Designer: Petter Schanke Olsen (Donning the Purple, Kill the King)

Artist: Joeri Lefevre (Donning the Purple, Europa Universalis: The Board Game)

Publisher: Tompet Games (Donning the Purple, Kill the King)

Genre/Mechanisms: area control, civilization, dice rolling, economic, fighting, hand management, miniatures, political, variable player powers, voting, worker placement

Funding Status: At the time of this posting, Donning the Purple + Votes & Virtue Expansion is already fully-funded.  In fact, pledges currently total more than 3.5x the initial funding goal with 6 days left to go on the campaign.

Player Count: 1-4

Solo Mode: yes

Complexity: heavy

Risk: medium-high

What It’s About:  Asymmetrical king-of-the-hill game Donning the Purple gets a 4th player expansion, a new phase, and lots of new cards.

How It Works: Donning the Purple is played over 4 years in the Roman Empire, beginning in the year 193. The player with the most victory points wins at the end of the the game, but the game can end prematurely with all players losing if the enemy controls all regional capitals at the end of any given year, or if all 28 enemy tokens are out populating the map at the end of any given year. Each year, or round, is broken up into 8 phases: Incoming Enemies, Harvest Grain, Draw Cards, Player Actions, Place Buildings, Distribute Food, Collect Taxes, and End of Year.

During the Incoming Enemies phase, dice rolls will determine which province in each region two additional enemies are placed. During the Harvest Grain phase, players will determine which region receives the Famine Marker, and then players will generate Grain in regions not containing enemies or the Famine Marker. During the Draw Cards phase, the Emperor will draw 5 cards from the Event Deck and resolve them. During the Player Actions phase, players will be able to take 2 actions (the Emperor takes 3) from among the following: Move a Pawn, Bribe a Senator, Build an Estate, Build a Monument, and Assassination. The Emperor may also choose from among: Move a Legion, Train New Legions, and Build an Aqueduct.

During the Place Buildings phase, players place buildings from the first 4 spots in the production line out onto the board, in provinces that do not already contain buildings. During the Distribute Food phase, the 25 provinces on the board not containing enemies must receive 1 Grain each from the Emperor. Failure to feed everyone will adjust the Happiness Track, and could result in the Emperor’s Death. During the Collect Taxes, the Emperor receives 1 coin for every province that was fed. And finally, during the End of Year phase, cleanup and upkeep occurs.

During end-game scoring, the player with the right-most Senator receives 2 victory points. Players receive 1 VP for every 20 coins, as well as VPs from Forum Cards, Plot Cards, and Hidden Agendas.

Comparisons:  Donning the Purple bears some similarities to City of the Big Shoulders. Both feature several different phases with a worker placement phase in the middle. But where City of the Big Shoulders is at its core an economic game, Donning the Purple is a combination civilization and area control game, and the rotating role of Emperor may inspire a few comparisons to the way allegiances can swing in Pax Pamir.

What Should I Pledge?:
$35 Buy the Expansion: the Votes & Virtue Expansion, all unlocked stretch goals, and the print & play files.
$50 Buy the Game: Donning the Purple base game with the print and play files.
$79 Buy the Game and Expansion: combines the two previous pledge levels.
$179 Have Your Face in the Game: the previous pledge level, plus your face will be drawn into the artwork on a player mat or Event Card.

Add-Ons:
None.

KS Exclusives:
None.

All-In Total: Assuming you don’t feel the need for the vanity reward and having your face drawn into the game, in the continental U.S. you’re looking at $79 for Buy the Game and Expansion and $10 in shipping for a total of $89.

Donning the Purple + Votes & Virtue Expansion completes its Kickstarter on Thursday, October 3rd and tentatively ships in August 2020.