Warhammer Underworlds: Gnarlwood
Warhammer Underworlds: Gnarlwood Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Before You Play
- The Decks
- The Battlefield
- Playing the Game
- Action Phase
- Activation Step
- Move Action
- Attack Action
- Combat Sequence
- Support
- Damage
- Heal
- Out of Action
- Attack Action Keywords
- Guard Action
- Charge Action
- Spells
- Power Step
- Modifiers
- Scatter
- Reactions
- End Phase
- Play On
- Multiplayer Games
- Glossary
- Reference
Introduction
Aim of the Game
The aim of the game is to win glory points, awarded for achieving objectives and vanquishing your foes. The player with the most glory points at the end of the game wins!
Standard and Advanced Rules
The rules that follow are known as the standard rules. These tell you everything you need to play a game of Warhammer Underworlds. Advanced rules provide more detail, which you will not need in every game, but which will help you understand how to resolve some of the more complex situations which you come across while playing. Advanced rules are presented in boxes, and for your first few games you can freely ignore these rules.
Terminology
If you come across a word in these rules and you're not sure what it means, you can refer to the Glossary (pg 50-54). When a word is in bold type, it is a keyword (pg 19).
Core Set Contents
Cards
- The Gnarlspirit Pack fighter cards and Rivals Deck
- The Sons of Velmorn fighter cards and Rivals Deck
- Tooth and Claw Rivals Deck
- Daring Delvers Rivals Deck
Tokens and Counters
- 38 glory points tokens (unspent/spent)
- 8 activation tokens (untaken/taken)
- 24 wound counters/generic counters
- 6 Raise tokens
- 13 Move/Charge tokens
- 13 Guard/Stagger tokens
- 2 snare hex tokens
- 1 double-sided scatter token
- 9 double-sided feature tokens, which represent areas of tactical importance and the scattered treasures of Talaxis
Boards
- 2 double-sided game boards which feature some of the twisted environs found in the root-halls of the Gnarlwood (see the Environs of the Root-halls, pg 55).
Before You Play
This section explains the rules you need to understand and the components you need to gather before you play a game of Warhammer Underworlds.
Warbands
When you play a game of Warhammer Underworlds, you and your opponent each choose a warband. Each warband has its own distinct character and individual fighters, identified by their fighter cards (see opposite) and represented by their miniatures. You can both use the same warband if you each have a set of the miniatures and their fighter cards. If you are playing with one copy of the Core Set, simply decide between you who will use which warband. The Core Set includes two warbands: the Gnarlspirit Pack and the Sons of Velmorn. The Gnarlspirit Pack consists of four fighters: Sarrakkar Blackwing, Gorl Spinehammer, Lupan Longcut and Crimson Kheira. The Sons of Velmorn consists of five fighters: King Morlak Velmorn, Sir Jedran Falseborn, Marshal Faulk Velmorn, Helmar the Hewer and Thain, Fourth-and-Last. There are also expansions that let you add additional warbands to your games of Warhammer Underworlds.
Advanced Rules: Warbands and Fighters
Sometimes a rule refers to a warband. This means all of the fighters in that warband and all of the cards used by the player of that warband.
If a rule refers to a friendly fighter it means a fighter in your warband. Each fighter in the other warband is referred to as an enemy fighter.
A fighter on the battlefield is referred to as a surviving fighter. When a fighter is not on the battlefield, that fighter is referred to as out of action (pg 34).
Fighter Cards
A fighter's fighter card tells you their characteristics (how fast, how tough and how well-armoured or evasive they are), their Attack actions, and any other abilities they have.
Parts of a fighter card (the Inspired fighter card has the same layout):
- Picture of your fighter's miniature
- Your fighter's name
- Icons showing your fighter's trait(s) (pg 16)
- Your fighter's Move characteristic
- Your fighter's Defence characteristic
- Your fighter's Wounds characteristic
- Your fighter's Attack action(s) (pg 30)
- Additional abilities may be found here
- Your fighter's Inspire condition (see below) (on the un-Inspired side of the card)
- Your fighter's warband symbol
- Your fighter's Grand Alliance symbol
Inspire
The fighters in Warhammer Underworlds have hidden strengths, and under the right conditions they can unlock these strengths during battle. When the Inspire condition on a fighter's card is met, that fighter will become Inspired at the next Inspire step. An Inspire step comes before each activation step (pg 28) and follows each activation and each power step (pg 38).
When a fighter becomes Inspired, flip their fighter card over, revealing the fighter's Inspired characteristics and abilities.
Advanced Rules: Inspire
In each Inspire step, starting with the player who last took an activation, each player Inspires each of their fighters whose Inspire condition has been met.
A fighter keeps all their upgrades, tokens and counters when they become Inspired. Once a fighter becomes Inspired, they remain Inspired for the rest of the game, unless they are un-Inspired as a result of a gambit card (page 39). When a fighter is un-Inspired, flip their fighter card over so that the Inspired side is hidden. A fighter keeps all their upgrades, tokens and counters when they become un-Inspired.
If an Inspired fighter would be Inspired, nothing happens.
Traits
Some fighters share certain common traits, represented in Warhammer Underworlds by consistent rules. If a fighter has any traits there will be one or more trait icons on their fighter card, and they have the additional rules listed below. The most common archetype is leader, indicated by a crown symbol - every warband has one leader.
- Beast - This fighter cannot be given Attack action upgrades or bound spell upgrades, and cannot hold objectives.
- Flying - When making a Move action, this fighter cannot be dealt damage by lethal hexes and can move through blocked and occupied hexes. This fighter must end its Move action in an empty hex.
- Leader - Each warband has one leader. There are no additional rules for being a leader.
- Wizard - This fighter can cast spells as described on page 37. A wizard will also have a number next to this symbol - this is their wizard level characteristic.
Advanced Rules: Beast and Large Fighters
If a fighter becomes a beast during a game, break (pg 25) each of their upgrades that cannot be given to a beast.
While 'Large' is not a trait, it works in a similar way to traits. While a fighter has a Wounds characteristic of 5 or more (including all modifiers), they are referred to as a Large fighter. If a fighter becomes Large during a battle, break each of their upgrades that cannot be given to a Large fighter.
The Decks
Each player uses two decks of cards: an objective deck made of 12 objective cards, and a power deck made of 20 power cards, which are a mix of gambits and upgrades. The easiest way to prepare your decks is simply to use a Rivals deck, which consists of a prebuilt objective deck and a prebuilt power deck. Rivals decks give your warband a thematic set of goals and ways to achieve them.
All but the oldest warbands in Warhammer Underworlds have a Rivals deck. A warband's Rivals deck consists of a complete set of 12 objective cards and a power deck made up of 20 cards, all of which are unique to that warband and have that warband's symbol. This game comes with one Rivals deck for the Sons of Velmorn and one for the Gnarlspirit Pack. For your first game, it is best to use these Rivals decks.
Once you're familiar with the rules, you can experiment with using different Rivals decks: although a warband cannot use another warband's Rivals deck, there are a number of 'universal' Rivals decks that can be used by every warband. This game comes with two universal Rivals decks: Tooth and Claw and Daring Delvers. Using these decks instead of a warband's own Rivals deck lets you try different strategies in your games.
Some Rivals decks, like Tooth and Claw and Daring Delvers, add new rules to your games of Warhammer Underworlds. Where this is the case, these rules will be presented on a plot card that is used alongside the deck, which you and your opponent can refer to during the game.
Advanced Rules: Deckbuilding
Rather than playing with Rivals decks, you can construct your own decks for your warband. This allows you to take complete control over your warband's strategy and abilities.
When you're building your own decks, you must follow these restrictions:
- The power deck must include at least 20 power cards. It can include any number of additional power cards. No more than half of the deck can be gambit cards.
- The objective deck must include at least 12 objective cards. It can include any number of additional objective cards. It cannot include more than 6 Surge objectives (pg 44).
- Neither deck can include more than one card with the same name: each card in both of the decks must be unique.
- You can only include cards that have the same warband symbol as your fighter cards, the same Grand Alliance symbol as your fighter cards, or the universal symbol. Some older warbands do not have a Grand Alliance symbol on their cards. To find out which Grand Alliance these warbands belong to, visit WarhammerUnderworlds.com.
- You can only use one plot card. If you include cards from more than one deck that uses a plot card, you must pick one of those plot cards to use alongside your deck. Note that some power and objective cards will have little to no effect without their associated plot card, so choose carefully! Plot cards that accompany a warband, such as the Desecration Tokens plot card for Khagra's Ravagers, are an exception to this rule, and you can take these plot cards in addition to the plot card you choose.
Some competitive formats only use Rivals decks, or have different deck construction rules. If you plan to attend a competitive event, be sure to check the format rules which you can find at WarhammerUnderworlds.com.
The universal symbol can be included in any warband's decks. The Grand Alliances are Order, Chaos, Death and Destruction.
Objective Cards (pg 44)
Objective cards reward you with glory points when you complete one or more conditions. Most objective cards are used in the end phase at the end of each round (pg 44).
Parts of an objective card:
- Objective card symbol
- Faction symbol
- Card name
- Keyword(s)
- Condition(s)
- Reward
- Rivals Deck symbol (or set symbol, on older cards)
Upgrade Cards (pg 39)
Upgrade cards are used to bestow permanent improvements on your fighters. You will get a chance to play these cards in the power step that follows each of a player's activation steps (pg 38-39) and in the end phase at the end of each round (pg 44). Some upgrades are restricted to particular fighters.
Parts of an upgrade card:
- Upgrade card symbol
- Faction symbol
- Card name
- Keyword(s)
- Effect
- Restrictions
- Rivals Deck symbol (or set symbol, on older cards)
Gambit Cards (pg 39)
Gambit cards have many uses. They are either ploys or spells. You will get a chance to play these cards in the power step that follows each of a player's activation steps (pg 38-39). Some gambits are restricted - they can only be played if a particular fighter is on the battlefield.
Parts of a gambit card:
- (a) Ploy card symbol; (b) Spell card symbol
- Faction symbol
- Card name
- Keyword(s)
- Effect
- Restrictions
- Rivals Deck symbol (or set symbol, on older cards)
Advanced Rules: Card Rules
Keywords. Some cards have keywords on them. These words are in bold type and are used in two ways: some of them are used to refer to a rule found in this booklet, in which case you can quickly find the relevant rule by checking the Glossary, and others are used to label that card so that other cards can interact with it (e.g. an upgrade card with the Attack action keyword would be affected by a gambit that affects all Attack actions, and a fighter with the brawler keyword would be affected by a gambit that affects all brawlers).
'Cannot'. If two or more rules come into conflict, and one of them says 'cannot', that rule takes precedence (e.g. if a fighter has a rule that says they cannot be pushed, a card that lets you push a fighter does not work on that fighter).
'But my card says...'. Some cards allow you to do things that you wouldn't normally be allowed to do by the rules in this book. Whenever a card contradicts the rules in this book, the card takes precedence (even if the rule in this book says 'cannot').
Abilities. Rules found on a fighter card or power card are referred to as abilities.
The Battlefield
Games of Warhammer Underworlds use a battlefield made up of two game boards. The battlefield is divided into hexes. When a fighter, feature token (pg 24) or scatter token (pg 41) is put onto the battlefield, it is said to be placed. It must be positioned in a single hex. A single hex cannot contain more than one fighter.
