Tokyo S.O.S. Kaiju Attack!

One day, as the glowing red sun vanished beyond the horizon… the air grew abnormally pungent in the fishing villages of Hiroshima Bay. In the city of Tokyo, as citizens rushed home to be with their families, the air became foul; it was as if the sea itself had spoiled.

Monstrous sounds erupted into the thick evening fog; the earth shook itself, and out of the churning brine of the Pacific Ocean, the creature ascended! Its colossal body breached the shore and it released a deafening scream, shattering windows and eardrums miles away. No one can quantify the destruction left behind by the walking nuclear disaster, and it did not stay in any province for too long. As the first villages were evacuated, someone in the mob thought to give it a name… HAIKAIRA!

The skyline of Tokyo is marred by the approaching silhouette of assured doom. Its dorsal fins light up. It opens its mouth and a light with the intensity of a burning sun begins to emanate. As citizens look on in horror, a concentrated beam of red energy cuts buildings down for miles. The monster raises its head and the beam pierces the clouds and up through the sky like a beacon, signaling the beginning of the end.

The beginning of the age of the Kaiju…

A Kaiju has awakened due to humanity’s callous disregard for the planetary ecosystem. It has breached the shores of Japan and is destroying everything in its wake. Take on the roles of a Reporter, Geneticist, Scientist, JSDF (Japan Self-Defense Force) Officer, Beaurocrat, Pilot, Psychic, Chemist, Intern, Fisherman or Idol as you race to stop the Kaiju before the country becomes a radioactive no-man’s land.

Wage war on the Kaiju using JSDF force’s special abilities. Traverse the countryside, helping cities and villages decontaminate the landscape as you gather components that will aid in the battle to send this monster back to its watery grave in the Pacific.

But the United Nations has been monitoring the situation and assessing the Kaiju’s threat to the rest of the planet. They are ready to resolve the issue with extreme measures if Japan cannot defeat the Kaiju. The clock is ticking.

Game Overview

In TOKYO S.O.S. KAIJU ATTACK, 2-5 players cooperate to keep the country from becoming an irradiated wasteland. Slow the Kaiju down when possible, protect the country's cities, landmarks and geothermal power plants. Weaken the monster and push it back into the sea to hibernate once again. But be warned, the Kaiju is not easily defeated. In order to save Japan, players will have to assume a specific role and use their special abilities to complete missions, or use the JSDF military to cause enough damage to the creature to save Japan. Players all win or lose together.

Players WIN by:
Reducing the Kaiju’s hit points to zero.
Completing Missions

Players LOSE if:
Three regions become wastelands
THREAT LEVEL reaches 10 and the UN has to step in to nuke everything!

• To set up your table, start with the map board in the center so everyone can reach it. At one end, place the Kaiju tracking board along the edge of the map. 
• Place the red Kaiju HP marker cube at the appropriate starting HP (easy starts lowest, normal in the middle and hard mode at the highest!). 
• Place the threat level marker (represented by a mushroom cloud) at level 1, and the three wasteland markers nearby.
• Hakaira (our Kaiju) starts in Tokyo Bay, and the players start with three JSDF tanks surrounding Mt. Fuji. Players also choose a location for a second Mobile Command Center and surround it with three JSDF tanks as well. Place the remaining tanks, Command Centers, damage markers and radiation markers next to the map along with all the d6 dice and Kaiju d12.
• Remove the Intern card from the Characters, shuffle the rest and deal one Character to each player. OR if the group prefers, players may read through all the Characters and choose the team they'd like to play with. Each player takes the standee for their Character and locates their starting point, placing the standee on their city or landmark. Unplayed Characters and standees can go back in the box.
• Shuffle the Mission cards and randomly deal one Mission to each player.
• Prepare the Player Deck: remove all Event cards and shuffle the remaining deck. Deal four cards to each player. Add the Event cards back to the deck, shuffle again and place next to the map. Players start with four cards in their hand and because it is a co-op game, we recommend players place their hands face-up in front of them.
• Prepare the Kaiju Decks by shuffling the Location Deck and Action Deck and setting them next to the Kaiju tracking board.

On the back of each character card is a Turn Reference list. The easiest thing to do is give each player a second character card to use during play. Each player's turn contains ALL of the phases mentioned - this means that the character, military and Kaiju will have the opportunity to do something each turn.

PHASE 1 - DRAW AND DEPLOY

The number of cards the player draws will change throughout the game as the Threat Level rises. At the beginning of the game, players draw 3 cards that are added to their hand and are immediately playable. After drawing, the player may play one card marked as Deploy, such as a JSDF Tank:

The military are the front line of offense against the Kaiju, so more tanks on the board is always a good thing!

