Northgard: Uncharted Lands
Northgard: Uncharted Lands Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Components
- Goal of the Game
- The Map Tiles
- Glossary
- Game Setup
- Deck Building
- Game Play
- Anatomy of a Card
- Actions
- Combat
- End of the Game and Winner
- Variants
- Clan Powers
- Module: Creatures
- Credits
Components
- 70 units (14 for each player, in 5 different colors)
- 30 Starting cards (6 for each player, with a special banner bearing the color of the player)
- 56 Building tokens (7 for each of the 8 types)
- 35 Map tiles (including 1 starting tile)
- 65 Fame tokens values 50 (x5), 10 (x15), 5 (x15) and 1 (x30)
- 75 Resources tokens (30 food, 25 wood and 20 lore)
- 1 First Player marker
- 2 Northgard dice
- 1 Turn track and Year token
- 21 Clan cards (1 initial card and 2 upgrade cards for each of the 7 clans)
- 52 Development cards (16 Early Development and 36 Advanced Development)
- 5 Player's aid cards
- 10 Unrest cards
- 7 Achievement cards
- 15 Multiple resource tokens (5 food, wood, lore)
- 1 Kaija, the armored bear token (for Bear clan only)
- 1 Scorched Earth token (for Snake clan only)
Goal of the Game
- Control three closed territories with large buildings at the end of any year.
OR
- Have the most fame points at the end of the seventh year.
The Map Tiles
The Map tiles may contain borders that delimit up to four territories. White borders with small dotted lines are regular borders, while yellow borders with large dotted lines are Rough borders (for more details, see the Move action).
Map tiles may contain resources: food, wood and/or lore.
The tiles also have spaces for small and large buildings (see the Build action).
Some of those spaces contain a Carved Stone symbol. This is the only place where you can build a Carved Stone building.
Some territories might contain a creature's lair. They have rules which can be added to the game through the Creatures module.
Starting tile
The regular starting Map tile has a different back and is always placed first during setup.
Starting tiles for 5 players
The starting tile for five players has a regular back, but a "5" symbol on its front. At five players, place both tiles next to each other with the food symbol in the middle territory.
Glossary
Borders: The lines displayed on the Map tiles.
Territory: Space created between several borders and/or the edge of the Map tiles. Units can be physically placed anywhere inside a territory's borders (even spread out on different tiles of a same territory for easy manipulation).
Adjacent territories: Two territories are adjacent if they have at least one common border (touching by a point or corner of a tile doesn't count).
Closed territory: A territory that has been totally defined by borders. Such territory cannot be explored (extended) further.
Open territory: A territory that has not been closed yet, around which the borders are not complete. In such situations the edges of the Map tiles mark their (evolving) borders.
Territory owner (controller): The player that has at least one unit in that territory controls it. In combat, the defender controls the territory until its resolution.
Neutral territory: A territory that has no units on it. Although it can have buildings created by previous owners.
Combat: Conflict happening whenever units of two players are in the same territory.
Resource: Food, wood or lore.
Game Setup
A. Place the dice and fame, Resource (food, wood, lore) and Building tokens on the table, creating a common reserve in easy reach of all players.
B. Place the turn track on the table, the Year token on its first space.
C. Place the Unrest cards in a face up deck on the table.
D. Shuffle all the Early Development cards and take 2 cards per player (4/6/8/10 cards depending on player count) to form a face down pile. Repeat the process with the Advanced Development cards, taking 4 cards per player (8/12/16/20 cards) to form a second face down pile. Place the Early Development pile over the Advanced Development pile, forming a single Development deck. Return the unused cards to the game box.
E. Shuffle all the Achievement cards and randomly take cards equal to the number of players, placing them face up next to each other, on the table. Return the unused cards to the game box.
F. Place the starting Map tile at the center of the table. At five players, search for the corresponding starting tile and place them as described above. Shuffle the remaining Map tiles and place them in a face down pile on the table.
G. Each player chooses a color and takes the corresponding six Starting cards. They place their corresponding fourteen units next to them.
H. Each player chooses a clan and takes the corresponding Clan cards: one initial Clan card and two Clan upgrade cards (set aside for a later use).
I. Each player shuffles their deck of six Starting cards plus their initial Clan card (a total of seven cards), and places them face down as their draw pile.
J. Randomly determine the starting player by rolling two dice. Give the first player token to the player who rolls the most axes (re-rolling any ties).
K. Give to each player their starting resources, starting with the first player and going clockwise around the table:
- 1st to 3rd player → 2 food + 2 wood
- 4th and 5th player → 3 food + 2 wood
L. Each player draws three Map tiles. The starting player chooses one tile from their hand and places it so that it orthogonally touches the starting tile(s). Then, they take a group of three of their units and place them in one empty territory of the newly placed Map tile.
Continuing in clockwise order, each player does the same.
Once all players have placed one Map tile each, repeat the process once more, following these placement rules:
- A player's second Map tile must orthogonally touch any placed tile, it doesn't have to be the starting Map tile(s).
- Map tiles must be placed so that the border lines are continued (see Forbidden Placements for examples).
- A player's second group of units must be placed in an empty territory of this new tile. Even if it is connected to their first tile, the two groups of units cannot be placed in the same territory.
Once it is done, the players end up with two groups of three units in different territories. They place their unused third Map tile in the tile deck and shuffle it.
