Bruti
Bruti Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Game Materials
- Your First Game
- Get to Know the Combat Deck
- Get Ready
- The Duel
- Wounding and Inflicting Damage
- Dodge and Pass to Attack
- Keep Attacking or Pass the Turn
- Get Fired Up!
- Movement in Attack
- Movement in Defense
- Use the Cards of Your Endowment
- The Character's Special Ability
- Strike Two or More Blows in a Single Attack
- Healing
- Dying
- The Armor
- Keep Fighting
- Duration and End of the Combat
- The Squads
- The Brawl
- Optional Rules
- Tournament Rules
- Fickle Gods, Scraps and Tournaments (Deluxe)
- Special Characters (Deluxe)
- The Undead (Deluxe)
- Predefined Scenarios (Deluxe)
- The King's Room (La stanza del Re)
- A Troll in the Latrines (Un troll nelle segrete)
- The Return of the Barbarian (Il ritorno del barbaro)
- The Giant's Valley (La valle del gigante)
- Glossary
- Modified Cards Updated to Version 1.2
Game Materials
Items marked with the red skull are exclusive to the Deluxe edition.
Basic and Deluxe:
- 112 Combat cards
- 20 Character cards
- 44 Damage cards
- 42 Special Object mini cards
- 24 Equipment mini cards
- 16 Mystic Invocation mini cards
- 12 Condition mini cards
- 6 "Movement" mini cards
Deluxe only:
- 7 Special Character cards
- 4 "Divine Intervention!" cards
- 20 Fickle Gods cards (Carte degli dei beffardi)
- 16 "Scraps" (Recchie) mini cards
- 24 Special Ability mini cards
- 1 game board
Your First Game
This first part of the rules will help you face the Pit of Bruti and start playing in a few minutes. If you are two players, read this chapter of the rules and the section "The Duel". You need to know nothing else. If you are three or four players, also read the sections "The Squads" and "The Brawl".
For an even richer play experience also read the optional rules and the tournament rules. Now take the cards and divide the decks.
Paragraphs marked with the red skull symbol refer to content exclusive to the Deluxe edition.
Combat Deck
112 cards (116 in the Deluxe edition) divided into blows, enhancements, moves, parries and dodges. You will hold them in hand during the clashes and use them to attack, defend and perform various actions.
Damage Deck
44 cards that represent all the wounds you can inflict and suffer in combat.
Character Deck
20 cards (27 in the Deluxe edition) that depict the warriors you will impersonate during the clashes.
Equipment Deck
16 weapon cards, 4 shields and 4 armors that you will use to equip your warriors.
Special Objects Deck
42 cards with objects of different powers usable in combat.
Mystic Invocations Deck
16 cards with very powerful effects that the deities may grant you during the clashes.
Condition Deck
12 cards that show on both sides the state of your warrior.
"Movement" Deck
6 cards that are fundamental for performing particular and precious actions during the game.
Scraps Deck (Deluxe)
16 cards that represent the ears of the opponents killed in combat. The "Scraps" (Recchie), as they are called in the Pit, represent the prestige of the warriors and are used to keep track of victories in combat.
Special Abilities Deck (Deluxe)
Cards associated only with the special characters. Each of these allows a particular combat action during the game.
Fickle Gods Deck (Deluxe)
20 cards with unexpected effects that bring into the game the will of the capricious gods who watch over the Pit.
Get to Know the Combat Deck
Take the combat deck. You will see that it is divided into five types of cards.
Blows
Thrust Blow, Diagonal Blow, Chopping Blow and Backhand Blow. They are played in attack to hit the opponent, but can also be used in defense to cancel a blow of the same type and of equal or lesser power. They all have the symbol of a red circle with an attack value. For each type of blow there is a version of value 1 and a "powerful" version of value 2.
Enhancements
They are played one at a time, only in attack and always together with a blow, to increase its effectiveness. They bear the symbol of a black circle and a possible modifier value to the power of the blow. They can never be played alone.
Moves
They are played one at a time, only in attack, and have no symbols, but only a text that describes how to use them and that you must apply to the letter. Moves are played one at a time and always alone.
Parries
They are played only in defense to cancel the blows of opponents and have the symbol of a green shield with a defense value inside.
Dodges
They are played only in defense to cancel the blows of opponents. They bear the symbol of an orange shield with a defense value inside and, unlike parries, they let you move on to attack when you succeed in canceling an attack.
Get Ready
Sit facing each other. Draw lots for a dealer (mazziere), who first of all shuffles the character card deck and puts it on the table. He does the same with the special objects deck, with the mystic invocations deck and with the combat deck. He puts on the table the equipment deck, the condition deck and the "Movement" deck without needing to shuffle them.
The first player to get ready for combat is the one who sits to the right of the dealer, who therefore:
- Takes the first card from the character deck and places it, face up, in front of himself.
- Takes the first two cards from the special objects deck, chooses one and puts it, face up, on the table, in the character's endowment area (dotazione; see figure), and puts the other back at the bottom of the deck.
- Chooses a one-handed or two-handed Weapon from the equipment deck and, if he wants, also a Shield and/or an Armor, placing them, face up, together with his other cards, in the equipment area (see figure). Whoever chooses a two-handed Weapon cannot use the Shield.
Then it is the turn of the next player counterclockwise. When all players have completed this phase, each of them must calculate the condition of his warrior: look at the number in the red rectangle on your character card and add to it the numbers in the red rectangles of all the other cards you have chosen; if the text of the special object entails modifications, take these into account too. The total is your condition and is the maximum number of cards you can have in your hand during combat.
Take from the condition deck a card corresponding to this value and add it to the other cards, orienting it so that the number of your condition is correctly legible. Finally take a "Movement" card and place it, face up, with the others of your endowment. Now you are ready.
