1 THE COMPONENTS

DEATHMATCH This chapter deals with the various components of

the DEATHMATCH card game.

A game by Raoul Schaupp 1.1 THE CARDS

There are 10 different card types. Each card has
DEATHMATCH is a fast tactical war game for 2-4 a card number printed on for identification,
players, which is based on video game shooters. except the Cover Cards. The information on cards
Each player takes the role of a group of soldiers always supersedes any rules.
who are fighting in an arena for victory.
1.1.1 COVER CARDS
TABLE OF CONTENTS The Cover Cards is a list of the content of the
1 THE COMPONENTS .................................... 1 Base Game or an expansion.
1.1 THE CARDS................................... 1
1.1.1 COVER CARDS .......................... 1
1.1.2 CHARACTER CARDS (C) .................. 1
1.1.3 EQUIPMENT CARDS (E) .................. 1
1.1.4 SPECIAL EQUIPMENT CARDS (SE) ......... 2
1.1.5 MARKER CARDS (M) ..................... 2
1.1.6 COUNTER CARD (CC) .................... 2
1.1.7 TERRAIN CARDS (T) .................... 2
1.1.8 START AND SPECIAL TERRAIN CARDS (ST) . 2
1.1.9 SCENARIO CARDS (SC) .................. 2
1.1.10 CHOOSE YOUR TEAM CARDS (CYT) ......... 3
1.2 THE MARKERS................................. 3
1.2.1 CHARACTER MARKER ..................... 3
1.2.2 COUNTER MARKER ....................... 3
1.2.3 NORTH MARKER ......................... 3
1.2.4 EXPLOSIVE MARKER ..................... 3
1.2.5 SMOKE MARKER ......................... 3
1.2.6 STUN MARKER .......................... 3
1.2.7 SPECIAL EQUIPMENT MARKER ............. 3
Picture 1 Cover Card
2 THE GAME RULES .................................... 3 1.1.2 CHARACTER CARDS (C)
2.1 SETUP ....................................... 3
2.1.1 CHOOSE A SCENARIO .................... 3 Every character in the game is represented by a
2.1.2 BUILD THE DECKS ...................... 3 Character Card. Each Character Card has a healthy
2.1.3 CHOOSE THE FIRST PLAYER .............. 3 and a wounded side. The wounded side is marked by
2.1.4 CHOOSE THE CHARACTERS ................ 4 two red Wounded logos.
2.1.5 CREATE THE ARENA ..................... 4
2.1.6 EXCHANGE TERRAIN CARDS ............... 4
2.1.7 LAYOUT THE NORTH MARKER .............. 4
2.1.8 THE STARTING EQUIPMENT ............... 4
2.1.9 SHUFFLE THE EQUIPMENT DECK ........... 4
2.1.10 DRAW CARDS ........................... 4
2.2 TURN SEQUENCE .............................. 4
2.2.1 PHASE 1: DRAW CARDS .................. 4
2.2.2 PHASE 2: UPDATE THE MARKERS .......... 4
2.2.3 PHASE 3: RESPAWN CHARACTERS .......... 4
2.2.4 PHASE 4: ACTIVATE ONE CHARACTER ...... 4
2.3 END OF THE GAME ............................ 6
3 COVERS AND OBSTACLES .............................. 6
Picture 2 - Character Card (healthy and wounded
3.1 SMALL METAL WALL (COVER) ................... 6 side)
3.2 HIGH METAL WALL (COVER) .................... 6 Each Character Card has the following 5 Stat-
3.3 HIGH METAL WALL WITH EMBRASURE (COVER) ..... 6
3.4 MUD PIT (OBSTACLE) ......................... 6 Boxes:
3.5 HILL (OBSTACLE) ............................ 6 Action Points (AP): The Action Points are
3.6 MULTIPLE COVERS ............................ 7 used to perform different actions with this
3.6.1 MOVEMENT OVER MULTIPLE COVERS ........ 7 character, like move to another square or
3.6.2 MOVEMENT BETWEEN MULTIPLE COVERS ..... 7 shoot at an enemy (see Chapter 2.2.4).
3.6.3 SHOOT OVER MULTIPLE COVERS ........... 7
3.6.4 SHOOT BETWEEN TWO COVERS ............. 7 Portage Capacity (PC): The Portage Capacity
4 KEYWORDS, TERMS AND SPECIAL RULES ................ 8 indicates the amount of weight a character
4.1 KEYWORDS.................................... 8 can carry. Weight is represented by Portage
4.1.1 ADD-ON ............................... 8 Points (PP) on the Equipment Cards (see
4.1.2 EXPLOSION ............................ 8 Chapter 1.1.3).
4.1.3 DRIFT ................................ 8
4.1.4 FAVOURITE WEAPON ..................... 8 Attack Value (Att): The Attack Value
4.1.5 INDIRECT FIRE ........................ 8 represents the shooting and close combat
4.1.6 MUNITIONS1 ........................... 8 ability of a character (see Chapter
4.1.7 SMOKE ................................ 9 2.2.4.6.4).
4.1.8 STUN ................................. 9
Defense Value (Def): The Defense Value
4.1.9 RED HITNUMBER ........................ 9
4.2 CHARACTER AND EQUIPMENT .................... 9 represents the ability to avoid shots and
4.2.1 COMMANDER ............................ 9 ignore hits (see Chapter 2.2.4.6.5).
4.2.2 MEDIC ................................ 9 Damage Value (Dam): The Damage Value
4.2.3 PITBULLS ............................. 9 indicates the amount of damage the character
4.2.4 ENGINEER ............................. 9
inflicts during a Close Combat Attack (see
4.2.5 SENTRY GUN ........................... 9
4.3 SPECIAL RULES .............................. 9 Chapter 2.2.4.7).
4.3.1 RESPAWN RULE ......................... 9 Each character has some special abilities and a
4.3.2 TEAM PLAY ............................ 9 close combat value with a Range and a Hitnumber.
4.4 TERMS ....................................... 9 In a Hitcheck a number equal or higher than the
4.4.1 ADJACENT ............................. 9 Hitnumber is needed to hit the target.
4.4.2 FRIENDLY ............................. 9
The boxes with the keywords Head, Hand or Body
5 DECKBUILDING ...................................... 9
5.1 STARTER DECK............................... 10 represent places where Equipment Cards can be
5.2 CHOOSE YOUR TEAM .......................... 10 attached (see Chapter 2.2.4.2).
5.3 DECKBUILDING............................... 10
6 INDEX ............................................ 11 1.1.3 EQUIPMENT CARDS (E)
7 GLOSSARY ......................................... 11
8 CREDITS .......................................... 11

