Concordia Venus

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Details

Sourced from: https://jmo.name/games

Player Aid Author: Jarrod Moore

Description

Traders compete to build the greatest empire in the Roman Mediterranean.

Expansions in Use

  • Salsa
  • Solitaria

  • Choose a board to play on and place it in the centre of the table
    • Any map can be used at any player count, but some are better suited to certain player counts than others. Recommended choices are:
      • 2 players: Creta, Corsica, Ionium Mini, Aegyptus
      • 3 players: Aegyptus, Balearica, Britannia, Gallia, Hispania, Helles, Italia, Byzantium
      • 4 players: Helles, Italia, Byzantium, Ionium, Imperium
      • 5 players: Ionium, Imperium, Cyprus
      • 6 players: Imperium, Cyprus, Germania
  • Randomly distribute city tokens on spaces matching the letter written on them:
    • If playing with the Byzantium or Hispania maps, add the salt city tokens to each group
    • Otherwise, replace one token in each group with a salt city token:
      • Group A: Food token
      • Group B: Tools token
      • Group C: Wine token
      • Group D: Brick token
  • For each province on the map, determine the highest value good (that is not Salt) and place a corresponding bonus token in the province's bonus space with its good facing up
  • Prepare the market personality cards deck:
    • Remove all cards that have a Roman numeral higher than the player count
    • Only include cards based on the mode of play:
      • Standard: Cards with a column icon on their back
      • Team play: Cards with a double circle icon on their back
    • Place the market card display on either the all-cloth side or the cloth and wine side
    • Deal the I cards into the card display and keep the remaining cards from II down on one stack in its space
  • Prepare the Forum display
    • Randomly deal two blue forum tiles to each player
    • Each player chooses which of the two tiles they received to keep, and the other is returned
    • All remaining tiles (green and blue) are shuffled and kept in a stack near the board
    • The top 4 tiles are dealt to the Forum display
  • Keep the Concordia card near the board
  • Randomly choose a starting player, then give whoever will take their first turn last the Prefectus Magnus card

If you are using the Fish Market:

  • Instead of putting out bonus tokens, replace them with fish
  • Keep the remaining fish as a supply
  • Replace the Prefectus Magnus card with the Prefectus Piscatus card
  • Place the fish market board next to the game board on the side of your choosing

Some maps have specific set up instructions in addition to the common ones above:

  • Aegyptus:
    • A bonus token for food is placed in Kush
  • Balearica:
    • Players start with two sea colonists on the ship markers and all other colonists start in the storehouse
  • Creta:
    • Leave the brown bonus space with "?" empty
  • Britannia:
    • Place a land colonist on Londonium
    • Place a sea colonist on Portus Its
    • These two cities are considered the capitals for each type of colonist
  • Gallia:
    • Place 1 land colonist on Lutetia
    • Place 1 sea colonist in the Mediterranean
    • Team Play: The second player places a land colonist on any city not adjacent to Lutetia and one sea colonist in the Mediterranean
  • Germania:
    • Randomly place the remaining bonus tokens to the Roman castles, good side up, until all are filled
    • Place a land colonist in Basilia
    • Place a sea colonist in Colonia Agrippina
    • These two cities are considered the capitals for each type of colonist
  • Ionium Mini:
    • For a smaller map, do not distribute the B tokens to the Italian provinces

Each player receives:

  • 1 storehouse board
  • 1 good of each type to place in 6 of the storehouse places
  • 3 sea colonist and 3 land colonists
    • Place one of each on the map's capital city
    • Place the remaining 4 colonists in the storehouse
  • Their personality cards:
    • Only include cards based on the mode of play:
      • Standard: Cards with a column icon on their back
      • Team play: Cards with a double circle icon on their back
  • Sestertii (the currency) based on turn order:
    • Standard play
    Player PositionStarting Sestertii1st52nd63rd74th85th96th10
    • Team play:
    Team PositionStarting Sestertii (per player)1st52nd63rd7
  • Team Play: Players should sit in the following order:
    • 4P: A1, B1, A2, B2
    • 6P: A1, B1, C1, A2, B2, C2

