Components

• 5 Scientist Markers
• 5 Lab Cards
• 5 Transformer Cards
• 20 Portal Cards
• 50 Action Cards
• Rulebook

Object of the Game

Close as many portals to alternative realities as possible and overload the transformers in order to gain the most Discovery Points (DP).

The winner of Multiuniversum is the player who gains the most DP. DP are gained for closing portals that appear above five transformers of the machine.

Setup

1. Playing Area

   Place five transformer cards in the center of the table, in equal distance from one another, so that they form a virtual circle.

2. Portals

   Divide the portal cards into 5 separate stacks. Each stack should contain: 1 basic portal (a card with 1 tool icon), 2 medium portals (cards with 2 tool icons) and 1 advanced portals (cards with 3 tool icons).

   Shuffle all stacks separately and place 1 stack (face-up) above each transformer card.

3. Scientist Marker and Lab Cards

   Each player chooses and takes 1 scientist marker and a lab card of the matching color. Place your lab card in front of yourself. Place your scientist marker on the transformer card of the matching color. This is your starting transformer.

4. Action Cards

   Shuffle the action cards and randomly deal 3 to each player. Use the remaining action cards to form a stack. Place this stack face-down in the center of the circle formed by the transformer cards.

5. Discard Pile

   Draw 5 cards from the action card stack and place them face-up next to the action card stack. These 5 cards form the discard pile.

6. First Player

   The most ingenious of all scientists (the person who proposed playing Multiuniversum in the first place) starts the game. After him, all players resolve their turns going clockwise around the table.

Game Elements

Scientist Markers

These wooden pawns represent players moving between the transformers.

Each scientist is a researcher who works in CERN on a top secret project called Multiuniversum.

Together they are trying to close the portals and deactivate the unstable machine, at the same time trying to discover as much as possible about alternative dimensions. Each gained portal card is a part of a different reality and all of them brought together could mean winning the Nobel Prize.

In order to close the biggest number of portals, a player must be in the right place at the right time. That is why you should move your scientist marker between the transformers, prepare proper tools and outwit other players by closing the most portals!

Lab Cards

Your lab card is tantamount to your second home. It also reminds you about the color of your scientist marker.

During the game, results of your actions are placed in the lab. This way, all players can track your progress. This is done simply by placing action cards and portal cards under your lab card.

When you use an action card to prepare a tool, place it on the right side of the lab card (so that only the tool icon is visible). In contrast, all cards representing sealed portals should be placed on the left side (so that the dimension icon and any DP gained are visible).

Transformer Cards

Each of 5 transformers that appear in the game has its own unique ability (shown in the lower left corner of its card).

This ability may be triggered using a proper icon from an action card. Each scientist is supposed to move between the transformers and close the portals placed above them.

The portals have the following abilities:

1. 

   Change the order of any portal stack: Take 1 portal stack, then place portal cards from this stack in any order you choose. Do not reveal this order to other players.

2. 

   Draw 3 cards and discard 2 cards: Draw 3 cards from the top of the action deck and add them to your hand. Then, choose 2 cards (from among all the cards you have in your hand now) and discard them to the discard pile.

3. 

   Switch places of 2 different portals: Choose any 2 face-up portal cards and switch their places between the transformers. But remember! You cannot place portals above deactivated transformers (i.e. where the card stack is already depleted).

4. 

   Place each face-up portal at the bottom of its stack: Place the topmost portal card from each transformer on the bottom of its portal stack. If a given stack contains only 1 portal card, this card is left in its place.

5. 

   Keep one card played this turn as a tool: At the end of your turn, when discarding the cards you have just played to the discard pile, keep one of those cards as a tool (place the card under your lab card). Important: You may only keep a card that was played as an action (i.e. not used this turn as a tool).

Remember: Even if there are no portal cards above a given transformer (i.e. such transformer is deactivated), you may still use its action.

