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Thank You!
Working Together?
A sincere thank you for purchasing Storm the Castle!.
This is just the beginning of a long line of premium
games from Giant Goblin Games. We wish you the
best as you summon your ruthless hordes, pillage
defenseless villages, and crash down castle walls as
you play the bad guys!
Storm the Castle! is a semi-cooperative game meaning players can work together to weaken the castle’s
defenses to make it easier to win. Although there may
be times when it makes sense to attack your so-called
“allies” to put your Dark Force army in a better position to win.
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Learning the Rules
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Like any new game it may take a few plays
to fully grasp the subtle strategies that Storm
the Castle! offers. You don’t need to read
every section to start playing. Try going
through the turn phases and read only sections that apply for each unique situation.
You’ll start building up the knowledge of
how the game plays instead of trying to
memorize everything at once.
Game Overview
Storm the Castle! is an exciting and challenging 1 - 4
player, semi-cooperative game. Players control 1 of
the 4 unique Dark Forces armies in a race to breach
Castle Storm Haven’s defenses and overrun its Fantasy Defenders. The game’s unique mechanics, allow
for players to constantly be in the action. Since the
strategies, card combinations, and paths to winning
are so varied, players will have a unique experience
each game played.
Components
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How the Dark Forces Win
Attacking Castle Storm Haven is no easy feat! It takes
hordes of minions willing to be led to certain death
(err victory), cunning strategy, and a touch of treachery. The player whose Dark Force unit enters the
castle’s keep first, claims total victory!
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How the Fantasy Defenders Win
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Throughout the game, players will have the opportunity to control the Fantasy Defenders, including playing Event Cards, summoning heroes, and mustering
brave defenders to keep the Dark Forces at bay. If the
Defenders manage to prevent the players from reaching Castle Storm Haven’s keep by the end of turn
8, the Dark Forces are repelled and must try again
another day!
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1
Rulebook.
Game Board.
Dice x4 (1 Burst Die, 3
Battle Dice).
Army Reference Cards
x5.
Arcanists Power Cards
x22.
Boss Deck x8.
Dark Elves Power Cards
x22.
Fantasy Defender Event
Deck x54.
Fantasy Defender Magic
Deck x5.
The Green Tide Power
Cards x22.
Undead Horde Power
Cards x22.
Fantasy Defender Units
x15.
Fantasy Defender Heroes
x3
Peasant Tokens x4.
Arcanist Units x13.
Dark Elves Units x13.
The Green Tide Units
x13.
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Undead Horde Units
x13.
Battlefield Upgrade
Tokens x4.
Castle Building Tokens
x4.
Castle Walls x17.
Dark Elf Equipment
Tokens x3.
Green Tide Equipment
Tokens x12.
Gold Tokens x42 ones
and x5 fives.
Magic Tokens x20 ones
and x3 fives.
Ladder Tokens x 15.
Player Turn Order
Tokens x4.
Structure Damage
Tokens x32.
Unit Damage Tokens
x53.
Turn Tracker Token x1.
Note: we’ve included some
extra tokens (just in case!)
Power Cards
Cards used to augment the Dark
Force armies. Each deck back has
the icon of the Dark Force army.
Components Overview
Battlefield Upgrades
Unique buildings that Dark Force
players may place in their respective Battlefield Upgrade slot.
Reference Cards
Used to refer to the abilities of the
Dark Force and Defender units.
Boss Deck
A deck of mighty cards used by
the turn’s “Boss.”
Turn Order Tokens
Used to keep track of turn order
among the players.
Castle Buildings
Placed in any unoccupied Castle
Building Space when certain
Event Cards are played.
Damage Tokens
Each token represents 1 damage
to either a Structure or Unit.
Units
Dark Force and Defender units
used in the attack and defense of
Castle Storm Haven.
Structures
Walls
Castle and Keep Walls are placed,
per the set-up diagram to prevent
the Dark Forces from easily entering the keep.
Units
Dice
The Burst and Battle Dice, used to
resolve Battle.
The Invasion Begins!
It all began one day when a mysterious Dark Boss
gathered together the 4 emissaries of the Dark Lands,
representing the different Dark Forces. With his
charm, threats, oversized helmet, and promises of
untold wealth, the Dark Forces banded together to invade the rich and fertile fields of the land of Holmenstein. But only one thing stood in their path, Castle
Storm Haven. As the invaders neared, the outnumbered defenders called upon any who would come to
their aid. Can you bring victory to your Dark Force or
will you return to face the Dark Boss in shame?
Equipment Tokens
Used by the Green Tide and Dark
Elves to equip their units.
Defender Events and Magic Spells
Decks of various events and spells
that can occur throughout the
game giving bonuses to the Fantasy Defenders.
Game Board
The game board shows the 4
Battlefields, Castle Storm Haven,
Turn Track, Battlefield Locations
and Battlefield Upgrade Slots.
Playing Storm the Castle! (STC)
We find playing STC with 4 players to be the optimal
experience. If playing with less than 4 players, please
refer to the end of the rule book for additional game
variants. We’ve also included rules for an Introductory Game and recommend players play this variant
first to get a feel for the mechanics and rules of the
game before doing a full castle assault!
Game Turn Marker
Tracks the current game turn.
Gold and Magic Tokens
Used to purchase and/or play
units, Power Cards, and more.
Card and Rule Conflicts
Sometimes the text of a card will conflict with that of
the rules. The card’s text will always supersede the
rules.
Ladders
Equipment used to scale walls.
Peasants
Guards the 4 Battlefield Locations.
Attack 1 - Health 1 and always
Strikes Last in battle.
Dice Rerolls
If an ability allows you to reroll, you may only ever
reroll a die once for that ability keeping the result.
2
The Green Tide: This tribal alliance specializes in brute force and
strange technology. Players who
enjoy large explosions will enjoy
this deadly team!
He/She
For sake of simplicity players are referred to as “he”
instead of “he/she.” Though we do value and love
female gamers with all our hearts!
Speeding Up Play
Pros: Hard hitting units with potentially powerful
As a suggestion to speed up play, we recommend that equipment.
players take no more than 5-7 minutes on their turn.
Cons: Equipment can be deadly for both you and foe!
If not, that’s OK! But remember, in the thick of battle,
generals are usually given seconds to make critical
The Undead Horde: The walking
decisions.
dead’s power derives from ever
increasing numbers. Players looking to overwhelm their opponents
and use dark magic will find great
pleasure in fielding this army.
A Challenge!
Winning at Storm the Castle! is challenging, very
challenging! You’re likely to be repelled several
times before understanding how to fully utilize
your army and develop winning strategies.
Pros: Many units cause Fear and can sustain a lot of
damage.
Cons: Slow units with low attack values.
The Dark Forces
The Arcanists: Masters of metal and magic, they use
Opening up your box
strange powers to manipulate the events and minds of Carefully punch out the tokens, shuffle the different
their enemies and allies! We recommend non-experidecks separately and open the game board. The folenced players to choose a different army.
lowing instructions detail how to set up for the standard 4-player game (see pg 20-21 for variants).
Pros: Incredible Power Cards that can
shift game elements to your favor.
Many units can be augmented for even Game Setup
Gather the Turn Order Tokens into the game box or a
more powers.
Cons: Many units have low health and cup and have each player blindly draw 1.
are not strong in melee battle.
1. The player with the lowest numbered Turn Order
Token (the First Player), and continuing in turn
The Dark Elves: No foe is safe from the tips of their
order (Second, Third, Fourth Player), each player
arrows nor the teeth of their treachery. Players who
chooses the Dark Force army they wish to play
revel in backstabbing and shooting
and collects the corresponding Reference Card,
should choose this Dark Force army.
Power Cards, and Tokens.
2.
Then starting with the First Player, and continuing
Pros: Awesome ranged attacks and
in turn order, each player selects 1 of the 4 Battledevious Power Cards. Special “back
fields to start at. Note: It really doesn’t matter
stab” cards give you a unique comwhich side you choose as each Battlefield is the
petitive edge against other players.
same in terms of game play.
Cons: Low health units means that you’ve got to
know when to fight and when to move in. Players
may give you strange “can I trust you?” looks.
Each player then:
1. Shuffles their Power Card deck and then draws 3
cards. They may look at these cards.
2. Collects 5 Gold Tokens and 3 Ladder Tokens.
3. Collects 3 Magic Tokens if playing the Arcanists
and/or Undead Horde.
“Remember, each Dark Force
army has its own strengths,
weaknesses, and ways to win.
Discover interesting ability combos
to thwart your friends and foes! “
Give the Fantasy Defender Reference Card to the
player to the left of the First Player.
3
Fantasy Defender Setup
Please refer to the Setup Diagram (on pg 5) and the
Intro Game side image to the right.
The Card will pass clockwise among players after:
1. An Event card is drawn and resolved.
2. A Hero is summoned and does its own Onward
March 1.
3. Placing the Defender unit(s) during the Reinforcement phase.
1. Place 3 Castle Walls on each of the 4 Castle Sides.
2. Place 1 Castle Wall on each side of the Keep
Grounds.
The Current Player may never have the Card. If this
3. Place 1 Peasant Token on each of the 4 Battlefield
happens, the Current Player passes the Card to his
Locations (i.e. +2 Draw, +2 Magic, +2 Hand,
left.
+2 Gold)
• If playing the Introductory Game, put the
Intro Game
Peasant Tokens back into the game box.
4. Place the Defender units into a cup or the game
• Castle Walls have a health of 2 (instead of 3).
box. Starting with the First Player and continuing
• Pre-selected Fantasy Defender units will be
clockwise, blindly draw 1 Defender unit token and
placed as per the Setup diagram.
place it on any unoccupied space in the Towers or
• Towers do not confer a +2 Cover Defense, or +1
Ramparts.
