Overview

Heroes are split into two opposing teams: one fighting for the Atlanteans (Red) and the other fighting for the Titans (Blue). Regardless of which side you are on, coordinating with your team mates is the key to victory.

The recommended way to play is with either 4 or 6 players.

While there are ways to play Guards of Atlantis II with up to 10 players or with an odd number of players, these player counts should only be used if all participants have played the game at least five times.

The board is covered by a hex grid and divided into Zones. The two most important Zones are the two Thrones, one for each team.

The Throne is where your hero starts the game and where they respawn when defeated. Capturing the enemy Throne is the quickest (but not the easiest) way to win.

Minions are another type of unit. Unlike heroes, they are not directly controlled by the players.

Minions automatically fight other minions between rounds and will not attack heroes, though they can affect your hero’s defense if you get too close, so be cautious!

Minions serve as cannon fodder for the heroes and as a source of steady income of coins and level ups! While minions are no match for a hero, only minions can capture the enemy Throne by “Pushing a Lane”.

A Lane is a sequence of Zones connecting the two Thrones. At the start of the game, all minions are placed in the Zone in the middle of the Lane, called the Battle Zone.

If all opposing minions are destroyed, your minions advance one Zone closer to the enemy Throne, and that Zone becomes the new Battle Zone. Defeated minions respawn in the new Battle Zone, and the fight continues — this is called “Pushing the Lane”.

If your minions ever Push the Lane into the enemy Throne, they capture it and your team wins!

Cards are the heart of Guards of Atlantis II. Everything your hero can do — skills, attacks and even your hero’s “health” — is represented by an action on a card. If a card’s text directly contradicts the rules, the card’s text takes precedence.

You play 1 Action card each turn (simultaneously with other players) to perform 1 action. After 4 turns, the round ends, and you retrieve all your cards to use again in the next round.

There are many unique cards and card interactions to explore, which can feel overwhelming at first.

But do not worry! If you are ever unsure about an effect or interaction, simply follow the card text exactly as written.

The cards are written with precision, and many points of confusion can be resolved by rereading the text. Additional clarifications on core concepts and keywords are available on pages 17-19.

If that doesn’t help, join our Discord server, and we will be happy to assist you!

In addition to Pushing Lanes and defeating minions, it’s every hero’s right and privilege to fight and defeat their peers using a vast array of deadly attacks.

If your hero is defeated, they respawn at their Throne, safe and sound. However, immortality comes at a cost: the attacker and their team earn coins for your defeat, and, more importantly, your team loses one or more Life counters.

Life counters are shared by your team. If you spend your last Life counter, the enemy team wins the game, so try not to die (or, at least not too often)!

Higher-level heroes are worth more coins and spend more Life counters when defeated. If you fall behind, there is always a chance for an epic comeback!

By now, you have learned that there are two ways to win in Guards of Atlantis II — by Pushing the Lane into the enemy Throne, or by defeating enemy heroes until they run out of Life counters. But there is also a third way!

The game also ends when “time” runs out. Whenever a team Pushes the Lane, a Wave counter is removed. When the last counter is gone, the game ends immediately, and the team that won the last Push wins the game!

But what about “line of sight”? There are no “line of sight” rules! You can simply see everything!

Guards of Atlantis II has strict rules for communication during the game. Following them ensures that the game is played as intended and runs smoothly. Several heroes are designed and balanced with these rules in mind.

Between turns, you are free to discuss strategy with your team, but it must be done out loud so that the other team can clearly hear you. You are not allowed to take notes or show each other cards (though you may read aloud information from your cards).

Use your best judgement to know when to discuss strategy, potentially revealing your plans to the opponents, and when to trust your teammates to do the right thing.

Once the Action cards are revealed at the start of a turn, strategy discussions must stop. Players should read the cards played by others to gauge their opponents’ and teammates’ intentions, but each player must make decisions on their own.

This simulates the real-time nature of the battle.

If teammates need to make a coordinated decision after the Action cards have been revealed, they must do so without discussing strategy; they may simply state their preferences.

For example, if two players on the same team are tied for the Initiative, they have to decide which one of them will act first. Since the cards are already revealed, they cannot discuss strategy at this point. It would be legal for one of the players to say “I would really like you to go first”, but not “I need to go first, because I have to dodge that attack”. Players must come to an agreement, without discussing their rationale.

If a card instructs another player on your team to name a color, or choose a direction, you are not allowed to suggest which option you would like them to choose.

You can always ask another player to read any of their unresolved cards, resolved cards, and discarded cards, as well as visible information on their dashboards.

Everything else is hidden information, including:

• Cards in the deck.
• Cards in hand.
• The part of the card covered by your hero dashboard (more on this later).
• Any facedown cards.

Not knowing or not being 100% certain of the exact values and the exact text of every card is expected and is a part of the game.

Exceptions can be made for first-time players. More experienced players are encouraged to reveal information, such as their initiative, attack, or defense value, to newer players during a teaching game.