"Iron Age" is a political strategy game, in which players compete
and co-operate with each other to build a community. The better you
manage your village, and the better you manage your relations with
other players, the more honour you will gain. And the more honour
you gain, the better your position will be at a special democratic
assembly called the Landsmoot, where one player is elected the
Chieftain. Originally designed as a teaching tool for a college
course in political science, the simple rules of Iron Age allow
many strategic possibilities. From the "hard power" of the army to
the "soft power" of trade and culture, just about every facet of
politics in the real world can be represented here - all depending
on how you play * Build farms, workshops, Great Halls, temples, and
more * Recuit specialists like warriors, priests, and poets * Trade
with other players to enrich your village, or put other players in
your debt * Raise an army to protect your village, or to loot and
pillage your neighbours * Build voting blocks, coalitions, and
alliances * If you can get elected Chieftain of the Landsmoot often
enough, and remain Chieftain long enough, you win the game Players:
Between 3 and 8 Ages: 15 and up Includes: * Basic and Advanced
versions of the game * Commentary on the philosophical roots of the
game, especially in the political thought of Thomas Hobbes and
David Hume, * Fifteen fun illustrations, * and a short essay on the
nature of "soft power" games. Requires: * Character sheets for each
player (available for free on the author's web site) * Three or
more 6-sided dice. A Note for Philosophers and Educators: This game
began as a project in experimental philosophy, which I presented to
students of my "Theories of Social Justice" class. It is not mainly
intended to teach facts: rather, it is intented to help students
develop skills, especially in public speaking, political
strategizing, and rational persuasion. It is also designed to
reproduce and to experiment with what some philosophers call "the
circumstances of justice," meaning the social or economic or
political problems that call for a justice-based solution. David
Hume is perhaps the first to draw up the list of circumstances that
most philosophers have used ever since. On his list of these
circumstances are: moderate scarcity of resources; approximate
equality of power among all players; and moderate self-interest.
Would players in these circumstances reach the justice-based
conclusions that Hume claimed they would? Or would they remain in a
Hobbsean "state of nature," leading nasty, brutish, and short
lives? As players calculate the best way to either win the game, or
else at least avoid being eliminated from the game, they end up
negotiating and co-operating with each other to handle these
circumstances. In the course of play, "Iron Age" also helps
demonstrate to students things like: * how political supporters are
won and lost * how players with the most honour are not always the
clear winners * how to find the right "balance" between
co-operation and competition * the importance of public speaking,
argumentation, and persuasion * the importance of being alert to
the movements of both allies and rivals * how political power flows
from numerous sources * how to plan for the future, and how to grow
a community sustainably * how much of our lives are unpredictable,
and why it's important to prepare for the unexpected. "Iron Age"
also demonstrates some features of Iron Age culture and history,
such as the Heroic Feast, the importance of Honour, the role of
fate and luck, and the early development of democracy.
General
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