Verrix Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Common Area Setup
• Player Area Setup
  • Ability Card
  • Village Card
  • Travel Card
  • Tribesman, Hostage and Leader
• Playing Order and End of Setup
  • Territories, Sea Areas and Movement
• How to Play
  • Month Turn
  • Event Phase
  • Action Phase
  • Cleanup Phase
  • Festival Turn
• End of the Game
• Action, Reaction and Support
  • Development
  • Trade
  • Raid
  • Battle

Components

• 5x Setup Cards in 5 colours (1 for each tribe)
• 5x Leader Cards in 5 colours (1 for each tribe)
• 7x Common Leader Cards
• 5x Portum Itium Cards
• 5x Rules Reference Cards
• 5x Ability Cards in 5 colours (1 for each tribe)
• 70x Action Cards in 5 colours (14 for each tribe)
• 20x Event Cards
• 5x Village Cards in 5 colours (1 for each tribe)
• 5x Travel Cards in 5 colours (1 for each tribe)
• Rulebook
• Kings' Board
• Battle Board
• 4x Trophy tiles
• 67x Goods tiles
• 4x Festival tiles
• 3x Movement Cost tiles
• 1x Kings' ring tile (First player)
• 7x Mórrígan tokens with bag
• 35x Tribesman meeples in 5 colours (7 for each tribe)
• 5x "55" Victory Points tokens in 5 colours (1 for each tribe)
• 20x Divine Will cubes
• 5x Common Leader meeples
• 5x Leader meeples in 5 colours (1 for each tribe)
• 15x Village tokens in 5 colours (3 for each tribe)
• 10x Victory Points/Playing Order discs in 5 colours (2 for each tribe)

Common Area Setup

Place the Kings' Board in the centre of the common play area, then place:

• (A) all 4 Festival tiles, with the text visible, on spaces 3, 6, 9 and 12 of the Turn track;
• (B) 1 black disc in space 1 of the Turn track. It will be used to indicate the current turn during the game;
• (C) Movement Cost tile "A" in the Movement Costs space.

The Common Pool identifies a space within the common play area that includes the Portum Itium market. Portum Itium market is part of the Common Pool. Everything you can find at the historic Roman harbour is placed in this specific area.

Place the Battle Board next to the Kings' Board then:

• (D) place the second black disc in the central space of the Battle Track (value: 3);
• (E) place the bag containing the 7 Mórrígan tokens next to the Battle Board.

Finally, set up the Common Pool so that it is easily accessible to all players with:

• (F) Movement Cost tiles "B" and "C";
• (G) trophy tiles;
• (H) Divine Will cubes;
• (I) Event Cards deck, shuffled and covered, showing the Verrix logo and the tree of life;
• (M) grey Common Leader Cards;
• (N) grey leader meeples (one for each player);
• (L) good tiles in the Portum Itium market space.

The Mórrígan was considered one of the most important deities and was traditionally associated with fate and war. Myths tell that she took part in famous battles bringing victory to her side and then turning into a raven claiming the life of the dying defeated.

Note: Divine Will is not considered a good and cannot be traded or raided. The amount of goods and Divine Will is not infinite. If they run out during the game they must become available again before a player can gain them.

Player Area Setup

Each tribe has a main trait that opposing tribes are less keen to pursue:

• Blue tribe: Battle
• Orange tribe: Raid
• Purple tribe: Mysticism
• Green tribe: Trade
• Yellow tribe: Craftsmanship

Wondering why red is missing from the game? Roman soldiers wore red tunics, and officers wore a cloak called paludamentum that, depending on the quality of the used dye could be crimson or scarlet. Red was therefore the Romans' colour. In Verrix, Romans have not set foot in Britannia yet, that is why you won't find this colour.

Each player chooses the tribe they consider the most suitable and takes all the equipment of the corresponding colour: 1 Ability Card, 1 Village Card, 1 Travel Card, 1 Leader Card, 1 Rules Reference Card, 1 Portum Itium Card, 14 Action Cards, 1 Setup Card, 7 tribesman meeples, 1 leader meeple, 2 Discs, 3 village tokens and 1 "55" Victory Points tile.

Each player then places their tribe's equipment, taking into account the following guidelines:

• (A) the Ability Card, Village Card, Travel Card and Leader Card must be placed in each player's area, so that everyone can see them;
• (B) the Rules Reference Card and the Portum Itium Card can be placed next to the Village Card or next to the Travel Card;
• (C) 5 tribesman meeples and the leader meeple, available from the beginning of the game, must be placed in the player area, so that everyone can see them;
• (D) the other 2 tribesman meeples, which can be acquired during the game, must be placed in the Portum Itium market area along with the goods tiles;
• (E) the 3 village tokens must be placed so that everyone can see them;
• (F) the "55" tiles must be placed in each player's area;
• (G) 1 disc must be placed on space 3 of the Victory Points track;
• all 14 Action Cards must be divided into 2 small decks:
  • (H) 1 deck with 9 Basic Action cards, the ones with the black stripe, they are available at the beginning of the game;
  • (I) 1 deck with the 5 Special Action cards, the ones with the red stripe, they can be acquired and added to the Basic Action cards during the game.

