Paper Empires Dangerous T ides

a roleplaying game by Andrew Hauge licensed under the Open Gaming License (OGL) 1.0 version 0.1 (alpha)

“It's a wild world out there, lad. Pirates...all scurvy thieves and killers, the lot of them...your fellow colonists, sworn to God and country...the natives, with their superstitions. T here's a lot of roads you could take, but it's ultimately about finding the right crew to throw your lot in with. Who knows? Maybe you get your own crew someday, if you're lucky enough.” Set sail: you're about to embark on a perilous voyage, as the leader of a band of pirates, chieftain of a tribe of islanders, or governor of a band of colonists. If you can manage your empire, and overcome the challenges that await you, you could end up leading your empire to glory in the Iron Ring Islands. Will you make allies or enemies? Will you acquit yourself with honor, or steal underhanded advantages?

A Game of Civilizations Paper Empires: Dangerous Tides will be a novel experience for all sorts of game players. It is a roleplaying game whose influences are closer to European boardgames, instead of wargames. Those who are used to traditional roleplaying games will find a stronger structure than they may be used to, and of course a different scope. One does not usually play out the actions of an entire empire in a roleplaying game. Those who are used to empire-building games and board games will find a greater flexibility of design, and less emphasis on clear objectives for victory. In this game, the objective is to create histories worth remembering and telling over and over again. Of course, you may be a complete newcomer to many of the ideas in this book, including the concept of roleplaying games in general. In that case, read on; we've got a little introduction here for you.

The Ivory Ring Islands It's a dangerous world out there, in the Ivory Ring, but there's wealth and glory aplenty for any man wishing to test his luck. In this Alpha, I've outlined four factions that can be played, as well as each of the main islands of the Ivory Ring. Along with the islands come some fleets that can be commanded; for now, they use the same rules as provinces. If you want more rules-based details on these, those bits come after the summary of the turn, in the Dynasty and Setup sections.

Factions The Dun Crow Donnoleys The Dun Crows have come to the islands from afar, bringing their clans to spread terror and pillage through the Ivory Ring. Now, they've decided to settle down and carve out an empire for themselves in the Ring, and there's precious few as can stop them, if they put their minds to it. The Four Fangs The newcomers to the islands have caused some of the more militant natives to band together, in an attempt to drive off the intruders. The Four Fangs are four different tribes, formerly in conflict, who have made a hasty alliance against the factions who would seek to claim the Ivory Ring. The Colonials In the name of God and Country, the Colonials have come from afar, supported by a royal army, to lay claim to the Ivory Ring, and to keep it safe from the marauders who would lay it to waste. They aim to bring order to these lawless lands.

The Monkey's Sabre High adventure and derring-do are the bywords of the Monkey's Sabre. The men and women who swear their fealty to the hand who is claimed to wield the Monkey's Sabre (an ancient ancestral weapon) are elite fighters, out for nothing more than adventure, treasure, and a generally good time.

Islands Knave's Cove A lawless hive, home to the men and women who protect the Monkey's Sabre. Plenty of work can be had here, though discipline and a general sense of culture are somewhat lacking. The Reef Inhabited by two of the tribes who belong to the Four Fangs, the Reef used to be the site of much war and bloodshed, but now serves as a very defensible military headquarters for the alliance. Crossbone Isles Once the home to notorious smugglers, these two islands are dangerous places to attack, as any invading ships must navigate treacherous sandbars on the approach. They are currently home to a fiercely hostile native tribe, but any who can conquer them will have a worthy prize. Queensland The Colonial capital, this island is refined, advanced, and well-populated. Its people are generally peaceful and law-abiding, with a keen interest in fishing and harvesting the local wealth of the sea. Murrow's Stone A smaller island which was named and discovered by a Colonial sailor. It is unknown just how much strength the Colonials are willing to devote to claiming it. It is also known as the prime growing-place of a rare coffee plant. Redrock Island Named for the bloodred stone at its center, this is the island where the Dun Crow was forged, where the Donnoleys initiate newcomers into the clan. It is a fiercely defended island, and its legend reaches far and wide. The Keg Supposedly named for an unusual rock formation on one of its coasts, the Keg has fallen under the eye of the Dun Crows, who are looking for a good place to train their ruthless captains and vicious assassins.

