Fate of Witches Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
  • Cards
  • Tokens
• Setting Up the Village
• Player Set Up
• Gameplay
  • How to Play: Overview
    • Phase 1: Dawn
    • Phase 2: Day
    • Phase 3: Night
    • The End: Final Round
• Character and Item Cards
  • Character Cards
  • Item Cards
• Event Cards
• Coven Actions
  • Upkeep
  • Cast
  • Cauldron
  • Exchange
• Sacrifice
  • Example of a Sacrifice
• Suspicion Tokens
  • Removing Suspicion
• Enchantment Tokens
• On Trial
• Scoring
• End of Game
  • Scoring Example
• Solo Mode
  • Solo Mode Setup
• Solo Scoring Chart
• Quick Reference
  • Gameplay Overview
  • Coven Actions
• Terms and Icons
  • Effects
  • Icons
  • Cards
  • Tokens

Components

Cards

• 72 Character Cards
• 16 Event Cards
• 16 Item Cards
• 4 Cauldron Cards
• 1 Night Card
• 1 Day Card
• 1 On Trial Card
• 1 Burn Pile Card
• 4 Reference Cards

Tokens

• 25 Blessed / Cursed Tokens
• 25 Enchantment Tokens
• 1 Witch's Coin Token
• 15 Suspicion Tokens

Setting Up the Village

1. Shuffle the Character Cards to create a deck. This deck is the Village Deck. Place the Village Deck face down within easy reach of all players.

   Draw four cards from the Village Deck and line them face up next to the Village Deck. These four cards are referred to as the Village Square.

2. Place the Day Card next to the Village Square.

3. Shuffle the Item Cards to create the Well Deck. Place the Well Deck face down to the left of the Village Deck.

4. Shuffle the Event Cards to create the Event Deck. Place the Event Deck face down to the left of the Well Deck.

5. Place the On Trial Card above the Village Deck.

6. Place the Burn Pile Card to the left of the On Trial Card.

7. Place the Night Card to the left of the Burn Pile Card.

8. Create piles for the Enchantment and Cursed/Blessed Tokens within easy reach of all players. These two piles are collectively known as the Supply.

9. Place all of the Suspicion Tokens onto the On Trial Card. Suspicion Tokens are not part of the Supply.

Player Set Up

10. Give each player a Reference Card.

11. Give each player a Cauldron Card. Leave space (Coven Spots) for at least five Character Cards to the right of the Cauldron Card and leave space for the Graveyard to the left of the Cauldron Card.

12. Give the player who's had the worst day the Witch's Coin Token (player marker).

13. The player holding the Witch's Coin deals each player four cards from the Village Deck. Each player keeps one card from their dealt hand and then passes the remaining cards in a clockwise direction to their neighbour. Repeat until each player has selected a hand of four cards.

You are now ready to play.

Gameplay

How to Play: Overview

The game is played over several rounds. Each round has three phases: Dawn, Day and Night.

Phase 1: Dawn

Skip this phase on the first round.

The player holding the Witch's Coin takes the following actions:

1. Repopulate the Village Square by drawing four cards from the Village Deck and placing one card on top of each of the four Village Square piles.
2. Pass the Witch's Coin clockwise to the next player.

Move onto the Day Phase.

Phase 2: Day

Starting with the player holding the Witch's Coin and proceeding clockwise, each player takes it in turn to perform a Draft Action and their Coven Actions:

1. Draft Action. Choose one of the following:
   • Draft from the Village Square. Take one card from the top of any Village Square Pile and add it to your hand. Cards taken from the Village Square are not replaced until the Dawn Phase.
   • Draft from the Village Deck. Take the top card of the Village Deck and add it to your hand.
   • Visit the Well. Take three cards from the top of the Well Deck. Choose one card to add to your hand and then put the other two cards back at the bottom of the Well Deck in any order.
2. Coven Actions. Perform the following Coven Actions in any order: Upkeep, Cast, Cauldron and Exchange. Full details of each action can be found on pages 10-11.

Once all players have had their turn, proceed to the Night Phase.

Phase 3: Night

The player holding the Witch's Coin draws the top card from the Event Deck. There are two types of Event Card: Night Events and Day Events.

