LEADERSHIP 1 DIPLOMACY
Primary Ability
✦Gain 3 command tokens.
✦Spend any amount of influence
to gain 1 command token for
every 3 influence spent.
Secondary Ability
✦Spend any amount of influence
to gain 1 command token for
every 3 influence spent.
A player might choose this card to gain
more command tokens, enabling him to
perform more actions during the action
phase.
TRADE 5 WARFARE
Primary Ability
✦Gain 3 trade goods.
✦Replenish commodities.
✦Choose any number of other players.
Those players use the secondary ability
of this strategy card without spending
a command token.
Secondary Ability
✦ Spend 1 token from your strategy pool
to replenish commodities.
A player might choose this card to gain
trade goods and commodities, which he
could use to produce additional units or
trade to other players.
LEADERSHIP 1 DIPLOMACY
Primary Ability
✦Gain 3 command tokens.
✦Spend any amount of influence
to gain 1 command token for
every 3 influence spent.
Secondary Ability
✦Spend any amount of influence
to gain 1 command token for
every 3 influence spent.
A player might choose this card to gain
more command tokens, enabling him to
perform more actions during the action
phase.
TRADE 5 WARFARE
Primary Ability
✦Gain 3 trade goods.
✦Replenish commodities.
✦Choose any number of other players.
Those players use the secondary ability
of this strategy card without spending
a command token.
Secondary Ability
✦ Spend 1 token from your strategy pool
to replenish commodities.
A player might choose this card to gain
trade goods and commodities, which he
could use to produce additional units or
trade to other players.
2 POLITICS
Primary Ability
✦Choose 1 system, other than Mecatol
Rex, that contains a planet you control;
each other player places a command
token from their reinforcements in the
chosen system.
✦Then, ready up to 2 exhausted planets
you control.
Secondary Ability
✦Spend 1 token from your strategy
pool to ready up to 2 exhausted planets.
A player might choose this card if he
feels threatened, to prevent other
players from attacking his system.
6 TECHNOLOGY
Primary Ability
✦Remove 1 of your command tokens from
the game board; then, gain 1 command
token.
✦Redistribute any number of the command
tokens on your command sheet.
Secondary Ability
✦ Spend 1 token from your strategy pool to
use the PRODUCTION ability of 1 of your
space docks in your home system.
A player might choose this card to
allow some of his ships to move twice,
or to build a unit and move it during the
same game round.
2 POLITICS
Primary Ability
✦Choose 1 system, other than Mecatol
Rex, that contains a planet you control;
each other player places a command
token from their reinforcements in the
chosen system.
✦Then, ready up to 2 exhausted planets
you control.
Secondary Ability
✦Spend 1 token from your strategy
pool to ready up to 2 exhausted planets.
A player might choose this card if he
feels threatened, to prevent other
players from attacking his system.
6 TECHNOLOGY
Primary Ability
✦Remove 1 of your command tokens from
the game board; then, gain 1 command
token.
✦Redistribute any number of the command
tokens on your command sheet.
Secondary Ability
✦ Spend 1 token from your strategy pool to
use the PRODUCTION ability of 1 of your
space docks in your home system.
A player might choose this card to
allow some of his ships to move twice,
or to build a unit and move it during the
same game round.
3 CONSTRUCTION
Primary Ability
✦Choose a player other than the speaker.
That player gains the speaker token.
✦Draw 2 action cards.
✦Look at the top 2 cards of the agenda
deck. Place each card on the top or
bottom of the deck in any order.
Secondary Ability
✦ Spend 1 token from your strategy pool
to draw 2 action cards.
A player might choose this card to
draw action cards, increasing the
variety of abilities that are available to
him.
7 IMPERIAL
Primary Ability
✦Research 1 technology.
✦Spend 6 resources to research 1
technology.
Secondary Ability
✦Spend 1 token from your strategy pool
and 4 resources to research 1
technology.
A player might choose this card to
research a new technology that would
grant him a new ability or unit upgrade.
3 CONSTRUCTION
Primary Ability
✦Choose a player other than the speaker.
That player gains the speaker token.
✦Draw 2 action cards.
✦Look at the top 2 cards of the agenda
deck. Place each card on the top or
bottom of the deck in any order.
Secondary Ability
✦ Spend 1 token from your strategy pool
to draw 2 action cards.
A player might choose this card to
draw action cards, increasing the
variety of abilities that are available to
him.
7 IMPERIAL
Primary Ability
✦Research 1 technology.
✦Spend 6 resources to research 1
technology.
Secondary Ability
✦Spend 1 token from your strategy pool
and 4 resources to research 1
technology.
A player might choose this card to
research a new technology that would
grant him a new ability or unit upgrade.
4
Primary Ability
✦Place 1 PDS or 1 space dock on a planet
you control.
✦Place 1 PDS on a planet you control.
Secondary Ability
✦Spend 1 token from your strategy pool in
any system; you may place either 1 space
dock or 1 PDS on a planet you control in
that system.
A player might choose this card to
produce planetary structures, such as
space docks and PDS units.
8
Primary Ability
✦Immediately score 1 public objective if
you fulfill its requirements.
✦Gain 1 victory point if you control Mecatol
Rex; otherwise, draw 1 secret objective.
Secondary Ability
✦Spend 1 token from your strategy pool
to draw 1 secret objective
A player might choose this card to
draw an additional secret objective,
granting him additional routes to
victory.
4
Primary Ability
✦Place 1 PDS or 1 space dock on a planet
you control.
✦Place 1 PDS on a planet you control.
Secondary Ability
✦Spend 1 token from your strategy pool in
any system; you may place either 1 space
dock or 1 PDS on a planet you control in
that system.
A player might choose this card to
produce planetary structures, such as
space docks and PDS units.
8
Primary Ability
✦Immediately score 1 public objective if
you fulfill its requirements.
✦Gain 1 victory point if you control Mecatol
Rex; otherwise, draw 1 secret objective.
Secondary Ability
✦Spend 1 token from your strategy pool
to draw 1 secret objective
A player might choose this card to
draw an additional secret objective,
granting him additional routes to
victory.

