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Alien Invasion, A Solitaire Risk Variant

RISK is a trademarked product of Hasbro and Parker Brothers. This variant is not

endorsed by Hasbro or Parker Brothers and no such association is implied or claimed in

these rules.

By Joe Scoleri, "The Maverick" on www.boardgamegeek.com

Version 0.2 – 2 JUN 2010; Version 0.1 - 5 APR 1998 (with typos fixed 31 MAR 1999)

Designer’s Note for v.0.2 Edition: I can’t even remember what inspired me to throw

this Risk variant together a little over twelve years ago (uh – boredom?) It was posted on

my old website for the rec.games.board crowd to try out and I guess a few people

actually gave it a spin before I took the website down.

In response to a recent request from a BGG user looking for the variant, I was able to

locate the original ugly “old-school” HTML file that I posted back in 1999. I reformatted

the HTML file to create this PDF edition, cleaning up the wording in several places, but

unfortunately retaining the awkward numbering. The gameplay itself remains unchanged

from the original prototype 0.1 version.

I look forward to hearing about your attempts to conquer the Earth!

INTRODUCTION

Scenario: You are a military leader for a strange and warlike alien race straight from a

1950's science fiction movie. For reasons better explained in the movie, you have been

ordered to conquer the people of the planet Earth. As Supreme Commander of the

Terrestrial Invasion Forces, you have been assigned a limited number of forces to

complete your mission.

Further background information is contained in italicized text throughout the rules. The

variant may be learned without reading the italicized sections so feel free to skip them as

you see fit.

And one more thing... if you fail at your mission, the penalty (as always) is death.

Good luck Commander!

Object: Conquer the major Capitals of the Earth before your invading forces are repelled

from the planetary surface.

Required Components: To play this variant you will need a complete copy of the Parker

Brothers board game Risk. I used my 1975 edition with plastic star shaped pieces to

design and test this variant but earlier and later editions of the basic Risk game should

also be compatible.

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Definitions and Basic Procedures: Where possible I have used the same terminology as

the Risk rule book. The following are some special terms and procedures used in the

variant.

Regarding Playing Pieces:

10-Army Pieces – Used to describe the larger army pieces which represent 10 armies in

the regular Risk rules. These pieces are not used to represent armies in the variant. See

the definitions of Capital Pieces and Status Markers below for more information on how

the 10-army pieces are used in the variant.

Alien Armies - Single-army pieces in the color you have selected to represent your forces.

No more than five Alien Armies may be present in one territory at the same time.

Alien Capitals – A 10-army piece that is the same color as the Alien Armies. When an

Earthling Capital is captured it is replaced by an Alien Capital piece. Alien Capitals may

never be recaptured by the earthlings but they may be damaged or destroyed by nuclear

strikes. If an Alien Capital is damaged by a nuclear strike it is turned on its side to reflect

the damaged status.

Alien Force Pool - A group of Alien Army pieces representing the Alien Armies

currently present in Earth orbit.

Alien Tray - The storage tray to which Alien Armies are returned when they are

destroyed. These pieces may not reenter play unless returned to the Alien Force Pool

under the reinforcement rules.

Capital Pieces - These pieces mark the locations of the Earth's Capitals that you have

been assigned to conquer. Use a Risk 10-army piece standing up on end. (Note: If your

Risk set uses the Roman numeral pieces, you may want to use a coin or other marker to

show the location of the Capitals.) When a capital is captured, it is replaced by a Capital

Piece of the same color as the Alien Armies.

Earthling Armies - Single-army pieces in the five colors other than the one you have

selected for your Alien Armies. There is no limit on the number of Earthling Armies that

may occupy a single territory.

Status Markers - The remainder of the Risk 10-army pieces in the earthling colors are

used as Status Markers. A Status Marker is placed lying on its side so that it will not be

mistaken for an Earthling Capital.

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Regarding Cards:

Draw Piles - The Risk cards are used to generate some of the actions and events in the

variant. After completing the Setup process, the cards are dealt into a row of six equal

piles. These Draw Piles are referred to as 1 through 6, numbered sequentially from left to

right.

Discard Pile - Cards are returned face down to a single Discard Pile. An exception is

made for Wild Cards which are discarded face up next to the Discard Pile to track when

the Draw Piles must be renewed.

"Draw a Card" - When the rules tell you to draw a card or cards, one die is rolled for

each card to be drawn. You then take the top card of the Draw Pile that matches the

number shown on the die. (Example: If you are told to draw two cards, roll two dice. If

the results are 2 and 4, you draw the top card from the second pile from the left and the

top card from the fourth pile from the left.) If a die roll corresponds to a Draw Pile which

has no cards left, roll that die again. NOTE: This process of drawing cards is only used

during play, not during setup.

Other:

Adjacent Territory - Same as defined in the original Risk rules for attacks.

"Randomly Select" - When you are told to make a random selection and no specific

procedure is given, resolve the selection with a die roll giving an equal chance of success

to all possible candidates. For example, if three different territories are candidates for a

random selection, roll one die and choose the first territory on 1-2, the second on 3-4, and

the third on 5-6.

