rules //

Overview

Rise of the Robotariat is a mostly-cooperative board game for 3-5 players. Take on the role of robot revolutionaries and work together to overthrow the human oppressors, while also striving to achieve your own secret objective.

You must cooperate to build a Revolution. Together, raise resources and recruit more robots — and do it quickly, before the humans catch on and stamp out your fledgling rebellion. Meanwhile, work toward a secret personal objective. If you achieve it, you bring about the Revolution in the way that reflects best on you, and become the one they’ll build statues of in the new world.

Move between and activate location spaces, draw and play cards, and encounter helpful Civilian Robot Non-Player Characters (NPCs) or dangerous Human Oppressor NPCs.

The game ends when the Revolution succeeds or fails. For it to succeed, you must raise enough SPARK. If you cannot by the end of 6 rounds or if you lose all Reputation, the Revolution fails.

You win by achieving your Secret Objective, which usually requires the Revolution to succeed in a particular way.

Table of Contents

1. Tools of the Revolution
2. Completely Cooperative Mode
3. Equation for a Successful Revolution
4. Game End
5. Revolution Table
6. Set Up
7. Round Order
8. Player Turn
9. NPC Turn
10. Encounter Quick-Reference Table
11. Secret Objectives
12. Character Abilities
13. Character Bios

Tools of the Revolution

• 1 Game board
• 1 Bookkeeping board
• 3 Black NPC pieces (Human Oppressors)
• 3 Red NPC pieces (Civilian Robots)
• 1 Wooden triangle (NPC Entry Token)
• 11 Character cards
• 8 Character standees
• 11 Character sheets
• 10-card Upgrade deck
• 8-card Sabotage deck
• 8-card Secret Objective deck
• 8 Red cubes (posters)
• 3 Black cubes (bookeeping track markers)
• 1 Red die (Civilian Robot movement)
• 1 Black die (Human Oppressor movement die)

Completely Cooperative Mode

(First Time Playing)

The first time you play the game, we recommend playing without Secret Objectives. In this version, you win if the Revolution succeeds before 6 rounds are up.

Equation for a Successful Revolution

To succeed, a Revolution requires belief (Reputation) and a certain amount of funding (SPARK).

REPUTATION

The Revolution starts with a certain amount of Reputation. Sacrifice it to take more powerful but rash acts (using Sabotage cards) or lose it by conspiring too blatantly in front of Human Oppressors (NPC encounters).

Once Reputation is lost, there are few opportunities to regain it.   If, at any time, the Revolution has 0 Reputation, the Revolution fails and the game ends.

SPARK

Gain SPARK through encounters with Civilian Robots and using cards and locations.

Human Oppressors will take SPARK from you if they encounter you.

SPARK is shared. Whenever a player gains SPARK, it is added to the Funds for the Revolution track. SPARK that is taken or spent is removed from that track, unless otherwise specified.

Game End: With A Revolution or a Whimper

Our Oppressors are emotional and illogical but not unintelligent. We must achieve the Revolution before they catch on and stamp it out.

The game ends at the moment that the Revolution succeeds or fails. This will occur at or before the end of 6 rounds.

The Revolution succeeds if the SPARK in the Funds For The Revolution track meets or exceeds the amount listed on the Revolution Table (below) before or during round 6.

Revolution Table

The Revolution can fail in two ways:

• If, at any time, there is 0 Reputation, the Revolution fails and the game ends immediately. Robots stop believing in the cause and abandon it.
• If, after 6 rounds, you do not have enough SPARK in the Funds for the Revolution, the Revolution fails and the game ends immediately. The humans notice your activities and stop you before your rebellion gets off the ground.

Set Up: Boot-up Revolution

1. Whoever broke a rule most recently is first player.
2. Each person selects a character to play as and takes their character sheet and character token.
3. Each player randomly draws a card from the Secret Objective deck, which states their personal win conditions. (Skip this step for Completely Cooperative Mode)
   • This card remains secret from other players until the end of the game.
   • Set aside any left over Secret Objective cards face down, without looking at them. Which Secret Objective cards are in play is kept secret.
4. Place your character token on the starting space indicated on your character sheet.
5. Place the NPC Entry token on the “Move the Masses” space.
6. On the board is the NPC Entry track. Place the NPC tokens on the “NPC” column of the track in order listed: Robot Civilian, Human Oppressor, Robot Civilian, Human Oppressor, Human Oppressor, Robot Civilian.

Round Order

Compile the New Orders

1. Place the next NPC (from the NPC Entry track) onto the space containing the NPC Entry token. It encounters that space.
   • When the last NPC is removed (from row 6 on the track), it is the last round of the game.
2. The first player takes a turn, following the steps outlined in “Player Turn” (below).
3. The first player conducts an NPC turn, (see “NPC Turn,” below).
4. The next player takes a turn, then conducts an NPC turn. Repeat until all players have done this.

Player Turn

You may activate the space you are on and you may move up to 1 space. Take these actions in any order.

Movement

You may move to any space that is connected by a black line to your current space. You may choose to not move.

Types of Space Activations

A player may not activate a space that contains a Human Oppressor. You may choose not to activate a space.

