Yes, Your Grace

A Medieval Social Diplomacy Card Game

by SarisonZero

version 0.4

Game Contents
Set Up
Game Play

Resource Phase
Intrigue Phase
Event Phase

The Effects of the Intrigue Cards
Deposing and Assassinating a King
Civil War
Game End and Victory

Game Contents:

Yes, Your Grace comes with 360 cards:

192x Resource Cards:

48x Coin Resource Cards
48x Soldier Resource Cards
48x Spy Resource Cards
48x Diplomat Resource Cards

70x Player Intrigue Event Cards

7x for each of 10 players

64x Holding Cards
16x Crisis Event Cards
11x Allegiance Cards
4x Role Cards
2x Double Sided King/Queen Allegiance Cards
1x Heir Card

Yes, Your Grace also requires method of recording the "Annals of History." This could be a pen and a pad of paper, a smartphone app, colored beads on a string, very plain website, or whatever else players want to use to keep track of up to 9 events of up to 3 different types, but this is required and not provided.

Set Up:

Follow these steps to set up the game:

Separate the Resource Cards into decks for Coins, Soldiers, Diplomats, and Spies. Shuffle each deck.
Separate the Intrigue Cards for each Noble House. Give one set of Intrigue Cards to each player and remove the unused Intrigue Cards from the game.
Separate the Allegiance Cards into 3 piles: the first is the Loyalist Supporters, the second is the Usurper Supporters, and the third is just the Loyalist King and Usurper King. Shuffle the first and second piles, and without looking at the face of the cards, take randomly from each pile a number of cards based on the number of players in the game:

2 Supporters of each pile in a game with 5 or 6 players
3 Supporters of each pile in a game with 7 or 8 players
4 Supporters of each pile in a game with 9 or 10 players

Place the selected cards in a new combined pile and remove the unselected cards from the game. If there is an even number of players (ie, 6, 8 or 10), add the Chaos Agent into the new combined pile. Shuffle the combined pile and take one card out. This card will be the "Unused Allegiance Card" during the game. Add the King and Usurper King cards to the remaining cards in the combined pile, and shuffle that one last time. Distribute one Allegiance Card to each player, face down. Each player looks at their Allegiance Card, but unless they are the King, they don't show it to anyone. The player who receives the King card shows it to all players and takes the Double Sided King and Queen cards. They remove the King Allegiance card from the game and instead uses the face up Loyalist King card as their Allegiance.
Create a Holdings Deck by including the cards that show a number on the back equal to the number of players or lower, and excluding the cards that show a number on the back higher than the number of players. Shuffle all of the Holdings and deal 6 to each player, face down. Each player picks 4 they wish to use, placing them face up in front of them. The other 2 are discarded face down and will not be used. Remove the unused Holdings from the game.
Shuffle the Crisis Event Cards and give them to the King.
Give the King the four Role Cards (The Marshal, the Steward, the Spymaster, and the Chancellor), and the Heir Card.

Players may look at only their own Allegiance Card, and may not show it to anyone else (unless instructed to do so). They should not talk about the artistic details of the Card, but may make claims about the side they support and the Role they need to win.

The Queen Allegiance Card functions exactly like the King Allegiance Card. It may be used by the player who is the King if they like. These instructions will refer to the player with the King or Queen card as the King, but those references also apply to that player if they decide to use the Queen card instead. If the player is instructed to hand over the King Card, they should also hand over the Queen Card. A player with these cards may decide which card they wish to use at any time.

The Game is now ready to begin.

Game Play:

The game is played in Rounds. The Rounds consist of three phases completed in order: the Resource Phase, the Intrigue Phase, and the Event Phase. Once all three phases are done, that round ends and the round next begins.

Resource Phase:

The Resource Phase has five steps. These steps must be completed in order. Once one step is completed, players may not backtrack to a previous step.

