Midway Through the Unnamed Decade
More New Cards for Deluxe Illuminati
by Steve Honeywell
The world changes, the Illuminati change right along with them. It seems that every year, something new appears in the world, and the Illuminati squabble over it like alley cats fighting for a fish head.
The following 18 new groups are suggested as possibilities for those blank Illuminati cards. Additionally, a new Illuminati has emerged after centuries of staying shrouded in mystery.
Accountants
In Arrow:
Left
Out Arrows:
Right
Power:
1
Resistance:
4
Income:
2
Alignments:
Straight, Peaceful
Pay 5MB from this group at the end of your turn and reorganize your money freely. This is not an action.
Amnesty Multinational
In Arrow:
Right
Out Arrows:
None
Power:
0
Resistance:
5
Income:
0
Alignments:
Liberal, Peaceful, Fanatic
+1 on any attempt to destroy any Government or Communist group.
Bloggers
In Arrow:
Left
Out Arrows:
None
Power:
0/2
Resistance:
6
Income:
1
Alignments:
Fanatic
+2 on any attempt to neutralize or destroy.
Boy Bands
In Arrow:
Left
Out Arrows:
Up
Power:
2
Resistance:
0
Income:
5
Alignments:
Straight, Peaceful
+2 for direct control of Recording Industry or Empty Vee.
Cell Phones
In Arrow:
Right
Out Arrows:
Up, Down
Power:
2/3
Resistance:
1
Income:
2
Alignments:
None
+2 for direct control of Phone Company.
+4 for direct control of Phone Phreaks.
Civil War Re-enactors
In Arrow:
Right
Out Arrows:
None
Power:
0
Resistance:
6
Income:
2
Alignments:
Weird, Violent
+1 on any attempt to control Survivalists, Militia, and Gun Lobby.
Documentary Filmmakers
In Arrow:
Right
Out Arrows:
Left
Power:
1/1
Resistance:
6
Income:
1
Alignments:
Liberal
+1 on any attempt to control, neutralize, or destroy Hollywood and Big Media.
Eye-Pods
In Arrow:
Left
Out Arrows:
None
Power:
0/1
Resistance:
3
Income:
3
Alignments:
Straight
Once per turn, owner can add, remove, or reverse an alignment of any other group in his power structure; change lasts for owner's turn only.
Karate Schools
In Arrow:
Left
Out Arrows:
Up
Power:
1
Resistance:
6
Income:
2
Alignments:
Straight, Violent
+1 on any attempt to destroy.
La Lethe League
In Arrow:
Left
Out Arrows:
Down
Power:
2
Resistance:
*
Income:
1
Alignments:
Fanatic, Violent, Criminal
Normal resistance 3; against any Conservative or Fanatic group, resistance 10.
People Eating Tasty Animals
In Arrow:
Right
Out Arrows:
Left, Down
Power:
2
Resistance:
4
Income:
1
Alignments:
Fanatic
+1 for direct control of Fast Food Chains.
Prisons
In Arrow:
Right
Out Arrows:
Left, Up
Power:
3
Resistance:
3
Income:
0
Alignments:
Straight, Violent, Government
+1 for direct control of Criminal groups.
Real Estate Agents
In Arrow:
Right
Out Arrows:
Down
Power:
2
Resistance:
0
Income:
3
Alignments:
Straight, Peaceful
Owner may move one group freely at the end of his turn. This is not an action.
RE-Bay
In Arrow:
Left
Out Arrows:
Right, Up
Power:
3
Resistance:
1
Income:
5
Alignments:
Weird
Owner may transfer money from this card freely. This is not an action.
Right-Wing Media Conspiracy
In Arrow:
Right
Out Arrows:
Up, Down
Power:
1/3
Resistance:
6
Income:
2
Alignments:
Conservative, Fanatic
+2 on any attempt to destroy Liberal, Communist, and Weird groups; cannot be used in any attempt to destroy Conservative or Government groups.