The example battlefield diagram shows the following hex types: starting hexes, blocked hexes, incomplete hexes, edge hexes, lethal hexes, cover hexes, one player's territory, and completed hexes (no one's territory).
Starting Hexes
Some of the hexes contain a white Warhammer Underworlds symbol - these are used when placing your fighters, and are called starting hexes.
Blocked Hexes
Some hexes have a thick white border. These are blocked hexes. Fighters cannot move into or through these hexes and these hexes block line of sight to what is beyond them (pg 30).
Incomplete Hexes
The incomplete hexes at the edge of the battlefield are not part of the battlefield and are not part of the game.
Edge Hexes
The complete hexes around the edge of the battlefield are edge hexes.
Lethal Hexes
Some hexes have a red border. These are lethal hexes. When a fighter moves, is placed or pushed (pg 29) into a lethal hex, deal that fighter 1 damage (pg 33).
Cover Hexes
Some hexes have a border made of dashes rather than solid lines. These are cover hexes. A fighter on a cover hex considers rolls of double-support symbols as successes in their defence rolls (pg 31).
Occupied Hexes
A hex that contains a fighter is an occupied hex.
Empty Hexes
If a hex is not occupied or blocked, it is an empty hex.
Advanced Rules: Hexes
If a hex is not adjacent to six hexes, it is an edge hex (remember that incomplete hexes are not hexes). A hex can be an edge hex in addition to any other types (e.g. an edge hex that is a lethal hex is both lethal and an edge hex). The same is true of 'occupied' and 'empty'.
A fighter that is in a lethal hex can remain in it without being dealt further damage from that hex, and can move out of it (or be pushed out of it) without being dealt further damage from that hex.
Some rules can change the type of a hex - for example, some rules make a hex into a lethal hex. If a fighter is in a hex when it becomes a lethal hex, they are not dealt damage from that hex.
Players' Territory
A player's territory is made up of all the hexes on their game board. Hexes on other players' game boards are enemy territory. Any hexes that become completed by the placement of game boards are no one's territory.
(Diagram: the hex in the centre of the diagram was completed when the game boards were placed next to each other. It is no one's territory.)
Advanced Rules: Distances and Directions
These diagrams show you what the rules mean when they refer to distances. A fighter is always considered to be within zero hexes of itself but cannot be adjacent to itself. When counting the distance between two hexes, count the shortest distance possible (which can be straight through blocked hexes).
Diagram 1: B is within one hex of A. B is one hex from A. These hexes are adjacent.
Diagram 2: B is within two hexes of A. B is two hexes from A.
Diagram 3: B is within four hexes of A. B is four hexes from A.
When a rule tells you to move or push a fighter (or token) 'away' or 'further away' from a hex, fighter, or token, it means that each hex it is moved or pushed into as part of that move or push must be further from that hex, fighter or token than the hex it just left. This distance is counted in hexes by the shortest route, even if that means counting a blocked hex.
When a rule tells you to move or push a fighter (or token) 'towards' or 'closer towards' a hex, fighter, or token, it means that each hex it is moved or pushed into as part of that move or push must be closer to that hex, fighter or token than the hex it just left. This distance is counted in hexes by the shortest route, even if that means counting a blocked hex.
Playing the Game
Game Sequence
A game of Warhammer Underworlds is played in the following sequence:
- Set up: 1. Reveal your warbands. 2. Place the boards. 3. Place feature tokens. 4. Draw cards. 5. Place the fighters.
- Round 1: Action phase, end phase.
- Round 2: Action phase, end phase.
- Round 3: Action phase, end phase.
- Victory.
1. Reveal Your Warbands
Simultaneously, the players each reveal the warband they have chosen to use.
2. Place the Boards
The players roll off (see below). The player who wins picks a player. The player they pick will choose a game board first. This gives that player a disadvantage when the battlefield is set up, but the advantage when placing feature tokens (pg 24).
The player they pick chooses a game board from their collection and decides which side of that game board they will use as their territory. The other player then chooses a game board and a side in the same way. That player then sets up the battlefield by placing the two game boards so that the chosen sides are face up, and so that there are at least four hexes that are completed by connecting the boards long edge against long edge, or two hexes that are completed by connecting the boards short edge against short edge.
Examples of how you might set up the battlefield are shown in the rulebook.
Roll-offs
When the rules tell you to roll off, each player takes any combination of four attack or defence dice and rolls them. Then they compare the results:
- If one player rolls more critical successes than their opponent, that player has won.
- Otherwise, if one player rolls more single-support symbols than their opponent, that player has won.
- Otherwise, if one player rolls more double-support symbols than their opponent, that player has won.
- If there is still no winner, start the roll-off again.
Advanced Rules: Re-rolls
When a rule tells you to re-roll a dice, roll it again immediately after making the relevant roll. If you are told to re-roll a dice roll that involved multiple dice, re-roll all of them simultaneously unless specified otherwise. Whatever the new result is, it replaces the old result, even if it is worse. Unless specifically stated otherwise, you cannot re-roll a re-rolled dice.
If you have two or more rules allowing you to re-roll one dice, for example in an attack or defence roll, if you roll more than one dice, you can re-roll one dice for each of these rules. As these are separate abilities, you can re-roll dice one at a time, though you still cannot re-roll a re-rolled dice.
Dice Symbols
The keys below show the different symbols on each of the dice in Warhammer Underworlds. Most rules just show the symbol itself, but each symbol also has a name - these are useful when discussing your rolls with your opponent.
Attack dice: Critical success; Attack - Smash; Attack - Fury; Support - Single; Support - Double.
Defence dice: Critical success; Defence - Block; Defence - Dodge; Support - Single; Support - Double.
Magic dice: Critical success; Magic - Channel; Magic - Focus.
3. Place Feature Tokens
A game of Warhammer Underworlds uses seven feature tokens which all show a cover hex token on one side. On five of the feature tokens, the other side has a number from 1-5, and on the other two feature tokens the other side shows a snare hex.
Shuffle the five numbered tokens with the cover side face up. Deal three to the player that chose the first game board, and two to the other player. Keeping the numbered sides hidden, the players take it in turns to place the feature tokens on the battlefield, starting with the player that chose the first game board. When a player does so, they must place the token with the cover hex side face up in any hex on the battlefield, with the following exceptions: they cannot place it in a starting hex, a blocked hex, a lethal hex, a cover hex or an edge hex (pg 20), or within two hexes of another token. If a token cannot be placed because of the above exceptions, it can be placed in an edge hex. Once all tokens have been placed, flip them over. With the numbered side face up, these tokens are called objective tokens.
Objective tokens indicate important areas of the battlefield that the warbands will fight to hold. A fighter (and their warband) is said to hold an objective if they are on the objective token.
The other two feature tokens are not placed during this step. These feature tokens, and any feature tokens removed from the battlefield during a game, are called 'available feature tokens' as long as they are not on the battlefield. Some cards interact with available feature tokens.
(Feature tokens: objective token side / cover hex token side.)
Advanced Rules: Feature Tokens
With the numbered side face up, a feature token is referred to as an objective token. With the cover hex side face up, a feature token is referred to as a cover hex token.
Sometimes a feature token is flipped during the game. An objective token flipped in this manner will become a cover hex token. If that token is flipped again, it becomes an objective token once more. In the same way, a snare hex token flipped in this manner will become a cover hex token, and if it is flipped again it becomes a snare hex token once more.
Sometimes a feature token is moved or placed during the game: it cannot be moved into, or placed in, a blocked hex, a hex that contains another feature token, a lethal hex or a cover hex.
When a player is told to place a feature token during a round, unless specified otherwise, that player can decide which face of the feature token is face up.
Snare Hex Token
When a fighter moves onto, is pushed onto or is placed on a snare hex, or when a feature token in the same hex as a fighter becomes a snare hex, stagger that fighter (pg 35). A fighter that is in a snare hex can remain in it without gaining further Stagger tokens, and can move out of it (or be pushed out of it) without gaining further Stagger tokens.
4. Draw Cards
Each player shuffles their objective and power decks separately and places them face down next to the battlefield. Each player then draws three objective cards and five power cards. To draw a card, a player takes the top card from the relevant deck.
Once a player has drawn their cards, they can use one 'do-over'. This gives them a chance to try for a better starting hand. To do so:
- First they discard all of their power cards, or all of their objective cards, or all of their cards.
- Then they draw replacements for the cards they discarded - an objective card for an objective card, and a power card for a power card.
- Then they shuffle the discarded cards back into their respective decks.
The player who chose the first game board is first to decide whether to use a do-over. After they have decided not to use a do-over, or after they have used their do-over, it is then the other player's turn to decide whether or not to use a do-over.
Discard
When a player discards a card, they place it face up in a pile next to that card's matching deck, so you will have an objective discard pile for your objective cards and a power discard pile for your power cards. Rules on cards in discard piles have no effect on the game, unless they specify otherwise. All players can look at the cards in any discard pile.
Advanced Rules: Your Hand
The cards a player has drawn but has not yet played are referred to as their hand. A player's hand is kept secret from their opponent. A player's hand can contain any number of power cards, but never more than three objective cards.
Advanced Rules: Running Out of Cards
If a player would draw a card, but the relevant deck is empty, they cannot draw a card - discarded cards are not shuffled back into the deck.
Advanced Rules: Broken
Sometimes a rule will tell you to break an upgrade, or say that an upgrade is broken. This only affects upgrades that have been given to a fighter, so an upgrade in your hand cannot be broken. When an upgrade is broken, it is placed face up in the power discard pile of the player that owns that card.
5. Place the Fighters
The players roll off again. The player who wins picks a player. That player places one of their fighters in an empty starting hex in their territory (pg 21). Then players take it in turns to place one fighter at a time in the same way, until all of the fighters in the warbands have been placed. If either player runs out of fighters to place, the other player continues placing fighters until all of the fighters have been placed.
Action Phase
You're now ready to battle! Each game is made up of three rounds, and each round is made up of an action phase and an end phase.
At the start of each action phase, the players roll off. This happens before any abilities that are used at the start of an action phase. In the first round the player who finished placing all of the fighters in their warband first adds one critical success symbol to their roll. The player who wins picks which player is first to take a turn in that action phase.
Steps of a Turn
A player's turn has two major steps:
- Activation step
- Power step
In the activation step, the player takes an activation, which will usually involve activating a fighter to make an action such as a Move or Attack action. Note that although most activations allow a fighter to make an action, activations and actions are different things!
In the power step, both players can play power cards and delve (pg 38). After the power step, it is the other player's turn. When both players have taken four turns, the action phase is over, and the end phase begins.
Each player's turn also includes a number of minor steps:
- Reaction steps
- Inspire steps
- Surge steps
These are called minor steps because often neither player will do anything in these steps, and they will pass without comment. Each minor step is described elsewhere - the reaction step on page 42, the Inspire step on page 15, and the surge step on page 44.
The turn proceeds in this order: the turn starts with a set of minor steps (reaction step, Inspire step, surge step; these are rarely used except by certain warbands); then the activation step; then a reaction step, Inspire step and surge step; then the power step; then a reaction step, Inspire step and surge step.
