Project: ELITE

Game Overview

Project: ELITE is a fast-paced cooperative board game for 1 to 6 players who take on the role of members of an ELITE squad recruited to stop an invading alien force. These fearless soldiers have been assigned several missions that must be fulfilled before their window of operations closes and time runs out. While the game itself controls the aliens and their activations, players engage in frantic rounds of real-time dice rolling that allow them to move, search for weapons and items, and fight against the incoming swarm of aliens.

Introduction

Doctor Kohm did his best not to fidget, but he kept smoothing his tie like a man obsessed. He’d given plenty of briefings in his time at the United Nations, but never one of this scale. Not that there even was such a thing as United Nations anymore. That building had been vaporized along with most of New York City.

“Doctor? They’re ready.”

The soldier led him through a long, stark concrete corridor to a briefing room shrouded in darkness but for a spot near the projection screen. The escort announced the doctor to the room. He couldn’t really see anyone, but got the impression of suits and uniforms beyond the edge of the gloom. That and nervous energy. His tablet contained the sum total of what they knew about the invasion; an all-too-brief document.

“Secretary General, Presidents, Generals, and Ambassadors, I’m Doctor Kohm.” He tapped a button on his tablet, and the projection wall behind him bloomed into a dozen horrific images of twisted creatures; some mockeries of humankind, others utterly alien. “The many faces of our enemy.”

“There’s more than that!” said the UN General near the front.

“Yes, but these larger ones are the true Janusians.”

The General snorted: “Are we really calling them that?”

“Er… well, they come from Proxima Centauri b, a planet we’ve dubbed Janus for the two-faced god—”

“Proxies,” he interrupted flatly. “That’s how the troops call ‘em.”

Kohm shrugged. “Proxies then. They’ve got many more troops of varying specialties.” Several more taps, and images appeared. “Smaller, and far less intelligent. Like six-year-olds.”

“That spit acid and run at forty miles per hour.”

“Yes, General,” said Kohm. “They’re absolute masters of genetic engineering. We surmise this was used to adapt to their dying world. Proxima Centauri b orbits their star at a fraction of the distance than even Mercury orbits our sun. It’s a dim, dark star throwing off little heat. While the zone is technically habitable, the planet has degraded significantly over time, due to radiation and intense stellar winds. I’m sure they’ve known their world was doomed for some time.”

“So they want ours” said the General. “Well, they can’t have it.”

A murmur of agreement circled the room.

“Indeed, General. At one time, perhaps some accommodation might’ve been possible—”

“That ended when they destroyed our interplanetary infrastructure and Mars Colony went silent. Let’s not even talk about the craters that were Earth’s largest cities. So, cut to the chase. How do we stop them?”

This was the tricky part. Kohm swiped an orbital map image to the screen. “This is their invasion fleet, currently in stationary orbit behind the Moon. From here they’re able to launch attacks on us with impunity. The only reason we’re still here is because they want the planet intact. Otherwise, they could just as easily drop an asteroid on us. Large scale bioweapons would be counter-productive as well. Mostly, they seem interested in mass abductions and strikes against our research efforts, as well as whittling away at what defenses we retain.”

The General grunted. “And your research efforts will win this for us?”

More taps, and a number of weapons appeared on the screen, as well as video of super-soldiers lifting incredible weights and running nearly as fast as the aliens. “Their technology is formidable, but not incomprehensible. Once we can put some of these prototypes into mass production, we can fight back on much more equal terms. We are so close.”

The General was nodding, along with positive murmurs through the room. Kohm took a deep breath. “Time, General. That’s all what we need.”

The General grunted. “That’s the one thing I can’t buy you. Not easily, anyway.” He contemplated the screens for a moment. “Still, there’s a plan in the works. It’s risky, but it might work perfectly with you and your prototypes. Let me tell you all about Project: ELITE.”

Improve Your Game Experience!

With music carefully created by Orkestra and with an amazing production by Labirinto Filmes, the Project: ELITE app offers a timer function for the real-time Action Phase, along with custom made soundtracks to transport players to the battlefield, which react and adapt to the amount of time left, escalating the tension and cueing players on time left.

Game Components

• 6 Hero Figures: Kinje, Kara, Voker, Gilgamesh, Akosha, Gherid
• 53 Alien Figures:
  • 45 Swarm Figures: 15 Biters, 15 Shooters, 15 Runners
  • 8 Boss Figures: Ashar, Mindeater, Searsting, Naga, Gutslug, Thraex, Dreadspit, Reanimated Harrier
• 6 Hero Dashboards
• 6 Counter Bases
• 1 Electronic Timer
• 1 Double-Sided Map Board (Abandoned Lab / Crash Site)
• 1 Rulebook

Cards, Dice, and Tokens

• 64 Equipment Cards: 8 Basic Weapons, 40 Search Cards, 16 Alien Tech Cards
• 25 Event Cards
• 30 Swarm Spawn Cards
• 3 Swarm Stats Cards
• 20 Boss Spawn Cards: 8 Boss Stats Cards, 12 All Clear Cards
• 6 Player Aid Cards
• 42 Dice: 18 Hit Dice, 24 Action Dice
• 6 Damage Markers
• 88 Tokens:
  • 12 Target Tokens
  • 24 1-Health Tokens
  • 12 3-Health Tokens
  • 12 Acid Tokens
  • 4 Slime Tokens
  • 6 Kara Ability Tokens
  • 3 Alien Cluster Tokens
  • 3 Search Tokens
  • 12 Trap Tokens
• 28 Double-Sided Objective Tokens: Exploration Tokens, Demolition / Recon Tokens, Extermination / Capture Tokens

