Supernova Rules v2

7/29/2019 Supernova Rules v2

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Escape! Expand!

Defend! Conquer!

Your sun is steadily approaching Supernova. You must aban-

don your planet and ght for a foothold in a new solar system

before your home world is destroyed.

Over 9 game rounds within 3 phases, you will learn new tech-

nologies - Weapons, Shields, Communications or Engines - to

aid in your quest for survival. Increase your income by mining

moons and discover alien races on new planets, gaining you

valuable bonuses. The player with the most points when the

sun goes Supernova at the end of phase 3 is proclaimed the

winner!

3-5 150 - 270 min medium

1.0 Game Overview

The objective in Supernova is to have the most points whenthe sun goes Supernova at the end of the game. Points are

counted as follows:

:: Every hex you occupy is worth 1 point

:: Every moon you occupy is worth 3 points

:: Every planet you occupy is worth 5 points

:: Each resource unit (RU = $) you have is worth 1 point

:: If you have not played your Special Power card, it is

worth 4 points

Game Overview

Game Components

Setup

Center Board Piece

Board SetupCards

Player Setup

Drafting the Battle Cards

Gameplay

Turns, Rounds, Phases

Round Sequence

Turn Overview

Turn Sequence

TurnSpecics

Upkeep

Replenish Battle Cards

Receive Income/Pay Taxes

Receive Tiles for Placement

Fortify

Place Tiles, Resolve Battles

Replenish Battle Cards

Increasing Technologies

Buy/Playing Research Cards

Buy Battle Cards

Taking Moons, Planets, Encounters

Desperation Cards

Attacking

Battle

CombatModiers

Battle Cards

Playing New Boards

Exploration

Encounter Outcome GuideSolar Flares, End of Phase Scoring

Determining Solar Flares

Resolving Solar Flares

End of the Phase

End of the Phase Scoring

Supernova!

Final Scoring

Breaking Ties

SpecialPowerCards,CardClarications

Variants

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supernova[ oliver harrison mike roy ]

[ Rules v2.2 ]

Table of Contents

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1 Center board piece (Supernova board) 5 large board pieces

5 play mats5 screens7 small board pieces

3 desperation cards7 special power cards40 research cards6 colonization cards66 battle cards

6 planet markers6 moon markers 1 rst player marker1 supernova coin

79 scoring markers250 control tiles,54 in eachplayer colour

20 technology markers 25 encounter markers

30 Resource Units(RUs)

2.0 Game Components

The following components come with Supernova:

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initial placement of coin which marks the turns

3.0 Setup

The board is composed of the center board piece plus a combina-

tion of large and small board pieces.

:: For a 5 player game:

use all 7 small board pieces and all 5 large board pieces.


use 6 small board pieces and 4 large board pieces.


use 5 small board pieces and 3 large board pieces.

:: The two small board pieces with the planet and the moon

are always used.

The Center Board Piece

The center board piece has 12 hexes surrounding the sun. These

hexes represent the rounds of the game.

Place the Supernova coin on the hex that is labeled 1/1.

Board Setup

Assemble the larger board pieces so that the three-tile sectionsalong the edge of each board are touching the Central Board Piece.

Once players have assembled the board to their liking, the board

is populated with the planet, moon and encounter markers. Se-

cretly randomize the planet markers face-down and add an amount

equal to the number of players. Place these markers on the hex-

es in the center of the large board pieces. Turn the 25 Encounter

markers face down, mix them up, and place them in a stack next

to the board. If you desire less predictable encounters, remove 5

Encounter tokens at random and return them to the box these

markers are not used this game and should remain hidden. Place

one Encounter marker face-down on the green center hex of the

small board pieces. The rest of the Encounter markers are left face-

down next to the game board.

33

a

b

3 player setup

5 player setup

4 player setup

Note: in these 3 examples the planet (a)

and moon (b) boards are shown placed

after the rst round has ended.

a

b

a

b


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The circular path around each planet indicates the orbit of a moon.

There are 3 icons within each path to indicate the possible starting

positions for the moons. For each moon path, place one moon on

either of the 2 moon icons farthest from the Supernova, with the

marker rotated so that the arrow on the moon points toward the

Supernova.

The small

Moon and

planet boards

are not used

during the rstphase of thegame.

Place one moon on either of the 2 moon icons farthest from the

Supernova in this case (a) or (b) with the arrow pointing along

the path toward the supernova. The moon will follow the arrow along

the orbital path. Therefore, the next hex the moon will move to is bb.

a b

a

b

bb

bb

The two small board pieces with a moon and planet pictured

below, are not used during the rst phase of the game. These

two board pieces are turned upside-down, randomized and then

placed near the game board for use after phase 1.

Player Setup

Determine who will be the rst player. The player to have visited

a hot climate most recently goes rst; this may also be selected

randomly. This person receives the rst player marker.

