How to Play Root
Root is a competitive game of woodland conflict in which every player follows a different faction board, scores in a different way, and shares one map of clearings and paths. For more tabletop explainers, visit Play More.
Quick facts
| Item | Base-game detail |
|---|---|
| Title | Root: A Game of Woodland Might and Right |
| Players | 2–4 |
| Core factions | Marquise de Cat, Eyrie Dynasties, Woodland Alliance, and Vagabond |
| Maps | Fall and Winter maps |
| Shared systems | Movement, crafting, battle, cards, clearing suits, and victory points |
| Edition note | This is the standalone base game, not an expansion, hireling module, or Clockwork scenario |
Objective
Most games are won by being the first player to reach 30 victory points. Each faction reaches that target through its own engine: the Cats develop buildings and produce wood, the Eyrie expand and build roosts, the Alliance spreads sympathy and organizes revolt, and the Vagabond explores, completes quests, improves relationships, and takes opportunities from the conflict. Read your faction board before play because its scoring rules are not interchangeable with another faction’s.
A dominance card can change the objective from points to control of specified suits of clearings. Playing one is an optional strategic choice, not the normal opening plan. The faction board and the current Law of Root determine the exact requirements and timing.
Setup
- Choose the Fall or Winter map and place the shared deck, dice, ruins, buildings, tokens, and other common pieces as shown in the setup material.
- Assign one base-game faction to each player. Use the faction’s setup card or walkthrough to place starting warriors, buildings, tokens, and faction-specific supplies.
- Give each player the indicated starting cards and faction board. Keep faction pieces and rules visible so everyone can explain how their engine works.
- Determine the first player using the setup instructions, then begin with that player’s Birdsong.
Core turn flow
- Birdsong: Resolve the mandatory effects printed in your faction’s Birdsong section. This may place pieces, generate resources, change a decree, spread sympathy, refresh items, or trigger another faction-specific process.
- Daylight: Spend actions and resolve the faction’s listed abilities. Common actions include crafting cards, moving warriors, battling, recruiting, building, placing tokens, and using faction powers. A clearing’s fox, rabbit, or mouse suit matters for crafting and several abilities; bird cards are wild for suit requirements.
- Battle: Choose an enemy in a clearing where you can attack. The attacker rolls both battle dice and uses the higher result; the defender uses the lower result. Each side cannot deal more hits than the number of its warriors in that battle, and pieces are removed according to the rules. Ambush cards may alter the opening exchange if their conditions are met.
- Evening: Resolve your faction’s end-of-turn effects, draw cards, and discard down if required. Then play passes clockwise. A faction’s board always takes priority over the generic sequence when it changes what a phase permits.
Ending, scoring, and winning
Victory is checked immediately: a player who reaches 30 points wins, subject to the game’s simultaneous-win and alternate-objective rules. Score points from your faction board, crafted effects, removing enemy pieces, quests, or other permitted sources. The board’s points track records the total; do not assume that removing a piece, ruling a clearing, or winning a battle is worth points unless a rule or faction ability says so.
Beginner tips
- Learn your own faction first, but ask opponents to summarize their scoring engine and the actions that can disrupt it.
- Use the faction walkthrough for the first game, then keep the faction board beside you as the main reference.
- Check who rules a clearing before moving or crafting. Rule normally depends on having more warrior and building presence than any rival there.
- Do not treat the shared deck as private fuel only: suits, crafting pieces, ambushes, and favorable card trades shape the whole table.
- Watch the points track, yet intervene before a rival’s engine becomes difficult to stop. Temporary alliances are useful, but Root remains competitive.
FAQ
Can every faction use the same turn actions?
No. Birdsong, Daylight, and Evening are shared phase names, but each faction has its own permitted actions, costs, and sequence. Use the generic phase order as a frame, not as a complete faction rulebook.
Is Root’s base game the same as the expansions?
No. The standalone base game contains the Marquise de Cat, Eyrie Dynasties, Woodland Alliance, and Vagabond. Riverfolk, Underworld, Marauder, hireling, and Clockwork content adds separate factions or systems and should use its own setup and rules.
What should I do when a faction rule conflicts with a general rule?
Apply the faction rule when it specifically changes the general rule, then consult the current official Law of Root and errata for unresolved questions. The printed components and edition-specific updates can differ, so check the materials for your copy.