Advanced Rules: Additional Reaction Steps
The activation step and power step can contain a number of reaction steps which are not pictured in the turn diagram. These steps occur after certain stages of the game, such as after a step in the combat sequence (pg 31) or after a power card is played (pg 38). How to play these steps is described in more detail on page 42, but in the rules that follow, the reaction step symbol is used following a rule to show that after that rule is resolved, there is a reaction step.
Activation Step
You will use most of your activation steps to activate your fighters. When you activate a fighter they make an action. Doing so uses one of your four activations for the phase. All fighters can make the following actions:
- Move (see below)
- Attack (pg 30)
- Guard (pg 36)
- Charge (pg 36)
Other actions fighters can make may be found on fighter and upgrade cards.
You can instead use an activation step to make a player action. These don't involve your fighters - instead, these actions allow a player to do something. Doing so uses one of your four activations for the phase. Players can make the following actions:
- Draw a power card
- Discard an objective card and then draw an objective card
- Pass (forfeit an activation)
It can be easy to lose track of how many activations you've taken in the heat of battle! This is why each player has four activation tokens. Each time you take an activation, flip one of the tokens over.
Move Action
When one of your fighters makes a Move action, you move them into an adjacent empty hex a number of times up to their Move characteristic. This is found on their fighter card (pg 15). The move can be in any direction. When a fighter completes a Move action, give that fighter a Move token (see below).
A fighter with one or more Move tokens cannot make a Charge action.
A fighter's position on the battlefield sometimes changes without them taking a Move action (e.g. when they are pushed, see below) - when this happens, do not give that fighter a Move token.
(Diagram: in the example, Sarrakkar would need a Move characteristic of at least 2 to move to hex A, at least 3 to move to hex B, and at least 4 to move to hex C.)
Advanced Rules: Move Action
A fighter that makes a Move action cannot end their Move action in the hex they started the Move action in.
Whenever a fighter makes a Move action, except as part of a Charge action (pg 36), give that fighter one Move token, even if that fighter was not activated to make that Move action.
Tokens and Counters
Some rules tell you to give a fighter a token. When you give a fighter a token, place the relevant token next to that fighter.
Some rules instead tell you to use a counter - they will say to give it to a fighter or place it on a power card. The most common of these are wound counters. To give a fighter a counter, place it on their fighter card. The reverse of a wound counter can be used to represent any kind of counter.
The tokens and counters are: Move/Charge token, Guard/Stagger token, and Wound/Generic counters.
Advanced Rules: Tokens and Counters
When you give a fighter a token, that fighter is then said to have that token, and whenever that fighter's position on the battlefield changes, their tokens go with them.
When you give a fighter a counter, or place a counter on a fighter's upgrade, that fighter is then said to have that counter.
Rules may name counters - the names are simply used to label the counters in the same way as keywords (pg 19). The rules will explain how to use the counters, or what significance they have.
Some rules tell you to remove a token or a counter. This means that you take that token from next to the fighter, or that counter from the card it is on. If the fighter or card has none of the relevant token or counter, you cannot remove it.
Push
When a rule tells you to push a fighter, push their miniature into an adjacent empty hex the number of times specified by the rule. Each push can be in any direction unless specified otherwise. A fighter that is pushed cannot end the push in the hex they started the push in.
Attack Action
Most fighters have at least one Attack action on their fighter card.
All Attack actions have the following information:
- Name. Some Attack actions have the spell symbol by their name. This means they are spell Attack actions.
- Range characteristic. A fighter making an Attack action can target a visible fighter (see below) within a number of hexes equal to the Attack action's Range characteristic (so a Range 1 Attack action can only target enemy fighters within 1 hex of the fighter making the Attack action).
- Dice characteristic. This characteristic is a number and a symbol. The number tells you how many attack dice to roll for an Attack action, the greater your chance of success. The symbol tells you which symbol (Smash, Fury or Support) you need to roll on the attack dice for a success. Spell Attack actions use magic dice instead, and have different symbols you need to roll for a success (Channel, Focus or Support). Spell Attack actions may have a hyphen instead of a number - where this is the case, roll a number of magic dice equal to the fighter's wizard level (pg 16).
- Damage characteristic. This tells you how much damage the attacking fighter deals to the target if the Attack action is successful.
- Some Attack actions have additional rules text, which may refer to a number of common abilities, such as Cleave and Knockback (pg 35) or may include other rules that change how the Attack action works.
Advanced Rules: Attack Actions
Fighters can gain additional Attack actions when they are given an Attack action upgrade (pg 39), or in some cases when they are Inspired (pg 15). Fighters can even gain temporary Attack actions from some gambits (pg 39).
A fighter must have a target that is within range and visible (see below) to be able to make an Attack action.
The distance to the target does not affect the Range characteristic of an Attack action (e.g. a Range 3 Attack action which targets an adjacent fighter is still a Range 3 Attack action). Some cards may refer to, for example, 'Range 3+ Attack actions': this means all Attack actions with a Range characteristic of the stated value and higher.
Where an Attack action has additional rules text, or where a fighter card includes an ability that has the same name as one of their Attack actions, these rules only affect that Attack action, unless specified otherwise.
Line of Sight
Line of sight is used to determine which fighters are visible to each fighter. It is usually used when checking if one fighter can make an Attack action that targets another. Fighters have line of sight in all directions - it doesn't matter which way the miniature is facing.
To check if a fighter has line of sight to a hex, draw a straight imaginary line from the centre of the hex they are in to the centre of the hex in question. If that line goes through or touches one or more blocked hexes, or goes off the edge of the battlefield, the fighter does not have line of sight to that hex. Otherwise, they have line of sight to that hex, and anything in that hex is visible to that fighter. Fighters and occupied hexes do not block line of sight, and you can draw line of sight along the edge of an incomplete hex (but not through one).
(Diagram: Sarrakkar has line of sight to all hexes labelled A, but does not have line of sight to any of the hexes labelled B.)
Combat Sequence
When you choose one of your fighters to make an Attack action, follow the combat sequence described here. A fighter making an Attack action is referred to as an attacker while that action is being resolved, and that fighter's player is referred to as the attacking player.
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Declare Attack action: Pick one of your fighter's Attack actions, and a target within that Attack action's Range and visible to the attacker. (reaction step)
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Attack roll: Roll a number of attack dice equal to the Attack action's Dice characteristic (or magic dice if the Attack action is a spell, see page 37). (reaction step)
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Defence roll: The target's player rolls a number of defence dice equal to the target's Defence characteristic. The target's Defence characteristic also shows which symbol (Block or Dodge) is a success. (reaction step)
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Determine success: Resolve this step as follows.
Trapped: First, check if the target is trapped. The target is trapped if there is no empty hex adjacent to the target which is further from the attacker. A fighter that cannot be pushed or cannot be driven back - for example, a fighter on Guard (pg 36) - cannot be trapped. If the target is trapped and you rolled one or more successes (including critical success symbols), add one success to the number of successes you rolled.
Count critical successes: Now count up the critical success symbols in the attack and defence rolls.
- If you rolled more than your opponent, this is called a 'critical hit'. The Attack action succeeds. Go to step 5. (reaction step)
- If your opponent rolled more than you, this is called a 'critical defence'. The Attack action misses and fails. Go to step 8. (reaction step)
- Otherwise, count successes (see below).
Count successes: Now count up the successes in the attack and defence rolls. Rolls of critical success symbols are always successes. In addition, support symbols may be successes (see overleaf).
Advanced Rules: Combat Sequence
When your fighter makes an Attack action, you cannot target a friendly fighter.
If, at the start of any of the steps 2-5 in the combat sequence, the target is no longer visible and/or within range, the Attack action fails - skip to step 8. (reaction step)
Note that fighters do not gain a token for making an Attack action - a single fighter can make multiple Attack actions in the same round.
A critical hit or critical defence has no inherent advantage over a 'normal' hit or miss - however, some fighters have critical abilities, such as Grievous, which work when the Attack action results in a critical hit or when their defence roll results in a critical defence (pg 32).
Driven Back
If the target of an Attack action can be driven back, the attacking player can choose to push the target 1 hex away from the attacker.
(Example: when Velmorn drives Gorl back, Gorl can be pushed into one of the three hexes labelled A in the diagram.)
Support
In combat, fighters rarely have the luxury of facing their foe one-on-one. Each fighter's allies will try to help and hinder their enemies.
- The attacker is supported by each friendly fighter that is adjacent to the target. These friendly fighters are said to be supporting that attacker.
- The target is supported by each friendly fighter that is adjacent to the attacker. These friendly fighters are said to be supporting the target.
If a fighter has one supporting fighter, rolls of single-support symbols are successes in their attack or defence roll. If a fighter has two or more supporting fighters, rolls of single-support and double-support symbols are successes in their attack or defence roll.
Fighters cannot support an attacker making a spell Attack action.
(Example: if Helmar (A) was attacking Sarrakkar (D), Thain (B) would support Helmar and neither Kheira (C) nor Longcut (E) are in a position to support Sarrakkar, as they are not adjacent to Helmar. This would give Helmar one supporting fighter, so he would count rolls of single-support symbols as successes. If, on the other hand, Thain was attacking Sarrakkar, Helmar would support Thain, but Kheira would support Sarrakkar. Again, Longcut is not in a position to support Sarrakkar. Both the attacker and the target have one supporting fighter, so each would count rolls of single-support symbols as successes. Finally, if Longcut was attacking Thain, Helmar is not in a position to support Thain, while both Kheira and Sarrakkar are in a position to support Longcut. This would give Longcut two supporting fighters, so he would count rolls of single-support and double-support symbols as successes.)
Advanced Rules: Critical Abilities
Some Attack actions, fighters and power cards have critical abilities. A critical ability on a fighter card or power card will include the critical success symbol in its name. The most common of these is Grievous (pg 35).
Critical abilities are used after step 4 of the combat sequence. The attacker's player can use their fighter's critical abilities if the Attack action resulted in a critical hit, and the target's player can use their fighter's critical abilities if the Attack action resulted in a critical defence.
Damage
When a fighter is dealt damage, take a number of wound counters equal to the amount of damage dealt (which will usually be the Damage characteristic of an Attack action that targeted them and succeeded) and give them to that fighter by placing them on that fighter's fighter card. (reaction step) Then check if that fighter has been taken out of action (pg 34).
Advanced Rules: Who Dealt Damage?
Sometimes you need to know who or what is considered to have dealt damage to a fighter:
- If a fighter's Attack action or a fighter's upgrade deals damage, that fighter is said to have dealt that damage and, if relevant, to have taken that fighter out of action.
- If a gambit spell (pg 37) or backlash (pg 37) deals damage, the wizard that was casting the spell is said to have dealt that damage and, if relevant, to have taken that fighter out of action.
- If another card deals damage, the warband of the player who used that card is said to have dealt that damage and, if relevant, to have taken that fighter out of action.
- If a lethal hex deals damage, the lethal hex is said to have dealt that damage and, if relevant, to have taken that fighter out of action. This is true even when a fighter is pushed into a lethal hex during an Attack action.
Heal
If a card tells you to Heal (X), where X is a number, that means that you remove that number of wound counters from the fighter or fighters described by the card (if they do not have enough wound counters, simply remove all their wound counters). A fighter can only be healed if they have at least one wound counter.
