In
Ethnos, players call upon the support of giants, merfolk, halfings,
minotaurs, and other fantasy tribes to help them gain control of the
land. After three ages of play, whoever has collected the most glory
wins!
In more detail, the land of Ethnos contains twelve tribes of fantasy
creatures, and in each game you choose six of them (five in a 2/3-player
game), then create a deck with only the creatures in those tribes. The
cards come in six colors, which match the six regions of Ethnos. Place
three glory tokens in each region, arranging them from low to high.
Each player starts the game with one card in hand, then 4-12 cards
are placed face up on the table. On a turn, a player either recruits an
ally or plays a band of allies. In the former case, you take a face-up
card (without replacing it from the deck) or the top card of the deck
and add it to your hand. In the latter case, you choose a set of cards
in your hand that match either in tribe or in color, play them in front
of you on the table, then discard all other cards in hand. You then
place one or more tokens in the region that matches the color of the top
card just played, and you use the power of the tribe member on the top
card just played.
At the end of the first age, whoever has the most tokens in a region
scores the glory shown on the first token. After the second age, the
players with the most and secondmost tokens score glory equal to the
values shown on the first and second tokens. Players score again after
the third age, then whoever has the most glory wins. (Games with two and
three players last only two ages.)