Layout (figure): the character card sits in the middle with the condition card above it; the equipment area (Equipaggiamento) holds the Armor, Shield and Weapon cards; the endowment area (Dotazione) below holds the special object and the Movement card.
Example: Working Out the Character's Condition
Boccamarcia has an initial condition value of 5. He does not suffer the -1 penalty due to the Shield thanks to the special object "Shield Master's Bracers" (Bracciali del maestro di scudi), which cancels this penalty; however, he reduces his condition by 1 because of the Armor, for a final condition value of 4. The player who impersonates Boccamarcia therefore takes the condition card 3/4 and places it so that the 4 is correctly legible; the player cannot have more than four combat cards in hand during the clash.
(Card texts shown in the figure: Boccamarcia: "Once per turn you may swap a card from your hand with one from another player's hand." Shield Master's Bracers: "When you use the Shield you do not suffer a penalty to condition.")
Attention!
The weapon, the Shield and the Armor are part of your equipment. The special objects, the mystic invocations and the Movement represent your endowment. During the game you may use some special objects, the Shield to defend yourself and the Movement to perform other actions both in attack and in defense. Some of these cards must be exhausted when you use them (turn them face down) and cannot be used again until you reactivate them (turning them face up).
Form the Damage Deck
The dealer prepares the damage deck by removing all the "Death!" (Morte!) cards and all the "Favor of the Gods!" (Favore degli dei!) cards and puts it on the table. He gives each player one "Death!" card and one "Favor of the Gods!" card and puts back in the box the leftover ones.
Each player, starting from the one to the right of the dealer, now chooses whether or not to add his own "Death!" and "Favor of the Gods!" cards to the damage deck. Each player may add only both of them, never just one. If he adds a "Favor of the Gods!" card he must therefore also add a "Death!" card and vice versa. The player to the right of the dealer decides first, then the others counterclockwise.
If during a combat you inflict a "Death!" damage, it means your opponent has fallen under your attacks and nothing can save him except the bizarre effect of some mystic invocation or special object.
The "Favor of the Gods!" damage, on the other hand, has completely opposite effects. If you receive a "Favor of the Gods!" damage, in fact, you may discard the other damages drawn during the same attack and draw a mystic invocation and add it to your endowment.
When all players have decided and possibly added their cards, the dealer shuffles the damage deck and puts it on the table face down. Whoever chose not to add the "Death!" and "Favor of the Gods!" cards to the damage deck must keep them aside.
Veteran's Advice
Adding a "Death!" card to the damage deck makes combat more lethal, but if your character seems weaker than the others it can be a good strategy to hope to land a lucky blow and send an opponent to the other world with the first hit! Naturally this choice could also turn against you...
Prepare the Combat Deck
At this point the dealer shuffles the combat deck well and places it face down in the center of the table, so that it is easily reachable by all players.
Receive Your Hand
Each player now receives from the dealer, face down, a number of cards from the combat deck equal to his own condition.
The player with the lowest condition plays first. In case of a tie between two or more players, draw lots to see who starts. The real game begins now. The player whose turn it is is the player "in attack".
The Duel
Let us first see how the game works with two players. Combat in Bruti is a continuous alternation of attacks and defenses in the attempt to disorient, strike, wound and kill the opposing warriors and, in the meantime, try to survive.
A player, during his own turn, can perform several actions:
- A - Perform a combat move.
- B - Attack an opponent of choice with a blow or an enhanced blow.
- C - Use a card of his own endowment.
- D - Use the character's special ability.
- E - Draw a card from the combat deck.
- F - Exchange a card of his own hand with another one drawn from the combat deck.
- G - Reactivate the Shield.
- H - Reactivate a card of the endowment.
As long as it is his turn and he has cards to do so, the player may perform as many actions A, B, C, D as he wishes, in the order he prefers. An action E, F, G or H immediately ends the turn.
Perform Combat Moves
Moves are cards of the combat deck that allow you to perform many different actions when you are in attack. Play a card and do what the text printed on it says. Some of these allow you to reactivate cards of your endowment or exhaust those of the opponent, others have different effects. In any case, after playing a move you remain in attack and can continue to play. There is no limit to the number of moves you can play during your turn.
Attack, Strike and Defend
To try to strike and wound the opponents you must choose and play a blow from your hand. A blow can be played alone or together with an enhancement that makes it harder to cancel; it is not possible to use more than one enhancement per attack. The sum of the value of the blow and of the possible value of the enhancement represents the attack power of that blow.
The attacked player tries to cancel the opponent's blows in order not to be hit and wounded. Whoever is in defense can use the Shield, parries and dodges to defend himself. The attacked player may also decide to defend himself using one or more blows of the same type used by the player in attack. To cancel a blow and not be hit or wounded you must respond with a defense power equal to or greater than the attack power received.
While in attack you are limited to a single blow or to a single blow with an enhancement, in defense you have no limitations on the number of cards you can play to cancel an attack, and you can combine blows, parries, dodges and use of the Shield as you please. The values of all these cards are added together to form the defense power.
Example: Attack and Defense
Franco attacks Stefano with a Powerful Diagonal Blow (2) With Fury (+1), for a total attack power of 3. Stefano cancels the attack by playing a Diagonal Blow (1), a Parry (1) and another Parry (1), for a total defense power of 3.
Example: Attack and Defense Using the Shield
Franco attacks Stefano with a Powerful Diagonal Blow With Fury (2+1), for a total attack power of 3. Stefano cancels the attack by playing a Powerful Parry (2) and exhausting the Shield (1), for a total defense power of 3.
