Theurgy Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Meet The Gods
• Core Components
  • Divine Components
• How to use this Rulebook
  • AI and Coop Rules
  • Thematic Overview
• Setting up for the core game
  • 1. Create the board
  • 2. Preparing the Miracle Deck
  • 3. Preparing the Monster Deck
  • 4. Preparing the Divine Calling Cards
  • 5. Select Your Deities
  • 6. Populating the Map
  • 7. Choose Your Divine Calling
• Capital Events
  • 2. Preparing the Miracle Deck with Capital Events
• Sequence of Play
• The Winning Conditions
• The Four Actions
  • Pilgrimage
  • Spread The Word
  • Divine Intervention
    • Perform A Miracle
    • Summon A Monster
• A Guide to the Monsters
• Test The Faith
  • Move the Anomaly Token
  • Count Up Faith Tokens
  • Carry Out Conversions
  • Destroy and Build Temples
  • Place Sceptic Tokens
• Clarifications
  • Deity Abilities
  • Miracles
  • Monsters
  • Divine Callings

Meet The Gods

Lutraz - Goddess of fine wine and fine words, whose silvered tongue speaks the only language all can understand. Temples to Lutraz are often among the most opulent buildings in any settlement. "There is a price for all things."

Kelerix - God of haste, said never to spend two consecutive heartbeats in one place; also worshipped as a god of journeys and safe passage, and known as the 'god of gales'. His temples are marked by streamers of many colours.

Aeoris - The Maker of Dawn and Dusk, who resides outside of time. Aeoris' acolytes wear soul-knots on pendants; when an acolyte dies, their soul-knot is taken to a child born that same day, and a new thread woven into it.

Kirjani - Kirjani Ever-light, 'the everlight', offers her followers neither peace nor power, but only the promise of greater understanding. Her followers dress in simple garb and build temples of plain stone.

Orrun - The hidden god, almost always depicted from behind. Orrun's followers keep their identities secret and wear masks to worship. More strange and unexplained phenomena are attributed to Orrun than to any other god.

Eseryn - Worshipped beneath satin skies in open-air temples, with midnight worship. The common name for shooting stars is 'Esseryn's tears'.

Core Components

• 51 Miracle Cards
• 6 Capital Event Cards
• 120 Faith Tokens (20 per player)
• 27 Divine Calling Cards
• 30 Monster Cards
• 30 Unique Monster Tokens
• 6 Plain Monster Markers
• 80 Sceptic Tokens
• 6 Player Aids
• 6 Deity Boards (1 per player)
• 19 Settlement Tiles
• 1 Anomaly Token
• 72 Temples (12 per player)
• 400 Follower Meeples (55 per player)
• 70 Non-Believer Meeples
• 6 Action Pawns (1 per player)
• 12 Acolyte Meeples (2 per player)
• 6 Player Trays (1 per player)
• 6 AI Relationship Markers
• 1 Direction Die

Divine Components

• 30 Unique Monster Meeples
• 6 Custom Action Pawns (1 per player)
• 72 Custom Temples (12 per player)
• 12 Custom Acolyte Meeples (2 per player)
• 1 Custom Anomaly Token
• 6 Engraved Monster Markers

How to use this Rulebook

The rulebook is divided into four sections:

1. Setup
2. Capital Events
3. Sequence of Play
4. The Four Actions

You will need to read sections 1, 3, and 4 before you attempt your first game. After you've played a couple of times, you may wish to introduce Capital Events as described in section 2.

Suggestions for teaching the game to new players are given in white boxes. These are suggestions specific to teaching Theurgy based on the designers' own experiences over many sessions.

Throughout the rulebook, key concepts and other points of interest are explained in the sidebar (rendered here as Sidebar notes). Pay close attention to the sidebar as well as to the main text - it is just as important! If you come across something in the main text which you don't understand, check the sidebar (on the current or the next page) again.

As with most games, Theurgy sounds a lot more complicated on paper than it is in practice. The best way to learn is to get stuck in.

AI and Coop Rules

Theurgy also includes a Solo and Coop mode. Due to space constraints, the rules for these modes are not printed in this rulebook. The Solo and Coop rulebooks can be downloaded at www.ministryofmeeples.com. (They are not included here.)

Thematic Overview

In Theurgy, players take on the role of old half-forgotten deities and compete to have temples built in their honour.

At the beginning of the game, each deity has only a pair of loyal acolytes and a handful of followers situated at the rural edges of a godless world. However, as the game progresses, whole towns and cities will pledge their devotion to one faith or another - or else they perish.

Setting up for the core game

1. Create the board

1.1. The 19 settlement tiles are divided into the following settlement types: 3 x Forests, 3 x Markets, 3 x Farmlands, 3 x Marshes, 3 x Harbours, 3 x Mines, 1 x Capital.

