Order of the Gilded Compass
Overview
Order of the Gilded Compass is a dice assignment game for 2-5 players. In this game, each player takes on the role of a Treasure Hunter seeking invitation to join the most prestigious of archeological secret societies. Players will scour the globe to unearth fantastic and valuable artifacts. By assigning their archaeologist dice to the right locations at the right time, players will acquire treasure maps and specialists to follow them, dive for sunken treasure, acquire rare finds at the auction house, and even enlist the help of the Illuminati. The player who has the most treasure at the end of the game earns an invitation to The Order of the Gilded Compass and is the winner of the game.
Components
6 Building Tiles
Setup
Order of the Gilded Compass uses a variable setup in order to create fresh and interesting gameplay experiences. Each game will use all 3 of the "A" Buildings, and then a players' choice of 1 "B" Building and 1 "C" Building. This process of selecting and setting up the game for each play is described in detail below.
(1) The University, Archives, and Library buildings are called "A" Buildings and must be used every game. Set these buildings in the middle of the table as shown below. The University should be assembled based on the number of players. Put the pieces together to create a 4-space University with 2 players, a 5-space University with 3 players, a 6-space University with 4 players, and a 7-space University with 5 players. Next, mix up the Specialist Tiles face down and place them in a pile to the left of the University. Then, shuffle the Ancient Map tiles and place them face down above the Archives. Finally, place the re-roll tokens next to the Library.
(2) Choose a "B" Building (either the Treasure Hunters' Guild or the Auction House) and place it to the left of the Archives as shown below.
(3) Choose a "C" Building (The Hidden Temple, The Illuminati, The Sunken Galleon, or the Treasure Tower) and place it to the right of the Archives.
(4) Set up each of the buildings in play as described under Building Descriptions Return any unused buildings and their associated tiles to the box.
(5) Give each player 8 dice of their chosen color to be placed in their play area along with one Knowledge/Reroll Token.
(6) Give the Start Player Marker to the player who has most recently found something valuable. (Alternatively, players may randomly determine the start player.)
You are now ready to begin playing.
*In the above setup, each player has a private collection tile as they are playing with the Auction House. In a setup without the Auction House, players would have no such tile at the beginning of the game and would instead simply begin with dice of their color.
How to Play
Order of the Gilded Compass is played over 6 rounds with 2-3 players or 5 rounds with 4-5 players. At the beginning of a round, the player with the Start Player Marker takes the first turn. A turn consists of rolling all of your dice then placing 1 or more of them on a single building, where they will remain for the rest of the round. Each building has unique rules governing the placement of dice as described in the Building Descriptions, later in these rules.
After the first player has placed their dice on a building, the next player in clockwise order takes their turn by rolling and assigning dice. Note that players will roll all of their available remaining dice every time their turn begins. This process will repeat until one player has assigned all of their dice.
Once a player has assigned all of their dice, play will end after the round has been completed. When the player to the right of the Start Player has completed their turn, this signifies the end of a round.
At the end of a round, buildings are resolved, one at a time, left to right and top to bottom. The player(s) who best meet the conditions of each building will gain that building's rewards. These conditions and rewards are described under the individual building descriptions later in these rules.
After all buildings have been resolved, players retrieve their dice and the start player marker is passed one player clockwise. Then, a new round begins. This is repeated until either 5 or 6 rounds have been played (based on the number of players). Then, players proceed to game end and final scoring.
After final scoring, the player with the most Gold is declared the winner!
Buildings
"A" Buildings
Archives
Send your Archaeologists to the Archives to uncover ancient treasure maps to locations such as: Temple of Pompeii, Lost City of Atlantis, Jungle Ruins, Pharaoh's Tomb, Tower of the Gods, or The Dark Temple.
Setup
(When playing with the dummy player variant, these tiles should be drawn 1 at a time and placed from top to bottom.)
How it Works
How it Resolves
The player who has the group with the most dice in the Archives takes a face up Ancient Map of their choice from the Archives and places it face up in their player area. Next, the player with the group with the next most dice does the same. Note that one player may end up going twice in a row. Ties for number of dice are broken in favor of the set of dice with the higher value. Players continue to claim tiles in this way until all of the Ancient Maps have been claimed or there are no more groups of dice in the Archives. Any remaining tiles are removed from the game but left face up above the Archives for reference. All players who still have dice in the Archives but did not get to claim a tile move their unused dice to the Library.
