Borderlands: Mister Torgue's Arena of Badassery
Borderlands: Mister Torgue's Arena of Badassery Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- The [RE]action System
- Setup
- How to Play
- Exhaust
- Scenarios
- Base Rings
- Vault Hunter Cards
- Skills
- Line of Sight
- Navigating the Vault
- Actions
- Basic Actions
- Loot
- Fan Favorite and the Spotlight
- Gear Up
- Wounds
- Skill Trees
- Sidekicks
- The Enemy Turn
- Enemy Activations
- [RE]actions
- Shielded Enemies
- The Tier 0 Announcement
- Bosses
- Ending a Round
- In Between Games
- Bounties
- Scenario Rules
- Terrain Rules
- Action Effects and Keywords
- Bounty Maps
- Rules Reference
The [RE]action System
At the core of the Borderlands®: Mister Torgue's Arena of Badassery™ game is the [RE]action System.
Actions
When it's your turn to play, you'll be taking actions with your Vault Hunters. Actions include moving, attacking, healing, and more. Each Vault Hunter has a number of actions available to them, colored GREEN, YELLOW, or RED. You'll use Action Tokens to track how many actions each Vault Hunter has. When one of your Vault Hunters takes an action, they'll flip one of their Action Tokens, to show it's been used. The color of Action Token used determines what color die you'll roll, to see if the action succeeds or fails. Generally, GREEN actions are the best, then YELLOW, with RED actions being the least likely to succeed.
[Re]actions
If one of your Vault Hunters is wounded, you'll have the opportunity to react to it - instead of just getting pummeled! [RE]actions use an Action token, just like Actions, but they can be taken during the Enemy Turn.
The Dice
Borderlands®: Mister Torgue's Arena of Badassery™ uses three different colors of Action dice: a GREEN twelve-sided (d12), a YELLOW eight-sided (d8), and RED six-sided (d6). They are rolled to see if an Action succeeds or not.
Non-Action dice, such as a twenty-sided (d20), ten-sided (d10), and four-sided (d4), are also used when the rules specify.
Each Action die has a CRIT (the max result) and a FUMBLE (on the 1) face. Crits usually mean success and may trigger special rules. Fumbles may trigger worse results and usually means you've failed at the attempted Action.
Setup
STEP 1 - CHOOSE VAULT HUNTER: First, each player chooses their Vault Hunter. You must always play with four Vault Hunters, but a single player may control more than one Vault Hunter if you wish. Take the card for your Vault Hunter and place it in front of you as well as the cards for your Vault Hunter's starting weapons. Find Action Tokens that match the action symbols on the Vault Hunter card and place those tokens on or near it.
STEP 2 - SETUP CAMPAIGN MAP: Next, as a group, choose which campaign you will play. Each campaign is described in its own booklet. Turn to the first scenario in the campaign booklet. Setup the game board as shown, this is referred to as the Arena. Any special rules, such as specific Victory Conditions and how enemies spawn, will be listed in the scenario. Also, take any Events associated with the Boss you will face at the end of the campaign and shuffle them into the Event Deck.
STEP 3 - DEPLOY SCENARIO TOKENS AND ENEMIES: Place any game elements and enemies in the Arena as shown on the scenario map. Every scenario has enemies, but some may also include loot, exploding barrels, etc. The scenario will also describe how many and which enemies spawn during the enemy turn. Collect any enemies available for spawning during the scenario and place them somewhere convenient.
STEP 4 - CHOOSE SKILL CARDS: Each player chooses one Skill Tree card from the three available to their Vault Hunter. Skill Tree cards are used to track your Vault Hunter's progression as they Level Up and learn new abilities.
STEP 5 - FAN FAVORITE CARDS: Shuffle the Fan Favorite deck and randomly deal one Fan Favorite card to each Vault Hunter. Your Fan Favorite card determines how you can gain the Spotlight token, which you will hold until another character takes it. Randomly determine one Vault Hunter to start with the Spotlight token. More on the Spotlight token later (see page 15).
STEP 6 - STARTING CASH: Place the group's communal Starting Cash near the board where everyone can reach it. Each scenario will specify the Vault Hunter's starting Cash. Each Cash token is worth $500. This Cash will be used to respawn at a New-U Station during the scenario or to buy Gear after the game.
STEP 7 - DEPLOY VAULT HUNTERS: Place the Vault Hunters on or in a zone adjacent to the green New-U Station.
STEP 8 - ANNOUNCEMENT DECK: First, set the Tier 0 Announcement Card aside. If this is the first game of a campaign, build the campaign's Announcement deck using all of the Tier 1 cards. Next, shuffle the Announcement Deck and create the Announcement Queue by dealing a number of cards faceup in a row. The number of cards dealt will be determined by the Scenario. Then place the Tier 0 Announcement card at the end of the row.
The Announcement cards are divided into four tiers: Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3 and Tier 0. Tier 1 includes the least challenging Announcements. As the campaign progresses, you will alter the Announcement deck by replacing cards.
The Announcement Queue determines how the enemies act during the game (see page 20). It also acts as a "timer": new cards are never added to the Queue. Once you reach the Tier 0 card, Mr. Torgue has lost his patience for the Vault Hunters and that card will be repeated until the game ends, one way or another (you usually want to end things yourself before then if you can).
STEP 9 - PREPARE LOOT BAG: Place all of the Loot tokens into the Claptrap bag and give it a good shake.
STEP 10 - SHUFFLE GEAR AND EVENT DECKS: Shuffle the Event deck and the Vending Machine decks (GUNS!, Ammo Dump, Zed's Meds, and the Torgue Deck) and place them near the Arena.
How to Play
Borderlands®: Mister Torgue's Arena of Badassery™ is played over game rounds. Each round consists of a Vault Hunter Turn followed by an Enemy Turn. Vault Hunters always get the first turn. During each round, follow these steps:
VAULT HUNTER TURN:
- Choose a Vault Hunter to activate.
- Take actions until the Vault Hunter has none left or chooses to pass.
- Repeat steps 1 & 2 until all Vault Hunters in play have been activated, then it is the Enemy Turn.
ENEMY TURN:
- Follow the orders listed on the first card in the Announcement queue from top to bottom. You must fully complete each order with all enemies before moving onto the next order. For example, if the first order is "Move" and the second is "Attack," then first all enemies will move towards the Vault Hunter with the Spotlight; then, once all enemies have finished moving, all enemies will make an attack if they are able.
- Once all the orders have been completed, Exhaust (turn face down) the Announcement card. Exhausted Announcement cards are ignored on future turns. The Tier 0 card is never Exhausted.
END OF ROUND:
- Make the Clean Up Roll to see if loot vanishes or persistent game effects end.
- Respawn any slain Vault Hunters from New-U Stations.
- Check the scenario's Victory Conditions to see if you have won (or lost) the game.
- Flip all Exhausted Action Tokens to their Ready side. If there are other cards or tokens that refresh at the end of the round, flip them back to Ready at this time.
- Start a new round!
Exhaust
Sometimes you'll be directed to "Exhaust" a card or token. To Exhaust a card or token, flip it over so its back is showing. This is most common when guns run Out of Ammo or Action Tokens are used. An Exhausted card or token may not be used and is considered blank for all game purposes, unless specified otherwise. For example, Exhausted Action Tokens may still be used to defend. When you are directed to refresh a card or token, flip it face up and it may be used normally again.
The Active Model
During the game, you will "activate" and take actions with one model at a time. The model that is currently activated is called the "Active Model."
Scenarios
Each game of Mr. Torgue's Arena of Badassery is played as a scenario. Scenario rules are found in the campaign book that came with this box. The scenario tells you what enemies to spawn, how to win, and it may even have new and challenging special rules. For more on scenarios, see page 28.
Base Rings
Sometimes, you will add a base ring to a model to indicate that it is a different version of that enemy. The colored rings shown on enemies' cards are only suggestions, and you may use any color ring you prefer.
For example, the Unique enemy Nine Toes uses a Psycho model (as indicated in his keywords) but his card says to place a blue base ring around him to let you know he is not an average Psycho.
Vault Hunter Cards
Each Vault Hunter has a card that define their abilities in the game.
NAME & KEYWORDS The Vault Hunter's name and any keywords are listed at the top.
ACTIONS Each card shows how many actions the Vault Hunter has to start. Actions can be GREEN, YELLOW, or RED. Each Vault Hunter has starting equipment which may include weapons with attack Actions.
SKILLS Most Vault Hunters have three Skills. When they attempt an Action that uses one of those Skills, they add their Skill Value to the die roll.
SPECIAL RULES Many Vault Hunters have a special rule or action listed on their card. If the special rule is an action, it will show a Skill icon or state the action type. Otherwise, it does not require an Action to use.
STARTING EQUIPMENT This is the equipment that the Vault Hunter begins with in the first scenario.
Skills
There are six different Skills that Vault Hunters can have. Higher Skills improve the chance that actions using that Skill will succeed.
WILLPOWER — Used to command, intimidate, and for Psychic Actions.
REFLEXES — Used for movement, climbing, jumping, thrown items, and defending against Ranged Actions.
