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C O L L E C T O R ’ S E D I T I O N R U L E B O O K

CREATED BY ZAIN MEMON

 GAME
BOARD

1
IDEOLOGY
CARDS

108
W H A T ’ S
I N T H E
B O X

IDEOLOGUE
CARDS 4

VOTERS
300
(60X5)

20
60
CONSPIRACY
CARDS
VOTER
CARDS

HEADLINE
CARDS
20
 H Q M AT

P L AY E R
M ATS

RESOURCES

FUNDS CLOUT MEDIA TRUST 3

50 50 50 50

GAME CONTENTS

1 x Game Board
60 x Voter Cards K I C KSTA RT E R PR O M OT I O N A L
300 (60x5) x Voter Pegs R EWA R D S
200 (50x4) x Resource Tokens
1 x HQ Mat
5 x Player Mats
4 x Ideologue Cards 1 x Edge of Chaos Mat
11 x Home Turfs
5 x I Owe You Tokens
K I C KSTA RT E R E D I T I O N 2 x Tracker Tokens
13 x Elite Cards
108 x Ideology Cards 12 x Cost of Victory Cards
20 x Conspiracy Cards 1 x Scenario Book
20 x Headline Cards 5 x Voter Pouches with Party Symbols
1 x Cardboard Public Reserve Box
PRESIDENTIAL EDITION 1 x Collector’s Edition Rule Book

432 x Ideology Cards

80 x Conspiracy Cards
80 x Headline Cards
 F R O M
T H E
C R E A T O R S

In early 2018, we set out to build an

intervention that could create real
political dialogue, without all the
hostility, pitchfork-carrying tribalism
and whataboutery that had long since
become the norm in politics.

We wanted to create something that

could bring people together, engage and
entertain, while enabling conversations
about our most urgent problems. As our
first game, SHASN tries to manifest our
aspirations - of reflecting upon the real
world, through the sheer joy of gaming.

To our delight, the tabletop community

welcomed us with open arms. It’s been
4 the warmest and coolest community
we’ve ever been a part of. SHASN would
not have been possible without all the
support we received.

If this game helps you hash out your

differences with another player, or
even find some common ground, we
will consider our job done. At the very
least, we hope it gives you another lens
through which to interpret our world,
and at the most, we hope it inspires you
to participate in the democractic process
further.

Games are a profound medium. We’re

so excited for more creators to tell
meaningful stories through them in the
future, and hope to do the same. Thank
you so much for the support and vote of
confidence that has made it possible.
 H O W T O
R E A D T H I S
R U L E B O O K

This rulebook has been split into two parts - a narrative introduction
phase, and a detailed list of rules for every mechanic. On your first
readthrough, only read the top section of each page (marked with )
to learn how to begin the game. Once you start playing, you can refer
to individual sections to check for additional rules.

What’s In The Box 2

From The Creators 4
Index 5
Shasn / ∫a Sən 6
Objective & Setup 7
Forming Majorities 8
Breaking Majorities 9
Influencing Voters 10 I N D E X
5
Resources 11
Resource Cap And Trading 12
Ideology Cards 13
Content Advisory 14
Ideologues 15
Gerrymandering 16
Volatile Areas And Headline Cards 18
Conspiracy Cards 19
End-Game Scoring 20
Order Of Turn 21
Elites 22
Home Turfs 23
Edge Of Chaos 24
2 Player Mode 26
Ideologue Powers Explained 28
The Capitalist 29
The Supremo 30
The Showstopper 31
The Idealist 32
Reference 33
Glossary Of Terms 34
Credit List 35
 (noun) Origin: Sanskrit
S H A S N
1. Governance, rule, or regime
/ ∫ A SƏN 2. Throne, or seat of power

Welcome to SHASN. You are a politician.

Enter an election that will decide the fate of your nation.

Copyright 2019, Memesys Lab. Colours may vary.

 O B J E C T I V E
& S E T U P

The game ends when all possible majorities in all zones

have been formed. The player with the highest number of
majority voters wins the game.

▶ Each player selects a Player Mat, along with its

corresponding bag of voter pegs and I Owe You
Token.
▶ All players vote to determine Player 1. In the case of
a tie, vote again. Players cannot vote for themselves.
Players take turns clockwise.
▶ Player 1 receives any 1 resource of their choice from
the Public Reserve (i.e., the resource bank). Player
2 receives any 2 resources. Player 3 receives any 3
resources. Player 4 receives any 4 resources. Player 5
receives any 5 resources. Players keep their resources
on their Player Mats. 7

Designer’s Note: This is to offset first

player advantage.

G A M E P L A Y T I P :
Every starting position offers a
different advantage. You could strike
deals with other players in order to
influence their vote.

