Metro 2033 Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Components
  • Game Board
  • Faction Cards
  • Hero Cards and Figures
  • TREAT CARDS
  • EQUIPMENT CARDS
  • MISSION CARDS
  • LAW CARDS
  • COMBAT CARDS
  • Faction Tokens
  • Resource Tokens
  • First Player Marker
  • Round Marker
• Game Setup
• Gameplay
  • 1. Events
  • 2. Mobilization
  • 3. Army Actions
  • 4. Hero Actions
  • 5. The End of the Round
• Other Rules
  • Cards and Decks
  • Stages of the Game
  • Capturing and Losing Stations
  • Missions
  • Equipment
• Combat
  • The Combat Deck

Game Components

The game box contains the following components:

• Game board
• 6 faction cards
• 6 hero cards
• 6 hero figures
• 7 law cards
• 36 threat cards (18 for the first stage of the game and 18 for the second stage)
• 18 equipment cards
• 18 mission cards
• 7 combat cards
• Resource tokens: 35 each for pigs, mushrooms, and ammo
• Faction tokens: 14 for each faction
• First player marker
• Round marker
• This rulebook

Below you will find more information about the game components.

Game Board

At the center of the game board is a map of the Moscow metro. This is where the main events of the game will take place. Colored zones on the map designate the territories of the six factions, as well as the Polis, a connection hub comprised of four stations.

The zones of factions that were not chosen by any player are not active in the game. Therefore, if there are less than 6 players, a portion of the board is inaccessible. All tunnels leading to that part of the metro are considered blocked. Heroes and armies cannot enter that territories, capture stations there, or confront threats.

The board legend lists these items: home stations of the factions; faction symbol; stations and the resources they produce (pigs, ammo, or mushrooms); tunnels between stations; and transfers between stations.

• Hansa stations (brown colored) - these stations cannot be attacked, but heroes can trade there
• Abandoned stations - heroes can move through these stations, but cannot attack or capture them
• Polis stations - these stations produce any resource of their owner's choice. If you capture all four Polis stations, you win the game

Stations that are separated by one tunnel of one transfer are considered neighboring stations. To move from one neighboring station to another, heroes spend 1 unit of speed.

Surrounding the metro map on the game board, there are slots for card decks and several tracks for players to mark the strength of their armies, the points they have earned, and the current round.

• Law deck
• Round track
• Reference
• Equipment deck
• Hansa Market
• Mission deck
• Army track
• Victory track

The round track shows which events take place during different rounds of the game.

On Army track players mark the strength of their armies.

Victory track shows how close each faction is to winning.

Hansa Market stores equipment cards that players can buy.

Don't forget to move your tokens on the respective tracks every time there is a change in your army's strength or your number of victory points.

Faction Cards

Each player heads one of six factions, which are groups, alliances, or unions of stations in the underground metro system. The factions not only differ by their location, but also by their special abilities.

Hero Cards and Figures

Heroes are outstanding individuals of the underground world: leaders, adventurers, and mercenaries. At the beginning of the game you choose which hero will represent your faction. During the game a hero cannot change his faction and a faction cannot change its hero.

The hero is represented by a plastic figure on the game board, indicating his current location. You can choose any figure for your hero, but it is recommended to choose a figure of your faction color to avoid confusion.

TREAT CARDS

(Printed as "TREAT CARDS" in the source; the section is the threat cards.)

Threats are dangers lurking in abandoned tunnels, threatening heroes and simple residents of the metro. Players confront threats when they try to capture neutral stations, and sometimes threats also come down on the players' property. There are two threat decks in the game: one is used in the first stage of the game and the other is used in the second stage. The threats in the first deck are less dangerous, while the threats in the second deck are more powerful. There are three threat types: physical, biological and radiation. Some equipment provides bonus against threats of certain type.

Threat types: Physical, Biological, Radiation.

EQUIPMENT CARDS

Equipment is weapons, tools, and other useful objects that your hero can use. Equipment can be bought at the Ring Line stations in Hansa. Many of the equipment items improve the hero's strength or speed. During the first stage of the game a hero can use up to two equipment cards, and during the second stage, up to three.

MISSION CARDS

Missions are tasks that your hero or faction can complete to receive victory points. Like equipment, missions can be acquired at Hansa stations. When you complete the goal of a mission, you receive 1 victory point. In addition, every mission has a special ability that you can use at any time during the game.

