Path of Light and Shadow Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Components
• Setup
• Gameplay
  • Main Phase
    • A. Move your leader (once per turn)
    • B. Gain an ally (once per turn)
    • C. Use an "Action" ability
    • D. Promote a card
    • E. Cull cards
    • F. Build a structure
    • G. Conquer a province
  • End Phase
• End of Year Scoring
• End of the Game
• Important Terms
  • Morality
  • Realms and Provinces
  • Defense and Ruin
  • "When you play this…"
  • "Action:"
  • "Build/Conquer/Defend:"
  • "Cruel/Merciful:"
• Strategy Guide
  • Commonfolk
  • Sigilborne
  • Hordes of Zurd
  • Halax Guildlords
  • Numerai
• Quick Start Guide
• Credits

Overview

In Path of Light and Shadow, you will lead a growing nation with the goal of having the most Influence at the end of the game. You will gain Influence by Conquering provinces, controlling realms, Building structures, Promoting troops, and acquiring allies.

Each turn, you will be able to take one move action, and as many additional actions as you have the resources to do so. Some of the actions (such as Culling cards) will cause your Morality to change, causing you to become either a Cruel or a Merciful leader. Both paths will offer their own advantages, and both can be employed as a means of winning the game.

Components

1 game board: The game board is divided into twelve territories, called "provinces" based on their terrain. Players can Conquer these provinces to gain Influence. Each province belongs to one of four realms: Hallowed Vale, Mountain Clans Empire, Riverway Sovereignty, and Woodland Nations. These realms determine which deck players recruit new cards from at the end of their turn. The Influence track, Morality track, and turn track can be found around the outside of the board. (See: Game Board in the Component Anatomy booklet)

1 first player marker

1 turn marker

264 deck cards: These cards constitute a player's deck, and are divided into three categories: starter, realm, and upgrade deck cards. (See: Deck Cards in the Component Anatomy booklet)

• 34 starter deck cards: These cards help form a player's initial deck at the start of the game. They are labeled "Starter Card" at the bottom.
• 132 realm deck cards (divided into four decks): These cards represent the inhabitants of the four realms.
• 98 upgrade deck cards (divided into five decks): These cards are improved versions of realm deck cards, acquired by taking the Promote action. They are divided into five factions: the Commonfolk, the Halax Guildlords, the Hordes of Zurd, the Sigilborne, and the Numerai.

9 ally cards: These cards award additional powers to the first player to reach specific milestones. (See: Ally Cards in the Component Anatomy booklet)

4 leader miniatures: These miniatures are placed on the board to keep track of a player's location.

4 player mats (same for all players): These mats contain the list of all the structures that players can Build during the game. (See: Player Mats in the Component Anatomy booklet)

4 leader bases (1 each in four player colors): These plastic bases are placed on the bottom of a player's leader, to signify ownership.

48 player banners (12 each in four player colors): These banners are used to mark which provinces a player controls on the board.

44 player cubes (11 each in four player colors): These cubes are used to track which structures a player has built on their player mat, as well as their total Influence and Morality on the game board.

40 3-defense tower pieces (10 each in four different factions): These towers are used to track how much defense a province has remaining. They are divided by strength (3-defense, 1-defense) as well as by realm. A province's defense is equal to the sum of the value of these tower pieces.

24 1-defense tower pieces (6 each in four different factions)

16 combat dice: These dice are used to determine the outcome of a Conquer action.

4 player aids

4 strategy aids ("tips & tricks")

