Union City Alliance
Union City Alliance Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Setup
Setting up Heroes
- Choosing heroes. Each player chooses a hero, and finds all origin and power cards belonging to that hero, as well as their character card. Their team up cards will not be needed.
- Hero zone. Each hero creates a hero zone which contains a deck, an active area, a discard pile, a hand, a power deck, and available power cards.
- Hero cards. Each hero places their character card in their active area. They then shuffle their power cards face down as their power deck and place the top two face up as their available power cards. They shuffle their origin cards face down as their deck.
- Draw starting hand. Each hero draws 5 cards from their deck.
[Image: example hero zone for Captain Jupiter]
Setting up the Map Zone
Place the starting block in the middle of the play area. Shuffle all other blocks together and place them face down as the block stack.
Setting up the Union deck
- Choose a Prime deck and two Team up decks. You may not choose the team up decks of any heroes who are being used by a player. Shuffle these cards together to form the Union deck, leaving space for the Union trash next to it.
Aaron is playing as Odysseus, Phoebe as The Green Death and Darion as Lady Sunbeam, so they may not use those hero's team up decks. They decide to use the Captain Jupiter and Wrangler team up decks as well as the New Vanguard prime deck.
Note that in the core game there is only one Prime deck (the New Vanguard) but later expansions will add other Prime decks such as the Science Squad, the Renegades and the Silver Age.
Setting up the City deck
- Choose two locale and/or scenario decks and shuffle the two chosen decks together to form the city deck. Leave space for the city trash next to it.
The locales in the base game are Uptown and Downtown, whereas the scenarios are Starlet Strikes, the Street Pirates and Progress Q Barnum's Circus.
It is recommended that at least one of the two decks be a Locale as they are more basic and balanced decks. You can use two scenarios, but it may result in a more skewed range of card types and rewards.
Setting up the Villain
Note that most villains will have extra setup instructions and rules as detailed in the sourcebook. What follows are the default setup rules that all villains follow unless otherwise specified.
- Choose a villain. Find the villain's entry in the sourcebook and gather all of the components of that villain.
- Select Epic modes (if any). The villain may have a number of Epic modes listed in the sourcebook. Select any number of these (including none). These will tell you what cards to include and how setup and game rules are modified.
All Epic cards will include the Epic icon. Only use Epic cards associated with the modes you are using, remove others from the game.
- Villain zone. Create a villain zone. This will contain a plot deck, a plot trash, a peril deck, a peril trash, several issue stacks and a current rules card. It may also include other components specific to that villain. For example the Pteranodon also has a Mobster deck and trash, and Gangster deck and trash.
[Image: example villain zone for the Pteranodon. Note the two extra decks (Mobster and Gangster) that this villain has.]
- Set up the Issue stacks and Plot deck. If you are playing a 2 hero game, remove all plot cards with the [icon not preserved in source] or [icon not preserved in source] icon. If you are playing a 3 hero game, remove all plot cards with the [icon not preserved in source] icon. If you are playing a 4 hero game, do not remove any plot cards. Separate the remaining plot cards into three groups, one of all the issue 1 cards, one of all the issue 2 cards and one of all the issue 3 cards.
Shuffle each group of plot cards separately. The group of issue 1 plot cards becomes the Plot deck. Leave space for the Plot trash next to it. Put the issue 2 plot cards under the Issue 2 rules card. This is the issue 2 stack. Do the same with the issue 3 plot cards and the issue 3 rules card to make the issue 3 stack. Finally set aside the issue 4 rules card, which by itself forms the issue 4 stack.
Note that although the issue 4 stack at this point will only be the rules card, more cards will be added to it via Escalate.
- Set up the peril deck. Shuffle the peril cards together to form the Peril deck. Leave space for the Peril trash next to it.
- Set up the first issue rules card. Place the first issue rules card faceup in the villain area. Its rules immediately apply.
- Follow any extra setup rules. Many villains will specify some additional steps to be carried out and/or decks to be set up during villain setup, most commonly setting up other decks specific to that villain. If applicable, do this now.
Prepare the Starting Block
- Follow the instructions on the starting block. With the Great Hall of the Union of Heroes, this will be getting some Union cards to put on it.
- Each hero's standee is put on the starting block.
Game Structure and Concepts
Turns
The game is divided into a number of player turns. In each player's turn they go through an Action Phase, Cleanup Phase, Draw Phase, Threat Phase and Peril Phase, in that order.
At the start of the game choose one hero to take the first turn. Heroes take their turns beginning from that hero, and proceeding clockwise. Players continue taking turns in this order until the game is either won or lost. During their turn, that hero is the current hero.
Issues
The game begins in issue 1, with the plot deck being made of issue 1 cards. At the end of each peril phase if there are no cards in the plot deck, the issue will change to issue 2, and the issue 2 cards will become the plot deck (along with some issue 1 cards that have been moved into it via the Escalate mechanic).
When the plot deck runs out again it will become issue 3 and by the same manner eventually issue 4. The average game ends early in issue 3. Some game components refer to the current issue as a variable, where it will be represented by symbols like those below.
[Symbols as shown in the source: Issue, Issue x 2, Issue + 1. The symbol artwork did not survive the text export.]
Most effects use it as a number, for example an enemy might have a fight value of Issue + 1, or an Event makes you discard cards equal to the issue. Some other effects only occur when it is a certain issue, for example a hero card's Galvanize might only be usable in issue 2 or later.
In each issue there will be an issue rules card, which will define the Disengage cost (if any) that must be paid to maneuver or explore when you are engaged. Many rules cards will also have other rules specific to that villain.
Ending the Game
Each villain will specify how the players win. In most cases this involves defeating a particular enemy or enemies, but villains can vary in this regard.
If every hero is Taken out, the heroes lose. If you reach the end of issue 4 the game will also end. Some other components may specify other ways that the players can lose.
The Board
The board begins as only the starting block, but as the game goes on more blocks will be added, mostly via the explore action. Spaces is the term used for places on the board where blocks can be placed, but where there is no block currently.
Range is a term used for the distance between two things in the game (usually either cards or blocks). The range is the shortest distance between the two things, measured in blocks. The distance is counted only in orthogonal blocks (i.e. immediately above, below, to the left and to the right). As a result two blocks that are diagonally adjacent are at range 2.
The board is divided into Wards. Ward 1 is all blocks/spaces at range 1 from the starting block (so the four blocks immediately above, below, to the left and to the right of the starting block). Ward 2 is the eight blocks/spaces that are at range 2 from the starting block, Ward 3 is all those at range 3 and so on.
Teamwork
Union City Heroes is a fully cooperative game. The players are free to talk to each other, to strategize and to plan ahead. Players can show each other any of their cards if they wish. When a decision needs to be made, the players can make it together, however if there is a disagreement the current player (the player whose turn it is) makes the final decision.
Making Choices
There will be a number of occasions where something happens but the game does not specify exactly what, leaving several options. For example, the City Never Sleep effect says that half of the Raptors in play threaten you.
When there are choices to be made the players make the choice in whatever way they wish, in this example they choose which Raptors threaten.
Action Phase
During the action phase, the current hero takes actions from this section. They may use these actions in any order and as many times as they wish.
Activate a Card
Put a card from your hand into your active area. Gain any basic resources on that card, which go to your resource pool. Resources in your pool can be exerted for various other actions and mechanics. If it has any resources with an "Or", you must choose one of those resources as you activate the card.
If a card has an X value for a resource, X is evaluated when the card is activated and that amount of resource is gained. Even if something happens later in the turn to change X, the amount of resource that was gained does not change, it only depends on what X was when the card was activated.
Dangerous Driving has a might equal to the amount of speed you have gained. This will count the speed you have gained at the point you activated Dangerous Driving, gaining speed later in the turn will not increase the might from this card.
Achieve a Union card
Choose a Union card on your block and exert Valor equal to that card's cost to put it on your deck.
In many games new cards go to your discard pile, but in Union City Alliance they go to the top of your deck. As such it pays to consider what you might need next turn when you achieve cards.
Attack an Enemy
Choose an enemy on your block and exert any amount of Might to deal it that much damage. You can only attack each enemy once during your Action phase. You can split your Might to attack multiple enemies using multiple attack actions, as long as each individual enemy is only attacked once.
When an enemy has damage equal to or greater than their maximum stamina, they are defeated and moved to the relevant trash. This happens at any time, even if the damage did not come from an Attack action.
Maneuver
Exert one Speed to move to a block at range 1. Remember that diagonal blocks are at range 2, not 1. If the player is engaged (on the same block as an enemy) then they may have to pay an extra disengage cost as noted on the issue rules card.
- If you have to pay a disengage cost, you only pay the cost once no matter how many enemies you are engaged with. If there are different disengage costs for different types of enemy, pay the highest one.
- You may discard three cards instead of exerting one speed in order to make a maneuver action. You can only do this if you are disengaged (even if the disengage cost is zero).
- Discarding cards to move is an extremely inefficient option, so should only be used in the direst of circumstances.
Explore a Space
Choose a space at range 1 from your current block. Exert an amount of speed equal to the Ward that space is in. Set up a new block there and then move to that block. If you are engaged the amount of speed you need to exert will be increased by the disengage cost.
Use a Feat
Choose a card in your hand with the Feat text and resolve it. Each card can only have its Feat resolved once per turn. If a card leaves and re-enters your hand in the same turn, you may use its Feat again.
