The Menace Among Us Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Contents
• Set Up
• Game Overview / Objectives
• Agenda Cards
  • MENACE
  • CREW
  • NEUTRAL (only The Coward is Neutral)
  • Sample Agenda Cards
  • Determining Agenda Cards for This Game
  • Assemble the Agenda Decks
  • Randomize the Agenda Decks
  • Choose an Agenda Deck
• Below Deck Action Cards
  • GOOD
  • NEUTRAL
  • BAD
• Character Cards
  • Select a Character
  • Build the Rest of Your Deck / Draw a Starting Hand
• Playing the Game
  • A Round of Play
  • 1. Action Phase
  • 2. Resolution Phase
  • Resolution Phase Warnings
  • 3. Accusation Phase (OPTIONAL)
  • Table Talk
• Wounding Crewmembers
• Killing Crewmembers
• Ending the Game
• Credits

Contents

268 Below Deck Action cards

• Raise Morale — 50 copies. Oxygen is the most important resource in the game and this card is the only way to increase the Oxygen Level.
• Advanced Repair — 33 copies. If the next revealed card is not Replicate, copy its effect. (If Replicate is the last card revealed, this effect carries through to the next round.) It costs 1 Oxygen, but it increases the Energy Level by 2. This two-for-one trade is excellent.
• Command — 14 copies. Each crewmember draws a Below Deck Action card. Normally, a player must use their whole turn to draw a card, so having everyone draw a card for 1 Oxygen is a great value.
• Basic Repair — 68 copies. Increases the Energy Level by 1 but costs an Oxygen. Both sides are okay with this exchange.
• Replicate — 24 copies. If the next revealed card is not Replicate, copy its effect. (If Replicate is the last card revealed, this effect carries through to the next round.) Duplicates the next card revealed, for good or ill.
• Backstab — 24 copies. The first time each round a Backstab is revealed, the Mission Leader receives a Wound. (This cannot be Replicated.)
• Brawl — 19 copies. The first time each round a Brawl is revealed, the Mission Leader chooses a crewmember. That crewmember receives a Wound. (This cannot be Replicated.)
• Panic! — 9 copies. Each crewmember discards a random card from their hand. (All discards are made face down.) Not only does it cost an Oxygen, but everyone is forced to randomly discard a card from their hand. All discards in the game are made face down.
• Airlock Breach — 13 copies. Each crewmember discards a random card from their hand. (All discards are face down.) The Oxygen drops one increment. Someone just blew Oxygen out of the ship on purpose. This player is a Menace.
• Reactor Leak — 5 copies. Each un-wounded crewmember who played a Below Deck Action card this round receives a Wound. Each currently un-wounded player, who played a Below Deck Action card this round, receives a Wound. You can be confident that the player of this card is a Menace.
• Explosion — 9 copies. Each un-wounded crewmember who played a Below Deck Action card this round receives a Wound. The Energy level drops two increments. This slows the repair process. You will note that some characters have a couple of these, as counterbalances to their Above Deck Action abilities.

10 Agenda cards — 2 Menace (Contagion & Butcher), 1 Neutral (Coward), 7 Crew

16 Character cards, with a Player Guide on the reverse of each Character card

16 Wound cards, including the Flesh Wound card ("This wound has no additional effects.")

1 HUD Board, with the ISV-Vigilant Central Command Console, Round Sequence, Oxygen Level track, Energy Level track, Discard space, Wound deck space, and EmMA deck space

• Oxygen token
• Energy token

1 Mission Leader token

1 Voting Pistol (assembled from two parts — the stand slots into slot a/slot b so it can stand upright on the table)

Set Up

A. Place the HUD board in the center of the table.

B. Place the Energy token on the first space of the Energy Track (marked with triangle).

C. Place the Oxygen token on the numbered space equaling the number of players. (7 players, place the token on the space marked with a "7")

D. Assemble the Voting Pistol and place it beside the HUD board.

E. Place the Mission Leader token in front of the owner (or host) of the game.

F. Shuffle the 15 Wound cards and place them face down onto the space marked on the HUD board.

G. Assemble the EmMA deck. Assemble this deck so that it contains these specific (20) Below Deck Action cards: 5 Basic Repair, 4 Advanced Repair, 4 Raise Morale, 2 Airlock Breach, 1 Explosion, 1 Reactor Leak, 1 Panic, 1 Brawl, 1 Backstab. Shuffle the deck and place it face down onto the space marked on the HUD board.