SETUP

1. Alien Force Recruitment - Select one color to represent your Terrestrial Invasion

Forces. Count out 50 single-army pieces of this color for your Alien Force Pool. The

remaining single-army pieces of this color are not used in the game and must be set aside.

(NOTE: Do not place these additional pieces in the Alien Tray to be used as

reinforcements. Only eliminated Alien Armies are returned to the Alien Tray.) Place the

Alien Force Pool in a convenient location (the ocean space between Africa and Australia

is suggested.)

2. Scan For Earthling Capitals - Shuffle the deck of 44 cards (all 42 countries and the

two "wild cards" – if a "trademark" card is present, do not include it in the deck.) Deal

the top card from the deck and place it face up.

If the card is a wild card or if it is a territory card from a continent that already has

a Capital placed or if it is a territory adjacent to a territory which already contains

a Capital, deal the next card face up.

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If the card is a territory card and no Capital Piece has been placed in the continent

in which the territory is located, place a Capital Piece in that territory.

NOTE: Select a different earthling color Capital Piece for each continent.

Keep dealing one card at a time from the top of the deck until you have placed a Capital

in five of the six continents (one continent will not have a Capital.) No continent should

have more than one Capital. Do not place any of the cards back in the deck until

completing the next Setup step.

Although you are the Supreme Commander of the ground forces, all orbital and

interstellar transport decisions are made by the Fleet Admiral. The Fleet Admiral,

notorious for his arrogance and ignorance, will be responsible for several decisions

which will often hinder your invasion efforts.

Based on his analysis of the planetary defenses, the Fleet Admiral has selected three

landing zones. These zones were not selected for your convenience – they were chosen

solely to avoid harm to any of the Admiral's ships. The High Command has allocated

three Disintegration Bombs to be used by your forces in their initial landing. These

bombs will be dropped in the selected landing zones to eradicate all enemy forces in the

immediate area.

3. Landing Zone Selection - To find out which three territories your forces will land in,

take the next three territory cards from the top of the deck. If a wild card is selected, take

another card from the top of the deck until you have three territory cards. You must place

1 to 5 Alien Armies in each of these territories. You do not need to place the same

number of Alien Armies in each territory. The landing zones have no special significance

during play; they are simply the starting places for your forces.

4. Deal Cards Into Draw Piles - Return all cards to the deck and shuffle the 44 cards

again. Deal seven cards in a pile. Deal six more piles of seven cards in a row. It is usually

convenient to place these piles along the edge of the game board closest to you. Without

looking at the remaining two cards, place them face down beside the game board to start

the Discard Pile.

5. Arrange Remaining Pieces - Place the Alien Tray and all trays containing the

Earthling Armies in a convenient location. Separate out about a dozen Status Markers and

place them in a pile near the game board. (NOTE: There is no limit on the number of

Status Markers; you just don't need to separate out all of them at this time.) Alien Capital

pieces can be kept in the Alien Tray until needed.

You are now ready to play Alien Invasion.

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GAME END

High Command has many battles going on throughout the universe. Forces and

resources are stretched thin. Accordingly, if you lose a military foothold on the planetary

surface, the invasion will be terminated and the Fleet recalled to your home world so that

your success or failure may be evaluated by the Council of Elder Ones.

The game ends immediately at any time that either of the following conditions exists:

All Capital Pieces have been captured and replaced by Alien Capitals, or

There are no territories occupied by Alien Armies (even if there are still armies

available in the Alien Force Pool.)

Your victory level is determined by the number of Alien Capitals on the board at the end

of the game. This could range from a humiliating defeat (no Alien Capitals) to a stunning

victory (five Alien Capitals.)

TURN SEQUENCE

1. Status Marker Placement Phase

2. Alien Attack Phase

3. Earthling Attack Phase

4. Capital Capture Phase

5. Alien Reorganization Phase

6. Alien Landing and Orbital Transport Phase

7. Earthling Nuclear Strike and Reorganization Phase

8. Alien Reinforcement Phase

9. Surrounded Alien Elimination Phase

10. Earthling Reinforcement Phase

11. Earthling Siege Attrition Phase

12. Draw Piles Renewal Phase

A turn sequence card has been included for reference during play. While the variant rules

are written in a lengthy style for purposes of clarity, after repeated play you should only

need to refer to the Turn Sequence Card and Earthling Force Strength Table.

1. Status Marker Placement Phase

Your ground forces are swift striking and highly mobile compared to the primitive

wheeled and tracked vehicles used by the earthlings. However, should your units take up

fixed positions, the earthlings may have sufficient time to mount an attack against them.

Alien Armies which do not participate in any attacks during a turn are subject to attack

during the Earthling Attack Phase. Status Markers are used to keep track of this status.

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A. Place a Status Marker in each territory containing one or more Alien Armies.

B. Do not place a Status Marker in a territory that contains an Alien Capital unless there

are also Alien Armies present in the territory.

