Disney Sidekicks Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Setup
• Board Spaces
• Gameplay
  • Goal of the Game
  • The Danger Phase
    • Villagers Appear
    • Danger Rises
    • Enemies Approach
    • When Enemies Move
    • When Enemies Attack
  • The Action Phase
    • Move
    • Attack
    • When Sidekicks Attack
    • Unlock
    • Rescue
    • Rest
    • Attached / Detached
  • Game End
• Grave Danger Cards
• Game Board Sides
• Summary of a Turn

Components

2 Danger cards. Danger cards tell you what the Villains are up to. Although each Villain brings their own set of Danger cards to the game, these neutral cards are always shuffled in.

12 Grave Danger cards. Looking for a tougher challenge? Add one or more of these packs to your Danger deck and that's just what you'll get (see Grave Danger cards).

1 Castle. This is where the Heroes are locked up. If each tower space (5 total) are filled with tokens (Villagers and/or Guards), the Villains win.

1 Gameboard. Side 1: 2-3 Players. Side 2: 4 Players.

8 Bridges. They allow movement between the inner and outer regions of the board, and are required to access the castle. If 3 of them are destroyed, the Villains win.

1 Attack Die. Use these to resolve attacks:

• Sidekicks want to roll the hand symbol.
• Villains want to roll the claw symbol.
• The attacker hits whether Enemy or Sidekick rolls the combined hand-and-claw symbol.
• The star symbol means you get a star token.

32 Villager tokens. Help to rescue the Heroes and the Villagers from the Villains' evil clutches. Rescue Villagers to activate your Power cards, and rescue all the Heroes from the castle to win the game.

4 Lock tokens. The magical locks keeping your Heroes trapped in the castle. Spend stars to unlock them (see Unlock).

Tokens:

• 40 Star tokens. Spend them to use special powers, help other Sidekicks, prevent disaster, and unlock magical locks.
• 15 Attack Die tokens. These tokens make Villains stronger. When they Attack, they roll the Attack Die once for each one of these they have.
• 4 Health tokens. These tokens are used for the health track on Sidekick character cards.
• 12 Guard tokens. These enemies are on the Villains' side. Defeat them before they are sent to the castle.

5 Sidekick sets. Each player uses one of these Sets. Specific setup instructions are found on the back of each Villain character card. Each Set includes:

• 1 Sidekick figure
• 1 Sidekick character card
• 7 Power cards
• 1 Villain figure
• 1 Villain character card
• 7 Danger cards
• 1 Action card
• 1 Hero token

In addition, each Set also contains pack-specific components:

• Flora, Fauna and Merryweather Set: 1 Diablo Henchman token, 8 Curse tokens. Note: the Flora, Fauna and Merryweather figure is composed of 3 pieces: Flora, Fauna and Merryweather.
• Tinker Bell Set: 1 Jolly Roger token.
• Timon & Pumbaa Set: 3 Hyena Henchmen tokens.
• Lumiere Set: 8 Charm tokens.
• Abu Set: 1 Genie token, 1 Iago token.

Character cards, Power cards, Danger Cards and Action card. The Sidekick and Villain character cards, the Danger cards and the Sidekick's power cards are shown on the component pages; the card text itself is printed on the cards and is not reproduced here. The Action card lists the Danger Phase and Action Phase steps on one side, and the Sidekick and enemy roll results on the other.

Setup

A. The board. Place the board in the middle of the table. Use whichever side is appropriate for the number of players (2/3p or 4p).

B. Ready the supplies. Place the Attack Die and Guard, Star, and Attack Die tokens within everyone's reach. (As printed, the Attack Die is listed twice in this step.)

C. Build the bridges. Place a bridge on each outlined bridge space. Return any unused bridges to the box.

D. Summon the guards. Place 1 Guard token on each space connected to the castle by a bridge.

E. Place Villagers. Put the Villager tokens in the bowl space in the box, then draw and place 1 Villager (face-up) on each space with a location icon.

F. Choose a Sidekick. Take a Sidekick Set and place down all components for that Sidekick as described on page 3.

G. Draw Sidekick powers. Shuffle your Sidekick's 7 power cards, and deal yourself 3 of them faceup next to your character card. Return unused power cards to the box.

Note: Your three faceup power cards are currently inactive. To activate one, fill each of its spaces with a Villager of a different color as described under Rescue.

H. Lock up your Hero. Place your Hero token in the castle and place a Lock token next to the castle, locked side up.

I. Place your figures. Place your Sidekick figure on a starting space not occupied by another Sidekick (P1, P2, etc.). Place your Villain figure on the corresponding Villain space (V1 if P1, V2 if P2, etc.).

J. Prepare your Sidekick. Take 1 star and a health token. Place the health token on the empty space at the start of your character card's health track. Place the star beside your character card.

K. Prepare your Villain. Follow the setup instructions on the back of your Villain character card. When done, place 1 star on each space of your Villain health track.

L. Prepare the Danger Deck. Take the 7 Villain cards for each Villain in play and shuffle together with 2 neutral Danger cards to form the Danger deck. Place it next to the gameboard.

M. Start playing. Decide amongst yourselves who will play first. We suggest choosing whoever is youngest at heart.

Board Spaces

Each of the clearings on the board is a space. Learning about them now will make reading the rest of the rules that much easier.

• Villain and Sidekick figures are placed in the center of the board space they occupy. No two figures can occupy the same space (when a Villain or Sidekick moves, they skip over spaces occupied by other Villains and Sidekicks).
• Spaces next to each other on a footpath and spaces connected by a bridge are considered to be adjacent.
• Many spaces have one of six location icons. These are most often used to indicate where new Villagers are placed.
• Tokens (Guards, Villagers, etc.) are placed around the board space they occupy. There is no limit to the number of tokens that can occupy a space. However, some token types have their own 'per space' limit (e.g., 1 Guard, 2 Villagers).
• Each space belongs to one of two regions: the inner region (closer to the castle) or the outer region.

Gameplay

Goal of the Game

As Sidekicks, you must cooperate to collect stars, unlock the castle's locks, rescue the captured Heroes, and defeat at least 1 Villain. And you have to do it while remaining healthy, preventing the destruction of the kingdom's bridges, making sure the castle doesn't become filled with Guards and/or Villagers, and thwarting the Villains' attempts of achieving their own goals. It's a lot to ask, but Disney Sidekicks are on the job!

Clockwise from the start player, take turns until either you win or the Villains do. Each turn consists of two phases: the Danger Phase, then the Action Phase. When your Action phase is over, play passes clockwise to the next player.

The Danger Phase

Danger cards are how your enemies (Villains and Henchmen) accomplish their murkiest schemes. All of them have text that explains what terrible thing they're up to. Most of them also have instructions of where to add new Villagers on the board, where to move a particular Villain, or whether a new Guard is spawned next to your Sidekick.

Draw a card from the Danger deck, follow its instructions from top to bottom, then discard it. If the drawn card belongs to a defeated Villain, remove it from play and draw another card.

Each Danger card has up to 3 sections:

1. Villagers Appear. A Villager is placed on the board.
2. Danger Rises. Something bad happens.
3. Enemies Approach. A Villain moves, then attacks, or a Guard is summoned.

Note: Not all Danger cards have all 3 sections.

Villagers Appear

Place 1 Villager on the space in your region that is marked with the depicted location icon.

No more than 2 Villagers can occupy the same space. If a 3rd Villager would be added, they are captured by the Villains and placed on an unoccupied tower space in the castle instead.

Example: Place 1 Villager on the Icy Mountain space in your region. You try to place a Villager on the closest Icy Mountain space, but there are already 2 Villagers there. You have to place the Villager in the castle instead.

Danger Rises

Each Villain has their own way of making things difficult for you, and this is where it happens. Follow the written instructions on the card and watch their plans unfold.

Spend your stars wisely. It's tempting to always pay stars to avoid negative effects, but remember that you also need them to unlock the castle and help other Sidekicks.

Example card, "Exploding Bridge!": The bridge nearest to you explodes (if multiple are closest, you decide). Any Sidekick on a space that was connected to the exploded bridge loses 1 heart. The Sidekicks can collectively spend 2 stars to discard this card without effect.

Example card, "Danger Rising": If your Villain is already defeated, all Sidekicks lose 1 heart. If not, your Villain gains an Attack Die token. Reshuffle this card and the discard pile into the Danger deck. This card cannot be discarded.

Enemies Approach

Move the depicted Villain 1, 2, or 3 spaces toward the depicted Sidekick, skipping spaces occupied by Sidekicks and other Villains.

After a Villain has finished moving, they attack each Sidekick adjacent to them, one at a time (you choose the order). If the Villain is adjacent to more than one Sidekick, you choose the order in which they are attacked.

OR

Summon a Guard to your space. No more than 1 Guard can occupy a space. If a 2nd Guard would be added or would move to a space with a Guard, place them on an unoccupied tower space in the castle instead.

Example: Scar moves 3 spaces toward Timon & Pumbaa, then attacks each adjacent Sidekick.

When Enemies Move

When enemies move, they most often move toward a Sidekick. Regardless of their destination, you move them one space at a time, skipping over other figures. Each move must result in the enemy being closer to (i.e., fewer spaces away from) their destination than they were before. If doing so is impossible (e.g., they are adjacent to their Sidekick), the enemy stops moving.

