FAQ and Optional Rules

v3.0, July 22, 2006

Amended from the original Fantasy Flight FAQ v1.0 By The Brothers Kelley

This document contains errata, frequently asked questions and HEAD OF CHURCH AND CHAIRMAN OF ASSEMBLY
optional rules for the Warrior Knights board game. Q: If the Head of the Church loses some Faith, such that I now
have more Faith than any other player, do I immediately become
ERRATA Head of the Church?
In the “Draw Fate Cards” step of battle, neither player may draw A: No! The Head of the Church only changes hands when a
more than 10 cards. The players may draw additional Fate cards player using the “Serve the Church” Action card has more Faith
for “Draw 1 Fate” as usual, however. than any other player. Chairman of the Assembly works the
same way with the “Rally Support” action. Except for a few
The component list shown on page 2 should have the following Agent and Event cards, “Serve the Church” and “Rally Support”
corrections: are the only way that these tokens change hands.

• 93 Crown Tokens (in 1’s and 5’s) NOBLES

• 44 Influence (in 1’s, 3’s and 5’s) Q: I have a Noble with 150 troops and 100 Casualties. Do I
• 24 Casualty Tokens (all –100s) have to pay wages for all 150 troops?
• 18 Breach Tokens (singled-sided) A: Yes, you must attempt to pay all your Regular troops, and
• 44 Agenda Cards you must pay each Mercenary if you do not want them to desert.
In game terms, troops add to a Noble’s strength and Casualties
The setup diagram on page 9 should read “Draw a number of take away from it by reducing a Noble’s strength but without
Mercenary cards equal to one more than the number of players necessarily killing troops. Therefore, Barons must always pay
and place them face up, as shown here.” wages for their troops, regardless of Casualty Tokens.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Q: If my Noble takes Casualties outside of a battle (for

