Ascendancy
Ascendancy Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Components
- General Setup
- Starting Stock
- General Setup - Options
- Gameplay Concepts
- Gameplay Structure
- Placement & Resolution
- Decade End
- Final Decade
- Game End
- Districts
- Build & Buildings
- Empire & Renown
- Instant Actions
- Quests
- Items & Scraps
- Combat Units
- Battle
- The Encounter Zone
- Single Combat
- Status Effects
- Nemesis
- Overview
- Nemesis Players
- Nemesis Setup
- Difficulty Setting
- Nemesis Placements
- Action Resolution for Nemesis
- Skill Checks
- Hidden Roles/Teams
- Placement Roll (Phase 4)
- Target Hex
- Intended Action Rules
- Nemesis Upgrade Settlement
- Nemesis Siege (vs Unoccupied Settlement)
- Nemesis Siege (vs Human)
- Nemesis vs Nemesis
- Priority Override
- Priority Override Examples
- Nemesis Card (Boss Side)
- Final Battle
- Initiating Battle vs a Nemesis
- Boss Row Placement
- Defeated by a Nemesis Boss
- Defeating a Nemesis Boss
- Skill Checks
- Skill Perks
- The Tech Tree
- The Map & Locations
- Area Effects
- Legacy Reward Cards
- Rules Disputes
- Keyword Glossary
- House Buildings / Patron Actions
Introduction
What Ascendancy Is
Ascendancy is a tabletop board game. It's also the name of the world the game takes place in. It was designed by a crazy person, who wanted to push the boundaries of progression in the tabletop format to the limit.
As the name implies, almost everything and everyone in Ascendancy can be upgraded, and made more powerful.
Victory or defeat is determined by how well you or your teammates adapt to unforeseen variables. The game rewards long-term strategic thinking, short-term tactical decisions, minimizing risk, pushing your luck, and outmaneuvering your rivals.
What to Expect
Ascendancy is complex. If this is your first time playing, your initial setup can take well over an hour. You should budget your time accordingly.
During your first few sessions, there will be details you won't fully understand yet. Whenever you get stuck, just keep playing! With more experience, the full picture will become clearer.
Some players may absorb the rules quickly, but most will need more time. Try not to worry about strategy at first. Just take it slow, and learn as you go... you may even have more fun that way!
Start Playing
The Tutorial is designed to be immediately playable without any prior knowledge.
This book will make more sense after you've gotten an initial feel for the game. You won't need to read this until later.
If it's your first game, switch to the Tutorial (Scenario 01 in the other booklet) now. Then come back here to continue with General Setup. Read this book before your 1st game!
Components
- 1x Reference Guide
- 1x Scenario Booklet
- 4x House Boards
- 4x District Trays
- 4x Reference Sheets
- 1x Ancestral Ledger
- 1x Tracker
- 4x Storage Trays
- 48x Event Cards
- 49x Dice Units
- 13x Champions
- 2x Fortifications
- 6x Nemesis/Bosses
- 34x Quests
- 68x Estate/Buildings
- 96x Techs
- 26x Legacy Rewards
- 46x Items/Scraps
- 47x Loot
- 41x Locations
- 8x Stamina & 4x Munitions cubes
- 36x Damage counters
- Minis or Standees
- 15x Mounts
- 45x Workers
- 1x Crown
- 54x Status Effects
- 36x Coins
- 45x Settlements
- 5x Big Player Dice
- 4x Attack Dice
- 4x Resist Dice
- 36x Renown
- 36x Stackers
- 116x Resources
The Crown's Workers (Royal Mandate) cannot be Ousted or Replaced.
General Setup
Central Layout
- Place the Map in the middle of your table. Brown side for most Scenarios. Color side for Scenarios that specifically require it.
- Place the tall Tracker tray next to the Map.
- Place the 4 big District trays around the Map. Their orientation doesn't matter.
District 1 - The Frontier
- Shuffle all the Items with a Battle "X" and Place them in the top tray.
- Shuffle the remaining Items without a Battle "X" (Utility) and Place them in the tray below.
- Shuffle all Tier 1 Creature cards, then place them in their tray face-down. Then do the same for Tier 2 next to them.
District 2 - The Supply
- Place a starting Stock of Resource cubes (Food, Ore, Skill, Knowledge) into their corresponding sections. See Starting Stock at The Supply for amounts. Remove unused cubes from the game.
- Place all Coins into The Bank, next to the Banker.
District 3 - The Academy
- Shuffle all Quest cards, and Place them in their tray text-side down.
- Place Manastone Resources and Influence Resources. See Starting Stock at The Academy for amounts.
- Shuffle all 6 Mercenaries and Place them in the left tray face-down. Then do the same on the right for 6 War Machines.
District 4 - The Empire
- Sort all 9 GREEN Status Effect tokens into 1 section (ROOT, TAMED, & REGEN). Then repeat for the other 5 sets: RED, BLUE, PURPLE, BLACK, and WHITE.
- Shuffle the Loot tokens by Tier, and Place them in their tray face-down.
- Place all Champion cards, & the Werecat/Werebear, in the tray. Order doesn't matter. Then place the 2 Fortification cards on top of the stack, face-down.
- Shuffle a number of Event cards & Place them in the tray face down. See Event Card Setup for amounts based on game type & Duration.
Optional Components
- If your game includes Nemesis: Players Place their components here. See Nemesis Setup for more on Nemesis Setup.
- Shuffle all available Legacy Reward cards. Draw & set aside 4 at random. Return the others to the box. See Legacy Reward Cards for more.
House Boards
- Each Human chooses 1 House Board.
- Place 1 of each of the following meeples (in your color) in their Home slots: OUTCAST, LABORER, LOYALIST, and LORD/LADY astride their Tier 1 MOUNT.
- Sort your Tech cards (these show your House color/insignia on the back) into 4 separate stacks by Type (x7, x7, x7, x3) as shown in the top-left corner, face-up.
- Next, sort all the Estate cards by Type (x4, x4, x4, x5) and also by Tier, with highest Tier on the bottom, smallest Tier on top (with no Tier icon showing).
- Combine each Estate stack on top of each Tech stack of matching Type.
- Place each finished stack of cards on your Tech Tree, covering the lower half of your House Board. The order is left to right by Type.
- Keep the following components in each storage tray: 1 on-color house die, 2 brown Battle dice, 6 on-color Settlement minis, 2 wall pieces, 1 tower, Renown tokens valuing 5 (x2), 2 (x3), 1 (x4), 2 yellow Stamina & 1 grey Munition cube, 8 red Damage counters, and all unused on-color Workers.
- Fetch starting Coins & Resource cubes as shown on your House Board. Resource cubes should be taken from the unused cubes, not from the starting Stock at the Supply.
Map
- Choose a Starting Hex for each Player. Then Fetch the following, and Place them onto that Hex:
- 1 on-color Embarkment Location tile.
- 1 on-color Tier 1 Settlement mini to denote your Capitol.
- 1 Avatar (mini or standee with on-color base).
- Place 1 random Loot token face-down on each empty Hex (ones without tiles):
- Tier COMMON on outer ring hexes.
- Tier UNCOMMON on middle ring hexes.
- Tier RARE on the center hex.
- Shuffle the 15 named Location tiles (3 per color, do not include QUEST or Embarkment tiles) and Place them face-down in the lower left-hand corner of the Map.
Tracker
- Place the brown Current Decade stacker on Decade 1.
- Place the pink Final Decade stacker per your Scenario instructions.
- Starting with the youngest Player, Place stackers matching their House color on LOYALTY and UPKEEP.
- In the same order, Place 1 House colored stacker on each of the 3 SKILL Types for each Player. Use the starting SKILL values as shown on each respective House Board.
Starting Stock
Starting Stock at The Supply
The table below illustrates the starting number of each color Resource cube at The Supply, as determined by your number of Human Players and Final Decade (game Duration).
Place equal amounts of FOOD, ORE, SKILL, and KNOWLEDGE cubes into their respective sections in The Supply. Match the row and column distribution as shown.
The Supply's six rows have these sell/buy prices, from top to bottom: row 1 = +1/-2, row 2 = +1/-2, row 3 = +2/-3, row 4 = +2/-4, row 5 = +3/-5, row 6 = +3/-6.
Each filled row holds 2 cubes for a 1-Human game, and 3 cubes for a 2-, 3-, or 4-Human game. The rows that are filled are:
| Humans | 3 Decades | 4 Decades | 5 Decades | 6 Decades | 7 Decades | 8 Decades | 9 Decades |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Human | rows 2-3 | rows 2-3 | rows 2-4 | rows 2-5 | rows 2-5 | rows 2-6 | rows 2-6 |
| 2 Humans | rows 2-3 | rows 2-3 | rows 2-4 | rows 2-4 | rows 2-5 | rows 2-5 | rows 2-6 |
| 3 Humans | rows 2-3 | rows 2-4 | rows 2-4 | rows 2-5 | rows 2-5 | rows 2-6 | rows 2-6 |
| 4 Humans | rows 2-4 | rows 2-5 | rows 2-5 | rows 2-6 | rows 2-6 | rows 1-6 | rows 1-6 |
Starting Stock at The Academy
Place MANASTONES & INFLUENCE into their designated storage sections in The Academy. Unlike at The Supply, row and column distribution doesn't matter at The Academy.
The amounts below are per Resource type — place that many Manastones and that many Influence.
| Humans | 3 Decades | 4 Decades | 5 Decades | 6 Decades | 7 Decades | 8 Decades | 9 Decades |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Human | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| 2 Humans | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 |
| 3 Humans | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 |
| 4 Humans | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 |
General Setup - Options
Game Duration
If a Scenario allows you to set your preferred game Duration, all Players must agree on a Final Decade during Setup. (During play, the Final Decade may be nudged earlier if all Players agree).
All game systems are available no matter which Duration you choose. However, keep in mind: strategies that work well for a short game may be different from ones that work for a long game.
| Decade | Estimated Length | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 9-8 | 2+ hours per experienced Player | An epic length game. |
| 7-6 | 1.5 - 2 hours per experienced Player | A longer game. |
| 5-4 | 1 hour per experienced Player | A short-normal game. |
| 3-2 | 45 minutes per experienced Player | For teaching & learning. |
Event Card Setup
Your Scenario will specify if it uses the Fully-Cooperative set of Event cards, or the Competitive set. Fetch the entire stack for your Scenario as indicated. Return the other set to the box.
Stack A. Separate the Law, Dissent, & Sacrifice cards, shown at the top-left corner of each card. Then, shuffle a number of these cards together, depending on your Final Decade, as shown in this table:
| Decades | Law | Dissent | Sacrifice |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| 8 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| 7 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
For example, for a 4 Decade game, shuffle 1 of each kind of Event.
Stack B. Shuffle all the remaining cards of your set into a stack B.
Combine. Finally, place stack A on top of stack B. Do not shuffle stacks A & B together.
Player vs Player
Battle between Human Players is opt-in on a Player-by-Player basis.
During Setup, each Player at your table should announce whether or not they are Flagged for PvP. Players who are Flagged for PvP can not Battle with Players who are not flagged for PvP.
For each game, you may choose any one of the following rulesets:
- No PvP - Human Players may not Battle against each other under any circumstances, and cannot target each other with the SIEGE Action.
- PvP-lite - Human Players may not initiate tactical Battle with each other. However, they may SIEGE any Unoccupied Tier 1 Settlements if the opportunity arises.
- Full-PvP - Human Players may SIEGE any of each other's Settlements, and can use the CONQUER Action to Initiate Battle against rival Players who Occupy the same Hex.
Look out! If your Capitol piece is ever Destroyed, you will be eliminated. If PvP is enabled, don't neglect Upgrading your Capitol.
Nemesis Players ignore PvP settings (they can always pose a threat to you).
Action Programming
This option may be enabled for:
- Solo Players
- Fully-Cooperative games
If all Human Players are working together, you may prefer to Place all of your WORKERS for the entire Decade at the same time, rather than 1 Phase at a time. Some find this approach makes it easier to visualize and plan out their Turns.
If using Action Programming, be sure that any Standard Nemesis have Placed their own WORKERS before Human Players Place theirs.
When to Take Breaks
We recommend pausing after a Decade End step, and before moving into a new Decade - That way, you can resume without losing track of where you left off.
Gameplay Concepts
How to Play
Ascendancy is a Scenario-based game. All core rules & mechanics are contained in this Reference Guide. However, each Scenario will provide its own specific setup options, victory conditions, Roles/Teams and more.
If this is your first time playing, start with the Tutorial. After that, Scenario 1, Loyalty of The People can be considered base game mode.
Game Configurations
Each Scenario features one or more of the following tags:
- FULLY-COOPERATIVE — All Human Players work together towards a shared objective.
- COMPETITIVE — Human Players compete for victory against each other.
- ALLIED TEAMS — Players are divided into distinct Teams, and achieve victory or defeat together as a Team.
- ADVENTURE — These are story mode Scenarios with some choose-your-own-adventure style elements. They include more read aloud to the table moments, and make unique use of the ADVENTURE Action.
How to Win
Victory conditions are dependent on the Scenario you are playing, and can vary wildly.
For example, Loyalty of the People has a basic "victory points" win condition. The Twisted Spinstress requires you to "defeat the boss". Doomsday requires particular "game states".
How to Lose
If a Human Player's Capitol is completely Destroyed they are eliminated from the game. When this happens, remove all of their Settlements from the Map, & ignore their stackers on the Tracker tray. In Team games, they are no longer considered to be part of their Team.
Otherwise, winners and losers are determined at game end. A surprise win from behind is not a RARE occurrence! Never give up.
Your Character
You take on the role of a young noble who has recently come of age to inherit the throne of your chosen House.
Your presence as sovereign is represented in-game by a single standee or sculpted mini, known as your Avatar. (Extras will be utilized for special new content.)
The Avatar you choose at game start may bear the likeness of any 1 of your royal family members (referred to in-game as Champions). Mechanically, your Avatar has no connection to the Champion card it resembles. Your Avatar simply indicates your current position on the Map, which is visible to all Players at all times.
Your Royal Family
Each House features 3 royal family members known as Champions, found at the bottom of the first 3 Estate columns of your House Board. Each has their own ideas for how you should rule.
These princes & princesses are your siblings & cousins, each representing a distinct thematic archetype, common across every new generation of your House.
You can Ascend their Estates, unlocking powerful new Tech options, and even anoint them as Combat Units to lead your House to victory on the battlefield.
Your House
Off Map, your House Board represents your House's holdings & presence. From here you direct everything, including your WORKERS, Estate progression, treasury Assets, and more.
Each House is strong in several different areas of gameplay, providing multiple ways to win. Each House starts out similarly, but develops quite differently as you play. Each is relatively competitive with each other, with a similar difficulty curve.
Each column of your House Board will provide a kaleidoscope of different strategies you may take. Try experimenting with different builds each game!
Districts
These 4 trays are where you will Place most of your WORKERS to take ACTIONS on your behalf. Each District is themed around an abstracted part of the world, where Players compete for access.
District trays serve double duty as storage for game tokens, chits, and cards. Any time the game instructs you to gain Coins, Draw a card, claim Resources, Apply STATUS EFFECTS, etc., you will always take them from their source District (unless otherwise noted).
Worker Placement
The core gameplay mechanic in Ascendancy involves Placing your WORKERS (commonly: meeples) in a variety of ACTION slots around the table. You'll gain a wide variety of interesting benefits from each ACTION you choose. It's all designed to reward you for anticipating your upcoming needs, and re-evaluating your strategy as things change.
During play, you may gain additional WORKERS. Though you may never have more than 2 of each kind.
- COMMONERS include: Tier 1 OUTCASTS, Tier 2 LABORERS, Tier 3 LOYALISTS.
- NOBLES include: Tier 4 LORDS/LADIES, Tier 5 ROYAL ADVISORS.
- MOUNTS include: Tier 1-4 MOUNT (do not count as WORKERS).
Area Control
The Map consists of Hexes, on which you will Place Location tiles as you explore.
You can Control these prized Locations by Establishing Settlement minis on them. Upgrade your Settlements tall for low risk, or expand wide for a bigger slice of the Map.
Tiers of Power
Many game components and assets in Ascendancy have an associated Tier. Tiers reflect the relative power levels between different versions of the same things.
Battle
Combat in Ascendancy is side view, JRPG style. Each Combat Unit will take turns choosing Abilities, rolling dice, & dealing damage, until 1 side is victorious.
Players typically get to decide for themselves if and when a Battle will take place, by choosing the CONQUER or SIEGE Action. The tactical decisions you make during a Battle are important, but more critical is how well you've prepared beforehand.
When compared with other methods of progression (such as fulfilling Quests) choosing Battle can provide faster progression. However, it also comes with the risk of Defeat! If you prefer to play it safe, or dislike tactical nuance, feel free to skip combat, while still enjoying the other ways to progress your Empire.
