Calamity Cube, Ver 1.0
“To
Adapt Is To Overcome.”
A
game by Steven Russell
20-30
minutes, 2-4 players
Battle
Goal: Gain the most victory points to win by the end of several rounds!
Coop
Goal: Defeat Chaos in his own game, while surviving his treacherous powers!
Battle
Story: Several mages of varying factions have come to this chamber of old to
acquire power beyond anything anyone has ever seen – the Calamity Cube.
Coop
Story: Having witnessed the rebirth of the Calamity Cube and its eldritch
creator, Chaos, an order of paladins sends several of their finest to confront
and seal away the malicious power.
A
card game where players are to manipulate the Calamity Cube to their whims, in
an effort to conquer and achieve victory.
Players
will have to use the cards they are given to shift the Calamity Cube towards a
satisfying direction to get the most out of each round, whether it’s to deal
damage to Chaos, or to gain effects to crush others in the next round!
Game Components
Board
or map illustration
Card
illustration with callouts
Illustration
of other pieces
Printing
Instructions
Setting up the game
Players
are to sit in a circle/square formation with the cube in the middle. Each
player must be facing a face on the Cube. A shuffled stack of cards is then
placed to the side of the Cube.
Players
determine who goes first by rolling a dice. From there, the player with the
highest number goes first.
Turn Order
First
Phase
Second
Phase
Third
Phase
End
of turn
Check
for victory
First Phase
A
player will roll a dice, in which case chooses one out of six cards to use for
the Cube’s face effects for that round. The round is then started from there.
The
cards each have different properties for each face of the Cube, which will be
used for the round as the different color face attributes. Negative effects,
positive effects, and victory points will be strewn across these varying
colors, always changing each round.
Example
Second Phase
The
player’s turn begins now. The player will roll a dice, and from there must pick
up the amount of cards from the stack of shuffled cards that corresponds to the
number rolled. Now the player must remove cards from their current hand to take
in the new cards and keep a max hand of 6.
The
player’s turn begins by rolling a dice and picking up the amount of cards they
roll for. They must integrate these into their current hand, replacing existing
ones to keep a hand max of 6 at all times, moving the discarded cards to the
bottom of the shuffled stack of cards.
Example
Third Phase
Now
the player must play a movement card if they have one, or skip their turn
entirely.
Movement
cards are cards with directions on them that rotate the Cube in the direction
depicted. They can only play a max of one. Skipping the turn allows the player
to move onto the next player instantly, and make no moves from there until it’s
their turn again.
Example
End of turn
Battle
Options: Players can play an event card on an opposing player at the end of
their turn by choice, but cannot play another event card until after their next
turn.
Coop
Options: Players can play an event card to thwart Chaos’ movement of the Cube
at the end of their turn by choice, but cannot play another event card until
after their next turn.
At
the end of each player’s turn, the player to the left goes next.
Check for Victory
Battle
Conditions: The player with the most victory points wins the game at the end of
all 4 rounds (1 round = 4 turns per player).
Coop
Conditions: Upon dealing five negative effects to Chaos, the players win.
Glossary
The
Calamity Cube / The Cube : The relic forged by an otherworldly being, said to
contain dark powers that expand far beyond anything humans have ever seen.
Chaos
:
The creator of the Calamity Cube, and
the composer of madness.
Movement
Cards :
These cards rotate the cube in a certain
direction, whether it’s to rotate it once up, down, left, or right.
Event
Cards :
These trigger events, or ghosts from the
Calamity Cube. Some ghostly images can help or hinder the player, based on what
the effects the card displays.
Strategy tips and design notes
Since
the cards are constantly changing, it’s best to plan ahead and put yourself in
a position where there’s a good chance that if the cube gets moved, you’ll most
likely end on a positive effect. Sometimes skipping your turn is good! Maybe you need a better hand, you’re
waiting for that one event card to show up, or perhaps you’re spectating,
quietly calculating to make that one move. Be careful when trying to save cards
for certain situations! If you’re not careful, you may roll a high number and
have to discard it!