Your Men Await Orders! Let's have a look at this empire of yours, shall we? Just to make things simple, we've already made empires for players to choose from. Any unclaimed empires...well, they didn't manage to make it into the story. Maybe they're not big enough groups to count as empires yet, or maybe they never showed up, period. Your empire consists of a number of “provinces”. It may also include “fleets”, and those are slightly different, but still the same in a number of ways. You should have a set of cards, each depicting one province (or fleet; from now on, whenever the rulebook refers to “province”, unless it specifically says otherwise, you may assume that whatever it says applies to fleets as well). Take some time to look over the different features of your province. The province has a number of different “statistics”, which determine how prominent it is in certain areas. A province's Influence denotes its fame, and how strongly it represents your empire and its culture. High-Influence provinces are more likely to produce National Heroes. A province's Resources value indicates how well-stocked it is among various resources. During the Income phase, you test Resources in order to see how much raw material you have to work with. Population, Military, and Science are all values which represent your investment of Resources. They allow you to accomplish things, particularly in the Expand, War, and Research phases.

The Parts of a Turn Every turn has different Phases, chosen by the players. Each turn, the Leading Power chooses a phase for all of the players to follow, including themselves. The Leading Power then rotates, and the next phase is picked. After every player has gone, the turn ends, Upkeep and Growth phases happen, and all powers test their total Influence to determine who is the new Leading Power for next turn. A phase may not be repeated in a turn, unless you have a special ability which allows otherwise. The possible phases (and the actions you take) are as follows: • • • • • • •

Income: Acquire goods to build up your empire. You need goods to allocate to your activities, and if you don't generate enough to fuel your actions, your empire can fall into disrepair. Build: Invest resources into your projects. You sacrifice raw resources, but gain military power, population, or research in your provinces. Research: Try for a breakthrough in your technologies; the more scientific growth your empire has, the greater the chance of an epiphany. Inspire: Attempt to gain a cultural expansion, possibly gaining a National Hero. War: Send your military might to pillage or conquer the enemy! You may also use this phase to maneuver your armies. Expand: Send colonists (or buccaneers) to settle new lands, expanding your influence over the islands. Crisis: Face off against a random challenge, with possible rewards for success.

Every turn ends with an Upkeep phase, where you spend Goods to keep your empire happy and in good repair, and a Growth phase, where you test to see if any of your provinces gain in Population, also reducing your resources.

Income During an Income phase, you test the Resources value of every one of your provinces. You do this by rolling a number of six-sided dice equal to your Resources. A result of 4, 5, or 6 produces a Good. If more than half of the dice rolled for a province are 6's, that province experiences a resource boom. This means that the province produces an extra Good, and you get a +1 bonus on all Inspire and Build rolls this turn. Mark down on that province how many Goods it generated, or mark that information down on a separate sheet, if you wish to track turn-to-turn Goods. You may spend these Goods in other phases. A province may not produce an amount of Goods any greater than half its Population (rounded up). Goods are either “freshly produced” or “in storage”. During the Upkeep phase, all Goods in a province that are not spent are moved into that province's “storage”, and any Goods that were in that province's storage expire and are removed from the game. Goods in storage can be spent for the same reasons as freshly produced Goods, and can be stolen in War just the same as other Goods.

Build You reduce provinces' Resources value, in exchange for building up their Population, Military, or Science. For every point of Resources invested, you may increase two of those three values by one point. You may not invest a single point of Resources to increase Population, Military, or Science by two points; you must spread the points between two values. Note that this phase does not affect Goods; only Resources are reduced. If you gained a bonus to Build from another phase, this grants you an additional point to invest in Population, Military, or Science. This bonus may only apply to one province per phase.

Research During a Research phase, you test the Science value of each province. You do this by rolling a number of six-sided dice equal to that province's Science. If a province rolls three 6's, then that province achieves a breakthrough, and you gain a +1 bonus on all Inspire or War rolls this turn (when the appropriate phase comes up, apply the bonus; it only applies to one of those two phases). You then collect all the Science dice rolled, spending four 6s to gain a breakthrough. When you have gained as many breakthroughs as possible, spend them on unresearched technologies. Most basic technologies cost one breakthrough, advanced technologies cost two breakthroughs, and revolutionary technologies usually cost up to four breakthroughs. More advanced technologies also require the research of certain basic technologies first; see the technology section for that. The biggest use of technologies is to uncover more natural Resources, but some technologies may give you access to bonuses for various actions of your turn.

