Ignite
Ignite Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Races
Lizardmen — We have always lived in the land of Oshos, if you would consider the wind a resident. We were a peaceful people, living as nomads on the plains. Many fear us, for individually we are large and strong—little do they know how few of us are left to this land. When the desolation began, it hit us the hardest. Our camp had been set up for a week, and the land gave no sign of what was to come. We lost many brothers when the ground beneath our camp became molten, opening up to swallow two-thirds of our tribe. The land rejected us just as it rejected the magic forced inside it. Since then, we have learned to become one with the land yet again, devising ways to navigate the toxic, molten landscape. We have learned to move through the land as the wind moves through the trees. But we are strong, and we do not forget. Payment is required for those we lost that night … and payment will be given.
Catfolk — We live in the trees, in the shadows. Most know us only as a legend. We prefer it that way. We keep to ourselves, but we hunt, we gather, we eat, we dance. Occasionally, one of our cubs would make himself known to a forest intruder, thinking a fight would bring him honor. But the clan always corrected him quickly. We are peaceful, picking up our feet rather than a weapon. Or that's how it had always been. Not now. Not since our cubs were taken. One night, on my watch, they were taken. All of them. We left the forest that day, searching the plains and fields, risking the places of burning and corruption. But we found nothing. For many moons, nothing. We cried and we mourned, my mate most of all. Thirteen moons later, one of our eyes saw it from the edge of the forest. I've never heard a cry so deep, so fierce. We all thought the cubs were dead. But what we saw from the forest depths was so much worse. A single rider on a single cub. No longer a cub. No longer one of us. His eyes held no soul. He no longer stood with honor. He crawled on all fours like a beast of the field. That rider never saw us coming. We ripped him limb from limb. But the cub couldn't be saved. He fought, clawed, bared his teeth. Then he ran away. We let him. We followed him into the heart of civilization. We will make them pay ...
Dwarves — Hail from the deep regions below the land of Oshos, we do. Miners we are, proud and strong. Work the mines we do, selling the metals to the well-paying humans and elves. Free we are, keeping or selling as we please. Deeper we mine, deeper and deeper. Spurred by our greed and the greed of those we sell to. The "master races." Pointy ear, round ear—makes no difference to us. Only the gold matters. So we mine and mine, without knowing the humans and elves had been using magic in secret. Well did they know this would lead to destruction. Well did they know they'd bring desolation. But not us ... not until the molten lava came. From deep within the earth, it came—barreling through our tunnels in an instant. Taking the lives of those deepest inside. Many a good dwarf we lost in that flow of molten death. Their screams will never leave my ears. I was farther up. Many dwarves climbed wooden ladders, but the earth shook, knocking many ladders backward. My love … my life ... the look in her eyes as the ladder fell backward, falling just beyond the reach of my outstretched hand. "Master races?" Bah. Avenge with my axe, I will. I and my brethren. Strong in arm we are, and weak in skull are they.
Humans — Date: 3rd day of the 6th moon. My master has been training me in the use of magic. We train in secret as magic is frowned upon in these parts. But I know why we must do it. There is a strong tension between ourselves and the elves. There has always been a shaky alliance between us, but ever since the death of the elven ambassador, we have been on edge. We know that elves do not forgive, nor do they forget … not that we have done anything which would require either. I am learning to control the magical flows, which come from the ground itself. It truly is an amazing thing to see what this wild and powerful energy can do. I've seen beasts tamed. Beasts so strong they could tear me in two. But now, a powerful war mount. I've seen men send powerful shockwaves through the earth. My own teacher produces flame at will, whether to attack a sparring partner or to merely light his pipe. I know how the raw power feels as it courses through me. There is a quickening of breath, a surge of power, then a release in whatever form I desire. I know I will need this power. War is coming soon. I can feel it.
Elves — Those humans with their curved ears. Do they really think we don't feel the fluctuations in magic coming from their training houses? Do they really think our elven eyes cannot see through the night to look upon their weapon training? We have allowed them to think of themselves as equals for too long. We are smarter, stronger, more precise. How could they even imagine opposing us? They think they are smart, making and fashioning new weapons of war. Do they think we aren't taking notes of their advancements? Keeping track of their new discoveries? Our orc factories began producing their "improved" weapons before their inventor's ink even dried. The elven council saw this coming and is ready. Those pesky humans will pay for their insolence. They will pay for the treachery done to our beloved ambassador. We push our warriors harder every day. Their magic is growing strong, their aim more accurate. We train them in the flaws of the opponent, the weak eyesight, the weak wrists and ankles. When this war comes—and it is coming—they will know wrath like never before. We were here long before they were ever born, and we shall still be here long after they are gone. We are elves, the true master race, and there shall be none who oppose!
Kitsune — We came to the land of Oshos from a small island across the sea. For years we had heard tales of this land, a land where magic users were not trained in the ways of clean magic. We didn't think it would affect us, until the blight started creeping into our island as well. Our leader requested volunteers to travel to the source while he stayed to protect our island from the invading magical darkness. Myself and a handful of sisters agreed to go. We didn't come in force, bringing only a few of our strongest magic users across the vast sea. Upon arriving, we cast a spell, creating a barrier to contain the dark corrupting force. We spoke with the people of this land, believing we could teach true magic—clean, untainted magic, pure in form, that doesn't ravage and destroy. We could teach mastery of the magical form that is necessary to avoid the darkness inside. But the people of this land wouldn't listen, too stubborn in their lust for power. They even tried to enslave my sister in order to take possession of her powerful energy. We have tried the way of peace, but now, for the sake of our homeland and the ones we left behind, we have to stop the flow of dark energy … by any means necessary.
