Hybris: Disordered Cosmos
Hybris: Disordered Cosmos Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Story
The End of an Era
The primordial gods have fallen. Hunted, captured, and tortured by their children, Chronos and his peers are nothing but remnants of an ancient world. The era of the Olympians has just begun. After years of fighting, a new order is established. Zeus and his brothers and sisters dominate the heavens and the mortal world. Now, they are trying to organize themselves to share the remaining realms and to determine who will be the new ruler.
But the Olympians, even with their colossal strength, are not yet true gods! They must evolve and activate the spark that will allow them to attain that ultimate status. Moreover, they must establish their domination in the realm of mortals, by using the essence of their father: the aegis. This energy comes directly from the primordial gods themselves, who are captured and chained in the underworld. With this energy, the Olympians can meet the expectations of the greatest cities in ancient Greece by deploying the most beautiful and promising technologies.
Game Summary
In Hybris, each player takes on the role of an Olympian aspiring to become a real god, bringing empathy and technology to the people of ancient Greece.
Over the course of six ages, players must find the Primordials to extract aegis and drive out any threat that might upset the balance they are trying to establish. They must also seek to develop their powers and make their names among the believers who will sing their praises, by improving those believers' comfort of life through new technologies.
Each Olympian, accompanied by their heroes, will move between different mythical locations to perform specific actions, or travel to the mortal world to help the people of Greece. Through these actions, players will expand their influence and create new technologies in order to earn victory points, as well as unlock powers and attributes that may lead to the evolution of their Olympian into a god.
At the end of the six ages, the player with the most victory points will win their place on the throne of Olympus, and will become the guardian of this new world. But watch out! If a player manages to fully evolve their Olympian into a god, the game ends immediately. This new god will take the upper hand over the other pretenders and secure the throne of Olympus for themselves!
Components
For the Game
Note: Aegis gems, Prayer cubes, Believers, and Bonus Location tokens are not intended to be limited. If there are none available when you need to take one from the general supply, use something else as a substitute.
- 1 Main board (The Mortal World)
- 6 Location boards (Olympus, The Forge, The Coliseum, The Underworld, The Oracle, and The Moirai)
- 40 Trained Combat cards
- 5 Hero of the Coliseum cards
- 39 Premonition cards
- 6 Divine Pillar cards
- 10 Primordial cards
- 60 Technology tiles in 5 different types (Architecture, Culture, Military, Science, and Social)
- 33 Quest cards (17 Epic and 16 Confrontation)
- 2 Stance cards
- 5 Scenario cards
- 3 Variant cards
- 5 Hero of the Coliseum standees
- 1 Age marker
- 20 Bonus Location tokens
- 30 Aegis gems
- 30 Prayer cubes
- 30 Believers
- 2 Combat markers
For Each Player
- 4 Player boards (1 per player)
- 4 Olympian miniatures (1 per player)
- 24 Enhancement tiles (6 per player)
- 12 Hero standees (3 per player)
- 12 Prophet standees (3 per player)
- 12 Temples (3 per player)
- 40 cubes (10 per player, 8 Spark and 2 Track)
- 8 Player markers (2 per player, Greatness and Victory Point)
- 60 Player tokens (15 per player)
- 32 Location tokens (8 per player)
- 72 Player Combat cards (18 per player)
- 4 Player Aid cards (1 per player)
- 4 Game Aid cards (1 per player)
- 4 Aid booklets (1 per player)
Game Setup
Main Play Area
Create the World
Place the Main board (The Mortal World) in the center of the play area with the 6 Location boards placed in their positions around it:
- The Mortal World
- Olympus
- The Coliseum
- The Underworld
- The Moirai
- The Oracle
- The Forge
Locations
- A. Place the Age marker on space 1 of the Age track on Olympus board.
- B. Separate the Technology tiles by type into five piles, placing each pile face up onto its matching symbol on Olympus board. There is no need to shuffle each pile.
- C. Place the 5 Hero of the Coliseum standees, in any order, on their spaces on the Coliseum board, and place the 5 Hero of the Coliseum cards above their corresponding standees.
- D. Shuffle the deck of Trained Combat cards and place it face down on its space on the Coliseum board.
- E. Shuffle all Quest cards together to create the Quest deck. Turn over the top 3 Quest cards and place them on the spaces at the bottom of the Moirai board, with the remaining deck face down to their left.
- F. Shuffle the deck of Premonition cards and place it face down on its space on the Oracle board.
- G. Take the Chronos card from the Primordial deck and place it on the Primordial space on the Underworld board.
- H. Sort the remaining 9 Primordial cards into piles according to the symbols on their backs. Take 1 card at random from each pile and place each face down on its matching symbol on the Oracle board. Return the 6 unused Primordial cards to the box without looking at them.
Divine Pillars and Resources
- I. Place the 6 Divine Pillar cards in ascending order from left to right, face up, next to the game boards.
- J. Place the Aegis gems, Prayer cubes, Believers, Bonus Location tokens, and Combat markers in a general supply next to the game boards.
Player Markers
Each player chooses an Olympian and takes all of that Olympian's components.
- K. Place one of each player's colored markers on the Greatness track, in ascending order of their Auras, as marked on their Player boards.
Note: In a 3-player game, leave the first space on the Greatness track empty, and in a 2-player game, leave the first 2 spaces empty, so that the players' markers are still placed in ascending Aura order, but shifted to the end of the track.
For example, in a 3-player game, Zeus (with an Aura of 1) will start on the 2 space, followed by Poseidon (Aura of 3) and Hades (Aura of 7), on the 3 and 4 spaces respectively. The 1 space will be empty because it is a 3-player game.
- L. Place each player's other colored marker on the 0 space (shown by the Victory Point symbol) of the Victory Point track (order does not matter).
Player Area
For each player:
- A. Place your chosen Olympian's Player board in front of you.
- B. Place your 6 Enhancement tiles in position to match the illustrations on your Player board, with the image side of the tile face down.
- C. Place the 8 Spark cubes and 3 Temples in your color, as well as 2 Prophet and 2 Hero standees, in their corresponding spaces on your Enhancement tiles as marked by these symbols: Spark cube, Temple, Prophet, Hero.
Note: The Heroes have unique names; place those matching the names of the corresponding Enhancement tiles.
- D. Place 1 Track cube in your color on the starting space of your Determination track on the left side of your Player board (the one marked by an arrow).
- E. Place 1 Track cube in your color next to the Greatness symbol at the start of the Virtue track on the right side of your Player board.
- F. Place your Olympian miniature, and your remaining Prophet and Hero standees (1 of each) in your reserve next to your Player board.
- G. Place your 8 Location tokens and 15 Player tokens in your reserve next to your Player board. Note that in the base game, only use the side of the Player tokens depicting the face of your Olympian.
- H. Find the Enhanced Combat card (the one showing the Determination symbol alongside its name) from your Player Combat cards and tuck it face down underneath the Determination symbol on the left side of your Player board.
- I. Shuffle your remaining 17 Player Combat cards and place these face down as a deck next to your Player board. Draw the top card and put it in your hand. Leave space next to your deck for a discard pile.
- J. Draw a Premonition card from the Oracle and place it face down by your Player board. You may look at this card, but keep it secret from other players.
- K. Take 3 Aegis gems from the general supply and place them in their matching storage area on your Player board.
- L. Place your Player Aid cards and booklet nearby for reference during play.
Game Overview
At the end of the 6th Age, the player with the most Victory Points (VP) is awarded the Throne of Olympus and wins the game. However, if at any point any player manages to unlock all of their 6 Enhancement tiles, the game ends immediately and that player wins automatically, irrespective of Victory Points.
