FAQ
44 answered questions7 official
Rules questions from the BoardGameGeek forum. Answers marked Official were confirmed by Ludonova or the designers.
Common mistakes
- Skipping a City because it has no Contract left — you can still activate the Boat there for the City Benefit. Ruling · Rule
- Letting a lying Priestess stand up in place to offer again — she must move to a new Room first. Ruling · Rule
- Only collecting a Construction or Favour space when you stop on it — every step counts. Ruling · Rule
- Refilling only the value-1 spaces in Era II — every empty Contract space gets that Era’s value. Ruling · Rule
- Counting your own new Apprentice when paying Food for a crowded House — only those already there count. Ruling · Rule
- Turning Papyri upside down to complete a Drawing — they keep the orientation of their picture. Ruling · Rule
Showing 44 of 44
Is the first turn of every Era always a Visit?
Yes. At the start of an Era all your Apprentices are on your board and all three Tablet spaces are full, so you can neither Specialise nor take a Tablet — Visit a House of Life is the only option. Answered by Andrew Platt, who made the community solo aid.
Source: BGG thread
Does the Food cost count the Apprentices already in the space?
Yes. Count the Apprentices (anyone’s, Neutral included) that are already on the Sun or Moon space you move into, not yours: 1 Food for one, 3 for two, 5 for three or more. An empty space is free.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread
Can several of my own Apprentices share one space?
Yes — the only limit is the Food cost. If you can’t pay, you still place or move the Apprentice, pay nothing, take 3 Food and skip the actions (rulebook p. 9).
Source: BGG thread
If I can’t do one action of a Tablet, do I lose the whole Tablet?
No. You do the actions you can and lose only the one you can’t (rulebook p. 10). Example: without Heka to place a Papyrus, you still take the Tablet’s other action.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread
Do my three starting Tablets stay on my board?
No. When an Apprentice visits a House you do that Tablet’s actions and discard it, which frees a Tablet space for Obtain an Action Tablet.
Source: BGG thread
Do I get a Construction or Favour space I pass without stopping?
Yes. Each step is taken on its own, so every space you reach on the way counts — you don’t have to end your move on it.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread · BGG thread
Where can I put a Great Pyramid piece?
You must take the top piece of the pile for the level being built, but you may place it on any free spot of that level and turn it as you like, choosing which printed Favour it covers. The rulebook doesn’t say this in so many words; experienced players agree on it, and the solo rules’ corner placement for Imhotep only makes sense that way. A level must be complete before the next one starts.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread · BGG thread
Is the fourth hammer on the Great Pyramid Track on space 14 or 16? Official
Space 14. Space 16 only shows points.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread
What if I reach a Construction space after the Great Pyramid is finished?
Nothing happens: once the Pyramidion is placed no more pieces are added (rulebook p. 11).
Source: BGG thread
What are the wooden Queens’ Pyramids pieces for?
They limit Permissions: you place a Permission only on a Queens’ Pyramid that isn’t finished, and a pyramid is finished by its Pyramidion. With 2 or 3 players some levels start built, so each pyramid takes fewer Permissions. The scoring comes from the cardboard Queens’ Pyramids Tiles.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread · BGG thread
How many Mastaba activations does a Level I Sarcophagus give?
One, on either of its two Mastaba Tiles. Level II gives 2 and Level III gives 3, and you may use the same tile more than once.
Source: BGG thread
Does a Pedestal’s Mastaba activation need one of my Sarcophagi?
No. A Pedestal (and any other “activate Mastaba Tiles” icon) lets you choose any of the 5 tiles, whether or not you have buried anything; split several activations as you like.
Source: BGG thread
Is a free Papyrus also free to place on my board?
Yes. The free-Papyrus icon (Osiris, some Pedestals) waives both the market price and the Heka of your board space (rulebook pp. 17 and 19).
Source: BGG thread
Does embalming my last Mummy give the Heart and Feather step?
No. You only take the Heart-and-Feather step when you must Embalm while your Mummy Reserve is already empty. The same goes for carving with an empty Sphinx Reserve and for Permissions.
Source: BGG thread
Do Sphinxes and Sarcophagi ever come back?
No. Once placed they stay, so you place at most 4 of each in the whole game.
Source: BGG thread
Can one action make more than one Offering?
No. The Priestess-with-Basket icon gives a single Offering, however many steps the action gives.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread
Must I move a Priestess to make an Offering? Official
No. A standing Priestess — one that hasn’t offered in her Room yet — can offer where she is. Movement is never compulsory, but each Priestess makes only one Offering per Room.
