active: An active Hero has more than 0 HP. A Hero is active if they are not incapacitated.
character card: a unique card which represents the primary or a major character of a deck. Character cards do not have the same back as the rest of their deck, rather, they have a unique back that provides their extra rules, such as a Villain’s flip side or a Hero’s incapacitated abilities.
current HP: the HP of a target, relative to how much damage that target has taken, if any. For instance, a target with a maximum HP of 7 that has been dealt 2 damage has a current HP of 5.
destroy: When a card is destroyed, it is removed from play and placed in the appropriate trash.
deck: the set of cards associated with a specific Hero, Villain, or Environment. All cards in a deck have a uniform back.
device: keyword appearing on Villain cards. Devices have HP. When played, Devices remain in play, but are destroyed when reduced to 0 or fewer HP.
discard: When a card is discarded, it is placed in the appropriate trash. Cards can be discarded from hand, from the deck, or from being revealed, but not from play.
draw: when a Hero card is drawn, that Hero card goes into the Hero’s player’s hand, unless stated otherwise.
Environment: An Environment is a deck not played by a player which simulates the environment in which the game takes place. Environments have a deck of 15 Environment cards. Like targets, Environments can be sources of damage, but, unlike targets, the Environments themselves do not have HP and cannot be dealt damage, though some cards in an Environment deck do have HP.
Environment card: any card from an Environment deck.
Environment target: any target that is also an Environment card. If a card affects non-Environment targets, it can affect any targets that are not Environment cards.
Equipment: a keyword appearing on Hero cards. Equipment remains in play after being played and can only be destroyed by cards which specifically target Equipment cards.
flip: Villain character cards are flipped when certain criteria are met. For example, Grand Warlord Voss’s Villain character cards flip from their fronts to their backs when there are no minions in play at the start of the Villain turn. Hero character cards are flipped when that Hero is reduced to 0 or fewer HP.
Hero: A Hero is a character played by a player. Heroes have character cards, which list the maximum HP of the Hero and their innate power on the front, and their incapacitated abilities on the back. Each Hero has a deck of 40 Hero cards.
Hero card: any card from a Hero deck.
Hero character card: the main card for a Hero. Heroes have character cards, which list the maximum HP of the Hero and their innate power on the front, and their incapacitated abilities on the back.
Hero target: any target that is also a Hero card or a Hero character card. If a card affects non-Hero targets, it can affect any targets that are not Hero cards or Hero character cards.
HP: HP stands for “hit points” and represents the amount of damage that a target can take before it is destroyed. Only certain cards have HP. All cards with HP are targets.
immune: If a target is immune to damage, its current HP cannot be reduced by damage. However, it may still be targeted by damage. Also, it can still be destroyed by cards that destroy targets without dealing damage.
incapacitated: A Hero is incapacitated when reduced to 0 or fewer HP. When this occurs, immediately remove all of that Hero’s cards from the game and flip the Hero character card. On the back, the Hero has incapacitated abilities, one of which can be used on each of that Hero’s subsequent turns. Incapacitated Heroes cannot regain HP as they no longer have HP.
indestructible: If a card is indestructible, it cannot be destroyed or removed from play. If a target is indestructible, it stays in play even if it is reduced to 0 or fewer HP.
innate power: the power printed on the front of a Hero character card.
irreducible: If damage is irreducible, it cannot be reduced by any effect. Irreducible damage can still be increased or redirected. Irreducible damage can also be prevented entirely by effects that prevent damage, or by targets that are immune to damage.
keyword: The words in the rectangular box at the top of any game text section. Any Keywords not defined in this glossary will make sense circumstantially.
limited: A Keyword appearing on Hero cards. Limited cards are unique, in that only one card of that name can be in play at one time. If a Limited card with the same name as a Limited card already in play would come into play, the second card is put into the appropriate Trash instead.
maximum HP: a target’s HP as printed. A target cannot regain HP past its maximum HP amount.
one-shot: a Keyword appearing on Hero and Villain cards. The effects of a One-Shot card happen immediately upon being played, after which the One-Shot card is moved to the appropriate trash.
ongoing: a Keyword appearing on Hero and Villain cards. Ongoing cards remain in play after being played and can only be destroyed by cards which specifically target Ongoing cards or destroy all cards in play.
play: When a card is played, the text on it takes effect, and then the card either stays in play or goes to the appropriate trash, depending on the type of card. Hero cards are played from players’ hands, while Villain and Environment cards are played from the top of the Villain or Environment decks, respectively.
power: an ability possessed by Heroes that can be used during a Hero’s power phase. A given power may only be used once per turn, even if a Hero is allowed to use more than one power during their turn.
redirect: damage that is redirected does not affect the original target. Instead, it affects the target to whom it is redirected.
restore: When a target has HP restored, increase its current HP by that amount, up to but not exceeding its maximum HP.
nemesis: Each Villain has a nemesis Hero indicated by the Hero icon of the nemesis located on the Villain character card. Targets which share an icon are considered nemeses. Nemeses have their damage increased by one when dealing damage to each other.
round: the period of time beginning with the start of the Villain turn, proceeding through each of the Hero turns, and ending with the end of the Environment turn.
Sentinels of the Multiverse: The greatest cooperative, fixed-deck, comic book themed card game in the Multiverse!
target: Any card with HP is a target.
trash: Each deck in the game has a trash into which cards from that deck are placed when they are destroyed, discarded, or otherwise moved there.
turn: the portion of the game during which all of the actions associated with a given deck take place. The three types of turns in Sentinels of the Multiverse are Hero turns, Villain turns, and Environment turns.
Villain: A Villain is a character not played by a player. Villains have character cards, which list the maximum HP of the Villain as well as the setup, gameplay, and advanced rules for that specific Villain. Villain character cards have two sides, and may flip in the course of play. Each Villain has a deck of 25 Villain cards.
Villain card: any card from a Villain deck.
Villain character cards: the main cards for a Villain. Villains have character cards which list the maximum HP of the Villain as well as the setup, gameplay, and advanced rules for that specific Villain.
Villain target: any target that is also a Villain card or a Villain character card. If a card affects non-Villain targets, it can affect any targets that are not Villain cards or Villain character cards.