Advanced Rules: Vulnerable
A fighter who has a number of wound tokens that is one less than their Wounds characteristic (so they would be taken out of action if they were dealt 1 damage) is vulnerable. This has no inherent effect, but some cards refer to this keyword.
Out of Action
If a fighter has a number of wound counters equal to or greater than their Wounds characteristic, that fighter is taken out of action. Take them off the battlefield - they will play no further part in the game. (reaction step)
Bounty
When an enemy fighter is taken out of action, gain 1 glory point. Glory points that you gain in this way are called a bounty. Large enemy fighters are worth 1 additional glory point.
Advanced Rules: Plunder
Any player can use the following reaction.
Plunder Reaction: Use this during a friendly fighter's Attack action that takes the target out of action, after the out of action check. Place one available feature token in the hex the target was in with the objective token face up.
Advanced Rules: Out of Action
When a fighter is taken out of action, clear all of their tokens from the battlefield. In addition, clear all counters from their fighter card and from their upgrades. Note that these tokens and counters are not said to have been removed (so, for example, the fighter is not healed - see page 33). Do not break the fighter's upgrades.
A fighter that is out of action cannot do anything: their abilities don't do anything, they cannot be activated, cannot become Inspired, cannot make actions or reactions, you cannot use any actions or reactions on their upgrades and so on. However, any traits or keywords the fighter has still apply.
Some warbands or power cards have the ability to return fighters who have been taken out of action to the battlefield. Note that as you clear all of a fighter's tokens and counters when they are removed from the battlefield, a fighter returned in this way will not 'keep' their Move, Charge, Guard or Stagger tokens or their wound counters.
Attack Action Keywords
Cleave
If an Attack action has the Cleave keyword, rolls of Block cannot be successes in the defence roll.
Ensnare
If an Attack action has the Ensnare keyword, rolls of Dodge cannot be successes in the defence roll.
Grievous
If an Attack action has the critical success Grievous X keyword, where X is a number, it has the following critical ability.
Critical success Grievous X: +X Damage to this Attack action, until it has been resolved, where X is the number in the ability name.
Advanced Rules: Grievous
Some older cards simply say Grievous or Grievous 1, or say that the Attack action has +1 Damage on a critical hit - this is the same as Grievous 1.
If an Attack action has two or more rules giving it Grievous, add the numbers together for a combined total (e.g. if an Attack action has two rules giving it Grievous 1, it has Grievous 2).
Scything
When a fighter makes an Attack action with the Scything keyword, the fighter makes that Attack action once for each adjacent enemy fighter, targeting a different one of those fighters with each of those Attack actions.
Advanced Rules: Scything
The number of Attack actions made as part of a Scything Attack action, and the targets of those Attack actions, are determined at the start of the action. If the number of Attack actions is more than one, the Attack action is resolved as a superaction (see overleaf).
The attacking player resolves the Attack actions in whatever order they choose. Because each Attack action is resolved separately, if there is a rule in effect that affects the next Attack action, it will only affect the first Attack action resolved in this way, not the whole superaction. In addition, each Attack action has its own reaction steps (reaction step) in the same way as other Attack actions.
Stagger
If an Attack action has the Stagger keyword, after that Attack action, if it succeeds, give the target one Stagger token. This happens before the reaction step after that Attack action. If a card tells you to stagger a fighter, give that fighter one Stagger token.
When a fighter is given one or more Stagger tokens, remove that fighter's Guard tokens. A fighter with one or more Stagger tokens is staggered: when that fighter is the target of an Attack action, the attacker's player can re-roll one attack dice in the attack roll.
Knockback
If an Attack action has the Knockback X keyword, where X is a number, in the drive back step the attacking player can drive the target back a number of additional hexes up to X.
Advanced Rules: Knockback
When Knockback causes the target of an Attack action to be driven back more than 1 hex, the push must continue in the same direction. If the attacking player cannot push the target further in that direction, the target is not pushed any further.
If an Attack action has two or more rules giving it Knockback, add the numbers together for a combined total (e.g. if an Attack action has two rules giving it Knockback 1, it has Knockback 2).
(Example: Sir Jedran attacks Kheira with a successful Attack action with Knockback 1. The attacking player can choose one of three hexes to drive Kheira into as a result of the successful Attack action, and the arrows show how that movement continues as a result of Knockback.)
Guard Action
When one of your fighters makes a Guard action, give that fighter a Guard token. When a fighter is given one or more Guard tokens, remove that fighter's Stagger tokens. A fighter with one or more Guard tokens is on Guard.
A fighter who is on Guard counts both Block and Dodge as successes in their defence rolls. In addition, they cannot be driven back unless the Attack action has Knockback.
Advanced Rules: Guard
A fighter who is on Guard cannot make a Guard action.
Charge Action
When your fighter makes a Charge action, first remove any Guard tokens that fighter has (see above).
That fighter then makes a Move action, then an Attack action. Give the fighter a Charge token (rather than a Move token) after the Move action. Once you have followed the rules for both actions, the Charge action is complete.
A fighter with one or more Charge tokens cannot be activated unless each surviving friendly fighter has one or more Charge tokens. When a fighter with one or more Charge tokens is activated, that fighter cannot make a Move action or a superaction (see below).
Advanced Rules: Charge Action
The Move action and the Attack action of a Charge action are resolved in the same way as a normal action of that type, with all of the same reaction steps. If any of the conditions for making the Move action or Attack action of a Charge action cannot be met, the fighter cannot make a Charge action.
Whenever a fighter makes a Charge action, give that fighter one Charge token after the Move action, even if that fighter was not activated to make that Charge action and even if, after the Move action, the fighter is unable to make an Attack action (for example, because of a reaction that means they no longer have a valid target).
Advanced Rules: Superactions
A superaction is a special kind of action that combines two or more actions in one. The most common of these is the Charge superaction. When you activate a fighter to make a superaction it only requires a single activation. Each action within a superaction follows the rules for an action of that type. There is a reaction step after each action within a superaction - see page 42.
Spells
Spells in Warhammer Underworlds come in three forms:
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As gambit cards, as described on page 39.
Gambit spells can only be played when there is a friendly wizard on the battlefield. Each time you play a gambit spell, you must choose a friendly wizard to attempt to cast it as described below. The casting value for a gambit spell is shown as a number of symbols, for example: Gambit Spell (Channel, Channel).
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On fighter cards and upgrade cards as actions or reactions that your fighter can make.
A wizard with a spell action or reaction can attempt to cast it as described below. The casting value for a spell action or reaction is shown as a number of symbols, for example: Spell Action (Focus).
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On fighter cards and upgrade cards as Attack actions.
Spell Attack actions can be used by a fighter in the same way as other Attack actions, see below for details on how these spells are cast.
Casting Spells
When a fighter attempts to cast a spell, other than a spell Attack action, follow the casting sequence described here.
- Roll a number of magic dice equal to the casting wizard's wizard level. This is called the casting roll. (reaction step)
- If there are two or more critical success symbols in the casting roll, the wizard suffers backlash: they are dealt 1 damage (pg 33). (reaction step) If this damage takes the wizard out of action, the spell fails - skip to step 5. If the wizard did not suffer backlash or was not taken out of action as a result of damage dealt from suffered backlash, go to step 3.
- Compare the casting value of the spell to the result of the casting roll.
- If the casting roll includes a matching symbol for each symbol in the casting value, the spell has been cast: go to step 4. Each critical success symbol in the casting roll can be used to match a symbol of any kind in the casting value.
- If you do not roll enough matching symbols, the spell fails - skip to step 5.
- Resolve the spell by following the text on the card.
- This sequence ends, and if the spell was a gambit spell it is discarded. (reaction step)
For example, if a level 2 wizard was attempting to cast a Gambit Spell (Channel, Channel), that fighter's player would roll two magic dice. If the result of the roll is Channel Channel, Channel and critical success, or critical success and critical success, the spell is cast (although with the critical success and critical success result this will only be true if the wizard survives the damage from backlash!). On any other result the spell is not cast.
Advanced Rules: Casting Spells
Some spells require you to choose one or more fighters, feature tokens or hexes. In these cases, the caster must have line of sight (pg 30) to whatever you need to choose (the caster is considered to have line of sight to themselves). If they do not, they cannot attempt to cast that spell (and in the case of a gambit spell, you cannot play that card).
Casting Spell Attack Actions
Unlike other spells, spell Attack actions do not have a casting value - a spell Attack action is cast if the Attack action succeeds, and otherwise is not cast and it fails. If you roll two or more critical success symbols in the attack roll when a wizard makes a spell Attack action, that wizard suffers backlash. If this damage takes the wizard out of action, the spell (and the Attack action) fails.
Power Step
The power step lets you play gambit cards and upgrade cards to disrupt your opponent's plans, or carry out your own.
After a player's activation step, it is time for that player's power step. Players alternate playing a power card, delving a feature token or passing (saying "pass"), starting with the player whose power step it is. Any number of power cards can be played in each power step, but once both players pass in succession, the power step ends and the next turn begins.
Play a Power Card
To play a power card, a player simply reveals the card from their hand they wish to play. The player then follows the directions on the card if it is a gambit, or gives the upgrade to a friendly fighter if it is an upgrade card. More detail is found in the sections that follow.
Advanced Rules: Playing a Power Card
A player can only play a power card if they can follow all of the directions on that card. For example, if a card instructs you to choose two friendly fighters, and you only have one surviving friendly fighter, you cannot play that card. For another example, if a card tells you to Heal (1) a fighter, and that fighter has no wound counters, you cannot play that card.
Some power cards describe an additional condition that must be met before they can be played (reactions are the most common of these, and are described on pages 42-43). A player can only play these power cards when that condition is met.
Delve
In place of playing a power card, a player can instead delve by flipping one feature token, if a friendly fighter that is not staggered is on that feature token. When they do so, they stagger that fighter. Each player can only delve each feature token once in each power step.
Advanced Rules: Sequencing
If a player has two or more abilities that would resolve at the same time (e.g. at the beginning of the action phase) they choose in which order they are resolved.
If two players have abilities that would resolve at the same time, and these rules do not specify otherwise, they roll off (pg 23). The winner chooses who resolves an ability first, then the other player resolves an ability. They keep resolving abilities in the same order until all abilities they wish to resolve have been resolved. Some abilities are optional (they use the word 'can') - a player can choose not to resolve such an ability, but if they do so they cannot resolve any further optional abilities at this time.
Gambit Cards
Gambit cards are either ploys or spells.
To play a ploy card, reveal it. (reaction step) Then follow the text on the card. Once you have done so, the card is said to be resolved, and you discard it. (reaction step)
To play a gambit spell, reveal it. (reaction step) Then follow the rules for casting spells (pg 37).
Advanced Rules: Gambit Cards
Some gambit cards list one or more restrictions, which may be a specific fighter, a trait or a keyword that a fighter can have. A gambit card with one or more restrictions can only be played if one of the fighters identified by those restrictions is on the battlefield.
Some gambit cards refer to the next event of some kind - the next activation, Attack action, or so on. Instead of discarding these cards immediately, leave these gambit cards face up in front of you once you have played them. There is a reaction step (reaction step) once you have played them. They will remain there until the end of the next activation, or until the end of the round, or until you apply their effects: whichever comes first. Once that point is reached, any remaining unresolved face-up gambit cards of this type are discarded with no effect.
