Manual — Time of Crisis: The Age of Iron and Rust

GMT Games, LLC • P.O. Box 1308, Hanford, CA 93232-1308 • www.GMTGames.com
Introduction.......................................................2
1. Components......................................................2
2. New Influence Cards....................................... 2
3. Optional Emperor Rules................................. 3
4. Optional Non-Player Faction Rules.............. 6
5. Card Notes.........................................................9
6. Example of Play................................................9
7. Historical Notes..............................................12
Game Design by Wray Ferrell and Brad Johnson
TABLE OF CONTENTS
RULES OF PLAY

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Time of Crisis Expansion Rules
© 2018 GMT Games, LLC 2
Introduction
This expansion adds several new options to Time of Crisis. You
may choose to play with any combination of these additions:
• New Influence Cards: This expansion adds a full set of 9
new influence cards, plus a recommended replacement for one
card from the base game. This doubles the selection of cards
available for purchase and greatly expands your deckbuilding
choices.
• New Emperor Rules: Using these rules allows you to specify
the location of your Emperor, opening up new ways to gain
Legacy, but also new risks to manage.
• Non-Player Faction Rules: If you are playing with fewer
than 4 players, these rules allow the open positions to be filled
by your choice of three different “artificial intelligence (AI)”
profiles, providing a mix of challenges working against the
human players. You can even play solo against all 3 non-
player factions.
1. Components
• This rules manual
• 69 new influence cards (in suits of Red, Yellow, and Blue,
each suit has 9 x 2-value, 8 x 3-value, and 6 x 4-value)
• 6 replacement influence cards (6 Blue 4-value)
• 3 AI mats
• 4 AI instruction / card reference bi-folds
• One counter sheet consisting of:
o 8 Emperor tokens (1 square and 1 round in each of the 4
player colors [green, red, blue, yellow])
o 3 AI mode markers (1 for each bot)
o 1 Ludi Saeculares (AI reminder) marker
• Wooden pieces including:
o 9 AI black pawns (3 for each bot)
o 9 AI cylinders (3 each of red, yellow and blue)
Emperor Tokens
(Senate/Populace)
Emperor Tokens
(Military)
AI Mode MarkersAI Reminder Marker
2. New Influence Cards
2.1 Game Setup
A full set of 9 new types of influence cards is provided to expand your deckbuilding options.
First, replace the Damnatio Memoriae cards provided in the
base game with the new version provided in the expansion. (You
can return the old cards to the box.)
Design Note: It was felt that the original Damnatio Memoriae
event needed to be adjusted in order to provide better balance with the new expansion events.

Then, choose one of the following three options (Fixed Setup, Variable Setup, or Selective Setup) for using the expansion cards in your game.
All other game setup remains unchanged from the base game.
2.1.1 Option 1 - Fixed Setup
Choose this option if your group wants to have all deckbuilding
options available and desires certainty regarding which cards
will be available to be purchased.
• Place both the original influence cards and the expansion influence cards beside the game board in 18 face-up stacks sorted by name.
• All cards will be available for purchase throughout the game.

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2.1.2 Option 2 - Variable Setup
Choose this option if your group wants to introduce some strategy to manipulating the influence card market during the game, and does not mind uncertainty regarding which cards might be available for purchase during each player’s turn.
• For each category (color/value) of card, create one stack by shuffling both the base game and expansion cards together.
(For example, shuffle all of the Tribute and Princeps Senatus cards together to form one Blue 2 card stack.)
• Place the nine shuffled stacks face-down beside the game board.
• Turn the top card of each stack face-up to start the game. Only this card is available to be purchased from that stack.
• Whenever a card is purchased from a stack, immediately turn the new top card face-up to show the next card available for purchase.
SPECIAL RULE: During each player’s Buy/Trash Cards Phase, the active player may spend 1 political point to put the top (visible) card of one stack face-down on the bottom of that stack and then turn the new top card of that stack face-up. This may be done on any stack(s) as many times as the player can afford.
Design Note: This ability to pay to “cycle” the card stacks can allow you to hunt for the card you want to buy if you have the political points to pay for the privilege. You could also use the ability to try to bury a card type you know your neighbor wants. However, in both cases, you are spending political points that might otherwise be used to buy or trash cards.
2.1.3 Option 3 - Selective Setup
Choose this option if your group wants to be certain about what cards will be available for purchase during the game, but would like to force some variation from game to game.
• For each category (color/value) of card, choose either the base game cards or the expansion cards to use in that slot.
(For example, choose either Tribute or Princeps Senatus to use as the Blue 2 stack for this game.)
• You may select the stacks of your choice, or randomize the selection.
• Place the 9 selected stacks face-up beside the board and return the other cards to the box.
• Only cards from these selected stacks are available for purchase during this game.
Design Note: A setup that only uses certain cards could significantly change the relative desirability of some of the events and force players to explore new strategies.
3. Optional Emperor Rules
During this period of Roman history, Emperors were frequently not just seated in Rome like kings. Many Emperors were generals who were crowned by their men and spent their reign campaigning in the field with their legions. Some were regional officials who may have never seen Rome, elevated by local popular support or outright mob rule.
These rules may be used to help represent the different ways Roman Emperors were positioned during their reigns, introducing some new variation into the game.
When using these rules, each time a player takes over as Emperor, that player places an Emperor token on the map showing where his Emperor is actually located. Different choices provide different avenues for gaining Legacy points, but may also provide additional risks.
These rules override or amend the basic game rules as noted.
3.1 Game Setup
When using this optional rule, each player simply adds their two Emperor tokens (one round, one square) to their Available Leaders box. These tokens will be used to designate the location of your Emperors during their reigns.
3.2 Becoming Emperor
In all cases, there is still only one way to become Emperor:
During your player turn, you must perform a successful Place Governor action in Italia, per the base game rules in 6.3.2 (modified by applicable cards). You must still have an available Governor token to place in Italia.
When you succeed at a Place Governor action in Italia, perform the steps as given in the base game rules, section 6.3.2 Place Governor, and then perform the following additional step:
• Choose one of the following locations to place your Emperor token:

