Speakeasy

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Details

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

Player Aid Author: Jarrod Moore

Description

Run a mobster empire in Prohibition-era Manhattan — bootleg, bribe, ambush, and cook the books to come out richest.

  • Place the main board on the side for your player count (1/2 or 3/4), and the Mobster board next to it:
    • 3 zones: Downtown, Midtown, Uptown
    • 16 districts (6 / 6 / 4), each with 2 building spaces; Uptown has 3 (2 in 2P)
  • Set up mobsters:
    • Separate Mobster tiles by letter:
      • 2P: shuffle the A deck first and return 2 random tiles to the box
    • Shuffle the A deck, take the top 6 (4 in 2P). For each:
      • Reveal a Mobster District tile
      • Place the mobster city-side up in the matching district of the Mobster board
      • Return the District tile to the box
    • For each placed mobster, place a Mobster Strength tile of matching value number-side up on the gun space of the matching district on the main board
    • Place a Mobster Speakeasy next to every building space in those districts:
      • 2 in a Downtown/Midtown district
      • 3 in an Uptown district (2 in 2P)
    • From the remaining Mobster District tiles, reveal 3 (2 in 2P), place face down (red side up) on the gun spaces of their districts
    • Stack the rest face down in the Time track area: one stack of 3 and one of 4 (2 and 3 in 2P)
    • Place a Mobster Zone Control marker on the bottom space of each Zone Control track
  • Set up cops:
    • Shuffle Cop District tiles, reveal 4; place a cop in each indicated district and return the tiles to the box:
      • 2P: cops may go in blocked districts
    • Reveal another 4, place face down on the cop spaces of their districts
    • Split the remaining into 2 face-down stacks of 4 in the Time track area
  • Set up City tiles:
    • Shuffle, place one face up on each building space (not blocked districts in 2P)
    • Place 3 face up on the right column of the City tile display
    • Split the rest into 3 face-down piles on the left column
    • The middle column starts empty
  • Set up Zone Goal tiles:
    • Shuffle, place the top in Downtown
    • Reveal until you find a different number, place in Midtown
    • Reveal until you find one different from both, place in Uptown
    • Return the rest
  • Set up Central Park Goal tiles:
    • Separate by back (A/B/C), shuffle each
    • Place the top of A on space 1
    • Reveal A until a different number appears, place on space 2
    • Reveal B until you have two tiles whose numbers differ from both A tiles and each other, place on spaces 3 and 4
    • Reveal C until you find one different from all four, place on space 5
    • Return the rest
  • Set up Operations cards:
    • Split into 4 decks: VIP Room, Party, Stills, Fleet, and shuffle each
    • Deal one of each to each player
    • Place the decks face up next to the board
  • Set up Helper cards:
    • Shuffle into a face-down deck next to the board
    • Reveal the top 3 into the helper display
  • Set up the Docks:
    • Place the City Docks board to the left of the main board
    • Put 5 barrels on each Rum-runner Ship
    • Shuffle Crate tiles; place one face up on each ship's crate space and the rest face up in a stack
    • Shuffle Port tiles face down; for each ship, reveal a port tile and move the ship to that port, then return all port tiles to the box
  • Make a supply of barrels, cops, money, Leverage tokens, and Goons

  • Each player takes:
    • An Operations board
    • A Safe screen
    • A Player tray of components in their colour:
      • 4 Operations markers
      • 1 Strength marker
      • 1 Infamy marker
      • 1 Turn Order marker
      • 3 Zone Control markers
      • 4 Capos
      • 12 Family Members
      • 10 Books
      • 2 Trucks
      • 1 Associate marker
      • 1 Stills
      • 8 Speakeasies
      • 3 Nightclubs
      • 3 Casinos
    • 1 Goon and 1 Player Aid
    • The 4 Operations cards dealt during board setup
  • Set up your Operations board:
    • Place each Operations marker on level 1 (leftmost) of its track
    • Place the Strength marker on level 1 of the Strength track
    • Place Capos, Stills, Speakeasies, Nightclubs, and Casinos in their spaces
    • Place the Goon on the $0 Goon space
    • Place the Associate marker on the Associate space
    • Place one Truck next to the board; the second goes under the Fleet track
  • Set up your Safe screen:
    • Stand it next to your Operations board
    • Place $15 in front of you (cash) and $30 behind the screen (safe)
  • Set up on the main board:
    • Place a Zone Control marker on the bottom space of each of your three Zone Control tracks
    • Place your Infamy marker on space 5 of the Infamy track (sum of your 4 Operations levels plus Strength)
    • Place one Family Member to the left of space 8 and another to the left of space 14 of the Infamy track
  • 2P only: place one Family Member from your supply on any empty space at the Docks in reverse turn order, and gain that space's Dock benefit

  • Determine turn order:
    • The last player who had an "illegal drink" is the start player; they place their Turn Order marker on the leftmost space of the top row of the Turn Order track
    • In clockwise order, each other player places their marker on the leftmost empty space of the top row
    • 3P only: place a Blocked District marker covering the 4th space of both rows (those spaces are not used)
  • In reverse turn order, each player opens either their Stills or one of their Speakeasies:
    • Pay the cost from your $15 cash:
      • Stills: $5
      • Speakeasy: $3, $5, or $8 (shown below its space on your Operations board)
    • Place the building on an empty building space (no player's building on it and no Mobster Speakeasy next to it; a City tile is fine)
    • Move the City tile (if any) from that space to your Operations board
    • Gain the benefit shown below the space the building came from on your Operations board
    • Play one Operations card from your hand into the matching slot on your Operations board:
      • Gain the icon benefit in the top-left of the card (above the dashed line)
      • You do not perform the card's action this round
      • You do not draw a replacement; your hand is now 3 cards

The Act Structure

The game runs for 13 years (1920–1933): a first round, 11 player rounds, and final scoring, grouped into 4 acts.