Range to the Fantasy Defender’s ranged units.
• The Hero is not summoned (lucky for you!).
• If playing the Introductory Game, place the
Place the Hero Tokens back into the game box.
2 Musketmen and 2 Dwarven Pikers on the
• Do not place the Peasants at the 4 Battlefield
Towers as show in the Setup Diagram.
•
Battle Tip: You’ll want to place the Defenders in a
space that will hinder the other players while making
it easier for you to “storm the castle.”
•
Locations.
Players can’t deploy into other players’ Battlefields.
Do not use any of your units’ text abilities (except for traits).
5. Place any Hero Tokens off to the side for now.
Turn Summary
• If playing the Introductory Game, place the
A game turn is played over a series of phases. Below
Hero Tokens back into the game box as these
is a brief summary of each phase in a turn:
will not be used.
6. Shuffle the Defender’s Event and Magic Decks.
7. Place the Game Turn Marker on the “Turn 1” posi- 1. Collect: Players collect gold and magic, draw
cards, and refresh any Exhausted Cards.
tion of the Game Turn Track.
2. Who’s the Boss?: Players bid to become the allBoss for the turn.
Fantasy Defender Reference Card (“The Card”) 3. powerful
Turn Order: Players draw Turn Order Tokens to
The player who currently has the Fantasy Defender
determine the turn order. The Boss first draws 2
Reference Card is referred to as the Defender’s Conand picks 1.
troller. To simplify naming this Reference Card
4. Let’s Buy & Deploy: Starting with the First Player,
throughout the rules, it is known as “the Card” from
and continuing in turn order, the player may buy
here on.
Power Cards, units, and/or equipment. After all
players have purchased, units and/or equipment
The Card reminds the Defender’s Controller of his 4
are deployed in turn order.
responsibilities:
5. Reinforcements: Additional Defender units arrive
in the Castle to stop the invaders and the number
1. Drawing and resolving the Event Card on the
of Event Cards to be drawn this turn are deterCurrent Player’s turn and resolving any Castle
mined.
Building and/or Event Card Remain-in-Play (RIP)
6. Players Turn: Starting in turn order, Players will
effects.
resolve Events, may play Power Cards, and acti2. Deploying the Defender’s units during the Reinvate and move their units.
forcement Phase.
7. Wrap Up: Check for victory or defeat. Players
3. Explaining the abilities of the Defender’s units and
discard down to 3 cards, Defenders unflip, shuffle
heroes.
the highest Onward March Event card drawn this
4. Rolling the dice during battles involving the Degame turn back into the Event Deck. Then advance
fenders.
the Game Turn Marker.
4
p Diagram
Setu
1
2
3
27
21
4
26
24
22
5
25
19
23
6
20
7
8
17
9
10
18
16
13
12
11
14
15
1. Boss Deck.
2. Damage Tokens: Health (Hearts), Structure (Circles).
3. Castle Buildings.
4. Loot Pile Tokens: Magic (blue) and Gold (yellow).
5. Ladder tokens (each player receives 3).
6. Player Turn Order tokens.
7. Defender’s Unit Reinforcement pool.
8. Defender’s Hero Reinforcement pool.
9. Defender’s Event Deck.
10. Defender’s Magic Spell Deck.
11. A player’s Power Card Deck.
12. A player’s Reference Card.
13. A player’s hidden hand consisting of Power Cards.
14. A player’s unpurchased units.
15. A player’s Gold and Magic pool.
16. Game Turn Marker on the Game Turn Track.
17. 1 of 4 Battlefield Locations (don’t place the Peasants here
if playing the introductory game).
18. 1 of the 4 player’s Battlefield Start Locations where
units deploy, and their 3 Start Spaces (first row of arrows).
19. 1 of the 4 player’s Battlefields with 3 Paths,
each having 3 Spaces (represented by the arrows).
20. 1 of 4 Castle Towers.
21. 1 of the 4 player’s Battlefield Upgrade Slots.
22. Shows 1 of the 4 Castle Sides and Castle Ramparts,
each having 3 Castle Walls.
23. Castle Grounds.
24. Keep Grounds. Each side having 1 Castle Wall.
25. Castle Keep.
26. 1 of 4 Castle Building spaces to place Castle Buildings.
5
The Boss Vote
Each player declares how many base votes they have
this turn and are calculated as follows:
Collect
Players perform this phase together:
1. Place any Exhausted Cards (see Exhausted Cards
pg 19) back into your hand.
2. Collect Gold:
• Each player collects 5 Gold Tokens.
• If you control the Battlefield Location named
(+2 Gold), collect an additional 2 gold.
3. Collect Magic:
• The Arcanists will collect a number of Magic
Tokens equal to the amount of magic generated by their magic-generating units (see Magic
pg 19).
• The Undead Horde collects 1 Magic Token for
each non-flipped Undead unit they currently
have in play (see Flipped Units pg 16).
• If you control the Battlefield Location named
(+2 Magic), collect an additional 2 magic.
4. Draw 1 Power Card:
• Draw 1 Power Card from your Power Card
Deck (reshuffle if out of cards).
• If you control the Battlefield Location (+2
Draw), draw an additional 2 Power Cards.
1. Each player has 1 base vote and then add:
• +1 vote for each Castle Wall you’ve destroyed.
• +1 vote if your Battlefield Upgrade is in play.
• +1 vote if your Champion is in play and not
flipped.
• +1 vote for each group of 3 Fantasy Defenders
(excluding peasants) you’ve destroyed during
the game.
• +1 vote if you’ve defeated a Hero during the
game.
2. Players then secretly put any amount of gold
(including nothing) they wish from their current
stash into their right hand. Each gold contributed
adds +1 to your vote total.
Note: Any gold contributed (win or lose) is lost after
the bid and placed back into the loot pile.
3. When everyone is ready, players reveal what’s in
their right hand (even if no gold was contributed).
The player with the most votes (base votes plus
gold-contributed votes) becomes the Boss for the
turn.
You can only hold so much
A player can hold a maximum of 10 gold and 10
magic at any one time. Any excess gold or magic is
immediately discarded and cannot be used to pay for
an ability, card, etc. Additionally, you can only hold
a maximum of 3 Power Cards and 3
Boss Cards at the end of your turn.
Note: If this is the first turn, the First Player breaks
any tie. On subsequent turns, the current Boss will
break any ties.
The Boss
Who’s the Boss? Phase
Players will bid to become the Boss.
Being the Boss grants unique bonuses
such as:
1.
2.
• Gain access to the powerful Boss deck.
• No player may attack the Boss with their units,
though the Boss may attack other players. However, once the Boss attacks another player, that
player may counterattack and attack the Boss as
normal that game turn.
• Break any Boss vote ties.
• During the Turn Order Phase, the Boss first draws
2 Turn Order Tokens instead of 1 then picks 1 of
those 2.
• The Boss may give any amount of gold to any
player during the Let’s Buy and Deploy Phase – it
doesn’t hurt being charitable to your underlings.
Note: Players can play Power Cards against the Boss,
including cards that can attack the Boss’s units.
3.
4.
5.
6.
6
If you win the Boss Vote:
Take the Boss Reference Card.
Draw 2 Boss Cards, choose 1 to keep, and
discard the other into the Boss discard pile.
• Boss Cards don’t count against your
hand-size limit of 3 Power Cards.
• You may hold up to 3 Boss Cards in your
hand at the end of any game turn.
• At any time should you run out of Boss
Cards, reshuffle the Boss Card discard
pile to create a new deck.
The former Boss must discard any Remain-inPlay (RIP) Boss Cards.
If he has any Boss Cards in his hand, you may
look and choose 1 to keep. Any remaining
Boss cards in his hand are discarded.
Take 1 gold or 1 magic from the loot pile.
Revel in your glorious victory!
Battlefield Upgrade: You may buy and deploy your
Battlefield Upgrade in your Battlefield only if you
have the Battlefield Upgrade Power Card in your
hand. Pay the card’s cost and place the token on your
Reference Card to deploy. To deploy, place the token
in your Battlefield Upgrade Slot on your Battlefield.
Once paid for, you may keep your Battlefield Upgrade
Power Card in your play area to use as a reference; it
no longer counts as being part of your hand.
Turn Order Phase
To determine turn order:
1. Return all Turn Order Tokens to the game box.
2. The Boss first blindly draws 2 Turn Order Tokens,
looks and chooses 1 to keep, and then returns the
non-chosen Turn Order Token to the game box.
3. Going clockwise from the Boss, players each draw
1 Turn Order Token.
4. Place your Turn Order Token near your Battlefield
Start Area for all to see.
5. The player with the lowest Turn Order Token is
considered the First Player for the turn. The player
with the next-lowest token is considered the Second Player, and so on.
Power Cards: You may purchase additional
Power Cards for 1 gold each. Your Reference
Card will have an image of your Power Card,
reminding you of this option.
Equipment Tokens: You may pay the cost of any
Equipment Cards in your hand. Once purchased, take
the corresponding equipment token and place it on
your Reference Card to deploy. You may place the
Equipment Card near your play area to use as a reference. Once you pay the cost of that Equipment Card
to play it on a unit, it no longer counts as part of your
hand (see Equipment pg 18).
Note: The Boss gets a distinct advantage. By drawing 2 tokens first and choosing 1, he can decide to go
either earlier or later during the game turn.
Let’s Buy and Deploy Phase
The battlefield is a constantly evolving spectacle of
whirling blades with masses of troops attempting to
scale Castle Walls. Players will need to wisely plan
what to purchase and how to deploy these forces each
turn if they are to be successful.
Ladders: Your army begins with a total of 3 ladder
tokens and may have up to 3 Ladders out at any given
time by paying each Ladder’s cost (see Ladders pg 18).