▶ Select a campaign. Remove any Ideology Cards if

desired, based on Content Advisory.
▶ Shuffle that campaign’s corresponding decks
of Ideology Cards, Conspiracy Cards, and Headline
Cards.
▶ Place the following on the HQ Mat:

▷ Conspiracy Cards.
▷ Headline Cards.
▷ Voter Cards. Draw and place the top 3 cards face up.
 F O R M I N G
M A J O R I T I E S

There are 9 zones on the board. Elections will be contested

in each of these zones. Form a majority in a zone by
influencing more than half the voters in that zone.

Each of the 9 zones can hold a maximum number

of voters. The fraction on each zone denotes its
majority requirement.

This zone has

space for 11
voters. You
must place
6 of your
own voters
8 out of the 11
total possible
voters in this
zone to form a
majority here.

▶ Every voter peg has a blank side and a side

marked with its party symbol. Non-majority voters
are placed on the board with the blank side up.
▶ A majority is formed in a zone immediately after its
majority requirement is met.
▶ To denote a formed majority in a zone, flip over as
many voters as were required to form the majority,
with the party symbol side up. Each voter used to
form a majority (called a ‘majority voter’) earns you 1
point during end-game scoring.

Designer’s Note: We understand that this does not accurately

represent any one political system. The ambition was to
translate the fundamental ideas behind the democratic process
in general, to allow the game to be played around the world.
 By
forming a
majority in
the North-
West zone,
you have
earned 6
points.

▶ Only the number of majority voters count

towards a player’s final total in the game. In the
above illustration, placing any more voters in this
zone after the first 6 will not earn any additional
points and will be kept with the blank side up.

▶ A majority can be broken through B R E A K I N G

certain powers and effects. If you no MAJORITIES 9
longer have enough voters to meet the
majority requirement of a zone, your
majority breaks. Flip over your remaining
voters blank side up.

G A M E P L A Y T I P :
Once you form a majority, don’t take
it for granted. A majority can be
broken. Watch your back.
 I N F L U E N C I N G
VO T E R S

Voters can be influenced through Voter Cards. Each Voter

Card has a combination of resources on it. Pay these
resources to the Public Reserve (the resource bank) in
order to influence that many voters and place them on
the board.

10

Voter Cards can contain 1, 2 or 3 voters. Three open

Voter Cards must always be available on the HQ Mat.

▶ After influencing a Voter Card, a player must place

its voters on the board in a single zone.
▶ Any influenced voters must be placed on the
board by the end of the same turn. Failure to do so
will lead to these voters being discarded.
▶ Voters from a single Voter Card cannot be split
across zones. Voters obtained from any other means
can be split.
▶ After a Voter Card is influenced, discard it and
immediately flip open a new one in its place from
the draw pile.
▶ There is no limit to how many voters you can
influence in your turn.
▶ If the draw pile gets emptied, shuffle and reuse all
the discarded Voter Cards.
▶ If there aren’t enough empty areas left in any one
zone to place the influenced voters from a single
Voter Card, all voters from that card get discarded.
 R E S O U R C E S

There are 4 resources in SHASN - Campaign Funds, Street

Clout, Media Attention, and Public Trust. Earn and trade
resources in order to influence Voter Cards.

▶ Campaign Funds: If there is ▶ Media Attention: In an era of

a profit to be made, someone’s media saturation, it is vital for
making it. Earn the support politicians to maximise visibility
and funds of industry giants in the public eye. If you choose
by promising business-friendly to baffle, entertain and outrage
practices and creating market with your words, you will earn
demand through your policies. lots of media attention.

11

▶ Street Clout: If politics is a ▶ Public Trust: Intention

numbers game, leaders that matters. When you seek to
appeal to the majority set create a world where all can
themselves up for success. engage in the pursuit of
Accumulate clout quickly happiness, regardless of who
by tending to populist they are, where they come from,
sentiments and engaging in or the pragmatism of change,
identity politics. you will earn people’s trust.

All four resources are equally important, and are used to influence
voters, buy Conspiracies, and take special actions.

A indicates that a player can spend any resource of their choice.

 R E S O U R C E
C A P A N D
T R A D I N G

▶ You will earn resources from Ideology Cards and

passive Ideologue Powers (page 28).
▶ Players have a default resource cap of 12.
▶ If at any time you cross your resource cap, you
must choose and discard any excess resources down
to your current resource cap. You cannot take any
other actions until you do so.
▶ You can trade resources and Conspiracy Cards
with opponents.
▶ You can trade resources with other players in any
ratio. At least 1 resource must be exchanged by both
12 parties. At least 1 player must be the active player for
a trade to occur.
▶ You can initiate a trade at any point during your
turn.
▶ Ideology Cards cannot be traded (unless specified
otherwise).

A U C T I O N ▶ Certain events in the game will initiate an auction.

