Neon Knights: 2086 Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Game Setup
• Player Setup
• Overview
  • 1) Preparation Phase
  • 2) Action Phase
    • Actions, in Detail
  • 3) Pay Day and Race Day
  • Racing Phase
    • The First Racing Round
    • All Following Racing Rounds
  • After a Race
• Clean Up Phase
• Additional Rules
  • Wealthy
  • Part Abilities
• Weapons, Shields & Upgrades
• Winning
• Other Modes
  • Campaign Mode
  • Epic Campaign Mode

Components

• 40 Parts
• 15 Fan Bets
• 16 Stage
• 30 Implants
• 32 Upgrades
• 18 Sponsors
• 6 Speed Pawns
• 6 Player Boards
• 6 Car Minis
• 3 Custom Dice
• 48 Cubes
• 23 Track Tiles +1 Finish Line
• 1 Game Board

Game Setup

Place the board in the center of the table. Shuffle each deck separately and place them on their spot on the board (Sponsors, Parts, Upgrades). Reveal cards from each of those decks to fill the row beside them.

Place the calendar marker on Day 1 of the calendar track.

Player Setup

Each player chooses a player board and receives the tokens of the corresponding color.

• Place a token on the 30 spot of the currency track.
• Place a token on the number 3 spot of each sponsor reputation track on their player board (Shield, Gun, Lightning).
• Place a token on the number 5 spot of the fans on their player board (Fist).
• Place a token on the maximum Armor Points, depending on the number of players:
  • 2 players: 8 Max AP
  • 3 players: 10 Max AP
  • 4 players: 12 Max AP
  • 5 players: 14 Max AP
  • 6 players: 16 Max AP

Each player starts with 4 different starter parts from the starter cards (Brakes, Tires, Engine, Turbo) attached to the bottom of their player board, corresponding to the colors of the parts (Red, orange, yellow, green).

Choose the player order and place a token from each player on the player order track in that order. The order can be also be chosen randomly.

The last player will place his car on the number 1 spot of the starting grid. The second to last player on the number 2, and so on until all players have placed their car on the starting grid.

Each player will start with 1 Victory point on the Tracker.

Draft Implants: Shuffle all the Implant cards (The Brains) and deal them out to all players until everyone has the same amount of cards. Remove the extra cards from the game. Each player will choose 1 and place it face down in front of them, then pass the rest of those cards to the player to their left, who repeats the process until all cards have been placed face down. Each player should now have a deck of Implant cards in front of them. You can have duplicates in your deck but cannot equip your driver with more than one of the same. For example, you cannot have two Ambition Implants equipped, but can have two Ambition cards in your deck.

You are now ready to play!

Overview

The game is played in 3 Races (Rounds), each Round having 3 major Phases: Preparation phase, Action Phase, and Racing phase.

1) Preparation Phase

A) Fans Bet: Shuffle the Fan Bet cards (Money Icon) and deal 1 to each player. This card is hidden from other players. Place the rest of the deck to the side of the board for later use.

B) Create Track: The player with the least victory points will choose 8 racing tiles and make a track using them. They must all fit in the playing area to form a complete racetrack. If tied for lowest victory points, the player last on the player order track wins the tie.

2) Action Phase

Drivers will take 6 days to prepare for the race on Sunday.

In turn order, each player will choose 1 action from the following list:

• Get Sponsored (Take 1 face up sponsor or draw from that deck)
• Visit Shop (Buy 1 from the face up parts in the shop / Install parts)
• Buy 1 Upgrade (Buy and attach to the corresponding slot on your car)
• Draw a Fan Bet (Draw a fan bet card from the deck / Discard)
• Repair Armor (For every 5 chips you spent, repair 1 Armor)
• Install Implants (Install Implants onto your player board)

Once each player has taken 1 of those actions, move the calendar marker down to the next day and repeat the Action phase.

Actions, in Detail

• Get Sponsored: Take one of the visible sponsor cards or draw the top card from the deck and place it face up in an empty sponsor slot ("handshake") above your player board. You can only take this action if you have an empty slot available. Then flip a new card into the empty spot.

