Wizard's Quest Rulebook

Table of Contents

II. Object of the Game
III. Equipment
IV. Prepare for Play
V. Sequence of Play
VI. Orc Phase
VII. Dragon Attack Phase
VIII. Wizard Prosper Phase
IX. First Player Determination Phase
X. Individual Player Phase
XI. Battle Resolution
- C. Hero and Sorcerer
XII. Special Set-Up for Two Players
XIII. Optional Treasure Placement
Play Summary

II. Object of the Game

To win, you must be the first player to regain all three of your treasures.

III. Equipment

A. Inventory

One mapboard of the island of Marnon.
One counter portraying 'Peacemaker, the Wizard'.
One counter portraying the dragon.
Ninety orc counters (colored black).
Six sets of playing pieces (one set per player). Each set is distinguished by its own color and contains: a. One hero counter b. One sorcerer counter c. Forty flag counters (each represents one man) d. Six circular counters (each is equivalent to five flag counters. These counters can be exchanged for five individual flag counters and vice versa at any time.) e. Three rectangular treasure counters
Thirty-five petition cards
Two dice (one white and one colored)
Game box and lid
One instruction folder

B. Playing Counters

There are six different types of creatures represented by the playing counters: men, hero, sorcerer, orc, dragon and wizard.
The hero, sorcerer and men counters are directly controlled by the players. The hero and sorcerer will often be referred to as super powers and the 'men' counters as just 'men'.
The orcs, dragon and wizard counters are controlled by the dice. Players have no influence over these counters except through special powers granted by a petition card or by successful battle.

C. Mapboard

The island of Marnon is composed of eight castles and six large regions. Each region is distinguishable by its own name and color.
The regions have been further subdivided into six territories. Each territory has its own name. There are a total of 36 territories. For example, the Golden Dunes region contains the six territories named Lair of the Lizard, Dewbury, Hidden Hollow, Melting Sands, Britton and Red Dune.
A special numbering system, identifying the six regions and each of their six territories, has been incorporated into the game to facilitate the movement of the orcs, dragon and wizard. The six territories in each region have also been physically numbered '1' through '6'. For example, the territory of Pembroke in the Misty Forest region is identified as territory 4 in region 3. Each castle space has also been numbered.
Whenever the term 'space' is used it refers to all 36 territories and eight castles. There are, therefore, a total of 44 spaces in Marnon.
Spaces are the only places on the board which playing counters may occupy. A counter cannot be placed in water or on a bridge. If a counter is in a region, it must be in one particular territory of the region. a. Playing counters belonging to different players cannot occupy the same space at the same time. b. A hero and sorcerer can never occupy the same space at the same time. c. Orc counters also cannot occupy the same space as a player's counters at the same time. d. The dragon and wizard counters may share a space with each other and with any playing counters. e. All of a player's counters or orc counters occupying the same space are termed a force. The dragon and wizard are never part of a force. f. Spaces which share part of a common boundary are considered adjacent spaces. g. Spaces sharing the Amnon river as their only common boundary are not adjacent unless connected by a bridge. h. IMPORTANT: The two spaces, Earthen Pass and Marls Gate are connected by the Great Tunnel and considered adjacent to each other. i. A space is considered occupied if at least one man, orc, hero or sorcerer is in the space. A space is unoccupied if empty, or if just a treasure, wizard, dragon or any combination of the three are in the space.

IV. Prepare for Play

A. Each player chooses a colored set of playing pieces. If at any time a player or the orcs run out of counters use an unused set or make additional pieces. Men or orc counters can never run out.