Ratmen — We have always been dwellers of the shadow. Always shunned. Always outcasts. Feeding on scraps dropped from the tables of others. Just barely getting by. Sometimes it's too much to handle. I can't fault the ones who did it. The ones who saw the political procession—the opportunity. They saw a chest of gold, and their greed overcame their sense. But a guard saw our cloaked child, caught in the act of skimming off the top like we always do. But this time, the guard's master wanted an example made of the child. The punishment—the loss of his tiny hand. This was too much for the shadow brothers. They made their presence known, and in the end, none of the pointy-eared procession was left alive. We are tired of living off scraps. Tired of being outcasts. Tired of walking in the shadows, afraid to show our faces. We didn't mean to start a war, but we were the spark. We didn't mean to start a war, but we're glad we did.
Panda Warriors — The elves and humans have always enjoyed our traveling caravans. We sell treasures from faraway lands. We tell tales of adventure and courage. Taught by teachers across the sea, our acrobats and martial art masters demonstrate techniques that have never been seen in this land. We are peaceful by nature, never picking up a sword or weapon in anger. Until the day when a group of elves and humans were both watching our performance. The day when a brash young human, prodded by pride and drink, challenged an elf to a martial art dual outside the camp. The day when a dual became a riot. The day when fire and earth and lightning shot through our peaceful camp, killing men, women, and children without distinction. The day when my friend's child became an orphan. The day when our peace died. We no longer sell trinkets. We brandish weapons and techniques this land has never seen. We will bring back our peace. It will be our final trophy after everything else has crumbled before us.
Centaurs — Our people have always been free. Free to roam. Free to run. The plains have always been our home. We'd hunt, feast, rejoice under the stars. We stayed out of the war, even after the start. No two-legged creature can catch us. We are faster than all. So, we stayed out of the conflict—forever moving from one place to the next. On that day we were on the move, as we always are. I was in the back, ensuring the young ones kept up, when the earth opened up before my eyes … and my brothers fell. Their massive bodies hit the wooden spikes at the bottom of the pit, dead before they could realize what had happened. We looked for survivors, but the pit was deep and the wooden spikes were long. I had never raised a weapon against any two-legged creature before, but that day we wiped out the nearby battalion with no remorse. They outnumbered us two to one … and to this day I don't know if they were elf or human. The trap wasn't meant for us. We weren't even in this war … but we are now.
Box Contents
36 Game Board Tiles, 1 Bazaar Token, 29 Miniatures, 41 March Cards, 33 Dagger Cards, 25 Old Wooden Shield Cards, 50 Randomizer Cards, 30 Scorched Earth Tokens, 60 Damage Tokens, 30 Ice Wall Tokens, 510 Battle Cards, 55 Divider Cards, 8 Reference Cards, 1 Trash Pile Card, 1 Warp Portal Token, 15 Frozen/Magic Potion Bomb Tokens, 15 Knocked Down/Immobilized Tokens, 40 Water Minion Standees, 10 Kraken Standees, 1 Monopoly Token, 10 Crystal Shard Tokens, 4 Adept Trickster Tokens, 80 Colored Token Bases, 29 Colored Miniature Bases.
Board Setup
The top row of village pieces are numbered 1-18 along the top. The left column of village pieces are lettered A-R along the left side.
5-8 Player Board: There are eight possible starting locations, numbered 1-8 running clockwise around the board.
2-4 Player Board: There are four possible starting locations, numbered 1-4 running clockwise around the board. Place the Bazaar token on the 2x2 section in the center of the board.
The only pieces you need to randomize are the 16 tiles in the center of the board. If you have an Ignite expansion, you may replace any of these inner 16 tiles with expansion tiles.
Starting
Choosing Starting Player and Races
Whoever went to bed earliest the previous night gets to choose their race first. Race selection continues counter-clockwise around the table. When a player chooses their race, that player takes the 3 miniatures of that race and snaps their colored rings onto the miniatures' bases. These miniatures are their units. Each race has a unique ability.
The last player to choose their race is the first player to choose their starting location area on the board. The player chooses their starting location area and places their 3 units on the board wherever they desire within this area. In clockwise order, each player chooses their starting location area and places their 3 units on that area of the board.
Note: When selecting starting locations, a player may not place their unit adjacent to another player's already placed unit.
Once players have placed their units, each player draws their starting hand of 6 cards from their deck. Play begins with the player who chose their starting location first, then moves clockwise around the table.
Race Special Abilities
Catfolk — Before playing any cards, one of your units gets up to 2 free movement. The movement can be used at any time during your turn, but it must be used all at once.
Centaurs — All non-spell movement cards give +1 movement. Centaurs cannot use mounts or move through units. This player starts the game with 3 March cards, 4 Old Wooden Shield cards, and 5 Dagger cards.
Dwarves — All successful melee attacks do 1 additional damage as long as the target is outside of the village. A melee attack is successful if it causes damage (is not blocked, dodged, or otherwise negated).
Elves — All ranged attacks get +1 range. Also, elves can use ranged weapons at a range of 1.
Humans — Each turn, draw 7 cards instead of 6. However, the first battle card you buy each turn costs +1 honor.
