The Manhattan Project: Chain Reaction
The Manhattan Project: Chain Reaction Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
The game contains 108 cards, including:
- 31 double-sided Resource cards in different denominations
- 4 Landmark cards
- 4 Bomb Loaded cards
- 13 Bomb Plan cards
- 55 card Industry deck, made up of 20 Mines, 8 Factories, 14 Enrichment Plants, 7 Universities, and 2 each of the three Special Action cards (Design Bomb, Espionage, Double Agent)
- 1 Start Player card (separate from the Industry deck)
Setup
Separate the Resource cards (showing cubes of Yellowcake on one side and Uranium ingots on the other) into piles of each Yellowcake value (ones, threes, fives). Place them to one side of the play area with the yellow cube side up. Place the Landmark cards in a row, face up, near the resource stacks. Place the Bomb Loaded cards in a stack next to the Landmarks. Shuffle the Bomb Plan cards and deal one for each player in a row below the Landmarks, face up, leaving the rest face down as a draw pile. Shuffle the Industry deck, deal five cards face down to each player, and place the rest, face down, as a draw pile near the Landmarks. Leave space for a discard stack. You may look at your cards and begin to plan out your turn.
Decide who will go first and give that person the Start Player card. Each player will get the same number of turns, so the player to the Start Player's right will take the last turn.
Play Overview
On your turn, you will play your cards in linked series, each card after the first activated by previous cards. You are attempting to complete one or more of the available Bomb Plans, to generate resources for future use, or to interfere with your opponents' hands. You may play as many cards as you are able.
At the end of your turn, discard all Industry cards played. Keep all Yellowcake, Uranium, Bomb Plans and Bomb Loaded cards you have built face up in front of you for all to see. You may discard as many cards as you wish from your hand. Draw from the Industry deck so that you have five cards in your hand, shuffling and reusing the discard pile as necessary. Replenish the Bomb Plan row if someone built a bomb. The player to your left now takes a turn, and play continues.
Winning
Each Bomb Plan is worth a number of points, as shown on the bottom of the card. When one player has built at least 10 points (set the goal higher if you desire a longer game) of Bombs and Bomb Loaded cards (combined), the game will end at the end of that round, when the player to the starting player's right has had their last turn.
Your final score is equal to all Bomb Plan plus Bomb Loaded cards you played, plus ½ (rounded down) the total Uranium left in your supply. The player with the most points is the winner! If there is a tie, the player with the most Yellowcake wins.
How the Cards Work
Most Industry cards have an activation cost, shown on the top edge; an output, shown on the bottom edge; and personnel they can provide without activation, shown on the left edge. Usually cards may be used in one of two ways: as personnel to activate other cards (played sideways), or as building/special actions, which, when activated, generate more personnel or resources, or allow special actions. Resources and personnel generated may immediately be used to activate other cards. Bomb Plan and Bomb Loaded cards have an activation cost, and show the number of points they give when built.
There are three types of personnel: Laborers, Scientists, and Engineers. There are two types of resources: Yellowcake and Uranium ingots.
The icons on the long left side of the card represent the personnel that card can provide. The icons on the top edge show the personnel and resources needed to activate the card. Some cards may be activated by any type of personnel. The icons on the bottom edge of the card show the output of or action allowed by the card, or in some cases, the point value of the card.
Diagram of a typical card (Enrichment Plant):
- Cost to activate: Requires a Scientist and 3 Yellowcake to activate.
- Personnel available: OR can provide 2 Engineers.
- Output: Provides two Uranium when activated.
You may use a card as a building/special action or for its personnel, but never for both.
To play a card for its personnel, place it in front of you with the long edge upwards (sideways). The personnel it provides may then be used to activate one card which requires some or all of those personnel. Multiple cards may be played to provide enough personnel to activate a complicated building/plan, but all personnel from these cards are used up by activating that single building/plan, even if they are not required. Leftover personnel from the side of a card may not be used to activate other cards later during a turn.
Place the building/plan being activated on top of the first card played. If the activated card also requires resources, return the required amount from your supply to the main supply. If the building generates personnel, they may be used to activate multiple buildings/plans, which are placed below the earlier building/plan. You may use cards for their personnel at any time during your turn.
Example: This Factory requires any two personnel to activate, and allows you to draw two cards or force an opponent to discard two cards from his or her hand. To activate it, play any card or combination of cards which provides two personnel and place the Factory card on top of it. Draw two cards from the Industry deck, which you may immediately use; OR, your chosen opponent must take two cards of their choice from their hand and place them in the discard pile.
Example: This Mine building requires three Engineers to activate, and generates five Yellowcake. To activate it, play any combination of cards which provides three Engineers. Place the Mine on top of them, and take five Yellowcake from the supply. At the end of your turn, discard the Mine and all cards used to activate it. Keep your Yellowcake in front of you. You may instead use the Mine card to provide one Laborer.
Example: This Enrichment Plant building requires a Scientist and three Yellowcake to activate. Play a card which provides a Scientist, return three Yellowcake to the supply, and take two Uranium. You may "make change" for larger denomination resource cards; the exact amount is not required. Note that each Yellowcake card has Uranium in the appropriate denomination on the back, so you can usually flip them, rather than returning them to the supply. You may instead use this card to provide two Engineers.
