Set a Watch Game Rules
Contents
Set a Watch Game Rules
Hey there! Welcome to the world of Set a Watch! Today, I’m here to guide you through the exciting game rules. So, let’s get started!
The Objective
Your main goal is to survive the darkness that engulfs the land. You and your fellow adventurers will form a party and journey through perilous regions, battling all sorts of malicious creatures and dangerous encounters.
How to Play
Set a Watch is a cooperative game, which means you and your teammates will work together to achieve victory. Each round, you’ll take turns performing different actions, such as scouting, resting, or attacking enemies.
To successfully complete a region, you must defeat all the enemies present. But be careful! The darkness grows stronger with each passing round, and your party must wisely manage their resources and abilities.
Choosing Characters
Before embarking on your courageous journey, you’ll need to choose your character. Each character possesses unique abilities and skills that can greatly contribute to the success of your party. So, pick wisely!
Surviving Against the Darkness
The darkness in Set a Watch is an ever-present threat. It steadily grows throughout the game, bringing with it dangerous encounters and making your journey even more challenging.
To counter the darkness, you can perform various actions to regain strength, heal wounds, and enhance your abilities. Strategy and teamwork are key in your battle against the encroaching shadows.
Victory and Defeat
At the end of your quest, victory is achieved when you successfully complete all the regions and emerge triumphant against the darkness. However, if darkness overwhelms you and your party falls, it’s game over.
Now that you know the rules, it’s time to gather your party, choose your characters, and embark on an epic adventure! Set a Watch awaits you.
Uh-oh! The Kingdom is in big trouble. Some really powerful enemies are scheming to bring back the wicked Unhallowed that my party and I just defeated. Now, you and I, the brave adventurers of this land, have to go to these summoning spots and take down the hordes of creatures behind this nasty plan.
Four badass Adventurers, each with their own special skills, need to team up again to destroy this evil before the Unhallowed plunge the world into darkness.
Set a Watch is a game where we all work together. It’s made for one to four players. Our mission is to protect nine different locations and stop the acolytes from breaking the seals that hold back the wicked Unhallowed.
Here’s how it works: Every round, we’ll go to a new location and pick an Adventurer to rest and do some smart camp actions. The rest of us will keep watch and face a bunch of creatures trying to crash our camp.
When you use your dice to wage war and unleash special abilities based on your character class, you and your team must come up with clever strategies and show unwavering determination to solve each round’s combat challenge.
As we embark on an extraordinary quest to survive, conquer the powerful Unhallowed, and safeguard the campfire’s flame, it is crucial that we rely on our intelligence and expertise to battle for the hope of light. Failure to do so will result in the triumph of darkness and the downfall of all.
The Things You Need
- There are 6 Adventurer Boards
- You will have 30 Adventurer Ability Cards
- There are 9 Unhallowed Creature Cards
- There are 42 Creature Cards
- There are 20 Location Cards
- You will have 9 d6 dice and 9 d8 dice
- There are 4 Rest Tokens and 1 Fire Token
- You will have 1 Rulebook
- You will have 1 Magnetic Box and a foldout Camp Board
Setup
1. Set Out the Board and Components
To start, place the Camp board where everyone can easily reach it.
Next, put the 4 resting tokens, dice, player boards, and other necessary items nearby. Organize all the cards into piles based on their type: Creature, Ability, Location, and Unhallowed.
2. Choose Your Adventurers
Now it’s time for each player to select their Adventurer. Grab the corresponding dice, Ability cards, and Adventurer board. Randomly choose 3 Ability cards to begin the game.
Hey there! Let me break it down for you. Take these Ability cards and place them on your player board. Put the two extra Adventurer cards on the side. Now, pick one Ability card randomly and flip it over. That card is now exhausted. Easy, right?
Welcome, fellow adventurer!
Let’s dive into the basics of the Adventurer Class:
Ability Slots: Place your three ability cards in the slots on your board.
Dice: Keep track of your spent combat dice here. Are you rolling six-sided (d6) or eight-sided (d8) dice? Blue banners represent d8s, while Red corresponds to d6s.
Camp Action: This is your special action in camp. Remember, you can only use it once per Camp Phase.
