The following rule changes apply here on yucata.de:
- The influence points for shrines and council seats are already included in the total during the game.
- In games with 2 players, the start player does not change. The players move always alternating. This will be changed to the original rules in a later version.
In the Domain of the Moon Priestess
Excerpts from the diary of Novice Campus:
"... soon the time has come: Our Moon Priestess Luna will choose the Order that will
decide on her successor. To be worthy before Luna's eyes, my Order sends me on a trip to our Holy Isles."
“…on the evening of a long day, we finally completed the new Shrine on the Library Isle. The Master Builder made
sure we worked as hard as we could! Still, I’m not done for today: My Order sends me on a journey to the Tidal Isle –
there I have to ask the local Priest for advice. Thanks to an Herbal Potion, I’ll get there by rowboat before dawn.
Also, the arrival of Luna has been announced. I hope so much to finally participate in her Service! Unless, of course,
our Abbot gives me some other work. There’s so much to do and there are only so many of us! I guess we should
recruit some new ones..."
“…lunch time – I’ve received news that, at the request of our Abbot, the Tidal Priest wants to send me to serve in
the Moon Temple! What a great honor – and so important for our Order! On the other hand, though, I’ll miss Luna’s
service again. Time’s up and I’ve to leave for the Temple. Why, whatever our Abbot wants me to do, I’ll always
subordinate myself to the great goal..."
Components
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| 7 Holy Isles |
1 Temple Island |
4 Temple boards |
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| 28 Temple tiles (of values 1-28) |
6 Guard tiles (of values 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 2) |
28 Favor tokens
(4 each of the 7 Favors) |
4 Time tokens |
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| 4 "Book of Wisdom" tokens |
Influence point tokens |
Moon Priestess
of value 6 (4 players) and
of value 5 (2-3 players) |
Master Builder |
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| Apostate |
Guard of the Temple |
13 Novice pieces of each colour |
6 Shrine pieces of each colour |
Setup
Tips for the first play:
Please use the preselected setup! Unlike the standard setup, it tells you how to place the Holy Isles, and the players’
starting Shrines and Novices. Getting started will be easier this way, as you will not need to bother where to place your
starting pieces.
Each player receives 5 influence points.
A start player will be chosen randomly. The colour marker of the start player will be signed with S:
Beginning at the Temple Gate, place a number of randomly selected Temple boards equal to the
number of players face-up on the temple island.
Place the remaining Temple boards facedown
in the vacant spaces. They remain face-down for the remainder of the game.
Remove all Temple tiles from play that do not match one of the colors of the Temple
boards in use. Randomly distribute the tiles 1-4 (if not removed) among the players.
Then each player places the received tile together with his own Novice on the proper
space in the Temple matching the number of the tile. Finally, place a “Book of
Wisdom” on each of these tiles.
Place the remaining Temple tiles and the Guard tiles on the path around the
Temple as follows: Firstly, place the lowest-numbered Guard tile (2) next to the
Temple Gate. Then, starting with the highest-numbered Temple tile, place a number
of descending Temple tiles equal to the number of players on the next free spaces of
the path. Continue placing the next highest Guard tile and another set of descending
Temple tiles until all Guard and Temple tiles are placed on the path around the Temple.
Place the Guard of the Temple figure on the Guard tile of value “6”.
Pile up the 4 Time tokens (with the burning candle side up) and place them in the
Meditation Room. Make sure the Time token with the “1” is on the bottom of the
pile. Remove the Time token on top of the pile from play if playing with 2 players.
Beginning with the start player, the players stack their Member of the Council piece
on the first space of the Council of Priests.
Randomly place the 7 Holy Isles tiles around the Temple Island.
Preselected setup: Turn the Holy Isles on the numbered side and place them
according to these numbers in clockwise order around the board.
Place a number of matching Favor tokens equal to the number of
players on each of the Holy Isles.
Take the proper Moon Priestess figure according to the number of players:
- 2-3 players: take the Moon Priestess of value “5”
- 4 players: take the Moon Priestess of value “6”
Distribute the Moon Priestess, the Master Builder, and the Apostate figures on
the Holy Isles of your choice. You may place more than one figure on any one Isle.
Preselected setup: Place these figures as depicted on the Isles.
Preselected setup: Each player places 1 Shrine and 8 Novices as depicted on the
Isles. Each player receives a Favor token from the two Isles where he has no Shrine
or Novice on.
