The Story behind the Gearloc Mat of Too Many Bones

The Gearloc Mat of Too Many Bones is a truly unique and fascinating creation. When I first encountered it, I was mesmerized by its intricate design and rich backstory. Let me tell you all about it, because once you learn more, you’ll be just as captivated as I am.

The Gearloc Mat serves as the canvas upon which the thrilling adventures of the Gearlocs come to life. It’s a portal that transports you into a world of strategy and excitement. On this mat, you’ll find the Gearloc characters – brave warriors who possess incredible skills, powers, and stories. Each Gearloc has a distinct personality and a role to play in the battles that unfold.

The Gearloc Mat is more than just a game accessory – it’s a gateway to a realm brimming with possibilities. It invites you to step into the shoes of a Gearloc, to strategize and plan your every move. The mat acts as both a guide and a challenge, offering you a platform to test your skills and push the boundaries of what you thought was possible.

As you delve deeper into the world of Too Many Bones, you’ll begin to understand the intricate mechanics and dynamics that make this game so special. The Gearloc Mat is designed to enhance your experience, offering you a visual representation of the battlefield and serving as a tool to aid you in your quests.

But the Gearloc Mat is more than just a tool – it’s a work of art. The attention to detail and craftsmanship that went into creating this masterpiece is truly remarkable. From the clear and vibrant illustrations to the carefully thought-out layout, every aspect of this mat has been meticulously designed to inspire awe and wonder.

One of the most remarkable things about the Gearloc Mat is its versatility. This mat can be used in a variety of game modes, ensuring that every playthrough feels fresh and exciting. Whether you’re embarking on a solo adventure or teaming up with friends, the Gearloc Mat will adapt to your needs and provide you with an immersive and engaging experience.

In conclusion, the Gearloc Mat of the Too Many Bones game is a must-have for any fan of tabletop gaming. Its intricate design, immersive gameplay, and versatility make it a true gem in the world of board games. So, if you’re looking for a gaming experience like no other, look no further than the Gearloc Mat of Too Many Bones.

Alright, so you’re about to start your first Encounter! But before we jump into that, I want to make sure you have a good understanding of all the different parts of TMB. Let me introduce you to the Gearloc Mat!

1. Stat Area

Hey there! Let’s talk about the important stuff – your Gearloc’s stats!

So, I have these 4 stats: Health, Dexterity, Attack, and Defense.

Each stat has a starting value, which is the number you see on the mat. But here’s the cool part – you can actually increase these stats during the game!

How, you ask? Well, it’s simple! You just need to place a Stat Die in the corresponding Stat Dice slot. The value of the Stat Die, when added to the Starting Stat, gives you the current (Max) Stat of your Gearloc.

By the way, the higher your stats, the better off you’ll be in the game. So make sure to keep an eye on them and give them some love!

When you complete Encounters, you can use Training Points () to upgrade your stats. Each Training Point gives you a chance to improve one of your Stats or Skills. If your attempt is successful, you get to place a Stat Die in the slot next to your Starting Stat, showing your new modified number. Remember, Stat Dice can’t go higher than 6. The Stat Dice you earn from Training will stay with you throughout your adventure.

Let’s talk about Health (HP). Your HP is the number [#] of Health Chips stacked below your Gearloc Chip. Your HP can’t go higher than its [Max] Stat. If you receive excess healing or regeneration, it will be lost. Buff HP is separate from your HP and is treated differently. If your Gearloc has a Buff HP Skill, refer to your individual Gearloc Reference Sheet for details.

When I Train in HP, my Gearloc gets stronger. I gain 1 HP and my HP Stat Die increases. Losing all of my HP means I’m Knocked Out. If that happens, I have to remove my Gearloc, its Initiative Die, and all the dice I have in the Active, Locked, and Backup Plan slots from the Battle Mat. I can use the Recovery Phase to get back to full HP.

Dexterity, or Dex for short, is important too. It determines the number of dice I can roll each turn for attacking, defending, and using skills. I can spend Dex to move my Gearloc on the Battle Mat, with each position costing 1 Dex. Training in Dex always succeeds.