Game Overview / Objectives

Before proceeding with Agenda and Character selection, it is important for players to understand the cards and game play so they can better choose a Character. The owner of the game should place the following Agenda cards aside as examples to show the group: The Contagion, The Vengeant and The Coward.

As you can see on the HUD board, the ship is in grave trouble. The power is down, shown by the Energy token in the "0" position and there is only so much oxygen remaining, as displayed by the O2 token. Almost every action the players take will impact the Oxygen or Energy Levels. Players are either loyal CREW or the deadly MENACE, as determined by random assignment of an Agenda. There are three categories of Agenda Cards: MENACE, CREW and NEUTRAL and each has a Primary Goal and an Individual Goal.

In the Basic game, only the Primary Goal must be achieved for the player to Win. This means you will win or lose as a team.

In the Advanced game, both the Primary AND the Individual Goal must be achieved for that player to Win. Here, it is possible to lose even if your team wins.

Note that in either game mode, you can win by achieving your Goals, even if you are killed during the game.

Agenda Cards

Each Agenda card lists an Agenda Type, a Primary Goal, an Individual Goal, a Special Ability, and Exiled/Killed Effects, along with a Card List of the 13 Below Deck Action cards unique to that Agenda.

IMPORTANT: During actual play, keep Agenda cards hidden until prompted to reveal by a triggering event.

MENACE

Primary Goal: You win when the Oxygen Level reaches 0% or all CREW are killed.

Individual Goal: Menace players do not have Individual Goals.

Special Abilities: These abilities must remain secret, until the triggering event occurs. You may not even hint at a Special Ability before it is triggered.

Exiled/Killed Effects: Correctly accusing a player of being a Menace gives a boost to the Oxygen level. (see The Accusation Phase)

CREW

Primary Goal: You win when the Energy Level reaches 100%, without the Oxygen reaching 0%. If at any time the Oxygen Level reaches 0%, the Crew players immediately lose, even if the Energy Level reaches 100% in the process. However, if all Menace players are killed, the Crew wins if they can raise the Energy past the Safety Threshold (70%) on the HUD board.

Individual Goal: (ADV game only) Each is unique to the Crew's Agenda. Some may cause suspicion amongst the other Crew.

Special Abilities: These abilities must remain secret until the triggering event occurs. You may not even hint at a Special Ability before it is triggered.

Exiled/Killed Effects: Incorrectly accusing or killing a loyal Crew loses precious Oxygen.

NEUTRAL (only The Coward is Neutral)

Primary Goal: You start like any loyal Crew, trying to save the ship and win alongside them. But all you care about is living and you don't care which side you are on to do it.

Special Abilities: As soon as a Menace player is Exiled/Killed, The Coward switches sides and becomes a Menace player, adopting their Goals. However, if all Menace players are killed, they switch back and must survive with the Crew to win.

Exiled/Killed Effects: Incorrectly accusing or killing a The Coward loses Oxygen, but not as much.

Sample Agenda Cards

The Contagion (Menace Agenda)

• Goals: You win when the Oxygen Level reaches 0% or all Crew are killed. No Individual Goal.
• When you are killed, if you have not been Exiled, you may choose a player. That player discards their hand.
• Exiled Bonus: gain Oxygen. Killed Bonus: none.
• Card List: 6 Airlock Breach, 4 Explosion, 3 Panic!

The Vengeant (Crew Agenda)

• Goals: You win when the Crew reaches the ENERGY GOAL. Complete your Primary Goal with at least one other player killed.
• When you are killed, you may choose another player. That player receives a Wound.
• Exiled Penalty: lose Oxygen. Killed Penalty: lose Oxygen.
• Card List: 6 Basic Repair, 1 Reactor Leak, 2 Advanced Repair, 4 Brawl.

