# Cyclades ## General Info - **Year Published**: 2009 - **BGG Rating**: 7.5 - **BGG Rank**: #271 - **Players**: 2-5 (Best with: 5) - **Duration**: 60-90 min - **Weight**: 2.82 / 5 - **Designers**: Bruno Cathala, Ludovic Maublanc - **Artists**: Miguel Coimbra - **Publishers**: Matagot, asmodee, Asterion Press, Bureau de Juegos, CrowD Games, Galápagos Jogos - **Categories**: Ancient, City Building, Civilization, Fighting, Mythology, Nautical - **Mechanics**: Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Auction / Bidding, Auction: Fixed Placement, Dice Rolling, Open Drafting ## Verdict If you enjoy games with a delightful mix of area control, tense bidding, and a touch of luck, Cyclades is a feast for your gaming table!Strategic and dynamic auctionStunning, immersive miniaturesDirect player interactionCaptivating Greek mythology themeMultiple paths to victoryOccasional 'kingmaking' potentialDice luck influences combatInitial learning curveRECOMMENDED ## Description In Cyclades, get ready to dive into an epic struggle for dominance over the Greek archipelago, where luck and strategy meet under the watchful eyes of the Olympian gods! Created by the duo Bruno Cathala and Ludovic Maublanc, this game challenges you to be the first to build two metropolises, but to do so, you'll need to win divine favor. Each turn is an exciting auction where players compete to please one of the five main gods: Ares, Poseidon, Zeus, Athena, and Apollo. The catch is that each god can only be appeased by one player per turn, and you can only have the favor of one god at a time. Ares grants you the power to move armies and erect fortresses, while Poseidon allows you to command naval fleets and build ports. Zeus blesses his followers with priests and temples, Athena offers philosophers and universities for cultural advancement, and Apollo ensures an increase in your income. It's a race against time and your opponents, where every auction decision can change the course of war and prosperity. You'll need one eye on your economy, another on military tactics, and a third (if you had one!) on divine influence to emerge victorious. The miniatures are a spectacle in themselves, bringing the battlefield and your growing cities to life. Prepare your bids and your troops, because in Cyclades, only the most cunning and divinely favored will achieve glory! ## How to Play Game Objective: Conquer the Cyclades and Glory! Welcome to the Cyclades archipelago, where the great cities of Ancient Greece fight for supremacy under the watchful eyes of the Gods! In Cyclades, your objective is simple yet challenging: be the first player to control 2 Metropolises at the end of a cycle. Show that your city-state is the most powerful and achieve victory! Setup: Building Your Empire Let's set up the table and prepare the ground for the battle for glory! Follow these steps: Each player chooses a color and receives all items of their color (offering markers, Fleets, Armies, building markers, and a screen). Place them visible in front of your screen. Receive 5 Gold Coins and hide them behind your screen. Arrange the modular boards according to the number of players. The illustrations on pages 7 and 8 of the manual show the correct configuration. Shuffle the Mythological Creatures cards and place them face down in the designated pile. The 5 miniatures of Mythological Creatures are placed near the discard pile. Place the Philosopher and Priest cards in the designated spaces on the board. Each player takes one of their offering markers. Mix them and distribute them randomly in the starting spaces of the turn indicator. (The second offering marker is only used in 2-player games). Keep the 4 God tokens near the board. The building markers, Metropolis, prosperity, the two special dice, and the remaining Gold Coins are set aside, awaiting use. To start the game, each player places 2 Fleets and 2 Armies on the board, as illustrated on page 7 or 8, controlling 2 islands and receiving an initial income of 2 Coins. The Game Turn: The Battle for Divine Favor and Territory The game unfolds in a series of cycles, where each player seeks the favor of the Gods to expand their empire. A cycle is divided into 6 phases: 1/ MYTHOLOGICAL CREATURES: At the beginning of each cycle, the Mythological Creatures indicator is updated to have three Creatures visible (one in each of the 2, 3, and 4 Coin spaces). The Coins under each space indicate the cost to use that Creature during the action phase. Discard the Creature that was in the 2 Coin space in the previous cycle. Move the Creatures from the 3 and 4 Coin spaces to the 2 and 3 Coin spaces, respectively. Fill the 4 Coin space with the first Creature from the draw pile (face up). Special case at the start of the game: In the first cycle, place the first three Creatures from the draw pile in the 2, 3, and 4 Coin spaces. 