Kingdom Death: Monster – Dragon King Expansion
Kingdom Death: Monster – Dragon King Expansion Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Dragon King
- Two Ways to Play
- Add to Your Campaign
- Upgrade Your Core Game
- New Rules
- Special Terrain Cards
- Knockback and Knocked Down
- Monster Level Symbol
- Scythe Weapon Proficiency
- People of the Stars Campaign
- Dragon Traits and Constellations
- The Tyrant
- Tyrant Showdown
- Expansion Glossary
- Story Events
- Glowing Crater
- Showdown: Dragon King
- Meltdown
- Foundlings
- Intimacy
- Midnight's Children
- Awake
- Unveil the Sky
Dragon King
This expansion is designed to be added to the Kingdom Death: Monster core game. It includes:
Dragon King sprues (armor kits, the Dragon King monster, and the Tyrant monster):
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50 x Gear cards
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10 x Rare gear
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24 x Dragon King AI cards
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23 x Dragon King HL cards
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21 x Dragon King Resource cards
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28 x Tyrant AI cards
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21 x Tyrant HL cards
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1 x Tyrant Terrain card
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3 x Strange Resource cards
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8 x Dragon King Hunt Event cards
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2 x Terrain cards
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2 x Terrain tiles sheets
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4 x Disorder cards
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4 x Fighting Art cards
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2 x Secret Fighting Art card
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8 x Constellation cards
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1 x Armor Set Bonus card
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5 x Innovation cards
Two Ways to Play
This expansion includes two monsters with unique AI and Hit Location decks and two distinct ways to add them to your game.
The massive Dragon King may be added to any Core Game campaign (details below). It is a huntable monster with unique resources to collect and gear to craft.
The Tyrant is the Dragon King's human form. You will only encounter this monster as part of the People of the Stars campaign.
Add to Your Campaign
To add the Dragon King to your current campaign, add the Glowing Crater story event (found in this book) to Lantern Year 8 on the timeline. If your campaign is beyond year 8, add it to the next year on the timeline.
Upgrade Your Core Game
Upgrade your core game with the contents of this expansion. Separate out all of the cards by their types and then:
- Add the Dragon King Card Divider, AI, Hit Location, Hunt, and Resource cards to the monster section of the core game box.
- Add the Tyrant Card Divider, AI, Hit Location, Special Terrain, and Constellation cards to the monster section of the core game box.
- Add the new disorders to the Disorders deck.
- Add the new fighting arts to the Fighting Arts deck.
- Add the new secret fighting arts to the Secret Fighting Arts deck.
- Add the new gear and Armor Set bonus card to the game box.
- Add the new terrain to the Terrain deck.
- Add the new innovations to the innovation cards in the game box (not your settlement's deck).
When a story event in this book is triggered, it is denoted by the story event icon preceding the event name.
New Rules
Double-sided Terrain Tiles
The Dragon King expansion introduces double-sided terrain tiles (Lava Pools/Obsidian Towers). These terrain tiles have 2 corresponding terrain cards. During the Dragon King showdown, these terrain tiles flip after they are placed. Use the rules on the terrain card corresponding to the currently visible side of a terrain tile.
If the Lava Pool or Obsidian Tower terrain cards are drawn in another monster's showdown, use only the side of the terrain tile corresponding to the terrain card you drew.
Special Terrain Cards
The Tyrant's showdown uses a Gate special terrain card with rules for Gate terrain tiles only used during the Tyrant showdown. Do not shuffle this into the Terrain deck.
Knockback and Knocked Down
The Dragon King is too massive to be moved by a mere survivor. It is immune to any knockback and cannot be knocked down.
Monster Level Symbol
The ★ symbol on all game cards and events refers to the monster's level. For example, the Dragon King's Lordly Roar instructs the target to suffer ★ + 3 brain damage. In a showdown against a level 2 Dragon King, this would be 5 brain damage.
Scythe Weapon Proficiency
This expansion has a new weapon type and a corresponding weapon specialization/weapon mastery card. Scythe can now be nominated by survivors for weapon proficiency.
People of the Stars Campaign
The People of the Stars is designed as a stand-alone campaign. It is not intended to be added to a standard campaign or for use with any other expansion monsters.
Adopted by the Tyrant, the last of the People of the Stars, the survivors must grow their settlement to please its desire to leave an enduring draconian legacy before he passes.
This campaign follows a group of survivors that establish their settlement near the Tyrant's Throne instead of a Lantern Hoard. Under the watchful gaze of the Tyrant you will build a different settlement, follow a different timeline, and develop new innovations. New types of survivors, People of the Stars, will emerge.
