We Forlorn Few

We Forlorn Few Rulebook

Table of Contents

Components

5 double-sided Player boards
5 Player pieces
25 Terrain tiles
72 Event cards
17 Equipment cards
6 Spring Season cards, 6 Summer Season cards, 6 Fall Season cards, 3 Winter Season cards
5 Player Reference cards
25 Food tokens, 25 Water tokens, 25 Wood tokens
40 Hunger tokens, 40 Thirst tokens, 40 Wagon Damage tokens
20 Companion tokens
15 Bag Draw tokens
1 First-Player token
4 six-sided dice
1 Exploration Bag

Your Player Board

The Player board will keep track of each Traveler's journey through the game. Each Player board has a Traveler side and a Ravenous side.

Traveler Information
Starting Equipment: Each Traveler begins their journey with different starting equipment. Players should pay particular attention to this section when selecting a Traveler during setup.
Companions: This section keeps track of the number of Companions that each Traveler currently has with them.
Ailment Tracks: Travelers will accrue three different types of Ailments (Hunger, Thirst, and Wagon Damage). When Players receive these tokens, they are placed on their respective track.
Supply: The Supply is where Resource tokens and Equipment cards are stored.
- a) Resources: Players can carry any combination of up to six Resource tokens.
- b) Equipment cards: Equipment cards must be stored in the slots which share the same type as the Equipment card (see page 4).
Ravenous Side: If a Traveler perishes (see page 12) during their game, they must flip their Player board to become Ravenous.
- a) How to play reference guide.
- b) New rules: Once a Traveler turns Ravenous, they follow a new set of rules (see page 16).
- c) Hunger Tracker: Ravenous Travelers only track this one Ailment.

Notes

Storage cards can allow a Traveler to carry extra Tools and Weapons.

Anytime a Traveler receives a token or card that exceeds their Supply capacity, they must immediately discard either something from their Supply to make space, or return the newly acquired item to the Stockpile.

Travelers and Starting Equipment

The Traveler boards shown in the rulebook list the following starting equipment:

The Self-Made Entrepreneur: Pistol, Tool Box
The Sheriff's Daughter: Pistol, Holster
The Widowed Heiress: Water Keg

The rulebook text does not print the starting equipment for The Outpost Matriarch or The Exiled Woodsman; it is not legible in the printed rulebook, and their Traveler boards are not reproduced in the text.

Companions

Companions indicate the health of each Traveler. Travelers can have up to a total of four Companions on their Player board at any time.

NOTE: Each of these tokens is double-sided. One side shows the living Companion and the other depicts the Sacrificed Companion (see page 13).

Equipment Cards

Equipment cards provide valuable assistance to Travelers.

Card Type: There are three types of Equipment cards: Tools, Weapons, and Storage.
Value: Value is the currency of We Forlorn Few and can be used to determine the cost of items when Trading or following Combat.
Equipment Name
Equipment Description

Terrain Tiles

Terrain tiles make up the Game Board and represent different land types. There are seven types of Terrain: Badlands, Canyon, Desert, Forest, Mountain, Prairie, and Wetlands.

Available Resources: Different Terrains allow Travelers to gather different Resources.
Travel Costs: This section indicates Resources required to move off the Terrain tile (see page 8).
Trading Post: If a Terrain tile has a Trading Post it is shown here (see page 10).
Difficulty: The icon on the back of the tile indicates the tile's difficulty level. This is necessary for game setup (see page 6).

Resource and Ailment Tokens

Each Resource token has a Value of 1.

Ailment tokens threaten Traveler safety. Accumulating too many of any one kind of Ailment will cause Companions to perish.

Resource tokens (Food, Water, and Wood) are needed for traveling and alleviating Ailments (Hunger, Thirst, and Wagon Damage).

First-Player Token

The First-Player token keeps track of the beginning and end of each round. At the end of each round, it will pass to the Player to the left.

Exploration Bag

Over the course of the game, Players may be directed to draw random tokens from the Exploration Bag.

Note: At no time may a Player look into the Exploration Bag.

