Stellar Leap Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Objective
• Game Contents
• Player Setup
  • Five Player Differences
• Galaxy Setup
• Missions
  • Planets and Asteroids
• Icons
• Terms
• Card Anatomy
  • Planet Cards
  • Mission Cards
• Your Turn
• Population Movement
• High Command Actions
• Divisions
• Events
• Game End
• Appendix
  • Player Board Achievements
  • Clarifications
• Solo Variant
  • Game Setup
  • Game Flow
  • Scattering the AI
  • Game End
  • Multiple AI Variant
• Multiplayer Variants
  • Intense Attack Variant
  • Additional AI Variant
  • Easy Event Variant
• Stellar Leap: Frontiers
• Quick Setup Guide

Game Objective

The player with the most Prestige at the end of the game wins. Prestige is earned by completing Missions, discovering new Planets, increasing population, and fulfilling your hidden Trait's objective. The game ends after a specified number of Events have been triggered.

Game Contents

• Cards:
  • 29 Planets and Asteroids (5 Home, 12 Safe, 12 Dangerous)
  • 13 Events
  • 9 Traits
  • 34 Missions (11 Tier One, 11 Tier Two, 12 Tier Three)
  • 11 Dice Powers (8 Player, 3 Universal)
  • 3 Solo AI
  • 5 Reference
  • 6 Dice
• 5 Player Boards
• 7 Dice (2 main, 5 Asteroid)
• 50 Player Population Figures (10 each of 5 colors)
• 60 Player Chits (12 each of 5 colors)
• 20 Resource Cubes (5 each of 4 colors)
• 25 Action Tracker Cubes (5 each in 5 colors)
• 1 Exhausted Spaceship Token
• 1 Scoring Pad

NOTE - A Quick Setup Guide is located at the back of this book for those familiar with the game.

Player Setup

Choose a player board, a set of four Resource Tracker cubes (blue, yellow, red, and green), and a reference card. Take a set of ten Population Figures, twelve chits, five Action Tracker cubes, and the Home Planet in your chosen color.

Fill all 10 spaces of the Population Track on your board with your Population Figures. Using the Action Tracker cubes is optional. If using, place them in the Action Track, covering up the Completed icon.

Place the four Resource Tracker cubes on their respective color track on the 3 column in your Cargo Hold.

Figure 1 - Player Board: the board shows the Player Board End Game Bonuses (Discoveries and Attacks tables, plus 1 Prestige for every population created), the optional Action Track (High Command and the Divisions: Intel, Mining, Labor), the Population Track (spaces 1 to 10), the Event reminder list, and the Cargo Hold, which tracks all resources.

NOTE - Your Cargo Hold can only hold up to 20 of each resource. Any extra resources are lost.

Figure 2 - Trait with Player Count Restrictions. Example Trait "Resourceful": Gain either 3 Prestige for every unique resource that you have 10 or more of OR Gain 5 Prestige for every unique resource that you have 15 or more of. Gain 1 Prestige for every 3 resources. (Printed player count restriction on the card: 3P+.)

Determine the First Player, either the player who has traveled the farthest to where you are playing today or choose randomly.

Certain Traits and Species Dice Powers have a player count restriction printed on them; remove the Traits and Powers not needed for the current player count. Shuffle and deal two Traits and two Species Dice Powers to each player. Each player keeps one Trait and one Species Dice Power and returns the others to the box. Traits give you a hidden objective that will earn you Prestige at the end of the game. Reveal your Species Dice Power.

Five Player Differences

After selecting the First Player, give the Exhausted Spaceship Token to the person to the First Player's right; that person is the Exhausted Player for the first turn.

The Exhausted Player does not gather resources if the Planets they are on generate resources. Each time a player ends their turn, they take the Exhausted Spaceship Token.

The initial Exhausted Player also gets to choose from all the rejected Species Dice Powers and Traits.

Galaxy Setup

Arrange the Dice cards in a row as shown with the arrows on the cards in the upper right. Each row of Planets and Asteroids represents a single Solar System. Shuffle and place the Event deck to the left side of the Galaxy. Randomly choose a Universal Dice Power and place it to the left side of the Galaxy.