GAME OVERVIEW
1. Strategy Phase: Players choose strategy
cards starting with the speaker and
proceeding clockwise.
2. Action Phase: Players take turns in initiative
order, repeating until each player has passed.
3. Status Phase: Players perform cleanup
steps in preparation for the next round.
4. Agenda Phase: Players draw and resolve
two agendas.
FREQUENTLY OVERLOOKED
✦Players do not resolve the agenda phase until
any player has removed the custodians token from
Mecatol Rex.
✦Players cannot pass during the action phase
until they have performed a strategic action.

✦When performing a strategic action, players

cannot use the secondary ability of their own
ACTIONS Tactical Action strategy cards.
A player may perform a tactical action by
There are three types of actions that players
spending a command token from his tactic ✦Players can produce units at a space dock in
may perform during the action phase:
pool. He resolves the following steps: the active system during their tactical actions
1. Activation even if they did not move ships or invade planets.
Strategic Action 2. Movement
A player performs the primary action of his i. Move Ships
chosen strategy card. ✦Ships can only drop off ground forces in the
ii. Space Cannon Offense
Then, other players perform the secondary active system.
3. Space Combat
ability of that card. i. Anti-Fighter Barrage
✦Players can exceed their ships’ capacity during
ii. Announce Retreat
combat.
Component Action iii. Make Combat Rolls
A player may perform an action granted to him iv. Assign Hits
v. Retreat ✦Players are limited to two PDS units and one
by his faction sheet, a technology, or an action
4. Invasion space dock on each planet.
card.
i. Bombardment
ii. Commit Ground Forces ✦Unit upgrade technology does not satisfy
iii. Space Cannon Defense prerequisites.
iv. Ground Combat
v. Establish Control ✦Players can exchange only one promissory note
5. Production each as part of a single transaction.

✦Players with upgraded PDS units in the same

STATUS PHASE PLANET TRAITS system as a wormhole can use those units’
1. Score Objectives “Space Cannon” abilities to fire through the
2. Reveal Public Objective wormhole.
3. Draw Action Cards
4. Remove Command Tokens ✦Players may trade promissory notes that were
5. Gain and Redistribute Command Tokens given to them by another player.
CULTURAL HAZARDOUS INDUSTRIAL
6. Ready Cards
7. Repair Units Traits have no inherent game effect, but are ✦A player is limited to three secret objectives,
8. Return Strategy Cards referred to by some cards and abilities. including both scored and unscored secret
objectives.

GAME OVERVIEW
1. Strategy Phase: Players choose strategy
cards starting with the speaker and
proceeding clockwise.
2. Action Phase: Players take turns in initiative
order, repeating until each player has passed.
3. Status Phase: Players perform cleanup
steps in preparation for the next round.
4. Agenda Phase: Players draw and resolve
two agendas.
FREQUENTLY OVERLOOKED
✦Players do not resolve the agenda phase until
any player has removed the custodians token from
Mecatol Rex.
✦Players cannot pass during the action phase
until they have performed a strategic action.

✦When performing a strategic action, players

cannot use the secondary ability of their own
ACTIONS Tactical Action strategy cards.
A player may perform a tactical action by
There are three types of actions that players
spending a command token from his tactic ✦Players can produce units at a space dock in
may perform during the action phase:
pool. He resolves the following steps: the active system during their tactical actions
1. Activation even if they did not move ships or invade planets.
Strategic Action 2. Movement
A player performs the primary action of his i. Move Ships
chosen strategy card. ✦Ships can only drop off ground forces in the
ii. Space Cannon Offense
Then, other players perform the secondary active system.
3. Space Combat
ability of that card. i. Anti-Fighter Barrage
✦Players can exceed their ships’ capacity during
ii. Announce Retreat
combat.
Component Action iii. Make Combat Rolls
A player may perform an action granted to him iv. Assign Hits
v. Retreat ✦Players are limited to two PDS units and one
by his faction sheet, a technology, or an action
4. Invasion space dock on each planet.
card.
i. Bombardment
ii. Commit Ground Forces ✦Unit upgrade technology does not satisfy
iii. Space Cannon Defense prerequisites.
iv. Ground Combat
v. Establish Control ✦Players can exchange only one promissory note
5. Production each as part of a single transaction.

✦Players with upgraded PDS units in the same

STATUS PHASE PLANET TRAITS system as a wormhole can use those units’
1. Score Objectives “Space Cannon” abilities to fire through the
2. Reveal Public Objective wormhole.
3. Draw Action Cards
4. Remove Command Tokens ✦Players may trade promissory notes that were
5. Gain and Redistribute Command Tokens given to them by another player.
CULTURAL HAZARDOUS INDUSTRIAL
6. Ready Cards
7. Repair Units Traits have no inherent game effect, but are ✦A player is limited to three secret objectives,
8. Return Strategy Cards referred to by some cards and abilities. including both scored and unscored secret
objectives.