Gamehelpkairos

Kairos — Time Travellers

Kairos is a 1-4 player cooperative time-travel board game. Players are time-travelling agents recovering precious historical articles from 36 time locations scattered across a hexagonal grid — from ancient Egypt to the moons of Saturn. An AI antagonist called Kronos steals artifacts and bends the Main Line Timeline toward darkness. Work together to restore articles, protect artifacts, and shift the timeline back to the light!

Goal

Shift the Main Line Timeline (MLT) above zero AND clear all blots from at least one player's record before time runs out.

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Setup

Total Seats	Agents per Player	Starting TimeLords	Starting Blots	Max Rounds
1	12	4	10	14
2	6	2	9	14
3	4	1	9	13
4	3	1	8	13

Starting Kairos (⭐): All players start with 0 Kairos.

Initial State: MLT starts at -2, Paradoxes at 2. All agents begin at their player's HQ.

The Time Field is a hex grid of 37 tiles: 36 Time Locations across Rings 1-3, plus the Time Vortex at the centre (Ring 0). Articles start at their correct locations (artifacts and crystals) or scattered to random past-era locations (items). 12 random locations are designated as active Portals.

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Your Turn

On your turn, each of your agents may perform one action. When finished, press End Turn.

Agent Actions

Action	Who Can Do It	Description
Time Travel	Any agent	Roll Travel Dice to move to a destination Time Location
Recover Article	Any agent at a location with an article	Roll Recovery Dice to secure the article
Pick Up Article	Any agent	Pick up a recovered item/crystal. Free at HQ; costs action elsewhere
Recall to HQ	Any agent in the field	Return to HQ. Carried articles are auto-deposited
Empower Crystal	Any agent at HQ; owner's agents in the field	Empower a deposited crystal (+1⭐). A TimeLord field-empowering at the paired artifact's TL attempts a nerf (TimeLord-only)
Attempt Vortex	TimeLord at Vortex only	Try to switch off the Time Vortex (2d6 check)
Intel / Recon	Any agent at a TL with another team's agent	Grant the other team an Intel Die (all-wild recovery die, one use)
Rescue from LIT	TimeLord at HQ only	Rescue an allied agent Lost in Time
Skip	Any agent	Take no action this turn

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Time Travel

Select an agent and destination, then roll the Travel Dice. Up to 4 rolls total.

Travel Dice

Die	Colour	Faces	Purpose
Ring	🟠 Orange	6, 6, 7, 8, X, 0	Match destination ring (6=R3, 7=R2, 8=R1). X = skull
Direction	âš« Black	2, 2, 3, X, 0, ★	2=past, 3=future (needed if crossing eras)
Base	🟢 Green	1, 1, 1, 1, 0, ★	Always required (must show "1")
Portal	🔵 Blue	★, ★, ★, ★, 0, X	Bonus die if destination is a portal
Planet	⚪ White	5, 5, 4, X, 0, ★	5=Earth, 4=off-world (space/moon)
Adjacent	🟡 Yellow	!, !, ★, ★, 0, ★	Bonus die if destination is 1 hex away. ! negates a skull
TimeLord	🕐 TL	★, ★, ★, ★, 0, 0	Bonus die for TimeLord agents only
Age	🟣 Purple	+, −, 0, 0, 0, 0	Always included; + = Ageing check, − = Sickness check

Special Faces

• ★ (Wild): Can satisfy any requirement. Only assigned on the final roll
• X (Skull): Auto-locks, cannot be unlocked. 2+ skulls = instant failure
• ! (Negate): Cancels one skull face (Adjacent die only)
• + (Ageing): On the Age die — triggers an ageing check (see below)
• − (Sickness): On the Age die — triggers a sickness check (see below)
• 0 (Blank): No value

Requirements

• Ring — always required
• Base "1" — always required
• Planet — always required (5 for Earth, 4 for off-world)
• Direction — required only when crossing eras (past ↔ future)

Skull faces may trigger a Travel Event card draw.

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Time Travel Ageing

Every travel roll includes an Age die reflecting the physical toll of time travel. It can cause your player avatar to age, rejuvenate, or suffer sickness.

