Overview

Arena: Roma II is a 2-player card and dice game set during a revolt in Rome. Players compete for supremacy by playing character and building cards next to an icon bar, activating them with dice to earn victory points, collect money, attack opponents, and gain advantages. The player with the most victory points when any player runs out wins.

Components

• 55 cards: 26 character cards (yellow) and 29 building cards (green)
• 1 icon bar (5 parts, showing die results 1-6 plus bribery, money, and cards icons)
• 36 victory point tokens (1 VP and 2 VP pieces)
• Money (Sestertii) in various denominations
• 3 action dice per player (2 colors)
• 1 white battle die
• Rules leaflet

Setup

1. Assemble the icon bar and place centrally.
2. Each player takes 10 VP as personal supply and 3 action dice of their color.
3. Place remaining 16 VP, money, and battle die within reach.
4. Shuffle cards, deal 5 to each player. Each player gives 2 cards face down to their opponent.
5. Youngest player goes first: play all hand cards face up on their side of the icon bar, next to any die icon (1-6) or the bribery icon. Max 1 card per icon per player.
6. Other player does the same on their side.

Turn Structure

Each turn follows this sequence:

1. Roll action dice – Roll your 3 dice.
2. Use dice – Use each die to perform one action. Each die can: activate a card matching its number, collect money, or draw cards.
3. End of turn – Pass to opponent.

Actions

Activate a Card: Place a die on one of your cards matching that die’s number. Execute the card’s effect (earn VP, attack, gain resources, etc.). Some cards require 2 dice.

Collect Money: Place a die on the money icon to collect Sestertii from the bank.

Draw Cards: Place a die on the cards icon to draw cards from the draw pile. New cards can be played next to available icons on your side.

Bribery: Place a die on the bribery icon for special effects.

Playing New Cards: Cards have a cost in Sestertii. Pay the cost to place a new card next to an available icon on your side.

Battle: Some cards allow attacking the opponent’s card directly or diagonally opposite. Roll the white battle die. If the result meets or beats the target’s defense value, the target is discarded.

Reroll (special card): Certain cards allow rerolling action dice once at the start of your turn.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

• Players start with 10 VP each.
• VP are gained through card abilities and lost through opponent attacks.
• When any player’s VP personal supply reaches 0, the game ends immediately.
• The player with more VP wins. (The player at 0 can still win if their opponent has fewer through transfers.)

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Cards marked with “no die needed” are active as long as face up, requiring no die to use.
• Cards requiring 2 dice need 1 die to activate and 1 die to determine the effect strength.
• Character cards (yellow) are generally more aggressive; building cards (green) provide ongoing benefits.
• If a card is discarded through battle, the icon space it occupied becomes available.
• The draw pile can run out; if so, shuffle the discard pile to form a new draw pile.
• Arena: Roma II can be combined with the original Roma game for expanded options.

Player Reference

Die Use	Action
Match card number	Activate that card’s ability
Money icon	Collect Sestertii
Cards icon	Draw new cards
Bribery icon	Special bribery action

Card Type	Color	Nature
Character	Yellow	Aggressive/tactical
Building	Green	Economy/ongoing benefits