How to Play

The Princes of Florence

1-5 players 75-100 min 7.5 Board Game Geek Rating

Players compete as Florentine families, bidding on buildings, landscapes, and freedoms to attract various professionals like astronomers and architects to their palaces. Each profession has specific preferences that, when matched, generate work points convertible to money or victory points. Over seven rounds, minimum work point requirements increase, creating escalating challenges. The family accumulating the most victory points achieves prestige and wins.

Published 2000

Get Ready

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

Position the score board

Put the score board in the center of the table

Set the round marker

Put the black marker on round 1 on the score board

Assign the start player

Give the black start-player figure to the oldest player

Distribute player components

Give each player a principality board and the marker matching the color of the palazzo text and its name

Place score figures

For each player, put a matching color figure on score 0 (prestige points)

Arrange auction items

Left of the score board, stack separately:

Deal profession cards

Shuffle the 21 profession cards and deal each player 4; each player keeps 3 and discards 1

Prepare profession deck

Shuffle the discarded profession cards with the undealt cards and stack right of the board

Arrange action items

Right of the scoreboard, stack separately:

Distribute starting money

Give each player 3500ƒ; put the remaining florins aside as a bank

On Your Turn

What you can do during your turn.

Start an auction

The first player in clockwise order still playing may select one nonempty stack left of the score board and bid 200ƒ, or pass

Pass on starting

If you pass, you are out of auction play for this round

Raise bids

In clockwise order, each player may bid exactly 100ƒ higher or pass

Pass on bidding

If you pass on a bid, you are out of that auction but may bid in later auctions

Win the auction

Bidding continues until 1 player remains; this winner pays the bank and gains 1 item from the auctioned stack

Place landscape

Put it in your principality; if it repeats a previous one, score 3 prestige points

Select prestige card

Draw 5 (supply permitting), keep 1, and put the rest facedown in any order under the stack

Gain recruiting card

Hold it in your hand or use it immediately

Place jester

Put it on your palazzo

Place builder

Put it in your leftmost open builder spot (limit 3); for builders 2 and 3, score 3 prestige points each

Mark completed auction

The winner puts their marker on top of the auctioned stack; this stack may not be auctioned again this round, and the winner is out of auction play for this round

Continue auctions

Hold auctions until all players are out of auction play; the last player may win an item for 200ƒ

Take two actions

Once around in clockwise order, each player may take 2 actions from the available options

Take a Profession card (limit once)

Pay 300ƒ, draw 5 cards (supply permitting), keep 1, and put the rest facedown in any order under the stack

Introduce a Freedom (limit once)

Pay 300ƒ and take any available freedom you do not have; put it in its corresponding space on your board

Acquire a Bonus Card (may repeat)

Pay 300ƒ, draw 5 bonus cards (supply permitting), keep 1, and put the rest facedown in any order under the stack

Build a Building (may repeat)

Pay 700/300/300/0ƒ based on having 0/1/2/3 builders; score 3 prestige points; immediately put 1 available building of a type you do not have into your principality

Complete a Work (may repeat)

Play a profession card and any number of bonus cards to complete a work

Calculate work value

Sum the following:

Meet minimum value

In round 1/2/3/4/5/6/7, the work value must be at least 7/10/12/14/15/16/17, or the card may not be played

Record work value

Put your marker on the score track; if this is your second work, use the higher value

Collect income

Take 100ƒ for each value point of this work

Convert income to points

You may immediately score 1 prestige point for each 200ƒ forfeited from this income