[Twilight Imperium] Game 6 - Game Over.

MrBlarney · April 2013

Twilight Imperium

Over three thousand years ago, the Lazax ruled the galaxy. But after many millennia of control, the Lazax grew complacent with their position over the other races. The six great races of Sol, Hylar, N'orr, Hacan, Letnev, and Xxcha began to chafe under the rule of the Lazax Empire. And so when a trade dispute over the Quann wormhole resulted in the Sol armada acting against the Letnev, a flame spread like wildfire throughout the galaxy, igniting a civil war between races that had only tenuously been held back by the Lazax rule. In the centuries that followed, the Twilight War eradicated the Lazax race and turned back thousands of years of progress. The great races retreated to their home planets to rebuild, and once the Galactic Council was once again able to meet, it was a shadow of its former strength. And now, thousands of years later, after the long era of the Dark Years, the time is right for a new race to step up and become the rulers of the galaxy, and the guiding hand for all races within its domain.

Twilight Imperium is a boardgame of galactic empire-building on a large scale, often described as a 4X game given physical form. Players build ships, conquer planets, research technology, and engage in trade and diplomacy, all in the pursuit of earning victory points toward claiming the Imperial Throne of Mecatol Rex and rule over the entire galaxy. For this forum game, I am planning on including the following options from the game's two expansions and a number of house rules:

Wormhole Nexus; Empty Worlds stack includes both Wormhole systems for setup; Regular Worlds stack includes Lodor and Quann systems for setup
Modified galaxy creation and starting location selection
Strategy card set from Shattered Empire with modifications
Some Secret Objective cards modified
Mixed Public Objective deck from base set and Shattered Empire with modifications
Action Card deck cut from combined 170-card deck to 120 cards
Political Card deck cut from combined 110-card deck to 60 cards; Political cards cannot be spent as Trade Goods but instead provide a Trade Good when drawn
Racial Technologies, Flagships, Mechanized Units with modification, Shock Troops with modification
Alternate Starting Technologies and Tech Tree
Tactical Retreats
Custodians of Mecatol Rex
Resources and Influence may be converted to Trade Goods as a common Refresh ability

Rules and Utilities

Base Set Rules
Shattered Empire Rules
Shards of the Throne Rules
Official FAQ
Alternate Tech Tree

Walkthrough/Tutorial
Previous Games on PA: Game I, Game II, Game III (setup), Game IV, Game V

There are a lot of rules to read through, and the summary I am putting into these opening posts will not be entirely comprehensive. I recommend reading through the Walkthrough/Tutorial linked above for starters and as a good review of the base game for veterans. You might also want to look at previous games played on the forum for an idea of the flow of the game. Keep an eye out for text in darkorange to note house rule modifications.

In general, actions will be noted in bold dodgerblue, bold limegreen, and bold red: see the sections below for specific formatting. Alternatively, players may post actions in bold using their race's color. Except for conversations between teammates and those initiated by the host, all inter-player conversation must be done in-thread. If you have need for clarifications, feel free to ask in bold darkorange.

Game Objectives

In order to claim the Imperial Throne of Mecatol Rex, players must accumulate 10 victory points (VP). VP are earned by fulfilling Objective cards: at the start of the game, each player has a hidden Secret Objective that only they may fulfill; over the course of the game, cards will be unlocked from the Public Objective line that all players may fulfill. As soon as any player has completed 10 VP worth of Objectives, the game ends immediately, even if another player could have gained more VP later in the round.

The Public Objective line is comprised of 6 Stage I cards and 5 Stage II cards. At the start of the game, cards are randomly selected, revealed in a line (Stage I cards first, followed by Stage II), and a Red Tape counter placed on each card but the first. Cards with a Red Tape counter on them may not be fulfilled; counters will be removed as the game progresses (see the Bureaucracy II strategy card). Among the Stage II cards is "Imperium Rex", which acts as a bit of a game clock: if it is unlocked, the game ends immediately and the player with the most VPs wins. In case of a tie, ties are broken in order by number of Objective Cards fulfilled, number of planets controlled, number of reserve Command Counters, and number of allocated Command Counters. If none of these measures break the tie, then the game ends in a draw.

Races and Special Abilities

Eight races were drawn from a total of seventeen, of which six were chosen by players for play.

The Emirates of Hacan

Starting Units: 4 Ground Units, 2 Carriers, 1 Cruiser, 2 Fighters, 1 Space Dock
Starting Technologies: {Sarween Tools OR Neural Motivator}
Trade Contracts: 3, 3
Your trades do not require approval during Trade Negotiations.
You do not need to spend a Command Counter to execute the Secondary Ability of the Trade Strategy. When you receive Trade Goods from one of your Trade Agreements, you receive one additional Trade Good.
No player may ever, except for war, break a Trade Contract with you.
During the Status Phase, you may trade Action Cards with other players.
Racial Technology 1: Production Centers (Cost: +3) - As an Action, you may spend one command Counter from your Strategy Allocation area to gain 6 Trade Goods. You must then give 2 of your Trade Goods to one other player. You may only do this once per turn, and only if you have fewer than 6 Trade Goods.
Racial Technology 2: Quantum Datahub Node (Cost: +5) - At the end of the Strategy Phase, you may trade one of your Strategy Cards with a Strategy Card belonging to one of your trade partners. The other player does not need to agree to this trade.
Flagship: Wrath of Kenara (Cost: 10) - Battle 7 (x3), Movement 2, Capacity 4, Sustain Damage - When this ship is present, up to two times each combat round, you may spend 1 Trade Good to reroll one of your dice.