• Visit the Shop / Install Parts: During this action, you can sell parts for 5 chips each, then discard them (Starter parts are removed from the game instead of discarded). You can also buy a part from the face up cards in the shop. The price of each card is printed on the board, below each part. The purchased part will go into your hand. You can also install parts from your hand onto your car if you have an empty slot corresponding to the part's color. Afterwards, slide the parts in the shop to the right and flip a new part from the deck into the empty space.

• Buy 1 Upgrade: You can buy any face up Upgrade from the black market and place it face up on an empty slot next to your player board. The icon must match the icon on your player board, therefore you can only have 1 weapon, 1 Shield, and 2 Specials. If you do not have an empty spot, you can discard the old card and replace it with the new card. Afterwards, slide the upgrades in the shop to the right and flip a new upgrade from the deck into the empty space.

• Repair Armor: This action allows you to repair your car's armor. You can repair any amount of damage for 5 chips per armor point. You can never go past your Maximum AP determined at the start of the game. However, some special Implants will increase your maximum AP.

  Maximum AP:

  • 2 players: 8 Max AP
  • 3 players: 10 Max AP
  • 4 players: 12 Max AP
  • 5 players: 14 Max AP
  • 6 players: 16 Max AP

3) Pay Day and Race Day

Pay Day: When the calendar marker reaches PAY DAY, each player must discard their sponsor cards and receives the bonuses written on those cards by raising their company tokens and currency token by the value on the cards. Then, each player takes an action on this day, still in player order.

Race Day: When the calendar marker reaches RACE DAY, the RACING Phase begins. You do NOT take any actions on this day.

Racing Phase

Sunday night is upon us and everyone is now ready for the race!

Choose Starting Speed: Each player, in Starting Grid order, will now choose the starting speed on their player boards. Any speed from 2 to 10 can be selected. (Optional: this can be done simultaneously.)

The First Racing Round

The player on the number 1 spot of the starting grid will move on the track a number of spaces equal to his current speed, then the player on the 2 spot and so on. You cannot use any weapons, shields, or specials during the first round of the race. But danger lines do apply in the first racing round.

All Following Racing Rounds

1) Adjust Player Order. Once all players have moved, rearrange the player order with the Fastest player going first and slowest going last, according to their current speed.

If there is a tie, check the Power rating of the part that is in the color zone corresponding to their current speed. The highest wins. For example, two players are going at speed 7, they check the Power rating of their yellow part to break the tie, highest number will go first. If there is still a tie, the order from the previous turn remains the same for those players.

2) Player Racing Turns.

A-) Adjust Your Speed: On your turn, you first choose to accelerate, decelerate, or cruise.

• If you choose to accelerate, you can move your speed token to the right, up to a number of spaces equal to 1 plus the bonuses from your yellow and green parts. (Example: 1+1+1=3.)
• If you choose to decelerate, you can move your speed token to the left, up to a number of spaces equal to 1 plus the bonuses from your red and orange parts. (Example: -1-1-1=-3.)
• If you cruise, you do not move your speed token and maintain your speed.

B-) Optional Action - Repair Your Car: Before you move your car pawn, if your speed is 2 or 3, you may also repair your car, up to 2 Armor point for free.

C-) Move Your Car: You now move on the track a number or spaces EQUAL to your current speed (movement points) following movement rules.

Movement Rules:

• You can only move into the space in front of you or in diagonal for 1 movement point.
• You can move through other player's cars and land on the same spot. If you do, you might "Slam" the opponent (explained later).
• Weapons and Upgrades can only be used before and/or after your movement. Not during. (You may try "During" as a house rule, but it might be a lot to keep track of and make the game more chaotic.) When used, turn the card face down. You might reactivate it later.
• You cannot cut corners during a turn or u-turn.

(The source shows three track diagrams: a NO case where a car cuts a corner, and two OK cases where the car follows the corner.)