Source: BGG thread
Can a lying Priestess stand up without moving? Official
No. She stands up only when she moves on, so the same Priestess can never offer twice in one Room — and once she has offered in the fourth Room she is done.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread
Can two separate 1-step Priestess activations be combined into one 2-step move? Official
No. Two activations of a “1 step” Mastaba Tile are two separate moves of one step, so neither can pay the 2-step cost of Room 3 or 4.
Source: BGG thread
How does the Obelisk score?
You score the last scoring space your Orb has reached or passed — the value at your space if it is a scoring space, otherwise the one below it.
Source: BGG thread
Does Hathor’s Contract have to be in a City my Boat can reach?
No. Take any Contract still available in any River City.
Source: BGG thread
What else is Heka for?
Nothing: Heka only buys and places Papyri.
Source: BGG thread
Can I activate a City with no Contracts in it? Official
Yes. You take the City Benefit and no Contract, then the Boat leaves the City as usual.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread
Can several Boats be in the same City?
Other players’ Boats, yes. Two of your own, no: you can never end a move where you already have a Boat — only the port of Men-nefer holds any number.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread · BGG thread
Can I have a Boat in a City and another in the river section beside it?
Yes. A City and the river section next to it are different places.
Source: BGG thread
Where does an activated Boat go if I already have a Boat where it would leave the City?
Backwards, to the first river section behind it that has none of your Boats — in the end the port of Men-nefer. It never moves forward. The publisher’s video says “back” explicitly.
Source: BGG thread
Can I activate the same City twice in one action with two Boats?
No. All your movement comes before or after all your activations, never in between, and you can’t end a move with two Boats in one City. Two activations can take two different Cities.
Source: BGG thread
Must I use every Advance Boats step?
No. You may skip any action or part you don’t want, so you can keep a Boat waiting in a City.
Source: BGG thread
In Era II, do I refill only the spaces that held value-2 Contracts? Official
No. At the Flood of Era II every empty Contract space used at your player count gets a value-2 Contract; in Era III, a value-3 Contract.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread
Must I reach a Contract’s number exactly?
No, it is a minimum: you may exceed it (rulebook p. 19).
Source: BGG thread
Can Contracts flipped this Harvest count toward a “fulfilled Contracts” Contract?
Yes. Check your Contracts in any order; ones you flip now count for it in the same Harvest.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread · BGG thread
Can I turn a Papyrus upside down? Official
No. Papyri are always placed in the orientation of their illustration.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread · BGG thread
Can I rearrange my Papyri later?
No. They stay where you placed them, left to right in the order you got them.
Source: BGG thread
What if my Heart or Feather reaches the end of the Duat Meter?
Further steps are lost; nothing replaces them.
Source: BGG thread
Can my score go below 0?
No (rulebook p. 8).
Source: BGG thread
What is Imhotep’s “Obtain an Offering” action?
It is read as Obtain a Craft: when Imhotep must make an Offering without a Craft in a Basket, he takes a Craft instead, using his usual Craft rule. This is the reading of Andrew Platt, author of the community solo aid, and of the forum; Ludonova has not published a correction.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread · BGG thread
Where does Imhotep visit when I have no Apprentice on a Sun space?
On an empty Sun space where his Scarab is furthest ahead, ties broken from the top. Only if no Sun space is empty does he join an occupied one — Neutral Apprentices count as occupying.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread
In which order does Imhotep do several actions of one space?
The solo rules don’t say. Players resolve top to bottom, or in the order that helps Imhotep most (for example taking a Permission before moving on the Queens’ track).
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread
What if Imhotep must take a Contract with no free Contract space?
Not covered by the solo rules; players replace one of his lower-value Contracts, as a player may.
Source: BGG thread
Does Imhotep’s Embalm/Funerary Rite swap apply to every icon?
Yes. Whenever he gets either icon — from a track, a Tablet or a Pedestal — he alternates between preparing and placing, and the same for Sphinxes. He ignores any Food or Heka he would gain.
Source: BGG thread
What does Imhotep do if his Boats’ Cities have no Contracts?
He activates Boats on the river for 1 PP each; he does not move a Boat out of a City to do so.
Source: BGG thread
Why does Imhotep draw Action Tiles at the start of an Era if he can only Visit?
He can’t do anything else, so tiles are put under the pile until a Visit comes up. Andrew Platt’s shortcut: put a Visit tile on top after shuffling.
Source: BGG thread · BGG thread
How do I win or tie against Imhotep?
As in the normal game: most PP, then the Heart-and-Feather tie-break.
Source: BGG thread
[Promo] What do the Promo Tiles do?
Horus advances your Hieroglyph Counter 1 step; Ra gives 2 steps of Advance Priestesses; the Queens’ Pyramids promo tile scores the number of steps your furthest Scarab has advanced. The rules are printed on the promo sheet.
Source: BGG thread