ALIEN: Fate of the Nostromo
ALIEN: Fate of the Nostromo Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 Nostromo Game Board
- 5 Player Reference Cards
- 5 Crew Placards
- 5 Crew Figures
- 1 Alien Figure
- 1 Morale Marker (insert into white base)
- 21 Encounter Cards
- 10 Objective Cards
- 5 Final Mission Cards
- 20 Scrap Tokens
- 12 Item Tokens
- 6 Coolant Canister Tokens
- 13 Concealed Tokens
- 1 Self-Destruct Track
- 4 Countdown Tokens
- 1 Ash Standee (insert into blue base)
Setup
- Unfold the Nostromo game board and familiarize yourself with the locations on the Nostromo. Instructions and components will reference these locations as you set up and play the game.
- Place the Morale Marker on the board's Crew Morale Track. a. For one to three players, place the Morale Marker on indicated space. b. For four or five players, place the Morale Marker on indicated space.
- Place two Scrap tokens at each of the following locations: Garage, MU-TH-UR, Medbay and Maintenance. Create a Scrap pile next to the game board with all remaining Scrap tokens.
- Shuffle the Concealed tokens and place one Concealed token facedown at each of the following locations: Garage, Workshop and Maintenance. Place the remaining Concealed tokens facedown in a stack next to the game board.
- Place one Coolant Canister token at each of the following locations: Workshop, Garage, Maintenance, Equipment Storage, MU-TH-UR and Hyper Sleep.
- Lay out the Flashlight, Motion Tracker, Electric Prod, Incinerator, Grapple Gun and Cat Carrier Items to the side of the board.
- Shuffle the Objective cards and reveal one card for each player plus one additional card and place them at the top of the board. Return the remaining Objective cards to the box.
- If you are playing solo, remove the Final Mission cards "Cut Off Every Bulkhead and Every Vent" and "Blow It Out into Space."
- Shuffle the Final Mission cards and draw one card at random. Place it facedown next to the revealed Objective cards. Return the remaining Final Mission cards to the box.
- Shuffle the Encounter cards and place deck next to the board.
- Place the Alien in the Nest.
- ! FOR A MORE CHALLENGING GAME: place Ash in the Medbay (see I Can't Lie About Your Chances for instructions).
- Each player chooses a Crew placard and corresponding figure. Each player takes a Player Reference card. Each crew member has different abilities. All crew members start the game in the Galley.
- The player who most recently had a cat hiss at them goes first. Otherwise, the oldest player goes first.
How to Play
Alien: Fate of the Nostromo is a cooperative game in which all players win or lose together.
Complete all the starting objectives to reveal the crew's Final Mission. You must meet all the requirements of the revealed Final Mission to win the game!
The fate of the Nostromo and its crew is in your hands.
The players lose immediately if one of the following events occurs:
- Crew Morale Failure: As the crew encounters the Alien and other situations, they gain and lose Morale. If the Crew Morale Track reaches 0, the crew have run out of hope and cease to function.
- Self-Destruct: The Nostromo's Self-Destruct sequence may be activated by a Final Mission card. If the Self-Destruct track reaches four counters, the ship is immediately destroyed.
Starting Objectives
Each Objective card has a task that must be completed to finish that objective. After the crew succeeds in completing the task(s) listed on the Objective card, flip that card facedown. Once all your starting objectives are facedown, reveal the Final Mission card.
Example: "We'll Take Our Chances in the Shuttle" — the icon matches the destination on the board (in this case, the Docking Bay), and the task is: Drop 2 Coolant Canisters in the Docking Bay.
On Your Turn
Each turn has two phases, performed in this order:
Crew Action Phase
On your turn, you may perform up to the number of actions indicated on your Crew placard. See Crew Action Phase below.
Encounter Phase
Draw one Encounter card from the top of the Encounter deck and resolve all parts of the card. See Encounter Phase below.
After completing both phases, play proceeds clockwise, beginning with the next player's Crew Action Phase.
Crew Action Phase
Take a number of actions up to the number indicated on your Crew placard. You may take fewer than indicated if you wish. Actions may be taken in any order and the same action can be performed multiple times in a turn. Actions include:
Move
Move your crew member into an adjacent corridor or an adjacent room, or use ladders to travel to different levels of the Nostromo. As you move, you may encounter the Alien or Concealed tokens. To resolve these encounters, see Alien Encounter and Encountering a Concealed Token.
Pick Up/Drop
You may use one action to pick up or drop any number of Scrap tokens, or to pick up or drop one Item. When picking up Scrap tokens or Items, place them in your Inventory. You may carry up to three Items, one Coolant Canister, and any number of Scrap tokens. When dropping Scrap tokens or Items, place them in the room or corridor you currently occupy.
Use an Item
Some items require an action to use them: Incinerator, Grapple Gun, Motion Tracker, Coolant Canister.