**1 Promotion chart

Setup

1. Place the game board in the middle of the table. In a two-player game, use the side of the game board that has dark blue water and a white compass. In a three- or four-player game, use the other side.
2. Place defense tower pieces on each province equal to that province's defense value shown on the board.
3. Place the turn marker on the "1" space of the turn track.
4. Players choose a player color, and then take a player mat, one of each player aid, and a set of components in their player color (one leader base, eleven player cubes, and twelve player banners).
5. Players choose a leader miniature as their leader and attach it to their leader base.
6. Players place one cube on each of the following spaces: a. the empty spaces at the top of each of the five structure trees on their player mat b. the "5" space of the Influence track c. the "0" space of the Morality track.
7. Separate the upgrade deck cards by faction and place them as faceup decks next to the matching tabs on the game board. Then shuffle the cards labeled "Upgrade Deck: Numerai" and return them facedown next to their tab on the board.
8. Separate the realm deck cards by realm, shuffle them, and place them as facedown decks next to the matching tabs on the game board.
9. Shuffle the ally cards. Draw a number of them equal to the number of players +1. Place them faceup near the game board. Return the remaining ally cards to the box as they will not be used this game.
10. Randomly determine a first player and give that person the first player marker.
11. Create each player's deck in the following manner: a. Give each player four "Trusted Followers" and three "Steadfast Conscripts" from the starter deck cards. b. Shuffle together the cards labeled "Starter Card: Advisor" and deal one facedown to each player. Return the rest of the cards to the box as they will not be used this game. c. Starting with the first player and continuing clockwise, players take turns placing their leaders in one of the Village provinces on the board that does not already have a leader present. Then, each player takes two cards from the top of the realm deck that matches their starting Village's realm. d. Players shuffle these ten initial cards together and place them facedown as a deck to the left of their player mat.
12. Players draw the top five cards from their deck into their hand. (Player's hands are kept secret throughout the game.) Then, the game begins with the first player taking the first turn.

Gameplay

Path of Light and Shadow is played over the course of three years, each year consisting of four rounds (for twelve rounds total). At the end of each year, players will gain Influence based on the state of their nation. (See: End of Year Scoring)

Each round, each player takes one turn. Each turn is divided into two phases: the Main Phase (where the active player moves around the board and performs actions) and the End Phase (where the active player recruits new cards into their deck and refills their hand of cards).

Once a player has completed their End Phase, play passes to the next player in a clockwise direction. After all players have completed their turn, the round is over and the turn marker is advanced one space.

Main Phase

During your Main Phase, you may perform the following actions any number of times and in any order. Most actions require you to play cards to perform that action. Any cards used as part of an action stay in your play area (above your player mat) until the End Phase, when they are placed in the discard pile, and a new hand of cards is drawn.

The following describes your actions in detail:

A. Move your leader (once per turn)

You may move your leader to any adjacent province. Each province sharing a common border is considered adjacent, and a province with a boat icon is considered adjacent to each other province with a boat icon. Moving is not inhibited in any way by the presence of leaders, player banners, or defense towers in a province.

B. Gain an ally (once per turn)

If you currently meet the conditions necessary to gain one of the available ally cards, you may gain it and place it next to your player mat. Allies grant special abilities that can be used for the rest of the game. If you meet the conditions of multiple allies, you may choose which ally to gain. Once a player has gained an ally it cannot be taken away from them, even if they no longer meet the stated condition.

C. Use an "Action" ability

Play a card with an "Action:" ability from your hand (placing the card in your play area) and resolve that ability. If you play a card in this way, you do not benefit from any of that card's other stats that turn.

D. Promote a card

Promoting cards allows you to upgrade the cards in your deck with more powerful versions from the upgrade deck. These upgraded cards are limited in number (first come, first served).

To Promote a card, perform the following steps in order:

1. Choose one card in your hand or discard pile to Promote.
2. Play cards from your hand to pay the chosen card's Promotion cost in Labor and/or Strength, as shown in the card's lower left corner. When you play a card to pay a Promotion cost, you can use either that card's Strength or Labor, but not both. Any remaining Labor or Strength from the cards used to pay the Promotion cost is lost.
3. Retrieve the card named in the Promoted card's Promotion result (shown beside the Promotion cost) from its upgrade deck and place it in your discard pile.
4. Return the card you Promoted to its starting location as indicated at the bottom of the card. When a card is returned to a realm deck, place it on the bottom of that deck. When a starter card is Promoted, it is removed from the game.

You cannot use a card's Labor or Strength to Promote itself. You cannot Promote cards that you have already played this turn because those cards are in your play area, not your hand or discard pile. You must Promote cards one at a time, meaning you cannot use one card to pay the Promotion cost of multiple cards.

