7/30/2019 The Spoils Basic Rules

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INTRODUCTIONWelcome to The Spoils Trading

Card Game. Before you play, you

should read the front of this rules

sheet to learn the basics. The

back features a glossary of terms

you can refer to if questions come

up while youre playing. Although

these rules do explain how to

play, we recommend you learn

the game from another person if

you can.

The Five TradesThe Spoils features cards representing a wide array of characters,settings, and objects within its fantasy setting. Every card in yourcollection is a part of the Arcanist, Banker, Gearsmith, Rogue, orWarlordtrade. Each trade has a unique look and feel as well as itsown set of strategies.

What You Need to PlayThe Spoils is a two player game, which means you and a friendeach need your own deck to play. You also need a way to keep trackof the score (probably with a pen and paper). We recommend youbegin with two pre-constructed decks, which contain everything youneed to get your collections started.

The Most Impor tant Ru leIn trading card games, the cards can always break the rules. If anycard contradicts the rules, the card is always right.

Object o f the GameThe object of the game is to decrease the inuence score of youropponents faction card to 0. You do this by playing characters andusing them to attack your opponents faction.

What is a Trad ing Card Game?In regular card games, players share a common deck that alwaysstays the same. Trading card games are different because theyrealways changing. Each player keeps their own collection of cardsand uses them to build a personal deck with a customized strategy.Over time, new card sets are released and the game continues toevolve.

Thresho ld A cards threshold consists of resource

icons in the upper left corner, just below the cost

number. It represents the resource icons you must

control in order to play the card.

Batt le Sta ts A cards battle stats appear in the

upper right corner, consisting of strength (STR), life

(LIFE), and speed (SPD). All characters have thesenumbers which dene how they behave in battles. In

addition, some items actually affect a characters battle

stats. Those adjustments are conveniently represented

in the items upper right corner, preceded by a + or

- symbol.

Type L ine A cards type line appears in the

middle, just below the artwork. Written on this line

are its trade, type, and subtypes (which are located

after the dash). Subtypes are descriptive words that

sometimes interact with other cards during the game.

Not every card has subtypes.

Rules Text A cards rules text appears on thebottom half, just below the type line. This text explainswhat the card can do during the game.

Some paragraphs of rules text begin with thresholdicons. These paragraphs are only active while youcontrol the appropriate resource icons.

Any text written in italics is not part of the rules text;its usually just a descriptive paragraph relating to thecards overall theme or a simple reminder.

Col lector In fo A cards collector info appearsat the bottom, just below the rules text. The set iconidenties which set this card belongs to. The rarity iseither common, uncommon, rare, or ultra rareand itdenes how often youll nd the card in a booster pack.The collector number helps you organize your cards.For example, 196/220 means its the 196th card in aset of 220 cards.

St ruc tu re (Locat ions Only) A locationsstructure appears in the upper right corner insteadof battle stats. It represents the amount of damage ittakes to destroy the location.

YOUR OTHER CARDSAlthough each trades cards have a unique look, most

cards share the same layout. Learning this layout is the

key to understanding what your cards can do during

the game.

Name A cards name is written at the top in large

letters. Just below youll nd the subtitle, a descriptive

line of text related to the cards overall theme.

Cost Number A cards cost number appears

in the upper left corner. It represents the number of

resources needed to play the card.

THE PARTS OF A CARDThe six different types of cards are called faction,

resource, character, tactic, item, and location. Faction

and resource cards are special, but the remaining card

types all have the same basic parts.

YOUR FACTION CARDYour faction starts the game in play. It providesessential abilities and affects how the game ows. Youare only allowed to use one faction card.

If damage is inicted to your faction, it loses an equalamount of inuence. Once your faction has 0 inuence,you lose the game.

THE PARTS OF A FACTIONAlthough each faction is unique, they all share the

same basic parts.

Back Face A r t While most cards have thestandard back face, each faction has a unique pieceof artwork on its back so that it easily stands out fromthe rest of your deck.

Name A factions name appears at the top of thecard in large letters.

Infuence A factions starting inuence scoreappears at the top, just below the name.

Star t ing Resources A factions startingresources line describes the resources that start thegame in play under your control.

