Inori
Inori Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- 1 Game Board
- 90 Favor tokens (15 per Spirit's color)
- 15 Rune tiles
- 6 double-sided Altar tiles (1 per Spirit's color)
- 12 Start cards
- 6 New Start cards
- 36 Journey cards (6 per Spirit's color)
- 2 neutral Offering markers
- 4 Score markers (1 per player)
- 28 Offering markers (7 per player)
- 4 Player tiles (1 per player)
- This Rulebook
The Spirits' Favors are represented by the Favor tokens. The more Favor tokens you have in a given color, the more favorable the Spirits of that color are toward you.
Setup
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Place the game board in the center of the table.
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Sort the Favor tokens by color to form the Supply. They should be accessible to all players.
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Shuffle the Rune tiles to form a facedown stack and place it next to the board.
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Place the Altar tiles next to the board (the order does not matter).
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Prepare the cards as follows:
- Shuffle the New Start cards together to form a deck and place it near the board.
- Sort the Journey cards by color, shuffle each color separately, then place each of the 6 decks facedown, near the board.
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Randomly draw 1 of each type of Start card, and place these 3 cards on the spaces in the center part of the board. Return the remaining Start cards to the box.
- 2-3 player games: Use the cards with the 2-3 player symbol on the back.
- 4 player games: Use the cards with the 4 player symbol on the back.
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Look at the color at the bottom right of each Start card you just revealed. Place 2 tokens of each of these colors on the spaces provided on the game board.
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Place the 2 neutral Offering markers on the game board on their indicated starting space.
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Each player chooses a color, and places the Score marker matching their color on space 0 of the score track.
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Each player takes their Player tile and a number of Offering markers matching their color as follows:
- 2 players: 7 Offering markers
- 3 players: 6 Offering markers
- 4 players: 5 Offering markers
Unused Offering markers are returned to the box.
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Each player places 1 of their Offering markers on each of the spaces indicated on the game board. (In 4 player games, do not place any Offering marker on the top space.)
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Each player starts the game with 3 Offering markers (in 2 player games, start with 4 markers each). Randomly determine a player to go first.
How to Play
The game is played over 4 rounds called seasons, after which a final scoring count is made at the Great Tree. During each season, players will take turns in clockwise order, and will continue until all players' Offering markers have been placed.
On your turn, you must perform 1 of the following 2 actions:
- Place 1 Offering marker on any card OR
- Place 1 Offering marker on the Great Tree
OPTIONAL: You may also play 1 or more Rune tiles on your turn.
Place 1 Offering Marker on Any Card
Place 1 Offering marker on an unoccupied space of any card. Pay the cost of that space, if any, and apply its effect. An unoccupied space is a space with no Offering marker on it.
Card Anatomy
Each card shows, for each space: the space's effect and its cost (if any). The card also shows its own color, its count in that color, the Journey destination if the card is complete, and the Journey destination if the card is incomplete.
Costs
Some spaces have a cost you must pay before you can place your Offering marker on them.
- Return 1 Favor token of the indicated color to the Supply.
- Return 1 Favor token of your strongest color (the color you have the most of) to the Supply. If you have multiple strongest colors, you may choose which one to pay the cost with.
If you cannot pay the cost, you cannot place your Offering marker on that space and must choose another unoccupied space.
Example: Juliet wants to place 1 Offering marker on the left space. She must pay 1 yellow Favor token, which she returns to the Supply, and then applies the effect of that space. If Juliet had no yellow Favor tokens, she would not be allowed to place her Offering marker on that space.
Effects of the Card Spaces
After you place an Offering marker on a space, you must immediately apply its effect as much as possible.
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Take a number of Favor tokens of the indicated color and quantity. There is no limit to the number of Favor tokens you can have. However, there is a limit to the number of Favor tokens available; if there are fewer tokens in the Supply than the indicated quantity, take all the remaining tokens of that color. If there are no tokens of a color in the Supply, you cannot take any of that color until some are returned to the Supply.
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Take 2 Favor tokens matching your weakest color (the color you have the fewest of, including 0). If you have multiple weakest colors, you may choose which of those colors to take.
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Draw the top Rune tile from the stack (see Playing Runes below).
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Score 1 point for each different color of Favor token you have.
Example: Max has 2 green Favor tokens, 3 blue, 1 red, and 1 purple, which is 4 different colors. Therefore, he scores 4 points.
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Score 1 point for each Favor token you have matching the indicated color.
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Score 1 point for each Favor token you have of your strongest color.
