I have to admit I was highly skeptical of this card game when it came out. However, during the holiday break, I started playing the Serpent Skull base scenario with my kids and we love it now.
Of course, questions abound now ... (sorry if any of these are commonly answered already, I did scan through the first few pages of posts)
We do not plan on utilizing the adventure guild anytime soon, I am just playing with family and friends (if that helps answer any questions).
Collection management: For the following questions, I have Skulls and Shackles box, all 6 adventure decks for Skulls and Shackles, the 5-6 player expansion for Skulls and Shackles, and various iconic character cards ...
Iconic character cards:
General Gameplay:
Skulls and Shackles questions:
Story Enhancement:
Let me also add under Gameplay
I'm not an expert on all the minuscule details of the game, but this should answer most of your questions (and I'm sure someone will correct any mistakes):
1.a) Yes, you can. We typically do in our home games.
1.b) Shuffle them in with the B cards. So your locations in Adventure Deck (AD) 1 locations will have B and 1 cards in them.
1.c) Same as 1.b. Mix them in, so you'll see B, 1, and 2 cards in the AD2 locations. Note, when you start AD3, you'll start removing cards from the game that have the Basic trait (see the Adventure Path card for this rule)
1.d) Nope, you don't want to do that. You'll have incredibly unbalanced games.
1.e) Once you hit AD2, you'll be able to use any card from B deck to fill in gaps in your deck after a scenario. You can use Deck 1 cards in AD3 and any card with a deck number that is 2 lower than your current scenario from then on. If you are starting a new character, I think you technically always have to use Basic cards though.
2.a) All cards that have a 'P' for their deck number (instead of a B,C, 1-6) can be added to their appropriate decks starting in AD1. Note that for building your character decks, some cards have an "Owner: [CHARACTER NAME]" trait. That means that card is considered a Basic card for only that character.
2.b) See 2.a.
2.c) Yes, they can use it and keep it for future scenarios.
3.a) I think for Boons you can (sort of), but not Banes. Technically, you are choosing not to encounter the card, which is not exactly the same as auto-failing.
3.b) Generally, all rewards are Character rewards (there are some exceptions, but not in the base game or adventure decks.
3.c) You can. Officially, that character starts from scratch with Basic cards and no feats checked off on their character card. We generally house-rule that to give them Feats matching the other players and a comparable deck.
4.a) I think so, yes.
4.b) I don't have that Scenario Card in front of me, but I think it has special rules for what happens when you acquire an ally: instead of being added to a character's hand, they go to an Ally Pile next to the scenario card.
5. There are some very nice guides on BoardGameGeek which flesh out the story a lot. For S&S, the file is here: https://www.boardgamegeek.com/filepage/107542/skull-shackles-adventure-guid e-v102
Hi, welcome on the forums and happy you enjoy the game.
(1.a) Can / should I mix in everything from the 5-6 player expansion even when there are only 3 of us playing? (We are mostly using the characters from the expansion). Assumed yes
The "official" answer is: yes you can but it will affect a bit the balance.
The "real" answer is: it's YOUR game, do whatever feels the more fun for you. This said, from now on i'll give you "official" answers.
(1.b) When we move on to Adventure Deck 1 in the AP, do we mix in all of the Adventure deck 1 cards into the collection to populate the locations, items, weapons, etc., or do we only use the adventure 1 cards for henchmen and whatnot?
Do mix in all of the Adventure deck 1 cards into "the box" (I guess it's what you call the collection) to populate the locations, and get a chance to draw one when you are asked to darw cards from the box.
(1.c) When we move on to adventure 2, do we remove all of the adventure 1 cards from the collection decks (if we were to mix them all together from the previous question)?
No! Just add them, you only remove cards from the box/collection if:
- a card explicitely tells you to "remove that or another card from the game" (very rare)- a card has the "Basic" or "Elite" trait and you get to the point/situation where you can remove it from the game (see the details on your ADVENTURE card)
(1.d) Depending on the above answers, could we mix in all of the items, henchmen, weapons, etc., from all 6 adventure decks right off the bat for starting adventure 1? How about when just playing the base scenario?