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o In Italia: Place your round Emperor token on top of your Governor token in Italia. Your Emperor is a Senate Emperor.
o In a non-Italia Province: Place your round Emperor token on top of your Governor token in a province you govern that is not Italia. Your Emperor is a Populace Emperor.
o With an Army: Place your square Emperor token on top of your General token with an army you command. Your Emperor is a Military Emperor.
You may choose any available option for placing your Emperor token, regardless of the circumstances leading up to your successful Place Governor attempt in Italia.
You may only ever have one of your Emperor tokens on the board at a time.
Note: Once placed, your Emperor token remains as placed until it is removed as Emperor. You may choose a different placement for your token the next time you become Emperor.
Note: A Military Emperor does of course move with the army with which it is placed.
3.2.1 Limitations
You may not attempt a Place Governor action in Italia if you have already been Emperor at any point during your current turn (i.e., if you were a Military Emperor who was killed in battle this turn).
3.3 Types of Emperor
Each of the three types of Emperor has its own benefits and risks, as described below:
3.3.1 Senate Emperor
When an Emperor token is placed with a Governor in Italia, it is a Senate Emperor.
While you control a Senate Emperor, you apply the following rules:
Gain Legacy: During the Gain Legacy phase of your turn, you gain Legacy equal to the support level of Italia minus the number of Pretender provinces, treating a negative number as zero. (See second bullet in the base game rules, section 6.6 Gain Legacy, “If you are the Emperor.”)
Special Advantages: You have control over the Senate of Rome. No player may target you with the Damnatio Memoriae event when you are replaced as Emperor.
Special Disadvantages: None.
Removal: You are removed as Emperor only when another player performs a successful Place Governor action in Italia. (See 3.4 Being Removed below.)
Note: This is the “default” type of Emperor carried over from the base game, and is generally the safest, most easily-defended position. However, it offers no additional means for improving your Legacy gains.
3.3.2 Populace Emperor
When an Emperor token is placed with a Governor in a province other than Italia, it is a Populace Emperor.
While you control a Populace Emperor, you apply the following rules:
Gain Legacy: During the Gain Legacy phase of your turn, you gain Legacy equal to twice the support level of the province containing your Emperor token minus the number of Pretender provinces, treating a negative number as zero. (This replaces the second bullet in the base game rules, section 6.6 Gain Legacy, “If you are the Emperor.”)
Special Advantages: As a leader of the people, no player may target a province you govern with a Mob event. Additionally, at the time you become Emperor, you may immediately remove all Mob tokens from provinces you govern.
Special Disadvantages: By turning your back on Rome, you are especially vulnerable to intrigues in the Senate. Opponents’ Place Governor attempts against you in Italia add 2 to the number of votes that are gained from rolling the dice.
Removal: You are removed as Emperor when another player performs a successful Place Governor action in Italia OR in the province where your Emperor token is located. (See 3.4 Being Removed below.)
Design Note: A Populace Emperor can provide significant benefits, especially for an Emperor who only governs a couple provinces, but has a lot of support in at least one of them. Also, since support in the “home” province you select generally isn’t affected by Rival Emperors and can be improved through the Increase Support Level action normally, it’s easier to maintain your Legacy gains. However, you now need to defend two provinces (your “home” province and Italia) to avoid removal.
3.3.3 Military Emperor
When an Emperor token is placed with a General, it is a Military Emperor.
While you control a Military Emperor, you apply the following rules:
Gain Legacy: You double all Legacy gained for each battle won by the army with which your Emperor is placed.
Note: Any bonus received for playing a Triumph event is not doubled. It is received as a separate bonus after normal battle rewards are calculated. For example, a Military Emperor defeats a barbarian army containing three units, eliminating all three barbarians, and then plays a Triumph event. The total Legacy gained is 13 - 5 Legacy (2 for winning the battle + 3 for eliminating three barbarian units), doubled to 10 (for being Military Emperor), and then +3 (for the Triumph event), for a total of 13 Legacy.
During the Gain Legacy phase of your turn, you must subtract Legacy equal to the number of Pretender provinces. The amount subtracted cannot be greater than the total amount of Legacy you gained through winning battles during your just-completed

a Triumph event is not doubled It is received as a separate bonus after normal battle rewards are calculated For example a Military Emperor defeats a barbarian army containing three units eliminating all three barbarians and then plays a Triumph event The total Legacy gained is 13 5 Legacy 2 for winning the battle 3 for eliminating three barbarian units doubled to 10 for being Military Emperor and then 3 for the Triumph event for a total of 13 Legacy During the Gain Legacy phase of your turn you must subtract Legacy equal to the number of Pretender provinces The amount subtracted cannot be greater than the total amount of Legacy you gained through winning battles during your just completed

