Principalities

Principalities^[1] is the basic game of the realm Kastgard. The rules are fixed and cannot be changed; you choose only the number of players, 2 to 8, 4 by default. The opponents are AI opponents of the Normal level, and everybody plays against everybody. Whoever wants to set things up has Free play and maps.

The map and the start

• Territories (tiles in the settings and in play) are irregular shapes made of small hexagons. There are 32 of them with 2 to 5 players, 36 with 6, 42 with 7 and 48 with 8. The shape of the map is always the "Field": a rectangle that the territories fill unevenly, with holes and ragged edges.
• The territories are dealt at random, the same number to every player (at most one more or less).
• Every tile starts with one die and a few more; on average it has about 3.1 dice, at most 8. A tile holds at most 8 dice.
• A random player starts. In a duel it matters most who starts, which is why it is drawn.

A turn

1. Pick your tile with at least two dice and then a neighbouring enemy tile (they share an edge; touching at a corner does not count).
2. Both sides roll all their dice and add them up. The higher sum wins, a tie goes to the defender.
3. After a win all dice but one move onto the captured tile; with two or more dice it can attack on. After a loss the attacking tile is left with one die and the defender loses nothing.
4. You may attack as many times as you like, then you end the turn.
5. At the end of the turn you get as many dice as your largest connected group has tiles. They fall one by one onto random tiles of yours that have fewer than 8 dice; what does not fit waits in a reserve (at most 64) for the next turn.

The chance that an attack wins (in %, a tie goes to the defender):

The same number of dice never gives 50%: three against three is 45.4%, eight against eight 47.1%. The game shows the chances on the borders when the Hints are switched on (they lower the score).

The end of a game

You are out when you have no tile; you win when all opponents are out. If nobody attacks for four rounds in a row, the game offers once per game to end on points (more tiles, then more dice, otherwise a draw) or to go on. The rule "Long wars end" (big stacks melt) is not in Principalities; it is in Free play and in the Daily challenge (Minigames, puzzles and the daily challenge).

The score

A loss pays nothing. A win pays points by the number of players: 79, 89, 93, 97, 99, 101 and 103 with 2 to 8 players; a win on points pays 0.6 times that, using hints 0.75 times, and a quick victory adds up to 25%. The points are also experience and Golden Dice (The hero, level and coins). What follows from the numbers for playing is on the page Principalities: what follows from the measurements.