Starting with the First Player and proceeding clockwise, place your Home Planet into the Galaxy along with one chit and one figure by choosing a column and placing the Planet in the Solar System closest to that column's dice card. The figure will come from the 1 spot on your population track and is placed into the Planet Habitat of your Home Planet. Planets must always be placed in the Solar System closest to the dice cards.

The higher-valued columns are typically better as the value and sum of two dice rolls determine the columns of Planets that generate resources.

Missions

Separate the three tiers of Missions. Randomly choose Tier One Missions equal to twice the number of players. Do the same for Tier Two Missions. Use all of the Tier Three Missions. Place these decks at the top of the Galaxy. Return the remaining Missions to the game box, as they will not be used. Reveal four Tier One Missions.

Planets and Asteroids

Shuffle and place the Safe and the Dangerous decks next to the Galaxy. These cards will be drawn when you perform the Discover action. The Safe Planets and Asteroids require less Fuel to travel to, but generate fewer resources than Dangerous Planets and Asteroids.

Icons

• Water Icon - This represents the Water resource used in the Populate High Command action and when fulfilling Missions.
• Food Icon - This represents the Food resource used in the Populate High Command action and when fulfilling Missions.
• Fuel Icon - This represents the Fuel resource used to perform movements and fulfill Missions.
• Oxygen Icon - This represents the Oxygen resource used to perform movements and fulfill Missions.
• Resource of Choice Icon - This represents a Resource of Choice: either Water, Food, Fuel, or Oxygen.
• Threat Level Icon - This represents the amount of danger and thus the amount of Fuel needed to move to a Planet.
• Prestige Icon - This represents Prestige, which determines the player that wins the game.
• Planet Habitat Icon - This represents the area of a Planet where the Player's population resides. If a population is located here, it can gather the resources of a Planet, should that Planet generate resources.
• Exhausted Area Icon - This represents the area of a Planet where the Player's population is located if it is exhausted. Populations here can never gather resources or move until the Player's next turn.
• Completed Icon - This represents an action that has been completed when using the Action Track. It should initially be covered up and uncovered once an action has been completed.

Terms

• Flip - Turn the die to show the opposite side of the one it is currently showing. For example, flipping a die showing a 6 would result in it showing a 1.
• Overpopulated - Planets containing at least one population from all players (or three players in a four or five player game) are considered overpopulated. Overpopulated Planets generate fewer resources as stated on the card's Overpopulated section, in the top right.
• Scatter - The scattered population retreats to the Planet of their choice in the same Solar System where they are currently located. If no applicable Planet exists, they retreat to a Planet of their choice in the nearest Solar System. No Fuel or Oxygen is needed for this retreat movement, but the population is now exhausted from the effort of scattering.
• Solar System - A row of up to six Planets and Asteroids. Traveling between Planets in the same Solar System does not cost any extra Fuel, but traveling between Solar Systems costs one Fuel per Solar System change. Players can choose to discover as many Solar Systems as they wish.

Card Anatomy

Planet Cards

• Planet Threat Level (top, next to the Planet name).
• Resources that the Planet generates from die rolls (top left).
• Resources that the Planet generates while Overpopulated (top right).
• Planet Habitat.
• Exhausted Area.
• Resources gained when the Labor Division is used (beside the Exhausted Area).
• Location to place Player Chit when discovering the Planet.

Mission Cards

• Mission Tier: 3 Stars means Tier Three.
• Mission Prestige Value.
• Mission Requirements. Example: 8 Oxygen, 5 Food.
• Mission Rewards. Example: 3 Resources of Choice, 1 Water.

Your Turn

1. Recover exhausted population. Move all of your exhausted population from the Exhausted Area to the Planet Habitat of the planet. This population can now collect resources if it is located on a Planet that generates resources.
2. Roll two dice.
3. Apply one Dice Manipulation Power. You may use either your Species Power or the Universal Power to change the die values.
4. Planets now generate resources if they are in the columns matching the die values and also the sum of the die values. (Three columns generate if the sum of the dice is 6 or less. For example, a roll of a 1 and 3 will generate resources in columns 1, 3, and 4.) Every player with at least one population on the Planet Habitat portion of any Planet located in the chosen columns receives the resources noted on the Planet card. Resources are tracked by moving your corresponding resource cubes right or left on your player board. Planets with more than one of your population do not gain additional resources. Planets containing at least one population from all players (or three players in a four or five player game) are considered overpopulated. Overpopulated Planets generate fewer resources as stated on the card's Overpopulated section. If both dice are the same value, then Planets in that column generate resources twice, once for each die.
5. Population movement, activate High Command actions, and/or activate Divisions in any order: See following sections.
6. Check for missed Event conditions.

