Rules

#Game stages:#

#Between games#

Each player can create as many decks as possible, which utilise their full set of blueprints in different ways. By selecting an option, the deck is defined by the type of Core they have (Hydrocarbon, Turbine, Fission, Solar, etc) which prevents them from, say, placing a backup fission generator in a Solar deck. ##Deck types##

• Solar- Solar power. No actions required to get 500W of energy minimum per turn, but if planet half it has landed on is facing away from the sun, or if a cloud nebula is blocking the sunlight, then only 50W power is provided per turn.
• Fission- Nuclear power. Nuclear generators take 1 Radium per 2 turns for 1000W provided consistently, but needs repairing every 5 turns with 1 extra Radium and 2 Iron.
• Hydrocarbon- Combustion power. Fossil generators take 1 hydrocarbon per every turn for 750W.
• Turbine- Kinetic power. They get energy by moving around the board- 50 + 100n joules per turn, where n is the number of spaces they travelled in the previous turn.

##Start of game (Round 0)##

A solar system is generated- a one-wide circular path around a sun, with dust clouds and planets inside the ring, and planets outside. (FIGURE 1: the dark spots are areas in darkness, where solar ships stop working.) There are always at least 1 less planets than players up to 5 planets (up to 8 players, however). The scale of the solar system ring is dependent on the number of players- so the number of spaces = (n*8). The player selects a deck they have previously built. They place their spaceship icon on the board, and start off with a preset number of Iron and Copper, plus three units- a Brute, a Scout and a Healer. They then expand their ship and place these units anywhere inside until their Iron or Copper are used up, their 5 visible cards are used up, they skip the set-up stage, or 60 seconds have passed (to prevent loitering in online games). If not all units are placed, their locations are randomised in the ship. At the end of Round 0, the locations of the ships are broadcast to all players for a split moment, before the players’ ships over 6 spaces away are hidden due to interference.

##In each round (Round 1 to end)##

The player’s starting position determines the order of the players’ turns- clockwise from a randomly selected location on the solar system’s player orbit. Each turn per round lasts 60 seconds at maximum, and 15 seconds minimum before you can skip.

• Ship- can move 1 orbit space per turn without power, or takes 50W per turn per orbit space travelled, up to 6 spaces. Provided necessary criteria for power is met, the spaceship gets the number of Watts its core type is set up for. Each additional blueprint module uses up energy as well. Landing on a planet counts as an orbit space travelled. They can land anywhere on the side of the planet facing them as long as they have the energy, a landing module, and there is a spare space on the planet. Ships can land anywhere on the side of the planet that faces them that turn.

###Units### Each can be moved in any order. Can move one space, perform an action, then move the rest of their spaces, or can perform an action then move, or move then perform an action. Attacking is an action. Another action is placing a structure. One last action type is using a ship’s computer to control a module.

• Brute- can move 3 spaces per turn, and can only attack up close- but instantly kill any unit they attack, except a brute, which they deal 2 damage to. Has 4 health max.
• Scout- can move 5 spaces per turn, and can attack in straight lines with laser gun for 1 damage from up to 10 spaces away. Has 2 health max.
• Healer- can move 4 spaces per turn, cannot attack other units at all. Has 3 health max. Can heal other units of the same team for 1 health per turn when in an adjacent space.

###Blueprints### A player can have up to 5 blueprints on their bar. Blueprints from the chosen deck enter the bar randomly at a rate of one per turn. A blueprint can be sacrificed for materials, sending it back into the deck until a later stage, or sacrificed for another blueprint. Only one sacrifice can be made per turn. Using a blueprint costs Iron, Copper and between 50W and 100W. Blueprints can be dragged and dropped to make a new module for the ship.

###Planets### Planets are small sub-boards that range from having a circumference between 16 spaces and 48 spaces, in multiples of 8. There are segments on the planet that can be mined using unit structures; these structures provide materials directly to the player’s inventory until destroyed or claimed by another team. There are multiple types of planet space-

• Woodland- can be cut down by a unit for 3 hydrocarbon fuel, but takes 2 actions to cut down and becomes grassy plains.
• Plants- can be picked up by a unit for 1 hydrocarbon fuel, taking 1 action and becoming grassy plains.
• Plains- area that a ship can land on, and which units can be fired upon from space. Can look rocky or grassy. Rock and grass colours are randomised for each planet, but are always distinct. Grassy plains can randomly grow plants.
• Iron Ore- area that a unit can place a mining structure on for iron, which lasts 5 turns until becoming rocky plains.
• Copper Ore- area a unit can place a mining structure on for copper, which lasts 5 turns until becoming rocky plains. Radium Ore- area a unit can place a mining structure on for fission fuel, which lasts 5 turns until becoming rocky plains.
• Oil- area which is inaccessible, but an adjacent unit can place an oil platform on for hydrocarbon fuel, which lasts 5 turns until converting into water with a normal platform.
• Water- area which is inaccessible, but an adjacent unit can place a platform on it to make it accessible.
• Water platform- a grate above water, allowing units to walk up to oil deposits in a lake. Not naturally generating. At the end of each round, a planet flips 180 degrees on its axis- so the area which a ship can land on changes every turn, and areas which were previously day become night, and vice versa.

##End of game##

The last team standing (ie: a player with units left alive) is the winner. They receive some virtual money (20n, where n is the number of players), and copies of all of the blueprints used which their ship destroyed. Those who come in 2nd, 3rd and so on get copies of 1/(2^(n-1)) of the blueprints of the ship parts which they destroyed in-game (rounded down and randomly selected), and 1/(2^(n-1)) of the money, except for the last player, which gets nothing. Those who destroyed no spaceship parts, but didn’t come last, get a complimentary mid-tier blueprint.