LAW CARDS

Laws are various agreements between all factions of the metro. They temporarily change the rules of the game, complicate battles, or simplify expansion. From time to time players have to accept or reject a new law. The more stations a faction has under its control, the more votes it has in the voting.

COMBAT CARDS

These cards represent various combat strategies and are used during battles between players. A combat card gives strength modifier to your hero or army, depending on the card chosen by opponent.

The combat card carries a strength modifier, a name and a description, and a type: attack, defence or neutral.

Faction Tokens

Each faction has 14 two-sided tokens which players use to mark stations under their control and to mark positions on tracks indicating their armies' strength and their number of victory points. When you capture a station that produces a certain resource, place your token on it facing up with the side showing the image of the resource. At Polis stations, which are capable of producing any resource, tokens are placed facing up with the symbol of the faction. Tokens on the tracks can be placed facing up with either side.

Resource Tokens

At the beginning of the game, all of the resource tokens are placed into the general reserve. When you receive a certain resource, take the corresponding token from the reserve and put it in front of you. When you spend a resource, put the corresponding token back into the reserve.

The resource tokens are pigs, mushrooms, and ammo.

First Player Marker

The first player is the player who opens every phase of the round. At the end of round the first player marker is passed to the left.

Round Marker

This marker is used to indicate the current round on the round track. At the beginning of the game it is placed at the start position, and then every round it is moved according to the arrows. The current position of the marker shows which events will occur at the beginning of the round.

Game Setup

Put the game board in the middle of the table. Shuffle the equipment, mission, and law decks and place them face down on the designated places. Shuffle threat cards for the first stage of the game and place the deck face down next to the game board. Put aside threat cards intended for the second stage; you will need them later. Place the combat cards next to the game board. Separate the resource tokens according to type and place them into the reserve next to the game board. Using any method of your choice, decide who will be the first player.

The first player takes 6 faction cards, chooses one of them and places it face up in front of him. He passes the remaining cards clockwise and the next player also chooses one of the factions. This repeats until all the players have a faction.

The second player and all players after him can only choose factions whose zone neighbors those already chosen. For example, if the first player chose the Confederation of 1905, then the second player must either take the Fourth Reich or the Arbat Confederation. If he chooses the Fourth Reich, then the third player has to choose between the Arbat Confederation and the Red Line, and so on. Territories of factions are designated by colored zones on the metro map.

Once you choose a faction, take all 14 of its tokens and one of the hero figures. Place one token of your faction on each of the home stations, which are listed on the faction card. Don't forget that the tokens are placed facing up with the side showing the resource that's produced by the station. Each player begins the game with 3 victory points (because he controls 3 stations) and an army with a strength of 2. Mark this by placing faction tokens on the corresponding tracks. Then take the start bonus of your faction. This can either be resources, equipment cards, mission cards, or a stronger army.

Now every player chooses a hero card. This is done the same way as choosing the factions, except that the last player to choose his faction (the one sitting to the right of the first player) is now the first to choose. Once he is done choosing, he passes the cards counterclockwise. Once a player has chosen a hero, he places his figure on any of his home stations.

Put away the extra faction and hero cards into the box. They won't be used in this game.

Place the round marker to the start position of the round track. Reveal the top 4 equipment cards and place them face up on the Hansa Market. This completes the game set-up and the game can start.

Don't forget that the only territories participating in the game are the zones of factions that have been chosen by the players, as well as the Polis.

Gameplay

The game is made up of rounds, with each round divided into several phases. During each phase the players act one after another, starting with the first player, then proceeding to the player on his left, and so on clockwise. When the last player finishes his actions in the current phase, the next phase begins, starting again with the first player. At the end of the round the first player passes his token to the player on his left, who now becomes the first player to act in every phase of the next round.

There are 5 phases in the round:

1. Events - Players receive resources, confront threats, or pass new laws.
2. Mobilization - Players pay for army maintenance and may recruit new soldiers.
3. Army actions - Players can capture neighboring stations or send an army to search for resources.
4. Hero actions - Players can use their heroes to move, trade, and fight.
5. The end of the round - The round marker and the first player marker are moved.