Star t ing Draw A factions starting draw line

describes the number of cards you draw at the startof the game. This number is usually different if you aretaking the rst turn of the game instead of the second.

Restore Rule As you play, resources get usedand your characters become depleted from battle. Afactions restore rule replenishes your cards everyturn.

Develop Rule A factions develop rule lets youdraw cards and play resources. Its primary purpose isto provide a steady ow of new options as the gameprogresses.

Other Rules Text A faction has additional rulestext below the develop rule. This text usually includesabilities that allow you to draw more cards and playmore resources. Since you can always use your extraresources to draw more cards, youll never run out ofthings to do no matter how long the game goes.

GENERAL RULES

GAME AREASDuring the game, every card is always within one ofthe game areas.

Deck This is the stack of cards you brought to the

game. When you draw cards, they come from yourdeck. No one is allowed to look through your deck orshufe it unless instructed to do so.

Hand This is the group of cards that you currentlyhave access to. Keep your hand hidden from youropponent. There is no limit to the number of cards youcan have in your hand.

Being Played This is where a card goes whenyou play it from your hand. It stays in this area untilyour opponent is done responding and it resolves.

In Play This is the place on the table where you putthe cards youve played. Most cards cant do anythinguntil theyre in play.

Discard P i le This is where you put your cardswhen they are discarded or destroyed. You shouldkeep this pile face-up next to your deck.

Out o f Game This is where a card goes whenit is removed from the game. You should set the cardaside face-up for the rest of the game, but rememberto retrieve it afterwards.

CARD TYPESCharacterYou can only play characters during your turn. Whena character resolves, put it into play. Your characterscan attack and block while theyre in play. However, acharacter cant attack unless it started the turn in playunder your control.

A characters strength represents how much damageit can inict in battle, while its speed denes whenthat damage is inicted. Its life represents how muchdamage it takes to destroy it. If the damage a characterreceives in a single turn is ever equal to or greater thanits life, destroy it immediately.

Tact icTactics have a one-time impact on the game.When a tactic resolves, follow its instructions andput it into your discard pile.

Tactics are special because they can be playedin response to your opponents actions, even if it

isnt your turn. There are also special times duringbattles when you can play tactics. (For moreinformation, see Responding to Your Opponentand How to Attack below.)

I temYou can only play items during your turn. Whenan item resolves, put it into play. Items stay inplay and have an ongoing impact on the game.

Some items can be attached to other cards inplay. For example, an item with the subtype gearusually has the keyword Attach to Character inits rules text, which means it should be attachedto a character while it s in play.

Locat ionYou can only play locations during your turn. Whena location resolves, put it into play. Locations stayin play and have an ongoing impact on the game.However, they are vulnerable since they can beattacked by your opponents characters.

If a location receives damage, keep track of it. Unlikecharacters, the damage a location receives is notforgotten at the end of each turn. If the damage alocation has received this game is ever equal to orgreater than its structure, destroy it immediately.

IMPORTANT TERMSDeple te Sometimes youre instructed to depletea card to show its been used. You can indicate thata card is depleted however you want as long as itsclear to your opponent. You can only deplete a card ifit isnt depleted already.

Restore To restore a card, undo whatever youdid to deplete it. Your factions restore rule tells youhow your cards are restored each turn.

RESOURCESYou use resources to pay for your cards. The more resources youaccumulate, the bigger and better things you can play.

Staple ResourcesStaple resources are the simplest kind of resource and your deckis usually full of them. Each trade has its own staple resource type.Arcanist uses Obsession, Banker uses Greed, Gearsmith uses Elitism,Rogue uses Deception, and Warlord uses Rage.

Resource Icons & Thresho ldEvery staple resource card provides you with a distinct resource icon.These icons appear prominently on the resource and correspond to thethreshold icons in the upper left corner of your other cards.

You cant play a card until youve met its threshold. For example, if acard has a threshold of 2 Rage icons, you cant play it until you controlat least 2 Rage resource cards. But once you control those resources,you can play any number of cards with a threshold of 2 Rage icons.

Face-Down ResourcesWhen a card lets you play a resource, you dont always need an actualresource card. You can instead put any card from your hand into playface-down. While they dont provide any resource icons, face-down

resources do everything else regular resources can do.

