Godspeed Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• The Nations of Minos
  • USA
  • Japan
  • Soviet Union
  • European Nations
  • India
• Components
• Game Setup
  • Play Area
  • Set Up Nation Board and Pieces
  • Prepare the High Council Deck
  • Prepare the Supply Deck
  • Deal Starting Cards
  • Select a Start Player
• Gameplay
  • Game Objective
  • Assigning Team Members
  • Round Overview
• Phase 01: High Council
  • Basic Resources & Rovers
• Phase 02: Supply Depot
  • Step 1: Prepare the Auction
  • Step 2: Decide Bids
  • Step 3: Reveal Bids & Choose Deliveries
  • Step 4: Clean Up
  • Claiming the First Player Token
  • Claiming a Relic Plan
• Phase 03: Actions
  • Taking Actions
  • Available Actions
    • Defense Actions
    • Commerce Actions
    • Infrastructure Actions
    • Exploration Actions
    • Government Actions
    • Scrap Yard
  • Development Cards
  • Assistant Cards
  • Production Buildings
  • Special Abilities
• Phase 04: Resolution
  • Step 1: Relic Bonuses
  • Step 2: Resolution Bonuses
  • Step 3: Production
  • Step 4: Return Team Members
  • Step 5: Pass Auction Tiebreaker
  • End of the Round
• Gaining Global Dominance
  • Prestige
  • Mastering a Prestige Track
  • Prestige Scoring
  • Civilization Milestones
  • Lunar Season
• Relics
  • Relic Powers
• Game End
  • Victory Points
• 2-Player Variant
  • Optional Dummy Pawns
  • Blockers
• Advanced Rules
  • A. Random Victory Decree Variant
  • B. Fixed Victory Decree Variant
• Credits

The Nations of Minos

USA

The Americans are one of the best funded of the operations on Minos.

With substantial public support behind not only the Space Race but in combating the Soviet influence, the fear of Congress questioning the budgets is nonexistent.

The financial strength of the post-WW2 economy gives the American's a leg up on the economies of other nations.

Japan

No one's sure exactly when the Japanese arrived on Minos, or how they managed to get there. No one from the Japanese team is forthcoming with the information.

The Japanese have a unique understanding of the XenoRelics that is far superior to the other nations. Another part of the secretive operation.

Soviet Union

The Soviets are believed to be the first nation to arrive on Minos. Their rocket propulsion technology is far superior to that of any of the other nations on the Exoplanet.

Their strong central government and control of the flow of information has given them a strong leg up on the rest of the teams when it comes to militarization of Minos.

Though the Americans and European Nations have condemned this activity, they are likewise building their own weapons systems.

European Nations

The European Nations are on a unique potential path towards world peace. At war with each other less than 30 years ago, the French and Germans have worked together to forge an Alliance of free-market economies following WW2.

When it comes to mass production, they may have lost ground to the Americans back on Earth, but their commitment to Minos is second to none.

India

The Indian expedition to Minos is fascinating for many reasons. Having only recently won their independence from the British Empire, their arrival came as a surprise to the other nations.

Backed by wealthy private investors, the Indian Space Agency is something of a wild-card on Minos. Of the agencies that have thus far arrived, they are most aligned with the Soviets.

Components

• 1 game board
• 25 production building tiles (5 per player): Fortress, Warehouse, Relic, BioCorps, XenoLab
• 5 nation boards
• 25 team members (5 per player)
• 20 prestige scoring markers (4 per player)
• 1 round marker
• 1 first player token
• 1 tiebreaker marker
• Resources — credits and lithonium
• 200 resources (40 of each type) — munitions, tech, and rovers
• 7 milestone statues
• 8 relic power tiles
• 20 flag scoring markers (4 per player) — USA, JPN, EUR, IND, USSR
• 144 development cards (36 Defense, 36 Commerce, 36 Infrastructure, and 36 Exploration)
• 10 initial objective cards
• 25 High Council cards
• 8 cargo hold cards
• 62 supply cards
• 12 lunar season cards
• Score pads
• 5 reference cards

Game Setup

2 Player Rules: Additional rules for the 2-player variant are provided on pg 20.

Play Area

1. Place the game board within reach of every player.
2. Place the Round Marker on the 1 space on the top left of the board.
3. Separate the Lunar Season cards by Lunar Season (shown on card back) and randomly select 1 card for each of the 3 Seasons. Place each card face-up in the Lunar Season Scoring Area of the game board. Return the unused cards to the game box.
4. Shuffle each of the 4 Development Decks and place them face-down on the matching action spaces.
5. Place the 5 resource types in separate piles near the board, within reach of all players.
6. Place a Milestone statue on each of the 7 spaces for them.
7. Place all Relic Power Tiles face-up next to the board.

