Risk: Godstorm
Risk: Godstorm Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Artifacts of the Past
- Your Holy War
- Readying for War
- Setup
- Object of the Game
- Start of an Epoch
- Turn Overview
- End of an Epoch
- Winning
- Pronunciation Guide
- Rules to Classic RISK®
Artifacts of the Past
You have unearthed an ancient treasure. Buried in the sands for centuries, this box contains all the pieces the ancient warriors used in their deadly battle games. Blow off the dust and investigate its mysterious contents . . . .
You have these items to determine which civilization will reign supreme.
- 1 rulebook
- 1 Ancient Earth gameboard
- 1 Underworld gameboard
- 5 pantheon cards
- 60 reddish-brown Norse soldiers
- 10 reddish-brown Norse war elephants
- 60 green Celtic soldiers
- 10 green Celtic war elephants
- 60 plum Greek soldiers
- 10 plum Greek war elephants
- 60 blue Babylonian soldiers
- 10 blue Babylonian war elephants
- 60 tan Egyptian soldiers
- 10 tan Egyptian war elephants
- 12 temples
- 5 gods of war (1 of each color)
- 5 goddesses of magic (1 of each color)
- 5 gods of the sky (1 of each color)
- 5 gods of death (1 of each color)
- 17 War miracle cards (War cards)
- 15 Magic miracle cards (Magic cards)
- 17 Sky miracle cards (Sky cards)
- 17 Death miracle cards (Death cards)
- 44 territory cards (includes 2 wild cards)
- 10 six-sided dice (5 white, 5 black)
- 50 1-point faith tokens
- 10 5-point faith tokens
- 1 reference card
- 1 epoch marker
- 5 turn order markers
- 5 plague markers
- 1 sunken Atlantis marker
- 1 maelstrom marker
Game Design: Mike Selinker
Game Development: Richard Baker, Michael Donais, and Bill McQuillan
Based on the Classic Game of RISK® by Albert Lamorisse, and RISK 2210 A.D.™ by Craig Van Ness and Rob Daviau
Cosmology: Brandon Bozzi, Eric Cagle, Brady Dommermuth, Skaff Elias, Chris Galvin, Brian Tinsman, and Teeuwynn Woodruff
Editor: Cal Moore
Art Direction: Matthew Stevens and Peter Whitley
Cartography: Rob Lazzaretti and Dennis Kauth
Cardface Design: Kate Irwin
Cover Illustrator: Greg Staples
Figure Illustrator: Arnie Swekel
Relic Illustrator: Lars Grant-West
Rune Illustrator: Abigail Fein
Thanks to Aaron Alberg, Stephen Baker, Paul Bazakas, Tyler Bielman, Martin Durham, Joe Fernandez, Evan Fuerst, Mike Gray, Joe Hauck, Dawn Heiberg, Tracy Hogan, Kurt Isensee, Mary Kirchoff, Shelley McKinley, Faith Price, Bill Rose, Kate Ross, Patrick Ross, Leslie Samuel, Liz Schuh, Tina Trenkler, Laura Veasey, Tricia Yochum, and all our divine playtesters.
Risk Godstorm™ uses the same basic strategies, rules, and tactics as Classic RISK®. If you have never played Classic RISK®, the rules are included beginning on page 12.
Your Holy War
You are the high priest of a proud and ancient people. You must rush to control the ancient world by summoning your gods to Earth, by overrunning foreign lands, and by painting the land with the blood of your enemies.
To win, you need to master the strategies of classic conquests. You must learn to summon the proper gods at the right time and to complete the Labors that those gods demand. And do not turn your back on those warriors who die in your service, for they will continue to fight for you in the land of the dead—and some may even return to fight on earth again.
Strategy
Keep these 3 strategy hints in mind as you play, add armies, and fortify:
- Conquer whole continents: You will earn more armies and faith that way.
- Watch your enemies: If they are building up forces on adjacent territories, they may be planning an attack.
- Fortify borders adjacent to enemy territories for better defense if a neighbor tries to attack you.
Atlantis
Atlantis is a special continent in this game. Its continent bonus is 3, which is higher than the similarly sized continent Hyrkania. This is a tempting place to conquer, but it can be risky.
The miracle card called "The Sea Is Your Tomb" sinks Atlantis. If this occurs, destroy all armies on Atlantis and send them to their respective heavens, banish all gods from Atlantis, destroy any temples on Atlantis, and cover Atlantis with the special, sunken-Atlantis piece that severs all connections to Atlantis.
The Rules of War
Risk Godstorm is a game of bloodthirsty conquering, so everyone should observe a few simple courtesies:
- Table talk, including alliances, threats, coercion, whining, pleading, backstabbing, invocation of the divine wrath of your ancestors, and other verbal tirades, is not only allowed, but also encouraged.
- Once someone draws, uses, and discards a card, it is out of play. Discarded cards should be put in the box and are not reshuffled or reused.
- How many faith tokens a player has is public knowledge.
- The number and type of miracle cards a player has is public knowledge, though what they say is not.
- Anytime in the game that you have to divide a number, round down. For example, when you lose armies in a plague territory, round down the number of armies lost (that is, if you have 3 armies, you lose 1).
If you have a question that isn't answered in the Risk Godstorm section, then refer to the Classic RISK® rules on page 12.
Readying for War
Carefully punch out the faith tokens, the Underworld gameboard, the turn order markers, the epoch marker, the reference card, the sunken-Atlantis marker, and the maelstrom marker (the thin water piece used to cover a water connection).
Remove all the soldiers and gods from their plastic bags. Remove the dice and temples from their bags. Assemble the cardboard tray. You can store the game pieces in the tray slots after each game.
