Re;ACT: The Arts of War Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Components
  • Artist Tuckbox Contents
• Reading Cards
  • Card Type
  • Card Name
  • Effect Cost
  • Effect Text
  • Card ID & Deck Quantity
  • Reference Sheets & Cards
  • Action Cards vs Ability Cards
• Setting Up the Game
• How to Play the Game
• #1 Masterpiece Phase
  • Progressing Your Masterpiece — the 3 options
• #2 Draw Phase
• #3 Main Phase
  • #3.1 The React Chain
  • #3.2 Playing Intentions
  • #3.3 Playing Reactions
  • #3.4 Building the React Chain
  • #3.5 Resolving the React Chain
  • Tracking Damage
  • Resolution of Effects
  • Summons
  • Movement
• #4 End Phase
  • Ending the Game
• Glossary (Alphabetical)
  • Ability Cards
  • Action Cards
  • Adjacent
  • Artists
  • Block Tokens
  • Damage (to Artists)
  • Damage (to Summons)
  • Deck
  • Draw
  • Discard
  • Exhaust
  • Hand
  • Jump
  • Masterpiece Cards
  • Masterpiece Zone
  • Move / Movement
  • Progressing Your Masterpiece
  • React Chain Tokens
  • Reference Sheet
  • Refresh
  • Standee
  • Start of Turn Effects
  • Summons
  • Summoning
  • Swapping
  • Ties
  • Tokens
  • Occupied Zone
  • Unit
  • Zone
  • Zone Tiles

Overview

In this 2 player 1 vs 1 game, you and your opponent each select a different character to fight as.

Be the first to deal 3 damage to your opponent to win!

To deal damage, you'll play your cards to a physical Reaction Chain. The React Chain resolves in reverse order, similar to a "Stack" (first in, last out).

Every character's cards and abilities are different, and every character has a different strategy for dealing damage. Carefully play your cards and outmaneuver your opponent to win!

Components

• 1 Field Board
• 1 React Chain Board
• 1 Masterpiece Board
• 5 Reaction Chain Tokens
• 8 Artist Tuck Boxes

Artist Tuckbox Contents

Each of the playable characters in Re;ACT is called an Artist. Each Artist has their own unique play style and comes with their own unique components inside their own tuck box.

This will always include:

• 1 Artist Reference Sheet
• 1 Artist Ability Card
• 3 Masterpiece Cards
• 1 Artist Unit Tile
• 1 Artist Acrylic Standee (Deluxe Edition only)

It may also include (depending on the Artist):

• A deck of Action Cards (icons in top left corner)
• Additional Ability Cards (icons in top right corner)
• Various tokens specific to that Artist
• Summons specific to that Artist

The deck of Action Cards is pre-built.

Reading Cards

Card Type

• Cards with left justified names are Action cards.
• Cards with right justified names are Ability cards.

Card Name

The card's name.

Effect Cost

• All effects are either Intention (blue) or Reaction (orange) effects.
• Some effects have white text written in the colored bar. This is known as the card's Cost.
• An effect's cost must be paid IMMEDIATELY when its card is played to the React Chain.
• If the cost cannot be paid, it cannot be played. Cards without costs can always be played.

Effect Text

• The effect box describes what happens when the effect resolves.
• Effects are always resolved in the order it is written.
• Resolve as much of the effect as you can. If any part of an effect cannot be resolved, it is ignored.
• You can play a card even if its effect would entirely fail to resolve.

Card ID & Deck Quantity

The (X/30) tells you there are X copies of this card in a deck of 30.

Ability Cards have unique card backs; don't shuffle them into your deck.

Reference Sheets & Cards

Each Artist comes with a square reference sheet, a playstyle card, and a reference card.

The square reference sheet defines each Artist's unique passive. This passive is the foundation for your Artist's gameplay mechanics, read this first!

The playstyle card lists out your Artist's components, an overview of your playstyle, and a list of FAQs and tips.

The reference card is for your opponent and summarizes your capabilities.

Action Cards vs Ability Cards

Action Cards (left justified names) are cards you draw from your deck to your hand (hidden from your opponent).