Set Up Nation Board and Pieces

Each player chooses 1 of the available Nations and takes the associated player pieces:

8. 1 Nation Board
9. 5 Team Members (1 of each type)
10. 4 Flag tokens
11. 4 Prestige Markers
    • Each player places 1 of their prestige markers on each of the Prestige Tracks, on the "Start" space.
12. 4 Production Building Tiles (1 of each type) and 1 Relic Tile.
    • Each Nation starts with 1 Production Building already built. Place your starting Production Building Tile at the top of the sun slot on your Nation Board. Place the remaining Production Buildings and Relic near your play area.

Prepare the High Council Deck

13. Separate the High Council cards into 5 stacks by Team Member specialty: Trader, Captain, Biologist, Engineer, Ambassador.
14. Shuffle each stack and deal 2 cards face-down from each.
15. Return the remaining High Council Cards to the box.
16. Shuffle the 10 selected cards into a single deck and place it face-down in the High Council Area.

Prepare the Supply Deck

17. Separate out the Supply Cards with the correct player count on the back. Return all cards for other player counts to the game box.
18. In your first game, remove all of the Third Lunar Season Cards titled "Victory Decree." These should be used for advanced players only.
19. Separate the remaining Supply Cards into 4 stacks: First Lunar Season Cards, Second Lunar Season Cards, Third Lunar Season Cards, and Relic Power Cards (marked with purple border). Shuffle each stack separately, then stack them together in the following order:
    • A. First Lunar Season stack (top)
    • B. Second Lunar Season stack
    • C. Relic Power stack
    • D. Third Lunar Season stack (bottom)
20. Place the Supply Deck in the Supply Depot Area of the game board. (Do not shuffle this deck!)

Deal Starting Cards

21. Shuffle the Initial Objective Cards and deal 1 to each player. This card should be kept hidden in your hand. Return any unused Initial Objective Cards to the game box. If a player's Initial Objective matches their pre-built Production Building, discard the Initial Objective and draw another.
22. Find the Cargo Hold Card with the Tiebreaker marker on it. (This must be included in every game.) Randomly select 1 fewer Starting Supply Cards than the number of players. Shuffle the Tiebreaker card into these cards, then deal 1 to each player. Return the unused Cargo Hold Cards to the game box.
23. Each player reveals their Cargo Hold Card and takes the starting resources shown. Give the Tiebreaker marker to the player with the Tiebreaker card.

Select a Start Player

24. Use Chwazi or fight with each other in a leg wrestling tournament to choose an initial start player.

Gameplay

Game Objective

Godspeed is an Exoplanet colonization game where various Nations exploit the natural resources of the newly found planet Minos in the shadow of the Cold War.

The player who best establishes their foothold on the new planet will win the game. Godspeed is played over 10 rounds as indicated by the Round Marker.

At the end of the final round, each Nation counts up Victory Points they have earned from their position on the Prestige Tracks, their Civilization Milestones, Lunar Season Scoring, and other bonuses they have earned. The Nation with the most VPs is the winner.

Assigning Team Members

Each Nation has 5 Team Members that can be assigned to various tasks each round. Each Team Member has a different specialty and influence value, which together determine the kinds of tasks they may be assigned to.

The five Team Members are: Captain, Trader, Engineer, Biologist, and Ambassador. Each Team Member card shows its name, specialty, and influence value.

IMPORTANT: The most important rule of the game is that when a Team Member is assigned to a task in any Phase, they are assigned there for the rest of the round. They may not be assigned again until the next round.

Round Overview

Godspeed is played over 10 rounds. Each round has 4 Phases:

Phase 01: High Council — A High Council Card is revealed, presenting a new challenge and opportunity for every Nation.

Phase 02: Supply Depot — Nations bid for First Player status as well as precious resources and special abilities that will help them accomplish their mission.

Phase 03: Actions — Nations send their Team Members to take unique actions and complete Developments.

Phase 04: Resolution — Nations produce resources and take back their Team Members for the next round.

Phase 01: High Council

In the High Council Phase, Nations convene to decide how they will respond to an event occurring back on Earth or on the Exoplanet.

