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Marvel Champions The Card Game · Reference sheet

Marvel Champions The Card Game reference sheet

Overview

  • Cooperative game for 1–4 players; all players win or lose together [p.2 — Overview]
  • Each player is one Marvel hero (hero side) and their alter-ego (civilian side) [p.2 — Overview]
  • Goal: defeat all villain stages before the villain completes their scheme [p.9 — Winning and Losing]
  • Core loop: Player Phase (heroes act) → Villain Phase (villain schemes/attacks, encounter cards revealed) [p.10 — Round Sequence]
  • Villain wins if threat on the final scheme stage reaches its target, or all players are eliminated [p.9 — Winning and Losing]

Setup

  1. Each player picks an identity card; place it alter-ego side face up [p.4 — Setup]
  2. Set each player's hit point dial to the starting HP on their identity card [p.4 — Setup]
  3. Set aside each hero's nemesis set (do not shuffle into encounter deck yet) [p.5 — Setup]
  4. Shuffle each player's deck; place near identity card [p.5 — Setup]
  5. Create token pool: damage tokens, threat tokens, all-purpose counters; place stunned/confused/tough status card stacks nearby [p.5 — Setup]
  6. Place villain deck and main scheme deck in center; stack villain stages in order (stage I on top) [p.6 — Setup]
  7. Set villain HP dial = HP value on villain card × number of players [p.6 — Setup]
  8. Shuffle obligation cards into the encounter deck [p.6 — Setup]
  9. Resolve any 'Setup' instructions on the main scheme card [p.6 — Setup]
  10. Each player draws cards up to their hand size [p.14 — End of Player Phase]

Turn structure

PLAYER PHASE (each player takes a full turn in player order)

  1. Take any actions in any order: play cards, use basic powers, use allies, trigger Action abilities [p.10 — Player Turn]
  2. Announce turn complete; next player takes their turn [p.14 — End of Player's Turn]

END OF PLAYER PHASE (after all players have taken a turn)

  1. Each player discards down to hand size (optional discard first) [p.14 — End of Player Phase]
  2. All players simultaneously draw back up to hand size [p.14 — End of Player Phase]
  3. All players simultaneously ready all their cards [p.14 — End of Player Phase]

VILLAIN PHASE

  1. Place threat on main scheme (base amount + 1 per acceleration side scheme in play) [p.15 — Step One]
  2. Villain activates once per player (in player order); minions engaged with that player also activate [p.15 — Step Two]
  3. Deal 1 encounter card facedown to each player (+ 1 per hazard side scheme) [p.16 — Step Three]
  4. Reveal and resolve encounter cards in player order [p.16 — Step Four]
  5. Pass first player token clockwise; begin next round [p.17 — Step Five]

Actions

Action Cost Effect Limit
Change Form — Flip identity card hero↔alter-ego Once per turn
Play Card Discard cards for resources Ally/upgrade/support enters play; event resolves then discards Unlimited; max 3 allies
Basic Attack (hero) Exhaust hero Deal ATK damage to one enemy Unlimited
Basic Thwart (hero) Exhaust hero Remove THW threat from one scheme Unlimited
Basic Defense (hero) Exhaust hero Reduce incoming attack damage by DEF; excess hits defending hero Only when attacked
Basic Recovery (alter-ego) Exhaust alter-ego Heal REC hit points (cannot exceed max HP) Unlimited
Use Ally — Attack Exhaust ally Deal ally's ATK damage to one enemy; ally takes consequential damage Unlimited
Use Ally — Thwart Exhaust ally Remove ally's THW threat from one scheme; ally takes consequential damage Unlimited
Trigger Action Ability Pay cost shown (resources or exhaust) Resolve card effect Unlimited if cost payable and effect changes game state

Combat

Villain Attacks a Hero (hero form)

