Food Chain Magnate Gameplay Overview

Turn Structure

1. The game is played in 7 phases, some simultaneous and some in turn order.
2. Phases are: 1) Restructuring (simultaneous), 2) Order of Business (based on open slots), 3) Working 9:00-5:00 (turn order), 4) Dinnertime (house number order), 5) Payday (simultaneous), 6) Marketing Campaigns (campaign number order), 7) Clean Up (simultaneous).

Phase 1: Restructuring

Players choose which employees to use this turn and arrange them into a company structure with the CEO at the top.

1. Choose cards secretly: Each player simultaneously chooses which employee cards to use this turn and places them face down. All other cards are placed face down in a separate pile.
2. Reveal cards: All players simultaneously reveal the pile of cards to be used this turn. These employees are 'at work'. The rest are 'on the beach'.
3. Build company structure: Place the cards at work into a pyramid company structure. CEO at top, managers below CEO (up to 3), and normal employees below managers (2-10 per manager).
4. Validate structure: If too many cards were played to fit the structure, all cards except CEO go on the beach and the player plays with only the CEO.

• The CEO is always at work and always the top of the pyramid
• During all other phases, players can request to see another player's cards (both at work and on beach)

Phase 2: Order of Business

Players choose their position on the turn order track based on open slots in their company structure.

1. Count open slots: Count open slots (unused slots on CEO and managers). Player with 'First airplane campaign' milestone adds 2 extra open slots.
2. Choose turn order: Player with most open slots chooses turn order position first. Ties broken by previous turn order (earlier player chooses first).
3. Complete turn order: Continue in descending order of open slots until all players have chosen positions.

Phase 3: Working 9:00-5:00

Players take turns performing actions for each card in their company structure. Actions must be performed in the order listed in the rules.

1. Take turns: Players take turns in turn order. Each player completes all their actions before the next player begins.
2. Recruit employees: Recruit: CEO provides 1 free recruitment. Additional recruitments from recruiting girl (1x), recruiting manager (2x), or HR director (4x). Hire entry-level (●) employees to the beach. Can hire if immediately training to higher level.
3. Train employees: Train: For each training action (trainer, coach, guru), train one employee on the beach one step. Cannot train cards at work or busy marketeers. Coach can train same card 2 steps, guru 3 steps. With milestone, multiple trainers can train same card.
4. Place marketing campaigns: Initiate Marketing Campaigns: For each marketeer at work, place a campaign (billboard/mailbox/airplane/radio) within range (if applicable). Choose what to advertise (pizza/burger/drink type). Place wooden pieces equal to duration on campaign. Place busy chip on marketeer card.
5. Produce goods: Get Food & Drinks: Kitchen staff and buyers collect food/drinks per their card abilities. Kitchen trainee: 1 burger or pizza. Burger cook: 3 burgers. Burger chef: 8 burgers. Pizza cook: 3 pizzas. Pizza chef: 8 pizzas. Errand boy: 1 drink of any type. Cart operator: 2 drinks per source, range 2. Truck driver: 3 drinks per source, range 3. Zeppelin pilot: 2 drinks per source, range 4, ignore roads.
6. Add houses/gardens: Place New Houses/Gardens: New business developer can place a new house connected to a road anywhere on the map, or add a garden (2x3 rectangle) to an existing house on empty squares.
7. Place/move restaurants: Place/Move Restaurants: Local manager places new restaurant within range 3 by road, entrance connects to road, placed 'COMING SOON'. Regional manager places restaurant anywhere entrance connects to road, or moves existing restaurant, active immediately. Both provide drive-in (entrances in all corners).

• Actions of pricing manager, discount manager, luxury manager, CFO, recruiting manager, HR director, and waitress are mandatory
• Actions must be performed in the order listed, regardless of organizational chart position
• Only one copy of each ◆ card allowed per player

Phase 4: Dinnertime

Houses eat based on demand tokens, choosing restaurants by price and distance. Players earn money for sales.

1. Process houses in order: Process houses in order of printed house numbers (lowest first).
2. Check supply: For each house with demand tokens: find chains with restaurants connected by road that can provide ALL demanded goods. If none, inhabitants stay home.
3. Determine winner: If multiple chains can supply: calculate unit price (base $10, +/- price managers). Calculate distance (range from house to nearest restaurant entrance). Add (unit price + distance). Lowest sum wins. Ties broken by most waitresses, then turn order.
4. Serve and earn money: Winning chain serves food: remove demand tokens and matching goods from stock. Earn unit price + milestone bonuses per item. Houses with gardens: earn 2x unit price (bonuses not doubled). Then add bonuses.
5. Waitress tips: After all houses processed: each chain earns $3 per waitress ($5 with milestone).
6. CFO bonus: Chains with CFO (or milestone): earn +50% bonus on all cash earned this turn (including waitress tips), rounded up.
7. Check bank break: If bank has insufficient funds, break the bank (first time: open reserve cards, add money, adjust CEO slots; second time: game ends, finish phase 4, most cash wins).

• Bonuses from milestones (e.g., +$5 for burgers) do not affect unit price for competition calculation
• Standard unit price is $10 before any modifiers

Phase 5: Payday

Players may fire employees and must pay salaries for cards with $ symbol.

1. Fire employees: Each player may fire any employees in company structure or on the beach. Return fired cards to general stock. Busy marketeers normally cannot be fired.
2. Pay salaries: Pay $5 for each card with $ symbol in structure or on beach, including busy marketeers. Unused recruiting manager/HR director actions give $5 discount each. Apply all discounts. Minimum payment $0.
3. Handle broke players: If a player has no money but must pay a busy marketeer, that marketeer must be fired (only if all other salaried employees already fired). Campaign remains on board.

• First billboard placed milestone: marketeers require no salary
• First to train someone milestone: $15 salary discount

Phase 6: Marketing Campaigns

Marketing campaigns run in number order, placing demand tokens on houses they reach.

1. Process campaigns in order: Process campaigns in order of printed campaign numbers (lowest first).
2. Billboard reach: Billboard: place 1 demand token of advertised type on each house orthogonally adjacent (including garden-only adjacency).
3. Mailbox reach: Mailbox: place 1 demand token on each house in the same block (area enclosed by roads and board edge).
4. Airplane reach: Airplane: place 1 demand token on each house in a line of 1/3/5 rows or columns from the airplane.
5. Radio reach: Radio: place 1 demand token on each house on the radio's tile and all 8 surrounding tiles (2 tokens with milestone).
6. House capacity limits: Houses have maximum 3 demand tokens (5 with garden). Campaigns have no effect on full houses.
7. Update campaigns: After campaign runs: remove 1 advertising token from campaign. If no tokens remain, return campaign to stock and return marketeer to player (unless eternal campaign).

• First billboard placed milestone: campaigns are eternal (never end, marketeer unavailable forever)
• First radio campaign milestone: radios place 2 demand tokens instead of 1

Phase 7: Clean Up

Discard unused goods, collect cards, flip new restaurants, and remove claimed milestones.

1. Discard goods: All players without 'First to throw away drink/food' milestone discard all food and drinks they own. With milestone, keep up to 10 in freezer.
2. Collect cards: All cards from company structure and beach are taken back into hand. Other players may request to see them.
3. Open new restaurants: Flip all 'COMING SOON' restaurants to 'WELCOME' side (they become active).
4. Remove claimed milestones: If any milestones were awarded this turn, turn all remaining milestone cards of the same type upside down (no longer available).
5. Persistent tokens: Advertising tokens on campaigns and demand tokens on houses remain on the board.