Roadside Tourist Traps
In Arrow:
Left
Out Arrows:
None
Power:
0
Resistance:
1
Income:
2
Alignments:
Weird
+1 on any attempt to control Video Games and Theme Parks.
Soccer Hooligans
In Arrow:
Right
Out Arrows:
None
Power:
0
Resistance:
6
Income:
0
Alignments:
Violent, Fanatic
+1 on any attempt to destroy.
Spyware
In Arrow:
Left
Out Arrows:
None
Power:
0/1
Resistance:
1
Income:
0
Alignments:
Criminal
Pay 5MB from this group to interfere with a privileged attack.
New Illuminati: The Market
Power:
7/7
Income:
10
The Market is the classic zero-sum game. You make a dollar, someone else loses a dollar. In truth, no matter who makes money in the Market, the Market itself rakes in tons of cash. Since the first time two people had something the other wanted, the Market has existed. Today, the Market is everywhere, and everything is for sale. The Market cares nothing for money in the bank. Instead, it craves cash flow.
Power and Goals: The Market wins if its entire power structure has an income of 40 megabucks or more, including its own income of 10. Use of Special Action cards like Market Manipulation does not count as income for determining victory conditions. During the income phase of its turn, the Market can distribute money freely, dividing up its total income as it sees fit. At the end of its turn, the Market may make two additional free money transfers.
Playing The Market: If your opponents will allow you to take high income groups, so much the better for you. There are a lot of groups out there with incomes in the 6+ range, and snapping up a couple of them puts you within sight of your special victory condition. Of course, you can expect a lot of resistance if you start going for OPEC, Multinational Oil Companies, Loan Sharks, and Video Games, particularly if you are playing against the Gnomes.
Instead, play similarly to the Gnomes and go for groups with lower incomes. A few solid groups bringing in money will be just as good for you as one powerful group. To keep yourself protected, groups with a moderate income but significant power and/or resistance will help you defend against attacks and keep the money flowing. Groups like New York, CFL-AIO, Texas, Defense Contractors, and Triliberal Commission are all powerful enough to be useful, hard to take or destroy once controlled, and have incomes that are decent without being scary. While your opponents are busy adding up your total income, you can go for a regular victory.
Don't be afraid to spend your money. Unlike the Gnomes, you don't need to horde. If you are attacked, especially if your biggest income-producing groups come under fire, spend freely to protect them. Your power isn't sexy, but stockpiling resources at the start of a turn gives you the ability to spend a ton of cash on a particular action. Outspend, and you can outlast.
Finally, watch out for the Assassins, and befriend them if you can. While the Gnomes can stack up mountains of money on their Illuminati and win, you can't. You are entirely reliant on the strength of your entire power structure. Attacks to neutralize are a serious threat to you, and anything you can do to avoid them will benefit you in the long run.
Opposing The Market: Keep a careful eye on what the Market picks up. It's possible that with the right combination of cards, the Market can win with just four groups under his thumb. While you can destroy groups like OPEC and the I.R.S., often it is better to take them and keep them away from the Market. Should he take high-income groups, your best bet is to attack to neutralize unless you are playing Cthulhu. Try to get the Gnomes to spend all of their money attacking the Market and you weaken two opponents at once.
Once the Market gets close to his victory conditions, it will be very expensive to bring him down. A coalition is the only way to have enough money to neutralize or destroy his power structure.
New Rules and Clarifications
- Fort Knox: For the purposes of determining income, Fort Knox counts as having an income of 1.
- I.R.S.: For the purposes of determining income, the I.R.S. counts as having an income of 2 for each opposing player.
- Post Office: The Post Office's negative income counts against the Market's total income.
- Savings and Loans: The Market may draw one extra card per turn if it controls this group.
- State Lotteries: The Market gets +2 income if it controls this group. This +2 income counts toward the Market's total income.
Article publication date: June 17, 2005
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