Step 1: If the King has any Role cards or the Heir card in their possession, they may give those out to the other players. They are not required to do this, and may choose not to hand those out. A player may only be given one of the four Role cards, and may not be given another if they already have one. The Heir card is not a Role card, and so it may be given to a player with a Role card. When a player is given a Role card, they should take the corresponding Resource Deck for that Role so that they may manage that deck during the game. This is simply for convenience of play: they don't get to use all the cards in the Resource Deck, only the cards they are dealt in Step 3 like everyone else, but this adds another pair of hands to the tasks of shuffling the decks, dealing cards and collecting discarded cards. If a role is not handed out, then any player without a role can take an unmanaged deck and manage it.
Step 2: If a player has a 3 or 4 damaged Holdings, they may Repair one of them, flipping the card face up.
Step 3:The King draws 3 Crisis Events cards from the Crisis Event Deck, placing those Cards in front of them, face up, for all to see. These are the Crises that they must face this round.
Step 4: All players draw Resource Cards based on the Holdings they control. Only Undamaged Holdings provide resources.
Step 5: Players play Intrigue Cards. The King designates one player to start (this player may be the King himself), and the direction of play, either around to the left or around the right. That player may play one of their Intrigue Card or elect not to do so. Once that choice has been made, the next player in the direction of play does the same thing, playing an Intrigue Card or not. This process repeats for each player until everyone has had an opportunity to play an Intrigue Card or elected not to do so. A player may only play one Intrigue Card per Resource Phase.

Playing an Intrigue Card: Players have 7 Intrigue Cards that they can play on other players. These are Event Cards that get resolved in the Event phase. To play an Intrigue Card, they simply place the card face down in front of the player they are playing the Intrigue Card on. If they play their Intrigue Card on the King, the King may decide to refuse the card; in that case, the player may play that Intrigue Card, or another Intrigue Card, on another player, but may not play another Intrigue Card on the King that round. There are two exceptions to this: if a player plays the Overthrow card on the King, the King may not refuse it; and if the player's Intrigue Card is refused by the King, they may instead play the Overthrow Card on the King. A player may never play the Overthrow card on a player who is not the King.

Intrigue Phase:

The Intrigue Phase is more free-form than Resource phase. Players may play their cards in any order they wish, but once a card is played, it may not be taken back. If two players both try to wait to see what another player will do, the King decides which player must play first. There are two things that a player can do during the Intrigue Phase: Play a Resource Card to one side of an Event Card, or play their Role Card (if they have one) to one side of an Event Card.

Playing a Resource Card: When a player plays a Resource card, they are committing their Resources to the resolution of that Event. They choose which side of the Event they will play on, the Support side or the Oppose side. To indicate this, they play their Resource Card face down on that side of the Event card. Players may play as many Resource cards to as many Events as they have Resource Cards to play, though a Resource Card may only be played to one Event Card. When they are done playing Resource Cards, the player discards any remaining Resource Cards to the Deck of matching Resource Cards, face down without revealing the discarded cards. If the King instructs a player to play their Resource Cards, the instructed player must play the Resource Cards they wish to play and then discard any remaining Resource Cards. Keep in mind that both Crisis Cards and Intrigue Cards are types of Event Cards.
Playing a Role Card: like the Resource Cards, the player may play their Role Card to an Event; they will be directing their attention to that Event and its resolution. They play their Role Card to the side of the Event they prefer, either the Support or the Oppose side. This is done face up.

The Intrigue Phase ends when all players are done playing Resource Cards and have discarded any remaining Resource Cards, and have played their Role Card, if they have one, or declined to do so. If two or more players are at an impasse waiting to see what the other one does, the King can decide when enough time has passed and call the end of the Intrigue Phase. They should not "cut off" another player in the middle of playing a card, nor can they force them to play or discard Role Cards.

