Helionox: The Last Sunset
Helionox: The Last Sunset Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 10x Material Asset Cards
- 6x Sentinel Prototype Cards
- 8x Faction Starting Cards
- 9x Prime Asset Cards
- 23x Event Cards
- 36x Faction Cards
- 5x Location Cards
- 6x Architect Cards
- 2x Reference Cards
- 4x Mission Cards
- 2x Ship Tokens
- 10x Embassy Tokens
- 8x Cryo Counters
- 5x Shut Down Tokens
- 15x Influence Tokens
Table Setup
The table is set up with four zones, plus each player's own area:
- Placed Events — a row of five spaces, one beside each Location, where Events are placed as they enter play.
- Locations — five Location cards in a column: Earth (the Starting Location), Moon, Mars, Asteroid Belt, and Europa.
- The Market — four faction decks (Defense, Bio, Cyber, Transport), an Influence tokens area, a Consumed Card Area, and the three Event decks (Events I, Events II, Events III).
- Prime Assets — a single pile beside the Market.
The Player's Area (same setup for all players):
- Deck (face down) — draw cards from here.
- Discard Pile (face up) — discard cards here. When your deck runs out, shuffle your discard pile; it then becomes your deck.
- Architect — set aside, not shuffled into your deck.
Set Up
Each player starts the game with the following.
Starting Cards
Chosen randomly:
- 1 Architect
- 2 Specialized faction cards
Same for all players:
- 5 Material Assets
- 3 Sentinel Prototypes
Starting Tokens
- 1 Ship Token and 5 Embassy Tokens, all of the same color
- 4 Cryo Counters
Each player receives the above cards and tokens. All players place their ship token at the Starting Location (Old World Capital for the base game). Set your chosen Architect aside. This card will not be shuffled into your deck. Specialized faction cards are also chosen randomly and received as a pair (take both Bio faction cards, both Transport faction cards, etc.). All starting deck cards are signified by an orange dot in the upper left corner. Take your 10 starting deck cards and shuffle them. This forms your starting deck. Draw 5 cards. This is your starting hand.
Event Deck
Eight events per player, plus 1 Catastrophic Event per player. Divide the Event deck into 3 equal decks called Events I, Events II, and Events III. The first deck (Events I) will include no Catastrophic Events, the second deck (Events II) will include half of the Catastrophic Events (rounded down) and the third deck (Events III) will include the other half of the Catastrophic Events (rounded up). Place these decks in order from left to right starting with the first deck (Events I - which contains no Catastrophic Events).
The Market
Separate all faction cards into 4 piles based on faction and shuffle those decks. This forms the Market. Flip the top card of each Market deck. These face up cards are available for purchase. Place Prime Assets in a separate pile.
Turn Sequence
Players take turns clockwise around the table. Determine randomly who takes the first turn. Each turn has four phases. In the Event Phase a new event is placed, in the Cryo Phase, you remove a Cryo Counter, in the Main Phase players act, moving their ships and playing cards. Played cards are discarded and a new hand is drawn during the End Phase.
Card Anatomy
Event Cards show: the defense needed to overcome the event, the location icon, the card type, the influence value (gained if overcome), a defense alternative, and an event penalty.
Faction Cards show: the faction icon, the market cost, the card type, the influence value at end of game, and text that resolves when the card is played.
Architect Cards show: the architect icon, a cryo ability, and a cryo cost.
Starting Cards (not used in the market) show: the faction icon and a starting card icon.
Location Cards show: the location icon, a location bonus, and key access.
Event Phase
Every turn take 1 Event from the leftmost Event Deck and place it at its corresponding Location with the Inactive side up (match the large symbol on the Event to its Location). Events are Inactive on their first turn in play. Events become Active during the next Event Phase if they are still in play. Any Event may be Overcome while Active or Inactive. Below is the Event Phase process:
- Flip any previously placed Inactive Event onto its Active side. Any Location with an Active Event is considered Shut Down. If a Location is Shut Down, Location Bonus and Key Access cannot be used and an Embassy cannot be placed (see Terminology section for more info).
