Innovation — How to Play

Innovation: Your Guide to Mastering Civilization's March!

Welcome, fellow leaders, to the thrilling world of Innovation! Get ready to guide your civilization through ten great periods of history, from the First Ages to the Digital Age, making groundbreaking discoveries and outmaneuvering your rivals. This isn't just a card game; it's a tactical management experience where every choice shapes your destiny. Let's dive in!

Objective of the Game

In Innovation, you are the architect of your civilization's progress. Your ultimate goal is to achieve victory through one of three exciting paths:

• Be the first to dominate a specific number of Periods and/or Domains (6 in a 2-player game, 5 in a 3-player game, or 4 in a 4-player game).
• Have the most Influence points when the game ends due to a player being forced to draw from a Period higher than 10, or a specific Dogma effect ending the game.
• Meet the unique conditions of certain Victory Dogmas found on high-value cards (Periods 8, 9, and 10).

Choose your path wisely, as the currents of history can shift in an instant!

Preparation (Setup)

Setting up your game of Innovation is quick, getting you to the action faster:

1. Innovation Cards: Shuffle the 105 Innovation cards by their Period value (1 through 10). Create 10 separate draw piles, one for each Period, and place them on the table.
2. Periods to be Dominated: Draw the top card from Periods 1 through 9 (without looking at them!) and place them in the center of the playing area. These represent the Periods to be Dominated.
3. Influence Domain Cards: Place the 5 Influence Domain cards to the side of the playing area. These offer alternative ways to score Dominations.
4. Player Boards: Each player takes a Gaming Board.
5. Starting Hands: Each player draws 2 cards from Period 1. From these two, choose one card to put into play face up in your Zone (starting a new pile of its color), and keep the other in your Hand without revealing it.
6. First Player: The player whose initial Innovation card in play is first in alphabetical order goes first. For the very first turn, the first player (or the first two in a four-player game) gets only one action instead of two.

You're now ready to begin your journey through the ages!

The Game Turn

On your turn, you must carry out 2 Actions. These actions can be different or identical. After you complete your actions, play passes clockwise to the next player. Always let other players know how many cards you have in your Hand and their value.

Available Actions:

• Play (Discover an Innovation):
  • Choose one card from your Hand and place it face up on top of the pile of its matching color in your Zone.
  • If you don't have a pile of that color, start a new one.
  • If the pile is already splayed, place the new card to continue the splaying.
  • The card you just played becomes the new Active card for that color, potentially giving you access to new Dogmas.
  • You can play a card of any value, even covering a high-value card with a low-value one!
• Activate (Activate a Dogma):
  • Choose one of your Active cards and resolve its Dogmas in the order they are printed.
  • Dogmas are the heart of Innovation, representing your civilization's ideology. They come in two types:
    • Supremacy Dogmas (u): These start with "I demand..." and are aggressive. They affect players who have fewer of the required icons than you do. Affected players must comply, starting with the player to your left, clockwise. Only you benefit directly from these.
    • Cooperative Dogmas (t u): These can be shared. They affect players who have at least as many of the required icons as you do. Affected players carry out the Dogma before you, starting with the player to your left, clockwise, and concluding with yourself.
  • Cooperation Bonus: If at least one other player benefits from a Cooperative Dogma you activated (meaning the effect caused a modification in their game), you gain a FREE DRAW action at the end of that card's resolution.
  • All Dogma effects must be fully carried out by every affected player, even if a card is covered or lost during execution. Unless a Dogma says "you may," players cannot choose not to carry it out.
• Draw (Researching an Innovation):
  • Draw one card from the Period pile that matches the value of your highest Active card.
  • If that Period pile is empty, draw from the closest non-empty higher Period pile.
  • If you have no cards in play, draw from Period 1.
  • You cannot draw from a Period lower than your highest Active card.
  • There's no limit to the number of cards you can hold in your Hand.
• Dominate (Claiming a Period):
  • To Dominate a Period, you must meet two conditions:
    1. Your total Influence points must be at least five times the value of the Period you wish to dominate.
    2. You must have an Active card in play with a value equal to or higher than the Period you wish to dominate.
  • If you meet these conditions, take the corresponding Period to be Dominated card and archive it under Dominations on your Gaming Board. You do not spend Influence points.
  • You can never lose or have your dominated Periods stolen. You also cannot look at the Innovations of dominated Periods.

End of Game and Scoring

The game of Innovation can end in three ways:

• Victory through Domination: The game immediately ends when a player achieves the required number of Dominations (Periods and/or Domains) based on player count:
  • 2-player game: 6 Dominations
  • 3-player game: 5 Dominations
  • 4-player game: 4 Dominations
• Victory through Influence: The game immediately ends if a player is forced to draw a card from a Period higher than 10 (e.g., the Period 10 pile is empty and there are no higher Periods to draw from), or if a Dogma effect explicitly states "the game ends." In this case, the winner is the player with the most Influence points. If there's a tie, the player with the most Dominations wins. If still tied, victory is shared.
• Victory through Dogma: The game immediately ends when a player activates a specific Dogma effect that declares a winner if certain conditions are met. These are typically found on high-value Innovation cards (Periods 8, 9, and 10).

Understanding Influence and Dominations:

• Influence: Your Influence is the total value of all cards you have "scored" by slipping them under the left side of your Gaming Board, making their value visible.
• Domains: These are special Dominations that can be claimed automatically and immediately as soon as a player meets the requirements printed on the Domain card, without using an action or spending Influence points. They count towards your total Dominations for victory. Some Domains can also be dominated by activating the Dogma of a specific Innovation card.

Tips for Winning

1. Balance Your Actions: Don't just focus on drawing new cards! Playing cards expands your options and provides icons, while activating Dogmas is crucial for interacting with opponents and gaining powerful effects. Remember you get two actions per turn, so make them count!
2. Leverage Dogmas for Interaction: Pay close attention to both Supremacy and Cooperative Dogmas. Supremacy Dogmas are your chance to directly hinder weaker opponents, while Cooperative Dogmas can give you a valuable FREE DRAW action if other players benefit. Understanding when to use each type is key to controlling the game flow.
3. Strategize Your Dominations: While accumulating Influence points is important for Period Dominations, don't forget about the immediate and automatic Domain Dominations. Keeping an eye on their requirements can give you a sudden lead in the race for victory, especially if you can snatch one before an opponent does!

Now you're equipped with the knowledge to lead your civilization to greatness. Go forth, innovate, and conquer!