The Arborec

Starting Units: 4 Ground Forces, 1 Cruiser, 1 Carrier, 2 Fighters, 1 PDS, 1 Space Dock
Starting Technologies: Gen Synthesis and {Stasis Capsules OR Transit Diodes}
Trade Contracts: 1, 2
You may not build Ground Forces with your Space Docks.
Your Ground Forces have a production capacity of 1. You may not produce units with Ground Forces that have moved during the same activation.
At the start of the Status Phase, place 1 Ground Force on one planet you control.
Racial Technology 1: Bioplasmosis (Cost: +3) - At the beginning of the Strategy Phase, you may move 1 Ground Force from a planet you control to a friendly or uncontrolled planet in an adjacent system. (Discard any Domain Counters on the planet.)
Racial Technology 2: Spore Acceleration (Cost: +5) - Increase the production capacity of your Ground Forces by 1.
Flagship: Duha Menaimon (Cost: 10) - Battle 6 (x2), Movement 1, Capacity 5, Sustain Damage, Production Capacity 5 - You may not build units with this ship if it has moved during this activation.

The Clan of Saar

Starting Units: 4 Ground Forces, 2 Carriers, 2 Fighters, 1 Cruiser, 1 Space Dock
Starting Technologies: Antimass Deflectors and {Cybernetics OR Micro Technology}
Trade Contracts: 1, 2
Gain 1 Trade Good every time you acquire a new planet.
Your Space Docks have a movement of 1, but may not build during the same activation in which they move. Your Space Docks are never placed on planets and have a production capacity of 4. Your Space Docks are destroyed if ever present with an opponent's ship without any of your ships present.
You may fulfill Objectives even if you don't control your Home System.
Racial Technology 1: Floating Factory (Cost: +3) - Your Space Docks have a production capacity of 5, a fighter capacity of 5, and receive +1 movement.
Racial Technology 2: Chaos-Mapping (Cost: +2) - You may activate Asteroid Field systems. Your Fleet Supply limit in Asteroid Field systems is 3 (which cannot be modified).
Flagship: Son of Ragh (Cost: 10) - Battle 6 (x3), Movement 1, Capacity 4, Sustain Damage - This ship rolls 4 dice for your anti-Fighter barrage.

The Winnu

Starting Units: 3 Ground Forces, 1 Carrier, 1 Cruiser, 2 Fighters, 1 PDS, 1 Space Dock
Starting Technologies: Stasis Capsules and {Integrated Economy OR Neural Computing}
Trade Contracts: 1, 3
You may always add the Influence value of your Home System planet to your votes, even if it is exhausted.
Your planets that contain at least 1 Ground Force are immune to the Local Unrest Action Card.
You do not need to spend a Command Counter to execute the secondary ability of the Technology Strategy.
Racial Technology 1: Bioptic Recyclers (Cost: +3) - Once per game round, as an action, you may discard an Action Card from your hand to gain 2 Trade Goods or 1 Command Counter.
Racial Technology 2: Lazax Gate Folding (Cost: +4) - At the start of each Status Phase, you may place 1 Ground Force on Mecatol Rex. You may only do this if the planet is uncontrolled or under your control. (Discard any Domain Counters on the planet.)
Flagship: Salai Sai Corian (Cost: 10) - Battle 7 (x?), Movement 1, Capacity 3, Sustain Damage - This ship makes a number of attacks equal to the number of opposing non-Fighter ships present this round during a Space Battle.

The Mentak Coalition

Starting Units: 1 Carrier, 3 Cruisers, 1 Space Dock, 1 PDS, 4 Ground Forces
Starting Technologies: Micro Technology and {Gen Synthesis OR Maneuvering Jets}
Trade Contracts: 1, 1
You start the game with one additional Command Counter in your Fleet Supply area.
Before a Space Battle begins (in which you are participating), you may fire with up to two Cruisers or Destroyers (or a mix thereof). Enemy casualties are taken immediately, with no return fire allowed.
During the Strategy Phase, you may take one Trade Good token from up to two different players. Each such target player must have at least 3 Trade Goods on his Race Sheet.
Racial Technology 1: Salvage Operations (Cost: +4) - Gain 2 Trade Goods at the end of each Space Battle in which you participate. If you won the battle, you may build one ship in the system of a unit type that you destroyed during combat. You must pay the ship's resource cost.
Racial Technology 2: Mirror Computing (Cost: +4) - When you spend Trade Goods, each Trade Good counts as 2 resources or 2 influence (instead of 1).
Flagship: Fourth Moon (Cost: 8) - Battle 5 (x2), Movement 2, Capacity 2, Sustain Damage - Opposing ships may not use the sustain damage ability in this system.

The Yssaril Tribes

Starting Units: 1 Space Dock, 5 Ground Forces, 1 PDS, 2 Carriers, 1 Cruiser, 2 Fighters
Starting Technologies: {Light/Wave Deflector OR Micro Technology}
Trade Contracts: 1, 2
You are allowed to skip your action turn during the Action Phase. You may not skip two such action turns in a row.
You draw one additional Action Card during every Status Phase. You are never limited to a hand size of Action Cards, regardless of the game rules and any active Political Cards.
Once during every Strategy Phase, you may look at one other player's hand of Action Cards.
Racial Technology 1: Shuttle Logistics (Cost: +3) - At the start of the Status Phase, you may choose a system that does not contain any enemy ships. Your Ground Forces in the chosen system may move to any friendly planet in the same or an adjacent system (that does not contain any enemy ships).
Racial Technology 2: Mageon Implants (Cost: +4) - When looking at your opponent's hand of Action Cards using your racial ability, you may steal 1 card of your choice and add it to your hand.
Flagship: Y'sia Y'ssrila (Cost: 9) - Battle 7 (x2), Movement 2, Capacity 5, Sustain Damage - This ship may move through systems containing enemy ships.

Game Setup

At the start of the game, players each receive five system tiles for creation of the game map. Mecatol Rex is set at the center, with home system locations on the third ring directly outward. Starting from the first player and proceeding in a snake draft (first to last, last to first, etc.), each player places a system title from their hand with the following restrictions:

Each ring must be filled completely before moving on to the next, starting from the center and moving outwards.
Special systems with red borders may not be placed adjacent to one another.
If a player has placed a system containing no planets, then a system containing at least one planet must be placed on their next turn.

