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Asunder
Dreams Are Made Of StarsSummaryRulebookGallerySample CardsPrint ItBuyLicenseHow It Was CreatedEpic SoundtracksFluonsHistory
Dreams Are Made Of Stars
One human has breached the very wheelwork of Nature and found a way to go anywhere in an instant, transiting through portals as if walking through open doors between worlds. The dawn of intergalactic travel is so close that its electric body galvanizes the minds of thousands of scientists and millions of wannabe colonists. Gravitons, artificial intelligence, quantum engineering and 3D printing are intertwined with everyone's daily life. The solar system is teeming with ships, robots and people. But the dark side of humanity is showing its claws. The human civilization has been polarized by the people who want to acquire and maintain power over the masses. The humans of this world are in conflict. Shadowy figures are trying to obtain control over the greatest achievement of this world: the obliteration of any barriers of space. It is your destiny to intervene and set humanity on its path to the future you wish for. Join your forces with others like you, breathe life into the world, take part in events happening in the solar system and beyond, and bring triumph or ruin to a world which finds itself in the agony of childhood. No human has ever been closer to the future of this world. Reach up and embrace your destiny, for you have the power to bring change. Become a Pathfinder!
Summary
The presented game is a preview of version 2, but the linked rulebook and cards are still for version 1.5, which is different. Asunder is a competitive, fast-paced card game for 2 or 3 players, with a science fiction exploration theme, atmospheric lore and artwork, set in an open universe where nothing has a fixed destiny, where the players can weave their own narrative arc from the card-sized stories and from the lessons they learn on the way, from light and from shadow, all while exploring deep space and mind alike. The game's charm comes from the card combos which emerge fluidly, from the deck building, from the balance which allows a casual player to feel like the equal of an advanced player, from the twists in what the players think is their win, and from the variety of the mechanics which appeal to advanced players. Playable out of the box, with simple rules, yet complex actions. The players control 200 cards, 31 abilities and 10 play zones. Typical duration (when the rules are known): 45 minutes. Minimum player age: 14. To start the game, shuffle the cards. Each player draws 7 cards. The progression of a game is made of consecutive adventures, with each adventure made of consecutive and alternating turns played by each player. During a turn, the current player may execute various actions, while the other players may not execute any action, unless allowed by ability conditions. The current player may deploy (= play from hand) 1 card, but its abilities may allow for more cards to be deployed. Deploying several cards during a turn, and executing their abilities, is called a combo. Combos with 10 cards are not rare, and even with more than 20 cards have been seen. The goal is to deploy as much total valor as possible in order to become the pathfinder (= the player whose valiance is the highest) and the first who may execute various actions, like turning. Everything builds toward the finale (which starts when the destiny has no more cards from which to draw). The pathfinder from the finale end is the winner of the game. Mechanics:
Rulebook
The presented game is a preview of version 2, but the linked rulebook and cards are still for version 1.5, which is different. Here are the rules in PDF format. Here are the rules in LibreOffice format. This is for anyone who wants to edit the rulebook.
Gallery
In version 2 of the game, the artwork of the cards will be generated with AI. The visual style is a work in progress, using Midjourney's reference style feature. To produce the visual style of the images, over 900 AI generated images were used as individual reference styles in order to understand the visual styles that they can produce across prompts, in over 80'000 generated images. A custom-built application was used to automatically organize the selected images per reference style, each in its own folder, in order to easily see the result of each reference style. It's difficult to choose a style because most of them are irreproducible across prompts (usually due to the change in scale), and the background usually doesn't fit the desired theme.
Sample Cards
In version 2 of the game, the cards will have AI art. Sample front of cards:
Sample back of cards:
Print It
The presented game is a preview of version 2, but the linked rulebook and cards are still for version 1.5, which is different. If you want to print the cards yourself, download the archive with cards (saved as image files). The simplest way to print the cards is at a photo shop, on 125 * 88 millimeters (4.9 * 3.5 inches, B7, ISO 216 format) photo paper. The large size makes looking at the artwork and reading the lore feel great. If the cards were normally sized playing cards, it would feel claustrophobic to look at the artwork and read the lore, but it can be done if you want to reduce the print cost. The texts of the cards can be seen here. You can download all the card artwork, as wallpapers, from here.
Buy
The presented game is a preview of version 2, but the linked rulebook and cards are still for version 1.5, which is different. You can purchase a professionally printed copy from GameCrafter. This is a convenience for people who want to have such a print. The price is just the production cost, the same that you would get if you were to set up your own game using the digital files. The cost is significantly higher than if you were to print the cards at your local photo shop. GameCrafter offers bulk prices only when buying multiple game copies at a time, and the price can get reduced to half for many copies. Advantages of the GameCrafter cards: they are also printed on the back, the handling and shuffling are much better due to the card stiffness and rounded corners. The box size is 229 * 156 * 57 millimeters (9 * 6.1 * 2.3 inches), 2 mm thick walls, 1.1 kg weight (with content). The card size is 136 * 86 millimeters (5.4 * 3.4 inches), 0.3 mm thick, 4 g weight. Components in box:
If you create some custom cards, GameCrafter offers some (double-sided) printables that work as large-format cards that fit in the game's box: 203 x 102 mm (4 cards) and 152 x 102 mm (4 cards).