Now let’s talk about Attack, or Atk. It’s all about how much damage I can deal to enemies. The higher my Atk, the more powerful my attacks become.

• The number of Attack Dice you have available to roll each turn is determined by your Attack Stat.
• Each Attack Die requires 1 Dex to be rolled during battle.
• To attempt an Attack Training, roll your current Attack (Starting Stat + Stat Die). If you roll no , the attempt is successful. If unsuccessful, your Attack Stat doesn’t increase, and you must allocate the Training Point elsewhere.
• Before rolling Attack Dice, you must choose a target (only one target per roll).
• Each rolled I3inflicts [#] damage (Dmg) and can be used to apply damage to the target (can be combined with other rolled Dmg).
• Each rolled ^acan be used in your Backup Plan and does not reduce the number of Attack Dice available in future turns.

Defense (Def)

Your Defense Stat is the number of Defense Dice you have available to roll each turn. Each Defense Die costs 1 Dex to roll in battle. A Defense Training Attempt requires you to roll your current Defense. Any ones rolled are rolled once more. If no ones are rolled after the second roll (or first), you are successful. If unsuccessful, there is no Defense Stat increase and you must spend this Training Point elsewhere.

When I’m playing the game, there’s something I need to keep in mind. The Defense Dice in my Active slots will affect how many Defense Dice I can roll this turn. Let’s say my character, Boomer, has a Defense stat of 2. On my turn, I roll both Defense Dice and get a 1 and a 2. I decide to put both dice in my Active slots. Later on, a Baddie attacks me, causing 1 damage. To defend myself, I remove the 1 Defense from my Active slot. Now it’s my turn again, but because I still have a Defense Die in my Active slot, I can only roll 1 Defense Die this turn.

There’s something else I should know about the game. Whenever I roll a gearloc icon, which looks like this, I can place it in an Active slot. This allows me to activate special abilities and use them strategically during the game.

Let me tell you something interesting about the gearlocs in Too Many Bones. Talents are cool abilities that can affect your gameplay. They come in different forms, like Attack Dmg and Defense Dice. Let me break it down for you.

First up, Attack Dmg. The number of gearlocs you have in your Active slots equals the amount of Attack Dmg you can block. So, if you have, let’s say, 3 gearlocs, you can block 3 points of Attack Dmg. Here’s the cool part: you can decrease the enemy’s Defense by that much! For example, if the enemy has 2 Defense, you can either reduce it to 1 or just get rid of the whole 2. Before anything else, you have to use your Defense Dice for all incoming Dmg (except True Dmg) before you can remove any HP.

Now, let’s talk about the Backup Plan. When you roll a gearloc, you can use it in your Backup Plan. The best part is that it doesn’t affect the number of Defense Dice you have in future turns. So you can use it to your advantage without worrying about future battles.

Lastly, let’s discuss Innate and Innate +1. Every gearloc starts with a special talent called Innate. You can use this talent throughout your adventure. It’s like having a superpower! You can refer to your Gearloc Reference Sheet to see what your specific talent does.

See? Talents are pretty cool, right? They spice up your game and give you an edge in battles. So go out there and show off your gearloc skills!

Your Gearloc’s Innate can be upgraded by spending 6 JJI on your Backup Plan. This upgrade will last throughout your entire adventure and its effects will be explained on your Gearloc Reference Sheet.

When playing, keep the non-star side of your Gearloc chip face up until you upgrade to Innate+1. Once you upgrade, flip it over and use the star side.

Let’s talk about your Attack Form. This describes how your Gearloc can attack.

– If you have a Melee or Melee-Ranged Attack Form, you can only target units that are adjacent to you. When you attack, roll the Attack Dice.

– If you have a Ranged Attack Form, you can target any unit, whether they’re close or far away.

Your Attack Form also affects your starting position options in battle on your Battle Mat. Keep this in mind when strategizing your moves.

Hey there! Let’s talk about Defense and Attack Dice. They’re pretty cool because, unlike Skill Dice, they never run out. You can use them every single turn. Unless, you know, you come across a golem or a bog wyrm. In that case, don’t worry; I’ve got your back. Just stay behind me!

