2491 Planetship Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Game Overview
• Game Setup
  • Forming Planetship Alpha
• Zones
  • Zone Grid
  • Space Docks
  • Probes
• Character Cards
• Start of Round
• Player's Turn
• Round End
  • #1 - Resolving a Zone
  • #2 - Gaining Reward Cards
  • #3 - Retrieve Characters, Ships and Probes
  • #4 - Discard Cards
  • #5 - New First Player and Beginning of a New Round
• Game End and Scoring
  • #1 - Discarded Cards
  • #2 - Cards in Hand
  • #3 - Accomplished Missions
• Character Abilities
  • Hacker
  • Scanner
  • Tractor Beam
  • Shield
  • Team Radio
  • Teleport
• Zone Special Rules
• Mission Cards
  • Rules Summary: Abilities

Components

• 1 rulebook and 2 rules reference cards
• 38 Character cards
• 30 Starting Character cards (6 per player colour)
• 13 Mission cards
• 10 Zones, numbered from 0 to 9
• 10 Shields
• 24 Ship tokens (6 red, 6 blue, 4 yellow, 4 green, 4 pink)
• 24 Probe tokens (6 red, 6 blue, 4 yellow, 4 green, 4 pink)
• 5 Card stands, each with a differently coloured player symbol
• 1 First player card
• 1 Round marker

The DNA icon printed on each Character or Mission card shows how many victory points (VP) that card is worth.

Game Overview

This page summarizes the general idea of the game and how it is played. Detailed rules are explained in the sections that follow.

1. Each player begins with 6 Character cards and a number of Ships (dependent on player count) in their colour.
2. Players take turns clockwise, starting with the first player. On a turn, the active player plays one of their Character cards, along with one of their Ships, into an unoccupied Zone space.
3. Each Zone contains a Reward card. Once the players have placed all of their Ships, resolve each Zone. The player with the highest total strength in a Zone wins that Zone's Reward card.
4. After all Zones have been resolved, players must discard down to 6 cards.
5. At the end of 4 rounds, the game ends and players score VP from cards in hand and accomplished Missions, plus 1 VP for each discarded card.

Note: the number of Zones in play depends on the number of players.

Game Setup

1. Provide each player with 1 card stand, 6 starting Character cards, 4 Probe tokens and 4 Ships in their chosen colour. Each player places their cards in their stand. Return any unused components to the box.
   • In a 2-player game, players receive 6 Ships and 6 Probes each; players only play as red or blue.
2. Shuffle the Mission cards and select 4 at random. Place these near the centre of the table, face-up. Return the others to the box. In a 5-player game, add a 5th Mission card.
3. Shuffle all Character cards (excluding starting Characters) and place them in a face-down deck near the Mission cards. Whenever it becomes necessary to draw new cards (e.g., placing cards on Reward spaces), players will draw from this deck.
4. Place the Shields within easy reach for everyone.
5. Place the round marker on the "1" space of the first player card. Give that card to the player who has most recently been on a ship.
6. Form Planetship Alpha in the centre of the table. The size of the grid depends on the number of players in the game.

Forming Planetship Alpha

With 2 or 3 players:

1. Randomly place 6 Zones to form a 2x3, face-up grid. Zones should be placed with random orientations.
2. To the left of the grid, set aside 4 face-down Zones as a reserve.
3. At the beginning of rounds 2-4, remove the 2 rightmost Zones from the grid and place them face-down on the leftmost side of the reserve.
4. Then, turn the 2 rightmost Zones from the reserve face-up and add these to the left side of the Zone grid.

With 4 players:

1. Randomly place 8 Zones to form a 2x4, face-up grid. Zones should be placed with random orientations.
2. To the left of the grid, set aside 2 face-down Zones as a reserve.
3. At the beginning of rounds 2-4, remove the 2 rightmost Zones from the grid and place them face-down on the leftmost side of the reserve.
4. Then, turn the 2 rightmost Zones from the reserve face-up and add these to the left side of the Zone grid.

With 5 players:

1. Randomly place 9 Zones to form a 3x3, face-up grid. Zones should be placed with random orientations.
2. To the left of the grid, set aside 1 face-down Zone as a reserve.
3. At the beginning of rounds 2-4, remove the 3 rightmost Zones from the grid, face-down. Randomly choose 1 of these to set aside, then add the other 2 to the reserve.
4. Then, shuffle the 3 Zones from the reserve and turn face-up and add them to the left side of the grid. The set-aside Zone becomes the new reserve.

Zones

Each Zone is composed of 3-4 spaces, 1 Reward space, and various icons.

