Actually turned this over in my head a few times on the drive home today, trying to pick out what I didn't like about it and how it could be fixed.
Namely:
- Strategy takes a big backseat to chance. If you roll low on the dice, well, tough.
- Not everyone owns d8s or d12s. Hell, I play D&D and I don't even know where my d12 is.
- The gameplay and rules are pretty vague, given that each got about a paragraph.
Here's what I came up with. I still consider it unplayable!
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Setup:
Each player selects or chooses at random one champion card. Each player takes one each of the Attack, Defense, and Skill cards and places them in front of him on the table in his play area. Each player takes a number of stamina tokens and power tokens (based on the champion chosen) and places them on their champion card. Shuffle the Combat deck. Each player is dealt a hand of three cards from the Combat deck, then place the Combat deck in the middle of the table within easy reach of all players.
Decide which player gets the "Initiative" token for the first turn.
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Goal
The goal of the game is to reduce all opponents' stamina to 0. A player with 0 stamina is eliminated from the game. If there is one player left with stamina greater than 0, he wins the game. If during one turn all remaining players' stamina is reduced to 0, the game ends in a draw.
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The Turn
Roll Phase:
Starting with the player holding the "Initiative" token and proceeding clockwise around the table, each player rolls three six-sided dice. The player then places one die each on the "Attack", "Defense", and "Skill" cards on the table in front of him. The player then adds his champion's Power tokens to his choice of the "Attack", "Defense", or "Skill" cards.
The number on the die gives the player the value for his Attack Pool, Defense Pool, and Skill Pool for the turn. For each Power token, increase the effective value on the die by +2. Example: The Attack card has a die placed on it with a value of 5, and one Power token. The player's Attack Pool this turn is 7.
One all players have placed their dice and tokens, proceed to the Challenge Phase.
Challenge Phase:
Starting with the player holding the "Initiative" token and proceeding clockwise around the table, players declare their attacks against other players. To declare, each player names the champion that their champion is attacking this turn. In games with more than two players, only one target may be declared.
Playing Cards:
Each player may play one Combat Card during the Challenge Phase each turn. To play a Combat Card, the player's Skill Pool must be equal to or greater than the Skill Cost of the card. A card is played by when a player announces the card and places it on the table in front of him. Any player may play a card, before or after attack targets are declared -- the Initiative token doesn't matter.
Once a card is no longer in effect -- usually the End of Turn phase of the turn they were played -- it is placed faceup in the discard pile. If any player needs to draw a card when there are no cards in the Combat Card deck to draw, shuffle the discard pile and turn it facedown as a new Combat Card deck.
Resolution Phase:
All players who are declared targets of an attack compare the Attack Pool of their aggressor to their own Defense Pool. If the Attacker's Pool is greater, the champion loses Stamina tokens equal to the amount the Attack exceeded his Defense. If the Defense Pool is greater, no damage is dealt.
In games with more than two players, if one player is the recipient of multiple attacks, his full Defense Pool counts against each attack. It is not divided between them.
If any player has 0 Stamina tokens, he is eliminated from the game.
End of Turn Phase
Combat Cards with effects that last until the end of the turn are placed in the discard pile. Each player removes all dice from their Attack, Defense, and Skill cards and returns their Power Tokens to their Champion card. Each player draws until they have three Combat Cards in their hands. The player with the Initiative token passes it to the player on his left.
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Sample Champions:
Human
Stamina: 20, Power: 2
Ability: Well-Trained. During game setup and during each End of Turn phase, draw until you have four cards in your hand instead of three.
Elf
Stamina: 18, Power: 2
Ability: Nimble: Each turn, add +4 to the Elf's Skill pool.
Orc
Stamina: 22, Power: 1
Ability: Ferocity: Each turn, add +1 to the Orc's Attack pool. The Orc may divide his Attack Pool among any number of opponents, attacking all of them in one turn.
Dwarf
Stamina: 25, Power: 1
Ability: Heavy Armor: Each turn, add +2 to the Dwarf's Defense pool.
Gnome
Stamina: 18, Power: 2
Ability: Tricky: When the Gnome spends a Power token, it adds +3 to the Gnome's Attack, Defense, or Skill pool instead of +2.
Halfling
Stamina: 18, Power: 3
Ability: Luck: Each turn when the dice are rolled, the Halfling may reroll one die. He must take the result of the second roll, even if it is lower.
Ogre
Stamina: 22, Power: 2
Ability: Vicious: If the Ogre has the Initiative token, his Attack, Defense, and Skill Pools are +1 for that turn.
Wizard
Stamina: 18, Power, 3
Ability: Magic: The Wizard may play any number of cards from his hand during the Challenge Phase. The Wizard's Skill Pool must be equal to or greater than the combined Skill Cost of all cards played.
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Sample Combat Cards:
Power Hit
Cost: 4
Effect: Your Attack Pool is +2 this turn.
Vicious Strike
Cost: 8
Effect: Your Attack Pool is +4 this turn.
Parry
Cost: 2
Effect: Your Defense Pool is +2 this turn.
Block
Cost: 5
Effect: Your Defense Pool is +4 this turn.
Feint
Cost: 4
Effect: Your Attack Pool is -2 this turn. Your Attack Pool is +6 next turn. Keep this card in front of you until the end of next turn.
Tactical Gambit
Cost: 6
Effect: Your Defense Pool is -2 this turn. Your Attack Pool and Defense Pool are both +2 next turn. Keep this card in front of you until the end of next turn.
No Guard Stance
Cost: 8
Effect: Add the amount of your Defense Pool to your Attack Pool. Your Defense Pool becomes 0 for the rest of the turn.
Dirty Trick
Cost: 2
Effect: Add +6 to your Skill Pool. You may play another Combat Card this turn.
Expert Evasion
Cost: 10
Effect: All attacks declared against you are treated as having Attack Pool of 0.
Element of Surprise
Cost: 4
Effect: Draw three cards from the Combat Card deck. Choose one and put it directly into play in front of you. Discard the others.
Graceful Technique
Cost: X
Effect: The cost of this card is equal to your Skill Pool. Add half of this card's Skill Cost value (rounded down) to your Attack Pool.
Insurmountable Guard
Cost: X
Effect: The cost of this card is equal to your Skill Pool. Add half of this card's Skill Cost value (rounded down) to your Defense Pool.
Lich
Cost: 8
Effect: If your Stamina is reduced to 0 this turn, you win the game.
First Aid
Cost: 6
During the Resolution Phase this turn, for each attack declared against you, compare the attacker's Attack Pool and your Defense Pool as normal. If your Defense Pool is greater than the attacker's Attack Pool, you gain Stamina tokens equal to the amount your Defense Pool was greater. You may not have more Stamina Tokens than the maximum listed on your Champion card.