The Gameboards
The Ancient Earth gameboard represents the ancient "flat Earth" that includes much of Europe, northern Africa, western Asia, and Atlantis. It is divided into 6 colored continents and is composed of 42 territories.
A side gameboard represents the Underworld and contains 5 heavens that are color-coded to the pantheons of the gods.
The Gods and Faithful
Each of the 5 pantheons—Babylonians (blue), Celts (green), Greeks (plum), Egyptians (tan), and Norse (reddish-brown)—has 4 gods: a god of death, a goddess of magic, a god of the sky, and a god of war.
Each pantheon also has armies of faithful. The armies are composed of soldier figures, which represent 1 army, and war elephant figures, which represent 5 armies. You may trade 5 soldiers for a war elephant, or vice versa, at any time.
Setup
1. Determine Plague Lands
At the start of the game, 4 lands will be affected by disastrous plagues. Turn over the top 4 territory cards from the territory deck. Place a plague marker on each of the territories shown (one marker is unused). Return the cards to the territory deck and reshuffle.
Any player's armies may enter a plague land. When armies conquer and move into a plague land, the plague destroys half that player's invading armies, rounded down. (This means a single army can hold a plague land indefinitely.) Gods that enter plague lands are automatically banished, since their worshippers lose confidence in their divine power.
2. Choose Pantheons
Each player chooses a pantheon by rolling one of the dice (reroll ties). The player with the highest total chooses a pantheon card. Then the person with the next highest roll chooses a pantheon card, and so on until all players have chosen. Each pantheon card lists its civilization, the gods that rule it, its army's color, and its heaven.
Give the armies and gods to the players based on their choice of pantheons:
- Babylonians — blue
- Celts — green
- Egyptians — tan
- Greeks — plum
- Norse — reddish-brown
3. Place Armies, Gods, and Temples
Count out armies to form your starting forces.
- 2 Players: count out 30 armies each (see the Setup for 2-Player rules on page 6)
- 3 Players: count out 35 armies each
- 4 Players: count out 30 armies each
- 5 Players: count out 25 armies each
Deal out all of the territory cards, starting with the person who drew the first pantheon card and continuing clockwise. When all of the cards have been dealt, each player places an army from his or her starting forces in each of the territories listed on his or her cards, even if the territory contains a plague marker. Then, continuing with the next player in order, each player places armies 3 at a time in any territories that he or she controls. All 3 armies may be placed together, or divided between territories.
Continue placement until every player's armies are on the board. Reshuffle the territory deck.
Then, continuing with the next player in order, place both your god of war and a temple in a territory that you control. (They may be placed in different territories.)
4. Gain Faith Tokens
Faith is what powers the divine strength of the armies in this war. With tokens of your faith, you summon gods, obtain miracle cards, cast miracles, and bid for turn order. Each of these actions requires you to sacrifice the faith tokens you have gathered and return them to the faith pool. There are 2 denominations of faith tokens: 1-point tokens, and 5-point tokens. You may trade 5 1-point tokens for a 5-point token, or vice versa, at any time.
Each player starts with 3 1-point faith tokens.
Non-Random Setup
You may wish to set up the game by choosing which territories you occupy rather than dealing out territory cards. If so, use this rule.
Each player rolls one of the dice. The player with the highest roll places an army in any unoccupied territory (reroll ties). Armies cannot be placed in the Underworld. Continuing clockwise, players take turns placing 1 army at a time until all territories have been occupied, including plague lands. Then, continuing with the next player in order, players place armies 3 at a time into any territories they control, until all armies are on the gameboard. From this point on, follow the normal rules for placing gods and temples.
Setup for 2 Players
You can play Risk Godstorm with only 2 players by using these special setup rules.
After the plague markers have been placed, choose a neutral pantheon card. Shuffle the territory cards and deal them, facedown, into 3 equal piles. Both you and your opponent choose a different pile. The remaining pile is neutral. Place 3 armies of the neutral pantheon's color in each of those territories.
These neutral armies will defend their territories, but cannot move or take any other special actions.
The 2 players now set up normally, using 30 armies each.
Object of the Game
Risk Godstorm lasts 5 epochs, at which time one pantheon will rule over mankind. This ascendant pantheon will be the one that best combines control of territories, continents, and the Underworld (see Winning on page 12).
Start of an Epoch
Before the start of each epoch, players sacrifice faith tokens for turn order. You will need a number of turn order markers equal to the number of players.
Take all of your faith tokens in hand. Secretly choose how many you want to reveal and place those in your other hand. You may sacrifice anything from 0 to the number of faith tokens you have.
Players reveal their sacrifices at the same time. The player who sacrifices the most faith tokens chooses one of the turn order markers, then the next player chooses, and so on. Use die rolls to break ties. All faith tokens sacrificed for turn order return to the faith pool.
Turn Overview
On your turn you may perform some or all of the following actions in order. The player with the "Turn Order 1" marker goes first, followed in turn order by the rest of the players.
- Raise Armies and Gather Faith
- Summon Gods and Build Temples
- Obtain Miracle Cards
- Play Miracle Cards
- Suffer Plague
- Invade Territories
- Fortify a Position
- Embark from Heaven
- Invade the Underworld
- End Your Turn
Continent Bonus
- Europa — 7
- Germania — 5
- Africa — 5
- Asia Minor — 7
- Atlantis — 3
- Hyrkania — 9
1. Raise Armies and Gather Faith
At the start of your turn, raise additional armies and gather faith tokens to wage your holy war. Look at the reference card to see how many armies and faith tokens you get based on the number of territories you control. You control a territory only if at least 1 of your armies (not your gods or temples) is in it. You may save faith tokens for later turns.