Should a player be unable to place a system according to these rules, their hand of systems is revealed so that they may place a system while breaking the normal rules. Once the game map has been created, players will continue the snake draft to select race and starting position. Eight races will be randomly dealt for selection; each player may select either a race to play or a start position on their turn.

The first player changes in each step of galaxy creation: the inner ring starts with player 1, the second ring starts with player 3, and the outer ring starts with player 5 - each round proceeding initially clockwise. Race and starting location selection starts with player 1 and proceeds clockwise.

Once all players have a race and start location, Custodians of Mecatol Rex tokens are placed on Mecatol Rex (see Odds and Ends) and the Public Objective line is created. Each player receives 2 Secret Objective cards. Simultaneously, players select one Secret Objective to keep (returning the other to the deck face down), place their starting units, and select starting technologies. Players then receive 2 Political Cards (and 2 Trade Goods) and allocate 2 Command Counters to Strategy Allocation, 3 counters to Fleet Supply, and 3 counters to Command Pool. The game begins with the first Strategy Phase.

General Game Flow

The game is played over a number of rounds, typically 5-10 in total. Each round is divided into three parts: the Strategy Phase, the Action Phase, and the Status Phase. In the Strategy Phase, players select Strategy Cards: this determines the special action that player may take during the round as well as play order. The bulk of activity takes place in the Action Phase: here players may deploy abilities specified by their choice of Strategy Card, activate systems for unit movement, space combat, invasion of planets, and building of new units, or to play certain action cards. Once everybody has passed their turns in the Action Phase, the Status Phase allows for players to score victory points by claiming objectives and refreshes the board setup for the next round of play.

Strategy Phase

In the Strategy Phase, players select Strategy Cards for the round. Each Strategy Card has a special ability and determines play order in the Action Phase. Starting from the player with the Speaker token and moving clockwise, each player will choose a card; each card may be selected by at most one player. To select a Strategy Card, note your selection in bold dodgerblue. Example:

I select the (1) Leadership Strategy Card.

At the end of the Strategy Phase, there will be two unselected Strategy Cards. A Bonus counter will be added to each card as incentive for selection in future rounds. When a player selects a Strategy Card with a Bonus counter, they immediately exchange each counter for either a Trade Good or Command Counter.

Action Phase

Starting with the player with the lowest-numbered Strategy Card and moving up in number, players take actions sequentially until all players have passed. There are four different types of actions that players can perform: the Strategic Action, Tactical Action, Transfer Action, and using Action Cards that are played as actions. Details about the first three actions are contained in the following sections. The fourth is straightforward: the acting player declares the card they wish to play in bold dodgerblue, noting its effects. For expediency in the forum game environment, players do not need to declare use of the Action Card, wait for others to declare, and then actually play the card. (Please note that the two-step declare-then-play protocol still applies for other phases of the game, including the Strategy Phase, Status Phase, and battles.) Example:

I play an Action Card: Alien Technology.
I exhaust Arnor (2R) and Saudor (2R) to gain the technology Sarween Tools.

If a player does not wish to make any more actions during the round, they may pass their turn. Players must use the Strategic Action specified on their Strategy Card before ending their turn for the round. Players who have passed their turn will still be able to participate in secondary abilities from other players’ Strategic Actions, but take no further actions in the Action Phase. Players may pass their turn in bold red. Example:

I PASS my turn.

MrBlarney · April 2013

Strategic Action and Strategy Cards

With a Strategic Action, players activate the ability specified on their chosen Strategy Card. After executing the primary ability, all other players, including players who have already passed their turn, will have a chance to make use of the secondary ability listed on the card by spending a Command Counter from their Strategy Allocation. Normally, players make their choices clockwise from the primary player, but for the purposes of the forum game environment, players may choose to pass or play on a secondary ability out of order if they wish. Text of each card and a short explanation and example for each follow below. Generally, use of a Strategy Card ability is noted in bold dodgerblue. Usage example:

I activate the primary ability...
I PLAY the secondary ability...
I PASS on the secondary ability.

(1) Leadership

Primary Ability: Take Charge Receive 3 Command Counters from your reinforcements. You may then immediately use this card's secondary ability.
Secondary Ability: Masterful Tactician You may spend influence to purchase up to 3 Command Counters from your reinforcements. You receive 1 Command Counter for every 2 influence you spend.

Notes: Unlike other Strategy Cards, there is no need to spend a Strategy Allocation counter to use this card’s secondary ability. Usage examples:

I activate the primary ability of the (1) Leadership Strategy Card and exhaust Mellon (2I), placing 1 counter into Strategy Allocation, 1 into Fleet Supply, and 2 into Command Pool.

I PLAY the secondary ability, exhausting Dal Bootha (2I) to place 1 Command Counter into my Command Pool.

(2) Diplomacy II

Primary Ability: Demilitarized Zone Choose either a) or b):
a) Choose one system containing a planet you control. Each opponent must place one of his Command Counters into the system from his reinforcements.
b) Execute the secondary ability of this card without paying a Command Counter or any influence.
Secondary Ability: Peaceful Annexation Spend 1 Command Counter from your Strategy Allocation area and 3 Influence to claim an empty planet adjacent to a system you control. Place your Command Marker on the planet.

Notes: The a) side of the primary ability protects a system from interference by other players; if they have no counters in their reserves they must take one from their race sheet if possible. Players may not use the secondary ability to take control of Mecatol Rex or a planet that was just annexed by another player using this ability during the same activation. Players may annex planets under the control of other players if the opponent has no ground units based at that planet. Usage examples:

I activate the primary ability of the (2) Diplomacy II Strategy Card, choosing option a) and targeting the Abyz-Fria system.

I PLAY the secondary ability, spending a Strategy Allocation Counter and exhausting Torkan (3I) to annex Vefut II.

