XCOM: The Board Game Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Playing the Game
• Player Roles
  • Commander
  • Chief Scientist
  • Central Officer
  • Squad Leader
• Setup
  • Board Anatomy
  • Downloading the App
• The Timed Phase
  • Communications Interface
  • Forecasts
  • Pause
  • Timed Phase Actions
• The Resolution Phase
  • Tasks and Rolling Dice
  • Audit the Budget
  • Resolve Research
  • Resolve Orbital Defense
  • Resolve Global Defense
  • Resolve Base Defense
  • Resolve Mission
  • Recruit Soldiers and Build Interceptors
  • Resolve Crises
  • End of the Resolution Phase
• Panic
• Winning and Losing
  • Final Mission
  • Continental Panic
  • Base Destruction
• Scoring
• Units
  • Soldiers
  • Interceptors
  • Scientists
  • Satellites
  • UFOs
• Elite Soldiers
• Skill Icons
• Card Types and Card Anatomy
  • Asset Cards
  • Reserve Cards
  • Tech Cards
  • Crisis Cards
  • Enemy Cards
  • Mission Cards
  • Invasion Plan Card
• Symbols & Shorthand
• Exhausted and Refresh
• Component Limitations
• Budget & Credits
• Fewer Than Four Players
• Component List

Playing the Game

XCOM: The Board Game is played over a series of game rounds. Each round consists of two phases that are resolved in the following order:

1. Timed Phase: During the timed phase, players will react to the various actions of the alien invasion and plan their counter strike.
2. Resolution Phase: During the resolution phase, players will resolve each of the tasks they assigned units to in an attempt to thwart the alien invasion.

At the end of each resolution phase, the app will ask the Central Officer to input the results from that round. The app will use this information to adapt to the players' tactics and prepare the actions of the next round.

Players continue resolving game rounds until they have won or lost the game.

Player Roles

Each player takes on a particular asymmetric role and has certain responsibilities to go along with that role. The four roles are Central Officer, Chief Scientist, Commander, and Squad Leader.

When playing with four players, each player takes on a single role. When there are fewer than four players, one or more players take on multiple roles as decided by the group.

• It is recommended to have one player be both the Commander and the Chief Scientist and the other player be the Central Officer and the Squad Leader in a two-player game.
• In a three-player game, it is recommended that one player is both the Central Officer and the Commander.
• If a player is playing solo, he or she must be all four roles!

Commander

The Commander is responsible for formulating an overall strategy and maintaining the XCOM defense force's finances. The Commander:

• Gains credits when instructed by the app. He or she uses these credits to track how much each player spends.
• Can take credits from the "Emergency Funding" asset card when instructed by the app.
• Assigns Interceptors to the global defense tasks when instructed by the app.
• Draws two crisis cards and chooses one to add to the crisis pool.
• Can recruit soldiers and build Interceptors when instructed by the app.
• Resolves all crisis cards in the crisis pool.
• Resolves all global defense tasks in the order of his choice when instructed by the app.

Chief Scientist

The Chief Scientist is responsible for researching alien technology and upgrading the XCOM defense force. The Chief Scientist:

• Draws from the tech deck until he or she has six cards in hand when instructed by the app.
• Assigns tech and scientists to the three research spaces when instructed by the app.
• Resolves the three research tasks, left to right, when instructed by the app.

Central Officer

The Central Officer is responsible for controlling the app and relaying instructions and information from the app to the other players. The Central Officer:

• Communicates the instructions provided by the app to the other players.
• Communicates forecasts provided by the app to the other players. Whenever the red scanner button lights up, the Central Officer can tap it to see a UFO forecast.
• Can pause the current action.
• Spawns UFOs in orbit and continents when instructed by the app.
• Moves UFOs from orbit to continents when instructed by the app.
• Assigns satellites to the orbital defense task when instructed by the app.
• Resolves the orbital defense task when instructed by the app.

Squad Leader

The Squad Leader is responsible for controlling XCOM's ground forces, defending the XCOM base, and completing missions. The Squad Leader:

• Assigns soldiers to the base defense space and the mission card when instructed by the app.
• Places enemy cards on the base when instructed by the app.
• Chooses a mission when instructed by the app. If a new mission is chosen, enemy cards are placed facedown on that mission.
• Resolves the base defense and mission tasks when instructed by the app.

Setup

To set up a game of XCOM: The Board Game, follow these steps in order:

1. Place the board in the center of the play area.
2. Assign roles and distribute asset cards to each player. Asset cards are color-coordinated and have the name of the player role on the front.
3. Distribute reserve cards to each player. Reserve cards have the name of the player role on the front.
4. Place the listed units (soldiers, satellites, Interceptors, and scientists) on their corresponding reserve cards.
5. Place one of each soldier and two Interceptors in the recruitment pool.
6. Create a supply of credit and success tokens. Place the threat token on space "1" of the threat track and the base damage token on the blue space of the damage track.
7. The Chief Scientist shuffles all tech cards to form a tech deck and places it near the board.
8. The Commander shuffles all crisis cards to form the crisis deck and places it near the board.
9. The Squad Leader shuffles all mission cards to form the mission deck and places it near the board.
10. The Central Officer opens the app and selects "Play." Choose the desired options and then follow the rest of the setup steps. You are now ready to play!

