Sidekick Saga Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• 1.1 Where Are the Heroes?
• 1.2 Introduction and How to Win!
• 1.3 Ways to Play
• 1.4 Choosing a Sidekick
  • 1.4.1 Premade Sidekicks
  • 1.4.2 Homemade Sidekicks
• 1.5 Unboxing Sidekick Saga!
• 1.6 Set-Up
• 1.7 Overview ... or "How Does the Game Flow?"
• 1.8 Bad Guys
• 1.9 How to Play
  • 1.9.1 The Structure of a Turn
• 1.10 Turn Details
  • 1.10.1 Bad News Phase
  • 1.10.2 Sidekick Phase
  • 1.10.3 Combat Phase
    • City Order
  • 1.10.4 End Phase
  • 1.10.5 End of Act
• 1.11 End of the Game
  • 1.11.1 End of Issue Maintenance
• 1.12 Skirmish Mode
• 1.13 Sidekick of Interest (SOI)
• 1.14 Bad News!!
• 1.15 Supply Lines
• 1.16 Sidekick Cards: Leads and Locations
• 1.17 Leads and Going to Secret Identity
• 1.18 Heroic Items
• 1.19 Tableau and Hand
• 1.20 Open Hand vs. Closed Hand
• 1.21 Xeonite Communicator
• 1.22 Disarray
• 1.23 Gangs
• 1.24 Thugs
• 1.25 Minions
• 1.26 Villains
• 1.27 Villain Forces, Power Structure, and Protection
• 1.28 Combat Basics
  • 1.28.1 Attack Basics
  • 1.28.2 Hack Attack Basics
• 1.29 Range
• 1.30 Attack Type Preferences
• 1.31 Who Do the Bad Guys Attack?
• 1.32 Defeated
  • 1.32.1 Bad Guy Defeated!
  • 1.32.2 Sidekick Defeated!
• 1.33 Discarding and Destroying
• 1.34 City Terror!
• 1.35 City Locations
• 1.36 FAQ
• 1.38 Glossary

1.1 Where Are the Heroes?

One morning, the city of New Dover woke up to discover that all the powerful Super Heroes had disappeared! Where did they all go? No one seems to know what happened to them! The Gangs, Thugs, Minions, and Villains of New Dover immediately noticed the power vacuum in the city and began to assert themselves. The city is reeling from their attacks! What can be done?

The Sidekicks of the Super Heroes haven't given up the fight! They know they aren't as powerful as the Bad Guys, but they are courageous and resourceful. They know where the Heroes have helpful technologies, weapons, and devices. To help each other out, the Sidekicks have set-up supply lines between themselves to share useful things! They will protect New Dover! And maybe along the way, they can find out what happened to the Super Heroes...

This is their story: this is The Sidekick Saga.

1.2 Introduction and How to Win!

Sidekick Saga is a cooperative adventure, combat, and exploration game for 1-4 players (ages 14 and up). It takes 60-90 minutes for one game. There is also an ongoing story to find the missing Super Heroes!

For 2-4 players, each player takes control of one of the Sidekick characters in the game. A solo player will take control of two Sidekick characters and will play them both as if it were a 2-Player game.

The players work together to defeat the current Villain and their Villain Forces. This is a cooperative game: the Sidekicks win or lose together! There is only one way to win (usually): the players must defeat the main Villain by reducing him to 0 Hit Points! There are many ways to lose!

1. If all Sidekicks are defeated (reduced to 0 Hit Points), the Villain wins! Note: only 1 Sidekick needs to survive for the Sidekicks to win! Sometimes, other Sidekicks will take one for the team to defeat the Villain!
2. If time runs out, the Villain has stalled long enough to bring his evil scheme to fruition, and he wins! This happens if the Villain is still alive at the End of Act III (when the last Bad News card comes out).
3. If the City Terror ever gets too high (16 on the City Terror track), the Sidekicks lose!

1.3 Ways to Play

For your Introductory first play, you should play the First Patrol scenario from the Scenario Book! Start there for a simplified set-up/game!

After that, there are two ways to play Sidekick Saga: Story Mode or Skirmish Mode. After your intro game, we strongly recommend you play the full Story Mode first to unlock all the cards! This makes Skirmish mode more fun as more options will be available!

Story mode is like a 6-issue comic mini-series: it's an overarching story spanning 6 issues (6 game sessions/encounters). In Story Mode, you start with Issue #1 of the Sidekick Saga story and play through all 6 Issues (where each Comic Book Issue is a single game lasting 90 minutes). You set-up and play normally, keeping things you find along the way for the endgame. At the endgame, depending on how the game went, "something happens" and changes the world up as you head to the next Issue.

Skirmish Mode is like a one-shot comic: one battle with one Villain and that's the end of it. In Skirmish Mode, you choose a scenario from the Scenario Book. You either win or lose that scenario, and that's the end of it!

1.4 Choosing a Sidekick

Each player chooses one Sidekick to play the game. There are two kinds of Sidekicks in the game: premade Sidekicks (like Blackbird) and homemade Sidekicks (or create-your-own).

1.4.1 Premade Sidekicks

At the start of the Sidekick Saga, there are 5 premade heroes: Amethyst Arrow, BlackBird, Commissioner Jones, Delphi, and The Tinkerer (6 if you have the Kickstarter Exclusive Shadow Walker). We strongly suggest each player start with one of these for playing the full Saga. Once you become familiar with the game and unlock other Powers (hint hint), there will be a lot more choices for Sidekick Powers for custom Sidekicks.

NOTE: You can't play Epsilon Wave or Mach Q until you unlock their powers later in the Saga!

Each Sidekick starts with two Powers: the two Powers are notated on the character sheet. For example, Blackbird starts with 2 Powers: KRAV MAGA and SCIENTIST (see figure). Note that each Power card has a Level 1 and Level 2 side (noted in the upper left corner): this is the Power Level of that Power. For the intro games, start with all Power Levels at 1. As the Saga progresses, you earn both new Powers and new Power Levels.

Place the Power cards underneath the Character with the Level, Title, and Icons showing. You should be able to glance at the Icons to remind yourself what the Power does, but if you forget, the full description is on the card underneath. (A picture of how to do this is shown in the set-up example.)

You will be flipping your Character Sheet from HERO to SECRET IDENTITY (and back) a fair number of times during the game: putting the Power cards underneath (but still showing the title) allows you to see the Powers abilities in either mode. Your Powers are still active in SECRET IDENTITY mode, you just might not be able to use them. For example, Combat related Powers aren't used in SECRET IDENTITY mode, as you can't attack!

When you start the game, there are only eight Powers, 2 for each of the 4 Sidekicks. As the Saga progresses, new Powers will be unlocked!

1.4.2 Homemade Sidekicks

When you want to make a homemade Sidekick, it's fairly straightforward. Find one of the generic Sidekick Character Sheets, and fill it in! You'll need to choose a name for the Sidekick, the Secret Identity, and a picture (drawn yourself or downloaded from the internet) for both sides of the card, the SOI Tokens, and the Marker!

You'll also choose two Power cards to put under the Sidekick. If you are creating your own Sidekick, make sure you choose the appropriate Power Level—See Skirmish Mode later on.

We strongly suggest you use the premade Sidekicks to learn the game, but if you HAVE to make your own Super Hero Sidekick, there are 32+ Powers sprinkled among all the Decks! Upgrades GG and DD in particular!

1.5 Unboxing Sidekick Saga!

When you first open your box, you'll notice a LOT of cards! Be careful! Since SIDEKICK SAGA is an adventure that unfolds, you don't want to read cards before you should!

There are 2 Adventure Decks: Deck 1 is what you use when you are playing Issues 1-3. Deck 2 is what you play when you are playing issues 4-6. DO NOT READ OR SHUFFLE OR REARRANGE THESE DECKS! They are meant to come out in order and present a progressive story!

In grand terms, there are three types of decks in SIDEKICK SAGA! Each of the different decks is marked in the lower right corner with the deck it comes from!

