Welcome to the World of Hail Hydra!

I’m here to guide you through the exciting game of Hail Hydra. Get ready to immerse yourself in a thrilling adventure where alliances will be tested, secrets will be unveiled, and the fate of the world will hang in the balance. Together, we’ll explore the rules and strategies that will help you navigate this epic battle.

The Basics

So, what is Hail Hydra all about? Well, it’s a game of deception and strategy, where you must determine who among your fellow players is a true hero and who is secretly a member of the villainous organization known as Hydra.

You and your teammates will work together to complete missions and stop Hydra’s evil plans. But beware, because some of your teammates might not be as loyal as they seem. They could be Hydra agents in disguise, hoping to sabotage your efforts and bring chaos to the world.

Playing the Game

Each round, you and your teammates will take turns playing cards. These cards can either help your team complete missions or hinder your opponents’ progress. It’s up to you to decide who to trust and who to undermine.

Remember, not everything is as it seems. You might have to use your deduction skills to figure out who the Hydra agents are and expose them. Communicate with your teammates, analyze their actions, and pay close attention to any suspicious behavior. The fate of the world rests on your shoulders, so be smart and stay vigilant.

The Role of the Leader

One player will be designated as the Leader for each round. The Leader plays a crucial role in determining the direction of the game. They will assign players to missions, decide which missions to prioritize, and ultimately shape the outcome of each round.

But here’s the twist – the Leader can also be a Hydra agent. This means they could use their position of power to manipulate the game and further Hydra’s agenda. Keep a close eye on the Leader, as their decisions can have a significant impact on the game’s outcome.

Winning the Game

Victory in Hail Hydra is not easy, but it is possible. As a team of heroes, you must complete a certain number of missions without being sabotaged by the Hydra agents. If you successfully complete enough missions, you’ll emerge victorious and save the world from Hydra’s clutches.

However, if the Hydra agents manage to disrupt your efforts and prevent you from completing the required number of missions, they’ll seize control, and the world will descend into chaos. So, work together, trust your instincts, and do everything in your power to expose the Hydra agents and bring them to justice.

Are You Ready?

Now that you’re familiar with the world of Hail Hydra and its thrilling gameplay, it’s time for you to take your place among the heroes. Get ready to uncover secrets, forge alliances, and thwart Hydra’s plans. The fate of the world is in your hands. Will you rise to the challenge?

• 80 Attack Cards
• 8 Loyalty Discs
• 18 Villain Cards
• 14 Hero Cards
• 13 Health Discs
• 3 Defense Discs
• 1 New York City Card
• 1 Avengers Tower Mover
• 1 First Player Token
• Instructions

Your Goal in This Exciting Game

Now it’s time to gather your team of Heroes! Together, we’ll fight against powerful Villains and protect New York City. We need to work quickly and wisely to defeat the Villains before they can do harm. But watch out, because sneaky HYDRA agents might be trying to mess with our plans. Are you ready for this thrilling challenge?

If you’re a member of S.H.I.E.L.D. (that’s the good guys), your mission is to defeat all the Villains before they destroy New York City.

When it comes to fighting crime, things can get pretty complicated. You see, there’s this group of bad guys called HYDRA agents, and they are always causing trouble. They sabotage the efforts of the good guys from S.H.I.E.L.D., making it easier for the villains to destroy our city. It’s a never-ending battle.

Getting Started

Alright, here’s what you need to do to set up the game. Take the 80 Attack Cards and shuffle them up real good. Then, put them face down in a pile in the middle of the New York City Card. You’ll see a spot that says “Draw Pile” – that’s where they go.

Attack Cards

Now, let’s talk about the villains. Every game will have five of them. They’re the ones we need to defeat to save our city.

When you play the game Hail Hydra, you start with some Villains. There’s one Villain, two Villains, and one Final Villain named Red Skull. But here’s the twist: you don’t know which Villains you’re getting! It’s a surprise. The only one you do know is Red Skull, and he always shows up at the end.

So, to start the game, you have to shuffle the deck of Villain cards and draw four. These four cards represent the other Villains besides Red Skull. But here’s the catch: you draw them randomly, so you never know which ones you’ll get. They could be from any of the danger levels on the back of the cards.

Once you have those four Villain cards, you place them face down in a pile. This is where they’ll stay until it’s time to reveal them later in the game.