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5Time of Crisis Expansion Rules
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turn. (This replaces the second bullet in the base game rules,
section 6.6 Gain Legacy, “If you are the Emperor.”)
Example: You are a Military Emperor and win one battle that
scores you 6 Legacy points during your turn. During your Gain
Legacy phase, there is a Pretender with 3 provinces on the board,
so you must lose 3 Legacy at that time. If you had won no battles
during your turn (gaining 0 Legacy), you would not be required
to lose that 3 Legacy due to the Pretender at the end of your turn.
Special Advantages: You are beloved by the army (for now, at
least). No player may use a Praetorian Guard event against
you.
Special Disadvantages: Since you are leading your legions in
the field, your Emperor token can be lost in battle.
Whenever the army containing your Emperor token is involved
in a battle (whether attacking or defending), perform the steps
as given in the base game rules, section 8.1, and then perform
the following additional steps:
• For each hit dealt to the Emperor’s army, regardless of the
battle result, your opponent rolls 1d6. If at least one die shows
a 5 or 6, your Emperor has died in battle. (See 3.4 Being
Removed below.)
• If all units are eliminated from the Emperor’s army, regardless
of the battle result, your Emperor has died in battle. (See 3.4
Being Removed below.)
Note: If your Emperor dies in a battle that you won, you still
gain the bonus Legacy points. However, the Triumph event may not be used for a battle in which the Emperor died (since
he’s obviously not there to preside over a lavish parade in Rome).

perform the following additional steps For each hit dealt to the Emperor s army regardless of the battle result your opponent rolls 1d6 If at least one die shows a 5 or 6 your Emperor has died in battle See 3 4 Being Removed below If all units are eliminated from the Emperor s army regardless of the battle result your Emperor has died in battle See 3 4 Being Removed below Note If your Emperor dies in a battle that you won you still gain the bonus Legacy points However the Triumph event may not be used for a battle in which the Emperor died since he s obviously not there to preside over a lavish parade in Rome

Design Note: The chance of losing your Emperor is meant to reflect not only normal death in battle, but also the fact that more than a few so-called Barracks Emperors during this time were executed by their own men.
Removal: You are removed as Emperor when another player performs a successful Place Governor action in Italia or if your Emperor token is lost in any battle as described above. (See 3.4 Being Removed below.)
Note: A Military Emperor fighting in the field can possibly
gain large amounts of Legacy by fighting the right battles, especially in conjunction with cards like Force March and
Triumph. However, these opportunities might not always be
present and of course the risks of death on the field of battle can be quite significant. A Military Emperor will definitely want to remain mobile and well-supplied with fresh legions.
3.4 Being Removed
Whenever your Emperor token is removed from play, for any reason, you are immediately removed as Emperor.
But also, whenever your Governor is removed from Italia, for
any reason, you are also immediately removed as Emperor, no
matter where your Emperor token is located.
3.4.1 Senate Emperor
If your Senate Emperor token is removed from Italia via an
opponent’s successful Place Governor action:
• Return your Emperor token and the associated Governor
token to your Available Leaders box.
• The opponent places his Governor in Italia and thereby
becomes Emperor, as normal.
3.4.2 Populace Emperor
If your Populace Emperor token is removed via an opponent’s
successful Place Governor action:
• Return your Emperor token and the associated Governor
token to your Available Leaders box.
• The opponent places his Governor in that province, as normal.
• Also remove your Governor from Italia and replace it with a
Neutral Governor, following normal rules for setting Italia’s
new support level.
If your Governor is removed from Italia via an opponent’s suc-
cessful Place Governor action:
• Return your Governor token to your Available Leaders box.
• The opponent places his Governor in Italia and thereby
becomes Emperor, as normal.
• Also remove your Emperor token from the province where it
is located (but not the associated Governor) to your Available
Leaders box.
3.4.3 Military Emperor
If your Military Emperor token is removed from an army due
to death in battle:
• Return your Emperor token to your Available Leaders box.
(Return the associated General token only if all units in the
army were eliminated, as normal.)
• Also remove your Governor from Italia and replace it with a
Neutral Governor, following normal rules for setting Italia’s
new support level.
If your Governor is removed from Italia via an opponent’s suc-
cessful Place Governor action:
• Return your Governor token to your Available Leaders box.
• The opponent places his Governor in Italia and thereby
becomes Emperor, as normal.
• Also remove your Emperor token from the army where it is
located (but not the associated General) to your Available
Leaders box.
Design Note: When Populace or Military Emperors away from Rome are removed, it probably makes it very easy for the active
player to immediately take over as the next Emperor, if he has planned properly. However, the player does still need to spend at least one Blue influence and have an available Governor
token to perform a successful Place Governor action in Italia to take advantage of this opportunity.