No, you add cards of a given adventure level just when you are about to start the first scenario of that level.
Adding them before would either get you killed early (meeting a big level 6 monster when you aren't equipped for) or would spoil you fun (getting you a too powerful item too early that would make inexistent any challenge you are supposed to face).
(1.e) We probably missed this in the rules, but when do we get to build a new deck without utilizing *only* basic cards?
You never build a "new" deck (unless you died). At the end of a scenario, you "rebuild" (i. e. adapt) your existing deck.
First you add to your deck any reward card (can be an armor, or a specific loot... see the scenario card) that you get if you won the scenario.Then if you won a card feat as a reward (if you won the scenario and this is the reward for the scenario), you will get to increase the nupmber of cards in your starting deck for the next scenario (initially it's 15, it will go up to 16 the first time you win a card feat after a few won scenarios, and so on).
Once you know how many cards of each type you need to keep in your deck for the next scenario, trade with other characters or discard cards until you have no more than allowed of ecah type (usually you will have more than allowed at the end of a scenario because of all then boons you aquired during the scenario... the idea is that you get to keep the ones you select only, up to the number of weapons, spells... that you are allowed to keep).
If you have not enough of a type, you have to fill gaps first with cards that the other players have in excess (before they get to discard them). Then if within the whole group there is not enough cards of a given type to fill all requirements from characters, you get to draw basic 0 level cards to fill the gaps. The rules say you can select them in the box, but it's way more fun if you feel with random cards IMHO.
When you will finish a scenario of level 2 or higher, you won't be restricted to 0 level basic cards when filling gaps, but only to cards of levels 2 or more below the scenario level that just ended.
Iconic character cards:
(2.a) None of the ones I have say 'basic', so do they have to get mixed into the collection and encountered to be found? Or, is there an overrule here if you are using the iconic character they belong to?
Rule is that if a boon card as an "owner" mentioned on it, then if you are playing the character who is the "owner", that boon is "basic" for you (and for you pnly).
(2.b) Can only the specific iconic character (each card shows its owner) add the card to their deck (during building)?
No. Anyone can... if allowed. Usually that means you get to add a boon that has someone else as owner:
If it was for whatever reason in a location and you aquire itIf someone else gives it to you
If when you "rebuild" your deck you lack a card of that type and the scenario that just ended is at least 2 levels above the boon with an owner.
Hope that helps.
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Woo lots of questions. I'll probably be echoing some other posters, but I felt like answering them all anyway.
1a. I'd recommend mixing in the Character Add-On even if you are not playing with 5 or 6 players.
1b. When beginning a new adventure, mix in all of the new cards of that adventure deck number with the old ones. You never remove cards when mixing in a new adventure deck. The Adventure Path card contains instructions on when you should start removing cards from the box.
When you successfully complete all of the scenarios on the adventure card, you complete the adventure, and earn the reward on the adventure card. To move on to the next adventure, add all of the cards from the next Adventure Deck to the box, sorting the cards by type and combining them with the cards you already have. If you own any Class Decks, you can add any cards from them that have the same adventure deck number as the Adventure Deck cards you just added. Begin with the first scenario of the new adventure.
1c. Answered above, you do not remove old cards when mixing in new ones.
1d. Do not mix in cards of higher adventure deck numbers until you are actually playing scenarios in that adventure. Doing otherwise would completely break the pacing of the game. Scenarios are meant to be played in order, as well.
1e. Why are you building new decks? You should be keeping the same deck throughout your playthrough, swapping out the initial cards with things you've picked up on the way as it suits you (this is called "rebuilding" your deck). You would only build a new deck if you are starting a new character, and new characters start with 0 feats; not terribly useful if you're halfway through the game. If you do need to build a new deck partway through, I think the rules as written limits you to only Basics no matter how far along you are. A lot of people house rule death and introducing new characters to make it a less punishing experience, feel free to do so yourself. Introducing new characters with the same number of feats and with cards built using the current adventure deck number - 2 (so if playing AD3, you can use any B, C, P, or 1 card) is a common house rule.