1. Night Event. If a Night Event Card is drawn, read the card aloud. The card takes effect immediately. Place the Night Event Card onto the Night Card unless the card instructs you to do something else. Most Night Event Cards will prompt you to draw another Event Card.
2. Day Event. If a Day Event Card is drawn, read the card aloud and then place it onto the Day Card. This signifies the end of the round.

Start a new round with the Dawn Phase.

The End: Final Round

The final round of the game is triggered when the last Event Card in the Event Deck is drawn.

1. If the last Event Card is a Day Event Card, place this card onto the Day Card, then move on to the Dawn Phase.

   When the Dawn Phase is completed each player takes their turn for one final Day Phase.

   Once the last player finishes their Day Phase, the game ends and the player with the highest score wins.

2. If the last Event Card is a Night Event Card, resolve this card immediately and then move on to the Dawn phase.

   When the Dawn Phase is completed, each player takes their turn for one final Day Phase using the last Day Event Card that was drawn.

   Once the last player finishes their Day Phase, the game ends and the player with the highest score wins.

A full scoring breakdown is available on page 16.

Character and Item Cards

Character Cards

There are three types of Character Card: Witches, Villagers and Companions.

Character Card layout:

• Name and Type. The character's name and type are printed at the top of the card.
• Base Character Value. This is the Base Value of the Character. A card's value can be modified by Tokens and any attached Item Cards.
• Effect Type. Character Cards have two types of Effect: Cast and Fate. Some Effects may have additional icons which are affected by Day Event Cards.
• Graveyard Value. This is the Graveyard Value of the Character. If this card is in a player's Graveyard at the end of the game, the Graveyard Value is used for scoring purposes instead of the Base Character Value.
• Effect Icon and Effect Copy. The card's effect is printed at the bottom of the card, beneath its Effect Icon.

Note: There is no limit to the number of Character and Item Cards you can have in your hand.

Item Cards

All Item Cards are labelled Item. If an Item Card also has a Graveyard Icon, it remains active even when in a player's Graveyard.

Note: There is no limit to the number of Item Cards that can be attached to a single Character Card. Item Cards cannot be attached to a Cauldron Card or to a Character if it is in your Graveyard.

Example: Old Dave's Cursed Ring (Item). "If this Item is attached to a Character in your Graveyard at the end of the game, increase your Coven Score by 4 points."

Event Cards

There are two types of Event Card: Day Event Cards and Night Event Cards.

Day Event Cards have a Sun icon in the corner of the card, while Night Event Cards have a Moon & Star icon. The type is also clearly stated just above the event name.

Night Event. A lot of crazy things happen in this village at night. The Night Event Cards represent these events. There may be multiple events in a single night, so be prepared. Keep drawing Night Event Cards until you reach a Day Event Card or until the Event Deck is empty.

Day Event. Daytime in the village can be just as hectic and downright dangerous as the night, with the Witch Hunter and the Hound on the hunt, as well as random visitors passing through. The Day Event Cards represent the activities and goings-on during the day. These cards have an ongoing effect that remains active throughout the round until a new Day Event Card is revealed or the game ends.

Example Night Event Card: Witch's Mark. "Place a red Cursed Token onto any Character in your Coven and then discard this card. Draw another Event Card."

Example Day Event Card: Witch Hunter. "Whenever a player uses a Witchbolt effect this round, place a Suspicion Token onto the first Character to the right of that player's Cauldron."

Coven Actions

There are four Coven Actions that players can perform during each Day Phase: Upkeep, Cast, Cauldron and Exchange. Each of these actions can be performed once per Day Phase in any order.

Upkeep

During the Upkeep Action, players have the option to either Recruit a Character OR Attach an Item Card.

Recruit a Character. To recruit a Character, choose a Character Card from your hand and place it into your Coven. Covens can hold up to five Character Cards, unless a card specifies otherwise.

Attach an Item Card. To attach an Item Card, select an Item Card from your hand and slide it under a Character Card currently in your Coven. The Item Card's effect must be clearly visible. The attached card takes effect immediately.

There is no limit to the number of Item Cards that can be attached to a single Character Card. Item Cards cannot be attached to a Cauldron Card.

Cast

During the Cast Action, you can activate one Cast Effect from a Character Card currently in your Coven.

Only Cast Effects can be activated in this manner. Fate and Item Effects are active as soon as they are placed into or attached to your Coven.

Cauldron

During the Cauldron Action, players may choose to perform one of the following: Prepare, Activate or Remove.

