Hunt: The Unknown Quarry
Hunt: The Unknown Quarry Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
A Note About Cheating
This game works on the honor system; a lot of information is secret during play, and you will probably find many ways that you can cheat without being caught until everyone else compares notes at the end of the game (and maybe not even then). This secrecy is important for the game to work, but cheating can ruin the experience for everyone. Hunt is only recommended for groups of players that can trust each other to play fairly.
By the same token, it is important that all players know the rules, to prevent accidental cheating. You should carefully explain all of the rules before starting. If anyone is uncertain about a rule during play, they are encouraged to check the manual (since asking another player may reveal important information).
Game Components
- 6 Player Screens
- 1 Six-Sided Die
- 6 Character Pawns
- 6 Plastic Stands
- 9 Scratch Sheets
- 6 Energy Cards (Butch Fathom, Caitlin Verdge, Maxine Noblesse, Jessica Sable, Marshal Albion III, Major Thomas Brass)
- 3 Double-Sided Game Boards (1 Upper Floor, 1 Ground Floor, & 1 Basement)
- 36 Item Cards
- 5 Monster Ability Cards (Bite, Wasting, Magic, Resilience, Tireless)
- 3 Standard Action Cards (Spy, Grab, Brawl)
Objective
One player is secretly the monster; that player wins when all the other players have been crippled, allowing the monster to escape. Any of the other players win if they deal the killing blow to the monster.
Icons
Icons shown: Golem, Fairy, Warlock, Vampire, Naga, Revenant, Gorgon, Lich, Spirit, and Werewolf. The rulebook also shows a Human icon, with two variants: Human included (left) or excluded (right) in effect that this symbol is next to.
When you see a human symbol on a card, it means that human players are affected by that listed effect and must do what the effect says. When you see a human-excluded symbol on a card, it means that human players are not affected by the listed effect, and therefore do not perform that effect.
Item Card Anatomy
- Card Title: the name printed at the top of the card (for example, Electrum Hammer).
- Monsters Affected by this card's Effect Text: a ring of monster symbols around the main image of the card. When a symbol is shown, all effect text on the card will affect that monster (and human if the human symbol is present next to the effect text; otherwise the human symbol is displayed next to the effect). Each monster symbol is located in the same space on every card to help the monster player quickly see if the card affects them.
- Card Type: for example, Action Item.
- Effect Text: the die-roll results and their effects. For example, on the "3-4" roll, Humans in addition to the monster symbols above will also take a wound when this card is used on them.
Monster player tip: Be sure to memorize where your monster symbol is located so you can quickly tell if an item affects you. If you take too long it may give you away as the monster player since human players typically do not have to look for much on a card.
Set-Up
Set out the three game boards on the table (one for each floor of the house). Each board has a different layout on each side, so you can play with a different arrangement each game.
Each player takes one of the player pawns, placing it in the Hall (ground floor), and the corresponding energy card, placing it face-up in front of them. Put the remaining pawns and energy cards away; you will not use them this game. Each player also takes one scratch sheet and a writing implement for taking notes during the game, and their character's player screen to keep those notes hidden from the other players. Note that energy cards should not be hidden behind the player screen; they should always remain visible to all players.
Separate the remaining cards into three piles: the 3 standard actions (Spy, Grab, and Brawl), the 5 monstrous abilities (Bite, Wasting, Magic, Resilience, and Tireless), and the remaining cards (items).
Shuffle the 5 monstrous cards, and place 2 of them in a pile, face-down. Shuffle the item cards, and then deal out enough piles (of 2 cards each) of item cards so that each player has one pile (including the monstrous pile); e.g., in a 4 player game, you would deal out three piles of item cards, with the fourth pile being the monstrous pile. Then, two players look away while the other players rearrange the piles, and then those players look away while the first two rearrange them again; this ensures that no one knows which pile contains the monstrous cards.
Each player then takes one pile, which forms their starting hand (you can look at your own hand, but do not show it to anyone else). If you took the pile with the monstrous cards, then you are the monster: Those cards represent your abilities, and determine what type of monster you are (consult your player screen). If you took a pile containing item cards, then you are one of the (human) bounty hunters, and those are your starting equipment.
