Introduction
Trisk is a trading card game set in a realm broken by the fall of Cern. Every card carries the three shades of his shattered light: the Red of Might (MIG), the Green of Cunning (CUN) and the Blue of Wisdom (WIS).
Each player leads a Primal and raises creations in its image. Train them, upgrade them and send them into battle. The goal: bring the other player's Primal down to 0 HP.
Every card is built to be equal in power. What sets a card apart is how it looks, never how it plays.
Reading a card
- Name and typeWho the card is and what kind of card it is: an Animal Creation, a Primal, or an Upgrade such as a Dragonling Upgrade.
- ArtThe heart of every card. The layout is built to show it off.
- StatsThe column on the right: see Stats below.
- AbilitiesWhat the card can do: a triangle for Attack, a circle for active abilities, a diamond for passive abilities. The number inside is the level needed to use it. Sorceries only have the name header.
Stats
| Stat | Meaning |
|---|---|
| MIG | Might, the Red shade |
| CUN | Cunning, the Green shade |
| WIS | Wisdom, the Blue shade |
| HP | Hit points: the damage it can take before it is destroyed |
| AP | Attack points: the damage it deals when it attacks |
| MP | Magic points: X for your Blessings and Curses (your Primal's MP), or for a Ritual (the sacrificed creation's MP) |
| ATTR | Attributes, such as Armor and Flying, shown as icons |
| RESIST | Damage types it resists, shown as icons |
| WEAK | Damage types it is weak to, shown as icons |
MIG, CUN and WIS decide who can play a card (see Your Primal).
Abilities
Every ability is marked with a shape that tells you what kind it is:
The number inside the shape is the level the card needs before it can use that ability. In play, abilities stay greyed out until the card reaches that level, and light up when they unlock.
Click a card to read what its abilities do. Every ability is explained in the Skill Book.
Your Primal
Every deck is led by exactly one Primal, one of the ten who climbed the world-tree after Cern fell. Nine are in the Primals set; Cern the Grey is in the Jager Set.
You can only create in the image of your Primal. A card can be played only if none of its MIG, CUN or WIS is higher than your Primal's. The Warrior has MIG 5, so it needs a Primal with at least 5 Might.
- Every Primal has 10 HP, 1 AP and 1 MP. If your Primal falls, you lose.
- Your Primal has a level from 0 to 10, raised by Meditate. Its level is also how much it can Train a creation.
- At level 10 its Attack unlocks and it can join your attacks. Primals don't block.
The code under each Primal is its MIG, CUN and WIS: 504 means MIG 5, CUN 0, WIS 4.
Pick a Primal to see what it can play:
Building a deck
- Exactly one Primal.
- Any number of cards: there is no minimum or maximum deck size.
- Any number of copies of each card.
- Every card must be playable by your Primal.
Starting a game
- Put your Primal in play at level 0 and shuffle your deck.
- Flip the coin to decide who goes first: one player calls heads or tails, and the winner chooses who starts.
- The player who goes second starts with their Primal at level 1.
- Both players start with no cards in hand. You draw with Muster, and you can hold at most 9 cards.
Taking a turn
Every turn has three phases, and every phase has three parts: three times three, the sacred numbers of Trisk.
- Primal phaseTake three actions, in any mix. You can choose the same one more than once.
MeditateYour Primal gains 1 level (maximum 10).TrainOne of your creations gains levels equal to your Primal's level (maximum 10).MusterDraw a card. This is the only way to draw (maximum hand size 9).
- Creation phaseDo these as often as you like, in any order:
CreatePlay a creation from your hand (it enters at level 0), or an Upgrade onto the creation it upgrades for 3 of its levels.CastPlay a sorcery onto a creation (see Sorceries).AbilitiesUse one active ability on each creation. A creation that uses an ability can't attack this turn.
- Combat phaseThree steps, in order (see Combat):
AttackersChoose which of your creations attack.DefendersYour opponent chooses which of their creations block.DamageEvery attacker deals its damage.
End of turn
- Remove one token of each status from each of your own cards: your Primal and your creations (see Status effects).
- Creations whose damage has reached their HP are destroyed and leave play.
- Your opponent's turn begins.
Levels and upgrading
Every creation has a level from 0 to 10. It enters play at level 0 and gains levels when you Train it. The level is shown with a ten-sided die on the card; at level 0 there is no die.
Levels unlock abilities: an ability can be used once the creation's level is at least the number in its shape. A level 0 Bear can't do anything yet; at level 1 it can Attack, and at level 3 it can Hibernate.