In seeking victory, you will need to do some or all of the following:
Expand Your Influence — Make your name known throughout ancient Greece, in order to recruit Believers who will follow you and build Temples in your honor.
Develop Technologies — Respond to the needs of humans by giving people access to modern technologies that will change their lives. They will reward you with their trust and prayers.
Enhance Yourself — Absorb the prayers from your Believers, grow by granting life to the greatest Heroes, and awaken the divine spark within you to enhance your abilities and move closer to becoming a true god.
Fight — Confront horrible beasts or challenge the tyrannical hold of another Olympian who comes to subdue their people. But be careful, your resources are limited, and even a good fight can put you in a difficult position in the future.
Prophesize — You hear the distant murmurs influencing your destiny... Must you engage with these visions? If you do, you will confront them alone. These Premonitions may bring excitement to your journey; just be careful not to stray too far from your main objective...
Important Rules
Pay
When an action or effect calls for you to 'pay' something (e.g. Believers, Aegis, Prayers, and/or Victory Points) and you cannot pay in full, you cannot perform that action or effect.
Lose
When an effect calls for you to 'lose' something and you do not have enough to lose everything required, first lose what you can, and then lose 1 Greatness Point. You can only lose 1 Greatness Point per effect in this way, regardless of how large your shortfall is and even if the shortfall is made up of a combination of things. Note that Victory Points can never be reduced below zero.
Card Decks
Whenever any deck of cards is empty, immediately reshuffle the corresponding discard pile to create a new deck.
Greatness Track
Whenever you gain or lose a Greatness Point, move your marker 1 space towards the front or back of the track, respectively. If the space you move into has another player's marker, swap the two markers. Gaps between markers are possible in games with fewer than 4 players.
If you gain a Greatness Point while you are on the 1 space or lose a Greatness Point while you are on the 4 space, you gain or lose 1 Victory Point, respectively, instead.
Gameplay
Hybris is played over 6 Ages, with each Age divided into 4 phases, carried out in the following order:
- Divine Pillar Phase
- Planning Phase
- Action Phase
- End of Age Phase
1. Divine Pillar Phase
Following the order of the Player markers on the Greatness track (from left to right), each player chooses a Divine Pillar card that will help define their strategy during this Age. When you choose a Divine Pillar, take it and place it face up in the dedicated space at the top of your Player board.
For example, in the first Age, if Zeus is in play, he chooses a Divine Pillar first because he has an Aura of 1 and will therefore be at the front of the Greatness track, followed by Poseidon, Athena, and finally Hades (with Auras of 3, 5, and 7 respectively). In subsequent Ages, the order will be determined by player actions that have altered the positions of the markers on the Greatness track.
After all players have their chosen Divine Pillar, add 1 Prayer cube to each unchosen Divine Pillar card that does not already have one on it. In a subsequent Age, if you choose a Divine Pillar with a Prayer cube on it, you also take that Prayer cube, placing it in your personal supply in the center of your Player board.
Divine Pillar Cards
Each Divine Pillar has a unique power. After choosing a Divine Pillar card, its power is available for you to use during that Age. But beware, a Divine Pillar also grants a benefit to each of the other players, whether or not you use its power!
In addition, the Divine Pillars set turn order during the Action Phase, with all players taking actions in ascending order of the numbers in the middle of their chosen Divine Pillar cards.
Each Divine Pillar card shows:
- A. The name of the Divine Pillar.
- B. The Divine Pillar's power, available to you during the Age you choose it.
- C. The benefit to be received by the other players during the Age you choose it.
- D. The number of the Divine Pillar, used to determine turn order in the Action Phase.
- E. The back of the card also shows its number.
For example, Athena chooses Divine Pillar card 1 and places it in the space at the top of her Player board. Since there was a Prayer cube on it, she also takes that, placing it in her supply.
2. Planning Phase
Each player secretly selects and places one of their available Location tokens under each of their available Hero and Prophet standees. This will determine the Location each character may visit during the Action Phase.
Notes:
- An available Location token is one from your reserve that is not already placed under a character (ones in your Used Locations space or Unavailable Locations space are not available).
- Do not assign a Location token to your Olympian miniature.
- Placing a Location token under a Hero / Prophet is optional.
- At the start of the game, you will only have 1 Hero and 1 Prophet available (those placed next to your Player board during setup). The ones that start on your Enhancement tiles must be unlocked via actions before you can use them (see page 15).
- Prophets cannot visit the Moirai or the Coliseum; those Location tokens cannot be assigned to any Prophets.
- During the game, you may gain Bonus Location tokens. A Bonus Location token can be assigned to a Hero or Prophet, allowing them to visit any Location (Prophets cannot visit the Moirai or the Coliseum). When you activate that standee in the Action Phase, you decide then which Location the character will visit.
Characters
Each player has 3 types of character: an Olympian, 3 Heroes, and 3 Prophets. Each type of character has a different role to play, and the key differences between them are as follows:
Olympians cost nothing to activate and can visit any Location. When activated, they must also use their Divine Pillar card. They can take part in Combat.
Heroes cost 1 Aegis to activate and require a Location token. They can take part in Combat and go to the Underworld if defeated.
Prophets cost 1 Aegis to activate and require a Location token. They cannot visit the Coliseum or the Moirai. They cannot fight and flee if attacked.
3. Action Phase
During this phase, players take turns in ascending order of the numbers on their chosen Divine Pillar cards, continuing in this cycle until all players have passed.
On your turn, you must choose one of the following:
- Activate one of your characters
- Pass
Activating a Character
Choose one of your characters that you have not yet activated this Age and perform the steps listed below, in order:
1. Pay for Activation
Activating your Olympian is free. However, to activate a Hero or Prophet, you must pay 1 Aegis to the general supply. If you cannot or do not wish to pay this cost, you cannot activate a Hero or Prophet.
2. Move the Character
If activating a Hero / Prophet, reveal the Location token you placed underneath your chosen character and move the character to the corresponding Location. Then, place the revealed Location token in the 'Used Locations' space on your Player board.
If you reveal a Bonus Location token, move the character to any Location of your choice and then discard the Bonus Location token instead of placing it in your 'Used Locations' space.
If activating your Olympian, move your Olympian to any Location.
When moving your character to a Location, place them on either an empty space within that Location or a space with a dashed line around it (which can have any number of characters placed on it). If there is no available space, place the character on the illustration of the Location instead.
The Mortal World is a special Location that follows slightly different rules (see box).
Notes:
- Prophets cannot move to the Moirai or the Coliseum.
- You must be able to perform an action at the Location. If you cannot, you may not send your character to that Location.
The Mortal World
When you move a character to the Mortal World, you may place it either on an empty space, or a space already occupied by another player's character.
If you move a character to an occupied space, a Combat is triggered to determine who will occupy the space (see page 26).
Note: Prophets cannot fight, so you cannot send them to occupied spaces.
3. Gain Bonus / Pay Penalty
If you placed your character on a space, you must immediately gain the bonus depicted on that space, if able. If you placed your character on the illustration (because there were no available spaces), you must immediately suffer the penalty shown to the right of the Location name. See the table on page 12 for a list of these bonuses and penalties.
4. Perform an Action
You must now perform one action of your choice from that Location. The Locations and their actions are detailed on pages 16-24.
For example, on your turn, you decide to activate one of your Heroes. You pay 1 Aegis and reveal the Location token below the Hero to be 'The Olympus'. You place the Hero on the empty space with the Greatness Point bonus, gaining 1 Greatness Point. Then, you choose either the Design or Convert action.
