Copyright 2001, Jim Musser and Karl Musser
Introduction:
We really like History of the World, but noticed that it left out many peoples. We thought it would be fun to add more civilizations and ended up creating a new game. Many aspects of this game have not been well playtested so consider this a "beta" release. If you play this game we'd welcome any feedback and will incorporate it into future versions.
This variant should work fine with either the Avalon Hill or Hasbro edition. If using the Hasbro rules we recommend you allow stacking. Ignore references to fleets in the rules below. If using the AH rules we recommend adopting some combat changes from the Hasbro edition. Both sides lose an army during ties. Forts count as an army and are taken as the first casualty, you may want to apply this to disasters as well.
Board Changes:
Zagros has been split in two, with the southern part called Elam. Elam borders Lower and Middle Tigris and the Persian Salt Desert.
Gold Coast has been split in two, with the eastern part called Niger. The new Gold Coast does not border either Congo Basin or Central Africa.
The resource symbol in Eastern Ghats is moved to Eastern Deccan.
The Arabian Sea has been added. It borders the Sahara Desert through the Lower Indus.
Navigation abilities of Indian+ extend to the Red Sea.
General Rule Changes:
Treat barrens as normal spaces except that armies there die at the end of the turn.
Fleets are optional.
Any armies in excess of one on a city or capital function as they always did, but the first army with a city or capital acts as a garrison. When attacking an occupied city, the attacker must score two victories to take the space. When attacking an occupied capital, the attacker must score three victories to take the space.
Scoring Changes:
The game now has 8 epochs instead of 7. Each player can have many turns in each epoch, scoring points after each turn. The victory point table has been modified substantially. At the end of the game each players victory points are divided by the stength points of the empires that they have played.
Certain empires are designated as barbarians. Barbarians score 1 victory point (VP) for destroying a city, 2 VP for destroying a capital, and 5 VP for destroying a monument.
Monuments are worth 2 VP for the empire that builds it. Once it is captured, turn it over and it is worth 1 VP forever more.
Sequence of Play:
Each year has the following sequence:
Empires: - Empire Cards: Word Perfect file PDF file
A player can play many empires in the same epoch. There is no requirement that all players get the same number of empires.
Sample empire card:
The card number indicates the sequence of play within a year.
Strength points is a number from 1-5. Each player keeps a running total of strength points of the empires that they've played. Note that strength points are no longer tied directly to the number of armies an empire receives. That is determined by making a 1d6 recruitment roll. If you roll higher than 6 due to bonuses add one additional army for each number over 6. If you roll less than 1 subtract one army (minimum 1).
A ^ after an ocean means that the empire can navigate that ocean, but may not cross over to the Americas.
The range of years indicates possible starting times for the empire. The empire must start as early as possible, but can start later if drawn after its starting year, but not after its ending year. If drawn after the ending year, discard the empire (they're history).
Distributing Empire Cards:
At the end of each turn the player with the lowest strength point total draws a empire card and decides how to distribute it. If strength points are tied then the player with the fewest armies on the board distributes the card. If that is tied then the player the lower victory point total distributes the card, if that is tied then roll a die to break the tie.
They may keep the empire card, discard it, give it to another player or they can pass, in which case the last player to play distributes the card. The person with the lowest strength point total may not choose to distribute two empire cards in a row, if they choose to distribute an empire card they must pass the next empire card on to the person who played last (unless the person with the lowest strength points also played last). A player may not receive two empire cards in a row, nor can two empire cards be discarded in a row (even if by different players - unless "they're history" as indicated above).
A player may not have more then 5 empire cards in their hand.
At the end of epochs 1, 2, 3, and 4 each player distributes an additional empire card before the next epoch begins. Begin with the player with the lowest strength points and proceed in order of strength points, ties broken as above, until all players have distributed a card. In a 3-4 player game each player then distributes a 2nd empire card. If there are more then 10 players then skip this between-epoch distribution of empire cards.
Cards:
Cards may only be played in the epoch or time period indicated on the card.
For brevity disaster and revolt cards use the following shorthand definitions:
China: all spaces indicated as China on the board.
India: all spaces indicated as India except for Hindu Kush.