Finally, each player looks at their Setup Card (J) and takes all the depicted resources from the Common Pool (K) and places them on their own Village Card.

Players who are entitled to a hostage must choose one tribesman meeple from the Portum Itium market. It is not possible for a player to take one of their own tribesman meeples at the beginning of the game.

Fame may be gained and lost! It is not possible to drop below 1 on the Victory Points track, whereas if a player exceeds 55, they start at 1 again, placing the "55" token under their disc.

Ability Card

The Ability Card grants a benefit for the duration of the whole game. Make sure you read it carefully to learn its effect and when you can use it.

The Purple Tribe's Ability Card provides the permanent effect Benevolence. This effect allows the player, only during the Event Phase and only when an Event Card is drawn, to read the card, discard it if they don't like it and draw a new one. This second card cannot be discarded again.

Village Card

This card represents all the "Regiones" (territories) where there is a village token of your tribe.

All tribesman meeples and leader meeples placed on this card can be used until the Cleanup Phase of the current Month Turn only to defend your Village in case of Raid or Battle.

The good tiles, trophy tiles and hostages on this card are available for use, but other players can target them with Trade or Raid actions.

Travel Card

This card represents any "Regiones" (territories) other than the ones where there is a village token of your tribe, including the Portum Itium market location.

All tribesman meeples and leader meeples placed on this card are no longer available until the Cleanup Phase of the current Month Turn, not even to defend your Village in case of Raid or Battle.

Good tiles, trophy tiles and hostages placed on this card cannot be used until the current Month Turn Cleanup Phase, but as long as they are on the Travel Card, no other player can target them with Trade or Raid actions.

Tribesman, Hostage and Leader

Each tribe has 2 kinds of units: tribesman and leader.

Tribesman can perform any Action, have a STRENGTH value always equal to 1 and can carry 1 good or 1 hostage. A hostage is a captive tribesman (e.g. a Blue tribe tribesman on the Purple tribe's Village Card) or any tribesman in the Portum Itium market.

A hostage in a Village can't be used to defend the Village or to perform Actions.

Hostages rescued by their own tribes through a Raid or Trade action become tribesmen again during the next Cleanup Phase.

The leader, featuring a Leader Card, is particularly trained in carrying out Actions related to their class (A): Craftsman, Warrior, Merchant or Mystic.

The leader has a variable STRENGTH (B) value and can carry, normally, 1 good or 1 hostage. They can also be equipped with goods that cannot be traded or raided.

Goods that are placed on a Leader Card's spaces (C) allow to benefit from different types of bonuses (D):

• Decreases Movement Cost by 1 when the leader is used to perform actions away from the Village.
• Permanently increases the leader's STRENGTH by 1.
• Allows you to gain 1 Victory Point during the Cleanup Phase.
• Increases the transport capacity of the leader by 1 good or 1 hostage.
• Improves the effectiveness of some Battle action cards.

We define as "available" all the tribesmen and leaders that have not been used to perform an Action yet. Each player must keep them in their playing area so that they are visible to all opposing players.

We define as "engaged" all the tribesmen and leaders that have been used to perform Actions. If the Action they performed has taken place at the Village they are placed on the Village Card. If the action has taken place in a different location, they are placed on the Travel Card.

Playing Order and End of Setup

At the beginning of the game, determine the first player as you prefer, maybe choosing the oldest player to honour their wisdom...

The first player takes the Kings' Ring tile and places the disc of their tribe on the Kings' Board in the first space at the top of 1 of the 2 tracks of the Playing Order. Then, in clockwise order, all other players place their discs in the first available spaces below.

The first player immediately gains 1 Victory Point. This will happen only at the beginning of the game, see below to read about how the order of play works during the game.

Finally, to complete the preparation each player, following the Playing Order, places a village token of their tribe in 1 of the 3 territories indicated on their Setup Card. The other 2 village tokens may be placed during the game.

After placing the village token, put their Setup Card in the box, you will not need it for the rest of the game.

Territories, Sea Areas and Movement

The territory where you have placed your first village token may influence, at least in part, your strategy for the game.

The map shown on the Kings' Board is divided into territories (Regiones) and sea areas (Oceanus). When performing actions, the Village Card and the Travel Card always refer to a territory.