• Basic Cards (@): These are the cards that are (mostly) used in every game. These are OnGoing, Leads, Gangs, Heroic Items, Bad News, base Powers, Leads, Locations, etc.
• Comic Book Issue Cards #1—#6: These are the cards specific to the Comic Book Issue you are playing. There are usually some scenario-specific Bad News cards and scenario-specific Villain Forces! They are cards you need at the start of a scenario to set it up. Don't look at these unless told to by your Comic Book Issue!
• Upgrade Cards (YY, UU, DD, HH, GG): These are the cards that are the "rewards" for beating the Villain at the end of a Comic Book Issue! They also advance the plot! These are all marked with double-letters. Don't look at these unless told to by your Comic Book Issue!

There are a total of 12 different decks in the game: @, #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, YY, UU, DD, HH, GG.

1.6 Set-Up

If this is your first time playing, set-up and play is described in the Scenario book under "First Patrol"! Go there for a simplified set-up and first game to learn the rules!

The rules below for set-up are for Story or Legacy Mode. The rules change slightly if you are in Skirmish Mode. See the Skirmish Mode Set-Up section near the end of the Rulebook for the changes.

1. Find the Comic Book Issue with the Villain you want to fight! If this is your first time, choose Comic Book Issue #1! Take and read the Introduction. Note the extra rules of Set-Up (which you will follow below). If this is NOT your first time playing, consult your records (from End of Issue Maintenance) for the state of the "a little help" Cards, SOI Chart, Powers, Characters, Locations, and Heroic Items!

2. Each player chooses a Sidekick to play (solo players play two Sidekicks). Each player takes the Character sheet for that Sidekick and puts it in front of them (HERO side up). See Choosing a Sidekick, above. Make sure your Power cards are correct. (In Skirmish mode, you'll also set the Power Level, see Skirmish Mode, later on).

3. Take the SOI Chart and place it out. Take a single SOI token for each of Sidekick playing. For the first issue, place them randomly on the Sidekick of Interest (SOI) Chart, filling from left to right. Otherwise, use the SOI positions from the last game! Only one SOI Token per slot! NOTE! There are extra SOI Tokens which will be used much later in the game!

4. Take the City Terror Chart and place it just below the SOI Chart—put the Red Marker on space 1!

5. Put all the Gang cards together (call them the Gang Hangout!) and put them next to the City Terror Chart. This will help remind the players to update the SOI when they defeat a Gang in Combat!

6. Take 4 base Heroic Items cards and place them hidden side up. This is the Heroic Items tableau. Your previous games or the Comic Book Issue may add or subtract Heroic Items to the tableau.

7. Each player takes a Turn Summary Card.

8. Find the Locations needed for this game and arrange them as described in your Comic Book Issue. Shuffle each Location deck thoroughly before placing it face down. Leave some space below each Location deck for some Sidekick markers. When a Sidekick is on a Location, you don't want the Sidekick marker to get in the way of drawing Location cards! So you want the marker (and Peril Numbers, see below) to be just under the Location cards.

1.7 Overview ... or "How Does the Game Flow?"

The Villains are moving quickly in this game. The Sidekicks need to stop them before they consolidate their power base! A single game takes place over 1 day with 3 Acts: The Morning (Act I), Afternoon (Act II), and Night (Act III). Each Act contains a certain number of turns (depending on number of players), and each turn contains four Main Phases: Bad News Phase, Sidekick Phase, Combat Phase, and End Phase. The turn is where the action is!

Each part of the day (each turn) starts with the Bad News Phase. Bad News makes it more difficult for the Sidekicks to take down the Villain. But, the Sidekicks are also slowly revealing the plan/power structure of the Villain during the Bad News phase: this is both good and bad! Revealing means getting closer to the Villain, but also more trouble!

The Sidekicks then get a chance to put their plans into action in the Sidekick Phase. Each Sidekick will gather some resources and then share them with their compatriots—the Sidekicks have set-up a supply line between them so they can help each other out. Each Sidekick then decides to be a HERO or be in SECRET IDENTITY. When a Sidekick is a HERO, they can fight Bad Guys (Gangs, Thugs, Minions, Villains). When a Sidekick is in their SECRET IDENTITY, Bad Guys ignore them, allowing them to investigate and find resources.

Next begins the Combat Phase: combat begins with Villains, Thugs, Minions, and Gangs around the city. Combat only occurs with Bad Guys who are in range or who aren't in disarray. In the End phase, active Gangs will cause terror in the city, and any Bad Guys in disarray will regroup!

Play continues turn after turn until they reach the End of an Act. The End of an Act is a chance for respite for the Sidekicks (and getting a meal). At the End of an Act, the Sidekicks decide on the direction of the Supply Lines.

Play continues until all the Villain Forces are defeated, the players are all defeated, or the Villain has stalled long enough (End of Act III) to bring his plan into action!

(The rulebook's Player Summary Card callout notes that everything needed for the Combat Phase is on the Player Summary Card.)

1.8 Bad Guys

There are four types of Bad Guys in the game!

• Gang: A violent group that takes over a City Location!
• Thug: A lone low-life who haunts a City Location!
• Minion: A powerful, evil character beholden to the Villain!
• Villain: A super-powerful Bad Guy you have to defeat!

When we say Bad Guys or Bad Guy, we are referring to all four types (It's much easier to say "When the Bad Guys attack..." rather than "When the Gangs, Thugs, Minions, or Villains attack...")! All the Bad Guys have special abilities (see below), but they all have the same basic attack structure (see Combat).

1.9 How to Play

A normal game takes place over 3 Acts: Morning, Afternoon and Night. At the end of each Act, the Sidekicks have a chance to rest. Each Act has a number of turns (based on number of players) where Bad Guys and Sidekicks engage.

A Turn has four basic Phases:

• Bad News Phase: Villain do dastardly deeds!
• Sidekick Phase: The Sidekicks act!
• Combat Phase: Good Guys and Bad Guys Fight!
• End Phase: Miscellaneous effects!

After the End Phase, Sidekicks check for End of Act. If so, go to respite, otherwise continue to the next turn.

1.9.1 The Structure of a Turn

Bad News Phase (1 Bad News card for 1-2 players; alternate 1 then 2 for 3 players; 2 Bad News cards for 4 players):

1. The Least Interesting Sidekick (LIS) draws and reads the Bad News card(s) for this turn.
2. The LIS reveals the next Villain Force, marking affected Locations with Peril Numbers.

Sidekick Phase (Novice: players go in SOI Order. Normal: All Sidekicks perform each step simultaneously):

1. Move: Move up to your Movement Rate.
2. Gather Resources: Draw a Location card from your current Location.
3. Decide: Decide to be a HERO or change into SECRET IDENTITY.
4. Populate Supply Lines: Pass as many cards as you like from your hand (or in front of you) in the current Supply Lines direction.
5. Execute:
   • If in SECRET IDENTITY form: (a) Draw a Lead Card, then play as many (legal) cards as you like that can be played.
   • If in HERO form, do exactly 1 of the following: (a) Play as many (legal) cards as you like that can be played; (b) Move your Sidekick to the top of the SOI Chart; or (c) Rotate a Gang 90 degrees clockwise (into disarray).

Combat Phase (A Sidekick must be in HERO form to be in Combat!):

1. Sidekicks may Hack Attack in any order they like. Hack Attacks bypass Protection!
2. Bad Guys attack in City Order: top-to-bottom, left-to-right.
3. Sidekicks may attack in any order they like (if they haven't Hack Attacked). Attacks must respect Protection!

End Phase:

1. City Terror! For every City Location occupied by a Gang (not in disarray), raise the City Terror level by 1.
2. Regroup! For every Gang, Thug, Minion, Villain, or OTHER in disarray, rotate them 90 degrees counter-clockwise.

If the End of an Act (End of Morning, End of Afternoon, or End of Night) shows up in the End Phase, a few things happen:

• Is it end of Night? Unless something special happens, THE PLAYERS LOSE! Check your Comic Book Issue to see what happens!
• Otherwise, respite!
  1. Change the direction of the Supply Lines. Any Sidekick may discard a card to keep the direction the same.
  2. Take all cards from GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD and sort them into appropriate, separate discard decks. Shuffle each discard deck individually, placing each discard deck on the bottom of the appropriate deck.
  3. Start the next Act!