Players will take turns going around the table in clockwise order until the game end is triggered

On your turn, you will play a card to your personal discard pile and perform its corresponding action

Some cards that can be purchased from the market have more than one action written on them. You can choose one of the actions to use when the card is activated, but you cannot use both on the same turn

If you ever receive resources and you cannot store all of them in your storehouse, you are allowed to choose which resources to keep but the ones that cannot fit in the storehouse are lost. Each space in the storehouse is only allowed to hold one thing (colonist or resource)

Players are not allowed to trade resources

During your turn, you can choose to spend green forum tiles for their benefit (or during the corresponding action if the benefit is linked to a particular action). Once a green tile's benefit has been received, it is placed in a discard pile near the supply. Blue forum tile benefits are permanent and you keep that tile for the rest of the game

The game end is triggered when one of the following conditions is met:

  • A player has built their 15th house on the map
  • A player purchases the last card from the market display, leaving it empty

The player who is responsible for triggering the end of the game receives the Concordia card, which is worth 7 victory points at the end of the game. This player will not take any more turns for the rest of the game

All other players may take one final turn, after which final scoring commences

Before final scores are calculated, players sell all goods in their storehouse and then sort their cards into piles based on the god written on them

Players score points based on a specific condition that each god rewards, and players will multiply that score by the number of cards that they have with that god's name on it

After summing the scores received from each god, the winner is the player with the most victory points. In the event of a tie, the winner is either the player who is currently holding the Prefectus Magnus, or the player who would next have received the Prefectus Magnus card

Concordia - First to Finish

You receive 7 points for having the Concordia card

Vesta - 10 Sestertii

You receive 1 victory point for each 10 sestertii you finished the game with

Jupiter - City (No Brick City)

You receive 1 victory point for each house you have built in a non-brick city

Saturnus - Province

You receive 1 victory point for each province you have built at least one house in

Venus - 2 Houses in Province

You receive 2 victory points for each province containing at least 2 of your houses

Mercurius - Production

You receive 2 victory points for each type of good you are able to produce (excluding salt)

Mars - Colonist

You receive 2 victory points for each colonist you have on the board

Minerva - Specialist

You receive a number of victory points based on the card in your possession

When calculating how many cities you have for each type, salt cities can be included in your total for one other type of good

  • Mason: 3 points for each house in a brick city
  • Farmer: 3 points for each house in a food city
  • Smith: 3 points for each house in a tools city
  • Vintner: 4 points for each house in a wine city
  • Weaver: 5 points for each house in a cloth city

Remember that you score each of the above categories for each card you have at the end of the game of that god

e.g. If you had 5 colonists on the board at the end of the game, and you had 3 Mars cards at the end of the game, for Mars you would score 5 colonists * 2 points * 3 cards = 30 points for Mars

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • Roll blue Architect die
  • Take card from display spaces from left:
    • If no card in this space, take first card instead
  • Refill display

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • If you produced, bot scores 1 VP for each house in province you produced in:
    • If this would be less than 1 VP, score 1 VP instead
  • If you reactivated provinces, bot scores 2 VP

This card allows you to buy up to two cards from the market display and put them into your hand

For each card you wish to buy:

  • Pay the cost written on the card and under the card on the display space (if any)
  • If the cost is a ?, then any resource can be used for this portion of the cost

After the purchase(s) have been completed, the remaining cards slide down to the left to fill any gaps and new cards are dealt to replenish the display

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • Bot builds house:
    • Roll black Mercator die
    • Choose house according to bot house building rules
  • Province bot built in produces:
    • If bonus marker was already flipped:
      • If less than 3 bonus markers have been flipped, nothing happens
      • Otherwise, all bonus markers are flipped over
    • Otherwise, the province produces:
      • Flip bonus marker over
      • You receive any goods from houses in that province
      • Bot never receives goods

Action: Use 1 face-up card of Contrarius Reaction: Contrarius does the reaction on the card you copied

