The Magnates: A Game of Power Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• 1. Components of the Game
• Board
• Family Cards
• Senator Cards
• Privilege Cards
• Conflict Cards
• King Markers
• Auxiliary Markers and Pawns
• Using Senator Cards and Privilege Cards and Estate Counters
• Marking Advantage and Dominance in a Province
• Actions
• 2. Game Preparation
• 3. Sequence of Play
• 4. Election of King
• 5. Senate
• 6. Sejm
• 7. Conflicts
  • Modifiers of Strength during the Examination of Conflicts
  • Winning a Conflict
  • Prizes for Winning a Conflict
  • Losing a Conflict
  • The Effects of Losing a Conflict
  • Undefeated Conflict Cards
  • Partitions
• 8. Interregnum
  • Third Partition
  • Establishing New Turn Order
• 9. The End of the Game and Determining the Winner
• Credits
• Rules Summary
  • Setup
  • Sequence of Play
  • The End of the Game

1. Components of the Game

The box of the game, in addition to this manual, includes:

• game board,
• 119 cards (65 Family cards, 4 Senator cards, 25 Privilege cards, 25 Conflict cards),
• 192 cardboard markers (175 Estates, 12 King markers, 5 Advantage/Dominance markers),
• 17 wooden pawns (5 Magnates, 5 Silent Sejm pawns, 1 Black Clouds pawn, 1 Fortress, 1 Monastery, 1 Palace, 3 Partition pawns),
• cardboard moulding and zipper bags for components.

Board

The board shows a map of the Commonwealth, together with the neighboring countries. It is surrounded by special spaces and tracks, which help players to run the game and to remember important principles.

The central position on the board is occupied by the Commonwealth, divided into 5 Provinces. Each of them is highlighted in a different color. These are: Prussia (Borussia) - gray, Lithuania (Lithuania) - blue, Ukraine (Ruthenia) - yellow, Little Poland (Polonia Minor) - red and Great Poland (Polonia Maior) - white. On the map, each Province is marked with the Latin name and its coat of arms.

The Commonwealth is surrounded by 5 neighboring Powers. Each of them is trying to affect one of the Provinces of the Commonwealth:

• Prussia - Brandenburg/Sweden,
• Lithuania - Moscow,
• Ukraine - Cossacks/Tatars,
• Little Poland - Ottoman Empire,
• Great Poland - Habsburg Empire.

Each of the neighboring Powers is represented on the board with 2 spaces for Conflict cards. They are marked with the coats of arms of the Powers and colors of the neighboring Provinces. For example: the Province of Lithuania and the spaces for the Conflict cards of Moscow have the same blue color, because they are adjacent to each other.

Moreover, the map includes Fiefs, which can be gained by players during play. One or two such Fiefs are linked with three Provinces: Lithuania has Livonia (Livonia) and Smolensk (Smolenscum); Little Poland has Moldova (Moldavia); Great Poland has Silesia (Silesia).

The board also includes a round track with 4 spaces to place the Kings reigning in the 4 successive rounds of the game. Its 4 spaces represent different periods in the history of the Commonwealth: Golden Age, Silver Age, Bronze Age, and Iron Age.

Below the round track is a turn order track, which shows the order in which players do various activities during various phases in a round. This turn order can change each round. Below that is a phase track to guide players through each phase of a round.

On the right of the round track there are spaces of the Senate and the Sejm - marked with symbols of Senators (mitre: Primate, key: Treasurer, mace: Hetman, seal: Chancellor) and acts of the Sejm. The 4 Senator cards and 5 Privilege cards for which the players compete in the Senate phase and the Sejm phase will be placed on these spaces.

The Privilege deck (marked with the coat of arms of the Commonwealth) and the deck of Conflict cards (marked with the drawing of crossed pistol and sabre) should be placed face down next to the board.

Family Cards

During the game, each player has a deck of cards of one lordly family (e.g. the deck of the Radziwiłł family, with black cards). They are a player's basic stock, used to build the family's power. Each deck of Family cards has 13 cards.

In each round of the game, each player will play all the cards from their Family deck:

• 3 Family cards to acquire Senator cards in the Senate,
• 5 Family cards to acquire Privilege cards in the Sejm,
• 5 Family cards to fight in Conflicts affecting the Commonwealth.

If by mistake a player does not play a Family card during a Senate, Sejm or Conflict phase, then the missing card is drawn at random from the cards still remaining in the hands of that player (if this happens in the Senate phase, this card is placed on a random Senator which does not yet have a card of that player). If a player plays too many Family cards in a given phase, then the excess card(s) is randomly selected from among the played ones and returns to the player.

A player decides which Family cards to use at a given moment - where to focus the strong cards with high values, and where to play the weak ones. At the end of the Interregnum phase, a player takes back all their played Family cards, so they will have a full deck of 13 cards again for the game's next round.