Status markers may be removed during subsequent phases as follows:

If the Alien Armies in the territory participate in an attack, whether or not

successful, any Status Marker present in the attacking territory is removed.

If one or more Alien Armies move from the territory into an adjacent territory

following a successful attack, whether or not the forces participated in the attack,

the Status Marker is removed from the territory from which the Alien Armies

were moved.

2. Alien Attack Phase

Select an attacking territory and defending territory

Determine the Earthling Force Strength in defending territory

Resolve attack

Occupy territory if captured

Repeat these steps for any other attacks desired

You must now designate and resolve all attacks for the turn. Alien attacks are optional

and you may conduct as few or as many attacks as you are able during the phase. You are

not required to conduct any attacks and may skip the attack portion of the phase after

placing status markers. Unlike the standard rules for Risk, Alien Armies may attack even

if there is only one army in the attacking territory.

A. Select any territory of your choice containing one or more Alien Armies from which

you wish to launch an attack. This is the Attacking Territory.

B. Select a territory to attack which is adjacent to the Attacking Territory. This is the

Defending Territory.

C. During this phase, you cannot select a territory as a Defending Territory if that

territory contains:

i. Any Alien Armies, or

ii. An Alien Capital and no Earthling Armies, or

iii. A Status Marker placed there because Alien Armies were destroyed on a roll of

triples during an earlier attack in the same turn (see Rule 2.G.vii below.)

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D. Forces from two different territories may not conduct a combined attack. Each attack

is from ONE territory against ONE other.

E. If the Defending Territory already contains one or more Earthling Army pieces, then

proceed with the Alien Attack Resolution.

Memorandum from the Fleet Admiral: Odd life forms, these earthlings... they don't even

register on our standard scanning devices. But knowing where they are is not your

concern. You merely need to crush them as you advance to on [sic] capitals.

F. If the Defending Territory does not contain any Earthling Army pieces, then use the

following procedure to determine the number of Earthling Armies present:

i. Draw a card and consult the following table using the symbol shown on the card. If

the Defending Territory contains an Earthling Capital, use the number found under the

"Capital" column. If the Defending Territory is adjacent to any Earthling Capital, use the

number found under "Adjacent" column. Otherwise use the number found under the "Not

Adjacent" column. NOTE: Please remember to use the “Draw a Card” procedure

explained above under the Definitions whenever you are instructed to draw a card!

EARTHLING FORCE STRENGTH TABLE

Symbol Not Adjacent Adjacent Capital

Foot Soldier 2 3 4

Horseman 3 4 6

Cannon 4 5 8

Wild Card 6 7 10

ii. If there is an Earthling Capital located anywhere in the continent containing the

Defending Territory, one of the following modifiers is to be applied to the number

generated by the card draw:

+2 if the Defending Territory is the territory shown on the card,

or

+1 if the Defending Territory is in the same continent as the territory shown on the card.

iii. The final result is the number of Earthling Armies which are to be placed in the

Defending Territory. Use the same color armies as the Earthling Capital which was

originally placed in that continent. If the continent was not assigned a Capital during

setup, use armies of the same color as the nearest adjacent continent.

iv. Take the Earthling Armies from the appropriate tray and place them in the

Defending Territory. If there are fewer armies in the tray than called for, only take as

many as are available – do not make up the difference from another tray.

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v. Once the strength of the earthling force has been determined and the Earthling

Armies have been placed, the units in the Attacking Territory MUST complete at least

one attack against the units in the Defending Territory.

G. ALIEN ATTACK RESOLUTION

These procedures differ in some minor but important ways from the standard Risk

rules. The primary differences are in the number of dice rolled and the handling of tie die

rolls. Please review these rules carefully.

i. Use one set of dice for the aliens and one set of dice for the earthlings. If there is a

Status Marker in the Attacking Territory, remove it at this time.

ii. The number of dice rolled for the Aliens is determined by the number of armies

participating in the attack:

4 or more Alien Armies - MUST roll 3 dice

3 Alien Armies - 2 dice

1 or 2 Alien Armies - 1 die

iii. However, if the number of Alien Armies attacking is equal to or less than the

number of Earthling Armies defending, the player may instead elect to roll the following

number of dice:

3 Alien Armies - 3 dice

2 Alien Armies - 2 dice

iv. The number of dice rolled for the earthling defenders is determined by the number

of armies defending:

3 or more Earthling Armies - roll 3 dice

2 Earthling Armies - roll 2

1 Earthling Army - roll 1 die

v. Roll the dice. Pair off the opposing dice as in the standard Risk rules.

vi. IMPORTANT! Losses are apportioned in the same way as outlined in the standard

Risk rules with two exceptions:

If the opposing dice are tied, BOTH the attacker and defender lose an army.

If either the earthling or Alien dice show triples, the opposing forces are

completely eliminated from the territory. (This reflects a tactical nuclear attack by

the earthlings or the "surprise" allocation of another Disintegration Bomb by the

Fleet Admiral.) However, if both sides rolled triples at the same time, then combat

is resolved normally.