2a. The listed Owner of a card treats the card as if it were Basic, but nobody else can. If you want to use the card but are not playing the owner, you would mix it into the box along with other promo cards. Promo cards cannot be mixed into the box until you begin Adventure 1 (so they are unavailable while playing the B adventure).
RULES: OWNER TRAIT
Some cards have the Owner trait, followed by the name of a character. If your character is the Owner of a card, you—and only you—may treat it as if it has the Basic trait.
2b. Yes, the card is treated as Basic for the Owner, so it can be in their starting deck.
2c. Yes, the Owner only impacts who can treat the card as Basic. It is otherwise just a normal card for everyone else, but they can still use it should they acquire it.
3a. Acquiring boons is optional, all other checks are mandatory unless the check says "may." If you find a boon you don't want, you can banish it without attempting to acquire. That is the only "auto-fail" that is allowed. This was clarified in the Mummy's Mask rulebook, I recommend grabbing the PDF of it and giving it a perusal.
After you flip over the top card of the location deck, put it on top of the deck and read it. If the card is a bane, you must try to defeat it. If it is a boon, you may try to acquire it for your deck; if you choose not to acquire it, it counts as failing to acquire it.
RULES: OPTIONAL VS. REQUIRED CHECKS
• If you are instructed to attempt a check, you must do so.
• If you are instructed to succeed at a check to do a thing, and the instruction does not use the word “may,” you must attempt the check; if you succeed, you must do that thing.
• If you are instructed to succeed at a check or do a thing, you must attempt the check; if you fail, you must do that thing.
• If you are instructed to either attempt a check or do something else, choose one of those options.
• If you are presented with 2 or more options, none of which require a check, you may choose any of those options.
3b. Rewards are per-character, not per-player.
3c. Yes, but by the rules as written they do not automatically get any of the previous rewards, meaning they start with 0 feats and a deck consisting only of Basic cards. I do not recommend swapping characters once you begin a playthrough.
3d. You are required to perform the When Permanently Closed on the location you corner and defeat the villain at, even though the game ends afterwards. In rare cases, this may cause you to die or lose the scenario before you actually get around to winning it.
4a. Cards Do What They Say and Cards Don't Do What They Don't Say. Jirelle does not say she needs to be on the ship for that power to be effective, so she does not need to be on the ship for that power to be effective -- it works wherever she is.
4b. Read through the Scenario card again, it has you create an ally pile when you acquire allies instead of adding them to your hand.
Other. Grab the Mummy's Mask rulebook PDF and use it in conjunction with your S&S rulebook (it's a free download from this site). The core rules are under constant evolution, and the MM rulebook contains numerous clarifications and changes not found in S&S. Set-specific rules (plunder, ships, and the fleet card) are not present in the MM rulebook, so you will still need to consult the S&S rulebook for those rules. See also the S&S FAQ which lists numerous errata to the S&S rulebook and individual cards.
Excellent, thanks guys!
One point of clarification, ...
1.b) Shuffle them in with the B cards. So your locations in Adventure Deck (AD) 1 locations will have B and 1 cards in them.
I assume that you also would include the "C" cards (from player expansion) and any class decks as well, correct? Or asked another way, when we officially start AD1, are there any cards we would remove from the box?
Thanks skizzerz. I just recently found the FAQ pages and browsed through them ... sigh lots of card redlines to make ... hah. I will definitely grab the MM rulebook so I don't have to also redline rulebook.
As for two of your responses:
1e. Why are you building new decks?
I have a 7 and 9 year old playing with me. They want to try a lot of the characters. I am just content to progress through the Base storyline with my Lini deck to get the rewards.
4b. Read through the Scenario card again, it has you create an ally pile when you acquire allies instead of adding them to your hand.
Yeah, I have to admit that I didn't read the card well at all and then we rushed to close out the adventure. I need to be more careful in the future, hah!
Excellent, thanks guys!
One point of clarification, ...
1.b) Shuffle them in with the B cards. So your locations in Adventure Deck (AD) 1 locations will have B and 1 cards in them.I assume that you also would include the "C" cards (from player expansion) and any class decks as well, correct? Or asked another way, when we officially start AD1, are there any cards we would remove from the box?
I've updated my above post with rulebook quotes and bolded the answer to your most recent question: You never remove cards when mixing in a new adventure deck. The Adventure Path card contains instructions on when and how you should begin removing cards from the game.
Thanks skizzerz. I just recently found the FAQ pages and browsed through them ... sigh lots of card redlines to make ... hah. I will definitely grab the MM rulebook so I don't have to also redline rulebook.
As for two of your responses:
1e. Why are you building new decks?I have a 7 and 9 year old playing with me. They want to try a lot of the characters. I am just content to progress through the Base storyline with my Lini deck to get the rewards.
I'd definitely recommend using a house rule then where new characters start out with the same number of feats and you build the new deck using better cards than just Basics, and treating rewards as "per-player". Perhaps do AD-1 instead of AD-2 if your kids change characters a lot and they feel that AD-2 is "unfair."
1e. Why are you building new decks?I have a 7 and 9 year old playing with me. They want to try a lot of the characters. I am just content to progress through the Base storyline with my Lini deck to get the rewards.
I totally get this.
It's a variant, but you might try letting them build the new character's deck with cards of similar power as they had in the old character's deck: ie if they had an Elite B/C/P, then can choose an Elite B/C/P; if they have a non-Basic non-Elite deck 1 card they can choose any deck 1 card; etc. I wouldn't make them stick to types, because different characters will have so many differences in card types.
Great suggestions!
They don't really want to take apart some of their previous decks though in case they decide on that character instead. That will make the card power comparison a little more difficult to implement (if they have 4 other decks). I could have them designate one of their characters as a "main" character for this purpose.
If they still aren't settled on a character when we start the whole adventure path, then I will break out which rewards you would start with per new character in an AD.
Great suggestions!
They don't really want to take apart some of their previous decks though in case they decide on that character instead. That will make the card power comparison a little more difficult to implement (if they have 4 other decks). I could have them designate one of their characters as a "main" character for this purpose.
If they still aren't settled on a character when we start the whole adventure path, then I will break out which rewards you would start with per new character in an AD.
I would suggest writing down the cards their previous characters have rather than keeping the decks on the side, because they may acquire a card that could be useful to their new characters & keeping that card out of the rotation would be a disadvantage.
An easy way to track decks is to group the cards by type & arrange them with the card names & AD# showing, then set the character card next to them (Skill/Power feat side up) & take a photo. Since the cards are grouped by type, you don't need a photo of the other side of the character card (Card feats).
It's also useful to put cheap clear sleeves on the character cards, so you can mark feats with a permanant marker & still swap characters around easily.
That is a great idea about the sleeves. I was just going to record things on paper, but that will make it easier to remember, thanks!
I like the picture idea too. I was leaning towards making them do their own bookkeeping of the deck lists as more of a way to make them take ownership. The pictures wouldn't get lost as easily though, so that would probably work out better.
2 More Questions:
(1) A ship encounter is not a combat check (unless it says so on the ship or the power that created the encounter, if any)? For example, we got a card a summoned a Shackles Pirate ship. It lists Dexterity X (and something else) to defeat. This isn't a combat or ranged dexterity check, correct? I assumed not and we played it that way, but I just wanted to make sure.
(2) Player A encounters a bane that requires a Strength check. Can Player B cast the Strength spell before the check is made? Is the answer any different whether it is strength combat check vs. a strength barrier check?
(1) Right. The ship would have to list Combat as a check to defeat, in order for the check to be a combat check. (Not sure what you mean by "the power that created the encounter" -- this will never make the check to defeat a ship a combat check.)
Also, note that ships aren't even banes. So powers that work against banes don't work against ships.
(2) If a character is making a Strength check, the spell Strength can be played on that character, because the spell directly affects the check. It doesn't matter if the Strength check is combat or non-combat.
2 More Questions:
(1) A ship encounter is not a combat check (unless it says so on the ship or the power that created the encounter, if any)? For example, we got a card a summoned a Shackles Pirate ship. It lists Dexterity X (and something else) to defeat. This isn't a combat or ranged dexterity check, correct? I assumed not and we played it that way, but I just wanted to make sure.