example, because of the “Assassin” Event card) that reduce him
CANCELING EVENTS to 0 strength, does he instantly die?
Q: If I have a lasting Event played on me (such as “Heretic”), A: Yes. If the number of Casualties on a Noble is ever equal to
can I cancel it at a later time or do I need to spend the Faith as or greater than the number of troops in the army, the Noble
soon as the card is played? leading that army immediately dies.
A: Event cards must be canceled at the time that the Event is
played. Once an Event card with a lasting effect is played (and Q: I have a Noble with 250 troops and 200 Casualties. The
not canceled), the victim is stuck with it for the remainder of the Wages phase is triggered and I cannot pay for one of my 100
game. Only a Private Motion will allow a player to get rid of Mercenaries, so they desert. What happens to the Noble (who is
one of these cards (see also the “Miracles Can Happen” optional now at -50 strength)?
rule, below).
A: The Noble dies, since he now has Casualties equal to or
greater than the troops in his army. This is a good reason to
GENERAL COMBAT remove Casualties from your Nobles (if you get the chance) and
Q: If an opponent controls a City and has a Noble in the City’s to be sure to keep money for the Wages phase (see also the
area, can I move a Noble in this area and attack the opponent’s “Abandoned Nobles” optional rule in this FAQ).
Noble in open-field battle?
A: No. Defending Nobles in a region with a City their Baron Q: If a Noble loses all his troops but has no Casualties, does the
controls are considered to be in the City (middle column, page Noble die or is he simply removed from the board? This matters
14), so they may only be attacked by assault or siege. for such cards as “No Heir.”
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A: The Noble is removed from the board (because he has no STRONGHOLDS
troops) but he does not die unless he has Casualties assigned to Q: Can I place my Stronghold in a space with a razed City?
him. The Noble may return to the board on a later turn normally. A: Yes! A Stronghold may be placed in any Kingdom space
This similar to when a Noble moves and another Noble in his (not overseas) that does not contain a plastic City piece or an
area transfers all his troops to the moving Noble. The now- opponent’s Stronghold.
troopless Noble is removed from the board, but not considered
dead for the purposes of “No Heir” and “Broken Line.”
OPTIONAL RULES
Q: I have two Nobles attacking an opponent in battle. Is only ABANDONED NOBLES
the commanding Noble exhausted or are both of my Nobles If a Noble dies because of desertion he is considered abandoned
exhausted after the battle? instead of dead, even with Casualty Tokens. Abandoned Nobles
A: Any and all Nobles that move or attack using “Mobilize are removed from the board and treated the same as Nobles that
Forces” or “Versatile Action” are always exhausted after they have died (i.e. remove Casualties/troops) except that abandoned
move and/or attack, regardless of whether or not they are the Nobles are not considered dead for such cards as “No Heir.”
commanding Noble. However, remember that if you are the This variant makes Mercenary desertion a little less harsh.
attacker and you have multiple Nobles in an area, you do not
have to attack with all of them (and any Nobles that do not MIRACLES CAN HAPPEN
move or attack would remain unexhausted). With this variant, Barons may cancel Events with continuous
effects (e.g. “No Heir” and “Heretic”) long after they happen by
Q: Does the “Circle” Noble’s +200 strength count for purposes paying 1 additional Faith over the printed cancellation cost that
of his ability (“does not pay wages for troops if army size is he could have paid at the time the Event was played.
under 450”)? Do the strength of “maintained” troops gained
from the Assembly count towards the 450? Example: the Noble Esteban di Gaudi has just become victim of
A: The “Circle” Noble’s +200 strength represents strength from the “No Heir” Event card. His Baron, Guillaume de Limon, does
leadership, not troops, so do not count it towards the 450. Do not have the 2 Faith required to cancel this Event, and di Gaudi
count maintained troops’ strength since they are in fact troops. is therefore stuck with it. On a future turn, Baron de Limon
accumulates 3 Faith and uses it to cancel “No Heir.”
SIEGES
Q: When comparing the attacker’s and the defender’s strength These miracles have limits. In the above example, Baron de
to determine whether the attacker may choose to siege, are Limon would not be able to cancel “No Heir” (or “Broken
Casualties and Breaches taken into account? Line”) after Esteban di Gaudi’s death!
A: Yes!
GARRISONS
Q: My Noble is besieging a City and takes Casualties so that he A Noble can leave behind a garrison of troops to maintain order
no longer has enough strength to siege the City on a future turn. in a City he owns, or to add to its defenses. Like any other type
Can I have another Noble enter the area and assist in the siege? of troop transfer, the Noble must be in the City, and may only
A: Yes, you may have another Noble assist in a siege. You do so during the Upkeep phase. Garrisoned Troop Cards are
could even have a different Noble enter the area while the first placed beneath the City ownership marker.
Noble leaves, so that a different Noble finishes the siege.
However, if you ever leave the area of the siege without any To keep a City from revolting the garrison must equal at least
Nobles, the siege is lifted. half its strength. A garrison less than that number can still be
deployed for defensive purposes, but revolts will occur as usual.
Q: Can a besieged Baron send reinforcements with “Versatile The number of troops garrisoned cannot exceed the strength of
Strategy” or “Mobilize Forces” without engaging combat? the City. The strength of all garrisoned troop Cards is added to
A: Yes. Keep in mind that Nobles who are in an area with a City the City’s defense during battles.
their Baron controls are always considered to be defending the
City. Therefore, a player could move into one of his besieged Garrisons take Casualties like any other army does, but are lost
Cities with a Noble, but would not be able to move out until the permanently during a revolt, or if the City falls to an enemy.
siege is lifted. They must be paid Wages per the usual rules whenever a Wages
phase is triggered.
Q: Can a Baron place an off-board Noble at his Stronghold if it
is under siege? RANSOM
A: Yes. Although off-board Nobles may not be placed at Once defeating a Noble and his army, the victor’s Baron can opt
besieged Cities, a Baron is always able to place off-board to capture the Noble instead of killing him for the opportunity of
Nobles (and assign Mercenaries acquired through the Mercenary ransoming him back to his Baron, either for Crowns or whatever
Draft) to his Stronghold. can be negotiated.