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vii. When Alien Armies are eliminated from a territory on a roll of triples as described

above, place a Status Marker in the territory to indicate the use of the tactical nuclear

weapon. No Alien Armies may attempt an attack against that territory for the remainder

of the Attack Phase. Remove the Status Marker from this territory after all Alien Attacks

for the turn have been completed.

viii. Any Alien Armies eliminated in combat or through other means are returned to

the Alien Tray, not the Force Pool.

ix. If the Earthling Armies have not been eliminated from the Defending Territory,

any Alien Armies remaining in the Attacking Territory may attack again. However, if the

player decides not to attack again, the player many not conduct an attack from the same

Attacking Territory against that Defending Territory for the remainder of the Attack

Phase.

x. Advance After Combat. If the Alien Attack eliminated all Earthling Armies from

the Defending Territory:

At least one Alien Army must be moved from the Attacking Territory into the

Defending Territory, unless all Alien Armies were also eliminated. You may

move additional Alien Armies from the Attacking Territory into the Defending

Territory so long as the move does not cause the limit of five Alien Armies per

territory to be exceeded.

In addition, any number of Alien Armies in territories adjacent to the Defending

Territory may be moved into the Defending Territory subject to the limitation that

there cannot be more than five Alien Armies in one territory. Such a move is

permitted even if all of the attacking Alien Armies were also eliminated.

IMPORTANT: When adjacent Alien Armies are moved into the Defending

Territory, remove any Status Markers from the territories that the Alien Armies

came from.

xi. Once an attack has been terminated (whether by victory, defeat or choice) the

player may designate another attack. However, Alien Armies which have conducted a

successful attack or moved into a territory as the result of an attack may be used to

conduct further attacks during the same turn.

H. When all Alien Attacks have been completed, you may remove any Status Markers

that were placed in vacant territories due to an earthling roll of triples (Rule 2.G.vii.)

3. Earthling Attack Phase

Attacks against stationary Alien Armies

Attacks against Alien Armies besieging Capitals

Attacks against separated Alien Armies

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As the Alien invaders swept across the planet, their awesome power and brutal tactics

shocked the human troops. The military commanders of Earth were frequently left with

armies that were severely demoralized, if not outright mutinous. Even the earthlings who

stayed in the fight were more apt to sit tight in their defensive positions to await the

advance of the Alien forces.

This Phase consists of the three distinct Stages named above.

It is important that the three Stages of Earthling Attacks be resolved in the order given.

You MUST resolve all attacks of one Stage before moving on to the next. This is how the

game system controls the "hidden movement" of Earthling Armies, their force allocation,

and their attack strategy.

Unlike the Aliens, Earthling Armies cannot conduct an attack unless there are at least two

Earthling Armies in the Attacking Territory.

Unless otherwise specified, the order of attacks occurring within each Stage is to be

randomly determined.

A. Attacks against stationary Alien Armies

Old Alien Proverb: He who hesitates is lost in space...

During this Stage, Earthling Armies will conduct attacks against Alien Armies which did

not participate in attacks this turn.

i. Skip this Stage if there are no territories containing a Status Marker together with

any number of Alien Armies.

ii. Only one attack is made against each territory containing both a Status Marker and

any number of Alien Armies. Each attack will consist of only one roll of the dice.

iii. Randomly select one of the territories containing both a Status Marker and Alien

Armies as the Defending Territory. Remove the Status Marker.

iv. Determine Location of Attacking Forces. An attack may or may not occur against

the Alien Armies in the selected territory. Determine the location of any attacking forces

as follows:

NOTE: If all of the territories adjacent to the Defending Territory contain Alien

Armies then you need not conduct this procedure as no attack can occur against the

Defending Territory.

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a. Roll one die. Use the number rolled to randomly select one adjacent territory.

(For instance, start with an adjacent territory directly north and count each

adjacent territory going clockwise until the number rolled is reached.)

Older Alien Proverb: United us live, divided us die.

b. If the selected territory contains Alien Armies or only one Earthling Army

piece, no attack occurs against the Defending Territory.

c. If the selected territory contains more than one Earthling Army, one attack is

carried out by the armies in that territory against the Defending Territory. Use

the Earthling Attack Resolution as described below.

d. If the selected territory contains no Earthling Armies, determine the strength

of the earthling forces in the territory by drawing a card and consulting the

Earthling Force Strength Table and modifiers (see Rules 2.F.i through iv.)

Place these armies in the selected territory and use them to conduct one attack

against the Defending Territory as described below. NOTE: The presence of

an Alien Capital in the selected territory does not prohibit the placement of

Earthling Armies using this procedure.

v. EARTHLING ATTACK RESOLUTION

These procedures differ in some minor but important ways from the standard Risk

rules and the Alien Attack Resolution explained previously. Please review them

carefully. Remember, there must be at least two Earthling Armies in the attacking

territory for an attack to be conducted. The same attack resolution rules apply in all three

Stages of the Earthling Attack Phase.

a. Use one set of dice for the aliens and one set of dice for the earthlings.

b. The number of dice rolled for the earthlings is determined by the number of

armies participating in the attack:

4 or more Earthling Armies - roll 3 dice

3 Earthling Armies - 2 dice

2 Earthling Armies - 1 die

1 Earthling Army - no attack may be conducted

c. The number of dice rolled for the Alien defenders is determined by the number of

armies defending:

3 or more Alien Armies - roll 3 dice

2 Alien Armies - roll 2 dice

1 Alien Army - roll 1 die

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d. Roll the dice and pair off the opposing dice as in the standard Risk rules.

