Mega Empires is a board game for 3 to 18 players and covers the development of ancient civilizations over 8000 years of history. This bundle including the stand alone games Western Empires (2019) and Eastern Empires (2021) can take up to 13 hours to complete, and still yet, it has a simple mechanism and is easy to learn. It was designed to be the largest game possible that fits within a single day within a single room. The players lead their civilizations, as they expand and collapse, from the Stone Age, through the Bronze Age to the end of the Iron Age. This game is especially meant for larger groups of strategic board game fanatics. Culture Though it may seem at first glance, Mega Empires is a not a wargame. Yes, conflict may be involved, but rather it is a game about history, culture, trade, development, and... calamities. The 2 meter (80 inch) wide map board stretches from Britannia in The West to current Bangladesh in The East. From Scandinavia in the North to Sudan in the South. Some of the involved civilization are The Romans, The Egyptians, The Babylonians, The Indus Valley civilization and The Nubains. Players develop their own unique civilization in arts, crafts, science, civics and religion. Each player starts his civilization with a single population token, 8000 BC, but grows and grows over time, and eventually cities can be built. Cities of course bring wealth and fortune, but also… natural calamities such as epidemics, famine or earthquakes, or civil calamities such as pirate attacks, slave revolts and civil disorder. Trading This wealth is expressed in trade cards. The more cities, the more cards a player gets. These cards provide both trading commodities, and calamities. Trading is the heart of the game. A real social experience, where all players simultaneously trade with each other during a limited time. As soon as trading has ended, the players that end up with calamities will suffer them. Develop advances And then, of course, it's time to do something about it. Build walls, give your citizens music and architecture. Develop religion, democracy, improve science… 51 different advances can be developed in five different categories. Maybe a player can even construct a wonder of the world, or scatter their people all over the map, and gain cultural ascendancy. The player that knows best how to work together, trade or battle for territory, defend his people against nature or enemies like barbarian hordes, and stand the test of time, eventually will win the game. After up to 13 hours of playing that is. Mega Empires Either game can be played by 3-9 players, and the combination can be played by 10-18 players. Either stand alone game can be expanded with the two Special Buildings Expansions (2019). Where Western Empires has a focus on sea travel and trade on the Mediterrainean Sea, Eastern Empires follows the Silk Road to India and trading is done through the deserts of the Arabian Peninsula. Both games are developed as equally balanced counterparts that either have their own unique characteristics in gameplay, while competing together in an East/West 18 player experience. —description from the designers