Die Atombombe: The Reich's Bid to Build the Bomb Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Read This First
  • Learning to Play the Game
• 1.0 Introduction
  • 1.1 Object of the Game
  • 1.2 Game Scale
• 2.0 The Components
  • 2.1 Preparing for Play
  • 2.2 The Play Mat
  • 2.3 The Control Zone
  • 2.4 Faction Cards
  • 2.5 Director Cards
  • 2.6 Resource Cards
  • 2.7 Event Cards
    • 2.7.1 Scientists
    • 2.7.2 Intrigues
  • 2.8 Enemy Action Cards
• 3.0 The Sequence of Play
• 4.0 The Joint Recovery Phase
• 5.0 The Joint Enemy Action Phase
  • 5.1 Soviet Offensives
  • 5.2 Allied Bombing Raids
• 6.0 The Joint Influence Point Phase
• 7.0 The Joint Initiative Determination Phase
• 8.0 The Joint Event Card Draw Phase
• 9.0 The Individual Player Action Phase
  • Stage Advancements
  • Research Action Icons
  • Research Action Steps
• 10.0 The Joint End Phase
• 11.0 Victory
  • 11.1 Game End
  • 11.2 Player Win for Having the Most Victory Points
  • 11.3 Player Win for Having "Moral Qualms"
• 12.0 Two- or Three-Player Games

Read This First

The rules of this LPS simulation game follow the game's sequence of play in introducing concepts. The rules are written in a format known as the Case System. This approach divides the rules into Modules (each of which deals with a major important aspect of play). Modules are numbered sequentially as well as possessing a title. Each Module is divided into Sections (that deal with a major sub-topic inside the Module) which are also numbered sequentially. A Section with the number 7.5, for example, is the fifth Section of the seventh Module of the rules. The numbering system is designed as an organizational aid. Use it to determine where a Section is located in the rules.

Learning to Play the Game

Begin by familiarizing yourself with all of the components listed for this game. Then skim through the charts and rules, reading all the titles of the Modules and Sections. Set up a game scenario or portion of a scenario (after reading the applicable Module) and play a trial game against yourself. During this trial game, try referring to the rules only when you have a question and remember the numbering system makes it easy to look up rules when you do. While a trial game may take you an hour or two, it is the quickest and most pleasant way to learn. Learning the rules word-for-word is not recommended; taking in the rules as you play along is the best approach to mastering this game.

1.0 Introduction

By late 1941 there was an increasing awareness across Germany that Operation Barbarossa would fail somewhere outside Moscow. Many senior officials began looking for an "out." Would a nuclear program of some sort do, perhaps? Die Atombombe is a multi-player game that examines Germany's atomic research efforts during WW2. The players, each representing the Director of a prestigious research institute, are recruited by a faction inside German government, military, or industrial circles to start work and see if a miracle of some sort is at all possible. Historically, very little was achieved due to technical misunderstandings, shifting priorities, and dispersion of efforts.

1.1 Object of the Game

Die Atombombe is a competitive card game, best played with 4 to 5 gamers. There are several levels of difficulty players may choose from before starting the game, ranging from "Basic" (a fun, rollicking game with a bomb in every basement) to "Historical" (best reflecting the true daunting challenge of executing a nuclear program). As the game unfolds, players work through their Director to try to acquire scarce resources, recruit other scientists, engage in intrigue against their rivals (this is the Third Reich after all), and demonstrate progress in their efforts to deliver a real advance. A player will really need to go all out to get some sort of useable weapon ready by himself before Berlin is overrun by the Red Army. Another path to building a weapon may be through limited cooperation with the other players (a "success" in these contexts is assumed to allow Germany to negotiate some sort of acceptable end to the war). However, some players may instead focus on mastering and commercializing the secrets of the atom, hoarding knowledge and resources "for the glorious post-war economy" they imagine is sure to come...

1.2 Game Scale

Each turn represents anywhere from 3 to 6 months of time. Each Director and Scientist card represents the named man himself plus a cadre of his bright young grad students and assistants, along with their own lab equipment and resources.

