7 Wonders Endgame and Scoring Math

Age III is where 7 Wonders scores get decided. The cards are bigger, the guilds arrive, and a military win is worth 5. None of it is hidden, though. With a little arithmetic you can know, pick by pick, which card is worth the most to you and which one hurts you most to pass.

7 Wonders: science, counted

Science scores two ways, added together:

• Each symbol type scores its count squared: 1 symbol is 1 point, 2 are 4, 3 are 9, 4 are 16.
• Each complete set of all three different symbols (compass, gear, tablet) scores 7.

The value of your next green card depends on what you already hold. Say you have 2 gears, 2 tablets, and 1 compass:

The compass is worth 10 points; the gear, 5. Finishing a set is usually the best science pick. Collecting one symbol only pays when you already have many of it: a fourth gear on top of three adds 7.

A few effects give a science symbol of your choice at the end of the game. Make that choice at scoring time, when you can see which symbol adds the most.

7 Wonders: the Age III battles

A win in Age III is worth 5 points, and a loss costs 1. Against one neighbor, that is a 6-point swing between you. Before taking a red card, count both neighbors’ shields:

• If one shield puts you ahead of a neighbor, that card may be worth 5 or 6 points.
• If you are already ahead, more shields score nothing.
• If a neighbor is far ahead, matching them costs several cards. Let that side go.

Remember that your neighbors are counting too. A late red card from them can flip your win into a tie.

7 Wonders: guilds read your neighbors

The guilds shuffled into Age III (players plus 2) all get dealt. Most score from what is around you: points for certain cards in your neighbors’ cities, for Wonder stages built nearby, or for cards in your own city. A guild can be worth a lot in one seat and little in the next.

Before passing a guild, read it from your neighbor’s side. If it would score them 8 points and you only 3, it may be worth tucking under a Wonder stage instead.

7 Wonders: coins at the end

Every 3 coins is 1 point, and leftover coins score nothing. If you hold 8 coins, that is 2 points, and 2 coins are idle. Spending those 2 coins to buy a resource for a card worth 4 points costs you nothing on the score pad. Spend down to a multiple of 3 when you can.

Coins also break ties, so a close game is a reason to keep a few.

7 Wonders: the last pick of each Age

On the sixth turn you see 2 cards, play one, and the other is discarded. Ask which one your neighbor would have wanted, not just which one you want. And if a neighbor can build from the discard pile, think about what you are putting there.

Duel: what changes in Age III

Age III has no brown or grey cards. Your brown and grey production is now fixed, and every missing resource costs you at the bank. Three guilds are mixed in, and the red and blue cards are the biggest of the game.

Duel guilds score from the city with the most of something: blue cards, green cards, Wonders, coins, and more. That city can be yours or your opponent’s, so a guild can pay you off your opponent’s success.

Duel: check for supremacy every turn

Two quick counts before each pick:

1. The pawn. How many spaces from either capital is it? Which red cards are accessible, and how many shields do they hold?
2. The science. How many different symbols does each player have? Five means one more wins.

If your opponent is one card from either win, stopping it is your move, even if the card is worth nothing else to you. Take it, sell it, or tuck it under a Wonder.

Duel: civilian scoring

If the game reaches the end of Age III, add up:

• The pawn’s position: 0, 2, 5, or 10 points to the player it leans toward.
• Points on blue, green, yellow, and purple cards, and on your Wonders.
• Progress tokens.
• 1 point per 3 coins.

Ties go to the player with the most points from blue cards, then a shared win. When the game is close, a blue card can be worth more than its printed points.

For the big-picture strategy that sets up these endings, see the 7 Wonders strategy guide.