The game uses a 6x6 grid as the main playing area. Each player receives a bunch of little plastic pieces and 2 large ones (gnome crystals) with an irregular shape.
The object is to score the most points by the time the game ends, which happens immediately when someone runs out of pieces to play. A point is scored by having a straight or diagonal arrangement of three crystals of the same color, and a large crystal as part of such an arrangement scores 2 points instead of 1. A line of 4 crystals scores twice, once for each "end" of the row.
The game is played by rolling two dice, one for each side of the grid (rows and columns). After rolling the dice, the player places them on the appropriate row and column that matches the die face. Then the player can place a crystal in any empty location on either the row or column indicated. They can also choose to "combat" another player's crystal on the specific intersection of the rolled dice. Combat involves a simple die-off, defender wins ties, with a large crystal providing a +1 bonus to the roll.
Finally, if a player rolls doubles and is able to place a crystal on the intersection (say row 3 and column 3), then they get to roll again.