Inspire During the Inspire phase, you test the Influence value of each province. You roll a number of six-sided dice equal to that province's Influence, plus additional dice for bonuses gained from other phases. If a province rolls three 6's, that province immediately produces a National Hero (and two Expansion points). Otherwise, every 6 generates a National Hero point, and every 4 and 5 generate Expansion points. National Hero points add up, and you may spend them during your Growth phase to have a National Hero spring up. Expansion points are spent during the Expand phase. When a single province gains a Hero from rolling three 6's, this is known as Inspiration. It is the only way that you can gain the unique hero from your dynasty.

War War is serious business. At the start of this phase, each power rolls every province's Military: a number of six-sided dice equal to their Military value. A 3, 4, 5, or 6 produces an battalion in the province; if two 6's are rolled in a province, that province also gains an elite unit in the province. These represent the forces that you are able to muster up and equip. You may also spend a Good to roll a province's Population; this roll produces a battalion on a roll of 5 or 6. Elite units must be selected from a list of all of the elite units which your empire has achieved so far. These are like lesser National Heroes, usable in war to grant you small bonuses. You unlock elite unites through research. Each player, in turn, commands the battalions of one province to perform one of three actions: attack, raid, or garrison. Players continue to take turns commanding battalions, until they run out of battalions to command. In an attack, one group of battalions aims to conquer another, gaining massive rewards. Both players roll a number of dice equal to the battalions participating in the battle. All dice rolled are put into a War Pool. Each side, starting with the smaller army, may then expend its elite units for special benefits. Then, starting with the side that possesses more battalions, both sides take turns inflicting casualties. Each side may spend a 5 or a 6 in the War Pool to destroy a single enemy battalion. Then, if one side has more than twice the battalions of the other side, the larger side inflicts an additional casualty. After that, the attacker chooses whether to press on and conquer the province. To do this, they spend a Good from the attacking province. The defending province rolls a number of dice equal to its Population, and inflicts a casualty on the attacking army by spending each 4, 5 and 6 rolled. If there are three or more battalions remaining in the attacking army, destroy the defending army and transfer at least three battalions into the new province. The attacker now owns it, and all Goods produced by the province that turn, but the province becomes Unhappy. Otherwise, retreat all surviving attacking battalions into the province which they came from. In a raid, one group of battalions skirmishes another to destroy supplies. Play proceeds as in an attack, but casualties are only suffered on 6's, and each side may only expend one elite unit. Then, the attacker rolls a number of dice equal to his remaining battalions. Destroy one Good produced by the province for each 5 or 6 rolled. You may choose to destroy a building instead of destroying two Goods this way. (If you rolled three 5s and a 6, you could destroy two buildings, or destroy a building and two Goods, or destroy four Goods.) The garrison action commits a group of soldiers to digging in, so that they can protect their land. They may not attack. If an army attacks a garrisoned army, then every 1 rolled in the War Pool can be spent to deflect a casualty from the defender to the attacker. In the right situation, this can be devastating, although it doesn't render garrisoned armies impregnable. This advantage does not apply during a raid.

Expand When the Expand phase starts, the player to the left of the current Leading Power chooses an unoccupied/unaligned province to be settled. He is now known as the Expedition Leader. All powers then roll their current total Population; all 5's and 6's generate 1 Expansion point. They add to this their Expansion points from the Inspire phase (if there was one), and this forms their Expansion pool. The

Expedition Leader bids a certain number (at least one) of Expansion points for the province, or else passes. The player to his left then has an opportunity to bid more Expansion points, or else to pass. This continues until all players pass. Then, everyone spends the Expansion points they committed to the province, and the highest bidder adds the province to their empire. The next player to the left becomes the new Expedition Leader, and chooses a new unaligned province to be settled. When you settle an unoccupied Province, you must populate it by shifting points of Population from your provinces to the new province. Otherwise, the province starts with 0 Population.

Crisis Each player rolls on the Crisis Table. This is a random assortment of various challenges which test different values of provinces, providing varying rewards that depend on the severity of the challenge. Don't pick this phase lightly!