(3) Assembly

Primary Ability: Senate Draw 1 Political Card and 2 Action Cards. Then choose either a) or b):
a) Claim the Speaker token and choose one other player to play a Political Card and resolve its agenda. You may not choose this option if you are already the Speaker.
b) Choose one other player to claim the Speaker token. Play a Political Card from your hand and resolve its agenda. You must select a player that is not currently Speaker.
Secondary Ability: Morale Boost Spend 1 Command Counter from your Strategy Allocation area to refresh any number of your Planet Cards with total combined resource and influence of 6 or less.

Notes: If a player selected to play a Political Card has none to play, the top card of the Political Card deck is drawn and resolved instead. After negotiation, players vote on the agenda, starting to the left of the Speaker, with the option to also abstain from a vote. Each player's vote is worth the amount of influence on their unexhausted planets (minimum 1); Trade Goods may not be spent here to increase the power of the vote. The option with the most votes wins, with the Speaker breaking any ties. Usage examples:

I activate the primary ability of the (3) Assembly Strategy Card, choosing option a) to claim the Speaker token and choosing The Universities of Jol-Nar to play a card. (The activating player may wait to receive cards before making a choice)
Selected player under option a): I choose to bring "Ancient Artifact" to a vote., and posting the Political Card text.
Voting: I vote FOR the agenda, I vote AGAINST the agenda., I ELECT <item> for the agenda., I ABSTAIN from the agenda.

I PLAY the secondary ability, spending a Strategy Allocation Counter to refresh Lodor and Xxehan.

(4) Production

Primary Ability: Tight Deadlines Immediately build units in one of your systems containing one or more friendly Space Docks, receiving 2 additional resources with which to build, even if you have activated this system already. Building units here does not activate the system.
Secondary Ability: Double Efforts Spend 1 Command Counter from your Strategy Allocation area to immediately build up to 3 units in one of your systems containing one or more friendly Space Docks, even if you have activated this system already. Building units here does not activate the system.

Notes: Players are still limited by the normal production capacity of Space Docks during activation of this card. Usage examples:

I activate the primary ability of the (4) Production Strategy Card, exhausting Fria (2R) to build a Cruiser (2R) and 2 Destroyers (2R) at the Space Dock on Abyz.

I PLAY the secondary ability, spending a Strategy Allocation Counter and exhausting Lodor (3R) to build a Cruiser (2R) and 2 Fighters (1R) at the Space Dock on Lodor.

(5) Trade II

Primary Ability: Free Trade Receive 3 Trade Goods or cancel up to 2 trade agreements. Then all players receive Trade Goods from their active trade agreements. Players who are not the active player receive 1 fewer total Trade Goods. Finally, open trade negotiations among all players. You must approve all new trade agreements.

Notes: Each race has two Trade Contracts that they may exchange with others to earn Trade Goods in the Trade Strategy Card, and trade agreements must be made between different races (i.e. you can’t exchange both Contracts with the same race). Negotiation is encouraged when making and approving agreements. There is no secondary ability associated with this Strategy card. Players do not need to declare the Trade Goods they gain, but may do so optionally. Usage examples:

I activate the primary ability of the (5) Trade II Strategy Card, receiving 6 Trade Goods (3 free + 3 from agreements). or
I activate the primary ability of the (5) Trade II Strategy Card, breaking the Trade agreement between The Universities of Jol-Nar and The Barony of Letnev. I collect 3 Trade Goods (all from agreements).

When trying to create an agreement: I request the creation of a Trade Agreement between myself [2] and The Xxcha Kingdom [2].
When approving a trade: I approve of the creation of a Trade Agreement between The Xxcha Kingdom [2] and The Federation of Sol [2].

(6) Warfare II*

Primary Ability: High Alert Place the High Alert token in a system. Your ships in the system with the token gain +1 movement and +1 on all combat rolls. If you move any ships from this system, you may move the token with them. Remove the token from the board at the start of the next Status Phase.
Secondary Ability: Reinforce Spend 1 Command Counter from your Strategy Allocation area to move up to two of your ships from unactivated systems into any adjacent systems that do not contain enemy units. Then place one of your Command Counters from your reinforcements in each destination system that you did not control before the movement.

Notes: The High Alert token does not affect the performance of ground units, nor does it affect pre-combat abilities. Moving ships using the secondary ability does not trigger PDS Fire. Control of a system is defined by control of all planets in the system (if any) and the presence of at least one non-Fighter friendly ship. Usage examples:

I activate the primary ability of the (6) Warfare II Strategy Card, placing the High Alert token in the Abyz-Fria system.

I PLAY the secondary ability, spending a Strategy Allocation Counter to move a Destroyer from Quann to Qucen'n-Rarron and a Cruiser from Dal Bootha-Xxehan to Qucen'n-Rarron.

(7) Technology II

Primary Ability: Technological Focus Receive one Technology advance. You may then buy a second Technology advance at the cost of 8 resources. You must have the necessary prerequisites for each Technology.
Secondary Ability: Advanced Development Spend 1 Command Counter from your Strategy Allocation area and 6 resources to receive one Technology advance (for which you have the necessary prerequisites.

Notes: Common technologies are divided into four categories and organized into a tech tree. (Tech Tree) If purchasing technology, the cost may be reduced by one for each technology specialty icon matching the type of technology you wish to buy on your unexhausted planets. You do not have to exhaust such planets during technology purchasing to gain their bonus. Each race also has two Race-Specific Technologies only they may purchase. These technologies have no prerequisites, are colorless, and incur an additional resource cost to purchase; this includes if the technology is selected for the 'free' technology in the primary ability. Usage examples:

I activate the primary ability of the (7) Technology II Strategy Card and exhaust Abyz (3R) to gain racial technology "Production Centers". (Hacan racial technology costing +3 resources)

I PLAY the secondary ability, spending a Strategy Allocation Counter, exhausting Abyz (3R), Fria (2R), and using the Fria Technology specialty to gain "XRD Transporters".

