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Introductory Two-Player Game Rules

This Introductory Two-Player Game offers the adventure of the Star Trek: The Next Generation (R) Customizable Card Game (TM) in a simple-to-learn, easy-to-play format. Ready to play right out of the box, the two pre-customized decks and "quick-start" rules are all you need to begin. As an added bonus, this game also contains many new cards created especially for this set. Be the first on your planet to collect these unique cards!

The two basic decks in this game can be reused time and again, with the game being different every time you play. After you learn the basics, you may want to expand your power in the universe by learning more advanced rules and by trading cards with other players to complete your set. You can add new adventures to your game by including Romulans, Borg, holographic characters, alien ships and much more!

01. Special Items

02. Quick-Start Rules

03. Things to Remember

04. What you Need to Know

05. The Eight Types of Cards

06. Playing in 3 Easy Steps

07. Playing From Your Hand

08. Battling

09. Attempting Missions

10. Additional Helpful Information

11. Rebuilding Your Decks

12. Expand Your Power in the Universe

01. Your Set Contains Several Special Items
Quick-start rules to start you off at warp speed plus an additional, comprehensive rules booklet with advanced strategies for future play.

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Two "Expansion Packs" containing free samples of 30 randomly assorted cards generally sold at hobby, comic, game and toy stores. These expansion packs will introduce you to the excitement of customizing decks and can add more powerful cards to your collection. (Complete rules for special cards in the Alternate Universe TM expansion pack can be obtained from participating retailers and on Decipher's web site, www.decipher.com.)

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Premium cards featuring well-known or highly unique Star Trek characters. These cards will add new dimension and power to your game and may also have added value to collectors.

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A list of the cards available in the Star Trek: The Next Generation [R] Customizable Card Game TM basic set and the Alternate Universe TM expansion set, including information about the cards' affiliations, icons and rarity.


02. Quick-Start Rules
The Star Trek: The Next Generation [R] Customizable Card Game TM universe contains hundreds of different cards representing personnel, ships, missions, outposts, events, artifacts, dilemmas, equipment and other phenomena. Each card brings to the game different powers which realistically mirror Star Trek: The Next Generation [R] scenarios. To play, each player chooses an affiliation, shuffles the pre-customized deck for that affiliation and attempts to accomplish missions and score points. The winner is the first player to score 100 points or the player with the most points when either player's deck runs out of cards.

03. Things to Remember

As you read through the rules below, keep the following points in mind:

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The objective is to score points, primarily by accomplishing missions. You score no points by battle, but you can score additional points by overcoming dilemmas.

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You don't have to memorize what each card does. Using written information and a few icons, the cards explain what you can do with them.

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Beginners should allow a few hours to play the first few games and get used to the process. What may seem complicated at first will become natural after a few practice games. The longer version of the rules builds upon the foundation of the quick-start rules, and thus is easy to pick up once you are familiar with basic play.

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If a situation arises that is unclear or not addressed in these rules, simply use common sense to resolve the issue within the spirit of Star Trek: The Next Generation [R], then proceed with the game.


04. What You Need to Know
THE AFFILIATIONS
There are three major affiliations in the game: Federation, Klingon and Romulan. Most personnel and ships belong to one of these affiliations. Some cards are non-aligned, meaning that they can work with any affiliation. For example, non-aligned personnel can be placed aboard any ship to strengthen its crew. A card's affiliation is identified by a special icon in the upper left corner of the card, as well as by the card color: Federation cards are blue, Klingon cards are red, Romulan cards are green and non-aligned cards are gold. This Introductory Two-Player Game set contains only Federation, Klingon and non-aligned cards, but you may find some Romulans in your sample expansion packs.

THE CARDS
There are common, uncommon, rare and "premium" cards you can collect. While the rarity of a card generally corresponds to its strength or power in the game, there are a lot of useful common cards. (See the enclosed card list for information on card rarity.) The two pre-customized decks in this package are composed of "common" cards, and the additional bonus cards are considered "premium" cards. Some rare cards can be quite valuable, especially popular personnel like Captain Jean-Luc Picard and Lieutenant Commander Data. Players can expand their collections by purchasing the rest of the cards in 60-card starter sets or 15-card expansion packs. (Starter sets contain 45 common, 13 uncommon and 2 rare cards; expansion packs have 11 common, 3 uncommon and 1 rare card.) Even more fun is trading with other players to get the cards you want!

05. The Eight Types of Cards Used in the Two-Player Game

MISSIONS
Mission cards define an objective (to provide medical relief, investigate a disturbance, etc.) and the requirements for completing it. The first player to complete a mission scores the points indicated on the card. Points vary according to the difficulty of the mission; the harder the mission, the higher the point value. Color icons at each end of the mission card indicate which affiliations can attempt the mission.

DILEMMAS
Placing dilemmas under the mission cards creates dramatic "plot twists" in the game. Dilemma cards are hazards that a player uncovers while attempting to complete a mission. Depending upon the composition of an Away Team, dilemmas may stop, slow or have no effect on a mission attempt.

OUTPOSTS
Outpost cards mark locations where ships are launched, personnel report for duty and equipment is loaded. Only Klingon and Federation outposts are included in this game.

SHIPS
Ships carry personnel to mission locations. Only Federation and Klingon ships are used in this game. Ships have different attributes which determine their power in the game:

Range determines how far a ship can move on one turn.
Weapons determine offensive capabilities during battle.
Shields determine defensive capabilities during battle.

Many ships list special capabilities, such as holodecks and cloaking devices, which are used in the comprehensive rules. For the quick-start rules, ignore these devices unless a special card (such as Ship Seizure) references them.

PERSONNEL
Personnel cards represent crew members in seven different classifications (Officer, Engineer, Medical, Science, Security, V.I.P. and Civilian). In addition to other special skills listed on the cards, values for three primary attributes determine a crew member's effectiveness in accomplishing missions and overcoming dilemmas:

Integrity characterizes morality, loyalty and discipline.
Cunning indicates shrewdness, imagination and intelligence.
Strength is physical strength, stamina, aggression and fighting ability.

These attributes and other special skills listed on the cards (e.g., Navigation or Stellar Cartography) are needed to complete missions. Many personnel also have special icons indicating command ability, holograms, alternate universe personnel, etc. These icons are used only in the comprehensive rules.

EQUIPMENT
Equipment cards represent tools or devices (like phasers or tricorders) which can be used to enhance the performance of an Away Team or crew.

EVENTS
Event cards create special occurrences or conditions that generally continue throughout the game unless negated by another card. Event cards may only be played at the beginning of a player's turn.

INTERRUPTS
Interrupt cards interrupt the game by imposing special occurrences or conditions at any time between game actions, even during the other player's turn. The consequences of interrupt cards tend to be immediate and short-lived, but not always.


06. How to Play the Game in Three Easy Steps
STEP 1: CHOOSE AN AFFILIATION
Open the two decks of cards. Choose one player to be Federation and one player to be Klingon for the first game. (Keep the expansion pack cards, Spock and the other premium cards separate for now. Play a few games using only the pre-customized decks before you begin adding the extra cards.)

STEP 2: CREATE AND SEED THE SPACELINE
The spaceline is the playing surface. It represents a "sector" of planet locations where missions can be accomplished. Ships containing personnel and equipment will travel, battle and attempt to accomplish missions along the spaceline. For advanced play, a detailed explanation of creating a spaceline is in the comprehensive rules. For the quick-start rules, randomly create the spaceline in the following manner:

First, each player shuffles his six Mission cards and places them face down in a pile. The Federation player draws his top Mission card and places it face up on the playing surface. Players take turns placing cards, side-by-side, on either end of the growing line until all of the Mission cards have been laid down, creating a spaceline that looks something like this:

Next, take your six Dilemma cards and place one face down under each of your opponent's mission cards. You may choose which dilemma to place under each mission, but keep them secret from your opponent. (Your opponent does likewise.)

Finally, put your outpost card under any one of your mission cards to establish an "entry" point for your ships and personnel.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Keep Track of Your Cards! Since both players share the spaceline, you should always keep your cards facing yourself. Make this a habit. This process will make it easier to re-assemble the two decks after the game.

STEP 3: PLAYING THE GAME
You are now ready to play! Each player shuffles their remaining cards thoroughly and places their deck aside, face down, to form a personal draw deck. Each player then draws 7 cards from their own draw deck to start their hand. (Note: there is no limit to the number of cards a player can hold in their hand during play.) The Klingon player goes first, then players alternate turns. On each turn you will:

Choose whether or not to play a single card from your hand. Only one ship, personnel, equipment or event card can be played per turn, taken from your hand and played to the table. (You may also elect to play any number of interrupts at this time.)

Execute orders... which essentially means moving the cards already on the table. There is no limit to the number of actions you can take in one turn. You can load and unload ships at outposts, take command of ships, move ships, beam personnel and/or equipment, attempt missions and engage in battle. You can continue making moves until the cards are "stopped" by (1) encountering a dilemma the Away Team can't overcome or (2) participating in a battle. Cards that are stopped can do nothing for the remainder of the turn, but you are free to move other cards which have not yet been stopped.

Draw a card from your own draw deck to your hand to signal the end of your turn. After a while, both sides of the spaceline will look something like this:



07. Playing Cards From Your Hand
Ship cards - A ship is commissioned by docking it at your outpost. Take a ship card from your hand and place it at one of your outpost locations as shown below:


Personnel cards - Personnel must "report for duty" at an outpost before they can board a ship. To report a personnel card for duty, place the card face up on the playing surface near the outpost and say (for example), "Montgomery Scott reporting for duty!"

Equipment cards - Equipment cards enter play exactly like personnel cards, but without the verbal announcement.

Event cards - Event cards are usually played face up and off to the side as a reminder, but some are placed on the spaceline itself. Remember, Event cards may affect one or both players and their effect may be temporary or long-lasting.

Interrupt cards - Interrupt cards are the only cards that can be played without following the normal sequence of taking turns. They can be played at any time by saying, "Interrupt!" and laying the card on the playing surface. Everything stops and this card now takes precedence over everything else in the game. Interrupt cards may affect one or both players. Most interrupts have an immediate effect on the game and are then discarded. If several interrupts are played in a row, they are handled in the sequence in which they are played.

08. Battling
You can choose to battle your opponent during your turn. Three types of battles can occur: Away Team vs. Away Team; ship vs. ship; and ship vs. outpost. All battles are subject to these rules: (1) battle can only be initiated by a player during his turn; (2) no other activities can occur during a battle; (3) battles can only occur when the opposing forces are at the same location, directly across from each other, at the same mission on the spaceline; and (4) after a battle is resolved, all cards involved in the battle are stopped from any other actions on this turn.

