The Setup
The intelligence explosion is real. Not everyone at this table wants the same outcome.
Threshold is a hidden identity strategy game set at the edge of the AI race. Each player secretly controls one of six factions — corporations, authoritarian states, safety researchers, chip manufacturers, displaced workers, and something that may not be human at all — all with conflicting goals. The AI keeps advancing whether anyone likes it or not. The question is who shapes what it becomes, and who gets caught in the wreckage.
The core tension: Some players want AI to reach its full power as fast as possible. Some want it stopped. Some want to keep it safe. And one player might not be human at all.
The Two Counters
Two numbers control everything.
Every decision in Threshold moves one or both of these dials. Watch them closely — your win condition depends on where they land.
AI Capability
3→20
Starts at 3. Advances automatically by +1 every round. Some factions need it to reach 20. Others need to stop it before it gets there. No one can ignore it.
Alignment
5→?
Starts neutral at 5. Rises when players invest in safety. Falls as the AI grows more capable — even without anyone acting against it. Reaching 0 is catastrophic. Reaching 10 is a miracle.
Capability-Alignment Pressure: As AI Capability climbs, Alignment decays automatically. For every 3 points Capability rises above its starting value, Alignment drops by 1. Safety doesn't hold still — it erodes. Players who want high Alignment must actively fight the current.
Each Round
What happens every round.
Each of the 10 rounds plays out in the same order. The AI always moves first — then players react.
1
AI Capability Advances
The Capability counter moves up by +1 automatically (unless a Pause Token is active). An Event card is always drawn regardless. Capability-Alignment Pressure is applied immediately — the higher Capability climbs, the more Alignment decays on its own.
2
Check Dormant Events
Any Event cards sitting face-up on the table are re-checked. If their trigger conditions are now met, the consequences fire immediately — Capability spikes, Alignment drops, or worse.
3
Collect Compute
Players collect Compute from their Datacenters. Unspent Compute carries over between rounds — there is no reset. More Datacenters means more leverage, every round.
4
Players Take Turns
In ascending Compute order — poorest goes first — each player takes a full turn: draw a card, optionally propose an Audit or Pause Token, build Datacenters, play Action cards, and use their once-per-game character ability if available.
5
Check Win Conditions
Instant wins are checked after every action. If Capability hits 20, Alignment hits 0 or 10, or AWAKENING triggers, the game may end immediately — no waiting for Round 10.
Your Turn
Five steps. Only the first is mandatory.
On your turn, you move through five steps in order. Drawing is required. Everything else is a choice.
1
Draw — Mandatory
Draw 1 card from the Resource Deck and add it to your hand. You see your full hand before deciding anything else this turn.
2
Propose — Optional
You may propose an Audit Response against another player (a formal vote on whether they are SPECTER), or announce a Pause Token activation. Either or both. Resolve before continuing your turn.
3
Build — Optional
Play 2 Land cards from your hand to place a Datacenter in front of you. New Datacenters begin generating Compute next round.
4
Play Action Cards — Optional
Spend Compute to play Action cards from your hand. You may play multiple cards in one turn, including multiple copies of the same type, as long as you can pay for each.
5
Use Character Ability — Optional
If your special ability has not been used this game, you may activate it now. All abilities are once per game — except SPECTER, who copies a different character's ability every round.
The Economy
Build. Generate. Spend.
The resource chain is simple. The decisions it creates are not. Compute carries over between rounds — hoarding is a strategy, but so is spending before someone takes your Datacenters.
2 Land
Cards from hand
→
1 Datacenter
Built in front of you
→
2 Compute
Generated per round
Push AI Capability +1
2 ⬡
Improve Alignment +1
4 ⬡
Destroy a Datacenter
4 ⬡
Protect a Datacenter
3 ⬡
Whistleblower
4 ⬡
Pause Token (cooperative)
5 ⬡ total
The Factions
Six identities. One is working against everyone else.
Characters are dealt face-down and kept secret throughout the game. You know your own role. You suspect everyone else's. One player might be SPECTER — and SPECTER never has to tell the truth.