Upkeep During this phase, you attempt to keep your empire happy and in good repair, spending the Goods you have produced (and possibly plundered). Every province that is Happy requires one Good to sustain it, and every province that is Unhappy requires two Goods to sustain it. If a Happy province does not receive the necessary Goods, then it becomes Unhappy. Every three points of Population in the province adds an additional Good to be paid. If a Province does not achieve half of the Goods necessary to sustain it, that Province is starving: reduce its Population by 2, and make it Unhappy. If you accumulate enough Unhappy provinces, a rebellion may start in the Crisis phase. Certain events (such as the rise of a National Hero, or a glorious military conquest) may make a province Very Happy; such a province must receive two Goods during the Upkeep phase or else fall back to Happy, but also gains a +1 bonus to Inspire and Income rolls. Those same events also cause an Unhappy province to rise back to Happy. Alternatively, you may spend four Goods (plus one for every three Population) during upkeep to raise a province from Unhappy to Happy. Finally, all Goods remaining in a province's storage expire, and all Goods freshly produced in a province move to its storage.

Growth During this phase, you test each Province's Population, to see if it grows. Roll each Province's Population; for every pair of matching dice, increase the Population by 1. For every triplet, increase the population by 2. For every set of four matching dice, increase the population by 4. You may also spend National Hero points earned in this turn to buy a National Hero. The price for each hero is listed next to them, in the Hero table. Dynasties also have their own unique Heroes. Unique Heroes cannot be purchased, but must arise by Inspiration (the rolling of three 6s in a single Province's Inspire Roll).

Turn Summary Here's a handy summary of every action in the turn. If you can't remember how things are supposed to go, turn here. Not every rule from above is spelled out here; this is only a quick reference. • Leading Power picks a phase (Income, Build, Research, Inspire, War, Expand, Crisis) and all players, starting with the Leading Power, undergo that phase. ◦ Income: In each province, roll dice equal to your Resources, and gain a Good for 4s, 5s, and 6s in that province. ◦ Build: Reduce a province's Resources to increase Population, Military, and/or Science. ◦ Research: Roll each province's Science, and gain a breakthrough for every four 6s rolled in the whole pool. Spend breakthroughs on technologies. ◦ Inspire: Roll each province's Influence, and gain Expansion Points, plus a chance to make a National Hero. ◦ War: Roll each province's Military, generating an army there, and choose (in turn) to conquer or raid another player's (or a neutral) province. ◦ Expand: Each player auctions off an unoccupied or unaligned province; everyone bids with Expansion Points. ◦ Crisis: Each player rolls on the Crisis table, encountering a challenge which they must overcome by testing their provinces. Challenges have varying rewards. • The next player clockwise becomes the Leading Power. • Repeat the first two steps, until all players have been the Leading Power. • Perform Upkeep: maintain provinces with Goods produced. Expire stored Goods and store fresh Goods. • Perform Growth: roll provinces' Population, and increase it by matching dice.

Dynasties: the Face of Power Your empire is represented by a Dynasty. This is not a single man, but rather a culture unto its own, a collection of rulers, a lineage which may grow to span generations. It is a legacy, and the way which your empire will be remembered. The change of a Dynasty is a major event in this world. Dynasties grant a number of bonuses to you... • Influence: A Dynasty may give a certain Influence bonus to any one province, once per turn. Don't forget to use this bonus! It may be just the boost you need for a National Hero... • Ability: Every Dynasty has a once-per-game ability, which is chosen at the very beginning of the turn, before any phases are performed. • Traits: A Dynasty has many different Traits which modify aspects of the game. They may give you a unique ability, make certain actions easier for you to perform, or simply change the way things work altogether. This is where you can get the greatest idea of what your Dynasty is like. • Unique Heroes: A Dynasty can also bestow unique traits on its National Heroes, letting them serve the empire in a way unlike the heroes of any other empire. Although the unique heroes have a Strength listed, they can only be produced through Inspiration. This quickstart includes one dynasty for each faction; the core rulebook for Dangerous Tides will include at least two dynasties for each faction.

T he Treywood Dynasty (T he Monkey's Sabre): Influence 1 The Treywoods have distinguished themselves with enough audacity to readily merit the title of leadership in the Monkey's Sabre. They thrive off of high adventure, and the spoils of said high adventure. Ability (usable once per game): Season of Adventure: you begin this turn with a bonus Crisis phase: each player rolls on the Crisis Table, and you assign each result to a player, including yourself (one per player; you gain a +2 bonus to your own result). After these Crises resolve, every player rolls again and you assign results as before. Then the normal turn begins. Traits (choose one each turn): Brash: all provinces gain a +1 Military bonus. You may not choose the garrison action. Lucky: once per turn, when you roll on the Crisis Table, you may choose to reroll; you must take the second result. Unique Hero: Swashbuckler (Strength 2): the province this Hero is in can never be Unhappy. Inspiration produces this Hero with two 6's instead of three.

