Shuffle Dungeons Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• The Goal
  • Difficulty
• Components
• Setup
• Player Turn
• Heroes
• Dungeon Deck
  • Building Rooms
  • Open Path
  • Card Areas
  • Equipment
  • Equipment Upgrades
  • Corridors
  • Snacks
  • Traps
  • Weapons
  • Wards
  • Armor
  • Shrines
  • Spells
• Monsters
  • Monster
  • Boss Monster
  • Winning the Game
• Combat
  • Determining Combat
  • Granting Assistance
  • Rolling Attacks
  • If the Player Wins
  • If the Monster Wins
  • Knocked Out
  • Game End
• Combat Example
• Rule Variations
  • Solo Play
  • Crumbling Dungeon
  • Hidden Dungeon
  • Danger Zone
  • Win or Die
  • The Next Level
• Key Terms
• FAQ

The Goal

The path to victory will always be different, but your goal is always the same: build a path to defeat the boss and escape the dungeon.

All players work together to fight monsters, build a route through the dungeon, and defeat the boss waiting in their lair. Players will loot and equip powerful items to survive the dangers that lurk around every corner. Deadly monsters, dangerous traps, mystical wards, and powerful shrines are just some of the many things that await you.

Defeat the boss to escape the dungeon and win the game!

Difficulty

Shuffle Dungeons is designed as a lightweight game with the feel of a traditional dungeon crawler, and has an easier difficulty intended to complement casual gameplay.

If you are a seasoned board game enthusiast, we recommend trying some of our optional rules to spice up the game and increase the difficulty.

Components

• 4 Reference Cards
• 8 Hero Cards
• 8 Hero Tokens
• 4 Dungeon Entrance Cards
• 13 Boss Cards
• 12 Monster Cards
• 15 Armor/Ward Cards
• 16 Weapon/Trap Cards
• 11 Spell/Shrine Cards
• 28 Snack/Corridor Cards
• 20 Damage Tokens
• 8 Token Stands
• 6 Hero Dice and 4 Monster Dice
• 1 Round Token
• 1 Card Tower

Setup

1. Roll to determine who goes first. Start with the player who rolled highest, then continue clockwise around the table.
2. Each player selects a HERO CARD and matching HERO TOKEN.
   • Place your Hero Card in front of you with the unleveled side facing up.
   • Return the remaining Heroes to the box.
3. Select a random BOSS MONSTER with gates equal to the amount of players. (e.g. 3-gate Boss for 3 players.)
   • Place the Boss face down in the center of the table.
   • Return the remaining Bosses to the box.
4. Set aside the DUNGEON ENTRANCE cards, marked by their green border. Then take the remaining cards and shuffle them to form the DUNGEON DECK.
   • The deck should be face down, with the room side up.
5. Deal 3 cards for each player in a line, starting at the Boss card and extending toward the players. This creates a consistent grid for the dungeon to be built on.
   • Add a Dungeon Entrance to the end of each line, with the center path facing the Boss.
   • Place your HERO TOKEN on your respective Dungeon Entrance.
   • If a MONSTER was placed in a starting line, flip it face up and create its Loot Pile (page 12) from the deck.
6. Players pick up the cards in their starting line to form their hand. (Do not pick up Monsters or the Dungeon Entrance. This may mean starting with fewer cards!)

Setup diagram: the Boss starts in the center. Each player's line of 3 cards is dealt from the Boss toward the player; players start on the 4th space (the Dungeon Entrance). Dealt Monsters stay on that space. Players pick up the non-Monster cards. The Dungeon Deck is placed to the side.

Player Turn

On your turn, you may perform any of the actions listed below. These actions may be completed in any order, except Fight, which always ends your turn.

• Move up to your SPEED. (1 speed equals 1 room of movement.)
  • Movement can be broken up over the course of your turn.
• Draw 1 card per Open Path (page 7) of the room you are currently in.
  • This may only be done once each turn.
• Play any number of cards from your hand.
  • This includes using a snack, equipping an item, or building a room next to you.
• Use a card's power.
  • A card's power may only be used once each turn.
• Trade cards with another player in the same room as you.
  • You may give or take any number of cards from your hands, as long as both players agree.
• FIGHT a Monster inside its Area.
  • This always concludes your turn after Combat is finished. (If you try to end your turn inside a Monster's Area, you still must fight it.)