Q: If I’ve started a siege this turn, do I have to finish the Siege SURRENDER
during the next game round? A Baron can pledge allegiance to another Baron, giving that
A: No. You may finish the siege on any future game round Baron control of all he has. The surrendering Baron is now out
(unless the siege is lifted, of course). of the game and all his forces go to the Baron he surrendered to.
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TREACHERY REMOVE CASUALTIES
If at any point during the game a Baron reneges on an in-game The “Muster Troops” neutral Action Card still allows Baron’s to
deal and betrays the trust of another Baron (such as pledging to remove all Casualty Tokens from a single army at a cost of 2
ally, agreeing to a truce, or promising not to make a certain Crowns per token. However, for gamers who find that this card
move) his standing in the Kingdom is damaged and he must is not drawn often enough for their playing style, a variant could
return 1 Influence token to the Pool. If the betrayal results in the be used that would allow Barons to remove 1 Casualty per turn
loss of a City the offending Baron forfeits 2 tokens, for the death during Phase 6 of Upkeep at a cost of 2 Crowns.
of a Baron or Noble 3 tokens, and the loss of a Stronghold 5, all
cumulatively. If the Baron does not have enough Influence to TROOP LEVIES
forfeit to the Pool then he pays only what he can, but is branded Once a Noble takes control of a Kingdom City (one that is not
a Heretic as though he had drawn that Event Card. overseas), he may enlist a military from its citizenry equal to the
City’s strength. This is done by picking Mercenary cards from
CAPITULATION the top of the deck and paying 2 Crowns for each. If the City is
A Noble in a besieged City can ask for a truce. This allows the not diplomatically controlled he must also pay 1 Faith for each.
Noble and his army to leave safely if he hands over his City to The Noble must of course reside in the City to accomplish this,
the attacking forces, and no troops are lost on either side. If the and may do so only during Upkeep per the usual rules for
terms are accepted, the besieged Noble and his army move one transferring troops. To indicate Kingdom troops the cards are
space away and the City ownership marker is replaced. A player placed face down, always with a strength of 100.
laying siege can always refuse the truce offer, but once accepted
must abide by its terms for the duration of the turn. If he reneges When Kingdom troops are levied a Casualty Marker is placed
on his promise not to attack and the Treachery optional rule is in on the City for each 100-troop card, temporarily reducing its
play (which is recommended), the Noble is guilty of Treachery defensive force. These can be removed per the normal method.
and must suffer the consequences described. This rule could be Penalties for Casualty Markers and Breach Tokens on Cities are
used for Barons when laying siege to a Stronghold as well if an not cumulative (e.g. if a City has both a Breach and Casualty, it
elimination variant is being used. only has a penalty of 100). Once the maximum number of
troops has been levied from a City (i.e. 100 troops per 100 City
DIPLOMATIC CONQUEST strength), no more can be until at least one Casualty Marker is
Barons may attempt to enlist a Kingdom City’s support (not one removed. If a City with Casualty Markers becomes neutral due
overseas) diplomatically by sending a Noble with an appeal to to a revolt (the citizenry having mustered their own troops to
its citizenry. This is initiated with either a “Mobilize Forces” or replace what had been levied) all markers are removed, but they
“Versatile Action” card, playing it like any attack and placing it remain if taken over by another Noble.
in the “Assembly” or “Wages” area appropriately. The Baron
then spends either 1 Faith or twice the City’s income in Crowns. DEFECTOR
For neutral Cities or Cities forcefully controlled by another Barons may attempt to turn an opposing Noble by spending 30
Baron, the top Fate Card is drawn. If the result is “Revolt!” the Crowns or 3 Faith and drawing 3 Fate Cards. If the result of all
Noble takes control of it immediately, placing a Control Marker 3 cards is “Revolt!” the Noble defects, but if one of them is “No
beneath the City, and a Baron Marker next to it. If the result is Revolt” he stays loyal. A defected noble is controlled just like
“No Revolt” the City’s loyalty lies elsewhere and the Faith or any other Noble, although upon defection he loses Regular
Crowns he spent campaigning are gone, although he is free to troops, who return to the first Baron’s Stronghold, and if he held
make another attempt on any subsequent turn. For Cities that are an office it is discarded. If the Noble refuses, the Baron retains
diplomatically owned by another Baron, 3 Fate Cards must be the Crowns he offered, but can never attempt to turn a Noble of
drawn, and only if all 3 are “Revolt!” does ownership change. that color again. Whether the Noble accepts or rejects the offer,
however, the Baron must forfeit 3 Influence points back to the
Offers cannot be made to Cities if the controlling Baron has a Pool, as his devious actions have become known.
Noble or a garrison (refer to the “Garrison” variant) in the City.
Nor can offers be made to a City once that Baron has at some ALTERNATE 2 or 3 PLAYER RULES
point in the game attacked or besieged it. Barons may send a Instead of razing 11 Kingdom Cities for a 2 or 3 player game,
Noble to renegotiate the diplomatic takeover of a City they have raze 9. The rule restricting the placement of Strongholds on the
lost as long as they have never attempted to take it by force. outer rim is nullified. Put 20 Influence in the Pool per player.

