The Vale of Eternity: Artifacts
The Vale of Eternity: Artifacts Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 28 cards. Cards from this expansion can be recognized with the expansion symbol (a cave-shaped icon printed on the card).
- 11 Artifact tiles:
- 5 Base Artifacts, with the player count on their back: for 2+ players, for 3+ players, or for 4 players.
- 6 Advanced Artifacts.
- 4 square markers.
- 4 shelter markers.
- 1 cave standee.
- 4 player aids.
- 4 Additional Area tiles, two with +1 and two with +2 printed on them.
Setting Up the Game
This expansion requires The Vale of Eternity base game. Set up the game as normal, plus these extra steps:
- Shuffle the expansion cards together with the cards from the base game.
- Each player takes the square marker and the shelter marker in their colour, and a player aid.
- Place Artifacts in a display beside the game area, within reach of players:
- For Base Artifacts, take Artifacts corresponding to your player count.
- 2 players: play with all of the Base Artifacts marked for 2+ players.
- 3 players: play with all of the Base Artifacts marked for 2+ players and for 3+ players.
- 4 players: play with all of the Base Artifacts marked for 2+ players, for 3+ players, and for 4 players.
- For Advanced Artifacts, take 3 random Artifacts.
- For Base Artifacts, take Artifacts corresponding to your player count.
- Place Additional Area tiles near the supply of the stones.
- Place the cave standee so that all players can see it.
The printed page shows an example setup for a 2-player game.
Gameplay
This expansion adds more cards (creatures) with brand new effects, and Artifacts to select during the Hunting phase.
The game no longer ends when a player has 60 points or more: the game ends at the end of a round when a player has 80 points or more, or as usual, at the end of the 10th round.
The player with the most points wins, whichever endgame condition was triggered.
The cave standee reminds you the endgame condition has changed.
A Player's Game Area
The printed diagram of a player's game area labels four spaces:
- Space for Additional Area tile: the Additional Area tile goes here (see Purchasing Areas below).
- Areas: the summoned cards, arranged by family.
- Shelter: the cards placed in your shelter (see Shelter below).
- Space for Artifact: the Artifact you have selected during the Hunting phase.
1. Hunting Phase
Now the Hunting phase follows a new sequence:
- Reveal cards equal to twice the number of players as normal.
- From the first player and in clockwise order, each player takes an Artifact tile from the display that does not have their own square marker on it. If it had another player's token, give it back to them. (In other terms: you cannot take the same Artifact twice in a row.) Then place your square marker face-up on it.
- From the first player and in clockwise order, each player chooses their first card, placing their player marker on a card that has none. (This step is similar to the base game.)
- Then, from the last player and in counterclockwise order, players choose their second card by placing their player marker on it. (This step is similar to the base game.)
Note: If space is limited and there is not enough space in front of you, you can leave your selected Artifact in the display and simply move your square marker there to indicate whether you possess the Artifact. Instead of taking an Artifact, place your square marker on it face-up. Instead of returning it, flip your square marker face-down.
Note: you may choose to play without Artifacts, solely adding the new cards to the game. If you do, play the game as normal.
2. Action Phase
The action phase is played like in the base game. If the Artifact you selected during the Hunting phase has an Action ability, you may use that ability on your turn. After using it, return the Artifact to the display with your square marker on it.
3. Resolution Phase
After resolving all your effects, if you still have an Artifact (Instant, Permanent, or unused Action) in front of you, put it back to the display with your square marker on it. This means you will not be able to select it in the next round.
Artifacts
The abilities of the Artifact are divided into three types:
- Instant abilities are used as soon as you select the Artifact.
- Permanent abilities are active as long as you have the Artifact.
- Action abilities can be used once on your turn during the Action phase. After using such an ability, return the Artifact to the display with your square marker on it.
Shelter
Some abilities let you put a card in your shelter. To Shelter a card means to place it above your shelter marker, face up. If there are any existing sheltered cards, overlap them partially so players may look at cards in your shelter freely.
However, your sheltered cards are neither in your hand nor summoned; they don't have any effect while there, nor can be targeted by effects unless they specifically mention the Shelter. (Typically, those effects are found only on Artifacts.)