Enemies Approach example: Scar moves 3 times toward Timon & Pumbaa, then attacks each Sidekick adjacent to him.

• Move #1: Scar can't move over the bridge to the left, as he would still be 3 spaces away from Timon & Pumbaa. He has to move to space 1.
• Move #2: By skipping over Captain Hook and Timon & Pumbaa, Scar can move to either 2A or 2B, both of which are only 1 space away from Timon & Pumbaa.
• Move #3: Scar is already adjacent to Timon & Pumbaa, so he stops moving.

When Enemies Attack

The player will roll the Attack Die once, for the villain, unless otherwise specified. (Note: whether by card effect or by the Sidekick moving into the Henchman's space.)

When a Villain attacks a Sidekick, roll the attack die once for each attack die token they have.

• If they roll a claw symbol or a hand-and-claw symbol, their attack hits!
• Any other roll is a miss. However, if they roll a star, the Sidekick they are attacking gains 1 star.

Example: The enemy hits and the Sidekick loses 1 health.

Example: The enemy misses, but they dropped something. The Sidekick being attacked gains 1 star.

When a Sidekick is hit, reduce their health by 1 by moving their health counter one space to the right. If any Sidekick runs out of health, the Villains win.

The Action Phase

Your Action phase always starts with an opportunity to use any 'before your actions' abilities that you have on your activated power cards or character card.

On your turn, you perform actions. The number of actions you can perform is indicated at the bottom left corner of your character card.

A Hero's Helping Hand (or Paw): If you have rescued your Hero, you can perform an additional action on your turn, even on the turn you rescue them.

The actions are:

• Move. Move your Sidekick 1 space along the footpath or over a bridge.
• Attack. Attack a Henchman in your space or a Villain in an adjacent space that you have not attacked this turn.
• Unlock. Spend 5 stars to unlock a locked Lock token.
• Rescue. Rescue a Villager in your space or your Hero from the castle.
• Rest (once per turn). Gain 1 star or restore 1 heart.

You can perform actions in any order, and as often as you are able (unless otherwise specified).

Once you are out of actions, or wish to skip your remaining actions, you have an opportunity to use any end of your turn abilities you have before play passes to the next player clockwise.

Move

Whether you need to rescue a Villager, attack a Guard, or put some distance between you and your Villain, moving will get you there.

Move your Sidekick 1 space along the footpath or over a bridge, skipping over other Sidekicks and Villains. If you move into a space occupied by one or more Henchmen, each of them attacks you, in the order of your choice. Henchmen in spaces that you skip over do not attack you.

Example: Although you're only adjacent to 1 available space, there are actually 5 different spaces you can move to. Thanks to the fact that you skip over other figures, you often have several enticing options. But watch out for Henchmen!

Attack

Not only do you have to defeat at least 1 Villain, you also have to keep the Guards from filling the castle. Attacking will help you accomplish both.

Attack a Henchman on your space that you have not attacked this turn,

OR

Attack a Villain on an adjacent space that you have not attacked this turn.

When Sidekicks Attack

Whether you're attacking a Henchman or a Villain, you roll the Attack Die:

• If you roll the hand symbol or the hand-and-claw symbol, your attack hits!
• Any other roll is a miss. However, if you roll a star, gain 1 star.

Example: That's a hit! The enemy loses 1 health.

Example: You missed. But what's this on the ground? Gain 1 star.

Whenever a Villain is hit, reduce their health by taking a star from their health track and resolve their "When Hit" effect, if any. Remember to keep the star(s)!

When a Villain's last star is taken, they are defeated. Remove their figure and any associated components from play.

Example: You defeated Jafar. Remove his figure and Iago from play. You do not have to remove Jafar's danger cards from the Danger deck. They can be removed as they are drawn during the Danger Phase.

Henchmen only have 1 health. When you hit a Henchman (Henchmen are only: Guard, Hyena, Diablo), they are immediately defeated. Remove them from the board.

Example Villain card, "Jafar" (New Master): When a Danger card flips the Genie to his controlled side, he becomes a Henchman that cannot be attacked or removed. When a Sidekick moves to the controlled Genie's space, they lose 1 heart. Breaking the Spell! When you hit Jafar, you can flip the Genie to his blue side. The Genie is no longer a Henchman. Iago the Parrot: When the Sidekick Iago is attached to is attacked, roll the Attack Die an additional time.

Unlock

Before you and the other Sidekicks can rescue your Heroes, you need to unlock the magical locks that are keeping them in the castle.

Unlock a Lock: If you are adjacent to the castle (i.e., on a space connected to it by a bridge), spend 5 stars and flip a lock token from its locked side to its unlocked side.