- Place the top card of the leftmost Event Deck near its associated Location, Inactive side up.
A Catastrophic Event works in the same way. It is Inactive on its first turn in play. However, after 1 turn in play, a Catastrophic Event becomes active and all Locations are considered Shut Down. Use Shut Down Tokens to signify Shut Down Locations during a Catastrophic Event. Follow any other rules outlined on the Catastrophic Event card.
Cryo Phase
If your Architect has any Cryo Counters on it, remove 1 Cryo Counter.
Main Phase
On card icons - Credit, Defense, Influence.
Once per turn and any time during your Main Phase you may:
- Cycle 1 card from the Market (put it on the bottom of its faction deck and reveal a new card).
- Gain 1 Location Bonus from your Current Location. If you control an Embassy at your current Location, you may gain Key Access instead of a Location Bonus (see below for symbols on Locations; see Terminology for more details). Credit and Defense gained may be used any time during your Main Phase.
- On card symbols: Location Bonus, Key Access.
Any number of times and any time during your Main Phase you may:
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Play cards from your hand. Card abilities are used immediately upon playing in the order they appear on the card. Credit and Defense may be pooled for use anytime during your Main Phase.
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Overcome events. Whether an Event is Active or Inactive, if you are at the Location of an Event you may pay Defense equal to an Event's cost to gain Influence. Immediately collect Influence Tokens equal to the Event's Influence Value.
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Call for Collaboration. The Current Player may Call for Collaboration with any other player at his/her Location and/or any other player who controls an Embassy at his/her Location. Players may openly discuss how much Defense they have available but are not required to reveal any information. The Collaborating Players each Gain Influence equal to the amount of Defense they contributed to Overcome the Event. Then the Collaborating Players each draw 1 card. Only the Current Player may Call for Collaboration and that player must have at least 1 Defense. The Current Player must be at the Location of the Event. All other players involved in the Collaboration must either be at the Current Player's Location or have an Embassy at the Current Player's Location. The Current Player is in control of the Collaboration so he/she chooses how much Defense they will offer and which player or players they will Collaborate with (based on legal targets). Only cards that offer Defense may be played during Collaboration. Players play cards from their hand following all normal rules of game play (card abilities resolve even for Collaborating players, cards played go to the discard pile at the end of the turn). Only the Current Player draws 5 cards at the end of the turn.
Example: The Current Player has 2 Defense and Calls for Collaboration on a 3-Defense event. The Collaborating Player has a card that offers 2 Defense. The Collaborating Player has to decide if he/she wants to contribute to the collaboration or not. If he/she contributes, the Collaborating player will only gain 1 Influence because the Current Player has 2 Defense and will gain 2 Influence. The Collaborating Player may make a counter offer, but the Current Player ultimately chooses how the Collaboration will happen. If players cannot agree on terms, the Collaboration fails.
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Obtain any number of Prime Assets and/or cards from the Market for its cost printed in the upper right corner. Obtained cards are placed on the top of your deck. Prime Assets and Market cards may be obtained from any Location. When a card is Obtained from the Market, immediately flip the next card in that Market deck.
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Travel to new Locations. Pay 2 Credit to Move to any location. Pay 1 Credit if you control an Embassy at the Location you are moving to.
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Pay 2 Credit to place an Embassy at your current Location.
End Phase
Put any cards played this turn into your discard pile. You may keep any unplayed cards still in your hand. Draw 5 cards from your deck then discard down to 5 cards. If you have no cards to draw from, shuffle your discard pile to create your new deck (same rules apply any time you need to draw a card).
