Friday, May 11, 2012

My Asynchronous Collectable Card Game Rules

Types of Cards
  • Hero - Basically a creature card, designed to be the basis of the game.  Each Hero has an Attack Strength and a Defend Strength.  Attacking Heroes use their Attacking Strength determine the outcome, and Defending Heroes use their Defending Strength to determine the outcome.
  • Equipment - Enhances Heroes is some way.  Equipment is attached directly to the Hero, and goes to the graveyard when the Hero does.
  • Artifact - Enhances the board in some way.  Can affect Players, Heroes, or any other card.  Unless they are destroyed and sent to the graveyard, they stay on the field.
  • Trap - Laid out in advance, Trap cards activate based on a trigger.  Traps can be activated during an opponent’s turn, or they can be a reaction to another Trap.
  • Spell - Spells are abilities the player casts during their turn only.  They can affect anything, but are discarded after use.
  • Mana - Mana cards are used when summoning Heroes, laying Traps, casting Spells, equipping Heroes, using Abilities, or placing Artifacts.  Players must use the right kind of Mana to utilize any card or ability.

Realms of the Board
  • Hero Realm - This is where the Heroes sit when not in direct combat.
  • Trap Realm - This is where the Traps are set, face down.
  • Artifact Realm - This is where the Artifacts are set.
  • Mana Realm - This is where the Mana cards are set.
  • Combat Realm - This is where Heroes, Traps,  and Spells are set when in action.
  • Library - This is where the player’s deck sits, with all cards face down.
  • Graveyard - This is where used or destroyed cards go, with all cards face up.

Phases
  • Beginning Phase - This is where any residual effects are applied or removed, where Mana is regenerated, and where the player starts their turn.
  • Draw Phase - This is where the player draws their card.
  • First Main Phase - This is where Heroes are summoned or switched between Attacking and Defending, Spells are cast, Traps are laid, Equipment is applied, and Artifacts are established.
  • Combat Phase - This is where Heroes attack defending Heroes, Spells are cast, and Traps are activated.
  • Second Main Phase - This is where Heroes are summoned or switched between Attacking and Defending, Spells are cast, Traps are laid, Equipment is applied, and Artifacts are established.
  • Ending Phase - This is where any residual effects are applied or removed, and where the player ends their turn.
  • Submitting Phase - This is where the player submits their turn to their opponent.

Each round, the player has a very specific number of Moves afforded to them.  Each action they take during the First Main Phase, Combat Phase, or Second Main Phase constitutes a Move, which includes summoning Heroes, Equipment, and Artifacts, activating Abilities, setting Mana, laying Traps, and casting Spells.  Ranked Matches will have 5 Moves, but Private Matches are open to the Host’s rule set.  The Host may choose to apply a handicap to themselves, but the Host will never have more Moves or health than the Guest.

At the beginning of the match, both players draw 6 cards.  If a player has more than 6 cards in their hand during the End Phase, they must discard as many cards of their choice into the Graveyard as it takes to reach 6 cards.  The player who starts first does not draw a card during their first round, nor are they allowed to attack during their first round.  There is no restriction to attacking after the first round.

Heroes may be set to either an Attacking Position or a Defending Position during either Main Phase.  Attacking Heroes are not required to attack during the Combat Phase, but all Defending Heroes are subject to attack by their opponent’s Heroes.  During the Combat Phase, players must attack any Defending Hero on the field with their Attacking Heroes before attacking the player directly.  Both the Attack Level and the Defense Level of each Hero will play a factor into each engagement.  If the Attack Level is higher than the Defense Level of the opposing Hero, then that opposing Hero dies and goes to the Graveyard.  If the Hero survives the encounter, they maintain the damage taken to their Defense Level until the End Phase, where all Attack Levels and Defense Levels of remaining Heroes gets reset.  Any changes made to the Attack Level or the Defense Level from Equipment or Artifacts attached to the Hero are unaffected by the End Phase.  The Attacking Position is indicated by the card being positioned normally on the board, with the Defending Position being indicated by the card being positioned perpendicular to the player.

Traps are automatically triggered by the conditions established on the card.  Once a Trap is triggered, and its effects activated, the Trap goes to the Graveyard.  Not all Traps have to be negative in nature.  Trap cards can also include effects like reviving a Hero if they’re killed during the Combat Phase.

Hero Abilities can be activated at any point during the player’s turn.  If the ability requires Mana, then it will be tapped as needed.  No Ability can be activated during the opponent’s turn.  Using Abilities will not induce any other action, unless otherwise noted.  Heroes don’t get tapped, so they won’t get tapped.  Activating Abilities uses a Move.  No Hero will have any kind of attribute.  There will be no flying, bypassing defenders, or any other kind of attribute.  Some Heroes may have Abilities that give them special privileges, but they aren’t natural to the card, and they must use a Move in order to activate it.

Each Faction has a specific type of Mana that it draws upon for its various functions.  Players are allowed to mix and match cards from the various Factions, but they must use the prescribed Mana that is indicated on the card.  While there is no neutral Mana, some cards can have requirements to utilize more than one Faction’s Mana type.  Mana must be tapped in order to utilize for any requirement, but any unused tapped Mana that is still there during the End Phase will burn.  Turn the Mana card perpendicularly to indicate it has been tapped.  New cards may be added to Factions at any point, and entirely new Factions can be added at any point.

Each Deck must have a minimum card count of 40 cards, with no upwards limit.  The recommended Deck size is 40-60 cards, but that is a suggestion, and not a rule.  The reason why 40 cards is the minimum deck size is to allow a more simplified deck capability, and so players can access the cards they want at a faster pace if they’d like.

A Legendary Hero is a card that is abnormally powerful, and the card will indicate it as a Legendary Hero card.  They usually have a larger Mana requirement, will have very unique abilities, and have higher Attack and Defense Levels.

Unless otherwise dictated on the card itself, there will be no more than the below listed number of cards with the same name in the player’s Library.
  • 3 Hero cards
  • 1 Legendary Hero card
  • 3 Equipment cards
  • 4 Trap cards
  • 2 Artifact cards
  • 4 Spell cards
  • Unlimited Mana cards

There are only two ways to win the game.  Either by reducing the opponent’s health to 0 points, or if the opponent runs out of cards in their library.  The player’s life is set at 20 during Ranked Matches.  Hosts can change the amount of life available at the start of the match in Private Matches.



Here is a rough sketch of what the board would look like: