First in Flight
First in Flight Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 Game Board
- 1 Year Tracker
- 40 Coins
- 4 Player Mats in Player Colors
- 4 Flight Record Trackers in Player Colors
- 4 Pilot Pawns in Player Colors
- 10 Pilot Cards
- 2-Player Game Card
Flight Cards
- 75x Glide Cards (1 Distance)
- 10x Experience Cards (1 Distance, + a Glide Card)
- Upgrade Cards, 2-5 Distance: 8x (2 Distance), 12x (3 Distance), 8x (4 Distance), 4x (5 Distance)
- 28x Design Flaw Cards
- 30x Basic Flight Problem Cards
- 5 Descend Cards
Development Cards
- 10 Friend Cards
- 14 Technology Cards
- 18 Skill Cards
- 1 Rulebook
- 1 Solo Rules Aid
Setup
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Place the Game Board on the side matching your player count (1-3 or 4, shown in the lower left corner) and place the Year Marker on Year 1. Place the supply of Coins nearby.
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Separately shuffle the 3 decks of Development Cards: Friend, Technology, and Skill Cards. Place these decks on their respective sides of the Board, as shown, and draw the face-up options for the first Year: 2 Friend Cards, 2 Technology Cards, and 4 Skill Cards.
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Prepare the supplies of Flight Cards near the Game Board:
- Place the Glide, Experience, and Basic Flight Problem Cards face up.
- Shuffle the Upgrade Cards, numbered 2–5, to form the face-down Upgrade deck.
- Shuffle the Design Flaw Cards, with a dark red and smoking number in the corner, to form the face-down Design Flaw deck. Leave room for Design Flaw discards.
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Each Player chooses a Player Color and takes the corresponding Player Mat, Pilot Pawn and Flight Record Tracker, as well as a Descend Card. In a 2-player game, include a Pawn and Tracker for Gustave, who will act as the 3rd player (see 2-Player Rules).
Place the Flight Record Trackers at the Start of the Flight Record Track. Randomly choose turn order and place Pawns in the spaces of the starting area, with the Start Player in the leftmost (farthest back) starting space, and player order proceeding to the right.
The Start Player, in the leftmost space, begins the game with 6 Coins. The player in the next space to the right begins with 7 Coins, then 8 Coins, then 9 Coins (if applicable).
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Each player forms a starting deck of 9 Flight Cards: 4 Glide Cards, 1 Experience Card, and 4 randomly-drawn Design Flaws. Without looking at the Design Flaws, they shuffle these 9 Cards together.
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Each player selects a Pilot Card. These may be drafted by randomly choosing a number of Pilot Cards equal to the number of players plus one, then having players take turns selecting a Pilot Card in reverse turn order (starting with the front-most Pilot Pawn). Each player places their Pilot Card on their Player Mat with the blue side face up and the gold (Famous) side face down.
The following Pilot Cards are recommended options for new players: Wilbur and Orville Wright, Alberto Santos-Dumont, Hubert Latham, Thérèse Peltier, and Louis Blériot.
Game Concepts
Taking Actions
Players in First in Flight take turns moving their Pilot Pawns clockwise around the Action Spaces on the Game Board, stopping to take a variety of Actions. The player who is farthest behind always takes the next turn, and players may move forward to any unoccupied Action Space, skipping over other spaces to prioritize Actions as they wish.
The Actions let players upgrade their Flyers, fix problems they encounter, acquire powerful abilities, and go for a Flight to test their designs.
Play proceeds until any player sets a Flight Record of at least 40 or until the end of the 4th Year (4 trips around the Board). In either case, players take one final Flight, and the aviator with the longest Flight wins!
Building a Flyer
Each player has their own deck of Flight Cards that represents the features of their Flyer, both good and bad. These decks are nearly identical when the game begins, but will change as players make different decisions. Players may not look through their Flight Decks.
When a player takes the Fly Action, they will draw and reveal cards into their Flight, one at a time, until they either Descend or Crash. The Flight Cards they draw contribute to their Distance, but some also have Problems. If 4 Problems are ever revealed during a single Flight, the Player Crashes and the Flight is over.
Each Flight Card shows a Distance value, and may also show a Flight Problem icon, a bonus for Repairing, an ability when drawn in Flight, or a negative effect when drawn in Flight.
Breaking Records
As players Fly, they will set new Flight Records. Flight Records are tracked around the outside of the Game Board and can provide rewards and ongoing benefits:
- After the end of each Year, the Michelin Cup award money is given to players based on the best Flight Records.