If you control all of the territories in one or more continents, you receive a continent bonus in armies and faith tokens. Here are the bonus amounts. (They are also listed on the Ancient Earth gameboard.)
Place all of the armies you've raised in any of the territories you control. These territories must be occupied by at least 1 of your armies.
If you control a crypt in the Underworld, you may also move 1 army from that crypt space to any territory with a temple you control in the Ancient Earth, unless it is the only army in that crypt space. (See page 11 for more information on crypts and the Underworld.)
Also, for each temple you control, you get 1 additional faith token and 1 additional army. The army must be placed in the territory where the temple is located.
2. Summon Gods and Build Temples
You may now summon any gods that you do not have in play. You must sacrifice 3 faith tokens to summon each god, and that god must be placed only in a territory where you have at least 1 army. If any of your gods have been banished, you may summon them again, assuming you have the required faith tokens.
A god walking the earth is a formidable sight. They give powers to your armies and allow you to complete Labors to perform miracles. Your gods can exist only in territories where you control at least 1 army. If all of your armies are destroyed in a territory (whether through battle or by miracle cards), any gods in that territory are banished.
It is beneath a god to attack or defend against soldiers, but the gods will use their powers to help those forces in battle. However, when opposing gods meet in an invasion, there is a titanic godswar (see page 9).
Gods and Their Powers
Each god has a domain in which he or she reigns supreme. The 4 gods use their powers to defeat other gods or to help their armies during an invasion.
God of Death
The god of death is a guardian of the Underworld. It is he that brings the epic disasters like plagues and earthquakes. He gains power when his followers rule the Underworld.
Divine Power: When the god of death attacks, opposing armies do not go to the Underworld, but are placed back with the defending player's reserve armies instead.
- Babylonians — Druaga
- Celts — Arawn
- Egyptians — Osiris
- Greeks — Hades
- Norse — Loki
Note: See Invade Territories on page 9 for more information on godswar battles.
Goddess of Magic
The goddess of magic controls fate itself. Her powerful magical relics can change the very nature of war. She gains strength when fate conspires to favor the lucky.
Divine Power: When the goddess of magic attacks or defends, reroll all 1s.
- Babylonians — Ishtar
- Celts — Brigid
- Egyptians — Isis
- Greeks — Hekate
- Norse — Freya
God of the Sky
The god of the sky rules his pantheon and his followers on the earth. His miracles are seen when his lands are invaded. When the gods of his enemies fall, he prospers.
Divine Power: When the god of the sky is in a godswar, roll an additional die.
- Babylonians — Marduk
- Celts — Lugh
- Egyptians — Ra
- Greeks — Zeus
- Norse — Odin
Note: See Invade the Underworld on page 11 for more information on armies in the Underworld.
God of War
The god of war lives for battle. He wields a devastating power when his armies attack. He gains in potency as his followers conquer their foes.
Divine Power: When the god of war attacks, you win ties.
- Babylonians — Gilgamesh
- Celts — Nuada
- Egyptians — Set
- Greeks — Ares
- Norsemen — Thor
Temples
Each temple you control gives you 1 faith token and 1 army during the Raise Armies and Gather Faith step. The army must be placed in the territory where the temple is located. Temples also allow you to reroll 1s on any defensive roll in an invasion. No territory may contain more than 1 temple.
You may also build additional temples in territories where you have at least 1 army. You must sacrifice 5 faith tokens to build each temple. Temples change hands when their territories change hands. There cannot be more temples on the gameboard than are provided in the game, and you cannot place temples in the Underworld.
3. Obtain Miracle Cards
Miracle cards allow you to create amazing effects that can alter the game significantly. The gods provide these miracles if they have been summoned and appeased.
There are 4 types of miracle cards; each is named for one of the gods. There are 2 ways to get each type of card:
- Have that card's god in play and sacrifice 2 faith tokens. This happens during the Obtain Miracle Cards step.
- Have that card's god in play and complete the Labor listed on the back of the miracle card. You get the miracle card as soon as the Labor is completed, except for Death cards, which are gained at the end of your turn if you control a crypt.
Each god has a Labor that he or she wants followers to perform. These Labors are noted on the back of each miracle card. If you have that god in play and perform the god's Labor, draw the appropriate miracle card for that Labor. You may keep miracle cards as long as you want and can invoke the miracle as an instantaneous effect later in the game. A miracle happens as soon as its card is played; its effect is resolved, and then the card is discarded. An exception to this are the miraculous relics of the goddesses of magic, which are immediately played and stay in play for the rest of the game.
You may obtain no more than 4 miracle cards per turn, but the cards may be from any of the miracle decks as long as you have the corresponding god in play. Cards gained through performing Labors do not count against this total. Once a miracle deck is out of cards, no more cards of that type may be obtained in any manner.
You must obtain all of your miracle cards before looking at them. The number and type of miracle cards you have is public knowledge, though what they say is not. The types of cards are:
Death Cards
Labor: Control at least one crypt at the end of your turn.
Effects: Death cards are expensive and devastating miracles.
Magic Cards
Labor: Roll at least 3 of the same number.
Effects: Magic cards are relics that enter play immediately and stay in play for the rest of the game.
Sky Cards
Labor: Defeat 1 or more gods on your turn.
Effects: Sky cards are very fast miracles that are played on your opponents' turns to surprise them.
War Cards
Labor: Conquer 3 or more territories on your turn.
Effects: War cards are cheap, all-purpose miracles.
Note: To conquer a territory, you must defeat at least 1 army in that territory; moving into an unoccupied territory doesn't count toward the god of war's Labor.
