A Walk in the Celestial Playground: Game Rules for Among the Stars

Note: The purpose of this article is to provide you with a comprehensive guide to the game rules for Among the Stars. So, brace yourself for an intergalactic experience!

Hey there! So, have you ever wondered what it would be like to navigate the vast expanse of outer space? If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably spent hours marveling at the twinkling stars above, dreaming of cosmic adventures. Well, my friend, your celestial journey starts here, with Among the Stars.

The objective of Among the Stars is simple: you take on the role of a space station commander with the exciting responsibility of building a stellar network of space stations. These stations serve as the foundation for galactic diplomacy and exploration.

The game comes complete with a deck of location cards, each representing a unique, awe-inspiring celestial body. From breathtaking nebulae to bustling spaceports, you’ll have an entire cosmos to explore and develop.

So, let’s delve into the mechanics of the game. In each round, you’ll have the opportunity to draft a series of location cards. These cards will be the building blocks of your space stations. Each card you choose will evoke a different sense of wonder, unfolding an extraordinary narrative with every decision you make.

As you draft your cards, you’ll need to consider a plethora of factors. For instance, you’ll need to take into account the locations of neighboring space stations. Will you strategically position your new station as the beacon of cooperation, or will you opt for a more secluded, mysterious corner of the universe?

But that’s not all. Among the Stars is all about resource management. Each location card will require a variety of resources to construct. Fuel, energy, and even precious alien artifacts are vital for a successful space station construction. So, be resourceful and plan accordingly!

Once you’ve constructed your stations, your strategic skills will be put to the test during the scoring phase. You’ll receive points based on the accomplishments of your stations, such as their size, diversity, and technological advancements. How will your network stack up against your fellow space commanders? Only time will tell.

To add an extra layer of challenge, in Among the Stars, you’ll have the option to interact with your fellow players. Be it through cooperative alliances or shrewd deals, political maneuvers could turn the tide of the game. After all, in space, one must navigate not only the unknown, but also the complex dynamics of interstellar relations.

So, ready to embark on a captivating celestial adventure? Let’s play Among the Stars and discover the limitless wonders of our universe!

Hey there! So, get this: after this crazy war, all the big races in the galaxy finally decided to make peace and formed a thing called the Alliance. And guess what the Alliance did first? They decided to create space stations all over the galaxy! These space stations are meant to help with trade, improve diplomatic relations, and, you know, just keep that precious peace intact.

Now, here’s the really cool part: in a game called Among the Stars, you can be the leader of one of those alien races and try to build the best space station for the Alliance. Sounds awesome, right? So, who’s gonna create the most efficient station before time runs out?

In Among the Stars, you get to pick your alien race and take on the challenge of building a space station for the Alliance. How? Well, you’ll be given these Location Cards that you have to strategically place in your play area. It’s all about finding the best way to organize and set up your station. Oh, and the player with the most efficient space station after 4 years wins the game! Exciting, isn’t it?

Components

• 4 Main Reactor Cards
• 12 Conflict Cards
• 16 5-Credit Tokens
• 2 VAK Main Reactor Cards
• 4 Player Aid Cards
• 20 Energy Cubes
• 72 Basic Location Cards
• 1 Score Board
• 8 Race Tiles
• 44 Special Location Cards
• 4 Player Markers
• 16 Power Reactor Cards
• 1 Year Marker
• 8 Objective Cards
• 32 1-Credit Tokens
• Rulebook

Setup

Here’s what I’ll need to play:

four Main Reactor Cards,

twelve Conflict Cards,

sixteen 5-Credit Tokens,

two VAK Main Reactor Cards,

four Player Aid Cards,

twenty Energy Cubes,

seventy-two Basic Location Cards,

one Score Board,

eight Race Tiles,

forty-four Special Location Cards,

four Player Markers,

sixteen Power Reactor Cards,

one Year Marker,

and eight Objective Cards.

