StarFall
StarFall Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 27 Sky Tiles
- 40 White Stardust Pieces (1 value)
- 20 Orange Stardust Pieces (5 value)
- 1 Stargazer Board
- 4 Player Aids
Each Sky Tile shows some combination of astronomical objects — Stars, Planets, Moons, Black Holes, Comets, and Nebulae — which score points at the end of the game (see Scoring, below).
Setup
- Give each player 7 White Stardust Pieces and 5 Orange Stardust Pieces. This means each player will start with 32 Stardust points. The extra Pieces should form a supply pile.
- Give each player a Player Aid. Put the extras back in the box.
- Shuffle the Sky Tiles face down. If playing a 2 or 3 player game, remove the number of Sky Tiles as indicated below. A four player game will use all of them. Place any that are removed back into the box without looking at them.
- 2 Players: Remove 10 Sky Tiles from the game
- 3 Players: Remove 5 Sky Tiles from the game
- 4 Players: Do not remove any Sky Tiles from the game
- Place the Stargazer Board in the middle of the table.
- The first player will be the person who has most recently visited a planetarium.
Gameplay
The game is played taking turns, clockwise, until there is only one Sky Tile left in the game or until all players have spent all of their Stardust Pieces.
A Game Turn
On a player's turn, they must do one of the following actions:
1. Add a Sky Tile
Add a Sky Tile to the highest available number on the Stargazing Board. This is drawn from the top of the Sky Tile deck and placed face up. No two Sky Tiles may ever occupy the same number space. In addition, there may be no more than 3 Sky Tiles on the Stargazing Board at one time. If there are already 3 Sky Tiles on the Stargazing Board, this action may not be taken. (A new Sky Tile is drawn and added to the highest available space on the Stargazing Board.)
2. Move a Sky Tile
Select a Sky Tile on the Stargazing Board and move it down to the next available number. Normally, this will be only a step down in value of one. But, if that space is occupied, you should continue to move it down until you get to the next available number. A Sky Tile may be moved off the end of the track, at which time it is discarded from the game. (Move a Sky Tile down to the next available space, skipping occupied spaces if necessary.)
3. Discover a Sky Tile
Select a Sky Tile from the Stargazing Board and place it into your personal pile. You must pay its current value (as determined on the Stargazing Board). This is paid to the bank. In the rare instance you discover a Sky Tile in the '0' spot, you pay nothing.
When paying, you may discard the Stardust Pieces that you started with at the beginning of the game or you may pay the cost by discarding a Sky Tile that you have already discovered. Sky Tiles are worth Stardust equal to the number of Stars on that piece. A Sky Tile used to pay is discarded from the game, and you cannot make change. You may pay with multiple Sky Tiles or a combination of Sky Tiles and Stardust Pieces. You cannot gain more Stardust Pieces during the game. (For example, to claim a 6-cost Sky Tile, the player spends 2 White Stardust Pieces, and one Sky Tile showing 4 Stars.)
First time players often find themselves paying too high a price for Sky Tiles early in the game and running out of Stardust towards the end, so be careful! Running out of Stardust too early in the game will allow other players to get Sky Tiles very cheaply because you are no longer able to buy them!
Scoring
Your goal is to discover valuable sets of astronomical objects. Each Sky Tile may feature several objects on them, and they will all count towards your final score. These objects are:
| Object | Scoring |
|---|---|
| Stars | If you have the most Stars at the end of the game, you gain 10 points. In a 3-4 player game, if you have the fewest stars, you lose 5 points (there is no penalty for the fewest stars in a 2 player game). You may also use Sky Tiles with Stars on them as payment for Discovering other Sky Tiles. |
| Planets | Planets are worth 5 points apiece. |
| Moons | Moons are worth 3 points apiece, but must have a planet to match it to. (So, if you find 3 moons but only have two planets, you will only score 2 of the Moons.) |
| Black Holes | If you only have one Black Hole, it is worth -5 points. If you have two or more Black Holes, they are (together) worth +15 points. Three or more Black Holes are still 15 points (but grabbing them may prevent other players from making sets!) |
| Comets | Comets increase in worth for each one you have, according to the following chart. |
| Nebulae | Nebulae are worth 2 points apiece. And, you get a bonus for each unique color that you have, based on the following chart. |
Comets
| Comets | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Each comet is worth | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
Nebulae color bonus
| Colours collected | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bonus points | 4 | 9 | 16 | 25 |
End of Game
Whenever there is only one Sky Tile left on the board and none available in the draw pile the game ends immediately. Whenever no players have Stardust left the game ends immediately. Note: The game ends when players are out of Stardust Pieces. Even though you may have Sky Tiles with Stars on them that can be used for Discovery, if no players have any Stardust Pieces left the game ends.
Players then add up their scores, based on the values of their Sky Tiles. In addition to the values on your Sky Tiles (as shown above) you gain 1 point for every 2 Stardust value you have left. For example, 1 white and 1 orange Stardust Piece would be worth 6 Stardust value, and 3 points at game end.
The player with the most points is the most successful astronomer and wins the game! In the case of a tie, both players share the victory!