Rule precision. Powered by AI.

Lairs · Reference sheet

Lairs reference sheet

Overview

  • 2-player asymmetric dungeon game: each player builds a lair, then explores the other's [p.1 — The Story]
  • Goal: earn more VP than your rival by finding Treasures, defeating Monsters, and exiting [p.1 — How To Win]
  • Players alternate turns as Explorer (exploring rival's lair) and Builder (describing their own lair) [p.6 — Gameplay]
  • Game ends when the first player exits; the other gets one final full turn [p.10 — The Exit]
  • Tiebreaker: whoever exited first wins [p.11 — Game End]

Setup

  1. Sit across from each other; stand your screen facing you [p.4 — Setup]
  2. Place your Lair board behind your screen [p.4 — Setup]
  3. Gather lair-building pieces: 20 Walls, 3 Trap tiles, 3 Chests, 3 Blobs, Start tile, Exit tile, opponent's Explorer token [p.4 — Setup]
  4. Place a fresh Map sheet visible to both; keep pencil and Tracker nearby [p.4 — Setup]
  5. Place Player mat above map; put 6 cubes (4 white, 1 yellow, 1 green) in the Spent basket [p.4 — Setup]
  6. Shuffle Treasures into a face-down deck; lay out 3 face-up Treasures as display [p.4 — Setup]
  7. Place dice, Hungry Blob card, and Greased Pit card where both players can reach [p.4 — Setup]
  8. Both players simultaneously build their lair (hidden); first to finish chooses who explores first [p.5 — Building Your Lair]

Turn structure

First turn only: Builder tells you Start tile coordinates → draw Known circle, walls, write S, place Tracker [p.7 — On Your Very First Turn]

Every turn:

  1. Confirm location with the Builder (e.g. 'I am in B5, right?') [p.7 — On Every Turn]
  2. Refresh Energy: Spent → Fresh; Fatigued → Spent; Conserved cubes stay [p.7 — On Every Turn]
  3. Explore: spend cubes to perform actions until you run out or choose to stop [p.7 — On Every Turn]

Actions

Action Cost Effect Notes
Creep 1 any cube Move into 1 adjacent space; learn about it if Unknown Triggers Features
Hustle 2 any cubes Move up to 3 times (Creep process); stops if you enter any non-Empty space Decide each move after previous resolves
Backtrack 1 Quickness OR 2 any Move through any number of Known Empty spaces into a Known space Any Feature interrupts
Peer 1 Perception OR 2 any Learn about 1 adjacent Unknown space; may move in for free No forced move
Conserve — Move up to 3 Fresh cubes to Conserved slots; immediately ends your turn Conserved cubes can be spent twice next turn
Fight Monster 1 cube per die Check vs Monster's Target; fail = strike + reduce Target; succeed = defeat it [p.9 — Fighting Monsters]
Disarm Trap 1 cube per die Check vs Trap's Target; fail = strike then remove Trap; succeed = take token Either way, shade in the Trap [p.9 — Disarming Traps]

Scoring

Treasure Collection [p.11 — Treasure Collection]

  • Max 4 face-up Treasures; each scores base + any bonuses shown on card
  • Excess Treasures flipped face-down score 1 each

Defeated Monsters [p.11 — Defeated Monsters]

  • 2nd Monster defeated: +2 VP
  • 3rd Monster defeated: +4 VP additional

Exiting [p.11 — Exiting]

  • First to exit: 4 VP
  • Second to exit: 2 VP
  • Did not exit: 0 VP

End of game

  • Game ends when the first player exits; the other player gets one final full turn [p.10 — The Exit]
  • To exit, you must have: opened 3 Chests, OR defeated 3 Monsters, OR opened 2 Chests + defeated 2 Monsters [p.10 — The Exit]
  • You may choose not to exit even if eligible [p.10 — The Exit]
  • After the final turn, both players total their scores [p.11 — Game End]
  • Highest score wins; tiebreaker goes to whoever exited first [p.11 — Game End]

Glossary

  • Known space: a space fully described to you (walls + Feature); marked with a circle on your map [p.6 — Mapping]
  • Unknown space: a space you have not yet learned about [p.6 — Mapping]
  • Learn about: Builder reveals all walls and any Feature in a space; space becomes Known [p.6 — Mapping]
  • Locate: Builder reveals only the grid coordinate of a Feature/wall; space stays Unknown [p.6 — Mapping]
  • Check: roll dice vs a Target number; meet or exceed = success [p.7 — Checks]
  • Fatigue: move a cube to the Fatigued basket; it returns to Spent (not Fresh) on next refresh [p.7 — Penalties & Fatigue]
  • Conserved cube: a Fresh cube saved in a Conserved slot; counts as Fresh for penalties; can be spent twice next turn [p.6 — Spending Cubes]
  • Peril Rule: every Goal must have at least one path from Start passing through at most one Trap and one Monster [p.5 — The Peril Rule]
  • Achievements row: area on Player mat tracking defeated Monsters, disarmed Traps, and opened Chests [p.9 — Features]
  • Strike: the immediate penalty effect listed on a Hazard card when it hits you [p.9 — Monsters & Traps]

FAQ

  • Q: Can I leave a space with a Monster or Trap without fighting/disarming it? — A: Yes, any action that moves you out of the space is allowed; only fighting/disarming or leaving are permitted while sharing a space with a Hazard [p.9 — Monsters & Traps]
  • Q: Do I have to open a Chest when I enter its space? — A: No, opening is optional when you move in [p.10 — Chests & Treasures]
  • Q: What happens if the Treasure deck runs out? — A: Shuffle the face-down discard pile to form a new deck [p.10 — Chests & Treasures]
  • Q: Do Conserved cubes move during Refresh? — A: No, they stay in their Conserved slots [p.7 — On Every Turn]
  • Q: Can I buy more dice than are physically available? — A: Yes; split the check into multiple rolls and add totals together [p.7 — Checks]

Ask any Lairs rules question →