Galaxy's Edge Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Components
  • 30 Sector Tiles
  • 5 Loyalty Pledges
  • 28 Event Cards
  • 80 Colony Tokens
  • 80 Military Tokens
  • 1 Event Die
  • 4 Flagships
  • 4 Ban Markers
• Setup
  • Special game term definition: Vicinity
• Turn Order
• On Your Turn
  • Move Your Flagship
  • Build One Colony
  • Build One Base
  • Roll the Event Die
    • Drawing Event Cards
    • Playing Event Cards
  • Determine Military Control
  • Conquering
• Ending Your Turn
• Loyalty Pledges
  • Crystalloids
  • The Hive
  • Humanoids
  • Saplenti
  • Wargers
• Event Cards
  • Alien Embassy
  • Cultural Takeover
  • Discovery Mission
  • Forcefield
  • Rebellion
  • Surprise Attack
  • Wormhole
• Game End and Scoring
  • Scoring Example

Overview

Your overall objective in the game is to score the most points at the game's end. Points are mainly earned for building colonies in the many star systems of varying value. Bonus points can be won by earning the loyalty of various alien species while satisfying their specific requirements.

Throughout the game you will need to support your colonization efforts with military strategy, which in turn will allow you to conquer valuable opposing colonies and thus score more points. Obtaining and keeping alien loyalties will be an important factor in determining a winner, and the diverse Event cards can be used to further your goals in a number of ways.

Components

30 Sector Tiles

Hexagonal tiles that represent sectors of the galaxy. Each sector contains up to four planetary systems, represented as encircled stars of different sizes. The size of the star, and the number connected to its circle, indicates how valuable this system will be for colonists. These values range from 1 (the least valuable) to 9 (the most valuable). The area of each sector not occupied by systems is referred to as deep space.

Additionally, each sector is inhabited by one of the five specific alien species: Crystalloids, The Hive, Humanoids, Saplenti, and Wargers. A sector's species is indicated by the color and design of its border.

5 Loyalty Pledges

One loyalty pledge for each alien species. Loyalty pledges (pledges) will change hands over the course of the game, and indicate the loyalty of a species to the player holding the pledge. At the end of the game, each pledge will be worth a bonus to the player that currently holds it. The end-of-game bonuses are described in detail in the Loyalty Pledges section.

28 Event Cards

Players will use these cards to trigger special events that will affect the game in different ways. There are seven different types of Event Cards. The events are described on the cards themselves, and in greater detail in the Event Cards section.

80 Colony Tokens

20 discs in each player color. The colony tokens represent player colonies on the board.

80 Military Tokens

20 triangles in each player color. The military tokens represent player military bases (bases) on the board.

During the game, bases are placed as stacks of 1 to 3 tokens; stacks of different heights represent bases of the three different Classes:

• Class 1 Base: 1 token
• Class 2 Base: 2-token stack
• Class 3 Base: 3-token stack

A base's Class is permanent; once it is placed on the board, it cannot be changed from one Class to another.

Bases and colonies are collectively referred to as installations throughout the rules.

1 Event Die

The six-sided die will be used when colonies and bases are built, to control placement of the bans and to permit the drawing of and usage of Event cards.

4 Flagships

One flagship in each player color. Flagships will be moved around the game board to serve as focal points of military activity. Flagships are always positioned in the deep space of whatever sector they occupy; they are never considered to be "in" a system.

4 Ban Markers

1 octagonal Ban marker in each player color. Ban markers (bans) will be used to indicate that a sector is off-limits for building colonies and bases.

Setup

Shuffle the sectors and lay them face up to form the game board. Assemble the tiles into the overall shape as shown in the illustration; the actual arrangement of the sectors within the shape will be different in every game. (Orientation of the individual sectors is not important.)

The easiest way to assemble the shape may be to start with the central horizontal row of 6 sectors, then to build the shorter rows upwards and downwards from there.

Place the Event Die near the board.

Shuffle the Event Cards and deal 2 event cards to each player. The players keep the cards hidden in their hand. Place the rest of the deck face down near the game board.