Family cards with Ladies have Influence of 10 and Strength of only 1. On the other cards, Influence and Strength are equal.

Family cards are always played face down (their value is unknown to the opponents). They are not revealed until resolving the specific Senator/Privilege/Conflict card next to which they were played.

Card notes: each Family card shows the common coat of arms of that Family deck, a Strength value, and an Influence value; a Lady card instead shows a name and short biography.

Senator Cards

Four Senator cards represent offices which can be taken in the Senate: Primate, Treasurer, Hetman, and Chancellor.

A Senator card indicates its possibilities: the number of Estates obtained by the player winning this card, a description or symbol of the action which can be taken with the card, and a symbol of a given character (mitre: Primate, key: Treasurer, mace: Hetman, seal: Chancellor).

The acquired Senator card remains in front of the player until he or she decides to use its actions, or until the end of the Interregnum phase, if the action is not used at all.

After using the action described on a given Senator card, the card should be set aside - therefore, an action from the Senator card can be used only once in a given round of the game (except for the Primate, whose action of breaking ties is continuous throughout the round).

During the Interregnum phase, all the Senator cards return to their spaces in the Senate on the board.

Card notes: each Senator card shows the King's policy symbol, the Office, the Number of Estates, and a Description of the action.

Privilege Cards

The Privilege cards represent opportunities arising from the Family's political maneuvering. Players earn Privilege cards in the Sejm. They are the most effective method of acquiring Estates, ownership of which will decide victory in the game.

A Privilege card indicates the number of Estates obtained by the player winning this card, a description or symbol of the action which can be taken with this card, and one of 4 symbols of the King's policy: sabre (military), chalice (religion), ducat (finance), and crown (power).

The card Constitution of May 3 is unique; it has all 4 symbols of the King's policy.

When a player wins a Privilege card, it remains face up in front of the player until he or she decides to use its action. After a player uses a Privilege card's action, it is removed from the game - therefore, it can be used only once during the entire game.

Card notes: each Privilege card shows the King's policy symbol, its Name, the Number of Estates, and a Description of the action.

Conflict Cards

In every round, players resolve Conflicts conducted by the Commonwealth. Players' efforts determine whether the country ends up partitioned, or maybe quite the opposite: the Commonwealth expands at the expense of the neighboring Powers. Winning Conflicts will be rewarded with additional Estates, and failure can lead to an Invasion on the Province and destruction of players' Estates.

A Conflict card shows its scale (graded according to the number of players in a given game), color of the attacked Province, and the effects of winning and losing the Conflict.

Card notes: each Conflict card shows its Name, its Attacked Province, Prizes for winning, Effects of losing, and a Scale for each player count (2 players, 3 players, 4 players, and 5 players).

King Markers

The King markers depict individual rulers of a given period in the history of the Commonwealth. One of the Symbols determining the dominant direction of the policy pursued by this ruler is assigned to each King. This symbol will have an impact on the number of Estates received by the players when gaining Senator/Privilege cards.

King markers have the color of the game's round (Golden, Silver, Bronze, Iron) to which they belong. They mark the successive rounds of the game.

Card notes: each King marker shows its Name, the King's policy symbol, and the Game's round color.

Auxiliary Markers and Pawns

These markers are used to mark various events on the board.

• Black Clouds - This pawn is placed on the board in the event of losing the Black Clouds Conflict.
• Buildings - These pawns are placed on the board when certain buildings are built via Privilege cards.
• Silent Sejm - These 5 pawns are placed on the board in the event of losing the Silent Sejm Conflict.
• Advantage/Dominance - These markers indicate which player (if any) currently has Advantage (Commodum), or Dominance (Dominatio) in a Province.
• Partition - A Partition pawn is placed in a partitioned (occupied by foreign power) Province.
• Estates - The Estate counters in player colors are used to mark Estates in Provinces and Fiefs acquired by players.
• Magnate pawns - The Magnate pawns are used for marking players' positions on the turn order track. Players cannot use other players' pawns, but in games with 2 or 3 players it may exceptionally happen that a player runs out of Estates in their own color. This player can then use another unused set of Estate counters.

Using Senator Cards and Privilege Cards and Estate Counters

Players acquire Senator cards and Privilege cards in order to receive new Estates and to be able to take actions indicated on them.

The Estates received by acquiring Senator/Privilege cards are immediately placed on the board by the players. The player must place all Estates obtained as a result of acquiring a given card in a single freely chosen Province (not partitioned) - they cannot be split between several Provinces.

Some Privilege cards restrict the choice for placing Estates to specific Provinces indicated on the cards (e.g. Vistula Grain Trade).

