On the edge of Darkness, nestled in a broken land besieged by shadow,

lies Farrenroc. Known as both the First and the Last City, this final
stronghold of Light is under constant assault by the surrounding
Darkness. Heroes come for the glory of defending its walls. Traders
come for the exorbitant prices they can get for their wares. And
everyone else comes just to live under the meager protection that
Farrenroc provides against the encroaching Darkness.

After years of struggle, no foothold has been gained against the Darkness. And now, as all hope
begins to fade, a terrible assault is brewing from each of the four corners of the surrounding
lands. Farrenroc will not last longunless a few valiant souls brave the Fallen Lands and
rally the much-needed support Farrenroc requires to strike back against the consuming dark.
The time for survival has passed. It is time to rise and fight against the ultimate oppression.
The Darkness comes.

Object of the Game

Players win the game by either defeating the boss or completing the final objective.
They lose the game if Farrenroc is reduced to zero stability.

Myth Dark Frontier can be

played with Myth monster
miniatures. Visually enhance
your play experience with these
dynamic figures.

Game Components
1 Rulebook

50 Encounter Cards

1 Farrenroc Tile

(10 for each: Farrenroc,

Ruins, Dungeon, Village, and
Sanctuary)

15 Miniatures
(10 Farrenroc City,
1 City Base, and 4
Heroes)

1 Game
Board

3 Conquest Track Tokens

15 Quest Cards

4 Hero Cards
25 Enemy Tokens
20 Minions

1 Prayer Reference Card

4 Captains

1 Boss

6 Spell Cards
22 Damage Tokens

6 Structure Tokens

5 - 3-Damage Tokens
17 - 1-Damage Tokens

1 Objective
Board
20 Hero
Action Cards

5 Enemy Action Cards

1 Enemy
Sheet

12 Objective Tokens

30 Resource Tokens

4 Hope

10 Hope

6 Prayer

4 Supply

10 Supply

3 Fury

4 Influence

10 Influence

6 Ten-Sided Dice

10 Hero Tokens

1 Shadow

5 Custom Six-Sided Fate Dice

16 Objective Cards
(12 Objectives and
4 Final Objectives)

4-Player Setup

1
5

Action Deck
Locations
8

1
1

1
1
1 1 1 1
1
1
1

7
6

Players perform the following steps in order when setting up the game:

Set up the Game Board: Place the game board in the center of the table. Place the objective board and the Farrenroc tile near the game board.

Choose Heroes: Each player chooses 1 hero, then collects the hero card and action cards associated with that hero. Follow any additional setup instructions found on the
back of the chosen hero card. Each player places their corresponding hero figure on the Farrenroc tile.

Choose Enemy Army: Players choose 1 enemy sheet to use in the game. (In the base game, this will always be the Orcneas enemy sheet.)
Set the enemy sheet near the game board.
Enemy Components: Collect the corresponding enemy action cards and enemy tokens.

Follow the setup instructions on the back of the enemy sheet.

Place 1 conquest tracker on the top-left circle space of each conquest track on the enemy sheet.
Shuffle the enemy action deck and place it facedown near the enemy sheet.

Objective Decks: Divide the objective cards into three decks by type: influence, supply, and hope. Set the final objectives aside.
Shuffle the influence objectives, and place 1 faceup in the influence objective space. Place the remaining influence objectives
back into the box. Then, each player places 1 influence objective token in a different objective location that matches up to the
amount of players in game (depicted as a flame icon in the objective area), and the location on the influence objective card.
Repeat the previous step exactly for the supply and hope objectives. If the location type on a revealed objective matches
the location of an objective already in play, place that objective card back in the box and reveal a new one. There should be
only 1 objective card in each objective card space, each with a different objective location type.
Return all unused objective tokens to the box.

Final Objective Cards: Shuffle the final objective cards and place 1 facedown near the objective board. Return all unused final objective cards to the box
without looking at them.

Prepare Card Decks and Token Pools: Divide the following tokens and cards by type:
Encounter Cards: Shuffle each locations encounter deck
separately, and place them separately in a common area
near the game board.

Resource Pool: Gather all resource tokens corresponding

to all three types (hope, influence, and supply), and create
a single resource pool near the area of the game board
labeled Farrenroc Resource Reserves.

Quest Deck: Shuffle the quest cards to create the quest

deck, and place it facedown near its location on the game
board. Reveal the top card of the quest deck, and place it
faceup on top of the deck. This is the active quest.

Structures: Create a common supply for structure tokens

near the game board.
1

Damage Tokens: Place all damage tokens in a single pool

near the game board..

Prepare Dice: Gather the five fate dice and roll them, placing the results in the Fate Dice Pool area of the game board.
Then, place the 10-sided dice within easy reach of the players.

Set Farrenrocs Starting Stability:

Construct the Farrenroc miniature as
shown below and orient the base of
the city so the pegs fit into the center
of the game board in the
Farrenroc location. Start
with piece 1 and place
them in order until you
place the 10th piece.

10

9
3

7
Base

Sequence of Play
Each round, players complete phases in the following order. All steps in a phase must be completed in the listed order before continuing to the next phase
of the round. Players continue resolving rounds this way until the game ends. (See End of Game below).
1. Planning Phase: Players determine
enemy actions and choose hero actions.
Enemy Action Step: Players take
the top 3 enemy action cards and
randomly place 1 facedown adjacent
to the Morning, Day, and Night action
deck spaces on the game board.
Hero Action Step: Each player chooses
1 of their action cards and places it
facedown in each action deck space.
After all actions are chosen, players
separately shuffle each action deck
and return it to its corresponding action
deck space near the game board.

2. Action Phase: Players resolve all action cards in

each action deck in the following order:
Morning Action Step: Players draw the top card
of the morning action deck and resolve it. (See
Action Cards on page 4.) After resolving the first
card of an action deck, the next card is drawn and
resolved. Each player resolves their own action
card as its revealed. Players collectively resolve
enemy action cards.
Day Action Step: Players repeat the process
explained above to resolve the day action deck.
Night Action Step: Players repeat the process
explained above to resolve the night action deck.