1. Events

The events take place depending on the position of the round marker. The positions on the round track feature three kinds of symbols, each designating a specific event.

Note: the round track's sequence of symbols is printed as a graphic in the source and is not reproduced as text here.

Receiving resources

If the current position on the round track features a resource symbol, then each station with the same symbol produces one unit of this resource for its owner. Take the necessary number of tokens from the resource reserve.

Each Polis station produces all types of resources. This means that if a certain resource is featured at the current position on the round track, then any of the Polis stations produce that resource for its owner. However, even a Polis station cannot produce a resource if its symbol is not present at the current position on the track. Also, no station can produce two units of a resource at once. If there are two different resource symbols shown at the current position on the track, you have to choose which of them each Polis station under your control will produce.

The start position on the round track is special. At the beginning of the first round, all three types of resources are produced double. At the beginning of the game, every player has three stations, each producing a different resource. Therefore, in the first round every player receives 2 units of pigs, mushrooms, and ammo (in addition to the start bonus of his faction). This happens only once during the game. Throughout the game the round marker never returns to the start position.

Threats from the dark

When this symbol appears at the current position of the round track, it means that an unknown threat is coming from the metro tunnels, trying to destroy the players' stations!

Starting with the first player, every player chooses which of his stations will be attacked by the threat. You can confront the threat with your army or with your hero if he is located at the endangered station. Once everyone chooses the station and the mode of defence, the first player reveals the top card from the threat deck. Each player, starting from the first one fights the threat by the regular rules (see the Combat section). If you successfully repel the threat, you receive the reward indicated on the threat card, but if you are defeated by the threat, you lose the station and remove your token from it. In case of a draw, nothing happens.

2. Mobilization

Once the events are over, players pay for their armies and reinforce them. The players do this one after another, clockwise starting with the first player.

First you have to pay for army maintenance. The cost is indicated on the army track, which shows the strength of the army. It does not cost anything to maintain an army with a strength of 5 or less. An army with a strength of 6 costs 1 pig, a strength of 7 costs 2 pigs, and a strength of 8 costs 3 pigs. If you don't have enough resources or don't want to spend them, you have to disband your army, reducing its strength to a level you are able or willing to maintain.

For example, you have an army with a strength of 7 and 1 pig. You reduce the strength of the army to 6 and pay for its maintenance using the pig token you have.

After you pay for army maintenance, you can increase its strength by hiring new soldiers. In order to raise an army's strength by one, you have to pay 1 ammo and 1 pig. You can hire soldiers as long as you have enough resources, but the strength of your army cannot exceed 8. Put the resources you spent into the reserve.

Don't forget to move your token on the army track if you disbanded your army or hired additional troops.

Laws

This symbol indicates that leaders of the separated factions are trying to reach an agreement and pass a new law that will affect life in the entire metro.

The first player opens the top card from the law deck and reads it aloud. Then, starting with the first player, every player votes "for" or "against" this law. The number of votes you have is equal to the number of stations controlled by your faction. You have to vote "for" or "against" with all of your votes. You cannot refrain from voting, and you cannot vote "for" with some of your votes and "against" with others.

If most votes are "for" passing the law, it immediately goes into effect. Place the law card face up next to the law deck. If there is another card there because another law was passed earlier, the old law immediately stops being in effect. Remove that card and put it under the law deck. If the majority of votes are "against" the law (or if the votes are equally divided), then the new law does not go into effect. Put its card at the bottom of the law deck. If there is another law card present because another law was passed earlier, it continues to be in effect.

3. Army Actions

Once all players have paid for army maintenance and had the opportunity to hire new troops, every player, starting with the first player, chooses what his army will do in this round. An army can carry out one of the following actions:

• Attack a station
• Attack an opponent's hero
• Obtain resources

Attacking a station

You can use an army to attack a neutral station or a station belonging to another player as long as it neighbors any station of your faction. You cannot attack Hansa stations and abandoned stations.

Reminder: Stations are considered neighboring if they are connected by a tunnel or a transfer.

Neutral Polis and Hansa stations let players' armies through their territory and therefore your army can attack through these stations. Note that your army may use only one Hansa tunnel when attacking through its territory.