Kitsune — All pure spell cards (cards with "Spell" as the first card type listed) are worth 2 honor each for the kitsune player.
Lizardmen — Units are immune to damaging elements on the board (lava and passable terrain). Forest and water spaces affect them normally.
Panda Warriors — Before the game begins, the player may choose to either: (a) trash 2 starter cards from their deck and gain 2 battle cards that each cost up to 4 honor, or (b) trash 1 starter card from their deck and gain 1 battle card that costs up to 8 honor. When beginning the game, place these new card(s) in your discard pile, not your deck.
Ratmen — Start the game with 5 units. Each unit takes only 2 damage rather than 3 before dying. Each ratman unit only counts as one-half of a trophy for end-game scoring. Also, the ratmen player draws 1 extra card for each unique enemy unit their ratmen units are adjacent to at the end of their turn.
Card Setup
Battle Decks: Select 16 sets of battle cards, and place them in the center of the table in ascending order according to cost. These 16 battle decks form the market.
Note: For your first game, use a starter set of Arrow, Triple Sheath, Gladiator Net, Flail, Fire Arrow, Conditioning, Weapon Dealer, Full Moon Axe, Ice Wall, Berserk, Long Bow, Large Quiver, Lightning Bolt, Meteor Strike, Unicorn, and Quick Hands. For subsequent games, see Battle Decks below for tips on selecting a well-balanced market.
Players' Starting Decks: Each player begins with 5 March cards, 4 Dagger cards, and 3 Old Wooden Shield cards. Before beginning the game, each player shuffles their cards together, then places them face-down as their personal deck (which they will draw cards from).
2-Player Rules
In a 2-player game, each player chooses 2 races and takes the 3 miniatures of each race. Each player also chooses 2 colors to represent their units, placing those colored bases on their units.
If a race's ability is related to the player (an economic or card-drawing ability) and can't be applied only to those specific units (example: kitsune, panda warriors, humans), then the player gets the full effect of the special ability. However, if a race's ability can be applied specifically to that race's units (example: dwarf, elf, lizardmen, catfolk, ratmen, centaurs), then only those units have that special ability. Note: If all of your units of 1 race die, you lose that race's ability.
Each race is placed in its own unique starting position, and a players' 2 races start on opposite corners of the board. So one player would get locations 1 and 3, and the other would get 2 and 4.
The first player to reach 4 trophies wins.
Victory
How to Win
The winner is whichever player possesses the most enemy trophies at the end of the game. The end of the game is triggered when any of the following conditions exists:
- Only 1 player has unit(s) left on the board.
- In a 2- to 3-player game, a single player has 4 trophies. In a 4- to 8-player game, a single player has 5 trophies.
If 2 players tie for the most trophies at the end of the game, the player whose last unit survived the longest wins. If this is a tie, the tied player with the most diverse set of trophies (having trophies from the greatest number of players) wins. If there is still a tie, those players share the victory.
Taking a Trophy
When you deal the final point of damage to an enemy unit, you take the defeated miniature as a trophy. Units are defeated after receiving their third point of damage.
Note: You keep track of a unit's damage by inserting a dagger into the back of the miniature for each point of damage the unit receives.
How to Play
Golden Rule: If a card's text or race ability ever disagrees with a rule in this rulebook, the rulebook is overruled.
A Player's Turn
A player's turn happens in 4 steps: Beginning of Turn Effects, Action Phase, Cleanup Phase, and Draw Phase.
- Beginning of Turn Effects: Take any "beginning of turn" actions from cards played during previous turns. This could be revealing a hidden spell's location, calculating damage from a time-delayed item, removing an effect token from a unit, etc. If a decision needs to be made about the order of beginning of turn effects, the active player gets to choose.
Note: If a player's unit(s) are eliminated prior to the beginning of his turn, the beginning of turn effects still occur at the beginning of his turn.
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Action Phase: Play cards from your hand, activating them and placing them into your play area. This is the phase where all purchasing, moving, and attacking occur through the use of cards and race abilities.
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Cleanup Phase: Place all of your cards into your discard pile. This includes:
- all activated cards residing in your play area (cards used this turn)
- all purchased or gained cards residing in your play area (cards obtained this turn)
- all cards remaining in your hand (even if they weren't used this turn)
Note: Cards that are played, discarded, purchased, or gained during your turn are all placed into your play area, not your discard pile. Nothing goes into your discard pile until your Cleanup Phase.
- Draw Phase: Draw 6 new cards from your deck to create your new hand. If there are not enough cards in your deck to draw all 6, you draw as many as are left. Then you take your discard pile (which is face-up), shuffle it, and make it your deck (placing it face-down). Then draw cards from your newly shuffled deck (adding them to the ones you drew at the beginning of the Draw Phase) until you have 6 cards.
Note: At any time you may count how many cards you have in your deck (or how many cards remain in a certain battle deck in the market). However, neither you nor another player may look through your deck or discard pile. You are never required to say what card(s) you draw or set aside from your deck, discard pile or hand when you're allowed to do so.
Ways to Play Cards
A card can be played in 1 of 2 ways on your turn.
- Action: You may use the card for the stated action written at the bottom of the card.
- Honor: You may use the card for its honor, which is the currency of Ignite.
Each card can only be used in 1 of these 2 ways on the turn it is played. However, you may play it in a different way the next time it comes into your hand. You don't have to play cards in any specific order.
Example: You can play 2 cards for honor, buy a card, play 3 cards for their actions, then play 1 more card for honor to buy another card.