All the Senator/Privilege cards owned by players are visible to all other players.

Marking Advantage and Dominance in a Province

Whenever Estates are placed in or removed from a Province, players must check who has Advantage or Dominance in the Province. A player has Advantage in a Province when he or she has more Estates than each other player individually (i.e. plurality), and Dominance when he or she has more Estates than the combined sum of all other players' Estates (i.e. majority). Advantage or Dominance is marked by turning that side of the Province's Advantage/Dominance marker face up and placing it with an Estate of the player with Advantage/Dominance in that Province. If no one has Advantage/Dominance in a Province, then that Province's Advantage/Dominance marker is set away from all Estates.

Advantage/Dominance in Provinces will be important in determining the winner of the game.

Exception: In a 2 players game, to get Dominance in a Province a player needs to have at least two times more Estates than his opponent.

Actions

While settling Senate offices, acquiring Privilege cards, and fighting off Conflict cards, as well as at the beginning of the Interregnum phase, the players - in turn order as shown on the turn order track - declare whether they take actions from Senator/Privilege cards or pass. Each player can perform actions from one or more cards. To avoid confusion, it is recommended that the player who is the Primate ask other players in turn order whether they want to play any Senator/Privilege actions.

The action description on a Privilege card always specifies when a player can play it. For example, the VETO! card is played out of turn, interrupting in response to another player's action.

After a card's action is played, it is put aside (Senate cards) or removed from the game (Privilege cards). The player must place all Estates obtained in a given action in a single freely chosen Province (not partitioned), unless otherwise stated in description of the action.

Players can give owned Privilege cards to each other, treating them as a kind of currency in the game. This is possible at any time during the game. However, owned Senator cards cannot be given away.

2. Game Preparation

Example: A game of 3 players starts. The Lubomirski, Potocki and Sapieha families sit at the table. During setup, they randomize the initial turn order: Lubomirski is first, followed by Potocki, and Sapieha is third on the turn order track. Then each player places one initial Estate. Lubomirski places in Prussia, Potocki in Great Poland, and Sapieha in Lithuania.

The King markers are divided by the colors of their backs into 4 face down decks of 3 markers each. Each of them is shuffled separately and the players randomly select one marker from each of these decks. They are placed face down, with back colors corresponding to the 4 spaces of the round track. The other markers are put back into the box unrevealed - they are not used in the game.

The deck of Conflict cards is shuffled and put face down near the board.

The deck of Privilege cards is shuffled and put face down near the board.

The Senator cards are placed on the corresponding spaces of the Senate, face up.

Each player receives a deck of cards of their selected Family and Estate counters and a Magnate pawn of the same color.

One Advantage/Dominance marker should be placed in each Province.

The remaining pawns should be placed next to the board.

Then, the oldest player takes a Magnate pawn from each player and places them in random order on the turn order track, thereby establishing the turn order for the first round of the game.

Then each player, in turn order, places one of their own Estate counters in a freely chosen Province (which may containing another player's Estate).

3. Sequence of Play

The game lasts 4 rounds, each of which represents one period in the history of the Commonwealth (according to the ancient division: from the golden age, through the silver, bronze, to the iron age: the fall of the Commonwealth).

Each round consists of the following phases:

• Election of King (Electio),
• Senate (Senatus),
• Sejm (Sejm),
• Conflicts (Conflicti),
• Interregnum (Interregnum).

Players play in turn order during each phase of each round of the game. After completion of the Interregnum phase, they begin the next round. When they finish the Interregnum phase in the fourth and final round of the game, they do not start the next round, but make the final counts of their Wealth, to determine the winner of the game.

4. Election of King

The first player reveals the King marker for the current round on the round track and exclaims:

Long live the King!

Example continued: Players begin the first round of the game. It is the first phase: Election of King. The person playing Lubomirski reveals the King marker on the first (gold) space of the round track: Stefan Batory (Symbol: sabre).

5. Senate

Each player, in turn order, places one of their own Family cards face down below 3 of the 4 spaces with Senator cards to clearly show which 3 of the 4 the player wants (Primate, Treasurer, Hetman, or Chancellor). A player may not place more than 1 card below a given Senator.

Then, the players establish which of them takes each office. Starting from the Primate, the players reveal all the Family cards played at the office, and then, in turn order, declare Privilege card actions or pass. The player who placed the Family card with the largest modified Influence value wins the Senator card and places it in front of him or her.

Ties in Influence for the Primate are resolved in favor of the player who is later in the turn order.

This procedure is repeated for the 3 remaining offices in order (Treasurer, Hetman, Chancellor). Players resolve the Senator cards one after the other. All other possible ties in values of Influence are decided by the player who has the Primate.

Every time a player gets a Senator card, he or she immediately puts one Estate in one chosen Province (not partitioned).