Some gambit cards say that they persist - these cards have an ongoing effect. Instead of discarding these cards immediately, leave these cards face up in front of you once you have played them. There is still a reaction step (reaction step) once you have played them. They are not discarded until they specify that they are, or another card specifies that they are. If a card that persists specifies more than one event that it persists until (e.g. if a card said 'this persists until the next Attack action or the end of the round', it would persist until the first of these events occurs).
Some gambit cards allow your fighters to make additional actions without being activated. When one of these gambit specifies a particular action or actions, a fighter can make those actions even if the rules of the game would normally not allow it. For example, if a gambit says that a fighter can make a Charge action, they can do so even if they have a Move token.
Upgrade Cards
Upgrade cards give permanent abilities or characteristic modifiers to a player's fighters.
To play an upgrade card, a player reveals that card. (reaction step) The player then spends one of their unspent glory points by flipping it over to its spent side. Once they have done so, they declare which friendly fighter they are giving the upgrade to and place it adjacent to that fighter's fighter card. (reaction step) The fighter has that upgrade for the rest of the game.
Advanced Rules: Upgrade Cards
Some upgrade cards list one or more restrictions, which may be a specific fighter, a trait or a keyword that a fighter can have. An upgrade card with one or more restrictions can only be given to one of the fighters identified by those restrictions.
A fighter can be given more than one upgrade. A fighter cannot be given an upgrade if they are not on the battlefield or are out of action (though their upgrades are not broken when they are taken out of action).
If a fighter has an upgrade that includes a modifier, that modifier applies to the relevant characteristic of that fighter (pg 40). If a fighter has an upgrade that includes an action, that fighter can make that action when activated or when another ability grants it an action of that type or an unspecified action. If an upgrade includes a reaction, it will state when that reaction can be used. An upgrade that includes an Attack action is called an Attack action upgrade.
Modifiers
Various effects change the values printed on cards or the dice you roll. These are called modifiers. Most modifiers are found on power cards.
Modifying Characteristics
A modified characteristic is said to have the modified value. For example, if a fighter with a printed Move characteristic of 3 has a +1 Move modifier, that fighter's Move characteristic is considered to be 4.
Modifiers are cumulative, so if a single characteristic or roll has more than one modifier applied to it, apply them all.
Numerical modifiers that affect the Dice and Defence characteristics change the number of dice you roll in an attack or defence roll. For example, +1 Dice means that you would increase the number of an Attack action's Dice characteristic by 1 (and therefore roll an extra dice for that Attack action).
Advanced Rules: Modifying Characteristics
Apply modifiers that multiply or divide before modifiers that add or subtract, even if the modifiers that multiply or divide are on cards played after those with modifiers that add or subtract.
Characteristics cannot be reduced below 1, with the exception of Move, which cannot be reduced below 0.
Dice roll modifiers also apply to any re-rolls of those dice (pg 23). For example, when rolling to see who chooses the first player to take an activation in the first round, the player who finished placing their fighters first adds one critical success symbol to their roll. If this roll is re-rolled, they add one critical success symbol to that re-roll (and any subsequent re-rolls) as well.
Setting Characteristics
Some modifiers set a characteristic at a particular value, rather than modifying an existing value. Apply these modifiers before any others. For example, if a fighter has an upgrade that sets their Move characteristic to 5, and also has an upgrade that gives them +1 Move, you would set their Move characteristic to 5 and then add 1, for a Move characteristic of 6.
Modifiers may set the symbol of a Dice or Defence characteristic. For example, a ploy that makes the next Attack action have a Fury characteristic means that rolls of Fury (rather than the symbol on the Attack action) are successes for the attack roll of that Attack action.
Advanced Rules: Setting Characteristics
If two or more modifiers would set the same characteristic or roll to different values (e.g. a fighter's Move characteristic is set to 1 by one card and to 3 by another card), whichever of those rules came into effect last is the value used, for as long as that rule is in effect (or until another card is played that sets the value).
For example, if a fighter has an upgrade that sets their Move characteristic to 5 and a player plays a ploy that sets all Move characteristics to 1 for the next activation, the ploy takes precedence: that fighter's Move characteristic is 1 for the next activation, and then it reverts to 5 when the ploy is no longer in effect. If the upgrade was played after the ploy, the fighter's Move characteristic would be 5 (regardless of the ploy).
Innate Symbols
Innate symbols can appear on fighter cards, on upgrade cards, and on gambit cards - for example, Innate (Smash) or Innate (Fury). These symbols are modifiers and are added to attack rolls, defence rolls and casting rolls. For example, if a fighter has Innate Fury, when you make an attack roll for that fighter you add one Fury symbol to whatever else you have rolled.
Advanced Rules: Innate Symbols
Unlike other modifiers, innate symbols do not stack - no matter how many of these innate symbols a fighter has, you can only apply one to their roll. For example, if a fighter had Innate (Smash, Fury), you would choose to add either Smash or Fury to the attack roll when they make an Attack action, and if a fighter had Innate (Channel) from two or more sources, you would only add a single Channel to the casting roll when the fighter attempts to cast a spell. If you have to choose between two or more innate symbols, you must do so before making the roll.
Scatter
Advanced Rules: Scatter
Some cards or actions have the keyword Scatter X on them, where X is a number. Scatter is used to represent the sometimes random nature of direction in the confusing underworlds. When you resolve a card or action with Scatter X you will create a random chain of adjacent hexes that determines how you resolve the card or action.
The card or action will tell you which hex to scatter from - this hex is called the 'origin hex'. To scatter from the origin hex, place the scatter token on the battlefield. You can choose how the token is oriented and which hex you place it in. (reaction step) Then roll a number of attack dice equal to the Scatter number (so for Scatter 1 you would roll one dice, for Scatter 2 you would roll two dice, etc.). The symbols on the attack dice correspond to directions on the scatter token, so each of the dice rolled indicates a direction you can use to create the chain (see below). You cannot change the orientation of the scatter token once you have rolled the dice.
When the chain is complete, remove the scatter token from the battlefield. The card or action you are resolving will tell you how to use this chain, or what happens in the hexes through which the chain passes or in the end hex. If the chain would extend off the edge of the battlefield, it ends in the last hex it extends into. A chain that ends in this way is described as interrupted. If the chain has not extended beyond the origin hex, no chain is created, which usually means the card or action will have no effect.
For example, if a card said 'Scatter 3 from this fighter's hex. Any fighter in the end hex is dealt 1 damage.' you would place the scatter token on the battlefield, choosing its orientation when doing so. You would then roll three attack dice, choose the order in which to use them and place them in a chain as indicated by the directions on the scatter token. The effect of the card would cause 1 damage on any fighter in the last hex in the chain (the end hex). In the example, two Smash and one Fury were rolled. After the player creates a chain using the three results in whichever order they choose, any fighter in the end hex is damaged.
Creating the chain
- Choose one of the dice you rolled and place it in the hex adjacent to the origin hex in the direction indicated by that dice. This is the first hex in the chain. Note that the scatter token's orientation is fixed - you cannot change it once you have rolled the dice.
Reactions
Each reaction step lets you use a single reaction. Reactions are found on fighter cards, upgrade cards and gambit cards. It does not cost you an activation to use a reaction. Note that some reactions are spells - a friendly wizard must cast them as described on page 37.
Each reaction describes a reaction step in which it can be used, and may also list one or more conditions that must be met in that reaction step. When this situation arises you can use the reaction by declaring that you will do so and, in the case of a gambit, revealing the card from your hand. (reaction step) Then resolve the reaction as described on the card, and if it was a gambit discard the card. (reaction step) Then play continues from the point where it was interrupted.
Advanced Rules: On Hold
Often, a player will be able to use a reaction during an action or when a gambit is played, before that action or gambit is resolved. When this happens, the game is put on hold until the reaction has been resolved. Once it has been resolved, you then finish resolving the action or gambit that was interrupted.
If the reaction has made this impossible (e.g. if a fighter's position has changed so that they are no longer in range to complete an Attack action), the action ends or gambit is discarded without being resolved any further.
If a reaction happens during a fighter's action, that fighter is still considered to have made that action, even if you are unable to finish resolving that action.
Reaction Limits and Chains
In some situations more than one reaction could be used in the same reaction step - most often this will be after an action or activation step. However, each player can only play one reaction in each reaction step.
If more than one player wants to play a reaction in the same step, they take it in turn, starting with the player whose turn it is. This is referred to as a reaction chain.
After an Action/Activation Step
Many reactions use the reaction steps that occur after an action or after an activation step. These reaction steps are often the same, as the end of a fighter's or player's last action in an activation step is simultaneous with the end of that activation step. This means that players cannot use an 'after an action' reaction to the last action in an activation step and then an 'after an activation step' reaction.
Advanced Rules: Reaction Limits and Chains
Some reactions may share a reaction step even if the conditions they describe are slightly different: for example, a reaction that can be played after an Attack action and a reaction that can be played after an Attack action that fails - in both cases the reaction step is after an Attack action.
When more than one player wants to play a reaction in the same step, they take it in turn, building a reaction chain (see below). The player whose turn it is goes first. If the reaction happens outside of any player's turn, roll-off, and the winner of the roll-off chooses who goes first.
Reaction chains. When a player uses a reaction, they start a reaction chain. When they do so, the other player can pass (saying "pass"), or they can add one reaction to the chain, which must share the same reaction step as the original reaction. For example, after an activation if a player plays an 'after an activation' reaction, the other player could play an 'after an activation' reaction, or could even play an 'after an action' reaction as long as that was a reaction to the last action in that activation (see above). Those reactions would form a chain.
Once each player has added a reaction to the chain or passed, the chain is resolved in the order in which it was built. The second reaction in the chain can only be resolved if the state of play still allows it - a fighter taken out of action or pushed out of range can't make a reaction Attack action, for example. Gambit reactions that cannot be resolved are discarded, and if an upgrade would have been broken if its reaction had been resolved, it is still broken.
Reacting to a reaction. Some reactions can be played in reaction to a reaction. Rather than joining a reaction chain, these reactions start a secondary reaction chain. This is built in the same way and resolved in the same way immediately after the reaction which created the reaction step for this secondary chain is played or resolved (following the wording of the reaction). This may interrupt another reaction chain. For example, if two players play an 'after an activation' reaction, those two reactions go into a chain, with the first one to be resolved belonging to the player whose turn it is. If, after the first reaction is resolved, either player wants to make a reaction to that reaction, they can do so, creating a secondary chain. That secondary chain would then be resolved, and finally the second reaction from the original reaction chain would be resolved (if that is still possible).
Advanced Rules: Reactions (reaction steps diagram)
The following diagrams show you each of the reaction steps - the opportunities in which players will be able to use reactions. Each reaction step symbol represents a reaction step, and you will find these throughout this rulebook indicating where there is a reaction step.
Reaction steps during an Attack action: there is a reaction step after each of the eight steps of the combat sequence (1. Declare Attack action, 2. Attack roll, 3. Defence roll, 4. Determine success, 5. Deal damage, 6. Check if the target is taken out of action, 7. Drive back, 8. End sequence).
Reaction steps when a fighter is dealt damage: These reaction steps exist each time a fighter is dealt damage, for any reason (though most commonly after steps 5 and 6 of an Attack action). If a fighter is dealt damage at any other time during an action or when a power card is played, these reaction steps occur before that action or card is considered to be resolved, and before any other reaction steps.