Important: The players may not gain any resource, fame or other benefit from their special powers during the setup phase.
M. The game can begin with the first year, and the player with the First Player marker goes first.
Deck Building
Each player has their own deck of cards with 4 distinct zones: draw pile (face down - to draw cards from), hand (hidden to others - to play the cards from), active area (where the cards are played face up during the current turn) and the discard pile (face up - where cards go at the end of the year). The cards go from the draw pile to the hand, then to the active area, then to the discard pile, then back to the draw pile.
Important: A player will reshuffle their discard pile to form a new draw pile only when they need to draw a card from their empty draw pile.
Each player should place their player's aid card in front of themselves. Always place the draw pile on the left side of the player's aid and the discard pile visible on its right side.
Game Play
Once the set up is done, the game begins. The game consists of a series of years, or rounds, divided in five phases.
Phases of a Year
- Start of Year
- Actions
- Harvest
- Winter
- End of Year
1. Start of Year
At the beginning of each year, each player draws four cards from their own deck. Whenever a player no longer has any cards in their draw pile, they must shuffle their discard pile and create a new draw pile.
Important: this draw pile renewal takes place any other time a player must draw a card from an empty draw pile, including the other phases.
The first player then draws cards equal to the number of players from the Development deck and places them visible on the table next to it.
Due to the set up, Early Developments are drawn during the first and second years, and Advanced Development cards are drawn at the beginning of years three through six.
On the seventh year (last round of the game), Achievement cards replace the Development cards.
2. Actions
This phase is a sequence of player turns. Starting with the first player and following clockwise, each player takes turns to play one after another, until all players have passed. Each player may take multiple turns during this phase. During their turn, the current player needs to choose one of the following possible actions:
A. Play card(s)
The current player plays one card from their hand and places it face up in their active area, then resolves its action. The card actions are described later in the rules.
Flash cards, displaying the Flash symbol, are special. The player may play any number of these cards before and after the main action card. In such cases, the cards must be played one at a time, as a card action has to be resolved completely in order to play another card. Note that the player can also choose to play only a Flash card and nothing else (effectively ignoring the Flash bonus).
B. Wait
The current player picks a card from their hand and places it into the active area, without resolving its effects.
C. Replace a card
The current player picks a card from their hand and places it into the active area without resolving its effects and spends one lore. Then, they draw a new card from their own draw pile.
D. Remove a card
The current player picks a card from their hand and places it in the game box, effectively removing it from the game, and spends two lore. Then, they draw two new cards from their own draw pile.
E. Upgrade
The current player picks a card from their hand and places it into the active area without resolving its effects OR removes it from the game (their choice) and spends an additional three lore to get an upgrade. They pick one of their Clan upgrade cards and place it in their hand. This card can be played in a subsequent turn and is therefore integrated in the player's deck.
F. Pass
The current player discards all cards left in their hand (if any) to their discard pile and all played cards from the active area, and then picks a new card from the Development cards displayed on the table (or an Achievement card if this is the seventh year). They MUST place this new card on the top of their draw pile.
The first player to pass also takes the First Player marker.
Note: when the player has no cards left in hand, they can only Pass.
Important: The current player will not play anymore this phase, while the others continue until they have also passed.
3. Harvest
Starting with the first player, players gain fame and collect resources in the territories they control.
A. Gain fame from closed territories
For each closed territory they control, each player receives fame. Territories spreading on two tiles only bring one fame, while larger territories (three tiles or more) bring two fame.
B. Collect resources and fame
The players gain additional fame and resources from their controlled territories in the following ways:
- Each player receives three fame for each Altar of Kings.
- Each player collects one food, wood and lore for each corresponding icon displayed on their controlled territories and/or buildings.
C. Trade resources
Players may exchange their resources with the reserve. For any three discarded resources of any type, they may take one resource of their choice from the reserve.
Important: fame tokens must be kept face down by each player. The other tokens are kept visible in front of the players.
4. Winter
Starting with the first player, each player must pay resources for the winter. Depending on the total number of units a player has on the map, that player must pay resources shown in the below table.
Winter costs
| Units on the map | 1-3 | 4-6 | 7-9 | 10-12 | 13+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | — | 1 food | 2 food | 3 food + 1 wood | 4 food + 2 wood |
If a player cannot pay the required resources to maintain their units, they must pay as much of the required resources as they are able and take one Unrest card which they place on top of their draw pile.
The Unrest cards are integrated in the player deck and hinder the player's action. They have no effect and cannot be removed from the game. Additionally, each one forces its owner to lose five fame at the end of the game.
It is unlikely to use all the Unrest cards included in the game. However, if it does happen, a player that cannot draw an Unrest card will instead immediately lose five fame and discard the top card of their draw pile.
Example of Harvest and Winter
- Closed Territories: Purple gets no fame. Red gets two fame. Yellow gets two fame.
- Resources: Purple gets two wood and one lore. Red gets three food, one wood and two lore. Yellow gets one food, one wood and three fame.
- Winter: Red pays one food for four units, Purple pays two food for seven units, Yellow pays nothing for three units.
5. End of Year
A. Check the end of game conditions
- If any player controls at least three closed territories with at least one large building (Altar of Kings, Forge, Fortress) in each.