If the acquired Senator card has the same Symbol as the revealed King marker, it allows placing two Estates.

Each player's 3 Family cards used in this round are set aside, unavailable for the rest of this round.

In a rare situation where no player played a card on a given Senator, then simply no player takes that Senator.

Exception: If no one played a card on the Primate, then the last player in turn order receives it - but does not get to place Estates from receiving the card this way.

Example continued: Time for the second phase - Senate. Lubomirski plays one Family card each for Hetman (because it has the same Symbol as the revealed King marker and will be worth 2 Estates, instead of 1), Primate, and Treasurer. Potocki plays one Family card each for Hetman, Treasurer and Primate, and Sapieha for Primate, Hetman and Chancellor.

First, the players resolve the Primate. Players reveal the 3 cards there and it turns out that Lubomirski played 10 and Potocki and Sapieha both played 12. The Senator card is taken by Sapieha, because this player is later in the turn order than Potocki, winning the tie. Sapieha immediately places 1 Estate on the board, choosing Lithuania.

Next is Treasurer. Players reveal the 2 cards there: Lubomirski played 8, and Potocki 11. Potocki takes the Senator card and immediately places 1 Estate on the board, also choosing Lithuania.

Next is Hetman. Players reveal the 3 cards there: Lubomirski and Potocki played 14, and Sapieha 11. Sapieha, as Primate, decides that Lubomirski wins the tie, because Potocki has already gained one Senator card. Lubomirski takes the Hetman card and places 2 Estates in one single Province, choosing Great Poland.

Next is Chancellor. There is only 1 card: Sapieha's. It has value 2, because Sapieha, as the last one playing for that space, knew that a weak card was enough to win the office. Sapieha takes the card and places one Estate, choosing Ukraine.

6. Sejm

At the beginning of the Sejm phase, one Privilege card from the Privilege deck must be placed on each of the 5 Sejm spaces (i.e. on the 4 now empty Senate spaces and on the fifth space, marked with the act of the Sejm). The cards are placed face upward, so that all players can read them.

Then each player places exactly 1 Family card face down next to each of the 5 Sejm spaces. Players do this simultaneously.

Then players resolve the 5 Privilege cards one by one, in order from left to right, to see who gains each card.

To resolve a Privilege card, reveal the Family cards played there. In turn order, players may then declare actions from their Senator/Privilege cards or pass.

The player who played the Family card with the highest modified Influence gains the given Privilege card and places it in front of him or her. Ties in Influence are decided by the player with the Primate.

Every time a player gets a Privilege card, he or she immediately places Estates, in the number specified by the Privilege card, in one single selected Province (not partitioned).

If the acquired Privilege card has the same Symbol as the current King, it is worth one Estate more.

Each player's 5 Family cards used in this round are set aside, unavailable for the rest of this round.

Example continued: Players begin the third phase - Sejm. They deal 5 cards from the Privilege deck face up onto the 5 Sejm spaces. The drawn cards are: Jesuit schools, Private duchy, Surrender, Bishopric, Tribunal. Each player plays 5 Family cards, face down, one below each Sejm space.

Then they resolve the Privileges in order, starting with Jesuit schools. The Family cards there are revealed: Lubomirski played 9, Potocki 13, and Sapieha 10. Potocki would take this card, but Sapieha decides to play the Chancellor card to add 3 to their own Influence, tying with 13. Then, as the Primate, Sapieha decides the tie in their own favor, taking Jesuit schools and placing 2 Estates in Ukraine. The used Chancellor card is set aside for rest of the round.

For Private duchy, the revealed Family cards are: Lubomirski 13, Potocki 4, Sapieha 4. Lubomirski takes this card and places one Estate in Little Poland.

For Surrender, the Family cards are: Lubomirski 2, Potocki 9, Sapieha 7. Sapieha could use Jesuit schools to raise their Influence by 1, but it is not enough to defeat Potocki. Potocki takes the Surrender card. It gives no Estates, but it has the same symbol as the current King, so Potocki does place 1 Estate (choosing Lithuania).

For Bishopric, the players played: Lubomirski 7, Potocki 8, Sapieha 14. Sapieha takes this card and puts 2 Estates in Little Poland.

For Tribunal, the players played: Lubomirski 3, Potocki 7, Sapieha 9. Sapieha takes this card and places 2 Estates in Lithuania.

7. Conflicts

The first player in turn order reveals the top card from the Conflict deck. The revealed card goes onto one of the 2 Power spaces in its color. If both spaces are available, the card should be placed on the first one, looking clockwise. (Note: The different coats of arms on the Brandenburg/Sweden and Cossacks/Tatars spaces are only a decorative element, without functional game meaning.)

If the first space for the card is already occupied, then the card goes into the second space.

