PnP - Deconstruction

Labyrintus: is a 2-4 player game designed by Victoria Lamb. It's relatively fast-paced, with a playtime averaging in between 30-60 minutes depending on the number of players available.

GOAL:
The object of the game is to get your team, consisting of 4 figures, across the labyrinth first. Each player is assigned an entry point and an exit point (located across the entry point).


CORE MECHANICS:
Players roll 4d6 in order to determine their available choices. These range from movement to placing or removing walls anywhere on the board. Each dice can be thought of as a representative of the four figures. Players are also able to engage in combat during their turn in order to send other player's figurines back to their respective entry point.

SPACE:
The board itself consists of 4 quarter boards with a 7x7 tile grid. These are put together in order to create 196 discrete spaces for player movement.  Each tile is grouped into groups of 4, and those are then separated by gutters on all sides in which walls are fitted into, right up against the columns at each corner of the 4 grouped tiles. The outer walls are already incorporated with the board and cannot be moved. Entry/Exit points are designed by the green arrows.

Put 4 of these together to make up the board

OBJECTS, ATTRIBUTES, AND STATES:
Apart from the game board, these game makes use of dice, monster pieces, wall pieces.


Dice: There are 4d6s with numbers assigned to specific actions. Numbers 1 and 2 mean the player is able to place or remove a wall from the board. Numbers 3 through 6 mean the player is able to move their figures.

Monsters: There are 4 of each. They all have an initial position of the board (right by their respective entry points) and can either move, attack, or defend.

Movement is dependent on dice. Monsters can have 4 to no dice attached to them. Each die gives a monster 4 movement points. Not all points need to be used, however.

Walls: There are two types of walls: Outer Walls and Inner walls. Outer walls surround the outer side of the quarter board pieces and contain a doorway. They remain in place during the game. Inner Walls can either be added to the board in the gutters between the tiles with the pillars at the intersections, or they can be removed from the board. Wall placement is allowed anywhere on the board, regardless of player location.

The game begins with 36 inner walls placed randomly on the board, with 10 extra walls that can be added throughout the course of the game.

ACTIONS:
These are the operative actions available to all players:

Combat can result in the Defender player's piece getting sent back to their respective Entry Point....Monsters stay in place if the Defender is successful at fending off an attack.

RULES:
Turn Sequence is as follows:

• Each player rolls a die to determine who goes first
• Winning player decides which direction to follow (i.e. clockwise or counterclockwise)
• Player turn start
• Roll all 4 dice to determine available actions
• Move figures - engage in combat - move walls
• These can be done in any order. However, if a player moves to attack, they cannot continue to move after the battle until their next turn. (I.e. if a combat phase is initiated after a movement phase, then the movement phase is finished)
• End turn, next player moves

These are specific rules pertaining to different objects:

Walls:

• Can only be placed per every 1 or 2 die
• Cannot be placed in doorways (over the green arrows)

Monsters:

• Can only move horizontally or vertically (moving diagonally would count as 2 moves)
• Don't have to move even if you still have movement points available
• Have different dice designated to them to give them more movement points
• Cannot share dice with other monsters
• I.e. a player gets 3 movement dice:
• They can attach 1 dice per figure, or
• They can attach 2 dice to one figure, and 1 die to another figure, or
• They can attach 3 dice to one figure
• Cannot move past walls
• Cannot move past other figures (regardless of whether or not they are your own)

Entry/Exit Points:

• Cannot be blocked
• Are the only ways in and out of the labyrinth
• If a figure goes through an exit point, they cannot re-enter the labyrinth

Combat:

• Attacking player MUST be in an adjacent space to the Defender (no diagonals)
• Attacker rolls first
• Defender's roll must be equal to or greater than the Attacker's in order to stay in place
• If they fail to defend, the attacked figure returns to their entry point
• Attacks can be linked
• If Attacker has their attacker piece next to one or more of their own figures, they are allowed to roll a die per monster
• The attacker then chooses the highest number out of the rolled dice to attack (i.e. roll 3 dice? pick the one with the highest number)
• Players can attack more than once per turn-- so long as their attacker figure is directly adjacent to an opponent's figure

SKILL:
This game deals mainly with mental skills-- since it's about obstructing your opponent's paths while simultaneously clearing a path for yourself. Wall placement is important-- and you might accidentally trap yourself in a corner by an opponent and risk getting sent back to the beginning. Players also have to measure their chances for what they might or might not roll (i.e. becoming trapped because you keep rolling anything but 1 and 2, thus being unable to move a wall blocking your way).
Social skills can definitely be part of the game-- players are able to build alliances and betray one another for a more interesting game. Players might also want to read ahead and figure out the shortest route to the exit with the labyrinth's current layout (i.e. where walls should be moved, where to go if an opponent or wall is in your way, etc)

CHANCE:
Chance is definitely a factor in this game. The probability that you'll be moving your figures is always greater than the possibility of placing walls. Chance is balanced out due to the strategic nature of the game, however.

VARIATIONS:

• Dice Saving
• If one or more dice are not used in a given player's turn, they can choose to save the results for the following turn-- providing they don't re-roll those specific dice
• Directional Combat
• The direction a figure is facing MATTERS
• Figures may only attack in whatever direction they are facing
• Defending figures may counterattack if they defended successfully and are facing the attacker figures

Cue the victory fanfare!