Mission to Mars 2049 Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• 1.0 Game Components
  • 1.1 The Game Board (see page 7)
  • 1.2 Building Tokens
    • 1.2.1 Bases (see page 9)
    • 1.2.2 Resource Stations (see page 10)
    • 1.2.3 Laboratories (see page 10)
    • 1.2.4 Road to H2O Station (see page 11)
    • 1.2.5 H2O Station (see page 11)
  • 1.3 Cards and resources
    • 1.3.1 Resource Cards (see page 10)
    • 1.3.2 Resource Tokens (see page 10)
    • 1.3.3 Road Cards (see page 11)
    • 1.3.4 Mission Cards (see page 12)
  • 1.4 The Game Die (see page 8)
• 2.0 Starting setup
  • 2.1 The Game Bank
  • 2.2 Building Tokens
• 3.0 How to play
  • 3.1 Where do I put my First Base?
  • 3.2 Starting resources
  • 3.3 Your First Base and Resource Stations
  • 3.3 Who starts the game?
  • 3.4 What can I do during my game turn?
    • 3.4.1 Always start your game turn with rolling the Die.
    • 3.4.2 After rolling the Die you can do any of these:
    • 3.4.2 When done say "I'm done!" and give the Die to the next player.
  • 3.5 Symbols on the Game Die
  • 3.6 How does building work?
• 4.0 Mission Cards
  • 4.1 Peaceful Mission Cards
  • 4.1 Aggressive Mission Cards
• 5.0 Tournament rules (Optional)
• 6. Recommendations and tactics (Optional)
• 7. F.A.Q. (Optional)

1.0 Game Components

Welcome to Mission to Mars 2049! This book will guide you through the game components and the game rules so that you can start playing as soon as possible! If you only want to grasp the most important bits of rules then read only the information highlighted in yellow.

(In the printed book, the most important rules are highlighted in yellow. Those highlights are not reproduced here.)

1.1 The Game Board (see page 7)

The Game Board shows the map of the Northern Hemisphere of Mars. You start the game with a Base on the outside of the map. The objective of the game is to build an H2O Station in the center of the map before any other player does.

1.2 Building Tokens

1.2.1 Bases (see page 9)

You build Bases to move your colony closer to the North Pole. You can only build new buildings next to your bases.

1.2.2 Resource Stations (see page 10)

Build these to acquire much needed resources.

1.2.3 Laboratories (see page 10)

Laboratories allow you to trade resources at a better rate. The default exchange rate is 4:1. Laboratories improve this exchange rate to 3:1 or even 2:1.

1.2.4 Road to H2O Station (see page 11)

To build an H2O Station you first need to build a Road through the North Pole.

1.2.5 H2O Station (see page 11)

Whoever builds the H2O Extraction Station on the Polar Ice Cap first wins the game.

1.3 Cards and resources

1.3.1 Resource Cards (see page 10)

You need resources to pay for things you want to build or buy. There are three types of resources in the game: Air, Food and Minerals.

1.3.2 Resource Tokens (see page 10)

Use Resource Tokens when your colony grows richer and you have too many resources to hold in your hands. Resource Tokens, unlike the regular Resource Cards, are protected from stealing.

1.3.3 Road Cards (see page 11)

Road Cards are different from Resource Cards. You can only acquire them by rolling the "Discovery" symbol on the Die or by buying them from the bank. The only purpose of the Road Cards is to build a Road to the H2O Station.

1.3.4 Mission Cards (see page 12)

There are two types of Mission Cards in the game. Peaceful missions can help you progress faster in the game. Aggressive missions can help you stop an opponent who is too far ahead. Taking a Mission Card is always a risk as you might not get what you were hoping for.

1.4 The Game Die (see page 8)

Players always start their turn by rolling the game Die. The game has a special Die with six different symbols on it. Air, Food or Mineral symbols mean that all Resource Stations on the map will produce these resources. See page 8 to learn about all the symbols on the Die.

2.0 Starting setup

2.1 The Game Bank

The Game Bank is where you pay for everything you buy in the game, where resources are received after your stations produce them, and where you can trade resources. The Game Bank consists of Resource cards, Resource Tokens, Road cards and Mission Cards. Arrange them on the table next to the game board so that they are easily accessible to all players:

[Illustration: Eight Air, Eight Food and Eight Mineral Resource Tokens; Three Air, Three Food and Three Mineral Resource Tokens; then one Air, one Food, one Mineral, one Road, one Peaceful and one Aggressive Mission Card.]

