Talisman (Board Game)
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40 free Talisman (Board Game) trivia questions with answers — trivia quiz, new questions added Oct 2026.
Talisman has been sending adventurers around its board since the early 1980s, and the appeal has barely changed: pick a character, set off on a quest, and hope the next card makes you stronger instead of ending your run. Every character plays differently, which is why arguments about the best pick never end. This quiz puts the characters first: who starts with which abilities, who bends the rules of battle, and which expansion each newcomer arrived in. It also covers the regions and spaces of the board, the core rules, the expansions and spin-offs, and the story of how the game was made and passed between publishers. It is written for anyone who has played a few games, whether on a decades-old set, the Revised 4th Edition or the digital version. Newer players can reason out plenty of the answers, and veterans can check how much of the rulebook they really remember.
30 of 40 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Talisman borrowed its board layout from an earlier homemade game whose players raced to become Rector of what?
A school
A school was the prize in Rectocracy, a game the designer made as a pupil in Dundee: players took the roles of teachers competing to become headmaster.
Q 02In Talisman, which creature can a cursed character be turned into, shrinking Strength and Craft to 1?
Toad
A Toad cannot even roll for movement: it hops one space per turn and has no special abilities until the character changes back.
Q 03Which sitcom shows its main characters playing Talisman in a shared apartment living room in several episodes?
The Big Bang Theory
The Big Bang Theory uses the game's 4th Edition, which Sheldon, Leonard and their friends play in more than one episode.
Q 04In the 2019 spin-off Talisman: Batman, players control villains fighting their way through which Gotham location?
Arkham Asylum
Arkham Asylum is the board, flipping the usual quest: players are members of Batman's rogues gallery, racing to subdue him and free the inmates.
Q 05Which company first published Talisman after signing a royalty contract with the board game's creator?
Games Workshop
Games Workshop unveiled it at Games Day 1983, then bought out the creator's remaining interest after the third edition.
Q 06Besides good and evil, which third alignment can a character have in the board game Talisman?
Neutral
Neutral characters sit between the two extremes, and the choice matters: some cards and board spaces treat good and evil visitors very differently.
Q 07Which base-game Talisman character can regenerate whenever he rolls a 6 for his move?
Troll
Troll players heal only on a natural 6: the rulebook warns that a 4 boosted to 6 by a card does not count.
Q 08In Talisman's Revised 4th Edition, what does paying one fate token allow a player to do?
Reroll one die
Reroll one die is all that fate buys, and the new result must be kept: a player cannot spend a second token on the same roll.
Q 09In Talisman, what can the Warrior do in battle that the base game's other characters cannot?
Use two Weapons at once
The Warrior can use two Weapons at once, while everyone else may count only one Weapon per attack; a card that bans Weapons still stops both.
Q 10In classic Talisman, what happens to every rival when the Command Spell is cast successfully?
They each lose a life
They each lose a life on a roll of 4, 5 or 6, so the player at the Crown whittles opponents down turn by turn until nobody else is left.
Q 11Which Talisman character's inner belief lets him add his Craft value to his Strength in battle?
Monk
The Monk fights on faith rather than steel: he may carry a Weapon to sell or deliver, but he may never use one in battle.
Q 12Which Talisman character may gain a full complement of Spells whenever he lands on the Woods?
Druid
Druid players can also change alignment by choice, though no character, even this one, may change it more than once in a turn.
Q 13Which base-game Talisman character may discard one Adventure Card she draws and draw a replacement?
Prophetess
Prophetess players keep the gift on the corner boards too, where it applies to cards from that Region's own deck instead.
Q 21In Talisman, who attacks characters trying to cross the bridge from the Outer Region to the Middle Region?
The Sentinel
The Sentinel only fights travellers heading inward: characters crossing back out, or simply stopping on his space, pass unharmed.
Q 22In Talisman, what is a fight called when Craft is used in place of Strength, as against Spirits?
Psychic combat
Psychic combat follows the normal battle steps with one cruel twist: no Object, not even Armour, can save the loser.
Q 23What do Talisman players call the defeated Enemy cards they exchange, seven points at a time, for Strength?
Trophies
Trophies are cashed in at the end of a turn, and any points above a multiple of seven are simply lost.
Q 14Which base-game Talisman character has a Craft value of 5 and always holds at least one Spell?
Wizard
Wizard players gain a new Spell each time they cast their last one, the same trick the Wand gives to any character who finds it.
Q 15Which Talisman character can raise defeated Enemies from the dead and use them in battle?
Ghoul
Ghoul players can even revive the Goblin King and send him to fight, where other Goblins and Hobgoblins still add to his Strength.
Q 16Which Talisman expansion character begins the game with five gold and can swap Objects with rivals?
Merchant
Merchant players can also buy their way out of trouble, paying 1 gold to evade an Enemy Monster rather than fight it.
Q 17Which Talisman character from The Reaper expansion is always good and begins with a Sword and Armour?
Knight
Knight players may never attack good characters they meet, except at the Crown of Command, and they add 2 to the die when praying.
Q 18Which Talisman character from The Frostmarch may gain three gold whenever he lands on the Woods?
Leprechaun
The Leprechaun can also teleport: a roll of 6 lets him jump to any other space in the same Region.
Q 19Which Talisman character may add his movement die to his Strength in battle but may not use any armour?
Minotaur
Minotaur players may stampede only on their own turn, and the extra Strength lasts just until the end of that battle.
Q 20Which Inner Region space on the Talisman board can only be entered by a character holding a Talisman?
Valley of Fire
Valley of Fire is the last step before the Crown of Command, and it explains the game's name: without the right card a character must turn back.
Q 24According to Talisman's rulebook, no character may hold more than four Objects without which animal?
Mule
A Mule doubles the load, and losing it hurts: the rulebook's example character carrying eight Objects must drop four the moment it is taken.
Q 25In Talisman, a character holding an Axe in the Woods or Forest can skip moving to build what?
A Raft
A Raft carries its builder across the river at the start of the next turn, then it is discarded whether or not it was used.
Q 26In Talisman's 5th edition, what must a player defeat at the Crown of Command to win the game?
An elder dragon
An elder dragon with Strength 10 and Craft 10 guards the Crown, and the prideful beast lets each challenger choose which of the two to fight with.
Q 27In Talisman's 5th edition, where is a character placed after losing every life, instead of being eliminated?
The Village
The Village is a second chance at a price: the fallen character keeps every card but must spend gold on new lives, one gold each.
Q 28Under Talisman's Revised 4th Edition rulebook, which player always takes the very first turn?
The game's owner
The game's owner goes first in that edition, with play passing clockwise; the 5th edition instead gives the opening turn to the last player to pick a character.
Q 29Which designer created Talisman to amuse himself and his friends before signing a publishing contract?
Robert Harris
Robert Harris went on to write novels, including the Young Heroes books about Greek legends with Jane Yolen.
Q 30What was Talisman called in its prototype form, a name its creator later judged less family friendly?
Necromancer
Necromancer was the working title, and reaching the villain's isle earned a Death Spell, later softened into the Command Spell.