War on Terror: The Boardgame Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview
  • 1. Humble Beginnings
  • 2. Take it in Turns
  • 3. It's All About Oil
  • 4. Keeping the Peace
  • 5. Terrorism: Problem or Solution?
  • 6. Winning the War on Terror
• What's in the Box
• The Basics
  • The Board
  • Playing Counters
  • Oil Counters
  • Dice
  • Cards
  • Radiation Counters
  • Secret Message Pad
• Preparation
• Set-Up Round
• An Empire Player's Turn
  • 1. Roll Action Die
  • 2. "Play"
  • 3. Buy Terrorists
  • 4. Draw 2 Free Cards
  • 5. Roll Oil Dice
• Outside Your Turn
• Developments
  • Development Costs
• Bankruptcy
• The Axis of Evil
• Cards
• Fighting
• Terrorists
  • Terrorist Unit Costs
  • Indigenous Terrorists
• Turning Terrorist
• A Terrorist Player's Turn
  • 1. Roll Action Die
  • 2. "Play"
  • 3. Buy Terrorists
  • 4. Draw 2 Free Cards
  • 5. Roll Oil Dice
• Winning the Game
  • Empire Victory
  • Terrorist Victory
  • World Peace
• Card Appendix
  • Free Development
  • Global Jihad
  • God's On My Side
  • Nuclear Bunker
  • Nuclear Weapons
  • Terrorist Attack
  • Terrorist Movement
  • War

Overview

1. Humble Beginnings

You start the game as a modest empire determined to liberate the world from the clutches of terrorism - and the threat posed by other empires. (Set-up Round)

But, surprise surprise, if you get knocked out, you play as the terrorists - and as more empires get knocked out, they join you as the terrorist force. You can also choose to turn terrorist - yes, even in the first round if you want. (Turning Terrorist)

2. Take it in Turns

A turn always follows the same structure: roll the Action Die to find out how many developments you can build; then the bulk of your turn will typically be a mixture of developing, playing cards and trading. You can then choose to fund terrorism, collect two free cards and roll the Oil Dice to finish your turn. (An Empire Player's Turn)

3. It's All About Oil

Most money comes from oil. Each country contains an Oil Counter, which - when turned over - shows the oil number for that country. Some Oil Counters are blank and some reveal Indigenous Terrorists. (Oil Counters)

Larger developments are stronger defensively and earn you more oil money. So build upwards in oil-rich countries and you'll soon be wealthy enough to buy powerful friends. (Developments)

4. Keeping the Peace

You can play any card in your hand during your turn. A card may help your empire or may hinder another. Once played, cards are discarded to the bottom of the correct deck. (Cards)

Roughly half the cards involve some sort of aggression - mainly War or Terrorist Attack. If you have a score to settle, you'll more than likely use these cards first, but there are many less belligerent options. It all depends on context. (Card Appendix)

5. Terrorism: Problem or Solution?

They can be your best friend when you need a job doing and your worst enemy when the tables are turned. Once on the board, terrorist units are anyone's to use. They are largely a latent threat, until triggered by a relevant card. (Terrorists)

Since terrorism is cheaper, often more effective and more flexible than traditional combat, the temptation to fund it can be strong. The only drawback is that you'll eventually have to fight the terrorists you funded.

6. Winning the War on Terror

To win as an Empire, you need to secure a certain amount of Liberation Points. You get these by controlling continents and by building Cities. (Winning the Game)

To win as a Terrorist Player, you also need to secure Liberation Points. You get these by taking control of entire continents.

What's in the Box

• 1 World Map Board
• 1 Rules of Engagement (this booklet)
• 1 Action Die
• 2 Oil Dice
• 1 'Evil' Balaclava
• 1 Secret Message Pad
• 1 'Axis of Evil' Spinner
• 61 Empire Cards
• 48 Terrorist Cards
• 55 Oil Counters
• 6 sets of (coloured) Empire counters: 20 Villages, 6 Towns and 6 Cities each
• 1 set of (black) Terrorist units: 40 Terrorist Vanguards, 20 Terrorist Columns and 15 Terrorist Cells
• 6 Radiation Counters
• 120 'World Bank of Capitalism' Bank Notes

The Basics

The Board

The board is based upon a map of the world, divided into 7 continents and 49 countries. Some countries are joined by sea routes. Wherever 'bordering' countries are referred to in the game, this includes those countries linked by a sea route.

