Twilight Imperium: Fourth Edition

When several players want to resolve abilities at the same time, who goes first?

In the action phase, the active player goes first, then the other players in initiative order counting on from the active player's number and wrapping around. With the active player on 5 and others on 6, 1, 3 and 8, the order is 5, 6, 8, 1, 3. In the strategy and agenda phases, go in order starting with the speaker instead.

If I pass on playing an action card or ability in a timing window, can I still play one later in that window?

Yes — passing is not final. Players keep taking turns in the window, and if anyone plays something after you passed, you get another chance. The window only closes once every player passes in a row. This applies to riders, Sabotage, combat cards like Skilled Retreat, and any other timed ability.

Once I resolve an ability in a timing window, can I take it back after my opponent responds?

No — anything already resolved stays resolved. Your opponent's response just adds to the window; you can answer it with another ability on your next turn in that window, but you cannot withdraw what you already did.

If both players have the same 'after a round of space combat' ability, such as two Exotrireme II dreadnoughts, who resolves first?

The active player resolves one first, then the other player, alternating one ability at a time until nobody wants to resolve more. Each use is a separate resolution, so the players take turns rather than one player resolving all of theirs at once.

Can the defender respond to the active player's Flank Speed with a card like Ceasefire?

Yes — both are played after a system is activated, so they share one timing window. The active player gets the first chance to play, then the others in order, and the window stays open until everyone passes in succession.

How do we order two game effects (not player abilities) that trigger at the same time?

The speaker decides the order. Such conflicts are meant to be judged case by case, and absent a specific ruling the speaker resolves the timing question.

If an ability says 'then', do I have to resolve the first part before the part after 'then' happens?

Yes — the effect after 'then' only happens if the effect before it was resolved. For example, the Warfare primary gives you no command token back unless you actually removed one from the board. This links effects within a single ability only; a separate paragraph on the same card is its own ability.

Is each paragraph on a card a separate ability, for example the 'Then return this card' line on a promissory note?

Yes — each paragraph is its own ability and resolves on its own. So a note's final return line still happens even if an earlier paragraph had no effect, and a paragraph you can resolve still works when a different paragraph can't be done.

If an ability tells me to destroy or lose a number of things and I have fewer, do I resolve it partly?

Strictly, no — an ability has to be resolved in its entirety, and only effects joined by 'and' can be resolved separately, so a single effect you cannot fully carry out does nothing. Some players argue for resolving as much as possible. Unstable Planet, for one, was later errata'd to destroy 'up to' 3 infantry.

If an earlier ruling by the developer contradicts the Living Rules Reference FAQ, which one wins?

The Living Rules Reference and its FAQ win. When FFG released it, the developer said anything he had said before that contradicts the FAQ is overruled by it, and the LRR is the definitive current rule set.

“If something I've said before contradicts something in the FAQ, the FAQ is the winner.”

— CreussEmissary, designer

If I only play the base game, which Living Rules Reference should I use?

Use the current Prophecy of Kings version of the Living Rules Reference and skip the expansion-only parts. It made no major changes to base rules, though rule numbers shifted from v1.3 (59.4 became 68.4, for example). The revised Diplomacy and Construction strategy cards are recommended in base-only games too.

Are the Codex cards official, and do I have to use them?

They are official FFG content but optional. Cards marked with the Omega symbol replace the original cards of the same name when you use them; Codex cards without the symbol are additions. The Omega versions are widely recommended, since they were made to fix weak originals.

Can I show my action cards or secret objectives to other players?

Yes — you may reveal your own hidden cards to anyone at any time, and they still count as hidden afterwards. The old penalty for revealing a secret objective was removed. This only covers your own hidden components, not hidden information you have merely been allowed to look at.

After looking at another player's action cards (for example with Mageon Implants), can I tell other players what I saw?

Yes — nothing in the rules stops you from sharing or trading that information. Restricting it is a house rule.

Is the action card discard pile face up, and can players look through it?

Yes to both — discards are face up and public, so anyone may search the pile, for example to count how many Sabotages have been played. Secret objectives have no discard pile; discarded or unchosen ones are shuffled back into their deck.

Can I use an effect that destroys units, like Lucky Shot, Unstable Planet or X-89 Bacterial Weapon, on my own units?

No — the Living Rules Reference FAQ rules that abilities that destroy units can only be used against other players' units and planets. Readings that allowed it by the card's wording were overturned by that FAQ entry.

Are fighters ships?

Yes — the ships are carriers, cruisers, dreadnoughts, destroyers, fighters, war suns and flagships. Fighters count for anything that refers to ships unless it says non-fighter ships. Saar Floating Factories move like ships but are not ships.

Are PDS and space docks ground forces?

No — PDS and space docks are structures, a separate unit type. In the base game, infantry are the only ground forces.

Do faction units like the Muaat Prototype War Sun count as their base unit type?

Yes — a faction unit counts as its base unit type for every purpose, so the Prototype War Sun is a war sun. Only the researched upgrade card is a technology: Prototype War Sun II counts as a war sun technology, but the Prototype War Sun I printed on the faction sheet does not.

What do the small arrows and the dots by the combat value on a faction sheet mean?

An arrow marks a value that improves when you research that unit's upgrade. Each dot or burst by a combat value is one die the unit rolls, so two dots means two dice.

Are fighter and infantry tokens limited, and what are they for?

Tokens are unlimited, but each stack of tokens must sit with at least one plastic piece of the same type. So your plastic fighters and infantry limit how many places you can have them, not how many you have. You may swap a plastic piece on the board for a token at any time to free the plastic for use elsewhere.

Is there a limit to how many infantry can be on one planet?

No — any number of infantry can be on a planet. You are only limited by your components, and tokens can stand in for extra infantry.

What happens if I would gain a command token but have none left in my reinforcements?

You don't gain it. Your 16 command tokens are a hard limit. Tokens you spend, such as for a secondary ability, go back to your reinforcements, not to your command sheet.

What if an effect makes me place a command token from my reinforcements, such as Diplomacy or a retreat, and I have none there?

You take one of your choice from your command sheet instead. Component actions are different: one that cannot be fully resolved cannot be played at all, so it can't target you if it needs a token you don't have.

If my reinforcements are empty, must I take units from the board to place a new one?

No — the rules let you remove a unit from the board to place it elsewhere, but you are not required to. This matters for effects such as L1Z1X Assimilate or Swords to Plowshares.

Can Twilight Imperium 4 be played with two players?

Not officially — the game is designed for 3 to 6 players and has no two-player rules. Two-player games rely on fan variants.

How are factions, colors and seats chosen at setup?

However your group likes — the rules deliberately leave the method open. Free choice, random draw, or dealing each player a few factions to pick from are all fine. If you pick in turn, go clockwise from the speaker, as with other unspecified orders.

When building the galaxy, can I look at my dealt system tiles and choose which one to place?

Yes — the dealt tiles are effectively a hand. You see them all and pick which tile to place and where on each turn, within the placement restrictions, which lets you put poor systems near your opponents.

During galaxy setup, when can anomalies go next to each other, and can they go next to Mecatol Rex?

Anomalies may only go next to another anomaly when you have no other legal option, and holding any non-anomaly tile counts as an option. Matching wormholes follow the same rule. Nothing stops an anomaly from going next to Mecatol Rex.

Are red-backed empty systems anomalies for the setup placement rule?

No — only tiles with a red border on the front are anomalies. The red back only matters for dealing, so empty systems may go next to anomalies.

Is it a problem if an alpha or beta wormhole ends up on the map without its partner?

No — that is a legal galaxy. The lone wormhole just has nothing to connect to, though it is still a wormhole system for Creuss and for agendas or cards that care about wormholes. Swapping tiles to fix it is a house rule.

Is a randomly built galaxy supposed to be balanced?

No — the standard placement method isn't meant to produce equal slices, so an uneven map is still correct. Groups wanting balance use fixed or drafted maps.

Is the gravity rift tile only for four-player games?

No — it only shows up in the four-player Learn to Play map because that map uses nearly every tile. In a normal setup it can be dealt at any player count.

In a five-player game, which players get starting trade goods?

In the standard five-player layout, the players whose home systems sit closer to their neighbors receive trade goods as compensation; the others get none. Since the galaxy can't be built until home positions are known, decide who sits where (and so who gets them) first. The Mentak can't pillage these, since nobody is a neighbor during setup.

Do players start the game with commodities, trade goods or action cards?

No — nobody starts with commodities, trade goods or action cards. The only exception is the trade goods some players get in the standard five-player setup.

Do factions start with their faction technologies, and does adding them remove any generic technologies?

No to both. Faction technologies must be researched or otherwise gained; you only own the starting technologies listed on your faction sheet. The Nekro Virus is the exception, since its two Valefar Assimilator technologies are listed as starting technologies. Non-unit faction technologies, such as the Xxcha's, are simply added to your deck without removing anything.

Can I put all my starting ground forces on one home planet, and do I control the empty one?

Yes — split them however you like, all on one planet if you wish. You control every planet in your home system regardless. Put your space dock on the planet that suits your production best.

Which promissory notes does each player start with?

The four generic notes of your color plus your faction's unique note.

Are there errors in the Learn to Play setup illustrations?

Yes, two known ones. The Learn to Play shows the wrong resource and influence values for Jord; the planet card and system tile are correct. A starting-units example also doesn't match the faction's real starting units, so use the list on your faction sheet.

How do the two Creuss tiles work at setup, and where do their starting units go?

Place the Creuss Gate (tile 17) where a home system would normally go and keep the Creuss home system tile in your play area, off the map but visible. Your starting units go in the home system tile. The Creuss Gate has no planet and so no planet card; the card is for the planet Creuss.

When are galactic events chosen at setup?

Before anything else, including building the galaxy, since events can change how the galaxy and home systems are set up.

How do strategy cards work in three- and four-player games?

Each player picks two strategy cards, in a second pass of the selection. In a four-player game every card is taken; with three players two cards remain and collect trade goods as usual.

With two strategy cards, which one sets my initiative, and must I use the lower card first?

Only your lower-numbered card sets your initiative. You still take one turn at a time like everyone else, never two in a row, and you may use either card first.

Does a strategy card's primary ability cost a command token, and does the Leadership secondary?

No to both. A primary ability never costs a token. Secondaries cost a strategy pool token, except Leadership's, where you just spend influence: 1 command token per 3 influence.

Which parts of a strategy card's primary ability are mandatory?

Resolve the card top to bottom and do everything it says unless it uses 'may' or 'or'. Leadership's 3 tokens, choosing a Diplomacy system, Trade's replenish (for you and the players you pick), removing a token with Warfare if you can, the first Technology research and naming a new speaker with Politics are all required. Extras that cost you something, such as more Leadership tokens or a second technology for 6 resources, are optional, and Imperial never forces you to pay to score.

Does Leadership let me redistribute the command tokens already on my sheet?

No — you only place the newly gained tokens in any pools. Redistributing existing tokens happens in the status phase and with the Warfare primary.

How does the revised Diplomacy strategy card work?

The revised card (in the Living Rules Reference errata, later printings and Prophecy of Kings) lets the primary player also ready up to 2 exhausted planets they control, giving them the same refresh as the secondary. The secondary readies up to 2 exhausted planets you control for a strategy token. The older section text in the LRR wasn't updated, but the errata governs. The revised card is recommended for base-only games too.

Which system can I choose with Diplomacy, and can it be Mecatol Rex?

Any system containing a planet you control, except the Mecatol Rex system, which can never be chosen even if you control Mecatol Rex.

What do the Diplomacy tokens do to other players?

Each other player places a command token from reinforcements in the chosen system, so they can't activate it for the rest of the round. Nothing moves, and the system is not activated. A player who already has a token there doesn't add another. A player with none in reinforcements takes one from their command sheet.

Can Warfare, Counterstroke or other effects remove a token placed by Diplomacy?

Yes — once placed it is an ordinary command token, and the game doesn't track how it got there. Warfare, Counterstroke, Unexpected Action and similar effects can remove it.

Who can I make speaker with Politics, and is it mandatory?

You must choose a new speaker, and it must be someone other than the current speaker; that can be you if you aren't already the speaker. The speaker token doesn't rotate on its own and only changes hands this way, so if nobody takes Politics the speaker stays the same.

Can the speaker token be traded or sold?

Not in a transaction — it isn't a tradeable component. But the Politics player can take payment, or make deals, in exchange for naming someone speaker. Only trade goods, commodities and promissory notes can change hands, and a payment is a transaction, so it must be with a neighbor at that moment.

Can Politics look at and rearrange the agenda deck before anyone takes Mecatol Rex?

Yes — the agenda deck exists from the start and nothing restricts that part of Politics before the agenda phase begins.

After Politics, is it public whether the agenda cards went to the top or bottom of the deck?

Yes — everyone can see where each card goes; only the faces stay secret. You also can't show the cards themselves to other players, since you may only reveal hidden components you own, but you can tell them what they are (truthfully or not).

Do I pay resources for the structures placed with Construction?