When it comes to setting up the game, it’s important to place the Villain on top, followed by the Villains, and then the skull Villain. Finally, place Red Skull on the bottom. Here’s a visual representation:

Next, you need to position the Avengers Tower Mover onto the New York City Card at 27 health. The number of players will determine your next steps, so take the number of people playing into account. To make it easier, you can refer to the chart below:

Hey there! Let’s dive right in. Take a look at the chart above. See those two types of Loyalty Discs? We’re going to play a fun game with them!

First, let’s mix up all the HYDRA and S.H.I.E.L.D. Loyalty Discs and place them face down in a pile. Make sure you count out the right amount based on the chart. Once that’s done, give each player one face-down disc. Keep it a secret and don’t show it to anyone!

Now, here’s the interesting part: the amount of HYDRA agents in the game is something everyone will know. However, only the HYDRA agents will know who their fellow members are, while the S.H.I.E.L.D. members won’t have a clue. To make sure this happens, we need someone to help out.

Someone, step up and listen closely. After you’ve memorized the following lines, you’ll need to say them out loud to the group:

“Everyone, close your eyes.”

“HYDRA agents, open your eyes and make eye contact with each other.”

“HYDRA agents, close your eyes.”

“Everyone, open your eyes.”

And there you have it! Get ready for an exciting game of strategy and deception. Have fun!

If you’ve recently read a MARVEL comic, congratulations! You get to start the game as the first player. The player sitting to the left of the first player should draw 2 Attack Cards. Then, the player to their left should draw 4 Attack Cards.

If you don’t have any Attack Cards yet, don’t worry. You can draw 6 Attack Cards now. And the good news is, you can take a look at the Attack Cards you have.

Here’s the First Player Token you’ll need to start the game.

Gameplay

When we play the game, we start by handing out Loyalty Discs. These discs help the HYDRA agents identify each other. Then, we reveal a Villain to start a Mission. Each Mission is made up of different parts, and one part is called an Offensive. During an Offensive, we go through five steps:

1. First, we pass around the First Player Token. One Hero gets rid of some cards and draws a whole new hand, while everyone else just draws one card.
2. Next, all the Heroes play Attack Cards and keep them facedown.
3. After that, we gather up all the Attack Cards, mix them up, and count how much damage they can do to the Villain.
4. If the Villain isn’t defeated yet, they will attack the City.
5. Finally, we discard the team’s attack and start another Offensive if the Villain is still not defeated.

A Mission is over when we defeat the Villain. Then, we move on to the Knock Out Phase, where the team votes on which Heroes to knock out. Once we decide that, we flip over the next Villain, and another Mission begins.

If we want S.H.I.E.L.D. to win, it’s simple: defeat all the villains and make sure New York City stays safe. But be warned, if New York City is destroyed at any point, HYDRA wins!

The Heroes

Now, whether you’re on team S.H.I.E.L.D. or team HYDRA, we’re all heroes here. So go ahead and pick a hero to play as. Put that hero card face-up in front of you, and get ready to be that hero for the whole game.

Each hero has a special ability that can only be used once per game. These abilities are super strong and will make a real impact if you use them at the right time. Make sure to check the card for when you can use the ability – it’s all explained at the end of these rules.

But wait, there’s more! Flip the hero card over and you’ll find some strategies. They’ll help you figure out the best time to use your ability, depending on if you’re on team S.H.I.E.L.D. or team HYDRA. And on the back, you’ll also find instructions for when to shout “HAIL HYDRA!” – we’ll get to that later.

Don’t worry, you can’t use your superpower when you’re knocked out or if you’ve already announced “HAIL HYDRA!” It’s a rule that keeps things fair.

The Villains

When we’re out there fighting off the bad guys, we come across a whole bunch of baddies that we call Villains. They’re not your average troublemakers, oh no. They’re tough and they’re dangerous. But don’t worry, we’ve got your back.

Now, these Villains are ranked in levels of difficulty. You can tell how tough they are by looking at the little skulls on the back of their cards. One skull means they’re not too bad, but four skulls? That’s a whole other story.

Each Villain also comes with a certain amount of Health. You can find this number in the top left corner of their card. When we reveal a Villain Card, we place that many Health Discs next to the card. These discs keep track of how much health the Villain has left. We’ll need to chip away at their Health to take them down.

When a fight is over, there’s always that one bad guy who manages to escape. They might be wounded, but they’re still dangerous. You can tell how powerful they are by looking at the number in the bottom left corner of their card. That number represents their strength. But that’s not all – each villain also has a special ability, indicated by a symbol next to their strength number. And here’s the tricky part: the villain’s special ability is triggered every time they attack, even if they’re wounded. So you need to be careful!