Each player will choose one Alien race and take all of the followingcomponents associated with that race: player screen, play mat, 4

technology markers, and 54 control tiles. All of a players control

tiles are considered to be the players reserves. During a players

turn a player will take a certain number of control tiles from their

reserve for placement on the board or other tiles.

At the beginning of the game, each player starts with 2 Resource

Units (RUs). Each player places their RUs behind their screen and

sets up their play mat with their technology markers below each

technology path, indicating these levels are at 0.

Deal a Special Power card to each player. A player may look at

their Special Power card, but they should keep it face down by

their play mat. Dont let the other players know your Special Power

until you decide to use it. Special Power cards can be used any-

time during the game, even during another players turn. If you are

playing a 3 player game, deal each player 2 Special Power cards.

Each player will keep one face-down and discard the other without

anyone else knowing what it was.

Cards

There are 5 types of cards in the game. Separate the Battle, Re-

search and Special Power cards into decks. Shufe the decks and

place them face down in their own piles beside the game board.

Place the Desperation and Colonization cards face-up next to the

board. If the Battle or Research card deck is exhausted at anypoint during the game, the discard pile is reshufed into a new

card deck of the respective type.

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Starting items for each player. Note, one of the ve Battle Cards arediscarded. Follow procedure below for Battle Card distribution.


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Drafting the Battle Cards

Deal 5 Battle cards to each player. Each player chooses one card

to keep, then passes the remaining cards to the player on their

left. This continues until each player has 4 Battle Cards they have

chosen to keep. The remaining cards are then shufed back into

the Battle Card deck. Players keep their hand of Battle cards hid-

den from other players.

4.0 Gameplay

Global rule: A players ownership of a

planet can not be affected by cards,

Solar Flares, or the Supernova.

Turns, Rounds, Phases

The starting player begins each round and completes his turn.

Then the other players take their turn following in a clockwise order

from the rst player. A round is complete when each player has had

a turn. A phase is over when all rounds in that phase are complete.

Each game lasts 9 rounds. Phase 1 has 4 rounds, phase 2 has 3

rounds and phase 3 has 2 rounds. The phase and round is indi -

cated with numbers in the hexes surrounding the Supernova in the

format Phase/Round. The three hexes with Flare icons indicate a

mandatory Solar Flare event or the Supernova, but they do not

count as a round. Once the Solar Flare has been resolved at

these hexes, the coin is moved to mark the next phase.

Round Sequence starting on Round 1

1. First player takes their turn

2. Remaining players take their turns in a clockwise order

3. The round ends.

3a. If the ended round is not at the end of a Phase

(the current round hex is not followed by a hex

with a are icon), the Supernova coin is ipped

by the rst player to determine if a random So-

lar Flare event occurs. If the result shows the

side of the coin labeled Stable, nothing hap-

pens. If the result shows the are side, the

players resolve a Solar Flare event. After ip-

ping the coin, place the coin back on the same

round hex that it was previously on. To make

for a more true random result, ip a regular

coin instead.

3b. If the ended round is the last in the Phase

(round 4 [labeled 1/4] or round 7 [labeled 2/3]),

move the Supernova coin to the next hex in

a clockwise rotation which contains a Flare

icon and a number on it. This signies the end

of phase. The Supernova coin is not ipped.

There will be a mandatory Solar Flare Event.

Resolve the event. Resolve end of Phase scor-

ing.

3c. If the ended round is round 9, (labeled 3/2)

move the Supernova coin to the next hex in a

clockwise rotation which contains a Flare icon

and the number 5 on it. This signies the end of

the game. The Supernova coin is not ipped.

There will be a mandatory Solar Flare Event.

This mandatory Solar Flare event is called The

Supernova. Resolve the event. Resolve the

End of Game scoring, tabulate the scores,

break ties if necessary and then the game

ends.

4. If the game has not ended, move the Supernova Coin to

the next round hex on the Supernova Board Piece in a

clockwise rotation.

5. If the game has not ended, all moons are moved one

hex along their orbits, around their respective planets, in

the direction that is displayed by the arrow on the moon

marker. If a hex is occupied by a control tile, place the

moon on top of the control tile.

6. If the game has not ended, repeat the sequence by goingback to step 1

5

mandatory Solar Flare events

phase 1

phase 2

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=

Turn Overview

On each players turn, each player performs a number of actions

in sequence.

Turn Sequence

0. Upkeep

1. Replenish Battle Cards to maximum

2. Receive Income/Pay Taxes

3. Receive Tiles for placement

3a) Fortify

3b) Place Tiles, Resolve Battle

3c) Replenish Cards to 4

4. Buy/Play Research Cards, Buy Battle Cards,

Buy Technologies

5. Exchange 1 Battle Card, if no Battle has

occurred

TurnSpecics

0. Upkeep

Upkeep does not always happen during a players turn. Upkeep

only happens if the player has a Research card that is next to the

unavailable Research Cards on their player mat and/or if the

player has a face-down Desperation card.

All Research Cards next to the unavailable Research Cards po-

sition on their play mat are moved next to the area labeled avail-

able Research Cards.