1.2. Place the Capital in the centre of the play area.

1.3. Shuffle together 1 of each of the 6 remaining types.

1.4. Randomly place these 6 tiles face-up around the Capital to form an inner ring.

1.5. Shuffle together the remaining settlement tiles.

1.6. Randomly place these 12 tiles face-up around the inner ring to form an outer ring.

Sidebar - Building the map: If all three tiles of the same settlement type end up sharing the same vertex, swap the tile on the inner ring with another tile on the inner ring. Example: Suppose three Farmlands share one vertex. To solve this problem, the Farmland on the inner ring is swapped with the Market on the inner ring.

2. Preparing the Miracle Deck

2.1. Make sure that any Capital Events have been removed from the Miracle Deck. Capital Events are not used in the core game.

2.2. Shuffle the Miracle Deck and then deal 3 miracle cards face-down to each player. Players may look at their own miracle cards.

2.3. Place the Miracle Deck face-down near the board.

3. Preparing the Monster Deck

3.1. Shuffle the Monster Deck and place it face-down near the board.

3.2. Then draw the top three Monsters and place them face-up in a row for all the players to see.

3.3. Place the six Monster Markers next to the Monster Deck.

3.4. Arrange the thirty monster tokens in a common supply pool so that each token can be easily seen (e.g. in 6 rows of 5).

4. Preparing the Divine Calling Cards

4.1. Go through the Divine Calling cards and remove any which are not compatible with the player count. The compatible player counts are clearly indicated on each card.

4.2. Shuffle the remaining Divine Calling cards and deal two face-down to each player. Players may look at their own Divine Calling cards.

4.3. Return the remaining Divine Calling cards to the box. They will not be used in this game.

5. Select Your Deities

Each deity has a unique power. Although all the powers have been carefully balanced so that no deity is more powerful than any other, some deities are easier to strategise with than others. The deities may be ordered in complexity (from lowest complexity to highest) as follows: Lutraz < Orrun < Kelerix < Kirjani < Aeoris < Eseryn. For your first couple of games, it is suggested to use the less complicated deities.

5.1. Deal one of the six deity boards to each player. You may do this randomly or allow players to choose their preferred deities. Players should make sure they use the 'player' side of the board and not the AI side. The AI side is indicated by the cog symbol.

5.2. Each player then collects the action pawn, faith tokens, meeples and temples which match their deity's colour and place them in a personal supply pool beside their deity board.

5.3. Finally, place all the grey non-believer meeples and sceptic tokens in a common supply pool within easy reach of all the players.

Sidebar - Player Trays: Player trays have been provided to help you keep your pieces organised and the game table clear. They are not strictly necessary for gameplay.

(Setup diagram for two players, key: 1. Map, 2. Miracle Deck, 3. Monster Deck, 4. Monster Markers, 5. Monster Tokens, 6. Starting Cards, 7. Player Mats, 8. Player Pieces, 9. Non-Believers, 10. Sceptic Tokens, 11. Anomaly Token, 12. Player Aid.)

6. Populating the Map

6.1. Randomly determine a starting player. If this is not your first game, it is recommended that you choose the player to the left of the most recent winner of Theurgy.

6.2. The possible starting locations are those settlements which are NOT connected to the Capital along a single edge.

In reverse player order (beginning with the last and proceeding anticlockwise) each player must choose their starting location(s):

• 2/3 Players: Each player chooses TWO directly opposite starting settlements. They place one acolyte and three followers in each of these settlements. They then place one faith token on a vertex of their choice on each of these settlements.
• 4/5/6 Players: Each player chooses just ONE starting settlement. They place both of their acolytes and three followers in this settlement. They may then place one faith token on a vertex of their choice on this settlement.

Sidebar - Acolytes: Your acolytes are your eternally loyal and most important servants. It is they who will travel the land, preaching and performing miracles in your name. They are represented by the two largest meeples in your colour.

Sidebar - Followers: Followers will help to spread the word of your religion and build temples in your honour. They are represented by the mini meeples in your colour.

Sidebar - Non-Believers: Non-believers are either unsure about which deity to follow, or doubtful whether there are any deities at all! They are represented by the grey mini meeples.

Sidebar - Mortals: The term "mortals" is used to refer to mini meeples regardless of their colour. Followers and non-believers are mortals, but acolytes and monsters are not.

6.3. The third and fourth player each place 1 additional follower in their starting settlement(s). The fifth and sixth players each place 2 additional followers in their starting settlement.

6.4. Once all players have chosen their starting locations, place 3 grey non-believers onto each remaining settlement in the outer ring.