The First Player reveals the top card of the High Council Deck, reads the text aloud, and places the card face-up next to the deck (covering the previous round's High Council Card, if there is one). Nations may then negotiate and individually decide whether to respond to the event.

A. Each High Council Card shows a Team Member with a specific specialty in the center of the card. If you decide to respond to the event, you must assign your matching Team Member by placing it below the card. If you decide to ignore the event, instead keep your Team Member.

During this Phase, Nations may announce decisions in any order, and any Nation may freely change their decision until the Phase ends. (If you placed your Team Member, and you change your decision, you may take it back.)

After all Nations have committed to a decision, the event is resolved:

B. Any Nation that ignored the event receives the penalty on the card.

C. If (and only if) all Nations responded to the event, everyone immediately gains the bonus on the card.

IMPORTANT: Nations may not exchange resources as part of the negotiation.

REMEMBER: Once you have assigned a Team Member, you cannot use them again until the next round!

EXAMPLE: In a 3-player game, Indira has the First Player token. She reveals the Council Card below: "On Site Security — Build some outposts in the field so our sentries can spend more time doing what they are trained to do and less time in transport pods." The event requires an Engineer. Indira and John both decide to assign their Engineer to the event, to avoid the penalty of −1 Defense. They try to convince Leonid to send his Engineer as well. If he does, that will mean all 3 Nations have responded to the event, so everyone will receive the reward of 1 Tech.

However, Leonid is planning to use his Engineer for an important action later in the round, so he announces that he will ignore the event. As a penalty, he must move his Nation marker on the Defense Prestige Track down 1 space. Indira and John are safe, but gain no bonus.

Basic Resources & Rovers

The 4 basic resources are Munitions, Credits, Tech, and Lithonium.

Rovers acts as a "wild" resource and may be spent as any type of basic resource. It is not a basic resource, and may only be gained by taking the Diplomacy action, or by completing certain Development Cards.

You may never give your resources (including Rovers) to another player.

Phase 02: Supply Depot

In the Supply Depot Phase, Nations bid on deliveries from Earth that contain valuable supplies.

Step 1: Prepare the Auction

First, place the First Player Token in the designated space in the Supply Depot Area. It will be auctioned off along with the other deliveries.

Then reveal 1 Supply Card per player from the Supply Depot deck. Place each card face-up in one of the open spaces in the Supply Depot Area to represent a delivery from Earth.

(Some spaces will remain empty depending on player count.)

Step 2: Decide Bids

Each Nation secretly decides how much they want to bid by placing Team Members and resources in their closed hand.

To participate in the auction, you must place at least 1 Team Member in your closed hand. Each Team Member you add to your bid increases your bid by their influence value.

You may also add Credit or Rover resources to increase your bid. Each Credit or Rover you add increases your bid by 1.

Other types of resources may not be used in this phase.

Step 3: Reveal Bids & Choose Deliveries

All Nations simultaneously reveal their bid by opening their closed hand. Each Nation that participated in the auction declares their total bid, adding together the resources and the influence values of the Team Members in their hand.

Nations are then ranked in order from highest to lowest bidder. If 2 or more Nations bid the same amount, the tie is broken in clockwise order starting with the Nation who has the Auction Tiebreaker marker.

In order from highest to lowest bidder, each participating Nation claims 1 delivery of their choice (either a Supply Card or the First Player Token) from the Supply Area.

After the lowest bidder chooses, the highest bidder only may take a second delivery from those remaining in the Supply Area.

IMPORTANT: The highest bidder may not take a second delivery if they were involved in a tie for the highest bid.

IMPORTANT: DECLINING TO PARTICIPATE If you do not bid with a Team Member, then you are declining to participate in the auction. This means you may not take a delivery, regardless of the auction outcome. When bids are revealed, any resources that you placed in your hand are returned to you. (If you don't want to bid, it may still be a good idea to pretend to put things in your hand.)

Step 4: Clean Up

Every participating Nation must discard all resources that they bid. All Team Members that were assigned to the auction are placed on the Supply Depot Area (and remain there until the end of the round).

Any unclaimed deliveries are placed in the Supply Depot Area discard pile.

Each participating Nation then takes the supplies shown on their card:

• If your card provides resources, Development Cards, Prestige Points, or a Relic Power Tile, gain these immediately and place the card in the Supply Area discard pile.
• If your card is a Special Ability or Assistant, add it to your hand and keep it until you choose to activate it. (See "Assistants Cards" on pg 15 and "Special Abilities" on pg 16.)
• If your card is a Relic Plan, place it next to your Nation Board. During the Action Phase, you may assign Team Members here to complete your Relic. (See "Relics" on pg 20.)
• If your card awards Victory Points at the end of the game, place it face-up near your Nation Board.

Claiming the First Player Token

The Nation who takes the First Player Token becomes the First Player until the token is auctioned again in the next Supply Depot Phase.

In the first round only, if the First Player Token has not been claimed when the last bidder chooses their delivery, they must take the First Player Token. In subsequent rounds, if the First Player Token is not claimed by anyone, it returns to the Nation who held it before the auction.

EXAMPLE: In the Supply Depot Phase, Indira places the First Player Token in the Supply Area, then deals out 3 Supply Cards (1 per player).

Indira, John, and Leonid all secretly place their bids in hand. When everyone is done deciding, they reveal their bid to be the following:

• John: John bid his Ambassador (7). His total bid is 7.
• Leonid: Leonid bid his Biologist (3) and Engineer (3). His total bid is 6.
• Indira: Indira bid her Engineer (4) and 2 Credits. Her total bid is 6.

All 3 players have decided to participate. Indira and Leonid are tied, but Leonid holds the Auction Tiebreaker marker, so he will go before Indira.

John, with the highest bid, takes the Lab Tech Assistant Card from the Supply Area.

Leonid is next, taking the First Player Token.

Indira, who is last, takes the 1 Development Card and decides to draw an Infrastructure Development Card.

The remaining card is 1 Lithonium, which John takes as his second delivery.

All players place the Team Members they bid in the Supply Area to show they have been assigned for the round. Indira returns the 2 Credits she bid to the supply pile.

Claiming a Relic Plan

You may only ever acquire 1 Relic Plan Card during the game. There is 1 Relic Plan Card per player in the Supply Deck at all player counts, so each Nation has an opportunity to acquire a Relic Plan.

If you already have a Relic Plan and there is another one up for auction, you must choose a different delivery to take. If there is no other choice, instead discard the card and gain +1 Prestige Point on a track of your choice.

Phase 03: Actions

In the Action Phase, Nations assign Team Members to action spaces to take actions and earn Prestige.

Each Nation may take up to 2 actions, one at a time. Starting with the First Player and proceeding in clockwise turn order, each Nation takes one action at a time, until everyone has played twice.

When it is your turn to take an action, you may choose to pass without taking an action. If you are not able to take an action because you do not have any Team Members (or Assistants), you must pass.

Assistants: Lab Tech, Financier, Archivist, Major (single-use specialty substitutes).

NOTE: If you have more than 2 Team Members left in the Action Phase, you will still only get to take 2 actions total (unless you have a Special Ability that grants an extra action).

Taking Actions

Each action space is associated with a specific Team Member specialty. To take an action, you must assign a Team Member with the correct specialty to that action space. Place the Team Member's token on the action space to show they are assigned there.

NOTE: Plan ahead! If you assign a Team Member in the Council Phase or Supply Depot Phase, then you won't be able to use any action spaces that require that Team Member in the Action Phase (unless you have an Assistant with the same specialty — see "Assistant Cards" on pg 15).

Each action space (except the Scrap Yard) can hold a limited number of Team Members. Once an action space is full, no other Nation may assign a Team Member there.

IMPORTANT: In a 2-3 player game, each action space may have 1 Team Member assigned there.

In a 4-5 player game, each action space may have up to 2 Team Members assigned there.

This is represented by the number of spaces for Team Members next to each action space.

EXAMPLE: Leonid took the First Player Token in the Supply Depot Phase. For his first action in the Action Phase, he places his Ambassador on the "Leadership" action space.

It is a 3-player game, so this means the space is now full, and no other player may assign an Ambassador there for the rest of this round. This blocks Indira from using the space, though she could still use her Ambassador for the Diplomacy action. (John, who assigned his Ambassador to the bid in the Supply Depot Phase, could not have used the space even if it was empty.)

Available Actions

There are a total of 11 action spaces. Each Team Member specialty is associated with 2 action spaces. (The 11th space, the Scrap Yard, may be used by any Team Member.)

Defense Actions

The Captain may be assigned to either:

SCAVENGE: Take any 1 Supply Card from the Supply Depot Area discard pile and gain its rewards (see "Supply Depot Phase" on pg 11.)