Upgrade cards turn a creation into a stronger form. The type line says what an Upgrade goes onto: the Dragon is a Dragonling Upgrade, the Elder Dragon is a Dragon Upgrade, and the Warrior is a Human Upgrade.
Upgrading costs 3 levels, so the creation needs at least level 3. It keeps its spot and whatever levels it has left, and becomes the new card.
Example
A level 7 Dragonling is upgraded to a Dragon, which is now level 4. Upgraded again, it becomes a level 1 Elder Dragon.
Sorceries
Sorceries are cast in the Creation phase, as many as you like. Drag one from your hand onto a creation; it takes effect and leaves play. Sorceries can't target Primals, and anyone can cast them: they have no MIG, CUN or WIS.
| Kind | Cast on | X is |
|---|---|---|
| Blessing | One of your creations | Your Primal's MP |
| Curse | An enemy creation | Your Primal's MP |
| Ritual | One of your creations, which you sacrifice: it is destroyed | The MP of the sacrificed creation |
Effects that last "for X turns" give X status tokens (see Status effects). Click a sorcery card to read what it does.
Combat
Attackers
- A creation can attack once its Attack (the triangle) is unlocked. The Raven, for example, attacks from level 3.
- A creation can't attack if it used an ability this turn, or if it is asleep.
- Your Primal can attack once it reaches level 10.
Defenders
- The defending player may block each attacker with one of their creations. A creation can only block one attacker.
- A creation with Flying can only be blocked by creations with Flying.
- Asleep creations can't block. When the Defenders step starts, each feared creation flips the coin: heads it can block, tails it is too afraid to block this combat. Primals don't block.
Damage
- Every attacker deals physical damage equal to its AP: to its blocker, or to the defending Primal if it is unblocked.
- Armor: each shield ignores 1 physical damage.
- Blockers don't hit back.
- A blinded attacker flips the coin first: on tails it deals no damage.
Damage
Damage is marked with damage tokens: red pebbles on the card, one for each point of damage. Damage stays on a creation until it is healed.
When a creation's damage equals or exceeds its HP, it is destroyed and leaves play.
In play, a damaged card's HP shows what it has left, in red: a Bear with 2 damage shows 5. Inspecting the card shows its full HP.
Example
The Bear has 7 HP. With 3 damage tokens it is still in play. After 4 more damage it has 7 tokens, equal to its HP, so it is destroyed.
Status effects
Some abilities put a status on a card. A status is a stack of tokens, one for each turn it lasts. At the end of your turn, remove one token of each type from each of your own cards. When the last token is gone, the status ends.
| Status | Token | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Feared | Purple | Flips the coin when the Defenders step starts: heads it can block, tails it can't this combat. |
| Blinded | Grey | When it would deal damage, flip the coin: on tails it deals none. |
| Asleep | Blue | Can't attack or block. Each sleep token removed also heals 1 damage. |
| Poisoned | Green | Each poison token removed deals 1 damage. |
| Silenced | Red | Can't use its abilities. It can still Attack. |
| Flying | Gold | Has Flying (from Blessing of Flight). |
Removing tokens with Blessing of Cleansing doesn't trigger poison, but a sleep token always heals 1 damage when it comes off.
Because tokens come off at the end of their owner's turn, a status you put on an enemy lasts through their next turn. A Raven's Blind, for example, is still on the enemy when it attacks you.
Coin flips
Heads is the stag, tails is the triskelion.
Trisk uses a gold coin for luck. Heads is the stag skull and tails is the triskelion.
- Who goes first: flip at the start of the game.
- Chance: when an ability calls for a flip, it works on heads.
- Some abilities flip several coins at once. Howl flips one coin for every Wolf you control: one heads is enough.
Winning
Unblocked attackers damage the defending Primal, and poison can hurt it too. When a Primal's damage reaches its 10 HP, it falls and its player loses the game.
Skill Book
What every ability on the current cards does. A circle is an active ability: you choose when to use it. A diamond is a passive ability: it is always in effect. Words in bold are explained at the bottom.
Finishes
Cards come in three finishes: Common, Radiant (rainbow foil) and Signed (gold leaf with the artist's signature). Finishes are cosmetic only: every version of a card plays exactly the same.
Sets
Cards are released in sets: the Primals, the cards that lead every deck; the Basic Set; and the Jager Set, with Cern the Grey, the Stag, the Druid, the Nymph and the Bear, Wolf, Snake, Raven and Owl Spirits. New sets are rare and only add new ways to play, so your cards and decks never go out of date.