Hidden Information
Many things in Ascendancy are hidden. Creatures may surprise you, each new Event is unknown, and when Player Roles/Teams are hidden, you won't know who to trust. Even Loot must be Identified before it can be useful.
Players who make good use of the REVEAL Action and Peek mechanic will gain a strategic advantage. In the treacherous realm of Ascendancy, knowledge is power.
The Tracker
This tray shows your personal progression relative to the other Houses. Whenever a Player gains or loses LOYALTY, UPKEEP, or SKILL, they must Place their stacker on top of those previously Placed.
When multiple Players have stackers on the same number, the one on top is winning, or has the highest score. The Player on the bottom is lower. If a SKILL Check would result in a tie between Players, then the Player with the highest stacker wins.
There are no ties on the Tracker during play.
If a Player gains more LOYALTY or UPKEEP than the tracker allows, add a second stacker of their color on top of their original stacker, and start them again at the 0 position. Add any breakpoint Coin values to determine total Income.
(For example, at 21 LOYALTY, a Player should have 2x stackers on the 1 LOYALTY position, and they gain 12 Coins + 2 Coins = 14 Coins Income, before any -Coins from UPKEEP.)
Loyalty
This score represents the overall amount of love, fear, and respect each Player has earned from the unwashed masses of Ascendancy. In some Scenarios, LOYALTY serves as victory points. In all Scenarios, LOYALTY determines Income & Turn Order.
The lowest LOYALTY Player acts first. Thematically, they feel the need to prove themselves. Mechanically, this offers a minor catch-up mechanic for anyone lagging behind, or otherwise clever enough to make use of it.
LOYALTY is constantly recalculated in real time, as soon as any changes occur. Don't forget to change LOYALTY scores whenever you Place or Destroy a Settlement, or add a new Location tile that modifies the LOYALTY value of a Connected Location.
Upkeep
This score represents your financial burden, and serves as an efficiency check against your Income gained from LOYALTY. Over-extend yourself, and you won't earn Coins. Some assets, like Buildings, increase both LOYALTY and UPKEEP at the same time.
Unlocking Tech cards can reduce your UPKEEP burden. Thematically, these contribute to the technological advancement of your House, allowing you to reduce costs.
Renown
These tokens represent the prestige you've earned by accomplishing great feats. Many assets can be bought, sold, stolen, or schemed. RENOWN is unique in that it must be earned, typically by defeating Creatures or Completing Quests.
You need RENOWN to progress the Empire column of your House Board.
Loot
1-time goodies. Loot is Claimed from the Map automatically whenever you Occupy (or SCOUT) a Hex that has it. It can also be Drawn from The Empire district as a reward. Whenever you gain Loot, you always collect it face-down, "Unidentified".
Many effects in the game will allow you to Identify Loot. When you do, Flip it and gain its benefit immediately. Identified Loot remains in your Tableau for the rest of the game, but can never be TRADED. Unidentified Loot however, can be TRADED to other Players, within 1 Hex of your Avatar.
Manabank & Manastones
Each House Board has a Manabank, located under your ACADEMY column. Whenever you claim a MANASTONE, Place it here in the top row, "Charged".
Unlike other Resources, you never Discard MANASTONES on use. Instead, you Activate them by moving them from the "Charged" row of your Manabank down to the "Depleted" row. During each Decade End step, you Recharge all of your Depleted Manastones.
Your first Manastone adds +1 UPKEEP burden. After this, having more Manastones will add no additional UPKEEP. Your Manabank may never have more than 3 total Manastones in any combination of Charged/Depleted.
Settlements
Settlements are miniature tokens that represent your control of the Map. They grant a variable amount of LOYALTY based on the underlying Location. Each Settlement may also project Area Effects if you INVEST in them.
New Settlements start out as Tier 1, and can be UPGRADED by adding a Tier 2 Wall, and later a Tier 3 Tower on top of the base piece.
Nemesis Players will auto-gain and Place new Settlements whenever they MOVE to an Unoccupied Location. Human Players will need to gain new Tier 1 Settlement minis by progressing the Empire column of their House Boards. Whenever you gain a new Tier 1 Settlement, take it from your Storage Tray and add it to your Tableau. It may be Placed anytime during your Turn using the Instant SETTLE Action.
Each Player has access to up to 6 Tier 1 Settlements in a game, including their starting Capitol. If 1 of your 6 is Destroyed and collected by another Player as a Trophy, you cannot get a 7th!
Your Capitol
The Settlement on your Embarkment is your Capitol. Big "Capitol" Settlement minis may be used in place of standard sizes, if your game version includes them. If a Human Player loses their Capitol, they are eliminated from the game! However, Nemesis Players cannot be eliminated this way (their starting Settlement has no such importance).
Gameplay Structure
One full game round in Ascendancy is called a Decade. Each Decade follows the gameplay Steps shown below.
Each Decade runs through 4 Phases, one per District, then a Decade End Step. Within each Phase there is a Placement Step (Step 0 for Standard Nemesis, then Step 1-4 in Turn Order for Players, with Hard Nemesis placing after) and a Resolution Step.
| Phase | District | Placement Step | Resolution Steps (in this order) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | The Frontier | Step 0 (Standard Nemesis) / Step 1 (Players, in Turn Order; Hard Nemesis) | 1 Item, 2 Scout, 3 Reveal, 4 Reveal, 5 Build, 6 Patron |
| 2nd | The Supply | Step 2 | 1 Food, 2 Ore, 3 Skill, 4 Knowledge, 5 Build, 6 Patron |
| 3rd | The Academy | Step 3 | 1 Quest, 2 Hireling, 3 Manastone, 4 Influence, 5 Build, 6 Patron |
| 4th | The Empire | Step 4 | 1 Upgrade/Settlement, 2 Move/Adventure, 3 Conquer, 4 Siege |
Step 5 - Decade End Step
In Turn Order, each Player Resolves the below (in any sequence):
- Income
- SKILL Perks
- Area Effects
- Instant ACTIONS
Coronation Ceremony
- CROWN the Player with the highest LOYALTY.
- THE CROWN may Refresh* the top card of each of: Items, Creatures, Hirelings, Quests, and Events.
- THE CROWN Establishes the next Event.
- Each Nemesis gains +1 LOYALTY on a Dissent.
*A Nemesis CROWN never Refreshes cards.
Return & Recharge
- Return all WORKERS to their House Boards.
- Exhausted cards become usable again.
- Recharge all Depleted MANASTONES.
- Advance the BROWN stacker by +1 Decade.
Turn Order Placement
Within each Step & Phase, Players take turns in reverse LOYALTY order:
Nemesis (Standard) → Least Loyalty → Most Loyalty.
When LOYALTY changes, Turn Order is also recalculated at the start of the next Phase.
Placement & Resolution
Step 0 - Nemesis Placement (Standard Difficulty)
Standard difficulty Nemesis will Place all of their WORKERS at the beginning of the Decade, before any Human Players begin their Placements. (Hard Nemesis, however, will follow the same Placement rules as Humans.)
Steps 1-4 - Districts
Placement. Starting with Phase 1, District 1 (The Frontier), each Player takes Turns Placing 1 WORKER at a time into available ACTION slots, until all Players have Passed on placing any additional WORKERS.
- Each Player may Place Up to 1 WORKER during their Turn.
- Over the course of a given Phase, each Player may Place multiple WORKERS.
Resolution. When you Resolve an ACTION, you gain its benefits.
Resolve ACTIONS. Each Player may Resolve their chosen ACTIONS simultaneously, so long as there are no conflicts or combos (such as BUILD + PATRON).
Resolution Sequence. If a chosen ACTION does have a conflict or combo, then Resolve them from top-to-bottom, left-to-right.
Additionally, you may take any Instant ACTIONS before or after Resolution. Once all District ACTIONS are Resolved for the current Phase, proceed to the next Phase.
Your Turn (Placement)
During your Turn, you may do any of the following, in any order:
- Place a Worker — Place up to 1 WORKER in a District ACTION slot of the current Phase.
- Use Instant ACTIONS — Resolve an unlimited number of Instant ACTIONS, such as BUY.
- Pass — Place no WORKER. Take no Instant ACTION.
When you're done, Pass your Turn to the Player with the next highest LOYALTY. After each other Player has had a Turn, it will be your Turn once again. You may Place another WORKER if you wish, or Pass.
While you are limited to Placing 1 WORKER during each of your Turns, there is no limit to the total number of WORKERS you can Place during each Phase. You may even Place 2 WORKERS in the same ACTION (like BUILD, PATRON, or SIEGE), if slots allow.
Note that while Resolving, it is also considered to be your Turn, and you can Resolve any additional Instant ACTIONS along with your District ACTIONS. Though you cannot Place new WORKERS during Resolution.
Worker Placement Rules
- Multiple Workers — You can Place multiple WORKERS during the same Phase. (Up to 1 per Turn.)
- Social Class — WORKERS can act on Districts of equal or lower Tier to themselves. ROYAL ADVISORS may act 2x on their chosen slots. (A Tier 2 WORKER can act during Districts I and II, but cannot act during Districts III and IV.)
- Mounts — Unlike WORKERS, the Tier of a MOUNT does not determine its available ACTIONS. Typically, a MOUNT can only be used to MOVE, during Phase IV.
Oust & Replace Rules
Replace a lower Tier WORKER. Higher Tier WORKERS may Oust & Replace lower Tier WORKERS, bumping them out of their chosen ACTION slot, and taking it for themselves.
Return to Controller. When this happens, the Ousted WORKER is returned to its Controller. That Player may choose a new ACTION slot for their Ousted WORKER during the same Phase, but they must wait until their next Turn in Placement Order to do so.
Preferred slots. You may Oust & Replace a rival WORKER even if there are other Unoccupied slots for the same ACTION (e.g., PATRON or BUILD).
Mounts. Higher Tier MOUNTS can Oust lower Tier MOUNTS, regardless of any LORD/LADY riders.
ROYAL ADVISORS can never be Ousted, regardless of any MOUNTS.
If you manage to bump a Nemesis WORKER, they do not bother to re-Place it for the rest of the Decade. However, if you Oust & Replace their MOUNT, they will simply place it in the next slowest MOVE slot.
Decade End
This is where you'll tie up loose ends, make any last minute plays, and reset all WORKERS.
In Turn Order, each Player Resolves the following in any sequence they choose:
Collect Income
Check your Income based on your current LOYALTY, and subtract your UPKEEP burden. If any Coins remain, collect it now from the Bank.
Example: Red has 5 LOYALTY & 1 UPKEEP. +4 Coins - 1 Coin = 3 Coins Income.
You never have to Pay Coins during this Step. Even if your UPKEEP is higher than your LOYALTY, any negative Income becomes zero instead.
While unconventional, a high Upkeep/no Income strategy can be viable in certain games...
Resolve SKILL Perks
If your SKILL values qualify you for any Perks that include a Decade icon, you may Resolve each one up to 1 time, each Decade End.
Trigger Area Effects
Each Player may Resolve any Area Effects they have unlocked through their Tech tree, and must Resolve any Area Effects from Nemesis within Range of their Avatar.
Instant ACTIONS
While Resolving the above, you may also perform any number of last minute Instant ACTIONS, in any sequence.
Coronation
The Player with the highest LOYALTY gains THE CROWN.
They maintain their title until the next Coronation, even if their LOYALTY score falls behind other Players before then. THE CROWN has the final say in all rules disputes.
Refresh Cards
After Coronation, THE CROWN may choose to Refresh any card stacks in any tray. To Refresh, move the top card of any stack to the bottom.
There are ways for a savvy CROWN to Peek at the upcoming Event card before their Refresh Step, to avoid an unfavorable Dissent.
Event
Establish. THE CROWN Draws a new Event, reads it aloud to the table, and Establishes it in The Empire tray, covering up any old Events.
Dissent Events give bonus LOYALTY to each Nemesis, regardless of who wears THE CROWN.
Categories of Events
| COMPETITIVE | BOTH | FULLY-COOPERATIVE | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Persistent effects remaining through to the next Decade. | THE CROWN nominates 1 Player to roll a SKILL check. | ||
| Law | Benefit to THE CROWN. | SKILL Check. | |
| Dissent | Benefit to non-CROWN Players. | SKILL Check contest vs the Nemesis. | |
| Sacrifice | Each Player Discards a WORKER. |
Return
- WORKERS — All WORKERS return to their Home slots.
- MANASTONES — Shift from Depleted up to Charged.
- Exhausted cards become usable.
- Progress the brown Current Decade stacker by +1, & start the next Decade.
Final Decade
Most games of Ascendancy end after a Final Decade, depending on your Scenario.
The End Step of the Final Decade is abridged. During your Final Decade End Step:
- There is no Coronation, and no new CROWN.
- There is no new Event.
- WORKERS do not return to Home slots, and MANASTONES do not Recharge.
Players still gain benefits from Income, SKILL Perks, & Area Effects. Exhausted cards become usable again. And Players can still Resolve any other Instant ACTIONS for a final chance at victory.
Game End
At the end of the game, determine winning & losing Players based on your Scenario's Win Conditions.
Victorious Players may claim 1 Legacy Reward card from the pool, and add it to their House Board for future Generations.
Districts
District 1 - The Frontier
Overview. The Frontier represents the conceptual outer boundaries of your domain. These are the wilds, waiting to be explored.
Worker Placement Rules
- Any WORKER can act in The Frontier.
- When a LABORER or higher acts in The Frontier to Draw a card, you Draw 1 extra card from that stack. Keep the 1 you want. Discard the other to the bottom of the stack.
- When you use a ROYAL ADVISOR in any Frontier slot, you may Resolve that ACTION twice.
Each WORKER has a Tier. OUTCASTS can usually be considered the weakest and least versatile.
1 - ITEM
- A: Draw the face-up Battle Item.
- OR
- B: Draw the face-up Utility Item.
Add it to your Tableau.
BUY - Instant ACTION on your turn: Pay 3 Coins to BUY either of the top Item cards without Placing a WORKER.
2 - SCOUT
Select a Target Hex on the Map within 1 Hex of your Avatar. You may claim any Loot from that Hex. Then Draw the top 2 tiles from the Location stack. Pick 1 Location to Place onto your Target Hex, and Discard the other face-down. Recalculate LOYALTY if there are any modifiers to Connected Locations.
You do not MOVE your Avatar when you SCOUT.
3 & 4 - REVEAL
Preemptively Draw 1 Creature card from the top of the corresponding stack. Flip it, and then immediately DEPLOY it into your Encounter Zone on the enemy side.
Bonus: When you Resolve this ACTION in the first slot, you may also Identify 1 Loot you Control. (Before or after.)
5 - BUILD
Establish your Phase 1 (CUNNING) Building as a new PATRON Action in the Building space.
Bonus: When you Resolve this ACTION in the first slot, you enjoy a Discount of -1 ORE on the cost of your BUILD.
6 - PATRON
Resolve this District's Tier 1 Building, or an Established Building on the Building space.
Bonus: When you Resolve PATRON in the first slot, you may also Identify 1 Loot you Control (Before or after.)
PATRON Rules
Placement & Resolution - You do not need to choose a Building to PATRON when you Place your WORKER. You are free to wait or change your mind right up until the Resolution Step. Since BUILD Resolves before PATRON, you can BUILD and then PATRON that same Building during the same Phase by Placing 2 WORKERS.
Fee - The Controller of a Building may require other Human Players Pay them 1 Coin for the privilege of using their Building.
7 - THE INNKEEPER
Choose 1: Restore up to 2 Damage to each Champion you Control, or feed your MOUNT.
If you choose to feed your MOUNT: You may MOVE across up to 1 Food on the Map for no cost when you use the MOVE Action in Phase 4 later this Decade. (If you want a reminder, you may slot 1 Discarded Food onto your MOUNT.)
INNKEEPER is always available to PATRON throughout the game, regardless of new Buildings Established in The Frontier.
District 2 - The Supply
Overview. The Supply represents economic & production centers. These are the conceptual farms, mines, dojos, schools and banks of Ascendancy.
Worker Placement Rules
- Only LABORERS or higher can act in The Supply.
- When a LOYALIST acts here to claim a Resource, they also gain 1 Coin as a bonus.
- When a LORD/LADY acts here to claim a Resource, they gain 2 Coins as a bonus.
- When you use a ROYAL ADVISOR in any Supply slot, you may Resolve that ACTION twice. For example, 1 ROYAL ADVISOR could PATRON 2 different Buildings, the same Building x2, or gain 2 of the same Resource (though they do not gain bonus Coins).
BUY / SELL
You may BUY or SELL a Resource without Placing a WORKER, as an Instant ACTION.
SELL value and BUY cost for each row of Resources is shown together on the left side. As players claim Resources, Stock is depleted, and values increase. If Players Sell Resources, Stock is replenished, and values will decrease.
