Nemesis
Overview
Nemesis is a semi-cooperative survival horror board game set on a spaceship infested with hostile alien organisms called Intruders. Players take on the roles of crew members who wake from hibernation to find one crewmate dead and the ship compromised. Each player is dealt two secret Objective cards (one Corporate, one Personal) and must choose one when the first Intruder appears. To win, a player must both fulfill their chosen Objective and survive – either by hibernating aboard the ship (which must have working engines and correct coordinates) or by evacuating in an Escape Pod. Multiple players can win, but each player pursues their own agenda, and some objectives may require other players to die or the ship’s destination to be changed. The game plays over a series of turns until an end condition is met: the ship jumps to hyperspace, the ship explodes, or the last active character leaves the board.
Components
Board and Tiles
- 1 two-sided game board (basic side marked with a red arrow icon; alternate side designed for campaign play with double Technical Corridors)
- 11 Room tiles “1” (Basic Rooms, all used every game)
- 9 Room tiles “2” (Additional Rooms, only 5 randomly chosen per game)
- 2 Room sheets (reference for Room Actions)
Miniatures
- 6 Character miniatures (Captain, Pilot, Scientist, Scout, Soldier, Mechanic)
- 6 Larvae
- 3 Creepers
- 8 Adult Intruders (4 different sculpts)
- 2 Breeders
- 1 Queen
- 6 colored plastic rings (for Character miniatures)
Cards
- 60 Action cards (10 per Character, each Character has a unique deck)
- 18 Objective cards (9 Personal, 9 Corporate)
- 27 Contamination cards (share a card back with Action cards but form a separate deck)
- 20 Intruder Attack cards
- 16 Serious Wound cards
- 20 Event cards
- 5 Help cards
- 8 Intruder Weakness cards (3 used per game, chosen randomly)
- 8 Coordinates cards (1 used per game, chosen randomly)
- 30 Green (Medical) Item cards
- 30 Yellow (Technical) Item cards
- 30 Red (Military) Item cards
- 12 Blue (Crafted) Item cards
- 6 Character Starting Item cards (Weapons, 1 per Character)
- 12 Character Quest Item cards (2 per Character)
- 6 Character Draft cards
Tokens and Markers
- 1 First Player token
- 18 Status markers (used as Light Wounds, Slime, Signal, Self-Destruct, Time, Destination markers)
- 30 Noise markers
- 12 Door tokens
- 4 Escape Pod tokens
- 20 Exploration tokens
- 1 Blue Character Corpse token (starting dead body)
- 5 Red Character Corpse tokens
- 8 Intruder Egg tokens
- 27 Intruder tokens (8 Larvae, 12 Adult Intruders, 3 Creepers, 2 Breeders, 1 Queen, 1 Blank)
- 8 Intruder Carcass tokens
- 50 Ammo/Injury markers
- 8 Fire markers
- 8 Malfunction markers
- 6 Engine tokens (3 Working, 3 Damaged – one pair per engine)
- 2 “Five Injury” tokens (for tracking large Injury counts on Queen/Breeders)
- 1 Airlock Procedure token
- 5 Plastic card holders (Inventories)
- 1 Intruder bag
- 1 Scanner (red foil viewer for Contamination cards)
- 1 Intruder board
Dice
- 2 d6 Combat (Attack) dice
- 2 d10 Noise dice
Advanced Mode Components (not used in basic game)
- 7 Solo/Coop Objective cards
- 10 Intruder Action cards
Setup
Board Setup (Steps 1-13)
- Place the board on the table, basic side up (red arrow icon in upper left corner).
- Shuffle all Room tiles “2” face down. Place 1 face-down Room tile “2” on each “2” slot on the board. Return remaining Room tiles “2” to the box without looking at them.
- Shuffle all Room tiles “1” face down. Place 1 face-down Room tile “1” on each “1” slot on the board.
- Shuffle all Exploration tokens face down. Place 1 face-down token on each Room tile. Return remaining tokens to the box without looking.
- Place 1 random Coordinates card face down on its space next to the Cockpit. Return remaining Coordinates cards to the box.
- Place 1 Status marker on the “B” space of the Destination Track (this is the Destination marker).
- Place Escape Pod tokens based on player count:
- 1-2 players: 2 Escape Pods
- 3-4 players: 3 Escape Pods
- 5 players: 4 Escape Pods
Place the lowest-numbered pod in Section “A”, next in Section “B”, alternating. All pods start Locked (Locked side face up). Return remaining pods to box.