Playing Counters

The six colours of playing counter are Empire developments. The black counters are terrorist units. The counters come in three sizes, small, medium and large: Villages/Terrorist Vanguards, Towns/Terrorist Columns, and Cities/Terrorist Cells.

Oil Counters

Every country has an Oil Counter. Oil Counters have a number from 2 to 12 on the face side and represent the oil potential of the country they're in.

Some Oil Counters are blank, which represent an oil barren country. Some Oil Counters reveal the presence of an Indigenous Terrorist Column (see Terrorists).

Oil Counters are turned over when a country is developed for the first time, revealing the oil number for that country.

Dice

There are two types of dice: two regular six-sided dice for use in combat and rolling for oil (sometimes referred to as 'Oil Dice'), and one Action Die, showing the numbers 2 to 4 and various action symbols.

Cards

There are two decks of cards, one for each type of player - Empire cards and Terrorist cards.

Radiation Counters

Some cards result in a Radiation Counter being placed in a country. You cannot develop beyond a Village, nor do you receive oil revenue, in radioactive countries.

Secret Message Pad

A surprisingly important element in War on Terror, secret messages can be written and received at any time. Use them to spread fear and paranoia or strike temporary alliances with other players.

Some cards require you to divulge your secret messages, so be careful what you write.

Preparation

• Shuffle both Empire and Terrorist cards and place the decks face down on the board.
• Set up the Axis of Evil. Get out the Evil Balaclava and Secret Message Pad ready for use.
• Randomly pick 49 Oil Counters, include at least one Indigenous Terrorist Oil Counter, shuffle face down and place one in each country.
• One player should take responsibility for the World Bank, the other players should keep an eye on them.
• Depending on the number of players, each Empire starts the game with:

Players	Start with the following
3 or 4 Players	3 Villages, 300m in cash and 3 Empire cards
5 or 6 Players	2 Villages, 200m in cash and 2 Empire cards

Set-Up Round

• Players roll two dice; highest goes first.
• Moving anti-clockwise around the board, each Empire places all their starting Villages at once, anywhere on the board. Only one development can exist per country.
• Oil Counters are turned over in these newly-developed countries.
• The last Empire to place their starting Villages then starts the game with the first full turn.
• Order of play is now clockwise.
• There is no attacking allowed in the first full turn.

An Empire Player's Turn

There are two types of player: Empires and Terrorists. At the start of the game, everyone is an Empire.

Every turn follows the same structure:

1. Roll Action Die

The number rolled on the Action Die determines how many developments an Empire is allowed to build during their turn. If you roll an action symbol, act on it immediately: collect an additional card, shuffle the card deck, or spin the Axis of Evil.

2. "Play"

During the main part of their turn, in any order, Empires may:

• Buy up to 2 additional Empire cards at 50m each.
• Play any amount of cards they hold in their hand.
• Develop up to the amount of developments indicated by the Action Die. (Developments)
• Place any terrorists from their Training Camp anywhere on the board.

3. Buy Terrorists

Players may buy terrorists from the World Bank. These terrorists are held off the board in your 'Training Camp' and cannot be used until your next turn. (Terrorists)

4. Draw 2 Free Cards

Draw two free Empire cards.

5. Roll Oil Dice

Players roll the oil dice to finish their turn. All Empires with a development in a country bearing a matching oil number receive oil revenue, unless it's blocked by a Radiation Counter or stolen by a terrorist Cell.

Example: Player A rolls a 9. Player B has two Towns on a 9 and gets 200m, Player C has a Village on a 9 and gets 50m. Player A has no developments on a 9 and gets nothing.

Outside Your Turn

At any stage in the game, players may:

• Send secret messages to other players.
• Barter, haggle and trade with other players.
• Remove any amount of their own developments from the board.
• Turn Terrorist. (Turning Terrorist)

Developments

• Developments come in three sizes: Villages, Towns and Cities.

• Only one development can exist per country.

• The Action Die determines the number of developments Empires can build in their turn.

• Empires can only develop in a country that borders a country they already occupy.

