Ragami Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Components
• Objective and End of Game
• Terms Used in the Game
• Board and Setup
• Turn Preparation
• Turn Order and End of Turn
• Action Dice
  • Action: Move a Ragami
  • Action: Move a Saint, and Move or Place a Demon
  • Action: Draw Cards
  • Action: Resolve a Conflict and Use Force Points
• How to Earn PV
• Ways to Obtain White Cubes
• Action Cards
  • Card Explanations
• Rules for 2 and 3 Players
• The Force Die (Optional)

Game Components

• This rulebook
• 1 game board
• 1 large white cube (first player marker)
• 30 white cubes
• 4 cubes marking resolved conflicts, one of each player's colour
• 4 PV markers, one of each player's colour
• 4 Ragami, one of each player's colour
• 4 Saints, one of each player's colour
• 6 Demons
• 30 numbered Location tokens, numbered 1 to 30. The reverse of each token is a "Ragami passage prohibited" token.
• 6 Conflict dice
• 3 Action dice
• 1 Force die
• 4 Virtue dice, one of each player's colour
• 33 Action cards

Objective and End of Game

The player who accumulates the most Virtue Points (PV) wins.

The game ends at the end of the turn in which:

• one of the players reaches 30 PV, OR
• the Location tokens run out.

At the end of that turn, in addition to the PV accumulated during the game, the player who resolved the most conflicts adds 7 PV. The second player with the most resolved conflicts adds 4 PV.

If the total points are tied, the player who resolved the most conflicts wins. If the tie remains, the players share the victory.

Terms Used in the Game

• Virtue Points (PV): the points players earn during the game.
• Force Points: the points a player uses to resolve conflicts.
• Turn: a series of actions taken by the various players.

Board and Setup

1. The game board shows a city with its streets and blocks. The streets contain numbered dashed squares, which are the locations where conflicts occur. When a Ragami, Saint or Demon moves along the streets, it moves between these dashed squares.
2. A block is an area containing a building and surrounded by streets. Only Ragami may be on a block or move through it. Each block has a series of adjacent conflict zones. (In the example in the manual, the block is adjacent to zones 12, 14, 15, 18, 19 and 20.)
3. Place the discard pile for used cards next to the board.
4. Place the point markers and the resolved-conflict cubes at zero, and place the Location tokens face down within reach of the players. Shuffle the Action cards and place them face down on the game board. Place the white cubes and the Demons in the general supply, and place the Force die on the board.
5. Roll the 6 Conflict dice. Draw one Location token for each die rolled. Place the tokens on their respective locations on the board, with the matching Conflict die showing the face that was rolled.
6. Draw 4 Location tokens for the 4 Demons. Place each Demon on the board together with its respective token.
7. Each player chooses a colour (yellow, green, blue or purple). Determine the first player at random and give them the large white cube. This determines the 2nd, 3rd and 4th players, in clockwise order.
8. Each player receives 3 Action cards, chooses ONE and discards two, placing them in the used-cards area.
9. Starting with the 1st player and proceeding in turn, each player places the Saint of their colour on one of the numbered dashed squares (any one). In this phase, NO cube is gained for placing Saints in conflicts.
10. Starting with the 2nd player and proceeding in turn, each player places their Virtue die showing 1 on any block. There may be several dice on the same block.
11. Starting with the 3rd player and proceeding in turn, each player places their Ragami on a block. Only at the start of the game may there be just one Ragami per block.
12. The 4th (last) player rolls the Action dice and places them on the action board at their choice. For each red 1 showing on a die, that player takes a Demon from the general supply (if there is one) and places it on any street location. Then the player chooses the value that the dice showing a red 1 will now display (any value except red 1) and places them on the action board.

The 1st player may now begin the first turn.

Turn Preparation

(Skip this preparation during the first turn.)

1. The 1st player passes their first-player marker (large cube) to the player on their left, who becomes the new 1st player.

2. Increase by ONE point every Conflict die on the game board.

   Conflict dice that have passed the limit (exceeded the value 6) are returned to the supply, and their Location token is turned over to its "Ragami passage prohibited" side. From then on, no Ragami may pass through or stay on this location. Any Ragami that were on this location are moved to an adjacent block, at the choice of the player.

3. Increase by ONE point the value of each Virtue die on the game board, plus one point for each Ragami present on that block or on locations adjacent to that block.

   In the example in the manual, the yellow and green dice would each increase from 1 to 4 points: +1 for the end of the turn, +1 for the yellow Ragami and +1 for the purple Ragami.

4. Roll the Conflict dice that are in the supply (if any). Draw one Location token for each die rolled. Place the tokens on their respective locations on the board, with the matching Conflict die showing the face that was rolled.

