Marvel Villainous: Instructions

Components

• 5 Domains
• 5 Villain Movers ?
• 150 Villain Cards
• 70 Fate Cards
• 12 Specialty Tiles (including 6 Infinity Stone Tiles, 4 Ultron Objective Tiles, 2 Killmonger Objective Tiles)
• 75 Tokens (40 Power Tokens ?, 20 Strength Tokens ?, 15 Soul Mark Tokens)
• 1 Vault
• 5 Reference Cards
• 5 Villain Guides
• Instructions

Setup

Player Setup:

1. Each player chooses a Villain and takes their corresponding Domain ?️, Villain Mover ?, Villain Guide, Villain Deck, Fate Deck, and a Reference Card. Return unused Villains and components to the box.
2. Place your Domain in front of you. Your Domain shows your portrait and objective, four locations ?, and a Specialty area. Place your Villain Mover on your Villain portrait.
3. Shuffle together the Common Fate deck and the Fate decks for all Villains in the game to create a single Fate deck. Place this deck within reach of all players, leaving space for a discard pile.
4. Shuffle your Villain deck and place it face down to the left of your Domain, leaving space for a discard pile.
5. Place the Power ? and Strength ? tokens in the Vault within reach of all players.
6. Draw a starting hand of four cards from your Villain deck. Keep your hand secret.
7. The last player to read a Marvel comic goes first. If in doubt, the oldest player starts. Play proceeds clockwise. The first player starts with no Power tokens. The second player starts with one Power token, and the third and fourth players (if present) each start with two Power tokens.
8. In turn order, read your Villain's objective aloud so all players are aware of it.

Note: Some Villains have unique setup instructions detailed in their respective Villain Guides.

Game Overview

Each player embodies a Marvel Villain with a unique objective. On your turn, move your Villain Mover ? to a different location ? in your Domain, then perform the actions available at that location. The first player to achieve their Villain's objective wins the game!

A. Domain: All cards played to your Domain are considered "in" your Domain. Cards in your hand, deck, or discard pile are not in your Domain. Each Domain has four locations, each with icons indicating available actions. Your Villain's objective is shown on the far left, and the Specialty area is on the far right.

B. Villain Mover: Represents your Villain and moves between locations in your Domain each turn.

C. Villain Deck: Draw cards from this deck to help achieve your objective.

D. Villain Cards: Play cards from your hand to your Domain. These do not block actions.

E. Power & Strength Tokens: Power ? is the game's currency used to play cards and activate abilities. Strength ? tokens modify the Strength of Allies or Heroes.

F. Villain Guide: Contains details about your Villain's objective, unique cards, and potential hindrances.

G. Fate Deck: Use this deck to hinder opponents' plans.

H. Fate Cards: Opponents play Hero and Item cards from the Fate deck to your Domain, blocking actions at locations.

I. Events: Special locations placed in the center of the playing area. They have Strength requirements to be resolved.

J. Specialty Area: The rightmost space in your Domain for Specialty cards.

K. Reference Card: Lists how each Villain achieves their objective and identifies game actions and icons.

On Your Turn

Perform these steps in order:

1. Move Your Villain: Move your Villain Mover ? from its current location to a different location ? within your Domain. You cannot stay in the same location, move to Events, or move to another player's Domain.
2. Perform Actions: At your new location, you may perform the actions indicated by the icons. Each action can be performed once per icon. All actions are optional.
3. Draw Cards: At the end of your turn, if you have fewer than four cards in your hand, draw from your Villain deck until you have four. If your Villain deck is empty, shuffle its discard pile to form a new deck.

Note: You must wait until the end of your turn to draw cards, even if you have fewer than four at the start of your turn.

Blocked Actions: Actions covered by Fate cards or an opponent's Ally are blocked and unavailable until the covering card is removed.

Types of Cards

Players have two decks: Villain cards (colored backs) and Fate cards (white backs). Cards in play are face-up and their effects are ongoing. Cards played to your Domain affect only you.

Villain Cards:

• Ally: Henchmen or minions. Have Strength and abilities. Can be played to Events or other players' Domains.
• Item: Affects other cards or actions. Can be attached to Allies.
• Effect: One-time abilities.
• Specialty: Provide ongoing abilities. Played to the rightmost space of your Domain. Cannot be defeated or removed unless required by an objective.

Fate Cards:

• Hero: Block actions in your Domain. Have Strength. Some have the "Protector" ability, requiring them to be defeated first if multiple Heroes are present.
• Item & Effect: May have conditions to be played; no direct cost.
• Event: Situations with penalties. Global Events (no Villain icon) are placed in the center. Targeted Events (with Villain icon) are placed above a specific Villain's Domain. Events are resolved when Allies at the Event meet or exceed its Strength requirement. Allies at the Event receive a reward.

Strength: Indicated in the lower-left corner of character cards. Can be modified by Strength Tokens (+1/-1) or card abilities. Zero Strength characters remain in play but may have limitations.

Card Actions

• Play: Add a card from a deck or discard pile to a Domain or Event.
• Reveal: Show cards to all players.
• Look: View cards privately.
• Find: Search for a specific card or card type.
• Defeat: Move a character to its discard pile via Vanquish or card ability.
• Remove: Move a card or Item to its discard pile. No abilities trigger to stop this.

Ending the Game

The game ends immediately when a player fulfills their Villain's objective. That player wins!

Thanos and the Infinity Stones: Thanos' gameplay is tied to collecting Infinity Stones ?. Stones are double-sided tiles (Item/Specialty) and enter play via Fate cards or Thanos' effects. Thanos must use his Allies to retrieve Stones from other players' Domains. Once in Thanos' Domain, a Stone is flipped to its Specialty side, bringing him closer to victory. Stones cannot be discarded or removed.