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HOW TO PLAY
There are three main ways to play the game:
STANDARD RULES
Object of the Game
To destroy your opponent’s Castle. This is done by moving one of your pieces onto the space occupied by your opponent’s Castle.
Gameplay
To begin, you and your opponent must set up the board and choose a random means to determine who will move first, such as by flipping a coin. Players then alternate moves. When it is your turn to move, you must move exactly one of your pieces. You can’t move to a space occupied by one of your other pieces, and you can’t “jump” over any pieces unless otherwise specified. If you move to a space occupied by one of your opponent’s pieces, his or her piece is destroyed. Once you move, your turn is over. The first player to destroy his or her opponent’s Castle wins the game.
Gameboard Setup
The gameboard should be setup as displayed below. The light pieces should be placed on the light side of the board and the dark pieces should be placed on the dark side of the board.
Pieces
You may choose to play either with the king’s pieces (light) or the exiled king’s pieces (dark). Each light piece has an equivalent dark piece and vice versa. There are two tiers of pieces: greater pieces and lesser pieces.
The King's Pieces
The king (or queen) is an honorable and just ruler. He ensures the protection of his subjects and the prosperity of the kingdom. Should you choose to play the role of the king, these are your pieces:
Lesser Pieces:
Soldier Elf
Greater Pieces:
Knight Griffin Giant
Paladin Castle Lion
The Exiled King's Pieces
The exiled king (or queen) is a malevolent overlord. Banished for his profane use of dark magic, he seeks revenge against the kingdom and all who reside within it. Should you choose to play the role of the exiled king, these are your pieces:
Lesser Pieces:
Skeleton Orc
Greater Pieces:
Death Knight Dragon Ogre
Lich Castle Dire Wolf
Skeleton
Skeleton
Skeleton
Skeleton
Skeleton
Orc
Orc
Orc
Orc
Orc
Death Knight
Death Knight
Dire Wolf
Dire Wolf
Dragon
Dragon
Ogre
Ogre
Castle
Lich
Soldier
Soldier
Soldier
Soldier
Soldier
Elf
Elf
Elf
Elf
Elf
Knight
Knight
Lion
Lion
Griffin
Griffin
Giant
Giant
Castle
Paladin
The Elf can move up to 2 spaces diagonally.
Elven warriors are known for their dexterity in battle. The elves and the humans forged an alliance to combat the growing number of orcs and undead plaguing their lands.
The Soldier can move 1 space horizontally or forward, or 2 spaces forward if doing so would not cause it to destroy a piece. If the Soldier destroys a greater piece or reaches the farthest row on the opposing side of the board, it becomes a Knight.
Human soldiers are valiant warriors, sworn to serve king and country. Their prowess with the sword is matched only by their bravery.
The Elf can move up to 2 spaces diagonally.
Elven warriors are known for their dexterity in battle. The elves and the humans forged an alliance to combat the growing number of orcs and undead plaguing their lands.
The Knight can move up to 3 spaces in any one direction.
Knights are noble warriors, often riding into battle on horseback. Only soldiers who have shown their courage in battle and loyalty to the crown are granted such distinction.
The Lion can move 1 space horizontally or vertically, and then may move up to 2 spaces diagonally in the same direction as the horizontal or vertical movement.
The lion is the sigil for the royal house. In battle, lion banners are raised high to give valor to those who fight for the king.
The Griffin can move up to 3 spaces horizontally or vertically. The Griffin can fly (jump) over pieces.
Griffins are ferocious beasts. They have the head, wings, and talons of an eagle, and the body and hindquarters of a lion.
The Giant can move up to 3 spaces in any one direction, except backward (vertically or diagonally). The Giant can’t be flown over and can’t be destroyed by a lesser piece.
Giants are descendants of an ancient race. Though once at war with humans, they have joined forces to combat the horde of invading orcs and undead.
The Paladin can move any number of spaces in any one direction.
The paladin serves as hand and champion of the king. His skill in battle is unrivaled, destroying enemies of the crown with righteous fury.
The Castle can’t move. If your Castle is destroyed, you lose the game.
The castle lies at the heart of the kingdom. If the castle is taken, all is lost.
The Elf can move up to 2 spaces diagonally.
Elven warriors are known for their dexterity in battle. The elves and the humans forged an alliance to combat the growing number of orcs and undead plaguing their lands.
The Skeleton can move 1 space horizontally or forward, or 2 spaces forward if doing so would not cause it to destroy a piece. If the Skeleton destroys a greater piece or reaches the farthest row on the opposing side of the board, it becomes a Death Knight.
Skeletons are the foot soldiers in the army of the undead. Reanimated through dark magic, skeletons fear neither foe nor death.
The Orc can move up to 2 spaces diagonally.
Orcs are fearsome warriors who thirst for battle. They wear the ears of slain elves as necklaces and symbols of their rank.
The Death Knight can move up to 3 spaces in any one direction.
Death knights are undead commanders. Often mounted, they lead the legion of the undead into battle.
The Dire Wolf can move 1 space horizontally or vertically, and then may move up to 2 spaces diagonally in the same direction as the horizontal or vertical movement.
Dire wolves are known for relentlessly hunting their prey. It is said this is the reason they were chosen as the sigil for the exiled king.