Activating Divine Pillar Cards
On a turn when you activate your Olympian, you must also activate your Divine Pillar card (either before moving, before performing an action, or after performing an action):
- You may use the power in the upper part of your Divine Pillar card.
- All other players receive the benefit on the lower part of the card (whether or not you used its power).
- Flip your Divine Pillar card face down to indicate that it has been activated this Age.
For details of all Divine Pillar cards, see page 9.
Note: If you pass without activating your Olympian, you cannot use the Divine Pillar's power yourself, but the other players will still receive the benefit from the lower part of the card when you pass.
For example, on your turn, you decide to send your Olympian, Poseidon, to the Underworld. You choose to place your miniature on the empty space with the Victory Point bonus, gaining 1 VP. Then, you choose the Resurrect action and take back your dead Hero, Theseus, placing the standee next to your Player board.
You then use the power of your Guidance Divine Pillar card, to take one Technology tile of your choice from Olympus, paying its cost and placing it in the Factory on the Forge Location board. Then, all other players receive the benefit from the lower part of Guidance, each drawing 1 Trained Combat card from the Coliseum.
Passing
Instead of activating a Hero, Prophet, or your Olympian, you may choose to pass. If you have already activated all of your characters, you must pass.
When you pass, remove the Location tokens from beneath any Heroes or Prophets you did not activate this Age, and return them to your available supply next to your Player board (do not place them in the 'Used Locations' space since you did not use them). If you did not activate your Olympian this Age, all other players now receive the benefit from the lower part of your Divine Pillar card, after which you flip the card (see Activating Divine Pillar Cards above).
Once you have passed, you take no further turns this Age. Other players continue to take turns until all players have passed.
Location Bonuses and Penalties
Bonuses
- None
- Gain 1 Victory Point
- Take 1 Aegis from the general supply
- Gain 1 Greatness Point
- Gain 1 Virtue
- Take 1 Believer from the general supply
- Take 1, 2, 3, or 4 Prayer cubes from the general supply and place them in the Well of Prayers (in the Mortal World)
- Take 1 Prayer cube from the Well of Prayers (if available) and place it on your Player board
- Draw 1 or 2 Combat cards from your deck into your hand
- Perform 1 Produce action (at the Forge)
Penalties
- Lose 1 Victory Point
- Lose 1 Believer to the general supply
- Lose 1 Aegis to the general supply
Well of Prayers
Whenever Prayer cubes are added to the Well of Prayers, you must immediately check for overflow.
If there are 9-13 Prayer cubes in the Well of Prayers, the active player must lose 1 of their Believers to the general supply.
If there are 14 or more Prayer cubes in the Well of Prayers, do the following instead:
- The player furthest ahead on the Greatness track who has at least one Temple in a City must destroy one of their Temples (removing it from the game).
- Empty the Well by returning all of its Prayers to the general supply.
4. End of Age Phase
Once all players have passed in the Action Phase, the Age ends. Perform the following steps, in order:
-
Orientation: Return all 6 Divine Pillar cards face up to their starting positions in ascending order, next to the game boards.
-
Rest: Each player removes all Hero and Prophet standees and all Olympian miniatures from the Locations and places them next to their Player board. Stand up any Olympians that are lying down (i.e. those that were wounded during this Age have now recovered).
Note: Leave defeated Heroes in the Underworld.
-
Permission: Each player returns all Location tokens from their 'Unavailable Locations' space on their Player board to their available supply (these will be available for use again in the next Age).
-
Occupation: Each player moves all Location tokens from their 'Used Locations' space to their 'Unavailable Locations' space.
-
Quest Advance: If there is a Quest card in the rightmost space on the Moirai board, remove it from the game, returning any Player tokens that were on it to their corresponding players. Then, slide any remaining Quests to the right and draw new cards to fill any gaps. There should now be 3 face up Quest cards.
-
Forge Burns: Advance each Technology tile on the Factory track at the Forge by one space. If this causes a Technology tile to leave the Forge, the player whose Player token is on the tile takes it and places it on an empty Technology storage space of their Player board. Each player can only have a maximum of 2 Technology tiles on their Player board. If you ever gain a 3rd tile, choose one of the 3 and remove it from the game (i.e. your 3rd tile may replace one of your existing ones).
-
Fear: If the Age marker is on a Primordial symbol (α, β, or γ):
a. Flip the corresponding Primordial card at the Oracle face up and apply the Wrath I effect to all players (in order of their positions on the Greatness track). Players who have a Combat card below the Oracle board are immune to the Wrath I effect.
b. Apply the Wrath II effect of the card to all players (in Greatness order).
c. Place the card on the Underworld board, on top of any cards already there.
d. Move all Combat cards that were placed below the Oracle board during Omen actions to their corresponding players' discard piles, and return the Player tokens that were on them to these players too.
For example, at the end of the second Age, a Primordial card is flipped, revealing Ouranos. Ouranos' Wrath I effect is applied to all players except for Hades, who has a Combat card below the Oracle board. The Wrath II effect is then applied to all players. Finally, Ouranos is placed on top of Chronos on the Underworld board.
If you have just completed the sixth Age, the game ends. Otherwise, advance the Age marker 1 step on the Age track and proceed to the next Age.
End of the Game
The game will end in one of two ways:
- If any player unlocks their last Enhancement tile (see page 15), the game ends and that player wins immediately.
- Otherwise, at the end of the 6th Age, the player with the most Victory Points wins. In case of a tie, the tied player who is earliest in order on the Greatness track wins.
Player Board
Your Player board shows and tracks information specific to your Olympian as well as providing places for you to store resources, Location tokens, and Technology tiles.
- A. Aura: This value determines your starting position on the Greatness track.
- B. Special Powers: Abilities or effects that are unique to your Olympian. Resolve them whenever one of the situations listed applies.
- C. Spark track: This represents the divine essence of your Olympian. Advancing along this track can unlock bonuses.
- D. Determination track: This represents the physical and mental strength of your Olympian. It determines the total value of Combat cards you can play during a Combat.
- E. Virtue track: This represents your Olympian's empathy to understand human prayers. Advancing up this track allows you to accumulate bonuses that you can earn by deploying Technology tiles.
- F. Store your Aegis gems here. They represent the divine material which composed the Primordials.
- G. Store your Believers here. They are mortals who follow the Olympians and help to craft Technologies.
- H. Store your Prayer cubes here. They represent the wishes of every soul living in ancient Greece, and may be used and recovered by deploying Technologies.
- I. Used Locations: When you activate a Hero or Prophet, place the Location token you used here.
- J. Unavailable Locations: Location tokens you cannot use are placed here. They will return to you during the End of Age Phase.
- K. Technology tiles: After one of your Technology tiles leaves the Factory at the Forge, and before you deploy it in a City, store it in one of these 2 spaces.
- L. Enhancement tiles: See page 15.
- M. Divine Pillar: Space for your Divine Pillar card.
Enhancement Tiles
Your Player board has 6 Enhancement tiles available to you. You unlock them by removing all of the components on them during the game. The components on each tile must be removed in order from left to right.
If you have the ability to remove a type of component, but none of those components are the leftmost ones on your Enhancement tiles, you cannot remove a component.
For example, if you have the ability to remove a Spark cube, you cannot choose 'The Little Owl' tile (because the leftmost piece is a Temple).
When you remove:
- Spark cube, place it in the leftmost empty space on your Spark track, receiving any bonus you cover up.
- Prophet or Hero, place their standee beside your Player board. They will be available for you to perform actions in future Ages.
- Temple, place it in the Temple area of any City on the Mortal World board where you do not already have one (each player can only have one Temple per City). If you have a Temple in a City, you will gain a bonus when you take an action in that City.
