The Grimwood
The Grimwood Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Objective
The Grimwood is a forest where supernatural creatures reside. Players search the forest (deck) and compete with each other to collect the most supernaturals, animals, or settings to maximize their loot (points). The player with the most points wins.
Starting the Game
Shuffle the cards and deal 3 cards to each player face down. Place the remaining cards face down in the middle of the table.
Players may now look at their cards; these are their starting hands. Players can have a maximum of 7 cards in their hand. If they have more than that, they must discard their cards down to 7 by the end of their turn.
The player whose birthday is the soonest starts the game by taking his/her turn. Then the turns proceed clockwise. Every turn, the player can do up to 2 actions and/or place one or more combos.
There's only a limited time to make your moves - the game ends when the last card is drawn. The deck goes quicker than you think! Once the last card is drawn, each subsequent player finishes one last turn, and then everyone scores his/her combinations.
Turn Overview
On a turn, a player may do the following:
Action A: Draw or steal 1 card
- Draw: take the first card from the top of the deck.
- Steal: pick randomly 1 card from another player's hand.
Stealing is only from a player's hand, not from his/her combos. Some supernatural powers allow taking a card from another player's combo.
NOTE: If an amulet is played against you when you attempt to steal, you lose the rest of your turn. However, if you are stealing using a supernatural's power, an amulet only blocks one steal and the rest of your turn proceeds as usual.
Action B: Play 1 card
You can only play a supernatural or a rune. When playing a supernatural, place it in front of you to start building a supernatural combo. The card's effect is only valid at the time you play it unless another card allows you to reactivate it.
After playing a Rune, place it in the discard pile after you do your additional actions. Actions are: Draw a card from the deck, steal a card from a player's hand, or play a card's power.
Place a combo
Anytime during the turn, you can place a combo(s). Placing combos do not count as actions.
Type of Combos & Scoring
Combos must be placed in front of the player and remain in his/her possession (combos get destroyed or taken) to count as points and make up the player's final score at the end of the game.
Supernatural Combos
- 1 supernatural: 1 pt.
- 2 supernaturals: 2 pts.
- 3 supernaturals: 5 pts.
- 4 supernaturals: 10 pts.
- 5 supernaturals: 15 pts.
Animal Combos
- 3 Owls: 10 pts.
- 3 Crows: 10 pts.
Settings Combos
- 1 Swamp + 1 Path + 1 Clearing: 5 pts.
- 3 Swamps: 3 pts.
- 3 Paths: 3 pts.
- 3 Clearings: 3 pts.
Card Breakdown
- 24 supernaturals
- 9 owls
- 9 crows
- 4 amulets
- 6 clearings
- 6 paths
- 6 swamps
- 4 runes
- 68 cards total
Example of a 3-Player Setup
Each player has their own combos in front of them (in the example: Player 1, 8 pts.; Player 2, 11 pts.; Player 3, 15 pts.), with the draw deck and the discard pile in the middle of the table.
About Placing Combos
While supernaturals can be placed one at a time, animal and settings combos cannot be placed until all 3 cards are in your hand.
You may place more than one supernatural at a time, but in this case only one supernatural power can be played unless you have a rune. Playing a supernatural's power is optional.
You may place supernaturals however you wish, even starting multiple combo sets, but once you place a supernatural, you cannot change the composition of the combos.
Gameplay Example
Let's say your hand looks like this:
Action A: Draw or steal
On your turn, you decide to draw from the deck rather than steal from another player's hand. You get a Clearing.
Place a combo
With a Clearing, you now have a Settings Combo (1 Path + 1 Swamp + 1 Clearing). You place the combo in front of you.
Action B: Play 1 card
As a second action, you may play a card. You decide to play the Dark Unicorn and force all players to discard a card from their hand. You place the Dark Unicorn beside your Place combo. You now have a score of 6 points (1 Supernatural plus 1 Clearing + 1 Path + 1 Swamp). Since you don't have any more combos, you end your turn.
More on placing combos...
When it is your turn again, you play the Nymph, deciding to build up the combo you began with the Dark Unicorn.
Now you also decide to activate the Nymph's power, taking another player's supernatural, the Giant. You can either place the Giant with the Nymph and Dark Unicorn, or start a new combo.
While you get more points if you place all the supernaturals together, you are also more at risk for losing all of them should someone else play a card which allows them to take a combo from you.
- All together: Dark Unicorn + Nymph + Giant = 5 pts. + 5 pts. (settings combo) = 10 pts.
- OR separately: 1 pt. + 2 pts. + 5 pts. (settings combo) = 8 pts.
Summary of Card Powers
AMAZON: All players must give you a card from their hand of your asking. If they don't have it, you missed your shot. Example: Play the Amazon and ask for crows. Any player with crows must give 1 crow to you. You may also ask for a supernatural by name, but you can't just ask if anyone has a supernatural in general.
BOOGEYMAN: Exchange hands with another player.
BRIDE: Take any male supernatural already played. May play the card's effect immediately. Male supernaturals: Boogeyman, Demon, Dracula, Dwarf, Giant, Mage, Troll, Werewolf.
CENTAUR: Take the top card of the discard pile. May play immediately.
DARK UNICORN: Force all players to discard a card from their hand. You choose randomly.
DEMON: Send any combo into the discard pile.
DRACULA: Steal 2 cards from a player's hand.
DRAGON: Protects the set it is part of by making the set immune from special powers. Once played, it freezes the set it is part of and no more cards may be added to that combo.
DWARF: Take top card of discard pile and top card of deck. Choose one, discard the other.
ELF: Reactivate the power of any supernatural under your control this turn.
FAERIES: Take any 2 cards from the discard pile into your hand. May play one.
GHOULS: You may draw from the deck or steal a card from a player's hand.
GIANT: Take any card from the discard pile. May play immediately.
GOBLINS: Steal 3 cards from 1 or more players' hands.
HIGHWAYMAN: Swap combos with another player.
HYDRA: You may look at 1 player's hand.
MAGE: Draw 2 cards from the deck.
NYMPH: Take any supernatural card already played. Play that card's effect.
SHADOW QUEEN: Look at every player's hand. Steal 1 card blind from 1 player's hand.
SORCERESS: Sacrifice a set of owls or crows to take any combo as your own.
THE ETERNALS: Fill your hand to 7 by drawing from the deck and/or stealing from other players' hands.
THE LARAKI: Draw as many cards from the top of the discard pile as there are players. Pick 1 to put in your hand. Give 1 card face up to each player.
TROLL: Force a player to discard a card. Choose a card from the player's hand at random.
WEREWOLF: Choose a player to lose a turn.
AMULET: Play to block any 1 steal from your hand. Discard after use. The player who tries to steal loses his/her turn. If a player steals using a supernatural's power, you can block 1 steal per amulet, but the player's turn proceeds as usual.
RUNE: Player can take 2 additional actions this turn. Actions include drawing a card, stealing from a player's hand, or playing a card's power.
Alternate Modes of Play
For a 2 player game, take out 2 runes and 2 amulets.
For more combinations have 3 clearings, 3 paths or 3 swamps = 3 pts.