T he Donnoley Dynasty (T he Dun Crow Donnoleys): Influence 2 The Dun Crows are vicious raiders who seek to dominate the entire Ivory Ring. They are bonded to one another by blood ties, and will stand steadfast until the last of their number falls. Ability (usable once per game): No Quarter: all provinces this turn gain a +3 Military bonus, and every province that you successfully raid loses 1 Population (limit one per province).

Traits (choose one each turn): Ruthless: one province gains a +2 Military bonus. Clans: provinces with 3 Influence or more cannot be Unhappy. Unique Hero: Ghost Ship (Strength 3): when this Hero leads a raid, before the War Pool is rolled, roll a bonus die; on a 6, destroy a defending battalion.

T he Norriser Dynasty (T he Colonials): Influence 3 The Norriser family is an old line which stretches far back to the Old Country. Viceroy Norriser was a personal advisor to the King, and for that he was granted an opportunity to carve out an empire in the Ivory Ring. Ability (usable once per game): Construction Boom: this turn, you may spend Goods instead of Resources during the Build Phase. Traits (choose one each turn): Economic: once per turn, choose a province during the Build phase. Reduce that province's Resources by one and increase its Military, Population, and Science by one point apiece. Scholarly: after all dice have been rolled during your research phase, convert one 1 result to a 6; this does not count for a single-province breakthrough. Unique Hero: Ambassador (Strength 3): any Inspire roll made in this Hero's province rerolls all “1” results.

T he Queltala Dynasty (T he Four Fangs): Influence 2 The Queltala is the native leader who is chosen to lead the Four Fangs to victory over the invaders. He generally holds his own tribe's protection as his guiding principle, but is aware that all of the tribes must be protected in order for the invaders to be kept away. Ability (usable once per game): People of the Islands: at the start of the turn, roll one die for every province you control. You gain that many bonus Expansion Points this turn. Traits (choose one each turn): Tribal Army: when you generate armies in the War phase, you may choose to spend a point of Population in any province to gain a battalion there. This may be done as many times per province as you wish. Native: when you make a roll on the Crisis table, you may choose to reroll it; you must take the new result. Unique Hero: Chieftain (Strength 3): during the Income phase, this Hero's province produces a Good on a result of 3, as well as on a result of 4, 5, or 6.

Technologies: the Power of Intellect Technology is a tool...and it is power. By leveraging technologies, you grant your empire the ability to rise above and beyond other empires, advantages that cannot be matched through normal means. Each technology that you research grants you certain benefits within the game, such as bonuses to certain rolls. Every technology has a benefit and a breakthrough cost. The benefit is whatever the technology gives your empire; this is a permanent benefit. Sometimes, a benefit will be a special ability that you can use. This instance will often be worded as “You may do X to get Y effect.” or “When you do X, you may add Y effect.” The breakthrough cost is how many breakthroughs you must spend during the Science phase to research that technology. Technologies also come with prerequisites: you must research certain technologies before other technologies open up for use. Technologies come in several different categories: Military, Trade, and Production are the ones listed here.

Military Technologies These are the arts of war, giving your civilization the tools necessary to crush your enemies. They enable you to unlock newer and better elite units. Drilling Prerequisites: None Benefit: you may choose the elite unit “Sergeant” (Once per raid or attack, reduce the result of a single die from the War Pool by 1.) each time you produce an elite unit. Breakthrough Cost: 1 Militia Prerequisites: None Benefit: when you roll Population at the start of the War phase, you may increase the result of a single die in any province by 1. Breakthrough Cost: 1 Adaptive Tactics Prerequisites: Militia Benefit: you may choose the elite unit “Huntsman” (Once per raid, spend a 5 from the War Pool to inflict a casualty.) each time you produce an elite unit. Breakthrough Cost: 2 Advanced Tactics Prerequisites: Drilling Benefit: you may choose the elite unit “Lieutenant” (Once per attack or garrison, reroll a single die from the War Pool.) Breakthrough Cost: 2 Guerrilla Warfare Prerequisites: Adaptive Tactics Benefit: During a single raid, you may spend 5's and 6's to inflict casualties. Breakthrough Cost: 4

Standing Army Prerequisites: Advanced Tactics Benefit: Gain a +3 Military bonus in any province. Choose the province at the start of each turn. Breakthrough Cost: 4