Now, shuffle the remaining 3 monstrous cards together with the remaining item cards (without looking at them!), and deal out a number of cards (face-down) in each room equal to the number printed on the board in that room. Divide any leftover cards between the rooms marked with an asterisk (as evenly as possible).
Finally, choose a player to go first, and give that player the standard action cards (Spy, Grab, and Brawl).
Set-Up Example: the diagram in the rulebook is set up for a 4 player game.
Sequence of Play
Each player takes a turn, proceeding in clockwise order. When your turn ends, you always pass the standard action cards (Spy, Grab, and Brawl) to the next player. Play continues until the victory conditions are fulfilled (either the monster is slain, or all the other players declare they have been crippled).
Actions
On their first turn, the first player is allowed to take one action. The second player can take two actions on their turn, and the third player can take three; from the fourth turn onward, all players are allowed four actions per turn (this helps balance out the advantage of going first). You don't have to use all of your actions for a turn if you do not want to.
A player chooses their actions one at a time, resolving each before selecting the next. Each action can be any of the following (when appropriate):
Move
Move your pawn into any connected room. Two rooms are connected if they touch each other (only along a side, not diagonally) and there is not a solid dark line (wall) between them. Additionally, stairs in a room connect to the room immediately above and/or immediately below them (e.g., the Storeroom in the basement connects directly to the Game Room on the ground floor). Each player spends one move action to move between each floor, therefore you cannot move from the basement to the upper floor (or vice versa) for one action.
The first move of your turn costs an extra action for each other player in the room you are leaving that has harassed you since your previous turn (see Interact, below). For example, if there are four other players in the same room as you, and two of them have harassed you since your last turn, you need to spend 3 actions total to move into a connected room. You can avoid this extra cost by spending your energy on the feint ability (see Energy, below).
Harassment Example: Alice is in the Gardens with Bob, and spends her last action to interact with him. Bob is now considered harassed by Alice. It is now Bob's turn, and if he wanted to move into a connected room, he would have to spend two actions (instead of one) to do so or use the feint ability on his energy card, because Alice has not left the room he occupies. On Bob's next turn, if neither Alice nor any other player harasses him, he can move to a connected room normally for one action.
Search
Look at all of the cards that are face-down in your current room (do not show them to anyone else).
Pick Up
Take an item card from your current room and add it to your hand. You cannot pick up monstrous cards. If picking up an item causes you to have more than 4 cards in your hand (not counting the standard actions), you must immediately drop an item (not a monstrous card!) to get back down to 4 cards; place the dropped item face-down in the room.
Important: You can only pick up items if you have already searched the room on your current turn! After your turn ends, the items are scattered and you have to look around again to find the one you want.
You can pick up multiple items on your turn (after searching the room only once), but each item you pick up is a separate action.
Important Note on Monstrous Cards: Monster cards should never change possession for any reason. This means that you cannot pick up, drop, or steal monster cards at any time during the game.
Interact
You cannot interact with another player on your first TWO turns.
You can perform an action targeting another player in the same room. Declare which player you are targeting, and choose an Action card from your hand (without showing it to anyone), setting the rest of your cards down. The card you choose can be any of the standard actions, but it can also be an item or monstrous card from your hand as long as that card is labeled as an "Action".
Then, roll the die, and compare the result to your selected card. Each action has different effects depending on the number rolled; if a number is not listed on a card, then that card does nothing on that number.
If you are satisfied with the result, then pass your selected card to your target (without letting anyone else see it); that player looks at the card and your die roll to determine the effect, then passes the card back to you and resolves the effect (this may involve passing you cards from their hand or marking down wounds on their scratch sheet).
If you are not satisfied with the number you rolled, you may choose to withdraw your Action card, returning it to your hand without revealing it to anyone. You have still used up one of your actions for the turn, and the card has no effect, but you do not have to show it to anyone.
You can use the same Action card multiple times in a single turn, if you want; each use counts against your actions for the turn.