5. Players may convert the value of their Virtue die into Virtue Points. Every 3 points on the die = 1 PV.

   Additionally, a player may move their die to a different block. On arrival, the die must show the value ONE.

   If a player does not have their die on the board, they may now place it on any block with the value ONE. There is no limit on the number of Virtue dice on a block.

6. The new 4th player rolls the 3 Action dice and places them on the action board.

   For each red 1 showing on a die, that player takes a Demon from the general supply (if there is one) and places it on any street location. Then the player changes the value of each die that showed a red 1 to any value they choose (any value except red 1), and places it on the action board.

   In the example in the manual, the player rolls 1, 5 and 4. The dice showing 5 and 4 are placed immediately in actions at the player's choice. Because of the red 1, the player takes a Demon from the supply and places it on the board. The player then changes the value of the red-1 die (mandatory) and chooses 3, placing it in the last remaining action slot.

Turn Order and End of Turn

Starting with the 1st player and proceeding clockwise, each player does the following:

• ONE action with one of the Action dice (see the green chapters).
• Any actions they wish to take with cards (see the purple chapter).

Each time a player takes their turn, they may take these two types of action in any order. They may use Action cards before and after their Action-die action. A player on their turn is not obliged to take any action, whether with a die or with cards.

Players take turns in order until no player wishes or is able to take any further action, whether with dice or with cards. At that point the turn ends.

Action Dice

Action dice are placed on the board during turn preparation. Each one shows the number of actions still available during the turn. Any die allows 2 types of action.

On their turn, each player chooses ONLY ONE action they wish to take and reduces that die's value by ONE.

When a die shows 1 (red), only one action remains with it. When that action is spent, the die is placed at the bottom of the board, showing that it can no longer be used during this turn. That action is unavailable until the next turn.

A player may take ONLY ONE action. The exception is certain cards, which allow particular actions represented by the dice. A player may also choose not to take any action.

Each Action die offers one of the following:

• Die allowing a Saint to be moved, and a Demon to be moved or placed, or a Ragami to be moved.
• Die allowing cards to be drawn, or a Ragami to be moved.
• Die allowing an attempt to resolve a conflict (using Force points), or a Ragami to be moved.

A die that still has 4 actions available may be spent on attempting to resolve conflicts or on moving the Ragami. The next player who uses this die reduces it to the value 3, leaving that face showing.

A die that has used all of its actions shows zero. Its actions become available again only in the next turn.

Action: Move a Ragami

A player may move ONLY their own Ragami, under the following rules:

• A Ragami may make up to 4 movements.
• A Ragami may move along streets and through blocks. It may jump from one block to an adjacent block without passing through a street. When it moves from a block to a street location, that location must be adjacent to that block.
• A Ragami may NOT be placed on a location where a Saint of its own colour is. It may pass through such a location.
• A Ragami may NOT pass through or end its movement on a location that has a "Ragami passage prohibited" token.
• At most 2 Ragami may be on one street location. On a block there is no limit on the number of Ragami (only at the start of the game may there be just one Ragami per block).
• If a Ragami ends its movement on a location where there are ONLY Demons, remove those Demons to the general supply and gain 1 PV for each Demon at that location. See the section "How to Earn PV" below.
• At the end of the turn, if a Ragami is present on a block (or on a location adjacent to that block) that has one or more Virtue dice, the value of those dice increases by 1 for each such Ragami. (See Turn Preparation, step 3.)

The manual's example shows yellow moves that are allowed and three red moves that are NOT allowed: jumping directly to a non-adjacent block, ending the movement next to a Saint of the same colour, and ending on a "Ragami passage prohibited" token.

Action: Move a Saint, and Move or Place a Demon

A player may move any Saint (of any colour) under the following rules:

• A Saint moves ONLY along streets, between the dashed squares.
• A Saint may NOT be placed on a location where its own Ragami is, but it may pass through that location.
• A Saint may not be placed on the same location as a Ragami of the same colour.
• Each time a player places a Saint in a conflict (a location with a black Conflict die), that player gains ONE white cube. Important: it is not the owner of the Saint who gains the cube, but the player who moved the Saint.
• A Saint moves in any direction, by at least 1 and at most 4 movements.
• A Saint may NOT end its movement on the same location where it started.

After moving a Saint, the player MUST then either move a Demon or place a new Demon on the board (choosing one of the two options), under the following rules:

• A Demon moves ONLY along streets, between the dashed squares.
• A Demon may be moved in any direction, by at least 1 and at most 4 movements.
• A Demon may NOT end its movement on the same location where it started.
• If the player chooses to place a Demon from the general supply (if there is one), it may be placed on any street location.