The purpose of attacks, in Bruti, is to force the defender to discard cards from his hand. This happens every time an attack is not completely canceled. When an attack is not completely canceled, the defender is considered hit and must discard a number of cards equal to the difference between attack power and defense power. When the defender does not have in hand a sufficient number of cards to discard, he is considered wounded.
Example: Insufficient Defense and Discard
Franco attacks Stefano with a Diagonal Blow With Fury (1+2=3). Stefano plays only a Parry (1), which is not enough to cancel the attack; he is hit and must discard two cards from his hand.
Attention!
When you are in defense you can play only parries, dodges or blows, but the latter, in order to cancel an attack, must be of the same type as the blow played by the attacker!
Wounding and Inflicting Damage
The attacker's aim is to force the defender to discard cards from his hand in the attempt to wound and kill him. A player is considered hit when, following an attack that is not completely canceled, he is forced to discard cards from his hand. He is instead considered wounded when he must discard a number of cards from his hand greater than the number he has available. In this case, he discards all the cards he has and also suffers damage: the attacker draws from the damage deck the cards to inflict on the opponent.
The number of damage cards you inflict when you wound does not depend on the number of cards the opponent discarded, but is determined by the skull symbols shown on your equipment and on your character, added together and added to every applicable modifier reported in the text of the other cards present in your endowment. Damage cards are always drawn by the attacker and inflicted on the defender one at a time, and only at the end of the assignment are the effects and penalties shown on the cards applied and the condition of the wounded character updated if necessary. The effects of equal damages are not cumulative, but penalties to condition are. If during the assignment a damage is drawn that bears the wording "interrupt the damage draw", before resolving it all the effects preceding that damage are applied, with the exception of the "Favor of the Gods!" damage, which instead cancels all the damages received during that draw.
Example: Damage Calculation
Kumka-Kok inflicts one extra damage when he wounds. The one-handed Weapon he is equipped with inflicts one damage. The special object "Ring of Black Devotion" adds another one, and the mystic invocation "Psalm of the Shadows", if it is used and exhausted, adds a further damage, for a total of four damages.
(Card texts: Kumka-Kok: "Once per turn you may exhaust the Movement of an opponent by discarding a card from your hand." Ring of Black Devotion: "When you wound an opponent you inflict one extra damage." Psalm of the Shadows: "The shadows support you. Exhaust this invocation to add a damage when you wound an opponent.")
Attention!
Read the text of the damage cards carefully. Some of these interrupt the draw of other cards, and "Favor of the Gods!" makes the wounded character more powerful instead of damaging him!
Some damages modify the condition and show a red icon with a negative number. When a player receives these damages he must update his condition and consequently reduce the maximum number of cards he may have in hand. If the condition reaches zero or less, that warrior is dead!
Example: Effects of a Damage
Aldobrando is equipped with a two-handed Weapon that inflicts two damages. In his endowment he has the special object "Ring of Black Devotion", which adds one damage, for a total of three damages to inflict every time he wounds.
After receiving the "On the Arms!" (Alle braccia!) damage, however, besides reducing his own condition by 1, he must apply the limitations indicated on the "On the Arms!" card and reduces the damages of the two-handed Weapon from two to one. As long as Aldobrando has the "On the Arms!" damage associated, he will therefore inflict a total of two damages instead of three.
(Card text of On the Arms!: "...the weapon, the shield, everything had become too heavy... The blood ran down the arm." If you use the Shield you must discard it. If you use a weapon, from now on you inflict one damage less. Associate this card to your warrior and reduce your condition by 1.)
Dodge and Pass to Attack
When you cancel an attack using the Shield or blows or parries, the opponent can still continue to play, bring other blows or perform moves. But if you cancel an attack using at least one defense that bears the symbol of an orange shield, such as Dodge, Powerful Dodge or Perfect Dodge, the attacker's turn is over and you are the one who passes to attack and can carry out all the actions allowed during your turn.
Example: Defense with a Dodge
Franco attacks Stefano with a Powerful Chopping Blow With Fury (2+2). Stefano defends with a Powerful Parry and a Powerful Dodge (2+2). Canceling the attack completely and using at least one Dodge, he passes to attack and can play his own turn.
Attention!
Even if you use dodges in a defense, you pass to attack only if you completely cancel the attack received!
When you play a blow or a move or a defense, you must put the cards, face up, next to the combat deck, in an orderly way, to form the pile of played cards. Discarded cards are instead put, face down, to form the discard pile, next to the played cards. Players may not look at the played cards nor at those in the discards.
Example: Arrangement of the Cards on the Playing Surface
Left to right: Combat deck; Played cards; Discard pile.
Keep Attacking or Pass the Turn
When you are in attack you may continue to play, alternating blows and moves as you like as long as you have cards available, but you must pass the turn when:
- You draw a card from the combat deck.
- You exchange a card of your hand with another one drawn from the combat deck.
- You reactivate the Shield or the Movement or any one of the cards of your endowment.
- A defender cancels one of your attacks by playing at least one Dodge.
- You wound an opponent, forcing him to draw damages or to exhaust his own Armor.
In all these cases, the turn passes to the opponent. You can never voluntarily pass the turn to the opponent, but only by performing one of these actions. The player in attack is obliged to carry out at least one game action during his turn.
Example: Sequence of Actions in Attack
Franco attacks Stefano with a Diagonal Blow and Stefano cancels it with a Parry. Franco plays again, uses the move "Feint" and forces Stefano to bring his hand down to the same size as his own, plays then a Thrust Blow which however Stefano cancels using the Shield. Short on cards, Franco decides to draw a card from the combat deck and must pass the turn.
Attention!
When an attack is canceled by a Dodge, the turn passes to the defender who dodged the blow. Also when a defender is wounded and receives damages or exhausts the Armor to avoid them, the attacker's turn ends and it is the defender's turn.