Assign each player a color. Each player gets all of the installations (colonies and bases), the flagship, and the ban of this color. Unused colors (if any) are returned to the box.

Randomly select a starting player. Moving counterclockwise around the table, each player places their flagship into the deep space of one of the outer sectors of the board. (Only outer sectors are eligible; sectors that are not outer sectors are ineligible.) During this initial placement, a flagship cannot be placed in the vicinity of an already-placed rival flagship.

Special game term definition: Vicinity

At some points during the game, the distance limitation called vicinity will be referenced. Something is "in the vicinity" of a given object if it is in the same sector, or if it is in an adjacent sector.

• Example 1: All seven sectors shown (a central sector and its six neighbors) and everything contained within them are in the vicinity of Yellow's colony in the central sector.
• Example 2: Green is last to place his flagship. He may not place it in any of the outer sectors marked with an X, because they are all in the vicinity of an already-placed rival flagship.

Turn Order

The play moves clockwise around the table. The player who placed their flagship last will make the first move, and play continues with each player taking their turn until the game is over and a winner is determined.

On Your Turn

On your turn, you can take the following actions once each in whatever order you choose, and you can forfeit either or both actions if you wish.

• Move your flagship.
• Build one colony or Build one base.

After you have completed your actions, you might have to:

• Roll the Event Die.
• Establish Military Control.

Move Your Flagship

Move your flagship from its current position to the deep space of an adjacent sector.

Flagships can be moved to any adjacent sector even if other flagships or bans are present.

Example: Red can move her flagship to any of the three sectors indicated.

Build One Colony

To build a colony, place a colony from your supply onto an empty system, following the rules below.

You can build a colony in a particular system if:

1. You have an existing installation in the system's vicinity or
2. Your flagship is present in the system's sector.

You can not build a colony in a system if there is a ban in the system's sector, or if there is already an installation in that system.

Example: Red could build a colony in any one of the empty systems marked with "V" or "F". Systems marked with "V" are eligible because they have existing Red installations in the vicinity. The system marked with "F" is eligible because it is in the same sector as Red's flagship. Note that Red cannot build in the system marked "B" even though there are Red installations in the vicinity, because Blue's ban is in that sector. To build in any of the eligible locations, Red would simply place a colony from her stockpile into the system circle.

Build One Base

To build a base, take a stack of 1 to 3 military tokens from your supply and place the stack onto an empty system, following the rules below. This creates a military base of the Class corresponding to the number of tokens in the stack. Choose carefully, as once a base has been placed, it cannot be changed from one Class to another.

You can only build a base in a system if your flagship is present in the system's sector. You can not build a base in a system if there is a ban in the system's sector, or if there is already an installation in that system.

Example: The only eligible system in which Red could build a base is marked "F". This system is the only empty system in the sector currently occupied by her flagship. Red could build a base of any Class there by stacking the appropriate number of Military tokens. Note that Green can not currently build a base, since there are no empty systems in the sector currently occupied by his flagship.

Roll the Event Die

If you built an installation on your turn, you must roll the die at the end of your turn. Depending on the die roll result, you will take a different action:

• Own ban symbol: You must take your ban (from wherever it is currently positioned) and place it in the deep space of the sector in which you built.
• Next player's ban symbol: You must take the next player's ban (from wherever it is currently positioned) and place it in the deep space of the sector in which you built.
• Event card symbol: You can either draw the top event card from the deck and add it to your hand, or you can play an event card from your hand, or you can do nothing.

Drawing Event Cards

Upon rolling an event card symbol, you might choose to draw the top event card from the deck. If the deck becomes exhausted during the game, it is not replenished; in such a case, players will not be able to choose this option for the remainder of the game.

Playing Event Cards

Upon rolling an event card symbol, you might choose to play one of the cards from your hand. Each of the cards introduces a special event that may alter the ordinary course of the game to your advantage. To play a card, show the card to all players and follow directions on the card itself. See the Event Cards section for details on all seven different event cards.

If you did not build an installation on your turn, you do not roll the Event Die.

