View a video demonstration of this game online at www.theroadtocanterbury.com
Overview
Greed, Pride, Gluttony, Wrath, Luxury, Idleness, and Envy—the infamous “Seven Deadly Sins.” For the faithful, they
instill horror. For you, on the other hand, they present a wonderful business opportunity! In The Road to Canterbury, you play
a medieval pardoner who sells certificates delivering sinners from the eternal penalties brought on by these Seven Deadly
Sins. You make your money by peddling these counterfeit pardons to Pilgrims traveling the road to Canterbury. Perhaps you
can persuade the Knight that his pride must be forgiven? Surely the Friar’s greed will net you a few coins? The Miller’s wrath
and the Monk’s gluttony are on full public display and demand pardoning! The Wife of Bath regales herself in luxury, the
Man-of-Law languishes in idleness, and that Prioress has envy written all over her broad forehead. And the naughty stories
these Pilgrims tell each other are so full of iniquity they would make a barkeep blush! Pardoning such wickedness should be
easy money, right?
Not quite. For you to succeed as a pardoner, you’ll need to do more than just sell forged pardons for quick cash. To keep your
services in demand, you will actually need to lead these Pilgrims into temptation yourself! Perhaps some phony relics might
help? There is also one big catch. The Seven Deadly Sins live up to their name: each sin that a Pilgrim commits brings Death
one step nearer, and a dead Pilgrim pays no pardoners!
So much to forgive, so little time. Will you be able to outwit your opponents by pardoning more of these Pilgrims’ sins before
they die or finish their pilgrimage to Canterbury?
Components
The Goal Of The Game
Players are medieval pardoners who travel the Road to Canterbury tempting Pilgrims with the Seven Deadly Sins—and then
pardon these sins for a fee! Each sin with which a player tempts a Pilgrim increases the amount of money that will be paid
when that sin is pardoned, but also brings Death one step closer, which threatens to kill off your customers! (These are
“deadly sins” after all.) Players also make use of fake holy relics to perform special actions. Bonuses are awarded to players
who corrupt each Pilgrim the most while traveling the Road to Canterbury. Players also score a bonus from the Pardoner’s
Guild for being the first to tempt Pilgrims to commit each one of the Seven Deadly Sins. Players are further rewarded for
performing Last Rites for Pilgrims as they pass away. When the Pilgrims finally reach Canterbury at the end of the game,
players receive bonuses from the Companies of Pilgrims for which they have pardoned the most sins, plus a bonus from
Canterbury to the most forgiving pardoner along the road. The player who makes the most money as a pardoner wins the
game!
Setting Up The Game
• Set up the game board and card supply board as shown in the example above.
• Place the Parson (brown pawn) on any of the seven sins in the Circle of Sin in the middle of the board (decide at random).
This is the Sin currently denounced by the Church.
• Shuffle the Sin cards, Pardon cards, Relic cards, and Pilgrim cards each separately and stack them as shown above,
facing down. Make sure all cards are shuffled thoroughly!
• Draw from the top of the Sin card stack and place three Sin cards face up next to the stack in the marked spaces. Do
the same with Pardon cards. (The Relic stack and Pilgrim stack receive no face up cards.) If you draw any cards labeled
“Death,” shuffle them back into the deck and redraw.
• Place Coin Tokens on all four corners of the board as shown (sort by type into loose piles).
• Stack the Last Rites Tokens in the center circle of the game board, covering the game title as
shown.
• Draw the top three Pilgrim cards and place them face up, one on each of the three spaces
of the board dedicated to the yellow, blue, and green Companies. Do not cover the space
showing the Road to Canterbury!
• Each player chooses a color to play.
a. Each player takes the Reference Card, Coin Bag, and Corruption Cubes in his or her color.
Return any unused colors to the box.
b. Deal each player five Sin cards from the supply. Keep the face values of your cards secret.
The backs of your cards (which indicate the type of card) are considered public information
and should always be kept visible to your opponents.
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Example of the Death Card
c. If a player receives any cards labeled “Death” (see example to the right), shuffle these cards back into the deck and
deal replacement cards to the player until they each have five Sin cards.
• Each player begins the game with 3 gold hidden away in his Coin Bag.
Keep your ill-gotten earnings hidden from other players!
• The player who can cackle the most like a vile and greedy medieval
pardoner begins the game!