If both spaces of the given Conflict color are occupied, then put its card back to the deck, reshuffle it and draw a new Conflict card. Conflict cards are drawn and placed in this way until there are 5 Conflict cards on the board.

If some Power spaces are occupied by Conflict cards from the previous round, then fewer than 5 new cards are drawn.

Each player then places exactly 1 Family card face down next to each of the 5 revealed Conflict cards. Players do this simultaneously.

Then each Conflict is resolved in order (clockwise, according to the Roman numerals: starting with Moscow, and ending with Brandenburg/Sweden).

To resolve a Conflict, the Family cards played there are revealed. In turn order, players may declare Senator/Privilege actions (e.g. using Hetman to raise one's Family card Strength by 3) or pass.

A given Conflict may be won or lost. The effect is applied before resolving the next Conflict.

Modifiers of Strength during the Examination of Conflicts

While resolving a Conflict, the players must remember possible Strength modifiers resulting from pawns located in a given Province. The Black Clouds and Silent Sejm pawns will reduce the total Strength of Family cards by 2 points, and various building pawns add from 1 to 3 points.

For every Fief related to this Province which has an Estate, add 1 point to the total Strength of the Family cards played by the players.

Example: Livonia is a Polish fief (worth +1), and a Silent Sejm pawn (-2) and Fortress pawn (+3) are in Lithuania. The final modifier to the total Strength of Family cards played while examining the Conflict card in Lithuania is therefore +2.

Example: Losing the Conflict "Silent Sejm" modifies the scale of all following Conflicts.

Ties in Strength of Family cards are decided by the player with the Primate.

Winning a Conflict

A Conflict is won if the modified total Strength of all players' Family cards in the Conflict is greater than or equal to the scale of the Conflict. In this case, the player who played the Family card with the highest modified Strength wins the prize indicated on the Conflict card. The Primate decides ties.

The Conflict card is then removed from the game.

If winning a Conflict lets a player place an Estate, then it must be placed in a Province of that Conflict's color (even if it is partitioned).

If winning a Conflict gives a Fief to a player, then the player puts an Estate in this Fief, unless the corresponding Province is currently partitioned.

Prizes for Winning a Conflict

Acquiring a Fief - the player places an Estate in the Fief indicated by the card, unless the related Province is partitioned.

Acquiring an Estate - the player places an Estate in a Province of the Conflict's color, even if it is partitioned.

Losing a Conflict

A Conflict is lost, if the total modified Strength of all players' Family cards in the Conflict is lower than the scale of the Conflict. In this case, the Conflict's effects for loss are applied.

If the Province of the Conflict's color has a Fief (i.e. it already has a player's Estate), then (in addition to specific Conflict card effects) the Estate of the player located in this Fief (or Fiefs, in case of Lithuania) must be removed.

An undefeated Conflict card remains in the game, in its current Power space. A Province with at least one undefeated Conflict is considered partitioned.

The Effects of Losing a Conflict

Invasion (in one or several Provinces) - In the Province of the Conflict card's color (and possibly in other Provinces, whose coats of arms are indicated on the card), each player loses 1 Estate (if they have any). In addition, the player who played the Family card with the lowest modified Strength loses one additional Estate in the Conflict's Province (if they have any).

Losing a Privilege card - The player who played the Family card with the lowest modified Strength loses one Privilege card of his choosing (if they have any).

Black Clouds - The Black Clouds pawn should be placed in the Province of Prussia. From that moment until the end of the game, the total Strength of Family cards played to resolve a Conflict in this Province is reduced by 2.

Silent Sejm - A Silent Sejm pawn is placed in each Province. From that moment until the end of the game, the total Strength of Family cards played to resolve a Conflict in each Province is reduced by 2.

Undefeated Conflict Cards

If, after resolving all Conflicts, a given Power still has 2 Conflict cards, then the card with lower scale is removed from the game. The Primate decides ties. Thus at the beginning of the Interregnum phase, each Power will have at most one Conflict card.

Partitions

Provinces which have undefeated Conflict cards in their color receive a Partition marker. A partitioned Province can receive no Estates due to acquiring or using Senator/Privilege cards, and the Treasurer cannot be used on them. An Estate may still be placed there due to winning a Conflict, but a Fief cannot be gained.

When there are no longer Conflict cards in that Province's color, the Partition marker is removed from the Province.

Example continued: Players begin the fourth phase - Conflicts. 5 Conflict cards are dealt face up to Power spaces. They are: Habsburg Queen (Great Poland), Tatar Invasion (Ukraine), Cossack Rebellion (Ukraine), Abazy Pasha War (again Ukraine - therefore, it is not placed on the board, but shuffled back to the deck of Conflicts and a new card is drawn in its place), Livonian War (Lithuania), Ottoman War (Little Poland).