Playing a Card for Its Action
Playing a card for its action allows you to enact some action with your unit(s), someone else's unit(s), or your deck/discard pile. The action is explained in the card description at the bottom of the card.
A single unit may use as many cards/actions as you want.
If a weapon says you gain a certain effect when you attack with that card, you can use that action even if you didn't attack an enemy with it (Example: Flail, Blessed Spear). You can also choose not to activate the weapon's special effect when attacking, unless the card says you must.
Sometimes you'll be able to play a card from your hand during someone else's turn. If you do this, the card is placed in your play area as an activated card and stays there until the Cleanup Phase of your turn (unless it says "reveal" or that the card is trashed after use). You do not draw another card after using one out of turn.
Note: Trashing a card means you place the card on the Trash Pile card, rather than discarding it to your play area. This card will never return to your deck, and it cannot be bought by any player. It is removed from the game completely.
You can tell how a card can be used by its background color around the text of the card. Card backgrounds indicate: cards that cannot be used out of turn; cards that cannot be used out of turn and are trashed after use; cards that can be used out of turn; cards that can be used out of turn and are trashed after use; cards that cannot be used out of turn but, once activated, stay out in front of you, allowing for certain effects; and title cards.
Playing a Card for Its Honor
A card's cost is how much honor you must pay to buy that card. A card's honor is how much honor you get to spend if you use that card for its honor.
Each time you play a card for its honor, this honor goes to your honor "bank" which starts each turn at 0 and is shared between all of your units. Once you have enough honor, you simply spend honor equal to the card's cost from your "bank" and then take the card from the market, placing it in your play area. Extra honor cannot be saved from turn to turn.
Example: Kelsie plays 3 Dagger cards for their honor. Each Dagger is worth 1 honor, so Kelsie decides to buy an Arrow, which has a cost of 3, and places it in her play area.
You don't have to have exact change to buy cards. If you use both a "4 honor" card and a "2 honor" card for their honor (bringing your honor bank to 6), you may buy 2 cards costing 3 honor each.
To buy a card, you must have a unit either in the village (the brown spaces around the outside of the board) or in the bazaar (the special token on the middle of the board). You may only purchase as many cards as you have units in the village and the bazaar. Moving a unit out of the bazaar/village and then moving it back in does not allow for another buy.
Example: Krysta has 1 unit in the village and 1 unit in the bazaar. She may buy, at maximum, 2 cards unless she moves her third unit into the village or bazaar.
Note: Once a battle deck contains no cards, you may no longer purchase that specific card.
Selling a Card for Honor
If you have a unit in the bazaar (your unit is on 1 of the 4 spots of the bazaar token), that unit may buy 1 card just as though it was in the village. That unit may also sell 1 card (you may sell as many cards as you have units in the bazaar). Selling a card means you trash a card from your hand to gain honor equal to the cost of the card.
Example: Kelsie moves her dwarf unit into the bazaar. She then sells a Dagger (cost of 3) from her hand. The Dagger goes to the trash pile, and she has 3 honor to spend (since she gets honor equal to the Dagger's cost). She then plays 2 March cards for their honor to raise her honor bank to 5 (since each March has an honor of 1). She decides to buy a Conditioning card (which has a cost of 5), taking it from the market. Her honor bank is now reduced to 0.
Note: When selling a card at the bazaar, you gain only the cost of the card as honor. You do not also get the card's honor value since you did not play the card for honor.
Card Type
On some cards, you'll see writing such as "put any melee weapons in your hand" (example: Triple Sheath). This is referring to the card type on the bottom of the card. A single card can fall into multiple card types.
Example: Krysta plays a Triple Sheath, which allows her to draw 3 cards, keeping any that are melee weapons and discarding the rest. She draws a Javelin, Dagger, and March. She must discard the March since its card type is "Movement." She can keep the other 2 cards in her hand because they both have "Melee" and "Weapon" as their card type. This holds true even though the Javelin is also "Ranged."
The Board
Movement
Movement cards allow you to move units around the board. Movement cannot be diagonal; it is always orthogonal. If you want to be in a diagonal spot, you must spend 2 movement.
Movement rules:
- You cannot move through a space that contains a unit or minion unless you are using a "Mount" card type.
- You cannot move through spaces containing an impassable terrain token.
- You cannot end your movement on top of a unit, minion, or impassable terrain token.
- You can move through or end your movement on a small item or passable terrain token.
- You cannot split one card's movement between multiple units.
- You can move less than the maximum amount of movement given by a card.
- You must use a movement card for its full effect before playing another card.
Example: If Krysta has a Horse card (Movement: 3), she cannot move a unit 2 spaces and another unit 1 space. She cannot move a unit 2 spaces, attack using another card, and then finish the Horse card by moving another 1 space. Krysta can choose to move a unit only 2 spaces instead of the full 3, but once she has played another card, the Horse card's action is finished.
Attacking
Cards used to attack other units include their range (how far they can attack) and damage (how much damage they do) in the card's description.
Range is orthogonal, just like movement. It is not diagonal. A unit is considered "in range" when the range listed on the attacking card is equal to the distance from your unit to theirs.
Note: A unit can be too close to attack. For example, Long Bow is Range: 2-4 and cannot be used on an adjacent unit.
A player is allowed to attack as many times per turn as their cards allow.
A player attacks with only 1 weapon, projectile, item, or spell at a time. After each attack the defender has an opportunity to respond with a defensive card (red or purple bordered cards, which can be used out of turn) to negate the attack, preventing damage.