Game End
The game is over at the end of the turn after the last event is placed at a Location. Your score is calculated by adding the numbers on your Influence tokens, the Influence values in the lower right corner of any cards in your deck, hand, and discard pile, and the number of Embassies you control (one Influence for each Embassy). You will also add any applicable Mission Bonuses if you are using the Missions Variant. The Player with the most Influence wins. If the game ends in a tie, the player with most cards worth 0 Influence wins the tie. If the game is still tied, the player with the most Embassies in play wins. If the game is still tied, shake hands and divide the solar system among the victorious players.
FAQ and Examples
- If a card says "all players place an Embassy", each player places an Embassy at his/her Current Location. If a card says "all players may move to an Adjacent Locations", each player moves from his/her Current Location. There is no cost associated for any player to take these actions.
- Defense and Credit may be stored up and used at any time over the course of your Main Phase. Example: You Gain one Defense from the Lunar Base Location Bonus. You then move to a different Location and use the 1 Defense gained on the Lunar Base to Overcome an event at your new Location. All excess Defense and Credit are lost at the end of the turn.
- Card text resolves in order from top to bottom. If a card says "draw a card, consume a card" you must draw first then consume. This can be important if drawing a card forces you to shuffle your discard pile into your deck. However, if a card says "you may" it is optional.
- Cards resolve immediately and other cards or abilities may not be used until a card is completely resolved. Example: Orbital Base says "You may Move to an Adjacent Location. Gain 2 Defense." If you plan to move to an Adjacent Location, you must do so before Gaining the Defense.
- Decks are shuffled after being searched for any reason.
- Location Bonus / Key Access – This can only be taken once per turn unless granted by a card effect. Once per turn, you may take one Location Bonus or Key Access. However, if you have a card that offers Key Access, you may take another Key Access Bonus but you can never use the same Location twice for any reason. Also, if a card gives Key Access, you do not need to have an Embassy to Gain Key Access but this Key Access Bonus cannot be used for the regular Location Bonus.
- Some cards use the term "if able". Usually, this is in reference to Key Access or placing an Embassy. In either case, your ship must be at the Location, the Location cannot be Shut Down, and (in the case of Key Access) you have not used any Location Ability at that Location.
Advanced Rules
If this is your first play, you can stop reading here. Advanced rules use additional cards, rules, and different modes of play. You do not need to read this section to play a "regular" version of the game. These rules should only be used after you are comfortable with the "regular" version of the game.
Missions
Place the 4 Mission cards in a place where all players can clearly see them. When the game ends, during the scoring process, examine the game state to see if you have completed any of the Missions. Any player who completes the objective on any of the Mission cards adds the Mission Influence to their score. Each player can gain the Influence associated with any Mission and more than one Mission may be completed during a game.
Defense Mission Explanation: When using Missions, collect the events you Overcome in a special pile near your personal play area. This pile is called a Merit Deck. Each player will collect Events into his/her personal Merit Deck once the Event is Overcome. If players Collaborate, the Player calling for Collaboration collects the Event into his/her Merit Deck. The Merit Deck has no in game significance. It is only used to count Events at the end of the game for the Defense Mission.
Cooperative and Solo Mode (Beta Rules)
All regular rules apply with a few changes. Events I will add Events to Locations as normal but Events II and Events III will add Events in pairs. After Events I is depleted, the current player will add 2 Inactive Events from the Event deck to its corresponding Location. Both Events will become active on the next player's turn if they are not Overcome. In Cooperative Mode, you have no opponents. Any ability that refers to an Opponent does not have an effect. Example: Nano Hacker will grant 1 Influence to the player who plays it but will not remove Influence from anyone.
All players lose the game if any of the following conditions are met:
- At least 4 Locations have an Active Event.
- There are 2 Active Catastrophic Events.
- The game ends with 5 or more Events on the table.
Solo Normal Mode: Include 1 Catastrophic Event in Event Deck II and 1 in Event Deck III. Collect 45 Influence by the end of the game.
Solo Challenge Mode: Include 3 Catastrophic Events (one in each Event Deck). Collect 55 Influence by the end of the game and Overcome all Events.