4. Play Miracle Cards
You can play as many miracle cards as you want on your turn provided you have enough faith tokens. To play a miracle card, you must sacrifice the required amount of faith tokens listed on the card and have the card's corresponding god in play.
When you play a card, tell the other players the card's name and its effects. Cards may be played in any order, and each is resolved before the next is played.
When a card is played and discarded, it is removed from the game. Discard piles are not reshuffled into new draw piles. Once a miracle deck is exhausted, no more of that type of card may be obtained in any manner.
If a miracle card instructs you to draw a territory card, the card is drawn from the top of that deck. The territory card is then replaced in the deck, and the deck is reshuffled. If a miracle card allows you to move armies from one territory to another, you must leave at least 1 army behind in the first territory.
It is possible that a miracle card can destroy all of the armies in a territory. If a territory becomes unoccupied, it does not give territory or continent bonuses to the player who last controlled it.
Miracle cards do not affect the Underworld spaces, unless the card specifically allows it. (See Section 9: Invade the Underworld on page 11 for more information on Underworld spaces.)
If any rules on a miracle card contradict the rules in this rulebook, use the rules on the card.
War and Death Cards
These cards may be played at this time if you sacrifice the required faith tokens.
Sky Cards
Sky cards are not played at this time, but are played in response to another player's attack. When a player declares his or her attack and the number of armies and gods he or she is using, you may play 1 or more Sky cards if you sacrifice the required faith tokens.
Magic Cards
Magic cards are relics that are revealed immediately when drawn and that stay in play for the rest of the game. A Magic card never requires a sacrifice of additional faith tokens to play it beyond what is needed to obtain the card. A relic's effects may be invoked whenever the card allows. If the goddess of magic leaves play, any relics you have in play remain in play. You get one of these cards any time you roll at least 3 of the same number on any roll of the dice, including rerolls of 1s, if your goddess of magic is in play.
Some relics give bonus points to your overall score at the end of the game if you control a particular territory. For example, if you control Anglia and have Stonehenge in play, you get a bonus point.
5. Suffer Plague
If you have armies in plague lands, destroy half of those forces, rounded down. (So if you have 3 armies in a plague land, you would destroy 1 of them at this time.) A plague land will never destroy your last army in the territory. This plague effect happens in addition to when armies are destroyed as they invade plague territories (see Capturing Territories on page 10).
If you have any gods in a plague land, banish them now.
6. Invade Territories
Now you may decide to attack opposing territories. The object of an attack is to capture a territory and any temples in it by defeating all of the opposing armies and gods in it. If you control all of the territories in a continent at the start of your next turn, you will get additional army and faith bonuses (see the Ancient Earth gameboard for continent bonuses). Each time you attack a territory from a territory, it is considered a separate invasion, even if you have previously attacked that territory.
You may only attack a territory that is adjacent to one of your own. You must have at least 2 armies in the territory you are attacking from. (Gods are not armies, but they may be in an invading force.) You may attack as many territories as many times as you like in a turn, and in any order you desire, as long as you have at least 2 armies in that territory.
A territory is adjacent to another if it shares a border. If a water connection (a dotted black line) connects 2 territories, they share a border and can be invaded. For example, Thule or Rus may attack Varangia, and Oricalcos may be attacked by Poseidonis or Atlas, with which it shares a connection.
You cannot attack over a mountain range.
Declaring an Attack
First, announce the territory you are attacking and the territory you are attacking from. If you have 1 or more gods in your forces, declare whether you will include them in the invasion. If you include gods in your forces and your opponent has any gods in the defending territory, wage a godswar before the invasion. It is assumed that all of your gods are attacking with the invading force unless you declare that some or all of them are not attacking. When a god is attacking with, or defending against, an invading force, his or her power may be used for both godswar battles and normal battles, if applicable.
Godswar
When gods are present on both sides of an invasion, a godswar must be resolved to eliminate the gods on one side. Before any soldiers battle, each player chooses a god in the invasion, starting with the attacking player. Then each player rolls 3 dice and adds the number of armies on the god's side in the battle to the result.
If your god of the sky is in the godswar, add an additional die to your roll. If you use another god, that god's divine power applies as well. You may only include 1 god in each godswar, but the powers of all the gods in each force apply. (Gods may support each other in a godswar.)
If you control any altars in the Underworld, add an additional die to your roll for each altar you control.
If the defender controls a temple in the attacked territory, that player can reroll all 1s. The defender may continue to reroll 1s until all dice show numbers of 2 or higher.
The highest result wins the godswar battle and the god on the loser's side is banished from the battlefield. The defender wins ties, unless the attacking force included a god of war, in which case the attacker wins. Gods do not go to the Underworld. Instead they are banished and return to their pantheon cards, but they may be summoned again on later turns.
If there are still gods remaining on both sides, the attacking player may decide to attack again. When only one side has gods left, then any normal battle between armies occurs.
If the attacking player defeats at least 1 god on his or her turn and has a god of the sky anywhere on the gameboard, that player draws a Sky card. You cannot gain additional Sky cards for defeating more than 1 god.
If a player in a godswar rolls at least 3 of the same number (regardless of how many dice are rolled) and has a goddess of magic anywhere on the gameboard, that player draws a Magic card and puts it into play immediately.
Attacking
Once any godswar battles are resolved, you may attack by rolling the dice against the opponent who occupies the opposing territory. First you (the attacker), and then your opponent (the defender), announce how many dice you're going to roll. You both roll at the same time. You (the attacker) may roll 1, 2, or 3 dice, but you must have at least 1 more army in the invading territory than the number of dice you roll. Your opponent (the defender) may roll 1 or 2 dice—the latter only if he or she has at least 2 armies in the defending territory.
