Clash of Cultures — How to play

Grow your civilization through cities, research, exploration and influence. The highest victory-point total wins; conquest is only one route to victory.

Turns and ages

Players take turns with three actions each. You may repeat an action or end your turn early. Three rounds make an age. At the status phase, resolve objectives and, if the game continues, gain an advance, draw cards and resolve the remaining status steps. The standard game ends after six ages; the selected game length can change this. It also ends at the status phase if a player has no cities.

Your actions

• Research: pay for an advance, respecting its prerequisites. Advances unlock abilities and buildings.
• Found a city: replace a settler on suitable land with a settlement.
• Activate a city: collect resources, construct a building or recruit units. City size and mood limit what it can do. Repeated activation lowers its mood; angry cities cannot construct buildings.
• Move: move units to explore, settle, transport armies or fight. Terrain, ships and combat impose movement restrictions.
• Increase happiness: spend mood tokens to improve cities.
• Influence culture: try to take ownership of an opponent’s building without taking their city.

Collect food from plains, wood from forests and ore from mountains. Advances can change collection rules. Keep resources for future actions and watch your storage limits. Cards, wonders and civilization abilities provide additional opportunities.

Scoring

City pieces score 1 point each, advances ½ and completed objectives 2. Wonders, captured leaders and some events also score; specific abilities can modify scoring. Check each objective’s timing: some are claimed during play, others at the end of an age.