So why play face-down resources? Well, sometimes you dont drawenough regular resource cards and its important to keep playingresources throughout the game. It can be hard to give up a cool cardby putting it face-down, but if you dont continue to play resources youllfall behind later in the game. Remember that your faction lets you drawextra cards, so theres no limit to the number of resources you caneffectively use.

SATISFYING COSTSCost NumberMost cards have a cost number in the upper left corner. It represents the

number of resources needed to play the card. To pay a cards numericcost, you must attach that many resources to your faction.

Once a resource has been attached to your faction, it cant be usedagain until it becomes detached. Your factions restore rule tells youhow and when your resources can be detached.

Extra CostsSome cards have extra costs written in their rules text. They are clearlylabeled and are usually a list of instructions. If you cant follow all ofthese instructions, then you cant play the card. For example, if an extracost says pick an item then you cant play the card if there are noitems in play to pick.

Sometimes an extra cost instructs you to pay a number. To satisfy thiscost, you must attach that number of resources to your faction.

Personal ize Your DeckOnce youve mastered the pre-constructed decks, you should trycustomizing your deck to t yourpersonality. You can accumulatemore cards by trading or gettingbooster packs.

An ofcial The Spoils deckmust contain at least 75 cardsin addition to a faction. You cantinclude more than 4 copies of thesame card in your deck. However,you can include any number ofstaple resources.

Player Communi t yTheres an active forum communityonline at www.thespoils.com. Ourmembers are eager to help newplayers with just about anything.

Another great way to make newfriends is by going to tournaments.The atmosphere at small events iscasual, so youll have a good timeeven if youre just a spectator. Ifyour local game shop isnt runningtournaments yet, send an emailto sales@thespoils.com and wellget them on board.

Quest ions?As you acquire more cards andplay more games, youll discovernew and unfamiliar concepts. Youshould refer to the glossary ofterms on the back of this sheet ifyou encounter anything you dontunderstand.

If you still have questions, emailrules@thespoils.com. You canalso check the comprehensiverules reference, available online atwww.thespoils.com/rules.

PLAYING TH E GAME

H ow to S ta r tYour faction card starts the game in play.Flip a coin or roll dice to decide who goes rst.Look at your faction and nd the starting resourcesline. Search your deck for the appropriate resourcesand put them into play. If your pre-constructed deckhas two kinds of staple resources, make sure youstart with one of each.Look at your faction and nd the starting draw line.Draw the appropriate number of cards.You may choose any number of cards in your handand put them on the bottom of your deck in anyorder. Then, draw the same number of cards toreplace the old ones. This is called a mulligan and itcan be done only once.The game starts.

Dur ing Your TurnWhile its your turn, you may play a card, use an ability,and attack as many times as you want. When youredone, announce that youre ending your turn.

Many cards have abilities and other effects thatchange what happens while you play. Remember topay attention to all the cards, even if they belong toyour opponent.

How t o P lay a CardPick a card in your hand. Make sure your resourceicons meet the cards threshold.Announce that youre playing the card and put itonto the table.Satisfy all of the cards costs. This includes thenumeric cost and any extra costs listed in its rulestext. If you cant do this, you cant play the card.Wait for your opponent to respond.The card resolves. If its a character, item, orlocation put it into play. If its a tactic, follow itsinstructions and put it into your discard pile.

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Abi l i t iesMany cards have abilities in their rules text. Every

ability has a center-justied name and a clearly

labeled cost and effect section. For example:

BATTLES

H ow to A t tac kYou win the game by attacking your opponentsfaction. Characters can act alone or join togetherin battle parties. The way you combine yourcharacters can drastically affect a battles

outcome. Since you can attack as many times asyou want each turn, you have lots of battle options.To attack, follow these steps:

Announce that you want to attack. By default,you are attacking your opponents faction butyou can choose to target one of their locationsinstead.Choose one or more characters you controlthat are not depleted to form the attackingparty. Then, deplete the attacking characters.Remember, a character cant attack unless itstarted the turn in play under your control.Once the attacking party is formed, you canplay tactics and use abilities. Then, youropponent can do the same.Your opponent may choose one or morecharacters they control that are not depleted toform the blocking party.Resolve the battle.