Heroes

Players control Heroes to explore the Dungeon and defeat the Boss.

Hero stats:

• ATTACK: How many points you add to your attack rolls. (Heroes roll 1 die for their base Attack.)
• HEALTH: How much damage you can take before your Hero is Knocked Out.
• SPEED: How many rooms you can move each turn.

Each Hero also has a leveled up side, which gives them a HERO POWER and increased stats! (Example: the Incinerator's unleveled side reads "Slay your first monster to level up!"; its leveled side reads "Incinerator: When attacking, you may BURN cards from your hand to gain +1 ATTACK for each card BURNED.")

When a Hero slays a Monster, a member of your party has a chance to Level Up. Choose any one Hero who participated in the Combat and flip their card over. (The active player has the final say.)

You have a maximum hand size of 3 cards and must BURN extra cards if you end your turn over the limit.

BURNED cards are discarded into the Burn Pile face up to distinguish them from the Deck.

Dungeon Deck

All cards in the Dungeon Deck are double-sided, with the back showing a room that players can build in the Dungeon, and the face showing Snacks, Equipment, or Monsters.

When playing cards from your hand, you decide which side of the card to use!

Building Rooms

The only way HEROES can get around the Dungeon is by building rooms. Every card in the Dungeon Deck has a "room side" that serves as the back side of the card.

During a player's turn, they may play any number of cards from their hand. If a player wishes to Build a room, they place the card room-side up, connecting one of its paths to an Open Path of the room their HERO is in.

Once a card is placed in the Dungeon it cannot be picked up again, unless another card instructs you to do so.

Open Path

When the game refers to an "Open Path", it means any path in a room that is not connected to another room and not blocked by a wall or a MONSTER.

Card Areas

Certain cards have a mini-map with colored squares that show the surrounding spaces they affect. The colored (non-black) squares on the mini-map define a card's respective Area.

How the card affects its Area depends on the card:

• A WARD may be activated any time you are within its Area, not just on its space. These are shown in purple.
• Some SPELLS may only be used to impact a specific Area, which is shown in blue.
• You can only ATTACK a MONSTER while in a room within the Monster's Area. These are shown in red.

(You cannot move onto a Monster card, as it is not a room itself!)

Equipment

Heroes will find valuable items in the Dungeon to help them defeat the Boss and escape alive.

Equipment cards offer continuous bonuses to your Hero, unlike rooms, which only grant you a limited effect until the end of your turn.

Each Hero can equip 1 WEAPON, 1 ARMOR, and 1 SPELL.

You equip your Hero by placing these items next to your Hero Card.

To change Equipment, you must BURN the old card before replacing it.

Equipment Upgrades

Certain Equipment can be upgraded by meeting the card's Unlock requirements.

For example, an Equipment might gain an extra effect if certain types of rooms are built in the Dungeon.

If a card's UNLOCK requirements are met, the Equipment's upgrade is unlocked and it gains a new stat value and/or special power.

However, the Equipment will lose its upgrade if its Unlock requirements are no longer fulfilled.

Examples shown: Ghost Form (Spell): "You can move through walls and ignore TRAPS." Double-Edged Sword (Weapon): "When in combat, the winner deals 1 extra damage. [Unlock] If you attack without assistance, ATTACK becomes 5." Incinerator (Hero): "When attacking, you may BURN cards from your hand to gain +1 ATTACK for each card BURNED." Winged Bascinet (Armor): "Gain +1 SPEED. [Unlock] If there are 3 TRAPS on the Map, gain +2 SPEED instead." The "Winged Bascinet" unlocks its upgrade after 3 TRAPS have been built in the Dungeon.

Corridors

These are basic rooms with varied paths.

Corridors have no special effects, but they are the "building blocks" of the Dungeon that will help you find your way through.

