Objective of the Game

Welcome to the bustling world of In the Year of the Dragon! As a powerful leader in Imperial China, your goal is to guide your province through a tumultuous year, marked by twelve challenging events. You'll need to wisely manage your resources, attract skilled people to your palaces, and make strategic decisions to overcome droughts, invasions, and more. The player who best navigates these trials, accumulating the most Victory Points (VP) by the end of the 12th round, will earn the Emperor's favor and claim victory!

Preparation (Setup)

Let's get your province ready for the challenges ahead! Here's how to set up your game of In the Year of the Dragon:

1. Person Tiles: Sort all Person Tiles by color, then by their experience level. The older, more experienced people (with more symbols and lower numerical values) go in the top row, and their younger counterparts are placed directly below them in the second row.
2. Middle Row People: Place the beige Craftsmen, orange Court Ladies, and yellow Tax Collectors in the three middle spaces on the board. Only the younger versions of these tiles are used here.
3. Adjust for Player Count: If you have fewer than 5 players, return 2 Person Tiles of each type (either one older and one younger, or two younger) to the box.
4. Event Tiles: Place the two Peace tiles face-up in the first two spaces of the event row. Shuffle the remaining 10 Event Tiles and place them face-up randomly on the other spaces. Make sure no two identical event tiles are placed consecutively, with the exception of the Peace tiles.
5. Action Cards: Shuffle the 7 Action Cards and place them face-down in the middle space on the board.
6. Player Components: Each player receives:
   • 1 Person Marker (disc), placed on the '0' space of the inner person track.
   • 1 Scoring Marker (8-sided), placed on the '0' space of the outer scoring track.
   • 1 Dragon token.
   • 11 Person Cards of their chosen color.
7. Palaces and Yuan: Each player also takes 2 Palace Floors and immediately builds two palaces, each with 2 floors. Remember, no palace can ever be built higher than 3 floors. Additionally, each player receives 6 Yuan. (A helpful tip: 1 gold coin equals 3 silver coins, and you can exchange them freely throughout the game!)
8. Starting Player & Initial Persons: Determine the starting player. This player chooses two different Person Tiles from the second row (the younger versions). Play then proceeds clockwise, with each player choosing two different Person Tiles. No two players may choose the exact same combination of tiles.
9. Place Persons in Palaces: Players then place these chosen Person Tiles below any of their palaces. A palace can hold a number of Person Tiles equal to its current number of floors (up to a maximum of 3).
10. Move Person Markers: Finally, each player moves their Person Marker forward on the person track by the total number indicated on their chosen Person Tiles. If multiple markers end up on the same space, simply stack them on top of each other.
11. [Optional: The Great Wall of China Expansion]: If playing with this expansion, players take the 6 Wall Tiles in their color and place them face-down. Shuffle the "Building the Wall" Action Card in with the other Action Cards.
12. [Optional: The Super Events Expansion]: If playing with this expansion, shuffle the 10 "corners," pick 1 at random, and place it face-up on the 7th Event Tile. Return the rest to the box.

The Turn of Play

A game of In the Year of the Dragon unfolds over 12 rounds, with each round consisting of four distinct phases. All players complete the current phase in person track order (from furthest ahead to furthest behind) before moving to the next phase.

1. Action Phase

This is where you make your strategic moves! Here's how it works:

• Shuffle the 7 Action Cards and divide them face-down into groups equal to the number of players (as evenly as possible). Then, flip all the cards face-up.
• The player whose Person Marker is furthest ahead on the person track (reading top to bottom) chooses one of the card groups. They place their Dragon token on that group and immediately perform one action from the chosen cards.
• Play continues in person marker order until all players have chosen a group and performed an action.
• Important: You can choose a group that has already been selected by another player, but you'll have to pay 3 Yuan to the bank for the privilege!
• Skipping the Action Phase: If you don't want to take an action, you can skip this phase and instead take enough Yuan from the bank to bring your total to 3 Yuan.

Here are the actions you can choose from:

• Taxes: Take 1 Yuan from the supply for each coin symbol on the chosen card, plus 1 Yuan for each Tax Collector you have in your palaces.
• Build: Take 1 Palace Floor from the supply for each hammer symbol on the chosen card, plus 1 Palace Floor for each Craftsman you have. You can then use these floors to build new palaces or add floors to existing ones (up to a maximum of 3 floors per palace).
• Harvest: Take 1 Rice Tile from the supply for each rice sack symbol on the chosen card, plus 1 Rice Tile for each Farmer you have.
• Fireworks: Take 1 Fireworks Tile from the supply for each rocket symbol on the chosen card, plus 1 Fireworks Tile for each Pyrotechnist you have.
• Military: Move your Person Marker 1 space forward on the person track for each helmet symbol on the chosen card, plus 1 space for each Warrior you have.
• Research: Move your Scoring Marker 1 space forward on the scoring track for each book symbol on the chosen card, plus 1 space for each Scholar you have.
• Privilege: Pay 2 Yuan to gain a small privilege (represented by 1 Dragon symbol) or 7 Yuan for a large privilege (with 2 Dragon symbols). You can only take each privilege once.
• [GW] Building Wall: If playing with The Great Wall expansion, take the bonus on a chosen Wall Tile, then place it under the first Event Tile (from the left) that doesn't already have a wall tile (up to a maximum of 12 wall tiles).