6.5. Place 5 grey non-believers and 1 sceptic token onto each settlement in the inner ring.

6.6. Place 8 grey non-believers, 2 sceptic tokens and the Anomaly Token in the Capital.

Sidebar - Sceptic Tokens: Sceptic tokens indicate the level of doubt toward the gods in a settlement. Scepticism is spread by the Guild of Alchemists, who have spent decades working tirelessly to rid the world of the old religions.

Sidebar - The Anomaly Token: The Anomaly Token indicates that something strange has occurred in the settlement, like a ghostly apparition or strange weather event.

Sidebar - Faith Tokens: Faith tokens represent your cultural influence - the extent to which you are recognised in the surrounding settlements' histories, customs, and practices.

Sidebar - No Resource Limit: The number of meeples, temples and tokens are not meant to be limited. In the highly unlikely event that you run out of a particular resource, use substitutes.

7. Choose Your Divine Calling

7.1. Each player chooses one of their Divine Calling cards to keep and discards the other. Do not look at the discarded divine calling cards.

You are now ready to begin.

Capital Events

2. Preparing the Miracle Deck with Capital Events

2.1. Make sure that any Capital Events have been removed from the Miracle Deck.

2.2. Shuffle the Miracle Deck and then deal 3 miracle cards face-down to each player. Players may look at their own miracle cards.

2.3. Split the remainder of the Miracle Deck into four roughly equal piles: A, B, C, D.

2.4. Shuffle the Capital events and randomly insert them face-down into these piles as follows:

• 2/3 Players: 1 capital event in B, 1 capital event in D.
• 4/5/6 Players: 1 capital event in D.

2.5. Shuffle each pile individually.

2.6. Place C on top of D, B on top of C, and A on top of B to reform the Miracle Deck. Do NOT shuffle this deck!

2.7. Place the Miracle Deck face-down next to the board.

Sidebar - Capital Events: Capital events pose an interesting dilemma to players. Should you make a dash for the capital and attempt to establish a stronghold, knowing that there's a high probability that the event will badly hurt you later? Or should you wait until the event has passed, by which time all the other players will be making their way to the capital too?

Sidebar - Added Chaos: Capital events make the game a little more chaotic and unpredictable. If that's the style of game that you like, then you can make the game even more chaotic by adding in additional capital event cards during set-up.

Sequence of Play

Theurgy is a turn-based game. Beginning with the starting player and proceeding clockwise, players use their turn to perform a single action by placing their action pawn onto any one of the available action spaces on their player mat.

The four actions are: Pilgrimage, Spread the Word, Divine Intervention, and Test the Faith.

It is important to place your action pawn onto an action space because, unless otherwise instructed, a player may not perform the same action twice in a row by leaving their action pawn on its current space. You MUST always move your action pawn to perform an action.

There are no end-of-round upkeep phases in Theurgy. Players simply take their turns one after another until a player finishes their turn having met one of the three winning conditions.

Sidebar - The Golden Rule: Unless otherwise instructed, a player may not perform the same action twice in a row by leaving their action pawn on its current space. In general, you MUST always move your action pawn to perform an action.

Sidebar - Open and Hidden Information: Your hand of miracle cards and your Divine Calling are hidden information - you may not show other players these cards. The monsters in your horde and the current position of your action pawn are open information.

The Winning Conditions

Temples are only ever built as a result of a Test the Faith action. The aim of Theurgy is to be the first to meet one of three winning conditions at the end of your turn, all of which involve building temples:

• Establish the Official Faith: Build X temples, including one in the Capital.
• Fulfil Your Calling: Build X+1 temples and meet your secret objective.
• Spread Across the Land: Build X+2 temples anywhere on the board.

The value of X depends on the number of players and is given on the player aid.

Sidebar - Victory Conditions: If you meet a victory condition during someone else's turn, hold your tongue. You only win if you have still met that condition by the end of your own turn!

Sidebar - Hint: As you approach the late stages of the game, it may become clear that one player is dangerously close to winning. When this happens, it can be a good idea for the rest of the group to set aside their differences and work together to destroy a few of the front-runner's temples. Conversely, if you are getting close to meeting a victory condition, you need to think carefully about how you can ensure victory. If you have multiple ways of achieving victory, then it's going to be much tougher for your rivals to stop you.

The Four Actions

Teaching suggestion: If you try to teach everyone all of the actions at once, chances are that they will feel overwhelmed. It is best to teach these actions as you play. Make yourself the starting player and begin by taking the Pilgrimage action. Then, in order, have each other player take a Pilgrimage action. For your second turn, take a Spread the Word action, and then have each other player in order take a Spread the Word action. For your third turn, take a Divine Intervention action, and for your fourth turn, take a Test the Faith action. Encourage the other players to take the same actions on their turn. Once everyone has tried all four actions, continue the game as normal by taking whichever action you think is best.