Place the Ladder Token(s) on your Reference Card to
Players can simultaneously spend any amount of their deploy. Ladders don’t require a corresponding Power
available gold to buy any number of units, ladders,
Card to purchase. Your Reference Card has a Ladder
equipment, and additional Power Cards.
symbol on it reminding you of this purchase option.
After all purchases are made, starting in turn order
with the First Player, players deploy any units and/or
equipment purchased.
Deploying Units
After you’ve purchased your unit(s), you may deploy
them in any of your non-occupied 3 Battlefield Start
Spaces.
What you may buy:
Units: The costs for units, noted by the gold icon, are
shown on your Reference Card. Once purchased, take
the unit token and place it on your Reference Card to
deploy later.
Deploying in your Battlefield
• Battlefield Start Areas have the first 3 spaces (see
image below) into which units can be deployed.
Only 1 unit may occupy any space at any time (i.e.
Note: Each Dark Force Player is limited in the number
you cannot deploy 2 units to one space).
of units he may purchase by the number of unit to• You may destroy any of your units to make room
kens provided. Gold spent is returned to the Loot Pile.
for a newly purchased unit that you’re deploying.
Place the destroyed Unit Token back into your
token pile.
7
Deploying in your Battlefield (Cont)
Fantasy Defender’s Reinforcement Phase
Should another player’s unit occupy a space your unit You didn’t think the Defenders were pushovers, did
is deploying on, a Battle with multiple rounds imme- you? During the Reinforcement Phase, the brave
diately begins (see Battle Rounds pg 15).
guardians of Castle Storm Haven will call upon their
allies to repel the invaders!
• The Battle is considered to be at range 1.
• The deploying unit is considered to have acted for There are 2 steps to the Reinforcement Phase:
the turn and may not attack, move, or use abilities
again this turn, though it may counterattack.
1. Summon the Defenders.
• If an ability allows your unit to deploy in a space
2. Determine the number of Event Cards to be
other than a Battlefield Start Area (i.e. the Dark
played during the turn.
Elves Portal Battlefield Upgrade allows this) and
another player’s unit is already there, a Battle with Summon the Defenders
multiple rounds begins as normal.
On all turns, except 4 and 7, 1 Defender unit is summoned. On turns 4 and 7, 2 are summoned instead.
Deploying in another player’s Battlefield
The Turn Track has larger images for turns 4 and 7 to
You may also choose to deploy any of your units in
remind you of this.
any of the 3 Battlefield Start Spaces of another player’s
Battlefield by paying 1 additional gold for each unit
The Defender’s Controller must:
deployed in this manner. This gold is immediately
spent when the unit declares its deployment into that 1. Blindly draw a Defender Token (2 Tokens during
space.
turns 4 and 7) and deploy it in any non-occupied
space within the castle.
Example: Greg decides to deploy his Witchlings into 2. Place a Defender inside the Keep if a Dark Force
1 of Katrina’s Battlefield Start Spaces. In addition to
player has a unit within 3 spaces of the Keep.
the cost of his unit, he must pay 1 additional gold to 3. Pass the Card clockwise, remembering to always
deploy there.
skip the Current Player, once all Defenders are
deployed.
If deploying on another player’s unoccupied Battlefield Start Area, that unit deploys normally. If ocNote: Should the Defenders run out of their Unit Tocupied, a Battle with multiple rounds immediately
kens, they cannot add units during the Reinforcement
begins.
Phase.
Note: You cannot deploy units in the Battlefield Locations (i.e. +2 Gold, +2 Magic, etc).
Deploying Equipment
You may place any purchased equipment on any of
your units in any space in any Battlefield, including a
unit that is being deployed.
Equipment must be placed on a deploying unit before
it is actually placed on a Battlefield’s space.
Ladders are considered to be Equipment and can only
be placed on units in your Battlefield’s start space or
as your unit is being deployed.
Determine the Number of Event Cards
The final step to the Reinforcement Phase is determining how many Event Cards will be played this turn:
1. Count the number of Castles Sides that have at
least 1 Castle Wall remaining (whether damaged
or not) and add +1 to that number. The Castle’s
Keep Walls are never counted in this manner.
Example: On turn 1, all 4 Castle Sides have at least
1 Castle Wall. Add +1 to this number. The Dark
Forces will be facing 5 Event Cards this turn!
2. Draw that many Event Cards and place them
side by side in a row face down. This is called the
Event Card Stack. This allows the players to more
easily track which Event Cards were played and
how many remain this turn.
8
Determine the Number of Event Cards (Cont)
Note: Event Cards are never removed from the Stack
if a Castle Side is destroyed later during the turn.
Once they are drawn, they remain for that turn.
Player’s Actions
During a player’s turn, he may do any of the following in any order:
• Move and/or Attack with any Units.
• Play Power Cards.
• Play Boss Cards (if he’s the Boss).
Example: Jimmy moves his Dark Elf Archer 2 spaces,
then attacks a unit 1 space away. After the battle, he
plays a Power Card. He then proceeds to move his
Dark Miner.
Some Event Cards may remain in play (RIP). Simply
place any RIP card on or near the game board so that
all players may easily reference it. Any Event Cards
that RIP, stay in play, unless somehow canceled.
Move Units
Each player begins his turn with a total of 5 Army
Moves which he may use to move any combination of
his units. Each space a unit moves costs 1 Army Move.
Once a player uses all 5 Army Moves, that player can
no longer move any more units.
Battle Tip: Destroy all walls on a Castle Side.
Events can severely impact your ability to win the
game. Player’s may need to work together for
the greater “good!”
Player’s Turn
Most units can move up to 2 adjacent spaces each unless an ability or card specifies otherwise (i.e. such as
a unit being Slow). All moves and attacks by a single
unit must be uninterrupted by other move or attack
actions – in other words, you can’t move 1 unit a
At the START of the First Player’s turn:
single space, then move and/or attack with a different
1. If the Fantasy Defender’s Hero is currently in play, unit, and then move and/or attack with the first unit
a second time. Nor can a unit remain in a space with
the Defender’s Controller will resolve the Hero’s
another unit as this will cause a Battle with multiple
Onward March now (see Heroes pg 16). If not,
rounds.
skip to step 2.
During a player’s turn they’ll have the opportunity to
move and attack with their units, play Power Cards
and much more.
2. The Defender’s Controller resolves the first Event
Card on the Event Card Stack. Once the Event
is resolved, the Card is passed clockwise as explained before. The First Player may then perform
any actions (see Player’s Actions pg 9).
3. At the end of the First Player’s turn, the second
Event Card on the Event Card Stack is resolved by
the current Defender’s Controller. Once that Event
Card is resolved, pass the Card clockwise, always
skipping the Current Player and start the next
player’s turn.
Example: Greg decides to just move his Skeleton
Warriors 1 space. He then moves his Zombie Horde
2 spaces. He can no longer move or attack with the
Skeleton Warriors.
Additional Move Guidelines:
• Units can only move into spaces that are adjacent.
• You may move through any Dark Force unit, but
no unit can remain in a space already occupied
by another unit, as a battle with multiple rounds
must immediately begin to remove one of those
units (see Battle Rounds pg 15).
• You may not move out of a space controlled by a
Defender’s unit (see Move Lock pg 17).
• Spending a unit’s move to move into a Battlefield
Location (which costs that unit 2 of its moves)
does take away 2 Army Moves.
The Second, Third, and Fourth Player’s turn:
The Second Player now begins his turn. Unlike the
First Player, an Event Card is only resolved at the
END of the turn for players 2, 3, and 4 (this is assuming 5 Event Cards were drawn for the game turn).
Important! There may be times when more or less
than 5 Event Cards will be drawn during a turn (see
More/Less than 5 Events on pg 20).
9
Moving in the Battlefield
A Battlefield Space is designated on the board by
an arrowhead. In the Battlefield, spaces forward,
backward, and to the left and right of a space are
considered adjacent. Spaces that are diagonal are not
considered adjacent, and therefore units cannot move
directly between them.
Moving in the Castle
A Castle Space is designated on the board by a diamond. In the Castle, spaces forward, backward, left,
right, AND diagonal are considered adjacent spaces.
The Witchling may spend 2 movement (from
any space it’s at) to enter this Battlefield Location (BL) or ANY BL in ANY Battlefield!
Play Power and Boss Cards
Power and Boss Cards provide unique
abilities to further your unrighteous cause.
You may play any number of cards on
your turn so long as you meet the requirements of each card and can pay its cost (if
any). These cards can only be played on
your turn, unless noted otherwise.
Gold Cost
Some Power Cards Remain-in-Play (RIP)
Magic Cost
unless somehow canceled. You may
choose to cancel any of your RIP cards on
your turn. Simply place RIP cards in your play area so
all can know of their constant effect.
Power Card Types
Moving into another player’s Battlefield
Players can enter another player’s Battlefield to either
help or hinder them! A unit on a space located either
on the right or left paths of a Battlefield may move
to the corresponding path and space of an adjacent
Battlefield at the cost of 2 moves for that unit.
Note: This is only possible with either the player to
the left or right of you. Though it is possible to
continue to move your unit, from turn-to-turn into
other players Battlefields in the same manner.
If your unit moves to another player’s Battlefield and
his unit is on that space, a Battle immediately begins
at range 1 (see Battle Rounds see pg 15).
Moving to a Battlefield Location
A unit on any space in any Battlefield may move to
ANY Battlefield Location for a cost of 2 moves. If a
Peasant or another unit is already at that Battlefield
Location, a Battle immediately begins at range 1 and
continues until one of those units is victorious (see
Battle Rounds see pg 15).
• Action – Cards unique to your army.
• Common – Cards that other players also have.
• Magic – Cards that are also referred to as Spells.
These cards are unique to the Arcanists and Undead Horde and typically have a magic cost.
