Tales of Tails Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Set Up
• Player Components
• Gameplay
  • Explore the Dungeon
  • Escape the Dungeon
    • Examples of ways out of the dungeon
  • Taking a Nap
• Room Effects
  • Monsters
    • Monster card
    • Example of fighting a monster
  • Coins and Artifacts
  • Traps
    • Trap card
    • Example of disarming a trap
  • Stray Racoon
  • Treasure Chest
  • Potions
  • Door
  • Portal
• End of Round
• End of Game and Scoring
• Example of the First Round
• Example of Scoring Coins
• Doggos Abilities
  • Bonk the Mighty
  • Joan of Bark
  • Rogue the Dogue
  • Robin Goodgirl
  • Roota Frostbite
  • Sparky the Mage

Components

• 90 Room cards
• 6 Doggo player boards
• 12 Quest cards
• 6 Potion cards
• 42 Paw tokens (7 tokens of each color)
• 3 Round tokens
• First Player token
• This Rulebook

Set Up

1. Each player chooses a Doggo player board and places it in their play area facing up. Put all the extra player boards back into the box.
2. Then each player takes 7 Paw tokens corresponding to the picture in the corner of their player board: 5 of them are placed onto the player board (these are main tokens) and the 2 remaining tokens are placed next to it (these are additional tokens). Put the rest of the tokens back into the box.
3. Shuffle all Quest cards facing down and deal each player 2 of them at random. Put the rest of the Quest cards back into the box.
4. Each player chooses one Quest card from the two and places it in their play area facing down without showing anyone. These are the players' personal quests. Tip: The more attack symbols on a Quest card match the attack symbols on your player board, the easier it will be for you to complete this quest.
5. Players place the remaining Quest cards on the table facing up. These are common quests, all players can complete them.
6. Find a heart-shaped room among the Room cards. One side is used for three-player or four-player games and the other is used for two-player games. Place this card in the middle of the table with the suitable side up — this is where your way out of the dungeon will start. Experienced doggo tip: want a real challenge? Try using the two-player side for a game of three or four players. The fewer ways out, the more difficult the game will be.
7. Stack 3 Round tokens on the starter room card: first place the Round 3 token, then the Round 2 token onto that and then the Round 1 token on the top. This is the round tracker.
8. Shuffle the rest of the Room cards forming a deck and place it at the center of the table facing down.
9. Shuffle all Potion cards facing down and deal each player one random card. Each player places their Potion card next to their player board facing up. Place the remaining Potion cards facing up next to the room deck to form a supply. Experienced doggo tip: another way to make the game more challenging is to play without the Potion cards.

Look over your player components on the next page and you are ready to play. The last player to pet a dog becomes the first player and receives the good boy (or good girl) token.

Player Components

1. Doggo's name and class.

2. Doggo's ability. See detailed explanations of doggo abilities in "Doggos abilities".

3. Basic attack symbols. If the symbols on a Monster card match your attack symbols (both basic and additional) you can defeat this monster.

4. Basic defense symbols. If you wish to pass through a room with a monster without fighting it, then you have to take damage as indicated on the Monster card. If the total amount of damage you take on your way is equal or greater than the number of your defense symbols (both basic and additional), you cannot escape the dungeon — either choose a different path or "take a nap".

5. Additional attack and defense symbols (trophies) can be acquired by defeating monsters and collecting artifacts in the dungeon. A Stray Racoon can give you additional symbols as well.

6. Paw tokens are kept on the player board and can be used in two cases:

   • when escaping the dungeon you can activate Room card effects. You can place your Paw token onto some Room cards to collect them at the end of the round (see more in "Gameplay" and "Room Effects"). You do not have to place a Paw token onto every Room card on your way out of the dungeon — choose wisely according to your strategy and how many Paw tokens you can use. You do not have to use all of your available tokens.
   • to use your ability if you are playing as Bonk the Mighty or Joan of Bark. See detailed explanations in "Doggos abilities".

   All Paw tokens you used return to you at the end of the round.

7. Additional tokens can be acquired from the Stray Racoon or by "taking a nap". One player can have 7 Paw tokens max.

8. Potion card — a single-use additional attack symbol. It can be used to defeat a monster or disarm a trap. Potion cards can also help you complete the "Iron Grasp", "Fiery Heart" and "Bullseye" quests. After using a Potion card, put it into the supply facing up. New Potion cards can be obtained in the dungeon.

Gameplay

Players take turns in clockwise order starting with the first player. During your turn you can take one of three actions:

• Explore the dungeon.
• Escape the dungeon.
• Take a nap.

The goal of each player is to build an efficient path for themself to escape the dungeon and do so while activating Room card effects before other players do.