The Coward (Neutral Agenda)

• Goals: You win when the Crew reaches the ENERGY GOAL. Complete your Primary Goal without being Exiled.
• Once a Menace Agenda is revealed, your Goal becomes "You win if the Oxygen Level reaches 0% or all Menaces are dead." Revert back when all Menaces are dead.
• Exiled Penalty: lose Oxygen. Killed Penalty: lose Oxygen.
• Card List: 6 Basic Repair, 3 Backstab, 7 Airlock Breach, 2 Explosion.

Determining Agenda Cards for This Game

Determine which Agenda cards will be used this game, based on your player count. Place the extras back in the box.

• 4 Players: 1 Menace (The Contagion is recommended), 3 random Crew (note: The Coward is Neutral and is only used in 7 & 8 player games)
• 5 Players: 2 Menace, 3 random Crew
• 6 Players: 2 Menace, The Saint, 3 random Crew
• 7 Players: 2 Menace, The Saint, The Coward, 3 random Crew
• 8 Players: 2 Menace, The Saint, The Coward, 4 random Crew

Assemble the Agenda Decks

The bottom of every Agenda card has a list of (13) Below Deck Action cards which are unique to that Agenda. Collect the listed cards and place them face down, with the Agenda card placed face down on top of this stack. Do this for each Agenda used in this game. You may find it quicker to have each player construct one, passing the needed cards around the table. (You can also reassemble them after play and store them in the box for next time.)

Randomize the Agenda Decks

Now that each Agenda deck is assembled, place them within reach of all players and have all but one player close their eyes. This player moves the piles around at random, keeping each deck intact as they do so. When finished, this player will shut their eyes while a different player repeats the process. This will assure that no one knows which Agenda is which.

Choose an Agenda Deck

Have each player select one of the face down Agenda decks. Players may examine their Agenda card and their 13-card hand. This is their role for the game and from here on out, they must keep their Agenda, its Goals and Abilities, and the cards in their deck completely secret. Communicating anything about this information is not allowed, as it will very likely reveal your identity.

Below Deck Action Cards

On the reverse side of every Character card is a Player Guide. Hand one out to each player so they can follow along. The cards are listed in three categories, based on what playing the card tends to imply about a player's intentions.

GOOD

These cards are among the most beneficial to the Crew's Primary Goal of saving the ship, and therefore speak well about those who play them.

• Raise Morale: Oxygen is the most important resource in the game and this card is the only way to increase the Oxygen Level.
• Advanced Repair: It costs 1 Oxygen, but it increases the Energy Level by 2. This two-for-one trade is excellent.
• Command: Normally, a player must use their whole turn to draw a card, so having everyone draw a card for 1 Oxygen is a great value.

NEUTRAL

These cards are conditional and both loyal Crew and the Menace will find important uses for them.

• Basic Repair: Increases the Energy Level by 1 but costs an Oxygen. Both sides are okay with this exchange.
• Replicate: Duplicates the next card revealed, for good or ill.
• Backstab & Brawl: These cards are used to Wound other players. As it only takes 2 Wounds to kill a player, they are generally considered 'Bad.' But remember, eventually you will have to kill the Menace players, so many Crew have them for security reasons.

BAD

Anyone playing these cards has strong reason to be suspected of being a Menace, yet that may not always be the case.

• Panic: Not only does it cost an Oxygen, but everyone is forced to randomly discard a card from their hand. All discards in the game are made face down.
• Airlock Breach: The Oxygen drops one increment. Someone just blew Oxygen out of the ship on purpose. This player is a Menace.
• Explosion: The Energy level drops two increments. This slows the repair process. You will note that some characters have a couple of these, as counterbalances to their Above Deck Action abilities.
• Reactor Leak: Each currently un-wounded player, who played a Below Deck Action card this round, receives a Wound. You can be confident that the player of this card is a Menace.