Each act:

  • Return capos (acts 2, 3, 4 only) — some capos come back to your Operations board, the rest go to the box
  • Player rounds:
    • Act 1: 4 rounds
    • Acts 2 and 3: 3 rounds
    • Act 4: 1 round
  • End of act (acts 1, 2, 3 only) — mob war, cops patrol Manhattan, payout for zone control
  • Final scoring (act 4 only)

Turn order may change at the end of each player round if any player visited the Restaurant.

Your Turn

On your turn, in order:

  • (Optional) Use a Helper card — gain the benefit on the lower half of one Helper card in front of you, then place it behind your Safe screen (it cannot be used again)
  • Send a Capo (required) — send one Capo from your Operations board to a Person of Interest at one of the 8 locations: Docks, City Hall, Restaurant, Commission, Contractor Office, City Planning Office, Garage, or Park. Place the Capo on a Person of Interest that does not already have one, and perform that Person's actions
    • Each Person of Interest talks with only one Capo per act
    • Exception: the Restaurant has no limit on Capos
  • Draw an Operations card — top card of any of the 4 Operations decks. No hand limit

Turn Order Change

At the end of a player round, if anyone's Turn Order marker is on the lower row of the Turn Order track (because they visited the Restaurant):

  • Every player gains $3 cash per Operating Casino ($5 in 2P) — applies to all players
  • Keeping relative order on the upper row, shift markers up so the spaces directly below are vacant
  • Move markers from the lower row up into the corresponding upper-row positions; existing upper-row markers shift as needed to accommodate them

Operating Buildings

A building is Operating if either:

  • There is no cop in its district, or
  • It is protected by a Family Member

Golden rule: a non-Operating building is the same as a non-existent building. It cannot receive, produce, distribute, or sell barrels. It does not count for payout zone control or for final scoring.

Exceptions: Crate tiles and Central Park Goal tiles marked with the "break the Golden Rule" symbol ignore the Operating requirement — the goal applies even when the building is not Operating.

Mobster Speakeasies are unaffected by cops.

Operations Levels

Your 4 Operations levels (1–5) on your Operations board:

  • VIP Room: capacity of your VIP area for Family Members
  • Party: number of barrel sales per sell action
  • Stills: number of barrels produced (requires an Operating Stills)
  • Fleet: Truck delivery range; second Truck unlocks at level 3+

Increasing a level:

  • Move the marker one space right. Also increase Infamy by the same amount
  • To reach level 5, also discard an Operations card (of any type)
  • You may not go above level 5

Extra boost: you may discard any one Operations card to bump the increase by an additional +1. The type of discarded card does not have to match. If this brings you to level 5, you still discard the level-5 card on top.

Strength

Your Strength (1–5) on your Operations board. The base value for:

  • Your attack strength when taking over a Mobster Speakeasy or ambushing a Rum-runner Ship
  • Your building defense strength during a mob war

Increasing Strength:

  • Move the marker one space right. Also increase Infamy by the same amount
  • To reach level 4, also discard 1 Operations card (any type)
  • To reach level 5, also discard 2 Operations cards (any type)
  • You may not go above level 5

Infamy

Your Infamy on the Infamy track = sum of your 4 Operations levels + Strength. It advances any time one of those increases.

  • Sets the price you sell barrels for (higher is better)
  • Upon reaching certain spaces, immediately gain the benefit shown:
    • A Family Member
    • A Helper card
    • An Operations card
    • A new Cooked Book space

Money, Cash, and the Safe

Money is kept in two places.

Cash (in front of you):

  • Sources:
    • Selling barrels
    • Crate rewards on a successful ambush
    • Payments from other players using your Family Members in ambushes
    • $3 per Operating Casino ($5 in 2P) each time turn order changes
  • Spent freely at no cost

Safe money (behind your Safe screen):

  • Sources:
    • Zone control payout at end of act
    • Cooking Books
  • To spend, it must be laundered at 2:1 — you spend $2 from the safe to use $1
  • At final scoring, counts at face value with no laundering penalty

Blocked Districts

A Blocked District marker means no building may be placed in that district. Ports may still be used, Trucks may enter and leave, and cops may be placed there.

Blocked districts appear in:

  • 2P games: during setup, 5 districts are blocked from Mobster District tiles (2 Downtown, 2 Midtown, 1 Uptown). City tiles are not placed in blocked districts
  • 3P games: the 4th space of both rows of the Turn Order track is blocked (those spaces are not used)
  • Solo games: same as 2P

3 Persons of Interest in 3/4P (2 in 2P). Resolve the actions of the Person you talk to top to bottom; all actions are optional.

  • Shared action (every Person): open a Speakeasy, open a Stills, or take over a Mobster Speakeasy, up to 2 times (same action twice, or 2 different actions). Pay the cost each time ($3/$5/$8 for a Speakeasy, $5 for a Stills)
  • Person-specific actions (one of):
    • Gain 1 Book (place on the Books space of your Operations board; no limit)
    • Increase any one Operations or Strength level by 1
    • Gain 1 Helper card from the display; refill the display (Helper cards cannot be discarded)

Open a Speakeasy or Stills:

  • Place the building on an empty building space anywhere in Manhattan (may be in a district with a cop — it will not be Operating until protected)
  • Move the City tile (if any) on the space to your Operations board
  • Gain the benefit below the space the building came from on your Operations board

Take over a Mobster Speakeasy:

  • Your attack strength = Strength + modifiers:
    • +1 per Goon you return to the supply
    • If Associated with a Mobster (and not in their district), pay the Associate's fee to add its Strength
  • Defense strength = the Mobster Strength tile in the district
  • You may only take over if attack exceeds defense. You may not take over a Mobster Speakeasy in your Associate's district
  • Place your Speakeasy or Stills on the space; return the Mobster Speakeasy to the supply
  • Move the City tile (if any) to your Operations board
  • Gain the benefit below the space the building came from

Speakeasy upgrade bonus: your Speakeasies and Stills are arranged in 3 groups on your Operations board (leftmost 3 Speakeasies, middle 2 Speakeasies + Stills, rightmost 3 Speakeasies). When you clear a group by placing its 3rd building, and only when upgrading a Speakeasy to a Nightclub or Casino, you get a permanent discount equal to the cost of buildings in that group ($3/$5/$8). If multiple groups are cleared, use the value of the rightmost cleared group.

