Colosseum (2016)
Colosseum (2016) Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Overview
"COLOSSEUM" is a 1-vs-1 card duel game in which each player chooses a character to use and fights.
Using nine skill cards, you deal damage to your opponent; the player who first reduces the opponent's HP to 0 wins. Read your opponent's hand, manipulate the 3 colored dice placed on the table, trigger your character's special abilities, and aim for victory.
Contents of the Manual
Package contents (p. 2), How to read the cards/sheet (pp. 3-6), Game setup (pp. 7-8), Game flow (pp. 9-12), Character introductions (pp. 13-15), Q&A (pp. 16-18).
Package Contents
Cards: 33 in total
- Character cards: 6
- Skill cards: 16
- Skill cards (Overdrive): 8
- Range display cards: 3
Play sheet: 1
Rulebook: 1
Dragon Tide dice: 3 in total
- STR (red): 1
- DEX (green): 1
- INT (blue): 1
How to Read the Cards
Character Card
- Character name
- HP (health)
- Initial dice adjustment: the dice value adjusted at the start of the game.
- Base correction value: a value added to the power when calculating a skill's damage.
- TIDE AURA: a special ability that activates when its condition is satisfied.
- ABILITY: a special ability that activates when a specific skill hits.
Skill Card (Attribute / Move)
- Skill name
- Skill attribute
- Base power: the basic power of this skill.
- Dice influence: shows the value and color of the dice that can be adjusted when this skill hits.
- Range: the distance at which this skill hits.
- Dice power correction: the power correction value received from the dice of a specific color.
Skill Card (Overdrive)
- Card name
- Activation condition (common): the activation condition of this Overdrive. Regardless of the number of activations, this condition must always be satisfied.
- Activation condition (by stage): the activation condition of this Overdrive. The condition to be satisfied differs by the number of hits (1st / 2nd / 3rd HIT).
- Effect: the effect when this Overdrive activates. The effect differs according to the number of activations.
Range Display Card
- Card type display
- Range display: the current distance is written here.
- Effective skills: shows the attribute skills that are effective at the distance this card displays.
Play Sheet
- Character placement
- HP counter
- Skill placement
- Range display card placement: stack the 3 range display cards face up. Show the current distance on the top.
- Dragon Tide dice placement: place the 3 Dragon Tide dice. Place them according to the color of the dice.
- Sealed card placement: place cards that have been "sealed" by an effect.
Skill Card Attributes and Types
Skill cards have an "attribute." The attribute expresses the matchup between cards and the classification of the card.
Attribute Action
Among skill cards, those that show a matchup are called "Attribute Actions."
The attributes are in a rock-paper-scissors (three-way) relationship, and a card of the advantaged attribute can one-sidedly activate its effect (Hit). (For "Hit," see p. 11.)
The three attributes are STR, DEX and INT. The matchups are shown on the sheet by a cycle of arrows: STR beats DEX, DEX beats INT, INT beats STR. (The attribute icons are rock = STR, scissors = DEX, paper = INT.)
Move Action
A special card with no matchup. By changing the distance, you can break the activation condition of the card your opponent used. A "Hit" occurs only if your opponent's card fails to activate because of this card's effect.
Overdrive
A special skill card that can activate only when strict conditions are satisfied. Only when it activates successfully can it one-sidedly exert its effect (Hit).
Game Setup
Each player selects 1 character
Select 1 character from the 6 character cards. You cannot select the same character as your opponent. Choose one of the following 3 methods of assignment. After both players have decided, reveal them immediately.
- Random: assign them randomly from among the 6.
- Random draft: deal 3 random cards to each player and choose freely among them.
- Free: decide who goes first by rock-paper-scissors or similar, and choose the cards you like in turn.
Each player selects 1 Overdrive
Select 1 from the 4 kinds of Overdrive. Add the chosen Overdrive to your hand so that your opponent cannot see it.
Set the range display cards to MIDDLE
Between the characters both players selected, place the 3 range display cards stacked face up (the side on which the distance is written). After placing them, adjust them so that the top of the range display cards is "MIDDLE."
Place the 3 colored dice and set initial values
Near the range display cards, place the 3 colored dice with the pip "3" showing.
After placing them, raise or lower each die by the amount of the "Initial dice adjustment" (the number at the upper right of the card) of the character each player selected.
Deal the hand (skill cards)
Deal the 8 kinds of skill cards to both players. Check that the contents of the cards are the same for both players.