Italy: Northern & Southern Appennines
Spain: Pyrenees, Western & Southern Iberia
France: Central Massif, Western & Northern Gaul
Germany: Lower Rhine, Baltic Seaboard, Central Europe
Europe: Norhtern Europe, Southern Europe, North European Plain, Dnieper
Persia: Persian Plateau, Persian Salt Desert, Zagros, Elam
Disasters: - Disaster Cards: Word Perfect file PDF file
There are a number of different disasters, which act in slightly different manners. They all have a year and one or more lands indicated. The owner my play the disaster at the beginning of the indicated year, or discard it. The number after the type of disaster is the number needed to roll to kill armies in the indicated land(s). Plagues and famines affect only the armies in the land, not cities, capitals, or monuments. Earthquakes and Floods destroy cities and monuments and reduce capitals to cities, as well as killing armies. Volcanos act as earthquakes except that they destroy capitals instead of reducing them.
Revolts: - Revolt Cards: Word Perfect file PDF file
Revolt cards may be played at the end of the year indicated on the card, at the option of the player with the card. Each has a number and one or more lands. The lands indicates the area of revolution, but the revolt only takes place in the empire holding the majority of the indicated lands. When there is a tie for largest empire the land in brackets indicates which empire is in revolt. If there is no land in brackets, the player playing the card can choose among the tied empires. Normally the revolt takes place only in the indicated lands, even if the chosen empire has holdings outside this area, but the notation "all lands" after the number means the revolt takes place in all lands of the chosen empire. The number is the number need to roll for the revolt to succeed. Roll for each land separately. If successful the player playing the card replaces the revolting armies with his own. Cities, capitals, and monuments in the land are taken intact, change the color of monuments if they are color face up.
Political Cards: - Political Cards: Word Perfect file PDF file
Most political cards are self-explanatory and many can not be played by barbarians. Here are some that may need further explanation:
Ally: This allows you to "move through" an earlier empire or use its fleets. The earlier empire's armies remain intact, you just leapfrog over them. To use an earlier empire's fleets you must still be able to navigate the appropriate seas.
Empire Revives: A previous empire gets 1d6 armies and picks up from where it left off. It could conceivably get a monument if it takes two resource symbols. It can turn these armies into fleets if it had fleets before, and it can make them forts.
Evangelism: Replace the armies of the converted empire with your own. Capitals and cities are not reduced, change the color of monuments if the monument is still color face up.
Hill Forts: Place a fort in each land the empire takes.
Resources Deplete: This card must by played by the first empire that can. It affects all players for the rest of the game.
Special Resource: Capturing the indicated land allows you to build a monument.
Trade: When the current empire meets on of your earlier empires, you get a capital in the land adjacent to the old empire. If they touch at more then one spot, you choose which one gets the capital. If you abut more then one earlier empire, you get a capital for each (unless it is a single land touching two earlier empires). Meeting up with a previously placed fleet counts. If you place a new fleet that meets a previously empire, you get a capital at the last land placed before the fleet. If this fleet meets more then one previous empire, you still get only one capital unless you meet some of the empires by different routes.
Ship Building: If using Hasbro rules treat this as two free armies usable only by an empire that has navigable seas.
Military Cards: - Military Cards: Word Perfect file PDF file
Self-explanatory.
If using Hasbro rules treat cards giving a bonus to naval combat as Ship Building above.
Leader cards: - Leader Cards: Word Perfect file PDF file
Self-explanatory.
You may not use two leaders who add to your recruitment roll.
Defensive cards: - Defensive Cards: Word Perfect file PDF file
These are generally played on another players turn when you are being attacked.
Cards which cancel a disaster or revolt or target an attacker can only be used to defend yourself, they may not be used on behalf of another player.
Handicap Cards: - Handicap Cards: Word Perfect file PDF file
When you give an empire card to another player you may choose to give a handicap card with it. The handicap card applies to the empire being given. The empire card and the handicap card be in the same epoch (not necessarily the current epoch).
Introduction to Scenarios:
Each scenario contains the following information: start and end dates, number of players, estimated playing time, and card set-up.
For all but the shortest scenarios, first sort the empire cards by epoch and shuffle each epoch separately. Then, starting with the latest epoch in play, move one or more cards (as indicated by the scenario) to the next earliest epoch. Then reshuffle that epoch and move one or more cards to the following epoch. Repeat this until the first epoch is reach. Then reshuffle the first epoch and move one or more cards to the next later epoch and repeat until the last epoch is reached again. Once all the epochs have been reshuffled stack them atop each other with the earliest epoch on top.