How it Scores
University
Send your archaeologists to the University to hire Specialists - Cartographers and Excavators - who have knowledge of particular dig sites. Choose the Specialists who are uniquely qualified to help with your treasure hunt.
Setup
How it Works
How it Resolves
Note: A map only allows for one specialist of each type (e.g. The green Jungle Ruins Map tile can have at most 1 green Cartographer and 1 green Excavator assigned to it.)
How it Scores
Library
The Library is a place where archaeologists can go to do private research, learn random facts, or exchange ideas with one another. Archaeologists sent here gain Knowledge in the form of reroll tokens.
Setup
How it Works
How it Resolves
How it Scores
"B" Buildings
Auction House
Send your Archaeologists to the Auction House to gain Artifacts for your Private Collection. Certain Artifacts retrieved from the Auction House will be especially desirable to you, while others may not be quite as impressive to your personal tastes.
Setup
How it Works
How it Resolves
The two players with the longest sequences receive Artifact Tiles from the Auction House. The player with the longest run draws 3 Artifact Tiles and chooses 2 to keep. The player with the second longest run draws 2 Artifact tiles and chooses 1 to keep. (e.g., 1-2-3-4 beats 4-5-6 which beats 5-6). Ties for length are broken in favor of the run of higher value. Unselected tiles are discarded face-up above the Auction House. Any remaining dice which were not used in a winning run are moved to the Library.
Note: In a S-player game, the player ranked third in the Auction House each round draws one artifact tile from the supply and keeps it
How it Scores
Treasure Hunters' Guild
Send your Archaeologists to the Treasure Hunters' Guild to gain inside information in the form of secret missions which can score you more value from your treasure hunts.
Setup
How it Works
How it Resolves
Note: In a 5-player game, the player ranked third in the Treasure Hunters' Guild each round receives the third tile (instead of it being returned to the supply).
How it Scores
"C" Buildings
Hidden Temple
Send your Archeologists to the Hidden Temple in search of magical items to help your Specialist find more treasure!
Setup
At the start of the game, shuffle the Magical Item tiles and stack them above the Hidden Temple board. At the beginning of each game round, move the appropriate number of Hidden Temple tiles to the indicated locations next to the Hidden Temple board without looking at them. The number varies based on the number of players - 2 tiles in a 2-player game, 3 tiles in a 3-player game, and 4 tiles in a 4 or 5 player game.
How it Works
How it Resolves
How it Scores
Magical Item tiles are color matched to the Specialist tiles, and are specific to either a Cartographer or an Excavator. Cartographers need compasses while Excavators need tools. At the end of the game Magical items are assigned to a Specialist tile matching the color and type of the Magical Item. A Specialist with one of these items scores double their value, as long as they are assigned to an Ancient Map. If a map has 2 specialists assigned, and each has a Magical item, the treasure map value is also doubled! Each specialist may only carry 1 magical item.
Illuminati
Send your Archaeologists to the hallowed halls of the Illuminati to seek special help in the form of unique abilities. These abilities can be used in future rounds to give you an edge over the other players and help you get the most treasure.
Setup
How it Works
How It Resolves
Special Ability Tiles
Take an additional turn after the round ends. (Use after round ends. Option to use goes clockwise beginning with the start player)
Place an identical set of dice, creating a tie - then, send one of your opponents' dice in the tied set to the Library.
Gain 2 extra dice. (Use at start of your turn. - Only 1 player per round may use this effect.)
Set 2 of your dice to your desired results. (Use immediately after rolling.)
How it Scores
Unused Ability cards are worth 1 Gold each at the end of the game, though you will find that using their abilities effectively during the game is worth significantly higher value or more points.
Sunken Galleon
Send your Archaeologists diving into the wreck of the Sunken Galleon to recover Sunken Chests - their value is variable. So, it is best to find as many as you can.
Setup
At the start of the game, mix up the Sunken Chest tiles face down and place them in a pile above the Sunken Galleon.