The 9 cards made up of the 8 skill cards dealt here plus the Overdrive you selected earlier become each player's hand.
Preparation is complete.
Game Flow
Victory Condition
When the HP of either character becomes 0, the player whose character still has HP remaining wins immediately. The HP value differs depending on the character.
Game Procedure
A battle in this game proceeds by repeating two phases. The following two phases together are called 1 round.
1 Round
- Set Phase: Select 1 card from your hand. Place the card you select here face down so that your opponent cannot see it.
- Battle Phase: Reveal the cards you each placed face down at the same time. Resolve the battle (see the next page); after it ends, move on to the next round.
Flow of the Battle Phase
First, check the attribute of the cards.
Is there a card with the attribute "MOVE"?
- YES: Process 1, then go to the Overdrive check.
- NO: go to the Overdrive check.
Is there an Overdrive card?
- YES: Process 2, then Process 3.
- NO: Process 3.
Process 1: Distance adjustment. Carry out the effect written on the card of attribute MOVE and change the range display card.
Process 2: OD activation. Check the 2 kinds of activation conditions. If all conditions are satisfied, resolve the card's effect.
The content of the effect differs according to the number of activations. However, if it fails to activate, it is not counted as an "activation count."
When an Overdrive's effect has activated, Process 3 is not carried out.
Process 3: Matchup check. Check the attribute matchup and the distance. The card that wins the matchup becomes a "Hit," deals damage to the opponent, and adjusts the dice according to the display (upper right of the card) of the dice influence. (For "Hit," see the next page.)
What "Hit" Means
During the Battle Phase, a "Hit" occurs when the conditions corresponding to the skill card played are satisfied. (A Move card has special Hit conditions.)
Condition 1: Matchup
Confirm that you have won the three-way attribute matchup.
If your opponent selected an attribute action, or if your opponent's action did not satisfy an activation condition such as range (see below), it is treated unconditionally as "won the matchup."
Condition 2: Range
Check whether the current distance is within the range of the displayed skill card.
(On the card's RANGE row of SHORT / MIDDLE / LONG, the distances at which the skill hits are marked. For example, if the current distance is "SHORT," the condition is satisfied when SHORT is marked.)
Processing on Hit
If the above conditions are satisfied, deal damage to your opponent and adjust the Dragon Tide dice by the value corresponding to the skill card.
(On the skill card, the upper left is the skill card's base power; the upper right shows the type (color) and value of the Dragon Tide die that can be adjusted.)
Damage Calculation Procedure
When an Action card hits, calculate the damage dealt according to the following procedure. The damage is the sum of the following three values:
- Base power: the number displayed at the upper left of the skill card. Move skills have no power.
- Dragon Tide correction: displayed at the bottom of attribute skills (the TIDE row). Add a correction value to the power according to the value of the Dragon Tide die of the displayed type (color). (The row shows the correction for each die pip: for example, -1 / ±0 / ±0 / +1 / +2 / +3 for pips 1 to 6 as printed on the card.)
- Base power correction: displayed on the character card. Add a correction to the power according to the attribute skill you used. (Example on the card: STR +2, DEX +1, INT -1.)
About a "Draw" (Aiko)
If the matchup is the same, both players perform the damage calculation and compare the values. The difference between these values is dealt as damage to the side whose value is lower. In this case, because no "Hit" occurs for either player's card, no dice adjustment occurs.
Also, if both players display the same Overdrive, neither exerts its effect. If the activation conditions were satisfied, it counts as an activation count.
Character Introductions
Lucent of the Frenzy (狂奔のルーセント)
Former high priest of the "Cult of the Moon," which worships the dragon veins. Now pursued by the cult, he entered this tournament with firm resolve. Of the "Prince of the Moon," once loved by the people, none truly understand the transformation. No one remembers any longer the shape of the eclipsed moon.
Performance notes: By lowering the values of the Dragon Tide dice, combat ability improves greatly. Hit with your Overdrive and keep the TA activated state going.
Will the Stargazer (星睨みのウィル)
William, an astronomer living in the valley forests of the south. His eyes, receiving the Tide of Dyx, were transformed, and he came to see through a telescope beyond the far night sky. The waves of passing curiosity drive him on. Higher, farther, beyond what he has yet to see. The adventure of this genius enchanted by the sea of stars continues.
Performance notes: A tricky character who can "seal" the opponent's cards without using an Overdrive. Restrict the opponent's actions and aim for their escape route with DEX skills.