▶ You can bid up to as many resources as your
resource cap during an auction. You do not need to
hold the number of resources you bid. If you win the
bid, you can pay off the bid amount in successive
turns. The seller can now take your I Owe You Token
and keep it above their Player Mat to keep track of
how many resources you owe them.
▶ However, you cannot make any purchases until
you have completely paid off your bid.
▶ If nobody places a bid for your auctioned item,
discard it and receive the minimum bid value from
the Public Reserve.
 I D E O L O G Y
C A R D S

Resources are earned from answering Ideology Cards. At the start

of each turn, the player on your right will read aloud both sides of
the top Ideology Card for you. Ideology Cards pose important policy
questions. You will have to pick between the two available answers
on each card. Every answer will yield a different set of resources.

▶ Players take turns in clockwise order. At the start

of your turn, the player to your right will draw the top
Ideology Card and read both sides aloud to you. These
Ideology Cards pose important policy questions.

13

▶ You must choose between the 2 available answers,

each of which corresponds to an Ideologue and
yields a different set of resources. After confirming
your answer, keep the card under your Player Mat
with your answer face up and receive the resources
denoted on it.
▶ Before answering an Ideology Card, you can also
choose to have it redrawn by paying any 4 resources
to the Public Reserve. If you do so, the player to your
G A M E P L A Y
right should discard this Ideology Card and draw a T I P :
new one. Read between the lines - every
Ideologue has a distinct voice.
▶ Keep the Ideology Card hidden until the active
player has confirmed their answer. Every Campaign
Box is especially designed for this purpose.

Designer’s Note: While replaying the same campaign multiple times

might familiarize players with some of the answers, Ideology Cards
are only a small part of the gameplay experience. The interactions of
all the other components, along with a strong social strategy element,
ensure replayability for all your games to come.
 C O N T E N T
A D V I S O R Y

Certain Ideology Cards include sensitive themes and

subject matter. Such cards are marked with or You
may choose to remove these cards before the game begins.
Doing so will not affect the gameplay experience adversely.

Mature/ Sensitive Themes

Trigger Warning

14

Designer’s Note: We have chosen to include these questions

because they do exist in the real world and can inspire necessary
conversations. To exclude them would be to pretend that they
don’t affect our lives. However, due to their sensitive nature, we
have given players the option to play with them as they see fit.
 IDEOLOGUES

In SHASN, both answers on an Ideology Card belong to a

different Ideologue. There are 4 Ideologues -
The Capitalist, The Supremo, The Showstopper, and The
Idealist. As you collect multiple cards belonging to these
Ideologues, you will unlock exciting powers.

▶ Build a unique combination of ideologies and powers each time you

play. Every resource also corresponds to one of the four Ideologues.

T H E CA PI TA L I ST THE SUPREMO THE SHOWSTOPPER THE IDEALIST

15

▶ While answering an Ideology Card in your turn, you have two answers to
choose from. Both answers belong to different Ideologues, denoted by the
colored band at the bottom of the card.
▶ Every Ideologue has a passive power: For every 2 Ideology Cards you hold
of an Ideologue, get 1 extra resource of that type.
▶ Collecting 3 Ideology Cards of a single Ideologue unlocks their Level 3 Power.
▶ Collecting 5 Ideology Cards of a single Ideologue unlocks their Level 5 Power.
▶ Ideologue Powers can be used in the same turn in which they are unlocked.
▶ You can have multiple Ideologue Powers active at the same time.
▶ You can use your unlocked Ideologue Powers every turn, as long as you still
hold the number of Ideology Cards needed to use each power.
 G E R R Y-
M A N D E R I N G

Gain Gerrymandering Rights in a zone by having the most

voters there. This allows you to Gerrymander (move) one
non-majority voter in or out that zone, or in between two
adjacent zones every turn. Gerrymander to disperse your
opponent’s voters and consolidate your own.

16

If you have Gerrymandering Rights

in North-West, you can Gerrymander
voters in or out of it. You can also
Gerrymander voters in between
adjacent zones.
▶ You can only Gerrymander non-
majority voters, ie, voters that are not
used to form majorities (unless specified
otherwise).
▶ You can Gerrymander voters
belonging to all players, including your
own.
▶ If you gain Gerrymandering Rights in
a zone during your turn, you may use it
in the same turn.
▶ If two or more players are tied for
most voters in a zone, no player has
Gerrymandering Rights in that zone.
▶ Voters in Volatile Areas cannot be
Gerrymandered. 17
▶ Having even 1 voter in a zone with no
other voters gives you Gerrymandering
Rights in that zone. However, you may
not move your only voter out of a zone
by using that zone’s Gerrymandering
Rights.

G A M E P L A Y T I P :
Gerrymandering is an important
strategy to slow opponents down
by dispersing their voters. When you
can Gerrymander, Gerrymander.