Use a Galvanize
Choose a card in your active area with the Galvanize text and resolve it. Each card can only have its Galvanize resolved once per turn. If a card leaves and re-enters your active area in the same turn, you may use its Galvanize again.
Some heroes like to turn their cards 90 degrees to show that they have already been used this turn, while others are happy remembering.
Use a Block action
If the block you are on has an Action and does not have an Exhausted token, resolve the Action. Then place an Exhausted token on the block.
Champion actions: Some blocks have champion actions (in yellow). These actions can only be used when the block has no city, villain or union cards on it.
Confront a challenge
Exert resources equal to the cost on the top left corner of a challenge on your block to confront it. This causes the challenge to be overcome, moving it to the relevant trash. Some challenges have overcome effects that trigger now.
Some challenges have a difficulty. These cards need to be confronted that many times to be overcome. The confront actions can be done by different heroes on different turns if need be. Mark the number of times it has been confronted with progress tokens.
Heroics
Exert 2 Valor to gain 1 heroism.
Remember that like every other action you can do this as many times as you wish, as long as you have sufficient resources. Heroics is usually the least efficient thing you can do with valor, but if there are absolutely no relevant cards to achieve or you need to empower right now it can sometimes be the right choice.
Empower a card
Choose one of your available power cards and exert heroism equal to its cost, plus an additional two heroism for each level token you have. Put that card into your hand, where it may be used as normal this turn. Gain a level token. Then refresh your power cards.
Refresh your power cards: If you wish, you may put any available power cards on the bottom of your power deck. If you have just empowered, there will generally be one power card available. Then place cards from your power deck until you have two available power cards.
Talents: Talents are a special type of Power card. The amount of heroism exerted to achieve a Talent does not increase due to level tokens, and gaining a Talent does not cause you to gain a level token. Otherwise they function in the same way.
Example: Wrangler has two level tokens and the available power cards Strongest in the West (2 heroism cost, talent) and Cowboy leathers (3 heroism cost, not a talent). If he empowers Strongest in the West he will exert 2 heroism to do so, and not gain a level token. If he empowers Cowboy leathers he will exert 7 heroism to do so, and gain a level token bringing him to 3 level tokens. Whichever he chooses to empower, it will go to his hand and he will then refresh his power cards.
Cleanup Phase
- Empty your resource pool. Remove all Might, Valor and Speed from your resource pool. Note that heroism does not empty from your pool this way and is kept track of via tokens.
- Clear your active area. Put all hero cards in your active area on your discard pile in any order. Note that this does not count as discarding, so any effect that triggers on discarding will not do so.
If you have any Legacy cards in your active area, you may choose up to four of them to keep in your active area. Any that are not chosen are also put in your discard pile. Note that you can choose less than four cards (even none) to keep in your active area if you so desire.
This step only applies to hero cards. Your character card and any cards from other decks that are in your active area (for example villain or city cards) will not be put on your discard pile this way unless otherwise specified.
If you have any Surge cards in your hand, they are put on your discard pile at the end of your cleanup.
If you do not use a card during your turn, you can keep it in your hand, making you draw fewer cards. This might be a good option for example with a strong defense card if you know you are going to be attacked. However you cannot do this with Surge cards, so it's best to use them when you can.
Draw Phase
- Draw new cards. Draw a number of cards equal to the amount of cards in your hand minus five. If you ever need to draw cards (or do anything else with them) and your deck is empty, shuffle your discard pile and flip it upside down to form your new deck, then continue normally.
If you draw cards with the Alert text, after completing the draw you may resolve the Alert effect if the card is still in your hand. You can resolve Alert effects on cards whenever an effect puts them in your hand, not just from drawing during the Draw Phase (for example via empowering it or putting it from your discard to your hand with the overcome effect of Occult Symbol).
Threat Phase
- Select an enemy in threat range if able. Most enemies have a threat value. If the range between you and that enemy is less than or equal to their threat, that enemy can threaten you (remember that diagonal blocks are at range 2, not range 1). An enemy with a threat of 0 will only threaten you if you are on its block. An enemy with no number for threat does not threaten.
If there is at least one enemy in range who has not already threatened this turn, choose one such enemy and they Threaten you as below.
If there are no such enemies, or if all eligible enemies in range have already threatened this phase then the Threat phase is over. Often there will be no enemies in range and this phase will be over immediately.
Only enemies that were in play at the start of the threat phase are eligible to threaten this way. This means that any enemies that were somehow played during the threat phase will not threaten normally that turn, such as those played by Alexander the Great's Duel deck. However, some other game effects such as Debuts may cause them to threaten.
Note that only the current hero can be threatened during their Threat phase, the position of enemies relative to any other players is immaterial.
- That enemy threatens. The enemy moves to your block. Then the enemy assaults, which means they deal you damage equal to their fight value. Gambits and counters can be used in response to this, as with any damage being dealt to a hero.
Once you have resolved this, return to step 1 to either select a new enemy in range if one exists, or end the threat phase if there are none.
Peril Phase
- Play a Peril card. Play the top card of the Peril deck, putting it in the trash and resolving all instructions on it. As with most decks (except the Plot and Union decks), if you need to play a Peril card (or do anything else with one) and the Peril deck is empty, shuffle the Peril trash and turn it face down to become the Peril deck, then play the card as normal.
Peril cards can cause a wide range of effects, but two common ones are Play a Plot card and Escalate.
- Playing a Plot card. When instructed to play a Plot card, play the top card of the plot deck, resolving it as appropriate for the card type.
When a Challenge or Enemy card is played, play it on the current player's block. When an Event card is played, put it in the trash and resolve anything on it. When a Plot Twist card is played, place it by the Rules card. Its effect applies immediately.
If a card has a debut effect this applies now. This may cause it to be played in a different place to usual (for example an enemy that goes on another block, or a Plot Twist that goes in a hero active area).
- Escalate. When instructed to Escalate, move that many cards from the bottom of the plot deck to the bottom of the next issue stack. For example, if you were currently in issue 2, it would be moved to the bottom of the issue 3 stack. You do not look at the moved cards. If there are no later issue stacks to move the cards to (i.e. you are already in issue 4), instead trash the cards.
If there are not enough cards in the plot deck to be moved, then move as many as possible. The plot deck is an exception to the default rule that if you need to do something with an empty deck you shuffle the trash back into it.
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Check issue. If there are still plot cards in the plot deck, then do nothing. If there are no cards in the plot deck, then the issue will change by the resolving steps below.
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Play the next issue rules card. Take the next issue stack and put its rules card on top of the old issue rules card. For example, if it was currently issue 2 you would take the rules card from the issue 3 stack and put it on top of the issue 2 rules card. Any rules on the previous issue card immediately cease applying. It is now the issue stated on the new rules card.
If there are any Debut effects on the rules card, resolve them now. If there is no next issue rules card (i.e. you were already in issue 4) then the heroes lose the game.
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Set up the Plot deck. Shuffle the plot cards in the next issue stack (which will now no longer have a rules card on it) and they become the new plot deck. Move them next to the plot trash.
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Shuffle the City deck. Shuffle the city deck.
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Refresh blocks. Some blocks have reusable actions (in green). Remove exhausted tokens from any such blocks.
Dealing Damage
Damage can be dealt in a variety of ways, most commonly from enemies to heroes or heroes to enemies. Damage being dealt to enemies is quite simple, the damage is just placed on them, however when heroes are dealt damage they can use counters and gambits to respond to it.
Counters and Gambits
When damage is dealt to a hero a Counter and Gambit phase begins, where the heroes may use counter and gambit effects. Both of these can be used during the phase, the difference being that counters can be used when the card is in your hand, and gambits when the card is in your active area.
Any number of counters and/or gambits (including none) may be used in any order the heroes decide, providing they are in range. Any hero can use counters or gambits if they are in range, not just the hero taking the damage.
Each card's counter or gambit may be used up to one time each time damage is dealt. This means if damage is dealt multiple times in a turn the same counter/gambit can be used each time, unless the card specifies otherwise (or it is discarded/dismissed when used, as they often are).
Self/Range. Counters and gambits will state either "Self" or "Range X". This determines what damage it can be used in response to. A card that says "Self" can only be used when the hero whose card it is is being dealt damage.
A card that says "Range X" can be used when a hero at range X (including the hero who has the card) is being dealt damage. Note that if you use a counter or gambit as a response to another hero being dealt damage, while the defense is used to reduce damage to them you are still the one using the card.
Supersonic Speedster is a counter with Range 4 that gains 4 defense and has you draw a card. If you use this counter when another hero is being dealt damage, although it will lower the damage directed at them, it is you who draws the card.
Gaining Defense. Most counters and gambits will gain Defense. When Defense is gained, lower the amount of damage taken by that amount. Defense is never in your resource pool, it is generated to lower a specific instance of damage. Any excess is lost and cannot be used against other instances of damage.
Critical damage. Some damage is critical. Defense cannot be used to reduce critical damage, but you can still use counters and gambits in response to them if you wish.
Effects of damage
When an enemy has damage equal or greater than their maximum stamina, that enemy is defeated. When a hero has damage equal or greater than their maximum stamina, they are Taken out.
Taking damage will also lower the enemy/hero's stamina (not to be confused with their maximum stamina). At any given time, a hero/enemy's stamina is their maximum stamina minus the amount of damage they have taken.
Great White has a maximum stamina of 8, as on the top left of his card. He has 3 damage on him, so his stamina is 5.
Sources of damage
Most damage will come from a specific source, as detailed below. This is significant because some effects care about the source of damage, most commonly damage being dealt to the source.
