How to Play Hegemony: Lead Your Class to Victory

Welcome, future leaders! Ever wondered what it's like to steer the fate of an entire nation, balancing the needs of its people with the pursuit of power and profit? In Hegemony: Lead Your Class to Victory, you're not just playing a game; you're stepping into the shoes of a powerful socio-economic class, each with its own agenda and unique way of shaping society. Get ready to dive into a world of economic struggle, political maneuvering, and strategic class warfare!

Objective of the Game

The nation is in disarray, and it's up to you to guide it! In Hegemony, you and your friends will each take on the role of a distinct socio-economic class: the Working Class, the Capitalist Class, the Middle Class, or the State. This isn't a cooperative kumbaya; each class has its own specific goals and plays by its own rules, creating a truly asymmetric experience. Your ultimate goal? To achieve the most Victory Points (VP) by successfully advancing your class's agenda and outmaneuvering your opponents. Will you fight for social reforms, maximize profits, find balance, or keep the whole system from collapsing? Only one class can achieve true hegemony!

• Working Class: Your goal is to cover your Workers' basic needs (food, health, education, and entertainment) to the best extent possible, increasing their prosperity.
• Capitalist Class: You run Companies, employing workers to produce goods and services. Your objective is to maximize your profit.
• Middle Class: You also have Workers and can run your own smaller Companies. You need to find the perfect balance between producing, selling, and consuming to cover your Workers' needs and increase their prosperity.
• State: Your mission is to increase your legitimacy by keeping all classes satisfied and in balance, while dealing with societal issues.

Preparation (Setup)

Alright, let's get this economy running! Setting up Hegemony might seem like a lot, but we'll go through it step-by-step to get you ready for class warfare.

1. Game Board: Place the main Game Board in the center of your play area. This is where all the action happens!
2. Player Boards: Each player chooses a class (Working Class, Middle Class, Capitalist Class, or State) and takes the corresponding Player Board, Player Aid, and Rule Aid.
3. Player Components:
   • Each player receives their specific deck of Action Cards (40 cards per class).
   • The Working Class receives their Working Class Workers.
   • The Middle Class receives their Middle Class Workers.
   • The Capitalist Class starts with a Free Trade Zone tile.
   • The Capitalist Class and Middle Class will also use Storage tiles.
4. Company Cards: Separate the Company Cards by type: Capitalist Class Companies, Public Companies, and Middle Class Companies. Note the starting companies indicated by symbols (e.g., for 2-player or 3-4 player games).
5. Other Cards:
   • Shuffle the Export Cards and reveal one at the beginning of each round during the Preparation Phase.
   • Shuffle the Immigration Cards. A new one is revealed each round during the Preparation Phase to indicate new immigrants.
   • (4-player games only) Shuffle the Event Cards. These show issues the State must deal with.
   • (4-player games only) Shuffle the Political Agenda Cards. The State draws these each round.
   • Keep the Business Deal Cards and Loans separate.
6. Tokens and Markers:
   • Place all Resource Tokens (Food, Luxury, Health, Education) within easy reach.
   • Set out the Vardis Coin Tokens (money).
   • Place the Legitimacy Tokens, Machinery Tokens, Strike Tokens, Demonstration Token, Welfare Tiles, Influence Cubes, Voting Cubes, and other various markers (Prosperity Markers, Wealth Marker, Legitimacy Markers, Round Marker, Tax Multiplier Marker, Policy Markers, Scoring Markers, Bill Markers) near the board.
   • The Cloth Bag is for drawing workers.

Once everything is laid out, you're ready to begin your journey to economic and political dominance!

The Turn of Play

A round in Hegemony is a dynamic dance of actions, production, and political maneuvering. Here's a quick overview of the phases:

1. Preparation Phase: This is where the round kicks off. A new Export card is revealed, indicating transactions with the foreign market. An Immigration card is also revealed, bringing new Workers into play. The State (in 4-player games) draws a new Political Agenda card.
2. Action Phase: This is the heart of the game! Players take turns playing Action Cards from their hand or discarding them to perform Basic Actions. Each class has its own unique set of actions that reflect its agenda. For example, the Capitalist Class might be building Companies or selling goods, while the Working Class might be advocating for better wages or building Cooperative Farms. Remember, you can play a card for its powerful effect or discard it for a more general action.
3. Production Phase: Time to see what your Companies have produced! Companies that are operational (have the required Workers or are automated) will generate goods and services. Machinery tokens can boost production. Automated companies produce without paying wages.
4. Elections Phase: (This phase is primarily driven by the State and political actions.) Bills are proposed and voted on, influencing the various Policies on the Politics Table (e.g., Fiscal Policy, Labor Market, Taxation, Welfare State, Foreign Trade, Immigration). Players can use Influence for Immediate Votes on Bills, but each Bill requires its own influence.
5. Scoring Phase: This is where you see how well you've done this round! Each class scores VP based on their unique objectives. For the Capitalist Class, this involves transferring Revenue to Capital and gaining VP based on their wealth, potentially earning bonus VP for increasing their Wealth marker.

The game continues through these phases for a set number of rounds, with each round bringing new challenges and opportunities.

End of Game and Scoring

The game concludes after a predetermined number of rounds. When the game ends, it's time for a final tally of Victory Points to determine who truly achieved hegemony!

Here's a glimpse into some end-game scoring for the Capitalist Class (other classes will have their own specific end-game scoring):

• Policy Check: The Capitalist Class gains VP based on the number of Neoliberal Policies (section C) in effect for Policies 1-5 on the Politics Table.

  Neoliberal Policies	1	2	3	4	5
  VP	1	4	8	12	18

• Storage Bonus: Gain 1 VP for every 2 / 3 / 3 (depending on the resource type) in your Storages, including those in the Free Trade Zone.
• Loan Penalty: You lose 5 VP for each Loan you still have.

The player with the most Victory Points at the end of the game is declared the winner!

Tips for Winning

Ready to dominate? Here are a couple of tactical pointers to get you started on your path to victory:

1. Master Your Class's Actions: Each class plays fundamentally differently. Don't try to play the Working Class like the Capitalist Class! Understand your unique Action Cards and how they synergize with your class's core objectives. For instance, if you're the Capitalist Class, focus on building and optimizing your Companies and leveraging the Foreign Market through Export Cards and Business Deal Cards to maximize profit.
2. Strategic Policy Engagement: The Politics Table is a powerful tool. Pay close attention to the various Policies and how they impact your class and your opponents. As the State, your Political Agenda Cards are crucial for scoring VP, so you'll want to push for policies that align with your agenda. As other classes, you can influence votes on Bills to shift policies in your favor, even using Influence for an Immediate Vote when it truly matters.
3. Resource Management is Key: Whether you're the Working Class trying to cover needs or the Capitalist Class producing goods, managing your resources (Food, Luxury, Health, Education) and money (Vardis Coin Tokens) is paramount. Don't overextend yourself with Loans, as they come with a hefty end-game penalty. For the Capitalist Class and Middle Class, expanding your Storages can be a smart move to hold more goods and potentially score more VP.

Now you're equipped with the basics to lead your chosen class to victory! Good luck, and may the best class win!