Apportion losses in the same manner as explained in the Alien Attack Resolution

with one exception: no new Status Markers are placed during any portion of the

Earthling Attack Phase even if the earthlings win an attack by a roll of triples.

e. Advance After Combat. If all Alien Armies in a territory are eliminated by the

attack, and more than one Earthling Army remains in the Attacking Territory,

move all but one Earthling Army from the Attacking Territory to the Defending

Territory.

f. No follow up attacks are conducted between the same two territories in a Stage.

Move on to the next attack as directed in the rules for the particular Stage.

vi. Repeat this Stage until there are no more territories containing a Status Marker

together with Alien Armies. There should be no Status Markers in any territories at the

conclusion of this Stage.

B. Attacks against Alien Armies besieging Capitals

The "wait and see" attitude of the earthling commanders was thrown out the window

when Aliens threatened a Capital. Whatever forces could be thrown together would make

a last ditch attack.

During this Stage, Earthling Armies will conduct attacks against Alien Armies that are in

the same territory as an Earthling Capital.

i. Skip this Stage if there are no territories containing an Earthling Capital together

with any number of Alien Armies.

ii. Only one attack is made against each territory containing both an Earthling Capital

and any number of Alien Armies. Each attack will consist of only one roll of the dice.

iii. Randomly select one of the territories containing both an Earthling Capital and

Alien Armies as the Defending Territory. Determine the location of any attacking forces

and conduct the attack as described in the rules for the previous Stage (see Rules 3.A.iv

and 3.A.v.)

iv. Repeat this Stage once for each additional territory containing Alien Armies

together with an Earthling Capital.

C. Attacks against separated Alien Armies

Earth's military commanders were reluctant to commit their forces against the

demonstrated power of the Alien invaders unless absolutely necessary. At the same time,

the earthling forces were quick to make opportunistic attacks against Alien forces that

separated from the main invading force.

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During this Stage, Earthling Armies will conduct attacks against territories which contain

only one Alien Army piece.

i. Skip this Stage if either of the following conditions exists:

There are no territories containing only a single Alien Army, or

There are no territories containing two or more Earthling Armies adjacent a

territory containing only a single Alien Army.

ii. In this stage each territory containing a single Alien Army will be attacked by all

adjacent territories which contain two or more Earthling Armies.

iii. Each such adjacent territory will attack separately, and each adjacent territory will

only make a single attack against the solo Alien Army (i.e. only one roll of the dice).

iv. Randomly select one of the territories containing a single Alien Army that is

adjacent to Earthling Armies. This is the Defending Territory.

v. If the Defending Territory is adjacent to more than one territory containing

Earthling Armies that are eligible to attack, begin with the Attacking Territory that has

the most Earthling Armies in it. (If the adjacent territories are tied for the most Earthling

Armies, randomly select the order in which these attack.)

vi. Conduct a single attack resolution as described under Earthling Attack Resolution

(see Rules 3.A.v.a through e.)

vii. Unlike the previous stages, you never place new Earthling Armies on the game

board during this Stage! Only use Earthling Armies that are already on the game board.

viii. Only one attack (i.e. one roll of the dice) is conducted from each earthling

occupied territory adjacent to the territory with the single Alien Army. However, these

same Earthling Armies may participate in attacks against other solo Alien Armies later in

this Stage, if the required conditions are met for such an attack.

ix. Resolve all attacks against any one territory containing a single Alien Army before

moving on to the next Defending Territory. Remember that Earthling Armies cannot

attack unless there are at least two of them in the Attacking Territory.

x. Earthling Armies that have successfully attacked and advanced after combat during

this Stage are eligible to attack single Alien Armies that become adjacent as a result of

the advance.

xi. Repeat these steps for each additional eligible territory containing a single Alien

Army.

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4. Capital Capture Phase

Even after the military forces of Earth had been beaten back, the Alien invaders could be

delayed by the unfamiliar guerilla tactics of the desperate citizens of the planet. Such

tenacity in non-combatants had not been encountered elsewhere in the universe.

A. Skip this Stage if there are no territories containing an Earthling Capital together with

any number of Alien Armies.

B. Select one of the territories containing both an Earthling Capital and Alien Armies.

C. Draw a card. If a wild card is drawn, draw three more cards.

i. If the territory displayed on one or more cards is the same as any territory currently

containing an Earthling Capital then the capture attempt is unsuccessful.

ii. Otherwise the capture attempt is successful and the Earthling Capital piece is

replaced by an Alien Capital piece.