Running out of cards
At any time, should you run out of Power or Boss
Cards, shuffle your Power Card discard pile (or
the Boss Card discard pile) to create a new deck, as
needed.
Hand Size
You may hold up to 3 Power and 3 Boss cards at the
end of your turn. Any excess must be discarded. Note:
Remain-in-Play (RIP) cards count against your respective hand sizes for both Power and Boss cards.
Attack
During your turn, each of your units may initiate a
single attack against another eligible unit or structure.
An eligible target is a unit that is within range (see
Ranged Battles pg 12) and with nothing blocking the
line of site to that unit, or in an adjacent space for melee battle. Attacking is a free action and does not take
a move action or count against your 5 Army Moves.
10
Attack (Cont)
A unit does not have to move to attack, but it may
move and then attack. Once a unit attacks, it may not
move again this turn unless it Battle Marches (see
Battle March pg 15).
Melee Battles (Cont)
A Battle is simultaneous, meaning both the attacker
and defender will roll their attack value (see Melee
Counterattacks pg 11) to determine if they hit.
After rolling the attack and any counterattacks, the
battle is over unless your unit is involved in Battles
requiring multiple rounds (see Battle Rounds pg 15).
The Dice for Battles!
Battles are fought using the Burst and Battle Dice. A
unit attacks by rolling a single red Burst Die PLUS
1 Battle Die for each attack value greater than 1. (i.e.
a unit with an Attack 2 would roll 1 Burst Die and 1
Battle Die. A unit with an Attack 1 would just roll 1
Burst Die). Any hits rolled will damage the defending
unit unless somehow canceled (see Defenses pg 20).
Melee Counterattacks
After a Melee unit rolls its attack, the defending unit
rolls for its counterattack even if the attacker rolled
enough damage to destroy it. Battle is simultaneous,
so it’s possible for both the attacker and defender to
destroy each other.
Note: Attack values for units are listed on your reference card.
The red Burst Die has one side showing a “hit” (the
sword) and another showing a “critical hit” (the flaming skull). Blank sides represent a miss and deal no
damage. When a critical hit is rolled, first count the
roll as a normal “hit” then roll 3 additional Battle Dice.
Any hits rolled with these Battle Dice are added to
the previous hit total. The white Battle Die has 2 of its
sides showing hits. Blank sides represent a miss and
deal no damage. Any hits that equal or exceed the target’s health will destroy that unit or structure. Otherwise, place a number of Unit Damage Tokens on that
unit, or Structure Damage Tokens if it was a Structure
(see Structures pg 17). Damage Tokens remain unless
somehow removed.
Example: Greg uses his Dark Miner (Attack 1) to attack Katrina’s Witchling (Attack 1). Greg and Katrina
will each roll a Burst Die. Greg rolls a miss. Katrina
rolls a Critical and inflicts 1 hit. She then rolls an additional 3 Battle Dice further scoring another hit. The 2
damage is enough to destroy the Miner (2 Health).
Counterattack Limit
A Melee unit (Defenders and Dark Forces) can counterattack only once during a player’s turn unless
involved in Battle with multiple rounds (see Battle
Rounds pg 15) or for a single Onward March. Should
another Onward March be played later during the
turn, the unit may counterattack once, as normal, if
attacked again.
Example 1: Greg had previously unsuccessfully attacked Katrina’s Witchling. He attacks her again
with another Dark Miner. Because the Witchling had
already counterattacked during Greg’s turn, she may
not counterattack again. Should another player attack
Melee Battles
the same Witchling, she may counterattack again (but
A melee unit is a trait that’s found on your Reference
Card. Melee units adjacent to another unit or structure only once per player’s turn).
may attack to begin a Battle.
Example 2: During an Onward March 2 Event, a
Warrior Knight attacks Katrina’s Arcane Warrior.
Both may attack and counterattack as normal. Should
another Defender unit attack that Arcane Warrior
again it may no longer counterattack again during this
Onward March Event.
Battle Tip: Particularly devious players will attack
a unit with one of their weaker units, and then
attack that same unit again (if it survives) with
another of their units since that defending unit
can no longer counterattack.
In the first example, the Ghost Fiend is adjacent to the Warrior Knight and may attack it. In the second example, the
Ghost Fiend may not attack, as the Battlefield’s diagonal
spaces are not considered adjacent.
11
Ranged Attacks and Counterattacks vs Melee units
Ranged units have the opportunity to deal their damage before a Melee unit can attack or counterattack.
Ranged Battles
A Ranged unit will be
denoted on the unit’s
reference card with the
“Range” trait along with
its maximum range.
A Ranged unit may
attack another unit or
structure, within its range
and line of sight (see
Line of Sight below), to
begin a ranged battle.
With a Range 2, the Dark Elf Archer
may strike any of these spaces.
If a Ranged unit attacks a Melee unit that is not adjacent to it, that Melee unit cannot counterattack - it’s
simply too far away.
A Ranged unit may
shoot up to a number
of adjacent spaces equal
to its range value. Some
ranged units may have
a range of 1. This simply
means it may shoot an
adjacent unit.
Similar to melee battles,
Ranged units will roll a
number of dice equal to
their attack value.
Note: During Battles with Multiple Rounds, the
Ranged Unit would do its damage first ONLY during
the first round.
With a Range 2, the Dark Elf Archer
may strike any of these spaces. Note:
the Wall and Unit share the same
space and may target either one. The
Archer cannot shoot past the wall.
Ranged Battles and Line of Sight (LOS)
The examples below show when a Ranged Unit cannot “see” and attack their target.
2
1
If a Ranged unit attacks, or is attacked by an adjacent
Melee unit, the Ranged unit rolls its attack first and
then deals its damage first. If the Ranged unit does
enough damage to destroy the Melee unit, it is immediately removed and cannot participate in the battle. If
the Melee unit survives (and is adjacent to the Ranged
unit) it may attack or counterattack as normal.
3
1. The unit cannot “see” the Warrior Knight (WK), as the tower is
blocking (LOS) to that unit. It would be able to “see” the WK to the
right of the Keep (since the Keep Wall is not there). If there were
a WK to the left of the Keep, it could not be “seen” for the same
reasons.
2. This unit cannot “see” the WK on the opposite end of the Keep.
3. The Rock Lobber can attack the WK in the Keep Grounds (since
the Keep Wall was destroyed and nothing is preventing LOS). Unlike the Dark Elf Archer, the Rock Lobber can attack the WK in the
Castle Ground’s space due to its special ability to attack targets it
cannot “see”.
Ranged Attacks & Counterattacks vs Ranged units.
If a Ranged unit attacks or counterattacks another
Ranged unit, battle is then simultaneous as normal.
The target Ranged unit must be in range of the attacker or it cannot counterattack - it’s too far away.
Range Counterattack Limitation
Similar to Melee counterattacks, a Ranged unit can
counterattack only once during a player’s turn or on a
single Onward March, unless involved in a battle with
multiple rounds (see Battle Rounds pg 15). Should
another Onward March be played later during the
turn, the unit may counterattack as normal if attacked
again.
Unable to Counterattack
Some units cannot counterattack due to an ability,
being Flipped (see Flipped Units pg 16), etc. In Battle,
the attacker will roll his attack as normal and inflict
any damage on the non-counterattacking unit. The
battle is then over. If a unit that cannot counterattack
is involved in a Battle with multiple rounds, and the
attacker has at least an Attack 1, then that unit is immediately destroyed.
Example: Greg’s Dark Miner attacks a Musketman
that is flipped in the castle. The Dark Miner would
roll its attack and inflict any damage. The Musketman
cannot counter attack.
Example 2: Katrina deploys her Witchling on a Battlefield start space containing a Dragon Ballista. Since
the unit cannot counterattack, due to a trait, and the
Battle involves multiple rounds, the Dragon Ballista is
immediately destroyed.
12
Magic Attacks
Wrap-Up Phase
Magic attacks work in the same manner as either
Storming a castle is a tiresome and bloody job. Now
melee or ranged battles, depending on if a melee
it’s time to clean up the mess.
or ranged spell used. If your Caster is attacked, or
counterattacking, it may use either its melee/ranged
1. Each player discards down to 3 Power Cards and
attack value, or it may cast 1 spell with an attack value
3 Boss Cards (if he’s the Boss).
(should you have enough magic to cast it), but not
• Remain-in-Play (RIP) and Exhausted cards
both!
count against your hand size. Cards set aside
to use as a reference (such as played ChamCasters may cast additional non-attack spells, during
pion, Battlefield Upgrades, and Equipment
the battle, if they meet all requirements (i.e. magic
Cards) do not.
cost) of that spell. Once a spell is cast, it will either
2. Unflip any Defender units.
Exhaust (see Exhausted pg 19), meaning the card is
3. Shuffle the highest Onward March Event Card
turned to its side to be used again another turn, or
drawn this turn back into the Event Deck.
Fizzle (see Magic pg 19), meaning the card is placed in
• Example: During the turn an Onward March 2
your Power Card discard pile.
and an Onward March 1 were drawn among 3
other Event cards. Take the Onward March 2
Event Card and reshuffle it back into the Event
Rolling for an Attack outside of Battle
Deck and discard the rest.
Some Boss, Event, and Power Cards may ask the
4.
Move
the Turn Tracker to the next game turn.
player to roll an Attack X. Similar to normal battle,
roll a Burst Die for an attack of 1. For each attack
value greater than 1, add a Battle Die to the roll.
Example: An Event Card says to roll an Attack 3
against a Dark Force unit. The Defender’s controller
will roll 1 Burst Die and 2 Battle Dice.
Defeated Units & Battle Trophies
The more you destroy, the more respect you get on
the battlefield in the form of extra votes for the Boss
Phase. These votes stay with your Dark Force from
turn to turn unless those trophies are somehow removed from you.
