John Company is an epic game of diplomacy, scheming, and occasional cooperation set in the Indian subcontinent in the early eighteenth century. From BGG: “In John Company, players assume the roles of ambitious families attempting to use the British East India Company for personal gain. The game begins in the early eighteenth-century when the Company has a weak foothold on the subcontinent. Over the course of the game, the Company might grow into the most powerful and insidious corporation in the world or collapse under the weight of its own ambition. John Company is a game about state-sponsored trade monopoly. Unlike most economic games players often do not control their own firms. Instead, they will collectively guide the Company by securing positions of power, attempting to steer the Company’s fate in ways that benefit their own interests. However, the Company is an unwieldy thing. It is difficult to do anything alone, and players will often need to negotiate with one another. In John Company, most everything is up for negotiation.”

John Company is a perfect game for pros and beginners at the same table – we will offer a demo, and each table will be seeded with at least one experienced player. This experienced player will act primarily as “whip” to explain each step of the game and help move things along. The mechanics of John Company are formulaic, but the interaction between players can seem complex so I would strongly recommend attending the demo, reading the rules, and/or watching one of the excellent how-to videos on YouTube to get maximum enjoyment.

Notes on schedule and some changes this year:

• Heats will offer both 1710 scenario (good introductory game that doesn’t involve player firms) and 1758 scenario (potential for firm formation and more complexity). If there are enough players who wish to play the 1758 scenario, I will attempt to arrange as many tables as possible. However, given the need to have an experienced “whip” at each 1710 table, this may not be possible for everyone. Note also that the heats are capped at 5 hours so you would need to commit to fast play to complete the 1758 scenario
• Heats will aim for 4-5 players at each table
• Depending on the number of unique players in the heats, we may have a Semifinal round. If there are only 1-15 players in the Heats, we will skip the Semifinal and go right to a 5 player final. Semifinal table configuration will depend on the number of unique players in the heats, and all Semifinal games will be the 1758 scenario. I will advance players from the Heats to maximize 5 player Semifinal tables, but keeping within the Convention rule that only half the participants in Heats may advance to Semifinal. For example, if there are 19 unique players in the heats, I will advance 9 players with a 4 and 5 player Semifinal table. Eliminators could be used if available
• Regardless of number of semifinalists, the Final will feature a 5 player table. The final game will be a full campaign game and I will add extra time (though it’s unlikely to go a full 7 hours)
• Advancement to the Semifinal will be based on the Heats Most Wins - Points standard Tiebreakers with a GM specific tiebreaker listed
• Advancement from the Semifinal to the Final will also be based on the standard tiebreaker using results from only the Semifinal only. Ties among these players will be broken with “percent of 1st place points” in the Semifinal game, then seeding from heats, then John Company game specific tiebreakers, and only then a die roll.
• Ties in the final will be broken by game specific tie breakers. Importantly, we will make the following changes to the game specific tie breakers – first tie breaker is number of windows; second will be cash on hand; third will be trophies; fourth PM seating order.

HEATS: MOST WINS - POINTS (HMW-P):

1. Most Wins (e.g., total in all heats entered)
2. Total Points – Players earn the following pints in each heat they entered:
   • 1st Place - 1,000 points
   • 2nd Place - 100 points
   • 3rd Place - 10 points
   • 4th Place - 1 points
   • All other places - 0 points
   • e.g. player has a 1st, 2nd, and 4th in three heats: total points would be 1,101
3. GM Specific Tie-breaker: Ties will be broken by "percent" of first place in game(s) played. For example, if two people are tied with a second place result in the Heats (100 points each), the tie-breaker will be which 2nd place score had the highest percent of the 1st place score in their game.
4. High dice roll.

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