Encounter

Something is hunting the survivors as they hunt their quarry. **Encounters** with these foes take place during the hunt phase. Encounters can ruin or enrich a hunt. The Gambler's Chest Expansion includes the Bone Eaters encounter monsters.

### Encounter Monster Components

The following components are used for an encounter with the dangerous Bone Eaters:

* Encounter hunt event cards
* Initiative cards
* Opportunity deck
* Counter deck
* Critical wound deck
* Encounter Showdown story event
* Reference card
* Encounter board
* Encounter monster miniatures
* Life dice

### Adding Encounters

To add encounters to a new campaign, add each encounter's introduction story event to the indicated lantern year on the timeline of your settlement record sheet.

#### Current Campaign

To add encounters to a current campaign, add each encounter's introduction story event to the indicated lantern year on the timeline of your settlement record sheet. If this lantern year has passed, add it to the next lantern year.

#### Adding Bone Eaters

Add the introduction story event **Missing Statue** to lantern year 3 on the settlement's timeline.

**Encounter hunt event cards** replace basic hunt event cards, introducing the looming threat of an encounter showdown during the hunt.

**Initiative cards** determine the order in which the monsters act. Each initiative card is illustrated with a specific encounter monster.

**Opportunity cards** are small cards that add horrifying outcomes to encounter monster basic attacks.

**Counter cards** are small cards that describe counter measures performed by monsters when they find an opening.

**Critical wound cards** are small cards that describe what happens when survivors inflict critical wounds on encounter monsters.

The **Encounter Showdown** story event lists the monsters' attributes and traits, encounter setup diagrams, and the outcomes of the encounter.

**Reference cards** list essential information that the monster controller uses to pummel the survivors.

The **encounter board** is a unique board on which encounter showdowns take place.

**Life dice** are used to track each monster's life total.

There are five **Bone Eater miniatures** in this expansion. Survivors will battle all of them at once.

## Encounter Hunt Events

When the encounter monster introduction story event is triggered, an encounter hunt event card is introduced into the basic hunt event deck. From this moment, the threat of an encounter looms over every hunt.

**Missing Statue** replaces a basic hunt event with **Bone Eaters - Encounter Level 1** in the basic hunt event deck.

When the encounter hunt event is revealed, if the current lantern year is the same or later than the lantern year on the card, the encounter monsters challenge the survivors and the encounter showdown begins. If the lantern year on the card is in the settlement's future, the monsters are disinterested; roll a random hunt event instead.

## Encounter Showdown

Encounters take place in the claustrophobic darkness of the hunt, somewhere between the settlement and the survivors' quarry.

### Encounter Board Setup

Set up the small encounter board below the hunt board. Leave all hunt phase materials (e.g., hunt board, unrevealed hunt events) on the table.

Turn to the **Encounter Showdown** story event. Place the terrain, the monsters, and the survivors as specified by the encounter setup diagram for your encounter level.

Place life dice showing the starting life of each encounter monster in that monster's base.

Do not add terrain tiles beyond what is listed in the encounter setup (ignore the effects of Strategist, Bug Trap, etc.).

### Set Up Encounter Cards

Encounter showdown story events list the monsters' attributes and traits for each encounter level.

Place any Special trait cards listed for your encounter level faceup in play alongside the encounter board.

Place the double-sided Basic Action / Reference card and initiative cards nearby. Shuffle the basic resource deck and set it facedown.

Shuffle each deck of opportunity, counter, and critical wound cards and set each nearby. These cards, along with Basic Actions and traits, determine the monsters' behaviors.

## The Encounter

Encounters are showdowns and have the same round structure. The rules in this section highlight the differences between encounters and showdowns. If questions arise, consult the Showdown Phase section in the core game rulebook.

At the beginning of an encounter, survivors gain Arrival and "start of showdown" bonuses. Effects that directly refer to the showdown, such as "during the showdown" effects, are usable during an encounter. All showdowns are unique conflicts, so "once per showdown" effects may be used again during the showdown with the survivors' quarry.

## Monster Turn

All encounter monsters act on the monster turn. At the start of the monster turn, the monster controller shuffles the initiative cards.

#### Initiative Cards

The order in which encounter monsters act is determined by initiative cards. The monster controller draws the top initiative card, activating the monster shown. This monster performs its Basic Action. Do this until all monsters have been activated and their turns resolved.

### Encounter Monster Basic Action

Encounter monsters perform their Basic Action one at a time. As they do, they are always searching for an opportunity to get the upper hand. The monsters' Basic Action describes when such an opening occurs.

These opportunities are part of the Basic Action. They describe when the monster will draw an opportunity card. For example, Bone Eaters draw an opportunity card when they roll any **Perfect hits**.