OR
- If this is the seventh year, the game ends here. See the "The End of the Game" section.
B. The second chance
If a player doesn't have any units left on the map at the end of the year, they can place a group of three new units in any neutral territory. They continue the game with the same deck, resources and fame.
If by any chance there is no neutral territory left on the map, the player can draw a new tile and place it to create a new neutral territory.
C. Move the Year token
Slide the Year token one space on the turn track.
Anatomy of a Card
All cards share a similar layout but feature a few differences depending on their type:
- Upper box, layout depending on the type of card (see below)
- Action icons
- Player color's banner (starting cards only)
- Title of the card
- Picture
- Fame value (if any)
- Bottom box with rules exceptions and effects (if any)
Upper box layouts: Starting cards / Clan cards / Unrest cards; Early Development cards; Advanced Development card; Achievement cards.
Actions
The following actions correspond to the cards a player may play during Phase 2 – Actions.
The icons in the top box of each card describe the effect of the action, while a bottom box specifies if there are any exceptions to the usual rules applying to this action.
Four actions are displayed on the Starting cards: Recruit, Explore, Move and Build. Feast is a wild card that allows you to play the action of your choice among these. Development and Clan cards feature a greater variety of effects, which includes Draw and Special actions.
The cards are always right
Northgard: Uncharted Lands is a game where the text on the cards can contradict what is written in this rulebook, to create more powerful effects. In that case, the rules stated on the cards take priority over this rulebook.
Note: Some cards, like Spy, have multiple effects. As long as these effects are not dependent on each other (do X to do Y), the player may choose however many of them they wish to perform.
Recruit Action
The current player places up to the given number (displayed by the card) of new units on the map, with the following conditions:
- The new units can only be placed in a territory they control.
- The new units may be placed in different territories if several units are recruited.
- There is no limit to the number of units that can be placed in one single territory.
- The number of units a player may have on the map is only limited by the number of models available in their reserve.
- When recruiting at least one unit in a territory with a Training Camp, another extra unit may be added per Training Camp in that territory.
- If the player has no units left on the map and plays a Recruit action, they can choose a neutral territory to place the units.
Example: The Red player uses a Recruit-2 action and adds two units on the map, on two different territories, both of them with a Training Camp on it. As both units are added on a territory with a Training Camp, they trigger an additional unit recruitment in their respective territories, allowing the player to place four units with the same action.
Build Action
The current player places one new Building token on the map with the following conditions:
- The new building must be placed inside a territory they own, on a corresponding available space.
- The current player pays one wood for a small building, or three wood for a large building.
- Small buildings can only be built on small spaces, large buildings only on large spaces.
- A Carved Stone can be built only on a small space with the Carved Stone icon.
- The player cannot build a type of building that already exists in the same territory.
- The total number of buildings that can be built is limited to the number of Building tokens.
- Once built, the buildings cannot be moved or removed.
Example: The Red player has two wood, so they can build: a Carved Stone, only in the space with the Carved Stone icon of territory B; or any one of the four other types of small buildings in territory A or B (including on the Carved Stone space if desired). They cannot build a large building in territory C, as they would need three wood.
Small Buildings
| Building | Placement | Wood needed | Benefits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food Silo | Small space or Carved Stone space | 1 wood | Phase 3 - Collect one food. |
| Woodcutter Lodge | Small space or Carved Stone space | 1 wood | Phase 3 - Collect one wood. |
| Defense Tower | Small space or Carved Stone space | 1 wood | During Combat, the defender gets one additional casualty per Defense Tower to be added to their die result. |
| Training Camp | Small space or Carved Stone space | 1 wood | Phase 2 - Each time a player recruits unit(s) in a territory with Training Camp(s), they may add one more unit for each Training Camp. Note: This benefit only applies for a Recruit action, or if the card text contains the word recruit. |
| Carved Stone | Carved Stone space only | 1 wood | Phase 3 - Collect one lore. |
Large Buildings
A player can win the game with at least three closed territories with large buildings.
| Building | Placement | Wood needed | Benefits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fortress | Large space | 3 wood | During combat, add two combat points to the defender's result. |
| Forge | Large space | 3 wood | Phase 1 - draw one more card per Forge controlled (four cards plus one card per Forge). |
| Altar of Kings | Large space | 3 wood | Phase 3 - receive three fame for each controlled Altar of Kings. |
Move Action
The current player can make as many independent moves as the card displays, as part of a single Move action.
- A move is to take any number of units from a controlled territory (from one unit to all of the units) and move them to an adjacent territory by crossing one border per move.
- The Starting card only displays one move, but Development cards and Clan cards can display several moves (x1, x2, x3, x4, x?).
- These multiple moves are played consecutively, meaning that the current player can gather units in another controlled territory before moving out of it with a greater number of units. They may also be split between different groups of units. A player doesn't have to use all the moves displayed by the card.
- If the Move action specifies a combat bonus (extra combat points or casualties) or special effect, it applies to any combat generated by the move.
- Crossing each Rough border uses an additional move of the Move action (it usually requires a Move action displaying at least two moves). This penalty applies when no other regular border exists between the two adjacent territories. The Rough border cannot be crossed by using two different Move actions.
- A player cannot cross enemy territories. Upon entering an enemy territory, all units moving there must stop, triggering a combat. A Move action with multiple moves may trigger multiple combats.