Trade Technologies These are the fine lessons of commerce, allowing your empire the ability to acquire more goods, and to make its people happier. Barter Prerequisites: None Benefit: During the Income phase, you may give another player's province a Good produced by one of your provinces to roll 2 additional Resource dice in that province. Breakthrough Cost: 1 Trading Networks Prerequisites: None Benefit: Each turn, choose a province; that province gains a +1 bonus to Income rolls. Breakthrough Cost: 1 Trade Agreements Prerequisites: Barter Benefit: During the Income phase, you may raise another player's Science in any province by 1 to roll 2 additional Resource dice in one of your provinces. Breakthrough Cost: 2 Moneylending Prerequisites: Trading Networks Benefit: Once per turn, choose a single province during the Income phase. You gain a +1 bonus to its Resource roll for every two Goods in storage in that province. Breakthrough Cost: 2 Trading Company Prerequisites: Trade Agreements Benefit: During the Income phase, any player may request a Good, a +1 Science bonus in any province, or a +1 Military bonus in any province. They may make any number of these requests. For each request that you grant, add a die to a “Trade Pool”. For every 6 rolled in the pool, make an Unhappy province Happy. Then, produce a Good for every 5 or 6 in the Trade Pool. Breakthrough Cost: 4 Banking Prerequisites: Moneylending Benefit: During the Income phase, you may choose to move any number of Goods produced to your Dynasty. During the Growth phase, roll one die for each Good, and produce an additional Good for every 5 and 6 rolled. Distribute the Goods to provinces' storage areas. Breakthrough Cost: 4

Production Technologies These are the pillars of industry, giving you the capability of constructing buildings in your provinces for special effects. Many buildings require the research of a Trade or Military technology to be built, and can only be built once in any province. Harvesting Prerequisites: None Benefit: During the Build phase, you may spend a point of Population to build a farm (This province has +1 Resources.) in that province. Breakthrough Cost: 1 Mining Prerequisites: None Benefit: During the Build phase, you may spend a point of Military to build a mine (This province has +1 Resources) in that province. Breakthrough Cost: 1 Specialized Farming Prerequisites: Harvesting Benefit: During the Build phase, you may spend two Goods to build a plantation (This province has +1 Resources and may increase the result of a single die by 1 during its Income phase.) in that province. Breakthrough Cost: 2 Smelting Prerequisites: Mining Benefit: During the Build phase, you may spend a point of Science and a point of Population to build a smithy (This province has +2 Resources) in that province. Breakthrough Cost: 2 Preservation Prerequisites: Specialized Farming Benefit: During the Build phase, you may spend two Goods and a point of Population to build a storehouse (This province has +1 Resources and you may store up to two Goods here; Goods stored here do not spoil.) in that province. Breakthrough Cost: 4 Industry Prerequisites: Smelting Benefit: During the Build phase, you may spend a point of Military, a point of Science, and a point of Population to build a factory (This province has +3 Resources) in that province. Breakthrough Cost: 4

Heroes: Swords and Swashbucklers Every empire has its extraordinary figures. Whenever you produce National Hero points during the Inspire phase, you may spend them to gain any of the Heroes listed here. Heroes are present in a single province, and can be moved to another province during the War or Expand phases. They grant certain benefits to that province. Each hero has a Benefit and a Strength. You should also give a unique name to each hero. The Strength value is how many National Hero points you must spend to get the hero. At the start of each turn (unless otherwise noted), you expend the hero to gain the benefit listed. You may only expend the hero as many times as his or her Strength rating. When the hero has been exhausted in this way, he or she fades into obscurity, and is removed from the game. Warleader (Strength 1): the province this hero is in may reroll a single War die; you must use the second result. Tradesman (Strength 1): the province this hero is in rolls one extra Resource die during the Income phase. Explorer (Strength 1): you generate 1 extra Expansion Point. Scholar (Strength 1): you reroll 1 Science die this turn. Captain (Strength 2): you gain a +1 Military bonus this turn. Performer (Strength 2): you may spend 2 Goods to make any Unhappy province Happy.

Crisis Table When you roll on the Crisis Table, roll two dice, and add them together. Compare the result to this table. Every entry has a Challenge to be overcome and a Benefit to be gained, as well as a Consequence for failure. Every Benefit which grants a bonus or penalty only gives the bonus or penalty for one turn unless otherwise noted.