Any player that you target with an Action card is considered harassed by you, even if you withdraw the card (see Move, above).
Interaction Effect Example: You have the Cold Iron Poker item card in your hand. The monster icons listed on the card are: Warlock, Fairy, and Spirit. This means that this card affects the Warlock, Fairy, and Spirit monsters. You also notice a human symbol on the 3-4 result, which means that if you roll that result and the player you target is one of the three affected monsters or a human, they would take a wound. Conversely, if you rolled a 6 (which has a human-excluded symbol), a human would be immune, but the three listed monster types would still be affected.
Standard and Monstrous Action Cards
Standard Action cards (Brawl, Grab, and Spy) are passed between players as described under Sequence of Play.
- Brawl (Standard Action): 6: Wound (anything). 5: Spend energy or wound (human). 4: Spend energy (anything).
- Grab (Standard Action): 3-4: Spend energy or give any card. 2: Spend energy or give a random card.
- Spy (Standard Action): 5: Spend energy or show any card. 3-4: Spend energy or show a random card. 1-2: Show any card.
Monstrous Action and Ability cards (the five monstrous abilities):
- Bite (Monstrous Action): 6: Two wounds. 3-4: Spend energy or wound.
- Magic (Monstrous Action): 6: Cannot interact next turn. 5: Wound. 4: Spend energy. 3: Cannot move next turn. 2: Give a random card. 1: Show all cards.
- Resilience (Monstrous Reaction): Show to negate any action targeting you with a roll of 1 or 2.
- Tireless (Monstrous Ability): You may recover energy at the end of any of your turns, regardless of what you did during that turn.
- Wasting (Monstrous Action): 6: Wound. 5: Wound and spend energy. 3: Wound and spend energy.
Editor's note on transcription: the Magic card's text layer also contains the word "All" between its effect list and the Resilience card text, not attached to any effect line; it is not transcribed as a rule.
Card Examples
- Stone Totem (Action Item): You have the Stone Totem card in your hand. You see that it affects the Golem, Werewolf, Spirit, Naga, and Warlock. On your turn, you decide to target the player in the same room as you (hoping they are one of the listed monster types) and roll a die. The result is a 4. You pass the Stone Totem to your target, who must show you any of their cards due to Stone Totem's effect if they are any of the 5 listed monster types. Your target (who is secretly a Spirit) selects a card from their hand and shows it to you. You make a note on your scratch sheet of that player's potential monster types.
- Hunter's Bow (Action Item): You are being targeted by another player. They play the Hunter's Bow card on you and roll a 6, instructing you to take two wounds if you are the Vampire, Werewolf, or Gorgon. However, you are a human player, and you see the human-excluded symbol by that effect, so you are not affected by that effect.
- Brawl (Standard Action): On your turn, you play the Brawl card on one of the other players in the same room as you and roll a die. You roll a 5, therefore your target, if human, must spend energy or take a wound. The targeted player reacts to the Brawl card, but the only thing you know is that they did not spend any energy (you do not know whether or not they took a wound). This effect does not affect any monsters, but the monster player (if targeted) could still spend their energy if they wanted their attacker to think they were human.
- Bite (Monstrous Action): You have been targeted by another player, who plays the Bite card on you and has rolled a 4, giving you the choice to spend energy or take a wound. Luckily, you have the Buckler in your hand and show that Reaction card to the other player in order to prevent taking a wound.
Energy
Each character's energy card lists three abilities; the rulebook shows the Caitlin Verdge card as an example. Energy card text: "Rotate to spend once, flip to spend again." "Surge: Add or subtract 1 from the result of a die you rolled." "Adrenaline: Take an extra action." "Feint: Ignore harassing players this turn."
In addition to the actions you are allowed each turn, you can choose to spend your energy for additional effects:
- Surge: You can add or subtract 1 from the result of a die you roll when interacting.
- Adrenaline: You can take an additional action on your turn.
- Feint: You can ignore the effects of being harassed for the rest of your turn.