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How t o Reso lve a Bat t leCharacters with the same speed inict their damageat the same time, but each speed group is handledseparately. Start with the highest speed charactersand work your way down. For each group, followthese steps:

Before damage is assigned, the attacking playercan play tactics and use abilities. Then, thedefending player can do the same.All characters in this group assign damage equal totheir strength to the opposing party. This damagecan be divided however their controller wants. Ifthere are no blocking characters left, the attackingcharacters assign their damage to the target of theattack instead.The assigned damage is now locked in. It will beinicted even if its source leaves play.Before damage is actually inicted, the attackingplayer can play tactics and use abilities. Then, thedefending player can do the same.All locked in damage is inicted. Any charactersdestroyed by this damage leave play immediately,even if they havent acted yet.

Repeat these steps until youve handled everycharacter. Afterwards, all surviving characters in bothparties are depleted and the battle is over.

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Some abilities even have threshold icons next tothe name. You cant use an ability unless youvemet its threshold and can satisfy all its costs .

Just like tactics, abilities can be used in responseto your opponents actions even if it isnt your turn.There are also special times during battles whenyou can use abilities.

How t o Use an Ab i l i tyPick an ability you control. If the ability has athreshold, make sure your resource icons meetit.Announce that youre using the ability.Satisfy all of the abilitys costs, listed in its costsection. If you cant do this, you cant use theability.Wait for your opponent to respond.The ability resolves. Follow the instructions inthe abilitys effect section.

Responding to Your OpponentYou get a chance to respond every time youropponent plays a card, uses an ability, or endstheir turn. If you choose to respond, you can playtactics and use abilities. All your responses resolvebefore your opponents action happens.

Keep in mind that even responses can beresponded to. A series of responses can go backand forth between players any number of times.Just remember that the last response madealways resolves rst.

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In a Par ty WithIf a character refers to another character that is in a partywith it, any member of that party meets this criteria, eventhe character doing the check. For example, if a card sayspick a character in a party with this card then you couldpick the card itself.

IncreaseTo add to a numbers value. If a number is increased and/or reduced by more than one effect at the same time,apply all increases in any order you want followed by allreductions in any order you want.

See alsoRdc

InictTo apply damage to a character, faction, or location.

InuenceThe score on your faction that keeps you in the game.When damage is inicted to your faction, it loses an equal

amount of inuence. Once your faction has 0 inuence,you lose the game. If both factions go to 0 inuence at thesame time, the game is a draw.

See alsoLoss, Draw

InsteadIf a phrase contains the word instead then it is probablya replacement. (If this card would go to a discard pilefrom play, put it into its owners hand instead.)

See alsoRplacmnt

I ta l ic TextText that appears in italics is not considered rules text. Itis simply a reminder or descriptive text about the cardsoverall theme.

KeywordUsed to summarize complex card effects. Keywordsappear in bold letters in a cards rules t ext.

Leaves PlayWhen a card moves from in play to another area. Thishappens regardless of which area the card moves to.

Limit ed PlayA way of playing The Spoils using only cards fromsealed packs. An ofcial limited deck needs a faction cardand a minimum of 45 additional cards. Youre allowed toadd any number of staple resources to your deck.

See alsoConstrctd Pla

LosesIf a faction loses inuence its not the same as receivingdamage, so anything that would affect damage doesntaffect the loss of inuence. For example, a card might sayyour opponents faction loses 2 inuence while anothercard says if damage is inicted to a faction, reduce theamount by 1. Your opponents faction would still lose 2inuence because the other effect only reduces damage.

Ma yIf an instruction contains the word may then you donthave to follow it.

If you forgot to follow a may instruction then its assumedyou chose not to do it.

Micromaj i g TokenAny object used to represent a Micromajig created by aneffect. Micromajigs are considered Gearsmith charactercards with 1 strength, 1 life, 3 speed, and the majigsubtype. If a Micromajig leaves play, it is removed fromthe game.

The owner of a Micromajig is the player who controlledthe effect that created it.

MinimumIf something is reduced to a minimum of that restrictiondoesnt apply if the thing was already less than thatminimum. For example, if a numeric cost of 0 is reducedby 1, to a minimum of 1, then that numeric cost is still 0.

See alsoRdc

MulliganTo redraw part of your starting hand. Youre allowed toput any number of cards from your starting hand on thebottom of your deck in any order then draw an equalnumber of cards. You only get to do this once per game.