Explore the Dungeon

Take the top card from the Room deck, look at it and place it on the table facing up according to the following rules:

• At least one of the exits on the card has to align with an exit on another card on the table. The other exits on the Room card you are placing do not have to align with any other exits: an exit can hit the edge of another Room card (the wall) or lead to an empty space on the table. Exits leading to empty spaces on the table are considered leading out of the dungeon. The colorful block with attack and defense symbols on the side of a Room card is considered a wall.
• The card can be rotated before placing it down.

(Illustrated example: the Room cards with the Dragon, the coins and the Gigatick are placed correctly. The Room card with the Magicollar is placed incorrectly and must be repositioned.)

The blue arrows show ways out of the dungeon — new cards can still be placed next to them even if a player has escaped the dungeon through one of these exits before.

If the Room card deck has run out, you cannot explore the dungeon — choose another action.

Escape the Dungeon

Choose a way out and use it to escape the dungeon according to the following rules:

• Your way must begin with the starting Room card and end with the Room card that has an exit from the dungeon (an exit leading to an empty space on the table). The number of Room cards on your way is unlimited.
• A Room card can only be passed through and activated once. This is true for all Room cards including the starting room and Portals.
• You must activate Room cards one by one in the same order as you pass through them. You can leave a Paw token on some of the Room cards to collect them at the end of the round. See more about every room in "Room Effects".
• If there is an opponent's Paw token on a Room card, you cannot pass through this room.
• You can use trophies you've acquired from activated Room cards in the same round: they can be used further up the path to fight monsters or disarm traps. If you've acquired a Paw token from a Stray Racoon, it can also be used in the same round. The Room cards themselves, however, can only be collected at the end of the round.

Tip: Keep the quests in mind. You can plan your way out of the dungeon to beat monsters and collect trophies you need for quests before you complete them at the end of the game.

After escaping the dungeon, you don't participate in the round and must wait for all the other players to finish the current round.

As soon as a player escapes the dungeon for the first time in this round, other players have a limited number of Room cards to finish the round: count out a number of Room cards from the top of the deck as specified in the table below, form a new deck and place it on the table separately facing down.

Number of doggos still in the dungeon	Number of cards in the new deck
1	4
2	8
3	12

The players still exploring the dungeon must only take Room cards from this new deck. As soon as this deck runs out, the players can no longer explore the dungeon — they must escape the dungeon or "take a nap".

Examples of ways out of the dungeon

For example, there are several ways out of a small dungeon (illustrated):

• collect Potion card, one coin and fight a Cerberus;
• collect Potion card and one coin;
• collect Potion card and fight a Gigatick;
• collect Potion card and fight a Mimic;
• hire the Stray Racoon;
• in this case it is also possible to escape the dungeon straight out of the starting room, gaining nothing.

Which way is the most efficient and whether it is worth it to leave right now is up to you.

Taking a Nap

Take an additional Paw token and place it onto your player board — you keep it until the end of the game. After this you no longer participate in the round and must wait for all the other players to finish the round. You can "take a nap" even if you have no additional tokens.

Tip: you can choose this action if you are stuck in the dungeon.

Room Effects

Monsters

You can fight a monster or try to run past it and take damage.

If the symbols on the Monster card match your attack symbols (basic and additional symbols both count), then you defeat the monster — place a Paw token on the Monster card. The defeated monster gives you additional attack or defense symbols you can use in the same round. Some monsters also award you a coin at the end of the game. Instead of trophy symbols Dragons award you four coins each. Moskeyto gives you a trophy key — as long as you have it you can open all doors on your way and open one Treasure Chest at the end of the game.

If you don't want to or cannot fight a monster but you want to pass through the room it occupies — you have to take as much damage as indicated on the card.

If the total amount of damage on your way matches or exceeds the number of your defense symbols (basic and additional symbols both count), then you cannot use this path to escape the dungeon — choose another way or "take a nap". Before escaping the dungeon, you can walk through your chosen path in your head to help yourself count how many damage symbols you can take.

Monster card

1. Monster name.
2. Attack symbols required to defeat it.
3. Damage it deals.
4. Trophy.
5. Coin.

Example of fighting a monster

Jenny plays as Robin Goodgirl and is passing through a room occupied by a Mimic. To defeat the Mimic she needs one bow symbol and one fireball symbol. Robin's basic attack symbols are enough to defeat the Mimic (she doesn't have any trophy symbols yet). Jenny places a Paw token onto this Monster card and continues her way through the dungeon.

She encounters a Cerberus in the next room. To defeat it she needs 3 sword symbols, but Jenny only has 1 sword symbol — the trophy she acquired from the Mimic in the previous room. This is not enough to defeat the Cerberus so Jenny loses 2 defense symbols. She only has 1 defense symbol left, so she avoids monsters she cannot defeat for the rest of her way out of the dungeon.

Coins and Artifacts

You can place a Paw token on a card to collect a card with a coin or an artifact at the end of the round. An artifact gives you two trophy attack symbols. There are three artifacts in the game. Coins help you win. There are rooms with one coin and two coins in the game.