1.10 Turn Details

1.10.1 Bad News Phase

"Bad News Everyone!"

In the Bad News phase, the Villain's plan comes closer to fruition! The Least Interesting Sidekick (LIS) does the maintenance of Bad News work. The LIS does the following:

1. Draw and read the top card of the Bad News deck. Everyone must deal with the Bad News!
   • 1 or 2-Player game: 1 Bad News card comes out per turn.
   • 3-Player game: the Bad News alternates between 1 Bad News card, then 2 Bad News Cards, then 1, then 2 and so on. During set-up, you should have made the Bad News deck easier to manage by alternating one card horizontal, two cards vertical, and so on.
   • 4-Player game: 2 Bad News cards come out per turn.
2. Reveal the next Villain Forces card, marking affected Locations with Peril Numbers. Consult the current Comic Book Issue to see the order to uncover the Villain Forces card(s).

Some Bad News cards may stay out for a while to mark an effect. Otherwise, discard this to the Bad News discard (completely separate from the GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD).

The current Comic Book Issue describes how to reveal the next Villain's Force card (usually left to right, bottom to top). If the revealed Villain's Force does something upon revealing, the LIS makes sure that is handled.

Use the Peril Numbers to mark effects: when you reveal a Villain Force, put the corresponding number on the City Location to show where its effects are felt!

Example: When the Villain Forces #1 is revealed, that Minion oversees the Warehouse District. The corresponding number #1 is placed next to the Warehouse District to show Villain Force #1 is active there!

1.10.2 Sidekick Phase

"Justice is Served!"

This is when the Sidekicks get a chance to do their thing!

Novice mode is for introductory players who haven't played many games and aren't comfortable with the simultaneous selection of Normal mode.

In Novice mode, players play in Sidekick of Interest order (left-to-right on the SOI chart), with each player taking their whole Sidekick Phase (in the order below) one after the other, then proceeding to Combat.

In Normal mode, all Sidekicks perform their actions simultaneously, in the following order:

1. Move: Each player moves, up to their movement rate. Movement is calculated orthogonally. I.e., you can't go diagonally for 1 movement—you have to move 1 horizontally then 1 vertically for a total of 2 Movement. Unless otherwise notated, each City Location costs 1 Movement point to move through.
2. Gather Resources: Each Sidekick draws a Location card from their current Location. If the Sidekick is on his/her home Location, they may draw a Home Location card, even if there is a Gang or Thug (or any Bad Guy) on this Location! The Sidekick knows all the secret ways in and out of his Home Location, so nothing can stop him from getting his stuff!
3. Decide: Each Sidekick decides (individually) to be in SECRET IDENTITY mode or HERO mode. Flip the Character Sheet to the appropriate side. For the remainder of this turn, that Sidekick is either in HERO or SECRET IDENTITY form.
4. Populate Supply Lines: Noting the direction of the Supply Lines, each Sidekick may pass any number of cards (from their hand or in front of them) in the Supply Lines direction. This all happens simultaneously.
5. Execute: Each player does something, depending on if in HERO or SECRET IDENTITY form.

If in SECRET IDENTITY mode:

1. Draw a Lead Card. Then, play as many (legal) cards as you like. While in your SECRET IDENTITY, you are basically doing research undercover trying to find something useful—you still have to abide by the rules of the Location and your Sidekick. For example: If a Gang is there (unless it's your home), you can't draw any cards.

If in HERO form, you can do exactly 1 of the following actions:

1. Play as many (legal) cards as you like. This is the Sidekick serving up Justice! You can only play cards that make sense (i.e., you can't go searching the HERO HQ deck if you are on the STREETS space). But in general, do as much as you can! In this phase, the Sidekicks are doing stuff and just getting ready for Combat—they need to play cards that are relevant for their upcoming Combat! If a card is not in play, it can't be used in the Combat (unless the card says otherwise).
2. (or) Move your Sidekick's SOI token to the top of the SOI Chart. This is a Sidekick "creating a distraction" to keep the Bad Guys busy this turn. He shows himself and may become the target of many Villain Forces. This is all the Sidekick can do this turn!
3. (or) Put a gang into disarray (rotate 90 degrees clockwise). Muck up a Gang a little to keep them off the Sidekicks' collective backs.

Note: The purpose of the simultaneous actions is to keep the play moving, so everyone gets to do something! It's okay to move through your actions before the other players, so long as it would have the same effect as if you executed them in order. I.e., you can't share a card this turn that you GOT this turn!

If the order that Sidekick's play makes a difference, players decide who goes first. For Example, if the Villain attacks the first player to change into their SECRET IDENTITY, and multiple players do that simultaneously, players decide who "goes first" (and gets attacked).

1.10.3 Combat Phase

Combat occurs! In this Phase only! See Combat Above. To attack Bad Guys, a Sidekick must be in HERO form! To attack a Sidekick, a Bad Guy must be revealed (and not in disarray) and the Sidekick target must be in HERO form!

1. Sidekicks may Hack Attack in any order they like. Hack Attacks bypass Protection!
2. Bad Guys attack in City Order! Top-to-bottom, left-to-right.
3. Sidekicks may Attack in any order they like (if they haven't already Hack Attacked). Attacks must respect Protection!

If a Sidekick Hack Attacks, he may not do a plain physical Attack (unless he has a special ability/card). In general, each Sidekick can only Attack once in the Combat Phase, but of course, they can be attacked by multiple attacks!

When a Bad Guy initiates an attack, unless it says otherwise on their card, they will Attack. They will only Hack Attack (or both) if it says on their card.

Note that the players can Attack on any order they desire on their turn! This is important because this may affect the SOI chart!

City Order

City Order is the simple top-to-bottom, left-to-right traversal of the City Locations. It's basically like reading!

You use City Order to determine the order that the Bad Guys attack.

Example: There are three Bad Guys active in the City who can Attack! A Thug at the Caves, a Gang is Uptown, and a Minion at Rincon Labs. In what order do they Attack?

Start at the Warehouse District, go left-to-right. No Bad Guys on the top row! Go down to the next row, left-to-right, which puts the Uptown Gang attacking before the Minion at Rincon Labs! Go down to the next row—the Thug at the Caves attacks! No other Bad Guys on the last row.

If there are multiple Bad Guys on a Location, the players may choose the order the Bad Guys attack.

1.10.4 End Phase

"Meanwhile..."

• City Terror! For every City Location occupied by a Gang (not in disarray), raise the City Terror level by 1.
• Regroup! For every Gang, Thug, Minion, Villain, or OTHER in disarray, rotate them 90 degrees counter-clockwise.

Things in disarray tend to fix themselves. If a card rotates back to its normal position, then that card is no longer in disarray.

• End of Act? Check for End of Act!

1.10.5 End of Act

Is it end of Night? Unless something special happens, THE PLAYERS LOSE! Check your Comic Book Issue to see what happens!

Otherwise:

1. Change the direction of the Supply Lines. A Sidekick may discard one card to keep the direction the same.
2. Take all the cards from GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD and sort into appropriate, separate discard decks. Take and shuffle each discard deck individually. Then place each discard deck on the BOTTOM of the appropriate deck.
3. Start the next Act!

1.11 End of the Game

If you defeat the Villain before the time runs out, you win! Otherwise, you lose. If you are in Skirmish mode, you are done. Hopefully you won!

If you are in Story mode, consult your Comic Book Issue! It will explain what to do if you are defeated, you ran out of time, or the Sidekicks win. Usually, you will go to the next issue if you win ... but you need to perform some End of Issue Maintenance!

