Elements of the Gods

Elements of the Gods Rulebook

Table of Contents

Overview

On your turn, you will choose one of the five Elements and place it on the board, manipulating the Worshipers to allow you to play a card from your hand. You will build Monuments and Gardens and score points by playing Divinity cards, and at the end of the game you will score bonus points for the Worshipers in your domain.

Components

5 Elements: Water (use the power of water to pull worshipers together), Fire (scatter worshipers away), Wind (push worshipers in a large area in the same direction), Earth (bring worshipers to life), Death (destroy those who fail to show you the proper reverence)
32 Worshipers in 4 colors
15 Garden tiles
20 Monument cards
20 Garden cards
48 Divinity cards
25 Monuments, 5 each of 5 colors
Game board
5 score track markers
Draw bag

Setup

Place the board in the center of the table. Choose the side based on the number of players:
- 8x8 board for 3 players
- 9x9 board for all other player counts:
  - Use the full board for 4 or 5 players
  - Use the inset 7x7 spaces (the spaces with cliffs are not in play) for 1 or 2 players
    - See the rules for solo play below.
- Note: The river running through the board has no gameplay function, but may be used in an expansion.
Place a Garden on each of the 4 corner spaces of the board.
Mix all Worshipers in the bag, then draw 2 random Worshipers to place on each space of the board except the outer edge spaces. Also place 2 random Worshipers in each of the 4 Gardens.
Place the 5 Elements and the Gardens next to the board within easy reach of all players.
Give each player the 5 Monuments of their player color.
Put a score track marker for each player on the score track at 0.
Shuffle the Monument, Garden, and Divinity decks.
Reveal Divinity cards until you have revealed each of the 3 types of bonuses (bottom part of the cards). Place these 3 cards next to the board and shuffle any other cards back into the Divinity deck.
Give each player 5 cards: 2 Monument cards, 2 Garden cards, and 1 Divinity card.
Place the 3 decks next to the board.
The player who has most recently performed a miracle takes the 1st player marker and the first turn.

On Your Turn

Perform the following actions in order:

Choose an Element, place it on a space on the board, and carry out its effect.
Play 1 card from your hand and carry out its effect. OR Discard at least 1 card from your hand.
Draw back up to 5 cards in hand from any deck(s) you choose.

Play proceeds to the left, with the next player choosing one of the remaining Elements and placing it on the board, playing a card or discarding, and drawing back up to 5 cards.

End of a Round

After all 5 Elements have been played, the round ends. Remove the Elements from the board. Pass the 1st player marker: to the left in a game with 2 or 4 players, or to the right in a game with 3 or 5 players.

Note: In a game with fewer than 5 players, each round one or more players will get more than one turn. In a game with 5 players, the last player will be first in the next round, and therefore will take two turns in a row.

End of the Game

The end of the game is triggered when any player plays their 5th Divinity card. Finish the round, with each player taking turns until no Elements remain. Then score end game bonus points.

Scoring

During the game, you will score points immediately from the following sources:

Monuments you built next to Gardens
Gardens built next to your Monuments
Divinity cards you played (top part of the cards)

At the end of the game, you will score bonus points from the following sources:

20 points for the first player to play 5 Divinity cards and trigger the end of the game
15 points for each other player who played 5 or more Divinity cards
Public Divinity cards (bottom part of the cards) - everyone scores these 3 cards
Divinity cards in your hand (bottom part of the cards) - each player scores their own cards

The player with the most points is the most powerful god of all and the winner of the game. If players tie with the most points, they establish a pantheon together in shared victory.

Your Turn In Detail

1: Choose an Element, place it on a space on the board, and carry out its effect.

You may place an Element on any space except:

A space with a Monument
A space with a Garden
A space with another Element

The Powers of the Elements

Water, Fire, and Wind affect many spaces at once and move only one type of Worshiper, while Earth and Death affect one space and all types of Worshipers.

