Hanamikoji

To set up Hanamikoji, place the seven scholar cards in a horizontal row between the two players, each with a favor marker resting on its center. Shuffle the deck of theory cards, place the remainder face down, and deal a starting hand of six cards to each player. Each player also takes four action tokens, which represent the unique moves available during a round.

The main objective is to win the favor of the scholars. You win the game immediately if you successfully capture the favor of at least four scholars, or if the sum of the reputation points on the scholars whose favor you hold reaches 11 or more.

A player's turn begins by drawing one card from the deck. Then, the player must choose and use one of their remaining, unused action tokens for the round. The four actions are: Secret (reserve a card face down), Discard (remove two cards from the game), Gift (display three cards for your opponent to choose one), and Competition (divide four cards into two pairs for your opponent to choose one). Each action token can only be used once per round.

Scoring occurs at the end of a round once both players have used all four action tokens. Players reveal their secret cards, and all cards won are placed next to their respective scholars. For each scholar, the player with the majority of cards wins their favor marker. If tied, the marker stays in the center.

A full game consists of up to three rounds. A round ends when all players have expended their four action tokens. The game concludes at the end of any round where a player satisfies the win condition of having four favor markers or 11+ reputation points. If neither player wins after three rounds, the player with the most points wins.