Tapestry

Objective and base-game scope: Each player leads an asymmetric civilization and earns victory points by advancing tracks, taking income turns, building a capital, and controlling territory. Everyone takes five income turns, but each player chooses how many ordinary track advances to take between them. The current base game supports 1–5 players and includes 16 revised civilization mats; no expansion is required for the four base tracks.

Map and civilization setup: Choose the public map size for the player count: the small map for one to three players and the large map for four or five. Each player takes a capital mat, income mat, and civilization mat. Arrange farms, houses, markets, and armories on the four income tracks with the leftmost building uncovered; all four resources begin at zero. Take a starting territory and outposts, place track markers at their starting spaces, and randomly determine first player. Everyone’s first turn is an income turn.

Two choices on a turn: On their turn, a player either begins a new era and takes an income turn, or pays the cost shown for the current level to advance one space on any development track and resolve that space. Optional benefits may require an additional cost. Under the publisher’s current global rule, a player cannot initiate the same track space a second time in one turn. The restriction applies to the specific space, not the entire track. Play then passes clockwise.

Income turns and resource limits: An income turn generally resolves the civilization ability, places a tapestry card in the next era space, optionally upgrades a technology card, and collects the exposed victory points, resources, tiles, and card income on the income mat. A tapestry card occupies its era space and can provide an immediate or ongoing benefit. The base rulebook caps each resource at eight. Income, technology, complete capital rows and columns, and controlled territory contribute to scoring at their listed steps.

Science track: When a player advances to a science space, roll the science die and move forward for free on the other track shown by the die. If the result would move the marker beyond that track’s end, it does not move. Further movement can provide additional spaces and benefits. Science can turn one paid action into progress in another area, but the die determines which track is available; the player cannot choose a different free advance.

Technology track: When gaining a technology card, choose from the face-up cards or the top of the deck and place the card in the bottom row beside the capital. Gaining it normally has no immediate card effect. To upgrade, move a technology card up a row and resolve the circular or square effect associated with its new row. A move to the top row requires the printed prerequisite, such as the player or an adjacent player reaching a specified track level. Technology is developed by upgrading acquired cards, not by simply collecting more cards.

Exploration track and map: Place a territory tile in an unexplored map space adjacent to territory you control, choosing its orientation. Gain one victory point for each matching edge with adjacent terrain, up to six, then take the resources printed on the tile. Reaching level IV of the exploration track allows a player to explore space tiles. Space tiles sit beside the player’s income mat, do not need to connect to one another, and provide their printed benefit. The supplies of territory and space tiles are limited.

Military track and control: A military action places an outpost from the player’s supply on an adjacent territory that has at most one outpost, then rolls two conquest dice and chooses one of their benefits. If an opponent has an outpost there, turn it sideways to show that control is contested; the opponent may discard a trap card to keep control, while the attacker still receives the chosen die benefit. A territory with two outposts cannot be conquered again. A player with all outposts on the map cannot start another conquest.

Capital construction and scoring: When an exposed building on the income mat is available, place it in an open capital space. Completing a region of the 3×3 capital grants a resource of the player’s choice immediately; each complete row and column is worth one victory point during scoring. Landmarks also occupy capital space and affect the tie-break rule. If the capital has no room, the official FAQ still allows the player to gain an income building or landmark and place the model beside the capital mat; a full city does not cancel an earned component.

Tapestry cards, traps, and technology: Play a tapestry card only when beginning an income turn by placing it in an era space. “When played” effects resolve immediately; “this era” effects last until the next income turn begins. Trap cards can respond to an opponent’s military conquest. Technology cards are gained and upgraded through the technology track. Under current official updates, a player’s game ends after their fifth income turn: they cannot play a tapestry or trap card or respond to another player afterward.

End of game, winner, and ties: A player finishes their own game after their fifth income turn; other players continue. Once everyone has completed five income turns, the player with the highest victory-point total wins. If scores are tied, current publisher rules award the win to the player with the highest landmark in their capital. The publisher’s FAQ does not specify a second tie-break if those landmarks are also tied, so do not invent a comparison of remaining resources or other values. This update replaces the older resource tie-break in the 2019 rulebook.