In order to perform actions away from your Village, in territories other than the one where you have placed 1 of your tribe's village tokens, you must make a movement and pay a Movement Cost in Provisions tiles. If you do not have enough Provisions to complete the movement, net of any bonuses, the action cannot be carried out.

Note: When a player has more than one village token in the territories of the Kings' Board map, the total number of Provisions tiles to be placed at Portum Itium market must be calculated considering the movement starting in the nearest village token.

Territory and Sea Area Movement Costs are indicated on the Movement Costs tile on the Kings' Board. At the beginning of the game the Movement Cost is 1 Provisions per territory and 2 Provisions per sea area you cross. Costs may change temporarily, for one Month Turn only, due to some Event cards.

The total number of Provisions that must be placed at Portum Itium market to complete the movement is the sum of all Movement Costs the player has to cross in order to reach their destination (the starting territory is not included, while the destination is).

If while moving, you cross a territory that contains an opposing player's village token, give that player one Provisions you were supposed to give back to the Portum Itium market. The tribute must be paid even if the moving player benefits from a bonus that would allow them to reach the destination territory for free.

Note: There is no wrong territory to place your tribe's village tokens in, but always consider carefully the distance between your village tokens and your opponent's. Always consider the distance between the territories where your village tokens are placed and the territories where your opponents' tokens are placed and the Portum Itium market!

How to Play

The game is played in 12 turns. After 2 Month Turns, when players perform actions, there is always 1 Festival Turn when players gain Victory Points by reaching the objectives described on the Festival tiles.

Month Turn

Each Month Turn is divided into three phases:

• Event phase;
• Action phase;
• Cleanup Phase.

Event Phase

Each player, following the playing order, moves 3 Divine Will cubes from their tribe's Village Card to the Common Pool and draws 1 Event Card. Players who do not have enough Divine Will cannot draw an Event Card, they will not participate in the Event Phase.

Note: If the Event Card deck runs out, the Event Phase ends immediately and it is not performed again until the end of the game.

The Event Phase ends when all players had the chance to spend Divine Will to draw 1 Event Card.

Some Event cards have an immediate effect. The player immediately reads the text aloud, applies the effect and then discards the card in a discard pile next to the Event Cards deck.

Example: The player that draws the Event Card The Gift reads the text aloud (a) and applies the effect (b):

• takes 1 Cow tile from the Portum Itium market or, if available, from another player's Village Card;
• then places the Cow tile and one of their own tribesman meeple on the Travel Card.

Note: Event Cards take priority over the rules. If at any point an Event Card allows you to play against the general rules, follow the card.

Other Event Cards have a delayed effect that is described on the card itself (c). In this case the player reads the text (d) without revealing it to the other players and places the card, covered, in their playing area.

Example: The player who draws the Event Card Arianrhod reads the text (d) without revealing it and places the card in their playing area. During an Action Phase of any Month Turn, only during their turn, the player applies the effect (e):

• looks at the first 3 cards at the top of the Event Cards deck and rearranges them, as they prefer, placing them back on the top of the deck.

A player cannot have more than one Event Card in their playing area. If they draw a second one they must choose one to keep and discard the other.

The player discards the delayed effect card in a discard pile next to the Event Cards deck only after applying the effect.

Action Phase

Each player, following the playing order, engages their tribe's units to play a Development, Trade or Raid Action Card or to declare a Battle. Players take turns playing their cards until all of them cannot or will not play a card to perform an action and pass.

When a player passes, they move the disc of their colour onto the first free space (top to bottom) of the other order column. The other order column shows the playing order of the next Month Turn.

The player who passes first will be the first to play in the next turn and immediately gains 1 Victory Point.

Example: The playing order of the current Month Turn represented in the image is Blue, Purple, Green, Orange and Yellow. When the Green player passes, they move their disc on the other column. Since the Green player passed first, they will play first in the next turn, also they immediately gain 1 Victory Point.

Note: Do not underestimate playing order management. It is often important to be able to play a Development, Trade, and Raid Action Card or declare Battle before or after another player.

When a player passes, they cannot play Development, Trade and Raid Action Cards or declare Battle any longer in the current Month Turn.

Cleanup Phase

All players simultaneously must:

• Move on the Travel Card goods, trophies and hostages to their own Village Card;
• Make available again all tribesmen and leader meeples of their tribe, that are on Travel and on Village Cards;
• retrieve the Action Cards from the discard pile of their tribe and recreate the Action Cards deck.

Each player, only in this phase, may:

• equip the leaders, moving goods from the Village Card of their tribe to the spaces on the Leader Cards of their tribe;
• strip the leaders, moving goods from the Leader Cards of their tribe to the Village Card, in order to use them, for example in a Trade Action;
• take advantage of the benefits described on their tribes' Ability Card that are activated during this Phase;
• gain 1 Victory Point for each hostage on their tribe's Village Card;
• gain 1 Victory Point for each leader of their tribe who is equipped with a Fibula;
• gain 1 Victory Point for the "Spear of Gorias" trophy placed in their tribe's Village Card.