If a player has a face-down (previously used) Desperation card, it

is ipped face-up so that it can be used again on this turn at the

appropriate time.

See the gure in the next column.

turn 1

turn 2

1. Replenish Battle Cards to maximum

The player adds Battle Cards to their hand until it equals their

maximum hand limit. A players maximum hand limit is equal to

4 cards + their Comms level on their play mat. Typically, a player

will only draw a number of cards equal to their Comms level sincea players hand size will frequently be refreshed to 4 cards after

Battles.

2. Receive Income/Pay Taxes

Every turn, each player receives 1 RU as regular income. If a play-

er has a moon situated on one of their tiles at the beginning of

their turn, they are considered to own that moon.

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If any player owns a moon at the beginning of their turn, they re-

ceive income from that moon. A player receives 2 RUs as income.

This income is received in full:

:: If no one owns the planet the moon is orbiting

OR

:: If the same player owns the planet the moon is orbiting

If a moon pays an income to a player and the planet it orbits is

owned by an opponent, the opponent is entitled to a tax on that

income. The player receiving the income pays a tax of 1 RU to the

player that owns the planet, taken from their 2 RU income.

+

3. Receive tiles for placement

The number of tiles a player is allowed to take from their reserves

to use that turn is determined by that players level of Engines tech-

nology. The base amount a player may play each turn is 4, if their

Engines technology is at level 0. Take one extra tile for placement

for each level you have in Engines technology. The placement of

tiles each turn represents the players capture and occupation of

space. These tiles can be used to fortify ones own territory, to ex -

pand into uncharted space, or to attack other players.

3a. Fortify

To fortify any control tile a player owns on the board - with the

exception of a control tile under a planet - a player places a tile on

top of the one that they wish to fortify. This control tile is taken from

that players allotted control tiles for that turn. A stack of fortied

control tiles does not have a height limit. To fortify a planet, it costs

a player 2 control tiles, taken from that players allotted tiles that

turn. One tile is placed on top of their control tile underneath theplanet marker; the second tile is discarded to their reserves. If a

player wishes to use any of their allocated tiles for fortication, they

must do so before placing any other tiles that turn. A player may

only fortify any given hex once per turn.

A higher stack of tiles represents fortication of a players posi-

tion in space, which increases that hexs defense and offense in

relation to its surrounding tiles. If a player is attacked or is attack-

ing another player, they receive a combat modier relative to the

height difference between the attacker and defender. See battles

for more information.

Important: Control Tiles used to fortify a players tiles are

drawn from their allotted tiles for that turn, NOT their re-

serves. The only exception to this is if a player has the Colo-

nizationbonusthatoffersfortication,inwhichcase,this

tile is drawn from that players reserves each turn.

3b. Place Tiles, Resolve Battles

The remainder of a players allocated tiles after fortication caneither be:

a) placed on an empty hex

b) placed on top of an opponents control tile - this results

in battle (see Attacking)

c) placed off of the edge of a large or small board piece

to place a small board which will contain a moon or

planet (see Placing new boards)

d) discarded to their reserves in order to draw encounter

markers (see Exploration)

Red receives 2 RU income, but pays 1 RU as tax to green.

Yellow receives 2 RU income and keeps it all as they also own the planet.

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During round one, (labeled 1/1 on the hex on the Supernova Board

Piece) all players must place two (and only two) of their tiles against

the Supernova board piece. The remaining 2 control tiles must be

placed on hexes adjacent to those previously placed tiles - see

example below. A player may battle on their rst turn, if they desire.

tile. This player immediately takes the corresponding card from

the face-up Colonization cards. These Colonization cards typi-

cally will increase a players technology.

Important: The bonus that a Colonization card offers is

implemented immediately. If a planet is taken mid-turn, the

player may make use of that bonus on that turn (if it is al-

lowed-ie:Forticationmaynotbeutilizeduntiltheirnextturn). Modify the current level of technology that the Colo-

nization card confers, if any.

Desperation Cards

If the planet that was just taken was the last uncontrolled planet,

each player who owns no planets immediately takes one Des-

peration card. If any player loses control of their only planet, they

immediately take one Desperation card.

Desperation cards give a player the ability to use one of three

bonuses once per turn. The bonuses are as follows:

1. Take one additional RU as income when they receive

their regular income.

2. Take one additional tile for placement from their re-

serves when they are receiving tiles for placement.

3. Fully replenish Battle cards to their hand up to theirmaximum hand limit (max hand limit = 4 + Comms

level) at any point during their turn.

Once the player has taken one of these three actions, their card

is turned over until the beginning of their next turn. If they ac-

quire a planet on their turn, their Desperation card is immediately

discarded. If a new planet becomes available during the game

(by the introduction of a new board piece), every player with a

Desperation card immediately discards it. Discarded Desperation

cards may be taken again by any player, any number of times, as

the planet situation changes during the game.

Attacking

If a player wants to place a control tile on a hex where an op-

ponents control tile is located, they should visually indicate this

and then the player will place his control tile upon his opponents

and a Battle will ensue. This Battle is then resolved immediately.