Transformer cards are the most important cards in the game. The transformer on which you currently are defines what actions you can trigger from your available pool of action cards. Therefore, effective movement between the transformers allows you to use your cards in the most optimal way and overcome other players.

Portal Cards

These cards represent fascinating gates to other dimensions and alternate realities that hide on the other side.

Portal cards feature a few icons:

1. The bulb icon in the upper left corner of a portal card shows how many DP can be gained for sealing it.

2. The dimension icon is used to gain additional DP. The number of bars around the dimension icon informs players how many cards with a given icon appear in the game. Portal cards show the following icons:

   
   
   

3. The artwork of an alternative world. It artfully suggests what dangers and wonders players may face in this particular alternative reality.

4. The tools shown in the lower right part of the portal you about the color of your scientist marker, required to close a given portal. They appear in different combinations.

   In order to close the portal shown in the illustration to the left, the following tools are required:

   
   
   

   In the game, there portals appear that may be closed using a combination of 1, 2 or 3 tools.

Action Cards

Action cards are your basic tools to conduct all the scientific work in the Multiuniversum Project. You start each turn with at least 3 action cards in your hand and try hard to use them in the best possible way.

Once you learn how to understand a single action card, you will know how to use all cards available in the game. Each card enables you to resolve an action connected with a certain transformer, where your scientist is currently located.

Action cards show the following elements: on the left side, there is an action column 1, on the right side a tool icon and in the lower right corner 2, a trash can 3.

Actions available on action cards are as follows:

• 

  Search: Draw 2 cards from the top of the action card stack.

  
  
• 

  Trigger Transformer Ability: Resolve the action described on the transformer, on which you currently are.

• 

  Move: Take your scientist marker and place it on any other transformer. There is no limit to the number of scientists on one transformer, so you can move to a transformer with scientist markers of other players.

  

  Seal Portal: Seal the portal laying face-up above the transformer, where you currently are. In order to do this, discard the proper tools (from under your lab card to the discard pile). Place the card representing the sealed portal under your lab card (on the left). Remember: You may seal a given portal only if you have the proper tools.

• 

  Recycle: Take any card from the discard pile and add it to your hand. Any player may look through the discard pile at any moment of his turn.

Remember: Each action card contains all the actions described above, however arranged in a different order.

On the right side of each action card, there is an icon of one of the following tools:

Those tools are crucial when sealing the portals.

The trash can icon is there to remind you that - as an action - you may also discard your action card to the discard pile to draw a new action card from the action card stack.

Game Play

1. During your turn, you may resolve up to 3 actions of your choice, choosing from the ones described below (each of those actions may be resolved more than once):

1. Resolve an action from a card

   Play a card from your hand to resolve the proper action. Which one? The one whose background color matches the color of the transformer, on which your scientist marker currently is.

   For example: If your pawn is on the red transformer card (marked with number 3), you should pay attention to any effects shown in the red space (the one marked with number 3) of your action cards. If you move to a different transformer, your cards will allow you to play completely different actions!

   Place all cards played during your turn in front of yourself, in the so called player area. After you resolve all 3 actions and end your turn, discard all the played cards and used tools to the discard pile.

2. Prepare A Tool

   You need special tools to seal the portals. Each action card depicts on its right side exactly one tool icon. As your action, you may prepare the tool shown on the action card by placing it under your lab card (on the right side, so that the tool icon is visible).

3. Discard A Card

   The trash can icon in the lower right corner informs that you may discard a given action card to the discard pile and draw a new action card from the action card stack.

Pass: At any point of your turn, you may decide that you forfeit any additional actions available to you. Once you have decided to pass, you may no longer resolve any actions this turn.

Remember: During your turn, you may resolve the same action many times (but up to 3 actions per player per turn). It is entirely your decision, which actions are best under given circumstances.

2. At the end of your turn, move all cards from your player area to the discard pile.

3. If, at the end of your turn, you have less than 3 cards in your hand, draw enough cards from the action card stack to have 3. If, at the end of your turn, you have 3 or more action cards in your hand, do not draw any new cards.

