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City Conquest – Race Through Edinburgh
Group games: teams against each other

City Conquest

Race Through Edinburgh

€19.95 per team

A city game where teams play against each other: at least 2 teams of 1–4 players, each team on its own phone.

Teams against each other · from €4.99 per person · book instantly · valid 12 months · no guide needed

  • 120 min
  • 30 zones
  • 20 factions
  • 2–20 teams

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In City Conquest the centre of Edinburgh becomes a game board for your whole group: at least two teams race to conquer zones, and other teams can win them back. On the way you pass places like City Chambers and the Mercat Cross, St Giles' Cathedral and Parliament Square, and Advocate's Close. When time is up, the team with the most points wins; with equal points, the team with the most ducats wins.

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What does it cost for your group?

Teams (up to 4 each): 3

Without a game master

€59.85

≈ €4.99 per person

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With a game master

€199.00

≈ €16.58 per person

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How to play

  1. 1

    Explore

    Walk through the real city. The map shows every zone: free, taken by a team in its colour, or locked for a few minutes. The game starts at .

  2. 2

    Conquer

    Step into a zone and open its task: a puzzle, a riddle, something to count or a code to crack on the spot, now and then a photo. Get it right and the zone takes your colour , and you earn 30 ducats .

  3. 3

    Defend and take back

    Other teams can take your zones once the lock is over, and you can take theirs. A zone stays with the team that conquers it. The first team at a bonus spot gets a power-up in its backpack .

  4. 4

    Final count

    When the time is up, the team with the most points wins; with equal points, the most ducats . Be at the meeting point in time: the herald calls everyone together.

Every zone has ten tasks about what you can really find there. Each team gets a different one, and a new one every time it comes back, so answers can't be passed on.

20 factions

Every zone has a field that fits the place: knowledge at a library, creativity at a museum, charm on a market square, speed on a bridge or quay, power at a fortress or tower. The stronger your faction is in a zone's field, the more points that zone is worth to you, so every faction has its own zones to go for.

  • Riders of Din Eidyn
  • Queen Margaret's Household
  • Randolph's Climbers
  • The Hammermen
  • The Queen's Four Maries
  • Heriot's Goldsmiths
  • The Edinburgh Caddies
  • The Enlightenment Club
  • The Surgeons of the Old College
  • The Printers of the High Street
  • The Makars
  • The New Town Architects
  • The Mound Diggers
  • The Fishwives of the Shore
  • The Tattoo Pipers
  • The One O'Clock Gunners
  • The Leeries
  • The Calton Hill Stargazers
  • Keepers of the Honours
  • The Fringe Players

Ducats, chests and drops

Chests

Every 20 minutes the herald hides chests in the streets. The first team within 30 m opens one: ducats , a potion, a defence or something to leave for others.

The merchant

You start with 50 ducats and earn more by conquering, holding zones and approved photos. Spend them at the merchant : you can buy anywhere, and at his spot you get 20% off.

Drops and fog

Leave a bomb, trap, fog, curse or sabotage on the street . Only your team sees it; the team that walks into it is hit. Fog hides their map beyond 100 m. A scout shows drops near you : walk to one to defuse it.

  • Speed potionWait times and zone locks halved for 10 minutes.
  • Wisdom potionRemoves one wrong answer from your next multiple-choice question.
  • Strength potionYour next conquest scores double.
  • ShieldBlocks the next attack on your team (20 seconds to react).
  • MirrorSends the next attack straight back to the team that left it.
  • AntidoteEnds fog, a trap or a curse at once.
  • ScoutShows other teams' drops within 100 m for 2 minutes; walk to one to defuse it.
  • BombLeave it on the street: the team that walks into it loses 25 points.
  • TrapLeave it on the street: 3 minutes no conquering and no answering.
  • FogLeave it on the street: for 4 minutes their map shows only 100 m around them.
  • CurseLeave it on the street: on their next 2 questions a wrong answer costs double.
  • SabotageLeave it on the street: steals one thing from their backpack (or 30 ducats).