• Reward space: Reward Character cards are placed in Reward spaces. Reward spaces are always surrounded by a frame. Each Zone has a special rule, as indicated by an icon in the corner of the Reward space (see Zone Special Rules below).
• Space: Each space may hold one (and only one) Character card.
• Face-down icon (crossed-out eye): If a space shows this icon, any Character cards placed here must be placed face-down.
• Roman numerals: Indicate the order in which the spaces in this Zone will be resolved (starting with "I").
• Space Dock icon: See Space Docks below.
• Zone number: The number in the centre of each Zone indicates the order in which the Zones will be resolved (see Round End below).
• Probe icon: When a player places a Character on this space, they may immediately place a Probe token on any space in this Zone or an adjacent one.

Zone Grid

The grid formed by Zone cards is composed of spaces and Reward spaces. The combination of these Zones and spaces has the following rules:

• Adjacent spaces: Adjacent spaces are those that are orthogonal to each other in the grid (excluding Reward spaces and diagonals). It is possible for spaces in different Zones to be adjacent.
• Adjacent Zones: All Zones that are orthogonal (i.e., not diagonal) to each other are considered adjacent. For example, Zone 1 is adjacent to Zones 5, 7, and 9.

In the printed example, Zones 6 and 7 are adjacent. The blue circles indicate spaces where the active player could directly place a Character. The red circles indicate spaces where the active player could place a Character ONLY if they already had another Character in an adjacent space.

Space Docks

The Space Dock icon appears on Reward space frames. The small arrows point to the spaces in which Space Docks are located. If a Space Dock space is unoccupied, the active player may play one of their Characters there. If a space does not have a Space Dock, the active player may only place a Character there if at least one of their Characters is in an adjacent space.

Probes

When a player places a Character on a space with a Probe icon, that player may immediately place one Probe token on any space in this Zone or an adjacent one (including Reward spaces). There are no limits to the number of Probes that can be placed on the same space. During the game, a player may secretly look at any face-down cards on spaces where their Probes are located (including face-down Reward cards). Probe tokens may be placed on unoccupied spaces.

In the printed example, the red player placed a Character on space II of Zone 7. That player may now place one of their Probes in any space or Reward space in Zones 2, 6, or 7.

Character Cards

Each Character card shows:

• Strength: The Character's strength value.
• Race icon: There are 6 races.
• Starting Character icon: Indicates that this is one of a player's starting Characters. There are 5 possible colours.
• Ability icons: Some Characters have more than one ability icon. See Character Abilities below.
• VP: The victory points this Character is worth if it is in your hand at the end of the game (DNA icon).
• Card number.

Start of Round

1. Place Zones as described in Setup (pages 4-5 of the printed rulebook), remembering that Zones are placed according to round and number of players.
2. Place Reward cards in Reward spaces. Draw cards from the top of the Character deck and place them randomly in the appropriate Reward spaces. Reward cards are normally placed face-up, unless the Reward space shows a face-down icon, in which case they are placed face-down.
3. Play begins with the first player and moves clockwise. The player with the first player card begins the round.

Player's Turn

1. On a player's turn, they MUST choose a Character card from their hand and play it, along with a Ship, either face-up on an unoccupied Space Dock space, OR on an unoccupied space adjacent to one of their Characters. If the chosen space has a face-down icon, place the card face-down instead. Play then passes clockwise to the next player, continuing in this manner until all players have placed their Ships.
2. Once all players have played their Ships, the round ends. Go to "Round End."

In the printed example, the red player has placed a Character and Ship in space III of Zone 7. Because this space shows a face-down icon, the chosen Character must be placed face-down. Unlike spaces I and II, this space has no Space Dock. The red player is only allowed to place a card in space III because they have an adjacent Character card.

Round End

A round ends once all players have played their Ship tokens. At the end of each round, all Zones are resolved in numerical order.

#1 - Resolving a Zone

Resolving a Zone includes revealing all cards on that Zone, triggering Character abilities, and giving its Reward card to the player with the greatest strength in that Zone. (For details on each Character ability, see Character Abilities below.)

Zones are resolved in numerical order, according to the number in the centre of each Zone. Start with the lowest-numbered Zone in play.

When resolving a Zone, first turn over any face-down cards in that Zone (including Reward cards). Then, following the Roman numerals starting with "I" and counting upwards, players may resolve any of their Characters' abilities. If a Character has several abilities, the player may use them in any order. Players are never required to use abilities.

#2 - Gaining Reward Cards

After resolving abilities within a Zone, each player adds together the total strength value of all of their Characters present in that Zone. The player with the highest total strength wins that Zone's Reward card and takes it into their hand.

IMPORTANT: Do NOT retrieve any Character cards until all Zones have been resolved.