1.11.1 End of Issue Maintenance

After you are done resolving the ending of your Comic Book Issue, players need to do the following maintenance:

1. Hit Points: Heal all Hit Points (With more players, remember you start with fewer Hit Points).
2. Xeonite Communicators: All Sidekicks get their Xeonite Communicators back.
3. Discard Sidekick Cards: Discard all Sidekick Cards (not Heroic Items, see below) back to their original decks.
4. New Characters: Record if any new Characters were unlocked!
5. Heroic Items:
   • (a) Heal: Heal all Heroic Items (Hit Points, rotate back, etc.) to their original activated state.
   • (b) Record all new (hidden) Heroic Items: If you added new Heroic Items at the end of this issue (from Upgrade packs), record which pieces were added. The new, added Heroic Items come hidden at the start of the next Issue! It's new stuff for the Sidekicks to find and activate!
   • (c) Record all Heroic Items found and claimed: If, during the course of your current Comic Book Issue, you found/claimed/activated any hidden Heroic Items, it stays around! Record the Heroic Items you found and claimed! You will start the next issue with that activated Heroic Items in a Sidekick's hand!
6. Powers:
   • (a) Power Level Upgrades: If any Sidekick upgraded a Power Level from 1 to 2, record that upgrade!
   • (b) New Powers: If any Sidekick gained a new Power (usually from an Upgrade Pack), record that new Power for that new Sidekick! (And the Power Level ... usually 1).

If any new Sidekicks come out, make sure their Power Level is equivalent to other Sidekicks (same number of Powers, same level, etc). Any new Sidekick is going to come out as LIS because no one knows who they are yet!

It's important to record the state of your Powers, Heroic Items, Locations, SOI Chart, and extra cards! You'll use your records to note what extra things the Sidekicks get before the start of the NEXT game!

1.12 Skirmish Mode

The Scenario Book describes a bunch of one-shot scenarios for the Sidekicks. The First Patrol scenario (front of the Scenario book) can be played without having unlocked/played-through any Comic Book Issues, but most scenarios will require some (if not all) Comic Book Issues (1-6) to be completed (so you have unlocked certain cards) before you can play that scenario. Don't open the Scenario Book until you've played through most Comic Books!

Each scenario is described by:

1. Name and Difficulty: A name and difficulty are notated at the top of the page (intro, easy, medium, and hard). For example: First Patrol, Easy is the first one! This is followed by a brief, thematic description. Have the LIS read it aloud!
2. Preliminary Requirements: Comic Book Issues you need to have completed before you play this Scenario.
3. Heroic Items Tableau: The hidden Heroic Items available to the Sidekicks.
4. Skill Level: The Skill Level of the Scenario: a summary number encompassing Powers, Power Levels, and Heroic Items (found) each Sidekick.
5. (optional) Suggested Sidekicks: The recommended Sidekicks to use for the scenario. You can use any you like, but these Sidekicks might make it easier!
6. Bad News Set-up: Which Bad News cards are needed for that scenario.
7. City Layout: Which City Locations to use and their organization.
8. Power Structure: A description of the cards and structure of the Bad Guys for that scenario. The picture will show which cards to use—if there are multiple cards like that, use a random one!
9. Win or Lose? A description of the Scenario! With Win and Lose conditions, plus any other changes to the scenario!

The Skill Level of a Scenario encompasses the number of Powers, Power Levels, and the Heroic Items players take in hand. Each player gets a number of points equal to the Skill Level to spend to build his Sidekick. Each Power at Power Level 1 costs 1 point, and each Power at Power Level 2 costs 2 points. Heroic Items are special: however many Leads it takes to find, it costs n/2 Skill Level points (rounded down) to start the game with that Heroic Item.

When making Sidekicks with Skill Level points, Premade characters MUST ALWAYS use at least their 2 base Powers, but homemade characters have free reign!

For Example: Consider a Scenario with Skill Level 4.

Player 1 chooses BlackBird. Player 1 must start with base Powers Krav Maga and Scientist, so that's 2 of the 4 Skill Level points. He then chooses to up the Power Level of Krav Maga to 2 (that's 3). Then, he chooses another Power (Aikido) at Power Level 1. That's 2 + 1 + 1 = 4, so the player is done.

Player 2 chooses to make his own Character: Moonfire. He only wants one power (Hands of Fire) at Power Level 2. That's 2 points. He then wants the Heroic Item Force Field Controller—that means the Hero HQ starts immediately in play! That costs 2 points as well (4 Leads needed to find, so 4/2 = 2). That's 2 + 2 = 4, so the player is done.

Player 3 chooses to make his own Character: Steve. He wants a civilian who just happens to find the Energy Bands of Gog! 8 Leads needed to find, 8/2 = 4, so all 4 points go to the Energy Bands!

Take a look at the entry for First Patrol!

1.13 Sidekick of Interest (SOI)

The SOI is the Sidekick Of Interest. The SOI is where the Bad Guys concentrate their efforts! In other words, he's the Sidekick who has enraged the Bad Guys the most! We all know that Bad Guys hold grudges, so the more a Sidekick disrupts the Bad Guys, the more "interested" they become in that Sidekick!

Word gets around when a Sidekick defeats a Bad Guy! And everyone wants to take out the top Sidekick!

The Sidekick of Interest (SOI) Chart marks how "interesting" each Sidekick is. Sidekicks move their Sidekick token (see Tokens above) left on the SOI Chart when they become more interesting, and right when they become less interesting. In general, anytime a Sidekick defeats any Bad Guy, he has become "more interesting" to the Bad Guys and that Sidekick rockets all the way to the left on the chart!

The discard for the Bad Guys (Villain Forces, Gang Hangout, Bad News Discard) are all right next to the SOI Chart. After a Sidekick defeats the Bad Guy, discard that Bad Guy next to the SOI Chart—that will immediately remind you to update the SOI chart!

In general, the SOI Chart is used for disambiguation, so that means no two SOI Markers can ever be on the same space on the SOI Chart. Example of disambiguation: If two Sidekicks are at the same range of a Villain Force, the most interesting one (the leftmost) will be the target.

Note that when a Sidekick changes to the SECRET IDENTITY form, he/she can no longer be targeted by Bad Guys, but his place on the SOI Chart doesn't change (unless another Sidekick moves up).

The SOI is the leftmost Sidekick, regardless of whether the Sidekick is in SECRET IDENTITY form or not. The active SOI, on the other hand, is the leftmost Sidekick who is currently in HERO form.

Once you know the game better, you know that adjusting the SOI Chart can mean the difference between defeat and victory! So, once you are more comfortable with the SOI Chart and the rules for adjusting it, you may want to do Combat in a certain order to adjust the SOI Chart in a certain order.

There is another way for a Sidekick to become the SOI! He can "create a distraction"! But, it comes at a cost: he can't play any cards that turn! Instead of playing cards during the Execute part of the Sidekick Phase, a Sidekick creates a distraction, forcing the Bad Guys to notice him! This distraction causes that Sidekick to become the new SOI (moving his Token to the leftmost position).

You'll notice that the backs of the SOI tokens are empty. Why aren't they two-sided? This is on purpose! When you get to "create your own Superhero", you will need SOI tokens! We left the back of the SOI Tokens empty so you could mark them with your own character's names!

There is also the notion of Least Interesting Sidekick (LIS). This Sidekick is at the lowest level on the SOI chart. Basically, the LIS is the Sidekick who handles the maintenance during the Bad News Phase (see Turn Order).

Why does the LEAST interesting Sidekick (LIS) do maintenance? The LIS is the least likely to get into Combat this turn, so it gives him/her something more to do on his/her turn!

The LIS reads Bad News cards and reveals the Villain's Power Structure during the Bad News Phase.

1.14 Bad News!!

"Bad News Everyone!!"

The Bad News cards come out at the beginning of each turn. The LIS reads and handles all the Bad News for that turn. After reading, the Bad News card is discarded (face-up so you can see the last Bad News) to the Bad News discard.

The number of Bad News that comes out each turn depends on the number of players:

• 1-2 Players: 1 Bad News per turn
• 3 Players: Alternate every turn. Start with 1 Bad News, then 2 Bad News, then 1, then 2 ...
• 4 Players: 2 Bad News per turn

Every Comic Book Issue adds specific Bad News Cards (called Villainous Plot Cards) to the Bad News deck. It usually takes the form of 2 Bad News for the Morning (Easy), 2 Bad News for the Afternoon (Medium), and 2 Bad News for the Nighttime (Hard). The Easy cards are marked in green, the Medium cards with Yellow, and the Hard cards with red. These will be mixed in with the generic Bad News cards (in gray) in each Act.