Ability Cards (right justified names) are cards that sit in front of you the entire game (public info).

Most Ability Cards correspond directly to an Artist or a Summon, and using their effects will usually exhaust the corresponding Artist or Summon. You can think of these as "once per turn" abilities for each Artist or Summon.

Cards from your hand are Action Cards. These are discarded after they are resolved and cannot be played again.

Cards sitting in front of you are Ability cards. These stay face up in front of you after they are resolved and can be played again as long as their costs can be paid.

Setting Up the Game

1. Select an Artist to play as and place their reference sheet in front of you (read their passive first!).
2. Place the Field Board in the center between you and your opponent, followed by the React Chain and Masterpiece boards to the Field Board's left and right (doesn't matter which is on which side).
3. Place the 5 React Chain tokens on the React Chain board in numerical order (direction doesn't matter).
4. Set your Artist's 3 Masterpiece cards to the side of the Masterpiece board.
5. Place your Artist's unit tile on your starting zone (marked by a star on the board).
6. Place any components unique to your Artist in front of you and follow any setup instructions on your square reference sheet.
7. Shuffle your deck of 30 Action Cards (they will have the same card backs) and set it within reach, then draw 4 cards. Skip this step if your Artist doesn't have a deck.

Make sure to follow any SETUP instructions on your Artist's Reference Sheet.

Your opponent will be set up across the board from you.

The person who starts the game as the Turn Player is the one who most recently created a piece of art.

How to Play the Game

Re;ACT is played in turns. During a turn, only the Turn Player can play Intentions, while both players can play Reactions. A turn ends only when the Turn Player no longer wishes to play any new Intentions. A single reaction chain resolve does NOT end the turn!

You win by dealing 3 damage to your opponent's Artist!

A tie can occur if both players reach 3 damage during the resolution of a single effect!

Each turn has 4 phases.

If you have Start of Turn effects, they always resolve before the Masterpiece Phase. If both players have Start of Turn effects, the Turn Player's effects resolve first.

1. Masterpiece Phase
   • The Turn Player Progresses their Masterpiece.
   • The player that goes first skips this for their first turn.
2. Draw Phase
   • BOTH players draw 1 card from their deck. (Yes, even on turn 1!)
   • You cannot draw a card if you are already at your hand limit of 6 Action Cards.
3. Main Phase
   • The Turn Player can play Intentions.
   • Both players can play Reactions.
   • THIS PHASE DOES NOT END after a single React Chain resolves.
   • The Turn Player can keep playing Intentions to start new React Chains.
   • The turn only ends once the Turn Player decides to stop playing Intentions.
4. End Phase
   • Unexhaust (aka Refresh) ALL Artists and Summons on the board.
   • Your opponent becomes the Turn Player for the next turn.

You can remember who the Turn Player is by who played the last intention. Unlike other games, you draw at the start of every turn, even when it's not YOUR turn!

#1 Masterpiece Phase

Each character has 3 Masterpiece Cards that connect together to form a mural.

Starting on the second turn, the turn player Progresses their Masterpiece once during this phase.

Your Masterpiece (MP) is like a super meter. Once you've completed it, flip your character's ability card over to enter the ascended state and unlock a powerful super move! Using your super move will descend you, taking you out of the ascended state, so make sure to make it count!

When you Progress your MP, perform one of the 3 options below.

Your MP is complete if all of your MP cards are in the Masterpiece Zone and connected in the correct order.

There are only 5 spaces in the Masterpiece Zone for both players to share. This means you can block off your opponent's Masterpiece with your own cards and force them to waste turns swapping cards around. Think of this system as 1-dimensional tic-tac-toe with swapping!

If your Masterpiece is completed:

1. Remove all of your MP cards from the Masterpiece Zone.
2. Ascend your Artist by flipping over your Artist's Ability Card.

While in the Ascended state, you can still continue to progress your Masterpiece by placing your MP cards back into the Masterpiece Zone again.