End-of-turn City tile limit: if you have more than 4 City tiles on your Operations board, discard excess face up to any space of the middle column of the City tile display.

3 Persons of Interest in 3/4P (2 in 2P). Resolve the actions of the Person you talk to top to bottom; all actions are optional.

You may have at most 1 Nightclub and 1 Casino in each zone.

  • Shared action (every Person): open a Nightclub or Casino, upgrade a Speakeasy to a Nightclub or Casino, or take over a Mobster Speakeasy (replacing it with a Nightclub or Casino), up to 2 times. For each action, pay the cost ($12 Nightclub, $17 Casino) and discard an Operations card from your hand
  • Person-specific actions (one of):
    • Play one Operations card (see Operations cards)
    • Increase any one Operations or Strength level by 1
    • Play one Party card to the Party area of your Operations board

Open a Nightclub or Casino:

  • Choose an empty building space in a zone where you do not already have a building of that type; place your Nightclub or Casino there (may be in a district with a cop — not Operating until protected)
  • Move the City tile (if any) on the space to your Operations board
  • Gain the benefit below the space the building came from on your Operations board

Upgrade a Speakeasy to a Nightclub or Casino:

  • Choose one of your Speakeasies in a zone where you do not have a building of the type you are upgrading to. Replace it with the Nightclub or Casino; remove the Speakeasy from the game
  • Gain the benefit below the space the new building came from
  • Upgrade discount: your Speakeasies and Stills are arranged in 3 groups on your Operations board — leftmost 3 Speakeasies, middle 2 Speakeasies + Stills, rightmost 3 Speakeasies. Once a group's third building is placed, every later upgrade from one of your Speakeasies gets a permanent discount equal to the cost of the buildings in that group ($3 / $5 / $8). If multiple groups are cleared, use the value of the rightmost cleared group

Take over a Mobster Speakeasy (replacing it with your Nightclub or Casino):

  • Your attack strength = Strength + modifiers:
    • +1 per Goon you return to the supply
    • If Associated with a Mobster (and not in their district), pay the Associate's fee to add its Strength
  • Defense strength = the Mobster Strength tile in the district
  • You may only take over if attack exceeds defense. You may not take over a Mobster Speakeasy in your Associate's district
  • Place your Nightclub or Casino on the space; return the Mobster Speakeasy to the supply
  • Move the City tile (if any) to your Operations board
  • Gain the benefit below the space the building came from

Reminder: each Operating Casino pays $3 cash ($5 in 2P) each time turn order changes at end of round.

End-of-turn City tile limit: if you have more than 4 on your Operations board, discard excess to the middle column of the City tile display.

2 Persons of Interest in 3/4P (1 in 2P). Resolve the actions of the Person you talk to top to bottom; all actions are optional.

  • Person-specific actions (one of):
    • Play one Stills card to the Stills area of your Operations board
    • Hire one Goon for free (place on the lowest-cost empty Goon space without paying)
    • Ambush a Rum-runner Ship (see below)

Ambush a Rum-runner Ship:

  • Choose a ship to attack. You must have at least one Family Member at the Dock zone matching the ship's zone
  • Defense strength = the highest Ship value not covered by a barrel on the City Docks board
  • Your attack strength = your Strength × the number of your Family Members in the matching Dock zone, plus:
    • Other players' Family Members in the same Dock zone, at $1 cash each from you to each player (the other players cannot refuse)
    • +1 per Goon you return to the supply
    • You may not pay an Associate for this attack
  • Attack strength must exceed defense for a success; otherwise you cannot attack
  • On success:
    • Flip the Crate tile and place it in front of you (see Crate tiles for the ongoing bonus)
    • Replace the taken Crate on the ship with the top of the Crate tile stack
    • Take the rightmost barrel from the ship and place it next to one of your Operating buildings without a barrel, or on your Stills area if you have an Operating Stills. If you have neither, return the barrel to the supply. If the ship has no barrels, take a barrel from the supply
    • Move one of your Family Members from the matching Dock zone to an empty space in your VIP area. If that would exceed your VIP Room capacity, return the Family Member to your supply (it is killed)
    • Move the attacked ship clockwise to the next empty port

2 Persons of Interest in 3/4P (2 in 2P). Resolve the actions of the Person you talk to top to bottom; all actions are optional.

  • Person-specific actions (one of):
    • Increase any one Operations or Strength level by 1
    • Play one Fleet card to the Fleet area of your Operations board, and gain +2 range for each Truck during this Pick Up and Deliver action
    • Pick Up and Deliver barrels (see below)

Pick up and deliver barrels:

  • Each Truck holds up to 2 barrels and may only deliver to an Operating building without a barrel next to it. You cannot deliver to a Stills
  • Truck availability:
    • You start with 1 Truck available
    • The second Truck unlocks when your Fleet Operations marker is at level 3 or higher
  • Entering the map: a Truck may enter any district of Manhattan without spending movement. Once on the board it cannot leave
  • Range = your Fleet Operations level + bonuses:
    • +2 if you played the Fleet card (on your Operations board) for this action
    • +2 if this action came from the leftmost Person of Interest at the Garage
  • Each movement point moves a Truck 1 adjacent district (not diagonal, not through Central Park — districts 13/15 are not connected to 14/16). In 2P, Trucks may enter and leave blocked districts normally
  • Pick up (during movement):
    • In the district with your Operating Stills: fill your Truck with barrels from your Stills
    • In a district with a Rum-runner Ship: buy barrels. Pay the amount below the rightmost barrel on the ship and load it onto the Truck. If the ship has no barrels, pay the amount below the leftmost empty space and load a barrel from the supply. After buying, move the ship clockwise to the next empty port
  • Deliver (during movement):
    • In a district with your Operating building that has no barrel next to it, place a barrel from the Truck next to the building (max 1 per building). Trucks may end movement with barrels still on them

Tip: if you have both Trucks, fully move one before moving the other.

