Ahead in the Clouds
Ahead in the Clouds Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Quick Reference
Each player has 3 actions and can do any of the following. You can repeat actions.
- ACTIVATE a building
- DISCONNECT a building
- CLOUDBURST
At any point during your turn, you may do the following as many times as you would like, at no action point cost:
- CONNECT a building
- FULFILL CONTRACTS
Components and Setup
NOTE: You will need to provide 8 coins. One will be used to track the progress of the game, while the rest are used to track completed contracts.
Each player chooses a color of Habitat (big red meeple or big blue meeple) and takes four different resource tracking cards, and places each in front of them with "0" at the bottom.
The Dust Reclaimer, Vapor Condenser, and HydroSplitter are placed in the center of the table, along with the Magic Portal and Bank buildings (with randomly assigned sides face up). These are not connected at the start of the game.
The Blimp card and Contract card are placed to the side, with a coin on the 1 space on the Blimp card and the remaining coins will stay next to the Contract card.
The player who most recently traveled above the clouds goes first chooses to play as heads or tails. The first player takes 2 actions on their first turn instead of 3.
Game Play
Each player has 3 actions and can do any of the following. You can repeat actions.
- ACTIVATE a building
- DISCONNECT a building
- CLOUDBURST
Activate
ACTIVATE a building that you are connected to, by taking or converting the resources shown on the card. You will track this with your resource cards.
If you travel through your opponent's habitat in order to reach a building, your opponent may take the resource shown on their card.
If any player activates a building/habitat with the swirl symbol, that building is flipped over to its opposite side.
Resources are limited to 7 max each. If you cannot store all generated resources, you cannot take the action that provides them.
Disconnect
DISCONNECT - take any one building and detach it from your habitat.
NOTE: If this building is also attached to your opponent's habitat, their connection stays. You may also choose to detach your own building, keeping any buildings that are connected to you alone, still connected to you.
Cloudburst
CLOUDBURST - break the entire network apart then choose up to one swirl card to flip over to its other side.
Free Actions
At any point during your turn, you may do the following as many times as you would like, at no action point cost:
- CONNECT a building
- FULFILL CONTRACTS
Connect
CONNECT buildings to any open spaces on their habitat. If they have to move their habitat to do this, they will bring any connected buildings with them. You may only connect to your habitat, and may not affect your opponent's connections this way.
NOTE: Buildings must only connect to habitats, never directly to each other.
Fulfill Contracts
FULFILL CONTRACTS - If a player has the resources required to fulfill a contract, they may fulfill it. When a contract is fulfilled, the player will reduce their resources the amount required by the contract and then place a coin over the contract with their side (heads or tails) facing up. This cannot be fulfilled again.
End of Round
At the end of rounds 3, 5, and 8 a Blimp arrives and must be paid 1, 2 or 3 resources (based on the Blimp location) by both players. Round 3 is one, Round 5 is two, and Round 8 is three. These can be any resources, and need not be all of the same kind. If a player cannot pay the blimp, they must give back one of their contracts of their choice.
End of Game
At the end of the 8th round, after paying the blimp, players compare completed contracts. If one player has completed more than the other, they have won. If the number of contracts is equal, players total up their remaining resources, and the one who has more is declared the winner.
Building Detail
- Habitat - Acts as a bridge between buildings and gives the owner a resource when crossed by the other player. Side 1 - Water. Side 2 - Stone.
- Vapor Condenser - Produces 2 Water.
- Dust Reclaimer - Produces 2 Stone.
- HydroSplitter - Converts 3 Water to 2 Hydrogen and 1 Oxygen.
- Bank - Side 1: Converts 2 Water and 1 Stone to 3 Oxygen.
- Bank - Side 2: Converts 1 Stone and 1 Hydrogen to 1 Water and 1 Oxygen, or vice versa.
- Magic Portal - Side 1: Converts 4 of any same resource (temporarily marked by an S for same) into 2 of any one type (temporarily marked by an A for any) OR 1 of a type and 1 of another type.
- Magic Portal - Side 2: Converts 2 of any same resource into 1 of any type.