REMEMBER: You may only ever have 1 Relic Plan Card.

DEFENSE DEVELOPMENT: Draw 3 Defense Development Cards and choose 1 to add to your hand OR complete 1 Defense Development in your hand. SEE: "Development Cards" on pg 15.

Commerce Actions

The Trader may be assigned to either:

RESOURCES: Gain 2 basic resources of your choice. You may take 2 of the same resource or 2 different resources.

NOTE: You may gain any of the 4 basic resources (Munitions, Credits, Tech, or Lithonium), but not Rovers.

COMMERCE DEVELOPMENT: Draw 3 Commerce Development Cards and choose 1 to add to your hand OR complete 1 Commerce Development in your hand. SEE: "Development Cards" on pg 15.

Infrastructure Actions

The Engineer may be assigned to either:

CONSTRUCTION: Build a new Production Building by paying the cost in the space below each slot on your Nation Board. Once paid, place the tile in the open slot. (You will receive resources from this Building in the Resolution Phase.) SEE: "Production Buildings" on pg 16.

INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT: Draw 3 Infrastructure Development Cards and choose 1 to add to your hand OR complete 1 Infrastructure Development Card in your hand. SEE: "Development Cards" on pg 15.

Exploration Actions

The Biologist may be assigned to either:

RESEARCH: Take the top card from any 2 different Development Decks.

EXPLORATION DEVELOPMENT: Draw 3 Exploration Development Cards and choose 1 to add to your hand OR complete 1 Exploration Development in your hand. SEE: "Development Cards" on pg 15.

Government Actions

The Ambassador may be assigned to either:

DIPLOMACY: Take 2 Rover resources, then take the top card from any Development Deck. Every other Nation gains 1 basic resource of their choice.

LEADERSHIP: Complete any 1 Development Card in your hand. (You may not acquire Development Cards with this action.)

Scrap Yard

Any Team Member may be assigned to the Scrap Yard. Unlike other action spaces, it may hold an unlimited number of Team Members.

SCRAP YARD: Gain 1 basic resource of your choice.

TIP: Ideally all of your plans will come to fruition and you will never be out-maneuvered for an action space – but in the event that you're stuck with a Team Member who can't use any of their specialty actions, you can always send them to the Scrap Yard.

EXAMPLE: John places his Biologist token on the "Exploration Development" space, which allows him to acquire or complete Exploration Developments.

He decides to complete a Development from his hand, revealing a card that costs 2 Credits, 2 Munitions, and 1 Tech.

John returns these resources to the supply piles and places the card beside his Nation Board.

He gains +2 Prestige on the Exploration Track.

He also gains an Immediate Bonus of +1 Prestige on the Defense Track for each player who has fewer Munitions than he does. He has 1 Munitions remaining, while the other 2 players have none, so he gains +2 Prestige on the Defense Track.

Development Cards

Some action spaces allow you to draw new Development Cards from one or more Development Decks, or complete Development Cards in order to gain rewards.

ACQUIRING A DEVELOPMENT CARD:

When you acquire a Development, add it to your hand and keep it hidden from other players until you complete it.

If you drew multiple cards and chose 1, place the remaining cards face-up in the discard pile next to the deck you drew from.

COMPLETING A DEVELOPMENT CARD:

When you complete a Development, reveal the card from your hand, then spend the resources shown at the top of the card and place it face-up next to your Nation Board.

Gain the rewards shown at the bottom of the card:

• If the Development provides resources or Prestige Points, gain these immediately.
• If it provides an Immediate Bonus, activate this immediately.
• If it provides a Resolution Bonus or Council Bonus, place it next to your Nation Board and activate it in the indicated Phase. (These Bonuses are only provided by Infrastructure Developments.)

NOTE: Unless you are using a reward or special ability, it always takes an action to complete a Development. Action spaces allow you to acquire or complete a card, not both.

EXAMPLE: John plays the Lab Tech Assistant from his hand as his second action. This allows him to use the "Exploration Development" action space again, even though he assigned his Biologist there earlier this round!

He decides to complete another Exploration Development from his hand, paying 2 Credits and 1 Munition to gain +1 Exploration and +1 Defense.

Assistant Cards

Assistants can be acquired during the Supply Depot Phase to help your Team Members with their work.

On your turn during the Action Phase, you may choose to assign an Assistant from your hand instead of a Team Member.

