STRIKE!: The Game of Worker Rebellion Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Setup
• Winning & Losing
• Overview
  • City Board
  • Player Boards: Energy & Powers
  • Example Characters Shown in the Rulebook
• Turns
  • Step 1: Use Four Action Tokens
  • How to Take Basic Actions
  • Play an Ally Card
  • Play a Strike Card
  • Step 2: Draw a Commercial Break
• Shorter Game + Bonus Challenges
• Quick Reference Guide

Components

• 40 Strikers: 10 blue, 10 gray, 10 orange, 10 purple
• 24 Drones
• 5 MegaDrones
• 4 Energy Markers
• 14 Victories
• 4 Player Boards: showing a different character on each side
• 1 City Board
• 36 Strike cards
• 22 Ally Cards
• 36 Commercial Break Cards
• 1 Rulebook
• 2 Score Markers
• 16 Action Tokens
• 1 Twelve-Sided die

Setup

1. Place the city board on the table.
2. Each player takes a player board and chooses one side to play as: both sides are the same color but have a different character with different powers and stats.
3. Each player collects the 10 strikers that are the same color of their player board and places them in a nearby supply. (For example: Michael is blue and uses the blue strikers.) Each player then places 2 of their strikers in their Home Base on the city board. Your Home Base is the location listed on your player board under your character's name. (For example: Michael's Home Base is the Harbor.) It helps to sit near the Home Base of your character.
4. Each player takes 4 action tokens and places them next to their player board.
5. Each player takes 1 energy marker and places it on the "2" space of the energy track on their player board.
6. Shuffle the Strike cards, Ally cards, and Commercial Break cards into separate face-down decks. Each player draws 1 Strike card. Throughout play, you may show each other the cards in your hand.
7. Place the yellow score marker for HappyCorp and the red score marker for the Strikers on their respective "0" spaces on the score track.
8. Place all 24 drones, 5 MegaDrones, and 14 victories in separate piles near the board.
9. Place 1 drone in each location except for Restaurant Row (3), Financial District (6), Stadium (9), and Corporate HQ (12).
10. Choose your difficulty level and follow the corresponding set-up adjustments. We recommend that first-time players try either Easy or Normal difficulty.
    • Very Easy: Each player puts 2 more Strikers in each location matching their color that isn't their Home Base (blue, orange, gray, or purple.) Then each player draws 1 more Strike card.
    • Easy: Each player puts 1 more Striker in each location matching their color that isn't their Home Base (blue, orange, gray, or purple.) Then each player draws 1 more Strike card.
    • Normal: Each player puts 2 more of their strikers in their Home Base.

(The rulebook shows a two player, normal difficulty set up as an example.)

Winning & Losing

Winning: STRIKE! is a cooperative game. All players are on the same team together, called The Strikers. They win instantly if they reach 15 points as a team. HappyCorp is abolished from Mercury City!

Losing: HappyCorp wins instantly in one of two ways:

• If it reaches 15 points.
• If you would have to place a 6th MegaDrone on the city board. (There are only 5 MegaDrone pieces.)

Mercury City has been turned into HappyCity!

Overview

City Board

The city board is made up of 12 locations, such as the Harbor and the Park. Each location is one of four colors, determined by the outline around that location: Blue, Orange, Gray, or Purple. For instance, Restaurant Row is blue.

Your goal is to get your strikers into these various locations so you can complete requirements on Strike cards, which will score points for your team!

Player Boards: Energy & Powers

Throughout play, you will gain and lose energy, as shown on your energy track. You cannot go below 0 energy or above 6 energy. Nothing happens if you fall to 0 energy. You just cannot lose anymore.

Your character has two unique powers: Your first power (0+) is something you can always use, even if you have 0 energy. But you can only use your second power (3+) if you have three or more energy. Important: This is an additional power you can use; it does not replace your first power.

The player board shows: the character's name and role, Home Base, strikers, first power, second power, the energy track (0 to 6) with the energy marker, and four action boxes (Grow Ranks, Mobilize, Draw, Disassemble), each with a Max number of action tokens it can hold, plus the space for your action tokens.

Example player board (Valentina, Factory Worker, Home Base Manufacturing District): Grow Ranks max 1, Mobilize max 3, Draw max 1, Disassemble max 3.

• 0+ REPURPOSE: You may Grow Ranks for free whenever you remove two regular drones on your turn.
• 3+ TAKE APART: You can disassemble a MegaDrone with only two of your strikers in the location.