AWAY TEAM VS. AWAY TEAM
The initiating player announces the attack. Both players then total the combined strength of their Away Team personnel, including any enhancement points from equipment cards. The Away Team with the highest total strength wins the battle and one member of the losing Away Team is killed by random selection. (If there is a tie nobody is killed.)

SHIP VS. SHIP
Ship vs. ship battle consists of an attacking shot immediately followed by a retaliation shot from the defender. Even if the defender's ship is damaged or destroyed, it still gets a retaliation shot. (The comprehensive rules booklet implies that a damaged defender may not retaliate; this is an error.) First, the initiating player announces the attack. The attacker must identify which of his ship(s) are making the attack and which enemy ship is being attacked. An attacker can use multiple ships in a battle but can target only one enemy ship at a time. The attacker adds up the total weapon power of his ships, which is compared to the total shield value of the targeted ship. (Enhancement cards can affect these numbers.) If the attacker's weapon power is greater than the defender's shield power, the defender's ship is damaged. Otherwise, the defender's ship is safe. The defender immediately gets his retaliation shot against the attacker, reversing the above comparisons. Remember, the ships and crews involved in the attack are stopped at the end of battle (but the defending ships can still retaliate if attacked again that turn).

Damaged ships - When a ship is damaged, its range is automatically reduced to 5 and the damage is indicated by rotating the ship card 180 degrees. Damage does not affect a ship's weapons or shields, nor its ability to do battle. Ships can be damaged in other ways, too. For example, some event or interrupt cards inflict damage. Unless otherwise specified, treat a damaged ship as stated above.

Destroyed ships - If a damaged ship is damaged again before it is repaired, the ship and all cards on board are destroyed (discarded).

Repairing ships - A damaged ship can be repaired, once it is moved back to its outpost, by waiting two full turns there before re-commissioning.

SHIP VS. OUTPOST
Although outposts do not have weapons, they do have powerful shields. It is possible to attack and destroy an opponent's outpost, but this requires an armada of ships. If ships with total weapon power exceeding the defensive shields attack an outpost, the outpost and any personnel are immediately destroyed (discarded). The mission card and any ships located at the outpost are unaffected, as are any Away Teams on the planet.

REMEMBER, IT'S STAR TREK [R] !
Federation forces can never initiate an attack. The Federation is only allowed to defend itself and retaliate until a battle is over. Klingons can battle at will. During a ship vs. ship battle at an outpost location, the outpost can extend up to 50% of its shields to protect each affiliated ship. This number is added to the designated ship shields. Usually, a ship will be safe while docked at a friendly outpost.

09. Attempting Missions
Completing missions is the primary method of scoring points. You accomplish a mission by beaming an Away Team (with the required skills) down to the planet and overcoming the Dilemma card there. If there is no dilemma present, simply beaming down personnel who have the required skills will accomplish that mission.

Normally, only personnel which match the affiliation of the mission may attempt the mission (although non-aligned personnel can be mixed in as long as one other personnel matches). Before completing a mission, a player must first overcome the dilemma at that location. Personnel must survive with the skills required to accomplish the mission or the mission will not be completed and scored.

All Mission cards state what skills are necessary to complete the mission. For example, a mission requiring ENGINEER x2 means at least two personnel with ENGINEER skill (or one personnel with double ENGINEER skill) must be present in the Away Team for you to complete the mission.

Use the following procedure when attempting a mission.

Announce that you are attempting the mission.

Select and beam your Away Team.

Turn over the Dilemma card and read it aloud. The dilemma represents a plot twist that emerges during the mission and must be dealt with before the mission can be completed.

Some Dilemma cards list certain skills that are required to overcome them. If the Away Team meets the requirements, then it overcomes the dilemma and can immediately proceed. If the Away Team cannot meet the requirements, it is stopped; do whatever the Dilemma card instructs.

Other Dilemmas have no requirements to be overcome; these simply have their effect and are discarded, but do not stop the Away Team.

Most dilemmas end with the phrase, "Discard dilemma." This means you only have to face them once. For example, you experience a dilemma that inflicts damage on your Away Team and is then discarded. On your next attempt, that dilemma will not be present. Other dilemmas stick around forever until you overcome them (they are worded accordingly).

Sometimes Dilemma or Mission cards have a condition like STRENGTH>36 or CUNNING>28. This refers to the total STRENGTH or CUNNING of the Away Team. For example, STRENGTH>36 means the strength of the Away Team added together must be greater than 36. If less than or equal to 36, the Away Team cannot overcome the dilemma.

Some Dilemma cards contain bonus points. To earn these points, you must overcome the dilemma and meet all the conditional phrases present. Most cards are self-explanatory. Set aside all bonus point cards you've earned as a reminder.

If you overcome the dilemma and then complete the mission with the required personnel, you score the mission points. The surviving members of the Away Team involved in completing the mission are free to beam back up to the ship and continue if desired. A completed mission remains in play as a spaceline card for purposes of span etc., but it cannot be scored again. To score the mission and mark it complete, pull the Mission card half the card height of the spaceline toward the scoring player like this:

There are a couple of other interesting things about attempting missions:

Personnel located at an outpost can attempt the outpost mission without boarding a ship. Simply designate outpost personnel as an Away Team and beam down as usual.

