Shadowlord
Encyclopedia
Shadowlord is a board game
published by Parker Brothers
. In it, two to four players, each representing a "master" of one of the four Greek elements (earth
, fire
, wind
, and water
) battle each other, and a non-player character
called the Shadowlord, to become master of the universe.
1. Draw Power Cards: The player draws at least one, and an additional one for every corner galaxy the player controls. The player can either place them underneath a portrait for or face down in their attack hand (for use in battle).
2. Roll the dice and follow the directions of the corresponding number on the guide card rolled.
3. Build spaceships: Players get three spaceships for every merchant they own, three for every corner galaxy they control, and they can discard cards from their attack hand (added to in step one) and redeem it for the corresponding number of ships.
4. Move: Players may move any character with a spaceship in its power ring they like, but may only move as many spaces as that character has spaceships. If they are the first player to cross into a galaxy, they may discard their spaceship onto that galaxy, and they control it. If a diplomat passes into a galaxy that has a face-down character disc, that diplomat may recruit that character into his alliance.
5. Move a minor shadow: Each shadow can only be moved one galaxy at a time, and they never discard their spaceship and own the galaxy. The Shadowlord is never moved.
6. Do battle: Battle occurs when a character moves into another galaxy that another player controls or occupies without his or her permission. Shadows never give permission to cross into the galaxies they occupy.
Battle consists of the following: Each character in the galaxy (or a character of the defenders choice if the galaxy is controlled by the presence of a spaceship) is placed on the battlefield. Each participating combatant may choose one (and only one per character) power card from underneath its portrait or from the generic attack hand. The attacker places this extra card face down, while the defender places it face up. The attacker then turns up his extra card. A power card is drawn from the deck for each character in the battle, with the one controlling a power stone being able to draw yet another power card, and the players total up their side's power levels, spaceship count (only spaceships in the character's power ring count), and the value of all their power cards, and whichever side has the highest total, that player wins the battle. A card is then drawn for each of the losing characters, and that number is how many spaceships they lose. If a character is penalized more spaceships than it has, that character dies and is liquidated from the alliance. If the master dies, that player is out of the game entirely. If a player defeats a character with a power stone (either the Shadowlord or the one who took the power stone from the Shadowlord), that character then takes possession of the power stone. At the end of battle, all cards used are discarded.
If the Shadowlord still holds the power stone, every time the deck of power cards are reshuffled, the power stone timer (which looks exactly like the power stone itself, so it does not matter which one is which) is moved up a slot in the power stone timer base. If the timer reaches the final slot, the game is over and all players lose.
Board game
A board game is a game which involves counters or pieces being moved on a pre-marked surface or "board", according to a set of rules. Games may be based on pure strategy, chance or a mixture of the two, and usually have a goal which a player aims to achieve...
published by Parker Brothers
Parker Brothers
Parker Brothers is a toy and game manufacturer and brand. Since 1883, the company has published more than 1,800 games; among their best known products are Monopoly, Cluedo , Sorry, Risk, Trivial Pursuit, Ouija, Aggravation, and Probe...
. In it, two to four players, each representing a "master" of one of the four Greek elements (earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
, fire
Fire
Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. Slower oxidative processes like rusting or digestion are not included by this definition....
, wind
Wind
Wind is the flow of gases on a large scale. On Earth, wind consists of the bulk movement of air. In outer space, solar wind is the movement of gases or charged particles from the sun through space, while planetary wind is the outgassing of light chemical elements from a planet's atmosphere into space...
, and water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
) battle each other, and a non-player character
Non-player character
A non-player character , sometimes known as a non-person character or non-playable character, in a game is any fictional character not controlled by a player. In electronic games, this usually means a character controlled by the computer through artificial intelligence...
called the Shadowlord, to become master of the universe.
Object of the game
The object is to destroy the armies of opponents, and of the shadows, before the timer runs out and the shadowlord wins and the game is over.Objects
Below is a list of objects required to play the game and their purpose.- Power Rings: These are the rings that the discs that are in play go in.