Picture 3 - Equipment Cards

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Every equipment in this game is represented by an The Marker Cards represent the characters,
Equipment Card. Characters can be equipped with special markers or items for the different
Equipment Cards, to increase their fight or scenarios. The players have to cut out the
defense ability (see Chapter 2.2.4.2). Each markers along the black line. All markers are
Equipment Card has 2 or 3 of the following 4 explained in Chapter 1.2.
Stat-Boxes:
1.1.6 COUNTER CARD (CC)
Portage Points (PP): The Portage Points
indicates the weight of that equipment. A
character can never be equipped with more
equipment than his PC allows, that means the
sum of all PP has to be smaller than or equal
to the PC (see Chapter 2.2.4.2).
Fire Rate (FR): The Fire Rate is the maximum
number of shots or salvos a weapon can fire
in one turn (see Chapter 2.2.4.6.7).
Defense Value (Def): The Defense Value of the
Picture 7 - Counter Card
equipment is added to the Defense Value of
the character (see Chapter 2.2.4.6.5). The Counter Card is used in the different
Damage Value (Dam): The Damage Value scenarios to mark the achieved Victory Points
indicates the amount of damage the weapon with the Counter Marker (see Chapter 1.2.2).
inflicts during an attack (see Chapter
2.2.4.6.5). 1.1.7 TERRAIN CARDS (T)
Each Equipment Card has a Type, which is used by
some special effects and it indicates the
possible add-ons. Weapons have also 3 different
Ranges (short, mid and long) specified in squares
and corresponding Hitnumbers (see Picture 4).

Picture 8 - Terrain Card

Picture 4 - Ranges
Some of these Hitnumbers are red, which is
explained in Chapter 4.1.9. In a Hitcheck a
number equal or higher than the Hitnumber is
needed to hit the target at that range (see
Chapter 2.2.4.6.4).
The boxes with the keywords Head, Hand or Body
represent the positions at which the Equipment
Cards must be added to a character, so that he is
equipped with this equipment (see Chapter
2.2.4.2).
The boxes with the keyword Add-on indicate the
places where the equipment can be upgraded (see
Chapter 4.1.1).
The number in the white circle is the Fate
Number. These numbers are used as a dice roll. In
every Hitcheck or Defensecheck (see Chapter
2.2.4.6) these numbers are used to check the
result of an attack.
1.1.4 SPECIAL EQUIPMENT CARDS (SE)
A Terrain Card represents a part of the arena,
where the characters compete against each other.
Every card is divided in 6 squares and has a
different setup of covers and obstacles (see
Chapter 3).
1.1.8 START AND SPECIAL TERRAIN CARDS (ST)
Picture 9 Start Card (left) and Special Terrain
Card (right)
The Start Cards are Terrain Cards with a flag in
the center of the card (see Picture 9 left).
These cards are the starting point for the
characters in all scenarios. The Scenario Card
specifies where to place this card.
Special Terrain Cards (see Picture 9 right) are
Terrain Cards, which are used in some scenarios.
The component list of a scenario specifies if and
which Special Terrain Card is used. These cards
cannot be used to create a Terrain Deck in the
Deckbuilding option (see Chapter 5).

1.1.9 SCENARIO CARDS (SC)

Each Scenario Card represents a game mode. All
necessary information is given on these cards.
This includes information such as the components,
the rules and the way to lay out the arena with
the Terrain Cards.

Picture 5 - Special Equipment Cards

Special Equipment Cards are Equipment Cards,
which are used in a specific scenario or by a
specific character. These cards cannot be used to
create an Equipment Deck in the Deckbuilding
option (see Chapter 5).

1.1.5 MARKER CARDS (M)

Picture 10 - Scenario Card (front and back)

Below the Components the components are listed
which are used in that scenario. The Rules lists
all the special rules for this scenario. The
Picture 6 Marker Card Winning Conditions lists the rules to win the