No — space docks and PDS have no cost. Construction places them; it isn't production, so production rules don't apply. The primary places a PDS or space dock and then also a PDS.

Can I use the Construction secondary in a system that already has my command token, and does it lock the system?

Yes, you can use it there: you still spend a strategy token, but it goes to reinforcements instead of a second token in the system. Otherwise the spent token is placed in the system, which then counts as having your token for the rest of the round, so you can't activate it later. Either way you must build on a planet you control.

Can the Clan of Saar use Construction to place a Floating Factory in a system without a planet they control?

No — Construction still needs a planet you control. The Saar choose an eligible planet and the Floating Factory then goes in that system's space area, so an asteroid field or other system without your planet can't get one.

Does the Warfare primary give me two extra command tokens?

No — you remove one of your tokens from the board and gain that same token back to your command sheet, then redistribute. If you have no token on the board to remove, you gain nothing, though you may still play the card.

How does the Warfare secondary work?

Spend a strategy token to use the Production of one space dock in your home system. It doesn't activate the system and works even if your home system already has your token; if it doesn't, the new ships can still move out later that round. Only one dock can be used, so a Saar player whose docks have left home can't use it.

Must I research a second technology with the Technology primary?

No — the second technology costs 6 resources and is optional, even though you must play your strategy card before passing.

What do the Imperial abilities give, and when is Mecatol Rex control checked?

The primary scores one public objective you qualify for, then gives 1 victory point if you control Mecatol Rex, checked when you perform the strategic action; otherwise you draw a secret objective. The secondary draws one secret objective, not two to keep one. Scoring with Imperial doesn't stop you scoring a public objective in the status phase too.

If Public Disgrace makes a player give back a strategy card, who gets its trade goods?

Whoever ends up choosing that card. Trade goods are collected once the choice sticks, so they stay on the returned card for the next chooser.

Can Public Disgrace be played against a strategy card swap from Quantum Datahub Node or Imperial Arbiter?

No — Public Disgrace triggers when a player chooses a strategy card, and those swaps at the end of the strategy phase aren't choices. Quantum Datahub Node can, however, answer Imperial Arbiter in the same end-of-phase window.

How does Hacan's Quantum Datahub Node swap strategy cards?

Hacan chooses both which of their cards to give and which face-up card to take. Only the cards move: trade goods were already collected when the cards were picked, and the Naalu 0 token stays with the Naalu, which only their promissory note can move.

Must the Naalu place their 0 initiative token?

Yes — Telepathic has no 'may', so the Naalu always go first in initiative unless they've given the token away with Gift of Prescience.

What does Jol-Nar pay to use Brilliant, and does it work on other strategy cards?

Only the strategy token for the Technology secondary — not the 4 resources — and then they resolve the primary, with the optional second tech for 6 resources. It only applies to the Technology card.

In a three- or four-player game, does Political Stability let you keep both strategy cards?

Yes — you keep both and skip choosing next strategy phase. The Third Edition restriction about specific cards doesn't apply in Fourth Edition.

How many actions do I take per turn, and in what order must I use action types?

Exactly one action per turn — strategic, tactical or component — or you pass. You may use them in any order over the round and repeat types on later turns; the only restriction is that you can't pass until you have used your strategy card (both cards in three- and four-player games).

Do I have to move ships or do anything after activating a system?

No — only placing the command token is required. Every later step is optional (combat aside, which is mandatory if both sides have ships), so you may activate a system just to fire Space Cannon, to stall, or even one nobody can move into. All the steps happen on that one turn, in order, before play passes on.

Can I activate a system that already contains my command token?

No — however the token got there (your earlier activation, Diplomacy, Construction's secondary), you can't activate that system again until the token is removed, for example by the status phase, the Warfare primary or Unexpected Action. Other players' activations of nearby systems can still trigger your Space Cannon.

How many systems can I activate in one tactical action, and why do I end up with tokens in many systems?

One. Each tactical action spends one tactic token to activate one system. Your tokens accumulate on the board because the action phase goes around the table many times, and they stay until the status phase. Ships in, or produced in, a system holding your token can't move out for the rest of the round.

Does a system I activated stay the active system for the rest of the round?

No — it is the active system only for that tactical action. Your command token stays there until the status phase (or until an effect removes it), which is what stops you activating it again.

Can a system ever hold two of my command tokens?

No — if an effect would place your token in a system that already has one, you don't place a second. Construction says the spent token goes to your reinforcements instead, and other effects work the same way.

Do Diplomacy tokens, retreats or action cards like Ghost Ship or Plague count as activating a system?

No — a system is activated only by placing a command token as the first step of a tactical action. Tokens placed by Diplomacy or a retreat and cards aimed at a system don't activate it, so they don't trigger Space Cannon Offense, Support for the Throne returns or other 'activate' effects.

Can I move into a system, fight, invade and then produce there in the same tactical action?

Yes — the steps run activation, movement, space combat, invasion, then production. Because production comes last, units produced in that action can't join its combat or land on planets that turn. Ships you moved in count toward your fleet pool when you produce.

If another player activates a system with my space dock, can I produce there during their action?

No — only the active player resolves the steps of a tactical action. Other players join in only through things like Space Cannon and combat. To build there, activate it on your own turn.

Can I produce in a system that already holds my command token from an earlier turn?

Not with a tactical action, since you can't activate it. Only effects that don't need activation, such as the Warfare secondary in your home system, let you produce there.

Must I resolve my strategy card right away, and do I need command tokens to do it?

No to both. You choose which turn to take your strategic action, as long as it is before you pass. Strategic and component actions need no command tokens, so a player out of tokens can still play their remaining strategy card and then pass.

When a strategy card is played, do other players resolve the secondary right away or on their own turn?

Right away, clockwise from the active player, as part of the active player's strategic action — it doesn't use their turns. Afterwards play passes to the next player in initiative order. End-of-turn effects can't be slipped in between the primary and the secondaries.

Can I still resolve other players' strategy card secondaries after I have passed?

Yes — passing ends your turns, not your ability to follow secondaries by spending a strategy token.

When do 'at the start of your turn' abilities happen, and do they work in other phases?

Before you choose your action or pass, so they come before activating a system and before anything activation triggers, like Ceasefire. They only exist in the action phase: you don't have turns in the strategy, status or agenda phases.

Are component actions limited to once per round?

No — each one simply uses your action for the turn. The only limits are those printed on the component itself.

Can I play a component action that I can't fully resolve?

No — a component action can only be performed if you can carry out the whole ability. You can't play Signal Jamming on a player with no tokens in reinforcements, use Sling Relay with nowhere to produce, use Uprising on an exhausted planet, or stall with Yssaril's ability without a card to discard. Unstable Planet is different, because its effects are joined by 'and'.

Can I play an action card whose effect would amount to nothing, like Plague on a planet with no infantry?

Yes — doing the card's text with a result of zero still counts as resolving it, and 'up to' includes zero. Players relaying an official reply confirmed Plague for zero. You must still meet any targeting requirement and do every part that is possible.

Can I remove my own units from the board when I want to?

No — units leave the board only through the game (destroyed, captured and so on). The one exception is taking a unit off the board when you need to place one and none are in reinforcements.

In the status phase, do I get back all the command tokens I used on the board?

No — tokens on the board go back to your reinforcements, and you then gain just 2 tokens to place on your command sheet. Spent tokens are not refunded, so to grow your supply you need Leadership or similar effects. Newly gained tokens may go in any pool.

In what order do players score objectives in the status phase?

In initiative order, not from the speaker. The Naalu's 0 token therefore makes them score first, unless they gave the token away with their promissory note.

Can I score more than one public objective in a single status phase?

No — each status phase you may score at most one public and one secret objective, both on your scoring turn. The Imperial primary is the main way to score an extra public objective, during the action phase.

Does Arborec's Mitosis place an infantry on every planet they control?

No — it places a single infantry on one planet you control each status phase.

If two players have abilities at the same point of the status phase, such as both using Wormhole Generator, who goes first?

Initiative order: the player with the lower initiative number resolves first. The status phase runs in initiative order, and simultaneous abilities follow it.

In what order are action cards drawn in the status phase?

In initiative order, though it rarely matters in practice.

Are control tokens removed along with command tokens in the status phase?

No — only command tokens come off the board. Control tokens stay on planets until you lose control of them.

When does the agenda phase happen, and when are planets readied?

Once the custodians token is off Mecatol Rex, the agenda phase follows the status phase every round. Planets ready in the status phase, so they can vote, but not between the two agendas: influence you spend on the first vote is gone for the second. Planets ready again at the end of the agenda phase for the next action phase.

How does voting work, and does it go around the table more than once?

Each player votes once per agenda, openly, starting to the speaker's left and ending with the speaker. On your turn you name an outcome and exhaust planets for that many votes, or abstain. Votes are committed as they are declared.

Can I spend only part of a planet's influence when voting?

No — exhausting a planet casts all of its influence as votes. You can only fine-tune your total by choosing which planets to exhaust.

Can trade goods be spent to cast votes?

No — trade goods count as influence for everything except voting. You can still pay them to other players to sway their votes.

Can I abstain, and does casting zero votes let me use Distinguished Councilor or Bribery?

You can always abstain, whether or not you have votes available. Casting zero votes is the same as abstaining, so cards that add to votes you cast, like Distinguished Councilor, need at least one real vote first; a single 1-influence planet is enough.

What happens if the vote ties or everyone abstains?

The speaker picks which tied outcome resolves; at 0 to 0 that means any eligible outcome. The agenda is never discarded for lack of votes. The speaker's choice is not a vote, so it doesn't count as voting for that outcome, but riders that predicted it still pay out.

Can a speaker who can't vote, such as the Nekro Virus or a speaker who played a rider, still break ties?

Yes — breaking a tie isn't voting, so the speaker always does it.

Does an agenda's outcome affect everyone, or only the players who voted for it?

Everyone, unless the card itself limits the effect to players who voted a certain way, as Mutiny does. Abstaining doesn't exempt you.

What is the difference between a law and a directive?

If a law's For (or elect) outcome wins, the card stays in play as a lasting effect, even if part of it is one-time. A law's Against outcome, and either outcome of a directive, resolves once and the card is discarded.

How do 'Elect Planet' agendas work, and can an uncontrolled planet be chosen?

There's no nomination step: on your vote you back an eligible planet someone already named, name a new one, or abstain. Only planets some player controls are eligible, and only those that already have the required trait, since electing never changes a planet's trait.

When must Rider action cards be played, and can we discuss the agenda first?

Riders go after the agenda is revealed and before the first vote is cast. Talking and negotiating don't close that window, and the speaker can't rush to the vote to shut riders out: everyone gets their chance to respond.

Do 'when an agenda is revealed' effects like Veto and Quash come before Riders?

Yes — 'when' effects (Quash, Veto, Political Favor, Political Secret) resolve first, then 'after' effects (Riders, Assassinate Representative, Galactic Threat), then voting. Veto and Political Favor were errata'd to 'when' timing to match Quash, so they cancel an agenda before anyone has played riders on it.

In what order do players play riders and other agenda-phase cards?

Starting with the speaker and going clockwise, each player plays one card or passes, and it keeps going around until everyone passes in a row. Passing doesn't lock you out: if someone plays a card afterwards, you can still play one.

Do I have to reveal my Rider and its prediction when I play it?

Yes — action cards are read aloud and played openly, so the whole card, reward included, and your prediction are public. The prediction is made when you play the card, before voting, never after the result is known.

Can one player play several riders on the same agenda, on different outcomes?

Yes — FFG confirmed by email that you can play several riders in the same vote. Each rider is played on its own, so each can predict a different outcome, letting you cover both For and Against.

Who can play Bribery, and when?

Only a player who actually voted. Per its errata, Bribery is played after the speaker votes and each trade good spent adds a vote to the outcome you voted for. A player who played a rider can't vote and so can't use it, nor can a speaker who abstained, but others who voted still can. If an Argent speaker votes first with Zeal, Bribery comes right after that vote.

Can a player hit by Assassinate Representative still play riders?

Yes — it only stops that player voting; unlike Political Secret, it doesn't block action cards.

When an agenda outcome and a rider both award points, which resolves first?

The agenda's outcome resolves first, then the riders that predicted it. This can decide the game if the agenda's points push someone to the goal.

How do Confusing and Confounding Legal Text interact with riders and Drive the Debate?

Both only work on 'Elect Player' agendas, and only the player originally elected can play them. They act before the outcome resolves, so riders and agenda-phase secrets like Drive the Debate use the final elected player.

What exactly does Political Secret stop the affected player from doing?

For that agenda, they can't vote, play action cards, or use optional abilities, those with 'may' or another choice. Mandatory and passive abilities still apply, such as Saar's Scavenge, Nekro's Propagation or Hacan's Arbiters, and laws they own still work.

If Political Secret is played and the agenda is then Quashed or Vetoed, does it carry over to the replacement?

No — discarding the agenda counts as resolving it, so Political Secret ends and is wasted. The replacement is handled from scratch: it can be Quashed in turn, and players can make fresh transactions for it. Since they share timing, Xxcha may also Quash before anyone plays Political Secret on them.

