Rulebook v2.0
Each Hero leads a 39-card faction deck through traps, actions, allies, and cosmic timing. Break the opponent’s Shield or force them to fail a draw to win.
Overview
Components
1 Hero + 39 Cards
13 Allies · 13 Actions · 13 Traps
Win Condition
Shield → 0
Or opponent can't draw
Turn Phases
5 Phases
Draw · Energy · Play · Battle · End
Heroes
6 Factions
Unique decks, abilities, and Shield values
Card Size
63 × 88mm
Standard TCG
Sets trap limit. Higher T = more traps on field at once. Doctor Boon (T5) dominates this stat.
Boosts Action damage by S×10%. Also determines Skill-boosted card scaling. Sel (S5) leads here.
Base Shield = R×10 (modified by hero-specific bonus). Also sets Trap Resistance at R×5%.
Energy per turn = 3 + ceil(M÷2). M≥4 unlocks Mystic Cancel (negate for 2 Energy). Nyra (M5) peaks here.
Draw
Draw 1 card. Cannot draw = lose.
Energy
Gain 3 + ceil(M÷2) Energy. Field allies may add bonus.
Play
Spend Energy to play Allies, Actions, and Traps.
Battle
Allies attack. Summoning sickness: allies can't attack the turn they're played. First-turn restriction: no attacks on turn 1.
End
Resolve end-of-turn effects. Ability cooldowns tick down.
Allies
Permanent units with ATK and HP. They stay on field until destroyed. Attack during Battle phase (except the turn they’re summoned). Many have on-play effects and field passives like energy generation. Each hero has 13.
Actions
One-time effects: deal damage, restore Shield, draw cards, drain Energy. Resolve immediately and go to discard. Skill-boosted actions scale with the hero’s S attribute. Each hero has 13.
Traps
Set face-down. Trigger on conditions (Reaction, Instant, or Persistent). Limited by Tactics attribute. Traps are the hidden layer of strategy — your opponent knows they’re there but not what they do. Each hero has 13.
v2.0 Balance
| Hero | T | S | R | M | Shield | Energy | Traps | Ability | Identity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Doctor Boon The Freeborn |
5 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 50 | 5 | 5 | Tactical Override Peek opponent's top card. CD:2 |
Control · Traps · Disruption |
| High Priestess Nyra Elemental Flame |
3 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 75 | 6 | 3 | Luminous Convergence Draw 1 or restore 10 Shield. CD:2 |
Mystic · Shield Recovery · Pressure |
| Virelia Cradle of the Root |
2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 22 | 5 | 2 | Root Memory Deal 8 damage if opponent healed. CD:2 |
Sustain · Anti-Heal · Endurance |
| Sel of the Luminous Codex of the Eternal Spark |
2 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 33 | 5 | 2 | Arcane Archive Reveal top 3, pick 1 to hand. CD:2 |
Knowledge · Combos · Draw Engine |
| Ember Glow The Ember Ashes |
4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 35 | 5 | 4 | Ashblade Fury Deal 5 damage, all allies +2 ATK. CD:2 |
Aggro · Burn · Vengeance |
| Arkhelios Dragon The Void Ones |
4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 33 | 5 | 4 | Void Resonance Opponent discards 1, you draw 1. CD:2 |
Disruption · Void · Control |
Balance Note — Rulebook v2.0
Shield values are hero-specific and do not follow a simple R×10 formula. Each hero’s starting Shield is calibrated to offset their deck’s power curve. Doctor Boon’s allies carry boosted ATK/HP stats (printed on cards), compensating for his lower effect damage. Nyra’s high Shield offsets her lower ally combat stats. All six heroes are balanced to a 45–55% overall win rate across all matchups.
Initiative Roll
Both players roll a d6 at game start. Higher roll takes the first turn. The first player draws 5 cards but cannot attack during their first Battle phase (v1.4 Tempo Patch). This prevents first-move advantage from snowballing.
Summoning Sickness
Allies cannot attack the turn they are summoned. On-play effects still trigger immediately. Plan your board one turn ahead.
Mystic Cancel
Heroes with M≥4 can spend 2 Energy to negate an opponent’s Action. This is a response window mechanic — you can only use it when the opponent plays an Action during their turn. Once per response window.
Hero Abilities
Each hero has a unique activated ability with a cooldown of 2 turns. Abilities range from information (Boon’s peek) to damage (Ember’s burn) to disruption (Arkhelios’s forced discard). Use them at the right moment.
Priority & Stack
When a card is played, both players get a response window. Effects resolve in a stack (last-in, first-out). Pass priority to let effects resolve, or respond with Traps or Mystic Cancel.
Deckout
If you must draw and your deck is empty, you lose. Aggressive draw engines (Sel, Nyra) must balance card advantage against deckout risk in long games.
No hero dominates all matchups. Each has strengths and vulnerabilities designed into the six-hero asymmetric system.
Doctor Boon
Boosted ally stats (ATK 10–38) create overwhelming board presence. T5 trap control locks down opponent options. Weaker against high-damage effect decks that bypass his board.
High Priestess Nyra
Highest Shield (75) gives extraordinary staying power. M5 generates 6 Energy/turn. Heart Engine allies restore Shield passively. Vulnerable to anti-heal and effect-based burst.
Virelia
Anti-heal specialist. Punishes Shield recovery with bonus damage. Strong allies (ATK 2–7) but lowest Shield (22) makes her a glass cannon with sustain tools.
Sel of the Luminous
S5 makes her the hardest-hitting Action user. Draw engine cycles fast. Signature cards (55 and 45 damage) end games. Must survive long enough to reach them.
Ember Glow
Pure Orc aggro. Cheap allies deal damage on entry. T4 gives strong trap presence. Ashblade Fury ability creates burst turns. Runs out of steam in long games.
Arkhelios Dragon
Resource denial. Forces discards and drains Energy. Void Resonance ability is a 2-for-1 swing every 2 turns. Grinds opponents into submission rather than bursting them down.
Shield Tracker
Energy Calculator
Energy per turn
3 + ceil(4÷2) = 5