Game Setup

1. Choose 1 side of the Map board and place it faceup in the center of the table. Given the game’s real time aspect, it is very important the Map is within easy reach of all players.
2. Each player does the following:
   • Choose a Hero and take the corresponding Hero dashboard and figure.
   • Choose a player color and collect the matching Damage marker and counter base. Place the Hero dashboard in front of you, with the Damage marker on the leftmost slot of the Damage Track. Then, attach the counter base to the Hero figure and place it on the Starting Area.
   • Take 1 Player Aid card.
   • Take 4 Action dice and 3 Hit dice.
3. Randomly take a number of Basic Weapons equal to the number of players + 2 and place them faceup in the center of the Map. Then, each player chooses and equips 1 Basic Weapon card. Return any unselected cards to the box.
4. Place the Swarm Stats cards faceup next to the Map so they are all visible to all players.
5. Take 8 Boss Stats cards, shuffle them with 12 All Clear cards, and place them facedown near the Map, forming the Boss Spawn deck.
6. Separate the Search, Alien Tech, and Swarm Spawn cards into 3 separate decks. Shuffle each of them and place the decks next to the Map.
7. Choose a Mission and select a difficulty level: Easy, Medium, or Hard. Each Mission has its own unique setup and rules.
8. Return any unselected Heroes to the box. Place all the Alien figures next to the Map board.

9. Each Event card displays a number in its bottom right corner. Sort the Event cards in different piles according to the rows below and shuffle each pile. Then, take a total of 8 cards according to the chosen difficulty level below. Return the remaining cards to the box. Shuffle the selected cards and place them facedown in line near the Map, forming the Event track.

10. Shuffle the Alien Cluster tokens and randomly place them in the Alien Cluster slots on the Map, with their numbers faceup.
11. Place the Search tokens on the Search slots in the Map, with their light side faceup.
12. Place the remaining tokens in separate pools next to the Map.
13. Players collectively decide who will be the Timekeeper in charge of the electronic timer during the Action Phase. That player takes the electronic timer.

Solo Mode

To play Project: ELITE with a single player, follow the normal Game Setup instructions with these adjustments:

1. The player chooses any 2 Heroes to play with.
2. Instead of the 4 Action dice per Hero, the player takes a total of 5 Action dice. During the game, dice results can be distributed between the 2 Heroes.
3. During the Alien Spawning Phase, Aliens are Spawned as in a 2-player game.

Map Board Anatomy

Project: ELITE’s double-sided Map board provides 2 different scenarios: the Abandoned Lab and the Crash Site. Both sides share the following common features printed on the Map board:

1. Starting Area: Each Map has a Starting Area denoted by hazard stripes on its borders. This is the area where Heroes are placed at the beginning of each Mission. Reaching the Starting Area is the Aliens’ ultimate goal.
2. Alien Cluster Slot: Spaces where Alien Cluster tokens are placed.
3. Spawn Point: Spaces where Alien figures will be placed during the Spawning Phase.
4. Objective Slots: Numbered areas that are used during Missions’ Setup.
5. Search Slots: Spaces where Search tokens are placed.
6. Alien Path: A series of arrows indicating the mandatory paths Aliens use when moving.
7. Spaces: Each Space on the Map can fit only 1 figure. Spaces sharing an edge or corner with another Space are considered to be adjacent to one another. Spaces are denoted by gridlines.
8. Walls: Some Spaces on the Map are separated by Walls, which block movement between Spaces as well as around Wall corners. Spaces separated by Walls are not considered to be adjacent.
9. Blocking Spaces: Some Spaces don’t have gridlines on all 4 sides. These are Blocking Spaces. No figure can be placed on them or be Pushed into them. They also block Line of Sight.

Hero Dashboard

Hero dashboards are used to keep track of Heroes’ Abilities, Damage, Weapons, Items, and Dice Effects.

• A. Name
• B. Illustration
• C. Damage Threshold
• D. Damage Track: The Damage marker on the Damage track represents the current status of the Hero’s life.
• E. Locked Dice Slots: When a Damage marker crosses a Damage Threshold , the Hero loses 1 Action die and places it in this slot.
• F. Special Ability: A unique characteristic that sets each Hero apart from the others.
• G. Weapon Slots: Each Hero dashboard features 2 slots where the Hero’s Weapons can be placed. Each Hero can only carry up to 2 Weapons at any time. When they find new Weapons, they must choose which 2 to keep.
• H. Items Area: Indicates where the Hero’s Item cards are placed. Unlike Weapons, there is no limit to the number of Items a Hero may carry.

Action and Hit Dice

In Project: ELITE, Heroes use 2 types of dice:

• Action dice: Used during the Action Phase, Action dice have specific symbols on each face that allow Heroes to perform different Actions.
• Hit dice: Hit dice are used to activate Weapons and Items, and to determine where Bosses Spawn.

Action Slots

Action slots indicate places on various game components where Action dice must be allocated to activate or cancel effects. There are 2 types of slots:

• Regular slots: These slots have a blue background and may be used multiple times during each Action Phase by having dice with the corresponding symbols allocated to them. Heroes may retrieve the dice allocated to Regular slots at any time.
• Locking slots: These slots have a red background and a textured border. Whenever a Hero allocates a die on this slot, it must remain there until the end of the Round. This means each Locking slot can be used only once during each Action Phase.
• Double Locking slots: Require players to allocate both Action dice on it.