When you remove the last component from an Enhancement tile, gain the Victory Points shown alongside the tile's name, and then flip the tile. The Enhancement tile is now unlocked, granting you a permanent effect and/or a unique bonus.
When you flip the Enhancement tile with the Enhanced Combat card bonus on its flipped side, add your Enhanced Combat card to your hand.
If you manage to unlock your 6th and final Enhancement tile, you win the game immediately.
For example, during a visit to Olympus, you use the Convert action to allow you to remove a Temple from one of your Enhancement tiles. You choose the Egide tile, remove the Temple (placing it in a City), gain 4 Victory Points, 1 Determination and add your Enhanced Combat card to your hand before flipping the tile over.
Technologies
During the game, each Olympian is striving to enhance Greece technologically, offering an improved quality of life to its population.
There are 5 different types of Technology: Culture, Social, Science, Military, and Architecture.
The process of acquiring and bringing a Technology tile to a City requires a series of actions performed at different Locations in the game.
Each of these is explained in more detail later in the rulebook:
- Olympus – Page 16
- The Forge – Page 17
- The Mortal World – Pages 23-24
The Technology pipeline runs through five stages: The Plan (at Olympus, via the Design action), The Workshop (at the Forge, via the Build action), The Factory (at the Forge, via the Produce action), Storage (on your Player board), and Deployment (in a City, via the Deploy action).
Premonitions
Premonition cards can help your Olympian to develop their Enhancements faster. You start the game with one Premonition card and can get more by visiting the Oracle. Premonition cards are kept face down next to your Player board, but you can look at them at any time.
On your turn, if you send a character to the Location named on one of your Premonition cards, and you meet the conditions for fulfilment, you may reveal the card and gain the reward shown on it. Then, place the card face up in the discard pile on the Oracle board.
There is no limit to the number of Premonition cards you may hold at a time. You may fulfil a Premonition card on the same turn you draw it.
A Premonition card shows: the Location, the Conditions for fulfillment, and the Reward.
Example: "Temple of Apollo" names the city of Argos as its Location, with the conditions "Be in Argos" and "Have a Temple in Argos," rewarding +3 Greatness.
Locations
Olympus
This is the Kingdom of the gods. Here, you can obtain a Technology blueprint or exchange Prayers for valuable rewards.
Design
Take one Technology tile of your choice from anywhere in any of the piles on Olympus board and place it on the 'A' space in Hephaestus' Workshop at the Forge, showing its blueprint side. Place one of your Player tokens on top of it to identify it as yours. If there is already a Technology tile on the 'A' space, refer to the rules for The Forge on the next page.
Convert
You may perform any number of conversions, including the same one multiple times. For each conversion, choose a row on the conversion chart on Olympus board and spend the indicated number of Prayer Cubes from your Player board to immediately receive the corresponding reward. Return all spent Prayers to the general supply.
Conversion Rewards
- 2 Prayer cubes → Gain 1 Victory Point
- 2 Prayer cubes → Gain 1 Greatness Point
- 3 Prayer cubes → Remove 1 Spark cube from an Enhancement tile
- 4 Prayer cubes → Remove 1 Temple from an Enhancement tile
- 4 Prayer cubes → Remove 1 Prophet or Hero from an Enhancement tile
Remember: When you remove a component from one of your Enhancement tiles, it must be the leftmost component on that tile (see page 17).
For example, you send a character to Olympus and decide to use the Convert action. You have 7 Prayers in your supply. You choose to convert 4 Prayers to build a Temple, and another 2 Prayers for 1 Greatness Point, leaving you with 1 Prayer cube.
Age Track
At the bottom of Olympus board is the Age track, which is used to track the Age being played, and the Ages in which a Primordial will be revealed (see page 13).
The Forge
The lair of Hephaestus the blacksmith houses the machinery needed to manipulate the Aegis. By using its production lines, you can create new Technologies.
Hephaestus' Workshop
Any time you add a Technology tile to the Workshop, it is placed on the 'A' space. You may subsequently use the Build action to move this tile into the Factory, paying the Build costs, as explained below.
If the 'A' space is already occupied when you are placing a Technology tile into the Workshop, first slide the existing tile to the 'B' space, and so on. If this pushes a tile off the 'C' space, move that Technology to space '1' of the Factory without paying the Build cost.
If necessary, slide the tiles in the Factory as described below.
Produce
Slide all Technology tiles in the Factory forward one space, in the direction of the arrows. If you slide a tile off the '3' space, the player whose Player token is on it takes the tile and places it on one of their Technology tile storage spaces, returning their Player token to their supply. If the tile you moved off the '3' space belonged to another player, you gain 1 Victory Point.
Note: Each player can only store 2 Technology tiles at once, so if it would be their 3rd, that player chooses one of the 3 to remove from the game and keeps the other 2.
Build
Choose a Technology tile in the Workshop with your Player token on it and pay the Build cost (in Believers and/or Aegis) as indicated on the tile. If the tile is on the 'B' or 'C' space of the Workshop, discount the cost by 1 or 2 resources of your choice as indicated by the number beside the space.
Then flip the Technology tile and move it (along with your Player token) to the '1' space of the Factory. If there is already a tile on the '1' Factory space, first slide it along to the '2' space, and so on, following the arrows. If you slide a tile off the '3' space, follow the rules as described in the Produce action.
For example, you have the City Decree Technology tile in the 'B' space of the Workshop. You send a Hero to the Forge to perform the Build action. You pay 3 Believers and 1 Aegis (the Build cost minus 1 Aegis due to the discount of the 'B' space). Then you flip and place the City Decree tile on space '1' of the Factory.
As the Age progresses, other players visit the Forge and perform the Produce action (due to the Location space Bonus and the action itself), which advances your Technology in the Factory. Another player's action moves your Technology tile out of the Factory, so you move it to one of your empty Technology storage spaces on your Player board. The other player gains 1 VP for completing someone else's Technology.
The Oracle
The Pythia is an oracle who can see snatches of the future. You must provide the right Elements if she is to make a good interpretation of her visions.
Omen
Choose 1 Combat card from your hand and place it face up below the Oracle board with one of your Player tokens on it. The card you choose must depict at least 1 Element that is not shown on any other cards that are already face up below the Oracle board.
Then, pay 1 Believer (returning it to the general supply) to secretly look at the Primordial card that will be revealed next (in the first and second Ages this is α, in the third and fourth Ages it is β, and in the fifth and sixth Ages it is γ). After looking, return it to its position face down next to the Oracle board. Each player who has a Combat card below the Oracle is immune to the Wrath I effect of the card when it is revealed in the corresponding End of Age phase (see page 13).
Notes:
- If all 4 Elemental symbols are depicted on the card(s) placed below the Oracle board, the Omen action cannot be performed.
- Performing the Omen action does not protect you from the Wrath II effect of the next Primordial, but having looked at the card you will have advance warning of what it will be!
For example, in Age 1, you perform the Omen action. Since there are no other cards currently face up below the Oracle board, you may choose any of your Combat cards that depict at least 1 Element of any type. You choose the 'Sea Currents' card, which has the Water and Air symbols, placing it below the Oracle board with one of your Player tokens on it. You pay 1 Believer to see the α Primordial card.
Later, in Age 2, another player also wants to know the next Primordial (which is still α). They perform the Omen action and choose 'Combined Attack', which has at least 1 Elemental symbol that is not shown on 'Sea Currents' (Fire). If another player wishes to see the α Primordial card before it is revealed, they will need to play a card with the Earth symbol (the only symbol not yet showing on cards).
Sight
Draw 1 Premonition card from the Oracle and gain 1 Victory Point. See page 16 for more details about Premonition cards.