Ageing Check (+ face)

When the + face is rolled, a d6 determines the outcome:

d6 Result	Effect
1	Age Up — avatar moves one step forward (e.g. Youth → Adult)
2	De-Age — avatar moves one step backward (e.g. Adult → Youth)
3–6	No effect

Age Steps

Child → Youth → Adult → Old → Zero Time

All players begin as Youth. The avatar picture changes to reflect the current age.

Zero Time

If ageing would push past Old (aging up) or below Child (de-aging), the player enters Zero Time:

• A dramatic popup shows the avatar transformation
• All remaining unspent agents are immediately marked as spent
• The player's turn ends immediately
• The avatar resets from Zero Time at the start of the next turn

Sickness Check (− face)

When the − face is rolled, a d6 determines the outcome:

d6 Result	Effect
1–2	Time Travel Sickness — the travelling agent misses their next turn
3–6	No effect

Note: The Age die is separate from the Hazard (Baal) die, which only appears when the timeline drops to −6 or below. Both can be in the travel pool simultaneously.

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Article Recovery

When an agent is at a Time Location with an unclaimed article, roll the Recovery Dice.

Recovery Dice

Die	Colour	Faces
Red	🔴	A, S, C, P, M, $
Blue	🔵	A, S, C, P, $, H
Green	🟢	A, S, C, P, ★, H
Black	⚫	★, S, C, P, $, H
White	⚪	A, S, C, P, M, ★
TimeLord	🕐 TL	M, C, P, H, ★, ★
Intel	🟣 In	★, ★, ★, ★, ★, ★	Granted by Intel/Recon action; single use

Specialist Factors

Code	Specialist	Description
A	Archivist	Archaeological and archival expertise
S	Security	Physical security and protection
C	Cryptohacker	Cyber security and code-breaking
P	Psychotronics	Psychic defence and mental warfare
M	Medical	Medical support and emergency care
H	Historian	Historical research and cultural knowledge

Up to 4 rolls. $ faces trigger a Recovery Event card draw. Wilds count on the final roll only.

On Success: Items and Crystals are added to the agent's inventory. Artifacts are guarded at their location (stay on the tile but protected from Kronos).

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Article Types

Items (12 total)

Historical curiosities scattered to random past-era locations. Carry them back to HQ to restore them.

Restoring an item at HQ awards:

• ⭐ Kairos (typically 2-4)
• −⚫ Blots removed (typically 1)
• −1 Paradox (vital for slowing time collapse)

Crystals (12 total)

Precious gems from future time locations. Deposit at HQ for Crystal Light each Kronos phase.

Depositing a crystal awards:

• ⭐ Kairos (typically 2-3)
• −⚫ Blots removed (typically 1)
• Crystal Light each round (see Crystal Light section below)

Artifacts (12 total)

Legendary relics of great power. Unlike items and crystals, artifacts are NOT carried — they are guarded at their location after recovery.

Guarding an artifact awards:

• ⭐ Kairos (typically 2-4)
• Protection from Kronos theft (harder to steal when guarded)

Each crystal is randomly paired with one artifact. A TimeLord empowering the crystal in the field at the paired artifact's time location (while Kronos holds it) attempts a nerf — only TimeLords can nerf. Roll 2d6 − crystal depletion, success on 4+: the artifact gains +4 depletion, pushing it toward depleted — an inert state where it deals no timeline damage until it recovers.

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Intel / Recon

When your agent is at a Time Location with an agent from another team, you can perform the Intel action to grant that team a one-use Intel Die (all wilds). The receiving team's agent shows a blue dot indicator. When the Intel Die is used in a recovery session, the indicator disappears.

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TimeLord Upgrades

A regular agent upgrades to TimeLord when it accumulates 8 or more Kairos (⭐) (agent_kairos ≥ 8).

