GUIDE

ROOT FACTION GUIDE

Root is an asymmetric strategy game where animal factions each play by different rules to control the forest. The first faction to reach thirty victory points, or to complete a dominance card, wins.

DIFFICULTYADVANCED

PLAYERS2-4

PLAY TIME60-90 min

AGE10+

STRATEGY ASYMMETRIC ROOT

STEP 1

SETUP

1Unfold the woodland map and choose one side, then seed the twelve clearings with the ruins and starting tokens the map shows.
2Deal each player one faction board and take all pieces, warriors, and tokens in that faction's color.
3Follow each faction's own setup rules, since the Marquise, Eyrie, Alliance, and Vagabond all begin very differently.
4Place the Marquise de Cat's starting keep, sawmills, workshops, and recruiters in one corner as its board instructs.
5Set the Eyrie Dynasties' roost and starting warriors, and build the Woodland Alliance's supporters supply and bases off to the side.
6Place the Vagabond's chosen character in a forest, give it its starting items, and shuffle the item supply.
7Shuffle the shared deck, deal each player a starting hand of cards, and lay out the craftable items on the map's item track.
8Give each faction its victory point marker on zero of the shared score track.

STEP 2

HOW TO PLAY

THREE PHASES

Every player's turn runs through Birdsong, Daylight, and Evening. Birdsong is your setup phase where you ready cards and faction actions, Daylight is when you take most actions such as moving, crafting, and battling, and Evening is when you score, draw cards, and clean up. Play then passes to the left.

PLAY YOUR FACTION

Each faction wins in its own way and follows its own rules. The Marquise de Cat builds an industrial engine and scores by constructing buildings. The Eyrie Dynasties must obey an ever-growing decree of promised actions. The Woodland Alliance stirs revolts through sympathy, and the Vagabond roams alone completing quests and aiding others.

BATTLE AND RULE

To battle, choose a clearing where you have warriors and roll the two combat dice. The attacker takes the higher roll as hits and the defender takes the lower, with each hit removing an enemy warrior, building, or token. Whoever has the most warriors and buildings in a clearing rules it, which unlocks key faction abilities there.

CRAFT FOR POINTS

During Daylight you can craft cards from your hand by spending the crafting power of workshops or roosts in matching clearings. Crafting turns cards into items that grant victory points or lasting bonuses like extra hand size, movement, or combat strength. Managing your hand between crafting, battling, and faction actions is the central tension of every turn.

★ WIN CONDITION

The first faction to reach thirty victory points immediately wins. If two players hit thirty at the same time, the active player wins. Alternatively, a player who reveals and completes a dominance card wins instantly by controlling the required clearings instead of by points.

STEP 3

QUICK TIPS

▸Learn how every faction scores, not just your own, so you know who to slow down as they approach thirty points.
▸Do not let one faction snowball unchecked, because Root rewards the table for ganging up on the current leader.
▸As the Eyrie, keep your decree manageable, since failing to resolve every promised action causes a costly turmoil.
▸As the Marquise, defend your workshops and sawmills, because losing your production clearings stalls your whole point engine.
▸As the Alliance, spread sympathy widely before revolting, and bait opponents into removing sympathy to gain supporters.
▸Craft items whenever the clearings line up, since steady crafting points add up faster than risky all-in battles.

DEEP DIVE

STRATEGY NOTES

Root disguises a cutthroat war game inside a storybook of woodland creatures. Designed by Cole Wehrle and illustrated by Kyle Ferrin for Leder Games, it is famous for its asymmetry: every faction plays by its own rulebook, scores points in its own way, and feels like a different game entirely. That variety is the whole appeal, but it also means your first job is learning not only your faction but everyone else's.

The map is a network of clearings connected by paths, dotted with forests where the Vagabond slips between territories. Ruling a clearing simply means having the most warriors and buildings there, and rule unlocks the actions that let each faction thrive. The Marquise de Cat occupies the forest with an industrial machine, building sawmills, workshops, and recruiters to churn out points. Facing her, the Eyrie Dynasties command the skies but must obey a decree that grows every turn, promising more actions until a single failure throws the birds into turmoil.

The Woodland Alliance plays the long game of insurgency, seeding sympathy across clearings and converting the other factions' aggression into supporters and open revolts. The Vagabond wanders alone, befriending or antagonizing everyone, completing quests and ferrying items to score. Because each path to points is so different, the table must constantly read who is closest to winning and pivot to stop them.

Turns follow a clean rhythm of Birdsong, Daylight, and Evening. You prepare, then act, then score and refill your hand. Combat is quick and dice driven, with the attacker claiming the higher roll, so battles are decisive but rarely one sided. Crafting cards into items offers a steadier stream of points and powerful upgrades for players who would rather build than brawl.

The race ends at thirty victory points, or the instant someone completes a dominance card by seizing key clearings. The deepest skill in Root is political: knowing when to press your own plan and when to throw your weight against the leader. Master both your faction and your table, and the woodland is yours.

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