Action Slots in Detail

• During the first activation of cards that feature a Regular and a Locking slot, you need to allocate 2 Action dice. However, in future activations, the Action die on the Locked slot is kept on the card and the Weapon can be activated as if it had only the Regular Slot.
• For cards with Double Locking slots, you need to allocate 2 Action dice that will remain in the slots until the End of the Round, meaning that the Weapon can only be used once during the round.

NOTE: You must retrieve dice from all slots at the end of the Round. Remember that you can still use any unused ready equipment once after the time of the Action Phase is over.

When you have to lock an Action die because your Damage marker crossed a threshold, you can choose any of your dice, even if it already was in a Locked slot. Note that completed Events or Objectives that have dice removed from them for this purpose will remain completed. This means that, since they were already completed, Events won’t affect the game and Objectives are still considered ready. However, if you remove a die from an incomplete Event or Objective, then that slot will need to have a new die allocated to it in order to be completed.

Search cards, Items, and Weapons that have dice removed from them cannot be used again during the same Action Phase. Flip the card if you need a reminder that the card was already used until the next Action Phase.

Acid and Slime Tokens

Some Alien abilities might include the use of Slime and Acid tokens. Each Space can have up to 1 token of each type, but can have several different tokens on it, like Objective, Acid and Slime tokens.

• Acid tokens: Whenever a Hero enters a Space containing an Acid token, they suffer 1 Damage. Aliens ignore Acid tokens.
• Slime tokens: Whenever an Alien enters a Space containing a Slime token, that Alien must immediately be moved 1 additional Space following the Alien Path. Heroes ignore Slime tokens.

Round Structure

A game of Project: ELITE is played over a maximum of 8 Game Rounds. Each Game Round is broken up into the following Phases:

1. Event Phase
2. Alien Spawning Phase
3. Action Phase
4. Alien Activation Phase
5. End of the Round Phase

1. Event Phase

At the beginning of each Game Round, the Heroes reveal the left-most unrevealed Event card on the Event Track. There are 3 types of Events:

• Ongoing Effect (Events 1-16): When revealed, these cards add an Ongoing effect to the game which stays active until its requirements are fulfilled.
• No Effect (Events 17-21): When revealed, these cards have no effect and play continues to the next Phase.
• Immediate Effect (Events 22-25): When revealed, resolve this card’s effect immediately, then play continues to the next Phase.

Event Card Anatomy:

• A. Title
• B. Action Slots: These slots list the Action dice that must be allocated in order to fulfill the Ongoing Event. The number of slots that need to be filled is based on the number of players. The top-left corner of each slot indicates the applicable player count.
• C. Event Effect: The card’s effect, which stays active every Game Round until its requirements are fulfilled.
• D. Event Number: The card’s number, which is used to build the Event track. It also lists the Event type: Immediate, Ongoing, or No Effect.

Resolving an Event

To resolve an Event with an Ongoing effect, Heroes must allocate Action dice with matching results to the Event card’s Locking slots. Heroes may do this from any Space of the Map.

When Action dice have been allocated to all Action Slots of the Event card, it is fulfilled and will cease to affect the game after the Action Phase has ended. During the End of the Round Phase, remove any fulfilled Event card with an Ongoing effect and return all dice allocated back to their owners. If the Event wasn’t fulfilled, it will continue to affect the game.

Multiple Events may be active at the same time. If Heroes fail to resolve an Event, it will remain on the Map, stacking with Events from any future Rounds.

2. Alien Spawning Phase

During this Phase, the Alien forces receive reinforcements based on the chosen difficulty and number of players in the game:

The Alien Spawning Phase is broken into 2 steps, which take place in order: Swarm Spawn Step and Boss Spawn Step.

Swarm Spawn Step

To Spawn new Alien Swarms, reveal and resolve the required number of cards from the top of the Swarm Spawn deck, 1 card at a time.

• A. Type: Indicates the type of Alien Swarm to Spawn: Biter, Runner, or Shooter.
• B. Quantity: The number of Alien figures to Spawn.
• C. Location: The Spawn Points where the Alien figures must be placed. Each Spawned figure must be placed on a Spawn point adjacent to the indicated Alien Cluster token. NOTE: When [?] is shown instead of a number, players collectively choose an Alien Cluster token.
• D. Activation: This icon indicates that the Aliens Spawned by this card perform their Ability Step and then perform their Movement Step. This happens immediately after all Alien figures generated by the current Swarm Card are placed on the Map. Newly Spawned Aliens don’t activate during this Phase unless an activation icon is present. Aliens activated during this Phase will be activated again during the Alien Activation Phase.

If all eligible Spawn Points are currently occupied by figures (Aliens or Heroes), players must Push figures to make room for the Swarms being Spawned. Players collectively decide which figures to Push. Pushed Alien figures must move following the Alien Path. Pushed Heroes suffer 1 Damage but don’t need to follow the Alien Path.

If there aren’t enough figures to Spawn the required number or type of Aliens generated by a Swarm Spawn card, Spawn as many as possible and immediately resolve an Alien movement for each missing figure.

IMPORTANT: If at any point the Heroes need to draw a Swarm Spawn card and the deck does not have enough cards, reshuffle the discard pile to form a new Swarm Spawn deck.

Boss Spawn Step

To Spawn new Alien Bosses, reveal and resolve the required number of cards from the top of the Boss Spawn deck, 1 card at a time. There are 2 possible outcomes when revealing a Boss Spawn card:

• Boss Stats: This card Spawns the shown Boss. Find the Boss figure that matches the card, roll a Hit die to determine an Alien Cluster token, and place the miniature on a Spawn Point adjacent to it. Use the following results of the Hit die:
  • 1-2: Alien Cluster token 1
  • 3-4: Alien Cluster token 2
  • 5-6: Alien Cluster token 3
• All Clear: The card is discarded with no effect.