(8) Bureaucracy II

SPECIAL After selecting this Strategy Card, remove Red Tape counters from the Public Objective line equal to the number of Bonus Counters on this card.
Primary Ability: Imperial Control Receive 1 Command Counter from your reinforcements. Then remove one Red Tape counter from the Public Objective of your choice. Stage II cards may not be selected until at least five Stage I cards have been unlocked. You may then immediately claim one Public Objective that you qualify for.
Secondary Ability: New Agendas Spend 1 Command Counter from your Strategy Allocation area to draw one Political Card and one Action Card.

Notes: If "Imperium Rex" is unlocked, whether by the special action or primary ability, the game ends immediately without any further player actions (including qualification for further objectives). "Imperium Rex" may only be selected if at most one Red Tape counter is in front of it in the line. A player must control all planets in their home system in order to claim an objective. Usage examples:

I activate the primary ability of the (8) Bureaucracy Strategy Card, placing a Command Counter into Command Pool.
After receiving Objective Cards: I unlock the following Objective Card:, and posting the Objective Card text.[/color][/b]

I PLAY the secondary ability, spending a Strategy Allocation Counter to draw one Political Card and one Action Card.

Tactical Action

With a Tactical Action, players may activate a system for movement, invasion, or production. The following steps are taken in a Tactical Action:

Activate a System One counter will be spent from the Command Pool to activate the chosen system.
Movement into the System Ships cannot be moved out of activated systems and cannot pass through systems with non-Fighter enemy ships. Units with carry ability can pick up units at any time during their movement as long as the systems do not contain enemy ships and are not previously activated.
PDS Fire If there are any enemy PDS units in range, play will be paused to allow their owning players the opportunity to decide whether or not to react. The active player may then choose to activate their own PDS units, if any. Hits are scored as in Space Battles (see below) by each player.
Space Battles A Space Battle occurs when ships of different players are in the same system. See section below.
Planetary Landings Units being carried may be landed at this time; they may be split between multiple planets.
Invasion Combat Invasion Combat occurs when units of different players are in the same planet. See section below.
Produce Units Players may exhaust planets and spend trade goods to build units at a previously established Space Dock, or to build a Space Dock if the planet it is being built on has been controlled the entire round. The maximum number of units that may be produced is equal to 2 plus the resource value of the planet housing the Space Dock.

If a planet is taken, either by landing a Ground Force or Mechanized Unit on an empty planet or winning Invasion Combat, the planet card is received in exhausted state. Example:

I spend a Command Pool Counter to activate the Tar'mann system and perform a Tactical Action.
A Carrier with two Fighters and two Ground Forces from Tequ'ran-Torkan and a Cruiser from the Xxcha Home System will be moved in. (If there were PDS in the area, the action would pause for PDS fire. Assuming the system is empty,)
I land two Ground Forces onto Tar'mann, taking control of the planet.

Building units: I exhaust Bereg (3R) to build a Cruiser (2R) and two Fighters (1R).

Space Battles and Invasion Combat

Before a Space Battle, pre-combat Actions and anti-Fighter barrage occur. In Anti-Fighter Barrage, each player rolls two dice for each Destroyer they have in the system. Each hit (roll on d10+modifiers at or above the ship’s combat value) destroys a Fighter in the opponent’s fleet. Once complete, Space Battles are resolved in rounds:

Announce Withdrawals/Retreats Attacker has first option to declare a retreat, followed by the Defender. Players may retreat into an adjacent activated system without enemy ships. Alternatively, the defender may spend a counter from Strategy Allocation to activate an adjacent empty or friendly system for the purposes of retreat.
Roll Combat Dice Both players simultaneously roll outcomes for all their ships.
Remove Casualties Both players decide what ships to remove from their own fleets; attacker removes first.
Execute Withdrawals/Retreats If there are still ships of both players in the system and a retreat was declared, it is executed now.

Battle rounds continue until a player retreats or only ships of one kind (or fewer) remain in the system. Generally, battles will be conducted via private message, and it is encouraged to have conditional orders in place with me in order to expedite the process. Results will be announced in thread at battle’s completion.

Invasion Combat flows similarly to Space Battles, but without a retreat option. Pre-combat, the attacker has the option of using Planetary Bombardment with his Dreadnoughts and War Suns and the defender may use PDS fire. For Bombardment, ships must be split between planets if there are multiple invasions, and Dreadnoughts may not bombard planets that contain enemy PDS units. PDS units must be on the planet being invaded to be used in PDS fire. For each hit by each player, one Ground Force or Shock Troop is removed or one Mechanized Unit is damaged (but not destroyed). Remaining Ground Forces, Shock Troops, and Mechanized Units fight it out in rounds of rolling combat dice, then removing casualties. If the attacker wins with at least one Ground Force, Shock Troop, or Mechanized Unit remaining, then he gains control of the planet. All enemy Space Dock and PDS units are destroyed, unless the attacker has at least one Shock Troop; in that case, the invader may choose to capture the facilities instead, replacing them with units of his own.

Units

The number of each type of unit a player may have on the board is limited, with the exception of Ground Forces and Fighters. Even then, there is a maximum number of 'divisions' of each type. Certain units have a Sustain Damage ability that allows them to take one hit without being destroyed. Damaged units are not hampered combat-wise, though a second hit will destroy them. Damaged ships are repaired in the Status Phase.