Promoting a Wandering One: The "Wandering One" card shows that it Promotes into a "Legendary Numerai." Because there is no card named Legendary Numerai, when you Promote a Wandering One, you will draw one of the facedown cards from the Numerai upgrade deck at random.

Example of Promoting a Card: Abby chooses to Promote a Trusted Follower from her discard pile. Trusted Follower's Promotion cost is 2 Labor. Abby plays a Devout Granger from her hand to her play area to pay this cost. Next, she finds a Trusted Loyalist from the upgrade deck and places it into her discard pile. She checks the Trusted Follower to find its starting location. It says "Starter card." She returns that card to the box.

E. Cull cards

Culling cards allows you to remove cards from your deck, to improve your deck in exchange for losing Morality.

To Cull cards, perform the following steps in order:

1. Play a card from your hand to your play area for its Strength value.
2. Then, select a number of cards in your hand and/or discard pile up to the Strength value of the card played.
3. Return the selected cards to their starting location (as shown on the bottom of the card). When you Cull a realm deck card, place it on the bottom of that realm deck. When you Cull a starter card, remove it from the game and place it back in the box.
4. Gain 1 Cruelty for each card you Cull.

Please note: You gain Cruelty whenever you Cull a card (from any ability).

Any remaining Strength from the card used to Cull this turn is lost. You cannot use a card's Strength to Cull itself. You cannot Cull cards that you have already played earlier this turn (as they are not in your hand or discard pile). You cannot Cull cards, or be forced to Cull cards, that would bring your total number of cards (in hand, discard, deck, and play area) to fewer than five cards.

Example of Culling Cards: Abby plays a Steadfast Conscript from her hand and chooses to use it to Cull some cards. Steadfast Conscript has 2 Strength, so Abby will be able to Cull two cards with this action. Next, she chooses two cards in her hand or discard pile. She chooses to Cull a Trusted Follower in her hand and a Sigilborne Convert in her discard pile. The Trusted Follower is a starter card, so it is returned to the box. The Sigilborne Convert is from the Woodland Nations deck, so it is placed on the bottom of that deck. Finally, Abby gains 2 Cruelty.

F. Build a structure

Building structures unlocks increasingly useful powers and gains you Influence during the End of Game Scoring. Structures must be built in order, progressing down the five different structure trees. Four of these trees are linked to the four main factions: the Commonfolk, the Halax Guildlords, the Hordes of Zurd, and the Sigilborne. The fifth tree represents general structures and has no faction requirement.

To Build a structure, perform the following steps in order:

1. Choose which structure you want to Build on your player mat. It must be next in line on one of the structure trees on your player mat. (You must have already built all the preceding structures on that structure tree.)
2. Play cards from your hand to your play area until you have paid the amount of Labor shown as the labor cost for that structure. At least one of the cards you use must be from the faction of that structure (unless Building on the General structure tree). Any additional Labor is left unused.
3. Move your cube for that structure tree to the space for that structure, to show that you have now built that structure.

Once you have built a structure, you can use its ability for the rest of the game including the turn that you Build it. You can also continue to use the abilities of the previous structures that you have built in that tree.

Example of Building a Structure: Abby wants to Build the Mercenary Reserves, which is a Halax Guildlords structure that costs 6 Labor to Build. First she checks to make sure that she has all the preceding Halax structures, which she does as denoted by her player marker on Halax Fleet. Abby plays two Trusted Followers for a total of 4 Labor and one Harbor Trader for its 2 Labor. Abby has paid the required 6 Labor. Since Harbor Trader is a Halax Guildlord, she has the faction requirement covered. Finally, she moves her player cube down so that it is next to Mercenary Reserves. Now she can use the Mercenary Reserves for the rest of the game, as well as the Halax Fleet.

G. Conquer a province

Controlling provinces will gain you Influence during each End of Year Scoring phase. To control a province you will need to Conquer it. However, Conquering a province also sets it on the road to ruin by reducing its defense and Influence value.