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Time of Crisis Expansion Rules
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4. Optional Non-Player
Faction Rules
These optional rules may be used to include one or more non-
player factions driven by “artificial intelligence” (AI) instruc-
tions, allowing 1, 2, or 3 players to enjoy a full 4-faction game.
(Hereafter, a non-player faction will be referred to as an “AI
bot”.) There are three different AI bot profiles, each with its
own mat that is used to represent the contents of a deck and
current hand of cards so you don’t need to keep track of those
for non-player factions.
4.1 AI Overview
Each AI bot mat shows the three areas of influence (Blue for Sen-
ate, Red for Military, and Yellow for Populace) as three separate
color-coded sections. Within each section, the level of the bot’s
relative power in that area of influence will be tracked with a
pawn that advances across the row of circles. The square boxes
directly under the location of the pawn indicate how many points
of that type of influence the bot might bring to bear each turn.
Each turn, a bot will always have points to spend in two areas
of influence, determined by the mode box that is selected for the
bot. One area of influence will be “primary”, providing more
points to spend, and the other area of influence will be “second-
ary”, providing a lesser number of points to spend.
The three different AI bot mats provided have a different “pre-
ferred” area of influence, indicated by the section at the top. The
bot will generally increase its power in this area fastest and will
therefore tend to focus more on actions that use these points.
The three AI bots are characterized as Emperors from the Year
of Six Emperors (238 AD) – Maximinus Thrax prefers Military
influence, Gordian III prefers Populace influence, and the pair
of Pupienus and Balbinus prefer Senate influence.
4.2 AI Player Setup
Before following the Player Setup steps in section 3.2 of the
base rules, perform the following additional steps:
• Select a different AI mat for each non-player faction, and
place them where they will be convenient for the human
player(s) to view.
• Select an unused set of player tokens (including the matching
Emperor tokens, if you are using the optional Emperor rules).
Place the starting Governor and General markers (and the
Emperor markers) in the AI’s Available Leaders box.
Recommendation: You may wish to use the red markers for
Thrax (Military preference), the blue markers for Pupienus
& Balbinus (Senate preference), and the yellow markers
for Gordian (Populace preference). When using multiple
AI factions, this may help you remember which color goes
with which AI, as well as indicating their different preferred
tactics.
• If using more than one AI bot, randomly choose a turn order
for them. All AI bots will perform their setups before the
human players do.
• Place markers on each AI bot mat as follows:
o Place the AI’s mode maker, portrait side up, in the portrait
box.
o Place an AI pawn on the “0” (zero) circle in each of the 3
colored influence areas.
o Place 3 AI cylinders, one of each color, in the Available
Cylinders box beside the influence areas.
• In turn order, each bot selects the first available province from the following list as its starting province, and places starting units exactly as for a human player.
1. Gallia
2. Macedonia
3. Syria
Variant AI Bot Starting Provinces: If you wish, you may
randomly determine starting provinces for AI bots for more
variation in play. Simply choose a random non-Italia province
that is not adjacent to an already-selected province for each AI
bot in order. Be aware that this may result in an unbalanced
board when using multiple AI bots.
4.3 AI Bot Turns
All AI bots take their turns in order, followed by all human
players in order.
During each AI bot’s turn, perform all of the usual steps for
any player turn as normal, with modifications as described in
the sections below.
4.4 AI Crisis Phase
At the start of each AI bot’s turn, roll on the Crisis Table as
normal, and observe the following additional rules:
• Any time Pax Deorum is rolled: Flip all AI mode markers
to their +2 side.
• If the Palmyra Allies event is drawn by an AI bot: The
active AI bot will remove barbarians from any provinces it

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governs first, ties broken by the province with the lowest
number of barbarians. If it governs no provinces impacted by
the event, it will remove barbarians from the homeland first.
When removing barbarians from the board, it will remove
any leaders first.
• If the Ludi Saeculares event is drawn and an AI bot is
Emperor: Add 4 Legacy to the score of the AI bot that is
Emperor, but then subtract 4 from the amount of secondary
influence it has to spend during its next turn, to a minimum
of 0. Any event granted by the secondary influence is lost if
it is reduced to 0. (Place the Ludi Saeculares marker on the
bot’s mat as a reminder.)
4.5 AI Take Actions Phase
4.5.1 Determine Available Influence and Events
First, to determine how much influence an AI bot has to spend
during its turn, follow these steps:
• Place the AI bot’s mode marker for the turn according to the
following priority:

event is drawn and an AI bot is Emperor Add 4 Legacy to the score of the AI bot that is Emperor but then subtract 4 from the amount of secondary influence it has to spend during its next turn to a minimum of 0 Any event granted by the secondary influence is lost if it is reduced to 0 Place the Ludi Saeculares marker on the bot s mat as a reminder 4 5 AI Take Actions Phase 4 5 1 Determine Available Influence and Events First to determine how much influence an AI bot has to spend during its turn follow these steps Place the AI bot s mode marker for the turn according to the following priority

