A Place in the Sun
A Place in the Sun Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Component Overview
4 Planetary Faction Dials and 2 Extinctor Dials
- Pop out all 12 components from the punchboards. Match both parts of each dial and connect them with 2 connectors.
4 Faction Decks
- 40 Action and Orbital Cards each
- 3 Leader Cards each
Each planetary faction comes with a faction specific dial and deck.
1 Influence Deck
- 30 Influence Cards
The Influence Deck provides an additional victory condition, recommended for 3+ player games.
1 Extinctor Deck (Cooperative expansion)
- 40 Action and Orbital Cards
- 4 Program Cards
The Extinctor expansion adds "boss" opponents with their own dials and deck.
5 two-sided Solar Boards
- White Dwarf/Nebula, Binary Star/Red Dwarf, Pulsar/Yellow Dwarf, Black Hole/Red Giant, White Giant/Blue Giant.
The Solar Board determines your starting resources and provides special bonuses for placed cards.
Power Tokens
- 42 small tokens worth 1 power
- 34 large tokens worth 5 power
These tokens represent the power, resolve, and independence of your civilization. If you lose all of your Power tokens, you lose the game.
Story
Within the endless void, only a few planets are capable of supporting life. All are home to intelligent life, and strangely, they all reached the space age at the same time.
Now as new stars alight in the sky, remnants of attack ships meet plasma fire and acidic abominations. Giant plant life wraps around beast and cold alloy alike, whilst yet more burns in cold orbit among the battered remains of an orbital defense platform.
There can be no peaceful coexistence between intelligent species from different planets. We are all aggressive by nature, our one common denominator being the struggle for survival and expansion – our fight for a Place in the Sun!
Planet Earth
The humans have built a glorious civilization. They've developed heavy industry, powerful orbital defenses, and huge battleships; they've established a vigilant military and brave space infantry… but they also have bureaucracy, corruption, terrorism, deserters, and of course, the scourge of all mankind: politics. It amazing they have managed to survive this long!
When playing the humans, you will struggle with your own deck, trying to reserve your best cards until the opportunity arises to unleash devastating combos. The changes in your planetary political Regime can help you – or hinder you and push you down the slippery slope to destruction.
Planet Arachne
This is the cradle of a terrifying species, created by a wild burst of evolutionary forces. Arachnids mutate, evolve and still keep all rudimentary genes they have ever developed. Their Queens lay eggs and determine the fate of the offspring, but the genetic material is so volatile they can barely influence the outcome.
Some of your cards will increase your planetary spawn, and others will consume it to hatch swarms of your strongest monsters. The Arachnids are relatively weak, yet versatile and adaptive. They can also infest other players and give them hell on their own planet.
Mothership Theta
The inhabitants of Mothership Theta have brought their planet to ruin. They now dwell in their monumental ship, relying on the superior technology and sophisticated machinery that their civilization created.
You will have to sacrifice your own planetary power to support your equipment with energy. However, installing generator modules will reduce these losses. In order to buy time for building up your magnificent Mothership, you will send out well equipped spacecrafts to check on, or disrupt your rivals.
Planet Rhea
The home world of the Plant Mind is an enormous neural structure spreading out from its surface to space. Through its seeds it colonizes planets and even barren asteroids. One cannot tell a tree not to grow.
As Rhean you will have good control of your deck, strong power gain and mass attacks damaging both your planet and your enemies. Yet your arch enemy is your closest relative: the wild Protojungle struggles to cover your planetary surface. Its cards are powerful and cunning, but playing them will come with a price.
Victory Condition
Eliminate everyone else by reducing their planetary power to 0.
Game Setup
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Each player chooses a Solar Board.
For inexperienced players we recommend using the Solar Board sides with an even #-indicator number (# 2, 4, 6, 8, 10).
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Take power tokens according to the number indicated on the board. Place the remaining power tokens in a pile on a convenient spot for all players.
- This is your planet's "life". If it is reduced to 0, you lose.
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Each player chooses their planet. Take its Faction Deck (or deck), place your factions' Planetary Dial (or dial) on the Solar Board, and set it to show 3.
- This is your initial Dial Position (or position). It shows how many cards you have to play this turn. Changes to this number apply from the next turn onward after changing the position.
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Shuffle your Leader Cards separately and place them face down on the Leader Slot of your Solar Board.
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Shuffle your deck and place it face down to the left of your Solar Board.
