Cavern Shuffle: Maze of the Minotaur
Cavern Shuffle: Maze of the Minotaur Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Setup
Set aside the Short Rest and the Minotaur cards from the rest of the deck and shuffle.
Next, form the Dungeon. On the left-most pile, place the Minotaur face up (Minotaur icon) to make the first pile. Using the shuffled deck, deal one card face down for the next six piles. Starting again left to right, place one card face up on the second pile and deal one card face down on piles three through seven. Repeat until the seventh pile has a card facing up with six face-down cards.
Place the Short Rest above the first pile. The remaining cards in the shuffled deck will form the Explore pile, and are placed face down on the table in front of you.
Important: Return the Scoresheet to the box.
Types of Piles
The play area consists of five (5) sections:
- Dungeon: Seven piles that make up the foundation of the play area.
- Party: Four empty piles located above the Dungeon whereby each Adventurer will be placed in ascending order from one (1) to ten (10).
- Explore: Located below the first pile in the Dungeon, these are the remaining cards from setup. This pile is revealed three (3) at a time into the Discard pile.
- Discard: Cards that have been revealed from the Explore pile are placed here face up. Only the top card can be moved from the Discard pile to the Dungeon or Party.
- Inventory: Located above the first pile in the Dungeon, this is where Items are placed. Starting with the Short Rest card, players will come across Item cards that can be "Set Aside" into this pile.
Important — Out of play: Items and Encounter cards that are used or completed will be removed from play.
The labelled areas of the play area are: 5 Inventory (above the first Dungeon pile), 2 Party (the four empty piles above the Dungeon), 3 Explore and 4 Discard (below the first Dungeon pile), and 1 Dungeon (the seven piles).
Types of Cards
The game will have four (4) types of cards:
- Adventurers: Four characters divided into two alignments: Lawful and Chaotic. The Cleric and Barbarian are your Lawful suits, while the Rogue and Ranger are your Chaotic suits.
- Obstacles (pg. 12): There are four obstacles, each tailored to one of the four Adventurers in your party. These can only be completed by the specific Adventurer.
- Enemies (pg. 13): Purple-bordered cards that block the player's ability to progress through the game.
- Items (pg. 15): Green-bordered cards that provide players with unique effects used to overcome challenges.
Adventurers
Similar to the four (4) suits in a deck of cards, there are four (4) Adventurers in Cavern Shuffle.
Each Adventurer will consist of ten cards ranging from level one (1) to ten (10) that will be used to form sequences or be placed in the Party piles.
After placing a card in the Party pile, the top most (or highest) card of each party member will indicate their Individual Level; while the sum of these levels will determine the Party Level.
Important: Once you move a card into the Party, it cannot be moved back to the Dungeon.
The two Lawful Adventurers are the Barbarian and the Cleric. The two Chaotic Adventurers are the Ranger and the Rogue.
How to Play
Sequences: Gameplay will be centered around forming sequences with the four Adventurers. Sequences will be formed in the Dungeon; either from cards revealed with the Explore pile or cards uncovered in the Dungeon.
These sequences will alternate between Lawful (light-border) and Chaotic (dark-border) Adventurers in descending numerical order.
Sequences can always be manipulated in the Dungeon as long as they adhere to the same structure of alternating colours, counting down.
i.e., if you have a sequence of 8,7,6 attached to a Lawful 9, you may move that segment of cards to a different Lawful 9 elsewhere in the Dungeon.
As you begin building sequences, you will start revealing face down cards. Typically these will be Adventurers, but could also be Items (pg. 15), Obstacles or Enemies (pg. 11). Items can be moved into your Inventory freely, while Obstacles and Enemies cannot be moved until you have strong enough Adventurers to do so.
This is done by placing each Adventurer in ascending order into their respective pile in the Party located above the Dungeon, beginning with a level-1 Adventurer.
When the player performs this action, the Minotaur (pg. 16) will move one pile over, blocking whatever space it sits on top of. Once covered, no card from that pile will be able to move until the Minotaur moves.
Passages: If a vacancy in the Dungeon is created by the removal of a card it is called a passage. A passage can only be filled with the Minotaur, a level-10 Adventurer or sequence beginning with a level-10 Adventurer.
Exploring: If you can't move any more face up cards in the Dungeon, you can utilize the Explore pile by flipping over three (3) cards at a time into the Discard pile.
The top-most card in the Discard will always be in play. If you cannot play or complete that card, turn over another three (3) cards, and continue. Once you are at the end of the Explore pile, flip over (without shuffling) and repeat.
Items: If the Item is in your Inventory, you can choose to perform the action on the card at any time. This can be done by adding or modifying the corresponding cards in the play area and setting the completed or used cards out of play.
How it Ends: Continue to bring cards into play from the Discard pile and build sequences in the Dungeon until your Party Level is equal to the Minotaur's power or you run out of available moves and become lost to the perils of the dungeon.
Important: Gameplay is pretty free flowing and will vary from game to game, it is up to you to determine the right path to victory.
Encounters
There are two kinds of Encounters: Obstacles and Enemies. Either type of Encounter may be revealed and completed in the Discard pile or one of the seven Dungeon piles. Once completed, set them out of play.
