XCOM: The Board Game – Evolution
XCOM: The Board Game – Evolution Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Overview
XCOM: Evolution presents the team with new challenges. Not only the alien invasion, but also a human organization called EXALT, which has infiltrated the whole world, threatens planet Earth. The expansion contains new material for all players: new assets, technologies, soldiers and upgrades. New threats come in the form of EXALT markers and destruction cards.
Extension Symbol
All cards from this expansion bear the XCOM: Evolution symbol, so that they can be told apart from the cards of the base game.
Updating the App
To play with XCOM: Evolution, update the app to the latest version. After the update you have the option to play with the expansion. When playing with the expansion, always use the complete component set of XCOM: Evolution.
Components
- 12 mission cards
- 2 invasion plan cards
- 3 asset cards
- 12 tech cards
- 16 crisis cards
- 21 enemy cards
- 10 destruction cards
- 1 reserve card (MEC Trooper reserve, for the Squad Leader)
- 3 MEC Troopers
- 1 dangerous alien die
- 24 EXALT markers
- 1 MELD token
Playing with the Expansion
When setting up the game, integrate the XCOM: Evolution components into the game in the following steps:
- The Chief Scientist shuffles the new tech cards into the tech deck and places the asset card "Cybernetics Lab" in front of him or her.
- The Central Officer shuffles the EXALT markers and forms a face-down supply from them. Then he or she places the asset card "Situation Room" in front of him or her.
- The Commander shuffles the destruction deck and places it next to the board. Then he or she shuffles the new crisis cards into the crisis deck and places the asset card "Counterintelligence" in front of him or her.
- The Squad Leader shuffles the new mission cards into the mission deck and places the three MEC Troopers in the recruitment pool.
MEC Troopers
MEC Troopers are a fusion of human bodies with alien technology and represent a versatile new super soldier for the Squad Leader.
At the start of the game there are no soldiers on the MEC Trooper reserve. They must be recruited by the Chief Scientist via the Cybernetics Lab. In the Recruit Soldiers and Build Interceptors step of the resolution phase, no MEC Troopers can be recruited. They also cannot be promoted to elite soldiers.
New Invasion Plans
XCOM: Evolution adds two new invasion plans. In "Suppression" (Unterdrückung), XCOM is increasingly threatened by the paramilitary organization EXALT. "Annihilation" (Auslöschung) is the ultimate challenge for the XCOM team. Prepare for a long, brutal war in which nothing and no one is safe.
Suppression (Unterdrückung)
Text printed on the card face, in order of appearance:
- "2 EXALT markers are drawn."
- "Game won."
- "To complete this task, 3 success tokens are needed."
Annihilation (Auslöschung)
The card face of the Annihilation invasion plan is covered on the printed sheet, and its text is not legible. It is not reproduced here.
MELD
MELD is a mysterious alien substance needed to manufacture powerful upgrades and technologies. However, the canisters holding the coveted MELD have a self-destruct mechanism. Do not wait too long!
All missions in XCOM: Evolution carry a new reward, the MELD reward. It is obtained when the associated mission is completed in the round in which the mission card was drawn.
MELD Marker
When the Squad Leader chooses a mission with a MELD reward, he or she places the MELD marker on the mission card together with the face-down enemy cards. While the MELD marker lies on the card, the threat increases by 1 before each roll for this task.
If the indicated mission is completed while the MELD marker lies on the card, the Squad Leader immediately receives the indicated reward and sets the MELD marker aside.
At the end of the "Resolve Mission" step of the resolution phase, the MELD marker is set aside from the current mission (if one lies on it). From then on, the MELD reward of this mission is no longer available.
Destruction Cards
The resources of XCOM are now in danger. Destruction cards represent material and facilities that have come into the sights of the aliens.
Whenever the base damage marker moves onto a yellow space, the Commander draws the top card of the destruction deck and resolves it. Each of these cards gives the Commander a choice: either remove an asset or units from the game, or spend credits from the Emergency Fund.
Example, the destruction card "Skyranger":
- "The asset card 'Skyranger' is removed from the game."
- "OR"
- "Spend 2 credits from the Emergency Fund."
Dangerous Tasks
A dangerous task represents a particular risk for the XCOM team. Tasks can become dangerous for various reasons, for example through crisis cards, enemies or missions. While a task is dangerous, the active player rolls the six-sided alien die instead of the eight-sided alien die. This increases the chance that the roll is at or below the threat, so that all units assigned to the task are exhausted, destroyed or killed (depending on unit type).
A task that was dangerous at the start of the resolution phase may lose this status while it is being executed. In that case, the players switch back to the eight-sided alien die, but the threat is not reset.
EXALT Markers
EXALT is the name of a paramilitary organization that has infiltrated human society and wants to topple established governments. Its threatening activities are represented by EXALT markers, which affect the tasks on the board. During the game the app can instruct the Central Officer to draw an EXALT marker from the supply. Each marker shows an area of the board:
- Continents
- Orbit
- Research Labs
- Base
- Mission
The marker is placed next to the depicted board space. Each space may contain several EXALT markers.
While one or more EXALT markers are assigned to a task, the task counts as dangerous. When the task is executed in the resolution phase, a player may spend 1 rolled success to remove one EXALT marker from the current task.
The Central Officer has a new asset card with which he or she can reveal EXALT markers in the supply. When he or she does, two markers in the supply are turned face up so that their destination is visible. When the Central Officer is asked to draw a marker from the supply, he or she may choose either a face-down or a face-up marker.
EXALT markers removed from the board are placed face up next to the marker supply. In the "Refresh Units and Cards" step of the resolution phase, all EXALT markers that are not on the board are placed face down in the supply and shuffled.
Rules Clarifications
- EXALT markers on research and mission tasks are always assigned to the task and not to a card lying on it. If a tech or mission card is removed (because it is to be replaced or because the task was completed), all EXALT markers stay on the task until they are removed by a game effect.
- EXALT markers on a mission do not apply to the final mission (if it is unlocked). There are no EXALT markers for the final mission.
- Whenever an EXALT marker is drawn, it is turned face up and placed on the depicted space. When an EXALT marker is set aside, it does not return to the supply right away. This only happens in the "Refresh Units and Cards" step.
- When a continent falls into panic, all EXALT markers of that continent remain on the board. If the Central Officer later draws an EXALT marker for this continent, it is placed on the continent as usual.
- Research, enemy and mission tasks that have the required number of success tokens do not have to be completed immediately. A player may also keep rolling to remove an EXALT marker from them.
- Even when no UFOs are on an orbital or global defense task, a player may roll to remove an EXALT marker from that task.
- MEC Troopers can only be recruited via the Cybernetics Lab and Experimental Warfare. They cannot be obtained in the Recruit Soldiers and Build Interceptors step of the resolution phase, nor through a card effect that allows recruiting soldiers.
- Each instance of damage to the base is resolved individually, even if the base takes several instances of damage at the same time. If the base damage marker moves over several yellow spaces of the damage track because of the damage from a single event, one destruction card is drawn for each space.
- If there are fewer than 2 credits in the Emergency Fund, the second option of a destruction card does not apply.
- Assets and tech that allow success tokens to be placed on tasks may not be used to remove EXALT markers. EXALT markers can only be removed by spending a rolled success symbol or by cards that explicitly remove EXALT markers.
- The tech card "Pulse Arc" cannot be used against Mechtoids.