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	9	16
2	6	2	8	16
3	4	1	7	15
4	3	1	6	15

Starting Kairos (⭐): Player 1: 0, Player 2: 1, Player 3: 2, Player 4: 3 (compensates for turn order).

Initial State: MLT starts at -5, Paradoxes at 5. 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	TimeLord at HQ only	Empower a deposited crystal (+2⭐, nerfs paired artifact)
Attempt Vortex	TimeLord at Vortex only	Try to switch off the Time Vortex (2d6 check)
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, 9, 0	Match destination ring (6=R3, 7=R2, 8=R1, 9=Vortex)
Direction	⚫ 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, X	Bonus die if destination is 1 hex away
TimeLord	🕐 TL	★, ★, ★, ★, 0, 0	Bonus die for TimeLord agents only

Special Faces

• ★ (Wild): Can satisfy any requirement. Only assigned on the final roll
• X (Skull): Auto-locks, cannot be unlocked. 2+ skulls = instant failure
• 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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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, ★, ★

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 ongoing MLT boosts each Kronos phase.

Depositing a crystal awards:

• ⭐ Kairos (typically 2-3)
• −⚫ Blots removed (typically 1)
• +1 MLT each round during Kronos Crystal Boost phase (+2 if empowered)

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. Empowering a crystal nerfs its paired artifact (Kronos skips it entirely).

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TimeLord Upgrades

A regular agent upgrades to TimeLord when the player has:

1. Deposited at least one crystal at HQ, AND
2. Guarded at least one artifact in the field

TimeLord Benefits:

• Extra TL die on travel and recovery rolls (mostly wilds!)
• Carry 3 articles instead of 2
• Empower Crystals at HQ (+2⭐, nerfs paired artifact, -1⚫ if artifact in Kronos)
• 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 6 phases:

Phase 1 — STEAL: Kronos targets artifacts at portal locations. Roll d6 per artifact:

Protection	Steal Threshold
Unprotected (no agent, not guarded)	d6 ≥ 2 (83%)
Guarded (recovered)	d6 ≥ 4 (50%)
Protected (agent present)	d6 ≥ 6 (17%)
Nerfed (paired crystal empowered)	Skipped entirely

Phase 2 — EMPOWER: For each artifact Kronos holds, d6 ≥ 4 = empowered (deals more damage).

Phase 3 — PENALISE: Each artifact Kronos holds damages the MLT:

• Empowered artifact: −2 MLT (−3 on Hard)
• Non-empowered: −1 MLT (−2 on Hard)

Phase 4 — CRYSTAL BOOST: Each crystal deposited at any HQ boosts the MLT:

• Base crystal: +1 MLT (+2 on Easy)
• Empowered crystal: +1 extra MLT

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.

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

All empowered/nerfed flags are cleared at end of round.

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Special Locations

Time Vortex

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

Result (2d6 + empowered crystals − Kronos empowered)	Outcome
≥ 9	SUCCESS — +10⭐, −3⚫, max rounds locked
5-8	No effect
≤ 4	WIPE — agent destroyed permanently

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⭐, +1⚫)
• 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 (+1⚫)

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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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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 (⚫) (minimum 0). Tiebreaker among winners.

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)
• 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.

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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
Starting Order	Fixed / Random	Fixed

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Quick Reference

Stat	Value
Starting MLT	−5
Starting Paradoxes	5
Max MLT	±20
Agent carry capacity	2 (regular) / 3 (TimeLord)
Max dice rolls	4 (travel and recovery)
Skulls to auto-fail travel	2+
Active portals	12 (rotate each round)
Kronos steal start	Round 1
Kronos empower threshold	d6 ≥ 4
Empower crystal reward	+2⭐ (and −1⚫ if paired artifact in Kronos)
Vortex success	2d6 + crystals − Kronos ≥ 9
Vortex wipe	≤ 4
Vortex reward	+10⭐, −3⚫
Jail: doubles escape	−2⭐
Jail: bribe	−3⭐, +1⚫
Jail: forced after	3 turns
LIT: escape threshold	d6 ≥ 5
LIT: forced after	3 turns (+1⚫)
Item restore bonus	−1 Paradox per item