Can the Xxcha Quash more than once, including the replacement agenda?

Yes — Quash can be used on any newly revealed agenda as long as Xxcha pays a strategy token each time, including the replacement Quash itself reveals. A Veto card, by contrast, is one card and one use.

When does the Nekro make its Galactic Threat prediction, and what can it predict?

In the same window as riders: after 'when revealed' effects such as Veto or Quash, before anyone votes. It predicts an outcome; abstaining isn't one. The Nekro may also play riders on the same or different outcomes.

Does Galactic Threat gain a technology if nobody voted for the predicted outcome?

No — the Nekro gains a technology from a player who voted for that outcome. If it won through the speaker's tie-break, Committee Formation or a Legal Text change, with no player voting for it, there is nobody to take from.

Can I exhaust planets for resources or technology specialties during the agenda phase?

Yes — nothing limits planets to voting then. You can spend them on things like Inheritance Systems or research from a Technology Rider, but those planets then can't vote. Exhausted cards other than planets don't ready at the end of the agenda phase.

If Shard of the Throne, The Crown of Emphidia or Holy Planet of Ixth is discarded or re-elected, does the previous owner lose its victory point?

No — a point from these laws is lost only through the condition printed on the card. If the law is discarded some other way, such as Repeal Law, or re-elected via Miscount Disclosed, the old owner keeps the point; a newly elected owner gains one, and the same player re-elected scores again.

Do I lose The Crown of Emphidia if I lose a planet I control in another player's home system?

No — only planets in your own home system count for it. Likewise, A New Constitution only exhausts the planets each player controls in their own home system.

If players are tied for the most or fewest points when Seed of an Empire resolves, who scores?

Every tied player gains the point. Effects aimed at the player with the most or fewest points hit everyone tied; the speaker doesn't break this kind of tie. Trading Support for the Throne after the votes can change who qualifies before it resolves. Under Colonial Redistribution, by contrast, the planet's controller chooses one player among those tied for fewest points.

When Miscount Disclosed forces a revote on a law, does that law stay in effect during the revote?

Yes — the law remains in play until the revote resolves, so Representative Government, for example, still limits everyone to 1 vote. The old outcome is replaced only when the new one resolves, so a new Demilitarized Zone planet replaces the old one rather than adding a second.

How does the revote from Miscount Disclosed work?

First vote on Miscount Disclosed, with riders predicting only which law is chosen. Then vote on that law as if it had just been revealed, so Veto, Quash and a fresh round of riders can be played on it. Planets are not readied in between, and the revote doesn't replace the phase's second agenda, so a phase can have three votes.

How does a secret objective made public by Classified Document Leaks work?

While leaked it is a public objective and no longer counts toward its owner's secret objectives, so they may hold another secret. Nobody can score it twice, its original owner included. If the law is later discarded, the card returns to its owner as a secret, and anyone who scored it keeps the point.

What does Enforced Travel Ban do, and does it stop Space Cannon or the Creuss?

For: alpha and beta wormholes have no effect on movement, but the systems stay adjacent for everything else, so Space Cannon still fires through them, as the errata confirms. It also cancels the adjacency from Lost Star Chart for movement. The Creuss ignore it, since no game effect can prevent Quantum Entanglement. Against: every PDS in or next to a system with any wormhole, gamma and delta included, is destroyed.

Which units does The Ixthian Artifact destroy?

All units in the Mecatol Rex system, ships included, and 3 units of each player in every adjacent system (all of them if a player has fewer). Adjacency is the normal kind for everyone: a matching wormhole on Mecatol counts, but Creuss's Quantum Entanglement doesn't extend it. With Wormhole Reconstruction in play, alpha and beta systems both count.

Does Arms Reduction touch ships other than dreadnoughts and cruisers, and what about capacity?

No — For only cuts dreadnoughts beyond 2 and cruisers beyond 4. Afterwards check capacity; fighters and ground forces that no longer fit are removed, which is not the same as being destroyed.

When Fleet Regulations passes, what happens to fleet pool tokens above 4 and ships over the limit?

Excess fleet tokens return to reinforcements; you can't move them to other pools. Any ships over the new limit must be removed immediately. Abilities that raise fleet limits, like Letnev's, still add on top.

How does Anti-Intellectual Revolution work?

For: after you research a technology you must destroy one of your non-fighter ships; fighters don't count. It is an after-research effect, not a cost, so a player with no such ships can still research. The Nekro are unaffected, since Propagation gains tokens instead of researching. Against applies only at the start of the very next strategy phase, then the card is discarded.

Does Distinguished Councilor still add 5 votes under Representative Government?

Not with the newer printing, which says players can't cast additional votes. Under the original wording it did, since you still cast votes; groups with older cards should follow the reprint.

Does Public Execution stop the elected player voting in the next agenda phase, and does Yssaril's Crafty save their hand?

No to both. The voting ban only covers that agenda phase. The discard comes from being elected, not from the hand limit, so Yssaril must discard too. Crafty does beat effects that cap hand size, such as Executive Sanctions.

Under Shared Research's Against outcome, what if I have no command tokens in reinforcements?

Then you place nothing — the outcome places a token only if able, so you don't take one from your sheet.

When is Committee Formation used, and does it combine with riders?

Just before voting, after the 'when' and 'after' windows, so riders are already down. The agenda it settles still counts as one of the phase's two. Riders that predicted the chosen player pay out, so playing a rider and then electing that player works. The Nekro can hold and use it despite not voting, and Political Secret doesn't stop it.

If Judicial Abolishment comes up with only one law in play, can that law be saved?

No — that law is the only eligible outcome. Abstaining isn't an outcome, and if nobody votes the speaker must break the 0-0 tie by choosing it.

Can Minister of War be used after any action?

Yes — its owner can discard it after any action to remove one of their command tokens from the board and take another action; it doesn't need to follow an action that removed a token. A player relays an FFG email confirming this.

When is Minister of Peace used, and can other after-activation abilities follow it?

Right after the system is activated, before any ships move. Once it ends the active player's turn, no other abilities in that window can be resolved, per the developer's later FAQ ruling.

What triggers Minister of Industry?

Placing a space dock, which means putting one on the board from reinforcements. A Saar Floating Factory moving into a system doesn't trigger it, but a dock placed by a Construction Rider in the agenda phase does, payable only with planets you haven't exhausted.

How does Minister of Sciences interact with the Technology strategy card?

Its owner pays no resources when researching through either Technology ability: two free techs with the primary, one with the secondary.

Under Regulated Conscription, how much do fighters and infantry cost?

1 resource each; the law removes the two-for-one from their cost.

How does Swords to Plowshares work on a planet with one infantry, and how often can Mentak pillage the result?

Half of one rounded up is one, so the lone infantry is destroyed and you gain 1 trade good. All the trade goods from Swords to Plowshares or Compensated Disarmament arrive in a single step, so Mentak can pillage each affected neighbor only once.

Which rolls can The Crown of Thalnos reroll?

Only combat rolls, not Anti-Fighter Barrage, Bombardment (L1Z1X Harrow included) or Sardakk's Courageous to the End. You may reroll units that look doomed, because hits aren't assigned until rolling ends; any unit whose reroll fails to hit is destroyed, even if its other dice hit.

If Homeland Defense Act is discarded, must players remove PDS beyond 2 per planet?

Yes — the normal limit of 2 PDS per planet applies again, and extras are removed.

Do gamma and delta wormholes count for Wormhole Research and Wormhole Reconstruction?

For Wormhole Research, ships in any wormhole system, gamma and delta included, qualify, but each player researches at most one technology; only ships in alpha or beta systems are then destroyed. Wormhole Reconstruction's Against outcome hits every wormhole system, delta included, which a player confirmed with the developer as intended.

Can a home planet, or the planet with Holy Planet of Ixth, be elected for Demilitarized Zone or Colonial Redistribution?

Home planets can't: they have no trait, and these agendas elect a cultural planet. The Holy Planet of Ixth planet is still cultural, so it is a legal choice. A Demilitarized Zone planet given away by Colonial Redistribution gets no units, since none can be placed there.

Why vote against Conventions of War, and does it stop X-89 Bacterial Weapon?

For makes it a law that nobody may bombard cultural planets, so players who rely on Bombardment vote Against, at the cost of their action cards. X-89 can still be used on cultural planets under it.

What happens with Archived Secret if the elected player already holds the maximum secret objectives?

They draw one, look at it and discard it right away.

When an attached agenda says 'exhaust this card', do I exhaust the planet?

No — 'this card' always means the card the text is on, so you exhaust the attached agenda and the planet stays ready.

How do Minister of Commerce, Industry, Peace and War interact with other effects?

Minister of Commerce still pays 1 trade good per neighbor when your commodities were already full, since you still replenished. Minister of Industry lets you produce in that system right after placing the dock. Minister of Peace's owner needn't have units in the activated system. Minister of War isn't an action itself, so with Fleet Logistics you can take three actions in a turn.

Does Minister of Sciences waive the 2 resources for L1Z1X's Inheritance Systems?

No — those 2 resources pay to ignore prerequisites, not to research the technology.

Does Shard of the Throne change hands if both sides' ground forces are wiped out?

No — if neither player has ground forces left, nobody won the combat, so the Shard stays put. It also never moves through combats that don't happen, such as landing unopposed or bombarding the last defenders.

How do the Research Team agendas work?

You exhaust the Research Team card, not the planet, to skip a prerequisite, so the planet can still be spent. They don't give the planet a technology specialty, so they don't count for objectives about specialty planets.

In what order are agenda-phase secret objectives scored?

In speaker order, clockwise; it only matters if several players would win from the points, a tie that also goes clockwise from the speaker.

When must The Prophecy of Ixth be discarded?

Only when you use a unit's Production and don't produce 2 fighters with it. Skipping production, or placing units by other effects like Integrated Economy, keeps the card.

If an agenda exhausts a planet with a Research Team attached, is the Research Team exhausted too?

No — exhausting a planet doesn't exhaust its attachment, so the Research Team can still be used.

Can I score objectives if another player controls a planet in my home system?

Not public objectives — you must control every planet in your home system to score one, and the Imperial card doesn't override that. Everything else still works: secret objectives, Imperial's Mecatol Rex point, agendas, relics, Support for the Throne and the custodians token. Enemy ships blockading your home system don't stop you; only losing a planet there does.

Does the limit of three secret objectives include ones I've scored?

Yes — you may have three in total, scored and unscored together, so three is also the most you can score. If you go over, you return an unscored one; scored objectives are never discarded.

How do I get more secret objectives after setup?

Mainly through Imperial: its secondary draws one for a strategy token, and its primary draws one if you don't control Mecatol Rex. You draw one card, not two to keep one; that's only at setup.

For objectives that require spending resources, influence, tokens or trade goods, does earlier spending count?

No — you pay the full amount in one go when you score the objective, as its cost; nothing spent earlier in the round counts. Trade goods can stand in for resources or influence there, though a 'spend trade goods' objective needs actual trade goods. If you score one through Imperial, you pay right then in the action phase.

Can I mark an objective as soon as I meet it and score it later, or keep a point if I stop qualifying?

You must qualify at the moment you score. Status-phase objectives check the condition then, so a blockade you lifted earlier doesn't count for Cut Supply Lines. Once scored, points are kept even if you stop qualifying; only effects that say so, like Support for the Throne returning, take points away.

Do revealed public objectives stay in play, and can several players score the same one?

Yes — they stay for the rest of the game unless an effect removes them. Any number of players can score each, but each player scores a given objective only once.

How and when are action-phase secret objectives scored?

Secret objectives marked Action Phase are scored the moment you meet them, even on another player's turn and even after you have passed. You may score several in a turn but only one per combat or step: one in a space combat and another in the ground combat that follows is fine, two from the same combat is not.

If two players could each score an action-phase objective in the same combat, who scores first?

Whichever condition is met first. Destroying a flagship or war sun happens during a combat round, before the combat ends and has a winner. If both trigger at the same moment, the active player goes first.

Can I score a public objective with Imperial and another in the same round's status phase?

Yes — they are separate scoring windows. Imperial scores a public objective immediately even if it says status phase, and you can still score one more public objective in the status phase.

Can Imperial's point for controlling Mecatol Rex be gained more than once?

Yes — each time you resolve the Imperial primary while controlling Mecatol Rex you gain it, separately from the one-time custodians token point.

Do Space Cannon, Bombardment or landing on an empty planet count as winning a combat for objectives?

No — a combat is a space combat or a ground combat, and you win when your units remain and the opponent's don't. Destroying ships with Space Cannon during movement, bombarding away all defenders, or landing unopposed involves no combat, so it can't score 'win a combat' objectives or take Shard of the Throne. A Naalu Foresight escape means no combat happened either. A space dock or PDS alone doesn't make a combat.

Does a ship destroyed by Space Cannon plus Direct Hit, or fighters lost for capacity after Space Cannon kills their carrier, count for Turn Their Fleets to Dust?

