Q: Where can I get more Resources?

A: Place Influence Discs on sector hexes and use Colony Ships to move your Population Cubes on the Population Squares.

Research the Advanced Technologies to be able to use the Advanced Population Squares. Build Orbitals to get more Population Squares. Collect Discovery Tiles.

Q: What do I need Money for?

A: You need Money to pay for the Upkeep of your civilization. The more actions you take and more sectors you control, the more you have to pay each round.

Q: That's all?

A: Yes. Well, you can also trade Money for other Resources, and vice versa.

Q: I don't have enough Influence Discs to do everything I want to. What now?

A: You can use the Influence action to return up to two discs from the sector hexes to your Influence Track. You can also research Advanced Robotics and Quantum Grid Technologies, which give you more discs.

Finally, you often can deliberately bankrupt your civilization, by using more discs than you can pay for in the Upkeep Phase, and thus be required to return some of the discs from the sectors to your Influence Track.

Q: The best Technologies are terribly expensive. How can I ever afford them?

A: Having Technologies of the same category increases the discount you get when buying more. If you buy the Technologies in increasing price order, you get the maximum benefit of the discounts.

Q: What is the benefit of being the first player?

A: You get the first pick on the researching Technologies and exploring empty areas. You also often get to be the first player in a contested hex, giving you the edge on Initiative ties.

Q: What happens if I cannot return a Population cube to a track because it is full? This might occur if I return cubes from gray squares to different tracks than where they originally came from.

A: The track may be filled completely, so that no number is visible. This means that you do not have any production of that Resource. If a track is full and you still need to return cubes to it, the cubes must go to any other track(s).

Q: What happens if the extra Influence Discs acquired through the Advanced Robotics and Quantum Grid Technologies do not fit on the Influence Track?

A: Stack the extra discs on top of the disc on the rightmost space of the Influence Track. You may use these extra discs normally.

Q: Using the Influence action, I can move an Influence Disc from a hex to its neighbor through a Wormhole connection. May I move the Disc that created this connection in the first place?

A: No. If you move the disc, there is no longer a connection.

Q: During Upkeep Phase, when may I remove Influence Discs from my hexes?

A: Only when you do not have enough Money (produced in this Upkeep, plus your Storage) to pay for the Upkeep.

Then you may remove Discs until the Upkeep cost is low enough. Note that if you remove a disc from a hex, the Population cubes are immediately returned to your Production tracks, which may also reduce your Money production.

Q: Is it ever possible to voluntarily remove population cubes from the board without giving up the control of the entire hex?

A: No. It can be done with the Influence action, though, by first removing the disc and the cubes from the hex and then returning the disc back to the hex.

Q: My precious ships keep getting blown to pieces. How can I win more battles?

A: You have an advantage if you get to shoot first, cannot be hit or can take some beating. Buy better Drives and Computers to increase your Initiative, and Missiles to attack before the close range combat.

Buy Shields to render the opponent's Computers useless. Buy Hull parts to withstand more hits. Collect Discovery Tiles to get unique, powerful Ship Parts.

Q: Aren't Interceptors too small to be of any use?

A: Not really. For example, try upgrading them with a better energy source and they can pack quite a punch. They often work best when specialized somehow.

Q: Are the Shields of any use if my opponents don't have Computers?

A: No. Then again, if they don't have Computers, they most likely won't hit you anyway. Use that to your advantage.

Q: If I have the Gluon Computer Technology, can I take Positron Computer Ship Parts?

A: No. Each Ship Part (apart from the default ones, ie. Ion Cannon, Nuclear Drive, Nuclear Source, Hull and Electron Computer) requires its own Technology.

Q: If all of my ships try to retreat but are all destroyed while doing so, do I get the Reputation Tile for taking part in a battle?

A: No. Your ships are considered to have retreated as soon as you decide to retreat them.

Q: If the Ancient Ships are destroyed from a Descendants controlled hex but the Descendants still control the hex, can they take the Discovery Tile?

A: The Discovery Tiles can only be taken when placing an Influence Disc. So you'll first have to remove the disc with the Influence action and then place it again.

Q: Do I have to use the Descendants' or Planta's Explore ability? If not, when may I choose whether to use it or not?

A: You don't have to draw two hexes with the Descendants, or Explore two times with Planta. You can decide after seeing the first hex.

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