2.2 Building Tokens

Each player starts the game with a complete set of Building Tokens in the color that they have chosen. Make sure that you have all the Building Tokens before you start the game. Use reserve pieces if any tokens are missing. You should have exactly:

• 5 Bases,
• 5 Air Resource Stations,
• 5 Food Resource Stations,
• 5 Mineral Resource Stations,
• 2 Laboratories: (3) and (2),
• 1 Road,
• 1 H2O Station.

(Keep your Building Tokens organized so that you see how many of them you've left.)

3.0 How to play

3.1 Where do I put my First Base?

Each player starts the game with a First Base built on one of the game Starting Points that are marked on the Game Board. Depending on how many players play the game, you should always choose the Starting Points so that all players are located equally far from each other. See this illustration on how to achieve that.

(There are 6 game Starting Points. Start a two-player game on points (1) and (2). Start a three-player game on points (1), (5) and (6). Start a four-player game on points (1), (2), (3) and (4).)

3.2 Starting resources

Each player starts the game with two Resource Cards of each kind:

• two Air Resource Cards,
• two Food Resource Cards,
• two Mineral Resource Cards.

3.3 Your First Base and Resource Stations

Each player starts the game with a First Base and three Resource Stations built around it: one Air, one Food and one Mineral Station. Build the three Resource Stations around your First Base as shown in the illustration below. Leave two spots above the Base free, so that you can later choose which way to build your next Base.

(Game starting position. Each player starts with a Base built on one of the game Starting Points. Around this Base you have three Resource Stations – Air, Food and Mineral station.)

(Section numbers are reproduced as printed in the rulebook, including the repeated 3.3 and the two paragraphs numbered 3.4.2.)

3.3 Who starts the game?

Determine which player will start the game by rolling the Die. Whoever rolls the Air symbol first can roll the Die again to start the game.

3.4 What can I do during my game turn?

3.4.1 Always start your game turn with rolling the Die.

Do everything the Die tells you to do and only then you can start trading, building or playing Mission Cards.

3.4.2 After rolling the Die you can do any of these:

• Trade resources in the bank (see 3.9)
• Change Resource cards for Resource tokens (see 3.8)
• Pay for and build Bases, Resource Stations and Laboratories (there is no limit to how many structures you can build during a turn — build as many as you can afford) (see 3.6)
• Buy one Mission Card and play one Mission Card (see 4.0)

(Always start the turn by rolling the game Die.)

3.4.2 When done say "I'm done!" and give the Die to the next player.

3.5 Symbols on the Game Die

• Air – All players receive Air from their Air Stations. Every player receives 1 Air Resource card from the bank for each Air Resource Station on the map that they own.
• Food – All players receive Food from their Food Stations. Every player receives 1 Food Resource card from the bank for each Food Resource Station on the map that they own.
• Minerals – All players receive Minerals from their Mineral Stations. Every player receives 1 Minerals Resource card from the bank for each Minerals Resource Station on the map that they own.
• Robbery – Choose an opponent and draw a card from him/her. Your spies have stolen goods from an enemy warehouse. Pick an opponent and draw 1 Resource card from him/her. Draw blind without seeing the cards.
• Discovery – Receive 1 card of any resource type (or Road). Receive 1 card of any resource type you want from the bank (including the Road card). Only the player who rolled the Die does that.
• Skip a turn – Bad weather is forcing you to stand still. Skip this turn. Do not do any actions and give the Die to the next player immediately. Attention! If you roll "Skip a turn" twice (or more times) in a row, receive 1 card of any Resource (or Road) from the bank. You still have to skip the turn but standing still for so long has let you find a valuable Resource near your colony.

3.6 How does building work?

3.6.1 All the Building Tokens that you own (see page 6) can be built on the map sooner or later during the game. To build something on the map you need to pay for it first.

For example, building a Mineral Station will cost you two Air and two Food Resource cards.

3.6.2 Build on the intersections of the coordinate lines as shown in the illustrations below. You can only build new buildings around your bases.

Build new bases next to each other and other buildings around them. Always build new bases next to each other. Build them towards the center of the map to move your colony closer to the North Pole. You can build both straight and diagonally.

3.6.3 When you build a new Base you open up space where you can build your next bases, Stations or Laboratories.

You can build Resource Stations and Laboratories around your bases (see illustrations below).