3. Prepare Phase: Players refresh cards, stand up defeated heroes/

delayed minions, and reset enemy action cards.
Prepare Effects Step: Resolve all prepare effects on cards and
components in play.
Resource Step: Gain 1 resource of any type for each structure
in play.
Refresh Step: All players refresh exhausted asset cards.
Revive Step: All defeated heroes and delayed minions are turned
upright. Defeated heroes are returned to the Farrenroc tile.
Reset Step: Players shuffle all used enemy action cards and
place them facedown under the unused enemy action cards.
Players place all their used actions back in their hands.

End of Game
After the siege begins (see The Siege on page 13), players can win the game by either defeating the boss or completing the final objective (if revealed).
However, they will lose the game if Farrenroc is destroyed by losing all its stability.

Game Round Rules

This section provides expanded rules for each phase of the game round described previously.

Planning Phase
The planning phase is when players discuss strategy and coordinate their actions for the turn. In addition to planning their actions, players must also determine
enemy actions for the turn, (see page 6). Players will not know which enemy action cards will be resolved during a turn. After enemy actions have been determined
and all players have chosen and placed their actions, each action deck is shuffled separately and returned to its action deck space facedown near the game board.

Action Cards
Hero Actions
Each hero action card corresponds to a particular action type, described here. These cards are used by heroes to plan their turn. Each action deck may
contain only one of a single heros action cards. For more information on the Action Phase, see page 7.
Back

Travel

Quest

A player resolving this action may move their hero into

an adjacent area.

A player resolving a quest action may attempt a

quest, only if they are in a quest location area. If
the hero is not in a quest area (or if they choose
not to resolve a quest action), they gain 1 hope.

Battle
A player resolving this action may attack a single enemy
rank by rolling 1 10-sided die per enemy of that rank
(See Enemies on page 12) in their area. For each die
result that equals or exceeds the enemy ranks defense
(target number), the player deals 1 damage. Each
damage dealt this way may be assigned to any enemy
of the target enemy rank in the attacking heros area.
Defeated enemies are placed in the out-of-play area.
Each die result equal to or lower than the enemy ranks
attack value deals 1 damage to the active hero.
If the defense and attack value are the same, and that number
is rolled, both the hero and the enemy receive damage.

If the hero cannot or chooses not to resolve a battle,

they gain 1 influence.

Front

Encounter
A player resolving this action must draw and
resolve an encounter card based on the location
in their area.

Fortify
A player resolving this action may
place 1 structure in their area. The
amount of structures in play cannot
exceed six. Structures may not be
built in special locations: Farrenroc,
Lairs, or Outland. If the hero
cannot or chooses not to build a
structure, they gain 1 supply.

Title
Hero Symbol
Mandatory
Action
Optional
Actions

Mandatory
Action

Enemy Actions
Each enemy type has its own set of action cards. These cards are used to determine how the
enemy acts during each turn. Each action deck may contain only one enemy action card.

Action & Title

Front

March
The march action type moves minions toward objective
areas and/or Farrenroc. When resolving a march, players
resolve the following steps for each area containing 1 or
more minion tokens:

Back

2
1

Resolve an assault on Farrenroc (Page 5) and each area

containing a structure.
Each minion in a non-objective structureless area moves 1
area, following priority. (See Enemy Movement on page 6.)
Resolve minion movement in this order:

1 Resolve First

2 Resolve Second

3 Resolve Third

Darkness
(Mandatory)

Siege Action
(Mandatory)

Assaults: Each time players resolve an assault, roll 1

10-sided die for each enemy token in the assaulted
area, and determine which enemy rank in that area
has the highest attack value. If at least one die result
is less than or equal to that enemys attack value, the
assault succeeds.
The results of a successful assault depend on the
assaulted area.
If the area contains a structure, that structure
is destroyed.
If the assaulted area is Farrenroc, reduce Farrenrocs
stability by 1.

Delayed Minions
Only enemy minions can be delayed. When a minion is delayed, its
token is turned over to its delayed side. Optionally, if you are using
miniatures, lay a delayed minion on its side. Delayed minions are
essentially ignored by all game effects, except for the following:
A delayed minion may still be targeted by hero effects.
Delayed minions still count against the number of minions
allowed in an area.
When a hero resolves a battle action card, they may
automatically defeat all delayed minions in their area
before resolving the battle action step of the card.

If an assault is triggered in an area with no enemy

tokens or structures, the assault is ignored.

After resolving an assault, delay each minion in the

assaulted area, regardless of the results.

Scheme
When this enemy action type is resolved, players resolve steps in the following order:
1.

For each quest location containing an enemy captain, players resolve the active quests scheme effect.

2.

Each captain not in a quest area moves 1 area toward the nearest quest area or Farrenroc, whichever is closer. If there is a tie, the
captain moves toward Farrenroc. If a captain is in Farrenroc, he does not move.

3.

Place 1 defeated captain in a random Outland location. (See Random Outland Locations on page 11.) Skip this step if no captains
have been defeated.

Conquest: The enemy sheet contains three conquest tracks: despair, devastation, and corruption. Each conquest track corresponds to a resource and
objective type, as follows:

Despair
VS
Hope

Devastation
VS
Supply

Corruption
VS
Influence

These tracks include 10 spaces each, with conquest ability spaces appearing at different intervals on the track. The conquest markers track the conquest
levels throughout the game.
If a conquest marker enters a conquest ability space, players must immediately resolve that conquest tracks ability. When moving the conquest marker
multiple spaces, players fully resolve each conquest ability before continuing to move the conquest marker. The first time any conquest marker reaches the
last space on the track, the siege begins. (See The Siege on page 13.)
If players are required to raise a conquest track by one or more spaces when the conquest marker is already on the last space, they must immediately resolve
that conquest tracks siege ability. Each time a conquest track is raised the siege ability is only triggered once, regardless of how many raises were required.