1.15 Supply Lines

The Sidekicks know they have to help each other by passing information and supplies between them! They have set-up Supply Lines around the city to share stuff. What are they sharing along the Supply Lines? The Sidekick cards! The Items, Locations, Leads—basically any cards the Sidekicks have.

Power Cards may NOT be shared over Supply Lines! They are intrinsic to the character!

The Supply Lines have a direction associated with them: this represents the cars, info, and messengers going through the city in a single direction for drop-offs. At the end of an Act, the direction of Supply Line changes—this represents the cars, info, and messengers going back the direction they came.

In a 1 or 2-Player game, the directionality of the Supply Lines doesn't matter—you can ignore the directionality rules in the rest of this section.

At the start of the game, the Supply Lines are clockwise, which means the cards passed during the Sidekick phase are passed to the left during the Morning. At the end of the Morning, the direction shifts. During the Day, cards flow counter-clockwise (to the right). At the end of the Afternoon, the direction changes back to clockwise (to the left).

There is a Supply Lines card that indicates the Current Direction. Flip it at the end of each Act. NOTE! The players may decide, collectively, to keep the Supply Lines flowing in the same direction. If any Sidekick discards a card, players prevent the Supply Line direction from changing.

NOTE: If two or more Sidekicks end up on the same Location, they don't need the Supply Lines: they can just trade any cards they want. You CANNOT trade cards if you just move through a Location—both Sidekicks must end their movement in the same Location. (The exception is Mach Q! He may drop cards off as he moves through Locations—it's one of his Powers!)

1.16 Sidekick Cards: Leads and Locations

There are two basic forms of cards the Sidekick can have in play (tableau or in their hand): the generic Lead Cards (labelled on the back), and all the Location cards (labelled by the different Locations all over the city). All together, these are all considered the Sidekick Cards. These are cards that may be shared over Supply Lines!

There are four different types of Sidekick Cards:

• Lead: A Lead is like a clue: it allows the Sidekick to "look deeper" at a given Location to find better stuff—typically a Lead allows drawing an extra Card at a given Location. After playing a Lead, it is discarded to the GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD. Alternatively, a number of Leads can be discarded to find the Heroic Items (see Heroic Items below).
• One-Shot: A One-Shot card is played, its effects happen, then it is discarded to the GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD. Usually, the one-shots can only be played in the Execute part of the Sidekick Phase, but occasionally, they can be played at other times—this will be noted on the card.
• Ongoing: A Ongoing card is played in front of a Sidekick, and its effects linger for a while. Sometimes, that card will be discarded (to the GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD) to power a later effect, or sometimes it will stay around the whole game. It depends on what happens!
• Item: An Item card is played in front of the Sidekick, and can now be used. They aren't discarded when used, unless the card says so. If it is discarded, it goes to the GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD.

Remember, when any Sidekick Card (either Lead or Location card) is discarded, it goes to the GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD! IT DOES NOT GO TO THE BOTTOM OF THE APPROPRIATE DECK! Only at the End of an Act do Sidekick Cards come back into play.

1.17 Leads and Going to Secret Identity

One of the things the Sidekicks are doing is running down leads. They know where some of the Superheroes' stuff was, but not all of it. In many cases, they have to go investigating to look for it. The Lead cards give the Sidekicks a better chance of finding something useful at a Location (or even finding Heroic Items, see next page).

To get a Lead, the Sidekick needs to change to the SECRET IDENTITY form—flip the Character card to the SECRET IDENTITY side. When in the SECRET IDENTITY form, the Sidekick gains a Lead Card at the start of the Execute part of the Sidekick Phase—they are searching for something to lead them to the Superhero technology. In the SECRET IDENTITY form, Sidekicks can search without being bothered by citizens or Bad Guys.

Leads can only usually be drawn in SECRET IDENTITY mode (but some Locations may have Leads as well—these can be found in any mode).

There are really two reasons to change to your SECRET IDENTITY, both of which are complementary. One: you can get a Lead card. Two: You can't be attacked (but you can't attack either). If this would be a turn where you don't want Combat, it makes sense to change into your SECRET IDENTITY to get some Leads.

In SECRET IDENTITY mode you are protected from Attacks, but note that a Bad Guy's Hack Attacks can still affect you!

1.18 Heroic Items

Even though the major heroes disappeared, we know they left behind some very big and powerful technology: we call these "Heroic Items"! They are strange and wonderful items! Some think they are from another dimension? We just don't know where they all are! We have to go explicitly looking to find and activate the hidden Heroic Items!

Heroic Item cards are the big technologies known to be left behind by the heroes—but where? In most games, 4 Heroic Items cards are turned hidden in the Heroic Items Tableau for all the Sidekicks to see. To find and claim a Heroic Item, a Sidekick must discard a certain number of Lead cards at a particular Location—that turns that Heroic Item to found and claimed!

When the Leads are discarded (to the GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD), the Heroic Items are found and claimed! Flip it over and put that Heroic Item in the finding Sidekick's hand. It becomes like any other Sidekick card.

The best way to get a Lead is to change to the SECRET IDENTITY, but some other Leads can be found in HERO mode (as they are scattered in city Locations as well).

If a Heroic Item is ever discarded, it comes back at the End of Act like all other Sidekick cards, going to the deck where it was found! For example: the Force Field Controller would come back to the bottom of the Suburbs deck (if that's where it was found). However, all Heroic Items (both hidden and claimed) remain around between Comic Book Issues! Claimed Heroic Items remain in play (in a Sidekick's hand) between Comic Book issues. Newly discovered Heroic Items (but still hidden) survive between issues as well.

(The rulebook shows two sample Heroic Item cards: X-Ray Specs, hidden side and found side. Their printed text is quoted here: "One Sidekick must discard 3 LEADS at the SUBURBS to find and claim the X-Ray Specs. Flip this card when found." and, on the found side, "When drawing from a Location, the Sidekick may first look at bottom card of that Location. The Sidekick may then choose to draw a Location card from the top or bottom of the deck.")

1.19 Tableau and Hand

Each Sidekick has a tableau and a hand. These are two places the Sidekicks keep their cards.

A Sidekick's tableau is all the cards "in play", turned face-up in front of them. Each Sidekick has his own tableau. These represent the Items the Sidekicks are carrying and stuff they are doing. The tableaus are always visible to everyone. Thematically: it's the stuff they are wearing and using so everyone can see that!

A Sidekick's hand is all the cards the Sidekicks are carrying, but not currently using. Each Sidekick has his own hand. Thematically, these are items hidden in pockets and pouches!

During the Execute part of the Sidekick Phase, a Sidekick usually plays cards from his hand to his tableau, but he can take cards from his tableau back into his hand!

1.20 Open Hand vs. Closed Hand

There are two ways to play Sidekick Saga: Open Hand or Closed Hand. If you are playing the solo game, you are playing Open Hand. Open Hand means all Sidekick Cards are face-up and everyone can see what cards everyone else has in their hands. Closed Hand means Sidekicks can't see what other Sidekicks have in their hands.

The default way to play is Closed Hand: it's more thematic! Sidekicks are roaming around the city, doing the best they can, but they can't keep track of what everyone else is doing! They can't see what all their compatriots have been up to. When playing Closed Hand, you can talk generally about what your cards are, but not specifically what the values may be. Think of it as shouting across the city ... it's hard to share small details when shouting!

Allowed:

• "I need a Scientist! Can anyone get me a Scientist?"
• "I have a first-aid kit! It heals some!"
• "I found an awesome Xeonite Blaster! It rocks!"

Disallowed:

• "The first-aid kit heals 2 Hit Points."
• "I got the Xeonite Blaster and it gives me +12 to attack."

In either mode, other Sidekicks are always allowed to see cards you have played in front of you in the tableau. For example, any Item has to be played in front of the character to be used (like the Xeonite Blaster). Everyone can see items in play!

If you and your group feel more comfortable playing Open Hand, feel free. It makes the game easier, but it may really slow down the game! Open Hand can lead to some analysis paralysis ...

Every Sidekick gets a Xeonite Communicator—these special items have different effects, depending on whether you are playing Open Hand or Closed Hand.