For example, if you control Chekhovskaya, your army can attack Ploschad' Revolutsii (through Polis stations Borovitskaya and Arbatskaya, if they haven't been captured by other players yet). Or, if you control Marksistskaya, your army can attack Paveletskaya (through two transfers and one Hansa tunnel). To attack Serpukhovskaya you need to capture Paveletskaya first.

Attacking a hero

You can attack another player's hero if his figure is positioned at your station or at a station that neighbors any of your stations. You cannot attack a hero if he is at a Hansa station or at a station of his own faction. Combat against a hero and its consequences are described in the Combat section below.

Your army can pass through neutral Polis and Hansa stations when attacking an opponent's hero as well.

Obtaining resources

Send your soldiers to scout inside metro tunnels or on the surface. Take one resource token of your choice.

4. Hero Actions

Starting with the first player, players take turns making actions with their heroes. Each hero can move and then carry out one of the following actions:

• Buy equipment
• Receive a mission
• Exchange resources
• Scout an area
• Attack a station
• Attack another hero
• Use his ability

Moving the hero

Every hero has a certain Speed, which is the number of tunnels and/or transfers he can move through during this phase of the round. In other words, for every unit of speed, your hero can move between two neighboring stations.

Equipment cards can increase or reduce a hero's Speed. Don't forget to take these modifications into account when moving your hero.

You do not have to move your hero to the maximum allowed distance. You can even refrain from moving him at all and leave him where he is. However, a hero cannot move after he has carried out any other action, such as trade, attack, exchange, and so on. If a hero has carried out an action, he can only move in the next round.

Keep in mind that during a round, a hero can carry out just one of the actions listed below.

Buying equipment

To buy equipment, your hero has to be on a Hansa station (the Ring Line) and you must have enough resources. The four face-up equipment cards that lie on the Hansa Market are the merchants' current offerings. Before buying equipment, you can renew the offerings by paying 1 ammo and discarding all the cards from the market. Then reveal 4 new cards from the deck to replace them. This can be done only once during a round and only before buying cards.

Any equipment card costs 1 ammo and 1 mushroom. Once you pay for a card, place it next to your hero card. Now the hero carries this equipment and receives all of its bonuses, penalties and abilities.

If you have enough resources, you can buy as many equipment cards at the market as you want - even all four of them. You can also refuse to buy them (for example, if you renewed the offerings and still aren't satisfied with them). In this case, simply pass turn to the player on your left.

Keep in mind that in the first stage of the game, a hero can carry no more than two equipment cards, and in the second stage of the game, he can carry no more than three. If you bought a card that exceeds this limit, you must immediately discard one of your equipment cards.

When you are done buying equipment, reveal new cards from the deck so the Hansa Market has four face-up cards again. If the equipment deck runs out, shuffle the discarded cards and use them as the deck.

Receiving a mission

To receive a mission, your hero has to be at a Hansa station (the Ring Line) and you must have enough resources. Pay 1 ammo and 1 mushroom and draw 2 cards from the mission deck. Without showing them to other players, choose one of the cards and take it, and discard the other.

Place your mission cards in front of you face down without showing them to other players. During a round you can acquire only one mission card.

Exchanging resources

To exchange resources, your hero has to be at a Hansa station. Return any amount of one type of resource to the reserve and receive the same amount of any other type of resource from the reserve.

Scouting an area

Scouting lets you assess the conditions in tunnels and prepare for future battles. To do this your hero has to be at a neutral station. Look at the top card in the threat deck without revealing it to other players and place it in front of you face down. If you attack a neutral station with your army or hero in the next round, you can place this card at the top of the threat deck before making the attack. This enables you to know what kind of threat you have to fight. If you do not use this card by the end of the next round, put it under the threat deck.

Attacking a station

A hero can attack the station he is at, with the exception of Hansa stations and abandoned stations. To attack a neutral station, open the top card of the threat deck and fight it. To attack another player's station, you fight his army. If the opponent's hero is positioned at this station, the player can decide how to defend himself against your attack: with his army or hero. The combat rules are described in the Combat section.

Exception: Neutral Polis stations are always defended with a strength of 7. Do not open a threat card when attacking Polis.

If your attack succeeds, you can immediately add the station to your domain (see the section Capturing and losing stations). If you decide not to do so, the station becomes or remains neutral.

Attacking a hero

You can attack an opponent's hero if he stands at the same station as your hero. A hero cannot be attacked if he is at a Hansa station or at a station of his own faction. Combat with hero and its consequences are described in the Combat section.

