Suddenly, the air falls quiet. From all sides, the Wood grows closer, darker. As one, we are seized by an incomprehensible terror. Somehow, without a doubt, we know the truth.
He is coming. The Lord of the Wood is coming.
Frantic with fear, we turn back the way we have come. We no longer think of our journey or our quest. The only thing left to do is run.
The Lord of the Wood has learned of your presence in his lands. Now he comes to reap your souls. Such an evil cannot be fully outpaced — but perhaps, if you run fast enough, just one of you can make it.
Travellers must now compete to be the sole survivor of the Wood.
Travellers who have earned Blessings retain these spirits’ protection. Blessing cards may be kept.
Travellers who have earned Bargains have failed to gain those spirits’ protection. Discard all Bargains.
Once this is done, continue below.
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We run, the Lord of the Wood silent on our heels. His breath is a wind on our necks, His eyes a green fire among the trees.
One by one, He claims us.
Reader, perform the following actions:
Take the Character Card from all living traveller.
Shuffle the Character Cards together, face-down.
Deal a single card face-up onto the table.
The traveller who drew this Character Card is now Marked for Death.
Evading death. If the Marked traveller carries the Blessing of a spirit, they may claim its protection by saying: “The [spirit] speaks for me.” For example, if the Marked traveller holds the Blessing of the Helpless, they may say: “The Helpless speaks for me.” The traveller then discards the Blessing of the Helpless and is no longer Marked for Death.
If death is evaded, repeat steps 1, 2 and 3 at the top of this section.
If death is not evaded, the Marked traveller is claimed by the Lord of the Wood. Remove their card from play.
Repeat this process until only one traveller remains in play. Then continue below.
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————All travellers who have been Marked for Death become the Wood’s victims.
Clockwise starting with the traveller to the Reader’s left, each victim may describe their death at the hands of the Lord of the Wood — how it appears to them, and how it appears to the other travellers.
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The sole surviving traveller becomes the final Reader.
To wrap up the game, the final Reader should skip through the Path and scan the last card (Chapter VI: The Epilogue).
If the Reader has not changed, they may click here instead.