- With a Flight Record of 15+, a player becomes Famous (see below).
- With a Flight Record of 40+, heavier-than-air flight has been achieved! All players take a final Fly Action, and the game ends.
Becoming Famous
Each player begins the game with a unique Pilot ability. When that player achieves a Flight Record of 15 or more, they become Famous: they immediately flip their Pilot Card to its Famous side. They will receive an immediate Fame Benefit (shown in the top left corner) and an improved ability for the rest of the game.
For Example: When Thérèse Peltier becomes Famous, she gains a free Friend Card. On subsequent Flights she also receives a Distance bonus for each of her Friend Cards.
Development Cards
- Friend Cards can each be used once per Year, then they are exhausted (rotated, to show they have been used).
- Technology Cards are always in effect.
- Skill Cards can each be used once per Flight, then they are exhausted (rotated, to show they have been used).
Gameplay
Players take turns moving their Pilot Pawns clockwise around the Action Spaces and taking the corresponding Actions. The player whose Pawn is farthest behind always takes the next turn. On a player's turn:
- If their Pawn is standing up, the player moves their Pawn clockwise to any unoccupied Action Space of their choice, skipping over any spaces as they wish. Once they have moved, the player must take the Action indicated on the Action Space where they end their move (if they can't take the Action, they can't move there). Once a player's Action is resolved, the player who is farthest behind takes the next turn (even if it's the same player who just went).
- If their Pawn is lying down (that is, because their Flyer Crashed on the previous turn), then the player must take the Recover Action on their turn. They will pay 2 Time (see Action Costs) and set their Pawn upright (see Recover Action).
Play continues in this way as all players complete a trip around the Game Board, representing 1 Year. With the players' final movements of the Year, they will return to the start area, either by choice or with no Action Spaces remaining. Players may not move beyond the start area. The first player to move into the start area will take the leftmost space (and therefore go first in the next Year), and so on. When all players have reached the start area, the Year ends, and the Michelin Cup will be awarded (see Ending the Year).
Example: Crystal's Pilot Pawn is farthest back, so she takes the next turn. She decides to skip ahead to a Fly Action, passing over the chance to buy a Skill Card. After Crystal Flies, Asher takes the next turn. If he moves 1 space forward and purchases a Skill Card, he would still be farthest behind and would take the next turn as well.
Action Costs
Many actions have costs paid in Money and/or Time.
Money is paid with your Coins. More Coins can be earned through the Michelin Cup award after each Year, or through some Actions and abilities.
Time is paid by immediately advancing your Pilot Pawn forward by the indicated number of Time Spaces (icons between Action Spaces) on the Game Board, ending on a Time Space. Time may not be paid that would cause your Pawn to pass the last Time Space of the Year. Players paying Time may land on the same Time Space as another player's Pawn: the new Pawn is placed ahead of any other Pawns on the Time Space. Players on the same space will take their next turns from back to front, in the order they arrived.
For Actions that allow payment in Money or Time, players must choose one or the other — they may not split the cost between the two.
Example: Asher takes a Repair Action that costs either 3 Money or 2 Time. He decides to pay Time, and immediately moves his Pilot Pawn clockwise by 2 Time Spaces. Note that Sami's Pawn is already on a Time Space, but that does not affect Asher's Time payment.
With the Repair Action freed up, Crystal decides to take the same path as Asher. She moves to the Repair Action Space, pays 2 Time, and moves to the same Time Space as Asher. Crystal ends her movement in front of Asher's Pilot Pawn. Asher, the first to arrive and farther back, will take his next turn before Crystal takes her next turn.
The Actions
Fly Action
The Fly Action is the heart of the game: it takes your Flyer to the sky to push for new records and uncover your Design Flaws. To Fly, take the following steps:
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Shuffle your deck of Flight Cards, including any Design Flaws on your Garage (see Repair Action), but excluding your Descend Card. Reset (straighten) any Skill Cards, which can be used any time before Descending.
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Draw Flight Cards one at a time and place them in a row as your Flight. All Flight Cards contribute a Distance value, shown in the upper-left corner, to your Flight. You may also use Skills and other abilities on your cards while Flying.
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The Flyer Crashes if 4 Problem icons are revealed during a Flight. If your Flyer Crashes, lay your Pilot Pawn on its side and end the Flight immediately (stop drawing cards and skip to Step 5). You will need to take the Recover Action for your next turn (see Recover Action).
