KONKVEST

(Conquest)

- Rulebook -
Argent Hellion
What is Konkvest? ..........................................................2
Konkvest pieces ..............................................................3
Formation.......................................................................7
Territorial influence .................................................... 10
Reserve........................................................................ 14
Time limit .................................................................... 15
Endgame ..................................................................... 16
Reset ........................................................................... 18
Repetition.................................................................... 20

-1-
 What is Konkvest?

Konkvest is a game specifically made to be played by two players. It is played on a

hexagonal board with 114 active tiles, as players alternate taking their turns to move their
pieces. The tiles are distributed in 13 rows, the middle row has 12 tiles in total and each
subsequent row on the higher and the lower level has one tile less, ending with 6 tiles in the
final rows.

The game itself is a combat simulation, with the main goal being to topple the
opponent's Queen or to occupy the opponent's base. The player achieves this by moving his
pieces forward, occupying his opponent's territory and taking his pieces so he can use them
as his own. The player can also promote most of his pieces if he meets the conditions
needed, in order to gain further advantage.

The tiles marked with dots

represent the unique points on
the board. The row of dotted
tiles in the very middle
represents the border
between the players (divider),
while the two solitary dots on
each player's side represent
their base and the starting
position of their Queens
respectably.

-2-
 Konkvest pieces

There are two types of pieces: standard (grey) and advanced (red).

The feature that makes Konkvest stand out from most games is the rule that allows
each player to use his opponent's pieces as his own. When active on the board, the pieces
are placed so the arrow on the top of the piece is directed towards the opponent, this is
essentially the main way of differentiating the pieces between the players.

This provided diagram shows the

difference between the opposing pieces. The
piece with the label ''A'' belongs to the player
who's currently viewing the situation, while the
piece with the label ''B'' belongs to his opponent.

-3-
 Before we begin discussing the pieces in further detail, we have to address the rules
of movement in Konkvest. First and foremost, in Konkvest, the player moves his active pieces
by dragging them across the board, therefore the pieces are not lifted from the board
surface. This effectively means the pieces are not allowed to jump over other pieces in the
game when moving, irrelevant of their movement set.

There are two types of piece movement: attack and relocation. Attack movement
means the piece can move within its attack range and capture an enemy piece, while
relocation movement means the piece can move within its relocation range if and only if the
said tile is not occupied.

Let us proceed with the description of each and every piece available in Konkvest.
During this chapter, attack movement will be marked on the diagrams using grey tiles, while
relocation movement will be marked using grey circles.

The Pawn is the most numerous standard

piece on the board and the second-most valuable in
the game, exclusively because it provides territorial
influence on the board, along with the Queen.
Territorial influence allows the player to summon
additional units on the board, promote active pieces
and deny his opponent the chance of doing the
same, and this subject will be discussed later.

The Pawn can attack only a single tile straight forward, while relocating two tiles
straight forward. It is important to note that, in order for the Pawn to reach his relocation
movement tile, he has to pass through his attack movement tiles. If at least one of the attack
movement tiles is empty, the Pawn will pass through it and reach its relocation movement
tile, otherwise the Pawn will not be able to move. This rule also applies to all other pieces.

The Support is a standard piece that begins

the battle from the player's reserve, it's a piece that
attacks in ''leaps'', even though it cannot explicitly
jump over other pieces. (Reserves will be discussed
later). This piece attacks by leaping to its left or right
in an L shape, or by leaping two tiles directly straight
forward, while relocating only a single tile straight
forward. If the relocation movement tiles are
occupied, the Support can reach its intended attack movement tile by moving through the
tiles marked with the white arrows, but it cannot stay on those specific tiles.

-4-
 The Guard is one of the most capable
standard pieces, mostly used to back up other
pieces. This piece can attack one or two tile straight
forward, and it can relocate one tile to the side in
order to adapt.

The Rook is a primarily defensive piece, it has

unlimited attack range when attacking on its sides and
it can attack a single tile straight forward. Due to his
limited capability to keep up with other pieces on the
board, the Rook usually spends most of the battle in
the back, unless there is a chance of promotion.
(Promotion will be discussed later).

The Lanser is the most aggressive piece

on the board, it can only attack sideways and
forward but has unlimited range. Due to his strict
limitation, this piece mostly benefits from good
formation and summoning on the board (these
subjects will be discussed later).

One thing all standard pieces have in common is the fact that they cannot move
backwards once they make their move towards the enemy. In short, standard pieces
CANNOT RETREAT, therefore it is useful, but not always beneficial, to promote them into
their advanced counterparts for long-term use. Let us now proceed to the advanced pieces.

