Stellar Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Game Setup
• Card Anatomy
• Game Overview
• Turn Sequence
• Telescope Details
• Notebook Details
• Special Cards
• End of the Game
• Final Scoring
• Winning the Game
• Credits

Components

• 60 Celestial Object Cards
• 24 Telescope Cards (2 sets of 12)
• 5 Number Cards
• 1 Scorepad (50 Sheets)
• 2 Reference Cards

Game Setup

1. Give each player a set of 12 telescope cards, arranged to form an outline. (Use the small numbers in the corners of the cards as a guide for how to arrange them.) This area is their telescope, while the area below it is their notebook.

2. Find the five celestial object cards that are marked as starter cards (i.e., with a diamond icon in the lower right corner). Shuffle these five cards, then deal two cards to each player. Each player plays one starter card face up in the top slot of their telescope and the other starter card face up in their notebook.

3. Shuffle the remaining celestial object cards (including the fifth starter card), then deal two cards to each player as their starting hand.

4. Set the remaining celestial object cards off to one side as a single face-down deck, with plenty of room next to it.

5. Place the five number cards in a row next to the deck, with the "1" card closest to the deck and the "5" card farthest from it. Then reveal five celestial object cards from the deck and place one in the slot by each number card, face up.

6. Give one reference card to each player, then choose who will be the start player.

Card Anatomy

Type: There are five types of celestial objects: planets, moons, asteroids, interstellar clouds, and black holes. (Satellites do -NOT- count as their own type.)

• Planets
• Moons
• Asteroids
• Interstellar Clouds
• Black Holes

Number: The card's number has a different function based on where you play the card. In your telescope, higher numbers will help you score section majorities. In your notebook, runs of consecutive numbers will increase your multipliers.

Stars: The number of stars indicates how many points the card will be worth (before multipliers) if played in your telescope.

Factoid: A brief fact about astronomy. This does not affect game play.

Game Overview

The game is played over 11 rounds. By the end of the game, each player will have transformed their telescope into a beautiful display of the night sky. In each round, both players will take one turn: first the start player, then the other player.

Turn Sequence

On your turn, you will play two cards in different areas: one in your telescope and one in your notebook. To do so, carry out these four steps, in order…

1. Add Card to Hand
2. Play Card from Hand
3. Play Card from Row
4. Refill the Row

STEP 1: Add Card to Hand Take one celestial object card from the row and add it to your hand.

STEP 2: Play Card from Hand Play one celestial object card from your hand. You may play that card in the area of your choice: either your telescope or your notebook. The number of this card will determine which card you must play in the next step.

STEP 3: Play Card from Row Play one celestial object card from the row. You must play the card from the slot whose number matches the number of the card you just played from your hand. Take that card from the row and play it in the area where you did -NOT- just play a card from your hand.

Important! If the matching slot is empty, because you took that card from the row and added it to your hand earlier this turn, you must play a card from the top of the deck instead.

STEP 4: Refill the Row Reveal cards from the deck, one at a time, to refill any empty slots in the row. There will always be one or two empty slots.

Example: ① Carly takes the "3" planet card from the row and adds it to her hand. ② She then plays the "1" black hole card from her hand, choosing to play it in her telescope. ③ Because that card's number is "1," she then takes the card from the first slot in the row, which is a "4" asteroid card, and plays it in her notebook.

Telescope Details

Your telescope is made up of 12 slots, represented by the 12 telescope cards. Each slot is available until a celestial object card has been played there.

At the start of the game, you will only have one card in your telescope, but you will play one more card in your telescope every turn.

There are three sections in your telescope: the top section (five slots), middle section (three slots), and bottom section (four slots). These sections matter for scoring purposes.

When you play a card in your telescope, follow these rules:

• If you have any cards of that type in your telescope already, you must play the new card face up in an available slot of your choice that is adjacent to (i.e., sharing an edge with) at least one card of that type.
• If you do -NOT- have any cards of that type in your telescope already, you may play the new card face up in an available slot of your choice.

Important! If you cannot (or do not wish to) play a card legally in your telescope, you must instead play it face down in an available slot of your choice. Face-down cards are considered to have a number of "3," but no stars or type.

Example: In Emma's telescope, the next moon card she plays has three legal positions, the next planet card she plays has two legal positions, and the next black hole card she plays has three legal positions.

Notebook Details

Your notebook is made up of five possible stacks, with one stack for cards of each type. At the start of the game, you will only have one card in your notebook, but you will play one more card in your notebook every turn.

Keep the cards in each stack arranged in numerical order. Ensure that the cards in each stack are splayed so that their numbers remain visible.

When you play a card in your notebook, follow these rules:

• If you have any cards of that type in your notebook already, play the new card face up in the existing stack for that type, inserting it where it goes in numerical order.
• If you do -NOT- have any cards of that type in your notebook already, play the new card face up beside the other stacks in your notebook, starting a new stack for that type.

Important! You are allowed to have duplicate cards in the same stack. When you score at the end of the game, duplicates in a stack are simply ignored.