Space Dock Cost: 4, Max Available: 3. Ground unit, cannot be carried. No combat capabilities, but can support three Fighter units. Builds units; cannot produce units the same turn it is built. If blockaded (in a system with enemy ships), only ground units can be built.
Ground Force Cost: 1 (for 2), Max Available: unlimited in 12 divisions, Combat Value: 8. Ground unit. Can establish control of planets.
Shock Troops Cost: Special, Max Available: 12 across all players, Combat Value: 5. Ground unit. Can establish control of planets, may take over PDS and Space Dock units after battle. Upgrades from Ground Force when Ground Force rolls a natural 10 in Invasion Combat. Must be taken as casualties before Ground Forces. Does not need to be accompanied by other ground units.
Mechanized Unit Cost: 2, Max Available: 4, Combat Value: 6 (x2). Ground unit, can sustain damage. Can establish control of planets. Can be damaged (but not destroyed) by bombardment and PDS fire.
PDS (Planetary Defense System) Cost: 2, Max Available: 6, Combat Value: 6. Ground unit, Planetary Shield (defend against bombardment), PDS Fire abilities. Maximum of two can be present on each planet.
Fighter Cost: 1 (for 2), Max Available: unlimited in 10 divisions, Combat Value: 9. Space unit, must be supported by a Space Dock or unit with carry capacity.
Carrier Cost: 3, Max Available: 4, Combat Value: 9, Movement: 1. Space unit. Carry capacity of 6 units. If destroyed, any carried Ground units are immediately lost.
Destroyer Cost: 1, Max Available: 8, Combat Value: 9, Movement: 2. Space unit, can use Anti-fighter barrage.
Cruiser Cost: 2, Max Available: 8, Combat Value: 7, Movement: 2. Space unit.
Dreadnought Cost: 5, Max Available: 5, Combat Value: 5, Movement: 1. Space unit, can bombard, can sustain damage.
War Sun Cost: 12, Max Available: 2, Combat Value: 3 (x3), Movement: 2. Space unit, can bombard through Planetary Shield, can sustain damage. Carry capacity of 6 units. If destroyed, any carried Ground units are immediately lost. Requires tech advance to build.
Flagship Cost: Varies, Max Available: 1, Combat Value: Varies, Movement: Varies. Space unit, unique stats dependent on race. May only be built at player’s home system.

Transfer Action

The Transfer Action bears similarities to the Tactical Action, but can only be used in friendly systems and used only for reorganization of units and production. The following steps are taken in a Transfer Action, with exceptions listed where they differ from the Tactical Action:

Activate Two Systems One counter will come from the Command Pool like in a Tactical Action, the other will come from the reserve tokens. Both systems must be “friendly”, containing at least one friendly unit and no enemy units, and must be adjacent to each other.
Movement Between Systems
PDS Fire
Planetary Landings Units may not be landed on neutral or enemy-controlled planets in the Transfer Action.
Produce Units Units may be produced or a Space Dock may be built at only one of the activated systems.

Example:

I spend a Command Pool Counter to activate the Saudor and Arinam-Meer systems and perform a Transfer Action.
A Carrier with two Fighters and two Ground Forces will move from Saudor to Arinam-Meer; a Cruiser will move from Arinam-Meer to Saudor.
I will land one Ground Force from the Carrier to each of Arinam and Meer.
I will exhaust Saudor (2R) and spend 2 Trade Goods to build a Space Dock on Arinam.

MrBlarney · April 2013

Status Phase

Once all players have passed their turns, the Action Phase ends and the Status Phase begins. In the Status Phase, the following steps are taken in order:

Qualify for Public/Secret Objective Cards Players may qualify for at most one Public Objective Card and one Secret Objective Card per round. A player must control all planets in their home system in order to claim an objective. All players may claim each Public Objective once; players may not claim other players' Secret Objectives.
Repair Damaged Ships
Remove Command Counters Counters are removed from the board and returned to players' reserves.
Refresh Planet Cards Trade stations and certain worlds have Refresh abilities that can be used immediately after refreshing, causing them to become exhausted. All worlds (including trade stations and other worlds with specific Refresh abilities) may also be exhausted for their resource or influence values to gain Trade Goods at one Trade Good for every two points spent. A maximum of three Trade Goods can be gained per round, whether via resources, influence, or both.
Receive 1 Action Card and 2 Command Counters
Redistribute Command Areas If a player reduces their Fleet Supply, they must make sure their fleet numbers are in compliance with the new number.
Return Strategy Cards Strategy Cards return to the common area for selection in the next Strategy Phase.

Players may also scuttle units during the Status Phase, returning the unit to the reserves. Most steps are automatic; outside of potential Action Card plays and scuttling units, players need only declare how they are redistributing their Command Counters in the Status Phase. Example:

I gain 2 Command Counters, placing one in Strategy Allocation and one in Command Pool., or I gain 2 Command Counters, rearranging my Command Areas to include 2 in Strategy Allocation, 4 in Fleet Supply, and 2 in Command Pool.

Odds and Ends

At the start of the game, Mecatol Rex is assigned two Custodians of Mecatol Rex tokens. Before any player may establish control over the planet, they must defeat a standing force of 3 Fighters and 2 Ground Forces. The Fighters are immune to Anti-Fighter Barrage, the Ground Forces immune to Bombardment. Each token returns to full strength if not defeated, but when beaten they are permanently removed from the game, even if control over Mecatol Rex is later lost.
As described above, Command Counters in the Strategy Allocation area are (generally) used to play the secondary abilities of Strategy Cards, and counters in the Command Pool area are used to activate systems in Tactical and Transfer actions. Command Counters in the Fleet Supply area are not spent, but instead indicate the maximum number of friendly non-Fighter ships that can be supported in a single system at any time. Each player has a maximum of 16 Command Counters available in the game. If a game effect requires the placement of a Counter from the reserves and none is available, the counter must be taken from one of the allocated areas.
Keep in mind that removing all Ground units from a world after establishing control does not relinquish it. Only when an enemy takes over control does ownership transfer.
Certain map hexes have special features. Hexes with matching-lettered wormholes are considered adjacent by movement. Asteroid Field systems are impassable unless a player has the Antimass Deflectors technology; even then, movement may not end in this system. Supernova systems are completely impassable to movement. Nebula systems can be activated, but units may not move through them in a single activation. Ships defend with a +1 bonus to combat rolls while inside a Nebula, but their movement is reduced to 1 when moving out of a Nebula system. Ion Storms, much like Nebulas, can be activated, but cannot be passed through without stopping. While inside an Ion Storm, ships may not be fired upon by PDS Units, and Fighters do not fire in combat (though they still may be taken as casualties). Gravity Rifts have a chance of destroying any ship that leaves or moves through the system: for each ship a die is rolled and on a 1-5, the ship and any carried units are destroyed.
With the additional components from the expansions, the Trade Good pool is effectively unlimited (88 in total). Trade Goods may be spent at any time as 1 resource or 1 influence, except in voting. Trade Goods are also notable for normally being the only component that may be freely traded between players. Transfers may be performed at any time by noting the action in bold dodgerblue; these are good bargaining chips when making negotiations.
Trade Contracts may be broken unilaterally by a player in the Status Phase if they desire. Contracts are also automatically broken if trade partners engage in a Space Battle or Invasion Combat.
When playing an Action Card outside of simply as an action, a player must first declare that they are making an Action Card play, after which all other players may also declare a play, or pass. If multiple players wish to play cards at the same time, resolution is in play order (which differs in the Strategy Phase, Action Phase, and Status Phase). The exception to Action Card declaration is the play of "Sabotage" cards: these do not need to be declared until they are played reactively to another Action Card being played. To declare the play of a card, note it in bold dodgerblue at the appropriate period in which it will be played.
The maximum hand size for Action Cards is seven. If a player exceeds this number at any time, they must immediately discard down to seven, even if they have more Action Cards to draw. In the latter case, the player may continue drawing cards after discarding down to seven.
A similar maximum hand size also exists for Political Cards at five. Unlike the rules as written, Political cards cannot be spent as Trade Goods. Instead, whenever a Political card is drawn, the drawing player also receives a Trade Good.
To aid in recordkeeping, and as a common courtesy, it is recommended that you list the number of Trade Goods, Action Cards, Political Cards, and Command Counter Allocation in bold limegreen after each of your actions. For example, at the start of the game, your status might look like this:

TG/AC/PC: 2/0/2
SA/FS/CC: 2/3/3

MrBlarney · April 2013

Signup Period

People interested in playing should indicate their interest by posting a message indicating such in bold limegreen. I'll close signups after 48 or 72 hours, depending on interest. I'll assign player order and races randomly, and if there are more than six people interested, I will put players into teams of up to two players each. If there are more than twelve players, then I'll randomly select twelve players for initial participation, with the remainder acting as reserves in case any active player drops out. Players also may request specific partners, or may request to play solo, to which I will fulfill as closely as possible.

Please also take note of the optional modules and numerous house rules that will be employed in this game, as listed at the top of the opening post:

Wormhole Nexus; Empty Worlds stack includes both Wormhole systems for setup; Regular Worlds stack includes Lodor and Quann systems for setup
Modified galaxy creation and starting location selection
Strategy card set from Shattered Empire with modifications
Some Secret Objective cards modified
Mixed Public Objective deck from base set and Shattered Empire with modifications
Action Card deck cut from combined 170-card deck to 120 cards
Political Card deck cut from combined 110-card deck to 60 cards; Political cards cannot be spent as Trade Goods but instead provide a Trade Good when drawn
Racial Technologies, Flagships, Mechanized Units with modification, Shock Troops with modification
Alternate Starting Technologies and Tech Tree
Tactical Retreats
Custodians of Mecatol Rex
Resources and Influence may be converted to Trade Goods as a common Refresh ability

If the players wish to add any additional modules to the game, then please also indicate your interest and suggestions and I will do my best to accommodate them if there is support for their inclusion. I'm most interested in thoughts regarding the Tech Tree, whether to use the alternate one currently posted in the OP or the standard Tech Tree.

stever777 · April 2013

Sign up for more space destruction.

If the game fills up, I'll bow out to make room for someone who didn't play last time.

Lockeout · April 2013

Yes, please! I need more TI3 in my life.

caliber · April 2013

I had a lot of fun in the last one, so sure, sign up again.

If the game fills up though, I'll bow out in deference of someone who didn't play last time. No need for me to have all the fun! :P

stever777 · April 2013

^^^ Me too.

Void Slayer · April 2013

Sign up as well!

Same as others, if someone new wants to take my spot I'll reserve.

Are we going to see the races before we build the galaxy?

MrBlarney · April 2013

The way I wrote the game setup section, races will be drawn after map creation. I suppose I should also note that while the Public Objective line will only be built after the map is created and races are selected, I do plan on divulging the list of potential objectives in play. That is, I'll list 10 Stage I and 10 Stage II objectives, from which 6 Stage I and 5 Stage II cards will be selected to be placed in play.

Auralynx · April 2013

Tentatively interested

I've wanted to try this for a while and that last game made interesting reading, but I'd probably need to be part of a team to cover for the fact that I haven't played before.

MrBody · April 2013

Heck yeah

MrBody · April 2013

I'm having that photobucket problem again. The alternate tech tree is a tiny resolution.

robinlambert · April 2013

Hello,
I would love to play. I have played table top but never by forum. If there is room, I am in.
Robin

robinlambert · April 2013

Hello,
I would love to play. I have played table top but never by forum. If there is room, I am in.
Robin

MrBlarney · April 2013

MrBody wrote: »

I'm having that photobucket problem again. The alternate tech tree is a tiny resolution.

Ok, I've changed the tech tree links to Dropbox. Damn, the best thing about photobucket (and the reason I continue to use it) is how sensible the folder and linking structures are. Unfortunate that it seems everything else about it has to suck now...

Tayrun · April 2013

I've never played before, in person or on the forum, though I've read the past few games with interest.

I'll signup if you're cool with new players. Also, I'd quite like to play solo as I know it'll force me to learn the game more thoroughly.

Fidoh · April 2013

I'll signup as well, please. I'd love to play one from the start.

I prefer playing solo, but I don't mind a partner.

MrBody · April 2013

Hmmm....how do starting techs work with the alternate tech tree?

I'm on the fence about the alternate tech tree. It does fix some issues with the original one but it seems to introduce some new ones. There's some minor stuff like the bottom yellow path not seeming to be worth it, and for some reason Graviton Negators is considered a top advancement while Duranium Armor is only middle tier. But the biggie is now the only thing you need for War Suns is one tech of each color?!!!! Wowzers!!!!

Does anyone know of an online resource that lets you see each race's trade treaties and leaders? I can't find them anywhere.