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After drawing any number of Flight Cards, you may play your Descend Card to end your Flight: add your Descend Card to your Flight, shuffle your remaining Flight Cards, and draw exactly 2 more. Skills and other abilities that exhaust cannot be used after playing your Descend Card. If you draw the final 2 cards without Crashing, you land safely, and your Descend Card adds 5 Distance to your Flight. If you reveal a 4th Problem while landing, you Crash: do not draw any more Flight Cards, and the Descend Card will only count for 2 Distance.
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Calculate your Flight Distance (even if you Crashed!): add up the Distance values from your Flight Cards, including your Descend Card (if you played it), plus any bonuses. If this Flight surpassed the value of your previous Record, increase your Record Tracker to your new Record. (Your Flight Record is always your single best Flight, not a cumulative total.) If your Record is now 15+, flip your Pilot Card: you are Famous (see Becoming Famous).
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Finally, clean up. Set aside your Descend Card, if you played it. You may move up to 2 face-up Design Flaws from your Flight onto the Garage Spaces on your Player Mat, where they can be Repaired on a future turn. Note that the left Garage Space is cheaper to Repair (see Repair Action).
Gather the rest of your Flight Cards together. If you placed any Design Flaws in your Garage, turn over your Descend Card and place it on your deck as a reminder to return all Cards before your next Flight.
The Flight Cards
- Glide Cards add a Distance of 1 to your Flight.
- Upgrade Cards add a Distance of 2–5. They are generally gained through the Upgrade Action.
- Experience Cards add a Distance of 1 and add a new Glide Card to your Flight from the supply when drawn.
Each player begins with 4 random Design Flaws and gains 1 with each Upgrade Action. Repaired Design Flaws are moved to a shared discard pile (and reshuffled if needed).
Design Flaws
- Delicate Wing Structure counts as 2 Problems if it is the first Problem Card in your Flight.
- Pitch Instability — when you draw it, you must exhaust a Skill (ignoring its ability) or play your Descend Card.
- Power Failure — when calculating Distance, each Power Failure reduces the largest Upgrade Card in your Flight to a Distance of 2.
- Unreliable Elevator Control — after it is drawn, if the next Flight Card you draw is a Glide Card, Scrap it (return it to the supply).
Your Descend Card is a special card that never goes in your deck, but you may play to end your Flight: shuffle your remaining deck and draw 2 more cards. It adds 5 Distance if you don't Crash, or 2 if you do.
Repairing a Design Flaw will replace it with a Basic Flight Problem. They cannot be Repaired.
Gaining Flight Cards adds them to your Flight (if Flying) or to your deck of Flight Cards. Scrapping a revealed Flight Card from your Flight removes it from your deck, returning it to the supply.
Example Flight
It's Sami's turn and he decides to Fly, hoping to set the best Flight Record before the end of the year. He moves his pawn forward to the next Fly Action Space, passing over several other Action Spaces on the way.
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Shuffle Flight Cards. Sami prepares to Fly by shuffling his deck of Flight Cards, including a Design Flaw he discovered on a previous Flight. He also resets his Skill Card. He can use it any time before Descending.
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Draw Flight Cards. Sami begins his Flight by drawing several Flight Cards one at a time and laying them in a row. Sami is off to a good start. He has revealed a Distance of 7 so far, including an Experience Card that permanently improves his deck by gaining a Glide Card.
Still hoping for a bit more Distance, Sami exhausts his "Roll Control" Skill to use its ability. He looks at the top 2 cards of his deck, puts the Problem on the bottom of his deck (close one!), then plays the 5.
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Drawing 4 Problems causes a Crash. Sami reveals a pair of Problem Cards: a "Delicate Wing Structure" Design Flaw and a Basic Flight Problem. Both add Distance, but contribute a total of 3 Problems. If he draws any more, he will Crash.
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Play the Descend Card to land. Time to land: Sami plays his Descend Card. He shuffles the remainder of his Flight Cards and draws 2 additional cards. Note that he could not have saved his Skill Card to use at this point: exhaust abilities can't be used while Descending, so plan carefully!
Sami draws his 2 additional cards and sees a 4th Problem on the last card of his Flight. His Flyer Crashes! He sets his Pilot Pawn on its side as a reminder that he will need to take a Recover Action on his next turn.