Battle cards along with various modiers are used to resolve the

outcome of this attack.

Important: When placing tiles, each tile must placed adja-

cent to one of the players currently occupied hexes OR the

Supernova board piece. Rules for tile placement after the

rstturnmaybealteredbyResearchcards.

Taking Moons, Planets, Encounters

If a player wants to place a control tile on a hex where a moon re-

sides, remove the moon marker from the hex and place the control

tile on the hex. The moon marker is placed on top of that players

control tile. Be careful to keep the arrow pointing in the same direc-

tion on the orbit as it was when it was picked up.

If a player wants to place a control tile on a hex where an encounter

marker resides, remove the encounter marker from the hex and

place the control tile on the hex. That player takes that encounter

marker - if the encounter must be used immediately, it is resolved.

If not, the player may place it behind their screen for use in a future

round. Randomly choose and place a new encounter marker on

top of the players control tile when the encounter is taken. This

new encounter may only be taken by a different player through a

successful battle.

If a player wants to place a control tile on a hex where a planet re-

sides, remove the planet marker from the hex and place the control

tile on the hex. The planet marker is then turned over to display the

icon underneath and placed face-up on top of the players control

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First turn tile placement

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Battle

In Battle, the attacker begins by displaying face-down, how many

cards they are initially attacking with; the defender may then

choose how many cards they initially wish to use. A defender

must play at least one card when attacked.

After both players have displayed how many battle cards they are

beginning battle with, the attacker may choose to increment theirattack by adding cards from their hand to the pile of face-down

cards they attacked with. They may increment with any number

of cards, provided their total attacking hand does not exceed 4

cards. Any additional cards must not break the rules for playing

Battle cards which will be covered in a paragraph further down.

Once the attacker is satised with their Battle cards, the defender

may likewise increment their hand. If a player chooses to pass,

the other player may continue to increment. You must pass whenyou have played four cards. When both players have passed con-

secutively, the battle is resolved. The players face-down cards

are now shown and the battle outcome is resolved by comparing

each players Battle value, which is determined by sum of their

Battle cards numerical total and their combat modiers.

CombatModiers

The game circumstances that provide modiers in battle are as

follows:

:: Tile Height. Account for the height of the players stack from

which they are attacking, in relation to their opponents tiles. The

player whose tiles are higher gets a bonus to their Battle card

total. A height advantage of a single tile results in that player re-

ceiving a +1 bonus to that Battle, while an advantage of 2 or more

tiles results in a +2 bonus. This bonus is added to the total of their

Battle Cards. The tile that they are attacking with does not count

towards their height bonus.

A player may battle outwards from the Supernova board to any

hex which is adjacent to it. As they are not battling from a hex

of their own, the attackers stack is considered to be 0 tiles in

height. Event, Moon, and Planet markers do not count towards

a tile stacks height, only that players control tiles.

:: Level of Technology. A player who has acquired levels of

weapons or shields technology can receive a bonus which isadded to their nal Battle card total. Weapons only give a bo -

nus to a player who is attacking; Shields only give a bonus to a

player who is defending.

Example: If a player has Weapons level 2, they would re-

ceive a +3 bonus to all attacks, but not when defending.

If a player has Shields level 2, they would receive a +3

bonus when defending, but not when attacking.

:: Crystal Encounter Markers. Crystal Encounter markers can

sometimes be used when a player Battles. If a player wishes to

use one or more crystals in Battle, they may do so under some

restrictions. Silver Crystals can used with any type of Battle

cards. Colored Crystals can only be used when a player has a

face-down card of the matching color. To use a Crystal in bat-

tle, a player may place the Encounter marker alongside their

face-down Battle hand at any time while playing Battle cards.

These crystals are revealed when battle is resolved - their bo-

nus is added to that players nal Battle card total.

Battle Cards

Battle cards range in value from 1 to 5. There are 3 suits of

battle card: Blue, Green, and Orange ranging in value from 2-5,

which are known as regular Battle cards.

Attacker Defender

The attacker and defender both start by playing 2 cards face down.

The attacker then adds 1 card while the defender adds 2 more cards.

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All Battle cards valued 1 are Silver - this indicates that they are

wild. Wild Battle cards contravene regular Battle card rules in that

they may be played with any suit, regardless if played with a High

Impact Battle card or not. In addition, a player may play as many

wild cards per hand as they please, up to a total of 4 Battle cards

played. A player my play a wild card as their only Battle card, if

they choose.

Hand

Playable hand

Each of the three suits have 3 High Impact cards, which have special

effects when they are revealed. These effects are as follows:

:: Power Inverter: The values of each players highest played card

are swapped.

:: Dual Seeker: This card is worth one less than the highest regular

card you play this battle.

:: Smart Bomb:Your opponent must discard the highest regular card

played this battle. If there is a tie, only one of the tied cards is dis-

carded.