Example: This Bomb Plan requires two Scientists, an Engineer and four Uranium to complete. Play cards which provide the needed personnel, return four Uranium to the supply, and claim the Bomb from the Bomb row (or build it from your private stash—see DESIGN BOMB). This Bomb is worth 6 points, shown by the number on its lower edge. At the end of your turn, discard all the cards used to activate it. Keep all completed Bomb Plans in front of you, face up.
How to Almost Build a Bomb in One Turn
Diagram captions, in printed order:
- Two Laborers activate the University, which requires any two personnel. Output: three Scientists.
- University requires two personnel; Enrichment Plant requires a Scientist and 3 Yellowcake.
- University provides 3 Engineers. Mine takes 2 and produces 3 Yellowcake, which goes to the Enrichment Plant. Enrichment Plant produces 2 Uranium.
This Bomb Plan requires a Scientist, 2 Engineers and two Uranium. You have one Engineer and the Uranium, but not the Scientist and second Engineer! If you had one more card with both a Scientist and Engineer on its side, you could have completed the Bomb Plan on your turn. Note that the unused Engineer is not available on your next turn.
Be careful not to confuse the personnel required to activate a card with the personnel a card can provide by itself. The icons on top of a card are always its requirement to activate, not the personnel it can provide.
The Cards
Mine: Provides Yellowcake, usually activated by Engineers. Play any number of cards sideways to supply the number of personnel indicated, or use personnel produced by a University or Landmark. Take the Yellowcake indicated and keep it in front of you. You may use Yellowcake produced during your turn or previous turns to pay the activation cost of an Enrichment Plant.
Factory: Allows you to draw cards from the Industry deck or force an opponent to discard cards. Activated by the required number of personnel shown at the top. If you choose to draw, take the number of cards shown on the lower left from the Industry deck. You may immediately use the cards you draw for personnel or as building/special actions. If you force an opponent to discard, the opponent chooses the number of cards shown on the lower right to discard from their hand, placing them in the discard pile.
NOTE: When playing with only two players, some cards have a no-2 player icon, which means you may not force your opponent to discard using that card.
Enrichment Plant: Provides Uranium, activated by Scientist(s), and requires you to spend Yellowcake. Play any number of cards sideways to supply the number of personnel indicated, or use personnel produced by a University or Landmark. Return the number of Yellowcake indicated to the supply. Take the Uranium indicated and keep it in front of you. Note that each Yellowcake card has Uranium in the appropriate denomination on the back, so you can usually flip them, rather than returning them to the supply. You may "make change" for larger denomination resource cards; the exact amount is not required.
You may use any Uranium produced any time during your turn as part of a Bomb Plan's completion cost.
University: Provides personnel that "float in your pool". To activate, play any number of cards sideways to supply the number of personnel indicated, or use personnel produced by another University or Landmark. Personnel produced may be used once each to activate any building/plan, and may be used to activate multiple buildings/plans. Unused personnel are lost at the end of your turn.
Note that one special University provides only Laborers, which may only be used to activate buildings requiring a Laborer.
Landmarks: If you have a desperate need for specific type of personnel or resource, the Landmark cards can convert three of any type of personnel into an Engineer or a Scientist, or provide one Yellowcake, or even Uranium. These inefficient Landmarks are available to any player on their turn and may be used as often as desired in the same turn. They always stay in the center of the table and are not put into anyone's hand or discarded.
Design Bomb: May be played at any time during your turn to put a Bomb Plan into your private stash. Look at the top three cards from the Bomb Plan draw pile. Select one card from these three and any card currently in your private stash. Place the chosen card face down in front of you. Place the unselected Bomb Plan cards on the bottom of the Bomb Plan draw pile. The chosen card does not count for points until built. You may only have 1 bomb in your private stash at any give time.
Building & Loading Bombs: Bomb Plans work the same way as Enrichment Plants, except that they require both Scientists and Engineers, and Uranium instead of Yellowcake. You take and keep all Bomb Plans you build, face-up in front of you. The number on the bomb card is its point value. All of the face-up Bomb Plans in the center of the table and any from your private stash are available for you to build on your turn, but the supply is not refreshed until the end of your turn.
Bomb Loaded cards are similar, but you may only build one per Bomb Plan you have built. It adds two points to the value of the Bomb. When built, place the Bomb Loaded card beneath your Bomb Plan card with its point value showing. At the end of a player's turn in which he or she built a bomb or loaded a bomb, check to see if their total point value triggers the final round of play (see WINNING above). You may build more than one Bomb Plan in a single turn.
Espionage: May be played at any time during your turn. You may look at any opponent's hand and take one card, OR you may take one Yellowcake (making change if necessary) from any opponent. You may immediately use what you take.
Double Agent: May be played at any time during your turn. You may activate any Landmark from the common play area without paying its personnel activation cost. You must still pay any non-personnel resource costs, such as Yellowcake. Else you may take one Yellowcake (making change if necessary) from any opponent. You may immediately use what you take.
Solo Play
The goal in solo play is to build the most bombs and gain the most points you can while only going through the deck one time. During setup deal out 4 bomb cards and place them face up in the center.
Some cards have a special ability in solo play mode which is written out on the bottom of the specific card.
Factory: Instead of making another player discard cards, you may take that many cards from anywhere in the discard pile and put them into your current hand. However, you may not choose another Factory card from the discard pile.
Double Agent: You may play a single card from your hand while ignoring the input requirements of that card including the resources like Yellowcake.
Espionage: You may draw 3 cards and choose 1 to put into your hand. The rest are placed back on top of the deck in any order you choose.