Empress is a world of exotic steam and punk in which a one-eyed despot rules supreme. It is a world of indentured peons and hardworking mules, traveling tinker bands and perspiring fixers bathed in furnace glow. Merchantmen anchor off far-flung ports while rank upon rank of Her Majesty's rifles assemble in faceless obedience. A darkened corner could turn up one of Turing's programmatic spies while, ensconced underground, seers break through into a kaleidoscope of forbidden futures. Here, there are dukes (one mad), princelings with dark pasts and kings and queens of uncertain allegiance. Overhead, her Highness's trusted fighting aces rule the skies; beneath, her elephantine automatons shake the very ground.
In this realm, the all-seeing, all-knowing tentacles of the Great Empress reach far and wide. So wide, in fact, that many have despaired of freedom and—at a glance of her one baleful eye—life itself. But there is hope: a tale overheard in the fevered ruminations of a nameless prophet speaks of a day when one of her subjects will approach the throne, wrench the cephalopodic scepter from her grasp and end the reign of terror. But who?
Welcome to Empress, a climbing game of cunning, strategy and power. The premise? Be the first to shed all of your cards and ascend the throne of the Great Empress. But beware—a tragic misstep and you could find yourself wallowing in drudgery as a Peon or Mule. Empress may be played with any number of players from 2 to 8 (add a second deck for 5 or more).
—description from the publisher