Heroes as a source of damage. A hero is considered to be the source of damage if it comes from their attack action, when a card states they deal damage (e.g. "you deal damage", "that hero deals them damage"), or when damage is dealt by an effect (e.g. Galvanize, Alert, Feat...) on a card anywhere in their hero zone (e.g. Alpha Predator's counter says "Deal that enemy 5 damage").
Enemies as a source of damage. An enemy is considered to be the source of damage if it comes from their Assault or a rule that names the card or refers to it (e.g. "this deals you 2 damage", "KRUSSH deals 4 damage to the two nearest heroes"). Compare this to "You are dealt 2 damage", "deal 4 damage to each hero", or "the two heroes nearest to KRUSSH are dealt 4 damage" which do not come from a specific enemy.
Unsourced damage. When damage is dealt that does not fit into either of the above two cases, that damage is considered unsourced, and while Defense may be generated, any effects that would apply to the source of the damage are wasted.
Alexander assaults Odysseus, dealing 5 damage. Odysseus uses the Counter of Chain Summoning, gaining 3 defense and dealing 1 damage to "that enemy". In this case as Alexander is the source of damage, he is dealt 1 damage.
In a later turn the card Air Strike is played, which in part reads "The hero with the highest stamina is dealt 6 damage". The Counter of Chain Summoning is again used here, and although it still generates 3 defense which lowers the damage taken, the 1 damage is not dealt to anyone.
Affecting the source of damage. Various effects triggered by gambits and counters might do something to affect the enemy that dealt damage such as defeating it, moving it, or lowering its Fight. However once the damage is dealt anything that occurs in the subsequent Counter/Gambit phase cannot affect this. It will still be dealt even if, for example, the enemy is defeated, its fight is lowered, or it is no longer in threat range. Note that although the amount dealt cannot be changed, the amount taken most certainly can via defense.
Taken Down Heroes
Being taken down
When a hero has taken damage equal to or greater than their maximum stamina, they are Taken down. To be taken down means to resolve the steps below.
- Remove your character. Remove your character card and standee from the game.
- Refresh your deck. Put all hero cards from your hand, play area and discard pile on top of your deck and shuffle them together. Then draw until you have 5 cards in your hand.
- Take a Support action. See the Taken Out Action phase below for the details of this.
While taken down
While taken out you still have a turn but are not considered to be a hero for any purpose unless specified in this section. You cannot do anything other than that listed in the Taken Out Action phase.
The things you cannot do include but are not limited to gaining resources, exerting resources, using Alerts, using gambits or counters, any of the normal actions, engaging enemies, drawing or discarding cards from anything other than your Support action, resolving the Surge rule, being in range of anything, moving or empowering. Any game effect that interacts with heroes does not affect you unless it is one of the things specified above.
Odysseus has been taken out. When Wrangler overcomes Black Flag each hero other than Wrangler draws 2 cards, Odysseus does not. When Wrangler overcomes the Pyrrhic Outpost the heroes must collectively discard cards, Odysseus cannot.
When Captain Jupiter uses the Alert of Glory Hog to take heroism from a hero, she cannot choose Odysseus. When Odysseus draws Flurry of Fists, he does not get to use the Alert effect. However, when he passes that card to Captain Jupiter as his Assist action, she is able to resolve the Alert effect, drawing a card herself.
If an effect would target a hero (for example the hero with the most cards in their hand) you are ignored for this. If anything specifically affects you as the current hero, it affects the next hero instead. If something affects all or every hero, you are not counted.
If something would target you as "the next hero", you are ignored and the hero after you will be affected. Note that if there is only one hero left then they count as "the next hero", so can be affected twice.
Odysseus is taken out, and Green Death is the next player. On Odysseus' Peril phase, Green Death is treated as the current player. If Crime Wave was played, the Raptor would be played on and threaten Green Death. If Stay Outta our Way was played, it would attach to Green Death.
If Jessica Raptor was played, she would be played on the Mobster nearest to the Green Death. If Family Business was played, it would trigger the special effect if a Mobster was on Green Death's block. If it was "I run this city", the hero of every player other than Odysseus' would take damage, and the Green Death would discard/destroy a card.
If Drive By was played, the Raptor would assault Green Death and the player after Green Death. If this is a two player game, then the next player is the Green Death again (as Odysseus does not count), and he will be threatened twice.
Some effects in the game will refer to the number of heroes which you do not count towards. However you do count towards the number of starting heroes.
Your turn while taken out
When a hero is taken out they are not dead, but they are seriously injured and can only somewhat aid their allies who are still standing. Your turn has the normal phases with the following exceptions.
Taken Out Action phase. During your Action phase, you cannot take any of the normal actions. You may only take the action below once.
Support: You may put up to one card from your hand in another player's hand. Then discard any number of cards and draw enough cards to have five in your hand.
Taken Out Cleanup, Draw and Threat phases. These phases are all skipped.
Taken Out Peril Phase. Play a Peril card as normal. As above, when anything would affect "you" or the current hero, it affects the next hero instead.
Setting up Blocks
Various effects can cause new blocks to be set up over the course of the game, the most common one being an explore action.
Standard and Advanced blocks
When you set up a block, it can be either standard or advanced. This has no effect other than during the setup of the block.
In a 2 player game, all blocks are standard. In a 4 player game, all blocks are advanced. In a 3 player game, the first block set up (not counting the starting block) is normal, the next is advanced, the next is standard and so on. This means that the second, fourth, sixth and so on blocks placed on the board will be advanced.
In a 3 player game, the Starting block is first set up, with its special starting cards. The first block explored is the Varandovan Embassy, which is a normal block (the first explored, the second on the board). Then a new block is explored, this time City Hall. This is advanced (the second block explored, the third on the board). The next block happens to be the Metropolitan Zoo, which is normal (third block explored, fourth on the board). The next is the Order of the Spectrum, which is advanced (fourth block explored, fifth on the board) and so on.
Setting up a standard block
Take a block from the face down stack and put it face up in the specified position on the board. Play two Union cards on that block. Then play one City card on that block.
Some blocks will have debut effects that change how they are set up.
Setting up an advanced block
Take a block from the face down stack and put it face up in the specified position on the board. Play three Union cards on that block. Then play two City cards on that block.
Some blocks will have debut effects that change how they are set up.
Issue 2+ Exclusive Cards
Some City cards are marked as being issue 2+ exclusive. If you would interact with these cards in any way during issue 1 (play, reveal, trash…), instead set them aside and continue whatever you were doing as though the card did not exist. At the end of that effect, put the issue 2+ exclusive card on the bottom of the city deck.
The most common thing that will cause this is placing new City cards when exploring a block, but if anything tries to play the card (e.g. The City Never Sleeps peril card) or do anything else with it (e.g. referencing it for Scrap Salvo) the rules still apply.
If an effect refers to a specific Issue 2+ Exclusive card, then ignore this rule. This applies both if the particular card is named (e.g. "Search the City deck for Starlet and play her here") or if issue 2+ exclusive in general (e.g. "Mine the City deck for an issue 2+ exclusive card…").
Dr Tomorrow explores a block during issue 1. It is a two player game, so it is a normal block getting two Union cards and one City card. A city card is played, and the first card played is Great White, an issue 2+ exclusive card. This card is set aside and ignored, and a card still needs to be played so the next city card (Old Lady up a Tree) is played instead. Once the rest of the explore effect has finished, Great White is put on the bottom of the city deck.
Later the Plot card Scrap Salvo is played, revealing the top 4 city cards. They are Alien Cyclops, Autograph Signing, Starlet and Sasquatch. Starlet is issue 2+ exclusive so she is set aside and we continue revealing, finding Rockenstein. After the entire Scrap Salvo is resolved (dealing damage, playing one of those cards and trashing the others), Starlet is put on the bottom of the City deck.
Glossary
- Achieve: An action that exerts Valor to put a Union card from your block on top of your deck.
- Activate: An action that puts a card from your hand into your active area, gaining its basic resources (if any) and letting you use its Galvanize and Gambit effects.
- Active area: Part of your hero zone where cards you have activated go. They will leave this area during your cleanup phase (unless they are Legacy cards).
- Alert: Alert effects are found on Union cards. If an effect puts cards in your hand, if it is still there at the end of that effect you may resolve their alerts.
Note that Alert is triggered when an effect puts a card in your hand. The most common way to put a card in your hand is by drawing it, but other effects such as Supersymmetry, Quick Costume Change or Empowering a card with Alert also trigger it.
- Assault: When an enemy assaults you they deal you damage equal to their fight. Generally triggered as part of being threatened, although it can be caused other ways such as by events or Debuts.
- Attack: An action that exerts Might to deal damage to an enemy on your block. You can only attack each enemy once per turn.
- Attached: Some cards are attached to other components, for example Stay Outta Our Way attaches to a hero. Attached cards are always on the same block as the thing they are attached to. If that thing moves, they also move. They cannot be moved themselves. If the thing they are attached to leaves a play area or the board (such as by being defeated or taken out), the Attached card is trashed.
Although Attached cards are on the block their attached thing is on, to save space you might find it convenient to put them in/near the relevant play area (for example Stay Outta our Way you could put by that hero's play area, Conqueror Armor in the villain play area) but for the purposes of the rules it is nevertheless on their block. For example if they are challenges, to confront them you need to be on the block as whatever they are attached to.
Some attached cards say what they attach to (for example Attached to you or Attached to Alexander). Others will have a Debut effect that states what they attach to when played, others may move during the game.
