Heirs of the Wizard King Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Contents
• Introduction
• Setup
• Turn Order
  • 1. Either Command, Absorb or Cast
  • 2. Chain by Matching Color or Number
  • 3. Discard and Score All Complete Chains
  • 4. Draw Two Cards from the Deck
  • 5. Deal One Card to the Black Chain
• Black Abilities
• Abilities
  • Heal
  • Burn
  • Lore
  • Grow
  • Webs
  • Prior
• Ending the Game
  • Additional Rules
• Solo Mode

Contents

The printed contents page lists the following components: 48 Cards, 4 Player Boards, 35 Tokens, and 1 Black Wizard.

The contents page lists the rule sections as: Introduction (page 3), Setup (pages 4-5), Turn Order (pages 6-8), Black Abilities (page 9), Abilities (pages 10-15), Ending the Game (page 16), and Solo Mode (page 17).

Introduction

The Wizard Tower has stood for centuries as a beacon for hopeful new wizards. Those that possess a spark of talent are trained to master one of six magic abilities; those without are simply turned away. Every generation, however, a special few are found with the talent necessary to master all six magic abilities. These apprentices are specially trained by the Wizard King, so they are named the HEIRS OF THE WIZARD KING.

Your training just began when a Black Wizard murdered the Wizard King to fuel an evil ritual. Unguided, you must complete your training to be able to stop the Black Wizard. You must stop the ritual, and do it quickly, because not only could the ritual destroy this way of life, someone less worthy might rise and take the throne before you.

Setup

1. Each player receives a Player Aid and places a Score Token on the 1.
2. Select a first player, place the Black Wizard Score Card to their right with the Black Token by the 1 of the Track.
3. Place one each of the Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue and Violet tokens on the left side of each Player Aid and the Black Wizard.
4. Shuffle the cards and deal each player, and the Black Wizard, one card face up to start their Chain.
5. Deal each player a Hand of cards equal to their turn order: first player gets one, second player gets two, etc.
6. Place the Deck in reach of all players. Flip the top card of the Deck to create the Discard Pile.
7. The first player begins; play proceeds clockwise.

Turn Order

1. Either Command, Absorb or Cast

• Command: Play a card from your Hand. Use its ability. Then discard the card.
• Absorb: Play a card from your Hand. Move that color's Token up one space on the Score Track. You may immediately Cast that Token's ability. Then discard the played card.
• Cast: Cast any of your Ability Tokens. Use the description on your Player Aid; your Token's level replaces the symbol.

2. Chain by Matching Color or Number

Place cards from your Hand to either end of your Chain that match the end card's color or number. A Chain is complete when the number of cards in the Chain equals the next space on the Score Track. When a Chain is complete, no cards may be added to it. If your Chain is empty, you may place any card from your Hand to start a new Chain.

3. Discard and Score All Complete Chains

Discard all complete Chains and move that individual's Score Token up one space. Scoring players also increase, but don't use, an Ability Token one space.

4. Draw Two Cards from the Deck

In a two-player game, players may have up to 5 cards in their Hand without penalty. Higher player count games reduce the Draw Limit by 1 for each additional player, as shown below.

Players	Draw Limit
2	5
3	4
4	3

• Check: If your Hand exceeds the Draw Limit, either: skip your Draw Step, or discard to the Draw Limit.
• Draw: If your Hand is equal to or less than the Draw Limit, either: Draw 2 cards, or resolve your selected ability that says "On your Draw Step..."

Illustrated in the 4-player example: Check (4 Players): Don't Draw, or Discard to Draw Limit. Draw (4 Players): Draw 2 Cards, or Resolve Draw Step Ability.

5. Deal One Card to the Black Chain

Deal the top card of the Deck to either end of the Black Chain; it does not need to match. Increase the Ability Token that matches that card one spot on his track. Then perform that color Ability at that Token's level. Finally, deal 1 card to empty player Hands and Chains.

Black Abilities

While performing Black Abilities, if there is a tie, target the first tied player to the right of the current player.

• Heal (Black): Look at the top [Red] card(s) of the Discard Pile. Chain the first card that matches either end of the Black Chain. If none match, do nothing.
• Burn (Black): Randomly discard one card from the player with the largest Hand. If all player Hands are empty, randomly discard from the player with the largest Chain instead. Repeat until [Orange] or more card(s) have been discarded or no players have cards.
• Lore (Black): Look at the top 2 + [Yellow] card(s). Chain as many cards as possible that match either end of the Black Chain (maximum of 2). Shuffle the remaining cards and place them on top of the Deck.
• Grow (Black): Reveal [Green] card(s) from the Deck. Match as many cards as possible to the Black Chain. Then match as little as possible to the player's Chains, prioritizing smaller Chains.
• Webs (Black): Randomly return one card to the Deck from the largest player Chain. Repeat until [Blue] card(s) have been returned or all player Chains are empty.
• Prior (Black): Discard [Violet] card(s) from the Deck.

Abilities

Each card represents a wizard. The spell they are learning is shown by color/symbol (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, and Violet) and their proficiency with that spell is shown by a number from 1-7. All wizards of the same color perform the same spell; however, higher numbered wizards affect more cards. The only exception are the Lords (shown by an L), which use similar, but legendary abilities.

As players absorb/cast abilities, the symbol in the ability's description is replaced by their token's level. In this transcription, that symbol is written as the bracketed color, e.g. [Red] means "your Red Token's level."

Each basic ability is printed as a ladder: the low-level card, the ability symbol, and the high-level card, followed by the ability text. The thumbnails of those ladder cards are example art and are not reproduced here.