BUYing Resources is fast, but more expensive when compared to Placing WORKERS to claim Resources.
FOOD / ORE / SKILL / KNOWLEDGE
Claim 1 Resource cube from the topmost available row of Stock. The topmost row (just below the Discard) usually starts out empty. It may get filled if Players SELL during the early game.
When you claim a Resource with a WORKER, you do not need to Pay any Coins.
The Stock & dynamic supply
Each row of the Stock has a set maximum of 2 or 3 Resource cubes, depending on Player count and game Duration. See Starting Stock for details.
When you claim a Resource, you take it from the top-most available row. When you SELL a Resource, you add to the top-most available row, or the next row up if the top-most row already contains the set maximum number of cubes.
DISCARD
Anytime you Spend or Discard a Resource cube, Place it here. The Supply Discard section is shared for all Resources including MANASTONES and INFLUENCE.
If an effect allows you to Restock a Resource, you collect it from the Discard section and Place it in the top-most available slot of its corresponding section.
BUILD
Establish your Phase 2 (MIGHT) Building as a new PATRON Action on the Building space, or nearby as space allows.
Bonus: When you Resolve this ACTION in the first slot, you enjoy a Discount of -1 ORE on the cost of your BUILD.
PATRON
Resolve this District's Tier 2 Building, or an Established Building on the Building space.
Bonus: When you Resolve this ACTION in the first slot, claim 1 Coin as a bonus. You may SPEND this when PATRONING The BANKER, or for any Building Fees required by other Players: COMMUNE, SMUGGLER'S COVE, etc.
THE BANKER
During Resolution, Invest 2 Coins by Placing it next to your PATRONing WORKER. Then during the Income step at Decade End, recollect your investment, plus interest, by gaining 3 Coins total.
The BANKER is always available to PATRON throughout the game, regardless of new Buildings Established in The Supply.
District 3 - The Academy
Overview. The Academy represents the institutions of higher learning, politics, and grand pursuits. Here you will find the engineers, academics, swords for hire, and orators of Ascendancy.
Because of their power, many Academy ACTIONS will result in additional UPKEEP burden. Be sure to consider that as you plan out your turn.
Worker Placement Rules
- Only LOYALISTS or higher can act in The Academy.
- When you use a ROYAL ADVISOR in any Academy slot, you may Resolve that ACTION twice.
QUEST
Draw the top 2 cards from the Quest stack. Select one of them to add to your Tableau, text-side-up. Discard the other to the bottom of the stack.
HIRELING
Draw the top Mercenary or War Machine card, add it to your Tableau. Immediately gain +1 UPKEEP burden.
BUY - Instant ACTION on your turn: Pay 2 Coins + Discard 1 ORE to BUY either of the top Hireling cards without Placing a WORKER.
MANASTONE
Claim 1 Manastone from the tray and add it to your Manabank on your House Board "Charged".
BUY - Instant ACTION on your turn: Pay 1 Coin + 1 ORE for a Manastone, without Placing a WORKER.
INFLUENCE
Claim 1 Influence from the tray and add it to your Tableau.
BUY - Instant ACTION on your turn: Pay 1 Coin + 1 KNOWLEDGE for an Influence, without Placing a WORKER.
BUILD
Establish your Phase 3 (INTELLECT) Building as a new PATRON Action on the Building space, or nearby as space allows.
Bonus: When you Resolve this ACTION in the first slot, you enjoy a Discount of -1 ORE on the cost of your BUILD.
PATRON
Resolve this District's Tier 3 Building, or an Established Building on the Building space.
Bonus: When you Resolve this ACTION in the first slot, you also Identify 1 Loot token you control. You may do this before or after you PATRON.
THE MYSTIC
You may Clear any 1 bad STATUS EFFECT from a Combat Unit you Control.
Additionally, you may Peek at any 1 face-down card, including the upcoming Event, or another Player's Hidden Role/Team. Or, you may Identify any 1 Loot token you control.
MYSTIC is always available to PATRON throughout the game, regardless of new Buildings Established in The Academy.
District 4 - The Empire
Overview. The Empire is your command center, where you give marching orders, Ascend your Settlements, and destroy those of your rivals.
Each Player starts the game with 1 LORD/LADY as their only NOBLE, and 1 MOUNT. You can INVEST in PURPLE slots to gain another NOBLE, or Ascend your NOBLE to the all-powerful ROYAL ADVISOR. You can only ever have 1 MOUNT!
Worker Placement Rules
- ACTIONS in The Empire require a NOBLE, MOUNT, or both.
- UPGRADE SETTLEMENT & ADVENTURE require a NOBLE only.
- MOVE requires your MOUNT only.
- You can Place a NOBLE astride your MOUNT to MOVE & ADVENTURE.
- SIEGE requires a NOBLE and a DEPLOYED War Machine card.
- When you use a ROYAL ADVISOR in any NOBLE slot, you may Resolve that ACTION twice.
1 - NEMESIS TARGET HEX
This is where you Place each Nemesis Player's last roll of the Decade to determine their Target Hex.
2 - UPGRADE SETTLEMENT
Ascend any Settlement you Control by +1 Tier: Fetch 1 upgrade piece (Tier 2 Wall or Tier 3 Tower) from your storage tray, and stack it onto a Settlement of your choice. Then gain LOYALTY as per its underlying Location.
BUY - Instant ACTION on your turn: Pay 2 ORE to UPGRADE 1 Settlement you Control.
3 - ADVENTURE / MOVE
This ACTION slot contains two distinct ACTIONS for NOBLES and MOUNTS. You may Resolve one or both in either order, depending on if you use a NOBLE and/or a MOUNT.
ADVENTURE (NOBLE only) — Roll a SKILL check, and Draw +1 Location (in either sequence).
- You may Roll the SKILL check at your current Location, or at your Target Hex.
- If your Target Hex is Undiscovered, Draw +1 Location. Choose 1 to Place. Discard the rest.
Your NOBLES may ADVENTURE without Placing or feeding your MOUNT.
MOVE (MOUNT only) — Relocate your Avatar.
- Select a Target Hex on the Map.
- Pay 1 FOOD for every Food icon on the Map between your Avatar and your Target Hex.
- If your Target Hex has any Loot, claim it face-down, Unidentified.
- If Undiscovered, Draw 1 Location tile and Place it onto your Target Hex. (Draw +1 Location if you also ADVENTURE.)
- Relocate your Avatar to the Target Hex.
MOVE Discounts
The following allow you to MOVE across Food without Paying the cost. All effects can stack.
| Source | Discount |
|---|---|
| Tier 2 MOUNT | -1 Food |
| Tier 3 MOUNT | -2 Food |
| The INNKEEPER | -1 Food |
| Maneuver SKILL Perk | -1 Food |
| Tech cards | Variable |
You cannot MOVE:
- Across Mountains (without a special effect).
- Onto a rival Settlement without permission.
You can MOVE:
- Across Mountain Passes in one direction only. This does not cost any Food.
- Through a rival Settlement without permission.
- Across any number of Hexes with a single MOVE Action, if you pay the Food.
Place a NOBLE astride your MOUNT to Resolve both ADVENTURE & MOVE together.
Both CONQUER and SIEGE can Initiate Battles. Whenever possible, try to have all Players Battle simultaneously to help speed up the game.
4 - CONQUER
Initiate Battle in your Encounter Zone. You may CONQUER Creatures to gain RENOWN, and Ascend your Empire.
If you CONQUER when there are no Creatures in your Encounter Zone, you must immediately Draw 1 or more surprise Creatures of any Tier, and DEPLOY them to your Encounter Zone.
Whenever Nemesis CONQUER, they Initiate Battle vs rival Players.
Bonus RENOWN: If your game includes at least 3 Human Players, then this 1st slot provides +1 RENOWN. (Even if you lose the Battle.)
5 - SIEGE
Attempt to Destroy a rival Settlement.
- Target a Settlement on the Map within 1 Hex of your Avatar.
- If that Settlement is Unoccupied, immediately Destroy 1 Tier of it.
- If that Settlement is Occupied by a Defending Player Avatar, Initiate Battle.
- Collect any Destroyed Settlement pieces as Trophies. You earn 1 LOYALTY per Tier of piece.
- The Player whose Settlement was Destroyed loses any LOYALTY that Settlement provided.
- Flip your War Machine card back to its unDEPLOYED side.
You must have a DEPLOYED War Machine in order to Resolve a SIEGE Action, even if your Target Settlement is Unoccupied.
Royal Advisors in The Empire
These all-powerful NOBLE WORKERS may perform their chosen ACTION twice.
During The Empire Phase, a single ROYAL ADVISOR can Oust & Replace a LORD/LADY, including any Tier of MOUNT, and can never be Ousted themselves.
Build & Buildings
Overview
Each House has access to 3 different Buildings, one for each Type (CUNNING / MIGHT / INTELLECT). They start the game on top of the Estate stacks of your House Board. When you Resolve the BUILD Action, you Establish these Buildings as permanent new PATRON options for their corresponding Districts.
Building Card Sides
Each Building has two sides:
- Side A: BUILD side. This side lives on your House Board, and shows the cost and benefits for BUILD.
- Side B: PATRON side. This side is Established on a District, providing a new PATRON option for all Human Players (Pay 1 Coin).
Building Tier
Each Building comes in Tier 1, 2, or 3. Each Tier higher provides a more powerful version of the same effect.
Building Anatomy
Side A: BUILD
- SKILL Requirement. Most Buildings require you meet or exceed a certain SKILL value on the Tracker before you can BUILD them. For example, STABLES requires that you have 1 or more CUNNING to BUILD it.
- Cost. Each Building has a different cost in Resources. When you BUILD, you Pay the printed cost by Discarding to the tray, or Activating Manastones.
- Gain Benefit. BUILD grants immediate LOYALTY and UPKEEP as printed. Note that UPKEEP always increases by +1 with each +Tier, but higher Tier Buildings will provide more LOYALTY than UPKEEP as they Ascend, for better value.
- Establish. When you BUILD, after all costs are Paid and LOYALTY/UPKEEP are gained, you must Establish it:
- Flip your Building over to its ACTION side.
- Place it onto, or next to its corresponding District (depending on your available tabletop space).
- Finally, grab the whole Estate stack your Build card came from, and slide it up by 1 row to gain access to 3 new Tech Tree options.
Building Effect. When a Building is Established, this text describes the effect for Players who choose to PATRON that Building. For example, if you Resolve PATRON at The Frontier, you can choose to PATRON the STABLES (or any other Building) to gain its effect.
Building Rules
You can only BUILD a given Building during its respective Phase, at its corresponding District. For example, you can only BUILD The STABLES during Phase 1, on The Frontier District. Never during Phase 2, on The Supply District.
NEXT Tier. If you manage to BUILD a Tier 2 or Tier 3 version of an existing Building, Establish the new card directly on top of the old one, effectively replacing it.
Multiple Buildings. A given District can have any number of Buildings from other Houses Established on it simultaneously. In this situation, try staggering each of the Building cards in a single column on, or next to the tray, to keep them all visible.
Canceling a BUILD. If you Place a WORKER in a BUILD Action slot, you can decide not to BUILD once it's time to Resolve the ACTION, either by choice, or because you don't have the Resources or SKILL needed. You may then choose to Resolve a different Action at the current District (if available).
Empire & Renown
Overview
The 4th column of your House Board represents the expansiveness of your House as a cohesive Empire. Unlike Buildings, you do not BUILD your Empire. Instead, you will need to accomplish great feats which earn RENOWN to Ascend your Empire.
Each new Empire Tier requires progressively more RENOWN, and provides you with more benefits. Crucially, benefits include new Tier 1 Settlement minis.
Empire Card Sides
Each Empire card has two sides:
- Side A: Shows the requirements and benefits for ASCENDing your Empire.
- Side B: Lives in your Tableau and provides a new effect, just like a Tech card.
Earning Renown
You need RENOWN in order to ASCEND your Empire. Most of the time, you will earn RENOWN by Completing Quests, or Defeating Wild Creatures in Battle using your CONQUER Action.
When you do, fetch the amount of RENOWN shown on the Quest or Creature card from your Storage Tray. You may ASCEND your Empire as an Instant ACTION as soon as you reach the required amount. You do not Pay or lose RENOWN when you ASCEND.
You can also Defeat Creatures outside of Battle, such as using the VOLCANIUM PATRON Action, Tech cards, or Items. That counts, and grants RENOWN! If a Creature is Discarded or removed from your Encounter Zone, but it is not Defeated, then it does not grant RENOWN.
Empire Anatomy
- TIER. Players start each game at Empire Tier 1, and can Ascend all the way up to Tier 5.
- NEXT TIER REQUIREMENT. Each Empire Tier requires a total RENOWN value, which you primarily gain when you Defeat Creatures or Complete Quests. As soon as you acquire enough RENOWN, you satisfy this condition, and can ASCEND.
- GAIN BENEFIT. As soon as you ASCEND, you immediately gain everything printed here, including LOYALTY, Loot, burden of +1 UPKEEP, and a new Tier 1 Settlement mini, which can be Placed immediately, or saved for later.
- ESTABLISH. After everything is gained, proceed to Establish:
- Flip your Empire card over to its B side.
- Place it in your Tableau as a new Tech.
- Finally, grab the whole Estate stack, and slide it up by 1 row to gain access to 3 new Tech options.
- EMPIRE TECHS. When an Empire card is Established in your Tableau, it works just like a Tech card, providing you a unique effect as described.
- BONUS EFFECT. Some Flipped Empire cards provide bonus effects, just like Tech cards. Their "x" value is printed here, and explained by the card itself. You gain these modifiers as soon as the card is Established, and the value can change dynamically as you play.
Instant Actions
These basic Instant ACTIONS are available to everyone, throughout every Phase of the game.
All basic Instant ACTIONS have the following qualities:
- Do not require a WORKER.
- Resolve... you guessed it... Instantly!
- Can be Resolved any time during your turn.
- Can be used any number of times during your Turn.
- Can NOT be used during Battle!
Many unlockable Tech cards can provide you advanced Instant ACTIONS. These may specify different rules, such as requiring a WORKER, usage during Battle, etc.
BUY & SELL
Some District ACTIONS show a BUY cost icon, which provide an alternative way to Resolve that ACTION. Unlike when Placing a WORKER, you can BUY from Districts during any Phase, by Paying the associated cost.
You can also SELL Resources to The Supply (but never to other Districts).
BUY is the fastest way to get things that you really want, and can be used at any time during your Turn. However, this method is more expensive compared to placing a WORKER.
TRADE
Swap Resources, Coins, or any other Assets in any combination with any willing Human Player. TRADE is 100% optional.
To TRADE, both participating Player Avatars must be within 1 Hex of each other on the Map. TRADES do not need to be balanced, so long as all participating Players agree. Nemesis never TRADE.
SETTLE
Place a Tier 1 Settlement mini from your Tableau onto your Avatar's current Location. When you do, you immediately gain LOYALTY as printed on that Location for Tier 1 (1x).
SETTLE itself has no UPKEEP (thematically, this burden is incurred when you Ascend your Empire).
Each Location can have up to 1 Settlement. You cannot SETTLE Quest Locations, nor any Location which have already been SETTLED.
ASCEND EMPIRE
Once you have the required RENOWN, you may ASCEND the Empire column of your House Board as an Instant ACTION.
You do not Pay or lose RENOWN when you ASCEND. Empire progression cannot be undone, even if you lose RENOWN in another way.
INVEST RESOURCE
To INVEST a Resource, Place it into an open, color-matching socket in your Tech Tree, then immediately gain its benefit.
Gain a new WORKER, anoint a new Champion — OR — Ascend an existing one.
SPEND RESOURCE
SPEND the following Resources by Discarding them from your Tableau directly into The Supply Discard in order to gain an immediate benefit. SPEND anytime on your Turn outside of Battle.
- Discard FOOD — Restore 1 Damage to each Champion you Control.
- Discard SKILL — Gain a permanent +1 to any SKILL.
- Discard INFLUENCE — Gain 1 RENOWN from your personal Storage Tray.
DEPLOY
Place a Combat Unit into your Encounter Zone, effectively preparing it to participate in the next Battle. Pay the DEPLOYMENT costs (if any).
ATTACH EQUIPMENT
Equipment cards are a category of Techs which bestow new Abilities to any 1 of your Champions.
Each Champion may ATTACH up to 1 Equipment by tucking it slightly underneath their card.
Equipment may be re-ATTACHED to a different Champion anytime outside of Battle. A given Champion can never have more than 1 Equipment ATTACHED at a time.
Creatures, Hirelings, and other non-Champion units cannot ATTACH Equipment.
Tech Card Actions
Tech cards with an "INSTANT" subheader can be used anytime during your Turn, just like other Instant ACTIONS. Some may be used during Battle, but only if specified on the card.