Like Team Members, Assistants have specialties and can only take actions matching their specialty. When you assign an Assistant, place their card on the action space, as you would a Team Member.

Unlike Team Members, Assistants may be assigned to an action space even if it is full. Once played, an Assistant counts towards an action space's Team Member limit, so it may prevent other Nations from placing there.

IMPORTANT: Each Assistant may only be used once per game. During the Resolution Phase, all used Assistants are removed from the game (rather than placed in the discard pile).

TIP: Use your Assistants strategically. When making plans for the round, remember that an Assistant can take one of your 2 actions in the Action Phase, which frees up a Team Member to be assigned to a Council Phase event or Supply Depot Phase auction.

Production Buildings

The "Production" action allows players to complete any of the remaining production buildings on their Nation Board.

To complete a Production Building, use the Construction action and spend the resources shown underneath the matching slot on your Nation Board. Then place the Production Building Tile into the slot above the cost. For example, the Xenolab can be built for 1 Credit, 1 Lithonium, and 1 Tech.

At the end of each round, each Production Building produces 1 of the resource shown underneath the cost for the Production Building. In the case of the Xenolab, one Lithonium.

NOTE: You may only construct one of each type of Production Building.

The 5 Production Building types are: Fortress, Warehouse, Relic, BioCorps, and Xenolab.

EXAMPLE: The Xenolab can be built for 1 Credit, 1 Lithonium, and 1 Tech.

EXAMPLE: The Xenolab produces 1 Lithonium.

Special Abilities

Special Ability Cards are gained in the Supply Depot Phase and may be activated once, at the time indicated on the card (without taking an action). After you use a Special Ability Card, place it in the Supply Depot Area discard pile.

TWO AT A TIME: Play this on your turn during the Action Phase to take both of your actions for the round, one after another. You must still have 2 actions remaining in order to play this card (it does not grant an extra action).

EXTRA ACTION: Play this at any time during the Action Phase to grant yourself another action after the last Nation in turn order takes their second action. You must have a Team Member (or Assistant) available to take the action. (You may combine this card with "Two At a Time" to take 2 actions on your second turn.)

MEET THE NEED: Play this during the High Council Phase to successfully respond to an event without assigning a Team Member.

Phase 04: Resolution

In the Resolution Phase, Nations produce new resources and return their Team Members home to rest. Starting with the First Player and proceeding clockwise, each player performs the following resolution steps:

Step 1: Relic Bonuses

If your Nation has completed a Relic, you gain +1 Prestige Point on the indicated track.

If you have completed a Relic AND you have a Relic Power Tile that activates in the Resolution Phase, you may use it now.

Step 2: Resolution Bonuses

If you have completed one or more Infrastructure Development Cards that provide Resolution Bonuses, you may activate them.

Step 3: Production

Each of your completed Production Buildings produces resources. Take the corresponding resources from the supply pile.

Step 4: Return Team Members

Take all 5 of your Team Members back from the board. Remove any used Assistants from the game.

Step 5: Pass Auction Tiebreaker

After the last player returns their Team Members, pass the Auction Tiebreaker marker to the next player in clockwise order.

IMPORTANT: During the Resolution Phase, turn order may determine which player is first to earn a Civilization Milestone or reach the top of a Prestige Track.

EXAMPLE: Leonid has the First Player token, so he is first to perform his Resolution Phase. He has not yet completed his Relic and has no Developments that provide Resolution Bonuses, but he has built 3 of his 4 Production Buildings.

He gains 1 Credit from his Warehouse, 1 Lithonium from his Xenolab, and 1 Tech from his Biocorps.

Indira is to his left, so she resolves next.

End of the Round

If this is the 10th round the game ends and each Nation counts up their Victory Points to determine the winner. (See "Victory Points" on pg 21.)

If this is not the 10th round, advance the Round Marker forward on the Round Track, then begin the next round with the Council Phase.

Gaining Global Dominance

Prestige

Each Nation may gain Prestige on 4 tracks, corresponding to the 4 Development areas: Defense, Commerce, Infrastructure, and Exploration. Most of the time, you will gain Prestige as a result of completing Developments.

Whenever you gain Prestige Points, move your Nation marker up the indicated number of spaces on the indicated track. (If you are instructed to move up on a track of your choice, you may choose any of the 4 tracks.)

If your prestige reaches or surpasses a starburst icon by advancing up the track, Immediately take 1 basic resource of your choice.

