Heresy Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Object of the Game
• Winning
• Victory Conditions
• Turn Sequence
• Combat Sequence
• Heresy Basics
  • Areas of Play
  • Aura
  • Tau
  • Virtual Support
  • Conviction
  • Influence
  • Gaining Influence
• Card Anatomy
  • Card Elements
  • Locations
  • Characters
  • Alephs
  • Enhancements
  • Celestial Power Cards
  • Miracle Cards
  • Stay Tuned For Further Developments...
  • Special Ability
  • Card Values
• Using Cards During the Game
  • Opening and Readying Cards
  • Striking Cards
  • Attaching Cards to Other Cards
  • Putting Cards Into Play
  • About Unique Cards
  • Using a Card's Special Ability
• Rules of Play
  • The Prime Commandment
  • Areas of Play
  • Necessary Equipment
  • Setting Things Up
  • Beginning the Game
  • Player Turn Sequence
  • End of Turn Interval
• About the Matrix
  • Virtual Support
  • Crashes
  • Getting Ripped
  • Timing of Effects
• Reactions
  • Miracles
  • Opening Domains and Arrays
  • Scrambles
• Conflict
• Combat
  • Quick Combat Sequence
  • Options That Modify Combat
  • Detailed Description of Combat
• The Aereopagus
  • A Quick Summary of Aereopagus Voting
  • The Process of Aereopagus Voting
  • Challenges
  • Challenge Resolution
  • Investiture & Revocation of Titles
• Special Abilities
  • Netwalking and Blitz
  • Netwalking
  • Blitz
• Heresy Q & A
• Glossary

Introduction

Welcome to Heresy: Kingdom Come. Heresy is a game of action, strategy and influence in which you and your opponents represent powerful, enigmatic, spiritual beings who, due to a tremendous breach of the barriers between the spiritual, physical, and digital worlds, have fallen from the dream-state of the divine Empyrean into the torturous Wilds of the Forsaken Earth. This breach, known as "the Ruin" has cast the world into a dark and deadly age, where technology and mysticism intertwine to twist the laws of reality, and gothic legends clash with the glittering chrome and neon of the cyber-age. During the course of play you will assemble a cadre of immortal fallen seraphim, usurp control of the broken nations of the blasted world, and attempt to reconstruct the Ruin-shattered global computer network known as the "Matrix." Your goal is to amass the spiritual energy and technical resources needed to achieve reascension and return to the Empyrean.

In Heresy, your deck of cards represents all of the resources available to you in the ruined world of Forsaken Earth. You must use your resources carefully in order to undermine your opponents who would deny you the right to reascend. Using your deck wisely is the only means of ensuring that you will be the first to access the divine Empyrean, claiming for yourself the right to reshape the Forsaken Earth in an image of your own choosing.

Heresy works best with two to five players, although there is no absolute limit to the number of players who can participate in a single game. Each player assembles a deck containing at least 60 cards. If you are new to Heresy, you can play with a basic starter deck straight out of the box. As you collect additional cards you may add or substitute them into your playing deck, removing any cards that you don't need. By "tuning" your deck in this manner, you will find that your game play improves. Creating your own unique playing deck constitutes much of the strategy in the game.

Object of the Game

Heresy depicts a race among the fallen Hosts for reascension. In game play you represent a great leader among the fallen Hosts. Other members of the Host serve as your minions, and it is through them that you can control and destroy nations, and establish a base of followers to obtain spiritual, technological and political power. In order to reascend, players must collect enough tau energy within their rebuilt portion of the ruined Matrix to activate a gateway leading back to the celestial Empyrean. The first to achieve this goal passes through their gateway and reascends, earning the privilege to reshape Forsaken Earth in an image of their own choosing.

Winning

While the object of Heresy is simple, winning is not. In order to activate a gateway you'll need to develop a strategy that will enable you to accomplish several things. First, you must rebuild and assume control of domains, the blasted and ruined cities, nations, and regions of Forsaken Earth. Second, you must exploit these domains to supply aura (spiritual energy needed to call cards into play) and virtual support (technological support necessary to rebuild the computer Matrix). Third, you must build enough arrays (data sites in the computer matrix) in your Matrix to store the amount of tau energy necessary to activate your gateway. Of course your opponents will compete with you during every stage, attempting to undermine your achievements while trying to advance their own positions within the game. Hey, nobody said this was going to be easy. . .

Victory Conditions

The amount of tau energy each player needs to accumulate in order to activate a gateway defines the victory condition for each game of Heresy. Victory conditions may vary according to the desires of the players participating in the game. To shorten or lengthen game time, you may vary the number of tau points required to activate your gateway. Refer to the following chart to find the victory conditions recommended for certain numbers of players and average lengths of game time. In a two player game, 15 points is usually the standard amount of tau necessary to activate a gate and win the game.

Recommended Victory Conditions (Number of Tau Needed to Activate Gateway)

Total Players	30 min.	45 min.	90 min.	120 min.
2	11	15	19	21
3	9	11	15	19
4	7	9	11	15
5	5	7	9	11

Note: the source's victory table is laid out as run-on cells in the HTML; the values above are read row by row against the printed headers.

Turn Sequence

Orientation Interval (In Order)

1. Ready Cards Phase
2. Recovery Phase
3. Maintenance Phase

Action Interval (In any Order)

• Build
• Open cards to gain aura
• Call characters
• Enhance cards
• Invoke celestial powers
• Play miracles
• Move characters
• Jack in/Jack out
• Initiate conflict
• Store/spend Tau
• Activate gateway

End of Turn Interval (In Order)

1. Discard Phase
2. Draw Phase
3. Repair Damage Phase

Combat Sequence

1. Declaration of Attack. Attacker declares target Location & opens combat participants.
2. Declaration of Defense. Defender declares Defense or Intervention & declares defense participants or opens Intervention participants.
3. Combat Resolution. Combat totals are compared and Damage is applied.
4. Bring out the Dead. Remove/reposition killed Locations and Characters.

Heresy Basics

Before you proceed, there are a few basic concepts and terms that you should know. By taking a few moments now to familiarize yourself with these ideas, you'll save time later and find the rules to be easier to comprehend and more enjoyable to read.

Areas of Play

In Heresy, the area in which you place your cards on the table in front of you is termed your "territory." Your territory is divided into two primary play areas, each area representing a part of the Forsaken Earth under your control. You will need to develop both of these areas in order to win the game.

Area of Play 1, the Wilds. The first area is called the "Wilds," and represents the actual physical world of the Forsaken Earth. All the domains (the geographic sites you control) you build are placed in the Wilds, and most characters enter play here. All characters in your Wilds are referred to as Wilds characters.

Area of Play 2, the Matrix. Your second area of play is your "Matrix," and represents the parts of the ruined digital global computer network you will rebuild during the course of the game. The Matrix is home to any arrays (digital sites you control) you have built, as well as those characters that have moved from the Wilds into the digital world of the computer matrix. All characters in your Matrix are referred to as Matrix characters.

Aura

Aura is the spiritual essence or energy that originates in the mass psyche of the populace of Forsaken Earth. The domains you build have inherent populations that provide most of this energy, thus you gain access to more aura with each domain you build. You will spend aura to call cards, such as Hosts and Heathens, into play.

Tau

Tau is a special spiritual energy that may be stored in one or more of the arrays that you build in your Matrix. To win a game of Heresy you will need to gather enough tau to activate your gateway and pass through it into the Empyrean. There are several ways to gather tau in Heresy, but successfully attacking an opponent's domains and arrays is the primary method.

Virtual Support

The post-Ruin Matrix is highly unstable and requires constant technical support to maintain its integrity. As you build arrays and move characters into your Matrix, you'll need to maintain their stability by keeping a number of cards that provide "virtual support" in play in your Wilds. If your total virtual support available ever falls below the amount required by your Matrix, one or more of your Matrix cards will crash. We'll explore virtual support in detail later, but for now understand that maintaining it is crucial to rebuilding the Matrix and winning the game.

Conviction

Conviction defines the beliefs and morals of the populations of Forsaken Earth. To greater or lesser degrees, all cards in Heresy adhere to one of eight convictions. A card's conviction can be easily identified by the large icon in the upper right-hand corner of the card. The eight convictions are as follows:

Rebellion. Why be a follower when you can be a leader? Despise authority, renounce allegiances, and break as many oaths and laws as possible. "Only dead fish go with the flow" is an appropriate motto for Rebellion.

Devotion. Faith and belief in higher powers will allow us to transcend our earthly selves. Those who have seen the way will lead us all out of the Ruin and into a glorious new age. We have only to follow them...

Preservation. From the earth we have been born, and to the earth we will return. Follow the gaian principle, and place defense of eco-systems above all other concerns. "Green peace, not green pieces" would be a good motto.

Acquisition. The original "conspicuous consumers." There's nothing money can't buy, and although they've already bought a sizable chunk of everything, they need more. Control is the key to power. Power is the key to the universe.

Tradition. Believes respect for the past is the one true way to enlightenment. The laws and rituals must be upheld to prevent the world from slipping even deeper into decay than it already has. Why must we live this way? Because we always have...

Stagnation. The world is doomed, so why try? The most nihilistic of all convictions, Stagnation includes consumers of the designer drugs Stim and Anubis. "Got a date with Death," is poplar Anubis drug culture slang.