If you complete your masterpiece while Ascended, you cannot Ascend again. Instead, your MP cards simply stay in the Masterpiece Zone. After you use your super move and Descend, you can re-ascend if your MP is completed.

The backs of MP cards are grayed out. You flip MP cards to track damage. Flipped MP cards have no mechanical difference!

Your Artist will have at least 2 abilities on their ability card. One of these will allow you to progress your MP more quickly. Knowing when to use this instead of your more powerful abilities is often key to victory!

Progressing Your Masterpiece — the 3 options

When there is empty space in the Masterpiece Zone: Place one of your Masterpiece Cards into an empty space.

If there are no empty spaces: You may replace an opponent's Masterpiece Card with your own.

If all 3 of your Masterpiece Cards have already been placed: You may swap any 2 spaces in the Masterpiece Zone. This can be 2 MP Cards or 1 MP Card and an empty space.

#2 Draw Phase

During every Draw Phase, BOTH PLAYERS draw one card!

This includes the first turn of the game. You start the game with four cards, and you'll draw your fifth card on the first Draw Phase of the game.

A few rules regarding drawing:

• Your maximum hand size is six.
• If you already have six cards in hand, an attempt to draw fails.
• If your deck is empty when you draw, you immediately lose the game.
• If the order of drawing matters, the Turn Player draws first.

If your Artist does not have a deck of Action Cards, check their Reference Sheet to see what you do instead when you are supposed to draw.

#3 Main Phase

During the Main Phase, only the Turn Player can play Intentions to the React Chain. Both players can play Reactions in response to any Intention or Reaction to build the React Chain.

Once both players pass on playing additional Reactions to the React Chain, the React Chain resolves starting from the last card played to the first card played (first in last out, just like a stack).

The Main Phase does not end after a single React Chain! The Turn Player can keep playing new Intentions to start new React Chains. The Main Phase only ends after the Turn Player declares they are done playing Intentions.

If an effect has a cost, that cost must immediately be paid or performed when the card is played. A card cannot be played if the effect has a cost you cannot pay or perform.

Most costs force you to choose the effect's target or direction. It's entirely possible for you to target an enemy's zone but for the enemy to leave that zone before the effect resolves!

Most ability card costs exhaust their corresponding unit.

Some common costs are:

• Target a Zone: Place the React Chain Token on the targeted zone.
• Choose a Direction: Turn the React Chain Token to the desired direction.
• Exhaust <Unit>: Rotate the corresponding unit's token on the board 90 degrees. You cannot exhaust a unit that is already exhausted! Being exhausted has no other implications. You can still move and play cards while exhausted.

#3.1 The React Chain

All cards are played to the React Chain, which is the absolute core of Re;ACT. Understanding how cards are played to the React Chain and how the React Chain resolves is key to enjoying Re;ACT.

The following are the core rules for the React Chain:

• A React Chain is always started by an Intention.
• Reactions cannot be played as Intentions.
• Intentions cannot be played as Reactions.
• The React Chain resolves if both players decline to play another Reaction, or if the React Chain hits 5 cards.
• The React Chain resolves in descending order (5 -> 4 -> 3 -> 2 -> 1).
• New cards cannot be played once the React Chain begins resolving.

Just because you CAN play a reaction, does not mean you should! Cards are your primary resource in Re;ACT. DO NOT WASTE YOUR REACTIONS if they don't accomplish anything meaningful!

You might think to only play your Reactions as a response to your opponent's cards, but playing Reactions to respond to your own cards to build combos is just as important!

The React Chain sequence: You play an Intention, then the opponent reacts or passes (Opponent Priority), then you react or pass (Your Priority) — this alternates until both players have passed, at which point the chain resolves.

#3.2 Playing Intentions

Only the Turn Player can play Intentions, and only while the React Chain is empty.

To play an Intention, place your Action Card or Ability Card with the Intention effect into the blue "1" space of the React Chain.

• If a card has more than one Intention, declare which you are playing. You can use the Chain Token to point at the effect you are using to keep track of this.
• If the effect has a cost, that cost must be paid or performed IMMEDIATELY. If the cost cannot be paid or performed, the card cannot be played.