PHASE 2 - PLAYER ACTIONS

Each character has a pool of Action Points, indicated on their card. The player may do as many Actions as possible, as many times as they can afford, in any order (except the character's Special Action):

• MOVE: 1 Action Point - Moving along a 'surface road' (a black line on the map) from one location to the next location is 1 Action Point.
• RIDE JR TRAIN: 2 Action Points - Moving along the JR Train route (red and yellow lines on the map) from the current location to ANY OTHER location on that line, costs 2 Action Points - unless you have a Pass for that train line, which reduces it to 1 Action Point. This is the bullet train, so a fast way to move around the map!
• DECONTAMINATE: 1 Action Point - if there is a radiation marker in the character's current region (the larger land areas on the map), the player can spend 1 Action Point to reduce a red marker to yellow, or remove a yellow completely.
• TRADE: 1 Action Point - if a character is in the same location as another character, the player can spend 1 Action Point to open a trade window. Characters can then trade freely between themselves. If there is another character in that location, the player can pay another Action Point to open another trade window too.
• SPECIAL ABILITY: Each character has a distinct Special Ability. The character card contains the cost and when the ability is available. Special Abilities cannot be used more than once per turn.

This phase ends when there are no more Action Points to spend, or the player chooses.

PHASE 3 - MILITARY

The military can now move across the map. JSDF Type 74 Tanks move up to 3 squares in a straight line (no diagonal movement) and each tank on the map can move every military phase. Tanks can also fire up to 3 squares away and roll 3 green d6 for each attack. Each tank activates once per turn. Be careful and pay attention to where they finish their movement - if the Kaiju steps on a tank while moving, it takes 1 damage (tanks have 3 HP). If the Kaiju finishes their movement on top of a tank, it's destroyed!

There are also other military cards that can activate during this phase to cause damage to the Kaiju or help with future military strategy.

This phase ends when all military have activated and cards are played, or if the player chooses to end it earlier.

PHASE 4 - KAIJU PHASE

Yes, the Kaiju gets a chance to activate EVERY turn. It's angry and not likely to stand still!

If there is no Location card visible, a new one is drawn and placed on the Kaiju board. This is where the Kaiju is headed next. The first thing it does is move five spaces toward its target - the Kaiju will move east/west first, then when even with the location, start to move north/south until reaching the location and destroying it - if the location is a city or landmark, the Threat Level goes up by one. If it's a thermonuclear power plant, the Threat Level goes up by two!!! As the Threat Level goes up, so does the Kaiju's draw - and the players' goes down! And of course, if the Threat Level hits 10, it's game over.

As Hakaira moves across the board, it is dropping radiation. Each time the Kaiju enters a new prefecture (the smaller land areas on the map), it will drop a radiation token. The first time, it's a yellow token. The second time it steps into that prefecture, it goes up to a red token. And the third time - the prefecture becomes a wasteland, and the token becomes a mushroom cloud. Wastelands CANNOT be decontaminated, and if all the prefectures in a region become wastelands, the region is lost. Three lost regions and the Kaiju wins.

After the Kaiju finishes moving, its hand is drawn from the Kaiju Action Deck, one card at a time. These could cause the Kaiju to move again, attack, rest or even regenerate.

PHASE 5 - DISCARD

After the Kaiju's movement and Actions are completed, the player discards down to 7 cards if needed, and their turn is over. Play moves to the player on their left.

Why Kickstarter?

The easy answer? You're guaranteed one of the first copies of the game, at the Kickstarter price. We anticipate the retail price of the game will be higher. You'll also receive all the game upgrades unlocked, at no additional charge. Plus we have a few special surprises lined up for our backers.

The other answer? Because otherwise this game may not be made! We are a tiny company, made up of just the three owners, and we all work day jobs to support our families. Although Wyrd Weaver is what we love to do, we don't have a ton of our own money to sink (although we've invested as much as we can, plus our blood, sweat, tears and time).

Reward Tiers

RETAILERS!

Retail pledges are absolutely welcomed for brick-and-mortar stores - please pledge for a base game to get your invite to the Pledgemanager, and we will be sending out more information on converting to a retail pledge at a discount. Retail pledge games will be eligible for all stretch goals as normal, so your customers will get exactly what the backers do, as long as your pledge is in.

Stretch Goals - Let's Goooo!!!

Check out all of the radical upgrades we have planned for this game!

Shipping Information

Shipping Policy: Fair, Flexible, and Transparent

We aim to keep shipping fair and adaptable for everyone. Since shipping rates may change between now and fulfillment, we’ll calculate and charge shipping costs after the campaign ends.