Playable hand (from hand above)

Alternate Playable hand

Battle cards may be played in 3 different ways:

1. Regular Battle cards may be played with other reg-

ular Battle cards of different suits, up to a total of 4

cards played. All cards played must be of differing

suits; there may not be more than one card of each

suit. With this type of hand you may not use High

Impact cards.

2. Regular Battle cards may be played with other reg-

ular Battle cards of the same suit, up to a total of 4cards played. With this type of hand you may use

High Impact cards of the matching color.

If both players have played a High Impact card, they are resolved in

the following order:

:: Dual Seeker

:: Smart Bomb:: Power Inverter

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3. High Impact Battle cards can only be played with cards

of the same suit plus any wild cards, up to a total of 4

cards played. The only exception to this rule is if you

only have High Impact cards in your hand. If this is the

case you may play just one High Impact card by itself.

This High Impact card will have a value of 3 and does

not get to resolve any of its typical effects. Only one

High Impact card may be played by a player in any

single Battle. A High Impact Battle card may never beplayed with a single Silver wild card - it must also be

accompanied by a card of the same suit.

If the attacker wins, the tile they used to attack with is placed on

top of the attacked tile stack, if it hasnt already been placed there.

This stack of tiles is now considered to be owned by the attacker.

After a round of Battle is complete, the Battle cards used in this

Battle are discarded and each of the players involved draw one

Battle Card.

Important: Inadditiontoanyotherbenets,whenanat-

tacker wins a battle, they receive 1 RU from the supply

If there was an encounter marker where the Battle took place, the

attacker takes the encounter marker. If the encounter must be

used immediately (as described by the Encounter outcome guide),

resolve the encounter, otherwise the player may place it behind

their screen for use in a future round. Place a new encounter mark-

er on top of the attackerss control tile stack when the encounter is

taken. This new encounter may only be taken by a different player

through a successful battle.

If there was a moon marker where the Battle took place, the at -

tacker places the moon marker on top of the control tile stack. Be

careful to keep the arrow pointing in the same direction on the orbit

as it was when it was picked up.

If there was a planet marker where the Battle took place, the winner

places the planet marker face-up on top of the control tile stack.

The player then takes the associated Colonization card from the

opponent. The card is read aloud and placed in front of them, face-up. The attacker would then raise their technology level while their

opponent must lower their technology by the number indicated on

the Colonization card (if applicable).

Example: A planet gives a bonus to Weapons. This planet is

currently owned by Player A. Player B attacks their planet

and is successful. Player B now increases their Weapons

Technology by 2 levels on their play aid, while Player A must

now reduce theirs by 2. The Colonization card is given to

Player B, who now owns the planet.

Playable hand (from hand above)

Alternate Playable hand

On occasion, people may play an invalid hand by accident. If this

is the case when cards are revealed, it is resolved in the following

manner: The invalid cards are discarded and no cards are drawn

to replace them. Only the remaining valid cards in that hand count

towards that players nal Battle card total. If a situation arises

where theyve played 2 greens and 2 oranges by accident, the

opponent gets to choose which 2 cards to discard at that time

to make the hand legal, which would be either, 2 green cards, 2

orange cards, or one of each color (assuming that no High Impact

card was played).

Example: If Player A were to play a green High Impact card

and a blue High Impact card with a Green 5, Player A would

lose that blue High Impact card - only the 2 green cards

would count in that situation.

After adding up the value of the cards played plus any modiers

mentioned above, the winner is determined. If a tie occurs, thedefender is considered the winner. If the attacker loses, the tile they

attacked with is discarded to their reserves.

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bb

incorrect

correct

Only 1 board

is adjacent

The moon is closest

to the board

Only 1 tile is

allowed initially

The moon is farthest

from the boards

2 boards

are adjacent

Playing new boards

Two small boards are unused at the beginning of the game one

with a planet, one with a moon. These boards may be introduced

by players starting in Phase 2. The rst player who chooses to

place a board does so by indicating they would like to place one

of their tiles off of the board. This player then turns over one of the

unused boards and places it according the following rules.

Rules for placing new boards:

1. A new board must be placed adjacent to two board

pieces. Both adjacent board pieces must be occupied

by more than one player.

2. The player who introduces the new board may place

only one tile on it at this time. No Research cards can

allow players to add more tiles to the board. That one

tile on the board may, however, be moved by Research

cards.

If the board to be placed has the moon on it, the moon must be

positioned at the farthest possible location from the players tile.

If desired, both boards may be introduced in Phase 2. A single

player may not introduce both boards in one turn.

Once the new board has been placed, play continues as normal.

encounter marker must be used immediately (as indicated below),

resolve the encounter; otherwise, the player may place it behind

their screen for use in a future round.

If an Encounter requires a player to forfeit a tile or an RU and the

player is unable to do so this turn, the marker is placed in front of

them and its action is enforced in the players next turn when they

have the RU or control tile available to discard. Encounters are

discarded when used; discarded Encounters are removed fromthe game.