Boss Card Anatomy:

• A. Name
• B. Ability: Unique to each Boss.
• C. Health: The number of Health tokens to place on the Boss Stats card when it Spawns.
• D. Activation: This icon indicates that the Alien Spawned by this card immediately performs its Ability Step and then performs its Movement Step.
• E. Movement Value: The number of Spaces a Boss moves during its activation.

If all eligible Spawn Points are currently occupied by figures (Alien or Hero), the players must follow the normal Swarm Spawn rules, Pushing figures as needed.

IMPORTANT: A Boss is killed when its Health is reduced to 0. When this happens, remove both its figure and Stats card from the game. The Hero who dealt the final blow takes an Alien Tech. Additionally, the Boss Spawn deck is never reshuffled, even if there are no cards left in it.

3. Action Phase

The Action Phase takes place in real-time and is controlled by the electronic timer. The standard Action Phase duration is 2 minutes, during which the Heroes repeatedly roll their dice to perform different Actions.

At the beginning of each Action Phase, the Timekeeper sets the timer (the electronic or the APP) to 2 minutes and all players should make sure they have their Action and Hit dice at hand. Once everyone is ready, the Timekeeper starts the timer and all players begin rolling their Action dice.

NOTE: Some Events, Items, Aliens, and other game components may have effects that change the duration of the Action Phase. The Timekeeper must adjust the timer accordingly in such cases.

Given the Action Phase’s real-time and simultaneous nature, sometimes Heroes may perform actions or take decisions which do not go as expected for themselves or for the group. However, once an Action is performed, it may not be taken back, regardless of its consequences.

If, during the Action Phase, any die rolls off the table, players may stop the timer, retrieve the die, and then resume the timer and continue with the Action Phase. While the timer is stopped, Heroes are not allowed to perform any Actions or discuss their plans.

Rolling, Spending, and Allocating Action dice

All players take some or all their Action dice and roll them. Then, they each may choose 1 or more of their rolled dice and resolve it either by:

• Spending it by setting the die aside and resolving its effect, OR
• Allocating it in an Action slot.

Throughout the Action Phase, the players may reroll any number of their Action dice any number of times, in any combination. The players may choose to resolve any result rolled, or may choose to reroll it. However, any results must be resolved before rerolling or performing any other Actions. Once an Action die is resolved, it becomes available to be used again, provided it was not placed in a Locking slot.

Hero Actions

During the Action Phase, the players spend the results of their rolled Action dice to perform various Actions:

• Move Action: When a player spends this result , they may choose to move their Hero figure 1 Space in any direction, orthogonally or diagonally. If more than 1 result is rolled, the Hero may be moved multiple Spaces at once. Heroes cannot move through Walls, nor may they move diagonally across a Wall’s corner.
• Allocate Action: Dice showing these results (, , ) may be allocated to the corresponding Action Slots in order to activate Equipment, resolve Ongoing Events, and complete Objective tokens.
• Search Action: Heroes may spend 1 to make a Search action when standing on a Search token with its light side up or being adjacent to it. Each Search slot can only be used once per Round. To Search, the Hero may either:
  • Option A: Immediately draw 3 cards from the top of the Search Deck, choose 1 to keep, and discard the other 2. Then, flip the Search token facedown, showing that the Action is no longer available in this Space for the rest of the current Round. (NOTE: You may choose to immediately equip any Weapon or Item cards you keep, or discard them.)
  • Option B: Immediately take the Search token off the Map and place it next to your dashboard. At the end of the Action Phase, draw 3 cards from the top of the Search Deck, choose 1 to keep, and discard the other 2 cards. Return the Search token, light face up, to its Search slot at the end of the Round.

NOTE: Heroes can also allocate dice in matching Action Slots in order to activate Equipment, resolve Ongoing Events, and complete Objective tokens.

IMPORTANT: If at any point the Heroes need to draw a Search card and the deck does not have enough cards, reshuffle the discard pile to form a new Search deck.

Blocking Elements

Heroes cannot move through Spaces that don’t have gridlines on all sides (e.g. trees, water, etc). These are Blocking Spaces. No figure can be placed in it or be Pushed into them. Heroes can move through the corners of Blocking Spaces normally.

NOTE: Heroes cannot move through Spaces occupied by other Heroes or Aliens, except when they are being Pushed by an Alien. Heroes cannot Push other Heroes or Aliens, unless it happens because they are themselves being Pushed.

Alien Movement & Pushing

Whenever a Hero rolls an result, before doing any other Action or rerolling any dice, they must choose any 1 Alien (Swarm or Boss) figure on the Map and move it 1 Space following the Alien Path. If multiple results are rolled at the same time, the Hero may choose how to spend these results, distributing them among 1 or more Alien figures. If an Alien figure moves into a Space currently occupied by another figure, the Alien will Push it.

Unlike the other Action dice results, resolving the result is mandatory. When a Hero rolls 1 or more results, they cannot perform any other Actions or reroll any other dice until after all results are resolved.

NOTE: Players may choose to delay the resolution of their results as long as they’d like, provided they perform no other Actions in the meantime. However, all results must be resolved at the end of the Action Phase.