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Make place for your discard pile on the right of your Solar Board.
Solar Board Layout
Labelled elements: Orbital Line (up to 4 cards); outermost card (attacked first); orbital defense (damage required to destroy); Leader Slot and Cards (untargetable); Moon Slot (bonus defense); Initiative (first turn); Orbital Line bonus; Your starting Power; Your deck; Your Discard Pile; Your hand; Your Planetary Dial; Current Dial Position; Faction Skill.
Labelled elements of a card: card effect (a single attack); multiple attack; card loaded on a Carrier card (activated each turn as an Orbital Card and follows whatever happens to the Carrier); single target attack; power gain.
Turn Order
Starting with player with the smallest #-indicator and continuing clockwise, all players take turns to play a certain number of cards, then refill their hand to 5.
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You must play as many cards as shown by your initial Dial Position for this turn. Playing a new card is considered a Play Action:
- Playing an Action Card activates its effects and sends it on the discard pile.
- Playing an Orbital Card allows you to place it on a Moon or Orbital Line slot and activate it once per turn.
- Playing a Leader Card, from your Leader Slot or from your hand, allows you to place it face up on top of the Leader Deck and activate it once per turn.
Example: Position 3 means you have to play 3 cards this turn – no more, no less. Activating the effects of any placed cards is not considered as "playing" a card.
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While playing each card, resolve the current Dial Position effect, if any. Changes in your Dial Position will affect the number of played cards from your next turn onward.
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After you have played as many cards as required by your initial Dial Position OR when you run out of cards in your hand, your turn ends. At this time, if you hold less than 5 cards, draw until you hold that many. If you already have 5 or more cards, do nothing.
- All cards in your hand must remain there until played or discarded.
- If you don't have enough cards left in your deck to draw from, shuffle your discard pile, place it as a new deck, and draw from it the cards needed to refill your hand.
Then the player to your left takes the next turn and the play continues in clockwise order.
Solar Boards
Orbital Line
Orbital Cards placed on the Orbital Line protect the Solar Board (the planet & the moon) from a direct attack. When playing an Orbital Card, you may freely set its place adjacent to your planet or another Orbital Card you have previously placed. Orbital Cards can not be moved.
The Orbital Line is a row of cards limited to 4 slots. When those slots are full, the next card placed will replace one card on the row and cause it to be discarded.
Orbital Line effects:
- Cards placed on the Orbital Line have their defense increased by 1 (see Card Effects).
- Cards placed on the Orbital Line have their defense decreased by 1. Playing an Orbital Card with defense 1 means it may be activated and then discarded (like an Action Card).
- Cards placed on the Orbital Line will last for only 1 round and must be discarded in the beginning of your next turn.
Moon Slot
An Orbital Card placed on the Moon Slot does not protect your planet from attacks. Instead, it has its defense increased by the amount indicated on the Solar Board. It may be attacked only if there are no cards left on the Orbital Line.
- Here you can place an Orbital Card for bonus defense.
- Here you can place an Orbital or Action Card for bonus defense (the Action Card has base defense 0 and may be activated once per turn like an Orbital Card).
Playing a card on the Moon Slot while there is another card will discard and replace it.
Leader Slot
This is where your Leader Cards reside. They cannot be attacked. Changing the leader causes the previous one to be discarded.
Play Area
Your Play Area consists of your Orbital Cards placed in the Orbital Line and the Moon Slot, your active Leader Card (if face up), and other cards in play (Eye Bots).
Card Types
Action: This card type's effect is activated one time when played, and the card is then put into its faction's discard pile. You must activate every effect described on the card, unless there are two alternative effects separated by "OR".
Action Cards immediately enter the discard pile and may be used from there – for example, by a card effect "shuffle your discard pile and draw a card from it".
Orbital: This card type is placed on the table upon playing. You may activate it for all its effects at any time once during your turn (including the turn when it enters play). While on the table and not in the hand or deck/discard pile, it is in play.
Note: We recommend placing your Orbital Cards sideways so other players can more easily read them.
An attack may target only the Orbital Card which is the farthest in the Orbital Line from the planet (the outermost card). Only when there are no cards on the Orbital Line, may the attacker choose to target the planet or a card on the Moon Slot.
If destroyed or discarded, an Orbital Card is placed in its faction's discard pile.
Leader: You may play the top Leader Card from the corresponding slot on your Solar Board or from your hand.
