That Time You Killed Me
That Time You Killed Me Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
What the Sard Is This Game?
You are rival time travelers trying to erase each other from history. To prove you are the one true inventor of time travel, you must use your invention to find your enemy in time and murder them – before they get you!
Unfortunately, since your enemy has strewn many copies of themself across the timeline, you may have to do the terrible deed many, many times before it sticks. Just make sure you don't get erased first!
Standard Setup
Before playing That Time You Killed Me, first complete the following standard setup, then follow any extra setup for the Chapter you are playing.
- Arrange the past, present, and future era boards in a row between the players. Make sure all boards are oriented the same way (so the "1" is in the same corner on all boards).
- Each player chooses either white or black and takes the 7 player pieces and focus token in their color.
- The white player places a player piece on the "1" space on each of the 3 boards.
- The black player places a player piece on the "16" space on each of the 3 boards.
- Each player places their remaining 4 pieces in front of themselves to create their supply.
- Choose a first player. (If this is not your first game of the day, the loser of the previous game goes first.)
- The first player places their focus token on their side of the past board.
- The second player places their focus token on their side of the future board.
If this is your first time playing, and your opponent doesn't feel the need to read the rest of the rules before continuing, this can be a red flag that it's a copy of them from the future who knows how the game ended and came back in time to change history.
Or they're just really, really good at picking up rules on the fly. Either way, you should probably murder them before they murder you.
Adjusting for Skill Gaps
Competitors who have different levels of experience in abstract strategy games and/or murdering people can consider giving one player a starting disadvantage to even the playing field.
Before starting the game, the more skilled player removes pieces from their supply and returns them to the box. The number of pieces they remove depends on their skill level:
| Skill Level | Pieces Removed |
|---|---|
| Advanced | Remove 1 piece |
| Expert | Remove 2 pieces |
| Grandmaster | Remove 3 pieces |
If you become more than a grandmaster at murdering people, instead of removing more pieces, you should probably turn yourself in to the police.
How to Play
The Timeline
The three era boards together make up the timeline. Each board represents the same physical area at a different point in time. That means that two spaces on different era boards that have the same number are actually the same space at earlier and later times.
The "7" space on each board represents the same physical location in the past, present, and future.
A very common use of time travel is to go to your favorite burger place just after the chef got good at grilling, but before he accidentally walked into the open mouth of a hippopotamus at the zoo.
When you take an action in an era that is earlier on the timeline, it may have an impact on eras that are later on the timeline. For example, if you were to place an object of some kind in the present, you would expect it to appear in the same place in the future (assuming something unfortunate doesn't happen to it sometime in between).
Your Various Selves
Traveling through time results in there being multiple versions of yourself at different points on the timeline. Even before you start the game, there's one version of you in the past, another in the present, and a third in the future. These are all you at different times in your life.
Each "copy" of you acts independently, and can even travel to different eras in time, potentially creating new copies in the process. Your opponent will of course be doing the same thing, so to truly destroy them, you'll have to chase down and murder as many copies of them as you can (before they murder yours).
Temporal Focus
Coordinating your copies across time is no trivial task. Though having many copies lets you affect different parts of the timeline, you can only activate one copy each game turn.
This is where your temporal focus comes into play. Your focus token marks the era that you're paying attention to on any given turn, and you'll have to take actions with a copy in that era. (Likewise, your opponent's focus token marks where they will act on their turn.) At the end of your turn, you'll shift your focus to a different era, so you can execute the next step of your timeline-spanning strategy.
How to Win
Your goal each game is to eliminate your opponent from at least two eras on the timeline. (They don't have to be specific eras; any two will do.) If your opponent has copies in only one era (or no eras) at the end of your turn, you immediately win!
After white murders black's last copy in the past, black only has copies in the present. White wins!
How to Take a Turn
The game is made up of turns. Beginning with whoever was named first player, you and your opponent alternate turns until one of you wins.
On your turn, you must take the following steps in order:
Step 1: Choose Copy — Choose an active copy of yourself in the era where your focus token is.
Step 2: Take Actions — Take any 2 actions with your active copy.
Step 3: Shift Focus — Move your focus token to a different era of your choice.