- When a Move action triggers one or multiple combats, complete all the moves first and then resolve all the combats. See the Combat section. Combats are considered to be a part of the Move action.
- Reminder: When using multiple Move actions in the same round due to Flash cards, the actions must be resolved separately, and their conditions respected individually. Therefore, the player cannot combine multiple cards to pass Rough borders, and the player needs to resolve combats triggered by one card before using the next.
Example: The Red player uses a Move x4 action. First, they move one unit from territory A to B (x1). Second, they move one unit from territory A to C (x1). Third, they leave one unit in territory C before passing the Rough border to territory D with the remaining four units (x2). At the end of the Move action, the Red player controls territories B, C and D.
Explore Action
The current player draws one new Map tile from the pile and places it on the table with the following conditions:
- A player can only explore from an open territory (not closed) they control. They must place the new Map tile next to any of their open territories.
- The new Map tile may only be placed adjacent orthogonally to the present Map tiles (not diagonally).
- The borders cannot be discontinued, meaning that the new Map tile cannot be placed if it causes a border to stop suddenly in the middle of the surrounding Map tiles.
- If none of the drawn tiles (some cards allow to draw several tiles with a single action) can be placed by any means, place them at the bottom of the pile and draw a new one.
- When there are no Map tiles left in the pile, players can no longer use the Explore action.
- If the Explore action merges different territories to create a bigger one, the resulting territory may contain several buildings of the same type, if they were previously in the two original territories.
- It is allowed to leave "holes" on the map.
- It is not allowed to place the new tile so that different players have units in the same merged territory. In other words, a combat cannot be triggered by exploring and merging territories.
Earning fame at territory completion
Whenever the current player closes one or more territories, they earn fame for each controlled territory that they just closed. If they close a territory controlled by another player, this player does not earn any fame.
Reminder: A territory is controlled only if there are units in it.
The current player earns as many fame as the number of Map tiles forming the newly closed territory.
Example — Case 1: If the Red player is the current player and places this tile, they close the territory in which the Yellow player already had units. In this case nobody gains any fame, as the closed territory is not controlled by Red and Yellow is not the current player closing their own territory.
Case 2: If Yellow is the current player and places this tile, they close their own territory and receives three fame (as the territory is spread out on three tiles).
Forbidden placements: Red uses an Explore action and they have two potential placements. However, the new tile drawn cannot be placed in B, as any orientation would result either in a discontinued border, and/or merging Red and Purple units in the same territory, which is not allowed.
Draw Actions
The current player may use Draw actions to draw more cards from their own draw pile.
A Draw action might require the current player to draw several cards and some of them will be kept in hand, others placed back on the draw pile or discarded. Simply follow the instructions on the card; colored symbols act as a visual reminder of these instructions: keep card in hand, discard, put on top of the draw pile.
- These effects apply only to the cards just drawn by this action. A player cannot discard or put back in the draw pile one of the cards they had in hand before the Draw action.
- When a player has several cards to discard or put back on the top of their draw pile, they choose the order in which they place them back.
- Remember that the Draw action just played is placed in the active area of the game, and NOT the discard pile; meaning that if a player needs to reshuffle their discard pile to create a new draw pile, this card (and all the other cards in the active area) will not be available to be drawn again immediately.
- If there are not enough cards in the draw and/or discard piles to draw the number of cards required, the Draw action cannot be played.
Special Actions
Cards displaying a Special action symbol indicate an action (described in the card's text) that is usually too exotic to be illustrated by the other symbols. Simply follow the instructions on the card and resolve the action accordingly.
Combat
A combat is triggered automatically whenever there are units belonging to different players in a same territory (usually as a consequence of a Move action).
The attacker is the player whose units just moved into an enemy territory and the player controlling that enemy territory is the defender.
The combat involves only the units in that territory. If multiple territories have units belonging to different players, then there are multiple combats and must be resolved one at a time, with the active player choosing in which order.
Combat factors
The combat is resolved using 4 factors:
- number of participating units.
- potential bonus coming from the Move action (for the attacker) or buildings (for the defender).
- number of discarded food (well fed warriors fight better).
- the uncertainty of fate, represented by the roll of a die for each player involved.
Icons and combat points
- One / two / three axes: one / two / three combat point(s).
- Skull: one casualty inflicted to the opponent.
Potential dice results:
- Two axes: two combat points.
- Three axes: three combat points.
- Skull / axe: choose between one combat point and one casualty.
- Two axes and a skull: two combat points and one casualty.
- Two skulls: two casualties.
- Axe and skull: one combat point and one casualty.
The combat steps in detail
Step 1: Count starting forces
Involved players count their number of units in the combat. Each unit is worth one combat point.
Step 2: Factor in eventual bonuses
The attacker adds any number of combat points displayed on their Move action and/or clan powers.
The defender adds combat points from buildings and/or clan powers.
Step 3: Food bonus
Starting with the attacker, both players decide how many food they discard for this fight.
A player can only spend a maximum of one food per unit involved. Each discarded food will add one combat point to their player's result.
Step 4: Roll the dice
Starting with the attacker, each player rolls one combat die.
If a skull/axe result is rolled, the player must decide if it is considered as a casualty or as one combat point. The attacker has to decide before the defender rolls.
Step 5: Determine the winner
Determine the combat score: for each player, add up the total number of combat points from the previous steps.
