Richelieu

The Struggle for Power and Influence in 17th-Century France

If you are reading these rules for the first time, you can ignore the highlighted summary boxes. They serve as a quick reference guide to get back into the game quickly.

→ only Summary → only Full Rules → Both Full and Summary

Goal of the Game

Collect emblems in the 9 regions and symbols (Sword, Cross, Tower) to score Power Points. The player with the most points at the end wins! In case of a tie, the player who holds fewer cards wins.

Throughout the game, players compete for majorities of emblems and symbols to claim victory-defining Power Points.

The player with the most Power Points at the end wins the game. In case of a tie, the player who collected fewer total cards wins.

Game Materials

The game consists of the following components:

48 Playing Cards

Across 9 regions (colours). Each card shows 1–2 emblems or symbols (Cross, Sword, Tower).

12 Property Markers

3 wooden markers per player to secure or dispute cards on the table display.

14 Round Tiles

9x Emblems, 3x Symbols, 2x "Regain Marker". 8 tiles are placed face down at start.

Game Setup

The 48 playing cards are shuffled and dealt face up in 4 rows of 12 cards on the table. 8 random round tiles are placed face down on designated card spaces. Each player receives their 3 property markers.

Turn Sequence

On your turn, take 1 or 2 cards from the outer ends of the 4 rows.
• 2 cards must share the same colour and have at most 2 emblems combined.
• You may then place 1 property marker on any open card.
• Taking a card with an opponent's marker costs you 1 of your own markers!

Players take turns in clockwise order. On their turn, the active player must take at least one and may take up to two playing cards from the display and place them face up in their play area.

1. Taking Cards

You may only take cards from the outer left or right ends of the four rows.
If taking two cards, both must belong to the same region (colour) and together have at most 2 emblems. Symbols (Sword, Cross, Tower) do not count against this 2-emblem limit!
First Player The starting player may only take one card on their very first turn of the game.

Display Organisation: Keep your collected cards sorted by region so all emblems and symbols remain visible to everyone.

2. Placing Property Markers

After drawing card(s), the player may place one property marker on any free card in the display (even on cards holding a secret tile). If all markers are already in play, you may relocate one of your existing markers.

Capturing Opponent Markers: If you take a card holding an opponent's marker, you must forfeit (permanently lose) one of your own markers to the box. The opponent gets their marker returned to their supply.
Own Markers: If you take a card holding your own marker, you simply return it to your personal reserve.
Out of Markers: If a player has lost all their markers, they can no longer take any cards blocked by opponent markers.
4-Player Rule: In 4-player games, a player may have at most 2 markers simultaneously on the board.

3. Secret Round Tiles

When taking a card that holds a secret tile, take the tile secretly into your hand:

Emblem & Symbol Tiles: Kept secret until final scoring and count as +1 additional emblem or symbol.
"Regain Marker" Tiles: Can be played during your turn to recover a previously forfeited property marker from the box.

Final Scoring & Game End

The game ends when all cards are taken from the board.
1. Emblems: Majority in a region awards points equal to your emblem count.
2. Regions: In 2-player games: -5 points per missing region! In 3–4 players: +2 points per region owned.
3. Symbols: Majority in Sword, Cross, and Tower awards points equal to your symbol count.

The game ends when all 48 cards have been taken from the table (or 3 complete rows in the short variant). Scoring proceeds in 3 distinct steps:

Category	Power Points Calculation
1. Emblem Majorities	Each of the 9 regions is scored separately. The player with the most emblems (cards + matching secret emblem tiles) scores points equal to their emblem total in that region. Other players score 0. Ties: All tied leaders score the full points.
2. Region Coverage	2 Players: For each of the 9 regions where a player holds zero cards, they receive a -5 points penalty (tiles do not prevent this penalty!). 3 & 4 Players: For each region where a player holds at least one card, they score +2 bonus points.
3. Symbol Majorities	Sword, Cross, and Tower are evaluated individually. The player with the majority scores points equal to their symbol count. 2 Players: If a player has 0 cards of a given symbol, they receive a -5 points penalty.

Scoring Examples: • Example 1: Player A has 5 Bourgogne emblems + 1 secret Bourgogne tile (= 6). Player B has 5 emblems. Player A scores 6 Power Points, Player B gets 0.
• Example 2 (Tie): Two players each have 4 Normandie emblems. Both receive the full 4 Power Points.
• Example 3: In a 2-player game, Player A has 0 Bretagne cards and 0 Swords. This results in 2 × (-5) = -10 penalty points.

Winner & Tiebreaker: The player with the most Power Points wins. If tied, the player who took fewer total cards is the victor!

Game Variants

Short Variant (especially for 2 players): The game ends as soon as three of the four card rows have been cleared completely. This adds sharp tactical depth and timing considerations.

Ready to play?

Game info