Danger Lines: These neon lights are installed into the pavement to warn drivers of speed limits and dangers. Should a player touch one of these lights while going a faster color speed than the color of the light, they stop their movement to "check for damage" and continue their movement afterwards unless they have run out of movement points or crashed. If your speed is in the red zone on the player board, you can move freely thought these lights.

If you are in the orange, you can move freely through yellow and orange lights only, but not red. If you are in the yellow speed, you can move freely through yellow lights only, but not through orange or red lights. Finally, if you are in green speed, you must check for damage when touching ANY danger line.

Check for Damage: Count the colors from your current speed to the color of the line, and roll that many dice. The Damage icons will indicate how much damage your car has taken AND how much speed you lose.

For example, if you are going at a speed of 10 (Green) and touch an Orange line during your move, stop and roll 2 dice (1 die for yellow, and 1 die for orange) to see how much damage your car takes. If you take 3 damage, you lower your Armor by 3, lose 3 movement points, reduce your speed by 3 and lose 1 fan. Continue your movement if you have any leftover movement points after the damage.

Fans:

• Whenever you take damage from a Danger line, you lose 1 fan, regardless of the amount of damage.
• If you roll dice to check for damage from a danger line and roll NO damage icons, you GAIN 1 fan per die for performing an awesome stunt! Fans will give you bonus points at the end of the race.
• If you are at maximum fans and gain more, convert the next fan points to victory points.

Crashing: If you've taken enough damage to bring your Armor below 1 on your turn, you end your turn and bring your speed down to 2. You can never go below 1 armor. You can continue racing but will only have 1 armor at the start of your next turn.

No Armor: If you take enough damage from weapons or slams to bring your armor below 1, bring your speed down to 2 and your armor back to 1.

Activation Spaces: When you land on an activation space, you can re-activate the corresponding item on your car. This means turning the upgrade, weapon, or shield face up and ready to be used again at the next turn. When landing on a repair space, you can spend credit to repair your armor (5 chips per armor point repaired). If there is a car stopped on an activation space, that activation space becomes inactive for the other players. Landing on spaces is also a good way to block other players from activating that space.

Slamming: When ALL players have moved their car, if a car is in the same spot as another, they slam into each other! Each player involved rolls a die to see how much damage they take. If you roll a blank, you gain a fan instead. Again, if you have maximum fans, you gain a Victory point instead! Fans love the slams!

Die results: a damage face = 1 or 2 Damage; a blank face = 1 Fan.

Once you've finished your movement, the next player in player order will take his turn.

Once all players have moved: check for Slams and start a new racing round by changing the player order according to current player speeds, and moving again in the new player order, until a player reaches the finish line.

Crossing the Finish Line: The first Player to reach the finish line places his car on the starting grid, on the number equal to the number of players. He gains that many VPs and an extra 1 VP points per fan he still has. The other players get to finish the round. Coming in second will place you one space ahead of the player who came in first on the starting grid and you gain that many VPs plus 1 points for each fan you have and so on. The player who comes in last cannot redeem Fan Bet cards for this race. If you do not reach the finish line during the last round, wait until the end of the round and the distance between the finish line and each car still on the track will make up the final standings. If there is a tie, their current speed will break the tie.

Example: In a 4-player game, the player who reaches the finish line first with 3 fans left will gain 7 VPs: 4 points from the grid and 3 points from the fans. The second player to reach the finish line with 4 fans will also get 7 points: 3 points from the grid and 4 from the fans he has.

Note: You do NOT repair your car after a race. The only way to repair your car is during the race or by taking the repair action during the Actions phase.

After a Race

1-) Check your Fan Bet: If you accomplished goals on your Fan Bet cards, gain the reward listed at the bottom & discard them. When you complete a betting card, place it face-up in front of you, but obtain the reward after the race. These can make you win chips and victory points.

2-) Change Player Order: Change the player order track according to the Victory Points. The player with the least points will become the first player, second to last will be second player and so on. In case of a tie, the player farthest back on the starting grid wins the tie.

