Primal: The Awakening – Nightmare Expansion
Primal: The Awakening – Nightmare Expansion Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1x Zekath monster board
- 1x Zekalith monster board
- 1x Zekath/Zekalith miniature
- 1x Vibration marker
- 4x Strain token
- 4x Zekath Peril card
- 6x Zekath Stance card
- 4x Zekalith Peril card
- 6x Zekalith Stance card
- 18x Zekath Behavior card
- 1x Zekath Objective card
- 18x Zekalith Behavior card
- 1x Zekalith Objective card
- 4x The Awakened Behavior card
- 5x Quest card
- 3x Reward card
- 60x Nightmare Stance card
- 90x Behaviour Nightmare card
- 6x Taraska Stance card
- 3x Taraska Peril card
- 3x Taraska Special Attrition card
- 18x Taraska Behavior card
- 1x Taraska Objective card
- Taraska monster board
- Taraska miniature
- 6x Xitheros Stance card
- 3x Xitheros Peril card
- 8x Bleeding card (Xitheros and The Awakened)
New Rules
This expansion introduces some new keywords and rules that are specific to the scenarios relating to the new monsters. Refer to this section as required during the scenario, since it explains each of the new rules in detail.
Zekath Variants (Zekath & Zekalith)
Zekath comes in two different variants, Zekath and Zekalith, each featuring their own peril, stance and behavior cards.
New Behavior Reaction (Taraska)
Trigger: If you have an attack card in your sequence at the end of your Action phase.
Note: Attack cards with Stealth do not trigger this reaction.
Monster Rules
Bleeding Cards (Xitheros, The Awakened)
Xitheros can introduce a Bleeding card into a players' deck, through card ability effects. When a card ability instructs you to shuffle a Bleeding card into your action deck, use the Bleeding card that corresponds to your hunter, identifiable by the class icon on the back of the card.
Similar to Wound cards, Bleeding cards can clog up your action deck, making it less efficient. In addition, as per the Bleeding card ability text, Xitheros gains 1 struggle each time a player draws one of these cards.
Lava Diagram (Taraska)
Taraska's behavior cards feature a diagram that is called Lava diagram, which represents the different sides of the monster (the front of the monster is always at the bottom).
The Lava diagram highlights a specific side of the monster in orange, which is used by the monster's Lava Geyser keyword ability. (See the Lava Geyser keyword ability on page 5.)
Primordial Blood (Xitheros)
These special cards are obtained in Campaign mode, as rewards for defeating Xitheros.
During the crafting phase, a player may discard one of their Primordial Blood cards (i.e. return it to the box) to gain 1 element resource of their choice.
Special Peril Cards and Vibration Track (Zekath and Zekalith)
Zekath's Hallucination, Discharge and Unsettled cards (as well as Zekalith's Hatred, Fear, and Daze cards) are special peril cards, since they are not associated with any of the monster stances.
The first monster stance (for both Zekath and Zekalith) will instruct players to bring a random special peril card into play. Then as the game progresses, players will replace that card with a different special peril card as per the monster vibration mechanics.
The Vibration track is a special track on the monster board that indicates Zekath's/Zekalith's vibration level during the game. Each time you are instructed to increase the vibration level by X, move the vibration marker along the Vibration track by X spaces.
Each time the vibration level reaches 3, perform the following steps in order:
- Randomly replace the special peril card with one of the two special peril cards that are not currently in play. Note: The special peril card that is swapped out is not permanently removed from the game. It may potentially reenter play the next time the vibration level reaches 3 in the game.
- Reset the Vibration track to 0 by placing the vibration marker on the [brain-symbol space; icon not legible in the source text layer].
New Keywords
Action phase: [Ability]
When a behavior card ability begins with this keyword, it means that the [Ability] is only resolved if that behavior card has been revealed during the action phase of the active player's turn.
Lava Geyser (Taraska)
The keyword ability Lava Geyser means that you must discard the top card of the behavior deck and then place a fire terrain token in the sector indicated on that card's Lava diagram (more details about the Lava diagram are on page 3). If there is already a fire terrain in that sector, players in that sector must either immediately move or suffer [damage icon; not legible in the source text layer, to be confirmed against the printed card].
Quick Refresh (Zekath)
While a peril card that features this keyword is in play, skip the Behavior Refresh step during the Monster Upkeep phase of the round. The monster performs a Behavior Refresh at the end of each player's turn instead.
Nightmare (Variant Rule)
Nightmare is an optional variant rule that is designed to increase the level of difficulty beyond the challenges of the base game. The Nightmare variant is available for the following monsters:
Kharja, Dygorax, Orouxen, Morkraas, Jekoros, Tarragua, Xitheros, Reikal, Nagarjas, Mamuraak
Whenever you play a scenario associated with one of these monsters, in either Campaign or Expedition mode, you can choose to use the Nightmare variant for that specific monster. If you do, follow these special rules to set up the monster for that scenario:
- Instead of using the regular stance cards for that monster, use the Nightmare variant stance cards included in this expansion. Note: The Nightmare variant of a stance card features the aggression level icon in red. Make sure you use the stance cards that correspond to the correct monster aggression level (level 1, level 2 or level 3 icon).
- Take the monster's Nightmare behavior cards (identifiable by the red aggression icon) and select the 3 with the correct aggression icon for the monster level (use the table on the right to identify the aggression icon for each of the monster levels). Add as many of those cards as you wish to the behavior deck. The more cards you add, the greater the difficulty.
Aggression Icons (table as printed; the source captions this table "Vibration track")
| Monster level | Aggression icon |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | level 1 icon |
| Level 2 | level 2 icon |
| Level 3 | level 3 icon |
Nightmare Variant: Setup Example
In this example, Alice is setting up a scenario against a level 2 Kharja and wants to use the Nightmare variant.
