Here to Slay rules in short: on your turn you get 3 action points to draw cards, play cards, roll for your Heroes’ effects or attack a Monster. You win by slaying three Monsters, or by ending your turn with six different classes in your party, counting your Party Leader.
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This guide follows the official Here to Slay rulebook for the retail base game. The publisher no longer hosts the rules on its own site, so that link goes to a copy we keep of the official PDF. Here to Slay plays 2 to 6, ages 10 and up.
What’s in the Box
- 1 main deck of 115 cards
- 6 oversized Party Leader cards, one for each class
- 15 oversized Monster cards
- 6 rules reference cards
- 2 six-sided dice
The main deck holds Hero, Item, Magic, Modifier and Challenge cards. The six classes are Fighter, Bard, Guardian, Ranger, Thief and Wizard.
Setup
- Each player chooses a Party Leader. Roll to decide who picks first. Unused leaders go back in the box.
- Shuffle the main deck and deal 5 cards to each player.
- Shuffle the Monster cards and turn 3 face up in the middle. The rest form the Monster deck.
- The player who picked their Party Leader last goes first. Play moves clockwise.
What You Can Do With 3 Action Points
Every turn you have 3 action points. Spend them in any order, and repeat an action if you like. Unused points don’t carry over.
| Action | Cost |
|---|---|
| Draw a card | 1 |
| Play a Hero, Item or Magic card from your hand | 1 |
| Roll to use the effect of a Hero already in your party | 1 |
| Attack a Monster | 2 |
| Discard your whole hand and draw 5 cards | 3 |
When you play a Hero from your hand, you may roll for its effect right away at no extra cost.
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How Hero Cards Work
Each Hero has a class, an effect and a roll requirement. To use the effect, roll two dice and match or beat the number.
- You can only roll for each Hero once per turn, even if the first roll fails.
- A failed roll still costs the action point.
- There’s no limit on how many Heroes you can have in your party.
Items, Magic, Modifiers and Challenges
Item cards are equipped to a Hero as soon as you play them. A Hero can hold one Item, and you can’t swap it for another later. Items can’t go on a Party Leader. Cursed Items have bad effects and can be equipped to other players’ Heroes. If a Hero is destroyed, stolen or returned to a hand, its Item goes with it.
Magic cards have a one-time effect and are then discarded.
Modifier cards change a dice roll. They cost no action points and can be played on any roll, by any player, including on your own.
- If a card has two options, like +1 or -3, say which one you’re using.
- Any number of Modifiers can be played on the same roll. Add them all up once everyone is finished.
Challenge cards try to stop a card as it’s played.
- Another player plays a Hero, Item or Magic card from their hand.
- You play a Challenge card. It costs no action points.
- You both roll two dice.
- If your roll is equal or higher, their card is discarded and they don’t get the action point back. If their roll is higher, the card works as normal.
Each card can only be challenged once. The rules list only Hero, Item and Magic cards as things you can challenge.
Worth knowing: the challenger wins ties. By our maths that gives the challenger about a 56% chance before any Modifier cards are played.
Attacking a Monster
Attacking costs 2 action points. You can only attack a face-up Monster, and only if your party meets the requirement printed on it.
- A class symbol means you need that class in your party. Your Party Leader’s class counts for this.
- A gray “H” means any Hero. Your Party Leader is not a Hero, so it doesn’t count for this.
- One Hero can’t fill two slots.
Then roll two dice. Each Monster shows two numbers:
| Your roll | What happens |
|---|---|
| At or above the slay number | You slay the Monster. It joins your party and gives you its skill for the rest of the game. |
| At or below the penalty number | You pay the penalty, such as sacrificing a Hero or discarding cards. |
| In between | Nothing happens. |
The rulebook’s example Monster is slain on 8 or higher, makes you sacrifice a Hero on 5 or lower, and does nothing on a 6 or 7.
A slain Monster can’t be stolen or destroyed. After a slay, turn over a new Monster so there are always three to choose from.
Party Leaders
Your Party Leader has a class and a skill that stays in play all game.
- The skill works every time its condition is met, unless it says “once per turn.”
- If you forget to use it, you can’t go back and claim it later.
- A Party Leader can’t be sacrificed, destroyed, stolen or returned to your hand.
Our best party leader guide lists all six skills and ranks them.
How to Win
There are two ways to win:
- Slay three Monster cards.
- End your turn with a full party, which means six different classes including your Party Leader.
A common mistake: thinking you need six Heroes of six classes.
The actual rule: your Party Leader counts as one class. You need Heroes from the other five, and you need to still have them at the end of your turn.
If you add any expansion, the full party needs seven classes. That’s true whether you add one class pack or both.
Two-Player Rules
The game plays the same with two. The one official change is that The Shadow Claw can’t be used as a Party Leader in a two-player game.
Rules People Get Wrong
- “A Hero that says you don’t have to roll skips the roll.” You still make the first roll to activate the Hero’s effect. The publisher’s FAQ confirms this.
- “You can replace an Item with a better one.” You can’t. Once equipped, an Item stays until the Hero leaves play.
- “Item effects are optional.” Only if the card says “you may.”
- “You can re-roll a Hero if you have points left.” One roll per Hero per turn.
The rulebook doesn’t say what to do if the main deck runs out, so agree on that as a table before it comes up.
This how to play Here to Slay video from Tim Chuon shows a full turn. For our verdict on the game, see the Here to Slay review. If you’re adding to the game, the expansions ranked guide explains what each pack changes. A new copy of Here to Slay includes six reference cards that list the action costs.
Choosing between this and the same publisher’s other big card game? See Here to Slay vs Unstable Unicorns.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many action points do you get in Here to Slay?
Three per turn. Drawing a card, playing a card and rolling for a Hero each cost 1. Attacking a Monster costs 2. Discarding your hand to draw 5 costs all 3.
How do you win Here to Slay?
Slay three Monsters, or end your turn with six different classes in your party, including your Party Leader. With any expansion added, you need seven classes.
How many cards do you start with?
Five. Each player also has a Party Leader, and three Monsters are turned face up in the middle of the table.
How does a Challenge work in Here to Slay?
When another player plays a Hero, Item or Magic card, you can play a Challenge card. You both roll two dice. If your roll is equal or higher, their card is discarded.
Does the Party Leader count as a Hero?
No. It doesn’t count toward a Monster’s “any Hero” requirement. Its class does count toward class requirements and toward a full party.
Can you roll for the same Hero twice in one turn?
No. Each Hero can be rolled for once per turn, even if the first roll fails. The action point isn’t refunded.
Can a Hero have more than one Item?
Not in the base game. Each Hero holds one Item, and it can’t be replaced. Some expansion Heroes are marked as able to hold two.
Can you play Here to Slay with 2 players?
Yes. The rules are the same, but The Shadow Claw can’t be chosen as a Party Leader.