Talisman Worlds — Official Rulebook v0.3.0

Before You Begin

How to Play in 5 Minutes

Talisman Worlds replaces the game boards used by Talisman with individual hexagonal tiles. This ensures that every game of Talisman has a completely different setup, whilst also laying important foundations for more easily introducing new expansions that are not just limited to the four corners as they are in traditional games.

★ What This Mod Does

Replaces: The Talisman board (outer, middle, and inner regions) with 61 hexagonal tiles arranged in four concentric rings around a hidden ending tile.

Keeps: All characters, adventure cards, spell decks, purchase cards, stranger cards, warlock quests, and core rules. Your entire encounter library is untouched.

Result: A different board every session. Same game, completely different journey.

This mod has been built and tested for Talisman 4th Edition (revised) by Fantasy Flight Games.

The Original Board

As a reference, the original core board has the following spaces:

Outer region = 24 spaces
Middle region = 16 spaces
Inner region = 9 spaces
Crown of Command = central space
Total of 50 spaces

Converting spaces to hexagons around a hidden ending tile results in the following four-ringed board, which requires exactly 61 hexagonal tiles to complete:

4th ring (24 hexes) — randomly place all 24 outer region tiles face-up
3rd ring (18 hexes) — randomly place 18 river region tiles face-up
2nd ring (12 hexes) — randomly place 12 middle region tiles face-up
1st ring (6 hexes) — randomly place 6 of the 9 available inner region tiles face-up
Middle — randomly place one of the eight available ending tiles face down

An additional 14 tiles must be added to the middle region choices to account for missing hexes, whilst also creating the infamous river that separates the outer and middle regions:

10 water tiles (cannot be crossed without a raft)
4 additional desert tiles (act as desert spaces from original Talisman)

Rule Changes

Rules

The only required changes to the rules are as follows:

Restrictions to movements based upon the region a player starts their turn
Newly introduced river region (between the outer and middle regions)
Newly introduced river tile — which players may not end their turn on
Tweaked desert tile and more of them — which players may not end their turn on

This modular board system not only results in a different setup every time, but also lays important foundations for more easily introducing new expansions in the future.

Getting Around

Movement

Some movement rules are consistent, regardless of the region:

Players can only cross river tiles by using a raft
Players can only cross deserts by using a water bottle
Players cannot end their turn on a river tile
Players cannot end their turn on a desert tile

Some movement is restricted based upon the region a player starts their turn.

Outer Region

Players roll a D4 for movement
Players can choose any tile up-to the maximum they rolled
Players can only freely access the middle region from the sentinel
Players cannot use the oasis or hidden valley tiles as part of movement

River Region

Players roll a D3 for movement
Players can choose any tile up-to the maximum they rolled

Middle Region

Players roll a D3 for movement
Players can choose any tile up-to the maximum they rolled

Inner Region

Players may only move to an adjacent inner region tile
Can only freely access inner region from portal of power (middle region)
Can only access ending (middle tile) from valley of fire (by discarding a talisman)

The Board

Tiles

Endings

Randomly choose one of the ending tiles and place it face down in the middle of the board.

Crown of Command — unchanged
Horrible Black Void — unchanged
Battle Royale — unchanged
Dragon King — unchanged
Demon Lord — unchanged
Eagle King — unchanged
Hand of Doom — unchanged
Thieve’s Guild — unchanged

Inner Regions

The first ring surrounding the ending are the six inner region tiles:

Valley of Fire — unchanged
Crypt — unchanged
Death — unchanged
Werewolve’s Den — unchanged
Mines — unchanged
Vampire’s Tower — unchanged

Middle Regions

The second ring surrounding the inner regions are the twelve middle region tiles:

Portal of Power — unchanged
Black Knight — unchanged
Hills — draw 1 card — unchanged
Cursed Glade — draw 1 card cannot use magic — unchanged
Runes — draw 1 card enemies get plus 2 X 3 — unchanged
Chasm — unchanged
Warlock’s Cave — unchanged
Temple — unchanged
Woods — draw 1 card — unchanged
Castle — unchanged