To represent your inglorious battle prowess:
• When you destroy a Wall, place it in your play
area. So long as the Wall is in your play area, it
counts as +1 vote during each Boss phase.
• Note: Sometimes an Ability/Event may force
you to return a Wall token that you worked so
hard to destroy!
• When you destroy any non-peasant Fantasy Defender, place those Defender Unit Tokens in your
play area so all may admire your battle prowess.
For each group of 3 non-peasant Fantasy Defenders you slay, you gain +1 vote during each Boss
Phase.
• For each Hero slain, set him aside for +1 vote.
Note: You do not gain a trophy for defeating another
Dark Force player’s unit.
If at the end of turn 8 the Dark Forces embarrassingly
cannot reach the Castle Keep, all is lost! The invaders
are routed, the Boss beheaded, and the Defenders can
celebrate their valiant win!
If the Dark Forces unfortunately do not conquer the
Defenders, the players can celebrate the vilest, most
cunning valuable player.
Each player’s score is calculated as follows:
• +1 for each Wall destroyed.
• +1 for each group of 3 Defender units slain (Peasants are not counted).
• +1 for each defeated Hero.
• +1 if their Champion is in play and not flipped.
• +1 for each group of 3 units they have in play and
not flipped.
• +1 if their Battlefield Upgrade is in play.
• +1 for every 3 gold they have.
• +1 if they’re the Boss.
• +1 if they’re wearing a pink tie and green goblin
ears.
The player with the highest total
may celebrate being the baddest of
the bad (even though you technically lost). Always think positive,
dark invaders! If somehow there
is a tie, the Boss decides who wins
between the tied players.
13
Intermission
Congratulations, you now know how to play! The
remaining sections of the rule book explain additional
rules that will occur throughout the game.
Onward March
Onward March Event cards are the primary way
Defenders activate to move and attack during a turn.
There are different versions of Onward March, (i.e.
Onward March 1, 2, and 3). The number represents
how many different Defenders will be activated. The
Defender’s Controller resolves all the units in an Onward March Event before passing the Card.
Onward March–Moving and Attacking in the Keep
While in the Keep, a Hero/Defender unit will only
attack another unit:
• If that Defender has a ranged attack and can’t be
counterattacked.
• The target unit can’t counterattack.
• If the target is flipped (see Flipped Units pg 16).
A Hero or Defender unit may move and/or Battle
March to leave the Keep if there is not a Dark Force
unit within 3 adjacent spaces of the Keep.
Note: The same Defender unit can NEVER be activated more than once during a single Onward March
event. The unit may be activated again, as normal,
with another Onward March Event card.
Example: On turn 3, the first Event Card is an Onward
March 2. There is a Dwarven Piker and Musketman
currently in the castle. The Controller would be able to
activate both of these, but not the same unit twice.
In this example, all three of these Dark Force units are within three spaces
of the Defender within the Keep. As such, the Arch Priestess cannot leave.
Onward March-Defender’s Actions
Defender units act similar to the Dark Force units:
each have 2 moves, may attack, counterattack, and
can Battle March (see Battle March pg 15). And like
the Dark Forces, 1 Defender unit must complete its
actions before moving to another Defender unit. Defender units that can attack a Dark Force unit must be
activated first. This may require the Defender to move
into position to do so. Sometimes the Defender’s Controller may have to attack his own Dark Force units
to meet this requirement. There may be times when
more than 1 unit is eligible to be attacked. In this case,
the Defender’s Controller chooses who to attack.
Onward March–Moving and Attacking in the Keep
Grounds
As a special rule only a melee Defender unit, in the
Keep Grounds, may attack a unit in any of the 3 adjacent spaces in the Castle Grounds. Because the Defender left the protection of the Keep Wall (assuming
the Wall is there), it does not gain Cover Defense (see
Defenses pg 20).
Onward March-Protecting the Keep
If at the start of an Onward March event a Dark Force
player’s unit is within 3 adjacent spaces of the Keep
and the Keep is undefended (i.e. not occupied by a
Defender unit) a Defender unit must first be activated
to enter into the Keep so that it may protect it. If that
unit cannot enter the Keep during its move, it must
destroy the next Dark Force unit that can enter it this
game turn. If it can’t attack it must move as close
as possible to the Keep. A Defender unit, currently
defending the Keep, may move out to make room for
another Defender unit. This is only possible if the new
unit can enter the vacated Keep space during the same
Onward March Event (i.e. During an Onward March
2 a wounded Warrior Knight is moved out of the keep
and replaced by a Halfling Archer).
Ranged Dark Force and Defender units may fire at
a unit adjacent to the Keep Wall. The Ranged Dark
Force unit can choose to attack the Keep Wall instead.
Melee Dark Force units may attack the Keep Wall, or
the unit behind the Keep Wall (if a Ladder has been
placed).
14
Onward March Guidelines
• The Hero can be activated with an Onward March
Event Card even if activated by a previous Onward March Event Card.
• Once a Defender unit attacks, it cannot move.
• An activated Defender unit must complete all actions before the next Defender unit is activated or
it loses its remaining actions. Defenders are unaffected by Move Lock (see Move Lock pg 17).
• Defenders may move up to 2 spaces.
• A Defender may spend 1 of its move actions to
knock down a Ladder, even if a Dark Force unit is
on it (see Ladders pg 18).
• Defenders may not move into Battlefield Locations
or Battlefields, but they may attack into the Battlefield.
• If there are not enough Defenders to activate, remaining activations are lost.
• Defenders may Battle March as normal.
• Peasants are never activated nor can move.
Onward March and Fantasy Defender Casters
When a Defender’s Caster (i.e. Battle Mage, Wizard
Lord) is chosen to activate, the Defender’s Controller first draws a number of spells as directed by that
unit, on the reference card. The player may then move
and/or attack with that Caster.
Like Dark Force Casters, a Defender Caster may
choose to make a melee or ranged attack, or cast a
spell, but it cannot do more than 1 of these things.
Battle Rounds
Some Battles require multiple battle rolls to determine
a victor. Each series of rolls is called a Battle Round.
The only time you’ll go through more than one Battle
Round is if 2 units share the same space; otherwise,
the Battle is over after 1 round.
Battle Rounds-Magic
Any Magic cast during Battle Rounds stays in effect
until the conclusion of the Battle. After the first round,
no new spells with an attack value can be played nor
can the caster choose to switch how it attacks (i.e.
ranged and/or melee) for this Battle.
Example: Greg, playing the Arcanists, casts Vorpal
Blast as his attack against a Peasant unit occupying
the same space. Neither of the 2 units destroys the
other so another round of battle begins. Vorpal Blast
remains in play as Greg’s attack spell. He cannot cast
another spell with an attack value, but he could play
another non-attack spell.
Battle March
If a Melee unit attacks and destroys an adjacent unit, it
may move into the target’s space. To do this, the unit
must be able to move into the new space (i.e. have
at least 1 Unit and Army Move remaining). A Battle
March is considered a “move” and takes 1 unit/army
move as normal. It may not continue moving after the
Battle March even if it has moves remaining.
Example: Jimmy has 2 Army Moves remaining. He
moves his Skeleton Warriors 1 space (1 Army Move
and 1 move remaining for that unit), then attacks an
adjacent unit. After defeating it, he decides to Battle
March into that units space (which takes the remaining unit move). He no longer has any Army Moves
remaining.
A unit may ignore Move Lock (see Move Lock pg 17)
with a Battle March.
You may not Battle March:
• After destroying a structure.
• If the adjacent unit destroyed is behind a Wall.
You may Battle March if your unit is on a Ladder
(see Ladders pg 18).
Battles with multiple rounds of battle are immediately • If involved in a Battle with multiple rounds.
initiated when:
1. 2 units are at a Battlefield Location.
2. 2 units are sharing the same space, such as when
a unit moves from 1 Battlefield to another player’s
Battlefield.
3. A unit deploys on another player’s unit.
For each round of battle, the attacker and defender
roll their dice for attack and counterattack.
Note: To clarify, the defender rolls his counterattack
for each round of battle involving multiple rounds.
First Strike
Some units have the trait “First Strike”. This will be
noted on their unit card. A unit with First Strike deals
its damage first in an attack or counterattack. The unit
with First Strike rolls first. If the First Strike unit deals
sufficient damage to destroy the target, that unit cannot roll its attack or counterattack as normal.
A Ranged unit, regardless of range, will deal its damage before a Melee unit with First Strike can.
15
The Hero’s Onward March
Once the Hero has been placed, the Defender’s Controller (who placed the Hero) activates the Hero as if
given his own Onward March 1.
First Strike (cont)
First Strike-Battle Rounds
A unit with First Strike, only applies its First Strike in
the first round of battle.
Similar to both how the Dark Forces and Defender
units act, the Hero acts the same (i.e. he gets 2 moves,
Just when you think you’re about to crush those pesky may Battle March, counterattack, etc).
Defenders, a mighty Hero always appears to save the
day.
• If the Hero was placed in the Keep and there is a
Dark Force unit within 3 spaces of the Keep, the
Immediately PAUSE the game and summon the Hero
Hero will not leave the Keep.
when any one of the following happens:
• The Hero will move into an unoccupied Keep, if
possible, if a Dark Force unit is within 3 spaces of
• The 9th Wall is destroyed (Castle and/or Keep
the Keep.
Walls).
• While in the Keep space, the Hero will only attack
• A Dark Force unit declares he will enter the Keep
Flipped (see Flipped Units below) units or units
(pause the game before the unit actually moves
not able to counterattack.
into the Keep).
• A Dark Force unit declares it will attack a DefendBattle Tip: Some dastardly players will place a
er in the Keep (pause the game before the battle
strong Defender unit in the Keep to free up the
begins).
mighty Hero to attack the other players.