This card allows you to perform the action shown on the card on the top of your own discard pile

Just like with the Diplomat, you carry out the action just as if you had played the card showing that action yourself

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • Bot builds 1 house:
    • Type is salt, if possible, else is of type that matches its best specialist:
      • Weaver > Vintner > Smith > Farmer > Mason
      • Follow bot house building rules
  • Roll red tribune/colonist die
  • If colonist:
    • Build a sea or land colonist in capital
  • If card shown:
    • Place card in bot's face-up card display
  • Bot takes first forum card

Note: This card is only available from the market

This card allows you to buy a single card from the market

To buy a card from the market using a Consul:

  • Pay the cost on the card
  • Ignore the cost (if any) showing under the card on the display

Just as with the Senator, when you have finished your purchase, move cards down the display to fill in the gap and then replenish the last space from the deck

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • If you placed colonists:
    • Roll trubine/colonist die
    • If colonist:
      • Place colonist on capital
    • If card:
      • Place card in bot's face-up display
  • If earn money:
    • Bot scores 2 VP

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • Score 3 VP

  • The bot player, Contrarius, does not own a storehouse, does not keep goods and has no money
  • When you play a card, the bot follows your action with the action printed on the card
  • Contrarius scores victory points immediately during gameplay
  • The game ends by the normal conditions and is scored in the normal way

  • Place the game board and place city/bonus markers as normal
  • Get 2 sets of wooden pieces: one for yourself and one for the bot
  • Place the storehouse for your colour in front of you
  • Keep the 4 solitaria dice by the board
  • Prepare the personality cards deck:
    • Use the solitaria I and II stacks of personality cards, with I on top of II as in the normal game
  • Put Contrarius' 5 display cards in a face up display next to the board
  • Randomly give bot 1 blue forum card
  • Choose the first Minerva card (from left to right) available from the display and place it next to Contrarius' other 5 cards
  • You start with:
    • 1 good of each type
    • 6 sestertii
    • 2 colonists on capital as usual
    • 4 colonists in storehouse
    • 7 turquoise personality cards (your hand)
  • Decide on the difficulty level:
    • Standard:
      • Place 1 bot sea colonist and bot land colonist on capital
      • You start with 20 victory points
    • Veteran:
      • Place 1 bot house into the most valuable city adjacent to capital
      • Place 1 colonist between capital and this city:
        • If there is both a blue and brown line, you can choose which to use
      • Place the other bot colonist on next valuable city it can reach
      • You start with 10 victory points
    • Strong Veteran:
      • Veteran rules, except 1 extra bot house on city next to second colonist
    • Expert:
      • Place 1 bot sea colonist and bot land colonist on capital
      • Place 1 house on following spaces of score track:
        • 10
        • 20
        • 30
        • 40
        • 50
      • When bot reaches/passes score space with house on it, it builds it:
        • Use mercator die to decide house type
      • If bot house supply is empty when it needs to build a house, take house from far end of scoring track
      • You start with 0 victory points
    • Strong Expert:
      • Expert rules, except place houses on following spaces on score track:
        • 9
        • 18
        • 27
        • 36
        • 45

  • Each turn you play a card, then do the action shown on the card in the C box as Contrarius' reaction
  • Gameplay continues until the game ends with the usual game end conditions

Bot House Building Rules

  • Roll white Senator/Consul die or black Mercator die depending on card played
  • If "S" is result:
    • Goods type house is Salt, if possible
    • Otherwise, goods type house to build matches best specialist card:
      • Weaver > Vintner > Smith > Farmer > Mason
  • Otherwise, result is goods type house to build
  • Determine which city to build in:
    • Bot has following preferences:
      • Bot only builds in cities it can reach with colonists that they haven't built in:
        • Number of movement steps follows normal rules
        • Reachable line to the city must be empty as usual
      • Bot prefers empty cities:
        • Bot will build in occupied cities if no other choice
      • Bot prefers cities in provinces it has no houses in:
        • Bot will build again in a province if no other choice
      • If still multiple choices, choose city first in alphabetical order
    • Bot moves colonist using shortest possible number of moves:
      • You can choose path if multiple shortest paths available
    • If no city is available, bot builds house in next cheapest type city:
      • If bot tries to build brick and none are available, build a cloth house