Retrieve: Retrieving a card means taking a card of your choice from your shelter and adding it to your hand.
Purchasing Areas
Some Artifacts allow you to purchase areas. Upon purchasing an area, take an Additional Area tile and place it in front of you, +1 side up. If you already had one, flip it on its +2 side up. A player may acquire up to two additional areas this way.
Note: If space is limited and there is not enough space in front of you, you can save space by grouping the cards summoned in front of you by family or type of effect, and overlapping them so that only the bottom part of each card is visible.
Printed example of grouping the summoned cards by the type of effect: with the Additional Area tile showing +1 side up, you may have up to 5 summoned cards in the 4th round.
Printed example cards: Incense Burner reads "Purchase 1 area. (Price: 3) -or- Shelter the top 2 cards from the draw deck." Cap of Hades reads "Shelter 1 card from your hand to purchase 1 area for free or to earn [stone]."
Artifact Abilities
This section provides detailed information on the abilities of Artifacts.
The printed section covers the Artifacts below. Cap of Hades appears only in the purchasing example above and has no entry here; the stone icon on its printed text is not legible at the scan's resolution and is not transcribed.
Book of Toth
You cannot upgrade the same stone twice.
You cannot "downgrade" stones, even if they are more valuable to you through effects.
Gem of Kukulkan
You may use this ability only after you sell the card, earn its stones, and check your holding limit!
Incense Burner
The price you pay for acquiring a new area is 3. Pay as though you were summoning a creature with cost 3. However, creature cost reduction or fixing does not work on this price!
Pied Piper's Pipe
The Retrieve ability of this card only applies to your shelter, not other players' shelters.
Ring of Wishes
You resolve the chosen Resolution effect when you use the Ring's ability during the Action phase. You do not have to wait for your Resolution phase to resolve it!
Seven-League Boots
The revealed card is placed with the cards of its family around the board. The card you shelter with this Artifact doesn't have to be the newly revealed card, it can be any card revealed at the beginning of the Hunting phase or by this Artifact.
Reminders
When paying magic stones, you cannot pay extra stones beyond what is required.
E.g.: If you have a blue magic stone and a red token with the number 1, to pay a cost of 1, you can pay either the red token or the blue magic stone. However, you cannot pay both the blue magic stone and the red token.
Every effect must be used.
E.g.: If you have Hephaestus in your area, but have neither a blue magic stone nor three red tokens with the number 1, you must lose the 2 token and earn a blue magic stone and three red tokens with the number 1.
The only exception to this is if you have less than the 2 token: then you cannot use this card's effect.
A card cannot be summoned if any part of its Instant effect cannot be resolved.
E.g.: You must select a player (including yourself) who has at least one summoned Fire card. The player of your choice gets to decide which Fire card to swap with Pyro. If you select yourself, both cards remain your area. If there are no players with summoned Fire cards, you cannot summon Pyro.
If the cost of a card is fixed, it is no longer influenced by other card effects such as cost reduction.
E.g.: With Belphegor in your area, you always pay a cost of 1 when summoning a Fire card, even a card with cost 0 such as Hestia. Pegasus does not reduce the cost of your Fire cards: it is always 1.
Permanent effects remain active throughout the game, after finishing summoning of the card until it leaves your area. They can trigger even in the midst of processing an action or another effect.
E.g.: You have Thalassa in play and four stones. An effect has you earn a blue magic stone, and makes you recover Thalassa. Even if you discard the blue magic stone as part of exceeding the magic stone limit, Thalassa has already been recovered.
E.g.: You have summoned Loki. You can treat this card as if it were of any family during your turn. "Your turn" refers to your Hunting, Action, and Resolution phases. But, during other players' turns, Loki in your area is considered as a Wind card.
Discarding a card from your area means discarding one of your summoned cards. A card is discarded either by the Remove action, the effect of cards like Cerberus or Anubis, or the ability of Imperial Seal.
E.g.: You have summoned Totem Pole. When you resolve the effect of Dragon Egg or Mandrake to discard itself, you can earn a purple token through the effect of Totem Pole. However, you cannot earn a purple token when Pyro, Ash, or Tengu leave your area by resolving their effect, since they are not considered to be discarded.