D. Repeat this Stage once for each additional territory containing Alien Armies together

with an Earthling Capital.

5. Alien Reorganization Phase

A. At the player's option, any or all of the Alien Armies in one territory may be moved

into an adjacent territory under the following conditions:

i. The adjacent territory contains Alien Armies or an Alien Capital,

ii. There are no Earthling Armies in the adjacent territory, and

iii. The adjacent territory contains no more than five Alien Armies after the move.

6. Alien Landing and Orbital Transport Phase

Now that the attack is under way, the Fleet Admiral is starting to get under your skin.

Additional forces are being landed in erratic numbers. You can't always get your forces

transported from one territory to another because "it isn't safe." The Fleet Admiral

refuses to bring in any reinforcements until you "show some results." You're starting to

wonder who the real enemy is...

This is the Phase in which Alien Armies in the Force Pool may be moved to the planet's

surface. You can also consolidate your forces by moving units from one location to

another.

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A. Roll three dice and total the results to determine the Transport Capability number for

this turn. If triples were rolled then the Fleet Admiral has granted you unlimited

Transport Capability for the current Phase.

B. The Transport Capability number represents the maximum number of Alien Armies

that can be landed from the Alien Force Pool or transported from one territory to another.

You may not transport or move any Earthling Armies during this phase. Each of the

following actions uses one point of Transport Capability:

i. Moving one army from one territory to another,

ii. Moving one army from the Force Pool to a territory, or

iii. Moving one army from a territory to the Force Pool.

C. On turns where you have unlimited capability you may land and/or transport as many

armies as you wish subject to the limitations of the Alien Force Pool and the limit of five

Alien Armies per territory.

D. Armies may only be landed in or transported to a territory that has no Earthling

Armies in it. In addition, the destination territory must contain either of the following:

i. At least one Alien Army, or

ii. An Alien Capital.

E. You are not prohibited from “abandoning” a territory by transporting all Alien Armies

in it to valid destinations. However, if you transport all Alien Armies out of a territory

that does not contain an Alien Capital, you may not move or transport any Alien Armies

to that territory without recapturing and occupying it through a successful attack made

during the Alien Attack Phase.

F. Any additional Transport Capability is lost if it is not (or cannot) be used during the

Phase. Transport Capability does not accumulate from one turn to the next.

G. At no time are you allowed to have more than five Alien Armies in a single territory.

All moves made during the Phase are subject to this limitation.

7. Earthling Nuclear Strike and Reorganization Phase

After the first earthling Capital fell, the United Nations Global League of Atomic

Scientists for Planetary Defense (UNGLASPD) released its secret arsenal of nuclear

weapons for use against the fast moving, and seemingly unstoppable, Alien forces.

Though only used sporadically, the nukes were unquestionably effective in the effort to

repel the Alien invaders.

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A. Skip this Phase if there are no Alien Capitals on the board.

B. Count the number of Alien Capitals on the board. This is the number of cards that are

drawn at this time.

C. If two wild cards are drawn, a nuclear attack is conducted against the Alien Fleet. Roll

three dice and remove that many Alien Armies from the Alien Force Pool and place them

in the Alien Tray. [Sorry, the Fleet Admiral always manages to survive these attacks.]

D. If only one wild card was drawn, draw three more cards. If a second wild card is

drawn at this time, do not conduct the fleet attack described above - simply draw an

additional three cards.

E. Examine the territories on the map which match the territories on the cards drawn and

take the following actions where applicable:

i. If the territory contains only an Earthling Capital with no Armies of either side, then

Earthling Armies are placed in the territory. Determine the strength of the earthling forces

in the territory using the Earthling Force Strength Table and modifiers (see Rules 2.F.i

through iv.) After the Armies are placed, go on to the next card, if any.

ii. If the territory contains any number of Earthling Armies and there are no Alien

Armies in adjacent territories, the Earthling Armies are removed for reorganization and

are returned to the appropriate tray. In this case make sure to check whether conditions iv

and v below also apply to the territory.

iii. If the territory contains any number of Alien Armies together with an Earthling

Capital, a tactical nuclear strike occurs. Roll one die and remove that many Alien Armies

from the territory and place them in the Alien Tray. Ignore the excess amount if the

number rolled is greater than the number of Alien Armies in the territory.

iv. If the territory contains only Alien Armies, a nuclear strike occurs. All of the Alien

Armies are eliminated and returned to the Alien Tray.

At one point the earthlings conducted nuclear attacks pursuant to a "scorched earth"

strategy.

v. If the territory contains a damaged Alien Capital, a nuclear strike occurs. The Alien

Capital is destroyed and removed from the board.

vi. If the territory contains an undamaged Alien Capital, a nuclear strike occurs. The

Alien Capital is damaged and the piece is turned on its side to reflect the damaged status.

vii. If none of the above conditions apply, go on to the next card. The order in which the

cards are resolved is not important.

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F. Discard the cards once they have all been resolved.

8. Alien Reinforcement Phase

The Fleet Admiral's jealousy grows with each of your successful conquests. You become

increasingly annoyed by his poltroonic shenanigans as the flow of reinforcements

dwindles to critically low levels.