You can only Conquer the province where your leader is located, and only if you don't control that province. If a province has a player banner on it, it is controlled. Otherwise, it is uncontrolled. To Conquer a province, resolve the following steps in order (depending on whether the province is uncontrolled or controlled by other players):

Please note: the active player is referred to as the "Attacker." If the province is controlled, the controlling player is referred to as the "Defender."

Uncontrolled Province

1. Choose Attackers: Play one or more cards from your hand to your play area for their Strength value. The Strength value of your strongest troop will be replaced with the value of the dice rolled.
2. Resolve Effects: In any order you choose, resolve all abilities of the cards you played with "When you play this" or "Conquer" effects. Some "Conquer" effects may resolve later during this Conquer action.
3. Roll Attack dice: Roll a number of combat dice equal to the Strength value of the card you played with the highest Strength value. (For example, you roll three dice if your highest-Strength card is a Strength of 3. Strength symbols will be added to your Strength. Ruin symbols will be resolved at the end of the Conquer action.)
4. Resolve Rerolls: If you have abilities that grant you a reroll, resolve them now.
5. Calculate Strength: Add up the Strength value of the combat dice rolled and the cards you played during this Conquer action except the one with the highest Strength value.
6. Determine Success: If your Strength value is greater than or equal to the current defense value of the province, you have successfully Conquered the province. Otherwise, you fail and do not gain control of the province. Each 3-defense tower in the province adds 3 to the current defense, and each 1-defense tower in the province adds 1 to the current defense. (See: Defense and Ruin below.)
7. Recruit Cards: If you successfully Conquered the province, place one of your player banners on top of one of the tower pieces there and recruit (draw) two cards from the corresponding realm's deck. To recruit a card, gain the top card of the appropriate realm deck and place it faceup into your discard pile. If that realm deck is empty, don't recruit any cards.
8. Resolve Ruin: For each ruin you rolled, remove one defense from that province by removing defense towers equal to that amount. (See: Defense and Ruin below.)

Example of Conquering an Uncontrolled Province: Bob wants to Conquer Pilgrimwalk. His leader is there, so he can attempt to Conquer it. He plays two Steadfast Conscripts and his starter advisor, Sellsword. The Sellsword has 3 Strength, which makes it his strongest troop, so Bob will be rolling three combat dice. The Sellsword also has the ability "Conquer: You may reroll one of your dice." Bob rolls three dice with the following results: Bob's Steadfast Conscripts give him 4 Strength and his dice rolls give him 2 more Strength for a total of 6 Strength. Bob does not add the 3 Strength of his Sellsword because it is replaced by the dice roll. Bob needs 7 Strength to Conquer Pilgrimwalk, so Bob would fail at Conquering Pilgrimwalk with this action. However, Bob remembers that the Sellsword gives him the ability to reroll one of his dice. Bob chooses to reroll the blank result. On his reroll, Bob improves by 1 Strength. Bob now has enough strength to Conquer Pilgrimwalk. Bob recruits the top two cards of the Hallowed Vale realm deck into his discard pile. (Hallowed Vale is the realm that Pilgrimwalk, the Conquered province, belongs to.) He places one of his banners on top of a tower piece in Pilgrimwalk. Finally, Bob has to resolve the ruin results of his dice. Bob rolled 1 ruin so he removes one defense from the defense value of Pilgrimwalk. Now the current defense value of this province is 6.