No to both. Direct Hit's own text destroys the ship, not the Space Cannon, and fighters lost to the capacity rule weren't destroyed by Space Cannon; FFG confirmed both by email. Space Cannon fire resolves player by player, so only the player whose own shots meet the condition scores.

Can I score an objective for beating 'the player with the most victory points', like Spark a Rebellion, if I'm the leader?

Only if you share the lead: when players are tied for most points, each of them counts as having the most. If you lead alone, nobody else qualifies. The check is made at the time of the combat.

When several players are tied for the most or fewest victory points, which of them does an effect apply to?

All of them — every tied player counts. Tied agenda votes are different, since the speaker breaks those.

If I beat the Shard of the Throne holder, who leads on points, can I score Spark a Rebellion and take the Shard?

Yes, both. Players differ on whether the objective scores before the Shard moves or after, but either way you won a combat against the leader.

Do other players' home planets count for 'non-home system' objectives like Subdue the Galaxy?

No — 'non-home' excludes every home system, including other players' that you control. A separate objective covers holding a planet in another player's home system.

Do ships in Mecatol Rex's system, or in an anomaly, count as adjacent to it for objectives?

No — a system isn't adjacent to itself. Intimidate Council needs ships in two different systems next to Mecatol Rex, and ships inside an anomaly don't count as adjacent to it.

What counts for technology-colour objectives like Diversify Research and Master the Sciences?

Only researched technology cards with a colour. Diversify Research needs two of each of two colours (four total); Master the Sciences two of each of the four colours. Unit upgrades have no colour, and planets with technology specialties are not technologies.

Do technologies the Nekro copy with Valefar Assimilator count for objectives?

Yes — a copied technology counts with its colour and type, so the Nekro can score faction-technology objectives that way. But when a copied faction upgrade covers a generic one, like Dreadnought II, only one of the two counts.

Does the Muaat Prototype War Sun count as a war sun for objectives?

Yes — it is the Muaat war sun under another name, as its subtitle shows.

Can Support for the Throne be given away even if it hands someone the winning point, and can the giver attack the holder?

Yes to both. Trading it is a normal transaction, and a ban is a house rule. Only the holder risks losing it, by activating a system with the giver's units, any system, even by mistake. The giver can attack freely.

If I reveal a secret objective to score it but turn out not to qualify, do I lose it?

There's no rule for it in Fourth Edition. Most players keep the objective, now known to everyone, and score it later as normal.

Are there common clarifications for specific objectives like Establish a Perimeter, Unveil Flagship, Become the Gatekeeper or Make an Example of Their World?

Yes: 5 PDS satisfies 'own 4 PDS'; Unveil Flagship needs your flagship to survive the combat; Become the Gatekeeper needs ships in both an alpha and a beta system, as Creuss's Quantum Entanglement only makes them adjacent; Rule Distant Lands needs planets near two different players' home systems; and destroying the last ground forces with L1Z1X's Harrow counts for Make an Example, since Harrow is Bombardment.

When do I discard the 5 action cards for Form a Spy Network?

When you score it in the status phase, as its cost, without resolving the cards. You can't discard cards freely at other times.

How does the Total War variant's commodity tally work?

Each time you destroy enemy units you take commodities equal to their combined cost and keep them on a planet in your home system; with 10 there you may take the component action for a point. Whoever takes that home system takes the stored commodities too. Units captured without being destroyed, as by the Vuil'raith hero, add nothing.

Does the 0 on the ten-sided die count as 0 or 10?

10 — the Living Rules Reference FAQ confirms the 0 face is a 10, the best result. Otherwise units with combat 10 could never hit.

Does a 10 always hit or a 1 always miss?

No — there are no automatic hits or misses. A roll hits when the result, after modifiers, equals or beats the unit's combat value, so with enough bonuses even a 1 can hit.

Can more than two players fight in the same space combat?

No — a space combat is always between two players, and it continues until only one player's ships remain or one side retreats. Other players can still have ground forces or structures on planets in that system.

How does Sustain Damage work, and is it optional?

Before hits are assigned, a unit with Sustain Damage may cancel one hit; it is placed on its side as damaged and can't do so again until repaired in the status phase. It is optional: you may skip it and assign the hit to the unit, destroying it. An undamaged dreadnought therefore needs two hits, which can come in different rounds.

Can Sustain Damage save a ship from Exotrireme II, Assault Cannon or other 'destroy' effects?

No — Sustain Damage only cancels hits, and these effects destroy units without producing hits. For Exotrireme II, the Sardakk player chooses which ships (up to 2) are destroyed; it is used after a round of combat, and each Exotrireme II may use it.

When Dimensional Splicer or Yin's Devotion hits my ship, who picks the target, and can I use Sustain Damage?

The Creuss or Yin player chooses which of your ships takes the hit, and assigns it immediately when the ability resolves. Only that ship can use its own Sustain Damage to cancel it; you can't move the hit elsewhere.

Are 'start of combat' and 'start of the first combat round' abilities in the same timing window, and how often do they happen?

Yes — they are the same window, before Anti-Fighter Barrage, and ordered by the usual timing rules. Later rounds only have 'start of a round' windows, so start-of-combat abilities like Assault Cannon happen once per combat. Anything destroyed in that window, such as a destroyer hit by Dimensional Splicer, never fires its barrage.

If both players have start-of-combat abilities like Assault Cannon or Skilled Retreat, which resolves first?

The active player's, then the other player's, with each trigger re-checked when its turn comes. So the attacker's Assault Cannon can push the defender below 3 non-fighter ships and deny the defender's own Assault Cannon, and it destroys a ship before the defender's Skilled Retreat moves the rest away. Assault Cannon is mandatory when it applies and can never destroy a fighter.

With rerolls or die modifiers like the Hacan flagship or Crown of Thalnos, must I decide before rolling my other ships?

No — since the Codex rules update, rerolls and modifiers are applied after you have rolled all your dice, so you see every result before choosing. The older reading of deciding ship type by ship type is out of date.

Who can retreat from a space combat, and does an announced retreat still happen if the enemy is wiped out?

Either player can announce a retreat, the attacker included, but the defender announces first, and if the defender retreats the attacker can't that round. You can only announce one if you have a legal system to retreat to (so Rout needs one too). If your opponent has no ships left after the round, the combat simply ends and your retreat doesn't happen; answers from 2017 saying you still had to leave predate that rule.

Where can my ships retreat to?

To an adjacent system with no other player's ships that contains your units or a planet you control; Dark Energy Tap drops the second requirement. Movement bonuses don't matter, as a retreat always goes to an adjacent system. Under Enforced Travel Ban, alpha and beta wormholes give no adjacency for a retreat. Whether a nebula is a legal destination is disputed; see the nebula question under movement.

When my ships retreat, can they pick up ground forces from my planets in the combat system?

Yes, under the current Living Rules Reference: retreating ships move and transport units like any other movement, so they may pick up ground forces from planets there within their capacity. The old rule of lifting ground forces into space when you announce the retreat was removed in v1.2 (some translations still have it), which superseded the developer's 2018 answers about choosing units at announcement.

What happens to units that can't go with a retreat?

All your ships with a move value retreat together. Fighters and ground forces in the space area that the retreating ships can't carry are destroyed, even if a space dock could have supported them. Ground forces on planets are not destroyed; they stay, and the winner may bombard and invade them.

How does Skilled Retreat differ from a normal retreat?

It isn't a retreat in rules terms but a move, so Intercept can't cancel it (only Sabotage), and the usual transport rules apply: ships can pick up ground forces from planets, and fighters move with the fleet without needing capacity. Capacity and fleet limits apply again at the destination, and you choose which excess units to lose. It can go to any adjacent system without other players' ships, including the one the attacker came from.

Can I retreat or Skilled Retreat into, or carry units out of, systems that contain my command token?

Yes on both counts. A normal retreat or Skilled Retreat may go into a system that already has your command token; you just don't place a second one. And retreating ships can carry units out of the combat system even if your token is there, because the transport restriction excludes the active system, whoever activated it.

What happens if neither side can ever win a space combat?

The Living Rules Reference FAQ says the attacker must retreat. If the attacker has nowhere legal to go, players generally treat those ships as destroyed.

Can two players agree not to fight when their ships share a system, or not to roll or assign hits?

No — when two players have ships in the same space area (or ground forces on the same planet), combat happens and continues until one side is gone; rolling and assigning hits are mandatory and a deal can't override the rules. Retreating, after at least one round, is the only legal way out. Ships and ground forces never fight each other.

In space combat, who assigns hits first?

Nobody first — both players assign hits in the same step. Assigning hits isn't an ability, so no initiative order applies; cancelling hits, as with Sustain Damage, is.

Can a unit with Sustain Damage be destroyed by two hits in one round?

Yes — Sustain Damage cancels one hit, not every hit. If you must take more hits than you can cancel and that unit is what's left, the next hit destroys it; it is not a second hit point. Non-Euclidean Shielding lets it cancel two.

If my carrier is destroyed in combat, are the fighters and ground forces it carried destroyed at once?

No — capacity isn't checked during combat, so they stay while it lasts. When combat ends, each player checks capacity and removes fighters and ground forces in space that are no longer supported. If all your ships are destroyed, the units they carried go with them. If the side left in space has only fighters it can no longer support, they are removed and the combat counts as a draw.

If the defender leaves with Skilled Retreat or Foresight, does the attacker still invade, and has anyone won a combat?

The attacker carries on to bombardment, invasion and production as normal. But no combat was won: after a normal retreat the player left in the system wins, whereas Foresight happens before combat and Skilled Retreat leaves no winner, so 'win a combat' objectives and effects don't trigger. The destination system isn't activated, so nobody fires Space Cannon or invades there.

What happens to the attacker's ships if the invasion fails?

They stay in the system; nothing makes them leave. While they remain, the defender's space dock there is blockaded and can only produce ground forces.

If Space Cannon Offense destroys all of the active player's ships, did a space combat take place?

No — Space Cannon Offense happens at the end of movement, outside space combat. If it destroys every ship, no combat occurs and 'win a combat' effects don't apply.

Do Morale Boost, faction modifiers and rerolls affect Anti-Fighter Barrage, Space Cannon, Bombardment or Ambush?

No — only rolls made against a unit's combat value are combat rolls. Anti-Fighter Barrage, Space Cannon, Bombardment, Mentak's Ambush and Sardakk's Courageous to the End are ability rolls, so Morale Boost, Sardakk's +1, Jol-Nar's Fragile and effects that reroll combat rolls don't touch them. Anti-Fighter Barrage happens only in the first round.

Can I roll all my combat dice together when my ships have different combat values?

Only for ships with the same combat value; ships with different values roll separately, so each die stays with the unit that rolled it. Modifiers are added to the die result, so +1 makes a hit easier.

Do ships that announced a retreat still roll that round?

Yes — announcing a retreat doesn't stop you firing; you roll normally and then leave in the retreat step. Retreating in that step also escapes Exotrireme II, which acts at the end of the round.

Can ground forces that retreated with my ships, or moved with Skilled Retreat, land on a planet in the new system?

No — landing only happens in the invasion step of a tactical action in the active system, and a retreat doesn't activate anything. They stay in space on your ships.

When both players have end-of-round abilities, like Yin's Devotion and Sardakk's Exotrireme II, who goes first?

The active player resolves one first, then the players alternate one ability at a time; each Exotrireme II is a separate ability.

What happens if I move ships into a system where the opponent has only ground forces on planets?

No space combat — ships only fight ships. You may then bombard and commit ground forces in the invasion step; ships alone do nothing to enemy planets.

After winning a space combat, must I invade the planets in that system?

No — committing ground forces is optional. You can leave your ships in space and go straight to production, even sharing the system with enemy planets.

Can I invade several planets in the same system in one tactical action?

Yes — in the invasion step you commit ground forces to any or all planets in the active system, declaring which go where. Each ground force lands on only one planet, so two planets need at least two ground forces. Four infantry arriving at an empty two-planet system can put two on each and take both.

Can ground forces already on one planet invade another planet in the same system?

Only if a ship with capacity picked them up into the space area during the movement step. Only ground forces in the space area can be committed, so units still on a planet when the invasion step begins stay put.

Can I land ground forces on a planet, even one I control, outside the invasion step?

No — ground forces land on planets only by being committed in the invasion step of a tactical action, so you must activate the system even to drop infantry on your own planet. Movement abilities used as component actions skip the tactical action steps and can't land anyone.

Can fighters or dreadnoughts take part in an invasion?

Fighters can't invade (barring specific faction abilities), and ships take part only through abilities like Bombardment. You need ground forces in the active system's space area to commit.

Is there a ground combat if Bombardment or Space Cannon Defense wipes out one side first?

No — ground combat only happens if both players still have ground forces on the planet after those steps. If Bombardment kills every defender, you land unopposed; if Space Cannon Defense kills every invader, nobody lands. Structures don't count as defenders, and start-of-combat abilities such as Yin's Indoctrination can't be used without a combat.

Does Space Cannon Offense happen if the active player moves nothing into the active system?