(2) Player A encounters a bane that requires a Strength check. Can Player B cast the Strength spell before the check is made? Is the answer any different whether it is strength combat check vs. a strength barrier check?
You may find this post to be helpful.
(Not sure what you mean by "the power that created the encounter" -- this will never make the check to defeat a ship a combat check.)
Yeah, we have only encountered a small handful of ships so far as we are just playing through the base adventure. I didn't know if there were any future barriers or anything that summoned a ship as a combat check. I was just leaving that option out there, if it existed at all.
You may find this post to be helpful.
Very helpful actually. I not sure how much we have been paying attention to the minutae of when the trait is added and the fact that a power or spell doesn't add traits unless it says so. I also don't think we've done anything too wrong yet either.
If anything, we keep catching mistakes that are making it harder on us a lot of the time.
I am copying the check order checklist from your linked post to here for my reference later.
The type of a check is derived from four sources:
A. The type listed on the Check to Acquire/Defeat.
B. The skill you are using on that check and all skills referenced by that skill.
C. Any traits on the card you played to determine your skill.
D. Any traits explicitly added to the check by powers you use/cards you play on the check.
Question coming, but first, ...
Ahh poor Lini. We figured we were losing Sunken Treasure last night, but did manage to corner Kelizar the Brine Dragon at the Wishing Well with 0 cards left in the blessings deck. It was Lini's turn, with no cards in her deck and 5 active pirate haunts dragging her down. Neither Valeros nor Seltyeil had any blessings to help either.
There was one card left: Kelizar. We talked about just skipping the encounter and replaying the scenario because it meant nearly sure death for Lini. The kids wanted to skip it, but I hate giving up when there is a chance. Also, this would be our first death (and it was my character) and so I wanted to show them what death meant. So, I encountered Kelizar and off we went.
With the 5 haunts, I needed a 21, and I could have technically made a 26 with the cards I had. However, fortune was not with us this night as a I rolled a super-low 12. The kids were horrified to see Lini's deck come apart, though they didn't shy away from her stuff. Haha. #PlayToWin #ChoicesHaveConsequences
Ok, now for the questions:
So Lini was haunted for much of the adventure because I foolishly went to the Wishing Well first. The permanent closing for the Wishing Well basically says to banish all haunts on your character. What would happen to the haunts on Lini if we ended the adventure (with Lini still alive)? Do they stay with her or does ending the scenario remove all banes displayed with characters? I assume they would go away or haunts would be super annoying, but I wanted to check.
As an after effect, I put in two hourserules for us:
(1) Once we completely the base scenario, any new character we make gets the skill feat + 1 random boon of each type during deckbuilding.
(2) Character death can be undone at the end of an adventure by banishing all blessings + 3 other cards. I am hoping this makes them respect the chance of dying, but not be too upset if it happens. Do you guys think this is pretty reasonable?
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So Lini was haunted for much of the adventure because I foolishly went to the Wishing Well first. The permanent closing for the Wishing Well basically says to banish all haunts on your character. What would happen to the haunts on Lini if we ended the adventure (with Lini still alive)? Do they stay with her or does ending the scenario remove all banes displayed with characters? I assume they would go away or haunts would be super annoying, but I wanted to check.
Steps in ending a scenario:
0. If you lost the scenario for any reason (such as running out of cards in the blessings deck), immediately end the current character's turn. This means that you immediately apply any end of turn effects and then reset your hand. You cannot play any cards or use any powers while doing this. This may cause your character to die if you don't have enough cards left in your deck.1. If you won the scenario, the game ends immediately. You do not finish the current turn, so you do not reset your hand. You earn the rewards listed on the scenario card. If you won every scenario in the adventure, you earn the rewards listed on the adventure card. If you won every adventure in the adventure path, you earn the rewards listed on the adventure path card. Your character may not earn any given reward more than once unless the reward specifically tells you otherwise.
2. If any displayed boons could be banished or removed from the game when a condition is met (such as the end of an encounter, the end of a turn, or a location closing), treat them as if that condition is occurring.