• Prepare. To Prepare your Cauldron, take a Character Card with a Cast Effect in your hand and place it onto your Cauldron Card face down. You cannot have more than one Character Card on your Cauldron Card at any given time.
• Activate. To Activate your Cauldron, reveal the card on your Cauldron Card and activate its Cast Effect, then place the card onto the Burn Pile immediately.
• Remove. To Remove a card from your Cauldron Card, reveal it and place it onto the Burn Pile immediately without activating its Cast Effect.

Exchange

Once per Day Phase, a player may return four Enchantment Tokens in their Coven to the Supply to remove one Suspicion Token from a Character in their Coven.

Sacrifice

Sometimes, being evil is the most effective way to score points.

Some Characters possess a unique Cast Effect called Sacrifice. When this Cast Effect is activated by a player, that player chooses one Character Card from their Coven and moves that card to their Graveyard, along with any attached tokens and cards.

When a Character Card is added to a player's Graveyard, the Character Card is rotated 180 degrees; any Blessed/Cursed Tokens on the card are flipped over to reveal their opposite side; any Enchantment Tokens on the card are returned to the Supply; and any attached Item Cards are re-attached to the bottom of that card.

The total Graveyard Value of a Character in a player's Graveyard is made up of its Graveyard Card Value, Blessed/Cursed Tokens and any attached Item Cards with Graveyard icons. The original Character Value is not used once a Character has entered a player's Graveyard.

Before you start sacrificing everyone, remember the following:

• A Character in your Graveyard can no longer activate its Cast or Fate effect.
• A Character cannot be Sacrificed if it has any Suspicion Tokens on it.
• You cannot attach Item Cards to a Character in your Graveyard. Item Cards attached to Characters in your Graveyard have no effect unless they have a Graveyard Icon.
• Remember to adjust your end score based on the Enchantment Chart. Gain points for each card in your Graveyard depending on your Enchantment Level.

Example of a Sacrifice

Step 1. The player activates Lady Chadworth's Cast Effect and Sacrifices Oldrich. Oldrich's current Character Value is -3 (-1 Base Character Value and -2 Cursed Token).

Step 2. Oldrich is placed into that player's Graveyard. Oldrich is turned upside down to indicate that he has been sacrificed. The Blessed/Cursed Token is flipped and any Enchantment Tokens on him are returned to the Supply. Any Item Cards are re-attached to the new bottom of that of Oldrich's Character Card. Lady Chadworth and all remaining Character Cards in that player's Coven are then moved towards the Cauldron.

Step 3. Oldrich has been Sacrificed - his new value is +3. At the end of the game this new value is added to the final Coven score.

Suspicion Tokens

The Witch Hunter and the Hound use Suspicion Tokens to mark those they suspect of witchcraft.

Suspicion Tokens will be placed on Characters in Covens throughout the game.

Beware - Characters with Suspicion Tokens on them may be placed On Trial. Try not to accumulate too many Suspicion Tokens in your Coven; the more Suspicion Tokens you have in your Coven at the end of the game, the greater the number of points will be deducted from your Coven Score. See Suspicion Chart.

Suspicion Chart (Suspicion Tokens in Coven: Points Deducted)

• 1: -2
• 2: -4
• 3: -6
• 4: -10
• 5+: -16

Removing Suspicion

Players may remove Suspicion Tokens in one of two ways.

• Activate a Character Effect. Some Character Effects allow players to replace, move or remove Tokens.
• Exchange Enchantment Tokens. Once per Day Phase, a player may return four Enchantment Tokens in their Coven to the Supply to remove one Suspicion Token from a Character in their Coven.

Cauldron. Suspicion Tokens cannot be placed onto a player's Cauldron Card.

Sacrifice. Character Cards with Suspicion Tokens cannot be Sacrificed.

Note. Whenever a Character Card Effect is activated which would require that Card to be discarded immediately (e.g. Boris the Toad), place that Character On Trial instead of the Burn Pile if the Card has any Suspicion Tokens on it.

Enchantment Tokens

Enchantment Tokens represent how magically imbued your Coven is. The more Enchantment Tokens in your Coven, the more your Final Coven Score will increase or decrease.

At the end of the game, use the Enchantment Guide on the Reference Card to add and/or subtract points from your Final Coven Score based on the number of Witches and Villagers in your Coven, then add points for each Character in your Graveyard according to the chart.