MEDICAL — Used for healing, drugs, poisons, and Medical Actions.
MELEE — Used for melee attacks, close combat, and defending against other Melee Actions.
RANGED — Used for ranged attacks. Enemies most commonly make ranged or melee attacks, so your Vault Hunter will usually defend with their Reflexes or Melee Skills.
TECH — Used for machinery, hacking, and Tech Actions.
Line of Sight
Every action requires "line of sight" (LoS) between the Active Model and the target, unless it says otherwise. If the Active Model does not have line of sight to a target, that target is not a valid choice for the action.
To determine if a model has line of sight to its target, check to see if there are any blocking zones between it and the target. Blocking zones are zones that contain one or more enemy models and/or other game elements that block line of sight (generally described in each scenario). If there are one or more blocking zones between a model and its target, the model does not have line of sight.
Friendly models never block line of sight.
A model always has line of sight to all other models in its zone.
If an enemy model is in the Active Model's zone, the Active Model cannot draw line of sight out of its zone (though it may draw line of sight to the enemy model(s) in its zone).
Areas that do not have any Vault tiles (such as the space between two parallel hallways that are not connected) block line of sight.
Each zone has a dot in its center. In order to have line of sight, you must be able to draw a straight line between the dot of the zone the Active Model is in and the dot of the zone of its target without crossing any blocking zones or areas where there are no Vault tiles. A straight edge such as a ruler or even the edge of a card may be useful in determining line of sight.
If line of sight is drawn along the edge of a single blocking zone, the action is not blocked. However, if the line of sight is drawn across the edge of multiple blocking zones, line of sight is blocked.
The rulebook illustrates this with a diagram of zones A–F: the Vault Hunter cannot draw line of sight to zone A because the line of sight cannot pass through space without a tile; it can draw line of sight to zone B because the line of sight is drawn along the edge of zone F, which is not occupied; it may draw line of sight to zone C because nothing blocks it, but not to zone D because zone C is occupied by an enemy model; and it may draw line of sight to zone E, since passing along the edge of a single blocking zone does not block line of sight (if zone F were a blocking zone, the Vault Hunter would not have line of sight).
Navigating the Vault
Zones
The hexes that make up the Arena are called zones. Models and other game elements will always be in a single zone while they are in play. When a model wishes to move into a zone it may be blocked by other models. A zone can hold three small models or one large model, but not small and large models. To move a small model into a zone, the zone may not be full. To move a large model into a zone, the zone may not contain any models.
FULL ZONES — A zone may contain up to three small-based models or one large-based model. If a zone has three small-based (or one large-based) model(s) then it is "full."
MODEL MOVEMENT — A model may move into any of the adjacent zones when it moves. Models may move in any direction they choose. Models may not move into, or through, a zone that is full.
Actions
During each Vault Hunter turn, players will take turns activating their Vault Hunters.
Activating a Vault Hunter
Each Vault Hunter is given a chance to activate in any order of the players' choosing.
When a Vault Hunter is activated, that Vault Hunter is referred to as the Active Model. The Active Model may choose to take actions until it either has no more Ready Action Tokens or it chooses to finish its activation without using all of its Action Tokens. A Vault Hunter does not need to use any Action Tokens if it does not want to, sometimes saving Action Tokens can be useful! After each Vault Hunter ends their activation, the players choose another Vault Hunter to activate. Once each Vault Hunter has activated, the Vault Hunter Turn is over.
Starting Action Tokens
Each Vault Hunter begins the game with the Action Tokens shown on their card. Action Tokens begin the game in the Ready state (face up). Place them on or near the card, so it's very clear which tokens belong to each Vault Hunter.
Taking Actions
Action Tokens are used to keep track of how many actions of each color the Vault Hunter has and whether those actions are Ready or Exhausted. When a Vault Hunter takes an action, Exhaust one of its Ready Action Tokens. If a die roll is necessary, the color of the chosen Action Token determines the color of die used to determine success.
Anatomy of an Action
There are three components of every action: the Skill used, the Range, and the Result.
1. SKILL If an action shows a Skill icon, you'll make a Skill Roll to see if it succeeds. If no Skill icon is shown, it is an Easy action and it automatically succeeds.
2. RANGE An action's range is measured in zones and is presented in colors: RED is Range 1 (including the zone the acting model is in); YELLOW is Range 2; GREEN is Range 3. Some actions can be used at Long Range, which is represented by a black bar with a plus sign. Long Range actions may affect a target 4 or more (unlimited) zones away.
If a range shows its color (RED, YELLOW, or GREEN) the action can choose targets at that range. If the range is not colored in, the action may not choose targets at that range. If an action is capable of choosing a target at Long Range it will display the Long Range icon.
3. RESULT Some actions cause special effects to occur, such as Slag, Deadly, Explosive, etc. Unless the rules of the action or effect state otherwise, the action MUST be successful for the effect to occur.
Range Examples
An action with RED range may affect targets in the same zone as the model taking the action or an adjacent zone. This is common for short range actions, such as melee attacks.
An action with only YELLOW and GREEN range may affect models two or three zones away but may not affect models adjacent to or in the same zone as the acting model.
An action with RED, YELLOW, and GREEN ranges may affect targets in the same zone as the acting model or up to three zones away.
An action that is not RED, YELLOW, or GREEN but shows Long Range may not target models in the same zone as the acting model or within three zones of it. It may target models farther than three zones away up to an unlimited range. This is common among weapons like sniper rifles.
Resolving Actions
After choosing an Action and Exhausting any required Action Tokens, you'll do the following to resolve it:
- Choose the Action's Target: Choose a target and check if it is within the Action's range and there is line of sight to the target.
- Determine Target Number: This is the number you need to roll in order to succeed. If you are attacking an enemy model, the target number will be the enemy's Defense stat. (For example, if the enemy has Defense 5, you will need a 5 or higher to succeed.)
- Roll Dice: Roll the die and add the associated Skill value, plus any other modifiers (such as special abilities).
- Calculate Results: If the Active Model's total is equal to or higher than the target number, the action is a success. Otherwise, the action is a failure.
- Apply Effects: If the action was successful, apply its effects. If there are consequences for failing and the action failed, apply those effects.
Attack Actions
Attack actions may only target enemy models and, if they are successful, they deal a wound to the target. Any action with the attack symbol is an attack action.
WOUNDING ENEMIES Every enemy has a number of Hit Points listed on its card. When an enemy is wounded, place a wound token next to the enemy's model (or on its card if there is only one of that enemy in play, whichever you prefer). If an enemy suffers a number of wounds equal to its Hit Points, it is taken out and removed from the table. The enemy may also drop loot when it is taken out (see page 14-15).
Crits and Fumbles
If a Crit is rolled, the action is automatically a success. If a Fumble is rolled, the action automatically fails. Many models have special rules that trigger when a Crit or Fumble is rolled.
Statistically, smaller value dice (such as d6) roll Crits and Fumbles more frequently than larger dice (such as d12). It can be handy to keep this in mind when you are specifically trying to achieve a Crit or Fumble result.
Example: Salvador targets a Psycho with a ranged attack. He Exhausts a YELLOW Action Token to take the action, so he rolls the YELLOW die (d8). He gets a 6. Since it is a Ranged Action, he also adds his Ranged Skill of 2 to the roll for a total of 8. This is equal to or higher than the Psycho's Defense of 6, so the action succeeds.
The Obstacle Die
Sometimes Vault Hunters will need to make a Skill Roll when they are not targeting an enemy. When this happens, roll the black Obstacle Die (d10) to determine the target number. Remember that any action which shows a Skill icon will require a roll!
Actions with Multiple Targets
When an action targets more than one model, the attacker makes a single die roll, which is compared to the Defense of each target. This can result in an attack that wounds some models but misses others.
Actions Using Skills
When a Vault Hunter attempts an action that shows a Skill icon, you must roll a die and add the model's Skill value to the roll to determine whether the action succeeds or fails.
Roll the color die that matches the Action Token used to attempt the action. For instance, a GREEN action uses the GREEN d12. If a Vault Hunter attempts an action which uses a Skill they do not have their Skill bonus is 0.
Easy Actions
When a Vault Hunter attempts an Action without a Skill icon, it is an Easy action and always succeeds. The Action will require an Action token to be Exhausted (unless it is a free action).
Free Actions
When an ability or effect allows a Vault Hunter to take an action "for free" it does not need to Exhaust an Action Token to take the action. To determine the color of the action, the model may choose any Action Token it has, Ready or Exhausted.
Basic Actions
There are six basic actions available to all Vault Hunters, even though they are not listed on their individual cards. To perform a basic action, a Vault Hunter must Exhaust a Ready Action Token as normal. The basic actions are:
Collect Action
This is an Easy and Free action so it does not require a roll or an Action Token be exhausted. It may also be taken multiple times during a Vault Hunter's activation. When a Vault Hunter starts their activation, and each time they move into a new zone, they may take a free Collect Action to pick up any Loot tokens in that zone and place them on their Vault Hunter card (see Loot Tokens, page 14-15). This action is usually used to pick up Loot tokens, but some scenarios may allow you to pick up various scenario elements with it (bombs, etc.). You may also take a Collect Action when a Loot token drops in the zone you are in during your activation (such as when you take out an enemy in your zone and it drops loot).