The Queen is the most important piece on

the board and her loss defines the end of the game.
This piece can attack a single tile in any given
direction, and it can relocate two tiles directly on
each side or two tiles straight backwards. The
Queen provides territorial influence along with the
Pawn but, unlike those pieces, this one cannot be
promoted. On its other side is a black skull image
and turning the piece to display this skull
represents the end of the game.

-5-
 The General is the strongest advanced piece
available at the start of the game and it is the only
advanced starting piece (if not counting the Queen).
It can attack a single or two tiles in any given
direction other than backwards, while also being
able to relocate a single tile backwards in order to
retreat. Considering this piece is already an
advanced piece, it cannot be promoted and it has
the same image on both of its sides.

The Hero is an advanced piece that's

obtained by promoting either a Pawn, a Support or
a Guard. This piece can attack a single tile sideways
and it can attack two tiles straight ahead, while also
being able to relocate a single tile backwards in
order to retreat.

The Champion is the strongest advanced

piece and effectively the strongest piece in the
game. This piece is obtained by promoting either a
Rook or a Lanser and it's essentially a merger of the
two said pieces, with the ability to attack in an
unlimited range sideways while also being able to
relocate a single tile backwards in order to retreat.

Unlike the standard pieces, advanced pieces have the ability to move a single tile
backwards in order to retreat, meaning none of them are able to capture any opposing
pieces while doing so. The Queen is the ONLY piece in the game with the ability to attack
backwards.

-6-
 Formation

Before the start of the game, all the pieces are arranged as shown in the image
below. Both players line up their Pawns in their 3rd row from the bottom, while placing the
Queen on their bases respectably. The Supports are placed in the right-side reserves while
the rest of the pieces are placed below the bottom row on both sides in a strict order, from
left to right:

Two Rooks >> Two Guards >> Two Lansers >> Two Generals

Formation is a set of fast-paced ritual moves during which players alternate in placing
their active pieces on the board for the first time, on any of the tiles behind their Pawns
respectably. These moves are performed in a strict order:

-7-
01.) The first player places his first Rook

02.) The second player places his first Rook

03.) The first player places his second Rook

04.) The second player places his second Rook

05.) The first player places his first Guard

06.) The second player places his first Guard

07.) The first player places his first second Guard

08.) The second player places his second Guard

09.) The first player places his first Lanser

10.) The second player places his first Lanser

11.) The first player places his first second Lanser

12.) The second player places his second Lanser

13.) The first player places his first General

14.) The second player places his first General

15.) The first player places his first second General

16.) The second player places his second General

17.) The first player makes his first move and the game begins.

-8-
 The following diagram displays one of the possible formation. In this particular case,
the player on the top side has decided to attack on his left side by placing the Lansers on his
left, while the player on the bottom side has decided to start the game in a symmetric and
balanced way.

-9-
 Territorial influence

As stated earlier, territorial influence is gained through the presence of Pawns and
Queens on the board. There are four different types of territories:

1.) Captured territory

2.) Promotional territory

3.) No-man’s land

4.) Last stand

Captured territory is the territory that is indisputably under the player's control and
it is defined as the territory located in the wake of the said player's Pawns and Queen
(marked with blue tiles on the diagram below). When the player decides to do so, he can
summon any piece from his reserves by placing it on an empty tile within this territory.
Summoned pieces are brought back on the board strictly in their standard form, irrelevant of
the state they were in when they were captured.

- 10 -
 Promotional territory is the territory that provides the player with the ability to
promote his units when they enter it. This territory is a part of the player's captured territory
that falls on his opponent's side of the board and on the divider (marked with purple tiles on
the diagram below).

In order to be promoted from standard into advanced, the piece in question has to
end its move inside the promotional territory while NOT capturing any opposing piece.
Capturing any opposing piece negates the right of promotion during the same turn. In case
the piece in question is already located within the promotional territory, the player can also
use his entire turn to promote that piece without moving it from the tile it's currently
occupying.

The Pawns on the top of the territory is an integral part of said territory, therefore it
has the right to promote into a Hero as soon it hits the divider or crosses on the opponent’s
side of the board. On the diagram above, it is clear that two Pawns have this right. However,
it is very important to note that once the Pawn promotes into a Hero, the piece is no longer
a Pawn and as such it does not provide territorial influence.

- 11 -
 No-man’s land occurs when players intersect their territories. This happens when
opposing Pawns manage to slip past one-another and negate each-others influence,
effectively negating the benefits of captured and promotional territories for both players
simultaneously. Both players are prevented from summoning or promoting any pieces within
this territory. Also, no-man’s land prevents the Pawns that are forming it to promote
themselves. Since it cannot be reduced by Pawn movement, the only way to resolve this
phenomenon is to remove the Pawns responsible for its existence.