Note: For the first 2 rounds, players are not allowed to attack each other in any way.
If an attack is not blocked, dodged, or otherwise negated, it is considered successful and the attacked unit takes the specified amount of damage.
Line of Sight — There are certain obstacles called impassable terrain (example: Ice Wall) that cannot be shot over/through by cards listing a "Range" on the card. To see if a unit can target another unit/space, you must be able to draw an imaginary line from any 1 corner of the attacking unit's space to any 2 corners of the target unit's space. If neither of the lines cross the impassable terrain, the attack can be made.
Self-Harm — A unit may never commit suicide on purpose. However, it is possible to damage yourself as long as it also damages other units. You may damage yourself only if it (a) causes damage to another unit and (b) doesn't cause your unit to die.
Final Blows — Sometimes it is a little unclear who the final "attacker" was that killed a unit. Remember, the player who played the card causing the final point of damage is the one that gets the trophy. If someone ever causes another player's own card to kill himself, the player who caused this accidental self-kill gets the trophy.
Example: Abby's unit lays a Magic Potion Bomb in front of Paul's unit, but Paul's unit pushes it back with an Ice Wall, leaving it adjacent to Abby's unit. It explodes at the beginning of Abby's turn, and her unit takes its third damage token. Paul gets the trophy because he caused Abby's own card to deal the final damage to her unit. However, if it was Krysta's Magic Potion Bomb that Paul's unit moved onto Abby's unit, Krysta would get the trophy because it was her card that caused the final damage.
Terrain
The game board is made up of different terrain types.
Plains — The default terrain is the green plains, which has no special effect.
Note: A space is considered the type of terrain that makes up the majority of the square. A "plains" terrain type which has a small amount of lava on it, is still considered "plains."
Lava — If a unit enters lava at any point, it is instantly killed. All items and minions are instantly destroyed (with no effect) if they go into lava. Lava cannot have passable or impassable terrain tokens placed on it.
Note: If a lizardman is in lava (due to its special race ability), it cannot be hit by a passable or impassable terrain attack (as lava trumps all attempted changes in terrain).
Water — Being in or near water allows you to play certain spell cards. "Lightning" attacks and "Freeze" attacks affect all units in that body of water (all orthogonally connected water spaces). Neither of these effects can be blocked. Water has no effect on movement.
Note: You may attack an empty terrain space with a spell, weapon, or other card that affects that terrain type as long as it will affect a unit. You may do this multiple times on the same turn.
Forest — A unit in the forest can only be targeted by a card effect if (a) it is at a range of 1 or (b) the attack card is an AoE card. The exception to this is "Fire" attacks, which affect all units in that forest (all orthogonally connected forest spaces). Fire effects cannot be blocked. Forest has no effect on movement.
A unit may use a ranged attack over a forest space or while in a forest space. Forest spaces only limit ranged attacks if the target unit is in a forest.
Note: Global effects (card effects that target all players or all player units) still affect units in the forest.
Village — The village is the brown section with buildings around the outside of the board (no buildings in the village have special significance; all buildings are merely for artistic effect). Each unit starts the game in the village. Being in the village allows you to buy cards (1 card per unit).
Units may go anywhere in the village; they are not restricted by their starting positions.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If a unit is damaged by another player while in the village, the unit takes an additional damage (because the unit isn't expecting to get attacked in the village). This is only true of the village—not the bazaar.
Note: The outside edge of the board counts as impassable terrain (a barrier created by the Kitsune to contain the corrosive effects of magic). Your unit can be crushed between the edge of the map and a well-placed ice wall.
After Death
After a player has lost all of their units, they are not allowed to use their deck or race ability anymore.
After skipping one turn, the player spawns 1 water minion to their starting location area (the set of spaces where that player initially placed their units) each turn for the rest of the game.
Each water minion gets to move (Movement: 1-2) and attack (Range: 1, Damage: 1) each turn. This attack is considered a special attack and can only be blocked by a shield. Water minions may move and attack on the same turn they're summoned. Once a player has run out of colored bases (10), they may not summon additional water minions until one of theirs is destroyed.
Water minions are never given as trophies to the player who killed it. However, if a player's water minion kills a unit, the owner of the water minion does receive the trophy. Water minions spawned in this way (after death) cannot attack other water minions.
Note: After a player loses all of their units, their minions, spells, and "beginning of turn" effects stay in play. Their "beginning of turn" effects go off at the beginning of their skipped turn.
Key Terms
These are keywords you'll need to understand as you play Ignite. You'll see them either in a battle card's action text or card type section.
AoE: "AoE" stands for "Area of Effect." These are attacks that can hit a unit even if it cannot be seen (such as a unit in the forest) because the AoE attack affects the entire space (example: Ice Wall, Meteor Strike).
Attack: Throughout this rulebook, "attack" is a generic term that means targeting another unit or player with a card effect.
- Melee Attack: A melee attack is any attack with a melee weapon at a range of 1.
- Ranged Attack: A ranged attack is any attack made with a card that lists its range as greater than 1. Cards that don't list a range are not considered ranged attacks.
- Spell Attack: A spell attack is any attack made with a pure spell card (a card listing "Spell" as the first card type). Spell-infused projectiles or weapons are not considered spell attacks.