• Zero-strength Characters still count for strength values. If a Character with zero strength is the only one present in a Zone, whoever played that Character gains that Zone's Reward.
• In case of a tie, the player occupying the lowest-numbered space in the Zone wins the Reward.

In the printed example, the red and green players are tied at 2 strength. Green wins the Reward card because their Character is in the lower-numbered space.

If a Zone has no player cards on it as it is being resolved, place its Reward card face-down on the bottom of the Character deck.

#3 - Retrieve Characters, Ships and Probes

Once ALL Zones have been resolved, players then return their played Character cards, Probes and Ships to their hands.

#4 - Discard Cards

Each player with more than 6 cards in their hand MUST discard cards into a personal, face-down discard pile until they have only 6 cards in hand. Players with 6 cards do nothing.

Then, once everyone has discarded down to 6 cards, all players turn their discard piles face-up in front of their respective card stands. These discard piles can be freely consulted by all players. At the end of the game, each discarded card is worth 1 VP (see Game End below).

#5 - New First Player and Beginning of a New Round

The first player card moves one seat to the left. The new first player advances the round marker to the next space, and a new round begins (see Start of Round above). Skip this step in the 4th round.

Game End and Scoring

The game ends after the 4th round.

Each player then gains VP for:

#1 - Discarded Cards

Each player gains 1 VP for each card in their discard pile.

#2 - Cards in Hand

Each player adds together the total VP value of all cards in their hand. IMPORTANT: do not count discarded cards in this step.

#3 - Accomplished Missions

For each face-up Mission a player achieved, they add that Mission's points to their final score (see Mission Cards below). IMPORTANT: do not count discarded cards in this step.

Winner: The player with the most VP is the winner.

• In the event of a tie, the winner is the tied player who achieved the greatest number of Missions.
• If there is still a tie, the winner is the tied player with the most VP in hand.
• If there is still a tie after that, the tied player farthest away (clockwise) from the current first player is the winner.

In the printed example, the red player scored a total of 29 VP: 7 VP from their 7 discarded cards, 13 VP from the cards in hand, and 9 VP for accomplished Missions (6 VP for the shield Mission, for having the most shields among Character cards in hand, plus 3 VP for the Gr'tratki Mission, because the red and yellow players tied at 2 icons each; see Mission Cards for details on scoring ties).

Character Abilities

Most Character cards have one or more icons that represent their abilities. Abilities are used at the end of a round, when resolving Zones (see Round End above). It is not mandatory to use abilities, and they may be used in any order. Each icon on a Character card may be used once per round.

Hacker

Choose an unshielded enemy Character in this Zone; return that Character and its Ship to its owner's hand.

In the printed example, Zone 6 is being resolved. The red player's Character in space I has the Hacker ability. Because that Character is in space I, it triggers its ability before those of Characters in spaces II and III. The red player returns the Character on space III to the pink player.

Now, the green and the red players have equal strength in this Zone. Red will win, because they occupy the lower-numbered space. Before determining who wins this Zone's Reward, the Character in space II has the chance to trigger its ability.

Scanner

Draw the top card of the Character deck and add it, face-up, to the Zone's Reward space. Then, choose a card from the Reward space to return to the bottom of the Character deck, face-down.

Continuing with the previous example, once space I has been resolved, it is time to resolve space II. The green player decides to use their Character's Scanner ability, and adds the top card of the Character deck to Zone 6's Reward area. Green must then choose one Reward card to place on the bottom of the Character deck. Red will win the card that is left behind, which might not be the one they really wanted.

Tractor Beam

Choose an unshielded Character in an ADJACENT Zone. This Character may belong to any player, may be face-up or face-down (it cannot be a Reward Character), and its Zone may be resolved or unresolved. Place the chosen Character face-up in an UNOCCUPIED space in the Zone that is currently being resolved. If there are no unoccupied spaces in that Zone, this ability cannot be used. The Character that was chosen by the Tractor Beam CANNOT use any abilities this Round.

In the printed example, space I of Zone 2 is being resolved. The yellow player seems to have secured the Reward for this Zone, but they also want to stop the red player from taking the Reward on Zone 4; yellow uses the Tractor Beam ability on red's Character in Zone 4. The red player now has a Character in Zone 2 with 5 strength. Because of the Tractor Beam, this Character cannot trigger abilities. Both players are tied at 5; yellow wins because they have a Character in the Zone's lowest-numbered space. Yellow has successfully prevented red from winning the Reward in Zone 4.

Shield

Choose a Character in this Zone or an adjacent one and place a Shield token on top of it. This Character may belong to any player. A Shielded Character cannot be targeted by Hacker or Tractor Beam abilities.