Determine Military Control

If by building an installation you occupied the last empty system in its sector, the sector is completed and you must determine military control. Military Control is determined by the bases in the vicinity of the just-completed sector. You will check first Class 1 bases, then (if necessary) Class 2 bases, and finally (if necessary) Class 3 bases to determine if any one player can claim Military Control of the sector.

To determine Military Control:

• Check the vicinity of the just-completed sector for Class 1 bases. If the only Class 1 bases in the vicinity belong to one player, that player claims Control, and follows the rules in the Conquering section. (Note that the number of Class 1 bases a player has does not matter; the only way to claim Control is by being the only player with Class 1 bases in the vicinity.)
• If nobody can claim Control using Class 1 bases: Check the vicinity in the same fashion, but this time look at only Class 2 bases.
• If nobody can claim Control using Class 1 or Class 2 bases: Check the vicinity in the same fashion, but this time look at only Class 3 bases.
• If nobody can claim Control using Class 1, Class 2, or Class 3 bases: There is no Military Control of this sector, and the Conquering section is skipped.

Example 1: Green builds a colony in the Warger value-3 system, and the action completes that Warger sector. We first check the sectors in the vicinity to see if any player can claim Military Control using Class 1 bases. As it turns out, only Green has any Class 1 bases in the vicinity, so Green claims Military Control of the newly-completed sector and wins a Conquering action. Sadly for Green there is no rival colony in the sector to conquer, so the Conquering action is lost.

Example 2: Green builds a colony in the Crystalloid value-6 system, and the action completes that Crystalloid sector. We first check the sectors in the vicinity to see if any player can claim Military Control using Class 1 bases. This time, both Red and Green have Class 1 bases in the vicinity, so neither player can claim Military Control using them. (Note that this is true even though Green has more Class 1 bases in the vicinity than Red does.) Next we check the sectors in the vicinity to see if any player can claim Military Control using Class 2 bases. As it turns out, only Red has any Class 2 bases in the vicinity, so Red has Military Control of the newly-completed sector and wins a Conquering action. Red will conquer the most-valuable rival colony in the sector, which in this case happens to be the Green value-6 colony that was just built! (An unfortunate mistake by Green!) Red will replace that colony with one from her supply, and Green's displaced colony will be returned to his supply.

Conquering

The player that establishes Military Control of the just-completed sector according to the method above can conquer exactly one colony in it. To conquer, the player replaces the most-valuable rival colony in the sector. If there is no rival colony in the sector, (or if the most-valuable rival colony in the sector is protected by an active Forcefield card) the conquering player does nothing.

Please note that claiming Military Control can happen a maximum of once per sector per game, and only immediately after the sector is completed; adding more bases around it later on has no effect.

Ending Your Turn

Once you have taken (or forfeited) your two actions, rolled the event die (if necessary) and established military control (if necessary), your turn ends and play passes to the next player in clockwise order. Play continues in this fashion until the game ends, and a winner is determined!

Loyalty Pledges

Each sector is inhabited by one of the five alien species. A sector's species is indicated by the color and design of the border. Obtaining the loyalty pledges of the species can be very valuable for the players, and can make the difference between winning and losing.

At any point during the game, if you have colonies in more sectors of a given species than any other player does, you can claim the loyalty of that species. Make the claim, and receive the corresponding loyalty pledge; keep it face up in front of you. You can hold this pledge until someone else colonizes more of that species' sectors than you have, and claims the pledge as their own. The player holding the pledge at the end of the game receives the benefits brought by it. The species and their benefits are detailed below.

Remember that claiming alien loyalty is based simply on the number of sectors you have colonized corresponding to that species, and that the number of colonies you have in those sectors is not relevant.

Crystalloids

Silicon-based lifeforms that are well-adapted to survive in the harshest of environments.

Bonus: Score 5 bonus points for each colony of yours on a system of value 1.

Example: At the end of the game, Yellow holds the Crystalloid pledge. Yellow has two colonies on value 1 systems, so she scores (5 + 5) 10 bonus points. Note that Yellow's base on the value 1 system does not earn bonus points; colonies only.