If the attacking or defending player's armies include a goddess of magic, he or she may reroll any 1's in the battle. That player may continue to reroll 1's until all dice show numbers of 2 or higher.
If a player with a goddess of magic anywhere on the gameboard rolls at least 3 of the same number in a battle, that player draws a Magic card and puts it in play immediately.
Deciding a Battle
Compare the highest die each player rolled. If you (the attacker) have the higher roll, the defender loses 1 army from the territory. But if the defender's roll is higher, you lose 1 army from the territory you attacked from. If each of you rolled more than 1 die, you each compare the 2 next-highest dice and repeat the process.
The defender wins ties. However, if the attacking force includes a god of war, the attacker wins ties instead.
Neither side can lose more than 2 armies on a single roll.
All lost units go directly to their civilization's heaven on the Underworld gameboard. The pantheons and their heavens are:
- Babylonians — Kurnugia
- Celts — Avalon
- Egyptians — Duat
- Greeks — Elysium
- Norse — Valhalla
If the invading force includes a god of death, destroyed defenders do not go to their heaven. They are placed back with the defending player's reserve armies instead.
Temples in Battle
If the defender controls a temple in the attacked territory, that player can reroll all 1's. The defender may continue to reroll 1's until all dice show numbers of 2 or higher.
Sky Cards in Battle
Sky cards are played as an invasion is declared and after the invader has said how many armies and gods will be in the invasion. These miracles happen as soon as the card is played. Whenever a Sky card is played, the player sacrifices the required faith tokens (if any), resolves that miracle's effect, and then removes the card from the game.
Calling It Off
Sometimes you may declare an invasion and an opponent may play a card that makes it difficult or impossible to win the invasion. Once you declare an invasion, you must attack at least once before calling it off.
Capturing Territories
As soon as you defeat the last army in a territory, you capture that territory and must occupy it immediately. To do so, move in at least as many armies as the number of dice you rolled in your last battle. You must always leave 1 army behind in the territory you attacked from.
Gods you involved in the invasion move with your armies. A god is involved in the invasion if his or her power was invoked during the battle. All defending gods in that territory are banished and are returned to their pantheon card, and any temple in that territory is now under your control.
If you invade a plague land, destroy half of the armies you move into that territory immediately. If you included gods in your invasion, they are banished as well.
Each territory you control at the end of the game counts for 1 point toward your final score. Continent bonuses also apply.
During your turn, if you take 3 or more territories from opposing armies and have a god of war anywhere on the board, draw a War card. You cannot get more than 1 War card for this Labor on your turn.
Eliminating a Player
If during your turn you defeat another player's last army in the Ancient Earth, that player is eliminated from play. When this happens, discard the player's miracle cards and remove his or her remaining armies in the Underworld from the game. If he or she had any temples, they become nonaligned if no other force is in their territory.
This happens immediately, so you may move forces into vacated spaces in the Underworld or into territories with unoccupied temples if that option is available.
7. Fortify a Position
Once you have declared that you are done with invasions this turn, you may fortify a position. To fortify, move as many armies and gods as you desire from one, and only one, of your territories to another. The two territories need not share a border, but you must be able to travel from the first territory to the last in an unbroken path through land territories you control. You must leave at least 1 army behind in the first territory.
During this action, gods may move from one territory to another regardless of whether there are plague lands in between, though they cannot end their turn in a plagued territory.
8. Embark From Heaven
When your forces die, they go to your heaven on the Underworld gameboard. But they are far from out of the game. They may continue to fight in the Underworld, and a lucky few will return to life on the Ancient Earth. The pantheons and their heavens are:
- Babylonians — Kurnugia
- Celts — Avalon
- Egyptians — Duat
- Greeks — Elysium
- Norse — Valhalla
After you have fortified a position on the Ancient Earth gameboard, you may have any of your armies embark from your heaven.
When you embark from heaven, if you do not control any spaces in the Underworld, your armies may only enter the Underworld through the spaces that contain gates (marked by a gate illustration). If all of the gate spaces are controlled by your opponents' armies, you must invade one of those spaces to enter the Underworld. If you do control one or more spaces in the Underworld, you may move any number of your armies directly from your heaven to any of the spaces you control, without using a gate. Each heaven has access to all 3 gates.
You do not move any of your armies that are controlling spaces in the Underworld at this time. Those forces may move when you invade the Underworld and attack adjacent spaces controlled by an opponent.
9. Invade the Underworld
You may invade spaces in the Underworld with your armies following the same rules for invasions described under the Invade Territories action. You may also invade one or more of the gate spaces from your heaven, whether you control any spaces in the Underworld or not. Remember, as with invasions on the Ancient Earth, you must leave at least 1 army behind in each space that you occupy, except for your heaven.
When an army is defeated in the Underworld, it is removed from the Underworld. It does not reappear in a heaven. The piece is not removed from the game, but is returned to your reserve armies pile and may be raised during the Raise Armies and Gather Faith action.
Spaces in the Underworld
Spaces in the Underworld are not territories. They do not count for raising armies or gaining faith tokens. They do not have continent bonuses. They do not count as territories when the god of war's 3-territory bonus is determined. Gods cannot be summoned into the Underworld. Miracles and relics don't affect the Underworld, unless they specifically say so. You cannot place temples in the Underworld.
You also cannot attack across flame borders or attack another player's heaven.
Altars
Controlling an altar allows you to roll an additional die in a godswar battle for each altar you control.
Each altar you control at the end of the game will add 1 point to your final score.
Crypts
Controlling a crypt allows you to revive an army in that space from the dead. During your Raise Armies and Gather Faith action, you may move 1 army from each crypt you control to any of your temples, unless that is your only army in the crypt space.
