Dread Draw

Players start with a hidden Life Deck of ten cards and compete in repeated rounds of escalating summons. On a turn, a player attempts to summon by revealing the top of the Draw Deck (or by playing a suitable card from their reserves); the revealed card must have higher strength than the last summoned card or the summoner is eliminated from the round. Successful summons may trigger optional Summon abilities, while some cards grant Reserve or Aftermath effects when placed aside or when a player is eliminated. Rounds end when only one player remains; the round winner deals damage equal to the summed damage dots on their summoned cards, forcing opponents to discard cards from their Life Deck and choose one drawn card to add to reserves. Players are defeated when they take damage with no cards left in their Life Deck. The last player remaining wins and may lay out remaining Life Deck cards as a thematic fortune.

Players: 2–5 best 4
Playing time: 15–30 min
Age: 14+
Complexity: 1 / 5