Determine the casualties: for each player, add up the total number of casualties inflicted to the opponent. They can be inflicted by cards + buildings + die result + clan powers. We suggest to lay the miniatures on the side to count casualties.
If a player is inflicted as many casualties as their number of units, they lose the fight. It may happen rarely that both players lose all of their units and in such a case, nobody wins.
Otherwise, the winner is the player with the highest combat score. In case of a tie, the defender wins.
Step 6: Apply casualties
Each player removes one unit per casualty inflicted by the opponent, and places them back in their reserve.
Step 7: Loser retreats
The loser takes all their remaining units and places them in any number of adjacent territories separated by a regular border (Rough borders cannot be crossed) that are either friendly or neutral, and not currently in any combat(s).
If there are no such territories, then all units that have to retreat are removed and placed back in the player's reserve.
Note: The buildings are not destroyed after combat. They stay in place, now controlled by the new territory's owner.
Combat example #1
Red attacked Purple using a basic Move action (no combat bonus). Red has five units and no bonus points. Red adds two food and this gives a starting number of seven combat points. Purple has two units and two bonus points (due to the Fortress) and decides to add two food (they cannot add more with only two units), totalling six combat points. Red rolls the die and gets two skulls. Red inflicts two casualties and this would make them victorious. Purple rolls the die and gets two axes.
Total points: Seven for Red and eight for Purple.
Casualties: Red lost one unit (due to the Defense Tower) and Purple lost two units (due to the die roll).
Combat aftermath: Red is the winner as Purple is left with no units. Red takes the ownership of the territory.
Retreat: No need to retreat, as Purple has no remaining units after the combat.
Combat example #2
Red plays a Move action and attacks Purple by moving only four units to Purple's territory. Red has four units and one bonus point from their card. Red adds no food, for a starting number of five combat points. Purple has two units and two bonus points from the fortress. Purple adds two food, for a starting number of six combat points.
Red rolls the die and gets an axe and a skull. Purple gets skull/axe. Purple chooses the skull to inflict one casualty.
Total points: Six for Red and six for Purple.
Casualties: Red lost two units (one from the die and one from the Defense Tower). Purple lost one unit (due to the die roll).
Combat aftermath: As this is a tie, the winner is the defender. Purple keeps the ownership of their territory.
Retreat: Red lost and retreats with their two units left, one to its starting territory and one other to an adjacent neutral territory.
End of the Game and Winner
The game can end in two different ways:
1. A player owns at least three closed territories with at least one large building in each
This can happen during the End of Year phase of any year. In this case, the winner is the owner of those territories.
If multiple players reach this condition at the same time, then the tie is broken first by the greatest number of fame (see below), then by the greatest number of territories (open or closed) controlled, then by the most units on the map and if there is still a tie, then by the greatest number of buildings on the map.
OR
2. This is the end of the seventh year
In the seventh year, players pick Achievement cards instead of Development cards. During the End of Year Phase, the game is over even if the first victory condition (see above) hasn't been fulfilled.
Each player calculates their total fame:
- Adds the total value of their fame tokens in their reserve.
- Adds one extra fame per set of three resources of any type still in their reserve.
- Adds the fame value displayed on all their Development and Achievement cards. The Achievement cards' value is variable and is calculated at this point.
- Subtract five fame per Unrest card in their deck.
The player with the most fame wins the game.
If there is a tie, it is broken by the greatest number of controlled territories (open or closed), then by the most units on the map, and then by the greatest number of buildings on the map.
Note: Winning with condition 1 takes priority over condition 2, meaning that someone with three closed territories wins the game even if another player has more fame in the last year of the game.
As a reminder, fame is gained during the game by:
- Exploration (Action): number of tiles forming the closed territory.
- Control of closed territories (Harvest): one or two fame per closed territory.
- Control of buildings (Harvest): three fame per Altar of Kings.
- Cards (End of game): Development and Achievement cards have an indicated fame value.
- Resources (End of game): one fame per any three Resource tokens in the player's reserve.
- Creatures removal (part of a move): Module only.
Variants
If you are looking for ways to experience the game, you can try the following variants.
Longer games
You can play the game over ten years instead of the standard seven. Flip the turn track to the other side.
During step D of set up, take three Early Development cards per player (instead of two) and six Advanced Development cards per player (instead of four) to form the Development deck.
The first victory condition doesn't apply, the game can only be won by total fame at the end of the tenth year.
Team play
If you are exactly four players, you can split in two teams of two players. Teammates have to sit opposite each other, alternating team turns.
Teammates can discuss their options and share between them their current fame score, but they are not allowed to show their hands of cards.
Teammates' units cannot coexist in the same territories, but they can move through each others' territories when playing a card with multiple moves.
During the Trade Resource step of the Harvest phase, teammates can trade their resources between each other on a 1:1 basis.
Victory conditions (and tiebreakers) are fulfilled as a team rather than individual players, adding their fame scores together into one.
The first victory condition is only achieved when a team has five closed territories with at least one large building, instead of three.
Clan Powers
A clan grants a special power and access to unique cards: one Clan initial card and two Clan upgrade cards. Clan special powers are described below.
Bear Clan
Stalwart protectors of the land supported by their armored bear Kaija, they are the toughest warriors, a military force to be reckoned with.