Designer’s Note: We understand that real-world

Gerrymandering redraws the district and does not entail
moving the voter around. However, we decided to go
ahead with an abstraction more in line with the game’s
mechanics instead. The resulting effect is mathematically
identical and assumes that each empty area in a zone
has an undecided voter in it.
 V O L A T I L E A R E A S
A N D H E A D L I N E
C A R D S

There are 11 Volatile Areas across the board. If your voter is

placed in a Volatile Area, a Headline is triggered. At the end
of the ongoing turn, draw the top Headline Card and resolve
it. Headline Cards contain an array of lucrative opportunities
and devastating penalties.

18

▶ A voter peg in a Volatile Area stays there

permanently. It cannot be Gerrymandered,
converted, moved, or affected in any way.
▶ You can either place your own or an opponent’s
voter into a Volatile Area.
▶ If multiple voters are placed in Volatile Areas
during a turn, that many Headline Cards will be
triggered. Headline Cards will be resolved in order of
the voters that were placed in Volatile Areas.
▶ Movable Volatile Areas are a Kickstarter
Promotional Reward. These are 9 extra Volatile Areas
that can be placed anywhere on the board. This
allows for more Headline Cards to be triggered than
in a standard game. These are compatible with all
game modes.

G A M E P L A Y T I P :
Each campaign has a unique
combination of Headlines, good and
bad. You can check the Headline Deck
Box to build a more informed strategy.
 C O N S P I R A C Y
C A R D S

Conspiracy Cards offer a wide range of boosts and attacks.

They can be bought for any 4-5 resources, as denoted
by the cost on the back of the card. You can use them
immediately or save them for later.

19

▶ Players can only buy the top Conspiracy Card in

the draw pile.
▶ You can use a Conspiracy Card at any point in your
turn. You can also use one right before an opponent
answers their Ideology Card and begins their turn.
▶ There is no limit to the number of Conspiracy
Cards you can hold. You can also use multiple
Conspiracy Cards at a time, one after the other.
▶ If two players use Conspiracy Cards at the same
time, they will be resolved in turn order.

G A M E P L A Y T I P :
End-game scoring depends entirely
on how many voters you have on the
board. Don’t splurge endlessly on
Conspiracy Cards.
 E N D - G A M E
S C O R I N G

The game ends when all possible majorities in all zones have
been formed. Every voter used to form a majority is worth 1
point. The player with the highest number of majority voters
wins the game.

▶ Only your total number of majority voters will be taken into

consideration during scoring, not the number of zones you
capture.
▶ Non-majority voters do not add to a player’s final score.
▶ If every single Voter Area on the board gets filled, without all
majorities having been formed, every player will play their final
turn, starting with whoever filled the final empty area.

20
TIE-BREAKER

In case two extremely well-matched politicians end the

game with the same number of points, the player with
the greater real-life privilege wins. This will help you
calculate your privilege:
www.playSHASN.com/privilege

All players must agree to this rule and calculate

their privilege before the game begins. We do not
recommend using this rule in your first playthrough.

Designer’s Note: SHASN was designed to be as accurate

a simulation as possible, one that also serves as a tool of
reflection for its players. This tie-breaker was created to
acknowledge the consequence of birth in shaping the outcome
of our efforts. However, this is a non-binding rule. Our intention
is not to reinforce, but to remind players of the privilege that
permeates our lives. We hope to be able to remove this rule
from future editions of SHASN, in a world where such a concept
has become redundant. In the same spirit, this rule will not be
applicable in The Future of Humanity: Earth 2040 Campaign.
 O R D E R
O F T U R N

START OF TURN
▶ At the start of your turn, the player to your right will draw the top
Ideology Card and read both sides aloud to you. You must choose
between the 2 available answers.
▶ However, before answering, you can choose to have the Ideology
Card redrawn by paying any 4 resources to the Public Reserve.
▶ After confirming your answer, keep the Ideology Card under
your Player Mat with your answer face up. Receive the resources
corresponding to your answer, and any other resources earned
from passive Ideologue Powers (page 28).
▶ Check your resource cap. If you cross it, choose and discard any
excess resources down to your current cap before taking any other
actions.

TURN ACTIONS - After taking the above actions, you may take
as many of the following actions as you are able to, in any order.
▶ Influence Voter Cards - Spend resources to influence open Voter
Cards on the HQ mat (page 10). 21
▶ Place Voters - Place influenced and evicted voters on the board
(page 29).
▶ Form Majorities - Form majorities by influencing more than half
the voters in a zone (page 8).
▶ Trade - Trade resources and Conspiracy Cards with players. Players
can also trade before answering their Ideology Card (page 12).
▶ Buy / Use Conspiracy Cards - Spend any combination of
resources to buy the top Conspiracy Card(s). You may use them
immediately or save them for later. You may buy multiple
Conspiracy Cards in a turn (page 19).
▶ Gerrymander - Gerrymander voters (page 16).
▶ Ideologue Powers - Use unlocked Ideologue Powers (page 28).
You can take the same action multiple times over the course of
your turn, if allowed. For example, a player may trade a resource,
influence a Voter Card, trade more resources, and influence
another Voter Card in their turn.

POST TURN ACTIONS

▶ Players must resolve a Headline Card for each of their

voters placed in Volatile Areas during a turn (page 18).
▶ Draw and read an Ideology Card for the next player.
▶ Before the next player answers their Ideology Card, any
player may choose to play a Conspiracy Card.
 The next few pages,
marked with this gradient
E L I T E S border, contain rules for
SHASN add-ons only. You
do not need to refer to
Additional Components Required: Elite Cards (KS Promo) these while playing the
base game.

A great politician isn’t created by accident,

but crafted with painstaking precision.
In SHASN, there are 13 such politicians, called
The Elites. Every Elite is a hybrid of two Ideologues, with
a negation of another. Become an Elite by collecting its
corresponding Ideology Cards, and add new electrifying
powers to your arsenal.

▶ Every Elite is a hybrid of two Ideologues, with a

negation of another. For instance, to become The
Technocrat, a player must have at least 3 cards
belonging to The Capitalist as well as 3 cards
22 belonging to The Showstopper. However, they can
have no cards belonging to The Supremo.
▶ Players can use an Elite’s power immediately after
unlocking it. If they fail to keep meeting that Elite’s
requirements, they will lose its power. For instance,
if a Technocrat receives a single Ideology Card
belonging to The Supremo, they cease to be The
Technocrat.
▶ Players can be multiple Elites at a time, if their
combination of Ideology Cards allows it. Doing so will
allow them to use multiple Elite powers in their turn.
▶ All other standard SHASN rules apply.

THE TECHNOCRAT
▶ 3 Capitalist - 3 Showstopper - 0 Supremo
▶ Your Player Mat can now hold a combination of resources
and voters, up to 12. Keep influenced voters on your Player Mat
to place them on the board later, anytime during your turn.
▶ Powers that increase or decrease your resource cap also affect
this power.
THE LOBBYIST
▶ 3 Capitalist - 3 Showstopper - 0 Idealist
▶ Double the resources earned from answering Ideology Cards.
▶ Only double the resources that are denoted on the side that
you have chosen.

THE PHILANTHROPIST
▶ 3 Capitalist - 3 Idealist - 0 Supremo
▶ Once per turn, donate 2 resources to any opponent and
influence 1 open Voter Card for free.

THE PATRON
▶ 3 Capitalist - 3 Idealist - 0 Showstopper
▶ Pick 2 opponents. Every time they influence a 3-Voter Card,
23
you get 1 free voter. Place your voter(s) at the end of their turn.

THE PROVOCATEUR
▶ 3 Showstopper - 3 Supremo - 0 Capitalist
▶ Twice per turn, buy a Conspiracy Card at -2 cost from the
draw pile or at -1 cost from the discard pile.

THE PROPOGANDIST
▶ 3 Showstopper - 3 Supremo - 0 Idealist
▶ Once per turn, buy the top Headline Card from the draw pile
for any 3 resources, and pick any player to resolve it.

THE ACTIVIST
▶ 3 Showstopper - 3 Idealist - 0 Capitalist
▶ Peek at any Conspiracy Card(s) held by an opponent.
 THE WHISTLEBLOWER
▶ 3 Showstopper - 3 Idealist - 0 Supremo
▶ Every time an opponent uses a Conspiracy Card, discard 1 of
their voters. For every full round of play where no opponents use
Conspiracy Cards, gain 2 voters.

THE GURU
▶ 3 Supremo - 3 Idealist - 0 Capitalist
▶ Once per turn, discard 1 of your voters to gain any 3 resources.

THE GUERILLA
▶ 3 Supremo - 3 Idealist - 0 Showstopper
▶ Once per turn, move up to 4 of your voters into adjacent
zones. You can use this power in addition to regular
24 Gerrymandering.
▶ In addition to Gerrymandering.

THE MAFIOSO
▶ 3 Supremo - 3 Capitalist - 0 Showstopper
▶ Every player has to pay you 1 resource after answering their
Ideology Card in order to proceed with their turn.

THE DICTATOR
▶ 3 Supremo - 3 Capitalist - 0 Idealist
▶ Convert voters by Gerrymandering them into any zone where
you have Gerrymandering Rights.

THE RENEGADE
▶ Have 3 Passive Ideologue Powers without any Level 3 Powers.
▶ Once per turn, select and use any other Elite Power.
 H O M E T U R F S

Additional Components Required: Home Turfs (KS Promo)

This mode adds a unique two-sided Home Turf to each

zone, injecting the board with powerful advantages and
challenges. Gain the Gerrymandering Rights in a zone to
exercise its Home Turf power once per turn. At the end of
your turn, flip over all used Home Turfs.

▶ You can use a Home Turf’s power at any point

during your turn.
▶ You must compulsorily use some Home Turf
powers every turn, while some others can be used at
your discretion, as specified on the Home Turf. 25

▶ Every time you use a Home Turf power, you must

flip over that Home Turf at the end of your turn.
▶ All other standard SHASN rules apply.
 E D G E O F
C H A O S

Additional Components Required: Edge of Chaos Tracker (KS Promo)

A great leader knows how to compete and cooperate with

perfect balance. In this game mode, players can increase
or decrease Chaos through their actions, on a 13 point
Chaos Tracker. If Chaos reaches the 13th point, democracy
ends and everybody loses.

▶ This is a 4 player game mode

only. After all players have
selected their Player Mats and
26
voters, the remaining bag of
voters now become the Chaos
Voters.
▶ At the beginning of the
game, place a Chaos Voter
peg at the STABILITY point
on the tracker (Level 0).
There is a reward or penalty
corresponding to every point
on the Chaos Tracker.
▶ Every time you increase or
decrease Chaos through your
actions, move the Chaos Voter
peg on the tracker accordingly,
and receive the corresponding
rewards/penalties.
▶ Answering certain Ideology
Cards, using certain Conspiracy
Cards, and using Level 3 and
Level 5 Ideologue Powers will affect Chaos by either
increasing or decreasing it.
▶ Every Ideology Card in each campaign deck is
numbered. Before playing this game mode, make
sure to select and play with the Ideology Cards
numbered from 1 to 48 in your chosen campaign. The
Ideology Cards which affect Chaos are in this range.
▶ You can make the game mode easier by lowering
the level of Chaos in the game. To do so, add the next
12 Ideology Cards after 48. Every subsequent set of 12
cards that you add will make this game mode easier.
▶ You may also reduce Chaos by paying the resource
cost as denoted at the bottom of the tracker. Paying
to reduce Chaos will not earn you the corresponding
benefits on the tracker. 27

▶ Chaos Voters are also earned through this Tracker.

If you earn a Chaos Voter, place it anywhere on the
board by the end of your turn (except in Volatile
Areas).
▶ Chaos Voters can be affected just like regular voters
- they can be Gerrymandered, discarded, converted
etc.
▶ If enough Chaos Voters are gathered in a zone and
are able to meet that zone’s majority requirement,
a Chaos majority is formed. Discard all non-Chaos
voters in that zone. This zone is now permanently out
of play for all effects and purposes, and is not taken
into account during end-game scoring.
▶ If you fail to place Chaos Voters earned by you on
the board, the player after you must place the voters
during their turn instead.
▶ If you evict Chaos Voters, the next player after you
will place them back on the board during their turn.
 2 P L AY E R
M O D E

Additional Components Required: 2-3 Player Board (sold separately)

Face off with a singular enemy in a relentless battle for

every square inch of this unique board. Shuffle and assign
a Zone Requirement to each zone. To form a majority, you
will need to meet an additional condition in every zone.

28

▶ There are 14 unique Zone Requirements Cards.

Shuffle and divide them between the 2 players.
S E T U P
Players have to take turns placing these Zone
Requirements on the board, until each of the 7
zones has a requirement.
▶ Player 2 will place the first requirement on the
board, Player 1 will place the second. Both players
will alternate until every zone has a requirement..
Therefore, Player 2 will get to determine 4 Zone
Requirements and Player 1 will determine 3. This
has been designed to offset any potential Player 1
advantage.
▶ Remove all Conspiracy Cards and Headline Cards
not applicable to this game mode (marked with ).
▶ How To Determine Player 1:
Each player will receive 8 resources (2 of each type).
The players must now secretly bid resources, and
reveal their bids at the same time. The player with
the higher bid will begin the game as Player 1. All bid
resources will go back to the Public Reserve. Players
will keep their remaining resources. In case of a tie,
bid again.

▶ Types of Zone Requirements: 29

One-Time Requirement: These
requirements have to be met only once
during the course of the game. Once
a player meets the requirements, they
must place one voter peg on the Zone
Requirement Card to denote their
eligibility in that zone.

While Forming Majority: These

requirements have to be met every time
a majority is being formed. If a majority
exchanges hands, this requirement must
be met again.

Zonal Rule: This introduces a rule

modification only applicable to the zone
this card is played on.