Once you've completed step 3, your opponent's turn begins.
Hmm... Wait... Um...
During your turn, you may feel free to "redo" your actions (and even choose a different active copy in the era with your focus) until you are satisfied. However, once you've moved your focus to a new era and stopped touching it, your turn is officially over and you may not change anything else!
It's sort of like chess. If I'm remembering my history correctly, your generation played chess. When you weren't dodo-hunting.
Step 1: Choose Copy
The first step of each turn is to choose a single copy of yourself to take actions. The copy you choose must be in the era where your focus token currently is.
Don't worry: due to the inherent dangers involved in time travel, it's not recommended for married folk, so all your copies are single.
You must take all actions on your turn with your active copy (including any bonus actions you might get – but don't worry about that just yet). You may never "split" your actions up between different copies in your focus era (or any other era).
Acting Through Time: Even if your active copy time travels to a different era, it is still your active copy! You must continue taking any remaining actions with your active copy in the new era (even though your focus isn't there). See "Time Travel" on pg. 10.
No Copies in Focus Era: If you start your turn with your focus token in an era where you have no copies, you lose your actions for that turn. Immediately shift your focus to a new era, then end your turn.
Step 2: Take Actions
Once you've selected an active copy, take any 2 actions with it. You may take the same action multiple times. You must take both actions if you are legally able to.
Standard actions (detailed on pg. 8) are always available. Other actions will become available as you reach new Chapters.
No Legal Actions: You must choose a copy of yourself that is able to take 2 actions if you have a choice. In the rare event that none of your copies in the era with your focus can take any actions, immediately shift your focus to a new era and end your turn.
Step 3: Shift Focus
Once you have completed your actions, move your focus token to a different era of your choice. This is where you will choose an active copy on your next turn.
You may choose any other era to move your focus to. (You may even move your focus to the era where your opponent's focus currently is.) However, you may not keep your focus in the same era for multiple turns in a row.
Tip: Shifting your focus gives your opponent information about your plans, so think carefully about this choice!
Standard Actions: Movement
You can use your actions to move around your current era and push your opponent. When you push your opponent into a wall or another copy of themself, they die.
Move Action
Use move actions to travel around your current era.
Action: Move — Move 1 space in any orthogonal direction within your current era.
Moving is very different in the future. We have jetpacks, of course. Rocket boots, teleporters, elephants (I'll get to those later), laser-skates – those are a bit tricky to use, but you quickly work out whether or not you have an aptitude for it. It's like riding a dinosaur, in that respect.
Oh yeah, we used your time machine to bring back dinosaurs. Don't worry, we're being really smart about it. We put them all on an island for safekeeping.
You can use multiple move actions to travel multiple spaces in a single turn.
Each era board is surrounded on all sides by walls. You may not move through walls. (If you would like to travel to a different era, see "Time Travel" on pg. 10)
Pushing your Opponent
Moving into a space your opponent occupies will push them into the next space.
Effect: Push — When a player moves (or is pushed) into an opponent's space, that opponent is pushed 1 space in the same direction.
If you push an opponent into a wall, you squish them – a messy but effective way to murder someone!
Effect: Squish — When a player is pushed into a wall (or an object that can't be pushed), they die.
What Happens to Copies That Die? Whenever a copy of your opponent dies, remove that copy from the timeline and place it on your side of the board. (If you like, you can think of this like claiming a chess piece. It's not like that, but it might make you feel better about it.)
Note that when a copy of your opponent dies, their copies in later eras aren't affected. You'll have to murder them all the old-fashioned way.
Make sure you do not return dead copies of your opponent to their supply. Any copies that die are permanently out of the game, and can't be placed back on the timeline by any means. (See "Your Supply of Self" on pg. 12.)
Causing a Paradox
If you push an opponent into another opponent, this causes a paradox. This is an even more effective way to murder them, as it removes both copies of your opponent!
Effect: Paradox — When a player moves or is pushed into one of their own copies, they both die.
Paradoxes can be a horrible thing to witness – you remember that scene in Rocky XVII when he has to sew all his limbs back on, but gets two of them wrong? It's even more grotesque than that.