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scenario. Below Victory Points is a list of
conditions how to achieve points. On the backside
are pictures of the arena, which show how to
create it by laying out the Terrain Cards, the
Start Cards and the Special Terrain Cards
depending on the number of players. The positions
of the Start Cards are marked by an S and the
positions of Special Terrain Cards are marked by
the card number in a red box. If one Terrain Card
has multiple colors, than all of the players with
this color draw their top Equipment Card. The
player with the highest Fate Number lay out one
of his Terrain Cards to that position.
1.1.10 CHOOSE YOUR TEAM CARDS (CYT)
Picture 11 - Choose Your Team Cards
The Choose Your Team Cards are used to create a
custom deck in no time. The specific use of these
cards is explained in Chapter 5.2.
1.2 THE MARKERS
In DEATHMATCH there are different types of
markers, which are used to mark the position of
the characters in the arena, to track the Victory
Points or to mark different kinds of conditions.
The following chapters explain these markers.
1.2.1 CHARACTER MARKER
Picture 12 - Character Markers in the 4 different
player colors
Character Markers are used to mark the position
of the different characters in the arena. Each
character is available in 4 different colors.
1.2.2 COUNTER MARKER
Picture 13 - Counter Marker (front and back side)
The Counter Markers are used to mark the achieved
Victory Points on the Counter Card. Each marker
has two sides. The first side is to mark 0-4
Victory Points and the second side is to mark 5-9
Victory Points.
1.2.3 NORTH MARKER
Picture 14 - North Marker
The North Marker is used to mark the direction as
shown at the Scenario Cards (see Chapter 1.1.9).
The direction is used to calculate the drift of
specific weapons with the keyword Drift (see
Chapter 4.1.3).
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1.2.4 EXPLOSIVE MARKER
Picture 15 - Explosive Marker
The Explosive Marker is used to mark the drift of
a shot in the arena (see Chapter 4.1.3).
1.2.5 SMOKE MARKER
Picture 16 - Smoke Marker with Smoke 1 side
(left) and Smoke 2 side (right)
The Smoke Marker is used to mark smoke in the
arena, which is created by weapons with the
keyword Smoke (see Chapter 4.1.7)
1.2.6 STUN MARKER
Picture 17 - Stun Marker with Stunned 1 side
(left) and Stunned 2 side (right)
The Stun Marker is used to mark that a character
is stunned from a weapons with the keyword Stun
(see Chapter 4.1.8).
1.2.7 SPECIAL EQUIPMENT MARKER
Picture 18 - Special Equipment Markers
Special Equipment Markers are marker, which are
used in a specific scenario or by a specific
character.
2 THE GAME RULES
This chapter deals with the setup and the game
rules.
2.1 SETUP
The following sections explain step by step, how
to setup a game.
2.1.1 CHOOSE A SCENARIO
First of all, the players should agree on one
scenario. If the players cannot agree on one
scenario, one player can randomly draw a Scenario
Card.
2.1.2 BUILD THE DECKS
There are 3 different methods to create playable
decks, which are explained in Chapter 5. If all
players have their decks, it is time to choose
the first player.
2.1.3 CHOOSE THE FIRST PLAYER
All players flip the top card of their shuffled
equipment decks and the player with the highest
Fate Number is the first player. In case of a
tie, repeat the check with the next card from the
pile until a first player is chosen. Each player
reshuffles their Equipment Cards back into their
own Equipment Deck.
DEATHMATCH RULES| PAGE 3
2.1.4 CHOOSE THE CHARACTERS
Each player chooses in secret their starting
characters and lays them in front of themselves.
After that, each player takes the corresponding
character markers in one of the four colors and
places them on their Start Card in the arena. The
first player places his markers first, then
clockwise till all characters are placed.
2.1.5 CREATE THE ARENA
The Scenario Card specifies how to lay out the
Terrain Cards to create the Arena for 2, 3 or 4
players (see Picture 10 back). All players
shuffle their Terrain Deck and lay out the
specific number of cards face down. After all
cards lay on the table, the players flip their
cards over. Now each player checks, if their
Terrain Cards are aligned in the right direction.
The Scenario Card specifies the right direction
of every card. The card number indicates the
direction of a card. This number is represented
as a black rectangle on the Scenario Cards. If a
card is aligned in the wrong direction, then
rotate it 180 degrees.
2.1.6 EXCHANGE TERRAIN CARDS
Each player can swap two of their own Terrain
Cards. Instead of swapping two cards, it is also
allowed to exchange a Terrain Card with an unused
Card from the Terrain Deck. It is not allowed to
swap or exchange the Start Card. Start with the
first player and then clockwise, until every
player had the chance to swap or exchange Terrain
Cards once.
2.1.7 LAYOUT THE NORTH MARKER
One player puts his North Marker (see Chapter
1.2.3) as shown on the Scenario Card (see Picture
10) beneath the arena to mark the direction. This
is used in the game to calculate the drift of a
shot (see Chapter 4.1.3).
back side. If they are already on their back
side, then the markers are removed from the arena
(e.g. Smoke Marker (see Chapter 4.1.7)) or
Character Card (e.g. Stunned Marker (see Chapter
4.1.8)).
2.2.3 PHASE 3: RESPAWN CHARACTERS
This phase is skipped if the Respawn Rule is not
active for the selected scenario. Otherwise the
active player can respawn dead characters as
explained in Chapter 4.3.1.
2.2.4 PHASE 4: ACTIVATE ONE CHARACTER
In Phase 4 the active player activates one of his
remaining characters and uses some or all of his
APs to perform different actions. If a character
receives damage or gets healed in his active
turn, then the Action Points for that turn will
not decrease nor increase. The following sections
explain all possible actions.
2.2.4.1 MOVE (1AP)
The cost to move from one square to another is
1AP. Orthogonal and diagonal movement is allowed.
If a character crosses an obstacle, he might need
to pay additional APs. The costs to cross
obstacles are listed in Chapter 3 and movement
into and out of close combat are explained in
Chapter 2.2.4.7.4.
2.2.4.1.1 MOVE THROUGH CHARACTERS
A character can move through a square occupied by
a friendly character. But at the end of the turn,
he has to be in an unoccupied square. An enemy
occupied square cannot be entered or passed
through.
2.2.4.2 EQUIP A CHARACTER (1AP)
To equip a character, he has to be in a square
with a supply box (see Picture 19).

2.1.8 THE STARTING EQUIPMENT

All characters on the board start with an
Equipment Card that has a red Fate Number of 0.
Therefore, every player searches for these cards
Picture 19 - Supply Box
in their Equipment Deck and equip them to their
characters. Each character receives only one card For 1AP a player can add as many Equipment Cards
and if one character cannot be equipped, his card as he wants from his hand to the active character
is shuffled back in the Equipment Deck. or his equipment while regarding the following
two conditions. First, the Portage Points (PP) of
2.1.9 SHUFFLE THE EQUIPMENT DECK all armed equipment cannot exceed a characters
Each player shuffles his remaining Equipment Portage Capacity (PC). Second, the player must
Cards. Afterwards, an opponent may cut the deck. always add the equipment in such a way, that one
2.1.10 DRAW CARDS white and one black box with the same keywords
Every player draws 4 Equipment Cards plus 1 card lay against each other.
for each opponent player in this scenario from
his Equipment Deck and keeps them. This number is
the hand card limit.

For Example, in a 3 player game every player has

a hand card limit of 6.

2.2 TURN SEQUENCE

DEATHMATCH is played over a series of turns. Each
player completes his entire turn before the next
player takes his turn.
A players turn is divided into four phases,
which are taken in following order:
PHASE 1: DRAW CARDS
PHASE 2: UPDATE THE MARKERS
PHASE 3: RESPAWN CHARACTERS
PHASE 4: ACTIVATE ONE CHARACTER
Once a player has completed all four phases, his
turn is over. These four phases are repeated
until one player reaches the winning conditions
Picture 20 - Add equipment to a character
and wins the game. Following is a detailed
outline of the turn sequence. For example, the wounded Commander in Picture 20
cannot hold a two handed weapon, because he has
2.2.1 PHASE 1: DRAW CARDS only one functioning hand. But the player can
A player discards as many hand cards to his equip him with a Bulletproof Vest. The Sniper can
discard pile as he likes, then he draws new cards be armed with a two handed weapon like the M24
from his Equipment Deck until the hand card limit Sniper Rifle. But he cannot add the Helmet to the
is reaches. If in any phase the Equipment Deck is box with the keyword Body. The player has to lay
empty, the player reshuffles his discard pile and the card next to the box with the black keyword
uses it as new Equipment Deck. Head on the right top of that Character Card.
2.2.2 PHASE 2: UPDATE THE MARKERS
The active player updates all his markers.
Therefore the markers are flipped over to their

