Dragons of Etchinstone: Siege Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Key Concepts
  • Structure Cards
  • Besieged Mage Cards
  • New Region Cards
  • New Dragon Cards
• Setup
• Gameplay
  • Challenge Phase
  • Action Phase
    • Resolving the Move Set
    • Resolving the Attack Set
    • Penalty Phase
    • Upgrade Phase
    • Cleanup Phase
• The Final Battle
  • The Final Siege
  • The Final Enemy
• Structure Actions
  • Repair
  • Upgrade
  • Special Abilities
• Rule Clarifications
• Return to Etchinstone
• Saving Your Game

Components

5 Structure Cards, 4 Besieged Mage Cards, 2 Region Cards, 4 Dragon Cards, 4 Return to Etchinstone Variant Cards, 1 Reference Card, 1 Divider Card, 1 Rulebook.

Key Concepts

Structure Cards

Structure Cards represent the part of the Tower you are defending. Each Structure has three HP Levels. If the last HP Level is damaged, you lose the game.

The printed Structure Card layout labels its Structure's Name, HP Level, Armor, Special Ability, Repair Action, and Upgrade Action, and marks the Starting Structure. Setup step 5 identifies the starting Structure by the star beside its name.

Besieged Mage Cards

Besieged Mage Cards are additional cards you add to the Deck when you play Siege. Some Besieged Mage Cards have Basic and Enhanced Actions with both Attack and Move. Others have multiple Boost values—Attack, Initiative, and/or Move.

New Region Cards

Region Cards in Siege have Enemies with a Siege Attack. There are no Journey Encounters.

New Dragon Cards

Dragons in Siege have three additional features: a Siege Attack value, Counterspell icons, and a Counterspell Ability.

Note: the card-face values of the Structure, Besieged Mage, Region and Dragon cards are printed on the cards themselves and are not transcribed here.

Setup

0. DIZED promotion (not a game rule, omitted). The printed step invites players to use the DIZED interactive tutorial by scanning the QR code on page 2.
1. Prepare the Deck. In addition to the base game setup, add the four Besieged Mage Cards to the Deck.
2. Hunt a Dragon. Select a dragon from Siege to face in the Final Battle.
3. Draw Your First Hand. Take the first five Mage Cards from the Deck into your right hand.
4. Prepare for the First Expedition. Choose which Region Card from Siege to defend against and place it on top of the Deck.
5. Choose a Structure. Orient to the Structure with the star beside its name. Place it behind the Dragon Card, raised so the Special Ability and HP Level 3 are visible. Cover the lower HP Levels.
6. Start the Adventure. Confront the first Enemy of Region 1.

The printed setup page shows an example Left Hand and Right Hand of Mage Cards.

Gameplay

Siege uses the rules you are familiar with from the base game, with the following adjustments. All steps are listed, but only the changes that pertain to Siege are detailed. Refer to the base game rulebook if you need a refresher on the base game rules.

Challenge Phase

Perform these three steps in order. Remember that the Key Card is the topmost Mage Card in the Deck, directly underneath the Region Card.

1. Scout Ahead. Check the Encounter Icon on the Key Card to see which Enemy you will face in this Encounter. There are no Journeys in Siege. When the Journey icon appears, face the same-numbered Enemy Encounter instead.
2. Face Hardships. Check for a Hardship on the Key Card. If you face Hardships that would pertain to a Journey, instead apply those effects to all Structure Actions you take during that Encounter.
3. Divert (Optional).

Action Phase

With your Hand of five Mage Cards, create two Action Sets—a Move Set and an Attack Set.

• Your Move Set is used first, against the Enemy's new Siege Attack. It also allows you to resolve Structure Actions.
• Your Attack Set is used second, against the Enemy Encounter like normal.

Each Action Set must have between one to three cards in it, with no more than four cards between the two Action Sets in total. If you have five cards, one must be selected as the Reserve card (or Fused to a Role). In each Action Set, one card must be assigned as the Spell. Each Action Set may also have a Boost and an Element.

• Any Action Set without an Element assigned has a base Initiative of 0. Boosts can still modify this value.
• You can Fuse once per Encounter.

The printed Action Phase page shows a Move Set Example and an Attack Set Example.

Resolving the Move Set

1. Determine Movement Points. Add any applicable Boosts to your Spell's Action to determine your Move. If you have Besieged Mage Cards in your Attack Set, add the relevant Action and/or Boost value(s) with a Move icon to your Move total. Note that any additional Move from your Attack Set's Spell only applies its value and not its Ether element to your Move Set.

2. Move. Assign any amount of your Move to the Enemy's Siege Attack, reducing the Siege Attack by the amount assigned. Any amount of Move left over can be used later to perform Structure Actions.