Some villains have extra powers, called buffs. You can recognize a buff by a symbol next to the villain’s attack. Be on the lookout for these, they can make a tough fight even tougher!

Defense – So, here’s the deal: Defense is all about making the Villain tough and hard to take down. It’s like a shield that makes them resistant to attacks. To use Defense, I put the right number of Defense Discs near the Villain’s Health Discs. Now, let’s say the Villain has Defense and I try to hit them with an attack. Well, guess what? The Defense comes into play and actually reduces the damage that my attack does. How does it do that? Easy! It just subtracts the Villain’s current Defense value from the damage my attack would have caused. So, the more Defense a Villain has, the less damage I can dish out. Sneaky, huh?

Quick Attack – The Villain’s power affects how this offensive move is executed. You should carefully read the power before engaging in a fight against this Villain.

Attacks and Dealing Damage to the Villain

These cards are used to either attack the Villain directly or hinder the team’s efforts to attack the Villain. There are two types of Attack Cards: Blue and Red. Blue Attack Cards contribute to the total damage inflicted on the Villain by your team. If you are on the S.H.I.E.L.D. team, you would want to see blue Attack Cards played.

On the other hand, Red Attack Cards reduce the total damage dealt to the Villain by your team. If you are on the HYDRA team, you would want to see red Attack Cards played.

The distribution of Attack Cards is evenly split between Blue and Red, with each type accounting for 50%. However, on average, the Red cards have higher numeric values. Blue cards have a range of +1 to +4, while Red cards have a range of -2 to -5.

When you play an Attack Card, it doesn’t directly hurt the Villain. The text on the card doesn’t have any special effects.

While we’re playing the game, each player will choose an Attack Card from their hand, place it face down, and mix them up. Then, we’ll reveal all the cards at once. The numbers on the cards will be added up to determine the strength of our team’s attack against the Villain. Depending on our total attack value, here’s what will happen:

An Introduction to Offensives

Hey there! Let me tell you all about Offensives. It’s a cool concept that we use in the game. So, every round in the game is called an Offensive. It’s kind of like a turn, but with a fancy name.

1. First things first, we pass the First Player Token to the left. The person who gets the token has a special role. They have to secretly get rid of all their Attack Cards and draw 6 fresh ones. Everyone else only draws 1 new Attack Card.
2. Next, each Hero in the game gets to play between 1 and 3 Attack Cards. They have to keep them face down so no one else knows what they’re up to.
3. Now comes the exciting part! We collect all the Attack Cards from everybody, shuffle them up, and then reveal them. We add up the numbers on the cards to see how strong our attack is.
4. If the Villain is still alive at this point, they get to attack us back and we have to deal with their effects. It can get pretty intense!
5. Finally, we discard all of our attack cards face down into a special pile.

Offensives and Missions

Offensives and Missions are two important terms in the game. Offensives are when we all team up and attack the Villain together. It’s like a big battle! On the other hand, Missions are a bit different. They start when a new Villain appears, and they end when we finally defeat that Villain. Sometimes, we need to go through multiple Offensives to complete a Mission. It can be quite a challenge, but also a lot of fun!

Let me break it down for you. Each Offensive, except for Step 1 in the first one, follows this pattern:

1. First, the Hero on the left receives the First Player Token. They have to get rid of all their remaining Attack Cards face down in the “Discard Pile” on the New York City Card. Then, they draw 6 new Attack Cards. The rest of the Heroes only draw 1.
2. Now it’s time for each Hero to lay down their Attack Cards. The Hero with the First Player Token goes first. They can put down 1 to 3 Attack Cards on their own Hero Card. Then, it’s the next Hero’s turn, going clockwise. This keeps happening until every Hero has played at least 1 card. Remember, you have to play a card.

I’m about to give you a rundown of some game rules. Here’s how it goes:

First, take all the Attack Cards from the Heroes and mix them up. Then, flip them over and add up the values. If the total is positive, that’s the damage dealt to the Villain. If it’s negative, you’ll need to refer to the chart on the left for the right outcome.

If the Villain is still standing after that, it’s their turn to strike back. They’ll perform their attack and carry out any other effects they have. Keep an eye on New York City’s health – if it takes damage, lower its Health by moving the Avengers Tower on the New York City Card.

But watch out! If New York City gets completely destroyed (reaches 0 health), it’s game over and the HYDRA agents win! In that case, discard the team’s attack cards facedown into the discard pile. That’s the end of an Offensive. If the Villain is still kicking, get ready to start another Offensive.