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2.2.4.3 CHANGE EQUIPMENT (1AP)
For 1AP the player can rearrange the items of the
active character or exchange equipment with a
character in an adjacent square (see Chapter
4.4.1). Notice the PC of both characters.
2.2.4.4 DROP EQUIPMENT (0AP)
For 0AP the player can drop equipment from the
active character. He has to remove the Equipment
Card from that character and put it on top of his
discard pile.
2.2.4.5 USE A SPECIAL ABILITY (XAP)
The cost in AP and the effect of a special
ability is written on the specific card. To use
that ability the corresponding APs have to be
paid. Now just follow the rule text on the card
to use this ability. Some of the abilities are
explained in detail in Chapter 4.
2.2.4.6 SHOOT (1AP)
The cost to shoot a weapon of the active
character is 1AP. A character can only shoot at
enemies, not at friendly characters or unoccupied
squares. To shoot at an enemy character, the
target must be in Line of Sight (LOS) and in the
sufficient firing range of the firing characters
weapon.
2.2.4.6.1 LINE OF SIGHT (LOS)
All arena squares on a direct line between the
center of the square occupied by the shooter to
the center of the square occupied by the
shooters target, that dont intersect a LOS
blocking cover/obstacle or is occupied by another
character are considered to be within LOS. An
example is shown in Picture 30.
2.2.4.6.2 RANGE
Each weapon has different ranges and
corresponding Hitnumber printed on it. The range
is the distance between the shooter and his
target. The square occupied by the shooter does
not count, but the targets square does. Count
the shortest way between these two squares by
moving from one square to another, using
orthogonal and diagonal movement.
Picture 21 - Range
For example, in Picture 21 the range from the
green Scout to the blue Sniper is 2 and the range
to the yellow Gunner is 4.
2.2.4.6.3 HITNUMBER
The Hitnumber specifies the number that a
character has to reach or exceed in his final
Hitcheck, to hit the target. Covers, Obstacles
(see Chapter 3) and being in Close Combat (see
Chapter 2.2.4.7) can increase and special
abilities and weapon add-ons can decrease the
Hitnumber. If the final Hitnumber is determined,
a Hitcheck is performed.
2.2.4.6.4 HITCHECK
To do a Hitcheck, the Attack Value (Att) of the
shooter is taken. Then the controlling player may
play an Equipment Card from his hand and add the
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Fate Number to his Attack Value. Finally he must
draw the top card from his Equipment Deck and add
its Fate Number also to his Attack Value. The
resulting number is the final Hitcheck number,
which has to be equal or greater than the
Hitnumber to hit the target. There are two
exceptions.
If the player draws (not play from hand) an
Equipment Card with a green Fate Number 5,
the character will always hit, even if he
doesnt reach the Hitnumber.
If the player draws (not play from hand) an
Equipment Card with a red Fate Number 0, the
character will always miss, even if he
reaches the Hitnumber.
If the shooter hits the target, the target has to
perform a Defensecheck against the Damage Value
(Dam) of the used weapon.
2.2.4.6.5 DEFENSECHECK
To do a Defensecheck, the player takes the
Defense Value (Def) of his hit character and then
he may play an Equipment Card from his hand and
add the Fate Number to his Defense Value. And
finally he has to draw the top card from his
Equipment Deck and add its Fate Number also to
his Defense Value. The resulting number is his
final Defensecheck number, which has to be equal
or greater than the Damage Value to prevent his
character from damage. There are two exceptions.
If a player draws (not play from hand) an
Equipment Card with a green Fate Number 5,
the character will always prevent the damage,
even if he doesnt reach the Damage Value.
If the player draws (not play from hand) an
Equipment Card with a red Fate Number 0, the
character will always get damage from that
a hit, even if he reaches the Damage Value.
2.2.4.6.6 DAMAGE
If a character receives damage, the Character
Card is flipped over to its wounded side. Some
characters can use only one hand on the wounded
side. So there is the possibility that this
character has to discard some equipment. If he
has 2 one-handed Equipment Cards, he can choose
which one he discards. If the Character Card is
already on the wounded side, the character dies.
The player has to remove the Character Marker
from the arena and discard all Equipment Cards
from that character.
2.2.4.6.7 FIRE RATE
Every weapon has a Fire Rate (FR), which
indicates how often a weapon can be fired per
turn. If a character has more than one weapon, he
can fire both weapons to a maximum of their Fire
Rate.
2.2.4.7 CLOSE COMBAT ATTACK (1AP)
The cost to perform a Close Combat Attack with
the active character is 1AP.
2.2.4.7.1 MOVE INTO CLOSE COMBAT
If a character moves into a square adjacent (see
Chapter 4.4.1) to one or more enemy characters,
these characters are considered in close combat.
2.2.4.7.2 PERFORM A CLOSE COMBAT ATTACK
A Close Combat Attack is performed in the same
manner as shooting (see Chapter 2.2.4.6). If a
character doesnt use a Close Combat Weapon
(CCW), the Range, Hitnumber and Damage Value from
his Character Card are used. The FR of a Close
Combat Attack without a CCW is always 1. Each CCW
has a DAM Bonus, which is added to the DAM of the
character using it. If a character wields 2 CCWs,
he had to pick one for his attack and use the
according DAM bonus.
2.2.4.7.3 FREE HIT
A character in close combat receives each time a
Free Hit, when he performs an action that doesnt
affect his adjacent non-stunned (see Chapter
4.1.8) enemy or enemies. Take the DAM of the
adjacent non-stunned enemy character (including
DAM bonuses of one CCW) and perform a
Defensecheck. If the Defensecheck (see Chapter
2.2.4.6.5) fails, the character receives damage
(see Chapter 2.2.4.6.6).
DEATHMATCH RULES| PAGE 5
Actions, which cause Free Hits, are:
MOVE into a non-adjacent square
SHOOT at an enemy not participating in the
close combat
USE A SPECIAL ABILITY, which doesnt interact
with the adjacent enemy
EQUIP A CHARACTER
CHANGE EQUIPMENT
DROP EQUIPMENT
If a character is in close combat with more than
one enemy and he performs an action regarding one
of his enemies, he receives a Free Hit from each
of the remaining enemies.
Picture 22 - Close combat
For example, in Picture 22 the red Commander is
engaged with 3 enemies in close combat. If he
attacks one of these enemies, he receives 2 Free
Hits from the other two. If he moves one square
to the left, he receives only a Free Hit from the
blue Commander, because he moves in a non-
adjacent square to this character. The blue
Commander is only in combat with the red
Commander, because the red Gunner is on a
different level and a cover is between him and
the red Sniper. The red Sniper can attack the
blue Medic, without receiving a Free Hit. But if
he shoots at the blue Commander, he receives a
Free Hit from the Medic.
2.2.4.7.4 MOVE OUT OF CLOSE COMBAT
A character can move without further restrictions
from one square adjacent to an enemy to another
square adjacent to the same enemy. But if a
character wants to move away from that enemy in a
non-adjacent square, he receives a Free Hit.
2.2.4.7.5 SHOOT INTO A CLOSE COMBAT
Shooting at characters in close combat is
performed without further restrictions.
2.2.4.7.6 SHOOT DURING A CLOSE COMBAT
If a character is in close combat and he wants to
perform a Shoot action, he has to add +1 to his
Hitnumber if he uses a single-handed weapon and
+2 to his Hitnumber if he uses a two-handed
weapon.
2.3 END OF THE GAME
The game immediately ends when a player meets the
victory conditions written on the scenario card.
3 COVERS AND OBSTACLES
There are the following covers and obstacles in
the game.
3.1 SMALL METAL WALL (COVER)
Picture 23 - Small Metal Wall
MOVEMENT: Characters have to pay no additional
APs if they want to cross a small Metal Wall.
SHOOTING: If there is a side of a square with a
small Metal Wall in LOS between shooter and
VERSION 1.2.0
target, the shooting character has to add a +2 to
his the Hitnumber. There are two exceptions:
If the shooter is adjacent to that cover and
no other cover is in LOS, then he can shoot
over it without restriction.
If both characters (shooter and target)
standing adjacent to the same Small Metal
Wall and the LOS crosses it, then the
shooting character has to add a +1 to his
Hitnumber.
3.2 HIGH METAL WALL (COVER)
Picture 24 - High Metal Wall
MOVEMENT: Characters have to pay 1 additional AP
if they want to cross a high Metal Wall.
SHOOTING: If there is a side of a square with a
high Metal Wall in LOS, the LOS is blocked and
the shooter cannot hit a target behind.
3.3 HIGH METAL WALL WITH EMBRASURE
(COVER)
Picture 25 - High Metal Wall with Embrasure
MOVEMENT : Characters have to pay 1 additional AP
if they want to cross a high Metal Wall.
SHOOTING: If there is a side of a square with a
high Metal Wall in LOS, the LOS is blocked and
the shooter cannot hit. There are three
exceptions:
If the shooter stands adjacent to a Metal
Wall with Embrasures and there is no other
cover in LOS, then he can shoot through the
embrasures without restrictions.
If the target character stands adjacent to a
Metal Wall with Embrasure and the LOS crosses
it, then the shooting character has to add a
+4 to his Hitnumber to hit the target (see
Picture 30).
If both characters (shooter and target)
standing adjacent to the same high Metal Wall
with Embrasures and the LOS crosses it, then
the shooting character has to add a +2 to his
Hitnumber.
3.4 MUD PIT (OBSTACLE)
Picture 26 - Mud Pit
MOVEMENT: Characters have to pay 1 additional AP
to move from a Mud Pit in an adjacent square.
SHOOTING: The Mud Pit doesnt block LOS.
3.5 HILL (OBSTACLE)
All non-hill squares are considered to be level
0. All hill squares are considered to be level 1.
The only exception is the Special Terrain Card
ST003 (see Picture 9 right), which has level 1
and level 2 Hill squares.
DEATHMATCH RULES| PAGE 6

Picture 27 Hill
MOVEMENT: Moving up a hill incurs a +1AP movement
penalty per level to the moving character. There
are no additional costs for moving downhill.
SHOOTING: There are 3 different situations:
SHOOTING INTO A HILL SQUARE: Shooting into a
Hill square from any level is performed
without restrictions.
SHOOTING FROM A HILL SQUARE: Squares at a
lower level adjacent and behind a LOS
blocking cover or character, are blind spots
to characters at higher elevations. They have
no LOS to those blind spots, but to squares
behind these spots.
SHOOTING THROUGH A HILL SQUARE: The LOS
through a Hill square from a lower level is
blocked. Shooting from the same level is
performed without restrictions, but all
squares with lower levels behind that hill
are blind spots. Shooting from a higher level
is performed without restrictions and blind
spots are only behind LOS blocking covers.
If the LOS is drawn from a higher level to a
lower level (or vice versa) and there is a cover
in LOS which cause a Hitnumber bonus, this bonus
is ignored, except the target is adjacent to that
cover.
Picture 28 Hills and shooting
For example, the red Commander in Picture 28
cannot shoot at the blue Scout, because he is
adjacent to a LOS blocking cover, which creates a
blind spot. But he can shoot at the blue Medic.
If no cover would be adjacent to the blue Scout,
he would create a blind spot behind himself so
the Commander could not shoot at the blue Medic.
The blue Commander cannot shoot at the red
Gunner, because the LOS is drawn through a Hill
square from a lower level. If the red Gunner
moves one square to the left, he doesnt receive
the bonus from the small Metal Wall, because this
cover is at a lower level and therefore not
adjacent to him. If the red sniper shoots at the
blue Gunner, he ignores the Hitnumber bonus from
the small Metal Wall, because he is at a higher
level and the Gunner is not adjacent to that
cover.
VERSION 1.2.0
3.6 MULTIPLE COVERS
3.6.1 MOVEMENT OVER MULTIPLE COVERS
If there is more than one high Metal Wall between
two squares, then the character has only to pay
the movement bonus from one wall to cross it. If
there are different obstacles and covers between
two squares, than the movement bonuses are
cumulative, like a Mud Pit adjacent to a high
Metal Wall.
Picture 29 - Multiple Covers
For example, the blue Commander in Picture 29 has
to pay 2APs to cross the two Metal Walls, because
they are counting as one wall with no Embrasure.
The red Commander instead has to pay 3APs to move
in the adjacent square. He has to pay 1AP for the
movement, 1AP to cross the Metal Wall and 1AP to
move out of the Mud Pit.
3.6.2 MOVEMENT BETWEEN MULTIPLE COVERS
A cover always blocks or hinders the whole side
of a square from one edge to another. The LOS or
Movement through the edge is not blocked or
hindered, except another Cover is adjacent to the
edge too. For movement through this edge, the
character has to pay only the lowest movement
bonus.
For example, if the blue Commander from Picture
29 wants to move into the target square of the
red Commander, he has to pay the additional AP to
cross the cover, because the two high Metal Walls
counting as one long high Metal Wall and the
lowest movement bonus is 1AP. If one of these two
walls is a small Metal Wall with a movement bonus
of 0AP, then the Commander has to pay only 1AP to
move to the other square.
3.6.3 SHOOT OVER MULTIPLE COVERS
If there is more than one obstacle or cover in
LOS, only the obstacle with the highest bonus has
to be added to the Hitnumber. If LOS is blocked
by one of several covers, then LOS is blocked
completely.
3.6.4 SHOOT BETWEEN TWO COVERS
If the LOS is drawn between two covers, then the
lowest bonus is added to the Hitnumber. If the
LOS is drawn along a cover, then no bonus is
added to the Hitnumber.
For example, Picture 30 shows the Range and LOS
of different characters. If the blue Medic shoots
at the red Commander, the two covers count as one
huge cover. If he shoots between two different
covers, the lowest bonus is added to his
Hitnumber. So the Medic shoots at Range 2 with a
+4 Hitnumber bonus for the high Metal Wall with
Embrasures. The blue Scout cannot shoot at the
red Commander, as a high Metal Wall with
Embrasures is in LOS and none of the two
characters stands adjacent to this cover.
DEATHMATCH RULES| PAGE 7