Encounter Outcome guide

Exploration

Encounters may be taken through exploration. A player who wish-es to explore returns one of their allotted tiles to their reserves

and randomly takes 2 Encounter markers from the pile next to the

board. A player may do this more than once per round but may not

do the action at all if there is no Encounter markers remaining. If an

Blue Crystals

2 Available

Gives +1 to attack

or defense when

used with a blue

Battle Card during

Battle.

Green Crystals

2 Available

Gives +1 to attack

or defense when

used with a green

Battle Card during

Battle.

Orange Crystals2 Available

Gives +1 to attack

or defense when

used with an

orange Battle Card

during Battle.

Silver Crystals

1 Available

Gives +1 to attack

or defense when

used with any

Battle Card during

Battle.

Comms

Enhancer

1 Available

Draw one extra

Battle card for

this turn only.

If unused, it is

discarded.

Plasma Shield

1 Available

Gives +1 to

shields. May only

be used when

defending in Battle.

Rescue

3 Available

The player gains

1 tile for placement.

Must be

used immediately.

Recover Lost

Squadron

2 Available

The player gains

2 tiles for placement.

Must be

used immediately.

Ore2 Available

Gain 1 RU.

Must be

used immediately.

Repair Damage

3 Available

The player must

immediately

pay 1 RU.

Asteroid Impact

3 Available

The player

immediately discards

one of their alloted

tiles for this turn to

their reserves.

Empty Space

3 Available

Nothing happens.

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3c. Replenish Battle Cards

After all combat and tile placement is resolved, the player draws

enough Battle cards to ll their hand back to up 4 - they do not re-

plenish to their maximum hand limit at this time. Any other players

that were involved in Battle this turn also replenish their hands to

4 cards at this time. A player may only replenish to their maximum

hand limit at the beginning of their turn, unless using a Researchcard or Desperation card.

4. Buy Technologies, buy Research Cards, buy

Battle Cards

A player may use RUs to:

:: increase their technologies

:: to purchase Research cards

:: to purchase Battle Cards.

4a) Increasing Technologies

Technologies give the player the ability to increase his aliens ca-

pabilities in a number of ways. Different technologies give different

results, respective to the level. They are as follows:

:: Engines - Grants a bonus number of tiles forplacement during the players turn equal to the

Engines level.

:: Comms - Grants a bonus number of Battle

cards that a player may hold in a turn equal to

the Comms level. When someone purchases a

level in Comms, they immediately draw 1 Battle

card.

:: Shields - Grants a bonus to a players defense

modier in Battle (this bonus is only applicable

when a player is attacked).

:: Weapons - Grants a bonus to a players at-

tack modier in Battle (this bonus is only ap-

plicable when a player attacks an opponent).

Important:A player may only purchase one level of each

technology per turn. It takes effect immediately upon

purchase.

The cost in RU to increase a level of technology is equal to its cur-

rent level number. i.e., level 3 costs 3 RUs, level 4 costs 4 RUs,

etc. This cost is regardless of whether the current technology level

number is being modied by a Colonization card or not. A player

may only buy subsequent levels of technologies if they own the

preceding level, i.e., A player may buy level 4 shields only if they

own level 3 shields. A player may never go beyond a level 5 in any

technology regardless of Colonization card modiers.

Technology bonuses differ, according to the technology type. En-

gines and Comms give the same amount of bonus as their level,

ie: a +1 bonus for level 1. Weapons and Shields each give a bonus

of 2 for level 1, a bonus of 3 for level 2, and so on.

4b) Buying Research Cards

Research cards can be purchased at a cost of 1 RU per card. A

player may buy as many Research cards as they wish on their

turn. When purchased, they are placed face-down in the unavail -

able Research Cards position on their play mat. At the beginning

of that players next turn, all Research Cards are moved to the

available Research Cards position and remain in the facedown

position until used. A player may look at their own face-down

Research cards at any time.

When a player has one or more Research cards in their available

Research Cards position on their play mats they may be played.

A player may only play 1 Research card during their turn. When

playing Research cards, follow the instructions on the card to de-

termine when it may be used, carry out the effect, and then discardthe card.

13

In this example, the

blue player will receive

a bonus of 3 for shields,

4 for weapons and 2 for

engines. No bonus willbe given for comms as

they have not invested in

this technology.


15/19

4c) Buying Battle Cards

If desired, a player may spend 1 RU during the purchase phase of

their turn in order to improve their Battle hand. They would then

draw 3 Battle cards from the deck and immediately discard one of

those three. The player would then have the option to choose to

keep up to two of the remaining cards. For every card the player

wants to keep, they would need to discard one card from their cur-

rent hand. In this way, a players hand will always stay the same size

and they may never keep more than 2 of the cards they bought.

5. Exchange 1 Battle card if no battle happened

this turn

The player has the option to choose one card from their hand to

discard if they have not participated in a battle during their turn. If

they do so, they draw one card from the Battle deck.

