Description

King William…reigned over England, and by his capacity so thoroughly surveyed it, that there was not a hide of land in England that he wist not who had it, or what it was worth, and afterwards set it down in his book. The land of the Britons was in his power, and he wrought castles therein…and extorted from his subjects many marks of gold, and many hundred pounds of silver, which he took of his people, for little need, by right and by unright.

Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 1087

King Edward the Confessor of England did not prepare well for his death, to avoid trouble he promised his kingdom to King Magnus Olafsson of Norway (a claim inherited by Harald Hardrada), King Sweyn Estridsson of Denmark, Duke William of Normandy, and Earl Harold Godwinson of Wessex. When Edward died on the fifth day of January 1066 these four powerful warlords raised armies to back their claims by force. William the Conqueror won the crown but had to defend his new kingdom from fresh invasions and rebellious barons. To formalise his control of the kingdom after twenty years of conquest he ordered a Great Survey in 1085, a record so final and unalterable that it was named Domesday.

Domesday is a card driven game depicting the Norman Conquest of England from 1066 to 1106. The players control Normans, Barons, English, Danes, Norse, Scots, Welsh, and Irish, playing cards to resolve Events or use Marks to activate their units. Players win by earning the most victory points through controlling, contesting, or plundering areas, building cathedrals and towers, and making their leader the King of England.

—description from the designer