Despair

Devastation

Corruption

Players follow these steps when

resolving a despair action:

Players follow these steps when

resolving a devastation action:

Players follow these steps when

resolving a corruption action:

1. Raise the despair track by 1 for each hope

objective location containing at least 1 minion. If
no hope objective tokens remain in play, raise the
despair track by 1.

1. Raise the devastation track by 1 for each supply

objective location containing at least 1 minion. If
no supply objective tokens remain in play, raise
the devastation track by 1.

1. Raise the corruption track by 1 for each

influence objective location containing at least 1
minion. If no influence objective tokens remain in
play, raise the corruption track by 1.

2. Each hero spawns 1 minion on a different hope

objective location in play, and rolls 1 non-darkness
fate die in the fate dice pool for each missing hope
objective simultaneously. The minion(s) spawn in
the location corresponding to the fate die result(s).
For each fate die that cannot be rolled, increase
the despair track by 1.

2. Each hero spawns 1 minion on a different

supply objective location in play, and rolls 1 nondarkness fate die in the fate dice pool for each
missing supply objective simultaneously. The
minion(s) spawn in the location corresponding to
the fate die result(s). For each fate die that cannot
be rolled, increase the devastation track by 1.

2. Each hero spawns 1 minion on a different

influence objective location in play, and rolls 1
non-darkness fate die in the fate dice pool for each
missing influence objective simultaneously. The
minion(s) spawn in the location corresponding to
the fate die result(s). For each fate die that cannot
be rolled, increase the corruption track by 1.

Spawning Enemies

If any enemy is instructed to move to a location that they are already in,
they do not move.

To spawn a minion, a player places that minion in the designated area.

Spawned minions are always placed 1 token at a time and are taken from
the supply of out-of-play enemies near the enemy sheet. If the designated
area already has 3 minions when a spawned minion would be placed, the
players resolve an overrun.

Running Out of Minions

If players are required to spawn one or more minions when none remain
in the out-of-play enemy supply, the players must resolve the following:
Discard 1 resource of the players choice for each minion that could
not spawn.
If players were unable to discard 1 or more resources for the previous
effect, reduce Farrenrocs stability by 1.
A single spawning effect will reduce Farrenrocs stability
by 1 only, regardless of how many resources the players
are unable to discard.

The two minions in the Outland area cannot enter the Village because it is
full, so they move to the Ruins, which is the next area closest
to Farrenroc.

Enemy Movement Priority

Overruns
An overrun occurs when 1 or more minions would be spawned in an area
that already contains 3 minions or exceeds 3 minions after the spawn
effect. When an overrun occurs, players either must discard 1 resource of
the players choice or the overrun minion(s) are placed one area closer to
Farrenroc. If a resource is discarded place the overrun minions out of play.
Each time an overrun occurs in an objective location,
players must immediately raise the corresponding
conquest track by 1.
An overrun can be triggered only once per area per spawn effect.

Enemy Movement
Enemy movement is resolved exactly like hero movement. Minions cannot
end their movement in an area already containing three minions. When
one or more minions would move into an area already containing three
minions, the minions being moved hop over the area containing three
minions and end their movement in the next area closest to Farrenroc.
During enemy movement, more than three minions may end their
movement in Farrenroc. After resolving all enemy movement, if more than
three minions occupy Farrenroc, remove all excess minions so that only
three remain, then reduce Farrenrocs stability by 1.

When determining minion movement, enemies always take the shortest path
toward their destination: the direction with the fewest areas to move through.
Minions always move toward the closest location that contains a structure,
an objective, or Farrenroc. When there are several valid destinations, send
minions to the highest priority based on the following order:
1.

Farrenroc

2.

The objective location corresponding to the highest

conquest track

3.

Structures

If there is a tie between multiple objectives or multiple structures when

resolving enemy movement, players choose where the enemy moves.

Determining
Enemy Actions

During the planning phase, the players must determine which enemy
action cards will be resolved during the action phase. This is done without
players knowing which enemy action cards are chosen. To determine
enemy action cards, players draw the top 3 enemy action cards without
revealing them and then place 1 facedown on each of the 3 action deck
spaces on the game board starting with morning, then day, then night.

Choosing Hero Actions

Each player must choose 3 of their action cards, 1 for each of the 3
action space decks. Players may discuss strategies among themselves and
coordinate which of their actions will work best with other players actions.
After choosing an action card, the player places the chosen action card
facedown on one of the action decks. After each player has placed all 3 of
their chosen action cardsone in each action deckeach action deck is
shuffled and returned to its action deck space on the game board.

Action Phase
During the action phase, players collectively resolve each action deck in the following order:
1.

Morning actions

2.

Day actions

3.

Night actions

Action Card Back

Players resolve each card, one at a time, in a single action deck before moving to the next deck. Based on the preceding
list, the lowest-numbered deck that still contains unresolved action cards is referred to as the active action deck. To resolve
an action deck, one player draws the top card of the active action deck and then performs one of the following:
If the action card drawn is a hero action, the player that controls the hero resolves the action card.
Or, if the action card drawn is an enemy action card, immediately resolve it.

To resolve an action card, the player resolving it performs each step of the action card in order, top to bottom. Each step of an action card that is
highlighted in a gray bar is mandatory and must be resolved, while each step of an action card not within a gray bar, is optional, and may be resolved if the
player (or players) choose. Note that optional steps must still be performed in order. Each action card must be completely resolved before drawing the next
action card.
If a fate ability appears as one of the steps of the action card, the mandatory and optional rule still applies. Fate abilities can be resolved only if a matching
fate symbol is in the fate pool. After resolving a fate ability, the player must roll a fate die in the fate pool with the matching symbol and, keeping the
new result, return it to the fate pool. When resolving an action card, each fate ability on that card can be triggered only once. Enemy action cards have
mandatory fate abilities which are always triggered and resolved, regardless of whether the ability actually takes effect.
When resolving a step of an action card that contains a bold action type (Enemy Action Cards), that corresponding action type is fully resolved. Any siege
steps of an action card are ignored until the siege has begun.
When resolving enemy actions that target areas, players always start with Farrenroc and work their way outwards, so the center-most enemies are resolved first.
After resolving a hero action card, that card is placed faceup in the controlling players area to signify that action is now a used action. After resolving an
enemy action card, it is placed faceup next to the enemys unused actions to signify these are used actions.

