The Roman Empire is flourishing. News of the famous

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A game by Adam Carlson and Josh Carlson 1-3 players / Age 13+

The Roman Empire is flourishing. News of the famous arena games are reaching every corner of the globe. But this renown may be having some undesired effects, as it has attracted the attention of some unusual parties. Legendary cities from the far reaches of the earth, each thought to have been lost forever, are sending emissaries to Rome. These are not ordinary cities. Each represent an advanced civilization with warrior types, skills, and tactics unknown to the Empire. How these cities and cultures exist remains a mystery… one the Empire intends to uncover. In order to study and determine the threat level of these potential adversaries, the Roman Empire reacts quickly. Each of the emissaries have been sent home with a challenge in hand that will take place in the arena. It reads: “Gather your elite, your best Champion and fighters, set your strategists to work and join us. Battle in the arena and prove to the world you are worth its notice.” Three cities have responded…

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Setup Roll out the game board in the center of the play area. Place a few stacks of health chips on either side of the game board. Also, place the crowd favor beads at “0” for both players. For Solo and Co-op modes, refer to the “Game Modes” section for additional setup details and specifics.

NOTE!! Arenas may have special rules, setup instructions, and additional ways to win or lose the game. These rules will be posted on the “Battle Scroll” found in the upper left corner of the arena, so be sure to familiarize yourself with these rules and conditions when setting up the board.

Goal A player must eliminate their opponent’s Champion to win. If you are playing a solo or co-op game, you must eliminate the arena Boss(es) with at least 1 Champion remaining.

NOTE!! As we move through this rulebook, we will be doing it from a PvP (Player vs Player) perspective and then adding variation comments for solo and co-op modes when necessary. There will also be a solo and co-op overview section at the end which will summarize the differences.

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How to Play To start the game, select a City to represent. All cities consist of 1 Champion, 3 special gladiators, 12 basic gladiators, and 8 tactics. ***The following instructions have terms you have not yet learned - please refer to the “Crowd Favor” section if this is confusing. Place the Crowd Favor (CF) Tactic chips (white chips) face down and mix them.

Players will each draw a Level 1, 2, and 3 CF Tactic chip plus one of the CF Gladiator chips and place them face down on their respective levels of the CF Meter. You may look at these Tactics and Gladiator but they will remain hidden from your opponent. Place all of your gladiators and tactics into your chip bag except for your Champion and shake up your bag to mix the chips. Roll 1 black, 1 blue, and 2 yellow “hit” dice - the one who lands the most hits starts the game. Player 1 will place their Champion face down, along with its health chips, in a desired location within the Champion placement area. Player 2 now does the same. At this point both Champions cannot move or take action, however, they can take damage. Players take consecutive turns. If arena units (beasts and criminals) are being used and are in play, they take their turn together after all other players have gone. ***For first time PvP games, it is recommended to play without the beasts and criminals.

Refer to our “Game Modes” section for more on how to set up a game using arena units.

Player 1 Champion Placement

Player 2 Champion Placement

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A player’s turn is broken down into 4 Phases. Once you move to a new phase, you cannot go back to an earlier one. These phases must be completed in order and once finished, your turn is over.

Phase 1: Draw Chips To start this phase, a player must draw enough chips to fill their prep area. If at the start of the game you draw 5 tactics (no gladiators), show them to your opponent, place them back in your chip bag and redraw. These chips serve as your “playable hand” for this turn. They will be spent and replenished throughout the game. After you have drawn the last chip from your chip bag, you must keep all 5 circles occupied by chips or else your Champion will begin to take 2 damage at the start of each of your following turns until defeated. END GAME TIP: A player may choose to play some of these last remaining chips knowing that he/she will take damage the following turn. A few well-played tactics may allow you to overwhelm your opponent before your health runs out.

Also in this phase, record any crowd favor you have earned from occupying a CF (crowd favor) Stone at the start of each of your turns. Crowd favor is tallied on the swords on either side of the arena.