Water - When you place Water, choose one type of Worshiper. Pull all Worshipers of that type from the 8 adjacent spaces into the space with Water.

Fire - When you place Fire, choose one type of Worshiper. Scatter all Worshipers of that type from the 8 adjacent spaces 1 space away from the space with Fire.

Also, scatter all Worshipers of that type from the space with Fire to adjacent spaces. You choose where they go, but they must each go to a different space. If there are more Worshipers than legal adjacent spaces, distribute them as evenly as possible.

Wind - When you place Wind, choose one type of Worshiper and a 3x3 square of spaces orthogonally adjacent to Wind. Push all Worshipers of that type 1 space away from the space with Wind in the same direction.

Also, push all Worshipers of that type from the space with Wind 1 space in the same direction.

Earth - When you place Earth, birth 5 random Worshipers from the bag and place them on the space with Earth.

Earth is the only Element that may be placed on a space with a Garden.

If you have any Worshipers in your Afterlife (that you previously claimed using Death), you may first place up to 5 of them on the space with Earth, then birth random Worshipers from the bag such that the total number of new Worshipers placed on the board is 5.

Death - When you place Death, destroy all Worshipers in the space with Death. Choose 2 of them and claim their souls, placing them in your Afterlife. Place the rest of the Worshipers in the bag.

Notes on Worshiper movement

Worshipers are never allowed in Monument spaces for any reason. If a Worshiper would be moved into a Monument space by the effect of an Element, do not move it.
If a Worshiper would be moved off the edge of the board by the effect of an Element, do not move it.
When you have a choice of where to move a Worshiper and there is a legal space for it to move, it must move. For example, when playing Fire you may not choose to scatter a Worshiper on the space with the Fire into a space with a Monument in order for it to not move; you must choose a legal space for it to move.

2: Play 1 card from your hand and carry out its effect. OR Discard at least 1 card from your hand.

The Cards

There are three decks: Monument, Garden, and Divinity. Use Monument cards to build Monuments, Garden cards to build Gardens, and Divinity cards to score points. There are two types of Divinity cards - Ritual cards and Smite cards.

Monument, Garden, and Ritual cards show patterns of Worshipers, Monuments, and/or Gardens. In order to play a card, that pattern must exist somewhere on the board. The pattern is just a minimum requirement, so there can be extra Worshipers or Gardens on the board relative to what's shown on the card, and there can even be an Element in that space.

Monument cards

Monument cards are used to build Monuments. Each Monument card shows a Stonemason and 1 other Worshiper on a single space. Play a Monument card to place one of your Monuments on a space containing the Worshipers shown on the card.

It is acceptable for the space to contain more Worshipers beyond those shown on the card.

A Monument is so large that it takes up the entire space. When you place a Monument, move all Worshipers (and any Elements) from that space together to one adjacent space.

After placing a Monument, immediately score 5 points for each Garden adjacent (orthogonal or diagonal) to it.

You may not place a Monument orthogonally adjacent to a Monument belonging to any player. Diagonally adjacent is acceptable, as is any other space not occupied by a Monument or a Garden.

The presence of an Element in a space does not prevent you from placing a Monument in that space. Simply move the Element to the same space you moved the Worshipers.

When you play a Monument card, place it next to the Monument deck in a discard pile.

Garden cards

Garden cards are used to build Gardens next to your Monuments. Each Garden card shows a Gardener and 1 other Worshiper on a single space diagonally adjacent to a Monument. Play a Garden card to place a Garden on a space containing the Worshipers shown on the card.

It is acceptable for the space to contain more Worshipers beyond those shown on the card.

When you place a Garden, all Worshipers remain in that space, as does any Element present in that space.

After placing a Garden, the owner of each Monument adjacent (orthogonal or diagonal) to it immediately scores 5 points.

As shown on every Garden card, you may place a Garden only on a space that is diagonally adjacent to one of your Monuments.