Yes — it is a step of every tactical action, not something movement triggers, so enemy Space Cannon can hit the active player's ships already in the system. Equally, you may activate a system purely to fire your own Space Cannon into it. You must finish moving before anyone fires, so you can't see the results first.

During Space Cannon Offense, who can shoot at whom?

The active player fires first and chooses which other player's ships in the active system take the hits. Then each other player with Space Cannon in range fires, but only at the active player's ships — a third party can't shoot the defender or help one side of someone else's battle.

Can a ship use Sustain Damage against Space Cannon hits?

Yes — Sustain Damage can cancel any hit produced against the unit, Space Cannon included. It only fails against effects that destroy a unit without producing a hit.

When can Experimental Battlestation be used, and what can it shoot?

Only when another player's ships actually move during the movement step of a tactical action: not on retreats, not when nothing moves in, and never on your own turn as active player. It fires as part of Space Cannon Offense and can target only the active player's ships in the active system. An earlier emailed ruling allowing any movement, retreats included, was walked back by the developer.

Can Space Cannon fire at ships outside the active system, such as ships passing by, retreating, or in a neighboring system?

No — Space Cannon only ever targets the active system: Offense after movement, Defense during invasion. PDS II's Deep Space Cannon and the Xxcha flagship let a unit in an adjacent system fire into the active system, never out of it. Ships passing through systems in range or retreating into one aren't shot at. A unit with the ability that moved into the active system fires as normal.

When several players fire Space Cannon Offense, are they resolved together?

No — one player at a time, starting with the active player and then the others in order. Each player's roll, hit assignment, Sustain Damage and responses like Direct Hit finish before the next fires, so a unit destroyed earlier, such as an Xxcha flagship, never gets to shoot.

Can Space Cannon with range reach through a wormhole?

Yes — wormhole adjacency counts for Space Cannon range, including the delta wormhole on the Creuss flagship, and even when a law turns off wormholes for movement. The Nomad flagship's mech adjacency is not a wormhole, so it doesn't extend Space Cannon.

Is Bombardment mandatory, and can I bombard without landing ground forces?

The Bombardment step always happens, but using the ability is optional: the active player may bombard. You can also bombard with no ground forces to land and simply not take the planet, since committing ground forces is optional too.

How many extra dice does Plasma Scoring add to Bombardment and Space Cannon?

One extra die per use of the ability, not per unit or per planet. Bombardment is a single step, so one extra die however many planets you bombard. Space Cannon Offense rolls one die per unit in range plus one from Plasma Scoring. Each planet's Space Cannon Defense is a separate roll, so each can get the extra die.

Can the active player fire their own Space Cannon, including PDS II in an adjacent system, into the system they activate?

Yes — every player with Space Cannon in range of the active system may fire, the active player first. You can activate a system purely so your PDS II next door can shoot enemy ships there, even a supernova if someone like Muaat activated it. Fighters in the space area are valid targets; ground forces in space and Saar Floating Factories are not.

Which PDS fire Space Cannon Defense during an invasion?

Only PDS on the planet being invaded. A PDS on another planet in the system, or a PDS II in an adjacent system, doesn't fire then. A PDS can fire Space Cannon Offense and later Space Cannon Defense in the same tactical action.

Can one ship bombard several planets, or split its dice between them?

No — there is one Bombardment step per invasion, and before rolling you declare which planet each unit bombards; a unit bombards a single planet with all its dice. You may pick any planet in the system, since bombardment comes before ground forces are committed. A war sun removes Planetary Shield from other players' units in its system, so all your bombarding units can then hit planets with PDS.

How many times does a PDS fire in one tactical action?

Once at Space Cannon Offense, after movement, however many ships came in, plus once more at Space Cannon Defense if ground forces are committed to its planet. PDS II improves range and combat value, not the number of shots. A PDS needs no ground forces with it to fire, and having your command token in its system doesn't stop it.

Do Ceasefire or Disable stop Space Cannon?

Ceasefire only stops ships moving in, so Space Cannon, Bombardment, invasion and production all still happen. Disable is played at invasion and only shuts off PDS on the planets being invaded; Space Cannon Offense has already been fired by then.

Can I move ships partway toward the active system, or move ships that can't reach it?

No — every ship that moves must end its move in the active system, along a path no longer than its move value. A ship that can't get there doesn't move at all, so you can't stop short, for example to set up Space Cannon.

Can a ship leave the active system and come back in the same move, for example to fetch ground forces?

Yes — a ship that starts in the active system may move out and back in if its move value allows, and a ship may pass back through a system it already crossed. None of the systems it leaves or starts from may hold your command token, apart from the active system, and enemy ships still block the path.

What blocks my ships from moving through a system?

Any other player's ships in it, fighters included. The Living Rules Reference dropped the old exception for fighters, so even Fighter I next to a space dock blocks. Your own command tokens don't block passing through, and neither do enemy ground forces or PDS. A deal can't let you through; only effects like Light/Wave Deflector, In the Silence of Space or the Yssaril flagship do.

Can I move more ships into a system that already has my command token on a later turn?

No — ships only move into the active system, which stops being active when that tactical action ends, and you can't activate a system holding your token. A ship with move 1 can't reach a system two away in one action either; Warfare removes a token but doesn't extend movement.

Do ships move one at a time, and can I wait to see gravity rift rolls before moving others?

No — you declare every moving ship and they move together; rift rolls come after. Fleet pool isn't checked in systems you pass through, only at the end, and you remove any excess then. The Creuss flagship is the exception: it may move before or after your other ships, but not in the middle of their moves.

How do gravity rifts work: when do I get +1 move and when do I roll?

A ship whose path moves out of or through a rift gets +1 move for that path, one per rift, even if it could otherwise only just reach the rift. Each ship that leaves or passes through a rift rolls, and is removed on a 1-3. A ship that stops in a rift gains nothing and doesn't roll until it later leaves. Trace the whole path first, then check it against the boosted move value.

When a carrier leaves a gravity rift, do the fighters and ground forces it carries roll too?

No — only the ships moving out roll. Declare which ship carries what before rolling; if a carrier is lost, everything it carries goes with it, and other carriers' spare capacity can't save them. Units lost this way are removed rather than destroyed, so effects like Infantry II don't trigger.

How do nebulae work for movement, and does Gravity Drive help?

A ship may only enter a nebula if it is the active system, so it can never pass through one. A ship leaving a nebula has move 1, and bonuses like Gravity Drive or Flank Speed are then added on top.

Can ships retreat or Skilled Retreat into a nebula?

Disputed. A 2019 developer ruling relayed by players says yes, because the nebula restriction applies to the movement step. Others read the nebula rule literally, since a nebula is only enterable when it is the active system, and say only the Empyrean can. The relayed ruling is the stronger source.

Who can move into or through a supernova?

Nobody normally. Muaat's faction ability lets their ships move through supernovas; Magmus Reactor lets ships move into and stop in one. A Nekro who copies Magmus Reactor can move into or out of a supernova but not through it. A supernova never destroys ships already there, so losing the technology later changes nothing.

If I lose Antimass Deflectors while my ships sit in an asteroid field, or place units in an anomaly, what happens?

Nothing — anomaly rules restrict moving into or through them, not being in them or moving out. Ships already there stay and may leave normally, and effects can place units in anomalies.

Which systems count as anomalies?

Only tiles with a red border: asteroid fields, nebulae, gravity rifts and supernovas. Empty systems and wormhole systems are not anomalies unless bordered. Antimass Deflectors is the technology that lets ships move into and through asteroid fields.

How do wormholes work, and must my ships use them?

Systems with matching wormholes are adjacent for all purposes, movement, Space Cannon and neighbors included. A wormhole only adds connections: you don't have to use it, and a wormhole system can be activated and moved through like any other. Being in one wormhole system doesn't put you next to the systems around the matching one.

Can other players use the Creuss Gate and the Creuss flagship's delta wormhole?

Yes — delta wormholes follow normal rules, so anyone can travel between the Creuss Gate, the Creuss home system and the flagship's system. Since the flagship's system contains a Creuss ship, enemies need a way to move through it (such as Light/Wave Deflector) or must stop and fight there.

How does the Creuss flagship's 'move before or after your other ships' work?

Its system counts as containing a delta wormhole. If it moves into the active system first, that system becomes adjacent to other delta wormholes such as the Creuss home system, so your other ships can come in through it; or it can move after them. It can also use its own wormhole, for example to go home. If it moves first through a gravity rift and is destroyed, the wormhole is gone before the others move.

What exactly does Creuss's Quantum Entanglement connect, and can others use it?

For the Creuss only, systems with alpha wormholes and systems with beta wormholes are adjacent to each other; no game effect, Enforced Travel Ban included, can stop that. Other players can't fire Space Cannon or move through that connection.

Does Enforced Travel Ban stop Creuss's Slipstream bonus?

No — Slipstream only checks for a wormhole in the ship's starting system; it isn't a wormhole effect, according to a relayed developer ruling.

How does Lost Star Chart work, including with Enforced Travel Ban?

For the tactical action, every alpha and beta wormhole system is adjacent to every other, for everyone, including other players' Space Cannon. It creates its own adjacency, which a relayed FFG answer says still works under Enforced Travel Ban.

Do Flank Speed and Gravity Drive stack?

Yes — Gravity Drive gives +1 to one ship and Flank Speed +1 to all your ships, so that ship can get +2, plus other bonuses. Two Flank Speeds can't be played together, though.

Do movement effects like Gravity Drive and gravity rifts apply to Saar Floating Factories?

Yes — the developer ruled that anything affecting movement affects Floating Factories and the ships moving with them, so they get Gravity Drive, Flank Speed and rift bonuses, and he later confirmed they roll when leaving a gravity rift. Separately, players read a lone Floating Factory as not blocking enemy movement, since it isn't a ship.

When an ability moves units outside a tactical action, like the Argent or L1Z1X hero, do normal movement rules apply?

Only the ability's own text applies: move values, the command-token restriction and other tactical-action movement rules are ignored, and the moving ships can transport units that start with them. Anomaly rules still apply, so no ability moves ships into a supernova unless it says so.

How do I move ground forces from one planet to another in the same system?

Make a tactical action on that system: a ship with capacity, already there or moving in, picks them up during movement, and they land on the other planet in the invasion step, even if you already control it. Transit Diodes is the other way.

Is a system adjacent to itself, and are planets in the same system adjacent?

A system is never adjacent to itself, so being in a system doesn't count as adjacent to it. Planets are treated as adjacent to other planets in their system and in neighboring systems, which matters for effects like Xxcha's Peace Accords.

When is the fleet pool limit checked, and can I bring extra ships into a fight and trim afterwards?

At all times, except for ships that are only moving through other systems. Once ships arrive in the active system, any non-fighter ships over your fleet pool are removed straight away, before Space Cannon Offense and combat, so you can't use extras to soak hits.

Can I deliberately go over my fleet pool by moving or producing, then remove ships of my choice?

Yes — nothing stops you; you just remove the excess right away, choosing which. That lets you, say, build a new ship in a full system and scrap an old one, or move extra carriers in to deliver ground forces. Production itself isn't capped by the fleet pool; it is checked once the units are placed.

If an effect cuts my fleet pool, like Neuroglaive or Fleet Regulations, what happens to the excess ships, and does anyone get credit for them?

You lose the token at once and must bring every system back within the new limit right away. Ships removed this way are destroyed, but no player destroyed them, so 'when you destroy' effects and objectives don't trigger for whoever caused it. Neuroglaive can even drop a fleet pool to zero.

What does capacity cover, and which units have it?

Capacity holds fighters and ground forces in the space area, in any mix: Cruiser II's or a dreadnought's capacity can hold fighters too. Any unit with a capacity value can transport, including some flagships, war suns and faction units; check the faction sheet. Ground forces on planets need no capacity.

Does a space dock have capacity?

No — a normal space dock lets up to 3 fighters in its system ignore capacity, so you can build fighters there with no ships to carry them. It holds no ground forces and adds nothing to your carriers; two docks in one system cover 6 fighters. The Saar Floating Factory works differently, with real capacity of 4.

Can fighters stay in a system without a carrier or space dock?

Not normal fighters: any beyond the capacity of your ships and space docks there are removed. Fighter II can move and stay on its own, but Fighter IIs that don't fit in capacity count against your fleet pool like other ships. Letnev's Armada bonus is for non-fighter ships only, so it doesn't extend that.

Can Fighter IIs move on their own into a system already at my fleet limit?

Yes — Fighter IIs move independently, and fleet pool and capacity are checked once all movement is done. If ships in the destination have room for them, they don't count against your fleet pool.

Where can a moving ship pick up and drop off units?

It can pick up fighters and ground forces in the system it starts in, every system it passes through and the active system, but not from any other system with your command token. Units come off only in the active system, after the ship finishes moving; it can't drop a load and go back for more. Fighters that don't fit stay behind.

Can a carrier pick up more units than its capacity so the excess are destroyed, or leave fighters behind to die?

