2–6 heroes race to level 10. With two players it is a head-to-head duel; every rule below is the same, and your single rival is the one who must pass, can help, and receives your excess cards.
Setup
Everyone is dealt 4 Encounter and 4 Loot cards. Before readying you may play classes, an origin, powers, a sidekick and equip or carry gear. The first turn starts once every hero is ready.
Turn phases
- Prepare: manage your cards, then kick open the door (reveal the top Encounter). A villain starts a fight. A trap hits you at once. Anything else goes to your hand.
- Choice (if no fight): fight a villain from your hand, or take a face-down Encounter card.
- Combat: see below.
- Charity: manage cards, then end your turn. Cards above your hand limit (5, +1 per equipped HQ gear) go to the lowest-level rival(s) round robin; if you are lowest or tied for lowest they are discarded.
Combat
Hero strength = level + equipped gear + powers + sidekick (+ helper's strength, boosts and Sparkborn discards). You win only if hero strength is strictly greater than all villains combined.
Anyone can play boosts for either side, enhancers on a villain, cast a trap, or spend a Reinforcement card together with a villain from their hand to add that villain to the fight. Any interference clears all passes. The fighter can claim victory only after every other player has passed since the last change.
While not winning, the fighter may ask one rival for help, offering some of the villains' Loot. The helper adds their strength and draws their agreed Loot first; only the fighter gains levels. Otherwise flee: one d6 per villain per fighter, 5+ escapes (+1 with flight gear, plus the villain's flee modifier). Each failure suffers that villain's Bad Stuff. An Evade card escapes everything with no reward.
Levels, ranks and selling
Level cards and selling gear (every full 1000 of value sold together = 1 level) stop at level 9. Level 10 can only be reached by winning a fight. Levels never drop below 1. Total power ranks may not exceed your level plus your origin bonus; if you drop below, your most recent powers are discarded.
Classes
- Sparkborn: in combat, discard a card from your hand for +1 strength, up to 3 times per combat (while fighting or helping).
- Outsider: once per turn outside combat, discard a card from your hand to try to steal a power from a rival. Roll a d6: on 4+ the power is yours (excess powers drop if over capacity); otherwise you lose 1 level.
- Gearhead: you may have 2 Big gear equipped instead of 1.
- Spellweaver: once per turn outside combat, discard 2 cards from your hand to draw 1 Loot card.
- Tactician: villain class bonuses never apply against you, including bonuses aimed at your other class.
You may have each power only once. Total power ranks may not exceed your capacity.
Trades, traps and discards
Outside combat anyone may offer equipped or carried gear for a rival's gear; traded gear arrives carried. Traps in your hand can be cast on any player any time after setup; in combat that clears all passes.
On your turn outside combat you may discard your own classes, origin, powers or dual class (the dual class only while you hold one class). Hand cards, gear and sidekicks cannot be freely discarded: sell, trade or carry them, or let charity handle excess cards.
Engine notes and simplifications
- Each hero starts at level 1 with 4 Encounter and 4 Loot cards. Everyone readies up after setting out cards.
- On your turn reveal the top Encounter card. A villain must be fought. A trap hits you at once. Anything else goes to your hand; then fight a villain from your hand or take a face-down Encounter card.
- You win a fight when your strength (level + gear + powers + sidekick + boosts) is strictly greater than all villains combined. Every other player must pass after the last interference before you can claim victory.
- If losing you may ask one rival to help for an agreed number of Loot cards. Only you gain levels; the helper draws their Loot first.
- Fleeing: roll a d6 per villain per hero, 5+ escapes (+1 with flight, plus the villain's flee modifier). Failures suffer Bad Stuff.
- Death keeps level, classes and powers, but your origin and all stuff are lost; rivals take one item each, highest level first, and you draw 4+4 at your next turn.
- Level 10 can only be reached by defeating villains. Level cards and selling gear stop at level 9. Levels never drop below 1.
- Ending your turn above your hand limit (5, +1 per equipped HQ) automatically gives the excess (last cards in hand) to the lowest-level rival, round robin if tied; if you are lowest or tied for lowest, the excess is discarded.
- You may discard your own classes, origin, powers or dual class (once you hold at most one class) outside combat on your turn. Hand cards, gear and sidekicks can't be freely discarded; card costs of abilities are the only other discards.
- Traps from your hand may be cast on any player at any time after setup, including during combat; a trap in combat clears all passes.
- Reinforcement: during any combat, spend a reinforcement card plus a villain from your hand to add that villain to the fight.
- Each player may have one pending trade offer to each other player (a new offer replaces the old one). Offers vanish automatically once any offered gear changes hands or leaves play.
- Simplifications: rival looting after death takes the first item in the dead hero's equipped-then-carried list; traps lose your first equipped gear; there is no limit on how many villains join a fight.
- Dice are rolled by the server with a seeded generator, so results are shared and cannot be rerolled.