The Event Phase:

The Event Phase is the phase where the Crisis Event Cards and the Intrigue Event Cards are resolved. The King decides on the order in which they are resolved. Most Intrigue Event Cards are played face down (the exception is the Overthrow Intrigue Card), so once they pick and reveal an Intrigue Card to resolve, it must be completely resolved before another Event can be resolved. Event Cards are resolved according the current state of the game in that moment, and the result of one Event Card can dramatically change the resolution of another. For example, if the King chooses to resolve an Overthrow event and the Overthrow attempt is successful, the new King would be in charge of the resolution of Crisis cards from then on. If that new King failed to resolve those Crisis Cards successfully, they would take the damage to their Holdings. In another example, if the Marshal had all of their Holdings Damaged at the start of the phase, their Role Card would add nothing to the Event it was assigned to. If the King resolved an event that Repaired the Marshal's Holdings before they resolved the Event with the Marshal's Role Card, the Role card would add the appropriate bonus in that Event. The King continues to resolve events until there are no more left.

To resolve an Event, flip the Event face up (if it is not already). If there is more than one Resource Card in either of the two sides, each side is separately shuffled so it is unclear which card was placed by which player, and then the Resource Cards are revealed, placing them back on the side they came from.

Next, each side of the Event attributes Coins to any Resource Cards that have a Cost, starting with the Resource Card with the highest Cost. If two or more Resource Cards are tied for the highest Cost on one side of an Intrigue Card, the tie is broken by different players for different sides of the Event: the player who played the Intrigue Card breaks ties on the Support side of the Event, while the player the card was played on breaks ties on the Oppose side of the Event. The King breaks ties on both sides of the Crisis card. If there are Coins remaining after the highest Cost Resource Card is paid for, the remaining Coins are attributed to the next highest Cost Resource Card, breaking ties in the same way. If there are insufficient Coins to pay for a Resource Card with a Cost, that Resource Card is discarded, as are any Resource Cards with a lower, non-zero Cost. This means that a Resource Card with a Cost may be discarded even if there are enough Coins to pay for it, if there is another, more expensive Resource Card that could not be paid for.

For example, if the Support Side Resource cards are flipped and there are 3 Coins, a 0-cost Soldier, a 1-cost Soldier, and two 2-cost Soldiers, the 1-cost Soldier and one of the 2-cost soldiers would be discarded. First the Coins would be attributed to the 2-cost Soldier as it is (tied for) the highest Cost. The remaining Coin would be applied to the other 2-cost Soldier, but be insufficient to cover the cost. The remaining 2-cost Soldier is discarded because it was not fully paid for, and the 1-cost Soldier is also discarded because there are no more Coins to pay for it. The 0-cost Soldier is not discarded because 0-cost Resource Cards are never discarded due to lack of funds; only non-zero Cost Resource Cards might be discarded in this way.

When only the paid-for and zero-cost Resource Cards remain, add up the value of each Resource Cards. Most Resource Cards have a bonus that may apply if there is a certain other type of Resource on the other side of the Event: Soldiers count double if there are any Spies on the other side of the Event; Spies count double if there are any Diplomats on the other side of the Event; Diplomats count double if there are any Soldiers on the other side of the Event. Keep in mind that unpaid-for Resources that have been discarded don't grant bonuses to Resources on the other side of the Event. For example, if there is 1 Soldier on the Support side of an Event and a 1-cost Spy that got discarded because there were not enough Coins to pay for it, the 1-value Soldier would just be worth 1; it would not be doubled as there are no Spies on the other side (they were all discarded).

Role Cards are also added in. Role Cards never have a cost, and they contribute Resources of type based on their Role, in an amount equal to the number of corresponding Holdings owned by the player who holds that role. The Marshal adds Soldiers for each Military Holding they have, the Spymaster adds Spies for each Espionage Holding they have, and the Chancellor adds Diplomats for each Diplomacy Holding they have. The Steward adds Coins equal to twice the number of Economic Holdings they have. This value is calculated at the time the Event they are in is resolved, and may be different from the time they were placed. The Soldiers, Spies, and Diplomats they contribute may be doubled if they are opposed by the appropriate type of Resource, exactly like Resource cards.