2.0 The Components

Each copy of Die Atombombe includes:

• 1 Play Mat
• 5 Secret Faction Cards
• 9 Director Cards
• 20 Resource Cards
• 20 Enemy Action Cards
• 25 Event/Scientist Cards
• 29 Event/Intrigue Cards
• 1 Soviet Progress marker
• 6 Numbered Initiative markers
• 10 Director counters (each representing one Director)
• 35 double-sided Influence Point markers

Players must provide a number of their own 6-sided dice for play.

2.1 Preparing for Play

Set up the game using the steps below.

1. Choose the overall Challenge Level everyone wishes to play at (Basic, Advanced, or Historical) and place the Play Mat in the center where it can be accessed by all the players.
2. Take the Soviet Progress marker and put it in the Moscow Box of the Distance Track facing towards the 1000 Miles Box. This marker depicts the approximate front line as Soviet forces begin advancing on Berlin.
3. Place a number of red Initiative markers equal to the number of players (to govern player order) in the middle of the table where they will be within reach. Note: Set aside the black Initiative #6 marker for now as that will be used in a future variant to be published in Against the Odds Magazine.
4. Place all the Influence Point (IP) markers in a neutral cache (a pile) where they can be accessed by all players. IP markers can be freely swapped to make "change."
5. Separate all the cards into their separate decks and shuffle them. The Enemy Action deck is placed to the right of the Play Mat. The Event deck is placed to the left of the Play Mat. The Resource deck is placed to the right of it. An area next to each deck is reserved for discards. When a deck runs out of cards the discard pile is reshuffled and the cards are used from it. Deal out six cards from the Resource deck face up at the start of the game laying them out in a row across the top of the Play Mat. This row of six cards forms the Resource Exchange from which players may buy the cards present.
6. Deal out one Secret Faction card to each player face down.
7. Randomly select and deal out a number of Director cards equal to the number of players in the center of the table face up. The player who can name the most elements on the periodic table goes first (or alternatively, each player rolls 3 six-sided dice (3D6) and highest score goes first) and chooses one of the Director cards. Play proceeds to the left until each player has chosen a Director. Each player then places the Director counter matching his Director's card in the Stage Advancement 0 box on the Play Mat. Note: Set aside the black Kammler Director counter for now as that will be used in a future variant to be published in Against the Odds Magazine.

2.2 The Play Mat

The Play Mat serves as the focus of the game where much of the action takes place. It is divided into sections, including the Soviet Distance Track in the upper right, the Stage Advancement Track to the lower left, a card holding space for revealed Enemy Action cards (above) to the lower right and a recap of the Sequence of Play for the game. As play proceeds, players adjust the counters on the Tracks to reflect the current progress of game events.

2.3 The Control Zone

The cards that a player owns are placed in his Control Zone, which is the area of the table closest to him and the Play Mat. At the start of the game a player will have only his Director and Secret Faction cards in his Control Zone. Place any Scientist and resource-related Intrigue cards played from your hand in your Control Zone. Also place any Resource cards acquired from the Resource Exchange in your Control Zone. When a card is first placed into the Control Zone, always place it face up and vertical to indicate it is available (this is termed Ready mode) and all icons printed on it are thus fully available. During the course of a turn a player may Drain a card in his Control Zone by turning it to the right, indicating it has been used up (this is termed Drained mode in the game) this turn. Thus each player has both hidden and face up cards laid on the table. Each player also has Event cards in his hand which remain concealed from other players until revealed during game play. These cards, once played, are either placed in a player's Control Zone face-up, or acted upon and then put in the Discard pile.

2.4 Faction Cards

A Secret Faction card represents a player's true patrons and backers. Their goals for the player are listed on the card, and the player wins by accumulating the Victory Points for completing these achievements (regardless of the overall course of the war).

The Secret Faction card is hidden, placed face down on the table in a player's Control Zone, and not shown until the end of the game. Players may never reveal their Secret Faction or Victory Point conditions to another, even when negotiating, until game end.