There is no limit on the number of Saints and Demons that may share a location.

In the manual's example, the yellow player chooses to move a Saint and moves the blue Saint to conflict 29. Because it placed a Saint in a conflict, it gains ONE white cube. It could not place the blue Saint on conflict 23, because its Ragami is there. It then moves a Demon and chooses to place it on the same conflict. Instead of moving the Demon at location 19, the player could have taken a Demon from the supply (if there is one) and placed it directly on conflict 29.

Action: Draw Cards

This action serves ONLY to obtain cards. It does NOT mean using cards. For how to use cards, see the purple chapter "Actions with Cards" on page 7 of the manual.

When a player chooses this action, they draw 3 cards and must keep ONLY ONE. The rejected cards are placed face up on the board. A player may use the chosen card only in subsequent turns.

A player may not hold more than 3 cards in total. A player holding 3 cards may still draw, but first must discard or use one of their cards.

If the draw pile is exhausted, shuffle the used cards (which are face up) and place them face down on the board as a new draw pile.

Action: Resolve a Conflict and Use Force Points

To take this action, the player must have their Ragami present on a location containing a conflict (a black Conflict die).

To resolve a conflict, the Ragami must pay the same or more Force points than the conflict's value. The value of the conflict is the value of the black Conflict die, plus the number of Demons present on that location.

A player may obtain Force points in 6 different ways, and may use several of these ways at the same time:

1. White cubes the player holds. One cube = 1 Force point.

2. Action cards that are worth Force points.

3. Saints on the same location as the conflict. Each Saint automatically contributes ONE Force point (the Saint does NOT need to give any cube). If the conflict is resolved, the player with the colour of that Saint gains 1 PV. Do not forget that a Saint and a Ragami of the same colour CANNOT be together on the same location.

4. Virtue die. If the conflict location is adjacent to a block where the player has their Virtue die, the player may use points from that die. The die must be changed, lowering its value. If the die reaches zero, it is removed from the board and returned to its player. It may only be placed again on a new block at the end of a turn.

5. A second Ragami on the conflict location. This automatically contributes 2 Force points to the resolution. The Ragami that "helps" receives 2 cubes from the general supply when the conflict is resolved. Do not forget that no more than 2 Ragami may be on a conflict.

6. The Force die. A player may use this die whenever they wish, to obtain additional Force points. If the player wants to add the die's points to other points they already have (for example cubes or cards), they must declare it, because they cannot add more Force points after the die has been rolled.

   If the die gives more points than necessary, there is no refund of points through cubes or any other means.

   If the conflict resolution fails (the Force die does not give enough Force points), the player immediately removes their Ragami from the conflict location to an adjacent block. They do NOT lose the cubes, cards or Virtue-die points they used to obtain Force points.

When a player resolves a conflict, they gain PV ONLY equal to the value of the black Conflict die (regardless of how many Force points they used). The black die is removed from the game and returned to the supply. The Location token stays on its location.

The player returns to the general supply the cards and white cubes they used. The player adds the value of the die (and ONLY that value) to their points track, and advances their resolved-conflicts cube one space.

The manual gives three examples:

• Example 1. The green Ragami needs 2 Force points. The green player chooses the action and resolves the conflict with its Virtue die, using 2 points. It removes the black die to the supply, gains 2 PV, advances its green resolved-conflicts cube by 1, and reduces its Virtue die by 2 values.
• Example 2. The green Ragami needs 3 Force points: 2 from the conflict die, plus 2 Demons, minus 1 Saint. It takes the action and resolves the conflict using its 3 white cubes. It removes the black die, returns its white cubes to the supply, gains 2 PV and advances its green cube by 1. Note that the player used 3 Force points but gained ONLY 2 PV. The yellow player (because of its Saint) gains 1 PV.
• Example 3. The green Ragami needs 1 Force point: 2 from the conflict die, plus 1 Demon, minus 2 points (because of the blue Ragami). The player is one point short, so it takes a risk and uses the Force die. It rolls a 1 and resolves the conflict. It removes the black die, gains 2 PV and advances its green cube by 1. The blue player (because of its Ragami) receives 2 white cubes from the general supply.

The manual's example box also shows a yellow player with 6 PV and 4 resolved conflicts, who resolves one more conflict of value 4. It advances its PV marker to 10 and increases by one the cube that shows its number of resolved conflicts.