Clan Power: the Bear clan has access to a special unit, Kaija the Armored Bear, symbolized by a token (see below for its effects).
The Bear token
This token behaves mostly as a regular unit, with some additional powers:
- Whenever the Bear clan recruits, they can place Kaija as they would place any regular unit (including during setup).
- When involved in a combat, Kaija is worth two combat points.
- Whenever the Bear clan moves, they can move Kaija with other units, but it cannot enter in an enemy territory.
- During the winter phase, Kaija doesn't count towards the total number of Bear clan units on the map to calculate the resources to pay.
Boar Clan
Mystical and untamed, their understanding of the world is unmatched, as are their boorish and primitive ways.
Clan Power: whenever the Boar clan explores without closing any territory, they collect one lore.
Goat Clan
Adaptable and resilient, they will endure the harshest of winters. Excellent builders, they work hard to make the most of every inch of their territory.
Clan Power: whenever the Goat clan builds, they collect one food for a small building and two food for a large building.
Raven Clan
Great explorers and merchants, brash and swift, they will often be found roaming where you least expect them.
Clan Power: whenever the Raven clan closes their controlled territory (or territories) by exploring, they immediately collect the resources displayed on these territories (both on tiles and buildings) as if this was the Harvest phase.
Snake Clan
Cunning and deceitful, they work in the shadows and use guerrilla tactics rather than open warfare.
Clan Power: The Snake clan has access to a special effect, Scorched Earth, symbolized by a token (see below for its effects).
Before resolving the effects of a Clan card (whether it is an initial card or an upgrade card), they may place this token into a neutral or enemy territory adjacent to their controlled territories.
Note: the initial Clan card therefore allows the player to place the token before AND after the Move action, if they wish.
If the token was already in a territory, simply remove it from there and place it in the new territory.
The Snake token
The Snake clan uses cunning ruses and ruthless tactics to outsmart and outlive their opponents, scorching their lands to facilitate their raids and pillages. The Scorched Earth token has the following effects:
- Whenever the Snake clan fights in a territory with this token, they get an extra one combat point bonus. This applies whether they are attacking or defending.
- During the Harvest phase, if this token is in an enemy territory, the Snake clan may choose to collect any one resource from that territory (including a resource produced by a building) instead of the territory's owner.
Stag Clan
Valuing wealth and fame, they are renowned for their regal manners, and are highly ambitious expansionists.
Clan Power: whenever the Stag clan conquers a new territory through combat, they gain one fame. Whenever they close their controlled territory (or territories) by exploring, they gain one extra fame per territory.
Wolf Clan
Aggressive and ruthless, they use their combined might and mobility to give little chance to all but the most resilient.
Clan Power: whenever the wolf clan wins a combat as the attacker, they collect one food.
Module: Creatures
It is recommended to play a few times with the core rules before including this module, as it adds more variety and challenges to the game.
To use this module, follow all the core rules of Northgard: Uncharted Lands, with the following modifications.
Creatures, both from natural and unnatural origins, are inhabiting Northgard's uncharted lands. As they explore these newly discovered territories, clans will stumble on their lairs and meet dangerous threats hindering their expansion. Creatures' behaviors are managed by the game and will react to the players' actions in a predetermined order and with priority targeting. Some creatures have permanent abilities and coexist with the clans, while others fight them for their lands. Although they are a menacing threat to each clan's development, they are also a new source of fame to pave the way to victory!
Components
9 creatures, including miniatures and their corresponding cards:
- 3 Wolves (beige, brown, dark brown)
- 2 Brown Bears (beige, brown)
- 2 Draugar (beige, brown)
- 2 Fallen Valkyries (beige, brown)
Creature colors
Creatures can exist in several different colors: beige, brown and dark brown. This is made to differentiate each model and its order of activation: both the miniature's plastic and the icon in the card's box text share a matching color.
Creature card anatomy
All creature cards share a similar layout: move priority, color code, combat value, creature name, creature's effect and fame reward.
Setup
After step K of setup and before step L:
Shuffle all the creature cards with a combat value of six or less, then place N+1 of these cards in a face down pile (N being the number of players). Shuffle the remaining creature cards to form another pile and place it below the first pile, creating one single creature draw pile.
During step L of setup:
After a Map tile with a creature's lair is placed and before the current player places their units, a creature apparition is triggered. See Creature Apparition below.
During setup, creatures do not move, activate, or apply their special effects. They simply appear.
After the creature appears, the player can choose to place their three units following the usual rules (including in the same territory as the creature).
General creature rules
Creature apparition
Whenever a creature appears, the current player draws a card from the creature draw pile, takes the corresponding colored miniature and places the new card in the creature line.
Creature cards are placed face up on the table, so that they form a line of cards: they will activate starting from the left and going right (players determine which side is left and right). Whenever a new creature card is drawn, add it to the end of the right side of the line as they are revealed.
Once the card has been placed in the line, the creature's miniature is placed in the indicated territory (either by a creature's lair or a special rule).
Creature draw and discard pile: Whenever a creature card must be drawn but the draw pile is empty, shuffle the discard pile and create a new creature draw pile.
Creatures sharing a territory
The majority of creatures can coexist with player units in a territory. They do not trigger combats (except if their special effect specifically say so). Their effects can however hinder players in a variety of ways.