Note: A player may equip a leader with a Fibula and gain 1 Victory Point for it during the same Cleanup Phase.

Finally, advance the black disc on the Turns track on the Kings' Board by 1 space and check that the other black disc on the Battle Board Track is placed in the space with the value 3.

Festival Turn

Each player who achieves 1 or more objectives described on the Festival tile of the current Festival Turn gains Victory Points. Goods equipped by leaders contribute to achieve the objectives.

Note: Read the Festival tile objectives in advance in order to plan the best strategy and gain as many Victory Points as possible.

The Celtic calendar is divided in 2 semesters: one is the winter, connected to the beginning of the darkest half of the year, and the other is the summer, connected to the beginning of the brightest half. The Celts celebrated four major annual festivities related to nature's cycles and seasons: Samhain, Imbolc, Beltane and Lughnasadh. They were also called fire festivals because on these occasions a ritual fire was always lit.

After playing the Turn, flip the Festival tile down or put it back in the box, it will not be used for the rest of the game.

End of the Game

At the end of the game, after all players had their chance to gain Victory Points thanks to the "Lughnasadh" Festival Turn and Event Cards with delayed effects have been played (if any), the player with the most Fame, i.e. with the most Victory Points, is declared the winner and gets the title of VERRIX.

In case of a tie between 2 or more players, the winner is the player whose Village Card has, in order, the highest number of:

• Divine Will;
• trophies;
• animals, including those equipped by leaders.

In case of a further tie, the player whose tribe's disc is placed in the lowest space on the Play Order Track wins.

Action, Reaction and Support

There are 4 Action types: Development, Trade, Raid and Battle. In order to perform these Actions, it is always necessary to use an Action Card, which can only be played thanks to the efforts of tribesmen and leaders.

Any Action Card can only be played once during the Action Phase of a Month Turn and becomes available again only during the next Cleanup Phase.

Each Action Card includes the following information:

• (A) the minimum STRENGTH required to perform the Action;
• (B) the units whose STRENGTH can be used to reach the needed value to perform the Action and the units that can join the Action, including those of the opposing tribe for Raid and Battle Actions. Any combination of tribesmen and leaders that can be engaged to perform the Action is allowed;
• (C) the location where the Action takes place;
• (D) the title;
• (E) the type of the Action;
• (F) the effect of the card, including any other condition that must be met in order to perform the Action;
• (G) the type of card. The black stripe identifies a Basic Action Card while the red stripe identifies a Special Action Card. The number of diamonds inside the stripe identifies the rarity:
  • 1 diamond - Common Action, card owned by all players;
  • 2 diamonds - Uncommon Action, card owned by some players;
  • 3 diamonds - Rare Action, card owned by one player only.

Note: Action Cards take priority over the rulebook. If at any point an Action Card allows you to play against the general rules, follow the card.

A player, even after passing the hand, is obliged to perform a Reaction when they are the target of an opposing player's Action.

A player who has not yet passed their hand can provide Support when they decide to intervene in an Action proposed by an opposing player against a third one.

Defending your own Village from an opposing player's Raid Action is considered a Reaction. Siding with an opposing player who has declared a Battle, or with an opposing player who is making a Reaction to defend himself, is considered Support.

Development

These Action Cards mainly allow you to produce goods or obtain Divine Will.

When a player performs a Development Action, they shall:

• play a Development Action Card;
• engage on their tribe's Village Card a number of available tribesmen and leaders that have a total STRENGTH value equal to or greater than the commitment cost of the Development Action Card;
• apply the effect described by the Action Card.

Goods and Divine Will produced through a Development Action, with certain exceptions described by the Action Card, must be placed on your own tribe's Village Card. Goods in the Village may not be equipped on Leader Cards until the Cleanup Phase of the current Month Turn and may be targets of trade or raid.

Among the Basic Action Cards of each tribe there is the Cooking Action Card which takes place in your Village and allows you to produce Provisions.

Example: The player managing the Yellow Tribe plays the Cooking Action Card and applies the effect:

• (A) They engage 2 tribesmen on their Village Card, each with a STRENGTH of 1. The total STRENGTH value is 2, equal to the commitment cost of the Cooking Action Card;
• (B) takes 3 Provisions tiles from the Common Pool and places them on their Village Card;
• (C) since they have the "Cauldron of Murias" trophy, they take another Provisions tile from the Green Tribe's Village Card and place it on their own Village Card.

The player applies the effect and then discards the card into a discard pile in their playing area.

Among each tribe's Basic Action Cards there are 2 Development Action Cards that deserve a closer look.