Get Fired Up!
Every time you hit a defender and force him to discard one or more cards from his hand following one of your attacks, whether he is wounded or not, you must perform the "Fervor Draw" (Pesca del fervore), drawing a card from the combat deck without ending the turn. Regardless of the number of cards discarded by the defender, the "Fervor Draw" always and only grants the draw of a single card.
Example: "Fervor Draw"
Stefano attacks Franco with a Powerful Backhand Blow (2). Franco has no defense cards or blows usable to cancel the attack and is therefore hit and forced to discard two cards. Stefano gets fired up, draws a card and continues to play.
Attention!
Only the cards that you make the opponent discard by playing blows grant the "Fervor Draw". A move that forces an opponent to discard a card does not give the right to the "Fervor Draw".
Movement in Attack
The Movement can be used when you are in attack to perform some actions that would otherwise force you to pass the turn. To use it you must exhaust your "Movement" card (turning it face down) and in this way you can:
- Draw a card from the combat deck and continue to play in attack, or:
- Change any number of cards of your hand for the same number of cards taken from the top of the combat deck and continue to play in attack.
Veteran's Advice
The Movement can be used to draw a card from the combat deck and stay in attack, and since when you are in attack you can anyway draw a card before passing the turn, using the Movement is a good way to recover two cards in the same turn.
Movement in Defense
The Movement can also be used when you are in defense. When an opponent attacks you and tries to hit you, you can use the Movement in defense to change any number of cards of your hand before responding to his attack.
Veteran's Advice
The Movement is fundamental in a combat: it allows you to draw a card or change the cards of your hand when you are not satisfied and stay in attack. In defense it can literally save your life. Receiving a blow when you have no blows or defenses to respond with is very dangerous. The Movement allows you to change the cards of your hand before responding to an attack. Always evaluate carefully when to use it and when it is the right moment to reactivate it.
Example: Use of the Movement During a Defense
Stefano attacks Franco with a Powerful Thrust Blow. Franco has three cards in his hand: a Thrust Blow, which is not enough to cancel the attack, and two move cards (which cannot be used in defense). He therefore decides to use the Movement and changes the two moves of his hand before responding to the attack, in the hope of drawing thrust blows or adequate defenses.
Attention!
In game terms, changing cards means discarding one or more of those you have in hand and drawing an equal number from the combat deck.
Use the Cards of Your Endowment
Besides the Movement, when you are in attack you can use the cards of your endowment, one at a time, and continue to play. Each card of your endowment must be active to be usable (turned face up) and by using it, it is exhausted (turned face down) or discarded, depending on the text printed on it. When you reactivate an exhausted card you must pass the turn.
The Character's Special Ability
Every character of Bruti has a special ability printed on his card. Some abilities are permanent, others can be used in attack once per turn. When you are in attack, once per turn, you may use, if available, the ability of your character and continue to play.
Strike Two or More Blows in a Single Attack
Normally it is not possible to play more than one blow at a time, but some cards allow an exception. When you find the definition "strike two or more blows in a single attack" it means that you can play in a single combined attack several blows together, at one time. Add together the values of all the blows into a single attack power. The defender, in order not to be hit, must cancel this value. It is not permitted to use enhancements in combined attacks.
Example: Combined Attacks
Stefano, who controls the character "Il Principino", who thanks to his special ability can strike two or more blows in a single attack, plays a Powerful Thrust Blow (2), a Diagonal Blow (1) and a Backhand Blow (1), for a total attack power of 4. Franco cancels the attack by playing a Thrust (1), another Thrust (1), using the Shield (1) and a Dodge (1), for a total defense power of 4. Having used at least one Dodge to defend, after canceling Stefano's blows, Franco in turn passes to attack.
Healing
During the game events may occur that allow you to remove damages inflicted on your warrior. Damages that are discarded or removed must be put back in the deck. When you remove a damage from your character remember, if necessary, to update his condition.
Example: Removing a Damage
Boccamarcia received an "On the Head!" (Alla testa!) damage which entails a -1 to condition. During his turn the player who controls him plays the move "Clenched Teeth" (Denti stretti) which allows him to remove a damage. He discards the "On the Head!" damage and updates his condition by bringing it back to 4.
(Card text of Clenched Teeth: "Remove a damage from those associated with your warrior." Card text of On the Head!: "...the blow made him tremble violently and his legs gave way. For some instants the world around seemed almost to vanish..." To use the Movement you must discard a card from your hand. Associate this card to your warrior and reduce your condition by 1.)
Dying
In Bruti you can be killed in two ways: instantly, by drawing a "Death!" damage, or slowly, through the reduction of condition caused by damages received, until it reaches zero or less.
The Armor
When you are wounded, if your warrior is equipped with an Armor, you can exhaust it and not receive the damages. An Armor protects from all the damages that you would have to receive following a wound, regardless of their number, but it can be used only once. Before starting to draw the damages the attacker must ask the defender whether he wants to use the Armor. The Armor can never be reactivated, not even by the effect of objects, abilities or moves. The penalty to condition caused by the Armor remains even after it has been exhausted. A warrior can spend his own turn to get rid of an Armor, exhausted or not (and possibly recover a point of condition). To do so he must discard all the cards of his hand and pass the turn. It is not permitted to perform other actions when discarding the Armor.
Attention!
If you want to use the Armor to avoid receiving damages you must announce it before the opponent draws the damages from the deck. An exhausted Armor can no longer be used or reactivated.
Example: Use of the Armor
Stefano, who controls Lady Carlotta (Donna Carlotta), wounds Franco. His weapon inflicts two damages and his character adds two more, for a total of four damages. Franco decides to exhaust his Armor and does not receive any damage.
