Cow Island Publishing

Consul
of
Rome

A fast-paced strategy card game where you vie for the support of Senators and Legions to gain the votes you need to become Consul of Rome.

Build your support through patience, gambling, or bribery — there is more than one way to the top of Rome.

The Game

What is Consul of Rome?

A fast-paced strategy meld-making game where you vie for the support of Senators and Legions to gain the votes you need to become Consul of Rome.

Build your support through patience, gambling or bribery — there is more than one way to the top of Rome.

Consul of Rome is a card game that can be played right out of the box, but customised with special edition sets — including some of the great Senators of the Roman Republic.

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Senators

Court the most powerful men in Rome. A Senator opens your campaign — without one, your legions have no mandate.

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Legions

Marshal four legendary legions into devastating Runs and Officer Sets. The bigger the army, the louder the vote.

🎲

Gambit & Bribery

When patience fails, risk your tabled cards in a poker-like Gambit, or steal a rival's Senator through calculated Bribery.

How to Play

Three Steps to Power

I

Open with a Senator

Your first move is always political. Play a Senator from your hand to open your campaign. No Senator in hand? Draw and bide your time.

II

Raise Your Legions

Once your Senator takes his seat, build Legion Runs and Officer Sets from your hand. The longer your run, the more votes it commands.

III

Call the Vote

Empty your hand to call the vote and claim a 10-vote bonus. The player whose tableau votes exceed their hand votes wins — and becomes Consul.

Modes of Play

Choose Your Ambition

Super Quick

≈ 30 min

Play Now

Learn the core flow. Open with a Senator, build your legions, call the vote. No Gambit or Bribery — pure meld strategy.

Play Now ▶

Quick Game

≈ 45–60 min

Coming Soon

The full duel. Gambit adds a poker-like showdown where you risk your tableau. Bribery lets you steal a rival's key card when you're behind.

Campaign

≈ 2–2.5 hrs

Coming Soon

Three sequential rounds with accumulated Favour for winners. Narrative arcs, cumulative Gambit results, and special scenario cards.

Behind the Game

Dev Diary

Of Rome: Creating Card Templates with Speed

16 December 2025

Of Rome: Creating Card Templates with Speed

Don’t forget to check out DictatorOfRome.com for a daily dose of Roman themed logic puzzles – new features are being rolled out frequently so make sure to check back regularly! Up to this point, I had only focussed on rules and game mechanics. These didn’t stray too far off the beaten track, but I liked […]

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Of Rome: Sense checking the rules

3 December 2025

Of Rome: Sense checking the rules

Don’t forget to check out DictatorOfRome.com for a daily dose of Roman themed logic puzzles – new features are being rolled out frequently so make sure to check back regularly! Now to figuring out whether the rules worked beyond just my gut instinct honed over years of not designing, but at least playing, games. Print […]

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Of Rome: Rules that make the game go

26 November 2025

Of Rome: Rules that make the game go

Don’t forget to check out DictatorOfRome.com for a daily dose of Roman themed logic puzzles – new features are being rolled out frequently so make sure to check back regularly! Research It had been some time since I had actually looked at the rules of any card game, so my first step was to look […]

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Limited Edition

Be First in Line

Be first to know when pre-orders are open and be first in line for the limited edition Senator cards — Caesar and Pompey — foils and the most powerful men in Rome.

These cards will only be available in limited quantities.

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