Range: With range , you can attack and damage Creatures in the first or second position. Melee is limited to attacking Creatures in the first position only.
Note: No matter how many people are playing, there always have to be four Adventurers in the game. If there are four players, each person chooses one Adventurer. If there are three players, one player gets to control an extra Adventurer during the Watch phase. And if there are only two players, each player gets to choose two Adventurers.
3. Get the Creature Deck Ready
Let’s start by preparing the Creature deck. Here’s how:
- Easy: Summon 1 creature
- Normal: Summon 2 creatures
- Hard: Summon 3 creatures
- Insane: Summon 4 creatures
So, depending on how challenging you want the game to be, choose the number of creatures to summon from 1 to 4. It’s up to you!
Now, make sure to remove any unused Summon cards from the game. You only want to keep the cards you’ll use.
Next, randomly select 30 Creature cards from the deck. Make sure you include both Acolytes in the mix. These cards will form the foundation of your game.
Now, divide the Creature cards into piles. Try to make the piles as equal in size as possible. You want the number of piles to match the number of Summon cards you have. For example, if you’re summoning 2 creatures, you should have 2 piles.
Here’s the tricky part. Take 1 Summon card and shuffle it into each of the face-down piles. Make sure to place them at the bottom of the piles. Once you’ve done that, stack the piles on top of each other to form the Creature deck. The smaller piles should be at the bottom.
4. Get the Map Ready
To start the game, we need to remove the respite locations and final locations from the Location cards. The respite locations are marked with and the final locations are marked with . Once those are removed, we shuffle the remaining Location cards and draw 8 of them without looking.
Next, we shuffle those 8 cards and place them face-down on the board to create the Map deck. Don’t forget to add a final location card of your choice to the bottom of the deck.
All the other location cards, including the respite locations, are shuffled together and placed face-down in the box. This forms the Unused Location Deck.
5. Getting Ready for the Unhallowed
We also need to prepare the Unhallowed cards. Shuffle these cards and draw one without looking. This card goes into the Horde deck, which is a face-down deck of cards that will be used in the final round of the game.
When it comes to the Horde, the bigger it is, the harder the final round becomes. You need to draw and put 7 Unhallowed face-up next to the Camp board. Any remaining Unhallowed should be taken out of play.
6. Let’s Get the Fire Going!
Time to draw the top location card from the Map deck and place it as the current location on the Camp board. For the first round, we won’t trigger the location’s firewood modification.
We’re starting with a firewood value of 7 on the Camp Board. To add some excitement and increase the challenge, you have the option to roll a d8 and set the starting firewood value randomly.
Creatures: The Key to Battles
Hey there! Let’s talk about creature cards, shall we? They’re pretty cool and important when it comes to battling. Creature cards are like little cheat sheets that tell you all about a creature’s abilities and health. They’re what make battles exciting and strategic.
So, here’s the lowdown. When a creature is defeated in battle, it goes straight to the Graveyard. But when a creature isn’t defeated, it joins the Horde, ready to fight another day.
Imagine having a whole deck of creature cards. Each card is like a little warrior with unique powers and a set amount of health. When you find yourself in a battle, you choose a creature card from your deck and send it into the fray. It’s like summoning your very own champion to fight for you!
But here’s the thing – you’ve got to make sure you choose the right creature for the job. Each creature has its own special abilities and health points. Some creatures may have the power to fly or shoot fireballs, while others might be tough and have loads of health.
As you can see, creature cards are a pretty big deal. They can turn the tide of a battle in your favor, but you’ve got to use them wisely. Pay attention to each creature’s abilities and health, and make calculated decisions on which ones to send into battle.
So, the next time you go into battle, remember to take a look at your creature cards. They hold the key to victory!
A Damage: Here’s the deal – this number shows how many Ability cards we have to use up from our Adventuring party whenever we can’t beat a Creature. It’s not about each player individually, but the total number of cards used up by everyone on the Watch.
B Health: So, this number is the minimum we have to roll on the dice to defeat a Creature and get rid of it.
C Power text: These are special effects that happen when certain conditions are met, like when we reveal a Creature or when it’s in the First Position.
