Sonic the Hedgehog: Battle Racers Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Objective
• Components
• Racers
• Racer Profiles
• Agility Cards
• Track Sections
• Winning the Game
• Game Setup
• How to Play
  • Playing Agility Cards
  • Resolving Agility Cards
    • Action
    • Movement
    • Select a New Agility Card
    • Begin a New Round
• Track Setup
  • Connecting Tracks
• Movement
  • Golden Rule
• Damage and Badniks
  • Racer Damage
  • Badnik Damage
• General Track Features
  • Turns
  • Obstacles
  • Elevation and Movement
    • Elevation Icons
  • Rocks
  • Rings
  • Green Hill Terrain Features
• Solo Mode Rules
  • Solo Setup
  • Solo Gameplay
  • Solo Scoring
• Track Reference
  • Ground (Grass)
  • Elevation (Elevation 1 and Elevation 2)
  • Accelerator/Decelerator
  • Spike
  • Water
  • Expansion Tracks
    • Oil Pool (Oil Ocean Expansion)
    • Treadmill (Metallic Madness Expansion)
    • Spring (Studiopolis Expansion)
• Boss Mode Rules
  • Boss Setup
  • Boss Gameplay
  • Boss Profiles
  • Boss Cards
  • Boss Expansions
• Boss and Track Expansions
  • Green Hill Zone
  • Oil Ocean
    • Breakaway Platforms
  • Metallic Madness
    • Traps
  • Studiopolis
    • Virtual Reality Tokens
    • Spring
• Racer Expansions

Objective

Cross the Finish Line and be the player with the most Ring and Badnik Tokens to win!

Components

• 64 Agility Cards
• 50 Ring Tokens
• 40 Badnik Tokens (10 Buzz Bomber, 10 Crabmeat, 10 Moto Bug, and 10 Spinner)
• 10 Track Sections (6 Straight, 2 Turns, 1 Start Line, and 1 Finish Line)
• 15 Rock Tokens
• 4 Miniatures (1 Sonic, 1 Tails, 1 Knuckles, and 1 Amy)
• 4 Racer Profiles
• 4 Speed Tokens
• 4 Badnik Reference Cards
• 1 Track Reference Card
• 1 Rulebook

Racers

Most Racers are on a normal sized base (Sonic, Tails, Amy, Knuckles), but some other Racers like, Dr. Eggman (1 of 17 Expansions) are larger and so are their bases. Racers with a large base follow most of the same rules as Racers with normal size bases with the following differences:

• When Running or Spinning, they are only affected by a space when entering the space.
• When landing, they are affected by both spaces, the order is chosen by the player, controlling the Racer.
• If a Racer with a large base has more than 1 Ring when they suffer Damage, they may keep their left-most stack.

Racer Profiles

• The Speed of the Racer (1–9).
• The Ability of the Racer is a permanent effect that benefits them throughout the game.
• The Power of the Racer is a special action that can be activated by the Power Agility Card.
• The Ring Stack is where the Rings a Racer collects during the game are placed.

Agility Cards

• The Priority Score of the Agility Card. This is used to determine the order the Agility Cards are resolved in.
• The Name of the Agility Card.
• The Action of the Agility Card. Actions are optional and may be resolved or passed.
• The Movement of the Agility Card. This is the mandatory type of Movement, Running or Jumping forward, based on the Speed of the Racer.

Track Sections

Place a Ring Token on each of these ring-marked spaces when a Track Section is placed.

Select a random Badnik Token for each of these red-diamond-marked spaces and place them face up for games with any number of players when a Track Section is placed.

Select a random Badnik Token for each of these yellow-diamond-marked spaces and place them face up for games with only 1, 2 or 3 players when a Track Section is placed.

Winning the Game

When a Racer has crossed the Finish Line, the other players resolve their Agility Cards and then the game ends. The player with the most Ring and Badnik Tokens is the winner.

Game Setup

• Shuffle the Agility Cards into a deck and place them face down in the middle of the playing area.
• Separate the 2 Turn Track Sections and place them in a stack.
• Shuffle the remaining Track Sections and place them face down in a stack.
• Place the Badnik Tokens into a bag.
• Place the Ring Tokens in a pile accessible to all players.
• Place the Track Section with the Start Line close to one edge of the table.
• Draw 2 Track Sections from the stack and connect them to the Start Line Track, then draw and connect a Turn Track (see Connecting Tracks on Page 6 for additional information).
• Starting with the player who played a Sonic video game the most recently and going clockwise, each player selects a Racer and takes the miniature, Profile, and a Speed Token for that Racer.
• Starting with the player who selected a Racer last and going counter-clockwise, each player places their Racer behind the Starting Line.
• Each player takes their corresponding Racer's Speed Token and places it on Speed 3 on the Racer Profile.
• Deal 4 Agility Cards to each player.
• Deal 4 Agility Cards face up within reach of all players.