If a creature is encountered during a move, the player's units may continue moving through that territory without stopping.
It is possible for several creatures to coexist in the same territory (ie: when they appear). All their effects apply normally.
Creatures who do not share a territory
A handful of creatures, like the Fallen Valkyrie, do not share their territories with units. It is indicated in their effects. They always trigger combats.
If a player's units move into a territory with at least one of these creatures, the units must stop their movement and will resolve a combat against that creature once all movements are made.
These creatures will also attack players' territories during the Creature phase. See the Combat Against Creatures section.
Important: If several such creatures happen to coexist in the same territory, then the player cannot move into that territory at all; it is impossible to fight two creatures in the same territory at the same time.
Creature effects and activation
The creature card's text describes its special effect and timing of resolution. Some effects are ongoing, others trigger only when the creature appears, activates, moves in a territory, or any other condition stated on the card.
Phase 2 - Explore action
By taking the Explore action, a player can encounter a creature! Whenever a Map tile with a creature's lair is placed on the map, a new creature appears, following the Creature Apparition rules above.
Creatures appearing during an Explore action do not move, but they immediately activate and all their special effects apply.
Phase 2 - Combat against creatures
The current player can attack creatures only during a Move action, and only in a neutral or friendly territory.
Once all moves are made, but before any combats are resolved, the player has to declare which creatures are attacked by their units. They can choose up to one creature in each territory currently shared with them (even if there are several creatures in the territory - the other ones remain unharmed).
These creatures are treated as enemy units for resolving combat order and retreat (a player cannot retreat in a territory where a creature is being attacked).
Note: The current player can attack creatures in their territories even without moving their units, but playing a Move action is always necessary.
Depending on their effects, some creatures may also trigger combats by appearing or moving into a player's territory.
Combat resolution
Similarly to a combat between players, a combat against a creature is resolved by four factors: number of participating units, potential bonuses coming from actions/buildings/clan powers, number of discarded food, and the roll of a die.
A few changes apply to the combat steps:
Step 1: Count starting forces — The creature's total combat value is displayed on its card.
Step 2: Factor in eventual bonuses — No changes here; the player adds any combat point bonuses they might have in attack or defense. Usually a creature does not have any additional bonuses.
Step 3: Food bonus — The player can increase their total combat score by discarding food in the usual way, but the creature cannot.
Step 4: Roll the dice — The player to the left of the player fighting the creature rolls that creature's die. Starting with the attacker, each party rolls one die. If the creature rolls a skull/axe, it always chooses the axe (combat point).
Step 5: Determine the winner — If the player suffers a number of casualties equal to their number of units, they will apply the casualties and lose the combat — even if they have a highest combat score than the creature.
Otherwise, the player calculates their combat score as usual. The creature's combat score is equal to the creature's combat value plus the result of the rolled die.
The combat winner is the player or creature with the highest score. In case of a tie, then the defender wins.
If the player is the winner, they gain fame as shown on the creature card.
Step 6: Apply casualties — The casualties inflicted by the player to a creature do not count. The casualties inflicted by a creature to a player apply normally.
Step 7: Loser retreats — A creature never retreats; either it wins, or it is eliminated. If the creature lost the fight, remove the creature's miniature from play and place the creature's card in the creature discard pile.
When a player is attacked by a creature and loses, they must retreat by following the usual rules.
When a player attacks a creature and loses, they must retreat only if that creature doesn't share its territory. Otherwise, they do not retreat and simply leave their units in the creature's territory.
Note: a player attacking a creature does not benefit from potential building bonuses (like the fortress), as they are the attacker and not the defender.
Creature combat example
Red moves two units to attack the Wolf, using a Move action that has no attack bonus. Red's third unit is involved in the combat, as it is in the same territory as the creature. Red spends one food for a starting score of four.
Red rolls the die and gets an axe and a skull, for a total of five combat points (as casualties do not count against a creature).
Another player rolls the die for the Wolf and gets skull/axe. A creature always chooses the axe, for a total score of five combat points.
Total combat scores: Five for the Wolf and five for Red.
Combat aftermath: Since defenders win ties, the Wolf is the winner. As the creature can share its territory, Red simply stays in it and does not retreat.
Phase 2.5 - Creature phase
This new phase takes place just after the players' actions (phase 2), and before the harvest (phase 3).
All creatures in the creature card line activate and move one after another, from left to right.
For each creature, apply the movement before its potential effect.
Creature movement
A creature moves following these rules:
- A creature must always move if possible. If not, the creature will activate without moving.
- A creature moves to an adjacent territory, ignoring rough borders.
- A creature will not move into a territory where there is already another creature (even if several creatures can sometimes coexist due to the apparition rule).
- A creature first moves into territories where there are player units. They will only move to a neutral territory if there are no other eligible territories.
Once these conditions are met, if there are several territories eligible for movement, players will apply the priorities displayed on the creature's card in order, from left to right, proceeding to the next priority in line until the tie is broken.
Here are the possible priorities:
- Choose the adjacent territory with the most building points: a small building is worth one point, a large building is worth three points.
- Choose the adjacent territory with most units.
- Choose the adjacent territory with the most resources (both on Map tiles and buildings).
If at the end of the priority line the adjacent territories are still tied, then the first player chooses one of these territories to move into.
