General

This document includes mainly the information that's available only on the faction boards + a short summary of other special aspects of the faction. For exact information on the ice and volcano terrain types and on the details of the faction special powers, please read the Fire & Ice rulebook.

A note on home terrain: The concept of home terrain only applies to the original 14 factions from the base game and the shapeshifters. The other 5 expansion factions have a starting terrain but no home terrain.

Factions

Ice Maidens

• Start with 6/6/0 power, 0/1/0/1 on cults.
• Start with a favor tile (taken immediately on faction selection). Note that FAV11 scores no points for initial dwellings.
• Advancing on the digging track requires just 5c+1w+1p (discount of 1w).
• SH costs 6c+4w, produces 4pw and generates 3vp per temple when passing.
• SA costs 6c+4w.
• The 8th dwelling produces a worker.

Yetis

• Start with 0/12/0 power, 0/0/1/1 on cults.
• Have a discount of one power on the power actions (so act4 costs 3pw, not 4pw).
• Advancing on the digging track requires just 5c+1w+1p (discount of 1w).
• SH costs 6c+4w, produces 4pw, and allows the Yetis to take any power action that they can pay for, even if it has already been taken during that round. The same power action can be taken multiple times, regardless of how many times and by whom it has been taken.
• SA costs 6c+4w.
• The SH and SA have a power level of 4 for leeching / forming towns, instead of the normal 3.
• Every TP produces 2pw+2c.
• The 8th dwelling produces a worker.

Acolytes

• Start with 6/6/0 power, 3/3/3/3 on cults
• Have no base worker income (no worker produced with no dwellings). The 4th dwelling produces no worker income.
• SH costs 8c+4w, produces 2pw, and gives the Acolytes one extra cult step for each priest sent to the cult tracks.
• SA costs 8c+4w.
• Pay cult steps to transform terrain to volcanos. 4 steps on a single cult if transforming from another player's home terrain to a volcano, 3 steps if transforming from some other color.
• If the Acolytes gain a spade from somewhere, they'll gain a cult step instead.
• The Acolytes do not gain power from the cult track thresholds when going down on a cult, but do gain the power every time they pass the threshold when going up. If they leave the 10 space on a cult, it's free to be taken again by either the Acolytes or another faction.

Dragonlords

• Start with 4/4/0 power, 2/0/0/0 on cults
• Have no base worker income (no worker produced with no dwellings). The 4th dwelling produces no worker income.
• Permanently remove power tokens (from any bowl) to transform. 2 tokens if transforming from another player's home terrain to a volcano, 1 token if transforming from some other color.
• SH costs 8c+4w, produces 2pw, and gives an instant one-time production of as many power tokens as there are players (tokens go into bowl 1).
• SA costs 8c+4w.
• If the Dragonlords gain a spade from somewhere, they'll gain a power token into bowl 1 instead.

Riverwalkers

• Start with 10/2/0 power, 1/0/0/1 on cults
• 3rd and 6th dwellings produce no income.
• 2nd temple produces 5pw instead of a priest.
• Start with range 1 shipping, which can never be upgraded.
• Have no spade conversion ability, can never gain or use spades, nor transform terrain in any other way.
• Can only start from areas next to a river space, can only build dwellings into areas reachable through river movement.
• When gaining priests through any means, can either unlock new terrain types or get a priest into the treasury.
• official rule change: Have to pay 1 coin when they unlock a new terrain on their wheel (starting terrain is free), 2 coins, if it is another player's home terrain.
• SH costs 6c+4w, produces 2pw and allows the Riverwalkers to immediately place 2 bridges.
• SA costs 6c+4w.

Shapeshifters

• Start with 4/4/0 power, 1/1/0/0 on cults
• Can not upgrade digging beyond the initial 3w to one spade level.
• If anyone leeches power from a Shapeshifter build / upgrade, the Shapeshifters gain a power token straight to bowl 3.
• official rule change: The Shapeshifters have to pay one VP for every power token they receive using their faction special ability.
• If at least one player was eligible to leech from the Shapeshifters and all players decline, the Shapeshifters instead gain 1pw.
• SH costs 6c+3w, produces 4pw and allows the Shapeshifters to switch their home terrain (can't switch to the home terrain of another faction). Switch home terrain is a full action, and costs either 3pw or 3 power tokens 5pw or 5 power tokens. Each terrain switch generates 2vp..
• SA costs 6c+4w.