Note - Use of the Action Tracker cubes to track which actions you have taken so far on your turn is optional. To use them, move all the cubes to the top section of the Action Tracker at the start of your turn and as you do actions, move the associated action cube down, so that the Completed icon is visible. Once all the cubes are pushed down, you can now only move your population to different Planets.

Population Movement

You may move any of your populations from one Planet to another by spending Oxygen and Fuel. To move, you must first spend one Oxygen for each population moving. You must spend one Fuel per Solar System traveled through, plus Fuel equal to the Threat Level of the Planet you are moving to. You may never move to another player's Home Planet. Always move population to the Planet Habitat portion of the Planet.

NOTE - Population movement within the same row or Solar System only costs an amount of Fuel equal to the Threat Level of the Planet and Oxygen equal to the number of populations moved.

Example: If Purple wants to move three populations from her home Planet to Planet Alpha, which has a Threat Level of three, she must spend three Oxygen, one for each population, and four Fuel, three for the Threat Level and an additional one for traveling across a Solar System.

If Yellow wants to move one population from his home Planet to Planet Beta, which has a Threat Level of three, he must spend one Oxygen and five Fuel, three for the Threat Level and two additional for traveling across two Solar Systems.

High Command Actions

You may perform up to TWO of the following actions. This may be the same action twice.

• Populate: Spend two Food and one Water to add one population to the Planet Habitat of a Planet that already contains at least one of your population.
• Tax: Receive two resources of your choice.
• Discover: Draw two cards from any Planet deck, choose one and return the other to the bottom of the deck. Choose a column and place the newly discovered Planet or Asteroid, along with your chit, in the Solar System closest to that column's dice card. Place an Asteroid die on any newly discovered Asteroid with a 3 as its starting value. The Discover action is not limited by your number of chits.

NOTE - Only three Solar Systems are shown in the examples, but players can choose to discover as many Solar Systems as they wish.

Example: In the Galaxy shown (a Solar System 1 with a Planet in the first column, Solar System 2, and Solar System 3), you could place your newly discovered Planet or Asteroid in one of six places marked with an X.

• Attack an Opponent: You must have the majority of Population Figures on a Planet to launch an attack. Exhausted populations still count towards defense of an attack.
  • The defeated populations must scatter and retreat, in clockwise player order, to any Planet in the same Solar System as the attacked Planet. If no applicable Planet exists, they retreat to a Planet of their choice in the nearest Solar System. No Fuel or Oxygen is needed for this retreat movement, but the population is now exhausted from the effort of retreating. You may never attack a player's Home Planet.
  • Gain a chit from every player that was successfully attacked and place them to the side of your player board. These chits will be used to track victories for end game scoring.
  • Movement and Attacking are separate. You have the choice to perform the Attack High Command action once you have the majority on a Planet.

Example: Purple wants to attack Planet Alpha. She must move at least three population to Planet Alpha as there are a total of two defending populations - one Yellow and one Teal. She can perform two separate movements to move two population from her home Planet and one population from Planet Beta. After the attack, Yellow must return to his Home Planet as it is in the same Solar System. Teal has the choice of going to either Planet Beta or their Home Planet, as there is no Planet in Solar System 2 they can inhabit.

Divisions

You may activate each Division once per turn.

Intelligence Division can complete one Mission. Spend the resources shown on the Required section of the Mission card to complete it and receive its rewards. Once you complete a Mission, keep the Mission card near your Player Board and replace it by drawing from the lowest available tier Mission deck. Each Mission is worth Prestige at the end of the game, as shown on the top right corner of the card.

Note - When replacing Missions, keep different Mission Tiers separate so it is easy to tell when a Mission Tier is completed.