MustIf a phrase contains the word must then it is probablya requirement. (If you are attacked and this card couldblock, this card must block.)

See alsoRqirmnt

Name a CardIf you are instructed to name a card then you mustchoose an actual The Spoils card.

Numeric CostThe numeric cost of a card is usually equal to its costnumber. If a card doesnt have a cost number, its numericcost is equal to 0.

While a card is being played, its numeric cost is handleddifferently. You must calculate it by keeping a runningtotal of cost additions, increases, and reductions.

When you play a card, its running total starts as its costnumber. Then, you satisfy its extra costs. If an extra costsays pay followed by a number, you dont pay it rightaway. Instead, you add that number to the running total.

Once all the extra costs are satised, you then apply allcost increases to the running total in any order you want,followed by all cost reductions in any order you want. Theoverall total is the cards numeric cost while its beingplayed. Finally, you pay that amount.

An abilitys numeric cost is handled in the same way.But since abilities dont have an inherent cost number,any ability without a pay instruction in its cost section isconsidered to not have a numeric cost at all.

Opposing Par tyThe party under your opponents control during a battle.

Ow nYou own any card that started the game as a part of y ourdeck, regardless of who currently controls it. Ownershipof a card cannot change during a game.

See alsoControl

OwnerThe player who owns a card.

Par tySeeBattl Part

PayIf you are instructed to pay a number, you must attachthat number of resources to your faction.

PickThe word pick is a special term used when a card needsto affect another card.

Unless otherwise mentioned, you can only pick cards inplay. Also, you cant pick a faction unless an instructionspecically says to pick a faction.

Play a CardIf you are instructed to play a card then you must followthe steps in How to Pla a Card on the front of this sheet.This means you cant play a resource since they arehandled differently. However, you can play a character,item, or location even if its not your turn.

See alsoPla a Rsorc, Pt

Play a Resource

If you are instructed to play a resource then you caneither put an actual resource card from your hand intoplay, or you can put any card from your hand into play asa face-down resource.

ProvidesIf a card says it provides resource icons, those icons areexactly like the ones on your s taple resources. (This cardprovides )

PutIf you are instructed to put a card its not the same as toplay it. Putting a card simply moves it from one area toanother, while playing a card follows its own set of steps.

See alsoPla a Card

Act ive PlayerThe player whose turn it is currently.

AllIf an effect says all it is referring to everything, evenif you control it. For example, if a card says inict 2damage to all characters then it would inict damage toyour characters as well as y our opponents.

Assign DamageWhen you are resolving a battle, damage gets assignedbefore it is actually inicted. This gives the players achance to react to the damage with tactics and abilities.However, once damage has been assigned it will still beinicted even if its source leaves play beforehand.

If there is nothing left for a character to assign its battledamage to, the character doesnt do anything but it is stillconsidered to have assigned its battle damage.

AtIf a phrase begins with the word at then it is probably atrigger. (At the start of your turn, draw a card.)

See alsoTrir

At tachTo attach one card to another, arrange the attaching cardso it overlaps the target card. When you attach a card tosomething, it is simultaneously detached from anythingelse it is already attached to.

An attaching card can only be attached to one target ata time. However, target cards can have any number ofcards attached to them at once.

If a target card leaves play, any cards attached to it leaveplay in the same way. This includes being destroyed,removed from the game, put into owners hand, orshufed into owners deck.

See alsoAttach to [Tp]

At tach to [Type]A keyword that summarizes how to handle certain cardsthat need to be attached to other cards.

When you play a card with this keyword, you must pick atarget card of the appropriate type as the rst extra cost.When the attaching card resolves, it enters play attached

to the target card.If the attaching cards target is no longer in play by thetime it resolves, put it into its owners discard pile insteadof into play.

If the attaching card is put into play by an effect that doesnot specify a target for it, you must pick a target card asthe attaching card enters play.

If the target card stops being the appropriate type, destroythe attaching card immediately.

See alsoAttach

At tack ing Charac te rAny character that is currently part of an attacking party.

At tack ing Par t yThe group of characters under the attacking playerscontrol during a battle. The attacking party is alwaystargeting either a faction or location.

