Samsara

Overview

Samsara is a deckbuilding board game published by Oka Luda where players embody characters living multiple lives on a spiritual journey toward Nirvana. Players move around an octagonal game board (the Samsara) and collect cards to build their decks. The first player to recover five Amulets of Eternity reaches Nirvana and wins the game. The game blends deckbuilding with board movement and strategic zone selection.

Components

• 1 Octagonal game board (the Samsara) divided into 8 zones
• Player character cards and tokens
• Deck of action cards
• Amulet of Eternity tokens (5 needed to win)
• Life cards
• Zone cards for each of the 8 zones
• Resource tokens
• Starting deck cards for each player

Setup

Place the octagonal board in the center. Set up zone cards in each of the 8 zones. Each player selects a character, takes their starting deck, and places their token on the board. Shuffle the main deck and place it nearby. Set the Amulet tokens in the supply.

Turn Structure

On each turn, a player performs the following steps:

1. Move: Move your character clockwise to one of the 8 zones on the octagonal board. You must move at least to the next zone but cannot return to your starting zone (i.e., you cannot complete a full circuit in one turn).
2. Zone Action: Resolve the action of the zone where you landed. Each zone offers different benefits – gaining cards, acquiring resources, using special abilities, or recovering amulets.
3. Play Cards: Play action cards from your hand for their effects.
4. Draw: Draw cards to refill your hand.

Actions

Movement and Zone Selection

• Movement is always clockwise around the octagonal board.
• You must advance at least one zone per turn.
• Each zone corresponds to a different aspect of the spiritual journey and offers unique benefits.

Deckbuilding

• Acquire new cards from zone offerings and the main deck.
• Add them to your discard pile (standard deckbuilding).
• When your draw pile is empty, shuffle your discard pile to form a new draw pile.

Resource Management

• Collect various resources from zones.
• Spend resources to acquire more powerful cards or attempt to recover Amulets of Eternity.

Amulet Recovery

• Certain zones or card combinations allow you to attempt to recover an Amulet of Eternity.
• Successfully recovering an amulet brings you closer to Nirvana.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

The first player to recover 5 Amulets of Eternity immediately wins the game and reaches Nirvana.

If the game deck runs out before anyone reaches 5 amulets, the player with the most amulets wins. Ties are broken by total card value in the player’s deck.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Clockwise Movement Only: Players can only move clockwise around the Samsara. Planning your route multiple turns ahead is essential.
• Zone Occupancy: Multiple players can occupy the same zone. Some zones may have limited resources that deplete when used.
• Multiple Lives: The game’s theme of living multiple lives is reflected in deck cycling – each time you reshuffle your deck, it represents a new life.
• Character Abilities: Each character has unique abilities that modify standard rules, making them better suited for certain strategies.
• Wooden Edition: The game was produced in a special wooden edition via Kickstarter.

Player Reference

Step	Action
1. Move	Advance clockwise to a zone
2. Zone Action	Resolve zone-specific action
3. Play Cards	Use action cards from hand
4. Draw	Refill hand

Victory: First to 5 Amulets of Eternity wins (Nirvana).