If you push a copy of your opponent into another copy of yourself, this does not cause a paradox. Instead, your opponent pushes your other copy, as if they had moved into that space normally, in a sort of "chain" of pushing. If you're not careful with this, you can accidentally squish yourself!
However, you can never directly push another copy of yourself, because moving into a space with another copy of yourself immediately causes a paradox. (This is not recommended!)
You can't run past yourself and hope for the best. Paradoxes wait for no one. Not even you, the inventor of time travel. Or you, the person who murdered them. Paradoxes simply don't discriminate.
You murderer.
Standard Actions: Time Travel
You can use time travel actions to move to different eras and make new copies of yourself. Time traveling forward and time traveling backward follow slightly different rules, so they are treated as separate actions.
Traveling Forward
Time traveling forward is pretty straightforward (sorry).
Action: Time Travel Forward — Move to the same space in the next era. You may not travel to a space occupied by a player or object.
White time travels from 10 in the present to 10 in the future.
If you want to travel forward, but the same space in the next era is occupied by another copy or an object, you simply can't. It causes some awkward problems with intertwined matter that you really don't want to get mixed up in.
Objects: As you progress through the story, you will discover different kinds of objects. In general, objects occupy spaces on the timeline like players do, and you usually can't time travel into spaces that have objects in them.
There are exceptions, but you have to be exceptional to qualify. And I hate to break it to you, but you're just not. Yet.
Traveling Backward
Time traveling backward is a bit trickier, since the you that travels backward to become "past you" will grow older and eventually turn into a new "present you." (For example, if you went back in time one week, then waited a week, you'd be right back where you started!) This temporally logical phenomenon is how copies are made.
Action: Time Travel Backward — Move to the same space in the previous era, then place a new copy of yourself in the space that you left. You may not travel to a space occupied by a player or object. If you have no copies left in your supply, you may not take this action.
Just like traveling forward, you can't travel backward to a space that's occupied by another copy or object. Also, keep in mind that even though you leave behind a new copy, your active copy is the one that traveled backward. As always, you must take any remaining actions with your active copy, not the new one you placed.
Your Supply of Self: Whenever you place a new copy of yourself on the timeline, it comes from your supply. Your supply is the collection of extra copies that are not on the timeline at the start of the game. These represent the number of new "yous" you can make before you've stretched the timeline too thin.
Note that when a copy of you dies, it does not return your supply. This means that your supply can run out during the game.
If at any point there are no copies left in your supply, you can no longer time travel backwards, or take any other action that would produce a new copy of yourself. You're out of time!
Traveling More Than 1 Era: Whenever you travel forward or backward, you travel one era with each action. You can't use a single action to travel from the past to the future, or from the future to the past. However, you can use two actions to travel two eras, one era at a time.
Note: The space you travel to must be empty in both other eras – you can't "skip over" the present just because someone is inconveniently standing there.
Some Final Thoughts
Just a couple more caveats before you get murdering.
Content Overrules the Rulebook: Some unlockable game content may contradict rules given in this rulebook. In that case, the content has priority, and the rulebook is chopped liver.
Conceding: Either player can concede the game at any time if they feel they have lost.
Calling a Draw: If neither player thinks they have a chance of winning, and all signs point to a stalemate, players can agree to a draw. In the event of a draw, whoever went second this game becomes the first player for the next game.
Checking for Victory: An important detail you may have overlooked in that bit about "How to Win" (pg. 6) is that each player only checks for victory at the end of their own turn.
This means that no matter what you do, you can't lose on your own turn. It's still usually a bad idea to put yourself in a losing position on your turn – unless doing so wins you the game. Keep an eye out for these tricky wins, as they're very satisfying!
Time to open Chapter 1 and start playing!
Chapter 1: Growth
Components: 5 seeds, 5 shrubs, 5 trees, 2 rules cards
Extra Setup
- Place all seeds, shrubs, and trees in a general supply that both players can reach.
- Place the Basics rules card and the Growth rules card near the timeline, where both players can see them.
Seeds, Shrubs, and Trees
This Chapter introduces a variety of new objects that you can interact with: innocuous seeds, prickly shrubs, and impressive but unstable trees.