Example: By placing her Offering marker on this space, Caroline scores 1 point for each token in her strongest color. She has 5 red Favor tokens. Therefore, she scores 5 points.
Place 1 Offering Marker on the Great Tree
Place 1 Offering marker on any unoccupied space of the Great Tree. Pay the cost of that space, if any, and apply its effect.
Empty Altar Slots
The Great Tree has 6 Altar slots, which are empty at the beginning of the game. When you place an Offering marker on a space of the Great Tree, if the corresponding Altar slot is empty you must choose one of the available Altar tiles and place it on that slot. Once placed, an Altar tile on the Great Tree cannot be moved or removed and remains on its slot until the end of the game. Then apply the effect of the corresponding space (regardless of whether the Altar tile was newly placed or already there).
IMPORTANT: The top 2 spaces of the Great Tree have a cost shown inside their Altar slots. If an Altar has not yet been assigned to one of these slots, you must return 1 Favor token of one of the remaining available colors you have to the Supply before you can place an Offering marker on the corresponding space. Place the Altar of the color spent next to the space you placed your Offering marker on. From now on, this space will have a cost of 1 Favor token of the color of the Altar.
Altar tiles are double-sided. The side that shows a cost is only used for the top 2 slots; the other side is used for all other slots.
Example: Caroline wants to place an Offering marker on a space of the Great Tree. No Altar tile is yet assigned to that space's Altar slot. She places her Offering marker on the space, chooses the blue Altar tile, places it on the corresponding slot, then applies the effect of that space. Max then places an Offering marker on another space. He pays the Altar's cost (1 yellow Favor token) and applies the effect of that space.
Effects of the Great Tree
After you place an Offering marker on a space, you must immediately apply its effect as much as possible.
- Take 2 Favor tokens of any color. The tokens may be of the same or different colors.
- Score 5 points.
- Draw 1 Rune tile, then take 1 Favor token matching the Altar's color.
- Score 1 point for each Favor token you have matching the Altar's color.
- Place the 2 neutral Offering markers on any 2 unoccupied spaces of any card(s), then take 1 Favor token matching the Altar's color. Ignore the costs and effects of the spaces on which the neutral Offering markers are placed.
- Take 3 Favor tokens matching the Altar's color.
- The 3 spaces at the base of the Great Tree are single-use and do not have an Altar slot. If you place an Offering marker on one of these spaces, take the 2 Favor tokens placed during setup. These spaces are not resupplied. You cannot place an Offering marker on one of these spaces if the tokens have already been taken.
Playing Runes
After drawing a Rune tile, keep it facedown in front of you; you may look at it at any time. There is no limit to the number of Rune tiles you can have.
Rune Tile Powers
2 Favor (1 per color): You can reveal this Rune tile at any time. Once revealed, this tile counts as 2 Favor tokens of the indicated color for all purposes, including final scoring at the end of the game, as well as determining your weakest and strongest colors.
On your turn, you can also discard this tile to pay the cost of a space. However, you do not take a Favor token as "change"; the excess value of the Rune tile is lost.
Note: You can reveal your Rune tiles during the final count.
Example: Caroline, who drew the red Rune tile, already had 4 red Favor tokens. She reveals her red Rune tile and places 1 Offering marker on a space that scores 1 point for each red token. As she now has the equivalent of 6 red Favor tokens in front of her, she scores 6 points.
Runic Journey (1 per color): These tiles are played at the start of your turn, before placing your Offering marker. You may not choose your own Offering markers with this power. Discard this tile to choose 1 of the following 2 powers:
- Choose 1 Offering marker from a card and move it onto any unoccupied space of another card matching the tile's color. The cost (if any) and effect of the new space are ignored.
- Choose 1 Offering marker from a card matching the tile's color and move it onto any unoccupied space of another card. The cost (if any) and effect of the new space are ignored.
Example: Max plays the purple Runic Journey tile. He moves Caroline's brown Offering marker from a purple card to an unoccupied space on the red card. The cost for the space on the red card is ignored, as is the effect.
Companion (x3): These tiles are played at the start of your turn, before placing your Offering marker. You may discard this tile to place your Offering marker on any occupied space that does not contain your own Offering marker. This is the only exception to the 1-Offering-marker-per-space rule. You must still pay any associated cost for the space, then resolve the effect.
End of Season
After all players have placed all their Offering markers, move to the End of Season phase. All players resolve this phase together, following these steps in order:
- Evaluate the cards
- Retrieve and add Offering markers
- Choose a New Start card
1. Evaluate the Cards
Evaluate each card, one after the other. A card is either complete or incomplete.
