How to Play

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War of the Keys is Church versus Crown. Ranks stay hidden until a duel.

Setup

• Each player places 40 pieces on their own four rows, unseen by the opponent.
• The two middle rows and mountain / lake squares cannot be used in setup.
• The Keep (Royalty) / Cathedral (Church) and Pits never move.
• Neither side should see the enemy layout before the match.

Turns

• Royalty moves first. You must move; there is no pass.
• Except Keep/Cathedral and Pits, pieces move one square. No jumping, no two pieces on one square.
• Mountains and lakes are blocked for the whole game.

Special pieces

• 2 Soldier / Ostiary: may move any number of squares in a straight line if the path is empty.
• 3 Peasant / Lector: clears a pit and takes that square. Any other piece that attacks a pit is lost; the pit stays.
• S Assassin: beats the King / Pope (10) only if the Assassin attacks. If the 10 attacks the Assassin, the Assassin is lost.
• Higher rank wins. Equal ranks both fall. The winner of an attack takes the square.

End

• Capture the enemy Keep / Cathedral to win.
• Or destroy all of the opponent’s mobile pieces.

Best played on a computer.

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