Bag Draw Tokens

Some effects cause these tokens to be placed on specific Terrain tiles. If a Player picks up one of these tokens, they must immediately draw from the Exploration Bag. The Bag Draw token is then returned to the Stockpile (see page 6).

Player Reference Cards

A quick reference guide to how the game is played.

Event Cards

Event cards are random incidents that a Player must resolve at the end of each of their turns.

Flavor Text
Required Action

Season Cards

Season cards track the time passed during the game and count down to when winter will set in, making the remainder of the journey impossible.

Flavor Text
Add to Exploration Bag: A particular selection of Ailment and Resource tokens that are to be added to the Exploration Bag immediately.
Season Effect: Each Season card also includes an effect that will alter the state of the board by removing tiles or placing tokens or Equipment cards on specific tiles.

Dice

Dice are used to determine the outcomes of Exploring, Event cards, and Combat.

Each die has three potential outcomes: Worth 2, Worth 1, and Worth 0.

Objective

The objective of the game is to be the first Traveler to successfully cross the Game Board and reach Newhaven.

Setup

Create the Trail
- a) Separate the Cedar Falls and Newhaven tiles from the Terrain tiles and place the Cedar Falls tile face up as the starting tile and the Newhaven tile as the finishing tile on opposite sides of the playing space.
- b) Separate the Terrain tiles into their difficulty groups, shuffle the groups and place them face down in a diamond pattern that is five tiles wide at its widest point (as pictured). The Playing Space diagram shows 5 "Easy" tiles, 13 "Medium" tiles and 5 "Hard" tiles.
Event Cards
- a) Shuffle the Event cards and place them face down within reach of all Players.
Stockpile
- a) Separate all the Resource tokens and Ailment tokens into their specific types (Food, Water, Wood, Hunger, Thirst, Wagon Damage, Bag Draw, and Companions).
Season Cards
- a) Separate all the Season cards, based on the season they represent (Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter). Shuffle each season and place them face down.
- b) Draw the top three cards from each Season and combine them into a single deck making sure they are grouped in the following order: Spring on top followed by Summer, Fall and then Winter on the bottom of the deck.
- Note: Do not shuffle this deck.
Determining the First Player
- a) The First Player is the person who traveled the furthest in order to play.

Note: The printed setup does not give a placement step for the Exploration Bag.

Remember: Keep your game running smoothly by checking your Player Reference card or the Quick Reference Guide on the back cover of this rule book.

Rounds

The First Player resolves a Season card. Beginning with the First Player and moving to the left, the Player turns are resolved. See the Player Turns section for more information.

The First-Player token moves to the Player on their left.

Season Cards

The Season deck acts as a timer counting down to winter, at which time completing the journey to Newhaven will be impossible and the game ends.

At the beginning of each round the First Player will draw the top Season card, read it aloud and resolve it.

Each Season card contains two elements:

Adding tokens to the Exploration Bag: When resolving a Season card, all the tokens that are listed on the card are to be immediately added to the Exploration Bag from the Stockpile.
Season Effect: Season Effects are to be resolved immediately by following the instructions on the card. Once completed, discard the card.

Remember: If, at the beginning of a new round, there are no cards left to draw from the Season deck, all Players who are still in the wilderness perish and the game is over.

Player Turns

Each Player's turn consists of four phases that MUST be resolved in the following order:

Travel Phase: travel to an adjacent tile, travel backwards, or stay on current tile.
Gathering Phase: add Tool Bonuses to your Supply, then Gather Resources or Explore.
Camp Phase (in any order): Recuperate, trade with another Player, initiate Combat with another Player, trade at a Trading Post.
Event Phase: resolve an Event card.

Note: Players may Sacrifice a Travel Companion at any time during their turn. See the Sacrificing Companions section.

Travel Phase

During the Travel Phase the Active Player may choose one of the following actions:

Travel to an adjacent tile
Travel backward toward Cedar Falls
Stay on their current tile

Travel to an Adjacent Tile

Players can Travel to an adjacent tile by paying Travel Cost before moving their Player piece to the adjacent tile of their choosing.

Travel Costs are paid by:

Discarding Resource tokens from a Player's Supply into the Stockpile to match the listed cost.
If Players do not have all of the resources required to pay the Travel Costs, they can still travel by taking the corresponding Ailments instead.