During play, the players are free to make whatever deals they want to procure assistance or prevent interference from others, including private discussions, but may never reveal their Secret Faction backer or any of their victory conditions on their Secret Faction's cards. It's OK to ask others if they are interested in building an Atomic Bomb or not, and players can (truly or falsely) volunteer that information (it's probably unwise to say you're not interested in war-winning but difficult projects however; this is the Third Reich). Similarly, no deals between players are binding.

2.5 Director Cards

A player's Director card is the player. Each Director card has a portrait of the man in the background with his name and his institute at the top and two icons to the left. The top icon is a red number in a diamond; this is the number of Influence Points (IPs) the player receives every turn.

Underneath that is a white number inside a shield. The shield icon denotes that this card is a Director and is immune from the direct effects of all Intrigue cards. The number inside the shield is the Director's Protection Rating. A player rolls two six-sided dice (2D6) and tries to score less than or equal to this number when indicated by an Enemy Action card to avoid ill effects.

Note: Protection Ratings do not represent bodyguards or alarms per se, rather it's an assessment of the vulnerability of the Director's home Institute to internal political shocks and external air attacks.

A Director card is normally in Ready mode and displayed face up and oriented so the player can easily read it. At the bottom of the card on the left is a turn arrow. This indicates that all the icons to the right of the arrow are available to the player when he Drains (turn sideways) the Director card to undertake a Research Action.

2.6 Resource Cards

These represent the natural or technical resources presently available in Germany to support nuclear research. Resource cards can be bought by a player and later Drained when either undertaking a Research Action or a Sell Action. Each card has a name at the top and a red number in a diamond icon to the left of the name. This red number is the IP cost of the card. Below the card's picture is a turn arrow and two rows of icons. The upper row icon is a red number on a diamond, which denotes how many IPs the card yields if it is Drained during a Sell Action. The lower icons denote the various assets gained when the card is Drained while undertaking a Research Action.

Once brought into play, a Resource card will remain in a player's Control Zone until another player takes control of it (if Drained at that point, the Resource card remains Drained). However, a destroyed Resource card is completely out of play for the rest of the game.

2.7 Event Cards

There are two types of Event cards, Scientists and Intrigues.

2.7.1 Scientists

These represent key researchers, currently unaffiliated, that can contribute to the success of a player's team. These cards all have at their top the name of the scientist and a red number in a diamond to the left showing the IP cost of the card a player must pay to get ("recruit") the Scientist and place him in his Control Zone. At the bottom is a turn arrow and various Research Action icons.

When a Scientist is Drained to undertake a Research Action, the player gains access to all the icons beside the arrow. Once brought into play, a Scientist card will remain in a player's Control Zone until he is (voluntarily or involuntarily) transferred to work for a new Director (if Drained at that point, the Drained Scientist remains Drained), or discarded (place him back in the discard pile for Event cards), where he may eventually return to play in Ready mode.

2.7.2 Intrigues

These cards represent both aboveboard and unsavory actions, or possibly tainted (i.e. illegally confiscated) resources, that players can use to boost their own efforts, or retard others. These cards have at their top the name of the card, and a red number in a diamond to the left showing the IP cost a player must pay to play it. Instructions on how to play the card and effects are printed on each card.

A player cannot target Directors directly with Intrigue cards but can play them on himself (if favorable) or against any other player's Resources or Scientists (when harmful).

Generally, an Intrigue card can only be used once per player currently holding it. Once an Intrigue card is played, place it in the discard pile for Event cards where it may eventually return to play.

2.8 Enemy Action Cards

These represent the overall Allied war effort against the Reich. Allied Bombing Raid cards will continually destroy precious resources and disrupt plans, while Soviet Offensive cards bring the front closer and closer to Berlin, which will eventually bring the war (and the game) to an end.