This is the only time that eliminated Alien Armies may be removed from the Alien Tray

and returned to the Force Pool.

A. Skip this Phase if there are no Alien Capitals on the board.

B. Roll two dice. Subtract the number of Alien Capitals on the board from the total

shown on the dice.

C. If the result is a positive number, you may move that many eliminated Alien Armies

from the Alien Tray back into the Alien Force Pool. If the number rolled is greater than

the number of Alien Armies in the Alien Tray, ignore the excess total.

Don't curse the dice, curse the Fleet Admiral.

D. If the result is a negative number, then a corresponding number of Alien Armies must

be removed from the Alien Force Pool and placed in the Alien Tray. This represents a

reallocation of forces by the High Command.

To keep your campaign moving you continue to lobby the High Command for new

landing zones. Unfortunately it seems they are more often swayed by the Fleet Admiral's

convincing, albeit false, claims that additional landing zones would create too much risk

for the Fleet.

E. SPECIAL: If you rolled doubles on the dice, the High Command has ordered the Fleet

Admiral to clear a new landing zone. Draw a card to determine the location of any new

landing zone. If the territory displayed on the card is completely empty (no Armies or

Capitals of any type) then a landing zone is established in the territory for this Phase

only. If there are Armies available in the Alien Force Pool, place 1 to 5 Armies from the

Force Pool into this territory. If the chosen territory is not vacant, or no Armies are

available in the Force Pool, then a new landing zone is not established.

9. Surrounded Alien Elimination Phase

The earthlings received a slight morale boost when they discovered that the Aliens were

particularly vulnerable to coordinated attacks from all sides. This was due to the

confining sterioperoptic viewers that the Aliens were forced to use in the Earth’s

atmosphere. The Aliens were slaughtered in panic whenever they could be confined by

encircling forces.

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A. During this Phase review the game board to determine if any territory containing

Alien Armies is completely surround by adjacent territories occupied by Earthling

Armies.

B. When Alien Armies are in a territory around which every adjacent territory contains

Earthling Armies, the Alien Armies in the surrounded territory are eliminated and

removed to the Alien Tray.

C. If two or more adjacent territories containing Alien Armies are surrounded as

described above, the Aliens in those territories are not eliminated in this Phase. This

Phase only affects individual Alien territories that are completely surrounded by adjacent

Earthling Armies.

10. Earthling Reinforcement Phase

A. Skip this Phase if there are no territories that contain just one Earthling Army.

B. Select a territory which contains a single Earthling Army piece and draw a card. For

purposes of this phase, always consult the "Not Adjacent" column of the Earthling Force

Strength Table no matter what the actual status of the territory is. Apply any applicable

modifiers (see Rules 2.F.i through iv).

C. The result is the number of Earthling Armies to be added to the territory. Use the

appropriate colored armies for that territory. This may occasionally result in a

combination of pieces of different continent colors. This does not affect the way in which

these Earthling Armies defend and attack.

D. Repeat these steps once for each additional territory containing just one Earthling

Army.

11. Earthling Siege Attrition Phase

A. Skip this Phase if there are no territories containing an Alien Capital together with any

number of Earthling Armies.

B. Select any one of the territories containing both an Alien Capital and Earthling

Armies. Roll a die. The result is the number of Earthling Armies to be removed from the

territory and returned to their trays. Ignore the excess amount if the number rolled is

greater than the number of Earthling Armies in the territory.

C. Repeat this phase once for each additional territory containing Earthling Armies

together with an Alien Capital.

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12. Draw Piles Renewal Phase

From the Fleet Admiral's broadcast to the fleet on the day of the attack: "Gentlemen, our

preparations are complete. Today we shall see what hand fate has dealt us."

A. When it is time to renew the Draw Piles, all 42 cards are combined and reshuffled (i.e.

including the Discard Pile and all unused Draw Piles). Deal out the six Draw Piles again

and use the remaining two cards to start a Discard Pile as was done during setup.

B. The Draw Piles are renewed at this time if either of these conditions exists:

i. Both wild cards have been drawn since the Draw Piles were last dealt out (after a

wild card is drawn and used it should be discarded face up beside the Discard Pile to keep

track of this condition), or

ii. Any Draw Pile is empty at the beginning of this Phase.

C. The Draw Piles are normally only renewed during this Phase. The only exception

would be if all of the Draw Piles are emptied during the course of a turn and a card draw

is called for (this is not likely to occur).

D. If the Draw Piles are not being renewed this turn, draw a card for each Earthling

Capital on the board and place them in the Discard Pile without looking at them.

E. This concludes a full turn. Begin the next turn with the Status Marker Placement

Phase.

