Unmatched: Teen Spirit
Unmatched: Teen Spirit Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- 8 sidekick tokens
- 90 action cards
- 4 characters
- 4 health dials
- 3 character cards
- 3 scheme tokens
- 3 combat tokens
- 1 game board
Squirrel Girl
- 30 action cards
- 1 Squirrel Girl hero character
- 1 Squirrel Girl character card
- 8 Squirrel sidekick tokens
- 1 health dial
Ms. Marvel
- 30 action cards
- 1 Ms. Marvel hero character
- 1 Ms. Marvel character card
- 1 health dial
Cloak & Dagger
- 30 action cards
- 1 Cloak hero character
- 1 Dagger hero character
- 1 Cloak & Dagger character card
- 1 Cloak health dial
- 1 Dagger health dial
Battlefield Items
- 1 helium balloons token
- 1 XL Slushie token
- 1 Zazoom token
- 1 snow globe token
- 1 garbage can lid token
- 1 parking meter token
Before you play for the first time, assemble the health dials by punching out the circles for each character and connecting them with a rivet.
Heroes & Sidekicks
All of your characters in the battle are called your fighters, but your primary fighter is called your hero. Heroes are represented by miniatures that move around on the battlefield.
Your other fighters are called sidekicks. Heroes may have multiple sidekicks, a single sidekick, or no sidekicks at all. Sidekicks are represented by tokens that move around on the battlefield.
Each hero has a special ability noted on their character card. This card also lists your fighters' stats, including the starting health of your hero and their sidekick. Fighters' health is tracked on separate health dials. Fighters cannot gain health higher than the highest number on their health dial.
How to Play
Players take turns maneuvering their fighters on the battlefield, playing schemes, and attacking their opponent's fighters. To win, you must be the first to defeat your opponent's hero, which happens when they are reduced to zero health.
Note: These setup instructions and the following rules are for games with 2 players. For rules for playing with 3 or 4 players, see the Free-for-All section.
Setup
- Choose a battlefield and place it on the table.
- Each player chooses a hero and takes the corresponding action cards, character card, hero miniature, sidekick tokens (if any), and health dials.
- Each player sets their hero's starting health on the matching health dials. Starting health is found on the character cards. (Sidekicks without a health dial have only one health each.)
- Each player shuffles their action cards to form a single deck and places it face down, then draws 5 cards as their starting hand.
- The younger player places their hero in the 1 space on the battlefield. If your fighter has more than one hero (like Cloak & Dagger), place one figure on the starting space and the other hero in a separate space within the same zone. If the starting space is part of multiple zones, the other hero may be in any of those zones.
- The older player places their hero in the 2 space on the battlefield based on the same rules as in step 5.
- The younger player takes the first turn.
The Field of Battle
Spaces and Zones
The battlefield is made up of circular spaces that the fighters will move between. Each space can only contain one fighter at a time (except for squirrels, described in the Squirrel Girl: Squirrels section).
Two spaces connected by a line are adjacent. Adjacency is used to determine targets of attacks and various card effects.
The spaces of the battlefield are divided into zones, which are indicated by different colors. All spaces with the same color are part of the same zone (even if they are in different parts of the battlefield).
If a space has multiple colors, it is considered to be part of multiple zones. Zones are used to determine targets of ranged attacks and various card effects.
Note: This set contains the same battlefield on both sides of the board. On one side, the colored spaces are filled in with different patterns, which can be especially helpful for players with vision deficiencies. The other side has empty circles, where zones are only indicated by the circle's color. Both sides play exactly the same.
Your Turn
On your turn, you must take 2 actions; you cannot skip an action. You may choose two different actions or the same action twice.
The possible actions are:
- Maneuver
- Scheme
- Attack
You have a hand limit of 7 cards. At the end of your turn, if you have more than 7 cards in your hand, you must discard down to 7 cards, placing any discarded cards in your discard pile.
Then it is your opponent's turn.
Anatomy of a Card
- A — Overall card type: Attack, Defense, Scheme, or Versatile (attack or defense).
- B — Attack or defense value (if any).
- C — Fighter allowed to use the card.
- D — Name of the card.
- E — Effect when played (if any).
- F — BOOST value.
- G — Deck that the card appears in.
- H — Number of copies in the deck.
Each hero's deck is different, though they may share some cards with other heroes' decks.
Action: Maneuver
When you take the maneuver action, you first draw the top card of your deck, then you may move your fighters.