River Regions

The third ring surrounding the middle regions are the eighteen river region tiles:

River Tiles X 10 — can only cross with raft — cannot end turn here
Desert Tiles X 6 — can only cross with water bottle — cannot end turn here
Oasis — draw 2 cards — can only go one way (outward)
Hidden Valley — draw 3 cards — can only go one way (outward)

Outer Region

The fourth ring surrounding the river regions are the twenty four outer regions:

City — unchanged
Village — unchanged
Tavern — unchanged
Chapel — unchanged
Ruins — draw 2 cards — unchanged
Fields — draw 1 card X 6 — unchanged
Plains — draw 1 card X 4 — unchanged
Woods — draw 1 card X 3 — unchanged
Hills — draw 1 card X 2 — unchanged
Sentinel — if crossing from outer then must win fight — then roll next turn
Graveyard — unchanged
Crags — unchanged
Forest — unchanged

The graphics used for stickers to be placed on 90mm hexagons can be seen on Moddable.Games. Talisman cards fit in 90mm hexes.

Tile Encounters

Special Tiles

The following information is difficult to place on the hexagonal tiles so is here as reference, with the hope that future versions of this modification will be able to reduce or remove this section.

Outer Regions

Forest — Roll D6

Attacked by a brigand with Strength 4
Lost; lose your next turn
Lost; lose your next turn
Safe
Safe
A ranger guides you out; gain 1 Craft

Graveyard — Based on Alignment

Good = Lose one life
Neutral = Replenish fate up-to starting value for one gold each
Evil = Either replenish fate up-to starting value for FREE or roll D6:
- 1 to 4 = Ignored
- 5 = Gain one fate
- 6 = Gain one spell

Crags — Roll D6

Attacked by a Spirit with Craft 4
Lost; lose your next turn
Lost; lose your next turn
Safe; no effect
Safe; no effect
A barbarian leads you out; gain 1 Strength

City — Visit Enchantress, Doctor or Alchemist

Enchantress — Roll D6:

You are turned into a Toad for 3 Turns
Lose 1 Strength
Lose 1 Craft
Gain 1 Craft
Gain 1 Strength
Gain 1 Spell

Doctor — heal up-to two lives at one gold per life

Alchemist — turn any number of objects into gold — one object equal one gold

Village — Visit Blacksmith, Healer or Mystic

Blacksmith — Purchase (if available):

Helmet — 2G
Sword — 2G
Axe — 3G
Shield — 3G
Armour — 4G

Healer — heal up-to your starting life value at one gold per life

Mystic — Roll D6:

Become evil
Ignored
Ignored
Become good
Gain 1 Craft
Gain 1 Spell

Tavern — Roll D6

You get blind drunk and collapse in a corner. Miss 1 turn.
You get tipsy and get in a fight with a farmer (STRENGTH 3).
You gamble and lose 1 Gold Coin.
You gamble and win 1 Gold Coin.
A wizard offers to teleport you to an Outer Region of your choice as your next move.
A boatman offers to ferry you to the Temple as your next move.

Chapel — Based on Alignment

Evil = Lose one life
Neutral = Heal up-to starting life value for one gold per life
Good = Either heal up-to starting life value for free or PREY by rolling D6:
- 1 to 4 = Ignored
- 5 = Gain 1 life
- 6 = Gain 1 Spell

Middle Region

Temple — Roll 2D6

Lose 2 lives.
Lose 1 life.
Lose 1 Follower.
Enslaved; stay here until you roll a 4, 5, or a 6 for your move.
Gain 1 Strength.
Gain 1 Craft.
Gain 1 Spell.
Gain 1 Spell.
Gain a Talisman.
Gain 2 fate.
Gain 2 lives.

Chasm — Roll D6 for Yourself and Each Follower

If yourself; 1 or 2 results in losing one life.

If follower; 1 or 2 results in follower being killed.

Castle — Royal Doctor

Heal up-to your starting life value at one gold per life.

If you have the prince or princess, heal up-to two lives for free (each).

Portal of Power

Draw one card or try to access plain of perils by choosing strength or craft and rolling 2D6. If the number is equal or lower than your chosen stat you can move to the plain of perils.

