Gamehelpemberleaf

Emberleaf

In Emberleaf, players lead a group of forest folk rebuilding their home after a devastating fire. Through clever card management and area control on the board, players gather resources, construct buildings, and gain ancient knowledge.

Game Objective

The goal is to have the most Victory Points (Prestige) at the end of the game. Points are awarded for:

• Constructed buildings and their effects.
• Achieved milestones (Knowledge track).
• Remaining resources and fulfilled objective cards.

Game Flow

The game is played over 4 Seasons (rounds). Each season consists of several player turns. A season ends when all players have played their hand cards or passed.

The Player Turn

A turn consists of three steps:

1. Play a Card: Choose a card from your hand and place it into your personal Clearing (a 3x3 grid).
2. Perform Actions: Activate the symbols on the card just played, as well as bonus actions triggered by adjacent cards.
3. End of Turn: Check if the Clearing is full (clear it if necessary) and draw a replacement card.

Core Actions (Symbols)

Playing cards triggers the following primary actions:

• Move (Paw): Move your hero on the game board a specific number of spaces.
• Forage (Basket): Collect resources (Wood, Stone, Berries) from the space your hero is currently occupying.
• Build (Hammer): Spend resources to place a building tile from your player board onto the map (must be adjacent to the hero).
• Knowledge (Book): Advance on the Knowledge track to unlock permanent bonuses or points.
• Clear (Broom): Allows you to remove cards from the Clearing early to make room for new synergies.

The Clearing (The 3x3 Grid)

The core of the decision-making lies in card placement:

• Adjacency: Cards have partial symbols on their edges. If two card halves match, a Bonus Action is triggered.
• Overlapping: You can place cards on top of others to change symbols, but you cannot exceed the 3x3 grid layout.
• Emptying: Once a row or column is complete (or via specific actions), the cards are moved to the discard pile, making room for new combinations.

Categories & Card Types

• Hero Cards: Your hand cards that provide specific symbols and strengths for the Clearing.
• Buildings: Provide immediate bonuses (Blue), permanent advantages (Green), or end-game scoring (Yellow).
• Hazards (Fire/Predators): Areas on the map that block movement or cost resources until "cleared."

End of Game

After the fourth season (Winter), final scoring takes place. All points from buildings, the Knowledge track, and collected bonuses are summed up. The player with the highest prestige wins.