See alsoTart of an Attack

At tacking PlayerThe player who started the current battle.

Bat t leA period of time starting when a player attacks and endingwhen the battle is nished being resolved.

Bat t le DamageThe damage inicted by characters as part of the steps inHow to Rsolv a Battl on the front of this sheet.

Bat t le Par t yA group of characters, either attacking or blocking, thatare involved in a battle.

Being At tackedYou are being attacked during any battle in which youropponent has attacked one of your factions or locations.

BlockTo stop an attacking party from damaging its target bygetting in its way.

Blocking CharacterAny character that is currently part of a blocking party.

Block ing Par t yThe group of characters under the defending playerscontrol during a battle. If the defending player choosesnot to block with any characters, there is no blocking partyduring that battle.

Can, CannotIf an effect says you can do something but another effectsays you cannot, the most recent effect always wins.

Theres a difference between saying you can dosomething and being instructed to do that thing. Forexample, if a card says characters c annot be destroyedthen all destroy a character instructions have no effect.

Card TypeThere are six card types: faction, resource, character,tactic, item, and location. A cards type can be found on itstype line, just after its trade. Some cards can have morethan one type at the same time.

If a card with the character type loses that type, it forgetsall damage it received this turn and it is removed from anybattle it is currently in.

If an effect refers to a specic type, but the card it istrying to affect is no longer that type, then the card isnot affected by that effect. For example, if an effect saysdestroy the character but the card it is trying to destroyis no longer a character, nothing happens.

See alsoRmov From Battl

ConcedeIf you think you are going to lose, you can give up at anytime during a game. If you concede, your opponent winsthe game immediately.

Condit ionalConditionals use the word while followed by a c onditionto dene an effect that is only active while the condition istrue. For example, a card might say while your opponentcontrols a character, this card gains 1 strength and 1 life.This effect immediately ceases if your opponent everstops controlling a character.

Constructed PlayA way of playing The Spoils using decks that youbuild ahead of time. An ofcial constructed deck needsa faction card and a minimum of 75 additional cards.You cant include more than 4 copies of any regularcard. However, you can include any number of stapleresources in your deck.

See alsoLimitd Pla

ControlYou control the cards that you play. You also control theeffects and abilities on cards you control.

Some effects let a player take control of a card thatisnt theirs. If this happens to a character in a battle, thecharacter is removed from the battle immediately.

If more than one effect takes control of a card, the mostrecent effect wins.

See alsoOwnr, Rmov From Battl

Control lerThe player who controls a card, ability, or effect.

CovertA keyword that summarizes how to handle cards thathave special attacking and blocking rules.

If all members of an attacking party have the covertkeyword in their rules text, that party is considered acovert party. Only covert characters can block a covertparty. Also, covert characters cant block regular parties.

If an effect says a character gains covert then thecharacter is considered to actually have the covertkeyword in its rules text.

ReduceTo subtract from a numbers value. If an effect tries toreduce a number below 0, that number stays at 0.Negative numbers dont exist in The Spoils.

If a number is increased and/or reduced by more thanone effect at the same time, apply all increases in anyorder you want followed by all reductions in any orderyou want.

See alsoIncras

Remove From Bat t l eIf a character is removed from battle, it is no longerattacking or blocking. Any battle damage assigned to thecharacter is not inicted.

Remove From Gam eTo put a card into the out of game area.

Replacement

Replacements use the word instead to dene one thingthat replaces another. For example, a card might say ifthis card is put into your discard pile from play, removeit from the game instead. In that case, the card wouldnever go to the discard pile; going to the discard pile iscompletely replaced with removing it from the game.

Some replacements say the next in their rules text todene something that could be replaced in the future.These effects are called delayed replacements becausethey dont replace something immediately. They wait untilwhatever they are trying to replace happens.

Under rare circumstances, a series of replacements mighttry to create innite recursion. However, this situation isavoided because each replacement can only be appliedto the same thing once.

RequirementRequirements use the word must to dene somethingyou are required to do. If you cant meet the requirementsfor an action then you cant take that action. For example,a card might say your opponent must pay 2 for eachattacking party they form. In that case, your opponentcould not form a new attacking party unless they couldmeet the requirement by paying 2.

RestoreTo restore a card, undo whatever you did to deplete it.