Additionally, you do not have to discard any action cards from your hand - there is no maximum hand limit and you may keep as many cards in your hand as you like.

If, at any moment of the game, the action card stack is depleted, reshuffle the discard pile and use it to form the new action card stack. Then, draw 5 cards from the stack and set them next to the stack as the new discard pile (the same way you did during the game setup).

Example of a Player Turn

You are next to the transformer #1 and the illustration below shows the set of cards in your hand. To simplify matters, let us call your cards A, B, and C, respectively (going from the left).

You probably wonder, which actions you may resolve using the action cards available... Considering that you are next to the first transformer, you may perform the following actions:

Draw 2 cards.

Move to a different transformer.

Trigger the ability of the transformer, on which you currently are.

You may also prepare a card as a tool or discard it to the discard pile in order to immediately draw a new action card.

Most of the actions available to you this turn only allow you to prepare yourself for future turns. However, if you check the actions you have and the portals placed face-up above other transformers, you will notice that there is a chain of 3 actions that will allow you to prepare one tool and immediately seal a portal as part of 3 actions available to you this turn.

What should you do to achieve that and in what order?

1. First, prepare the tool shown on the A card by sliding it under your lab card (from its right side). This way, you resolve your first action out of 3 for the turn:

   
   
   

2. As you are next to the transformer no. 1, you may use the Move action from the B card in order to move to a different transformer (even to one with other players). This way, you resolve your second action out of 3 for the turn:

   
   
   
3. 

   Now, you are next to the transformer marked with number 3. It means that you may use the Seal Portal action using the C card. The icon on its space 3 informs you that you may use this card to seal the portal.

   That is exactly what you need. This way, you resolve your last action available for this turn.

   As part of the Seal Portal action, remember to discard all required tools to the discard pile and to slide the portal card under your lab card (from the left side).

   
   
   

   By sealing the portal, you reveal a new portal card from the same stack.

This is the end of your turn, as you have resolved all 3 actions available to you. You have no action cards left in your hand, so draw 3 new cards from the stack.

Now, the next player in clockwise order may start his turn.

As you can see, there are multiple ways to play your turn. It is up to you - a real genius after all - to choose the best combination of actions and win the game!

End of the Game

The game ends after any 3 portal stacks (in a 3-5 player game) or any 2 portal stacks (in a 2-player game) have been depleted.

Once it happens, each of the remaining players (ending with the one sitting to the right of the player who started the game) has a chance to play his last turn ensuring that everyone has an equal amount of turns.

The final scoring depends on a few factors: sealed portals, unused tools and collected sets of dimension icons. DP are awarded as follows:

1. Sealed Portals: First, each player counts his DP for the portals he has sealed. The DP are shown inside the bulb icon in the upper left corner of each portal card.

2. Unused Tools: Then, each player loses 1 DP for each of his unused tools (i.e. the ones still under his lab card).

3. Dimension Icons: Finally, each player counts DP for dimension icons shown on his portal cards. You gain additional DP for certain sets of icons, so be careful when sealing portals!

   • Omni Set - If you manage to seal portals with 5 different dimension icons, you gain 9 additional DP for each set.

   • Specialization Set - If your sealed portals depict identical icons, you gain DP according to their number: 4 additional DP for 2 identical icons or 9 additional DP for all 3 identical icons.

Remember: When counting additional DP, each portal card may only be used once for the purposes of one set. If you use a given card to complete a set of 5 different icons, you cannot use it to collect a set of 2 or 3 identical icons. So, choose wisely!

The player with the highest score wins the game!

Ties

What happens in case of a tie? Below you can find a few rules that - when used in the given order - will help you reveal the ultimate winner:

1. The player with the least unused tools.
2. The player with the most sealed portals.
3. The player with the most cards in his hand.
4. The oldest player (being wise matters when you compete for the Nobel Prize).

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