Age of Wonders: Planetfall Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Contents
• Game Overview
• Setup
  • Commanders' Stats
• Gameplay
  • 1. Discovery
  • 2. Income
  • 3. Exploration: Part I
  • 4. Exploration: Part II
  • 5. Migration
• Action Types
  • 1. Fighting a Unit
  • 2. Claiming a Landmark
  • 3. Studying a Technology
  • 4. Searching for a Pickup
  • 5. Running Operations
• Turn Example
• Game End
• Credits

Contents

• 1 Operations board
• 6 double-sided Commander sheets
• 8 Goal sheets
• 1 Restrain token
• 6 "+50 Empire points / +100 Empire points" tokens
• 98 Planet cards (7 Planet decks, 14 cards each)
• 28 Unit cards
• 21 Technology cards
• 21 Landmark cards
• 28 Pickup cards
• 30 wooden pieces (1 ship and 4 markers of 6 different colors)

Game Overview

The game is played over 7 rounds, and a new planet is explored each round. Each player may conduct 2 explorations on every planet. The players will gain Empire points by defeating Units, studying Technology, claiming Landmarks, and running Operations on those planets. At the end of the game, players will score Empire points for meeting certain conditions listed on a particular Goal sheet. Whoever scores the most Empire points wins.

Setup

1. Place the Operations board in the middle of the table. Leave some space beside it for the rows of Planet cards.

2. Shuffle the Goal sheets and choose one of them randomly. Place it next to the Operations board, face up. There are three end-game conditions for scoring Empire points listed at the bottom of the sheet.

3. Sort the Planet cards into 7 decks according to the numbers on their backs. Shuffle each deck individually and then place them in a row above the Operations board in ascending order.

4. Starting from the youngest player and going clockwise, each player picks one Commander sheet. You may also distribute them randomly if you wish.

   There is a unique ability on each side of the Commander sheets, and the starting stat values are different, too. For your first game, we recommend playing with "A" sides of the Commander sheets. Later on, each player may choose either side of their sheet, regardless of the other players' choices.

5. Each player picks a color and takes 1 ship and 4 markers of their chosen color. One of the markers should be placed on "0" of the Empire points track, and the other three markers are to be placed on the starting spaces (the underlined numbers) of the Experience, Strength, and Energy tracks of their Commander sheets.

   Note: If you want to delve deeper into the universe of Age of Wonders: Planetfall, each player should pick the ship depicted in the upper-right hand corner of their Commander sheet — that's their faction's ship. In this case, each player takes 4 markers of the color of their ship. Neither the shape nor the color of the wooden pieces affects the gameplay.

6. See your Initiative in the square to the right of your faction's name. The lower your Initiative, the earlier you take your turn in the first round. Place the players' ships on the turn order track on the Operations board so that the lowest Initiative ship is on "1," and all of the other ships are lined up in ascending order of their Initiative.

Commanders' Stats

Experience helps Commanders during battles with neutral units. This stat cannot be decreased.

Strength is also used while battling neutral units, but its points are spent.

Energy allows studying technologies and claiming landmarks. Its points are also spent.

Empire points will determine the winner at the end of the game.

The highest possible experience, strength, and energy levels are determined by the rightmost slots of the corresponding tracks. There is no limit for Empire points: once you get to 50 Empire points, take a "+50 Empire points" token from the supply, and if you get to 100 Empire points, flip your token to the "+100 Empire points" side.

Gameplay

The game is played over 7 rounds, and every round, there is a new planet to explore. Each round consists of 5 phases:

1. Discovery
2. Income
3. Exploration: Part I
4. Exploration: Part II
5. Migration

Phase 5 is not resolved at the end of the 7th round — proceed with scoring instead.

1. Discovery

Take the deck of Planet cards with the current round number on their backs. Depending on the number of players, reveal the number of cards listed in the chart below and place them in three rows to the left of the Operations board. Set the leftover cards aside as the current Planet deck.

Number of cards revealed:

	2–3 players	4–6 players
Upper row (Level I)	4	5
Middle row (Level II)	3	4
Lower row (Level III)	2	3
Leftover cards	5	2

2. Income

If there is no Aron Ardelli (side "B") in the game, skip the Income Phase during your first round. If he is in the game, resolve his ability only.

Resolve the following:

1. Gain income for every annexed sector, if you have any (see "Annexing a Sector" below).
2. Resolve all Technology card effects that are resolved during the Income Phase (if you have any).
3. Resolve the ability of your Commander if it is resolved during the Income Phase.

3. Exploration: Part I

Starting from the topmost ship on the "1" slot of the turn order track to the bottom, each player takes their turn: they choose one of the available Planet cards (or an Operation slot in the Operations board) and place their ship on it.

When all players have taken their turns, they resolve the corresponding actions (fighting Units, studying Technology, claiming Landmarks, searching for Pickups, and running Operations). Those actions are resolved in order of the players' ships: from left to right and from top to bottom: all Level I cards and slots are resolved first, then Level II, and finally Level III.

