Description

[Setting]

Numinous Nonflict takes place in a post-war era. Individuals no longer struggle with self-worth, self-image and self-concept and thereby are no longer competitive nature. Individuals no longer struggle to comprehend the abundant, endless nature of the universe and its resources, and thereby no longer feel the need to fight or go to war over resources or an inward sense of lacking.

In this world devoid of competition with each other, there is still a desire to achieve great works for the sheer joy of it. Individuals practice absolute focus, mastery of every part of their body, precision, emotional clarity, strength of compassion, intuitive guidance, and tests of logic. After mastering these subjects in their first forty to eighty years of life, individuals move on to more advanced lessons: telepathy, levitation, full grokking of other beings, enmeshment with animals and plants, energetic biological influence, and direct manifestation (without the waiting period).

The acolytes in the game represent six areas of study that are of great interest in this era: three areas from the study of earth and three areas from ether. You can read more about the setting in the manual which is available as a free PDF download.

[Gameplay]

Each turn you collect resources from your lands and acolytes, tracking them on your abacus. Then you spend as many resources as you wish to acquire more lands, acolytes, and technologies. Collect lilies to win. (With the Adventuring Acolytes expansion you have an ulterior motive – a hidden win condition unique to you.)

The game uses a mechanic called "splaying" where cards overlap one another to create different effects depending on which direction the cards are "splayed." Acolytes reside within Arcania (buildings) where they study and work. Acolytes who are apprentices are splayed to the right, revealing a single resource of their specialty. Technologies allow acolytes to further their advancement, changing which way they splay, and thereby how many resources they provide.

—description from the designer