Picture 30 - Line of sight
But the red Gunner can shoot at the blue Scout
and the Gunner receives a +2 Hitnumber bonus,
which is the half of the +4 Hitnumber bonus,
because both characters stand adjacent to the
high Metal Wall. The red Gunner and the red
Sniper cannot shot at the blue Medic, because the
Scout blocks the LOS. But the red Sniper can
shoot at the blue Scout. The range is 2 and
because the shot is going along and not between
the two covers, there is no bonus added to the
Hitnumber. If the blue Commander shoots at the
red Gunner, he has to add +4 to his Hitnumber
because the LOS is drawn between two high Metal
Walls with Embrasures.
4 KEYWORDS, TERMS AND SPECIAL RULES
The following chapter covers different abilities,
terms and rules, in more detail than on the
different cards of this game.
4.1 KEYWORDS
This chapter deals with the keywords, which are
found on some equipment cards.
4.1.1 ADD-ON
Equipment Cards with the tag Add-on are added to
other equipment cards. All weapon types, which
can be equipped with that add-on, are listed
behind the tag Add-on. Each Equipment Card can
only be equipped with one add-on of each type.
For Example, a player cannot add a Red Dot Sight
and a Scope to an Assault Rifle, because both
add-ons are from type Sight (S).
4.1.2 EXPLOSION
A weapon with the Explosion keyword creates
damage in multiple squares.
Picture 31 - Explosion Chart
The white damage number in a black square
indicates the center square of the explosion (see
Picture 31) and its damage (DAM). The black
numbers are the damage in the squares around the
center of the detonation.
VERSION 1.2.0
4.1.3 DRIFT
If a character misses with a weapon, which has
the keyword Drift, it will impact in a nearby
square.
Picture 32 Drift Chart
The shot drifts the amount of squares according
to the shooting range (see Picture 4). That means
1 square for a shot in short range, 2 squares for
a shot in normal range and 3 squares for a shot
in long range. The player has to draw 2 Equipment
Cards for each square it drifts. The player adds
the two Fate Numbers and determines the drift by
the Driftchart (see Picture 32) in regard to the
North Marker. The Explosion Marker can be used to
track the position. A 0 or a 1 as the sum of 2
Fate Cards indicates a dud shot and the explosive
projectile will not detonate and cause no damage.
If a shot drifts out of the arena, it is out of
the game.
Picture 33 - Drift of a grenade
For example, the yellow Gunner throws a grenade
on the blue Sniper (see Picture 33), which is 2
squares away. His final Hitcheck number is lower
than the Hitnumber and he misses. The grenade
drifts 2 squares, because the throw was in mid-
range (see Chapter 1.1.3). Therefore the yellow
player draws two Equipment Cards from his deck
for each square the grenade is drifting. The
first two cards showing the Fate Numbers 1 and 2
(=3), so it drifts to the top right. The second
cards showing a 5 and a 1 (=6), so the grenade
drifts north, between the two green characters.
The grenade explodes in the new square. The red
squares mark the detonation radius (see Chapter
4.1.2). The grenade explosion doesnt hit the
blue sniper, but the green Scout and the green
Soldier.
4.1.4 FAVOURITE WEAPON
If a character attacks with a weapon of his
favorite weapon type, he adds a bonus to his
final Hitcheck number.
4.1.5 INDIRECT FIRE
For a weapon with the Indirect Fire keyword a
character need no LOS to shoot at another
character. The character may also determine an
empty square or a square occupied by a friendly
character as target. Because the shooter needs no
LOS, he also has not to add any bonuses from
covers or obstacles to his Hitnumber.
4.1.6 MUNITIONS1
Equipment with the Munitions1 keyword can only be
used once until the weapon is empty and the
Equipment Card has to be discarded on the discard
pile.
DEATHMATCH RULES| PAGE 8
4.1.7 SMOKE
A weapon with the Smoke keyword creates smoke in
multiple squares. Smoke doesnt damage any
character, but it creates a hindrance for sight
on all levels. Put the Smoke Marker (see Chapter
1.2.5) labeled Smoke 2 onto the target square. To
shoot in or out of a square with smoke, that
character has to add a +4 to his Hitnumber. Smoke
is cumulative to other cover bonuses. LOS through
a smoke square is blocked. Smoke 2 is a hindrance
in the target square and the 8 squares around. On
the players next turn, in phase 2 he has to flip
the marker over on the Smoke 1 side. On the Smoke
1 side the hindrance is only in the target
square. In the players third turn he has to
remove the marker from the arena.
4.1.8 STUN
A weapon with the Stun keyword stuns characters.
Each character in the target square or in one of
the 8 squares around is automatically stunned.
Put the Stun Marker (see Chapter 1.2.6) labeled
Stunned 2 adjacent to the stunned Character Card.
In the following turn (phase 2) of a player with
a stunned character, he puts the marker onto that
Character Card. If a player activates that
character, he has 2 APs less this turn to perform
actions and he does no Free Hits in close combat.
In his next turn, he flips the Stun Marker to the
Stunned 1 side and in the third turn he removes
that marker from the Character Card.
4.1.9 RED HITNUMBER
A red Hitnumber indicates a high penetrating
power of a weapon in a specific range, like
shotguns in short range. If a character performs