Traps

You can disarm a trap or pass it and pay a fee at the end of the game.

To disarm a trap you have to have a Room card with a suitable trophy symbol. It can be a card you've acquired in previous rounds or one you've acquired earlier in this round. You can disarm a trap with a Potion card and a Stray Racoon card.

For example, a trap may require a trophy bow to disarm. Place the card face down on top of the trap — it is now disarmed. Other players cannot pass through a disarmed trap. You do not need to place a Paw token on a disarmed trap.

If you disarm a trap with a card you activated earlier this round, an empty space may appear in the dungeon with a Paw token on it (see example below). Other players cannot pass through it or fill it with a new Room card.

At the end of the round, discard both cards — the trap card and the card that disarmed it (except if it was disarmed with a Potion card — return the Potion card to the potion supply) — into the box. They will not appear in the game again.

If you don't have a card to disarm a trap or don't want to do so, place a Paw token on the card and collect it at the end of the round. It will subtract one coin as a penalty at the end of the game.

Trap card

1. Trophy required to disarm the trap.
2. Fee.
3. Symbol of immediate effect. It appears on traps and potion rooms and indicates that to activate this card you must immediately spend a trophy (if you are disarming a trap) or take a Potion card.

Example of disarming a trap

Lily is playing as Joan of Bark. In the previous room, she defeated a Zombie Squirrel and left a Paw token on the card. Now she needs to get past the trap. A trophy sword is required to disarm it. Lily decides to use the sword from the Zombie Squirrel she just defeated: she flips the Zombie Squirrel card and places it on top of the trap. A Paw token is left where the Monster card used to be. Lily has lost her trophy sword, and she won't have to subtract a coin at the end of the game.

Stray Racoon

You can place a Paw token on this card to hire the Stray Racoon — he will help you until the end of the game, but he will need to be paid.

Immediately choose one of the two sides with trophy symbols — you will use them until the end of the game and will not be able to change sides:

• the side with two trophies gives you two trophies, however you can only choose to use one of them in each battle with a monster. They can also be used to disarm a trap (in this case you will not have to pay the Stray Racoon).
• the side with one trophy and a paw gives you one trophy and an extra Paw token — take it immediately and place it on your player board. It can be used in the same round. If you choose this side and disarm a trap with a Stray Racoon, remove one Paw token from your tablet — it becomes an additional token and is not returned to your tablet at the end of the round. If you spend all of your Paw tokens, including the one you've received from the Racoon in one round, remove one token from your tablet before the next round begins.

When scoring, subtract one coin to pay for the Stray Racoon's work. If you disarm a trap with a Stray Racoon, you do not need to subtract a coin at the end of the game.

If you don't need a Stray Racoon, pass through this room without leaving a Paw token on it.

Treasure Chest

You can place a Paw token on this card. At the end of the game, the Treasure Chest will give you 4 coins, but only if you have a key. You can obtain a key by defeating the Moskeyto or by playing as Rogue the Dogue. You can only open one chest with one key. One player can have several keys and chests.

Potions

You can place a Paw token on this card and immediately take any Potion card of your choice from the supply. You can have as many Potion cards as you like. You may choose to take a Potion card that another player has previously discarded. You take the Room card itself at the end of the round according to the general rules, but it brings nothing at the end of the game.

Door

You can pass through a door if you have a key.

You can use the trophy key obtained in the same round, or the key of Rogue the Dogue if you are playing as him. Bonk the Mighty can use his ability to break through a door without a key. If you don't have a key, the path with the door is blocked for you.

The key is not discarded — you can open any number of doors in the dungeon with one key.

Portal

If there is more than one Portal card in the dungeon, you can move between them as if they were Room cards with a common exit. You do not need to place a Paw token on portals.

End of Round

A round is finished when all players have escaped the dungeon or stayed to "take a nap". The player whose turn was last in the round immediately receives the First Player token. Then each player collects the Room cards with their Paw tokens on them, returning their Paw tokens on the player board.

• Set the Coin cards, Treasure Chests, undisarmed traps aside in your play area facing down.
• Place defeated monsters, artifacts and Stray Racoons underneath your player board on the left side as shown in the picture, so that all trophy symbols are next to the basic ones. Place the trophy key in the same way on the right side of the player board. Place the Stray Racoon with the side you chose when you hired him showing from underneath your player board.

Return the disarmed trap cards to the box along with the cards on top of them (except if they were disarmed with Potion cards — return the Potion cards to the potion supply).

Remove the top token from the round tracker. If it was the last token, the game ends immediately. If not, shuffle the Room cards remaining in the dungeon (except for the starting room) back into the main deck and start a new round using the same rules. The doggos are back in the dungeon, but better prepared for new challenges.