On Your Turn
1) PLAY ONE CARD (see below) and
2) REDRAW and PERFORM A RECKONING OF SIN (see page 5)
1) PLAY ONE CARD
• You must play one card at the beginning of your turn (either a Sin, a Pardon,
or a Relic).
• If you cannot (or choose not to) play a card on your turn, then you must pay
a penalty of 3 gold to the supply (or all your gold if you have less than 3 gold
remaining). Then discard as many cards as you like (place them face-down next
to the appropriate stacks), and immediately Redraw.
Pilgrim Cards
The Pilgrim cards represent seven different pilgrims journeying to Canterbury. Each
Pilgrim has a “favorite sin” that increases the amount you collect if you pardon any
Death cards for this Pilgrim (see p. 4 and p. 6 for examples). Pilgrim cards never
go in your hand—they are drawn from the supply and placed on each of the three
Company spaces on the board. Players use Sin cards to tempt these pilgrims and
Pardon cards to pardon their sins and collect money.
Sin Cards
Sin cards come in seven flavors, each flavor representing one of the Seven Deadly
Sins. A Sin card does two things. First, it tempts a Pilgrim to commit a Deadly Sin
(which he or she always does!). Second, the Seven Deadly Sins live up to their
name—each Sin card that you play brings Death one step closer…
Rules for playing a Sin card. See example on the next page.
a. To play a Sin card, remove it from your hand and place it face up on the table
next to the board as near that Company as possible. This card tempts the
active Pilgrim in the adjacent Company. Note: Death cards work differently
than regular Sin cards. See page 6 for details.
b. Immediately place one Corruption Cube in the Circle of Sin in the center of the board. It should go in the space
matching the flavor of sin on the card you just played. If you already have a Corruption Cube in play on this space, do not
add another unless you have added one cube to all seven sins already. In that case, you may add a second cube in
your color to that sin, but no more cubes than that. (In either case it is okay if other players have cubes in the same space.)
c. If by placing this cube in the Circle of Sin you now have a cube marking each one of the seven sins in the Circle,
immediately collect a bonus from the Pardoner’s Guild. The first player to mark all seven sins collects 20 gold. The
second player collects 10 gold. The third player (only in three-player games) collects 5 gold. (See Player Reference Card.)
d. If you play the seventh card below an active Pilgrim, this Pilgrim dies and you perform last rites. Immediately collect one
Last Rites Token. This token may be used at the very end of your turn (including this one, if you like) to take another turn.
See page 6 for details.
e. Redraw and perform a Reckoning of Sin (see page 5)
Pardon Cards
Pardons (also known as “indulgences”) are certificates of forgiveness that Pardoners sell to Pilgrims. The Pardons in this game
are total fakes—documents you have forged yourself. You are much more interested in hearing the sound of coins clinking
together than the sound of pilgrims praying for forgiveness!
Rules for playing a Pardon card. See the next page for an example of how to pardon a Pilgrim.
a. A Pardon card pardons all of the sins of the same flavor marked on the card for ONE Pilgrim only. To play a Pardon card,
there must be an active Pilgrim who has committed at least one Sin of the same flavor as the one showing on the Pardon
card. For example, to play a pardon for “Wrath,” at least one face-up Wrath card must be in play next to a Pilgrim.
b. Discard your used Pardon card face down next to the stack of Pardon cards.
c. Place one (and ONLY ONE) Corruption Cube in your color on top of the Pilgrim card you are pardoning.
No matter how many Sin cards you end up pardoning, make sure you still add only ONE cube in your color
when you play a Pardon card!
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d. Death cards count as Sin cards! Each Death card functions as a Sin card having the same flavor of sin marked
on the adjacent Pilgrim. For example: if a Pilgrim’s favorite sin is Wrath, then any Death card next to this Pilgrim
counts as a Wrath card.
e. Pardon sins for this Pilgrim and collect money. Flip over ALL cards of the same flavor of sin shown on the
Pardon card (do this for ONE Pilgrim only) and leave them in play, facing down. Note: Even though these sins are
pardoned, these cards still bring Death closer! When a total of seven cards of any kind are in play next to the Pilgrim,
Death arrives! To figure out how much money you collect for pardoning this Pilgrim of one flavor of sin, add up the
following values to determine the total pardon value:
• Add one to the pardon value for each Sin card you turn over. Remember to include any Death cards that match the
pardoned Sin!
