By D. Brad Talton Jr.

Presented by Level 99 Games

Preview Game
BattleCON captures the fast-paced head-to-head intensity of
a 2D fighting video game and tempers it with the
strategic decision-making of a card game.

As new villains appear to lay claim to

the world of Indines, new heroes rise
to challenge them. BattleCON:
Devastation of Indines puts you in
control of 18 mighty heroes and
deadly villains to decide the fate of the
world.

Each character's play style

requires new strategies, but
uses the same foundational
tactics, making a new character easy to
learn, but challenging to master.

BattleCON: Devastation of Indines can be played

stand-alone, or combined with other BattleCON games
to create an even greater pool of characters and play modes.
Level 99 Production Staff Designer’s Foreword
Lead Designer Hi there, thanks for trying out BattleCON!
D. Brad Talton Jr. BattleCON is probably a bit different than
most board or card games you own or have
Lead Character Illustrator played before. It is not intended to be taken off
Eunice Abigael Tiu (Nokomento) the shelf and taught and played on some select
occasions. Instead, it is designed to be an
ongoing game played regularly by a group of
Design & Concept Artist experienced friends.
Fábio Fontes Each character requires a bit of work to
master, and each matchup requires a new strategy
Supporting Illustrators to win. Each strategy requires a new counter-
Christelle Hyunh, Victor P. Corbella, Yuting strategy to defeat. By playing regularly with an
Lian, Victoria Parker, and Anika Różnowicz established group, BattleCON develops a meta-
game where players begin to effectively expect
Playtesters their opponents’ tactics and adapt their own
John Parmalee, John Kirk, John Celino, Jessey styles, creating a ‘living game’ that grows beyond
Wright, Joseph Tenney, Bo King, Lorenzo just the box.
Batallones, Ryan “Ozzy” Lawrence, Bryan We’ve packed as many options, play modes,
Graham, Marco De Santos, Yaron Raca, Aaron and possibilities as we can into this box, so that
Gresham, Matthew Locklin, Matthew Fournier, you can have a new experience each time you
Andrey Trubitsin, Dmitry Trubitstin, Danil play, even with (and especially with) friends who
Trubitsin, Thomas Woodruff, Sean Whetton, have the same level of experience as you.
James Johnes, Marco De Santos, Maksim Penzin, If this all sounds a bit daunting, don’t fear.
C. A. DuChane, Dennis Crenshaw, Mark We’ve worked just as hard to make the game
Roberts, Ari Tykkyläinen, Noah Selzer, Ryan accessible as we have to make it deep. Every
Gerstein, Vladimir "Grey Swan" Perepelkin, element, from the characters to the play variants
Noah Bogart, Steve Ripberger, Ar-j Castelo, Icon has been marked with a difficulty rating, which
Ortega, Kiko Santos, Travis 'KingOfOdonata' will help you to start on a solid footing and
Schneider, Nick Eglinton, Richard Peppers, advance towards more specialized characters,
Ferdinand Andrew Capitulo, Helder Araújo play modes, and strategies. So grab some friends
and get ready to explore and experience
Special Thanks BattleCON!
Kevin Bridgeman, Steven Pettit, Steven It is my sincerest hope that BattleCON brings
Thompson, Graham Russell, Lance Myxter, Tom you endless hours of entertainment with friends
Vasel, Lynda Yang, Kevin Brusky, Brandon and family!
“Ragnar” Johnson, Mac Ko, Mark Hadley, Alex Happy gaming!
Sieland

D. Brad Talton Jr.

Lead Designer

- 2 -
 you can gradually explore the more advanced
What is BattleCON? characters and play variants.
BattleCON is a board game based on the
principles of intense action, direct The difficulty of characters and variants
confrontation, and tactical positioning present in comes in three flavors:
fighting video games. Unlike its peers in console Basic - You can jump right in and play with
gaming, however, BattleCON provides strategic these characters and play modes.
elements and a more thoughtful pace–allowing Intermediate - When you feel comfortable
the player to choose carefully his next moves and with the basics of the game, try these out.
gauge his opponents’ strengths and motives. Advanced - When you are ready for a
BattleCON is a standalone game that comes challenge that tests even the abilities of a
as a complete boxed set. There are no random seasoned player, try these.
packs to buy, no exclusives, and no chase cards–
you get the complete game up front in the box.
While you can expand BattleCON with
additional sets featuring new characters, there is
no buy-in to collect more powerful cards and no
expensive rare cards to chase down–when you
get a box, you know exactly what you are getting.

The World of Indines

Welcome to Indines (pronounced In-deans),
a land of mystery, magic, wonder, and war. In
this game, you will take on the roles of the
champions of each nation or faction,
participating in duels to determine their fates
and the fate of the world as a whole.
Each duel is short and fast-paced, as two
combatants move across the field attempting to
strike one another and avoid being struck. Only
the one whose wits are strongest and whose
strategy is surest will be able to claim victory.
Learning the Game
Don't be intimidated by this rulebook or the
number of cards in the game! BattleCON is an
extremely simple game, and most of the cards
and rules in this book exist to allow you to play
different variants and to increase the
replayability of the base game. In fact, each
player will only use 15 cards over the course of a
duel.
If this is your first time playing, use
characters listed as 'Basic' in the character guide
(Shekhtur and Eligor), and follow along with the
graphic quick-rules comic. After you feel
comfortable with the basic mechanics and rules,

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Building the Print and Play
To Build your own BattleCON: Devastation
of Indines Print and Play, follow these steps:
1. Print up all cards and gameboards in this
document. There should be 8 pages of cards and
tokens, and one gameboard.
* Many cards will have incomplete bleeds on the left
or right sides. This is intentional. Cut them out along
the white lines. Even if the bleeds don’t look quite right
on the sheet, they will once you set up the game.
2. Sleeve the cards so that all bases are in one
color sleeve, and all styles are in another. Styles
are the cards with their numbers aligned to the
right (they are the left side of an attack pair).
Bases are the cards with their numbers aligned
to the left (they are the right side of an attack
pair). Take note that Joal has more bases than
other characters.
2a. Malandrax’s Trap Cards can be sleeved as
any third color, to differentiate them from other
card types.
2b. Sleeve each character’s Finisher cards in
clear sleeves so that they are double-sided. Each
side should have a different Finisher for the same
character.
3. Assemble the character Standups. You can
build your character standups by pasting them
together, or by folding them along the dotted
line, gluing them together, then cutting the
shapes down to better match the character sizes.
4. Cut out all Tokens. Shekhtur and Eligor
each have 5 tokens they need. Cut these out as
well.
5. Acquire two life counters. You’ll need two
counters that go from twenty down to zero.
Poker chips, glass drops, a 20-sided dice, or even
scrap paper work fine for this purpose.
6. Separate Character Kits. Use plastic bags
or card cases to separate each character and the
basic cards. Every character’s cards will have that
character’s name at the bottom center of the
card. For tokens, check the Character
Introductions at the end of this guide to see
what goes with whom.
- 4 -
After all this, you should have the the
following supplies ready to play:
Eligor Character Kit:
- 1 Character Card (Eligor Larington)
- 5 Vengeance Tokens
- 5 Styles (Chained, Counter, Martial,
Retribution, Vengeful)
- 1 Base (Aegis)
- 1 Finisher (Sweet Revenge / Sheet
Lightning)
Shekhtur Character Kit:
- 1 Character Card (Shekhtur Lenmorre)
- 5 Malice Tokens
- 5 Styles (Combination, Jugular, Reaver,
Spiral, Unleashed)
- 1 Base (Brand)
- 1 Finisher (Soul Cracker / Coffin Nails)
Joal Character Kit:
- 1 Character Card ( Joal Kalmor)
- 5 Styles (Cutthroat, Dual Wield, Relentless,
Slayer’s, Warded)
- 5 Bases (Knuckles, Binding Knife, Hand
Cannon, Ironstar, Runeblade)
- 1 Finisher (Annihilator / Neutralizer)
Malandrax Character Kit:
- 1 Character Card (Malandrax Mecchi)
- 4 Trap Cards (Alarm Trap, Electroshock
Trap, Smasher Trap, Wall Spike Trap)
- 5 Styles (Calculated, Ingenious, Leading,
Plotting, Precision)
- 1 Base (Master Plan)
- 1 Finisher (Deathtrap / Plots Within Plots)
2 Base Sets:
- 6 Bases (Strike, Shot, Grasp, Dash, Drive,
Burst)
1 Game Board
2 Reference Cards (Beat Sequence + Setup)
2 Life Counters (supplied by you)
4 Double-sided standups
Gameplay Overview
Your primary goal in BattleCON is to win
matches against other players in a head-to-head
battle. Both you and your opponent will select
one of the eighteen characters in the game, and
play a match.
A single match consists of two or three duels.
A duel is a complete game, beginning at 20 life
points and ending with one player reaching 0
life. A single duel takes between 10 and 20
minutes, so a match is typically between 30
minutes and an hour long. The player who wins
two out of the three duels is declared the winner
of the match.
In the course of a single duel, the goal of each
player is to reduce their opponent's life total to
zero or fewer points. The first to accomplish this
is declared the winner of that duel.
A duel consists of up to fifteen rounds, called
beats. In a beat, both players act simultaneously
as they play out all of the steps of the beat. There
are no 'turns' in BattleCON–both players are
constantly engaged in the conflict.
If you’re just learning the game, it is
recommended to use the two characters ‘Shekhtur
Lenmorre’ and ‘Eligor Larington’ and follow
along with the introductory rules comic. After
following through the comic, you can use the
detailed rules here to answer any questions that
come up as you play the game.
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Character Card Overview
Characters are specific personas that you use
on the field of battle. Each player will select a
different character at the start of the game and
must use all of the styles and bases that are
associated with that specific character.
Each character card has the following
components:
1. Name – The name of the character.
2. Unique Ability – One or more unique
abilities that this character possesses. These are
staples of their personal strategy and are used
during gameplay.
The reverse side of each character contains a
description of how that character fights and some
insight as to how you can pick them up to play
quickly.
Some characters are more difficult to learn
than others, or require a familiarity with the core
gameplay that makes them difficult to learn first.
We suggest starting with ‘basic’ characters. The
difficulty of a character can be found in their
strategy section on the reverse of this card.
1
Base Card Overview
These cards are printed with their numbers
aligned to the left and may be either unique to a
character or generic. Those that are unique to a
character have that character's picture on them.
Bases are the foundations of an attack pair. All
bases have the following parts.
1. Name – The name of the base.
2. Range – This is what distance the attack
will strike at. Some ranges are expressed as two
values (i.e.: 1~4). These ranges target all spaces
included in the range (so 1~4 would target
spaces at range 1, 2, 3, and 4). Attacks with a
range of N/A will never hit unless they have
some special effect that says they do. Range can
never be less than 0.
3. Power – This is how much damage the
attack will do. Attacks with a power of N/A will
not do any damage. Power can never be less than
zero.
4. Priority – The speed of the attack. Higher
priority attacks have the advantage of going first
in combat--allowing you to stun or escape your
opponent in many instances. Priority may be
negative on some attacks.
5. Effects – Special effects that are part of the
attack. These are explained in more detail later.
1 1
2
3
4
5 5
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Style Card Overview
These cards are printed with their numbers
aligned to the right and are all specific to a
certain character. Each style can be paired with a
base to form an attack pair. A style has the
following parts.
1. Name – The name of the style. This pairs
with the name of the base to form the name of
the attack. For example, a 'Calculated' style and a
'Strike' base combine to form the 'Calculated
Strike' attack.
2. Range Modifier – The range of the attack is
modified up or down by this amount.
i. If only one side of the attack has a
variable range like (1~4), add the single number
to both sides (so 1~4 plus 2 would be 3~6).
ii. If both sides of the attack range are
variable, calculate the complete range by adding
the highest and lowest parts of both sides (so 1~4
plus 2~4 would be 3~8).
3. Power Modifier – The power of the attack
is modified up or down by this amount.
4. Priority Modifier – The priority of the
attack is modified up or down by this amount.
5. Effects – These effects are added on to the
effects of the base, giving the attack additional
powers. Style effects work the same way as base
effects.
2
3
4
Finisher Card Overview
Each character has a Finisher card that they
can make use of during play. We recommend not
using the Finisher cards during your first few
games of BattleCON, and instead introducing
them after you feel comfortable with the basic
gameplay.