If a Baron forcefully takes over a City that is diplomatically LIMITED HEIRS

controlled by another Baron, the Baron Marker of the previous It is assumed that every Noble has at least one heir that can take
owner remains next to it to indicate its political disposition. That his place if he dies, barring the “No Heir” Event Card (although
Baron can always come back and retake the City by merely see “Miracles Can Happen” above). When the first heir is killed
paying 1 Faith or twice the City’s income in Crowns, without the Baron draws a Fate Card. Unless he picks a card with the
having to draw a Fate Card, as long as the current Baron’s symbol for the Noble that was killed, he has another heir and
owner does not have a Noble or garrison in the City. If the City can be replaced on the board during Upkeep. To make it more
revolts or is diplomatically taken over, however, the Baron difficult this can be reversed, in which case the Noble has an
Marker of the previous owner is removed. Diplomatically heir only if his symbol is drawn. This process could also be used
controlled Cities have a much smaller chance of revolting, to determine the lineage of Barons if some form of elimination
allowing Barons to draw 3 Fate Cards during Upkeep. Only if variant is being used (see “Modified Player Elimination”).
all three cards show “Revolt!” do they do so.
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 ADVANCED OPTIONAL RULES Win By Influence Gain/Loss Table
MODIFIED PLAYER ELIMINATION Action/Ownership Gain Loss
With this variant Barons have at least 1 heir, and possibly more, Kingdom City N/A 1
ala the “Limited Heirs” optional rule, using the Baron crest on Overseas City N/A 2
the Fate Card to determine if an heir exists (i.e. the Baron has no Diplomatic City N/A 0/1
heir if he picks his own crest). Loss of Stronghold N/A Half
Half of Unrazed Kingdom Cities 3 3
If a Baron’s Stronghold is razed but he is either not executed Raze a Stronghold 3 N/A
(see “Win By Influence”), or has an heir, the defeated Baron Battle Victory at 1:2 Odds 1 N/A
must forfeit half of his Influence to the Pool, then during Battle Defeat at 2:1 Odds N/A 1
Upkeep may replace his Stronghold as stated in “Attacking A Head of Church 3 3
Stronghold” in the original rules, although with 4 breaches on it, Chairman of Assembly 3 3
indicating it’s still being constructed. If “Win By Influence” is Each Single army of 500 of more 1 1
being used the victor is instantly awarded 3 Influence tokens Act of Kindness 1 N/A
(instead of 1 City and half the defeated Baron’s Crowns). Attempts Noble Defection 0 3
Treachery 0 1-8
If the attacking Baron shows no mercy and the executed Baron
has no heirs, then use the optional “Player Elimination” rule in Note that taking over a City does not provide an instant boost to
the original book with two changes: all his Influence tokens are Influence, which is still gleaned during Upkeep per the normal
returned to the Pool, and his Nobles remain on the board. If any rules. However, losing a City does impart an instance Loss.
Nobles were in the Stronghold, the victor may decide to execute Items that have a Gain and Loss that are equal indicate those
the Baron but spare his Nobles, which for the time being should that provide a boost in Influence only so long as the condition
be placed to the side of the board. During Upkeep, it’s possible exists or the item is held, while others have a more permanent
that surviving Nobles might pledge fealty to one of the Barons, impact. It is recommended that the Treachery optional rule be
who in turn may spend Crowns or Faith to vie for their loyalty. used. If not, the Treachery item will of course not apply.