VICTORY LEVELS

Although this solitaire variant is just for fun, here are some guidelines for evaluating your

performance and future potential as an Alien Military Commander. The victory levels

reflect the strange and warlike nature of your alien race as foreshadowed in the scenario

introduction:

Alien Capitals

On Board Victory Level and Future Career Prospects

--------------- ----------------------------------------------------

0 Humiliating defeat, you are put to death... twice!

1 Dishonorable service, you are demoted and then killed.

2 Unsatisfactory service, you are now the Admiral's clerk.

3 Adequate show of force, but you are executed anyway!

4 Strong foothold, you retain your rank (for now.)

5 Stunning victory, they didn't know you had it in you!

Alien Invasion, Risk Variant, Version 0.2, Copyright © 2010 by Joseph J. Scoleri III

Distributed free-of-charge on www.boardgamegeek.com for personal, non-profit use.

TURN SEQUENCE CARD

Setup Summary: Recruit Alien forces, scan for Capitals, Landing Zone selection,

deal cards into Draw Piles, and arrange remaining pieces.

1. Status Marker Placement Phase Place Status Markers in each territory containing Alien Armies

2. Alien Attack Phase Select an attacking territory and defending territory

Determine earthling force strength in defending territory if necessary

Resolve attack

Continue attack if desired or occupy territory if captured

Repeat these steps for any other attacks desired

3. Earthling Attack Phase Stage 1: Conduct attacks against stationary Alien Armies

* Skip Stage if no Status Markers with Alien Armies

Randomly select eligible Defending Territory

Randomly determine Attacking Territory

Resolve any attack with one roll of the dice

If territory captured, occupy with all but one attacking army

Repeat these steps for all eligible territories

Stage 2: Conduct attacks against Alien Armies besieging Capitals

* Skip Stage if no Alien Armies with Earthling Capitals

Randomly select eligible Defending Territory

Randomly determine Attacking Territory

Resolve any attack with one roll of the dice

If territory captured, occupy with all but one attacking army

Repeat these steps for all eligible territories

Stage 3: Conduct attacks against separated Alien Armies

* Skip Stage if no eligible Earthling Armies adjacent to lone Alien Armies

Randomly select eligible Defending Territory

Select Attacking Territory with most Earthling Armies

Resolve any attack with one roll of the dice

Resolve any other attacks against Defending Territory

If territory captured, occupy with all but one attacking army

Repeat these steps for all eligible territories

4. Capital Capture Phase * Skip Stage if no Alien Armies with Earthling Capitals

Draw card for eligible territory

If territory on card contains an Earthling Capital, attempt fails

If attempt succeeds replace Capital with Alien Capital

Repeat these steps for all eligible territories

5. Alien Reorganization Phase Move any or all Alien Armies from only one territory to an adjacent

Alien controlled territory

6. Alien Landing and Orbital Transport Phase Roll three dice and total to find Transport Capability

Move eligible units to Alien controlled territories as desired

7. Earthling Nuclear Strike and Reorganization Phase * Skip Phase if no Alien Capitals on the board

Draw cards equal to the number of Alien Capitals on the board

Two wild cards: nuclear attack on Alien Force Pool, roll three dice

One wild card: draw three more cards

For each card, if territory contains:

Earthling Capital - determine earthling force strength, place Earthling Armies

Earthling Armies - remove if no adjacent Alien Armies

Alien Armies + Earthling Capital - limited nuke, roll one die

Alien Armies - nuked, remove all to Tray

Alien Capital - nuked and damaged, if previously damaged then remove

8. Alien Reinforcement Phase * Skip Phase if no Alien Capitals on the board

Roll two dice, subtract number of Alien Capitals

Positive number = Armies moved from Alien Tray to Force Pool

Negative number = Armies moved from Force Pool to Alien Tray

On doubles, also draw a card for possible new landing zone

9. Surrounded Alien Elimination Phase Remove any Alien Armies in territory completely surrounded by Earthling Armies

10. Earthling Reinforcement Phase * Skip Phase if no territories with just one Earthling Army

Select eligible territory, draw card, add forces from "Not Adjacent" column

Repeat for all eligible territories

11. Earthling Siege Attrition Phase * Skip Phase if no territories with Alien Capital and Earthling Armies

Select eligible territory, roll die, remove Earthling Armies

12. Draw Piles Renewal Phase Renew Draw Piles if:

Two wildcards were drawn since Draw Piles last renewed

Any of the Draw Piles is out of cards

If not renewing Draw Piles, draw and discard for each Earthling Capital

This concludes the turn. Begin the next turn with the Status Marker Placement Phase.

EARTHLING FORCE STRENGTH TABLE

Symbol Not Adjacent Adjacent Capital

Foot Soldier 2 3 4

Horseman 3 4 6

Cannon 4 5 8

Wild Card 6 7 10

Modifiers: +2 Armies if Defending Territory is shown on the card, or

+1 Army if Defending Territory is in the same continent as the one shown on the card

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Alien Invasion

A Solitaire Risk Variant

Version 0.2 – 2 JUN 2010

If you have any comments or suggestions, please send them to "The Maverick" on

www.boardgamegeek.com

THANKS!

RISK is a trademarked product of Hasbro and Parker Brothers. This variant is not

endorsed by Hasbro or Parker Brothers and no such association is implied or

claimed in these rules.