The finisher card looks just like a style, except

that it has a purple overlay and a complete
border around the edge. A finisher is not half of
an attack pair though–it replaces the entire
attack pair, and whatever base or style you play
does not modify it.
Finishers have two sides. During setup, each
player should secretly select which finisher they
wish to use, then reveal those simultaneously.
Finishers can be used during ante if a player
has 7 life or less remaining. Just ante your
finisher and take your attack pair back into your
hand. Do not recycle discard piles after using a
finisher. Instead just remove the Finisher from
the game.

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Game Setup
1. Character Selection – Each player
chooses one character (choose secretly in a
competitive game). They take all of that
character's cards (1 character card, 5 styles, 1
finisher card, and 1 base), plus a set of generic
bases (6 bases–Strike, Dash, Drive, Grasp, Burst,
and Shot), to form a starting hand. Each player
should also find any tokens or markers their
character uses and place them beside their
character card or into play as specified by their
unique abilities.
Each character’s complete kit is listed below
their portrait in the character guide, later in these
rules. The name of the character kit a card belongs
to is always listed in the bottom center of the card.
2. Board Setup - Place the players on the
second and sixth spaces respectively (as shown
below), so that each character is on its owner's
left hand side of the board. Use the spinning life
dials to keep track of each player's life points. All
players start with 20 life.
- 17 -
3. Initial Discards - Each player chooses two
bases and two styles*. These will form two pairs
that should be placed in discard 1 and discard 2
respectively. These cards will not be available at
the start of the game but will become available
soon. Make sure your two discard piles are clearly
separated and that you know which is which, as
they both have very important functions (see
“Recycle” for more information).
3b. Character Setup - Some characters
(particularly advanced characters) require some
additional setup. The character’s Unique Ability
will tell you what extra setup steps they may have
to complete.
4. Game Start - Once you have completed
these actions and filled both discard piles, you are
ready to begin the game.
* When learning the game or trying a new
character, the bases and styles marked with a ‘1’
and ‘2’ form the starting discard piles. These are
optional, but are intended to help you to set up the
game and jump into a new character quickly.

The Core Mechanic
An attack pair is formed by selecting one
style and one base from the player's hand and
placing those face-down in front of him.
An attack pair has the power, range, and
priority of the base, plus the modifiers specified
on the style and all the effects of both cards.
Since there are 5 styles and 7 bases, each
character has 35 possible attacks (and even more
when you factor in Unique Abilities!)
Objective
The objective of each duel is to reduce the
opponent's life points to zero before your
opponent can do the same to you. The first
player whose life points reach zero is eliminated,
and the remaining player is declared the winner
of the duel.
A duel has a time limit of 15 beats (just a
fancy name for rounds). At the end of the 15th
beat, if no player has eliminated the other, then
the player with the highest life total is declared
the winner.
Play Sequence
Every beat in BattleCON follows a similar
pattern. Each of these steps is done by each
player simultaneously.
1. Select attack pairs
2. Ante Tokens
3. Reveal attack pairs
4. Execute attacks
5. Recycle
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1 - Select Attack Pairs
Each player chooses one style and one base
from his hand, then places those cards face down
in front of him where their opponent can see the
backs of the cards clearly. A legal attack pair
always has one red-backed and one blue-
backed card. Once both players have attack pairs
placed down in front of them, move on to the
next step.
2 - Ante Phase
A character's unique ability may provide that
character with with tokens. These tokens are
chosen and spent during the ante step, after both
players have selected attack pairs. A token's exact
effect depends on the unique ability of the
character using it.
Tokens are in a character's “token pool” area
until they are used. After being used, they are
typically moved to the “token discard pool.”
Unless otherwise stated by a character's
unique ability, tokens are discarded to their own
separate discard pile and cannot be retrieved
except by the effects of that character's styles and
bases. Not all characters are able to retrieve their
tokens, so pay attention to your options for
recovery before you use them recklessly!
Players may ante tokens in any order, and may
always ante more tokens (as far as their unique
abilities allow), but antes can never be taken
back. Once both players have elected to pass on
adding tokens, move on to the next step.
3 - Reveal Attack Pairs
Both players simultaneously flip over their
face-down attack pairs. Any Reveal Effects occur
at this time. Reveal effects can occur in any order
the players wish.
After resolving all reveal effects, check the
priorities of both attacks (considering any
modifications provided by tokens, styles, and
passive special abilities). If the total priorities
tie, then a clash occurs.
Reveal effects do not have any timing, and only
serve to improve the priority of the styles they are
printed on. Players can execute reveal effects in
either order, even simultaneously. They continue to
provide their benefits, even after a clash, and are
never activated more than once per beat.
Priority Tie? - Clash!
In a clash, both players must play a new base
face-down from their hands. They
simultaneously reveal the played base and put it
on top of the old one, hiding the effects and stats
of the original base and forming a new attack.
Players then check to see if another clash has
occurred. If it has, continue again as above.
If any player runs out of cards during the
clash, then skip directly to recycling their top
attack pairs (without activating any End of Beat
effects) and a new beat begins.
During the Recycle step, only recycle the
top attack pair (the one your character
actually used), and return all other cards to
your hand.
4 - Active Attack
The Active Player activates his attack first by
performing the following steps*:
1. He performs any Before Activating effects
listed on his cards. If there are multiple effects, he
chooses which order to use them.
2. He checks to see if the opponent is within
his range. Range is counted in spaces, with the
space occupied by the player being space zero (so
adjacent characters are at range 1, and characters
at the start of a match are at range 4).
* It is possible for some effects, such as Eligor’s
Counter style, to stun the Active Player. If this
happens, his attack is skipped, and you should move
straight to the next step, Reactive Attack.
Special Ranges
Some attacks have special ranges of X or
N/A. These attacks are treated differently
than normal.
Attacks with a range of N/A never hit
opponents.
Attacks with a range of X (on either side of
the attack pair) have their range defined by
some special passive or triggered effect. Range
boosts or penalties do not apply to these
special ranges–they can only hit or miss due
to their effects.

The player who has higher priority after

Reveal effects are resolved is called the Active
Player, and the one with lower priority is called
the Reactive Player.
After Reveal effects and Active/Reactive
player are resolved (by clashes if necessary),
Start of Beat effects take place. The Active Player
executes all of his Start of Beat effects, then the
Reactive Player executes all of his Start of Beat
effects. Once the Start of Beat effects are
resolved, attacks begin.
!

- 19 -
 3. If the opponent is in range, then the active Once you have recycled your discard piles,
player resolves any On Hit effects. advance the turn timer by one beat, and you are
4. If the opponent was hit by the attack, then all set to start the next beat!
the opponent takes damage equal to the power
of the attack, reducing the damage taken by his
own attack's Soak value (if he has this effect–see The recycling of discard piles means
common effects). that each Attack Pair you play will take 2
5. If any damage was done, On Damage beats of cycling before it can be recombined
effects are resolved. Also, if any damage was into new attacks. Be careful before you use
done, the opponent may be stunned. This stun your strongest attack–it might be more
can be prevented by an opponent with Stun useful as two parts instead of one!
Guard (see the section on Stun, page 25).
6. If a player's life is reduced to zero or fewer
points, the game immediately ends, with the
remaining player being declared the winner.
7. The active player resolves any After
Activating effects, regardless of whether or not
the attack hit or did damage.
4B - Reactive Attack
If the Reactive Player is not stunned, then he
may activate his attack by following the same
steps as the Active Player. A stunned player skips
activation entirely, including any Before
Activating and After Activating effects.
Once the reactive player has resolved his
attack (or been stunned), move on to the next
step.

5 - Recycle
Both players activate any End
of Beat effects they possess. If
both players have End of Beat
effects, the Active Player executes
all of his effects first. End of Beat
effects will still be executed by
the reactive player even if he
was stunned.
Finally, both players:
1. Pick up their second
(outermost) discard pile,
2. Move their first (innermost)
discard pile into their second
discard pile, and
3. Move the attack pair they just
played face-up into their first discard
pile.

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 Advance – This movement brings you closer
Resolving Effects to an opponent. (ex: “Advance 1, 2, or 3 spaces”)
During the course of the game, you will need
to resolve many special effects that your attacks
have. How to resolve these effects is explained in
detail here.
There are two kinds of effects, Passive
Effects and Triggered Effects.
Passive effects are always active from the time Retreat – This movement takes you further
the attack is revealed until the end of the beat. from an opponent. (ex: “Retreat 1 space.”)
For example, Shekhtur’s Combination Style
states "This attack does not hit opponents at range
3 or greater." This is a passive effect and should
be followed as long as it is face-up on the player's
current attack pair. Its instructions should be
obeyed by both players at all times.
Triggered effects have two parts: a trigger and Pull – This movement brings an opponent
an effect. An example of a triggered effect might closer to you. (ex: “Pull the opponent up to 2
be "Before Activating: Advance 1 or 2 spaces." spaces”)
This means that the effect is triggered and
resolved during the Before Activating step
(during step 4 of the turn). If a player controls
multiple triggered effects with the same trigger,
then he chooses what order to activate them. All
triggered effects are mandatory–you must use
them when they trigger.
If triggered and passive effects would conflict Push – This movement puts an opponent
with one another, the passive effects take further from you. (ex: “Push the opponent up to
precedence. 2 spaces”)

Status Effects
Some triggered effects will apply powers to
the next beat of combat. These are called “Status
Effects” and are separate from the cards, tokens,
or abilities that generate them. The box contains
some tokens that you can use to track status Move – You may choose either direction for
effects, but status effects are not tokens. this movement. (ex: “Move 1 space”)
Movement
Many effects will cause characters to move.
The only way to move on the board is by these
effects or by the unique abilities of characters.
Movement will be specified by triggered
effects or a character's unique abilities in the
form of effects such as “After Activating:
Advance 1, 2, or 3 spaces.”
There are 6 kinds of movement:

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 Move directly – Teleport immediately to the
space specified, without moving into or out of Stun, Guard, & Immunity
spaces in between. Some effects may prevent you All attacks have the potential to stun
from “moving over” your opponent. These opponents when they hit. A stunned opponent is
effects do not apply to direct movement. unable to react with an attack of his own. Thus, in
order to score hits a player must either be fast
enough to strike first, maneuverable enough to
avoid damage, or defensive enough to prevent
stun.
A stun occurs whenever a player takes damage
greater than his Stun Guard value. Attacks that
Movement effects are mandatory. If an have no Stun Guard on them have a Stun Guard
effect says 'advance 1 or 2 spaces', then the player of zero. Here are a few examples that you can
must move either 1 space forwards or 2 spaces follow along with using your own cards. All of
forwards. He cannot choose to remain where he these examples ignore range and movement.
is. Example 1 - Hit and taking damage:
For all moves except direct movement, you Shekhtur and Eligor dueling. Shekhtur uses a
must pass through the spaces between your 'Jugular Grasp' (7 priority) and Eligor uses a
current position and your final destination. 'Retribution Drive' (4 priority). Shekhtur will go
If an effect specifies 'Advance up to 2 spaces', first. She hits Eligor for 1 damage. Because Eligor
then the player has the option of choosing a has no Stun Guard or Soak effects, he takes 1
movement of zero (which is less than 2) and damage and is stunned. He will not be able to use
remaining stationary. Negative movement is any of his effects, since Before Activating is an
never allowed. Attack trigger, and he will not attack this beat.
When moving, you hop over opponents and Example 2 - Taking no damage: Eligor uses
do not count the spaces they occupy against your 'Retribution Aegis' with 3 tokens (priority -1,
movement. (See the example for Advancing) Soak 3, Stun Guard 6) and Shekhtur uses 'Jugular
If a player cannot complete a retreat due to Grasp' (priority 7). Shekhtur will hit first,
the presence of a wall, then he moves as far as dealing 1 point of damage to Eligor. Eligor has
possible and stops. The same holds true for a Soak 3, which reduces the damage he takes by up
player advancing against a player who is adjacent to 3 points. Thus, he takes 0 damage. Because he
to a wall. The presence of walls may preclude has not taken any damage, he is able to retaliate
movement entirely. In this case, movement is and score 2 damage on Shekhtur.
ignored.
If a legal movement is possible given the
effect moving the character, then it must be
taken. (Example: Arec must move 1 space forwards or
backwards, but there is a wall behind him. In this case,
he is forced to choose the forwards movement, since it is
the only legal, available move).

‘Advance’ and ‘Pull’ just determine

the initial direction of the movement. It’s
possible to pull someone past you so that
they are further away than when they
started, and it’s possible to advance far
past someone in order to create distance.