Some cards, however, produce a benefit anytime you attack (example: Quick Hands, Adrenaline). In this case, an attack is any card played that would do damage to a unit (example: Short Sword and Lightning Bolt would count as attacks, but Monopoly and Freeze wouldn't). It is considered an attack even if the attack is blocked, dodged, or otherwise negated. The attack effect must happen this turn (example: Meteor Strike and Magic Potion Bomb wouldn't count as attacks). "Mount" attacks (example: Unicorn, Tiger Mount) and "Minion" attacks (example: Water Minion, Kraken) do not count as attacks for this purpose.
Block: An attack is blocked if a player discards a shield (or a card that specifies that it "blocks") to block an attack. Spells cannot be blocked. Terrain effects cannot be blocked.
Bows and Arrows: Bows and arrows can be a very deadly combination as they give you the ability to attack enemy units from a distance. However, to use an arrow, you must also have played a bow this turn. The range of your arrow is determined by the bow you are shooting it from.
Each arrow can only be shot 1 time per turn, but a single bow can be used multiple times during a turn. Multiple units can shoot arrows with the same bow card.
Events and Abilities: Cards with "Event" as the card type cause one-time events that do not have lasting effects. Cards with "Ability" as the card type have lasting effects. These effects either continue through the active player's full turn, continue through a full round, or are triggered whenever a certain condition is fulfilled.
Fire: A "Fire" attack will set fire to the entire forest. A player can attack an unoccupied forest space (or a unit in the forest), automatically setting fire to the entire forest (all orthogonally connected forest spaces) and doing 1 damage to every unit inside. If the initial fire attack is successful, the resulting forest fire damage cannot be blocked.
If a fire attack is successfully used on a unit on a forest space, the fire will automatically carry through the entire forest.
Note: If a fire attack is blocked, a forest fire does not occur (unless another forest space was also targeted by the same attack).
A unit in the forest who is attacked with a fire attack does not get double damage; it takes damage only from the initial attack, not from the subsequent forest fire.
A forest may be set on fire multiple times, even on the same turn (causing damage with each fire attack).
Fly: "Fly" means that the unit's movement is through the air and is unaffected by any terrain effects, impassable terrain, passable terrain, units, etc. The only terrain that affects them is the terrain they end their movement on. Flying units don't knock down enemy units by moving through them (unlike regular mounts).
Freeze / Frozen: Freeze attacks (with a "Freeze" card type) cause units to be frozen. A freeze attack will carry through a body of water, so a player may use a freeze attack on one unoccupied water space (or a unit in the water), and it will automatically freeze every unit in the entire body of water.
A frozen unit may not move, react, buy, sell, or attack until the beginning of the attacker's next turn. A frozen unit can be pushed back or knocked down like normal (it is not frozen to the ground).
Use a freeze token to designate when a unit is frozen.
Note: Freezing an enemy unit a second time on the same turn does nothing. However, if another player freezes the same unit at a later time, that extends the time until the unit is unfrozen (it must wait until the beginning of the second attacker's turn, rather than the beginning of the first attacker's turn).
Immovable / Immovable Object: Immovable objects are objects that (a) will not be moved by a "pushed back" effect, (b) will cause your unit to be knocked down if it is pushed into it, and (c) will squish your unit if it is caught in between 2 of them with no space for it. They cannot be moved through.
Impassable terrain, krakens, and the edge of the map are all immovable objects.
Impassable Terrain: Impassable terrain cards (example: Ice Walls) place tokens on the board that cannot be moved through or shot over. Impassable Terrain blocks any ranged attack. You must use the line of sight rules to determine whether a ranged attack can be used on a unit near impassable terrain.
Knocked Down: Some cards cause an enemy unit to be knocked down. If your unit gets knocked down, it may not move, attack, buy, or sell until it stands up.
Use a knocked down token to designate when a unit is knocked down.
When it is your turn, you may stand up your unit and remove the knocked down token by discarding a card from your hand for no effect.
If your unit is already knocked down, additional knocked down effects have no effect.
Lightning: Lightning attacks (with a "Lightning" card type) act as chain lightning, causing damage to all units orthogonally connected to the target (including your own). A lightning attack will carry through a body of water, so a player may use a lightning attack on one unoccupied water space (or a unit in the water), and it will automatically do 1 damage to every unit in the entire body of water. Additionally, if a unit is on the edge of the water, it carries the lightning from within the water to all orthogonally connected units on shore. If the initial lightning attack is successful, the resulting damage cannot be blocked.
Note: Lightning will not "jump" out of a water space to hit a unit adjacent to the water space. Lightning can only leave the water by carrying through orthogonally connected units (a unit inside the affected body of water and an adjacent unit on land).
Mount: Mounts are movement cards which allow you to move a unit multiple spaces. To move through another unit or minion, you must use a mount.
There are 2 types of mounts: flying and non-flying (mounts that don't have the "Flying" card type). If you move through an enemy unit with a non-flying mount, that unit is knocked down. This knocked down effect can be blocked with a shield, but blocking doesn't stop the mount's movement. You may move through your own units without knocking them down.
Note: With a mount card, you may move into the same space as another unit and then return to the space you just vacated.
Flying mounts (mounts that have the "Fly" card type) move above the terrain and are not affected by terrain effects until you land. The only terrain you have to worry about when using a flying mount is the space you land on (as you still cannot land in lava).
Passable Terrain: Passable terrain cards (example: Scorched Earth) place tokens on the board which replace the terrain they are placed on. They cannot replace lava. This new terrain can be moved through and shot over, but has some additional effect to those who move onto it.
