trades domestic worker who performed whatever menial tasks needed doing in a great Victorian house. He rose well before the family, and his duties were varied and often backbreaking.

Gameplay Detail: The Useful Man (UM) has five abilities:

• Place the UM onto the Private Study tile during a Village Fair round, thereby increasing the revenue from that Village Fair by £200 (either from £0 to £200 if the Study Tile has not been flipped or from £300 to £500 if the Study Tile has been flipped).
• Place the UM onto any tile in the builders' market when making a purchase, thereby decreasing the cost of the tile by £100.
• Place the UM onto any improvement tile located in the player's organiser with a prestige rating visible (playable tiles), thereby temporarily decreasing that prestige rating by one.
• One Time Use (at any time during a player's turn): Remove the UM from the game to refresh the builders' market.
• One Time Use (at any time during a player's turn): Remove the UM from the game to allow the player to search the tile bag for a specific tile (monuments excluded) and place it in the £800 space of the builders' market (the tile in the £300 space is returned to the bag, the remaining five tiles slide to the left, and the new tile is placed in the £800 space, where it can then be purchased normally).

Printed example: place the UM onto the Study Tile at the beginning of a Village Fair turn to increase the money favour by £200. Thematic Note: The family sends the UM to the village to help get ready for the fair, perhaps as an alternative to actively engaging their role as patron. This aid results in a slightly better fair, yielding some income. If the family embraces the role of patron, the fair will be a smashing success.

Note: The UM is placed on the Private Study in the country estate organiser during Step 2 of the Order of Play (on the player board).

Rule Clarifications (Servants)

• Timing of Supplemental Service: The Order of Play directs that service be provided in step 5. This refers to mandatory service, reviewed on page 3. Supplemental service, the service mechanic governing the Upstairs, Downstairs servants, may occur at various times throughout the Order of Play. The Useful Man is used primarily in steps 2, 3, and 7.
• Special Actions and the Village Fair? A player may use a special action to refresh the Useful Man to make him available for a village fair; special actions may be taken any time during a player's turn.
• Touch-Move Rule? If the Useful Man is placed onto a tile in the market for a discount or a tile in the organiser to lower the prestige rating, the player is not locked into that decision. If, after review, the player cannot or does not want to make the purchase or use the tile in the organiser, the Useful Man is returned to Available Service.

Hiring Rule and Servant Limitations

Note: This hiring/passing rule is required when the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion is used. It is optional for any game of Obsession that does not use the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion.

Hiring Servants on a Pass Turn

New Rule Summary: Players are able to hire servants when passing.

Current Base Game Rule: The hiring action occurs on a standard turn and is the sole activity. Passing takes place on a separate turn.

Reason for Change: The introduction of four new servants does not make additional valets, lady's maids, and footmen any less critical to a successful strategy. Given the limited actions in a game, servants would be underutilized without mechanisms to increase access, which are this rule and the servant draft (see page 7).

Rule Detail:

• Reclaiming Deck and Refreshing Service: As in the original rule, the player reclaims his discard pile (step 1) and refreshes all service (step 2).
• New Hiring Option: In the original rule, step 3 offered the player two options: a choice between £200 and refreshing the builders' market. The new rule adds a third option: hiring servants (see the passing flowchart).
• Hiring Action Explained: The hiring action, if chosen, functions exactly like the hiring action described in the Obsession rulebook: the Butler's Room start tile is placed onto the player board with the butler (or underbutler) as the mandatory servant. Two servants are chosen from the servants for hire area on the supply board and placed with the butler into Expended Service (the underbutler cannot be hired in this fashion and is only acquired with the purchase of the Butler's Pantry service tile from the market).
• Critical Rule (Servant Limitations): Players may hire multiple valets, lady's maids, and footmen, but may only possess one each of the cook, hall boy, head housemaid, and useful man; if the useful man was used to refresh the market or locate a tile (see Useful Man, page 5), a player cannot hire another to replace this lost servant.
• Recruiting (Stealing) Servants: If using the hiring action for the second time (see modified action highlighted by the yellow box), players may only recruit valets, lady's maids, and footmen from another player. Players cannot recruit any of the new Upstairs, Downstairs servants (cook, hall boy, head housemaid, or useful man). Note: The original rule prohibiting recruitment of the butler, housekeeper, and underbutler also remains in effect.
• Butler Availability: When hiring servants during a pass, note that on the player aid above REFRESH SERVICE is before HIRE SERVANTS; this means the butler will always be available for the hire. After hiring, the butler and new servants go into the Expended Service on the player board.