Phase 2: Deployment & Tactics A player now has the option of playing chips from their prep area. The first player, on their first turn, can play only one chip. After this, each player may play up to two chips per turn for the rest of the game. If you have a gladiator chip, you have the option of placing it onto any one of your available unoccupied deployment hexes (place health chips underneath the gladiator in the amount indicated on the chip). If all your deployment zones (6 to start) are in use, you will be unable to deploy a gladiator. If a gladiator comes into play this turn, it cannot move or take action until the next turn. There are a few exceptions, such as the Archer’s ‘First Strike’ and the Tactician’s ‘Initiative’ abilities. Attacker on deployment hex

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Also during the deployment phase, you may choose to play a tactic chip if you have one. A tactic can be played on any unit except Champions and Bosses. A tactic can only be played on units within your tactical range. This range is indicated by a spyglass on each unit chip. A unit with ‘Tactical Range 3’ must be within three hexes of the target unit during this phase. A gladiator may play a tactic on itself so long as it has a tactical range of 1 or more. If a friendly gladiator does not have a tactical range, then it must be in range of another friendly unit. Once a gladiator is deployed, it’s tactical range is immediately available to the player.

NOTE!! Single turn effects (Stun) are placed on top of the affected unit. Permanent effects (Hamstring, Adrenaline) are placed between the unit chip and it’s health chips. Hamstring will remove any Adrenaline effects (remove the Adrenaline chip). Adrenaline only increases move range by one, even if that unit is Hamstrung (in this case, keep both Adrenaline and Hamstring chips under unit).

Phase 3: Movement During this phase you may move your units based on each unit’s move range. You do not have to move the full range of the unit. Once you choose to move, you cannot ‘save’ part of the unit’s movement for later during the same movement phase (i.e.: You cannot move a Tactician out of the way for other units to pass through, and then step back where it was). Be sure to check for any modifiers under the unit chip.

NOTE!! If your unit is engaged with an arena beast, your unit is locked in combat with the beast and cannot disengage by just moving away. Certain abilities may allow you ways to get away however.

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Move and Attack Examples

In order to move to another hex, that hex must not be occupied. It’s not possible to move “through” another unit unless a specific ability allows for this. There must be hexes available between your current position and your move-to position. During this phase, abilities that allow special movement or unit displacement (i.e. Hurl, Pull), may be used. Please refer to these abilities for further details. All abilities are limited to one use per turn.

Phase 4: Attack 5/6 Hit Attacker’s can move a distance of 2 hexes.

Brawler’s ‘Hurl” ability can flip Defender over the Brawler - away from protection.

3/6 Hit

2/6 Hit

After you have completed the move phase, you may choose to attack, if possible. Each of your units may use it’s basic or alternate attack, not both, if they are within range (refer to each unit’s attack range to determine this). Damage is based on your unit’s attack power. You will roll the appropriate dice for each attack. The damage is immediate and your opponent must respond with a defensive ability (i.e. Intercept Blow) or remove a corresponding number of health chips from under the unit that was attacked and hit. Take note of the attack dice colors on each chip. These are the dice to be rolled during attacks. Each ‘H’ that comes up is a HIT of 1 damage, and each blank is a MISS. When all health chips have been removed from a unit, that unit has been eliminated and is removed from play.

Brawler and Attacker both focus their attack on the unprotected Defender.

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NOTE!! It is considered proper etiquette to state your attacks loud and clear, along with a pointing of the attacking unit followed by the unit being attacked. Also, should you roll a successful attack, allow your opponent to remove his/her own health and unit chips. It is the responsibility of your opponent to make any ability declarations during this time.

Crowd Favor CF (Crowd Favor) is earned a number of ways: 1. Killing an opposing gladiator grants you 2 CF (points for kills are taken immediately when the kill happens). 2. Beast and Criminal kills grant you 2 CF per kill. 3. You gain 1 CF if you occupy a CF Stone at the center of arena and 3 CF if you occupy both stones at the same time (These stones must be in your control at the start of your turn which is also when you should mark them on your CF meter). TIP: It’s important that you keep a constant awareness of where you are at with the crowd. CF rewards unlock the instant the level is reached. A Champion unlocked on your opponent’s turn can move and attack on your turn! A deployment zone unlocked at the start of your turn can be used in the same turn! Remember, it is your responsibility to calculate and take credit for CF you have earned. Once the current phase ends, you cannot go back and adjust for missed CF.

Reaching a new CF level grants you 2 rewards. The first is a CF Tactic that is now available for your use.

This area will contain a list of specific Crowd Favor Tactics along with a picture. These tactics are still being finalized.

The other reward for each level is an arena effect. These effects are the same for both players and are instantly activated once reached: Level 1: Your Champion is activated. *If this level is reached on your turn - your Champion cannot move, attack, or use abilities this turn.

Level 2: All deployment zones (12 total) are now available for use. Level 3: All units gain “Initiative” ability (can move first turn) Level 4: CF Gladiator is unlocked and can be deployed during your next deployment phase.