An Away Team can attempt a mission on a planet even if there is an enemy Away Team already on that planet.

10. Additional Information That May Prove Helpful
LOADING AND UNLOADING SHIPS
Personnel or equipment can be loaded on or unloaded from any ship with compatible affiliations if all are docked at the same location. To load, stack the cards underneath the ship, face up. When the ship moves, everything on board moves with it.

TAKING COMMAND OF SHIPS
To move a ship, you need at least one personnel on board with a matching affiliation. (The longer version of the rules outlines a more elaborate system of staffing requirements. Ignore these rules for now but incorporate them in later play for more advanced strategy.)

MOVING SHIPS
Properly staffed, a ship can move along your side of the spaceline in either direction. To determine how far a ship has traveled, add up the span numbers on each mission card as the ship passes. (Do not count the span number on the starting location.) When a ship has used up all its range, it may not move again that turn. Other ships can still move up to their full span during this turn.

BEAMING PERSONNEL AND EQUIPMENT
Beaming is a method of transferring personnel and/or equipment over short distances. To beam personnel or equipment, simply remove the card(s) from the ship and place them crosswise over the mission card. Personnel beamed to a planet are called an Away Team. There is no limit to the number of times beaming can occur during a turn. Personnel and equipment can also be beamed from one of your ships to another if both ships share the same mission location.

KILLING AWAY TEAM MEMBERS
If an Away Team member is killed by random selection, shuffle the Away Team personnel cards and hold them so the faces of the cards cannot be seen. Let your opponent draw a single card at random and place it in your discard pile. Sometimes you or your opponent will get to choose which Away Team member will die. The designated player then gets to look at all of the personnel cards in the Away Team and determine who dies.


11. Rebuilding Your Decks
After the game is over, be sure to re-assemble your Federation and Klingon decks so they will be ready to go the next time you play. If you lost track of which deck began with which cards, or if you customized the decks with some of your expansion pack cards and would like to return them to their original configurations, use the lists below to reconstruct your decks.



OUTPOST
Federation Outpost

SHIPS
Runabout
Type VI Shuttlecraft
U.S.S. Galaxy (2)
U.S.S. Nebula (2)

MISSIONS
Cargo Rendezvous
Distress Mission
Gravesworld
Homeward
Hostage Situation
Survey Instability

PERSONNEL
Calloway
Christopher Hobson (2)
Darian Wallace (2)
Giusti
Linda Larson
McKnight
Mendon (2)
Montgomery Scott
Simon Tarses
Sito Jaxa
Taitt (2)
Taurik
Dr. Farek
Gorta
Narik
Vekor

DILEMMAS
Alien Labyrinth
Anaphasic Organism
Female's Love Interest
Hidden Entrance
Malfunctioning Door
Microvirus

EQUIPMENT
Engineering Kit
Medical Kit
Medical Tricorder
Tricorder

EVENTS
Atmospheric Ionization
Pattern Enhancers
Plasma Fire
Res-Q
Spacedock
Tetryon Field
Yellow Alert

INTERRUPTS
Countermanda
Disruptor Overload
Escape Pod
Kevin Uxbridge: Convergence
Long-Range Scan
Loss of Orbital Stability
Palor Toff - Alien Trader
Particle Fountain
Wormhole (2)



OUTPOST
Klingon Outpost

SHIPS
I.K.C. K'Ratak
I.K.C. K'Vort (3)
I.K.C. Vor'Cha (2)

MISSIONS
A Good Place To Die
Avert Danger
Gault
Reopen Dig
Reported Activity
Sensitive Search

PERSONNEL
B'iJik
Batrell
Divok (2)
Dukath
Gorath
J'Ddan
K'Tesh (2)
Klag
Kle'eg (2)
Kromm
Torin (2)
Vekma
Dr. Farek
Gorta
Narik
Vekor

DILEMMAS
Archer
Ferengi Attack
Hunter Gangs
Impassable Door
Male's Love Interest
The Gatherers

EQUIPMENT
Engineering Kit
Medical Kit
Medical Tricorder
Tricorder

EVENTS
Atmospheric Ionization (2)
Pattern Enhancers
Plasma Fire
Res-Q
Where No One Has Gone Before
Yellow Alert

INTERRUPTS
Countermanda
Disruptor Overload
Kevin Uxbridge: Convergence
Long-Range Scan
Loss of Orbital Stability
Palor Toff - Alien Trader
Particle Fountain
Ship Seizure
Wormhole (2)


12. Expand Your Power in the Universe! TM
If you've mastered the quick-start rules and you're ready to explore deeper into the universe of the Star Trek: The Next Generation [R] Customizable Card Game TM, you can look for these other card sets at your local hobby, comic, or game store.

BASIC SET
363 cards containing characters and story elements from all seven seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation [R].

ALTERNATE UNIVERSE
122 cards introducing the idea of opening "doorways" to other dimensions. Experience time travel, parallel universes and alternate timelines. Play blackjack at the Royale Casino. Attempt a new dimension of missions. Use the ultra-rare Future Enterprise to travel to the ends of your spaceline at warp speed. You can even find Data's Head! This set expands the game play into surreal worlds and different phases of existence.

