Radiant (Tin Shoe Games)
Radiant (Tin Shoe Games) Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Object
You are the general of a fantasy army. In each of three ages, you will draft an army of warriors, show your strength through melding, and battle for control of Perim. Points are scored for melds, conquering regions, controlling majorities, and capturing opposing units. The player with the most points after three ages wins.
Components
- 1 board
- 48 cards
- 4 player aids
- 12 silver coins (worth 3 points each)
- 30 copper coins (worth 1 point each)
- 3 sets of 14 colored cubes
- 3 score markers (wooden cylinders)
- 1 battle tracker token (black cylinder)
- 1 Radiant marker (blue orb)
Setup (Age 1)
- Each player or team (see "Four-player Game" on page 9) takes a set of cubes and places the corresponding score marker on the scoring track next to the space labelled "1."
- Place the battle tracker on the center of the board.
- Place one silver coin on each temple.
- Look at the top card of the deck. The race of this card will be Radiant for the first age. Place the Radiant marker (blue orb) on the corner in the corresponding realm.
- Avis: Native to Clouds
- Treefolk: Native to Forest
- Stonedwellers: Native to Mountains
- Mariners: Native to Sea
- Choose a dealer to shuffle the deck and deal a hand of cards to each player according to the chart below.
- 2 Players: Deal 10 cards each
- 3 Players: Deal 9 cards each
- 4 Players: Deal 8 cards each
- Deal nine cards face up in a 3x3 grid next to the board. This forms the drafting pool. The deck is set next to it.
Ages and Phases
The game is played over three ages. Each age includes the following three phases.
- Recruit
- Meld
- War
Each of these phases is described in detail below.
Phase 1: Recruit
Beginning left of the dealer, players take turns choosing a card from the drafting pool until each player has drafted four cards into their hand. Each time a card is taken, it is replaced with a card from the deck so there are always nine choices (there will be fewer choices when the deck runs out in a four player game). The deck and any remaining cards in the drafting pool are then set aside. These cards will not be used again until the next age.
Phase 2: Meld
Players look for sets of cards, called melds, in their hands. Possible melds are shown in the chart on p. 4 and on the player aid. Meld values are different for each of the three ages. The Army and Mounted Knight melds must be from a single race.
Players simultaneously place their melds face up on the table and move their score marker according to the chart. Each card can only be used in a single meld. Players are not required to meld their cards; they are allowed to keep them in hand without scoring points. After melding, players must pause so that the opposing players have a chance to see their melds. After scoring points, players return the sets to their hands. These cards will be used again during the war.
Melds
| Meld | Icons shown on the chart | 1st Age | 2nd Age | 3rd Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Council of Elders | Four shields: blue, green, red, purple | 4 | 8 | 12 |
| Army* | Five shields, of increasing ornament from left to right | 3 | 6 | 9 |
| Assassin's Guild | Four swords: blue, green, red, purple | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| Mounted Knight* | Two mounted-knight icons | 1 | 2 | 3 |
*Must be a single race.
Phase 3: War
The player with the most scouts in hand begins the war. In the case of a tie, the player with the fewest points begins. If there is still a tie, including when two players are on a team, the tied player left of the dealer begins. He or she moves the battle tracker into an adjacent region and plays a card face up in the center of the table.
Play proceeds to the left with each player playing a card until all have done so. The winning card is determined by the ranking chart (page 5) and the "battles" rules below. The player that wins the battle places all the cards from the battle face down in front of him or her forming a "captured" pile. If one or more coins were on the contested region, the battle's victor takes them. The victor controls the region by placing a cube on it and removes any cube there previously. The victor then moves the battle tracker into an adjacent region and plays a new card to begin another battle.
Moves
Moves can only be made between regions that share part of an edge. Moves cannot be made between regions that only touch at a corner. Players may not move the battle tracker into a region they already control, but they may move it into a region controlled by an opponent. If a player has no legal move, control of the battle tracker passes to the left. For Portals, see page 7.
Battles
The following rules describe which cards can be played in different situations and how the result of the battle is determined.
The map is divided into four realms: clouds, mountains, sea, and forest. Each realm is divided into six regions. If a player has a card native to the contested region (i.e. a mariner card for a sea region) then they must play that card. If they do not have a card native to the contested region then they may play a card from any other race. The Radiant race is an exception. A Radiant card can be played in any region, regardless of which other races a player has in his or her hand. A player is not required to play a Radiant card unless the battle is occurring in the Radiant's native land.
The winning card is determined according to the ranking chart: the highest card played wins the battle. In the case of a tie, the player who played first wins the battle. If a card is not native to the contested region and is not Radiant then it usually loses the battle regardless of its rank. The only exception is if all players play cards that are neither from the contested region, nor Radiant. In that case, the highest ranking card of any race wins.
Ranking (highest to lowest)
- Phalanx
- Knight
- Mount
- Scout
- Elder
- Assassin
The ranking chart shows Mounted Knight (a pair of cards, see below) and Assassination (a sword marked "= target") in a separate column beside the ranking. Assassination is a special case; see "Assassinations" below.
Mounted Knights
A mounted knight is a pair of cards, a knight and a mount from the same race, that are played together. When played in this way, the mounted knight is the most powerful unit.
Example: Treefolk are Radiant. Jim moves the battle tracker into the middle cloud region. Because he has an Avis card, he must play Avis or Treefolk (Radiant). Jim plays his Treefolk Mount. Beth plays her Avis Knight. Knights are higher than mounts on the ranking chart, so Beth wins the battle. She places the cards from the battle face-down in front of her, claims the region with a cube, and moves the battle tracker to an adjacent region.