The Learning Action takes place in your Village and allows you to add a Special Action Card to your Basic Action Cards deck.

Example: The player managing the Purple Tribe plays the Learning Action Card and applies the effect:

• consults the Special Action Cards they have yet to learn and chooses to add the Consecrated Ground Action Card to their Basic Action Cards Deck;
• engages the mystic leader Lindsay on their Village Card. She has a STRENGTH of 3, which is greater than the commitment cost of the Consecrated Ground Action Card;
• adds the Consecrated Ground Action Card to the Basic Action Cards deck, making it immediately available to perform Actions in the current Month Turn;
• gains 1 Victory Point.

Note: The Learning Action Card does NOT have a commitment cost of its own and does NOT show the units that can be engaged in order to perform the Action. This information is to be obtained from the Special Action Card you want to add to the Basic Action Cards deck.

The player applies the effect and finally discards the card into a discard pile in their playing area. If they have added the last Special Action Card to the deck of Basic Action Cards, they can permanently discard the Learning Action Card and put it in the box, it will no longer be needed for the rest of the game.

The Promote Tribesman Action takes place in your Village and allows you to get a new leader in exchange for a tribesman.

Example: The player managing the Blue tribe plays the Promote Tribesman Action Card and applies the effect:

• places the tribesman engaged to perform the Action at the Portum Itium market;
• consults the grey Leader Cards, chooses the leader Ambigath and places the corresponding Leader Card in their playing area;
• takes a grey leader meeple and adds it to their available units that can still be engaged to perform Actions in the current Month Turn.

Note: Grey Leader Cards can be consulted at any time throughout the game.

The player applies the effect and then places the Action Card in the box; it will no longer be needed for the rest of the game.

Trade

These Action Cards mainly allow you to trade goods and hostages with the Portum Itium market and with another player's Village.

When a player performs a Trade Action, they shall:

• play a Trade Action Card;
• place on the Travel Card a number of available tribesmen and leaders that have a total STRENGTH value equal to or greater than the Trade Action Card commitment cost;
• pay the Movement Cost;
• apply the effect described by the Action Card.

The maximum number of goods and hostages a player can sell and buy, unless otherwise described in the Action Card, is equal to the number of units engaged in the Trade Action plus any bonuses that increase the transport capacity of the leaders engaged in the Action.

Example: A player who engages in a Trade Action a leader with no bonus increasing transport capacity and 2 tribesmen, has a transport capacity equal to 3. They can then sell up to 3 goods and/or hostages and buy up to 3 goods and/or hostages.

Note: A player targeted by a Trade Action must accept the proposed exchange.

Depending on where the trade takes place, goods and hostages sold with a Trade Action must be placed at Portum Itium market or on the player's Village Card that is the target of the Trade Action.

Goods and hostages purchased with a Trade Action must be placed on the Travel Card. Traveling goods cannot be placed on Leader Cards until the Cleanup Phase of the current Month Turn. Both goods and hostages placed on the Travel Card cannot be targeted by trade or raids.

In VERRIX there is no such thing as money, so in order to solve any exchange of goods and hostages it is necessary to take into account the values described on the Portum Itium Card. For convenience, the same values are also present on each good tile.

Example: In order to buy a Sword that has a value of 5, it is necessary to sell goods that have a value of 5 or more. A Cart that has a value of 5 may be sufficient. One Hammer and one Belladonna that have a total value of 6 are a viable alternative.

In VERRIX, there is no such thing as "change", the surplus value is lost.

One of the Green Tribe's Basic Action Cards is the Celebration Action Card, which takes place away from your Village and allows you to trade with another tribe.

Example: The player managing the Green Tribe plays the Celebration Action Card and applies the effect:

• (A) places the merchant leader Murchad who has a STRENGTH of 2, plus a tribesman who has a STRENGTH of 1 on the Travel Card. The total STRENGTH value is 3, equal to the commitment cost of the Celebration Action Card;
• (B) places 2 Provisions tiles at the Portum Itium market to pay the Movement Cost, which allows them to move from the Iceni territory to the Atrebates territory, where there is a Yellow Tribe village token;
• (C) places 1 Horse taken from the Village Card on the Travel Card;
• (D) takes the Horse on the Travel Card and places it on the Yellow tribe's Village Card;
• (E) decides not to take the Spear on the Yellow Tribe's Village Card and takes 2 Belladonna tiles placing them on the Travel Card;
• gains 1 Victory Point once the transaction has been completed.

The player applies the effect and then discards the card into a discard pile in their playing area.

Each tribe owns a Special Action Card that deserves a closer look. The Clan Pact Action takes place away from your Village and allows you to place a village token on the Kings' Board map. The village token must be placed in an unoccupied territory adjacent to a territory where there is already a Village of your tribe.