3.6.4 Be careful not to build so many Resource Stations that you have blocked yourself from moving forward. Always leave room for your next Base (see page 16, question 2 if you haven't).

(In this illustration the green player has built two Bases and four Resource Stations in total. Now he can build more stations around his second base.)

(The orange player has two free spots around her second Base. She can build the third Base on any one of those.)

(Each player has a special sheet of "Building Costs" showing how much it costs to build or buy everything in the game.)

Building Costs (as printed on the player sheet):

Item	Cost
Air Station	2 Food, 2 Minerals
Food Station	2 Air, 2 Minerals
Mineral Station	2 Air, 2 Food
Base	3 Air, 3 Food, 3 Minerals
Laboratory (3)	4 Food, 3 Minerals
Peaceful Mission	3 Air, 1 Food
Aggressive Mission	1 Air, 3 Minerals
Road to H2O Station	3 Road cards
H2O Station	8 Air, 8 Food, 8 Minerals

3.7 What are resources and Resource Stations?

3.7.1 Everything you build or buy in the game costs resources. There are three types of resources in the game: Air, Food and Minerals.

3.7.2 You acquire resources by building Resource Stations. They produce resources when someone rolls that resource symbol on the Die.

• Air Resource Stations produce Air.
• Food Resource Stations produce Food.
• Mineral Resource Stations produce Minerals.

3.8 What are Resource Tokens?

• 3.8.1 Resource Tokens are similar to Resource cards, only they have bigger value.
• 3.8.2 Resource Tokens are protected from stealing when someone rolls "Robbery".
• 3.8.3 Change Resource cards to tokens only when it is your turn. You can also pick up Resource Tokens when your stations produce that resource on another player's turn.

(When you have too many cards, change 3 Resource cards for a (3) Resource Token or 8 cards for an (8) Token.)

3.9 Laboratories and how to trade resources

• 3.9.1 You can trade four resources of the same kind for one resource of any other kind in the bank. This is the default exchange rate of 4:1.
• 3.9.2 Building Laboratories will allow you to trade resources at a better exchange rate. Building a (3) Laboratory will allow you to trade resources with the bank at the exchange rate of 3:1. When you have built a (3) Laboratory, you can pay again to build a (2) Laboratory which will allow you to trade resources at 2:1.
• 3.9.3 You build Laboratories on the map the same way as you build Resource Stations — in any free spot next to an already existing Base.
• 3.9.4 You can also trade resources for Road cards at the same rate: 4:1, 3:1 or 2:1, respectively.
• 3.9.5 Trading between players is not allowed. Remember, you are at war. :)

(The default exchange rate with the bank is 4:1. You can improve this rate by building Laboratories. Build Laboratories on the map the same way you would build Resource Stations – keep them close to your bases.)

3.10 What do I need a Road for?

• 3.10.1 You need a Road to cross the polar ice cap and to be able to build the H2O Station there. Each player only needs to build a Road once in a game.
• 3.10.2 Build a Road from your last Base towards the center of the polar ice cap. That's where you will build your H2O Station to win the game.
• 3.10.3 To build a Road you need three Road cards.
• 3.10.4 If a Base you have built the Road from gets destroyed (by Armageddon Mission Card) then your Road becomes inactive until that Base is built again.

(The green player has built a Road through the polar ice cap and can now collect resources to build an H2O Station.)

3.11 Why are Road cards special?

• 3.11.1 Road cards are special cards that are only used to build the Road to H2O Station.
• 3.11.2 There are two ways to get Road cards:
  1. When you roll the "Discovery" symbol on the Die;
  2. By trading them in the bank 4:1 (four resources of one kind to one Road card). If you have built one or two Laboratories then you can trade resources for Road cards at a rate of 3:1 or 2:1, respectively.
• 3.11.3 Road cards cannot be stolen from other players. They need to be kept visible on the table.
• 3.11.4 Each player can have no more than 3 Road cards.

3.12 How do I win the game?

• 3.12.1 Building an H2O Station is the last thing you have to do in the game. The player who builds an H2O Station first wins the game.
• 3.12.2 To build an H2O Station you need to have already built 5 bases towards the North Pole and a polar Road through the polar ice cap.
• 3.12.3 You can build an H2O Station when you have collected the necessary resources and it is your turn. See the Building Costs sheet for how expensive the H2O Station actually is.
• 3.12.4 As soon as you build the H2O Station you have won the game, congratulations!