Object: Seed — Players may share spaces with seeds. When moving, pushing, or time traveling, treat spaces with seeds as if they are empty.
Object: Shrub — Players and objects can't move into spaces with shrubs. When a player is pushed into a shrub, they die.
It's a really, really tough shrub. (It's probably Australian.)
Object: Tree — Trees can be pushed by players or other objects. When a tree is pushed, it topples into the next space (see "Effect: Topple" on pg. 17).
Planting Seeds
How do you get trees? Well, you start by planting seeds.
Action: Plant Seed — Place a seed in your space or an empty space beside you. If there are no seeds in the supply, you may not take this action.
Effect: Grow — When you place a seed, if the same space in the next era is empty, place a shrub there. When you place a shrub, if the same space in the next era is empty, place a tree there.
The seed black planted in the past grows into a shrub in the present. The shrub then grows into a tree in the future.
Removing Seeds
Just as you create life, you can un-create it.
Action: Remove Seed — Remove a seed in your space or a space beside you and return it to the supply.
Effect: Un-Grow — When you remove a seed, also remove any shrub in the same space in the next era. When you remove a shrub, also remove any tree in the same space in the next era, or any fallen tree with its trunk pointing to that space. Return all removed pieces to the supply.
When white removes the seed in the past, the shrub disappears in the present, and the tree disappears in the future.
Seeds can only share spaces with players. When placing other new objects (like shrubs and trees), spaces with seeds count as occupied.
If you plant a seed on 10 in the past, and there is another seed on 10 in the present, a new shrub does not appear in the present. (This also means a tree does not appear in the future.)
Pushing Trees
When you push a tree, it topples into the next space. It then becomes a fallen tree, which can no longer be pushed. Toppling trees onto your opponent is yet another great way to murder them!
Effect: Topple — When a player or object moves or is pushed into a tree, the tree topples into the next space. Place the toppled tree on its side, with its trunk pointing to the space it was pushed from, to show it is now a fallen tree.
Effect: Fallen Tree — Players and objects can't move into spaces with fallen trees. When a player is pushed into a fallen tree, they die.
After decades of selective breeding, our top scientists finally managed to create a tree that wouldn't roll away after it was knocked over. Lumberjacks everywhere celebrated with a hearty, "Oh yeah, I guess that could be useful, some of the time? Doesn't really seem worth the effort though."
Effect: Crush — When a tree topples onto a player, they die. When a tree topples onto a seed, remove the seed.
Trees can't be pushed into walls or into other objects that can't be pushed (like shrubs or fallen trees). When a player is pushed into a tree that can't be pushed, they die.
If a tree topples into a space with an object that can be pushed (like another tree), that object is also pushed. This is similar to how you can push players in "chains" (see pg. 9).
You're ready to play Chapter 1! Get murdering!
Don't turn the page until you've played at least 3 games of Chapter 1!
Chapter 2: Influence
Components: 3 orange statues, 3 white statues, 3 black statues, 1 rules card
Extra Setup
- Place an orange statue on the "7" space on each of the 3 era boards.
- The white player places the 3 white statues in their supply, and the black player places the 3 black statues in their supply.
- Place The Basics rules card and Influence rules card near the timeline, where both players can see them.
Note: You can return the Growth rules card and components to the Chapter 1 box. This is an entirely new time travel challenge!
Statues
This Chapter introduces statues that persist through time. Building or moving a statue not only affects your era, but all later eras.
Object: Statue — Statues can be pushed and pulled by players. Each player can build a new statue once per game.
Pushing and Pulling Statues
You can manipulate statues by pushing them (as you would your opponent) or pulling them. Whenever you move a statue in an earlier era, you alter its position in each era further along the timeline.
Effect: Push Statue — When a player or object moves or is pushed into a statue, the statue is pushed 1 space in the same direction.
Effect: Pull Statue — When a player moves directly away from a statue, they may pull the statue into the space they left.
Effect: Propagate Move — When a statue moves (by being pushed, pulled, or propagated), its copy in the next era moves the same distance and direction.
When white moves the statue from 7 to 8 in the past, it also moves in the present. Because it moves in the present, it also moves in the future.