Your factions restore rule tells you how your cards arerestored each turn.

See alsoDplt

Same TypeA cards type is either faction, resource, character, tactic,item, or location. If an effect checks for the same typethen it doesnt care about anything besides these types.For example, a Banker character and a Gearsmithcharacter are the same type, just w ith different trades.

SearchUsually, you are required to nd all cards that youreinstructed to search for. However, if a card must matchspecic criteria (search your deck for an item) you areallowed to fail in nding it either by choice or necessity.

Whenever a deck has been searched, its owner mustshufe it afterwards.

ShufeTo sufciently randomize a deck.

SourceAn ability or effects source is the card that generated theability or effect.

If a cards effect instructs you to inict damage, then thatcard is considered the source of that damage. For battle

damage, its source is the character which assigned it.Take Cont rolSeeControl

Target of an AttackThe faction or location being attacked during a battle.

TerminateTo stop something before it resolves. If you are instructedto terminate something, you must cease following anyinstructions associated with it immediately. If its a card,put it into its owners discard pile.

This TurnIf an effect contains the words this turn then it only lastsfor the duration of the current turn. (This turn, this cardgains 2 strength.)

TokenA bead, coin, or other object placed on a card in play.Tokens have no inherent meaning, so a card alwaysexplains how it uses tokens in its rules text. If a cardleaves play, any tokens on it disappear.

See alsoMicromaji Tokn

Tr iggerTriggers begin with the words if, when, or at and arefollowed by a trigger condition. If the trigger conditionhappens, you must immediately follow the instructionsof the trigger, even if you are in the middle of resolvingsomething else. No one can respond to triggers.

If a trigger happens while a player is satisfying the costsof a card or ability, the trigger waits until after the costsare completely satised before it actually resolves.

TypeSeeCard Tp

Under Your ControlSeeControl

Unique [Name]A keyword that summarizes how to handle cards thatyoure only allowed to control one copy of at a time.

If a card says Unique Beatrix, for example, then youcant control more than one card with that in its rules text.If you ever control more than one of these cards, youmust choose one to keep and destroy the rest.

This restriction only applies to your cards, so youropponent is allowed to have their own copy of a UniqueBeatrix card in play at t he same time.

Variable NumbersCards with variables (X, Y, Z, etc.) fully explain how those

variables are used in their rules text.If you are instructed to choose a number for a variable,you must choose a whole number (2 is fne, but not 3 ).

WhenIf a phrase begins with the word when then it is probablya trigger. (When this card enters play, draw a card.)

See alsoTrir

Whenever You Could Play a TacticSome cards include the rules text you may play thiscard whenever you could play a tactic. Although youcan play them at the same times, these cards are neverconsidered to actually be tactics.

WhileIf a phrase begins with the word while then it is probablya conditional. (While this card is attacking, it gains 2strength.)

See alsoConditional

X, Y, ZSeeVariabl Nmbrs

You, YourAlways refers to a cards current controller.

Cover t Par t yAn attacking party containing only covert characters. Ifany of the members of a covert party lose covert duringthe battle, the party immediately isnt covert anymore.However, if the blocking party is already formed, nothingchanges since the characters have already blocked.

DamageThis is what destroys characters and locations andreduces your factions inuence. Each card type has itsown way of handling damage that is inicted to it.

If something tries to inict 0 damage, then no damage isactually inicted.

Damage SourceSeeSorc

DeckDifferent types of play have their own set of deck buildingrules. See Constrctd Pla and Limitd Pla.

Defending PlayerThe player being attacked during a battle.

DepleteSometimes youre instructed to deplete a card to showits been used. You can indicate that a card is depletedhowever you want as long as its clear to your opponent.You can only deplete a card if it isnt depleted already.

See alsoRstor

Dest royTo put a card in play into its owners discard pile.

DetachTo detach a card, physically separate it from the card itwas attached to.

See alsoAttach

DiscardTo put a card from your hand into your discard pile.

DrawTo put the top card of your deck into your hand. If you runout of cards to draw you dont lose the game, you just failto draw the remaining cards.

Cards are always drawn as a group. For example, if a

card says draw 2 cards then you get them at the sametime instead of 2 separate draw a card events.