The players play 5 Family cards at the same time, one next to each Conflict card. Then, they begin to resolve Conflicts, starting from Livonian War. Lubomirski and Potocki each played 6 and Sapieha 8. The sum of the Family card Strengths is 20, and the scale of Conflict is 21, therefore, the players would lose this Conflict, but Lubomirski plays Hetman to add 3 to his own Strength. Next in order, Potocki could play Surrender to reduce his own Strength by 3 and deprive Lubomirski of the benefit of the won Conflict, but chooses not to, because then Potocki would lose 2 Estates in Lithuania (all players would lose 1, but having played the lowest Strength would make Potocki lose an extra Estate).

So the players' total modified Strength is 23 and the Conflict in Lithuania is won. Lubomirski contributed the most Strength (9) and so receives a Fief in Livonia and places an Estate there. Finally, the Livonian War card is removed from the game.

Next is Tatar Invasion. The revealed Family cards are: Lubomirski 5, Potocki 1 (Lady: Strength 1 and Influence 10), Sapieha 13. The total Strength is 19, and the Conflict scale is 21 - the players will not win this Conflict. (Potocki wanted it to be lost and so deliberately played the low-strength Lady.) The Invasion occurs in Ukraine and in Little Poland. Sapieha loses one Estate in each of these Provinces and Lubomirski one in Little Poland. Potocki played the Family card with the lowest Strength, but does not suffer this additional effect, because there is no Potocki Estate in Ukraine.

For Cossack Rebellion, the players played: Lubomirski 4, Potocki 2, Sapieha 6. The total Strength is 12, and the scale of Conflict is 21 - the players do not win the Conflict. The Invasion takes place in Ukraine - Sapieha loses another Estate there. Potocki played the Family card with the lowest Strength, but again has no Estate to lose from that penalty.

For Ottoman War, the players played: Lubomirski 11, Potocki 3, Sapieha 5. The total Strength is 19, and the scale of Conflict is 24 - the players do not win this Conflict. The Invasion occurs in Little Poland. Sapieha loses another Estate there. Potocki again contributed the lowest Strength but has no Estate to lose in Little Poland.

For Habsburg Queen, the players played: Lubomirski 12, Potocki 5, Sapieha 3. The total Strength is 20, and the scale of Conflict is 18 - the players win this Conflict. Even though Potocki could play Surrender to reduce their Strength by 3 and lose the Conflict, Potocki chooses not to, since the Third Partition would mean the collective defeat of all the players.

Thus, the Conflict in Great Poland is won, and Lubomirski is awarded with a Fief in Silesia and places an Estate there. The Conflict card Habsburg Queen is removed from the game.

There are two Conflict cards in Ukraine with scale 21, so Sapieha (holding the Primate) decides that Tatar Invasion is removed from the game. The Conflict phase ends with two Provinces having Partition markers (Ukraine and Little Poland).

At this point, players have played all their Family cards.

8. Interregnum

Now the first player removes from the game the current King marker (which was revealed in the Election phase) and declares:

The King is dead!

Then, the players check if the Third Partition takes place and they all lose.

Third Partition

In the Interregnum phase, if spaces of at least 3 different Powers have undefeated Conflict cards, i.e. at least 3 Provinces are partitioned, then the game ends in defeat of all the players - the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth has become partitioned by its neighbors. Players do not count up Estates and Victory Points - all players have lost, and their Families will live in infamy for contributing to the collapse of the Homeland.

If the Third Partition does not take place, then players - in turn order - have a final chance to play Senator/Privilege card actions.

Example continued: During the Interregnum phase, Lubomirski plays the Private duchy card's action. Since Lubomirski dominates in two Provinces (Prussia, Great Poland), he gets another Estate, and places it in Lithuania. The Privilege card is then removed from the game. Potocki plays the Treasurer card and replaces Lubomirski's Estate in Prussia with Potocki's own. This could not be done, for example, to Sapieha's Estate in Ukraine, since Ukraine is partitioned, nor with the Lubomirski's Estate in Silesia or in Livonia, because they are Fiefs. The Senator card is then set aside for next round.

Example continued: If, in the Conflict phase, Potocki had decided to play a Surrender action card while dealing with the Livonian War, then this Conflict would have been lost, and therefore, in the Interregnum phase 3 Provinces would be partitioned, causing the end of the game. But, fortunately for the Homeland, the player decided not to do this... Similarly Potocki chose not to end the game in shared loss with the Third Partition during the Conflict in Great Poland, because the player still felt able to win.

The players were balanced on the edge of total disaster - apparently they kept too weak cards to fight the Conflicts threatening the Commonwealth. Or maybe it was all Potocki's fault for sabotaging the defense of Ukraine and Little Poland, just to destroy Sapieha's Estates there?

