The Acquisitions Phase
Acquisitions is the fourth of the seven phases of each round — it is where coins turn into presence on the board. Unlike the Announcements, Income and Check Victory phases, which the game resolves on its own, this one always stops and waits for you.
You arrive with the money already banked: the Income phase immediately before is automatic and credits your coins (in round 1 every player starts with 6 coins as a stake). The financial report becomes a notification in the bell.
How the panel works
The Acquisitions panel shows your balance at the top and works like a shopping cart: you add items, watch the Cart Total and the Balance after purchase, and only then confirm with Buy. Nothing is charged until you confirm — Reset clears the whole cart.
The panel gathers four kinds of spending, each in its own section: settlement improvements, Judge titles, ransoming captive generals, and the Sacrifice for the Guilt.
Settlement improvements
The Settlements section lists only the settlements you control and that are not under siege — a besieged settlement accepts no purchase at all.
| Improvement | Cost | Effect | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Troop | 2 coins | Strengthens the garrison defending the settlement | 6 per settlement |
| Wall | 10 coins | +4 defence; makes the village eligible to become a judge city | 1 per settlement |
| Development | 6 coins | +2 income per round; +6 coins on loot | 2 per settlement and 7 on the whole board |
| Tabernacle | 30 coins | 1 victory point; unlocks the Sacrifice for the Guilt | 1 in the entire game |
The panel shows how many developments are still left on the board — once all 7 are built, nobody can buy another until one is destroyed.
The Tabernacle button only appears if you control a city, have one of your generals carrying the **Ark**, and no Tabernacle exists in the game at that moment.
The details of each improvement are in the chapter The Board.
Judge titles — 10 coins
A Judge title is worth 1 victory point (and 3 win the game), which makes it the most decisive purchase of the phase.
The section only lists regions that already meet every condition:
- the region has at least 4 settlements;
- there is no judge in it yet, and it has no city yet;
- you control every settlement of the region;
- you own a walled village there;
- you have a free general (not captive) who does not already hold another title.
The purchase takes two steps: first you choose the general who will hold the title, then you tap 📍 Select on the Map to point at the walled village that will become the judge’s city. That village becomes a city permanently — it never reverts.
If no region qualifies at the moment, the panel says so instead of offering the purchase.
Ransoming captive generals — 6 coins
When one of your generals loses a battle they do not die: they become the winner’s captive. The Captured Generals section lists yours, and for 6 coins you bring one back.
The ransom needs a destination: tap 📍 Select on the Map and point at a settlement of yours that still has room — that is, with fewer than 2 free generals of yours. If no settlement has space, the panel says so and the ransom is unavailable.
The freed general arrives at the settlement with no troops at all: they are back on the board, but unarmed, and will need troops handed to them later.
Ransoming early pays. A captive is dead weight — they do not count as your presence on the board (losing every settlement while all your generals are captive eliminates you) and they can change hands: at the start of the Check Victory phase custody is reconciled, and a captive standing on a hex their captor no longer controls passes to whoever controls that hex — or is freed outright, if that controller is their original owner.
Sacrifice for the Guilt — 20 coins
This option only appears for whoever owns the Tabernacle. For 20 coins you shed 3 points of the Wrath of God.
It is the only way to make the meter fall. The reduction is logged immediately but only applied at the next Announcements reconciliation, and the meter never drops below zero.
Cards playable in this phase
| Card | In this phase? | Where else |
|---|---|---|
| Blessing | ✅ | [[60. Projects/Promised Land - manual/en/draw-cards |
| Assassin | ✅ | any phase except Combat |
| Justice | ✅ (if some general carries the Assassin title) | any phase except Combat |
| Tax | ❌ | Draw Cards only |
| Revolt | ❌ | Draw Cards or Movement |
| Secret Passage | ❌ | Movement only |
What to prioritise
Three readings that tend to decide a game:
- Garrison before marching. A general leaving a settlement leaves whatever troops are there behind. Garrisoning before advancing keeps you from losing for free what is already yours.
- The wall is the gate to a victory point. Without a walled village in the region, controlling every settlement of it still yields no Judge title. Those 10 coins buy defence and the chance to score.
- Developments are a contested resource. The cap of 7 applies to the whole board, not per player: every development an opponent builds is one fewer for everyone.