Reaction steps after an action, and after an activation step: The end of the final action in an activation step and the end of that activation step are simultaneous, and they share the same reaction step. These examples use Charge actions to show how these reaction steps work for superactions: in a Charge action there is a reaction step after the Move action and after the Attack action; the reaction step after the Attack action is shared with the end of the activation step.
Reaction steps when a spell action (other than an Attack action) is made: there is a reaction step when the spell action is declared, after the casting roll, and when the spell action is resolved.
Reaction steps when a power card is played: there is a reaction step when the power card is revealed and when it is resolved. For a gambit spell, there is a reaction step when the gambit spell is revealed, after the casting roll, and when the gambit spell is resolved.
End Phase
Once both players have taken all of their turns, the end phase begins.
In the end phase, you can score objective cards, upgrade your fighters, discard cards and replenish your hand. Take it in turns to run through the following sequence; the player who took the first turn in the action phase runs through this sequence first, then their opponent does so.
- Check your objective cards, and if you have met the conditions on any of them you may score that objective. To score an objective card, reveal that card and collect the number of glory points specified on that card. Place the card revealed this way face up in your scored objectives pile, adjacent to your objective card deck. Repeat this step for any further objective cards you wish to score.
- You can discard any of your remaining objective cards.
- You can play any upgrade cards, as described on page 39.
- You can discard any of your remaining power cards.
- If you have fewer than three objective cards in your hand, draw objective cards until you have three in your hand, or there are no more cards in your objective deck (whichever happens first).
- If you have fewer than five power cards in your hand, draw power cards until you have five in your hand, or there are no more cards in your power deck (whichever happens first).
Once both players have followed this sequence, clear all Move, Charge, Guard and Stagger tokens from the battlefield. Flip your activation tokens over - a new round then begins.
Advanced Rules: End Phase
Players cannot use gambits in the end phase, and there are no reaction steps, Inspire steps or surge steps in the end phase.
Tokens cleared in the end phase are not said to have been removed.
Objective Card Types
Surge objective cards and the surge step. Most objective cards are scored in the end phase as described above. However, some objective cards are scored 'immediately' after an event - for example after an action or gambit - as long as the conditions on the objective card are met. These objective cards are called surge objective cards, and have the surge keyword. When the condition on a surge objective card is met, the player reveals that card. They will score that card in the next surge step.
A Surge step precedes each activation step (pg 28), and follows each activation and each power step (pg 38). Starting with the player who last took an activation, each player scores each of their revealed surge objectives.
When a player scores a surge objective card, that player immediately draws another objective card. Note that you cannot score any surge objective cards drawn this way until the next surge step.
Hybrid objective cards. Some objective cards have two different conditions on them (separated by the word 'or'), either of which allow you to score the objective card. These objective cards are called hybrid objective cards, and have the hybrid keyword. When you satisfy either or both of the conditions on the objective card you can score that objective card. Hybrid objective cards may also be surge objective cards.
Dual objective cards. Some objective cards have two different conditions on them (separated by the word 'and'), both of which you must satisfy to score the objective card. These objective cards are called dual objective cards, and have the dual keyword. When you satisfy both of the conditions on the objective card you can score that objective card. Dual objective cards may also be surge objective cards.
Play On
Rounds 2 and 3
Round 2 works in the same way as round 1 - simply return to page 26 and play through another action phase and another end phase.
The action phase of round 3 works in the same way as rounds 1 and 2. However, when you get to the end phase of round 3, each player only plays the first step of the end phase, scoring any objective cards whose conditions have been met in the same way as in the other end phases. You do not discard cards, play upgrade cards or draw cards. The third round then ends, and then the game ends.
Victory
At the end of the game, whichever player has the highest number of glory points (whether they are spent or unspent) is the winner. If the players have the same number of points, but only one player has one or more surviving fighters, that player wins. If each player has one or more surviving fighters, whoever is holding the highest number of objectives wins. If there is still a tie, the game is a draw.
No Enemies in Sight
It may seem strange that if your fighters take the other warband entirely out of action, you don't automatically win the game (though it is likely that you will). This means that you cannot afford to take your eyes off the objective cards!
This also means that if a warband is taken entirely out of action in round 1 or 2, you still need to play the remaining phases so that neither player is prevented from scoring objective cards.
Multiplayer Games
If you have access to two Core Sets, you can play Warhammer Underworlds with three or four players. For the most part you will follow all of the rules for a two-player game, but there are some significant changes which are detailed here.
Place the Boards
The players roll off. Whoever loses (see below) chooses a game board and a side of that game board to use. This can be any board from their collection. The remaining players roll off again, and the loser chooses a game board and side next, then places it adjacent to the first board and in one of the positions shown in the rulebook. If there are two players left, they roll off again and the player who scores lowest does the same, placing their board adjacent to at least one of the boards already placed, following the same restrictions. Then the final player does so. The resulting battlefield will look like one of the example layouts shown.
No Room for Your Board?
Note that when you place your game board, you can first rotate the game boards that have already been placed (though you must keep them in the same position relative to each other). This means you can place your own game board exactly where you want it to be. Once all game boards are placed, players may wish to switch places so that their own game board is within easy reach.
Roll-offs in Multiplayer Games
In a multiplayer game, you may need to establish the loser of a roll-off. In this case, when you compare the results:
- The loser is the player who has rolled fewer critical success symbols than any other player. The other players win.
- If there is a tie, the tied player who has rolled fewer single-support symbols than any other tied player loses. The other players win.
- If there is still a tie, the tied player who has rolled fewer double-support symbols than any other tied player loses. The other players win.
- If there is still a tie, the tied players should roll off again. The other players win.
Order of Play
In a multiplayer game of Warhammer Underworlds, when determining the order of play (whose turn it is to do something), the next player to have a turn is the player to the left of the player whose turn it is.
Place Feature Tokens
A three or four player game of Warhammer Underworlds uses up to thirteen feature tokens which all show a cover hex on one side. On nine of the feature tokens, the other side has a number from 1-9, and on the other feature tokens the other side shows a snare hex.
If you are playing a three-player game, take the tokens numbered 1-7 and put the other numbered tokens back in the box. If you are playing a four-player game, use all the numbered tokens. Shuffle the numbered tokens with the cover side face up. Deal three to the player that chose the first game board, and two to each other player. Keeping the numbered sides hidden, the players take it in turns to place the feature tokens on the battlefield, starting with the player that chose the first game board and following the order of play. When a player does so, they must place the token with the cover hex side up in any hex on the battlefield, with the following exceptions: they cannot place it in a starting hex, a blocked hex, a lethal hex, a cover hex or an edge hex (pg 20), or within two hexes of another token. If a token cannot be placed because of the above exceptions, it can be placed in an edge hex. Once all tokens have been placed, flip them over.
The other feature tokens are not placed during this step. Set aside a number of these tokens equal to the number of players in the game. These feature tokens, and any feature tokens removed from the battlefield during a game, are called 'available feature tokens' as long as they are not on the battlefield. Some cards interact with available feature tokens.
Draw Cards
The player who chose the first game board is first to decide whether to use a do-over. After they have decided not to use a do-over, or after they have used their do-over, the next player decides whether to use a do-over, and so on, in order of play.
Place the Fighters
The players roll off, and whoever wins chooses who places a fighter first. That player places one of their fighters in one of the starting hexes on their game board. Then players take it in turns in order of play to place one fighter at a time in the same way, until all of the fighters in the warbands have been placed. If any player runs out of fighters to place, the other players continue placing fighters until all of the fighters have been placed.
Objective Cards
Some objective cards work differently in multiplayer games. When this is the case, they will have one or more of the following symbols:
- The multiplayer symbol is used for cards that work differently in all multiplayer games.
- The three-player symbol is used for cards that work differently in three-player games.
- The four-player symbol is used for cards that work differently in four-player games.
Each symbol is followed by italic text that replaces the italic text in the objective card's condition, modifying the condition depending on how many players are in the game. In the example (the objective card Hold Objective 1: 'Score this in an end phase if your warband holds objective 1.'), in a game with three players, you score the objective in an end phase if your warband holds objectives 1 and/or 6, and in a game with four players, you score it if your warbands holds objectives 1, 2 and/or 6.
Action Phase (Multiplayer)
At the start of the action phase, the players roll off. The player who finished placing their warband first adds one critical success symbol to this roll in round 1. Whoever wins decides which player is first to take a turn in that action phase.
Players take it in turns to take a turn, starting with the player chosen as described above and proceeding in order of play from there.
Game Sequence (Multiplayer)
The number of turns each player takes in a round is determined by the number of players:
- If you are playing a three-player game, each player takes three turns in each round.
- If you are playing a four-player game, each player takes four turns in each round.
Bounty (Multiplayer)
When a fighter is taken out of action, only the player whose warband took them out of action gains a bounty. If a fighter is taken out of action by damage not caused by a warband, for example by a lethal hex, no player gains a bounty. A player cannot gain a bounty for taking their own fighter out of action.
Power Step (Multiplayer)
After a player's activation step, it is time for that player's power step. Unlike in a two-player game of Warhammer Underworlds, in a three- or four-player game the only players that take part in a player's power step are that player and the player who is next in order of play (if this is the last turn in the round, include the player whose turn would be next if there was another turn). Those players alternate playing a power card, delving a feature token or passing (saying "pass"), starting with the player whose turn it is. Any number of power cards can be played in each power step, but once both players pass in succession, the power step ends and the next turn begins.
Supporting Fighters (Multiplayer)
When working out who is supporting a fighter in a multiplayer game, the rules work exactly the same. In effect, you will ignore all fighters from warbands that are neither attacking nor the target of the attack.
(Example: Gorl (A) can attack three enemies. When resolving an Attack action against Thain (D), Kheira (B) supports Gorl, but Velmorn (C) and Sir Jedran (E) are from different Sons of Velmorn warbands and do not support Thain. Similarly, when resolving an Attack action against Velmorn or Sir Jedran, Gorl doesn't have to worry about the other enemy fighters, as they all are from different warbands.)
Sequencing (Multiplayer)
If two or more players have abilities that would resolve at the same time, they roll off. The winner resolves an ability first, then the loser of the roll-off resolves an ability. If there are three or four players with abilities that would resolve at the same time, the losers roll off again until a first, second and third loser are established, and they resolve one ability each in that order. They keep resolving abilities in the same order until all abilities they wish to resolve have been resolved.
One Reaction per Reaction Step (Multiplayer)
In some situations more than one reaction could be used in the same reaction step - most often this will be after an action or activation step. However, each player can only play one reaction in each reaction step.
If more than one player wants to play a reaction in the same step, they take it in turns building a reaction chain (see below). The player whose turn it is goes first, and then the other players in order of play. If the reaction happens outside of any player's turn, roll-off, and the winner of the roll-off chooses who goes first.
Reaction Chains (Multiplayer)
When a player uses a reaction, they start a reaction chain. When they do so, in order of play, each other player can pass (saying "pass"), or they can add one reaction to the chain, which must share the same reaction step as the original reaction. For example, after an activation if a player plays an 'after an activation' reaction, the other players could each play an 'after an activation' reaction. Those reactions would form a chain.