3. Resolve Structure Damage. If the Enemy's Siege Attack has not been reduced to 0, your Structure suffers damage and loses one HP Level. Slide your Structure Card up to reveal the lower HP Level.

   After your Structure loses an HP Level, compare the Enemy's remaining Siege Attack against the intermediate Armor. Reduce the Enemy's remaining Siege Attack by the value of the Armor.

   Repeat this process until either the Enemy's Siege Attack has been reduced to 0 or the last HP Level of your Structure suffers damage and you lose the game.

4. Resolve Structure Actions. Any remaining Move can now be used to Repair, Upgrade, or use a Special Ability (if there is an associated cost). Some Special Abilities are free.

   Refer to the Structure Actions section below to learn about each Structure Action and how it functions.

Resolving the Attack Set

1. Assign Boost.
2. Determine Initiative.
3. Calculate Attack.
4. Determine Outcome. Consult the table on page 20 of the base game rulebook.

If you have Besieged Mage Cards in your Move Set, they cannot modify your Attack Set.

Editorial note: the printed Move Set step 2 reads "Seige Attack" once; it is transcribed here as "Siege Attack".

Penalty Phase

When Soaking damage by Downgrading cards, you can apply this to any of the cards in your Hand—both Action Sets and your Reserve card.

Upgrade Phase

When Upgrading cards, you can consider all cards in your Hand—both Action Sets and your Reserve card—as long as they have not suffered damage during the Penalty Phase.

Cleanup Phase

At the end of the Encounter, discard both Action Sets, keeping your Reserve card (if you have one) for your next Hand.

The Final Battle

In Siege's Final Battle the Final Siege takes the place of the Final Journey. Both the Final Siege and Final Enemy operate differently from the base game rules.

The Final Siege

1. Draw Your Hand. Take the first seven Mage Cards in your right hand.
2. Regroup (Optional).
3. Assign Roles. Use the seven Mage Cards to create two Move Sets. Add the values together for a Total Move.
4. Resolve Structure Damage. Add together all Armor below the current HP Level. Reduce the Siege Attack by this total. If there is Siege Attack remaining, reduce your Total Move by that amount.
5. Determine Outcome. Compare your Total Move to the Final Enemy's MP Tiers, resulting in a Time Penalty or immediate game loss, like normal. Consult the table on page 32 of the base game rulebook.
6. Rest. Finally, discard all seven Mage Cards from your Hand.

The Final Enemy

As the dragons near The Tear, Ether magic becomes unstable, and the Final Enemy starts casting Counterspells!

1. Draw Your Hand. Take all the remaining Mage Cards in the Deck into your Hand. Then, choose a number of Mage Cards equal to the number of Counterspells shown on the Final Enemy's card. These Mage Cards are now Counterspells. Refer to page 20 for how to resolve them.
2. Scout the Enemy.
3. Assign Roles. Create your two Attack Sets as normal, but without the Counterspells. Place the Counterspells to the far left of your Attack Sets (behind any Reserve cards).
4. Compare Initiative. Remember to factor in any Counterspells.
5. Evaluate Armor. Remember to factor in any Counterspells.
6. Attack the Dragon. Consult the table on page 35 of the base game rulebook.
7. Try to Survive.

Counterspells strengthen the Final Enemy. If a Counterspell has multiple values to choose from—typically with the Besieged Mage Cards—you choose which of the values to use. Refer to each Final Enemy for how its Counterspell Ability utilizes Counterspells.

Because Counterspells are not part of your Hand, you cannot use them to Soak damage, and you cannot add their Levels to your endgame score.

Structure Actions

There are three types of Structure Actions—Repair, Upgrade, and Special Abilities. Which actions you can perform, and their costs, are shown on the Structure Card below the Structure's name and beside your current HP Level.

Some Structure Actions are passive and do not have a cost, but others have a Move Cost to resolve them. To resolve a Structure Action with a Move Cost, decide how much of your remaining Move to spend, and use the chart below to determine the outcome. If a Structure Action has a Move Cost but does not have a Time Penalty, Narrow Victory is not allowed for that Structure Action.

If your first Structure Action in an Encounter matches the Ether element of the Enhanced Action of your Move Set and you resolved that Enhanced Action, gain the Boost of your Reserve card as extra Move. This extra Move can be used for any future Structure Actions this Encounter.

Remaining Move vs. Move Cost	Outcome
Remaining Move equals or exceeds the Move Cost.	Complete Victory: Use the Structure Action without paying the shown Time Penalty.
Remaining Move equals or exceeds half of the Move Cost (rounded up).	Narrow Victory: Use the Structure Action but pay the Time Penalty first.
Remaining Move is less than half of the Move Cost (rounded up).	Loss: You cannot use the Structure Action.