(The green player has built an H2O Station in the center of the map.)

(Take a careful look at this finished game. The green player has built five bases (including his First Base) all moving diagonally towards the North Pole. Around those bases he has built 5 Air Stations, 2 Mineral Stations and 4 Food Stations. He has also built the (3) and (2) Laboratories. The final step he had to do was to build a Road through the polar ice cap and then the H2O Station.)

4.0 Mission Cards

• 4.0.1 There are two types of Mission Cards — Peaceful and Aggressive. You can buy Mission Cards during your turn by paying the price on your "Building Costs" sheet.
• 4.0.2 Each player can buy no more than one Mission Card in their turn and play no more than one Mission Card in their turn (see page 12 Q:12).
• 4.0.3 Keep both types of Mission Cards in two separate piles face down. When you buy a Mission Card you don't know what card you will get.
• 4.0.4 You don't have to tell anyone what Mission Card you have just got. Unless there's text on the bottom of the card that says that it has to be played out immediately. In that case read the card out loud.
• 4.0.4 If you run out of Mission Cards you can use the previously used ones again. Collect all the used Mission Cards of one type and mix them well before using them again. Do not put used Mission Cards on the bottom of the pile while playing. This will cause them to appear in a predictable order the second time around.

(Peaceful Mission Cards have light backs while Aggressive Mission Cards have dark.)

4.1 Peaceful Mission Cards

• Build Mission (4 cards) – The most common Peaceful Mission Card. Build a free Resource Station of any kind next to one of your bases. If you don't have a free space to build more stations (or any free Resource Stations to build) save this card for later.
• Assistance Mission (4 cards) – Receive four resources from the Bank of any kind you need (this does not include Road card). Choose when and what resources you want to take. However, you have to take all four resource cards in the same turn and at the same time.
• Resource Mission (3 cards) – The third most common and probably the most powerful Peaceful Mission Card. Receive two of each resource from the bank. That means 2 Air, 2 Food and 2 Mineral cards. You can use this card immediately or save it for later.
• Laboratory Mission (2 cards) – A rare Mission Card that allows you to build a free Laboratory. Build a 3:1 Laboratory if you don't have one. If you already have a 3:1 Laboratory then build a 2:1 Laboratory. If you have already built two Laboratories then take another Peaceful Mission Card.
• Productivity Mission (1 card) – A rare Mission Card that lets you receive resources from one type of your Resource Stations at any time you choose. For example, if you have built 5 Mineral Stations you can play this card to receive 5 Mineral cards – one for each Station. Play at any time you wish.
• Protection Mission (1 card) – This card will protect you when an enemy tries to play an Aggressive Mission Card against you. You can choose when to use this card and use it only once. It does not protect you against your own Aggressive Missions.

4.1 Aggressive Mission Cards

• Crimean Mission (5 cards) – This card lets you steal an opponent's Resource Station. When you play this card choose any Resource Station on the map that is not yours and put it next to one of your bases. From now on this Station will produce resources for you instead of your opponent.
• Sabotage Mission (4 cards) – Destroy one opponent's Resource Station of your choice (take it off the map). Receive 3 resources from the bank of the same type as the Station you just destroyed. Give the destroyed Resource Stations back to their original owners so that they can build them again later.
• Grand Theft Mission (1 card) – Similar to the Robbery face on the game Die. Except this time you get three cards at once. Choose a player (probably one who is closest to winning the game) and draw three Resource cards from him or her. Draw without seeing what cards you are getting.
• Capture Mission (1 card) – Choose one player who will have to skip a full turn starting from the moment you play this card. This player will not throw the Die and will not receive any resources until a full round has passed and it's the captured player's turn to go again.
• Black Friday accident (Powerful!) (2 cards) – Destroy all Resource Stations on the Game Board of one type of resource (including your own). Choose which type of Resource Stations to target. Receive one of that resource from the Bank for each of your own station that gets destroyed. The destroyed stations go back to their owners and can be built again.
• Armageddon Mission (Powerful! Play immediately!) (2 cards) – Armageddon is a Mission Card which attacks the leader of the game. If you are the leader you will only hurt yourself if you get this card. Armageddon destroys the Base that is located closest to the North Pole (even if it's your own). If there is more than one Base equally close to the North Pole, destroy all of them. I.e., if a player has built more bases than anyone else then she loses the Base which is located closest to the North Pole. If someone else owns just as many bases then they lose their furthest Base too. Only the Starting Bases are protected. Turn their tokens upside down until they are connected to a Base again. The destroyed bases return to their owners and can be built once again.

