In a galaxy far, far away, ruthless Space Admirals compete to earn the respect of their commander - the Dark Invader himself - by destroying everything that comes into range: starships, meteors, planets...
Do you have what it takes to rise up the ranks and take command of the Dark Invader's Fleet?
Components
- 49 Planet Cards
- 45 Destruction cards
- 15 Secret Mission Cards
- 1 Dark Invader
- Instructions
Object of the Game
Your goal is to score more points than the others by destroying Planets, capturing Moons, destroying your opponents' Destruction cards, and completing your own Secret Missions.
Setup
Separate the cards by type. Then, prepare the Star Sector (play area):
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Set aside any six Level 4 Planets with different names plus 1 Dark Planet.
Shuffle the rest of the Planet cards, and randomly add enough to those seven cards to fill the Star Sector grid (as shown below). Shuffle that stack of cards again, then use them to fill the grid, with either side up.
Important: Dark Planets may never be adjacent! (I.e., share a horizontal or vertical edge). If two Dark Planets end up next to each other, re-shuffle the cards and build the Star Sector again.
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Set the leftover Planets nearby in a small pile.
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Each player chooses a color and takes the matching set of nine Destruction cards.
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Separate the Secret Mission cards by value (1, 2, and 3). Shuffle each stack separately and deal one 1-point, one 2-point, and one 3-point card to each player.
You may look at your Secret Missions, but keep them secret from the other players! Return any unused Destruction and Secret Mission cards to the box.
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The youngest player takes the Dark Invader card and places it in front of him.
Game Play
Shooting Star is played over a series of turns. Each turn is split into two phases:
- Place Destruction Cards
- Resolve Destruction Cards
1. Place Destruction Cards
In this phase, players take turns in clockwise order. The player with the Dark Invader goes first.
On your turn, you must choose one Destruction card from your hand and place it face down on an empty Planet (i.e., one that is not already covered by another Destruction card). Play continues until each player has played one Destruction card.
2. Resolve Destruction Cards
After all players have played, turn all the Destruction cards face up in the direction of the arrow. Then, starting with the Destruction card that has the highest Priority Number, and continuing in descending order of priority, resolve each Destruction card as shown below.
If two or more cards have the same Priority Number, start with the card that was played on the table first (in turn order).
Once played, turn Destruction cards face up following the arrow (on the long side).
How to read a Destruction card.
Damage
Each Destruction card shows a Weapon on the Planet you played your card on top of, and the Planets that your Weapon blasts (by their relative position on the Star Sector grid). Each Planet blasted by your weapon "loses" one Level:
A Level 4 Planet is flipped to the other side and becomes a Level 3 Planet.
A Level 3 Planet is captured! Take the Planet card, then replace it with a Level 2 Planet from the Planet card deck (place it so the "2" side is up).
A Level 2 Planet Is Flipped To The Other Side And Becomes a Level 1 Planet.
A Level 1 Planet is captured! Take the Planet card, but leave the space empty.
Important: Your Priority 7 Destruction card reduces the Planet you play it on by two Levels, following the rules above.
Example 1: Effects of a Destruction card.
The Blastroid (red) plays his Destruction card on a Level 4 Planet. It blasts the 4 planets next to it as follows:
- The Level 3 Planet is captured (and replaced with a Level 2 Planet);
- The Level 2 Planet is flipped over to the "1" side;
- The Level 1 Planet is captured.
Note that the Destruction card could have also blasted a Planet below it, but since it is on the edge of the Star Sector, there is no planet there to hit.
After you resolve your Destruction card, place it in your own "Space Debris" pile. If you capture a Planet (Level 3 or Level 1), place it in a separate "Conquest" pile. In this way, you will build up two piles of cards:
- A Conquest pile that contains any Planets you capture; and
- A Space Debris pile that contains Destruction cards that have been used.
If the Weapon on your Destruction card blasts a Planet with another player's Destruction card, his Destruction card is destroyed and goes into your Space Debris pile! The planet your opponent's card was on is not affected, but any other Planets on your Destruction card are affected normally.
Example 2: Effect of a Destruction card on another Destruction card.
The Blastroid (red) plays his Priority 6 Destruction card next to the Krakenian's (yellow) Priority 2 card. The Blastroid's card is resolved first.