Controlled Province

1. Choose Attackers and Defenders: a. Choose Attacking Troops: The Attacker chooses one or more cards from their hand, places them on the table facedown, and declares to the Defender how many cards were placed. b. Choose Defending Troops: The Defender chooses any number (which may be zero) of cards from their hand — each must have a defend icon — and places them on the table facedown. The Defender then draws a number of cards equal to the number of cards the Defender placed. c. Reveal: Both players simultaneously reveal and play their placed cards (placing them in their respective play areas).
2. Resolve Effects: The Attacker resolves all abilities of their placed cards that have "When you play this" or "Conquer" effects. Then, the Defender resolves all abilities of their placed cards that have "When you play this" or "Defend" effects.
3. Roll Attack Dice: The Attacker and Defender both roll combat dice equal to their own card with the highest Strength value.
4. Reroll Dice: Starting with the Attacker, the players resolve any reroll abilities they have.
5. Total Strength: Both players separately add up the Strength value of their dice rolled and all the cards they played except the ones with the highest Strength value.
6. Determine Winner: If the Attacker's Total Strength is greater than or equal to the defense value of the province plus the Defender's Total Strength, the Attacker has conquered the province. If not, the Defender retains control of the province.
7. Recruit Cards: If the Attacker won, they place a banner on top of one of the tower pieces in that province and recruit two cards from that realm deck. The Defender's banner is returned to that player.
8. Resolve Ruin: For the total ruin rolled by the Defender, the Attacker must Cull cards they played during this Conquer action until they have Culled cards with a total Strength value greater than or equal to the ruin rolled. Neither player gains the Cruelty for Culling cards this way. (For example, if 2 ruin was rolled, the Attacker must Cull a card with at least 2 Strength or two cards with 1 Strength each. If they only attacked with one card, it must be Culled.) For each ruin the Attacker rolled, remove one defense from that province by removing defense towers equal to that amount. (See: Defense and Ruin below.)

Example of Conquering a Controlled Province: Abby wants to take control of Pilgrimwalk from Bob. Abby's leader is in Pilgrimwalk which has Bob's banner. Bob inflicted 1 ruin on it during a previous turn, so its current defense value is 6. Abby decides to play four cards to try to Conquer Pilgrimwalk. She announces this to Bob. Bob discovers that only one of the cards in his hand has the defend icon. He decides to play that card, Steadfast Conscript. Then, he draws one card. Abby's strongest card has 3 Strength, so she will roll three dice. Bob's Conscript has 2 Strength, so he will roll two dice. Before that, Abby and Bob check their cards to see if they have "When you play this" or "Conquer/Defend" abilities. Neither Abby nor Bob have these abilities. Abby and Bob roll their dice. Abby rolls 4 Strength and 2 Strength. Bob rolls 2 Strength and 1 ruin. Abby adds the 4 Strength to the combined 6 Strength of her other three Conquering cards to get a total of 10 Strength. Bob defended with one card, so his Defense Strength is just the 2 Strength that he rolled. He adds that to the current 6 defense of Pilgrimwalk for a total defense of 8. Abby's total strength is higher than Bob's so she wins and gains control of Pilgrimwalk. Abby recruits two cards from the Hallowed Vale deck and replaces Bob's banner with her own. Finally, each player must resolve the ruin that the other player rolled. Bob rolled 1 ruin, so Abby must Cull a card with at least 1 Strength from the cards she used to attack. She returns one of her Steadfast Conscripts to the bottom of the Woodland Nations deck. Abby rolled 2 ruin, which must now be inflicted on Pilgrimwalk. Pilgrimwalk's defense is reduced from 6 to 4.

End Phase

After the active player has completed all the actions they wish to take in the Main Phase, they must resolve the following steps in order:

1. You may use any "At the beginning of your End Phase" abilities you have on allies or structures.

2. Recruit one card from your current province's realm deck. You may choose to recruit a second card from that deck. If you do, gain 1 Mercy. To recruit a card, you gain the top card of a realm deck and place it into your discard pile. If that realm deck is empty, don't recruit any cards. You cannot choose to recruit a second card if that deck is empty.

   Tip: If you are having difficulty remembering to recruit every turn, place a banner or cube on top of your deck to remind you to recruit before drawing at the end of your turn.

3. Place all the cards in your play area into your discard pile. You may choose to discard any cards remaining in your hand.

4. Draw cards from your deck until you have reached your hand limit of five cards. If at any point you would draw a card and cannot, shuffle your discard pile facedown to form your new deck and continue drawing.