Starting with the Baron with the most Influence and proceeding The Loss value for diplomatically owned Cities is based on how
accordingly (draw Fate Cards to determine ties, the Baron who the City is lost. If taken over by force, which leaves the Baron
picks his own crest first going before the other), each Baron Marker in place, there is no loss of Influence, but if taken over
draws 1 Fate Card. If a card with one of the surviving Noble’s diplomatically or due to revolt, in which case the Baron Marker
symbols on it is picked, that Noble has approached the Baron would be removed, 1 Influence is lost.
and offered his allegiance. The Noble is immediately placed on
the Baron’s Stronghold. The Noble retains his army, but must Acts of Kindness include: the Head of Church giving a Green
“Draw for Deserters” (see “Noble Death” in the rules), and any Event Card to another Baron or taking a Red Event on himself, a
offices he held are discarded. Baron using Faith to cancel a Red Event that’s affecting another
Baron, covering the cost of a Red Event for a Baron who can’t
If the Fate Card a Baron draws does not match the symbol of a afford it, granting Capitulation (if Capitulation is used), letting a
surviving Noble then he gains no new Noble. No more than one Noble go free after defeating his army instead of killing him or
Noble can be given to each Baron per elimination. A Baron may holding him for ransom (if Ransom is used), cutting taxes in
attempt to influence a particular Noble by paying 10 Crowns or half for all Cities Taxation, or paying double Wages to all troops
1 Faith before drawing his Fate Card, giving him the ability to Wages. More Gains and Losses could be added but should be
draw 3 Fate Cards and picking the Noble symbol of his choice. carefully considered and agreed upon.
However, even if none of his Fate Cards depict a surviving
Noble he loses his Crowns or Faith. Any Nobles remaining after WIN BY INFLUENCE 2
every Baron has drawn are removed from play along with all Another variation of this optional rule removes the acquisition
troops, having given up on their quest for power. of Influence each turn during Upkeep for Cities, placing it into
the same category as other items for instant Gain or Loss. In this
WIN BY INFLUENCE case, starting Influence is not calculated based on the number of
A Baron is crowned king only by possessing the most Influence players participating, but on the number of Kingdom Cities that
when the Pool runs out. Political favor becomes more important are razed at the start of the game, plus 5 (e.g. for 3 players the
than sheer amount of property owned, but owning Cities is still number of tokens in the Influence Pool would be 7+5=12).
fundamental to winning. With this variant Influence is flexible Replace the Gain/Loss values for Cities in the previous table
and may fluctuate up and down as the game proceeds. Although with those below.
still accumulated during Upkeep at a rate of 1 token per City
owned, certain actions or events cause a rise or fall in Influence Win By Influence 2 Gain/Loss Table
instantaneously. Instant Influence is awarded no matter what
Action/Ownership Gain Loss
circumstances a Baron finds himself in, while the Influence
Kingdom City 1 1
gained during Upkeep is affected per the usual rules (e.g. a
Overseas City 2 2
Baron who’s Stronghold is under siege would not get Influence
Diplomatic City 2 1/2
for Cities during Upkeep). The below table depicts a list of what
City under siege N/A 1
will cause an instant Gain or Loss of Influence.
The “City under siege” item constitutes a temporary loss only, If at any time a Baron who has pledged fealty to the new King
and the Influence is returned if the siege is lifted. If the City is takes an action the King feels is treasonous, the King may brand
lost as a result of the siege, the Influence lost for the siege is him a traitor, at which time the offending Baron suffers the
subtracted from the Loss listed for losing a City (e.g. a Kingdom penalties of “Treachery” (even if the “Treachery” variant isn’t
City under siege causes a temporary loss of 1 Influence as long being used for any other aspect of the game). That Baron is then
as the siege is going on, meaning that if the siege were to lift the once again at risk of City revolts along with Barons who refused
Influence would be returned, but that if the City were to be lost, to pledge fealty. If at any time all remaining Barons concede the
the Influence would be permanently gone, and if the City was throne to the King, or if every unrazed Kingdom City falls under
overseas, an additional Influence would be lost at the time of his control, the game ends.
takeover since the total Loss of an overseas City is 2).
If a Baron manages to raze the Stronghold of the new King but
CORONATION chooses to spare his life, or if the King has an heir, the royal
In this variant the game is not over when the Influence Pool runs power he had vanishes. He loses half his Influence, 3 Votes and
dry, but it does give the Baron with the highest Influence score 3 Faith, and he is subject to any elimination options in play. The
the sole claim to the throne. That Baron now has the blessing of Baron with the most Votes becomes Chairman of Assembly and
the Kingdom and the church and is crowned King. He gains 3 the Baron with the most Faith becomes Head of Church. Iif the
Votes and 3 Faith, and receives the Chairman of Assembly and Baron who was King still has enough Votes or Faith he retains
Head of Church status. Furthermore, his Cities as well as the either position, although cannot retain both, keeping whichever
Cities of any Nobles who ally with him will never revolt, even he has the most tokens for. Revolts for all Barons revert to the
without the presence of a Noble (or garrison, if the “Garrison” normal process, and play continues until the Influence Pool runs
option is being used). Conversely, for all Cities not under his out again.
authority Barons must draw 2 Fate Cards instead of 1 when they
check for revolts, with a revolt occurring if either card shows
“Revolt!” If a City revolts it falls under the control of the King,
who places a Control Marker beneath it.