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Arena Units (Beasts, Criminals, and Bosses) When a B/C (Beast/Criminal) is drawn from someone’s bag, a basic D6 will be rolled to determine which Trapdoor (1-6) it will deploy from. If a Player’s unit is standing on that Trapdoor hex, a second D6 will be rolled to determine which hex the player’s unit will be forced to move to, in order to make room for the newly deployed B/C (use the dice legend on board game mat). The B/C will be granted a free attack against units standing within attack range before Player continues their turn. The Player will draw an additional chip for each B/C drawn and continue their phase.

Unit displacement example:

Image 1: Player moves onto a Trapdoor (numbered as 1). Image 2: On the next draw phase, Player ends up drawing a beast. Player rolls a basic D6 to see where the beast will deploy. The roll is a 1, right where the Player’s Attacker is positioned. Image 3: The Player rolls another basic D6 and gets a 6. Checking the dice legend on the arena - the Player now moves his Attacker to this spot indicated by the 6. Image 4: Beast is immediately placed on trap door #1 and gets a free attack on all units within range. Player redraws to replace the drawn beast and continues turn.

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Beast/Criminal Turn Sequence Beasts and Criminals take their turn after all players have gone.

Beast Movement Beasts use the ‘Beast Move D6’ to move in the direction rolled (use the same dice legend). Beasts move their entire move range or until met with resistance. Once a Beast is adjacent to (has engaged) a Player unit, neither Beast nor unit can disengage until a kill has been made. Other Beasts and/or Player units may join the fight, but each contact made will lock them in place until the battle(s) is resolved. Special abilities such as Pull or Hurl CAN disengage units.

Arena Move and Attack Dice

Beast Move D6

Beast Attack D6

Beast Attacks After all Beast movement has been resolved, a Player must roll the ‘Beast Attack D6’ for each beast to determine it’s action. If a base attack is rolled, Player must roll all attack dice indicated on the chip to determine damage. Base attacks hit all Player units in range. Refer to each chip and/or reference sheet for other skill explanations.

Criminal Move D6

Criminal Movement This unit uses the ‘Criminal Move D6’ to determine whether or not it Criminal Attack D6 advances towards your closest unit. If there are 2 or more units that are equally close to the Criminal, the Player will choose one of those units to attempt to ‘taunt’ the criminal toward. Roll the ‘Taunt D6’ and if you succeed (by rolling a “T”), the Criminal will advance as you Taunt D6 planned. If you fail the taunt roll (continue to taunt with each unit until you have one unit left), the Criminal will automatically move towards the last unit. Criminals move their entire move range or until met with resistance. In the event that there are 2 ways in which to advance toward a single unit, the player gets to decide which hex the Criminal ends up on. Criminals will not move as long as they are engaged, however, a Player may disengage and re-engage as they please.

Criminal Attacks After all Criminal movement has been resolved, a Player must roll the ‘Criminal Attack D6’ for each Criminal to determine its action. If a base attack is rolled, Player must roll all attack dice indicated on the chip to determine damage. Base attacks hit all Player units in range. Refer to each chip and/or reference sheet for other skill explanations.

Bosses Bosses function like all other B/C with one exception. Bosses perform an attack roll even when not in attack range as certain abilities, if rolled, can have arena-wide effects.

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Game Modes and Setup Player vs Player To win: Eliminate opposing Champion. Setup: Use main rule set.

Player vs Player with Arena Opponents (Beasts and Criminals) To win: Eliminate opposing Champion. Setup: Use main rule set, then add 2 criminals and 2 beasts to each Player’s bag.

Player vs Board: Basic difficulty level (other levels and scenarios are available at www.hoplomachus.com/pages/extras)

To win: Eliminate the arena Boss. Eliminate all criminals to get Boss to deploy. Setup: 4 random Beasts will start the game on Trapdoors 1, 2, 3, and 4. The other 4 Beasts are placed on the CF Meter (levels 1-4). Place 1 of the 4 Criminals on Trapdoor 6. As criminals are eliminated, another immediately deploys (roll a D6 to determine which Trapdoor it uses). Once all 4 Criminals have been eliminated, the Boss is deployed. Mix and draw an arena Boss (from the 3 Criminal and 3 Beast Bosses). Use main rule set to set up CF Rewards.