NOTE: Players may pay the Travel Costs by a combination of discarding required Resources that they have in their Supply, and taking Ailments for those they do not have. See the example below for details.

Travel Example

The Sheriff's Daughter is on a Wetlands tile and declares that they will travel to an adjacent face-down tile. The Travel Cost is one Food, one Water and three Wood. The Player has two Food, one Water and one Wood in their Supply. Therefore, the Player does not have enough Wood to pay the cost.

In order to travel, the Player discards one Food, one Water, one Wood, and adds two Wagon Damage to their Player board.

Traveling Backwards

Players may travel backwards to an adjacent tile by paying two Resource tokens of any type.

Stay on Current Tile

A Player may choose to stay on their current tile and go straight to the Gathering Phase.

Placed Items

When a Player travels to, or is moved to, a Terrain tile that has any tokens and/or cards placed on it, they immediately add everything currently on the tile to their Player board.

Note: Any excess cards and tokens that exceed Supply capacity are returned to the Stockpile.

Gathering Phase

During the Gathering Phase, Players can take the following actions: receive Tool Bonuses, then Gather Resources OR Explore.

Tool Bonus

Travelers with Tools in their Supply begin their Gathering Phase by adding the Resource tokens specified on their Tool card(s) from the Stockpile to their Supply.

Note: Players receive one token for each card in their Supply.

Gathering Phase Example

The Self-Made Entrepreneur is on a Prairie tile. They have the Snare Equipment card in their possession meaning they immediately add one Food token from the Stockpile to their Supply.

They then decide to Gather by rolling one die. They roll a "Worth 2" result, which allows them to choose two of the tokens listed on the Terrain tile to add to their Supply.

All three types of Resource tokens are available on the Prairie tile so The Self-Made Entrepreneur chooses one Water and one Wood token. They take those tokens from the Stockpile and add them to their Supply.

Gather

Players may gather Resources by rolling one die. What they roll determines how many Resource tokens they can take from the Stockpile.

Note: Travelers can only gather the Resources that are listed on their current tile.

Worth 2: Two Resources
Worth 1: One Resource
Worth 0: Draw from the bag

If a Player rolls Worth 0 they must immediately draw one random token from the Exploration Bag and then end their Gathering Phase.

Explore

If a Player chooses to Explore, they draw one token at random from the Exploration Bag and then immediately end their Gathering Phase.

Camp Phase

During the Camp Phase the Active Player may perform each of the following actions once in any order: Recuperate, Trade with another Player, Initiate Combat with another Player, or Trade at a Trading Post.

Recuperate

To Recuperate, the Active Player may spend Resource tokens to alleviate Ailments.

The Active Player may discard any number of Resource tokens from their Supply to remove the corresponding Ailment tokens from their Player board.

Recuperate Example

The Outpost Matriarch enters their Camp Phase. On their Player board they currently have the following Ailment tokens: two Hunger, one Thirst and three Wagon Damage.

In their Supply, they currently have the following Resource tokens: one Food, two Water and three Wood.

The Outpost Matriarch chooses to discard one Food token to remove one Hunger token, they discard one Water token to remove one Thirst token, and they discard all three Wood tokens to remove all three Wagon Damage tokens.

Trade with Other Players

The Active Player may Trade with other Players who are on the same Terrain tile, or on the Terrain tiles adjacent to them.

Trades may use Resource tokens, Equipment cards, or other forms of negotiation such as intimidating with a Weapon or by repaying a debt on a future turn.

The Player they are proposing the Trade with may then accept or reject the terms of the Trade and any tokens and cards are exchanged immediately.

Remember: Players are not required to hold up their end of a bargain later in the game. You'll have to know who you can trust.

Combat

To initiate combat, the Active Player selects another Player on their current tile, or an adjacent tile, and then makes a Combat roll. They roll one die as standard and add additional dice if they have Equipment cards that allow them to do so.

The Active Player adds their dice results together and the opposing Player does the same.

The Player with the highest result wins the Combat.

The winner may steal any Resources and Equipment up to the Value of their total roll result from the losing Player's Supply.