It is acceptable for this placement to result in a Garden that is orthogonally adjacent to another Monument. Both orthogonally and diagonally adjacent Gardens are considered adjacent to Monuments for scoring purposes.

Note: Gardens are neutral and do not belong to any player.

The presence of an Element in a space does not prevent you from placing a Garden in that space.

When you play a Garden card, place it next to the Garden deck in a discard pile.

Divinity cards

Divinity cards are used to perform rituals and score points. Each Divinity card is divided into two parts. The top part of the card is used during the game, while the bottom part of the card is used at the end of the game (explained below). There are 2 types of Divinity cards, Ritual and Smite:

Ritual - The top part of a Ritual card shows an arrangement of Worshipers (always including a Mystic and a Zealot) and one or more Monuments, and possibly one or more Gardens. If the arrangement shown on the card exists somewhere on the board, you may play the card. Any Monument shown on a card in your hand must be your Monument.

Any rotation of the arrangement shown on the card is acceptable.
It is acceptable for there to be more Worshipers, Monuments, and/or Gardens beyond those shown on the card.

IMPORTANT: After playing a Ritual card, sacrifice 1 Zealot that you used to satisfy the arrangement shown on the card and claim its soul, placing it in your Afterlife.

Smite - Smite cards work a little differently than the other cards in the game. The top part of a Smite card shows Death and a number of Worshipers. You may play a Smite card only if you chose Death this turn and used it to destroy the Worshipers shown on the card.

The '=' on some Smite cards means that the Worshipers shown on the card must all be the same type.
It is acceptable for you to remove more Worshipers beyond those shown on the card.

After you play a Divinity card, score the points indicated on the top of the card and place it face down in front of you. You keep your played Divinity cards only for the purpose of tracking how many you have played. You will never use the bottom part of a Divinity card that you've already played for the top part.

The end of the game is triggered when any player plays their 5th Divinity card.

Discarding - If you cannot or choose not to play a card on your turn, you must discard at least 1 card from your hand. You may discard as many cards as you like, even your entire hand.

3: Draw back up to 5 cards in hand from any deck(s) you choose.

You may draw from any of the three decks, regardless of the type of card you played this turn.

If you need to draw more than one card (because you discarded multiple cards this turn), you may look at each card you draw before deciding which type of card to draw next.

If any deck runs out of cards, shuffle its discard pile to form a new deck.

Scoring the bottom part of Divinity cards

At the end of the game, you will score points for worshipers you have gathered around your Monuments and in your Afterlife, using the bottom part of the 3 public Divinity cards and the bottom part of all of the Divinity cards in your hand.

You do not score points from the bottom part of Divinity cards you played during the game. This means that for every Divinity card in your hand, you must choose if you want to play it during the game, or save it in your hand until the end of the game.

In other words, score the bonuses you can see: on the 3 public Divinity cards, on any Divinity cards in your hand, but not the facedown Divinity cards you played during the game or the Divinity cards in other players' hands.

Do not neglect these end game points! They may determine the winner of the game.

There are 3 types of Divinity card bonuses. Each can require any of the 4 types of Worshipers.

1 point for every Worshiper of that type adjacent (orthogonal or diagonal) to your Monument. Score each of your Monuments separately.
2 points for every Worshiper of that type on a Garden adjacent (orthogonal or diagonal) to your Monument. Score each of your Monuments separately.
3 points for every Worshiper of that type in your Afterlife.

Rules for Solo Play

You will compete against Rival over the course of 6 rounds. Rival performs simplified actions based on a deck of cards, and your actions are restricted by a different deck of cards. If you do not play your 5th Divinity card before the end of the game, you lose.

Solo Setup

Set up according to the Setup section above.
Do not deal Rival a hand of cards. Instead, create the Rival deck with the cards in this order: MGDMGDMGDDD (M=Monument, G=Garden, D=Divinity). The top card is a Monument card, the bottom card is a Divinity card. Do not shuffle this deck.
Shuffle the Solo deck.

