Anachrony

2017

Experience a unique blend of strategy and time-travel in Anachrony, a board game set in a post-apocalyptic Earth. Harness the power of Time Rifts, manage resources, and avert impending disaster for victory.

120
minutes

1 - 4
player(s)

15+

Heavy

About the game

Anachrony is a deeply immersive and complex board game that stimulates the strategic thinking and planning skills of the players. Set in a post-apocalyptic world, this game is infused with elements of time travel, resource management, and worker placement.

The game is set in the late 26th century where humankind has been driven to the brink of extinction by a catastrophic disaster. The survivors, now living in four different ideological factions, have discovered time travel and the ability to send resources back in time. This powerful technology is used to prepare for the impending apocalypse, known as the impact, and its aftermath.

Game components Unboxing the fun!

Anachrony is a complex and engaging board game. Here’s a breakdown of every component included in the game, and an explanation of what each component does and how it interacts with the game:

1. Game Board: The main component of Anachrony is the game board, it is where all the actions take place. It’s divided into several sections, each representing different aspects of the game, such as the mine, the capital, the outlands, and the time rift.

2. Faction Boards: Each player receives a faction board. This represents their home base, where they can build buildings, recruit workers, and perform various actions. It also tracks resources and the status of the player’s time travel.

3. Worker Meeples: Each player has a set of worker meeples in their color. Workers are used to perform actions on the game board and on the player’s faction board. There are four types of workers: administrators, engineers, scientists, and laborers, each with their unique abilities.

4. Buildings: Buildings provide players with various benefits, including resources, victory points, and special abilities. There are four types of buildings: Life Support, Superproject, Power Plant, and Factory.

5. Resource Tokens: There are four types of resources in Anachrony: water, titanium, uranium, and gold. These are represented by tokens and are used to build buildings, recruit workers, and perform other actions.

6. Exosuit Tokens: These tokens represent the exosuits that players use to send their workers to the capital. Without an exosuit, a worker cannot perform actions on the main game board.

7. Time Travel Tokens: These tokens are used to track the player’s time travel. When a player time travels, they can borrow resources from the future. However, they must eventually pay back these resources, or risk creating a time paradox.

8. Anomaly Tokens: If a player fails to resolve their time paradoxes, they receive an anomaly token. Anomalies limit the player’s actions and can lead to negative victory points at the end of the game.

9. Evacuation Condition Cards: These cards represent the goals that each player is trying to achieve before the impact. Completing these cards can provide a significant number of victory points.

10. Impact Tile: This tile represents the cataclysmic event that occurs in the middle of the game. After the impact, the game board changes, providing new challenges and opportunities for the players.

Game setup Lay it out, line it up, let’s go

Anachrony is a complex, strategy-based board game where players lead their factions to prosperity in a post-apocalyptic world. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to set up the game.

Firstly, ensure that players understand their Roles and Factions:

Each player should choose a faction to lead. The factions are: Path of Dominance, Path of Progress, Path of Harmony, and Path of Salvation.
Each faction has a unique ability that players can utilize during the game.
Provide each player with their faction board, which details their unique ability and starting resources.

The Main Board and Timeline placement:

Place the main board in the center of the play area. This board contains the different action spaces where players will place their workers.
Attach the timeline board to the top of the main board. This board tracks the current era and determines which events occur.

Setting up the Initial Resources:

Each player starts with a set number of workers, as indicated on their faction board.
Additionally, players also start with a certain number of resources (water, gold, uranium, and titanium) as outlined on their faction board.
Place the workers and resources on their respective spots on the faction board.

Handling the Random Elements:

Shuffle the World Council card deck and place it next to the main board. Draw the top six cards and place them face up next to the deck.
Randomly determine the first player and give them the first player marker. This player will go first in the initial era.
Shuffle the Era cards and place them in a face-down stack next to the timeline board. Draw the top card and place it face up on the first era space of the timeline board. This card will determine the events of the first era.

Once the setup is complete, you’re ready to start playing Anachrony!

Game flow Round and round we go

Anachrony is a complex, worker-placement board game that is played in a series of rounds known as “Eras”. Each Era is divided into seven phases where players have the opportunity to perform several actions. Here is a detailed breakdown of these phases:

1. Paradox Phase

In the Paradox Phase, players potentially generate paradoxes for each of their Warp tiles. These paradoxes may cause Anomalies, which can negatively impact the player’s game progress.

2. Power Up Phase

In the Power Up Phase, players decide which Exosuits to power up and prepare for dispatch. It’s important to note that the number of Exosuits a player can power up is limited by their available power sources.