You can't pick up more than the moving ships' capacity, so you can't overload to destroy your own units. But you can load ground forces and leave fighters or infantry already in space behind; capacity is a system total, so those left over are removed if what remains can't hold them.

“You could not, however, attempt to transport more units than the moving ships have capacity for in an attempt to destroy the excess.”

— CreussEmissary, designer

After ships stop moving, are fighters and ground forces still tied to the ship that carried them?

No — only while moving (and when leaving a gravity rift). Afterwards only the total capacity in the system matters, so if a carrier is lost, the cargo survives if other ships have room, and you choose which excess units to remove. Units removed for lack of capacity are removed, not destroyed, so Infantry II doesn't trigger.

When is capacity checked if a carrier is lost?

Immediately whenever it isn't combat, for example after each player's Space Cannon Offense volley, before the next player fires. During combat fighters and ground forces may exceed capacity and keep fighting; the excess is removed when the space combat ends, before invasion. So if all your ships die, their ground forces can't invade.

Can ground forces stay aboard ships in space instead of landing?

Yes — committing them is optional, and they can stay in space between turns as long as your ships there have enough capacity in total. Ground forces placed in space by effects like the Sol flagship don't fight in space combat; they wait for a later invasion or ride along when your ships move.

With Light/Wave Deflector, can I pick up my ground forces from a system that has enemy ships?

Yes — moving through such a system is allowed, and ships can pick up units in any system they pass through. Blockades only limit production.

Who can make transactions, and when?

During the action phase, only the active player can transact, and only with neighbors: one transaction with each neighbor per turn. A transaction trades any trade goods and commodities plus at most one promissory note. Deals that don't exchange components can be made with anyone at any time.

Is the one-transaction limit per turn or per round?

Per turn. A round covers all four phases; a turn is one player's turn in the action phase. So two neighbors can trade on one player's turn and again on the other's.

Can players make transactions with non-neighbors during the agenda phase?

Yes — while each agenda is being resolved, from its reveal until its outcome resolves, every pair of players may make one transaction, neighbors or not. That doesn't make them neighbors for anything else, as the developer confirmed when asked about Mentak's Pillage.

Can players trade action cards?

No — transactions cover only trade goods, commodities and promissory notes. The Hacan are the exception: their faction ability lets them include action cards, still within the one-transaction-per-player limit.

When is a deal binding?

Only when its terms resolve immediately — for example, taking a trade good not to fire Space Cannon at the moment you decide whether to fire binds you not to fire. Promises about future actions, and if-then conditions, are non-binding and can be broken. You can bind yourself to an act, but not to its result, such as a card that might be Sabotaged.

Is a deal to buy someone's votes binding?

Only for a player about to cast votes right now. Paying the next voter in exchange for their vote binds it, since nothing can happen in between; a promise to vote a certain way later can still be broken.

Must deals and negotiations happen openly at the table?

The rules don't say. Whether players may negotiate in private is up to your group.

What can be exchanged in a transaction?

Any number of trade goods and commodities, plus one promissory note from each side, and relic fragments with Prophecy of Kings. Technologies, units, planets, laws, command tokens, the speaker token and secret objectives can't be traded; action cards only when the Hacan are one of the parties, in any number and either direction. A transaction may be lopsided, even a gift.

Is a transaction an action, and when during a turn can it happen?

It isn't an action — the active player can make one with each neighbor at any point in their turn, even mid-combat or between the parts of a strategy card, and still take their action. Either side may propose it, and it counts against the active player's limit with that player. Two non-active players can't transact with each other.

Can players make transactions in the strategy or status phase?

No — transactions happen only in the action phase (active player with neighbors) and the agenda phase (anyone). Players can still talk and make non-binding deals at any time, even during galaxy setup.

Who counts as my neighbor?

Players with a unit or controlled planet in the same system or adjacent systems, wormholes included, so two players fighting in a system are neighbors. Ships moving through systems don't create neighbors on the way, since they are never in those systems. The Hacan can transact with non-neighbors, and anyone can with them, but that doesn't make them neighbors for Pillage.

When do commodities turn into trade goods, and can I give them and get them back in one transaction?

A commodity becomes a trade good the moment another player receives it, whether by transaction, Pillage or another effect. A transaction is one simultaneous exchange, so commodities you receive can't be sent back in it; that would be a second transaction, which must wait for another turn. You can only give what you actually have.

Can I trade on a promissory note I received from another player, and must I show it?

Yes — any note in your hand can be traded on, and you needn't show it, though the recipient may want to see it first. If the deal named a specific note, you must hand over that one. Notes face up in your play area, like Support for the Throne, can't be traded or handed back voluntarily.

Is replenishing other players' commodities with Trade a transaction?

No — it is a strategy card effect: recipients needn't be neighbors, can't refuse, it doesn't use up a transaction, and Mentak can't pillage it as a transaction. The Trade player may still transact during their strategic action, even after the secondaries.

Is a deal like 'take these trade goods and don't attack me this turn' binding?

No — a promise covering a period of time can't be resolved immediately, so it can be broken. To make something binding, pay for a specific immediate act, such as choosing not to fire Space Cannon right now, or trade for a promissory note like Ceasefire. A deal for future payment is non-binding too. Deals can never override rules like mandatory combat rolls.

Can I broker a trade between two players who aren't neighbors?

Only as two separate transactions, one with each, and since you get one transaction per neighbor per turn, part of it will rest on a non-binding promise.

Can a planet's resources and influence both be spent, or spent twice?

No — exhausting a planet spends either its resources or its influence, never both, and an exhausted planet can't be spent again until something readies it. Trade goods can stand in for either resources or influence.

How does Mentak's Mirror Computing interact with Bribery or spend-trade-goods objectives?

Each trade good is worth 2 when spent as resources or influence, but still 1 when spent as trade goods, so Bribery and objectives that spend trade goods get no bonus.

Is returning a used promissory note to its owner a transaction?

No — returning it is part of resolving the card, so it needs no agreement and happens even if you are no longer neighbors.

How often can Sol's Military Support be used?

At most once per Sol turn: it is used at the start of Sol's turn and then returns to Sol. If Sol trades it out again that turn, the start of that turn has passed, so it waits until Sol's next turn.

How many units can a space dock produce?

A Space Dock I has Production equal to its planet's resource value plus 2 (plus 4 with Space Dock II), so on a 3-resource planet it builds up to 5 units. The planet being exhausted doesn't matter.

Does Production limit the number of units or their total cost?

The number of units. Each fighter or infantry counts as one unit, even though two cost 1 resource, so a war sun uses one point of Production and you pay its 12 cost separately. The value isn't used up: you can produce up to it every time you get a chance to produce there.

When producing, can I exhaust planets outside the active system to pay?

Yes — spend resources from any planets you control, wherever they are, plus trade goods. Only the number of units is limited by the Production in the active system.

Do the Production values of several units in the active system add together?

Yes — all your Production in the active system is pooled into one production: two space docks of 4 and 3 give 7, and two Arborec infantry with Production 1 can build 2 infantry for 1 resource, even on different planets. You work out the total before producing, so units produced in that step can't add their own Production to it.

Where are produced ground forces placed?

On a planet that holds a unit that used Production, never on other planets in the system. With several producing planets you may split them among those planets however you like, even all on one. If the producing unit is in space, like a Saar Floating Factory or Letani Warriors aboard ships, they can go in that space area or on any planet you control in the system.

Can ground forces I produce take an uncontrolled planet in the same tactical action?

No — production is the last step, after invasion, and produced ground forces only go where described above. They can invade in a later action.

Can I produce at my home space dock during a tactical action elsewhere, or at a system I activated earlier?

No — the production step only uses units in the system you just activated. Producing without activating needs a specific effect such as the Warfare secondary or Sling Relay.

Can I produce ships at a space dock when enemy ships are in that system?

No — a dock (or other Production unit) in a system with another player's ships and none of yours is blockaded and can only produce ground forces. You keep the planet, and your PDS still fire. If Space Cannon or combat clears the enemy ships before the production step, you produce normally. Ground forces alone, without ships, never blockade.

Can I build space docks or PDS with Production?

No — unlike earlier editions, structures can't be built with Production; they come mainly from the Construction strategy card. A planet holds at most one space dock and two PDS, Mecatol Rex included.

If all my space docks or PDS are on the board, can I place another?

Only by moving one: if none are in reinforcements, you may take one from a system without your command token and place it where the effect directs. You can't otherwise scuttle your own units, and nothing is refunded.

Do units 'placed' by an effect cost resources, and do they count as producing?

No to both. An effect that says 'produce' means you pay the cost unless it says otherwise. 'Place' or 'gain' is free and isn't producing, so Muaat's Star Forge doesn't count as producing and doesn't trigger Magmus Reactor's trade good.

How does Sarween Tools work?

It cuts the combined cost of one use of Production by 1, not 1 per unit or per dock, and can take it to zero, so 2 infantry or 2 fighters can be free. It needs a unit's Production ability, so it doesn't apply to effects that just let you produce, like Sling Relay, but works with the Warfare secondary.

Can a destroyed flagship be rebuilt?

Yes — it goes back to reinforcements and can be produced again; you're only limited to the one piece.

When all my plastic fighters or infantry are on the board, can I move some to where I'm producing?

Yes — you may remove them from systems without your command token and produce them instead of using tokens. Tokens are optional, and each location using tokens still needs at least one plastic piece of that type.

Does the Codex (Omega) Magen Defense Grid still work if the PDS on the planet has been hit by Disable?

Yes — Disable only strips the PDS's Planetary Shield and Space Cannon; it is still a structure, so Magen Defense Grid still produces its hit. That hit lands at the start of ground combat, before dice are rolled, so the destroyed unit never rolls. With only structures on the planet there's no ground combat and Magen can't trigger.

Does Graviton Laser System do anything during Space Cannon Defense?

No — you may exhaust it, but the only targets during Space Cannon Defense are the invading ground forces, so there are never non-fighter ships to force hits onto.

How does Duranium Armor work?

Once per combat round, after hits are assigned, it repairs one of your damaged units in that combat that did not use Sustain Damage that round, even if you had no hits to assign. Only units with Sustain Damage can be damaged, so only they benefit: ships in space combat, mechs in ground combat, never units elsewhere on the board. It isn't an extra hit point: a damaged unit that takes another hit is destroyed first. A unit damaged by Space Cannon before combat can be repaired at the end of round one.

Does Valkyrie Particle Weave trigger if I cancel all the opponent's hits?

Yes — it needs the opponent to produce hits, and they did; cancelling them afterwards doesn't undo that.

How does Graviton Laser System affect Space Cannon hits?

It makes Space Cannon hits be assigned to non-fighter ships when possible. They are still ordinary hits, so Sustain Damage can cancel them before assignment. It doesn't affect fighters or ground forces in ground combat, Naalu fighters included.

Is Hyper Metabolism misprinted?

Yes — early copies are wrong; it should make you gain 3 command tokens in the status phase instead of 2. Base sets printed after 2019 have the corrected card. It stacks with Sol's extra token, so Sol with it gains 4.

How do technology specialties work when researching?

Exhaust a ready planet with a specialty to ignore one prerequisite of that color; several planets can skip several prerequisites on one technology, and it works for unit upgrades too. Exhausting a planet for its specialty is separate from spending it, so you don't also get its resources.

Does a technology I just researched, or one that is exhausted, count as a prerequisite?

Yes to both. Owned technologies always count, exhausted or not, so the first technology from the Technology primary counts for the second, and you can exhaust AI Development Algorithm and still count it. A coloured faction technology counts as that colour for prerequisites and objectives.

How do unit upgrades work?

They are technologies you research normally, prerequisites and all; Inheritance Systems can skip their prerequisites like any other. Once gained, lay the card over that unit on your faction sheet; all your units of that type use the new stats right away. Upgrades have no colour, so they don't count as prerequisites or for colour objectives.

Do faction technologies replace generic ones?

Only faction unit upgrades replace the matching generic upgrade; all other faction technologies are extras. Faction unit upgrades do count as faction technologies for objectives.

If an effect lets me research a technology, do I pay for it?

Only if the effect says so, as the Technology card does. You still meet prerequisites (specialties can help). 'Gain' is different from 'research': gaining ignores prerequisites and doesn't trigger 'when you research' effects.

Can I use a technology right after researching it, such as Fleet Logistics?

Yes. Research Fleet Logistics with the Technology primary on your turn, and once that strategic action, secondaries included, is done you may take a second action that turn; gaining it on another player's turn doesn't give an extra action then. Starting technologies work from the first turn.

What does Fleet Logistics allow?

On each turn you may take two actions instead of one, of any type, even the same type, such as two tactical actions on two systems. You can't reuse an exhausted strategy card or a discarded action card, and the second action is optional. If the first is Warfare, other players resolve its secondary before your second action.

Does Gravity Drive give +1 move to every ship?

No — each tactical action you pick one ship, one plastic piece, and it gets +1 move for that action.

Is Plasma Scoring's extra die optional, and does it work with Experimental Battlestation?