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Calculate your Flight Distance. Sami calculates the Distance flown on his Flight:
- His Flight Cards contribute their printed values: 1+1+1+1+3+1+1+5+1+1 = 16
- His Descend Card counts for 2 instead of 5 because he Crashed.
- The "Dihedral Wing Design" Technology adds an additional +2 for the two Upgrade Cards in his Flight.
This is a total Distance of 20, Sami's personal best! Since 20 is farther than his previous Record, Sami moves his Flight Record Tracker to 20. This gives him the second-best Record in the game, and puts him in a better position for the Michelin Cup.
Additionally, because he set a personal record of at least 15, Sami is now Famous: he flips his Pilot Card to the gold-bordered side. This provides an immediate bonus and upgrades his Pilot ability.
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Clean up. Sami moves the Design Flaw he discovered to the Garage area of his Player Mat. He puts it in the left Garage Space to Repair later.
He gathers the rest of his Flight Cards together, then flips his Descend Card and puts it on top, as a reminder to return his Design Flaw before Flying again.
Recover Action
If your Pilot Pawn is lying down (because you Crashed last turn), you must take a Recover Action. Pay 2 Time (advance your Pawn 2 Time Spaces) to stand your Pawn back up.
Repair Action
The Repair Action replaces one of your Design Flaws with a Basic Flight Problem, making it easier to Fly farther.
To Repair, you must have at least one Design Flaw Card in your Garage from your most recent Flight. Pay the cost shown on the Action Space to remove exactly one Design Flaw Card from your Garage and place it in the Design Flaw discard, then replace it by gaining a Basic Flight Problem, adding it to your deck. If you are repairing a Design Flaw in the second Garage Space (on the right), pay an additional 1 Time.
You may not move or swap Design Flaws between your Garage Spaces.
When you take the Repair Action, you gain an additional repair benefit, shown on the top right corner of the Design Flaw Card.
Example: Asher found "Unreliable Elevator Control" and "Power Failure" Design Flaws on his last Flight, and added them to his Garage.
On a later turn, he moves to a Repair Action Space. He decides to pay for the Repair with Time, and decides to Repair "Power Failure." He pays 1 Money and 2 Time, then permanently discards the Design Flaw Card. He takes a Basic Flight Problem Card in its place and gains the top Upgrade Card as a bonus (Repair Bonus).
Note: The Repair Action "downgrades" the severity of Design Flaws, but does not remove them. Players begin the game with 4 Problem Cards, and can never reduce this number in their deck: they can only add new ones (with the Upgrade Action) or replace Design Flaws with Basic Problem Cards.
Upgrade Action
The Upgrade Action gains 2 powerful Upgrade Cards to your deck, but also introduces a new Design Flaw.
To take an Upgrade Action, first pay any amount of Money or Time (minimum of 2). Look at a number of cards from the top of the Upgrade deck equal to the amount you paid. Gain any 2 of these Upgrade Cards, then return the other cards to the Upgrade Deck and shuffle it.
Then, gain 1 face-down Design Flaw Card and add it to your deck without looking at it.
Note: The Upgrade Action is the only way that you will take additional Design Flaws. Other abilities may provide Upgrade Cards, but these do not add a Design Flaw.
At the start of the Game, the Upgrade Deck contains:
- 8x 2 Distance Cards
- 12x 3 Distance Cards
- 8x 4 Distance Cards
- 4x 5 Distance Cards
Example: Crystal pays 4 Money to Upgrade her Flyer. She first looks at the top 4 cards of the Upgrade Card deck. She chooses the 3 and the 5 to add to her deck and shuffles the other cards back. Then, she gains an unknown Design Flaw.
Glide and Experience Actions
This Action Space has two available Actions to choose from. You may either add a Glide Card to your deck of Flight Cards (for free) or you may pay the cost shown to gain an Experience Card.
Several other Action Spaces include a choice of actions separated by a divider. Players must always pick either the Action on the right or the left, not both.
Funding Action
Take the indicated number of Coins from the supply. Coins are unlimited, so use a substitute if they run out.
Development Card Action
The Development Card Spaces allow you to purchase a Technology, Friend, or Skill Card. These cards have powerful abilities that grant bonus actions, add extra distance to your Flights, or otherwise help you Fly farther.
When you move to a Development Card space, pay the indicated cost to gain one card of the type shown. You may select from the face-up options or draw a face-down card from the top of the corresponding deck. Place the card face up in your play area.