Q-CONTINUUM
121-card expansion set focusing on the antics of the omnipotent entity Q! Q the powerful, Q the petulant, Q the playful, Q the altruistic. Now he's here, FLASH, now he's not! Open the door to the Continuum and watch them warp reality. Your strategies and deck designs will never be the same.

HOLODECK ADVENTURES
Have you ever wished you could create your own world? Holodecks allow you to do just that! Use your discretion and customize a simulation of your own specific wishes. Imagine the programs you can write, from the clever schemes of Professor Moriarty to the fantasies of Lieutenant Barclay. Fantastic re-creations. Bizarre settings! Combine holodeck programs with new and existing game elements to design innovative new strategies. Projected Release Summer 1997.

Premium cards featuring well-known or highly unique Star Trek characters. These cards will add new dimension and power to your game and may also have added value to collectors.

A list of the cards available in the Star Trek: The Next Generation [R] Customizable Card Game TM basic set and the Alternate Universe TM expansion set, including information about the cards' affiliations, icons and rarity.


02. Quick-Start Rules
The Star Trek: The Next Generation [R] Customizable Card Game TM universe contains hundreds of different cards representing personnel, ships, missions, outposts, events, artifacts, dilemmas, equipment and other phenomena. Each card brings to the game different powers which realistically mirror Star Trek: The Next Generation [R] scenarios. To play, each player chooses an affiliation, shuffles the pre-customized deck for that affiliation and attempts to accomplish missions and score points. The winner is the first player to score 100 points or the player with the most points when either player's deck runs out of cards.

03. Things to Remember
As you read through the rules below, keep the following points in mind:

The objective is to score points, primarily by accomplishing missions. You score no points by battle, but you can score additional points by overcoming dilemmas.

You don't have to memorize what each card does. Using written information and a few icons, the cards explain what you can do with them.

Beginners should allow a few hours to play the first few games and get used to the process. What may seem complicated at first will become natural after a few practice games. The longer version of the rules builds upon the foundation of the quick-start rules, and thus is easy to pick up once you are familiar with basic play.

If a situation arises that is unclear or not addressed in these rules, simply use common sense to resolve the issue within the spirit of Star Trek: The Next Generation [R], then proceed with the game.


04. What You Need to Know
THE AFFILIATIONS
There are three major affiliations in the game: Federation, Klingon and Romulan. Most personnel and ships belong to one of these affiliations. Some cards are non-aligned, meaning that they can work with any affiliation. For example, non-aligned personnel can be placed aboard any ship to strengthen its crew. A card's affiliation is identified by a special icon in the upper left corner of the card, as well as by the card color: Federation cards are blue, Klingon cards are red, Romulan cards are green and non-aligned cards are gold. This Introductory Two-Player Game set contains only Federation, Klingon and non-aligned cards, but you may find some Romulans in your sample expansion packs.

THE CARDS
There are common, uncommon, rare and "premium" cards you can collect. While the rarity of a card generally corresponds to its strength or power in the game, there are a lot of useful common cards. (See the enclosed card list for information on card rarity.) The two pre-customized decks in this package are composed of "common" cards, and the additional bonus cards are considered "premium" cards. Some rare cards can be quite valuable, especially popular personnel like Captain Jean-Luc Picard and Lieutenant Commander Data. Players can expand their collections by purchasing the rest of the cards in 60-card starter sets or 15-card expansion packs. (Starter sets contain 45 common, 13 uncommon and 2 rare cards; expansion packs have 11 common, 3 uncommon and 1 rare card.) Even more fun is trading with other players to get the cards you want!


05. The Eight Types of Cards Used in the Two-Player Game

MISSIONS
Mission cards define an objective (to provide medical relief, investigate a disturbance, etc.) and the requirements for completing it. The first player to complete a mission scores the points indicated on the card. Points vary according to the difficulty of the mission; the harder the mission, the higher the point value. Color icons at each end of the mission card indicate which affiliations can attempt the mission.

DILEMMAS
Placing dilemmas under the mission cards creates dramatic "plot twists" in the game. Dilemma cards are hazards that a player uncovers while attempting to complete a mission. Depending upon the composition of an Away Team, dilemmas may stop, slow or have no effect on a mission attempt.



OUTPOSTS
Outpost cards mark locations where ships are launched, personnel report for duty and equipment is loaded. Only Klingon and Federation outposts are included in this game.



SHIPS
Ships carry personnel to mission locations. Only Federation and Klingon ships are used in this game. Ships have different attributes which determine their power in the game:

Range determines how far a ship can move on one turn.
Weapons determine offensive capabilities during battle.
Shields determine defensive capabilities during battle.

Many ships list special capabilities, such as holodecks and cloaking devices, which are used in the comprehensive rules. For the quick-start rules, ignore these devices unless a special card (such as Ship Seizure) references them.





PERSONNEL
Personnel cards represent crew members in seven different classifications (Officer, Engineer, Medical, Science, Security, V.I.P. and Civilian). In addition to other special skills listed on the cards, values for three primary attributes determine a crew member's effectiveness in accomplishing missions and overcoming dilemmas:

Integrity characterizes morality, loyalty and discipline.
Cunning indicates shrewdness, imagination and intelligence.
Strength is physical strength, stamina, aggression and fighting ability.

