How to Play

Thebes

2-4 players 60-60 min 7.1 Board Game Geek Rating

In Thebes, archaeologists compete to excavate ancient civilizations across Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. Players travel to gain knowledge, then use it to dig for artifacts at historical sites. The unique time-track mechanic means each action advances your position differently, with turn order based on who's furthest behind temporally. Victory comes from collecting valuable treasures and completing exhibitions.

Published 2007

Thebes

Get Ready

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

1
Distribute player components
Each player receives a set of 5 excavation permits, a time marker, and a time wheel
2
Place starting archaeologist
All players start their archaeologist piece at Warsaw
3
Stack time markers
Randomly stack time markers on the start space; for 3 players, start on the 16 space instead
4
Prepare exhibit cards
Remove the 10 exhibit cards from the deck and set aside
5
Create initial display
Shuffle the remaining cards, draw 4 cards and place face-up on the Research area of the board
6
Build the deck
Make 3 stacks of 27 researcher cards each
7
Set the year marker
Place on 1901 for 2 or 3 players; place on 1902 for 4 players
8
Seed excavation sites
Take one 1VP artifact token for each area and place on each excavation site on the board

On Your Turn

What you can do during your turn.

1
Determine active player
The player whose time marker is furthest back (last) takes their turn; if tied, the marker on top of the stack goes first
2
Pay movement cost
Moving costs time equal to the number of legs traveled; players may occupy the same space as others
3
Execute one mandatory action
Choose one of the following actions:
4
Select a card
Pick a face-up card from the display
5
Move archaeologist
Move your piece to the city indicated on the card
6
Add to collection
Place the card face-up in your play area
7
Advance time
Move your time marker forward for movement cost plus the card's time cost
8
Refill display
Draw a new card to replace the one taken
9
Travel to Warsaw
Move your player piece to Warsaw
10
Discard and redraw
Discard all current cards and draw 4 new face-up cards
11
Pay time cost
Advance time marker 1 week for the action plus movement to Warsaw
12
Handle consecutive exchanges
If exchanging cards again while already in Warsaw, pay an additional 2 weeks
13
Verify requirements
Must have a valid permit tile and at least 1 point of special knowledge for the area
14
Calculate special knowledge
Add technical books and rumors/legends for the specific area
15
Add general knowledge
Add general knowledge books, but cannot exceed your special knowledge amount
16
Use time wheel
Set the blue value to your total knowledge, choose weeks to dig, and draw tiles equal to the red number (must be greater than 0)
17
Apply shovel bonus
With 2 or 3 shovel cards draw +1 or +2 discs; with exactly 1 shovel card, draw +1 but discard that card
18
Process drawn tiles
Return debris to the bag; keep useful items face-up in your play area
19
Discard used cards
Discard any rumors/legends cards used
20
Claim first dig bonus
If first player to dig at this site, claim the 1VP token
21
Flip permit
Turn your permit tile to the X side; you may dig again next year
22
Travel to exhibition city
Move to the city shown on the exhibition card
23
Claim exhibit card
Take the exhibit card after showing artifact requirements are met; do not discard artifacts used
24
Cross year boundary
When your time marker passes 52, flip all permits back to valid side; if you are the last player to cross, advance the year marker

Winning

How to claim victory.

1
Trigger game end
A player ends when playing in 1903 and moves past week 52, stopping on the year 1 space; that player cannot move again while others continue
2
Score special knowledge
For each excavation site, the player with the most special knowledge gains 5VP; if tied, all tied players receive 3VP each
3
Score artifacts
Add VP values from all collected artifact tiles
4
Score exhibition cards
Add VP from completed small exhibitions (4 points each) and large exhibitions (5 points each)
5
Score congress cards
Earn VP based on number of congress cards collected: 1 card = 1VP, 2 = 3VP, 3 = 6VP, 4 = 10VP, 5 = 15VP, 6 = 21VP, 7 = 28VP maximum
6
Ignore non-scoring items
Assistants, legends, and general knowledge cards do not count toward final score
7
Determine winner
The player with the most VP wins; ties are not broken

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FULL rules

Looking for the full details? Grab the complete rulebook as a downloadable PDF.

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