2-Plague Challenge: Test Science in all provinces, and achieve four breakthroughs. Benefit: Make two provinces Very Happy. Consequence: Lose a total of 7 Population from your provinces.

3-Famine Challenge: Test Resources in all provinces. You must roll at least three 4s, 5s, and 6s in each province. Benefit: Each province that rolls three 4s, 5s, or 6s produces an extra Good. Consequence: Each province that does not roll three 4s, 5s, or 6s loses 2 Population.

4-Fire Challenge: Roll a die for each Good in the province with the most Goods. No more than two 1s or 2s must appear. Benefit: You gain a +1 bonus to the province's next Inspire roll. Consequence: Destroy two Goods in storage in the province.

5-Raiders Challenge: Test the Military value of the province with the lowest Military. You must roll at least two 4s, 5s, and/or 6s. Benefit: that province may produce a National Hero through Inspiration with one fewer 6 than normal. Consequence: Destroy a Good in the province.

6-Unrest Challenge: Roll a die for each Unhappy province; no more than two should come up as a 4, 5, or 6. Benefit: Gain a +1 Military bonus in any Unhappy province. Consequence: All Unhappy provinces rebel: they become unaligned and merely collect Income and raise armies during the War phase.

7-Corruption Challenge: Test the Influence value of a province chosen by the player to your left. You must roll at least two 4s, 5s, and 6s. Benefit: Gain a +1 bonus to Influence in that province. Consequence: Lose a Good in that province.

8-Storms Challenge: Roll a die for each province which has Goods in storage. No more than two 1s must appear. Benefit: You may reroll your next Crisis roll. Consequence: Each province loses one Good in storage.

9-Military Disorder Challenge: Test the Military value of the province with the highest Military. You must roll at least three 4s, 5s, and/or 6s. Benefit: In the next War Phase, the province with the highest Military produces a battalion on a result of 4, 5, or 6 if you choose to roll its Population. Consequence: Every province takes a -1 Military penalty in the next War Phase.

10-Assassins Challenge: The player to your right chooses a Hero owned by you. Test the hero's Strength value plus your Dynasty's Influence. You must roll at least three 4s, 5s, and 6s. Benefit: The Hero gains a permanent +1 bonus to Strength. Consequence: Lose the targeted Hero.

11-Rival Challenge: Test each province's Influence. Benefit: Each province that rolls at least two 4s, 5s, or 6s gains a +1 Military bonus in the next War Phase. Consequence: Each province that does not roll at least two 4s, 5s, or 6s becomes Unhappy.

12-Coup Challenge: Test your total Influence. You must roll at least six 4s, 5s, and 6s. Benefit: Shift up to three provinces one step in happiness (Happy to Very Happy or Unhappy to Happy). Consequence: Two provinces become Unhappy, and you face this challenge again during your next Crisis phase. You do not roll during the next Crisis phase.

Setup: Preparing the Game The Dangerous Tides quickstart features a specific setup; the full game will give rules for setting up your own scenarios. For now, though, follow this (and homebrew your own, if you wish).

The Dun Crow Donnoleys

Unoccupied

Redrock Island Influence: 3 Resources: 2 Military: 4 Science: 2 Population: 2

Murrow's Stone Influence: 2 Resources: 4 Military: 1 Science: 2 Population: 2

The Queltalas

Crossbone Isles Influence: 2 Resources: 1 Military: 3 Science: 2 Population: 2

The Reef Influence: 2 Resources: 2 Military: 4 Science: 1 Population: 4

The Norrisers Queensland Influence: 3 Resources: 2 Military: 2 Science: 4 Population: 2

The Monkey's Sabre Knave's Cove Influence: 2 Resources: 3 Military: 3 Science: 1 Population: 3

The Keg Influence: 1 Resources: 2 Military: 2 Science: 3 Population: 3

Optional Rule: Glory Points (Not yet implemented) If you'd really like to have a very clear-cut way to tell who's won a game of Paper Empires, you could use the Glory Points system. Different Dynasties gain Glory Points in different ways: some empires will gain Glory by conquest and raiding, others by expansion, others by scientific research. Here are the ways which the dynasties listed in this quickstart can gain Glory. At the end of the game (a number of turns agreed upon by all players), whichever player has amassed the most Glory is the victor and conquerer of the Ivory Ring!

Treywood Dynasty Donnoley Dynasty Norriser Dynasty Queltala Dynasty