It is a 'may', so you can decline it. It adds a die whenever your units use Space Cannon or Bombardment, including a space dock firing through Experimental Battlestation, which then rolls 4 dice.

What does Antimass Deflectors do?

Your ships can move into, end in and pass through asteroid fields, and other players' Space Cannon rolls get -1 against all your units, ground forces in Space Cannon Defense included, wherever they are.

Does Light/Wave Deflector let my ships ignore blockades?

No — it only lets your ships move through systems containing other players' ships. It doesn't let you produce ships in a blockaded system.

Are Fighter II units still fighters for other effects?

Yes — Fighter II only lets fighters move without capacity (counting against the fleet pool when unsupported); they remain fighters for every other effect.

What happens to infantry on the Infantry II card if I don't control my home system?

They return at the start of your next turn, which after passing is in the next round, onto planets you control in your home system, split as you like. If you control none there, they are lost (returned to reinforcements), per a relayed developer email; they don't wait on the card. Any destruction triggers Infantry II.

Does a war sun shut off Magen Defense Grid?

Only the original version, which needs a unit with Planetary Shield: a war sun makes other players' units lose Planetary Shield. Effects that merely ignore Planetary Shield leave it, so the original still works then. The Codex Omega version only needs a structure and isn't affected by war suns. It only acts in the first round of ground combat.

How does X-89 Bacterial Weapon Omega work?

It needs your Bombardment to destroy at least one infantry; if hits go to mechs and no infantry dies, nothing happens, and Planetary Shield, by blocking Bombardment, blocks it too. The original X-89 targets any enemy planet, even one with no infantry.

What can Integrated Economy produce?

Any units, ships or ground forces, up to the new planet's resource value in cost, paid normally; ships appear in that system, unless enemy ships are there. Each planet gained triggers separately. It isn't a Production ability, so Sarween Tools and the original Yin Spinner don't apply.

What can L1Z1X's Inheritance Systems be used for?

It ignores all prerequisites for one research, unit upgrades and your own faction technologies like Super Dreadnought included, but can't get you another faction's technology. Researched as the first tech of the Technology primary, it can pay for the second. It can be used in the agenda phase too, though it then stays exhausted, since only planets ready at the end of that phase.

Can Xxcha's Instinct Training cancel any action card, even outside their own combats?

Yes — it cancels any other player's action card, Sabotage included, since it refers to 'another player', not an opponent. Unlike Nullification Field, it doesn't require you to be the target.

Is Creuss's Wormhole Generator mandatory, and where can its tokens go?

A player relays a developer email saying it is mandatory each status phase, since it lacks 'may'. Only the alpha and beta Creuss tokens exist, so once both are out you move one. A system with a planet you control qualifies even if it's your home system; the non-home limit applies only to the option of a system without other players' ships.

Does the Creuss flagship's delta wormhole trigger Dimensional Splicer?

Yes — it is a wormhole, and the Creuss player then picks which enemy ship takes the hit, which can set up Direct Hit.

How does Jol-Nar's Research Agreement work?

When Jol-Nar researches a non-faction technology, by any means, while you hold the note, both of you end up with it: you gain the same technology. It doesn't trigger when Jol-Nar merely gains a tech, and it can't give you a unit upgrade for a unit your faction doesn't have. The Nekro get the technology, not tokens.

How does Jol-Nar's Spatial Conduit Cylinder work?

It is exhausted right after activation, before movement, so the system must already contain your units. Then systems with your units count as adjacent to it for that action, so all your PDS II there can fire into it.

Can Bioplasmosis or Transit Diodes move ground forces onto enemy planets, or chain across systems?

No. Both only move ground forces to planets you control. Bioplasmosis moves each infantry once, to a planet in its own or an adjacent system, so no hopping across several systems.

Can Winnu use Lazax Gate Folding's action without Mecatol Rex, and does the wormhole part work while exhausted?

The action needs you to control Mecatol Rex, so it can't be used as a stall. The passive part, Mecatol Rex counting as alpha and beta wormholes while you don't control it, doesn't need the card ready, so it works while exhausted.

Can a technology ability that doesn't say 'exhaust' be used more than once per round?

Yes — it applies every time its trigger occurs, and static abilities keep working even while the card is exhausted.

When does Magmus Reactor give a trade good for producing?

When you produce in a system that contains a war sun (anyone's) or is adjacent to a supernova; at most one per production. A war sun next door, producing inside a supernova (a system isn't adjacent to itself), or a war sun built in that same production doesn't count, and Star Forge places rather than produces.

Does Prototype War Sun II cost less?

Yes — it costs 10 instead of 12.

Does a home system stop being a home system when another player takes it?

No — it stays its original owner's home system, so it remains off-limits to effects that target non-home systems or planets, and its owner still needs it back to score public objectives.

Do I lose control of a planet if my ground forces leave or are destroyed?

No — you control a planet while you hold its card; with no units there, mark it with a control token. You only lose control when another player gains it, by invading or an effect that says so. That includes home planets you start with, and control never reverts to a former owner automatically.

Do I control both planets in my home system at the start, and does that trigger 'gain control' effects?

You control every home planet from the start, empty or not; a control token on an empty one is just a reminder. Because you begin with control rather than gaining it, abilities like Saar's Scavenge don't trigger at setup.

How do I take control of a planet?

Normally by landing at least one ground force on it in the invasion step; ships in the system, or fighters, even with the Naalu flagship, never take a planet. Each planet is taken separately, so one invasion can't claim a second planet you didn't land on. A few effects grant control directly, and say so, like Xxcha's Peace Accords.

When invading a system with two planets, does winning on one take both, and what if both sides are wiped out on a planet?

No — each planet has its own ground combat, and you take only the planets where your ground forces remain and the defender's don't. If both sides lose all their ground forces on a planet, the defender keeps control.

Can different players control different planets in the same system?

Yes — each planet is controlled separately and nobody controls the space area. Only ships can't share the space area without combat. If a planet's controller has no units on it while someone else's do, control stays put until that player invades.

What happens to space docks and PDS when an enemy takes the planet?

They are destroyed when another player's ground forces take control of the planet with none of the owner's ground forces left. Structures never fight or block an invasion. Fighters fighting via the Naalu flagship don't destroy them, since they aren't on the planet afterwards. L1Z1X's Assimilate replaces them instead, and the new dock can produce that same action.

Can PDS or space docks be moved or transported?

No — structures stay where they are placed, except the Saar Floating Factories, which move as if they were ships.

How do I take Mecatol Rex, and does the custodians point ever change hands?

Activate it like any system; during invasion, before committing ground forces, spend 6 influence to remove the custodians token, gaining it and 1 victory point, then land. Only the first player to do this gets the point, and it is never lost; later control of Mecatol Rex scores only through Imperial.

If I kill every ground force on a planet with X-89 or Orbital Drop elsewhere, do I take the planet?

No — destroying defenders never changes control, and Orbital Drop only reinforces planets you already control. You must invade in a tactical action to take it.

Can an enemy use a Saar Floating Factory to score objectives about ships in systems with enemy space docks?

No — a Floating Factory left alone with enemy ships is destroyed at once, so the condition never holds against the Saar.

Can I play two copies of the same action card, like Morale Boost or Flank Speed, in one timing window?

No — you cannot play more than one action card with the same name in a single timing window to affect the same units or effect. Cards with different names can all be played. Direct Hit can be played more than once because each copy targets a different ship.

If my action card is cancelled by Sabotage, can I play another copy of the same card in that window?

Yes — a cancelled card is treated as never having been played, so the same-name restriction doesn't stop a second copy. Likewise, if your Sabotage is itself cancelled (by Instinct Training, say), you may play another Sabotage on the original card. Some older answers said a second copy was not allowed.

Can a player who isn't in the combat play Sabotage or Direct Hit?

Sabotage, yes: any player can cancel another player's action card (other than a Sabotage). Direct Hit, no: the hit must have been produced by your own units or abilities, so a bystander has nothing to play it on.

Do Direct Hit and Shields Holding work on hits from Dimensional Splicer or Yin Devotion?

Yes to both. Direct Hit was errata'd to cover hits produced by your units or abilities, and Shields Holding can cancel these hits too. An early FAQ entry saying otherwise was acknowledged as a mistake by the developer, who confirmed the Splicer is meant to be that powerful.

If I have 7 action cards and draw 2, do I discard as I go or after drawing both?

Draw both, then discard down to seven, choosing from your whole hand.

Can Tactical Bombardment be played in a system with no enemy planets?

Yes — it only requires that you have a unit with Bombardment in that system.

Does Cripple Defenses destroy every PDS on the planet?

Yes — it destroys each PDS on the chosen planet, which is all of them.

If my component action card is cancelled by Sabotage, have I used my action for the turn?

No — a cancelled card counts as not played, so you still take an action (or pass, if allowed). Anything that happened before you played it stands: if Flank Speed or Upgrade is Sabotaged after you activated a system, the system stays activated and you carry on without the bonus. If it was the optional extra action from Fleet Logistics, you can just end your turn.

When exactly is Sabotage played: before or after the card's target is chosen?

After the player announces the card's choices (target planet, ship or player, rider prediction, retreat destination and so on), but before anything changes the game state, such as rolling dice or spending trade goods. Allow a short pause for it. Focused Research is the exception: its technology is chosen during resolution, after the Sabotage window.

Can Sabotage cancel another Sabotage or a promissory note?

No to both. Sabotage only cancels action cards, and never one named Sabotage. Other cancel effects that lack that restriction can still cancel a Sabotage.

Can I play action cards when it isn't my turn?

Yes, whenever a card's timing text allows it — Sabotage can even go into a combat you aren't part of. Only cards whose timing is ACTION must be played as your action on your turn.

When can the Upgrade action card be played?

Immediately after you activate a system containing your ships — not later in that tactical action, such as after producing a new cruiser.

Does Unstable Planet destroy fewer than 3 infantry if there are only 1 or 2?

Yes — it was errata'd to destroy up to 3 infantry, so it removes whatever is there, up to 3. It can also target an exhausted hazardous planet, since its effects are joined by 'and'.

Can several Direct Hits or Shields Holdings be played in the same combat round?

Several Direct Hits, yes: each Sustain Damage use is its own trigger, so you can answer each with a Direct Hit on that ship. Sustain Damage is used unit by unit, so you can wait to see a Direct Hit before sustaining with more; hits already cancelled stay cancelled. Shields Holding: one per player against a set of incoming hits, though each combatant can play one.

Does Shields Holding last for the whole combat?

No — like other action cards it resolves once, against one round's hits, and is discarded.

What happens to committed ground forces when Parley is played?

They return to the space area rather than being destroyed, within capacity. The invasion of that planet just doesn't happen.

Can I play Skilled Retreat if I have no command tokens in reinforcements?

Yes — as with a normal retreat, you take a token from your command sheet instead, according to a relayed FFG answer. Skilled Retreat may also move into a system that already contains your command token.

When can Parley be played, and does it stop Bombardment?

Right after ground forces are committed to a planet, not later in the combat. Bombardment happens before that, so Parley can't stop it. The committed forces go back to space and that planet's invasion is off; to try again you need the system free of your command token.

Which hits can Shields Holding cancel?

Hits during space combat, including Anti-Fighter Barrage in the first round and ability hits like Dimensional Splicer, Ambush or Devotion. Not Space Cannon Offense or Defense, which happen outside space combat, and not 'destroy' effects such as Courageous to the End. Each combatant may play one in the same round.

Can I play Direct Hit, Maneuvering Jets or other combat cards in a combat I'm not part of?

In practice no — Direct Hit needs a hit produced by your own units or abilities, Maneuvering Jets only cancels hits on your own units, and the other combat cards refer to you, your units or your opponent. Bystanders can still play Sabotage, and a few cards like Scramble Frequency.

Can Emergency Repairs save a ship from Direct Hit?

No — Direct Hit is played as Sustain Damage is used, while hits are being assigned; Emergency Repairs comes at the end of the round, too late.

Does Scramble Frequency reroll all the dice of a unit ability?

Yes — all of that ability's dice are rolled together, so the card rerolls all of them, across different values or bombarded planets.

Does Signal Jamming take command tokens from more than one player?

No — it names a single other player, whose reinforcements supply the one token you place; that player must have one there for the card to be playable.

Does Maneuvering Jets protect infantry from Space Cannon Defense?

Yes — it cancels Space Cannon hits on your ground forces as well as your ships, but only hits on your own units.

Do I have to play a promissory note, such as Ceasefire, as soon as its timing comes up?

No — promissory notes are never mandatory unless the note says to play it immediately or place it face up. You can hold it and decide each time its timing window arises. This means the holder may choose not to play it; it does not let the note's owner refuse to honor it once played.

Does the Letnev War Funding promissory note still work if the Letnev player has fewer than 2 trade goods?

Yes — the reroll still applies. The trade-good loss and the reroll are printed as separate paragraphs, so they are separate abilities, and the reroll does not depend on the Letnev being able to pay.

Can L1Z1X Cybernetic Enhancements or Xxcha Political Favor be used if their owner has no command token in the strategy pool?