In the printed example, space I of Zone 2 is being resolved. The yellow player used their Shield ability to place a Shield token on their Character in Zone 8; that Character cannot be Hacked or pulled with a Tractor Beam.

Team Radio

The Character using this ability gains +1 strength for every other friendly Character (belonging to the same player) in this Zone and in adjacent Zones. This effect lasts until the Zone is resolved.

In the printed example, the yellow player is resolving their Character in space II of Zone 2. The yellow player triggers the Team Radio ability, gaining +3 strength: +1 from the friendly Character in Zone 2, and +1 each from the friendly Characters in Zones 0 and 1. The Character's total strength is now 6, and will remain that way until Zone 2 has been resolved.

Teleport

Place this Character face-up into an unoccupied space of an adjacent Zone. After using the Teleport, this Character CANNOT trigger abilities this Round.

In the printed example, Zone 2 is being resolved. The yellow player goes first, and decides to trigger their Character's Teleport before the green player is able to use their Hack ability. Yellow chooses to place their Character in space IV of the adjacent Zone 8, increasing their chances of gaining Zone 8's Reward.

Zone Special Rules

When placing a Character in a Zone, you must follow the general rules explained in Zones, Probes, Space Docks and Player's Turn above. In addition, each Zone has its own special rules that must be followed. Each Zone's special rule is indicated by an icon in the corner of its Reward space, and is listed below by Zone number.

• #0 - Senate: All Characters in this location are immune to Hacker and Tractor Beam abilities.
• #1 - Leisure Area: A Character placed in space III of this Zone has +1 strength while in that space.
• #2 - Hangar: This location has no Stealth icons (the crossed-out eye icon, shown in the printed rulebook as a Stealth icon).
• #3 - Military Area: The first player to place a Character in this Zone may, after placing, rotate the Zone 90º or 180º in any direction.
• #4 - Prison: After resolving all abilities in this Zone, the player with the lowest combined Strength among their Characters in this Zone wins the Reward. Apply tiebreakers as normal.
• #5 - Command Center: Characters in this Zone and in adjacent Zones with AT LEAST one Team Radio icon gain +1 strength during this round, even if the Character is unable to use their abilities.
• #6 - Hibernation Chamber: Probes cannot be placed in any space of this Zone (including the Reward space).
• #7 - Radioactive Area: A player that wins the Reward card in this Zone must remove one of their Characters in this Zone from the game (return it to the game box).
• #8 - Observatory: This Zone has one extra space.
• #9 - Harvests: At the beginning of the round, place an additional Reward card in this Zone. The player that wins this Zone selects one of these Rewards to keep, then places the other on the bottom of the Character deck. (The rules summary on the final page of the printed rulebook states this Zone has 2 Reward cards; the winner must choose one of these Rewards to keep and place the other on the bottom of the Character deck.)

Mission Cards

Each Mission card represents an objective that players are trying to achieve at the end of the game, using the 6 cards in their hands. Points from Mission cards are awarded to the player that has the greatest number of Mission icons in their hand. In case of a tie, Mission VPs are divided evenly among tied players, rounded down. One Character can count for multiple objectives, and if a Character has multiple icons of the same type they all count for Mission scoring.

Important: Only consider cards in hand. Do not count discarded cards when scoring Mission cards.

The printed rulebook shows the 13 Mission cards as a grid of objective icons. Twelve of them are icon-based objectives: the player with the most cards in hand bearing that icon scores the card. The thirteenth objective, shown at the end of the grid, is:

• Strength objective: To achieve this objective you have to have the highest combined Strength among your cards.

Note: the individual icons on the Mission cards are pictorial and are not named in the printed text beyond the examples given in the scoring example above (the shield Mission and the Gr'tratki Mission). Refer to the Mission cards themselves for each objective's icon and printed VP value.

Rules Summary: Abilities

• Hacker: In this Zone return an unshielded Character and its Ship to its owner's hand.
• Scanner: Draw the top card of the Character deck and add it to the Zone's Reward space, face-up. Then, choose a card from the Reward space to be placed on the bottom of the Character deck, face-down.
• Tractor Beam: Choose an unshielded Character in an ADJACENT Zone. Place the chosen Character face-up, into an UNOCCUPIED space in the Zone that is currently being resolved.
• Shield: Place a shield on a Character in this Zone or adjacent. Shielded Characters cannot be targeted by Hacker or Tractor Beam abilities.
• Team Radio: The Character gains +1 strength for each other friendly Character in this Zone and any adjacent Zones.
• Teleport: Place this Character, face-up, into an unoccupied space of an adjacent Zone.