When an Alien figure enters an occupied Space, the occupant is Pushed out, making room for the newcomer. If the occupant was:

• An Alien: it moves 1 Space following the Alien Path. If a Space has multiple Paths, the Heroes choose which to follow.
• A Hero: they suffer 1 Damage and move 1 Space in any direction (except around Wall corners). If a Hero is Pushed multiple times, they will suffer 1 Damage for each time they are Pushed.

NOTE: A Pushed figure may end up Pushing another figure, and so on. A Hero Pushing another figure neither suffers nor inflicts any Damage.

IMPORTANT: If any Alien figure moves into the Starting Area, the game is immediately over and the Heroes are Defeated!

Completing an Objective Token

When a Hero is adjacent to an Objective token, they may allocate matching dice to their Action slots. When all slots are filled with Action dice, that token is considered ready.

Heroes win the game when they complete the Mission and all Heroes return to the Starting Area.

A completed Objective is only resolved during the End of Round Phase, when the players get to retrieve their Locked dice. It means that, after completing the Mission’s Objective and reaching the Starting Area, the Heroes still have to go through a last Alien Activation Phase before they win the game!

Time’s Up!

As soon as the timer reaches zero, the Timekeeper must announce “Time’s up!”. Heroes cannot roll any more Action dice and any leftover unallocated result is immediately discarded without resolution, with the exception of unsolved which must be resolved now.

Then, any ready Equipment may be used once before moving to the Alien Activation Phase. Heroes also resolve any Search token on their dashboards and Alien Tech cards previously collected, if they chose to set them aside during the Action Phase. This is also a good time for Heroes within Range 1 and with Line of Sight of each other to give or exchange Equipment cards.

4. Alien Activation Phase

The Alien Activation Phase is broken into 2 steps, which take place in order: Alien Ability Step and Alien Movement Step.

Alien Ability Step

During this step, all Aliens perform any available Abilities listed on their Stats cards (in case of Swarms) or Spawn cards (in case of Bosses). Heroes choose the order in which specific Bosses or Swarms will perform their Abilities. In the case of Swarms, once a type is chosen, ALL Aliens of that type must perform their Ability before another type.

Any Alien Ability or Ongoing Event effect that takes place at the beginning of the Alien Ability Phase takes place BEFORE any other effects. Conversely, any Alien Ability or game effect that takes place at the end of the Alien Ability Phase takes place AFTER all other effects. If there are multiple effects that are supposed to take place at the same time, Heroes simply choose the order in which they happen.

Swarm Stats Cards

• A. Type
• B. Ability: Indicates the Swarm’s Ability (if any).
• C. Health
• D. Movement Value: The number of Spaces each figure moves during the Alien Movement Step.

Heroes Suffering Damage

As a consequence of the Aliens performing their Abilities, Heroes may end up suffering Damage. Whenever a Hero suffers Damage, move the Damage marker to the right of their Damage Track by a number of slots equal to the amount of Damage suffered. Whenever the hero heals Damage, move the Damage marker to the left accordingly.

If the Damage marker crosses a Damage Threshold when moving from left to right, the Hero loses 1 Action die and places it in this slot. This Locked die can only be recovered when the Damage marker crosses back that Damage Threshold. Note that some Items and some Heroes’ abilities can recover Health.

If a Hero’s Damage marker would have to move beyond the rightmost space of their Damage Track, that Hero is killed and the game ends immediately in Defeat.

Alien Movement Step

Once each Alien has performed its Abilities, all Swarm and Boss figures on the Map move. Each Swarm type and Boss has its own Movement value, which indicates the number of Spaces each figure will move.

Heroes may move the Alien figures in any order they wish, but all Alien figures must move their full Movement Value during each Alien Movement Step. Alien figures move following the Alien Path printed on the Map. For all and any Alien Movement the Alien Path must be followed, unless stated otherwise. If a Space has multiple options, Heroes choose which path to move the Alien figure.

When an Alien enters an occupied Space, the original occupant gets Pushed.

IMPORTANT: If any Alien figure moves into the Starting Area, the game is immediately over and the Heroes have been Defeated!

5. End of the Round Phase

After concluding the Alien Activation Phase, the End of the Round Phase begins and Heroes perform the following steps in order:

1. Check for Victory or Defeat: according to the conditions below.
2. Retrieve Action dice: Heroes retrieve any Action dice allocated to Locking slots. When retrieving dice, also remove any completed Event cards.
3. Reset Search Tokens: Search tokens are returned light side faceup in the Search slots on the Map.

Winning or Losing the Game

• Victory: The game ends in Victory if the Mission’s Objective has been successfully completed AND all Heroes have returned to the Starting Area.
• Defeat: The game ends in Defeat if:
  • A Hero dies, OR
  • An Alien is in the Starting Area at the end of the Action Phase, OR
  • The 8th Round has ended and the Mission’s Objective has not been completed.

NOTE: If any Alien moves into the Starting Area during the Alien Spawning Phase, it doesn’t trigger the Defeat. Those Aliens stay there during the Action Phase, and if any of them is alive after it ends, the game ends in Defeat. Aliens in the Starting Area cannot be moved. If any additional Alien moves into the Starting Area while there is already an Alien there, the game ends in Defeat.

Equipment Overview

Equipment cards are Weapons, Items, and Attachments acquired through Search Actions and/or defeating Bosses. Heroes may give or exchange Equipment cards with other Heroes in adjacent Spaces anytime during the Round, but BEFORE the Alien Activation Phase begins.

NOTE: An Equipment card with any Locked dice cannot be transferred.