Example Characters Shown in the Rulebook

• Michael, Dockworker (Home Base: Harbor): Grow Ranks max 2, Mobilize max 3, Draw max 2, Disassemble max 1.
  • 0+ STRENGTH IN NUMBERS: When you move two of your strikers into the same location on your turn, you may remove a regular drone from there.
  • 3+ MANUAL LABOR: Whenever you remove a regular drone on your turn, you may remove another regular drone from a different location you are in.
• Eddie, Pilot (Home Base: Airport): Grow Ranks max 3, Mobilize max 2, Draw max 1, Disassemble max 2.
  • 0+ REFUEL: When using the Grow Ranks action on your turn, you may gain two energy instead of adding a striker.
  • 3+ PASSENGER FLIGHT: On your turn, you may spend three energy to move a striker of any color to any location. (This does not require an action token.)
• Candace, Fire Fighter (Home Base: City Hall):
  • 0+ FIRST RESPONDER: When you move your strikers twice in a turn, you may choose another player to Mobilize.
  • 3+ DISPATCHER: When you remove two regular drones or a Megadrone on your turn, you may choose any player to draw a Strike card.

Turns

Starting with the first player, each player takes a turn in clockwise order. Continue taking turns until either the Strikers or Happycorp wins the game!

Your turn has two steps:

1. Use up to four action tokens to take basic actions and play cards. You'll do this by placing your action tokens on your player board. Once all four have been placed, remove your action tokens from your player board. This frees them up to use on your next turn.
2. Draw a Commercial Break card. HappyCorp will dispatch its drones and try to suppress your rebellion.

Step 1: Use Four Action Tokens

Each turn, you may use up to four action tokens to take basic actions and play cards from your hand. To do so, place an action token on your player board in the matching action box.

However, each action box can only hold a maximum number of tokens, which is different for each character. If the action box has reached its maximum, you cannot place an action token in that box again this turn.

Example: Eddie has one remaining action token. He cannot place it in "Draw," because he has already reached his maximum there (1).

How to Take Basic Actions

Place an action token in the corresponding action box to take one of the following basic actions.

• Grow Ranks: Add 1 striker to any location where you already have a striker, or to your Home Base. (Take this striker from your supply. If you already have all ten on the board, you cannot add another.)
• Mobilize: Move 1 of your strikers in a location to a neighboring location that is connected by a line. (You can move the same striker multiple times in a turn.)
• Disassemble: Remove 1 regular drone from a location where you personally have at least 1 striker. Or remove 1 MegaDrone from a location where you personally have at least 3 strikers. Drones and MegaDrones that are removed are returned to their respective piles.
• Draw: Draw a Strike card or an Ally card. You can hold up to four cards total in your hand, and you cannot draw anymore cards if you already have four cards.

Play an Ally Card

Playing Ally cards is one of the only ways you can gain more energy, and they also give you powerful bonuses.

To play an Ally card, place an action token in the action box listed on the card. Do not do the basic action (such as Mobilize). Instead, do what the Ally card says, then discard it.

Example Ally card: PROGRAMMERS - Jam The Signals. You gain 2 energy. Then remove a regular drone from anywhere.

Play a Strike Card

Playing Strike cards is how you score points.

To play a Strike card, you must have at least 3 of your own strikers in the location listed on the card, and that location must have no MegaDrones. (It can have regular drones.) Then place an action token in each of the two action boxes listed on the card. Do not do these basic actions. Instead, follow the steps below.

1. Place a Victory & Score: Place a Victory in the location listed on the card. The first time you place a Victory in a location, you score 1 point for the Strikers. The second time you place a Victory in that location, you score 2 points. The third time, you score 3 points.
2. Choose Someone to Draw an Ally: Choose any player to draw an Ally card. (You can choose yourself.)

After you complete these steps, discard the Strike card.

As with taking basic actions, you can't play an Ally card or a Strike card if any of its required action boxes are already full.

Example Strike card: OCCUPY HAPPYCORP - 12 Corporate HQ. Completed: Add a Victory here & score; Any one player draws an Ally.

It's More Difficult to Place Second and Third Victories. While placing more than one victory in a location scores more points, it is also more challenging. The second victory you add to a location requires having 5 strikers present (instead of just 3), and the third victory requires 7 strikers. However, any strikers beyond the first 3 may come from your teammates - but you still must have at least 3 strikers of your own there. (There are only three Strike cards per location.)