A card is complete if all its spaces are occupied. Proceed with scoring. Each player with at least 1 Offering marker on the card scores 1 point for each Favor token they have matching the color shown in the top-right corner of the card. Players retrieve their Offering markers on the card, while any neutral Offering markers are returned to their space on the Great Tree. Replace the card with the top card of the Journey deck matching the color indicated in the top-right corner of the card.
Example: The green card is complete. Caroline and Juliet score points equal to the number of green Favor tokens they have, retrieve their Offering markers, and replace the card with the top card of the green Journey deck, as shown in the top-right corner of the card.
A card is incomplete if at least one of its spaces is unoccupied. No points are scored for this card. All players retrieve their Offering markers from the card, and neutral Offering markers are returned to their spaces on the Great Tree. Replace the card with the top card of the Journey deck matching the color indicated by the bottom right corner of the card. When incomplete, Starting and Journey cards always lead to the opposite color: yellow/purple, red/blue, gray/green.
Example: This yellow card is incomplete. Therefore, nobody scores any points for it, and it is replaced by the top card of the purple Journey deck, as indicated by the bottom-right corner of the card.
New Start Card Scoring
These cards follow different rules for scoring. If the card is complete, score it in the same way as described above. If the card is incomplete, each player with at least one Offering marker on the card scores 1 point for each Favor token they have matching the color shown in the bottom-right corner of the card. Then players retrieve their Offering markers and replace the card as usual. You may notice New Start cards ignore the color oppositions!
Example: The blue New Start card is incomplete. Since Max is the only player with an Offering marker, only he will score points equal to the number of green Favor tokens he has. He then retrieves his Offering marker, and replaces the card with a green Journey card.
2. Retrieve and Add Offering Markers
Each player takes their Offering marker from the space of the next season on the game board. They also retrieve any Offering markers they placed on the Great Tree this round.
Reminder: In a 4 player game, there are no Offering markers to gain at the end of the first season.
3. Choose a New Start Card
The player with the fewest points on the score track draws the top 2 cards from the New Start deck, chooses 1, and places it on the next season's space on the board. The unchosen card is discarded. In case of a tie, determine a random player (from among those tied) to make this choice. This can be done by taking an Offering marker from each tied player and selecting one at random.
Note: This step is skipped at the end of the fourth and final season.
Example: Max has the fewest points on the score track at the end of the season. He draws 2 New Start cards, chooses 1, and places it on the available space on the right side of the board.
The player who chose the New Start card will take the first turn in the next season.
Game End
Once scoring has been completed for the fourth season, the Spirits reward you one final time, and additional points are awarded based on the Altars placed on the Great Tree.
For each slot of the Great Tree with an Altar, players count the number of Favor tokens they have matching the color of the Altar (including any 2 Favor Rune tiles). The player with the most matching tokens scores points indicated by the larger circle next to the Altar. The player with the second-most matching tokens scores points indicated by the smaller circle next to the Altar.
In the event of a tie for most matching tokens, all tied players score points indicated by the larger circle. The other players score no points. In the event of a tie for second-most matching tokens, all tied players score points indicated by the smaller circle, but only if the tied players have at least 1 matching token.
Spaces with no corresponding Altar are ignored. (This would happen if nobody placed any Offering markers on that space during the game.)
In a 2 player game, only score points for the most matching tokens, ignoring the second-most matching tokens. If both players are tied, no points are scored.
Example of final scoring: The game has ended. Over course of all four seasons, Max scored 32 points, Caroline scored 28, and Juliet scored 24.
For each Altar, they determine who has the most and second-most matching Favor tokens, adjusting the scores for each one as they go.
Yellow Altar: Caroline scores 10 points because she has the most yellow Favor tokens. Max and Juliet each have 1 Favor token and are tied. They each score 5 points.
Green Altar: Juliet and Caroline are tied and score 6 points each.
Purple Altar: Juliet and Max are tied and score 4 points each. Caroline scores 0 points because scoring for the second-most tokens is not done if there is a tie for most tokens.
Blue Altar: Max scores 2 points while Caroline scores 1.
Grey Altar: There are no points associated with this space on the Great Tree.
Red Altar: The red Altar was not placed on the Great Tree, so nobody scores points for red tokens.
During final scoring, Caroline scored an additional 17 points, giving her a total of 45 points; Max scored 11 additional points, for a total of 43 points; and Juliet scored 15 additional points, for a total of 39 points. Caroline wins the game.
The winner is the player who scored the most points. There are no tiebreakers in Inori Valley, so there can be multiple winners at the end of the journey.