Step 1: Draw a Card (Mandatory)
Draw the top card of your deck and add it to your hand.
You can have more than 7 cards in your hand during your turn, but you must discard down to 7 cards at the end of your turn.
Drawing cards — whether via the maneuver action or due to a card effect — is mandatory, unless otherwise specified.
When your deck is empty, your fighters are exhausted. If you need to draw a card while your fighters are exhausted, do not reshuffle your discard pile. Instead, each of your fighters immediately takes 2 damage.
Step 2: Move Your Fighters (Optional)
Your character card lists your move value. During this step, you may move each of your fighters, one at a time, a number of spaces equal to or less than your move value. You may also choose to BOOST your movement (see below).
When you move a fighter, each space they move into must be adjacent to their previous space. You may move a fighter through spaces occupied by other friendly fighters (i.e., your own fighters), but they cannot end their movement in an occupied space. You may not move a fighter through spaces occupied by opposing fighters.
You may move your fighters in the order of your choice, but must finish each fighter's move before starting the next. You are not required to move all of your fighters the same distance as each other; you get to choose for each fighter. You are allowed to move a fighter zero spaces.
Note: If an effect ever lets you move your opponent's fighters, you must respect all of the same movement rules, but from your opponent's perspective.
Boost
When you take the maneuver action, you may boost your movement. To do this, discard 1 card from your hand and add that card's BOOST value to your move value. Ignore any effect on the discarded card.
Certain effects (like Ms. Marvel's Big Wind Up card) allow you to boost other things, such as the value of an attack.
Cards that can no longer legally be played — because the corresponding fighter or fighters have been defeated — may still be discarded from your hand to boost.
Action: Scheme
When you take the scheme action, you choose a scheme card (indicated by the scheme icon) from your hand and play it onto the table, face up.
You must declare which of your fighters is playing the scheme card; they are the active fighter. Each card in your deck indicates which fighters are allowed to play it. You may not play a scheme card if the listed fighters are defeated.
Resolve the card's effect, then place the card into your discard pile.
Discard piles: Maintain your own discard pile. All cards, once played and resolved, should be placed in the discard pile. Keep your discard pile face up to differentiate it from your deck. Both you and your opponent are allowed to look through your discard pile at any time.
Action: Attack
When you take the attack action, you must declare which of your fighters is performing the attack; they are the active fighter. You may not take the attack action if you do not have an attack card in hand or if none of your fighters have valid targets to attack.
Step 1: Declare Target
Any fighter may target a fighter in an adjacent space, regardless of what zone they are in.
Fighters with melee attacks (indicated by the melee icon) may only target a fighter in an adjacent space.
Fighters with ranged attacks (indicated by the ranged icon) may target an adjacent fighter or they may target a fighter anywhere in the same zone, regardless of adjacency.
Step 2: Choose and Reveal
As the attacker, you must choose an attack card from your hand and play it face down in front of you; it must be a card that your attacking fighter is allowed to use. Then the defender may (but is not required to) choose a defense card from their hand and place it face down in front of them; it must be a card that their defending fighter is allowed to use. Once both players have chosen their cards, reveal them at the same time.
Versatile cards: Cards with the versatile icon are versatile cards. They can be used as attack cards or defense cards. Versatile cards also count as both attack cards and defense cards for the purposes of other game effects.
Step 3: Resolve Combat
Most cards have effects, with labels indicating when they occur: IMMEDIATELY, DURING COMBAT, or AFTER COMBAT. Unless otherwise specified, card effects are mandatory (which can result in dealing damage to your own fighters or other negative effects).
If two effects would ever appear to resolve at the same time, the defender's effect resolves first.
After cards have been revealed, resolve any effects that occur IMMEDIATELY. Then resolve any effects that occur DURING COMBAT.
Then determine the result of the combat. The attacker deals combat damage to the defender equal to the value of their played attack card. If the defender played a defense card, subtract the value of their played defense card first. For each damage that the defender takes, reduce that fighter's health by one, adjusting their health dial accordingly.
After the result of the combat has been determined, resolve any card effects that occur AFTER COMBAT. Even if a player's fighter is defeated during the combat, as long as that does not trigger the end of the game, any AFTER COMBAT effects of their played card still resolve.
After card effects are resolved, resolve any other game effects that occur after combat, such as a hero's special ability.
Finally, all played cards are placed in their respective discard piles.
