The game of Hínaríkoto is a favorite to the lands of Alcrést and has swept across the continent as a pastime of merchants and mercenaries alike. Hínaríkoto literally means “crystal tiles” and is a battle style tabletop game played with tiles – koto – that are ornate in design. 

The koto are each roughly 150mm by 75mm rounded rectangles, and about 8mm thick. The koto has an opaque metal housing on the backside, and on the front side there are slivers of crystal arranged in a stained glass-like design, depicting one of the Amísén.  

At the top, bottom, left and right sides of the koto are number engraved in the crystal. Each corresponds to a stat of the card. These numbers are called the rokusén, meaning “compass”. Some familiarity with the tale of the Four Cardinal Kings helps to understand the significance. 

The game is played on a wooden board called a lunéra, which has gridlines painted on in a 5×4 square pattern. Each column of 4 spaces is a lane.

The object of the game is to capture 3/5 lanes.

Origins

The game originated in the holy territory of the Rínadaésé, amongst the head priests and priestesses, and quickly spread to the shrines around the continent. Shiïrifa shrines are dedicated to one Amí, and the larger shrines will sell their patron deity’s koto during festivals and other special occasions. This practice has encouraged the spread of the faith and increases participation in activities. 

The koto are made in-house by priest artificers by hand instead of mass produced by alchemy. This gives each one a custom feel and a certain value and emphasizes the limited-edition nature of each koto.

The Amísén have a hierarchy, and thus so do each koto. 

On Koto

Each koto is an intricately designed work of art. Featuring an assortment of glowing crystal shards, each one depicts a specific Amí, and something they’re known for.

On the top of the koto, the akídadénkí, or “Northern King”, represents the attack stat.

At the bottom of the koto, the nomédénkí or “Southern King”, represents the defense stat.

At the left of the koto, the hoshídénkí or “Western King”, represents the initiative stat.

At the right of the koto, the aídédénkí or “Eastern King”, represents the blocking stat. 

The Lunéra

The lunéra is divided into five lanes, with four spaces in each lane to set koto on. Each player’s territory are the two spots closest to the player in each lane. The row closest to the player is called the rearguard. It is in the rearguard that the player can place new koto into play and this spot must be defended against capture by the opposing player.

If the opposing player’s koto makes it into the other player’s rearguard, that lane is considered captured by that player. 

Rules: Playing the Game

To begin, each player should have a deck of 15 koto, shuffled and placed face down. This is the draw deck.

Players should determine who goes first, though it is typically the weaker player that begins. 

Before battle can begin, each player needs at least one koto on the field.

Players can only perform one action per turn. Actions are: Attack, Move, Draw, Retreat.

A player may only have one of their own koto in each lane. There is no doubling up of forces.

Drawing

Drawing a koto takes one turn. On any turn, including the first, a player may choose not to play the koto they drew, and instead can discard it to the bottom of their deck. A player can only draw if they have a lane available. 

Placing the Koto

After drawing, a player may place the koto into an available slot in their rearguard. This ends the turn.

Moving the Koto

Ultimately, the goal is to have a player’s koto infiltrate the enemy’s rearguard. A player may move their koto either forward to advance, or backward to retreat. A player may only move one spot per turn. Encountering an enemy koto initiates a battle.

Retreating

A friendly koto may be removed from the board and returned to the bottom of the deck so long as it is in the player’s rearguard. Retreating a koto takes one turn. 

Battle

When an advancing player encounters an enemy’s koto, a battle occurs. Battle also occurs when a player places a koto in their rearguard and there is an enemy in their territory (but has not advanced to the rearguard yet).

Initiative must be considered in any battle. The koto with the higher hoshídénkí attacks first, no matter who initiated the conflict.

If the hoshídénkí are the same, the one who initiated the battle will have initiative.

The akídadénkí is subtracted by the defending koto’s nomédénkí and the resulting number is compared to the defending koto’s aídédénkí.

If the resulting number is less than the aídédénkí, then the attack has failed, and the other player then gets their attack calculated.

If the number is higher than the aídédénkí, the attack has succeeded and the defending koto is removed from play permanently, in both cases.

Example 1

The first koto’s akídadénkí is 100, and its hoshídénkí is 8. 
The second koto’s nomédénkí is 94 and it’s hoshídénkí is 6. 
In this battle, the first koto has a higher hoshídénkí, and so has initiative. It begins it’s attack first. The akídadénkí is subtracted from the nomédénkí, and the remainder is 6. The second koto’s akídadénkí is 3. The attack is successful, the defending koto is removed from play.

Example 2

Koto 1: akídadénkí: 74, hoshídénkí: 6, nomédénkí: 48, aídédénkí: 5.
Koto 2: akídadénkí: 54, hoshídénkí: 4, nomédénkí: 65, aídédénkí: 10.
In this battle, the first koto has the initiative because its hoshídénkí is greater. The akídadénkí is subtracted by the opponent’s nomédénkíand gives 9.
The second koto had a particularly high aídédénkí of 10. The attack is unsuccessful, and so the second koto has a chance to fight in the battle phase.

Next, the second koto’s akídadénkí is subtracted from the opponent’s nomédénkí. This gives 6. The opponent’s aídédénkí is only 5, so the attack is not blocked, and the opponent is hit. The result is that koto 1 has lost the battle and is removed from play. 

On Lane Capture

The goal is to capture the most territories on the lunéra. This means that to win a player must capture three out of the five lanes. At the start of the game, each lane is considered neutral territory. When a player moves their koto into the enemy rearguard, the lane is considered captured by that player, and koto can no longer be played in that lane. The capturing koto cannot be removed from the captured lane until the game is over.

Special Circumstances

Rarely, the number calculated by an attack will be equal to the opponent’s aídédénkí. When this occurs, it is considered a perfect block. The one who was blocked is immediately pushed back a space, and the battle is concluded. 

Sometimes, a battle will end in a stalemate, where neither can win. When this occurs, both players move back a space.

If a koto was already in the rearguard, this is considered a retreat, and the koto is removed from the board and placed at the bottom of the player’s deck.