Example: Halfway through the game, Carly's notebook looks like this: planets (4), asteroids (2,3,4), interstellar clouds (1,5). On her next turn, she plays a "4" interstellar cloud card in her notebook, inserting it between the "1" and "5" in that stack.

Special Cards

"6/0" Cards There is one special "6/0" card of each type.

When played in your telescope, a "6/0" card always counts as a "6."

When played in your notebook, a "6/0" card counts as either a "6" or a "0" of that type. You do not have to decide which number you want it to be until the end of the game.

Important! When you play a "6/0" card from your hand during STEP 2 of your turn, you must take and play the top card from the deck instead of the row during STEP 3, since there is no matching "6" or "0" slot in the row.

Satellite Cards Satellite cards do -NOT- count as their own type.

When played in your telescope, a satellite card counts as the number printed on the card, but has no type and can therefore be played in any available slot.

When played in your notebook, a satellite card counts as the type of your choice. Play it in any stack (existing or new) and it will count as a card of that type.

You may freely move your satellite cards between stacks until the end of the game.

Important! When you take a satellite card from the row and add it to your hand during your turn, your opponent may choose to discard and refill the entire row at the start of their next turn. If the deck ever runs out, shuffle the discarded cards to form a new deck.

End of the Game

The game ends when the 11th round is over; at that point, each player should have 12 cards in their telescope and 12 cards in their notebook.

Once the game has ended, each player chooses one of the two cards left in their hand and plays it in their notebook, discarding the other.

Then proceed to final scoring.

Final Scoring

Each player tallies their points, using the included scorepad, in three categories.

1. Stars x Multipliers Carry out these steps for each of the five types of celestial objects:

• Count the number of stars showing on cards of that type in your telescope (ignoring face-down cards). That number is your star total.
• Find the longest run of consecutive numbers in the matching stack in your notebook. Count the total cards in that run (ignoring duplicates). That number is your multiplier.
• Multiply your star total by your multiplier to get your score for that type.

Example: Emma has two moon cards in her telescope, with five stars. In her notebook, the longest run of consecutive numbers in the moon stack is three (4,5,6). With a star total of five and a multiplier of three, she scores 15 points for moons.

5 x 3 = 15

2. Section Majorities For each section in your telescope, add up the numbers of all cards in that section. (Remember, each face-down card counts as a "3.") This is your section total.

You and your opponent then compare section totals. For each telescope section where you have a higher section total than your opponent does, score 10 points.

If tied, neither player scores points for that section.

Example: Carly has the higher section total for the bottom section (15 > 13) and middle section (11 > 6), while Emma has the higher section total for the top section (17 > 14). Carly scores 20 points and Emma scores 10 points.

3. Diversity Bonus If you have at least one card of all five types of celestial objects in your telescope, score 10 points. (Remember, face-down cards and satellite cards have no type.)

Winning the Game

Once final scores have been tallied, whoever scored more points is the winner! In the case of a tie, the players begrudgingly enjoy their shared victory.

Credits

STELLAR Game Designers: Ben Pinchback and Matt Riddle Developer: T.C. Petty III Astronomy Consultants: Bob Duke and Becky Ericson Illustrators: Tim Barton and Janos Orban Graphic Designer & Production Artist: Cold Castle Studios Editor: Dustin Schwartz

RENEGADE GAME STUDIOS President & Publisher: Scott Gaeta Controller: Robyn Gaeta Director of Operations: Leisha Cummins Director of Sales & Marketing: Sara Erickson Creative Director: Anita Osburn Senior Producer: Dan Bojanowski Senior Marketing Manager: Teri Litorco Creative Production Lead: Gordon Tucker Video Production Manager: Desiree Love Event Manager: Patty Wainwright Development Coordinator: Dan Blanchett Customer Service: Jenni Janikowski

PLAYTESTERS Fernando Amaral, William Beus, Henrik Blumenthal, Kate Bosworth, John Boucher, Leah Breeds, Travis L Bucknell, Aryn Callarman, Johnson James Chin, Martin Daine, Travis Dalke, David Digby, Paulo Filgueiras Camacho, Shari Forrest, Marissa Godfrey, Gordon Helle, Eric Hopkins, Ben Huston, Rachel Huston, Jeffrey Jacobson, Rachel Kealley, Quincie Krenkel, Anjanette Lugo, Garrett Lumens, Tila Maceira-Klever, Daniel Madamba, Ryan Malone, AJ Maulion, Bernadette Maulion, Neal McClatchey, Melissa Millar, Jason Ornelas, Tomas Padilla, Jeff Payne, Oscar Perez, Jeroen Prinsen, Brad Rochford, Laura Rodriguez, Jurgens Schneider, Chelsea Siaca, Caitlin Skalitzky, Heather Soltroff, Eugene Stasak, Sean Wainwright, Lydia-Rae Elizabeth Wehmeyer

SPECIAL THANKS The game designers would like to thank Brian Richards, Shannon Richards, Atalie Schwartz, and Dustin Schwartz. Renegade Game Studios would like to thank the Great Lakes, lighthouses, and everyone in the Renegade Tabletop Testers group who played and provided feedback!

For additional information or support, please visit us online: www.renegadegames.com

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