2/ THE GODS: The order in which the Gods grant actions changes each cycle. The 4 God tokens are shuffled and distributed randomly in the 4 empty spaces above Apollo's space. The number of available Gods varies with the number of players: 5 players: All 4 tokens are placed face up. 4 players: The last of the 4 Gods will be placed face down and will not be available in that cycle. 3 players: The first two Gods will be placed face up, and the others, face down. For 2 players: Specific modifications are explained on page 6 of the manual. 3/ INCOME: It's time to reap the fruits of your empire! Each player receives Gold Coins according to the prosperity of their islands and maritime trade. You receive 1 Coin for each prosperity marker under your control (printed on the board or placed by Apollo's action) and for some trade spaces. The Coins must be hidden behind your screen. 4/ OFFERINGS: To gain the support of the Gods, you will need to make offerings! Following the turn order, each player chooses a God and places their offering marker in the space corresponding to the value they wish to offer. The God grants their favor to only one player: the one who made the highest offering. If your offering is outbid, you must immediately make a new offering to a DIFFERENT God. You can place your offering marker in Apollo's space without spending anything, as he does not require offerings. Several players can choose Apollo, occupying spaces 1, 2, etc. The offering phase ends when all players have chosen a God. Players pay the Coins offered, considering reductions from Priests. Important: It is forbidden to make an offering that cannot be paid! 5/ PERFORMING ACTIONS: The Gods are activated in the order determined at the beginning of the cycle. The player who won the auction for the first God performs their actions, in the order they prefer. It is possible to alternate between actions and use Mythological Creatures by paying their costs. The available actions are: Summon one or more Mythological Creatures: Pay the indicated cost (2, 3, or 4 Coins, minus Temple reductions) to take and use the Creature card. The power is used immediately and the card goes to the discard pile. Recruit: The main Gods allow you to recruit an Army (Ares), a Fleet (Poseidon), a Priest (Zeus), or a Philosopher (Athena) for free. You can buy more, paying additional Coins. Poseidon: Recruits Fleets. One free, subsequent ones cost 1, 2, 3 Coins. Maximum of 3 extras per turn and 8 Fleets in total. Ares: Recruits Armies. One free, subsequent ones cost 2, 3, 4 Coins. Maximum of 3 extras per turn and 8 Armies in total. Zeus: Recruits Priests. One free, plus one for 4 Coins. Each Priest reduces your offering by 1 Coin per cycle (minimum of 1 Coin). Athena: Recruits Philosophers. One free, plus one for 4 Coins. Upon acquiring the fourth Philosopher, discard them to create a Metropolis. Build: Each God is associated with a type of building (Port, Fortress, Temple, University). You can build multiple times on the same island, paying 2 Coins per building. Upon owning 4 different buildings, you create a Metropolis. Poseidon: Port - Defensive bonus in naval battles adjacent to the island. Ares: Fortress - Defensive bonus for Armies on the island during battles. Zeus: Temple - Each Temple reduces the cost of using a Mythological Creature by 1 Coin (once per cycle per Temple, minimum of 1 Coin). Athena: University - Has no special effect, but is one of the four buildings required for a Metropolis. Special Action: Some Gods offer additional actions. Poseidon: Move Fleets - For 1 Coin, move Fleets up to 3 spaces. If entering an enemy space, naval battle. Ares: Move Armies - For 1 Coin, move Armies between islands connected by your Fleets. If landing on an enemy island, land battle. If landing on an empty island, conquer without battle. If leaving an island empty, it is still yours, but unprotected. Zeus: Change Creatures - For 1 Coin, discard an available Creature and replace it with a new one from the draw pile. Apollo: The player (or players) who chose Apollo plays last. It's a way to save money. You receive 1 Coin (or 4 Coins) and a prosperity marker to place on an island of your choice (only the