B. Each player rolls two dice. The player with the high toss takes his turn to set up first.

C. Turns pass clockwise (i.e., to the player's left) around the table.

D. Setting Up the Board — Set-up is completed in the exact sequence presented below.

Beginning with the first player, each player in turn places one of his men in an unoccupied castle space.
Two orcs are placed in each of the remaining unoccupied castle spaces.
Two orcs are placed in two territories in each region using the following procedure. a. For orc placement in the first region selected, two dice are tossed until the outcome is not doubles. b. Two orcs are placed in each of the two territories in the region whose numbers match the toss. For example, if a '2' and a '6' were tossed for Golden Dunes, two orcs would be placed in each of the territories of Dewbury and Red Dune. c. Repeat steps a. and b. to place orcs in two territories in each of the five remaining regions.
One man is placed in each of all remaining unoccupied territories using the following procedure. a. Beginning with the first player, players in turn place one man in any unoccupied territory on the board. b. Placement continues until no empty spaces remain.
After all spaces have been filled, players hide the three treasures of one opponent. a. Each player passes his three treasures to the player to his left. b. Starting with the first player, each player in turn selects one treasure and places it face down in any castle space except that occupied by the treasure's owner. c. Players then repeat the procedure for each of the remaining two treasures. These treasures may be placed in any territories (not castle spaces) not occupied by the treasure's owner. No two treasures may ever be in the same space at the same point in time even if a petition card allows a treasure to be moved at a later time.
Upon conclusion of the treasure placement, each player in turn, beginning with the first player, places ten men in any of the spaces he already occupies. All ten men are placed at the same time.

E. Anytime a player receives two or more men to place on the board for any reason, he may substitute either the hero or sorcerer for two men or he may substitute both for four men. For example, rather than place ten men on the board at start, a player may place either the hero or sorcerer and eight men, or the hero and sorcerer and six men.

V. Sequence of Play

Each turn is composed of five phases which must be performed in the exact sequence presented below. Turns continue in this way until one player wins.

Orc Phase a. Orc Generation b. Orc Frenzy c. Orc Placement
Dragon Attack Phase
Wizard Prosper Phase
First Player Determination Phase
Individual Player Phase a. Petition Card Selection and Play b. Reinforcement c. Attack Campaign

VI. Orc Phase

A. Orc Generation

Beginning with the first player, each player in turn tosses one die to determine a region to receive more orcs.
Each time a region is determined, one orc is added to each orc occupied territory in the region and one orc is added to each orc occupied castle adjacent to a territory in that region.
No orcs may be added to a space if it already contains four orcs. Four orcs is the maximum number of orcs that a space may contain.

B. Orc Frenzy (Attack)

Orcs frenzy from all spaces which contain four orcs. Frenzying orcs will attack player occupied spaces adjacent to their space until all such spaces are captured or until the frenzy space becomes unoccupied or occupied by only one orc, at which point the frenzy immediately stops in that space.
Orcs can only frenzy from spaces containing four orcs. If the space contains one, two or three orcs, no frenzy can begin in that space.
A specific procedure is used to determine the sequence in which orcs will frenzy. a. Orcs in the first region will frenzy before orcs in the second region and so on until all orcs in territories have frenzied. Finally orcs in castle spaces frenzy. b. Orcs in a lower numbered territory will frenzy before orcs in a higher numbered territory in the same region. c. Orcs in a lower numbered castle space will frenzy before orcs in a higher numbered castle space.
As orcs frenzy from a particular space, they must attack the adjacent spaces in a certain order. a. The first space that will be attacked is the lowest numbered territory in the lowest numbered region adjacent to the frenzy space. b. Attacks will continue in a clockwise direction from the first space around the frenzy space.
Only certain spaces can be attacked by orc frenzies. a. If the space to be attacked contains orcs, no attack occurs and that space is passed. b. If the space to be attacked contains a hero or dragon, alone or with other counters, no attack occurs and that space is passed. c. If the space to be attacked is in the region which contains the wizard, no attack occurs and that space is passed. d. If the space to be attacked is empty, no attack occurs and the space is passed. e. Frenzying orcs must attack an adjacent space if it does not conform to one of the four situations listed above. f. If the attack is successful and the defending force slain, one orc is moved from the attacking space into the defeated space to capture it. The move cannot be made if only one orc remains in the attacking space. The orcs then attack the next legal space if at least two orcs remain in the frenzy space. g. SPECIAL NOTE: The Great Tunnel spaces are considered adjacent. Therefore, orcs which frenzy from a tunnel space can attack through the tunnel but only after they have attacked all other spaces adjacent to the frenzy space. A space across the Amnon river is always considered adjacent if connected by a bridge.
All attacks are resolved using the system described in XI., Battle Resolution.

C. Orc Placement

When all frenzy spaces have finished attacking, all unoccupied spaces on the board receive one orc counter (including those in a region occupied by the wizard).

VII. Dragon Attack Phase

A. The dragon counter is moved randomly from territory to territory (never to castle spaces) until it 'gobbles' up at least one man, hero or sorcerer.

