Game Objective

In Abyss, you compete to be crowned the King of Abyss by accumulating the most Influence Points (IP). You gain these points by affiliating Allies, recruiting Lords, and controlling Locations. Additionally, slaying Monsters earns you the gratitude of your peers in the form of Influence Point bonuses.

Preparation (Setup)

1. Place the game board in the middle of the table.
2. Shuffle the Location tiles and form a face-down stack to the side of the board; turn over the top tile.
3. Shuffle the Exploration cards and form a face-down deck on the Exploration Track.
4. Shuffle the Lord cards and form a face-down deck on the Lords space. Turn over the top six cards and place them in the Court.
5. Shuffle the Monster tokens and place them face down by the board.
6. Place the Threat token on the Threat Track as shown.
7. Place the ten Key tokens in a pile near the board.
8. Each player takes one Pearl from the supply and stores it in a plastic cup. The remaining Pearls are placed in leftover cups to form the Treasury.
9. Randomly determine the starting player.

Game Flow

Players take turns moving clockwise. On your turn, you must follow these steps in order:

1. Plot at Court (Optional): You may pay one Pearl to the Treasury to add one Lord to an empty space in the Court (filling the space furthest from the Lord deck). You may do this as many times as you wish, provided you can pay and there are empty spaces. This is not possible if the Court is full or the Lord deck is empty.
2. Take One Action (Mandatory): You must choose one of the following three actions:
   • Explore the Depths
   • Request Support From the Council
   • Recruit a Lord
3. Control Locations (Mandatory): If you gain a third Key, you must immediately take control of a Location.

Actions and How to Play

Explore the Depths

Reveal cards from the top of the Exploration deck one by one and place them on the Exploration Track (from the space closest to the deck moving right). For each card revealed:

• If it is an Ally: You must first offer other players the chance to buy it (clockwise). The first player to buy it pays the cost to you and adds the Ally to their hand. The cost increases during your turn: the first Ally costs 1 Pearl, the second 2 Pearls, and the third 3 Pearls. Each opponent can only purchase one Ally during your turn.
  • If no one buys it, you must either add it to your hand for free (which immediately ends your turn) or leave it on the board and reveal the next card.
  • If all spaces on the Exploration Track are filled and no one buys the last Ally, you must add it to your hand and gain one Pearl.
• If it is a Monster: You must either FIGHT THE MONSTER or KEEP EXPLORING.
  • FIGHT THE MONSTER: Victory is automatic. The Monster is discarded, and you win the reward shown on the Threat Track (which may include Pearls, Influence Points from a random Monster token, or Keys). After this, the Threat token returns to the first space of the Threat Track and your turn ends.
  • KEEP EXPLORING: Move the Threat token one space up the track and continue revealing cards.
  • Note: If a Monster is revealed on the last space of the Exploration Track, you must fight it. You receive the Threat Track reward plus one Pearl.

End of Exploration: Once you add an Ally to your hand or fight a Monster, your turn ends. Remaining Allies on the track are placed face down in the Council by Race. Monsters are placed in the Exploration discard pile.

Request Support From the Council

Take all cards from one stack in the Council (without looking at them) and add them to your hand.

Recruit a Lord

Choose one Lord available at Court and pay the costs shown on the card:

• Costs: You must play the exact number of different Races required. You may play multiple Allies of the same Race. The total value must meet the required number; extra points are lost. You may spend one Pearl for each missing point, but you must still play at least one Ally from each required Race.
• Affiliation: All Allies used to recruit are discarded except for the one with the lowest value, which becomes affiliated (placed face up in front of you). If there is a tie for the lowest value, you choose which one to keep.
• Lord Powers: Place the Lord face up. Powers marked with an arrow are applied once upon recruitment. Powers without an arrow are semi-permanent until the Lord is used to control a Location.
• Refill the Court: Slide remaining Lords to the right. If only two Lords remain, you gain two Pearls and must refill the Court from the deck.

Control Locations

When you have three Keys (from Monster fights or Lord symbols), you must take a Location. You may take a face-up Location or draw 1-4 Locations and choose one (placing the rest face up). Place the Location in front of you. Any Lords used to control it are slid underneath, hiding their Powers and using their Keys. These Lords are no longer "free."

End of Game and Scoring

The game ends when any player recruits their 7th Lord, or when a Lord is recruited and the Court cannot be completely refilled from the deck. The active player finishes their turn, and every other player takes one last turn.

Final Tally: Players affiliate the lowest-value Ally of each Race remaining in their hand; others are discarded. Total Influence Points are calculated from:

• Locations you control.
• Lords you have recruited.
• The strongest affiliated Ally from each Race.
• Monster tokens you hold.

The player with the highest Influence Point total wins. Ties are broken by the most Pearls, then by the highest value Lord.

Tips for Winning

• Manage your Keys: Use Lords with Key symbols or fight Monsters to gather the three Keys needed to control Locations, which provide significant Influence Point bonuses.
• Strategic Recruitment: Pay attention to Guild specialties; for example, Merchants provide Pearls, while Farmers provide high Influence Points.
• Control the Court: Use the Plot at Court action to bring specific Lords into play, but remember that this costs Pearls.