Game Play
Overview:
1. Preliminary Round
Each player places 1 Shrine and 4 sets of 2 Novices on the 7 Holy Isles and receives 2 Favor tokens.
2. Game play
The game takes place over a series of 6 rounds. Each round moves through two different phases:
Action Phase: Players take turns taking an action until all Time tokens are turned.
Scoring Phase:
- Scoring: Receive influence points at the Moon Priestess and for Novices in the Temple / Lose points on the Isle with the Apostate.
- Preparing the Next Round: Return the Novices to the Isles, prepare the Time tokens, and move the 4 figures.
3. Game End:
After 6 rounds, players receive additional influence for their Shrines, unused Favor tokens, and their position in the Council of Priests.
The player with the most influence points wins the game.
1. Preliminary Round
- There is no Preliminary Round if you use the preselected setup.
- Beginning with the start player and continuing clockwise, each player places one of his Shrines on a Holy Isle of his choice.
Players must choose different Isles – no Isle may contain more than one Shrine at the beginning of the game. In the 2-player game, you may not choose the Herbal Isle.
- Next, beginning with the start player, players take turns to place 4 sets of 2 Novices on the Isles. No player may place another set on an Isle
already containing his pieces (incl. the Shrine). The pieces of the other players do not matter for his placement.
- Finally, each player receives one Favor token each from the two Isles he has not placed any pieces.
2. Game Play
Action Phase
Beginning with the start player, players take turns playing a single action.
An action may affect one or more Novices and/or consume a Favor token.
All available actions will be explained in detail.
Novices:
Unless otherwise stated:
- Only active Novices may take actions.
All the Novices on the Holy Isles are considered active.
- After taking an action that involves Novices, place the involved Novices
next to the Holy Isle. They are now considered inactive.
You may only take actions with your own Novices.
Favor tokens:
Return any used Favor tokens to their matching Isles.
At any time during the game, you may only have at
most one token of each type.
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Book of
Wisdom |
Bribery |
Novice |
Sailboat |
Herbs |
Shrine |
Tide |
Changing view between Island and Temple Island
Click on the top left curled corner.
Isle Actions (Actions that address a specific Isle)
Priest’s Favor (gain a Favor token)
Use 2 Novices on one Holy Isle to gain the Favor token of that Isle. You may not gain a Favor
token that you already own.
Shrine Bonus: If you own a Shrine on the Isle in question, you only need to use a single Novice.
“Your Novices help the local Priest. As thanks, he owes you a favor.”
Handling:
- Point mouse cursor over active novices of the island. Click on the action you want to do,
- or point the mouse cursor over the shrine, if you want to take the favor token with the favor token Novice.
Recruit (add Novices to your Order)
Use 2 Novices on one Holy Isle and place another one (if available)
from your supply next to this Isle. All 3 Novices are inactive now.
“Thanks to the persuasive power of your
Novices, an infidel has gained faith.”
Handling: Point mouse cursor over active novices of the island. Click on the action you want to do.
Shrine (get a bonus during “Priest’s Favor” and “Promotion”)
Return a Shrine Favor token and use 2 Novices on the Holy Isle with the
Master Builder to build a Shrine there (if available). You may only have a single
Shrine on each Isle, but there may be any number of Shrines from different players.
Shrines 
have several benefits:
- 4 influence points
- Actions “Priest’s Favor” and “Promotion” only require a single Novice.
- It counts towards the number of active Novices during the Scoring of the Moon Priestess.
“Your Novices need the instructions of the
Master Builder and building materials to
construct a new Shrine.”
Handling:
- Click on your favor token Shrine,
- or click on the Master Builder,
- or point the mouse cursor over your active novices on the island and click on the action you want to do.
Herbs (reactivate your Novices)
Return an Herbal Favor token to reactivate 1 or 2 inactive Novices on one Holy Isle.
Exception: You cannot use this on the Herbal Isle itself!
“Your weary Novices brew an Herbal potion
to regain their powers.”
Handling: Click on an inactive novice. The Herbal Favor token is used automatically.
Movement Actions (How can Novices move to other Isles?)
Journey (move active Novices – they become inactive)
Take any number of active Novices and place them next to any number of Holy Isles.
“Your Novices take a rowboat and row to another Isle.”
Handling:
- Point mouse cursor over active novices of the island. Click on the action you want to do,
- Click on target image.
- Click on another novice if you want.
Tide (move active/inactive Novices – they become/remain inactive)
Return a Tidal Favor token and move any number of active/inactive Novices next to any
number of Holy Isles. The moved Novices may come from any number of Holy Isles and/or the
Landing stage of the Temple Island.