Heal

Red Wizards are fascinated by blood's ability to shape and heal the body, even normally fatal wounds.

• Heal: Look at the top [Red] card(s) of the Discard Pile, maintaining their order. Select one card to place in your Hand.
  • Example: Take 1 to Hand.
• Heal Death (Lord): Look at the entire Discard Pile, maintaining the order. Select up to two cards to place in your Hand.
  • Example: Take 2 to Hand.

Burn

Burn: These wizards enjoy bright lights and destruction. Used properly, their flames can be a tool for reshaping landscapes, but fire has been known to get out of hand before. Use these abilities to remove unwanted obstacles to your success, even yourself if necessary.

• Burn: Select cards randomly from an opponent's Hand. Discard [Orange] card(s) from any Chain/Hand. Opposing player's cards each count for two discards.
  • Example: Discard 7 Cards.
  • Opponent's Hand and Chain: each card counts as 2 discards.
  • Black Chain, your Hand and your Chain: each card counts as 1 discard.
• Precise Burn (Lord): Select a number. Starting with yourself, discard from each Chain and Hand until each has that number remaining.
  • Example: Selected 1. Discard all but 1 card from each Chain and Hand.

Lore

Lore: Discovering and hoarding ancient lore is a Yellow Wizard's only true passion. They spend their days trekking through libraries, seeking only the best scrolls. Yet, absentmindedly, only the Yellow Lord has the foresight necessary to bring a satchel for his discoveries.

• Lore: On your Draw Step, draw 2 + [Yellow] cards. Keep two, return [Yellow] to the top of the Deck in any order.
  • Example: Draw 6 cards. Keep 2. Return 4 to the top of the Deck.
• Ancient Lore (Lord): On your Draw Step, draw until you have ten cards. Return three cards to the top of the Deck in any order.
  • Example: Draw until you have 10 cards. Keep 7. Return 3 to the top of the Deck.

Grow

Grow: The simple presence of a Green Wizard causes flowers to bloom. Their love for nature, and raw talent, allows them to find and cultivate all manner of plant life. However, their ability does come with a price: their presence also causes thorns and weeds to flourish.

• Grow: Reveal the top [Green] card(s) of the Deck. Add them to any Chain that they match. Discard any card(s) that can't join a Chain.
  • Example: Reveal 3 cards from Deck. Chain by matching; discard cards that don't match.
• Grow Aura (Lord): Reveal enough cards to complete all players' Chains. Clockwise, each player chains one or discards one that can't chain.
  • Example: 2-player game, both need a 4-card Chain; reveal 4 cards. Chain by matching.

Webs

Webs: Self-appointed inquisitors, Blue Wizards roam the Tower searching for wrongdoings. Often, their most valiant efforts trap innocents in immobilizing webs. But this "nuisance" has proven to be the best defense against the Black Wizard.

• Webs: Return up to [Blue] chained card(s) to the top of the Deck in any order.
  • Example: Return 2 Chained Cards to the Deck.
• Tower Webs (Lord): Return up to 10 Chained cards to the top of the Deck in any order. Then flip the Black Wizard face down, maintaining his Tokens.
  • Example: Return up to 10 Chained Cards to the Deck. Flip Black Wizard.

Prior

Prior: Violet Wizards reverse time for everything but memory and magic. With their prior knowledge, they are able to rewrite segments of time, sometimes in their favor. Normally, this only affects their immediate area, but the strongest can rewrite on a global scale.

• Prior: On your Draw Step, instead shuffle your Hand and the Discard Pile into the Deck. Then draw [Violet] card(s).
  • Example: Draw 3 Cards. Shuffle Hand and Discard into Deck.
• Prior Tower (Lord): Shuffle all other cards into the Deck. Deal all Chains 1 card and all Hands 3 cards. Then start a new turn.
  • Example: Shuffle all other Cards into the Deck; deal new Hands and Chains; then take a new turn.

Ending the Game

How to Win: In a two-player game, the first player to reach the 7 on the Score Track wins. For each additional player, the required score reduces by 1, as shown by the 2P / 3P / 4P markers on the Score Track. When multiple players win on the same Score Step, the tie is resolved by turn order: the current player beats the next player, who beats the next player, etc.

How to Lose: If the Black Token reaches the required score, all players lose. The Black Token moves up as the Black Chain gets scored and anytime the Deck runs out of cards. Players must work together to discard the Black Chain and prevent the Deck from emptying; but, in the end, only one player can be crowned King.

Additional Rules

• Chain Holes: If a card in the middle of a Chain is removed, the remaining cards stay chained together even if they don't match.
• Empty Deck: If the Deck is ever empty, move the Black Token up one spot, shuffle the Deck and continue play.
• Empty Discard Pile: If the Discard Pile is ever empty, immediately flip the top of the Deck to create a new Discard Pile.
• Shuffling: When the Deck is shuffled and the Black Wizard is face down, flip the Black Wizard face up, maintaining its Tokens.
• Face Down Black Wizard: When the Black Wizard is face down, players do not deal a card to the Black Chain.

Solo Mode

The other Heirs have fallen to the Black Wizard, making him stronger than before. Undaunted, you still lay claim to the throne. Seeing your resolve, the Black Wizard has unleashed his power in a more dangerous Ritual.

Setup: The Black Wizard has two Chains. Both begin with a single Chained card.

Complete Black Chains: If either Black Chain gets Scored, both Chains get discarded. However, only increase his Score Token by 1.

5. Deal one card to the Black Chain: Both Black Chains are dealt a card. Do this one after the other, pausing to perform the ability. Each ability only affects that Black Chain, except Green Abilities, which now prioritize adding the most total cards to the Black Chains.