Munchkin 8: Half Horse, Will Travel
Munchkin 8: Half Horse, Will Travel Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Hirelings
Hirelings, Sidekicks (from Star Munchkin and Super Munchkin), Mooks (from Munchkin Fu), Minions (from Munchkin Bites!), and Allies (from Munchkin Axe Cop) are all the same for the purposes of these rules.
Hirelings are found in Door decks in some sets, Treasures in others. (In this set, the Hirelings are Doors.) You can play a Hireling at any time, even in combat, as long as you have only one Hireling in play at a time. If you draw a face-up Hireling, you may put it in your hand if you cannot (or don't want to) put it in play. You may discard a Hireling at any time.
A Hireling is not an Item unless it has a price on it. You may only trade Hirelings that have a Gold Piece value.
A Hireling can sacrifice himself for you. If you lose a fight, then instead of rolling to Run Away, you may discard one Hireling and anything he is carrying. You automatically escape from all monsters in the fight, even if a monster card says escape is impossible. If someone was helping you in the fight, YOU decide whether that person automatically escapes as well, or must roll to escape.
Some Hirelings give you extra Hands, or let you carry an extra Big or Complex item. In this case, the Hireling does not actually have any items . . . he merely increases your own abilities. If something happens to the Hireling, your items are not affected.
Other Hirelings can specifically carry and use an Item themselves. In some cases, a Hireling can use an item you cannot use for yourself. The items a Hireling carries count for you and are affected by Traps, Curses, and Bad Stuff as though you were carrying them yourself. If your Hireling has an item:
- If your Hireling sacrifices himself to save you, any items he was carrying are lost.
- If your Hireling is killed, you loot the body yourself and keep the items.
- If your Hireling is taken away by a Trap/Curse, by Bad Stuff, or by a change in loyalty, the items go with him!
Hirelings and Monster Bonuses
If (for instance) you have the Centaur Hireling and you face a monster that gets a bonus against Centaurs, it gets the bonus against you unless you immediately discard the Hireling. And, of course, a monster that has a penalty against Centaurs has that penalty against any munchkin with a Centaur Hireling. The same is true for any monster that has a bonus or penalty against any Race, Class, or sex.
Bad Stuff does not affect Hirelings unless it specifically mentions them. Ignore your Hireling's Race, Class, and sex when determining what a monster does to you.
Hirelings and Sex
Look, we told you not to GO there.
The sex of a Hireling does not matter except with monster reactions (above) or when you want to give it an item that is male-only or female-only. In that case, the Hireling is of the sex, if any, shown on its card. It should be pretty obvious, even to your munchkin players, which illustrations are male, which are female, and which Hirelings (in other sets) have no sex at all. Robots never have a real gender, regardless of the pronouns on their card text. Ralph the Wonder Dog used to be male, but we took him to the vet.
If you ever want to change the sex of a Hireling, you need the Sex-Change Potion (from Need for Steed).
Hirelings and Cheating
A Cheat! card can be used to give you an extra Hireling, or to let a Hireling carry an Item he normally could not (but why not just use the card on yourself and carry it yourself?).
Steeds
Dear to a Munchkin's heart is his mighty Steed . . . because, of course, it gives bonuses. Steeds are found in the Door deck.
No player (except a Centaur!) can have more than one Steed except by using a Cheat! card.
Steeds are Items, and follow normal Item rules. Anything that affects an Item can affect a Steed.
Steeds carry themselves. A Steed is "Big," but it does not count against the number of Big items you can carry (in fact, some let you carry more Big things). The "Big" designation on Steeds is to control what Traps and Curses affect them, and to keep Thieves from pocketing and walking off with them.
There are a few Items that specifically enhance Steeds. Unless a card says it is a Steed Enhancer or otherwise says a Steed can use it, a Steed cannot use it. "Item enhancers" do not affect Steeds.
If a Steed has a bonus or penalty to Run Away, that replaces the bonus or penalty of the rider. (If a Curse or Bad Stuff gives you a Run Away penalty, that penalty applies no matter what!) If your Steed gives you a penalty to Run Away, you may discard the Steed before you roll to flee. You don't suffer the penalty, but the Steed goes to the discard pile.
Treating Steeds as Monsters
A player who draws a face-up Steed may choose to treat it as a monster instead. In that case, its Level is equal to twice the combat bonus at the top of the card. (If there is no bonus listed, a Steed cannot be monstrified.) Defeating a Monster Steed is good for one level and one Treasure, and its Bad Stuff is "Lose a level."
This is a wonderful little rule because many of your opponents will forget about it until you use it to win. Show them this rulesheet and do a happy little dance.