Winning the combat: Some AFTER COMBAT effects check to see who won the combat.
The attacker won the combat if they dealt at least one combat damage (i.e., damage to the defender from the attack itself, not from any effects).
The defender won the combat if they took no combat damage from the attack itself (even if they took damage from effects).
Defeating a Fighter
When one of your fighters is reduced to zero health, for any reason, they are defeated.
If your hero's sidekick is defeated, immediately remove that sidekick token from the battlefield. (A sidekick without a health dial only has 1 health and is defeated if they take any damage.)
If your hero is defeated, you immediately lose the game.
Winning the Game
When your opponent's hero is defeated, which happens when they are reduced to zero health, the game ends immediately and you win!
(In a team game, both opposing heroes must be defeated.)
Combat Example
Kamala is playing Ms. Marvel. Doreen is playing Squirrel Girl. It's Kamala's turn, and she wants to attack Squirrel Girl, who she can reach because of her Stretchy ability.
Ms. Marvel is in more zones than Squirrel Girl, so it's a perfect time to play Embiggen! Kamala plays it as her attack card, face down. (DURING COMBAT: If Ms. Marvel is in more zones than the opposing fighter, the value of this card is 6 instead.)
Doreen has two cards in hand: Call of the Mild and Squirgility, both of which she can play on defense. She chooses Call of the Mild and plays it as her defense card, face down. (DURING COMBAT: If there are four or more squirrels in your fighter's zone, the value of this card is 4 instead. AFTER COMBAT: If you won the combat, draw 2 cards.)
Both cards have during combat effects. The defender (Squirrel Girl) resolves Call of the Mild first. There are 4 squirrels in Squirrel Girl's zone, so the value of the card changes to 4.
Next, Kamala resolves Embiggen's during combat effect. Because Ms. Marvel is in more zones than Squirrel Girl, the value of that card changes to 6. Using the new combat values, Ms. Marvel deals 2 damage to Squirrel Girl.
Call of the Mild also has an after combat effect. Squirrel Girl did not win the combat because she took combat damage, so she does not get to draw any cards.
Special Rules for This Set
Cloak & Dagger: Dual Heroes
Cloak & Dagger are a pair of fighters. Each fighter is a separate hero with their own health dial. If something affects a player's "hero", you choose whether it affects Cloak or Dagger. When either Cloak or Dagger is defeated, remove them from the board like any other fighter. However, you only lose the game if both are defeated.
Squirrel Girl: Squirrels
Squirrel Girl's sidekicks are squirrels. Do not place any squirrels at the start of the game. At the start of each of your turns, you may summon a squirrel following these summoning rules:
- If you have any squirrel tokens off the board, place one squirrel on an empty space adjacent to Squirrel Girl.
- If all of your squirrel tokens are on the board, take one squirrel from the board and place it on an empty space adjacent to Squirrel Girl.
Squirrels are small fighters. Only fighters identified as "small fighters" on their character card are considered small. (For example, Alice from the Battle of Legends, Vol. 1 set is not a small fighter.) Being small has a number of effects:
- Opposing fighters may move through them, and they may move through opposing fighters.
- A small fighter may share a space with another fighter, including opposing fighters. Small fighters are considered adjacent to spaces they are in and to fighters they share a space with, so a small fighter may attack an opposing fighter in their space and vice-versa.
- Up to 4 small fighters may share the same space (in addition to any other fighter).
- If a small fighter takes damage, all small fighters of the same type in that space take an equal amount of damage. (So, if a squirrel takes any damage, it and all other squirrels in its space are defeated.)
Ms. Marvel: Stretchy
Ms. Marvel is a melee fighter. Her special ability lets her attack a fighter 2 spaces away, even if they are not in the same zone or if another fighter is in the space between them. When Ms. Marvel attacks a fighter who is not adjacent to her, it is still considered a melee attack.
Many of Ms. Marvel's cards check for how many zones fighters are in:
- She is in "more zones" than an opposing fighter if she is in a multicolored space with more colors than the opposing fighter's space.
- She "shares no zones" with an opposing fighter if her space has none of the same colors as the opposing fighter's space.
Battlefield Items
Teen Spirit has six Battlefield Item tokens: three scheme items and three combat items. At the beginning of the game, randomly place one item token in each designated space on the board. The effects aren't secret — feel free to place face up or face down as you prefer.