Weapons

• A. Name
• B. Dice slot(s)
• C. Weapon Effect, if any.
• D. Range: If an infinity symbol is shown, this Weapon has unlimited Range.
• E. Hit dice: The number of Hit dice rolled when attacking.
• F. To-Hit Value: The minimum dice value needed for a successful Hit.
• G. Attachment Restriction: Restrictions for adding Attachments, if any.

To activate a Weapon, Heroes must allocate Action dice with symbols matching the Weapon’s Action slots. Dice may be allocated in any order, in singles or groups. The Weapon is only ready when all its dice slots are filled.

Attacking with Weapons

At any point during the Action Phase, Heroes may attack with any of their ready Weapons. Check the Weapon Effect (C), if any, and follow the steps below:

1. Roll Hit dice: Roll a number of Hit dice equal to the Weapon’s Hit dice value (E).
2. Check Hits: Check how many results are greater than or equal to the Weapon’s To-Hit value (F). That is the amount of successful Hits generated by this attack. Results below the Weapon’s To-Hit value are considered Misses.
3. Assign Hits: Assign Hits among Aliens within the Weapon’s Range value (D) and Line of Sight. If multiple Hits are rolled, the Hero may choose to assign the Hits to a single figure or to distribute them between multiple figures. For each Hit dealt to a Boss, remove 1 Health token from its card. (NOTE: If you miss the Hit dice roll, remove the Action dice from the Weapon’s regular slots to indicate they’ve been spent. If a Weapon’s Hit removes more than 1 Health for each Hit dealt, the Health removed cannot be distributed between multiple figures.)
4. Kill Aliens: Any Alien whose Health is reduced to 0 is killed. Since Swarm figures have only 1 Health, 1 Hit is sufficient to kill each. Remove the killed figure from the Map and place it back in the Reserve. If a Boss is killed, it is removed from the game and its card and figure should be returned to the game box instead.
5. Spend Action dice: Remove the Action dice from the Weapon’s regular slots to indicate they’ve been spent.

NOTE: Heroes are allowed to remove Action dice that are allocated on a Weapon’s Regular slots before it is activated. However, dice allocated to Locking Action slots cannot be removed during the Action Phase. Furthermore, a Weapon that has a Locked die on it may be re-activated by reallocating Action dice to its Regular slots.

IMPORTANT: Any Weapons activated within the Starting Area have their Range reduced to 1.

Line of Sight (LOS)

In order to Attack an Alien, a Hero must have a Line of Sight (LOS) to it, and the Alien must be within their Weapon’s Range. Line of Sight may also be required to resolve specific game effects. In these instances, the game effect specifies that Line of Sight is required.

To establish if there is a Line of Sight between 2 figures, draw an imaginary line from the center of 1 figure’s Space to the center of the other figure’s Space. There is a Line of Sight if this line is not interrupted by any blocking element. Line of Sight is not blocked if it only skims a blocking corner, passing at an angle exactly through the intersection of 4 Spaces where only 1 side is blocked.

NOTE: Alien and Hero figures do NOT block Line of Sight.

Some Equipment cards specify they can only attack Aliens in straight lines. In these instances, Line of Sight can only be drawn through Spaces that line up orthogonally or diagonally.

Items

• A. Name
• B. Dice slot(s), if any.
• C. Item Effect

To activate an Item, a Hero must allocate matching Action dice to each of its Action slots. These dice do not need to be allocated all at once, meaning they can be allocated 1 at a time. The Item is only ready when all its dice slots are filled. At any point during the Action Phase, a Hero may decide to activate any of their ready Items to apply its listed effects.

Action dice may be removed from Regular slots at any point, regardless of whether or not all such slots are filled. However, dice may NOT be removed from Locking slots during the Action Phase.

Attachments

Attachments are improvements that connect to Weapon cards, enhancing the Weapon’s Range or Attack characteristics. Each Weapon can only have 1 Attachment connected to its Attack and 1 Attachment connected to its Range, meaning these stats cannot be enhanced more than once. Furthermore, some Weapon cards bear an Attachment Restriction symbol below their Attack or Range characteristic, which indicates that that Weapon’s characteristic cannot be enhanced at all.

Attachments are permanent. Once connected, they may not be removed, changed, or discarded. If the Weapon is given to another Hero or discarded, the Attachments go along with it. For all intents and purposes, consider a Weapon and its Attachments as a single piece of Equipment.

Alien Tech

Alien Tech cards are special Weapons and Items that can be gained during the Action Phase when Heroes kill Alien Bosses. Whenever a Boss is killed, the Hero that killed it may immediately draw 3 cards from the top of the Alien Tech deck, choose 1 to equip immediately, and discard the other 2. Alternatively, that Hero may set those 3 cards aside face down, without looking at them, near their Hero dashboard and wait until the end of the Action Phase to make their selection.

IMPORTANT: If at any point the Heroes need to draw an Alien Tech card and the deck does not have enough cards, reshuffle the discard pile to form a new Alien Tech deck.

Mission Overview

NOTE: The winning condition is only checked at the end of the Round and all Heroes must return to the Starting Area to win the game.

Extermination

“Alien nests have been located. They must be completely exterminated to protect humankind.”

Objective: The nests found by the exploration team are marked on the Map. It is your job to destroy them all. To win the Mission, exterminate the nests by activating all Extermination tokens.