▶ To ensure that each Ideology Card is unknown

to the opponent, players have to randomly draw
Ideology Cards from the middle of the deck whilst
picking out cards for each other.
▶ All other standard SHASN rules apply.
 C O S T O F V I C T O R Y
C A R D S

Additional Components Required: Cost of Victory Cards (KS Promo)

For the victors: congratulations, you’ve won. But at what

cost? Who have you become and what does your SHASN
look like? Select the Cost of Victory Card corresponding to
your primary and secondary Ideology to gaze upon the
world of your creation.

30
▶ The Cost of Victory Cards offer a glimpse, a
premonition into the world that your ideological
beliefs might create.
▶ There are 12 Cost of Victory Cards, each
corresponding to a unique combination of a primary
Ideology and secondary Ideology.
▶ After you win a game of SHASN, you can select the
Cost of Victory Card that applies to you and read it
aloud for all players to hear. This is the price of your
vision.
▶ In case of a tie between your ideologies, you can
select the combination that you prefer.
▶ For instance: if you win with the combination
of Ideology Cards as illustrated here, identify your 31
primary ideology (The Capitalist) and your secondary
ideology (The Showstopper). The Cost of Victory
Card corresponding to this combination is “The
Reignmaker.”
 I D E O L O G U E
P O W E R S
E X P L A I N E D

Every Ideologue has a passive power: For every 2 Ideology

Cards you hold of an Ideologue, get 1 extra resource of that
type. You will also unlock unique powers when you collect 3
and 5 cards of one Ideologue respectively.

▶ If you have 2 Ideology Cards of The

Capitalist, you will get 1 extra Funds
resource each turn. If you have 4
32 Ideology Cards of The Capitalist, you will
get 2 extra Funds resources every turn
and so on.
▶ You receive these extra resources
when you answer the Ideology Card at
the start of your turn.
▶ You will keep receiving extra
resources every turn as long as you hold
the corresponding Ideology Cards.
▶ You gain the bonus resource(s) in the
same turn that you collect the required
number of Ideology Cards. For example:
receiving a second ‘The Capitalist’ card
will earn you an extra Funds resource
immediately.
 T H E
CAPITALIST

33

Level 3 : Prospecting
Once per turn, give 1 resource to the Public Reserve to
get up to 2 resources of your choice.

▶ You must take both resources from the Public

Reserve at the same time.
▶ The two resources you get can be of different types.
Level 5 : Land Grab
Three times per turn, evict any 1 voter from the board
and send it back to its player (including majority
voters).

▶ An opponent whose voters are evicted through this

power can place the voters back anywhere on the
board in their next turn. If the player fails to place their
voters in their next turn, these voters are discarded.
▶ If you evict your own voters, you can place them
back anywhere on the board right away.
▶ Majority voters can be evicted. Voters in Volatile
Areas cannot be evicted.
34

Level 3 : Donations
Twice per turn, snatch 1 resource from another player.

▶ You can use this power to snatch resources, ie, take

resources from other players without giving anything
in return.
▶ You can snatch 2 resources from the same player or
1 resource each from 2 different players.
▶ You can snatch resources one at a time over the
course of your turn.

T H E Level 5 : Payback
Twice per turn, spend 1 resource to discard 1 of an
S U P R E M O opponent’s voter (including majority voters).

▶ You can pay 1 resource of your choice to discard 1

voter belonging to an opponent.
▶ You can do this up to twice per turn.
▶ Majority voters can be discarded. Voters in
Volatile Areas cannot be discarded.
 T H E
S H OWS T O P P E R

35

Level 3 : Going Viral

Twice per turn, get +1 voter for any Voter Card that
you influence.

▶ You can get an extra voter for every Voter Card you
influence.
▶ You can get an extra voter on a maximum of 2
unique Voter Cards, every turn.

Level 5 : Election Fever

You can Gerrymander 2 voters instead of 1 for every
zone where you have Gerrymandering Rights
(including majority voters).

▶ The 2 voters you Gerrymander per majority can

belong to the same player or to different players.
▶ You cannot use this power if you don’t have
Gerrymandering Rights in any zone.
▶ Majority voters can be Gerrymandered. Voters in
Volatile Areas cannot be Gerrymandered.
36
Level 3 : Helping Hands
Twice per turn, get 1 resource discount on any
purchase.
▶ By using a resource discount on a
purchase, you can pay any 1 resource less
on that purchase. These purchases only
include influencing Voter Cards and buying
Conspiracy Cards. Any other actions with a
resource cost cannot be discounted, unless
specified otherwise.
▶ You may choose which resource(s) to
discount while influencing a Voter Card.
▶ You can split your discounts on 2 purchases,
or combine them on the same purchase.
T H E
I D E A L I S T
Level 5 : Tough Love:
Once per turn, spend 2 Trust resources + any
2 resources to convert 2 of an opponent’s
voters into yours (including majority voters).
▶ The 2 converted voters must belong to the
same player in the same zone.
▶ You cannot use this power without paying
the resource cost.
▶ This power’s cost can be discounted using
The Idealist Level 3 Power.
▶ Majority voters can be converted. Voters in
Volatile Areas cannot be converted.
 REFERENCE

