Fantasy Flight Games FFGWR02 Citadels 2016 Edition

Product Information

Compete to become the kingdom's next master builder; enlist help from the game's characters and collect gold to see your city take shape. You must deceive, betray and bluff your fellow builders if you are to create the kingdom's most impressive city and be crowned master builder.

The average playtime is 30-60 minutes. However, if you’re playing with more people, the time will increase. Now, Citadels is and has always been a game in which your primary aim is to build a collection of districts for your city. While the first player to reach the target of 7 districts, yes I said 7, will earn a bonus, it is the total value of the locations that will determine the winner. As my father used to say, it’s not how many buttons you have, it’s how shiny they are that count. But then, he did get arrested for running down the high street with no trousers on… anyway, where were we? Ah yes, you see you have the choice of building a small city of gorgeous high scoring buildings or a sprawling hovel of… well… also gorgeous buildings! But seeing as how construction is simply a case of paying coins to build a card from your hand, this would be a bland and uninteresting experience if it weren’t for the roles.

Citadels is a classic game of building where each player must lead and build a prosperous city by building city districts. Each round, each player takes on the role of one of the citadel characters providing abilities unique to them and has uses in different situations in the game. Perhaps you have the thief who can steal gold from another player or maybe you have the assassin who eliminates another character for the round! In the round each player gains gold or can construct a district. Each district has costs in gold which must be paid. Districts themselves come in five different colours and there are bonus points for building all colours of the districts. The game ends when one player constructs their eighth district, then the final scoring begins with each district being worth a certain number of points and bonus points for the player who built all eight of their districts. The five colours of the districts represent the types of buildings they are. The yellow districts are noble, the blue are religious buildings. Green districts are for trade while red is military. The final type of district is the purple; these are special and unique buildings which provide special and unique benefits and abilities. Who will choose the warlord and destroy a city district? Who will use the wizards magic to swap their districts? Citadels is a fantastic introduction to more complex and other Euro games as well as a classic for experienced gamers. Lead you citadel to prosperity and greatness! Player Count: 2-8 Time: 30-60 Minutes Age: 10+ The first time I played Citadels, it was almost hellish as I and another player had to get used to all the roles, didn’t really know what to do and I got bored when it wasn’t my turn. Unlike previous editions that I’ve played, you also get a complete set of tokens to help remind everyone what roles are in the game. This is such a useful addition to a game that wants you to mix up characters. Better yet, more than one of the new roles makes use of these tokens in their powers, making them more than just fun filler. Beginning with the player possessing the crown counter, players take it in turn to choose a character card secretly before passing the hand to the next player. Lastly, this edition has new artwork. [3] 6 of the 9 new characters were created by a young French player, Robin Corrèze. [4]

The game ends when one player constructs their eighth district, then the final scoring begins with each district being worth a certain number of points and bonus points for the player who built all eight of their districts. You may not build a district such that you have two identical districts (two "Castle" cards, two "Market" cards, etc). in your city. Merchant (No. 6 and Green) - May collect gold pieces equal to the number of green buildings in their tableau (i.e. in their personal playing field). Collects an extra gold piece after taking an action during the action phase. (Regardless of if they take gold or cards as income). The bishop gains gold for each religious (blue) district in their city. The bishop can not be targeted from the rank 8 character. To add further strategy to the game, only some characters are available each round. Unavailable characters are selected randomly, and may be revealed or hidden, depending on the number of people playing. The first player to draft always knows the first face down character that is out of play and the last player to draft always knows the last card that is placed face down after the draft.Architect (No. 7) - After taking an action, may take two additional district cards and put both in their hand. May build up to three districts during their turn. Witch (No. 1) - May name a character (not player) and take their income. The Witch's turn is postponed until that character's turn. The player with that character may take their income but do nothing else. The Witch's turn resumes with them being able to use the "bewitched" character's ability and build from their own (the Witch's) hand. They may also take any extra income based on the buildings in their own (the Witch's) tableau. If applicable, you may now use your character's special ability, whatever that is, before you proceed to the main part of your turn. Here you may gather resources and you have a choice to take gold or choose a new district card. Then, finally, you may build a district in your city by paying the districts build cost in gold. Emperor (No. 4 and Yellow) - May collect gold pieces equal to the number of yellow buildings in their tableau (i.e. in their personal playing field). MUST take the crown token (aka first player token) and give it to a different player (not themselves). That player must pay the Emperor 1 gold coin or one card. The 2016 edition of Citadels includes twenty-seven characters — eight from the original Citadels, ten from the Dark City expansion, and nine new ones — along with thirty unique building districts, and the rulebook includes six preset lists of characters and districts beyond the starter list, each crafted to encourage a different style and intensity of gameplay.

There are multiple ways to earn points, which include the value of your districts (how many coins you paid for them), having one of each district type and competing your city. The abilities associated with each character vary and include defensive, offensive, and bonus earning powers. The original set contained eight character cards: With only one person at a time making any decisions, it’s not like ONUW or Sushi-Go-Party, where you can mix it a bit, spend longer making your decisions, and still not suffer any downtime. Pro tip: If you draft predictable characters in each round, you may become the target of the hit man or the thief. How do you score points?

End of the game

The box recommends that the game came be played in 30-60 minutes, we have yet to play a game within this time frame but I do think it is possible. In terms of replay-ability, there are lots of possible characters to choose from, and many different strategies you could adopt, so this is definitely a game that could be played over and over.

On a turn, a player earns two or more gold (or draws two building cards then discards one), then optionally constructs one building (or up to three if playing the architect this round). Buildings cost gold equal to the number of symbols on them, and each building is worth a certain number of points. In addition to points from buildings, at the end of the game a player scores bonus points for having eight buildings or buildings of all five colors. The basic mechanics of Citadels couldn’t be much simpler. Each round, every player chooses a character (role) to play for that one round, and on a turn, the player can either take gold or draw a new building card, pay and build one of those cards if desired, and may use the character’s special ability, if applicable. When one player constructs his/her seventh building (or eighth if there are fewer than four players), that triggers game-end; the players complete the current round and score points. Each building is worth one point per coin it cost to build, and there are bonuses for finishing first, for building one of each of the five building types, and for some of the buildings themselves.Bishop (No. 5 and Blue) - May collect gold pieces equal to the number of blue buildings in their tableau (i.e. in their personal playing field). Is protected from the power of the Warlord, except if the bishop was assassinated. Also, if you’re playing with a lot of people who are new to the game, I’d allow for over an hour. Is Citadels a good board game? In this new edition there are 3 different roles carrying each number, so each game can feature a unique mix of roles. Isn’t that exciting!? No, please don’t fondle the Cardinal, he’s very particular about these things. The roles follow a theme though. So the 4’s are the leaders: the King, Emperor and Patricians who are all about moving the ridiculously ornate crown marker around. Shuffle the basic district cards (structures with a yellow, blue, green or red symbol). Deal four cards to each player. Place the remaining cards facedown on the table. Diplomat (No. 8 and Red) - May collect gold pieces equal to the number of red buildings in their tableau (i.e. in their personal playing field). May "trade" districts in play with another player by paying the difference between the buildings. IF the building from the Diplomat's tableau is less expensive, no gold is "earned" by trading it with a more expensive building.