Fantasy Defender Heroes
Note: Only 1 Hero is summoned in this manner during the game.
The Hero’s Event Card
Once the Hero has completed its Onward March, add
1 extra Event Card to be resolved at the end of the
Current Player’s turn (this may result in more than
1 Event Card to be resolved at the End of a player’s
turn).
After the Hero’s Onward March, continue play as
normal.
Summoning the Hero
The Defender’s Controller randomly chooses a Hero
and places him in a space based
on the following priority:
• The Keep, if unoccupied OR:
• The Keep Grounds, if any of
the 4 spaces are unoccupied
OR:
• If all 4 spaces in the Keep
Grounds are occupied by
any Dark Force units, place
the Hero on top of a Dark
Force unit within the Keep
Grounds, immediately destroying that Dark Force unit OR:
• If all the spaces in the Keep Ground are occupied
by Defenders, place the Hero on any unoccupied
space in the Castle Grounds OR:
• If all the Castle Ground spaces are occupied, place
the Hero on top of a Dark Force unit, immediately
destroying it OR:
• If all the Castle Ground spaces are occupied by
Defenders, place the Hero in any unoccupied
space within the Castle.
Hero Abilities
1. Heroes are an inspiring force. They add 1
additional Event Card during the Reinforcement
Phase!
2. They’ll also make their own Onward March 1 BEFORE the first Event Card is drawn and resolved
each game turn.
3. Unlike other Dark Force and Defender units,
Heroes ALWAYS counterattack even if they’ve
previously done so.
The Hero is always controlled by the Defender’s Controller. Once the Hero’s activation has been resolved,
the Card is passed clockwise (as normal).
Flipped Units
There may be times when a unit is forced to Flip
or voluntarily Flips (i.e. a unit’s special ability). A
Flipped Unit generally represents the unit being
dazed, confused, etc. The other side of unit tokens
show a “dazed/confused” symbol. This side is used to
represent being flipped.
16
Flipped Units (Cont)
Structures
A unit that is flipped may not:
• Move.
• Attack or Counterattack.
• Use Abilities.
• Generate Magic.
• Cast Magic.
• Contribute any Vote Bonuses.
• Use Equipment or have Equipment Deployed on
it.
• If the unit is equipped, it cannot gain any of
the abilities and/or bonuses that equipment
confers.
• Cause Move Lock (see Move Lock below).
• Gain any Armor or Cover Bonuses (See Defenses
pg 20).
Walls
Castle and Keep Walls prevent
movement into the Castle until
they have been destroyed. Each
Wall has a health of 3.
All Castle Walls, Keep Walls, Towers, the Keep, Castle
Buildings, and the player’s Battlefield Upgrades are
considered Structures. When a Structure takes damage, place one Structure Damage Token on it for each
point of damage taken.
If a unit is in the Rampart’s space when that space’s
Castle Wall is destroyed, that unit takes an immediate Attack 1. This represents the Wall collapsing and
possibly damaging the unit there. Note: This does not
apply to units behind the Keep Walls.
Note: A Flipped Unit does not count for purposes of
controlling a Battlefield Location or the Keep.
Flipped Units and Moving
Dark Force units may move through a Defender’s
Flipped Unit, and vice versa.
Attacking a Flipped Unit
A unit attacking a Flipped Unit gains +1 Battle Die.
The Flipped Unit cannot counterattack or benefit from
Defenses (see Defenses pg 20).
Unflipping Units
A Dark Force unit may unflip on its next turn for
a cost of 1 of its 2 moves then may act normally. A
Defender may spend 1 of its 2 moves to unflip and act
during an Onward March. They’re motivated to defend their castle even at the point of exhaustion! Note:
Defenders automatically unflip during the Wrap-Up
Phase
Walls - Attacking Units/Walls
A space in the Castle Ramparts is shared by both the
Castle Wall AND the unit there. A space in the Keep
Grounds is shared by both the Keep Wall AND the
unit there. Ranged units may target either the Wall or
the unit in the space directly behind the Wall.
Melee units may only attack the Wall, unless a Ladder
has been placed (see Ladders pg 18), in which case he
may choose to either attack the Wall OR the unit
directly behind the Wall. If the Wall is destroyed,
Melee units may attack adjacent units (the arrows in
the image below show what the units can or cannot
attack).
Move Lock
In the Castle, Defender units prevent adjacent Dark
Force units from rushing past them. A Dark Force
unit adjacent to a Defender cannot move into another
space until that Defender unit is either destroyed or
Flipped.
Melee Unit
Melee Unit
Ranged Unit
Note: Dark Force units can attack Walls only from the
front (not from the rear/sides), and may not Battle
March after destroying a Wall.
Walls – Defense
Defenders gain a +1 Cover Defense (see Defenses pg
20) while directly behind a Wall, unless a Ladder (see
Ladders pg 18) has been placed and they’re being attacked by an adjacent unit on the Ladder.
17
Structures (Cont)
Battlefield Locations (Cont)
Walls and Line of Site into the Castle Grounds
Normally, units cannot
fire through or over Castle
Walls to hit targets in the
Castle Grounds, and vice
versa into the Battlefield
from units in the Castle
Grounds. If a Castle Wall
is destroyed, units in the
Castle Ground can see out
to the Battlefield (and can
themselves be seen) by
following a straight line of
adjacent spaces.
The following also applies to Battlefield Locations:
Castle Buildings
Castle Buildings are considered to be Structures. Some
Event Cards will allow the Defender’s Controller to
place the Castle Building in any of the
four Castle Building Spaces (see Setup
Diagram pg 5). The Castle Building is
treated as a “clear” space and may be
moved onto and fired through.
Note: The Castle Building may be
placed “on-top” of any unit, as they can share the
same space.
• A unit may move from any Battlefield Space (including another player’s Battlefield) to any Battlefield Location for 2 moves. Slow units will have to
Push (see Pushing Units pg 20) to move here.
• If a Dark Force player moves into a Battlefield
Location containing a Peasant or another unit, a
Battle begins immediately and continues until one
unit is victorious (see Battle Rounds pg 15).
• A unit may return from a Battlefield Location to
any space on any player’s Battlefield Start Area for
2 moves.
• Only 1 of your units may be at a single Battlefield
Location at any time.
Equipment
A unit may be equipped with a maximum of 2 Equipment, and each must have a different name. Example:
An Orc Pirate may be equipped with a Ladder and
Pirate Ale but not 2 Pirate Ales.
Equipment can be given to any of your units on any
Battlefield Space or while your unit is being deployed.
Equipment Summary:
• A unit may have a maximum of 2 pieces of equipment, each with a different name, equipped at any
Should a unit be on a Castle Building space the attackone time.
er may choose to attack the Castle Building or Unit.
• If a unit is destroyed, any Equipment Tokens attached to it return to your token pile to be used
again at a later time.
Battlefield Locations
• You may not deploy Equipment on units in BattleEach of the 4 Battlefield Locafield Locations.
tions confer a unique bonus. The
•
You cannot transfer Equipment to another unit.
Dark Force player who has 1 of
• You may un-equip any Equipment on your units.
their non-flipped units on that
Return the token to your play area to be used
Battlefield Location is considagain.
ered to “control” that location
•
Any Equipment purchased must be deployed that
and gains its unique bonus.
same turn; it can’t be saved. If you cannot deploy
the Equipment, the money is lost and the tokens
Battlefield Location Bonuses:
are returned to your token pile.
• +2 Draw - Draw 2 additional non-Boss Power
Cards during the Collect Phase.
• +2 Gold - Collect 2 additional Gold Tokens during
the Collect Phase.
• +2 Magic - Collect 2 additional Magic Tokens during the Collect Phase.
• +2 Hand - Your maximum hand size for Power
Cards (not the Boss cards) increases from 3 to 5.
Equipment - Ladders
Ladders are considered Equipment
and are used to quickly scale Walls to
pour your minions into the Castle.
Each Dark Force army may have in
play up to 3 Ladders at one time. Unlike other Equipment, Ladders can only be placed on units in your
Battlefield Start Area or while deploying a unit.
18
Equipment (Cont)
Ladders - Placing
A unit equipped with a Ladder Token may place it in
its space, while adjacent to a Wall. Placing the Ladder Token is a free action and may only be placed in
front of the Wall (i.e. not from the Wall’s back or side).
The Wall also must not currently have a Ladder token
already on it.
A Ladder Token can only be used by the unit on the
space that the Ladder Token is on. A unit sharing a
space with a Ladder Token is considered “on the ladder.”
Magic (Cont)
Fizzle Cards
Some spells may say “Fizzle.” This simply means that
when this spell is cast, it is then discarded instead of
Exhausted (see Exhausted Cards below).
Arcanist Magic
The Arcanists collect Magic based on what their Caster units can generate at the start of the Collect Phase,
as noted on their Reference Card.
Ladders - Moving
A unit in the Battlefield may move over a Wall with a
Ladder into an unoccupied, adjacent Rampart’s space
for 1 move.
Only Arcanist’s Casters may use Power Cards that are
Magic Actions (AKA Spells). If no Caster is in play,
Magic Actions cannot be played. When a Magic Action Power Card is cast that does not say “Fizzle,” you
may choose to Exhaust the card (see Exhausted Cards
below) by rotating it to its side instead of discarding
it.
A unit may move over a Wall with a Ladder in the
Castle Grounds into the adjacent Keep Grounds space
for 1 move.
Exhausted cards will be refreshed during the next
Collect Phase and can be used again. A Spell that
“Fizzles” is discarded after the spell resolves.
Ladders - Knocking Down
A Defender unit may spend one of its moves to knock
down a Ladder Token. Should a unit be on the same
space as the Ladder when this happens, it takes an
Attack 1.