Passive Get 1 Get 1 Get 1 Get 1

for every for every for every for every 2
2 “The 2 “The 2 “The “The Idealist”
Capitalist” Supremo” Showstopper” cards
cards cards cards

Level 3 Trade 1 Snatch 2 +1 voter / card 2 discounts

resource for 2 resources

37

Level 5 Evict 3 voters Pay 1 +1 Pay 2

to discard 1 Gerrymander /
voter, up to 2 zone +2 to
times convert 2
voters
 GLOSSARY
OF TERMS

Active Player: The player whose turn is ongoing is known as the Active
Player.
Area: Each slot on the board where a voter can be placed is called an Area.
Auction: When an item is auctioned, all players can bid resources for it.
You can bid as many resources as you want, up to your resource cap.
Convert: When you convert an opponent’s voter, replace it in the same
area with your voter.
Discard: When you discard a voter, remove it from the board permanently.
Discount: Having a discount allows you to pay 1 less resource on a
purchase, as specified by the card or power.
Donate: You can donate resources and voters, only when specified by a
card or action. Donate a resource by giving it to another player free of cost,
without receiving any resources in return. When you donate a voter to an
opponent, it is converted to their voter.
Evict: When you evict a voter, it is removed from the board and placed
back on the mat of its corresponding player. In their turn, that player can
place the evicted voter back anywhere on the board. If they fail to do so,
38 the evicted voter gets discarded.
Gerrymander: Having more voters than any other player in a zone grants
you Gerrymandering Rights in that zone. This allows you to move one
non-majority voter in between adjacent zones every turn, within that
zone’s area of influence.
Gerrymandering Rights: If you have more voters than any other player in
any zone, you gain the Gerrymandering Rights in that zone. This allows
you to Gerrymander voters using that zone.
Ideologue: There are 4 major Ideologues in the game - The Capitalist, The
Supremo, The Showstopper and The Idealist. Ideologues should not be
confused with Ideology Cards.
Snatch: The Snatch action allows you to steal resources and/or Conspiracy
Cards from an opponent without giving them anything in return, as
specified.
Trade: You can initiate a trade at any point during your turn. One player in
the trade must be the active player. You can trade in any ratio, but at least
one resource must be exchanged by both players. .
Volatile Area: Every zone on the board has at least one Volatile Area in it.
Placing a voter in a Volatile Area triggers a Headline Card, resolved at the
end of the turn. Voters inside Volatile Areas cannot be discarded, evicted,
converted, Gerrymandered, or otherwise affected.
Zone: There are 9 zones on the board. Each zone has its own majority
requirement.
 C R E D I T L I S T

Zain Memon Creator

Soumik Lahiri Creative Director and Illustrator
Nidhi Shetty Game Designer, Head of Video
Aayush Asthana Game Designer, Head of Writing
Mayuresh Paradkar Game Designer, Head of Manufacturing and Logistics
Mandir Dighe Producer, Campaign Manager
Janvi Ghatalia Product Designer
Alisha Coelho Pereira Senior Graphic Designer
Maithili Madhusudanan Graphic Designer
Abhishek Lamba Additional Game Designer
Amaan Shaikh Additional Game Developer
Matt Fantastic Additional Game Developer
Jonathan Ritter-Roderick Campaign Consultant
Christopher Rappley Campaign Consultant

Special Thanks
39
György Pálfi
INDIA 2019-20 Campaign USA 2019-20 Campaign
Lakshmi Pratury
Zsófia Ruttkay
Aayush Asthana Michael McCanne
Kani Kusruti
Nidhi Shetty
Ramit Verma
Amaan Shaikh
Kunal Kamra
Abhishek Lamba
Naomi Shah
Mandir Dighe Fall Of The Republic:
Wendy Chao
(RULEBOOK EDITOR) Mayuresh Paradkar Rome 40 BCE Campaign

Arthur Guilford
Playtesters The Future of Humanity: Jac Mindelan
Earth 2040 Campaign James Portnow
Justin Goodman
Robert Rath
John Schiavo Karthik KK
Nick Dianatkhah Raghava KK Edited By
Nihal Ahmed Manoj Prabhakar
Produced By

Vinay Shukla
Anand Gandhi
UK 2019-20: Additional Writing
Brexit Campaign and Editing:
Memesys Producers:
Aayush Asthana
Pooja Shetty
Luke Moody Abhishek Lamba
Neil Pagedar
Khushboo Ranka
C O L L E C T O R S E D I T I O N R U L E B O O K