Keep Fighting
After a warrior has been wounded, regardless of whether or not he received damages, the fight starts again with the roles reversed. The defender brings the cards of his hand up to the number of the attacker who wounded him (up to the maximum allowed by his own condition), passes to attack and the combat resumes.
Duration and End of the Combat
A duel ends when a player kills his opponent or when the combat deck runs out.
If at the end of the combat deck both warriors are still alive, victory is determined by counting the number of damages associated with each combatant. In case of a tie, the penalties to condition shown on the damage cards are counted. In case of a further tie, it is a draw.
The combat phase ends as soon as someone draws the last card of the deck. The player who is in attack at that moment does not complete his turn but interrupts it immediately.
Before a game, however, the players may, by common agreement, establish an alternative duration for the clash, either choosing a fight to the last blood, which ends with the death of the opponents, or with a different duration of two or more combat decks. In this case, when the combat deck runs out it is re-formed by shuffling all the played cards and all the discarded cards. At that point, each player:
- Discards one of the damages associated with his own warrior and puts it back in their deck.
- If there are mystic invocations in his endowment, discards them and puts them back in their deck.
- Discards any exhausted Armor.
- If necessary updates his own condition.
- Reactivates all the remaining exhausted cards.
- If he did not put the "Death!" and "Favor of the Gods!" damage cards in the damage deck at the start of the game, he may do so now.
At the end of these operations, you begin to fight again, the combat deck is shuffled again and the hand is received as at the beginning of the clash: the player with the lowest condition plays first.
The Squads
(Flavor quote omitted: in squad combat you are not left to yourself; not everything depends on you as long as your companion is alive, but you cannot watch both opponents, your back is often exposed.)
If you play with four you must divide into two squads of two and sit around the table so that to the right of a player of one squad there is always a player of the other.
The members of the same squad can talk to each other but cannot show each other the cards they have in hand. A player, during his turn, can attack any one of the members of the opposing squad, as he prefers. Every time the player launches an attack, he can decide which opponent to attack: the same as the previous attack or a different one, as he prefers. When a player ends his turn because he performs an action of type E, F, G or H, play passes to the opponent on his right or, if he has been eliminated, to the next player counterclockwise.
When a player eliminates an opponent the turn remains with him and he plays normally his attack phase. The squad that has killed the greater number of opponents wins or, in case of a tie, the one that has received fewer damages at the end of the duration established for the combat.
Movement in Squad Play
In addition to normal use, when playing in squads you can use the Movement, during your own turn, also to:
- In attack, give up playing further and pass the turn to your squad companion.
- In defense, intervene to protect a squad companion and take upon yourself an attack aimed at him.
Example: Use of the Movement to Help a Companion
Francesco and Mauro challenge Silvia and Roberta. Mauro attacks Roberta with an attack of power 4. Roberta has no suitable cards to defend herself and asks Silvia for help. Silvia accepts to help her, exhausts the Movement to take upon herself Mauro's attack and defends as if Mauro had attacked her directly.
Plunder the Slain Opponents
When you kill an opponent, all the damages, the Armor and the mystic invocations associated with him are put back in their decks. You may instead take all his special objects, swap your weapon with his and/or take his Shield. If you do, remember to make any changes to your condition. Plundering the opponent ends the turn.
The maximum number of special objects that a warrior can have in his endowment is three. If you have three objects and come into possession of other objects, you may decide to make an exchange and leave the excess objects on the playing surface. These objects can be picked up by the players at the start of their own turn. Each player, when he starts his turn, can pick up an object, a weapon or a Shield and end his turn.
The Brawl
Games of three or four players can be played in free-for-all mode. In this case things do not change much, but the clash becomes much more lethal. Each player, as in squad mode, can freely choose whom to attack.
When you end your turn the play passes to the player on your right. When you eliminate an opponent you keep playing. The only survivor when all the others are dead wins, or the one who has received fewer damages at the end of the duration established for the combat.
Optional Rules
You can choose to use only one of the following rules, some, or all of them, freely. An optional rule can be adopted only if all the participants in the game agree to do so.
Breaking and Leaving the Shield
The Shield can be used to add a further point to the defense power even when it is exhausted. But in that case it is considered broken and its card must be removed from the game. An intact Shield can be left on the game board and possibly picked up by a player. Leaving the Shield or picking it up are both actions that oblige the player to spend his entire turn.
Veteran's Advice
During combat you may find yourself playing with a very low condition. In that case, if you use a Shield that causes a penalty to condition, it can be a good choice to abandon it. In this way your condition can increase by 1.
Simultaneous Combat
If you play in squads or in a brawl you can use the optional rule of simultaneous combat: after a player has declared that he attacks an opponent and has played his blow, the players who are not at that moment involved in the combat, starting from the one to the right of the player in attack, can reactivate the Shield or a card of their own endowment or change a card of their own hand.
Surrender
A warrior in serious difficulty can decide to surrender and rely on the judgment of the audience of the Pit. To simulate the will of the audience, in fact, the "Death!" and "Favor of the Gods!" cards that were not put in the damage deck are shuffled and the player who announced the surrender must draw one. If he draws a "Death!" damage the audience of the Pit desires his end and the warrior is automatically killed by his opponent. If he draws a "Favor of the Gods!" damage, the audience of the Pit decides that he may survive and keep fighting as a veteran in future clashes.
Favor of the Audience
The audience of the Pit loves warriors who defy death by facing it and uses the most daring to reward them by throwing precious objects from the stands. To reproduce this situation a player may, if his hand is at the same size as his condition, choose to discard all the cards of his hand, draw an object from the special objects deck and add it to his endowment. After doing so he must pass the turn.