Evolution. Equates scientific achievement with ecstatic experience, embraces technology, and believes that technological progress is the key to enlightenment. "Building a better tomorrow," sums up the Evolution mind set.

Technology. Not really a conviction, more of a nature. The Technology conviction is only assigned to non-sentient things: hardware, software, mechanical devices and so on. Since arrays provide Technology influence and everybody needs arrays in play to win, everybody will have cards of the Technology conviction in their decks.

Influence

Influence provides a gauge for measuring the degree of conviction held by various cards within the game, as well as a mechanic for getting cards out of your hand and into play. To call cards into play, you need to have already in play cards that possess a certain amount influence of a specific conviction (almost always domains and arrays), and you must pay the amount of aura specified on the card. Unless you've got the required amount of influence and aura, you can't call into play the characters, technology, and powers that hold true to their convictions.

Gaining Influence

You gain influence primarily by building domains and arrays. For each domain or array that you build, you gain one influence of the conviction shown in the upper right-hand corner of the card. Occasionally, other cards will provide additional influence as part of their special abilities, but it is important to remember that although all cards in Heresy have conviction icons, only domains and arrays use the conviction icon to indicate that they provide influence.

Example. Samantha has a Free City (a domain) in play with the Rebellion icon in the upper right corner, and she also has the Host, Michael (a character), in play, also with the Rebellion icon in the upper right corner. Since they both have the Rebellion icon, both cards are considered to have the Rebellion conviction. In addition, the Free City also provides one Rebellion influence, since it is a domain. Even though Michael is a Rebellion card, he does not provide Rebellion influence because he is a character, not a domain.

Card Anatomy

We'll begin with a general overview of the types of cards found in Heresy, followed by a detailed look at the rules. Don't worry if at first you don't understand some of the terms we're talking about. Most concepts in this section are explained in greater detail elsewhere in the rules.

Card Elements

Every card in Heresy contains certain identifying elements which provide information regarding the purpose and usage of the card. Refer to the accompanying card diagram to identify the standard card elements found on Heresy cards.

Card Name. Every card in Heresy has a descriptive name, centered at the top of the card, between the conviction icon and the call value.

Conviction. All cards have a conviction, represented by the single large icon in the upper right corner of the card. Domains and arrays use this icon to represent the type of influence they provide, but other cards do not.

Call Value. The call value specifies the amount of aura and the type of influence required to play the card from your hand. The amount of aura needed is expressed as a number, while the amount and type of influence is denoted by a cluster of miniature versions of the conviction icons, one icon representing one influence. You must meet both of these requirements to call the card out of your hand and into play. We cover the process for calling cards into play in the section entitled "Putting Cards Into Play" found a little later in this booklet.

Card Type. There are six basic card types in Heresy: locations, characters, alephs, celestial powers, enhancements, and miracles. A card's type is found directly below the illustration, in bold letters. All cards described by a basic type share similar features and qualities, however, most cards have some additional card type information that helps describe how the card fits into the world of Heresy. Also, if a card is unique (we'll talk more about unique cards a little later), it will be listed here. Each basic card type is summarized in the following section.

Locations

There are two types of location found in Heresy: domains and arrays. Since locations are "built," not called, they never have call values.

Domains. Domains represent the broken cities, regions and nations of Forsaken Earth. The foundation of your Wilds, domains support large populations who provide aura and virtual support. Aura is accessed by opening the domain (turning it sideways), while virtual support is provided continuously. In addition to aura and virtual support, domains also provide one influence of their current conviction. Since you have to open a domain to access its aura, aura is considered an expendable resource. However, influence and virtual support are provided regardless of whether the card is open or ready (in the upright position), therefore are not considered expendable.

Arrays. Arrays represent massive iconographic data storage facilities that are the foundation of your Matrix. They are chiefly used to store tau, the energy you need to win the game. Like domains, arrays provide one influence, but unlike domains, do not provide aura or virtual support.

Characters

Characters represent the major groups and individuals of the Forsaken Earth. There are two fundamental types of character: Hosts and Heathens.

Hosts. Hosts are the divine beings who fell from the One City or were released from Pandemonium during the Ruin, and who now serve as your minions in your struggle to achieve reascension. Host characters are easily recognized by the word "Host" in their card type. In addition, Hosts will also have the following information listed in their card type:

• Celestial or Infernal. Celestial Hosts are those that fell from the Empyrean as a result of the Ruin, while infernal Hosts are those released from Pandemonium during the Ruin.
• Celestial Rank. All Hosts belong to one of nine celestial ranks. They appear as follows (from highest to lowest): Seraph, Cherubim, Throne, Dominion, Aeon, Authority, Principality, Archangel, and Angel. All you really need to know about rank is that certain cards have special abilities that affect only Hosts of a particular rank.

Heathens. Heathens represent various non-Host individuals or groups that inhabit the many locations in your Wilds and Matrix. Heathens are typically members of religions, gangs, corporations, secret societies, mercenary groups and mystical orders as well as digital phantoms, virtual personalities, and artificial intelligences. Heathen characters are noted with the word "Heathen" in the card type.

Alephs

Alephs represent powerful artifacts and talismans dating back to the earliest histories of the Earth, Empyrean, and Pandemonium. When called into play, alephs are attached to a character or location you control. If an aleph is attached to a location, it must remain there until either the aleph or the location are removed from play. If an aleph is attached to a character, that character is said to be "carrying" the aleph and it stays with the character regardless of where the character travels.

Enhancements

When called into play, enhancements are attached to other cards to either add to their values or to give them additional special abilities. Some enhancements require attachment to specific target cards. If an enhancement requires that you attach it to a specific target or place it in a specific area of play, it will say so in the card type. If an area of play is specified in the card type, then the enhancement may not leave the specified area of play. More will be said about area-specific enhancements later in the rules.

There are many types of enhancements, but two of them deserve special mention because they have special rules regarding their usage, as described later.

• Titles. Titles are special enhancements representing unique celestial offices and honorifics up for grabs in the age of the Forsaken Earth. It is possible to challenge, and thereby steal, a title held by an opposing Host. We will explore challenges a little later.
• IC. "IC" (pronounced like "ice") is shorthand for "intrusion countermeasures." IC cards are special enhancements for arrays that represent programs that protect the array during an attack. We will look at IC in the combat section of the rules.

Celestial Power Cards

As one of the mightiest of the Hosts, you are capable of wielding earth-shaking spiritual power. Celestial Power cards represent this capability, and are played during your turn only. Celestial Power cards are discarded after their effects have taken place.

Miracle Cards

Miracles represent spontaneous events that you may play during the action interval of any player's turn. Like celestial powers, miracle cards are discarded immediately after use.

Stay Tuned For Further Developments...

A final note about card type. Often the card type will contain information that relates only to other cards in the game. As you become familiar with more of the cards in Heresy, you will see how these cards interact. Don't worry if at first you don't understand all these relationships. Heresy is an evolving game with a sweeping story line, and sometimes we've planted information in the card types that will become useful as we release future expansion sets.

Special Ability

Many cards in Heresy have special abilities. If a card has a special ability, it will be listed in the text area on the bottom of the card, just below the card type. Most special abilities are unique to that card, and as such are self explanatory, but a few are common enough that they have their own sections later in the rules.

Card Values

Appearing as icons or "glyphs" in the small blocks on the left side of the card, card values are simply statistics that quantify the standard abilities of the cards on which they appear. If a card bears one or more of the following values, then you may use the card to perform related actions during the game.

• Attack/Defense Value. The levels of damage a character or location can inflict and receive when engaged in conflict. The values appear this way on the cards: attack value/defense value. Thus, a character with a "2/3" A/D value has an attack value of 2 and a defense value of 3. Attack value represents the amount of damage the card can inflict on other cards, and the defense value is the amount of damage the card can take before it is "killed." Location cards and characters usually have attack and defense values.
• Virtual Support Value. Indicates the number of virtual support points that card provides when put into play. Only domains have this value. Cards other than domains that provide virtual support will do so as part of their special ability.
• Tau Storage Capacity Value. Found only on arrays, tau storage capacity represents the maximum amount of tau energy that can be stored on the array after it is built in your matrix.
• Free Will Value. Free will ranges from 1 to 4 and measures the degree of control that a Host may exercise over itself and other Hosts. Free will is the primary value used to determine whether one of your Hosts may lead other Hosts during joint attacks or interventions, and is also used during the second (execution) stage of voting in the Aereopagus. Only Hosts will have free will values.
• Aereopagus Votes Value. The Aereopagus is the governing body of Hosts that decide various political issues. In the One City before their fall, Hosts held varying degrees of esteem and influence among others of their kind. Whenever the Hosts convene the Aereopagus to decide an issue, they gain a certain number of votes based on this esteem. The Aereopagus votes value ranges from 1 to 3, and during the presentation phase of Aereopagus voting each Host may cast a number of votes equal to its current votes value. Because only Hosts are eligible to vote in the Aereopagus, only Host cards will have this value listed.

Using Cards During the Game

Opening and Readying Cards

When a card is resting in the vertical (upright) position, it is "ready" and can be used during the current turn. Once a card has been used during the turn, it is turned to the horizontal position (sideways) and considered "open." Refer to the diagram. You will ready all of your open cards at the start of each turn.