For scenarios specifying the Dawn of Time setup, use the following procedure. Deal 3 empire cards to each player. Empires 1 through 4 play before epoch I begins, scoring as if in epoch I. Do not distribute a new empire card after these 4 empires. Normal play begins in 2400 BC.
For other scenarios, use the board setup for the starting year. Players roll dice with low choosing which player number to be. After all players have chosen a player number, then player one draws the top empire cards and distributes it, it may not be discarded. The receiving player may not look at it. Then player one draws a second card and distributes it. Next, player two distributes two cards in the same manner. Once all players have distributed two cards, players may examine the cards they have received. Then each player draws and distributes one additional empire card. Then begin play.
For scenarios ending in 1900 AD, each player scores VP for whatever they have on the board at the end of 1900 (after any revolts). Score as if in epoch 8.
At the end of the scenario each players victory points are divided by the stength points of the empires that they have played.
The Scenarios:
Scenario 1: 500 BC - 250 AD, Romans rise and then start to fiddle, 3-4 players, 2.5 hours.
Scenario 2: 285 AD - 850 AD, Dark Ages, 3-4 players, 3 hours.
Scenario 3: 1500 BC - 250 AD, Antiquity minus prehistory, 3-7 players, 5 hours.
Scenario 4: 500 BC - 850 AD, Sword and Armor, 3-9 players, 6 hours
Scenario 5: 865 AD - 1900 AD, Modern Statebuilding, 3-9 players, 6 hours.
Scenario 6: Dawn of Time - 250 AD, Antiquity, 3-9 players, 6.5 hours.
Scenario 7: 1500 BC - 850 AD, Early-mid Civilization, 3-12 players, 8 hours.
Scenario 8: 285 AD - 1900 AD, Collapse of Rome to modern times, 3-12 players, 10 hours.
Scenario 9: Dawn of Time - 850 AD, First half of history, 3-12 players, 10 hours.
Scenario 10: 500 BC - 1900 AD, Most of the Enchilada, 3-12 players, 12 hours.
Scenario 11: Dawn of Time - 1900 AD, The Whole Enchilada, 3-20 players, 16 hours.
Board Setup:
| 1500 BC | 500 BC | 285 AD | 865 AD |
Optional rules:
Non-barbarians: This rule encourages more "historical" behavior. Non-barbarians must leave two armies in a barrens space in order to cross it. Non-barbarians may spend an army to repair a city or capital that was destroyed or reduced earlier in their turn due to conquest.
Diplomacy: Allow players to trade cards. This will add to the diplomatic aspect of the game but could significantly extend the playing time.
Epoch points: Recommended for scenarios 8-11. Use epoch points to determine the winner.
After each epoch award epoch points as follows:
Player with the most victory points: 3
Player with the second most victory points: 2
Player with the third most victory points: 1
For each player you've "lapped" (exceeding be more than 100 VP): 1
For not scoring any victory points: -1Reset all players victory points to zero for the next epoch.
At the end of the final epoch award one epoch point for each strength point you are behind the player leading in strength points. Do not divide victory points by strength points if using this method. The player with the most epoch points wins.
This rule is designed to avoid the problem of one player getting so far ahead early in the game that the remaining epochs become academic, it ensures that every epoch matters. It has not been as well playtested as other aspects of the game though, so feel free to tinker.
Simultaneous play: We think our variant would be really cool if combined with Brad Johnson's simultaneous play variant http://www.grognard.com/variants/hotw1.txt.
We haven't worked out all the kinks to this but the Sequence of Play for each year would be:
- Disasters
- Empires are played in numerical order. For each empire:
- Announce that you have the next empire.
- Play cards indicating "play before turn."
- Play cards indication "play at start of turn"
- Make a recruitment roll to determine the number of armies available.
- Continue with players announcing empires in numerical order and playing cards until all the empires for the year have been announced.
- Play the empires in numerical order, as described in Brad Johnson's rules, using one army at a time - this includes all movement, combat, and monument building.
- When an empire terminates its expansion do the following steps: (note that an empire may terminate immediately after occupying it's start space if it does not plan on expanding).
- Play cards indicating "play at end of turn."
- Total points.
- Distribute a new empire card. If the new empire card can be played in the current year then the receiving player should announce and play it immediately.
- Repeat steps 4 and 5 until there are no more active empires.
- Revolts
If empires begin in the same start space in the same year allow the empires to co-exist in the start space until one of them terminates their expansion, at which point they must fight for the space with the terminating empire considered the attacker.
Use the Hasbro rules for fleets.
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