Only the Turn Player can play Intentions, and only while the React Chain is empty.

#3.3 Playing Reactions

After you play an Intention or Reaction, your opponent has the opportunity to play a Reaction or pass.

To play a Reaction, place an Action Card or Ability Card with a Reaction effect into the next available Red "2", "3", "4" or "5" space in the React Chain.

• If a card has more than one Reaction, declare which you are playing. You can use the Chain Token to point at the effect you are using to keep track of this.
• If the effect has a cost, that cost must be paid or performed IMMEDIATELY. If the cost cannot be paid or performed, the card cannot be played.

#3.4 Building the React Chain

The React Chain continues to build until either:

• Both players decline to play a Reaction back to back.
• The React Chain reaches 5 cards.

#3.5 Resolving the React Chain

When the React Chain resolves, it resolves in descending order, 5 to 1.

While the React Chain is resolving, no new cards can be played.

An Artist's unique Passive can trigger during the resolution of the React Chain. When this happens, pause the resolution of the React Chain and resolve the unique Passive immediately.

Examples of such Passives include:

• An Artist or Summon entering The Tagger's Zone Tiles.
• The Dancer placing his third Scale token in a zone.

Tracking Damage

• When your Artist takes damage, flip over one of your 3 Masterpiece Cards to its grayscale side.
• There is no mechanical difference between a face down and face up Masterpiece Card.
• You lose when you've taken your 3rd damage.

Resolution of Effects

• Effects are resolved exactly as written.
• Effects that can't resolve simply fail and are skipped.
• If part of an effect cannot be resolved, it is simply skipped. The rest of the effect still resolves.
• A card can be played even if some or all of its effects would fail to resolve.
• Effects are always resolved from top to bottom.
  • The Chosen effects from "Choose X to resolve" abilities are still resolved in the order they are listed.
• Effects are never optional unless it specifically says "may" or "up to".
• When a passive effect triggers, it immediately resolves, taking priority over anything else.
• You can choose to fail an effect on purpose by declaring an invalid situation:
  • Ex 1: Choose to move in a direction that is blocked and the movement fails.
  • Ex 2: Choose to summon in an occupied zone and the summoning fails.

Summons

• Most Artists have a Summons unique to them. Some Artists have no Summons.
• Every Summon has only 1 HP. This is separate from the HP of your Artist.
• When a Summon's HP is reduced to 0, it is removed from the board.
• A removed Summon returns to your pool of available Summons and can be re-summoned in the future.
• A Summon is always refreshed when first summoned.
• A Summon can be exhausted to pay for an ability on the same turn it was summoned.
• You can attempt to summon in an occupied zone, it fails and does nothing.
• You can attempt to summon when you have no available summons, it fails and does nothing.

Movement

• Movement is ALWAYS orthogonal and NEVER diagonal.
• You can attempt to move into an occupied zone, it fails and does nothing.
• You can attempt to move off of the board, it fails and does nothing.

#4 End Phase

Once the Turn Player decides to not play any more Intentions, the turn enters the End Phase.

All exhausted Artists and Summons are unexhausted (aka Refreshed) for BOTH players.

Some Artists might also have additional End of Turn effects. Make sure to read your Artist's passive carefully.

If both players have End of Turn effects, the Turn Player's effects resolve first.

Artists and Summons usually get exhausted as a cost for their abilities. Your Artist being Exhausted does not prevent you from playing cards or moving!

Ending the Game

The game ends immediately when a player has dealt 3 damage to their opponent's Artist and wins.

Additionally, if a player runs out of cards in their deck and needs to draw, they lose immediately. Artists who do not use a deck of cards ignore this rule.

It is possible for the game to end in a draw if both players reach 3 damage during the resolution of a single effect. This is possible due to effects that deal damage to multiple zones at the same time.