30 zones

  1. City Chambers and the Mercat Cross
  2. St Giles' Cathedral and Parliament Square
  3. Advocate's Close
  4. The winding street of small shops
  5. The Lawnmarket and the High Court
  6. The Tron Kirk and Hunter Square
  7. The two libraries of George IV Bridge
  8. Lady Stair's Close and Gladstone's Land
  9. George IV Bridge
  10. Waverley Bridge
  11. St Cecilia's Hall, Niddry Street
  12. North Bridge
  13. Chambers Street and the National Museum
  14. The Mound and the Playfair Steps
  15. The storytellers' corner of the High Street
  16. The little dog at Candlemaker Row
  17. Old College, South Bridge
  18. The Hub and the Outlook Tower
  19. East Princes Street Gardens
  20. The Gothic rocket on Princes Street
  21. The National Gallery on the Mound
  22. The Netherbow and the World's End
  23. Ramsay Garden and the Witches' Well
  24. The Grassmarket
  25. Register House and the Iron Duke
  26. The Royal Scottish Academy and the floral clock
  27. Bristo Square and McEwan Hall
  28. Castle Esplanade
  29. The Vennel and the Flodden Tower
  30. George Heriot's School gate, Lauriston Place

Two ways to play

Without a game master

You play on your own. The organiser opens the game master page, chooses the default language and the playing time, and starts the game. From then on everything runs by itself on every phone: the zones, the chests, the merchant and the final count.

€19.95 per team

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Often chosen by companies

With a game master

Someone leads the game from the game master page: follows every team live with its points and zones, sends messages to all teams, adds 15 minutes or stops the game, gives a team a power-up or puts a chest right next to it, and looks at the photos. The game master never sees the answers.

€199.00 including 5 teams, €19.95 per extra team

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The organiser sets up the game on the game master page (the default language and the playing time) and starts it for all teams.

Every player can pick and switch the language on their own phone.

What the game master sees

Live, on a laptop or tablet: where every team is, who holds which zone, and each team's points, ducats and items. From here the game master gives or takes points, sends a message to one team or to all teams, adds 15 minutes or pauses the game.

The City Conquest game master screen during a game: a live map with the teams and their zones, and one team's points, ducats and controls
Example game with made-up teams.

How do you play City Conquest?

City Conquest needs at least 2 teams of 1 to 4 players, each team on its own phone. First, every team picks a faction: a group with its own story, strengths and characters.

Then the teams set off for the zones on the map. Each zone holds a task. Solve it and your team claims the zone. But other teams can win it back, so you will keep switching between attacking and defending. Once the playing time is over, the team with the most points wins.

Which sights in Edinburgh form the board?

Edinburgh's streets and the sights on our routes make up the board. Around the Old Town you pass St Giles' Cathedral, the Museum on the Mound and New College, all on the route of The Edinburgh Syndicate (outdoor escape game).

Further along, Greyfriars Bobby and Greyfriars Kirkyard from Secrets of Edinburgh, and the National Museum of Scotland from Sherlock Holmes murder mystery in Edinburgh, add more ground. This group game in Edinburgh turns a walk through the closes and streets into a contest between teams.

What does the organiser do?

The organiser is the main booker. They set up the game on the game master page, choosing the default language and the playing time, and then start it for all teams together.

Each player can choose their own language on their phone and change it during the game. That makes the group game Edinburgh a good fit for stag and hen parties, colleagues, groups of friends and families, including visitors who prefer to play in another language.

Which Edinburgh games can you book today?

Three Edinburgh games are bookable today, each for €19.95 per team: one phone, at most 4 players. They take 1.5 to 2 hours and you start whenever you like.

In Secrets of Edinburgh you follow Maggie Dickson through the closes and wynds to track down the cursed Hangman's Hood, playing in the browser on your own phone, no app. Sherlock Holmes murder mystery in Edinburgh runs from Canongate Kirk up the Royal Mile. The Edinburgh Syndicate (outdoor escape game) is an outdoor alternative to an escape room, with up to 5 players per team.

Do we need a game master?

No. Without a game master you play completely on your own: the person who booked opens the organiser page once, picks the default language and play time and starts the game for all teams; after that everything runs by itself on every phone. A game master (€199.00 incl. 5 teams) is optional, for someone who wants to follow and steer the game live.

Can teams start the game themselves?

You do not need a game master for that: the person who booked starts the game once for all teams on the organiser page, so every team plays the same time. After that everything runs by itself on every phone. A game master is optional, for someone who wants to follow and steer the game live.

Who wins City Conquest?

When time is up, the team with the most points wins; with equal points, the team with the most ducats wins.

How many players can take part in City Conquest?

You play with at least 2 teams of 1 to 4 players. Every team uses its own phone.

Who starts the group game?

The organiser starts it for all teams after setting the language and playing time on the game master page.

Do I need an app for Secrets of Edinburgh?

No. Secrets of Edinburgh runs in the browser on your own phone.

What does Sherlock Holmes murder mystery in Edinburgh cost?

It costs €19.95 per team, for one phone and up to 4 players.

City Conquest Race Through Edinburgh

€19.95 per team

We play in more and more cities around the world, with friends, family or your company.

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