If you cannot complete an Encounter card in the Discard pile, simply flip another three (3) cards and continue. In the Dungeon, Encounters cannot move unless you defeat them, or if the card has the Ability to move.
Obstacles
There are four Obstacle Encounters tailored to each of the four Adventurers. The Obstacle card (Spike Trap, for the Barbarian) shows the Adventurer it is tailored to and the text: "Increase the difficulty of this Obstacle for each previously completed, in order of: 1/3/5/7".
In order to complete an Obstacle, your Adventurer's Individual Level (pg. 6) must be equal to or greater than the difficulty level to pass.
The difficulty of each Obstacle increases based on the total number of Obstacles that have already been completed, in the order of 1/3/5/7.
For example, if there are two Obstacles flipped up in the Dungeon and you have already completed one Obstacle, the next Obstacle you choose to complete will require that corresponding Adventurer's Individual Level to be three (3) or greater.
Enemies
Each Enemy Encounter will have a difficulty located on the card that will indicate the Party Level required in order to complete it (e.g., in your Party, if you have a level-3 Barbarian, 2 Ranger, 1 Cleric, and no Rogue, your Party Level is 6).
The parts of an Enemy card are its Difficulty (the number in the red shield), its Ability (e.g. "While in the Dungeon, Obstacle Encounters cost one (1) more."), and the Rulebook pg # it is described on.
If your Party Level (pg. 6) is equal to or greater than the difficulty required, you are able to defeat that Enemy.
Most Enemies will come with an ability. These will take effect in the Dungeon and Discard pile, unless specified. If blocked by the Minotaur, this would negate both the Ability on the card, and the player's ability to interact with that Enemy.
The Minotaur
Beginning face up (Minotaur icon) in the first pile of the Dungeon, the Minotaur will be this game's Boss Enemy Encounter.
Each time an Adventurer is placed in the Party, the Minotaur will move one pile to the right — blocking whatever is occupied in that pile, regardless of what is in there — until they reach the farthest pile in the Dungeon.
When the Minotaur reaches the seventh pile, it will flip over (flipped Minotaur icon). On its next move, it will continue left until it reaches the other end. This process repeats back and forth.
When your Party Level is equal to or greater than the Minotaur's power of 30, you win the game.
The Minotaur card reads: BOSS ENEMY / ENCOUNTER, difficulty 30, "Advance the Minotaur one (1) pile to the right every time you transfer a card to the Party pile."
Items
Players will begin with one starting item, and three found as you traverse through the Dungeon. As you find items, set them aside in your Inventory until you are ready to use them.
Each Item can be used freely to add or modify the play area. Once used or no longer needed, set them out of play.
The Short Rest is the STARTING ITEM (SINGLE USE): "Shuffle all the cards in the Discard and Explore piles together."
The three DUNGEON ITEMS are single-use Set Aside Items, each with a number in a circle:
- Potion of Decay (-5): "Set Aside. Temporarily reduce the next Enemy or Obstacle Encounter by five (5)."
- Minor Illusion: "Set Aside. Place this card in the Dungeon to continue any sequence. Once played into a sequence, it cannot be changed from its declared card."
- Treasure: "Set Aside. Place this card over top of any Adventurer in the Party to indicate the next level."
Item Cards
Short Rest: Collect and shuffle all the cards in the Discard and Explore piles.
Potion of Decay: Temporarily reduce the next Enemy or Obstacle Encounter by five (5).
Treasure: Place this card over top of any Adventurer in the Party to indicate the next level (this will move the Minotaur). The original card may still be in play, but once revealed, can be placed out of play. This cannot be used as a Level One Adventurer.
Minor Illusion: Place this card in the Dungeon to continue any sequence. Once played into a sequence, it cannot be changed from its declared card. I.e., once declared a Lawful eight, it cannot become anything else. This cannot start a sequence. Remove when no longer needed.
Beginner Tips
Winning a game of Cavern Shuffle can often feel impossible. Trust me, it isn't. Here are some tips to get you started:
Go through the Explore pile before moving any cards in the Dungeon. There is no limit to the amount of times that you can go through the Explore pile. Be sure to note how many Level One Adventurers are in the pile. This will help you determine what type of game it will be; whether you need to strategically play cards out of the Discard pile or whether you need to dig for the right cards in the Dungeon piles.
Wait to complete your Obstacle Encounters. They aren't hurting anyone. Even though you can get rid of it, should you? For instance, if the Ranger Obstacle is out in the Dungeon and you have access to leveling up the Ranger to Level Five, you should probably prioritize passing through other Obstacles first.
You don't need to level all your Adventurers to Level 10. The Minotaur's difficulty is only 30, which means you can have two Adventurers be Level 7 and two Level 8. Alternatively, if you have the Potion of Decay, you only need to get to 25!
Remember to be patient. Similar to a tabletop experience, strategically planning ahead versus kicking in every door can often improve your chances of success.
Not every game is a winner. Just like Solitaire, some games you will deal an unwinnable board — take this as an opportunity to sharpen your shuffling skills.
Scoring
Defeating the Minotaur is only half the battle. Hopefully, you left with some loot. Using the Scoresheet provided, players can track their record by marking their outcome each game.
Lost (X): You did not beat the Minotaur.
Novice (N): You won using all your items.
Seasoned (S): You won using some items.
Legend (L): You won + have all the items.