Note: If all the territories adjacent to your tribe's village token are occupied by opposing Villages, you cannot play the Clan Pact Action Card.

Example: The player managing the Yellow Tribe plays the Clan Pact Special Action Card and applies its effect:

• places on the Travel Card the craftsman leader Ygerna, who is equipped with a Hammer and has a STRENGTH of 3, plus a tribesman with a STRENGTH of 1. The STRENGTH total value is 4, equal to the commitment cost of the Clan Pact Action Card;
• places a Provisions tile at the Portum Itium market to pay the Movement Cost, because they placed their new village token in the Cantiaci territory, which is adjacent to the Atrebates territory where they placed the village token at the beginning of the game;
• chooses to take a tribesman meeple of their tribe from Portum Itium market and places it on the Travel Card.

The player applies the effect and discards the card into a discard pile in their playing area. If they have placed the last village token on the Kings' Board map, they can discard the Clan Pact Action Card permanently and put it in the box, it will no longer be needed for the rest of the game.

Raid

These Action cards mainly allow you to attack another player's Village and try to steal goods, trophies and hostages.

When a player performs a Raid Action, they shall:

• play a Raid Action Card;
• place on the Travel Card a number of available tribesmen and leaders who have a total STRENGTH value equal to or greater than the commitment cost of the Raid Action Card;
• pay the Movement Cost;
• apply the effect described by the Action Card.

Note: The player targeted by a Raid Action must perform a Reaction, in order to oppose the theft attempt.

The target player of a Raid Action, instead:

• takes into account that their units that can participate in the Action are those described by the Raid Action Card played by the attacker;
• takes into account that the tribesmen and leaders already engaged in previous actions on their tribe's Village Card must defend;
• can decide to engage on their tribe's Village Card those available tribesmen and leaders that they want to add to defend themselves.

The outcome of a Raid Action is determined by comparing the STRENGTH of the attacker with the STRENGTH of the defender. Both players, to determine their overall STRENGTH, should add up:

• the STRENGTH of engaged tribesmen and leaders;
• any bonus and malus described in the Raid Action Card effect.

The defender also draws one Mórrígan token from the bag and adds its value, even if they have not committed tribesmen and/or leaders on their Village Card. By placing a Divine Will in the Common Pool it is possible to draw 2 Mórrígan tokens and use only the one with the highest value. The other token must be put back into the bag.

If the attacker's STRENGTH is higher than the defender's STRENGTH the Raid Action is successful and the attacker applies the effect described on the Action Card. Otherwise, if the attacker's STRENGTH is equal to or less than the defender's STRENGTH, the Raid Action fails and the confrontation ends without consequences for the defender.

Any goods or hostages stolen in a successful Raid must be placed on the Travel Card. Traveling goods cannot be placed on Leader Cards until the Cleanup Phase of the current Month Turn. While goods and hostages are on the Travel Card, they cannot be the target of trade or raid.

The maximum number of goods and hostages that a player can steal, unless otherwise described in the Action Card, is equal to the number of units engaged in the Raid Action plus any bonuses that increase the transport capacity of the leaders engaged in the Action.

Example: A player who engages in a Raid Action a leader with no bonus increasing transport capacity and 4 tribesmen, has a transport capacity equal to 5. Therefore they can steal up to 5 goods and/or hostages.

One of the Blue Tribe's Basic Action Cards is the Pillage Action Card, which takes place away from your own Village and allows you to raid another tribe's Village.

Example: The player managing the Blue tribe plays the Pillage Action Card and applies the effect:

• (A) Places on the Travel Card the warrior leader Niamh, who has a STRENGTH of 2, plus 4 tribesmen, each with a STRENGTH of 1. The total STRENGTH is 6, which is higher than the commitment cost of the Pillage Action Card;
• (B) places 3 Provisions tiles at the Portum Itium market to pay the Movement Cost, which from the Caledonian territory allows them to reach the Brigantes' territory, where the Purple tribe has a village token;
• (C) The player managing the Purple Tribe has 2 tribesmen already engaged in previous Actions on their tribe's Village Card and decides to engage 2 more available tribesmen. The total STRENGTH value is 4;
• (D) The player managing the Purple tribe also draws the Mórrígan token with a value of 2 from the bag;
• The STRENGTH of the Blue tribe is equal to the STRENGTH of the Purple tribe, the Raid Action therefore fails and there are no consequences for the player managing the Purple tribe.

The player applies the effect, puts the Mórrígan token they drew back into the bag and finally discards the card into a discard pile in their playing area.

One of the Special Actions of the Orange Tribe is a Raid Action Card that deserves a closer look. The Sack Action takes place away from your Village and is the only one that allows you to raid Portum Itium market. The Action does not require any STRENGTH confrontation, the Sack in this case is always successful.

The player applies the effect and then discards the card into a discard pile in their playing area.