If there are two cylinders in the 0 box of
the Influence Point Track: Mode 4
If the AI is not Emperor and has 50+
Legacy: Mode 1
If the AI has any Troubled Provinces or is
Emperor and has no army in the provincial
capital of Italia: Mode 2
If the AI has Mobs in any of its governed
provinces: Mode 3
If none of the above: Mode 1
• For the Primary influence type indicated by the mode box selected: Move the matching AI cylinder to the top box under the pawn in the matching colored influence area.
• For the Secondary influence type indicated by the mode box selected: Move the matching AI cylinder to the bottom box under the pawn in the matching colored influence area.
• For both the Primary and Secondary influence types, the larger number to the left of the box containing a cylinder gives the number of influence of that type available for the AI bot to spend this turn.
o If the bot’s mode marker is currently on its +2 side, add 2 to the amount of Primary influence for this turn.
o If the Ludi Saeculares marker is on the bot’s mat, reduce the amount of Secondary influence by 4 to a minimum of 0 for this turn.
o Once you determine the proper number of influence points available to the AI, move the two placed cylinders to the matching numbers on the Influence Point Track on the AI’s mat. Then you can count down the AI’s available points of each type as they are spent while performing actions. You will still be able to tell which types of influence were used by the colors of the cylinders on the track.
• For both the Primary and Secondary influence types, if a smaller circled number is present to the left of the box, it indicates that the AI will use one event of that number in the corresponding influence type during its turn.
o When using both the expansion influence cards and the base game influence cards, randomly determine which event of the appropriate type and cost the AI will get to play at each appropriate instance.
• Roll 1d6: On 1-3, the AI will play the base game event. On 4-6, the AI will play the expansion event.
• For a tougher challenge, choose which event the AI will play for its greatest advantage, per the guidelines of the second bullet in 4.5.2.
• If playing with the expansion card setup Option 3 (Selective Setup) variant, the AI only has access to the cards in play.
o If the Ludi Saeculares marker is on the bot’s mat and the Secondary influence was reduced to 0, then the bot does not get to use the Secondary event, if any, this turn.
Example: In a 3-player game, the players have chosen Maximi-
nus Thrax (the Military AI) to run the fourth faction. As AIs take their turns before any human players, Thrax starts the game. His crisis roll activates a Nomad, but none invade. His mode marker is placed in Box 1 because none of the other conditions apply. Therefore, Senate will be his Primary influence and Military will be his Secondary influence. A cylinder is placed in the top box below his Senate pawn, showing that he will have 3 Senate influ-
ence to spend this turn. A second cylinder is placed in the bottom box below his Military pawn, showing that he will also have 2 Military influence to spend this turn. Since neither box contains a second smaller number, Thrax has no events to play this turn.
4.5.2 Spend Available Influence
Next, the AI bot will attempt to spend all of its available influ-
ence using the AI Action Priority List on the AI instruction
sheet. Start at the top of the list and proceed down the list action by action, performing each one in order if the AI bot meets the criteria and has enough available influence points to afford it. Subtract the cost of any action performed from the bot’s avail-

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able points and continue until you reach the end of the list or
the bot is out of points to spend. Apply the following general
guidelines when necessary:
• If the AI goes through every step of a loop without performing
an action, do not start the loop again, but continue on to the
next action.
• For all actions the AI performs, if there is more than one valid
option or you are required to make a choice for the AI, choose
the best option taking into account the AI’s board position
and influence points left to spend. If there are equally valid
options, target the neutral faction first, then actual players,
and finally other AI bots.
• Determining proper military actions for the AI bots requires
some extra consideration. In several places, AI actions refer to
sections in the AI Military Guidelines on the AI instruction
sheet. In these cases, execute the appropriate section and then
return to the action priority list to continue.
Example: For spending Thrax’s Senate and Military points, a
player consults the AI Action Priority List. He skips steps 1 and
2 as Thrax currently governs no “troubled” or “at-risk” prov-
inces (as defined on the AI Instruction Sheet) and is not Emperor.
For step 3, Thrax will attempt to bring another province under
his control. Since he will not lose any provinces at the end of this
turn, he doesn’t recall a Governor but instead spends 1 Senate
influence to recruit his 1-cost Governor. Thrax then performs step
4, because he now has a Governor in his Available Leaders box.
No faction has over 40 Legacy, so he will target the (neutral)
Emperor’s provinces. He does not have enough Senate influence
to target Italia, but with his two remaining Senate influence,
he can target any of the other seven provinces governed by the
neutral faction. Since those seven provinces are all equivalent,
then—following the second bullet above—the players decide
that Thrax will target Hispania because it is adjacent to his
starting province of Gallia. He spends both Senate influence
and places his available Governor in Hispania, replacing the
neutral Governor that was there. That exhausts Thrax’s Senate
influence for the turn.
Moving on, Thrax skips steps 9 (no damaged legions), 10 and
11 (not Emperor), and 12 (neutral Emperor). For step 13, Thrax
adds a second legion to his army in Gallia, spending his 2 avail-
able Military influence.
Since Thrax has no remaining influence to spend and no events
to use this turn, his Take Actions phase is over.
4.5.3 Using Events
The AI bot will have up to two events to use during its turn,
depending on what is indicated on the AI mat. Apply the AI
Event Guidelines given for each on the AI instruction sheet.
4.5.4 Becoming Emperor
If using the optional Emperor rules, the AI bot will select the
Emperor type (3.3) matching its preferred area of influence. For
a tougher challenge, choose which Emperor type that will benefit
the AI the most, per the guidelines of the second bullet in 4.5.2.
4.6 AI Buy/Trash Cards Phase
Instead of actually determining specific cards for the AI bot to
buy or trash, the improvement of the bot’s deck is represented
by determining if it can increase the value of one or more of its
influence areas. Perform the following steps in order:
• Any influence points the AI may have remaining are lost
(just as they are for human players). Move all cylinders on
the Influence Point Track to the 0 box.
• If the AI mode marker is on its +2 side, return it to its portrait
side and remove the Ludi Saeculares marker if present.
• Count up the AI bot’s available political points to spend based
on its board position as normal.
• In the top (preferred) influence area on the AI bot’s mat, move
the pawn one circle to the right if it can spend political points
equal to the value in that circle.