- Available Power Cards: Power Cards that are available for the Empower action by the associated hero. Each player will have two at any time. When you Empower, Power cards are refreshed.
- Basic resources: Hero cards have basic resources in the left hand bar. When you play the card, you gain these resources.
Some cards will have the basic resource block coloured and with the relevant word (Valor/Might/Speed), but no number. These cards do not provide the resource when activated (though they will usually provide it via other mechanics), but still count as having that resource for the purposes of other cards. For example if you have to discard a Valor card you could discard Digital Native.
- Block: The sections of the map that heroes, union cards, city cards and villain cards are placed on. For example Widow's Hill, M-Corp and the Metropolitan Zoo are all blocks.
- Board: Every block that has been set up. This does not include spaces that may or may not have things on them.
- Challenge: A type of city or villain card. They can be dealt with by the Confront action, leading to them being overcome.
- Champion Action: A type of action on blocks. These actions can only be used if the block has no city, villain or union cards on it.
- City cards & deck: A type of card with a yellow frame. They make up the City deck and are placed on block when they are played. City cards are generally enemies or challenges that can be defeated or overcome for rewards.
- City deck: The city deck is made out of two 16 card decks. These can be either Locales or Scenarios. This has no effect in game, but generally speaking Locales have simpler and more balanced cards, while Scenarios have more complex cards with a potential large skew in card and reward types. We generally recommend playing with one locale and one scenario.
- Citywide: A term found on some cards. It has no direct rules meaning, but indicates that the effect is one that applies to other blocks, not just the one the card is on.
- Confront cost: The number in the top left of challenges, indicating the amount of speed or valor that must be exerted to confront that challenge.
- Counter: Counter effects are found on Hero cards and can be resolved in response to damage being dealt when that card is in your hand.
Damage is dealt to heroes or enemies, which may or may not result in damage actually being taken.
- Debut: Debut is found on Challenge, Enemy, Plot Twist and Rules cards as well as blocks. When the component is played, the Debut text applies. Common examples include threatening you, dealing damage or making you discard. Some Debut effects are written as changing the playing of the card (e.g. playing it on a certain block). These are modifiers rather than when effects.
- Defeat: When an enemy has damage tokens on it equal to or greater than its maximum stamina it is defeated, putting it in the relevant trash. If it does not have a trash it instead goes in the relevant play area. Many enemies have Defeat effects that will resolve when they are defeated.
- Defense: A resource, used to reduce the amount of damage you are dealt. Unlike other resources, it never enters your pool and can only be used to reduce a specific instance of damage.
- Destroy: When a card is destroyed, it is removed from the game entirely rather than going to a trash/discard pile.
- Difficulty: Some challenges have a difficulty, showing the number of times it must be confronted in order to be overcome. These confront actions can be spread over multiple heroes and/or turns. Any challenge with no printed difficulty will be overcome when it is confronted once.
- Discard: When a card is discarded, put it from your hand to your discard pile. Note that not all instances of going from your hand to your discard pile are discarding (for example the Surge rule). It only is counted as discarding when the specific word discard is used, as opposed to "put a card from your hand on your discard" or something similar.
- Discard pile: Where hero cards go when discarded from your hand, dismissed from your active area, put there by your cleanup step or anything else that states a card goes to your discard pile.
- Disengage cost: The additional amount of speed required to maneuver or explore when you are engaged. It may be zero in some cases. This is specified on the issue rules card.
If the guard is on the same block as the thing it is guarding then the guard has threat 0, and the thing it is guarding cannot be damaged or destroyed (if it is an enemy) or be confronted or overcome (if it is a challenge).
- Hero: This word is used to mean both you, the player, and the hero that you control. For example if Joe is playing as Wrangler, when a card says your hero is dealt damage that is done to the Wrangler character card. If a hero draws cards, Joe, playing Wrangler, draws those cards.
If a Hero is taken out, they no longer count as a hero for any effects (e.g. each hero discards a card, move each hero to this block…) except those specified in the taken out rules.
- Heal: When an enemy or hero heals, remove that much damage from them.
- Hero cards: Hero cards have a blue frame. They go into hero hands, play areas, decks and discards. Hero cards have a bar on the left showing the resources that are gained when that card is activated. Hero cards come in three types, which are Union cards, Power cards and Origin cards.
These three types are gained in different ways but once in your deck this doesn't generally matter, although some effects will specify a particular type (e.g. "Destroy a non-origin card in your hand").
- Heroism: A resource, primarily used to Empower. Unlike Valor, Might and Speed it is not removed from your pool during your cleanup phase. Tokens are provided to track heroism from turn to turn.
- In play: A card that is on any block, space, hero active area or villain zone is considered in play. Blocks themselves are also in play. A card that is in a deck, hand, issue stack or a discard pile/trash is not considered in play.
- Iconic: A keyword usually reserved for very important villain cards. Like all keywords, it does nothing by itself but other cards may reference it. Iconic usually matters because a handful of extremely powerful effects do not function on iconic cards. Iconic cards also cannot generally be moved.
- Issue: A static variable. At any given time the game is in issue 1, 2, 3 or 4. Some cards will refer to the current issue as a variable using symbols.
- Issue 2+ Exclusive: Some city cards have this rule. During issue 1 if you would interact with an issue 2+ exclusive card in any way, instead set it aside and continue the action as though it was not there. Once you have finished that effect, move the issue 2+ exclusive card to the bottom of the city deck.
- Issue rules card: A card associated with the villain that sets out specific rules for each issue. When the issue changes, the new issue rules card comes into play, and is put on top of the old one, superseding any previous extra rules.
- Issue stack: A stack of cards consisting of Plot cards and an issue rules card placed during setup. Plot cards can also be put into issue stacks as the game goes on via the Escalate effect. When the issue changes, the issue rules card will come into effect and the Plot cards will become the Plot deck.
- Keywords: Properties of some enemy and challenge cards. Keywords have no innate effect, but other cards may reference keywords. Keywords are found just underneath the title and in some cases also on an insert in the middle right. For example Raptor Goons are Raptors and Footsoldiers (under the title) and also Gangsters (middle right).
You are instructed to mine the Union deck for a Might card and play it on your block. You reveal the top card which is Rapid Processing (not a Might card). The next card is Just a Blur (not a Might card). The next is Chain Summoning (a Might card). You play Chain Summoning on your block while Rapid Processing and Just a Blur are put on the Union trash.
- Origin cards: Origin cards are a type of Hero card. They make up the starting decks of each hero. Unlike the other types of Hero card, they have a cost of zero.
- Overcome: When a challenge is confronted, it is overcome. If the challenge has a difficulty it will need to be confronted several times. When a card is overcome it is trashed. If it does not have a trash it instead goes to the relevant play area. Many challenges also have overcome effects that resolve when they are overcome.
- Peril card: A type of card that is played during the Peril phase and will give additional instructions, most commonly Escalating or playing Plot cards.
- Playing cards: Taking the top card of a deck and doing whatever it says. Enemy and challenge cards are played on the current hero's block. Union cards are played on the specified block (usually a block that is being set up). Events and Peril cards are trashed and then resolved, while Plot Twists go to the villain play area.
Note that many cards have debut effects that will change how they are played. Also some effects tell you to play a card at a particular location (for example while setting up a block you play the Union or City cards on that block).
- Plot card: A type of villain card. Plot cards are played from the Plot deck, usually during the Peril Phase as the result of a Peril card. Plot cards all have a marker stating if they are issue 1, 2 or 3. They also have a marker indicating when they should be included in the setup based on the number of players.
- Plot Twist: A type of card. When played these go in the villain play area unless otherwise specified, and affect the rules of the game. Many Plot Twists will have ways that they can be trashed on the card, but other than this it is not possible to affect them.
- Power card: A type of Hero card. Each hero has their own power deck, and at any given time two power cards will be available to be empowered. Unlike the other types of Hero card, power cards have a heroism cost and can be gained by the Empower action.
- Qualities: Properties of some Hero cards. Qualities have no innate effect, but other cards may reference qualities. The qualities are Metahuman, Gear, Occult and Skill.
- Rally: Rally effects are found on hero cards. The first time a card with rally is put into one of your hand, play area, discard pile or deck resolve the Rally effect. Rally effects are not optional.
Note that this effect only applies the first time it enters any one of those zones. If a card is put into your discard pile its rally effect will resolve. If the same card is later put into your hand (for example via overcoming High Ground) or in another hero's hand (for example via the Support action) the effect will not resolve again.
- Range: A measure of distance between two blocks. Blocks adjacent in the cardinal directions (North, South, East and West) are at a range of 1, so diagonally adjacent blocks are at range 2.
- Resource pool: An imaginary pool containing Valor, Might, Speed and Heroism. When you gain a resource it goes into your pool until it is exerted or it is removed by the cleanup step. Some players prefer to keep track of their resources with tokens.
- Reusable Action: A type of Action on map blocks. When the issue changes the exhaust token is removed from this, allowing it to be reused.
- Reveal: To look at a face down card one time.
- Revealed: A card that is always face up.
- Space: A space on the map where a block could be, but it is not currently.
- Speed: A resource, primarily used to maneuver to and explore blocks and Confront challenges. Like Valor and Might, it is removed from your pool during the cleanup phase if not used.
- Stamina: A value of an enemy or hero. Calculated by subtracting the amount of damage on the hero from their maximum stamina. For example if Green Death has a maximum stamina of 25 and has 8 damage on him, then his stamina is 17.