So, here’s the deal: Attack and Defense stats are super important. Don’t underestimate them. Roll those dice and use them as much as you can. Seriously, go for it!

2. Worn-Out Dice Corner

When I use Skill Dice, I have to wear them out (unless noted otherwise).

• Worn-out Dice are stored to the left of my Gearloc Mat for the rest of the current battle and I can’t use them anymore. But don’t worry, they become good as new once the battle is over.
• Those pesky Baddie Skills might make me wear out my Attack or Defense Dice. Each worn-out die lowers my Attack or Defense Stat by 1 for the battle.

3. Ready Area

The picture of my Gearloc also serves as a temporary spot for certain things throughout the game.

• When I’m not battling, my Gearloc Chip stack with its current HP stays here.
• If I get an HP boost, it goes here.
• Some Gearlocs even use this area to prepare certain Skills before using them in battle.

4. Skills Area

Let’s Talk Skills

Skills are a super important part of who we are and what we can do. It’s fascinating how skills can vary so much from person to person. Some people have a natural talent for drawing, while others excel at solving complex math problems. Our skills shape our abilities and contribute to our uniqueness.

Skills are like special tools that we have in our toolbox. They help us do all sorts of things, like build, create, and solve. Just like a carpenter needs tools to build a house, we need skills to navigate through life.

But here’s the exciting part: skills are not fixed. They can be developed and improved over time. Imagine having a seed that you plant in your garden. With the right care and attention, that seed will grow into a beautiful flower. That’s how skills work too. The more you practice and nurture them, the stronger and more powerful they become.

Let’s say you’re interested in playing an instrument. At first, you might struggle to even hold it correctly. But with practice, your fingers start to get more nimble, and soon enough, you can play a simple tune. As you keep practicing, your skills grow, and you can play more complex songs with ease.

No matter what skill you want to improve, it’s essential to be patient with yourself. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and skills aren’t either. It takes time and dedication to cultivate and refine your abilities. But don’t worry—every little step you take counts and brings you closer to your goal.

Remember, you have unique skills that make you who you are. Embrace them, nurture them, and watch as they blossom into something amazing.

• When you start your adventure, you will have all of your Skill Dice in your Storage Tray, except for any Skills that your Gearloc starts with. These Skills will have circled bullets on your Gearloc Reference Sheet.
• You can learn new Skills by spending Training Points. When you unlock a Skill, take the corresponding numbered die from your Storage Tray and place it in the correct slot on your mat.
• The side of the Skill Dice that is facing up in your Skills Area doesn’t matter (except for Counters).
• You will always succeed in training a Skill.
• You can only use each Skill once in a battle, unless there’s a special exception. After using a Skill, you need to exhaust the corresponding Skill Die.
• Once you have learned a Skill, you can use its corresponding Skill Dice for the entire adventure.
• Each side of the Skill Die features an icon that you can match to your Gearloc’s Reference Sheet. This will tell you how that icon works. It will also show you where to place the die after rolling it (either in the Active [A] or Locked [L] section).

How Skill Dice work can be quite different from one another. Some Skills are resolved immediately, while others are put into your Active Slot, waiting to be used. There are even Skills that go into your Locked Slots and can stay there for the whole adventure, or until you decide to use them!

If you want to learn more about how each Gearloc’s Skills function, you can read about them on the Gearloc Reference Sheets.

Now let’s talk about Professions.

A profession consists of a unique set of Skills for your Gearloc. You can find the list of Professions in the top right corner of the Stat Area, and their corresponding Skills are connected by colored lines in the Skills Area.

There are also starred Skills, which are always available for training and can be seen next to certain slots in your Skills Area.

Hi there! Let’s talk about some important things when it comes to selecting Skills and acquiring Consumables in Too Many Bones. Here are a couple of tips to keep in mind:

Skills

• Skills are crucial in this game, and some of them have arrows pointing to them. These arrowed Skills must be learned in a specific order, starting with a basic Skill. Just follow the arrows to unlock them. If you see two arrows pointing to a Skill, you only need one of them to unlock it.
• You don’t have to unlock all the Skills in a profession before starting another one. Feel free to switch professions whenever you want!