Energy can also be spent during other players' turns to negate the effects of some actions (as noted on the Action card). Some actions force you to spend energy, if you have any. You are always allowed to spend energy when someone interacts with you, even if the Action card doesn't affect you or does not mention energy.
The first time you spend energy, tilt your energy card sideways; the second time, flip it to its exhausted side. When the card is exhausted, you cannot spend energy (see Spending Energy, below).
You recover your energy (returning the card to its original, face-up position) at the end of your turn if the only actions you took during that turn were to search, pick up items, and use the Spy card. If you move or you interact with any other card during your turn, then you cannot recover energy that turn (even if you withdrew the card after the roll).
Energy cards should always remain visible to all players.
Energy card states: Unspent (face-up); Spent once (tilted sideways); Exhausted (flipped; "Flip at the end of your turn if you do not move or interact (except for spying)").
Effects of Interactions
Each Action card lists the effect that it has for each die result (if a die result is not listed, then that card has no effect on that roll).
Some effects only work on particular types of creatures; the affected types are shown as icons on the top of the card, or listed in parentheses after the effect. If you are not one of the affected creature types, you MAY NOT perform the effect, even if you want to - except that you may always choose to spend energy (even if it is not mentioned by the card).
When Are Humans Affected? When you see a human symbol on a card, it means that human players are affected by that listed effect and must do what the effect says. When you see a human-excluded symbol on a card, it means that human players are not affected by the listed effect, and therefore do not perform that effect.
Secret Information: The cards in your hand and the wounds you have taken are secret. Do not show them to anyone. Your current energy, your location in the house, and your die rolls are all public. You may also count the number of cards in any room of the house at any time (without looking at their fronts).
Show Card
If an Action card instructs you to show a card, then you pass that card to the player who used the action on you (without showing it to anyone else); that player looks at it and passes it back.
If the effect says to show any card, you choose which card you show. If it says to show a random card, the player takes one at random from your hand.
Give Card
Giving a card works like showing a card, except the other player does not have to pass it back (though they still can, if they want to).
If you choose which card to give, you cannot choose a monstrous card, unless all the cards in your hand are monstrous. If you give someone a monstrous card (at random, or because you had no choice), the receiving player must give it back.
If receiving a card puts you over your hand limit (4 cards, not counting standard actions), you must either give the card back or drop a card from your hand (which could be the card you received). Dropped cards are placed face-down in your current room.
Wound
If you suffer a wound, check off one of your "life" boxes on your scratch sheet. See Wounds and Dying, below.
Spending Energy
An Action card may require you to spend energy. This has no effect if your energy card is already flipped to its exhausted side.
Some Action cards list an effect "or spend energy." This means that if you have energy, you may spend it to avoid the effect. You may spend energy to avoid an effect even if you wouldn't be affected anyway. For example, the Brawl standard action card says "Spend energy or wound (human)." If you are the monster, you will not be wounded in any event, but you can still spend energy to try and make the other player think you are a human, if you want.
Reaction Cards
Cards labeled as a "Reaction" can be used to defend yourself from certain interactions (as described on the Reaction card). When the Reaction is relevant, you may show the Reaction card to the player who played an Action card on you instead of resolving the action.
You can use a Reaction even if your species is not affected by the Action being used (e.g., in the example below, Bob could show his Hauberk card even if he is the monster and would not have been wounded in any case).
Reaction Card Example: Alice plays Brawl and rolls a 5, which tells Bob to spend energy or suffer a wound if he is human. Instead, Bob shows Alice his Hauberk card, which prevents a wound if the die roll is a 5.
Buckler (Reaction Item): Show to prevent a wound if the die roll was a 4.
Wounds and Dying
Each time you are wounded, mark off one of your "life" boxes on your scratch sheet. If you are not the monster, you are crippled when you have suffered 3 (or more) wounds. Do not immediately announce this fact; instead, you should declare that you are crippled the next time you suffer a wound (this gives the killer a chance to avoid detection by the other players). You may never declare yourself to be crippled except when required by the rules.
Crippled Example: Alice already has 2 wounds. Bob plays the Bite card on her and rolls a 6, dealing 2 more wounds. Since Alice now has 3 or more wounds, she is crippled, but she does not announce it until the next time she receives 1 or more wounds.