5.0 Tournament rules (Optional)

3.14.1. Only if you are playing the game in a tournament style (i.e., multiple games in a row with one overall winner) you might be interested to count Productivity Points to determine which player came in second, third or last. The points can be counted as follows:

• Each built Base on the map: 3 points,
• Each built Station on the map: 1 point,
• Each built Laboratory: 3 points,
• Built Road: 6 points,
• Each Road card: 1 point;
• Each bought Mission Card: 2 points.
• A built H2O Station: 20 points.
• Optional point victory: 49 points (only if mutually agreed).

6. Recommendations and tactics (Optional)

• 6.0.1 It is often beneficial to not buy anything in your first rounds of the game and save up for a First Base instead. Players who start by buying a Resource Station will often not be able to build their first Base as quickly as others. It might take multiple inactive rounds for them to save up for a Base and be able to move their colony forward again. This, however, depends greatly on luck and what resources the Die will bring in.
• 6.0.2 Armageddon mission, which is probably the most powerful of all Aggressive Mission Cards, is targeted specifically at the game leader. Even if it is you yourself. So be wary to buy Aggressive Mission Cards if you are the game leader — you might risk hurting only yourself.
• 6.0.3 Buying a lot of Peaceful Mission Cards can really speed up your development in the beginning of the game.
• 6.0.4 You will have a lot more chances to stop an enemy from winning the game if you buy Aggressive Mission Cards at the middle of the game, rather than the end. Only a few Aggressive Mission Cards are powerful enough to change the events of the game when your opponent is already close to winning. So don't be too late to get the right one.
• 6.0.5 Most players will find that the best strategy for winning is to advance as fast as you can by building bases and only as many Resource Stations as necessary to support your colony. Each Station has a 1:6 chance to produce resources each turn and will only start to pay back after 4 successful turns. That means that on average a single Resource Station starts to pay back only after 24 game turns. In a three player game that means 8 full game rounds. Think before if there are going to be that many rounds before building a new Resource Station.

7. F.A.Q. (Optional)

• Q.1: What do I need Resource Tokens for? A: Resource Tokens significantly increase the maximum amount of resources the Game Bank can provide. Later in the game they will help you operate with larger amounts of resources. They also help you protect valuable resources from stealing.
• Q.2: I accidentally built two Resource Stations around my First Base, blocked myself and now I have nowhere to build my second Base. A: You are allowed to build a Base over any Resource Station you own. However, if you have done this on one of your previous turns, you have to take that Resource Station off the map without getting back the resources you paid for it.
• Q.3: Can I build a new Base backwards or sideways from a previous Base? A: No. You have to build a new Base straight or diagonally towards the North Pole. Otherwise you would immediately lose the game. See Page 9 for more instructions.
• Q.4: Is there a limit to how many Resource cards I can own? A: No. There's no limit to how many Resource Cards or tokens you can own. However, if the Game Bank runs out of Resource Cards you are obliged to exchange at least half of your Resource Cards to Resource Tokens (immediately).
• Q.5: How many things can I buy in one turn? A: You can build as many Resource Stations, Bases and Laboratories in one turn as you can afford. If you had enough resources you could build all of your Bases, the Road and the H2O station in one single turn – you'd be allowed to do that. However, you can only buy one Mission Card in one turn. It doesn't matter if it's an Aggressive or Peaceful card.
• Q.6: When someone rolls a Resource symbol on the Die, who receives that resource? A: Everyone. Each player receives one Resource card for each Station that they own of that same resource type. An exception is when someone is blocked from receiving resources by the "Capture" Mission Card.
• Q.7: What actions am I allowed to do when it is not mine but somebody else's turn? A: Only to pick up resources which your Resource Stations have produced. You may also change Resource Cards to Tokens but only if they are of the same kind as the resource produced on that turn.

(Picking up resources is the only thing you are allowed to do when it's not your turn.)

(The small colored star on the Resource stations shows that station's original owner to whom it will return if that station gets destroyed.)

(Only the player who owns the station (has built or stolen it) can receive resources from it.)

(When the Armageddon card destroys a base, stations built around it become inactive.)

(You are not allowed to own more than three Road cards.)

(If you have already played a mission card on your turn you are not allowed to play another one.)