2 Persons of Interest in 3/4P (2 in 2P). Resolve the actions of the Person you talk to top to bottom; all actions are optional.

  • Person-specific actions (one of):
    • Gain one Family Member — place in your VIP area (up to your VIP Room capacity) or at the Docks (see Family members)
    • Hire one or more Goons — each Goon costs the amount shown on the cheapest empty Goon space on your Operations board ($0–$5)
    • Gain one Leverage token
    • Play one VIP Room card to the VIP Room area of your Operations board
    • Get Protection (see below)

Get Protection:

  • Your available Leverage = sum of the values in the top-right of each Operations card on your Operations board + 1 per Leverage token you choose to discard (cards are not discarded)
  • Cost to send a Family Member is determined by your Turn Order column, leftmost to rightmost: 4 / 3 / 2 / 1 Leverage per Family Member
  • Send Family Members from your VIP area to empty Protection spaces to the left of your buildings (send as many as your Leverage allows; all at once)
  • A building protected by a Family Member:
    • Still Operates even with a cop in its district
    • Is defended first by its Family Member (removed with the building if lost)
    • Wins all ties in the district control hierarchy during payout

3 Persons of Interest in 3/4P (2 in 2P). Resolve the actions of the Person you talk to top to bottom; all actions are optional.

  • Person-specific actions (one of):
    • Gain one Helper card from the display; refill the display (Helper cards cannot be discarded)
    • Increase any one Operations or Strength level by 1
    • Gain one Family Member (see Family members)
    • Hire one or more Goons (see Goons)
    • Get an Associate Mobster (see below, and Associate mobsters)

Get an Associate Mobster:

  • If you already have an Associate, return their tile to its district on the Mobster board (city side up) and recover your Associate marker from the main board
  • Choose a mobster from the Mobster board and place your Associate marker in its district on the main board
  • Flip the chosen mobster to its Associate side and place it on the Associate space of your Operations board
  • If the Associate has an immediate power, gain it now (ongoing powers remain active while they are your Associate)
  • "Honor among thieves": you may not take over a Mobster Speakeasy in your Associate's district

No limit on the number of Capos sent to the Restaurant.

You must change turn order for the next round:

  • Discard an Operations card from your hand and place your Turn Order marker on any empty space of the lower row of the Turn Order track
  • If the chosen space is the 3rd or 4th (or 2nd in 2P), discard another Operations card
  • If you have no card to discard, you cannot send your Capo to the Restaurant (or you cannot choose that space)
  • Your Leverage cost for Protection immediately changes for this turn based on your new Turn Order column
  • Turn order will adjust at end of round and Casinos will pay out — see Turn order change

Then perform 2 different actions from the following, in any order:

  • Play one Operations card (see Operations cards)
  • Play up to 2 City tiles — gain the bonus or perform the action of up to 2 City tiles on your Operations board (tiles gained during this action can also be played). At end of turn, each played tile goes face up to any space of the middle column of the City tile display
  • Cook up to 3 Books — for each Book you cook, place it from your Operations board onto an empty Cooked Book space (you must meet that space's requirement) and gain its benefit and money. Money goes to your safe. See Books

3 Persons of Interest in 3/4P (2 in 2P). At the Park, you exchange Capos with another player.

  • Choose another player's Capo that is already at a location other than the Park. Take your Capo off your Operations board and replace that Capo with yours. Send their Capo to an available Person of Interest at the Park (any of them)
  • The player whose Capo was moved to the Park chooses one:
    • Gain 1 Leverage token
    • Gain 1 Book (place on their Books space; no limit)
    • Gain 1 City tile from the display (a tile is available if face up and not covered). If taken from the right column, immediately reveal the top tile of a face-down stack into the empty space. The middle column does not refill
  • Then, the owner of the Capo now at the new location performs the actions of the Person of Interest it is now talking with (as if they had sent their own Capo there)

End-of-turn City tile limit: if you have more than 4 on your Operations board, discard excess to the middle column of the City tile display.

At the end of acts 1, 2, and 3, resolve each of the following fully before moving to the next:

  • Mob war — new mobsters enter Manhattan and attack your buildings
  • Cops patrol Manhattan — cops are placed in the city
  • Payout for zone control — you are paid for the districts you control

After payout, check for a Turn order change, then start the next act with a Return capos step.

  • Without looking, shuffle the stack of Mobster tiles for this act:
    • Act 1: B
    • Act 2: C
    • Act 3: D
  • Place new mobsters — repeat once per face-down Mobster District tile on the main board (3 in act 1, 4 in acts 2 and 3; 2 and 3 in 2P), starting with the lowest-numbered district:
    • Take the top Mobster tile from the shuffled stack, place it city-side up on the matching district of the Mobster board
    • Swap the Mobster District tile for a Mobster Strength tile of matching value; return the District tile to the box
    • Place a Mobster Speakeasy next to each empty building space in that district (if any)
  • Each newly placed mobster attacks every player building in its district. In turn order, each player decides whether to defend each of their buildings, one at a time:
    • Mobster attack strength = the mobster's Strength (brown box) + Strength modifier (red box)
      • Acts 1 / 2 / 3 totals: 6–8 / 8–10 / 10–12
    • Your building defense strength = your Strength + modifiers:
      • +1 per Goon you return to the supply
      • If you have an Associate Mobster, pay its fee to add its Strength
      • These modifiers apply only to the building you are currently defending
    • Attack strength must exceed defense strength for the mobster to win (ties go to the defender)
    • Each building you successfully defend stays on the board
    • Each building you fail to defend is removed from the game (along with any Family Member protecting it). Return any adjacent barrel (or barrels from your Stills, if the Stills was lost). A Mobster Speakeasy is placed on the building space
  • If the mobster placed no Speakeasies (every space was full of defended buildings), remove the Mobster tile from the game and flip the district's Mobster Strength tile face down
  • Mobsters already on the board from previous acts stay in play. Once all Mobster District tiles for this act are resolved, return any leftover Mobster tiles for this act to the box
  • Prepare the next mob war:
    • End of act 1: flip the 3 Mobster District tiles in the Time track area and place them face down on the related gun spaces
    • End of act 2: flip the remaining 4 and do the same
    • 2P: those counts are 2 and 3