How to Earn PV

A player can earn PV in 6 different ways:

1. Trading white cubes for PV. Each 2 cubes = 1 PV. A player may make this trade at any time during their turn, or at the end of the game.
2. Ending a Ragami's movement on Demons. When a Ragami ends its movement on a location where there is one or more Demons and no other figure (no conflict die, no other Ragami and no Saints), the Demons are "cleaned" and removed from play, returned to the supply. The player gains 1 PV for each cleaned Demon.
3. Resolving conflicts. The player gains PV equal to the value of the die.
4. Saints in resolved conflicts. Each Saint present on a conflict that is resolved gives 1 PV to the player of the same colour as that Saint.
5. Converting Virtue dice. A player may, on their turn (without waiting for the end of the turn) and without spending any action, convert the value of their Virtue die into PV. Every 3 points = 1 PV. If the die has been reduced to 0 it is removed from the game and returned to the player. At the end of the turn, the player may place it on the board again.
6. End of game. The player with the most resolved conflicts adds 7 PV to their total. The second player with the most resolved conflicts adds 4 PV. The 3rd and 4th players add nothing. In case of ties, the tied players receive the same value. Example: if two players tie for first place and the other two tie for second, the first two receive 7 PV each and the other two receive 4 PV each.

Ways to Obtain White Cubes

White cubes are very important for players, because they allow conflicts to be resolved and some cards to be used. There are 3 ways to obtain white cubes:

• +1 — Placing Saints in conflicts. Each time a player places a Saint (any Saint, not necessarily of their own colour) in a conflict, they gain one white cube. A Saint may not be placed in a conflict where its own Ragami is present, and a Saint may not be joined with a Ragami of the same colour.
• +2 — Helping another Ragami. If your Ragami is present on a conflict that is resolved by another Ragami, you receive 2 white cubes from the general supply, for your help (you contributed two Force points to the other Ragami's resolution).
• +? — Through cards. Certain cards allow a player to gain white cubes if the actions they describe are carried out.

Action Cards

Using cards does NOT require the Action die on the game board. It is enough to be on your turn. There is no limit on the number of cards a player may use on their turn, but a player may ONLY use cards they drew in previous turns.

A player may use cards before and after their action with the Action die. A player may even use cards without taking any action with the Action die (either because they do not wish to, or because the dice are at zero).

To use a card, follow its instructions (see page 8 of the manual) and then place it face up in the used-cards area on the board.

Card symbols:

• Red triangle: when resolving a conflict, a player may use only ONE card of this type.
• White cube: this card may be exchanged for a CUBE instead of using the action it allows.

Card Explanations

1. Move 2 Saints. Each one may be moved up to 4 movements. You may not place a Saint on the same location as your Ragami. Gain 1 cube for each Saint that is NOT in a conflict and is placed on one.
2. Move 2 Demons. Each one may be moved up to 4 movements. Do not move Demons that are on the same location as your Ragami. Gain 1 cube for each Demon removed from a conflict and that does not enter another.
3. Swap your Ragami's location with another Ragami. Give the player you swapped with 1 of your cubes.
4. Receive 1 cube from the general supply for each RAGAMI that is not in a conflict. Your RAGAMI does not count. (Note: in a game with only 2 players, the neutral Ragami does NOT count.)
5. Move your Ragami up to 4 movements. (Note: in a game with only 2 players, the neutral Ragami may be moved with this card.)
6. Roll the FORCE die twice and add the results. Apply this card BEFORE rolling the Force die for the first time. This card is always placed in the used cards, whether or not the player resolved the conflict.
7. Increase by up to 2 values, one conflict die, or reduce by up to 2 values, one conflict die. The die may not end with a value above 6 or below 1.
8. Perform the Conflict Action. Return 1 of your cubes to the general supply.
9. Perform ONE action with an Action die, in addition to the one you normally are entitled to. This may be an action on a die that is at zero. Reduce the value of any one action die by 1 (if there are dice with values remaining). Return 1 of your cubes to the general supply.

Rules for 2 and 3 Players

For 3 players, all 4 Saints come into play. The Saint that does not belong to any player is placed at random (using a Location token) on the board at the start of the game. Otherwise the rules are exactly the same.

For 2 players, all 4 Saints come into play. The 2 Saints that do not belong to any player are placed at random (using Location tokens) on the board at the start of the game. The players also use a 3rd Ragami, which is "neutral". This may be used by either player and serves ONLY to help with conflicts.

After the first player is determined at random, the players place their pieces in the following order: the 1st player places their Saint and their Virtue die. The 2nd player places their Saint, their Virtue die, their Ragami and the "neutral" Ragami. Finally, the 1st player places their Ragami.

The card shown in the manual is not used in the 2-player version. Put it back in the box.

The Force Die (Optional)

The Force die is optional. Players may agree not to use this die, and card no. 6, to resolve conflicts.