{hail to the king}
(modernizing the king's die)
Legends tell of an ancient collection of heirlooms, imbued with Eldrymetallum - that rare and precious star-metal - priceless and powerful beyond compare. Belonging to a king from a lost age, they were long thought lost to the sands of time. However, it seems these mysterious relics have resurfaced as of late...
What is the king's die?
Originally printed as a promotional die in Dragon Dice's earliest days, this pearlized lavender and yellow-inked die features the King (or Queen) of each of the five original factions found in the game.
As the game grew and new factions were added, the King's Die became less and less relevant, and with the release of the newest edition of the rules, it became the first (and only) die to be officially discontinued, as it has never been widely available and is no longer being produced.
so now what?
Still prized by collectors, we thought it might be fun to pay homage to this beautiful and historic die by creating a few options for bringing it back to life!
These rules are unofficial, but we think they can add a dash of variety to your games and give this wonderful and unique die a place at your table.
Print out any of the included reference cards and give these rules a shot!
What if i don't own a king's die?
As this die was a short-lived promotional die, tracking down your very own can be tricky. We wouldn't want anyone to be left out, so we have created this "Proxy" for anyone to use!
Simply print this card out, grab your favorite standard six-sided die, and use the icons shown to recreate your own King's Die.
Use the "6" face in place of the logo and you're all set!
The Rules
For our purposes, the King's Die represents one of four possible Heirlooms: unique pieces of equipment with a few specific rules. Remember that these rules are 100% unnoficial and should not be used without talking to your playgroup first:
Heirlooms are unique - no force can contain more than one heirloom.
Heirlooms are relics - they must be carried by units (of any faction), and any unit carrying an heirloom cannot carry a second item.
Heirlooms cost 4 points during force construction.
These heirlooms are outlined below.
Staff of the king
The first heirloom we have is the Staff of the King. The magic imbued within this wizard's staff causes it to transform into terrifying and powerful monsters at a moment's notice.
When you add the Staff of the King to your forces, you also choose up to five monsters - one for each faction depicted on the die - and place those monsters in your summoning pool.
Then, at the start of your turn you can roll the Staff of the King and then have it swap places with the monster matching the faction you rolled. This allows you to bring a variety of monsters to mix into your team, each with a one-in-three chance of coming out!
Instead of the normal effect, you can also swap the Staff of the King back to its non-monster form, returning the monster to the summoning pool and placing the Staff wherever that monster was.
Robe of the king
Next on our list of heirlooms is the Robe of the King. This enchanted robe twists and distorts the energy around itself, manifesting in strange and powerful effects on the battlefield.
Once per turn - yours and your opponent's, after your army containing the Robe of the King is rolled, it can be used to change the outcome of that roll. Before you apply any effects of the roll - SAIs, re-rolls, etc. you may choose four health-worth of units to ignore entirely; pretend they never even rolled. Then roll the Robe of the King and see what SAI it manifests in their place.
The Amazon Queen grants the Stone SAI, the Coral Elf King provides Fly, the Lava Elf King offers Volley, the Dwarven King brings Trample, and the Goblin King gives Counter, each of which is considered four-points worth of effect!
Crown of the king
The third heirloom we have to work with is the Crown of the King. This magical crown attunes its wearer with the ever-present magic of Esfah, allowing them to tap into new and powerful spells.
Once on your turn, you can roll the Crown of the King. Until your next turn starts, the army carrying the Crown can cast faction spells of the faction depicted on the die, and those spells can be cast with any color of magic. This only applies to faction-specific spells, not all spells available to that faction.
This grants access to powerful effects such as Blizzard, Scent of Fear, and Necromantic Wave in factions that normally can't access those effects. Suddenly Treefolk can use direct damage, Undead can mobilize their mages into melee combat, and Coral Elves can send their foes screaming in terror!
Blade of the king
The final heirloom in our arsenal is the Blade of the King. This bloodthirsty sword trades sacrificial slaughter for profane power.
Before making any roll, the army carrying the Blade of the King may make a sacrifice. Two health-worth of units must be immediately sent to the BUA - no coming back from this sacrifice - just to roll the Blade of the King. In exchange, the army wielding this blade gains access to the faction abilities of whichever face is rolled on the die. This ability lasts until another sacrifice is performed, or until the Blade moves to another location - either a terrain or reserves.
Scalders suddenly have access to Swamp Mastery. Dwarves can Kukri Charge. Swamp Stalkers now have Cursed Bullets. The possibilities are limitless.
How'd we do?
Now that we've given you some fun ways to incorporate the King's Die in your forces, how did we do? Do you like these ideas?
We'd love to hear your feedback! Email us at info@thedicemustflow.com and tell us what you think!