Playing a Leader Card places it face up on the dedicated slot of the Solar Board. If there already is another face up Leader Card, discard it to the discard pile.
You may activate the effect of a placed Leader Card at any time once during your turn.
When on a Leader Slot, a Leader Card cannot be attacked and destroyed.
Card anatomy (example card Patrol Shuttles): faction card type; # of copies in your deck; card type; card effect.
Card Effects
Attack
- Multiple Attacks: If the number of your attack symbols (damage) exceeds an Orbital Card's defense, it destroys it and you can carry the excessive damage on to an adjacent target (the next Orbital Card, or a card on the Moon Slot, or the enemy planet if no Orbital Cards are left).
- Single Target Attack: All attack damage X is focused on a single target (an Orbital Card or a planet). Any exceeding damage is lost.
If there are one or more cards on the enemy Orbital Line, your attack must target the outermost card on the line (the one farthest from the planet) and decrease its defense by the attack damage. If there are no cards on the enemy Orbital Line, you may choose to:
- Target an Orbital Card on the Moon Slot and decrease its defense by the attack damage, and/or
- Target the enemy planet – the owning player returns to the pile the amount of power tokens corresponding to the attack damage.
Effects of mass attacks which target all cards on the Orbital Line must be resolved one by one, starting from the outermost Orbital Card.
Defense: If an Orbital Card takes attack damage equal to or higher than its defense value X, it is destroyed and placed in its faction's discard pile. An Orbital Card may be consecutively attacked by several cards in order to be destroyed by their combined attack damage.
Orbital Cards which are attacked and not destroyed by the end of the attacker's turn, have their defense restored.
If a card's text refers to the base defense of an Orbital Card, this is the defense value of the card, without any bonuses from other cards and boards.
Gain Power: Take the corresponding amount of power tokens from the pile.
Lose Power (self damage): Return the corresponding amount of power tokens to the pile.
Remember: If you're out of tokens, you lose the game.
Other Effects
- Draw X cards: Add the top X card(s) from your deck to your hand. If you don't have enough cards in your deck, shuffle your discard pile, place it as a new deck, and draw from it the cards you need.
- Discard a card: Place the card face up on top of its faction's discard pile (unless a card effect says you have to discard it elsewhere).
- Look: Secretly look at the card you are allowed to see/choose. If there are several cards in a deck you can look at (i.e. "look at the top 5 cards of your deck"), then you may place them back on top of the specified deck in any order you like.
- Reveal: The same as Look, but you have to show everyone the revealed cards before you put them back in any order you like.
- Shuffle a card in the top X cards: Take the top X cards of the specified deck, add the card, shuffle them together and place them back on top of the deck.
- Infestation Cards: When activating a card which may be shuffled into another player's deck or hand, it has two effects depending on the player who plays it:
- Owner: This effect happens for the player who initially plays the card.
- Infested Player: This effect happens for the player who received the card. When it is in this player's hand, they may play it as a normal card and face the consequences as described on the Infested Player part of the card effect.
- Carrier: Playing the Carrier card and playing a card on it are two different Play Actions. This may happen in the same turn or in separate turns. Both cards have shared defense and if something affects the Carrier, the card on it is affected too. If you place another card on the Carrier card, the previously placed card is discarded.
Card Playing Rules
- In any case of rules conflict between the text of these rules and a card text, the card text wins.
- Play cards in any order you like to combine their effects. If a card has several effects, play them from top to bottom order. You may not play another card between resolving each of the cards' effects, i.e. you must play all of your cards one by one.
- The attacks and other card effects cannot be split between two players, unless the card text says it can affect multiple players.
- If a card effect can be activated only under a certain condition you don't currently meet, you can play the card for no effect. If it is an Orbital Card, it will stay only as an orbital defense, until the condition is met.
- When a card suggests you may play another card on it or in conjunction with it, playing the other card is a separate Play Action and may be done in a subsequent turn.
- When a card effect suggests playing a card as an additional card, this means it doesn't count towards the number of cards you have to play this turn.
Planet Earth
Card Types
- Military (10)
- Industrial (10)
- Social (20): These cards have their effect according to your current Dial Position at the moment when you play the card (see below).
Action/Orbital Cards ratio: 28 Action : 12 Orbital
Dial Position: Political Regime
Dial Positions represent your political regime.
- The lower part of the Dial Position shows how many cards you'll have to play depending on the position in which you start your turn. Any changes in your position will affect the number of played cards from your next turn onward.