TimeLord Benefits:

• Extra TL die on travel and recovery rolls (mostly wilds!)
• Carry 3 articles instead of 2
• Nerf artifacts — only TimeLords can attempt a nerf via field empowerment (-1âš« on success)
• Attempt Vortex — try to switch off the Time Vortex
• Rescue allied agents from Lost in Time

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Kronos Phase (End of Round)

After all players and Automa act, Kronos executes these phases:

Phase 1 — STEAL: Kronos targets ALL artifacts (portal and non-portal locations). Roll 2d6 per artifact + modifiers, steal on 9+:

Modifier	Roll Adjustment
Non-portal location	−5
Ring-1 location (inner ring, adjacent to Vortex)	+2
Ring-2 location	+1
Difficulty (Hard / Easy)	+2 Hard, −2 Easy
Crystal excess (when positive)	+ excess
Timeline tier (MLT ÷ 5, truncated toward zero)	± tier
Guarded (recovered)	−2
Protected (agent present)	−4

Phase 2 — EMPOWER: For each non-depleted artifact Kronos holds, roll 2d6 + difficulty/timeline modifiers vs 9+ = empowered (deals more damage). Each rolling artifact gains +1 depletion (+2 if empowered); depleted artifacts skip the roll.

Phase 3 — DARKNESS: Each non-depleted artifact Kronos holds damages the Timeline:

• Empowered artifact: −2 MLT
• Non-empowered: −1 MLT
• Depleted: no damage

Phase 4 — CRYSTAL LIGHT: Crystals contribute to the Timeline based on their location:

Crystal Location	Mechanic	MLT Gain
HQ (not empowered)	Flat (no roll)	+1
HQ (empowered)	Flat (no roll)	+2
Field at paired artifact's correct TL	Roll 2d6 + mods vs 9	Hit: +2 (+3 if paired artifact depleted); Miss: +1
Field elsewhere (hq-activated)	Flat (no roll)	+1
Carried by agent	Does not contribute	0

Field crystal roll modifiers: +3 if empowered, + crystal excess (HQ crystals − Kronos artifacts, minimum 0).

All contributing crystals accumulate depletion — eventually they deplete and stop contributing.

Phase 5 — TIME COLLAPSE: Roll 2d6 (adjusted ±3 at MLT extremes). If roll ≤ paradox count, max rounds decreases by 1. Locked if Vortex has been switched off. Cannot reduce below 6 rounds.

Phase 6 — PORTAL ROTATION: Remove portals equal to player count, refill to 12. Pool resets every 5 rounds.

All crystal empowered flags are cleared at end of round (re-empower each round). Depletion — on both crystals and artifacts — persists until recovered.

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Special Locations

Time Vortex

Centre of the hex grid. Only TimeLords can attempt to switch it off:

Roll: 2d6 + HQ crystals − Kronos artifacts + other TLs at Vortex + urgency modifier

Result	Outcome
≥ 9	SUCCESS — +10⭐, −3⚫, max rounds locked (time collapse disabled)
5-8	No effect
≤ 4	WIPE — agent destroyed permanently

TimeLords arriving at the Vortex can make an urgent attempt as a bonus action, but with a −2 modifier (harder to succeed, easier to die). Or wait until next turn for a normal attempt.

Max 3 agents at the Vortex simultaneously.

Xanadu Jail

Agents sent here by event cards. Escape options (turns 1-2):

• Roll 2d6 doubles (costs −2⭐)
• Bribe — instant escape (costs −3⭐, removes −1âš«)
• Play a KEEP – JAIL or KEEP – WILD card
• After 3 turns: forced bribe release

Lost in Time

Agents drifting through temporal space. Escape options (turns 1-2):

• Roll d6 ≥ 5 (free)
• Play a KEEP – LIT or KEEP – WILD card
• TimeLord rescue from HQ (both agents consume their turn)
• After 3 turns: forced release (+1âš«)

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Event Cards

Travel Events (40 cards)

Drawn when skull faces appear during travel. Effects include: Send to Jail, Lost in Time, Add/Remove Blots, Miss Turn, Recall to HQ, Wiped Out, Upgrade to TimeLord. Some are KEEP cards held in hand for later use.

Recovery Events (18 cards)

Drawn when $ faces appear during recovery. Effects include: Add Blot, Add Requirement, Wipe Locked Dice, Mission Fail, Lose Inventory, Send to Jail, Recall to HQ.

