Vrahode is a big world, and traversing it will wear you out. Heroes need rest in order to properly recover their ruhl (magic), reduce fatigue, and heal damage. As with all decks in the game, the Overland Rest Deck uses a lot of math to create an experience unique to this mode of play.
The Mathematics Behind The Overland Rest Deck
When heroes get tired, they can decide to rest. When resting, the hero or heroes pull out the Overland flat (encounter map) for the terrain type they are currently in, place the campfire miniature on the flat, and position their miniatures wherever they like on the flat, typically around the campfire, as there is safety in numbers.
If desired, someone – usually the one with the lowest fatigue level – may offer to take first watch. If no one wants to take watch, the Overland Rest Deck can then be drawn from with the following possible outcomes:
- Restful Sleep. The ideal outcome. It heals one damage, returns 2 ruhl to the available pool, and reduces fatigue by 2. Very valuable to starting a new day refreshed.
- Restless Sleep. Not as beneficial, but still returns 1 ruhl and reduces 1 fatigue.
- Thieves! Not a fun outcome. It means someone or something has rifled through your things. Each hero must randomly discard an item from their pack inventory. Equipped items are exempt from thievery. It might make the party rethink setting a watch to prevent this.
- Ambush! A bad outcome. The hero that draws this card has an enemy appear next to them. The enemy gets a free attack before initiative is rolled. If someone was on watch, then the enemy, instead of appearing next ot the hero that drew the card, appears in the spawn region of the flat. A good reason not to camp near an enemy spawn region!
Once the first rest card is resolved, then the party can choose to continue to rest until everyone is satisfied that they have recovered adequately from the prior day’s adventures!
Set A Watch To Stay Safe At Night
Usually the person with the least need to rest takes first watch. That doesn’t mean that they will be reliable at keeping an eye on things. Before a rest card can be drawn from the rest deck for the party, the hero on watch must make an alertness roll to ensure that they have remained awake. If the hero has no fatigue, all they must do is avoid rolling a -3 on a modifier die. For each point of fatigue, that roll becomes harder to make. Having 1 fatigue means they must roll above a -2, having 2 fatigue means they must roll above a -1, and so on. If they fall asleep, all benefits from having someone on watch are gone. Remember that before each card is drawn from the Rest Deck, the hero on watch must make their alertness roll.
This is a fun mode of play because it normally gives the party all they need to prepare for the next day’s adventuring. But it can sometimes be a bit…interesting!