How to Play Descent: The Road to Legend

Objective of the Game

In Descent: The Road to Legend, players take on the roles of heroes venturing across the land of Terrinoth to thwart the plans of the Overlord. The game is a campaign where heroes must complete quests, explore Dungeons, and manage their resources to grow stronger. The Overlord aims to complete their Plot and raze cities to achieve victory. The campaign concludes with the Final Battle at the Overlord’s Keep, where the ultimate winner is decided based on the success of these final confrontations.

Preparation (Setup)

1. Card Removal: Remove specific skills (Bardic Lore, Brawny, Ranger, Sharr the Brightwing, Telekinesis, Bear Tattoo) and Overlord cards (Poltergeist, Rolling Stone). Remove all Invulnerability Potions and associated Treasure Cache cards. Remove healing potions from the Copper, Silver, and Gold Treasure decks. Remove cards with well or stone altar icons if not using the corresponding expansions.
2. Hero Setup: Each player draws 3 Hero sheets and chooses 1. There must be 4 heroes in the campaign. Place the Hero party marker on Tamalir. One player acts as the treasurer, starting with 1,200 coins. Each hero takes their starting Skill cards (based on their sheet plus one from a deck of choice) and purchases starting equipment from the city store.
3. Overlord Setup: The Overlord chooses an Avatar sheet and places the Overlord’s Keep token on the map. They take the Sir Alric Farrow lieutenant card, 15 XP worth of Avatar Upgrades, and choose a Plot. The Plot’s zero-cost card is placed faceup.

Game Flow

The game progresses in Game Weeks consisting of the following steps:

1. Time Passes: Check if the campaign level advances based on combined Conquest points. The Overlord gains 1 Conquest token, plus 1 for each razed city.
2. Resolve Sieges: Remove Siege tokens from cities without a Lieutenant. If a city’s Siege tokens equal its Defense rating, roll a black power die; on a skull, the city is razed. If Tamalir is razed, the Overlord wins.
3. Overlord Actions: The Overlord may issue Orders (Move or Besiege) to Lieutenants and purchase 1 Upgrade.
4. Party Actions: The party collectively chooses to Move (travel along a trail, check for encounters, potentially enter a Dungeon or city) or Train (if in a city).

Actions and How to Play

Hero Actions

During an encounter, a hero may perform one of the following actions:

• Run: Move up to 2x Speed in MPs; cannot attack.
• Battle: Move 0 MPs; perform up to 2 attacks.
• Advance: Move up to Speed in MPs; perform 1 attack.
• Ready: Move up to Speed in MPs OR perform 1 attack; plus, may place 1 Hero Order.

Heroes may also spend Fatigue to add a black power die to an attack or upgrade a die level before rolling.

Overlord Actions

During encounters, the Overlord gains Threat based on the number of heroes and successful attacks. Threat is used to activate abilities on Incident cards or Lieutenant cards, move monsters, or upgrade attack dice.

Training and Upgrades

Heroes can Train at buildings in cities or Secret Master Areas to improve Traits (adding or upgrading power dice) or learn new Skills by spending coins and XP. The Overlord spends XP to purchase Avatar Upgrades, Treachery Upgrades, or Monster Upgrades.

End of Game and Scoring

The campaign ends after the Final Battle. When the Final Battle begins, both sides' Conquest totals are reset to 0. The Overlord’s Keep is explored as a Dungeon. During the battle with the Avatar, heroes and the Overlord gain wound bonuses based on Conquest tokens earned since entering the Keep. Once the Avatar is defeated or the heroes are eliminated, the Plot card is read to conclude the campaign. Consult the manual for specific Conquest values for killing leaders and Lieutenants.

Tips for Winning

• Manage Fatigue Wisely: Heroes can spend Fatigue to boost attacks or upgrade dice, but ensure you have enough to survive or use Rest orders when necessary.
• Prioritize Objectives: Whether it is activating Glyphs of Transport for Conquest points or preventing the Overlord from razing cities, focus on the campaign goals rather than just combat.
• Coordinate Equipment: Use the Party Treasurer to buy equipment that complements the party's Skill choices, and remember that Potions can be divided among the group as needed.