Passing flowchart (as printed): PASS, then RECLAIM DECK (take back discard pile), then REFRESH SERVICE (move servants to available service), then a choice of COLLECT £200 (tenant rents), HIRE SERVANTS, or REFRESH BUILDERS' MARKET (in builders' market), then SHOP (in builders' market).

Hiring without Passing?

The original hiring rule required that the Butler's Room tile be used on a standard turn as the sole activity. Can a player still use this original rule? Not really.

With this new rule, hiring during a standard turn without passing is possible, but it makes no sense. Even if a player chose to hire servants using the previous rule, what would be the reason to refuse the free option of refreshing her servants and claiming her deck, two hugely valuable actions?

If a player wanted to hire servants on consecutive turns (exceedingly rare), they would still take advantage of refreshing the first group of servants hired.

Season 1 Hire? This creates a strategic challenge for those players who prefer to hire in the 1st season to expand hosting options early in the game. Now hiring in Season 1 comes along with inefficient reclaim and refresh actions (which could lead to an additional pass later in the game).

Yet, there are compelling new reasons to hire the powerful Upstairs, Downstairs servants early to maximize their special abilities. Decisions, decisions!

Passing without Hiring?

Every hiring turn will include a pass, but not every pass turn will include a hiring action. Players not infrequently value £200 or a market refresh over hiring more servants.

Using the New Rule without Upstairs, Downstairs Servants?

Feel free to adopt the new rule even if playing Obsession without any Upstairs, Downstairs components. Note: It will lead to moderately elevated scores, but the new rule expands the role of servants and makes the pass turn vastly more interesting.

Upstairs, Downstairs Setup with Servant Draft

Player Area Setup with Draft

To enable the new servant draft and the rest of Player Area Setup using the Upstairs, Downstairs servants, it is necessary to go briefly out of sequence and complete only the first step of the Central Play Area Setup on page 4 of the Obsession rulebook (which is normally done after Player Area Setup on page 3).

Begin setting up a game by placing the supply board in the centre of the table. Then populate the Servants for Hire area as follows:

• 2 Players: 2 U, 4 F, 2 V, 2 LM, 2 C, 2 HB, 2 HH, 2 UM
• 3 Players: 2 U, 6 F, 3 V, 3 LM, 3 C, 3 HB, 3 HH, 3 UM
• 4 Players: 2 U, 8 F, 4 V, 4 LM, 4 C, 4 HB, 4 HH, 4 UM
• 5 & 6 Players: 2 U, 10 F, 5 V, 5 LM, 5 C, 5 HB, 5 HH, 5 UM

(Key: Underbutler–U, Footman–F, Valet–V, Lady's Maid–LM, Cook–C, Hall Boy–HB, Head Housemaid–HH, Useful Man–UM)

Player Area Setup now begins as detailed on page 3 of the Obsession rulebook, with the following modifications:

• Preparation for the Draft: Take one of each of the 'short' servants (cook, hall boy, head housemaid, useful man, valet, lady's maid, and footman) from the Servants for Hire and display them in the centre of the table for the draft.
• Step 1: Assign a 1st player.
• Step 2: Starting with the player to the left of the 1st player and going clockwise, each player chooses a family board and drafts one servant from the display. Note the following:
  • If a player chooses the Howard family board with a starting bonus of a cook, that player cannot draft a second cook; he must choose from the remaining servants on display (see the Visual Look to the right). All other players, of course, are eligible to draft the single cook on display.
  • All drafted servants are placed in Available Service on the player board.
  • The display is not restocked; once a servant is drafted, the next player chooses from the remaining servants.
  • The York family, with their family bonus of an extra footman, may draft another (there are no limits on the number of footmen that can be hired).
  • After the draft, return undrafted servants to the Servants for Hire area on the player board. The Servants for Hire setup step is now complete.
• Finish setting up the player areas as detailed on Page 3 of the Obsession rulebook, starting with step 3. In step 10, ensure the Objective Cards from the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion are used.
• Player aids summarising the abilities of the new servants are recommended.