Remember that, in the full game, players may perform any of the actions available to them - they DO NOT need to take the actions in a particular sequence. It just so happens that taking the actions from left to right on your player mat is often a good way to start the game. Helpful reminders about how the actions work are also given on the player aids.

Sidebar - The Importance of Test the Faith: Many first-time players leave it too long before taking their first Test the Faith action. If you leave it too long before you start building temples, you might find it difficult to catch up with more experienced players. Getting first-time players to take a Test the Faith action on their fourth turn can help them remember that this is an action you need to perform throughout the game, not just in the late stages!

Pilgrimage

By taking the Pilgrimage action, you may move any number of your own followers and acolytes anywhere on the board into neighbouring settlements. Each follower and acolyte can only move once.

ONCE during a Pilgrimage Action, each acolyte may EITHER preach OR fight. An acolyte may preach or fight before, after, or without moving.

Preach: Remove one undefended follower or non-believer in the acolyte's settlement and replace it with a follower of your own colour. Replacing a mortal with one of your own followers is known as 'converting a mortal'.

Fight: Remove one undefended monster token from the acolyte's settlement. The player who controls this monster discards their corresponding monster card.

Sidebar - Defending Followers: A follower is considered defended if it is sharing a settlement with an acolyte of the same colour. Notice that non-believers can never be defended.

Sidebar - Defending Monsters: A monster token is considered defended if it is sharing a settlement with an acolyte belonging to the player who owns the corresponding monster card.

Sidebar - Discarding Cards: Discarded cards are placed face-up in either a Monster or Miracle discard pile with the most recently discarded card on top. Players may look through the discard piles at any time, but they may NOT change the order of the cards.

Sidebar - Movement Restriction: It is not possible to move a follower during the very same Pilgrimage on which it was converted.

Sidebar - Lutraz & Kelerix: Both Lutraz and Kelerix have abilities associated with the Pilgrimage action. Lutraz's acolytes may preach both before and after moving, while Kelerix's acolytes and followers can move twice. Lutraz's ability certainly looks very dramatic, especially in the early game when there is a lot of grey on the board, but they have to work quite hard to keep this early game advantage!

Pilgrimage: Example 1. Lutraz (red) decides to Pilgrimage. They choose to move their follower in the Harbour to the Farmland and to leave their remaining followers where they are. Lutraz also wants to convert one of Kelerix's (blue) followers. They can't convert either of Kelerix's followers in the Marshes as they are being defended, so they move their acolyte to the adjacent Forest and preach there. They replace Kelerix's follower in this Forest with one of their own from the supply.

Pilgrimage: Example 2. Lutraz (red) decides to Pilgrimage. They choose to move their follower in the Harbour to the Farmland and to leave their remaining followers where they are. Lutraz also moves their acolyte into the neighbouring Forest. Instead of converting Kelerix's follower here, Lutraz decides to fight Kelerix's Werewolf. The Werewolf is undefended and so the token is simply removed from the board and Kelerix discards their Werewolf card.

It's worth stressing the fact that acolytes defend followers and monsters in exactly the same way. A rival acolyte cannot convert one of your followers or fight one of your monsters if you have your own acolyte present in the same settlement.

Spread The Word

By taking a Spread the Word action, a player may place one of their faith tokens on ONE vacant vertex on any settlement where they have at least one follower present.

If a player has more followers surrounding a faith token than the player who owns the faith token, they may INSTEAD use their action to replace this faith token with one of their own.

Sidebar - Vacant Vertex: A vertex (corner) that is not currently occupied by a faith token.

Sidebar - Kirjani: Kirjani's ability is associated with the Spread the Word action. It is not possible for other players to replace Kirjani's faith tokens IF Kirjani has an acolyte present in one of the surrounding settlements. This ability is much more subtle than some of the other deity abilities, but it can be incredibly powerful - especially if Kirjani is able to get a foothold in the Capital.

Sidebar - Hint: Faith tokens are very powerful pieces. You want to make sure that you position your followers carefully so as to prevent your rivals from replacing your tokens on their Spread the Word actions.

Spread The Word: Example 1. Lutraz (red) chooses to take the Spread the Word action. They may choose to place one of their faith tokens on any one of the vertices highlighted in the diagram.

Spread The Word: Example 2. Lutraz (red) chooses to take the Spread the Word action. They have three followers surrounding Kelerix's (blue) faith token, while Kelerix only has two. They therefore decide to use the action to replace Kelerix's faith token with one of their own.

Divine Intervention

Pilgrimage and Spread the Word are the bread and butter of the game. Divine Interventions are what make Theurgy so interesting.