Additional cost. Some Tech card ACTIONS may have additional costs. If those costs include WORKERS, you may Place them onto the Tech card itself, anytime during your Turn, including during Decade End, when normal District Placement is not possible.
Quests
Overview
Quests are unique, situational challenges. Completing a Quest grants RENOWN, which is used to Ascend your Empire.
When you use the QUEST ACTION slot in The Academy, Draw the top 2 Quests, choose 1 to keep, and return the other to the bottom of the stack.
If you claim a Quest by another method, such as from an Item, you simply claim the top Quest.
Quest Card Anatomy
Objective. Each Quest asks Players to fulfill an objective. The relative difficulty of a given Quest may depend on your build, or game state.
Some Quests require you to do something that you cannot do under normal circumstance. In these cases, you will need to find a way to do it.
For example, you normally can only Oust & Replace a rival WORKER with a higher Tier WORKER. Impersonate Rival asks you to Oust a WORKER of equal or lower Tier. In this case, you'll need to find an Item, Tech card, or other method to Complete this Quest.
Side A - Incomplete. Remains face-up in your Tableau, showing the condition to Complete it.
Completed. As soon as you achieve a Quest's objective, it is Completed. Flip it over to its Completed side, and rotate it 90 degrees in your Tableau. You immediately claim the RENOWN shown from your storage tray.
Harder Quests reward more RENOWN for Completing them than easier ones. Whenever you have a choice between different Quests, be sure to consider the reward, as well as the objective.
Side B - Completed. Remains face-down at a 90 degree angle in your Tableau.
Items & Scraps
Overview
Items are Instant, one-time-use effects that provide an edge on or off the battlefield. Each has a rarity: COMMON, UNCOMMON, or UNIQUE, which denotes the number of copies of that specific Item you may find in the stack. Once claimed, Items are kept anywhere in your Tableau.
Using Items
All Items can be used anytime during your Turn, even during Battle. To use an Item you first Resolve its effect, then Flip it to its Scrap side.
You may choose to Flip an Item to its Scrap side without Resolving its effect.
Battle Items
Have an "X" (Battle) symbol printed in the top right corner. Typically, these are most useful during a Battle, though they can be used anytime. You can even use an Item after you see an enemy Attack Roll, but before the Damage is applied to your unit.
Utility Items
These have a more broad array of effects, which can also be used anytime, even during Battle.
Scrap
Upon use, Items Flip to their Scrap side, and remain in your Tableau. War Machines, SKILL Perks, and tech cards may make use of different kinds of Scrap.
Combat Units
Overview
Each Combat Unit is represented by a card. (Sculpted Miniatures & standees are Player Avatars - Not Combat Units.)
Combat Units can participate in Battle if DEPLOYED, so long as they are not already Exhausted.
There are several different kinds of Combat Units, each with different strengths, weaknesses, and styles of play. Mechanically, however, they fall into two main categories:
Stamina Based Units. You have direct control over their Abilities via the Stamina system. Champions & Fortifications are always Human Player Controlled.
Dice Based Units. These utilize die rolls to randomize their combat Abilities. Hirelings & Creatures can be game or Human Player Controlled. Nemesis Bosses are always game Controlled.
Basic Combat Strategy - Rock, Paper, Scissors
Each Combat Unit in the game is 1 of the 3 Types. These share the same icons as Player SKILL Values, but are unrelated. Each Type is strong against one Type, and weak against another:
MIGHT beats CUNNING; CUNNING beats INTELLECT; INTELLECT beats MIGHT.
You can avoid unfavorable matchups by planning ahead. Pre-emptively REVEAL your Creatures to see what Types you'll be facing. Armed with this intel, you can DEPLOY units with the best chance of effectively countering them.
A favorable matchup won't guarantee Victory, but will notably improve the odds in your favor!
- CUNNING Types usually have the fastest Initiative on the battlefield. Going first at the start of each Round can be a big advantage, especially vs INTELLECT Types.
- MIGHT Types usually have the most Health, and have access to Armor. This allows them to trivialize Damage from CUNNING Types, and protect weaker units in your Back Rows.
- INTELLECT Types can Ignore Armor, rendering MIGHT Types defenseless. They can make particularly good use of synergies, STATUS EFFECTS, and MANASTONES.
Champions
Tier. Each Champion starts at Tier 1 when you first Anoint them. As you progress your Tech Tree, you'll gain the option to invest another Resource to Ascend them to Tier 2. When you do, simply Flip their card over to its Tier 2 side.
Type. One of 3 possible icons (CUNNING / MIGHT / INTELLECT) which indicate this Unit's thematic Abilities, max Stamina value and their relative effectiveness vs the other 2 Types.
Max Health. If this Champion accumulates Damage up to this value, it is Defeated. Health can be fully or partially Restored, but never beyond this max value.
Tier 2 Champions have a Status Resist.
Initiative. This number determines which Units get to Attack first during Battle. Highest Initiative goes first, then next highest, and so on.
Stamina. This Unit's energy value is tracked with a yellow cube. You spend Stamina as a cost for Resolving Abilities of your choice during Battle. To use an Ability, pay the cost by sliding the yellow tracker cube to the left.
Champions start each Battle with their Stamina tracker on the value noted by the "per rd." icon. Each round, they regain their per-Round Stamina. Any unused Stamina carries over into the next Round, though Total Stamina can never exceed the maximum value shown for a given Champion.
Example: during its Initiative, you want to use the Barbarian Strike Attack. Starting at 4 Stamina, slide the yellow cube down to 2 Stamina, to indicate that you paid the cost for Strike. Then Resolve the Attack. With 2 Stamina remaining, the Round ends, and Barbarian regains their per-Round Stamina of 4. Since they can never have more than 5, you set their yellow tracker cube to 5 Stamina, and proceed with the 2nd Round of Battle.
Abilities. Champions can use any of their Abilities each Round, so long as they can pay the Stamina cost, printed on the left side of each Ability in yellow. The right side of the box contains effect text for each Ability. These can vary wildly between Champions.
Each Ability can be used only once each Round, unless otherwise noted.
Attacks. Attack Abilities can only be used during that unit's Initiative. They usually deal Damage as printed near the Ability name. Dice units will make a Resist roll in response to incoming Attacks. So the final Damage value is dependent on the Resist Result.
You may also choose not to Attack. However, once Initiative is skipped, a unit may not Attack later in the Round.
Pinpoint. Some Abilities have the Pinpoint icon. These can target any enemy. (A normal Attack will target the Front Row enemy only). If the Ability hits twice, each Damage may target the same, or different units.
Tactics. Tactic Abilities can be used anytime during Battle, including during other units' Initiatives. For example, when an enemy targets your Champion with an Attack, you can wait to use a Tactic like Armor Up until after you see their roll result, before Damage resolves.
Ultimate Abilities. Each Champion has a powerful Ultimate Ability. In addition to any Stamina cost, these also require you to Activate a MANASTONE to use them.
Dice Units
All non-Champion Combat Units use die rolls to randomly determine their Abilities in Battle, even when they are Controlled by a Human Player.
Whenever possible, ask a friend to roll on your enemies' behalf. This can speed things up, and be more fun!
Category, Color, & Tier. Non-Champion Combat Units include: Creatures, Mercenaries, War Machines, & Bosses. Their respective symbols appear on their card. (Certain Abilities deal bonus Damage to specific Types or colors.)
RENOWN value. When a Wild Creature is Defeated in a Player's Encounter Zone, that Player gains the amount of RENOWN printed here.
Max Health. If this unit accumulates Damage up to this value, it is Defeated. Health can be fully or partially Restored, but never beyond this max value.
Type. One of 3 possible icons which indicate this Unit's thematic Abilities, and their relative effectiveness vs the other 2 Types.
Initiative. This number determines which Units get to Attack first during Battle. Highest Initiative goes first, then next highest, and so on.
Attacks. The left column shows possible Attacks. During this Unit's Initiative, roll a die to determine which Attack it will use: Match the die result against this column. If there is no Pinpoint icon, the Front Row enemy is the target. Most Attacks will miss on a roll of 1.
On-hit effects. Some Attacks may apply Status or other effects. These are Inflicted on their target on hit, after any Damage. They do not need to deal Damage to inflict their on-hit effect. (They just need to hit.)
Pinpoint. Some Attacks, like ENCIRCLE, have the Pinpoint icon. These can target non-Front Row enemies. (A normal Attack will target the Front Row enemy only.) When a Creature or Boss Ability has Pinpoint, it will attempt to hit a priority target as described, if they exist. In the case of ENCIRCLE, Alpha Wulf will target an enemy INTELLECT Type unit, even if that unit is in the Back Row.
Resists. The right column shows possible Resists. Unlike Champions, dice based units do not immediately take Damage when hit. They first roll for a Resist, and match the result against this column to see if they use one.
Depending on the roll, a Resist may have no effect, reduce, or increase incoming Damage. Some Resists can reduce incoming Damage using Armor or other effects.
For example, Alpha Wulf's Evade will limit any amount of incoming Damage down to just 1. And their Elude will avoid Damage altogether.
Status Resists
Bosses & Tier 2 units have a color shield icon. They always Resist good and bad STATUS EFFECTS of that color.
- For example, units with the PURPLE shield cannot suffer AMNESIA, POISON, & cannot gain FADED.
- RED shield units never gain or take Damage from SEARING or EMPOWER, and cannot gain HASTE.
- GREEN shield units cannot suffer from ROOT. They can't gain REGEN, nor become TAMED.
- BLUE shield units cannot suffer FROZEN or DAZZLED. They cannot gain LUCKY.
Mercenaries
Recruited from The Academy using the HIRELING Action slot. Each Mercenary adds +1 UPKEEP burden.
DEPLOY. You may DEPLOY a Mercenary by Discarding 1 Unidentified Loot token, or by Spending 2 Coins.
Each Decade End, any Mercenary who participated in Battle will clear any Damage and STATUS EFFECTS, and return to your Tableau face-down. You will need to Pay to re-DEPLOY them.
War Machines
Recruited from The Academy using the HIRELING Action slot. Each War Machine adds +1 UPKEEP burden. War Machines cannot Battle alone! Additionally, if they are your last remaining unit in a Battle, you lose.
Munitions. War Machines have no Health, & can never be targeted, nor suffer bad Status. Instead, they start each Battle with 3 Munitions on their tracker. Each Attack Roll per Round costs 1 Munition. (You may choose to skip an Attack.) At 0 Munitions, War Machines Flip and return to your Tableau. If a War Machine reaches 0 Munitions during a SIEGE, your other units may keep fighting, or Retreat.
DEPLOY. You may DEPLOY a War Machine by Discarding 1 Scrap card, or by Spending 2 Coins. (The kind of Scrap you need will depend on the specific War Machine.)
- War Machines must always DEPLOY to the Back-most available Row.
- War Machines must be DEPLOYED to Resolve a SIEGE Action.
Each Decade End, any War Machine who Battled returns to your Tableau face-down, regardless of Munitions. You will need to Pay to re-DEPLOY them.
Fortifications
Special SIEGE defense units, available from UPGRADED Settlements.
DEPLOY. When a SIEGE Action is Resolved against one of your Settlements, you may DEPLOY a Fortification to help defend it, but only if your Avatar Occupies the Target Hex. Nemesis Players, however, never use or DEPLOY Fortifications under any circumstances.
If the above requirements are met, Fetch a single Fortification card from The Empire tray, & DEPLOY it to your Front Row for no cost:
- Tier 2 Settlements provide a Wall Combat Unit.
- Tier 3 Settlements provide a Tower Combat Unit.
Fortifications must always DEPLOY to the Front Row.
Defeat. Defeated Fortifications result in Destroyed Settlement pieces. Win or lose, Fortifications must return to The Empire tray face-down at Decade End.
Creatures
WILD (Enemy Creatures). Defeating Wild Creatures with the CONQUER Action (or by other means) will grant RENOWN. This contributes to your Empire progression, which unlocks new Tier 1 Settlement minis.
Undefeated Wild Creatures will keep any Damage and ongoing STATUS.
TAMED (Allied Creatures). When a TAMED Creature is Defeated or Discarded, remove any Damage or STATUS EFFECTS, add it to your Tableau face-down, and gain +1 UPKEEP burden.
DEPLOY. You can DEPLOY a TAMED Creature as an Allied unit by Paying FOOD.
Each Decade End, any TAMED Creature who participated in Battle will clear any Damage and STATUS EFFECTS, and return to your Tableau face-down. You will need to Pay to re-DEPLOY them.
Battle
Overview
Battle is a glorious tactical contest between two opposing sides. Victory is achieved by the first side to Defeat, or force the Retreat of all enemy units. And to the winner go the spoils!
Battles must be deliberately triggered by Players, and are Resolved as the final District ACTIONS, before each Decade End.
Battle is a standalone game state, where the usual gameplay options (such as Instant ACTIONS) are mostly unavailable. Each Player who is participating in a Battle must finish it in either Victory, Defeat, or Retreat before progressing to Decade End.
Once all CONQUER/SIEGE Battles for the Decade are finished, any Combat Units that participated become Exhausted until next Decade.
Initiating & Defending Sides
Every Battle has 2 sides: Initiating (started the Battle), and Defending (the target).
Some circumstances or effects may allow multiple Players to Battle on the same side.
Preparing for Battle
Players must commit their DEPLOYED Combat Units to their Encounter Zone on their turn before Battle begins.
Conquer
For Human Players. When you Resolve CONQUER, first, check if there are any Wild Creatures in your Encounter Zone already, such as from the REVEAL Action. If so, you may Battle them.
If there are no Creatures yet, or you simply want a more challenging & rewarding fight, you may Draw and Place 1 or more surprise Creatures of any Tier.
(With PvP enabled, CONQUER may also Initiate Battle against rival Players on the same Hex.)
For Nemesis. Nemesis Players never CONQUER Creatures. Instead, they use CONQUER to Initiate Battle against Human Players.
Siege
When any Player targets a rival Settlement with the SIEGE Action, it may trigger a Battle.
First, check if the Target Hex is Occupied by a Player Avatar:
- Unoccupied (no Battle). If there is no Avatar to Defend, then SIEGE will automatically Destroy the highest Tier piece of that Settlement.
- Occupied (Battle!). If any Avatars Occupy the Target Hex when the SIEGE Resolves, then those Players may Defend the Settlement in Battle by DEPLOYing units from their Tableaus. If the target is Tier 2 or Tier 3, a Human Defender may also DEPLOY a Fortification as a defensive unit for no cost.
Victory Conditions in a SIEGE Battle. As soon as a Fortification is Destroyed, the Attacker immediately ends the SIEGE and claims a Trophy piece. If there is no Fortification DEPLOYED (because the Settlement is Tier 1), then the Trophy can still be claimed if all enemies are Defeated, or the Defending Player Retreats.
Trophy Pieces. When Settlement pieces are Destroyed (by any method), the Player who Destroyed them collects the top-most Settlement piece(s) as Trophies in their Tableau. Each individual Trophy piece grants +1 LOYALTY per Tier.
For example, Destroying a Tier 3 Settlement would Claim the Tower piece alone for +3 LOYALTY. The Tier 2 Wall & base would remain.
If you double SIEGE, you can Destroy up to 2 Tiers and collect 2 Trophies, gaining the sum total LOYALTY value!
Rounds and Initiative
Battle is divided into distinct Rounds, rotating through each Combat Unit's Initiative.
To determine which Combat Unit goes first, compare each Initiative value. The Unit with the highest value goes first, followed by the next highest, and so on.
When 2 Combat Units share the same Initiative value:
- A Tie between two units on different sides goes to the Defender.
- A Tie between units on the same side are up to Players to Resolve at their discretion.
As a Defender, you can use Ties between units to your advantage, by deciding which enemy will act first.
Round End
After all Combat Units have taken their Initiative, the Round ends. Round End steps:
- Champions & Fortifications regain their Per Rd. Stamina.
- Players decide whether to continue to a next Round, or Retreat to immediately end the Battle.
- Effects that trigger at the end of the Round, like POISON or REGEN, Resolve.
(If a Battle ends before the end of a Round, any remaining effects do NOT trigger for that round.)
If you don't like your odds, there's no shame in preserving Health to fight another day. When fighting Creatures, you won't lose anything for Retreat, besides time.
If you Retreat from another Player, you must immediately Relocate your Avatar to a friendly Settlement.
Damage & Defeat
| Champions / Nemesis / Wild Creatures | Tamed Creatures / Hirelings / Fortifications | |
|---|---|---|
| SURVIVED | Keep any damage counters & ongoing STATUS EFFECTS. Remain DEPLOYED. | Clear any damage counters & STATUS EFFECTS. Flip & return Mercenary/War Machine/Creature to your Tableau; Fortifications return to the Empire tray. May be DEPLOYED again next Decade at full Health. |
| DEFEATED | Champions: see Defeated Champions. Nemesis: see Nemesis Bosses. Wild Creatures: Discard & gain RENOWN. | (as above) |
- Whenever a unit is dealt Damage, Place that many Damage chits onto their card. All Damage is cumulative.