Undead Magic
The Undead collect Magic somewhat differently than
the Arcanists: For each non-flipped Undead unit you
currently have in play, gain 1 Magic during the Collect Phase. Example: Greg has 4 Undead units on the
board and 1 of them is flipped at the start of the ColA knocked-down Ladder is destroyed and returned to lect Phase. He would generate 3 magic.
the player who deployed it.
Their Magic Action Power Cards are played as norLadders - Battlefield Battles
mal Power Cards and unlike the Arcanists they don’t
If a Wall is between two Melee units, they can only
require a caster unit to play.
fight each other if a Ladder has been placed on that
wall. Normally Defender Units gain a +1 Cover DeBattle Tip: The Undead grow in power with
fense (see Defenses pg 20) while behind a Wall.
more of their units in play. That’s a subtle hint
to deploy A LOT of Undead units in your
Battlefield and elsewhere!
An attacking Dark Force unit, while on a Ladder, negates the Defender’s Cover Defense.
Magic
The streams of magic can only be tapped into by
Wizards and Mages who have learned to wield its
hidden power. Some Power Cards are labeled “Magic
Actions,” which is synonymous with “Spells.”
Some Magic Cards may remain-in-play (RIP). These
are considered “in-play” and count against the Power
Card hand size.
Important: Only Non-Flipped units can generate
magic for the Arcanist and Undead armies during the
Collect Phase.
Exhausted Cards
Most Power Cards are discarded when played. A card
that can Exhaust is simply turned to its side showing it can no longer be used this turn or until it is
refreshed. Exhausted Cards refresh at the start of the
game turn.
Exhausted cards count towards your hand size.
Should an ability force you to discard one or more
cards, place any Exhausted Cards back into your hand
before discarding. After the ability resolves, return the
exhausted cards to your play area in their exhausted
state if they weren’t discarded.
19
Pushing Units
More than 5 Event Cards
Some units can exert themselves to provide additional For more than 5 Event Cards, follow the steps below:
bonuses. This is referred to as “Pushing” the unit, or a
“Pushed” unit. Units that can Push will be denoted on • 6 Event Cards: An Event Card is resolved at the
your Reference Card, or the ability will be gained by
Beginning and End of the turn for both players 1
use of a Power and/or Boss Card.
& 2.
• 7 Event Cards: An Event Card is resolved at the
When a unit is Pushed, immediately roll an Attack 1
Beginning and End of the turn for players 1, 2, & 3.
against it (to reflect the strain of the extra exertion).
• 8 Event Cards: An Event Card is resolved at the
Any hits rolled cause damage to that unit. Should the
Beginning and End of the turn for players 1, 2, 3,
unit survive, it may continue as normal. A unit may
&4
only ever Push once per game turn.
Fewer than 5 Event Cards
If fewer than 5 Event Cards are to be resolved, follow
the normal procedure for resolving Event Cards until
they run out; some players will not have an Event
Card resolved during their turn.
Defenses
There are 2 types of Defenses in Storm the Castle!:
Armor and Cover. Though they are called by different names to add flavor to the context of the game,
they work in the same manner. Some units have thick For less than 5 Event Cards, follow the steps below:
plates of steel armor, defensive magical auras, or are
simply behind a Castle Wall. This protection, called
• 4 Event Cards: Player 3 would have the last Event
“Armor X” will be noted on the unit’s Reference Card.
Card resolved at the end his turn. No Event Cards
would be resolved during Player 4’s turn.
A unit behind a Castle Wall gains Cover 1 or while in • 3 Event Cards: Player 2 would have the last Event
the Castle Tower gains Cover 2. It’s possible for a unit
Card resolved at the end his turn.
to have both Armor and Cover Defense and as such
• 2 Event Cards: Player 1 would have the last Event
the defenses are cumulative.
Card resolved at the end of his turn.
• 1 Event Cards: Player 1 would have the only Event
For each Defense-granting bonus
Card resolved at the beginning of his turn.
that applies to a given unit, roll 1
Variants
Battle Die (not the Burst Die). Each
Solo Game: Setup the game as normal. Event Cards
hit rolled cancels 1 damage. This
drawn each turn are +1 in addition to the Castle Side,
damage is canceled before the Damwith Castle Walls still remaining, at the player’s
age Token is placed on the unit.
starting Battlefield. Ignore the 3 other Castle Sides for
purposes of drawing Event Cards. During the DeExample: Greg attacks a Warrior
ployment Phase, you may choose to deploy units in
Knight and inflicts 2 hits. The Knight has Armor 1.
another Battlefield as normal. Skip the Boss vote and
It rolls 1 Battle Die for its Armor and rolls a hit. This
the Turn Order Phase, as you will be the Boss and first
cancels 1 of the 2 hits.
player each turn. The Hero is summoned as normal
when any 3 Castle Walls are destroyed. When conCastle Towers
trolling the Defenders, any units and/or effects must
Defenders in a Castle Tower space gain +2 Cover De- target your units that cause the most threat to the sefense against Ranged Attacks. If the Defender unit has curity of the keep. Ultimately, this is your judgement
the Range trait, it gains +1 to its range value.
call due to the solo-nature of this variant.
Fear
Fear is a Trait found on your Reference Card. When a
Fear causing unit is involved in a Battle, roll a number
of Battle Dice equal to its Fear value once before the
Battle. If at least 1 hit is rolled, the other unit is immediately flipped. The Fear-causing unit attacks or counterattacks as normal. The Fear-causing unit would
then gain +1 attack and the flipped unit cannot attack
or counterattack (see Attacking a Flipped Unit pg 17).
2-Player Game: Setup the game as normal. Event
Cards drawn each turn are +1 in addition to the
number of Castle Sides that still remain at a player’s
starting Battlefield. Ignore the 2 other Castle Sides for
purposes of drawing Event Cards. During the Deployment Phase, players may choose to deploy in other
Battlefields as normal. Use only Turn Order Token “1”
and “2” when determining Turn Order. The non-Boss
player CAN attack the Boss.
20
Variants (cont)
2-Player Game (cont): The Boss must keep the first
token drawn. The Hero is summoned as normal when
any 5 Castle Walls are destroyed.
3-Player Game: Similar to the 2-player variant, adjust
for 3 players, except: use Turn Order Tokens 1,2, and
3. The Boss chooses 2 Turn Order Tokens, and picks
one. The Hero is summoned when any 7 Castle Walls
are destroyed. Ignore the unused Castle Side for the
purpose of drawing Event Cards.
Additional Trait Explanations (cont)
Immune to Fear/No Fear: The unit is not affected by
Fear. The Fear causing unit’s ability is not rolled.
Units without the Melee trait: Some units may not
have this trait. The unit may still make a melee attack
(unless its card says otherwise) but does not gain any
benefits from abilities that may enhance units with the
melee trait.
FAQs
Event Cards
Event Cards
The tables below show the # of Event Cards to be
1. Do the Undead need a caster to cast Magic Action
drawn at the start (first slash) and end (second slash)
Power Cards? - No.
of the player’s turns for the 2 and 3-player variants. If
2. What happens to a Magic Action card that does
playing solo, use the Solo column in the 2-player table.
not say “Fizzle”? The player may choose to discard or Exhaust the card. If Exhausted, the card
#
Player 1
Player 2
Solo
counts as part of that player’s hand and when
1
1/0
0/0
1/0
refreshed may be used again.
3.
Can I move my unit to any Battlefield Location?
2
1/1
0/0
1/1
For 2 moves yes. Your unit may move to ANY
3
1/1
0/1
2/1
Battlefield Location from ANY space from ANY
4
1/1
1/1
2/2
Battlefield its at.
5
2/1
1/1
3/2
4. When I capture a Battlefield Location do I gain its
6
2/2
1/1
3/3
effect immediately? You gain the bonus during the
7
2/2
1/2
4/3
appropriate phase. Example, the +2 Hand Loca8
2/2
2/2
4/4
tion would give you the bonus of allowing you to
hold additional cards during the Wrap Up phase.
#
Player 1
Player 2
Player 3
5.
Can the Fantasy Defenders move into the Battle1
1/0
0/0
0/0
field or Battlefield Locations? No, but they may
2
1/1
0/0
0/0
attack into the Battlefield if possible.
3
1/1
0/1
0/0
6. If I have an ability that allows me to Reroll a die
4
1/1
0/1
0/1
and another ability allows me to Reroll can I reroll
5
1/1
1/1
0/1
it twice or more? No. You may only ever reroll
6
1/1
1/1
1/1
a single die once per situation (i.e. Battle, for a
7
2/1
1/1
1/1
Power Card, etc).
7. Can I push a unit more than once on my turn?
8
2/2
1/1
1/1
No. You may only ever push a unit once during a
Peasants
game turn.
Four Peasant Tokens protect the 4 different
8. In the rules it says I can “voluntarily flip a unit”?
Battlefield Locations. Be warned, Peasants
You can flip a unit if an ability allows you to do so.
have been known to put up a fight and may
9. Can I contribute my Boss votes to another player?
take repeated assaults to wipe them from the
No.
land. Peasants may not be activated nor move.
10. Let’s say I have an attack 2. I roll 1 Burst Die and 1
Battle Die. If I roll a miss on the Burst Die does the
Peasants: Melee - Attack 1 - Always Strikes Last.
entire attack miss? No. Each die’s result is counted
separately.
Note: Peasants are never counted as trophies.
11. In Battles with multiple rounds, does my Fearcausing unit roll for its Fear every round? No, only
Additional Trait Explanations
before the start of the Battle.
Strikes Last: The unit rolls and applies its damage last
12. If a unit is feared in Battle with multiple rounds,
in Melee and Ranged Battle only. Should it take damcan it ever attack or counterattack? No since that
age sufficient to be destroyed, it cannot counterattack
unit is flipped.
or finish its attack, if it were the attacker.