Board Anatomy

The game board is organized into the following areas: the panic track, the base damage track, the base defense space, the invasion plan card space, the mission space, the three research spaces, the threat track, the six continents, the orbit space, the crisis pool, and the recruitment pool.

Downloading the App

To download the free XCOM: The Board Game App, connect to the Apple iOS App Store or Google Play store on your digital device and search for XCOM: The Board Game. You can also access the app from most internet browsers by going to xcomtheboardgame.com.

The Timed Phase

Each round starts with the timed phase. During the timed phase, the app provides a randomized list of actions to be performed by the players.

There are two types of actions: XCOM actions and alien actions.

• XCOM actions are presented in blue text displayed in a blue box. XCOM actions are optional.
  • If an XCOM action is displayed in a yellow box, that action has been scrambled by UFOs in orbit. A scrambled action happens earlier in the timed phase than normal. The more UFOs left in orbit, the more likely actions are to be scrambled.
  • When the timer is reduced to zero during an XCOM action, a new action will appear on the screen and the current player must immediately stop performing the previous action, even if it is incomplete.
• Alien actions are presented in red text displayed in a red box. Alien actions are mandatory and must be performed.
  • When the timer reaches zero during an alien action, a blinking warning will appear along with the word "EXPIRED." The next action will not appear until the Central Officer has tapped "DONE" to complete the action. When time expires, it halves the amount of time the players have to complete the next XCOM action, and it will drain any remaining pause time until the action is completed.

While most actions appear at different times during the timed phase, the first two actions always provide players with technology and credits, in that order.

Communications Interface

The Central Officer's primary source of information is the app's communications interface, which displays:

• A. The initial XCOM budget. This is how many credits the Commander gains at the beginning of the round.
• B. UFO scanner. When this lights up, the Central Officer can tap it to view a forecast of incoming UFO targets. The more UFOs there are in orbit, the fewer forecasts there are each round.
• C. The timer. This is a timer that indicates how much time players have to perform the current action.
• D. The current action. This displays the name of the action and the name and icon of the role responsible for performing the action. During a game of XCOM, the Central Officer can tap this action to pause the game and view instructions about how to perform that action.
• E. The "DONE" button. After the current action is completed, the Central Officer taps this button to proceed to the next action.
• F. Task history. Here the Central Officer can view all of the tasks for the round.
• G. The "Menu" button. Tap this to bring up the Main Menu. Tapping this button will pause the game. Pausing the game in this way will not subtract from your pause time.
• H. The "Pause" button. The Central Officer can tap this button to pause the timer if a player needs more time to complete an action. The amount of time that the game can be paused is finite on all but the easy difficulty setting. The pause button contains its own embedded timer which indicates how much pause time the Central Officer has remaining.

Forecasts

Forecasts represent intelligence about the alien invasion. The Central Officer can tap the red scanner button to pick up UFO contacts early. These UFOs will be placed on the board later in the round.

Pause

Pause time is a resource that is managed through the app. Pause time is unlimited on the easy difficulty setting.

The Central Officer can tap the "Pause" button to gain extra time to resolve the current action.

• Pause time is a limited resource on every difficulty except easy.
• For each XCOM action ended early, a small amount of time is added to the Central Officer's pause resource.

If an alien action is not completed before it hits 0, it will drain pause time until it is marked as completed by the Central Officer. Pause time not used during the round is added to the extra time given at the end of the timed phase.

Timed Phase Actions

The following sections describe the different types of actions that can appear during the timed phase, and how each is resolved.

New Technology Available. This action allows the Chief Scientist to draw a hand of six tech cards from the tech deck. Later actions will allow the Chief Scientist to research some of these cards. The Chief Scientist can show other players cards in his or her hand at any time.

Emergency Funding Available. The continents supporting XCOM have provided additional funding. To resolve this action, the Commander takes any number of credits from the "Emergency Funding" asset card and adds them to the XCOM budget. It is recommended that the Commander takes three or four credits from this action during the first round, since after the credits on the "Emergency Funding" asset card are depleted, there are few ways to replenish them.

Continental Funding. To resolve this action, the Commander takes the listed amount of credit tokens from the supply and forms the XCOM budget. The Commander uses credits during the resolution phase to pay for all the units assigned to the board, and can use excess credits to recruit and build new units.

UFOs Detected! The Central Officer spawns UFOs on the six continents and orbit when instructed by the app.