How it Works
Dice are assigned to the Sunken Galleon based on their sum. The first player to assign dice to the Sunken Galleon places exactly 1 die of any value. Then, that player retrieves 1 Sunken Chest tile, looks at it secretly, and places it face down in front of themselves. The second player to assign dice to the Sunken Galleon places exactly 2 dice, but the value on these two dice must be higher than the number of pips on the first die placed there. After placing 2 dice, the player takes 2 Sunken Chest tokens, looks at them secretly, and then places them face down in their play area. The third player must place 3 dice with a higher total than the two dice before, to take 3 Sunken Chest tiles, and so forth. Note that players who already assigned dice to the Sunken Galleon may place more dice there on a later turn. The player must place a number of dice that brings the sum of all their dice to the exact number needed, and the sum of all the dice must be greater than the previous total. Then, that player will draw tiles equal to the number of dice they just played.
How it Resolves
The player who has the most dice on the Sunken Galleon selects 2 of the Sunken Chest tiles they acquired during the round to keep, places them face up in their play area, and returns the rest face up near the Sunken Galleon. Each other player with at least 1 die in the Sunken Galleon selects one of their tiles acquired, places it face up in front of themselves, and then returns the rest face up near the Sunken Galleon. When the supply of face down Sunken Galleon tiles is exhausted, shuffle the face up tiles face down to replenish the supply.
Note: If only one die was assigned to the Sunken Galleon during a round, that player wins and keeps the 1 tile he took and turns it face up. Then, that player claims a random face down Sunken Chest tile and places it face up in their play area.
How it Scores
Each Sunken Chest tile is worth between 1 and 3 Gold. Players score the Gold values printed on each of their Sunken Chest tiles at the end of the game.
Treasure Tower
Send your Archeologists to the unstable Treasure Tower to acquire valuable treasure - depending on how clever and daring you are. Try to get to the top floors of the towers but don't let other players' Archeologists knack you out.
Setup
At the start of the game, shuffle each of the 3 types of Treasure tokens and place them in stacks face down beside the appropriate level of the Treasure Tower. Bronze tokens are placed next to the first floor of the Treasure Tower, Silver tokens by the second floor, and Gold tokens by the third floor.
How it Works
Players may assign any 1 die to the Treasure Tower, or 2 dice with a total of 7 pips on them. Dice with 1-3 pips are placed on the first floor of the left tower while dice with 4-6 pips are placed on the first floor of the right tower. When another player adds their die/dice to the Treasure Tower, they add to the first floor and any die that was already there is moved to the second floor. If there was already a die on the second floor, it is moved to the third floor. If there was a die in the third floor spot, that die falls from the Treasure Tower and is sent to the Library. Play continues in this manner until the end of the round.
How it Resolves
Any player with dice remaining in the Treasure Tower at the end of a round will receive one treasure token per die. Tokens are associated with the level on which the player's dice ended. Players with dice on the first floor receive Bronze tokens, second floor dice receive Silver tokens, and third floor dice receive Gold tokens. Tokens received from the Treasure Tower are kept face down until the end of the game, (e.g., If a player has 2 dice on the first floor and 1 die on the third floor, that player receives 2 Bronze tokens and 1 Gold token).
How it Scores
The Treasure Tower treasure tokens are worth a variable amount of Gold depending on the type of token they are. Bronze tokens are worth 0-2 Gold, Silver tokens are worth 1-3 Gold, and Gold tokens are worth 1-3 Gold. The higher floors of the tower provide better odds of scoring high value treasure.
1 X 0 GOLD
10 X 1 GOLD
1 X 2 GOLD
5 X 1 GOLD
6 X 2 GOLD
1 X 3 GOLD
1 X 1 GOLD
6 X 2 GOLD
5 X 3 GOLD
End of Game Scoring
After the fifth round of play (sixth in a 2-3 player game,) players proceed to final scoring. Each player scores all of the following and adds their gold values together. The player with the most gold joins the Order of the Gilded Compass and wins the game!
Ancient Map Tiles
Score the greater value if at least 1 Specialist is assigned to this tile. Score the smaller value if there are no Specialists assigned to this tile.