Now that I have all the pieces, it’s time to set up the game. There are two modes to choose from: Aggressive and Non-Aggressive. The core game is the Non-Aggressive Mode, which is great for beginners. If you want more direct confrontation, you can try the Aggressive Mode, but I recommend starting with a few Non-Aggressive games to get the hang of it.

Before you start playing, let’s organize the cards first. We need to separate the Basic Location Cards from the Special Location Cards. You can easily identify the Special Location Cards because they have a symbol in the lower right-hand corner, as shown in the graphic below.

If you’re playing with three players, you won’t need the Basic Location Cards with the number “4” in the lower right-hand corner. These cards are only used in a four-player game. Just put them back in the box. If you’re playing with two players, we have special instructions for that later in the rules.

Don’t forget to set aside the Power Reactor Cards to create a new deck. These cards will come into play during the game.

Hey there! Let’s get started with the game setup. First off, I won’t peek at the Cards, so neither should you! Here’s what we need to do:

For each player, draw 6 Special Location Cards and mix them in with the Basic Location Cards. In a game with 3 players, grab 18 Special Location Cards. And if we have 4 players, we’ll need 24 of those Special Location Cards.

All of these cards, both Basic and Special, will make up the Location Deck we’ll be using throughout the game.

Now, each player needs to grab a Player Marker and place it on the Score Board at 0. This marker will move whenever players earn or lose points. Make sure the Score Board is visible to everyone at the table. It’s a good idea to assign one player the role of keeping track of everyone’s points.

When we start playing the game, each of us gets a Main Reactor Card. It’s our Main Reactor Card that we put on the table in front of us. On that card, we also place 2 Energy Cubes. They’re pretty important! We all put the rest of our Credits and Energy Cubes in the middle of the table. We call that the Supply, and it’s where we can all get them from during the game.

If this is your first time playing, you can skip the setup for now. Once you’re more comfortable with the game, you can add in the Racial Abilities and Objectives.

Objective Card

Now we need to choose which race we want to play as. You can pick one randomly or decide together. Once you’ve made your choice, take the tile that has your race’s Racial Ability. To add some variety, shuffle up all the Objective Cards and draw as many as there are players. These cards will be our Objectives during the game.

Hey there, it’s time to learn how to play Among the Stars! Are you ready? Great! Let’s get started.

First, take a look at the Race Tile below:

Race Tile

Put this tile face up on the table where everyone can see it. This tile will determine your unique abilities and goals in the game.

Now, it’s time to jump into the game play. Here’s how it works:

Game Play

Among the Stars is a game of strategy and careful planning. The goal is to build the best space station and score the most points. To do this, you will need to make important decisions and manage your resources wisely.

Each round, you will have a hand of cards to choose from. These cards represent different rooms and facilities that you can add to your space station. Some cards will help you generate resources, while others will give you special abilities or ways to score points.

During your turn, you will choose a card from your hand and place it in your space station. Each card has a cost, which you will need to pay with resources. Make sure to keep an eye on your resources and plan ahead!

As you build your space station, you will need to consider the layout and adjacency bonuses. Some rooms work better when placed next to certain types of rooms, so pay attention to how you arrange your cards.

At the end of the game, you will score points based on the cards in your space station. Some cards will give you points directly, while others will score points based on specific conditions. The player with the most points wins!

Now that you understand the basic gameplay, it’s time to start playing. Have fun exploring the stars and building the best space station!

The game I am about to describe is quite an interesting one. It spans over a period of 4 years, and each year is represented by a single round of gameplay. Let’s dive into the details.

Now, here’s what you need to do at the start of every round:

• First, take 10 credits and place them in your play area. These credits will be essential for your gameplay strategy.
• Next, draw 6 cards from the Location Deck. These cards will form your hand, and it’s crucial to keep them a secret from the other players.

One important task falls on a player – tracking the score. This player will move the Year Marker to the correct year at the beginning of each round. Take note of the symbol around each year on the Year Marker. This symbol indicates the direction in which the cards will be passed from player to player – either clockwise or counter-clockwise. Make sure to flip the Year Marker accordingly, so everyone is on the same page. Now, let’s talk about the flow of each round.