first player to choose Apollo receives the prosperity marker). Apollo offers no other actions. After performing their actions, the player places their offering marker in the last empty space of the turn indicator. The next player in the sequence of Gods performs their actions. Explanation of a Battle: When enemy Fleets or Armies meet, a battle begins: Each player rolls 1 die and adds the result to the number of Armies/Fleets in the combat area. Defender on an island with a Fortress: +1 to the die per Fortress. Defender in a maritime space adjacent to an island with a Port: +1 to the die per Port. The player with the lower result loses the first round and removes an Army/Fleet. In case of a tie, both remove one. If both still have units, the defender can choose to retreat. If not, the attacker can retreat. If no one retreats, a new round begins. The steps repeat until only one player remains in the combat area. That player conquers the island or maritime space and its buildings. 6/ END OF CYCLE: After all players have played and moved their offering markers to the turn indicator, the cycle ends. If one or more players possess 2 Metropolises, the game ends. Otherwise, a new cycle begins. End of Game and Scoring: Supremacy is Yours! The game ends at the end of a cycle in which at least one player possesses 2 Metropolises. That player wins the game! If more than one player achieves the objective of 2 Metropolises in the same cycle, the player with the most remaining Coins behind their screen wins. The Metropolises: A Metropolis is a "mega-building" that grants the powers of all other buildings. You can build them in three ways: Economic development: Possess 4 different types of buildings (Port, Fortress, Temple, and University), even on different islands. Discard them and place a Metropolis marker in an empty space on one of your islands. Intellectual development: Possess 4 Philosophers. Discard them and place a Metropolis marker in an empty space on one of your islands. Conquest: Conquer an island that already has a Metropolis! For 2 players: The game ends when one of the players possesses 3 Metropolises at the end of a cycle. Tips for Winning: Strategies of the Gods! Dominate the Auctions: The Offerings phase is crucial! Evaluate which Gods are most important for your strategy in that cycle and be prepared to spend a little more to secure their favor. Remember that a Priest can give you a financial advantage! Balance is Key: Don't focus solely on one type of building or recruitment. To build a Metropolis through economic development, you will need all 4 types of buildings. Plan your actions to have a good balance between military expansion (Ares and Poseidon), economy (Apollo), and development (Zeus and Athena). Take Advantage of Mythological Creatures: Mythological Creatures can turn the game around! Keep an eye on those available and don't hesitate to use them if the effect is advantageous for your strategy, especially if you have Temples to reduce the cost. ## FAQ ### How many players can play Cyclades? Cyclades is ideal for 2 to 5 players, offering a different experience at each player count. With fewer players, area control can be more focused, while with more, the struggle for the gods becomes much more intense! ### What is the average game length? A game of Cyclades typically lasts between 60 and 90 minutes. Of course, this can vary slightly depending on player experience and the intensity of the auctions! ### What is the complexity level of the game? Cyclades has a BGG weight of 2.816/5, placing it in the medium-heavy complexity category. It has accessible rules, but the strategic depth, especially in the auctions, requires a few plays to master. ### Are the components of good quality? Yes, Cyclades' components are one of its strong suits! The miniatures are detailed and high-quality, the board is robust, and the artwork is beautiful, greatly contributing to the immersion in the Greek theme. ### Is there any language dependency in the game? The language dependency in Cyclades is low. Most information is on icons and the board. Mythical creature and philosopher cards have text, but translations or summaries are readily available, or you can learn the effects and play without issues. ### Who is Cyclades recommended for? It's highly recommended for those who love area control games with combat, enjoy auction mechanics that generate tension and bluffing, and appreciate a well-implemented Greek mythology theme. 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