At the end of your turn, if you control at least 1 crypt in the Underworld and have the god of death in play, you may draw a Death card.
Each crypt you control at the end of the game will add 1 point to your final score.
10. End Your Turn
You may now collect a Death card if you have your god of death in play and control a crypt. Play now passes to the person with the next turn order marker. If all players have gone, go to End of an Epoch.
End of an Epoch
Once all of the players have finished their turns, the epoch ends. Move the epoch marker to the next epoch and refer back to Start of an Epoch.
When the player with the last turn order marker has ended his or her turn and the epoch marker is on the Fifth Epoch space, the game ends.
Winning
At the end of the Fifth Epoch, the final score for the game is calculated. Each player, in turn order, does the following:
- Add up all of the territories you control. You earn 1 point for each one.
- Add up your continent bonuses and add that to your score.
- Add 1 point to your score for each crypt or altar that you control in the Underworld.
- Add 1 point to your score for each relic with a territory bonus that you have, if you control that territory.
This is your final score. The player with the highest score wins and drives all of the other pantheons from the Earth.
If There Is a Tie
- If there is a tie, then the player with the most faith tokens wins.
- If there is still a tie, then the player with the most temples wins.
- If there is still a tie, then the player with the most gods in play wins.
- If there is still a tie, then the player with the most armies in the Ancient Earth wins.
- If there is still a tie, then the game is a tie and both players share dominance of the Ancient Earth.
Pronunciation Guide
- Aegis — EE·jiss
- Africa — AFF·rih·kuh
- Alemannia — ah·lee·MAHN·yuh
- Anatolia — an·ah·TOE·lyuh
- Anglia — ANG·lee·uh
- Apulia — ah·PYOO·lyuh
- Arawn — ARR·oun
- Ares — AIR·eez
- Asia Minor — AY·zha MY·nur
- Assyria — ah·SEAR·ee·uh
- Atlantis — at·LAN·tiss
- Atlas — AT·luss
- Avalon — AV·uh·lawn
- Babylon — BAB·uh·lawn
- Babylonians — bab·uh·LOAN·ee·uns
- Brigid — BRIDGE·id (or BREED)
- Caledonia — KAL·uh·doan·yah
- Carthage — KAR·thuhj
- Celts — KELTZ
- Cimmeria — suh·MERE·ee·uh
- Corsica — KOR·sick·uh
- Cyrenaica — sir·uh·NAY·ih·kuh
- Dacia — DAY·she·uh
- Dalmatia — dal·MAY·shuh
- Druaga — DREW·ah·gah
- Duat — DUE·ot
- Egypt — EE·jipt
- Egyptians — ee·JIP·shuns
- Elysium — eh·LEE·see·em
- Europa — yu·ROW·puh
- Excalibur — ek·SCAL·uh·burr
- Freya — FRAY·uh
- Gaitulia — guy·TOO·lee·uh
- Galicia — guh·LEASH·ee·uh
- Gaul — GALL
- Germania — jer·MAHN·ee·uh
- Gilgamesh — GILL·gah·mesh
- Graecia — GREE·she·uh
- Greeks — GREEX
- Gungnir — GUNG·nihr
- Hades — HAY·deez
- Hekate — HEH·kah·tee
- Hesperide — heh·SPARE·ih·dee
- Hibernia — high·BUR·nee·uh
- Hyrkania — her·KAY·nee·uh
- Iberia — eye·BEER·ee·uh
- Ionia — eye·OWE·nee·uh
- Ishtar — ISH·tar
- Isis — EYE·siss
- Kurnugia — kur·NEW·gi·uh
- Kush — KOOSH
- Liguria — lih·GYUH·ree·uh
- Loki — LOW·key
- Lugh — LOO
- Marduk — MAR·dukh
- Mediterranea — meh·dih·tur·RAIN·ee·uh
- Minoa — mih·NO·uh
- Mjolnir — MEEOL·nihr
- Norse — NORS
- Nuada — NEW·ah·duh
- Nubia — NEW·bee·uh
- Odin — OWE·din
- Oricalcos — or·ih·KAL·kose
- Osiris — owe·SIGH·riss
- Pandora — pan·DOAR·uh
- Parthia — PAR·thee·uh
- Phoenicia — fih·NEE·shuh
- Poseidonis — puh·SIGH·doe·niss
- Ra — RAH
- Ragnarok — RAG·nuh·rock
- Roma — ROW·mah
- Rus — ROOSE
- Sarmatia — sar·MAY·she·uh
- Scythia — SITH·ee·uh
- Set — SEHT
- Sheba — SHE·buh
- Sicilia — suh·SILL·yah
- Stonehenge — STOAN·hehnj
- Sumer — SUE·mur
- Thor — THOAR
- Thracia — THRAY·she·uh
- Thule — THOO·lay
- Tritonis — try·TOE·niss
- Trojan — TROW·juhn
- Valhalla — vall·HALL·uh
- Varangia — ver·an·GEE·uh
- Zeus — ZOOSE
Rules to Classic RISK®
The Game of Global Domination
Introduction and Strategy Hints
In this classic "Global Domination" game of military strategy, you are battling to conquer the world. To win, you must launch daring attacks, defend yourself on all fronts, and sweep across vast continents with boldness and cunning. But remember, the dangers, as well as the rewards, are high. Just when the world is within your grasp, your opponent might strike and take it all away!
Strategy
In all RISK games, keep these 3 strategy hints in mind as you play, add armies, and fortify:
- Conquer whole continents: You will earn more armies that way.
- Watch your enemies: If they are building up forces on adjacent territories or continents, they may be planning an attack. Beware!