NOTE: You do not gain the bonus if you lose prestige causing you to reach or pass a starburst icon. You may gain the bonus if you subsequently reach or exceed to starburst later by advancing up the track.

Nations may lose Prestige Points, primarily by ignoring events. When you lose Prestige, move your Nation marker down the indicated number of spaces on the track.

IMPORTANT: Any time you would gain Prestige but cannot move further up a track, you instead gain 1 basic resource of your choice.

Mastering a Prestige Track

The first Nation to occupy the highest (12th) space on a Prestige Track has mastered that track.

Once a Nation has mastered a track, no other Nation may progress to the 12th space of that track (unless the master Nation loses Prestige and vacates the highest space).

Prestige Scoring

At the end of the game, Nations score Victory Points based on their ranking on each Prestige Track:

1. The highest Nation on each track scores 8 VP
2. The second-highest Nation on each track scores 4 VP
3. The third-highest Nation on each track scores 2 VP

If two or more Nations are tied on a track, split the points evenly between the them (rounding up). For example, if two Nations are tied for highest, they receive 6 VP each (8 VP for highest plus 4 VP for second-highest divided by 2).

IMPORTANT: In order to be eligible to receive Victory Points based on your ranking, you must be above the "Start" space at the end of the game. Any Nation that is at or below the "Start" space at the end of the game gains no VP for their ranking. Nations below the "Start" space additionally lose the VP shown on the space they occupy.

Civilization Milestones

There are 7 Civilization Milestones that serve notice to the rest of the planet that your Nation's influence is growing.

Each Milestone is claimed by the first Nation to achieve it and is worth 4 VP at the end of the game. When you complete a Milestone, immediately take the Milestone Statue and place it on your Nation Board. No other Nation may achieve this Milestone.

1. First to complete 3 Commerce Development Cards
2. First to complete 3 Defense Development Cards
3. First to master any Prestige Track
4. First to complete 3 Infrastructure Development Cards
5. First to complete 3 Exploration Development Cards
6. First to complete 1 Development Card of all 4 types
7. First to build all 4 Production Building Tiles

IMPORTANT: Once you have earned a Milestone, you cannot lose it by any means. This includes mastering a Prestige Track – if you later vacate that space, you keep the Milestone.

Lunar Season

In each Lunar Season, you can complete an extra strategic goal for bonus VP.

Each Lunar Season Scoring card you complete is worth 3 VP. Unlike Milestones, each Nation can complete each Lunar Season Scoring card once.

To complete a Lunar Season Scoring card, you must complete all requirements for the bonus before the Lunar Season ends. When you complete the requirements, place one of your Lunar Season Scoring Flags on the tile.

EXPANSIONIST: Any agency that completes BOTH a Defense and an Exploration card this season receives: +3 VP.

PROGRESSIVIST: Any agency that completes BOTH an Infrastructure and an Exploration card this season receives: +3 VP.

Lunar Season 1 takes place over Rounds 1-3 of the game, Season 2 takes place over rounds 4-6 and Lunar Season 3 takes place over rounds 7-10. The Round track will indicate which round you are on, and will also indicate which Lunar Season Card is active.

NOTE: Some Lunar Season Scoring cards require you to complete Development Cards during the Lunar Season. In these cases cards completed prior to the beginning of the Lunar Season do not count towards the goal.

Relics

Each Nation may build an ancient XenoRelic that provides Prestige at the end of each round and activates potent Relic Powers.

To build your Relic, you must first acquire a Relic Plan Card. If you have a Relic Plan, you may use an action during the Action Phase to assign the indicated number of Team Members to complete it.

Place the Relic Tile in the Relic slot of your Nation Board to show it is complete.

Once your Relic is completed, in every Resolution Phase you gain +1 Prestige Point towards a specific track indicated on your Nation Board.

Completed Relics also allow you to use the Relic Power Tiles (once acquired).

IMPORTANT: Building a Relic on your Nation Board does not gain you a Relic Power. Relic Powers must be acquired separately in the Supply Depot Phase.

Relic Powers

Relic Power Tiles enter the game in the first Supply Depot Phase of the 3rd Lunar Season (Round 7).

When you acquire a Relic Power Card, immediately choose 1 of the available Relic Power Tiles and place it on the Relic space of your Nation Board.

If you have completed your Relic, you gain both your Relic Bonus and Relic Power. You may acquire a Relic Power Tile before you complete your Relic, but it does not activate until your Relic is completed.

