Invoke is a turn based strategy card
game with the goal of accumulating power through Thaumaturgy. Thaumaturgy is the practice of summoning the
power of the elements through Invocation.
This Art is practiced by Mages.
The game is played by combining cards
to achieve a desired effect.
This game is all about creating new and
unexpected card combinations; so don’t rely on the included Invocations as
anything other than a small sample of multiple possibilities.
(see end of
instructions for examples)
Object of the Game “I have the Power!”
The game is won by “Invoking elements”
to attack your opponents' power while trying to defend your own. Like life, the player (Mage) with the most
toys (Gems) wins.
The game ends when either: (whichever comes first)
a)
Only one Mage
with any power remains (the winner); OR
b)
The Aether is
depleted - at which point the Mage with the most power wins.
Power
Gems
Mages keep account of their power
through the use of “Power Gems”. Each
Mage should have a bank of Power Gems. Any item can be used - coins, marbles,
etc. - the gems move around, so they do not have to be different for each Mage.
To keep the game play fast we have
found the following combinations work well … This is only a suggestion.
10 Mages = 3 Power Gems
6-9 Mages = 4 Power Gems
4-5 Mages = 5 Power Gems
2-3 Mages = 7 Power Gems
The Aether
This is a general bank of Power Gems
representing the total unclaimed magical power loose in the world. The gems in the Aether will equal 1/2 of the
starting gems for any one Mage, rounded up (3 Mages, 7 gems - Aether = 4 gems)
When the Aether is empty - magic is depleted and the game ends. NOTE: The Aether is on a different physical plain -
you can target Aether Power Gems for destruction (Target Power Gem) but you cannot
steal from the Aether with a Move card because they are neither to the left nor
right of any one Mage.
Cards - the Three Decks
Invoke consists of three distinct decks, each with multiple suits
which are explained in more detail later on. Cards from different decks are
combined to form Invocations. The deck
descriptions in these instructions describe the cards available in the starter
Invoke set. It is possible that further
booster packs may introduce new suits within the three decks.
1) Manifest: These are things that can
be manifested in physical form (Nouns).
The Manifest deck has three suits:
a) Magical items;
b) Elements; and
c) Creatures.
2) Thaumaturgy: This is the deck of magic,
but magic can sometimes get out of control, resulting in unintended
consequences or random events. The Thaumaturgy deck has two suits:
a) Action; and
b) Chaos.
3) Focus: To invoke magic is to call and then direct
power. All magic must be focused either
externally or internally. The Focus deck
has two suits:
a) Target (the external focus);
and
b) Modifier (the internal
focus)
Setting the Game
1)
Place the
appropriate amount of Power Gems in front of you.
2)
Seed the Aether
(this is a bank of Power Gems that is equal to the number of 1/2 Gems any one
Mage has at the start of the Game)
3)
Separate the
Card set into its 3 decks, forming a stack and an associated discard pile for
each deck.
4)
Each Mage draws
their starting hand by taking cards from the three piles in any combination
until they have 7 cards in their hand.
No more then 3 cards can be taken from any one pile.
5)
CHAOS CARDS ON
SET UP: Chaos cards in the Thaumaturgy
deck are always played immediately EXCEPT on the set up draw. Any Chaos cards drawn at the initial hand
should be discarded. After every Mage
has their starting hand - add the Chaos cards back into the Thaumaturgy deck
and reshuffle it.
6)
Choose who goes
first. This can be done by any method
according to house rules. We like the
gamer geek dice stack [Who can stack D20 the highest]. But this game has no dice (unless you use
them as your Power Gems) so whatever works for you works for Invoke.
Sequence of Play
1)
At the start of
each turn the Mage draws cards from the three piles in any combination until
they have 7 cards in their hand. No more then 3 cards can be taken from any one
pile on any one turn.
2)
Unless a card
is played that states otherwise:
a)
Mages may never
have more than 7 cards in their hand; and
b)
Mages can only
draw cards at the start of their turn before any invocations.