• To spawn a UFO, the Central Officer takes a UFO from the invasion force and places it in the indicated space.
• If there are no UFOs left in the invasion force, ignore the UFO spawn.

Keep UFOs that have not been spawned off the board, but near the Central Officer — these UFOs are known as "the invasion force." When a UFO is destroyed, it is removed from the board and added back to the invasion force. A destroyed UFO can be spawned again when instructed by the app.

UFOs Descending From Orbit! The Central Officer moves the number of UFOs shown from orbit to the indicated space(s).

Crisis! When the app instructs the Commander to choose a crisis, he or she draws the top two cards of the crisis deck, adds one faceup to the crisis pool, and discards the other (create a space next to the crisis deck for a discard pile). The Commander can ask other players for opinions when choosing between each one. Crisis cards are open information and are not hidden when added to the crisis pool. Crises in the crisis pool are not resolved until the resolution phase.

Choose Mission. Two continents are requesting military intervention. To resolve this action, the Squad Leader draws two mission cards from the mission deck and chooses one to place on the mission space. The other mission is discarded (create a space next to the mission deck for a discard pile). Each mission card has three tasks presented along the bottom of the card as well as two rewards. Each task is either composed of one or more skill icons or has an empty blue frame indicating an enemy space. For each enemy space on a mission card, the Squad Leader draws the top card of the enemy deck without looking at it and places it facedown on the mission card so that it covers the blue frame.

If there is already an active mission when this action occurs, the Squad Leader can choose to keep the previously chosen mission or replace it with a new one. If replaced, discard it and return all soldiers assigned to it to their reserve. If the previously chosen mission remains, both of the new mission cards drawn are discarded.

Assign Research I, II, III. One XCOM lab is ready for research. This action allows the Chief Scientist to choose one of the tech cards from his or her hand and place it on the research space listed by the app, and to take up to three scientists from his or her reserve and place them on the board next to the tech card. If there is already a tech assigned to a research task from the last round, the Chief Scientist can choose to leave it there or replace it — a replaced tech card is discarded. Each scientist assigned to research costs one credit from the XCOM budget during the resolution phase.

Deploy Squad to Mission. To resolve this action, the Squad Leader flips any enemy cards on the current mission faceup, then chooses up to four soldiers from their reserve cards and assigns them to the mission by placing them on the mission card. A mission cannot have more than four soldiers assigned to it, and each soldier assigned to a mission costs one credit from the XCOM budget. Each soldier class has two skill icons printed on its reserve card; to assign a soldier to either a mission task or a base defense task during the resolution phase, both the soldier and the task must have at least one matching skill icon. Some skill icons have a gold border — these are specialized skill icons; if both a soldier and a task have a matching specialized skill icon, the Squad Leader rolls one extra die when the task is resolved. If a mission is not completed, the Squad Leader can assign more soldiers to it during the next round.

Deploy Satellites. The Central Officer takes up to three satellites from the reserve and assigns them to the satellite spaces next to orbit on the board. During the resolution phase, each satellite costs one credit from the XCOM budget and contributes one die to the orbital defense roll. It is important to make sure that UFOs in orbit do not destroy XCOM's communications network.

Deploy Interceptors. The Commander takes any number of Interceptors from his or her reserve and places them on any of the circular spaces next to the six continents. Up to three Interceptors can be assigned to each continent, and Interceptors cannot be assigned to orbit. All Interceptors are assigned during the same XCOM action. During the resolution phase, each Interceptor assigned to a continent costs one credit from the XCOM budget and attacks any UFOs in the continent it is defending.

Enemy in the Base! The aliens are launching an attack against the XCOM base. To resolve this action, the Squad Leader draws the top card of the enemy deck and places it faceup on an empty enemy space in the base. He or she places each enemy on a separate space. During the resolution phase, each enemy placed here will damage the base if not stopped.

Defend the Base. The Squad Leader takes any number of soldiers from his or her reserve and places them on the base defense space on the board. Unlike missions, there is no limit to the number of soldiers that can be assigned to defend the base. Each soldier assigned to the base costs one credit from the XCOM budget during the resolution phase.

End of Round. When this action appears, the timed phase is ending. When playing a game with finite pause time, any excess pause time players have will be added here. This action provides all players with one final chance to use cards that have the Timed Phase symbol before proceeding to the resolution phase — for example, the Commander may want to train a soldier who was not assigned to the mission or the base by placing it on his Officer Training asset card. Any remaining pause time can be used as a final chance to use asset and tech cards during this phase. The Central Officer can end the timed phase early by tapping the "Done" button.

The Resolution Phase

The resolution phase occurs each round after the timed phase. Unlike the timed phase, every resolution phase consists of the same steps, which are resolved in the same order. After players have completed the resolution phase, a new timed phase begins.

Assets with the Resolution Phase symbol can be used any time during the resolution phase until cards are refreshed. Players can use an asset after rolling dice and before applying the results, but they cannot modify the number of dice being rolled.