Development Cards are not refilled after purchasing: if all revealed cards have been taken, players will have to draw from the top of the deck. New options will be drawn each Year.
Cards may be used after purchasing. When you use a Friend or Skill Card's ability, exhaust it (turn it sideways) to indicate that it has been used.
- Friend Cards may be used once per Year.
- Technology Cards are always in effect.
- Skill Cards may each be used once per Fly Action, before playing your Descend Card. You may use any number of Skill Cards during a Flight.
Any Action
The Any Action Space allows you to copy any other Action Space. You must pay that Action's normal cost, plus any additional cost shown on the Any Action Space.
Example: Asher really wants to Repair his Flyer. He moves to the Any Action Space and pays 1 Money (for the Any Action) as well as 2 Time to use the Repair Action.
Ending the Year
Travel around the Game Board represents your progress through the Year. When the Year ends, players pause to assess their progress. The first player to enter the start area moves to the leftmost available position, which means they will go first in the next year.
When all players have returned to the start area, the Year ends. If this was the end of Year 4, the Game will immediately end (see Winning the Game). Otherwise, before beginning the next Year:
- Award the prizes for the Michelin Cup. The player with the best Flight Record receives 7 Money, the second-best Record receives 5 Money, and the rest of the player(s) receive 4 Money. Ties are won by the earliest player to achieve that Record. Players who have not flown will always receive 4 Money.
- Advance the Year Tracker by 1.
- Discard any remaining face-up Friend, Technology, and Skill Cards and replace them with new cards from their respective decks. If one of these decks ever runs out, shuffle its discarded cards and make a new deck.
- Players reset any exhausted cards, to be used in the next Year.
Example: Sami, Crystal, and Asher are about to end a Year. Since Asher is behind the others, he moves next. He doesn't have enough Money to pay for a Skill Card, so he jumps ahead to the leftmost available starting space for the next year. He will have the first turn in the next Year.
Winning the Game
The game will end when any player sets a record of at least 40, or after the 4th Year. (The majority of games are likely to end by a 40+ record during Year 3.) In either circumstance, all players take one final Fly Action (including the player who first surpassed 40, if applicable). After all players have taken a final Flight, the player with the greatest Flight Record is the winner!
In the case of a tie, if one of the tying players triggered the end of the game (by being the first to set a record of at least 40), they are the winner. Otherwise, the victory is shared.
2-Player Rules
The 2-player game is played almost identically, with the inclusion of an extra Player Pawn representing Gustave, who will provide additional interference and competition.
During Setup, include a Flight Tracker and Player Pawn for Gustave. Set Gustave's Pilot Card near the Game Board as a reminder, using either the Standard side or Advanced side (for experienced players). Gustave does not need or use a Player Mat, Flight Cards, or Coins.
On each of Gustave's turns (when his Pawn is last in order), he will move to the next available Action Space. Gustave will take his turn depending on his Action Space:
- On a Fly Action or Any Action: Increase Gustave's Record by either 3 (in a Standard Game) or 4 (Advanced Game).
- On a Development Card Action, remove the bottommost card of a matching type if any are left (he takes Technology Cards over Friend Cards). Place the chosen card next to Gustave's Pilot Card. (Some game abilities may interact with these effects, such as Thérèse Peltier's ability.)
- On other Action Spaces, he takes no action.
If it is still his turn, he will continue moving to the next available Action Space until it is no longer his turn or the Year ends.
At the end of each Year, before awarding the Michelin Cup, increase Gustave's Record by 4 (Standard Game) or 6 (Advanced Game). He then competes as normal for the Michelin Cup, although he does not receive Coins.
If Gustave reaches a distance of 40, including during the end of the Year, he triggers the end of the game. At the end of the game, Gustave will Fly (increase his Flight Record as if taking a Fly Action) one final time. If Gustave ends the game with the highest Flight Record, he wins the game, and the human players may only compete for 2nd place.
Rules Clarifications
General
- You may only do an Action once, even if you have the resources to do so multiple times. For example, you cannot take a Repair action and pay extra to remove 2 Design Flaws.
- Coins are unlimited; use a substitute if they run out. All Card types are limited by the supply, which may restrict which actions players can take. For example, you cannot take an Upgrade Action if the Design Flaws have run out.
- You may activate Skill Cards and other abilities as soon as you begin Flying. You must draw at least 1 Flight Card before you can play your Descend Card.