Pure Spell: A spell is considered a pure spell if "Spell" is the first card type listed.
Pushed Back: Some attacks cause a unit to be pushed back. This means the target unit moves a certain number of spaces (usually 1, unless specified differently on the card), away from the attacker.
If a unit is pushed back and is on the same row or column as the attacker, the pushed back unit merely moves the additional space(s) away from the attacker.
If it's unclear where the pushed back unit goes, draw an imaginary line from the center of the attacker's square to the center of the defender's square. Extend the line past the defender, and whichever square is first touched by the line, that's where the pushed back unit goes. If it is pushed back 2 spaces, the unit will go in the second square that line crosses (as long as it is the correct number of spaces away). If 2 available spots are equally distant from where the attack came from (when a unit is pushed back diagonally), the defender gets to choose which spot the defending unit ends up on.
If a unit is pushed back, but that space contains another unit, both units move back 1 space and both are knocked down. If a unit is pushed back 1 space but that space contains an immovable object, the unit doesn't move back, but is knocked down instead. If a unit is pushed back by impassable terrain (such as an ice wall) in such a way that there is no available space for it to occupy between the impassable terrain and another immovable object, then it is squished and immediately killed.
React: "React" refers to using a card out of turn. This includes moving out of the way, blocking an attack, negating a spell, etc.
Example: Paul's elf is frozen and may not react. So even though he has a shield, he may not use it out of turn to block Kelsie's attack on that frozen unit.
Reveal: Sometimes a card will tell you to "reveal" it from your hand under certain circumstances. This means that you merely show the other players that you have the card, take the card's reveal effect, and place the card back into your hand. The card is not activated when this occurs. You may reveal a card multiple times on the same turn. You may also reveal multiple cards under the same condition for multiple reveal effects.
Example: Paul's dwarf unit is attacked, and he isn't able to block the damage. He takes a point of damage but reveals a Berserk card and draws 3 additional cards. One of these cards is another Berserk. Paul's unit is attacked again and takes another damage. This time he reveals 2 Berserk cards (the one played previously and the one he just drew) to draw 6 more cards.
Shield / Shield Bash: Out of turn, you may discard a shield to block a weapon, projectile, or mount. Shields cannot block spells or prevent you from being pushed back. You may use a shield when a non-flying mount runs through your unit to prevent being knocked down.
On your turn, you may use a shield (exception: Old Wooden Shields) to shield bash an opponent. A shield bash knocks down a unit adjacent to one of your units. It does not deal damage.
Small Item: Small items can be in the same spot as a unit or passable terrain token. Multiple small items may be in the same space at one time. They may not be thrown onto lava or onto an impassable terrain token.
Small items can be targeted by cards that would move the item (example: Wind Arrow, Ice Wall, Vine Pull). Each of these cards may only target a single small item unless the attack is an AoE attack. If it is an AoE attack, all small items in that space are affected.
Example: Magic Potion Bombs can be thrown on the same space as a unit or another small item.
Unoccupied Space: An unoccupied space is a space that doesn't contain an immovable object, minion, or unit.
Battle Decks
Choosing Battle Decks
If you'd like to choose the cards randomly, select 16 cards from the randomizer deck. Once you've selected your randomizer cards, pick out the corresponding sets of battle cards from the box, then return the randomizer cards to the randomizer deck.
After choosing 16 battle decks, ensure you have:
- Cards costing a variety of amounts.
- Enough cards that allow movement. Aim for at least 2 movement cards, otherwise it becomes difficult to move around the board.
- Prerequisite cards. (For example, if you have arrows in play, but no bows, the arrows are useless.)
Note: There is 1 randomizer card per battle deck. You never use randomizer cards in an actual game. They are only for randomly selecting which battle cards to play with.
Note: Old Wooden Shield, Dagger, and March are starting hand cards. You may put them out as additional battle decks, but it is not recommended.
Title Cards
Title cards are optional cards you can add to the market. Add only 1 or 2 titles cards per game. Title cards do not count toward the 16 battle deck limit.
There is only 1 copy of each title card.
A title card does not have a cost in the center of the card. Rather, it has multiple costs in the upper left-hand corner.
The first player to purchase a title card may purchase it for any of the costs listed. When it is purchased, it is placed in front of that player and stays out on the table. On each subsequent turn after it's purchased, the card's owner may use the title card's effect.
Another player, on their turn, can steal the title card away by purchasing it for a cost higher than what the previous player paid for it. They can purchase it for any listed price, as long as it is a higher price. The new owner places it in front of them and may use its effect on each subsequent turn.
If a title card is ever purchased for its maximum cost, other players can continue to steal it by purchasing it at its maximum cost.
Note: A title card has no honor value and cannot be played for honor. They cannot be discarded or sold.
Gameplay Variants
Win Condition: Last Man Standing
Setup for Last Man Standing is the same as the setup for regular Ignite.
To win, you must be the last player with a unit on the board. The game ends only once there is a single player with a unit left on the board. If the last two units somehow die at the exact same time, the winner is the player who took the most trophies throughout the game. If the players are still tied, the tied player with the most diverse (from the greatest number of players) set of trophies wins. If there is still a tie, those two players have tied.
Additional variant notes:
- Players often elect for pure "player elimination" in this mode (players with no units left are simply eliminated—unable to spawn water minions) to ensure no king-making occurs (eliminated players ganging up on an active player who seems to be winning).
