
2025 · Fantasy
Fate: Defenders of Grimheim
Players take the roles of inexperienced heroes defending a small Norse village after gods and proven warriors are away for a wedding. Monsters spawn and advance from all sides toward the town; each monster that reaches the village destroys a town piece. Players kill monsters to gain experience, upgrade their hero, and complete quests to discover weapons and equipment. The game is cooperative and loses if the town is completely destroyed; it wins if at least the sacred well survives by the time the gods return.
- Players
- 1–4 best 2
- Playing time
- 30–120 min
- Age
- 14+
- Complexity
- 2.6 / 5
About the game
- Design
- Publisher
Expansions
See them in LudoyaPhotos from Ludoya tables
All photos in LudoyaWhere to buy it
Shop prices and second-hand copies, checked every day.
On Ludoya's tables
Full stats in Ludoya- 123
- Plays logged
- 90
- Players
- 1h 21m
- Average play
- 27
- In collections
- 11
- On wishlists
- 1
- Pre-ordered
7.4/10
from 7 Ludoya reviews
Rulebook is trash, as well as art, playability and design. Don't waste your money nor time, it's not worth it
Rules questions
Answered from the rulebook by Ludoya's rules assistant.
Can two heroes occupy the same space or stack on a tile?
No — each area can hold only one character at a time, except Grimheim where any number of heroes may stand together (heroes in Grimheim are adjacent to each other but cannot interact with outside areas). (See page 3.)
Do free actions cost my turn or can I use them anytime?
Free actions do not use your two action slots and may be performed any number of times when allowed, but some are restricted (for example you may not play event cards while performing an action unless the card specifically permits it). (See page 6.)
How do I get equipment — does completing a quest automatically give the equipment or do I have to spend an action?
You obtain equipment only by completing the quest shown on the top card of your equipment pile; if a quest tells you to “spend” an action you must place an action marker there and receive the quest reward instead of the normal action effect. When the quest is completed, move the equipment card into your active cards immediately. (See page 7.)
When a monster attacks, where do I place damage — on the hero card or on the monster tile/shield/crystal?
Damage dealt to monsters is tracked by placing damage dice on the monster tile or boss card; damage to heroes is placed as red damage tokens on the hero card; equipment that takes damage uses damage markers on the equipment card per its durability. (See pages 9 and 6–7.)
Do monsters always charge on skull turns or only if they can attack?
On skull steps all monsters charge (each charging monster moves one additional area), and monsters may also charge for other specific reasons listed in the rules; a monster never takes more than one extra charge step. (See page 8.)
Can I shoot over other characters or mountains — what counts as line of sight?
Attacks with range 2 or more can target any character within that many areas even if other characters or mountains lie between, but you may never shoot over Grimheim (you must count areas around Grimheim’s border instead); note forests grant cover which affects hit results. (See pages 12 and 3, and attacks on page 9.)
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Play Fate: Defenders of Grimheim with Ludoya
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Game facts (players, playing time, age, credits) from BoardGameGeek.