Tasks and Rolling Dice

There are many different tasks in the game. Each task is associated with a specific type of unit that is assigned to a specific space on the board. Whenever a player rolls dice, he or she rolls the alien die and a number of XCOM dice equal to the number of units assigned to the task.

• Each XCOM die has two success symbols on it. Successes have different effects depending on the task.
• If the result of the alien die is less than or equal to threat, the roll is a loss and the units assigned to that task are exhausted or destroyed. Players still resolve all successes from that roll — successes and losses are resolved simultaneously.
• If a loss was not rolled, a player may choose to "push," allowing him or her to continue resolving the task by rolling the dice, including the alien die, again. A player may continue to push until a loss is rolled or he or she chooses to stop.
• After a roll's effects are applied, threat automatically increases by one, to a maximum of five, making it more likely to roll a loss. If threat reaches "5," a player can continue to push without threat increasing further.
• Threat is reset to "1" before starting each new task (except where noted below, such as base defense and mission tasks, where threat does not reset between tasks belonging to the same base defense or mission resolution).
• XCOM dice are not limited by the four included in the game and may be used multiple times per roll if the number of dice needed is greater than four.
• A player cannot roll an additional die if he or she is not already rolling at least one die.
• A player can choose to not roll any dice on a task, even if there are units assigned to it. Any effect related to the task still resolves (e.g., enemies dealing damage to the base, UFOs causing panic).
• Tech cards can be used before the dice results are applied, but the dice results must still be applied.

The complete list of tasks: research I, research II, and research III; orbital defense; each continent during global defense; each enemy in the base; each of the three parts of the mission. An enemy task is any time an enemy is being attacked, whether or not that enemy is in the base or on the mission. Units assigned to cards (rather than tasks) are not assigned to a task and do not cost credits from the XCOM budget.

Audit the Budget

When the app instructs the Commander to audit the budget, he or she counts the number of satellites, soldiers, scientists, and Interceptors assigned to the board, and spends one credit from the XCOM budget for each assigned unit. Units assigned to reserve, asset, or tech cards do not count against the XCOM budget.

If the number of credits spent is equal to or less than the amount gained during the timed phase, there is a budget surplus and players proceed to the next step of the resolution phase.

If the number of assigned units exceeds the Commander's budget, there is a deficit. The Commander must increase panic in the highest-panicked continent on the panic track for each credit he or she is short.

• If multiple continents are tied as the most panicked, the Commander chooses one of them to increase. Continents that have fallen into panic cannot be increased and are not taken into account when determining the continent with the highest panic level.
• If a continent falls into panic and there is still a deficit to account for, the Commander increases the new, most-panicked continent on the panic track until the deficit is made up.

Resolve Research

The Chief Scientist resolves each research task from left to right when instructed by the app, following these steps:

1. The Chief Scientist rolls one XCOM die for each scientist assigned to the task.
   • Any effects that allow the Chief Scientist to reroll dice may be used now.
   • For each success, he or she places one success token on the tech.
   • If there are success tokens on the tech equal to or greater than its research cost (the number in the upper-left corner of the card), the tech is researched. A researched tech is given to the player role listed on the card and is available to be used immediately.
   • If a card is not researched, that card and any success tokens on it remain on the board and the Chief Scientist can attempt to research it again the next round.
   • If the roll is a loss, each scientist assigned to the task is exhausted. Exhausted scientists cannot be used to provide XCOM dice for future rolls during the current game round, and they cannot be used at all during the next game round.
2. If the scientists assigned to the task are not exhausted, the Chief Scientist may roll again, returning to step 1.
   • Threat resets to "1" after each research task.

Resolve Orbital Defense

The Central Officer resolves the orbital defense task when instructed by the app, following these steps:

1. The Central Officer rolls one XCOM die for each satellite assigned to the task, along with the alien die. Any effects that allow the Central Officer to reroll dice may be used now.
   • For each success, he or she destroys one UFO in orbit.
   • If a loss is rolled, each satellite assigned to the task is exhausted (flipped facedown). Exhausted satellites cannot be used to provide XCOM dice for future rolls during the current game round, and they cannot be used at all during the next game round.
2. If the satellites assigned to the task are not exhausted, the Central Officer may roll again, returning to step 1.

After resolving the orbital defense task, for each UFO remaining in orbit, increase panic in the continent with the lowest panic by one. If there is a tie, the Commander chooses the continent in which panic increases. Resolve each UFO one at a time. UFOs that remain in orbit can also scramble communications during the next timed phase, changing the order in which actions appear.