Snacks

Always found on the face side of Corridors, these single-use items give you an instant bonus or power. Snacks may be used at any time, even to interrupt an outcome such as Combat, but are then BURNED after use.

Snacks may also be used on other players, even if it's not your turn!

Example: Trailblazer Biscuits: "BUILD the top 2 cards from the Deck anywhere on the Map."

Traps

Traps are dangerous rooms that lead to peril or profit. When you enter a Trap, roll a die and add your SPEED.

If you roll equal to or higher than the Trap's challenge number, you pass and get the reward. Otherwise, you fail and take the penalty.

Example: Bear Trap: on a pass, "Extra DAMAGE this turn"; on a fail, HALT.

Weapons

Always found on the face side of Traps, Weapons give Heroes a bonus to their ATTACKS and have additional powers that may help or hinder.

The number on a Weapon card is added to your character's ATTACK ROLL.

Example: Usurper's Dagger: "[Unlock] If you JUMP, deal 1 extra damage. [Unlock] If you SLIDE, roll 1 extra Attack Die."

Wards

These are rooms that spread their power over an Area, shown by the purple colored spaces on the card's mini-map.

When you are within a Ward's Area, you may activate the effect on the card.

Example: Butcher: "BURN 1 SNACK in THIS AREA, use any SNACK in the BURN PILE."

Armor

Always found on the face side of Wards, Armor gives Heroes additional HEALTH.

When you take DAMAGE, you can place Damage Tokens on your equipped Armor card instead of on your HERO.

If your Armor ever has Damage Tokens equal to its Health, it is destroyed and you must BURN the card. Your Hero still takes any additional Damage.

Example: Sallet of Starvation: "You can't use any SNACKS, and SNACKS don't affect you."

Shrines

Shrines are rooms that grant Heroes unique powers when they are in them.

Players may use a Shrine's power once per turn while on the Shrine's space.

Example: Slipping and Sliding: "You can SLIDE as one of your moves."

Spells

Always found on the face side of Shrines. Spells offer new powers for your Hero to use in the Dungeon.

Spells can be used once on your turn, and may have additional requirements for their use.

Monsters

Monsters lurk in the Dungeon at every turn, waiting to strike.

Monster Stats:

• ATTACK: How many points a Monster adds to its attack rolls
• HEALTH: How much damage a Monster can take before it is slain
• DICE: How many dice a Monster rolls for its Attack (unlike Heroes, a Monster's base roll will often be more than 1 die)
• WOUNDS (BLACK): Damage dealt to each Hero who was in the combat if the Monster wins
• WOUNDS (RED): Additional damage divided among Heroes who were in the combat if the Monster wins (players choose how the damage is distributed)
• POWER: An effect that activates if the Monster wins Combat
• LOOT: How many cards are placed under a Monster when it is drawn or played face up (unique to normal Monsters)
• FLIP ABILITY: An effect that triggers immediately when the Boss is revealed (unique to Boss Monsters)

Examples shown: Goblin Bomber (Attack 3, Health 2, 2 dice; power "JUMP onto the nearest TRAP"); Plague Rat (Attack 2, Health 3, Loot 3); Glass Dragon (Boss, Attack 9, Health 5; Flip Ability "SHIFT the nearest WARD 1 space away. All HEROES take 2 damage.").

Monster

When face up, these enemies are not considered rooms, but they do threaten an Area in the Dungeon.

When a Monster is drawn from the Dungeon Deck or, in rare cases, played face up from your hand, do the following:

1. Place the MONSTER face up in the Dungeon with the bottom of its card connected to the Open Path nearest to your Hero.
2. Draw a number of cards from the Dungeon Deck equal to the Monster's LOOT stat, then place them face down beneath the MONSTER. This forms the Monster's Loot, which will be gained by the players upon slaying the Monster.

Other Monster Cards can be part of a Monster's Loot!

Boss Monster

Powerful Monsters that the players must defeat to escape the Dungeon, BOSS MONSTERS are placed face down at the center of the Dungeon when the game begins. (Even while face down, a Boss is not considered a room.)

Once a room connects to one of the Boss Monster's GATES, the Boss is flipped face up and its Area is now active.