- Character discs: These specify the name and power level of the characters.
- Spaceships: These are required to move, and also to lay claim to galaxies players are not currently in.
- Power cards: These are used in battle, explained later.
- Battlefield: A big blue board where battles (explained later) are held.
- Universe: The board that the game is played on. Each space is a galaxy, and the corner galaxies are "building stations" (explained later).
- Power Stone: An object put into a spaceship slot on the power ring that allows an extra power card to be drawn in battle (explained later). Initially owned by the shadowlord, but can be taken from him if he is defeated in battle.
classes
Below is a list of the classes and their description.- Masters: Power level: 10. These are the most powerful and important characters in the game. If a master is killed, that player is out of the game.
- Warrior: Power level: 6. These are the second most powerful, and are the most useful as decoys in battle.
- Merchant: Power level: 3. Merchants are capable of doing battle, but are most useful for building spaceships.
- Diplomat: Power level: 0. A diplomat never fights, however, they are the only characters who can overturn character discs.
- Shadows: Power levels: 3-10. Shadows are the antagonists of the game. The Shadowlord starts with the power stone.
Initial board setup
The Shadowlord is placed in a black power ring, given one of the power stones and five black spaceships, and placed in the center galaxy (the one with the castle in it). The minor shadows are placed circling the Shadowlord and are given one black spaceship each. A protagonist character disc is placed face down in each of the other galaxies except the home planets of the masters. Each player chooses a master and is given one warrior, one diplomat, and three spaceships with which they can distribute to the three members of the force any way they choose. The three allies for each player are placed on the master's home planet.Gameplay
Players roll the die to see who goes first. A turn takes place with the following actions in this exact order.1. Draw Power Cards: The player draws at least one, and an additional one for every corner galaxy the player controls. The player can either place them underneath a portrait for or face down in their attack hand (for use in battle).
2. Roll the dice and follow the directions of the corresponding number on the guide card rolled.
3. Build spaceships: Players get three spaceships for every merchant they own, three for every corner galaxy they control, and they can discard cards from their attack hand (added to in step one) and redeem it for the corresponding number of ships.
4. Move: Players may move any character with a spaceship in its power ring they like, but may only move as many spaces as that character has spaceships. If they are the first player to cross into a galaxy, they may discard their spaceship onto that galaxy, and they control it. If a diplomat passes into a galaxy that has a face-down character disc, that diplomat may recruit that character into his alliance.
5. Move a minor shadow: Each shadow can only be moved one galaxy at a time, and they never discard their spaceship and own the galaxy. The Shadowlord is never moved.
6. Do battle: Battle occurs when a character moves into another galaxy that another player controls or occupies without his or her permission. Shadows never give permission to cross into the galaxies they occupy.
Battle consists of the following: Each character in the galaxy (or a character of the defenders choice if the galaxy is controlled by the presence of a spaceship) is placed on the battlefield. Each participating combatant may choose one (and only one per character) power card from underneath its portrait or from the generic attack hand. The attacker places this extra card face down, while the defender places it face up. The attacker then turns up his extra card. A power card is drawn from the deck for each character in the battle, with the one controlling a power stone being able to draw yet another power card, and the players total up their side's power levels, spaceship count (only spaceships in the character's power ring count), and the value of all their power cards, and whichever side has the highest total, that player wins the battle. A card is then drawn for each of the losing characters, and that number is how many spaceships they lose. If a character is penalized more spaceships than it has, that character dies and is liquidated from the alliance. If the master dies, that player is out of the game entirely. If a player defeats a character with a power stone (either the Shadowlord or the one who took the power stone from the Shadowlord), that character then takes possession of the power stone. At the end of battle, all cards used are discarded.
If the Shadowlord still holds the power stone, every time the deck of power cards are reshuffled, the power stone timer (which looks exactly like the power stone itself, so it does not matter which one is which) is moved up a slot in the power stone timer base. If the timer reaches the final slot, the game is over and all players lose.