Resolve Global Defense

The Commander is responsible for all effects relating to global defense tasks. The six continents on the game board are distinct global defense tasks; threat resets to "1" after each one. The Commander resolves each global defense task in the order of his choice when instructed by the app, following these steps:

1. The Commander rolls one XCOM die for each Interceptor assigned to the task, along with the alien die. Any effects that allow the Commander to reroll dice may be used now.
2. The Commander resolves the effects based on his or her roll.
   • For each success, he or she destroys one UFO in that continent, removing it from the board.
   • If a loss is rolled, each Interceptor assigned to the task is destroyed and placed in the recruitment pool. Remember that successes and losses are resolved simultaneously, so Interceptors and UFOs can be destroyed at the same time.
3. If the Interceptors assigned to the task are not defeated, the Commander may roll again, returning to step 1.

After resolving all global defense tasks, the Commander increases panic in each continent by one for each UFO still on that continent.

Resolve Base Defense

The Squad Leader is responsible for all effects relating to base defense tasks. Each enemy card in the base is a distinct task. Unlike other tasks, threat does NOT reset to "1" between base defense tasks. Follow these steps:

1. The Squad Leader attacks an enemy by assigning soldiers from the base defense space to the skill icons on any enemy card in the base.
   • To be assigned to a skill icon, a soldier must have a matching skill icon on its reserve card.
   • The number of soldiers that can attack an enemy is limited by the number of skill icons on that enemy's card. Only one soldier can be assigned to each skill icon.
2. The Squad Leader rolls one XCOM die for each soldier assigned to an enemy card.
   • He or she rolls one additional XCOM die for each soldier that is assigned to a specialized skill icon if that soldier has the same specialized skill icon on his or her reserve card.
   • Any effect that allows the Squad Leader to reroll dice may be used now.
3. The Squad Leader resolves the effects based on the results of his roll:
   • For each success, he or she places one success token on the enemy card.
   • If there are success tokens on the enemy equal to or greater than its health (the number in the upper corner of the card), the enemy is killed and its card is given to the Chief Scientist as salvage.
   • If a loss is rolled (the result of the alien die is less than or equal to the current threat), each soldier assigned to the enemy is killed and placed in the recruitment pool.
4. If one or more soldiers assigned to the base are not killed, the Squad Leader may roll again, returning to step 1.
   • The Squad Leader may choose to resolve any base defense task any number of times and in any order. A base defense task does not need to be completed before the Squad Leader resolves a new one, and he or she can go back and resolve a previous base defense task that remains incomplete.
   • The Squad Leader may assign the same soldiers or different soldiers to the same base defense task or to a different base defense task for each roll.

After resolving all base defense tasks, the Squad Leader applies one damage to the base for each enemy in the base that has not been killed, then discards each enemy in the base.

• When the base damage token advances to a red space on the damage track, the Squad Leader resolves the critical damage effect on the invasion plan card.
• When the base damage token advances to the orange space on the damage track, the XCOM base has been overrun and the players lose the game!

Resolve Mission

The Squad Leader resolves the mission when instructed by the app. Each mission has three separate tasks that are completed from left to right. Unlike most other tasks, threat does NOT reset to "1" between mission tasks. Follow these steps:

1. The Squad Leader assigns soldiers to the leftmost incomplete task.
   • To be assigned to a skill icon, a soldier must have a matching skill icon on its reserve card.
   • The number of soldiers that can attempt a task is limited by the number of skill icons on the task. Only one soldier can be assigned to each skill icon.
2. The Squad Leader rolls one XCOM die for each soldier assigned to the task. Any effects that allow the Squad Leader to reroll dice may be used now.
   • He or she rolls one additional XCOM die for each soldier that is assigned to a specialized skill icon and has the same specialized icon on its reserve card. The Squad Leader also rolls one additional die for each elite soldier assigned to the task.
   • If he or she rolls one or more successes on a non-enemy task, that task is completed.
   • For each success rolled on an enemy task, he or she places one success token on the enemy card.
   • If there are success tokens on the enemy equal to or greater than its health, the enemy is killed and the enemy card is given to the Chief Scientist as salvage.
   • If a loss is rolled, each soldier assigned to the task is killed and placed in the recruitment pool. Other soldiers on the mission card are not killed and can still be used.
   • Completed tasks are marked with a success token to track a player's progress, and progress on a mission carries over from round to round.
3. If one or more soldiers assigned to the mission are not killed, the Squad Leader may roll again, returning to step 1.
   • When a mission is completed, the Squad Leader resolves the mission's two reward effects before setting the mission card aside.
   • Soldiers assigned to a completed mission immediately return to their reserve.

If the mission is not completed, keep any success tokens and soldiers on it — it remains in play, along with any success tokens on any enemies — for the next round.

Recruit Soldiers and Build Interceptors

If there was a budget surplus, the Commander can recruit soldiers and build Interceptors from the recruitment pool by spending the extra credits when instructed by the app. Then all remaining credits are returned to the supply.

• For each credit spent, the Commander can recruit one soldier or build one Interceptor.
• The Commander can split credits between Interceptors and soldiers.
• Recruited soldiers and Interceptors are placed on their reserve cards and are immediately available for use.