Specialist Tiles
Score 1-3 Gold (as indicated on the tile) if the Specialist is assigned to an Ancient Map of the same color (or a Secret Map or Dual Map Mission tile.) If a Specialist is not assigned to a Map, they are worth 0 Gold at the end of the game. Only 1 Cartographer and 1 Excavator can be assigned to each map.
Knowledge Tokens
Score 1 Gold for every 2 Knowledge tokens in your possession (rounded down).
Private Artifact Tiles
Score 1, 2, or 4 Gold for Private Artifacts according to your Private Collection Tile. Your most desired artifacts are worth 4 Gold each, your preferred artifacts are worth 2 Gold each, and all other Artifacts not shown on your tile are worth 1 Gold each.
Secret Mission Tiles
Secret Mission Tiles are worth a variable amount of Gold at the end of the game, assuming you have met the mission's conditions. All Mission tiles are described in detail in the Mission Tile Supplement.
Magical Item Tiles
Assign these items to a Specialist tile matching the color and type of the Magical Item at the end of the game. A Specialist with one of these items scores double their value, as long as they are assigned to an Ancient Map. If both Specialists at a Map have a Magical Item, the value of the Map is also doubled.
Ability Tiles
Unused Ability cards are worth 1 Gold each.
Sunken Chest Tiles
Each Sunken Chest tile is worth between 1 and 3 Gold. Players score the sum of the Gold values printed on all of their Sunken Chest tiles.
Treasure Tower Goblets
Goblet tokens are worth between 0 and 3 Gold. Players score the sum of the Gold values printed on the tokens.
Special Rules for 2-3 Players
When playing Order of the Gilded Compass with 2-3 players, a slight change must be made in order to keep competition for rewards competitive. You may use either of the variants below, but they should not be used together.
Variant 1
Fewer Buildings
(This variant leads to less conflict and allows for less variety in buildings.)
During game setup, players should not select a C building. The game plays as normal but with 1 fewer building option.
Variant 2
The Neutral Player
(This variant allows for use of more variety in buildings and sometimes increases direct interaction between players.)
At the start of the game, designate one color of dice as "The Neutral Player". Give each human player 2 dice of the neutral player's color to be added to their own. On each player's turn, they roll all of their dice (including neutral dice). Players may assign one or more of the neutral dice on their turn before or after assigning their own dice. Neutral dice must follow the same rules as a player's dice - they may only be assigned to a single building per turn and must follow the rules of the building they are assigned to. A player may choose to assign 0 neutral dice in a turn.
The neutral dice act as a single extra player, meaning that in subsequent turns any player may add dice to a neutral set already in play.
A player is considered to have used all their dice (and triggered the end of the round) when all of their own dice have been assigned. A player may still have neutral dice remaining at the end of the round.
When a neutral player wins a building reward, they are resolved as though they were a player but their reward is discarded. When a choice is required, the neutral player takes the highest value reward with ties being broken top to bottom and left to right. If a reward would generally be kept secret, it is treated as though no one claimed that reward. Examples of resolving each building are as follows:
"A" Buildings
Archives:
Neutral Winner: Discard the highest value map tile remaining - ties determined top to
bottom.
Library:
Neutral Winner: No effect.
University:
Neutral Winner: Discard the highest value Specialist tile remaining - ties decided left to right.
"B" Buildings
Auction House:
Neutral Winner: 4 Random tiles are discarded face up.
Neutral Runner Up: 2 Random tiles are discarded face up.
Treasure Hunters' Guild:
Neutral Winner: Human runner up only draws 2 tiles.
Neutral Runner Up: Only human winner receives a tile. The other 2 tiles are returned to the bottom of the stack.
"C" Buildings
Hidden Temple:
Neutral Winner: Tile is returned face down to the supply.
Illuminati:
Neutral Winner: Discard the topmost tile. Player chooses 1 of the remaining tiles to keep and discards the other.
Neutral Runner Up: Human player chooses 1 tile. Then discards the topmost tile remaining before claiming the final tile.
Sunken Galleon:
Neutral Winner: Human runner up keeps only 1 tile. Neutral Runner Up: Only winning player claims a reward.
Treasure Tower:
Neutral Winner: No tile is removed for the neutral player.
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