Since moving a statue doesn't affect earlier eras, statues can become out of alignment across the timeline. Even if a statue's copies are out of alignment, when an earlier copy of it moves, its copy in the next era will move the same distance and direction.
Black pushes the statue from 8 to 4 in the present. This moves the statue to 4 in the future, but it remains on 8 in the past.
When white pulls the statue from 8 to 7 in the past, it moves from 4 to 3 in the present and future.
Statues can't be pushed into walls or objects that can't be pushed. If a player is pushed into a statue that can't be pushed, they die.
Note that if you move a statue in the past, but the copy of the statue in the present can't move, the move doesn't propagate to the future.
Black pushes the statue from 7 to 3 in the past. In the present, the statue is against a wall, so it doesn't move. This means it doesn't move in the future either.
Time travelers refer to this as the "statue of limitations."
Building Statues
The three statues in your supply are all copies of a single statue. You can build your statue once per game, in any era.
You can only build your statue in an empty space (with no player or object there), but unlike shrubs and trees, your new statue always appears in every later era, even if the space where it appears is occupied.
Action: Build Statue — Place a statue from your supply in an empty space beside you. You may do this only once per game.
Effect: Propagate Build — When you place a new copy of your statue, place another copy of that statue in the same space in the next era. When you place a statue in a space with a player or object that can be pushed, push them 1 space in the same direction you placed the statue. After propagating a newly built statue, remove all of its unplaced copies from the game.
When white builds a statue in the past, it appears on the same space in the present and future.
Black builds a statue on 10 in the past. The statue appears on 10 in the present, which white occupies. She is pushed from 10 to 11 (since black built the statue from 9 into 10).
When a propagating statue pushes a player into a wall or an object that can't be pushed, they die.
White builds a statue on 2 in the present. Black occupies 2 in the future. When the statue appears there, black is squished into the wall!
When a statue you build propagates forward into a space with an object that can't be pushed (such as another statue that's against a wall), instead of pushing that object, the new copy of your statue is pushed in the opposite direction into the first space it can legally occupy. This extra movement also propagates forward to the next era (if there is one).
Black builds a statue on 12 in the past. There is a statue on 12 in the present. Since the statue can't be pushed into a wall, the statue is instead pushed to 11.
The statue propagates to 12 in the future, but because it moved in the present, it also moves to 11 and pushes white out of the way.
If nothing else, keep this one thing in mind when building statues: it is vitally important to get the nose right otherwise the whole thing just looks off, y'know?
You're ready to play Chapter 2!
Don't turn the page until you've played at least 3 games of Chapter 2!
Chapter 3: Memory
Components: 3 dark elephants, 3 light elephants, 3 white hats, 3 black hats, 1 rules card
Extra Setup
- Place a dark elephant on "4" on each of the 3 boards, and a light elephant on "13" on each of the 3 boards.
- The white player places the 3 white hats in their supply, and the black player places the 3 black hats in their supply.
- Place The Basics rules card and Memory rules card near the timeline, where both players can see them.
Note: You can return the Influence rules card and components to the Chapter 2 box. This is an entirely new time travel challenge!
Elephants
This Chapter introduces elephants that can be trained to follow your commands. Since elephants are long-lived, elephant pieces of the same color are the same elephant at different points in time. Trained elephants wear a hat of your color, just like in real life.
Object: Elephant — Elephants can be trained, and a player can command their trained elephants. Players and objects can't move into spaces with elephants. When a player is pushed into an elephant, they die.
Elephant Fact: Pushing someone into an elephant will sometimes combine the two into a human-elephant hybrid, with all the powers of both species... but that's very rare, and probably not worth worrying about.
Training Elephants
In order to command an elephant, you must first train it to follow your orders. Since elephants have such a good memory, each time you train an elephant, it will remember your training in later eras.
Action: Train — While in a space adjacent to an elephant that is not wearing one of your hats, use an action to place a hat from your supply on it. If your opponent had a hat on that elephant, return it to their supply. If you had a hat on the other elephant in your era, move it to the newly trained elephant instead.