Cooperative Normal Mode: End the game with at least 45 Influence per player. This is done as a team. Example: in a 2-player game collect 90 Influence as a team (Player One collects 35 Influence and Player Two collects 55).
Cooperative Challenge Mode: Same as above with one extra Catastrophic Event (replacing a regular event) and 55 Influence per player required for victory.
Terminology
Adjacent – A location next to your current Location.
Collaboration – The Current Player may Call for Collaboration with any other player at his/her Location and/or any other player who controls an Embassy at his/her Location. The Collaborating Players each Gain Influence equal to the amount of Defense they contributed to Overcome the Event. Then the Collaborating Players each draw 1 card.
Credit - Money used to Obtain cards, place Embassies, or Travel to Locations.
Consume – Completely removes a card from your deck and places it in the Consumed Card Area. All Consumed cards go to this communal area.
Collaborating Player - A player who answers the Call for Collaboration, but is not the Current Player.
Current Player - The player currently taking their turn.
Current Location – The Location of your ship token.
Embassy - You may pay 2 Credit to place an Embassy token at your Current Location during your main phase. This Token represents that you now Control an Embassy and is worth 1 Influence at the end of the game. These tokens also work with many cards and allow for long distance Collaboration. In addition, if you control an Embassy at a Location, once per turn you may gain Key Access at that Location instead of a Location Bonus. A player must be at the location with the Embassy to use Key Access. You can only Control 1 Embassy at each Location.
Gain – Grants a function that does not go into your Hand, Deck, or Discard Pile and is lost at the end of your turn if not used.
Key Access - If you control an Embassy at your current location you may gain Key Access. Key Access may be gained once per turn instead of a Location Bonus. You may gain more than one Key Access per turn by using card abilities but you may never use the same Location twice. If a card ability grants Key Access, this does not count as your 1 Key Access per turn and you do not need to have an Embassy at your Location to use Key Access granted from a card.
Location Bonus – You may gain 1 Location Bonus per turn at your current location.
Obtain - Place a card on top of your deck.
Overcome – Remove an Event from the board. An Event is Overcome by playing Defense. Total Defense needed to Overcome an Event is indicated in the upper right corner of the card. Any number of Events may be Overcome on a turn. An Event can only be Overcome if you (the Current Player) are at the Location where the Event is taking place.
Secure - Place a card directly into your hand.
The Market – Faction-based Tech and Operatives that have become available for purchase or hire.
Unique Card - A card with this icon may only be played once per turn even if you have multiple copies in hand. If this card is copied by another card ability, it may not be copied or played again this turn.
Active Event Icons (Defense Alternatives)
Instead of using Defense, some events can be Overcome by using alternative costs that are indicated on the event card. These abilities may not be used with Collaboration. You must pay ALL alternative costs indicated on the Event to Overcome an Event this way.
These icons on an Event indicate that you may discard the cards indicated to Overcome that Event instead of using Defense:
- Discard 1 Card (any type)
- Discard 1 Cybernetic card
- Discard 1 Transport card
- Discard 1 Bio card
When you see these icons on an Event, you may pay a number of Credit equal to the number indicated to Overcome that Event instead of using Defense:
- Pay 3 Credits
- Pay 4 Credits
Active Event Icon (Penalty)
If the Penalty icon appears on an Event, you must pay 3 Credit while paying to leave this Event's Location. This penalty occurs even if you control an Embassy at the Location you wish to travel to. The cost to leave is never more than 3 Credit no matter how many of these Events stack up at a Location. Card abilities that offer Movement are not affected by this penalty.
Tokens
- Cryo
- Embassy
- Ship
- Influence
- Shut Down
On Card Symbols
- Location Bonus
- Key Access
- Unique Card
- Credit
- Influence
- Defense
Faction Symbols
- Bio
- Cybernetic
- Transport
- Defense