When you resolve an action from a Planet card or an Operation slot, remove your ship from it and place your ship on the topmost unoccupied slot of the turn order track. Thus, the players who occupied Level I cards will take their turn before those who occupied Level II or III cards in the next phase.

Then, claim your chosen Planet card by placing it in front of you, face up. Resolve all effects of your previously claimed cards and Commander sheet that are to be resolved when claiming a card (if any). If you choose an Operation slot, you don't get a card.

Note: You may group your cards according to their types and overlap them one behind the other, so the cards' critical information is still seen.

Skipping a turn. On rare occasions, there might be no available cards or Operation slots for you. In that case, you skip a turn and place your ship on the topmost empty slot of the turn order track. Exception: When played with side "B," Aron Ardelli's ship is always placed on the last slot.

You may only choose a Planet card or an Operation slot that hasn't been occupied yet (meaning that there is no ship on it). You may not choose a card you cannot pay for: you must have enough Strength and Energy points (see "Action Types" below). Pickup cards and Operation slots don't have a cost, so they may be chosen at any time when they are not occupied.

4. Exploration: Part II

Repeat the previous phase with the new turn order. Each player takes a turn according to their position in the turn order track by placing their ship on an available remaining Planet card or Operation slot. Then all players resolve their actions in the order of their ships within the rows, as described in the previous phase.

Important: You won't be refilling the rows of Planet cards after Exploration: Part I, so there will be fewer cards to choose from during Exploration: Part II.

5. Migration

Put all of the unclaimed cards of the current planet back in the box. Operation slots stay in the game until the end.

Action Types

When resolving an action, you must refer to the level that the card is on when you're about to claim it. Its level determines either the cost to be paid to claim the card or the reward for it:

• Cost — Unit, Landmark, and Technology cards.
• Reward — Pickup cards and Operation slots.

Example: When on Level I or II, a Pickup card brings 5 Energy, but if it's on Level III, the card brings 6 instead.

There are 5 types of actions, which are determined by the types of cards the players choose:

1. Fighting a Unit
2. Claiming a Landmark
3. Studying a Technology
4. Searching for a Pickup
5. Running Operations

1. Fighting a Unit

You fight the hostile inhabitants of an explored planet.

You may claim a Unit card in two ways: by defeating or recruiting it (if there is a Diplomacy effect).

A Unit card shows the card type (Unit), the planet number, the cost (by level), an optional Diplomacy effect, and the reward.

In order to defeat a Unit, you must fulfill two conditions:

1. Spend as many Strength points as listed on the left part of the Unit card (the cost depends on the card's level);
2. Compare your Commander's Experience with the Unit's Experience listed on the left part of the card (which also depends on the card's level). If you have fewer Experience points than listed on the card, you must spend 1 Strength for each point you're short by.

Reminder: Unlike strength and energy, experience is never spent.

Once you defeat a Unit, you immediately gain the number of Experience, Strength, and Energy (if present) listed at the bottom of the card.

Diplomacy. Some units may be recruited, so there is no need to fight them. In that case, there will be a Diplomacy effect with the Diplomacy symbol. In order to recruit such a Unit, you must fulfill two conditions:

1. Your Commander's Experience cannot be lower than the required Unit's Experience (depending on the card's level). In this case, the shortage of Experience can't be compensated for by Strength;
2. Spend the listed number of Energy points instead of the listed number of Strength points.

Once you recruit a Unit, you immediately gain the listed number of Experience, Strength, and Energy (if present); in this case, you don't gain any Experience from recruiting.

Example: Jane has 5 Strength and 1 Experience. A Unit card is on Level III. Therefore, Jane would need 3 Strength to defeat it (a cost of 2 Strength and 1 extra Strength for being short of 1 Experience). Jane gains Experience, Strength, and Energy as a reward. Jane has 2 Strength left, which she'll be able to spend during her upcoming fights.

2. Claiming a Landmark

You discover a functional structure, a remnant of the former Empire.

You may claim a Landmark card in two ways: by conquering it peacefully or forcefully (if there is an Aggression effect).

A Landmark card shows the card type (Landmark), the planet number, the cost (by level), an optional Aggression effect, the reward, and — in the top-right corner — the numbers of all upcoming planets that carry a Landmark of the same name and icon.

In order to claim a Landmark peacefully, you must spend as many Energy points as listed on the left part of the Landmark card (the cost depends on the card's level).

Once you claim a Landmark (peacefully or forcefully), you immediately gain the number of Strength and Energy (if present) listed at the bottom of the card.

All Landmarks of the same name are marked with the same icon, and they may be present on different planets. The numbers of all upcoming planets with the Landmarks of the same name and icon are listed in the top-right hand corner under the number of the current planet.

Two cards with Landmarks of the same name and icon make a pair. Once you get a pair, immediately gain an extra reward listed on the bottom-right hand part of each of those two cards. If you get a third Landmark card with the same name and icon, it won't get attached to the previous two but will bring additional reward if paired with a fourth card.