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 Example 3 - Stun Guard greater than
damage: Eligor uses 'Vengeful Strike' (priority
3, Stun Guard 8) and Shekhtur is using 'Spiral
Drive' with 2 tokens (priority 5). Shekhtur will
hit first, as usual, and deal 4 points of damage.
Eligor takes the damage, but because the damage
is lower than or equal to his Stun Guard value,
he is not stunned. He can hit Shekhtur back for 5
damage.
Example 4 - Damage greater than Stun
Guard: Eligor uses 'Counter Strike' (priority 2,
Stun Guard 5) and Shekhtur uses 'Combination
Drive' (priority 4). Shekhtur will hit first,
dealing 6 damage to Eligor (+2 from
Combination’s effect). Eligor takes the damage,
and since it is higher than his Stun Guard value,
he is stunned and will not activate his attack.
Example 5 - Stun by effect: Eligor uses an
extremely defensive 'Vengeful Aegis' with 4
tokens (priority 0, Soak 4, Stun Guard 11).
Shekhtur uses her finisher, 'Soul
Breaker' (priority 3). Shekhtur will go first,
dealing 3 damage to Eligor. Eligor's Soak absorbs
the first 4 points of the damage, so he takes
none. However, Shekhtur's Finisher has a special
effect "On Hit: The opponent is stunned..."
Eligor is stunned because of the effect and will
not activate his attack. This is called an auto-stun
effect and can stun regardless of the opponent's
Stun Guard and Soak.
Example 6 - Stun Immunity: Eligor uses
the same 'Vengeful Aegis' and Shekhtur uses her
same 'Soul Breaker' as above. This time,
however, Eligor decides to ante all 5 of his
Vengeance tokens during the Ante phase. This
ante gives him the effect of Stun Immunity due
to his unique ability. Now when Shekhtur hits
first, her Soul Breaker’s effect will attempt to
stun Eligor. Eligor is immune to stun, however,
so no effect and no amount of damage can
prevent him from executing his attack this beat.
Common Effects
Stun Guard – A number will be specified
(i.e.: Stun Guard 5, Stun Guard 3). Whenever
the player takes damage this turn, he is not
stunned unless the total damage taken this turn
is greater than his Stun Guard rating. Stun Guard
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is always a passive effect. Attacks with no Stun
Guard specified have an implied Stun Guard of 0.
If a player would take damage multiple times
in a turn, Stun Guard applies separately to each
one. The player must take damage higher than his
Stun Guard in a single attack for his Stun Guard
to be broken.
Soak – A number will be specified (i.e.: Soak
3, Soak 1, Soak 2). Whenever the player would
take damage this turn, he reduces the damage
taken by the amount specified. Multiple Soak
effects stack together (so Soak 3 + Soak 1 = Soak
4). Soak is always a passive effect.
If a player would take damage multiple times
in a turn, his Soak applies to each individual time
he would take the damage.
Lose Life – Effects that say “lose life” do not
ever cause stun. Only effects that “deal damage”
can cause stuns. Soak does not prevent loss of life
from these effects. Loss of life can never reduce
a player to below 1 life.
Stun Immunity – The character cannot be
stunned by any means or effects. Stun Immunity
overrides any effect or damage that would
normally stun a character. It does not prevent any
damage.
“The opponent is stunned” - The opponent
becomes stunned. This ignores any soak and stun
guard effects the opponent may have, but will not
bypass Stun Immunity.
Playing Eligor
Eligor is a dedicated defensive fighter whose
heavy armor and combat training allow him to
stand up against the most powerful attacks
without flinching. He excels in counterattacking,
and fights most effectively when he can predict
the opponent and bait certain attacks.
Start out with Eligor if you prefer to hold
your ground and watch your opponents’
strategies unwind in the face of your defenses.
Eligor Larington
“It only takes one hero to stand up
and change the world for the better.”
Eligor acquires Vengeance Tokens as he takes
damage, and these tokens further increase his
defensive potential and ability to effectively
counterattack. He is a great choice for players who
prefer to play defensively and make contingency
plans for their opponents’ options.
Difficulty: Basic
Complete Kit:
- 1 Character Card (Eligor Larington)
- 5 Vengeance Tokens
- 5 Styles (Chained, Counter, Martial,
Retribution, Vengeful)
- 1 Base (Aegis)
- 1 Finisher (Sweet Revenge / Sheet
Lightning)
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Playing Shekhtur
Shekhtur is a deadly rushdown character who
can do great damage to opponents and maintain
significant pressure. Her abilities revolve around
creating and maintaining favorable corner traps
and staying in close melee with opponents.
Start out with Shekhtur if you like to take the
offensive early and stay on the attack as much as
possible.
Shekhtur Lenmorre
“This power was meant for evil, but maybe
I can use it for good instead.”
Shekhtur gains Malice Tokens as she does
damage, and these tokens further increase her
speed and damage-dealing ability. She is a great
choice for players who like to use reckless,