Striking Cards

When a card is stricken, open it and turn it face down. During your next turn, you may "recover" the stricken card and turn it face up; during your following turn you may ready it. Stricken cards provide neither influence nor virtual support until recovered. Any effects a card's special ability generates are temporarily "turned off" while it is stricken.

Once a card has been "recovered" it is no longer considered "stricken." A stricken card is considered to have a defense value of zero during combat resolution. Cards that provide influence do not do so while they are stricken.

Attaching Cards to Other Cards

Attaching cards to other cards refers to the relationship between two or more cards in a specific area of play. Examples of attached cards include enhancements attached to characters or locations, or characters attached to locations. When a card is "attached" to another card, it is affected whenever the primary card it is attached to is affected. For example, when a character is opened or stricken, any enhancements or alephs attached to it are opened or stricken as well. Locations are the major exception to this rule. Opening a location does not open the characters attached to it. However, any enhancements or alephs attached directly to the location (i. e. not attached to the characters on the location) are opened.

Example. Samantha has a domain in play with a Fixer character attached to it, and she has a Cyberdeck enhancement attached to the Fixer. During her turn, Samantha opens the domain to get it's aura, but the Fixer remains ready, because characters don't open along with their home domain. Later that same turn, Samantha opens the Fixer to attack; but since the Cyberdeck is attached to the Fixer (and character enhancements open whenever they do), the Cyberdeck opens at the same time.

Putting Cards Into Play

Putting a card into play is the most fundamental action found in Heresy. There are two basic actions that you may perform to play a card from your hand-building and calling.

Building. Putting a location card into play is called building. Building allows you to place a domain or array card from your hand into play simply by placing the card in the ready position in the appropriate area of play. Domains are built in the Wilds; arrays are built in the Matrix.

Calling. Playing any other type of card than a location is termed "calling." You call a card into play from your hand by paying a number of aura specified by the "call value" on the card you want to call. Additionally, most call values require you to have a certain amount of influence in play, represented by a cluster of miniature conviction icons surrounding the aura number. Each icon represents one influence you will need to have available to call the card. In order to call a card requiring influence, you need to have locations in play that match the amount and types of influence specified on the card you want to call.

Remember, aura is an expendable resource, meaning that you have to open cards to get it. Once a card has been opened to grant aura, it may not provide more aura until it has been readied again, usually during your next turn. Influence, on the other hand, is always available regardless of whether the card providing it is open or not.

Example One. Mike has the two character cards "Chromeopaths" and "Gabrielites" in his hand. He has in play two domains, both of them "Seafloor Metroplexes" that provide one Evolution influence each. Both the Chromeopaths and the Gabrielites have call values of 2 Evolution influence icons, 2; meaning that each card requires Mike to have two Evolution influences in play, and spend 2 aura to call it from his hand. Looking at his Seafloor Metroplexes, Mike realizes that he already has two Evolution influences in play, plus he sees that each Seafloor Metroplex has a special ability that allows him to open it to provide 2 aura. He opens one Seafloor Metroplex to provide two aura, and calls the Chromeopaths into play, attaching them in the ready position to one of the Seafloor Metroplexes. Even though Mike opened the first Seafloor Metroplex to get aura, its influence is still available. Mike then opens the second Seafloor Metroplex to gain its 2 aura, and calls the Gabrielites, attaching them to either one of the Seafloor Metroplexes. Mike has used up all four aura available to him, but he still has the two Evolution influences in play because influence cannot be "used up."

Example Two. Samantha has the miracle card "Golem" in her hand. Golem has a call value of 1 Preservation (influence) icon which means she simply has to have one Preservation influence in play to call it. Samantha looks at her Wilds and realizes she has "London Dome" in play, which provides one Preservation influence. Since Golem doesn't require that she spend aura to call it, Samantha calls Golem without opening any cards.

About Unique Cards

If a card is considered unique, it will say so in the card type area. Only one of a unique card may be brought into play at a time, and no one may bring another one into play until the current one is removed from play.

Using a Card's Special Ability

Many cards have special abilities described in the text area below the card type. Unless it says otherwise, a card's special ability may be used only during your turn. If a card's special ability may be used out of turn, it will say so on the card. Some special abilities require that you open the card or pay some cost to use it. Abilities that don't open a card may be used more than once per turn, as long as the activation cost is paid for each use. Other abilities are considered "continuous" and affect game play as long as the card containing the ability is in play.

However, if a card is stricken, it's special ability is temporarily "turned off" until the card is turned face-up. On the turn it is called, a character may not use it's special ability, whether it is a continuous ability or not.

Rules of Play

The Prime Commandment

Occasionally, the cards you play will modify the game rules or contradict them outright. The Prime Commandment of Heresy is that rules on the cards always supersede the rules in this booklet.

Areas of Play

In Heresy, the area in which you place your cards on the table in front of you is termed your "territory." Your territory is divided into two areas, each area representing a part of the Forsaken Earth under your control, plus your card piles.

Wilds. The first area is called the "Wilds", and represents the physical world of the Forsaken Earth. All domains are placed in the Wilds, and most characters enter play here.

Matrix. The second area of play is your "Matrix", and represents the parts of the ruined global computer network you have rebuilt. The Matrix is home to any arrays you have in play, as well as those characters that have jacked in.

Card Piles. The third area of play houses your deck and two discard piles, called respectively the archive, and oblivion. Your deck and archive are played face-down, while your oblivion is played face-up. Any player may look through your oblivion pile at any time. You may look through your archive pile anytime you wish, but your opponents may not. Nobody can look through your deck, not even you.

Any time your cards are removed from play they are discarded to your oblivion. Discarding a card to your oblivion is referred to as "obliterating" the card, and any card in your oblivion has been "obliterated." Your archive is used to store only Technology-convicted cards in order to allow you to use them later in the game. You may only discard Technology-convicted cards to your archive during your discard phase in the end of turn interval. No other cards may be placed in your archive, and, unless otherwise specified, you may not place cards in your archive at any other time.

Necessary Equipment

In order to play Heresy, you and your opponents each need at least 60 Heresy cards to make your deck. The only rule concerning deck construction is that you may have no more than four of any given card in your deck, except for locations. You may have any number of individual locations in your deck.

You will also need a number of tokens or markers such as pennies, paper chits, etc.. If you can find a number of different color markers that can be divided into matching pairs, these will be useful to serve as body tokens when your characters enter the Matrix. Each player will need around 30 tokens to play an average game.

Setting Things Up

To begin the game, shuffle your deck and place it face down on the table. Each player now cuts the deck of the player on their left. If you intend to play games for ante, each player draws the top card from their deck after it has been cut. Cards drawn for ante are placed face up in an ante pile beyond the table space set aside for play. At the end of the game, the winning player gets to keep all of the cards located in the ante pile. Playing for ante is never mandatory.

After the decks are cut, draw 11 cards to create your playing hand. Of the 11 cards, keep 7 in your hand and discard the others. If you have cards that can be discarded to create your archive (only Technology-convicted cards), place them face down in the appropriate area. If none of your discards can be used to create an archive, you must discard your extras into the oblivion pile. Discarding to your oblivion pile is referred to as "obliteration," and a card placed in this pile has been "obliterated."

Creating an Archive. Your archive represents your collection of technological resources that you may draw forth to use later in the game. Whenever you discard from your hand, you may place any cards in your hand having the Technology conviction into your archive. During the game, the only cards that may be placed in your archive are cards you discard from your hand during your end of turn interval.

If You Draw No Domains in Your First Hand. If you draw no domains in your first hand, you may shuffle your hand back into your deck, have the player to your left cut the deck, and draw 11 new cards. You may only do this once per game.

Example. Mike draws 11 cards from his deck to begin the game. Looking at his hand he realizes he has 3 Technology-convicted cards, and 8 cards of other convictions. He decides to discard all 3 Technology cards into his archive, since he knows he will be able to retrieve them later in the game if he needs them. He must then decide which 7 of the 8 remaining cards he will keep to create his playing hand. He chooses one card he feels is too expensive to call right away, and since it is not a Technology-convicted card, he discards it to his oblivion. He will not be able to get that card back out of his oblivion later in the game unless he has another card that allows him to do so.

Beginning the Game

Once all players have created their discard piles, determine who goes first by flipping a coin, rolling dice, playing rock-paper-scissors, or using whatever method works for you. Once a player has been chosen play proceeds clockwise around the table, each player conducting their turn in order.

Player Turn Sequence

Each turn of the game is divided into three intervals which are further subdivided into phases. When it is your turn, you must perform the actions of the "orientation interval" and "end of turn interval" in the prescribed order. During the intermediate "action interval" you may take as many or few actions as you wish according to the guidelines established therein. Refer to the following player turn sequence to determine the actions that you may perform during your turn of the game.

Orientation Interval. Take the following steps in order. During this interval only miracles may be played.

1. Ready Cards Phase. Return any open cards you control to the ready position.
2. Recovery Phase. Turn any stricken cards you control face-up to recover them. Recovered cards remain open for the duration of the current turn, but are no longer considered stricken.
3. Maintenance Phase. Pay any required maintenance costs. If these costs cannot be paid, observe the consequences found on the initiating card.

Action Interval. During this interval, perform any of the following actions in any order (you may also choose to pass and take no actions).