How to Play

Playing Agility Cards

Battle Racers is played in a series of rounds. Each round, every player selects one of their Agility Cards and places it face down in front of themselves. Then, all players simultaneously reveal their face down Agility Cards. Players compare the Priority Score of each card, then resolve the Agility Cards starting with the highest Priority Score and moving to the lowest.

Resolving Agility Cards

Action

The player may choose to resolve the Action on the Agility Card they played, or they may choose to pass on the Action. There are 8 different Actions:

• Brake: Speed −4
• Shift: Run 1 Space or Speed +1
• Spring: Run or Jump up to 2 Spaces
• Spin Dash: Spin, and if current Speed is 1 or 2, then Speed +3
• Spin: Spin or Speed +1
• Boost: Jump 1 Space or Speed +1
• Sprint: Speed +2
• Power: Activate Racer Power

Movement

Once you have resolved the Action or passed, you must resolve the Movement on the Agility Card. There are 3 possible kinds Movements on an Agility Card:

• Run forward a number of spaces equal to the marked Speed on the Racer's Profile.
• Jump forward a number of spaces equal to the marked Speed on the Racer's Profile.
• Run or Jump forward a number of spaces equal to the marked Speed on the Racer's Profile.

Select a New Agility Card

Once the Movement is complete, discard the Agility Card used and take another one from the 4 face up Agility Cards. Then, immediately draw another Agility Card from the deck to replace the face up Agility Card taken.

Begin a New Round

After all players have resolved their Agility Card and selected a new one, begin a new round by playing new Agility Cards. Continue playing rounds until a Racer has crossed the Finish Line.

Track Setup

Connecting Tracks

Any time Track Sections are connected, they should be placed one after another.

• At the beginning of the game, 2 random Straight Track Sections are connected to the Start Line, and then 1 Turn is connected.
• If your Racer is first to enter the Turn, you must draw and place 2 Straight Track Sections and connect them to the Turn. Then, draw and place the last Turn, connecting it to the last Straight Track Section.
• If your Racer is the first to enter the Final Turn, you must draw and place 2 Straight Track Sections and connect them to the Final Turn, then draw and place the Finish Line, connecting it to the last straight Track Section.

After connecting a Track Section, follow the steps below:

• Place a Ring Token on all the spaces marked with a Ring.
• Draw a random Badnik Token and place it face up on each space marked with a red diamond.
• If it is only a 1, 2 OR 3 PLAYER GAME, draw a random Badnik Token and place it face up on each space marked with a yellow diamond.

Movement

Golden Rule

Unless stated otherwise on a card or rule, Racers may only move (either Running or Jumping) forward, up, or down. A Racer may NEVER move diagonally or backwards.

• Speed: A Racer's Speed is how many spaces they must move. Use a Speed Token to mark the current Speed of each Racer on their Profile. Speed cannot be reduced below 1 and cannot exceed 6 by using Agility Card Actions. Terrain features and the Racer's Abilities and Powers can allow a Racer's Speed to exceed 6 with an absolute maximum of 9. If a Racer's Speed changes during their Movement, change the Speed on the Racer Profile. However, the Racer must still move a number of spaces equal to their original marked Speed.
• Run: When Running, move a number of spaces equal to the Speed marked on the Racer's Profile. Take into account the effect of each terrain feature for spaces moved into.
• Spin: Spinning works the same way as Running, but with one major difference: when a Spinning Racer enters a space with another Racer or Crawling Badnik, the Spinning Racer will Damage them. Racers Spin by playing the Agility Cards SPIN or SPIN DASH.
• Jump: When Jumping, move a number of spaces equal to the Speed marked on the Racer's Profile, but ignore the effects of all terrain features except the last space, which is the one you are landing in. Buzzing Badniks are Damaged when a Jumping Racer moves into their space. In addition, when a Racer Jumps forward, they Damage any other Racer or Badnik they land on.

Damage and Badniks

Racer Damage

When a Racer is Damaged, either by a Badnik or by another Racer, follow the steps below:

• If the Racer does not have Ring Tokens, place the Racer on the first column of the Track Section and set their Speed to 3.
• If the Racer does have Ring Tokens, reduce their Speed to 1 and move the Racer forward, up, or down to the closest space without a Badnik or terrain feature that would Damage them. Starting from the left-most stack on their Racer Profile, place 1 stack of Ring Tokens on the space where the Racer was Damaged and on each consecutive space in the same column, starting from the closest one.