Assassinations
When played like other cards, an assassin is the lowest ranking card. Assassins can also be used to assassinate other units. Assassins can only be used to assassinate if they are native to the contested region or they are Radiant. To do this, the player using the assassin names the rank and race of a card they believe is in their opponent's hand. Assassins can only target individual cards that are native to the contested region. Assassins can only target opponents who have not yet played a card in the current battle.
If the targeted player has the targeted card then it is defeated and is immediately placed on top of the assassin. The rank of the assassin is now equal to the rank of the defeated card. On his or her turn, the defeated player may choose to pass or make any legal play.
If the targeted player does not have the targeted card then the assassin remains the lowest card of its race for that battle.
Portals
There are two pairs of portal regions on the board. Each portal region is two terrain types and has two native races. For purposes of movement, each of these regions is considered to be adjacent to its matching portal in the opposite realm.
Example: Both Stonedwellers and Mariners are native to the mountain portal located in the sea. Erin uses a Stonedweller assassin to target a Mariner knight there. After winning the battle, she can choose to move the battle tracker to any adjacent region or to the portal located in the mountains. In this case, the next battle would be fought on the portal region in the mountains.
Example: In a Mountain battle, Seth plays a Stonedweller Knight. Anna chooses to attempt an assassination with her Stonedweller Assassin. Because Seth has played, Anna cannot target him. Instead, she targets Ben's Stonedweller Phalanx. Ben does have a Stonedweller Phalanx, so he must play it and Anna's assassin is now winning, equal in rank to a phalanx. Ben can now choose to pass, or if he has a Radiant or Stonedweller Mounted Knight then he can play it and win the battle: an expensive choice!
Ending the War
The age ends after each player has exhausted their hand. If one player runs out of cards first then they will not participate in the remaining battle(s). If only one player (or team) has cards then the battle tracker is still moved by the victor of the previous battle. The player with cards automatically wins the last battle, capturing any points present. Only one region can be captured in this manner, regardless of the number of cards a player has remaining in his or her hand. If there are still cards remaining in hand, the player places them in his or her captured pile.
End of an Age
At the end of an age, players update their scores and prepare for the next age.
- Score majorities
- Score coins
- Score card coins (third age only)
- Setup for the next age
Players receive points for every realm where they control more regions than their opponents. Six points are awarded when the realm contains multiple cubes. In the case of a tie, these points are divided evenly among the tied players. If a realm contains only a single cube, three points are awarded. When counting majorities, portal regions are only considered to be part of the realm they are located within.
Example: Red scores six points for the sea realm. In the forest, red, yellow, and blue each score two points. Because there is only one cube in it, blue scores three points for the cloud realm. Yellow and blue will each score three points for the mountain realm.
Players score their coins by moving their score markers and returning the coins to the box. Silver coins are worth three points and copper coins are worth one point.
At the end of age three, players also score a point for each card in their captured pile that has a coin printed on it.
Setup Before Ages 2 and 3
Remove all cubes from the board. Return the battle tracker to the center of the board. The role of dealer rotates to the left. Shuffle all the cards together (including captured cards) and deal cards again according to the chart on p. 3. Move the Radiant marker clockwise on the board to the next realm marking a new Radiant race. Lay out a nine card drafting pool.
Place a silver coin on each temple and a copper coin on each other region that isn't a portal. If there were unclaimed coins left on the board from a previous age then it is possible for a region to contain two or three coins.
Adding multiple coins: To avoid confusion when replenishing the board, first add coins to spaces that already contain two coins. Next, add coins to spaces already containing one coin. Finally, fill the remaining spaces.
Winning
The player or team with the most points at the end of the third age wins. If there is a tie, the tied player who most recently won a battle wins the game.
Four-Player Game
The four-player game is a partnership game of two-on-two. Players sit across from their partner and between their opponents. Each partnership tracks their points together as a team and uses a single color of control marker. Players do not combine cards with their partners when melding. Battles proceed as normal with all players participating in battles. Table talk, in which teammates discuss strategies or cards in their hand during the game, is not allowed.
Quick Reference
Starting
- 2 Players: Deal 10, draft 4
- 3 Players: Deal 9, draft 4
- 4 Players: Deal 8, draft 4
- Left of dealer begins the draft
- Most scouts begins the war
Legal Plays
- Play a card native to the battle's location, or play Radiant.
- If a player doesn't have a native card, they may play any race.
- A player isn't required to play Radiant unless the battle is occuring in the Radiant's native realm.
Winning Card
- The high card that is either native or Radiant wins the battle.
- If no card is native or Radiant, high card of any race wins.
- Ties go to the first tied card played.
Assassination
- Assassin must be native or Radiant.
- Target must be native.
- If successful, assassin's rank equals target's rank.
1st Age
- Setup: Silver coin (3 pts) on each temple.
- Scoring: Age 1 meld scores; 6 pts per majority or 3 pts for single cube; score coins; do not count coins on cards.
2nd Age
- Setup: New silver coin on each temple; copper coin (1 pt) on other non-portal regions.
- Scoring: Age 2 meld scores; 6 pts per majority or 3 pts for single cube; score coins; do not count coins on cards.
3rd Age
- Setup: New silver coin on each temple; new copper coin on other non-portal regions.
- Scoring: Age 3 meld scores; 6 pts per majority or 3 pts for single cube; score coins; score coins on captured cards.