• Build a Location. A build action allows you to add locations to your territory. You may build one domain and one array per turn. Place domains in your Wilds and arrays in your Matrix area, in the ready position. You may open a location and use any special ability it might possess on the turn in which it is brought into play.

• Open Cards to Gain Aura. To gain aura, you may open any card that provides aura as part of its special ability any time during your turn, or during an opponent's turn. When you open a card to get its aura you gain the entire amount the card provides. You may immediately use the aura you gain, or allow unspent aura to wait in your "aura pool." Be aware, however, that certain events in the game cause aura pools to empty, depriving you of the chance to spend the aura you are holding. When these events happen, every aura pool of every player in the game empties at the same time, regardless of whose turn it is. Aura pools empty at the following times during the game: at the beginning of every turn, at the beginning of every conflict, at the end of every conflict, and at the end of every turn. Any unspent aura left in your pool when it empties is immediately lost, and cannot be spent. Usually, opening cards for their aura is something you will want to do as you need it, rather than all at once.

• Call Character. To call a character, make sure you have the appropriate amount influence in play, then pay the aura part of the call value by opening any cards that provide aura and attach the character card to a domain you control. When called, character cards are attached to a domain in the ready position. The turn they are called they may not attack or use their special abilities, but they may be opened to move. Additionally, they may defend or scramble during your opponent's turn. During your next turn any characters you called the turn before can be used as normal (i.e. they may now attack or use their special abilities). You may call any number of characters during your turn.

  A Note on Character Card Placement. Unless otherwise specified, characters are attached to a domain you control when they are called into play. If you have no domains in play, you may not call characters into play.

• Enhance card. Enhancing another card supports or reinforces it in some way. To call an enhancement, pay its call value and attach it to an appropriate card, as specified in the card type. You may enhance as many cards as you like during your turn.

End of Turn Interval

Your end of turn interval begins when you no longer wish to take further actions in your action interval. Each phase of the end of turn interval must be completed in order. Only miracles may be played during this interval.

If You Have No Domains in Play. If it is not your first turn of the game, and you have no domains in play at the beginning of your end of turn interval, each of your opponents immediately gains one tau.

Discard Phase. At your option, you may discard one or more cards from your hand. Any number of these cards may be discarded into your archive or oblivion piles so long as they meet the discard requirements described in the section "Setting Things Up."

A Note About Hand Size. Your hand may not exceed seven cards at the end of your discard phase. If an effect caused you to draw cards during your turn and your hand has more than seven cards in it at the beginning of your discard phase, you must discard down to seven cards, then skip your Draw phase.

Draw Phase. Draw cards from your archive or deck until you hold seven cards in your hand. You may draw cards from any of the two available piles according to the restrictions listed below. You must perform your archive draw before you draw from your deck. If at any time you are required to draw cards from your deck and have no cards available to draw, you forfeit the game.

• Drawing from your Archive. At your option, you may examine the cards in your archive and choose one card to draw into your hand.
• Drawing from your Deck. Draw one or more cards from the top of your deck until you hold seven cards in your hand. If at any time you are required to draw cards from your deck and have no cards available to draw, you forfeit the game.

Repair Damage Phase. Any characters or locations damaged but not killed this turn "shrug off" their damage and are considered to have their full defensive value again.

About the Matrix

Utilizing your Matrix efficiently is one of the keys to winning in Heresy. The following sections detail specific rules about the Matrix.

Virtual Support

As mentioned earlier, the post-Ruin Matrix is an inherently unstable place that requires constant support to keep it from decaying. In game terms, this technological aid is provided through "virtual support." Every array and character within your Matrix requires that one point of virtual support be available at all times to it to prevent it from crashing. Many cards such as domains and characters provide virtual support, either as an innate value listed in the "VS" block on the card or as part of their special abilities. The total amount of virtual support provided by your cards is represented by your virtual support pool, which is easily kept track of by keeping a pile of tokens off to the side of your territory, one for each point of virtual support provided by cards you have in play. You don't actually spend any of these tokens-they simply provide a quick visual reference to see how many characters and arrays you can support in your Matrix.

When you bring cards into play in your Wilds, look to see if they provide virtual support, either noted in the "VS" value block on the left side of the card, or as a special ability. If they do, add the appropriate number of tokens to your virtual support pool. Any cards providing virtual support continue to provide support regardless of whether they are open or ready. Virtual support is not provided when cards are stricken. As explained above in "Jacking In," any character with a body in play that normally adds to your virtual support pool continues to do so as long as the body remains in play. If the body is removed from play while the character is still in the Matrix, you must remove tokens from your pool equal to the amount of virtual support the character normally provides.

Example. Mike has the domain "Vatican Arcology" already in play, with the Host "Rimmon" attached to it. Vatican Arcology has a "VS" (virtual support) value of 2, but Rimmon does not provide any virtual support, so Mike has 2 tokens in his virtual support pool. During Mike's turn he builds another domain, "Biodome" with a VS value of 1. He adds 1 token to his virtual support pool, bringing his total virtual support to 3. Mike can now support up to 3 arrays and/or characters in his Matrix. Seeing that he can easily support it, Mike decides to build the array "Kiev Grid" in his Matrix. He also decides to jack in Rimmon and attach him to Kiev Grid, leaving Rimmon's body token attached to Vatican Arcology. Kiev Grid and Rimmon now require 1 point of virtual support each, and Mike has 3 in his pool, so their support requirements are met. Mike would be able to bring 1 more array or character into his Matrix with the virtual support he currently has.

Monitoring Virtual Support (Support Checks). At all times during the game you must monitor your virtual support. To perform a "support check," compare the number of tokens in your virtual support pool to the number of arrays and characters in your Matrix. For each array and character in your Matrix you must possess one token in your virtual support pool. If you ever find that you do not have enough virtual support, you must crash cards from your Matrix until you do have enough. It is useful to conduct support checks periodically, especially when you build locations, call characters, jack in, jack out or netwalk. Additionally, you should perform support checks whenever one of your Wilds characters or domains becomes stricken or obliterated. Your opponents may request a support check at any time.

Crashes

Whenever the number of arrays and characters in your Matrix exceeds the number of tokens in your virtual support pool, you must crash characters or arrays in your Matrix until your virtual support is sufficient. Depending on the types of cards in your Matrix, you may crash either arrays or characters, the choice is yours. If the crashed card is an array, you must obliterate it as well as any cards, or tau attached to it. Crashed Matrix characters are immediately ripped, as explained below.

Getting Ripped

Occasionally, a character will be forced out of the Matrix against its will, most often as a result of Matrix combat or crashes. This is called getting "ripped."

Ripped Characters With Bodies in Play. When a character with a body in play is ripped, it is immediately stricken and attached to the domain where its body resides. All enhancements attached to the ripped character are obliterated. The body is removed from play and any enhancements attached to the body are now attached to the stricken character card.

Ripped Characters Without Bodies in Play. When a character without a body in play is ripped, it is obliterated, along with any enhancements or alephs attached to it.

Example. Let's use the virtual support example we were using above. Mike has Vatican Arcology (with Rimmon's body attached to it) and in his Wilds, providing a total of 3 points of virtual support. He also has Kiev Grid and Rimmon in his Matrix, which require a total of 2 points of virtual support. Samantha attacks Mike's Vatican Arcology and obliterates it, and as a consequence obliterates Rimmon's body. Mike immediately loses the 2 points of virtual support Vatican Arcology provided, taking his total virtual support available down to 1. He performs a support check and sees that he can only support one character or array in his Matrix. Unfortunately, he has both Kiev Grid and Rimmon in his Matrix, each of which require one point of virtual support. Since he can't support both of them, Mike must now crash one of the two cards. He realizes that if he crashes Kiev Grid, he would also lose Rimmon, so he decides to crash Rimmon. Crashing Rimmon rips him, but since Rimmon's body was obliterated along with Vatican Arcology, he is obliterated. Mike's virtual support pool of 1 point can now support the one card (Kiev Grid) Mike still has in his Matrix.

Timing of Effects

Anytime someone does anything in the game it's called "generating an effect." Examples of effects include calling cards from your hand, opening cards, using a card's special ability, moving, jacking in or out, scrambling, declaring an attack, intervening, declaring a defense; in short, any action that players take in the game is considered an effect. Determining what happens as a result of generating a certain effect is called "resolving" the effect.

Anytime any player takes an action that generates an effect, all other players may respond by taking actions that generate effects of their own. These effects may generate other effects, which in turn may generate other effects, and so on. With all these effects flying around, figuring out whose effects resolve first can sometimes become a little confusing. That's where the timing rules come into play.

We've come up with a little rhyme to help you remember which effects get resolved in what order. "First called, last resolved" means that effects are resolved in the opposite order from which they are generated (note that the word "called" in "first called" really refers to the generation of an effect, whether generating the effect involved actually calling a card from your hand or the effect was generated by other means, such as activating a special ability).

Once a player generates an effect, nothing can stop that effect from being resolved (regardless of when it is actually resolved), unless an effect specifically states that it counters another effect. If an effect counters another effect, the player that generated the countered effect suffers all costs involved in generating the effect (i.e. calling a card, or paying a special ability's activation cost), but the effect itself is not resolved. Similarly, if the target of an effect disappears before the effect resolves, then the effect does not resolve, but the player generating the effect still suffers all costs involved with generating it.