B. Each move of the dragon is controlled by two dice. One player tosses one die to determine the region to which the dragon will move and another player rolls the other die to determine which territory in the region the dragon will land in.

C. When the dragon lands in a space, one die is tossed to determine how many counters (never to exceed the total force present) in that space are 'gobbled'. NOTE: a '5 men' counter is considered five counters and may be broken down into such to satisfy the dragon's appetite. If only orcs are 'gobbled', the dragon continues to move and 'gobble' until it lands and 'gobbles' in a space occupied by at least one man, hero or sorcerer. The wizard is never gobbled by the dragon.

VIII. Wizard Prosper Phase

A. The wizard counter makes one move in the Wizard Prosper Phase each turn. It is moved by dice roll in the same manner as the dragon counter.

B. The territory into which the wizard counter moves is prospered. It receives either three men if a player occupied territory or three orcs (to a maximum of four orcs) if an orc occupied territory. EXCEPTION: An unoccupied territory cannot be prospered.

C. The wizard counter protects the entire region for as long as it occupies a territory in that region. No attacks of any kind (men, orc or dragon) can occur against any territory in the same region as the wizard. A force can attack from a territory in the wizard's region if the space which it is attacking is outside that region.

IX. First Player Determination Phase

A. Each turn, in this phase, one player is selected as the first player. He remains as the first player until this phase next turn.

B. Each player rolls two dice. High man is the first player.

X. Individual Player Phase

Each player in turn, beginning with the first player, performs the following activities in the sequence presented below. While one player is taking his turn, the other players cannot perform any activity.

A. Petition Card Selection

The player decides whether or not to draw one petition card from the petition deck. By drawing a card, the player petitions the wizard for help, and, in most cases, the card will prove to be valuable to the player.
The card drawn may be played immediately or saved to be played in a later turn, unless the card states 'Play this Card Immediately' in which case it must be played when drawn.
Up to two cards may be saved by each player without being played. If a third card is drawn, at least one of the three cards must be played.
A petition card may be drawn and/or played only at the start of the player's turn. Any or all cards held may be played at this time. When a card is played, the directions must be followed immediately unless stated otherwise in rule 6 of this section.
All played cards are immediately placed face-up in a discard pile by the petition deck. When the deck is used up, the discard pile is shuffled to restock the petition deck. The discard pile cannot be examined.
Most instructions on the petition cards are self-explanatory. Some may need further clarification: a. All awards of men are added to the player's reinforcements and placed with them. b. Extra campaigns are used after the initial attack campaign has been completed. c. Certain cards award boating privileges. They state 'I give you one extra man, but save this card for boat privileges'. When played, the player receives one extra man and then keeps the card, face up in front of him, to be used for boat privileges at any time during one of his turns.
1. Any number of 'boat privilege' cards may be retained face up after being played.
2. While the 'boat privilege' cards remain face up, they do not count toward the two card limit for the player. He may still hold two other cards without having to play one.
3. Use of the 'boat privilege' card permits a force to make a move or attack from a space bordering the Sea of Marnon or Amnon River to any other space bordering the same body of water. For example, a player with a force in Cattle Meade may move to or attack Windfor, Brecknock, Castle 7, Sadbury or Radner Fen by boat as well as Dread Moor and Castle 5 which can also be attacked or entered by land. A player with a force in Dewbury may move to or attack Heatherlawn, Sheep Meade, Portston Moor or Haven by boat as well as Hidden Hollow and Melting Sands which can also be attacked or entered by land or bridge.
4. The boat privilege awarded by a card can only be used to make an attack against one space or one move from one space after which it must be discarded immediately.
5. When the 'boat privilege' is used to make an attack on the Amnon River, any bridge penalty is avoided. d. Other cards state, 'I give you six extra men if you currently have less than seven pieces on the board'. The term 'pieces' always includes hero and sorcerer as well as individual men. A five men circular counter counts as five pieces.

