Teach the Game
A script to teach World Order at the table — how you win, the board, a round, the end, every way to score and what each resource is for.
How you win
“It’s 2010. Each of us leads a great power — the USA, the EU, Russia or China — and we compete for influence over seven Regions of the world. After 6 rounds, the most victory points wins. There are no wars: armies only posture.”
You need victory points. Most come from Influence cubes in the Regions:
- every cube you place on a numbered slot scores at once;
- in rounds 3 and 6, every Region pays its leaders a big bonus.
To place Influence you need allied Countries, Diplomacy and money — which come from your cards, your production and trade. Everything in the game feeds that loop: build an economy, make allies, turn them into Influence.
The board
- Seven Regions, each with 2 Countries you can ally with, an Engage cost, Influence slots and majority bonuses.
- Influence slots — permanent above the line (safe, few points now) and temporary below (more points now, but pushed out when the row fills). A Region scores only when its permanent slots are all full. → Influence
- Small round flags mark each power’s zone of interest: rival Armies there cost you points.
- Around the edge: the VP track, the Round track and the Turn Order track.
Your Player board shows your production, the three Focus options, Prosperity and your resources. Everyone has the same rules; the powers differ in decks, resources, allies and trade.
A round
Six rounds, three phases each. Round 1 starts directly with the Action Phase.
- Preparation — draw 6 cards, new Countries appear, the player with the fewest VPs picks turn order first, everyone produces Energy, Raw Materials and Food, and chooses a Focus (Domestic, Diplomatic or Military) — this round’s bonuses.
- Actions — everyone takes 4 turns, playing one card each. The card’s colour is its
action: green diplomacy, orange economy, red military, blue domestic. Instead you may play a
Strategic Asset or pass for 10 money.
- Research — your 2 unplayed cards give bonuses and Research to buy new cards; they go on top of your deck, so you play them next round.
- Aftermath — investments pay out, raise Prosperity, lose points to rival Armies in your zone of interest, and in rounds 3 and 6 the Regions score.
→ Gameplay · Actions · Aftermath
How the game ends
After round 6’s Aftermath, with its final Region scoring. Unused Strategic Assets are worth 2 VPs each (unused Executive Orders 3). Most VPs wins; ties go to the most 1st places in the final Region scoring, then the most Influence cubes on the board.
Ways to score
| Points | How and when |
|---|---|
| Influence on a numbered slot | Engage, Invest, Build a Base, stacking a ready starting Country — scored the moment the cube lands. |
| Region scoring (rounds 3, 6) | 1 VP per cube, plus the majority bonus for 1st, 2nd… Only Regions with every permanent slot filled. |
| Majority tokens (rounds 3, 6) | Most money, most Armies on the map, most allied Countries. |
| Growth cards | The VPs printed on the card, when you buy it. |
| Prosperity | Spend Consumer Goods in the Aftermath to move up one space and take its VPs. |
| Strategic Assets | Your 2 kept cards set your starting VPs; each unused one is +2 at the end. |
| Power abilities | Russia +2 per zone Region where it leads in Armies; China’s FDI spread at the end; the USA loses points if it leads fewer than 4 Regions. |
| Losing points | −2 per rival with more THREAT than your Defense in each Region of your zone of interest, every round. |
What each resource is for
| Resource | Why you need it | How you get it | How you use it |
|---|---|---|---|
 Money | Pays for most actions. | Pass (10), Export, FDI returns, Engage cash-in, Prosperity, Research bonuses, overflow beyond 10. | Invest, Move and Bases (5 per Army), Imports, Growth cards, Focus upgrades. |
 Diplomacy | Makes allies and Influence. | Produce (Diplomatic Focus or a Produce card), Research bonuses, +1 for importing from a player. | Improve Relations (= Country value), Engage (= Region cost). |
| Allied Countries | Discounts, Research, trade, Bases and investments. | Improve Relations; your starting allies. | Exhaust for discounts or Research; Invest or Build a Base there; their symbols set your trade. |
| Armies | THREAT, Defense, tie-breaks, the Armies majority. | Produce (Military Focus), card effects. | Move and Build a Base; export for 20. |
   Primary resources | Inputs for everything else. | Produced free each Preparation; Import (3 each). | Pay for Goods, Services, Armies; Export for 5. |
 Consumer Goods | Prosperity (points and money). | Produce from primaries; Import (10). | Prosperity; inputs for Services; Export for 15. |
 Services | Growth cards and some card costs; trade income. | Produce from Goods and Food; Import (10). | Pay Growth cards and card effects; Export for 15. |
 Research | New, stronger cards. | Your 2 unplayed cards, +2 with Domestic Focus, exhausting allies. | Buy Market cards (lost if unspent). |
 Engage tokens | Money or Defense later. | Placed with each Engage. | Aftermath: 5 money per ally in that Region, or +2 Defense per ally there. |
| FDI tokens | Income every round, China’s bonus. | Invest. | Pays 2 × the Country’s value each Aftermath. |
Teaching tips
- Teach Preparation last — round 1 skips it; explain it once the first round has been played.
- Use the fixed starting hand in a first game (First game in the setup checklist).
- Keep the player aid out — even experienced players skip steps between phases.
- More from tutorials and the designers: Tips & Strategy.