Scythe: Invaders from Afar
Scythe: Invaders from Afar Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
Global components
- rulebook
- box
- punchboard
- player mats (2x)
- 2 plastic bags
- 1 custom plastic insert
Faction components
Togawa (purple) and Albion (green) each receive:
- Faction Mat
- action token
- popularity token
- power token
- star tokens (6x)
- structure tokens
- recruit tokens (4x)
- mech miniatures (4x)
- character miniature
- workers (8x)
- technology cubes (6x)
- cardboard tokens
Playing with 6 or 7 Players
This expansion allows for up to 7 players to play Scythe. There are no changes to the map; as would be the case in the real world, the game board is simply more crowded with more factions trying to conquer it. There are two small changes to the rules for 6-7 player games:
CRIMEA: One of the original Crimean mech abilities (Wayfare) is a non-factor in 6-7 player games. In a game of this size, the Crimean faction should replace the Wayfare ability with this new ability (placing the appropriate punchboard token on their faction mat): Move to any unoccupied farm.
POLANIA: The original Polania faction ability (Meander) results in a minimal benefit in 6-7 player games. When playing games of this size, the Polania faction should replace the Meander ability with this new ability (placing the appropriate punchboard token on their faction mat): Pick up to 2 options per encounter card. At end of game, gain $3 for each encounter territory you control.
While there are no other rule changes when adding a 6th or 7th player, please take into account the following notes regarding games of this size:
GAME LENGTH: A game of Scythe usually lasts about 25 minutes per player, so it will take longer with more players.
NEW PLAYERS: If this is a player's first time playing Scythe, we highly recommend they randomly select one of the original factions, not Albion or Togawa.
OVERLAPPING TURNS: Regardless of the player count, you may begin your turn once the player to your right starts to take a bottom-row action.
FIRST PLAYER: The new Player Mats, which are now shuffled in with the other Player Mats during setup for all games of Scythe regardless of player count, are numbered 2a and 3a. These numbers only matter when you are determining the first player based on the lowest-numbered player mat: The order is 1, 2, 2a, 3, 3a, 4, 5.
Clan Albion
FACTION ABILITY (EXALT): After ending your character's movement (post-combat and post-encounter), the Albion player may place a Flag token from their supply on the character's territory. A territory can only have 1 faction token on it (1 Flag or 1 Trap). Flag tokens may not be removed or moved once placed.
After being confined to their homeland for centuries, Clan Albion craves control of new territories. This is exemplified by the Albion faction's 4 Flag tokens, each of which counts as an additional territory for end-game scoring to the Albion player if (a) they control the Flag token's territory with a character, mech, worker, or unoccupied structure AND (b) the Flag token is not on a territory adjacent to the Albion home base.
EXAMPLE: At the end of the game, you control 1 Forest territory and 1 Tundra territory. The Tundra has a Flag token on it, so the total number of territories you control is 3 instead of 2.
Mech and Character Abilities (Albion)
BURROW: Your character and mechs may cross rivers into, or out of, any adjacent tunnel territory. A territory containing your Mine counts as a tunnel territory, but a territory containing an opponent's Mine does not.
SWORD: Before you engage in combat as the attacker, the defender loses 2 power. The loss of power is reflected on the Power Track (players cannot have less than 0 power). This happens once per combat, not once per unit.
SHIELD: Before you engage in combat as the defender, gain 2 power. The extra power is reflected on the Power Track. This happens once per combat, not once per unit.
RALLY: When taking a Move action, your character and mechs can move to any territory that contains at least one of your workers or a Flag token, regardless of the distance.
Connor (Clan Albion)
Connor is a highlander, a native of the southern area of the island controlled by Clan Albion. He comes from a long line of military legends, a tradition he perpetuated by entrenching himself far behind enemy lines during the Great War. He owes his life to his faithful companion, a wild boar named Max, who saved him from a pack of dire wolves in the foothills of Saxony.
Clan Albion fears that the Factory could fall under permanent control of one of the more powerful factions, which might then encroach on the Albion homeland. With Max by his side, Connor is entrusted with the command of a special taskforce to build a strong line of defense against the other factions and destroy the Factory before it's too late.
Togawa Shogunate
FACTION ABILITY (MAIFUKU): After ending your character's movement (post-encounter and post-combat), the Togawa player may place an armed Trap token of their choice from their supply onto the character's territory (even if that territory has an opponent's structure on it). A territory can only have 1 faction token on it (1 Flag or 1 Trap). Trap tokens may not be removed or moved once placed.
The Togawa Shogunate is united behind a common cause of controlling as much of Eastern Europa as possible... and discouraging other factions from doing the same. They have 4 Trap tokens at their disposal, each with an "armed" and a "disarmed" side. For the purposes of end-game scoring, an armed Trap token grants Togawa control of the territory (no other units are necessary). It is not possible for there to be enemy units in a territory with an armed Trap.
EXAMPLE: At the end of the game, you control 1 Village territory with your character, and 1 Farm territory contains an armed Trap and no units. You control 2 territories for end-game scoring.
TRIGGERING A TRAP: If an opponent moves a unit onto a territory with an armed Trap token, that unit's movement ends. Flip over the Trap token to reveal a penalty the opponent must incur if possible (e.g., lose 2 popularity). This happens before anything else, including combat or an encounter. The Trap token remains on the territory—it is now disarmed.
STRUCTURE INTERACTION: An opponent may build a structure on a territory with a Trap. At the end of the game, if the only player tokens on that territory are the structure and the Trap (whether the Trap is armed or disarmed), the player with the structure controls that territory.
PENALTY LIST: Lose 2 popularity; lose 3 power; lose $4; and discard 2 combat cards at random. Opponents should be made aware of the various Trap penalties before the game begins.