3.0 The Sequence of Play

Each Game Turn is divided in several phases to regulate play. Phases are either joint activities where everyone participates, or a player-specific action phase, where only the player with the current Initiative attempts game actions. The phases are:

1. Joint Recovery Phase (skip on Game Turn 1)
2. Joint Enemy Action Phase
3. Joint Influence Phase
4. Joint Initiative Determination Phase
5. Joint Card Draw Phase
6. Individual Player Action Phase (one per player)
   • a) Pass Action
   • b) Buy Actions
   • c) Sell Actions
   • d) Recruit Actions
   • e) Intrigue Actions
   • f) Research Actions
7. Joint End Phase

Each of these phases is explained in detail in the subsequent rules modules.

4.0 The Joint Recovery Phase

All cards in each player's Control Zone that were Drained in the previous turn are rotated back upright into their Ready mode position. Additionally, if there are less than six Resource cards in the Resource Exchange (because players have bought them), then refill any missing spaces with new cards from the Resource deck (skip this phase on Game Turn 1).

Note: Resource cards that have been flipped over (i.e. destroyed) due to Allied Bombing Raids stay in the Resource Exchange and cannot be replaced.

5.0 The Joint Enemy Action Phase

Any one player turns over the top Enemy Action card from the deck and all players impacted by it resolve the card's effects. Once this has been completed, remove the card from the game. Note that the game will end during the Joint End Phase of the turn the Soviets reach Berlin, but due to the sequence of play, the players will know early in this turn that this is the last turn, and will all have a chance to make a final effort to win (or maximize their chance of winning). Enemy Action cards fall into one of two categories, Soviet Offensives and Allied Bombing Raids.

5.1 Soviet Offensives

When any of these four types of cards are revealed, it shows the number of miles that the Soviets move towards Berlin from Moscow. Advance the Soviet Progress arrow marker on the Distance Track towards Berlin the number of spaces indicated on the card. Each row of the Distance Track grants an increasing hand size but also results in increasing costs for items on the Black Market when the Soviet Progress arrow marker is on that row (as a result of these alarming developments). Each Soviet Offensive card has the following four negative effects:

1. Soviet Feint: Advance the marker 1 space on the Distance Track. In addition, draw another Enemy Action card and apply the combined effects! However, only count the first Feint card drawn; if a second Feint card is drawn, still add it to the first but the process stops there.
2. Soviet Push: Advance the marker 2 spaces on the Distance Track. In addition, the player who has the most Resource cards in their Control Zone loses 2 IPs (return them to the Neutral cache). All other players lose 1 IP. If two or more players are tied for the most Resource cards, each lose 2 IPs. If all players have no Resource cards, then there is no additional effect.
3. Soviet Thrust: Advance the marker 3 spaces on the Distance Track. In addition, each player must reveal and discard a card from their hand to the appropriate discard pile. There is no additional effect for players with no cards in their hand.
4. Soviet Blitz: Advance the marker 4 spaces on the Distance Track. In addition, each player must make a Protection Rating check. Roll two dice and add the numbers together. If this roll is less than or equal to the Protection Rating on their Director's card, the check is passed, but the player must Drain one Resource card (his choice) currently in their Control Zone. If the number rolled is higher than the Protection Rating, the check fails, and one Resource card in their Control Zone is destroyed (remove from game). There is no additional effect if a player has no Resource cards.

5.2 Allied Bombing Raids

When this card is revealed, the most expensive (as measured by IP cost) card in the Resource Exchange is flipped over (i.e. destroyed) but remains in place. If two or more cards are of equal IP cost, then roll a die to randomly determine which one. The destroyed Resource card becomes unavailable for the entire rest of the game, permanently reducing the total number of Resource cards available on the Resource Exchange. Allied Bombing Raid cards also force each player to make a Protection Roll check for their Director in the same way as does a Soviet Blitz card.

Each player must make a Protection Rating check. Roll two dice and add the numbers together. If this roll is less than or equal to the Protection Rating on their Director's card, the check is passed, but the player must Drain one Resource card (his choice) currently in their Control Zone. If the number rolled is higher than the Protection Rating the check fails and one Resource card in their Control Zone is destroyed (remove from game). There is no additional effect if a player has no Resource cards.