These attributes and other special skills listed on the cards (e.g., Navigation or Stellar Cartography) are needed to complete missions. Many personnel also have special icons indicating command ability, holograms, alternate universe personnel, etc. These icons are used only in the comprehensive rules.

EQUIPMENT
Equipment cards represent tools or devices (like phasers or tricorders) which can be used to enhance the performance of an Away Team or crew.

EVENTS
Event cards create special occurrences or conditions that generally continue throughout the game unless negated by another card. Event cards may only be played at the beginning of a player's turn.



INTERRUPTS
Interrupt cards interrupt the game by imposing special occurrences or conditions at any time between game actions, even during the other player's turn. The consequences of interrupt cards tend to be immediate and short-lived, but not always.




06. How to Play the Game in Three Easy Steps
STEP 1: CHOOSE AN AFFILIATION
Open the two decks of cards. Choose one player to be Federation and one player to be Klingon for the first game. (Keep the expansion pack cards, Spock and the other premium cards separate for now. Play a few games using only the pre-customized decks before you begin adding the extra cards.)

STEP 2: CREATE AND SEED THE SPACELINE
The spaceline is the playing surface. It represents a "sector" of planet locations where missions can be accomplished. Ships containing personnel and equipment will travel, battle and attempt to accomplish missions along the spaceline. For advanced play, a detailed explanation of creating a spaceline is in the comprehensive rules. For the quick-start rules, randomly create the spaceline in the following manner:

First, each player shuffles his six Mission cards and places them face down in a pile. The Federation player draws his top Mission card and places it face up on the playing surface. Players take turns placing cards, side-by-side, on either end of the growing line until all of the Mission cards have been laid down, creating a spaceline that looks something like this:

Next, take your six Dilemma cards and place one face down under each of your opponent's mission cards. You may choose which dilemma to place under each mission, but keep them secret from your opponent. (Your opponent does likewise.)

Finally, put your outpost card under any one of your mission cards to establish an "entry" point for your ships and personnel.


IMPORTANT NOTE: Keep Track of Your Cards! Since both players share the spaceline, you should always keep your cards facing yourself. Make this a habit. This process will make it easier to re-assemble the two decks after the game.

STEP 3: PLAYING THE GAME
You are now ready to play! Each player shuffles their remaining cards thoroughly and places their deck aside, face down, to form a personal draw deck. Each player then draws 7 cards from their own draw deck to start their hand. (Note: there is no limit to the number of cards a player can hold in their hand during play.) The Klingon player goes first, then players alternate turns. On each turn you will:

Choose whether or not to play a single card from your hand. Only one ship, personnel, equipment or event card can be played per turn, taken from your hand and played to the table. (You may also elect to play any number of interrupts at this time.)

Execute orders... which essentially means moving the cards already on the table. There is no limit to the number of actions you can take in one turn. You can load and unload ships at outposts, take command of ships, move ships, beam personnel and/or equipment, attempt missions and engage in battle. You can continue making moves until the cards are "stopped" by (1) encountering a dilemma the Away Team can't overcome or (2) participating in a battle. Cards that are stopped can do nothing for the remainder of the turn, but you are free to move other cards which have not yet been stopped.


Draw a card from your own draw deck to your hand to signal the end of your turn. After a while, both sides of the spaceline will look something like this:


07. Playing Cards From Your Hand
Ship cards - A ship is commissioned by docking it at your outpost. Take a ship card from your hand and place it at one of your outpost locations as shown below:



Personnel cards - Personnel must "report for duty" at an outpost before they can board a ship. To report a personnel card for duty, place the card face up on the playing surface near the outpost and say (for example), "Montgomery Scott reporting for duty!"

Equipment cards - Equipment cards enter play exactly like personnel cards, but without the verbal announcement.

Event cards - Event cards are usually played face up and off to the side as a reminder, but some are placed on the spaceline itself. Remember, Event cards may affect one or both players and their effect may be temporary or long-lasting.

Interrupt cards - Interrupt cards are the only cards that can be played without following the normal sequence of taking turns. They can be played at any time by saying, "Interrupt!" and laying the card on the playing surface. Everything stops and this card now takes precedence over everything else in the game. Interrupt cards may affect one or both players. Most interrupts have an immediate effect on the game and are then discarded. If several interrupts are played in a row, they are handled in the sequence in which they are played.


08. Battling
You can choose to battle your opponent during your turn. Three types of battles can occur: Away Team vs. Away Team; ship vs. ship; and ship vs. outpost. All battles are subject to these rules: (1) battle can only be initiated by a player during his turn; (2) no other activities can occur during a battle; (3) battles can only occur when the opposing forces are at the same location, directly across from each other, at the same mission on the spaceline; and (4) after a battle is resolved, all cards involved in the battle are stopped from any other actions on this turn.

AWAY TEAM VS. AWAY TEAM
The initiating player announces the attack. Both players then total the combined strength of their Away Team personnel, including any enhancement points from equipment cards. The Away Team with the highest total strength wins the battle and one member of the losing Away Team is killed by random selection. (If there is a tie nobody is killed.)