Badnik Damage

For ease during the game, refer to your Badnik Reference Card.

When a Racer Damages a Badnik, take the Badnik Token and place it next to that Racer's Profile. Badniks Damage Racers when they move into a specific space. There are two types of Badniks, Crawling and Buzzing.

CRAWLING BADNIKS Damage any Racers Running into their space, but can be destroyed by a Spinning Racer that moves into the space they're on.

• Moto Bug: Damages any Racers Running into their space.
• Crabmeat: Damages Jumping Racers moving into the 2 spaces above or below them.

BUZZING BADNIKS do NOT Damage Running Racers that move into their space, but can be destroyed by a Jumping Racer that moves into the space they're on.

• Buzz Bomber: Damages Running or Spinning Racers that enter the 3 spaces in front of them.
• Spinner: Damages Jumping Racers entering the space they are on. Spinners are only destroyed by a Jumping Racer that LANDS on their space.

General Track Features

Turns

Turns are a special Track that are placed after every 2 Straight Tracks. They have a few special rules. Turns have 5 lanes each marked with a number. When a Racer moves into a lane, their Speed is reduced to this number and cannot be increased above it (even with Agility Cards, Racer Abilities, and Powers) until they have left the Turn.

Obstacles

Some terrain features are considered Obstacles. When a Racer moves into a space with an Obstacle, they reduce their Speed to 1 and their Movement ends immediately.

Spike Obstacle

Elevation and Movement

Track spaces have a default Elevation of 0, but many spaces have different Elevations, from −1 for Water spaces, to +2 for the highest Elevation. The effect of higher Elevation depends on your Movement:

• Running: Any Elevation higher than the Elevation the Racer is currently on is an Obstacle.
• Jumping or Landing: Compare the Elevation of the space you are moving into with the space you jumped from. If the new space is 2 or more levels higher, then it is an Obstacle.

Ground/Grass (Elevation 0), Elevation 1, Elevation 2, Water (−1)

Elevation Icons

• The +1 icon indicates the Track Elevation has changed from its previous Elevation to Elevation 1.
• The +2 icon indicates the Track Elevation has changed from its previous Elevation to Elevation 2.
• The −1 (water) icon indicates the Track Elevation has changed from its previous Elevation to Water.

Rocks

Rocks increase the Elevation of the space they are placed on by 1. Racers can stop on Rocks, and Rings can be placed on top of them. Rock Tokens have the same back design as Badnik Tokens.

Rings

When a Racer is on a space with one or more Ring Tokens, immediately take the Rings and place them on the Racer's Profile. This can be the result of a Racer moving into a space with Rings, or if a Ring is placed on the same space as a Racer. When collecting Ring Tokens, always place them on the left-most stack with the least number of Ring Tokens on it.

Green Hill Terrain Features

• Water: Reduce the Racer's Speed to 2.
• Spike: The Racer is Damaged.
• Accelerator/Decelerator: Increases or reduces a Racer's Speed by 1.

Please use the provided Track Reference Card or see Page 20/21 to quickly reference all effects of Terrain and Movement.

Solo Mode Rules

Sonic the Hedgehog: Battle Racers can also be played in Solo mode. When playing Solo mode, a single player races against a Boss (see Boss Mode Rules on Page 14 for BOSS SETUP and GAMEPLAY details) and earns a rank at the end of the game.

Solo Setup

• Follow the Game Setup on Page 4, but select only a single Racer to play with. Take the Miniature, Profile, and a Speed Token for that Racer, then place the miniature behind the Starting Line.
• Follow the Boss Mode Setup on Page 14.

Solo Gameplay

Solo Mode uses the normal rules and additional Boss Mode Rules with the following changes:

• When a Racer is Damaged and does not have any Rings they immediately lose the game.
• To earn a Rank, the Racer must defeat the Boss and cross the Finish Line.
• To determine the Rank the Racer earned, count up the total number of Rings and Badniks collected during the race and look at the scoring chart below.

Solo Scoring

• 30+ Rings/Badniks = S Rank
• 21 – 25 Rings/Badniks = A Rank
• 16 – 20 Rings/Badniks = B Rank
• 11 – 15 Rings/Badniks = C Rank
• 6 – 10 Rings/Badniks = D Rank
• 0 – 5 Rings/Badniks = E Rank

Track Reference

Ground (Grass)

• Running, Jumping, Land On: No Effect.

