Overview

Pendulum is a turnless real-time worker-placement strategy game where players are nobles vying to succeed the Timeless King as ruler of Dunya. Players simultaneously place workers on action spaces timed by sand timers, managing their time as a resource across three different action areas. The game runs in real time except during periodic Council phases. The player who best manages four victory tracks (Power, Prestige, Popularity, and Legendary Achievement) wins.

Components

• 1 game board (double-sided: 1-3 players / 4-5 players)
• 1 council board and summary tile
• 5 player mats (double-sided for asymmetric characters)
• 15 common workers (3 per player)
• 10 grande workers (2 per player)
• 20 VP tokens (4 per player)
• 5 hexagonal privilege markers, 5 octagonal achievement markers
• 150 resource cubes (50 each of 3 types, 10 per player)
• 50 vote tokens, 10 ten-vote chips (2 per player)
• 3 sand timers (green 45s, black 2min, purple 3min)
• 3 time markers
• Province cards, stratagem cards, achievement cards, council reward cards
• 1 legendary achievement token
• Optional: 1 timer track board and time token for untimed variant

Setup

1. Place the game board (correct side for player count) centrally.
2. Place the council board nearby.
3. Place the 3 sand timers on matching-color action areas in the top-row gold circles.
4. Shuffle achievement cards; reveal the top one with the legendary achievement token.
5. Shuffle province cards; deal 4 face up to the display.
6. Each player takes their character’s stratagem cards, player mat, 3 common workers, 2 grande workers, 4 VP tokens, starting resources, and starting province cards.
7. Place VP tokens on starting positions of the 4 victory tracks.

Turn Structure

Pendulum has no turns during the action phase. Players act simultaneously in real time. The game alternates between:

Action Rounds (Real-Time)

All players act simultaneously. When a sand timer runs out, any player may flip it, unlocking the workers on the now-uncovered row and locking workers on the covered row:

1. Place workers on open action spaces (top row when timer is up, bottom row when timer is down).
2. Retrieve workers from spaces that have been timed (the timer has flipped over them).
3. Execute the action of the space when retrieving a timed worker.

Council Phase (Turn-Based)

After a set number of timer flips, the Council phase triggers:

1. All action stops.
2. Players may retrieve any remaining timed workers and resolve their actions.
3. Play council reward cards and resolve council voting.
4. Advance victory tracks based on council results.
5. Reset for the next round.

Actions

The three action areas correspond to the three timers:

Timer Color	Duration	Action Type
Green	45 seconds	Quick actions (gain resources, basic moves)
Black	2 minutes	Medium actions (provinces, stratagems)
Purple	3 minutes	Long actions (major strategic moves, achievements)

Common Action Types

• Gain resources (military, culture, gold)
• Acquire province cards from the display
• Play stratagem cards for special effects
• Advance on victory tracks
• Gain votes for council phases
• Claim achievements for legendary track progress

Worker Placement Rules

• Only 1 common worker per player per action space.
• Grande workers can share a space with a common worker.
• Workers must be timed (the sand timer must flip over them) before they can be retrieved and their action resolved.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

The game ends after the final Council phase (typically 4 rounds).

To win, a player must meet the minimum threshold on all 4 victory tracks. Among players who meet all thresholds, the player with the highest legendary achievement wins. If tied, the player with the most votes wins.

Players who fail to meet any threshold cannot win regardless of other track positions.

Victory Track	Measures
Power	Military strength
Prestige	Cultural influence
Popularity	Public support
Legendary	Exceptional deeds

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Real-time etiquette: Any player may flip a timer when it runs out. Players should not intentionally delay flipping.
• Grande workers are more flexible than common workers and can be placed on already-occupied spaces.
• Stratagem cards are unique to each character and provide asymmetric abilities.
• Province cards are placed on your player mat and can generate ongoing resources or bonuses.
• Untimed variant: For learning games, use the timer track board. Players take turns flipping a single token to simulate timer movement. Strongly recommended for first games.
• Solo mode: Included with specific rules for playing against an automated opponent.
• Each character’s player mat is double-sided with different difficulty/complexity levels.

Player Reference

Phase	Type	Description
Action Round	Real-time	Place/retrieve workers; execute actions when timers flip
Council	Turn-based	Vote, resolve council cards, advance tracks

Timer	Duration	Action Weight
Green	45 sec	Light/Quick
Black	2 min	Medium
Purple	3 min	Heavy/Strategic

Win condition: Meet all 4 track thresholds, then highest legendary achievement wins.