Boss Monsters have a Flip Power (described under its Health) which happens immediately when the Boss is flipped face up.

Winning the Game

The players escape the Dungeon and win the game when the Boss is defeated!

Combat

Determining Combat

If a player is in a MONSTER'S AREA, they may choose to start Combat with it. Additionally, if a player ends their turn in a Monster's Area, they have no choice but to fight it.

(If a Hero is in multiple Monster's Areas, the player chooses which one to fight.)

Granting Assistance

Other Heroes within the Monster's Area may ASSIST the current player in COMBAT by giving them an extra die. If any players want to Assist, they must declare it before the current player makes their Attack Roll.

Be aware that if you Assist another player, you will take Damage if the Combat is lost.

MONSTERS can also Assist one another. If the current player is within multiple Monster's Areas, the Monster in Combat receives an additional die for each other Monster's Area the active HERO is in.

Rolling Attacks

Combat happens as follows:

1. The current player rolls both their HERO'S and the MONSTER'S dice (including additional dice from Assists or special powers).

   The Player's total ATTACK is determined by adding the following:

   • The Hero's base Attack
   • Any equipped Weapon's Attack
   • The Attacking player's die roll
   • Additional dice rolled for any assisting players

   The Monster's total ATTACK is determined by adding the following:

   • The Monster's base Attack
   • The Monster's rolled dice (1 per die symbol)
   • Additional dice rolled for any assisting Monsters

2. Whoever has the higher total Attack wins the Combat (with the Hero winning ties).

If the Player Wins

The Monster is dealt 1 Damage (plus any additional Damage from other card effects). Add the necessary number of Damage Tokens to the Monster.

If the Monster's Health reaches 0, the current player gains the Monster's Loot (the cards beneath the Monster) and flips the Monster face down, creating the four-path room on the back.

The current player may give any number of cards from the Monster's Loot to other players who assisted in the Combat.

If the Monster Wins

The attacking Hero and all assisting Heroes receive 1 damage for each black Wound icon on the Monster (shown below its Attack stat).

The Monster then deals 1 additional damage per red Wound. This damage may be distributed among the attacking Hero and any assisting Heroes however the players wish.

After Damage has been dealt, the Monster activates its power (written below the Wounds), if any.

Note: Heroes and Monsters aren't the only things that can take damage. If any other card that has Health takes enough damage, it is discarded into the Burn Pile.

Knocked Out

When your HERO takes Damage equal to or exceeding their Health, they are KNOCKED OUT.

Upon being Knocked Out, you must BURN all cards equipped to your HERO (though you may keep the cards in your hand).

Remove all Damage Tokens from your HERO and BURN the top 5 cards of the Dungeon Deck.

The game then continues as normal. Your HERO is back in action!

Game End

Losing the Game: Immediately after the last card is drawn and no cards remain in the Dungeon Deck, the game is over. The Heroes have lost!

Winning the Game: When the Heroes defeat the Boss by bringing its health to 0, the game ends. The Heroes win!

Combat Example

Let's see what a combat might look like.

In this example, the Incinerator has just ended a turn near the Plague Rat.

To determine whether or not Combat happens, we look at the Plague Rat's Area, which shows what part of the Map it threatens.

The Plague Rat's Area threatens 4 spaces.

To figure out which 4 spaces these are, compare the arrow on the Area mini-map with the arrow on the card itself. This arrow shows which way the Plague Rat is facing.

This means that the Plague Rat threatens each space on the corners around it.

Because the Incinerator is in a room highlighted on the Monster's mini-map, our Hero must fight the Plague Rat. Let the combat begin!

Note: Combat can only happen once a turn. Regardless if you win or lose, your turn ends and play continues.

Our Hero has a base ATTACK of 3.

With the Double-Edged Sword equipped, we gain another 3 ATTACK.

But wait! If we are attacking alone, this weapon's upgrade gives a bonus ATTACK of 5 instead.

The Monster has a base ATTACK of 2, but it gets to roll 2 dice instead of 1.