- Starting your turn in some positions (2 and 1) also allows you to discard 1 or 2 cards at any time during your turn.
- Effects in the middle of the Dial Position activate when you play the corresponding card type while in this position:
- In positions 1, 2, and 3, playing a Social Card provides you with 1 power.
- In positions 4 and 5, playing a Social Card inflicts 1 damage to your own planet.
1: Totalitarianism. Turn start: play 1 card. You may discard up to 2 cards from your hand. For each Social card played in this regime, gain 1 power.
2: Authoritarianism. Turn start: play 2 cards. You may discard 1 card from your hand. For each Social card played in this regime, gain 1 power.
3: Democracy. Turn start: play 3 cards. For each Social card played in this regime, gain 1 power.
4: Neoliberalism. Turn start: play 4 cards. For each Social card played in this regime, take 1 damage.
5: Anarchism. Turn start: play 5 cards. For each Social card played in this regime, take 1 damage.
"And now an exclusive report of the recent terrorist attack in New Sofia! But first, a message from our sponsor, the Roach Church of the Last Day!"
Some card effects (rotate counterclockwise and rotate clockwise) rotate your dial counterclockwise or clockwise. When rotating, for this faction it is allowed to rotate from Dial Position 1 to 5 and from Dial Position 5 to 1.
Faction Skill: Revolution
Once per turn, you may use your faction skill to lose 4 power and:
- Rotate your dial by 2 positions counterclockwise and discard 2 cards, or
- Rotate your dial by 2 positions clockwise and draw 2 cards.
While doing so, you may rotate from 4 to 1, from 5 to 2 or vice versa..
Card FAQ
- Carrier: This card "carries" only Military Action Cards.
- Mobile Infantry: The combat drop strikes any target you like, regardless of its place on the Orbital Line, the Moon Slot, or the enemy planet itself.
- Nuclear Bombardment: You may use this card only while your current Dial Position is 1 or 5. If your position is 2–4 and you play this card, it goes to the discard pile without having any effect (unless it is mounted on a Carrier, which would allow you to wait for the right time when you can use it).
- Quantum Relay Network: The instant communications increase your power gains from all sources, including dial effects of played Social cards.
Planet Arachne
Card Types
- Hatch (12): These cards cost you eggs – rotate your dial counterclockwise.
- If your current Dial Position shows 1 and you play such card, your position stays the same (you cannot rotate from 1 to 5).
- Fertilize (8): These cards provide you with eggs – rotate your dial clockwise.
- If your current Dial Position shows 5 and you play such card, your position stays the same (you cannot rotate from 5 to 1).
- Larvae (20): These cards have their effect according to your current Dial Position at the moment when you play the card (see below).
Action/Orbital Cards ratio: 28 Action : 12 Orbital
Dial Position: Spawn Cycle
Dial Positions represent your spawning capacity.
- The lower part of the Dial Position shows how many cards you'll have to play depending on the position in which you start your turn. Any changes in your position will affect the number of played cards from your next turn onward.
- Effects in the middle of the Dial Position activate when you play the corresponding card type while in this position:
1–3: Larvae Spawn. Turn start: play 1–3 cards. For each Larvae card played in this cycle, gain 1 power.
4–5: Overpopulation. Turn start: play 4–5 cards. If you play a Larvae card, rotate your dial counterclockwise.
Faction Skill: Lay Eggs
Once per turn, you may use your faction skill to sacrifice 3 power and rotate your dial by 1 position clockwise, increasing the number of cards you will play in your next turn.
You cannot rotate from Dial Position 5 to 1.
Card FAQ
- Brain Fungus: Allows you to put back in play a card from a player's discard pile. While doing that, any card effects referring to "your deck", "your discard pile" etc. will affect your own deck and discard pile (for example, if the card effect suggests finding an Industrial Card, it would be useless to you). If a card has specific requirements for playing or activating (see Nuclear Bombardment), ignore it. If it is an Orbital Card, you may place it on your Orbital Line or Moon Slot. If it gets destroyed, it will be discarded to its owner's discard pile.
- Harvesters / Meat Hunters: From the moment you play this card, any damage done to certain targets will provide your planet with power.
- Roach Infestation: If you deal any damage to a planet, shuffle this card in the top 5 cards of the attacked player. If that player ("Infested Player") decides to play this card, they lose 1 power and the card is shuffled again in the top 5 cards of their deck. If an Infestation gets discarded without playing, it goes back to your discard pile.
