How to Play KeyForge: Age of Ascension – Archon Deck

Game Objective

Welcome to the Crucible, Archon! In KeyForge, you take on the role of an Archon and command your unique deck in a card duel against an opponent. The main objective is to collect Æmber to forge keys. The first player to forge three keys immediately wins the duel, opening a Vault and claiming its contents.

Setup

To set up the duel, follow these steps in order:

1. Place all key tokens and Æmber tokens in a general supply within reach of both players.
2. Each player places their identity card to the right or left of their play area.
3. Each player places three key tokens, one of each color, near their identity card, with the un-forged side face up.
4. Randomly determine the first player. This player will take the first turn when the duel begins. (If players are in a series of games between two decks, in each game after the first, the player with the deck that was defeated in the previous game chooses who will be the first player.)
5. Each player shuffles their deck and offers it to the opponent for further shuffling and/or cutting.
6. The first player draws an opening hand of seven cards. The other player draws an opening hand of six cards.
7. Each player, starting with the first, is entitled to a mulligan: the player may shuffle their opening hand back into their deck and draw a new hand with one less card. (This step is skipped in the Quick Start game.)

The game can now begin.

Game Flow

The game consists of a series of turns, where players alternate taking their turns until one of them wins. Each turn consists of five steps, performed in the following order by the active player:

1. Forge a key.
2. Choose a house.
3. Play, discard, and use cards from the active house.
4. Ready cards.
5. Draw cards.

The player taking their turn is the active player and is the only one who can perform actions or make decisions. After Step 5, the active player's turn ends.

Actions and How to Play

During their turn, the active player performs the following actions:

Step 1: Forge a Key

• To forge a key, the active player spends Æmber from the Æmber pool on their identity card, returning it to the general supply.
• Then, they flip one of their key tokens to the forged side.
• The standard cost to forge a key is six Æmber, but card abilities can modify this value.
• Only one key can be forged in this step per turn, unless a card effect allows more.
• If the total Æmber on cards with effects that allow the Æmber on them to be spent is greater than or equal to the cost to forge a key, you must do so during this step.

Step 2: Choose a House

• The active player chooses one of the three houses from their identity card to activate, making it the active house for the remainder of the turn.
• The active house determines which cards the active player can play, discard from their hand, or use in the turn.
• After choosing a house, the active player may take all cards from their archive and put them into their hand.
• If a player controls a card that does not belong to one of the three houses on their identity card, they may choose that card's house as the active house.
• A player cannot choose to activate a house unless it is on their identity card or they control a card that belongs to that house.

Step 3: Play, Discard, and Use Cards from the Active House

• The active player may play or discard from their hand as many cards as they wish that belong to the active house.
• They may also use as many cards as they wish from the active house that are in play under their control.
• Eligible cards can be played, used, or discarded in any order.
• A card's house is indicated by an icon in the upper left corner.
• First Turn Rule: On the first player's first turn, they cannot play or discard more than one card from their hand.
• The active player cannot play, use, or discard cards from other (non-active) houses, unless a card ability allows it.

Card Types and How to Use Them:

• Action Cards: When an action card is played, the active player resolves the "Play:" ability of the card and, after resolving as much as possible, places it in their discard pile.
• Artifacts: Enter play exhausted and are placed in a row in front of the player, but behind their battle line. They remain in play from one turn to the next.
  • To use artifacts, the active player exhausts them and resolves their abilities.
  • "Action:" abilities can only be used if the artifact belongs to the active house.
  • "Omni:" abilities can be resolved even if the artifact does not belong to the active house.
  • Artifacts cannot be used to reap or fight.
• Upgrades: Enter play attached to a chosen creature. They remain in play from one turn to the next and modify the card to which they are attached. If the attached creature leaves play, the upgrade is discarded. They are not used independently of the creature.
• Creatures: Enter play in the active player's battle line, always on a flank (left or right end), and remain in play from one turn to the next. They have power and armor values.
  • When a creature is used, it becomes exhausted and the active player has the option to reap, fight, or activate its "Action:" or "Omni:" ability.
  • Reap: Any ready creature from the active house can reap. The creature becomes exhausted, the controller gains 1 Æmber for their Æmber pool, and "Reap:" abilities are resolved.
  • Fight: Any ready creature from the active house can fight. The creature becomes exhausted, and the controller chooses an opponent's controlled creature as a target. Both creatures deal damage to each other equal to their power simultaneously. After the fight, if the creature used survives, "Fight:" abilities are resolved. A creature cannot fight if there is no enemy creature to target.
  • Action: Any ready creature from the active house can activate its "Action:" ability. The creature becomes exhausted and the ability is resolved.
  • Omni: Any ready creature can activate its "Omni:" ability, even if it does not belong to the active house. The creature becomes exhausted and the ability is resolved.

Step 4: Ready Cards

• The active player readies all their exhausted cards (turning them vertically).

Step 5: Draw Cards

• The active player draws cards from the top of their deck until they have six cards in hand.
• If the active player has more than six cards in hand, they do not discard to get down to six.
• If the deck runs out, the active player shuffles their discard pile to form a new deck and continues to draw.
• If a player has chains, they draw fewer cards based on their chain level and then break one chain.
• After this step, the player's turn ends.

Important Concepts:

• Æmber Bonus: Several cards have an Æmber bonus under the house icon. When a card with an Æmber bonus is played, the active player gains that amount of Æmber, which is placed in their Æmber pool.
• Ready and Exhausted: Cards in play are in one of these conditions. Ready cards are vertical and can be used, which makes them exhausted (horizontal). Exhausted cards cannot be used until they are ready. All artifacts and creatures enter play exhausted.
• Damage and Armor: When a creature takes damage, damage tokens are placed on it. If the damage is equal to or greater than its power, it is destroyed. A creature's armor prevents an amount of damage equal to its value each turn. When a creature leaves play, all Æmber on it is gained by the opponent.
• Play Abilities: "Play:" abilities are resolved after the Æmber bonus is collected and the card enters play.
• Constant Abilities: Abilities without bolded introductions are constant, active as long as the card is in play and the conditions are met. They do not cause exhaustion.
• Golden Rule: If a card's text directly contradicts the rules text, the card's text takes precedence.
• Rule of Six: A player cannot play and/or use the same card and/or other copies of that card (same name) more than six times in the same turn.
• Chains: Represent disadvantages. If a player gains chains, they increase the number on the chain tracker. When drawing cards to refill their hand, they draw fewer cards and break one chain.
• Stun: A stunned creature cannot fight, reap, or use action or omni abilities. It can be exhausted to remove the stunned status.
• Capture: Captured Æmber is taken from the opponent's Æmber pool and placed on a creature controlled by the capturing player. It cannot be spent. When the creature leaves play, the Æmber is returned to the opponent.