Inner Region

Valley of Fire

Discard a Talisman in order to access the ending on your next turn.

Crypt

Roll 3D6 and subtract your strength:

1. Crypt
1. Plain of Peril
2-3) Portal of Power
4-5) Warlock’s Cave
6+) City

Death

Roll two dice for yourself and two dice for Death. If the scores are equal: Dice with Death again on your next turn. If your score is lower: Lose one life and Dice with Death again on your next turn. If your score is higher: You may move on your next turn.

Werewolves Den

Roll two dice for the Werewolf’s Strength, then fight it. If you lose, lose one life and fight the same Werewolf again on your next turn. You cannot move on until you have defeated the Werewolf.

Mines

Roll 3D6 and subtract your craft:

1. Mines
1. Plain of Peril
2-3) Portal of Power
4-5) Warlock’s Cave
6+) Tavern

Pits (removed to ensure six)

Roll 1D6 and fight that many pit fiends at strength 4. Cannot move until killing all.

Vampire’s Tower

Roll one die to determine how many lives the Vampire takes. You may discard any number of Followers to avoid this loss of life. Each Follower you discard prevents the loss of one life.

Lose 1 life
Lose 1 life
Lose 2 lives
Lose 2 lives
Lose 3 lives
Lose 3 lives

Endings

Crown of Command

If a character is on the Crown of Command and no other characters are present, he must cast one Command Spell at the start of each of his turns. If a 1, 2, or 3 is rolled, the Spell has no effect. On a 4, 5, or 6 all other characters lose 1 life. If a character is on the Crown of Command and there is another character present, he must encounter the other character instead of casting the Command Spell.

Battle Royale

All characters that do not have a Talisman, except for the character who first entered the Crown of Command, lose the game. All characters that have a Talisman are immediately placed on the Crown of Command.

The character who first entered the Crown of Command must choose a character to attack. The winner of the attack must force the loser to lose a life; he cannot choose to take an Object or gold instead. The winner of the attack then chooses any other character to attack (the loser cannot be chosen unless he is the only other character remaining). If the attack is a stand-off, the same characters fight again.

Characters must continue attacking each other in this manner until only one character remains. The last character remaining wins the game! When a character attacks, he may choose to fight in battle or psychic combat. He may not choose when he is attacked by another character.

Dragon King

Strength 12, Craft 12, Life 5 — on your turn, roll one D6:

1-2) Discard a Talisman. If you do not have a Talisman to discard, you are killed instead.
3-4) Clockwise starting with yourself, all characters must attack the Dragon King using Strength or Craft. Each time the Dragon King is defeated, remove one of his lives.
5-6) Attack the Dragon King using Strength or Craft. Each time you defeat the Dragon King, remove one of his lives and immediately attack him again. If you have a stand-off or are defeated, your turn ends.

If a character removes the Dragon King’s last life, he wins the game!

Characters cannot encounter each other; they must roll one die for the Dragon King instead. If there are no characters, the Dragon King heals all his lives.

Horrible Black Void

You and all of your possessions are pulled into the Horrible Black Void, you lose the game! Draw another random ending tile to replace this one.

Demon Lord

Craft 12, Life 4 — on your turn attack with craft — if stand-off or lose, return to crags. Player to take last life wins. If no players, Demon Lord heals all life.

Eagle King

Strength 12, Craft 12, Life 4 — on your turn attack with strength or craft — if stand-off or lose, return to crags. Player to take last life wins. If no players, Eagle King heals all life.

Hand of Doom

Roll one D6 on your turn:

1) All characters are killed — all players lose the game.
2-3) Lose 1 life.
4-5) Choose one character; that character is killed.
6) All other characters are killed — you win the game!

Thieves Guild

On your turn roll one D6:

1-2) You must take 1 gold from all other characters
3-4) You must take 1 Object from all other characters
5-6) You must take 2 Objects from all other characters

Players on Thieves Guild can hold an unlimited number of objects. When a gold or object must be taken but cannot be given, that player is killed. Characters on Thieves Guild cannot encounter each other and must both roll D6 for their turns. If all players are on Thieves Guild, the player with the most objects and gold wins.