• Sea Routes cost money to develop across. The amounts are written on the board.

• When developing in a previously undeveloped country, develop first, then turn over the Oil Counter.

• No developments are allowed in a country that contains a terrorist Column or Cell.

• You can only develop Villages in countries containing Radioactive Counters.

• Building a development is classed as placing a new development or upgrading an existing development.

• Villages, Towns and Cities must be developed in this order.

• You can build Towns and Cities direct, using one development, but you must pay the incremental cost.

  Example: Player A rolls a 3 on the Action Die, upgrades directly from a Village to a City and pays the corresponding price of a Town plus a City (150m). Player A still has two developments left.

• At any time, if a card isn't being played against them, an Empire may remove any number of their developments from the board. This is sometimes a worthwhile diplomatic tactic. Empires cannot remove their last development.

• The number of Cities is deliberately limited in the game to prevent Empires gaining too many Liberation Points from Cities alone. Build Cities wisely.

Development Costs

Development	Build Cost	Oil Revenue
Village	25m	50m
Town	50m	100m
City	100m	200m

Bankruptcy

Certain cards require an Empire to pay out money to another player or to the World Bank. If an Empire doesn't have enough money to cover the debt, this is the only time they can sell developments.

The Empire can remove any number of developments and recoup the cost of the development.

Example: A Town may be removed from the board, leaving the country empty and 50m is collected from the World Bank.

If an Empire doesn't have enough money to cover the debt after selling developments, trading etc., they are bankrupt and become a Terrorist Player. (Turning Terrorist)

The Axis of Evil

Occasionally the Action Die or a card instructs the Axis of Evil to be spun. When the Axis ends up pointing to a playing colour, that Empire is 'evil' until the Axis is spun again.

• The moment the Axis of Evil points to a playing colour, that Empire receives 2 free Terrorist cards.
• Evil Empires must wear the Evil Balaclava for the duration of their evil spell.
• For every card played against the Evil Empire, the attacker receives 50m from the World Bank.
• Evil Empires play exactly as normal Empires, with the following exception: when drawing or buying cards they can choose from both Empire and Terrorist decks.

Cards

• Empire players can only draw cards from the Empire deck.
• Terrorist players can only draw cards from the Terrorist deck.
• Evil Empires can draw cards from either deck.
• Any number of cards can be played during your turn.
• Once a card is played, it is returned to the bottom of the relevant deck.
• Any card in your hand can be played. Empires can play Terrorist cards and Terrorists can play Empire cards.
• Players receive 2 free cards per turn, at the end of their turn.
• Players may buy up to 2 extra cards per turn at 50m each.
• Some cards have important additional information, detailed within the Card Appendix.

Fighting

Almost half of the Empire and Terrorist cards are made up of War and Terrorist Attack cards. These cards (and a few others) enable you to fight and expand your territory.

All combat cards work on the same principle: rolling two dice to try and get a successful strike number, as shown on the card. See the Card Appendix for full details.

Terrorists

• Any player, including Empires, can buy terrorists or take advantage of bought terrorists on the board.

• Terrorists can only be bought after the 'Play' phase of your turn has finished.

• Terrorists are held off the board, referred to as having terrorists in your 'Training Camp'.

• Empires can place terrorists from their Training Camp anywhere on the board.

• Terrorist Players can only place within or bordering the existing Terrorist Network. (Terrorist Movement)

• More than one terrorist unit can occupy a country.

  When fighting terrorism, you must fight each Column or Cell in a country individually. Groups of up to 5 Vanguards are treated as a single unit for attack purposes. Multiple terrorist units in one country can be combined or split as necessary by any player.

• If you run out of terrorist units, ignore all rules that require placing/generating extra terrorist units.

• Terrorists lie dormant on the board until triggered by a Terrorist Attack or other relevant card.

• Players can 'upgrade' terrorist units by adding to the existing terrorists on the board.

  Example: A terrorist Vanguard can be upgraded to a Column by contributing 4 more terrorist Vanguards.

• Terrorist Columns and Cells stop any further development in a country.

• Terrorist Cells also steal oil revenue from any development present.

  If there is no Terrorist Player, stolen money goes into a "pot" for the eventual Terrorist Player to collect.

