Cultist

Cultist is a turn-based card game about the religions and history of the ancient Mediterranean and Middle East. You develop a religion by adding Cultists and doctrines, building from individual beliefs into cults and sects that can grow into forms resembling classical religions. The cards and their order shape each game, as early religions interact, share ideas and influence one another.

Cultists and doctrines

Cultists provide doctrines that strengthen your religion, but they also sustain it as an idea. You can flip a Cultist to use it as a doctrine, but it then stops functioning as a Cultist. After the first turn, a religion that loses all its Cultists is defeated, so keeping them can protect you from aggressive opponents while giving you more opportunities to develop your beliefs.

At the start of each turn, you have one opportunity to add a card by choosing one of two actions: look at three cards from your deck, add one to your religion and discard the other two, or take a card of your choice from the discarded cards. Some cards grant additional Draw Cards or Trade actions when specified conditions are met. These extra opportunities can be used at any point before your turn ends, and cards that provide them can be dangerous.

Build a deck

The Early Access version includes four pre-built decks. You can also build your own: a deck has 31 cards, including one starting card, and can contain up to three copies of any non-starting card. There are no other restrictions on card selection, so you can combine cards from different religious themes or focus on one. Check that the symbols your cards provide meet the requirements of the other cards in your deck, or you may be unable to play them.

Flip and destroy cards

Flipping cards can produce effects on the field, so their effects matter when you build a deck. Some cards require you to sacrifice one of your Cultists; the selected card is immediately destroyed, while sacrifice effects can be powerful enough to turn the game around. Other cards destroy opponents’ Cultists, sometimes only if you meet extra conditions, such as having greater Military Power or another card in a combo. Sacrificed and destroyed Cultists go to the trade pile rather than leaving the game, where they can be introduced to other players.

Cards can also have keywords that shape how they work:

• Split: Opens space for a new sect when the card is flipped. You can have up to three sects, which can strengthen your religion and reduce the risks of certain cards.
• Feat: Marks a card with a powerful effect. Only one Feat card can be flipped on a player's field at a time, making its timing important.
• Echo: If an opponent declares that they will destroy this unflipped card, it flips without cost instead and immediately benefits its holder.
• Crisis: If this card appears during the Draw Cards phase, you must select it.
• Revelation: Triggers when the deck is exhausted. These cards can only be drawn one at a time and must be flipped immediately after you acquire them.
• Sacrifice: Requires you to sacrifice another Cultist card to flip the card.

Symbols and religions

Most cards need enough symbols to be flipped and activated. A card’s top portion shows the types and number it requires; its bottom shows what you gain while holding it flipped. Those symbols remain available for as long as the card stays flipped. The five symbol types are Influence, Unity, Polytheistic, Monotheistic and Military Power, representing a religion’s expansion, cohesion, religious character and military strength.

Monotheistic cards mainly represent Abrahamic religions and ideas that influenced them. They are more exclusive than polytheistic cards and grow stronger as the game progresses, but their symbol requirements rise steeply. Their late-game cards often have high Military Power and make it easier to destroy opponents’ Cultists, while acquiring Pantheons is difficult. Early-game cards are designed to resist interference and support steady growth.

Polytheistic cards draw on faiths from different cultural regions. They begin separately, then can fuse into composite divinities as the game progresses. Their symbol requirements are relatively low, but they have restrictive conditions that may call for cards from different religious cultures. Their lower requirements give you time to score cards from other cultures, and victories are typically achieved by gaining Pantheons through powerful combinations.

Unity represents how well a religion can rally its members, manage dissatisfaction and make feats possible through individual sacrifice. Unity appears on cards representing exclusive religions whose growth relies on strong cohesion. Cards that require it often carry high risks and rewards, supporting rapid, aggressive development built around a few key cards.

Influence represents a religion’s capacity to spread. It is concentrated on cards for religions that change by absorbing other cultures rather than growing through internal cohesion. Influence cards do not produce powerful short-term effects, but can stabilize your card supply and become effective over time when combined with other cards.

Military Power measures how much influence a religion can exert over other religious communities. It lets you interfere more often with opponents, including by destroying Cultists, restricting certain plays and gaining advantages in turn order. Military Power is spread across cards from different religious cultures, with varying symbols and acquisition timings, so it is a factor to consider when designing a deck.

Win the game

Some cards have feats and influence that endure over time, represented by a temple-shaped Pantheon icon. Pantheons do not help activate cards, but they are needed to win: holding seven or more lets you claim victory after the end of a turn. You can win either by completing the Pantheon or by eliminating all of your opponents’ Cultists.

The religions built from the game’s diverse beliefs are not sharply separated. Players’ choices can lead them along different historical paths, whether constructive or self-destructive.