Combating Monsters in Wakening Lair

Wakening Lair is a cooperative dungeon crawl experience designed for 2-6 players that borrows the narrative style of traditional RPGs (Role Playing Games) and presents many of the aspects of that genre in an introductory, accessible way. You can play the equivalent of a full campaign in less than an hour, leveling your character and defeating a wide array of monsters with a concise combat structure.

Combating monsters is key to surviving the Wakening Lair. You must defeat monsters to obtain Treasure, which allows you to “level up” your heroes and strengthen your attacks through weapons and magic items.

You have 3 Actions on your turn and can choose to perform any of the following three actions: Move, Attack, or use your Hero Special Ability, in any combination and order. We are going to focus on the Attack Action for this article.

When attacking a monster, you must declare which monster you are attacking, which Hero Attack Type you are using, and, which weapon you are using (if you have equipped a weapon).

Mobius has not equipped any weapons yet. He would roll only 1D6 in combat at this time.

If your hero has no weapons, you roll 1D6 in combat. This is how all heroes start the game.

Mobius is equipped with a weapon that matches his Hero Archetype (blue color) but not his Attack Types. Kata is equipped with a weapon that matches one of her Attack Types (Holy symbol) but not her Hero Archetype. They would each be able to roll 2D6 in combat while using their equipped weapons.

If your hero has a weapon that has a Hero Preference (color) that matches your Hero Archetype (color), you can choose that weapon and roll an additional D6, for 2D6 roll.
OR
If your hero has a weapon that has an Attack type (symbol) that matches one of your Hero Attack type (symbols), you can choose that weapon and roll an additional D6, for 2D6 roll.

Mobius has equipped Northwind Wand which matches his Hero Archetype (blue) AND his Frost Attack Type. He would roll 3D6 in combat using this weapon.

IF your weapon matches BOTH your Hero Archetype (color) AND your Hero Attack Type (symbol), you can choose that weapon and roll 2 additional D6, for a 3D6 roll.

Roll the appropriate dice count and compare each die individually to the damage box numbers on the monster card for the monster you are attacking, starting with the leftmost damage box on the monster card and your highest die roll. If the roll is equal to or higher than the number on the monster card, you hit the monster! Place a red damage cube over that box, and proceed to your next highest die, and so on, if you rolled more than one.

hero attack with room and attack bonus Wakening Lair

Kata is currently in a Precision Room which matches her Precision Attack Type. She gets a Room Bonus, which allows her to add +1 to every die she rolls while in that room.

Room Bonus

If the room your hero is in has a symbol that matches one of your hero’s Attack Type symbols, you get a +1 to each dice you roll! Don’t forget to take advantage of this bonus.

monster hero matched attack Wakening Lair

Kata’s Precision Attack Type matches the Golem’s Weakness. If Kata attacks and hits the Golem, she can continue to reroll and attack on the same Attack Action as long as she continues to get hits. This is called Pressing the Attack.

Press the Attack

If the Hero Attack type (symbol) you are using matches the monster weakness (symbol) displayed on the monster card of the monster you are attacking, AND you hit the monster on your first roll during an Attack Action, you may reroll the dice to try to hit that same monster again as part of the same attack action.

defeated monster and treasure in Wakening Lair

The Orc Marauder has been defeated once all the damage boxes are covered. The hero who defeated it may immediately claim a Treasure card from the deck.

Getting Treasure

If you completely defeat a monster by hitting all (or the last remaining) damage boxes on the monster’s card during an attack action, you get to remove that monster from the game and draw a card from the Treasure deck.

You may choose to “equip” (apply to your hero) the weapon (left) or magic item (right) by sliding the card beneath your hero card to display the item you chose to equip. That item is now immediately available to you if you have actions remaining.

You may also choose to hold the treasure in reserve for future equipping or to give to another player when you are in the same room as them. This helps you obtain and equip weapons that are best suited to your hero’s archetype and attack types.

hero equipped with treasure in reserve Wakening Lair

Mobius has received the Dwarven HandCannon as Treasure. The weapon does no match any of his bonuses, so he is holding this card in Reserve to equip later (for the Magic Item) or to give to a fellow player that can use the bonuses.

Remember you are working as a team in Wakening Lair, so you will want to strategize with your fellow heroes to maximize weapons, room bonuses, special abilities, and magic items for the best combat scenarios.

For information on how to read the symbols on the various types of cards, check out our article: Wakening Lair Card Types and How to Read Them.

Download a copy of the Rules for Wakening Lair.

Combating Monsters in Wakening Lair

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