There is no limit to how many Enchantment Tokens can be placed on any one Character Card, unless a card specifies otherwise.

All Enchantment Tokens on a Character must be returned to the Supply if it is moved to your Graveyard.

Example: If you have 7 Enchantment Tokens in your Coven at the end of the game, you would add 2 points for each Witch in your Coven, subtract 1 point for each Villager in your Coven and add 1 point for each Character in your Graveyard.

On Trial

Characters may be placed On Trial throughout the game. The Trial Area is located next to the On Trial Card. There is no limit to how many Character Cards can be placed On Trial at any given time.

Whenever a Character Card is placed On Trial, that Character is moved to the Trial Area along with all attached Item Cards and Tokens.

If a Character with any Suspicion Tokens is placed On Trial, remove all Suspicion Tokens from that Card and return them to the On Trial Card.

Characters remain On Trial until a player retrieves them using a Character Effect or they are placed onto the Burn Pile due to an Event.

Scoring

Once the Final Round is complete (see Page 7), the game ends and it's time to add up your Coven Score. Follow the steps below to calculate your Final Coven Score.

1. Add up the Character Values. Add up the Character Values of all of the Character Cards in your Coven, including any Tokens and attached Item Cards.
2. Add 'End Of Game' Effects. Add points for any 'End of Game' Character Card or Item Card Effects that you have in your Coven.
3. Add up the Graveyard Score. Add up the Graveyard Score of all of the Sacrificed Characters currently in your Graveyard (see Page 12).
4. Check the Enchantment Guide. Use the Enchantment Guide to add and/or subtract points from your Final Coven Score based on the number of Witches and Villagers in your Coven, then add points for each Character in your Graveyard according to the chart (see Page 15).
5. Check the Suspicion Chart. Refer to the Suspicion Chart and deduct points depending on the total number of Suspicion Tokens in your Coven.

End of Game

Once all players have added up their total Coven Score, the player with the highest scoring Coven wins and is crowned the new Grand High Witch.

In the event of a tie, the player with the most Witches in their Coven wins. If there is still a tie, subtract one point for each Villager in each player's Coven. If no winner is declared, the game is a tie.

Scoring Example

How to add up this Coven's Score:

• The Character Values of Baba Mudfang, Raven and Adah adds up to 2 points.
• Raven has a Blessed Token which adds 2 points.
• The Item Card (Saint Pete's Skull) attached to Baba Mudfang adds 3 points.
• Raven has an end of game Effect: 'if Raven is in your Coven, gain 1 point for each Witch (other than Raven) in your Coven'. This adds 1 point.
• Adah has an end of game Effect: 'if Adah is in your Coven, gain 1 point for each Character in your Graveyard'. This adds 2 points.
• The total value of the Graveyard is 7 points (see Page 12).
• There are five Enchantment Tokens in play, which means we add 1 point for each Witch in the Coven, for a total of 2 points.
• There is 1 Suspicion Token in play which is a penalty of -2 points.
• The Final Coven Score is 17 points.

Solo Mode

Fate of Witches plays very smoothly as a 1-player game.

Solo Mode Setup

To play the Solo Mode, remove the Witch's Coin Token from the game as all Event Cards are resolved by the player. The Solo Mode is played in the same way as the standard game with the following changes:

The Village Square. The Village Square in Solo Mode serves as the opposing Coven. Tokens can be placed onto Character Cards in the Village Square if prompted by an Event Card or player action.

If a Token is present on a Character Card at the end of the Round, do not place a new Character Card onto that Card during the Dawn Phase.

Draft from the Village Square. If you Draft a Character Card from the Village Square which has any Token on it, set it to one side instead of adding it to your hand. This Character Card is still classed as being in your hand; the only difference is that any Tokens remain on that card.

Play through the game with these changes, then check your end result against the Solo Scoring Chart on the next page.

Each answer will give you a word or phrase. String the words together to discover your full witch title. For example, you might end up as The Mystical Witch whose heart is Ruthless and is quite the Tinkerer.

Note. Cards with Suspicion Tokens that are 'in your hand' can still be placed On Trial if prompted.