  1. Villain receives a facedown boost card from encounter deck [p.16 — Hero Form: Enemies Attack]
  2. Attacked player chooses to defend (exhaust hero or ally) or not; if not, any other player may defend [p.16 — Hero Form: Enemies Attack]
  3. Flip boost card; villain gains +1 ATK per boost icon [p.16 — Hero Form: Enemies Attack]
  4. Damage dealt = villain ATK (modified) − DEF of defending hero (excess to that hero); all damage to defending ally; all damage to undefended hero [p.16 — Hero Form: Enemies Attack]
  5. Engaged minions then attack that player one at a time (no boost cards; no defense step listed separately) [p.16 — Hero Form: Enemies Attack]

Villain Schemes (alter-ego form)

  1. Villain gets a boost card; flip it; +1 SCH per boost icon [p.15 — Alter-Ego Form: Enemies Scheme]
  2. Place threat on main scheme equal to villain's modified SCH [p.15 — Alter-Ego Form: Enemies Scheme]
  3. Engaged minions scheme one at a time (no boost cards) [p.15 — Alter-Ego Form: Enemies Scheme]

End of game

Players win when the final villain stage's HP is reduced to zero [p.9 — Winning and Losing]

Villain wins if:

  • Threat on the final main scheme stage reaches its target threat value [p.9 — Winning and Losing]
  • All players are eliminated (HP dial reaches zero) [p.9 — Winning and Losing]

When a villain stage is defeated, advance to the next stage and set HP dial to the new stage's value [p.12 — Dealing Damage]

When a scheme stage advances, remove its threat and check if it was the final stage [p.14 — The Scheme Deck]

Glossary

  • Threat: tokens placed on schemes representing villain progress; removed by thwarting [p.14 — The Scheme Deck]
  • Boost Card: facedown encounter card given to villain before activation; each boost icon = +1 ATK or +1 SCH [p.15–16 — Step Two]
  • Engaged: a minion placed near a specific player; it activates against that player each villain phase [p.16 — Step Four]
  • Exhausted: card rotated sideways; cannot exhaust again until readied [p.9 — Ready and Exhausted]
  • Consequential Damage: damage icons under an ally's ATK or THW; dealt to the ally after it attacks or thwarts [p.12 — Using an Ally]
  • Surge: reveal an additional encounter card immediately after resolving a card with this keyword [p.24 — Quick Reference]
  • Confused: replaces a thwart/thwart ability attempt; character still exhausts if required [p.24 — Status Cards]
  • Stunned: replaces an attack/attack ability attempt; character still exhausts if required [p.24 — Status Cards]
  • Tough: prevents all damage from one hit; discard the tough card instead [p.24 — Status Cards]
  • Crisis icon: side scheme must be defeated before threat can be removed from the main scheme [p.16 — Side Scheme Icons]
  • Acceleration icon: each such side scheme in play adds +1 threat placed on main scheme in step one [p.16 — Side Scheme Icons]
  • Hazard icon: each such side scheme in play causes one additional encounter card to be dealt in step three [p.16 — Side Scheme Icons]
  • Obligation: hero-specific encounter card; when revealed, immediately give to that hero's player to resolve [p.17 — Obligations]

FAQ

  • Q: Can a player defend against an attack targeting another hero? — A: Yes, any other player may exhaust their hero or an ally to defend if the attacked player chooses not to defend [p.16 — Hero Form: Enemies Attack]
  • Q: Can an ally defend against a villain attack? — A: Yes; if an ally defends, all damage from the attack is dealt to that ally [p.16 — Hero Form: Enemies Attack]
  • Q: What happens when a villain stage is defeated? — A: Set the HP dial to the new stage's value and continue; if it was the final stage, players win [p.12 — Dealing Damage]
  • Q: Can you use an action ability more than once per turn? — A: Yes, as long as its cost can be paid and its effect can change the game state [p.13 — Triggering an Action Ability]
  • Q: Does changing form reset upgrades or damage on the identity card? — A: No; upgrades, attachments, tokens, damage, and status cards all remain [p.11 — Changing Form]

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