SHIP VS. SHIP
Ship vs. ship battle consists of an attacking shot immediately followed by a retaliation shot from the defender. Even if the defender's ship is damaged or destroyed, it still gets a retaliation shot. (The comprehensive rules booklet implies that a damaged defender may not retaliate; this is an error.) First, the initiating player announces the attack. The attacker must identify which of his ship(s) are making the attack and which enemy ship is being attacked. An attacker can use multiple ships in a battle but can target only one enemy ship at a time. The attacker adds up the total weapon power of his ships, which is compared to the total shield value of the targeted ship. (Enhancement cards can affect these numbers.) If the attacker's weapon power is greater than the defender's shield power, the defender's ship is damaged. Otherwise, the defender's ship is safe. The defender immediately gets his retaliation shot against the attacker, reversing the above comparisons. Remember, the ships and crews involved in the attack are stopped at the end of battle (but the defending ships can still retaliate if attacked again that turn).

Damaged ships - When a ship is damaged, its range is automatically reduced to 5 and the damage is indicated by rotating the ship card 180 degrees. Damage does not affect a ship's weapons or shields, nor its ability to do battle. Ships can be damaged in other ways, too. For example, some event or interrupt cards inflict damage. Unless otherwise specified, treat a damaged ship as stated above.

Destroyed ships - If a damaged ship is damaged again before it is repaired, the ship and all cards on board are destroyed (discarded).

Repairing ships - A damaged ship can be repaired, once it is moved back to its outpost, by waiting two full turns there before re-commissioning.

SHIP VS. OUTPOST
Although outposts do not have weapons, they do have powerful shields. It is possible to attack and destroy an opponent's outpost, but this requires an armada of ships. If ships with total weapon power exceeding the defensive shields attack an outpost, the outpost and any personnel are immediately destroyed (discarded). The mission card and any ships located at the outpost are unaffected, as are any Away Teams on the planet.

REMEMBER, IT'S STAR TREK [R] !
Federation forces can never initiate an attack. The Federation is only allowed to defend itself and retaliate until a battle is over. Klingons can battle at will. During a ship vs. ship battle at an outpost location, the outpost can extend up to 50% of its shields to protect each affiliated ship. This number is added to the designated ship shields. Usually, a ship will be safe while docked at a friendly outpost.

09. Attempting Missions
Completing missions is the primary method of scoring points. You accomplish a mission by beaming an Away Team (with the required skills) down to the planet and overcoming the Dilemma card there. If there is no dilemma present, simply beaming down personnel who have the required skills will accomplish that mission.

Normally, only personnel which match the affiliation of the mission may attempt the mission (although non-aligned personnel can be mixed in as long as one other personnel matches). Before completing a mission, a player must first overcome the dilemma at that location. Personnel must survive with the skills required to accomplish the mission or the mission will not be completed and scored.

All Mission cards state what skills are necessary to complete the mission. For example, a mission requiring ENGINEER x2 means at least two personnel with ENGINEER skill (or one personnel with double ENGINEER skill) must be present in the Away Team for you to complete the mission.

Use the following procedure when attempting a mission.

Announce that you are attempting the mission.

Select and beam your Away Team.

Turn over the Dilemma card and read it aloud. The dilemma represents a plot twist that emerges during the mission and must be dealt with before the mission can be completed.

Some Dilemma cards list certain skills that are required to overcome them. If the Away Team meets the requirements, then it overcomes the dilemma and can immediately proceed. If the Away Team cannot meet the requirements, it is stopped; do whatever the Dilemma card instructs.

Other Dilemmas have no requirements to be overcome; these simply have their effect and are discarded, but do not stop the Away Team

Most dilemmas end with the phrase, "Discard dilemma." This means you only have to face them once. For example, you experience a dilemma that inflicts damage on your Away Team and is then discarded. On your next attempt, that dilemma will not be present. Other dilemmas stick around forever until you overcome them (they are worded accordingly).

Sometimes Dilemma or Mission cards have a condition like STRENGTH>36 or CUNNING>28. This refers to the total STRENGTH or CUNNING of the Away Team. For example, STRENGTH>36 means the strength of the Away Team added together must be greater than 36. If less than or equal to 36, the Away Team cannot overcome the dilemma.

Some Dilemma cards contain bonus points. To earn these points, you must overcome the dilemma and meet all the conditional phrases present. Most cards are self-explanatory. Set aside all bonus point cards you've earned as a reminder.

If you overcome the dilemma and then complete the mission with the required personnel, you score the mission points. The surviving members of the Away Team involved in completing the mission are free to beam back up to the ship and continue if desired. A completed mission remains in play as a spaceline card for purposes of span etc., but it cannot be scored again. To score the mission and mark it complete, pull the Mission card half the card height of the spaceline toward the scoring player like this:

There are a couple of other interesting things about attempting missions:

Personnel located at an outpost can attempt the outpost mission without boarding a ship. Simply designate outpost personnel as an Away Team and beam down as usual.

An Away Team can attempt a mission on a planet even if there is an enemy Away Team already on that planet.



10. Additional Information That May Prove Helpful
LOADING AND UNLOADING SHIPS
Personnel or equipment can be loaded on or unloaded from any ship with compatible affiliations if all are docked at the same location. To load, stack the cards underneath the ship, face up. When the ship moves, everything on board moves with it.

TAKING COMMAND OF SHIPS
To move a ship, you need at least one personnel on board with a matching affiliation. (The longer version of the rules outlines a more elaborate system of staffing requirements. Ignore these rules for now but incorporate them in later play for more advanced strategy.)

