Conquest of Paradise
Random Events Rules and Cards
by Kevin McPartland
The battlefield is a scene of constant chaos.
The winner will be the one who controls
that chaos, both his own and the enemy's.
— Napoleon Bonaparte
Chaos is a friend of mine.
— Bob Dylan
A good simulation game will inflict chaos
upon the situation at hand. Conquest of
Paradise has considerable chaos inherent in
the system — the map is laid out differently
each game, the turn order might change every
turn, and you never know what your opponents will spring on you: there's hidden units,
secret island groups, and face-down cards that
can be played at any time. These new Random
Events set out to add yet another layer of
chaos to the game.
The Polynesians had more to worry about
than just their opponents: nature was always
a threat. Typhoons and Tsunami could rise
out of the ocean to wash over the islands.
Invasive weeds and severe erosion could be
the unexpected results of efforts to subdue the
landscape. Drought might devastate crops
for many seasons. The god Pele could make
a sleeping mountain suddenly erupt in flames
and destruction. And the legendary Taniwha
— the Polynesian sea monster- was this vengeance sent from the gods, or just a figment of
the imagination?
Or perhaps nature could be kind, and
bestow unexpected blessings: favorable winds
for your canoes, an exceptionally successful
season of fishing at sea. Perhaps your islands
could become more fertile; a spring of cool,
clear water could be discovered in just the
right spot to irrigate your crops on the dry,
leeward side of your islands. Volcanic ash,
ejected from some unknown, far-away eruption, could sift gently from the sky onto your
taro fields, bringing new vitality to the soil.
Nature might be irresistibly powerful, but
the greatest bringer of chaos has always been
the people. They could suddenly become
obsessed with war, militarizing for battle.
Leaders can arise from their midst to galvanize them for battle, and a shaman might join
the expedition to bring the favor of the gods
to your side — or at least, make the warriors
believe it is so! People might turn against the
cultural advances of their predecessors, trashing their achievements in a violent backlash.
Angry insurrection may percolate below the
seemingly content appearance of your people.
And those neighbors in Fiji? They may no
longer remain quietly waiting for your empire
to build — they might man their war canoes,
and come after you!
Or, people could surprise you with their
achievements. They might find a way to push
terraced taro fields further up the hillsides
than you thought was possible. Or they may
find cultural purpose in achievements that
seemed to have little lasting significance.
They may turn away from warfare, or create a
population expansion that fuels the expansion
of your empire.
The new deck of Random Events for
Conquest of Paradise is meant to add even
more chaos to the game. As Napoleon said,
the winner will be the player who controls
that chaos, and turns it to his advantage. Like
Dylan, you've got to make chaos your friend.
Random Event Rules and Card Inserts
Carefully cut the C3i Random Event
Cards from their sheets with scissors, or a
straight edge and sharp blade. If you're not so
good at this, you can always place the cards in
card sleeves to hide imperfections. Shuffle the
cards, and place the deck in a handy spot near
the game map.
Card draws begin in the Turn Order Step
immediately following the first Victory Step
in which any player attains five (5) or more
Victory Points, and continue each turn until
someone wins the game. After determining the Turn Order, the player in last place
draws one Random Event card. (If there is a
tie for last place, then the player winning the
tie breaker decides if he will draw a Random
Event or determine the Turn Order, and the
next tied player resolves the other.)
If the card has a red title bar (and it says
"Keep this Card..." at the start of the event t
description) then read the rest of the description to yourself, smile mischievously, and place
it face down with you. It can be played at any
time that the drawing player chooses. Otherwise, the Event is read aloud to all, and the
effects of the card are resolved immediately.
If the card drawn calls for an Off Course
chit, then take one from the discards (if there
are none there, then fish one out of the draw
cup). The use of the Independent Local
Warriors or Battle markers for an Event is
not meant to prevent their use in the normal
course of the game. Use a coin to temporarily
mark the Event, if necessary.
If any Event results in a player ending up
with less than two (2) Villages on the map,
then the effects of that Event are reversed — as
if there were no Event that turn. Events affect
an Independent Island Group (printed on
the map) only if a player Controls it. Also, if
an Event creates a situation where there are
five (or even six!) Villages in a hex that is attacked, the defender now receives three Local
Warriors in the Battle. In that case, use one
of the blue Independent Island Group Local
Warriors for the third one.
You may play these events with any Advanced rules that you'd like, or just the Basic
rules. In any case, enjoy the new chaos that
the Events bring to the game!