3)
The Mage takes
their turn by combining cards to Invoke magic. (See Examples)
4)
They place
their invocations on the table in front of them.
5)
An Invocation
that is being currently formed is called the “Current Invocation”. If the Invocation is such that it can last
beyond the turn or is delayed, it remains in front of the Mage as an
“Established Invocation”. There is no
limit to the number of Established Invocations that a Mage may have.
6)
The Mage can
place as many cards into an Invocation as they like - as long as the
Invocations are sensible and self-explanatory.
7)
All damage
takes effect at the end of play - once all the current Mage’s Invocations are
complete. This allows a targeted Mage to
Invoke counter spells if they are able (as with a “Haste” modifier or “Target
Current Invocation” card)
8)
Any Power Gems
that are DESTROYED by Invocation are removed from play. They are NOT placed into the Aether.
9)
If the Mage is
not able to Invoke, then they MUST discard two cards before passing their turn.
10)
At the end of
their turn, after all invocations and damages, the Mage may, if they choose,
discard any or all of the cards remaining in their hand. Discarding is NOT required if an Invocation
has occurred.
11)
Play continues
Clockwise (unless caused to change by a card)
12)
The Ghost
round:
a)
When a Mage’s
power is depleted the Mage may remain in the game until the end of their next
turn. If they have no Power Gems left at
the end of their next turn, then they are removed from the game.
Invocations
Duration
Invocations only last 1 turn, unless modified by a “Sustain” or
“Delay”. Unmodified Invocations are “Current Invocations” for the purpose of
Target Cards (See Focus Deck section).
Sustained or Delayed Invocations are “Established Invocations”
Build Wall Invocations have a built in “Sustain” and last as long as
they are charged (See Thaumaturgy) section, so are always “Established Invocations”.
Any Invocation that manifests a Magical Item or a Creature is
permanent until destroyed - but is NOT an Established Invocation for the
purpose of Target Cards.
Sequence: IT MATTERS
The Sequence in which you combine the cards is the art of
Thaumaturgy!
Example: You have the following four cards: +2, Move Left, Air, Fire
+1 & Move Left & Air
& Fire
= An Invocation that moves left once, attacks with Air, moves left again and
attacks with Fire. NOTE: If you did not
have the second element (Fire) the Invocation would have nothing to attack the
second Mage. Even if your Air had a +1
on it - this is just a single Air element with a Power of 2 (assumed 1 of card
+1 more), not two Air elements
Move Left & +2 & Air
& Fire
= An Invocation that Moves three space (the initial Move Left Space + two more)
to the left and attacks that single Mage with both Air and Fire.
Move Left & Air &
Fire &
+2 = An Invocation that attacks the Mage to your immediate left with 1 Air
element and a Fire Element with a power of 3
Disputes
There are all kinds of ways to Invoke and there is no way to have
all the combinations in the instructions. When attempting new and creative
combinations, there will be times when
another Mage disagrees with you. In cases like this you will have to convince
them why it should work the way you want. However creating generalized house
rules about Invocation structure will more than likely bite you in the ass
later. So be careful. There will be a list of known working Invocations on our
website under Invoke and we are happy to have Mages send us suggestions and
inquiries.
Manifest Deck
This is the deck of any
object that can Manifest in reality: Elements, Magical Items and Creatures. By
themselves they are harmless. Objects cannot move on their own, they need to be moved with an event. Thus just
throwing down a fire card does not make a fireball or a defensive shield.
Elements (for more explanation of defensive use see “Build
Wall” Thaumaturgy Action
Card)
These cards are the building
blocks of the game. Thaumaturgy is the
invocation of elemental power. Each Element has an inherent 1 damage which can
be modified with (+) Cards. Alternately,
that power can be diminished with (-) cards as in the case of: Target Current Invocation & (Element
here) & -1
An Element is fully blocked without
damage by itself: A Shield Wall with
a Fire Element will block all Fire attacks no matter what the power
modifications without taking damage.