Now, let’s talk about the New Draw Pile. If it runs out, don’t worry. Just grab all the Attack Cards from the Discard Pile and shuffle them up to create a new Draw Pile.

Lastly, here are the Communication Rules. *Add relevant information here*

There you have it! These rules should set you up for success in the game. Have fun!

Hey there! Feel free to chat and strategize with me throughout the game. It’s important for us to communicate and figure out who might be secretly sabotaging the group. But here’s the thing – at any point, I might just throw in a lie to hide my true intentions. As a member of HYDRA, I’ll be doing a lot of that to convince everyone that I’m actually on their side and not trying to bring the group down.

When it’s time to play Attack Cards, I can only say two things: “This is good” or “This is bad”. No descriptive words allowed, like “very” or “kind of”.

Remember, even after the Attack Cards are revealed, I can never say anything that even hints at any specific Attack Card. This rule stays in place for the whole game.

Let’s keep it general! You can’t say:

“I played a blue 3 and 4! My cards are the best in the game. Did you play that red -5? This is really good!”

But it’s okay to say:

Okay, listen up. I messed up. I played a bad card. Well, actually, it’s one of those bad cards, but don’t blame me entirely because I did contribute a good one as well!

It’s important to be honest about how many Attack Cards you’re putting in. This helps the team figure out who might be a sneaky HYDRA agent.

Sometimes, you might have to play cards that you don’t want to. That’s just part of the game. But remember, you can’t be too specific about which cards you’ve played.

Knocking Out Heroes

Every time we defeat a Villain, we enter the Knock Out Phase. This happens before any new Missions start. Don’t reveal the next Villain until we finish the Knock Out Phase. How many times we vote in this phase depends on the Villain we’re about to face. Look at the chart below:

If you want to uncover who might be part of HYDRA, Knocking Out Heroes is your best bet. Taking down a S.H.I.E.L.D. member will decrease the number of blue Attack Cards available in each Offensive, while knocking out a HYDRA Agent will decrease the number of red Attack Cards.

Knocking Out is a crucial tactic to figure out who is on HYDRA’s side before facing Red Skull. If you fail to do so, S.H.I.E.L.D. will face an uphill battle.

If you happen to get Knocked Out during a Mission, don’t worry. You’ll rejoin the team once the next Mission is completed. A Mission concludes once the Villain is Defeated.

To start the Knock Out Phase, set a timer for 2 minutes. When the time’s up, the group will vote on who to Knock Out. On the count of 3, every player points to another Hero simultaneously.

When you point your finger, you’re essentially casting a vote to eliminate a Hero for the upcoming Mission. Unless you want to remove any Heroes, you can simply point your finger straight up in the air. The Hero with the highest number of fingers pointed at them will be eliminated, and that will mark the end of the voting round. However, if there is a tie for the most votes, or if the majority of fingers are pointed upwards, no one will be eliminated and the voting round will come to a close.

Take a look at the chart above. If there are more rounds of voting in this Knock Out phase, the next round begins immediately with 2 minutes of discussion. If all voting rounds have been completed, the next Mission starts and the Villain is revealed, regardless of how many Heroes have been eliminated.

If you happen to be eliminated from a mission:

Welcome back to the team, it’s good to have you here after the next mission. I want to let you know that you won’t be able to play any Attack Cards on the Villain this time. Despite that, you’ll still draw and discard Attack Cards like usual, and you’ll also receive the First Player Token.

Even though you’re knocked out, your voice still matters, and you still have a chance to make a difference in the mission.

Before anyone plays their Attack Cards, but after everyone has drawn them, you’ll need to pass 1-2 Attack Cards face down to another Hero on the mission. It’s important that you don’t give them randomly.

Hail Hydra

If you happen to be a member of HYDRA, you have the option to reveal yourself by flipping over your Loyalty Disc and shouting “HAIL HYDRA!” You can do this at any point during the mission, even if you are knocked out.

On the back of your Hero card, you’ll find the rules for hailing HYDRA, along with suggested strategies for your Hero Ability. This poses an interesting situation because other players won’t know if you’re reviewing the strategies or checking out the HAIL HYDRA! rules. But once you decide to HAIL HYDRA!, everything changes.

Once you HAIL HYDRA!, you’ve got to take immediate action: If you’re on a Mission, you’ll Damage the City by 3. And if you’re Knocked Out, you’ll still Damage the City, but only by 1.

From that point on, your Hero’s special ability is off the table. You won’t be able to use it anymore.

