So you have decided to try and work out what the future holds. You are playing Charterstone and you want the one up on players to try and win this legacy game. Well, here are my thoughts on strategies to employ in each game for each game, and over the course of the legacy campaign. PLEASE BE AWARE THERE ARE SPOILERS BELOW:

During the Game:

Glory & Building; Yes let’s cut straight to the chase. If you want to win the legacy then get the average glory you score per game up, and build the best buildings. Don’t waste time building lower point buildings unless they really move the needle on your strategy because you will just build over them again in the future. Buy buildings from the card stock, get them into your charter. Also, keep coming second rather than dashing between 1st and 3rd in games. It’s better that you score a consistent 5 glory than find yourself one short on points from another glory in the next game.

Bonuses; Double persona seemed amazing when I unlocked it using glory early in the game, but the reality is that I could have done that as the second or even third one and I still would have used all the personas. Yes, persona additions will mean more power in game but they are marginal and you will get to use them all anyway. Start then with extra commodities for building or extra minions. These really offer more benefit to you in the early game and speed up your engine. 3 points is even worth thinking about because it might get you extra glory. Later in the game, extra capacity is a worthwhile addition. Early game it would give you huge advantages but late game you will not be gaining anything from the benefit. However, mid-way into the campaign, will allow you to lock up all the capacity and still get some benefits each time.

Chain Actions; This game is all about being able to build an engine. If you can build the right buildings in your charter then you will have some opportunities to double up the impact of your moves. In fact, you might even be able to reduce the number of times you recall your workers – i.e. waste your turns.

Extra Objectives; The ability to gain extra objectives through giving up resources or through the income phase. These can be a complete waste, but two extra objectives can hand you the opportunity to gain reputation and score big points. Seek out these buildings for your own charter ideally!

Friends & Items; These are the cards that I found benefited players the most. Extra points being key. The friend who supports your charter, the items that you can easily build. These are helpful to pushing yourself into the next level of glory before the end of the game.

Reputation; Sometimes you will rush to build a building or to trigger progress. However, when you think about it you will want to get that bonus reputation token down by triggering progress. By the late games, we were all wise to this and were waiting patiently with a progress action – waiting for other players to have to move the progress track on. Keep in mind that ties in reputation are friendly – getting that last spot on the reputation track then offers you a way of creating a tie for extra points (or denying an opponent). Regular ties in this can really help players advance their game subtly.

Cloud Port; The most under-rated action on the board in our game, but one round I started to use this for the points and it was huge. Two pieces discarded, 4 points. Three pieces, another 4 points. Going again with other mechanics (coins et al) and there was a material upside.

Bonus Builds; The extra build areas are very compelling – more points, less cost and in your own charter. These can become very valuable. I would try to grab these and make sure that you can use minions to trigger them. Leaving your minions on these spaces for the next player that wants extra points or a cheaper build.

Staying in the Charter; I think it’s come up from the above, but there will be times that you need things in your charter. Above all else, those buildings in your charters can be visited by your minions – increasing the power of the space, and if another player uses it then that’s a bonus.

Minions; Speaking of the minions, the opportunity with the minions is best if it’s the chef or the robot. Get these guys and hold on to them – the extra influence will give you more opportunities for points, and the robot can offer you more cards that play into each game (and carry over). Get enough cards, and it’s back to the cloud port to remove them for points rather than just discarding them for free.

Guide Post; I mentioned this in the review, but it’s important to know that coming second and getting a guide post can actually leave you with more glory than coming first. This is perhaps the easier way to position for the win in the long run!

Good Luck!