Mechs vs. Minions
135 questions players ask about Mechs vs. Minions. Pick one for the answer. See also the full rulebook.
Updated 2026-11-03.
Campaign, Setup and Missions
- Can Mechs vs. Minions be played solo?
- Do cards and schematics unlocked in earlier missions carry over to later missions?
- Do Team Gears (and the Command Line) reset at the start of each mission?
- When replaying an earlier mission, do I have to remove the cards unlocked later?
- How do I reset the campaign and put unlocked cards back?
- Can I play individual missions out of order, or start a new group mid-campaign?
- In what order are the missions played?
- Can the number of players change from one mission to the next?
- Is a mission won or lost the moment its objective is met, or only at the end of the turn or round?
Drafting and Programming
- How long should the sand timer run, and can I play without it?
- When does the draft timer start being used in Mission 1?
- How many Command Cards does each player draft with fewer than four players?
- Which draft is the double draft, and how many cards do I get in it?
- Does Memory Core let the team draft more than four cards?
- Does Memory Core do anything when its owner is not the First Player?
- Can I decide to scrap a drafted card while programming, rather than during the pick?
- Do I have to use a drafted card or its scrap effect, or can I just discard it?
- Can I scrap or discard a card that is already in my Command Line?
- Do players program in turn order, and can I put both of my cards in one slot?
Command Cards and Stacks
- If I play a card of the same element on a slot, must I stack it and can I go back down a level?
- Can I place a card of a different element over a programmed slot?
- Can I carry out a stacked card at a lower power level than its stack?
- Are Command Card actions optional?
- Can I move fewer spaces than a Move card says?
- Does 'turn to face any direction' allow keeping my current facing, and which way does a 90-degree turn go?
- Are 'left' and 'right' on a card measured from the Mech, and what do color directions mean?
- Can Omnistomp move backward, toward an edge, or be redirected mid-move?
Movement, Pushing and Towing
- How does towing work, and what does it cost?
- With 3 or 4 movement, can I tow some spaces and step normally for the rest?
- Do I have to be next to the Bomb or Mech when the move starts to tow it?
- Where does the towed Mech or Bomb end up, and does it always sit directly behind me?
- Is towing optional, and can the towed Mech refuse?
- Can I tow a Mech or Bomb that is directly in front of me?
- Can pushes be chained through several Mechs or the Bomb, and can tows be chained?
- How much movement does it cost to push a Mech one space?
- Can I use a move toward a wall or the board edge to avoid moving?
- Does moving through Minions kill every Minion on my path, or just the one at the destination?
Oil, Lava, Spikes and Rune Gates
- Can a Mech or the Bomb be pushed or towed through an active Rune Gate?
- Do I have to stop on a Repair Pad or Rune Space to use it?
- Does the Boss heal on a Repair Pad, and can the Bomb be repaired by scrapping cards?
- How far does something slide on an Oil Slick?
- If a move carries me onto oil, do I finish the rest of the move after sliding?
- What does a sliding Mech do to Minions, Mechs and the Bomb in its path?
- If a towing Mech slides on oil, does the towed Mech or Bomb slide too?
- Does a Minion that spawns on oil slide, and does the Boss slide?
- What happens when a Mech steps onto a Lava Pool?
- How much damage does a Spike Wall do, and when?
Attacks and Ranges
- Can Fuel Tank detonate if it is not on top of the stack?
- Does a higher-range attack also hit targets at the shorter ranges?
- Does range count diagonals, board edges and Massive Boulders?
- What does 'at any range' on an attack card mean?
- Do Attack Commands hurt my own Mechs or the Bomb?
- Can I aim Chain Lightning or Hexmatic Aimbot at an empty space, and must an attack hit something?
- Which way does Ripsaw fire, and how far does it reach?
- What blocks Ripsaw?
- Can an attack other than Ripsaw pass through another Mech?
- If a Minion and a Crystal Shard share a space, does one hit destroy both?
Damage and the Minion Phase
- Are the Command Cards under a Slot Damage card lost?
- If lava or a Spike Wall hurts me while I'm resolving minion damage, when is the new damage drawn?
- How exactly do I take damage from several adjacent Minions?
- If a Damage Card moves me next to more Minions, do I take extra damage?
- In what order do Minions attack Mechs and the Bomb, and can one Minion hit several targets?
- When does Slot Damage take effect?
- Can Slot Damage land on an empty or already-damaged slot?
- Can I repair a Damage Card (for example on a Repair Pad) while I am still resolving it?
- How do I repair System Damage?
- What is the order of the Minion Phase?
Schematics, Team Gears and Overdrive
- What does the Tech Support schematic cost to unlock?
- How many Schematics can I bring to a mission, and which ones?
- How often can a Schematic be used, and must I use it the moment it unlocks?
- Are Schematic and Overdrive effects optional?
- If I earn a Schematic partway through my Command Line, can it affect later slots?
- When both an Overdrive and a Schematic say 'before you execute your Command Line', which goes first, and when can Overdrive repair?
- Do I keep counting Minion kills (and kill-triggered Schematics) after reaching Overdrive?
- Can Tristana's Rocket Jump go diagonally?
- Does Rocket Jump slide on oil, tow, push or stomp along the way?
The Boss
- How does the 2x2 Boss move when told to move one space?
- Is the Boss affected by oil, lava, Spike Walls, Rune Gates or Repair Pads?
- What happens to Minions the Boss moves onto?
- Can player Mechs push, tow, stomp or Skewer the Boss?
- Does the Boss push Mechs, and does the push hurt them?
- Can Ripsaw damage the Boss, and does he block it?
- Does the Boss count as a 'Mech' for card text and game rules?
- How long does a Boss Rune Shield stay down?
- Can one attack or Schematic damage the Boss more than once?
- What color is a Schematic's damage against the Boss?
Mission-Specific Rules
- In Mission 1, what if the Bomb is pushed onto the Repair Pad while a Minion stands on it?
- Does Mission 1 add new Damage Cards to the deck?
- In Mission 10, can I deactivate Rune Shields and gates while the super-shield is up?
- In the tutorial (Mission 0), do Crystal Shards count as Minions for attacks?
- How do Minions move in Mission 2, and what changes on the center tile?
- In Mission 2, is picking up a Crystal Shard optional?
- Is the School a wall or obstacle for movement and attacks?
- In Mission 4, do Mechs that reach the goal stop playing, and how do I set up the compass?
- In Mission 5, how do I orient the Crystal Compass and when does the lava start moving?
- How much damage does the Mission 5 Lava Wall do to Mechs it pushes?