Glossary (Alphabetical)

Ability Cards

• Ability Cards (right justified card names) sit face up in front of you and are never discarded.
• Ability Cards are played to the React Chain to use their Intention or Reaction effects.
• Once an Ability Card resolves, it is returned to you from the react chain and can be reused.
• Every Artist and most Summons have a corresponding Ability Card.
• Some Artists have additional Ability Cards that are not tied to a single unit but are just Ability Cards that they always have access to (Ex: Calligrapher's Sheathing Respite).

Action Cards

• Action Cards (left justified card names) are shuffled into a deck and drawn into your hand.
• Action Cards are played to the Reaction Chain to use their Intention or Reaction effects.
• Once an Action Card has resolved, it is discarded into your own discard pile.

Adjacent

• Adjacency is ALWAYS orthogonal and NEVER diagonal.
• Moving to or targeting an adjacent space always refers to the 4 spaces orthogonally touching you.

Artists

• Artists are the characters you can play as.
• Each Artist is represented by a corresponding unit tile on the board, or an Acrylic Standee in the deluxe version.

Block Tokens

• Block tokens are a specialized mechanic used by some characters, and can behave differently depending on the character.
• In general, a block token stays in the zone it is placed in until that zone takes damage, or until the end of the turn.
• When a zone with a block token takes damage, the damage is negated, and the block token is removed.
• In general, block tokens are NOT placed onto an Artist or Summon and do not follow them when they move.

Damage (to Artists)

• When your Artist takes damage, flip 1 of your 3 Masterpiece Cards face down to their grayscale side.
• You lose after you've taken 3 damage (all 3 of your Masterpiece Cards are face down).
• A MP card being face down has no mechanical significance. It is purely a visual tracker of damage. Face down and face up MP cards both behave identically.

Damage (to Summons)

• When a Summon takes damage, it is removed from the board.
• Functionally, this means every summon only has 1 HP. This is separate from the HP of your Artist.
• A removed Summon returns to your pool of available Summons and can be re-summoned in the future.

Deck

• Most Artists have a pre-built deck of 30 Action Cards.
• If your deck is empty when you try to draw, you immediately lose the game.
  • Some Artists do not have a deck and ignore this rule.

Draw

• When you draw, take an Action Card from your deck and add it to your hand.
• If you already have 6 Action Cards in hand, you cannot draw, and attempts to draw simply fail.
• If you attempt to draw but your deck is empty, you immediately lose the game.

Discard

• Action Cards are discarded into your own discard pile after they resolve.
• Your discard pile is always face up and both players can look through it at any time.

Exhaust

• An Artist or Summon is either Exhausted or it is Not Exhausted (aka Refreshed).
• Artists and Summons typically exhaust themselves as a cost for their abilities.
• To exhaust an Artist or Summon, rotate their unit tile on the board 90 degrees.
• Your artist being exhausted does not prevent you from playing cards.
• An Artist or Summon being exhausted does not prevent it from moving.
• All exhausted units are refreshed at the end of each turn.
• Attempting to exhaust an already exhausted unit fails and does nothing.

Hand

• Your hand is the set of Action Cards drawn from your deck. It is hidden from your opponent.
• Your max hand size is 6 Action Cards. You cannot draw while you already have 6 Action Cards.

Jump

• Jump is a unique keyword that is a special form of movement used by some Artists.
• When an Artist or Summon Jumps in a direction, they move in that direction until they enter an empty zone, skipping over all zones that were occupied by other units.
• Jumping in a direction with an adjacent empty zone is just a normal movement.
• Jumping in a direction where all zones are occupied until the edge of the board fails and does nothing.

Masterpiece Cards

• Every Artist has 3 Masterpiece (MP) Cards that combine to form a connected art piece.
• When you complete your masterpiece, you'll Ascend your Artist by flipping over their ability card and removing all of your Masterpiece Cards from the Masterpiece Zone.
• When you take damage, you'll flip one of your face up Masterpiece Cards over. This is ONLY to track damage, and has no mechanical influence on how the Masterpiece Cards work.

Masterpiece Zone

• There are 5 slots on the Masterpiece Zone.
• Each slot in the Masterpiece Zone can only hold 1 Masterpiece Card.