1.21 Xeonite Communicator

The Xeonite Communicators were a gift to the Sidekicks from one of the big Heroes before he disappeared. It allows an instant psionic and physical link between Sidekicks! With the link, the Sidekicks can immediately communicate/share anything and everything! But this effect only lasts a short time ...

At the start of a turn, any number of Sidekicks can discard their Xeonite Communicator. On that turn, everyone who discarded their Xeonite Communicator may show and discuss their hands in detail—they show all cards! But just for that one turn! This allows the Sidekicks (who are talking over the Xeonite Communicator) to make the most informed choices at crucial moments.

Alternatively, a Xeonite Communicator can be discarded at any time to pass up to 3 cards to another Sidekick immediately!

Xeonite Communicators may NOT be shared during the Populate Supply Lines part of the Sidekick Phase.

Special! If a Sidekick is defeated, he may immediately discard the Xeonite Communicator to pass 3 cards to a compatriot!

1.22 Disarray

A Bad Guy can be put into disarray using Sidekick special abilities, Sidekick cards, or special actions. (NOTE: It's usually very difficult to put the main Villain into disarray!) When a Bad Guy is put into disarray, this represents the Sidekick throwing that Bad Guy into chaos so he can't do anything!

What are some things Sidekicks can do to put a Bad Guy into disarray? Messing up his computer, playing other bad guys against him, revealing a hideout so he has to move, etc. Basically, keeping a Bad Guy busy so he's not a threat for a while.

While a Bad Guy is in disarray, he is out of commission and can't do anything (including Protecting other Villain Forces, see Protection below)! None of his effects are active either!

Although a Bad Guy in disarray CANNOT attack Sidekicks, the Sidekicks CAN attack the Bad Guys in disarray! That's one of many reasons to put a Bad Guy in disarray! When attacking a Bad Guy in disarray, the base Defense and Hack Defense are used—any other special abilities are not active (unless it says explicitly).

To show a Bad Guy is in disarray, that Bad Guy card is rotated clockwise either 90, 180 or 270 degrees. This represents how many turns it will take the bad guy to get out of disarray: 90° = 1 turn, 180° = 2 turns, 270° = 3 turns.

(The rulebook's diagram shows: Gang in disarray 90°, inactive for 1 turn; Gang in disarray 180°, inactive for 2 turns, regroups from 270° to 180°; Gang in disarray 270°, inactive for 3 turns; Active Gang.)

Nothing can be in disarray more than 270°! If put into disarray for more than 270°, it simply maxes out at 270°.

During the End Phase, every Bad Guy (or thing) in disarray is rotated 90 degrees counter-clockwise. This shows the Bad Guy making "progress" dealing with his issues. Once a Bad Guy is back at normal orientation, he is active again and all his effects are active!

Bad Guys already in disarray can be put further into disarray (but not beyond 270°). It is possible for things OTHER than Bad Guys to be in disarray, but the same rules apply ...

1.23 Gangs

Gangs are groups of streetwise fighters that will take over a City Location. Their reach typically doesn't extend beyond that Location, and Sidekicks on a Location with a Gang will be attacked in the Combat Phase.

There are two types of Gangs: Uncontrolled Gangs and Controlled Gangs.

Uncontrolled Gangs are chaotic, undisciplined groups who cause spates of chaos. Controlled gangs (usually controlled by the Villain) have more focus and more resources, so tend to be harder to defeat.

If a Gang is active on a City Location, Sidekicks may not draw cards there (even if they are in their SECRET IDENTITY form)!

To remind yourself you can't draw Cards there, drape the Gang card across the Location Cards. You won't accidentally draw a card, because the Gang card is on top of the deck!

Although you can defeat Gangs with traditional combat (see Combat Phase), there are many other ways that Gangs can be dealt with:

1. Police Forces: Discard POLICE FORCES to defeat gangs. Discard 2 for Uncontrolled Gangs, 3 for Controlled Gangs. POLICE FORCES are gained at the POLICE STATION. POLICE FORCES are discarded in the Execute part of the Sidekick Phase. The Sidekick DOES NOT have to be on the Gang's Location to defeat it—he is just "dispatching" Police to the Location to clean it up. And yes, multiple players can discard POLICE FORCES at the same time to defeat a Gang! Defeating gangs this way causes no change to the SOI. NOTE: This does NOT count as an Attack! If the Sidekicks dispatch some POLICE FORCES to take down a gang, the Sidekicks may still Attack this turn!
2. Disarray: Put a gang into disarray. It's remarkably easy to throw a gang into disarray (playing gang members off each other, using information against them, etc). While in disarray, the gang has no effect. I.e., Sidekicks can draw cards on that Location, no attacks will happen, etc. See disarray (previous page) for more information.
3. Rumble: Move another gang into that Location. If two gangs are ever on the same spot, they destroy each other. Gangs only destroy each other once they are both active (not in disarray). (Edge case: if an even number of gangs are on a Location, they all destroy each other. If an odd number of gangs are on a space, the strongest one survives and all others are destroyed).

Thugs and other Bad Guys can co-exist on the same Location as a Gang without any rumbling: Gangs only rumble with other Gangs!

4. Sidekick-Controlled Gang: It is rare, but it is possible for a Sidekick to take control of a Gang (and it is considered a Controlled Gang then). When this happens, the Sidekicks may treat the City Location of the Sidekick-Controlled Gang as a normal spot (for drawing, moving, etc). But: the Gang protects the Sidekicks—if a Sidekick and a Sidekick-Controlled Gang are in the same Location, ANY attacks by other Bad Guys target the Gang first, then the Sidekick. (If the Gang taken over was a Villain Forces Gang, then it is taken out of the Villain Forces Power Structure: See Power Structure below). Finally, if a Bad Guy ends up on the Sidekick Controlled Gang's City Location, the Controlled Gang will Attack the Bad Guy during the Sidekick's portion of the Combat phase. NOTE: Sidekick controlled Gangs do NOT cause the City Terror to increase!

If an active Gang occupies a City Location, they will cause Terror on that City Location—raise the City Terror level by 1 in the End Phase for each active Gang! See City Terror (later) for more details.

1.24 Thugs

Thugs are just low-life Bad Guys looking for a fight. In general, Thugs come from the Bad News deck and they DO NOT work for any Villain! They work for themselves!

The Thug, upon reveal from the Bad News deck, usually moves to a Location in the City—either directly to the SOI or a specific Location (their home on their card). While active, that Thug prevents drawing cards on that Location—put the Thug physically across that Location deck to note that.

In general, only Gangs and Thugs prevent Sidekicks from drawing at a Location (this is notated by placing that Bad Guy ON TOP OF the Location, effectively blocking it physically).

(The rulebook's example card is Hacker Noir: "Moves to the SUBURBS upon reveal! He HACK ATTACKS in the Combat Phase! While this Thug is active on this Location, players may NOT draw any cards here.")

1.25 Minions

Minions are Bad Guys who work for the Villains—their allegiance is to their Villain, and they do what they can to protect their master!

A Minion (working for the Villain, properly employed with Health Insurance) comes from the Villain Forces and typically stays in the Power Structure, but has a Home location he "oversees" on the board. A Minion generally doesn't move, and he acts as if he were on his Home Location. He stays in the Villain Forces Power Structure to show whom he protects (see Protection below), but still is ON the Location (for purposes of Range and Attacks, see Combat).

A Minion in the Power Structure generally DOES NOT prevent Sidekicks from drawing from that City Location deck.

This is why Minions in the Power Structure STAY in the Power Structure: they DO NOT prevent characters from drawing cards. They are too busy following the orders of the Villain to prevent the Sidekicks from searching! Hey, they gotta worry about keeping their jobs and their Insurance!

(The rulebook's example card is a Minion whose text reads: "If Lt. Ben is active, Jerry gets +1 to Range!")

1.26 Villains

The Villain is the main Bad Guy that you really have to defeat. He is very powerful and has many loyal Minions working for him (see above).

To win the game, you usually need to defeat the main Villain! They have powers and lots of hit points, but they are hard to defeat because their Villain Forces protect them! (See Villain Forces, next page!)