5.0 Solar Flares,

End of Phase Scoring

Solar Flares - Determining

If the ended round is not at the end of a Phase (the current roundhex is not followed by a hex with a are icon), the Supernova coin is

ipped by the rst player to determine if a random Solar Flare event

occurs. If the result shows the side of the coin labeled Stable,

nothing happens. If the result shows the are side, the players

resolve a Solar Flare event. After ipping the coin, place the coin

back on the same round hex that it was previously on. To make for

a more true random result, ip a regular coin instead.

Solar Flares - Resolving

When you are resolving a Solar Flare event, all players secretly take

as many RUs in hand as they wish to bid in order to control the

Solar Flare. All players put their sts forward (holding any RUs they

wish to bid) and when everyone is ready, these bids are displayed

simultaneously. The highest bidder pays all RUs while the losingbidders pay half (rounded up) of the amount they bid for the Solar

Flare. Players are not required to bid any RUs for the Solar Flare;

they must still take part in the bidding process.

If there is a tie - this is the case if no one bids or if there are multiple

ties on a bid - every player tied for the highest bid must Battle to

determine the winner. This Battle is slightly different than regular,

as outlined below.

When Battling for control of the Solar Flare, technology bonuses

are not taken into account. All players taking part in the Battle are

considered to be attackers; all players simultaneously choose a

Battle card hand containing at least one card and a maximum of 4

cards and place the cards face down in front of them. No players

may choose High Impact cards when creating their Battle card

hand unless they only have High Impact Battle cards. If this is the

case you may play just one High Impact card. This High Impact

card will have a value of 3 and does not get to resolve any of its

typical effects. When everyone is ready, all cards are revealed. After

this, if there is one person with the highest combat value, they win

the Flare. If there are multiple people with the highest value, theseplayers continue to battle. Anyone that did not tie for the highest

Battle value is eliminated from the remainder of the tiebreaker battle

rounds. Each of these tie breaking Battles are considered a round

and after every round of Battle each player still involved draws one

card from the Battle card deck. After a winner is determined, all

players that battled in at least one round replenishes their hand to

a maximum of four cards and not their maximum hand limit.

Important: No incrementing of Battle is allowed when de-

termining the winner of Solar Flares.

The winner of the Solar Flare may burn up (discard to their owners

reserves) control tile stacks on 2, 3, or 4 hexes, depending on if

the Flare occurred in Phase 1, 2 or 3 respectively. The player who

wins the Solar Flare/Supernova may burn off tiles owned by more

than one player, if desired. This player may even choose to burn

off their own tiles.

Important: This player may NOT burn tiles from a hex on

which an opponent owns a planet - see the Global Rule: Aplayers ownership of a planet can not be affected by cards,

Solar Flares, or the Supernova.

The coin was ipped to theare side which indicates a

are will now take place.

14

=


16/19

This removal must start from one of the hexes adjacent to the Cen-

ter Board Piece. The remaining tiles to be removed must be:

:: Adjacent to the Center Board Piece

OR

:: Adjacent to a previously burned tile space

End Of The Phase Scoring

Points are awarded as follows for end of phase scoring:

:: Every moon you occupy is worth 3 victory points

:: Every planet you occupy is worth 5 victory points

The points attained from both of the end of phase scoring rounds

are kept behind your screen and then are added to the points you

get from the end of game scoring.

6.0 Supernova!

At the end of round 9 (labeled 3/2), move the Supernova coin to

the next hex in a clockwise rotation. This hex contains a Flare icon

and the number 5 - it signies the end of the game. The Supernova

coin is not ipped. There will be a mandatory Solar Flare Event.

This is mandatory Solar Flare event is called The Supernova. Re-

solve the event. Resolve end of Game scoring, tabulate scores,

break ties if necessary and then the game ends.

Resolve the Supernova as you would a normal Solar Flare. The Su-

pernova burns off 5 hexes of control tile stacks. After the selected

tiles are removed by the winning bidder, the game is over and nalscoring begins.

Important: Solar Flares may not burn an empty hex unless

all hexes adjacent to the Supernova/Center Board Piece are

empty, in which case that empty hex is counted towards to-

tal number of hexes you may burn for this event

The player who wins the Solar Flare chooses the player that be-

comes the new starting player. The First Player marker is placed infront of this player to indicate this. The round sequence for every

subsequent round now begins with them, unless this is changed

by another Solar Flare event. A player may choose themselves as

the starting player.

End Of The Phase

At the end of round 4 (labeled 1/4) and round 7 (labeled 2/3), move

the Supernova coin to the next hex in a clockwise rotation which

contains a Flare icon and a number on it. This signies the end of a

phase. The Supernova coin is not ipped. A mandatory Solar Flare

Event occurs. Resolve the event. Resolve end of Phase scoring.

15

1

correct correct

correct incorrect

2 3

1

2

3

3

2

1

1

2

3


17/19

Final Scoring

Points are awarded as follows for end game scoring:

:: Every hex you occupy is worth 1 victory

point

:: Every moon you occupy is worth 3

victory points

:: Every planet you occupy is worth 5

victory points

:: If you have not played your Special Power

card, it is worth 4 victory points

:: Each resource unit (RU = $) you have is

worth 1 victory point

The score here is added to their current points from both of the

previous Phase scoring.

