Preparing the cards:
With a deck of cards, separate face cards from the rest of the deck. This stack of face cards is the Boss Deck and lives in the center of the play space.
Divide the remainder of the deck by suit, making four piles of 10 cards from A to 10; these are Damage Decks. Damage Decks live at the front of the play space and should not be mixed together.
Shuffle all five decks individually.
Preparing as a player:
1 - 2 Players: Each player selects 2 Damage Decks.
Next, establish health for your Hero. Roll 3D6 and sum the dice then add 20. Health will need to be tracked throughout the game, consider writing it down on paper. Other methods to track life include the use of a digital life tracker or pegs on a pegboard.
Each player draws a total of three cards from their damage decks (no re-drawing).
Before starting the first round, decide who will be running the bosses, this can be a shared responsibility, specific to one player or even run by a host that is only playing bosses.
3 Players: A 3 player game is the same as a 2 player game, except the third player will be playing the bosses. The player running the bosses does not get damage decks, instead uses dice for damage according to the Boss Trait Table. Because there is no decision making involved in this role, this player is encouraged to bring a narrative to the gameplay making it an immersive experience for everyone.