Consumables

• Consumable Dice are pretty cool. You can’t get them with Training Points, but you can find them as Loot or through certain Backup Plans. Some Gearlocs even start with these dice on their mats, so keep an eye out!
• When you get a Consumable Die, simply take it from your Storage Tray and put it on your mat. Easy peasy!

Once you use a Consumable, it’s gone from your mat. However, there are a few exceptions where some Consumables remain on your mat as counters throughout your adventure.

Now let’s talk about the Backup Plan (BP). You can only use one Backup Plan Skill per turn. The cost of using a BP Skill can range from 1 to 6 gearlocs, as indicated on the Gearloc Mat & Reference Sheet.

To use a BP Skill that costs a certain number of gearlocs, remove the corresponding number of gearlocs from the Attack & Defense Dice. They are simply removed from play. However, Skill Dice used in this way must be Exhausted.

Let’s also discuss managing Bones.

I can keep up to 5 total gearlocs from turn to turn in my BP. I need to line them up from left to right in the order they are earned. When I use them, I start from the left and shift any unused gearlocs all the way to the left. I can keep gearlocs in my BP until I use them, but I must clear them at the end of battle or if I get KO’d.

Now let’s talk about multi-bones dice.

• Multiple slots on the BP are occupied by these.
• If the BP Skill only uses a part of a multi-Bones Die, the whole die is used and any remaining are lost.

Advancing To Innate +1

• Upgrading to a Gearloc’s Innate+1 requires 6 uses.
• During the rest of the adventure, flip over the Gearloc Chip to the stars side to indicate this upgrade!

So, here’s the thing about bones. They’re kind of like a curveball, you know? When you roll the dice, chances are you’re going to come across a few sides with the Bones icon. And most of the time, that’s not what you’re hoping for.

But here’s where it gets interesting. Despite being an unexpected outcome, Bones actually play a crucial role in your decision-making process. They’re like that secret ingredient that adds some spice to the game.

So, what can you do with these Bones? Well, the good news is that you always have the option to put them into your Backup Plan. It’s like having a safety net, just in case things don’t go according to plan.

6. Active Slots

Hey there! Let’s talk about the interesting stuff you can do with Defense Dice and Active (A) Skill Dice effects. When you’re playing, you’ll need to put them right here. Oh, and don’t forget that your allies can place their Active (AA) Skill Dice effects here too!

If you’re wondering what those dice do, don’t worry! The Gearloc Reference Sheets have all the details about the effects of both Active and Ally Active Skill Dice.

• Now, the Active Dice have to stay here until you use them. But remember, you have to clear them out at the end of the battle or if your Gearloc gets KO’d.
• And as for the Skill Dice in these slots, you’ll need to Exhaust them when you use them. Well, unless it says otherwise, of course.

7. Locked Slots

• This is where you put the rolled Locked (L) Skill Dice effects. They stay here from one battle to another until you use them. And remember, if your Gearloc gets KO’d, you’ll have to clear these dice too.
• Again, you’ll have to Exhaust the Skill Dice in these slots when you use them, unless the rules say otherwise.

Listen up: If you need some breathing room, you can ditch (Exhaust if Skill Die) dice from Active or Locked slots whenever it’s your turn.

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Discovering the Loot Area

Have you ever wondered what happens when a Gearloc finds treasure or encounters a hidden trove? Well, let me tell you about the fascinating Loot Area.

When I, as a Gearloc, stumble upon valuable loot or stumble onto a hidden treasure trove, I have a special place to store these newfound riches. Just to the right of my trusty Gearloc Mat, there lies the Loot Area, a designated space where I can keep all my precious loot safe and sound.

The Loot Area has its limits, though. It can only hold up to four pieces of loot and trove loot at a time. But what happens if I’m lucky enough to discover a fifth piece of treasure, you ask? Well, in that case, I must make a choice. I carefully select four items to keep, while the remaining loot is regrettably discarded, left behind to be claimed by someone else.

So, with the Loot Area at my disposal, I venture forth with renewed excitement, eager to uncover rare treasures and fill my pockets with the spoils of my adventures. Who knows what incredible riches await?