B. Reinforcements

The player receives a certain number of men as reinforcements each turn. The number of men received depends upon the number of kingdom spaces his forces currently occupy. a. A kingdom is defined as either a single castle space, or a group of connected spaces (i.e., each space is adjacent to at least one other space in the same kingdom) which must include at least one castle space. b. When the player determines his reinforcements, he counts all spaces of all kingdoms that his forces occupy. c. A space may only be counted as part of one kingdom even if it connects to more than one castle space. d. SPECIAL NOTE: The Great Tunnel spaces are considered adjacent and a player's kingdom may be connected through the tunnel, just as a player's kingdom may be connected over a bridge.
All of the player's kingdom spaces are totalled. If his forces occupy four or less kingdom spaces, four men are received as reinforcements. If his forces occupy five or more kingdom spaces, a number of men equal to the number of his kingdom spaces are received as reinforcements. For example, if a player has six kingdom spaces, he receives six men as reinforcements. If he has no kingdom spaces (i.e., he occupies no castle spaces), he receives four men as reinforcements.
After all men are received through petition card and reinforcement, they (and any super power substitutions) may be placed in any spaces occupied by the player's forces.

C. Attack Campaign

The player is allowed to make at least one attack campaign in his turn. One attack campaign can always be initiated. Additional attack campaigns may be initiated by petition card award or if directed against the wizard or dragon.
An attack campaign permits one of a player's forces in a space to attack one adjacent space or to attack a space that can be reached by boat if using a 'boat privilege'. The attack campaign continues until the space being attacked is unoccupied in which case it must be captured if possible; or the player decides to discontinue his campaign (he may do this at any time even before resolving one battle); or he no longer has any force with which to continue the attack.
At the start of the attack campaign and at any time during the campaign, a player's attack may be supplemented by his men in spaces adjacent to the attacking space (or spaces bordering the same body of water if using a 'boat privilege'.) These men are moved into the attacking space. Any number of supplements may be made during an attack campaign as long as there are men available.
At the start of the attack campaign, only, the player's hero or sorcerer may be moved from any space on the board to the attacking space. If one of these two super powers is already in the attacking space, and the player wishes to attack using the other super power, he may simply switch them with both counters changing places. Remember the hero and sorcerer can never occupy the same space.
When an attack campaign is initiated against a space which is unoccupied, or becomes unoccupied because of the battle, that space must be captured by moving at least one counter from the attacking space into the space, if feasible. The player cannot call off a campaign to avoid making a capture.
An occupied space may never be voluntarily left unoccupied at any time. A space can be attacked but cannot be captured if there is only one counter left in the attacking space since the capture would leave the attacking space unoccupied.
Any number of counters may capture a space as long as at least one counter remains in the attacking space.

D. Attacking the Dragon or Wizard

If the dragon or wizard is in an unoccupied space, the player must use the normal attack campaign if he wishes to attack either.
If the dragon or wizard is in a space occupied by another player's force or by orc(s), the player may use a free attack campaign to attack the dragon or wizard. If successful, he may then attack the force in the same space using a normal attack campaign but only after the dragon and/or wizard have been removed.
If the dragon or wizard is in a space occupied by the player's force, the player may attack it with a free attack campaign but only with the force in the same space.
When using a free attack campaign against the wizard or dragon, no counter supplement can be made. A player may make as many free attack campaigns against the wizard and dragon as he is able and wants to make.
Only a force including a hero or sorcerer may attack the dragon. Only a force including a sorcerer may attack the wizard. a. A dragon which is slain by a hero force is temporarily removed from play. A new one will reappear in the next dragon phase. If his hero was not slain, the victorious player receives six additional men which he must immediately place in any of the spaces occupied by his forces. b. A dragon or wizard counter which is defeated by a sorcerer is not killed but is sent to the region of the victorious player's choice. A die roll determines which territory it will occupy. The dragon will gobble any counters in the territory equal to the roll of one die. The wizard will prosper any counters in the territory by three men or orcs (to a maximum of four orcs). c. If a player succeeds in removing the wizard to another region, he is now permitted to launch attack campaigns against any territories in the vacated region.
All attacks against the dragon or wizard are resolved using the system described in XI., Battle Resolution.

E. Capture of Treasure

When a player captures a space which contains one of his treasures, he removes it from the board and reveals the type of treasure. a. If the type is a treasure chest, the player receives four men which must be immediately placed in the space previously occupied by the treasure chest. b. If the type is a crown, the player receives three men which he must immediately place in any of the spaces occupied by his forces. c. If the type is a magic ring, the player draws one petition card, which he may play immediately or save. If the player already has two cards, he must play this card immediately or discard it. If the card drawn requires loss of reinforcements, he ignores the directions and discards it. It cannot be replaced by another draw.
When a player captures his third treasure, the game ends immediately and he is the winner.