Reminder: Each Resource token has a Value of one, while the Value of an Equipment card is listed on the card.

If both Players roll the same result then it is a tie and nothing happens to either Player.

Combat Example

The Outpost Matriarch initiates Combat against The Sheriff's Daughter who is currently on an adjacent tile.

The Outpost Matriarch has two pistols in their Supply, allowing them to roll a total of three dice (one die for standard combat and one for each pistol). They roll Worth 2 and Worth 1 and Worth 0, giving them a total result of three.

The Sheriff's Daughter has one pistol in their Supply and rolls two dice (one die for standard Combat and one for the pistol). They roll Worth 2 and Worth 2, giving them a total result of four.

The Sheriff's Daughter wins the Combat and now may steal up to four Value from The Outpost Matriarch's Supply.

Trading at a Trading Post

Some Terrain tiles contain Trading Posts.

If a Player is at a Trading Post they may Trade.

Flip the top three cards of the Equipment deck to see what is available to Trade.

You can Trade as much or as little as you wish provided you have enough Value to afford each item.

Each Resource token is worth a Value of one, and Equipment cards are worth the Value listed on the card.

Any traded or unwanted cards are then shuffled back into the Equipment deck.

Event Phase

The Active Player must draw and resolve an Event card before ending their turn.

Note: If a Player rolls multiple dice in order to resolve an Event card, they use the result of the highest scoring die, not a combined result.

When an Event card contains this icon (a bag showing the number 1, 2 or 3), the Player is to draw tokens from the Exploration Bag equal to the number on the icon.

Event Phase Example

The Self-Made Entrepreneur draws the following card during their Event Phase.

They have one pistol in their Supply so they roll two dice for the Combat roll.
They get results of Worth 2 and Worth 1 so they take the highest scoring roll, the Worth 2.
As per the card below they add two Food tokens from the Stockpile to their Supply and then must draw one token from the Exploration Bag and immediately add it to their Player board.
They then add the Event card to the discard pile and end their turn.

The example card is titled "A herd like that would fetch enough money to kill for." Its instructions read: Make a Combat roll. Worth 2: add two Food tokens. Worth 1: add one Food token. Worth 0: a Companion perishes. Then draw one token from the Exploration Bag.

Ailments and Perishing

When a Player is required to accrue an Ailment, they must take that Ailment token from the Stockpile and place it on the corresponding spot on their Player Board.

Players can accrue up to three of each Ailment type without penalty. However for each token that exceeds that limit, a Companion perishes, meaning their token is discarded to the Stockpile.

If a Player is required to have a Companion perish, but they have no remaining Companion tokens on their Player Board, their Traveler turns Ravenous (see page 16).

Note: Ailments are NOT removed from your Player Board when a Companion perishes. The ONLY way to remove Ailments is by Recuperating, Sacrificing a Companion, or by an Event card effect.

Ailments and Perishing Example

The Exiled Woodsman has two Hunger tokens and three Thirst tokens on their Player board. They draw an Event card that causes them to gain two Hunger and two Thirst tokens.
The additional Hunger means the Player is one token above the threshold. One Hunger token is added to their Player board and one Companion perishes.
The additional Thirst means the Player will be two tokens above the threshold. This causes two Companions to perish.
Therefore, they must discard three Companion tokens total to complete the Event card.

Sacrificing Companions

At any time during their turn, Players may Sacrifice a Companion in order to remove four Ailment tokens currently on their Player board.

To Sacrifice a Companion, the Player must flip a Companion token on their Player board to reveal the Skull side, then place the token over an available slot on the Ailment track, as pictured below.

This will lower the total amount of Ailment tokens the Traveler can accrue before another Companion perishes.

For example in the below picture the Player now cannot gain more than two Wagon Damage tokens before another Companion perishes.

During the game, Travelers can Sacrifice as many Companions as they deem necessary. They can place the Skull tokens on any Ailment type they wish as long as there is a slot available.