The diagram below shows an example of no-man’s land, marked with red tiles. Blue
tiles represent the first player's captured territory while the purple tiles represent his
promotional territory. Green tiles represent the second player's captured territory while the
yellow tiles represent his promotional territory. As it can be seen, the second player has an
overall better control of territory and has an advantage on that regard.

- 12 -
 Last stand is an exceptionally rare phenomenon in Konkvest and it occurs when one
of the players loses all of his active Pawns. Since the Queen is the only remaining piece
providing the player with territorial influence at that given moment, the said player is given
an additional benefit, a last chance to recover.

In this situation, the player's captured territory basically becomes his promotional
territory as well, allowing the said player to summon additional pieces in the wake of his
Queen and promote them in the subsequent turn, or move his active pieces into this
territory and instantly promote them if they haven't captured an opposing piece. Of course,
it is vital to note that the last stand ceases to exist as soon as the player summons his first
active Pawn back to the board.

Just as the captured and promotional territory, the last stand can be also affected by
no-man’s land. The diagram below displays a last stand situation marked with grey tiles,
while the no-man’s land is marked with red tiles.

- 13 -
 Reserve

The reserve is a limited pool of resources where both players store the pieces they
capture from their opponents respectably. Pieces within these pools can be summoned back
into the game at any given moment.

The player has to use his entire turn in order to summon a piece back into the game.
Summoning denies the right of doing any previous or any subsequent actions during the
same turn. Also, it is important to note that, again, all pieces except the General are
summoned back on the board in their standard form, not their advanced.

Players have two pools of reserves each (displayed with red circles on the diagram
below), one to their left and on to their right side of the board with 7 tiles each. That’s a
total of 14 tiles in reserve per player. At the very start of the game, the players start with 3
pieces in their right reserves, three Supports.

The reserve capacity is a

very important factor in the
game. The player has a total of 14
tiles in his reserves and once that
number is reached he cannot
capture any additional opposing
pieces until he clears at least a
single tile to store them.

The only exception to this

rule is the Queen. Since the goal
of the game is to topple the
Queen, not to capture it, the
Queen does not require a tile of
its own in the attacking player's
reserve, meaning the said player can attack and topple his opponent's Queen to win the
game even if his reserves are full at that given moment.

- 14 -
 Time limit

Real life battles occur within a limited amount of space and a limited amount of time,
therefore it stands to reason that the simulation of such battles should also have the same
limitations.

The passing of time during an official game of Konkvest

is exclusively measured by using an hourglass with a total of 10
minutes of sand held within it. Before the start of the game, the
hourglass is balanced out and laid in a horizontal position so
both of its chambers have 5 minutes of sand each.

As the game begins and the formation is being set up, the hourglass is still not in use.
When both players finish their formations and the first player makes his first move in the
game, he reaches for the hourglass at the end of his turn and turns it vertically upright,
setting the sand in motion. At that given moment the bottom chamber of the hourglass
becomes his timer while the top chamber becomes the timer of his opponent.

When the second player ends his turn, he flips the hourglass upside-down, moving
his chamber to the bottom in order to give himself more time while draining his opponent's
time. Time if of the essence during the battle, if the player spends more time to think during
his turn, he gives his opponent the same privilege. Alternatively, if the player doesn't spend
too much time on his turn his opponent will be denied as well.

Both players have to track the passing of time on their own, both for their own timer
and their opponent's timer. As soon as one player notices his opponent ran out of time, he
wins the game.

Although the official games have to be timed using a 10 minute hourglass (and a 5
minute hourglass due to resets, which will be discussed later), exhibition games can be timed
with various hourglasses. Alternatively, players can agree to simply not have any time limit,
which has the potential to stretch the game out indefinitely.

- 15 -
 Endgame

As they make their moves, players are not obliged to provide any kind of verbal
warning to their opponent, whether they are attacking multiple pieces at once or they are
directly threatening the Queen. Also, just like one cannot take back a swing of the blade or a
defined decision on the battlefield, one cannot take back a move once it's been made, at
least not in official games.

A game of Konkvest can end in 8 distinct ways (listed from most-often to rare):

- One of the players runs out of time

o When one of the players runs out of time, his opponent informs him by
saying ''Time's up'' and reaching for his Queen, toppling her.

- One of the Queens gets toppled

o When one of the players has the chance to successfully attack the
opposing Queen and isn't prevented to do so, he ends the game by saying
''Victory'' and reaches for the opposing Queen, toppling her.