The Moirai
The Sisters of Destiny live in this place, guiding Heroes and Olympians to the most dangerous, but also the most rewarding events.
Quest
This action can only be performed by a Hero or an Olympian (Prophets cannot be moved to this Location). Select one of the Quests and attempt to complete it by following the requirements of the card.
Note: In the rare case that there are no face-up Quests, characters cannot move to the Moirai.
There are 2 types of Quest cards: Epic Quests have blue boxes (A), Confrontation Quests have red boxes (B).
Epic Quests
These Quests are divided into 2 to 4 acts, represented by blue boxes numbered I to IV and linked with chains. Each time a player completes an act of a Quest, it is marked with one of their Player tokens. It is not required that the same player completes all acts on their own.
When you select an Epic Quest card during a Quest action, you must attempt to complete the first available act on that card (the lowest-numbered act without a Player token on it).
If you meet the act's conditions, you are successful; gain the reward associated with that act, and place one of your Player tokens on the act. You may then choose to end the action here, or discard a Combat card from your hand to attempt the next act. Each time you successfully complete an act, you may choose to continue to the next act in the same way (discarding a Combat card to do so) until all of the acts have been completed. If you complete the final act of an Epic Quest, you gain the Epic reward as well.
If you attempt to complete an act but are unable to meet its conditions, the character performing the action is defeated. The consequences of this are the same as if they had been defeated in Combat (see page 28).
Confrontation Quests
These Quests represent mythological monsters that you can fight. Some are easier to defeat than others!
When you select a Confrontation card during a Quest action, you engage in a fight against the strength and the conditions indicated by the card (following the rules under Fighting Against the Game on page 25). If you are victorious, gain the Quest's reward. See page 28 for the consequences if you are defeated.
Each Confrontation Quest card shows its Base Force and Force bonus, and may show an Elemental Bonus and/or additional requirements for the Combat. If you cannot meet these additional requirements, you are defeated.
For example, you send your Olympian to the Moirai to fight the Hydra of Lerna. The Hydra has a Base Force of 2. For its Force bonus, you draw 2 Trained Combat cards from the Coliseum, which have a combined Force value of 5. Further, each of those drawn cards has the Earth symbol (though neither has Water), giving the Hydra an Elemental Bonus of 2 (1 per card). Therefore, the Hydra has a Total Force of 9 (2+5+2). As an additional requirement, you must reveal one of your own Combat cards with a Fire symbol.
You cannot reach a Total Force of 9, so your Olympian is defeated. You lay it down next to your Player board and lose 1 Greatness Point.
The Coliseum
The strongest Heroes emerge from the Coliseum, ready to be recruited by the Olympians to help them in their accession to power. You can also sharpen your Combat skills at its training ground. Only Heroes and Olympians can be moved to this Location and perform the actions here.
Train
Draw 1 Trained Combat card from the Coliseum, adding it to your hand.
Dominate
Choose a Hero of the Coliseum to fight by selecting their corresponding card. Engage in Combat with them (following the rules under Fighting Against the Game on page 25).
If you win, the Hero you just defeated joins your side: place their standee and card by your Player board. If you are defeated, see page 28.
For example, you choose to fight Calypso, who has a Base Force of 3, a Force bonus from 1 drawn Trained Combat card, and an Air Elemental Bonus. You draw a card with a Force value of 3 and the Earth and Fire Elemental symbols (i.e. not Air). Calypso's Total Force is therefore 6 (3+3+0).
Heroes of the Coliseum
When you win a fight against a Hero from the Coliseum, take their corresponding standee and Hero of the Coliseum card, and place them next to your Player board. They are now allied to you and will be available for use from the next Age. Once allied to you they work like your other Heroes, with the additional benefit that when activating them you may take advantage of their unique effect in certain situations, as written on their card. Placing their card next to your Player board also serves as a reminder of which Olympian they are now allied to.
The Underworld
The Kingdom of the Dead serves as the jail for the latest Primordial held captive by the Olympians seeking to extinguish their essence, the Aegis. But the true purpose of the Underworld is the imprisonment of Heroes fallen in battle.
Drain
Gain a number of Aegis gems from the general supply equal to the Aegis value of the top Primordial card on the Underworld board.
Resurrect
Return one of your previously defeated Heroes from the top of the Underworld board to your reserve, placing their standee by your Player board.
Note: You may use this action to bring back a Hero of the Coliseum who is on your side (their card is next to your Player board).
The Mortal World
The Mortal World contains the Well of Prayers and the 5 largest Cities in ancient Greece.
Each City has 1 space where characters can be placed during the Action Phase, a Temple area, and 2-4 Technology spaces.
Some of the Technology spaces are also linked together with Technological paths.
When you send a character to the Mortal World, you must choose a City to send them to, and place them on that City's space. If the space is already occupied, a Combat is triggered to determine who will occupy the space (see page 25). If you are defeated in this Combat, your turn ends immediately without you performing an action.
Note: Since Prophets cannot take part in Combat, you may only send a Hero or your Olympian to an occupied City space. You may send any character to unoccupied City spaces.
If you successfully send your character to a City (either by placing them on an unoccupied City space, or by being victorious over another player's character in Combat for an occupied space), continue with your turn as normal, gaining the bonus from the space, and then performing one of two possible actions: Influence or Deploy.
Location Bonuses and the Well of Prayers
The arrival of a character in a City generates a number of Prayers according to the bonus on the City's space. Take the indicated number of Prayer cubes from the general supply and place them in the Well of Prayers. Check for overflow in the Well of Prayers (see page 11).
Note: Sparta has no bonus on its space and therefore visiting Sparta generates 0 Prayers.
Influence
When you perform this action, first gain the benefits depicted in the City's banner.
- A. A number of Virtue.
Then, either:
- B. A number of Believers, or
- C. The City's Service.
In addition, if you have a Temple in the City where you are performing this action, gain 1 extra Virtue or Believer (you may choose either irrespective of whether you just gained Believers or benefited from the City's Service).
City Services
- Draw 1 Combat card from your deck into your hand
- Gain 2 Victory Points
- Gain 1 Greatness Point
- Perform 1 Produce action (at the Forge)
- Perform 1 Design action (at Olympus)
For example, you send one of your Heroes to the unoccupied City of Lemnos. This generates 2 Prayers which are placed in the Well of Prayers, and since there are fewer than 9 Prayers in the Well after this, you do not return a Believer.
You choose to perform the Influence action, gaining 1 Virtue before choosing to recruit the indicated 2 Believers. As you have a Temple in Lemnos, you decide to gain an additional Believer, taking 3 in total from the supply.
Subsequently, another player wants to visit Lemnos to complete one of their Premonitions. Since your Hero is already occupying the Lemnos space, the other player will have to fight you for it. The other player activates their Divine Pillar, Ambition, gaining them 1 VP as well as an additional 3 Force for use in the upcoming fight, before sending their Olympian, Poseidon, to Lemnos, triggering the Combat.
They win the fight and your Hero is sent to the Underworld, with Poseidon taking their place in Lemnos, generating another 2 Prayers for the Well. Since there are still fewer than 9 Prayers in the Well after this, they do not return a Believer either.
The other player then decides to perform the Influence action, gaining 1 Virtue and choosing to benefit from the City's Service, which is to perform the Produce action in the Forge.
Deploy
When you perform this action, you introduce a Technology tile to the Mortal World. Perform the following steps:
Place a Technology tile from your Player board on an empty Technology space in the City where you are performing this action. Place one of your Player tokens on top of it to indicate that it is your Technology. If there are no empty spaces, you cannot choose this action.
