Section 4: Gameplay
A turn has three phases in order: receive and place reinforcements, attack if desired, and fortify if desired. A player must complete each phase before moving to the next and may not return to an earlier phase.
Phase 1: Reinforcements
Count the territories controlled at the beginning of the turn and divide that number by three, ignoring any remainder. The player receives that many armies, with a minimum of three armies even when the calculation produces fewer.
Add the bonus for every continent the player controls completely at the beginning of the turn: 5 for North America, 2 for South America, 5 for Europe, 3 for Africa, 7 for Asia, and 2 for Australia. Continent bonuses are not awarded for partial control.
The player may also exchange a valid set of territory cards. Under the classic escalating schedule, successive sets traded by anyone during the game are worth 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, and 15 armies. Each later set is worth five more armies than the preceding set: 20, 25, 30, and so on.
If a player trades a card displaying a territory they currently control, that territory receives two additional armies. When multiple owned territories appear in the set, the two-army bonus is still applied to only one eligible territory. This bonus is separate from the main set value.
A player beginning the turn with five or more cards must trade a valid set. A player with fewer than five cards may trade a valid set or save the cards. All reinforcements must be placed on territories the player controls before attacking.
Phase 2: Attack
Attacking is optional, and a player may conduct any number of attacks during this phase. To attack, choose a controlled territory containing at least two armies and an enemy territory connected to it by a shared border or printed connection line.
- The attacker rolls one, two, or three dice, but must leave at least one army behind. Three attack dice therefore require at least four armies in the attacking territory.
- The defender rolls one or two dice. Two defense dice require at least two armies in the defending territory.
- Both sides roll simultaneously and arrange their results from highest to lowest.
- Compare the highest attacker die with the highest defender die. The lower result loses one army.
- If both sides rolled at least two dice, compare their second-highest dice in the same way.
- Every tied comparison is won by the defender, so the attacker loses one army.
Remove all losses immediately. If the defender still has an army in the territory, the attacker may attack again, attack elsewhere, or stop attacking.
Conquering a Territory
When the defender's last army is removed, the attacker conquers the territory and must move armies into it from the attacking territory. The attacker must move at least as many armies as the number of dice used in the final attack roll, and may move more. At least one army must remain behind in the territory from which the attack was made.
The newly conquered territory may attack an adjacent enemy territory later in the same attack phase if it contains enough armies. Armies may never pass through an enemy-controlled territory without conquering it.
Eliminating a Player
A player is eliminated upon losing their final territory. The conquering player takes all territory cards held by the eliminated player. If this gives the conqueror six or more cards, the conqueror must immediately trade sets until holding four or fewer cards, placing the resulting armies before continuing the attack phase. With exactly five cards, the conqueror must make an immediate trade if a valid set is available.
Taking a Card
If the active player conquered at least one territory during the turn, that player draws exactly one territory card after finishing all attacks. Conquering several territories still earns only one card. A player who conquered no territory draws no card.
Phase 3: Fortification
At the end of the turn, the player may make one fortification move. Move any positive number of armies from one controlled territory to another controlled territory connected by an uninterrupted path of that player's territories. At least one army must remain in the starting territory.
The entire transfer counts as one fortification, regardless of the path's length. Armies do not stop in intermediate territories. A group preferring the older adjacent-only style may require the two territories to share a direct border, but that choice must be announced before play.
After the optional fortification and any earned card draw, play passes clockwise to the next player.