Example: Salvador activates in a zone with two Loot tokens and uses the free Collect Action to pick up one of them, but leaves the other for another Vault Hunter. Then he moves to a new zone with three loot tokens and uses the Collect Action to pick them all up.
Move Action
When a Vault Hunter takes a Basic Move Action, they move up to a number of zones determined by the Action Token they Exhausted. They may move up to one zone if they exhausted a RED token, up to two zones if they exhausted a YELLOW token, and up to three zones if they exhausted a GREEN token. This is an Easy action.
Melee Action
Any Vault Hunter may use the Basic Melee Action to attack an enemy within RED (in the same zone or adjacent). This action will do a single wound if it succeeds.
Swap Guns Action
Swap one item you have equipped with one item in your Inventory (see Inventory, Page 16). This is an Easy action.
Interact Action
This action allows you to interact with something in the Arena. Interact Actions are usually defined by the scenario. If the scenario requires a die roll, the Vault Hunter rolls a die of the same color as the Action Token used to take the Interact Action. Unless specified by the scenario, this is an Easy Action. For example, a scenario may allow you to pick up explosives in the same zone as your Vault Hunter and put it on their card with an Interact Action.
Handoff Action
Your Vault Hunter may give any number of Loot tokens they are carrying to another Vault Hunter in their zone (or take Loot Tokens from them, with that player's permission). This is an Easy action. Note, you may NOT handoff Gear using this action.
Loot
As you slay enemies, they drop Loot tokens: when an enemy is taken out it normally drops one Loot token. Draw Loot tokens randomly from the Claptrap bag. Loot tokens with the Card Draw icon on the back are placed in the zone the enemy occupied. ALL other tokens are automatically collected by the Vault Hunter who took out the enemy (and placed on their card) regardless of range.
When you move into (or activate within) a zone that has Loot tokens, you may use the basic Collect Action to take Loot tokens and place them on your Vault Hunter's card.
You may use Loot tokens on your Vault Hunter's card freely, at any time, without taking an action. The effects of each Loot token depend on the type of token.
HEALTH Discard a Health Loot to immediately heal one wound plus an additional number of wounds equal to your Medical skill (if you have a Medical Skill of 1, you heal two wounds, etc.). When you Heal a wound, choose a wounded Action Token and replace it with a token of its original color – see page 18.
When using Health Loot, you may choose to remove Elemental tokens from your Vault Hunter instead of healing wounds. For each wound not healed, you may remove a single Elemental token. You may heal wounds and remove tokens in any combination. For instance, Salvador uses a Health loot and heals 3 (1 plus his Medical 2), choosing to heal two RED Action Tokens to YELLOW again, and removing a Cryo elemental token.
AMMO Discard an Ammo token to reload (turn face up) all your equipped guns and grenades that are Out of Ammo (see page 23).
GUNS Discard a Gun token to immediately swap an equipped weapon with one in your Inventory without exhausting an Action Token.
CASH Cash can be used to respawn Vault Hunters who have been taken out (see Respawn Vault Hunters, page 25). Cash may also be used after the game to purchase things from the Vending Machines.
LEVEL When a Level token is drawn, all Vault Hunters immediately Level Up their Skill Trees once (see Skill Trees, page 18). The Vault Hunter who drew the Level token (and only that Vault Hunter) also heals all wounds and recharges all shields. After this token is drawn, place it aside; it is not reshuffled into the Claptrap bag until the next scenario.
BOUNTY Your Vault Hunter has found a tip about a lucrative Bounty! Turn it in after the game to go on a Bounty Hunt (see page 27). After this token is drawn, place it aside; it is not reshuffled into the Claptrap bag until the next scenario.
CARD DRAW If a token has a Card Draw icon on the back, it may be discarded to draw a card from the relevant deck instead of being used for its normal effect. Guns tokens draw from GUNS!, Ammo tokens from Ammo Dump, Health tokens from Zed's Meds, and Legendary tokens from the Torgue Deck. This card is equipped or added to your Inventory immediately, your choice (if you do not have room and do not wish to discard something else, it may be discarded). Remember, Loot tokens with Card Draw icons are placed in the zone of the enemy who dropped them, they do not automatically go to a Vault Hunter! You need to go grab that new gear.
RESALE VALUE If a token has a Resale Value icon on the back, it may instead be used after the game to purchase Gear from the Vending Machines. Resale Value may NOT be used to respawn Vault Hunters at the New-U. New-U Stations take cash, not old junk!
Loot tokens don't always stick around: they can disappear at the end of the round (see page 25), so grab them while you can!
When Loot tokens are discarded (such as when you use an Ammo token to reload), place them into a Loot discard pile next to the Claptrap bag. If the Claptrap bag is ever empty, immediately remove all Loot tokens from the Arena and place them into the Claptrap bag along with all the Loot tokens in the Loot discard (Loot tokens on Vault Hunters remain there). Remember that the Level and Bounty tokens are not in the discard pile, and are therefore not placed back into the bag until after the scenario.
Unique Enemies
Sometimes you may encounter a Unique Enemy. This may happen due to an Event card or a scenario rule. Unique Enemies are just like other enemies except that they are usually tougher and they drop Loot tokens differently.
When a Unique Enemy is taken out, do not draw random Loot tokens. Instead, place the Legendary Loot token in the zone the enemy had occupied. This token may be used immediately when collected to draw one card from Torgue's Deck. The Legendary Loot tokens are not shuffled into the Claptrap bag, they are only dropped by Unique enemies or other game effects.
Fan Favorite and the Spotlight
Each Vault Hunter has one Fan Favorite card for the duration of the scenario. This card defines how the Vault Hunter gains the Spotlight token. There is only one Spotlight token, and only one Vault Hunter may have it at a time. If a Vault Hunter gains the Spotlight, another Vault Hunter will lose it. At the beginning of the scenario, randomly determine a Vault Hunter who starts with the Spotlight Token (dice off).
The Vault Hunter with the Spotlight is the focus of all enemies. In general, enemies will always try to move towards and target the Vault Hunter with the Spotlight, if possible (see pages 22-23).
If the Vault Hunter with the Spotlight is taken out, they give it to the Vault Hunter in play with the most RED action tokens. If multiple Vault Hunters are tied, the taken out Vault Hunter may choose between them.
Example: if Mordecai has the Fan Favorite card above and he takes out two or more enemy models during his activation with ranged attacks, at the end of his activation he will take the Spotlight from the Vault Hunter who has it and place it on his card.
Gear Up
Borderlands®: Mister Torgue's Arena of Badassery™ is full of all the Gear you will ever need to maim, mutilate, and massacre your way to stardom!
Equipment Slots
Every piece of Gear takes up one equipment slot. All Vault Hunters start with the following equipment slots:
- Two weapon slots
- One shield slot
- One grenade slot
- Two mod slots
These slots represent the maximum number of that type of Gear a Vault Hunter may have equipped at a time. For example, a Vault Hunter with two gun slots may equip a maximum of two guns.
If a Gear card is discarded for any reason, it is shuffled back into the deck it came from. If a Vault Hunter draws a Gear card and has no slots to equip it, they may place it in their Inventory. If their Inventory is also full, they must either discard the drawn Gear card or a card they have equipped (or in their Inventory) to make room for it.
Inventory
Each Vault Hunter also has their own Inventory. This is where all of the items they cannot currently equip go. Items in your Inventory may not be used and have no effect on the game. A Vault Hunter may have a maximum of three items in their Inventory.
A Vault Hunter may take the basic Swap Guns action to exchange one item in an equipment slot with one item in their Inventory (even non-guns). This may be useful to swap out a gun that is Out of Ammo, but note that a gun that is Out of Ammo and placed into Inventory in this way is still Out of Ammo. If a Vault Hunter's equipped Shield has any exhausted Shield tokens, it may not be swapped.
Weapons
There are many weapons in Mister Torgue's Arena of Badassery, from buzz axes to rocket launchers! All weapons include at least one new action your Vault Hunter may use to attack. This action will let you know what Skill you use, the range of the attack, and the effect it will have if it hits.
GUNS Guns are the most common type of weapon you will find. Guns provide an attack that usually has a decent range, but they may become Out of Ammo.
MELEE WEAPONS Melee weapons are for getting up close and personal! Melee weapons are never Out of Ammo.
GRENADES Grenades are weapons, similar to guns: They show an attack which they allow your Vault Hunter to make. There are four main differences between grenades and other weapons:
- Using a grenade is a free action and does not require that an Action Token be exhausted.
- The grenade will show a die type (GREEN, YELLOW, or RED). This is the die type used to make the attack regardless of the Action Tokens the Vault Hunter may have available.
- Grenades are always Out of Ammo and are exhausted after being used (in addition to when the Vault Hunter is normally Out of Ammo). An Ammo Loot token may be used to reload your grenades and refresh them so they can be used again.