- One of the players surrender

o When one of the players decide he has no chance of winning the game,
he ends the game by saying ''I surrender'' and reaches for his own Queen,
toppling her.

- One of the Queens reaches the opposing base (occupation)

o As soon as one of the players places his Queen on the base of his
opponent (the spot where the opposing Queen started the game on), he
ends the game by saying ''Victory''. Victory is achieved at the very turn
the Queen lands on the said tile, irrelevant if that tile is attacked by any
opposing pieces.

- One of the players gets disqualified

o If one of the players makes an illegal move and his opponent realizes this,
his opponent has the right to immediately disqualify him by saying
''Disqualification''.

o If one of the players makes an illegal move and his opponent doesn't
realize this, the game continues without interruptions until the end (for
the sake of playing the game). At the end of the game, the player who

- 16 -
 made the illegal move is disqualified by the judge present, even if the
player in question won the game by achieving one of the victory
conditions.

- The game is reset

o At any given time, the player has the right to offer a reset to his
opponent. In order to do this, the player has to say ''Reset'' during his
own turn and wait for his opponent's response. If the opponent says
''Reset'' as well, either during that same turn or his own next turn, the
reset will be implemented, but if the opponent makes his next turn
without any verbal gesture, he actively denies the offer.

o If the players are caught in a clinch, repeating the same moves over and
over again but are unable to disengage, due to the fact that whoever
disengages will be at a severe disadvantage, they can offer each-other the
option to reset the game voluntarily or the judge present will force them
to reset the game.

- One of the players gets blocked

o If one of the player has no more legal moves remaining, he can either
reach for his Queen in order to topple her and surrender, or wait for the
time to run out (although the second option is unsportsmanlike).

- One of the players gets disqualified through repetition

o If one player unsuccessfully attacks the opposing Queen using the same
set of moves three times in a row, he will be disqualified if he makes the
fourth attack, irrelevant if it's a possibly successful attack or not.

- 17 -
 Reset

In real life battles, there is no draw, therefore there isn’t one in Konkvest either. In
certain situations, when players are unable to achieve clear victory, the said game is scraped
and a reset is performed. The reset is basically a game restart and it can be voluntary or
obligatory, as mentioned in the chapter above. Voluntary reset occurs when a player offers a
reset during his turn by saying ''Reset'' and the opponent repeats the same word without
making any further moves of his own, while the obligatory reset is a situation when the
judge orders it.

When the game is reset, all pieces are returned to their starting positions and the roll
of the player making the first move is alternated, other than that the game plays out in a
regular fashion. Multiple resets are a possibility (although the chance for that occurring is
negligible) and other than the roll of the player making the first move alternating, there are
no noteworthy consequences… except for one.

When an official game is reset for the very first time, the regular 10 minute hourglass
is replaced with a 5 minute hourglass, meaning the players are forced to play the game at a
notably faster rate. Due to this rule, not many players are keen to resetting the game unless
it's absolutely necessary.

The provided diagram shows an example

of repeating moves. The starting position of any
given piece is marked using a blue tile while its
final position is marked using a red tile.
Summoned pieces are marked using a purple tile.

The situations 1 and 5 on the diagram are

basically the same. The placement of the Pawns is
the same and so is the state of both players
reserves.

- 18 -
 Using the same system as
on the previous diagram, a more
extensive example is provided (out
of context, of course).

It can be seen here that the

situations 3, 7 and 11 are the
same.

Same can be said for

situations 1 and 9.

Same can be said for

situations 2 and 10.

Same came be said for

situations 8 and 12.

- 19 -
 Repetition

Repetition is a unique case of repeating moves that includes the Queen. Just like any
other set of repeating moves, repetition is basically a waste of turns, but unlike any other
repeating moves, repetition has dire consequences for the player who forces it.

If the attacking player manages to attack the opposing Queen three times in a row
while resorting to the same set of moves, effectively repeating his turns and forcing the
opponent to do the same, he is not allowed to make an attack the fourth time, even if that
attempt seems to be a viable cause for achieving victory. In case the attacking player in
question makes the fourth attack, he is instantly disqualified.

An example of death by repetition is displayed on the diagram below. As previously,

the starting positions of pieces are marked using the blue tiles, while their final positions are
marked using the red tiles.

In this situation, the player is trying to

move his Queen in order to escape the opposing
General. Death by repetition occurs on the 7th
move (4th attack in a row) and the attacking
player is immediately punished by losing the
game in question.

In order to avoid this, the attacking

player can simply make any random move that
doesn't immediately repeat the process.

- 20 -