The Dragon can move up to 3 spaces horizontally or vertically. The Dragon can fly (jump) over pieces.
Dragons are the most feared creatures throughout the kingdom. Their fire scorches land and melts flesh and stone.
The Ogre can move up to 3 spaces in any one direction, except backward (vertically or diagonally). The Ogre can’t be flown over and can’t be destroyed by a lesser piece.
Ogres are dim witted, but monstrous creatures. They are easily influenced by the dark magic of the exiled king.
The Castle can’t move. If your Castle is destroyed, you lose the game.
The castle is the unholy fortress of the exiled king. If the castle is taken, all is lost.
The Lich can move any number of spaces in any one direction.
The lich is the exiled king’s most terrifying weapon. The lich is a blight upon the land and brings with him only death.
Formal Gameplay
1. You may not take back a move after removing your hand from the moved piece.
EXPANDED RULES
The expanded rules are an extension of the standard rules which allow you to use game pieces and other components from expansion packs. Unlike the standard rules, you can customize your side of the board each game. As more expansion packs are released, alternate ways to play the game will arise. This page will be continually updated with the most popular rule variants.
Informal Gameplay
Go nuts! Have fun!
Formal Gameplay
You may have up to two of the same greater piece, and you may place them as you choose on the row closest to you, except for your Castle and Champion (e.g., Paladin/Lich) which should be placed exactly as before. You may have up to five of the same lesser piece, and you may place them as you choose on next closest row.
ADVENTURE RULES
The adventure rules are an extension of the standard rules which combine strategy with chance, adding a variety of new elements to the game including dice and playing cards. These rules completely change the feel of the game, providing a more casual playing atmosphere. In addition, these rules are great for younger players or anyone who is new to the game. The Adventure Expansion Pack contains everything you need to start playing:
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12 Dice: Each player gets 6 dice (two 6-sided, two 8-sided, two 10-sided) which are used for both movement and combat.
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16 Playing cards: Each unique game piece has a matching playing card.
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6 Adventure tokens: Each player gets 3 tokens which can be used at any time to make either player re-roll a single die.
Gameplay
Begin the game by placing your Castle card below the lower right-hand corner of your side of the board. Shuffle the remaining cards and place them in a row, starting to the left of your Castle card; alternately, you may place the cards in a desired order. The cards are now ordered from one to eight, with the left-most card being one and your Castle being eight.
Movement
To begin your turn, roll an 8-sided die and find the card which corresponds to the number rolled. This determines the piece you move.
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If it is not possible to move the piece because it is “boxed in”, you must move a piece which frees it.
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If you no longer have any pieces which match the card, move any piece instead.
Rolling an even number on your movement roll unlocks adventure effects, which are optional movement and/or combat modifiers which can be used during that turn.
If you are using expansions and have more than 8 unique pieces: Lay the cards out in a similar manner, with the Castle in the highest even position. Choose a die with at least as many sides as you have unique pieces but make the difference as small as possible because if your movement roll is greater than your number of unique pieces, you lose your turn.
Combat
When you land on an opposing piece, it is no longer destroyed, but rather it is under attack. To resolve the attack, each player gets a die equal to the combat value of their piece; however, the attacker also gets a die equal to the combat value of the opposing piece. Both players then roll their dice. The player with the highest number shown on a single die wins (attacker wins ties) and the loser’s piece is destroyed. The only exception to this is combat with a Castle. If you unsuccessfully attack the enemy Castle, your piece is not destroyed but instead remains on the closest (unoccupied in the case of flying) square to the Castle from which it moved.
Alternate Adventure Rules
Adventure Variant I (AV I)
Same as the adventure rules with the following exceptions:
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You always roll an 8-sided movement die to start your turn (regardless of unique pieces).
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You may then move any piece, but adventure effects are still unlocked only by even rolls.
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If you roll an eight, you can move two different pieces.
Adventure Variant II (AV II)
Same as AV I with the following exceptions:
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Each player receives only 1 adventure token.
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Dice are no longer used for combat (landing on an opposing piece destroys it).
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Giant/Ogre can't be destroyed by a lesser piece.
Blitz
The Blitz adventure rules are a fast-paced alternative to the regular adventure rules. To begin your turn, roll all 6 of your dice. For each pair of matching dice you get to take an action:
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1s, 2s or 3s: move a lesser piece
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4s, 5s or 6s: move a greater piece
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7s or 8s: move any piece
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9s: move both a lesser and a greater piece
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10s: move both a lesser and a greater piece and take an extra turn
The same piece may not be moved more than once in this way. However, for each matching number beyond the second (e.g., three of a kind, four of a kind, etc.) you take the corresponding action again. In this case, you can choose to move the same piece more than once, but the Castle can be attacked only on a piece's first move.
Other key differences:
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Adventure effects are unlocked if the highest number rolled is even.
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Each player receives only 1 adventure token, but can get another adventure token by trading in a movement die. This can be done up to 2 times and can be done at any time. The dice that are traded in are no longer rolled for movement, but can still be used when needed for combat.
Tactician
Same as the standard/expanded rules, except each player receives 3 adventure tokens, which are instead used to unlock adventure effects for a turn. No dice are used.