“Your Novices take advantage of
the Tidal Priest’s ferry service.”
Handling:
- Click on your Tide Favor token.
- Click on a novice.
- Click on a target image.
- Click on another novice if you want.
Sailboat (move active Novices – they remain active)
Return a Sailboat Favor token and move 1 or 2 Novices from one Holy Isle or from
the Landing stage of the Temple Island to another Holy Isle. These Novices remain active!
“The Sailboat Priest lends you his sailboat
that can hold at most 2 Novices.”
Handling:
- Click on your Sailboat Favor token. Then sailboat symbols will show up.
- Click on a sailboat symbol with one novice or two novices.
- Click on a target image.
Temple Actions (How can Novices come into the Temple?)
Promotion (claim a Temple tile)
You need 2 Novices from 1 Holy Isle to claim a free and approved Temple tile that has the same
symbol as the Isle. “Approved” means: The tile is lying between the Guard and the Landing stage.
Put the first Novice on the Temple tile and deactivate a second Novice from the same Isle.
Shrine Bonus: If you own a Shrine on the Isle in question, you don’t need the second Novice.
Bribery: Return a Bribery Favor token to claim a tile which is lying between the Guard of
the Temple and the next free Guard tile.
Note: You cannot use a Novice Favor token to claim a Temple tile.
“The local Priest has
deemed your Novice worthy
to enter the Temple.”
Handling: Click on a marked Temple Tile. If you click on a red marked Temple tile, the Bribery Favor token will be used automatically.
Sanctification (place a Novice in the Temple and gain influence)
Move an already claimed and approved Temple tile (see “Promotion”)
together with its Novice on the matching space in the Temple.
Bribery: Return a Bribery Favor token to move a claimed, but yet unapproved tile to the Temple,
i.e. one that is lying between the Guard of the Temple and the next free Guard tile.
Bribery or not: You gain a number of influence points equal to the
number printed on the Guard tile the Guard stands on.
Displacement: A newly placed Novice displaces every opponent
Novice to whom all of the following are true:
- The new Novice is adjacent to the opponent Novice.
- The new Novice is standing on a tile with a higher number.
- The opponent’s Novice is not protected by a “Book of Wisdom”.
You gain 1 influence point for each displaced Novice.
Move any displaced Novices to the Landing stage of the Temple.
Players can pick their displaced Novices up by using a “Sailboat” or “Tide” Favor token.
“The Guard of the Temple
grants your Novice access
to the Temple. His service is
rewarded with influence.”
Handling: Click on a marked temple field. If you click on a red marked temple field, the Bribery Favor token will be used automatically.
Book (gain influence and protection)
Return a “Book of Wisdom” Favor token to displace a “Book of Wisdom” in the Temple.
Take a “Book of Wisdom” of your choice and place it under any one of your Novices in the Temple that does
not have a Book. You gain 1 influence point by doing so. In addition, as long as the Book remains there,
your Novice is protected from displacements.
“Your Novices gain
knowledge and influence
by studying the Book of
Wisdom.”
Handling:
- Click on your "Book of Wisdom" Favor token.
- Click on a book you want to displace.
- Click on a temple field, where you want to place the book.
Council of Priests (move up in the Council of Priests)
Use any number of Novices of any one Isle. Move your “Member of the Council” piece up a number of seats
equal to the number of used Novices. Place your piece on top of any already existing pieces of other players
unless this is the last seat in the Council. In this case, place your piece under the bottom of the stack.
“Your Novices support the
representative Priest of your Order
with valuable information.”
Handling:
- Point mouse cursor over active novices of the island. Click on the action you want to do,
- or point the mouse cursor over the Novice Favor token and click on the action you want to do.
Other Actions
Expulsion (expel the Apostate)
Use any number of Novices on the Holy Isle with the Apostate. Then move
him a number of Isles in clockwise order equal to the number of used Novices.
“Your Novices successfully struggle with the insinuations of the Apostate.”
Handling:
- Point mouse cursor over Apostate. Choose how many islands to expel,
- or point mouse over Novice Favor token. Click on the action you want to do.
Virtual Novice (replace a Novice during another action)
Return the Novice Favor token to replace an active Novice during an action.
Exceptions:
- You may not replace the Novice that claims a Temple tile.
- You may not use it to (re-)gain the Novice Favor token.