- Scourge: Look at the top 5 cards of a deck. Count the damage you have dealt to their planet from the start of your turn to the moment of playing this card. You may discard that many cards of those 5 and turn the others back in any order.
"Other news: The Soviet Union of Nations has ordered an immediate colonization of Mars. Government critics expressed concerns that all the colonists appear to be coming from the Arachnid-infested megalopolis of Mumbai."
Mothership Theta
Card Types
- Generator Core (4): It takes up a great portion of your ship space – rotate your dial counterclockwise.
- If your current Dial Position shows 1, playing another Generator Core triggers your faction skill Overload (discard it and draw 3 cards).
- If a Generator Core gets destroyed, discarded, returned to hand etc., rotate back clockwise.
- Ship Device (18): These cards have no special effect, except for Auxiliary Platforms, which provide you with additional ship space – rotate your dial clockwise.
- If an Auxiliary Platform gets destroyed, discarded, returned to hand etc., rotate back counterclockwise.
- Spacecraft (18): Playing a Spacecraft may have an additional effect according to your current Dial Position at the moment when you play the card (see below).
Action/Orbital Cards ratio: 20 Action : 20 Orbital
Dial Position: Operational Space
Dial Positions represent the space in your ship.
- The lower part of the Dial Position shows how many cards you'll have to play depending on the position in which you start your turn. Any changes in your position will affect the number of played cards from your next turn onward.
- Effects in the middle of the Dial Position activate when you play or activate the corresponding card type while in this position:
1–2: Charging Mode. Turn start: play 1–2 cards. Once per turn, gain the indicated amount of power for each placed Generator Core you have.
3–5: Invasion Mode. Turn start: play 3–5 cards. For each Spacecraft played, gain 1 power.
Faction Skill: Overload
Once per turn you may use your faction skill to discard from your hand:
- a Ship Device Card, and draw 2 cards, or
- a Generator Core Card, and draw 3 cards.
Power Consumption
Some of your cards require power for activating their effect (activation cost): Playing the card is free, but activating it costs some power indicated on the card as lose-power icons. If you don't pay the power cost, the card does nothing for this turn.
Certain cards (Generator Core, Accumulator Drones) decrease all activation costs, permanently or only for the turn, for all activated cards.
Example: If you have 3 cards requiring (two lose-power icons) per activation, having 2 Generator Core cards in your play area decreases this cost to 0 for all of them, i.e. you may activate them all for free.
Card FAQ
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Force Shields, Interceptor Drones: For cards which have their effect during another player's turn, the power costs are calculated whenever they are being activated.
If activated, the Force Shield cards reduce some enemy attacks which are about to affect any of your cards or your planet, including mass attacks, regardless of the shield's place on the Orbital Line.
A Force Shield protects only from damage (attack), not from other card effects, and the protection is non-distributable (activating a 3-shield for a 2-attack depletes the shield uses for the turn).
Example: An enemy player uses a Fighter Fleet, dealing 2 damage to everything you have. You activate Force Shield I and it absorbs 1 of the attack. The remaining 1 attack will damage your Mothership by 1 and decrease your Orbital Cards' defense by 1 for the turn.
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Graviton Cannon: This card causes an Orbital Card to fall down from the sky and crash onto an enemy planet. It should be adjacent to the planet, i.e. it must be the card placed on their Moon Slot or the innermost card on their Orbital Line.
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Infiltrators: Look at the top 5 cards of another player, change their order in any way you want (Look Action) and place this card among them. If that player ("Infested Player") decides to play this card, you draw cards from your deck and place the Infiltrators card in your own discard pile. If an Infiltrators card gets discarded without playing, it goes back to your discard pile.
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Overcharge: Allows for use of another Ship Device Card which is also an Orbital Card twice per turn, but the second time you have to pay the full cost (Generator Cores and Accumulator Drones will not reduce it).
"The Mothership Theta: A refugee vessel, or an alien invasion? Follow the live discussion now on the Holovision News Channel!"
Planet Rhea
Card Types
- Protojungle (12): These cards spread the savage species of vegetation on your planet – rotate your dial counterclockwise.
- If your current Dial Position shows 1 and you want to play such card, your position stays the same (you cannot rotate from 1 to 5).