Terry, Lord of Warriors (戦士たちの主 テリー)
A great hero king who quelled the wars that once spread across the east and built the peace that has lasted to this day. His body, which received the Tide of mighty Estia, eventually transformed into something no longer human. What he seeks after leaving the throne is the boil of blood. Only the true heart of a warrior is his wish now.
Performance notes: His strengths are the largest HP of all characters and a powerful TA that deals damage ignoring the opponent's hand.
Note: the "activation" of Terry's TA differs from a "Hit" and cannot adjust the dice. Damage correction is added, but it is calculated after the effect resolution of the opponent's card.
Dorothy the Sage of the Far North (極北の賢者 ドロシー)
The Tide that spreads over the north, Aenty's aurora, grants the old knowledge's transformation to everyone who lives there. Dorothy, a scholar of the remote Valefal Palace, was searching for the true state of this distorted world, the reason she herself is in the place of Acacia. Her goal is the south, the place called the origin of the Tide. It is said that everything began beneath the kingdom.
Performance notes: Besides doubling the base power of INT skills, she can unleash the highest firepower in the game with her TA. Choose an Overdrive that suits this, and she excels at fighting by sealing the distance the opponent is good at.
Gau the Explorer (探訪者 ガウ)
A brilliant, carefree adventurer wandering after losing his memory. If there is a secret art in the east he goes to it; if there is treasure in the west he visits it. He laughs that "exploration" is the duty engraved on his own soul. And now his aim is the throne of the royal palace, the legendary "Holy Grail" said to sleep at its foot. Guided by his homing instinct, his final adventure begins.
Performance notes: While TA is active he is the character with the strongest combat ability in the game. If you activate TA using an Overdrive that can adjust the Dragon Tide dice, a comeback is possible from any situation.
Elaine the Phenomenon Walker (事象渡りのエレイン)
An assassin released by the cult to pursue Lucent. Made with the old wisdom the cult possesses, she, a "hunter of phenomena," has no ego. The hunter chasing the traitor is also the guard who protects the throne. The cult's secret seal must be protected. This world stands on a trembling needle.
Performance notes: The only character who can deal damage to the opponent by moving. Because she can change the distance freely while TA is active, she can always hold the initiative in the mind game. However, her HP is 10, the lowest of all characters, so handle her carefully.
How to Choose Characters / Overdrives
Characters have matchups with each other. When a disadvantageous opponent has been selected, counter it with your Overdrive. Look carefully at the activation conditions of the opponent's abilities when choosing.
Q&A
Q1. If the opponent's move destination is within the range of my skill card, does a "Hit" occur?
A. It occurs. At the moment the Move card is revealed, it is automatically treated as having lost the matchup. In addition, if the player showing the attribute skill satisfies the range condition, a Hit occurs.
(Caption: skills that cover two or more distances are best for hunting movers.)
Q2. I succeeded in activating my Overdrive for the 4th time. Which effect should I apply?
A. The 3rd-time effect activates. The effect of an Overdrive grows with the number of activations, and the activation conditions also become stricter. It is fine to interpret it as "it reaches its highest stage on the 3rd activation" and "from then on the conditions are fixed."
Q3. When do ABILITY and TA activate?
A. After damage processing is finished. Changes to the field caused by a character's traits are basically done after damage processing ends. For example, even if the Dragon Tide dice are changed by these effects, it does not affect the damage calculation.
The TA of "Terry, Lord of Warriors" activates after the opponent's processing ends. Therefore it is affected by the Dragon Tide dice adjustment that the opponent made.
Q4. "Moon Burial (月葬)" and "Estia's Fury (エスティアの暴威)" satisfied their conditions at the same time. What is the processing order?
A. "Moon Burial" one-sidedly exerts its effect. When multiple Overdrives exert their effects simultaneously, "Moon Burial" is processed first. Because the opponent's Overdrive is sealed by the effect of "Moon Burial," the opponent's Overdrive never exerts its effect. When an Overdrive is nullified by sealing, the activation count is not counted.
Q5. What happens if I use "Advance (前進)" when the range display is "SHORT"?
A. Nothing happens (and no Hit occurs either). When a Move card to a distance that is not set is displayed, no processing occurs. Because the Hit condition is that "by the effect of the move, [the opponent] escaped from the attack range (that arose at the distance where the own character originally was)," no Hit occurs. In the matchup check, it automatically loses.