Mining Division can mine one Asteroid. Using normal movement rules, move any one of your population to an Asteroid. Roll a number of dice equal to the value of the Asteroid die. Receive the resources shown on the Asteroid plus the highest single value of the dice rolled. After receiving resources, decrease the value of the Asteroid die by one or remove the Asteroid die, if at one. If you mine an Asteroid with no Asteroid die, you receive the resources on the Asteroid with no die roll. Finally, the population then returns to their previous location for no additional movement costs due to using a free-return trajectory when mining Asteroids.

Example: If you were to mine the Asteroid above (which shows 3 Food plus a die), receive a number of Food equal to three plus the highest value of three die rolls. The Asteroid die would then be changed to the 2 value.

Labor Division can receive the Planet's resources listed on its Exhausted Area. Move one of your population from the Planet's Habitat to the Exhausted Area. Exhausted populations cannot harvest resources generated while exhausted nor can they move or attack.

Example: Green exhausts the above population (on a Planet whose Exhausted Area lists 2 Water), receiving two Water, but this population can no longer gather resources until Green's next turn.

Note - You may activate all three Divisions on your turn, if you wish.

Example Turn: Green mines a Food Asteroid with her Mining Division, gaining enough Food to Populate twice, using up both her High Command actions. One of these populations is exhausted using her Labor Division, which allows Green to complete a Mission using her Intelligence Division. Green then moves several populations to different Planets.

Events

Certain galactic milestones trigger Galaxy-wide Events that affect all players. Immediately draw an Event card and apply its effects if any of the following occur:

• The last Planet or Asteroid in a Solar System is discovered.
• When all Players have at least three, six, or nine population.
• After three, six, or nine Asteroids have been discovered.
• A tier of Missions is completed.
• A Planet deck is depleted.

After the Event is resolved, set it aside with the other resolved Events and play continues normally.

Example Event card, "Mega Populate": A new High Command Action is available: Spend 5 food and 3 water to add two populations to the same planet. This action is available until the end of the game.

Note - It is possible that multiple Events can be triggered during one player's turn.

Note - All Missions of a tier must be completed, not just revealed, for an Event to trigger.

Example: The following Missions are revealed: one Tier One Mission, one Tier Two Mission, and two Tier Three Missions. If either the Tier One or Tier Two Missions are completed, then that tier of Missions has been completed and an Event will occur.

Game End

The last round is triggered after the sixth Event. Complete the round and continue drawing Events if more are triggered. Players end the game after having played an equal number of turns.

For beginners, it is suggested that players play until four Events are triggered. For a longer or shorter game, modify the number of Events required to complete the game.

At the end of the game, tally your Prestige from completed Missions, your Trait, and player board achievements (see Appendix) using the provided scoring pads. The player with the highest Prestige wins! In the event of a tie, the tied player with more discoveries wins. If there is still a tie, the tied player with more population wins.

The winner of the game has the option of taking a selfie with the Stellar Leap Champion card, so everyone knows that they have mastered the Galaxy of Stellar Leap!

Appendix

Player Board Achievements

Tally together your end game bonus from discoveries and attacks, plus one Prestige for every population created, to determine your total Prestige for your player board achievements.

Discoveries	End Bonus	Attacks	End Bonus
2	1 Prestige	2	2 Prestige
5	4 Prestige	5	7 Prestige
7	7 Prestige	7	12 Prestige
10	12 Prestige	10	20 Prestige

Note - Home Planets count as a discovery toward your player board achievements.

Clarifications

Universal Dice Power: Subtract the dice, instead of adding them. This causes three columns to generate resources, unless the die values are the same. For example, if the die values are 3 and 6 and this power is activated, the 3 column triggers twice and the 6 column once.

Cloning Species Dice Power: When using this power, mark the Species Dice powers that you have used with a player chit. When all abilities have been used, take back the chits and repeat.

Solo Variant

In the solo game, you play against an AI. The instructions below cover the rule changes for the solo game of Stellar Leap. All other standard rules apply.

Game Setup

After choosing a player board, choose a player color for the AI and choose an AI card to play against. Remove the Mega Populate Event from the Event deck. Place your Home Planet normally. Place the AI's Home Planet in the first Solar System, in the furthest column to the right (either the 5th or 6th column). Place one player figure on the AI's Home Planet.

Set up the Missions decks as if you were playing a two player game.