1.27 Villain Forces, Power Structure, and Protection

Each Villain has a different way of organizing his Minions, also known as his Villain Forces. The Villain Forces are all the Minions and machinations working for the Villain.

Each Villain has a different Power Structure—a way of organizing the Villain Forces cards. The Comic Book Issue featuring that Villain will describe how that Villain's Power Structure works. In general, all Villain Forces are laid out face down at the start of the game, and they are revealed as the game progresses.

One thing that's common to all Power Structures: some Villain Forces protect other Villain Forces. By protect, we mean that if A and B protect C, then C cannot be attacked until A and B are both defeated.

For example, in Jon Frost's Villain Forces, Sidekicks cannot attack Level 2 Villain Force #6 until they have defeated the two Level 1 Villain Forces protecting him (#1 and #2)! Typically, you have to defeat most of the Villain Forces before you can even attack the main Villain!

(The rulebook's Power Structure diagram for Issue 1 is a figure and is not transcribed.)

Note that, unless otherwise specified, a Bad Guy in disarray does NOT offer any Protection to upper Villain Forces! Any revealed Villain Forces may attack (but nothing may attack or be attacked if it's not revealed)! The Protection of its lower Villain Forces DOES NOT STOP a Villain Force from doing its thing (Attacks, effects, etc)!

Life isn't fair. Villain Forces can attack you, but they hide behind their subordinates and you can't attack them.

Note that Hack Attacks (see below) DO NOT respect Protection! In other words, you may Hack Attack any revealed Bad Guy when you may not be able to Attack him normally.

1.28 Combat Basics

Each Character, Gang, Thug, Minion, and Villain can participate in Combat. Things that can be in combat have the combat icons on the right side of their card. Note that a Sidekick in SECRET ID form cannot participate in Combat.

• Attack: The base value for how much physical damage you do in Combat.
• Range: How far your Attack can reach (range is computed orthogonally, see Range later).
• Defense: How much you resist when damage is done to you.
• Hack Attack: The base value for Hack Attack damage.
• Hack Defense: How much you resist a Hack Attack.
• Movement: How far you can move (computed orthogonally). Most Bad Guys don't move once in play, so they don't even have this on their card!

There are two types of Combat: Attacks (physical attacks) and Hack Attacks (computer attacks). Typically, a Sidekick can't do BOTH a plain Attack and a Hack Attack in the same turn!!!

A Bad Guy in disarray cannot initiate any attacks (although he can still be attacked).

If something has an "empty" Defense (no number, just a dash), it can't be Attacked. Similarly, if something has an "empty" Hack Defense, it can't be Hack Attacked.

1.28.1 Attack Basics

Attacks are straightforward: the purpose is to damage a target (reduce target Hit Points) and hopefully reduce it to 0 Hit Points, as to remove it from the game.

HIT POINTS are notated on cards inside the Hit Point icon, usually in the upper right corner for most Bad Guys.

1. Check Range: A Range of 0 means you can only attack a target on your same Location. Any range beyond that is how many Locations away you can attack. A Range of 1 means you can attack a target on your Location, above/below or left/right by one Location. Attacks cannot reach diagonally unless the Range is infinity. See Range discussion below.
2. Check Conditions: Check target card and other conditions to ensure you can still attack. Some Bad Guys may prohibit certain attacks, or one Villain Force may Protect another!
3. Compute Attack: Add attacker's base Attack to any modifiers (cards you discard, items you have, etc.). This is the full attack value.
4. Compute Target's Defense: Look at the Defense value on the Target and add all defense modifiers to the defense. This is the full defense value.
5. Do Damage: Compute the damage value by subtracting the full defense value from full attack value. If that value is positive, subtract that value from the target's Hit Points.
6. Discard? If the target is at or below 0 Hit Points, discard the Target: they are defeated. Otherwise, the Target stays around until next turn. Use the POW! tokens to notate damage!

Example: Delphi (on the Streets) wants to attack the Bruiser (in the Suburbs). Delphi's Range is 0, but she has nothing to increase her Range. She fails a Range Check and cannot Attack the Bruiser.

So, on her turn, Delphi moves to the Suburbs—Delphi is now on the same Location as the Bruiser. A Range Check (of 0) will succeed! During the Combat Phase, she knows she can Attack!

Delphi checks conditions: nothing (such as Protection) prohibits her from attacking the Bruiser.

Delphi computes her Attack: Her base is 2. She also has a Boomerang (found in the Caves) which she discards for another +1 to her Attack. Delphi's full attack value is 3.

The Bruiser's Defense is 1. No other modifiers. The Bruiser's full defense value is 1.

Delphi does 3 - 1 = 2 Damage. The Bruiser has 8 Hit Points, and takes 2 Damage—use the POW! tokens to notate this damage. The Bruiser is still going strong and is alive for another Turn (yes, damage persists). If he takes 1 damage next Turn, the Bruiser will be defeated.

In Combat, you can use as many items/cards as you want, but you can only use each item/card at most once.

1.28.2 Hack Attack Basics

Hack Attacks are a little different than normal Attacks. There is (usually) no Range Check, as Hackers can login and attack anywhere! The purpose of a Hack Attack is to reduce the resources of the target, but it works differently for Sidekicks and Bad Guys. When the Sidekick Hack Attacks a Bad Guy, the purpose is to throw them into disarray. When a Bad Guy Hack Attacks a Sidekick, the Sidekick loses cards.

The biggest incentive for Sidekicks to Hack Attack is that it bypasses Protection! If you can't normally Attack a Bad Guy because his minions guard him, you can still render him ineffective for a few turns!

1. Check Range: Usually a Hack Attack can attack anywhere, but sometimes conditions may change!
2. Check Conditions: Check target card and conditions ensure you can still attack. Some conditions may prohibit Hack Attacks!
3. Compute Attack: Add attacker's base Hack Attack to any modifiers (cards you discard, items you have, etc.). This is the full hack attack value.
4. Compute Target's Defense: Look at the Hack Defense value on the Target and add all defense modifiers to the defense. This is the full hack defense value.
5. Do Damage: Subtract full hack defense value from full hack attack value: If it's positive, the attack succeeded!
6. Results:
   • A successful Hack Attack against a Bad Guy throws them into disarray by 90 degrees for each value over 1. For example: a Hack Attack that succeeds by 2 causes the Bad Guy into disarray by 90 * 2 = 180 degrees. A Hack Attack can never cause more than 270 degrees of disarray.
   • A successful Hack Attack against a Sidekick causes that Sidekick to lose a Sidekick card! The Sidekick chooses a card—it may be in play or in hand. Remember, being in SECRET IDENTITY does NOT prevent Hack Attacks!

Note that Hack Attacks (by the Sidekicks) happen before any other attacks.

1.29 Range

Many powers, effects, and attacks in the game have a Range.

(The rulebook's diagram shows the Locations reached at each range.) Range 0 is the same Location. Range 1 is one Location away. Range 2 is two Locations away.

The chart above shows what Locations you can reach/effect for the different ranges.

1.30 Attack Type Preferences

Like the Sidekicks, Bad Guys can either Attack or Hack Attack, but not both (usually).

In general, Bad Guys will use Attack when it is their turn in Combat. If a Bad Guy is to Hack Attack instead it will say that explicitly on their card.

Note that there are some Bad Guys who can both Hack Attack and physical Attack on the same turn!

1.31 Who Do the Bad Guys Attack?

But when the Bad Guys do Attack, who do they Attack?

Each Bad Guy has an attack strategy noted on their card. There are two main attack strategies: OPPORTUNISTIC and VENGEFUL.

An OPPORTUNISTIC Bad Guy basically Attacks the closest Sidekick he can, using the following rules in order:

1. Find the closest active Sidekick(s) in Range: Recall that Range 0 means you are on the same Location in the city. Range is computed orthogonally, never diagonally. If there are no Sidekicks in Range, no Attack happens.
2. If multiple targets, use the active SOI. If there are multiple targets in the same range, whatever active target is the most interesting (highest on the Sidekick of Interest (SOI) chart), they are the target of the attack.