No — each of these notes is a single paragraph where the benefit follows from removing the owner's strategy token, so if there is no token to remove, nothing on it resolves. The separate 'return this card' paragraph is judged on its own.

Does Sol's Military Support work if Sol has no strategy token, and can its 2 infantry go on different planets?

It works without a token — the note only spends Sol's strategy token if able. But both infantry go on a single planet you control; the card says one planet, in English and in translations.

When must I return another player's Support for the Throne?

As soon as you activate a system containing any of that player's units, whether or not you move in or attack. Units include their ships, ground forces, space docks and PDS, but not control tokens, so activating a system where they only have control tokens is fine. Putting a command token in a system by other means is not activating it.

If I hold Mentak's Promise of Protection without playing it, must I return it when I activate a Mentak system?

No — a note you have not played face up ignores its own return conditions. But it also doesn't protect you from Pillage until it is face up in your play area.

Can the Creuss IFF note put a wormhole token in a system with enemy ships if I control a planet there?

Yes — the two placement options are alternatives: a system containing a planet you control, or a non-home system with no other players' ships. Meeting either is enough, so enemy ships or a blockade don't matter if you control a planet there.

Can I receive Creuss IFF in a transaction at the start of my turn and play it in that same window?

Yes — it is still the start of your turn until you actually take an action, so you can trade for the note and then resolve its start-of-turn ability.

Who can play the Yin Greyfire Mutagen note, and in which systems?

Any player holding it can play it whenever a system is activated for a tactical action, regardless of which player is the active player.

Does the Arborec Stymie note stop the Arborec from producing in their home system?

No — Stymie only covers non-home systems containing the holder's units and the systems adjacent to them, so the Arborec home system is never blocked.

When must Ceasefire be played?

Right after the system is activated, before any ships move; once ships have moved it's too late. The active player doesn't have to announce what will move first, and their own after-activation cards like Flank Speed get the first chance in that window.

Can Letnev's War Funding or The Crown of Thalnos reroll Anti-Fighter Barrage dice?

No — effects that modify or reroll combat rolls don't apply to Anti-Fighter Barrage, and players report the designer said War Funding wasn't meant to work with it. The card's 'any rolls this round' wording is read loosely by some.

Who assigns the L1Z1X flagship's hits?

The opponent, as with any hits unless an ability says otherwise; if only fighters are left, they take the hits.

Can Creuss use a wormhole token to get into an asteroid field protected by Saar's Chaos Mapping?

No — Chaos Mapping says other players can't activate it, and 'cannot' is absolute; Creuss can place the token there but still can't activate the system to move in.

When does the Arborec flagship produce, and can it move in first?

It produces right after its system is activated, before movement, so it only works if it is already in the active system; it can't move in and then produce. Its units go on planets you control or in the space area, never on enemy planets.

Are the Ghosts of Creuss neighbors with a player on a beta wormhole when Creuss sits on an alpha wormhole?

Yes — Quantum Entanglement makes alpha and beta wormholes adjacent for Creuss, and adjacency created that way also makes them neighbors, so the two players can transact.

How many Creuss wormhole tokens are there, and is there a delta wormhole token?

The tokens are limited, and abilities say to place or move them rather than adding more. A full copy with Prophecy of Kings has three Creuss tokens (alpha, beta and gamma). Their faction-symbol backs are not delta wormholes. The flagship's delta wormhole needs no token; it travels with the ship.

When Jol-Nar uses Brilliant to resolve the Technology primary as a secondary, do they need another token for the second tech?

No — they pay one strategy token, then resolve the full primary: research one technology and optionally spend 6 resources for a second.

How does the L1Z1X Harrow ability work?

Per errata it triggers at the end of each round of ground combat, as Bombardment from L1Z1X ships in the active system. Every ship with Bombardment there can join in, not just those that bombarded that planet. It still resolves after the round in which L1Z1X lose their last ground force; if it then kills the last defender, the combat is a draw. Planetary Shield stops it.

How many hits can the Jol-Nar flagship produce?

Each die showing 9 or 10 produces its normal hit plus 2 more, so its two dice can make up to 6 hits.

How does the Hacan flagship's trade-good bonus work?

Roll all your combat dice first, then spend 1 trade good for +1 on any of your units' dice in its system, at most once per die. It only modifies combat rolls, not Space Cannon or other ability rolls.

Can Letnev use Munitions Reserves every round, and does it cover Anti-Fighter Barrage?

Every round, paying 2 trade goods each time, to reroll any of their dice that round. Whether it covers Anti-Fighter Barrage is debated; the better-supported view is yes, since barrage is part of the first combat round.

With Jol-Nar's Fragile, can their fighters still hit?

Yes, on a 10: the -1 makes it 9, which still meets the fighter's combat value of 9. Fragile only affects combat rolls, not Space Cannon, Bombardment or Anti-Fighter Barrage.

How does Non-Euclidean Shielding work?

Every time one of your units uses Sustain Damage, it cancels 2 hits instead of 1, and that unit can still be assigned one of the remaining hits. Unused cancellation is lost; it doesn't carry over to a later hit such as Devotion's.

How does Arborec infantry Production work?

Each Letani Warrior I has Production 1 (II has 2) and can build any unit you can pay for, ships included, with no space dock; they still pay resources. Their Production pools with your other units in the system, and they can produce in a system they just moved into, or from aboard ships. Arborec space docks can never produce infantry, so infantry output is capped by the Letani Warriors' own Production. Blockaded Letani can only make ground forces.

How does the Arborec flagship's produce-5 ability work?

Right after you activate the system it is already in, before movement, you may produce up to 5 units there, paying as normal; it isn't the Production step, so the regular production step still follows later. It can't move in first and then produce. Structures can't be produced this way.

How do the Hacan trade action cards?

Any number of action cards can go either way in a transaction the Hacan are part of, still within one transaction per player per turn. The Hacan, or anyone trading with them, can transact regardless of neighbors, on either player's turn, though the active player must be involved.

How often can the Mentak use Pillage, and does it work in the agenda phase against everyone?

Pillage triggers separately each time a neighbor gains trade goods or resolves a transaction and ends with 3 or more, so it can hit each qualifying neighbor, in any phase. But the agenda phase does not make everyone neighbors: transactions with non-neighbors are allowed then, yet Pillage still only works on the Mentak's actual neighbors, as the developer ruled.

How often can the Naalu use Foresight, and what triggers it?

As often as they have strategy tokens and an eligible system to move to — there is no per-round limit. It needs another player's ships to actually move into and stop in the Naalu ships' system: not a ship merely passing through, and not an activation with nothing moved in. A Naalu command token already in that system doesn't block it, just as it wouldn't block a retreat.

How do ground forces fighting with the Nekro Virus flagship work?

They take part in the space combat as if they were ships, so the opponent can assign hits to them. They are not ships for any other purpose, so they don't count against your fleet pool or your ships' capacity.

Can the Nekro gain technologies from both the space combat and the ground combat of one tactical action?

Yes — Technological Singularity works once per combat, and each space combat and each ground combat is a separate combat. Note that if you bombard the last defender before landing, there is no ground combat on that planet.

Does the Nekro Virus pay normally to use the Technology secondary?

Yes — like anyone they spend a strategy token and 4 resources, and because they can't research, Propagation gives them 3 command tokens instead.

Can Naalu fighters fighting with the Matriarch win a ground combat or take control of a planet?

No. They join ground combat with all bonuses, but per the errata they return to space when combat ends, before a winner is decided. If only fighters remain, the combat is a draw, Dacxive Animators doesn't trigger, and the defender keeps the planet. You need actual ground forces to take control.

Which kills trigger Nekro's Technological Singularity?

Only an opponent's units destroyed during a space or ground combat the Nekro are part of; it triggers as soon as the unit dies. Kills from Space Cannon, Bombardment, or structures destroyed when control is established don't count, since those happen outside combat. Anti-Fighter Barrage is part of combat and counts.

How do Nekro ground forces fighting via the flagship count for other effects?

They take part as ships for that combat, so they count as non-fighter ships for things like the Winnu flagship's extra dice (per the LRR FAQ) and probably Assault Cannon. Effects naming a specific ship type, like fighters or destroyers, never apply to them. Carried infantry can join too, then land and fight on the ground the same action. If Assault Cannon hits Nekro when the flagship is their only non-fighter ship, the flagship must go.

Do Mentak ships that Ambush still roll in the first round, and how does The Fourth Moon block Sustain Damage?

Ambush is an extra roll at the start of combat; those ships still roll normally from the first round. The Fourth Moon stops other players' Sustain Damage in any round it takes part in, including the round it is destroyed, because Sustain Damage is used before hits remove it.

When does Naalu Foresight happen, and where can the ships go?

Right after the other player's ships move in, before Space Cannon Offense, so the Naalu leave before PDS fire, and Space Cannon can't follow them. They may go to any adjacent system without other players' ships, including the one the attacker just vacated or one with only enemy structures, but can't land ground forces there. Intercept doesn't stop it, as it isn't a combat retreat.

What combat value do Naalu fighters use in ground combat, and can they fight on two planets?

Their own fighter combat value, upgrades included; they act as ground forces but aren't infantry. All ground forces are committed in one step before any combat, so the same fighters can't fight on two planets in one invasion.

How does Mentak's Ambush work?

At the start of space combat, before Anti-Fighter Barrage, roll one die for each of up to 2 cruisers or destroyers, mixed as you like. Hits are removed at once and destroyed ships never fire back. It isn't a combat roll, so Morale Boost doesn't apply, and the ambushing ships still roll normally from the first round.

Does the Mentak flagship stop Sustain Damage against Space Cannon hits too?

Yes — other players' ships in its system can't use Sustain Damage at all, whatever the source of the hit.

When the Nekro Virus gain a technology, does the other player lose it?

No — the Nekro take the matching card from their own technology deck, and gaining ignores prerequisites. The Nekro choose which eligible technology to take, and it works immediately, even for the rest of that combat. It triggers when any opponent's unit is destroyed in combat, even one the Yin sacrifice with Devotion or one killed by Assault Cannon or Anti-Fighter Barrage.

What can the Nekro copy with Valefar Assimilator?

Faction technology cards another player has actually researched, unit upgrades included, two at a time, one per token; to copy a third you move a token. Units printed on faction sheets, like Muaat's Prototype War Sun I or flagships, aren't technologies and can't be copied (the Nomad's Memoria II card is the exception). Copying a faction war sun technology does make the Nekro subject to Publicize Weapon Schematics.

What happens to the Nekro's own unit upgrades when they copy a faction upgrade for the same unit?

The copied faction upgrade covers your generic one, which you keep; only one is in effect. Move the token away and the generic upgrade applies again. A second faction upgrade for the same unit replaces the first, using the same token.

What happens when the Nekro move a Valefar token off a technology their units depend on?

The copied tech is swapped, not stacked. Lose a war sun technology with no replacement and all Nekro war suns are destroyed. Lose a copied Floating Factory II and each dock in space moves to a planet you control in its system, or is destroyed if none qualifies. Ships already in a supernova after losing Magmus Reactor are fine.

Can the Nekro use technology specialties?

Not for research, since they never research; Propagation gives command tokens instead, and they still pay the normal cost to follow Technology.

What are the Nekro's X and Y tokens for?

They mark which faction technologies the Nekro are copying with their two Valefar Assimilator technologies.

When exactly can Mentak use Pillage?

After each instance of a neighbor gaining trade goods or resolving a transaction, if that neighbor then has 3 or more trade goods and no face-up Promise of Protection. Both sides of a transaction between two neighbors can each be pillaged, in the order Mentak chooses, and receiving converted commodities counts as gaining trade goods. Nobody can dump trade goods between the trigger and Pillage. A commodity taken becomes a trade good.

If Yin's Indoctrination replaces the only defending infantry, have the Yin won the ground combat?

Yes — Indoctrination is used once the ground combat has begun, so if it removes the last defender the Yin win, which counts for Dacxive Animators and 'win a combat' objectives, and any card the opponent played is wasted. If Bombardment had already killed every defender, there is no ground combat to win.

Are Saar Floating Factories ships, and do they count against the fleet pool?

No — Floating Factories are never ships; they only move and retreat as if they were. They don't count against your fleet pool, but every ability that affects movement, such as Gravity Drive, Flank Speed, Antimass Deflectors or Light/Wave Deflector, still applies to them and the ships moving with them.

“The general movement of the Floating Factory and its accompanying ships (if any) shouldn’t be hindered by the fact that it is not technically a ship.”

— CreussEmissary, designer

Can Space Cannon fire at, or hits be assigned to, a Saar Floating Factory when it moves?

No — PDS cannot fire at a moving Floating Factory, and hits cannot be assigned to it because it is not a ship. The developer originally ruled the other way, then publicly reversed himself in January 2018 and put the corrected ruling in the FAQ.

“no—PDS cannot fire at a Floating Factory when it moves. I’ll make it clear in the FAQ.”

— CreussEmissary, designer

Where do Saar Floating Factories go, and how many can share a system?