• If the flavor of Sin you have just pardoned has been denounced by the Parson (that is, if the pawn in the Circle of Sin
marks this flavor of sin) then add one more to the total pardon value (see
Denounced Sins on the previous page). Then move the Parson clockwise
one space.
f. Receive Payment based on the total pardon value (see the chart to the right
and the Player Reference Card). The payment amount equals the pardon
value multiplied by itself (i.e., squared). A pardon value of 1 awards 1 gold,
a value of 2 awards 4 gold, a value of 3 awards 9 gold, and a value of 4 or
more scores 16 gold. Add up the total and claim this amount in gold from the
supply. Immediately hide your ill-gotten gains inside your coin bag!
Note that 16 is always the maximum payout.
g. Redraw and perform a Reckoning of Sin. See below.
Relic Cards
Relics are sacred objects (often body parts and personal items) that belonged to
saints and which are reputed to hold great power. In this game, the Relics are all
not-so-holy fakes—objects you yourself have fabricated for the sake of deceiving others. Because mistaken beliefs still hold
power, however, even fake relics can be useful! A clever Pardoner never underestimates the power of Relics in this game!
Playing a Relic card:
a. Read the name of a Relic in your hand out loud for everyone to hear (say “I’m using The Knickers of Saint Nicholas!”
for example).
Note: if the Relic card displays a Parson pawn icon, then in
b.Perform the action(s) specified on the card and then
addition to performing the action indicated in the text, you
discard your used Relic card face down next to the
may also move the Parson pawn to any sin in the Circle of
supply. You are not permitted to play any Sins or
Sin. (You may do this anytime on your turn.)
Pardons this turn unless the Relic card specifically
instructs you to do so. See page 8 of the rulebook
for detailed descriptions of each Relic.
c.Now Redraw and perform a Reckoning of Sin.
2) REDRAW and PERFORM A RECKONING OF SIN
a. If you hold fewer than five cards in your hand, draw one card from the supply, either face up or face down (either
a Sin, Pardon, or Relic). You may never draw a Pilgrim card. Cards in your hand can be any mix of Sins, Pardons,
and Relics. However, it is usually wise to make sure that you hold at least one Sin card in hand so that at the beginning
of your next turn it is guaranteed that you can play a card. (There is a three-gold penalty if you cannot play a card on
your turn.)
b. Refill the general supply. If you just drew a face up card, immediately draw another card from the appropriate facedown stack to refill the space for the card just drawn.
c. If at any time you draw a Death Card (by either drawing or refilling the supply), do not add it to your hand or the faceup card area. Instead, place it in the next available space next to the Company of matching color and then draw again
from the same stack (see Example: Death Cards, on the next page).
d. Return to step a above and continue drawing until you have a total of exactly five cards in your hand.
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After redrawing, perform a Reckoning of Sin on each Pilgrim in play.
• Examine all Companies of Pilgrims to see if any Pilgrims have passed away from their sins. Proceed in clockwise
order beginning with the Pilgrim immediately clockwise from the Road to Canterbury.
• When counting cards for each Company, count the total number of adjacent cards of any kind in play. Be sure to count
face up and face down Sin cards, Death cards, AND Pilgrim cards from deceased Pilgrims when determining the
total number.
• If the total number of cards on a single Pilgrim now equals (or exceeds)
seven, then the Deadly Sins immediately take their toll and this Pilgrim dies!
• When a Pilgrim dies, calculate each player’s corrupting influence on this
Pilgrim. (See Earn the Wages of Sin, below).
• If the active player possesses a Last Rites token, he or she may now return
it to the general supply to take an extra turn. There is no limit to the number of
times you may do this, provided you have enough Last Rites tokens remaining
in your own personal supply. Any unused Last Rites tokens will be worth 3 gold
each at the end of the game.
• Play proceeds with the next player clockwise. Return to Step 1 on page 3.
A few notes on cards and redrawing:
• If all three face-up cards next to a stack ever show the same type of card
(if all are Sins of Wrath, for example), then discard all three cards and draw
replacements.
• If any deck of face-down cards is ever depleted, simply reshuffle the discards
thoroughly to make a new draw pile.
End Of Game
The game ends when the Pilgrims all reach Canterbury (when all stages on the road
are filled with players’ cubes). Proceed to the Final Judgment (final scoring), on
the next page.