You may not use a Structure Action that would require you to suffer more damage from Time Penalties than the number of Mage Cards remaining in the Deck.

You can resolve as many Structure Actions in an Encounter as you can pay for. You do not have to spend all of your remaining Move, and you may choose to spend less than the full Move Cost on a Structure Action, even if you had the full amount available to spend.

Repair

Repairing allows you to increase your Structure's HP Level by 1. When two Move Costs are separated by a "/", you can choose to resolve either one to Repair your Structure.

When you increase the HP Level, slide the Structure Card downward to hide the previous HP Level.

Upgrade

Upgrading allows players to improve their fortifications. You can choose to Rotate or Flip to a new Structure, depending on the Structure Actions available. Structures start at HP Level 3 after Upgrading.

• To Rotate, rotate the Structure Card 180 degrees, making the text on the other end right-side-up.
• To Flip, flip the Structure Card on its long edge as if turning a page, revealing its other side.

Consider what Special Abilities and Armor you might want when choosing your Upgrades.

Special Abilities

Special Abilities are found above the Structure's HP Levels and/or on HP Level 3. If a Special Ability has an associated Move Cost, you must pay it to resolve the Structure Action. Unless otherwise stated, Special Abilities only apply to Region Enemies and not Dragons.

Rule Clarifications

You can play with Northvale's Ether Mages in Siege. Ether Mages' Special Abilities only activate if that card is assigned as the correct Role(s), as in Northvale, and the effect applies only to the Action Set that card is in unless otherwise noted. See below for how each Ether Mage Card functions within Siege.

Volta

• Grit & Warrior's Wisdom: Reduce your Attack Set's Initiative regardless of which Action Set this card is in.
• Ice Breaker & Swirling Blades: These require no adjustment for Siege.

Myth

• Elemental Shift & Volatile: Ignore any Pursuer effects that relate to Journeys. Cards with a Pursuer can be assigned as the Element in either Action Set to ignore the negative effects.
• Ether Chain: If a Besieged Mage Card is the Reserve card and has multiple Action values, Ether Chain applies to and increases both values.
• Windwalker: You can choose from the two effects listed below once per Encounter at any time during the Action Phase, regardless of which Action Set this card is in.
  • Choose to face a different Enemy. This works like choosing to face a different Encounter in Northvale.
  • When resolving a Structure Action, you can change its Ether element. Find the Enemy in your Region whose Attack matches the Ether element of the Structure Action you are resolving. Then, change the Structure Action's Ether element to be an Ether element that matches the Attack of an Enemy adjacent to that first Enemy.

Noramir

• Decisive Spell & Wise Commander: Units can apply their Skills to the appropriate value—Armor, Attack, Initiative, or Move—regardless of which Action Set this Ether Mage Card is in.
  • For example, Decisive Spell can increase your Move even if it is part of the Attack Set.
• Imbalance & Time Lapse: Subtracting Boost only applies to the Attack Set.

Tempest

• Berserker: Use this effect only if this card is in the Attack Set.
• Contingency Plan: This ability activates only if it is in your Attack Set. It can affect your Move.
• Illuminated Path: Apply this effect twice, based on the Ether elements of both your Boosts (Attack Set and Move Set). If both Boosts have the same Ether element, only apply the effect once. Apply the effect to the appropriate value regardless of which Action Set this card is in.
  • For example, if this card is in your Attack Set and its effect would reduce your Move, apply the effect to your Move Set's Move.
  • If Initiative is affected, adjust your Attack Set's Initiative.
• Seeing Red: Use this effect only if this card is in the Attack Set (or if it is a Reserve card).

Return to Etchinstone

Return to Etchinstone is a variant where players take on the role of dragons laying siege to the Tower, rather than an Ether Mage defending it.

Follow these steps to find your way back to Etchinstone:

• Choose one of the alternate Ether Mages as the Final Enemy.
  • If you are incorporating one or more Ether Mages from Northvale, choose one you do not have in your Deck as the Final Enemy.
  • Any references to "Dragons" apply to the chosen alternate Ether Mage.
• Begin at the "Outer Walls" Region.
• Choose the "Siege Ladders" Structure Card.

Otherwise, the gameplay functions the same as Siege.

Saving Your Game

If you have a game in progress and want to finish it later, follow these steps.

1. Place the Structure Card at a certain location in your Hand to signify its current HP Level.
   • A. If at HP Level 3, place it on top of your hand.
   • B. If at HP Level 2, place it behind the top Mage Card.
   • C. If at HP Level 1, place it behind the top two Mage Cards.
2. Collapse your Hand and put it on top of the active Region Card.