the value of one or more of its influence areas Perform the following steps in order Any influence points the AI may have remaining are lost just as they are for human players Move all cylinders on the Influence Point Track to the 0 box If the AI mode marker is on its 2 side return it to its portrait side and remove the Ludi Saeculares marker if present Count up the AI bot s available political points to spend based on its board position as normal In the top preferred influence area on the AI bot s mat move the pawn one circle to the right if it can spend political points equal to the value in that circle

IMPORTANT EXCEPTION: If the AI’s Senate Influ-
ence pawn is on the starting zero cost circle, it will first
check to see if it can improve Senate Influence.
o Subtract the political points spent from the bot’s total to be spent this turn.
• If any political points remain, repeat this check for the other (non-preferred) influence area that is least developed (i.e., pawn is furthest to the left). Ties are broken in favor of the upper-most influence area.
• If any political points remain after that, repeat this check for the third influence area.
• If the AI bot did not have enough political points to advance any of its three pawns, flip its AI mode marker to its +2 side.
Design Note: This means that each AI bot will focus on im-
proving its “preferred” influence area (the top one on its mat) first, and will generally try to balance the growth of the other two areas as a secondary priority.

Example: Thrax controls two provinces (Gallia and Hispania),
each at support level 1, so he has two political points to spend for “improving his deck”. A player checks Thrax’s Senate influence first (because his Senate pawn is still on zero, see the Important

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9Time of Crisis Expansion Rules
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Exception above). The pawn currently occupies the first column
on the left and the cost to move to the next column to the right is
shown in that circle – 2 political points. Since Thrax has 2 points
to spend, he is able to upgrade his Senate influence, advancing
the pawn to the second column.
With no more political points to spend, Thrax’s Buy/Trash Cards
phase is over.
4.7 AI End of Turn Phase
If all 3 cylinders are in the 0 box of the Influence Point Track, it
indicates that the AI has “exhausted its Available Pile”. Return
all cylinders to the Available Cylinders box beside the influence
areas, indicating that the AI bot’s deck is reset.
5. Card Notes
5.1 Cavalry
In the rare case that an attacker wins a battle against an army
in a provincial capital without inflicting any hits, any Militia in
the capital are removed as they cannot retreat.
5.2 Demagogue
A Populace Emperor is only immune to Mobs placed by the
Mob event. Therefore, if a Populace Emperor reveals a 1 value
card in response to this event, a Mob token will be placed in
one of his provinces.
6. Example of Play
Perhaps the best to way to learn the Non-Player Faction rules is with a journal of the first two turns of a solo game. Designer Wray Ferrell will play against the three non-player factions.
Player Setup: Maximinus Thrax (Red) was selected to go first
and thus Gallia is his starting province. Pupienus & Balbinus
(Blue) were selected to go second and thus Macedonia is their
starting province. Gordian III (Yellow) will go third and thus
Syria is his starting province. Wray (Green) selects Galatia as
his starting province.
The initial setup of the three AI mats.
Maximinus Thrax,Turn 1
His crisis roll activates a Nomad, but none invade. His mode marker is placed in Box 1 because none of the other conditions apply. Therefore, Senate will be his Primary influence and Military will be his Secondary influence. A cylinder is placed in the top box below his Senate pawn, showing that he will have 3 Senate influence to spend this turn. A second cylinder is placed in the bottom box below his Military pawn, showing that he will also have 2 Military influence to spend this turn.
Credits
Design: Wray Ferrell & Brad Johnson
Art Director: Rodger B. MacGowan
Cover Art & Design: Rodger B. MacGowan
Counter Art: Mark Simonitch
Event Cards: Kurt Miller & Mark Simonitch
Map Graphics: Mark Simonitch
Manual & Player Aid Card: Charles Kibler
Name-the-Expansion Contest Winner: John Boone
Proofreading: Jonathan Squibb
Production Coordination: Tony Curtis
Producers: Tony Curtis, Rodger MacGowan, Andy Lewis,
Gene Billingsley and Mark Simonitch
Playtesters: We would like to acknowledge all the people
who have played this expansion at various conventions and
gaming groups. Your contributions helped turn an idea into
a game. For going the extra mile, we would like to thank:
• Scott Blanton, Jeremy Maciejewski, Jed Humphries,
Jamey Cribbs, and The Gamer’s Armory
• Jason Albert
• John Tammes, Bill Dyer, Mark Ashton, Lee Proctor, Glenn
McMaster, and the Ludophilia gang