“The local Priest sends you one of his apprentices to help you with an action.”Meditation (turn a Time token)
If you do not want to take an action, turn a Time token from top of the pile and put it on a second
pile of turned Time tokens. Doing so does not finish the Action Phase for you! Once it is your turn again,
you may still take another action.
However, once the last Time token has been turned, the Action Phase is over. The player who turned this last token, gains
1 influence point.
In the 2-player game, pass the start player figure to your opponent. (Yucata.de: NOT IMPLEMENTED yet)
“Your Novice retires from work. He visits the
Meditation Room and does not take an action.”
Handling: Click on a burning candle.
Scoring Phase
Each player receives/loses influence points in 3 different ways:
Players gain influence in the Temple and on the Isle with the Moon Priestess – they
lose influence on the Isle with the Apostate.
Moon Priestess:
On the Isle with the Moon Priestess, count the active Novices and Shrines of each
player. The player with the highest number gains a number of influence points equal
to the large, printed number. The second and third places gain a number of influence
points equal to the smaller numbers. Ties are resolved according to the relative
position of the players in the Council of Priests. The player whose piece has moved
the farthest breaks the tie. If there is more than one player on the same space, the
player whose piece is on top breaks the tie.
If there is no second or third place, no one receives the influence points of these
places.
“The Moon Priestess ministers a Service on the Isle that she has moved to and
rewards its eagerest participants.”
Apostate:
On the Isle with the Apostate, count the active and inactive Novices of each player.
Each player now loses a number of influence points equal to his count plus one.
Players who do not have any Novices on or next to the Isle in question do not lose
any influence.
The Apostate does not affect Shrines.
“The Apostate succeeds in leading the Novices into temptation.”
Temple:
Each player gains 1 influence point for each of his Novices in the Temple.
“Players get a reward for each round their Novices are serving in the Temple.”
Preparing the Next Round (skipped at the end the 6th round)
- Place all inactive Novices back on their Isles. They are now active again.
- The Moon Priestess and Master Builder figures move clockwise to another Isle. They move a number of Isles equal to the large, printed number.
- The Apostate moves clockwise to the next Isle that contains at least one Novice.
- The Guard of the Temple moves to the next Guard tile on the path around the Temple. Remove the Guard tile he just left from play. Once he
reaches the last Guard tile, the last round begins.
- Restack the Time tokens in the same manner as during setup.
3. Game End
The game ends at the end of the 6th round. In an offline game, players would gain additional influence.
On Yucata.de, you will get these influence points during the game!
Players gain additional influence in 3 different categories:
- Each Shrine is worth 4 influence points.
- Each unused Favor token is worth 1 influence point.
- Players gain influence points according to their position in the Council of Priests.
Finally, each player sums up his influence points.
The player with the most influence points
wins the game – his Order will provide the next Moon Priestess.
Ties are resolved according to the position in the Council of Priests (see “Scoring Phase”).
Special rules for the 2-player game
- Setup: only 3 Time tokens are needed.
- During the Preliminary Round, players may not place their Shrines on the Herbal Isle.
- The first player to use a Book token in a given round gains 2 influence points instead of 1.
- At the end of each round, the current start player passes the start player figure to his opponent.
Playing Tips
These actions make sense in the first round:
- “Shrine”: If 2 of your Novices are on the Isle with the Master Builder, consider spending a Shrine favor token and build a Shrine there. You may
need to take the “Favor” action first to acquire that token.
- “Promotion”: You may wish to place a Novice on a Temple tile and move it into the Temple with your next action (Sanctification).
- “Recruit”: Consider recruiting additional Novices – the more you have, the more options you will have on future rounds.
- “Favor”: Collect some favor tokens.
- “Tide”: Use a Tidal favor token (if available) and prepare your inactive Novices for the next round. For instance, place them next to the Isle with
your starting Shrine to make use of it next round, or place them where the Master Builder and Moon Priestess will be next round.
- “Journey”: If you have no Tidal favor token, move some of your active Novices to prepare for the next round.
- “Council of Priests”: As the start player, you may wish to move forward in the Council of Priests in order to break ties, e.g. on the Isle with
the Moon Priestess to get more influence.
Acknowledgments:
Designer: Stefan Feld
Editor: Ralph Bruhn and Andreas Odendahl
Artwork: Klemens Franz | atelier198
3D-Artwork: Andreas Resch
© 2010 Hall Games
www.hallgames.de
Ralph Bruhn
Herderstr. 36
D-53332 Bornheim
Deutschland