How to Play

Euphoria: Build a Better Dystopia

2-6 players 60-60 min 7.2 Board Game Geek Rating

In this dystopian worker-placement game, you command dice-based workers whose pip values represent their dangerous knowledge levels. Deploy workers across four distinct societies—Euphoria, Wastelanders, and underground Subterra—to gather resources, construct oppressive markets, and collect valuable artifacts. Victory comes through area control by building markets that restrict opponents and trading artifact pairs for territory, all while preventing your workers from becoming too aware.

Published 2013

Get Ready

Setup the game with these step-by-step instructions before diving into your turn.

Assign starting worker values

Starting workers have a total combined value of 7, distributed as the player chooses

Set new worker values

New workers acquired during the game get a starting value of 1

Prepare artifact display

Keep the top 3 artifact cards face up at all times instead of drawing unknown cards

Remove incompatible components

Recruits and markets that refer to die rolls are not used with these variant rules

Set Sky Lounge cost

Until all markets are built, the Sky Lounge requires 3 commodities to use instead of 2

On Your Turn

What you can do during your turn.

Increase worker knowledge from work

When retrieving workers, give them +1 knowledge instead of rolling dice

Check individual knowledge limit

Each individual worker has a knowledge check of ≥7 that triggers loss

Check collective knowledge limit

The collective knowledge check of ≥16 still applies and triggers worker loss

Protect your last worker

A player's last remaining worker can never have knowledge greater than 6

Distribute knowledge changes individually

When gaining knowledge (e.g., +2), apply it to individual workers as +2 to one worker or +1 to two workers

Apply bump learning effect

When a worker bumps another worker, the smarter worker gets -1 knowledge and the dumber worker gets +1 knowledge

Select artifacts by worker intelligence

Workers with knowledge 1-3 must pick the 1st face-up artifact; knowledge 4-5 may pick 1st or 2nd; knowledge 6 may pick any of the three

Track ethical dilemma artifacts

When using an artifact for an ethical dilemma, place it face up on the dilemma card

Resolve recurring artifacts

When a previously used ethical dilemma artifact is drawn again, immediately discard it and gain +5 morale (if fighting dystopia) or -5 knowledge (if contributing to dystopia)