Phase I (Income Phase):

During the income phase, you get to collect new Workers, Coins, Priests, and Power (upon building the structures that reward them or meeting the requirements that provide them).

You may also collect your faction-specific starting income along with the naturally computed income for the 1st round. Your income depends on the Structures you have built, on the Bonus card you have chosen, and (later in the game) on the Favor Tiles you own. On all components, income is symbolized by an open hand.

Basic income from Structures

Workers: Earn a number of Workers equal to the number of visible Worker symbols on your Dwelling track (Alternatively, you can see a “projected” income on the details below your faction icon).

Coins: Earn a number of Coins equal to the number of visible Coin symbols on your Trading house track (Alternatively, you can see a “projected” income on the details below your faction icon).

Priests: Take a number of Priests from your supply equal to the number of visible Priest symbols on your Temple track (Alternatively, you can see a “projected” income on the details below your faction icon). Another Priest symbol will be visible once you have built your Sanctuary. (Both the Swarmlings’ Sanctuary and the Darklings’ Sanctuary provide 2 Priests.)

Power: Power is gained according to the visible Power symbols on the Trading house track. The Stronghold usually provides additional Power (except for the Alchemists who collect 6 Coins instead, or the Chaos Magicians who collect 2 Workers instead, or the Fakirs who collect 1 Priest instead).

Additional income From Bonus Cards and Town Tiles

Aside from the income collected your built structures, you get to earn additional income from the Bonus Cards you pick, and Favor Tiles you have earned.

Bowls of Power

Each player has 12 Power tokens that are distributed among three Bowls. Power actions only uses tokens accumulated in Bowl III. Otherwise, you may sacrifice tokens from other bowls and discard them permanently in order to force move tokens to the following bowl. Whenever you gain Power in the game (as income, when an opponent builds Structures, or by advancing on the Cult tracks), you do not get new Power tokens, but rather move the existing ones from Bowl to Bowl. Also, when spending Power on a Power action, you do not lose Power tokens, but move them around again.

Power tokens move (always in an ascending order from Bowl I to Bowl III) according to the following rules,

Gaining Power - when gaining Power, proceed in the following order:

1. If there are Power tokens in Bowl I, for each 1 Power you gain move one token from Bowl I to Bowl II.

2. Once Bowl I is empty, for each 1 Power you gain move one token from Bowl II to Bowl III.

3. Once all Power tokens are in Bowl III, you cannot gain further Power.