By taking a Divine Intervention action, a player may EITHER perform a miracle OR summon a monster.

A player may also activate the ability of, and/or move, any number of monsters in their horde at any point during their Divine Intervention action. Of course, each monster can only be activated and moved ONCE per Divine Intervention. Monsters are introduced below.

Perform A Miracle

Select ONE of your two acolytes to perform the miracle. Often, though not always, miracles affect the settlement in which the acolyte performing the miracle is present. Whenever the card uses the phrase "this settlement", it is referring to the settlement occupied by the chosen acolyte.

Players perform miracles by revealing and discarding a miracle card from their hand. The effect of the miracle is detailed on the miracle card. ALL sceptic tokens in the settlement where the miracle is performed are removed and returned to the supply.

After a player has played a miracle card, they then have the choice of discarding any number of further cards from their hand. The player then draws back up to three cards.

Sidebar - Removing Sceptic Tokens with Miracles: Sceptic tokens are removed from the settlement occupied by the acolyte performing the miracle, regardless of whether or not the miracle affects that settlement, another settlement, or no settlement at all. The idea here is that people tend to be a lot less sceptical when miracles are performed right in front of them!

Sidebar - Depleting the Deck: If ever you deplete a deck, simply shuffle all of the cards in the discard pile and use them to form a new deck.

Sidebar - Action Pawns: Some miracles allow you to perform other actions. Do not move your action pawn to perform these actions - leave your action pawn on Divine Intervention.

Divine Intervention: Example 1. Lutraz (red) performs a miracle using their acolyte in the Farmland. All three of the sceptic tokens which have accumulated there are removed and Lutraz carries out the effect detailed on their card. Lutraz decides that they don't like either of their two remaining miracle cards, so they discard them along with the miracle they just performed. Finally, they draw three more cards.

Summon A Monster

To summon a monster, a player may either select one of the three face-up monster cards or blindly draw the top card of the Monster Deck. They then place the card face-up beside their player mat to indicate that it is under their control. This monster is now a part of their horde.

The player then finds the corresponding monster token and places it into any settlement which matches the settlement type given on the monster card. Remove ALL sceptic tokens present there. The monster's ability is triggered immediately.

Finally, place one of the monster markers on each of the face-up monster cards that were not taken. If ever a monster card would receive a third marker, discard it and return the two disks to the supply. Finally, draw monster cards from the monster deck and place them face-up until there are once again three face-up monsters available for summoning.

After a player has summoned a monster, they then also have the choice of discarding any number of miracle cards from their hand. The player then draws back up to a hand of three cards.

Sidebar - How many monsters? There are 30 monster cards in the game: 5 monsters for each of the six settlement types. No monsters are ever directly summoned into the Capital, although they can be moved into the Capital.

Sidebar - Monsters vs Miracles: The big difference between monsters and miracles is that miracles just have an immediate one-time effect, while monsters will affect the board again and again so long as they're alive.

Sidebar - Mortals: Remember that the term "mortals" is used to refer to mini meeples regardless of their colour. So, for example, if a miracle or a monster allows you to move mortals from a settlement, you may move mini meeples of any colour.

Divine Intervention: Example 2. Lutraz (red) decides to summon the Werewolf, which must be placed into a Forest. Lutraz then removes the two sceptic tokens in their chosen Forest. The Werewolf's ability is immediately triggered. The Werewolf may remove a follower in its own settlement and in up to two neighbouring settlements. Lutraz chooses to remove Kelerix's (blue's) follower in the Forest and one of Kelerix's followers in the Marshes. Lutraz then decides to discard one of the miracle cards in their hand and draw back up to three cards.

Sidebar - Discarding Extra Cards: Although all of the miracles in the deck are useful, the utility of a card will likely depend on your position on the board. If you don't think you're ever going to use a card, then after your divine intervention you can discard it to draw another.

Sidebar - Summoning Monsters: Monsters can be summoned into ANY settlement which matches the settlement type given on the monster card. You DO NOT need to have an acolyte present in the settlement where the monster token is placed.

Sidebar - Removing Sceptic Tokens with Monsters: ALL sceptic tokens are removed from a settlement whenever a monster is summoned or moved into it. Again, people stop being so sceptical when there's a monster in their back garden!

A Guide to the Monsters

Each monster card contains the following information: Settlement Type, Ability Type, Movement Type, Name, Ability.

A monster may be summoned into ANY settlement which matches the settlement type given on its card. You DO NOT need an acolyte present in the settlement.

Every monster has one of two ability types. They either have an active ability or a passive ability (each indicated by its own symbol on the card).

If a monster's ability is active, it may be triggered each time its owner takes a Divine Intervention action. The player may choose at what point during their action to trigger the ability.