Creature Type: We gotta keep those Unhallowed cards separated from the rest. They’re their own special deck, with a Creature Type of Unhallowed.
Summon and Unhallowed cards
Now, here’s the scoop on Summon cards. When we reveal one, we have to exhaust one Ability card from any Adventurer on Watch. The Summon card then goes to the Graveyard and we bring in a card from the top of the Unhallowed deck to replace it.
When a relevant Unhallowed card is used, its powers are activated. If the Unhallowed card is defeated, it goes to the Graveyard. On the other hand, the Summon card always triggers when it is revealed.
For example: Let’s say the Ranger spends a die to use the Longshot ability and reveals the Summon card. In this case, players need to decide who on Watch exhausts a card and then replace the Summon card with an Unhallowed card.
Now, the defeated Unhallowed card is immediately sent to the Graveyard without activating its ability because it was defeated by Longshot.
Playing the Game
During gameplay, each player rolls their dice and decides which Adventurer goes to camp, using their dice for camp actions. The remaining party members stay on Watch (more on that below).
When I’m playing Watch, my main task is to take down Creatures that threaten me and my party. We call this the Line. As an Adventurer, when I’m in camp, I allocate my dice to different camp actions or Runes on the back of the Map deck. Then, I complete those actions to help the Adventurers on Watch.
Camp Phase
During the Camp Phase, I don’t participate in combat. Instead, I take my rolled dice and place them in any available spot in camp. I can put them on my Adventurer board or on the Runes on the back of the Location cards. This way, I can support the Adventurers on Watch.
When I’m in camp, I also get to refresh one of my exhausted cards for free. It happens right away, as soon as I enter camp.
Camp Actions
Chop Wood (3 placements): By placing my dice in the Chop Wood location, I can increase our firewood by 2 for each die I use.
Scout Ahead (3 placements): I draw and look at the top 2 Creatures. Then, I can rearrange them in any order I like and put each card back either on the bottom or top of the Creature Deck. If I want to make additional placements, I need to use a die that has a higher value than the one I just placed.
Check Map (1 placement): I draw one card from the top of the Map deck and one card from the unused locations deck. Then, I pick one of the cards and put it back on the top of the Map deck. The remaining card goes to the bottom of the unused location deck. To perform this action, I need to roll a die with a value of 4 or higher. I can’t swap out the last location card.
Heal (1 placement): I can refresh 1 exhausted Ability card for myself or any Adventurer on Watch. To do this, I need to roll a die with a value of exactly 6.
About Ability Cards: Let me show you a cool trick you can do to improve your skills. It’s called “Equip” and it’s a placement that lets you swap one of your Ability cards on your player board with another Ability card that you didn’t use yet. Just keep in mind that if you swap with a card that’s already exhausted, the new card you choose will be exhausted as well.
Adventurer Special Camp Actions
Hey, did you know that each Adventurer has their own special camp action? It’s true! These special actions are listed on the Adventurer player boards. To use them, you’ll need to spend one die just like any other camp action. But here’s the catch – you can only use each Adventurer camp action once per round. So make sure you choose wisely!
Runes:
Okay, listen up because I’m about to drop some knowledge on you. In order to activate Runes, the Adventurer in Camp needs to roll doubles on their dice. It’s all about luck! Once they have the right dice, they can place them on the Runes they want to activate. But here’s the rule – you have to select at least two Runes, and you can’t choose the same Rune twice. And get this – if you manage to roll triples, you can activate all three Runes at once! How cool is that?
Seal (1 placement): Whenever I have an Unhallowed in the Graveyard, I remove it and place it at the bottom of the Unhallowed deck. It’s like vanishing it from existence.
Vanquish (1 placement): If there’s a Creature in the Horde that hasn’t been stopped, I can remove the top one from the game. It’s like eliminating it from the battle.
Bolster (1 placement): I can reroll any of my dice if I’m on Watch. It’s like getting a second chance to get a better result.
Make sure to visit the camp twice while playing the game. When you visit the camp for the first time, take a Rest token and put it on your board. When you go to camp again, flip the token over. During the final round, all adventurers must be on Watch for the final battle.