Character Cards

Now that you know your Primary (and Individual) Goals and are familiar with the Below Deck Action cards, you will be selecting a Character card that you think will best help you succeed - or hide effectively. Rotti Vestine is a great sample Character to show players in illustrating these points:

At the bottom of each Character card you will see 7 additional Below Deck Action cards. These will be added to the cards you received from your Agenda, for a total of 20 cards in your personal, custom deck. Example: as a Menace player, with only "Bad" cards in your Agenda deck, you might choose to add beneficial cards to help hide your actions.

In addition, each Character has two Above Deck Actions. These abilities are varied and useful in many ways, some less obvious. Most abilities require a cost in Oxygen, Energy, Discards, or some combination of those. Other abilities have no cost. But each is available once per round. Example: a Menace player who chose Rotti might offer to heal another player, paying 2 Oxygen to remove a Wound. It sure seems like they are a 'good' player but, in reality, they are much more motivated by the loss of 2 Oxygen.

Sample Character: Rotti Vestine, Medical Officer

• Above Deck Actions:
  • BLOODWORK: Choose a crewmember. That crewmember publicly reveals a card from their hand. (Cost: Oxygen, Wound)
  • FIRST AID: Choose a crewmember. That crewmember removes a Wound. (Cost: Oxygen, Wound)
• Below Deck Actions: 5 Raise Morale, 2 Basic Repair

Sample Character: Andrew Nance, Pilot

• Above Deck Actions:
  • DELEGATE (no cost): Choose another crewmember. They must choose and immediately use an Above or Below Deck Action.
  • COMMANDEER (Cost: 1 Energy): Draw a Below Deck Action card from any crewmember's deck.
• Below Deck Actions: 3 Backstab, 2 Basic Repair, 2 Command

Sample Character: Martella Isodorus, Rear Gunner

• Above Deck Actions:
  • CRUNCH (Cost: Oxygen): Choose an un-wounded crewmember. That crewmember draws 3 cards and receives a Wound.
  • MOXIE (Cost: Oxygen): At the end of this round, if any crewmember was wounded this round, gain Oxygen.
• Below Deck Actions: 3 Brawl, 2 Basic Repair, 2 Raise Morale

Sample Character: Malumil Einum, Captain

• Above Deck Actions:
  • VETO (Cost: 1 Discard): Once during this round, you can and must cancel the cost and effect of a Below Deck Action card as it is revealed.
  • LASER PISTOL (Cost: 2 Energy): Choose another crewmember. That crewmember receives a Wound.
• Below Deck Actions: 3 Basic Repair, 2 Command, 2 Raise Morale

Select a Character

The owner of the game will collect all 16 Character cards. Remember, the Player Guides you handed out have Characters on the opposite side, so recollect them as well.

4-5 Players: Randomly deal each player 3 Character cards, face down. Players may examine them and then choose one. (in the Advanced Game, consider your Individual Goal in selecting a Character as well.) Players place this Character card in front of them, face up. They may also keep another to use as a Player Guide, flipping it to the correct side. Any unused Character cards are returned to the box.

6-8 Players: Randomly deal 3 Character cards, face down to the first 5 players. These players will examine them and then choose one, placing it in front of them, face up. All the unclaimed Characters are recollected and dealt out to the remaining players as evenly as possible. They may end up with a choice of more than 3 Characters as a result. Once they have selected their Character, all players may be given a Player Guide, using the reverse side of the unused Character cards. Any remainders are placed back into the box.

Build the Rest of Your Deck / Draw a Starting Hand

Collect the 7 Below Deck Action cards listed on the bottom of the Character card you chose. Add these cards to your personal deck, which came with your Agenda.

You may find it speeds the process if you pass stacks of Below Deck Action cards, by card type, (Raise Morale, Basic Repair, etc) around the table. Each player will take from the stack the cards they need and/or pass the stack to the next player. Any cards that are not claimed at the end of this process can be placed back in the box. (There are enough slots in the tray for each card type, as well as compiled decks for all Agendas and EmMA.)

When completed, you will have a full deck of 20 cards. Shuffle these cards and deal yourself 3 cards as your starting hand.

Set up is now complete.

