Ski Tour: Biathlon Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Overview
• Goal of the Game
• Setup
• Playing the Game
  • Preparation Phase
  • Race Phase
• The Course
  • Downhill
  • Uphill
  • Start Tile
  • Shooting Range
• Game End
• Advanced Nations
• Race Course Tips
• Wax Icons
• Glossary

Components

• 1 Rulebook
• 25 Stamina markers
• 5 x 10 Race dice
• 20 Double sided race course tiles
• 25 Hit/miss markers
• 5 Double sided player nation boards
• 5 Skeeples
• 5 x 8 Wax tokens
• 4 Colored shooting dice
• 1 First player marker

Overview

In Ski Tour: Biathlon, players will move along the race course with the ambition to be the first to cross the finish line. During the race you will also shoot at shooting ranges hoping to hit all targets, since a miss will give you a lap in the penalty lane. You can take advantage of your waxing and control your stamina to increase your speed. Lower stamina means it will be harder to hit the targets at the shooting range.

Goal of the Game

The first player to cross the finish line is the winner. The race continues until all players have passed the finish line, thereby determining the placement of the other players.

Setup

• Build the race course in the center of the table using the race tiles.
  • First game: use the starter course.
  • Later games: build the race course in any way you see fit, as long as it begins with the "Start" tile and ends with the "Goal" tile. It is recommended to have the shooting ranges evenly spread out along the race course.
• Place the shooting dice where all players can reach them.
• Give each player:
  • 1 player board, with the nation of their choice.
  • 5 stamina markers, placed on the top or second top stamina slots.
    • Top: Long race, 3 or more shootings.
    • Second top: Short race, 2 or fewer shootings. A short race can be played with the stamina markers on the top slots for a faster, more forgiving game.
  • 10 race dice of their nation's color, placed next to their player board as available race dice.
  • 5 hit/miss markers.
  • 8 nation wax tokens, placing 6 of their choice in the order of their choice. One of the outermost tokens can be used each turn for a bonus effect (see wax icon reference).
  • 1 skeeple of their nation's color, placed behind the starting line of the race course.
• Give the First player marker to the player who most recently skied.

In a 2 player game, give each player 2 sets of player items. They each control 2 nations during the race.

Playing the Game

Each game round has two phases:

• Preparation phase, in which players roll and place dice.
• Race phase, in which players take turns to use dice and wax tokens to move on the race course and shoot at the shooting range.

Preparation Phase

Simultaneously, you must each:

1. Roll half of your available race dice, rounded up. If you have stamina markers on the lowest value (blue), remove as many rolled 5s and 6s as you have stamina markers on blue, starting with 5s. They are returned to your available dice.
2. Place each rolled 1-4 in the corresponding column on your player board.
3. Place each rolled 5 in the 1-4 column with the most dice. If several columns have the same amount of dice, place the 5s in the column with the highest number. If the column with the most dice is full, there is no legal placement for the 5s.
4. Place each rolled 6 either in the Sprint column, or in the star box above any of your other columns containing dice.

If there is no legal place for a die on your player board, it is returned to your available dice.

Example: Tobias has 7 available dice, so he rolls 4 of them, getting two 1s, one 5 and one 6. The 1s are placed in the column marked 1. The 5 has to be placed above the 3s (the 1-4 column with the most dice). He can place the 6 in either the sprint column or the star box above the 1s. He places it in the sprint box.

Race Phase

Individually, the players take turns, starting with the player with the First player marker. On your turn, you:

1. Must take all dice from any one 1-4 column.
   • If the column is full (4 dice), any 6 in the star box above the column is included; otherwise the 6 is returned to your available dice.
   • You may not choose an empty column unless all your 1-4 columns are empty.
2. May take all dice from any number of additional 1-4 or sprint columns, paying one stamina for each.
   • You must pay stamina by decreasing the stamina marker in the column with the highest stamina value. The one exception is if you pay stamina when shooting. Then you must decrease a stamina marker in a column that you have not yet shot with.
   • If you have all stamina markers on the lowest value (blue) and are forced to decrease stamina, you collapse and are removed from the race.

Example: Hanna takes column 2. The 6 is returned to her available dice and does not count, as the column was not full. Then she also takes column 4, paying one stamina. This gives her a total of 5 dice taken.

If not at a shooting range:

3. Must move exactly as many steps as the number of dice taken.
   • When moving you must move forward or sideways, never backwards. If you move sideways, you must then pass another player to be allowed to move sideways again in the same turn. You may not move diagonally unless you move into a white area.
   • If a player is in the space behind you when you start moving, they may draft on you, letting them follow your exact movement for free. Players may draft on a drafting player in the same way.
   • If you sprint, by using the sprint column or another effect that allows you to sprint, no player is allowed to draft on you this turn.
   • To move into the same space as another player, you must pay one stamina (reducing your highest stamina value), even if you are drafting. You may end your move on an occupied space.