  • Replace each Cop District tile currently on the main board with a cop (from the supply); return the revealed tiles to the box
  • If this is the end of act 1 or 2, take one of the two face-down stacks of Cop District tiles from the Time track area:
    • Reveal them
    • Place each tile face down on the cop space of the indicated district (to be revealed next end-of-act)
  • A district with a cop is no longer safe — buildings there are not Operating unless protected by a Family Member. See Operating buildings
  • Mobster Speakeasies are unaffected by cops

  • Ensure all Zone Control markers (players' and mobsters') are on the bottom space of their Zone Control tracks before starting
  • In order of district number, determine who controls each district using the hierarchy below. Only the best Operating building per player counts — the number of buildings does not. Each controlling player (or the Mobster) moves their Zone Control marker up one space on that zone's track. Ties mean all tied players control the district
  • District control hierarchy (highest wins):
    • Any Operating building with a Family Member next to it (always wins)
    • Operating Casino
    • Operating Nightclub
    • Operating Speakeasy
    • Operating Stills
    • Mobster Speakeasy (only counts if no player has an Operating building and there is no cop or Family Member)
    • Otherwise the district is uncontrolled
  • For each zone, pay out from the supply to each player's safe based on their Zone Control track position, using the Lucky Luciano payout chart beside the track:
    • Include the Mobster Zone Control marker when ranking
    • Tied players all receive the lowest payout of the tied positions
    • If you control no districts in a zone, you get nothing from that zone
  • Shortcut for your payout position: count the number of Zone Control markers at or above your own (including your own and the Mobster's)

At the start of each act, some of your Capos come back to your Operations board from the main board; the rest go to the box. You keep playing rounds in an act until your Operations board has no Capos left.

  • Act 1: you start with 4 Capos already on your Operations board — no return
  • Act 2 (1925): return 3 Capos; the remaining 1 goes to the box
  • Act 3 (1928): return 3 Capos
  • Act 4 (1931): return 1 Capo; the remaining 2 go to the box

Capos at the Restaurant are never returned — they go to the box at the end of the act. There is no limit on how many Capos you may send to the Restaurant during an act.

Your final score is your cash + safe money (at face value; no laundering penalty), plus:

  • Money for each Protected building, from below its space on your Operations board:
    • Stills: $10
    • Speakeasy: $15
    • Nightclub: $20
    • Casino: $20
    • Unprotected buildings score nothing
  • Money for each Helper card (next to your board or in your safe) with a unique bottle — duplicate bottles score nothing. It does not matter whether the Helper card was used

Most money wins. Tie-breakers, in order:

  • Most Protected buildings
  • Most buildings in total (Protected or not)
  • Most placed Books
  • Most Family Members on the main board, at the Docks, and on your Operations board combined

If the tie is still unresolved: play again.

Your Family Members protect buildings and multiply your attack strength when ambushing Rum-runner Ships.

Gaining a Family Member — immediately place them either:

  • In your VIP area (up to your VIP Room capacity), or
  • At an empty Docks space — gain the benefit shown to the right of the row you placed them in
    • When placing at the Docks, you may also move any of your Family Members already at the Docks to other empty Docks spaces for free (no benefit for moving)

Uses:

  • Protection: send from VIP area to your buildings in Manhattan. See Get Protection at City Hall
  • Ambush: at the Docks, your Family Members in the matching zone multiply your attack strength. See Docks
  • Defense: a Family Member protecting a building is removed with it if the building is lost
  • Payout zone control: a Family Member next to a building always wins the district control tie

Sources: City Hall, Commission, Helper cards, City tiles, Infamy track rewards, Operations board benefits.

Goons add +1 strength each when returned to the supply. Usable when:

  • Taking over a Mobster Speakeasy
  • Ambushing a Rum-runner Ship
  • Defending during a mob war

Hiring: pay the cost on the cheapest empty Goon space on your Operations board ($0–$5) and place the new Goon there.

Returning: always return the highest-cost Goon first.

Sources: City Hall, Commission, Docks (one for free), Helper cards, City tiles.

An Associate adds their Strength to your attack or defense when you pay their fee (shown on the left of their tile). You may have one Associate at a time.

