2015
board game
published by Resonym
The Story | Game Play | Where to Buy
The Story
Monarch is a strategy game for 2-4 players, set in the mythical lands of Minervia. Players compete as sisters who must strategically assemble an impressive court and prove themselves ready to become the next Monarch.
Decide when to tax or harvest the fertile lands. Attract wise advisors, magnificent beasts, and majestic regalia to glorify your court. Sabotage your sisters’ efforts by sending ‘Unwanted Guests’ to unsettle their courts.
In the world of Monarch, strategy and surprise await players at every turn. Players must use inventive planning and keen judgment to navigate a world of beauty and mystery, and to discover their destinies … who will reign?
See the detailed website for the game with videos of the game’s creation and more at: http://www.playmonarch.com.
Game Play
Each sister aims to assemble a court of Court Cards: wise advisors, exotic animals, and symbolic regalia. Each of these Court Cards provides crowns, and the sister whose court contains the most crowns at the end of the game becomes the Queen.
Your turn is very straightforward:
- “Harvest” the farms in the land to get food, OR “Tax” the villages to get gold.
- Purchase any number of Court Cards, Land Improvements, and Unwanted Guests from the available cards in the “Market Row,” provided you can afford them.
There are tricks to assembling a majestic court. Some cards don’t work together well: the Astronomer is worth nothing if in a court with the Fireworks because he will be unable to see anything! Other cards work very well together: the Beastkeeper is worth more crowns for each animal she shares a court with.
In order to recruit for your court you’ll need gold and food, which you get by taxing and harvesting the land that the sisters rule over. Over the course of the game you’ll improve the land, building Royal Goateries and Jewel Bazaars, which benefit everyone.
When a sister knows what kind of ruler she will be, she can take up a banner to commit herself to a style of ruler-ship: Wisdom, Bounty, Culture, Might, or Balance. Banners provide extra crowns and a special power to help its bearer succeed.
Awards
- 2017 Featured on Wil Wheaton’s Tabletop, Season 4
- 2016 Official Selection Indie Mega Booth, PAX EAST showcase
- 2015 Finalist for Best Game and Official Selection, IndieCade Festival of Independent Games
- 2015 #2 Geek Buzz at Gen Con
- 2014 Official Selection Boston Festival of Indie Games, Tabletop
Where to Buy
You can find my games at your local game store, Amazon, or from my game company, Resonym.