Example: The player managing the Orange tribe plays the Sack Special Action Card and applies its effect:

• engages the warrior leader Artghal, who has a STRENGTH of 2, the warrior leader Sive, who has a STRENGTH of 1, plus 2 tribesmen who each has a STRENGTH of 1, and puts them on the Travel Card. The total STRENGTH value is 5, which is higher than the commitment cost of the Sack Action Card;
• the closest village token of their tribe to the Portum Itium market is placed in the Brigantes' territory. To reach Portum Itium 5 Provisions tiles would be needed but thanks to the warrior leaders, both equipped with a Horse that provides a bonus to decrease the Movement Cost by 1, only 3 Provisions must be paid to the Portum Itium market;
• there are 2 options on the card. The player having engaged 4 units to perform the Action, chooses a Sword, a Spear and 2 Provisions, takes them from the Portum Itium market and places them on the Travel Card;
• they gain 1 Victory Point for having taken 3 different types of goods.

Battle

These Action Cards allow you to attack another player's Village to try and gain Victory Points.

Compared to the other Action Cards that do not have special constraints, the Battle Action Cards can only be played after a Battle declaration against an opposing player. In order to declare a Battle, you must be able to use at least 4 units available among tribesmen, mystic leaders and/or warrior leaders.

Note: The defending player is obliged to perform a Reaction to try and win the Battle.

In a Battle there are always 2 factions that must be deployed on the Battle Board in the following order:

The player leading the attacking faction, after declaring the Battle, shall:

• pay the Movement Cost;
• (A) engage and place in the Camp spaces at least 4 units available among tribesmen and leaders of their tribe.

The player leading the defending faction instead shall:

• (B) engage and divide into the Village spaces the tribesmen and leaders that were already engaged in previous Actions on their tribe's Village Card (this is mandatory);
• (B) engage and divide into the Village spaces the available tribesmen and leaders that they chose to add to their deployment;
• lose 1 Victory Point for each available unit (tribesman, warrior leader, mystic leader) that could participate in the Battle but that they decide not to engage in the Village spaces.

All other players, following the play order, can propose to Support the attacking faction or the defending faction in the Battle. The player leading the faction that receives that Support offer can refuse the proposal.

If the proposal is accepted, each player who provides Support shall:

• pay the Movement Cost;
• (C) engage and divide into the Village or the Camp spaces the available tribesmen and leaders that they want to add to the supported faction's deployment;
• share with the supported faction their available Battle Action Cards.

After engaging the available units on the Battle Board, it is not possible to add or remove tribesmen and leaders to/from those already deployed.

Note: A player who already passed their hand in the current Month Turn, or does not have enough Provisions to pay the Movement Cost, cannot provide Support.

The player leading the attacking faction cannot add available units to the Battle Board, even if the player leading the defending faction accepts a Support proposal that increases the STRENGTH of their deployment.

Example - Deployment:

• The total STRENGTH of the attacking faction is equal to 8. The total STRENGTH of the defending faction is equal to 8. The black disc is placed in the space with a 3 of the Battle Progression Track.
• Village spaces: The player managing the Purple tribe engages the mystic leader Lindsay, who has a STRENGTH of 3, and 5 tribesmen, each with a STRENGTH of 1.
• Camp spaces: The player managing the Blue tribe that declared the Battle and is attacking engages the warrior leader Niamh, who has a STRENGTH of 2, and 4 tribesmen, each with a STRENGTH of 1.
• Camp spaces: The player managing the Green tribe provides support and engages 2 tribesmen, each with a STRENGTH of 1.

The Battle takes place in 3 consecutive Rounds.

The winning faction in each Round is determined by comparing the STRENGTH of the attacking faction with the STRENGTH of the defending faction. Both factions, to calculate their overall STRENGTH, consider:

• the STRENGTH of tribesmen and leaders participating in the Action, i.e. those in the Battlefield spaces of the Village and Camp;
• any bonus and malus that may be applied due to the effect of a Battle Action Card.

The faction that does not play the Battle Action Card also adds the value of 1 Mórrígan token, randomly drawn from the bag. By placing 1 Divine Will in the Common Pool it is possible to randomly draw 2 Mórrígan tokens and use only the one with the highest value. The other token must be put back into the bag. The used tokens are not put back inside the bag until the end of the Battle.

Note: If the players belonging to a faction cannot agree on who should put 1 Divine Will in the Common Pool to randomly draw 2 Mórrígan tokens, the player leading the faction decides.

At the end of each Round:

• move the black disc on the Battle Progression track on the Battle Board towards the winning faction by a number of spaces equal to the difference in STRENGTH between the 2 factions;
• move the tribesmen and the leaders who took part in the Action back to the spaces in the Village and the Camp.