Note: Technology tiles must be placed so that their text is oriented the same way as the Mortal World board. This is important for the connections on the edges of the tiles.
Another player may challenge your deployment. If they do, refer to the rules on 'Challenging a Deployment' on page 24.
Distribute deployment rewards as follows. If another player successfully challenges your deployment, they first choose 1 of these rewards to gain themself and you gain the remaining 2. Otherwise, you gain all 3:
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A. The number of Victory Points as shown on the Technology tile (if any).
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B. The number of Prayers as shown on the Technology tile (if any), taken from the Well of Prayers. If there are not enough Prayers in the Well, take what is available.
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C. All the bonuses from your Virtue track (those at or below the position of your corresponding Track cube, from top to bottom). Then, reset the Track cube to space 1 of your Virtue track.
Note: If this reward is stolen from a successful challenge, it is the Virtue track of the challenged player which is used.
Bonuses of the Virtue Track
- Remove 1 Spark cube from an Enhancement tile.
- Draw 1 Combat card.
- For each of your deployed Technology tiles, gain 1 VP for each Connection Link it has to another Technology tile (including one of your own).
- Gain 1 Victory Point.
- Gain 1 Greatness Point.
Powers of Technology Tiles
Once a Technology tile has been placed, you gain the benefit of its power. Each tile has an icon indicating the timing of its power:
- Immediate: Gain the bonus when you deploy the tile.
- Start of Age: Apply at the beginning of the Divine Pillar Phase.
- End of Age: Apply at the end of the End of Age Phase.
- Passive: Applies at any relevant time during the game.
- Once per Age: This power can be used once per Age.
- Reaction: Apply the effect to each condition that triggers it.
- End of game: Apply at the end of the game.
After all rewards have been assigned, you gain 4 other bonuses.
- Gain 1 Victory Point if the Technology tile you deployed has the same symbol as the City's Technological Affinity.
- If you have a Temple in the City where you deployed the Technology, gain your choice of 1 Victory Point or 1 Prayer cube from the Well of Prayers (if available).
- Gain 1 Victory Point for each other Technology tile which is connected to the one you just deployed. Two tiles are connected if they have touching Connection Links on their edges. Note that the Technological Paths between Cities allow tiles in different Cities to be connected in this way. Also, the owner of each Technology tile that is connected to the Technology tile you just deployed gains 1 VP for every such Technology tile (including your other tiles).
- If the Technology tile has an Immediate power, resolve that now.
For example, you want to deploy the City Decree Technology tile that you have on your Player board to Argos. You decide to activate your Olympian in order to first use your Divine Pillar card, Truce, performing the Influence action in the City of Elis to gain 2 Virtue, thereby maximising your position on your Virtue track.
Then, you send your Olympian to Argos, generating 1 Prayer for the Well of Prayers, and performing the Deploy action, placing your City Decree tile (along with one of your Player tokens) on one of the spaces in Argos.
No other player challenges your deployment, so you gain 1 VP and 5 Prayers from the Technology tile. Unfortunately, there are only 3 Prayers in the Well, so you take the 3 available.
You also gain the rewards from your Virtue track (1 Spark cube, draw 1 Combat card from your deck to your hand, 1 VP for Connection Links with other Technologies, 1 VP, and 1 Greatness Point). You then move your cube back to the start of your Virtue track.
Finally, you gain 1 VP for having placed a Social Technology in a City with the Social Technological Affinity, plus 1 VP for connecting to another Technology tile (the player who owns the adjacent Technology tile also gains 1 VP).
Now that the City Decree is deployed, you gain the benefit of its power, which in this tile's case is an immediate one, so you gain 1 Spark and 2 Virtue.
Challenging a Deployment
When a player sends a character to a City and performs the Deploy action, another player may challenge this and attempt to collect one of the deployment's rewards. One by one, in reverse order of their positions on the Greatness track, the other players are offered the chance to challenge the deployment, until one player decides to challenge, or all players decline.
When you challenge a deployment, you must send an available character you have not yet activated this Age to engage in Combat with the player making the deployment, placing them in the same City on the Mortal World board.
- If you send your Olympian, they must not be wounded.
- If you send one of your Heroes, they must have a Location token underneath them; return this to your reserve before placing the Hero in the City.
Remember: Prophets cannot fight; you cannot send a Prophet to challenge.
If the defending player is performing their Deploy action with a Prophet, the Prophet flees immediately (return them to that player's reserve), and you win the Combat by default (the other player is neither defeated nor victorious). You move your character onto the space where the Prophet was (you do not get the bonus of the space) and in step 3, you gain one of the deployment rewards, with the other player getting the remaining two. The other player completes steps 4-7 as normal.
If the Defending player is performing their Deploy action with a Hero or their Olympian, a Combat is triggered (see page 25).
For example, you send your Olympian, Poseidon, to a City and choose to deploy your Propylaea in Stasis tile. In reverse order of the Greatness track, the other players are offered the chance to challenge.
The player who is last on the Greatness track does not think they can win the fight and chooses not to challenge. The player who is third on the Greatness track decides they will challenge the deployment with one of their Heroes. A fight takes place!
Combat
There are two different types of Combat in Hybris:
You can fight against the game...
- Facing terrifying monsters in Confrontation Quests.
- Fighting a Hero of the Coliseum.
- When resolving specific Primordial cards.
...or against another player:
- When moving into an occupied City.
- When challenging a Technology deployment.
Combat is always one-on-one and only Olympians and Heroes can fight. If a Hero or Olympian moves to a City occupied by a Prophet, or challenges a Deploy action being performed by a Prophet, the Prophet flees and is returned to the owning player's reserve. The other player automatically wins the Combat and applies the consequences for Victory (see page 25). The player whose Prophet fled is neither defeated nor victorious.
Combat Cards
Both types of Combat involve the playing of Combat cards. At the start of the game, your Combat card deck contains 17 cards (12 cards common to all players, and 5 cards specific to your Olympian).
Each Combat card shows: Determination cost, Attack name, Attack type, Elements, Effect, Force bonus, Force value, Combo symbol (x2), and Affiliation.
During the game, there are various ways in which you will draw cards from your deck into your hand. You can also add Trained Combat cards to your hand by using the Train action at the Coliseum.
There is no limit to the number of Combat cards you may have in your deck or your hand. However, some effects require you to discard down to a maximum hand size when they are applied as indicated by the effect.
During a Combat, when you play a Combat card, apply its effect. Also, if you play two cards next to each other whose Combo symbols form a single image, you gain the Force bonus on the right hand card of the pair.
(Weapon Combo and Divine Combo are two examples of matching Combo symbol pairs.)
Fighting Against the Game
To accomplish victory in this type of Combat, you must equal or exceed the Total Force of the enemy you are fighting. Combat takes place over 3 steps, as follows:
Step 1: Calculate the Enemy's Total Force
The enemy you are fighting has the following information on their corresponding Confrontation Quest, Hero of the Coliseum, or Primordial card:
- A. Base Force.
- B. Force bonus: Draw and reveal the indicated number of Trained Combat cards from the Coliseum. The sum of the Force values of these cards is the enemy's Force bonus.
- C. Elemental bonus: For each of the depicted Element symbols on Combat cards revealed in B, the Elemental bonus is increased by 1. If more than one Element symbol is depicted (including repeated symbols), check each symbol separately.
Note: Other than taking into account their Force values and checking if they have matching Element symbols, ignore all information on any Trained Combat cards drawn in this step.
The enemy's Total Force is equal to the sum of their Base Force, Force bonus, and Elemental bonus.
For example, you are trying to complete a Confrontation quest and must fight an enemy. Your opponent's Base Force is 3. You draw 2 Combat cards, revealing Sneak Attack and Feint.