Special Rules:

• Setup: According to the number of players indicated for each Map, fill the listed Objective slots with 1 random Extermination token each. Return the remaining tokens to the box.
  • Abandoned Lab:
    • 1 and 2 Players: 1, 4, and 11
    • 3 Players: 2, 4, 6, and 11
    • 4 Players: 2, 4, 6, 9, and 10
    • 5 Players: 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, and 11
    • 6 Players: 1, 4, 5, 7, and 9 to 11
  • Crash Site:
    • 1 and 2 Players: 7, 9, and 10
    • 3 Players: 2, 6, 9, and 10
    • 4 Players: 1, 3, 7, 9, and 10
    • 5 Players: 1, 4, and 7 to 10
    • 6 Players: 2, 3, 5, and 9 to 12
• Activating Extermination tokens: Any Hero adjacent to an Extermination token may allocate dice to it. When all slots are filled, the token is ready. At the End of the Round Phase, remove from the Map all ready Extermination tokens.

Capture

“Alien biology is still largely unknown to humankind. Live specimens need to be captured for scientific research.”

Objective: Special traps are exactly what it takes to capture living specimens, but they need the right timing to activate. To win the game, all Traps must successfully capture an Alien.

Special Rules:

• Setup: According to the number of players indicated for each Map, fill the listed Objective slots with 1 random Capture token each. Then, place 2 Trap tokens adjacent to each Capture token. Return the remaining tokens to the box.
  • Abandoned Lab:
    • 1 and 2 Players: 5 and 11
    • 3 Players: 3, 7, and 11
    • 4 Players: 2, 5, 6, and 11
    • 5 Players: 1, 3, 7, 9, and 11
    • 6 Players: 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, and 11
  • Crash Site:
    • 1 and 2 Players: 6 and 10
    • 3 Players: 7, 10, and 12
    • 4 Players: 1, and 9 to 11
    • 5 Players: 3, 6, and 10 to 12
    • 6 Players: 1, 3, 7, and 9 to 11
• Activating Traps: Any Hero adjacent to a Capture token may allocate dice to it. When all slots are filled, the Capture token is ready. At the end of the Action Phase, each ready Capture token is activated and Heroes must choose 1 Trap adjacent to the tokens to close.
• Resolving Traps: If a Trap closes with a Swarm Alien figure on it, the Capture is considered successful! Remove the Trap token from the Map and return the Swarm to the reserve. If a Trap closes without a Swarm on it, the Capture is considered unsuccessful and the Trap remains on the Map. Bosses are unaffected by Traps.
• Moving Around: Spaces occupied by Traps or Capture tokens are not considered Blocking Spaces.

Demolition

“HQ studied the Proxy waves and found strategic points that are vital to the Alien forces’ maneuvers. If we blow them up we might clear the area once and for all! We must plant charges and return back to base or we will be caught in the Demolition!”

Objective: Explosives are set and need to be placed strategically. To win the game, all Demolition tokens must be placed and activated in the specific Objective slots.

Special Rules:

• Setup: Each Hero takes one 3 and one 4 Demolition token as part of their inventory. According to the number of players indicated for each Map, fill the listed Objective slots with 1 Target token each. Return the remaining tokens to the box.
  • Abandoned Lab:
    • 1 and 2 Players: 1, 3, 7, and 11
    • 3 Players: 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 11
    • 4 Players: 1 to 4, 6, 7, 11, and 12
    • 5 Players: 1, 2, 4 to 7, and 9 to 12
    • 6 Players: All
  • Crash Site:
    • 1 and 2 Players: 6, 7, 9 and 10
    • 3 Players: 5, 7, and 9 to 12
    • 4 Players: 2, 4 to 7, 9, 10, and 12
    • 5 Players: 1 to 3, 5 to 10, and 12
    • 6 Players: All
• Activating a Demolition token: Each Demolition token can only be filled by the Hero carrying it. Heroes may exchange Demolition tokens as any Equipment. When all slots are filled, the token is ready. Any Hero adjacent to an Objective slot with a Target token on it may replace it with a ready Demolition token and discard the Target token. Once placed, a Demolition token may not be moved.

Recon

“Recon tech must be deployed on the battleground to gather more intel about the imminent Alien invasion.”

Objective: Recon tech must be placed in strategic points. To win the game, place each Recon token on a different Objective slot.

Special Rules:

• Setup: Randomly place in the Starting Area 1 faceup Recon token per Hero. Then, according to the number of players indicated for each Map, fill the listed Objective slots with 1 Target token each. Return the remaining tokens to the box.
  • Abandoned Lab:
    • 1 and 2 Players: 6 and 11
    • 3 Players: 4, 7, and 11
    • 4 Players: 2, 7, 11, and 12
    • 5 Players: 1, 5, 7, 9, and 11
    • 6 Players: 2, 4, 6, 9, 11, and 12
  • Crash Site:
    • 1 and 2 Players: 4 and 7
    • 3 Players: 1, 7, and 10
    • 4 Players: 1, 6, 9, and 10
    • 5 Players: 1, 4, 7, 9, and 11
    • 6 Players: 2 and 7 to 11
• Moving a Recon token: Any Hero adjacent to a Recon token may allocate dice to it. For each die you allocate, move the token to a Space adjacent to where the token itself is located.
• Moving around: Aliens and Heroes can move normally through Spaces with Recon tokens. However, a Recon token cannot be moved if any figure occupies its current or destination Space.
• Placing a Recon token: Recon tokens that are adjacent to Target tokens can replace them. In order to do this, Heroes must allocate 1 die to the Recon token when adjacent to it. A Recon token on an Objective slot cannot be moved anymore.

Exploration

“Records show some debris falling from an Alien ship that passed by this area a few hours ago. Let’s run an investigation and make sure there are no surprises left around here – no living ones at least.”

Objective: We can’t leave any Alien unidentified material behind: the area must be secure when we leave it. To win the Mission, reveal all Exploration tokens.

