C arddom b y Adrien Charpentier Carddom is a solitaire card game that encourages you to build a story as you play. What you need : a deck of 34 cards (32 cards + 2 jokers) How to play : Shuffle the cards. Pick one at random . That card is your character (CC) You picked a King : you’re a noble You picked a Queen : you’re a member of the clergy You picked a Jack : you’re a merchant You picked an Ace : you’re a soldier You picked a 10 , 9 , 8 or 7 : you’re a commoner The suit of the card tells what goal you r character is pursuing: clover is fame, heart is justice, spade is power, diamond is wealth. Place the remaining cards on the table, face down, by stacks of four. This is the realm you are visiting. The last remaining card you place face down, horizontally, between the two stack s at the back (see figure next page ). That card is the overlord of the realm. Back Front The goal is to subdue the overlord by having, when you reveal it, at least one card that matches the value of the overlord and one card that matches the suit of the overlord. Y ou enter the realm: c hoose one stack of four cards at the front and (1) reveal the top card. The top card of e ach stack is a location. Heart : a city Spade : a mo untain Clover : a forest Diamond : a plain or a field The higher the value, the bigger the location (but this is useful for storybuilding only). If the card has either the same value or is of the same suit as your character card, you can pick it and put it next to your character card. If not, you have to lea ve it in place. You can now decide to explore the location you just revealed [go to 2] or move to another location by moving horizonta lly or vertically to a nother stack of four cards next to the one you a re leaving and [go back to (1)]. You d on’t have to pick the card as soon as you reveal it. You can choose to reveal more cards in the same or even other stack s before you make your pick. However , y ou can only ever pick ONE card in each st ack. 2) If you choose to explore the location, you can reveal the second card of the stack. The second card of e ach stack represents the people that inhabit that location. Heart : humans Spade : dwarves Clover : elves Diamond : kobolds The higher the value, the more the people (but this is useful for storybuilding only). Again, if the card has either the same value or is of the same suit as your character card or any other card that you have already picked , you can pick it and put it next to your character card. If not, you have to leave it in place. You can now decide to interact with the people you just met [go to 3] or move to another location by moving hor izonta lly or vertically to another stack of four cards next to the one you are leaving and [go back to ( 1 ) ]. 3) If you choose to interact with the people, you can reveal the third card in the stack as you will learn about their values and the things they cherish most in life. Heart : friendship Spade : craft Clover : magic Diamond : food The higher the value, the more the people are attached to and live according to these values (but this is useful for storybuilding only). Again, if the card has either the same value or is of the same suit as your character card or any other card that you have already picked , you can pick it and put it next to your character card. If not, you have to leave it in place. You can now decide to stay a while longer and live with the people you are now acquainted with [go to 4] or move to another location by moving horizonta lly or vertically to another stack of four cards next to the one you are leaving and [go back to ( 1 ) ] 4 ) If you choose to prolong your stay with the people, you can reveal the fourth, last card in the stack as the people will make a gift to you before you leave definitely. Heart : love Spade : knowledge Clover : blessing Diamond : wealth The higher the value, the more valuable the gift (but this is useful for storybuilding only). Again, if the card has either the same value or is of the same suit as your character card or any other card that you have already picked , you can pick it and pu t it next to your character card. If not, you have to leave it in place. As it is the last card in the stack, you have to move to another location now. You can always move back to a location you have visited before if you haven’t explored it thoroughfully , but you have to follow the rules of movement Remember that you can only ever pick one card in each stack. When you feel ready to stand before the overlord , reveal the horizontal card at the back. If the overlord card is an Ace , it is a warlord. If the overlord card is a King , it is a king. If the overlord card is a Queen , it is a witch. If the overlord card is a Jack , it is a n alchemist If the overlord card is a ten , it is a secret society. If the overlord card is a nine , it is a curse. If the overlord card is an eight , it is a n eldritch god If the overlord card is a seven , it is a beast The suit of the overlord card tells its motivation: clover is madness, heart is desperation, spade is wickedness , diamond is vengeance. If you have at least one card that matches the value of the overlord’s card and at least one card that matches the suit of the overlord’s card, you subdue him (in whatever way fits your story) and win the game. If you ever pick one of the two J okers during your explora ti on of the realm, you lose. The J oker is a monster , a dragon , a trap or an illness , whatever bad occurrence that will fit (and end) your story. If you pick a Joker as your character card, start again. If the overlord card happens to be a Joker, then your journey was doomed to fail from the beginning. As mentioned in the introduction, Carddom is a game that wants you to build a story around it . Don’t forget that! Find reasons for what is going on! Say you are a member of the cle rgy, what are you doin g in this realm ? Are you here to convert people? Are you on a pilgrimage? Why are elves living in the mountain s and why do they value food so much? Maybe they endured a famine and had to leave their ancestral forests (that are now popula t ed with magic - lovi ng kobolds). W hat kind of blessing did these field - reaping dwarves gave you, a soldier, before you left them ? The metal their ploughs is made of is probably of the best quality, and would make a great weapon for a warrior like you How did that secret soci ety turn on its head and plunge into madness? Bureaucracy does that sometimes, especially if you rely on kobolds to order your files... SUMMARY OF CARD Character card: You picked a King : you’re a noble You picked a Queen : you’re a member of the clergy You picked a Jack : you’re a merchant You picked an Ace : you’re a soldier You picked a 10 , 9 , 8 or 7 : you’re a commoner The suit of the card tells what your character is pursuing: clover is fame, heart is justice, spade is power, diamond is wealth. Overlord card If the overlord card is an Ace , it is a warlord If the overlord card is a King , it is a king If the overlord card is a Queen , it is a witch If the overlord card is a Jack , it is a n alchemist If the overlord card is a ten , it is a secret society If the overlord card is a nine , it is a curse If the overlord card is an eight , it is an eldritch go d If the overlord card is a seven , it is a beast The suit of the overlord card tells its motivation: clover is madness, heart is desperation, spade is wickedness, diamond is vengeance. Location (1 st card in stack) Heart : a city Spade : a mountain Clover : a forest Diamond : a plain or a field People (2 nd card in stack) Heart: humans Spade: dwarves Clover: elves Diamond : kobolds People’s Values (3 rd card in stack) Heart : friendship Spade : craft Clover : magic Diamond : food Gift (4 th card in stack) Heart : love Spade : knowledge Clover : blessing Diamond : wealth