- If a Combat Unit takes Damage up to its max Health, it's Defeated (can no longer act or be targeted).
- A Defeated unit should not be Removed from the Encounter Zone until the Battle is over.
- If a unit in the Front Row is Defeated, the next Row behind it is considered the new Front Row.
- If simultaneous Damage results in a "double knockout", Human Players are considered victorious.
- After Battle, units with persistent Damage represents injury which may be attended to.
Defeated Champions
- Defeated Champions are not dead! They remain Exhausted until 1 or more Health is Restored.
- Once a Champion is Defeated, they cannot be Restored until after Battle (e.g., INNKEEPER, Items, etc.)
- A Defeated Champion keeps Damage equal to its max Health, & clears any ongoing STATUS EFFECTS.
- You're free to keep a Defeated Champion DEPLOYED, or swap them out for a fresh Champion.
- A Champion who is Shapeshifted into a Creature follows the rules for Champions when Defeated, not Creatures.
Victory & Defeat
Once all units on one side are Defeated, or if a Player Retreats, the Battle ends, and the remaining Player is victorious!
The Encounter Zone
Battle always takes place in your Encounter Zone, found at the top of your House Board.
Depending on the Battle, your Encounter Zone may represent the outskirts of your domain, the ramparts of a castle or even a trans-dimensional plane vs a Boss.
Perspective is side-view JRPG style, split down the middle with Initiating units on one side, and Defenders on the other.
Row Placement
The Encounter Zone includes 1 Front Row slot and 2 Back Row slots for each side. When you DEPLOY a unit, you must commit it to a specific Row.
When you DEPLOY a new unit, you may need to adjust Row Placement for previously DEPLOYED units as per the rules below.
Deployed Combat Units
Combat Units on either side of your Encounter Zone are DEPLOYED. Think of them as being relocated to the battlefield from your garrison. You may Control any number of Combat Unit cards in your Tableau. However, only DEPLOYED units can participate in a given Battle.
Nemesis are always considered to be DEPLOYED, even when their Boss side is face-down.
Row Placement Rules
The Front Row (A). These 2 slots must be filled first, regardless of Combat Unit Type. All Attacks will target the enemy Front Row, unless otherwise specified.
When DEPLOYING an enemy MIGHT Type unit, it must take the place of any non-Might unit already in the enemy Front Row slot.
Fortification units must be DEPLOYED to the Front Row, ahead of all other units (including other MIGHT Types).
The Back Row (B, C). Units in all Back Rows make Attacks against the enemy Front Row (thematically, they're swiping and shooting over and around each other).
The 2 Back Row slots are functionally equivalent, except that once the Front Row is Defeated, Row B is treated as the next Front Row. Followed by Row C.
War Machine. If you DEPLOY a War Machine, it must be in your Back-most Row, behind all other units.
Row Placement. If the rules above do not specify which Row to DEPLOY a rival unit, Players may decide for themselves. For example, if you had 1 Creature in your Encounter Zone, and you REVEALED a new Creature, you may position either of those units as your Front Row enemy.
Hard Unit Cap
Each side may DEPLOY up to 3 total Combat Units in a single Battle. If a 4th Combat Unit would be added, it is ignored.
Soft Unit Cap
At game start, Human Players may DEPLOY up to one of each kind of unit on their side (for example, 1 Champion, 1 Mercenary, 1 War Machine, 1 Creature, etc.)
During play, you may discover ways to increase the cap for each kind of Unit with special Techs.
Deploy Rules
Champions. The first Champion you Anoint must be DEPLOYED immediately. There is no cost to DEPLOY a Champion, and you may replace a DEPLOYED Champion with another Champion as an Instant ACTION, but only outside of Battle!
Non-Champion Units. Other units have a cost to DEPLOY them. This cost must be Paid before a Battle begins.
Each Decade End, after all Battles are Complete, any DEPLOYED Mercenary/War Machine/Creature Flip and return to your Tableau. You can Pay to re-DEPLOY them at full Health.
Single Combat
Overview
Single Combat is a fight to the death between two rival Players (or teams) to break a tie at the end of a game.
Conditions
Single Combat can trigger if:
- Your Scenario determines winner(s) by LOYALTY value at the end of the Final Decade.
- 2 Players (or Teams) have the same LOYALTY. Note that a tie during the Final Decade is NOT broken by the highest stacker!
- Playing with the Free-For-All option, and 2 or more Players reach the Final Loyalty value.
Demand Satisfaction
At the end of a tie game, one Player (or team) may issue a Single Combat challenge to the other.
For Battle to commence, the challenged Player (or team) must formally accept. Otherwise, the game remains a tie with no winner. Tied Players must confess their cowardice, and attempt to carry on with their lives, honorless and besmirched to the end of their days.
Rules of Engagement
- The side who issued the challenge is Initiating, and the accepting side is Defending.
- Normal Battle rules apply, including use of Items, MANASTONES and Tech cards.
- Tech cards that trigger on CONQUER or SIEGE are not permitted.
- Retreat is not possible.
Victory
The Player or Team behind the victorious Champion are the ultimate winners!
Prepare for Battle!
Clear a single Encounter Zone of all Combat Units.
Duel. Each Player secretly nominates 1 Champion they Control. Both sides DEPLOY their chosen Champion at the same time. Then commence Battle.
Team Duel. Single Combat for Teams works as above, with each Player on the Team nominating 1 Champion to DEPLOY to the ROW of their choice. Allied Champions fight side-by-side.
Nemesis. Nemesis always issue a challenge if they are tied with Human Players at the end of a game. If multiple Nemesis are on a Team, they will nominate 1 Boss with the highest LOYALTY to represent them in Single Combat.
Status Effects
Overview
STATUS EFFECTS are persistent effect tokens Applied to Combat Unit cards. Good effects can be helpful, while Bad effects can hinder or become deadly.
Applying
Whenever an effect instructs you to Apply, gain, suffer, or Inflict a STATUS EFFECT, fetch its token by name from The Empire District, and Place it on the targeted Combat Unit card.
Some sources of STATUS EFFECTS specify a target, like when an Attack adds one as an on-hit effect. Other sources do not specify a target, like Loot or SKILL Checks. In these cases, you may choose any one of your Champion cards upon which to apply the effect.
Status Effect Rules
- If a STATUS EFFECT would be Applied, but no Champion is DEPLOYED, ignore it instead.
- Support Units (Mercenaries/War Machines/Creatures) refuse to gain STATUS EFFECTS outside Battle, even if they are DEPLOYED. They will, however, gain STATUS EFFECTS during Battle as normal.
- If you would Apply a 2nd copy of an identical STATUS EFFECT to the same unit, ignore it instead. POISON is an exception to this rule, and can stack up to 3x.
- Multiple STATUS EFFECTS in a Battle Resolve simultaneously by default. During a conflict, however, Good effects, such as REGEN, will Resolve before Bad effects, such as POISON.
- Units with a Status Resist can't gain Good STATUS EFFECTS, nor suffer from Bad STATUS EFFECTS of that color.
Duration
Each STATUS EFFECT has a set duration, tagged on their token in PINK.
- NEXT — Resolves 1 time if the condition is met, then is Discarded. If Applied outside Battle, it remains until triggered during Battle.
- 1 BATTLE — Remains until the end of 1 BATTLE, then is Discarded. If Applied outside Battle, it remains until the end of next Battle.
- ALWAYS — Remain indefinitely. Can be Cleared & Discarded by the MYSTIC, certain Items, Tactics, or other methods.
Status Effect Glossary
AMNESIA (Champion: can't use Tactics. Non-Champion: treat 5-result as 1. ALWAYS)
This affects Champion and non-Champion units differently.
- When Applied to a Champion: This unit cannot use any of its Tactics Abilities.
- When Applied to a non-Champion: Whenever this unit makes an Attack or Resist roll, if their result is a 5, treat it as a 1 instead.
During a conflict, AMNESIA always triggers before all other STATUS EFFECTS.
REFLECT (Bad Status Effects are ignored, & reflected back to enemy units. 1 BATTLE)
If a bad STATUS EFFECT would be Applied, it is ignored. Additionally, that effect may then be re-targeted onto any enemy Combat Unit of your choice.
Try bouncing effects off your own units to target the enemy Back Row!
CONTROL (Next Attack must target self or ally. NEXT)
A dice based Combat Unit without allies who is suffering from CONTROL will target themselves, meaning they make 2 rolls: an Attack against themselves, followed by an immediate Resist roll vs their own Attack!
A Champion under CONTROL can still decide which Attack to use during their Unit's Initiative, so long as they target themselves or another unit on their side. Champions must still pay Stamina costs for Attacks as normal. But you might be able to use a defensive Tactic (such as Armor Up) in response to your own Attack!
DAZZLED (Champion: suffer +1 from Attacks. Non-Champion: -1 to Resists. ALWAYS)
This affects Champion and non-Champion units differently.
- When Applied to a Champion: Other units who Attack this Champion gain +1 to their Attack roll.
- When Applied to a non-Champion: Whenever a DAZZLED unit rolls a Resist, it suffers -1 to the result.
DISEASED (Champion: -1 max Stamina. Non-Champion: -1 to Attacks. ALWAYS)
This affects Champion and non-Champion units differently.
- When Applied to a Champion: it suffers -1 max Stamina. This does not affect the Stamina they regain per Rd., only the max.
- When Applied to a non-Champion: Whenever this DISEASED unit rolls an Attack, it suffers -1 to the result.
EMPOWER (Each time this unit deals Damage, it adds +1. 1 BATTLE)
For the +1 bonus damage to Apply, the source Ability must have successfully applied 1 or more Damage. Bonus damage is not Applied if the source Ability is prevented. Units with a Status Resist never take Damage from EMPOWER.
The +1 applies to Attacks, Tactics, and Abilities from Attached Equipment.
FADED (Can't be hit until after using an Ability, or after next Rd.)
Once Applied, this unit is effectively invulnerable. They remain FADED until they use an Ability (Attack or Tactic), or until the end of the next round after FADED is Applied, whichever comes first.
If FADED is Applied outside of Battle, it is removed at the end of the first Round of Battle.
FROZEN (Can't act. Skip next Attack. NEXT)
This unit is frozen solid, and can't Attack, Roll Resists, or use Tactics. It stays FROZEN until its next Initiative. After its Initiative is skipped, FROZEN is Discarded. Champions still regain Stamina while FROZEN.
A FROZEN Boss will skip just 1 of its next 2 or 3 Attacks (depending on Difficulty).
HASTE (Initiative +2. 1 BATTLE)
This effect will immediately redetermine Initiative order if it is Applied during Battle.
LUCKY (Champion: may reroll up to 1 roll each Round. Non-Champion: +1 to all rolls. 1 BATTLE)
This affects Champion and non-Champion units differently.
- When Applied to a Champion: You may re-roll an incoming Attack which targets this unit, or a Resist against an Attack made by this unit, once per Round.
- When Applied to a non-Champion: It gains +1 to all of its Attack and Resist rolls.
PACIFIED (Can't Attack. ALWAYS)
Though PACIFIED units in your Encounter Zone can't harm you, they must still be dealt with, either using your CONQUER Action, or by other means. A PACIFIED unit in the Front Row will still absorb Damage before the Back Row.
As long as there are no additional Creatures in your Encounter Zone, you can skip the formality of a Tactical Battle and auto-win your CONQUER.
POISON (Suffer 1 Damage at the end of each Round. ALWAYS)
This Damage is unresisted. This only triggers during the end of a Round, and is skipped if Battle ends before then. Unlike other STATUS EFFECTS, POISON can stack up to 3x on 1 unit (making it particularly effective vs Bosses).
After Battle, POISON will persist. However, it will not apply Damage again until the next Battle.
REGEN (Restore up to +1 at the end of each Round. 1 BATTLE)
This only triggers during the end of a Round, and is immediately Discarded if Battle ends before then. REGEN won't revive Defeated Units. If a Unit suffers sufficient Damage to be Defeated, REGEN is immediately Discarded.
ROOT (Initiative -2. ALWAYS)
This effect will immediately redetermine Initiative order if it is Applied during Battle.
SEARING (Attackers that hit this unit suffer 1 unresisted Damage. 1 BATTLE)
This unit has a burning aura of fire. A single attacker who successfully hits a SEARING Unit will suffer 1 Damage from SEARING. If an attacker targets a SEARING unit & misses, the attacker does not suffer Damage. Units with a Status Resist never take Damage from SEARING.
Multiple attackers can suffer Damage from 1 instance of SEARING during a single Round of Battle. SEARING only triggers on Attacks (not Tactics).
SUBDUED (This unit's Attacks of 2+ deal -1. ALWAYS)
Any Attacks with a damage value of 2 or greater will be reduced by -1. Attacks of 1 Damage are not affected.
TAMED (Creature becomes Player owned after Defeat or Discard. ALWAYS)
This effect does not do anything by itself. You'll need to Defeat or Discard a TAMED Creature so that you can claim it for your Tableau.
A TAMED Creature can be DEPLOYED next Battle on your side, or used in other ways. After Battle, your TAMED Creatures are returned to your Tableau face-down.
TAMED Creatures you Control add +1 UPKEEP burden.
It is possible for a TAMED Creature to also be PACIFIED, such as from the PEACE PIPE Item. In this case, you may still DEPLOY it; however, you will need to find a way to Clear PACIFIED before it can Attack.
WEAK (When hit, suffer up to +1, once per Round. ALWAYS)
A WEAK unit will suffer an additional 1 Damage when successfully hit, up to once per Round. If targeted and missed, they do not suffer Damage.
An effected unit can never take more than 1 additional Damage per Round from WEAK. Damage from WEAK is applied after any Resist Rolls.
Nemesis
Overview
Nemesis are powerful, game-controlled sovereign Players that can be added to your game session during Setup. They may be included to help fill out a table, or serve as unique objectives in and of themselves, such as during a Defeat the Boss Scenario.
You may add 1 or more Nemesis Players to your game, depending on your total Player count and Scenario.
Nemesis Players
- Are represented in game with their own double-wide Player card, and Avatar on the Map.
- Make decisions using die rolls.
- Participate in Battle as special Boss Type units.
- Do not use UPKEEP, Loot, or cards.
- Gain bonus LOYALTY from Dissent Events.
The first Nemesis in your game can default to the yellow color. Any additional Nemesis can be set to any color not already in use.
When setting up Nemesis Avatars, you can mix & match the color of their bases as needed (Nemesis do not need to match the color of their thematic illustrations).
When playing a Scenario with Hidden Teams, Nemesis will remain rivals with every other Player at the table (including other Nemesis), even after being exposed by the Peek mechanic.
A Nemesis will recognize a Player as their Ally only when playing with the Visible Teams option.
Nemesis Setup
Some Scenarios include special Setup instructions for Nemesis Players. Otherwise, use the following standard Setup:
- Place the Nemesis Player card next to the Map, Boss-side down.
- Fetch a MOUNT, and 4 on-color WORKERS matching your chosen Difficulty setting as shown on their card. Keep these close to, or on the card.
- Fetch their on-color Player die, 6 Settlement minis, and stackers. Keep these close to, or on the card.
- Place the following components onto the Nemesis's Starting Hex on the Map:
- On-color Embarkment tile.
- 1 Tier 1 on-color Settlement mini.
- 1 Nemesis Avatar (standee/mini) with on-color base.
- On the Tracker, Place 1 of their stackers on 0 LOYALTY. Then place 3 additional stackers on their fixed SKILL values.
Standard and Hard mode each have different fixed SKILL values.
Difficulty Setting
Each Nemesis has two Difficulty settings: Standard, and Hard.
Standard Difficulty. WORKERS and fixed SKILL values are shown on the card. Standard Nemesis start with the same Tier WORKERS as Human Players, and Place all of their WORKERS at the beginning of each Decade.
All Nemesis start with more overall SKILL than Humans. Though unlike Humans, they cannot change these values during the course of the game.
Hard Difficulty. A Hard Nemesis's WORKERS & MOUNT are all +1 Tier higher, and are Placed in Turn order along with Humans. This means they can Oust & Replace!
Area Effect. Each Nemesis has a unique Area Effect which is Resolved as a SKILL Check vs any Player within 1 Hex. It can inflict a drawback (or occasional benefit) on Players who stray too close. Like all Area Effects, these will trigger during each Decade End step.
| Standard | Hard | |
|---|---|---|
| Workers & Mount | Standard Tier WORKERS + MOUNT | All +1 Tier |
| Worker Placement | Pre-emptive, before all Humans | In Turn Order |
| Can Oust & Replace? | No | Yes |
| Can surprise attack? | No | Yes |
| Bonus Loyalty per Dissent | +1 | +2 |
| Skill Values | Standard | Extra |
| Attacks per Round | 2 Attacks | 3 Attacks |
| Base Health | Standard | Extra |
| RENOWN provided when Defeated | +5 | +7 |
| SIEGE Effect | Destroys a single Tier | Destroys up to two Tiers |
All Nemesis can pose a significant challenge. Even on Standard difficulty, it's usually best to avoid them until you're well prepared. A few victories vs Standard Nemesis before attempting Hard is highly recommended!