License
See the rulebook. The following quote-inspired lore is in the public domain (the original quotes are not):
How It Was Created
The cards were created with Mosaic. The artwork for version 2 was generated with AI. To produce the visual style of the images, over 900 AI generated images were used as individual reference styles in order to understand the visual styles that they can produce across prompts, in over 80'000 generated images. A custom-built application was used to automatically organize the selected images per reference style, each in its own folder, in order to easily see the result of each reference style. For the general design principles, see What is a game?
Epic Soundtracks
For soundtracks to listen to, for an epic experience, see this.
Fluons
You can read here a technical / mathematical explanation of what fluons / portals are.
History
Version 2.0.0This is a preview of the next version. The new rules and cards are finished. The artwork will be generated with AI, but a visual style must first be chosen (which depends on AI). 2026 The rulebook has been rewritten over more than a thousand hours of constant iterations. The terminology has changed, some existing rules have changed, and new rules were added. From the previous version, only the general concepts remain: cards with valor and abilities, play zones, deploying / playing cards and combos. The game has an exploration theme and works with either 2 or 3 players. The players control 200 cards, 31 abilities and 10 play zones. There are 68 new cards. The lore (including the character names) has been reworked, is much better and it better fits the new exploration theme. The artwork is generated with AI. Added the multiple abilities per card mechanics. The effects of some abilities apply under specific conditions, not when the cards are deployed. Added the adventure mechanics as consecutive and alternating turns, simplifying and replacing the plot, obstruct and rounds. Added the portal, journey and mystery mechanics for collecting and reusing the preferred cards (= deck building and level up). Added the "Portal", "Cosmos" and "Obscurity" play zones. This is a more complex version of the previous "Recruiting" and "Experience". Added the different rewards mechanics during level up: the lead has one type of reward, the other players have other types. Added the vantage mechanics, given as credits during level up, which may be focused in order to increase the valiance. Added the "Vantage" play zone. Added the starlight mechanics for increasing the valiance, for extending the abilities of some cards, and for reducing the payed costs for some abilities. Added the "Starlight" play zone. Added an easy to use cost mechanics to pay for executing powerful abilities. Added the "Frontier" play zone, separate for each player. The cards are exhausted here, and the custom cards are put in this play zone at the beginning of a game. Added the "Void" play zone where cards are discarded (= removed from the game). Added mechanics to balance the finale, when some players have cards in the expanse, but other players have no more destiny cards to draw. Added scenarios to change the mechanics of the game. Includes a quick skirmish mode which may even be played with 3 players (because there are enough cards). Renamed the play zone "Timeline" to "Expanse". Renamed the card attribute "Sway" to "Valor". Removed the "Reserve" play zone. Removed unlocked abilities. Removed epic cards. Removed factions.
Version 1.5.12023.09.20 Added epic cards. Added some clarifications.
Version 1.5.02023.09.07 Changed the name of the game from "Gardener of Thoughts" to "Asunder". Significantly revamped the rulebook. The rules remain compatible with previous versions. Made it explicit that several turns make a round, and that players can win rounds. Merged the reserve play zone into the experience play zone; cards may be put in it only with abilities. Merged all the abilities; some were previously listed as custom abilities. Added unlocked abilities, with massive strategy implications for advanced players.
Version 1.0.152014.06.22 Replaced the "Secondary ability" with the "Recruitable" custom rule.
Version 1.0.13Corrected the "Omen" ability rules: "The player may take and look at 4 cards from the top of the destiny, may move 1 of the cards to the ops, and must put the others at the bottom of the destiny, with their faces down, in any order. The card to move to the ops must have either no faction or the player's faction. This ability may be executed only if the player has less than 7 ops cards."
Version 1.0.8Added the "Endurance" custom ability.
Version 1.0.7Corrected a rule in the "Winning turn" section to balance the gameplay: "If the turn loser has no reserve cards, or there are no destiny cards and no ops cards (for both players), the game ends and is won by the turn winner." This correction is useful for when a player has a covert card during the finale, because engaging this card may have (until now) ended the game too abruptly. Added a rule in the "Obstruct" section to balance the advanced gameplay: "If there are no destiny cards, each player must move the experience cards to the ops."
Version 1.0.6Corrected the rules of the "Sabotage" custom ability.
Public Release12.05.2014 Public release of the simplified version of "Gardener of Thoughts" card game version 1.
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