REMINDER: Players may only ever possess one each of the Cook, Hall Boy, Head Housemaid, and Useful Man; if the Useful Man is used to refresh the market or locate a tile, a player cannot hire another to replace this lost servant.

A Visual Look at the Servant Draft

The printed page illustrates a five-player draft as follows.

• Display the 'short' servants, one of each. Ted is the first player and gets the purple pawn. The draft starts with Ann, the yellow player to the LEFT of Ted.
• Ann chooses a family board (Cavendish) and takes the family advantage. Now she must draft one of the short servants on display and put it into Available Service with the rest of her starting servants. Ann drafts the Head Housemaid.
• No other player can now draft a Head Housemaid. The player to the left of the yellow player, Ulrich, has a choice from the six remaining servants. He chose the family Howard, which makes the Cook unavailable to him (players can only have one each of the Upstairs, Downstairs servants on their staff).
• Ulrich takes a valet.
• Maricel, the player to Ulrich's left, takes the York family (who starts with a bonus footman). She could draft another footman (there is no limitation on footmen, valets, and lady's maids), but instead chooses the Useful Man.
• The next player, Marcos, drafts the Cook and Ted (the 1st player) drafts a footman, leaving the hall boy and lady's maid over after the draft. These are returned to the Servants for Hire section of the supply board.

Central Play Area Setup

Set up the Central Play Area as described on Pages 4 and 5 of the Obsession rulebook, with the following modifications:

• Step 1: This step was completed above when the remaining servants were returned to the supply after the draft.
• Steps 2–5: Follow the Obsession rulebook.
• Step 6: Note that monument selection for 5 and 6 players is identical to the 4-player setup.
• Steps 7–9: Follow the Obsession rulebook.

This completes the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion setup rules.

Unique Rules for 5- and 6-Player Games

Player Boards and Organisers

There are a total of six player boards available:

• Obsession (4): Asquith, Cavendish, Ponsonby, York (+ 4 separate organisers)
• Wessex (1): Wessex (no separate organiser)
• Upstairs Downstairs (1): Howard (+ 1 separate organiser)

Either the Howard board in this expansion or the Wessex board in the Wessex expansion can be added to the Obsession base game so that there are five families. Both the Howard and Wessex player boards are required for six players. Note: the Howard board and all 2nd printing player boards have one side with an integrated country estate organiser (the five START tiles can be lined up under the player board); since there are only five separate country estate organisers available, one of the players in a 6-player game must use the integrated organiser side as shown on the printed page.

Guests, Servants, and Other Components

• Guests: The 33 Upstairs, Downstairs guest gentry cards are added to ensure sufficient guests for 5- and 6-player games. Critical Rule: Always place screened or dismissed guests at the bottom of the appropriate deck. If guests run out, no further invites are possible.
• Servants: Additional starting servants for 5 and 6 players are contained in this expansion along with a modified quantity of the servants for hire.
• Objective Cards: Objective Cards (OC) discarded at the end of each season should be shuffled and then placed at the bottom of the OC supply deck. This will ensure sufficient OC are available for standard and extended play.

5 Player—Player Area Setup

• Steps 1 & 2 (page 3 of the Obsession rulebook): If playing without the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion, the last player (yellow player, top right) is compensated £200 (as she never goes first in a season). If playing with the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion, there is no £200 compensation; follow the servant draft rules on page 7 of this rulebook.
• Steps 3–10: Finish setting up the player areas as detailed in the Obsession rulebook. Use the OC in this expansion if playing with the new servants.

5 Player—Central Play Area Setup

• Step 1 (page 4 of the Obsession rulebook): The Servants for Hire is populated with two underbutlers, ten footmen, five valets, and five lady's maids.
• Finish setting up the Central Play Area, steps 2-9.

6 Player—Unique Rules and Setup

Six-player individual play was a late Kickstarter stretch goal and has had limited playtesting. If competitive individual play is desired, unique setup and rule adjustments are required (see right).