- Standee: A purely cosmetic proxy. When you use a standee for an enemy such as Alexander, set aside the Alexander card and use the standee to show where he is located. The standee is treated as being the card for all purposes. For heroes, their standees also count as them for all purposes.
- Starting Block: The first block set up in the game. It will always be a unique starting block and not come from the normal block pile.
Games will have a city and union trash. Villains will have a plot and peril trash, as well as any other trashes for any other special decks the villain may have such as Alexander's Myrmidons, Outposts and Duel cards. Note that hero decks do not have a trash, they have a discard pile.
- Trash (verb): To move a card to the associated trash. Unless otherwise specified, a card will be moved to the trash of the deck it originally came from.
- Turn order: The clockwise order of the players.
- Union cards & deck: Union cards are a type of Hero card. They make up the Union deck and are placed on blocks when they are set up. Unlike the other types of Hero card, they have a Valor cost and can be achieved.
There are two types of Union cards, Prime and Teamup cards. These distinctions only matter when setting up the deck and have no effect in play.
Unlike other decks, if you run out of Union cards instead of shuffling the trash to make the new deck, you only shuffle the bottom half of the trash to make the deck.
- Valor: A resource, primarily used to achieve cards, gain heroism and confront challenges. Like Speed and Might, it is removed from your pool during the cleanup phase if not used.
- Ward: A group of blocks/spaces. Ward 1 is all blocks at a range of exactly 1 from the starting block. Ward 2 is all blocks at a range of exactly 2 from the starting block and so on.
Other Rules and Concepts
The Golden Rule
The rules in this book are the default rules of the game, but many individual components can and do contradict these rules in specific cases, in which case the component takes precedence.
During the threat phase, American Patriot X threatens Wrangler. Normally to threaten he would move to the hero's block and assault them, however American Patriot X's Expert Marksman ability states that he does not move when he threatens. This takes priority over the default rule and American Patriot X does not move when he threatens (but still assaults, dealing damage equal to his fight).
Ties
Many game effects cause players to compare variables. For example "The player with the highest stamina is dealt 5 damage" or "Put the most expensive Union card on the board under this".
If there are several options that qualify (in the examples above, two players with the same stamina or two Union cards with the same cost) then the heroes choose how to break the tie. If they disagree, the current hero chooses.
Resources, pools and exerting
During their turns, players will gain Speed, Might, Valor. They primarily do this by activating cards and thus gaining their basic resources, but various other effects can gain them resources such as Galvanizes, Feats, Defeats and so on. When resources are in your pool, you can exert them for various uses, most commonly achieving cards, gaining heroism, exploring, maneuvering and attacking. When a resource is exerted it is removed from your pool.
All unexerted Speed, Might and Valor is removed from your pool during the Cleanup phase, so generally it should be used if possible. Heroism is an exception to this, as it does not empty from your pool. Heroism can and usually should be saved up over multiple turns.
Heroism is not gained directly by basic resources on cards, but is most commonly gained by the heroics action, or by defeating or overcoming city cards. Various other effects can cause you to gain heroism.
As Speed, Might and Valor are usually generated and exerted during the same action phase, players should be able to keep track of how much is being gained and exerted, but tokens are included as an aid to help remember resources from unusual sources (for example Feats).
In the unlikely event you gain a resource during your turn but after your cleanup phase (for example by defeating the Cemetery Dogs with a Counter during the threat phase) the resource will remain in your pool until your next cleanup phase, which is during your next turn.
Costs
When an effect is phrased as "_____ to _______" it is considered a cost. For example, the card "This is My City" has the galvanize "Discard a non-Origin card to move to a block with an enemy."
In a cost, if you cannot pay the cost (the part before the "to") you do not gain the benefit (the part after the "to"). In the example you cannot use the Galvanize to move to a block with an enemy unless you have a non-origin card in your hand to discard. The same goes for exerting heroism you do not have, dismissing cards you do not have in your active area and so on.
Some effects are phrased as "_____. If you do _____." These are also costs, if you do not do the first part then you do not do the second part.
An effect phrased as "_____, then ____" does not require the first part to carry out the second. If "This is My City" were phrased as "Move to a block with an enemy then discard a non-Origin card", then it could be carried out even if you did not have the card to discard (although if you did have one, you would have to discard it).
Villain card, plot cards and issue stacks
Each villain has a plot deck at any given time. These are the cards that will be played when instructed to play a plot card. At the beginning of the game, the plot deck will be all the issue 1 plot cards.
There will also be several issue stacks, which also contain plot cards (as well as an issue rules card). These are not the plot deck, and cards in the issue stack will not be played while they are in the issue stack.
As the game goes on, some of the current plot deck will be played and some will be Escalated, moving to the next issue stack. When the issue changes, the plot cards in the next issue stack are shuffled together and become the plot deck. In this way, the later in the game you proceed, the more dangerous late issue cards you are exposed to.
Note that because of Escalating, cards in the plot deck can be from earlier issues than the current one. For example, when fighting Pteranodon a Drive By card (issue 1) might be added to the issue 2 stack via an Escalate. When the issue 2 stack is eventually shuffled and becomes the plot deck, that Drive By might be played.
Many villains also have other decks (for example the Mobsters and Gangsters of Pteranodon, and the Duels of Alexander). These still count as villain cards (having the red frame), but are not plot cards. They will go to their own specific trash when played (for events) or defeated/overcome (for enemies/challenges). These cards do not have the normal plot card back.
These special decks will be named (both during setup and on the card back). You only play a card from that deck when instructed to play one by that name. For example, when told to play a Gangster card, you play a card from the Gangster deck, you do not play it when told to play a Plot card.
Attack vs Damage, Maneuver vs Move, Achieve vs Put
Attacking is a specific action carried out during your action phase that uses Might to deal damage. Damage is the generic action of placing damage on an enemy. It can be done by the attack action, but there are many other ways in the game to deal damage (for example via the counter of Alpha Predator, the Feat of Blaze of Glory or the overcome of Captain Great). These are not considered to be attacks, and anything that affects attacking does not affect them.
Dr Tomorrow moves to Carlo the Tail's block. Carlo has the Back Plates rule, stating "You can only attack this if you both started the turn on the same block". Dr Tomorrow cannot use the attack action against Carlo, however he uses the Feat on his Tesla Gauntlets which states in part "...deal an enemy on any block 2 damage" this can damage Carlo as it is not an attack. Conversely, if Carlo's rule said he could not be dealt damage, this would stop him taking damage from Tesla Gauntlets and attack actions. Technically, Dr Tomorrow could still make an attack action against him, but no damage would be dealt.
By the same logic, Maneuver is a specific action carried out during your action phase that uses Speed to move you to another block. Move is the generic action of moving a game component from one block to another.
Maneuver can be used to move, but there are many other ways to move to other blocks such as the galvanize effect of Achaean Ambush, the block action of the Neville-Fox Airport or the defeat of Chopper Hogs. Things that affect Maneuver (such as disengage costs or the Raptor Hitman) will not affect them.
By the same logic, Achieve is a specific action carried out during your action phase that uses Valor to put a card on top of your deck. There are many other ways to put cards from various areas in your deck such as the defeat effect of Lord of Night, the action of Super Mall or the galvanize of Network drones, none of which are Achieving or affected by anything that affects Achieving such as Raptor Racketeers or the Downtown Department stores.
Decks, discards and trashes
The game will contain many decks of cards. This will always include a City deck, a Union deck, Hero decks and Power decks. The villain will have a Plot deck and a Peril deck, and often other decks as specified by the particular villain such as the Pteranodon's Mobsters and Gangsters.
The block stack is not a deck. The issue stacks are not decks (although their plot cards will eventually become the plot deck via issue changes).
Each deck has either a trash or a discard pile associated with it. Hero decks have a discard pile. All other decks have a trash. The power deck is an exception to this, there is no power trash.
Cards go to their trash when the verb "Trash" is used. Unless otherwise specified, a card when trashed will return to the trash associated with the deck it came from. A Union card would go to the Union trash, a Gangster to the Gangster trash, a plot card to the plot trash and so on.
As well as being trashed when specifically told to, defeated enemies are trashed and overcome challenges are trashed. Note that if you trash an enemy without defeating it (for example via KRUSSH's Scrap Salvo or Obliterate) you do not get the defeat effect, likewise for trashing a challenge without overcoming it.
Hero cards are moved to the discard pile from your hand or deck (when the word discard is used) or from your active area (when the word dismiss is used). Cards are also moved to the discard pile during your cleanup phase. Note that moving a card to your discard pile is not "discarding", unless that wording is used (for example during cleanup putting cards from your active area on your discard is not discarding).
If a card needs to be drawn, played, revealed, trashed or otherwise referenced from an empty deck, shuffle the trash back together to make the deck so you can draw/play/reveal/trash/whatever the card.
There are two exceptions to this. The Plot trash is never shuffled back. The Union trash is shuffled back, but when you do split the Union trash into two halves (this does not need to be exact). Shuffle the bottom half to make the new Union deck and leave the top half as the Union trash.
Some cards are set aside during the setup (such as Alexander's character card) rather than having an explicit deck. This is considered to be a deck of one card, so when Alexander is defeated he is put in the Alexander trash. If you for some reason needed to play Alexander again the one-card trash would be shuffled back into deck, which would then be played from. None of this will ever come up, as you won the game when you defeated Alexander.
