Goblivion Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Idea
• Victory Conditions
• Game Components
• Setup
• Anatomy of a Peasant Card
• Anatomy of an Enemy/Item Card
• Action
• Action Symbols
• Game Flow
• Phase — Training
• Phase — The Enemy Advances
• Phase — Combat
• Boss Fight
• King/Queen
• Difficulty Levels
• Bodyguard
• Co-op Mode
• Card by Card
  • Blue Cards
  • Gold Cards
  • King/Queen
  • Boss
  • 1-Sword Enemy / Item
  • 2-Sword Enemy / Item
• General Notes — Important!
• Game Aid
  • 1 — Training
  • 2 — The Enemy Advances
  • 3 — Combat

Game Idea

Goblivion is a deckbuilding card game. You must defend your castle against hordes of goblins and trolls, and then against Bosses.

You start the game with Peasant cards. These peasants are at first mediocre in combat. You must train them to improve your chances of defending the castle.

Following your victories in combat, you obtain Item cards, which you should make the most of.

Victory Conditions

To win, you must eliminate the enemy troops and the Bosses. If your castle's resources run out (fall to zero), the enemy breaches your defenses and you lose the game.

Game Components

Goblivion cards have different backs. Sort them at the beginning of each game.

• 5 King/Queen role cards
• 7 Boss cards
• 96 Goblivion cards. The red and blue corners are used to orient the cards on the different game boards (the cards are placed upside-down on the Enemy board). Sort the Goblivion cards as follows:
  • 40 Blue cards (marked with a fist symbol)
  • 34 Gold cards
  • 22 Enemy/Item cards (two-sided)
• 1 Enemy board
• 1 Player board
• 16 Resource tokens (face 1 / face 3): use these to track your resources on the Player board. Think of them as your survival points. When you gain or lose 2 resources, simply flip a token to show the difference — 1 to 3, or 3 to 1.
• 11 Ally Bonus tokens (face +1 / face +2): use these to mark bonuses on cards. At the end of each phase, these tokens return to your token bank. Example: place a +2 token on a card like this — the card is now worth 3 Strength (1+2).
• 1 Training token (wooden, face: monkey / face: pouch): defines the card to train this turn.
• 2 Training Handicap tokens (both faces show -2): defines a training choice that will cost you 2 resources.
• 3 Enemy Bonus tokens (face +1 / face +2): use these to mark bonuses on Enemy cards. They return to your token bank when the enemy is killed. An enemy can only have one bonus token. Enemies with 1 sword gain a +1 token. Enemies with 2 swords gain a +2 token. Example: an enemy with this token is now worth 4 Strength (3+1).

Setup

1. Place the Enemy board in front of you. Leave a free space for the Battlefield.

2. Place the Player board to the right (in the middle, in Co-op).

3. Take 20 Blue cards at random. Place them on the "Castle" space face down to form the draw pile. (40 cards in Co-op.)

4. Select a King/Queen role. Then take the Gold card representing the Bodyguard shown on your King/Queen card and place it here. Place a Training Handicap token on the Gold card indicated on your King/Queen card.

5. Place here a number of Resource tokens equal to the amount shown on your King/Queen card. This represents your survival points.

6. Group the 9 types of Gold cards into stacks of 4, as shown in the image (exception: 2 Priests).

7. Place the Boss cards face down here. The number of Bosses varies according to the difficulty chosen: Easy = 3, Normal = 4, Difficult = 5, as indicated on the Enemy board.

8. Take all the identified Enemy cards. Make two piles: one with the 1-sword symbols and the other with the 2-sword symbols. These symbols represent the difficulty of the enemies.

   Take 7 cards at random (6 in Co-op) from the 2-sword cards. Do not look at them, and place them face down here.

   Then take 8 cards at random (7 in Co-op) from the 1-sword cards. Do not look at them, and place them face down on top of the others here.

That's it for setup. Unused cards are returned to the box — do not look at them. Note that you have no cards in hand.

Anatomy of a Peasant Card

Cards with this symbol (the peasant face) are called Peasant cards. They represent your army. You will choose how to train your peasants and make them stronger.

• (A) The banner represents combat Strength.
• (B) These symbols represent your peasant's level, from weakest to strongest: fist, 1 sword, 2 swords.
• (C) The card's action.
• (D) This lower section of Gold cards is the training process. We'll come back to it.

