Symphony

About this board game

Symphony is a Eurogame for 2–6 players that takes about 45 minutes, first released in 2018. Draft instruments, arrange them into an orchestra, and perform a modular music score while competing to earn the most victory points.

The game unfolds in two phases. During the Orchestra Phase, players take turns placing Instrument cards on the board and choosing the instruments they want to control. Each instrument plays a fixed number of notes and has two abilities: one that is always active, and another that works only when the instrument is positioned correctly for its acoustics.

During the Symphony Phase, the assembled orchestra performs the music score. The score is modular, so its structure changes from game to game. The orchestra is divided into five columns, with each column performing in a specific part of the score. Within a column, instruments play from the bottom upward, repeating the sequence until all of their notes have been played.

• Draft and position instruments to claim the performers you prefer and activate their acoustic abilities.
• Place notes carefully onto scoring voices, where each note can provide 1–3 victory points.
• Compete for majorities on sheets and voices for additional points.
• Advance on scoring tracks by playing notes in designated scoring areas.
• Use bonuses earned from certain notes and initial instrument placements to strengthen your instruments, with a maximum of one bonus per instrument.

Because instruments perform in sequence rather than through conventional player turns, control passes from one instrument to the next. Success depends not on playing the most notes, but on placing them effectively and combining timing, positioning, abilities, majorities, and bonuses.

Symphony includes Basic and Advanced modes, making it suitable for soft gamers as well as more experienced players seeking a deeper strategic challenge.