Game Flow

Your turn plays normally. Once your turn is over, the AI will roll two dice. Planets generate resources based on these dice. The AI does not track resources; it performs actions as if it had unlimited resources.

The AI will perform two High Command actions, as listed on the chosen AI's card, which can be tracked with Action Tracker cubes. When Discovering, the AI takes only one card and places it in the first open Solar System, in the highest available column.

If there is an Asteroid with an Asteroid die, it is decremented, as if the AI had mined it. If there are multiple Asteroids, the highest value die is decremented. If there are multiple Asteroids with the same value die, the AI will mine the Asteroid in the Solar System closest to the Dice cards in the column with the highest dice value.

Scattering the AI

If you choose to attack the AI or if the AI is scattered by an Event, the AI will scatter to as many different Planets as they can, player's choice.

Game End

Tally your Prestige as if this was a regular game. Tally the AI's Prestige total using the rules listed on the AI's card.

Multiple AI Variant

Instead of choosing one AI, choose two AI to play against and select which one will play first. It is more difficult to play with the Attacker AI in the last player position. Set up the Missions decks as if you were playing a two player game.

Play proceeds much like it does in the standard Solo Variant. If, playing with the Attacker AI, it will initially attack any Planet it can, but it will not continue to attack the other AI player after the first attack has been made.

Multiplayer Variants

Intense Attack Variant

The difference between the base game and the Intense Attack Variant is that attacks are more meaningful and effective against other players. Instead of an attack only causing a player to scatter, that player must give two resources of the attacker's choice to the attacker for every population that was attacked OR discard one of their discoveries. This choice is made by the player that was attacked. The attacker can only ask for resources that the player in question currently owns. If the player chooses to discard their discovery, the player takes back their chit, that planet now has no discovery chit, and will remain that way until the end of the game. If the attacked player can do neither option, which means they do not have resources equal to twice the population that was attacked and they no longer have any discoveries, they must retreat back to their home Planet, instead of having the choice of their scattered location.

Additional AI Variant

Each player count of Stellar Leap plays differently and it is possible to experience different player counts by using the AI. This is recommended for two players hoping to get the three and four player experience. Select up to two AIs and play according to the Solo Variant rules.

Easy Event Variant

The difference between the base game and the Easy Event Variant is that Events are no longer triggered by player actions. Instead, draw an Event card before the start of each round, beginning with the second round. A standard game would be 5 Events for a total of 6 rounds.

Stellar Leap: Frontiers

Stellar Leap: Frontiers adds new resource focused planets, diverse new asteroids, additional events that can change your available actions, and additional challenging traits! This expansion adds a new type of card: Solar System Completion Bonuses. These allow the player who completed a solar system to change that system in a significant manner.

Add the additional Planets, Asteroids, Events, and Traits cards to their respective decks.

Find the expansion at http://StellarLeap.Space/Frontiers

Example Solar System Completion Bonus card: Planets in this Solar System can no longer be overpopulated.

There is a new card type: Solar System Completion Bonus. When a Solar System has been completed and the associated Event has been resolved, the player who completed the Solar System can now draw three Solar System Completion Bonus cards. Of these cards, choose one and place it to the side of the completed Solar System. This system now has a permanent change to it. Return the other two Solar System Completion Bonus Cards to the bottom of the deck.

Quick Setup Guide

1. Players each take: a player board, a set of four resource tracker cubes (blue, yellow, red, and green), and a reference card. They also take a set of ten population figures, twelve chits, five action tracker cubes, and a Home Planet in their chosen color.
2. Deal two Traits and two Species Dice Powers to each player. Each player chooses one of each card type and discards the other.
3. Players start with three of each resource.
4. Set out the Dice Cards in a row to form the Galaxy.
5. Randomly choose a Universal Dice Power and place it to the side of the Galaxy.
6. Shuffle and place the following decks to the side of the Galaxy: Safe Planets, Dangerous Planets, and Events.
7. Take Tier One Missions equal to twice the number of players, the same number for Tier Two Missions and all the Tier Three Missions and place the decks at the top of the Galaxy. Place the rest of the Mission cards into the game box, as they will not be used. Reveal four Tier One Missions.
8. Starting with the player who has traveled the farthest from where you are playing today and proceeding clockwise, place your Home Planet into the Galaxy with one chit and one figure. Play can now begin!