Anatomy of an Enemy/Item Card

The skull symbol identifies Enemy cards. They are always split in two (i.e. two-sided).

• (A) The banner indicates combat Strength.
• (B) The swords represent the enemy's level.
• (C) This symbol (draw arrow) specifies the number of cards to draw to face this enemy.
• (D) The enemy's action. This action is only carried out if the enemy is revealed during combat.
• (E) Once defeated in combat, you flip the card 180 degrees and obtain it as an Item card. This card is added to your Hospital.
• (F) The banner indicates the Item's combat Strength, as for peasants.
• (G) The Item's action (when it has one).

Action

Peasant and Item cards often carry actions, shown by the "draw / turn" symbol. When a card is on the Battlefield, you can use its action by turning the card 90 degrees to show that you have used it. You are never obliged to use an action.

An unused action shows the card upright; a used action shows the card rotated 90 degrees.

Example: a Builder card used for its action gains you 2 resources.

Archer cards have two possible actions (shown as an "or"): you only benefit from one of them. It's a choice.

Action Symbols

• Draw (upward arrow / card): take from the top of the Castle pile the number of cards indicated, and place them in play on the Battlefield.
• +1 / +2 Resource tokens: gain that many Resource tokens, which you place on the Player board. (In Co-op, you accumulate these Resource tokens on your King/Queen card.)
• Vision (eye): generate a Vision. A Vision reveals an Enemy card on the Enemy board at the designated spots. A revealed Enemy card remains revealed but does not trigger its action.
• +1 / +2 banner tokens: gain bonus tokens in combat on your cards in play.
• "Destroyed": the term "destroyed" means a card leaves the game for the rest of the game. Return it to the game box.

Game Flow

Each game turn is divided into 3 phases, which you repeat in this order until the end of the game (see Player board):

Turn order:

1. Training (fist → swords)
2. The Enemy Advances (arrow)
3. Combat (shield)

• You have no cards in hand.
• Cards are drawn from the Castle pile (on the Player board) and go to the Battlefield, where they are then considered "In play."
• At the end of each phase, cards in play leave the Battlefield for the Hospital.

The Castle pile is always face down. The Hospital is always face up — you may consult it at any time.

Important! When the Castle is empty (of cards) and you need to draw, you take the cards from the Hospital, shuffle them, and place them face down again on the Castle space of the Player board to form a new draw pile. As indicated on the Player board, there is a consequence when the Castle is empty: the enemy advances. During the Boss fight, you also lose 2 resources.

Phase — Training

In this phase, you place the Training token on the card you want to obtain. In the training camp there are 9 possible choices.

Important! At the start of the game, you must choose your training among the 1-sword cards. After winning your first combat, you may choose training among the 2-sword cards. Once the desired card is selected, follow the training process instructions at the bottom of the card, from left to right.

Anatomy of the training process:

• (A) The number of cards to draw from the Castle for training.
• (B) The target to reach with your total Strength on the Battlefield. If you do not reach the target, you must pay the difference in resources to continue training, or stop training.
• (C) The desired card is exchanged for a card in play: you train a peasant in play, who becomes this new, stronger peasant! The exchanged card is removed from the game. If you have no card in play with the required symbol, you cannot complete the exchange. You are never obliged to complete an exchange — you can stop training at this step and move to the next phase.

Training in steps:

1. Place the Training token on a Gold card. First select among the 1-sword cards. Once you have won a combat you may select a 2-sword card.
2. Draw the number of cards indicated on the training process.
3. Use the actions of the cards in play, and/or exchange the Bodyguard.
4. Compare the total Strength of your cards with the training cost target. If the result is not reached, pay the difference in resources to continue. Otherwise, skip the training.
5. Destroy a card in play with the symbol requested in the training process. Otherwise, skip the training.
6. Add the card marked with the Training token to your Hospital along with the cards from the Battlefield.

Example: Jim wants to make an Archer. He draws 3 cards, as indicated on the Archer's cost: a Farmer (0 Strength), a Pyromaniac (-1 Strength), and a Baker (0 Strength).

Once the cards are drawn, Jim can use the actions of these cards on the Battlefield. Jim chooses to use his Baker to gain a resource. He turns the card 90 degrees to show it is used, then adds a resource to his Player board.