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For spending Thrax’s Senate and Military points, Wray consults the AI Action Priority List. He skips steps 1 and 2 as Thrax currently governs no “troubled” or “at-risk” provinces and is not Emperor. For step 3, Thrax will attempt to bring another province under his control. Since he will not lose any provinces at the end of this turn, he doesn’t recall a Governor but instead spends 1 Senate influence to recruit his 1-cost Governor. Thrax then performs step 4, because he now has a Governor in his Available Leaders box. No faction has over 40 Legacy, so he will target the (neutral) Emperor’s provinces. He does not have enough Senate influence to target Italia, but with his two remaining Senate influence, he can target any of the other seven provinces governed by the neutral faction. Since those seven provinces are all equivalent, per the guidelines of the second bullet in 4.5.2, Wray decides that Thrax will target Hispania because it is adjacent to his starting province of Gallia. He spends both Senate influence and places his available Governor in Hispania, replacing the neutral Governor that was there. That exhausts Thrax’s Senate influence for the turn. Moving on, Thrax skips steps 9 (no damaged legions), 10 and 11 (not Emperor), and 12 (neutral Emperor). For step 13, Thrax adds a second legion to his army in Gallia, spending his 2 available Military influence. Since Thrax has no remaining influence to spend and no events to use this turn, his Take Actions phase is over. He gains two Legacy for governing two provinces.
Thrax controls two provinces (Gallia and Hispania), each at support level 1, so he has two political points to spend for “improving his deck”. Wray checks Thrax’s Senate influence first (because his Senate pawn is still on zero). The pawn currently occupies the first column on the left and the cost to move to the next column to the right is shown in that circle – 2 political points. Since Thrax has 2 points to spend, he is able to upgrade his Senate influence, advancing the pawn to the second column. With no more political points to spend, Thrax’s Buy/Trash Cards phase is over.
Pupienus & Balbinus, Turn 1
Their crisis roll activates a Frank, but none invade. Their mode marker is placed in Box 1 so they will have 3 Senate influence and 2 Military influence to spend this turn.
Pupienus & Balbinus recruit their 1-cost Governor and place him in Thracia. Then they spend their Military influence to add a second legion to their army in Macedonia. They gain two Legacy for governing two provinces.
They advance their Senate pawn to the second column.
Gordian III, Turn 1
His crisis roll activates an Alamanii, but none invade. His mode marker is placed in Box 1 so he will have 3 Senate influence and 2 Populace influence to spend this turn.
He recruits his 1-cost Governor and places him in Aegyptus. Steps 9 through 18 are ignored as he has no Military influence to spend. Steps 19 (governs no “troubled” or “at-risk” provinces) and 20 (No Mobs) are also skipped. For step 21, both Syria and Aegyptus are at Support Level One, so per the guidelines of the second bullet in 4.5.2, Wray decides to increase the support level of Aegyptus as there is no army protecting it. He gains two Legacy for governing two provinces.
Gordian advances his Senate pawn to the second column and his remaining Political Point is lost.
The AI mats after the bots have taken their first turn.
Wray, Turn 1
Wray’s crisis roll activates an Alamanii and one invades Thracia. Wray’s hand consists of three Blue 1 and two Red 1 cards. With his three Senate influence, Wray recruits his 1-cost Governor and places him in Asia. With his two Military influence, Wray recruits his 1-cost General and creates an army in Asia. For governing two provinces, Wray gains two Legacy. With his two points of Political influence Wray purchases a Tribute card. He then selects three Yellow 1 and two Red 1 cards for his next hand.
Maximinus Thrax, Turn 2
His crisis roll activates a Nomad, but none invade. His mode marker is placed in Box 4 because his Senate and Military cylinders are in the 0 box of the Influence Point track. Therefore, Populace will be his Primary influence and Military will be his

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Secondary influence. Thus he will have 3 Populace influence
and 2 Military influence to spend this turn.
Again steps 1 and 2 are skipped due to no Troubled or At-Risk
provinces and he is still not Emperor. Steps 3 through 8 are
skipped as Thrax has no Senate influence to spend his turn. Thrax
skips steps 9 (no damaged legions), 10 and 11 (not Emperor), and
12 (neutral Emperor). For step 13, Thrax cannot add a legion to
his army in Gallia as he only has two Military influence and it
would cost three influence to add a third legion. Thrax recruits
his 1-cost General (Step 14) and creates an army in Hispania
(Step 15). Steps 16 through 18 are skipped as Thrax has no
Military Influence remaining. Steps 19 (governs no “troubled”
or “at-risk” provinces) and 20 (No Mobs) are also skipped. For
Step 21, both Gallia and Hispania are at Support Level One, so
per the guidelines of the second bullet in 4.5.2, Wray decides
to increase the support level of Hispania as it currently requires
fewer votes to take over. With only one Populace Influence re-
maining, Thrax cannot perform any additional actions and the
point is lost. He gains two Legacy for governing two provinces.
Since his Senate Influence pawn is no longer in the starting zero
cost circle, the exception of checking Senate influence first no
longer applies. Therefore Thrax checks to see if he can increase
his preferred (Military) influence first. Since Thrax has 3 points
to spend, he is able to upgrade his Military influence, advancing
the pawn to the second column. With one political point left to
spend, Thrax cannot upgrade any other influence spheres so his
Buy/Trash Cards phase is over and the point is lost.
Since all three cylinders are in the zero space of the Influence
Point track, all three cylinders are returned to his Available
Cylinders box.
Pupienus & Balbinus, Turn 2
Their crisis roll activates a Sassanid, but none invade. Their
mode marker is placed in Box 4 so they will have 3 Populace
influence and 2 Senate influence to spend this turn.
With no Governor in their Available Leaders box, they recruit
their cost-2 Governor. Since Thracia is a troubled province at
Support Level One, they increase the support level to two and
the remaining point of Populace influence is lost. Due to the
presence of active barbarians, Thracia support level is reduced
to one. They gain two Legacy for governing two provinces.
They check to see if they can increase their preferred (Sen-
ate) influence first. With only two Political points, they cannot
increase their Senate influence as it costs four points. So then
they look to increase the other (non-preferred) influence area
that is the least developed. Since ties are broken in favor of the
upper-most influence area, they increase their Military influence
moving the pawn to the second circle.
Since all three cylinders are in the zero space of the Influence
Point track, all three cylinders are returned to their Available
Cylinders box.
Gordian III, Turn 2
His crisis roll is an event which brings on the Sassanid leader
Shapur. His mode marker is placed in Box 4 so he will have 3
Military influence and 2 Populace influence to spend this turn.
For two Military influence he adds a legion to his army in Syria.
For his last Military influence he recruits his 1-cost General.
With his two populace influence he increases the support level of
Syria to two. He gains two Legacy for governing two provinces.
Governing two provinces, each at support level two, gives Gord-
ian III four political points to spend. He uses them to increase
both his Populace and Military Influence.
Since all three cylinders are in the zero space of the Influence
Point track, all three cylinders are returned to his Available
Cylinders box.
The AI mats after the bots have taken their second turn.
Wray, Turn 2
Wray’s crisis roll activates an Nomad, but none invade. Wray’s hand consists of three Yellow 1 and two Red 1 cards. With his two Military influence Wray adds a second legion to his army in Galatia. He then builds a Limes in Galatia with his three

