You are one of up to 4 benevolent nobles looking to expand and develop your land in hopes of establishing a functional and fearsome empire.
You will collect resources and exploit the land; you will build buildings and develop your civilization through military, grace, population, and science tracks; you will explore ancient ruins, fight off troublesome invaders, and set up trade routes.
A shared pool of dice will be rolled. Those dice will then be drafted and used to activate your Buildings. These will in turn produce resources or move you up on development tracks which will give interesting bonuses. Clever management of resources will allow you to achieve various goals regarding expansion, exploration, exploitation, and extermination.
This game is 4X themed, but it is not a true 4X game - while it does include many elements of such games, the main focus is on resource management and expansion, with a closed exploration system.
—description from the designer