Prepare Phase
During the prepare phase, players refresh exhausted cards, each defeated hero and delayed minion is stood up, and players must reset the
enemy action cards.

Prepare Effects Step

Revive Step

Many components have Prepare Phase effects. Those effects are resolved
now, one at a time, in any order chosen by the players.

When a hero is defeated or an enemy minion is delayed, the corresponding

figure is tipped over (or minion token is flipped to the delayed side) to
signify this. During this step, all tipped over figures are turned upright and
enemy tokens are flipped back over to their non-delayed side. Defeated
heroes are placed in Farrenroc after being turned upright and are no longer
defeated.

Resource Step
Each structure in play produces one resource of the players choice. During
this step, players place 1 resource of their choice in Farrenrocs reserves for
each structure in play.

Refresh Step
Players refresh all exhausted asset cards. Some asset cards require players to
exhaust them to use the corresponding effect. Exhausted asset cards cannot
be exhausted again until they are refreshed during this step.

Reset Step
To reset the enemy action cards, players shuffle all used enemy action cards
and place them facedown under the unused enemy action cards. Then,
players place all their used actions back in their hands with their unused
actions. All hero actions are now ready to be used for the next round.

Additional Rules
Following are additional rules needed to play the game.

Rerolling Dice
Many effects in the game allow players to reroll dice. Each die can be rerolled only once, regardless of how many effects would provide additional rerolls.

Game Board
In addition to the reference information and card deck areas, the game board contains the map. The map is composed of locations.

Locations
Locations have three important
pieces of information on them.

LOCATIONS
Objective
Token Location

Sanctuaries

1. Objective Token Location:

Objective tokens are placed
here.

Dungeons
Villages

Ruins

2. Location Name: Reference to

determine possible objective
and quest areas.
3. Number of Players: The flame
icons located at the bottomright of the location are used for
placing objective tokens during
setup only. If the player number
meets or exceeds the flame
icon total (and the location
name matches the objective
card), then that area is a valid
location for objective tokens.

SPECIAL LOCATIONS
Outlands

Location
name

Farrenroc

Lairs

Number of
Players

There are four different types of basic locations (Dungeons, Ruins, Sanctuaries, and Villages). In addition to these basic locations, there are three special
locations (Farrenroc, Lairs, and the four Outlands).
When a hero resolves an encounter action, they draw an encounter card from the deck that corresponds to their location, which is indicated by the image of the
location on the back of the card. Structures can be built in basic locations only, never in special locations. Outland & Lair areas do not have encounter cards.

Farrenroc
The center location of the map is Farrenroc, which is the most crucial location for the heroes.
If Farrenrocs stability is reduced to zero, the players immediately lose the game. Stability
is an abstract measure of the citys ability to stand against the Darkness, represented by
the Farrenroc city miniature. Each time Farrenrocs stability is reduced, players remove and
discard pieces of the miniature equal to the stability reduction.
Farrenrocs stability can be reduced a number of ways, including:
Assaults
Each time a hero is defeated

After enemy movement, if more

than 3 minions occupy Farrenroc,
remove excess minions

The first point of stability loss removes

the piece numbered 10, then 9. then 8,
etc. Each time stability is lost another
part of the miniature is removed. When
only the base remains, the players lose.

Effects that force players to

discard resources exceeding
Farrenrocs reserves

1 Stability

10

Conquest and/or siege abilities

Card effects

Objectives

Final Objectives Setup

Objectives represent key strategic points for both heroes and enemies.
Enemy minions spawn in objective locations, and heroes can attempt
objective actions in objective locations. If heroes manage to complete all
three basic objectives before the siege begins, they reveal the final objective,
which provides an additional win condition.

When revealing final objectives that require multiple areas, players only
need to visit and successfully resolve a number of areas equal to their
player count. These areas are represented by the number of flames in the
area designated by the final objective card.

Basic Objective Cards

Basic objective cards are divided into three types
that correspond to the three types of resources
in the game; hope, influence, and supply. Each
objective card lists the objective actionthe
action required by the heroes to complete the
objectivewhich is usually accompanied by a
resource cost. In addition, each objective card lists
a type of location associated with that objective.
These locations are considered objective locations.

Objective Tokens
Each type of objective card corresponds to a collection
of objective tokens. These objective tokens are used
to mark locations on the board in which heroes can
attempt to complete the objective. Remember, all three
objectives must take place in different locations, so
each area may contain only one objective token.

When an objective is claimed, the hero claiming

the objective removes the corresponding objective
token from their area and places it near the
corresponding objective card. When an objective
card has a number of objective tokens near it
equal to the number of heroes, that objective
is immediately completed. When an objective
is completed, the players discard that objective card. If it was the third
objective completed, they immediately reveal the final objective.

Objective
Type

Fate Pool
The fate pool is a collection of fate dice that are rolled at the start of the
game. The fate symbols on the fate dice are used to trigger fate effects
during the game, and each die in the fate pool is considered to be available.
Players may choose whether or not to trigger optional fate effects if a
matching die is in the fate pool, but all mandatory fate effects (Enemy
Action Cards) must be resolved if there is at least one available matching
symbol in the fate pool.
When a fate symbol is used to trigger a fate effect, that fate die is rerolled
after fully resolving the fate effect then returned to the fate pool.

Title

Rage

Guile

Nature

Arcane

Faith

Darkness

Flavor
text

Resources

Required
Action

The game includes three types of resource tokens:

Success
Requirements

Objective
Location

Fail
Results

Supply

Hope

Influence

Final Objective
Final objectives represent the final way
players can thwart the enemy boss
without directly confronting him. Players
can reveal the final objective only by
completing all three regular objectives.
When the final objective is revealed, it
is placed faceup near the enemy sheet,
and the siege begins (see page 13). Once
revealed, the final objective is treated exactly like an objective card with
special rules which are found on the card. If players complete the final
objective, they immediately win the game.