The Force bonus is 4 (2+2), and the Elemental bonus is 2 (each card depicting the Water Element adds 2).
The Total Force is 9.
Step 2: Play Combat Cards
During this step, you may play Combat cards from your hand. To play a Combat card, choose one from your hand and place it face up in front of you (in an area known as your Combat zone), to the right of any cards that are already there.
Apply the effect of the card (if any) immediately after it is played.
Note: The combined Determination cost of any face-up Combat cards in your Combat zone must never be higher than your Determination value (as indicated by the position of the cube on your Determination track). You cannot play a Combat card that would cause you to exceed your Determination value.
You may continue to play Combat cards to your Combat zone in this way until you are unable or unwilling to play any more cards. Calculate your Total Force by adding up the Force values on the cards in your Conflict zone as well as any Force bonuses you gain from Combo bonuses or any card effects.
For example, you have a Determination value of 3. You play Stomping, Combo, and Anticipation (with Determination costs of 1, 2, and 0 respectively), not exceeding your Determination value of 3.
Your Total Force is calculated as follows: 7 for the cards (3 + 3 + 1), plus 2 for the Combo bonus of your first two cards, for a Total Force of 9.
Step 3: End of Combat
If your Total Force equals or exceeds the enemy's Total Force, you are victorious.
- If you win against a Hero from the Coliseum, that Hero joins your side. Place their standee and corresponding Hero of the Coliseum card next to your Player board. Also take a Bonus Location token from the general supply and place it with your other available Location tokens.
- If you win against a Confrontation Quest, receive the reward indicated on the card (see page 19).
- If you win against a Primordial, follow the instructions on the card.
If your Total Force is less than the enemy's Total Force, you are defeated. See page 28 for the full rules on being defeated.
Finally, discard all Combat cards from your Combat zone face up to your discard pile, and place all Trained Combat cards drawn in determining the enemy's Total Force face up onto the discard pile on the Coliseum board.
Continuing the example from before, since you equalled the enemy's Total Force of 9, you are victorious and receive the indicated reward (removing 1 Spark cube and gaining 3 VP).
Fighting Against Another Player
In this type of Combat, the player who initiated the Combat is the Attacker, and their opponent is the Defender. At the start of Combat, each player takes a Combat marker for use during the fight.
Combat takes place over a number of Combat rounds, with each Combat round divided into a series of steps:
- Each player selects 1 Combat card from their hand and places it face down in front of them (in an area known as their Combat zone), to the right of any cards that are already there. If you have no cards remaining in your hand, skip this step.
- Each player then secretly decides if they will 'Continue' the fight or 'Stop' by placing their Combat marker showing their chosen side, but covered by their hand. If you did not play a card in step 1, you must choose the 'Stop' side, and you do not need to cover it.
- Each player reveals their Combat markers.
- If your marker shows the 'Stop' side, and you played a Combat card this round, take that card back into your hand without revealing it.
- If your marker shows the 'Continue' side, flip the Combat card face up and apply its effects.
Note: The combined Determination cost of any face-up Combat cards in your Combat zone must never be higher than your Determination value (as indicated by the position of the cube on your Determination track). If you choose to 'Continue' the fight, you cannot choose a Combat card that would cause you to exceed your Determination value.
- If both players revealed the 'Continue' side of their Combat markers, perform another Combat round, following the same steps as before.
- If both players revealed 'Stop', proceed to the End of Combat below.
- Otherwise, if one player has chosen 'Stop', the other player (the one who chose 'Continue') may continue to play Combat cards, one by one, face up, and without using their Combat marker (but otherwise following the same rules as above). When they no longer wish or are unable to play further Combat cards, proceed to the End of Combat.
End of Combat
Both players calculate their Total Force by adding up the Force values on the cards in their Conflict zones as well as any Force bonuses gained from Combo symbols.
The player with the higher Total Force wins the fight. In the case of a tie, the defending player wins.
The result for the player who loses the fight is always the same, no matter what the Combat situation. See page 28 for the full details on being defeated. The result for the player who wins the fight depends on the Combat situation:
In a fight between two players for an occupied City space:
- If the player whose turn it is (the one who placed one of their characters in the occupied City) wins the fight, they take their place in that City (replacing their opponent) and then their turn continues as normal.
- If the defending player wins the fight, they retain their place in that City.
If the fight was from a challenge to a Technology deployment, there are two possible outcomes:
- If you win as the defending player, continue your Deploy action.
- If you win as the challenger to another player's deployment, place your victorious character in the City where the deployment is being made (replacing your defeated opponent) and claim one of the deployment rewards, with the other player getting the remaining two (see page 24).
Finally, both players discard their Combat cards from their Combat zones to their discard piles.
For example, Player 1 sends Poseidon to Lemnos and chooses to perform a Deploy action. Player 2 challenges this, using one of their Heroes. Combat is initiated.
Both players have a Determination value of 3. They each choose a Combat card from their hand, placing them face down in their Combat zones, before choosing and then revealing their Combat markers. Both markers indicate 'Continue', so both cards are flipped face up.
Player 1 played God's Grace, giving them 4 Force and costing them 3 Determination. However, because of Poseidon's Special Power, they get -1 Force because Poseidon is being attacked. Player 2 played Stomping, giving them 3 Force and costing them 1 Determination.
At this point, the two players are tied and if the Combat ended here, Player 2 would be defeated because they are the Attacker. A new Combat round begins and both players place another Combat card face down in their Combat zones and select a side for their Combat marker. Player 2 reveals their Combat marker showing the 'Continue' side, while Player 1, with no Determination left, has chosen 'Stop' and takes their face-down Combat card back into their hand without revealing it.
Player 2 reveals Feint, giving them an additional 2 Force and winning the fight. Defeated, Poseidon is placed lying down next to Player 1's board, who loses 1 Greatness Point.
Because Player 2 won the fight, they gain their choice of one of the following rewards:
- The 5 VP granted by the Technology tile.
- The 3 Prayers granted by the tile.
- The bonuses from Poseidon's Virtue track, here 1 Greatness Point and 1 VP.
Player 1 gains the other 2 rewards and reset their Track cube back to the start of their Virtue track.
Poseidon is wounded and Player 1 loses 1 Greatness Point, placing Poseidon lying down next to their Player board. Player 2 places their Hero in the City.
Defeat
When you are defeated in a fight, whether against the game or against another player, the consequences depend on whether you fought with your Olympian or one of your Heroes. In addition, if the Combat occurred during your turn, your turn ends immediately after resolving these consequences.
Exception: If you are defeated during one of your Deploy actions, complete the action before ending your turn.
When Your Olympian is Defeated
They are wounded and shamed: Place your Olympian miniature next to your Player board, lying down, and lose 1 Greatness Point. Your Olympian cannot be activated while lying down. They will recover from their wounds and be stood up again during the End of Age Phase.
Note: If your Olympian was defeated on your turn during their activation and you have not yet used your Divine Pillar card, you must activate it immediately without using its power; all other players now receive the benefit from the lower part of the Divine Pillar card.
When One of Your Heroes is Defeated
Place them on the top part of the Underworld board, lying down. You may retrieve them later using the Resurrect action (see page 21).
'Defeat' effects
Certain game effects instruct you to Defeat one of your Heroes. To do this, choose any one of your undefeated Heroes (from either your reserve, or one already placed) and place them in the Underworld.
Duel Mode
When playing with two players, you may choose to play Duel mode. This follows the normal rules for a 2-player game but with the following changes.
Setup
In addition to the normal 2-player setup, each player takes a double-sided Stance card and places it next to their Player board.