21
Index
A–
Arcanist Magic pg 19
Armor pg 20
Attack pg 10
B–
Battle March pg 15
Battle Rounds pg 15
Battle Trophies pg 13
Battlefield Locations pg 18
Battlefield Upgrades pg 2, 7
Boss Deck pg 2
Boss Vote pg 6
C–
Castle Buildings pg 2, 18
Castle Towers pg 20
Collect phase pg 4, 6
Counterattacks (Melee) pg 11
Counterattacks (Ranged) pg 12
Cover pg 20
D–
Damage Tokens pg 2
Defeated Units pg 13
Defenses pg 20
Deploying Equipment pg 8
Deploying Units pg 7
Dice pg 2
E–
Equipment pg 18
Equipment Tokens pg 2, 7
Event Cards pg 2, 8, 20
Exhausted Cards pg 19
F–
Fantasy Defender Heroes pg 16
Fantasy Defender Reference Card pg 4
Fantasy Defender’s Reinforcement Phase pg 8
Fear, pg 20
First Strike pg 15, 16
Fizzle Cards pg 19
Flipped Units pg 16
H–
Hero’s Event Card pg 16
Hero’s Onward March pg 16
I–
Immune to Fear pg 21
L–
Ladders pg 2, 7, 18, 19
Let’s Buy & Deploy phase pg 4, 7
M–
Magic pg 19
Magic Attacks pg 13
Melee Battles pg 11
Melee Counterattacks pg 11
Move Lock pg 17
Move Units pg 9
N–
No Fear pg 21
O–
Onward March pg 14
P–
Peasants pg 2, 21
Player’s Actions pg 9
Player’s Turn pg 4, 9
Power Card Types pg 10
Power Cards pg 2, 7
Pushing Units pg 20
R–
Ranged Battles pg 12
Reference Cards pg 2
Reinforcements phase pg 4
S–
Strikes Last pg 21
Structures pg 17
Summoning the Hero pg 16
T–
“The Card” pg 4
Traits pg 21
Trophies pg 13
Turn Order phase pg 4, 7
Turn Order Tokens pg 2
U–
Undead Magic pg 19
Units pg 7
V–
Variants pg 20
W–
Walls pg 2, 17
Who’s the Boss? Phase pg 4, 6
Wrap Up phase pg 4, 13
22
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Ross, David Hoffman, Patrick McKeon, Jason Preder, JSP, Tim Ryan, P&K McGregor, Jason Granat,
Todd Lewis, Emperor Fooble, Cryptkicker, Nathan Mikeska, Drew Kallen, David Blank, Tom Meier,
Paul Phillips, Jim Horvath, Richard Cook, Tony Tran, Eric Nussberger, Jandhuin, Die kleine Alex,
Theron, David Newell, Jhonna Niver, Dave McAvoy, Matt Leitzen, D Seeley, Paul Mahacek, John
Hanna, Michael Miller, John Kennedy, Ryan Jenkinson, Jeremy G, Craig ONeil, Sam Oppenheim,
Greg Deutschlander, Dirk Wilking, Biewer Family, Andreas Sturm, Bernabe Family, Philip Rosen,
Quentin Antrim, Charles Boyung, Griffin Brunk, Connor Hodge, Wyle Fox, crazymoes, Matthew
Allen, Jeffrey & Kaori Bowdler, Omael, William Woods, Swordsman, Paul Silverio, Maneesh Goel,
Postaljerk, Brent Schaffrick, Wayne Kaufman, Jared Eisenhart, Cole Family. WARCHIEF: Steven
Dodd, Benjamin Bishop, Brandin Owens, Ken Thronberry, CardiacKangaroo, Pete Duchak, Taurik
Cyprio, Andrea Cupido, Nik Kuhnle, Matthew Nyweide, Brodo Fraggins, Jens Wortmann, Kayne
Kajewski, Samuel King Jr, Greater Fringe, Joel Johnson, Ryan Brolley, Teancum the True, Derek &
Tiffny Kuper, Nick A. Niemiec, samuel bo, Jason Sherwood, Derek Carbonneau, Murray Smith, Ted
Muenster, Scott Alden, Vittorio Insogna, Hiram Borrero. MIGHTY INVADER: Roger Eastep, Ka Lai,
Vance Rawson, Kaskin, Ryan Edwards, David Cinabro, Dario Guedes, Kiai Weidemann, Tommy K.,
Frank Solnitzky, Arthur Changry (Dang this list was long!).
Thank You
Developing STC has been a long and incredible journey. Thank you to everyone who contributed, from
ideas to artwork, it took a team to pull this together.
Thank you to all the Kickstarter supporters who made
this game and dream come to life. Thanks to my family for all those early play tests and lastly to God for
all the blessings.
Afterthoughts
STC was developed over a 4-year period and went
through many different iterations until finally settling on the one now before you. Inspiration drew
from some of the old classic PC games like “Castles”,
“Siege”, “Lords of the Realm” and “Age of Wonders”.
I’m proud of what’s been accomplished and hope
you enjoy STC as much as we have. We can’t wait to
release new expansions to build upon the game by
adding new features, units, and factions. We’ll see you
on the battlefield!
CREDITS
Rich Nelson
January, 22 2013
Game Design: Rich Nelson Art Direction: Rich Nelson
Editing: Matt Shiners, Katrina Nelson, The Fans who helped
Artists: Markus Lenz, Emmanuel Roldan, Gabriele Gabba, William Hung,
Patrick Thompson, Chris Eisert, Tina Ghadge, Soumavo Dastidar, Indranil
Bhattacharya, Khushnaz Bode
Graphic Design: Crimzon Studio, G3 Studios
Publisher: Rich Nelson
Playtesters: Greg Piercy, Marc Semadeni, Jason Maestri, Chad Stewart,
Derek Kirby, Katrina Nelson, “the Girls”, Brett Petersen, John Payne,
Garrett Hatfield, Mike Tanner, Dustin Swede, Alex Haig, Cavan Heps and
the early playtesters at Salt Con.
Copyright 2010-2013 Giant Goblin Games, Inc., all rights reserved. No part of this
product may be reproduced without specific permission. Storm the Castle!, Giant
Goblin Games (G3), and the G3 logo are trademarks of Giant Goblin Games. G3 is located at 12207 Cove Crest Circle, Riverton, UT 84065 USA, giantgoblingames@gmail.
com. Not suitable for children 13 and under due to small parts. Actual components
may vary from those shown. Made in China.
THIS PRODUCT IS NOT A TOY. NOT INTENDED FOR USE OF
PERSONS 13 YEARS OF AGE OR YOUNGER!
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REFERENCE
Strategy Tips
Turn Order Summary
1. Collect: Players collect 5 gold and magic (if any),
draw 1 Power Card, and refresh any Exhausted
Cards.
2. Who’s the Boss?: Players bid to become the Boss.
3. Turn Order: The Boss draws 2 Turn Order Tokens
first and chooses 1. Remaining players then draw
Turn Order Tokens to determine the turn order.
4. Let’s Buy & Deploy: In turn order, the players may
buy Power Cards, units, and/or equipment. Afterwards purchases are deployed in turn order.
5. Reinforcements: The Defender’s Controller draws
1 Defender unit (or 2 units on turns 4 and 7) and
places the unit(s). Then count the number of
Castle Sides with at least 1 wall and add +1 to that
number to determine how many Event Cards will
be drawn and resolved this game turn.
6. Players Turn: In turn order, Players resolve
Events, may play Power Cards, and activate their
units (i.e. Attack, Move, Use any unit abilities).
7. Wrap Up: Check for victory or defeat. Players discard down to their hand size (normally 3 cards),
Defenders unflip, and shuffle the highest Onward
March Event Card drawn this turn back into the
Event Deck. Then advance the Game Turn Marker.
Storm the Castle! is a challenging game, especially
when you’re not sure what your “ally” may be planning. Here are some general strategy tips to get you
going on the road to victory.
1. Be careful when deploying units on your right and
left paths that can’t counterattack. Other players
may take advantage of this.
2. Your first turn allows you the most gold (10). Use
this to buy expensive units.
3. To be successful in the mid and late stages of the
game you’ll need a continuing wave of troops.
Have your units constantly moving towards
Castle Storm Haven.
4. Take advantage of the Battlefield Locations. Getting these bonuses can really help! Consider taking key Battlefield Locations to deny other players
those bonuses.
5. Don’t blow all your gold on the Boss during the
first few turns. The Boss becomes more of a factor
on later turns. Units will win you the game, so buy
plenty of them.
6. There are some fun combos to discover. Experiment with different units and Power/Boss cards.
7. Don’t allow a player to remain the Boss for more
than two turns. He’ll start entrenching himself in
the position, making it more difficult to remove
Heroes
him.
The Hero is summoned when the 9th/7th/5th/3rd
8. Use ladders! They’re cheap and allow your units
wall is destroyed respectively in a 4/3/2/1-player
to start pouring into the castle to threaten the
game.
Keep.
9. Destroy all the walls on a Castle Side. Remember,
Events are nasty and can severely hamper your
The Defender’s Controller
chance to win. Consider working with other playThe current Defender’s controller draws and places
ers in taking down their walls.
units during the Reinforcement phase, resolves Events
10. There are many more secrets and strategies to disand any Event RIP and Castle Building effects, and
cover. Trying new tactics and strategies is just one
rolls for Battles.
of the fun elements of Storm the Castle!
The Card will pass clockwise among players after:
1. An Event card is drawn and resolved.
2. A Hero is summoned and does its own Onward
March 1.
3. Placing any Defender units during the Reinforcement phase.
The Current Player may never have the Card and immediately passes the Card to his left.
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