Resources that have not been collected by the heroes are kept in a collective
pool near the game board. Each time a hero gains one or more resources,
he takes the appropriate number and type and places it in Farrenrocs
reserves on the board. When the heroes spend (optional) or discard
(mandatory) resources, they remove the appropriate number and type from
the reserves and place them back into the resource pool.
Each time the players are forced to discard resources exceeding the amount
of that type in the reserves, players must discard as many resources as
possible and reduce Farrenrocs stability by 1.

Skill Tests
Heroes are sometimes required to perform skill tests, usually as a result of encounter cards, quest cards, and conquest effects. Each time a hero is called to
resolve a skill test, they perform the following steps in this order:
1.

Gather a number of dice equal to the heros skill that matches the required
skill test. Heroes always roll a minimum of 1 die for skill tests.

2.

Roll the dice.

3.

Compare the dice results to the skill tests target number. Each die that equals
or exceeds the target number is a success.

Tactics

Intellect

Cunning

Spirit

4. If the hero rolls one or more successes, the skill test is successful, and the
hero resolves any success effects and ignores any fail effects. If they did not roll any successes, the hero resolves any associated
fail effects and ignores any success effects.

Quest Deck
The quest deck is used by both heroes and enemy captains. Quest
cards list a particular location type that indicates where that quest
can be attempted. This is referred to as the quest location. Quest
cards also contain a scheme effect that is resolved each time an
enemy captain resolves a scheme action in a quest location.
At the start of the game, and each time an active quest is resolved,
the top card of the quest deck is revealed and placed faceup on top
of the deck. This is referred to as the active quest, and it is the only
quest that heroes and enemy captains can interact with.
Each time a hero resolving a quest action successfully completes
a quest, players resolve the reward on the active quest and then
discard it. Each time an active quest is resolved, players receive the
reward in the green box, reveal the next card in the quest deck, and
place it on the top of the deck as the new active quest. If a quest
skill test is failed then the players suffer the fail results in the red
box, and this quest remains the active quest.
If there are no quests in the quest deck, shuffle the discarded quests
and create a new quest deck.

Scheme
Effects
Each time a scheme enemy action
card is resolved, players resolve
the active quests scheme effect for
each quest location containing at
least one captain.

10

Required Skill & Target Number

Quest Title &

Flavor text

Success
Results
Scheme
Effect
Quest
Location

Fail
Results

Encounter Cards
Each location has an associated encounter deck. Encounter cards represent the people, jobs, events, and equipment that heroes may encounter during their
journey. When a hero resolves an encounter action, he draws an encounter card from the deck that matches their locations image.
When a player draws an encounter card, he refers to the skill test first, if any. If a skill test is present, that player immediately performs the
required skill test.
Art & Title

If an encounter card does not have a skill test, players automatically resolve
the encounters success effect instead of performing a test.
When a hero gains an encounter card, he places it faceup next to his hero
card. Encounter cards gained this way are referred to as assets. A hero may
have only three assets at one time. If a hero gains an asset while he already
has three assets, they may choose one of their assets to discard to gain the
new asset.
The different types of encounter cards are identified by the following traits:

Required
Skill & Target
Number
Success
Results
Encounter
Type

Ally (Asset):
These encounter
cards represent
invaluable aid
given to the
heroes by allies.

Item (Asset): Similar

to ally assets, items
represent useful tools
that the heroes can
equip to make them
more powerful.

Event: Events
are not gained as
assets and are
discarded after
being resolved.

Burden: Burden events are gained like

assets, but they are not assets and never
count against the number of assets that
a hero may have. Each player can have
any number of burdens in addition to
their normal three assets. Additionally, a
player cannot discard a burden unless
the cards effect allows them to.

After resolving an encounter card or discarding an asset, that encounter card

is discarded faceup next to its corresponding discard pile. If players need
to draw an encounter card and none remain in the draw pile, immediately
shuffle the discard pile and place it facedown to create a new draw pile.

Fail
Results

Ability

Using Assets
Asset cards that can be exhuasted to perform an
action may be exhausted at any time unless the asset
card specifies otherwise. So remember to use these
powerful tools even if it is during another players
action or an enemys action.

Some assets are exhausted upon use. When a card is exhausted, that card is
turned 90 to indicate it cannot be exhausted again that round to trigger its
effect. All exhausted cards are readied during the prepare phase.

Muster

Lair

Outland

When resolving a muster effect, players spawn minion tokens by rolling one fate die for each muster
simultaneously. This can only be done with non-darkness fate dice. For each die that cannot be rolled
discard one resource from the reserve. Locate the Outland or Lair area associated with the fate die result
and place the minion tokens in the matching area.

Damage and Healing

Each damage a target suffers reduces its vitality by 1. Damage tokens are used to track this damage. When a
target suffers damage equal to or exceeding its vitality, it is defeated.
Defeated enemies are placed near the enemy sheet with the rest of the out-of-play enemy tokens. If the boss is
defeated, the players immediately win the game.

Muster Location

When a target heals any amount of

damage, they discard that many damage
tokens from the corresponding enemy
token or hero card.

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Defeated Heroes
When a hero is defeated, they immediately resolve the following steps in
this order:
1.

Discard all damage tokens.

2.

Reduce Farrenrocs stability by 1.

3.

Lay the defeated hero figure on its side.

While a hero is defeated, they may not resolve any actions during the
current round. When a defeated heros action card is revealed during the
action phase, that card is returned to the defeated hero but is not resolved.
Any effects that target heroes cannot target or affect defeated heroes.
Defeated heroes still count against the total number of heroes in the game
for any relevant game effects.

During the revive step of the prepare phase, the defeated heros figure is
turned upright, placed in Farrenroc, and is no longer defeated.