Example: Peter has 6 Energy. He spends 4 Energy to claim a Landmark from Level II (he has 2 Energy left). Peter immediately gains Strength and Energy as a reward. It's his second card of that Landmark, so he also gains an additional reward for the pair.

Aggression. Some Landmarks can also be claimed forcefully. In that case, there will be an Aggression effect with the Aggression symbol. In order to claim such a Landmark, you may spend the listed number of Strength points instead of the listed number of Energy points.

3. Studying a Technology

You rediscover a technology that was lost after The Collapse.

In order to study a new Technology and claim its card, you must spend the number of Energy points listed on the left part of the card (the cost depends on the card's level).

A Technology card shows the card type (Technology), the planet number, the cost (by level), the reward, and a Technology effect.

Once a technology is studied, you immediately gain the number of Strength and/or Energy (if present) listed at the bottom of the card and a special Technology effect. Planets 1–4 provide a permanent effect that changes the game rules for its owner starting from the next phase of the round. Planets 5–7 provide a condition under which Empire points will be scored at the end of the game.

Example: John has 4 Energy. He spends 3 Energy to study a Technology from Level I (he has 1 Energy left). John immediately gains Strength and Energy. Starting from the next phase, he will also be gaining more energy when claiming Pickup cards.

4. Searching for a Pickup

You encounter a hidden supply of a long-lost civilization.

A Pickup card shows the card type (Pickup), the planet number, and the reward (by level). Some Pickup cards also show an additional reward and/or an area for annexing a sector at the bottom.

Once you claim a Pickup card, choose one of the following:

1. Immediately gain as many Energy points as listed on the left part of the Pickup card (the reward depends on the card's level) and 1 additional reward (if listed on the bottom part of the card).

   OR

2. Annex a sector (if there is a pair of annexing symbols on the bottom part of the card).

Annexing a Sector. At the bottom of some Pickup cards, there is an area with income symbols. Instead of immediately gaining points, you may choose to place the card upside-down so that the area is at the top. During each Income Phase, every annexed sector brings you the number of points listed between the income symbols. Thus, instead of depleting the sector's resources, you may conquer it and produce energy there, having a steady income.

Important: In all of the effects, a Pickup symbol refers to a Pickup card placed with its name up. An annexed-sector symbol refers to the player's annexed sectors (the cards placed with the income symbols up). A symbol combining both means that the card's orientation doesn't matter.

5. Running Operations

You're getting ready for the upcoming Exploration.

Instead of choosing a Planet card to claim, you may choose to run Operations by placing your ship on one of the Operation slots on the Operations board. Just like with the Planet cards, an Operation slot may be occupied by one ship only.

When running Operations, you gain the number of Operation points listed in the slot, which depends on the level of the chosen slot. You need to immediately trade the gained points for gaining Experience, Strength, or Energy points in any combination (all leftover Operation points are lost):

• 1 Operation point may be traded for 1 Experience. The maximum number of Experience that can be traded for equals the number of the current planet.
• 1 Operation point may be traded for 1 Strength.
• 2 Operation points may be traded for 1 Energy.

Example: It's the third round, and Jane chooses to run Operations on level II. She gains 6 Operation points: she trades 3 for 3 Experience (the highest possible number of Experience on this planet), 1 for 1 Strength, and 2 for 1 Energy.

Turn Example

Peter is playing first. His ship is on the first slot of the turn order track, so he takes his turn first. Peter decides to go for the only Technology card on the table. John goes next: he chooses an Operations action on Level I. Jane goes last and chooses a Pickup card on Level I.

Everyone has taken a turn, and the chosen cards and slots get resolved in order from left to right and top to bottom. Jane resolves her card first. She claims the Pickup card, but instead of gaining energy immediately, she decides to annex a sector, so she rotates the card and places it upside down with the income symbols up. John is next, and he trades his Operation points for Experience, Strength, and Energy points. Since it is an action from the Operations board, he doesn't get a card. Peter goes last. He pays the cost of the chosen Technology card and places it in front of himself.

After resolving their Action, the player moves their ship to the topmost empty slot of the turn order track. In this case, during the next phase, Jane will go first, then John, and, finally, Peter.

Game End

The game ends right after the fourth phase of the seventh round, and the players score Empire points for:

1. Meeting the conditions from the current Goal sheet;
2. Meeting the conditions of certain Technology cards (claimed on the planets 5–7).

The player with the most Empire points is declared the winner. In case of a tie, the tied player with the ship located higher on the turn order track is the winner.

Note: During the game, you may keep track of the Empire points gained for running Operations and resolving some Commanders' abilities that bring Empire points. All of the other Empire points (for the cards and the Goal sheet) can be easily scored at the end of the game.

Credits

Game Designer: Stepan Opalev. Game Development: Petr Tyulenev, Pavel Iliin, Ekaterina Reyes. Published by Hobby World (Russian edition) and Arcane Wonders (English edition), under license from Paradox Interactive / Triumph Studios. Rules version 1.1.