- A Vault Hunter may only make one grenade attack per turn (even if the grenade is reloaded).
Shields
Shields are used to defend against attacks in place of a Vault Hunter's Action tokens. Shields show a number of Shield Tokens, which are placed on the Shield when it is equipped. Shields may also give Vault Hunters additional abilities. If they do, they will be listed on the card.
Shield tokens may only be used to defend against attacks, but otherwise work similarly to Action Tokens. A Vault Hunter must use Shield tokens to defend against any attacks before using Action Tokens. If the attack causes a wound, the Shield Token is exhausted, rather than the Vault Hunter suffering a wound.
When defending with a shield, do not add Skill modifiers to the roll. If an attack deals more than one wound, exhaust tokens on the shield before remaining wounds are applied to the Vault Hunter.
If the Shield's tokens are exhausted, it may not be used again until recharged. When a Vault Hunter recharges their shields, refresh the Shield tokens. Shields recharge when the game ends, the Vault Hunter respawns, or when specified.
Each Vault Hunter may equip only one shield at a time. A Vault Hunter may not swap out their Shield if it has any exhausted shield tokens.
Example: Salvador has a Shield equipped and the GREEN Shield token is already exhausted. The next time Salvador is attacked, he must defend with the YELLOW Shield token. He will not add his Skill to the roll but, if he fails, the YELLOW Shield token will be exhausted rather than a wound being suffered.
Mods
Mods are various modifications your Vault Hunter earns as they traverse the Arena. Each Vault Hunter may equip up to two mods. Mods provide a plethora of abilities from increased Skills to more deadly attacks. Each mod does what it says and applies to the Vault Hunter who has it equipped.
Rule Precedence
Many cards and scenarios replace or modify rules. Unless otherwise specified, Cards take precedence over Scenario rules, and Scenarios take precedence over the rulebook.
Getting a Random Number
There will be some situations where you will need to roll a die to generate a numerical value. In these instances a fumble is a 1 and a crit is the highest result possible on the die (6 on a d6, 8 on a d8, etc.). For example, if Psychoreaver deals an additional d4 wounds to you, on the roll of a fumble you would receive 1 additional wound and on a roll of a crit you would receive 4 additional wounds.
Wounds
If the Vault Hunter fails to defend against an attack (see page 22), they are wounded and the Action Token they used to defend with is replaced with a RED Action Token. If a Vault Hunter defends with a RED action token and fails, they are taken out and removed from play.
Healing
If a Vault Hunter is targeted by an effect that heals wounds, it will say "Heal [X]," where X is the number of wounds healed. Each wound healed restores one RED Action Token to its original color.
A Vault Hunter cannot be healed to give them more actions than they started the game with. Only models currently in the Arena can be healed. Once a model is taken out, they can no longer be healed.
Fight for Your Life
If a wound causes a Vault Hunter to be taken out, that Vault Hunter may still [RE]act, provided they have a Ready Action Token (see page 22). If that Vault Hunter manages to take out at least one enemy during this Fight for Your Life [RE]action, then the Vault Hunter is not taken out. Instead, they heal all of their wounds and recharge all of their shields. However, if the Vault Hunter fails to take out an enemy with their [RE]action, then they are taken out as normal.
Wounds Outside of Attacks
On rare occasions, a Vault Hunter may be wounded even when there was no attack (for example, an ability that automatically causes a wound). On other occasions, a model may suffer more than one wound during an attack, so there are still more wounds to apply after the Action Token that was used to defend is wounded (such as with a Deadly attack).
In these instances, the model's controller chooses which of the model's Action Tokens is replaced with a RED Action Token. If a model only has RED action tokens and suffers a wound, it is taken out.
Skill Trees
As your Vault Hunter progresses, they will Level Up their Skill Tree by finding Level Loot tokens or winning certain scenarios. Each Vault Hunter only has one Skill Tree card available at a time, selected at the start of each scenario. Each Skill Tree has a number of slots that you can Level Up, arranged in tiers that must be Leveled in order from lowest to highest.
When your Vault Hunter Levels Up, you may fill in one of the slots on the Skill Tree. To fill in a slot, you must have at least one slot of the previous tier filled in. You may fill in multiple slots in the same tier.
Each slot on a Skill Tree lists a bonus of some sort (increasing a Skill, a new ability, etc.). If you assign a Level to a slot, your Vault Hunter immediately gains that benefit.
In between scenarios, each Vault Hunter will have an opportunity to adjust their Skill Tree slots or even choose a new Skill Tree (see page 18).
Example: Salvador has Leveled the first tier of his Skill Tree and one of the tier 2 slots. The next time he Levels Up, he may either Level Up the remaining tier 2 slot or the tier 3 slot.
Sidekicks
Some Vault Hunters have a Sidekick listed on their card. For example, Mordecai has Sidekick (Bloodwing) so Bloodwing is his Sidekick. Sidekicks have their own models and stat cards, so be sure to grab them if you choose a Vault Hunter with a Sidekick.
Sidekicks always start in the same zone as their controlling Vault Hunter or adjacent to it, and they take up space in the zone like any other model. They remain on the board, move, and take actions like a Vault Hunter.
Sidekicks may take actions and [RE]actions like any other Vault Hunter, however they do not usually have their own Action Tokens. Instead, they use Action Tokens belonging to their controlling Vault Hunter. When Mordecai activates, his player chooses whether to use his Action Tokens to take actions with him or Bloodwing or both: They could choose to take all three actions with Mordecai, all three with Bloodwing, or some combination thereof. These actions may be taken in any order. For example, Mordecai may take one action, then Bloodwing may take an action, then Mordecai may take the final action.
Sidekicks never gain the Spotlight and they are never targeted by enemy actions or suffer wounds (unless they have a special rule that says otherwise). If the controlling Vault Hunter is taken out, their Sidekick is taken out as well, and when the controlling Vault Hunter returns to play, their Sidekick returns in the same zone or an adjacent zone.
When a Sidekick would gain the Spotlight, its Vault Hunter does instead. When a Sidekick would be the target of an attack, its Vault Hunter is the target instead. When a Sidekick would gain a Loot token, its Vault Hunter does instead.
Sidekicks may not take the Basic Collect Action, however they have access to all other basic actions. Sidekicks may not use actions to interact with scenario objectives.
Some Sidekicks have Action Tokens on their card. If they do, they may use these Action Tokens just like a Vault Hunter. Sidekicks take actions during their Vault Hunter's turn, and may take [RE]actions as normal. Action Tokens on a Sidekick's card may not be shared with their Vault Hunter; the Sidekick's Vault Hunter may still share their tokens with the Sidekick.
For example: Bloodwing makes an attack that takes out a Psycho and draws an Ammo Loot token with $100 on the back. Mordecai gains the drawn Ammo token. Then Bloodwing makes another attack against another Psycho and fumbles, triggering the Psycho's Attack Fumble (see page 21). The Psycho moves towards and attempts to attack Mordecai.
The Enemy Turn
During the Enemy Turn, the first card in the Announcement Queue determines what actions the enemies take that turn: simply follow all of the orders listed on the card from top to bottom. All small-based enemies perform their orders before large-based enemies. Beyond that, you may have individual enemies perform orders in the order of your choosing, but all enemies in play must complete each order before you move on to the next order.
Some Announcement cards may list the same order twice or more; in this case, simply perform it multiple times.
How Enemies Select a Target
Enemies will always target the Vault Hunter with the Spotlight if they are able. If that Vault Hunter is out of range, out of line of sight, or unable to be targeted for some other reason, the enemy will target a different Vault Hunter using the following priorities:
- The enemy targets the Vault Hunter with the most RED Action Tokens.
- If multiple Vault Hunters in range and line of sight have equal RED Action Tokens, the enemy targets the closest.
- If multiple Vault Hunters have equal RED Action Tokens and are equally close, the players may choose which of those models is the target.
There are seven basic orders. They are:
ACTIVATE SLAUGHTERLIGHT: Flip the Spotlight token to the red side.
ATTACK: All enemies that are within range and line of sight of a Vault Hunter make an attack. If an enemy has no range or line of sight to ANY Vault Hunters during an attack order, it will perform a Move order instead.
EVENT: Draw an Event card and resolve it immediately.
MOVE: All enemies move a number of zones equal to their Move value.
OUT OF AMMO: At least one Vault Hunter runs Out of Ammo.
SPAWN: Spawn enemies according to the Spawning rules for the scenario you are playing.
SPECIAL: All enemies with a Special Action take that action.
Activate Slaughterlight Order
When you receive an Activate Slaughterlight order, flip the Spotlight token to its red side. The Slaughterlight remains active (red) until the start of the next enemy turn. Each scenario describes what happens when the Slaughterlight is active. (For example, enemies may get a bonus to Strength, etc.) The Slaughterlight also generally changes what will spawn during a Spawn order.
Player Disagreements
There are times when the players need to make a choice as a group. If they cannot agree, the player with the Spotlight gets to make the decision. If, for some reason, the player with the Spotlight does not want to decide, simply roll a die.
