Swaraj: The Cooperative Game of Noncooperation (Essentials Edition)
Constructive Programme (CP): The Satyagrahi Mass Protest can end the game successfully or unsuccessfully, so you need to give it your best effort. Constructive Programme can give players bonuses when they are ready to launch their Satyagrahi Mass Action for Indian Self-Rule (Swaraj). Each CP, once it has become Established after four continuous rounds, will give players a bonus on the dice roll. Each CP also has secondary bonuses and/or powers that become available after that CP has been active for two consecutive rounds. CP actions are not bound by region; they are initiated throughout the country generally, but they cannot continue if the leader ends up confined in his or her homebase, or is put in gaol (jail) for any number of rounds. So Players need to be aware of which programmes their Player Card indicates they can lead. There may be times when Players will elect to delay an Act of Defiance until one or more CPs have become Established.
End-of-Game, Satyagrahi Mass Action:
Constructive Programme works in tandem with Obstructive Program toward a Satyagrahi Mass Action. Once OPs have achieved victorious Acts of Defiance in at least nine (9) regions, Players may roll for a Satyagrahi Mass Action, adding bonuses for each Established CP, but subtracting points for each region in Apathy. Some outcomes end the game unsuccessfully. Others allow further rolls and there are three possible winning scenarios:
1) India separates into Dominions of the British Empire, one Muslim and one Hindu,
2) a United India becomes a Dominion of the British India, or
3) a United India becomes a completely independent state; Purna Swaraj.
Swaraj
The Cooperative Game of Noncooperation
Swaraj, Essentials Edition……..$71.95 Swaraj, Standard Edition……..$81.95
Please go to page for the Standard Edition to add it to your cart. Gameplay is the same for both games.
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Object of Swaraj: The object of Swaraj is to overturn the British Raj and establish a government of United Indians, before the people lose faith in the Independence Movement. Players are members of the Independence Movement in India who cooperatively engage in one or more of three strategic, nonviolent actions
Obstructive Programme: Acts of Defiance which nonviolently break laws or obstruct unjust practices
Constructive Programme: Organizing which musters the economic strength and self-reliance of Indians while diverting resources and funds from the British
Riot Quelling: Peacekeeping actions which fight the divisions, fear, ignorance and anger that pit Indians against one another, with terrible consequences, and weaken India’s ability to rule independently of the British.
Obstructive Programme (OP):
Obstructive Programme consists of collecting OP Resource Cards until you and other players have a combination of cards, allowing you to launch an Act of Defiance in a specific region of India, often one which has requested your help, or an Act of Solidarity for a region you do not occupy, which is pursuing defiant actions. There are six suites of OP Cards: Strike, Picketing, Nonpayment of Taxes, March, Boycott, and Returning of Medals and Honors. OP acts must be initiated in a specific region by players in that region. When players achieve a victory, a Swaraj token is placed in the region. Once nine (9) of the regions have Swaraj tokens, players may initiate a Satyagrahi Mass Action to try to end the game successfully.
Riot Quelling:
Riots are destructive and demoralizing for the people of a region, and caring people everywhere. As long as there is rioting in a region, there can be no OP launched there. Players who try to quell a riot must actually be in a city in that region to do so. Satyagrahis can also come to add bonuses to the quelling roll. After each round that riots in a region are not quelled, players must roll on the Riot Table to see what happens the next round. Riots can end on their own, continue, or spread to adjacent regions, with various other consequences for players and followers. If rioting in a region is not quelled after three rounds, the British Raj will automatically impose Martial Law, which further limits movement and the ability to carry the Movement forward.
Other Game Elements:
These three main Game actions are served and affected by other game elements. To engage in OP actions, players will often need to travel, raise Satyagrahis, retain Satyagrahis, and deal with the inconveniences of Martial Law and sometimes Gaol (Jail). Travel is always along the blue travel lines, moving at the speed indicated on your player card. Satyagrahis travel is similar to player travel, but can be done more economically when players establish quarters for Satyagrahis and role to “campaign” with them. Weekly Gazettes may be established, which give players advantages in travel speed and knowledge of upcoming events.
Swaraj Cards describe events in specific cities in which Players can act to reduce suffering and generate successful acts of defiance. But if they do not act before the card rotates off the board, the region for that city or cities may fall into Apathy, which will have a negative impact on the End-of-Game, Satyagrahi Mass Action Roll.
The Box
Other than housing game elements and having a cover image that gets you to buy and open it, (Big thanks to graphic artist, Nik Hagialas!), the box doesn’t do much else for the game. This gamebox is made from repurposed, commercial glassware packaging: lighter than other game boxes, but strong, and since it is repurposed, better for the environment.
It takes some time and effort, but we think it’s worth it, and others do as well. In her May 2023 Grid Philly article, Dawn Kane writes “Reusing boxes doesn’t just save cardboard. According to a peer-reviewed study on the lifecycle of corrugated cardboard boxes published in Resources, reusing a cardboard box once instead of recycling right away cuts its lifecycle emissions by a third.” (Dawn Kane, Grid Philly, #168 May 2023, “A company with decades of reuse experience aims at zero waste” referencing “A LifeCycle Analysis and Economic Cost Analysis of Corrugated Cardboard Box Reuse and Recycling in the United States” by Harshwardhan Ketkale in Resources 2023, 12(2),22; https://doi.org/10.3390/resources12020022 – 01 Feb 2023)
So...what's in the box???
Swaraj: The Cooperative Game of Noncooperation, Essentials Edition comes with the following:
22″ x 17″ Gameboard Instruction Booklet: The Green Pamphlet
3 Dice 4 Direction Reminder Cards
98 Cards 116 Tokens
and 8 double-sided Player Cards (16 different Characters)
Swaraj: The Cooperative Game of Noncooperation, Standard Edition has all of these game elements, but has 20 double-sided Player Cards (40 different Characters). Gameplay is the same.
Swaraj Cards, Placement Tokens and Round Play