3. Put all cards other than boons back in the box.
4. Rebuild your character decks.
5. Put any remaining cards back in the box.
Step 3 is where you get rid of any Pirate Shade Haunts that are still displayed by your character. Note, however, that should Lini have beaten Kelizar that there would be no more haunts to banish by the time you get around to step 3, and that is because of how the villain encounter sequence works:
0. If any effects state they happen when you flip over a card, and you flipped over the villain (in other words, it came from a location deck), those take effect at this time.
1. Attempt to temporarily close open locations. You cannot temporarily close the villain's location. You choose the order in which the attempts are made. If you move before you attempt to temporarily close, you attempt to close the location you are now at, not your previous one. Temporarily closing a location only prevents the villain from escaping there, it does not otherwise count as a closed location for any other card or power. I typically turn temporarily closed locations sideways to indicate that they are temp closed, and to distinguish them from actually closed locations (which are flipped over).
2. Encounter the villain:
2.1. Apply any effects that happen when you encounter a card.
2.2. Apply any evasion effects. If you evade the villain, it is shuffled back into the same location (it does not escape). It is neither defeated nor undefeated, and the encounter is now over (do not go through any of the following steps).
2.3. Apply any effects that happen before you act.
2.4. Attempt the check.
2.5. Attempt the next check, if needed. This could be due to a villain requiring multiple checks, or because you played a card that has you perform a check (like most spells and some items). Repeat this step until there are no more checks to attempt.
2.6. Apply any effects that happen after you act.
3. If you defeat the villain, close the villain's location. This is automatic, you do not do the When Closing:
3.1. Search the location deck for additional villains; if you find any banish all non-villain cards then shuffle the rest. The location is not closed, so skip the rest of step 3. If there are no other open locations for the villain you defeated to escape to, banish that villain (it does not escape back to the same location).
3.2. Apply any When Permanently Closed effects that state "before closing."
3.3. Banish all cards from the location deck. You may encounter any cohorts you would banish instead. The location is now closed.
3.4. Apply any When Permanently Closed effects that state "on closing."
3.5. Flip the location card over.
4. Check to see whether the villain escapes. If there are any open locations, the villain escapes to one of them. Count the number of open (not temporarily closed or permanently closed) locations and subtract 1, grab that number of blessings from the box if you defeated the villain. If you did not defeat the villain, grab that number of blessings from the blessings deck instead. Shuffle the villain in with those blessings and distribute 1 of them to each open location, then shuffle those location decks. You do not get to know which location the villain escaped to.
5. If the villain has nowhere to escape to, you win. Do not finish the current turn, the scenario ends immediately.
So, if Lini did beat Kelizar, you still permanently close the Wishing Well, and the haunts would be banished at that time. In rare cases, it is possible to lose the scenario or die in the process of permanently closing the location after cornering and defeating the villain. Should you lose the scenario for any reason before you get to step 5 of the villain sequence, the loss takes effect first and you do not win.
Do not go through the villain encounter sequence if you are told to summon and encounter a villain; treat that as any regular encounter instead. Do not temporarily close locations, defeating the villain does not close any locations, and the villain does not escape.
Wow, that's an exhaustive summary. Everything is spot-on, as far as I can tell.
It's funny -- we put the character token on top of the location deck's cards to indicate a location is temporarily closed.
justaworm -- the house rules look reasonable. Many people don't play permadeath, it's too time-consuming.
Wow, that's an exhaustive summary. Everything is spot-on, as far as I can tell.
It's funny -- we put the character token on top of the location deck's cards to indicate a location is temporarily closed.
justaworm -- the house rules look reasonable. Many people don't play permadeath, it's too time-consuming.
I missed a step because I initially thought it wasn't needed :(. Add in the following:
2.7. Resolve the encounter. If any effects happen when a card is defeated or undefeated, those happen at this time.
Thanks everyone for your advice, and we are getting the hang of it pretty well I think.
Here is another one that I couldn't seem to answer from the rules.
When a character, like Seelah, has multiple powers that can be activated 'At the start of your turn', you can activate all of them, correct? I assumed so, but figured I should check ...
Yes. And if multiple things activate at the same time, you choose the order.