Enemy Activations
During the Enemy Turn, they get a go at pummeling your faces!
Enemy Cards
Each enemy has a card that represents how they play and what they can do in the game. Often multiple enemy models will be represented by a single card.
1 - NAME & KEYWORDS: The enemy's name and any keywords.
2 - ENEMY TYPE & BASE RING: The enemy's type and base ring (if any).
3 - MODEL: What physical model is used to represent the enemy on the board.
4 - MOVE: How many zones the enemy moves during a Move order.
5 - DEFENSE: When a Vault Hunter attacks an enemy, their result must be equal to or higher than the enemy's Defense in order to succeed.
6 - HIT POINTS: When an enemy suffers a number of wounds equal to its Hit Points, it is taken out.
7 - SPECIAL: What the enemy does during a Special order.
8 - RESIST STAT: The Skill Vault Hunters must use when defending against that enemy's attacks. Generally, enemies that are attacking you up close will have a Resist Stat of Melee while shooting attacks will be resisted with Reflexes.
9 - RANGE: The range of the enemy's attacks (in zones) during an Attack order.
10 - STRENGTH: When an enemy attacks a Vault Hunter, the Vault Hunter's defense roll must be equal to or higher than the enemy's Strength in order to successfully defend.
11 - ATTACK FUMBLE: An effect that happens if a Vault Hunter rolls a Fumble while attacking this enemy.
12 - DEFENSE FUMBLE: An effect that happens if a Vault Hunter rolls a Fumble while defending against this enemy.
13 - ABILITIES: Any special abilities the enemy has.
Enemy Type
Enemy types have no effect on individual games, however they allow you to use a greater variety of models in each campaign. In any scenario, you may swap out an enemy of one type for another enemy of the same type. In this way, you can use new models you purchase in old campaigns! The following are the enemy types:
- MELEE NORMAL
- MELEE SPECIAL
- MELEE HEAVY
- RANGED NORMAL
- RANGED SPECIAL
- RANGED HEAVY
- UNIQUE
- BOSS
- FODDER
- SPECIAL
Be sure to use the appropriate base ring as well. If a scenario calls for you to spawn a Melee Normal enemy with no base ring (such as a Psycho) be sure you replace it with a Melee Normal enemy with no base ring. However, if it shows a Melee Normal enemy with a magenta base ring (like a Maniac) be sure to replace it with a Melee Normal enemy with the appropriate base ring.
For example, in the I Need a Sandwich! scenario, Marauders are an enemy that can spawn. However, if you bought the Skags at the Gates box and you have Spitter Skags, you may choose to use them instead of Marauders for this scenario as they are both Ranged Normal models. This is a good way to get a wide variety of play out of any campaign (though there will also be a Skag-specific campaign in the supplemental campaign book).
Attack Order
Enemies don't exist just to sit there like meat-filled punching bags—expect them to fight back! When an enemy attacks a Vault Hunter, the Vault Hunter will roll a die to defend. Follow these steps:
- DETERMINE TARGET NUMBER: This is the number you need to roll to succeed. This is equal to the attacking enemy's Strength plus any modifiers. For example, if the enemy has Strength 5, you will need a 5 or higher to succeed, unless something like an Event card modified the enemy's Strength.
- SELECT DEFENDING TOKEN: Select an Action Token (Ready or Exhausted) to defend with (see below)—or use a Shield token if you have one, see page 17.
- ROLL DICE: Roll a die that matches the selected Action Token's color and add the appropriate Skill value, plus any other modifiers (such as special abilities). The enemy's card will note which Skill to defend with.
- CALCULATE RESULTS: If the Vault Hunter's total is equal to or greater than the Target Number, the Vault Hunter successfully defends and is not wounded.
- APPLY EFFECTS: If the Vault Hunter failed to defend with a YELLOW or GREEN Action Token, replace the Action Token they used to defend with a RED Action Token. (If the original token was Ready, the RED Action Token will be as well, likewise if the original token was Exhausted.)
- TAKEN OUT: If the Vault Hunter failed to defend while defending with a RED Action Token, the Vault Hunter is taken out and removed from play.
If an enemy is not able to attack a Vault Hunter during an Attack order due to range or line of sight, it will perform a Move order instead. Note that enemies that ignore Attack orders (such as Suicide Psychos) ignore the entire order, including this portion.
ENEMY STRENGTH An enemy's Strength is represented by a Skill icon and a number value. The Skill icon determines which Skill the Vault Hunter must use to defend against the attack. The number value is the attack's Target Number (before any modifiers). This Strength value is used for all of that Enemy's attacks.
Defending
When an enemy attacks a Vault Hunter, the Vault Hunter must select one of their Action Tokens (Ready or Exhausted) to defend with. The color of the action token determines the color of the die they roll to defend (in the same manner as attacking). Defending does not cause the token to be Exhausted, however if the defense roll is failed, the token will be replaced with a RED Action Token.
Remember, both GREEN and YELLOW tokens are replaced with RED if they are wounded! GREEN does not become YELLOW.
[RE]actions
[RE]actions represent your Vault Hunters adapting quickly as the battle gets more bloody, taking a shot or throwing a punch at the person who just bloodied them or their friends–or moving out of the line of fire to avoid being attacked again.
When a Vault Hunter takes a wound from an attack, any Vault Hunters within line of sight of them (including the wounded Vault Hunter) may immediately make a [RE]action. [RE]actions use Action Tokens like normal actions do, so the Vault Hunter must have a Ready Action Token to flip over in order to use a [RE]action.
A [RE]action is a single action, taken after your enemy's wounding action is fully resolved. It interrupts the normal sequence of the Enemy Turn.
Each Vault Hunter may only [RE]act once per enemy attack, even if that attack causes more than one wound (such as a Deadly or Rapid attack). If a Vault Hunter is wounded again by a different attack, then [RE]acts may be made again (provided Vault Hunters have sufficient Ready Action Tokens).
If multiple Vault Hunters wish to react at the same time, they resolve their [RE]acts in the order of their choosing.
If a Vault Hunter suffers a wound that was not dealt by an attack, no Vault Hunters may [RE]act to that wound.
After the [RE]action is complete, the Enemy Turn continues as normal.
Event Order
Events are just that: random events. When an order directs you to draw an Event card, draw the top card of the Event deck and resolve its effects immediately. Then the card is discarded. An Event may have orders on it: if it does, follow them the same way you would for an Announcement card.
At the end of the scenario, place the Event discard pile on the bottom of the deck. Do not shuffle it. Only shuffle the deck after the campaign ends or if you cycle through the entire deck. In this way, you will see a wider variety of Events.
Move Order
When enemies move, they move a number of zones up to their Move value. They always move directly towards the Vault Hunter with the Spotlight, stopping as soon as they are in range to attack that Vault Hunter and have line of sight. If an enemy is unable to make it into range, they will move as close as possible.
In the event that an enemy can take multiple paths that will all result in it getting into range and line of sight of the target, the players may choose which path it takes.
Example: This Marauder received a Move order. It has a Move of 2 so it may move a maximum of 2 zones. However, after moving one zone it is within its Range of 3 and line of sight of the Vault Hunter with the Spotlight, so it stops.
Out of Ammo Order
At least one Vault Hunter runs Out of Ammo. The order will specify which Vault Hunters are affected. All guns and grenades equipped by the specified Vault Hunters are Exhausted. They may not be used again until reloaded. Note that Gear in a Vault Hunter's Inventory is not Exhausted.
Spawn Order
The scenario will tell you how many enemies to spawn, what type of enemies they are, and what Spawning Zone they come from. Each scenario's map marks certain zones as Spawning Zones. The Spawning Zones are numbered and the scenario will direct you when they are used.
When spawning enemies, the first enemy is placed in the spawning zone. Then, the players place models in adjacent zones. Once all adjacent zones have at least one model in them, additional models may be placed in the spawning zone or adjacent zones as the players wish.
If the Spawning Zone and all adjacent zones are full, and there are still more enemies to spawn, spawn any remaining enemies as close to the Spawning Zone as possible.
If there are more orders after a Spawn order, the newly spawned enemies will take them.
If enemies are spawned and you do not have enough of the enemy model available, spawn as many of that model as you have. However, if you are called on to spawn an enemy and every enemy of that model type is already in the Arena, then all enemies of that type perform a Move order followed by an Attack order instead. For example, if you are called on to spawn five Psychos but you only have one model left available, spawn the last remaining Psycho model and then carry on as normal. However, if you are called on to spawn five Psychos and you have none available to spawn, then all enemies using the Psycho model Move and then Attack.
When you are called on to spawn a Unique enemy, it will always spawn, even if the model it uses is unavailable. Simply select one enemy that uses the Unique's model type and remove it from the Arena in order to spawn the Unique. This does not cause enemies to Move and Attack.
Special Order
Many enemies have Special Actions on their card. These are often attacks, but not always. When an order directs the enemies to take their Special Actions, all enemies use all Special Actions available to them. If an enemy has multiple Special Actions, it will take them in order from top to bottom.
Shielded Enemies
Some enemies have shields, represented by a shield icon on their card. If they do, when they are attacked, follow the same process as when a Vault Hunter has a shield: The enemy rolls a die determined by the color of their shield and the Vault Hunter needs to get equal to or higher than that roll to hit. Enemy shields are exhausted in the same manner as Vault Hunter shields.
If a Vault Hunter deals multiple wounds, it's possible to exhaust the enemy shield and have the wounds carry over to the enemy itself. If an Event directs all models to Recharge Shields, enemies do as well.
Example: Salvador shoots at a Badass Marauder. The Badass Marauder rolls for its shield and gets a 4. Salvador rolls a 3 plus his Ranged Skill of 2, for a total of 5, so he hits. His gun is Deadly (it deals two wounds) so the Badass Marauder's shield is exhausted and the second wound carries over to it, causing the Badass Marauder to be taken out. Enemies always use their shield instead of their defense if they have a shield, even if their defense is higher.
The Tier 0 Announcement
There is always one Tier 0 Announcement card at the very end of the Announcement Queue. In the core set, there is only one Tier 0 Announcement: "You're fired!" Other expansions may come with other Tier 0 Announcement cards to use. If they do, the campaign you play will let you know which one to use.
Tier 0 Announcements are meant to drastically increase the difficulty of the game as they represent the Vault Hunters running out of time; it is usually best to win before you reach it! You're fired! represents Mr. Torgue getting bored, hitting the red strobe lights, and sending his most vicious beasts at you as flames shoot from the floor!
If the Tier 0 Announcement is reached, it remains in play and will be repeated every Enemy Turn until the game is over. This Announcement card is in addition to the normal Announcements the scenario directs you to use. (For Example: if a scenario says it has three Announcements, you will draw three Announcement cards and add the Tier 0 card to the end for four total cards.)
BURNING TOKENS At the end of every Enemy Turn, every model with Burning tokens suffers wounds equal to the number of Burning tokens on them. During the Clean Up Roll, if End Effects (a Crit) is rolled, remove all Burning tokens from all models.
Bosses
During the last scenario of a campaign, the Vault Hunters will face a Boss. Bosses have all the same stats as other enemies. If the Vault Hunters take out the Boss, they win the campaign! The Boss scenario is difficult so beware!
Boss Events
A Boss may have their own Event cards. Shuffle these into the Event deck at the start of the campaign. In this way, the Boss can affect things even before the final scenario.
Ending a Round
When a round ends (at the end of the Enemy Turn), do the following in order:
Clean Up Roll
To make a Clean Up Roll, roll a d4 and resolve the result below, depending on the roll:
- Fumble: Remove Loot Tokens: Remove all Loot tokens from the Arena and discard pile and place them back in the Claptrap bag. Loot tokens that are on a Vault Hunter's card remain. If the Legendary token is in play, remove it, but do not put it in the bag.
- Nothing happens.
- Nothing happens.
- Crit: End Effects: Remove Effect tokens (such as elemental tokens) from models in the Arena. Effects that are affected by this result will state so in their description.
Respawn Vault Hunters
If your Vault Hunter was taken out during the round, you must spend $500 in Cash tokens to respawn in any zone with a New-U Station. This may come from a Vault Hunter's card or the Vault Hunters' collective starting cash. Take your Vault Hunter and place them in the New-U Station's zone with all of their wounds healed, shields recharged, elemental tokens removed, and guns/grenades reloaded. If the New-U Station's zone is full, place your Vault Hunter in the closest available zone. Your Vault Hunter retains any Loot or Objective tokens they were carrying. You may act normally in the next round.
Vault Hunters may only be respawned using Cash tokens (whether from the start of the scenario, Loot, or Cash that was found in chests). The resale value of weapons or tokens such as ammo or health may not be used to respawn Vault Hunters.
Check for Victory (or Defeat)
If a Vault Hunter is out of play at the end of a round due to being taken out and is unable to respawn, then the Vault Hunters lose and the game ends.
Some scenarios may also have specific loss conditions, but the above always applies as well. The scenario will tell you how to win.
See In Between Games (page 26), to see what happens after the scenario is over.
Advance Announcements
Exhaust the Announcement card that was used this round. Remember: there is a set number of Announcement cards per game and they are NOT replaced or refreshed.
The Tier 0 card is never Exhausted. If the only Announcement card left is the Tier 0 card, then it will be repeated every Enemy Turn.
Refresh Action Tokens
Flip all Exhausted Action Tokens to their Ready side. Any other cards or tokens that state they refresh at the end of a round also refresh now.
In Between Games
After each game, your Vault Hunters can gear up from the Vending Machines and prepare for the next scenario.
Vending Machines
After the game, the Vault Hunters have the chance to purchase new Gear from the Vending Machines.
Draw two cards each from the GUNS!, Ammo Dump, and Dr. Zed's Meds decks. Then, draw one card from the Torgue Deck. Place all the cards face up so all players can see them.
Starting with the Vault Hunter who had the Spotlight when the game ended and going clockwise, each Vault Hunter may purchase one of the revealed cards at a time.
Each card has a value in dollars listed on it. If the cost is paid, place the card in the Vault Hunter's Inventory. Each Vault Hunter may only purchase one card in this way at a time (though they may continue to go around until all Vault Hunters pass on buying any more cards).
Vault Hunters may spend Cash tokens as well as Loot tokens and Gear cards with a resale value. Any tokens used to purchase cards are placed back into the Claptrap bag. Gear is shuffled back into the relevant deck once the Vending Machine phase is completely over. Any cards that are not purchased are shuffled back into their deck.
Players may freely give other players money in the form of Loot tokens, Gear for resale, Cash tokens, etc. so that their fellow players have enough to buy the Gear they want. However, players are not required to help their friends.
Any leftover starting cash from the scenario may also be used. This is a communal resource and players are encouraged to agree how to use it, but the Vault Hunter with the Spotlight gets access first.
Cash and Loot tokens do not carry over between games, so use them now!
Level Up and Respec
Some scenarios allow you to Level Up (see page 18) if you win. If the scenario allows you to Level Up, do it now.
You may also choose to Respec your Skill Tree at this time. If you would rather have one of the other Skill Tree cards available to your Vault Hunter, remove any Levels from your current Skill Tree, and apply them to the new Skill Tree you have selected.
Rest, Rearm, and Recharge
Place any remaining Loot tokens back into the Claptrap bag. Any remaining Cash is discarded. Heal all wounds, recharge all shields, and reload all guns and grenades. All game effects (such as Burning, etc.) end. You may also take this opportunity to swap equipment with other players. You may swap ANY equipment you choose between Vault Hunters.
Remember you can swap any Gear you want with the other Vault Hunters between games!
Modify Announcements
It is now time to adjust the Announcement deck. The Announcement deck will always have twelve cards, and when the Campaign starts, these cards will be the twelve Tier 1 Announcements.
If the Vault Hunters gained a level during the scenario, take four random cards from the lowest Tier in the deck and replace them with four random cards of the next highest tier. If the Vault Hunters gained more than one level, repeat this process for each level gained.
If every card in your Announcement deck is already Tier 3, skip this step.
For example, your Announcement deck currently has eight Tier 1 cards and four Tier 2 cards. If the Vault Hunters gained one Level this game, you will need to replace four tier 1 cards with Tier 2 cards. Take all the Tier 2 cards not in your Announcement deck, draw four randomly and add them to the deck. Then, take the eight Tier 1 Announcements in your Announcement deck and discard four of them randomly. Your Announcement deck now has eight Tier 2 Announcements and four Tier 1 Announcements.
Bounties
When the Vault Hunters get a lead on a lucrative opportunity they can go on a Bounty Hunt between games. Bounty Hunts are not linked to the main campaign story, but are quick side-missions with a chance at bonus loot!
Vault Hunters get the opportunity to go on a Bounty Hunt when they end a game holding the Bounty Token. Bounty Hunts are always optional, and the Vault Hunters may collectively decide to skip it. If you choose to skip it, the opportunity is lost.
Before starting a Bounty Hunt, remove the Level and Bounty tokens from the bag, as a Bounty Hunt may not trigger another Bounty or allow the Vault Hunters to Level Up (don't forget to put them back after the Bounty Hunt).
Draw a Bounty card from the Bounty deck. The Bounty card tells you which enemies you are fighting (usually at least one Unique enemy) as well as any special rules for the Bounty.
Then roll a d10 to determine which map the Bounty will be played on. Bounty Maps are numbered and found at the back of this book (see page 32-35).
The map shows you how to setup the tiles, where the Spawning Zone and starting New-U Station are, and where any Unique enemies start.
Bounty Hunts use the Announcement cards as normal. However, they are short games, so only two Announcement Cards are used before the Vault Hunters get to the Tier 0 card.
The non-Unique enemies listed on the Bounty start on the board at the beginning of the Bounty Hunt as if they had spawned from the Spawning Zone. Unique enemies begin in the zone designated for them on the map.
The Bounty card lists:
- NAME: The name of the Bounty
- ENEMIES: The enemies that are in play at the start of the Bounty.