6.0 The Joint Influence Point Phase

All players now gain IP markers equal to the Influence Rating of their Director. These IP markers are added to the current pool of each player's IP amount. There is no limit to the number of IP markers a player can have in the game.

7.0 The Joint Initiative Determination Phase

The Player who has the fewest number of IPs takes the Initiative #1 marker. The player who has the second fewest takes the #2 marker, etc., until each player has one of the numbered Initiative markers.

8.0 The Joint Event Card Draw Phase

Each player draws cards from the Event deck to replenish their hand up to the maximum hand size currently allowed. The maximum number of cards that a player can have in their hand is determined by the Soviet Progress arrow marker along the Distance Track. The closer the Soviets get to Berlin, the greater the effort a frightened Third Reich will pour into nuclear research, and this means all players are allowed to draw and hold more cards. Before a player draws cards from the Event deck, he may discard any number of cards that are currently in his hand to the appropriate discard pile. A player is never required to discard cards, but must draw cards up to the current maximum hand size allowed by the Distance Track. If for any reason a player has cards equal to or greater than the allowed hand size, and a player chooses not to discard any cards in this phase, then he is not allowed to draw any cards this turn. (On Game Turn 1 of the game, all players draw cards up to the maximum hand size.)

9.0 The Individual Player Action Phase

Starting with the player holding the Initiative #1 marker, each player chooses and completes one of the following six actions:

1. The Pass Action: The player chooses to do nothing. Play proceeds to the player with the next highest Initiative marker.

2. Buy Action: The player may spend IPs and buy a maximum of one Resource card from the Resource Exchange. The Resource card is placed in his Control Zone in Ready mode.

3. Sell Action: The player may Drain any or all of his Resource cards in Ready Mode in his Control Zone and gain the IPs indicated at the bottom of each card. Rotate the Resource card to show it is now Drained and unavailable, but do not discard it.

4. Recruit Action: The player may choose any number of Event cards with Scientists on them from his hand and put them into his Control Zone in Ready mode. In order to move a Scientist from his hand to his Control Zone ("recruit"), the player must pay the IP cost printed on the Scientist's card (upper left number). The IP markers are moved from the player's pool to the Neutral cache. If a player lacks sufficient IPs, the Scientist cannot be placed.

5. Intrigue Action: The player may choose any number of Event cards with Intrigues on them from his hand and pays the IP cost (if any) printed on the cards to invoke them. Once a card has been used, the player completes the action written on the card, then discards it. Some Intrigue cards add to the chance of success when undertaking a Research Action (see below) and can be played at that time (paying any IP costs to do so).

6. Research Action: To undertake a Research Action, a player must first announce that he is trying to reach the next higher Stage Advancement level, connected by an arrow marking the path of progress from his current Stage Advancement level on the Play Mat. Use the colored arrows and icons corresponding to the Challenge level of play as follows:

Stage Advancements

• Stage Advancement 0: The starting point for all players (no real, or conflicting, ideas on how to create an atomic bomb, or how go about it) but from which all players can progress further.
• Stage Advancement 1: The player's Director has formulated a coherent theory about how to proceed to try and harness nuclear physics (allows one to proceed further).
• Stage Advancement 2: The player's Director creates a first, Crude Atomic Pile (a "proof of concept" so to speak). A player is required to have successfully reached Stage Advancement 1 (have a good theory) to attempt Stage Advancement 2.
• Stage Advancement 3: The player's Director builds a "Uranium Engine" (basically, a militarily or commercially useful nuclear reactor that generates power, or nuclear byproducts like plutonium). A player is required to have successfully reached Stage Advancement 2 (have a Crude Atomic Pile) to attempt Stage Advancement 3.
• Stage Advancement 4: The player's Director attempts to create a "Dirty Bomb." The Dirty Bomb is an emergency program that can only be undertaken if no player has successfully made an Atomic Bomb (Stage Advancement 5), and the Soviets are at or within 200 miles of Berlin. The player attempting this must be at a Stage Advancement that points to the Stage 4 Advancement box as a pre-requisite.
• Stage Advancement 5: The player's Director undertakes the "big one" and creates a true Atomic Bomb. A player is required to successfully reach Stage Advancement 3 (have a Uranium Engine) to attempt Stage Advancement 5.