The player with the most points wins the game and declares their

race as the most advanced of the new intergalactic settlers!

Breaking Ties

If players have the same number of points at the end of the game

the tie is broken in the following order:

1. The winner is the player who has NOT used their spe-

cial power

2. If all of the tied players have or have not used theirpower, the winner is the player with most non-covered

visible tiles on the board since they have the greatest

empire.

7.0 Special Power Cards, Card

Clarications

Special Power Cards

Special Power cards are extraordinary one-time capabilities. The

player may use their Special Power card or keep it for extra points

at the end of the game. Special Power card usage is as follows:

:: Special Power cards can be played at any time.

:: If a players Special Power card is unused at the end of the game,

it counts as 4 points toward their nal score.

:: Special Power cards are discarded when used.

CardClarications

Special Power card - Resource Hijacking: This card can be

played at any time. Once in play, it is not discarded until the begin -

ning of the Hijacking Players next turn. When this card is used,

every player that would normally receive 2 RU as income from a

moon must pay the Hijacking Player 1 RU. If a players moon pays

1 RU tax to an opponent, the Hijacking player would receive both

RU. A player never has to give their base income of 1 RU to a Hi-

jacking player. This Special Power can be extended to affect someplayers twice if the First Player - and subsequently the turn order

- changes before it is discarded.

Special Power card - Technological Wizardry: The rule A player

may only buy one level of each technology per turn is still en-

forced when this card is used. It can be used before you begin

your rst turn on the rst round to allow you to place 5 tiles on your

rst turn.

Colonization card - Eorthal: You may not fortify planets with these

fortications, only regular tiles or moons. Planets may only ever be

fortied at a cost of 2 tiles per fortication. You may not break the

rule that allows you to fortify a tile more than once per turn. This

fortication has to be done during step 3a on your turn.

Research card - Plasma Shield: Only 1 of your tile stacks may be

burned from the current are. A single tile is considered a stack.

This card may not be used to prevent tiles being burned from the

Supernova, only Solar Flares.

Research card - Retreat!: This card could be used during battle

to make an opponent discard the cards they attacked with. They

would then have to choose a new battle hand to use to countertheir opponents hand immediately after drawing a new hand.

16


18/19

Research card - Surface Eruption: This card should be revealed

if you have won control of a solar are in order to add 1 hex to the

distance that is normally burned.

Research card - Industrial Espionage: Choose up to two oppo-

nents; each opponent must discard one Research card randomly.

If one opponent is chosen, they must discard 2 Research cards

randomly.

8.0 Variants

Shorter Game

Play the game as normal, except play to only 6 rounds. Remove

one large board piece and one small board piece before beginning.

Skip the last round in each phase - place a penny or a randomgame component on this hex to remind players that it is ignored.

Unstable Sun

If you are nding that there are not enough Solar Flares, ip the

coin at the end of the round the same number of times as the num-

ber of the current Phase. For example, ip it twice during phase 2,

three times in phase 3.

Powerful Planets

Planets have an inherent +1 to defense when attacked. Add this to

the defenders Battle card total when determining the victor.

Attack!!!!

The attacker wins all ties in Battle.

Incremental tension

When Battling, both players turn over their initial cards played be-

fore they increment their attacks. Cards used to increment the at-

tack is played face-down. Players must play at least 2 cards before

incrementing their attack.

Slightly Less Desperate

When using the Desperation Card to replenish your Battle Cards,

adjust the amount you re-draw in one of the following ways:

:: Replenish to your Max Battle Cards -1 card

OR

:: Replenish to your Max Battle Cards, less the current # of Battle

Cards in your hand. Example: Joe has 2 Cards left in his hand.

He has Comms level 3. His Max Battle Cards is 7 - 2 (in hand),

so he can replenish up to 5 cards. He uses his Desperation Card

at this time to draw 3 Battle Cards.

Thanks to

:: Our wives for being understanding and letting us follow our

inner geek.

:: Kevin, Rik, and Torben at Valley Games for providing a place

and their time to develop and test the game in a fantastic environ-

ment.

:: All of the Calgary and Okotoks playtesters.

:: Everyone who participated in the Supernova tour, especially

Nate for many long-winded email conversations.

:: The Boardgamegeek.com site and community. Without you,

this game wouldnt exist.

:: Mike Doyle for creating such amazing art.

:: Our families for their enthusiasm and support.

:: Our Moms and Dads for family game nights way back when.

:: Everyone who played the game and thought about it afterwards,

offering advice, suggestions, tweaks, and encouragement.

Special thanks to the following for their help in mak-

ing the v2 Rules possible:

:: Dave Peters

:: Mark Johnson

:: Steve Bonario

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Rules Version 2.2

Supernova Rules v2

Documents

Transcript of Supernova Rules v2