Example. Samantha generates an effect by opening her Grigori to use their special ability, which is to inflict one point of damage on any character. She declares Mike's Doppelganger as the target of the effect. Mike's Doppelganger has a defense value of 1, so the Grigori will probably kill it. In response to Samantha's effect, Mike calls the miracle "Boomerang" which allows him to pull the Doppelganger back into his hand. Samantha and Mike both decide that they're done generating effects, so they resolve the effects they've generated. Mike's Boomerang was the last effect generated, so it resolves first, and the Doppelganger is pulled back into Mike's hand. This leaves Samantha's Grigori with no target for their damage, so their effect does not resolve, and they remain open.

Resolving Simultaneously Generated Effects. Sometimes two or more players will attempt to generate effects at the same time. If this happens, then the simultaneously generated effects are resolved beginning with the player whose turn it is, and proceeding clockwise around the table.

Reactions

Reactions are special actions you may perform during any player's turn, and are often played in response to actions taken by an opponent. There are three basic types of reactions: miracles, opening domains or arrays, and scrambles. All reactions are subject to the timing guidelines listed below in the section "Timing of Effects."

Miracles

Miracles can be either miracle cards you call or special abilities that may be played as miracles. Miracles may be played at any time, either during your own turn or during an opponent's. Miracles allow you to prevent or react to your opponents' actions by initiating spontaneous effects, either by calling a miracle card or by activating a card's special ability. Not all special abilities may be played as miracles. If a card's special ability can be played as a miracle it will say "this ability may be played as a miracle" in the card's special ability text.

Opening Domains and Arrays

If a card requires that you spend aura to activate its special ability or call it, you may open any domains that provide aura to do so, even during your opponent's turn. Similarly, if you need to spend or store tau during another player's turn, you may open any ready arrays to store or spend it. Opening a domain or array to access it's aura or tau is something you can do at any time and is not subject to timing rules. However, opening a domain or any array to activate its special ability and generate an effect is subject to the timing rules, just like opening a character to activate its special ability.

Scrambles

As a reaction to an effect or an attack that targets a location, a player may move ready characters to either include them as defenders or to flee to another location. Because of the difference in geographical realities of the Wilds and Matrix, scrambles are handled differently depending upon the area of play in which they occur. Scrambling will not allow characters to evade effects or actions that target them directly, only to avoid those actions or effects that target the locations to which they are attached.

An Important Note About Scrambles during Combat. A character may only scramble during combat after an attack has been declared but before a defense is declared. Characters may not scramble at any other time during combat.

Wilds Scramble. As a reaction to an effect or attack targeting a domain, players may scramble any number of ready characters off a domain by opening the characters and attaching them to another domain they control. Wilds characters may not be scrambled onto a domain that is being attacked or targeted by an effect. Remember, a character performing a Wilds scramble must be in the ready position to do so.

Example. Mike has in play an Arcology and a Seafloor Metroplex, to which is attached a Fixer. Mike's Seafloor Metroplex is under attack from Samantha's characters. Mike realizes that his Seafloor Metroplex and Fixer are hopelessly outgunned, and that if the Fixer and the Seafloor Metroplex stick around for combat resolution he's going to lose them both. Mike wisely decides to save the Fixer's bacon and opens him to scramble him over to the Arcology. Samantha's attack now advances against the Seafloor Metroplex, but the Fixer is safe.

Matrix Scramble. As a reaction to an effect or attack targeting an array, players may scramble any number of ready characters in the Matrix by opening their cards and either moving them onto a defending array, or moving them off a defending array to another array they control. Players may not scramble characters onto an array to allow them to participate in the attack.

Example. Samantha has in play the arrays Arena and Euroreach. Attached to Arena is Kushiel and attached to Euroreach is Hemah. Both characters are ready. Mike decides to attack Euroreach, and opens characters to do so. Samantha decides that Hemah will not fare well defending on her own, so she opens Kushiel to scramble him from Arena onto Euroreach to help defend it.

Conflict

Conflicts in Heresy are divided into two basic forms: combat (either Matrix combat or Wilds combat) and challenges. Combat pits your characters against an opponent's locations and all the characters attached to them. Challenges allow Hosts to engage in single combat with other Hosts for the purposes of settling grudges or stealing titles. During your action interval you may engage in up to two conflicts of different types per opponent -either one Wilds combat and one Matrix combat, or one Wilds or Matrix combat and one challenge. Combat is explained below, and challenges are explained in the section following combat, entitled "The Aereopagus." Remember, you are never required to engage in conflict, but avoiding conflict considerably lowers your chances of winning.

Example One. It is Mike's turn. Mike can initiate two conflicts per opponent per turn. Since Samantha is his only opponent, during his turn Mike can initiate two conflicts with Samantha. Mike first decides to initiate a Wilds combat by attacking one of Samantha's domains. Once that conflict is resolved, Mike decides to have one of his Hosts challenge one of Samantha's Hosts. Once the challenge is resolved, Mike has no further conflicts available to him, so he cannot initiate a Matrix combat this turn.

Example Two. It is Samantha's turn. Samantha decides to initiate a Matrix combat by attacking one of Mike's arrays. After the combat is resolved, Samantha realizes she cannot engage in two of the same types of conflict per turn, so her only options are to initiate either a Wilds combat or a challenge, or refrain from conflict for the rest of her turn.

Combat

In Heresy the primary way for you to gain the tau energy you need to win is by attacking your opponent's domains and arrays. It also allows you to undermine an opponent's aura base and virtual support by obliterating domains that provide it. Combat is the most challenging aspect of learning Heresy, but you will need to master combat if you want to win. We begin by presenting a condensed version of the combat rules, called the "quick combat sequence," followed by some rules you need to know that modify combat, finishing with a description of the combat rules proper.

Quick Combat Sequence

Combat is divided into distinct phases; the following outline presents the combat sequence in a concise format for easy reference. Reactions may be played in response to actions taken during any of the steps in the combat sequence.

1. Step 1. Attacker declares either a Wilds or a Matrix attack, names a specific target (either a domain or an array) and opens the characters participating in the attack. Once an attack has been declared, no players may call cards other than miracles until the combat has ended.
2. Step 2. Defender decides to either defend or have one or more Hosts intervene. If the player decides to defend, he or she indicates all cards participating in the defense, but does not open them. All cards attached to the target location (including the location itself) that have not been scrambled off the location must defend. If the player decides to have Hosts intervene (i.e. instead of declaring a defense), he or she opens all Host cards participating in the intervention.
3. Step 3. Resolve the combat and apply damage to cards participating in the combat.
4. Step 4. Killed characters and locations are dealt with, and any tau gained during the combat is awarded and must be stored.

Options That Modify Combat

The following section covers some combat options that affect how combat is handled. Read through them and explore the examples, then move on to the description of combat. After reading the description of combat, you may want to come back and review these combat options.

Joining Hosts During Combat. Combining the strengths of at least two or more Hosts during an attack or an intervention is called joining, and a joined group is known as an assembly. When Hosts join to form an assembly, each Host in the assembly gains +1/+1 to their attack/defense values for the duration of the combat. Any of your ready Hosts may join during combat, even those attached to different locations, with the following restrictions: Hosts may only join with other Hosts located in the same area of play. Hosts may never join when attacking or defending in conjunction with Heathen characters. Conviction, affiliation (celestial or infernal) and rank have no bearing on joining; Hosts of different convictions or ranks can be joined together and celestial Hosts may be joined with infernal Hosts.

To form an assembly of joined Hosts, you must declare one Host as the assembly leader. A number of Hosts equal to the leader's current free will value may join with the leader. However, the leader must possess a higher free will value than all the other Hosts in the assembly. This means that two Hosts with the same free will cannot be joined, unless they have a third Host with a higher free will to act as their leader.

Example. Samantha has the following Hosts in play, all on different domains in her Wilds: Abdiel (Rebellion conviction, celestial affiliation, Seraph rank, attack/ defense 3/3, Free Will 2), Rabdos (Rebellion conviction, infernal, Principality, 1/2, FW 1), and Los (Evolution conviction, infernal, Archangel, 1/1, FW 1). She decides to join the three of them to attack one of Mike's domains. Abdiel has the highest free will, so he is declared the leader. Since his free will is 2, he can join with up to 2 more Hosts. Since Rabdos and Los have lower free wills than Abdiel they may join with him to create an assembly. Each of the Hosts gains +1/+1 attack/defense, so while they are joined, Abdiel becomes 4/4, Rabdos becomes 2/3, and Los becomes 2/2.

Joining and Heathens. The decision whether to join multiple Hosts affects your ability to include Heathen characters in a combat. Because Hosts are loathe to share their glory with mere Heathens, Hosts cannot join when participating in combat on the same side as Heathens. If multiple Hosts attached to the same location participate in combat with Heathens, all cards may participate in the combat, but the Hosts cannot gain the benefits of joining. Hosts attached to different locations may not attack together unless they are joined.

Example. Samantha has Chromeopaths and Fractal Heresy (both Heathens), and Mephistophiel and Pursan (both Hosts), attached to an Arcology. Samantha also has the Host, Beleth, attached to a Biodome. Samantha could join Mephistophiel, Pursan and Beleth to attack, and they would get the +1/+1 bonus for doing so. Alternatively, she could allow Mephistophiel, Pursan, the Chromeopaths, and the Fractal Heresy to attack together, but Mephistophiel and Pursan would not get the joining bonus because they are attacking with Heathens. Since Beleth is attached to a different location, Beleth would not be allowed to participate in the attack with the Heathens.