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Time-Travelling Dinosaurs (Optional)

An optional game mode that can be enabled in game options. Dinosaurs are special entities that roam the time field and interact with agents and articles.

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Easter Egg Crystal (Optional)

An optional hidden mechanic. When enabled, a secret Easter Egg crystal is placed somewhere in the time field. If discovered and brought to an HQ, it permanently activates that HQ as an Easter Egg location. Once activated, any agent at that HQ can perform an Easter Egg upgrade — even if the crystal is later moved away. The activation is permanent for the game.

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Winning & Losing

Victory

• MLT is above 0, AND
• At least one player (human or Automa) has 0 blots
• Checked twice per round: after player turns (before Kronos) and after Kronos phase

Defeat

• Max rounds reached and MLT ≤ 0 — Kronos wins
• MLT > 0 but no player at 0 blots — Pyrrhic victory (light endures, no one ascends)

Scoring

Final Score = Kairos (⭐) − Blots (⚫) + End Score Card bonus (minimum 0). Tiebreaker among winners.

End Score Cards

Each player (and Automa) is dealt a secret End Score Card during setup — a personal combo objective with 2–3 tiered goals based on tracked stats: crystals deposited, artifacts guarded, items restored, crystals empowered, dinos sent back, artifacts nerfed. At game end, the highest tier reached on each objective awards bonus kairos (tiers don't stack) — up to +9 to +15 depending on the card. The two dinosaur cards (Dino Wrangler, Collector) are only in the deck when the Dinosaurs option is enabled.

How to Clear Blots

• Restore items at HQ (−blots, −1 paradox each)
• Deposit crystals at HQ (−blots)
• Empower crystals when paired artifact in Kronos (−1 extra blot)
• Switch off the Vortex (−3 blots)
• Bribe escape from Jail (−1 blot)
• Certain event cards

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Automa (AI Players)

Automa fill empty seats (up to 4 total). They follow automated logic to travel, recover, deposit, guard, and empower. Automa can win the game — if an Automa clears its blots while MLT is positive, the team wins.

AutoAlpha: A stronger Automa variant that receives a bonus Purple (Alpha) die on all travel and recovery rolls (2 wilds, 4 blanks). Helps AutoAlpha agents keep pace with human players.

Baal Die: Certain conditions grant the Hazel (Baal) die (2 crosses, 4 blanks). Crosses have special effects.

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Game Options

Option	Choices	Default
Difficulty	Easy / Medium / Hard	Medium
Game Length	Short (−2 rounds) / Standard / Long (+2 rounds)	Standard
Number of Automa	0-3 AI players	0
Dinosaurs	On / Off	Off
Easter Egg Crystal	On / Off	Off

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Quick Reference

Stat	Value
Starting MLT	−2
Starting Paradoxes	2
Max MLT	15
Agent carry capacity	2 (regular) / 3 (TimeLord)
TimeLord upgrade threshold	Agent Kairos ≥ 8
Max dice rolls	4 (travel and recovery)
Skulls to auto-fail travel	2+
Active portals	12 (rotate each round)
Kronos steal threshold	9+ on 2d6 per artifact
Non-portal steal modifier	−5
Guarded modifier	−2
Protected (agent present) modifier	−4
Kronos empower threshold	d6 ≥ 4
Crystal Light (HQ)	+1 MLT flat (empowered: +2)
Crystal Light (field at correct TL)	2d6 vs 9: hit +2 MLT, miss +1 MLT
Empower crystal reward	+1⭐ (and −1âš« if paired artifact in Kronos)
Vortex success	2d6 + crystals − Kronos + TL assist + urgency ≥ 9
Vortex wipe	≤ 4
Vortex reward	+10⭐, −3⚫
Jail: doubles escape	−2⭐
Jail: bribe	−3⭐, −1âš« (removes 1 blot)
Jail: forced after	3 turns
LIT: escape threshold	d6 ≥ 5
LIT: forced after	3 turns (+1âš«)
Item restore bonus	−1 Paradox per item
Collapse floor	6 rounds minimum

Wiki v1.4 — updated 8 July 2026 (nerf is TimeLord-only, flat +4 depletion)