New Survivor Record Sheet
When you create survivors in this campaign, use the new survivor record sheet (included in this book and at sheets.kingdomdeath.com). The new record sheet contains information about your survivors' progress through this campaign's new goals.
New Settlement Record Sheet
Complete the First Story prologue as normal. When you begin the first settlement phase, use the Dragon King settlement record sheet (included in this book and at sheets.kingdomdeath.com). The new record sheet contains an alternate timeline with a mix of new story events and events from the Kingdom Death: Monster core game.
Story Events in the Campaign
In some cases you will replace existing core game story events with new versions in this book, and in other cases you will ignore events from the core game altogether.
Replaced Story Events: If you are instructed to trigger any of the listed story events, replace these story events as follows:
- Returning Survivors → Foundlings
- Bold and Insight → Awake
- Intimacy (Core Game) → Intimacy
Removed Story Events: Some story events are not intended to be used in this campaign. Hands of Heat, Regal Visit, Armored Strangers, Watched, and Nemesis Encounter - Watcher have all been removed from the timeline.
If an event or card would cause you to add/trigger one of these events, do nothing instead. For instance, choosing the Barbaric Conviction Principle would usually add Hands of Heat to the timeline, and the 1 result on the Records innovation would move Nemesis Encounter - Watcher on the timeline. In both cases, simply ignore the results.
Innovations in the Campaign
The People of the Stars learn and discover different aspects of the world than those living near a Lantern Hoard.
Removed Innovations: Remove the following innovations from the pool of possible innovations: Language, Lantern Oven, Family, and Clan of Death.
New Innovations: The People of the Stars campaign starts with the Dragon Speech innovation, as noted on the Foundlings story event.
Bloodline and Empire are new home innovations. The Radiant Orb takes the place of the Lantern Oven as your settlement's source of heat, but unlike the Lantern Oven, it can only be gained when granted by story events. Finally, Arena is a new education innovation that is added to the innovation deck as a Nightmare Training consequence.
Dragon Traits and Constellations
Dragon Traits are a collection of abilities, fighting arts, attribute modifiers, disorders, secret fighting arts, and surnames that survivors gain throughout the campaign.
Dragon Traits are listed in the Constellation section of the survivor record sheet. Throughout this expansion, Dragon Traits are mentioned in bold, red text to remind players to mark them on their record sheet as they are gained.
Once marked, Dragon Traits are permanent. Even if a survivor loses the original source of that trait, they are still considered to have that Dragon Trait. For example, curing the Destined disorder by endeavoring at Bed does not remove the Dragon Trait.
When a survivor has four Dragon Traits in a row (vertically or horizontally), they trigger the Faces in the Sky story event and gain a constellation. When survivors gain a constellation, they become one of the People of the Stars.
Constellations are powerful upgrades available only to the People of the Stars. The exact constellation gained depends on which 4 Dragon Traits were used to complete a row or column. For example, a survivor who triggers the event by having the Oracle's Eye ability, the Unbreakable fighting art, 3+ strength, and 9+ courage, gains the Goblin Constellation.
Survivors can only have one constellation. Once a survivor has gained a constellation, they no longer record new Dragon Traits on their record sheet. If a survivor would gain two or more constellations at the same time, they choose which of them to gain.
The Tyrant
Periodically, the Tyrant will test the settlement's prowess, guiding their development towards People of the Stars and evaluating their progress. Failing to measure up to its expectations often has dire consequences.
Part of these tests are special nemesis encounters. However, the Tyrant is not a traditional nemesis monster, and the survivors may only face it when it is explicitly listed on the timeline of the settlement's record sheet.
Do not add the Tyrant to the Nemesis Monster list on the settlement record sheet. When choosing to fight an unspecified nemesis, you may not select the Tyrant. Furthermore, the settlement cannot choose to face the Tyrant via a special showdown (such as by using the Heart Flute) or use the monster as the basis for the Hunt Reenactment settlement event.
Tyrant Showdown
Move into Range and Attack
The Tyrant has Range: 3 and uses Move into Range and Attack actions. When the monster is instructed to Move into Range and Attack, end the monster's movement 3 spaces away from the target. If the monster is less than 3 spaces away, move it until it is exactly 3 spaces away.
Expansion Glossary
- Acid Palms: Add 1d10 strength to your wound attempts when attacking with Fist & Tooth.
- Heart of the Sword (Storm): If you gain weapon proficiency during the Aftermath, gain +3 additional ranks. You cough up a hunk of your own solidified blood and gain +1 iron strange resource.