- Pollen (10): These cards spread seeds of your species of vegetation on your planet – rotate your dial clockwise.
- If your current Dial Position shows 5 and you want to play such card, your position stays the same (you cannot rotate from 5 to 1).
- Tree (18): These cards have their effect according to your current Dial Position at the moment when you play the card (see below).
Action/Orbital Cards ratio: 34 Action : 6 Orbital
Dial Position: Protojungle
Dial Positions represent the spreading of your species in the struggle against the savage Protojungle.
- The lower part of the Dial Position shows how many cards you'll have to play depending on the position in which you start your turn. Any changes in your position will affect the number of played cards from your next turn onward.
- Effects in the middle of the Dial Position activate when you play the corresponding card type while in this position:
1: Struggle for Survival. Turn start: play 1 card. If you play a Tree card, rotate your dial clockwise.
2–4: Growth Balance. Turn start: play 2–4 cards. For each Tree card played, gain 1 power.
5: Overshadow. Turn start: play 5 cards. If you play a Tree card, rotate your dial counterclockwise.
Faction Skill: Overgrowth
Once per turn you may use your faction skill to give up growing grounds to the Protojungle and take advantage of its strength and vitality – rotate your dial by 1 position counterclockwise, decreasing the number of cards you will play in next turn, and gain 3 power.
This skill cannot be used when your Dial Position is 1.
Card FAQ
- Blinding Pollen: This card increases all damage from attacks and self damage from parasitic cards taken by enemy planets only.
- Parasites, The Wicked One: These cards affect all players equally (yourself and others, friend and foe). However, playing other cards that increase damage taken affects only enemy players – the owner and their allies will take only the damage from the parasitic card.
- Triffids: Give this card to another player. If that player ("Infested Player") decides to play it, the card enters their deck (top 5 cards). Playing a Flowers of Evil card triggers each Triffids card found in their top 5 cards for 6 damage. If a Triffids card gets discarded without playing, it goes back to its owner's discard pile.
"Since the Rhean intelligence has finally been proven in the now uninhabitable parts of Guyana, left-wing activists took to the streets to protest for plant rights recognition."
The Extinctors
Story
Millennia ago, in the times before intelligent life ever existed in our part of the galaxy, there were two great civilizations: the Moerae and the Plutonians. They were powerful beyond our measure, both in creation and destruction.
There was a war between them. During the galaxy-wide conflict, the Plutonians created the ultimate weapon: the Extinctor Machines, whose only purpose was to wipe out all life. The Extinctors were so effective it only took a handful of them to completely eradicate the Moerae. Determined to complete their purpose, they turned on their creators, utterly destroying the entire Plutonian civilization as well.
Before their annihilation, the Moerae managed to complete their greatest work. When they were at the peak of their power, they implanted the seeds of intelligence in the other, previously uninhabited part of the Galaxy. Eons have passed, and now the core planets of the great ancient civilizations lie in ruins. But their work lives on with us. We and our neighboring solar systems have reached the space stage of evolution just in time to face the horrible legacy of the Plutonians.
It is ironic that nothing less than that could stop us from infighting – and even more so, it is the wars we fought between each other that were the best preparation we could have made in order to survive this threat.
Victory Condition
Coordinate your efforts to eliminate the Extinctor by reducing its power to 0.
Extinctor Setup
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Choose an Extinctor Dial and place it on a convenient space for all players to see. Provide enough space for its Orbital Line (up to 4 cards), its deck, and its discard pile.
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Place nearby the starting power tokens for the Extinctor: it starts with 10 power + 10 power for each player against it.
For example, if there are 3 players, the Extinctor will have 10+3x10=40 starting power.
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Set the starting Dial Position of the Extinctor to the number of players +1.
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Prepare the Extinctor Deck: Separate its Program Cards from the other Extinctor cards. Split the remaining 40 cards into stacks of 10. Shuffle one random face down Program Card into each of the 4 stacks and put them on top of each other to form the deck.
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The players choose their Faction and their Solar Board, draw their starting cards etc.
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The player with the lowest Initiative number on their Solar Board takes the second Extinctor Dial face down, as a first player token. This is the first player.
Card anatomy (example card Combat Bot): faction card type; # of copies in the deck; card type; card effect.
Rounds
- The Extinctor takes the first turn.
- All players, starting from the first player and then going clockwise (the player on their left, then the next, etc.), take their turns.
- The owner of the first player token gives it to the player on their left. A new round begins.