Mech and Character Abilities (Togawa)
TOKA: Once per turn when moving, either 1 character or 1 mech may move across a river. A mech can use this ability while transporting workers. The character or mech may not move across multiple rivers when using a Move action on a Factory card.
SUITON: Your character and mechs can move to and from lakes. If combat occurs on a lake (some other factions have lake-related abilities), you may play 1 additional combat card. You may do this once per combat, not once per unit. If a mech transports workers onto a lake or if a character or mech transports resources onto a lake, you may not leave those workers or resources on the lake after moving off of it, nor may a worker move off of the lake without the assistance of the mech. You cannot build a structure or deploy a mech on a lake, but you may place a trap there.
RONIN: Before combat where you have exactly 1 unit (0 workers and either 1 character or 1 mech), you may gain 2 power on the Power Track.
SHINOBI: Your character and mechs can move to any territory with a Trap token, regardless of the distance. When using the Shinobi ability, if your character or mech ends their movement on the same space as a disarmed Trap token (i.e., not in the middle of a Factory card's Move action), you may choose to arm the Trap. If using Shinobi results in combat, you may only arm the Trap if you win the combat.
Akiko (Togawa Shogunate)
From an early age, Akiko, the niece of the shogun, read stories of warriors and adventurers in faraway lands. She was especially fascinated by the beauty and art of sword fighting. When she turned 16, Akiko begged her uncle to let her train at the most elite samurai war academy, and he agreed. She was a model student, practicing constantly until she excelled at fighting, shooting, strategy, and tactics. Bursting with pride, the shogun gave Akiko a special trained monkey named Jiro.
As Akiko was entering her second year of training, her brother, a prominent engineer, went missing during a mission to the mysterious Factory in Eastern Europa. The shogun's advisors suspected that he had been captured by agents of the Rusviet Union. Trusting in his niece's skills as a samurai, the shogun has empowered Akiko to lead a large military expedition to subvert the Rusviets, recover the Togawa engineers, and discover the truth of the Factory.
Automa Rules
This is the separate official English Automa sheet for Scythe: Invaders from Afar. The printed icons for the Encounter/Factory action and the river icon are rendered in words here.
COMPONENTS
- 4 Replacement cards for the Automa deck
- 2 Automa reference cards (with specific rule changes for the Albion and Togawa factions)
Setup
The first time you set up to play with the expansion, remove cards 5, 8, 18, & 19 from the original Automa deck and replace them with the four new cards provided in this expansion. The removed cards will no longer be used.
If the Automa is playing as Albion or Togawa, place the four Flag or Trap tokens, whichever is appropriate, on the Automa's faction mat. Randomize the Trap tokens and place them face down. You're ready to go.
Gameplay
All rules from the original Scythe Automa rulebook remain in force, except where expressly modified in this rulebook. Such modifications are only made in relation to the Albion and Togawa factions.
Traps and Flags placed by the Automa have no effect on its movement, except that the character of an Automa playing Togawa will sometimes move to an unarmed trap. Traps placed by you can influence its movement.
Since the Automa receives the additional points provided by Traps or Flags, playing against the new factions presents a greater challenge. Careful consideration will be required, if you are to triumph.
Movement Restriction for Albion and Togawa
The original rules state that as long as the Star Tracker token is on a space with a river icon on it, Automa units cannot use lakes or cross rivers. When the Automa is playing as Albion or Togawa, Automa units have an additional restriction: They cannot move onto a tunnel territory, as long as the Star Tracker token is on a space with a river icon.
The Automa Playing as Albion
Placing Flags: With Albion, the Automa gets the advantage of placing Flags provided in Scythe: Invaders from Afar. At the end of the game, these Flags are scored as described in the expansion rules. Flag placement occurs when the Encounter/Factory action (Encounter/Factory action icon) is resolved. After ending its movement, if the Automa has any Flags remaining, place one on the territory with its character.
The Automa Playing Against Albion
There are no changes when you play as the Albion faction.
The Automa Playing as Togawa
PLACING TRAPS: With Togawa, the Automa gets the advantage of placing Traps provided in Scythe: Invaders from Afar. At the end of the game, these Traps are scored as described in the expansion rules. Trap placement occurs when the Encounter/Factory action (Encounter/Factory action icon) is resolved. After ending its movement, if the Automa has any Traps remaining, place a random armed Trap on the territory with its character. You do not get to see which Trap was selected unless you trigger it in the normal course of play.
REARMING TRAPS. If evaluating the Encounter/Factory action (Encounter/Factory action icon) does not present a valid move and if there are disarmed Traps on the board, the character will move to the territory containing a disarmed Trap and arm it.
This action follows all of the rules of the Encounter/Factory action (Encounter/Factory action icon) except that the territory of the disarmed Trap does not need to be in the neighborhood of any Automa unit to be valid. The Automa's character is able to move to any territory with a disarmed Trap when taking the Encounter/Factory action (Encounter/Factory action icon).
If there are multiple disarmed Traps, choose the one that is the shortest distance from an enemy unit. Use normal reading order to break ties.
The Automa Playing Against Togawa
The Automa triggers Traps and incurs penalties as in the multiplayer game, except for the Trap with popularity loss as its penalty, which the Automa can trigger, but does not suffer the penalty.
To have the Automa actively attempt to trigger Traps, 'Territory with an armed Trap' is added as a new tiebreaker (before 'Normal reading order') for all move actions against this faction. Hence, when choosing a destination, there will be three tiebreakers instead of two:
TIEBREAKER 1: Territory closest to Factory.
TIEBREAKER 2: Territory with an armed Trap.
TIEBREAKER 3: Normal reading order.