- Iridescent Hide: Gain +1 armor at all hit locations for each different-colored affinity in your gear grid. (The printed shield icon is read as armor.)
- Limb-maker (Sculptor): Once per settlement phase, spend 2 endeavors to carve a prosthetic limb. Remove a survivor's dismembered injury and add 1 bone to the settlement's storage.
- Oracle's Eye: At the start of the showdown, look through the AI deck then shuffle.
- Presage (Witch): Each time you attack, before drawing hit locations, loudly say a name. You lightly bite the eye in your cheek to see what it sees. If you draw any hit locations with that name, gain +3 insanity and +10 strength when attempting to wound them.
- Pristine: When you suffer a dismembered severe injury, ignore it and gain 1 bleeding token instead.
- Psychovore (Reaper): Once per showdown, you may eat an adjacent survivor's disorder. If you do, remove the disorder. They gain 1 bleeding token and you gain +1 permanent strength. At the end of the showdown, if you haven't eaten a disorder, you die.
- Rooted to All (Absolute): If you are standing at the start of your act, reveal the top 2 cards of the AI deck and put them back in any order.
Story Events
Narrative text of each story event is omitted below; the mechanical instructions are transcribed in order. Full-page illustrations are omitted.
Glowing Crater
Story Event. Narrative omitted.
[Narrative omitted.]
Nominate a survivor. They are the only witness.
[Narrative omitted.]
They gain the Destined disorder.
[Narrative omitted.]
The nominated survivor gains the Destiny Husk rare gear and Acid Palms ability.
Acid Palms: Add 1d10 strength to your wound attempts when attacking with Fist & Tooth.
[Narrative omitted.]
You may now hunt the Dragon King. Add it to the Quarries list on the settlement record sheet.
Showdown: Dragon King
Story Event. Location: Quarry.
[Flavour text omitted.]
Select an encounter level and set up the hunt board. The hunt board is a row of spaces marked E, with encounter spaces numbered 1, 2, and 3 and the Dragon King's marker in the middle.
Showdown Setup
- 2 Toppled Pillar terrain cards, set up in the green spaces.
- 1 Stone Column terrain card, set up in the purple spaces.
- Place the Dragon King in the center of the board.
- Place survivors in any of the blue spaces.
(The printed setup diagram shows the green, purple, and blue spaces and the monster's start square.)
Instinct: Core Countdown
Full move toward the closest threat. Perform Irradiate. End the Dragon King's turn.
(The printed Blind Spot diagram marks the monster's blind spot; it is not reproduced here.)
Monster Stats
| Level | B | A | L | Mov | Tgh | Spd | Dmg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | 4 | - | 10 | 13 | - | - |
| 2 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 10 | 15 | +1 | +1 |
| 3 | 9 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 17 | +2 | +2 |
The three columns headed by letter icons are transcribed as B, A and L.
AI cards:
- Level 1: Irradiate, Unseen Agony.
- Level 2: Irradiate, Unseen Agony.
- Level 3: Irradiate, Unseen Agony, Smolder.
(Each AI card name in the printed table is preceded by a small numbered icon that is [illegible] at this resolution.)
Tokens (Level 3): +1 Luck. (Printed beneath the Level 3 row.)
Aftermath
Victory
- +1 Hunt XP
- +1 Weapon Proficiency (if eligible)
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- Rewards
Defeat: You may choose to leave or recover the remains. If you leave, do not gain the benefits of the settlement's Death Principle. If you recover the remains, gain the benefits of your Death Principle but a survivor becomes sick in the process. Suffer -1 population.
Rewards
The first time the Dragon King is defeated, add the Dragon Armory to the settlement locations.
The group gains the following rewards:
| Level | Reward |
|---|---|
| 1 | 4 basic resources and 4 Dragon King resources. |
| 2 | 4 basic resources, 6 Dragon King resources, 1 Pituitary Gland strange resource. |
| 3 | 4 basic resources, 8 Dragon King resources, 1 Shining Liver strange resource. |
If the settlement has innovated Sculpture when you defeat the Level 2 Dragon King, gain a Radiant Core strange resource.
Meltdown
Story Event.
[Flavour text omitted.]
Meltdown Zone
The Dragon King's nuclear heart explodes with an ear-shattering whine. Everything in the monster's path burns up in a wave of unseen heat. (The printed Meltdown Zone diagram shows the affected spaces in red, in front of the monster.)
- Each survivor in the Meltdown Zone is Caught in the Disintegrating Wave.
- Then, archive all destructible terrain in the affected spaces. Flip all Lava Pool terrain tiles to Obsidian Tower terrain tiles.
- The Dragon King's protective chest sphincter screws shut. Remove all -1 toughness tokens.
