Lords of Waterdeep is a worker placement game for 2-5 players by Rodney Thompson and Peter Lee and is published by Wizards of the Coast. In the game, each player (acting as one of the city’s rulers) deploys agents to recruit adventurers (for completing quests), build buildings, sabotage rival plans, etc. in an effort “to become the greatest Lord of Waterdeep.”

Tournament Structure:

Heats:

During the Heats, 3 and 4 player games will be played with 4-player games preferred. There will be no 2 or 5 player games played.

Semifinal:

The number of qualifiers and alternates who show up for the Semifinal will determine the number of games:

• 2 to 5 Players - Semifinal will be skipped and the final will begin immediately
• 6 to 10 Players - Two games, with the players distributed as evenly as possible
• 11 Players - One 3-player and two 4-player games will be played
• 12 to 16 Players: Four games, with the players distributed as evenly as possible

Final:

After the Semifinal, the Semifinalists will be ranked by:

1. Finish in the semi-final
2. The order of the winners doesn’t matter, so among those who didn't win a game, narrowest margin of loss in percentage terms
4. Ranking from the heat results

The top four Semifinalists advance to the Final. The Semifinal ranking also determines the 5th and 6th place finisher.

Note: Per convention rules, if a player qualifies to advance and chooses not to, they forfeit any prizes/laurels they may have been entitled to.

Rule Modifications & Clarifications:

Game Setup

• The normal game setup rules should be followed, with the exception that players will randomly determine the initial player order.
• Note that only the base Lords of Waterdeep game will be played.
• If all players agree, then Larissa Neathal (the builder lord) can be removed from the game before dealing out the Lord cards.
• If all players agree, then two lords can be dealt to each player, from which players will choose one to be the lord they use for the game.
  • Note: the lord choice is to occur right after setup is otherwise complete (i.e. Builder’s Hall is filled, quests are dealt and revealed, etc.).

Single Game Tiebreakers

• Most Gold (which is the only tiebreaker provided in the rules)
• Most completed quests (Note Mandatory Quests don’t count)
• Most buildings owned
• Player order in first round, with the player later in the order winning the tie.

Closed Information

• The discard decks are not open information. Only the top card should be visible.

Open Information

• A player can ask for the total number of your completed quests and/or number of intrigue cards in hand.

Player Responsibilities

• It is the responsibility of all players to verify before playing that the game setup is correct and that there are no missing or extra components. If during the course of the game it is found that the game is not complete, then the players will finish the game as is.
• Deal making / negotiating is prohibited and table talk should not include discussions of potential moves, strategy, valuation, etc.
• It is the responsibility of all players to verify the completeness and accuracy of the scoresheet before it is turned into the GM, who will accept it as is. Please double check your math!
• The game winner is to return the following to the GM at the end of the game:
  • The completed scoresheet
  • Any table numbers, playing cards, etc. used to assign players to tables.

Adjudication Rules

Note that up to 15 minutes of the 2 hour time slot maybe used to kick-off the heat/semifinal. It is expected that games will complete within 90 minutes, which leaves at least 15 minutes of grace time before the GM is required by tournament rules to halt play at the 2 hour mark.

Setting aside the Lieutenant and other affects that gain players more turns, and assuming 1 minute per turn, then a 4-player game would finish within 1 hour and 44 minutes.

Therefore the following Adjudication Rules will be used:

• Time reminders will be given 1 hour, 1 hour 30 minutes, and 1 hour 45 minutes into the time slot.
• At 1 hour 45 minutes any games currently in progress are adjudicated, which means your current round is your last. On a game by game basis, the GM reserves the right to allow a game to continue to the next round if it is felt the players can finish the next round in time.
• As necessary a time limit of 1 minute per player turn will be imposed.

Additional Prizes: will be provided by the GM.

While supplies last, each time a player wins a heat game, they will get to pick one Warrior, Cleric, Rogue, or Wizard DnDeeple.

Can you collect all four?

Note: (Especially if you replaced your little wooden cube adventurers for a set of DnDeeples) The supply of adventurers is limited to 25 of each adventurer type during game play.

The finalists will each receive a metal square coin, and the winner will receive a metal crescent coin from the Deepwater Coins pack by The Broken Token.

FAQ

As per the 2023 Event Report, the following clarifications are being made:

• When using the Quest and Intrigue card spot in Cliffwatch Inn, the Quest and Intrigue card can be chosen in any order.
• The official FAQ indicates that an agent gained during the Waterdeep Harbor phase is assigned immediately. This question is: is the assignment on the same turn as the current one or is a new turn taken right after the current turn (this matters for quest completion)? For the purposes of this tournament, the agent is assigned as part of the current turn.

Official FAQ

(located on the Wizards of the Coast website)

Q. For the intrigue card "Sample Wares", what does "unused agent" mean? Does this mean an agent in your agent pool (on your card) or do you re-assign the agent you just played?
A. It refers to one of your unused agents from your Agent Pool.

Q. What do you do if you run out of places to play (an agent to)? Must you pass?
A. The round ends in the case that no one can legally assign an agent. If only one person cannot legally assign an agent, they must pass.

