Potion Explosion Game Overview

Introduction

• Designed by Stephano Castelli, Andrea Crespi, and Lorenzo Silva.
• Published by Cool Mini or Not.
• Players: 2-4 players.
• Theme: Attend the Horrible Orem Sorcery Academy for Witty Witches and Wizards; gather ingredients to impress professors.

Game Setup

• Dispenser: Place in the middle of the table; assemble it the first time and return it to the box after the game.
• Ingredient Marbles: Dump them into the dispenser and fill the five tracks.
  • If marbles get stuck, push them down to the closest row that needs filling.
• Desks: Each player receives a desk board; set up for two players in this example.
• First Player Token: Given to the player who most recently prepared to drink.
• Potion Tiles: Double-sided (ingredients on one side, completed on the other).
  • Separate into eight types based on toppers and symbols.
  • Remove two potion stacks (recommended: “Bomb of Uttermost Stickiness” and “Filter of Lava Manson”).
  • Shuffle and draw potions equal to 2x the number of players: 4 for 2-players, etc.
  • Players choose potions clockwise then counterclockwise for a second pick.
• Countdown Stack: Take a number of skill tokens based on players (6 for 4 players; 4 for 2 players).

Game Play

• Objective: Gather ingredients to complete potions for points.
• Turns take place in clockwise order, starting with the first player.
  • Regular Pick: Take one visible ingredient marble from the dispenser (not those partially visible).
  • Explosions: If two same-colored marbles collide from a pick, an explosion occurs.
    • Continue collecting matching colored marbles until no more collisions occur.
  • Help from Professor: Players may take a help token to grab any single marble, at the cost of -2 points in the final score.

Placing Ingredients

• Ingredients must be placed onto matching colored holes on potions.
• Leftover ingredients go into the ingredient pool (flask), with a maximum of three marbles.
• If a potion is complete, return marbles back to the dispenser.
• Completed potions are flipped over and stored for point calculation.

Using Completed Potions

• Special powers can be used once per potion, even after completion.
• Effects of potions include:
  • Potion of Wisdom: Take any one ingredient of your choice.
  • Potion of Magnetical Attraction: Take two adjacent differently colored ingredients.
  • Bomb of Uttermost Stickiness: Take adjacent ingredients of the same color.
  • Abyssal Draught: Take one ingredient of each color from the bottom.
  • Filter of Lava Manson: Pick one and remove up to five same marbles from a track.
  • Elixir of Blind Love: Take all ingredients from an opponent’s flask.
  • Potion of Prismatic Joy: Place any ingredients onto incomplete potion spaces.
  • Sands of Time: Activate the ability of another potion.

Completing Sets and End of Game

• Completing three of the same type of potions earns a skill token.
• Completing five different potions also earns a token.
• End game triggered when skill tokens or potions run out.
• Points for endgame calculated from potions, skill tokens, and deductions from help tokens.
• In case of tie, drawing marbles from the dispenser may determine the winner.

Conclusion

• To learn and remember the game: focus on setting up, taking turns, using potions, and endgame scoring.
• For questions, refer to comments for clarifications.
• Enjoy the game!