- For each of the 3 Engines: take both Engine tokens for that engine (1 Damaged, 1 Working), shuffle them face down, and stack them on the corresponding Engine slot. The top token indicates the true status. Players must not see the fronts.
- Place the Intruder board next to the main board. On it, place:
- 5 Egg tokens (on the Egg slots)
- 3 random Weakness cards face down (1 per slot, corresponding to Character Corpse, Intruder Egg, Intruder Carcass). Return remaining Weakness cards to box.
- Fill the Intruder bag with: 1 Blank, 4 Larvae, 1 Creeper, 1 Queen, 3 Adults, plus 1 additional Adult Intruder token per player. Place remaining Intruder tokens and Intruder Carcass tokens next to the board.
- Shuffle and place the following decks face down next to the board: 3 Item decks (Red, Yellow, Green), Event deck, Intruder Attack deck, Contamination deck, Serious Wound deck. Place the Crafted Item (Blue) deck next to the Item decks. Place the Scanner next to the Contamination deck.
- Place next to the board: Fire markers, Malfunction markers, Noise markers, Ammo/Injury markers, Status markers, Door tokens, Red Character Corpse tokens, 2 Combat dice, 2 Noise dice, First Player token.
- Place 1 Status marker on the green space of the Time Track (this is the Time marker).
Crew Setup (Steps 14-20)
- Deal Help cards (numbered 1 through player count) randomly to determine player order for Character drafting. The number is the Player Number, important for some Objectives.
- Each player takes the plastic Inventory card holder matching their Help card number.
- Remove from both Objective decks (Corporate and Personal) all cards showing a player count higher than the current game. Shuffle each deck separately. Deal each player 1 Corporate Objective and 1 Personal Objective. Keep both secret.
- Shuffle all Character Draft cards. In player number order (Player 1 first), each player draws 2 Draft cards, reveals them, chooses 1 Character, and shuffles the other back. Continue until all players have chosen.
- Each player takes:
- A) Their Character board
- B) Their Character miniature, placed in the Hibernatorium with a colored ring
- C) Their Character’s 10 Action cards, shuffled face down on the left side of the Character board
- D) Their Character’s Starting Weapon, placed in one Hand slot, loaded with Ammo markers equal to the weapon’s Ammo capacity
- E) Their 2 Quest Item cards, placed horizontal side up (inactive) next to the Character board
- Player 1 receives the First Player token.
- Place the blue Character Corpse token in the Hibernatorium (represents the dead body found at game start).
Turn Structure
The game is played over consecutive turns. Each turn has two phases:
Phase I: Player Phase
Step 1 – Draw Action Cards: All players draw from their Action deck until they have 5 cards in hand. If the Action deck is empty, shuffle the discard pile to form a new deck, then draw.
Step 2 – Pass First Player Token: The current holder passes the First Player token to the player on their left. Exception: Do not pass the token on the first turn of the game.
Step 3 – Player Rounds: Starting with the First Player and going clockwise, each player performs a round of exactly 2 Actions. After all players have taken a round (or passed), another series of rounds begins. This continues as long as at least 1 player has not passed.
- A player who cannot or chooses not to perform any Actions must pass.
- A player who performs only 1 Action instead of 2 must pass.
- Once a player has passed, they cannot perform any more Actions for the rest of this Player Phase.
- When passing, a player may discard any number of cards from their hand. Flip the Help card to the “Pass” side.
- If a Character ends their round in a Room with a Fire marker, they suffer 1 Light Wound.
Phase II: Event Phase
Step 4 – Time Track: Move the Time marker 1 space to the right. If the Self-Destruct Sequence is active, also move its marker 1 space to the right.
Step 5 – Intruder Attack: Each Intruder in Combat with a Character attacks that Character.
Step 6 – Fire Damage: Each Intruder in a Room with a Fire marker suffers 1 Injury.
Step 7 – Resolve Event Card: Draw and resolve 1 Event card:
- Intruder Movement: All Intruders matching the symbol on the Event card that are NOT in a Room with any Characters move through the Corridor with the number shown on the card. If the number indicates a Technical Corridor, the Intruder is removed from the board and its token returns to the Intruder bag.
- Event Effect: Resolve the text effect on the card, then discard it (unless the card says otherwise).
Step 8 – Intruder Bag Development: Draw 1 Intruder token from the bag:
- Larva: Remove this token from the bag. Add 1 Adult token to the bag.
- Creeper: Remove this token from the bag. Add 1 Breeder token to the bag.
- Adult: All players roll for Noise in order (skip players in Combat). Return the Adult token to the bag.