Earn The Wages Of Sin (Calculate Corruption On A Newly Deceased Pilgrim)
Whenever a Pilgrim dies, immediately mark the dominant player’s influence on the Road to Canterbury.
a. The player with the most Corruption Cubes on the newly deceased Pilgrim card has dominant influence and moves
one of these cubes to the left-most open stage on the road to Canterbury (note that the player MOVES a cube already
in play on the Pilgrim—he does not ADD one from his supply).
b. The dominant player immediately collects the bonus marked for this stage on the Road to Canterbury (bonuses
increase as the game progresses: +2/+4/+6/+8/+10). In the unlikely event that more than one Pilgrim passes away when
the pilgrimage has just arrived at Canterbury, award the +10 bonus for each newly deceased Pilgrim and add each
dominant player’s cube to the Canterbury space.
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c. If players tie for corruption, then the player with more Sin cards in hand is considered dominant (determine the total by
examining the backs of each card in hand). If players tie yet again for the number of Sin cards, then all tied players add
one cube to this station on the road and each receives the full bonus marked for it.
d. Clear cards from the deceased Pilgrim. Remove all Sin cards and Death cards played next to this Pilgrim and place
them face down in the appropriate discard piles. Note: Any deceased Pilgrim cards next to the board remain in place.
e. Deceased Pilgrims are shrouded and brought along with the Company for burial at Canterbury. Move the Pilgrim card
to the first available space next to this Company, leaving all players’ remaining Corruption Cubes in place on
the card. (Turn it face down.) Ignore all deceased Pilgrims when pardoning future sins—although these cards each fill
one of the seven available spaces, they cannot be pardoned or used in any other way. At the end of the game a bonus
is awarded to the player with the most cubes in each Company of Pilgrims, counting those both on living and deceased
Pilgrims.
f. In the unlikely event that a Pilgrim passes away with no pardoned sins (and
thus, with no dominant player), then each player marks the current stage
on the Road to Canterbury with a Corruption Cube. In this case no bonus is
collected by anyone.
g. If any other Pilgrims have passed away, score them in exactly the same way
(proceed clockwise around the board from one company to the next).
h. If the Pilgrims have finally reached Canterbury (that is, if one or more cubes
now occupy the yellow +10 spot), the game is over. Immediately proceed to
the Final Judgment, below.
i. If the game continues, draw a new Pilgrim card and place it in the open
space for this Company of Pilgrims.
j. The next player clockwise now takes his or her turn.
The Final Judgment
Award final bonuses from the board in clockwise order, starting with the
Road to Canterbury. (See Player Reference Cards for a convenient summary.)
• Score the Canterbury Road Bonus. The player with the most Corruption
Cubes on the road to Canterbury scores a bonus of 20 gold. Second place scores 10.
Third place scores 5. If players tie for influence, then the player with the most cubes in the Circle of Sin wins the tie.
If players still tie, then all tied players receive the full bonus for their placement.
• Award each Company Bonus. For each individual Company of Pilgrims (yellow, blue, and green), add up the total
number of cubes each player has in play on ALL Pilgrims in this Company, including BOTH deceased Pilgrims and the
one still living (if any). The player with most cubes in each Company claims 15 gold, second place scores 7, and third
place scores 3. Resolve ties as indicated above.
• Each player collects 3 gold for each unused Last Rites token still in his or her possession.
• Players now empty their coin bags to reveal the total gold in their possession. The player with the most gold cackles
with delight and wins the game! Resolve ties as indicated above.
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Full Descriptions Of Not-So-Holy Relics
Note: these first six Relic cards display a Parson pawn icon. In addition to performing the action indicated in the text, you may
also move the Parson pawn to any sin in the Circle of Sin. (You may do this anytime on your turn.)
• Furball of Saint Felix: Pardon one flavor of Sin for any Pilgrim and add one cube as usual, but receive no payment.
Like his feline namesake, Saint Felix teaches us how to purge impurities from deep within.
• Collar of Saint Bernard: Call out one flavor of Sin. All opponents must discard all Pardons of this flavor. Bernard’s collar will
lead others as you wish to guide them.
• Hairbrush of Saint Hildegard: Collect 5 Gold. Balding Pilgrims take comfort!