Terrorist Unit Costs

Terrorist Unit	Cost
Vanguard	10m
Column	5x (cost of 5 Vanguards)
Cell	10x (cost of 10 Vanguards)

Indigenous Terrorists

Some Oil Counters indicate the presence of Indigenous Terrorists.

As soon as these Oil Counters are discovered, place a terrorist Column in that country. Indigenous Terrorists can be attacked or added to, but they cannot be moved or bought off. If successfully attacked, they will always return to a terrorist Column at the start of the next player's turn.

'Turning Terrorist' and 'A Terrorist Player's Turn' aren't essential reading for the start of the game. You can refer back to these sections later on. All you need to keep in mind is that, at any point, you may (or may be forced to) quit as an Empire and take control of the terrorists instead.

Turning Terrorist

There are three ways in which an Empire can become a Terrorist Player:

1. All of the Empire's developments are destroyed.
2. Bankruptcy.
3. Voluntarily - a good option if you do not think you can win the game as an Empire.

The first Empire to turn Terrorist can do so at any time. If it's during their turn, it ends their turn, rolling the Oil Dice to finish. Thereafter, players can only turn terrorist at the start of their turn, instead of taking a turn.

When an Empire becomes a Terrorist Player, take the following actions:

• Empire's developments are replaced with equivalent-sized terrorist units in the same positions on the board.
• All Empire cards are surrendered and replaced with an equivalent number of Terrorist cards.
• All money is kept, as are any terrorists in the Training Camp.
• The Empire now plays as a Terrorist Player from the start of their next full turn.

As Empires fall and turn terrorist, they join the first Terrorist Player, sharing a turn and assets between them.

A Terrorist Player's Turn

Whether just one or many, they are referred to here as the 'Terrorist Player'.

1. Roll Action Die

The number rolled on the Action Die determines how many Terrorist Movements the Terrorist Player can make during their turn. (Terrorist Movement) The card-related symbols on the Action Die apply to the Terrorist card deck.

2. "Play"

During the main part of their turn, the Terrorist Player may:

• Buy up to 2 additional Terrorist cards at 50m each.
• Play any amount of cards.
• Move terrorist units up to the amount of movements indicated by the Action Die.
• Place any terrorists from their Training Camp in any country within or bordering the existing Terrorist Network (Terrorist Movement). At times, this may be reduced to just the Indigenous Terrorist Columns.

3. Buy Terrorists

Players may buy terrorists from the World Bank. These terrorists are held off the board in your 'Training Camp' and cannot be used until your next turn.

4. Draw 2 Free Cards

Draw two free Terrorist cards.

5. Roll Oil Dice

The Terrorist Player can steal oil revenue by using terrorist Cells so they still roll the Oil Dice to finish their turn. Empires still receive oil revenue as normal.

Winning the Game

Empire Victory

To win the game as an Empire, you must demonstrate that you have liberated a significant portion of the world through the accumulation of Liberation Points. Liberation Points are won by controlling continents and by building Cities.

• An Empire must have a development in every country within a continent to claim the points associated with that continent.
• Every City on the board contributes 1 Liberation Point to your total.
• The amount of Liberation Points needed for a win depends on the number of Empires remaining in the game at that point.

Empire Players	Liberation Points required to win
6 Empires	12
5 Empires	11
4 Empires	10
3 Empires	9
2 Empires	8
1 Empire	7

Terrorist Victory

The Terrorist Player(s) claim a (joint) victory if they liberate enough of the world from Empires.

Similar to Empires, the Terrorist Player(s) accumulate Liberation Points for continents - they need to occupy every country within a continent and the continent needs to be free of Empire developments. Unlike Cities for Empires, Terrorist Players do not gain Liberation Points for terrorist Cells.

It's a tough prospect, but the rewards include a life without governments and no more borders.

Example: The Terrorist Player controls North and South America; they have 5 Liberation Points. In a game with two remaining Empires, the Terrorist Player could take Africa and Nowhere to ensure a victory (8 points). Alternatively, they could focus on knocking out one of the remaining Empires and then they would only need to take Africa for a 7 point victory.

World Peace

There is another, less dramatic, end to the War on Terror. All players, including any Terrorists, can declare their intention for 'World Peace'.