Nemesis Placements
During the Placement Step, roll the on-color die on behalf of each Nemesis to determine their Placement for each District. If you're playing with more than 1 Nemesis, they Place their WORKERS in Turn Order (least to highest LOYALTY).
Turn order: Standard Nemesis → Least Loyalty → Most Loyalty.
Place each Nemesis WORKER in the ACTION slot matching their die result. If a resulting ACTION has 2 or more slots, a Nemesis will always try to Occupy the first slot.
If the first slot is already Occupied, a Hard difficulty Nemesis will Oust & Replace the occupying WORKER whenever possible.
Otherwise, Place their WORKER in the next available slot for that ACTION. If no slots are available, roll until they find an empty slot.
Action Resolution for Nemesis
Nemesis will Resolve ACTIONS in Districts 1-3. However, they will not gain any benefits. Instead, they block slots from other Players, and Discard any Assets they would have gained.
Discard all Assets: If any effect in the game would have a Nemesis gain Coins, Resources, Loot, cards, or any other Assets, Nemesis Discard them. For example, if a Nemesis would claim a HIRELING, they Discard the top Mercenary & War Machine cards instead.
When Nemesis SCOUT, BUILD, or PATRON, nothing happens.
Pay all Costs to Human Players: If any effect in the game would have a Nemesis Pay Coins, Resources, Loot, or any other assets to a Human Player, they Pay that cost immediately from The Bank or source District of that asset.
Skill Checks
Nemesis will roll SKILL Checks against Human Players only. They ignore SKILL Checks from Locations and against other Nemesis.
Hidden Roles/Teams
Nemesis receive Hidden Role/Team cards in relevant Scenarios, just like Humans. When they do, tuck their card slightly underneath their Player card, face-down.
In Team games, you can be Allied with a Nemesis. Allied Nemesis will contribute to your victory. However, if Roles are hidden, they won't act like it! They will still Initiate Battle against you, SIEGE your Settlements, and otherwise ignore your shared objective. You cannot direct Nemesis behavior.
Try to find a way to Peek at a Nemesis Player's Role/Team card before acting against them. You wouldn't want to harm a hidden Ally, would you?
Placement Roll (Phase 4)
When you roll for a Nemesis' Phase 4 Placement, Place the die itself directly into the Target Hex slot at the top left-hand corner of The Empire tray.
Then, check the die result against the Navigation Compass at the bottom right corner of the Map. The die position shown is the direction of their Target Hex, relative to their Avatar.
For example, if they roll a certain result, then their Target Hex is due south of their Avatar.
Target Hex
A Nemesis Target Hex is the tile on the Map that they intend to interact with during their Resolution Step. This Target Hex ignores Mountains, just like the Nemesis MOVE Action.
If a Target Hex is off Map, simply reverse the direction. For example, if due south is off the Map, the Target Hex becomes due north instead.
Intended Action Rules
Nemesis Intended ACTION in Phase 4 depends on the state of their Target Hex. Place their NOBLE & MOUNT in ACTION slots as per the following rules.
| If Nemesis Target Hex contains... | Then their Intended Action is... |
|---|---|
| No Settlement | MOVE (+SETTLE) |
| 1 non-Allied Human | MOVE & CONQUER |
| An Allied Settlement | UPGRADE Settlement |
| A non-Allied Settlement (with or without a rival Avatar) | SIEGE |
Nemesis MOVE. When a Nemesis Target Hex contains no Settlement, they will MOVE onto it. If Unexplored, first Discard any Loot from the Target Hex. Then Draw & Place a Location tile. Nemesis ignore Mountains, FOOD costs, and never Roll SKILL Checks at Locations.
Nemesis CONQUER. If an Unsettled Target Hex is ever Occupied by exactly 1 non-Allied Human Avatar, a Nemesis will MOVE to that Hex. Then CONQUER.
If an Unsettled Target Hex is ever Occupied by 2 or more non-Allied Players, Nemesis will MOVE, but not CONQUER (unless 1 Player MOVES off the Location...).
Because MOVE Resolves before CONQUER, a Player can MOVE away first to avoid aggression.
Nemesis SETTLE. After Nemesis resolve their MOVE, they immediately SETTLE their new Hex with a new Tier 1 Settlement. Unlike Human Players, Nemesis do not need to unlock Settlement minis beforehand; they SETTLE automatically after they MOVE.
Nemesis Upgrade Settlement
When a Nemesis UPGRADES a Settlement, they do not Place their MOUNT, and do not MOVE onto that Settlement.
If playing with Visible Roles, Nemesis will upgrade any visibly Allied Player's Settlement.
If a Nemesis rolls the UPGRADE Settlement Action, but their target Settlement is already at Tier 3, or that slot is blocked, they must re-roll until a valid ACTION is rolled.
Nemesis Siege (vs Unoccupied Settlement)
Against an Unoccupied Settlement with no Player Avatar, Standard Nemesis will automatically Destroy 1 Tier of that Settlement. Hard Nemesis will automatically Destroy 2 Tiers.
Nemesis collect any Trophy pieces onto their Player card, and gain +1 LOYALTY per Tier.
If you're next to a Hard Nemesis, be wary of a surprise SIEGE! Unlike Standard Nemesis, Hard Nemesis Place their WORKERS in Turn Order, so you might not know their Target Hex until it's too late!
Nemesis Siege (vs Human)
If the targeted Settlement is Defended by a Human Player Avatar, then Nemesis will Initiate a SIEGE Battle.
During Battle, Nemesis fight to the death unless you have a Fortification and can break their Siege. Otherwise, you may Retreat to a friendly Settlement.
Nemesis vs Nemesis
- Nemesis never engage in tactical Battle against other Nemesis for any reason.
- If 1 Nemesis SIEGEs another, they will Destroy 1 or 2 Tiers of the target Settlement, even if Occupied. Nemesis never DEPLOY Fortifications.
- Multiple Nemesis can Occupy the same Hex without incident.
- Nemesis ignore all Area Effects from other Nemesis, even when their Avatars are within Range.
Priority Override
Nemesis do not always Resolve their Phase 4 ACTION as originally intended.
After they Place their NOBLE & MOUNT in Phase 4, but before Resolution, they must check whether the state of the Map has changed, and Override their Intended ACTION if necessary.
Priority Override makes sure that Nemesis always have a way to Resolve an effective Phase 4 ACTION, despite any sudden changes to the game state.
Override Rules
- During the Resolution Step, Nemesis tries to Resolve their Intended ACTION in Resolution Order.
- When they do, check the flowchart below, and Override if applicable.
- Nemesis NOBLE & MOUNT remain Placed in their Intended ACTION slots, even if they Override.
As Nemesis Resolves their Intended Action...
- 1st check - Vulnerable Human?
- Is there exactly 1 non-Allied Human Player on Nemesis current Hex? → Override to CONQUER (no MOVE).
- Is there exactly 1 non-Allied Human Player on Nemesis Target Hex? → Override to MOVE & CONQUER.
- 2nd check - New Settlement?
- Is there a non-Allied Settlement on Nemesis current Hex? → Override to SIEGE (current Location).
- Is there a non-Allied Settlement on Nemesis Target Hex? → Override to SIEGE (Target Location).
- 3rd check - Empty Hex?
- Is Nemesis Target Hex now empty of non-Allied Human Players & non-Allied Settlements? → Override to MOVE (& SETTLE).
Priority Override Examples
Intended ACTION: MOVE & CONQUER
- A - Cowardly Human! A non-Allied Player MOVES off the Target Hex. → MOVE, SETTLE: Nemesis will MOVE, then Override to SETTLE their new Hex.
- B - Aggressive Human! A non-allied Player MOVES onto the current Hex. → CONQUER: Nemesis will not MOVE, and Override to CONQUER at their current Hex.
Intended ACTION: MOVE (+SETTLE)
- C - Sudden Settlement! A non-allied Player SETTLES the Target Hex. → SIEGE: Nemesis will not Resolve their MOVE. Instead, Nemesis will Override to SIEGE.
- D - Contested Destination! A non-allied Player MOVES onto the Target Hex. → MOVE, CONQUER: Nemesis will proceed with their MOVE, and Override to CONQUER.
Intended ACTION: SIEGE
- E - Distracting Human! A non-allied Player MOVES onto the current Hex. → CONQUER: Nemesis will not SIEGE, and will Override to CONQUER at their current Hex.
- F - Unexpected Destruction! Another Player SIEGES & Destroys the Settlement on the Target Hex. → MOVE & SETTLE: Because the Target Hex no longer has a Settlement, Nemesis will Override to MOVE & SETTLE.
Nemesis Card (Boss Side)
Whenever a Nemesis engages in Battle, Flip their Player card to its Boss side.
Bosses are not CUNNING, MIGHT, nor INTELLECT. Instead, they are their own unique Type: Boss.
Boss Abilities are chosen at random by dice rolls similar to other non-Champion Combat Units.
Difficulty Setting. Some of a Boss's number values are presented using a slash "/". These indicate variable values for Standard / Hard Difficulty.
Attacks per Round. During its Initiative, a Standard Boss rolls 2 Attacks against each participating Human player. A Hard Boss will roll 3 Attacks!
Initiative. Bosses will only Attack during their Initiative. Hard Bosses will Attack earlier than Standard.
Attack Abilities. When a Boss Attacks, roll an on-color die for each Player. The result of each roll targets the Front Row unit of that Player.
Note that Abilities like SPIN target all units in the Encounter Zone of a single Player, not all participating Players.
Resist Abilities. Bosses respond to incoming Attacks with a separate Resist roll for each Attack. Additionally, Bosses always Resist 1 Status color.
Health (Bonus Health not shown). Each Boss has a set Base Health amount, depending on their Difficulty. Additionally, all Bosses gain +1 Bonus Health per LOYALTY. If a Nemesis is ever outnumbered by allied Human Players, this bonus scales for each additional Player.
- Example A: Free-For-All — Each Player is on their own, so the Boss gains their Bonus Health only x1.
- Example B: 2v1 (Solo) — Facing a single Player, each Boss only gains their Bonus Health x1.
- Example C: 2v1 (Comp-Stomp) — The Nemesis is outnumbered by 2 Players, so the Boss scales their Bonus Health x2.
- Example D: 2v2, Loyalty of The People — A lone Nemesis is playing against 2 enemy Players. However, because the Nemesis has an allied Player, they are not outnumbered. Therefore, the Boss only gains their Bonus Health x1.
- Example E: 4v1 Cooperative Adventure — 4 Players outnumber the lone Nemesis, so the Boss will scale their Bonus Health x4. However, if a Player joins the Boss in Battle as IMPOSTER, then the Boss only scales Bonus Health x3.
Final Battle
Some Scenarios end in an epic Final Battle. These allow each Allied Player to fight side by side as a group to achieve a shared victory, regardless of their current positions on the Map.
A non-"Final" Battle against a Nemesis will not typically end the game, but will still fight as their Boss side, regardless of Scenario.
Initiating Battle vs a Nemesis
Whenever a Nemesis Occupies the same Hex as a non-allied Human, that Nemesis will Priority Override their Action to CONQUER, to Initiate Battle against that Player.
Human Players may trigger a Battle against Nemesis intentionally, by MOVING onto a Hex with a Nemesis Avatar; this will cause the Nemesis to Override their Intended ACTION to a CONQUER Action.
If you cannot DEPLOY any Combat Units, Nemesis will auto-win the Battle.
Boss Row Placement
A Boss is always considered to be DEPLOYED in the enemy Front Row position of each enemy Player's Encounter Zone (even if multiple Players are participating in Battle against the Boss).
If you have pre-existing Creatures in your Encounter Zone, set them aside during a Boss Battle.
If you're Battling a Boss alone, you may put their physical card in your Encounter Zone. Otherwise, keep it near the center play area, so everyone can read it.
Defeated by a Nemesis Boss
If you Retreat from, or are Defeated by a Nemesis, you must immediately Relocate your Avatar to a Friendly Settlement of your choice. (Retreat or Defeat VS Wild Creatures does not require you to do this.)
Defeating a Nemesis Boss
Defeating a Boss is no small feat. If you manage to do so, congratulations! You gain RENOWN (+5, or +7 for Hard) & may immediately Peek at the Nemesis's Hidden Role/Team card, if they have one.
Then you must make a choice:
Show Mercy
- Relocate the Nemesis' Avatar to any Settlement they Control. Clear any STATUS EFFECTS & Restore them to full Health.
- They continue gameplay as normal.
If you discover the Nemesis you just Defeated was a secret Ally, this is probably a good choice!
OR
Execute Them
- Lay their Avatar to rest permanently on top of their Player card.
- Discard all their Settlements from the Map. Their LOYALTY & SKILL stackers are ignored.
- The total number of Players is reduced by -1.
- Allies of an Executed Nemesis will score their LOYALTY alone at end game, and may still win alone.
- If an Executed Nemesis was your last remaining rival, then congratulations, you win!
Skill Checks
Overview
Many effects in Ascendancy test your CUNNING, MIGHT or INTELLECT for a chance at Rewards.
SKILL checks can be found at the top of every Location tile, where you can ADVENTURE to attempt them alone.
Non-Location SKILL checks may pit you against rival or Allied Players in a Contest, where only one Player can succeed.
How to Resolve a Skill Check
- Note the Type of Check you are attempting. Each Check will test your CUNNING, MIGHT, or INTELLECT.
- Roll your Player die.
- Add the roll value to your current SKILL value on the Tracker. The sum is your Result.
- Compare your Result against the possible outcomes, as described on the SKILL Check.
- All SKILL Check thresholds are "equal to or greater than". If you meet or exceed the required values, gain the benefits immediately.
You can attempt a SKILL check on the same Location anytime you ADVENTURE on that Location, even if you have succeeded there before.
Skill Check Contests
Rolls against other Players work similarly, but instead of qualifying for a benefit, there is a winner and a loser. To make a contest SKILL Check, each Player rolls, then compare each Result. The Player with the higher number wins the contest.
There are no SKILL Check ties. If there would be a tie, the player with the highest stacker wins.
Modifying the Result
For a last minute win, you can SPEND a SKILL Resource, use an Item, or other Instant ACTION to increase your SKILL anytime during a SKILL Check, even after you see the Resulting rolls.
Skill Perks
Overview
As you increase your SKILL throughout the game, you may gain Perks to support your strategy.
Each Perk requires you to meet or exceed a specific SKILL value. Once you do, you gain the benefits of that Perk.
All SKILL Perks are cumulative with each other. You can benefit from any and all of them, so long as you have the required SKILL.
Perks with a Decade Icon Resolve once each Decade during the Decade End Step. All other Perks (without a Decade icon) are accounted in real-time as passive effects.
Single-Skill Perks
The following Perks require that you meet or exceed specific values for 1 SKILL.
CUNNING Perks
- PLOT (Cunning 4+, Decade) — Once per Decade during the Decade End step, you may look at the upcoming Event card. Then you may leave it as-is, or Discard it to the bottom of the stack.
- MANEUVER (Cunning 5) — You enjoy a Discount when you MOVE across Food on the Map. This can stack with other Discounts.
MIGHT Perks
- RECOVERY (Might 4+, Decade) — Once per Decade during the Decade End step, you may Restore up to 1 Health to each wounded Champion you Control.
- REINFORCE (Might 5) — You enjoy a Discount on ORE costs. This can stack with other Discounts, such as from the first-slot bonus for BUILD Actions.
INTELLECT Perks
- IDENTIFY (Intellect 4+, Decade) — Once per Decade during the Decade End step, you may Identify 1 Loot you Control of any Tier.
- ENLIGHTEN (Intellect 5) — Each KNOWLEDGE you have INVESTED in your Tech Tree provides -1 UPKEEP. This reduction stacks with any -1 bonuses from individual Tech cards.
Dual-Skill Perks
The following Perks require that you meet or exceed specific SKILL values for two different SKILLS at the same time.
MIGHT & INTELLECT Perks
- METALWORK (Might & Intellect 2+, Decade) — Once per Decade during the Decade End step, you may Discard up to 1 Metal Scrap. If you do, claim 1 ORE from the Discard.
- FAITH (Might & Intellect 3+) — Gain +1 LOYALTY for every 1 MANASTONE you Control.
- HEROISM (Might & Intellect 4+) — Gain +9 RENOWN. (One time only.)