Once each player has added a reaction to the chain or passed, the chain is resolved in the order in which it was built. The second and subsequent reactions in the chain can only be resolved if the state of play still allows it. Gambit reactions that cannot be resolved are discarded, and if an upgrade would have been broken if its reaction had been resolved, it is still broken.
End Phase (Multiplayer)
The players take it in turns to follow the sequence of the end phase (pg 44) in order of play, starting with the player who took the first activation this round.
Round 2 (Multiplayer)
If you are playing a three-player game, play this round in the same way as round 1.
If you are playing a four-player game, skip this round.
Round 3 (Multiplayer)
The action phase of round 3 works in the same way as round 1. However, when you get to the end phase of round 3, each player only plays the first step of the end phase, scoring any objective cards whose conditions have been met in the same way as in the other end phases. You do not discard cards, play upgrade cards or draw cards. The third round then ends, and then the game ends.
Victory (Multiplayer)
Whichever player has the highest number of glory points at the end of the game is the winner. If two or more players are tied for the highest number of points, the winner is the tied player with fighters still on the battlefield. If there are still fighters from more than one of these warbands on the battlefield, whichever tied player is holding the highest number of objectives at the end of the game wins. If there is still a tie, the game is a draw between those players, and the other players lose the game.
Glossary
Ability: Any rule found on a fighter card or power card (including keywords such as Cleave).
Action (pg 28): Something a fighter can do when activated. There are common actions (like Charge or Guard) and actions on fighter and upgrade cards.
Action phase (pg 26): The first phase in each round, during which fighters are moved and attack one another, and players attempt to score objective cards. Each game has three action phases.
Activation step (pg 28): Part of a player's turn in the action phase, during which they can make an action with a fighter, draw a power card, discard and draw an objective card, or pass.
Adjacent: A term used to describe two hexes that are next to each other. Things in adjacent hexes are adjacent to each other. A thing is never adjacent to itself. When a rule on a fighter or upgrade card refers to adjacent fighters, adjacency is established relative to that fighter, unless stated otherwise.
Attack action (pg 30): An action a fighter can make to attempt to damage one or more enemy fighters.
Attack action upgrade: An upgrade that includes one or more Attack actions.
Attack dice: Dice used to make Attack actions. Magic dice are not attack dice, even when used to make a spell Attack action.
Attack roll (pg 31): The dice roll made by a player when one of their fighters makes an Attack action. Step 2 in the combat sequence.
Attacker: A fighter making an Attack action.
Attacking player: A player whose fighter is making an Attack action.
Available feature token (pg 24): The two feature tokens that show a cover hex on one side and a snare hex on the other side are available feature tokens as long as they are not on the battlefield. The same is true of any feature token removed from the battlefield during a game.
Battlefield (pg 20): The area defined by the game boards placed at the start of each game. Incomplete hexes are not part of the battlefield.
Backlash (pg 37): Damage dealt to a wizard attempting to cast a spell when there are two or more critical success symbols in the casting roll.
Beast: A type of fighter denoted by a talons symbol before their name. A beast cannot be given Attack action upgrades or bound spell upgrades, and cannot hold objectives.
Blocked hex (pg 20): A hex defined by a thick white border. Fighters cannot stand in, move through or draw line of sight through blocked hexes.
Bounty (pg 34): In a two-player game, each time an enemy fighter is taken out of action, you score a bounty of one glory point, or two if the target is Large (a target with a Wounds characteristic of 5 or more). In a three- or four-player game, each time your warband takes an enemy fighter out of action, you score a bounty.
Break (pg 25): The act of putting an upgrade card that has been given to a fighter into a discard pile face up.
Cannot: A term used to establish rules priority. Where there is a conflict between two rules, if one of them says 'cannot', that rule takes precedence.
Cast (pg 37): A term used with regard to spells. A spell is cast when a casting roll equals or beats the casting value of the spell and the caster survives any backlash. Spell Attack actions are cast if the Attack action is successful.
Caster: A fighter who is casting a spell.
Casting roll (pg 37): The dice roll made by a player when one of their wizards attempts to cast a spell.
Casting value (pg 37): The value that a player must equal or beat to cast a spell.
Chain: The chain of hexes created when an ability scatters (see scatter).
Charge action (pg 36): A superaction that lets you make a Move action followed by an Attack action with a single fighter. A fighter that makes a Charge action is given a Charge token, instead of a Move token, after the Move action.
Charge token: A token that indicates that a fighter cannot be activated, unless each other surviving friendly fighter also has a Charge token. When a fighter with a Charge token is activated, that fighter cannot make Move actions or superactions.
Check if the target is taken out of action (pg 31): Step 6 in the combat sequence.
Choose: A rules term relating to the selection of fighters. Similar words, such as 'pick', do not mean the same as 'choose'.
Cleave: An Attack action keyword. If an Attack action is noted as having Cleave, rolls of Block cannot be successes in the defence roll.
Combat sequence (pg 31): The sequence followed whenever a fighter makes an Attack action.
Completed hex: A hex on the battlefield that is created when two or more game boards are pushed together.
Counter (pg 29): Used by certain cards, and represented by the reverse side of wound counters. The card may name the counter.
Cover hex (pg 20): A hex defined by a dashed white border. Rolls of double-support symbols are successes in a fighter's defence roll if they are in a cover hex.
Critical ability (pg 32): An ability that includes the critical success symbol in its name, used when an Attack action results in a critical hit or a critical defence.
Critical defence (pg 31): The result of an Attack action when the defence roll includes one or more critical success symbols, and more critical success symbols than were in the attack roll.
Critical hit (pg 31): The result of an Attack action when the attack roll includes one or more critical success symbols, and the Attack action is successful.
Critical success: A roll of the critical success symbol on any dice. A critical success symbol is always a success.
Damage (characteristic) (pg 30): An Attack action characteristic. When an Attack action is successful, the target fighter is dealt that amount of damage.
Deal damage (pg 31): Step 5 in the combat sequence. If something deals damage to a fighter, give that fighter a number of wound counters equal to the damage dealt.
Deck: A set of cards used by a player. Each player has two decks - the power deck and the objective deck. These are individually shuffled at the start of the game and kept face down next to the battlefield. Cards are drawn from the top of the decks. When a deck is empty, a player cannot draw any more cards of that type.
Declare Attack action (pg 31): Step 1 in the combat sequence.
Defence (characteristic) (pg 15, 31): A fighter characteristic, found on the fighter card and consisting of a number and a symbol. The number tells you how many dice to roll when they are the target of an Attack action, and the symbol (Block or Dodge) tells you what you need to roll for a success. A critical success symbol is always a success.
Defence dice: Dice used to make defence rolls.
Defence roll (pg 31): The dice roll made by a player when one of their fighters is the target of an Attack action. Step 3 in the combat sequence.
Delve (pg 38): In place of playing a power card in the power step, a player can delve a feature token that they have not already delved in the power step in the same hex as a friendly fighter that is not staggered. To do so, they flip that feature token and Stagger that fighter.
Determine success: Step 4 in the combat sequence.
Dice (characteristic) (pg 30): An Attack action characteristic, consisting of a number and a symbol. When a player makes an Attack action, they roll a number of attack dice equal to the number of that Attack action's Dice characteristic. The symbol (Smash, Fury or Support) tells you what you need to roll for a success. Spell Attack actions use magic dice with different success symbols (Channel, Focus or Support). A critical success symbol is always a success.
Discard (pg 25): The act of putting a card face up into a discard pile.
Discard piles: The locations where discarded cards are placed. Each player has two - the power discard pile and the objective discard pile. Cards in a discard pile are face up and have no effect on the game, unless they specify otherwise.
Do-over (pg 25): An opportunity for a player to discard and redraw cards. Players can use one do-over at the start of a game if they don't like their initial hand.
Draw: A term used to describe a player taking the top card from the relevant deck and adding it to their hand.
Drive back (pg 31): Step 7 in the combat sequence.
Driven back (pg 32): A push that may result from an Attack action. A fighter that is driven back is pushed 1 hex away from the attacker.
Dual objective card (pg 44): An objective card that has two conditions, both of which must be met for it to be scored.
Edge hex (pg 20): An outermost hex on the battlefield.
Empty hex (pg 20): A hex that does not contain a fighter and is not blocked.
End hex: The last hex in the chain created when an ability scatters (see scatter).
End phase (pg 44): Each game has three end phases. In the first two end phases objective cards are scored, upgrades are played and cards are discarded and drawn. In the third end phase objective cards are scored and the game then ends.
End sequence (pg 31): Step 8 in the combat sequence.
Enemy fighter: A fighter in any opponent's warband.
Enemy player: An opponent.
Enemy territory: Any opponent's territory (the hexes on their game boards).
Enemy warband: An opponent's warband.
Ensnare: An Attack action keyword. If an Attack action is noted as having Ensnare, rolls of Dodge cannot be successes in the defence roll.
Fails (Attack action): A term denoting an Attack action that is unsuccessful. An Attack action that fails doesn't cause damage.
Feature token: A double-sided token, one side of which is numbered. With the numbered side face up, this is an objective token. With the other side face up, this is a cover hex token. These tokens do not block movement or line of sight.
Fighter: A member of a warband. Each fighter is represented by a miniature and a fighter card. When a rule refers to 'a fighter' or 'fighters' without specifying 'friendly' or 'enemy', it refers to both.
Fighter action: An action taken by a fighter (as opposed to a player).
Flying (pg 16): A type of fighter denoted by a wings symbol before their name. When making a Move action, a flying fighter cannot be dealt damage by lethal hexes and can move through blocked and occupied hexes.
Friendly fighter: A fighter in your warband.
Gambit card (pg 19, 39): A type of power card. Gambit cards are either ploys or gambit spells. Most gambit cards are played in the power step, though some specify an additional condition that must be met before they can be played. Some gambit cards are reactions, and can be played as described by the condition on the card.
Gambit spell (pg 37): A gambit card that is a spell. Gambit spells can only be used when there is a friendly wizard on the battlefield. Each time you play a gambit spell, you must choose a friendly wizard to attempt to cast it.
Give: A rules term relating to counters, tokens and upgrades. A fighter given a counter, token or upgrade is said to have that counter, token or upgrade.
Glory point: A token that represents a warband's success. You gain glory points when you gain a bounty and when you meet the condition of an objective card. You can spend a glory point in the power step or the end phase to give an upgrade to one of your fighters - when you do so, flip the glory point over to show that it has been spent. At the end of the game, whoever has the most glory points (both spent and unspent) wins.
Grand Alliance (pg 17): Each warband belongs to one of the four Grand Alliances: Order, Chaos, Death or Destruction, and can use cards that bear the symbol of that Grand Alliance.
Grievous (pg 35): An Attack action keyword. When an Attack action that has the Grievous X keyword, where X is a number, results in a critical hit, it deals +X Damage.
Guard action (pg 36): An action a fighter can make when activated. When they do so, give them a Guard token. A fighter with one or more Guard tokens cannot make a Guard action.
Guard token: A token indicating that a fighter is on Guard. Rolls of Block and Dodge are both successes for defence rolls for a fighter with one or more Guard tokens. In addition, they cannot be driven back, unless the Attack action has Knockback. If a fighter with one or more Stagger tokens is given a Guard token, remove that fighter's Stagger token(s). If a fighter with one or more Guard tokens makes a Charge action, remove their Guard token(s).