Enemies
Three types of enemies can enter play during a given game: one boss, up to four captains, and up to twenty minions. All these enemy ranks make up a
single enemy army. Only one enemy army is used in each game. Each enemy army contains the following ranks:
Boss: This is the leader
of the enemy army. If
the heroes defeat him,
they immediately win
the game. The boss
enters play only during
a siege.

Captain: These are the bosss

trusted officers, and they are
formidable foes. Captains are sent
out to perform nefarious schemes
on the bosss behalf. While
defeating a captain can relieve
some pressure, there are always
more waiting to serve their master.

Minions: Each army contains a

fixed number of minions, which are
used to hold valuable objectives for
the Darkness, while also swarming
and befouling the lands. Heroes
must constantly fight back these
tides in order to save Farrenroc.

Enemy Sheet
All pertinent information about the different ranked enemies in a single army can be found on the enemy sheet that corresponds to that armys boss.

Name

Vitality
Attack
Value
Defense
Value
Special
Ability

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Enemy
Rank

Conquest Tracks
Each enemy sheet has three conquest tracks that represent the enemy armys preparedness for the coming siege. Each time a conquest track raises, the
conquest marker on the corresponding track is moved the indicated number of spaces counter-clockwise toward the Siege icon on the track.
Each conquest track corresponds to a different objective type:

Despair

Devastation

Corruption

As the people of Farrenroc lose hope

due to the enemy armys advance, they
step closer and closer to absolute despair,
as represented by this track. This track
corresponds to the hope objective cards.

This track represents the enemy armys

despoiling of the lands surrounding
Farrenroc, making it harder for the city to
gather its much-needed supplies to survive
the siege. This track corresponds to the
supply objective cards.

Loyalties dissolve in the face of

annihilation, and this track represents
the Darknesss corrosive influence on
the desperate people of Farrenroc and its
surrounding lands. This track corresponds
to the influence objective cards.

Corresponding Objective
Next to each conquest track
is a conquest ability and
siege ability. Each track also
contains conquest ability
icons and a single siege
icon. Each time a conquest
marker enters or passes
through a space containing a
conquest ability, the players
immediately resolve the
conquest ability associated
with that track. However,
if a conquest marker enters
or passes through a space
containing a conquest ability
due to the conquest track
being reduced, the ability is
not triggered.

Starting
Position

Siege
Position
Conquest
Ability Icon
Conquest
Ability

Conquest
Track Spaces

Siege Icon

Siege Ability
Conquest
Track Type

The Siege
When the enemy army is finally prepared to march on Farrenroc, or the heroes have drawn too much attention to themselves, the siege begins. This
represents the end game and raises all the stakes.
The siege begins the first time a conquest marker enters a siege icon space or when the final objective card is revealed. When the siege begins, do not resolve
the siege ability associated with it. Players must immediately perform the following actions:
Place the boss in a random Outland location by rolling one non-darkness fate die in the fate pool. If all dice are darkness, the boss appears in the darkness location.
Discard all remaining objective tokens in play, and discard all other objective cards. If the final objective has been revealed do not discard it.

A conquest track that has already reached the siege icon cannot be reduced.
Until the siege begins, players ignore all siege effects on game
components. However, after the boss has been placed, and for the rest of
the game, any siege effects will take effect.

If a conquest marker enters a siege icon space on its conquest track and
the siege has not yet begun, the siege immediately begins. If the siege has
already begun and a conquest marker reaches a siege ability, or the siege
marker is already on the siege ability when that conquest track raises,
players immediately resolve that tracks siege ability.

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Glossary
Action Deck: Players assign actions to three action decks during the planning phase:
morning, day, and night. Each action deck includes hero and enemy actions and is shuffled
and, later, resolved independently from the others.
Action Card: Action cards activate heroes and enemies. Each action card corresponds to
a specific action type.
Action Type: Each action card is associated with an action type. Each action type is
governed by a set of rules. When an action type appears in bold in an action cards ability
text, that corresponding action is resolved.
Active Action Deck: The lowest-numbered action deck containing at least one unresolved
action card, using this numbering system: 1. Morning actions, 2. Day actions,
3. Night actions.
Active Quest: At the start of the game, and after an active quest is resolved, players
reveal the top card of the quest deck and place it faceup on top of that deck. This is the
only quest that enemy captains and heroes can interact with.
Area: A single hex on the board. Areas are broken up into location types, and each location is an area. A single area can hold any number of enemy tokens, but can never contain
more than three minion tokens.
Assault: An assault is resolved when enemies attack structures or Farrenroc. To resolve
an assault, roll 1 10-sided die for each enemy token in the assaulted area, and determine
which enemy rank in that area has the highest attack value. If at least one die result is
less than or equal to that enemys attack value, the assault succeeds. The result of a
successful assault depends on the assaulted area. If the area contains a structure, that
structure is destroyed. If the assaulted area is Farrenroc, reduce Farrenrocs stability by
1. If an assault is triggered in an area with no enemy tokens or structures, the assault is
ignored. After resolving an assault, each minion in that area is delayed.
Attack Value: The target number for enemies to either deal damage to heroes during a
battle or successfully assault structures.
Basic Location: The game includes four basic location types: village, sanctuary, dungeon,
and ruins. Each has an associated encounter deck and may serve as objective locations.
Structures may be built in basic locations onlynot special locations.

