Comrades Conundrum

Comrades Conundrum is a game about the bureaucracy and backstabbing of the Supreme Soviet, shortly before the Fall of the Iron Curtain. You are a minister of the Soviet Union, seeking to seize the position of Premier as you acquire ever more grandiose Titles. By seizing Resources, and strategic use of your Powers, you might just end up at the top of the heap! Of course, your rivals won't just lay down like the capitalist running dogs they are— it's up to you to outmaneuver them before Perestroika brings everything crashing down. Comrades revolves around two main mechanics: trading of randomly distributed Resources (5 of each type, 10 types overall), and the use of Power cards to disrupt this trade. Resources (Nukes, Party Memberships, etc.) are traded blindly between players, opening up the potential to bluff. The more matches of a particular resource you hold, the more potential value they have, as you trade them in to declare Titles, which are worth points at the end of the game. Power cards come in two types, Action and Instant. Action cards are more powerful than Instants, but force the player to choose between declaring a Title, or altering the balance of play. Instants, on the other hand, can be played at any time, and are generally offensive in use. Optional rulesets provide for longer games, and for a "Judge" that influences things round to round. —description from the publisher