Spaces and blocks
Some game effects will refer to or cause cards to be placed on "spaces". These are the spaces where blocks may be placed later in the game. The term "the board" refers to all blocks, whereas "in play" refers to all blocks, as well as all spaces as well as active areas and villain zones.
A space can contain cards but is not considered as a block or as in range of anything. As such, heroes cannot move to it by maneuvering or by any other means (such as Achaean Ambush or the Neville-Fox Airport's action). Anything that says move to any block will not function, as it is not a block.
The cards on the space count as in play and act normally, but are not in range of any other block or space. This means that among other things they will not threaten normally during the threat phase. Any city-wide effects would still apply, as would anything that applies to cards "in play".
If players wish to move to the space, they will generally need to explore it, following the normal rules. When such a space is explored, any cards on the space are now on the new block in addition to any new cards that are set up there with the normal set up rules.
Alexander's Annex Peril card has put an Outpost and a Myrmidon on a space. Odysseus is on a block next to that space. However he cannot move there, either through normal maneuvering or through his Achaean Ambush card as you can only move to blocks, not spaces. He cannot use his Challenge of the bow Feat to deal damage to an enemy in range 4, as even though the space is at range 1, all cards on it are considered to not be in range. When the Besiege Peril card is played, it does count the [icon not preserved in source] of the Outpost, as it counts all [icon not preserved in source] "in play", which includes blocks and spaces.
Odysseus explores the space. A block is set up as normal with City and Union cards, with the Outpost and Myrmidon being on that new block. They are now on the same block as Odysseus and can be attacked or confronted as normal.
Often effects will put cards on spaces fitting a certain criteria (such as being in a given Ward). If there are no spaces that fit the criteria, place it on a block that fits the criteria instead.
The Conquer Peril card of Alexander the Great instructs you to Annex the farthest Ward 2 space. However all Ward 2 spaces have been explored and have blocks on them, so instead you Annex the farthest Ward 2 block.
Face down and underneath cards
Some game effects will cause cards to be placed face down, underneath another card, or both. When a card is face-up underneath another card, it can be looked at freely. When a card is face down, players cannot look at the other side. Sometimes cards will be placed both underneath another card and also face-down. In this card the card also cannot be looked at.
If a face-down card is turned face up, it counts as being played which will trigger Debut effects.
These face down or underneath (or both) cards do not count as existing unless specifically mentioned. If a card with cards under it stops being in play (e.g. being trashed, moving to your hand…) then all cards under it go to the relevant trash or discard pile unless otherwise specified.
Dr Tomorrow's card Technobabble is in his active area, with Plucky Interns and Just a Blur under it. During the Peril phase Sleep with the Ichthyosaurs is played, forcing Dr Tomorrow to dismiss a card from his active area. He cannot choose Plucky Interns or Just a Blur. He could choose to dismiss Technobabble itself, and if he did so Plucky Interns and Just a Blur would both go to his discard pile as well.
Assuming he dismisses a different card, during his cleanup phase, when he has to put cards from his active area in his discard pile, the two cards under Technobabble are not counted for this. Technobabble itself does not go to his discard, as it is a Legacy card.
There are two exceptions. The first is when a specific reference is made to something being face down/underneath a card. The second is when a specific card is mentioned by name or definite article. For example if an effect said "Destroy Solar Matrix" then even if it were under something it would be destroyed. If a card said "Destroy this at the end of the Peril phase", as it refers specifically to that card it would also be destroyed. Compare these to phrasing like "Dismiss all cards in your play area" or "Destroy the most expensive card in your play area" that do not specifically refer to a particular card.
The city card Endangered Ally is played, with Alpha Predator under it. When Lady Sunbeam is on that block, she cannot achieve Alpha Predator, nor can she trash it with the Galvanize of Heroic Hellion, nor can she move it with the Counter of Graviton Mastery as the card is not considered to exist.
However, when she overcomes Endangered Ally, the overcome states "Put the card under this on a hero's deck". As this specifically refers to the card under it, it does count as existing and is put on Sunbeam's deck.
"You"
Many game effects will be written in the context of a certain hero, for example "Discard two cards", "You are dealt 5 damage", or "Destroy a card in your hand or active area". For the purposes of these we need to determine who "you" is. This also applies to effects that exclude you (e.g. "Another hero draws two cards." means anyone other than whoever "you" is.)
If the effect is on a card in a hero play area (for example their hand, active area or discard pile), it refers to that hero. If it is a defeat or overcome effect, then "you" is whoever has defeated or overcome that enemy or challenge. If it is a when effect, then it refers to whoever caused the trigger.
If none of these apply (for example when resolving most villain cards) then by default "You" is the current player.
Descriptions and Keywords
Some cards will have descriptions in their text box. These are denoted in bold and with a colon, for example "Arrogant: Double defense gained against this". Here "Arrogant" is a description and not part of the actual rules. Descriptions just give more flavor and theme to the card, they should not be construed as having any rules effect.
Many cards also have keywords which appear below their title. They also may have a keyword in the middle right corresponding to the deck they are from. For example, Raptor Goons have the keywords "Raptor, Footsoldiers, Gangster". White Lightning has the keywords "White Fist, Rockabilly".
Keywords don't do anything by themselves, but in some cases other cards may refer to them, for example Watering Hole increases the damage dealt by Raptors, so will enhance Raptor Gangsters, as well as cards like Raptor Racketeers or Jessica Raptor. Note that although all these happen to have "Raptor" in their card name, it is not this that makes them Raptors, it is the Raptor keyword.
Damage dealt and damage taken
There is a distinction between damage dealt and damage taken. Damage dealt is the initial amount from the effect causing damage, whereas damage taken is the amount of damage tokens actually placed on the enemy or hero after any defense has reduced it.
Red Leech assaults Captain Jupiter, dealing 2 damage (because his fight is 2). Jupiter uses the counter on Cosmic Gauntlets, gaining 1 defense and reducing the damage to 1, so 1 damage token is placed on Captain Jupiter. In this assault, 2 damage was dealt, but only 1 was taken. Red Leech's Bloodsucker rule says that when a hero takes damage from Red Leech, he heals that much damage, so here he heals 1 damage.
Wrangler attacks Jimmy Hornhead, exerting 6 might to deal 6 damage. However, Jimmy's Hard Head rule prevents the first 2 damage dealt to him each turn, so only 4 damage is taken.
Plot Twists
Plot Twists are a type of card that add rules to the game, which applies at all times once that card is in play. Many Plot Twists will have a Debut effect that plays them in a certain place, but many do not. If not otherwise specified, Plot Twists go in the villain zone.
Heroes do not normally have any way to get rid of Plot Twists by default, but many Plot Twists will include a way to trash that card if a certain condition is met. For example Obliterate trashes itself when KRUSSH assaults.
Doing nothing
Sometimes effects will trigger when a certain thing happens, and sometimes external effects can make none of that thing happen. In this case the thing does not count as happening for the purposes of any relevant triggers.
Dr Tomorrow is dealt 2 damage, and uses the Counter on his Jetpack to gain 2 defense. Jetpack's counter states in part "...if you take damage, draw a card". Here the damage is reduced to 0, so Dr Tomorrow does not count as taking damage (as opposed to taking 0 damage, as his rules-lawyering player claims) and does not draw a card.
During his draw phase he draws Glory Hog and uses its Alert, which states "Another hero loses 2 heroism and you gain as much heroism as they lost. If you gained any heroism this way draw a card". He chooses Green Death who has no heroism. Green Death loses 0 heroism, and Dr Tomorrow gains 0. This does not count as gaining heroism, therefore Dr Tomorrow once again does not get to draw a card.
Note this only applies to triggering "when" effects. It is legal to do none of something if you want (for example attack for zero damage or try to take heroism from someone with none), it is just that other cards (in this case ones about taking damage) will not trigger from it.
Invert Gravity moves an enemy to a block in range 2, and it is possible to have this be the block it is currently on (as a block at range 0 is within range 2) and still satisfy the card's effect. If you had to put it somewhere else, this would be phrased as "ANOTHER block in range 2" or "a block AT range 2". However, if you move it to the block it is already on, any when effects checking for it moving would not trigger.
Ordering of Effects
While the designer has tried to make the rules as straightforward as possible, there are some occasions when it is unclear exactly what happens in what order. This is usually caused by various effects saying "When X then Y" and "When X then Z" and "When Y then W" occurring all at the same time and the relative timing being important.
What follows is a technical description of how various effects are timed. In most occasions the exact order in which things are resolved does not hugely matter. As this is a game rather than a supreme court case, we do not propose you spend twenty minutes halfway through a game arguing about exact rule interpretations. If there is an ambiguity during play we suggest agreeing on what seems about right between the heroes and getting on with things, coming back to this after the game to see what should have been done.
Effects
The game is broken into a series of effects. Generally an effect occurs, is resolved, then the next effect happens and so on.
Each action taken during a player turn (Activating a card, Attacking, Exploring, Empowering, Feats, Galvanizes…) is an effect. Drawing up to 5 cards during your draw phase is an effect. An Alert is an effect. A Rally is an effect. Using a Counter or gambit is an effect. Threatening during the Threat phase (which includes an assault as part of it) is an effect. Defeats and Overcomes are also effects and so on. Playing a Peril card (and any other cards it might play, such as Plot cards and anything they do) is an effect. Anything caused by a when is an effect.
Even if an effect does several different things, they are all considered one effect. For example Blinding Aurora's Counter gains defense and draws a card, this is all one effect (a counter). When an enemy threatens it moves to you and deals damage, all of which is one effect. Wrath of the Underworld plays a Sleep with the Ichthyosaurs, which makes you dismiss a card and be dealt damage, this is all one effect. Occult Symbol's overcome has four separate steps, which are all collectively one effect (an overcome), with each part resolved in the order listed.
