How to Play
Sector 196 is a quick draft-and-conquer game. You build a nation from pieces of real countries, then watch it try to conquer the world over 40 years. Every draft is different, every run plays out differently, and a game takes about two minutes.
Step by step
- 01Draft
A real country is drawn at random from all 196 in the world. You get eight draws, one at a time.
- 02Choose
Each draw goes into one of your 8 open categories: Military, Population, Food Production, Industry, Natural Resources, Economy, Innovation or Location. The catch is that you only find out how good that country is in that category after you've placed it. Put a superpower in the right slot and it's a huge boost. Put it in the wrong one and it's wasted.
- 03See how you did
Once a country is placed, you see its rank out of 196 and its tier, from Very Weak to Very Strong. Every ranking comes from real-world data wherever it exists. Not happy with how the draft is going? Restart at any time before it's complete and draw a fresh eight.
- 04Conquer
Your empire then plays out 40 years, one year at a time. Each year, one of your categories is tested. Strong categories tend to bring victories and new land; weak ones bring setbacks. Follow every battle, deal and disaster in the event log as your territory spreads across the map.
How winning works
Your empire score. The more of the world you hold, the higher your empire score, from almost nothing at the start up to 1,000 for the entire planet.
The Greatest Empires. At the end of the run, your empire score is ranked against nine of history's greatest empires, judged by how dominant each was in its own world. Match an empire's score to pass it. Finish 1st and you are the Greatest Empire in History.
World conquest · 196 / 196. The ultimate prize: take every country on Earth. It's rare, and it takes a brilliant draft and a bit of luck, but it can be done.
Tips
- Every category matters. Any one of them can decide a year, so a single terrible pick can hold back an otherwise great empire.
- Don't waste a superpower. A country that's world-class at one thing is often ordinary at the rest. Think about where it's likely to shine before you place it.
- Balance beats one big strength. An empire that's solid everywhere tends to go further than one that's brilliant at one thing and weak at the rest.
Ready?
Start DraftRankings come from real-world data wherever it exists — see Data & Credits for every source and licence.