Empires (2001)

“Short rules for a quick play civilization like boardgame.”

Two or more players begin the game with one city and ten counters representing the population and military force. A standard deck of cards is used. A certain type of card, or combination of cards, must be played to perform certain actions in the game. The descriptions of the combinations include: Migration, Merchant, Combat, Apostle, Abundance, Exploration, War, Exodus, Colonization, Crusade, and Foundation.

The object of the game is to control more than half of the provinces on the map. A player who is eliminated may return as a foreign invader, starting with one city and six counters on the outer ring of provinces.