Note that the overall Challenge Level the game is being played at will affect Research Action success. The higher Challenge Levels require more resource icons and/or greater die rolls to successfully reach each next Stage Advancement Level.

Research Action Icons

The following six icons found on cards may be used when a player undertakes a Research Action as follows:

• Die Icon: Each die allows a player to add one die to his dice pool when undertaking a Research Action.
• +2 Icon: Each of these icons adds +2 to the total number rolled by the dice when undertaking a Research Action.
• Re-Roll Icon: This icon means that the player may re-roll any one die in his dice total when undertaking a Research Action for each such RR Icon. A single die can only be re-rolled once.
• Heavy Water Icon: Each icon gives the player one unit of Heavy Water.
• Uranium Icon: Each icon gives the player one unit of Uranium ore.
• Technical Icon: Each icon gives the player one set of tools and equipment.
• Icons with a Yellow/Red Border: Players will also require this additional resource icon to try and achieve this higher Stage Advancement when playing both the Advanced and Historical Challenge level games.

Research Action Steps

The following six steps are used when undertaking a Research Action:

a) A player must first have enough cards in Ready mode bearing Uranium, Heavy Water, and Technical icons in his Control Zone equal to or greater than those shown for the Challenge Level the game is being played at in the appropriate Stage Advancement box on the Game Mat. The player must Drain some or all of the Resource/Scientist/Director cards in his Control Zone to equal or exceed the number of icons required to achieve the next level as shown in the next Stage Advancement box, with any excess icons being unused. A player may not count or use already Drained cards in his Control Zone. There are also Intrigue cards (like "Spoils of War" or "Success") which add icons, and dice may also be used (and paid for with IPs when used) at this point.

b) If a player does not have enough Icons of the appropriate type to undertake a Research Action, he may spend his IPs to purchase up to three icons of whatever type (Heavy Water, Uranium, or Technical) he needs from the Black Market. This Black Market simply exists outside the game; it has no limit on the items it may contain. The IP cost of each icon depends on the row the Soviet Progress arrow marker is on the Distance Track, and the price to buy icons gets more expensive as the Soviets close in on Berlin.

c) Any other player in the game may now oppose or assist the undertaking of the Research Action. Any other player may Drain any one (maximum) of his Resource cards in his Control Zone that is in Ready mode to add its icons on those cards to first player's pool in order to give him the icons he needs to attempt the Research Action. Each other player in the game may also spend exactly three IPs (maximum) of their own to add (helping) or subtract (hindering) one die from the dice pool.

d) The dice from the player's Director, his Scientists, and his Intrigue cards (after being paid for) that aid Research Actions, and any outside help (or lack thereof), are accumulated into a dice pool.

e) The player now rolls all the dice in his pool and adds the numbers together. If a player has +2 or RR icons available to him from cards he has Drained, he may use them now to add to the number rolled or re-roll low die results. If after all re-rolls and additions a player has reached a number that is equal to or greater than the difficulty number (for the Challenge Level) pointing at the Stage Advancement box he is trying to reach, then the player has succeeded. The player puts his Director's marker in the Stage Advancement box of the achievement he succeeded in and gains 5 IPs as a reward. A player may never advance more than one Stage Advancement level per turn.

f) If the player fails, nothing is gained. Regardless, Intrigue cards used in undertaking the Research Action are discarded and all Director/Scientist/Resource cards which were Drained remain so until the next Recovery Phase.

Once a player has completed his action, the player holding the next highest numbered Initiative marker chooses and completes his action. Once every player has finished an action, the Player Action Phase repeats, with the player still holding the Initiative #1 marker choosing another action and resolving it. Eventually players will be unable to take actions, either by lack of IPs, lack of cards, or the desire to end the turn, and will have to choose a "Pass Action." Once any two consecutive players decide to "pass," the Player Action phase closes, and the game proceeds into the Joint End Phase.