Excess credits do not remain in the XCOM budget for the next round — if the Commander did not spend all of his or her credits, those credits are lost and returned to the supply.

Resolve Crises

Crisis cards represent catastrophic events caused by the alien invasion. When the app instructs players to resolve the crisis task, each crisis in the crisis pool is resolved from the top of the stack to the bottom, following the instructions on the card. Each crisis card is discarded after it is resolved. Discarded cards are placed on the bottom of their deck at the end of the resolution phase.

End of the Resolution Phase

At the end of the resolution phase, cards and units are refreshed or returned to their reserves, the Central Officer inputs the round's results into the app, and the app prepares the next round's timed phase. During the end of the resolution phase, players cannot use the effects of their asset and tech cards.

Refresh Units and Cards. All exhausted cards are refreshed by being turned upright (turned 90 degrees counterclockwise). All exhausted tokens that are in their reserve (not on the board) are refreshed by flipping them faceup. Place all discarded enemy, tech, mission, and crisis cards on the bottom of their respective decks.

Return Units to Their Reserve. All units assigned to a task or placed on a card are returned to their reserve, except for soldiers assigned to the mission. Exhausted satellites and scientists are NOT refreshed when being returned to their reserve — they remain exhausted and cannot be used during the next round.

Was a Mission Completed This Round? The app asks the Central Officer if a mission was completed. Completing missions drives back the alien invasion, and each one that is completed helps XCOM get closer to unlocking the final mission. Even if no missions are ever completed, the final mission will eventually be unlocked by the app.

UFOs in Orbit. The app will ask how many UFOs are in orbit. If there are any UFOs in orbit, they will descend from orbit during the next timed phase. In addition, UFOs in orbit have a chance to scramble XCOM communications, making timed phase actions appear out of sequence. Keep the number of UFOs in orbit to a minimum to prevent the aliens from scrambling communications.

Input Panic Levels (Summary). The app asks the Central Officer to input the panic level of each continent. Move each continent into the three colored columns based on its current space on the panic track. Each continent that increases into the red has a chance to reduce the amount of funding that XCOM receives during the next round. A continent has fallen into panic if it reaches the orange space of the panic track — each UFO in a panicked continent is moved to orbit. If two or more continents have fallen into panic, the players lose the game!

Panic

The panic track represents the worldwide panic being caused by the alien invasion. Each continent has its own panic token, placed on the spaces on the panic track indicated by the app during setup.

There are three sections to the panic track: the yellow section, the red section, and the orange space at the end of the track.

• To increase panic in a continent, move its panic token one space on the panic track toward the orange space.
• To reduce panic in a continent, move its panic token one space on the panic track away from the orange space.

When a continent reaches the orange space, it has fallen into panic. Its panic level cannot be increased, and its panic level can ONLY be reduced by mission effects (not tech). If two or more continents have fallen into panic when updating the panic levels in the app, the players lose the game. If a continent has fallen into panic when updating the panic levels in the app, all UFOs in that continent are added to orbit.

Winning and Losing

Players continue playing game rounds until they have either completed the final mission or lost the game. Players do not win or lose the game until the app tells them that they have.

Final Mission

The final mission is on the back of the invasion plan card. After a set number of rounds based on the invasion plan, the app will instruct the Squad Leader to unlock the final mission, flipping the invasion plan card to its final mission side.

• The final mission has a high chance of being unlocked sooner for each mission the Squad Leader completes.
• Each final mission has special rules for each of its non-enemy tasks, which increase its difficulty. Follow all normal rules of mission resolution when resolving the final mission.
• The Commander must spend one credit from the XCOM budget for each soldier assigned to the final mission.
• The Squad Leader can assign soldiers to the final mission and the regular mission during the same round.
• The players win the game if the Squad Leader completes the final mission.

Continental Panic

The players lose the game if two or more continents fall into panic. A continent falls into panic if it reaches the orange space of the panic track.

Base Destruction

The players lose the game if the XCOM base is destroyed. The XCOM base is destroyed if the base damage token advances to the orange space of the base damage track. The app will ask if the XCOM base has been destroyed.

Scoring

At the end of the game, players can calculate their score based on these criteria. A higher score is better.

• +100 points if the players won
• −1 point for each UFO on the board
• −1 point for each soldier in the recruitment pool
• −1 point for each Interceptor in the recruitment pool
• −2 points for each continent in the red level of the panic track
• −2 points for each damage on the base
• −5 points for each continent that fell into panic

Units

There are four different units in the game: Interceptors, satellites, scientists, and soldiers.

• Players assign units in their reserve to the game board when instructed by the app.
• The Commander must spend one credit from his or her budget for each unit assigned to a task when instructed by the app. Units assigned to cards are not assigned to a task and do not cost credits.