unstoppable force as an alternative to a more paced
combat style.
Difficulty: Basic
Complete Kit:
- 1 Character Card (Shekhtur Lenmorre)
- 5 Malice Tokens
- 5 Styles (Combination, Jugular, Reaver,
Spiral, Unleashed)
- 1 Base (Brand)
- 1 Finisher (Soul Cracker / Coffin Nails)
Playing Joal
Joal is a slightly more advanced jack-of-all
trades type fighter. His additional bases give him
the ability to adapt to all sorts of situations, and
making the best move in any given position isn’t
always easy.
Once you’ve played a few games with
Shekhtur or Eligor, try out Joal and get a feel for
the breadth of possibilities BattleCON has to
offer in a more technical fighter.
Joal Kalmor
“Even the immortal dragons can be
hunted – if you know their weakness.”
Joal possesses additional unique bases, and can
swap out his starting selection of bases to put new
strategies into place. He is a great pick for players
who like to adapt their abilities to match each
opponent.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Complete Kit:
- 1 Character Card ( Joal Kalmor)
- 5 Styles (Cutthroat, Dual Wield, Relentless,
Slayer’s, Warded)
- 5 Bases (Knuckles, Binding Knife, Hand
Cannon, Ironstar, Runeblade)
- 1 Finisher (Annihilator / Neutralizer)
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Playing Malandrax
Malandrax is an advanced character, a
scheming trap-setter who relies heavily on an
opponent’s paranoia and recklessness to create
deadly setups.
Once you’ve played everyone else and feel
comfortable with the game’s core mechanics, try
out Malandrax to see how much an outlandish
Unique Ability can change the game and force
you to think differently.
Malandrax Mecchi
“As expected, everything is playing
out splendidly.”
Malandrax sets traps for opponents, activating
them instantly when the conditions are right, based
on his opponents’ movements. He is suitable for
tricky players who like to induce paranoia in
opponents to make them trip up.
Difficulty: Advanced
Complete Kit:
- 1 Character Card (Malandrax Mecchi)
- 4 Trap Cards (Alarm Trap, Electroshock
Trap, Smasher Trap, Wall Spike Trap)
- 5 Styles (Calculated, Ingenious, Leading,
Plotting, Precision)
- 1 Base (Master Plan)
- 1 Finisher (Deathtrap / Plots Within Plots)
Frequently Asked
Questions
For a more complete and up-to-date FAQ,
check out www.battleconnection.com
Common Questions
Q: Does damage cause life loss, and vice-
versa?
A: No. These are two different things.
Damage is usually caused by attacks based on
their power. Life loss is typically caused by
triggered effects. The primary difference
between these two are that life loss cannot
reduce a character below 1 life, will never stun a
character, and bypasses soak.
Q: What happens if priority changes after the
Reveal?
A: Nothing. Once priority order is resolved,
changes to priority do not alter that order later
on in the beat. Triggered effects (like Marmelee’s
Petrifying style) can still alter the priority order. Soul Breaker Finisher?
Eligor
Q: What is included in the power of my Aegis
base?
A: Any numbers printed in the ‘power’
section of your opponents’ attack pair. Bonuses,
like those provided by Malandrax’s Ingenious
style or Shekhtur’s 3rd and 5th tokens are not
included.
Joal
Q: When do I select my stockpile?
A: Anything that happens during setup (such
as choosing the stockpile or setting your starting
discards) happens secretly and is revealed
simultaneously right before the duel begins.
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Malandrax
Q: Can my Smasher Trap be used to trigger a
hit with my Master Plan?
A: No. Smasher Trap only activates during
End of Beat, and Master Plan has already missed
the opponent at this point.
Q: Do I have to activate a trap immediately
when its relevant?
A: No, you can always wait to activate a trap,
but if your opponent moves on to the next effect
and doesn’t give you another chance to activate,
then you’ve missed your opportunity!
Q: Can I interrupt movement with a trap?
A: Yes, you can activate a trap in the middle of
another player’s movement effect. Once the trap
effect is complete, the other player’s effect
continues as normal.
Shekhtur
Q: Exactly what happens when I hit with the
A: Treat it as though your opponent’s Unique
Ability text were completely blank.
- Eligor can no longer ante or acquire tokens.
- Joal’s stockpile cannot be accessed anymore
(he keeps extra bases already in play though).
- Malandrax can no longer set traps.
Any effects or abilities that reference tokens,
traps, or the stockpile stop working.
Gameplay Tips
Start out by sticking with a single character
and mastering them. The more you play a single
character, the better you’ll get. Only once you
have all of your own effects and capabilities
mastered will you be able to find the ways to
exploit an opponents’ weaknesses and to
compensate for your own.
Never give up. Except in a very few
situations, there’s always a winning move that
will make a positive exchange (or at least avoid
negative exchange). If things get tough, buckle
down and pay more attention to your opponent’s
Thanks for checking out
discards and play style.