The first Round takes place as follows:

• (A) the attacking faction plays a Battle Action Card and places it in the lowest white space on the Battle Board;
• (B) then moves the tribesmen and leaders of both factions participating in the Action to the Battlefield spaces of the Village and the Camp;
• (C) the defending faction draws 1 Mórrígan token from the bag.

If the attacking faction cannot play an Action Card the roles are reversed.

Example - First Round:

• The attacking faction's total STRENGTH is equal to 7. The defending faction's total STRENGTH is equal to 8. Move the black disc 1 space towards the defending faction.
• The defending faction draws the Morrigan token with a value of 3.
• Battlefield spaces of the Village: The only units participating to this Round are the tribesmen, each with a STRENGTH of 1, while the mystic leader Lindsay remains at the Village.
• The attacking faction plays the Supremacy Action Card. The symbol (tribesman) on the card indicates that only tribesmen can participate to this Round.
• Battlefield spaces of the Camp: The only unit participating to this Round are the tribesmen, each with a STRENGTH of 1, while the warrior leader Niamh remains at the Camp. The Supremacy Action Card effect also adds 1 to the attacking faction's STRENGTH.

The second Round takes place as follows:

• (A) the defending faction plays a Battle Action Card and places it in the central white space on the Battle Board;
• (B) then moves the tribesmen and leaders of both factions participating in the Action to the Battlefield spaces of the Village and Camp;
• (C) the attacking faction draws 1 Mórrígan token from the bag.

If the defending faction cannot play an Action Card the roles are reversed.

Note: If the players belonging to a faction cannot agree on the Action Card to be played, the player leading the faction decides.

Example - Second Round:

• The attacking faction's total STRENGTH is equal to 7. The defending faction's total STRENGTH is equal to 8. Move the black disc 1 space towards the defending faction.
• Battlefield spaces of the Village: The units participating in the Round are the tribesmen, each with a STRENGTH of 1 and the mystic leader Lindsay, who has a STRENGTH of 3.
• The defending faction plays the Agonizing Wail Action Card. The symbols (tribesman, mystic leader) on the card indicate that tribesmen and mystic leaders can participate to this Round.
• Battlefield spaces of the Camp: The only units participating in the Round are the tribesmen, each with a STRENGTH of 1, while the warrior leader Niamh remains at the Camp.
• The attacking faction draws the Morrigan token with a value of 1.

The third Round takes place as follows:

• (A) the attacking faction plays a Battle Action Card and places it in the highest white space on the Battle Board;
• (B) then moves the tribesmen and leaders of both factions participating in the Action to the Battlefield spaces of the Village and the Camp;
• (C) the defending faction draws 1 Mórrígan token from the bag.

If the attacking faction cannot play an Action Card the roles are reversed.

Example - Third Round:

• The attacking faction's total STRENGTH is equal to 8; the defending faction's total STRENGTH is equal to 5. Move the black disc 3 spaces towards the attacking faction.
• The defending faction draws the Morrigan token with a value of 0.
• The attacking faction plays the Onslaught Action Card. The symbols (tribesman, warrior leader) on the card indicate that tribesmen and warrior leaders can participate to this Round.
• Battlefield spaces of the Village: The units participating in the Round are the tribesmen, each with a STRENGTH of 1 while the mystic leader Lindsay remains at the Village.
• Battlefield spaces of the Camp: The units participating in the Round are the tribesmen, each with a STRENGTH of 1, and the warrior leader Niamh, who has a STRENGTH of 2.
• Outcome of the Battle: The attacking faction wins. The player managing the Blue tribe and the player managing the Green tribe each gain 6 Victory Points.

In each Round, if neither of the factions can play Action Cards, move all tribesmen and leaders to the Battlefield spaces of the Village and Camp. Both factions also randomly draw 1 Mórrígan token from the bag.

At the end of the Battle:

• each player of the winning faction gains all the Victory Points indicated in the space where the black disc is located on the Battle Progression Track, in case of a tie all players gain 3 Victory Points;
• the player who declared the Battle and each player who provided Support removes the tribesmen and leaders of their tribe from the Battle Board and places them on the Travel Card;
• the player who performed the Reaction moves the tribesmen and leaders of their tribe from the Battle Board to the Village Card;
• each player discards the Action Cards of their tribe, that were used during the Battle, into a discard pile in their Playing Area. The cards that were not used can be placed back into the deck of Action Cards that can still be played in the current Month Turn;
• put the Mórrígan tokens that you have used back into the bag.

The war always represented for the Celts a fundamental moment of their life, engaged as they were in continuous movements and therefore in continuous conflicts among populations. Their society, dominated by warriors, contemplated the battle like a normal method to assert their honor.

Note: Battle rewards risk. Winning against strong opponents means you gain more Victory Points.