- After you play your Descend Card, you may no longer use Skill Cards or any exhaust abilities. Experience Cards, Technology Cards, and other abilities that don't exhaust work normally. After Descending, you must draw 2 Cards from your deck (unless you Crash). Effects such as Experience Cards that add Cards to your Flight directly do not count toward these 2 draws.
- You may not use an Action Space occupied by another player, even if they have Crashed.
- Players do not reset exhausted Pilot or Friend Cards before the final Flight of the game, no matter how it is triggered. If you have an ability you wish to use on your final Flight, remember to save it.
Pilot Cards
- If Santos-Dumont Crashes and becomes Famous, he may still take Any Action as his Fame bonus, even while his Pilot Pawn is lying down.
- Louis Blériot's 2nd ability affects any Skills that say "Look at the top X Cards...", increasing X.
- Samuel Langley may choose from among extra cards when gaining one for any reason (the Upgrade Action, Repairing a Power Failure, Wheeled Landing Gear, etc.).
- Thérèse Peltier copies the chosen ability, including costs. It does not exhaust the copied card.
- Lilian Todd's ability may only copy Actions back to the starting spaces and ignores Time Spaces.
- The Wright Brothers receive their benefit whenever they move their Flight Tracker, including for their first Flight of the game.
Design Flaws
- Pitch Instability requires you to immediately exhaust a Skill Card (without using it or gaining any benefit) or Descend. If you have already Descended, nothing happens.
- Multiple copies of Power Failure will affect multiple Upgrade Cards.
- After drawing Unreliable Elevator Control, check the next card added to your Flight and Scrap it if it's a Glide Card. This Design Flaw has no effect if the next Card is any other type: Problem, Upgrade, Experience, or your Descend Card.
- You only gain new Design Flaws when taking the Upgrade Action. Other abilities that give you an Upgrade Card do not give you a Design Flaw.
Development Cards
- Katharine Wright may share the "Any" action and may select a different action from the one that player selected. Using her ability places your Pilot Pawn in front of theirs.
- Edith Berg allows you to move to an Action Space you couldn't normally afford.
- Paul Dunbar cannot reduce a cost below 0 (you cannot move backward).
- Practice Makes Perfect and Tilt the Canard only check the most recent cards in your Flight (row of Flight Cards). It does not matter how they were played or how cards were drawn.
- Skills and other exhaust abilities exhaust when used. If they are exhausted by other effects they cannot be used, and if they are copied or reset, they could be used repeatedly.
Biographies
Aida de Acosta (1884-1962) – A wealthy New York socialite and eventual eye care advocate, Acosta became the first woman to pilot a power aircraft solo. While in Paris, she was enchanted with Santos-Dumont's dirigibles and asked him to teach her how to fly. On June 29, 1903, having thrice practiced on the ground, she took the helm and rode over the City of Lights for fifteen minutes in his No9. The ensuing scandal led her family to pressure journalists to hide her identity, lest she be spurned by Victorian suitors taken aback by such a brazen bachelorette.
Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) – An avid inventor of more than the telephone, Bell made several important contributions to aviation's development like the use of ailerons. Starting with tetrahedral kites and graduating to gliders and powered aircraft, Bell and his team won the Scientific American Cup in 1908 for flying more than a kilometer.
Edith Berg (? - 1949) – An actress and eventual spouse of Hart Berg, the Wright Brothers' business partner, Edith Berg became the first American woman to be an airplane passenger. She rode with Wilbur on a flight in France in October 1908. On the flight, Berg wrapped her skirt with a rope to ensure her modesty. A French fashion designer and witness to Berg's ride was inspired by her attire, thus launching a fashion trend known as the hobble skirt.
Hart O. Berg (1865-1941) – A shrewd businessman and the Wright's agent in Europe, Berg promoted their flyers in France and Germany starting in 1907. He arranged for performance trials at Le Mans in 1908 that catapulted the American brothers to fame across the Atlantic and eventually resulted in lucrative contracts with foreign governments.
Louis Blériot (1872-1936) – A French aviator and manufacturer, in 1909, Blériot was the first person to fly over the English Channel, close on the heels of Latham's failed attempt. Having won the Daily Mail's prize, he also won contracts from worldwide governments eager to found air forces. After overcoming safety concerns, his biplanes battled in the skies during the Great War.
Léon Bollée (1870-1913) – A French inventor and car manufacturer, Bollée invited the Wright brothers to use his automobile factory and mechanics in Le Mans in 1908. The nearby race track would be the venue where the Wrights' international fame was launched.