Example of an End Phase: Bob has decided he is done with his Main Phase so he performs the following steps in order: He has the Magister of Guilds, which allows him to gain 1 Influence at the beginning of his End Phase. He moves his cube up 1 Influence. Bob's leader is in Gull Harbor, so he recruits one card from the Riverway Sovereignty realm deck. Bob chooses to recruit a second card so he can gain a Mercy. Bob moves his Morality marker one space toward the end of the Mercy track. Bob places both of the cards he recruited into his discard pile. Bob places all the cards in his play area into his discard pile. He has one card in hand and decided he wants to keep it for next turn. Bob draws four cards so that he has five cards in hand.

End of Year Scoring

At the end of rounds four, eight, and twelve there is an End of Year Scoring phase. During this phase, perform the following steps in order:

1. Each player gains Influence for each province they control. They gain Influence equal to the current defense value of that province.
2. Each player gains additional Influence for each realm they control. To control a realm, a player must control at least two provinces within that realm. At the end of the first year, players gain 4 Influence for each realm they control. At the end of the second, they gain 8. At the end of the third, they gain 12.

When a player reaches 50 Influence, they should leave one of their player cubes on the 50 space and use a second cube to keep track of their additional points. (For example, if you have 85 Influence, you would have one cube on the 50 space and one on the 35 space.)

Example of End of Year Scoring: Abby controlled the following provinces at the end of the twelfth turn: Pilgrimwalk (4 defense), Queenskeep (12 defense), and Aramek (9 defense). She scores 4 + 12 + 9 = 25 Influence for the current defense of the provinces she controls. She also controls the Hallowed Vale realm by controlling Pilgrimwalk and Queenskeep. She scores an additional 12 Influence for controlling a realm at the end of the twelfth turn. After scoring for the last turn, Abby has 52 Influence. To show this, she has one cube on the 2 space of the Influence track and one cube on the 50 space.

End of the Game

The game ends after the third End of Year Scoring phase. At this point, each player:

1. Gains Influence equal to the Influence value shown on each card in their hand, deck, and discard pile.
2. Gains Influence equal to the Influence value shown on each ally they've gained.
3. Gains Influence equal to the number of structures they've built.
4. Gains Influence provided by each Level 4 structure they've built.

The player with the most Influence wins the game. If there is a tie, the player that gained the most Influence during the third End of Year Scoring phase wins the game. If there is still a tie, the tied players share the victory.

Example of End of Game Scoring: She then scores the following points: She has 15 cards in her deck that are worth points for a total of 25 Influence. She moves her cube from 2 to 27. She has two allies that each score 2 Influence. She moves her cube from 27 to 31. She has built 8 structures. She moves her cube to 39. Abby built Exalted Domain so she will gain 1 Influence for each card in her deck that was worth 1 or more Influence. We know from before that she had 15 cards that were worth 1 or more Influence. She moves her cube from 39 to 4 (wrapping past 50) and adds another cube to the 50 on the Influence track. Abby's final score is 50 + 50 + 4 = 104 Influence.

Important Terms

Morality

The Morality track ranges from 12 Cruelty to 12 Mercy. Players start the game at 0 Cruelty/Mercy. Once you gain your first Cruelty or Mercy, you will never return to the 0 Cruelty/Mercy space. When you gain a Cruelty, move your cube one space toward the 12 Cruelty end of the track. When you gain a Mercy, move your cube one space toward the 12 Mercy end of the track. For each Cruelty beyond 12 that you would gain, gain 1 Influence instead. For each Mercy beyond 12 that you would gain, gain 1 Influence instead.

Realms and Provinces

The board is divided into twelve territories, called provinces. Each province belongs to one of the four realms based on its terrain type:

• forest: Woodland Nations
• mountains: Mountain Clans Empire
• plains: Hallowed Vale
• rivers: Riverway Sovereignty

A player's current province is the province in which their leader is located, regardless of control, and their current realm is the realm that province belongs to.

A player controls a province by Conquering it, and a player's control is indicated by the presence of that player's banner in the province.

A player controls a realm by controlling two or more provinces belonging to that realm. (Players will gain Influence for controlling provinces and realms during the End of Year Scoring phase.)