A draw is also the term for a game that has no winner.Even though its unlikely to happen, if both factionsinuence score becomes 0 at the same time then thegame is a draw.

DuplicateIf you are instructed to duplicate a tactic, an invisiblecopy is created. Its cost number is considered to be 0 andyou dont need to meet its threshold. The c opy has all therules text of the original, so you must still satisfy all itsextra costs. If you cant, the duplicate is terminated.

If a cards rules text has several labeled options, you canchoose a new option for the duplicate.

If an effect restricts you from playing tactics, anyduplicates created while that restriction is active areterminated immediately.

See alsoTrminat

EffectAnything that a card or ability does to affect the game.

Enters PlayA card enters play any time it moves from one game areainto the in play area.

ErrataTo reword a card so it functions as intended. Most errataclaries the cards text so that it interacts properly incomplicated situations.

Every card must be played according to its most recentversion. You can nd the current text for all cards on ourweb site at www.thespoils.com/rules.

Even NumberAny number that is a multiple of two. (0, 2, 4, 6, 8, etc.)

Face-DownWhen a cards front face cant be seen during game play.Every face down card in play is considered a resource.

A face-down resources controller is always allowed tolook at it if they want.

Face-UpWhen a cards front face can be seen by both players.Most cards are face-up while theyre in play, in a discardpile, or out of game.

Fl ipping CardsIf a face-down resource is ipped face-up, it stopsbeing a resource and it is considered to have left play.If applicable, its face-up version is considered to have

entered play as a completely new card.If a face-up card is ipped face-down, it is considered tohave left play. It becomes a face-down resource and thatresource is considered to have entered play as though itwere a completely new card.

Flip UpA keyword that summarizes how to handle cards that canbe played while they are face-down resources.

If one of your face-down resources has the Flip Upkeyword, you may play the card as though it were in yourhand by ipping it face-up. You must substitute its regularthreshold and cost number for its Flip Up threshold andcost number. Also, if the card has any Flip Up extra coststhey must be satised before its regular extra costs.

A cards Flip Up threshold and costs are affected byanything that would affect regular thresholds and costs.

See alsoFlippin Cards

Form a Bat t le Par tyWhen you form a battle party, each of the charactersperforms an attack or block action. Anything thattriggers when a character attacks or blocks happensat this time. (If this card attacks, your faction gains 2inuence.)

Once the party is formed, the characters are in a stateof attacking or blocking which may activate certaineffects on your cards. (While this card is attacking, itgains 1 strength.)

If a character is added to a party after it is originallyformed, the character didnt technically perform theattack or block action so anything that would normallytrigger doesnt. However, the character is still consideredto be attacking or blocking so any effects that checkfor that are still active.

FreeIf an effect lets you play a card for free then its costnumber is considered to be 0 while you play it. But youstill need to meet its threshold and satisfy its extra costs.

See alsoNmric Cost

Game AreaCards are always within one of these game areas: deck,hand, being played, in play, discard pile, or out of game.

If a card moves from one game area to another, anyunresolved effects that were going to impact it in the oldarea lose track of it. For example, if an effect wouldput a character into your hand when it resolves but thatcharacter is destroyed in response, you dont get to putthe character into your hand from your discard pile.

GearA special subtype of item that is attached to a characterwhile its in play.

See alsoAttach to [Tp]

IfWhen a phrase begins with the word if then it is probablya trigger. (If this card is destroyed, draw a card.)

See alsoTrir

In a Bat t leA character is considered to be in a battle while they area member of either an attacking or blocking party.

gAMe DeSIgNDirected by: Josh LytleDesign Team: Dylan Mayo, Bryan Petersen, Joe Huber, Dan Hanson

ARTDirected by: Patrick MeehanArt Team: Alex Ang, Chris De Joya, Fangwei, Silvia Gunarso, HenryGunawan, Jack Heng, Khoo Teck Chin, Wong Zi Jian, Tan YunLing,Shawn Ye ZhongyiPainted by: Imaginary Friends Studio, Singapore

STORy & FLAVORStory:Patrick Meehan, Josh Lytle, Dylan MayoFlavor Text: Josh Lytle, Jon Winkler, Patrick Meehan

PRODuCTIONProduction Management: Bucephalus Productions

GLOSSARY OF TERMS