Defeated: When a hero is defeated, their miniature is placed on its side, and they cannot
resolve any action cards that round. A defeated hero still counts as a hero when resolving
any effect that scales with the number of heroes. A defeated hero stands up during the
prepare phase, is placed in Farrenroc, and is no longer defeated. A defeated enemy is
returned to the out-of-play enemy supply near the enemy sheet. When a boss is defeated,
the players immediately win the game.
Defense: This stat determines how difficult an enemy is to damage. During a battle action,
each die that a hero rolls equaling or exceeding an enemys defense deals 1 damage.
Delayed: Only enemy minions can be delayed. When a minion is delayed, its token is
flipped over to its delayed side. A delayed minion may still be targeted by hero effects but
is ignored by enemy action card effects targeting minions. Delayed minions still count
against the number of minions in an area. When a hero resolves a battle action card, they
may defeat all delayed minions in their area before resolving the battle action.
Discard: Encounter cards are placed in discard piles next to their respective draw piles.
Action cards are discarded faceup in their respective areas, in front of a hero player or
next to the enemy sheet. Discarded resources are returned to the resource pool. If players
are forced to discard resources exceeding Farrenrocs reserves, they discard as many as
they can and then reduce Farrenrocs stability by 1.
Enemy: Each token listed on an enemy sheet is considered an enemy. Each enemy army
contains three ranks of enemies: minions, captains, and a boss.
Encounter Action: When resolving an encounter action, a hero must draw a card from the
encounter deck that corresponds to their current location.
Encounter Card: Each location type has a corresponding encounter deck that heroes
draw from when resolving an encounter action.
Exhaust: When a card is exhausted, it is tilted 90 to indicate that it cannot be exhausted
again to trigger its effect. Exhausted cards are readied during the prepare phase.
Farrenroc: The main city heroes are charged to protect. Farrenroc is located in the center
of the map. If its stability is reduced to zero, the heroes lose the game.

Battle Action: During a battle action, a hero chooses one rank of enemy in their area
and rolls 1 10-sided die per enemy of that rank in their area. For each success, they can
assign 1 damage to any enemy of the targeted enemy rank in their area. Otherwise, they
gains 1 influence.

Farrenroc Reserves: The pool of resources that players have collected during the game,
available for spending or discarding to pay for game effects. Spending resources is always
optional, but discarding resources due to game effects is always mandatory. Any time
players are forced to discard one or more resources exceeding the number of resources in
the reserve, players discard as many resources as they can and then reduce Farrenrocs
stability by 1.

Boss: Each enemy army is led by a boss, who the heroes can defeat to win the game. The
boss enters play immediately when the siege begins.

Farrenroc Tile: When enemies or heroes would move into or out of the center Farrenroc
area, place them or remove them from this tile instead.

Captain: Each enemy army includes at least four captains. This rank of enemy is more
formidable than a minion, but they will usually focus on scheming, rather than swarming
Farrenroc or attacking heroes.

Fate Ability: Any ability that appears on a card with a fate symbol preceding it is a fate
ability. These abilities can be resolved only by spending a matching fate symbol from the
fate pool. The timing of these abilities is defined by the ability itself. Fate abilities on action
cards are resolved when they appear in the order of steps, and each one may be resolved
only once. After resolving a fate ability, the fate die that was spent to pay for it is rerolled
and added back to the fate pool.

Conquest Marker: Each conquest track has a single conquest marker that tracks how
close the enemy army is to sieging Farrenroc. Each time a conquest marker passes
through a conquest ability icon or siege icon, players resolve the associated effects.
Conquest Track: Each enemy sheet contains three conquest tracks: despair, corruption, and
devastation. These tracks represent the enemy armys progress toward sieging Farrenroc.
Cunning: A hero skill that represents subterfuge, deception, and quick reflexes.
Damage: Each damage a target suffers reduces its vitality by 1. When a target suffers
damage equal to or exceeding its vitality, it is defeated. Damage may be healed through
certain game effects.

14

Fate Pool: The fate pool is a collection of fate dice rolled during game setup. Each fate die
shows a fate symbol faceup that may be used to trigger various abilities throughout the
game. When a fate symbol is used, that fate die is rolled and returned to the fate pool to
show that the new fate symbol result is available to use for a future ability.
Fortify Action: The fortify action allows heroes to build structures. Each time a hero resolves
a fortify action, they have the option of building a structure in their area. Structures can be
built in basic locations onlynot Lairs, Outland, or Farrenroc. Each area can have only 1
structure. If the hero cannot or chooses not to resolve this action, they gain 1 supply instead.

Hope: One of the three resources that Farrenroc needs to survive against the siege. Hope
represents morale, determination, and willpower.

Siege: The stage of the game where the boss is present on the board. All game effects
that take place during the siege are ignored until the siege begins.

Influence: One of the three resources that Farrenroc needs to survive against the siege.
Influence represents inspiration, leadership, and diplomacy.

Skill: Each hero has four skills with a number associated to each. Skills include Tactics,
Cunning, Intellect, and Spirit. The number associated with the skill represents the number
of dice rolled when performing a skill test matching that skill. Different game effects can
modify a heros skills.

Intellect: A hero skill that represents intelligence and arcane knowledge.

Lair: The lair location represents an enemy stronghold. When encountering a lair, a player
draws and resolves an enemy encounter card.

Minion: Enemy minions represent the bulk of the enemy army. Minions spawn throughout
the game, and if too many minions are in play, Farrenroc will begin to lose stability.

Spawn: To spawn a minion, a player places the designated number of minions in the
designated area. Spawned minions are always placed one figure at a time and are taken
from the supply of out-of-play enemies near the enemy sheet. If the designated area
already has three minions when a new minion would spawn, the players resolve an
overrun. If players need to spawn one or more minions when none remain in the
out-of-play enemy supply, players discard 1 resource of their choice for each minion they
could not spawn. If this number of resources exceeds what is available in the reserves,
reduce Farrenrocs stability by 1.

Muster: When resolving a muster effect, players spawn minion tokens by rolling 1 fate die
for each muster simultaneously. This can only be done with non-darkness fate dice. For
each die that cannot be rolled discard 1 resource from the reserve.

Special Location: The game includes three types of special locations: Farrenroc, Lairs,
and Outland locations. These are the only locations in the game that do not fall under the
four basic location types.

Objective Action: This area of the objective card lists the action the hero must resolve in
an objective location to complete the objective.

Spend: If players spend a fate symbol for an effect, they reroll that fate die and return it,
with the new result, to the fate pool. Spent resources are returned to the resource pool.
Players may never spend resources in excess of Farrenrocs reserves.

