Spheres of Life - Rules & FAQ

Spheres of Life is a competitive card game, so depending on the win condition you chose, your main goal of the game is to either get the most point in the end of the game; or to get to 0 points in the shortest possible time.

You reach this goal by collecting and discarding the cards that give and reduce your overall points, and by using handy Ability and Hero cards that grant you bonuses and reduce the chances for other Player to win.

This goal is achieved by playing through 3 Phases. Depending on the Phase you will either earn new cards, get rid of unnecessary cards, or even exchange and steal cards among other players.

Each Phase brings its own effects into play – during the Day Phase you are able to get new cards; during the Night you can lose or exchange unnecessary cards; and during the Dream Phase you must take Action, and use special Abilities.

The Standard win condition is the "Become the Strongest Hero" goal.

That means the Player with the most point at the end of game - wins.

For replayability purposes, we have also created alternative rules and win condition.

Read the next question for more info.

Before each Playthrough each Player chooses their Hero Card (marked yellow).

A Hero Card grants you a powerful Ability you can use once per game.

The Hero Cards can be used at any time of the Game.

Find the Three Phase Cards – Day, Night, and Dream (marked orange) – these cards will be passed around the Players and will mark the active Phase. Each Phase has its own unique attributes and conditions.

When the Hero Cards and Phase Cards are set, then shuffle the Main Deck, and deal 3 random cards to each Player.

Play a game of Rock-Scissor-Paper. The winner starts the game and begins the first Day Phase.

*If someone picked up the Windmaser Hero Card, they begins the first three Rounds – the first Day, Night, and Dream Phase.

Players take turns in a clockwise direction.

After each Phase – next Player in clockwise succession begins the new Phase.

During each Phase, the Players - also take turns in clockwise succession.

This can be changed buy using certain Ability Cards and in the instance, if someone picked the Windmaster hero card.
This Hero has an effect allowing the Player to begin the first three Rounds.

The game has 5 Types of cards:

• Noble Animals – gives you points.
• Corrupted Animals – reduces your points.
• Hero Cards – Grants a powerful Ability that can be used once per game. Each Player has one Hero card.
• Ability Cards – Cards with either positive or negative Abilities. These cards can be drawn from the main deck. Each unused Ability card, reduces your points by one point.
• Phase Cards – cards that illustrate which Phase is currently happening in the game.

In a nutshell, Noble Animals give you points; Corrupted Animals and Ability Cards reduce your Points.

Each Ability Card that left unused In your Hand at the end of the Game is worth one negative point.

Additionally, the Animal Cards give you exponential (positive or negative) Points if you collect multiple copies of the same Animal.

For example:

a) One Noble Rabbit Card – that is (+) one point.

b) Two Noble Rabbit Cards – that is (+) four points.

c) All three Noble Rabbit Cards – that is (+) nine points.

Similarly, if you have:

a) One Corrupted Snake Card - that is (-) one point.

b) Two Corrupted Snake Cards - that is (-) four points.

c) All Three Corrupted Snake Cards - that is (-) nine points.

The game is divided in three Phases – Day, Night and Dream.

In a nutshell:

• During the Day you earn cards;
• During the Night you exchange cards with the Main Deck;
• During the Dream you can use Actions and use Abilities against other players or in favor to you.

During the Day each Player will get two cards - one of their choosing and one random.

1) At the start of the Day, openly put cards on the table - the same number as Players are in the game. So, if there are 5 Players, put 5 cards on the table. Then, Players take turns, and each Player must pick up one card.

That means, the first Player gets to choose any card. And the last Player - gets to pick the one card remaining on the Table.

2) When all Players picked up their card, then every Player Draws another card - this time a random card from the tob of the Main Deck.

When all Players picked up the card from the Main Table - the Day ends, and the Night begins.

At the start of the Night, openly put cards on the table - twice the number as Players are in the game. So, if there are 5 Players, put 10 cards on the table.

Then Players take turns and each Player is allowed to discard up to 2 cards from their hand (but they can choose not to discard any).

Then for each discarded card, the Player may pick up one card.

When all Players have taken their turn, the cards still remaining on Table are discarded.

The Night Phase ends, and Dream begins.

During the Dream Phase you must take Actions and may use Ability Cards.

I. Abilities. At any moment of the Dream, any Player can use their Ability Cards (i.e., you don’t have to wait for your turn). And you can play out any number of Abilities during this Phase.