The winner is crowned Keeper of the Great Tree, until the next year's competition!
Inori Valley Designers
Mathieu Aubert: "I joined the game world almost by chance, through the back door of the Etable des Jeux, a game association, then shortly after, the playtest evenings at Libellud. Evenings where I met the already great Théo Rivière, the soon-to-be eminent game designer.
Régis then asked me to join Libellud, where I've met beautiful human beings within the company and around the world.
Everyone will have gone their own way six years later, but we all stayed in touch and motivated each other to launch a collaboration. In two days in October 2018 in Brussels, we laid the foundations of this cooperative idea, which gradually improved. The prototype has lived in the hands of a few teams worldwide—many thanks to the Space Cowboys for publishing it. Anouk, Thomas, Suzanne.
All my thanks to the early testers and those who believed in it: Elodie, Marie, Régis, Gaëtan, Richard, Mathieu, Croc, Adrien, Franck, Adrien...
To my little Rose and Charlie, with whom I will play."
Photo credit: Hélène Delforge
Théo Rivière: "When I started designing games ten years ago, I never imagined it would one day become my full-time job. I am grateful to everyone who has supported me and allowed me to get here. I will do my best to keep offering game experiences that can bring you joy.
Right now, I'm thrilled to imagine you holding this rulebook. Inori is a game that has had a journey strewn with pitfalls, and I am delighted to see it finally get to the game libraries and become available to the players who want to discover it. Mathieu, the Space Cowboys team, Suzanne, and I put a lot of heart into this game, so I hope you have a good time! I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who helped make the game exist, with a special thought for Elodie, Gaëtan, Anouk (and the entire Cowboys team), and Adrien.
Remember that the journey is more important than the destination, and let our little minds carry us along; everything will be okay."
Photo credit: Olivier Castagné
Suzanne Demontrond: "Illustrator based in Franche-Comté and a big dreamer, I like to imagine universes where fabulous creatures, dreamlike worlds, and abundant flora coexist. My passion for the imagination world, nature, and everything that shines manifests itself through a colorful, artistic universe at the crossroads of different techniques, both traditional and digital.
Developing Inori's graphic universe and its mischievous characters was an incredibly enriching experience and an opportunity for me to explore new worlds. I hope you have as much fun playing it as I had illustrating it! I wish you pleasant moments and joyful strolls in the company of the little nature's spirits. :)"
List of the Inori Symbols
Cards
- Take the indicated Favor token(s).
- Take 2 Favor tokens matching your weakest color. If you have multiple weakest colors, choose one color from among them.
- Score 1 point for each Favor token you have of your strongest color.
- Score 1 point for each different color of Favor token you have.
- Score 1 point for each Favor token you have matching the indicated color.
- Replace the card with a Journey card of the indicated color.
- Draw 1 Rune tile.
- Return 1 Favor token of the indicated color to the Supply.
- Return 1 Favor token of your strongest color to the Supply. If you have multiple strongest colors, choose one of those colors to return.
Great Tree Slots
- Take 2 Favor tokens of any color.
- Score 5 points.
- Draw 1 Rune tile, then take 1 Favor token matching the Altar's color.
- Score 1 point per Favor token you have matching the Altar's color.
- Place the 2 neutral Offering markers on any 2 unoccupied spaces of any card(s) ignoring any cost and effects of those spaces, then take 1 Favor token matching the Altar's color.
- Take 3 Favor tokens matching the Altar's color.
- Take the 2 Favor tokens placed here. Do not resupply these spaces.
- The three symbols for the neutral, 2-3 player, and 4 player Starting cards: randomly draw 1 of each type during setup. The 2-3 player symbol is only used during 2 or 3 player games; the 4 player symbol is only used in a 4 player game.
- Final scoring: For each space with an Altar, the player with the most matching tokens scores the circled points on the left, while the second-most scores the circled points on the right.
Runes
- Once revealed, this tile counts as 2 Favor tokens of the indicated color.
- Move 1 Offering marker of another color from any space to any space on a card with the indicated color, or from a space on a card with the indicated color to a space on any other card.
- Place your Offering marker on a space occupied by a marker of another color. You must pay any cost shown, then resolve the effect.
Edited by Scott Lewis.
SPACE Cowboys / Asmodee Group, 47 rue de l'Est, 92100 Boulogne-Billancourt, FRANCE
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Find out more about Inori and SPACE Cowboys at www.spacecowboys.fr, and @SpaceCowboysFR / space_cowboys_officiel / SpaceCowboys1