• Fingernails of Saint Vincent: Remove one cube of any color from any active Pilgrim (not from a deceased Pilgrim). Return it to
its owner. The grasping power of these claws will easily rip away the influence of others. They also play a mean lute solo.
• Scrambled Eggs of Saint Benedict: Draw one card at random from any opponent and then give one of your own in exchange.
Break your fast with this Benedictine order and be filled with divine strength! Note: you may look at the back of your opponents’
cards when deciding which card to take. You may not change your mind after you take this card, but you may look at the card
before deciding which one of your own cards to give in return (this card can be any already in your hand—it does not have to be
the same type of card as the one taken).
• Accusing Finger of Saint Philip: After moving the Parson Pawn, play a Pardon or Sin card. Hey—watch where you point that thing!
• Miraculous Moustache of Saint Wilgefortis: Move one face-up Sin card in play to another Pilgrim. You may then play one
Pardon or Sin card. Her moustache somehow wields a power to drive away all temptation. (Saint Wilgefortis was a young woman
who had pledged herself to God and resisted the advances of a suitor by praying for deliverance. Allegedly God granted her wish
by making her sprout a moustache and beard, making her hideously unmarriageable…) Note: if by playing this card you make a
Pilgrim pass away, claim a Last Rites token.
• Knickers of Saint Nicholas: Place this card face-up next to any Pilgrim and count it as one Death card. You may then play one
Pardon or Sin card. Leave this card in play until the Pilgrim is scored. Some gifts are best left unopened. Note: If by playing this
card you make a Pilgrim pass away, claim a Last Rites token. If this card is later pardoned (as a Death card), flip it face-down.
• Dancing Shoes of Saint Vitus: After playing this card, perform two more actions. Only the coffee cup of Saint Columba hath
a greater power of excitation. Note: Use this relic to play two more cards in succession. This card does NOT grant you an extra
turn. Do not redraw until your turn is completely finished.
• Writing Quill of Saint Anselm: Add one cube in your color to any active Pilgrim or any space in the Circle of Sin. Weld word to
world with the mystical power of divine philosophy and this greatest of all conceivable pens!
• Eyeball of Saint Isidore: Draw three cards from any single deck (Sin, Pardon, or Relic) and keep one. Discard the rest. You may
then play one Pardon or Sin card. In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king. Note: These three cards must be drawn from
one face-down deck only. If you draw any Death cards, do not count them towards the three from which you choose. Instead,
place them next to the appropriate Pilgrim and draw face-down replacements as you go.
• Snorkel of Saint Jonah: Remove one Sin card (face-up or face-down) from any Pilgrim and discard it. You may then play one
Pardon or Sin card. Jonah’s snorkel will keep the faithful breathing for just a little while longer.
Note: if a Relic indicates that you may play another card after performing a special action (or move the Parson pawn on
your turn), doing so is optional. You are not required to do so.
A Note from the Designer
For their inspiration and contributions I offer an uncorrupted heart full of thanks to Natasha Seegert, Rick Soued, Carey Grayson, Paul
Incao, Patrick Whiting, Barry Weller, Tom Stillinger, Margaret Toscano, Dave Bailey, the Board Game Designers Guild of Utah (www.
bgdg.info) and Game Night Games (gamenightgames.com). This game is dedicated to medievalist Terry Jones and Rowan Atkinson,
whose Black Adder is a devious inspiration to pardoners everywhere.
The theme of The Road to Canterbury is meant as a lighthearted parody in the spirit of Chaucer’s late-fourteenth century collection of
stories The Canterbury Tales (“The Pardoner’s Tale” and “The Pardoner’s Prologue” in particular). Please note that the game parodies the
corruption of religion. It is not intended as a parody of religion itself, or of any particular religion. Thank you for playing!
The Road to Canterbury showcases 15th century art from Hieronymus Bosch’s The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things, the
Ellesmere Manuscript of The Canterbury Tales, and the Troy Book and the Siege of Thebes by John Lydgate.
Credits
Original game design, layout and rules: Alf Seegert www.alfseegert.com
Game and rules development: Rick Soued, Gryphon Games
Graphics and production: Pixel Productions, Inc.
Art used by permission from the Bridgeman Art Library, New York City
www.eagle-gryphon.com
www.theroadtocanterbury.com
Lots more family games are available from Gryphon Games, including:
www.eagle-gryphon.com