Card Game Rules

TCG

Rules

Tournament PolicyGame Rules

Hero

Cards

Hero cards represent the characters you can play as. They each have three Elements, a trait, and a health value.

  • 1. The hero’s name.
  • 2. The Elements available to the hero. They allow the hero to play action and combo cards that require any of these Elements.
  • 3. A description of the hero trait. If this is an Ability, it requires an action to activate it.
  • 2. The Elements available to the hero. They allow the hero to play action and combo cards that require any of these Elements.
  • 3. A description of the hero trait. If this is an Ability, it requires an action to activate it.
  • 4. The amount of health a hero starts the game with. Health can’t exceed 35.

Action

Cards

Action cards make up the bulk of cards in your deck, and are the bread and butter of what you use to defeat your opponents. They come in four different types: Attack, Defend, Buff, and Item.

ACTION CARD - ATTACK & DEFEND

  • 1. The Element required to play the card. Cards that don’t have an Element icon are considered Unaligned and can be played by any hero.
  • 2. The name of the card.
  • 3. The effect of the card.
  • 4. The category of the card.

Attack and Defend cards can be identified by the tag at the bottom of the card and the icons in the top corners. Attack cards have a sword icon and Defend cards have a shield icon.

Attacks are directed at other heroes and you can’t choose to use them against yourself. The effects on the card, unless otherwise specified, are directed at the recipient of the attack.

Defends are directed at yourself and the effects can’t be applied to other heroes unless otherwise specified.

Attack and Defend cards are Discarded after they have been played.

ACTION CARD - BUFF

  • 1. The Element required to play the buff and for the buff to have any effect if it’s in play.
  • 2. The name of the buff.
  • 3. The effect of the buff. This is always applied to the player who played the card, unless otherwise specified.
  • 4. The category of the card.

Buff cards can be identified by the tag at the bottom of the card. Their top corners are either empty or contain a rotation symbol (as seen in the images a, b, and c).

Buff cards are placed on the table when played, in the order they were played from left to right, and their effects linger for as long as they stay in play. If the top corners are empty (a), it stays in play indefinitely. Indefinite buffs are in effect the moment they enter play.

If any of the corners have a rotation symbol (b or c), it means that it’s a rotating buff. Rotating buffs with circles in the corner (b) rotate 90 degrees anticlockwise in the beginning of your turn. Rotating buffs with an irregular shape in the corner (c) only rotate when their effect is triggered. If a rotating buff gets to a position where its current top left corner is empty or it’s back to its original upright position, it has Expired and is Discarded.

1. Active corner. ‘X’ means ‘ignore the effect'.

2. Rotate 90 degrees each turn.

3. The corner is no longer an ‘X’, so trigger the card’s effect.

4. The corner is empty. That means the buff has expired and is Discarded.

ACTION CARD - ITEM

  • 1. The name of the item.
  • 2. The Element gained if the items is equipped. Equipping an item does not count as using this Element.
  • 3. The effect of the item while in play. Using an Ability on an item does count as using the Element of the item.
  • 4. The weight of the item (how many points it uses up).
  • 5. The category of the card.

Item cards can be identified by the tag at the bottom of the card and the belt nameplate at the top.
When played, Item cards are equipped to the hero. Unlike other action cards, the Element displayed on an Item card is not a requirement but the hero instead gains this Element when they have the item equipped.

A hero can have 2 points of items equipped at a time. The point value of an item is displayed on the Item card.

Combo

Cards

Combo cards are powerful spells available to the hero.

To play a combo, the hero must first of all have access to all Elements listed on the combo. Then they also need to pay for it using cards from their hand. Cards used as payment must match all of the Elements on the combo card. Other combos can also be used to pay (and can possibly cover multiple Elements in one go), and so can items.

Cards used to pay for a combo are returned to the deck and the deck is then shuffled.

Similar to action cards, combos come in three categories: Attack, Defend, and Buff. These categories are handled in the same way as they are for action cards.

  • 1. The Elements required to play the combo. If this includes an Order, any card from that Order can be used as payment.
  • 2.The name of the combo.
  • 3. The effect of the combo.
  • 4. The category of the combo (Attack, Defend, or Buff).

Playing

The game

GETTING STARTED

Each player needs a hero and a deck containing 5 combos and 30 action cards. A deck can’t contain any duplicate combos and must have at most 3 of each action card.

The deck is shuffled and placed face down on the table, next to the hero who is kept face up.

Randomly decide the play order and sit down in a circle. The first player draws 4 cards from their deck; this is the starting hand. The second player starts with 5 cards, third with 6, and fourth onwards start with 7. The starting health of each hero is displayed on the hero card. Use the Lightseekers playmat and health counter to keep track of how much health you have.

The player on your left is your target and the player on your right is your enemy (if you’re playing a 2-player game, your opponent is both your target and your enemy). The objective of the game is to reduce your target to 0 health, at which point they are removed from the game and the next person on your left is your new target. This continues until only one player remains.

TAKING TURNS

Players take turns in a clockwise order. Each player’s turn is divided into five distinct phases which are all played out before moving on to the next player.

Phase 1: Start of Turn

Handle any effects on heroes, items, or buffs (in that order) that take place ‘at the start of the turn’.

Phase 2: Buff Phase
  • Rotate all buffs that need rotating and, following that, activate any lingering effects (such as ‘reduce damage received’ or ‘increase damage done’) that have come into play as a result of this.
  • Discard any buffs that have Expired, placing them at the top of discard pile.
  • Handle all instant effects on buffs (e.g. buffs that deal damage or heal). Note that effects listed as Abilities don’t trigger at this stage.
Phase 3: Action Phase

Either play a combo or perform up to 2 actions. Each of the following options constitute one action:

  • Play an action card (any action that isn’t a combo).
  • Use an Ability on one of your cards in play (including the hero).

In order to play a card of a specific Element or use an Ability on a card with a specific Element, your hero must be able to use that Element. If they have the basic level (silver frame), they can only perform one action that requires that Element per turn (i.e. play one card or use one Ability of that Element). If they have the superior level (gold frame), this restriction does not apply.

Phase 4: Draw Phase
  • If you played a combo this turn, Draw 1 card.
  • If you didn’t play a combo and didn’t perform 2 actions, Draw 1 card for each action you didn’t perform.
Phase 5: End of Turn

Effects that trigger ‘at the end of the turn’ take effect. If you have no cards left in your deck, you also need to perform the ‘empty deck check’.

ENDING THE GAME

If a player is reduced to 0 health, they have been defeated and are removed from the game. Regardless of how they reached 0 health, the player on their right (their enemy) receives the following:

  • 1 Victory Point.
  • 5 health.
  • Move any 5 discarded cards back into their deck.

If only one player remains, that player gains an additional Victory Point, and whoever has the most Victory Points is declared the winner.

TCG

Rules

Tournament PolicyGame Rules

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. OK Read more