The Krakenian's card is destroyed (and goes into the Blastroid's Space Debris pile), but the Planet beneath it is not affected. The Level 1 Planet on the other side is not protected, however, and the Blastroid takes it for his Conquest pile (as normal).
The Space Shield
Each player has one special Destruction card: The Space Shield. Your Shield does not have a Priority Number.
Instead, a Space Shield is only activated if it is blasted by the Weapon on another player's Destruction card. If a Weapon blasts your Space Shield:
All of the Planets that are shown on that Destruction card are protected: those Planets are not damaged at all!
Your opponent's Destruction card is captured by your Space Shield. Place it in your Conquest pile, along with your Space Shield card.
Example 3: Effect of a Space Shield on a Destruction card.
The Blastroid (red) Destruction card blasts a Level 1 Planet and an Alligish (green) Space Shield.
The Blastroid's card is captured by the Alligish, who puts it in her Conquest pile with the Space Shield card. The Level 1 Planet - which would have been destroyed - remains undamaged.
If a Destruction card blasts 2 or more Space Shields at the same time, it is captured by the player who played his Space Shield first (by turn order). He takes the Destruction card and his Space Shield for his Conquest pile. The other Space Shield(s) remain in play.
Isolated Planets
After the effects of your Destruction card are resolved, some Planets may become isolated (i.e., with no other Planet(s) adjacent horizontally or vertically).
You automatically capture all isolated Planets, regardless of their Level! Planets captured in this way are not flipped over or replaced. Place them in your Space Debris pile (instead of your Conquest pile), and place your Destruction card (or Space Shield) on top of them.
Example 4: An isolated Planet.
The Conquid (blue) places his Destruction card in position to blast a Level 3 and a Level 1 Planet. Both Planets are captured (and the Level 3 Planet is replaced by a Level 2 Planet). This leaves the Level 2 Planet isolated, so the Conquid captures it immediately.
Dark Planets
These creepy and mysterious worlds are immune to space Weapons. These special rules apply to all Dark Planets:
- You may place a Destruction card on a Dark Planet;
- Dark Planets cannot be damaged (Destruction cards have no effect on them);
- You can only capture a Dark Planet if it is isolated (this is the only way to capture one).
End of the Turn
Once all of the Destruction cards have been resolved, the turn ends. Any Space Shields still in play are removed and placed in their owners' Space Debris piles.
The Dark Invader is passed to the next player clockwise, who begins the next turn.
End of the Game
The game can only end at the end of a complete turn. It ends if either of these two conditions is met:
- All players have played seven of their Destruction cards; or
- The number of Planets left in the Star Sector is less than or equal to the number of players.
When the game ends, add the Destruction cards left in your hand to your Space Debris pile.
Now, reveal your Secret Mission cards and calculate your score:
- Each._ card in your Conquest pile is worth 1 point;
- Each card with Moons
in your Conquest pile is worth 1 additional point; and - Each Secret Mission you have completed is worth the points shown (1, 2, or 3).
Finally, each player counts the number of cards in their Space Debris piles. The player with the most cards gets 3 bonus points. If there is a tie for the most cards, all tied players get 3 points each.
The winner is the player with the most points!
In case of a tie, the winner is the tied player who has captured the most cards. If they are still tied, the tied player with the most Moons wins. In the unlikely event that they are still tied: the victory is shared.
Secret Mission Cards
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Secret Mission cards that require you to capture a given number of Planets only count the 1/2 and 3/4 Planet cards. Dark Planets do not count towards these Secret Missions.
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The 3-point Secret Missions require you to capture a specific Planet and the same Planet (Zero) as the other players. Capturing either of these two Planets is worth 1 point.
Capturing both of them is worth 3 points. Note: capturing multiple copies of the same Planet provides no additional points.
Variant for Experienced Players: Personalized Star Sector
When you set up the game, instead of using the fixed grid shape, follow these steps: Once the initial pile of Planets is formed, deal six Planets to each player.
The youngest player now places one Planet in the middle of the table (he chooses which side to put up).
Then, players take turns, going clockwise, to place one Planet on the table-either horizontally or vertically adjacent to at least one Planet already on the table.
Remember that two Dark Planets can never be adjacent!
The Star Sector does not have to be rectangular in shape: you can create any shape of Star Sector you want!
Continue until everyone has placed all the Planets from their hands. Then the game proceeds as normal.
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