If part of an effect states several things at the same time, the players choose the order. For example if an effect says each hero discards a card, the players choose the order. If an effect says "trigger each [icon not preserved in source] effect", the heroes choose the order of [icon not preserved in source] effects triggering.
When Effects
A number of cards have when effects (for example "when you discard this gain 1 heroism", "when you move to this block discard a card"). Many default rules of the game are also when effects. For example:
- When a challenge is confronted (assuming it has no difficulty) it is overcome.
- When a challenge is overcome, resolve its overcome effect.
- When an enemy has damage tokens equal to its maximum stamina, it is defeated (trashing it).
- When an enemy is defeated, resolve its defeat effect.
- When an effect puts an Alert card in your hand, if it is still there after the effect has finished you may use its Alert.
- When a hero has damage tokens equal to its maximum stamina, they are taken down.
- When a card with Rally is for the first time put into any hero's hand, play area, discard pile or deck resolve its Rally effect.
- When damage is dealt to a hero a Counter/Gambit phase begins. Note that there are several special rules about the Counter/Gambit phase.
- When a Counter/Gambit phase ends any remaining damage is taken.
Resolving Chains
Most of the potential complications arise when one effect causes several different when effects, or if when effects cause other when effects. These are resolved as follows.
If effect A causes when effect B, then finish completely resolving the first effect (A), and only then resolve the when effect it caused (B). This is true even if the part of effect A that triggers B occurs early on in effect A.
If B causes another effect (C) then finish resolving B completely before resolving the C and so on. This is called a chain. A chain is any group of effects linked by causing or being caused by one another.
The key point here (and where this differs from many other games) is what happens when effect A triggers effect B, and B triggers effect C. In this game you will trigger A completely, then B completely and then C completely. This contrasts other systems in which you could resolve A up until B begins, resolve B up until C begins, finish C, then finish B, then finish A.
Black Flag is confronted by Dr Tomorrow. The overcome effect lets each other hero draw 2 cards, and you also destroy a card in your hand or active area.
Lady Sunbeam draws Save the Day and Master Summoner. The alert effect of Master Summoner lets her draw two Beacons of Hope, and Dr Tomorrow draws a Plucky Interns. Can he destroy these Interns with the effect of Black Flag?
He cannot. The entire overcome effect of Black Flag is resolved (B), drawing cards and giving the chance to destroy a card in his hand or active area. Only after this entire effect is finished does the Alert effect triggered by it (C, via Lady Sunbeam drawing Master Summoner) occur, drawing the new cards for Dr Tomorrow. By the time the Plucky interns are drawn, Dr Tomorrow has already destroyed a card (or chosen not to).
An incorrect way to play would be to have Lady Sunbeam draw her cards, interrupt the effect of Black Flag to use the Alert of Master Summoner, then continue with Black Flag's effect once finished. "When" effects do not resolve the moment they are triggered, they resolve once the entire effect that triggered them has finished.
Branches
In some cases a single effect can cause more than one when effect at the same time (for example two cards with Alert text are drawn) these are called branches (in this case two). In this case both effects will be resolved but the current player chooses which branch is resolved first.
If one of the effects in a branch causes other when effects then continue resolving them until the branch is entirely resolved, then go back to the other branches. This is also true if a branch splits into its own branches.
Wrangler uses the Galvanize effect of Social Networking. The effect here is to destroy Social Networking and have another hero draw 2 cards. In this case Wrangler chooses Odysseus. Odysseus draws 2 cards with Alert, Scientific Genius and Rapid Processing.
Both of these when effects are triggered by the same effect (Social Networking's Galvanize), causing two branches. Wrangler (the current player) chooses which branch to go down first - note that although Scientific Genius was drawn before Rapid Processing, this does not mean Wrangler has to choose that to be first. They were both triggered by the same effect, so either can be resolved next.
Wrangler (after asking Odysseus) in fact chooses the Rapid Processing branch to resolve first, where Odysseus chooses to have Wrangler draw and discard a card. Wrangler draws Flurry of Fists and discards Southern Hospitality. As he drew a card with Alert, this triggers that when effect, drawing a card for Wrangler. Having completed this branch, we return to the other branch, playing a Union card thanks to Scientific Genius.
Note that D must be resolved before B, as the branch beginning with C has to be completely resolved before returning to B. [The lettered branches A to D are shown in a diagram in the source document, which is not reproduced in the text export.]
"First" effects
Some effects specify "first" (for example "when this threatens you first discard a card"). These are part of the chain, but are resolved before the trigger, the effect that caused it is treated as a when that follows the "first" effect.
Alexander's Showdown rule states that "When Alexander threatens first play a Showdown card". The first effect is playing the Showdown card and entirely resolving that, then the second effect is Alexander's threatening. As such if Alexander played a card like Conqueror Power Armor that improves his assault, it will be in play when he actually assaults.
Cards entering and leaving play
While a card is entering or leaving a particular area (e.g. being played, being trashed, being discarded) it is considered to be in both areas for the purpose of any when triggers.
Lady Sunbeam uses the Counter on Tactical Feint to discard Ithacan Warrior. Ithacan Warrior states "...when you discard a card you may deal 2 damage to an enemy in range 1." As Ithacan Warrior is leaving your hand it counts as being in it, so its rule still applies and you can deal damage.
Modifiers
- Some rules will not be stated as "when". These are considered modifiers and instead of acting separately as an effect in a chain they just modify other effects. Any text on a card that does not use "when" is a modifier effect.
- Note that some conditional effects will use "if" which is grammatically similar to a "when", but they are not when effects, they are modifiers.
Some examples of modifier effects follow.
- "Reduce the fight of enemies on this block by 1."
- "Draw 2 extra cards during your next draw phase."
- "You must exert 2 heroism to confront this."
- "If you draw cards, draw one less."
- "Heroes cannot heal damage."
- "Play this on the block of the highest stamina hero"
- "If this threatens it does not move, but still assaults."
- "If you take damage from this enemy, increase the amount by 2".
- "Once per turn if you gain heroism gain one extra heroism".
- "The next time you take damage, reduce the amount by 2."
- "You must discard a Might card to attack this."
- "City cards on this block cannot be confronted."
The distinction between modifiers and when effects is important. A "when" effect occurs after the effect that triggers it, and potentially after other "when" effects that it triggers. A modifier changes the thing and thus definitely occurs before any "when" effects. If several modifiers would apply to the same number and the order matters then the heroes choose the order.
Big Paulie T-Rex assaults the Green Death, who uses the Counter on Into the Night to gain 1 defense. Big Paulie's Half-Blind rule doubles the first defense gained, and Green Death's Veiled in Shadow increases the amount of defense gained by 2.
Green Death chooses to apply Veiled in Shadow first (bringing it to 3 defense) then doubling it (to 6). If he was feeling masochistic, he could have chosen to double it to 2, then increase it by 2 to a total of 4, it is up to him.
Start and end of phase effects
- Sometimes certain effects will be triggered by the start or end of a phase, for example "At the end of the next Threat phase defeat this". If there are multiple effects triggered by the same start/end of phase then they will form branches like "when" effects. As always, you must complete one branch before proceeding to the other.
Triggers affecting damage
- If a card has a when effect that applies to damage it deals, that effect still applies to that damage, even if when the damage is resolved the card with that rule is no longer in play. Note that if the effect is healing the now defeated enemy, nothing will happen.
Big Daddy Juju deals 2 damage to Captain Jupiter, causing a counter/gambit phase in which she uses Alpha Predator to defeat Big Daddy Juju and resolve his defeat effect.
When she takes the damage, the Voodoo Slap effect of Big Daddy Juju triggers (when you take damage from this, discard a card), making her discard a card. Even though Big Daddy Juju is no longer in play, the Voodoo Slap effect still applies.
Debuts
Most Debuts are "when" effects triggered by the playing of the card. For example Cataphracts have a Debut that makes them threaten, so once the effect that plays them is resolved (generally either a Peril card or Lead from the Front) they will then threaten.
Some Debuts however are written mentioning "play" or "playing" of the card (most commonly something like "play this on the starting block"). These Debuts are modifiers, rather than "when" effects. Note that they are modifiers only when the rule refers to the playing of that card with the Debut, not anything else. For example "Play this on the block with the most expansive Union card" is a modifier as it refers to the playing of the card with the Debut, whereas "Play a Union card on this block" is a when effect as it refers to the playing of a card other than the one with the Debut.
In some cases a card will have their Debut include both a when and a modifier. For example Coup D'Etat's Debut is "Play this on the starting block. The heroes collectively discard 2 Legacy cards". "Playing on the starting block" is a modifier, while "The heroes collectively discard 2 Legacy cards" is a when effect.
Wrangler explores a block that turns out to be the Impossible Academy. The Block is set up, with Occam's Razor and two Social Networkings as well as the Endangered Ally and Spark Plug city cards. The Academy has a Debut that puts a Metahuman card from the Union trash on the block, Endangered Ally has a Debut that reveals cards from the Union deck then puts one under it, and Spark Plug has a debut that takes the most expensive Union card from the trash or board.
The entire explore effect is resolved, playing the block, putting the cards on it, and moving Wrangler there. This effect has triggered three "when" effects (the three Debuts), which can be triggered in any order (you do not have to do the Academy first just because it was triggered earlier in the explore effect).