II. Actions. Besides Abilities each Player must complete one of three possible Actions. The Actions are completed in the respective order – starting from the Player who holds the Phase Card. After the Player completes their Action, the next Player does his/her Action. The Round ends when all of the Players completed their Action.

III. Bonus Actions. Just before the Action, Players can take a Bonus Action - one type of Bonus Action per turn. In the Main Game, there is only one type of Bonus Action - Banking a Set.

During the Dream each player takes turns by completing one of the following Actions:

• Steal. Take one random card from another player. The regular steal (i.e. without using a specific Ability) allows you to take one random card from a Player’s Hand.
• Forced Gift. Give one of their cards to another player. This means you give one card to another player of your choice. They cannot refuse this gift (unless a specific Ability is used). You can give any card except the Hero Card.
• Exchange. You can propose an open exchange – tell everyone that you wish to exchange one particular card you own for another specific card (i.e. “I Want to Exchange my Noble Rabbit for the Noble Deer”). If no one agrees to the exchange, you must then do the Steal or Forced Gift Action.
  

During the Dream Phase, any Player at any time may play out their Ability Cards (marked as purple).

This means, that you can play out as many (or as little) Ability cards during the whole Dream Phase.

Some specifics, regarding the Ability Cards.

1) You can Play out the Ability card at any time during the Dream Phase. But if an Ability Card is being used at the moment - you have to wait for the Ability Card to take effect until you can play out yours. The exception is the Block Ability.

As an example, a Player Plays out an Ability that allows them to draw two cards from the Deck. So, in this case, you can use your Ability Card, when the player picked up the two cards, and put them in their hand.

2) When using an Ability Card, no Player can take their Action. After the Ability took effect, the Actions can be continued normally (except, if the Ability impacts the Action Phase directly).

3) After using an Ability card, the card is Discarded (unless the Ability states otherwise).

4) You can play out as many Ability cards as you like. But you cannot play them out simultaneously (i.e., you can play out the next Ability when the previous has taken effect).

5) You cannot play out Ability cards that don't make sense in the current situation.

For example, in case there are no cards left in the Main Deck, you cannot use the Ability that instructs to draw cards from the Main Deck).

Just before the Action, Players can take a Bonus Action - one type of Bonus Action per turn.

In the Main Game, there is only one type of Bonus Action - Banking a Set, but in the expansions there will be other types of Bonus Actions.

Banking a Set, explained:
- Before your Action, you can bank a complete set of Animals (in the Main Game, a complete set consists of 3 copies. For example, 3 Noble Rabbits).
- There is no limit on how many sets you can bank in total, but you can bank only one set during a single Dream Phase.
- Points for banked sets. When a set is banked, it no longer has the original points. A Banked Noble set will give you positive 6 points. And a Banked Corrupted set will give you +3 points. Read more in the “Counting Points“ section.
- A Banked Set cannot be discarded, stolen, or otherwise removed. In short,
a banked set will remain by the Player until the end of the game.

The Dream Phase ends when the last Player has completed their Action, or the Dream is ended by an Ability. Then pass on the Phase cards and begin the next Phase.

The game always ends in the Dream Phase - the LAST Dream.

Some notes about the Last Dream:
1. The Last Dream always comes when the Main Deck runs out of cards. When the last card is picked up from the Main Deck, the following Phase will always be the Last Dream.
2. If the last card is picked up in a Dream Phase - the next Phase will be another Dream Phase (i.e., the last Dream Phase).
3. The Last Dream is just like a regular Dream, but with one notable change - During the Last Dream, you cannot use cards and/or effects that change the Dream to Day or Dream.
4. The Last Dream can be restarted, but it cannot be changed to a different Phase. I.e., you cannot use any cards (including Hero Cards) that have an effect of changing the Phase.
5. The Last Dream is completed when all Players complete their Action in the Last Dream.
Now, the game ends, and a winner is found.

For better pace, and improved strategy, use these key changes in conjunction with the standard rules.

1) Each of you, pick up 2 Hero Cards, instead of one.

2) During the Day, put 6 cards on the Table. Then, each takes turns and picks three cards. Then each draw three Random cards from the Main Deck. So, you each will get 6 new cards after the Day Phase (instead of two if played by standard rules.

3) During the Night Phase, you put 12 cards on the table (instead of 4, if played by normal rules). Then, each of you can Discard up to 6 cards (instead of 2). For each discarded card, you can pick up to 1 card. 