The Hive

A collective species that thrives in huge numbers.

Bonus: Score bonus points as detailed below for each sector in which you have more than one colony.

• 2-Colony sector: 2 pts
• 3-Colony sector: 5 pts
• 4-Colony sector: 9 pts

Example: At game end, Blue has The Hive's pledge. There is one sector with 2 Blue colonies, and one sector with 3 Blue colonies. Blue therefore earns (2 + 5) 7 bonus points. Note that the central Warger sector does not earn any bonus points; although there are multiple Blue installations there, there must be multiple colonies in a sector for it to earn the bonus.

Humanoids

Ambassadors and traders, experts in diplomacy.

Bonus: Score bonus points as detailed below for each sector in which you and other players have colonies.

• You + 1 player: 2 pts
• You + 2 players: 5 pts
• You + 3 players: 9 pts

Example: At the end of the game, Green has the Humanoids pledge. There is one sector in which Green and two other players have colonies, and two sectors in which Green and one other player have colonies. Green therefore earns (5 + 2 + 2) 9 bonus points. Remember that bases of all players are not considered when tallying this bonus; colonies only.

Saplenti

Gentle and peaceful intelligent plant-beings.

Bonus:

• If you are the single player with the fewest military bases, score 15 bonus points;
• If you are tied for fewest bases, score 8 points;
• If any player has fewer bases than you, there is no bonus.

Example: At the end of the game, Red has the Saplenti pledge. Red and Blue both have two bases each. Yellow and Green both have three bases each. This means that Red is tied for fewest bases, so she earns 8 bonus points. Note that the Class of the bases is not considered when tallying this bonus; each base counts as only 1 base, no matter its Class.

Wargers

A martial civilization of sentient robots.

Bonus:

• If you are the single player with the most military bases, score 15 bonus points;
• If you are tied for most bases, score 8 points;
• If any player has more bases than you, there is no bonus.

Example: At the end of the game, Yellow has the Wargers pledge. Yellow has three bases. Green has two bases, while Red and Blue each have only one base. This means that Yellow has the most bases, so she earns 15 bonus points. Note that the Class of the bases is not considered when tallying this bonus; each base counts as only 1 base, no matter its Class.

Event Cards

During the Roll The Event Die phase of your turn (if it occurs; not every turn features that phase), you might get the opportunity to play an Event Card from your hand. To play a card, simply show the card to all players and follow directions on the card itself. There are seven different event cards in the game, and each is described and expanded upon below. While the text on the cards will be enough to enable you to carry out the event, this section will help clarify a few minor points and provides examples of use.

Once a card has been discarded according to its instructions, it is removed from the game; the discard pile is never reshuffled.

Alien Embassy

Place one of your colony tokens on any one loyalty pledge. The token stays on that pledge* regardless of who owns it, and adds 1 to your tally of colonized sectors when calculating that species' loyalty. Discard this card.

*Any number of tokens from any number of players can coexist on a single pledge.

Example: Green plays the Alien Embassy card and puts one of his colony tokens onto the Wargers pledge (currently held by Yellow). Green adds 1 to his tally of colonized Wargers sectors (total: 2) and is able to claim the Wargers pledge from Yellow (total: 1).

Cultural Takeover

Select a sector with at least 4 of your colonies in the vicinity. Replace the least-valuable rival colony in that sector* with one of your own. Discard this card.

*A sector may not be selected if the least-valuable rival colony there is protected by an active Forcefield card.

Example: Yellow plays the Cultural Takeover card and selects the Saplenti sector (eligible because Yellow has 4 colonies in the vicinity). The least-valuable rival colony in the sector is Blue's value-5 colony, so Yellow replaces that colony with one of her own.

Discovery Mission

Choose a sector (with no Ban) in which you have no colonies or military bases. Colonize the least-valuable available system in the sector. Resolve Military Control if necessary*. Discard this card.

*If playing this card completes the chosen sector, Military Control can be established according to the normal rules.