INTELLECT & CUNNING Perks
- GLASSWORK (Intellect & Cunning 2+, Decade) — Once per Decade during the Decade End step, you may Discard up to 1 Glass Scrap. If you do, gain 2 Coins.
- ELOQUENCE (Intellect & Cunning 3+) — Gain +1 LOYALTY for every 1 INFLUENCE you have INVESTED in your Tech Tree.
- ELITISM (Intellect & Cunning 4+) — All WORKERS you Control may act as LORDS for all purposes.
CUNNING & MIGHT Perks
- FIBREWORK (Cunning & Might 2+, Decade) — Once per Decade during the Decade End step, you may Discard up to 1 Fibre Scrap. If you do, claim 1 FOOD from the Discard.
- LEADERSHIP (Cunning & Might 3+) — Gain +1 LOYALTY for every 1 Hireling you Control (Mercenary/War Machine). (TAMED Creatures are not Hirelings.)
- POPULISM (Cunning & Might 4+) — Your UPKEEP equals zero for the purpose of calculating Income during Decade End. Continue to track your UPKEEP as normal.
The Tech Tree
Overview
These sprawling branches provide access to the various techniques and technologies that your House can master. It is brimming with combos, synergies, and potential pathways to victory.
Each time you BUILD or Ascend your Empire, you will "Tech up", uncovering 1 more row of 3 colored slots.
The decisions you make here are permanent for each game session, but will reset at the start of each new game. Try experimenting with different builds each time you play!
Tech Rows
Each slot of a given row is only available to INVEST in after it is uncovered. To access a first row of Tech options, you must first ascend one of your Buildings (or Empire) to Tier 2. To access a second row, you must ascend it to Tier 3, and so on.
Prerequisites
All Tier 1 slots are available to INVEST in as soon as they are uncovered. Some Tier 2 and Tier 3 slots, however, show a glowing prerequisite arrow, indicating that you must first have INVESTED in the previous Tier before you can use that higher Tier slot.
Purple Slots
Gain new WORKERS / Ascend existing WORKERS.
- Gain +1 WORKER (+1 UPKEEP) — Fetch a new WORKER from your Storage tray, and add it to a Home slot on your House Board. It may be used this Decade, depending on the current Phase and Tier of your new WORKER. If WORKERS are ever Sacrificed, the +1 UPKEEP will remain.
- Ascend WORKER — Swap your existing WORKER with a new, higher Tier WORKER from your personal Storage tray. If your Ascending WORKER was already Placed in an ACTION slot, it remains there until Decade End. Some of these will also provide you with +1 LOYALTY.
- DEPLOY +1 Champion — The max number of Champions you may concurrently DEPLOY is increased by +1.
Green Slots
Anoint new Champions / Ascend existing Champions.
-
Anoint Champion (+1 UPKEEP) — Fetch this Champion card by name from The Empire tray, and add it to your Tableau. Note that the first Champion you Anoint must immediately DEPLOY to your Encounter Zone.
-
Anoint Foreign Champion — Fetch a Champion by name from its tray. That Champion must live in a Location you either Control or currently Occupy. Unlike other Anoint slots, Foreign Champions do not add +1 UPKEEP burden.
Foreign Champions do not need to be in your House color, and do not require specific Buildings. There is only 1 Foreign Champion slot, so you may only Anoint 1 per game.
There is only 1 physical card for each Champion. If a Player Anoints a specific Champion, whether or not it is Foreign to them, no other Players may Anoint the same Champion. You snooze, you lose!
-
Ascend Champion (+1 UPKEEP) — Flip this Champion card to its Tier 2 side. If they have any Damage or STATUS EFFECTS on them, those will remain.
Blue Slots
Unlock new abilities in the form of Tech cards.
- Tech Cards: Tier 1-3 — Pick 1 Tech card in the stack matching Tier of the BLUE slot, & add it to your Tableau.
- Tech Card + 1-time Bonus — Same as above, plus extra benefit. For example: deal Damage Unresisted to any Creature.
Tech Card Anatomy
Type and Tier. Each Tech card has a Type and a Tier. When you INVEST you may pick 1 Tech in the stack of that Type & Tier to add to your Tableau.
Note that your Tech card Tier must match your Tech slot Tier. i.e. You cannot gain a Tier 2 Tech card from a Tier 1 Tech slot.
Bonus Effect. In addition to their unique effects, Tech cards often provide a passive bonus of -1 UPKEEP, +x LOYALTY, or a permanent +1 SKILL increase. When you add a Tech to your Tableau, you gain these benefits immediately.
Passive Enhancements
These effects work in the background, providing you bonuses, augmenting your existing ACTIONS, or allowing you to do things that you normally can't.
Passive Enhancements only affect the Player who Controls them, or other Players specified on the card.
For example, BEAST MASTER grants House Valiss a special Discount & DEPLOY benefit. Other Houses do not have this available.
Passive Techs have no extra cost to use.
New WORKERS gained from Tech cards do not add to your UPKEEP burden.
Instants
Instant Techs may be ACTIONS, Manaspells, or SKILL Checks. Once unlocked, you can use them anytime during your Turn. Unlike Passive Techs, Instants have a requirement to use, printed on the upper right-hand of the card:
- ACTION — A WORKER must be Placed on these cards to Resolve their effects.
- ACTIVATE — A MANASTONE must be Activated to Resolve these effects.
- COST — An Asset must be Discarded to Resolve these effects.
- EXHAUST — An Asset must be Exhausted until next Decade to Resolve these effects.
Equipment
You can ATTACH these to a Champion as an Instant ACTION outside of Battle by sliding them 2/3 of the way underneath the Champion card.
A given Champion can ATTACH up to 1 Equipment at a time. You may re-ATTACH Equipment to different Champions you Control as per the above rules.
Each Equipment provides 2 new Abilities for them to use in Battle: 1 Attack (usable only during their Initiative), and 1 Tactic which they can use anytime.
Equipment Abilities may have a Stamina cost, Damage and bonus effects, just like regular Abilities.
While ATTACHED, most Equipment also provides +1 to a specific SKILL, as shown in the top righthand corner of the card. If Unequipped, this bonus is lost.
The Map & Locations
Overview
The Map has a side A (brown) & side B (color), which represent the realm of Ascendancy during different generations. Depending on your Scenario, the Map begins with a number of starting Embarkment tiles, pre-Placed Locations and Loot tokens.
As Players progress and explore, new Locations are Placed into empty Hexes, and the Map evolves into a unique layout for the age. Each game should be considered a truthful historic record, amid infinitely recursive timelines.
Avatars
Each Player Controls 1 Avatar (standee or sculpted mini), which represents the current focus area for that Player.
Players change their focus by MOVING their Avatars to different Hexes, where they can claim Loot, Place Locations, attempt SKILL Checks, establish Settlements, and more.
Hexes
Each empty Hex on the Map represents a vast unexplored land.
- Only 1 Location tile & up to 1 Settlement can be established per Hex.
- Any number of Player Avatars may Occupy the same Hex at the same time.
- Avatars may Occupy Hexes without a Location (although this is rare).
Starting Hexes
During General Setup, each Player selects a Starting Hex from among the 4 corners.
Some scenarios will specify that Nemesis use the center of the Map as their Starting Hex. Humans can't use the center as a Starting Location unless specifically mentioned.
- Human Players may select the Starting Hex closest to them.
- If your game has more than 1 Nemesis, their Starting Hexes should be as far apart as possible.
- If the above rules result in a conflict for your seating or game mode, you may simply choose Starting Hexes that work best for your table.
Map Anatomy
MOVE costs. Hexes with a FOOD icon between them are considered Connected. You must Pay 1 FOOD to MOVE across them.
Mountains. Hexes with a long mountain icon between them are not Connected. You cannot MOVE across Mountains without a special effect.
Mountain Pass. Hexes with a Mountain & arrow icon between them are not Connected. However, you can MOVE through a Mountain Pass in one direction only, for no FOOD cost.
All Mountains block Adjacency Modifiers & Area Effects, regardless of whether or not they contain a Mountain Pass.
Location Stack. Any time an effect has you Draw a new Location tile such as the MOVE or SCOUT Actions, you Draw them from here.
Location Discard. Any time you Discard a Location tile they go here face-down. Once the Location Stack is empty, shuffle the Discard pile and recycle them back to the Location Stack.
Empty Hex. Empty Hexes may still be Occupied, even if no Location is Placed onto them.
Nemesis Navigation. This compass is used to determine Nemesis Target Hex during the Empire Phase.
Loot (and other goodies) on the Map. Hexes can contain any number of Loot (or other goodies). Any time a Human Player Occupies a Hex that contains any, they may claim them. Nemesis Discard them.
Location Anatomy
Location Name. During Fully-Cooperative Scenarios, Locations with a Point of Interest icon offer special ADVENTURE options.
SKILL Check Type. When you ADVENTURE on a Location, you may attempt a SKILL Check of this Type.
SKILL Check Outcome. If your check result meets this threshold, gain this benefit immediately. Note that an "&" indicates that the second benefit is gained in addition to the first.
Control Benefits
Players Control Locations by SETTLING them with a Tier 1 Settlement mini. Each Location you Control grants the following:
Base Loyalty Value. If you Control this Location you gain LOYALTY in the amount shown here, depending on Settlement Tier. In this example, SKYWATCH provides 6 LOYALTY total when a Tier 3 Settlement is Placed onto it. (Prior values are not summed together.)
Loyalty Modifiers. Locations can lose or gain LOYALTY depending on the color of any Connected tiles. Loyalty modifiers are blocked by Mountains (and Mountain Passes).
For example, SKYWATCH suffers a -1 penalty for each Connected PURPLE tile, and gains a +1 bonus for each Connected BLUE tile.
A YELLOW "Any Color" modifier means they can gain up to +4 bonus LOYALTY!
Foreign Champion. Each Location is home to a different Champion. As long as you Control or currently Occupy a Location, you may Anoint this Champion using the Foreign Champion slot in the 4th column of your House Board, regardless of your House.
Area Effects
Overview
Area Effects are special abilities that relate to the Map, and trigger once each Decade during the Decade End Step. Players can have any number of Area Effects, and Resolve them in any order at Decade End.
Human Area Effects
These are unlocked when you INVEST in BLUE Tech slots in the Empire branch of your House Board.
Human Area Effects usually trigger from Settlements, and a single Settlement may trigger multiple Area Effects.
Nemesis Area Effects
Each Nemesis character projects their own unique Area Effect. These are always SKILL Check contests, where they roll vs their affected target: on victory, target gains the check-mark benefit. On loss, target suffers the X penalty.
Unlike Humans, Nemesis start the game with an Area Effect, and it triggers from their Avatar against any rivals within 1 Hex, irrespective of Settlements.
- Nemesis Area Effects do not affect other Nemesis, only rival Humans.
- Nemesis Area Effects trigger during the End Step of each affected Human.
Range
Range is a distance across a number of Map Hexes. This distance always respects Connected tiles, unless otherwise specified.
Area Effects from Settlements have a Range equal to their Tier.
| Settlement Tier | Range |
|---|---|
| Tier 1 | 1 Hex |
| Tier 2 | 2 Hexes |
| Tier 3 | 3 Hexes |
For example, 2 Hexes with a FOOD cost between them are considered to be within 1 Hex of each other, i.e. Connected. Hexes with Mountains between them are not Connected, nor considered within Range.
Legacy Reward Cards
Overview
Unlocking Legacy Reward cards provides meta progression across multiple game sessions. Each card becomes a permanent addition to the Tech options available to your House.
While you start each new game session with an undeveloped House Board, you may unlock any family heirlooms and personality quirks inherited from your prior victories.
Legacy Cards unlock new game content as you and any friends win Scenarios.
If you prefer not to use them, you can simply play any Scenario you wish. However, these games will be forbidden from inclusion in the Ancestral Ledger (achievements) & future surprises.
How to Acquire Legacy Rewards
As part of General Setup, each game of Ascendancy includes 4 Legacy cards in a pool of possible Rewards for victory. (Certain Scenario options may add to this pool.)
If there are 1 or more victorious Human Players at the end of a game, each winner may choose 1 Legacy Reward card (always side A) from the pool to permanently add to their House Board.
Keep any Legacy Cards stored in your House Board, until your next session.
Playing With, & Planting in Your Tech Tree
When starting a game with a new Legacy card, it lives in your Tableau on its Incomplete side A.
During the course of your game, if you accomplish its objective, permanently Flip it to side B. Once Flipped, you gain its benefits immediately and for the remainder of your current game.
At game end, add your now Flipped Legacy card to its respective Estate stack. For all future games, you can unlock that card as a Legacy Tech, by INVESTING 1 Resource in a BLUE slot of matching Type and Tier, just like other Techs.
If you do not Flip a Legacy card before the end of a game, you do not add it to its Estate stack. Instead, it rejoins your Tableau at the start of your next game, for another chance to Flip.
Legacy Crafting
Blueprints & Inscriptions feature a lite crafting mechanic, making use of Item Scraps.
Discard the required Scrap for your blueprint to Craft it. These bespoke pieces can be ATTACHED now, and in any future games by your next of kin.
For example, an ARMOR Blueprint requires you to Discard 2x Metal Scrap. Once you do, Flip it to permanently become CRYSANIA'S HEART.
Legacy Traits: Vices & Virtues
Traits start out as Vices, giving you a drawback until you overcome them, and they Flip into Virtues.
For example, if you inherit THE DRUNK Vice, you'll suffer AMNESIA any time you visit the INNKEEPER.
However, if you achieve 5 LOYALTY, you can Flip the card to permanently Ascend as THE HABITUATED, which lets you PATRON The INNKEEPER during any Phase. When you do, you may both feed your MOUNT and Restore Health to your Champion.
Legacy Scenarios
These rarest Reward cards unlock new playable Scenarios for yourself and all of your friends.
As soon as 1 Player inherits a Legacy Scenario card, all other Players of that gaming group may participate in that Scenario, at any time. After completing the objective, only the Player with the card itself may use it as a Legacy Heirloom.
Rules Disputes
Resolving Contradictions
During the course of a game, certain ACTIONS, STATUS EFFECTS, Abilities, instructions, or combinations of any such, may contradict each other.
Sometimes this is intentional. Many effects supersede the rules and allow Players to do things that they normally cannot.
For example, the FRONTIER MASTERS tech card grants additional abilities to your OUTCASTS at The Frontier District, allowing you to ignore Events which would otherwise affect you at The Frontier, & may Subvert Events.
Other conflicts may not be so intentional. Because the game has hundreds of cards and unique effects, the possible combinations are extensive, to say the least.
Anytime you find a conflict that this Reference Guide cannot solve, you should resolve it in favor of Human Players over game-controlled Creatures or Nemesis.
If you're still stuck, remember that THE CROWN always has the final say during any rules disputes. This power is intended to help move things along, and should not be gamified or abused.
Remember, it is usually wise to favor your friends!
Keyword Glossary
Ability. Includes Attacks, Resists, & Tactics, that Combat Units can use during Battle.
Action. Includes District & Instant ACTIONS available to all Players, as well as any other ACTIONS granted by Tech cards or other sources.
Activate. MANASTONES are Activated by moving them from the Charged slot to the Depleted slot in your House Board.
Agenda. Side B of some Scenario cards shows your personal backstory, and objectives for winning the Scenario.
Ally. Combat Units DEPLOYED on your side in your Encounter Zone are Allied units.
In a Team game, a Human or Nemesis Player on the same Team as you, or with a collaborative objective, is your Ally.
Allies can be hidden or visible, as per setup. Note that Nemesis will only treat other Players as Allies when Teams are visible. If Teams are hidden, then Nemesis will SIEGE and Battle against their Allies, even if you Peek at their Team card.
Anoint. Gain permanent Control of a Champion card, typically by Investing FOOD in your Tech Tree, and fetching them by name.
Armor. 1 Armor prevents up to 1 incoming Damage during a given Round. Units gain Armor from Resist rolls or Tactics like ARMOR UP.
Effects that grant Armor, like Equipment, cannot be combined with other Armor.
INTELLECT unit Attacks can ignore Armor.
Ascend. Upgrade an Asset by +1 Tier. You can Ascend WORKERS, Champions, Buildings, Settlements, and more.
ASCEND is also the Instant ACTION to upgrade your Empire.
Asset. Any Player-Controlled game component. Assets include: Resources, Coin, Combat Unit cards, Settlements, Buildings, WORKERS, Loot, Items, Quests, Tech cards, and anything else that can be gained, claimed, Traded, or Discarded.
Avatar. A Standee or Mini on the Map, representing a Player's current position in the game world.
Boss. Side B of a Nemesis Player card, used for Battle.
Capture. When you Capture an Asset from another Player, you take it and add it to your Tableau.
You Control any Asset you have Captured until their original Controller pays their Ransom. However, you may not Place Captured WORKERS, nor DEPLOY Captured Combat Units yourself.
