Action
The term "action" has multiple different meanings in Dominion:
- Action cards – a card type.
- Actions remaining – a resource, how many Action cards is a player allowed to play.
- Action phase – a phase of each turn in which the active player can play Action cards.
Action cards
Action cards are a type of card. By default, unlike Treasure cards, each player may play only one Action card on a turn; however, many Action cards (and a handful of other effects) provide you with the right to play additional Action cards on the same turn. Action cards may have a wide variety of effects, from vanilla bonuses to attacking other players to rearranging cards in the deck.
Action cards are frequently referred to simply as "Actions"; whether the term "Action" refers to Action cards or the meaning below is usually clear from context.
Action cards have "Action" written on the bottom, and they ordinarily have a white border, unless another type (Reaction, Duration, Ruins, Reserve) supersedes that. If an Action card also has another fundamental type (Victory, Treasure, Shelter, Night), the border is split between white and the color of the other type.
As of the release of Plunder, approximately 84% of Kingdom cards are Actions; the expansions with the lowest density of Action Kingdom cards are Nocturne, which has a focus on Night cards as one of its main themes, and Prosperity and Plunder, which have a focus on Treasure cards. Several non-Kingdom Action cards also exist, which can be accessed through the effects of various other cards or card-shaped things; these include Ruins, Horses, Zombies, Wishes, the successors to Travellers, and a handful of others.
Actions remaining
A player starts their turn with the right to play only one Action card from their hand. Some Action cards, however, grant +1 Action or +2 Actions (in some cases even more) when played, allowing a player to play additional Action cards on the same turn. This is referred to as increasing that player's "number of actions" available. Action cards that have this effect are called non-terminal, while Actions that do not grant +1 Action (or more) are terminal. A deck that has the ability to play multiple terminal Action cards on a turn is said to have increased terminal space. Villagers can also be used to grant +1 Action, as well as a handful of effects from other card-shaped things.
Action phase
The Action phase is one of the four phases of a turn of Dominion. It begins a player's turn and is typically the only phase in which they are permitted to play Action cards. The rule book describes the Action phase as follows:
- In the Action phase, the player may play one Action card. Action cards are the Kingdom cards that say “Action” at the bottom of the card. Since players do not start the game with any Action cards in their initial Decks of 10 cards, a player will not have any Actions to play during his first 2 turns. Normally, a player may play only one Action card, but this number may be modified by the Action cards that the player plays.
- To play an Action, the player takes an Action card from his hand and lays it face-up in his play area. He announces which card he is playing and follows the instructions written on that card from top to bottom. The player may still play an Action card even if he is not able to do everything the Action card tells him to do; but the player must do as much as he can. Furthermore, the player must fully resolve an Action card before playing another one (if he is able to play another Action card). Detailed information about card abilities can be found in the card descriptions at the end of these rules. Any Action cards played remain in the player’s play area until the Clean-up phase of the turn unless otherwise indicated on the card. The Action phase ends when the player cannot or chooses not to play any more Action cards. Generally, a player can only play Action cards during the Action phase of his turn. However, Reaction cards are an exception to this rule as they can be used at other times.
Villa, Cavalry, and Launch can return the player from their Buy phase to their Action phase.
Cards that interact with Action cards
A very large percentage of all cards in Dominion are Action cards, consequently, there are also many cards that interact with Action cards in one way or another. Cards in italics have been removed.
Cards that play Action cards
These play an Action card or set aside an Action card to play at a later time.
- From your hand once:
- From you hand multiple times:
- From your discard:
- From in play:
- From the supply:
- From the trash:
- Set aside during Setup:
- When looking at, revealing from, or discarding from your deck:
- When gaining it:
- When playing:
Action gainers
These are gainers that can (only) gain Action cards.
- Without restrictions:
- Invasion, Kind Emperor, Spell Scroll, Woodworkers' Guild
- Invest and Transport do not gain cards but lets you acquire Action cards by Exiling them from the supply.
- With a limited cost:
- Advance, Amass, Credit, Procession, Seaway, Stonemason, Summon, University, Wheelwright
- Inheritance doesn't gain the set aside card, but it is in your deck at the end of the game for the purpose of scoring.
- Specific card(s):
- From the trash:
- With additional or other restrictions:
Action trashers
These are trashers that can (only) trash Action cards.
- From your hand:
- Acolyte, Advance, Animal Fair, Death Cart, Graverobber, Peril, Procession, Siren, Woodworkers' Guild, Zombie Apprentice
- Swap returns the Action card to the supply instead of trashing it.
- From in play:
- From the supply:
Caring about cards being Actions
These are affected by other cards beeing Actions (without playing, gaining, or trashing them).
- In your hand (to reveal, discard, or trash):
- In play:
- In your discard:
- Owned when scoring:
- In the trash:
- When drawing or revealing from your deck:
- When revealing from other players' decks:
- When discarding from play:
- When gaining due to that card:
- When gaining for other reasons:
- When trashing due to that card:
- When playing:
Cards that add tokens to Action Supply piles
Other
- Capitalism makes some Actions also Treasures.
- Deluded
makes it impossible to buy Actions. - Enlightenment makes all Treasures also Actions.
- Inheritance make Estates also Actions.
- Quarry affect the cost of Action cards.
- Warlord blocks Actions from being played more than two times per turn.
Trivia
In other languages
- Czech: Akce
- Dutch: Actie
- Finnish: Toiminta
- French: Action
- German: Aktion
- Italian: Azione
- Polish: Akcja
- Russian: Действие (pron. dyeystviye)
