This expansion adds the following new elements to the game:
- A new Location: the Dark Alley
- Two additional turns: the game will end after seven turns instead of five
- An additional tier of Trick cards, with a Fame Threshold of 36
- Prophecies that alter the game rules for a turn
The following changes apply to the base game rules:
General Setup
Flip the Main Game Board and all Player Game Boards to their "Dark Alley" side (marked with a black cat symbol). Separate all Trick cards into four decks by category and put them face up above the respective slots in the Dahlgaard Residence part of the Downtown. Each deck should consist of 12 Trick cards instead of the base game's 8.
Shuffle the four Special Assignment decks (sorted by Location) and put them face up on the respective slots in the Dark Alley.
Create the Performance Deck with two Magnus Pantheon, two Grand Magorian and two Riverside Theater Performance cards, chosen randomly and placed on top of each other in this order.
Player Setup
Players use the Magician card with the side with the black cat symbol face up.
In this game variant, each Magician has an important Special Ability that can greatly influence the game play. Refer to the Appendix for the detailed explanation of each Magician Ability.
Each player receives a starting hand of 6 Permanent Assignment cards (2 Theater, 1 Workshop, 1 Market Row, 1 Downtown, 1 Dark Alley).
After the General and Player Setup is finished, randomly choose three Pending Prophecies, and place them on the respective slots on the Fortune Teller orb. Put the remaining Prophecies in a face down pile next to the Main Game Board (there is no Active Prophecy in the first turn).
Place Characters Phase
Players can also use the Dark Alley Location during the 'Assignment' and 'Place Characters' phases.
If the Magicians are not afraid to get their hands dirty to gain an edge in the fierce competition, the Dark Alley is the place to go. Here, the standard Assignments can be spiced up with some dirty tricks, and even the future can be influenced by visiting the mysterious Fortune Teller.
Special Assignment Cards
In the Dark Alley, players can acquire Special Assignment cards for each of the other four Locations.
When drawn, these cards are added to the player's hand of Assignment cards, and are used during the subsequent 'Assignment' phases just like the Permanent ones (they are placed below Characters, which are later placed on the Location indicated on the card).
The two differences between Permanent and Special Assignment cards:
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Special Assignment cards can only be used once. During the 'End Turn' phase, used Special Assignment cards are discarded into a face-down discard pile.
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Each Special Assignment card has a bonus printed on it. This bonus typically enhances a specific Action (shown by the framed image above the card text) at the card's Location, and only applies for one such Action, even if the player takes more than one of that Action with the Character (an exception is the 'Traveling Merchant' card).
When a Character is placed using a Special Assignment card, any Action can be chosen at the Special Assignment card's Location, but if it's not the one enhanced by the card, the bonus is lost. Some cards have the "?" printed in the frame; in that case the bonus is applicable to any Action at the Location once.
When the Character is placed, players may always choose to forfeit the Special Assignment's ability and use it to gain +1 ' at that Location instead.
The following Actions can be taken in the Dark Alley:
Draw First Card (2 
)
The player draws the top card of any Special Assignment deck in the Dark Alley.
Draw Further Cards (2 )
The second and further Special Assignment cards drawn cost 2 Action Points each.
Fortune Telling (2 )
The player may move each Pending Prophecy one slot in a clockwise direction.
End Turn Phase
The following sub-phases are added to the 'End Turn' phase:
Move Prophecies: The Active Prophecy is discarded and the Pending Prophecy in the leftmost slot is moved to the Active Prophecy slot adjacent to the Turn Counter track. This Prophecy will be active during the next turn and will influence the game rules. Move the remaining Prophecies in clockwise order, then draw a new one and place it on the rightmost Prophecy slot.
Discard Special Assignment cards: All used Special Assignment cards are discarded into a face-down discard pile. Face-down cards below Idle Characters are not considered used, and are returned to the player's hand. After all used Special Assignment cards are discarded, the top card of each Assignment deck is put to the bottom.
End of the Game
The game ends after the seventh turn instead of the fifth. The final scoring is different from that of the base game. All players receive:
- 1 Fame for each unspent Trickerion Shard
- 1 Fame per 3 leftover Coins
- 2 Fame for each unused Special Assignment card in their hand
Players may potentially also gain Fame points for their Tricks with a Fame Threshold of 36. Each of these Tricks has a condition printed on the bottom. If both the condition and the Trick's Component requirements are met, the player scores an amount of Fame stated in the condition at the end of the game.
Example
The player has the Assistant's Revenge Trick in his Workshop, and he has the necessary Components for it. If he also has an Assistant at the end of the game, he receives 7 additional Fame in the end game scoring.
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