Effect: Memory — When you train an elephant, if the same elephant in the next era is not wearing one of your hats, also train that elephant. If your opponent had a hat on that elephant, return it to their supply. If you had a hat on the other elephant in that era, move it to the newly trained elephant instead.
By training the dark elephant in the past, white also trains the dark elephant in the present and future.
Elephant Fact: The amount of time it takes to fully train an elephant to obey your every command for the rest of its life is exactly one action.
Only one player can control each elephant at a time. However, you can train an elephant that is controlled by your opponent just as easily as you can train an elephant that isn't following anyone.
Black uses an action to train the dark elephant in the past, removing white's hat. Black then also replaces white's hat in the future.
It takes effort to maintain an elephant's training regimen, so you can only have a hat on one elephant in each era at any time.
If an elephant is following you in your era, and you train the other elephant in your era, the first elephant stops following you (and remains neutral until someone places a new hat on it). Furthermore, if you train an earlier copy of an elephant, you must also train its copy in the next era (if you are able to), even if this forces you to lose control of the other elephant there.
White trains the light elephant in the present. She must also place a hat on the light elephant in the future, which means she loses her hat on the dark elephant there. The dark elephant becomes neutral.
Elephant Fact: Elephants are found in many different lands: forests, swamps, islands, mountains, plains, and the 6 artifact lands of Mirrodin.
Since training only propagates forward to later eras, it is possible to control different elephants in different eras.
Black trains the light elephant in the future, but keeps his hat on the dark elephant in the present.
If an elephant is currently wearing your hat, you can't use the train action on it (even if it's not following you in later eras).
Note that training only propagates to the next era when you place a new hat. This means that if you train an elephant in the past that is already wearing your hat in the present, you don't place a hat on it in the future.
White wants to gain control of the light elephant in the future. However, her focus is currently in the present, where she already controls the light elephant. This means she can't use a train action on the light elephant's present copy to gain control of its future copy.
Elephant Fact: Dogs are man's best friend, but elephants are man's BFF.
Commanding Elephants
You can give orders to your trained elephants no matter where they are in your current era. Elephants are pretty big, so try not to get trampled.
Action: Command — Move an elephant in your era that is wearing your hat 1 space in any orthogonal direction.
Elephant Fact: Scientists have concluded that most elephants are Catholics (from observing their Mass).
Effect: Trample — When an elephant moves into a space with a player, the player dies.
Elephant Fact: Though often thought to be peaceful creatures, elephants really love trampling people to death. They can't get enough of it.
You can only command a trained elephant that is in the same era as your active copy. However, if your active copy travels to a new era, you can then command an elephant in that era.
White travels to the future with her first action, then commands her trained elephant there to trample black with her second action!
Since you can command a trained elephant from anywhere in the same era (why do you think they have such big ears?), you can choose any active copy in that era to command your elephant. However, if you can't choose an active copy (because you don't have any copies in your focus era), there's no one to give the order, so you can't take the command action.
Black's focus is in the past at the start of his turn. He has a trained elephant there, but no copies of himself to command it. He loses his turn!
Elephants can't move through walls or objects that can't be pushed (like other elephants). They also can't ever be pushed, even by another elephant.
White uses 2 actions to move her dark elephant to block black's light elephant from trampling her.
Unfortunately she doesn't realize that black can time travel backward and squish her against her own elephant!
You're ready to play Chapter 3!
Don't turn the page until you've played at least 3 games of Chapter 3!
Chapter 4: Convergence
Components: 2 Alternate Timeline cards, 9 achievement envelopes
Extra Setup
Before starting a game, follow the steps for standard setup, then randomly select 2 Chapter rulesets to combine, using the following method:
- Shuffle together the 3 Chapter rules cards (Growth, Influence, and Memory).
- Draw 2 of them at random. These are the 2 Chapter rulesets you will play with this game.
- Follow the extra setup steps for both Chapters you drew. Return all components from the Chapter that was not drawn to the appropriate box.
If you're concerned that shuffling the cards won't be random enough, simply measure the quadrature fluctuations of a single-mode thermal state using an optical homodyne detector. Or, flip two coins.
Note: Pay no attention to the Alternate Timeline cards or Achievement envelopes! They're none of your business for now.