2. Person Phase

This phase is all about attracting new talent to your palaces!

• In person track order, each player plays 1 Person Card from their hand to the discard pile (it's out of the game).
• Then, they take a matching Person Tile (either a younger or older version) from the general supply and place it in any of their palaces that has an open space.
• After placing the person, move your Person Marker forward on the person track by the number indicated on the played Person Card.
• Wildcard: If you play a Person Card with a wildcard symbol, you can take any Person Tile you wish.
• Full Palaces: If all your palaces are full, you may choose to displace an existing person. If you do, remove the displaced person from the game.
• Choosing Not to Displace: If your palaces are full and you choose *not* to displace a person, you must remove the new person you just took, and you do not move your Person Marker forward.
• Important: This phase is skipped in the 12th and final round.

3. Event Phase

Each round brings a new challenge! After all players have completed the event, the current Event Tile is turned face-down. When dismissing persons from palaces due to an event, dismiss them in turn order.

• Peace: Nothing happens! A rare moment of calm.
• Imperial Tribute: Pay 4 Yuan to the supply. For each Yuan you are short, you must release 1 person from one of your palaces. Remember to pay any available Yuan first!
• Drought: Return 1 Rice Tile to the supply for each of your inhabited palaces. If you are short on rice, you must release 1 person from each palace that cannot be supplied.
• Dragon Festival: The player with the most Fireworks Tiles gains +6 VP. The player with the second most gains +3 VP. If there's a tie for first, all tied players get +6 VP, and the player with the second most still gets +3 VP. Players who scored points then return half of their Fireworks Tiles to the supply (rounded up). If you have 0 fireworks, you get 0 VP.
• Mongol Invasion: Each player gains VP equal to the number of helmet symbols on their Warriors. The player(s) with the fewest helmets must release 1 person from any one of their palaces.
  • [GW] Great Wall Interaction: If the Great Wall is built to at least the current invasion tile, players get +VP for each wall tile they placed. If not, players who built the fewest wall tiles must each release 1 person.
• Contagion: Players must release 3 persons from their palaces. For each mortar symbol on your Healers, you release 1 less person.

Decay: After each Event, all uninhabited palaces lose 1 floor to the supply. Keep an eye on those empty buildings!

4. Scoring Phase

Time to tally up some points!

• Gain +1 VP for each palace you have, regardless of its number of floors or inhabitants.
• Gain +1 VP for each Dragon symbol on the fans of your orange Court Ladies.
• Gain +1 VP for each Dragon symbol on any purchased privileges.
• [GW] Mongol Invasion Scoring: After each Mongol Invasion event, if the wall is built to the Mongol Event Tile, players with 1 or more tiles in the Great Wall gain +1 VP for each tile they contributed. If the wall has not been built to the Mongol Event Tile, players who built the fewest tiles must each release 1 person from any one of their palaces.
• [SE] Super Event: After the 7th round event is handled, and before the regular scoring, evaluate the Super Event.

End Game and Scoring

The game concludes after the Scoring Phase of the 12th round. Now it's time for the final tally to determine the true leader of Imperial China!

• [GW] Great Wall Completion: If the Great Wall is built to 12 tiles, each player gains +1 VP for each wall tile they placed. If fewer than 12 tiles are built, the player(s) who built the fewest tiles must each release 1 person from any one of their palaces.
• Persons in Palaces: Gain +2 VP for each Person Tile remaining in your palaces.
• Monks and Buddhas: Gain VP for your Monks! Multiply the number of Buddha symbols on each monk by the number of floors in the palace that monk inhabits.
• Resources: Sell back any remaining Rice Tiles and Fireworks Tiles for 2 Yuan each. Then, for every 3 Yuan you possess, gain +1 VP.

The player with the most Victory Points wins! In case of a tie, the player whose Person Marker is farthest ahead on the person track is the victor.

Tips for Winning

To truly excel in In the Year of the Dragon, consider these strategic pointers:

1. Balance Your Workforce: Don't just focus on one type of person! While specialists are great, having a diverse workforce of Craftsmen, Farmers, Pyrotechnists, and Warriors will help you weather the various events and maximize your actions. A well-rounded set of people can mitigate the negative effects of events like Droughts and Contagion, while also boosting your income and scoring opportunities.
2. Event Anticipation is Key: Pay close attention to the upcoming Event Tiles! Knowing what challenges lie ahead allows you to prepare. For example, if a Drought is coming, prioritize collecting Rice Tiles. If a Mongol Invasion is on the horizon, consider recruiting more Warriors or contributing to the Great Wall (if playing with the expansion). Adapting your strategy to the events is crucial for survival and success.
3. Manage Your Yuan Wisely: Money is tight in Imperial China! You'll need Yuan for taxes, privileges, and potentially to take action groups already chosen by others. Don't be afraid to take the "skip action and gain 3 Yuan" option if you're low on funds and nothing else seems optimal. Having a small reserve can save you from releasing valuable people during an Imperial Tribute.