Veterans
Warriors who survived a clash become veterans and can be reused in subsequent combats. If a player has a veteran warrior he is not obliged to take part in the drawing of characters at the start of a new game and can use him again.
Veteran warriors keep the special objects they conquered in previous clashes and can choose new weapons, whether to use the Shield and the Armor or not, like all other players, before starting the combat.
Every time they prepare for a new clash veterans may draw a new special object and, if they already have three in their endowment, may decide to change the new object by replacing an old one and putting the discarded one back at the bottom of the deck.
Secret Preparation
Players may decide to carry out the whole phase of choosing and equipping the character in a way hidden from the opponents. In this case the character and the chosen cards are revealed only when all players have carried out the preparation phases. Each player, in turn, starting from the one to the right of the dealer, draws a character without revealing it to the others and does the same for the special objects and for the choice of weapon, Shield, Armor and any mystic invocations. When all players have made their choices the cards are revealed and arranged on the table as in the normal preparation phase for combat. Each player, at this point, calculates his condition, takes a card that represents it and adds it to the other cards.
Tournament Rules
To reduce the influence of luck on the outcomes of the game, in tournament mode a different system of choice and preparation of characters is used. The rest of the rules remains unchanged.
In tournament, once the character deck has been shuffled, the dealer turns face up on the table a number of them equal to the number of players plus one.
Counterclockwise, starting from the one to his right, each player chooses a character: the leftover one is put back at the bottom of the deck.
Then the dealer turns face up on the table a number of special objects equal to double the number of players, and the players, clockwise starting from the one seated to his left, each choose one object and put another one of their choice back in the deck.
Finally, when all players have made their choices, the normal preparation procedure resumes, with the players, counterclockwise, choosing the weapon and whether to use Armor or Shield.
The recommended maximum duration of a tournament game is one combat deck but, once again, it is the players themselves who decide the length of the combat according to their own tastes and needs.
Fickle Gods, Scraps and Tournaments (Deluxe)
Fickle Gods Deck
If you play using the Fickle Gods deck, you must add the four "Divine Intervention!" cards to the combat deck.
The "Divine Intervention!" cards are played as normal moves and allow you to draw a card from the Fickle Gods deck, which the dealer shuffles before the start of the game.
In the text of each Fickle Gods card there are the indications for its use. This text must be read aloud by the player who drew the card.
The Fickle Gods cards that temporarily increase the condition of the warriors must be left, face up, on the game board to remind the players of their effect and, in the case of games lasting more than one deck, put back in their own deck before starting to fight again.
Scraps Deck
The "Scraps" cards represent the ears cut from defeated enemies and are used to keep count of the combats won by a warrior. The dealer puts the deck on the table without needing to shuffle it. Their quantity influences the way in which it is chosen who must begin a combat, because in case of a tie in condition, instead of drawing lots, the warrior with the greater number of Scraps will play first.
Every time a warrior kills an opponent he gains a Scrap.
For convenience and to save space on the game table, there are also cards of 2, 3 and 4 Scraps that count several killed enemies in a single card.
Every time a warrior is killed, his Scraps are put back in the deck.
Scraps Tournament
An alternative game mode is the "Scraps Tournament", which is held in the Pit on occasion of special festivities.
It is played with the rules of the veterans. When a warrior kills another one, he not only takes a Scrap from the deck, but also takes possession of all the Scraps belonging to the slain warrior: the more the opponent has covered himself in glory, in fact, the more his killing is worth.
The first to reach seven Scraps wins.
If the optional Surrender rule is used in a Scraps Tournament, the warrior who surrenders and survives must put back half of his remaining Scraps (rounding up) in the deck.
Special Characters (Deluxe)
These are seven very powerful characters. They are not added to the character deck, but are kept in a separate deck and used in predefined scenarios. Special characters, unlike normal warriors:
- Bring their hand up to the maximum every time they use the Movement in attack.
- Bring their hand up to the maximum every time they draw and pass the turn.
- Do not suffer the effects of the Fickle Gods cards.
- Always play first at the start of a combat, regardless of their own condition value and that of their opponents.
Special characters are not prepared like the others: their equipment and their endowment are defined by the scenario. In their endowment they have a special ability card usable during combat. These abilities are used like the other cards of the endowment and have effects established by the scenarios. They can be used only in attack and to reactivate them you must pass the turn.
The alternation of turns in squad combats in which a special character faces several warriors at the same time follows this rule: every turn of a normal character is always followed by a turn of the special character. Example with three opponents: A/B A/C A/D, where A is the special character and B, C and D are the normal warriors.
The Undead (Deluxe)
They are deceased warriors who do not abandon their bones, remaining in a distressing and bloodthirsty state of semi-life. They attack anyone who approaches them, have no real brain activity and what drives them is only an irrepressible desire to kill.
When you use them you must take into account the icons present on the damage cards, which represent the type of damage inflicted. A bone represents a damage to the skeletal system. A drop of blood represents a damage to the tissues. A spiral represents a damage to the brain activity.
The Undead are immune to damages to tissues and to brain activity. When an Undead receives a damage that does not bear an icon with a bone, he ignores it and puts the card back at the bottom of the deck. When he has finished drawing the damages, shuffle the deck again.
An Undead can use the "Power of the Dead" (Potere dei morti) card, exhausting it, applying the effects defined by the scenario. The "Power of the Dead" card can be reactivated like any other card of the endowment. This action ends the turn.
(Character card text, e.g. Saro the Executioner: "Start the game with a Power of the Dead card.")
King Demetrius (Re Demetrio) - Undead
Card (condition 6; icons: tissue-damage immunity and brain-damage immunity): "Start the game with a Power of the Dead card and turn the slain opponents into Undead."