During a round, there are a total of 6 turns, and here’s where things get exciting. All players will be playing simultaneously, creating a buzzing atmosphere of competition and anticipation.

Here’s how a typical turn unfolds: each player must select one card from their hand and place it face down in front of them. This decision lays the groundwork for the upcoming gameplay actions.

So, we’ve all played our cards and passed the rest to the next person. Now, it’s time to reveal our picks and decide what to do next. Here are the three actions you can choose from:

• 9 Build Location
• 9 Build Power Reactor
• 9 Discard and Gain 3 Credits

The Location Cards

Building a Location

When it comes to building Locations in the game, there are a few important rules to keep in mind. As a player, your options for building new Location Cards are limited by their adjacency to existing Cards. To start, your Main Reactor is the only Location Card in your Station, so any new Card you build must be adjacent to it.

Each Location Card in the game belongs to a specific category, and these categories are color-coded for easy identification.

In the game, two locations are considered adjacent if they are placed next to each other orthogonally. If they are placed diagonally from each other, they are NOT considered adjacent.

To build a location, you have to pay its cost. Every location has its cost in credits in the upper right-hand corner of the card. Some also list an energy requirement directly below the credit requirement.

This energy requirement must be paid by a location in your Space Station with Energy Cubes on it and within 2 distance of the location you are trying to build. Distance is counted through built locations, orthogonally, with each card counting as a distance of 1.

In the game, there are 2 Energy-providing locations: The Main Reactor (the card with which each player started the game) and the Power Reactor. They both start with 2 Energy Cubes on them.

Once you’ve paid the cost and constructed the location next to another location in your Space Station, you’ll earn the number of Victory Points indicated in the bottom left corner of the card.

But don’t forget to look at the ability written on the card. There are two types of abilities: immediate abilities, indicated by a white box, and delayed abilities, indicated by a yellow box.

If the ability is immediate, follow the instructions right away and see if you gain any additional benefits, such as more Victory Points. However, if the ability is delayed, you don’t do anything at this time – you’ll revisit it at the end of the game.

Hey there, it’s my third turn in the first round. Let me show you Sandra’s Station:

Check out this card she picked: it’s called the “Holographic Display Area”. Sandra wants to add it to her station. But here’s the catch – she needs to pay the cost and place it right next to another location. Take a look below:

This is what the “Holographic Display Area” location card looks like.

Hey there! Want to know about this cool location card? Well, I’m here to spill the beans! This baby can be constructed on any of those orange spaces you see on the board. Pretty neat, huh? It’s like having your very own chunk of the game world right at your fingertips! So go ahead and find that perfect spot to build your location card and watch your gameplay reach a whole new level of awesomeness!

The “Holographic Display Area” costs 2 credits. I take 2 credits from my supply and return them.

Then, I remove 1 Energy Cube from my Main Reactor. Since it’s within 2 distance of the “Holographic Display Area,” I can use the Energy Cube to pay for the energy requirement of the new location. I return the Energy Cube to the supply as well. Now, I can place the card in my Station:

Next, I calculate the Victory Points (VPs) I gain. The card says it gives 2 VPs in the lower, left-hand corner, so I gain 2 VPs. But, I also read the immediate ability on the card, which says I get +1 VP for every adjacent location.

Since there are 2 adjacent locations to my newly-placed “Holographic Display Area,” I get +2 VPs for a total of 4 VPs.

I move my Player Marker 4 places forward on the Score Board.

If the ability was a delayed one (written in a yellow frame), then I would only get the 2 points listed on the card when building the location. I would check the ability at the end of the game to see how many extra points I would gain.

If you pick a card but can’t pay for it, you can’t build the location and will need to choose another option.

Building a Power Reactor

To meet the energy requirement for other locations, you’ll need to construct Power Reactors.