- This game variant generally takes longer since "turtling" can occur (playing defensively rather than offensively).
Win Condition: King of the Hill
To win, you must be the player with the most points when the game ends. After each player's turn, points are awarded to players whose unit(s) are currently in the bazaar. A player gets 1 point for each unit they have in the bazaar. A player gets 2 additional points per unit if they are the only race in the bazaar.
Example: Player A (Catfolk) has 2 units in the bazaar, and is the only race there — they get 2 points for having 2 units in the bazaar plus 4 points (2 for each unit) for being the only race in the bazaar. Player B (Elves) has 1 unit in the bazaar alongside Player A's units, and gets 1 point for having 1 unit in the bazaar.
Setup for King of the Hill is the same as the setup for regular Ignite. However, at the beginning of the game, place 5 damage markers on the bazaar. After each round (all players have taken a turn), remove 1 damage marker from the bazaar. Only after the last damage counter has been removed do players begin receiving points (so the first points are awarded after the starting player's 6th turn).
The game ends when either of the following conditions are met:
- A player loses all of their units, in which case the player with the most points wins. Note: The player who loses all of their units loses 5 points from their total.
- A player reaches 15 points (short game) or 30 points (normal game). The player who reaches this number first wins.
Additional variant notes:
- The number of required points is decided before the game begins.
- If there is a tie when one of the end-game conditions occurs, play continues until a single player reaches a higher point total. That player is the winner.
- With this variant, the bazaar does not allow you to sell cards. It is merely the "hill" for which units are battling.
- Units may be in the bazaar while it still contains damage markers. However, players do not receive points until the final damage token has been removed.
Win Condition: Team Deathmatch
Requires 4, 6, or 8 players. Setup for Team Deathmatch is the same as the setup for regular Ignite, with the following exceptions:
- Before beginning a game of Team Deathmatch, divide the number of players evenly between 2, 3, or 4 teams.
- After selecting teams, take seats around the table so that the team order is constant (example: Team 1, Team 2, Team 3, Team 1, Team 2, Team 3).
- Race selection proceeds as normal, with each player choosing their race in a counter-clockwise order.
- The last person to choose their race gets first choice of starting locations on the board. Starting location selection continues clockwise from there.
- For 2-player teams, teammates must start on opposite sides of the board.
- For 3-player teams, each teammate must start on a different side of the board and there must be at least 1 starting location area (empty or occupied) between their units and the nearest ally.
- For 4-player teams, team starting locations must go every other so that no teammates start on adjacent territories.
Play starts as normal, with the last person who chose their race taking the first turn, and continuing clockwise around the table.
The team with the most trophies at the end of the game wins. The game ends when either (a) a team has 4 more trophies than any other team, (b) a team has trophies equal to the number of players, or (c) all units of one team have been eliminated.
If teams are tied, the team with the most units still on the board wins. If teams are still tied, the player (from a tied team) who has the most diverse (from the greatest number of players) set of trophies wins the game for their team. If there is still a tie, those two teams have tied, and the win is split between them.
Additional variant notes:
- You cannot attack your own teammate unless doing so would (a) also damage enemy units and (b) doesn't kill a teammate's unit.
- Card effects that affect everyone except the casting player (example: Monopoly) still affect your teammates.
- Healing cards (example: Medicine) may be used on a teammate's unit at a range of 1.
- Teammates may not trade cards.
- Teams cannot whisper. Everything said needs to be said so that all players may hear.
- Keep team talk to a minimum. If a player thinks you are taking too long discussing future turns, they may start a 1-minute timer after which play must immediately continue or the current player must give one of his units a damage token.
- Players may elect to have all team starting locations adjacent to one another. This generally leads to a longer game with more turtling.
Epic Ignite
Epic Ignite allows you to play with all of Ignite's battle cards rather than the standard 16 battle decks. To play Epic Ignite you have to randomize all the battle cards rather than having them in separate battle decks.
You'll use all of the battle cards to create:
- 2 randomized stacks of Weapon, Shield, and Projectile cards costing 5 and below
- 2 randomized stacks of Weapon, Shield, and Projectile cards costing 6 and above
- 2 randomized stacks of Item, Event, and Ability cards costing 4 and below
- 2 randomized stacks of Item, Event, and Ability cards costing 5 and above
- 2 randomized stacks of Spell cards costing 7 and below
- 2 randomized stacks of Spell cards costing 8 and above
- 2 randomized stacks of Movement cards
Epic Ignite plays with all of the normal rules, with the following exceptions:
- When you buy a card, you may buy only the top card of any pile.
- Once during your turn (before, after, or even without buying a card), you may flip one card from the top of a pile to the bottom of the same pile.
- You may not look through the randomized piles at any point in the game.
Note: Epic Ignite can be played with any of the win conditions.
Tournament & Advanced Play
When playing in a tournament or if you're wanting a more advanced game, use 20 battle decks as the market, instead of the normal 16. This allows for more varied strategies throughout the game. Everything else remains the same.
Race Banning
In this variant, players choose races to ban from the game. This means those races cannot be picked by any player. This allows games to stay fresh as the more popular races are banned, forcing players to play with races they may not have experienced before.
In a 2- to 3-player game, all players ban 1 race. This occurs before race selection order is chosen.
In a 4- to 8-player game, first determine race selection order. Then in reverse race selection order, each player chooses 1 race to ban. Do this until there is 1 more race available than there are players playing.