A few weeks after the campaign wraps up, you’ll receive an email to confirm your pledge and choose any add-ons. As we approach fulfillment, we’ll follow up with your final shipping cost based on current rates at that time. Our intent as always is to cover costs only. We calculate the cost of shipping plus materials to get your game safely to you; no upcharge or 'handling' fees.

About Import Fees and Tariffs:

Due to ongoing global tariff fluctuations, some pledges may incur an additional fee at the time of shipping. Instead of increasing the base price of the game for everyone, we’re keeping this as a separate, conditional charge. If tariffs are reduced or lifted before shipping, we’ll lower your cost accordingly. It’s all about transparency and fairness. Please be aware that if you are outside of the United States, you may be charged import fees or customs. We will do our best to keep these minimal.

Shipping Restrictions:

Unfortunately, we cannot ship to the following countries due to logistical and geopolitical constraints:
Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, North Korea, Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Afghanistan, Cuba, Somalia, Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire), Eritrea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Iraq, Liberia, Libya, Myanmar, and Sudan.

If you're located in one of these restricted regions, we suggest using a freight forwarding service based in a nearby eligible country. This allows you to receive your pledge through a third-party address, provided it's accessible.

Who are we?

Cherise Wilson - CEO/CTO
Cherise began working in the video game industry in San Francisco in 2010 while earning her degree in Game Art and Design. Over the years, she’s developed and produced over 30 titles in the tabletop and video game industry. Currently resides in South Carolina and received her MBA from Clemson in 2022. She enjoys practicing and teaching yoga in her spare time.

Heather Przystas - COO/CFO
Heather has worked in the gaming industry for more than 12 years, mostly with Japanime Games, working from a warehouse picker/packer to Chief of Operations before hooking back up with Cherise to form Wyrd Weaver. She's led Kickstarter teams and produced games and accessories for more than two dozen campaigns and titles. She lives in New England with her family and fur brigade and is a yarn goblin.

Jimmy Clark - CMO
Jimmy has been an avid gamer his whole life and has turned that passion into a profession. A veteran of the video game industry, his long term goal is to live the #vanlife traveling around the country visiting national parks and attending board game conventions.

Mark Dos Santos - Designer and artist
Mark Dos Santos is an illustrator and comic book artist with a diverse portfolio spanning animation, comics, and book illustration. A graduate of the Joe Kubert School, he has worked on projects for Marvel, DC, "Rick and Morty," and "Steven Universe."
His comic work includes "Cthulhu Tales," "Eureka," "Imperial," and "A Train Called Love." He has illustrated book covers, contributed to anthologies, and created toy packaging art and mini-comics for Duncan Yo-Yo.

Mark's work is known for its dynamic storytelling and striking visuals. He regularly appears at conventions, showcasing his "Kaiju Glamour Shots" series and developing his personal project, "Nine Sons of the Dragon," which explores Asian folklore. His passion for art and storytelling continues to captivate audiences across various media.

Outside of illustration, Mark Dos Santos is an avid gamer, enjoying both video games and board games. Over the years, he found that one thing was missing: a kaiju board game that truly captured the thrilling experience of watching a giant monster movie. Inspired by that gap, he set out to create his very first board game, pouring all of his artistic and storytelling experience into designing a game he would genuinely love to play.

See more of Mark's art at https://www.markdossantos.com/

Matt Frank - Hakaira artist
Known as the "Kaiju King" among fans, Matt Frank has been a fixture of the Godzilla franchise and giant monster genre since 2011. A prolific comic book illustrator and writer, Matt has consistently contributed to the official Godzilla comics from IDW Publishing since their first publication, working on titles such as Godzilla: Rulers of Earth, Godzilla: Legends, Godzilla: Rivals, Godzilla vs Texas, Mothra: Queen of the Monsters, and the Eisner Award-Winning Godzilla 70th Anniversary Anthology. Matt has received praise and recognition in America and Japan for his dynamic and energetic art style, inspired by the artistic traditions of both cultures.

In addition, Matt has worked on tons of franchises that he grew up loving, such as Transformers, Ultraman, Gamera, Mars Attacks, Tremors, Power Rangers, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. His work has adorned Blu Ray box sets, pinball machines, toy packaging, video games, and apparel.

Matt's most recent work is State of the Monsters, a brand new franchise that includes comics and other merchandise that was successfully crowdfunded in 2026.

Mark Dos Santos brought Matt in to work on Tokyo S.O.S. Kaiju Attack! as the two share a mutual love of all things giant and monstrous. Matt's work includes illustrating the main box art as well as multiple cards featuring the mighty Hakaira, the terrifying antagonist of the game, which Matt also named. Matt and Mark also collaborated on Hakaira's final design.

See more from Matt at his WEBSITE, Instagram, or Twitter

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