Once the value of both sides is calculated, compare them. If the Support side is greater than the Oppose side, and the additional requirement is met, then the Event is Successful. In the case of an Intrigue Card, the player who played the Intrigue Card gets to enact the effect. In the case of a Crisis Card, add a Record of Notable Triumph to the Annals of History. If the Oppose Side is greater than the Support Side, or if the two sides are equal, or if the Support side is greater than the Oppose Side, but the additional requirement was not met, then the Event is a failure. In the case of an Intrigue Card, nothing happens. In the case of a Crisis card, two of the King's Holdings are Damaged. If the King already has four Damaged Holdings when they would take Damage from a failed Crisis, they are Deposed.

When all of the Event cards have been resolved, the Event Phase ends and the round is over. If one or more Overthrow Intrigue Cards were resolved, or one or more Civil War occurred, regardless of result, add a Record of Notable Violence to the Annals of History. If no Crises were successfully resolved and no Overthrow attempts or Civil Wars occurred, add a Record of Notable Peace to the Annals of History. Return all Resource Cards to their corresponding decks and shuffle each of those decks. Return the Crisis cards to the Crisis deck and shuffle it. Return Intrigue Cards back to their owners. Return Role Cards to the players who still hold those roles.

The Effects of the Intrigue Cards

There are 7 intrigue cards held by each player. If an Intrigue Card is played in the Intrigue Phase, the player who played the Intrigue Card is the Controlling Player. The player they played the card on is the Target. If the Intrigue Card was resolved successfully in the Event phase, the Controlling Player gets to enact the effect.

Raid: As an additional requirement to succeed, the Support Side of a Raid must have at least 1 Soldier Resource Card at the end of the Event Resolution. The Controlling players picks two Holdings of the Target player and those Holdings become Damaged, flipping them face down. If the King is the Target of the Raid all of their Holdings are face down when it is resolved, they are Deposed (see below).
Claim: As an additional requirement to succeed, the Support Side of a Claim must have at least 1 Soldier Resource Card at the end of the Event Resolution. The Controlling player picks one of their Holdings and swaps it with their choice of a Holding owned by the Target player. Alternatively, they may instead decide not to do this, forfeiting this opportunity to do so. Holdings remain in the same state before and after the swap, so a Damaged Holding would remain Damaged.
Assassinate: As an additional requirement to succeed, the Support Side of an Assassinate must have at least 1 Spy Resource Card at the end of the Event Resolution.
- If the Target player is not the King, they return their Allegiance Card to the pile of unused Allegiance Cards, shuffle them, and draw a new Allegiance Card. If the Target had a Role Card, it is immediately returned to the King (if the Role was on on an Event, it is removed from that Event and does not contribute to that Event's resolution. If the Target was the Heir, the Heir card is returned to the King.
- If the Target player is the King, they are Assassinated, see the section below on Deposing and Assassinating a King.
Investigate: As an additional requirement to succeed, the Support Side of an Investigate must have at least 1 Spy Resource Card at the end of the Event Resolution. The Controlling player looks at the Allegiance Card of the Target player.
Petition: As an additional requirement to succeed, the Support Side of a Repair must have at least 1 Diplomat Resource Card at the end of the Event resolution.
- If the Target Player is not the King and has a Role Card, the Controlling Player takes it. If the Controlling Player has two Role Cards, they must give one of their choice to the King.
- If the Target Player is the King and has one or more Role Cards they have not given out, the Controlling Player takes one. If the Controlling player has two Role Cards, they must give one of their choice to the King.
- If the Controlling Player is the King and the Target Player has a Role Card, the King takes it away from them, and may assign it to another player, like they could in the Resource phase.
- If a Role card is transferred in this way, it is removed from any Event that it was assigned to and does not contribute to the resolution of that Event.
- Keep in mind that the Heir is not a Role.
Repair: As an additional requirement to succeed, the Support Side of a Repair must have at least 1 Diplomat Resource Card at the end of the Event resolution. The Target player Repairs all of their damaged Holdings, flipping them back over from the damaged side to the normal landscape orientation.
Overthrow: The Target of this Intrigue card must be the King; the Controlling player must not be the King; and this card must be played face up. If Successful, the Controlling player becomes King: they reveal their Allegiance Card for everyone to see and take the King Card from the King, displaying it face up to match their previously displayed allegiance (Loyalist side up if they were previously a Loyalist, and Usurper side up if they were previously a Usurper). The Heir Card is returned from the current Heir to the new King; the King is not their own Heir, but they can name an Heir in the next Resource phase if they like. They also take any Role Cards if the previous King had not given those out. If the new King held a Role and played that Role to an Event, remove that Role from that Event and give it to the King; it may be assigned to a player in the next Resource Phase, but they are too busy being King to attend to that effort. The previous King puts their Allegiance Card back in the pile of unused Allegiance Cards, shuffles them, and picks one at random. Any unresolved Crisis Cards are transferred to the new King. The Resource Cards allocated to the Crisis Cards are not modified in any way; they remain allocated to the side they were previously allocated to. Any other Overthrow Cards are returned to their owners and the allocated Resource Cards are discarded. The new King resumes the process of resolving Event Cards.