On the Archer's training cost, Jim must reach (2) as the training target.

He adds up the combat Strength of these cards: 0 + -1 + 0... and ends up with -1 in total. Jim pays in resources the difference between the target to reach (2) and his total Strength (-1). Jim therefore loses 3 resources to continue the training.

Then Jim must exchange a peasant in play for the Archer. He chooses to exchange the Pyromaniac (-1). The Pyromaniac is therefore destroyed, returned to the game box, and the Archer is added to the Hospital, meaning that a Pyromaniac has been trained into an Archer. This greatly improves the odds of defending the Castle by replacing a -1 Strength card with a 2 Strength card!

Phase — The Enemy Advances

The second phase of each turn represents the enemy's long march toward the castle. On the Enemy board, note this symbol: a red skull arrow.

When the Enemy Advances, you slide the Enemy cards in the direction of the arrows. Add a card from the enemy pile to the next space so that all spaces are filled behind the first card, the cards always face down.

So, after the enemy has advanced 4 times, we would have all spaces filled.

Some cards have an action that generates a Vision. This action lets you reveal an Enemy card on the Enemy board at the designated spots. A revealed card stays revealed as it advances. A revealed card will not trigger its action at combat.

When they are at the Castle Gates, enemies are considered to be in combat. There is a maximum of 3 enemies.

If the enemy must advance and the maximum number of enemies is reached, the enemy advances anyway, but you destroy the next card that would have arrived at the Castle Gates. The enemy never stops! You may therefore lose an important item.

Phase — Combat

A combat is won if your Strength is greater than or equal to that of the enemy.

A combat proceeds as follows:

1. Reveal the leftmost enemy at the Castle Gates, draw its cards, then carry out its action.
2. Repeat step 1 for each enemy from left to right. This includes new enemies that may arrive in play during combat.
3. Play your actions and/or exchange your Bodyguard. If, while drawing cards with your actions, the enemy advances, return to step 1.
4. Compare the Strength results.
   • If the combat is won: turn the Enemy cards 180 degrees and add them to the Hospital along with the rest of your cards in play.
   • If it is lost: you lose the difference in resources. Then you distribute your Strength across the Enemy cards in play. If you can match the Strength of one or more enemies, you eliminate those enemies and gain their cards. Otherwise, the surviving enemies gain a bonus token according to their number of swords (limit of one bonus token per enemy).

Boss Fight

When you have defeated all the enemies, or when during the second phase (The Enemy Advances) there are no more enemies to advance, destroy the remaining enemies at the Castle Gates and move directly to the Boss fight. The rules change:

1. During the Boss fight, there is no more training. You fight the Bosses one after another.
2. The Bosses have set fire to the castle. The castle is burning! You can no longer gain resources — this is what the no-food symbol on Boss cards means. You also lose 2 resources each time the Castle is empty, as indicated on the Player board.
3. You reveal and face one Boss at a time.
   • A defeated Boss is removed from the game.
   • If you do not win, you must try again.
   • Trigger a Boss's action at each combat.
   • A Boss does not grant bonus tokens.
4. Triumph over all the Bosses and peace returns to the village!

King/Queen

Kings and Queens are roles that determine your starting resources, a one-time power for the game, and an advantage and a handicap.

Place 1 Training Handicap token on the Gold card stack indicated on your King/Queen card. Each time you place the Training token on that type of Gold card, you lose 2 resources.

Kings and Queens each have a unique power for the game. You may use this power whenever you are able to play actions. To use it, simply turn the card over, then trigger the power. Once per game.

Difficulty Levels

• Easy: Start the game with 3 additional resources. Enemies do not gain bonus tokens. You benefit from the advantage printed in the green box and ignore the handicap printed in the red box. 3 Bosses to face.
• Normal: You benefit from the advantage printed in the green box and suffer the handicap printed in the red box. 4 Bosses to face.
• Difficult: You ignore the advantage printed in the green box and suffer the handicap printed in the red box. The Bodyguard space is empty at the start of the game, but you may fill it during the game. 5 Bosses to face.

Bodyguard

The Bodyguard is a space on the Player board for keeping a Peasant or Item card from one phase to the next. It is your best tool for winning at Goblivion!

