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eSSEN SPIEL 2026
hALL 2 e311
An empire‑building boardgame charting the rise & fall of the Roman Republic in just 6 turns, where your word is the deadliest weapon of all
1-6 players
age: 14+
DUR:
sHORT GAME: 90MINS
lONG GAME: 3HRS
You control a Senatorial family vying to become Primus Inter Pares — First Among Equals — the unimpeachable ruler of the Roman Republic.
But this isn’t a contest of borders and battalions: it's a battle of wits that will test your negotiating skills to their limit.
Whisper softly behind marble columns to bribe senators for political favours, then drag them through the courts for corruption.
Every move you make opens a new space for a deal.
Every deal you strike reshapes the board. Every alliance is temporary.
When the dust settles, you’ll look back and realise that while you were scheming, bargaining, and quietly backstabbing your way to supremacy… you and your fellow senators had conquered an empire along the way.
The epic feel of a 4x in half the playing time, with twice the tabletalk
CHOOSE 1 OR 2 ACTION CARDS EACH ERA TO DECIDE YOUR FAMILY'S STRATEGY.
ALL PLAYERS CAN DO the chosen ACTION, BUT THE CARD-PLAYER EARNS BONUSES WHICH ARE MORE POWERFUL IF THEY ARE THE ONLY CARD-PLAYER.
sO BE CAREFUL NOT TO FOLLOW THE CROWD,
This card lets you tax the provinces you govern
This card converts your prestige into more permanent victory points, lets you Enact powerful Reforms and opens up provinces to re-election
This card uses the law courts to steal prestige from your political rivals
this is the most common card you will play.
it lets you win prestige by commanding Rome's legions and conquering new territory
these cards don't just let you do Actions - they create a space for you to do deals.
because This game is all about dealmaking:
Raised spare legions through tax? trade them for Political influence.
Trade that influence for votes in the Governor elections...
Or use it to pay someone not to take you to court.
or maybe you keep those legions till the EXpand phase, when you can get a better deal by trading them to a general who really needs them.
Anything is possible and everything is negotiable in this game about backroom deals in the smoke-filled streets of ancient rome
Then just when you thought it was over
the endgame goes full game-of-thrones!
the Extra-Legal card turns the final Eras of the game into a political deathmatch, where you win or you die!
The leader of the game can declare himself Emperor
Other players can attempt to bring him down through assassination or civil war
or you can use your popularity to whip up mobs that attack a political rival's supporters
use daggers & diplomacy
to beat your rivals in ancient Rome
and conquer an empire while you're doing it