Other items do not require an action to use. See Items. These are: Flashlight, Cat Carrier, Electric Prod.
Special Action
Some crew members have special actions. Special actions count as one of the total number of actions for your turn and can be taken multiple times unless specified otherwise.
Craft
To craft an Item, discard Scrap tokens equal to the Item's cost from your inventory into the Scrap pile, then take the Item and place it faceup in your inventory. (Example: 2 scrap for the Flashlight.)
Trade
All Crew members in the same room or corridor may give or take any number of Scrap tokens or Items to or from each other.
Crew Action Phase Example
On Ripley's turn, she may take 4 actions, as noted on her Crew placard. After some discussion with the other players, the player decides to do the following during the Crew Action Phase:
Action 1: PICK UP four Scrap tokens from the Docking Bay and place them in their inventory.
Action 2: SPECIAL ABILITY to move Lambert from the adjacent corridor to the Bridge to help advance one of the crew's objectives.
Action 3: CRAFT the Grapple Gun by discarding three Scrap tokens and placing the Grapple Gun in their inventory. The Grapple Gun shows 2 uses remaining.
Action 4: The Alien is lurking in the corridor directly adjacent to the Docking Bay. USE the Grapple Gun to move the Alien up to three spaces. The Grapple Gun is flipped to show 1 use remaining.
Ripley has taken all 4 actions. Play proceeds to the Encounter Phase.
Encounter Phase
At the end of each crew member's Crew Action Phase, they draw and reveal an Encounter card from the Encounter deck. Resolve the Encounter card from top to bottom. After resolving the Encounter card, place it faceup in the discard pile next to the Encounter deck. Some Encounter cards have a certain type, other cards may reference these types to be shuffled back into the Encounter deck.
Action
Perform any action as stated on the card.
Place Tokens
If the Encounter card instructs you to place tokens, do the following: First, if there is no Concealed token already in the area, place a Concealed token from the stack in that space facedown. Then place any Scrap tokens from the Scrap pile in the specified area.
Sometimes an Encounter card will instruct you to place a Concealed token in a space a crew member is currently located. If this happens, place the Concealed token without revealing it. Crew members may leave the room without revealing the token, but if any crew member enters the room, the Concealed token must be revealed. See Encountering a Concealed Token below.
! Only one Concealed token can be in a room at any time. If an effect instructs you to place another Concealed token in that room, do not place one.
Alien Encounter
Move the Alien the number of spaces indicated on the card. The Alien must move toward the nearest crew member along the shortest path. The Alien can use ladders just like the Crew. If multiple crew members are at the same distance from the Alien, the crew decides which one the Alien moves towards. If the Alien encounters a crew member, the Alien stops moving.
When the Alien encounters crew members, they lose Morale equal to the Morale listed on the Encounter card, and the Crew Morale Marker moves down a corresponding number of places. The crew members who encountered the Alien must immediately flee by moving three spaces away in a direction of their choice.
When fleeing, a crew member may be forced to move into a room that contains a Concealed token. In this situation, the fleeing crew member stops, then reveals the Concealed token and resolves it. See Encountering a Concealed Token below. Be careful! The Alien may continue to stalk the crew member…
Sometimes it may be impossible to avoid encountering the Alien during a player's Crew Action Phase. If a crew member encounters the Alien in the Crew Action Phase, Morale decreases by 2, and the affected crew member flees three spaces. The current player's Crew Action Phase is now over.
Encountering a Concealed Token
When a crew member moves into a room that contains a Concealed token, first check to see if any objectives have been completed. Then reveal the Concealed token.
Safe
Nothing happens. Shuffle this token back into the stack.
Surprise Attack
Move Alien into the room immediately. Decrease Morale by the amount indicated on the Concealed token. Any affected crew members must flee three spaces and the current player's Crew Action Phase immediately ends. Skip the Encounter Phase when a turn ends this way. Shuffle this token back into the stack.
Jonesy
Jonesy immediately hisses at the crew member, decreasing Morale by 1. Shuffle this token back into the stack.
Tracking Morale
Various effects within the game cause the crew to lose Morale. If Morale is lost, move the tracker down. If the crew's Morale runs out, they are unable to continue, and the game is immediately lost.
Completing Objectives
Most objectives require one or more items to be brought to a location. To complete an objective, a crew member needs to have the Item in their inventory and move to that location. They do not have to drop the Item or use the Item at that location.
Other objectives may require you to drop Items in a location. After the Item is dropped and the objective is completed, you may pick up that Item again.
Items
Items are important for completing objectives and keeping the Alien at bay. Each Item has a Scrap cost, which indicates how many Scrap tokens must be discarded for a crew member to craft the Item. Items specify whether they cost an action to use or can be activated in the case of an Alien Encounter. Items with a use limit are discarded after that many uses. When an Item is discarded, place it with the other Items on the side of the board. It may be crafted again.