Authority
After setup is complete, but before the game begins, players take turns placing Player tokens to represent their authority in the world of Hybris. First, the player whose marker is in position 4 on the Greatness track places 1 of their God tokens onto any empty space in any Location, even one with a dashed outline. Then, the other player does the same. In the same order, each player places a second token.
Of the 2 tokens each player places, 1 must be face up (showing the Olympian) and the other must be face down (showing the Forbidden side).
- Face up: This Location is under the influence of this Olympian.
- Face down: This Location is Forbidden.
Gameplay changes
1. Divine Pillars Phase
As in the normal game, the player ahead on the Greatness Track chooses a Divine Pillar card, followed by the other player.
Then, in the same order, each player chooses a second Divine Pillar card and also declares the Stance they wish to adopt during this round, flipping their Stance card to the appropriate side and choosing how to overlap their Divine Pillar cards.
If the player wants to be Humble, they place their Divine Pillar cards, one overlapping the other so that the upper part of one of the cards is covered.
If the player wants to be Proud, they place their Divine Pillar cards, one overlapping the other so that the lower part of one of the cards is covered.
Unlike in the normal game, no Prayer cubes are placed on unselected Divine Pillar cards.
2. Planning Phase
No changes to this Phase.
3. Action Phase
During this Phase, spaces with Player tokens showing the Forbidden side up cannot be visited. If you move one of your characters to a Location with a face-up Player token, resolve an effect and then return the token back to the owning player.
- If it is your token, gain 1 VP.
- If it is your opponent's token, they gain 1 Greatness Point.
In addition to this, after placing a Hero or Prophet, you must also place one of your Player tokens from your reserve onto an empty space in either the same Location or an adjacent Location.
- If you are Proud, this token is placed face up.
- If you are Humble, this token is placed face down.
Adjacent Location: Two Locations are adjacent if their boards are touching.
For example, the Forge is adjacent to Olympus, the Oracle, and the Mortal World.
When you activate your Olympian, you must resolve two effects immediately, before moving your Olympian to a location. The two effects are as follows:
- If you are Humble: First, remove up to 4 of your opponents face-up Player tokens and return them to their supply. If you returned at least 2 tokens, you may remove 1 Spark cube from one of your Enhancement tiles. Second, flip 2 of your face-down Player tokens to the Olympian side.
- If you are Proud: First, gain 1 VP for each of your face-up Player tokens on the board. Second, flip all of your opponent's Player tokens on the board (whichever side is showing) to their other side.
At the end of your turn after you activated your Olympian, place one of your Player tokens either side up on any one empty space in any Location.
Some effects will require players to flip their Player tokens. If an effect instructs you to flip X number of tokens and you don't have enough, flip as many as you are able to.
Use of the Divine Pillar Cards
While activating your Olympian, you must resolve the effects of all visible parts of your Divine Pillar cards. Also, when you pass, if you did not activate your Olympian this Age, your opponent receives the benefit from all visible lower parts of your Divine Pillar cards (two if you were Humble).
Note: You are considered to have both Divine Pillar cards for any game effects that refer to them.
4. End of Age Phase
A new step is added at the end of this Phase:
Changing Mood: Each player flips all of their Player tokens on the boards to the other side.
Scenarios & Variants
Scenarios
Scenario cards provide a new way to play Hybris and describe the adventures of the Olympians.
To use a Scenario card, choose one during setup and follow the rules on it. This could include setup changes, rules changes, and how you win the game.
The 'Renaissance' is good for a shorter game which teaches you the basics.
Variants
The Variant cards also change the way the game plays. You may choose one of these before the game begins.
The 'Influence Victory' or 'Awakening Victory' can be used when playing the normal game or Duel mode to change the victory conditions of the game. They cannot be used when playing with one of the Scenario cards.
The 'Oracle's Grasp' can be used in any game (including playing a Scenario) to make the game more challenging. It can also be used along with either of the other Variant cards.
Appendix
Olympian Powers
Athena
Peace Goddess: Whenever a Social Technology tile is deployed (by any player), gain 2 Victory Points.
War Goddess: Whenever another player initiates Combat against your Olympian (by moving to your space in the Mortal World, or challenging your Deployment when you are activating Athena), draw 1 Combat card from your deck to your hand.
Hades
Psychopump: Whenever another player's character is defeated in Combat, gain 1 Victory Point (if they were a Hero) or 2 Victory Points (if they were an Olympian). This happens even if one of your characters was not involved in the Combat.
Bad omen prophet: When you perform the Influence action, gain 1 fewer Believer from the City.
Poseidon
Impetuous: In Combat, increase your Force by 1 whenever you are the Attacker and reduce your Force by 1 whenever you are the Defender.
Chaos: Whenever a Primordial card is placed in the Underworld (at the end of rounds 2, 4, and 6), you may discard a Combat card from your hand to your discard pile. If you do, gain Victory Points equal to the Determination cost of the discarded card + 1.
Zeus
Persuasion: Whenever any player (including you) performs the Drain action in the Underworld, gain 1 Aegis. Also, if the action is being performed by an Olympian, gain 1 Prayer, or if the action is being performed by a Hero or Prophet, gain 1 Victory Point.
God of the Gods: Whenever your Olympian is in Combat with another Olympian, increase your Force by 2 for that Combat.
Epic Quests
Each act of an Epic Quest requires a certain condition to be met. The various types of condition, and what you must do to meet them, are listed here:
- Own: You must have at least what is depicted. This could be a number of Aegis, a specific Divine Pillar card, a specific type of Technology in a City, etc.
- Return: You must move the type of character depicted from the Location or City specified to your reserve.
- Reveal: You must show Combat cards from your hand to the other players that depict the elements listed in the act. Then, put the card back in your hand.
- Discard: You must discard Combat cards from your hand that depict the elements listed in the act.
Confrontation Quests
Some Confrontation Quests have additional requirements, depicted in boxes connected to the main box with chains.
The various types are shown here:
- If one or more elements are depicted, you must have these elements showing on Combat cards you have played during the fight.
- Any Combat cards drawn to determine the enemy's Force Bonus count as 0 Force. The Element Bonus on drawn cards is still counted. (E.g. "Antaeus count for 0.")
- Some creatures (e.g. the Ceryneian Hind) have 0 Force, and therefore any Combat against them automatically succeeds. However, you must defeat one of your Heroes.
- Before the Combat card is drawn to determine the Force of the enemy, you must discard 1 Combat card from your hand.
- You must have unlocked 2 of your Enhancement tiles to fight this enemy.
- The Force value of any Combat cards you play of the depicted type is reduced to 0. Any other effects of the card, and the Force bonus for connecting Combo symbols still count as normal.
Primordial Cards
Most of the Primordial cards are self-explanatory. Further clarification on some cards can be found here:
Gaia – Wrath I: When resolving the Believer-loss effect, you must discard cards depicting the Earth element.
Lethe – Wrath I: This counts the total number of Elements on all Combat cards played below the Oracle board through the Omen action.
Divine Pillar Cards
Indoctrination: When resolving the bottom part of the card, all other players gain 1 Virtue, but then it is the active player who adds Prayer cubes to the Well of Prayers. These Prayer cubes are all added at once, and then overflow is checked for, as described on page 11.
Enhancement Tiles
Hades – The Kuneen: When Hades moves to a space already occupied by another character (even one of your own), he gains the bonus of that space and performs an action as normal. If Hades moves to a Mortal World occupied space, this does not trigger Combat. At the end of his activation, Hades returns to your reserve, but wounded (place him laying down, he cannot be activated again this Age).
Also, when Hades is performing the Deploy action, he cannot be challenged.