Iron Weasel · April 2013

I'll come back for more. Team play is fine by me.

Like the vets from last game, you can skip me in favor of a new player.

Iron Weasel · April 2013

aargh.
I mean Sign up

SeGaTai · April 2013

vet signup, give new people a chance, all that jazz

Though of course I'd love a chance to get revenge against all the previous players.

Happy to advise/partner with anyone (team space ghost

)

Auralynx · April 2013

Yeah, if one of you guys who does know what they're doing wants me to cover turns you miss and provide "Well, that seems like a good idea to me," suggestions, I'd love to help out, but I doubt I can carry a game of this solo. Just sayin'.

SeGaTai · April 2013

Auralynx if you end up playing with someone more experienced you should take the opposite approach of come up with a bigger concept you want to implement and then have the more experience person help you implement it.

Things like I want to take over someone's planet, I want to make warsuns, I want to create an evil alliance and kill all the snake people.

Auralynx · April 2013

SeGaTai wrote: »

Auralynx if you end up playing with someone more experienced you should take the opposite approach of come up with a bigger concept you want to implement and then have the more experience person help you implement it.

Things like I want to take over someone's planet, I want to make warsuns, I want to create an evil alliance and kill all the snake people.

Have you been following my various early deaths in phallas lately? Ambitious but bad ideas are my forte. :P

Lykouragh · April 2013

I'm in

MrBlarney · April 2013

Looks like I'll be able to close up signups for the game Friday evening. Keep the signups coming! People who did not play in the previous game will get priority, and I'll try to match up a new player with a veteran where possible. I unfortunately do not think I have enough time to run two games of this simultaneously, so if there are more signups, I will have to start excluding people.

MrBody wrote: »

Hmmm....how do starting techs work with the alternate tech tree?

Each race has a different set of starting techs to account for the fact that the tech tree has been reshaped. The original tree on BGG has all the details - each race has a choice of starting tech set as well. In any case, I'll list the starting tech options when the time comes for race selection.

MrBody wrote: »

I'm on the fence about the alternate tech tree. It does fix some issues with the original one but it seems to introduce some new ones. There's some minor stuff like the bottom yellow path not seeming to be worth it, and for some reason Graviton Negators is considered a top advancement while Duranium Armor is only middle tier. But the biggie is now the only thing you need for War Suns is one tech of each color?!!!! Wowzers!!!!

The original BGG thread has discussion regarding the tech tree's structure and selection of each race's starting techs. On the topic of War Suns, they may be more accessible to all races by virtue of the fact that there are multiple paths to the technology, but as far as depth goes, they still require four prerequisite techs before they can be researched (Enviro Compensator, Sarween Tools, Hylar V Assault Laser, Deep Space Cannon in the standard tech tree). That kind of levels the playing field as far as accessibility goes. I can certainly see where there might be debate on the other techs' structures, but I can't disagree with them to an extent where I'm going to further modify things.

MrBody wrote: »

Does anyone know of an online resource that lets you see each race's trade treaties and leaders? I can't find them anywhere.

I can't think of any location off the top of my head. But as with tech options, I'll list each race's available trade agreements when it comes time for race selection.

stever777 · April 2013

I would not like to advise/partner with anyone.
No offense but I'm not sure my crazy ideas are that good, (see last games 1 VP!), & I have a bunch of stuff going on anyway.
As I've said before, I prefer to be in control of my own demise.

MrBody · April 2013

I'm tooling around with Vassal right now. I might be able to host a 2nd game, but I warn it wouldn't be as well organized as this one.

MrBlarney · April 2013

If you want any of my hosting materials, feel free to ask and I can try to put something together.

Signups will be open for about another day - I'll be out for part of tomorrow evening but I'll make team assignments once I return. If there are any comments or questions about the rules for this game, be sure to post them soon!

robinlambert · April 2013

I am still very much interested though would prefer to be solo. I am a rookie online but a bet IRL.

Fidoh · April 2013

We should do a 12-player game.

This will obviously solve everything and not have any downsides to it.

MrBlarney · April 2013

... yeah, no. Considering the number of signups, I don't think I'll have any solo players, the most likely case is that there will be two players on each team.

Void Slayer · April 2013

Since several people want to go solo I'll just go reserve.

MrBody · April 2013

I'm coming into a 2 week period of lots of free time. I could host a 2nd game, maybe an all new player game to avoid newbie trampling? I'd probably only go with the Shattered Empires expansion and very few optional rules just to keep it simple (for them and me!). Everyone can go solo and nobody gets left out.

Are there enough new(ish) players for that?

Lockeout · April 2013

I've played once in person (came in second place); that's the extent of my practical experience, so I guess I'm newish.

MrBlarney · April 2013

There are seven people who participated in the previous game, and five people who did not. Of those five, it seems like two or three are fairly new to Twilight Imperium? If I satisfy all requested constraints in just my game, that'll be at least four solo players and up to two pairs. Might be simplest just to go with all solo players and then run two simultaneous games off the random draw. If anybody has a preference, I'd be interested to get opinions. Also, if anyone else wants to play a game of TI3e, then this'd be a good time to speak up...

Tayrun · April 2013

I am strongly in favour of playing solo myself, but obviously I'm fine with playing against teams.

For similar reasons I'd prefer not to be in a "newbies only" game - I'd much rather get thrown in at the deep end and play a real game.

Auralynx · April 2013

If you do end up running two games, I think a newbie-friendly one and a less newbie-friendly one is the way to go. Alternately, if it comes down to one game, I'm perfectly happy to read along.

stever777 · April 2013

Solo or no-go for me, thx.
Again, no offense to the space-noobs.
You'll thank me later.

Fidoh · April 2013

Auralynx wrote: »

If you do end up running two games, I think a newbie-friendly one and a less newbie-friendly one is the way to go. Alternately, if it comes down to one game, I'm perfectly happy to read along.

I agree.

I don't mind teaming up with someone.

Penny Arcade

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