Via Magica
Via Magica Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Concept
Via Magica is "Powered by bingo!". In this game, however, instead of crossing out numbers to complete lines in a grid pattern, you collect Animus crystals to open portals. Instead of calling out "Bingo!" when you have a winning combination, you speak the magic word "INCANTATUM!".
The game is played in a series of turns. Each turn, an Animus is captured and removed from the bag, and all players who are able to place a crystal in a matching location on a portal may do so. When all the Animus on a portal have been crystallized, the portal opens, allowing you to harness its power… The magic effects of portals let you score extra points or open other portals more easily.
Points are scored by opening portals and by collecting Bonus rewards. The student with the most points at the end of the game is the winner.
Choose your portals wisely and think carefully about how to place your crystals. Be ready to adapt your strategy: the captured Animus spirits may not always be the ones you want! Waste no time, as the examination ends as soon as a student opens their seventh portal.
Setup
- Place the 23 Animus tokens in the fabric bag.
- Arrange the 10 Bonus rewards in two rows (one row for each type of reward).
- Shuffle the 80 magic portals and form a face-down draw pile.
- Reveal the first five portals and place them in a row.
- Randomly deal six portals to each player. Each player selects three portals and places them face up in their crystallization area. When portals are opened, they are moved to the player's achievements area. Important: There are two copies of each portal (with the same effect and illustration). Players are not allowed to play more than one of each portal per game. If you receive both copies of a particular portal, swap one with any portal in the central row.
- Each player then discards the three portals not selected.
- All players take a Player Aid card.
- Each player places 7 crystals in their stockpile.
- Place the remaining crystals near the portal draw pile.
The oldest player takes the fabric bag and becomes the Catcher for the first turn.
Note: The first time you play the game, feel free to randomly distribute three portals to each player instead of selecting 3 out of 6.
Game Turn
1/ Capture an Animus!
The Catcher takes the bag, randomly picks out an Animus token, calls out its name and place it in front of them, visible to all players.
Certain Animus spirits are harder to catch than others. For example, Air is all around us (six tokens), whereas Shadow is rarer (a single token). This distribution is shown on the player aid cards.
| Animus | Tokens |
|---|---|
| Air | x6 |
| Water | x5 |
| Earth | x4 |
| Life | x3 |
| Fire | x2 |
| Shadow | x1 |
| Wildcard | x2 |
The Wildcard token replaces any Animus token and lets each player place a crystal on any space they want. After drawing a Wildcard from the bag, the Catcher replaces all the tokens in the bag, shakes it and passes it to the player on their left, who becomes the new Catcher.
2/ Crystallize the Animus!
Placing crystals on the Animus spaces on the portals crystallizes the corresponding Animus spirits. All players (including the Catcher) may place ONE crystal on a matching space on a portal in their crystallization area:
- Either by taking a crystal from their stockpile;
- Or by moving a crystal already placed on a portal, whether on a different Animus space and/or a different portal. This option can be very useful for completing and opening another portal, or if you run out of crystals in your stockpile.
Important: You are only allowed to place or move one crystal per token removed from the bag.
Example: The Catcher calls out "Fire!". Paola has two portals with Fire spaces. She has three options:
- Place one of the three crystals in her stockpile onto one of the Fire spaces on her purple or blue portal.
- OR move one of the four crystals already placed to one of the Fire spaces on her purple or blue portal.
- OR do nothing.
Opening portals earns points for the final score. A portal opens immediately when the necessary Animus spirits have been crystallized, i.e. when all the Animus spaces in the upper part of the card contain a crystal. Portal effects can be used at various points in the game, depending on the portal's color. The effects of each portal are described on the last page of this rulebook.
Each portal opens onto the natural world, revealing a magical ingredient. Portals that lead to hard-to-get ingredients are more difficult to open, but score more points.
Each portal card shows:
- Animus spaces (for 2-6 Animus crystals), across the top of the card.
- Ingredient to collect — the illustration in the middle (for illustration only).
- Points scored and the portal's Effect, at the bottom of the card.
Color: Four different colors, each associated with a type of effect.
- Yellow: Instantly-activated, single-use effect.
- Green: Delayed effect used at the end of the game.
- Blue: Permanent effect usable throughout the game.
- Purple: No special effect.
3/ Open the portals!
When you have crystallized all the Animus spirits on one of your portals, it immediately opens. Call out "INCANTATUM!", then perform the following actions:
- Remove all the crystals from the portal and return them to their stockpile.
- Use the portal's effect (if any). Important: If this effect lets you open other portals, open them immediately. It performs the same six actions for each new portal opened as well.
- Move your portal to your achievements area.
- Select a new portal from the row of five in the central row and place it in your crystallization area. Note: You are only allowed to use one copy of a particular portal per game.
- Replenish the central row by revealing the first portal in the draw pile.