Once the creature has activated, proceed to the next creature in the line. You can show their activations by rotating the cards on their side, or any other visual trick you prefer.
Creature activation example #1
The Draugr is activated. First it will move into a territory where units are present: Red's territory or Purple's territory.
- Priority 1: Most units - both have three, so they are tied.
- Priority 2: Most buildings - both have one, so they are tied.
- Priority 3: Most resources - Red has two and Purple has one, therefore it moves into Red's territory.
Creature effect: Once it has moved, the Draugr's action removes one unit from Red's territory.
Creature activation example #2
The Fallen Valkyrie is already on the map. It moves into Red's territory as it is adjacent and has units on it. Then it applies its effect, which is attacking after appearing or moving. The Fallen Valkyrie attacks Red's territory with a combat value of seven.
Red has three units and no defense bonus points. Red adds three food for a starting combat score of six.
The player to the left of Red rolls the die for the attacking creature and gets skull/axe. A creature always chooses the axe when attacking, for a total combat score of eight.
Red also rolls the die and gets two skulls. However, casualties do not count against creatures.
Total combat scores: Eight for the Fallen Valkyrie and six for Red.
Combat aftermath: Red must retreat and decides to split in two groups in adjacent territories.
Note: If Red had totalled a combat score of eight, they would have won the combat since defenders win ties. In this case, the Fallen Valkyrie would have been removed from the game and the player would have gained four fame.
Variant: More creatures!
By following the core rules of this module, the players will make Northgard a safer place, as the apparition of creatures is limited to the number of lairs on the map. This variant will spice up the game for more warlike vikings, as they will actively bring new creatures to the game!
Phase 2 - Player pass
Important: This step is to be ignored if there are at least as many creatures on the map as there are players (ie: four creatures for a 4-players game).
After picking their own Development or Achievement card, the current player MAY trigger another creature apparition.
The current player applies the usual rules for creature apparition, except for the miniature's placement; they choose ANY territory on the map with a creature's lair currently not occupied by a creature, and place the miniature. If there is no such territory, the current player can choose any territory without a creature already in it and place the new creature.
Once it has appeared, the creature does not move but activates normally.
Creatures details
The uncharted lands of Northgard are home to a great variety of creatures. Below is a short description of the creatures in this module:
Brown Bear
These creatures fiercely defend their territory. They'll prove challenging to even the most seasoned warriors and disrupting to any clan's hold over their lands.
Creature Power: A player cannot build or recruit in a territory with this creature, and they cannot explore or move units from it.
If that player is attacked by an opponent and loses the combat, they are however allowed to retreat normally.
Note: Units can therefore move into a territory with a Brown Bear, but not out of it. Also remember that a Move action can be played without moving units, and combats against creatures are chosen in all territories shared with them, even if you haven't moved any units into the creature's territory.
Draugr
Draugar (plural for Draugr) are half-dead evil creatures that have infested the islands of Northgard, and prey on its living inhabitants.
Creature Power: When this creature appears or moves in a controlled territory, that player removes one unit from it.
Fallen Valkyrie
Originally champions of the gods, some Valkyries have been corrupted by the powers of Helheim. They will not share their lands with anyone!
Creature Power: This creature does not share its territory with a player and attacks them when it appears or moves into a territory.
Wolf
There are vicious, giant wolves roaming the lands of Northgard. They hinder humans from gathering resources by constantly harassing their territories.
Creature Power: A territory with this creature on it does not generate any fame or resources during the Harvest phase (except from buildings).
Note: The Snake clan cannot harvest a resource from a scorched territory with a Wolf if it is not produced by a building.
Creature activation summary
| Phase | Add one creature card? | Where does it appear? | Does it move? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setup (tile with a creature's lair) | Yes | In the territory with a creature's lair. | No |
| Phase 2 - Explore (tile with a creature's lair) | Yes | In the territory with a creature's lair. | No |
| Variant - Phase 2 - Pass | Only if there are less creatures than players and if the active player chooses to. | Choose any territory with a creature's lair and without a creature. If there is none, choose any territory without a creature. | No |
| Phase 2.5 Creature phase | No | No apparition. | Yes, all creatures in line, one at a time. |
Credits
- Author: Adrian Dinu
- Art: Grosnez
- 3D Models: EMAK, Valerio "Korax" Carbone, Benjamin Maillet
- Graphic Design: Franck Achard
- Development: Jim Gaudin
- 3D graphics: Théo Jacquemin
- Production: Nicolas Aubry (Synergy Games)
- Proofreading: Jonathan Caputo
Special thanks to Sébastien Vidal and Shiro Games, for entrusting your creation to us. Thanks to The Crowdfunding Agency and Caroline Imbert, for managing an incredible Kickstarter campaign, and to the Atlangames crew, for many hours of playtesting!
Special thanks from the author to Jim Gaudin as without him this game would never be where it is now. Bruno Cathala, for his help with the early rules of the game.
Then I wish to thank my testing teams: My family: Milena, Thomas, Eduard, Filip. The Ludivers Club: Christophe Roulin, Christophe Rebetez, Pascal Loutan, Cédric Stephens, Nils, Samuel Bovet. Tabletopia playtesters: Jam, Jakub Frąckowiak, Hennii815, Samuel Klobučarić «Hutmacher», Tahsin Shamma. And, of course, all our backers around the world!