Being crippled is a considerable disadvantage, but it is still possible to win the game. While crippled, you are subject to the following restrictions:
- You may not spend energy (even when it would normally be mandatory to do so).
- You may not move more than 2 spaces per turn (any leftover actions must be spent on something else or they are wasted).
- When interacting, you must withdraw your Action card if you roll a 4, 5, or 6; you can only complete the action if you roll a 1, 2, or 3.
Further wounds inflict no additional penalty on a crippled player.
If all players (besides the monster) have declared that they are crippled, the monster wins the game.
If you are the monster, you are mortally wounded when you have suffered wounds equal to the number of players in the game. When this happens, announce it immediately; then, each other player declares whether they are crippled or not.
If all of the other players are crippled, then the monster wins; the monster is badly hurt, but none of the hunters are strong enough to stop them from escaping.
If at least one other player is not crippled, then the monster is slain, and the player who dealt the last wound to the monster wins. All the other players lose.
Using the Scratch Sheet
You must keep track of your personal life on your scratch sheet. You are the only one who knows how many wounds you have taken! Other than that, you may choose to take (or not take) any notes you wish, but you may find the following recommendations a helpful starting point:
At the top of the sheet, there is a matrix of life boxes for every player/monster combination. When you attack someone with a weapon that only damages certain types of monsters, check off boxes for that player in the columns corresponding to those monsters. When you have checked off as many boxes as the monster's health score (i.e., the number of players in the game), if they have not announced they are dead, then you know they are not that type of monster (see the first example below).
Additionally, if you find any monster cards around the house, you can cross out the columns for all the monsters that use those cards (see the second example below).
At the bottom of the sheet, there is space for you to write down cards you have seen and their locations; this may be useful for remembering the location of an item that you may want to return for later. Each row also has checkboxes for each player; you can use these to keep track of which other players have seen the same card. This may be especially helpful for any monster cards you spot, to keep track of which other players have seen the same clues (see the third example below).
On the back of the rulebook, you will find black and white copies of the game's scratch sheet that you can print out as needed.
First Example: You attack the player to your left with the Clay Sword and roll a 6. On your scratch sheet, you find the row for player 1, and check off two boxes each in the columns for the Golem, Lich, and Fairy monsters.
Second Example: You search the Gardens and see the Tireless card. That means the monster cannot have that card in their hand, so you cross out the Golem, Spirit, Revenant, and Fairy columns on your scratch sheet.
Third Example: You write "Tireless" and "Gardens" in the first row of the bottom section of your scratch sheet. Next turn, the player to your left also searches the Gardens, so you make a tick mark in the first box of that row to remind you that player has also seen the card.
Which Weapon?
Reference table printed on page 2 of the rulebook: for each monster, the item cards that can be used against it, grouped by weapon class. Each class lists the die results that take effect (the rulebook's icons for wound, energy, and show are written out as words).
| To kill a... | Class I: 6: Two wounds; 3-4: Wound; 2: Wound | Class II: 4-6: Spend energy or wound; 1: Wound | Class III: 4-6: Show any card; 2-3: Spend energy or wound |
|---|---|---|---|
| Golem | Aqua Fortis, Clay Sword, Electrum Hammer | Ashen Cane, Lead Chain | Dog, Driftwood Stake, Stone Totem |
| Warlock | Cold Iron Poker, Gold Pin, Rod of Luna | Pine Bough, Steel Dagger | Dog, Silver Knife, Stone Totem |
| Naga | Blessed Scepter, Flint Axe, Gold Pin | Spike, Steel Dagger | Driftwood Stake, Mirror Shard, Stone Totem |
| Gorgon | Aqua Fortis, Hunter's Bow, Rod of Luna | Ashen Cane, Pine Bough | Driftwood Stake, Mirror Shard, Silver Knife |
| Spirit | Aqua Fortis, Cold Iron Poker, Firebrand | Lead Chain, Pine Bough | Iron Nails, Mirror Shard, Stone Totem |