Sacrificing Companions Example

The Outpost Matriarch begins their turn on a Mountain tile with three Hunger tokens, two Thirst tokens and one Wagon Damage token on their Player board.
They wish to Travel, but they do not have enough Resources to do so and gaining the corresponding Ailments would result in the death of a Companion and the Matriarch herself. Instead, they decide to Sacrifice their last remaining Companion allowing them to choose four Ailment tokens to remove from their Player board.
They select to remove two of the Hunger tokens, one of their Thirst tokens and their one Wagon Damage token.
They then must choose which Ailment they are going to reduce the threshold for.
They select Wagon Damage and place their Companion token Skull-side up on the bottom most space on the Wagon Damage track.
They then must pay the Travel Cost to move off the Mountain tile and continue their turn.

Companion Tokens

The Companion tokens depict the following characters (flavor quotes omitted):

The Artist, The Blacksmith, The Farmer, The Cook, The Deputy
The Midwife, The Orphan, The Soldier, The Doctor, The Pickpocket
The Drunkard, The Socialite, The Butcher, The Grifter, The Mathematician
The Professor, The Pastor, The Prospector, The Trapper, The Writer

The Ravenous

Turning Ravenous gives a Player a last chance to survive. They must sacrifice everything. Their only goal is to satisfy the hunger.

Turning Ravenous

A Player turns Ravenous once all of their Companions and their Traveler have perished.

Once this has occurred, the Player then returns all Ailment tokens, Resource tokens, and Equipment cards to the Stockpile, and flips their Player board to reveal the Ravenous side.

They then add one Hunger token to their Player board. If it is currently their turn, they must end their turn immediately.

Goal

To survive until all Players have perished OR until a Player reaches Newhaven and ends the game.

Ravenous Gameplay

A Ravenous Player's turn consists of three Phases that are to be resolved in the following order: Movement Phase, Combat Phase, Retreat Phase.

Movement Phase

During the Movement Phase, Ravenous Players may move up to two tiles per turn.
They do not pay Travel Costs.
They do not pick up any tokens or cards on any tiles they move onto.
They may travel to face-down tiles, but when they do, they DO NOT flip them.

Movement Restrictions

Ravenous Travelers cannot move onto Trading Post tiles, Cedar Falls or Newhaven.

NOTE: If a Ravenous Traveler is on a face-down tile and another Traveler flips it to reveal a Trading Post tile, the Ravenous Traveler immediately moves to an adjacent tile and adds one Hunger to their Player board.

Combat Phase

During the Combat Phase a Ravenous Traveler may initiate Combat against each opponent on their current tile.
They may only attack each Player once per turn.
The number of dice a Ravenous Traveler rolls during Combat is one die for each Hunger token currently on their Player board.

Combat Outcomes

If the Ravenous Traveler wins a Combat:

The Ravenous Traveler immediately removes one Hunger from their Player board, and the losing Traveler discards a Companion from their Player board.
The Ravenous Traveler may then initiate Combat with another Traveler on their current tile or begin the Retreat Phase.

If the Ravenous Traveler loses a Combat:

They must immediately begin the Retreat Phase.

If a Combat is a tie:

Nothing happens. The Ravenous Traveler may initiate Combat with another Player on the tile, or begin the Retreat Phase.

Retreat Phase

After the Combat Phase, Ravenous Travelers must move to an adjacent tile, following their movement rules and restrictions.

After completing their Retreat Phase, the Ravenous Player adds one Hunger token to their Player board and ends their turn.

Note: If a Ravenous Traveler adds a fourth Hunger token to their Player board, either by losing Combat, or by gaining a Hunger token at the start of their turn, they have perished and they are out of the game.

Ravenous Turn Example

The Ravenous Traveler begins their turn by moving two spaces to a Wetlands tile where The Self-Made Entrepreneur is. During their movement, the Ravenous Traveler crosses a face-down tile which they do not flip.
They then enter the Combat Phase and initiate Combat with The Self-Made Entrepreneur. Because the Ravenous Traveler has one Hunger token on their Player board, they roll one die for Combat.
They roll a Worth 1 giving them a Combat Result of one.
In defense, The Self-Made Entrepreneur rolls one die which results in a Worth 2 giving them a result of two.
The Ravenous Traveler loses and must immediately end their Combat Phase and enter the Retreat Phase.
They must move to an adjacent tile, so they choose the face-down tile they crossed during their Movement Phase. They do not flip the tile.
They add one Hunger token to their Player board and end their turn.