Solo Scoring Chart

1. How many Enchantment Tokens are in your Coven?

   • 0-2: The Common
   • 3-6: The Mystical
   • 7-9: The Arcane
   • 10+: The Divine

2. What was your final Coven Score?

   • <9 = Fool
   • 10-19 = Familiar
   • 20-29 = Apprentice
   • 30-39 = Witch
   • 40-49 = High Witch
   • 50> = Grand High Witch

3. How many Characters are in your Graveyard?

   • 0: whose soul is Kind
   • 1-2: whose eyes are Untrustworthy
   • 3-4: whose heart is Ruthless
   • 5+: whose hands are Blood Stained

4. How many Item Cards are in your Coven?

   • 0-1: and is quite the Wonderer
   • 2-3: and is quite the Tinkerer
   • 4-5: and is quite the Well Dweller

Quick Reference

Gameplay Overview

The game is played over several rounds, each consisting of three phases: Dawn, Day & Night.

Phase 1: Dawn. Skip this phase on the first round. The player holding the Witch's Coin takes the following actions:

1. Repopulate the Village Square.
2. Pass the Witch's Coin clockwise to the next player.

Phase 2: Day. Starting with the player holding the Witch's Coin and proceeding clockwise, each player takes it in turn to perform a Draft Action and their Coven Actions.

Draft Action. Choose one of the following actions:

• Draft from the Village Square: Take one card from the top of any Village Square Pile and add it to your hand.
• Draft from the Village Deck: Take the top card of the Village Deck and add it to your hand.
• Visit the Well: Take three cards from the top of the Well Deck. Choose one card to add to your hand, then put the remaining two cards back at the bottom of the Well Deck in any order.

Coven Actions. Perform the following Coven Actions in any order: Upkeep, Cast, Cauldron and Exchange. Full details of each action can be found on pages 10-11.

Phase 3: Night. The player holding the Witch's Coin draws from the Event Deck.

If a Night Event Card is drawn, read the card aloud. The card takes effect immediately and is then placed onto the Night Card unless stated otherwise. If a Day Event Card is drawn, read the card aloud and then place it onto the Day Card immediately. This signifies the end of the round.

Coven Actions

There are four different Coven Actions that you can perform during the Day Phase: Upkeep, Cast, Cauldron and Exchange. These actions can be performed in any order but cannot be repeated.

• Upkeep. During the Upkeep Action, players have the option to either Recruit a Character OR Attach an Item Card.
  • Recruit a Character: To Recruit a Character, choose a Character Card from your hand and place it into your Coven. Covens can hold up to five Character Cards, unless a card specifies otherwise.
  • Attach an Item Card: To attach an Item Card, select an Item Card from your hand and slide it under a Character Card in your Coven. The Item Card's effect must be clearly visible. There is no limit to the number of Item Cards that can be attached to a single Character Card.
• Cast. During the Cast Action, you can activate one Cast Effect from a Character Card currently in your Coven.
• Cauldron. During the Cauldron Action, players may choose to do one of the following: Prepare, Activate, or Remove.
  • Prepare: To Prepare your Cauldron, choose a Character Card from your hand with a Cast Effect and place it onto your Cauldron Card face down. You cannot have more than one Character Card on your Cauldron Card at any given time. (The printed quick reference reads "an place it"; the typo is corrected here.)
  • Activate: To Activate your Cauldron, reveal the card currently on your Cauldron Card and activate its Cast Effect, then place the card onto the Burn Pile immediately.
  • Remove: To Remove a card from your Cauldron Card, reveal it and place it onto the Burn Pile immediately without activating its Cast Effect.

Terms and Icons

Effects

• Fate Character Effect. This Effect is active immediately when the card is placed into a Coven.
• Cast Character Effect. This Effect is activated during a Cast Action (see Page 11).
• Item Card Effect. This Item Card is active when attached to a Character in a player's Coven but not when present in a player's Graveyard.
• Item Card and Graveyard Effect. This Item Card is active when attached to a Character in a player's Coven and in a player's Graveyard.

Icons

• Bloody Hand
• Graveyard
• Sacrifice
• Witchbolt

Cards

• Witch Character Card
• Villager Character Card
• Companion Character Card
• Night Event Card
• Day Event Card
• Witch's Coin

Tokens

• Blessed / Cursed Token (+2 / -2)
• Enchantment Token
• Suspicion Token

The Solo Scoresheet (pages 20-21) is a blank score-tracking form and is not transcribed.