End of Game and Scoring

After the third round, the game ends.

• Add up and count the number of gold coins on all your Room cards. Remember that the Treasure Chest only brings coins if you have a key.
• Subtract coins for Trap and Stray Racoon cards if you have them.
• Receive coins you've earned for completing personal and shared quests. Only the player who holds the Quest card can get coins for a personal quest. Any player can get coins for a common quest if they've completed it (it can be more than one player). Monster quests are scored by the number of monsters defeated — for example, if you defeated two Ifrits, you are considered to have completed the quest "Last Wish" twice.

Note: an artifact quest ("Iron Grasp", "Fiery Heart", "Bullseye") can only be completed by one player, even if the quest is common. If multiple players have the same number of trophy symbols, a tie is resolved in favor of the player who has more basic symbols of that kind. If there is still a tie, no one is considered to have completed the quest.

The winner is the player who has collected the most coins.

In case of a tie, the player who has completed more quests — both personal and common — wins. If there is still a tie, the participants in the tie share the victory and wag their tails happily. Woof woof!

Example of the First Round

Lily, Diane, Jenny and Mathew are playing. The first round is in progress. Jenny plays as Rogue the Dogue and is the first to decide to escape the dungeon. From the starting room, she passes the Gelatin Cat and defeats it with her basic attack symbols, then passes the Gigatick and also defeats it, then exits the dungeon (the trap card was placed next to the Gigatick after Jenny had already finished her turn).

Lily, Diane and Mathew count out 12 Room cards from the top of the deck and continue exploring the dungeon.

Lily escapes the dungeon next, playing as Joan of Bark: first Lily defeats the Ifrit, then goes through a room with a coin, then defeats the Gigatick using an Agility potion in addition to her basic bow symbol.

Diane escapes next, she plays as Robin Goodgirl. Diane chooses the path with three coins and no monsters. She passes the room with the portal without activating the card, since there are no other portals on the table.

The last one out of the dungeon is Mathew, he plays as Sparky the Mage. First he hires a Stray Racoon and decides to use the side with the fireball and the paw. Mathew immediately picks up an additional Paw token and continues on his way: he passes the Treasure Chest, defeats the Chocolate Golem by adding up the two basic fireballs and the trophy fireball from the Stray Racoon, picks up two coins, and escapes the dungeon. Mathew then immediately receives the First Player token, as he was the last to have a turn this round.

Players collect their cards: Jenny has 2 trophies; Lily also has 2 trophies and 1 coin; Diane has 3 coins; Mathew has 2 trophies, 2 coins and a Treasure Chest — it will require a key, which Mathew hopes to retrieve in the next rounds.

Example of Scoring Coins

Lily counts her coins: she has 1 room card with a coin and 3 defeated monsters with coins — a total of 4 coins. Lily also receives 4 coins for the treasure chest she opened with a trophy key.

Then Lily checks her personal quest "Fiery Heart": she has 6 fireball trophy symbols (from the Magicollar, the Gelatin Cat, the Ifrit, the Magic Potion and the Stray Racoon — Lily chose this very side of the Stray Racoon to increase her chances of completing the quest). This is more than any of the other players have, therefore Lily receives 5 coins for completing her personal quest.

Then she checks the shared quests: she defeated two Gelatin Cats, two Ifrits and one Cerberus — Lily gets 2 coins for each monster, for a total of 10 coins.

At the end she subtracts 2 coins to pay for the Stray Racoon's job and the trap she couldn't disarm.

Lily has 4+4+5+10-2=21 coins total.

Doggos Abilities

Bonk the Mighty

To break through a wall or door, place a Paw token onto it. The token marks the spot that is now considered to be a pathway. You can break your way out of the dungeon this way. Other doggos can also use your broken pathways. The token spent only marks the passage and does not allow you to collect the card at the end of the round.

Joan of Bark

Joan of Bark's ability can only be used when escaping the dungeon and only on a monster that Joan cannot defeat (except for a Dragon). Joan of Bark puts a total of 2 Paw tokens on a Monster card: one to use the ability, the other to take the card at the end of the round as per the regular rules.

For example, Joan of Bark cannot defeat the Chocolate Golem: she places one Paw token onto this card to use her ability and another Paw token to mark her victory over the monster.

Rogue the Dogue

Rogue the Dogue's key works the same way as a trophy key: it opens all doors in the dungeon and only one Treasure Chest at the end of the game.

Robin Goodgirl

Traps that Robin jumps over are not considered disarmed. Robin cannot use trophies and Stray Racoons to disarm traps, even if she wanted to.

Roota Frostbite

Roota has 5 defense symbols, all of them are considered basic.

Sparky the Mage

Using Sparky's ability does not require a Paw token. Sparky can rotate Room cards in any direction, but cannot flip them face down. The cards around the starting room are the four cards that touch the sides of the starting room.