As it happens, Wrangler chooses to resolve Endangered Ally first, which puts Master Summoner under itself and several cards including Scientific Genius and Just a Blur into the trash. Then he has Spark Plug's when effect resolve, putting Scientific Genius (which is now the most expensive card in the trash/on the board) under itself, and finally the Impossible Academy puts a Metahuman card from the trash on itself, with Wrangler choosing Just a Blur.
Starting Triggers and Resolving Effects
If starting a trigger is conditional on something else in the game, this is checked when it is triggered, not when it is resolved. Even if the condition is no longer true when the trigger actually resolves, it will still happen. A common one is enemies that deal damage when attacked, even if the attack defeats them, they still deal the damage.
Conversely, if part of the trigger's effect (not the condition for triggering it, but the effect itself) depends on something else, this is checked when it is resolved.
A hypothetical enemy has the effect "When you attack this, if you have 6 or less heroism Escalate 1 for each enemy on the board". "If you have 6 or less heroism" is part of how the effect is triggered, whereas "Escalate 1 for each enemy on the board" is part of the effect itself.
So in this case, if you had 8 heroism when you attacked the enemy, but only 4 when you eventually resolved the effect, it would still occur. However, the amount you Escalate would be the number on the board at the time you resolve the effect, not the number when you attacked. For example, if you had defeated the enemy, it would not count itself as it is no longer on the board when the trigger is resolved.
Counter and Gambit phases
- When damage is dealt to a hero (but not an enemy) a special phase is created where heroes can play Counters/Gambits. The creation of this phase is a when effect, but has some differences to other when effects.
Firstly, unlike other effects (i.e. when you defeat an enemy heal 2 damage) the effect here is not something that just occurs before moving to the next effect. Here a Counter/Gambit phase is created, in which various counters and gambits (effects) can be used, which might cause their own chains of "when" effects, and only once this is complete do you move to the next effect outside of the Counter/Gambit phase.
Secondly, when Counter/Gambit phases are created as a when effect any other when effects must be resolved first, this branch must be left for last. If the same effect dealt damage to several heroes the Counter/Gambit phases must be resolved in the order damage was dealt. Note that if an effect deals damage to several heroes without specifying an order (e.g. "deal each hero 3 damage" or "deal the two nearest heroes 5 damage each") the heroes can choose the order. Contrast this to "You and the next hero are each dealt 3 damage" which specifies the order of you, then the next hero.
While in this phase a Counter or Gambit can make its own chain of when effects, possibly branching. These are resolved as normal. Once that whole chain is resolved the players are still in the Counter/Gambit phase and can use more if they wish (for example using cards they gained via the chain). Only when the heroes decide they have nothing more to play does the phase end. When the phase ends, the damage (if any) that has not been removed by defense is then taken.
In some cases, damage can be dealt to a hero when you are already in a Counter/Gambit phase. If this happens, then after the current Counter/Gambit phase is resolved, and after the damage (if any) has been taken, the new Counter/Gambit phase is created to deal with the new damage as a when effect of the original Counter/Gambit phase.
Everything that occurs in the Gambit/Counter phase, everything that caused the phase (e.g. dealing damage), and everything it causes (e.g. taking damage) are all considered part of the same chain.
Captain Jupiter is on 1 stamina and Mother Munchausen deals her 2 critical damage, which would take her out. However, she has Alpha Predator and can defeat Mother Munchausen with the Counter, which will gain 6 stamina. Does she get taken out?
No. She does not actually take the damage until after the entire Counter/Gambit phase has resolved, and it is during that phase that Mother Munchausen is defeated and the healing happens.
Munchausen threatens, moving to your block (which is likely her block already, given her threat of 0), dealing 2 critical damage and beginning the Counter/Gambit phase. Alpha Predator is used, dealing damage to Munchausen. This triggers the when effect that defeats Mother Munchausen (as she now has at least as much damage as max stamina), and that in turn triggers her Defeat text, healing Captain Jupiter and giving the option to destroy a card. Once this chain has resolved, Captain Jupiter is still in her counter/gambit phase, but chooses not to use any more (the damage is critical so gaining defense is pointless).
Once that phase has ended, the 2 damage is finally taken, but at this point Captain Jupiter can withstand it. Note that although Mother Munchausen is no longer in play, the damage is still taken. Once the damage has been dealt, interfering with the source of the damage does nothing.
Atomic Kaiju threatens Odysseus, moving to his block and assaulting, dealing 5 damage. This triggers two when effects, the Nuclear Breath rule and the Counter/Gambit phase from damage being dealt. The Counter/Gambit has to be done after all other branches, so Nuclear Breath is resolved first, trashing the nearest Union card, which is a Chain Summoning.
The Counter/Gambit phase then starts. Inside this phase Odysseus uses the Counter of Trojan horse, gaining defense and drawing cards. This draws Clever Captain, and as we are still in the Counter/Gambit phase, its Counter can also be used, gaining 2 defense. Even though he didn't have Clever Captain at the time damage was dealt, it can still be used as it was drawn during the Counter/Gambit phase.
The heroes elect to not use any Counters or Gambits, the phase ends. When the phase ends the remaining one damage is taken.
Captain Jupiter attacks Kurt Von Kessel, defeating him. His defeat effect lets her destroy a card and she wishes to destroy Cosmic Gauntlets, but can she also use their defense against the counter attack from Roid Rage?
She can, assuming she chooses wisely. When she attacks Kurt and deals him 5 damage (he already had 1 damage on him), two when effects are triggered. One is him being defeated, as he now has sufficient damage. The second is his Roid Rage effect, which has him assault her. Both branches are caused by the same thing, and Captain Jupiter can choose which to resolve first.
She chooses the branch with him dealing damage. He assaults, dealing 4 damage. This triggers a Counter/Gambit phase, where she uses Cosmic Gauntlet's counter to gain 1 defense, increased to 2 by his Buffoonish Beefcake rule.
She chooses not to use any more Counters or Gambits, so the phase ends. Then the remaining damage (2) is taken by her. This branch is now complete, so she continues to the other branch triggered by attacking Kurt.
Kurt is defeated, going to the trash. This then triggers his defeat effect, gaining heroism and letting her destroy the Cosmic Gauntlets. Note that she COULD have chosen to resolve the branch with Kurt being defeated first, but if she did so she would have had to destroy the Cosmic Gauntlets before the Counter/Gambit phase, and thus would not have been able to use their defense.
During the Peril phase, Wrath of the Underworld is played, in turn playing Drive by. Drive by instructs you to play a Gangster card on the current hero (Lady Sunbeam), have it threaten them and then threaten the next hero (Wrangler). This is complicated by several modifiers. This game is using the Epic Gangsters, and the Gangster played is a Raptor Smuggler, whose Back Alley Escape rule means that when it threatens instead of moving to a hero it moves to a block in range 1 of them, which it does for both Threatens. Also, the card Watering Hole is in play, increasing the fight of the Smuggler by 2, so it deals 5 damage when it threatens. All of these things are a single effect, as it is all part of the Peril being played, and none of the rules (Back Alley Escape on the Smugglers or Fighting Drunk on the Watering Hole) involved are when effects, they are modifiers.
At the end of this effect Wrath of the Underworld and Drive By are in their trashes, the Smuggler is on a block in range 1 of Wrangler, and 5 damage has been dealt to Lady Sunbeam and Wrangler, creating Counter/Gambit phases for each. The one for Lady Sunbeam must be resolved first, as this was dealt first. The phase is begun, and Lady Sunbeam uses the counter of Blinding Flash, discarding it to gain 2 defense. This triggers two when effects, one for Aurora and one for Ithacan Warrior. She chooses to use the effect of Aurora first, letting another hero (Wrangler) draw a card, which turns out to be Master Summoner.
As Master Summoner has an Alert (a when effect), this creates another effect. This must be resolved next, as we must finish the branch we are in (that starting from the when effect of Aurora) before any others. This Alert draws Lady Sunbeam Urban Hunter and Alpha Predator, and Wrangler Disarming Dash. Now this branch that began with Aurora has finished, we return to the other trigger from the counter on Blinding Flash, Ithacan Warrior's effect. This deals 2 damage to an enemy in range 1 of Sunbeam. This cannot be used to deal damage to the Smuggler, as it is not in range of Lady Sunbeam (it is at a block in range 1 of Wrangler at this time), so she instead deals damage to the nearby Red Leech.
She then uses the Alpha Predator she drew, dealing 5 damage and defeating the Smuggler. Although the Smuggler is no longer anywhere near her, Alpha Predator just deals damage to "that enemy", and the Range 0 of Alpha Predator refers to the target of the damage (Lady Sunbeam), not the dealer. This damage is enough to defeat the Smuggler, which resolves as the next when effect putting the Smuggler in the Gangster trash. The heroes decide not to use any more Counters or Gambits, so the phase ends and the remaining 3 damage is taken.
With this entire branch resolved, we go to the other branch triggered by the Peril card, the Counter/Gambit for Wrangler's damage. Although the Smuggler is in the trash now, the damage has still been dealt. Wrangler uses the Counter of Tougher'n a $2 Steak, gaining defense. The card True Grit increases the defense by 2 (note this is a modifier to the counter, not a when effect). Wrangler then uses the Counter of Disarming dash, gaining another 2 defense.
The heroes elect not to use any more counters or gambits, so the phase ends and any remaining damage is taken. In this case there is no damage left due to the defense gained, so Wrangler takes no damage.