- RULES: Any rules for the Bounty, including how to win.
Vault Hunters start on or adjacent to the New-U station as normal.
Vault Hunters do not start the Bounty with any Cash tokens, and they do not respawn during Bounty Hunts. If a Vault Hunter is taken out, the Vault Hunters lose immediately. The only penalty for losing during a Bounty Hunt is that no reward is gained.
Of course, if you win the Bounty Hunt, you get a reward! Draw two Torgue cards from the Torgue Deck, choose one to keep, and place the other on the bottom of the deck. Only one Torgue card is kept (even though there are four Vault Hunters). After the Bounty Hunt, follow the normal In Between Games steps (visiting the Vending Machines, etc.) before proceeding to the next scenario.
The Spawn Order During a Bounty
Ignore the Spawn order during Bounty Hunts. If a Spawn order is reached, instead, all Unique enemies (and only the Unique enemies) in play perform the Special order.
Activate Slaughterlight During a Bounty
During a Bounty Hunt, if you reach the Activate Slaughterlight order, all Unique enemies recharge their shields and heal 2. In addition, the attacks of Unique enemies gain Deadly as long as the Slaughterlight is in effect.
Tracking Between Sessions
In the likely event that a campaign will require more than one session of gaming to complete, you will need to remember some key information from one session to the next. Track the Vault Hunter's level and their current equipment. In addition, the Announcement and Event decks should be maintained in their current state between sessions.
Scenario Rules
Scenarios tell you how to setup the Arena and list any special rules that will apply to the game. All scenarios have the following sections:
SETUP This shows the map of the Arena so you know how to lay out the tiles and where to place enemies, tokens, game elements like barrels, and anything else that may start in play. It will also show where the New-U Stations are and the zones where enemies spawn.
CASH How much starting cash the Vault Hunters have to share at the start of the scenario to use for respawning or buying gear after the scenario.
ANNOUNCEMENTS This tells you how many Announcement Cards to use to form the Announcement Queue. This is in addition to the Tier 0 card that is always at the end of the queue. For example, if a scenario lists three Announcements, place the Tier 0 card at the end of the queue and then draw three random Announcement cards to form the rest of the queue.
SPAWNING This section tells you what type of enemies to spawn, where to spawn them, and how many to spawn each time an Announcement card calls for it.
SPECIAL RULES Any special rules for the scenario are listed here.
VICTORY The victory and failure conditions for the scenario are listed here.
AFTER THE SCENARIO This section tells you if you Level Up or gain special Gear (usually depending on how well you did) and which scenario to play next.
CALLOUTS MARKED WITH !!! If there is a callout marked with !!! then do not read it until the scenario directs you to. Torgue has a surprise for you!
Terrain Rules
There are a few pieces of terrain that are used across scenarios. The scenario map will show the terrain you need and where it goes. If terrain rules are not listed here, the scenario will tell you how to use it. If a scenario ever lists different rules for terrain than here (for example, if Skag Vomit becomes slop to feed a Goliath) then the scenario rules take precedence. Terrain does not block Line of Sight or take up space unless otherwise specified.
Tires
Piles of tires are perfect for taking cover. A tire takes up one space in a zone: if there is one tire in a zone only two models may fit; if there are two tires in a zone only one model may fit; if there are three or more tires in a zone, the zone is full and may not be entered or moved through. A zone with three or more tires also blocks line of sight (though zones with fewer tires do not).
Vault Hunters gain +1 to all defense rolls for each tire in their zone. Enemies gain +1 defense for each tire in their zone.
Barrels
You can shoot barrels to blow them up, and hopefully a few enemies along with them! Barrels have a defense of 5 and may be targeted by attacks as if they were enemies. If a wound would be dealt, the barrel explodes; remove it from the board. All models in the barrel's zone suffer an attack with a strength of one d10 that is defended against with Reflexes. If the barrel shows an elemental effect on the reverse side, it automatically applies that effect to any models in the zone. Unless the scenario instructs you to do so, never place the barrel with the key on its back at the start of the game.
Skag Vomit
You can find all sorts of useful things in Skag Vomit! You may remove Skag Vomit with the Basic Collect action. If you do, draw a Loot token.
Ammo Chests / Loot Chests / Mailboxes
All of these terrain pieces work similarly and the scenario map will tell you how many you need and where they go. When you setup the Arena, take any of these terrain elements you need, place them face down and shuffle them so you don't know which one has what and then place them in the Arena where the scenario dictates.
For example, if a scenario map shows two Loot Chests, take all four Loot Chest tokens, place them face down, and shuffle them. Then take two of those Loot Chests and place them in the scenario as instructed. In this way, you don't know what awesome loot awaits you in those chests!
A Vault Hunter in the same zone as the terrain may use the Basic Interact Action and make a Tech Skill roll with a target number of 4. On a success, flip the token over and see what you get! Items Vault Hunters get from these terrain pieces are immediately collected by them, unless the scenario says otherwise. The following are a few things you can get:
- Draw a card from the Ammo Dump deck.
- Draw a card from the Zed's Meds deck.
- Draw a card from the Gun deck.
- Draw a Loot token from the bag.
- Gain $500 to respawn or buy Gear after the game.
- Draw a card from the Torgue Deck!
- This is a scenario objective and the scenario will tell you how to handle it.
- All models in this zone suffer an Incendiary attack with d10 Strength that is defended against with Reflexes.
Generally, Loot Chests have the best stuff, Ammo Chests are used for scenario objectives (and are the only chests with bombs or control panels), and Mailboxes can be useful as well.
PHYSICAL TERRAIN PIECES You may find it more fun to use actual models for your terrain. If you do, and you need to have an unknown reverse side (such as a Loot Chest, where you don't know what's in it), simply place the token underneath the physical terrain piece.
Vending Machines
These are always good for gearing up! There are two Vending Machine tokens: one for Ammo and the other for Zed's Meds. At the start of the game, which one you get is random (just don't look at the front and place it where the scenario tells you to). Once it is placed, flip it over so you know which one it is.
A Vault Hunter within one zone of a Vending Machine may take the basic Interact action to use it and flip it to its used side. After the game, if you used the Zed's Meds Vending Machine, draw two more cards from the Zed's Meds deck while buying new Gear. If you used the Ammo Dump Vending Machine, draw two more cards from the Ammo Dump. This will simply give you more options in the In Between portion of the game.
Action Effects and Keywords
Each action has an effect in the game if it is successful (and sometimes if it fails!). Often, this will include one or more "keywords" that describe the most common effects. These keywords, as well as some special abilities, are described below.
RULE OF X Wherever a rule has an (X), the X will be replaced with a number, such as "Corrosive 2."
ACCURATE: You may reroll Accurate actions. You may only ever reroll a die once.
AMMO GUZZLER: After this attack is resolved, Exhaust this weapon: It is Out of Ammo.
CORROSIVE (X): When a model makes an attack with Corrosive, it also rolls a d4. This d4 does not affect the Skill Roll total. If a Crit is rolled on the d4, the target is corroded (regardless of whether or not the attack succeeded). Place X Corrosive tokens on the target. The target reduces all defense rolls by 1 for each Corrosive token on it. During the Clean Up Roll, if End Effects is rolled, remove all Corrosive tokens from all models.
CRIT EFFECTS: Some special rules occur when a Crit is rolled and succeeds. These appear as (Special Rule) Crits. For example, "Deadly Crits."
CHARGE: If an attack has Charge, before the attack is made, the Vault Hunter may move a number of zones based on the Action Token used to make that attack. For example, if a Vault Hunter uses a GREEN Action Token to make an attack with Charge, they will get to move up to three zones before making the attack: If they use a YELLOW Action Token, it would be two zones, etc.
CROWD CONTROL: When a model makes an attack with Crowd Control, select a zone and roll a d4. The number rolled on the d4 determines the number of enemies in the selected zone that may be affected by the attack (only one attack roll is made, but each target defends separately). If only some of the enemies in a zone are affected, the Vault Hunters may choose which enemies are affected.
CRYO: When a model makes an attack with Cryo, it also rolls a d4. This d4 does not affect the Skill Roll total. If a Crit is rolled on the d4, the target is frozen (regardless of whether or not the attack succeeded). Place a Cryo token on the target. Models with a Cryo token may not move. At the end of the model's turn, remove all Cryo tokens from it.
DEADLY: Deadly attacks deal an additional wound when they hit.
DISPOSABLE: After completing an action with Disposable, discard the Gear card from whence the action came.
EASY ACTIONS: These actions do not require a Skill roll and are automatically successful.
EXPLOSIVE: Explosive attacks affect every model in the target's zone (friend and foe). Only one roll is made to determine if the attack succeeds. Each model in the zone defends separately.
FREE ACTIONS: These actions do not require an Action Token to be exhausted. If a free action requires a Skill roll, the Vault Hunter may roll a die matching any of their Action Tokens, Exhausted or Ready.