An entire round then has to pass peacefully for 'World Peace' to exist.

In this case, everyone shares a victory and can give themselves a well-earned pat on the back for being so nice and possessing the wise understanding that this is a 'war' no one can win.

Card Appendix

Some cards carry a symbol showing that there's additional information about them here.

Free Development

The free development can be placed anywhere in accordance with normal development rules (i.e. upgrade an existing development or develop in a bordering country). If you develop over a sea route, the route cost must be paid.

Global Jihad

If an Empire declares a win and there are terrorist units within their empire, this card can be played out of turn and all those terrorist units, regardless of size, get an immediate attack using the chart on the card.

If any of the attacks are successful and change the number of Liberation Points the Empire has, the game continues.

This card is only used once and removed from the game once played.

God's On My Side

Using a God's On My Side card in conjunction with a Nuclear Weapons card unleashes "Holy Nuclear Armageddon" - where any War cards held by any player can be played as Nuclear Weapons cards.

Play clockwise from initiating player, one War card at a time, until all chosen War cards are used up or until everyone dies. Whichever comes first.

Nuclear Bunker

If a Nuclear Weapon or Dirty Bomb card is played against you, this card can be played to defend your developments.

In the case of Nuclear Weapons, several countries - and therefore, several players - may be affected. Each affected player must play a Nuclear Bunker to avoid destruction.

Terrorists aren't allowed inside nuclear bunkers and so get destroyed (unless, by chance, the Terrorist Player has managed to get hold of a Nuclear Bunker card).

Nuclear Weapons

You must have a city on the board to launch a nuke.

Nominate the 'ground zero' country, anywhere on the board.

Nukes destroy everything - both terrorist units and developments - at ground zero and every country it borders. Countries across sea routes are not affected.

The only defence is a Nuclear Bunker. Each player affected by a nuclear strike must play a Nuclear Bunker card if they wish to save their developments.

Example: China gets nuked and the red Empire plays a Nuclear Bunker card, saving their development from the bomb.

Terrorist Attack

Incite a terrorist unit to attack a development. You can also incite a terrorist unit to attack itself (Terrorist In-Fighting).

Attacking Developments

There is no defence against a Terrorist Attack.

Terrorist units can only attack the development in the country they occupy. The terrorist unit must be at least the same size as the development it's attacking.

Roll two dice, using the appropriate chart on the card for the size of development being attacked. An unsuccessful strike results in the terrorist unit getting knocked down a level.

What do the strikes mean?

• Full Strike: Counter is removed from the board.
• Partial Strike: Counter is knocked down a level.

Terrorist In-Fighting

State which terrorist unit is in-fighting. Roll two dice, using the appropriate chart on the card for the size of the terrorist unit. An unsuccessful strike has no effect.

Terrorist Movement

A movement is classed as moving a single terrorist unit from one country into another country within or bordering the Terrorist Network.

The Terrorist Network spreads as far as there is an unbroken chain of terrorists in bordering countries, including sea routes, which terrorists cross for free.

War

There are three types of War card in the Empire deck. The only difference is the strike numbers on the card. The rules below count for all War cards.

War cards can be used to attack developments or terrorist units. They can also be used in defence against another War card being played against you.

Attacking Developments

You can only attack developments in countries bordering your empire, including those joined by sea routes.

Declare which country you are attacking from and which country you're attacking.

Defending Empire can choose whether or not to play a War card in defence.

Attacker rolls two dice, using the appropriate chart on the card for the size of development being attacked.

If defending:

• Defender rolls two dice, using the chart that corresponds to the attacker's development level.

• If the defender rolls a higher level of strike than the attacker, the attack is neutralised.

• If the defender matches a partial or full strike, then a roll off commences.

  A roll off: The attacker and defender keep rolling two dice until either one of them fails to land a full strike. Partial strikes and collateral damage are ignored in a roll off.

What do the strikes mean?

• Full Strike: Counter is removed from the board.
• Partial Strike: Counter is knocked down a level.
• Collateral Damage: Own development is knocked down a level.

Attacking Terrorist Units

You can attack terrorist units within your empire or in bordering countries.

Attacker rolls two dice, using the appropriate chart on the card for the size of terrorist unit being attacked.

Terrorist units can't defend against War cards.