a successful Hitcheck in this specific range,
then the target receives two hits and has to
perform two successful Defensechecks to receive
no damage.
4.2 CHARACTER AND EQUIPMENT
This chapter clarifies some of the characters,
their special abilities and their special
equipment.
4.2.1 COMMANDER
With the special ability Command, a player cannot
use more Action Points on a character than his
maximum APs. For example, a healthy Gunner can
only use 3 APs from the Commander. The remaining
AP has to be used by another character or the
Commander himself.
4.2.2 MEDIC
The Medic cannot heal himself with the special
ability Healing.
4.2.3 PITBULLS
The Pitbulls can only respawn, if both dogs are
dead.
4.2.4 ENGINEER
If the Engineer dies, his assembled Sentry Gun
remains in the arena. If a dead Engineer respawns
in phase 3, then the player has the choice to
remove his assembled Sentry Gun from the arena
and equip the Engineer with it or he let it
remain in the arena and the Engineer starts
without a Sentry Gun.
4.2.5 SENTRY GUN
If the Sentry Gun is assembled, it counts as a
character for checking LOS and stacking purposes.
Therefore, no other character can end their turn
in the same square or shoot through a square
occupied by a Sentry Gun.
4.3 SPECIAL RULES
This chapter deals with special rules, which are
used in the scenarios.
4.3.1 RESPAWN RULE
In scenarios with an active Respawn Rule, all
players fight with a specific amount of their 5
characters in the arena. This amount is given by
the Respawn Number, which stands in brackets
behind the keyword Respawn Rule. In phase 3 of a
players turn, if all his characters are dead, he
can respawn as many characters as the Respawn
Number indicates. It doesnt matter which of the
VERSION 1.2.0
5 characters the player chooses. If a player
wants to respawn his dead characters before he
lost his last one, he has to discard a green Fate
Number 5 Equipment Card from his hand from the
game in the 3rd phase. After that, the player can
respawn characters up to the limit of the Respawn
Number.
For example, the Respawn Number is 3 and 2 of the
characters are dead. Now, the player can respawn
2 of his 4 remaining characters, if he removes an
Equipment Card with a green Fate Number of 5 from
the game. If he waits till his last character in
the arena also dies, he can respawn 3 of his 5
characters at the beginning of his next turn
without removing an Equipment Card.
4.3.2 TEAM PLAY
Each 4 player game can also be played as a team
match. Players from the same team should sit
across, so that the players of the teams have
their turn alternately (e.g. Player1/Team1,
Player1/Team2, Player2/Team1 and Player2/Team2).
Because each player of a team has only 2 enemies,
the hand card limit is 6. The teams collect
together their Victory Points, so they need only
one Counter Marker. If the Victory Point Limit to
win a match is different than in free for all
matches, the new limit is printed underneath the
old limit in a white font.
4.4 TERMS
This chapter deals with terms in the rulebook and
on the different cards of DEATHMATCH.
4.4.1 ADJACENT
Two squares are considered adjacent if they touch
on one side or a corner, and if they are not
separated by a cover (see Chapter 3.1, 3.2 and
3.3), through smoke (see Chapter 4.1.7) or reside
on different height levels (see Chapter 3.5).
Characters are considered adjacent to a cover if
the occupied square shares one side with one side
of the cover on the same height level.
Picture 34 - Adjacent squares
For example, characters in the green squares (see
Picture 34) are considered adjacent to the blue
Commander. The blue Commander is not adjacent to
the red square on the top and bottom, because of
the Metal Walls in between. And the Commander is
also not adjacent to characters in the Hill
square, because of the different height level.
The left and the lower left squares are also not
adjacent, because of the smoke from the Smoke 2
marker. The small and high Metal Walls are
considered adjacent to the blue Commander,
because they share one side of his square.
4.4.2 FRIENDLY
Friendly characters are all characters of the
same color or in the same team.
For example, in a 2-vs-2-player Capture The Flag
scenario, all characters of both players in the
same team are declared as friendly.
5 DECKBUILDING
For the first few games, it is recommended to
play with the STARTER DECK (see Chapter 5.1). The
CHOOSE YOUR TEAM method (see Chapter 5.2) is a
quick way to create custom decks. This method
connects Equipment Cards and Terrain Cards to the
different Character Cards. The DECKBUILDING
method (see Chapter 5.3) allows players to
DEATHMATCH RULES| PAGE 9
customize their decks regarding their GOLDEN RULE: The Golden Rule applies to all 3
preferences. This is the expert variant. decks. Each card can only be used once in each
deck. No duplicates are allowed. This rule refers
5.1 STARTER DECK to the card number, not the name of a card. Only
Only the Base Game is needed for the Starter Deck one of each card number is allowed in a deck.
Variant. Each player creates the 3 necessary
decks after following method.
CHARACTER DECK: Choose 5 characters from the
Character Cards C001-C006.
TERRAIN DECK: The Terrain Deck has to include
the Start Card (ST001) and the Terrain Cards
T001-T010.
EQUIPMENT DECK: The Equipment Deck is created
with the Equipment Cards E001-E030.