Six-Player Individual Competitive Play Adjustments (components and rules), as printed:

• 1st Player / Last Player: After Season 1, the marker is passed. The last player, who never gets to go 1st, is compensated with £200 when playing without the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion (a rule for compensating the 5th player without the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion).
• Player Area Setup: If playing without the Upstairs, Downstairs servants, start the last player (green) with £300 and the second-from-last player (yellow) with £200. Otherwise, use the servant draft. Also, players are dealt 4 OC during setup for all 6-player games.
• Central Play Area Components: Set up for a 5-player game to the left. This means that there will be a limitation on servants with no additional base game servants and only a total of 5 each of the Upstairs, Downstairs servants (if this expansion is used). Players will need to strategise for shortages and compete in the hiring market. Reminder: Be sure discarded objectives are returned to the supply deck.
• Guest Limitation Rule: At such a high player count, it is recommended to institute a six prestige guest limit on all players, excluding either Fairchild. Once at the limit, players can continue to draw new prestige guests, but must always discard down to six. This will depend on an honor system, but all playing are Victorian ladies and gentlemen of character, so there should be no issues. Any prestige guests over this limit will have their VP subtracted from the guest VP end game total.

The official version of 6-player Obsession is competitive team play (see next page instructions). Important Note: All 6-player games, individual or team play, use 4 OC during Step 10 of setup regardless of game length.

Competitive Team Play (4 or 6 Players)

The official 6-player mode of play is 3 competitive teams of 2 players each.

Setup

Seat Assignments: Players from the same team (matching colors in the graphic) must sit across from each other with one player from each team between them.

Player Area and Central Play Area Setup: Follow the Upstairs, Downstairs setup instructions on page 7. For the draft, choose a team to go first and assign the 1st player marker to a member of that team. The player to the left of that player will begin the servant draft (see page 7). The draft will proceed clockwise as normal, and teams are free to coordinate all aspects of player board and servant selection. If playing with 6 players, recall that, for either a standard or extended length game, players always start with 4 Objective Cards (OC) and must remember to return all OC discarded at the end of a season to the bottom of the OC deck on the supply board (see Page 8, centre).

Teams will work together to score the most victory points:

• Family members and close family friends may attend teammate activities.
• Teammates may loan servants to each other as needed.
• Teammates may gift nominal amounts of money to each other (£100 or £200).
• Teammates may discuss and coordinate objectives.
• Table talk is an expected part of the game, although public statements may help opposing teams. A private discussion after setup to review objectives, discuss courtship and other strategies is advised.

Definitions: The rules below apply to the two players on the same team. Active Player refers to the team member hosting an activity, and Teammate refers to the team member who is being asked to provide money, servants, and/or guests.

Cooperative Actions

Money: On her turn, the active player may ask her teammate for £100 or £200.

• The teammate can accept or refuse (he may have plans of his own).
• This money is a gift and will not be repaid.
• The teammate may use special actions (SA) for the loan.

Servants: On her turn, the active player may borrow servants from her teammate.

• All servants are eligible if they are in Available Service.
• The teammate may use special actions (SA) to refresh a servant.
• The teammate can accept or refuse (he may have plans of his own).
• Once the activity is concluded, the loaned servant(s) are returned to the teammate and placed in Expended Service.

Guests: On her turn, the active player may invite family members and close friends (i.e., starter guests) of her teammate to her activity.

• Family members may attend an activity if they are in the teammate's active hand (not the discard pile).
• Any starter guests in the circle of friends may attend an activity if they are in the teammate's active hand.
  • This includes the two starter guests acquired at setup.
  • This includes any additional starter guests (small crown beneath the prestige rating) acquired during the course of play.
  • Note: All starter guest favours go to the active player.
• The active player may invite any number of her teammate's qualifying family or guests, even if those guests represent all the guests at the activity.
• Once the activity is concluded, the visiting gentry are placed in the discard pile of the teammate.

Critical—Status of Guest Favours: Visiting family favours do not automatically go to the hosting player.

• The man of the house: his £200 favour can go to the active player or the teammate.
• The lady of the house has a choice in favours:
  • Invite: The invite favour can go to the active player or the teammate.
  • Dismissal: The Lady's dismissal action can only be used to dismiss a guest from the teammate's own gentry deck.
• The heir has a choice in favours:
  • Money: The £100 favour can go to the active player or the teammate.
  • Reputation: The reputation must stay with the teammate.
• The young lady has 2 favours:
  • Invite: The invite favour can go to the active player or the teammate.
  • Admirer Bonus: The reputation must stay with the teammate.