Extinctor Turn Phases
- Consecutively draw and play a number of Extinctor cards equal to their Dial Position for the current turn. Action and Program Cards are activated upon playing. Orbital Cards are first placed, then activated after the Extinctor draws and plays the cards required for their turn. In the end, all cards exceeding the Orbital Line limit are removed.
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Action Cards: Activate immediately, then place them on the discard pile.
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Program Cards: Activate immediately by playing the effect shown on the dial, then the text effects. Place on the discard pile. This card either:
- Increases its Dial Position (the Extinctor will play more cards from the next turn), or
- Makes the Extinctor play X additional cards this turn.
Playing a second Program Card for the turn immediately ends this phase of the Extinctor's turn.
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Orbital Cards: Place them on the Extinctor's Orbital Line in front of the cards already placed, away from the Extinctor Dial.
- Whenever the Extinctor doesn't have enough cards left in its deck to play, shuffle its discard pile and place it as a new deck.
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- Activate the effects of all placed Orbital Cards, starting from the outermost card from the Extinctor Dial, and going inwards.
Targeting Types
The Extinctor activates each of its cards one by one and chooses the target of the card effect according to the icon in the top left corner of the card:
- Life Seeker: Affects the faction with the most power at the moment.
- End Bringer: Affects the faction with the least power at the moment.
- Autonomous Machine: Affects either all factions at the same time, or the Extinctor itself.
Attacks are resolved according to normal rules, targeting the outermost Orbital Cards first, with one exception: if all player defenses on the Orbital Line have been destroyed, the Extinctor cards always target the Moon Slot before targeting the planet.
Extinctor Abilities
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The Space Bender: During each player's turn, the Extinctor and its Orbital Cards have a total of 3 forward defense, which must be reduced before they start losing power or defense points. This means that if targeted by a mass attack (dealing damage to the planet and all Orbital Cards), the attack will decrease the Extinctor's forward defense for each Orbital Card which it would otherwise damage.
For example, if the Extinctor has 2 Orbital Cards and is targeted by attack 1 towards the planet and all Orbital Cards, the forward defense absorbs 3 damage (1 attack vs. each Orbital Card and 1 vs. the Extinctor), and there is none left to use against further attacks.
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The Doom Forge: Whenever the Extinctor plays an Orbital Card and if there are less than 4 cards in its Orbital Line, it plays it as an additional card (i.e. it doesn't count towards the number of Play Actions it has for the turn).
Special rules & Card effects
- The Extinctor is treated as a planet and a faction.
- Infestation Cards like Roach Infestation, Infiltrators, and Triffids played on the Extinctor which are about to enter its deck or hand, are placed on top of its deck instead. During its turn as Infested player, the Extinctor loses a Play Action to discard the Infestation Card and suffers no other effect.
- Extinctor's Eye Bot cards have no effect by themselves. They are just placed on top of a player deck. If drawn, they stay in the player hand until played or until a Program Card effect forces the player to put them in play. They are to be placed at some well visible place near the player's Orbital Line (play area). Once placed, they cannot be removed by any player. Some Extinctor cards refer to them to increase their effects or to move/discard them.
Hard Difficulty
If you need more challenge, simply increase Extinctor's starting power by 10 OR its starting position by 1. Good luck!
Influence Deck
Victory Condition
Acquire Influence Cards worth 8 Influence Points to immediately win the game.
Influence over brute force: If a player loses all of his or her power, but gathers the required amount of Influence Points, that player still wins.
This optional victory condition is recommended for 3- and 4-player competitive games. Each faction has a chance to win the war of the species by strengthening its own positions while entropy or Extinctors lead to the others' inevitable decline.
Setup
- Draw 3 Influence Cards from the Influence Deck and place them face up in view of all players.
- Place the deck nearby.
Claiming an Influence Card
At any time before the turn end, you may check the Influence Cards and take only one of them for which you have fulfilled the conditions in this turn. The condition may be over-fulfilled, i.e. if it requires gaining 5 power and you have gained 6, you may take the card.
If you have finished your turn and haven't noticed you can obtain an Influence Card, too bad! Wait for your next turn!
When an Influence Card is claimed, draw another one to replace it.
Card anatomy (example card Space Invader II): condition for claiming ("Put 2 Orbital cards in play in one turn."); Influence Points; replacing cost.