- Fortify borders adjacent to enemy territories for better defense if a neighbor decides to attack you.
Equipment
There should be 1 Ancient Earth gameboard, 5 six-sided dice (3 black attacker's dice and 2 white defender's dice), 44 RISK territory cards, and 5 sets of armies (each a different color).
The Gameboard
The gameboard is a map of 6 continents divided into 42 territories. Each continent is a different color and contains 4 to 12 territories.
The Armies
There are 5 complete sets of armies each containing 2 denominations of army pieces: soldiers (worth 1 army) and war elephants (worth 5 armies). Start the game by placing soldiers; later in the game, you may trade in 5 soldiers for a war elephant.
The 44 RISK Cards
42 cards are marked with a territory and a picture of a skull, a blade, or a sphere. There are 2 wild cards marked with all 3 symbols, but not with a territory.
Object of the Game
Conquer the world by occupying every territory on the board, thus eliminating all of your opponents.
Setup
Unlike most games, RISK demands careful planning before you actually start to play. The Initial Army Placement sets the stage for the battles you'll fight later on.
Before you begin, set aside the Underworld board, gods, temples, miracle cards, plague markers, turn order markers, epoch markers, the maelstrom marker, and the sunken Atlantis piece. These are used only in the Risk Godstorm game.
Initial army placement consists of these steps:
- Select a color and, depending on the number of players, count out the armies you'll need to start the game.
- 2 Players: See instructions on page 15.
- 3 Players: Each player counts out 35 soldiers.
- 4 Players: Each player counts out 30 soldiers.
- 5 Players: Each player counts out 25 soldiers.
- Roll one of the dice. Whoever rolls the highest number takes 1 soldier from his or her pile and places it onto any territory on the board, thus claiming that territory.
- Starting to the left of the first player, everyone in turn places 1 soldier onto any unoccupied territory. Continue until all 42 territories have been claimed.
- After all 42 territories are claimed, each player in turn places 1 additional soldier onto any territory that player already occupies. Continue in this way until everyone has run out of armies. There is no limit to the number of armies you may place onto a territory.
To complete game setup:
- Lay out 4 faith tokens. This marks the value of the next set of traded-in cards.
- Shuffle all 44 territory cards and place them, facedown, in a pile on the side of the gameboard. This forms the draw pile.
- Whoever placed the first army takes the first turn. Play then passes to the left.
Playing
On your turn, try to capture territories by defeating your opponents' armies. But be careful: Winning battles will depend on careful planning, quick decisions, and bold moves. You'll have to place your forces wisely, attack at just the right time, and fortify your defenses against all enemies.
Each of your turns consist of 3 steps, in this order:
- Getting and placing new armies;
- Attacking, if you choose, by rolling the dice; and
- Fortifying your position.
Getting and Placing New Armies
At the beginning of each turn, calculate how many new armies you will add to your territories based on the following:
- The number of territories you occupy;
- The value of the continents you control;
- The value of the matched sets of territory cards you trade in; and
- The specific territory listed on a traded-in card.
Territories
At the beginning of your turn (including your first), count the number of territories you occupy, then divide the amount by 3 (ignoring any fraction). The total is the number of armies you receive. You can find this chart on the reference card.
Place the new armies on any territory or territories you already control.
Example:
- 11 territories = 3 armies
- 14 territories = 4 armies
- 17 territories = 5 armies
You will always receive at least 3 armies on a turn, even if you occupy fewer than 9 territories.
Continents
In addition, at the beginning of your turn you will receive bonus armies for each continent you control. (To control a continent, you must control all of its territories at the start of your turn.) To find the exact number of armies you will receive for each continent, look at the chart on the Ancient World gameboard.
Risk Cards
Earning Cards
At the end of any turn in which you have captured at least 1 territory, you will earn 1 (and only 1) territory card. You are trying to collect sets of 3 cards in any of the following combinations:
- 3 cards of the same design (a skull, a blade, or a sphere)
- 1 each of the 3 designs
- Any 2 designs plus a wild card
If you have collected a set of 3 territory cards, you may turn them in at the beginning of your next turn, or you may wait. But if you have 5 or 6 cards at the beginning of your turn, you must trade in at least 1 set; you may trade in a second set if you have one.
Trading Cards In for Armies
At the beginning of subsequent turns, you may trade in matched sets of cards and take additional armies based on the total number of sets anyone has traded in so far.
At the beginning of the game, this number is 4. Every time anyone trades in a set of cards, the value of the next set increases.
- The first set traded in—4 armies
- The second set traded in—6 armies
- The third set traded in—8 armies
- The fourth set traded in—10 armies
- The fifth set traded in—12 armies
- The sixth set traded in—15 armies
After the sixth set has been traded in, each additional set is worth 5 more armies. For example, if you trade in the seventh set, you get 20 armies; if you trade in the eighth, you get 25 armies, and so on. "First" and "second" set, and so on, refer to sets traded in by anyone during the game. Thus, if you trade in the third set in the game, you receive 8 armies, even if it is the first set you have traded in.
Every time a set of cards is traded in, add a number of faith tokens to those set aside so that the total is the value of the next traded-in set. (Add 2 tokens after each set until the fifth set is traded in, in which case you add 3 tokens, then 5 tokens, and so on.) These tokens represent the value of the next card set turned in. Put the traded-in cards facedown at the bottom of the draw pile.
Occupied Territories
If any of the 3 cards you trade in lists a territory you occupy, you receive 2 extra armies. You must place both of these armies onto that particular territory.
Note: On a single turn, you may receive no more than 2 extra armies beyond those you receive for the matched sets of cards you trade in, even if the cards you turn in have more than 1 territory that you own. In this case, choose which territory gets the bonus armies.