Each realm has a realm deck associated with it. When a player recruits cards (adding them to their discard pile), they'll draw cards from the realm deck belonging to their current realm. A realm deck has cards belonging to several factions, as shown by its realm deck composition area on the board.

Defense and Ruin

Inflicting Ruin: Whenever you inflict ruin on a province, remove defense tower pieces from that province with value equal to the amount of ruin you are inflicting.

Adding Defense: Whenever you add defense to a province, add defense tower pieces to that province equal to the amount of defense you are adding.

Provinces cannot have more defense than they have at the start of the game. Provinces can never have less than zero defense. A province with zero defense can still be controlled, just place your banner on the board in that province instead of on top of a tower piece.

3-defense tower pieces may be exchanged for three 1-defense tower pieces, and vice versa.

"When you play this…"

Whenever you play a card with this ability, you will receive this effect in addition to the Labor or Strength value it was played for.

"Action:"

Cards with these types of abilities can be played as an action for the effect listed. When you play a card this way, you cannot use its Labor or Strength for any other actions this turn.

"Build/Conquer/Defend:"

These abilities happen when the card is played for that type of action. Allies with these types of abilities are used when you perform that action.

"Cruel/Merciful:"

You have access to the Cruel ability when you have any amount of Cruelty. You have access to the Merciful ability when you have any amount of Mercy.

Strategy Guide

There are many different strategies to explore with Path of Light and Shadow. To optimally execute these strategies, you will need to know more about the areas of the game each faction excels at.

Commonfolk

The Commonfolk faction excels at Conquering and Promoting. Their cards improve the more Cruel or Merciful you become. Because of this, they are a great complementary faction to Sigilborne and Hordes of Zurd. If you are Merciful and want help Building structures, you will want to Promote those Trusted Followers that you start with at the beginning of the game. If you are Cruel and need help Conquering provinces and defending those provinces, you will want to Promote the Steadfast Guards that start the game in your deck.

All the factions can make great advancements in the game by Promoting their cards. You will likely want to Build the Outland Tavern and Towne Garrison early in the game. The Imperial Council, which is a general structure, is also extremely helpful for heavy Promotion strategies.

Sigilborne

The Sigilborne are a Merciful people. They excel at Building structures, strengthening provinces, and Promoting troops. If you plan on implementing a heavy Build strategy, you will want to start with the Sigilborne Priory. You will want to make sure that you Build the Cathedral of Scars before the game ends because it could lead to a great deal more Influence. To help you with this strategy, you will want to try to recruit and Promote Devout Grangers.

When you are pursuing a Merciful strategy, make sure to recruit an extra card each turn to gain 1 Mercy. This extra card will give you additional options as to how to focus your deck. When you recruit a card that looks good, you should consider Promoting it so that you can have access to an even better version. Building Outland Tavern before you start Promoting will help you advance quickly on the Mercy track. Building Imperial Council will help you gain access to the cards you Promote on the next turn.

Hordes of Zurd

The Hordes of Zurd are Cruel. They excel in Culling off the useless members of your nation and Conquering provinces. However, they can be reckless in their Conquering which leads to provinces being ruined and worth less Influence during scoring. If you want to decrease the amount of ruin you inflict, you should Build Siege Beasts. Hordes of Zurd cards have poor Labor values, so you will likely need to pair them with Halax Guildlord or Commonfolk cards to help you Build structures.

When you are Conquering, you will recruit extra cards that you may not want. Using cards in your hand to Cull those cards out of your deck is a good idea, but it decreases the amount of cards you can use this turn. Building the Black Gulag and recruiting and Promoting Blood Hammer are good ways to Cull without having to use valuable cards in your hand to do so.

Halax Guildlords

The Halax Guildlords are the most flexible faction in Path. Their structures and cards provide several opportunities to trade Influence for powerful abilities. If you are using a Conquer heavy strategy, you should look to Build Halax Fleet to help you gain extra movement to access provinces that are ripe for the Conquering. Building Mercenary Reserves will also help you while Conquering.