Q. What if an agent is placed in Builders Hall and the player doesn't have money to buy a building (or doesn't want to buy a building)? Can the agent be placed there or is the space banned from being played on if the cost can't be paid? What if it is the last place left to play an agent to?
A. You must be able to perform all parts of an action to take that action. That means paying the cost of a building, or returning two adventurers for the Three Pearls, etc. So, no, you can't just block the Builder's Hall.

Q. Can you assign an Agent to a space if you cannot take the action (for example, assigning an Agent to Waterdeep Harbor to block it, even though you have no Intrigue cards)?
A. No. You must be able to complete all instructions for the space you are choosing in order to take that action.

Q. One player plays Sample Wares and assigns an Agent to a Building in Builder's Hall. I have completed Recover the Magister's Orb; can I use that Plot Quest's benefit to assign an Agent to the same Building in Builder's Hall as my opponent did with Sample Wares?
A. Yes. Recover the Magister's Orb allows you to assign an Agent to a space containing an opponent's Agent, which trumps the normal rule about assigning Agents to Buildings in play, as well as assigning Agents to spaces containing opponent's Agents.

Q. Are my active Quests always face up?
A. Yes. Additionally, each time you take a Quest, you must place it face up with your other active Quests.

Q. Does the Ambassador stay on the space it was assigned to if no one assigns an Agent to the Palace of Waterdeep?
A. No. At the end of the round, if no one has assigned an Agent to the Palace of Waterdeep and claimed the Ambassador, the Ambassador is removed from the board.

Q. The Ambassador's rules say it is treated as an opponent's Agent. Do I get the benefit of the space I assign it to?
A. Yes. It is treated as an opponent's Agent once it is on the board. When you assign any Agent (including the Ambassador or the Lieutenant), you always gain the benefit of the space.

Q. Does playing an Intrigue card to gain resources count as taking an action to gain that resource (such as with Call for Adventurers)?
A. Yes. When you assign an Agent to Waterdeep Harbor, that action includes playing the Intrigue card and the effects of that Intrigue card. Therefore, when you gain resources from an Intrigue card you play, you have taken an action to receive those resources. However, if you receive resources from another player's Intrigue card (for example, if someone other than you played Call for Adventurers), you have not taken an action to gain those resources.

Q. If a Plot Quest gives me resources for having taken an action, did I gain those resources as a part of taking the action?
A. No. You gained the extra resources from the effect of the Plot Quest, not from the action itself. The benefits of Plot Quests, and the rewards for completing a Quest, never count as being a part of an action.

Q. With Buildings that accumulate resources, such as the Caravan Court, are resources placed on them while they are still in Builder's Hall, unbuilt?
A. No. Those Buildings do not have resources placed on them until they are in play.

Q. What happens if there are no legal spaces for any player to assign an Agent to?
A. The round ends immediately.

Q. Can more than 10 Buildings be in play?
A. Yes. The number of empty Building spaces on the board is no limit to the number of Buildings that can be in play during the game.

Q. Can you control more Buildings than you have control markers?
A. No. The number of control markers you have is the maximum number of Buildings you can have in a single game.

Q. When I use the Zoarstar to take a Waterdeep Harbor action, do I also get to reassign the Agent from the Zoarstar at the end of the round?
A. No. The text in the appendix of the rulebook is in error.

Q. When I assign an Agent to the Heroes' Garden, do I still return resources to the supply when completing the chosen Quest?
A. Yes. The Heroes' Garden simply gives you an opportunity to complete the Quest if you have all the required resources. Completing this Quest does not count toward your limit of completing one Quest each time you assign an Agent, so you could potentially complete a second Quest after assigning an Agent to the Heroes' Garden.

Q. If I complete the Recruit Lieutenant Quest as a result of reassigning an Agent from Waterdeep Harbor, do I get to assign that Agent immediately?
A. Yes. If any effect puts a new Agent into your pool during reassignment from Waterdeep Harbor, you assign that Agent immediately.

Q. With regard to the Perform a Miracle for the Masses Quest, how many Adventurers can I convert to Clerics each time I gain the benefit of the Plot Quest?
A. One. The Plot Quest benefit states that once per round when you take an action that provides you with any number of Clerics, you can convert a single Adventurer in your Tavern (a Fighter, a Rogue, or a Wizard) into a Cleric.

Q. Does an effect that places a Building or puts a Building into play count as purchasing the Building?
A. No. You count as having purchased a Building only if you assign an Agent to Builder's Hall and pay the Gold cost of the Building. Putting a Building into play by other means (such as by completing a Quest) does not count as purchasing the Building. However, if you put a Building into play under your control from Builder's Hall and that Building has any Victory Point tokens on it, you gain those Victory Points regardless of whether you purchased it or simply put it in play.

HEATS: MOST WINS - POINTS (HMW-P):

1. Most Wins (e.g., total in all heats entered)
2. Total Points – Players earn the following pints in each heat they entered:
   • 1st Place - 1,000 points
   • 2nd Place - 100 points
   • 3rd Place - 10 points
   • 4th Place - 1 points
   • All other places - 0 points
   • e.g. player has a 1st, 2nd, and 4th in three heats: total points would be 1,101
3. GM Specific Tie-breaker:
   • Among those who won a game, largest margin of victory over 2nd place in percentage terms.
   • Among those who didn't win a game, narrowest margin of loss in percentage terms.
4. High dice roll.

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