Replacing cost: Once per turn you may pay a certain amount of power in order to discard the card and replace it with another. You may check if you meet the conditions for claiming the new card.
Game Modes
Vast Space
Tournament rules: This mode is recommended for players who seek to reduce first turns randomness.
Place a pile of Power tokens in the space between all players: 5 power per player.
Before anyone is allowed to attack, infest or affect in any other way another player, this pile must be removed by the collective efforts of all players.
You can close the distance to your rivals in two ways:
- Using Attack cards, deal damage to the pile.
- Using Power Gain cards, remove power tokens from the pile instead of actually gaining power.
This mode can be combined with the Extinctors. They will always go for shortening the distance.
A Nuke in the Back
Semi-cooperative mode: Combination of the Extinctors mode and the Influence Deck. The game is won on 2 conditions:
- The Extinctor is defeated, AND
- You have acquired more Influence Points than the last player.
Civilization(s) which gather the least Influence Points will succumb to their own self destructive tendencies and fall into decline: they are defeated.
If these conditions are met, total winner is the player who gathered the most Influence Points.
In this mode, there is always at least one player who loses the game. Feel free to either help your allies, or use each opportunity to gain some Influence Points, or both. After all, politics on planetary level is complicated. Don't forget, you can always blame the terrorists!
The Enemy of My Enemy
Teams 2 vs. 2: The game is won when a team of 2 players gains Influence Cards worth a total of 12 Influence Points.
- Players of the same team may not start the game one next to another. There must be an enemy between them.
- If a player is eliminated due to loss of power, his or her teammate keeps all gathered Influence Points and continues alone. In the case of a win, that player is the sole winner.
Rules Overview
Turn Order
- Play as many cards as shown on the lower part of the Dial Position at the start of your turn.
- Check for Influence Cards claim conditions (at any time).
- Fill your hand with up to 5 cards.
Card Types
- Action: Play and discard.
- Orbital: Play and place anywhere on the Orbital Line or on a Moon Slot. You may activate its effect once per turn, starting from this turn, until destroyed or otherwise discarded.
- Leader: Play and place on a Leader Slot (discard any previously placed Leader Card). You may activate its effect once per turn, starting from this turn, until discarded.
Card Effects
- Multiple Attacks: Target the outermost card on the Orbital Line. If your damage exceeds its defense, carry the excessive damage to an adjacent target (the next Orbital Card, or the enemy planet or moon if there are no Orbital Cards).
- Single Target Attack: Target the outermost card on the Orbital Line (or the enemy planet or moon if there are no Orbital Cards). If the target is destroyed, excessive damage cannot be carried to the next target.
- Defense: If attack damage directed at this card equals or exceeds its defense number, the card is destroyed (discard it). Otherwise, at the end of the attacker's turn the defense is restored.
- Gain Power: Take the corresponding amount of power tokens from the pile.
- Lose Power (self damage): Return the corresponding amount of power tokens to the pile.
- Rotate counterclockwise / Rotate clockwise: Rotate your dial counterclockwise or clockwise, respectively.
- Look/Reveal: Secretly look / show everyone the cards you are allowed to see or choose, then place them back on top of the deck in any order you like.
- Shuffle a card in the top X cards: Take the top X cards of the specified deck, add the card, shuffle them together and place them back on top of the deck.
- If a card which influences your Dial Position gets destroyed, discarded, returned to hand etc., rotate your dial back in the reverse direction.
Planet Earth
- Military
- Industrial
- Social: In Dial Positions 1–3 gain 1 power, and in Dial Positions 4 and 5 take 1 damage for each Social Card you play while in the respective position.
Planet Arachne
- Hatch: Rotate your dial counterclockwise (not less than 1).
- Fertilize: Rotate your dial clockwise (no more than 5).
- Larvae: In Dial Position 1–3 gain 1 power per played Larva Card. In Dial Position 4–5 rotate your dial counterclockwise.
Planet Rhea
- Protojungle: Rotate your dial counterclockwise (not less than 1).
- Pollen: Rotate your dial clockwise (no more than 5).
- Tree: In Dial Position 1 rotate your dial clockwise and in Dial Position 5 – counterclockwise. In Dial Position 2–4 gain 1 power per played Tree Card.
Mothership Theta
- Generator Core: In Dial Position 1–2 gain once per turn the indicated amount of power for each placed Generator Core you have.
- Spacecraft: In Dial Position 3–5 gain 1 power per played Spacecraft Card.