Caught in the Disintegrating Wave - roll 1d10
All survivors in the Dragon King's field of view and blind spot suffer 1 damage for each -1 toughness token the monster has to ★ hit locations.
- 1-4: Your arms give off steam and burst! Suffer the ruptured muscle severe arm injury.
- 5-8: The image of the screaming heart-face is seared into your memory. If you're not blind, suffer the blind severe head injury.
- 9: The shock wave sends you flying. You land with a steaming hiss! Suffer knockback 7. Archive any soluble gear in your grid.
- 10: You close your eyes and leap for your life. Gain the Acrobatics fighting art.
Foundlings
Story Event. The printed event has three parts, shown in order below. Illustrations are omitted.
First Words
Nominate a survivor to utter the First Words.
The nominated survivor listens close to the Tyrant's words and gains +1 understanding. They speak to the settlement for the first time in the Tyrant's language! They can finally discuss their situation, realizing they must hunt to live. Add the White Lion to the Quarry list on the settlement record sheet.
Your settlement gains the Dragon Speech innovation. Search the innovation cards for Dragon Speech and place it face up in your play area and record it on your settlement record sheet.
Dragon Speech is your first innovation and the unique language taught to you by the Tyrant. It will spark the creation of the innovation deck.
Build the Innovation deck now.
Build the Innovation Deck
The innovation deck represents the potential cultural and technological growth of your settlement. It will grow throughout the campaign as you gain new innovations.
Find the 6 innovation cards with language consequences listed under their title: Ammonia, Drums, Hovel, Inner Lantern, Paint, and Symposium.
Shuffle these 6 cards together to form your settlement's innovation deck. Place it face down in the designated space on the settlement board.
The innovation deck is persistent. Preserve the unique combination of cards in your deck between play sessions.
Finished with their work, the settlement gathers around its Gleaming Edifice.
Gleaming Edifice
Armed with language, the nominated survivor exalts the center of the settlement, the gleaming obsidian throne. The settlement gains the Throne settlement location.
Place the Throne face up in your play area. The Throne is the source of all innovations and further locations the settlement will develop.
The nominated survivor sits in front of the Dragon Throne in wonder. They gain the Champion's Rite fighting art and must skip the next hunt as they ponder the meaning of existence.
Check off the Skip Next Hunt box on the survivor's record sheet. They cannot be selected as a departing survivor this settlement phase.
Intimacy
Story Event.
Nominate one consenting male and one consenting female survivor and roll on the Intimacy table below.
The first time the survivors bring a new life into this world (+1 population from Intimacy), the Tyrant will teach the settlement how the People of the Stars are reared. (Trigger the Principle: New Life story event.)
As your settlement grows, don't forget to apply your New Life principle. It will greatly affect the outcome of your campaign.
- If the settlement has the Protect the Young New Life Principle, the parents give the child the Noble surname.
- If the settlement has the Survival of the Fittest New Life Principle, the newborn survivor gains a second Dragon's Inheritance.
Intimacy - roll 1d10
- 1: Unspeakable tragedy. The Tyrant looks on with sadness. The nominated survivors and the newborn are dead.
- 2-3: The child perishes in childbirth and the female survivor is forever changed. She suffers the destroyed genitals severe waist injury and gains a Scar.
- 4-5: A strong child is born, kicking and screaming. +1 population, the newborn gains +1 permanent strength.
- 6-9: The Tyrant is pleased. +1 population and choose 1 Dragon's Inheritance for the newborn survivor.
- 10: Mirror birth. Twins are born, +2 population. Choose 1 Dragon's Inheritance for each newborn survivor.
Choose an inheritance for the new survivor and note the resulting characteristic on the newborn survivor's record sheet.
Dragon's Inheritance
- Gain half of a parent's courage (rounded down).
- Gain half of a parent's understanding (rounded down).
- Gain one of a parent's fighting arts.
- Gain all of parent's disorders.
- Gain one parent's surname.
Hovel: A Favored Child
If the settlement innovated Hovel, a favored child is born. Roll 1d10 to determine which ability the newborn survivor gains.
| 1d10 | A Twinkle in the Sky Gazer's Eye |
|---|---|
| 1-5 | Iridescent Hide: Gain +1 armor at all hit locations for each different-colored affinity in your gear grid. (The printed shield icon is read as armor.) |
| 6-10 | Oracle's Eye: At the start of the showdown, look through the AI deck, then shuffle it. |
Midnight's Children
Story Event.
[Flavour text omitted.]