Optional Rules

Variations

Some of these variations are published elsewhere, others are modified by our team:

Warlock Quests — players must complete one quest per player to gain a talisman — all other talismans are removed from the game or replaced by “extra life” if printed.
The One Talisman — remove all but one talisman from the game — add two to both strength and craft whilst holding talisman. Warlock quests result in talisman teleporting.

Warlock Quests

The following D20 collection of quests provides an alternative to both the original warlock cave as well as the warlock quest cards that were introduced in future expansions.

Kill a dragon
Deliver a magic item to two different woods
Deliver five gold coins to the tavern
Deliver prince or princess to the castle
Deliver any enemy spirit to graveyard
Deliver three fate to the chapel
Meet the ranger (forest)
Meet the barbarian (crags)
Get enslaved at the temple
Deliver two weapons to the alchemist
Get teleported somewhere
Deliver three followers to the castle
Become a toad
Deliver an axe to the cursed glade
Change alignment
Safely guide at least three followers (in one go) across the chasm
Deliver an axe to the
Deliver a water bottle to the oasis
Enter the valley of fire without a talisman
Lose all your lives — then get replenished to starting lives

Players may only perform one quest at a time. In order to remove the current quest, players must get drunk in the tavern and miss a go. They may then visit the warlock for a new quest.

Upon completing a quest, the player must then return to the warlock’s cave to gain their talisman. If playing the one talisman variation, it is at this point that the talisman teleports.

Expansion

The Dungeon

The following official Talisman 4th edition expansion has worlds support:

Replace the dungeon board with a new fifth ring of tiles — with the following movement rules:

Players roll a D6 for movement
Players can choose any tile up-to the maximum they rolled
Players can only enter the dungeon from the entrance or newly discovered portals
Players can only exit the dungeon from the entrance or treasure chamber

Dungeon Region

The fifth ring of tiles surrounding the outer regions become the thirty dungeon region tiles:

Cavern — draw two cards X 4
Corridor — draw one card X 6
Tunnel — draw one card X 6
Vault — draw three cards X 3
Cell — leave a follower and take a follower
Dungeon Entrance — draw one card
Guard Room — bribe (2G) or fight (5S)
Hall of Darkness — roll D6
Kitchen — you may roll a D6
Library — roll D6
Monster Pit — roll D6
Summoning Circle — move closest enemy here or draw card if no enemies
Torture Chamber — pay 1G or lose 1 strength or 1 craft
Treasure Chamber — Fight Lord of Darkness (S12/C12)
Mountains — (newly added) cannot access this region (used for reaching 6th ring later). Also used to separate the dungeon entrance and treasure chamber to force players to go all the way around the dungeon in order to reach the end. Dungeon entrances found later in the game lead to spaces beside them, as opposed to the dungeon entrance.

Dungeon Special Tiles

Hall of Darkness — Roll D6 next turn for movement

Move back 3 spaces
Move back 2 spaces
Move back 1 space
Move forward 1 space
Move forward 2 spaces
Move forward 3 spaces

Kitchen — you may roll one D6

Poison: lose 1 life
Tastes great!
Tastes great!
Heal 1 life
Heal 1 life
Heal 2 life

Library — roll one D6

Have a good read
Have a good read
Discover a secret passage — immediately take an extra turn
Discover a secret passage — immediately take an extra turn
Gain 1 Spell
Gain 1 Spell

Monster Pit — roll one D6

Draw 1 card
Draw 2 cards
Draw 2 cards
Draw 3 cards
Draw 3 cards
Draw 1, 2 or 3 cards (you choose how many)

Treasure Chamber — Fight Lord of Darkness (Strength 12 | Craft 12)

Whether you win or lose, subtract the Lord of Darkness’s attack score from your attack score to see where you emerge:

1. Crags
1. Forest
1. Chasm
1. Cursed Glade
1. Warlock’s Cave
1. Temple
1. Portal of Power
1. Plain of Peril
8+) Crown of Command