If a monster's ability is passive, it has a permanent ongoing effect and the ability does not need to be specifically triggered.

Additionally, each monster is either roaming or territorial (each denoted by its own symbol).

If a monster is roaming, it may move into a neighbouring settlement whenever its owner takes a Divine Intervention action. The player may choose at what point during their action to move their monster.

Whenever a monster moves into a settlement, remove ALL sceptic tokens there.

A monster may NOT move during the Divine Intervention on which it was summoned. If a monster is territorial, it cannot move.

A couple of monsters move in unusual ways. When a monster does not move according to the normal rules, this is indicated by a special symbol. The way in which the monster moves is then detailed on the card.

Finally, there are six "legendary monsters" - one for each settlement type. Two acolytes are required to fight a legendary monster, which is indicated by the presence of a special symbol.

Since monsters are a little more complex than miracles, many new players tend to shy away from summoning monsters and just use their Divine Interventions to perform miracles instead. It may therefore be a good idea to summon a couple of monsters early on in the game so that everyone can see how they work.

Sidebar - Monster Abilities: It is always optional whether or not to trigger a Monster's active ability. Passive abilities, on the other hand, cannot be ignored.

Sidebar - Engine Building: The monsters introduce an element of engine building to Theurgy. Since monsters move and activate their abilities each time you take a Divine Intervention action, the greater the number of monsters in your horde, the more interesting and powerful your Divine Interventions become!

Sidebar - Adding/Removing Pieces: Whenever you are instructed to add pieces, take them from the supply. Whenever you are told to remove pieces, return them to the supply.

Sidebar - Opposing Pieces: An "opposing" piece is any piece which does not belong to you. This includes pieces belonging to the non-believers.

Sidebar - Wounding Acolytes: Some monsters and miracles allow you to wound an acolyte. Place an acolyte on its side to indicate that it is wounded. While an acolyte is wounded, it is as though it is not there. It cannot defend followers or monsters, use a deity ability, move, or perform a miracle. The acolyte may stand upright on the player's next Pilgrimage action, but they may do nothing else during that action i.e. they may not move, preach, or fight.

Sidebar - Monster Clashes: Some Monster abilities instruct you to move acolytes and mortals, while other Monsters prevent movement. In the event of a clash, monsters which prevent movement take priority over monsters which require movement. For example, the Siren cannot pull a mortal out of a settlement occupied by the Giant Spider.

Test The Faith

This is probably the most complicated action in the game - and it is also the most important! (Teaching tip: show everyone the example Test the Faith actions below.)

When a player takes this action, carry out the following steps:

Move the Anomaly Token

The player chooses to 'Test the Faith' in any settlement which DOES NOT already contain the anomaly token. The player then moves the anomaly token to their chosen settlement.

Count Up Faith Tokens

All players count the number of faith tokens they have on the vertices of the chosen settlement. Sceptic tokens are also counted - they will work exactly like faith tokens, except that they belong to the non-believers (grey).

Carry Out Conversions

The colour with greatest number of faith tokens present gets to carry out conversions first.

They convert x followers of EACH other colour present in the settlement to their own followers, where x is the difference in their number of faith tokens. If two or more players are tied for the greatest number of faith tokens, they carry out their conversions simultaneously and share their conversions equally (rounding down when necessary).

After the player with the greatest number of faith tokens has finished their conversions, the player with the second-most faith tokens carries out their conversions in the same way, and so on down to the player with the fewest faith tokens.

Destroy and Build Temples

The player who now has the greatest number of followers in the settlement destroys any rival temple already present there and places one of their own temples into the settlement.

If there is a tie for the greatest number of followers, any temple already present there is destroyed but no temple is built. A destroyed temple becomes a ruin.

Place Sceptic Tokens

Finally, ONE sceptic token is added into EACH neighbouring settlement that DOES NOT contain an acolyte or a monster.

Sidebar - Destroying Temples: Whenever you are instructed to destroy a temple, place it on its side. The temple has now become a ruin. Ruins are worth 1/2 temple for the purposes of meeting a victory condition, but they are NOT temples. Cards which refer to temples are NOT to be taken as also referring to ruins.

Sidebar - Restoring Ruins: If ever you would build a temple in a settlement where you already have a ruin, you simply turn your ruin upright and restore it to a temple. You will therefore never have both a ruin and a temple in the same settlement.

Sidebar - Eseryn: Eseryn has a power associated with Testing the Faith - they may distribute the sceptic tokens that would ordinarily be placed into the neighbouring settlements as they wish. This power might not look so dramatic, but it can be very dangerous when used well.