An Element absorbs damage
from its opposite: A Shield Wall with a Fire Element will counter a Water
Element on a power to power basis - one Fire element will destroy one Water
Element but also destroy itself in the process.
An Element does not respond
to Elements that are not itself or opposite - Fire and Water neither take
damage from nor block attacks from Air or Earth.
Opposing Elements May NOT be
combined in the same invocation. For
Instance:
The +2 & Move Left
Invocation moves left once, has an effect and moves left again. This can have 2 Fire Elements on it, or a
Fire Element and either an Earth or Air element, but NOT a Fire and Water
Creatures
Each creature has its own
special abilities. In the basic set they hold cards. In later versions they may
become offensive weapons. See the Card
for explanation.
Creatures are also aligned
with specific Elements. A Mage may not
defend a creature with a wall of its opposing Element, nor may they have two
creatures in play at the same time that are of opposing Elements (A Mermaid and
an Imp for instance)
Magic Items
A Mage may only have 1 Magic
Item in play at any one time!
Tomes:
Tomes allow a Mage to bank
up to 3 cards from any one deck for later use.
The Tome is placed face up in front of the Mage but the cards may be
placed face down. So a Mage with a hand full of Manifest cards but no targets
or actions may want to create a Manifest Tome - getting the cards out of their
hand without forcing them to discard.
Once a Tome has been
depleted it must be discarded. A Tome
May not be regenerated after being played - even if it was originally played
with less than the 3 card maximum.
Wands:
Allow the Mage to
Pre-Invoke. The Wand is placed face up in front of the Mage and then the
Invocation cards are placed upon it. The
Mage has the choice of placing the Invocation Face-Up in a flexing of power, or
face-down (are you bluffing?)
Wands have a built in Haste
- so may be used at any moment regardless of the Mage’s turn. Once the stored
Invocation has been activated, the Wand is destroyed
Cards in a Wand are NOT in
play until activated. So even if a Mage
has a Fire Wall, they CAN power a Wand with a Build Wall & Water Invocation.
They just cant ACTIVATE the Invocation until after their Fire Wall has
been destroyed
Be warned! If, at the end of the game, there is an un-activated wand and it is
determined that the cards did not create a legitimate invocation - the Wand
Explodes, costing the Mage a Power Gem.
Be prepared for More
Magic Items and Creatures to arrive in Boosters!
Thaumaturgy Deck
Now that you have called the power to
you, what are you going to do with it?
You must either target it - with cards from the focus deck, or you must
move the power, or both.
Action Cards
Moves
Without a specific target card a Mage
relocates power by movement. Movement is
either a Move Left, Move Right or Invoke which is like a
translocation spell allowing the Mage to target any Mage of choice.
Movement cards with an element and no
other target are an Attack and only effect power gems (and the shield
walls protecting them).
Movement plus a target can be used for
specific results - like stealing a power gem, relocating a creature or causing
general chaos: (Don’ forget - Sequence
Matters!)
Target
Hand & Move Left = another Mage must pass one card from
their hand to the Mage to their Left.
Target
Hand & +2 & Move Left = THREE Cards (Target Hand is an
assumed value of 1) moving to the Mage to their immediate Left
Target
Hand & Move Left & +1 = One card moving left 2 (the assumed
1 of the move card plus the 1) places
Discard Combined with a Target Hand card
to force opposing Mage to Discard. May
not be used to target Power Gems.
Build
Wall
You can build
shield walls in front of Magical Items, Creatures or Power gems (yours or the Aether!) A
Wall built in the absence of a Magical Item or creature is assumed to be
protecting the Mage’s Power Gems. A wall
protecting a magical item or creature must be placed with the Shield (Build
Wall) card touching the object it is protecting.
Once built Shield Walls are considered
“Established Invocations”
A Mage may not have opposing elements
interacting as Established Invocations.
So if you have a Water Wall, you can not also have a Fire Wall, nor can
you have an Imp (a fire based creature) protected by a Water Wall. But you can have an Imp in Play and build a
Water Wall that protects your power gems or a non-fire magical item or
creature.
