# Rules summary, v0.8

Defeat five enemies on the route 1-2-2-3-4 before Instability reaches the selected limit. Normal, Hard, and Arcane spells use two to five cards; Easy also permits one-card spells.

## Damage

Card values are used only to recognize combinations. They are not added to damage. Resolve temporary card value and element changes, recognize the best combination, then calculate:

`elemental affinity bonuses/maluses + combination bonus + other bonuses - Armor - Barrier`

Damage cannot fall below zero. Affinity changes damage directly and does not change the values used to recognize a pair, sequence, seal, or other combination.

## Turns, deck, and Instability

Played cards go to the discard pile and are not replaced automatically. At the end of every nonlethal turn, discard one card from the top of the deck. When a later draw finds the deck empty, reshuffle the discard pile; this Exhaustion adds one Instability outside Easy.

Before casting, the player may recanalise once per turn. Change the entire hand, or keep one or two selected cards, for no immediate Instability. Keeping three or more cards while changing the rest adds one Instability. Against the Storm Djinn, that surcharge is two. The draw itself can still trigger Exhaustion, so replacing more cards burns through the deck faster.

## Victory

After every defeated enemy, including the boss, reduce Instability by one to a minimum of zero. Before the next encounter, rebuild and shuffle the complete draw deck, draw a fresh full hand, and choose exactly one offered upgrade. The next enemy then begins with the restored deck and hand.

Difficulty profiles:

- Easy: hand 7, limit 9, spells 1-5, one deck discard per surviving turn, free reshuffle
- Normal: hand 7, limit 8, spells 2-5, one deck discard per surviving turn, Exhaustion 1
- Hard: hand 7, limit 7, spells 2-5, one deck discard per surviving turn, Exhaustion 1
- Arcane: hand 6, limit 8, spells 2-5, one deck discard per surviving turn, Exhaustion 1