Supplementary rules

  • If bot is unable to build house, bot builds colonist instead:
    • Roll red die to determine which type
  • When placing colonist:
    • If bot doesn't have land colonist in supply, bot places sea colonist and vice versa
    • If bot has already placed all 6 colonists, bot takes first card in display
  • When bot takes a card:
    • If dies result shows card position with no card in it, bot takes card in first position
    • If no cards are in display, bot builds a house:
      • Roll white senator/consul die

End game conditions and scoring follow normal rules, except:

  • Bot scores 3 points for each blue forum card it gets
  • Bot scores 2 points for each green forum card it gets
  • If scores are tied, winner is whoever has the Concordia card

If you trigger end of game, bot reaction is last move of game If bot triggers end of game, you play your card and bot does not react to it

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • If you produced, bot scores 1 VP for each house in province you produced in:
    • If this would be less than 1 VP, score 1 VP instead
  • If you reactivated provinces, bot scores 2 VP

Action: Same as Prefect in standard game with the double goods bonus Reaction:

  • If you produced, bot scores 1 VP for each house in province you produced in:
    • If this would be less than 2 VP, score 2 VP instead
  • If you reactivated provinces, bot scores 2 VP

Action: Use 1 face-up card of Contrarius Reaction: Contrarius does the reaction on the card you copied

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • Bot builds house:
    • Roll black Mercator die
    • Choose house according to bot house building rules
  • Province bot built in produces:
    • If bonus marker was already flipped:
      • If less than 3 bonus markers have been flipped, nothing happens
      • Otherwise, all bonus markers are flipped over
    • Otherwise, the province produces:
      • Flip bonus marker over
      • You receive any goods from houses in that province
      • Bot never receives goods

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • Roll blue Architect die
  • Take card from display spaces from left:
    • If no card in this space, take first card instead
  • Refill display

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • Bot builds 1 house:
    • Roll white senator/consul die
    • Build house of type shown on die according to rules

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • Bot builds 1 house:
    • Type is salt, if possible, else is of type that matches its best specialist:
      • Weaver > Vintner > Smith > Farmer > Mason
      • Follow bot house building rules
  • Roll red tribune/colonist die
  • If colonist:
    • Build a sea or land colonist in capital
  • If card shown:
    • Place card in bot's face-up card display
  • Bot takes first forum card

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • If you placed colonists:
    • Roll trubine/colonist die
    • If colonist:
      • Place colonist on capital
    • If card:
      • Place card in bot's face-up display
  • If earn money:
    • Bot scores 2 VP

Action: Same as in standard game Reaction:

  • Score 3 VP

  • 1 human player sets up as normal:
    • They start with:
      • 1 good of each type
      • 6 sestertii
      • 2 colonists on capital as usual
      • 4 colonists in storehouse
      • Standard set of personality cards with column on back of cards
  • The other player sets up with similar setup as solo mode player:
    • They start with:
      • 1 good of each type
      • 7 sestertii
      • 2 colonists on capital as usual
      • 4 colonists in storehouse
      • 7 turquoise personality cards (your hand)
      • The Prefectus Magnus card
  • Setup for the bot follows setup in solo mode, including choosing difficulty

Gameplay

  • The player turn order goes:
    • Player with standard cards
    • Player with solitaria cards
    • Reaction to action by player with solitaria cards
  • The player using stardard cards is never reacted to by the bot, even if they use cards purchased from the display
  • The Prefect with Prefectus Magnus card is treated as a Prefect card
  • The Prefectus Magnus card only can be held by a human player
  • The Diplomat card does not copy the bot, but instead copies the card played by the other human player
  • You have two veto cards:
    • You may spend a veto card to reroll a die roll for the bot

Thumbnail courtesy of BoardGameGeek and the respective publisher.