If you want to employ a Merciful Build and Promote strategy, Grand Bazaar offers great value as it allows you to Promote a card for the cost of 1 Influence. Any card you Promote is worth at least that much Influence and can be worth more if you have Outland Tavern built.

Numerai

There is only one type of Numerai card in the realm decks: Wandering One. Wandering One has the best Labor and Strength stats of any of the realm deck cards. It also has the highest Promotion cost of all realm deck cards at 6 Labor/Strength. When you Promote a Wandering One, you won't know what to expect as the card they become is random. Legendary Numerai stats range from 2 to 6 in Labor and Strength, and they have very powerful effects based on whether you are Cruel or Merciful. It is very difficult to force a Numerai strategy as they are hard to find in the realm decks. Promoting Wandering Ones is almost always worth your time as several of the effects they provide are uniquely powerful.

Quick Start Guide

1. Place the game board in the middle of the table. In a two-player game, use the side of the game board that has dark blue water and a white compass. In a three- or four-player game, use the other side.
2. Place defense tower pieces on each province equal to that province's defense value shown on the board.
3. Place the turn marker on the "1" space of the turn track.
4. Players choose a player color, and then take a player mat, one of each player aid, and a set of components in their player color (one leader base, eleven player cubes, and twelve banners).
5. Players choose a leader miniature as their leader and attach it to their leader base.
6. Players place one cube on each of the following spaces: a. the empty spaces at the top of each of the five structure trees on their player mat b. the "5" space of the Influence track c. the "0" space of the Morality track.
7. Separate the upgrade deck cards by faction and place them as faceup decks next to the matching tabs on the game board. Then shuffle all of the cards labeled "Upgrade Deck: Numerai" and return them facedown next to their tab on the board.
8. Separate the realm deck cards by realm, shuffle them, and place them as facedown decks next to the matching tabs on the game board.
9. Deal out a number of ally cards equal to the number of players +1. Place them faceup near the game board. Return the remaining ally cards to the box as they will not be used this game.
10. Randomly determine a first player and give that person the first player marker.
11. Create each player's deck in the following manner: a. Give each player four "Trusted Followers" and three "Steadfast Conscripts" from the starter deck cards. b. Shuffle together the cards labeled "Starter Card: Advisor" and deal one facedown to each player. Return the rest of the cards to the box as they will not be used this game. c. Starting with the first player and continuing clockwise, players take turns placing their leaders in one of the Village provinces on the board that does not already have a leader present. Then, each player takes two cards from the top of the realm deck that matches their starting Village's realm. d. Players shuffle these ten initial cards together and place them facedown as a deck to the left of their player mat.
12. Players draw the top five cards from their deck into their hand. Then, the game begins with the first player taking the first turn.

Credits

Game Design: Travis R. Chance, Nick Little, and Jon Gilmour

Development: Brian McCarthy

Illustrations: Beth Sobel

Graphic Design: Daniel Solis and Scott Hartman

Art Direction: Travis R. Chance and Daniel Solis

Miniature Sculpts: Emerson Matsuuchi, Donald Stouffer, Mauro Delli Bovi, and Andrew Martin

Editor: Rachael Mortimer

Playtesters: Dan DiLorenzo, Adam Daulton, Ryan Schoon, Milena Guberinic, Robert Kadlec, Zach Laxon, Kyle Montgomery, Eric Roades, Ken (PhilGAMEthropist) Franklin, Nate Daugherty, Daniel Stephens, Bharath "Barry" Murthy, Teddy Brewer, Jason Funk, Donnie Smith, Brandon Basham, JR Honeycutt, Nicki Jackson, Timothy Mattes, Travis Magrum, Curtis Clark, John Burns, Ian Moss, Nicholas Rausch, Jim Schoch, Jamie Gilmour, Brian Lewis, Spencer Cole, Julia Vasquez, Paul Clawson, Michael Addison, Brandan Parsons, Lance Myxter, Kevin Riley, James Shonkwiler, Daryl Andrews, Saul Lapidus, Nathan Driggs, Tim Radar Ealy, and Matthew Hester**