Special Rules:

• Setup: According to the number of players indicated for each Map, fill the listed Objective Slots with 1 random Exploration token each. Return the remaining tokens to the box.
  • Abandoned Lab:
    • 1 and 2 Players: 4, 7, 10, and 12
    • 3 Players: 1, 3, 4, 7, 10, and 12
    • 4 Players: 3, 4, 5, 7 to 9, 11, and 12
    • 5 Players: 1, 3, 4, 5, and 7 to 12
    • 6 Players: All
  • Crash Site:
    • 1 and 2 Players: 1, 8, 10, and 11
    • 3 Players: 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11
    • 4 Players: 1, 3, 5, 7 to 9, 11, and 12
    • 5 Players: 1 and 4 to 12
    • 6 Players: All
• Checking an Exploration token: Any Hero adjacent to an Exploration token may spend 1 to flip the token to its backside without triggering its effect. The token is flipped again and stays facedown until it is revealed.
• Revealing an Exploration token: Any Hero adjacent to an Exploration token may spend 1 to reveal it, activating its effect. After the effect is resolved, remove the Exploration token from the Map.
• Possible Exploration Effects:
  • (1x) Boss Alarm: Reveal 1 extra Boss card during the next Alien Spawning Phase.
  • (1x) Battle Scent: All Aliens move 1 extra Space during the next Alien Activation Phase.
  • (1x) Swarm Alarm: Reveal 1 extra Swarm Spawn card during the next Alien Spawning Phase.
  • (3x) Debris: No effect.
  • (3x) Alien Relic: Keep the token faceup and spend to remove it from the Map.
  • (1x) Lucky Debris: Draw 1 Search card.
  • (2x) Disband Alarm: Reveal 1 less Boss card during the next Alien Spawning Phase.

Rules Summary

Phases of the Game

1. Event Phase: Reveal the leftmost Event card. Its effect can be either Ongoing, Immediate, or No Effect.
2. Alien Spawning Phase:
   • A. Swarm Spawn: Reveal and resolve cards from the Swarm Spawn deck, according to the difficulty and number of players.
   • B. Boss Spawn: Reveal and resolve cards from the Boss Spawn deck, according to the difficulty and number of players.
3. Action Phase:
   • Set the timer to 2 minutes, unless instructed otherwise.
   • Start the timer: All Heroes act simultaneously, rolling and resolving their Action Dice.
4. Alien Activation Phase:
   • A. Alien Ability Step: Aliens (Bosses and Swarms) perform Abilities listed on their Stats / Spawn cards. Players choose the activation order.
   • B. Alien Movement Step: Each Swarm and Boss figure moves their full movement Value. Players may move the Alien figures in any order they wish.
5. End of Round Phase:
   1. Check for Victory or Defeat.
   2. Retrieve Action dice: Retrieve all Action dice allocated to Locking slots.
   3. Refresh Tokens: Return Search tokens to their slots on the Map and flip all Search tokens to their light side.

Actions

• Alien Movement: This result must be resolved before any other Action, cannot be set aside. Choose any Alien (Swarm or Boss) figure and move it exactly 1 Space following the Alien Path.
• Move: Move your Hero 1 Space in any direction.
• Search: Search when standing on a Search token light side up or adjacent to it.
• Allocate: Allocate these results to complete Objective tokens, resolve Events, or activate Equipment cards.

Dice Slots

• Regular slot: Allocate a die with the specific icon and activate it anytime during the Action Phase. The die can be retrieved and rerolled again anytime.
• Either icon slot: Allocate a die with either icon to activate it anytime during the Action Phase. The die can be retrieved and rerolled again anytime.
• Locking slot: The die allocated here is Locked until it gets unlocked during the End of Round Phase.
• Double Locking slot: Double Locking slots require players to allocate both Action dice on it.

Credits

• Game Design: Konstantinos Kokkinis and Sotirios Tsantilas
• Additional Design: Marco Portugal
• Development: Marco Portugal and Fabio Tola
• Production: Patricia Gil (Lead), Renato Sasdelli (Lead), Thiago Aranha, Marcela Fabreti, Vincent Fontaine, Raquel Fukuda, Guilherme Goulart, Rebecca Ho, Isadora Leite, Aaron Lurie, Ana Theodoro, and Safuan Tay
• Art: Saeed Jalabi, Stefan Kopinski, Henning Ludvigsen, and Filipe Pagliuso
• Logo Design: Csaba Bernáth
• Graphic Design: Max Duarte
• Sculpting: Arnaud Boudoiron, David Camarasa, Jacques-Alexandre Gillois, Yannick Hennebo, Dave Kidd, Aragorn Marks, Stephan Nguyen, Edgar Ramos, Jose Roig, Sam Rowan, Edgar Skomorowski, Remy Tremblay, and Kevin White
• Miniatures Director: Mike McVey
• Photography: Jean-Baptiste Guiton
• Writing: Eric Kelley and Bryan Steele
• Game Design Director: Eric M. Lang
• Proofreading: Paulo Andrade, Hervé Daubet, and Lucas Martini
• Project: ELITE App:
  • Music: Diogo Rodrigues
  • Executive Production: Labirinto Filmes
  • Sound Design and Audio Post Production: ORKESTRA
• Playtesting: Rod Mendes, Ricardo Limonete, Lyu Campos, Mário Cioffi, Fernando Costa, Pedro Obliziner, Fabio Iwace, Eduardo Villela, Flávio Oota, Caio Quinta, and Spyros Tsantilas
• Publisher: David Preti
• Rulebook version: 1.1