Description

Secret Cardinals is a ‘take that’ player elimination game of Vice, Virtues, and hidden Roles within Roles. Eliminate political opponents and survive the power struggle from within the 15th century church through deception, sabotage, and calculated choices. For each turn, clever players will need to strategize their actions wisely to deduce who their political rivals are, acquire gold for its power, or gamble their advantage on the role of the dice. Use gold to purchase indulgences, gain virtues by giving charity, or pay a bribe to find rivals guilty of vice. Each turn brings unexpected dangers and new ways to win.

Rome, 1418. The Papal standoff that had split the church for decades has just concluded, but tensions still linger from when three rival popes simultaneously claimed to be the one true pope. Each claimant was backed by a competing power of Europe: Rome, Pisan, and Avignon. Driven by politics rather than theological disagreement, the church was thrown into turmoil. To find a compromise, a fourth Pope was chosen to succeed as the legitimate head of the church. As a result, the other three claimants were deposed, jailed for heresy, or excommunicated for their disobedience. In order to maintain a delicate network of alliances among the ruling powers, the new Pope has secretly named his choice for a new Cardinal from among these powers to honor this player’s service while keeping them safe from the political machinations of the competing Kingdoms.

Adversaries with hidden agendas and hidden roles are looking to eliminate their opponents and win the game. An upstart with an agenda wants to be acknowledged as the Secret Cardinal and is looking to eliminate the competition. A rival Roman Cardinal is not keen to recognize the influence of the new Pope and the fanaticism of their Devoted Follower creates a dangerous situation for anyone trying to upset the status quo. No one is safe from the Heretic infiltrators, as they work to limit the growing influence of the church, even as the are being hunted by the an overzealous Inquisitor who is determined to root out anyone suspected of heresy. Lastly, interlopers associated with the neighboring monarchy have not forgotten their candidate for Pope was excommunicated and have sent a Royal Spy from Avignon to cause trouble.

Players will see similarities to Bang and One Night Ultimate Werewolf, with unexpected action cards and new ways to win with roles within roles.

—description from the designer