XI. Battle Resolution

A. During an attack campaign, when either the dragon, wizard or a space is being attacked, any number of battles may be fought at the discretion of the attacking player until he slays the dragon or defending force; or he disperses the wizard; or he decides to discontinue his attack; or he is unable to continue his attack.

B. To resolve one battle, each combatant tosses one die at the same time. Any player not involved in the battle rolls for dragon, wizard or orcs if they are one of the combatants.

A player's die toss indicates the number of the opponent's counters that are removed from the space (up to the total force present in battle) if his toss is within his proper die range. If the die toss is out of the die range, the opponent loses nothing. For example, if a player's die range is three, and he tosses a one, two or three, his opponent loses one, two or three counters respectively. If he tosses a four, five or six, his opponent loses nothing. a. The dragon has a die range of 6. b. The wizard has a die range of 6. c. Orcs have a die range equal to the number of orcs in the space (to a maximum of 4). d. Men have a die range equal to the number of men in the space to a maximum range of 4. e. The hero has a die range of 1 if by himself in a space. He adds 1 to the die range of men in the same space, so that the maximum range for four or more men and a hero is 5. f. The sorcerer has a die range of 2 if by himself in a space, he adds 2 to the die range of men in the same space, so that the maximum range for four or more men and a sorcerer is 6. g. A force defending against an attack in any one of the eighteen forest or mountain territories in the following three regions; Misty Forest, Crystal Mountains and Ancient Forest, adds 1 to its die range. A force receives no die range advantage for attacking from these territories. h. A force defending against an attack in a castle space adds 2 to its die range. A force receives no die range advantage if attacking from a castle space. i. A force defending against an attack initiated from a territory on the other side of a bridge adds 2 to its die range. A force receives no die range advantage if attacking across a bridge. j. A force defending against an attack through the Great Tunnel adds 2 to its die range. A force receives no die advantage if attacking through the Great Tunnel. NOTE: When defending against an attack through the Great Tunnel, a force does not also add 1 for being in forest territory (see g. above).
If both die tosses in a battle are out of their respective die ranges, then the attacking player must lose one counter from his attacking force.
Some examples of die ranges: a. A frenzying space in Golden Dunes containing three orcs has a die range of 3. b. An attacking space in the Field of Fallen containing a hero and six men has a die range of 5 (1 + 4). c. An attacking space in Whispery Meadow containing a sorcerer and ten men has a die range of 6 (2 + 4). d. An attacking space in Golden Dunes containing seven men has a die range of 4. e. A defending space in the Crystal Mountains containing a sorcerer and two men has a die range of 5 (2 + 2 + 1). f. Three orcs defending through the Great Tunnel have a die range of 5 (3 + 2).

C. Hero and Sorcerer

All losses in battle are removed from the space and taken off the board unless a sorcerer is involved in the attack.
If a player conducts an attack with a force that includes a sorcerer, any losses he inflicts are not removed from the board but are dispersed by him to any unoccupied spaces and/or spaces which belong to the defender that he chooses.
Dispersal occurs only if the sorcerer is part of the attack. If the sorcerer is part of the defending force, any losses inflicted by that defending force on the attacker's force are removed from the board.
If both the attacking and defending forces include a sorcerer, a special case arises. All losses inflicted (in attack and in defense) are dispersed. First the attacking player disperses the losses he inflicted and then the defending player disperses the losses he inflicted.
A space containing a hero can only be attacked by a force led by another hero or a dragon. A hero cannot be attacked by any other type of force. A hero leading an attack can attack all types of forces and the dragon. A hero cannot attack the wizard.

D. If a player loses all of his tokens on the board, he is no longer in the game.

XII. Special Set-Up for Two Players

A. In a two player game, when a player places his opponent's treasure in one of his own spaces, he receives five additional men to defend the treasure space.

B. Instead of each player placing ten men, placement is made as follows:

The first player places ten men.
Then, the other player places twenty men.
Finally, the first player places ten more men.