Playing the Game

Each game is played over the course of a number of rounds. A round has three Phases: 1. Action Phase / 2. Resolution Phase / 3. Accusation Phase.

A Round of Play

1. Action Phase

Starting with the Mission Leader and going clockwise, each crewmember (player) takes one of the following three actions:

• Draw a card. Draw the top card of your personal deck and add it to your hand. Each player's maximum hand size is 4. If an effect would cause you to go above that number, you must discard down to a four-card hand immediately. Cards are always discarded face down.
• Play a Below Deck Action card. Choose a Below Deck Action card in your hand and place it in front of you, face down. Below Deck Action cards are not flipped and resolved until the Resolution Phase (see below), regardless of how they enter play. So if any effect (such as the "Rush" or "Delegate" abilities) instructs you to "play a Below Deck Action card," it means placing one face-down in front of you.
• Perform an Above Deck Action. To perform an Above Deck Action, choose one of your Character abilities and announce it aloud, pay the associated cost and do the effect as instructed. Above Deck Actions resolve immediately in most cases, or may delay until a specific trigger occurs.

2. Resolution Phase

Once all players around the table have taken an action, the Mission Leader collects all face down Below Deck Action cards played this round, shuffles the cards, and reveals them one at a time, resolving each before proceeding to the next. After cards have been resolved, put all Below Deck Actions played this round into the Discard pile face down.

Resolution Phase Warnings

• Overloading the Reactor: The ship's engines are not the newest technology in the galaxy, and can only handle so much Energy. Energy Levels can only rise five increments higher than its current level at the beginning of the Resolution Phase. After five increments, any other Energy increases are ignored, however the all Oxygen costs must still be paid.
• Insufficient Crew / EmMA: The Emergency Maintenance Assistant (EmMA) is programmed to intervene when insufficient crew is available for repairs. At the beginning of each Resolution Phase, if the number of cards played this round are less than half the number of total players starting the game, rounded up, add cards from the top of the EmMA deck equal to the difference. Shuffle these with the cards played by the crewmembers and then begin the Resolution Phase. (Example: In a 7-player game, when only 2 Below Deck Action cards are played by the players, add 2 cards from the EmMA deck to bring the total to 4.) Unfortunately, EmMA has also been compromised by system-wide damage. While most of EmMA's deck is helpful, she has at least one of every potentially negative card, which provides a small measure of plausible deniability for Menace players.
• Discards / Discard Pile: As stated elsewhere, whenever a card is discarded for any reason, it is placed in the Discard pile face down. The contents of the Discard pile may not be looked at, unless an effect instructs otherwise.

3. Accusation Phase (OPTIONAL)

After the Resolution Phase, there is always ample time, if needed, to discuss what happened in the round (see Table Talk rules below) and air any suspicions players may have before continuing onto the next Action Phase. However, if a player feels strongly that they know who one of the Menace players is, they have the OPTION to officially call for a vote, in order to Exile a player in the Accusation Phase. To do so, grab the Voting Pistol from the center of the table and declare that there WILL be a Vote this round. The act of taking the Pistol makes the Accusation Phase mandatory. No take backs. Final evidence or words of defense or counter accusations may occur briefly.

When everyone is ready, the vote is called. After a count of three, each player either points to another crewmember they want to Exile -- or keeps their hand in a fist to abstain from the vote. If more players vote for a specific crewmember than any other player, that crewmember is Exiled. If more players abstain or there is a tie for most votes, no one is Exiled.

Exiled Crewmembers: The brig has no power, so Exiled players are sealed below in the secondary hull, away from the bridge and critical systems. In game terms, Exiled players must reveal their Agenda card to everyone. But Exiling a player is dangerous and should not be done lightly. Each Agenda has either a Penalty or Bonus associated with being Exiled. If a Crew Agenda is Exiled the Oxygen Level drops THREE INCREMENTS! The Coward creates a loss of two Oxygen. But if you Exile a Menace player, you gain two Oxygen. Resolve this loss or gain immediately.

Even worse, an Exiled player is cut off. They may no longer perform Above Deck Actions listed on their Character card. An Exiled player cannot vote or call for a vote, even if they are proved to be loyal Crew. They CAN continue to draw and play Below Deck Action cards normally, for good or ill.