Note: If you have battlefield items from other sets, you can randomly choose from all of the tokens you have.
Your fighter may use a scheme item when they are on the space with that token. Resolve the effect on the token and return it to the box. Using a scheme item counts as one of your actions, but it does not count as playing a scheme card for other effects.
Your fighter may use a combat item when they play a combat card (attack, defense, or versatile) while on a space with that token. When you play the card, take the token and place it next to your card. If you are attacking, choose whether to use the token before your opponent decides whether they are playing a defense card. The card you play gains the following effect: "DURING COMBAT: The value of this card is increased by the value on the token." If your card has a during combat effect, choose the order to resolve the card and token effects. The token effect may be canceled like a card effect. After combat, return the token to the box.
Free-for-All
Teen Spirit includes three heroes, but the game board has four starting spaces. You can mix and match heroes from this set with any other Unmatched set to play with three or four players using the following rules:
- On a hero's first turn of the game, they may only attack the hero whose turn is immediately after them or a hero who has already taken their turn. In a game with three heroes, this means that the hero going first cannot attack the hero going third. (In a game with four heroes, the hero going first may not attack the hero going third or fourth, and the hero going second may not attack the hero going fourth.)
- When cards or effects refer to your "opponent", this includes all other players.
- A player is eliminated when their hero is defeated. Immediately remove their sidekick from the board, if any. The winner is the last player whose hero is not defeated.
Team Play
You can also play Unmatched in teams of 2 by adding a hero from any other set. Teammates sit next to each other on the same side of the battlefield, and they may communicate about their cards and tactics, but each player controls their own hero and sidekick. Your teammate's fighters are considered friendly fighters. For team play with three players, one player will control both heroes and sidekicks for one team.
Choose a battlefield with four starting spaces. (Some battlefields in other sets have only two starting spaces and therefore cannot be used for team play.)
During setup, players place their heroes in alternating order:
- First player on Team A places their hero in the 1 space.
- First player on Team B places their hero in the 2 space.
- Second player on Team A places their hero in the 3 space.
- Second player on Team B places their hero in the 4 space.
When placing their hero, each player also places their sidekick within the same zone, as normal.
During the game, players take turns in alternating order:
- First player on Team A takes their turn.
- First player on Team B takes their turn.
- Second player on Team A takes their turn.
- Second player on Team B takes their turn.
This order repeats for the rest of the game.
When a player's hero is defeated, immediately remove that hero miniature from the battlefield. That player still takes their turns as normal, as long as they have their sidekick left. If all of a player's fighters are defeated, they are eliminated and do not take any more turns.
When both heroes on one team have been defeated, the opposing team wins!
Icon Reference
- Attack icon: This card can only be used to attack.
- Defense icon: This card can only be used to defend against an attack.
- Versatile icon: This card can be used to attack or defend.
- Scheme icon: As an action, this card can be played for its effect.
- Ranged icon: This fighter may make ranged and melee attacks.
- Melee icon: This fighter may only make melee attacks.
Credits
Unmatched is, like, totes awesome, and was restored from Star Wars: Epic Duels, designed by Craig Van Ness and Rob Daviau and published by Milton Bradley. Zone rules inspired by the Pathfinding System from Tannhäuser, designed by William Grosselin and Didier Poli and published by Fantasy Flight Games.
- Game Restoration: Jayme Boucher, Brian Neff, Noah Cohen, Rob Daviau, Justin D. Jacobson, and Tim Wiesch
- Graphic Design: Jason Taylor, Lindsay Daviau, Chris Bilheimer, and Jason D. Kingsley
- Cover and Card Illustration: Heather Vaughan
- Board Illustration: Ian O'Toole
- Project Management: Suzanne Sheldon
- Licensing: Mondo
- Pithy Squirrel Girl Marginalia: Ryan North
Thank you to everyone who helped playtest the game! You're all wonderful people. We mean it.
©2022 Restoration Games, LLC. The following are trademarks of Restoration Games, LLC: Restoration Games, the Restoration Games logo, Unmatched, the Unmatched logo, the "In Battle, There Are No Equals" tagline, and all associated trade dress. Restoration Games, LLC is located at 12717 W SUNRISE BLVD, #244, Sunrise, FL 33323. Actual components may vary from those shown. Made in China. THIS PRODUCT IS NOT A TOY. NOT INTENDED FOR USE BY PERSONS 13 YEARS OF AGE OR YOUNGER.
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