The Tyrant descends the obsidian staircase with a gift. It places the gift at the settlement's center, and heat washes over the cold stone ground for the first time. The settlement gains the Radiant Orb innovation.
The Tyrant beckons each survivor into the light. The gathered survivors Marvel at Their Reflection in the gleaming obsidian.
Marvel at Their Reflection
Count the number of survivors in the settlement that have at least 1 Dragon Trait.
3 or less - A pale reflection
The Tyrant gazes bitterly at the pale, anemic limbs crowding into the warmth of the Radiant Orb, their chilled goose-flesh resembling nothing of the proud people he imagined they would be. Roll 1d10.
| 1d10 | The settlement |
|---|---|
| 1-2 | The Tyrant loses patience, tearing at the mingling crowd and killing all survivors without any Dragon Traits. Suddenly contrite, the Tyrant ministers to the newborns of the settlement. Gain +4 population. These survivors are born with the Unbreakable fighting art and Reincarnated surname. |
| 3-6 | The Tyrant orders the survivors into the darkness for grueling martial exercises. Half of the survivors without Dragon Traits (rounded down) die. All other survivors gain +1 permanent strength or +1 permanent accuracy. |
| 7-9 | The Tyrant calls each survivor before it, marking their faces with honed claws reminiscent of the vanished dragons. Not all survive its touch. All survivors with permanent injuries are killed. All remaining survivors gain a Scar. |
| 10 | The Tyrant takes pity. All survivors without Dragon Traits gain an aspirational surname: Noble. |
4 or more - a flickering reflection
Among the survivors' dim reflections in the polished black stone of the settlement, the ghosts of the dragons appear to walk among the settlement. Roll 1d10.
| 1d10 | The settlement |
|---|---|
| 1-3 | The Tyrant culls dead weight. Half of the survivors without Dragon Traits are killed. The Tyrant presents the settlement with a Regal Edge rare gear. |
| 4-6 | The Tyrant calls each survivor with a Dragon Trait in turn. He wraps each survivor in an anemic embrace, whispering to them in a familiar tone that chills their hearts. Each gains +5 insanity and the Reincarnated surname. |
| 7-9 | The Tyrant calls up 1 hopeful survivor with no Dragon Traits. They place their hands upon the swirling surface of the Radiant Orb. Skin charring in its heat, they gain the Red Fist secret fighting art and the following ability. Pristine: When you suffer a dismembered severe injury, ignore it and gain 1 bleeding token instead. |
| 10 | The Tyrant spends time with the nascent People of the Stars. A random survivor gains a Dragon Vestments rare gear. Each survivor with a Dragon Trait gains a random fighting art. |
Awake
Story Event.
Roll on the table corresponding to the milestone you reached. A survivor may only gain these benefits once per lifetime.
Courage - roll 1d10
(Milestone icon: three squares.)
[Flavour text omitted.]
Gain the following based on the current game phase:
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Settlement Phase: Intimacy. Add +1 to your roll result. If possible, nominate yourself.
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Hunt Phase: Gain survival up to the settlement's survival limit.
-
Showdown Phase: Gain +1 strength and +1 accuracy tokens.
-
4-7: Gain +1 permanent strength, a random fighting art, and the Reincarnated surname.
-
8-10: Gain +1 permanent accuracy and the Unbreakable fighting art.
Understanding - roll 1d10
(Milestone icon: three squares.)
[Flavour text omitted.]
Gain the following based on the current game phase:
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Settlement Phase: Gain +2 endeavors only you can spend.
-
Hunt Phase: Gain +1 strength and +1 evasion tokens.
-
Showdown Phase: Remove all your bleeding and negative attribute tokens.
-
4-7: Gain +1 permanent evasion, a random fighting art and the Noble surname.
-
8-10: Gain +1 permanent evasion and the Champion's Rite fighting art.
Unveil the Sky
Story Event.
[Flavour text omitted.]
Nominate 4 survivors with at least 1 Dragon Trait. They gain +2 understanding and Peer into Destiny.
Peer into Destiny - roll 1d10
- 1: Convulsing with fear, you die. Your rigor-stricken face imitates a celestial one.
- 2-3: Your life has purpose. You will achieve your master's work. Gain +5 insanity and the Destined disorder.
- 4-6: You're certain one of the faces above is mouthing your name. A distant voice whispers the tale of your death. Gain +3 courage and the Noble surname.
- 7-9: A voice above loudly declares your perfect ancestry. Gain 2 ranks of weapon proficiency and the Reincarnated surname.
- 10: A face above peers back at you, shedding a single glittering tear. As it splashes down over you, the cold embrace of the other chills you to your quaking bones. Gain the Frozen Star secret fighting art.