So, in short, take 2 Hero Cards, and During the Day and Night, multiply everything by 3 compared to normal rules.

Yes, Spheres of Life have possible alternative rules for you to enjoy.

1. Alternative Rules:

We call these rules the “Purist Way“.
Basically, everything as in normal playthrough, but you don’t use Ability Cards and Hero Cards (take those cards out of play).
*In this case the Player who goes first is decided by a good old fashioned rock-paper-scissor fight, and the first Player passes the Phase Card to the next Player after the first Round (i.e., the Windmaster ability is not active).

2. Alternative win conditions:

Alternatively of becoming the Strongest Hero, you can aim to Restore the Balance.

“Restore the Balance” - the goal is getting to 0 points in the shortest time.

In this case, the game is played for at least 2 Daytime Phases. After the second Daytime Phase is concluded, the first Player to reach the total points on hand to 0.

This win condition is recommended for 3 or less Players.

It depends.

There are some Ability Cards that can be used exclusively on yourself, some - exclusively on another Player; and some will give you the option to choose.

1) Some Ability Cards will intrinsically describe the Ability as taking effect on you.

2) If the Ability Card says "Choose Another Player," you must use it on another player. So, you cannot use this ability on yourself.

3) If this Ability Card says "Choose a- or any Player," then yes, you can use this Ability Card on yourself.

Yes, you can use block Ability (i.e., the Apple of Life) on Ability Cards that you played.

But you cannot Block your own Action.

Except, the Block Ability (i.e., the Apple of Life), you cannot use Abilities Cards or take Action while another Ability Card is played out or an Action takes place.

If there is a draw, the Player with less cards on Hand wins.

If they possess the same number of cards, Playthrough ends in a draw.

*You can play multiple rounds and add up points each time to see who will be the overall winner.

Yes, it is most likely that you will run out of cards during Night or Day phases.

Before staring Day Phase - If there are less cards in the Main Deck than there are Players, then you set all available cards on the Table, and the Players pick up cards in their respective order. As during the Day, Players must pick up cards, then this will be the last round of the game.

Example - Before the new Day, there are 3 cards in the Main Deck, but there are 4 Players playing the game.

In this case, you set all 3 cards on the Table. Then first 3 Players take their turns and pick up their cards. And the last Player does not get a card.

If all Players completed their turn and there are no cards left in the Main Deck, the game proceeds to the LAST Dream (read, "End of the Game")

Yes, it is most likely that you will run out of cards during Night or Day phases.

Before starting Night Phase - if there are less cards then needed for Night Phase, then you set all remaining cards in the Main Deck on the Table.

Then, the Players take Turns and discard/ pick up their cards as they normally would in the Night Phase.

If after all Players completed their Turn and there are still cards on the Table, then move on to the next Phase.

In case a Player has their turn, but there are no cards remaining on the Table, then the Player can either discard their cards or skip their turn, but either way this Player cannot pick up any cards from the Table.

The night ends, when all Players had their turn and discarded their cards or skipped their turn.

If all Players completed their turn and there are no cards left in the Main Deck, the game proceeds to the LAST Dream (read, "End of the Game")

The Blessed Cherry Ability Card allows to look at two cards from another Player's Hand, and then you can put them back in their order. So, why does the order matter?

Firstly, you can combine it with your Steal Action. In this case, you can steal a card that you know you will be getting.

Or you can combine it with other Abilities that allows you to pick a random card from another Player.

Yes, the game is designed in a way you can add multiple decks, and/or future expansions.

Generally, speaking by adding multiple decks, you can increase the time required to play one game, and/or increase the potential number of players.

Otherwise, there are two main factors you should take into consideration:

1. There can only be one player, who picks the Windmaster card, so if you combine two or more decks, the remaining Winmaste4r cards will be redundant.
2. When counting points, the maximum set is still 3 cards. So, if you have 4 copies of the same animal card on hand, that means you will have 10 points (i.e., 9+1). If you have 5 cards, then it is 13 points (i.e., 9+4), and so on.
   *As an example, if you have 5 Noble Rabbit cards on hand, they will give you 13 points in total.
   
   

Yes, there are several ways you can support us.

1. You can write us a message with your feedback and suggestions you might have.
2. You can buy our merch. As this project is brand new, there is not a wide variety of available items, but we are working hard to expand the selection.
3. Or, if you simply wish to support the project, you can buy the cover art file here, which is almost as donation.