Establishing New Turn Order

Then, players count up currently held Estates on the board (both in Provinces and Fiefs) to determine the new turn order, starting with the player with the largest number of Estates. Any ties are decided by the Primate. Advantage/Dominance in Provinces does not matter when counting here.

Finally, the players take back all of their Family cards which were played this round. All Senator cards return to their spaces on the Senate track. Players retain their unplayed Privilege cards.

Example continued: At the end of the round, the players count up their Estates. Lubomirski has 5 (Livonia, Silesia, Lithuania, Great Poland ×2), Potocki 4 (Prussia, Great Poland, Lithuania ×2), and Sapieha 5 (Ukraine, Lithuania ×4). Therefore, Lubomirski remains first on the turn order track, as Sapieha declares in tie, that he will be second, and Potocki falls to third, because Potocki has the smallest number of Estates.

9. The End of the Game and Determining the Winner

If the Third Partition does not occur, then the game ends in the Interregnum phase of the fourth round.

First, players count owned Estates in Provinces and Fiefs. Each Estate is worth 1 Wealth. Then, each player adds bonus Wealth as follows:

• • 3 for each Province with more Estates than all the other players together (Dominance = majority);
• • 2 for each Province with more Estates than any other player (Advantage = plurality), but no Dominance;
• • 1 for each Province with an Estate (presence), but no Dominance or Advantage;
• • 1 for every Fief a player owns.

Exception: In a 2 players game, to get Dominance in a Province a player needs to have at least two times more Estates than his opponent.

Wealth is gained from unpartitioned and partitioned Provinces alike.

Then, the players holding Privilege cards giving Wealth at the end of the game (e.g. Constitution of 3 May) add them to their total score, if the cards' conditions are met.

Whoever has the most Wealth wins. A tie is decided by the player holding the Primate in the last round.

Example: Blue has 3 Wealth from Estates and +1 Wealth for presence in Little Poland and +1 Wealth for presence in Great Poland (altogether 5 Wealth). Similarly for Black and White (5 Wealth). Yellow has 4 Wealth for Estates and +2 Wealth for Advantage in Little Poland and +1 Wealth for presence in Ukraine (altogether 7 Wealth). Red has 5 Wealth from Estates and +2 Wealth for Advantage in Ukraine, +1 Wealth for presence in Little Poland and +1 Wealth for presence in Great Poland (altogether 9 Wealth). If Red would have had 4 Estates in Ukraine, it would have given Dominance there: +3 Wealth, instead of +2 Wealth for Advantage.

Credits

• Design: Jaro Andruszkiewicz and Waldek Gumienny
• Development: Michał Ozon
• Graphics: Piotr Słaby, Urszula Odulińska, Andrzej Gosik, Jan Matejko and others.
• Box cover illustration: Jarosław Nocoń
• Proofreading: Russ Williams.
• Playtesters: www.planszowe.opole.pl and various kind folks at: Festiwal Fantastyki Pyrkon, Festiwal Gramy, Gralicja, Gratislavia, Kociakołyska, Łódzki Port Gier, Pionek, Przystanek Historia, Ropczycki Klub Gier Planszowych and others.
• Pictures: public domain.
• Historical notes based on the Wikipedia: www.wikipedia.org

The game was published thanks to crowdfunding campaign on the www.wspieram.to/magnaci portal.

Rules Summary

A condensed quick-reference version of the rules above, as printed at the back of the manual.

Setup

Each player takes a deck of cards and Estate counters and a Magnate pawn of the same color.

Divide the King markers into 4 face down decks by color, shuffled separately. Randomly select one marker from each of these decks and place it face down, on the corresponding space of the round track.

Shuffle Conflict cards and Privilege cards into 2 face down decks near the board.

Place the Senator cards face up onto their corresponding Senate spaces.

Place one Advantage/Dominance marker in each Province.

Place a Magnate pawn of each player in random order on the turn order track, establishing the turn order for the first round of the game.

Each player, in turn order, places one of their own Estate counters in a freely chosen Province.

Whenever Estates are placed in or removed from a Province, players must check who has Advantage or Dominance in the Province. A player has Advantage in a Province when he has more Estates than each other player individually, and Dominance when he has more Estates than the combined sum of all other players' Estates. (In a 2-player game, a player needs to have at least twice as many Estates than his opponent.) Advantage or Dominance is marked by turning that side of the Province's Advantage/Dominance marker face up and placing it with an Estate of the player with Advantage/Dominance in that Province.

Sequence of Play

The game lasts 4 rounds, each round consists of the following phases:

Election of King - The first player reveals the King marker for the current round on the round track.

Senate - Each player, in turn order, places one of their own Family cards face down below 3 of the 4 spaces with Senator cards.