Soldiers

Soldiers represent XCOM's ground forces. There are four types of soldiers: Assault, Heavy, Sniper, and Support. Each soldier type has two skill icons that can be used to match the icons on enemy cards and mission tasks; each soldier has one specialized skill icon on its reserve, indicated by the gold frame.

When not assigned to tasks or cards, soldiers are placed on their respective reserves. When a soldier is killed, it is placed in the recruitment pool. The Squad Leader assigns up to four soldiers to the mission card and any number of soldiers to the base defense space when instructed by the app. The Commander may recruit one soldier for each unspent credit when instructed by the app; recruited soldiers are immediately added to the soldier reserve card.

Interceptors

Interceptors represent the aerial forces of the XCOM defense force.

• When not assigned to tasks or cards, Interceptors are placed on their corresponding reserve card.
• When an Interceptor is destroyed, it is placed in the recruitment pool.
• The Commander assigns Interceptors to the various continents when instructed by the app.
• The Commander may spend credits to build Interceptors when instructed by the app, adding them to their reserve.

Scientists

Scientists represent XCOM's research and development and engineering staff.

• When not assigned to tasks or cards, scientists are placed on the scientist reserve.
• When a scientist is exhausted, it is flipped facedown. It cannot be assigned to a task or card until it is refreshed.
• The Chief Scientist assigns scientists to the three research tasks when instructed by the app, and rolls one XCOM die for each scientist assigned to a research task.

Satellites

Satellites represent the XCOM defense force's orbital communications and intelligence gathering.

• When not assigned to tasks or cards, satellites are placed on the satellites reserve.
• When a satellite is exhausted, it is flipped facedown. It cannot be assigned to a task or card until it is refreshed.
• The Central Officer assigns satellites to the orbital defense task when instructed by the app, and rolls one XCOM die for each satellite assigned to orbital defense.

UFOs

UFOs represent the alien threat invading Earth.

• Keep UFOs that have not been spawned off the board, but near the Central Officer — these UFOs are known as "the invasion force."
• When a UFO is destroyed, it is removed from the board and added back to the invasion force. A destroyed UFO can be spawned again when instructed by the app.
• UFOs are limited by the number of included plastic figures. If all UFOs are on the board, ignore UFO spawns until more UFOs are removed from the board and become available.

Elite Soldiers

Elite tokens represent a soldier's training and experience. The Commander can make a soldier elite by using the "Officer Training" asset card.

• The Squad Leader rolls one additional die when resolving a task for each soldier with an elite token that is assigned to that task.
• If an elite soldier is killed, that soldier loses its elite status.
• The number of elite soldiers is limited by the number of elite tokens. There cannot be more than four elite soldiers at a time, and a new elite soldier cannot be made if all of the elite tokens are currently assigned to soldiers.

Skill Icons

There are four different skill icons, each associated with a part of an enemy or mission task card:

• A. Positioning
• B. Critical
• C. Firepower
• D. Teamwork

Each soldier type has two skill icons that can be used to match the icons on enemy cards and mission tasks. Gold-bordered skill icons are specialized. If a soldier is assigned to a specialized skill icon and has a matching specialized skill icon on its reserve card, the Squad Leader rolls one additional XCOM die during the resolution of that task.

Card Types and Card Anatomy

Asset Cards

Asset cards are components distributed to players during setup.

• Each card contains the name, icon, and color of the role to which it corresponds. Each asset card is given to the player who was assigned that role.
• Assets with the Timed Phase symbol can be used any time during the timed phase, regardless of which action is being resolved.
• Assets with the Resolution Phase symbol can be used any time during the resolution phase UNTIL cards are refreshed. Players can use an asset after rolling dice and before applying the results, but they cannot modify the number of dice being rolled.
• The app assigns the Commander an asset based on the location of the home base. This asset can only be used while the continent with the home base is in the yellow area of the panic track. Return the other continent-related assets to the box.

To resolve the effects of an asset, a player must pay the cost that is presented in bold on the card.

Asset card anatomy: A. Role Icon; B. Title; C. Phase Icon; D. Card Type & Role; E. Rules Text.

Reserve Cards

Reserve cards are given to each player role at setup and hold that role's units.

Reserve card anatomy: A. Role Icon; B. Title; C. Card Type, Role & Rules Text.

Soldier reserve card anatomy: A. Role Icon; B. Title; C. Card Type, Role & Rules Text; D. Skill Icons.

Tech Cards

Tech cards represent alien and XCOM technologies used by the XCOM defense force. Tech cards are shuffled together to form the tech deck during game setup.

• Each tech indicates which player role the card is given to.
• Each tech has a timing clause and symbol that indicates during which phase its ability can be used: Timed Phase abilities can be used at any time during the timed phase; Resolution Phase abilities can be used at any time during the resolution phase.
• Each tech may use a number of symbols as shorthand (see Symbols & Shorthand below).