Sidebar - Hint: It is very important to remember that ruins are worth 1/2 temple for the purposes of meeting a victory condition. This means that it can often be worth building a temple in a settlement even if you think that it is unlikely that you will be able to keep your temple standing throughout the game. After all, worst case scenario is that it becomes a ruin and two ruins are worth the same as a temple.

Test The Faith: Example 1. Lutraz (red) decides to test the faith of this Farmland. They move the anomaly token to this settlement and count up the number of faith tokens present there. They have two faith tokens present, while no one else has any. They convert two non-believers (grey): they have two faith tokens, the non-believers have zero, and 2 - 0 = 2. This gives them the majority in the settlement. They build a temple, and place one sceptic token in each neighbouring settlement which does not contain an acolyte or monster.

Test The Faith: Example 2. Lutraz (red) is getting ahead, so Kelerix (blue) decides to test the faith in this Farmland even though they don't have any presence there. They move the anomaly token to this settlement. The non-believers (grey) have the most tokens, so they carry out conversions first. They have two tokens, while Lutraz has one, and 2-1=1. So, the non-believers convert one red follower to grey. Lutraz has the next most tokens, but there is no one left to convert. They can't convert a non-believer, because the non-believers have more tokens than they do. So, conversions are over. Lutraz and the non-believers are now tied for a majority in the Farmland, and so Lutraz's temple is destroyed. Finally, Kelerix adds one sceptic token to each neighbouring settlement which does not contain an acolyte or a monster. (The sideways temple is a ruin.)

Sidebar - Building up Scepticism: At the beginning of the game, sceptic tokens may not present too much of a problem. However, as the game progresses and more sceptic tokens are added, they can become a real nuisance. If you let scepticism build up, other players will start to exploit opportunities to knock your temples down, especially in the late game. It's therefore important to keep on top of scepticism by performing miracles and summoning monsters!

Sidebar - Theme: The thematic idea behind 'Test the Faith' is that you are triggering a mysterious event in a settlement and seeing which deity the people turn to in order to explain this anomaly. Strange events, however, catch the attention of the Guild of Alchemists, who quickly get to work in the surrounding settlements explaining that these incredible occurrences have a perfectly rational explanation.

Test The Faith: Example 3. Lutraz (red) decides to test the faith in this Farmland. They first move the anomaly token to this settlement. Lutraz and the non-believers (grey) tie for the greatest number of faith tokens, and so they carry out their conversions simultaneously and split them equally. Both Lutraz and the non-believers have 2 tokens, while Kirjani (yellow) only has 1, and 2-1=1. They therefore each convert 1 of Kirjani's followers. Kelerix has no faith tokens. Both Lutraz and the non-believers could therefore convert 2 of Kelerix's followers. However, Kelerix only has 3 followers in the settlement and these have to be shared between Lutraz and the non-believers equally. So, both Lutraz and the non-believers each only convert 1 of Kelerix's followers.

Lutraz and the non-believers are done with their conversions - there is no one left for them to convert. Kirjani has the next greatest number of faith tokens (in this case, just 1 token) and so they get to carry out conversions next. Kirjani cannot convert the non-believers, as the non-believers have more tokens than they do. Likewise, Kirjani cannot convert Lutraz's followers. However, Kirjani does get to convert 1 of Kelerix's followers as they have 1 more faith token than Kelerix. Once they have converted Kelerix's follower, there is no one left for them to convert and all the conversions are finished.

At the end of the conversions, Lutraz has the most followers in the settlement and so they build a temple. Each adjacent settlement without an acolyte or monster present then receives one sceptic token.

Sidebar - Hint: You can prevent sceptic tokens being placed in settlements where you would like to build a temple by strategically positioning one of your acolytes or monsters there.

Sidebar - Hint: Don't leave it until the last minute to start destroying your rival's temples. If you leave it too late, your efforts will likely be in vain. The stronger your understanding of how Test the Faith works, the more easily you will be able to find ways to build and destroy temples.

Sidebar - Hint: It's rarely a good idea to leave one of your own temples in a settlement which does not contain any mortals. If the faith is tested there, your temple will be destroyed, because you won't have more followers present there than anyone else! Indeed, a common way of destroying someone's temple is by using a miracle or monster to clear the settlement of mortals and then testing the faith in the empty settlement.

Sidebar - Temples and Ruins: Remember that ruins are not temples. If you only have a ruin in the Capital, you cannot have met the first winning condition which requires a temple in the Capital.

In order to do well at Theurgy, it is very important for players to understand how Test the Faith works. For the first few times the action is taken, talk through the algorithm step-by-step so that everyone can see what exactly is going on. This is a good idea even if all the players feel pretty confident with the algorithm as it will prevent you from missing any of the steps. Don't forget to add the sceptic tokens to neighbouring settlements without acolytes or monsters - this is a common error!