End Game Scoring

• For each category on the scorepad except Reputation and Objective Cards, teammate scores are averaged. All averaged values are rounded down.
• For Reputation, the lowest teammate reputation is recorded (this prevents trashing one player's reputation for the benefit of the team). Note that the teammate with the higher reputation can use the excess near the end of the game without any negative impact!
• For Objective Cards, the team scores any three objectives, even if all from one player.

Team scoring summary (as printed):

• Improvement Tile VP: Averaged
• Gentry VP: Averaged
• Objective Cards VP: Team Scores 3
• Reputation VP: Lowest
• Service VP: Averaged
• Wealth VP: Averaged
• Courtship/VP Card: Averaged

Solo Estate Challenge

The traditional Obsession solitaire puzzle is finessing courtship against increasingly difficult solo opponents. Solo Estate Challenge (SEC) eliminates courtship and shifts the focus to country estate development as the path to victory.

Setup

Unique Player Area Setup: The player area sets up as detailed on page 3 of the Obsession rulebook, with three exceptions: 1) the solo player (SP) is always the starting player, 2) the SP does not start with any objective cards, and 3) the SP drafts one servant (see 'A Visual Look at the Servant Draft' on page 7 for draft details).

Reputation Wheel Counter (RWC) Note: The standard and extended length SEC games use the same number of RWC as described on page 3 of the Obsession rulebook. Game information specific to the standard length SEC game is marked in yellow on the Tableau Round Track with a 132 target AI score beneath round 12. Game information specific to the extended length SEC game is marked in red with a 188 target AI score to the left of round 15.

Unique Central Area Setup: Stock the supply board for a two-player game as detailed on pages 4 & 5 of the Obsession rulebook, with the following changes:

• Step 1: Add one cook, hall boy, head housemaid, and useful man to the supply (less any new servants gained from family bonus/draft; see page 7 for details).
• Step 2: Remove all the group bonus objectives from the objective card deck.
• Step 6: Instead of filling the purple bag, players create a supply of one copy of every improvement tile (including Suites tiles), which will be used in Step 8 below. Five monuments are used, one from each improvement category. Return unused tiles to the box. Note: Hybrid tiles are not used.
• Step 7: Set out the Tableau Round Track (found in the Upstairs, Downstairs expansion, see above) and place the white round track pawn on the START space. Shuffle and place the VP cards as shown above.
• Steps 8 and 9: The Builders' Market will function differently in SEC than a conventional game of Obsession. The six market spaces will now hold all the tiles set aside in Step 6 as follows:

Builders' Market layout (as printed): the market spaces are SERVICE (£300), SPORTING (£400), ESSENTIALS (£500), ESTATE (£600), PRESTIGE (£700), and MONUMENT (£800), with a 'No Purchase' spot holding the 19-20 counter. The round counters are 1-2 (SERVICE), 3-5 (SPORTING), 6-8 (ESSENTIALS), 9-11 (ESTATE), 12-14 (PRESTIGE), and 15-18 (MONUMENT).

Stack tiles by type (written in yellow above) in Tile Sorting Number (TSN) order, lowest on top. Place each stack in its proper spot in the market. For example, the SPORTING stack would be in the £400 market spot and have the Riding Stables on top, followed by the Croquet Lawn, Tennis Court, Hillside Kennels, Billiards Room, and Cricket Field, with the Stocked Lake on the bottom (TSN order). Repeat this for each category stack. The £800 MONUMENT space holds a single stack of monuments with the Trophy Room on top, followed by the Wine Cellar, Marble Floor, and Manor Gargoyles, with the Sculpture Garden on the bottom (TSN order). Place the SEC market counters (numbered round counters seen in the graphic above) as indicated and obtain the d20 dice.

Depending on the game length chosen, the SP now aims to beat the AI target score (in a standard game, the SP needs to beat a score of 132).

Variants: Players may use Obsession & Wessex solitaire cards (base scores are used) in place of the AI target score for a graduated challenge (the AI targets correspond to expert opponents). Add scavenged monument VPs to the solo opponent base score for elevated difficulty.