#### Opportunity Cards

When a monster draws an opportunity card, perform it as you would any other card. These are always performed by the currently acting monster and use the target of the Basic Action unless otherwise stated. When an opportunity card is resolved, place it in a discard pile.

#### Opportunity Card Moods

Some opportunity cards are monster moods. These follow the same rules as showdown monster moods. Place them in play and apply their persistent rules for as long as the card remains in play. Opportunity moods affect all monsters unless otherwise stated.

#### Encounter Monsters Are Individual Monsters

Each encounter monster is its own entity. When rules state that a monster gains an attribute token, only that monster gains a token. Encounter monsters do not share fields of view or adjacency.

## Movement & Collision

#### Encounter Monster Movement

When an action instructs an encounter monster to move towards a target, it takes the shortest path possible, moving around survivors, impassable terrain, and other monsters. If no path exists, move the monster as close as possible to its target.

Encounter monsters cannot voluntarily move through spaces occupied by survivors, impassable terrain, or other monsters.

If an encounter monster would occupy a space containing impassable terrain or another monster, place it in the nearest unoccupied space instead.

#### Encounter Monster Knockback

When an encounter monster suffers **knockback**, move it the indicated number of spaces away from the source of the knockback. If the monster would move into impassable terrain or another monster, stop its movement in the last unoccupied space before that object is reached (archive destructible terrain).

Knockback can move an encounter monster through a survivor. When it does, the survivor suffers **collision** at the end of the monster's movement. If the monster ends its knockback on a space occupied by a survivor, the survivor suffers **collision** and **knockback 5**.

## Survivor Turn

Survivors can perform the same actions in an encounter that they perform in a showdown. Encounter monsters do not have hit location decks, but they may still suffer critical wounds.

#### Attacking Encounter Monsters

Survivors make attack rolls and determine the number of hits as normal.

Instead of drawing hit location cards for each hit, survivors make a wound attempt roll for each hit, one at a time. On a successful wound attempt, the encounter monster suffers a wound.

When a survivor attacks while multiple encounter monsters are in range, they must choose which encounter monster they are attacking. If an encounter monster moves out of range or dies mid-attack, cancel all remaining hits.

#### Check for Critical Wounds

Lantern 10s, luck, and other applicable rules may cause critical wounds as normal.

When the monster receives a critical wound, draw and resolve a critical wound card. If a survivor kills a monster with a critical wound, they still draw and resolve a critical wound card. After resolving it, place the critical wound card in a discard pile.

#### Wounding Encounter Monsters

When the encounter monster suffers a wound, reduce the monster's life by 1 (track this using the life dice on the model's base). If the monster's Life reaches 0, it dies. Remove its miniature from the encounter board and archive its initiative card.

#### Counter Conditions and Counter Cards

Encounter monsters may counter the survivors' desperate assault. The counter conditions listed on the encounter monster reference card describe the moment this occurs.

When the counter conditions occur, the monster controller draws a counter card and resolves it. After a counter card is resolved, place it in a discard pile.

#### Survival Opportunities

Survivors have all the survival opportunities of a monster showdown: on the survivors' turn, during flows, after critical wounds, and when a monster is knocked down. The one exception is survival opportunities during reactions; without a hit location deck, these opportunities do not arise.

When an encounter monster draws an opportunity or counter card, there are no survival opportunities unless a flow is present.

## End of the Encounter

At the end of the encounter, the survivors are either defeated or have reached a crossroads. Since the end of the encounter is not the end of the journey, there is no **Aftermath** step.

### Defeat

If the hunting party has perished, they suffer defeat. Resolve the rules of defeat on the encounter showdown story event and end your hunt. Continue to the settlement phase.

### Victory

When the survivors are victorious, they gain the listed benefits of victory and rewards. Once they have determined their rewards, they **Deliberate** their next steps. Survivors retain all tokens and damage accrued during the encounter. Instead of applying any **Aftermath** rules, they must make a choice:

**Resume the hunt.** The survivors press on into the darkness, resuming on the hunt board as though they had just resolved a long hunt event.

**Return home.** The settlement suffers. Place the survivors at **Starvation**. The hunt ends in failure.

**Lower expectations.** The survivors can elect to hunt a lower-level quarry. Do not adjust the survivors' or monster's positions on the hunt board. When the showdown begins, the survivors fight a monster one level lower than that of their original quarry. You cannot lower a monster's level to less than 1.

If an effect like Exhausted Lantern Hoard compels the survivors to hunt level 3+ monsters, they cannot choose to fight a monster below level 3.

### Encounters Intensify

Once the encounter monster is defeated, remove the corresponding encounter hunt event card from the basic hunt event deck.

If possible, the threat intensifies. Add the next higher level encounter hunt event card to the deck. If none exists, the threat disappears back into the darkness.

### Continue the Hunt

If the survivors choose to lower their expectations or resume the hunt, return the encounter materials to the game box. The hunt phase resumes.