Clarifications

Deity Abilities

Lutraz: Lutraz's acolytes may preach both before and after movement during a Pilgrimage. This means that Lutraz could convert up to four mortals during a Pilgrimage turn if they move and preach with both of their acolytes. If an acolyte does not move, it may only preach or fight once.

Kelerix: Kelerix's pieces may move twice during a Pilgrimage. However, their acolytes may still only preach or fight once.

Orrun: Orrun may perform the Divine Intervention action on their turn even if their action pawn is already occupying this action space.

Aeoris: When Aeoris performs a miracle from their hand, instead of discarding it, they place this card into their own personal supply. On future Divine Intervention actions, they may choose to perform a miracle from this supply instead of from their hand. When they perform a miracle from their supply, that card is then discarded.

Eseryn: When Eseryn Tests the Faith in a settlement, count up the number of sceptic tokens that would ordinarily be placed. Eseryn may distribute these sceptic tokens into the neighbouring settlements however they choose. They may even place these sceptic tokens into settlements containing acolytes, though they cannot place them into settlements containing monsters.

Miracles

"Each Player": Many miracles effect each opposing player. Carry out the effect of the miracle on each player in turn-order, starting with the player to the left of whoever performed the miracle.

"Place/Replace Faith Tokens": There is an important distinction between placing and replacing faith tokens. If a miracle instructs you to place a faith token, you cannot use it to replace an opposing faith token.

Bend This Creature To My Will: Take the Monster card from the player and place it into your own horde to indicate that you now have permanent control of this monster.

Break Their Brittle Bones: See the sidebar on wounding acolytes (A Guide to the Monsters).

Bring Blight and Decay: You may distribute the mortals to the neighbouring settlements as you wish, but you must move all of them.

Cast Out The Doubts: Remember that you will also remove all the sceptic tokens in the settlement where you perform this miracle, as per the usual rules.

Cast The Runes: For example, if you choose the Pilgrimage action, then all opposing players will Pilgrimage on their next turn.

Death Shall Come To Those Who Deny Me: The opposing player may decide for themselves which of their followers to remove.

Make Them Choose A Different Path: The purpose of this miracle is to try to prevent players from performing a particular action on their next turn. You may choose a different action space for each player.

Lay These Healing Hands Upon Your Kin: When you recover your wounded acolyte, they are no longer wounded. The acolyte performing this miracle does not need to be in the same settlement as the wounded acolyte.

Let Us Return To Ages Past: Do not change the order of the cards in the discard pile. Whichever miracle is performed then comes to the top of the discard pile.

Let Your Whispers Dance on the Wind: You may count other players' acolytes in addition to your own.

Make These Creatures Mine to Command: Place the monster markers and refresh the supply of face-up monsters only after you have summoned both monsters. You will only place one monster marker on each face-up monster that wasn't summoned (the two monsters were summoned simultaneously, not consecutively).

Pull Them From The Mirror: You will therefore add four followers in total. If both of your acolytes are in the same settlement, then all four followers will appear in that settlement.

Reveal Your Power: You may use your other acolyte to perform the miracle.

Seep The Strength From Their Bones: You may not show their miracle cards to any other player, though you may inform (truthfully or otherwise) others about what you have seen.

Send Them Back To The Shadows: If you move a legendary monster, then their 'when summoned' ability will activate again e.g. the Kraken will wound acolytes, the Dragon will scatter mortals, etc.

These Walls Shall Stand Again: You must restore a ruin in order to be able to destroy a temple.

They Shall Know Me By My Deeds: You may use your other acolyte to perform the miracle.

Walk The Winds and Water: You also remove all sceptic tokens in the settlement where this miracle was performed, as usual.

Monsters

Centaur: Unfortunately, the Centaur does not defend herself.

Demon: The ban on placing faith tokens on this settlement includes the player who controls the Demon.

Giant Spider: This also prevents acolytes from leaving due to a miracle (such as Walk the Winds) or by using the Griffin. Monsters themselves, however, can move in and out of this settlement.

Giant: The ban on building temples in this settlement includes the player who controls the Giant.

Nymph: It is still possible for a player to perform a miracle in this settlement provided that it affects a different settlement (or the players rather than a settlement). The player who controls the Nymph is still able to affect the settlement with their miracles and monsters.

Troll: The ban on moving mortals into this settlement includes the followers of the player who controls the Troll.

Griffin: The Griffin may move as normal and then fly (carrying one or two acolytes), or vice versa.

Divine Callings

Build an Outpost: This includes temples belonging to other players.

Extend Your Borders: I.e. It must be possible to walk to and from each of your temples without passing through a settlement which does not contain one of your temples.

Root Out the Unfaithful: Non-believers do not count as opposing followers.