After you are done moving your hero and using him to make one of the above actions, the turn passes to the player on your left. Once all players are done making actions with their heroes, proceed to the concluding phase of the round.

5. The End of the Round

First check if any player has won the game, considering that a player has to do one of the following to win:

• Either collect 10 victory points (except the Red Line faction, which needs just 9 points)
• Or capture all 4 Polis stations

If a player has fulfilled one of the above conditions at the end of the round, he becomes the winner and the game ends. If several players have collected the necessary number of points to win, the winner is the tied player closest to the current first player, counting clockwise.

If no one has won yet, prepare for the next round of the game. The first player passes his marker to the player on his left. That player will act first in all phases of the next round. Move the round marker down the track to the next position. Check whether the conditions for the second stage are fulfilled (see the section Stages of the game). The new round begins.

Other Rules

Cards and Decks

Throughout the game you will sometimes discard cards, such as deflected threats, unnecessary missions and equipment, and rejected or annulled laws. The discarded law cards are always placed under the law deck, while other types of cards are always put away into the appropriate discard pile. Keep a separate discard pile for each type of card. If one of the decks runs out, shuffle the corresponding discard pile and use it as the deck. If there are no cards of the necessary type left in the deck or the discard pile, players cannot take new cards of this type.

Stages of the Game

Throughout the game the player's factions become more powerful, but the threats challenging them also become more dangerous. In the first stage of the game, players use the first threat deck and every hero can carry up to two equipment cards.

The second stage begins when at least one of the players has 6 or more victory points at the end of a round. In this case return the first threat deck into the box and replace it with the second threat deck. Now all threats will come from this deck. When the second stage begins each player, starting with the first player, draws 2 cards from the equipment deck, chooses one of them and gives it to his hero, and discards the other. In the second stage of the game, every hero can carry up to three equipment cards.

If at some point of the game all players have less than 6 victory points (it is possible if they lose stations), the game returns to the first stage. In this case, replace the second threat deck with the first one, and every player must discard any excess equipment cards used by his hero.

Capturing and Losing Stations

To add a station to your faction, you first have to attack it successfully with your army or hero. Then you can pay the cost of capturing a station and place your faction's token on it. Capturing a neutral station costs 1 mushroom and 1 pig, and capturing a station that you conquered from another player costs 1 mushroom. If the station you captured produces a certain type of resource, place the token face up with the side showing this resource. At Polis stations the tokens should be placed face up with the side showing the faction's symbol.

If you have conquered a station from another player but decided not to capture it, it becomes neutral. Capturing this station in the future will cost 1 mushroom and 1 pig.

Captured stations not only bring you resources, but also victory points. Once you capture a station, move your token on the victory track one position up. If all 4 Polis stations are under your control and you are able to keep them until the end of the round, you win the game.

If you lose a station due to card ability, an opponent's attack, or a threat, then you have to remove your token from this station and move your token one position down on the victory track. However, you cannot have less than 3 stations. If you have only 2 stations left after losing a station, you should immediately capture any neutral station in your faction's zone for free, and if there are no stations like that left, you can choose any neutral station in any other playing zone besides Polis.

Missions

When you acquire a mission at a Hansa station, read the card without revealing it to other players and then place it in front of you face down. You can have as many missions as you wish, including missions you have already completed and ones you haven't. You can look at the mission cards that are in front of you at any time.

Once you carry out the goal stated on the mission card, turn it over for all players to see. Move your token on the victory track one position up. It is impossible to cancel a mission that has been completed and you never lose the victory points you earned for it.

Besides having a goal for being completed, every mission has a special ability that can be used in two ways. If you haven't completed the mission yet, you can discard its card to activate the ability. If the mission has already been completed and the card is lying in front of you face up, you can pay 1 ammo to use its ability. Every completed mission can be used this way just once during a round. The effect of a mission ability lasts until the end of round.

You cannot complete a mission with the same goal as the one you've already completed. Nevertheless, you can discard such a mission to activate it's one-shot ability.

Equipment

Your hero can carry up to two equipment cards in the first stage of the game, and up to three cards in the second stage. If you have bought or otherwise acquired equipment that exceeds this limit, you have to immediately discard part of your equipment cards in order to meet this limit.

