the twelve page booklet, even though it was filled with illustrations and color examples, was just a difficult thing to understand.
You're such a generous guy, Tom
I'd call these rules borderline incoherent for the most part. Several elements of the game are essentially impossible to play correctly until you've re-read them 6 times, played once, and then attempted to channel the spirit of the designer. And while the board is attractive, the utility is hideous. I have a friend who is a graphic designer who won't play the game again because the layout is so poor it gives him a headache.
I think this game is heavily dependant on the number of players. I'm not sure whether it's actually good at
any number, but more clearly helps I think. With more players, the peasants aren't quite as screwed, because if there is a critical mass of merchants, each of their card plays helps the peasants generally. And merchants have a somewhat more reliable income stream than bankers. But with small numbers of players, those left behind are hosed.
I also thought the idea of sitting on cards that were specific to bankers while you were still a peasant was kind of interesting. You want to acquire these powerful cards early, but they can be expensive, and take up a spot in your hand, so reducing your flexibility, which was kind of a neat tradeoff.
The whole banker portion of the game seemed dumb and really, really tedious to me, though.
Ultimately I am in agreement with your overall rating, although there were a few things in there I saw that I liked. But the overall package has major and obvious problems, and really is only for the fixer-uppers.