Astraios: Starlight
Astraios: Starlight Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Number of Players
2 to 4 players.
Components
- Glow-in-the-Dark Tiles x 60
- Nebula Tokens x 32
Game Overview
This is a tile-placement puzzle game where players take turns placing tiles one by one to form enclosed shapes by connecting white lines. An enclosed shape becomes a constellation, which belongs to the player who completed it.
The stars that make up the constellation determine the score, and the player with the highest total score at the end of the game wins.
Examples of enclosed shapes (diagram on the sheet).
About the Tiles
There are 60 tiles in total, divided into three types:
- With no Star (16)
- A Regular Star (44)
- A First-Magnitude Star (6), marked with a star and the name "Deneb"
Line variation tiles: 12 types.
Game Setup
- Shuffle all tiles face down and create a draw pile.
- In a 2-3 player game, players compete against each other. In a 4-player game, players form teams (2vs2), and teammates should sit alternately (A1-B1-A2-B2).
- Each player draws three tiles from the draw pile as their starting hand. These tiles are placed face up for everyone to see.
- Draw one tile from the draw pile and place it face-up in the center of the table as the starting tile.
- Each player takes the Nebula Tokens of one color and places them nearby.
- Determine the starting player via rock-paper-scissors, then proceed clockwise.
The setup diagram shows the draw pile, the starting tile, each player's Player Tokens (8 per player), and the Player Tiles (3, always face up) laid out for teams A and B (A1, A2 on Team A; B1, B2 on Team B).
How to Play
On a player's turn, they perform the following actions in order (passing is prohibited):
Place a Tile/Move a Tile → (Place a Token) → Draw a New Tile
Place a Tile
Choose a tile from your hand and place it adjacent to an existing tile on the play area. The new tile must either connect an existing line or have the potential to connect in the future.
- Place a tile adjacent to an existing tile on the play area.
- Connect to an existing line or have the potential to connect in the future.
- A tile cannot be placed where it ends the line.
Tiles can be placed in any orientation, as long as they meet the above condition. Tiles can be rotated 90 degrees.
Move a Tile
If the previous player completed a constellation (formed an enclosed shape), the active player can choose to move an existing tile or placing a new one.
When you choose to move a tile, select a non-constellation tile from the play area and reposition it following the same placement rules.
You may not move a tile if doing so would leave any other tile completely isolated, not adjacent to any other tile, orthogonally or diagonally.
Place a Nebula Token (Completing a Constellation)
When a tile is placed, forming a closed shape, a constellation is completed, and belongs to the player who completed it. To indicate ownership of the constellation, place one of your nebula tokens on a tile inside the constellation (must be placed as long as the token is available).
Completing Multiple Constellations at the Same Time
If multiple constellations are completed at once, the player places one token per constellation. If the player runs out of tokens, they must choose which constellation to claim.
Unclaimed constellations remain neutral and cannot be claimed later.
Each player only has 8 nebula tokens, so be strategic in creating constellations.
Dividing Constellations
If a constellation has an open space in the middle, a token must be placed on one specific tile inside the constellation. Later, if a tile is placed in the empty space, the constellation may be divided.
The ownership of the resulting constellations is determined by the location of the original token. Plan carefully when placing tokens to maintain control over large constellations!
Diagram: a player (red token) completes a constellation. If the game ends here, 5 points are awarded. In the second diagram, a player (blue token) places the central tile and divides the constellation in two: the red player earns 4 points and the blue player earns 3 points.
Name the Constellations
When a constellation is created, name it using your imagination!
Play Area
The universe is limitless. There are no restrictions on the size of the play area.
End of Turn
After placing a tile, draw 1 tile from the draw pile to refill your hand to 3. The next player takes their turn.
The game ends when all tiles are placed and no actions remain.
Scoring
After the game ends, players collect their tokens while adding up the points from the stars in their completed constellations as follows:
- Regular stars = 1 point each
- First-magnitude stars = 3 points each
The player or team with the highest total score wins!
Glow-in-the-Dark Tiles
All tiles are printed with glow-in-the-dark ink. When exposed to light, they glow blue in the dark. If the tiles have been stored in a box for a long time, recharge them using sunlight, a smartphone flashlight, a UV light, or a regular flashlight.
Avoid water exposure and direct sunlight, as they may cause damage over time.