Scrap Tokens
Scrap tokens are used by crew members to craft Items and to fulfill some objectives. Keep Scrap next to your placard when you acquire it. Managing Scrap as a resource will be very important throughout the game. Additional Scrap tokens are generated from Encounter cards.
Coolant Canisters
Crew members may only carry one Coolant Canister at a time. When you pick up a Coolant Canister, place it on the designated space on your Placard. Coolant Canisters may be discarded and converted into two Scrap tokens at the Workshop as an action. Remember some objectives require Coolant Canisters, so don't convert them all to Scrap before completing those objectives.
Flashlight
Scrap Cost: 2 | Use Limit: Unlimited Whenever you lose Morale, reduce the amount lost by 1. May be used when it's not your turn. (Does not stack with other Flashlights) No action required
Motion Tracker
Scrap Cost: 2 | Use Limit: Unlimited ACTION: Reveal a Concealed token in a room up to two spaces away. If it's the Alien, place the Alien figure in the room, and you gain an action. Shuffle the revealed token into the Concealed token stack.
Grapple Gun
Scrap Cost: 3 | Use Limit: 2 ACTION: If the Alien is within three spaces of you, move the Alien up to three spaces in any direction.
Incinerator
Scrap Cost: 4 | Use Limit: 2 ACTION: If the Alien is within three spaces of you, send it to the Nest. If you do, don't draw an encounter card this turn.
Electric Prod
Scrap Cost: 3 | Use Limit: 2 Reduce the amount of Morale lost when encountering the Alien by 2. No Action Required. May be used when it's not your turn.
Cat Carrier
Scrap Cost: 1 If you reveal Jonesy, capture Jonesy underneath the Cat Carrier in your inventory. No Action Required
Final Mission
Once all starting objectives are completed, the Final Mission is revealed. Each Final Mission has specific requirements that must all be achieved simultaneously for the crew to succeed. If the crew succeed at completing all Final Mission objectives, they win the game.
Some Final Missions may introduce conditions that must be avoided, or the crew will immediately lose the game.
Example: The crew members have completed all objectives and have revealed their Final Mission, Escape on the Narcissus. Set up for the Final Mission by placing all discarded Coolant Canisters into Equipment Storage. To complete this Final Mission, the crew must drop one Coolant Canister for each crew member in the Docking Bay; have a Cat Carrier and Incinerator in inventory; and all crew members must assemble in the Docking Bay to win.
Self-Destruct Track
Some Final Missions will initiate the Nostromo's self-destruct sequence. The crew member whose turn it is places the Self-Destruct Track in front of their Crew placard with four Countdown tokens on it. At the beginning of each of their subsequent turns, remove a Countdown token. If you can't remove a token, the Nostromo is destroyed and the crew lost.
I Can't Lie About Your Chances
For a more challenging game, you can introduce Ash. Ash starts the game in the Medbay.
Whenever Ash moves, he uses the shortest route to move toward the nearest room or hallway with any Scrap tokens or a crew member — whichever is closest. If there is a tie, the crew decides which one Ash moves towards.
If Ash encounters a space with Scrap, he will stop and remove all Scrap. Any Scrap tokens removed by Ash will be placed into the Scrap pile.
If Ash encounters any crew, he will stop, and each crew member sharing space with Ash must discard one Scrap token or decrease Morale by 1. Lose 1 Morale for each crew member unable to discard a Scrap token.
If a Crew member stays in the same space as Ash, keeping him under observation, Ash is prevented from moving. The crew member will not need to discard Scrap or lose Morale.
If you reveal the Final Mission You Have My Sympathies, the rules for Ash change. He will no longer move toward Scrap in a room, or stop and remove it when he moves onto a space that contains Scrap. He will not cause players to lose Scrap when he encounters them during this Final Mission.
Note: Track damage to Ash by placing cannisters on the 3 markers.
"You Have My Sympathies" setup: Place all discarded Coolant Canisters into Equipment Storage. Place Ash at MU-TH-UR. Ash moves towards Crew members when he moves.
Objective: Defeat Ash by dealing 3 damage to him. Whenever Ash encounters a Crew member, that Crew member must discard a Coolant Canister to deal 1 damage to Ash and move him 3 spaces of their choice. Otherwise, you lose 3 morale and flee 3 spaces. When Ash is defeated, remove Ash from the ship.
Victory: Use an Incinerator on the Alien after Ash has been defeated.
Credits
Game Design: Scott Rogers
Game Development: Steve Warner
Editing: Kristel Proctor, Cassidy Werner
Playtesters: Allisa Allfie, Brenda Rogers, Chris Sherman, Clementine Holter-Mehren, Evelyn Rogers, Jack Rogers, Jayden Mortimore, Jazlynn Mortimore, Johann Holter-Mehren, Skyler Allfie, Ted Warner
Special thanks to Marlin Deckert
No cats (or Aliens) were hurt in the making of this game.
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