Elevation (Elevation 1 and Elevation 2)

• Running: If the Elevation is a higher level than the space the Racer is Running from, the space is an Obstacle. REDUCE the Racer's Speed to 1 and their Movement ends immediately.
• Jumping: If the Elevation of the space is 2 or more levels higher than the space the Racer Jumped from, the space is an Obstacle. REDUCE the Racer's Speed to 1 and their Movement ends immediately.
• Land On: If the Elevation of the space is 2 or more levels higher than the space the Racer Jumped from, the space is an Obstacle. REDUCE the Racer's Speed to 1 and their Movement ends immediately.

Accelerator/Decelerator

• Running: If pointing in the same direction the Racer is moving in, INCREASE their Speed +1. If pointing in the direction opposite to the one the Racer is moving in, DECREASE their Speed −1.
• Jumping: No Effect.
• Land On: If pointing in the same direction the Racer is moving in, INCREASE their Speed +1. If pointing in the direction opposite to the one the Racer is moving in, DECREASE their Speed −1.

Spike

• Running: Racer is DAMAGED.
• Jumping: No Effect.
• Land On: Racer is DAMAGED.

Water

• Running: REDUCE the Racer's Speed to 2.
• Jumping: No Effect.
• Land On: REDUCE the Racer's Speed to 2.

Expansion Tracks

Oil Pool (Oil Ocean Expansion)

• Running: REDUCE the Racer's Speed by 1. If their Speed is equal to 1, the Racer is Damaged.
• Jumping: No Effect.
• Land On: REDUCE the Racer's Speed by 1. If their Speed is equal to 1, the Racer is Damaged.

Treadmill (Metallic Madness Expansion)

• Running: Immediately move the Racer 1 SPACE in the direction the arrow is pointing.
• Jumping: No Effect.
• Land On: Immediately move the Racer 1 SPACE in the direction the arrow is pointing.

Spring (Studiopolis Expansion)

• Running: REDUCE the Racer's Speed by 3 and immediately perform a High Jump.
• Jumping: No Effect.
• Land On: REDUCE the Racer's Speed by 3 and immediately perform a High Jump.

Boss Mode Rules

As an alternative to normal gameplay, Sonic the Hedgehog: Battle Racers can also be played with a special Boss. In this mode, Racers not only have to race against each other, but will also have to contend with a Boss. Each Boss is unique, with their own special rules, and provides a different type of challenge.

Boss Setup

Each Boss comes with a Boss Profile and a deck of Boss Cards. After setting up the Track and Tokens, place the Boss Miniature in the center space of the first Track Section after the Starting Line. At the end of the setup phase, shuffle the Boss Cards into their own card deck. Next, place the Boss Profile and Boss Cards off to the side, but visible to all players. Place 10 Rings on the Boss Profile, then draw the top Boss Card from the deck and place it face up next to the Profile.

Boss Gameplay

Each round, the face up Boss Card will be resolved. Resolve the card by its Priority Score, indicated on the top left of the Boss Card. If the Priority Score is equal to the Priority Score of a Agility Card, the Agility Card is always resolved first. At the beginning of a new round, draw the top Boss Card from the deck and place it face up.

Unless otherwise stated, when Bosses move, they ignore Racers, Rings, Badniks, Obstacles, Elevation and Terrain Features, such as Water, Spikes, and Hills. When a Boss' move ends on a Racer, the Racer is Damaged.

When a Boss is Damaged, move the Boss forward 4 spaces, then take 2 Rings from the Boss' Profile and place them on the Boss' previous space. If there are no Rings left on a Boss' Profile, they are destroyed and removed from the race. If a Boss crosses the Finish Line, all players that have not yet crossed the Finish Line lose the game.

Boss Profiles

• Gameplay is where the special rules of each Boss are located. These rules are in effect if the Boss is still in the race.
• The Ring Stack is where the Rings a Boss collects during the game are placed.

Boss Cards

• The Priority Score of the Boss Card. This is used to determine the order Boss Cards are resolved in with Agility Cards.
• The Name of the Boss Card.
• The Action(s) of the Boss Card. All Actions must be resolved when possible.
• The Boss Character of the Boss Card. This identifies which Boss character the card is associated with.

Boss Expansions

• Dr. Eggman: The Dr. Eggman Boss comes with the Green Hill Zone Expansion.
• Shadow: The Shadow Boss comes with the Oil Ocean Zone Expansion.
• Metal Sonic: The Metal Sonic Boss comes with the Metallic Madness Zone Expansion.
• Infinite: The Infinite Boss comes with the Studiopolis Zone Expansion.

