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UNITE THE GNOMES – PROTECT THE GARDEN
UNITE THE GNOMES – PROTECT THE GARDEN
GNOMAGEDDON is coming... do you have what it takes? With only the loyal gnomes in your field, you must build, demolish, steal and sabotage your way to victory. When the dust settles, only one can rule the neighbourhood – do whatever it takes.
GNOMAGEDDON is a casual and chaotically competitive card game about building a comboing strategy, watching it fail and spiraling out of control. Prepare for Gnomageddon, or herald its arrival, by using your structures and resources to both help and hinder. The only things standing in your way are the other players, morality and bad luck.
How to play GNOMAGEDDON: Garden War
How to play GNOMAGEDDON: Garden War
Let's Get Gnoming!
Let's Get Gnoming!
Garden War is the standard way to play GNOMAGEDDON. The rules are laid out in full here, but you can also download the rulebook as a PDF further down!
Set up the battlefield as shown to the right. The number of cards in the shop should be equal to players at the table.
Give each player 2 gnomes and 2 action cards.
If you start with the Absolute Gremlin in your hand, place it in the deck wherever you want privately, then draw a new card.
When taking your turn, go through each turn phase in order, declaring clearly when progressing from one to the next. The turn order advances clockwise.
The shortest player starts!
Shop and Build Cards
Obtain a card from the shop by spending gnomes equal to its value. In doing so, build it anywhere in your garden, even between buildings. Once placed, building's position cannot be changed.
On your turn, you may refresh the shop. Spend 2 gnomes to replace the cards, putting them at the bottom of the deck.
Types of buildings
Effects and Action Cards
Build cards grant you effects as long as the building remains in your garden.
Action cards represent one-off effects and can be played at any time as long as the conditions (written under the title) are met. This is a lot of the time referred to as the effect's "trigger". This pauses the regular flow of the game until the action card is resolved.
Attached cards
Some action cards, e.g. Gnarl the Gnoblin, attach themselves to buildings. These are discarded if the building is demolished, but stay attached if it is moved. If there is no building to attach these card to, they cannot be played.
Types of action cards
Action cards either have no type or are considered “goblin action cards“ if they have the following symbol:
No type on buildings or action cards is not considered a type for the purpose of effects.
Stacking Effects
Effects from action cards or buildings sometimes stack. Unless otherwise stated, effects are resolved in the order they were played or triggered. If the first effect in a stack leads to an immediate consequence, this is also resolved before moving on.
If you can activate multiple effects with the same trigger (e.g. “during your collection phase”) you may choose in which order they activate.
Counters. A blue action card labelled “Counter” is played as a reaction to an effect and is resolved immediately – unless it is countered itself of course!
GNOMAGEDDON
If your garden has 5 buildings, it is full. No new buildings can be built or moved into it. If you end your turn with a full garden, you trigger GNOMAGEDDON.
During Gnomageddon the remaining players each take one last turn. When the turn order once again lands on you, the game ends. You may not trigger any effects.
If you are unable to take your turn for any reason, such as being blocked by the card You’ve Been Gnomed, Gnomageddon continues until the turn order lands on you.
You could also define a full garden as...
4 buildings for a short and easy game.
Great for tutorial rounds!
6 buildings for a long, complex game.
Great if you have experienced players!
7 buildings for a marathon. Great for pain!
The Battlefield
The Battlefield
Turn Phases
You may perform each of the following actions once.
Start of turn
I. Collection Phase
• Gain 1 gnome from the forest
II. Draw Phase
• Draw 1 action card
• Discard 2 action cards, draw 1
III. Construction Phase
• Build 1 building from the shop
• Demolish 1 building in your garden
OR forego both to draw 1 action card
IV. End Phase
• If you have more than 5 cards in hand:
You must play or discard down to 5
• If you have no cards in hand:
You may draw 1 action card (pity card)
End of turn
WORDS, WORDS, WORDS
WORDS, WORDS, WORDS
Places
Garden: Your active buildings
Field: Your supply of gnomes
Hand: Your supply of action cards
Forest: The game’s “bank” of gnomes
Build Deck: Face down build cards that have not entered the shop
Shop: Build cards available to build
Demolish Pile: Demolished build cards
Action Deck: Face down action cards available to draw
Discard Pile: Discarded/used action cards
Actions
Spend: Use your gnomes by returning them to the forest
Gain: Get gnomes from the forest
Discard: Place action cards from your hand into the discard pile
Steal: Get stuff from an opponent
Give: Send stuff to an opponent
Build: Get buildings, usually from the shop, by spending gnomes equal
to their value to put them in your garden
Demolish: Remove buildings from a garden and place in the demolish
pile
Move: Change the location of a building without demolishing or
building
Counting Points
When the game ends, you are awarded points as follows:
The player with the most points at the end is the winner!
Go gloat! All skill! Gnumba 1!
And if you lost, it’s mostly luck anyway.
It’s not gnover...
you can always play again.
Example of Play
Example of Play
The first player, Nohair Needwig, starts his turn. He begins his collection phase by collecting 1 gnome from the forest, then 2 more because he has Amusement park in his garden.
Needwig clearly states he is done with collection and moves on to his draw phase. He draws 1 action card and gets “I Miss You” Note. He starts hatching a plan.
Now, Needwig takes his contruction phase. He builds Necromarchitect Bureau from the shop by spending his remaining 8 gnomes. He chooses not to demolish any buildings and dramatically plays “I Miss You” Note with a gloating smirk. However, as he goes to take his 8 gnomes back, disaster strikes.
The other player, Busybee Babeless, has thrown down Nuh Uh, countering his card.
To make matters worse, the third player, Snorealot Snoozeless, joins in by playing Fireball Fred, returning 1 of his gnomes to the forest and demolishing Needwig’s Amusement Park.
Needwig absolutely loses it, ending his turn and drawing a pity card.
This is a typical example of play.
Interactions, Clarifications and other Nerd-tions
Interactions, Clarifications and other Nerd-tions
Common Clarifications
Common Clarifications
Exceptions. If an effect contradicts a general rule, follow what is written on the effect. Two effects should not contradict one another... but if they do, please do send us the interaction so we can share our two cents, then decide what you think is the best ruling for your table.
Ties are resolved by flipping a gnome.
Rounding is always done up.
Attacks always include the word in bold, as shown!
Gnomes on buildings are not affected by effects targetting your gnomes and do not count towards your points unless otherwise stated. If the building is demolished, they are lost. If moved, they move with it.
Drawing a pity card ends your turn. This means that a pity card cannot trigger any “on your turn” effects. Likewise, if the pity card has the trigger “Played on your turn” it cannot be played until your next turn.
Even More Words
Effect: Action described on building or action card.
Lose: Whenever stuff is expended in any way.
Return/take back: Gain stuff back from wherever it ended up. If it's been lost, you may gain new stuff
The Nerd Section
The Nerd Section
Are you looking to clear up a specific interaction that is not detailed here? The quickest way to receive an answer is to post your specific scenario under #rule-questions in the discord. Simply making up an answer that works for your table is of course also highly encouraged!
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