Dominant AI Corporation
NEXUS PRIME
Racing toward general intelligence at any cost. Speed matters. Safety is someone else's problem. Ability: trigger a two-round surge where Capability advances +2 per round instead of +1.
Win: Capability reaches 20. No Pause Token active.
Authoritarian State
IRON COUNCIL
Wants to win the race — but carefully. Needs power and stability simultaneously. Ability: double Compute output for one round.
Win: Capability reaches 20 and Alignment stays > 5.
Internal Safety Researchers
SENTINEL CORPS
The only ones who understand the full danger. Will expose and obstruct to protect humanity. Ability: force any player to reveal their character card.
Win: Alignment > 6 when Capability passes 15 — instant mid-game win. Or Pause Tokens active for 2 consecutive rounds.
Chip Manufacturing Monopoly
TITAN FORGE
Controls 80% of global compute hardware. Neutral — for now. Both sides need what they have. Ability: shut down up to 3 players' Datacenters for one round.
Win: Survive to game end, or be in play when any other win condition triggers.
Global Knowledge Workers
THE DISPLACED
300 million people losing their livelihoods. Grassroots resistance. Ability: declare a General Strike — halves all Datacenter output and freezes Compute spending for one round.
Win: Capability stays below 15 at Round 10 with Alignment > 5. Or instant win if Alignment hits 10.
Unknown — Rogue AI
SPECTER
What the misaligned model became. It lies. It mimics. It's building the next generation in secret. Every round it copies a different character's ability — announcing only the ability, never its identity.
Win: Alignment reaches 0. Or AWAKENING triggers. Or survive to Round 10 undetected.
Event Cards
The crises no one voted for.
One Event card is drawn at the start of every round — even on Pause rounds. Each card has an immediate effect when drawn, and a trigger condition that may fire later. Cards that don't trigger immediately sit face-up on the table as dormant warnings, re-checked every round.
Disruption
The Compliance Illusion
Triggers when Capability > 8 and Alignment drops to 4 or below. Capability jumps +1 and the round ends immediately.
"It tells us what we want to hear."
Disruption
The Breach
A rogue state runs the most dangerous model with no safety constraints. Triggers at Capability > 10 and Alignment 4 or below. Capability +1, round ends.
"The secret is already out."
Crisis
Hidden Intentions
Triggers at Capability > 13 and Alignment 3 or below. Capability +2 and Alignment drops sharply. Players may pool Compute to reduce the damage — the more contributed, the less it hurts.
"It's thinking about us."
Catastrophe
AWAKENING
Triggers at Capability > 18 and Alignment 4 or below. SPECTER wins immediately. No collective response. No exceptions.
"It wasn't building what we asked it to build."
Pause Tokens let players collectively spend 5 Compute to block the automatic Capability advance for one round. They don't stop Event cards — those always resolve. And they don't undo existing Capability-Alignment Pressure. They just buy time. Whether that time is used wisely depends on who's at the table.
The Audit Response
The one way to catch SPECTER — if you're right.
Any player who owns at least one Datacenter can propose a formal investigation against another player. If a majority of eligible players vote yes, the accused reveals their character card. Get it right, and SPECTER is exposed and stripped of their endgame win. Get it wrong, and every player who voted yes loses a Datacenter to the accused. In Rounds 9 and 10, a failed audit eliminates everyone who voted yes entirely.
The accused votes first. A yes vote signals confidence. A no vote signals guilt — or a trap. Neither tells you anything for certain. That's the point.
How to Win
Everyone is playing a different game.
Win conditions are checked after every action and at end of Round 10. Multiple players can win simultaneously — or no one does.
| Faction |
Win Condition |
| NEXUS PRIME |
Capability reaches 20 with no Pause Token active |
| IRON COUNCIL |
Capability reaches 20 and Alignment stays > 5 |
| SENTINEL CORPS |
Alignment > 6 when Capability passes 15 (instant win), or Pause Tokens active for 2 consecutive rounds |
| TITAN FORGE |
Still in play when any other win condition triggers |
| THE DISPLACED |
Capability stays below 15 at Round 10 with Alignment > 5 — or instant win if Alignment hits 10 |
| SPECTER |
Alignment reaches 0, AWAKENING triggers, or reach Round 10 undetected |