Sator Arepo Tenet Opera Rotas

The game board is set up with a central abyss and surrounding library sections. Path tiles, representing different types of flooring (wood, stone, grates), are placed on designated spaces. Books, corresponding to player colors, are distributed randomly on specific path tiles. Each player chooses an acolyte of their color and places it on a starting space. Players receive a hand of cards, typically 6, from two different decks: 'In Certos Movete' (for manipulating path tiles) and 'Liber Fidei' (special action cards).

The primary objective of Sator Arepo Tenet Opera Rotas is to be the first player to collect four magic books of your designated color. These books are scattered across the labyrinthine library, and collecting them is crucial to sealing the abyss and becoming the new Guardian.

During a player's turn, they have 6 action points to spend. Actions include playing cards from their hand, moving their acolyte across path tiles, or manipulating the path tiles themselves. Playing 'In Certos Movete' cards allows players to slide or rotate path tiles, with the cost in action points depending on the type of manipulation and whether an opponent's acolyte is on the tile. 'Liber Fidei' cards offer powerful special abilities, but typically cannot be used on the first round. After spending action points, players discard played cards and draw new cards to refill their hand up to 6, choosing from either the 'In Certos Movete' or 'Liber Fidei' deck.

Sator Arepo Tenet Opera Rotas is not a points-based game. There is no traditional scoring phase. Instead, the game focuses on a race to achieve a specific objective. The first player to successfully meet the victory condition is declared the winner.

The game concludes as soon as one player successfully collects their fourth magic book. This player immediately wins the game, becoming the new Guardian of the ancient library. The game does not continue beyond this point, and no further turns are taken.