When he kills an opponent he replaces him with an Undead who will fight on his side, maneuvered by the same player who controlled the eliminated warrior.
The process of extraction of vital energy by King Demetrius on the opponents he kills means they can never be brought back to life in any way.
When your character is killed by King Demetrius, draw one of the available Undead characters and fight at his side.
King Demetrius starts the game with a special "Power of the Dead" card in his endowment.
King Demetrius can use his "Power of the Dead" card, exhausting it, to apply its effects as defined in the scenarios.
The "Power of the Dead" card can be reactivated like any other card of the endowment. This action ends the turn.
If King Demetrius turns an opponent into an Undead companion, the turn sequence goes back to the normal squad game mode.
Cruni - Troll
Card (condition 5): "Start the game with a Regeneration card but you cannot use the Shield or the Armor."
Starts the game with a special "Regeneration" card in his endowment.
Cruni can use his "Regeneration" card, exhausting it, to apply its effects as defined in the scenarios.
The "Regeneration" card can be reactivated like any other card of the endowment. This action ends the turn.
Kalafuria - Barbarian
Card (condition 6): "Start the game with a Blind Fury card but you cannot use the Armor."
Starts the game with a special "Blind Fury" (Furia cieca) card in his endowment.
Kalafuria can use his "Blind Fury" card, exhausting it, to apply its effects as defined in the scenarios.
The "Blind Fury" card can be reactivated like any other card of the endowment. This action ends the turn.
Maciullo - Giant
Card (condition 8): "Start the game with a Crushing card but you cannot use the Shield or the Armor."
Starts the game with a special "Crushing" (Schiacciamento) card in his endowment.
Maciullo can use his "Crushing" card, exhausting it, to apply its effects as described in the scenarios.
The "Crushing" card can be reactivated like any other card of the endowment. This action ends the turn.
After using "Crushing", Maciullo must pass the turn.
Attention!
Special characters start the game with a special ability card in their endowment. It must be exhausted after use and reactivated to be used again.
Predefined Scenarios (Deluxe)
With the special characters you can engage your warriors in predefined scenarios. These combats are useful to power up before descending into the Pit and facing other warriors. Do not forget that, if you use the optional veterans rule, a character who survives a clash can keep with him the special objects he gained and increase his own power and the availability of Scraps.
Reinforcements
When, in a scenario, a number of reinforcements is indicated for a squad, an eliminated player can re-enter the game with a new character drawn from the deck (then performing the normal procedure for the choice and endowment of a character) as long as there are reinforcements available.
The King's Room (La stanza del Re)
Flavor text omitted: the access to the ancient catacombs beneath the Pit is discovered; a single adventurer returns, telling of a skeletal warrior with a golden crown who turned his slain companions into Undead; the strongest warriors still descend hoping to defeat the Undead warrior known as "King Demetrius" and seize his treasures.
King Demetrius against a Squad of 2-3 Warriors
Veteran characters (if available) or normally drawn characters can be used.
Reinforcements
None.
Preparation
Choose King Demetrius from the character deck, draw, without looking at them, six special objects and add them, face down, to his endowment. King Demetrius cannot use these objects. Add the special "Power of the Dead" card, a one-handed Weapon and a Shield. King Demetrius suffers no condition penalty for the use of the Shield.
In turn each player of the squad facing King Demetrius equips his own character, assigns the special objects and calculates his condition.
When an opponent of King Demetrius is eliminated he must re-enter by drawing one of the available Undead characters. From that moment, he enters combat, with his hand at the maximum allowed, and plays in the squad with King Demetrius. The Undead summoned by King Demetrius are minor special characters and do not bring their hand of cards up to the maximum by using the Movement or the end-of-turn draw, but apply the normal rules of warriors.
Special Rules
King Demetrius brings his hand up to the maximum every time he uses the Movement in attack and every time he draws and passes the turn.
Power of the Dead
King Demetrius can exhaust his Power of the Dead to terrorize and exhaust the Movement of an opponent.
Victory Conditions
King Demetrius and his Undead win the game when there are no more opponents alive.
The squad to which King Demetrius belongs is defeated when King Demetrius is killed, even if there are still Undead in play. With the death of King Demetrius the energy that keeps the other Undead alive fails and they return to their condition of inanimate corpses.
A Troll in the Latrines (Un troll nelle segrete)
Flavor text omitted: the troll Cruni mysteriously haunts the underground dormitories of the Pit's warriors, killing and plundering; several squads have tried to eliminate him but his ability to regenerate wounds has made the task difficult.
Cruni against a Squad of 2-3 Warriors
Veteran characters (if available) or normally drawn characters can be used.
Reinforcements
Two reinforcements in a game against two opponents. One reinforcement in a game against three.
Preparation
Take the troll Cruni from the special character deck, draw, without looking at them, five special objects and add them, face down, to his endowment. Cruni cannot use these objects. Add the special "Regeneration" card and a two-handed Weapon. Cruni suffers no penalty for the use of the two-handed Weapon and cannot use the Armor.
In turn each player of the squad equips his own character, assigns the special objects and calculates his condition.
Special Rules
Cruni brings his hand up to the maximum every time he uses the Movement in attack and every time he draws and passes the turn. Cruni ignores the effects of the "Favor of the Gods!" damage.
Regeneration
Cruni can exhaust his special ability Regeneration to remove a damage associated with him.
Victory Conditions
The squad that challenges the troll Cruni wins when Cruni is killed. Cruni wins the game when there are no more opponents alive and all the reinforcements are used up.
The Return of the Barbarian (Il ritorno del barbaro)
Flavor text omitted: the barbarian Kalafuria lives by bullying, raiding poor peasant villages from an abandoned ancient temple; challenging him has become a symbol of courage for the warriors of the Pit, and the riches he has accumulated tempt the greediest fighters.