Octave Chanute (1832-1910) – A civil engineer and aviation pioneer, Chanute made several important advancements in the study of aerodynamics. He widely gathered and shared findings of the burgeoning field of aeronautics. At great personal risk, Chanute and his assistants flew gliders in the Indiana Dunes in 1896. His trussed wing design provided great strength with little weight and informed the Wrights' plans, whom he befriended before their ultimate success.
Bessie Coleman (1892-1926) – A pioneering aviatrix, Coleman found American flight schools unwilling to train either women or Black people. Undeterred, she took a second job to save money, learned French, and moved to Paris to learn to fly. In 1921, she became the first African American woman to earn a pilot's license. From biplanes, she performed daring stunts before awestruck audiences and, with her elevated stature, she championed Black rights.
Glenn Curtiss (1878-1930) – An ingenious daredevil, Curtiss designed and operated motorcycle engines that broke speed records. After taking flight in 1907, Curtiss turned his attention to aviation and teamed up with Alexander Graham Bell's Aerial Experiment Association to eventually power and pilot airplanes. A Scientific American trophy winner and eventual manufacturer, Curtiss and company progressed flight through the development of ailerons, tricycle landing gear, and liquid-cooled engines.
Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906) – A poet, novelist, and short story writer, Dunbar was classmates with Orville Wright at Central High School in Dayton, Ohio. Dunbar and the Wrights would go on to be mutually supportive as each embarked on prodigious, unlikely careers. Dunbar first achieved national acclaim with his dialectic poetry that chronicled the Black experience in America. His tragic and complicated life was cut short by tuberculosis and ensuing struggles with mental illness and alcoholism.
Charley Furnas (1880-1941) – A mechanic whose interest was piqued by the Wright Brothers' experiments with flight, Furnas became the world's first airplane passenger in May of 1908. Having earned their trust and traveled to Kitty Hawk, he joined Wilbur on the Flyer 3 for an 800-foot flight and later accompanied Orville on a two-mile trip.
Samuel Langley (1834-1906) – An astronomer and inventor who became enamored with aerodynamics, Langley developed a series of flying machines. Refining unmanned models powered by steam engines, Langley's Aerodrome No. 5 took the first powered, heavier-than-air sustained flight by soaring over the Potomac River in 1896. Subsequent, larger iterations might have beaten the Wrights' timing — if only they could fly. Sadly, both attempts catapulted into the waterway in 1903.
Hubert Latham (1883-1912) – A French aviator, Latham crossed the English Channel in a balloon in 1905. Setting his sights on fame and prize money, he made several attempts to repeat his feat in an airplane. On two occasions, the engine on his Antoinette IV monoplane failed and he went down at sea. While he was ultimately unsuccessful, Latham is credited with smoking the first cigarette in flight and making the first water landing.
Charles M. Manly (1876-1927) – A mechanic who helped design and create Samuel Langley's engines, Manly's five-cylinder radial engine produced a record-setting power-to-weight ratio at a time when powered flight was beginning to take off. The engineer twice tried to pilot Langley's aerodrome from a launch atop a houseboat on the Potomac River in 1903. Both attempts ended with the machine and its helmsman submerged in water.
Thérèse Peltier (1873-1926) – A sculptor with an adventurous streak, Peltier absorbed her era's zest for aviation. In 1908, she became the first woman passenger aboard an airplane when she joined her friend, Ferdinand Léon Delagrange on a flight in Italy. After two months of training, she flew solo. She continued to fly until 1910 when she abandoned flight after her friend, Delagrange, died piloting a Blériot XI monoplane.
Alberto Santos-Dumont (1873-1932) – An eccentric Brazilian aeronaut and heir to a coffee empire, Santos-Dumont experimented with lighter-than-air flight at the turn of the 20th century. Having wowed crowds in Paris with his dirigibles, he piloted the 14-bis for the first publicly viewed powered flight in 1906.
Shivkar Bapuji Talpade (1864-1916) – An art instructor, Sanskrit scholar, and early aviation enthusiast, Talpade claimed to have designed and flown an unmanned heavier-than-air plane in 1895–beating Langley by a year. Corroborating evidence to support his account is lacking, as is confidence in his designs.
E. Lilian Todd (1865-1937) – A folk inventor, in 1906 she became the first woman to design a functional airplane. Later, she was the first woman known to apply for a pilot's license (and be rejected), leaving her design to be flown by a male associate in 1910.