- Alice takes the Kharja's Nightmare stance cards for aggression level 2, which replace the standard monster stance cards for this scenario (stances I, II and III).
- Alice takes the 3 Nightmare behavior cards that correspond to that monster, with the level 2 aggression icon. She may add as many of those cards as she wishes to Kharja's standard level 2 behavior deck, but she decides to only add one this time, so she chooses one of the cards and adds it to the behavior deck.
Hunter's Trial and Nightmare
For the ultimate challenge, you can combine the Nightmare and Hunter's Trial variants in Campaign mode (refer to page 63 of the Rulebook).
If you are using the Hunter's Trial rules and wish to incorporate the Nightmare variant into the campaign scenarios, add in the following rule:
Each time you successfully complete a scenario using the Nightmare variant, earn 3+X valor points. X is the number of Nightmare behavior cards included in the monster's behavior deck.
Since you can potentially achieve higher scores by earning these points, the Hunter's Trial rankings are revised as follows:
Ranking
| Rank | Valor points |
|---|---|
| Primal Beast | 170 points |
| Indomitable | 150 points |
| Dragon Slayer | 130 points |
| Beast Master | 110 points |
| Commander | 90 points |
| Prime Hunter | 80 points |
| Expert | 65 points |
| Rookie | <50 points |
Campaign Mode Expansion
To integrate the quests of this expansion into your campaign, follow these rules:
- Campaign Setup: When you set up your campaign, add all the quest cards in this expansion to the quest deck. The Campaign Book in the base game will instruct you to unlock these quests, based on specific conditions during the campaign.
- Scenario Setup: To set up and play the scenarios for the quests in this expansion, use the Campaign book Nightmare Unleashed (you will find the campaign scenarios of this expansion in numerical order, starting on page 6).
- Quest Rewards and Expiration: Use the Quest Rewards and Expiration section in the Campaign book Nightmare Unleashed to find the rewards and expiration consequences for each quest in this expansion.
The source shows a sample quest card (quest number 31) with callouts to its Quest Reward and Expiration entry in the Campaign book.
Expedition Mode Expansion
This expansion introduces 6 new expedition scenarios, which are played outside of Campaign mode. You can find the setup rules for each of those scenarios on pages 9-12.
Expedition Setups
The six expedition scenarios are two per monster (Taraska, Zekath, Zekalith, Xitheros). Each setup lists the special rules and the components shown for that expedition. The board diagrams in the source show token placement on the circular expedition board and the numbered Vibration track; those diagrams are pictures in the source and are not reproduced as text here.
Taraska (page 9)
Special Rules
- Special attrition cards: Remove three base attrition cards with attrition values of 0, 1 and 2 from the attrition deck. Then add in Taraska's special attrition cards instead. Special attrition cards are explained in detail on page 98 of the Rulebook.
- Lava diagram: Taraska's behavior cards feature a special Lava diagram, which is explained in detail on page 3.
Expedition 1 (components shown: 4x Rock)
Expedition 2 (components shown: 2x Rock)
Zekath (page 10)
Special Rules
- Special peril cards: Deception, Spark and Disturbance are special peril cards that are not connected with specific stances. These peril cards follow special rules, which are explained in detail on page 5.
- Vibration track: Set the vibration level to 0 by placing the corresponding marker on the [brain-symbol space; icon not legible in the source text layer] space on the Vibration track. The Vibration track is explained in detail on page 5.
Expedition 1 (components shown: 2x Rock, 1x Cyricae, 2x Water, 1x Baethanis)
Expedition 2 (components shown: 2x Rock, 2x Baethanis, 2x Water, 1x Fog)
Zekalith (page 11)
Special Rules
- Special peril cards: Pulsating, Fear and Dissonance are special peril cards that are not connected with specific stances. These peril cards follow special rules, which are explained in detail on page 5.
- Vibration track: Set the vibration level to 0 by placing the corresponding marker in the [brain-symbol space; icon not legible in the source text layer] space on the Vibration track. The Vibration track is explained in detail on page 5.
Expedition 1 (components shown: 2x Rock, 1x Cyricae, 2x Water, 1x Baethanis)
Expedition 2 (components shown: 2x Rock, 1x Cyricae, 2x Water)
Xitheros (page 12)
Special Rules
- Bleeding cards: Each player has a Bleeding card that relates to their hunter (see the matching class icon on the card back). Keep this card close at hand and use it when instructed by card abilities during the game. Bleeding cards are explained in detail on page 3.
Expedition 1 (components shown: 2x Brush, 1x Baethanis, 1x Synaerea, 2x Wildmaw, 2x Water)
Expedition 2 (components shown: 2x Rock, 2x Synaerea, 2x Wildmaw, 2x Water)
Transcriber Notes
- The source's own text is reproduced as printed. Where the source names different special peril cards for the same monster in different places, both are kept as printed: page 5 names Zekath's special peril cards as Hallucination, Discharge and Unsettled, and Zekalith's as Hatred, Fear and Daze, while the expedition setups on pages 10 and 11 name Deception, Spark and Disturbance (Zekath) and Pulsating, Fear and Dissonance (Zekalith).
- Two icons in the source (the Lava Geyser damage symbol on page 5 and the brain-symbol space on the Vibration track) are graphics that did not survive the PDF text layer. They are marked in brackets above and should be confirmed against the printed card or board.
- The credits page of the source is omitted, as are the expedition map diagrams.
- Campaign quests 31-35 and their scenarios are in the separate Campaign book Nightmare Unleashed, which is not part of this rulebook.