ECOLOGY GAME RULES
OBJECT
Players
try to achieve a balance between man's activities and the natural environment,
while advancing through the four Ages of Development: Hunting, Agriculture,
Industrial and Environment. As their population grows, players compete
to occupy Land Areas, collect money and inventions, and try to maintain
their supply of Ecology Points (which represent Environmental quality).
The first player to reach the Ecology Test square in any of the four Ages
with the proper balance of people, money, inventions and Ecology Points
is the winner.
PARTS
OF THE GAME
Board:
The board is divided into a central Land Area where populations are placed,
and the four corners representing the Hunting, Agricultural, Industrial
and Environmental Ages, through which each player moves their token.
Rings: Each player chooses a color and uses one Ring of that color as their token. The other Rings are placed on the central land area to represent their population. Each Ring represents 1,000 people.
Cards: There are 3 kinds of cards: Luck, Genius and Work. One card is drawn when a player lands on the appropriate square.
Money And Ecology Points: One player should be assigned as Banker to keep track of all money and Ecology Points not belonging to individual players.
Charts: There are 4 charts of special instructions for Wars, Population and Tests.
PLAY
OF THE GAME
Starting
The Game: Two to four people can play. Each player starts with 25 Ecology
Points and NO money. Each player selects a color and rolls the dice. The
first player is determined by the highest throw of the dice. Thereafter,
the turn proceeds COUNTER-CLOCKWISE (left to right). The first player places
their token in the Start Square (1,000 People) of the Hunting Age. They
then place one of their colored Rings (representing 1,000 people) on any
UNOCCUPIED space in the center Land Area.
How To Move: On each move, the player rolls both dice. They then examine the square on which their token is located, noting the small numbers on the edge of the square. They choose the number on one of the dice they have thrown and cross the side of the square indicated by that number to enter an adjacent square ... for example: If a player in the Start Square (1,000 People) rolls a 3 and a 5, they may move to the adjacent Genius Square (because of the 3) or to the Luck Square (because of the 5). If the player had rolled a 3 and a 2, they would have no choice but to move to the Genius Square. Each player in turn rolls the dice and moves to an adjacent square as indicated by the numbers within their PRESENT square.
Luck, Work And Genius Squares: When a player lands on one of these squares, they take one of the corresponding cards from the top of the deck and follows the instructions. In some cases, they will have a choice, as indicated by the words "may" or "or". Some Genius cards represent Inventions. The player who draws one of these cards should keep it. Invention cards may be traded or sold. All cards that do not say "Keep this Card" should be returned to the bottom of the pile. WHEN A PLAYER MOVES FROM ONE AGE TO ANOTHER, THEY MUST RETURN ALL OF THEIR INVENTION CARDS TO THE BOTTOM OF THE PILE, AS THEIR TECHNOLOGY IS NOW OBSOLETE.
Nature Squares: Whenever a player lands on a Nature Square, they earn one Ecology Point.
Ecology Points: Each player starts with 25 Ecology Points representing an unspoiled environment. At NO point in the game may they have more than 25 Ecology Points. Whenever a player loses all their Ecology Points, they MUST give up 1,000 people, move to the square corresponding to their new population and LOSE two (2) turns. At the end of the 2 turns, they get 2 Ecology Points and proceed as usual. Ecology Points may NOT be sold or traded.
Population
Squares: When a player lands on a Population Square, they AUTOMATICALLY
attain the population written on that square. If they have lost population,
they MUST remove from the Land Area one (1) Ring for every thousand (1,000)
people lost. If they have gained population, they MUST add a Ring for every
1,000 people gained. There are several ways to add population ...
1.
Add a Ring on any UNOCCUPIED space which is next to a space which they
already occupy.
2.
Place additional population Rings on the spaces they already occupied by
spending money to increase the land's capacity (see Population Density).
3.
Acquire an adjacent space from a player who is willing to trade their Land
Area for money or Invention cards, according to whatever arrangement the
2 players make.
4.
Fight a war to gain space occupied by another player (see War).
If a player is unable or unwilling to settle their population in any of these ways, they MUST give up the extra population they just gained and return to the Population Square corresponding to the number of Rings they have on the board.
IF AT ANY TIME A PLAYER'S POPULATION CHANGES, FOR ANY REASON, THEY MUST RETURN IMMEDIATELY TO THE POPULATION SQUARE CORRESPONDING TO THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THEY ACTUALLY HAVE. If there is no square corresponding to that population, they MUST move to the next LOWEST population for which there is a square. NO player's population may go below 1,000.
Population Density: A player who has gained population MAY, instead of occupying a new Land Area, choose to invest money to increase the population of the land they already occupy. The amount of money necessary to increase the population of a space by one thousand (1,000) people is indicated on the Population Density Chart. If this extra population is lost, at any time, the player MUST PAY AGAIN if they wish to reestablish the higher population level at a later time. The MAXIMUM population of any space is 4,000 people.
War: War may be declared by any player gaining population if any of the spaces they are occupying is adjacent to the space occupied by another player. The attacking player announces the number of spaces being attacked and pays the price indicated on the War Cost Chart. The number of squares attacked CANNOT be more than the increase in population of the attacker. The defending player may concede defeat and give up the square or else they may pay the amount indicated on the War Chart.
The outcome of the War is decided by the attacker rolling ONE DIE. The Winner is determined by consulting the War Result Chart. If the attacker loses, they MUST find some other place to place their extra population or lose them. They may NOT declare war on another player. If the attacker wins, they place their Rings on the disputed spaces. The defender MUST find other spaces for the Rings displaced by moving them to new spaces, by increasing the density of their population, or by fighting a War with some other player. If they are unable to relocate some of their Rings, they LOSE them and moves to the Population Square corresponding with their new population.
NO player may declare War on ALL of the Land Areas occupied by another player.
Crisis: If a player moves into a Crisis Zone, they lose five (5) Ecology Points and 1,000 people, and moves to the Population Square represented by their new population.
Agricultural, Industrial and Environmental Tests: To pass to a more advanced Age, a player MUST reach the appropriate Test Square and pass the requirements indicated on the Test Chart. If they pass the test, they follow the arrow to the first square of the next Age, returning their Invention Cards, but keeping their money and Ecology Points. If they fail the test, they proceed to roll the dice as usual on their next turn.
Ecology Test: To win the game, a player MUST reach the Ecology Test Square in any of the four corners of the board and meet the requirements described on the Test Chart. If they pass the test, they have won and the game is over. If they fail the test, they proceed to roll the dice as usual on their next turn. Note that it is very difficult to reach the Ecology Test Square in the Hunting Age and increasingly easier to reach it in the Agricultural, Industrial and Ecological Ages.