IMPORTANT: Before a Relic Power Tile can be activated, you must have a Relic built on your Nation Board.

Gamma Chamber: In each Resolution Phase, you may trade any 2 resources to gain +1 Prestige on any track, up to 2 times. The resources you trade do not have to match.

Hyperspeed: Once per round, when you complete a Development, you may immediately complete another Development of any type. You must still pay the cost of the second Development.

Stargate: You may place Team Members on action spaces that are full.

Sun Stone: Whenever you complete a Development, spend 1 less resource of your choice.

Stellar Codex: Each time you complete a Development, gain +1 Prestige on any track.

Treasure: In each Resolution Phase, gain 1 of each basic resource.

Moon Stone: In each Supply Depot Phase, you have +4 to your bid. You must still send a Team Member to participate in the auction.

Scepter of the Ancients: Gain 3 VP at the end of the game.

IMPORTANT: You may have only 1 Relic Power active at any time. If you gain an additional Relic Power Tile, you must immediately choose either your currently active Relic Power or the new Relic Power to remain active. Place the Power Tile you did not choose face-down near your Nation Board to show it is inactive. Each "extra" Relic Power Tile at the end of the game is worth a bonus 1VP if you have completed your Relic.

Game End

When the Round Marker reaches the 10th space on the Round Track, this signals the last round of the game.

Victory Points

At the end of the game, each Nation totals up their Victory Points. Use the score pad to total the following:

• 8 VP per 1st place on Prestige Tracks
• 4 VP per 2nd place on Prestige Tracks
• 2 VP per 3rd place on Prestige Tracks
• −1 VP/−2 VP per Prestige Track where you are below "Start"
• 4 VP per completed Civilization Milestone
• 3 VP per completed Lunar Season Scoring tile
• Bonus VP for Artifacts, Special Objective Cards, or Scepter of the Ancients
• 1VP per "extra" Relic Power Tiles (if Relic is completed)
• 1 VP for every 10 leftover resources (including Rovers)

In the event of a tie, the Nation who completed the most Development Cards is the winner. If it is still tied, each tied Nation adds together the total number of spaces they have progressed on all Prestige Tracks, and the Nation with the higher total is the winner. If it is still tied—jeez—you folks tie!

2-Player Variant

When playing with only 2 players, use the following additional rules for setup and gameplay.

Optional Dummy Pawns

1. During setup, place 1 unused Nation marker on the 6th space of each Prestige Track.

When scoring VPs at the end of the game, include the dummy markers in the ranking. (For example, if both players are behind the dummy on the Defense Track, they are ranked in 2nd and 3rd place.)

Blockers

2. During setup, each player takes the Ambassador from 1 of the Nations not in the game to use as their blocker.

Blockers are placed at the start of each round, before the High Council Phase. In reverse turn order, each player places their blocker on any 1 action space. In the first round of the game, the player with the Auction Tiebreaker Marker is considered the First Player.

During the Action Phase, any space with a blocker is treated as "full." Players may still use Assistants or the Stargate Relic Power to activate a blocked space.

Advanced Rules

A. Random Victory Decree Variant

1. When setting up the Supply Deck at the start of the game, shuffle all "Victory Decree" cards matching the current player count into the 3rd Lunar Season stack. Deal out the same number of cards from the 3rd Lunar Season stack as normal.

Victory Decree cards offer potentially powerful end-game scoring bonuses. In the Random variant, a random number of Victory Decrees will be included in the game.

B. Fixed Victory Decree Variant

1. When setting up the Supply Deck at the start of the game, set aside all of the "Victory Decree" cards matching the current player count.
2. Shuffle the 3rd Lunar Season Supply Cards matching the current player count and deal 2 per player. Return the remaining 3rd Lunar Phase Supply Cards to the game box.
3. Add the set-aside "Victory Decree" cards and reshuffle this new deck. This will be the 3rd Lunar Phase stack used to create the Supply Deck.

The Fixed variant ensures there are enough Victory Decrees that each Nation can acquire one, though there is no guarantee. A Nation may acquire more than one Victory Decree if the opportunity arises.

Credits

Game Design: Adam Hill & Clayton Hargrave

Development: Jonathan Gilmour

Art: Jesse Riggle

Narrative: Banana Chan

Rulebook Editor: Jeff Fraser

Graphic Design: Stevo Torres

Published by Pandasaurus Games. © 2019 Pandasaurus Games, LLC. All rights reserved.