Example: Blue plays the Discovery Mission card and chooses the Wargers sector (eligible because there are no Blue installations in it and because there is no ban there). Blue places a colony in the value 4 system of that sector since that is the least-valuable available system there.

Forcefield

Play this card face up in front of you. While this card is in play, none of your colonies may be removed by any means, including rival Military Control, Surprise Attacks, and/or Cultural Takeovers. Discard this card after your next turn.

Example: Red plays the Forcefield card and places it face up in front of herself. Until the end of her next turn, all of her colonies are protected by the forcefield and cannot be removed from the board by any means. Note that her bases do not benefit from the forcefield's protection.

Rebellion

Select a sector for which you hold the loyalty pledge*. Replace a rival military base in that sector with one of your colonies. Discard this card.

*For example, if you hold the pledges for Saplenti and Wargers, you may only select a Saplenti or Warger sector.

Example: Green holds the Saplenti pledge, and plays the Rebellion card. Green can replace one base in a Saplenti sector with one of his colonies, so he chooses Red's base on the desirable value 5 system.

Surprise Attack

Select an incomplete sector that has at least one of your military bases in the vicinity. Replace the most-valuable rival colony in that sector* with one of your own. Discard this card.

*A sector may not be selected if the most-valuable rival colony there is protected by an active Forcefield card.

Example: Red plays the Surprise Attack card and selects the incomplete Wargers sector (eligible because Red has a base in the vicinity). Red replaces the most-valuable rival colony in the sector (Yellow's value 9 colony) with one of her own.

Wormhole

Choose any one flagship and move it to any sector you wish, regardless of distance. Discard this card.

Example: Blue plays the Wormhole card and moves his flagship from its current position to the distant Crystalloid sector shown.

Game End and Scoring

The game ends when all players take consecutive turns without anybody building an installation. At this point, calculate the score for each player to determine the winner. It is important to calculate the bonus scores for loyalty pledges first, then once everyone has done that, to calculate the points for colonized systems. (Players must make sure to track their scores as they go, as they will be adding up several different numbers to arrive at a final total.)

1. Count the number of military bases built by each player and thus calculate the bonuses for the players with Saplenti and Warger loyalty according to the details on those pledges.
2. Count the number of sectors that contain multiple colonies belonging to the player with The Hive loyalty to determine that bonus according to the details on the pledge.
3. Count the number of sectors that contain colonies belonging to both the player with the Humanoids loyalty and to other players, to determine that bonus according to the details on the pledge.
4. Count the number of systems of value 1 colonized by the player with Crystalloid loyalty, to determine that bonus according to the details on the pledge.
5. Now, all players sum up all values of their colonized systems (colonies only; bases do not earn any points). This is their score from colonies. The easiest way to do this is to remove colonies from the board as their scores are recorded; another tip is to tally your colonies in groupings of 10 points at a time, to make addition simpler. It is a good idea to score one player at a time, so that confusion is limited and results can be verified.
6. Add your score from colonies to any bonuses you earned from loyalty pledges. The player with the greatest score wins the game! (In the rare event of a tie for most points, the victory is shared between the tied players.)

Scoring Example

(Example uses only 7 sectors; you will of course calculate for the entire board.) Keep the pledges handy while you read this, so that you will fully understand the species bonuses.

• Yellow has the most bases, so gets 15 points for the Wargers bonus.
• Red is tied for fewest bases, so gets 8 points for the Saplenti bonus.
• Red has one 2-colony sector and one 3-colony sector, so earns 7 points for The Hive bonus.
• Blue has 1 one-other-player sector and 1 two-other-players sector, so earns 7 points for the Humanoids bonus.
• Blue has two colonies on value-1 systems, so earns 10 points for the Crystalloids bonus.
• From colonies, Red earns 22 points, Blue earns only 2 points, and Yellow earns 13 points.

Final scores in this miniature example are:

• Red: Saplenti 8 + The Hive 7 + colonies 22 = 37
• Blue: Humanoids 7 + Crystalloids 10 + colonies 2 = 19
• Yellow: Wargers 15 + colonies 13 = 28

Red has scored the most points and is the winner of the game!