Now, for the rest of the game, here’s how things will go:

– If you’re a revealed player on the Mission, you’ll be the first to play. Then, the player with the First Player Token will take their turn. And remember, when you play Attack Cards, you’ve got to lay them all face up.

– If you’re a revealed player and you’re Knocked Out, you still get to play first, but you have two options to choose from:

I’ll rewrite the provided text for you:

• I give a Hero on the Mission 1 or 2 Attack Cards face down OR
• I grab a random Attack Card face down from a chosen Hero on the Mission.

Red Skull

In the final battle to save New York City from destruction, you’ll face off against Red Skull, the toughest Villain in the game! Watch out: Red Skull possesses the Cosmic Cube! But be careful, damaging Red Skull too much will harm the City as well. It’s known as the Cosmic Cube Penalty.

Cosmic Cube Penalty:

If my team surpasses Red Skull’s remaining health by 5, any additional Attacks will directly damage the City.

Example of the Cosmic Cube Penalty: Red Skull has 7 Health remaining. Two HYDRA agents each provided a Defense to Red Skull.

The team contributes 4 Attack Cards. The total attack is fifteen (+4+4+4+3 = 15).

I’m going to tell you all about the cosmic cube penalty and how it can be a game-changer in the city! When the penalty is activated, it deals 3 damage to the city. If the damage adds up to zero, that means HYDRA wins instantly. Talk about high stakes!

Timing of a Hero’s Special Ability

Let me explain how a Hero’s Special Ability works in the game. Multiple Special Abilities can be used at the same time, but the first person to call it gets priority. Just remember, a “Normal Play” is anything that doesn’t involve a Special Ability. Also, Heroes who are knocked out or have revealed HYDRA agents may not use their Special Ability.

• Before attacks start: This Special Ability must be announced after the Heroes draw Attack Cards at the beginning of a new Offensive. It should be announced before anyone plays, passes, or steals Attack Cards during normal play.
• Before attacks are resolved: This Special Ability must be announced once all the Heroes have played their Attack Cards for the current Offensive. However, once Attack Cards have started to be shuffled or can’t be assigned to a specific Hero, this Special Ability can no longer be used.
• Firstly, before attacks are dismissed, I want you to know that they must be announced after the Attack Cards are revealed but before they end up in the Discard Pile.
• Next, before votes are initiated, you have the option to announce it immediately after a Villain is Defeated. However, keep in mind that if you want to affect a specific voting round, you must declare it within the first 15 seconds of that round. It’s worth noting that She-Hulk’s ability lasts for the entire Knock Out Phase.

To Wrap Up

If, at any time, New York City is Destroyed, HYDRA wins!

On the other hand, if you manage to defeat Red Skull and New York City remains intact, the members of S.H.I.E.L.D. emerge victorious!

A Few Additional Details:

• When we say “Secretly,” it means that you’re the only person who can see the Attack Card(s).
• If there is ever a question about who should take action first because multiple Heroes could be acting at the same time, the Hero who has or will receive the First Player Token next has priority. Rules about when Special Abilities can be used are found to the right.
• If a Villain’s special power targets the Heroes and multiple Heroes have the same number of Attack Cards, the Villain will attack the Hero who is farthest from receiving the First Player Token.
• Heroes must carefully examine the Attack Cards they draw. When Heroes have to give away Attack Cards, it must be a deliberate decision and not based on chance.
• If you yell “HAIL HYDRA!” after the Heroes have already started playing Attack Cards, you must immediately play yours face up. The Heroes will continue playing cards from where they left off. If you have already played cards face down when you yell “HAIL HYDRA!”, you must reveal them right away.

If you’re on a mission and don’t have any Attack Cards because they were all stolen, don’t worry! Just take the top Attack Card from the Draw Pile and place it into the team’s attack without looking at it. This card is special because it can’t be affected by any Special Abilities.

The mission officially begins when the team of Heroes is chosen and the Villain card is flipped over. And remember, the mission officially ends when the Attack Cards that Defeat the Villain are revealed, not when they are totaled! So keep your eyes peeled for those Defeat Cards.

Some Villains have attacks that can change the course of the game. You can spot these attacks by looking for the Quick Attack symbol on the Villain card. When a Villain card tells you to resolve its Quick Attack, make sure you do so.

Good luck on your mission and may your Attack Cards be powerful!

Red Skull’s standout ability is a Quick Attack that affects every disclosed HYDRA agent. Before each Offensive, every disclosed HYDRA agent has the option to trade Defense for not revealing or taking Attack Cards from the Offensive.