Expansions

With Forces of Balance, Cerebria can be played with up to 6 players at once, and it also brings a new 3-player game mode to the table.

The expansion doesn’t affect the usual gameplay for players with Bliss or Gloom Spirits, but it introduces a new side, Balance, with a whole new playstyle.

Balance players have their own method to gather Identity Fragments during the game. They do not compete for the Common Aspiration; instead, they have special Hidden Aspirations with two different conditions. The first is similar to the normal Aspirations with a twist: Balance only wins if Bliss and Gloom are tied in that condition during the Revelation!

The other condition is unique to Balance, and winning one is worth a Minor Fragment, while winning both is worth a Major Fragment. Just like Bliss and Gloom, Balance wins by having the most points at the end of the game from Identity Fragments and the Wheel of Intentions.

Balance has its own set of Emotions, each of which can be aligned with one side or the other, but they can also benefit from Bliss and Gloom Emotions on the board. Overall, the highly asymmetric Balance faction brings a fresh and intriguing way to play Cerebria, with increased player interaction, temporary alliances between players, and a lot of tense moments.

Cerebria – The Card Game is a turn-based card game, where players build their Mindsets, filling it up with Bliss and Gloom Emotions. Players fill their hand with Emotion cards from the Impulse, a dynamically changing pool of available Emotion cards. Whenever the Impulse is emptied of Emotions, a Revelation takes place; this is when each player’s Mindset is scored, granting Bliss or Gloom Identity Fragments. The goal of the game is to collect enough Fragments to fully develop the Identity.

Players can gain Fragments by invoking Emotions into their Mindset. However, these Fragments can be spent on the effect of the Emotions’ Abilities, so it is up to the players to decide whether they hold on to their victory points or spend some of them to be more efficient. Emotion Ability effects can interact with other Mindsets, other players’ hands and the Impulse; but they can be canceled by discarding Emotions of the matching type.

The game ends if one of the players manages to build a fully single-minded (collecting twelve or more of the same type of Fragment) or a balanced Identity (collecting seven or more of both Fragment types each).