Play best of three matches. Especially with

new characters, a first match will rarely tell you
anything about the depth and possibilities of
your character. A first match lets each side know
what the other is capable of, but the second
match gives those possibilities time to sink in, so
that the other side can effectively counterplay.
BattleCON plays the best with full You can visit www.battleconnection.com to
information and mastery on both sides of the get a copy of the complete game, or to check out
field. Playing a complete match rather than just additional characters, gameplay reviews,
one duel gives you the opportunity to correct backstory notes, and strategy guides!
mistakes made in the first duel and experiment If you’ve had fun with this small slice of the
with new strategies that can deal with your complete game, there’s tons more where it came
opponent’s kit. from. The complete Devastation of Indines game
has over 18 characters, multiplayer modes,
Unconventional opponents require massive cooperative bosses to fight, and even
unconventional play. Not all matches will be as solo dungeons to tackle.
easy as others, but all matches are winnable.
Sometimes a match will require a completely Thanks from all of us at Level 99 Games for
different set of strategies from what you’ve taking the time to try out BattleCON!
become accustomed to.
Characters with extreme mobility, speed,
defense, or certain tricks can completely shut
down the core strategies of your favorite
character.
Finding a new strategy to overcome these
tactics is part of the fun of BattleCON, and one
of the most satisfying parts of mastering a
character is when you can handily win a fight
that looks impossible at first glance.

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