To claim a Monument or Place of Power, you must pay its cost in essences on the top left corner of the card. Once the card is paid for, move it in front of you, face-up. Water Is Blue: Cards that portray water (Hypnotic Basin, Mermaid, Sunken Reef, Seafarer, Diving Cord, Blood Isle, Pearl Bed) have it drawn in blue. Additionally, the blue Calm essence resembles a drop of water. Angry Guard Dog: The Guard Dog is an angry-looking dog with a spiked collar and Glowing Eyes of Doom. In gameplay, it's able to scare off dragons.

Illusion: Both of this item's powers are React powers, allowing it to be used with one of your powers. This item acts for that power as if it was a Creature, Demon or Dragon. However the item itself is not a Creature, Demon or Dragon and cannot be straightened using the Druid's or Temple of the Abyss's powers. Our Demons Are Different: The demons have widely varying appearances, such as an imp with fins on its head, a possessed sword, a cursed dwarf king, a shadowy figure and a Ghost Ship. They share a Dark Is Evil theme, with the exception of the Homunculus.Scrolls: Scrolls are claimed from the center using the magic item Inscription's power. Once claimed, a scroll can be saved until its owner decides to use it (via the "use a power" action or as a Shield's reaction power). Players choose magic items from a common pool. When they pass for a round, they have to return it and take another one. Res Arcana, Tom Lehmann's newest design, might just be his masterpiece. It takes a lot to blow me away these days, but Mr. Lehmann apparently figured out the right combination to do exactly that. This is an innovative, evolutionary design with fresh ideas and a razor-sharp focus. It's a lean set of rules and mechanisms that uses a brilliant combination of modular elements to create satisfying, compelling gameplay. You might be inclined to peg this as another resource conversion or tableau-building game and to some degree you'd be correct, but I don't think I've ever played a game in this design space that manages to balance accessibility with intricacy so well. Yes, there are currently 2 expansions available: Res Arcana Perlae Imperii and Res Arcana Lux et Tenabrae. Are there any variations available? Lux et Tenebrae: Its biggest additions are the Demons artifact type, support for a 5th player, and the "Inscription" magic item, which has the unique property of giving you scrolls that can be saved up for later rounds. It also tweaks the rules to Nerf the Monuments strategy a bit, and adds some new artifacts, mages, etc.

Blow That Horn: The Conch Battle Horn is an example of a destructive horn: its first power creates a bunch of Death essences, and the second ability can destroy any one of your artifacts. Play is in no way stodgier and the extra 3 VP to win does not affect game length but rather is an offset for the inherent value of pearls. More Is Better?Typically, it will just get discarded, but the marginal utility of being that last point you need is worth something. The Dragons If at any time you have more than 5 of the same essence in your personal stash, you may take 5 of that essence and replace it with a 5x essence chip found in the middle of the essence tray. Midas Touch: The Ring of Midas is a nod to the Midas touch — it can be turned to make gold, but also references the downside of Midas's power with its ability to turn life essences into gold. Discard an artifact: discard an artifact from your hand to your discard pile to gain 1 gold or any 2 other essences (either the same or different). Most players start playing with the mindset that this game is all about constructing the perfect engine. It is not. This game is a race to 10 points, and every path there is messy.