• It does not leave play at the end of phases.
• The Bodyguard is not "in play," so it is not counted during training or combat.
• To use it, you exchange it for a card in play (a card on the Battlefield); that card then takes its place as the Bodyguard.
• It can only be used ONCE per phase.
• You may only exchange the Bodyguard for a card in play whose action you are NOT using.

Co-op Mode

Co-op mode represents two Kings/Queens who each defend one half of the same castle.

Each player has their own King/Queen, their own Battlefield, and their own resources, which they manage individually. Players share the Castle cards and the training decisions. If a player's resources fall to zero, the game ends in defeat. The mechanic that changes everything: a player may lose 1 resource to send 1 card from their Battlefield to their ally's, as many times as desired.

Setup: Each player begins with their own King/Queen role, their resources (on their King/Queen card), their Bodyguard, and their own Battlefield space.

• Shuffle the 40 Blue cards, then place them on the Castle space, between the players.
• The number of Enemy cards to place in Co-op is indicated on the Enemy board.

General rules for Co-op mode:

• Each player has their own Battlefield and tallies their Strength individually for combat and training.
• Each player may lose one resource to send one of their cards in play to their ally's Battlefield.

"Training Phase," as in solo, with exceptions:

• The players decide together where the Training token will be placed — they therefore train the same type of card (example: each player trains a Soldier).
• Only the affected King/Queen loses resources according to their Training Handicap token.
• Each player draws their own cards for their Battlefield, but once the phase ends, the cards in play and the trained cards all end up in the same Hospital. The draw order is decided between players.

"The Enemy Advances Phase," as in solo.

"Combat Phase," as in solo, with exceptions:

• Each player fights the same enemies at the same time on their own individual Battlefield.

Example: Jim draws 3 cards and must have 4 Strength. Tom draws 3 cards and must have 4 Strength.

If one player has enough Strength but their ally does not, the enemy stays in play and gains 1 bonus token.

Example: Jim has 1 Strength, Jim loses 3 resources. Tom has 5 Strength, Tom loses 0 resources. The enemy was not defeated by Jim. It stays in play and gains 1 bonus token.

• Each player loses resources individually according to the combat.
• Players each suffer the effects of enemy actions. Exception: the enemy advances only happens once.

Boss Fight, as in solo, with exceptions:

• Follow the co-op column (two-player icon) to know the number of cards to draw and the Strength to reach.
• When the Castle is empty, players each lose 2 resources.
• Both players are affected by the Bosses' actions.

Card by Card

() Quantity in the box.*

Blue Cards

• Alchemist (1): Must choose a card in play. Cannot choose itself.
• Apprentice (1): Removes cards from the Castle, with a bonus.
• Adventurer (1): Must choose a card in play. Cannot choose itself.
• Innkeeper (1)
• Baker (1)
• Lumberjack (3)
• Hunter (1)
• Chief Scout (1): When it becomes Bodyguard, generate a Vision.
• Sword (3)
• Farmer (15)
• Gentleman (1)
• Grimoire (1)
• Village Hero (1): Pay 1 resource and it counts as a Soldier for this phase only.
• Village Idiot (1): Must choose a card in play. Cannot choose itself.
• Beggar (2)
• Tax Collector (2)
• Pyromaniac (2)
• Thief (2)

Gold Cards

• Archer (4): Draw 1 card OR generate a Vision. Cannot do both.
• Builder (4): Take it before it's too late.
• Executioner (4): Practice early in the game.
• Catapult (4): Draws abundantly. Must choose a card in play. Cannot choose itself.
• Blacksmith (4): Brings back Items, not Peasants.
• Berserker (4): Strong and useful.
• Priest (2): Faithful healer.
• Mechanical Protector (4): The strongest of them all!
• Soldier (4): United, they are stronger.

King/Queen

• Bella the Learned (1): Reactivates your actions!
• Margot the Gentle (1): Repels the enemy's advance!
• Brad the Ingenious (1): Brings back precious items!
• Loko the Brute (1): Boom! Eliminates a standard enemy!
• Jade the Merciless (1): Eliminates bad cards!