For Damage … see Elements section above
Walls are built by placing down a Build
Wall card and charging it with an element (and possibly modifiers). Walls can
hold up to 3 POINTS. You may have more than one element card on the wall - as
long as they are all the same type. You can also add modifiers on the element.
When the shield does its job and
protects you from damage the effected element card is discarded. If at any
point the shield no longer has any elements
the wall crumbles and the shield is discarded. At the beginning of your turn
only you may repair your wall by adding modifiers or more element cards to an
already existing shield - but only as long as the shield still holds that
element.
Shield Wall Examples:
You have built a shield wall in front
of your power gems consisting of:
· Build
Wall Card
· 2
Water Elements
·
+2 Modifier
This is not a legitimate wall - even
thought it only has 3 cards, it has more than 3 points of damage
protection. You must remove either the
+2 modifier (replace it with a +1 or another Water card if you can) or remove
one of the Water Element cards.
So you build it with 2 Water, +1
modifying the Water This wall will block
and take no damage from Water. It will block but also take damage from
Fire. It does not interact with Air or
Earth at all
Later on you are attacked and the wall
is diminished to 1 Water Element. At the
beginning of your next turn you can repair by adding either a power modifier or
another Water Element.
There are no Ghost rounds for Walls -
if all the elements are gone the wall crumbles immediately - you can not wait
until your next turn and add a different (Air) element. A repair can only
improve what currently exists on the wall - not rebuild it.
Chaos Cards
Any time you practice Thaumaturgy you
run the risk of loosing control of the Invocation, and unleashing wild
magic. So any time you draw from the
Thaumaturgy deck there is a chance (14% in the Starter Deck) you will draw a
Chaos Card. THESE CARDS MUST BE PLAYED
IMMEDIATELY WHEN DRAWN
The Cards are self explanatory and
usually random in who will be affected. In the Starter Deck there are three
cards that specifically damage the drawing Mage, and three that specifically
benefit the drawer. The other 6 Chaos
cards affect the whole table.
Focus
Deck
Power without
focus is Chaos. Successful Invocations
require that elements and actions be specifically targeted. Power Gems, specific Mages and the cards or
hands of specific Mages can all be targets. These cards are mostly self
explanatory:
Target
Target
Magical Item allows Mage to identify and target any
one Magical Item in play and is either combined with a move card (steal) or
with an element card (destroy)
Target
Creature allows Mage to identify and
target any one Creature in play and is either combined with a move card (steal)
or with an element card (destroy)
Target Hand allows
Mage to target a single card in any one other Mage's Hand - only targets cards
in the hand, not those laid out as Established Invocations. Can be combined with either a Move or a
Discard Action.
Target
Power Gem allows Mage to identify and target
any one Power Gem of any other Mage or the Aether. Since Attacks always affect a Mage’s
Power, Target Power is usually combined with a Move card to steal or relocate a
Mage’s Power, combined with an element card to destroy the gem. Remember, Aether cards can be destroyed – but
not relocated (at this point but never know what might be hatched in an
expansion pack!)
Target
Current Invocation this has a built in Haste and can be played
by any Mage, even out of turn.
Target
Established Invocation allows Mage to
identify and target any Established Invocation in Play - Does NOT effect
Magical Items or Creatures
Modifiers
Modifiers
that are (+) or (-):
Every card has an assumed value of
1. (+) or (-) modifiers can be used on
any card. So a “Move Left” moves the
Invocation 1 space to the left of a Mage.
But a “Move Left” with a (-2) modifier would actually move the
Invocation 1 space to the right. (Move Left moves one space left, -1 space
brings it back to the Mage, -1 more space moves it to the Mage to the right.)
Likewise an Element with a +1 is an
Element with a power of 2 (But NOT two separate Elements). Delay or Sustain can similarly be modified
Delay
Delays the effect of an
Invocation by one turn. So a Mage that
Invokes: Delay & Move Right &
Earth is targeting the Mage to their right, but the Invocation will be
placed down as an “Established Invocation” and be moved to the right
with damage calculated at the end of the Invoking Mage’s next turn.