3-) (Campaign Mode Only) Acquire Implants: In player order, you can now take an Implant card from those available in the Implant decks. You must start at Level 1 of an implant and must have it installed before taking a Level 2 of the same implant. You must also have a level 2 installed to take a level 3 of the same implant. These cards go into your hand and can be installed by taking the Install Implant action. When you install a level 2 or 3 implant, remove the lower level you have installed and place it back the deck to make it available to other players.

Clean Up Phase

1. All face down cards attached to player boards are discarded in their respective discard piles.
2. Discard all cards in each row of the board and reveal new cards to fill up the empty spaces. Same as in Setup (Sponsors, Parts, Upgrades). If there are not enough cards in the deck, shuffle the discard pile to form a new deck.
3. Return the calendar marker back to day 1.
4. Each player puts their Fan tracker back up to 5.
5. Shuffle all the discarded & completed Fan Bet cards into the deck.
6. Remove all track tiles from the board.

After clean up, start a new Game round from the Preparation Phase.

Additional Rules

Wealthy

If you gain more chips than the board allows, you have a choice to make:

1. Stay at 60 chips and lose all additional chips.

   or

2. Lose 60 chips to distribute 2 reputation points on your reputation tracker, and then only gain the leftover chip.

Example: If you have 50 chips and gain 30 from 2 sponsor cards combined, you can go up to 60 and stay there (losing the extra 20) or go down to 0 chips, add 2 points to any reputation tracker, and then add the leftover 20 chips to your chips tracker.

During Payday, you gain the rewards of the sponsors simultaneously.

Part Abilities

During the game, you can Discard or Return to your hand parts that are attached to your car to activate certain abilities:

• Repair (wrench icon): you can repair your car by spending 5 credits for each Armor Point you want to gain.
• Reroll (hand icon): you can re-roll any of the dice you just rolled.
• Remove a die (crossed-out icon): remove a die after rolling them.
• +2 (icon): some even help you accelerate or slow down. (These are good for completing Fan Bets.)

You can do these at ANY time.

Weapons, Shields & Upgrades

During the race, you can use a weapon or special upgrade to attack other racers. You can use these at the start and/or end of your movement. If you do, turn that card face down.

Weapons have a stat for number of targets, range, and damage. You choose the targets within range and deal that much damage. You can also hack cars and change their speed using the EMP Hacker. (The source diagram labels the weapon stats as Targets, Range and Damage. The EMP Hacker entry reads: increase or lower all targets' speed by 3.)

If you have a shield, you can use it to reduce damage or remove hacks depending on the type of shield. When you use a shield, turn it face down.

You can re-activate these by landing on Re-activation spaces.

Important: When you use a Weapon, Shield or Upgrade, increase the reputation Track for that company on your player board. (Players often forget to do so!) Example: if you use a Weapon, increase your GUN reputation by 1.

Winning

At the start of the game, decide how many rounds you want to play (3 for NORMAL MODE) and the player with the most victory points at the end of the final race will win the golden ticket to join of the elite driving crew: The Neon Knights!

Other Modes

Campaign Mode

Playing in this mode will give you a chance to earn implant and improve your driver's skills.

Do not draft the Implant cards during the setup for this mode. Instead, shuffle all the level 1 skills and deal 2 to each player to start. The rest are separated into piles of level 1, 2, and 3 implants. You will be able to earn or level up these implants at the end of each race.

For this mode, we suggest you keep track of player progression on paper between games, or take a picture of your player board with your phone. You can play until a player reaches a certain amount of victory points chosen by your group.

The Player with the most at the end of that race will win the golden ticket to become part of the elite driving crew called The Neon Knights!

Epic Campaign Mode

(Add the Stage Cards to Campaign Mode.)

In Epic Campaign mode, shuffle Stage 4, 3, 2, and 1 track cards separately. Make a deck with the Stage 1 cards on top, stage two under that, stage 3 under that and Stage 4 at the bottom. Instead of choosing the track tiles, draw the top card of the stage deck and make the track using the set of tiles indicated on the card.

Keep track of all info and cards for each player for the next time game. As you play, your driver will gain better implants and better parts for their car.

Play all 16 Stage Cards, starting with stage 1, and the player with the most Victory Points is the MASTER at NEON KNIGHTS!