Combat

Combat is always a contest of strength between two sides. Whoever has greater strength wins. However, depending on what kind of forces are taking part in the battle, their strengths are evaluated differently:

• An army against a threat - compare the army's current strength with the strength indicated on the threat card
• A hero against a threat - compare the hero's current strength with the strength indicated on the threat card
• An army against an army - compare the current strengths of the two armies, considering the modifiers from combat cards
• A hero against a hero - compare the current strengths of the two heroes, considering their equipment and the modifiers from combat cards
• An army against a hero - compare the army's current strength, considering the modifier from the combat card, with the hero's current strength, considering his equipment and the modifier from the combat card

In other words:

• An army always fights with its current strength
• A hero always fights with his current strength, considering all of his equipment
• A threat always fights with the strength indicated on its card
• If a battle take place between two players, both players use combat cards

If both sides have equal strength, the outcome of the battle is a draw. In this case, no one loses or gains anything. In all other cases, the outcome depends on the circumstances of the battle.

If you use your army to attack a neutral station and defeat the threat, you receive the reward indicated on the threat card and the right to capture this station. If you lose the battle, the strength of your army gets reduced by 1 (but it cannot be less than 1).

If you use your hero to attack a neutral station and defeat the threat, you receive the reward indicated on the threat card and the right to capture this station. If you lose the battle, your hero is wounded and moves to any home station of his faction, where he has to spend his entire next phase of hero actions.

If you use your army to attack another player's station and you defeat his army, he loses this station and you get the right to capture it. If you refuse to capture it, the station becomes neutral. If you lose the battle, the strength of your army gets reduced by 1 (but it cannot be less than 1).

If you use your hero to attack another player's station and you defeat his army, he loses this station and you get the right to capture it. If you refuse to capture it, the station becomes neutral. If you lose the battle, your hero is wounded and moves to any home station of his faction, where he has to spend his entire next phase of hero actions. In addition, the opponent who defeated you discards one of your equipment cards of his choice.

If you attack another player's station while his hero is on it, he can choose to defend himself against your army with his hero instead of his army. This does not influence the outcome of the battle. However, you cannot attack a hero who is at his own station. In this case you can only attack the station, and its owner can decide whether to defend with his hero or army.

If a hero fights against a hero, the winner of the battle can take one equipment card of his choice from the player he defeated. The defeated hero is wounded and moves to any home station of his faction, where he has to spend his entire next phase of hero actions.

If you use an army to attack another player's hero and you defeat him, you can discard one of his equipment cards of your choice. In addition, the defeated hero is wounded and moves to any home station of his faction, where he has to spend his entire next phase of hero actions. If you lose the battle, the strength of your army gets reduced by 1 (but it cannot be less than 1).

Don't forget that heroes cannot be attacked when they are at Hansa stations or at stations of their own factions.

If you defend your station against a threat with an army or a hero (for example, in the events phase of the round) and you win the battle, you receive the reward indicated on the threat card. If you lose the battle, you lose this station.

The Combat Deck

The combat deck is used when a battle takes place between two players. Each side's strength receives the modifier stated on its combat card. This is done in the following way.

The attacker thoroughly shuffles all 7 cards of the combat deck and without looking at the cards, deals them one by one to himself and to the opponent until each player has 3 cards. The last card is put aside face down and remains unknown to both players. Each player looks at his cards and chooses one of them, placing it in front of him face down. Then the players open up their cards simultaneously and the modifiers indicated on them are added to the players' strengths, respectively.

There are 3 types of combat cards: attack, defence, and neutral. Some defence cards have a higher bonus against attack cards, and vice-versa. Keep this in mind when choosing a combat card.

Example: The hero of the Fourth Reich attacks a station belonging to the Arbat Confederation. The Confederate army has a strength of 6 and the hero of the Reich has a strength of 5, with his equipment considered. The Confederates have chosen the combat card Ambush, while the Fourth Reich has chosen the Counterattack card. Thus, the army receives +1 strength and the hero receives +2 strength. Now their strengths are equal and the battle ends with a draw.

If the Confederates would have chosen the Evasion card, they would have received +0 to their strength and would have lost.

If the hero would had chosen an attack combat card rather than a defence one, the Confederates would have received +3 to their strength and would have won.