Detailed Description of Combat

Declaring an Attack. Characters may attack from domains or arrays, but the attack must target a location of the same type. Attacks always target locations, not the characters on them. All ready characters attached to a single location may participate in the attack. Multiple Hosts attached to different locations within the same area of play may attack together so long as they join to do so. Multiple Hosts attached to a single domain may similarly join to attack as long as Heathen characters attached to the same location are not declared as attack participants.

To conduct an attack, declare a target domain or array, and open the characters participating in the attack. Characters attached to a location from which an attack is declared are never required to participate in the attack, however, you may not add participants to combat once the attack has been declared. The location from which the attack is launched may not be declared as a participant in the attack, nor is it affected during combat resolution.

Remember, you may not use Hosts from different locations if Heathens are participating in the attack. You may open Hosts attached to different locations in the same area of play so long as they are able to join in an assembly, but again, no Heathens may participate in this attack. Once you have finished opening cards to include them in the attack, you have concluded your attack declaration.

Example. Samantha decides to attack Mike's Arcology. Samantha has Chromeopaths, Gaians and Gabriel attached to the Arizona Free Zone. Samantha declares her attack by opening the Gaians and Gabriel, but decides not to include the Chromeopaths. Since the Chromeopaths weren't declared as attackers they can't be added to the attack later, nor will they be affected during combat resolution.

Reacting During Combat. After an attack is declared no cards except miracles may be called. Miracles may be played and reactions such as scrambling may occur only during the specific periods allowed in the combat sequence. The first reaction phase of the combat sequence occurs after the attack has been declared and begins with the defender. At his time, the defender may scramble any characters capable of doing so. The defender may not scramble characters after they declare a defense. After a defense or intervention is declared, reactions may be played beginning with the attacker. During the reaction phases of the combat sequence, either player may play miracles, or scramble from one location to another location in the same area of play. To scramble characters, you must be able to meet the scramble requirements listed in the "Reactions" section of the rules.

Declaring an Intervention. After the attack has been declared, the defender may deploy his ready Hosts to intervene during the attack, negating the attack against the target location by offering the intervening Host(s) as an alternate and irresistible target. In the same way that multiple Hosts can attack, multiple Hosts within the same area of play may be used to intervene if they are joined, even if they are attached to different locations, as long as they are in the same area of play; i.e. only ready Hosts in the Wilds may intervene during Wilds attacks, and only ready Hosts in the Matrix may intervene during Matrix attacks. Heathens may not participate in interventions, and an intervention may not be declared in response to a challenge.

To intervene, declare which of your Hosts are participating and open them. Once the intervening Hosts have been assigned, combat proceeds as normal with the intervening Hosts considered to be the new target of the attack. During resolution, the target location will not take damage (nor can it inflict damage), and the intervening Hosts will take all the damage on themselves.

Example One. Samantha has opened Gabriel and the Gaians and declared a Wilds attack on Mike's Arcology. Mike looks at his defense options. His Arcology has no characters attached to it, and Gabriel and the Gaians could inflict enough damage on the Arcology to kill it. Mike has two ready Hosts, Nanael and Ithuriel, attached to two other domains. Mike realizes he can join these two Hosts and intervene in Samantha's attack, so he opens both of them and declares them joined, and that they are intervening. The target of the attack shifts from the Arcology to the two joined Hosts and the combat moves on to resolution.

Example Two. Mike has opened Ashmedai and declared a Matrix attack on Samantha's Nile Shard. Samantha has Belphegor attached to Nile Shard in the ready position. She realizes that Ashmedai could kill both Belphegor and Nile Shard if Belphegor simply defends along with Nile Shard so she decides to have Belphegor intervene and opens him to do so. Even though Belphegor is attached to Nile Shard, he can still intervene on its behalf by offering himself as an alternate target for Ashmedai's attack. In this case all damage inflicted by Ashmedai would be applied to Belphegor, and none of it would pass through to Nile Shard. Additionally, since Nile Shard didn't participate in its own defense, it couldn't inflict any damage on Ashmedai.

Declaring a Defense. If the defending player has not declared an intervention, defense of the location is established. Characters attached to the defending location must either participate in defense or scramble to another location. Only ready characters attached to the location have the option of scrambling from a location in reaction to the attack. The location being attacked must always participate in its own defense. Unlike interventions, defending does not open the defending cards, and cards can always defend whether they are open or ready. Stricken cards (including the location itself) may neither defend nor scramble, but they are affected during combat resolution. Multiple Hosts attached to the defending location may join (regardless of whether they are ready or open), but only if there are no Heathens attached to the location (because all cards attached to a defending location must participate in defense, and Hosts can't join when participating in combat with Heathens).

To declare a defense, indicate which cards attached to the location are participating in its defense (in addition to the location itself), but do not open the cards.

Example One. Samantha has declared a Matrix attack on Mike's Euroreach. Mike has decided not to intervene. He has three characters attached to his Euroreach: Arthur Glaston (open), Fixer (ready), and Cyberzealot (open). He decides to scramble the Fixer to his Osaka Expanse, and opens him to move him to the new location. Arthur Glaston and the Cyberzealot must stick around to defend Euroreach since they are open and can't scramble. Euroreach must participate in it's own defense, but during combat resolution gets to inflict damage on Samantha's attacking characters.

Example Two. Later that same turn, Samantha declares a Wilds attack on Mike's Biodome. Mike has the following cards attached to his Biodome: Fanatics (Heathen, open), Oracle (Heathen, ready), Lilith (Host, ready), and Arioch (Host, open). Mike opens the Oracle to scramble it to another domain, then declares his defense, which includes the Fanatics, Lilith, Arioch and the Biodome. Mike wishes he could join Lilith and Arioch, but he can't because the Fanatics, Lilith and Arioch are still attached to the Biodome, and all cards attached to a location once defense has been declared must defend, and Hosts can't join if they participate in combat with Heathens.

Defending Arrays Enhanced with IC. IC is shorthand for "Intrusion Countermeasures." IC programs are enhancements that protect your arrays from attacks by hostile forces looking to steal the tau stored on them. When IC enhancements are attached to a defending array they are always played face-down. If the array is attacked, the defender must turn the IC face-up the beginning of the combat resolution phase. If the attacker's total attack value is greater than the defense value listed on the IC, then the IC is ignored and turned face-down again, and combat resolution occurs in the normal fashion. If the attacker's combat total is equal to or less than the defense value of the IC enhancement, then none of the attacking characters may inflict damage on any of the defending cards attached to the array, and the special ability described on the IC card takes effect. At the end of the combat, if the IC is still attached to the array it is turned face-down again.

Example One. Mike has Titania Perimeter in his Matrix, enhanced with Headhunter, an IC enhancement. Samantha doesn't know the IC is Headhunter since it came into play face-down. Samantha attacks Titania Perimeter with her Fanatics (attack/defense 1/2), and her Outmodes (2/2). Mike declares his defense, and they move on to combat resolution. Mike first turns his IC face-up, revealing it to Samantha. Samantha groans, seeing that the IC is Headhunter. Headhunter's defense value is 3, enough to stop the Fanatics and the Outmodes. Since the Fanatics' and the Outmodes' combined attack values were only equal to, not greater than, the defense value of Headhunter, Headhunter's special ability is brought to bear on the two hapless characters, and the attack is ended. After Samantha has paid the price for her foolish attack, Headhunter is once again turned face-down and left attached to Titania Perimeter.

Example Two. During Samantha's next turn, Mike still has Headhunter attached to his Titania Perimeter. This time Samantha knows what she is up against and attacks with her Corporate AI (5/4). Mike declares his defense, and they move on to combat resolution. Headhunter is again turned face-up and the Corporate AI's attack value is compared to Headhunter's defense value. The Corporate AI easily overcomes Headhunter, so it can ignore the IC and continue it's attack against Titania Perimeter. Headhunter is returned to it's face-down position to await another attack.

Combat Resolution. During combat resolution, damage is tallied and distributed among the participants. Both players total the attack values on their participating cards, taking into account any modifiers provided by enhancements, alephs, joining and so on. The sum of the attack values is called the "combat total." The combat total represents the number of damage points that you may assign to opposing cards.

Both players now simultaneously distribute their combat total as damage points among the opposing cards participating in the combat. Players may inflict as many or as few damage points from their combat total as they wish on a single target, but damage points must be distributed among characters first, then on participating locations. Since locations may only participate in defense, only the attacking player will be able to inflict damage points on a location. The player inflicting the damage decides which cards take damage and how much. Each character or location that receives damage points equal to or greater than their defense value is said to have been "killed." You may apply more damage to a card that it's defense value.

Example. Samantha attacks Mike's Arcology (3/3) with her Jurors (3/2) and her Zoners (2/3). Mike has Rabdos (1/2) attached to and defending his Arcology. They both add up their attack values and arrive at their combat totals; Samantha's combat total is 5, while Mike's is 4. Both players now simultaneously apply their combat total to their opponent's participating cards. Mike decides to inflict 2 of his 4 damage points on the Jurors, killing them. The remaining 2 points are applied to the Zoners, but that's not enough to kill them, so they survive. Samantha inflicts 2 of her 5 points on Rabdos, which she must do before she applies any damage to the Arcology. Rabdos is killed, so the remaining 3 points are inflicted on the Arcology, killing it also.