Combining Chapters
When playing the game, follow all rules for the 2 Chapters you have combined. The following sections detail any interactions you might run into between objects from different Chapters. We recommend you start playing, and only look up the rules for the combination you're playing with if you run into a dilemma.
Growth + Influence
Whenever a statue moves into a space with a seed, remove the seed.
Black pushes the statue onto a seed in the present, removing the seed. This also removes the shrub in the future (see "Effect: Un-Grow" on pg. 16).
You can't build a statue in a space with a seed, since the space isn't empty. However, if a statue you build propagates forward to a space with a seed in a later era, the seed is removed.
Black places a statue on 7 in the past. A copy of the statue is placed on 7 in the present, crushing the seed there. Black first removes the shrub on 7 in the future, then adds a new statue there.
If there is ever a conflict due to multiple propagating effects happening at the same time, they are resolved in the following order:
- Remove objects (e.g. Crush, Trample, Un-grow)
- Place new objects (e.g. Grow, Propagate Build, Train)
- Move objects (e.g. Propagate Move)
White pushes the statue onto a seed in the past.
White first removes the shrub and tree from the present and future.
Once both are removed, the statue then moves in the present and future. Note that black's copy in the future is not crushed by the tree, since it was removed first.
Statues can't be pushed into shrubs or fallen trees.
White builds a statue on 7 in the present. The new statue would appear at 7 in the future, but there is a fallen tree there. Since the fallen tree can't be pushed, the new statue is pushed in the opposite direction to space 11 (see "Effect: Propagate Build" on pg. 21).
There are two types of fallen trees: once-great trees who turned to vice, losing their family and friends to their self-destructive habits, before ending up on the streets, alone and unloved, dying in a gutter while the world barely notices... and trees that have been pushed over.
This game refers exclusively to the latter.
Statues can be pushed into trees, causing them to topple. Conversely, if a tree topples into a statue, the statue is pushed.
From this position, white can push the statue to topple the tree onto black... or black can push the tree to squish white with the statue.
Statues and trees have a lot in common. Most notably, how useful they are when you're trying to murder someone.
Growth + Memory
Elephants can move into spaces with seeds, shrubs, or fallen trees. Whenever an elephant moves into a space with one of these objects, the object is trampled and removed.
White commands her trained elephant to trample a shrub in the present.
The fallen tree pointing to space 11 in the future is also removed.
When an elephant moves into a space with a tree that has not fallen yet, the tree topples. However, trees can't be toppled into spaces with elephants, since elephants can't be pushed.
Black CAN'T push the tree, because the light elephant is blocking the space where it would topple. But white CAN command the light elephant to push the tree onto black.
Duck Fact: Ducks have flat feet so they can stamp out burning fires.
Elephant Fact: Elephants have flat feet so they can stamp out burning ducks.
Influence + Memory
When an elephant moves into a space with a statue, the statue is pushed.
When an elephant moves directly away from a statue, the elephant may pull the statue with it.
White commands her elephant to pull the statue.
You can't build a statue in a space with an elephant, since the space isn't empty.
You can try, but the elephant will give you a real funny look.
Statues can't be pushed into spaces with elephants, since elephants can't be pushed.
White builds a statue at 4 in the present.
Since there is an elephant there in the future, and the elephant can't be pushed, the statue that would appear there is pushed in the opposite direction to the next space it can legally occupy. This is space 2, which black occupies, so the statue pushes black into the corner.
You're ready to play Chapter 4!
Don't turn the page until you've played at least 3 games of Chapter 4!
Coda
Okay, you two. I've figured it out. I've worked out how to be completely, totally, one hundred percent sure which of you is the true inventor.
You see, as I've been watching you murder each other in increasingly creative ways, something struck me.
They say we are what we eat. But unless you're a temporal cannibal (oh, yeah, that's a thing now. Your invention has given birth to some truly odd hobbies), that's not strictly true.
Who we are is fundamental. Time travel has proven it: we're not a product of our environment. Everyone is born with a destiny.
No matter what else changes, you'll always achieve it.
