How to Play
A guide to ruling your Italian city-state in the 15th century
Santa Paravia and Fiumaccio casts you as the ruler of one of six rival Italian city-states in the year 1400. Your goal is to grow your treasury, expand your population, build grand structures, and ultimately earn the title of King or Queen before your rivals — or before old age claims you.
The Basics
The game is played in turns. Each turn represents one year. Up to six players take turns in sequence — any empty seats are filled by the computer. On your turn you make decisions across three phases: Harvest, Taxes, and Public Works. Once every player has taken their turn, the year ends and the consequences of everyone's decisions are revealed.
Your ruler has a natural lifespan — randomly set somewhere between 21 and 55 years of reign (year of death between 1421 and 1455). If time runs out before you reach the top title, your reign ends. Plan accordingly.
Starting Resources
Every ruler begins with identical resources:
Your Turn: Three Phases
Each of your turns is divided into three phases. You must complete them in order.
Manage your grain supply and land holdings for the coming year.
- Buy or sell grain at the current market price (one transaction each per year).
- Buy or sell land at a price that reflects current grain production and unemployment (one transaction per year).
- Set your grain release — how much grain to distribute to your population. At least 20% must be released; at least 10% must be kept in reserve as seed grain. More grain fed to your people keeps them happy and attracts migrants; too little causes starvation and flight.
Set the rates that will fill your treasury — but tax too heavily and your economy suffers.
- Customs Duty (0–100%) — levied on noble and merchant trade.
- Sales Tax (0–100%) — levied on merchant activity.
- Income Tax (0–25%) — levied across the whole economy.
- Justice Level — Very Fair attracts migrants and boosts trade; Harsh and Outrageous collect fines but drive people away and are a barrier to promotion.
The game shows you a live tax preview as you adjust rates, so you can find the sweet spot before confirming.
Invest your florins in buildings and soldiers that unlock future promotions.
- Markets — generate rent income each year.
- Woolen Mills — generate profit and reduce serf unemployment.
- Palace — must be upgraded to the next level before each promotion.
- Cathedral — must be upgraded to the next level before each promotion.
- Platoons of Soldiers — each platoon adds soldiers from your serf pool. Essential for defence and promotion requirements.
End of Year
After all players have taken their turns, the game engine resolves the year automatically:
Up to 50% of your stored grain is eaten by rats before harvest. Keep this in mind when deciding how much grain to hold in reserve.
The weather roll (0–8) affects grain yield per hectare and shifts market prices for grain and land. A lucky harvest can transform your finances; a drought can ruin you.
Revenue from customs, sales tax, income tax, fines, market rents, and woolen mill profits is added to your treasury.
If your grain supply falls below 60% of demand there is a chance of plague, which can kill 10–50% of every class of your population. A universal plague can strike all states simultaneously.
Serfs are born, migrate in or out, and die each year based on food supply, justice level, taxes, and weather. Merchants and clergy grow as your economy and church develop.
At the start of each year, the game checks whether any player qualifies for a title promotion. Meet all the requirements and you move up the ladder automatically.
The Title Ladder
Rise through eight levels of nobility. To be promoted you must have at least 1 soldier per 500 ha of land, total taxes below 50%, justice no worse than Harsh, and grain demand fully met — plus the specific requirements below. You cannot build your palace or cathedral beyond the level required for your next title until you are promoted.
Threats to Your Reign
If your treasury falls below −10,000 florins multiplied by your title level, you are bankrupt and eliminated. Keep an eye on your spending, especially on soldiers and buildings.
If you have fewer than one soldier for every three serfs and your treasury is empty, your strongest neighbour may invade and conquer you. Always maintain a proportionate army.
Your ruler's lifespan is fixed at the start of the game — somewhere between 21 and 55 years of reign. When their time is up, they die and are eliminated, regardless of how wealthy they are. Higher titles extend life expectancy, so climbing quickly pays off.
Failing to release enough grain causes starvation, triggering mass migration out of your state. Starving serfs are also far more susceptible to plague. Always keep enough grain in reserve to cover at least one bad harvest.