Killed Characters. Killed characters are dealt with differently according to the area of play they occupy when they are killed, as described hereafter.

• Characters Killed in Wilds Combat. Characters killed in Wilds combat are obliterated. All cards attached to killed characters are obliterated.
• Characters Killed in Matrix Combat. Characters killed Matrix combat are ripped. Refer to the section "Getting Ripped" for more information.
• Damaged Characters Who Are Not Killed. Characters who do not take damage enough to kill them "shrug off" their damage at the end of every turn, and can count on their full defense value again immediately thereafter.

Killed Locations. If a location is killed (i.e. a defending location, since locations can't attack), the attacker has different options of how to deal with it according to the following conditions.

Killed Domains. A player killing a domain gains tau equal to the defense value of the domain. However, rather than taking the tau, the attacker has the option of obliterating the domain. The attacker cannot both claim tau and obliterate the domain.

Example. In the previous example, Samantha inflicted 3 points of damage on Mike's Arcology, which has a defense value of 3. Since Samantha has killed the Arcology, she may either obliterate it, or claim a 3 points of tau. Samantha decides to take the 3 tau points, and leaves the Arcology as it is.

A Note About Stricken Domains. There are cards in Heresy that allow you to strike domains. A stricken domain is considered to have an effective defense value of zero, so any damage applied to the domain automatically obliterates it. Remember, if you kill a domain you may either obliterate it or gain tau equal to its defense value. Since a stricken domain's defense is effectively zero, you would get zero tau as an award, so you should obviously obliterate the domain if it is already stricken.

Note, however, that striking a domain is not the same as killing it. If you were to have a card that inflicted enough damage directly on a domain to lower it's defense to zero (regardless of it's orientation) then you would have killed the domain and could either obliterate it or gain tau equal to it's defense value. Simply striking a domain does not kill it, though any damage applied to it while it is stricken will kill it.

Obliterated Domains. If a domain is obliterated as a result of combat, all of its attached enhancements and alephs are obliterated as well. Because characters attached to a domain during combat must suffer damage first, they are almost always killed before the domain itself is obliterated. If for some reason characters are still attached to the domain when it is obliterated, and the characters can't scramble to another domain, then the characters (and all of their attached alephs and enhancements) are also obliterated.

Killed Arrays. Dealing with killed arrays is a little different than killed domains because arrays store tau. A player killing an array may take tau from the array equal to the number of points of damage inflicted directly on the array, or the amount of tau stored on it, whichever is smaller. The array itself is unaffected as long as it had tau on it when the combat began. This is true regardless of whether the array is stricken, open, or ready. However, since stricken arrays have an effective defense value of zero, like stricken domains, any damage applied to a stricken array will automatically kill it. If an array has no tau on it at the beginning combat and is then killed during combat resolution, it is immediately discarded to it's owner's archive.

Example. Mike's Excalibur Megatrust has a defense value of 3, and there are 4 tau stored on it. Samantha attacks it and manages to inflict 5 points of damage directly on Excalibur Megatrust. The array has been killed, so Samantha could removes up to 5 points of tau from Excalibur Megatrust for herself, but since there was only 4 tau on it at the start of combat, she can only claim 4 tau. She can't send the array to Mike's Archive because the array had tau on it at the beginning of the combat).

During the next turn, Samantha attacks Excalibur Megatrust again, but this time it has no tau on it. Samantha inflicts 3 points of damage and again kills the array. This time it is removed from play and put in Mike's archive.

The Aereopagus

(A Convocation of the Fallen)

The Aereopagus is the vestigial political body which upholds the traditions and laws of the eternal One City, now lost to the Hosts since the Ruin. There are two events that automatically convene the Aereopagus: challenges and the revocation of titles. When either of these events takes place, all ready Hosts in play (controlled by all players) may attend the Aereopagus and cast votes. The Hosts aren't actually moved from the locations to which they are attached, but remain where they are. We begin by outlining the actual voting process, followed by a detailed section describing each event that requires Aereopagus voting.

A Quick Summary of Aereopagus Voting

1. Step 1. The Aereopagus is convened. Once the Aereopagus has convened, no cards other than miracles may be called. Miracles may be played in response to actions taken during any step in the voting process.
2. Step 2. Presentation phase. All ready Hosts in play may cast votes equal to their Aereopagus votes value. Votes may be cast for either of the players involved in the event which convened the Aereopagus, votes may be witheld by "abstaining."
3. Step 3. Execution phase. Beginning with the player whose actions convened the Aereopagus, and continuing clockwise around the table, ready Hosts may be opened to cast votes equal to their free will value. During this phase, reactions may be played after each player's turn to vote.
4. Step 4. Tally phase. Tally all the votes and apply the results.

The Process of Aereopagus Voting

When the Aereopagus is convened, all ready Hosts controlled by all players are eligible to vote. Voting proceeds as a three step process consisting of presentation, execution and tally. What each vote represents is described in the sections outlining the events that require voting. Votes cast by a single Host may be cast any way you wish, but all votes cast by a single Host must be the same. All Hosts controlled by a single player vote independently and do not have to agree with one another.

Presentation Phase. The first phase of voting. During the presentation, a player casts from zero to three votes for each ready Host they control, depending upon the Aereopagus votes value of the Host. This part of the vote does not open the Hosts, and every ready Host in play casts its votes during this phase.

Execution Phase. Following the presentation phase is the execution phase. Hosts may cast additional votes based on their free will value during this phase. Beginning with the player whose actions convened the Aereopagus, and continuing clockwise around the table, players may open Hosts cast a number of additional votes equal to the Hosts' free will values. During this phase, a player may open as many Hosts as they like during their turn to vote. If a player wishes, they can "pass" by not opening any Hosts (a player with no ready Hosts must pass). This continues clockwise around the table until all players pass in succession.

Tally Phase. Total the final votes during the tally phase and apply the results. During Aereopagus voting, miracles can be played before any of the three steps, beginning with the player whose action convened the Aereopagus.

Challenges

Once per turn, any one of your ready Hosts may issue a challenge to a specific Host controlled by an opponent located within the same area of play (i.e. Hosts in the Matrix may only challenge other Hosts in the Matrix, Hosts in the Wilds may only challenge other Hosts in the Wilds). The object of the challenge may be one of two things: either to obliterate another Host or to dispute a title enhancement attached to another Host.

To issue a challenge, open the Host issuing the challenge and declare which of your opponent's Hosts is being challenged as well as the intent of the challenge. A Host need not be ready to accept a challenge, but you may not issue a challenge to a Host that is stricken. The challenged Host can decline the challenge. However, declining a challenge implies disgrace and carries with it a penalty: The declining Host is stricken and the challenger gains tau equal to the free will of the declining Host. It is considered bad form among the Hierarchy for a member of the Host to challenge another member of the same conviction. If a Host ignores this etiquette of the Crucible, it is stricken once the challenge ends, assuming that it survives the ordeal.

If the opposing Host accepts the challenge, its card is opened (if it is not already open) and the two members enter the Crucible to engage in combat. The characters aren't actually moved from where they are attached, but both are opened. Like regular combat, reactions are allowed during a challenge, but no other types of cards may be played once the challenge has been issued. Since a challenge targets a Host directly, not the location to which it is attached, a Host may not scramble to avoid a challenge. Enhancements already attached to the combatants may be used if they provide continuous abilities or abilities that may be played as miracles.

Challenge Resolution

Once a challenge is accepted, the Aereopagus immediately convenes and any ready Hosts controlled by all players cast votes for one of the contestants or "abstain" from voting. Voting follows normal Aereopagus voting rules. When all votes are tallied each player secretly divides all voting points they gain between their Host's attack and defense values. After each player has assigned all of their points, they simultaneously reveal their Hosts' final attack and defense values and proceed to resolution.

Resolving a Challenge to Obliterate a Host. If the intent of the challenge was to obliterate, either Host killed as a result of the conflict is obliterated. If neither Host is killed then both Hosts survive and remain open. In either case the challenge is ended.

Resolving a Challenge to Dispute a Title. If the challenger "kills" the challenged Host, the challenged Host is stricken, and the title is removed from the challenged Host and attached to the challenger. If the challenger is "killed" and the challenged Host is not, then the challenger is stricken, and the challenged Host retains the title. If both Hosts are "killed" the title is obliterated and both Hosts are stricken. If neither Host is "killed" both Hosts are left in the open position, and the challenged Host retains the title.

Example One. Mike has had enough of Samantha's Host, Dubiel (2/2, free will value: 2), and decides to have his own Host, Phorlakh (2/2) challenge Dubiel to a fight to the death. He opens Phorlakh and issues the challenge to Dubiel. Samantha looks at the other ready Hosts Mike has in play, then at her own ready Hosts. She does a little mental math, and decides she won't be able to out-vote Mike, and that Dubiel is toast if he accepts, so she declines the challenge, striking Dubiel. Mike immediately gains 2 tau points, an amount equal to Dubiel's free will value.