Kalafuria against a Squad of 2-3 Warriors
Veteran characters (if available) or normally drawn characters can be used.
Reinforcements
Two reinforcements in a game against two opponents. One in a game against three.
Preparation
Take the barbarian Kalafuria from the special character deck, draw, without looking at them, four special objects and add them, face down, to his endowment. Kalafuria cannot use these objects. Add the special "Blind Fury" card. Thanks to his extraordinary strength Kalafuria starts the game with a two-handed Weapon wielded with a single hand and a Shield and ignores both penalties to condition.
In turn each player of the squad equips his own character, assigns the special objects and calculates his condition.
Special Rules
Kalafuria brings his hand up to the maximum every time he uses the Movement in attack and every time he draws and passes the turn.
Blind Fury
Kalafuria can exhaust his special ability Blind Fury to add +3 to the power of a blow.
Victory Conditions
The squad that challenges Kalafuria wins when Kalafuria is killed. Kalafuria wins the game when there are no more opponents alive and all the reinforcements are used up.
The Giant's Valley (La valle del gigante)
Flavor text omitted: a terrifying scenario surrounds the area where the giant Maciullo has long settled; human remains litter the ground near his cave; few Pit combatants know fear, and groups of adventurers periodically unite in squads determined to eliminate the creature.
Maciullo against a Squad of 2-3 Warriors
Veteran characters (if available) or normally drawn characters can be used.
Reinforcements
Two reinforcements in a game against two opponents. One in a game against three.
Preparation
Take the giant Maciullo from the special character deck, draw, without looking at them, six special objects and add them, face down, to his endowment. Maciullo cannot use these objects. Add the special "Crushing" card and a two-handed Weapon. Maciullo suffers no condition penalty for the use of the two-handed Weapon.
In turn each player of the squad equips his own character, assigns the special objects and calculates his condition.
Special Rules
Maciullo brings his hand up to the maximum every time he uses the Movement in attack and every time he draws and passes the turn.
Crushing
Maciullo can exhaust his special ability "Crushing" to make a free attack of power 1 that can be canceled only by using a Dodge, Powerful Dodge or Perfect Dodge. If this special attack is not canceled it automatically inflicts one damage but does not force the opponent to discard cards from his hand and does not grant the "Fervor Draw". Maciullo remains in attack after using Crushing regardless of the result of the attack.
Victory Conditions
The squad that challenges the giant Maciullo wins when Maciullo is killed. Maciullo wins the game when there are no more opponents alive and all the reinforcements are used up.
Final Note
Bruti encourages players to experiment and invent new scenarios and situations. Be creative and use all the characters, special and not, as you like! Feel free to assign the special abilities to different characters, try different configurations of weapons and subdivisions of the squads.
Glossary
Special ability of the character: A characteristic of the character printed on his card that can be used once per turn.
Combined attack: Playing at the same time two or more blows from your hand.
Change a card: Discard a card from your own hand and draw one from the combat deck.
Hit (Colpire): Force an opponent to discard at least one card from his hand.
Enhanced blow: An attack made of a blow and an enhancement.
Condition: The maximum number of cards a player may have in hand during the game.
Endowment (Dotazione): The set of special objects, mystic invocations and "Movement" cards.
Duel: A head-to-head combat between two players.
Equipment (Equipaggiamento): The set of weapons, shields and armors.
Exhaust a card: Turn a card of your endowment face down.
Pit (Fossa): The arena where the combats of the Bruti take place.
Hand (Mano di gioco): The cards of the combat deck that the player holds in hand during the game.
Pass the turn: Conclude your own game turn and hand over play to the opponent.
Fervor Draw (Pesca del fervore): After hitting an opponent, the action of taking a card from the combat deck and adding it to your hand without passing the turn.
Attack power: The sum of the blows and enhancements played in an attack.
Defense power: The sum of the blows, parries, dodges and Shield used in a defense.
Reactivate a card: Turn a card of your endowment face up.
Brawl (Rissa): A free-for-all combat.
Squad (Schiera): A team made up of two or more players.
Use the Movement: The action of exhausting your "Movement" card to perform one of the permitted actions.
Modified Cards Updated to Version 1.2
Refer to these cards for your games! The originals will be included in the next published expansion. In the meantime you can print this page, cut them out and substitute them for the previous ones.
Special Objects
- Maniac's Brace (Spallaccio del maniaco): When you cancel a blow using parries you may reactivate the Movement.
- Pendant of Vengeance (Pendente della vendetta): If an opponent hits you and makes you discard two or more cards, you pass to attack.
- Oil of the Two Saints (Olio delle due sante): Discard this object to draw the first card from the pile of played combat cards and remain in attack.
Damages
- Reeling! (Spossato!) (2 copies; brain-activity icon): "...the last blow seemed to have taken all his energy away. He tried to make out the opponent but everything was blurred, confused. The sweat, running into his eyes, blinded him..." You cannot strike blows of power greater than 1 but you may pass a turn to discard this damage and put it back in the deck.
- Dazed! (Intontito!) (2 copies; brain-activity icon): "...everything was spinning, as if the world itself had been suddenly turned upside down. The last time he had felt like that, he had drunk a whole tavern dry..." You cannot change more than one card of your hand at a time but you may pass a turn to discard this damage and put it back in the deck.
- To Hell With Me! (All'inferno con me!) (+1 to condition): "...staggering, bloodied, incredibly he rose, launching himself into one last attack..." Interrupt the damage draw. Bring your hand up to the maximum +1, strike one or more blows in a single attack, discard the cards you have not used and then receive 2 new damages. Put this card back in the deck.