Gameplay

Each solo player turn follows the Order of Play on every family board with the exception of Step 7, Buying from the Builders' Market (more on this below). The round track pawn is advanced counterclockwise after each turn until two end game conditions are met:

1. The solo player is at MAX reputation, and
2. The solo player's tableau (tiles in the country estate organiser) is complete. For a tableau to be complete, the player must:
   • Have a tableau with a certain number of completed rows depending on the length of the game. For example, the printed graphic shows what a completed tableau would look like for a standard length game (three completed rows, 15 total tiles). Note: The tableau for an extended length game would be four completed rows, 20 total tiles.
   • Have flipped all tiles (that can be flipped) to their rose side. Monuments and service tiles (except Butler's Room) are never flipped.

Once these two conditions are met, the game ends and the score is tabulated (see End Game Scoring, next page).

Step 7, Order of Play: Buying from the Builders' Market

• The SP may shop in the market with the advantage of having all tiles initially available and of knowing the cost of each tile; just as in a standard game of Obsession, the cost of any tile will be the market cost (i.e., £500) +/- any modifier on the tile itself.
• The SP may buy as many tiles as she can afford each turn.
• The SP may buy any tile in any stack.
• The SP cannot exceed the tableau size for the game she is playing; for example, she cannot purchase a 4th service tile (in a standard play game) unless she first discards (and removes from the game) one of the service tiles currently in her tableau.
• During Builders' Holiday rounds, all tiles are discounted £100.

Gameplay, Continued

After Step 7, the AI will scavenge tiles from the market stacks. The SP rolls the d20 and, referencing the market counters, locates the tile to be removed from the game, if any.

• Example 1: A 6 is rolled. The SP looks at the market counters (see previous page) and notes that the number 6 falls in the range of the £500 Essentials market stack. Since the first number of that range is a 6, the first (or top) tile in the Essentials stack is removed from the game.
• Example 2: A 13 is rolled. The SP looks at the market counters and notes that the number 13 falls in the range of the £700 Prestige market stack. Since 13 is the second number of that range, the second tile in the Prestige stack is removed from the game. If there isn't any tile in a scavenge location (i.e., one Prestige tile in the example above), no scavenging action happens that turn.

Note: The AI can never scavenge from a stack when it would not allow a player to complete her tableau. For example, if during an extended game, a player had two Service tiles in their tableau (and she must have four in each column), the AI could never scavenge the Service stack to less than two (or less than however many she needed to finish any column in her tableau). When the AI rolls to do this, it does not scavenge a tile that round.

Round Track: On the sixth space on the round track is an icon of a lady in a gown. This is the Grand Ball. Follow the instructions detailed to the right in the Tableau Obsession section.

Rule Exceptions: Use the standard solo rule exceptions (Obsession Rulebook page 14).

End Game Scoring

The SP totals her score using the Obsession scorepad, to which she adds 5 VP for every round she finished before the AI target (round 12 in standard play, which is in yellow) or subtracts 5 VP for every round she finished after the target. The SP compares her net score to the AI target score and declares a winner!

Variant: For an increased challenge, add scavenged monument VP to the AI score.

Tableau Obsession

Tableau Obsession is Obsession chess. It is designed to remove almost all randomness and variability that represents Victorian fate in traditional play. For the randomness that remains, there are mitigating mechanics available; it is up to the player to make the correct decisions to navigate those elements (i.e., if he dislikes random deck draws, the Head Housemaid is essential). Unique characteristics of Tableau Obsession are: 1) The Tableau Round Track is used, 2) There is no courtship, and 3) The game ends immediately when any player is at Max reputation at the end of his turn (no further turns).

Setup

Unique Player Area Setup: The player area sets up with player board selection and servant draft as detailed on page 7 of this rulebook with two notes: 1) Use the Starter Guest draft variant (see Glossary page 26), and 2) Be aware there is an option to use a 9/10 reputation wheel marker for a two-player variant called Tableau Obsession—Duel (the additional reputation levels make Duel a heavily strategic version of the game with a different feel than the standard play sprint).

Unique Central Area Setup: Stock the supply board as detailed on page 7 of this rulebook, with the following changes:

• Step 6: Use the low VP value Monuments (Upstairs, Downstairs expansion).
• Step 7: Use the Tableau Round Track and place the white round track pawn on the START space. Shuffle and place the VP cards in their space. Charles and Elizabeth Fairchild are not used.

Gameplay

The 1st player pawn is never rotated. The round track pawn moves counterclockwise on the round track with players taking standard turns following the Order of Play. The game ends immediately when any player is at Max reputation after finishing his or her turn.