INCENDIARY: When a model makes an incendiary attack, it also rolls a d4. This d4 does not affect the Skill Roll total. If a Crit is rolled on the d4, the target is set on fire (regardless of whether or not the attack succeeded). Place a Burning token on the target. At the end of each Enemy Turn, every model with Burning tokens suffers wounds equal to the number of Burning tokens on them. During the Clean Up Roll, if End Effects is rolled, remove all Burning tokens from all models.
LOOT PUPPET (X): This enemy drops additional Loot equal to X. For example, if an enemy has Loot Puppet 1, it will drop two Loot tokens (one Loot token is always dropped, plus one for Loot Puppet 1). This may also be a die type; in which case you roll to see how much additional Loot is dropped. (If an enemy has Loot Puppet (d4), it drops one Loot plus an amount of Loot equal to the roll of a d4.)
PISTOL: A Vault Hunter with at least one Pistol equipped may use their Ranged Skill to defend against Melee Attacks. This effect is lost if the Pistol is Out of Ammo.
RADIATION: When a model makes a Radiation attack, it also rolls a d4. This d4 does not affect the Skill Roll total. If a Crit is rolled on the d4, the target is irradiated (regardless of whether or not the attack succeeded). Place a Radiation token on the target. When a model with a Radiation token is taken out, roll a d10: All other models in the same zone as the irradiated model immediately suffer an attack with Strength equal to the roll that is resisted by Reflexes. (This may occur during the attack that placed the Radiation token on the model if the model was taken out by that attack.) During the Clean Up Roll, if End Effects is rolled, each model with a Radiation token suffers one wound (the token is not removed).
RAPID [X]: Rapid actions allow you to repeat the same action X times without using additional action tokens. Use the same die type for all additional actions taken due to Rapid. Resolve each of the Rapid actions separately (each is a separate roll). A Rapid action can target the same model more than once or target a number of different models. If a Rapid action has multiple targets, each new target must be in the same zone or a zone adjacent to the previous target.
RUN AND GUN: When a Vault Hunter equips a weapon with Run and Gun, place a YELLOW Action Token on the weapon. This Action Token may be used by the Vault Hunter, but only to make [RE]action attacks with that weapon. This Action Token refreshes whenever the Vault Hunter normally refreshes Action Tokens.
SHOCK: When a model makes a Shock attack, it also rolls a d4. This d4 does not affect the Skill Roll total. If a Crit is rolled on the d4, the target is shocked (regardless of whether or not the attack succeeded). Immediately exhaust all of the target's shields; they may not be used to defend against this attack. Place a Shock token on the target. Models with one or more Shock tokens may not recharge their shields. During the Clean Up Roll, if End Effects is rolled, remove all Shock tokens from all models.
SMALL CLIP: If this model Fumbles an attack with this weapon, Exhaust this weapon: It is Out of Ammo.
SLAG: When a model makes a Slag attack, it also rolls a d4. This d4 does not affect the Skill Roll total. If a Crit is rolled on the d4, the target is slagged (regardless of whether or not the attack succeeded). Place a Slag token on the target. Models with one or more Slag tokens suffer one additional wound from successful attacks targeting them. At the end of the round, during the Clean Up Roll, remove all Slag tokens (regardless of the roll result).
STUN: When an enemy makes a successful attack that has Stun, add one Stun token to the Vault Hunter (in addition to other effects, such as wounds). The next time the Vault Hunter refreshes Action Tokens, it refreshes one less Action Token (of their choice) for each Stun token on them. Then, the Vault Hunter removes all Stun tokens.
SUPPRESSION: When making a Suppression attack, Vault Hunters may ignore the Attack Fumble effects of their target the first time they Fumble that turn (enemies react to subsequent Fumbles normally).
SURGE: Weapons with Surge will apply elemental effects on a 3 or Crit on the elemental die.
TAKEN OUT: When a Vault Hunter fails to defend against an attack with a RED Action Token, or an enemy model loses its last hit point, the model is removed from play.
VULNERABLE (X): Models with Vulnerable (X) suffer an additional wound when they are successfully attacked with the listed elemental type. This applies even if the Effect token is not applied. For example, an enemy with Vulnerable (Cryo) will suffer an additional wound from attacks with Cryo, regardless of whether or not a Crit is rolled on the d4 and a Cryo token is placed.
ENEMIES STACKING EFFECTS Enemies frequently have abilities that allow them to "gain" effects. These effects stack. For example, the Shotgun Tinks' "Shotty" ability allows all of their attacks to gain Crowd Control. If they also used the "Slug" special action that makes all of their attacks gain +2 Strength and Deadly then all of their attacks will have Crowd Control, +2 Strength, and Deadly.
If a model gains Rapid (X), it will use its highest value Rapid rather than add them together. For example, if an enemy has Rapid (2) and it gains Rapid (3), its attack would be Rapid (3), not Rapid (5).
Bounty Maps
This section of the rulebook contains the ten reference maps used for Bounty Hunts (see Bounties, above), numbered to match the d10 roll that selects them: 1. The Caves Bounty Map, 2. Barrel Bunker Bounty Map, 3. The Power Station Bounty Map, 4. Hell's Kitchen Bounty Map, 5. Tire Yard Bounty Map, 6. Skag Gully Bounty Map, 7. The Watering Hole Bounty Map, 8. The Hidden Basement Bounty Map, 9. Outpost Scrapple Bounty Map, and 10. The Cauldron Bounty Map.
Each map diagram marks, using the following legend: Starting New-U (the Vault Hunters' starting zone), Unique Starting Zone, Tire and 3 Tires (terrain density), Mailbox, Barrel, Skag Vomit, Ammo Chest, Loot Chest, Zed's Meds Vending Machine, and Ammo Vending Machine, as printed on the physical map cards included in the box.
Rules Reference
The final page of the rulebook is a quick-reference summary of the core turn structure and token effects, reproduced below.
Breakdown of a Turn
VAULT HUNTER TURN:
- Activate each Vault Hunter.
ENEMY TURN:
- Follow the orders listed on the first face up card in the Announcement Queue from top to bottom.
- Exhaust the first card in the Announcement Queue.
END OF ROUND:
- Make the Clean Up Roll.
- Respawn any slain Vault Hunters.
- Check the scenario's Victory Conditions.
- Flip all Exhausted Action Tokens to their Ready side.
Basic Actions
- MOVE: Move a number of zones depending on the Action Token used (one zone for RED; two zones for YELLOW; three zones for GREEN).
- MELEE: Attack an enemy within RED (up to one zone away) using the Melee Skill.
- SWAP GUNS: Swap an equipped gear card with one in your inventory.
- INTERACT: Interact with an element in the scenario (the scenario will tell you the details).
- HANDOFF: Swap any Loot tokens with another Vault Hunter in your zone.
- COLLECT: A free action that lets you pick up Loot tokens when you activate, move into a zone, or when Loot drops in your zone.
Enemy Orders
- ACTIVATE SLAUGHTERLIGHT: Flip the Spotlight token to the red side.
- ATTACK: All enemies that are within range and line of sight of a Vault Hunter make an attack. If an enemy has no range or line of sight to ANY Vault Hunters during an attack order, it will perform a Move order instead.
- EVENT: Draw an Event card and resolve it immediately.
- MOVE: All enemies move a number of zones equal to their Move value.
- OUT OF AMMO: At least one Vault Hunter runs Out of Ammo.
- SPAWN: Spawn enemies according to the Spawning rules for the scenario.
- SPECIAL: All enemies with a Special Action take that action.
Action Tokens and Dice
- RED Action Token: Roll a RED die (d6).
- YELLOW Action Token: Roll a YELLOW die (d8).
- GREEN Action Token: Roll a GREEN die (d12).
Elemental Tokens
When any model makes an attack with an elemental effect, roll a d4. On a Crit, place the relevant elemental token on the target (regardless of whether the attack succeeded). This roll is only used to place elemental tokens, it does NOT add to the attack roll.
- CORROSIVE: The target reduces all defense rolls by 1 for each Corrosive token on it. During the Clean Up Roll, if End Effects is rolled, remove all Corrosive tokens from all models.
- CRYO: Models with a Cryo token may not move. At the end of the model's turn, remove all Cryo tokens from it.
- BURNING (placed by Incendiary): At the end of each Enemy Turn, every model with Burning tokens suffers wounds equal to the number of Burning tokens on them. During the Clean Up Roll, if End Effects is rolled, remove all Burning tokens from all models.
- RADIATION: When a model with a Radiation token is taken out, roll a d10: All other models in the same zone as the irradiated model immediately suffer an attack with Strength equal to the roll that is resisted by Reflexes. This may occur during the attack that placed the Radiation token on the model if the model was taken out by that attack. During the Clean Up Roll, if End Effects is rolled, each model with a Radiation token suffers one wound (the token is not removed).
- SHOCK: Models with one or more Shock tokens may not recharge their shields. During the Clean Up Roll, if End Effects is rolled, remove all Shock tokens from all models.
- SLAG: Models with one or more Slag tokens suffer one additional wound from successful attacks targeting them. At the end of the round, during the Clean Up Roll, remove all Slag tokens (regardless of the roll result).