How to Play Hegemony: Lead Your Class to Victory – Extended Edition

Game Objective

In Hegemony, each player takes on the role of a different social class (Working Class, Middle Class, Capitalist Class, or State) with unique objectives:

• Working Class: Fulfill basic needs (food, health, education, and leisure) to increase the Prosperity of workers.
• Capitalist Class: Maximize profits by managing Businesses.
• Middle Class: Balance production, sales, and consumption to sustain their workers.
• State: Maintain balance between the classes and handle social issues to increase their Legitimacy.

The game ends after 5 rounds. The player with the most Victory Points (VP), calculated according to each class's specific objectives, wins.

Setup

1. Assemble the central board:
   • Place the initial Businesses in the Private Sector (Capitalist and Middle) and Public Sector (State-owned).
   • Place cubes on the N2 Salaries of the Businesses.
   • Prepare decks for Export, Immigration, and Trade Agreements.
2. Class-specific setup:
   • Working Class: Receives 30, 1 Influence cube, and 7 Action cards. Places Workers in the initial Businesses.
   • Capitalist Class: Receives 120, initial Stocks, and the Free Trade Zone.
   • State (4 players): Sets up Incidents, Political Agendas, and Legitimacy markers.
   • Middle Class (3+ players): Receives 40, 1 Influence cube, and allocates Workers to Businesses.

Consult the manual for details on the exact placement of components.

Game Flow

Each round has 5 phases:

1. Preparation Phase: Advance the round marker, players receive cards and new Workers (via Immigration).
2. Action Phase: Alternating turns (Working → Middle → Capitalist → State). Each player performs 5 actions (playing cards or basic actions).
3. Production Phase:
   • Businesses produce goods/services and pay Salaries.
   • Classes fulfill basic needs (consumption of Food).
   • Check for IMF intervention if the State has too many loans.
   • Pay taxes according to Policy 3.
4. Election Phase: Voting to approve Bills (PL) proposed in the Action Phase, using Voting cubes and Influence.
5. Scoring Phase: Players gain VP based on progress (e.g., Prosperity of the Working Class, Capital of the Capitalist Class).

Actions and How to Play

Working Class Actions

• Propose PL: Suggests changing a Public Policy to an adjacent segment. Can spend Influence for immediate voting.
• Allocate Workers: Places up to 3 Workers in Businesses (vacancies must be fully filled). Dedicated Workers lie down until the Production Phase.
• Purchase Goods/Services: Acquires resources from up to 2 sources (limit = Population). Prices vary by origin (State, External Market, etc.).
• Strike: Places tokens in Businesses to pressure for higher wages (except Salary N3).

Free Actions: Include forming Unions (requires 4+ Workers in the same sector) to gain Influence and VP.

Consult the manual for actions of the other classes.

End of Game and Scoring

After 5 rounds:

1. Loan Penalty:
   • Capitalist loses 5 VP per loan.
   • Other players can pay debts (55 per loan) or lose VP.
2. Final Scoring:
   • Working Class: VP based on Prosperity and Unions.
   • Capitalist Class: VP according to accumulated Capital.
   • Tiebreaker: Number of Public Policies aligned with each class.

Tips to Win

• Working Class: Focus on creating Unions to gain passive Influence and VP.
• Capitalist Class: Use the Free Trade Zone to sell goods to the External Market without tariffs.
• State: Keep Legitimacy balanced between classes to maximize VP in the Scoring Phase.