Or, if at a shooting range:

3. Must shoot as many shots as the number of dice taken. You can never shoot on the same turn that you've moved.
   • Each shot is made by rolling one shooting die for one of your 5 stamina markers, using the shooting die of the same color as the value of the stamina marker. The lower your stamina, the lower your accuracy.
   • Place a hit/miss marker on the corresponding target based on your result (hit or miss). Misses will result in penalty laps (see Shooting Range).
   • Always shoot from left to right. You don't have to shoot all 5 shots in one turn.

At any time during your turn, you may:

1. Choose one of your outermost wax tokens.
2. Use its effect.
3. Flip it.

When all players have taken their turn, move the First player marker one step clockwise and start the next round. In a 2 player game, the First player marker is moved to the next nation.

The Course

The terrain has a great effect on cross-country skiing, most notably being the strain of going uphill, and the ease of going downhill.

Downhill

If you end a move on a green, downhill space and directly behind another player, you may choose to move up to three spaces for free and pass one skeeple without paying stamina.

Uphill

If you start on a red, uphill space, reduce your total number of moves that turn by 1, to a minimum of 1.

Start Tile

On your first turn, choose freely in which lane to start your movement. You do not have to pay stamina to move into the same space as another player on the spaces right after start.

Shooting Range

When you enter the shooting space of a shooting range, your movement is over. The following rounds, you have to shoot instead of move, until you have made 5 shots. You may not shoot the same turn that you entered the shooting space.

After making your 5 shots, take laps in the penalty lane according to the number of shots you missed. For every lap made, remove 2 miss markers. Repeat until you have no miss markers left, then continue on the race course.

Misses	Penalty laps
0 misses	0 laps
1-2 misses	1 lap
3-4 misses	2 laps
5 misses	3 laps

You do not have to pay stamina to move into the same space as another player in the shooting range. You can not draft on a player in the shooting range or in the penalty lane.

Game End

The first player to cross the finish line is the winner, the gold medalist. The race continues until all players have passed the finish line to determine silver and bronze medalists.

In a 2 player game, the game ends immediately when one player has crossed the finish line.

Advanced Nations

Once you are familiar with the game, you may choose to play with the advanced nations on the back of the player nation boards: Austria, Finland, Italy, United Kingdom and USA.

• All: The stamina differs for each advanced nation. When shooting, always use the die of the same color as the space underneath the stamina marker.
• Austria, Italy: Some columns are considered full, meaning any 6s in the star boxes above can be taken, when three dice have been placed instead of four.
• Italy, United Kingdom: A special box replaces the star box above a column. When taking the 6, you choose to either include it in your taken dice or flip back one of your innermost used wax tokens.
• Finland: You may, once each shooting turn, use the wax token printed on the player board. You can use another wax token on the same turn.

Race Course Tips

When building your race course, consider these tips for a more balanced course. They are, however, only suggestions; you are free to build your race course in any way you see fit.

1. Aim to keep the shooting ranges spread out over the race course. Avoid placing a shooting range directly following another shooting range.
2. Don't place an uphill space directly following another uphill space, as these tend to decrease the distance between players.

Wax Icons

Wax token effects (each is shown as an icon on the token):

• Reroll one shooting die.
• Gain sprint this turn. Also gain moves equal to the number of dice in your sprint column. Don't remove the dice.
• Use an additional column for free this turn.
• Reroll any one die from your player board. Place it as usual.
• Reroll all dice on your player board. Place them as usual.
• Add 1 to the total number of dice taken this turn. Does not count towards filling columns to use the 6 box.
• Deduct 1 from the number of dice taken this turn.
• Pay one stamina.

Some wax tokens have more than one icon. In those cases, all actions must be taken, unless it has an "or" icon, then you choose one of the actions. If the token has the pay-stamina icon, you must start with paying stamina.

Glossary

• Available dice: Your dice currently not on your player board.
• Dice column: A column on your player board in which race dice are placed.
• Downhill: See The Course.
• Drafting: Following another player's exact movement.
• Penalty lane: See Shooting Range.
• Race die: One of your nation's colored dice.
• Shooting dice: The colored dice rolled for shots.
• Shooting range: See Shooting Range.
• Sprint: Movement that prevents drafting.
• Sprint column: The column on your player board for sprint dice.
• Stamina: Tracked by your stamina markers.
• Star box: The box above a dice column in which a rolled 6 may be placed.
• Uphill: See The Course.
• Wax token: Tokens with a bonus effect, used from the outermost position and then flipped.