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Co-op (2) vs Board: Basic difficulty level To win: Team must eliminate both of the arena Bosses. One Champion must survive. Setup: Same as Player vs Board setup with these exceptions - Players only play with their Champion, two of each gladiator, and one of each tactic. Players will start on one end of the arena, will share 6 deployment zones, and can play just one chip per turn. If a Champion is eliminated, the owner may no longer deploy gladiators or use tactics but can still play out existing gladiators. Crowd Favor is shared as are the CF Rewards. Beasts from the CF meter must be put in the current players bag when level is reached. Draw 2 Bosses - deploy in the order drawn as the basic Criminals are eliminated.

Co-op (3) vs Board: Basic difficulty level To win: Team must eliminate all 3 of the arena Bosses. One Champion must survive. Setup: Same as Player vs Board setup with these exceptions - Players only play with their Champion, two of each gladiator, and no tactics. Players will start on one end of the arena, will share 6 deployment zones, and can play just one chip per turn. If a Champion is eliminated, the owner may no longer deploy gladiators or use tactics but can still play out existing gladiators. Crowd Favor is shared as are the CF Rewards. Draw 3 Bosses - deploy in the order drawn as the basic Criminals are eliminated.

FAQ: Are you stumped on a specific rule or a odd situation in the game? Please check our FAQ page at www.hoplomachus.com/pages/faq for answers!! A Game by:

Publisher:

Box Art:

Adam Carlson Josh Carlson

Chip Theory Games

Trey Ratcliff

Beastmaster:

Graphic Design/Artwork: AstralWanderer Josh Carlson Public Domain

Prison Key Keeper: David Cornell

www.hoplomachus.com

www.chiptheorygames.com

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Gladiator and Champion Abilities

Boss Abilities

Initiative: Unit can move

Hurl: Hurl can ‘pick up’ an

Assassinate: Move to

the same turn it is deployed.

adjacent unit (friend or foe) and ‘throw it’ to a different available, adjacent hex.

furthest opponent (use Taunt) and do 6 damage. (Player can choose Boss’s placement hex next to unit)

First Strike: Unit can attack the first turn it is deployed.

Retaliate: When attacked and hit, unit can do 1 damage back to the attacker.

Intercept Blow: When an adjacent friendly unit is hit, this unit can intercept the entire hit instead of the intended target. This ability only works with base attacks.

Pull: Unit is pulled in a straight line inward toward the puller (up to 2 hexes inward and from up to 3 hexes away).

Uber Pull: Unit is pulled in a straight line inward toward the Champion (up to 3 hexes inward and from up to 4 hexes away).

Fury Aura: Fury Aura does 1 damage to all opposing units 1 hex away. This damage is not part of this units attack but is performed during the attack phase. Uber Fury Aura: This aura does 1 damage to all opposing units up to 2 hexes away.

Strategic Attack: All friendly adjacent units gain an additional yellow die to use with their base attack this turn. *abilities usable once/turn

Shadow Spear: Roll a basic D6 twice, a spear is thrown in those directions doing 2 dmg to each unit in its path.

Ground Pound: All opposing units within 4 hexes are stunned for 1 turn.

Strike Fear: All adjacent opposing units must retreat 1 hex straight away if possible.

Acid Spray: All opposing units are hit for 1 damage.

Snared: Gladiators and Champions within 2 hexes of unit cannot move for 1 turn.

Regen 3: Unit regains 3 health not exceeding max HP. *Boss abilities usable only when rolled

Gladiator & Champion Alt Attacks

Boss Alt Attacks

Whirlwind: Roll 3 yellow dice, hits are applied to every adjacent opposing unit.

Reposition: Instead of attacking, unit may move 1 hex (during it’s attack phase).

Stun: Roll 1 yellow die to

Long Shot: Roll 1 yellow die to attempt a 1 dmg ranged attack from 3 hexes away.

Chase Down: If not engaged, move directly to closest opposing unit and do 4 dmg. (use Taunt if needed).

attempt to Stun an adjacent unit. A stunned unit cannot move, attack, or use abilities for 1 turn. Note!! Champions CAN be stunned by a gladiator (not a tactic).

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Uber Hurl: This hurl can ‘pick up’ an adjacent unit and ‘throw it’ up to 3 hexes away in any direction.

*Alt Attacks are used in place of a base attack *Boss Alt Attacks are usable only when rolled

Frenzy: All opposing adjacent units must reduce their existing health to 1.

Death Coil: Single adjacent unit (use Taunt to decide) is permanently stunned and loses 2 health per turn.