ZARM

Team Setup

1. Only one Leader per team.
2. Only two Unit cards per team.

Turn Order

1. Play always goes clockwise.
2. You cannot use the same figure back-to-back. After using a figure, that figure must sit out your next turn.
3. Leader activation: before taking a turn with your Leader, you may first take a turn with another one of your cards — but it cannot be the card you used on your immediately previous turn. If no other card is eligible (for example, the Leader is the last figure standing), you may activate the Leader directly.
4. Leaders cannot extract from the board as long as any of your other cards/figures are still in play.

Movement

Figures can only move in linear directions: forward, backward, left, or right.

Combat

Attack Directions

You can only attack in linear directions: forward, backward, left, or right. Never diagonal.

Special Attacks

Before using a special attack, roll a D20:

• 10–14: You may use your special attack this turn.
• Any other result: You cannot use that special attack this turn. Use a different attack or end your turn.

Defending — Evasion Roll

When attacked, roll a D20 to attempt to evade:

• Melee attack — 1–2: You evade the attack entirely and negate any additional effects it would trigger.
• Ranged attack — 1–4: You evade the attack entirely and negate any additional effects it would trigger.

Combat System

1. The attacker rolls first.
2. Both players roll their dice: the attacker rolls their attack dice, the defender rolls their defense dice.
3. If the attacker lands more successful hits than the defender lands blocks, apply damage and resolve any card abilities triggered by the attack.
4. If none of the attacker's dice land, none of that card's additional effects apply either.

Range Attacks

Range rules apply only to attacks with "Range" in the attack's name. They do not apply to every attack universally.

• No adjacent targets: Range attacks can only be used against non-adjacent figures.
• Diagonal allowed: Range attacks may fire in any direction, including diagonal. This rule supersedes any other rule that restricts attacks to linear directions.
• Straight line only: A range attack must travel in a straight line along its chosen trajectory. The shot cannot turn, bend, or curve around corners.
• Diagonal cost: Every diagonal terrain space the attack passes through costs 2 Range instead of 1.

Disengagement

When a figure tries to leave a space adjacent to an enemy, disengagement combat is triggered.

• Evasion: Roll a D20. On a 1–10, you successfully evade the disengagement attack and move freely.
• No XP: Kills that happen during disengagement combat do not grant experience points.

Height Advantage

When a figure attacks from a higher elevation than its target, the attacker gains +1 attack die (there is no struggle for the position).

Terrain

Flying & Levitation

• Only cards with wings can fly.
• Flying units ignore elevation when moving — every space counts as 1 space of movement, regardless of how high or low the space is.
• See Height Advantage for how flying interacts with elevation bonuses.

Water Terrain

Water Terrain includes pools, rivers, waterfalls, and rainfall zones.

• Water creatures can move 1 extra space while entering, exiting, or moving through water.
• Water creatures gain +1 defense die while in water.
• Non-water creatures can only move 1 space when entering or exiting water.
• Ranged attacks cannot travel farther than one water terrain space.

Fire Terrain

• Fire creatures gain +1 attack die while in fire terrain.
• Non-fire creatures lose 1 life at the end of each of their owner's turns, starting the turn after they entered fire terrain.
• Special attacks cannot be used in fire terrain by anyone.

Earth Terrain

• Earth creatures gain +1 defense die while defending in earth terrain.
• Earth creatures reduce incoming damage by 1 if they take more than 1 damage in a single combat.

Leveling System

Starting Bonus Points

• Leader / Lord: starts with 4 extra points
• Champion: gains 3 extra points
• All other units: gain 1 extra point

Earning Level-Up Points

• Killing a Leader: instant level up — 3 points
• Killing any other unit: 1 point
• Disengagement kills: grant no points (see Disengagement).

Spending Points

Reborn

Some cards have the ability to return to play after being killed. When a card is reborn:

• The card returns with its original Attack and Special Attack values.
• Life and Defense are set to 1 for the rest of the game after rebirth.
• Reborn cards cannot gain XP from any source. (Exception: if only part of the card was removed — e.g., a multi-piece figure where a piece is still alive — it can still gain XP.)

Reborn Leaders

A Leader can be reborn if you have no other cards left on the board. They return to play as 1 figure.

• Reborn Leaders do not gain XP.
• Reborn Leaders lose the Leader ability that requires "taking a turn with another card" before activating again — they may act on consecutive turns if they are the last figure standing.

A Chance with the Devil

When any character would die, before removing them from the board, roll a D20:

• 1–3: The card survives with 1 Life and is returned to the first row of your spawn / starting area.
• 17–20: The character dies, and if they currently have any unspent XP (1 or 2 points toward their next level), that unspent XP is also lost (reset to 0). Any levels already gained and spent remain.
• Any other result: The character dies normally (unspent XP is not affected).

Pity Points

Stats

All stats start at 1, except Movement, which starts at 2.

Leaders start with 3 Movement and do not level up.

Stat List

• Life — how much damage the card can take before being killed.
• Defense — how many defense dice the card rolls when attacked.
• Range — how far the card can hit with a ranged attack.
• Attack — how many attack dice the card rolls when attacking.
• Special Attack — scales the effectiveness of the card's unique special attack ability (damage, range, or effect, depending on the card).

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