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P.O. Box 1308, Hanford, CA 93232-1308
www.GMTGames.com
Populace influence. Wray gains three Legacy for the turn (+2
for governing two provinces, +1 for governing a province with
a single improvement). With his two points of Political influence
Wray purchases a Castra card. He must select the one Red 1, the
Tribute, and the three Blue 1 cards remaining in his available
pile for his next hand.
7. Historical Notes
7.1 Senate Influence Cards
• Princeps Senatus: The first member by precedence of the
Roman senate. He had the honor of speaking first on any topics before the senate and the position brought enormous prestige and influence to the senator holding it. During the Principiate, the Emperor was the Princeps Senatus, but it is claimed that others held the position during the Crisis of the Third Century. For example, it is stated that future Emperor Valerian was Princeps Senatus during the reigns of Emperors Maximinus Thrax, Gordian I, and Decius.
Art: Statue of Cicero, arguably one of Rome’s greatest orators
and historical Princeps Senatus, from the state courthouse in Rome, Italy.
• Frumentarii: Military logistics officers who originally
gathered, escorted, and distributed wheat throughout the empire. Being in close contact with the local population led naturally to the accumulation of significant information, which eventually put the frumentarii in the position to serve as a sort of secret police force for the Emperor. In game terms, having a personal spy network allows you to receive information about events occurring throughout the empire in time to plan for them.
Art: A scene from Trajan’s column showing the Roman army
collecting grain. As they were spies, the only records about frumentarii exist on graves, acknowledging their service, and an inscription from the Legio VII Gemina.
• Triumph: A public celebration, granted by the senate, to
acknowledge and sanctify a military commander who had led Roman forces to victory in the service of the state. Triumphs were highly ritualized events that remained largely unchanged throughout the centuries. During the Principiate, triumphs were more politicized, much less common, and primarily restricted as a privilege of the Emperor.
Art: Detail from a painting by Carle Vernet (1758-1836) of the triumph held to celebrate Aemilius Paulus’s victory over King Perseus of Macedon. While occurring several centuries before the Crisis of the Third Century, it depicts a vir triumphalis in his chariot.
7.2 Military Influence Cards
• Cavalry: Soldiers who fought mounted on horseback,
giving them the advantage of height, speed, and mass over infantry. Cavalry units figure more prominently in army accounts of this period, but there does not seem to have been a significantly higher proportion of horsemen than in earlier times.
Art: Detail from a mosaic in the Villa Romana del Casale in Sicily dating from the early 4th century.
• Force March: A movement on foot by soldiers who must,
in order to satisfy a military requirement, travel at a speed that would normally tire them excessively.
Art: A scene from the column of Marcus Aurelius showing Roman legionaries marching.
• Spiculum: A spear used by the Roman infantry. A standard tactic was to throw spears just before charging, to soften the enemy’s lines before engaging hand-to-hand. The spiculum replaced the pilum as the main throwing javelin around 250 AD.
Art: Original drawing created for the game by Kurt Miller.
7.3 Populace Influence Cards
• Ambitus: In Roman law, ambitus was a crime of political corruption – mainly a candidate’s attempt to influence the outcome of an election through bribery.
Art: A Roman coin from 63 BC showing a voter submitting a ballot.
• Mobile Vulgus: A Latin phrase that means “the fickle
crowd”, from which the English term “mob” was derived. In game terms, the support of the people can sometimes falter as easily as it can be encouraged.
Art: Painting by Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665) showing the conquest of Jerusalem by Emperor Titus.
• Demagogue: A popular leader or rabble-rouser who gains
power by exploiting prejudice among the common people and whipping up the passions of the crowd. If the local government can’t keep the populace in check (by diverting the necessary resources to public demands), the mob may get unruly.
Art: Plate 127 in Figures from the History of the Roman
Republic by Silvestre David Mirys (1742-1810) showing Gaius Gracchus, tribune of the people, addressing a crowd. While not of the period, it depicts a Roman official addressing a large public gathering.
7.4 Title
The expansion title is a quote from Cassius Dio, a Roman sena- tor from the late 2nd century, who commented “our history now descends from a kingdom of gold to one of iron and rust”.

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