  • Get an Associate at the Commission
  • Paying adds the Associate's Strength to:
    • Your attack strength when taking over a Mobster Speakeasy
    • Your building defense strength during a mob war
  • You may not pay an Associate when ambushing a Rum-runner Ship
  • "Honor among thieves": you may not take over a Mobster Speakeasy in your Associate's district (tracked by your Associate marker on the main board)
  • Changing Associates: return the current Associate tile to its district on the Mobster board (city side up), recover your Associate marker, then choose a new one

Associate powers — each mobster tile from stacks A–C has one, either immediate (gained once when you associate) or ongoing. Possible powers:

  • +1 to your building defense strength (ongoing)
  • Immediately place 1 Family Member at the Docks and another in your VIP area; gain the Docks benefit
  • +2 permanent Leverage for paying Protection (ongoing)
  • This Associate helps you defend your Stills for free (ongoing)
  • Immediately gain 2 City tiles from the display; refill as normal
  • Once, for any defense or attack, use this Associate for free (keep city side up until used)
  • +1 attack strength against Rum-runners (ongoing)
  • Pay $1 less to use this Associate for a Mobster Speakeasy takeover (ongoing)

Operations cards come in 4 types matching the 4 Operations tracks: VIP Room, Party, Stills, Fleet. Each card has:

  • A benefit (top-left icon, above the dashed line)
  • An action (below the dashed line)
  • A Leverage value (top-right)

Play an Operations card:

  • Place the card into the matching area of your Operations board
  • If there is already a card there, discard it face up to the bottom of the appropriate Operations deck
  • Stills cards: if there are barrels on the old Stills card, move them to the new one
  • Gain the benefit (top-left icon)
  • Perform the action:
    • VIP Room: Get Protection (see City Hall)
    • Party: Sell barrels (see below)
    • Stills: Produce barrels (see below)
    • Fleet: Pick up and deliver barrels (see Garage)
  • The rainbow "Play one Operations card" icon lets you play any type

Discard an Operations card: from your hand only, face up to the bottom of the matching deck. Cards on your Operations board cannot be discarded — they are only replaced when you play another of that type.

Take an Operations card: draw the top of any one of the 4 decks. No hand limit.

Produce barrels (requires an Operating Stills):

  • Place barrels onto your Stills area equal to your Stills Operations level
  • (No Stills card is required — this action can also be triggered by a City tile, Helper card, Crate bonus, etc.)

Sell barrels (up to your Party Operations level):

  • Sell barrels currently next to your Operating buildings (not Stills)
  • Price per barrel depends on the highest barrel space on the Infamy track that your Infamy marker is on or past, and the building type:
    • Speakeasy: lower of the two amounts
    • Nightclub or Casino: higher of the two amounts
  • Return sold barrels to the supply. Money goes to cash (in your pocket)

Place a gained Helper card face up next to your Operations board. Helper cards cannot be discarded.

  • At the start of your turn, you may use one Helper card: gain the benefit on its lower half, then place it behind your Safe screen (it cannot be used again)
  • At final scoring, each Helper card (next to your board or in your safe) with a unique bottle scores its shown value ($20 / $10 / $5). Duplicate bottles score nothing. It does not matter if the card was used

Possible Helper benefits (each card has one):

  • Gain 2 Leverage tokens
  • Take a VIP Room / Party / Stills / Fleet Operations card
  • Take any Operations card
  • Increase any one Operations or Strength level by 1
  • Gain the benefit of any Helper card from the display without taking the card
  • Gain 1 City tile (as the Park action)
  • Hire 2 Goons for free
  • Gain a Family Member
  • Upgrade one of your Speakeasies (pay the cost)
  • Take over a Mobster Speakeasy ignoring its defense strength (pay the cost)
  • Gain 1 Helper card
  • Pick up and deliver barrels
  • Produce barrels
  • Sell barrels
  • Gain 2 Books
  • Gain $5 cash
  • Get Protection
  • Gain 2 Family Members

City tiles sit on building spaces at setup and in the City tile display on the main board.

Gaining a City tile — move it to your Operations board. Sources:

  • Opening a new Speakeasy, Stills, Nightclub, or Casino on a space with a City tile
  • The Park (as the Park's exchange benefit)
  • Some Helper cards, Crate tiles, Cooked Book benefits, and Infamy track rewards

Playing a City tile — at the Restaurant, you may play up to 2 City tiles in a single visit. Tiles gained during that action can also be played. At end of turn, each played tile goes face up to any space of the middle column of the City tile display.

Operations board capacity — up to 4 City tiles. At end of turn, place any excess face up on any space of the middle column of the display.

City tile display:

  • A tile is available to draw if it is face up and not covered
  • Right column: face up — when taken, immediately reveal the top of a face-down stack into the empty right-column space
  • Middle column: empty, refills only with tiles discarded from play
  • Left column: face-down stacks

Possible City tile benefits (each tile has one):

  • Gain a VIP Room / Party / Stills / Fleet Operations card
  • Gain any Operations card
  • Gain 1 Helper card (from the display, refill)
  • Pick up and deliver barrels
  • Gain 1 Book
  • Increase any one Operations or Strength level by 1
  • Produce barrels
  • Sell barrels
  • Open a Speakeasy or take over a Mobster Speakeasy (pay the cost)
  • Open, take over, or upgrade to a Nightclub (pay the cost)
  • Open, take over, or upgrade to a Casino (pay the cost)
  • Gain 1 Family Member
  • Hire 1 Goon for free
  • Get Protection
  • Gain 2 Leverage tokens

Gained from a successful ambush at the Docks. The front gives an immediate cash payout; the back gives an ongoing bonus for the rest of the game. Tiles marked with the "break the Golden Rule" symbol apply even when the relevant building is not Operating.