End of Round: Once the vote is complete, or if no player calls for one, the Mission Leader token is passed to the next clockwise player and a new round begins.

Table Talk

During the course of the game, you will accuse players and defend yourself, or wish you could encourage someone to do something because of hidden information you possess. But you must observe these strict rules about the sharing of information to preserve the fun and intrigue of the game.

• You may always accuse another player of playing a specific named card, but when discussing your OWN actions or HIDDEN INFORMATION you have, you may not call out a card by name or infer a specific card. You may only discuss cards as "Good" "Neutral" or "Bad," as listed on the Player Guide.
  • Example: You play a Replicate face down. You cannot tell anyone or hint at the card's nature to the other crewmembers to maximize its chance of success. You can say only that you played a helpful card or a Neutral card.
  • Example: After cards are revealed in Resolution, you cannot claim a specific card that you played (whether true or a lie). You can say you played a Good or Neutral one.
  • Example: You use the 'Surveillance' Above Deck Action and see that another player has played a Raise Morale. You cannot tell people what the card is or its effect. But you can say that they have a Good or helpful card (and of course, you could say it was a Bad card too, for that matter).
• You may not give away any information regarding your Agenda or its special abilities.
  • Example: You look at your Agenda and see that you are The Resolute. You cannot ask to be Wounded or imply that would be okay because you are The Resolute, or have an ability that will help in some way.
• You must be protective about your hand of cards and your Agenda card, so that no one can see them. Seeing a card from your hand could identify you instantly.

Wounding Crewmembers

Certain Above Deck abilities and Below Deck Action cards will cause a crewmember to become Wounded. When that happens, the crewmember draws the top card from the Wound deck and places it in front of them. This is public information and should be read aloud. Some of the Wounds have no additional effects, while others can be extremely debilitating for the player or the entire Crew. The rules of the card must be followed for as long as they have the Wound - or until their death. Wounds may only be removed through specific Above Deck Actions possessed by a few of the Characters, if players chose to play them this game.

Killing Crewmembers

If a crewmember has two Wounds at the end of a round, that player has been killed and eliminated from the game. This means a player who is killed before their turn will still get one last action before they succumb to their wounds. A crewmember is also killed if, at the start of their turn, they have no cards in hand and none in their deck. When a crewmember is killed, they reveal their Agenda and resolve their "Killed" penalty and any special ability that may be triggered. A killed player can still WIN the game, posthumously, if they have achieved their Goals.

Ending the Game

• The game will end immediately if the Oxygen reaches 0% - or if all players with Crew Agendas have been killed. The Crew has lost and the Menace has Won.
• The game will end if the Energy is at 100% at the end of a round. The Crew has Won and the Menace has lost.
• Sometimes the Crew will eliminate all Menace players before the game has ended. It is possible for the Menace to still win if the Crew runs out of Oxygen, so eliminating the Menace is not enough. You must continue to play it out. However, if there are no living Menace players, raising the Energy Level above the "Safety Zone" (70%), is sufficient to Win the game for the Crew immediately.
• In all these cases, The Coward wins simply by being alive.
• ADVANCED GAME: The Advanced Game is different only in that a player must achieve BOTH their Primary and Individual Goals to Win. This makes the game harder and far more interesting, as some of the Goals may cause you to take actions that raise suspicion or force you to act more selfishly in order to win.

Credits

Game Designed by: Jeff Gum Development: Curt Covert Graphic Art: Jeff Gum, Curt Covert Illustrations: J. Hause of GhostHause Studios Rules editing: Avonelle Wing

Jeff's Development Team: Tim Mattes, Luke "Lucas Patrick" Muench, Anthony Rando, Eric Cesare, Mike Butz

Playtesters: Matt Bednarick, Tom Zebro, Ian Reed, Doug Levandowski, Elton Clark, Jeff Fraser, Quinn Brown and the staff and patrons of Gamer's Gambit, Danbury CT.

© 2019 Smirk & Dagger Games, All Rights Reserved.