NOTE: Each Lock token, once unlocked, allows any one Hero to be rescued. However, Sidekicks can only rescue their own Hero.

Rescue

Help to rescue your Heroes from the Villains' castle and keep the Villagers from being captured. Rescue Villagers to activate your Power cards, and rescue all the Heroes to win the game.

Rescue a Villager: Take a Villager on your space and place them on one of your power cards that does not have a Villager of that color. Once placed, they may not be moved to another power card.

When you fill the last space of a power card, return the Villagers on them to the supply, and tuck the top portion of the card under your character card. The power card is now active and its benefit can be used.

Example, "Care-Free Trio" power card: "If you are at full health, you have an additional action this turn."

Caption on the printed example: "After filling all three spaces of this power card, discard the Villagers to the Villager pile, and slide the now active power card under your character card."

NOTE: You may not rescue a Villager from the castle. If you are unable to place a rescued Villager on one of your power cards, simply discard it to the Villager pile.

OR

Rescue your Hero: If you are adjacent to the castle (i.e., on a space connected to it by a bridge), remove an unlocked lock token from play, take your Hero from the castle, and place them in front of your player board.

Once you have rescued your Hero, you can perform an additional action every turn, including the turn you used to rescue them.

Rest

(Once per turn.) Two things you're likely to be short on are stars and hearts. If all else fails, take a load off to grab one or the other.

+1 star OR +1 heart.

Attached / Detached

Some effects will cause a figure (i.e., one of the good fairies) or token (i.e., Iago) to become attached to your Sidekick. An attached figure or token moves around the board with your Sidekick until they're detached.

As long as a figure or token is attached to your Sidekick, they provide an ongoing benefit or hindrance, explained by the effect that caused them to become attached or the token itself.

Game End

Your quest to save the Heroes ends when either the Sidekicks or the Villains win.

The Sidekicks win when both:

• All of the Heroes are rescued, and
• At least 1 Villain is defeated.

The Villains win when:

• A Sidekick's health is depleted, or
• All 5 castle towers are filled with Guards and/or Villagers, or
• A 3rd bridge is destroyed, or
• A Villain's loss condition is met.

Grave Danger Cards

Looking to spice things up? Add one or more of the included Grave Danger packs to make the game more difficult in different ways.

• Pack 1: Villagers in Peril. Add a Villager token to your space and each space adjacent to you. Draw another Danger card.
• Pack 2: Guards on Patrol. Each Henchman attacks the Sidekick on their space, if any. Then add a Guard token to each space adjacent to you. Draw another Danger card.
• Pack 3: Nefarious Villains! Villains Attack! Choose one: The Sidekicks collectively spend 2 stars, or your Villain gains an Attack Die token. Draw another Danger card.

Each pack contains 4 identical cards to shuffle into the Danger deck. Add one pack to spice things up, two to make it extra hot, and three... well, don't say we didn't warn you.

The card text above is transcribed from the rulebook's card illustrations on the Grave Danger page. The printed illustration shows one card per pack; the Villains Attack! card is the one shown with the Pack 3 symbol.

Game Board Sides

• Game Board Side: 2 to 3 Players. Fewer spaces on the board.
• Game Board Side: 4 Players. More spaces on the board. The circled spaces on the 4-player side are the additional spaces.

Summary of a Turn

The Danger Phase. Draw a card from the Danger deck, follow its instructions from top to bottom, then discard it. If the drawn card belongs to a defeated Villain, remove it from play and draw another card.

1. Villagers Appear. New Villagers are added to the board.
2. Danger Rises. Something bad happens.
3. Enemies Approach. A Villain moves and attacks, or a Guard is summoned.

The Action Phase. Perform as many actions as you are allowed (you may choose to skip actions). The actions are:

• Move. 1 space, skipping over other figures.
• Attack. An enemy in your space once, or a Villain in an adjacent space once that you have not attacked this turn.
• Unlock. A locked Lock token by spending 5 stars on a space connected to the castle by a bridge.
• Rescue. A Villager in your space or your Hero from the castle.
• Rest (once per turn). To gain 1 star or restore 1 heart.

Enemy Rolls:

• Claw symbol, or hand-and-claw symbol: The enemy hits! The attacked Sidekick loses 1 heart.
• Hand symbol: The enemy misses.
• Star: The enemy misses. The attacked Sidekick gains 1 star.

Sidekick Rolls:

• Claw symbol: You miss.
• Hand symbol, or hand-and-claw symbol: You hit! If you hit a Villain, take a star from their health track and resolve their 'when hit' effect, if any.
• Star: You miss. Gain 1 star.