Location: There are four basic location types: sanctuary, dungeon, ruins, and village; and
three special location types: Farrenroc, Lairs, and four Outland locations.
Map: The portion of the game board that contains a different location in each area.

Objective Location: A location type that matches the area type listed on a particular
objective card. Each objective card has at least one area type associated with it, and that
area type is referred to as that objective cards objective area.
Objective Card: Each enemy army has a corresponding objective deck, which consists
of 16 cards: 4 hope objectives, 4 supply objectives, 4 influence objectives, and 4 final objectives. If all 3 objectives are completed and the final objective is completed, the players
immediately win the game.
Objective Token: Three types of objective tokens correspond with three types of objectives: hope, supply, and influence. Objective tokens are placed in objective locations to
represent objectives in play, or near the objective card to represent progress on the
active objective.
Overrun: An overrun occurs when 1 or more minions would be spawned in an area that
already contains 3 minions. When an overrun occurs, players must discard 1 resource of
the players choice or the overrun minion(s) are placed one area closer to Farrenroc. Each
time an overrun occurs in an objective location, raise the associated conquest track by 1.
An overrun can be triggered only once per area per spawn effect.
Quest Action: When resolving a quest action in a quest location, a hero resolves the active
quest card. If the hero cannot or chooses not to resolve this action, they gain 1 hope instead.
Quest Location: A location that matches the area type listed on the active quest card.
Heroes may attempt quests only while in a quest location, and captains can resolve a
quest cards scheme effect only while in a quest location.
Raise: Each time a conquest track raises, players move the conquest marker on the
corresponding conquest track toward that tracks siege icon as many spaces as indicated
by the game effect. Each time a conquest marker enters a conquest ability space on a
conquest track due to the track being raised, players resolve the associated
conquest ability.
Refreshed: When an exhausted card is refreshed, it is returned to its original orientation
and may be exhausted again to gain its effect.
Resource: The three types of resources in the game: hope, influence, and supply, are
collectively referred to as resources. Any resources collected by the heroes are placed in
the reserves. Any resources not yet collected are kept in the resource pool, out-of-play.

Spirit: A hero skill that represents willpower and charisma.

Stability: This is the measure of Farrenrocs survivability against the Darkness. If
Farrenroc is reduced to zero stability, the players lose the game. Each time players
are forced to discard resources exceeding Farrenrocs reserves, they discard as many
resources of that type as they have and then reduce Farrenrocs stability by 1. Each time
Farrenrocs stability is reduced, players remove 1 piece from the Farrenroc miniature.
Structure: When resolving a fortify action, a hero can build 1 structure in his area, as long
as it is a basic location. Structures produce 1 resource of the players choice during the
prepare phase.
Supply: One of the three resources that Farrenroc needs to survive against the siege.
Supply represents general provisions, food, and building supplies.
Tactics: A hero skill that represents military prowess and tactical strategy.
Target Number (TN): Generally, when rolling dice, any 10-sided die rolled that equals
or exceeds a target number is considered a success. For skill tests, the target number is
always listed next to the skill icon required for the test. Enemy assaults are treated differently, as the die results need to be less than or equal to the enemys attack value
to succeed.
Travel Action: When resolving this action, a hero may move into an adjacent area.
Unused Action: An unused hero action card that has not been assigned to an action deck
this round is kept in a players hand, or facedown on the table. An unused enemy action
card that has not been assigned to an action deck this round is kept facedown next to the
enemy sheet.
Used Action: An action card that has already been fully resolved this round and placed
faceup in a heros play area; or, in the case of enemy action cards, next to the enemy sheet.
Vitality: A targets vitality represents how much damage they can withstand before
becoming defeated. When a target suffers damage equal to or exceeding its vitality, it is
immediately defeated.

15

Quick Reference
Phase
1.

2.

3.

Stability Loss

Planning Phase

Effect

Stability Lost

Hero and Enemy cards are assigned to action spaces and each action space is shuffled
separately.

Assault

Action Phase

Unable to discard resources

Resolve each action card in each action space in the following order: Morning, Day, Night.

More than 3 minions in Farrenroc

Each hero defeated

Card effects

Conquest or Siege effects

Prepare Phase
Resolve prepare effects

Revive delayed minions and defeated heroes

Gain resources

Shuffle used enemy action cards and place them

under the unused enemy action cards.

Refresh assets

Overrun
(Place all the minions first then resolve these
steps per area that contains an Overrun)
1.

Can only happen once per area per spawn.

2.

Overruns in objective areas raise the corresponding conquest track by

1 per objective area that is overrun.

3.

Overruns in an area besides Farrenroc also require the players to

discard 1 resource of their choice or move each overrun minion 1
area closer to Farrenroc. If a resource is discarded, place the overrun
minions out of play.

4.

Overrun by movement into Farrenroc reduces its stability by 1 only

and then discard every minion over 3 into the supply.

If an overrun occurs in an
area, the players must either
discard 1 of these resources...

...or move the overrun minions

1 area toward Farrenroc.

Muster
1.

For each muster that must be performed, take 1 fate die from the fate pool that is not darkness. Roll these dice simultaneously and place minions into the
Outland and Lair areas matching the fate die results.

2.

For each fate die that cannot be rolled because there is not enough fate dice without darkness, raise the lowest conquest track a number of times equal to
the missing number of fate die.

Credits
Game Design & Rulebook: Adam Sadler, Brady Sadler, & Kenny Sims

Illustration: Moy Shin Hung, Keith Lowe, Jonathan Duncan

Game Producer: Kenny Sims

Miniatures Director: Tom Mason

Editor: H. Leigh Davis & J.L. Allan

Printing: Asia Pacific Offset

Graphic Design: Peter Wocken, Keith Lowe, & Chris Doughman

Miniature Production: ZIBOBIZ International LTD

Art Direction: Keith Lowe & Kyle Hough

2016 MegaCon Games. MegaCon Games and the MegaCon Games logo are registered trademarks of their respective owner. All rights reserved.