A Round of Play

Each round you and Rival will take alternating turns, two turns each. You always take the first turn each round.

At the beginning of each round, draw a Solo card, then draw a Worshiper from the bag and place it on the card.

The card shows 3 Elements that are your choices for your first turn, followed by 1 Element that you must play on your second turn.

During this round the Elements you play may not affect the type of Worshiper you placed on the card: you may not move that type of Worshiper when playing Water, Fire, or Wind, you may not use Earth to birth that type of Worshiper from your Afterlife, and you may not place Death on a space containing that type of Worshiper.

Play your turn as described above: play an Element, play a card, draw a card. Unlike in the multiplayer game, at the end of your turn your hand must have at least one of each type of card (Monument, Garden, Divinity).

If you can't play a card, Rival gains 25 points. Then discard your whole hand and draw 5 new cards from whichever decks you choose, as long as after drawing your hand has at least one of each type of card.

Rival Turn

Rival does not place Elements. Instead, Rival performs the action indicated by the top card of the Rival deck. Then Rival discards that card. Rival's action is determined by the card type:

Monument card - Rival builds a Monument
Garden card - Rival builds a Garden
Divinity Card - Rival scores 15 points

Monument - Use the Monument flowchart to determine where Rival builds a Monument. Rival scores points for any adjacent Gardens. Remove all Worshipers from that space and put them in Rival's Afterlife. This is the main way Rival gains souls for the purpose of scoring Afterlife bonus Divinity cards.

Garden - Use the Garden flowchart to determine where Rival builds a Garden. You and Rival score points for adjacent Monuments.

Divinity - Rival scores 15 points.

End of a Round (Solo)

After you and Rival have each taken 2 turns, the round ends. Remove the Elements from the board. Place the Worshiper on top of the Solo card in Rival's Afterlife with the other souls (this worshiper will count toward Afterlife bonus Divinity cards for Rival as well). Discard the Solo card. If you used any additional Solo cards for the tiebreaker, discard them as well.

End of the Game (Solo)

The game ends at the end of the round in which you play your 5th Divinity card. You do not get 20 bonus points, as in the multiplayer game. Instead, score 5 points for each card left in the Rival deck.

Alternatively, the game ends at the end of the round when the Rival deck runs out. If you have not played your 5th Divinity card by that time, you lose.

You will have 1, 2, or 3 Divinity cards in your hand at the end of the game. Add these to the three public Divinity cards and then score all of them for you and Rival. For each card, if Rival scores at least as many points as you do from any card, Rival scores that card again.

Subtract Rival's score from your score and look up the result below:

0 or less - There is not enough prayer to sustain you and you vanish from existence. You lose.
1-25 - Animism. People believe you have some influence in their lives, but not much.
25-50 - Polytheism. You are merely one god among many.
51-75 - Henotheism. You are the ruler of the pantheon.
76+ - Monotheism. You are the one true god.

How to choose where Rival builds a Monument or a Garden

Use the Monument flowchart if Rival is playing a Monument card and the Garden flowchart if Rival is playing a Garden card.

Start in the green oval. Follow the flowchart to narrow down the valid spaces to just one where Rival will build.

Rival's Monument cards have a number in the bottom corner. This number indicates the column on the board where Rival will build a Monument. Rival will never build a Monument in the outer edge of spaces. Rival may never build a Monument orthogonally adjacent to another Monument, as in the multiplayer game.

If you get to the "Use tiebreaker" box in the flowchart, you have narrowed down where Rival will build to just a few spaces. Draw a Solo card and use its tiebreaker symbol. Start with the space that the big arrow points to. Look at the spaces in order along the row in the direction indicated by the arrow. If you don't reach a valid space, go on to the row pointed at by the small arrow, then the row beyond that, etc. Continue until you reach a valid space; Rival builds in that space.