Sustain
Continues the effect of a
card for one extra turn. So Sustain & Move Right & Earth is a
way to target two Mages to the right and is treated as a “Current
Invocation” which is cast against the Mage to the immediate right with
damages assessed at the end of the Invoking Mage’s turn, and moves one more space to the right
with damages applied at the end of the next Mage’s turn. Unlike a +1 & Move Right invocation, the
Sustain card sustains the entire Invocation, not just the movement, so the same
single Earth can be used against both Mages.
Sustain & Invoke
& Earth would result in a “Current Invocation”
cast against the targeted Mage with damages assessed at the end of the Invoking
Mage’s turn AND an “Established
Invocation” cast against the same targeted Mage with damages applied at the
end of the Invoking Mage’s next turn.
Haste:
Allows immediate play - even out
of turn, or speeds up the action in a current turn.
Sample
Invocations
Example #1
You want to
force another Mage to discard 3 cards from their hand. You cannot just throw a Discard card at
them. You must lay out a focus and
increase the power:
Target Hand
& Discard & +2 = targeted Mage must discard 3 cards
BUT a third Mage thinks you are getting too
powerful and wants to keep the targeted Mage in the game…… So….
Target Current
Invocation (remember - built in haste, allowing Mage to Invoke out of turn)
& -1 = Your Invocation has been diminished by one power point so the targeted Mage only has to discard 2 cards.
Example #2
Using the
Invocation: Target Power
Gem & Move
Left you stole a
power gem from the Mage to your right. The victim of the spell would like to
get his Gem back…
In his hand he
has “Move Left” and Five Element cards.
Because he does not have “Target Power Gem” he is
not able to reclaim the stone. But,
assuming you do not have any shields against one of those elements, he can, for
example, Invoke: Air & Move Left - essentially sending a tornado at
you. Without any defense this will cause
1 point of damage - destroying the power gem you stole.
Example #3
You want to
strike the Mage
across from you with a bolder (Earth).
They do not have either an Earth or Air Shield, so hitting them with
this automatically damages the Power
Gem because it’s straight
damage. BUT there are 5 Mages at the table and the Mage you are targeting is neither
directly to your left nor directly to your right. There is one person between you to the left,
and two people between you to the right.
You must have
either:
•
Move Left &
+1 & Earth; OR
•
Move Right
& +2 & Earth; OR
•
You could use
-1 or -2 cards with your Move Left or Move Right as long as the Maths works
out: OR
•
Invoke (which
allows you to target any Mage) & Earth
Example #4
It’s your turn and you want to send a fireball at the
Mage across from you. (Invoke & Fire)
But that Mage has a Wand with two cards face up Build Wall & Fire and 1 card face down. You suspect the face down card is either a +1
or another Fire element. They do not have any Established Invocations with
Water remaining, so they can activate the wand and build their Shield Fire Wall as soon as you
cast – because Wands have a built in Haste.
The only way to get past it is to cast a Fireball
faster than they can build the wall so you Invoke with: Invoke & Fire & Haste. Since
its your turn you have the first action, which is negated by their built in
Haste, but your Haste get the fire through faster than they can build.
EXCEPT – the face down card is not a +1, but a
HASTE. Unless you had Invoke & Fire & Haste & +1 (sequence
matters, the 1 adding to the Haste, not the Fire), they still build faster than
you can cast and block all Fire attacks with no damage!
Example #5
You REALLY want
to win the game and you notice that you have the most power gems of any Mage at
the table. But your defenses are all destroyed
and your cards are not going to ensure you are the last Mage standing. The Aether, however, only has one gem
left……..
Target Power Gem & Invoke & Fire - you can destroy the Aether -
ending the game as the most powerful Mage! (Muwhahaha)
But wait…. OOPS
Another Mage has:
• Target
Current Invocation & Build Wall & Fire; OR
• Target
Current Invocation &Haste & Invoke & Water
You have been
blocked and are now the least popular Mage at the table…….
Curses – foiled
again!