Unique Market Rules: Two unique market rules are used when playing:

• Use the Queen Victoria market variant as described on page 25 of the Obsession Glossary.
• At the conclusion of Round 3, activate both tile reserves for the remainder of the game. Details on how the Builders' Market tile reserves function are on page 12 of the Obsession Rulebook.

Grand Ball: At the beginning of round six, there is a Grand Ball. As the first action of each turn (after rotating service), a player takes three prestige guests from the supply, keeps one, and returns the remaining cards to the bottom of the deck. Each player then completes a standard turn before the round track pawn is moved to the next space.

End Game Scoring

Scores take into account only VP for improvement tiles and player reputation, +/– three modifiers (– VP for negative guests, + VP for any completed objectives and VP cards). Positive VP guests, money, and servants are not scored. If tied, the player with the highest tableau score wins.

New and Modified Components

New Improvement Tiles

Carriage House: The Carriage House allows players to increase or decrease the number of guests dictated by an improvement tile. The Carriage House service tile rules are:

• A footman (or hall boy/underbutler) must be placed onto the tile to activate.
• Any additional guests must qualify normally (prestige rating, gender, etc.).
• It cannot reduce the guest count to zero.
• It cannot be used to increase the guest count for a Suites tile.
• It cannot be used when only family are the required gentry at an activity.

Stocked Lake: The Stocked Lake introduces the first Sporting tile with a prestige rating of 6. This tile functions like any other sporting tile in the base game.

Renovated Kitchen: The Renovated Kitchen allows a player to attract guests to her estate who otherwise would not attend. The Renovated Kitchen service tile rules are:

• Front Side: The cook is the mandatory servant for the Gourmet Tasting activity. This tile, which is first placed into the player's organiser with the cook icon visible, is played onto the player board. Any 2 guests (regardless of prestige rating) may attend.
• Back Side: After this tile is flipped, it stays in the organiser and grants the cook a permanent ability for the rest of the game: a player may increase the guest count by one for any activity where the cook is used (i.e., when the cook is placed as a supplemental servant on an improvement tile played onto the player board).
  • The additional guest must qualify normally (prestige rating, gender, etc.).
  • It cannot be used to increase the guest count for a Suites tile.

Housekeeper's Room: The Housekeeper's Room gives the Head Housemaid a new permanent ability: she can stand in for either the housekeeper or lady's maid, even if one is available.

Backer-Developed Promotional Tiles: The two winning improvement tiles in the crowdfunding contest are the Parish Church and the Babbling Brook.

• Parish Church: This tile converts from an activity tile into a monument. No activity service is required on the front side. On the monument side, the player chooses during Step 2 between two favours: £100 or 1 reputation.
• Babbling Brook: This is a hybrid tile (it is flipped back and forth). The tile enters play on the side with a line underneath the stylised flower in the upper right.

Milestones

Public objectives that can be added to any game or serve as an alternative to private objectives.

• Setup: Choose two milestones per game (randomly or by preference) and place them in a central location. Players acquire their two family crest circular markers.
• Gameplay: At any time during a player's turn, one and only one milestone can be claimed (1st or 2nd position). The player must meet the card requirements (the milestone player aid explains the symbols and requirements). The player places one of his two markers on an available space.
• Note: It does not matter when the player achieves the milestone, only when the player claims the milestone. Milestones, once claimed, can never be lost (if possible).
• Scoring: Milestones are scored with objectives on the updated Upstairs, Downstairs scorepad.

The milestone symbol key (the pictograms and their requirements) is a graphic on the printed page, and its icons are not transcribed here. Use the printed Milestone player aid for the symbols.

Changed Components

Three components have been changed for ease of use and better gameplay: the Extended Play round track (reverse of the Tableau side), Barn service tile, and oversized Courtship cards.

• Extended Play Round Track: The position of the National Holiday has been moved from round 17 to round 11 to make it relevant. It does not replace the original round track, which is needed for Standard Play.
• Barn Service Tile: The gardener reference was removed to avoid confusion. Replace the Barn tiles in 1st printing Obsession copies with the two provided in this expansion. Second printing Obsession copies do not need this upgrade.
• Large Courtship Cards: The cards have been enlarged to match the size of the objective cards for ease of use.