Immediate cash (by tile number):

  • 1: $4 per Book placed on the main board (max $24)
  • 2: $5 per Party Operations level
  • 3: $6 per Family Member on your Operations board
  • 4: $3 per Goon on your Operations board
  • 5: $5 per Strength level
  • 6: $3 × your Associate's Strength (max $24)
  • 7: $4 per City tile on or next to your Operations board
  • 8: $3 per Operations card in hand (max $24)
  • 9: $5 per Fleet Operations level
  • 10: $5 per barrel next to your buildings, except your Stills (max $25)
  • 11: $1 per Infamy position
  • 12: $4 per level on your highest Operations or Strength track
  • 13: $4 per open Nightclub and Casino (Operating or not)
  • 14: $4 per Helper card (in safe or not; max $24)
  • 15: $4 per Family Member protecting a building (max $24)
  • 16: $5 per VIP Room Operations level
  • 17: $4 per Family Member (yours or not) on the Dock where you attacked
  • 18: $5 per Stills Operations level

Ongoing bonuses (back of tile, one per tile):

  • Each sell action, sell +1 barrel
  • +1 to your building defense strength
  • Paying an Associate costs $2 less
  • City tile limit on your Operations board +1
  • Each Truck has +1 range
  • When placing a Family Member at the Docks, choose any of the 4 bonuses
  • +1 attack strength when taking over a Mobster Speakeasy
  • +2 permanent Leverage for paying Protection
  • Each produce action, produce +1 barrel

Books are cooked at the Restaurant to earn money to your safe and (often) a benefit. For each Book:

  • Choose an empty Cooked Book space in one of the 5 areas on the main board: Docks, City Hall, Central Park, Infamy track, or Zone Goal tiles
  • You must meet the space's requirement (shown values are minimums — you can exceed)
  • Place a Book from your Operations board onto the space
  • Gain the space's benefit (if any) and money (to your safe)

You may have multiple Books in the same area but never two on the same goal.

Central Park goals — $10 to safe + shown benefit. The 5 Central Park spaces are filled during setup from stacks A (2 tiles), B (2 tiles), C (1 tile). Goals relate to all of Manhattan. Tiles with the "break the Golden Rule" symbol may be achieved without the building Operating. Example requirements (A / B / C tiers):

  • 3 / — / — Protected buildings
  • 1 Nightclub with a barrel / — / 3 Nightclubs with barrels
  • 3 / — / 4 buildings with barrels (except Stills)
  • Sum of 5 / 7 / 9 Leverage on all components
  • 4 / 3 / 2 Operations/Strength levels at 3 / 4 / 5+
  • At least 9 / 12 / 15 Strength (yours + Associate + Goons)
  • 1 Casino with a barrel / 2 Casinos with barrels / 3 Casinos with barrels
  • — / 1 Speakeasy in each zone / 5 Speakeasies open

Zone goals — $20 to safe + shown benefit. The goal relates to the zone where the tile is placed. Each building on the tile must be Protected. Example requirements:

  • 1 Speakeasy and 1 Casino in different districts
  • 1 Speakeasy and 1 Casino in the same district
  • 1 Speakeasy and 1 Nightclub in different districts
  • 1 Speakeasy and 1 Nightclub in the same district
  • 2 Speakeasies in different districts
  • 2 Speakeasies in the same district
  • 3 Speakeasies
  • 1 Nightclub and 1 Casino in the same district
  • 1 Nightclub and 1 Casino in different districts

Docks goals — $15 to safe per goal. You need at least the indicated Crate tiles (1, 2, or 3). You can only place a Book if you have one in both spaces of the same goal pair.

City Hall goals — $20 to safe per goal. Requires a Protected building in at least 3, 5, or 7 different districts.

Infamy goals — $10 / $15 / $20 to safe. Requires your Infamy marker at or above position 10, 15, or 22.

Ways to earn cash:

  • Sell barrels from your Operating buildings
  • Crate rewards from ambushing Rum-runners (max $24 or $25), plus selling the stolen barrel
  • Other players paying you for using your Family Members in their ambushes ($1 each)
  • $3 ($5 in 2P) per Operating Casino whenever turn order changes

Ways to earn safe money (2:1 to spend):

  • Zone control payout at end of act
  • Cooking Books

Ways to spend money:

  • Opening or upgrading buildings
  • Paying an Associate
  • Hiring Goons
  • Buying barrels from Rum-runners
  • Paying other players for their Family Members during an ambush

Building reference:

  • Speakeasy: holds 1 barrel, sells at lower value, upgradable to Nightclub or Casino (watch for upgrade discounts)
  • Nightclub: holds 1 barrel, sells at higher value
  • Casino: holds 1 barrel, sells at higher value, pays $3 ($5 in 2P) per Operating Casino when turn order changes

Watch out for:

  • Be ready to defend during a mob war
  • Note where cops will enter Manhattan at the next end of act
  • Multiple buildings of yours in the same district must each be defended separately
  • Taking over a weak Mobster's Speakeasy is often better than opening in empty spaces, because empty-space openings will be targeted later
  • Buying barrels from ships is faster than building a Stills, though less profitable
  • Establish Nightclubs and Casinos early — bigger payouts and stronger position in district control

Variant: rebuild your Stills (recommended for first-time players):

  • If you lose your Stills during a mob war, place it back on your Operations board instead of removing it from the game
  • You may rebuild following normal rules; you may lose your Speakeasy upgrade discount until the Stills is rebuilt

You play against Jo, a bot that uses its own Operations board, Action card decks, and District card deck. Jo plays by 2-player rules with a small set of exceptions.

Solo setup (set up as for 2P, with these exceptions):

  • Choose a colour for Jo and create a supply: Operations markers, Infamy marker, Turn Order marker, Zone Control markers, Capos, Family Members, Books, Stills, Speakeasies, Nightclubs, Casinos
  • Jo does not use: Strength marker, Trucks, Associate marker, safe. Return those to the box. Jo has no starting money
  • Place Jo's Family Members, Books, and Stills next to Jo's Operations board. Place one Zone Control marker on the bottom of each Zone Control track
  • Place Jo's 4 Capos next to the Operations board, and each Operations marker on level 1
  • Left to right on Jo's Operations board: 8 Speakeasies, 3 Nightclubs, 3 Casinos
  • Shuffle the District cards into a face-down deck
  • Shuffle deck 0 and reveal the top card — increase Jo's matching Operations level by one step. If the card does not increase any Operations, shuffle and reveal another. Return the card to the box
  • Place Jo's Infamy marker on space 5 of the Infamy track

Prepare Jo's action decks:

  • Separate and shuffle Jo's 4 Action card decks (1, 2, 3, 4) and the difficulty modifier deck 0
  • Remove 2 of the 5 cards from deck 2 unseen, return to box. All decks should have 3 cards each except deck 0
  • Choose a difficulty:
    • Brick Wall (very hard): all 12 cards from decks 1–4
    • Consigliere (hard): replace 1 card each from decks 2 and 3 with 1 card from deck 0
    • Gangster (normal): replace 2 cards each from decks 2 and 3 with 2 cards from deck 0
    • Duck Soup (easy): replace 1 from deck 1, 2 from deck 2, 2 from deck 3, 1 from deck 4 with cards from deck 0
  • Return replaced and remaining deck 0 cards to the box (unused)

Prepare Jo's action deck each act:

  • Start of act 1: shuffle deck 1 + deck 2; place on Jo's Action card space. Draw from this in act 1
  • Start of act 2: shuffle the 2 remaining cards from Jo's Action deck into deck 3, place on Jo's Operations board
  • Start of act 3: shuffle the 2 remaining cards into deck 4, place on Jo's Operations board. Use this for the rest of the game

Setup round:

  • Randomly determine turn order
  • In reverse turn order, follow normal 2P rules. For Jo: draw District cards until one names an empty district space. Jo places his Stills on the leftmost/top building space of that district and moves the City tile to his Operations board. Return drawn cards to the District deck and reshuffle. Ignore any bonus on District cards this round. Jo does not place a Family Member at the Docks

General rules for Jo:

  • Does not play or discard Operations cards, use Helper benefits, or use City tile benefits
  • Does not gain or hire Goons, use Associates, or attack Rum-runners (except for his Ambush action below)
  • Always gains cash; never pays for buildings or barrels
  • Only spends money to defend buildings in a mob war — equal to the mobster's attack strength per defended building. If short, spends what he has
  • If Jo's Capo goes to the Park, he receives $5
  • At the Restaurant: moves Turn Order marker to the lower row, placing first on the lowest-Leverage position if possible, otherwise first place. When turn order changes, Jo gains $5 per Operating Casino at end of round
  • Jo's building priority is always: Casino > Nightclub > Speakeasy > Stills
  • Tie resolution for Jo's actions: always choose the lowest-numbered district
  • If Jo cannot take the action on his card, he passes
  • Jo places Family Members at the specified dock left to right, top to bottom
  • Jo's Operations are always limited by his Operations levels
  • Same rules apply to Jo for production, Stills pickup, delivery, selling, Lucky Luciano payout, and scoring. Jo's buildings must be Operating to count

On Jo's turn:

  • Flip the top card of Jo's Action deck. Send one of Jo's Capos to the named location's Person of Interest if available; otherwise send to the right. Ignore the location's actions — Jo performs the action on the Action card
  • If both spaces are blocked by your Capos, move your leftmost Capo to the Park and take one of the 3 Park actions
  • If all spaces at the named location are blocked by Jo's Capos (or the Park is full), draw new cards until a location Jo can place at is drawn. Shuffle any unused cards back to the bottom of his Action deck
  • Resolve all actions on the Action card top-to-bottom, left-to-right, then discard (will not be played again)

Jo's action types:

  • Deliver barrels:
    • Jo does not use Trucks — delivers anywhere on the main board
    • Number of barrels limited to his Fleet Operations level
    • Takes barrels first from his Stills, then from the cheapest ship
    • Delivers to higher-value Operating buildings first
  • Sell barrels:
    • Number limited to his Party Operations level
    • Price per barrel: his Infamy track position
    • Sells from higher-value Operating buildings first
  • Place buildings:
    • Follows normal rules; no benefits, no payment. Jo never upgrades
    • Draw a District card; if Jo cannot open or take over in that district, keep drawing
    • District card with a Family Member symbol: send one from Jo's supply to the indicated Docks zone. Ignore any Family Member symbols on later revealed cards
    • District card with a Helper card symbol: take the most valuable bottle type Jo does not yet have, left to right. If Jo has them all, take the most valuable, left to right. Ignore further Helper card symbols
    • District deck is reshuffled at the start of acts 1, 2, and 3, or when depleted
    • Jo places within a district left to right / top to bottom, moving any City tile to his Operations board
  • Get Protection:
    • Number of Family Members limited by Jo's VIP Room Operations level
    • Ignores Leverage
    • Sends from his supply in this order: buildings in districts with cops; buildings with barrels; higher-value buildings; buildings in Uptown, then Downtown, then Midtown
  • Ambush a Rum-runner Ship:
    • When you ambush, Jo gains $1 from your pocket per used Family Member. When Jo ambushes, he gains $1 from the bank per your Family Members (used or not) at the Dock of the attacked ship
    • Jo always has enough strength; no Family Members required
    • Jo attacks the ship with the most barrels (tie: lowest-numbered district)
    • Jo gains: $5 in act 1, $10 in act 2, $15 in acts 3 and 4
    • Jo places the Crate tile on his Operations board, moves a barrel from the ship next to one of his higher-value Operating buildings without a barrel (or to his Stills area); returns 1 of his Family Members (if any) from the Dock to his supply; moves the ship
  • Cook Books (Jo always has Books available; must meet each goal):
    • Jo attempts to place 3 Books in this order:
      • Zone Goals: increases the lowest Operations level (left-to-right, top-to-bottom), gains $20 per Book
      • City Hall: gains $20 per Book
      • Docks: gains $15 per Book
      • Infamy track: increases the lowest Operations level as above, gains the $ shown on the track space per Book
    • If fewer than 3 Books placed above, place 1 (and only 1) at the leftmost available Central Park space, ignoring the goal and any benefit, and gain $10

Final scoring (1933): scored as 2P — money, Protected buildings, Helper cards. Jo adds $1 per City tile on his Operations board. You must have more money than Jo to win.

Thumbnail courtesy of BoardGameGeek and the respective publisher.