Then, starting from the Primate, the players reveal all the Family cards played at the office, and then, in turn order, declare Privilege card actions or pass. The player who placed the Family card with the largest modified Influence value wins the Senator card.

Ties in Influence for the Primate are resolved in favor of the player who is later in the turn order.

This procedure is repeated for the 3 remaining offices. All later ties are decided by the player who has the Primate.

Every time a player gets a Senator card, he immediately puts one Estate (two, if the Senator card has the same Symbol as the current King) in one chosen Province (not partitioned).

Sejm - One Privilege card from the Privilege deck is placed face up on each of the 5 Sejm spaces. Then each player places 1 Family card face down next to each of the 5 Sejm spaces. Players do this simultaneously.

Then players resolve the 5 Privilege cards one by one, in order from left to right, revealing the Family cards played there. In turn order, players may then declare actions from their Senator/Privilege cards or pass.

The player who played the Family card with the highest modified Influence gains the given Privilege card. Ties are decided by the Primate.

Every time a player gets a Privilege card, he immediately places Estates, in the number specified by the Privilege card (plus one if the acquired Privilege card has the same Symbol as the current King), in one single selected Province (not partitioned).

Conflicts - Players reveal the top card from the Conflict deck. The revealed card goes onto one of the 2 Power spaces in its color. If both spaces of the given Conflict color are occupied, then put its card back to the deck, reshuffle it and draw a new card. Draw and place cards in this way until there are 5 Conflict cards on the board.

Each player then places 1 Family card face down next to each of the 5 revealed Conflict cards. Players do this simultaneously. Then each Conflict is resolved in order according to the Roman numerals (from Moscow to Brandenburg/Sweden).

To resolve a Conflict, reveal the Family cards played there. In turn order, players may declare Senator/Privilege actions or pass. A given Conflict may be won or lost. The effect is applied before resolving the next Conflict. Ties in Strength of Family cards are decided by the Primate.

A Conflict is won if the modified total Strength of all players' Family cards in the Conflict is greater than or equal to the scale of the Conflict. Otherwise it is lost. The Black Clouds and Silent Sejm pawns reduce the total Strength of Family cards by 2 points; building pawns add: 1 (Monastery), 2 (Palace), 3 (Fortress) points and every Fief related to this Province which has an Estate adds 1 point.

Winning a Conflict - The player who played the Family card with the highest modified Strength wins the prize indicated on the Conflict card. The Conflict card is then removed from the game.

If winning a Conflict lets a player place an Estate, then it must be placed in a Province of that Conflict's color (even if it is partitioned), and if it gives a Fief to a player, then the player puts an Estate in this Fief, unless the corresponding Province is currently partitioned.

Losing a Conflict - Invasion - in the Province of the Conflict card's color (also in other Provinces, whose coats of arms are indicated on the card), each player loses 1 Estate. In addition, the player who played the Family card with the lowest modified Strength loses one additional Estate in the Conflict's Province.

Losing a Privilege card - the player who played the Family card with the lowest modified Strength loses one Privilege card of his choosing.

Black Clouds - the Black Clouds pawn should be placed in the Province of Prussia. Silent Sejm - a Silent Sejm pawn is placed in each Province.

If the Province of the Conflict's color has a Fief then the Estate of the player located in this Fief (or Fiefs) must be removed.

An undefeated Conflict card remains in the game, in its current space. If, after resolving all Conflicts, a given Province still has 2 Conflict cards, then the card with lower scale is removed from the game. The Primate decides ties.

A Province with an undefeated Conflict is considered partitioned. A partitioned Province can receive no Estates due to acquiring or using Senator/Privilege cards, and the Treasurer cannot be used on them.

Interregnum - The current King marker is removed from the game.

If at least 3 different Provinces have a Partition marker, then the game ends in defeat of all the players. Otherwise players have a final chance to play Senator/Privilege card actions (in turn order).

Then, players count up their Estates on the board (in Provinces and Fiefs) to determine the new turn order, starting with the player with the largest number of Estates. Ties are decided by the Primate.

Finally, the players take back all of their Family cards. All Senator cards return to their spaces on the Senate track.

The End of the Game

The game ends in the Interregnum phase of the fourth round. Players count owned Estates in Provinces and Fiefs. Each Estate is worth 1 Wealth. Then, each player adds bonus Wealth:

• • 3 for each Province with his Dominance;
• • 2 for each Province with his Advantage;
• • 1 for each Province with his Estate, but no Dominance or Advantage;
• • 1 for every Fief the player owns;
• • Privilege cards giving Wealth at the end of the game, if the cards' conditions are met.

Whoever has the most Wealth wins. A tie is decided by the player holding the Primate in the last round.