10.0 The Joint End Phase

Players must first check to see if the game has ended. If the Soviet Progress Arrow marker on the Distance Track had reached Berlin (i.e. completed moving the full 1000 miles) during the previous Enemy Action Phase, then the game ends now in this phase, and players should proceed to Victory determination (Module 11.0). If the Soviets have not yet reached Berlin, then all players keep all the cards remaining in their hand and any IPs from their personal supply. Play now continues with the Joint Recovery Phase of a new turn.

11.0 Victory

The game can end in one of two ways, and there are also two different ways for a player to win the game.

11.1 Game End

The game ends in one of two ways:

1. If an Atomic Bomb is created by any player at any point, the game ends immediately and players must proceed to Section 11.2 below. A player can also immediately end the game by creating a Dirty Bomb, but may only try undertaking this Research Action when the Soviets are at or within 200 miles of Berlin (this can be risky to time). If the game ends this way, Germany's fortunes are considered to have improved and everyone can consider themselves a "winner." Proceed to Section 11.2 below to determine the "true winner" by comparing Victory Points.
2. If no player has made an Atomic or Dirty Bomb by the time the Soviets get to Berlin, then the game ends, but at the end of the turn the Soviets take Berlin (allowing some last minute player actions to improve their positions). If the game ends this way, the war is lost. Proceed to Section 11.2 below to determine the "best in show winner," again by comparing Victory Points.

11.2 Player Win for Having the Most Victory Points

In either case of Section 11.1 above, players now reveal their Secret Faction cards and add up all the Victory Points (VPs) received for the conditions listed on the card that they meet. Count up each player's earned VPs for their Faction as above; the player with the most VPs is the game's winner. While an Atomic Bomb maker may imagine he has clearly won, each Faction's true goals, and the other players' VP totals towards those, may give someone else the win. There are no shared VPs; if one player creates a Uranium Engine, only he can claim VPs for doing so at game end, even if others helped him succeed. However, another player, having independently also created his own Uranium Engine, can claim his Faction's VPs for it too. The player with the most VPs (or players in the case of a tie) wins the game outright (and depending how the war has turned out, has a fabulous post-war career, or possibly faces post-war crime trials and/or being deported to the East).

11.3 Player Win for Having "Moral Qualms"

There is a special Intrigue card called "Moral Qualms" in the card mix. The player holding this card in his hand at game end (i.e. effectively forgoing other opportunities) when no Atomic or Dirty Bomb has been created, can instead reveal it and claim sole victory, regardless of the other players' VP scores (post-war writings will portray him as "the Good German" who secretly didn't want Hitler to get the Bomb). A player can voluntarily discard (and reveal he is doing so if he wishes) the card during the Joint Event Card Draw phase during regular game play with no ill effects. However, if another player draws it out of his hand during game play, the new owner must choose one of the three courses of action below:

1. Immediately reveal it and make a scene, accusing the former owner of "colossal treason!" The former card holder immediately loses all his IPs and cards (except his Director and Secret Faction), but remains in the game at whatever Stage Achievement he was at, and may continue play from that very low point. Also in this case, place the Moral Qualms card back in the discard pile, where it can come into play again in a subsequent turn,
2. Hold on to the card until the next Joint Event Draw Card phase and voluntarily discard it (and reveal he is doing so if he so wishes) with no ill effects for anyone. The former owner cannot reveal the new owner has it during this period, or
3. Hold on to the card himself until game end, possibly use it to win the game. Again, the former owner cannot reveal the new owner has it but can possibly blackmail the new owner by threatening to target him in an effort to try and acquire it back.

Note: This card adds tension to the game as the holder of the card may have no incentive to help others if the Soviets are near and can, in fact, win by not helping.

12.0 Two- or Three-Player Games

When playing with just 2 or 3 players, increase the hand sizes shown on the chart by 1 each. So at the start of the game, each player may hold up to 4 cards instead of 3.