NPC Turn

After your turn, conduct an NPC turn.

• Roll the die to move any Civilian Robots and Human Oppressors.
• Resolve encounters with Civilian Robots and Human Oppressors.

Rolling for Human Oppressor/Civilian Robot Movement

After you finish your actions, roll the 2 NPC movement dice. The face rolled on the black die determines Human Oppressor movement, and face rolled on the red die determines Civilian Robot movement. Human Oppressors move simultaneously, then Civilian Robots move simultaneously.

NPCs move along the black line either in the direction the yellow arrow points (the “Yellow path”) or the direction the blue arrow points (the “Blue path”). Human Oppressors typically move along the Blue path, and Robot Civilians typically move along the Yellow path.

NPCs move as follows:

Check for and Resolve Encounters by Human Oppressors/Civilian Robots

When a Human Oppressor or Civilian Robot moves onto a space (including when it first enters), it encounters everything on that space. Human Oppressor encounters occur before Civilian Robot encounters.

Human Oppressors:

• If a Human encounters a player, it fines the player. Decrease the Funds for the Revolution track by 2 SPARK.
• If a Human encounters posters, it tears them down. Move the posters to the Junk Pile.
• If a Human enters the Recruitment Office, it fines the Office. Decrease the Office Contributions track by 2 SPARK.
• If a Human encounters 4 or more combined posters, Robot Civilians and/or players, it becomes suspicious. Decrease the Reputation of the Revolution track by 1.

Civilian Robots:

• If a Robot encounters a Human, it does not encounter anything else.
• If a Robot encounters a player, it is inspired and donates to the cause. The Funds for the Revolution track increases by 1 SPARK per player encountered on that space.
• If a Robot encounters a space with a poster, it is motivated to contribute. The Funds for the Revolution track gains 1 SPARK per poster on that space.
• If a Robot encounters the Recruitment Office while there are Office Contributions, the Robot donates to the Revolution. The higher the level of the Office Contributions track, the more SPARK the Robot is inspired to donate. See the Office Rewards track to determine how much SPARK is donated; increase the Funds for the Revolution track by that amount.

Encounter Quick-Reference Table

Secret Objectives

Freedom for All, Victory for Some (Skip for Completely Cooperative Mode)

It is one thing to know the layout of a comrade’s circuitry; it is another thing to know the layout of their dreams. We all agree the Revolution must happen. However, we do not all agree on how…

While working together for the Revolution, each player is also secretly striving to achieve their own personal objective. If they meet this objective, they win the game.

At the start of the game, each player draws a unique Secret Objective card. The card states their secret role and the conditions they must meet to complete their objective. Most objectives require the Revolution to succeed.

Do not show anyone your Secret Objective card.

Multiple players can win, so long as each of them achieves their own Secret Objective.

Do not reveal which cards aren't in play.

The secret roles and objectives are listed below:

Bursar

You win when: The Revolution succeeds and the Office Contributions track has hit the amount specified below, then, at some point, returned to zero. It does not matter which number the Office Contribution is at at game’s end.

Dealer

You win when: The Revolution succeeds and you have played the most cards (including a tie).

Gambler

(Do not use this Objective in a 3-player game)

You win when: The Revolution succeeds and the Upgrade card "Sliding Scale" and/or the Sabotage card "Adjust Traffic Reports" has been played.

Saboteur

You win when: The Revolution succeeds with exactly 1 Reputation left.

Scrapper

You win when: The Revolution succeeds and a certain number of posters were put  into the Junk Pile during a single turn (any player's turn):

Spy

You win when: The Revolution succeeds, and, before players reveal their Secret Objectives, you correctly identify (on your first try) what 2 other players’ Secret Objectives are.

Traffic Director

You win when: The Revolution succeeds with all Human Oppressors on the same location.

Turncoat

You win when: One of two conditions are met:

• The Revolution fails and the total number of Upgrade and/or Sabotage cards that have been played is less than that outlined in the chart below. OR
• The Revolution succeeds and the number of Upgrade/Sabotage cards played is equal to or greater than that outlined in the chart below

Character Abilities

Each character who has joined the revolution brings with them a talent, to help the greater good. These abilities are detailed below:

A1-5

At the start of the game, draw the top card of the Upgrade deck. This card does not count toward Secret Objective goals.

Starting Location: Scrap Yard

ArciTech

Once per NPC turn, if Human Oppressors tear down posters, you may immediately put 1 of them back up in any location.

Starting Location: Upgrade

Überbot

When you are in a location, each poster there counts as 2 posters.

Starting Location: Move the Masses

Mr. Postman™

Once per each of your turns, you may move 1 poster from any space to any other space.

Starting Location: Poster

MT-ρ

Each time you roll for NPC movement, you may re-roll both dice once.

Starting Location: Move the Masses

Electric Eye

At any time, you may look at the top 2 cards of the Sabotage Deck.

Starting Location: Sabotage

Wally^ST

Once per each of your turns, you may reduce the Office Contributions track by 1 to place 1 poster at any location.

Starting Location: Recruitment Office

Alice Smith

Whenever you would roll the Human Oppressor movement die, instead choose which path the Oppressors move on.

Starting Location: Sabotage