- Then claim any Bonus rewards.
Play order
If more than one player opens a portal during the same turn, the first one to call out "INCANTATUM!" plays first, followed by the player to their left, and so on.
If multiple players call out "INCANTATUM!" at exactly the same time, the player to the left of the Catcher plays first (or the Catcher, if he or she was among the players who opened a portal). Play then proceeds clockwise.
4/ Claim rewards!
You may claim a reward if you are the first player to open certain portals. Place the reward in front of you. Nobody else can earn that reward. Rewards fall into two categories, based on either the color of the portals opened or the number of portals opened.
Portal colors
Players may collect multiple rewards in this category. They are awarded automatically to the first player that opens:
- Three portals of the same color: 3 yellow OR 3 purple OR 3 green OR 3 blue portals.
- A portal of each color, i.e. at least 1 yellow, 1 green, 1 blue and 1 purple portal.
Of the 80 portals in the game, the blue ones are the rarest, green and purple are less scarce, and yellow portals are the most common. Rarer colors earn greater rewards. For example, the reward for blue portals is worth more points than the reward for yellow portals.
Number of portals
Each player may claim only one reward in this category. You may only claim a reward at the precise instant that you open the EXACT number of portals required. If you wait... It's too late!
The more portals you have to open, the more points you score. The first player to open two portals may, if they wish, claim the reward shown opposite, worth 2 points. The first to open three portals can claim the corresponding reward, worth 4 points, and so on…
When the opportunity arises, you must choose between:
- Claiming a reward immediately, thereby missing out on the chance of a bigger reward later.
- Waiting to open more portals, in the hope of claiming a greater reward but with the risk of not getting a reward at all.
The stars shown on reward cards represent the number of open portals.
End of the Game
The game ends if a player has seven portals open at the end of the turn. If multiple players are able to open portals during the same turn, they perform their actions in the normal way. Certain portal effects make it possible for a player to finish the game with eight, nine or ten portals open.
Each player then calculates their final score by adding together the points scored by their open portals and their rewards. Add up the points from:
- Bonus rewards;
- Yellow, purple and blue portals;
- Green portals (calculate the number of points).
The player with the highest score wins the game. As the valedictorian student, they earn the title of Junior Mage!
In the event of a tie, the player who opened the most portals wins.
Example: At the end of the game, Paola has opened five portals and has scored 45 points, as follows:
- 8 points for her Bonus reward (she was the first player to open a portal of each color).
- 5 points for her yellow portal.
- 10 points for her purple portal.
- 8 points for her blue portal.
- 14 points for her two green portals: one green portal's delayed effect scores her 10 points for her 5 Earth spaces, and the other green portal's delayed effect scores her 4 points for her (1) blue portal.
8 + 5 + 10 + 8 + 14 = 45 points.
Portal Effects
Only the effects of open portals can be used.
Green: Delayed effect (at the end of the game)
Used to calculate the points scored by green portals. A green portal's effect is printed as an icon pairing a checkmark with either a portal-color icon or an Animus-type icon, next to a banner showing the points scored per match. The two variants are:
Each portal of the specified color scores the stated number of points:
| Portal color | Points |
|---|---|
| Yellow | 2 |
| Green | 3 |
| Purple | 3 |
| Blue | 4 |
Example: By the end of the game, Paola has opened a total of two green portals. This effect earns her 6 points (2 green portals x 3 points).
Each Animus space scores the stated number of points:
| Animus | Points |
|---|---|
| Air | 1 |
| Water | 1 |
| Earth | 2 |
| Life | 2 |
| Fire | 3 |
| Shadow | 4 |
Example: By the end of the game, Paola has opened portals with a total of five Life spaces. This effect earns her 10 points (5 Life spaces x 2 points).
Blue: Permanent effect. Active throughout the game
When the indicated Animus token is drawn from the bag, you may treat it as a Wildcard. (Different blue portals name a different Animus type — Air, Water, Earth, Life, Fire or Shadow — as the one that can be treated as a Wildcard.)
Example: Paola has opened a portal with this effect for Water. Later in the game, a Water token is drawn. Instead of placing a crystal on a Water space, Paola may place it on any Animus space she wants.
Yellow: Instant effect. Used once only
Yellow portals carry one of the following one-time effects, illustrated with icons:
- Place two crystals on the indicated Animus spaces.
- Place the indicated number of crystals on Animus spaces of your choice.
- Add the indicated number of crystals to your stockpile.
- Rearrange any or all of the crystals already placed on your portals. You cannot return any crystals to your stockpile.
- When replacing this portal, choose two new portals instead of one.
- Open another of your portals in addition to this one.
Purple: No special effect
Contact us! hurricangames.com Follow us! hurricangames — Hurrican Edition — hurricanedition
Important: Contains small parts. Not suitable for children under 3 years old. Retain for future reference.