Step 2: Draw a Commercial Break

Commercial Breaks will dispatch HappyCorp's drones and do other bad things for the Strikers. After you've taken all your actions on your turn, you must draw 1 Commercial Break card and do what it says, in the order that it says to do them. Then discard the Commercial Break.

If a Commercial Break tells you to do something that you can't do, you must just do as much of it as you can. Example: You are told to lose 3 energy, but you only have 2 energy. So just lose 2 energy. And if you had 0 energy already, then you'd lose none.

Example Commercial Break: Prepare for a HappyFuture at our Happy Training Center - You lose energy per level. Roll one time, total.

Rolling the Die Adds Drones: Every Commercial Break will tell you to roll the twelve-sided die. Each time you do, you must add 1 drone to the location with the number matching the number you rolled.

Drones kick out strikers: Whenever a new drone is added to a location, each player with any strikers in that location must remove 1 striker from there and return it to their supply. However, players may choose to lose 1 energy instead to keep their Striker in that location. Important: Regardless of your choice, the drone is still placed.

Example: You roll an 11, so you add one drone to the Airport. Each player in the Airport removes 1 Striker from there or chooses to lose 1 energy instead.

Per level: If a Commercial Break tells you to do something "per level," look at your current level on the score track. At level 1, do that instruction one time. At level 2, do it twice. At level 3, do it three times. This means the game gets harder as you get closer to victory. (From 0 - 3 points, you are at Level 1. From 4 - 10 points, you are at Level 2. From 11 - 14 points, you are at Level 3.)

Example: you have 7 points and so that means you are at level 2. You draw a Commercial Break that says "roll once per level," so you must then roll the die to add drones two times. Or if the card tells you to "lose energy per level," at level 2 you would lose 2 energy.

Three drones fuse into a MegaDrone & scores for HappyCorp: If a location would ever have a third drone added to it, instead immediately remove all drones from that location and place a MegaDrone there. Then, HappyCorp scores 1 point for each MegaDrone in locations of that color!

Players must still remove 1 striker from a location or lose 1 energy when a MegaDrone is placed.

Example: A MegaDrone is placed in the Airport, an orange location. In this scenario, there are now 2 MegaDrones total across all orange locations. So HappyCorp scores 2 points.

Regular drones can still be added to locations with MegaDrones. Also, if a third regular drone would be added to a location with a MegaDrone, instead add another MegaDrone to the same location.

If you cannot draw a Commercial Break card because the deck is empty, you do not lose, but you must instead roll the die to add drones three times at the end of your turn. (Do not reshuffle the Commercial Break deck and make it again.)

Shorter Game + Bonus Challenges

Want to shave 15-30 minutes off a game? Or do you want to play STRIKE with bonus challenges to spice things up? The publisher has bonus rules for these on its website: tesacollective.com/strikerules

Quick Reference Guide

• Turns: Use four action tokens to take basic actions and play cards. Then, draw a Commercial Break.
• Basic Actions: Grow Ranks: Add a striker to your Home Base or anywhere else you have a striker. Mobilize: Move 1 of your strikers already on the board to a neighboring location, across a line. Disassemble: Remove a drone from any space you personally have at least 1 striker, or a MegaDrone from any space you personally have at least 3 Strikers. Draw: Take a card from either the Strike or Ally deck.
• Powers: You can always use your first power. Your second power can only be used if you have 3 or more energy. It does not replace your first power; it's an additional power.
• Strike and Ally Cards: You must put an action token in the action box(es) listed on the card. You do whatever the card says instead of taking the basic action. Ally cards give players energy and other bonuses. Strike cards score points for the players.
• Number of Strikers Needed to Complete a Strike Card: You personally must have 3 strikers in a location to complete the first Strike in a location. The second Strike in that location takes 5 strikers to complete and the third takes 7 strikers. These extra strikers beyond the first 3 can come from other players, though. The first strike completed in a location scores 1 point; the second in the location scores 2 points; and the third scores 3 points.
• Removing & Saving Strikers: Whenever a new drone or MegaDrone is added to a location by the roll of the die, each player in that location must remove 1 Striker. However, each player may choose to lose 1 energy to save their Striker instead.
• Maximum hand size. You can never draw above 4 cards total in your hand.
• MegaDrones: Create a MegaDrone when a third drone would be added to a location. Players cannot complete a Strike card in a space with a MegaDrone. Drones can still be added to spaces with MegaDrones, and there can be multiple MegaDrones in the same space.