The Monster has 3 Health. We will deal 2 damage thanks to our weapon's normal ability.

But wait once more! If we play our Snack, Swole Shake ("When a HERO wins a combat, deal 1 extra damage."), we could slay the monster this turn. (If we win.)

Let's roll our dice and find out.

HERO	MONSTER
ATTACK + 3	ATTACK + 2
WEAPON + 5	ROLL + 6
ROLL + 3
3 + 5 + 3 = 11	2 + 6 = 8

Our Hero wins! We deal 3 damage and slay the monster.

Rule Variations

Looking to shuffle up the standard game play? Here are a few optional rules you can add or combine to create a new experience!

Solo Play

If you're looking to play Shuffle Dungeons solo, you can always do so by controlling 2 heroes instead of 1.

We recommended adding at least one other rule variation when playing the game solo, just to keep things interesting!

Crumbling Dungeon

The dungeon is unstable and time is short!

This game variant uses rounds. Take the "End of Round" token from the box and set it next to the first player.

Once all players have taken a turn, the round ends. For each active MONSTER still in the dungeon (including the Boss, even if it hasn't been flipped), BURN 1 card from the top of the Dungeon Deck. When you do this, skip any Monster cards you come across. They will remain at the top of the deck.

In this varient, if the Dungeon Deck has only Monsters left in it, the Heroes lose as if the deck was empty.

Hidden Dungeon

Want to add a little more mystery to your dungeon? Try using the punch-out tower included in the box!

Assemble and set the Shuffle Dungeons tower within easy reach of the players. Then place the entire Dungeon Deck inside it, and face it so the deck is hidden from view.

Now when you draw cards, you will have no idea what's coming next!

Danger Zone

Watch where you step! You now take 1 damage when moving out of a Monster's Area. (Moving a Monster with a card like "Boop Burger" does not count.)

Win or Die

Want tougher Monsters? With this game variant, the Monsters now win ties in Combat.

The Next Level

Want tougher Bosses? Try taking on a Boss meant for more players.

Key Terms

• ACTIVE - refers to a Monster that is face up and threatening an Area in the Dungeon.
• AREA - a colored grid displayed on a card, showing which spaces it affects.
• ATTACKER - the current player in a combat.
• BUILD - adding a room to the Dungeon by connecting it to an Open Path.
• BURN - discarding a card into the Burn Pile. If any room in the Dungeon is Burned, all cards under it are also Burned.
• BURN PILE - the discard pile.
• EMPTY ROOM - a room without any Heroes.
• EQUIPMENT - any Weapon, Armor, or Spell card placed beside your Hero.
• GATE - a path on the Boss Monster's card.
• HALT - immediately skips to the end of your turn. (Combat can still happen.)
• HEAL - removes Damage Tokens from your Hero and/or any Equipment.
• JUMP - freely move a set distance, or to a specific location as directed. (When a Monster jumps, it loots any new cards it lands on.)
• LOOT - pick up a card from the Dungeon and add it to your hand. (Or with a Monster, add the card as Loot under it.)

FAQ

What happens if I start my turn in a Trap room? You do not trigger the room unless you move back into it again.

Can I Shift a room diagonally? No. Movement, including Shift, only happens Up, Down, Left, or Right.

When you move a room in the Dungeon, what happens to the cards under it? They move with the top card.

Can I Burn my Equipment or cards from my hand whenever I want? No, only if a card or power instructs you to, or you are over the hand size limit at the end of your turn.

What counts as movement for cards like "Charioteer's Greaves" and "Gladiator's Pauldrons"? Aside from normal movement, Jump and Slide are also considered movement for Heroes. (Shift and Swap do not count.)

Can I use an ability if it asks me to Burn cards from my hand when I have none? Yes.

I got a Monster as Loot. What can I do with it? You can play it face up as a Monster, following the normal rules, or as a room. (You may also find it useful to keep it in your hand.)

When there are equally valid options for an effect, what should happen? The active player gets to make the decision.

I can't find a clear answer to a rules question I have. What should I do? If you can't find the answer in the Rules of Play or the FAQ, decide what you feel the most correct ruling should be.