Overview

Chaos in the Old World is an asymmetric area-control strategy game set in the Warhammer Fantasy universe. Each player takes the role of one of four Ruinous Powers (Chaos Gods): Khorne (blood and battle), Nurgle (plague and disease), Tzeentch (magic and manipulation), or Slaanesh (pleasure and temptation). Players summon followers, play Chaos cards, and corrupt regions of the Old World to earn victory points or advance their unique Threat dial to win. If no player wins before the Old World deck runs out, all players lose.

Components

• 1 game board (9 regions, Threat dials, VP track)
• 4 Threat Dials with plastic connectors
• 4 Power Sheets (one per Chaos Power)
• 196 cardboard tokens (Power markers, VP markers, Dial Advancement counters, Corruption tokens, Old World tokens)
• 149 cards (96 Chaos cards, 20 Upgrade cards, 5 Ruination cards, 28 Old World cards)
• 5 dice
• 45 plastic followers:
  • Khorne: 1 Bloodthirster, 6 Bloodletters, 4 Cultists
  • Nurgle: 1 Great Unclean One, 5 Plaguebearers, 6 Cultists
  • Tzeentch: 1 Lord of Change, 3 Horrors, 8 Cultists
  • Slaanesh: 1 Keeper of Secrets, 3 Daemonettes, 6 Cultists

Setup

1. Attach Threat dials to the board (Khorne top, Nurgle right, Tzeentch bottom, Slaanesh left).
2. Each player takes a Power sheet, followers, Chaos cards (draw 3), power marker, VP marker, corruption tokens, and dial advancement counters.
3. Populate regions with Old World tokens (Peasants, Nobles, Heroes, Warpstone, Skaven) as indicated.
4. Shuffle Old World cards; reveal one and place it on the track.
5. Place Ruination cards nearby.
6. Set VP markers to 0.

Turn Structure

Each game round has 6 phases:

Phase 1: Old World Phase

Draw a new Old World card and place it face-up on the Old World track. Apply effects of expiring cards. Populate regions with tokens as indicated.

Phase 2: Draw Phase

Each player draws 2 Chaos cards (hand limit: 7).

Phase 3: Summoning Phase

Players take turns (Khorne > Nurgle > Tzeentch > Slaanesh) spending power points to summon followers and play Chaos cards in regions. Each follower and card has a power point cost. Continue until all players pass.

• Cultists: Cheap; place corruption tokens
• Warriors: Mid-cost; strong in battle
• Greater Daemons: Expensive; very powerful

Phase 4: Battle Phase

Resolve battles in each region (in numbered order) where opposing followers coexist. Each player rolls dice equal to their total battle value in that region. Hits scored on 4+ (5+ for some); assign hits to enemy figures. Removed figures return to owners. Khorne excels here.

Phase 5: Corruption Phase

In each region (numbered order):

1. Each Cultist places 1 corruption token in its region.
2. Some Chaos cards add corruption.
3. Check for Domination: the player with the most corruption tokens in a region dominates it and scores VP equal to the region’s value. Ties broken by most total figures in the region.
4. Check for Ruination: if total corruption in a region reaches 12+, the region is ruinated – all players with corruption there score bonus VP, a Ruination card replaces the region, and future scoring changes.

Phase 6: End Phase

Check for Threat dial advancement conditions unique to each power. Advance dials accordingly. Check victory conditions. Start player rotates.

Actions

Summoning

Spend power points to place figures on the board or play Chaos cards from hand.

Follower Type	Typical Cost	Role
Cultist	1 PP	Places corruption; cheap
Warrior	2-3 PP	Strong in battle
Greater Daemon	4-5 PP	Very powerful; unique abilities

Chaos Cards

Each power has unique cards that manipulate battles, corruption, movement, and more. Cards are played during the Summoning phase and may have instant or persistent effects.

Upgrade Cards

Each power has 5 Upgrade cards revealed through dial advancement. These provide permanent bonuses.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

Two paths to victory:

1. Victory Points: If any player reaches 50 VP at the end of a round, the player with the most VP wins (tiebreaker: most dial advancements, then most corruption on the board).

2. Threat Dial: Each power has a unique advancement condition. When a power’s dial reaches the final position, that player wins immediately (takes priority over VP victory).

Threat Dial Advancement Conditions: | Power | Advances When… | |——-|—————–| | Khorne | Kills enemy figures in battle | | Nurgle | Has cultists in 2+ regions with at least 1 Peasant token | | Tzeentch | Has cultists in 2+ regions with at least 1 Warpstone token | | Slaanesh | Has cultists in 2+ regions with at least 1 Noble or Hero token |

Loss condition: If the Old World deck is exhausted and no player has won, all players lose.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Each region has a Resistance value; higher-resistance regions are harder to dominate and ruinate.
• Heroes in a region deal automatic hits to Chaos followers during battle.
• Ruinated regions are permanently changed and may no longer be entered or corrupted normally.
• The dial not only tracks victory progress but also unlocks Upgrade cards at specific positions.
• Populous regions (marked) receive additional Old World tokens.
• 3-player game: one power is not used (rules specify which can be omitted).
• Corruption token supply is limited (29 per power); if depleted, you cannot place more.

Player Reference

Round phases: Old World > Draw > Summoning > Battle > Corruption > End

Victory: 50 VP at end of round OR complete Threat dial advancement

Battle: Roll dice per battle value; hits on 4+ (5+ for some); assign to enemies

Corruption/Domination:

• Cultists place corruption tokens
• Most corruption in region = domination (score region VP)
• 12+ total corruption = Ruination (bonus VP, region changes)

Power costs: Cultist ~1PP, Warrior ~2-3PP, Greater Daemon ~4-5PP, Chaos Cards ~1-3PP