The goal of
Adept is to occupy all six power points located on the board, eliminate all opposing pieces, or win Apocalypse, a
sudden death battle using pieces that base their strengths on the state of the board. Conversely, a player who is unable to make a move during their turn loses instantly. The game can be played with two players or one player against a computer, with options to choose or randomize sides and set
handicaps. The game board is laid out in concentric bands of Fire, Air, Water, and Earth, two Void squares, and two decorative citadels. "Order" (yellow pieces, right) and "Chaos" (blue pieces, left) each start with four
spellcaster "Adepts" which can place other pieces into play. On a turn, a player must move a piece or use an Adept to cast a spell. Pieces an Adept has placed on the board on a previous turn may move any number of squares in their elemental band, or one square in any direction. Adepts teleport anywhere. Neither may enter occupied squares, except to attack an opponent's piece by ending the turn on its square. An Adept piece can target spells onto the elemental band it is on. Pieces being placed on the board on the current turn by an Adept's summoning spell can be can be placed onto any empty square on the band or, for an additional cost, directly onto a piece the opponent has summoned to trigger a battle immediately.
Adept, unlike the first
Archon, involves accumulating and spending a resource in the form of magical power. Magic is gained by having pieces on power points, four of which lie on the outer edges of one elemental band at a time and cycle one step inward after each player has taken their turn. Two power points with lower income are stationary on the Void squares. The side that goes second also starts with additional magic. Magic is spent as an Adept moves or cast a spell, and as a per-turn upkeep cost for summoned pieces. The summoning spell places one of 4 types of pieces common to both sides ("Demons") or 4 specific to each ("Elementals") on the board. The costs of summoning, maintaining, and affecting a piece with other spells vary per type, and players may place multiple pieces of the same type or the same type of demon on opposing sides. Adepts can also cast spells to heal Adepts or summoned pieces, or to damage, freeze and unfreeze (with the freezing player taking on the upkeep cost), or remove summoned pieces. A player who has accumulated a great deal of magic can cast Apocalypse, which makes the citadels uproot, transform into luminous Adepts and face each other in a Void arena to decide the game. The computer can concede to a human player, typically when down to a single Adept with no magical power to summon new pieces for several turns. If a player loses their last Adept, "the Masters intervene" triggering Apocalypse.
Combat Pieces in battle are moved to an arena where their owners control them in a real-time action sequence. Pieces can move and attack in eight directions. A chime sounds (higher for Order, lower for Chaos) when their attack has recharged. Attacks that land decrease the target's life bar. Once a life bar is depleted, the piece dies and is removed from the game. The survivor is returned to the board, its injuries persisting. Combat can end in a draw if both pieces die. In
Archon, a piece would either have a melee attack, a projectile, or deal damage in an area around itself.
Adept elaborates on this. Chimeras cycle between two different projectiles and a melee attack, juggernauts transform to and from their own projectiles, and krakens' projectiles lose strength as they travel. Adepts can switch between moving the piece and guiding its projectile in flight, sirens automatically damage opponents with their song but must keep stationary to sing, and gorgons sap speed instead of health. The previous game's area-attacking pieces, phoenix and banshee, are revisited as firebirds, which can abort attacks, and wraiths, which drain health and are invisible save as they attack or reload (or against computer opponents). During Apocalypse, each side's health, attack power, and projectile speed depend on their stored magic, number of pieces on the board, and number of remaining Adepts. In
Archon, the battlefield had obstacles that blocked pieces and projectiles.
Adept builds on this as well. Battles on Earth squares obstacles act as in
Archon, in Water they slow, in Air they slow pieces and divert projectiles, and in Fire they admit projectiles but damage pieces. Void arenas are empty. ==Reception==