5.2 CHOOSE YOUR TEAM

For the Choose Your Team Variant the Choose Your
Team Cards (CYT001-CYT005) and the Base Game
including the first two expansions are necessary.
This variant allows playing a 2-player game with
only these 3 decks. Shuffle the CYT Cards and
each player draws one CYT Card. The player with
the highest Fate Number is the first player to
pick a character. Shuffle the cards again and the
first player draws one card. He chose one of the
two shown characters and takes all corresponding
cards which are listed below. The second player
receives the remaining character and its cards.
Now the second player draws a card, choses a
character and takes the corresponding cards. The
first player receives the remaining character and
its cards. This procedure is repeated until the
CYT Deck is empty and every player has 5
characters and their corresponding cards. Now the
players can continue with their setup.

5.3 DECKBUILDING
The following rules must be strictly adhered to
build the custom card decks.
CHARACTER DECK: The Character Deck has to
include 5 of the available characters. There
are no further restrictions.
TERRAIN DECK: The Terrain Deck has to include
one Start Card (ST001 or ST002) and 10 other
Terrain Cards. A minimum of 1 and a maximum
of 3 Terrain Cards can show a Supply Box.
EQUIPMENT DECK: Creating an Equipment Deck
has some further restrictions. The amount of
cards in the deck is 30-50. The number of
cards multiplied by 3 is the amount of Fate
Number points (see Chapter 1.1.3) to create
an Equipment Deck. That means a player with a
40 cards deck has a maximum of 120 Fate
Number points (3 * 40 cards = 120 points).
Each Equipment Card is worth the Fate Number
printed on it, except the green Fate Number 5
cards. These cards are worth 7 points when a
player creates his Equipment Deck. Each
Equipment Deck must include at least 3 cards
with a red Fate Number of 0. And for every
card with a Fate Number of 0 a player can
include a card with a green Fate Number of 5.

Picture 35 - Building a deck

For example, if a player wants to create a 30
card Equipment Deck, he has 90 Fate Number points
to build it. If he includes a CZ 75b for 0 Fate
Number points (see Picture 35) in his deck, he
can include an Equipment Card like the First Aid
Pack with a green Fate Number of 5 for 7 Fate
Number points. A MP7 costs 2 Fate Number points.
The combined costs of these 3 Equipment Cards are
9 Fate Number points (0+7+2=9). To complete the
deck the player has to include 27 more Equipment
Cards for a maximum cost of 81 Fate Number
points.

VERSION 1.2.0 DEATHMATCH RULES| PAGE 10

6 INDEX 7 GLOSSARY
Actions C2.2.4 A : Armor
Action Points (AP) C1.1.2 AP : Action Points
Add-on C4.1.1 AR : Assault Rifle
Adjacent C4.4.1 Att: Attack
Arena (how to create) C2.1.5 B : Belt
Attack Value (Att) C1.1.2
BP : Backpack
Character Cards (C) C1.1.2
C : Character Card
Choose Your Team (CYT) Cards C1.1.10
Close Combat C2.2.4.7 CC : Counter Card
Close Combat Attack C2.2.4.7.2 CCW: Close Combat Weapon
Cover Cards C1.1.1 CYT: Choose Your Team
Covers C3 COM: Communication Device
High Metal Wall C3.2 COV: Cover
With Embrasure C3.3 Def: Defense
Small Metal Wall C3.1 Dam: Damage
Commander C4.2.1 E : Equipment Card
Counter Card (CC) C1.1.6 F : Flag
Damage C2.2.4.6.6 FR : Fire Rate
Damage Value (Dam) C1.1.2 G : Grenade
Deckbuilding C5
GL : Grenade Launcher
Defensecheck C2.2.4.6.5
HC : Hitcheck
Defense Value (Def) C1.1.2
Drift C4.1.3 HN : Hitnumber
Engineer C4.2.4 LOS: Line of sight
Equipment Cards (E) C1.1.3 M : Marker Card
Change equipment C2.2.4.3 MAG: Magazine
Drop equipment C2.2.4.4 MED: Medicine
Equip a character C2.2.4.2 MG : Machine Gun
Explosion C4.1.2 MO : Mortar
Fate Number C1.1.3 MP : Machine Pistol
Favourite Weapon C4.1.4 MUN: Munitions
Fire Rate (FR) C2.2.4.6.7 MW : Mounted Weapon
First Player C2.1.3 P : Pistol
Free Hit C2.2.4.7.3
PC : Portage Capacity
Friendly C4.4.2
PP : Portage Points
Hitcheck C2.2.4.6.4
Hitnumber (black) C2.2.4.6.3 RL : Rocket Launcher
Hitnumber (red) C4.1.9 SC : Scenario Card
Indirect Fire C4.1.5 SE : Special Equipment Card
Line of sight (LOS) C2.2.4.6.1 SG : Shotgun
Marker Cards (M) C1.1.5 SI : Sight
Marker C1.2 SR : Sniper Rifle
Character Marker C1.2.1 ST : Start or Special Terrain Card
Counter Marker C1.2.2 T : Terrain Card
Explosive Marker C1.2.4
North Marker C1.2.3 8 CREDITS
Smoke Marker C1.2.5 Game Design: Raoul Schaupp
Special Equipment Marker C1.2.7
Stun Marker C4.1.8
Proofreading: Alexander Guth, Nigel Buckle and
Update a marker C2.2.2
Medic C4.2.2 Christian Anderl
Movement C2.2.4.1
Between multiple covers C3.6.2 Graphic Design: Raoul Schaupp
Into close combat C2.2.4.7.1
Out of close combat C2.2.4.7.4 Playtesters: Alexander Guth, Philippe Labalette,
Over multiple covers C3.6.1 Helmut Wner, Christian Anderl, Maik Stich and
Through characters C2.2.4.1.1 Thorsten Brombas
Munitions1 C4.1.6
Obstacles C3 This game and all its content is 2012 by Raoul
Hill C3.5
Schaupp. Permission is given to copy this game as
Mud Pit C3.4
long as it is for non-commercial purposes and
Pitbulls C4.2.3
Portage Capacity (PC) C1.1.2
proper credit is given.
Portage Points (PP) C1.1.3
Range C1.1.3
Counting the range C2.2.4.6.2
Respawn Phase C2.2.3
Respawn Rule C4.3.1
Respawn Number C4.3.1
Scenario Cards (S) C1.1.9
Sentry Gun C4.2.5
Setup C2.1
Shoot C2.2.4.6
Between multiple covers C3.6.4
During a close combat C2.2.4.7.6
Into a close combat C2.2.4.7.5
Over multiple covers C3.6.3
Smoke C4.1.7
Special Ability C2.2.4.5
Special Equipment Cards (SE) C1.1.4
Special Terrain Cards (ST) C1.1.8
Start Cards (ST) C1.1.8
Stun C4.1.8
Supply Box C2.2.4.2
Team Play C4.3.2
Terrain Cards (T) C1.1.7
Turn Sequence C2.2

VERSION 1.2.0 DEATHMATCH RULES| PAGE 11