Deposing and Assassinating a King

When a King is Deposed or Assassinated, the crown passes on to another player. If another player is the Heir, the Heir displays their Allegiance for everyone to see and takes the King Allegiance Card from the King, setting it face up to match the Allegiance Card they just displayed (Loyalist side up if they were previously a Loyalist, and Usurper side up if they were previously a Usurper). If they displayed the Chaos Agent, they may pick which Allegiance they wish to display. The former King returns their Allegiance Card to the pile of unused Allegiance cards, shuffles them, and then takes a random Allegiance Card from the pile of unused Allegiance cards. The new-King/former-Heir should have the Heir Card at this time; they are not their own Heir, but they can name one in the next Resource Phase if they live that long. They also take any Role Cards that the previous King had not given out. If the new King held a Role and played that Role to an Event, remove that Role from that Event and give it to the King; it may be assigned to a player in the next Resource Phase, but they are too busy being King to attend to that effort.

If the King is Deposed or Assassinated and no player has been named as Heir, the realm is thrown into Civil War.

Civil War

If the King is killed without an heir, the realm goes into Civil War. All players collect one Resource that each of their Undamaged Holdings could provide. They then play those cards face down in front of a player they wish for those Resources to support. This may be themselves if they want to claim the throne, but it might also be another person they want to support (or someone they want to hinder). If two or more players come to an impasse and are both waiting for the others to play their cards, the former King can give them ample time and then count down from ten. When they reach zero, any unplayed cards are discarded. Once all Resource Cards have been played or discarded, all Resource Cards are shuffled in their individual piles and then flipped face up. Cards are paid for with Coins in the same way as Event resolution (ties are broken by the player the Resources are supporting, and players at an impasse must play in the order decided by the former King), or discarded if they cannot be afforded. Remaining cards are added up for each player as if they were on one side of an Event card and all other Resource Cards were opposite them (it is highly likely that cards will be doubled in value, as they are facing so many other cards). The player with the highest total becomes King as if they were the Heir when the King was Deposed. They take the Heir Card, which they may give out in the next Resource Phase. If there is a tie for the highest Resource value, the former King decides the winner. If the Chaos Agent becomes King as a result of a Civil War, they immediately reveal their Allegiance Card and win the game as the sole victor; the game then ends.

Game End and Victory

The game ends immediately when the twelfth Record is written in the Annals of History. If there are additional unresolved Event cards, these are ignored. At that time, the King and the Heir are both counted as victors. The King's current Loyalty defines the winning side: if the King leads the Loyalist side, the Loyalists players may qualify to win. If the King leads the Usurper side, the Usurpers may qualify to win. To qualify to win, the player must have the Role Card matching their Ambition on their Allegiance Card. If they have the Role Card to match their Allegiance Card, and the current King matches their Allegiance, they stand among the victors with their King. If they are missing one or the other, they do not. The Usurper King does not have an Ambition other than to be King, they cannot qualify for victory without becoming King (or Heir). The Chaos Agent is counted as a victor if two or more Records of Notable Violence appear in the Annals of History.