Hints: No matter how many armies you receive at the start of your turn, deploy them carefully—either to prepare for an attack or to defend against one. It is good military strategy to move your armies to the front to heavily fortify territories that border enemy territories.
Attacking
After placing your armies at the beginning of your turn, decide if you wish to attack at this time. The object of an attack is to capture a territory by defeating all of the opposing armies already on it. The battle is fought by a roll of the dice. Study the board for a moment. Do you want to attack?
If you choose not to attack, pass the dice to the player on your left. You may still fortify your position, if you wish (see the next page).
If you choose to attack, you must follow these rules:
- You may only attack a territory that is adjacent to one of your own or that is connected to it by a water connection (a black dotted line). For example, Thule or Rus may attack Varangia, and Oricalcos may be attacked by Poseidonis or Atlas, with which it shares a water connection.
- You must always have at least 2 armies in the territory you are attacking from.
- You may continue attacking a territory until you have eliminated all armies on it, or you may shift your attack from one territory to another, attacking each as often as you like and attacking as many territories as you like during a turn.
To Attack
First announce both the territory you are attacking and the one you are attacking from. Then roll the dice against the opponent who occupies the opposing territory.
- Before rolling, both you and your opponent must announce the number of dice you intend to roll, and you both must roll at the same time.
- You, as the attacker, may roll 1, 2, or 3 black dice: You must have at least 1 more army in your territory than the number of dice you roll. Hint: The more dice you roll, the greater the odds of winning. However, the more dice you roll, the more armies you may lose or may be required to move into a captured territory.
- The defender may roll either 1 or 2 white dice. To roll 2 dice, he or she must have at least 2 armies on the territory under attack. Hint: The more dice the defender rolls, the greater his or her odds of winning—but the more armies he or she may lose.
Deciding a Battle
Compare the highest die each of you rolled. If yours (the attacker's) is higher, the defender loses 1 army from the territory under attack. But if the defender's die is higher than yours, you lose 1 army from the territory you attacked from and must put it back with your reserve armies. If each of you rolled more than 1 die, you also compare the 2 next-highest dice and repeat the process.
- In case of a tie, the defender wins.
- Neither side can ever lose more than 2 armies on a single roll.
Capturing Territories
As soon as you defeat the last opposing armies on a territory, you capture that territory and must occupy it immediately. To do so, move in at least as many armies as the number of dice you rolled in your last battle. Remember: In most cases, moving as many armies as you can to the front line is advantageous; armies left behind cannot help you when you are attacking. Also remember: You must always leave at least 1 army behind on the territory you attacked from.
Ending Your Attack
You may end your attack(s) at any time. If you have captured at least 1 territory, first take the top territory card from the draw pile. (No matter how many territories you have captured on your turn, you may take only 1 card.) Your last step is to fortify your position, if you wish (see below). Finally, pass the dice.
Eliminating Your Opponent
If during your turn you eliminate an opponent by defeating his or her last armies on the gameboard, you win any territory cards that player has collected.
- If winning them gives you 6 or more cards, you must immediately trade in enough sets to reduce your hand to 4 or fewer cards, but once your hand is reduced to 4, 3, or 2 cards, you must stop trading them in.
- If winning them gives you fewer than 6, you must wait until the beginning of your next turn to trade in a set.
Note: When you draw a card from the deck at the end of your turn (for having won a battle), and it brings your total to 6, you must wait until your next turn to trade in a set.
Fortifying Your Position
To fortify your position, move as many armies as you would like from one (only) of your territories into one (only) of your adjacent territories. In moving your armies from one territory to another, you must leave at least 1 army behind.
Winning
The winner is the first player to eliminate every opponent by capturing all 42 territories on the board.
Classic RISK® 2-Player Rules
Read the complete Classic RISK® "Global Domination" rules first.
This version is played like the Classic RISK® game with one important exception: Along with your armies and those of your opponent, there are also "neutral" armies on the board acting as buffers between you and your opponent. This feature gives the 2-player version much of the same strategic flavor as the regular RISK game.
Object of the Game
Same as in Classic RISK® "Global Domination" play.
Equipment
Same as in Classic RISK® "Global Domination" play.
Setup
Initial Army Placement
- You and your opponent each select a complete set of armies. Then either of you selects a third set to be "neutral." Take 30 armies from each of the 3 sets and claim territories in the following manner:
- Remove the 2 wild cards from the territory card deck.
- Shuffle the territory cards thoroughly and deal them, facedown, into 3 equal piles. Both you and your opponent choose a different pile. The remaining pile is neutral.
- Place 1 army onto each of the 14 territories listed on the territory cards in your pile. Your opponent does the same. Then place 1 neutral army onto each of the remaining 14 neutral territories.
- After every territory on the board has been claimed, you and your opponent take turns placing your remaining armies: Place 2 armies onto any 1 or 2 of the territories you occupy. Then place 1 neutral army onto any neutral territory you want, placing it to block your opponent's possible advance.
To Complete Game Setup
After all of the armies have been placed on the board, return the 2 wild cards to the territory deck, shuffle the deck, and start to play.
Attacking
On your turn, you may attack any territory adjacent to one of your own. Whenever you attack a neutral territory, your opponent rolls to defend that territory. Neutral armies cannot attack and never receive reinforcements during the game.
Reinforcements
If you run out of reinforcements in your original army's color, you may fortify your position using armies of a color not already being used in the game.
Winning
To win, be the first to eliminate your opponent by capturing all of his or her territories. You do not have to eliminate the neutral armies. Don't worry if all of the neutral armies are eliminated before the end of the game. Play continues until one player defeats the other.