3. Warp Phase

During the Warp Phase, players may warp in resources or workers from the future. However, these will need to be paid back later to prevent time anomalies.

4. Action Rounds

Preparation Sub-phase: Players place their workers in their available Exosuits and prepare them for dispatch.
Dispatch Sub-phase: Players take turns to perform one action at a time using their dispatched Exosuits. These actions can include mining, building, researching, recruiting and time traveling.

5. Clean Up Phase

After all actions are taken, players will remove their workers from their Exosuits and return them to their supply.

6. End of Era

At the end of each Era, players prepare for the next one by returning all of their Exosuits to their supply, removing resources from the main board and re-populating it for the next Era.

7. Impact Phase

The Impact Phase occurs after the fourth Era. In this phase, players need to ensure that their path is clear of debris, and that they have enough resources to withstand the impact. Those who are not prepared may suffer penalties.

The game of Anachrony continues in this manner until the final End of Era phase is complete. The player with the most victory points at the end of the game is declared the winner.

Players'turn One turn to rule them all

Anachrony is a complex, strategy-driven board game where players navigate a post-apocalyptic landscape to build the best possible future for their faction. A player’s turn in ‘Anachrony’ involves several stages, each of which offers different actions and strategic choices. These stages are:

Prepare Phase

In the Prepare Phase, players organize their resources and workers for the upcoming round. Strategic choices here involve deciding which workers to wake up and which resources to focus on, based on their current and future objectives.

Paradox Phase

The Paradox Phase comes next where players risk generating paradoxes if they have borrowed resources from the future. The more they have borrowed, the higher the risk. If enough paradoxes are accumulated, they may cause a temporary glitch, leading to negative points at the end of the game. Strategic choices here include deciding whether the rewards of borrowing from the future outweigh the potential risks.

Power Up Phase

During the Power Up Phase, players decide which of their exosuits to power up and make available for this round. Powering up more exosuits allows for more actions but at the cost of precious resources. It’s a crucial decision point in the game, requiring players to balance immediate needs against long-term strategy.

Action Rounds

Next, the Action Rounds begin, where players take turns to perform one action at a time. Actions include sending exosuits to the main board to obtain resources, construct buildings, recruit new workers, or achieve other strategic objectives. Alternatively, players can perform actions on their own player boards such as activating buildings, researching technologies, or preparing for time travel. The choice of actions can significantly influence the player’s progress and scoring potential in the game.

Clean Up Phase

Finally, the Clean Up Phase involves preparing the game board for the next round. All exosuits are returned, resources are restocked, and any time travel loans due this round must be repaid. Players must strategize to ensure they have the necessary resources to repay their loans and avoid negative effects.

Each player’s turn in ‘Anachrony’ is thus a series of strategic decisions, balancing current needs with future goals while managing resources and risks. The choices made during these turns significantly shape the player’s journey and final standing in the game.

End of the game All good games must come to an end

The game of Anachrony ends after the fourth Era, or earlier if a player triggers the Impact by using a specific action on their player board, and then all players have finished their actions for that round. The game also ends if there are no more buildings available to be built.

Victory Conditions

The main objective of Anachrony is to acquire the most victory points (VPs) by the end of the game. The victory points can be gained through various methods:

Building structures and superprojects
Advancing on the three different tracks (science, military, and morale)
Collecting anomaly tokens
Evacuating your capital city
Completing missions

At the end of the game, each player adds up all of their victory points. The player with the most victory points wins. In case of a tie, the player with the most remaining resources is the winner.

Actions Before Final Scoring

Before final scoring, each player must perform the following actions:

Resource Conversion: Players may convert any remaining resources into victory points. The conversion rate is indicated on the player board.
Evacuate Capital City: If a player has not yet evacuated their capital city, they must do so now. They score victory points based on the evacuation condition of the capital city.
Resolve Anomalies: Players must resolve any anomalies on their player board. Each unresolved anomaly subtracts victory points from the player’s total score.
Score Missions: Players score victory points for any completed missions. Incomplete missions do not score any points.

Once these actions are completed, players proceed to final scoring.

Scoring Did you outsmart your rivals?

Anachrony is a complex and strategy-driven board game. Scoring in Anachrony is dependent on various actions and achievements throughout the game. Here is a detailed breakdown of the scoring system.

1. Buildings:

At the end of the game, players earn Victory Points (VPs) for their constructed Buildings. The number of VPs each Building is worth is indicated on its tile.

2. Superprojects:

Players also earn VPs for their constructed Superprojects. The number of VPs each Superproject is worth is indicated on its tile.