Card. A specific category of Asset. Cards include: Items, Scraps, Combat Units, Buildings, Tech cards, Empire cards, Quests, & Events.
Claim. Whenever you claim an Asset, take it and add it to your Tableau. You must claim Assets from their source District tray unless otherwise noted.
Loot is claimed from the Map when you MOVE.
When you claim a Resource from The Supply, always claim from the top-most available Stock unless otherwise noted.
Clear. Remove a STATUS EFFECT from a Combat Unit and return it to the tray.
Combat Unit. Any card that can be DEPLOYED to an Encounter Zone to participate in Battle.
Commoner. Any WORKER that is not a NOBLE. This includes: Tier 1 OUTCAST, Tier 2 LABORER, & Tier 3 LOYALIST.
Connected. Hexes on the Map with a FOOD cost printed between them are Connected, and considered to be within 1 Hex of each other.
Human Players may MOVE between Connected tiles by Paying 1 FOOD each. Nemesis ignore all FOOD costs when they MOVE.
LOYALTY Modifiers for Settlements only apply to Connected tiles.
Control. The ownership status of any Asset. You Control Assets in your Tableau, as well as any Location on the Map you have SETTLED with a Settlement.
You do not Control enemy Creatures in your Encounter Zone.
CONTROL is also the name of a STATUS EFFECT.
Decade. 1 full game Round.
Depleted. MANASTONES that have been used this Decade.
Destroy. Remove a Settlement mini from the Map.
Destroyed Settlements are claimed as Trophies by the Player who Destroyed them.
Discard. Dispose of an Asset.
Discarded Resources are Placed into the Discard of The Supply.
Discarded Location tiles are Placed into the Discard of the Map.
Discarded cards go to the bottom of their respective stacks.
Draw. Take the top-most card from its storage section, and add it to your Tableau.
Encounter Zone. Space at the top of each House Board where Battles take place.
Enemy. Combat Units DEPLOYED against you in your Encounter Zone are enemy units.
In a Team game, any Player on the opposite Team is your Enemy.
Exhausted. Exhausted WORKERS cannot be Placed or Resolve ACTIONS this Decade, and should be laid flat on their Home slot.
Exhausted Combat Units cannot Battle, and can be Placed sideways in your Tableau as a reminder. Units can Battle more than once in a single Decade before they become Exhausted.
Fetch. Take a specific card from a stack. When you Fetch, you may look through an entire stack of cards to take the one you want.
Friendly. This catch-all term refers to anything that is not hostile towards you. Settlements you Control are always friendly. In a Team game, this extends to Allied Settlements.
Outside of Team games, other Players who grant you permission to visit their Settlements are friendly.
Nemesis can only be friendly in games when Roles are not hidden.
Generation. Each game session that you play is considered to be a new Generation of your House.
Hex. 1 individual space on the Map. A given Hex may contain up to 1 Location tile, and 1 Settlement. A Hex may contain any number of Loot tokens. Any number of Avatars may Occupy the same Hex simultaneously.
Hireling. This single ACTION slot includes both Mercenaries and War Machines.
Hit. Effects that trigger "on hit" trigger if an Ability successfully connects. You do not need to deal any Damage to "hit". You just need to not miss, & not be eluded.
House. An ancestral bloodline, spanning many Generations. Each House may be led by 1 Human Player, with assistance from up to 3 royal family members, who are available as unlockable Champions at the bottom of each House Board.
House Board. Player-controlled tray representing your royal family, personal Estate, and Tableau of Assets.
Identify. Flip a Loot token to gain its benefits immediately. Identified Loot remains in your Tableau.
Many District ACTIONS allow you to Identify as a bonus for being Placed in their first slot.
Players with high INTELLECT can Identify for free at each Decade End using the Identify SKILL Perk.
Income. Coin gained during the Decade End Step based on LOYALTY and UPKEEP.
Initiative. A value that determines the order in which Combat Units can Attack during Battle.
Inflict. Apply a bad Status. Abilities that deal Damage and Inflict Status always deal Damage first.
Abilities do not need to deal Damage to Inflict. e.g., if an Attack would deal 1 Damage & Inflict a Status, but that Damage is mitigated, such as by Armor, then the target still suffers the Status.
Instant. Anything that can be Resolved during your Turn. Instants can include ACTIONS, Manaspells, and SKILL Checks.
Interrupt & Prevent. An effect that stops another effect from Resolving. Prevented effects do not gain benefits, but Players still lose any cost they Paid trying to Resolve them.
Invest. Permanent Placement of Resources or Coins in a specific place.
Location. A tile that can be Placed into a Hex on the Map. Locations can be Controlled by Players with Settlements for various benefits, including LOYALTY.
Loot. A token that provides a 1-time benefit after being Identified.
Loyalty. This score represents the overall amount of love, fear, and respect each Player has earned among the unwashed masses of Ascendancy.
"may". Anywhere you see the word may, it means optional. You may choose to ignore, or not Resolve "may" effects.
Mount. These special meeples are required to MOVE. They are Placed in ACTION slots like WORKERS, though they do not count as WORKERS for effects that allow the use of "any WORKER", unless that effect specifies MOUNTS.
Mountains. Hexes on the Map with Mountains printed between them are not Connected, and not considered to be within 1 Hex. LOYALTY modifiers are always blocked by Mountains.
Players cannot MOVE across Mountains unless specified by a special effect.
Mountain Pass. All of the above rules about Mountains apply here, except that Players can MOVE through Mountain Passes for no FOOD cost in one direction only.
Munitions. A Tracker found on War Machines, indicating their remaining number of Attacks for a given Battle.
"must". Anywhere you see the word must, it means required. You cannot choose to ignore a must effect, and you cannot gain benefits unless you do what it says you must.
Noble. Any WORKER that is not a COMMONER. i.e., Tier 4 LORD/LADY or Tier 5 ROYAL ADVISOR.
Occupied. A Hex or Location with a Player Avatar currently Placed on it.
Oust & Replace. Remove a rival WORKER from an ACTION slot and replace it with your own WORKER.
Overkill. Any Damage dealt to a unit beyond its current Health is Overkill.
Pay. Satisfy a required cost by Discarding it from your Tableau. Effects that require you to Pay cannot be ignored. If you can't Pay for an ACTION, you skip Resolving it.
Peek. Pick up and look at the hidden side of a card or token. Can be used to look at an upcoming Event, a Player's Hidden Role, or other face-down Asset. When you Peek at Loot, do not claim the benefit.
Pinpoint. Combat Abilities with Pinpoint can target a specific unit in a Battle, not just the Front Row. Once Pinpointed, cannot be redirected.
Human Controlled units can Pinpoint any target in any Row. Wild Creatures and Nemesis will always Pinpoint their preferred target when there is one. Otherwise, they default to the enemy Front Row.
Place. Physically move a game component to a specific destination.
Quest Location. Scenario-specific Map tiles that can modify the game state when visited.
Each Quest Location is different, depending on your Scenario.
Range. Distance between Hexes on the Map. Range always respects Connected Hexes unless otherwise specified.
Ransom. Whenever an Asset is Captured, you can Pay the specified Ransom cost to get it back.
Ransom costs are Paid to the capturer directly.
Recharge. Move a MANASTONE in your Manabank from Depleted to Charged.
Reflect. Incoming STATUS EFFECT is prevented. Instead of Applying to the target, the target Applies it to an enemy.
Refresh. Move the top card of a stack to the bottom of the same stack.
THE CROWN may Refresh any card stacks of their choice during the Decade End step.
Relocate. Move a Player's Avatar to a new Location on the Map. Relocate Respects Connected Hexes unless otherwise noted. Relocated Avatars will claim/Discard any Loot.
You do not require permission to Relocate Avatars onto enemy Settlements.
Resist. Combat effects which can mitigate Damage or ignore STATUS EFFECTS.
Dice based units roll Resists in response to Attacks. A high roll will mitigate incoming Damage.
Each Nemesis Boss & Tier 2 unit will Resist 1 Status color inherently. Fortifications will Resist PURPLE.
Resolution. The gameplay Step where all players execute their chosen ACTIONS simultaneously.
Resolve. The act of officially "doing" any effect in the game. Players should always announce their intentions as they Resolve effects.
Resource. A colored cube Asset. Resources include: FOOD, ORE, SKILL, KNOWLEDGE, MANASTONES, and INFLUENCE. All Resources share the same Discard in The Supply.
Restore. The removal of red damage counters from a Combat Unit card.
A unit can never Restore more than its max Health.
Rival. A Player on an opposing or unknown Team. A Rival may also be your Hidden Ally. Find a way to Peek at your Rivals before doing anything drastic!
Row. Your Encounter Zone specifies Front and Back Rows slots.
Stock at The Supply also uses Rows.
Scenario. A specific game session with its own story, set of objectives, and Player Roles/Teams.
Settlement. A stacking miniature consisting of a color Tier 1 base piece, an optional Tier 2 Wall, and optional Tier 3 Tower.
Shapeshift. Place a Creature on top of another unit. It uses the Creature's Abilities in Battle. Only the base unit is counted for the Soft Unit DEPLOYMENT Cap.
Otherwise, it retains its original characteristics, Damage, Status, etc. (e.g., a shifted Champion unit has no DEPLOY cost, and needs to be Restored to heal.)
Stamina. Champions spend Stamina to use their Abilities in Battle.
Steal. Take an Asset and add it to your Tableau. If an effect does not specify where to Steal from, then you may Steal from anywhere, including Districts or Players. A Player cannot SPEND to avoid being stolen from.
Subvert. Ignore the effect of an Established Event. Tech cards that allow WORKERS to Subvert Events only ignore the Event in that WORKER's District, and cannot avoid Sacrifice.
Suffer. Any negative effect on a Player, Combat Unit, or other asset.
If Damage or Status is "suffered", then it cannot be Resisted.
Swap. Exchange Control or Placement of Assets. When you Swap Combat Units, those units keep any Damage or STATUS EFFECTS.
Tableau. Your personal collection of Assets, in and around your House Board.
Target. The selected beneficiary (or sufferer) of a given ACTION or Ability.
Target Hex. The selected Map Hex where a Player intends to interact. Nemesis use the Compass printed on the Map to determine their Target Hex.
Team. Side B of some Scenario cards. Determines which Players are your Allies/Enemies.
The Bank. The storage tray at The Supply District for Coins. Anytime an effect gains or Discards Coins, it goes to/from The Bank unless otherwise specified.
The Crown. A title bestowed upon the Player with the highest LOYALTY score during each Decade End Step.
Tier. The relative power level of a given WORKER, Building, Loot token, Combat Unit, or other Asset.
Token. Tokens include: Loot & STATUS EFFECTS. Tokens are not cards.
Trophy. An Asset collected by a Player that grants an effect (usually bonus LOYALTY).
Settlement minis are claimed as Trophies when Destroyed.
Turn & Turn Order. The gameplay Step during which you may Place 1 WORKER, and perform an unlimited number of Instant ACTIONS.
Turn Order determines when each player gets to Place their Workers on a District ACTION slot.
Unit. Shorthand for "Combat Unit".
Unoccupied. A Hex or Location with no Player Avatar currently Placed on it.
Unresisted. Refers to an Attack or Ability that does not trigger a Resist roll. Unresisted Damage cannot be mitigated or avoided, and is guaranteed to hit for its full amount.
All Attacks and Abilities may be Resisted unless specified as "Unresisted".
Upkeep. This score represents your financial burden, and serves as an efficiency check against the Income you might gain from LOYALTY.
Wild. Enemy Creatures. Wild Creatures may be DEPLOYED into your Encounter Zone on the enemy side. You do not Control them.
Worker. OUTCASTS, LABORERS, LOYALISTS, LORDS/LADIES, and ROYAL ADVISORS.
MOUNTS are not WORKERS, though they are used similarly.
Each Tier of WORKER is progressively more versatile and powerful.
No more than 2 of each Tier of WORKER can be Controlled at a time. If an effect would provide a 3rd WORKER of the same Tier, it is ignored.
House Buildings / Patron Actions
Phase 1 Buildings - Cunning
STABLES — Pay 1 FOOD: Ascend your MOUNT +1 Tier.
Upgrading your MOUNT early can save you a lot of FOOD over the course of a long game with many MOVE Actions.
If you ever intend to Pay 1 or more FOOD to MOVE during a given Decade, consider a play for the STABLES instead, to gain an ongoing discount.
SKY OBSERVATORY — You may Identify (but do not claim) up to 2 Loot on the Map. Then SCOUT within 1 Hex, ignoring any Mountains.
This upgraded version of the standard SCOUT Action can help you or your Team explore & exploit the Map more quickly.
Don't forget that when you PATRON the SKY OBSERVATORY, the built-in SCOUT Action allows you to claim either 1 of the Loot on the map that you've pre-Identified with it.
HUNTING CAMP — Choose two in any order: REVEAL | Apply TAMED | Discard any unwounded Creature & Draw 1 Tier 1 Loot.
This 3-in-1 upgrade on the vanilla REVEAL Action offers many different strategic combinations for clever players.
Since you Resolve HUNTING CAMP's effects in any order, you can even combine it with a standard REVEAL Action, use it to Apply TAMED to that Creature, then immediately Discard that Creature to add it to your Tableau.
BLACK MARKET — SELL up to 2 cards from your Tableau onto BLACK MARKET for 2 Coins each.
You can SELL Tech cards you no longer need, or even wounded Champions! (Note: Loot tokens are not "cards", and can't be sold).
With the Way of Schemes Empire Tech card, whenever PURPLE Players Discard Scrap, they can choose to send it to the BLACK MARKET instead, which will grant them additional RENOWN (but not Coins).
Phase 2 Buildings - Might
COLOSSEUM — Challenge another Player to any SKILL Check. The winner claims 1 Loot. Then both Players Gain +1 to that SKILL.
Particularly synergistic in Cooperative games, COLOSSEUM allows you to increase your own SKILL, and another Player's at the same time.
When you need SKILL in a Competitive game, don't be shy about challenging rival Players. You never know when the sporting favor might be returned.
SMUGGLER'S COVE — Smuggle 2 Discarded FOOD or ORE. You may pay 3 Coins to keep them, or return them to the Stock to gain 2 Coins.
One of the few available methods for Restocking the top row Stock of The Supply with Discarded Resources.
Use SMUGGLER'S COVE to get the Resources you need at a discount. Or simply Restock to line your pockets with Coin.
COMMUNE — Invest x Coins permanently onto this Building. Then claim Resources with total Buy value up to the cumulative Invested Coins (to a cap of 4 Coins).
The Coin you invest here remains, and pools together throughout the game.
When you PATRON the COMMUNE, contributing Coin is optional (x can be 0). However, the more total Coin invested, the stronger your communal buying power will become.
MAZE — Relocate another Player's Avatar to a Connected Location within 1 Hex of their Avatar.
Relocate a Player's Avatar (at higher Tiers, you can even Relocate your own Avatar!) This is not a MOVE Action. If a Player is Relocated to an empty Hex, they do not Place a new Location onto it. Though they will claim or Discard any Loot they find.
At Tier 1, MAZE can only Relocate to Connected tiles. At higher Tiers, it has less restrictions, and can help you or your team avoid danger.
Phase 3 Buildings - Intellect
VOLCANIUM — 1 Champion of your choice gains SEARING. All other DEPLOYED non-RED units suffer 1 Damage unresisted.
This alternative source of Damage can pre-emptively wound, or even Defeat Creatures in your Encounter Zone outright, without Battle.
Just be sure to protect your own guys (+ your friends' at higher Tiers) from the blast radius, by applying VOLCANIUM's helpful SEARING STATUS EFFECT.
CLOCKTOWER — 1 of your other COMMONERS acts again now on the ACTION slot they currently Occupy.
Hyper-focus your strategy by doubling up on your best ACTIONS of the Decade. Note that Tier 1 is restricted to COMMONERS, but at higher Tiers, even NOBLES can get in on the ACTION.
And yes, if you PATRON District 3 twice in one Decade, then you can CLOCKTOWER the CLOCKTOWER!
MOON GLADE — Apply REGEN to any unit. Then any units of your choice may Restore +2 Health and clear 1 STATUS EFFECT.
This is a one-stop solution for all of your (and your Allies') restoration & recovery needs.
MOON GLADE is not restricted to Restoring units you control. Savvy Players can heal their Allies, or even the enemies of their enemies.
LABORATORY — Shapeshift 1 target Champion/Mercenary/Creature: Draw & Place a Creature onto it. Its controller may Activate a MANASTONE to Swap between its forms anytime.
Shapeshift your Mercenaries to power them up, make your Champions more versatile, or even scramble your enemies!
LABORATORY can target the same unit more than once. Players whose units have undergone experimentation can Activate 1 MANASTONE to shift them into any of their available forms anytime, including during Battle.