In the solitaire variant, instead of playing against another opponent, the player faces off against an automated opponent called “the opposition.”

1. Decide if you will play as the Provisional Government (white) or as the Petrograd Soviets (red). Take a player a player aid card. Return the unit tokens of the other faction to the game box.

2. Situate the game board in the center of the play area so that you are closest to your chosen faction’s half of the support track.

3. Choose a difficulty level to play (1-6). Find the matching difficulty level token and place it face-up near you. (Note: It’s recommended to play difficulty level 1 for your first solitaire game, while more advanced players should try higher difficulty levels.)

4. Take the three leader cards, three leader tokens, and 10 unit tokens that match your color. The cards go in your hand, while the leader tokens and unit tokens are placed in front of you, with the fresh side up, as your supply.

5. Shuffle the three leader cards of the other faction and place them in a face-down stack near the stack of region tiles, along with the corresponding leader tokens.

6. Place the 27 opposing unit tokens off to the side of the game board.

7. Place one random neutral unit token in each region of the city, with the fresh side up.

8. Place the score marker on the center space of the support track, and place the will of the people marker on the marked space on the red player’s half of the game board.

9. Place the month marker and day marker on the calendar printed on the game board, with the month marker on the March/April space and the day marker on the 1 space.

10. Near the calendar, place the neutral Trotsky token above the May/June space and the red Trotsky token above the August space.

11. Place the three objective markers on the three green circles next to the support track.

12. Shuffle the six region tiles and place them face down in a stack off to the side.

13. Draw the top two region tiles, placing one on the “Unrest!” space and the other on the “Blockade!” space of the game board, both face up. (Alternatively, place the stack of region tiles face down on top of the "Blockade" space, turning over the top tile and moving it to the "Unrest!" space. Then turn over a second tile face up, leaving it on top of the stack.)

14. Place the blockade marker on the connection arrow matching the color of the region tile in the “Blockade!” space.

15. Shuffle the deck of 48 command cards and place it face down off to the side of the game board.