GAME OVERVIEW
"The time of small nations is past, the time of empires begins." — Chamberlain
What if all of world history had unfolded differently?
What if the great empires of our history had never come into being?
What if other forgotten civilisations had passed into posterity in their place?
The defeated could have been the victors, and the colonisers could have been the colonised — after all, empires are won and lost on a roll of the dice!
In First Empires, each player takes control of the fate of an ancient nation through a player board, meeples, and cards. The game lasts a number of rounds depending on the player count, and on a turn you roll dice based on how you've developed your empire board. The six sides of the dice correspond to the five abilities on your board. To expand to new territories or invade opponents, you need to unlock movement ability; to annex a territory, you have to outnumber the current occupant or have a "sword" result on the dice, with the inhabitants then fleeing elsewhere. The dice also allow you develop your player board by using the die face that corresponds to the improvement and controlling an associated territory. You can gain more dice and additional re-rolls, while also unlocking achievement cards.
At game's end, you earn points based on played achievement cards, points unlocked on your personal board, and the sum of cities under your control.
2-5 PLAYERS | 60 MINS | AGES 14+
REVIEWS
Shipping
All online orders are picked from our separate warehouse. We always ensure that your games are well packed before leaving. Wherever possible we'll re-use a cardboard box that we received games in from one of our suppliers. We figure it's better that way for our planet. But we do also use new boxes and wraps. If you have a strong preference either way please let us know in your Order Comments.
UK Orders
We aim for orders placed before 1:30pm Monday to Friday to be dispatched on the same working day. If this is not possible, your order will be dispatched on the next working day. Orders placed outside our Monday to Friday office hours will be dispatched on the next working day.
Delivery is free on all orders of £65 or more. Orders with a value of less than £65 will incur a delivery charge as follows:
£4.50 - Royal Mail Tracked 48 (2-3 business days delivery time)
£6.00 - Royal Mail Tracked 24 (1-2 business days delivery time)
£5.00 - DHL (mainland UK only)
International Delivery
If you are from further afield please contact us to discuss.
Collect in Store
At check-out you will to have the option to collect your order from our cafés in either Oxford or Bath and avoid the shipping charge. We will notify you by email as soon as your order is ready to collect. Allow up to 3 days for Oxford collection orders and 7 days for Bath collection orders. Orders will be held for a maximum of 21 days before being returned to our warehouse.
Additional Information
All delivery costs are presented at the 'My Basket' screen once the shipping destination is chosen, before any money is taken.
Please note working day delivery does not include Sunday, Bank Holidays, Public Holidays and substitute days (see the GOV UK website for clarification).
If you request that the package is left in a safe place, this will only be done at the discretion of the delivery driver.
Shipping times are not guaranteed. From time to time unforeseen problems that are outside of our control can lead to postal delays. We do not accept responsibility for this these and will not refund shipping fees in these circumstance. If it is imperative that your order must reach reach you the next working day please contact us so that we can quote for a guaranteed next day postal service.