Boss and Track Expansions

Green Hill Zone

When you add Green Hill Zone to your Sonic the Hedgehog: Battle Racers collection, you get 6 new Track Sections to use with your existing collection. Race against Dr. Eggman as a Boss or use him as your new favorite Racer.

Expansion contains: 16 Boss Cards, 6 Tracks, 1 Miniature, 1 Boss Profile, 1 Racer Profile, 1 Speed Token.

Expand your Base Game Race Track with 6 new Green Hill Track Sections. These 6 Expansion Tracks make the Green Hill Zone even more challenging!

• Water: Reduce the Racer's Speed to 2.
• Spike: The Racer is Damaged.
• Accelerator/Decelerator: Increases or reduces a Racer's Speed by 1.

Please use the provided Track Reference Card or see Page 20/21 to quickly reference all effects of Terrain and Movement.

Oil Ocean

When you add Oil Ocean to your Sonic the Hedgehog: Battle Racers collection, you get 6 new Track Sections to use with your existing collection. Race against Shadow as a challenging new Boss or use him as your new favorite Racer.

Expansion contains: 16 Boss Cards, 6 Tracks, 6 Breakaway Platforms, 1 Miniature, 1 Boss Profile, 1 Racer Profile, 1 Speed Token.

Breakaway Platforms

Some Track Sections have locations for Breakaway Platform. These areas are indicated by the dashed line around a 3x2 area on the Track and the Breakaway Platform icon.

When placing a Track Section with Breakaway Platform areas, take the 3x2 Breakaway Platforms and place them in the Breakaway areas. After a Racer or Boss moves off of a Breakaway Platform, remove it from the Track and add any Badnik or Rings revealed.

• Oil Pool: Reduce the Racer's Speed by 1. If their Speed is equal to 1, the Racer is Damaged.
• Accelerator/Decelerator: Increases or reduces a Racer's Speed by 1.

Metallic Madness

When you add Metallic Madness to your Sonic the Hedgehog: Battle Racers collection, you get 6 new Track Sections to use with your existing collection. Race against Metal Sonic as a new Boss or use him as your new favorite Racer.

Expansion contains: 16 Boss Cards, 6 Tracks, 3 Traps, 1 Miniature, 1 Boss Profile, 1 Racer Profile, 1 Speed Token.

Traps

Some Track Sections have locations for Traps. These areas are indicated by the Trap icon in the upper left corner of a 3x5 area on the Track itself. When placing a Track Section that has a Trap, place the Trap with the side that has the Trap icon face up. At the end of each round, flip the Trap over.

• Treadmill: If a Racers runs or lands on a Treadmill, immediately move the Racer 1 space in the direction the arrow is pointing.
• Accelerator/Decelerator: Increases or reduces a Racer's Speed by 1. The page also shows the Elevation 1 (+1) and Water (−1) terrain icons alongside these Metallic Madness terrain features, with no additional text.

Studiopolis

When you add Studiopolis to your Sonic the Hedgehog: Battle Racers collection, you get 6 new Track Sections to use with your existing collection. Race against Infinite as a challenging new Boss or use him as your new favorite Racer.

Expansion contains: 16 Boss Cards, 6 Tracks, 5 Virtual Reality Tokens, 1 Miniature, 1 Boss Profile, 1 Racer Profile, 1 Speed Token.

Virtual Reality Tokens

When playing against Infinite as a Boss, he will be constantly changing the Track with Virtual Reality Tokens. When putting a Virtual Reality Token in play, it should be placed so it covers both the first column of the Track Section Infinite is currently on and the last column of the previous Track Section.

Spring

If a Racer runs or lands on a Spring, reduce the Racer's Speed by 3 and immediately perform a High Jump. A High Jump is a special jump that allows Racers to ignore all Badniks, Badniks' Attacks, Obstacles, and Elevations when performing it.

The page also shows the Elevation 1 (+1) and Elevation 2 (+2) terrain icons alongside the Spring feature, with no additional text.

Racer Expansions

Continue to add to your Sonic the Hedgehog: Battle Racers collection with 13 individual Racer Expansions. Each Racer brings unique Abilities and Powers of their own to the game. Collect them all for the ultimate Sonic collection!

Each Racer Expansion contains: 1 Miniature, 1 Racer Profile, 1 Speed Token.

The Racer Expansions are Big, Blaze, Charmy, Omega, Espio, Jet, Rouge, Silver, Sticks, Storm, Vector, and Wave, along with Cream (the Racer shown on the page above them).