End of Game

We Forlorn Few ends when all Travelers' journeys have come to one of the following conclusions:

Reaching Newhaven

Once a Traveler reaches Newhaven their journey is over and they have completed the game. The first Player to reach Newhaven is the winner.

Winter Sets In

If a new round begins but there are no cards left in the Season deck then all Travelers remaining on the Game Board perish and the game is over.

All Travelers are Ravenous

If all Travelers turn Ravenous, the game is over.

FAQ

Q: What if I am required to discard a Storage card that currently has another Equipment card on it?

A: In this instance, both cards would be discarded.

Q: What if another Traveler steals a Storage card from me that currently has another Equipment card on it?

A: The other Traveler would steal the Storage card and the other Equipment card would be discarded.

Q: Can I initiate Combat with a Traveler on Cedar Falls or Newhaven?

A: No, attacking a Traveler in a city would be unseemly.

Q: Do my Ailments clear when a Companion perishes?

A: No, they can only be cleared by Recuperating, Sacrificing a Companion, or due to the effects of an Event card.

Q: What happens if my Traveler perishes during my turn?

A: Flip your Player board and add one Hunger token to the Ravenous Side then end your turn. You will begin your next turn as Ravenous.

Q: If my Traveler perishes while paying a Travel Cost, which tile do I end my turn on?

A: Paying Travel Cost happens before your Traveler moves, so you'd remain on the same tile.

Q: If I'm Ravenous can I be the target of Event cards?

A: No, Event cards do not affect you.

Quick Reference Guide

Travel Phase

Travel: Pay a tile's Travel Cost to move to an adjacent tile. Travel cost is paid by discarding Resources, by adding the corresponding Ailments to your Player board, or by a combination of both.
Travel Backwards: If you're stuck, you can travel backwards toward Cedar Falls for a Travel Cost of any two Resources.

Gathering Phase

Tool Bonus: Add the Resources listed on your Tool cards to your Supply. You may add one token per card.
Gather Resources: Gather Resources by rolling one die and then adding Resources to your Supply based on your result. Worth 2 / Worth 1 / Worth 0 (draw from the Exploration Bag).
Remember: You may only select from the Resources listed on the Terrain tile you are currently on.
Explore: To explore, draw one token from the Exploration Bag and immediately add it to your Player board.

Camp Phase

Recuperate: Remove Ailments from your Player board by discarding the corresponding Resources. For every one Resource discarded you may remove one corresponding Ailment.
Trade with Another Player: You may trade Resources and Equipment with another Player who is on the same or on an adjacent Terrain tile to you. Both Players must agree to the terms of the trade.
Initiate Combat with Another Player: You may initiate Combat with Players on the same tile or tile adjacent to you. Each Player rolls one die, plus an additional die for each Weapon card they hold. Highest roll result wins. The winner steals their result worth of Resources and Equipment from the losing Player.
Trade at a Trading Post: If you are on a Trading Post you may trade by drawing the top three cards of the Equipment card deck. Then, you may purchase from those cards by discarding Resources and/or Equipment of equal Value. Remember: You can purchase as many cards as you can afford and each Resource token is worth a Value of one.

Event Phase

Draw and resolve an Event card.

Don't Forget!

Perishing: You can accrue up to three of each Ailment type without penalty. However if you go over that amount, a Companion perishes, meaning that Companion token is discarded to the Stockpile.
Sacrificing Companions: Sacrificing a Companion allows you to remove up to four Ailment tokens from your board. The sacrificed Companion is placed Skull-side up on one of your Ailment tracks. This will lower the number of Ailment tokens you can accrue before another Companion perishes. You can Sacrifice a Companion at any time during your turn.
Discarding Resources and Equipment: Whenever you are required to discard Resources tokens or Equipment cards, they are returned to the Stockpile. If you gain tokens or cards that exceed the space available in your Supply you must either discard the newly acquired tokens/cards or discard something currently in your Supply in order to make space.