Overview

City of the Great Machine is an asymmetric one-vs-many steampunk board game. One player controls the Great Machine, a steam-powered AI ruling the city with an iron grip. The other players are Heroes fighting to free citizens from its control. The Great Machine wins by completing the Master Plan before the Heroes can awaken enough citizens to revolt. The Heroes win by raising the city’s discontent to trigger a revolution.

Components

• 1 modular city game board (districts)
• Great Machine dashboard
• Hero character boards (multiple heroes)
• Servant miniatures and tokens
• Citizen tokens (with awakened/oppressed states)
• Event cards, action cards
• Master Plan track
• Discontent track
• Various tokens and markers

Setup

1. Assemble the modular city board.
2. The Great Machine player takes the dashboard and servant miniatures.
3. Each Hero player selects a hero and takes their character board and starting equipment.
4. Place citizen tokens on districts as indicated.
5. Set up the Master Plan track and Discontent track.
6. Distribute starting cards and tokens per scenario.

Turn Structure

Great Machine Turn

1. Advance Master Plan: Move the Master Plan marker forward.
2. Deploy Servants: Place servant units on the board.
3. Take Actions: Move servants, oppress citizens, build machines, play event cards.
4. Hidden Movement: The Great Machine’s master servant moves secretly.

Heroes Turn

Each Hero takes a turn:

1. Move: Travel between districts.
2. Perform Actions: Awaken citizens, gather resources, sabotage machines, confront servants.
3. Special Abilities: Use hero-specific powers.

Actions

Great Machine Actions

• Oppress Citizens: Convert awakened citizens back to oppressed state.
• Build Machines: Construct devices that enhance control.
• Move Servants: Reposition servant units.
• Play Events: Use event cards for powerful effects.
• Patrol: Search districts for hidden heroes.

Hero Actions

• Awaken Citizens: Convert oppressed citizens to awakened, raising discontent.
• Sabotage: Destroy Great Machine installations.
• Investigate: Gain information about the Great Machine’s plans.
• Recruit: Gain citizen allies for special actions.
• Rally: Organize awakened citizens for greater effect.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

• Great Machine wins: Complete the Master Plan (track reaches the end) before the revolution.
• Heroes win: Raise the Discontent track to the revolution threshold.
• Game ends immediately when either condition is met.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• The Great Machine uses hidden movement for its master servant, adding a deduction element.
• Each hero has unique abilities that complement different strategies.
• Citizens can fluctuate between awakened and oppressed states throughout the game.
• Solo rules allow one player to control all Heroes against an automated Great Machine.
• Districts have special properties that affect actions taken there.
• The modular board provides different layouts each game.

Player Reference

Win Condition	Player
Master Plan completed	Great Machine
Discontent reaches revolution	Heroes

Great Machine Phase	Action
1. Advance Plan	Move Master Plan marker
2. Deploy	Place servants
3. Actions	Move, oppress, build, events

Hero Phase	Action
1. Move	Travel between districts
2. Actions	Awaken, sabotage, investigate
3. Special	Use unique hero powers