Marie Antoinette was born to be beheaded. Even when we transported her to the 31st century, or to ancient Egypt... whether by laserknight or falling cartouche, she always lost her head.
So here's the plan: before we replay the murder, we're going to go back and alter your upbringing. It might change your job, or your skills, or your physicality. It might give you strength you never had before, or an unexpected advantage.
But no matter what, you'll still be you. Either a superior mind or a backstabbing, idea-stealing murderer. With bad breath.
Let's do this. Good luck, inventor!
(Murderer, sard off.)
Alternate Timelines
To finally discover who is fated to invent time travel, you must play your way through several alternate timelines, where the laws of time travel work a little differently.
Each alternate timeline card provided with Chapter 4 describes the rules and setup instructions necessary to play an advanced variant of That Time You Killed Me. Each alternate timeline follows all setup and rules of the standard game, except for the additions and changes listed on the card.
While exploring alternate timelines, you'll be able to complete achievements and unlock new temporal powers.
Setting Up an Alternate Timeline
To play an alternate timeline, first choose one of the available Alternate Timeline cards and follow its setup instructions.
Each Alternate Timeline requires you to select 2 Chapter rules cards during setup to determine which Chapter components and rules you'll use in the game. In general, these should be selected by randomly drawing 2 Chapter rules cards, as you did in "Convergence" (see pg. 26).
However, when playing an Alternate Timeline, you should also shuffle in the Basics rules card before drawing 2 cards. If you draw the Basics alongside a Chapter rules card, then only the Chapter you drew is used for your game.
Note: Some temporal powers have requirement icons that override the random draw and force you to use specific Chapters. These are explained on the next page.
Achievements
While exploring Alternate Timelines, players can complete feats of temporal genius to unlock secrets from across the spacetime multiverse.
Whenever someone completes an achievement printed on one of the 9 envelopes, they sign their name on the envelope and open it. (Only the first player to complete an achievement gets to sign it.)
Once you've opened an envelope, use its contents in the next game you play, with the player who signed it taking the role of first player (even if they didn't win the previous game).
If you haven't already, you may now open the envelope that says "Open when you read the Coda section of the rulebook."
(Nobody gets to sign this one, since it doesn't take much effort. You gotta earn those signatures.)
Temporal Powers
As you open envelopes, you will encounter power cards that dramatically alter the nature of time travel and the many temporal objects you've discovered.
Players select a power they want to use during setup, and then may use their selected power throughout the game. The method for selecting powers depends on which alternate timeline card you're using.
In "Draft Powers," each player chooses 1 power from those available.
In "Power Share," the first player chooses 1 power that both players use.
Chapter Requirements
Some powers have Chapter requirements icons printed next to their name. A requirement icon means a power interacts with rules and components from a specific Chapter (such as trees or statues), so it won't work if that Chapter isn't used in your game.
In any alternate timeline where players select power cards, you must first reveal the powers that are available, before drawing Chapter rules cards to use. If any of the powers you reveal have requirement icons, you must choose the Chapter rules cards that satisfy the requirements on all available powers (instead of drawing them randomly). In some cases, you may even be required to play with all 3 Chapter rules cards.
If these 4 powers are revealed, you must play with both Growth and Influence rules cards.
If the 4 available powers have only 1 icon between them, also draw a 2nd Chapter rules card at random, as you would normally.
Note: If you draw the Basics, you will only use the Chapter that was required.
If these 4 powers are revealed, you must play with Memory and 1 randomly drawn Chapter.
Who Is "You"? In written effects on power cards, the word "you" refers to your active copy. For example, if a power says "You may take an extra action this turn," you must take the action with your active copy.
If a card ever says it is your birthday today, it means you, the person reading this. Happy birthday!
Credits
Game Design & Writing: Peter C. Hayward
Illustration: Jor Ros
Development & Rules Editing: Jeff Fraser
Additional Development: Alex Cutler
Graphic Design: Stevo Torres
Special Thanks: Anne Kinner, Danni Loe, Brian Lewis, Sara Perry, Christian Torres, Jonathan Gilmour, Stephanie Metcalfe, Toronto Board Game Design Crew
© 2021 Pandasaurus Games, LLC. All rights reserved.