3. Evacuation:

If a player has successfully evacuated before the Impact, they score VPs equal to their Evacuation Condition’s current level. Failing to evacuate results in no points from this category.

4. Anomalies:

Any Anomalies a player has at the end of the game will deduct VPs from their total score. Each Anomaly subtracts -3 VPs.

5. Unused Resources:

Players will earn 1 VP for every set of 3 unused Resources (Water, Gold, Titanium, Uranium, and Neutronium) they have at the end of the game.

6. Time Travel:

Players score VPs for each successful Time Travel they performed during the game. Each successful Time Travel is worth 1 VP.

Tie-Breaking Rules:

In the event of a tie, the following rules are applied, in order, until the tie is broken:

The player with the fewest Anomalies wins.
If still tied, the player who performed the most successful Time Travels wins.
If there’s still a tie, the player who has the most unused Resources wins.
If a tie still persists, the player who is earlier in the turn order wins.

Particular Cases and Exceptions Wait… is that legal?

Anachrony is a complex and nuanced board game, and as such, there are numerous special rules, exceptions, and important clarifications that players must be aware of. This guide will elucidate those elements of the game.

Special Rule: Time Travel

One of the signature mechanics in Anachrony is time travel. You can send resources back in time to your past self. However, it’s crucial to remember that each time you use this ability, you must place a Paradox token on the corresponding era on the timeline. Accumulating too many Paradox tokens can lead to anomalies, which can negatively impact your gameplay.

Special Rule: The Doomsday Module

If you choose to incorporate the Doomsday module into your game, be aware that it introduces an entirely new endgame condition. If four or more Impact tiles reach the Doomsday area, the game ends immediately. This can significantly alter your strategy and should be kept in mind throughout gameplay.

Exception: Exosuit Limit

While each player typically only has six Exosuits, certain expansions and modules can allow players to obtain more. However, even in these cases, players may never have more than six Exosuits on the game board at any one time. Any additional Exosuits must be kept in the player’s reserve.

Rule Clarification: Evacuation

It’s important to understand that the evacuation phase is not optional. Once the Impact occurs, all players must evacuate their Capital. This is done by spending resources and workers, and if a player cannot meet the evacuation requirements, they will lose points at the end of the game.

Rule Clarification: Scoring

Although many actions in the game can earn you points immediately, there are also several ways to earn points at the end of the game. These include having a fully powered up Power Plant, having no anomalies, and meeting the requirements on your Superproject and objective cards. Make sure to keep these potential sources of points in mind throughout the game, as they can often be the difference between victory and defeat.

Tips and tricks Play smarter, not harder!

Advanced Strategies:

Understanding the various paths to victory is crucial in Anachrony. Here are some advanced strategies:

Focus on building up your exosuit supply early on. Having more exosuits allows you to do more actions and get ahead of your opponents.
Take advantage of the time travel mechanic. Borrowing resources from the future can provide a significant boost, but be sure to pay them back to avoid paradoxes.
Consider the long-term impact of your decisions. The decisions you make early in the game can have a large impact in the later rounds.
Try to plan your actions a few turns ahead. This will allow you to make the most efficient use of your workers and resources.

Beginner Tips:

If you’re new to Anachrony, these tips will help you get started:

Make sure to understand the rules thoroughly. Anachrony has a lot of moving parts, so it’s important to know how everything works.
Start with the basic game before moving on to the modules. The modules add additional complexity and are best tackled after you have a good understanding of the base game.
Don’t be afraid to use the time travel mechanic. It may seem risky, but it can provide a significant advantage if used correctly.
Keep an eye on what your opponents are doing. Try to anticipate their actions and plan your strategy accordingly.

Common Mistakes to Avoid:

Even experienced players can make these common mistakes in Anachrony:

Not paying back borrowed resources. This can lead to paradoxes, which can have a negative impact on your game.
Ignoring the power plant track. The power plant provides a steady supply of energy cores, which are vital for powering exosuits and other actions.
Not diversifying your workforce. Having a variety of worker types allows you to take a wider range of actions.
Forgetting about evacuation. You need to prepare for the end of the game and evacuate your city before the impact.

Ways to Optimize Gameplay:

Here are some ways to optimize your gameplay in Anachrony:

Try to keep your options open. It’s good to have a strategy, but you also need to be flexible and able to adapt to changing circumstances.
Use your workers efficiently. Try to always have a worker in an exosuit and avoid having idle workers whenever possible.
Keep track of the morale track. High morale can provide extra victory points, while low morale can lead to penalties.
Take advantage of opportunities to score victory points. There are many ways to score points in Anachrony, so be sure to explore all of them.