Once all the adventurers at the camp have assigned their dice and taken their actions, we move on to the Watch Phase.
Watch Phase
Setting Up the Line
Hey there! Let’s take a look at your Location card and see how many Creatures we’ll be dealing with this round. Remember not to peek, we want it to be a surprise! Take cards from the Creature deck and line them up face-down. Start with the top card closest to the Camp board.
Stop drawing cards and adding them to the Line once the number of cards in the Line matches the number of Creatures on your Location card (B).
If you ever need to draw a Creature card but the deck is empty, don’t worry! Just shuffle the Graveyard, including any Unhallowed and Summon cards, to create a fresh Creature deck.
Time to Reveal the Monsters!
Let’s check the current firewood value to see how many Creatures we get to reveal thanks to the campfire. We’ll reveal the Creatures closest to the Camp board, one by one, and deal with their abilities.
When a creature is discovered, it remains visible even if the firewood value drops enough to change the number of creatures shown. Now it’s time for us to use our dice and Adventurer Ability cards to defeat those creatures and send them to the Graveyard.
Once all the creatures in the Line are defeated, we get to draw a new location card and start a new round of adventure.
Combat Actions:
Engaging in Direct Attacks:
When I’m on watch, I use my dice and abilities to defeat the creatures lined up in front of me. I can combine and assign my dice directly to these creatures, making sure that the total value of my dice equals or exceeds the creature’s health.
Once I’ve assigned enough dice to a creature and its health is met or exceeded, I defeat it and send it to the graveyard. It’s important to note that once dice are used to attack a creature, they can’t be used again.
Utilizing Ability Cards:
Alternatively, I have the option to spend one of my dice and place it on an ability card that I haven’t exhausted yet. This activates the ability of the card. However, I can only do this once per card per round. Some of my ability cards can be used again if I exhaust them after spending a die on them.
In the world of gaming, there is a special kind of ability called passive abilities. These abilities are different because they don’t need a die to activate. They stay active as long as they are face-up.
When it comes to activating and assigning dice, there is no set order. You can do it in whatever order makes the most sense to you. The goal is to defeat all the creatures or use up all your useful actions as an adventurer.
But here’s the thing – if you start the Watch Phase with all your Ability cards exhausted, you won’t be able to participate in combat. That means you’ll have to sit out until the next round.
If you run out of actions as an adventurer and there are still creatures left in the Line, things get tricky. You have to add that creature card to the Horde and exhaust cards based on the damage it can do. And when it’s time to exhaust cards, you have to do it from the Adventurers on Watch.
Now let’s talk about locations and how to end the round.
When I look at the Line, I can tell if we’ve finished a round and done well as long as the Adventurers on Watch aren’t all tired out. Each game has 8 different places we go to in a random order, and then there’s one last special place marked with that symbol at C.
In each round, I’ll draw and show you the next location. These locations determine the amount of firewood we’ll need for the campfire, and also tell us how many creatures will be placed in the line during our watch. But that’s not all – each location also has its own special effect that happens during the round.
To clear a location, we have to either defeat all the creatures in the line or add them to our horde. It’s a tough task, but we can do it!
The Final Round
When we finally reach the last location, things change up a bit. All of us adventurers go on watch, but don’t worry – if we need more firewood, we can always use a card to add 2 more.
So here’s what happens: first, we draw and place the Creatures in their normal positions, and then we put the Horde facedown at the end of the Line. No shuffling the Horde, though. After that, the round continues as usual, and we add the Creatures from the Horde to the Line when needed.
During the round, if necessary, we can start a new Horde pile. And remember, you can still win the game without clearing the final location, as long as you have at least 1 Ability card left after the Creatures have done their damage.
The End of the Game
We win the game if we successfully make it through all 9 locations. That’s the goal!
But there are a couple of things that can make us lose. If our firewood reaches 0, we have to act fast and exhaust an Ability card to increase the firewood by 2. And if all the Adventurers on Watch get exhausted by the end of a round, it’s game over for us, I’m afraid.
Oh, and one more thing! If a Summon card comes up and there are no more cards in the Unhallowed deck, we’re out of luck. That means it’s also game over.