Move / Movement

• You can attempt to move in any orthogonal direction when moving, not diagonal.
• Sometimes, the direction of movement is decided as a cost for the effect.
• If you attempt to move off of the board or into an occupied zone, the movement fails.

Progressing Your Masterpiece

• You progress your Masterpiece once at the start of your turn during the Masterpiece Phase.
• After you complete your masterpiece and Ascend, you can still progress your Masterpiece as normal.
• You cannot complete your masterpiece while you are already Ascended.

React Chain Tokens

• There are 5 slots on the React Chain and 5 React Chain tokens.
• Each token has a pointed arrow in order to indicate Direction and can be placed on a zone in the board to indicate a Target Zone.

Reference Sheet

This square card shows your Artist's Passive abilities and setup instructions.

Refresh

• If an Artist or Summon is not Exhausted, it is considered Refreshed.
• To refresh a unit, undo the rotation on their unit tile on the board from being exhausted.
• You can only refresh a unit that is exhausted.
• Refreshing a unit that is already refreshed fails and does nothing.

Standee

• Standees represent your Artist and their Summons on the board in the Deluxe edition of the game.
• In the base/retail version of the game, unit tiles are used instead of standees.

Start of Turn Effects

• If an effect says it happens at the start of a turn, that is a Start of Turn effect.
• Effects that happen at the start of YOUR turns only happen if you are the turn player that turn.
• Effects that happen at the start of every turn happen on both your turn and your opponent's turn.
• If both players have a Start of Turn effect that need to resolve, the turn player resolves them first.

Summons

• Summons refer to units that are unique to each Artist. Not all Artists have Summons.
• Summons are represented by a corresponding unit tile on the board.
  • Acrylic standees in the deluxe edition.
• Summons are removed when taking any amount of damage.

Summoning

• Summoning a unit places that unit onto the board in an unoccupied zone refreshed.
• You can exhaust a newly summoned unit on the turn they are summoned.
• A removed Summon can still be re-summoned later in the game.
• You can attempt to summon in an occupied zone, it fails and does nothing.
• You can attempt to summon when you have no available summons, it fails and does nothing.
• Summoning a unit into a zone is not considered as entering that zone. Effects that trigger when a Unit enters a zone are not triggered by summoning a unit into that zone.

Swapping

• An effect to swap 2 units will switch the positions of those 2 units.
• Tokens that normally move with their Artist or Summon (Ex: Ink Tokens) will move with those tokens during a swap as well.
• Swapping into a zone tile is considered entering that zone. Effects that trigger when an Artist or Summon enters a zone are triggered by swaps.
• If a swap would result in an invalid board state, the swap effect fails to resolve. (Ex: Trying to swap with The Painter with an Armament summon that would end up outside of the board due to the swap.)

Ties

• In a few rare cases, it is possible for a single action to deal damage to both Artists at the same time. (Ex: Sculptor's Expending the Expendable action card.) This kind of damage is always simultaneous, and therefore can result in ties.
• There are no tiebreakers. If a single effect would deal the final damage to both players at the same time, the game results in a tie.

Tokens

• Many Artists have unique tokens associated with their personal passives.
• If a placed token is removed, it is returned to your pool of available tokens and can be used again.
• You cannot place more tokens than you have in total.
• An effect to place a token while you have no more tokens simply fails.

Occupied Zone

• A zone is considered occupied if there is an Artist or Summon in that zone.
• Having tokens or tiles in a zone does not make that zone occupied.
• Movement into an occupied zone fails and is ignored.
• Summoning into an occupied zone fails and is ignored.

Unit

A Unit refers to an Artist or Summon.

Zone

• A zone is a square on the Field Board.
• Only one Artist or Summon can be in a zone.
• Multiple tokens can share a single zone, unless the token's effects say otherwise.

Zone Tiles

• Some Artists have a special component known as a Zone Tile.
• Each zone can only have 1 Zone Tile.
• Moving a zone tile into a zone that already has a zone tile fails and is ignored.
• Placing a zone tile into a zone that already has a zone tile fails and is ignored.