Tech card anatomy: A. Research Cost; B. Title; C. Phase Icon; D. Card Type & Role; E. Rules Text.

Crisis Cards

Crisis cards represent catastrophic events caused by the alien invasion. They are shuffled together to form the crisis deck during game setup.

Crisis card anatomy: A. Title; B. Continent Effect / Rules Text.

Enemy Cards

Enemy cards represent the specific invading alien threats. Certain enemy cards are shuffled together to form the enemy deck during game setup.

• When there are success tokens on the enemy card equal to or greater than its health, the enemy is killed.
• When an enemy is killed, the Chief Scientist gains that enemy card facedown as salvage.
• When the Squad Leader assigns a mission to the mission space, he or she draws and places one enemy card facedown on each enemy space on that mission.

Enemy card anatomy: A. Health; B. Skill Icons; C. Title; D. Rules Text.

Mission Cards

Missions represent the exploits of the XCOM defense force. Each mission has three separate tasks on it, represented by icons or enemy spaces.

Mission card anatomy: A. Title; B. Rewards; C. Continent Icon; D. Enemy Tasks; E. Mission Tasks.

Invasion Plan Card

The invasion plan card represents the nature of the alien invasion. One invasion plan is chosen by the app during game setup.

• When the base damage token advances to a red space on the damage track, the Squad Leader resolves the critical damage effect on the invasion plan.
• The Squad Leader flips the invasion plan to the side with the final mission when instructed by the app.

Invasion plan card anatomy: A. Title; B. Critical Damage Effect.

Final mission card anatomy: A. Title; B. Critical Damage Effect; C. Reward; D. Mission Tasks (With Rules Text); E. Enemy Tasks.

Symbols & Shorthand

Below is a list of symbols and shorthand that appear on cards. Any bold text on a card is the cost to use the card.

• "Exhaust this" — In order to use the card ability, a player must exhaust the card by turning it 90°. A card must be refreshed before it can use its exhaust ability again.
• "Place X here" — In order to use the card ability, a player must place the number and type of units specified on the card onto it. The units must be placed onto the card from their reserve. They cannot come from another card or the board.
• "Discard X salvage" — In order to use the card ability, a player must discard the amount of salvage specified on the card.

Card shorthand letters and their meanings:

• E — Success token
• G — Interceptor
• I — Scientist
• J — Credit
• K — Satellite
• A — Timed phase (symbol)
• H — Resolution phase (symbol)

Exhausted and Refresh

An exhausted satellite or scientist is flipped facedown and cannot be assigned to tasks or cards until refreshed. An exhausted card is turned 90° clockwise and cannot be used until refreshed.

Satellites, scientists, assets, and tech are refreshed at the end of the resolution phase when instructed by the app.

• Cards are refreshed by being turned 90 degrees counterclockwise.
• Tokens are refreshed by turning them to their face-up side.

Component Limitations

There are a variety of tokens that represent budget, panic, base damage, and other effects.

• Elite tokens are limited by the number of included tokens. There can never be more than four elite soldiers at a time.
• Credit and success tokens are not limited by the number of included tokens. If players run out of credit and/or success tokens, use another token as a substitute.
• Units are limited by the number of included tokens and plastic figures.
• UFOs are limited by the number of included plastic figures. If all UFOs are on the board, ignore UFO spawns until more UFOs are removed from the board and become available.

Budget & Credits

Credit tokens represent XCOM's funding for all of its exploits. Each round the Commander gains credits from the app to form his budget for the round. The Commander uses credits to pay for each unit assigned to the board.

• Each unit (Interceptor, satellite, scientist, and soldier) costs one credit from the XCOM budget when it is assigned to the board. The credits to pay for these costs are not spent until the resolution phase.
• The Commander gains the number of credits as indicated by the app. Each continent in the red level of the panic track reduces the number of credits in the XCOM budget each round — this reduction is calculated by the app.

Fewer Than Four Players

When playing with four players, each player takes on a single role. When playing with two players, each player takes on two roles. It is recommended to have one player be both the Commander and the Chief Scientist and the other player be the Central Officer and the Squad Leader. In a three-player game, it is recommended that one player is both the Central Officer and the Commander. If a player is playing solo, then he or she must be all four roles.

Component List

• 1 game board
• 12 mission cards
• 5 invasion plan cards
• 4 role reference cards
• 7 reserve cards (2 sizes)
• 32 crisis cards
• 63 enemy cards
• 4 XCOM dice
• 1 alien die
• 29 credit tokens
• 8 scientist tokens
• 8 satellite tokens
• 6 panic tokens
• 1 base damage token
• 1 threat token
• 18 success tokens
• 1 XCOM HQ token
• 8 Interceptors
• 24 UFOs
• 3 heavy soldiers
• 3 assault soldiers
• 3 sniper soldiers
• 3 support soldiers
• 4 elite tokens
• 15 asset cards
• 28 tech cards