Gustave Whitehead (1874-1927) – A Bavarian-born mechanic and aeronautical enthusiast, Whitehead experimented extensively with gliders, kites, and unmanned crafts throughout the late 19th century. His place in history rests chiefly upon a newspaper article from the Bridgeport Herald that alleged Whitehead flew his Number 21 airplane for more than 800 feet in 1901–beating the Wrights by two years. Alas, subsequent intellectual property lawsuits found corroborating evidence of Whitehead's achievements lacking, and subsequent review of his designs resulted in further skepticism.
Katharine Wright (1874-1929) – A high school teacher, suffragette, and younger sister to the Wright brothers, Katharine managed the bicycle shop while Orville and Wilbur were away perfecting their flyers. In 1909, she accompanied her brothers to Europe and cavorted with the rich and famous as the Wrights became the talk of the continent. In addition to providing lifelong moral and emotional support to her monomaniacal brothers, Katharine helped run the Wright Company.
Orville Wright (1871–1948) and Wilbur Wright (1867–1912) – Businessmen, engineers, and dogged inventors, the Wright Brothers leapt from bicycle salesmen to first place in the race for heavier-than-air flight. The methodical experimentation and pooled genius resulted in several advancements that culminated in an 852-foot journey over the sand of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina in 1903.
Credits
Design: Ben Rosset & Matthew O'Malley — Solo Design: Richard Wilkins
Development: Steve Schlepphorst, John Coveyou, Daniel Dávalos, & Alara Cameron
Art & Graphic Design: Tomasz Bogusz, Amelia Sales, Sarah Lafser, & Sarah Jane Matt
3D Modeling: Sarah Lafser — Insert Design: Matt Healey — Box Back: Jeffrey Barr
Rulebook: Steve Schlepphorst & Jonathan Leggo — Research: Matthew Ritter
Production and Editing: Bailey Preib, Sarah Jane Matt, Justin Forest, & Andreas Boehm
Quick Reference
Gameplay and Costs
- The player farthest behind takes the next turn.
- A player with a standing Pilot Pawn moves to any unoccupied Action Space, pays any costs in Money or Time, and takes the Action.
- Costs in Money are paid with Coins. Costs in Time are paid by advancing your Pilot Pawn the indicated number of Time Spaces. If you end this movement on an occupied Time Space, go in front of the other Pawn(s) on that space.
- A player with a Pawn lying down must take a Recover Action for their turn.
- Players continue taking turns until all players have returned to the start area, ending the Year.
- At the End of each Year, award Michelin Cup prizes based on Flight Records, discard and replenish Development Cards, and refresh exhausted Pilots and Friends.
Actions
Fly Action:
- Shuffle your Flight Cards (including Design Flaws from your Garage). Reset any Skill Cards.
- Draw Flight Cards, one at a time. You may activate Skills and other exhaust abilities.
- You will Crash immediately if you draw 4 Problems: end your Flight and lay your Pawn on its side (you must Recover next turn).
- Play your Descend Card to end your Flight: shuffle your remaining Cards and draw 2. Exhaust abilities may not be used.
- Calculate your Flight Distance and update your Flight Record Tracker.
- Set aside your Descend Card, move Design Flaws to your Garage, and return other Cards to your deck.
Recover Action: If your Pilot Pawn is lying down, you must pay 2 Time to stand it up.
Other Actions:
- Repair: Replace a Design Flaw on your Garage with a Basic Flight Problem and gain the Design Flaw bonus.
- Upgrade: Look at the top X Upgrade Cards, gain 2, shuffle the rest back, and gain a Design Flaw. (X is the Money/Time paid, minimum 2.)
- Development Card: Purchase the Card indicated, either a face-up option or from the deck.
- Funding: Take the Coins shown.
- Any: Take Any Action.
Icons
Card Types: Glide Card, Problem Card, Friend Card (Once per Year), Upgrade Card, Descend Card, Tech Card (Ongoing), Experience Card, Exhaust, Skill Card (Once per Flight), Scrap (permanently remove a card from your Flight), Gain a Card to your Flight (if Flying) or your deck or play area.
General Icons: Coins / Money, Time, Distance, Problem, Famous, Michelin Cup (the end of Year reward), Pilot Pawn, Pilot Pawn when Crashing, Pilot Pawn when Recovering.