MOVING SHIPS
Properly staffed, a ship can move along your side of the spaceline in either direction. To determine how far a ship has traveled, add up the span numbers on each mission card as the ship passes. (Do not count the span number on the starting location.) When a ship has used up all its range, it may not move again that turn. Other ships can still move up to their full span during this turn.

BEAMING PERSONNEL AND EQUIPMENT
Beaming is a method of transferring personnel and/or equipment over short distances. To beam personnel or equipment, simply remove the card(s) from the ship and place them crosswise over the mission card. Personnel beamed to a planet are called an Away Team. There is no limit to the number of times beaming can occur during a turn. Personnel and equipment can also be beamed from one of your ships to another if both ships share the same mission location.

KILLING AWAY TEAM MEMBERS
If an Away Team member is killed by random selection, shuffle the Away Team personnel cards and hold them so the faces of the cards cannot be seen. Let your opponent draw a single card at random and place it in your discard pile. Sometimes you or your opponent will get to choose which Away Team member will die. The designated player then gets to look at all of the personnel cards in the Away Team and determine who dies.


11. Rebuilding Your Decks
After the game is over, be sure to re-assemble your Federation and Klingon decks so they will be ready to go the next time you play. If you lost track of which deck began with which cards, or if you customized the decks with some of your expansion pack cards and would like to return them to their original configurations, use the lists below to reconstruct your decks.



OUTPOST
Federation Outpost

SHIPS
Runabout
Type VI Shuttlecraft
U.S.S. Galaxy (2)
U.S.S. Nebula (2)

MISSIONS
Cargo Rendezvous
Distress Mission
Gravesworld
Homeward
Hostage Situation
Survey Instability

PERSONNEL
Calloway
Christopher Hobson (2)
Darian Wallace (2)
Giusti
Linda Larson
McKnight
Mendon (2)
Montgomery Scott
Simon Tarses
Sito Jaxa
Taitt (2)
Taurik
Dr. Farek
Gorta
Narik
Vekor

DILEMMAS
Alien Labyrinth
Anaphasic Organism
Female's Love Interest
Hidden Entrance
Malfunctioning Door
Microvirus

EQUIPMENT
Engineering Kit
Medical Kit
Medical Tricorder
Tricorder

EVENTS
Atmospheric Ionization
Pattern Enhancers
Plasma Fire
Res-Q
Spacedock
Tetryon Field
Yellow Alert

INTERRUPTS
Countermanda
Disruptor Overload
Escape Pod
Kevin Uxbridge: Convergence
Long-Range Scan
Loss of Orbital Stability
Palor Toff - Alien Trader
Particle Fountain
Wormhole (2)



OUTPOST
Klingon Outpost

SHIPS
I.K.C. K'Ratak
I.K.C. K'Vort (3)
I.K.C. Vor'Cha (2)

MISSIONS
A Good Place To Die
Avert Danger
Gault
Reopen Dig
Reported Activity
Sensitive Search

PERSONNEL
B'iJik
Batrell
Divok (2)
Dukath
Gorath
J'Ddan
K'Tesh (2)
Klag
Kle'eg (2)
Kromm
Torin (2)
Vekma
Dr. Farek
Gorta
Narik
Vekor

DILEMMAS
Archer
Ferengi Attack
Hunter Gangs
Impassable Door
Male's Love Interest
The Gatherers

EQUIPMENT
Engineering Kit
Medical Kit
Medical Tricorder
Tricorder

EVENTS
Atmospheric Ionization (2)
Pattern Enhancers
Plasma Fire
Res-Q
Where No One Has Gone Before
Yellow Alert

INTERRUPTS
Countermanda
Disruptor Overload
Kevin Uxbridge: Convergence
Long-Range Scan
Loss of Orbital Stability
Palor Toff - Alien Trader
Particle Fountain
Ship Seizure
Wormhole (2)


12. Expand Your Power in the Universe! TM
If you've mastered the quick-start rules and you're ready to explore deeper into the universe of the Star Trek: The Next Generation [R] Customizable Card Game TM, you can look for these other card sets at your local hobby, comic, or game store.

BASIC SET
363 cards containing characters and story elements from all seven seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation [R].

ALTERNATE UNIVERSE
122 cards introducing the idea of opening "doorways" to other dimensions. Experience time travel, parallel universes and alternate timelines. Play blackjack at the Royale Casino. Attempt a new dimension of missions. Use the ultra-rare Future Enterprise to travel to the ends of your spaceline at warp speed. You can even find Data's Head! This set expands the game play into surreal worlds and different phases of existence.

Q-CONTINUUM
121-card expansion set focusing on the antics of the omnipotent entity Q! Q the powerful, Q the petulant, Q the playful, Q the altruistic. Now he's here, FLASH, now he's not! Open the door to the Continuum and watch them warp reality. Your strategies and deck designs will never be the same.

HOLODECK ADVENTURES
Have you ever wished you could create your own world? Holodecks allow you to do just that! Use your discretion and customize a simulation of your own specific wishes. Imagine the programs you can write, from the clever schemes of Professor Moriarty to the fantasies of Lieutenant Barclay. Fantastic re-creations. Bizarre settings! Combine holodeck programs with new and existing game elements to design innovative new strategies. Projected Release Summer 1997.


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