A VENGEFUL Bad Guy basically Attacks the most interesting Sidekick he can, using the following rules in order:

1. Find the most interesting active Sidekick in Range: Going left to right on the SOI Chart (from most interesting Sidekick to least interesting Sidekick), the Bad Guy searches until he finds a Sidekick in Range and then Attacks that Sidekick!

An Attack must be in range or it simply doesn't happen. It is also possible that all Sidekicks are in SECRET IDENTITY form which means no Attacks happen that turn (remember, though, that Hack Attacks can still happen!)

If a Bad Guy has a different Attack Strategy than the ones listed, it will be noted on the card.

1.32 Defeated

What does it mean to be defeated? Basically, if anything with Hit Points (Thug, Gang, Minion, Villain, Sidekick) is reduced to 0 Hit Points, they are defeated and usually can't act anymore.

1.32.1 Bad Guy Defeated!

In the case of the Bad Guys, 0 Hit Points means they are knocked unconscious and the Sidekick wins the battle! The Bad Guys are then taken into custody by the Police (or run off)—their cards are discarded and the SOI Chart updated! All Bad Guy discards are right next to the SOI chart to remind players to update the SOI Chart after defeating a Bad Guy!

• Gangs are simply placed back in the Gang Hangout! "There's more where they came from!"
• Thugs are discarded to the Bad News discard. "Back to the streets..."
• Minions are discarded to the Maximum Security Prison: the Villain Forces Discard.

If a Villain is ever defeated, usually you win! In case you don't, discard their card to the same place as the Minions.

If a defeated Bad Guy had a Peril Number, all corresponding Peril Numbers are removed from the City Locations—keep the Peril Numbers in the Villain Forces Power structure so you can see the order things happened (Important later in the game)!

1.32.2 Sidekick Defeated!

What happens when a Sidekick is defeated (i.e., reduced to 0 Hit Points)? If all Sidekicks are defeated, then the players lose and the game is over! Consult the current Comic Book Issue to see what that means for the players.

Otherwise, play continues normally after the defeated Sidekick completes these actions:

• Discard All Cards! The defeated Sidekick must immediately discard all his cards to the GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD.
• Head Home! A defeated Sidekick is immediately sent to their Home Location. Put the Sidekick's marker on the Home Location, laid down to its side to show that it's defeated.
• Change to SECRET IDENTITY! Turn the defeated Sidekick's Character Sheet to SECRET ID side. He must stay in SECRET IDENTITY form for the rest of the game.

A defeated Sidekick is just like being in SECRET IDENTITY form except:

• The Sidekick can never move!
• The Sidekick can never go into HERO form (even if other effects, like St. Nick, would require it).

The defeated Sidekick can still draw Lead and Home Location cards and pass them along the Supply Lines.

Thematically, the Sidekick just barely gets out of the Combat, losing everything! In terrible condition, he heads home to heal. Luckily, he can still do research at home and pass along information to his compatriots.

1.33 Discarding and Destroying

There are generally two things that happen to cards as the Sidekicks play: discard and destroy.

• Discarded cards are put back into the proper discard. For Sidekick cards (Lead and Location cards), the discard is the GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD (see below). Discards stay in the current game and can come back (usually in the next Act).
• Destroyed cards are placed back in the box, and can't be used again this game session (but they can next game).

Many times during play, cards from the Sidekicks are discarded. They are put in the GENERAL SIDEKICK DISCARD pile. If a deck (Location, Sidekick cards) ever runs out of cards, they are generally NOT immediately refilled! The end of an Act is when decks are refilled (representing the Sidekicks and the City catching their collective breaths).

1.34 City Terror!

The City Terror Chart represents "how the city is feeling". If there is too much going on, the Sidekicks will feel the effects!!! It's in the Sidekick best interests to keep the City feeling safe. Usually, active Gangs cause the most City Terror, but there are plenty of ways the Bad Guys scare the city.

As the City Terror grows, there are repercussions!

• At 6 and above: When Populating the Supply Lines (sharing cards with your fellow Sidekicks), you are limited to passing at most 2 cards (each) along the Supply Lines.
• At 11 and above: Movement is at -1, unless you discard a card (You can always move at least 1).
• At 16: The Sidekicks immediately lose!

Terror effects are cumulative: i.e., at Terror Level 13, Movement is reduced AND it's more difficult to pass cards. Luckily, there are some cards and special abilities that allow the Sidekicks to reduce the City Terror.

1.35 City Locations

Each City Location tends to concentrate a certain type of card there.

1. Police Station: This is home to Commissioner Jones: Head of Police. There are only POLICE FORCES here.
2. Streets: This is home to The Tinkerer: the mechanic. Mostly things related to the Gangs are here.
3. Uptown: This is home to Blackbird: the researcher. Things related to research and extra Leads are found here.
4. Hero HQ: Xeonite technology is here.
5. Rincon Labs: New technology and Scientists are here.
6. The Caves: Some old-fangled, but still useful, technology is here.
7. Downtown: This is home to Amethyst Arrow: the archer. A lot of Jade and her Mom's stuff is here.
8. Suburbs: This is home to Delphi: the hacker. Hacking-related stuff is here.
9. Warehouse District: This is home to the Shadow Walker: the rogue. Random, but useful stuff is here.

The City Locations are marked with a city-symbol icon in the lower left corner. Other types of Locations will reveal themselves as the game progresses!

1.36 FAQ

• When can I play cards? In general, Sidekicks only play cards during the Execute part of the Sidekick Phase. Some cards will indicate that they can be played at other times. Leads can be played at other times (see below).
• During the Populate Supply Lines, can I only pass cards from my hand? A Sidekick may pass any cards (that Sidekick owns) down the Supply Lines. This includes cards from the hand, and also cards in front of you (like Items or Ongoing cards in play). Power cards can NOT be passed, nor can Xeonite Communicators.
• Can a single Sidekick both Attack and Hack Attack in the same Combat Phase? Usually not. Note, however, that certain Villain Forces can!
• If a Location is in disarray, can I draw cards there? No. Even if the Location is your home.
• If a Location is in disarray, can I move through there? Yes.
• Can I use Lead cards to draw extra cards before I move? Absolutely! You can also use them in the Execute Phase. In most cases, however, you have to be on the named Location to use the Lead cards!
• If I draw a card that allows me to draw another Card, can I immediately play it and draw another card? And so on? Yes, as long as it is legal to draw that card from your current Location.
• If the Sidekick(s) and Villain all go to 0 HIT POINTS at the same time, who wins? The Sidekicks! They successfully defeated the Villain and saved the city! The cops picked up the pieces and rescued the Sidekicks...
• If a card is in my hand, can I use it during Combat? Generally, no, unless the card says it can be played at any time. In Execute mode, you are setting yourself up for Combat, so all your cards to use in Combat must be in front of you!

(Section 1.37 of the printed rulebook is the credits and thanks page, which is not transcribed.)

1.38 Glossary

• Active: Both revealed and not in disarray.
• Active SOI: The leftmost Sidekick on the SOI Chart who is in HERO form.
• Bad Guy: A Gang, Thug, Minion, or Villain.
• City Order: City Order is like reading: a left-to-right, bottom-to-top traversal of the City Locations. You use City Order to determine the order that the Bad Guys attack.
• Defeat: A thing (usually a Bad Guy or Sidekick) is defeated when it is reduced to 0 Hit Points.
• Disarray: A thing is in disarray (usually a Bad Guy) when it is rotated 90, 180, or 270 degrees from its normal orientation. While in disarray, none of its normal effects are active—it can't do anything. For Example: Villain Forces can't protect, Gangs can't prevent card draws. Bad Guys in disarray can still be attacked though!
• Dispatch: Send POLICE FORCES to a Gang to get rid of it! Players can collectively discard POLICE FORCES (dispatching them to the Gang Location) to defeat a Gang. Note that this method doesn't change the SOI, nor does it count as Combat!
• Gang: A Bad Guy who completely takes over a city Location (physically moving the card to that Location), preventing the Sidekicks from searching there.
• Least Interesting Sidekick (LIS): The Sidekick who's least interesting ("lowest") on the SOI Chart. The LIS handles maintenance in the Bad News Phase.
• Gang Hangout: Where all Gangs cards are when not in play: also the discard for a Gang when defeated.