Example Two. Samantha enhances Dubiel (2/2) with the title "Chief of the Planets." Mike decides he'd like to have that title for his own Host, Phorlakh (2/2). He opens Phorlakh and issues the challenge. Samantha thinks she can out-vote Mike this time, and accepts the challenge, opening Dubiel. The Aereopagus is convened, and both Mike and Samantha's ready Hosts can now vote in the presentation phase of Aereopagus voting. Mike has the following ready hosts in play: Sabrael (Aereopagus votes value: 2, free will value: 4), and Sithriel (AV: 2, FW: 3). Mike casts Sabrael and Sithriel's AV values as votes for Phorlakh, bringing his current total of votes to 4. Samantha has the following ready Hosts in play: Ashmedai (AV: 1, FW: 4), and Namaah (AV: 1, FW: 1). Samantha casts Ashmedai and Namaah's AV votes for Dubiel, bring her current vote total to 2. They then move on to the execution phase. Mike sees that he could beat Samantha with the votes he already has. He decides to pass on execution phase voting, thinking that by doing so he will force Samantha to open Ashmedai to cast his FW votes. True to form, Samantha opens Ashmedai to cast his 4 FW votes, bringing her total votes to 6. Mike knows that he can out-vote Samantha, and opens Sabrael to cast her 4 FW votes, bringing his total votes to 8. Samantha responds by passing, and Mike grins smugly. He passes as well, and since both players have passed in succession, the execution phase is finished. However, before they can move on to the tally phase, Samantha calls the miracle "Subterfuge" which negates all votes cast thus far by one Host, naming Sabrael as the target (who has cast a total of 6 votes so far) . Mike's grin fades away as he watches his total votes plummet from 8 to 2. They move on to the tally phase. Mike secretly assigns his 2 remaining votes to Phorlakh's defense value, making Phorlakh 2/4. Samantha secretly assigns her 2 of her votes to Dubiel's attack value, leaving her 4 votes to assign to Dubiel's defense value, making him 4/6. Both players reveal their Host's final attack/defense scores and exchange damage. Phorlakh takes 4 points of damage from Dubiel, "killing" him. Dubiel easily absorbs the 2 points of damage Phorlakh inflicts. Since Phorlakh was "killed" while disputing a title, he is stricken, but since Dubiel was not "killed" he retains the title and is left in the open position.

Investiture & Revocation of Titles

Whenever you enhance a Host with a title enhancement, the act is called "investiture." As long as the title is not held by another Host in play, investiture proceeds as a normal enhancement action. But, if the title is currently held by another Host, you may attempt to "revoke" the title and bestow it on one of your own Hosts.

To revoke a title, you must pay the call value of the title in your hand and attach it to the Host on whom you wish to invest it. The Aereopagus is immediately convened. During the voting process, players may either abstain or vote for one of the two contestants.

• If the player trying to revoke the title wins the vote, he or she may attach their title card to their Host. The loser obliterates their title.
• If the player trying to revoke the title loses the vote, they still suffer all costs involved with calling the title, and the contested title goes back into their hand. The winner keeps their title attached to their Host.
• In the case of a tie, the challenger obliterates their title, and suffers all costs involved with calling it.

Special Abilities

Netwalking and Blitz

These two character special abilities are more common than others found on the individual cards in Heresy, and as such require an extra bit of explanation. They will often be found as innate abilities noted directly in the character's text area, or as modifications added to the characters in the form of enhancements.

Netwalking

Some characters have the ability to project themselves directly into the Matrix without jacking in. This is called "netwalking," and a character able to do this is referred to as a "netwalker" and will have "netwalk" listed as a special ability. During conflicts, netwalkers gain certain benefits and must obey certain restrictions as detailed here.

Calling Netwalkers. Netwalkers have no innate sense of "reality" as we understand it, and as such consider the Matrix and the Wilds to be one and the same. To reflect his, when calling a netwalker into play, you may place it on any location you control, either in your Matrix or in your Wilds.

Netwalking from the Wilds into the Matrix. To netwalk from a domain to an array, open the netwalker and attach it in the open position to any array you control. Obliterate any enhancements attached to the netwalker that say "enhance Wilds character." Netwalkers may not jack in, and do not leave bodies behind when netwalking.

Netwalking from the Matrix into the Wilds. To netwalk from an array to a domain, open the netwalker and place it on any domain. Discard to your archive any enhancements attached to the netwalker that say "enhance Matrix character."

Netwalkers and Virtual Support. Like other characters in your Matrix, netwalkers require one point of virtual support apiece. However, since a netwalker does not leave a body behind, you lose any virtual support the netwalker contributes to your pool as soon as the netwalker enters your Matrix. You may add the virtual support back into your pool as soon as the netwalker exits the Matrix. If a netwalker is placed in your Matrix when called, it may not add its virtual support to your pool until it has exited the Matrix.

Netwalkers in Conflict. Netwalkers may initiate attacks against locations in any area of play regardless of their own location, but characters without netwalk may not participate in the attack if it targets a location in a different area of play. Netwalkers do not suffer this restriction when initiating attacks within the same area of play. Netwalking Hosts are able to intervene during any attack, regardless of their own location. Netwalking Hosts may challenge other Hosts in any area of play.

When a netwalker attacks or challenges a target, it is considered to be in the same area of play as the target for the duration of the conflict. Thus if a netwalker is ripped while attacking an array from the Wilds, it is obliterated (technically it is a Matrix character for the duration of the combat, and does not have a body in play). If a netwalker attacks a domain from the Matrix and is subsequently killed, it is also obliterated (technically the netwalker is considered a Wilds character for the duration of combat).

Joining Netwalking Hosts. Hosts with netwalk may join with other Hosts, but unless all Hosts in the assembly have netwalk, the ability is ignored.

Blitz

If a character can blitz, it will have the word "blitz" listed in its special ability. Characters with blitz inflict their damage first during combat resolution. They must still inflict damage on characters first, then locations, but they have the opportunity to remove opposing characters from play before they themselves take damage.

Example One. Samantha attacks Mike's domain, Rim (3/2), with Raguel (2/3), who has blitz. Mike cannot intervene and has no defending characters attached to Rim, so the domain must defend by itself. They move onto resolution. Since Raguel has blitz, he inflicts his damage first, doing 2 points to the Rim killing it. Since the Rim was killed it could not return damage, so Raguel survives, and Samantha gains 2 tau, and Rim is left standing.

Example Two. On her following turn, Samantha again attacks Mike's Rim (3/2) with Raguel (2/3, blitz), a Fixer (1/2), and Usiel (1/1). Mike has Nanael (2/2) attached to his Rim, and defends. During resolution, Raguel blitzes 2 points of damage onto Nanael, killing her. Then Mike's Rim and Samantha's characters (the Fixer, and Usiel) all inflict damage on one another simultaneously. Mike has had it up to here with that blitzer, and inflicts all 3 of Rim's available damage points on Raguel, killing him. The Fixer and Usiel inflict a total of 2 points on Mike's Rim, killing it again. This time Samantha is not so kind, and forgoes gaining tau to obliterate Rim.

Joining Hosts with Blitz. Hosts with blitz may join with other Hosts, but unless all Hosts in the assembly have blitz, the ability is ignored.

Heresy Q & A

If I am attacking with an assembly of joined Hosts and the leader of the assembly is removed from the combat before resolution, do the rest of the Hosts still gain the +1/+1 joining bonus?

Absolutely. Once participants in an attack have been declared, nothing can stop them from resolving the combat, leader or no leader. Once the Hosts have been joined, they all get their bonus regardless of whether or not the leader sticks around for resolution.

When I call a character of a particular conviction, do I have to attach it to a location of the same conviction?

No. The conviction of the character does not need to match to the conviction of the cards it is attached to, or that are attached to it.

If I attack my opponent's stricken domain and kill it (a stricken domain has an effective defense of zero, right?), am I required to obliterate it? Could I accept zero points of tau and then just leave it alone?

You are not required to obliterate the domain, so yes, you could accept zero tau.

Is challenging another Host considered an attack? Can cards like Interdict that affect attacking characters be used during a challenge?

Yes, a challenge is considered to be an attack/defense situation when considering the effects of cards that relate to attacking and defending.

My character and my opponent's character both have blitz. During combat, who gets to inflict damage first?

Neither character goes first; they both inflict damage on one another simultaneously, then all other characters or locations involved in the combat inflict their damage.

Glossary

The following glossary contains definitions of many of the terms found in Heresy.

• Aereopagus: The quasi-political voting body of the celestial and infernal Hosts. The Aereopagus convenes to vote during challenges and revocation of titles.
• Aleph: Aleph cards represent magical and technological artifacts that date back to the earliest days of the Earth and the Empyrean.
• Archive: Discard pile where cards of the <<Z>> conviction may be placed during your end of turn interval. Played face down. (Note: the source prints "<>" here as a placeholder; the rules text elsewhere says cards of the Technology conviction are placed in the archive. Transcribed as printed.)
• Array: A location card representing a digital site within your Matrix. Arrays are used primarily to store tau.
• Assembly Leader: The Host in an assembly with the highest free will value. All other Hosts in an assembly must have a free will value lower than that of the assembly leader.
• Assembly: A group of joined Hosts.
• Attack Value: The amount of damage a character or location inflicts when engaged in conflict.
• Aura: The energy that you need to call a card from your hand into play, usually gained by opening domains.
• Blitz. A special ability of some characters that allows them to inflict their damage first during combat resolution.
• Body: The token left attached to an array when a character jacks in to the Matrix.