Hand: The objective cards and power cards a player has drawn but not yet played or scored. A hand should be held or placed so that other players cannot see what cards are in it. A hand cannot include more than three objective cards, but can include any number of power cards.
Heal (pg 33): A keyword. Some cards direct you to heal (X) one or more fighters, where X is a number. Remove that number of wound counters from the fighter(s) affected. A fighter is only healed if you remove at least one wound counter from them.
Hex: A space on the battlefield, used to determine where fighters, obstacles and objective tokens are, and the distance between them.
Hybrid objective card (pg 44): An objective card that has two conditions, either of which can be met for it to be scored.
Incomplete hex (pg 20): A partial hex at the edge of the battlefield. Incomplete hexes are not part of the battlefield or the game.
Innate (pg 40): A symbol on a card that adds a success to a dice roll. Only one innate symbol can apply to each dice roll.
Inspire step (pg 15): An Inspire step precedes and follows each activation step and follows each power step. In each Inspire step, starting with the player who last took an activation, each player Inspires each of their fighters whose Inspire condition has been met.
Inspired (pg 15): The state of a fighter whose Inspire condition - found on their fighter card - has been met. When a fighter is Inspired their fighter card is turned over to reveal their Inspired characteristics.
Keyword (pg 19): A word in bold text that either refers to a rule in this book (e.g. Cleave) or labels a card (e.g. Grave Guard) for the purposes of interactions with other cards.
Knockback (pg 35): An Attack action keyword. The target of a successful Attack action noted as having Knockback X, where X is a number, can be driven back a number of additional hexes equal to X.
Large: If a fighter has a Wounds characteristic of 5 or more (including all modifiers), they are referred to as a Large fighter. Their bounty is worth 1 additional glory point.
Leader: A type of fighter. A warband's leader is denoted by a crown symbol on their fighter card.
Lethal hex (pg 20): A hex defined by a red border. When a fighter moves, is pushed, driven back or placed into a lethal hex the fighter is dealt 1 damage.
Line of sight (pg 30): A term used to define visibility. Line of sight is drawn from the centre of a fighter's hex to the centre of any other hex. If the line touches or goes through a blocked hex or goes off the edge of the battlefield, there is no line of sight. Otherwise, the fighter has line of sight to that hex.
Magic dice: Dice used to make casting rolls, and attack rolls for spell Attack actions.
Modifier (pg 40): An alteration of a characteristic or dice roll.
Move (characteristic): A fighter characteristic, found on the fighter card. The Move characteristic tells you how many hexes that fighter can move when they make a Move action.
Move action (pg 28): An action a fighter can make when activated to move into an adjacent hex up to a number of times equal to their Move characteristic.
Move token: A token indicating that a fighter cannot make a Charge action.
No one's territory: Any hexes completed by the placement of the game boards are no one's territory.
Objective card (pg 18, 44): A type of card. When the condition described on an objective card is met, the player can score that card. They gain the number of glory points indicated on the card.
Objective deck (pg 16): One of a player's two decks, made up of 12 or more unique objective cards.
Objective token (pg 24): A token placed on the battlefield. The number on the token identifies it for the purpose of scoring objective cards. This token does not block movement or line of sight.
Occupied hex (pg 20): A hex with a fighter in it.
Origin hex: The hex from which a chain is created when an ability scatters. It is not part of the chain (see scatter).
Out of action (pg 34): The state of a fighter who is not on the battlefield. If a fighter has a number of wound counters that is equal to or greater than their Wounds characteristic, they are taken out of action, and their model is taken off the battlefield.
Pass action: A player action in which they forfeit an activation.
Persists (pg 39): A keyword. Some gambit cards say that they persist - these cards have an ongoing effect. Leave these cards face up in front of you. They are not discarded until they or another card specifies that they are.
Place: A rules term. When placed, fighters, feature tokens and scatter tokens must be positioned in a hex.
Player action: An action taken by a player (as opposed to by a fighter).
Plot card (pg 16-17): A card that accompanies some Rivals decks, providing extra rules for you to use during the game when using that deck. When deckbuilding, you can only use one of these cards alongside your decks (with the exception of your warband's plot card).
Ploy card (pg 19, 39): A type of gambit card, identified by a dagger symbol.
Plunder (pg 34): A reaction that can be taken by any attacker when their target is taken out of action, allowing them to place an available feature token in the hex their target occupied.
Power card (pg 18-19): A type of card. Power cards can be upgrade cards or gambit cards.
Power deck (pg 16): One of a player's two decks, made up of 20 or more unique power cards, with no more than half being gambit cards.
Power step (pg 38-39): Part of a player's turn in the action phase. A power step follows each activation step, and gives players the opportunity to play power cards.
Push (pg 29): A rules term. A pushed fighter is pushed the number of hexes specified by the rule, in any direction (unless specified otherwise).
Range (characteristic) (pg 30): An Attack action characteristic, which tells you how far that Attack action can reach in hexes.
Re-roll (pg 23): A rules term. When a rule tells you to re-roll a dice, roll it again. If you are told to re-roll a dice roll that involved multiple dice, roll all of them again unless specified otherwise.
Reaction (pg 42-43): An ability, found on a fighter card, upgrade card or gambit card, that describes a condition that must be met for it to be used in a reaction step.
Reaction chain (pg 42): A sequence of reactions resolved in turn when more than one player wishes to play a reaction in the same reaction step.
Reaction step (pg 42): An opportunity to use a single reaction. Each player may use only one reaction in each reaction step.
Remove (pg 29): A rules term relating to tokens and counters.
Rivals Deck (pg 16): Rivals decks are pre-constructed decks designed to be played together. Many warbands have their own Rivals decks which contain cards that only that warband can use. Other Rivals decks contain only universal cards, and can be played with any warband.
Roll-off (pg 23): A rules term. Roll-offs are used to randomly determine a player for various purposes.
Round: One third of a game. Each round includes an action phase and an end phase.
Scatter (pg 41): A keyword. When resolving scatter, a player creates a random chain of adjacent hexes using the scatter token and applies the effect described by the card or action.
Scything (pg 35): An Attack action keyword. If an Attack action is noted as having Scything, when that Attack action is made it is made once for each adjacent enemy fighter in turn.
Snare hex (pg 24): A hex found on some feature tokens. When a fighter moves, is pushed, driven back or placed into a snare hex, or when a fighter is in a hex that becomes a snare hex, the fighter is staggered.
Spell (pg 37): A type of ability, found on gambit cards, fighter cards and upgrade cards. Spells must be cast by a wizard on the battlefield for them to be resolved.
Spell Attack action (pg 37): An Attack action that is also a spell. Only wizards can use these Attack actions.
Stagger (pg 35): An Attack action keyword. After a successful Attack action that has the Stagger keyword, give the target one Stagger token. Some cards may also tell you to stagger a fighter: give that fighter a Stagger token.
Stagger token (pg 35): If a fighter is given a Stagger token, remove that fighter's Guard token(s). A fighter with one or more Stagger tokens is staggered. You can re-roll one attack dice in an Attack action's attack roll if the target is staggered.
Starting hex: A type of hex, identified by the Warhammer Underworlds symbol.
Success: A rules term. Various symbols on the dice are considered successes in attack rolls, defence rolls and casting rolls.
Succeeds (Attack action) (pg 31): A rules term. An Attack action that succeeds deals damage.
Superaction (pg 36): An action made up of two or more actions.
Support (pg 32): A rules term. Friendly fighters adjacent to enemy fighters who are either making an Attack action or are the target of a friendly fighter's Attack action provide support. A fighter with support has a greater chance of success.
Supporting fighter: A fighter who is providing support.
Surge objective card (pg 44): An objective card that you reveal when you meet its condition and score in a surge step during the action phase.
Surge step (pg 44): A surge step precedes each activation step and follows each power step. Starting with the player who last took an activation, each player scores each of their revealed surge objectives.
Surviving: The state of a fighter who is on the battlefield.
Target: A rules term. A fighter that is the target of an Attack action is a target.
Territory: A division of the battlefield. A player's territory is made up of all the hexes on their game board.
Trait (pg 16): Some fighters have one or more traits, indicated by icons on their fighter card. There are four traits: beast, flying, leader and wizard.
Trapped (pg 31): A rules term. When determining the success of an Attack action, if the target is not adjacent to any empty hexes that are further from the attacker than the target, the target is trapped.
Un-Inspired (pg 15): The state of a fighter whose Inspire condition - found on their fighter card - has not yet been met, or who has been un-Inspired by an ability.
Upgrade card (pg 18, 39): A type of power card. A player can play an upgrade card in the power step or end phase by spending a glory point and giving the upgrade card to an eligible fighter.
Visible (pg 30): A rules term. If a fighter has line of sight to a hex, everything in that hex is visible to that fighter.
Vulnerable (pg 33): A fighter is vulnerable if one more point of damage would take them out of action.
Warband (pg 14): A specific set of fighters identified by a unique symbol on their fighter cards. Each warband has access to unique objective and power cards.
Wizard: A type of fighter. A wizard is denoted by a wand symbol on their fighter card. The number next to a wizard's wand symbol is their wizard level characteristic, sometimes used to determine how many dice you roll when they attempt to cast a spell.
Wounds (characteristic): A fighter characteristic, found on the fighter card. The higher this number is, the more damage a fighter can be dealt before they are taken out of action.
Wound counter: A counter that represents the damage dealt to fighters.
The Environs of the Root-halls
The Core Set game boards are double-sided, giving four environs in total:
- The Mistmarsh Tangle: predatory vapours strip flesh from bone.
- A Visceral Coil: where the gnarloaks' victims are crushed and digested.
- The Stricken Swamp: where the lifeblood of Ghur has spilled onto the surface and stagnated.
- A Moltscape: where the elder gnarloaks' bark falls away to reveal their horrific nature.
Reference
Combat Sequence
- Declare Attack action (choose an Attack action and a target).
- Attack roll.
- Defence roll.
- Determine success (compare your successes to your opponent's): critical hits and critical defences first, then successes. A miss ends the sequence (step 8). A draw skips to step 7 (drive back). If the target is trapped, a hit still succeeds; a hit is a critical hit instead if the attacker rolled one or more critical success symbols.
- Deal damage.
- Check if the target is taken out of action (if so, skip to step 8).
- Drive back (if the target is not trapped).
- End sequence.
Activation Options
- Make a Move action with a fighter.
- Make a Charge action with a fighter.
- Make a Guard action with a fighter.
- Make an action printed on a fighter card or upgrade (such as an Attack action) with a fighter.
- Draw a power card.
- Discard an objective card and draw an objective card.
- Pass (forfeit an activation).
Round Sequence
Action phase (pg 26):
- Roll-off to determine player order.
- Resolve any 'Start of the action phase' abilities.
- Play the following sequence four times: first player's turn, then second player's turn.
End phase (pg 44): First player, then second player do the following:
- Score objective cards
- Discard objective cards
- Play upgrade cards
- Discard power cards
- Draw objective cards
- Draw power cards
Turn Sequence
Reaction step, Inspire step, surge step; activation step; reaction step, Inspire step, surge step; power step; reaction step, Inspire step, surge step.