Jedruszczak

BOARD GAME LOST IN TRANSLATION

A race-to-the-top sci-fi adventure board game for two to six players, where the objective is to beat the
opposing team to an archaeological dig site on a newly discovered planet. Design document features team
cards, item cards, and simple art.

THE BOARD

Two concentric rectangles make up the plains and the mountains, the peak is a line of six spaces leading
to the objective, Site 21B. Certain spaces contain obstacles, such as swamps and storms.

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TEAM INTRODUCTION CARDS + THE ARTIFACT AT SITE 21B

Blue Team introduction:
You really arent supposed to be here. Well, you are, because you beat thousands of other
candidates and got selected to help research Site 21B, but you never signed up for this: sprinting
through the lowlands, nearly losing all your field notes, getting soaked by freak storms, and the
things. You have no idea what they are, but you can hear them all the time. Youre pretty sure
theyve been following you up the mountain. Theyre big and slow and creepy intelligent, and
youre pretty sure theyre, like, hairless. Youre going to get killed by alien worm-bears. Well,
unless you can get to Site 21B, get what you came to this planet for, and call for help.
Red Team introduction:
You really arent supposed to be here. Well, you are, because you beat thousands of other
candidates and got selected to help research Site 21B, but you never signed up for this: sprinting
through the lowlands, nearly losing all your field notes, getting soaked by freak storms, and the
things. You have no idea what they are, but you can hear them all the time. Youre pretty sure
theyve been following you up the mountain. Theyre small and fast and creepy intelligent, and
youre pretty sure theyre, like, shaggy. Youre going to get killed by alien bear-wolves. Well, unless
you can get to Site 21B, get what you came to this planet for, and call for help.
The artifact:
You sprint through the last set of half-collapsed arches, and youre finally there. Site 21B. Its a
huge, open atrium, and somehow the mountain winds that had been slicing right down to your
insides are completely absent. Directly across from you is a huge, imposing wall, and on that wall
is some kind of mural.
You step closer, not entirely sure whats being depicted, and then it hits you. Its an elaborate
fresco, partially damaged, but its subject is unequivocally clear: its you, a bunch of yous, shaking
hands with those scary things that have been chasing your ass up this entire mountain.
Its a peace treaty. And unless your mobile scanner is lying (which its not), its carbon-dated to be
a few thousand years old conveniently just before an enormous chunk of your historical records
got destroyed, and you (well, you, as a species) started colonizing a part of the galaxy youd never
bothered touching before. Its easy to connect all the dots, between what you know of ancient
history.
The only reason you thought you were alone in this galaxy was that the records of this peace
treaty had gotten destroyed somehow, and then, completely by chance, your people had expanded
into the opposite end of the galaxy from Those Other People. Talk about a huge misunderstanding.
As the other team runs up to the fresco, breathless and scared out of their wits, you give them a

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few seconds to come to the same conclusion as you, and then you think about the academic
goddamn jackpot you just won.

RULES
Each player controls a team of three pieces; if there are more than two players, each player controls a
piece, as applicable. Each team starts at its respective tent, on opposing corners of the board. Roll dice to
determine order in which players move. Players choose whether to move clockwise or counterclockwise.
Do not show the other team your team introduction card. Rules are located on the back of each card; it
can be put face-down.

Moving along the board:

Roll a die for each piece you have on the board. You may choose which die roll applies to which
piece, or you may roll one die for all pieces (eg., all pieces move three spaces).

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In order to move into the mountains, you must land on one of two squares marked by stairs.
Once in the mountains, do not return to the plains.
In order to move to the peak, you must land on the square marked by stairs. Roll upon landing
on a square marked by stairs. If you roll a 5 or 6, proceed to the peak. If not, continue moving
through the mountains. For every two strength or defense points, your chances to enter the
peak increase by one (eg., 2 strength points = roll a 4, 5, or 6l 4 strength points = roll a 3, 4, 5,
or 6 to enter).
Once at the peak, in order to proceed towards the site, all pieces on your team must be present
at the peak. Dice rolls no longer apply to pieces on the peak. Once all team members are
present, flip a coin to move towards the site; heads forward, tails backward. Do not return to
the mountains.
Whichever team reaches the artifact first wins the game.

Drawing cards:

Draw a card upon landing at any blank space.

A supplies card must be either used or returned to the deck within the turn it is drawn.
If you draw a movement card and it causes you to land on a blank space, do not draw again.
Artifact cards do not get returned to the deck.

Combat:

Combat takes place when you land on a space occupied by one or more members of the
opposite team.
Roll one die for each piece you have on that square. Whoever rolls the highest number wins
combat, and rolls again to move. The losing team loses one turn.
Strength and defense cards are added to the dice rolls.

Playtest notes: Few combat opportunities with four players. Team-control dynamic introduced to have more
pieces in play, and therefore more opportunities for opposing team members to land on the same space.

CARDS
Playtest notes: Amount of movement cards has been doubled.
Movement cards:
HEADS no movement
TAILS roll die to move again counterclockwise
x8

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HEADS no movement
TAILS roll die to move again clockwise
x16
Artifact cards:
You found something sticking out of the dirt and your curiosity got the better of you. Really, just
this one site. All you wanna do is see if theres more.
Lose one turn.
x3
Theres something really cool on this wall right here, but for now youll just take down
coordinates. You need to keep moving, but youre motivated to return now.
Roll again.
x3
It looks like a shield. Hey, Im gonna hold this thing, and you try shooting at
Yep. Its a shield.
Defense: +1
x2
An ancient-yet-mysteriously-advanced plasma ray gun thing of some kind.
You feel like youre gonna break this thing.
Strength: +1
x2

Supplies cards:
Youve found a cache of supplies that will help keep you safe. You may choose to strengthen your
defense in exchange for losing two turns.
Defense: +2
x3
Youve found a cache of supplies that will help keep you safe. You may choose to strengthen your
defense in exchange for losing one turn.
Defense: +1
x3
Youre found a cache of supplies that will help keep you safe. You may choose to strengthen your
offense in exchange for losing two turns.
Strength: +2
x3

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Youre found a cache of supplies that will help keep you safe. You may choose to strengthen your
offense in exchange for losing one turn.
Strength: +1
x3