Dark Empire: Revolution

About this board game

Dark Empire: Revolution is a 3–5 player card game that takes about 60 minutes, casting players as hidden supporters of rival factions during a rebellion against Emperor Flaut III.

In the state of R’yan, Students, Beggars, the City Guard, Alchemists, and the Apparats must cooperate to challenge the Emperor. Yet only one faction can ultimately rule the future country. Each player receives a secret goal faction, a hand of seven cards, and temporary support cards used to predict which faction will lead the next monthly scoring.

The table represents Vindoban, the capital, with the Emperor’s army facing the insurgent people. Each week, players simultaneously play cards toward the revolutionary forces or secretly place one card as a traitor on the Emperor’s side. Three rounds of card placement create a shifting struggle for support, while the Emperor’s card and its traitors may become powerful enough to suppress the rebellion.

• Five competing factions, each with its own strength cards
• Simultaneous card play and limited traitor placements
• Secret predictions about the next month’s winning faction
• Intermediate scoring after four weeks and final scoring after three months

At the end of each week, the strongest faction is determined. The player who supplied the most support sets aside a card for that faction and gains two points, while the player who played its highest single card earns one point. If the Emperor’s total exceeds every individual faction, the Emperor card is placed for scoring instead.

Correctly predicting the month’s winner provides six additional points. After three months, secret goals are revealed and collected faction cards are scored. In Dark Empire: Revolution, victory can take an unexpected turn: the Emperor may defeat the rebellion, or an overly dominant faction may be overthrown, allowing the second-highest faction to prevail.