As a famed mercenary seeking to establish your medieval empire, the prophecy has been commoner's talk for a while now: Of dragon scales gather up 10, and so become the ruler of men! But your arrival in the desolate lands has presented two hardships. Firstly, dragons don t give up their scales willingly. And second, you re not the only one who s heard the prophecy. Game play begins with card drafting as players create a unique hand to battle dragons and each other. Play continues in a series of rounds until 1 player wins by ending a round with 10 dragon scales or being the only player with at least 1 health token remaining. Dragon scales are gained by contributing strength to defeat a dragon, looting from the dragon, or stealing from other players (if you kill another player you gain all of their dragon scales). Each round has 3 phases. Phase 1: (every round) Players simultaneously play cards from their hand face-down. All cards are then revealed and resolved in a predetermined hierarchy (cards of the same hierarchy resolve clockwise from the dragon). Phase 2: (triggered only by specific phase 1 cards) A repeat of phase 1, however only players who have used specific cards during phase 1 can participate. Phase 3: (every round) Dragon combat and loot distribution. Players combine their strength in an attempt to defeat the dragon. The dragon player draws the top 3 cards from the dragon deck selecting one to play against all other players. The dragon card increases or decreases the dragon's base strength, often adding targeted abilities*. If the dragon is defeated, all contributing players take dragon scales. If undefeated, all players take 1 damage from the dragon. Looters acquire loot (dragon scales or items) from the dragon irrespective of the outcome. All non-core cards are discarded before and he role of dragon then shifts one player to the left (their mercenary becomes untargetable for the following round). A new round will then begin, rounds continue in this manner until a winner is determined. In a round with 2 or 3 players, the dragon becomes automated. In this case the top card of the dragon deck is chosen and targeted abilities affect all players. Unique game elements include a mix of card-drafting, simultaneous-play, semi-cooperative and competitive tactics, and playing as both the dragon and dragon attacker (in different rounds). —description from the designer

We may earn a small commission when you buy through these links.