Boss

• Cow Dragon (1)
• Giant Troll (1)
• Goblin Bomb (1)
• Slingshot (1)
• The Twins (1): Ignores the Strength of identical cards after the first. If you have 3 Soldiers, ignore the Strength of the 2 duplicates — count them as one. So 3 Soldiers are worth 4 Strength against this Boss.
• Trollette (1): Ignores the Strength of cards worth 4 or more, but you can still trigger their actions.
• Troll Queen (1)

1-Sword Enemy / Item

• Goblin Archer // Sling (2)
• Goblin Assassin // Toxic Blades (2)
• Goblin Hero // Fire Sword (1): Doubles the value of the tokens on a card.
• Goblin Magician // Magic Hat (1)
• Goblin Minstrel // Drum (1): Gives a +1 bonus token to each enemy at the Castle Gates after they have advanced (1 max).
• Goblin Nudist // Dirty Underwear (1)
• Pestilent Goblin // Rat Sack (1): Peeks at the Castle cards, risking a loss of resources.
• Goblin Cowherd // Daisy (2): In case of a tie, you choose the peasant.
• Herd of Goblins // Hunting Horn (1): You choose the peasant.

2-Sword Enemy / Item

• Troll King // Royal Cape (1): Gives a +2 bonus token to each enemy at the Castle Gates after they have advanced (1 token max).
• Troll Shaman // Cursed Staff (1): In case of a tie, you choose the peasant.
• Troll Slaver // King's Fool (1): Copies a peasant and gains its characteristics. Does not copy the number of tokens on the copied card.
• Glutton Troll // Salt Cellar (2)
• Troll Sorcerer // Spell Book (1): You draw the cards once the Spell Book is in the Hospital.
• Trollolole // Giant Knife (2): If the Castle is empty, ignore the enemy's action.
• Troll Saboteur // Super Tool (2): Only active during the combat in which it is revealed.

General Notes — Important!

• "In play" means "on the Battlefield."
• Enemies are not "in play."
• You only fight enemies during the Combat phase.
• Cards whose action is used have their Strength counted in combat and in training.
• A card that arrives in play from the Hospital is ready to be used.
• You shuffle the Hospital cards into the Castle only when you are forced to draw and the Castle is empty.
• An Item can be the Bodyguard.
• Cards whose action has already been used can still be destroyed or sent back to the Hospital by other cards — this is even one of the strategies to use to win!

Good luck!

Game Aid

Icons: Peasant, Draw, Enemy, Item, Vision, Resource.

1 — Training

Goal: your Strength ≥ the training target.

1. Place the Training token on a Gold card. The 2-sword cards become available after winning a first combat.
2. Draw from the Castle the number of cards indicated on the training process.
3. Use the actions of the cards in play. Options: exchange the Bodyguard (1x); King/Queen power.
4. Compare your Strength with the training process target. If the target is not reached, pay the difference in resources or skip the training.
5. Destroy a card with the symbol requested in the training process: Peasant or Item. Otherwise, skip the training.
6. Add the newly obtained card to your Hospital along with the cards from the Battlefield.

2 — The Enemy Advances

1. Slide the Enemy cards one space in the direction of the arrows on the Enemy board.
2. A face-down card slides face down.
3. A face-up card slides face up.
4. Always fill the empty space behind a card.
5. If no enemy can advance during this phase, destroy the enemies at the Castle Gates and move to the Boss fight.

3 — Combat

Goal: your Strength ≥ the enemy's Strength.

1. Reveal the leftmost enemy at the Castle Gates and draw the indicated number of cards.
2. Apply the enemy's action, if revealed this turn.
3. Repeat step 1 for each enemy.
4. Play the actions of your cards in play. Options: exchange the Bodyguard (1x); King/Queen power.
5. If a new enemy arrives in combat, restart from step 1.
6. Compare the Allied/Enemy Strength results.
   1. If you succeed, add the card to your Hospital along with the cards from the Battlefield.
   2. If you fail, lose the difference in resources. Then distribute your total Strength across the enemies' Strength. Place the defeated Enemy cards in the Hospital, turned 180 degrees. Enemies not defeated gain a bonus token according to their number of swords. (If the last enemy is defeated, move to the Boss fight.)

Boss Fight:

1. You no longer have training.
2. You no longer gain resources.
3. Lose 2 resources when the Castle is empty.
4. Boss fights happen one at a time.
5. Bosses trigger their action on every attempt.