To build a Power Reactor, discard the card you selected (after revealing it at the same time as the other players), pay its cost (1 credit), select a Power Reactor card from the Power Reactor Deck, and construct it anywhere in your Space Station, next to a location that has already been built.

Additionally, place 2 Energy Cubes on it to represent the Energy it generates. Keep in mind that you can only use these Energy Cubes for locations built within a 2 distance of the Power Reactor.

Power Reactors count as locations, but they don’t have a location type of their own.

If you can’t find any Power Reactor Cards available, or if you don’t have any credits left, you won’t be able to take this action. In that case, you’ll need to choose a different action to take.

Get Rid of a Card and Gain 3 Credits

If you want to get rid of a card, simply choose one and show it to everyone else at the same time. Once revealed, discard the card and instantly receive 3 credits.

Keep in mind that when you discard a card, it’s placed face up in the discard pile. This means that all players can see which cards have been discarded.

End of the Round

When 6 turns have passed, the round comes to an end. At this point, all players should check each other’s Space Stations for any mistakes. For example, if someone has built more than 1 location with a maximum limit of 1, they need to rectify the error by removing extra locations.

If you notice such an error in someone’s Space Station, they should remove enough locations to make their Station valid again. For instance, if they have 2 identical locations with a maximum limit of 1, they must remove one of them.

When I build cards and then they get removed, I lose the points I earned from building them, but I don’t get any credits back. If for some reason I can’t calculate the points, I lose the amount listed on the card, plus 3.

Sometimes, when a location is removed, it causes a station to split in two. In that rare case, I’ll turn the split station face-down and leave it in the same spot as a placeholder. But when counting the number of locations in my station, I won’t count this one.

Playing Order

In most of the game, all players act at the same time. But sometimes, there are situations where timing matters.

Hey there! Have you ever wondered about the way things happen in a game? Well, let me tell you, it can get a little tricky when it comes to the order of actions. Allow me to explain…

So, picture this: you’re playing a game, and you’re asked to do something that involves another player, like taking credits from them. Now, here’s the catch – you can only do that after all the other players have finished their actions. It’s like waiting in line at a buffet, you know? Everyone gets their turn, and then it’s your chance to snag those yummy credits.

Oh, and let’s not forget about Conflict Cards. If one of those bad boys shows up, hang tight! The effect of that card will happen once all the other players have had a chance to play their cards. It’s like the calm before the storm.

Now, let’s talk about a situation where things get a little competitive. If multiple players want to do something at the same time, like using their special abilities or playing Conflict Cards, we’ve got a system in place. It all comes down to the order of their Player Markers on the Score Board. The player who’s ahead in line gets to go first, and then it’s the next player’s turn, and so on. It’s like taking turns on the playground slide, but with a little extra strategy involved.

When it’s time to start the game, the player with the highest score gets to go first. If there’s a tie, the player with the most credits goes first. If they have the same number of credits, then we leave it up to chance.

End of the Game

Once the 4th round is over, the game comes to an end. To figure out my final score, here’s what I need to do:

• I check if I met any Objectives and get the bonus Victory Points they offer (only if we’re playing with Objectives).
• I look through all the cards in my Space Station to see if any of them have delayed abilities that earn me Victory Points.
• I earn 1 Victory Point for every Power Reactor that doesn’t have any Energy Cubes in it.
• I earn 1 Victory Point for every 3 credits I have left (rounded down).

Hey there! Let me break it down for you. Each goal can only be claimed by one person, unless it says otherwise. And if a few folks tie for a goal, no one gets a bonus. Fair, right?

Now, here’s the juice. The person with the most Victory Points is the big winner. Simple as that!

If there’s a tie, things get interesting. You see, the winner is the one with the most spots in their Station (but don’t count those Power Reactors). So it’s all about location, location, location!

But wait, there’s more. If there are still players tied after all that, the winner is the person with the most leftover credits. If there’s still a tie after that, well, everyone who’s tied gets to bask in the glory together.