C. This procedure permits a more balanced play in a two player game.

XIII. Optional Treasure Placement

A. A fourth 'worthless' (blank) treasure is included with each player's other treasures.

B. When an opponent's treasures are placed on the board, only one may still be placed in a castle space. The remaining three treasure counters are placed in territories as explained in the rules.

C. The victory conditions are still the same. A player must capture his ring, crown and chest treasure counters to win. If he captures the blank counter he receives nothing.

Design Credits

Game Design: Garrett J. Donner

Game Development: Richard Hamblen and Mick Uhl, Jim Skinner

Playtest: Seth Carus, Donald Greenwood, Bill Rakowski and Tom Murphy

Graphics and Layout: Mick Uhl and Jean Baer

Art: Chris White

Typesetting: Colonial Composition

Printing: Monarch Services

Examples of Battle Resolution

	Attacker's die range	Defender's die range	Attacker's die toss	Defender's loss	Defender's die toss	Attacker's loss
a.	4	4	2	2 counters	3	3 counters
b.	4	4	4	4 counters	5	0 counters
c.	4	4	5	0 counters	5	1 counter (see XI B 2)
d.	5	3	6	0 counters	3	3 counters
e.	6	2	2	2 counters	2	2 counters
f.	6	6	6	6 counters	6	6 counters

Replacement Parts Cost

For current replacement parts price list, send a stamped self-addressed envelope to: Parts Dept., The Avalon Hill Game Company, 4517 Harford Road, Balto., Md. 21214

OUR DESIGN DEPARTMENT will be happy to take the time to answer queries regarding play of this game but ONLY when accompanied by a self-addressed envelope containing first class postage.

Play Summary

Set-Up

A. Each player rolls two dice. High man goes first. Turns pass to the left.

B. Each player chooses an empty castle space and places one man on it.

C. Two Orcs are placed on each remaining castle space, and two Orcs are placed on each of the two die-selected spaces in each region.

D. Players in turn place one man on any available empty space until there are no empty spaces remaining.

E. Players pass their three treasures to the player on the left. Players in three turns place the treasures face down on the board, one on a castle and the other two on territory spaces.

F. Players in turn place a total of ten men on their occupied spaces.

Play: Order of Play is Orcs, Dragon, Wizard, Players

A. Turn of the Orcs

Each player tosses one die to select a region whose Orc territories and bordering Orc castles each receive one additional Orc, unless the space already contains the maximum of four Orcs.
Orcs frenzy (attack) from all Orc spaces with four Orcs.
The Orcs turn ends by placing one Orc on each unoccupied space on the board.

B. Turn of the Dragon

The Dragon moves until he gobbles up at least one man, Hero, or Sorcerer. Each move is made by one die toss for selection of region, and one die toss for selection of a territory in the selected region. One last die toss determines how many Orcs or men, etc. the Dragon gobbles up.

C. Turn of Peacemaker the Wizard

Peacemaker the Wizard moves once. The move is made by one die toss for selection of a region, and one die toss for selection of a territory in the selected region. If the territory is inhabited by a player or Orcs, Peacemaker prospers the space by giving it three more men, or up to three more Orcs.

D. Turn of the Players

One player tosses a die. The player with corresponding number marker goes first and turns pass to the left.
In his turn, the player may draw one 'PETITION CARD' and then receives one man for each of his kingdom spaces, or the minimum of four men. (Hero and Sorcerer cost two men each to acquire.)
After placing the pieces on the board, the player may make a number of attacks from one of his spaces to one particular adjacent space, in the hopes of making one capture.
After each player has taken his turn, the 'TURN OF THE PLAYERS' is over, and the cycle of turns begins again with the 'TURN OF THE ORCS'.

Treasure Rewards

Magic Ring — Draw a 'PETITION CARD'
Crown — Get three men to place anywhere
Treasure Chest — Get four men to place in territory where chest was located.

Die Ranges

The die range for men or Orcs present on a space is 1 for each man or Orc, up to a maximum range of 4. The presence of the Hero adds 1 to this range, and the presence of the Sorcerer adds 2. (By himself the hero has a range of 1, the Sorcerer a range of 2.)

B. The Dragon and Peacemaker the Wizard each have a die range of 6.

C. For the player defending the space: Forest and mountain territories add 1 to the die range, and castles add 2 to the range. Defending against an attack over a bridge or through the Great Tunnel adds 2 to the defending player's range.