- Breeder: All players roll for Noise in order (skip players in Combat). Return the Breeder token to the bag.
- Queen: If any Characters are in the Nest Room, place the Queen miniature there and resolve an Encounter. Otherwise, add 1 Egg token to the Intruder board. Return the Queen token to the bag.
- Blank: Add 1 Adult token to the bag (if available; otherwise nothing happens). Return the Blank token to the bag.
Step 9 – End of Turn: All Encounters, Surprise Attacks, etc. from Step 8 must be fully resolved before starting the next turn.
Actions
Each round, a player performs 2 Actions (or fewer, then passes). There are 4 sources of Actions:
Action Costs
Each Action displays a cost icon with a number. To pay the cost, discard that many Action cards from your hand. Contamination cards cannot be used to pay Action costs.
Basic Actions (available to all Characters)
Movement (Cost 1): Move your Character to a neighboring Room (connected by 1 Corridor). After entering:
- If the Room is unexplored (face down), flip it face up and reveal the Exploration token.
- If the Room is empty (no Characters or Intruders), perform a Noise roll. If someone is already in the Room, skip the Noise roll.
- Closed Doors block movement through a Corridor.
- To leave a Room containing an Intruder, you must use the Escape rule.
Careful Movement (Cost 2, Out of Combat Only): Works like Movement, but instead of a Noise roll, place a Noise marker in a chosen Corridor connected to the destination Room. Cannot be performed if all Corridors connected to the destination already have Noise markers.
Shoot (Cost 1, In Combat Only): Attack an Intruder in your Room with a Weapon in your Hand slot. Discard 1 Ammo from the Weapon, then roll the Combat die:
- Miss: No effect.
- 1 Hit (small symbol): Hits only Larvae or Creepers (1 Injury). Misses larger Intruders.
- 1 Hit (medium symbol): Hits Larvae, Creepers, or Adults (1 Injury). Misses Breeders and Queen.
- 1 Hit (large symbol): Hits any Intruder (1 Injury).
- 2 Hits: Deals 2 Injuries to any Intruder.
Some Weapons have special rules modifying the Shoot action.
Melee Attack (Cost 1, In Combat Only): Attack an Intruder with bare hands/improvised weapons.
- Draw 1 Contamination card, place in your Action discard pile.
- Choose 1 Intruder target.
- Roll the Combat die:
- Miss: You suffer 1 Serious Wound.
- 1 Hit (small): Hits Larvae/Creepers (1 Injury); otherwise miss and 1 Serious Wound.
- 1 Hit (medium): Hits Larvae/Creepers/Adults (1 Injury); otherwise miss and 1 Serious Wound.
- 1 Hit (large): 1 Injury to any Intruder.
- 2 Hits: 1 Injury (not 2) to any Intruder.
Pick Up Heavy Object (Cost 1): Pick up 1 Heavy Object (Character Corpse, Intruder Carcass, or Intruder Egg) in your Room. Place it in a Hand slot.
Trade (Cost 1, Out of Combat Only): Initiate a trade with all Characters in the same Room. Players may show Item cards and Objects, and exchange them if both parties agree. A player can give items without receiving anything. Characters cannot exchange Ammo.
Craft Item (Cost 1): Discard 2 Item cards showing the matching blue Craft icons to gain the corresponding Crafted Item card (with grey icons). The 4 Crafted Items are:
- Antidote
- Taser
- Flamethrower
- Molotov Cocktail
A Crafted Item cannot be built if its card is unavailable.
Action Card Actions
Each Character has a unique deck of 10 Action cards. To use one, discard the card from your hand and pay its cost (additional Action cards discarded). If a card has two sections separated by [OR], choose one.
Room Actions (Cost 2)
Most Rooms allow a specific Action. A Character must be in the Room, not in Combat, and the Room must not have a Malfunction marker. See the Room descriptions below.
Item Card Actions
Some Item cards provide Actions. Their cost and effects are described on the cards. “One Use Only” items are discarded after use.
Scoring / Victory Conditions
Winning the Game
A player wins if they meet both conditions:
- Fulfill their chosen Objective (the Objective card kept after the First Encounter).
- Survive – either:
- Hibernate in the Hibernatorium (the ship must survive, have at least 2 working engines, and be heading to Earth – or Mars if the player’s Objective requires it), OR
- Evacuate in a launched Escape Pod (always treated as arriving on Earth).
Multiple players can win. Other players achieving their goals is irrelevant to your victory.
End of Game Triggers
The game ends when any of these occur:
- Time Track reaches the final red space: The ship jumps to hyperspace. All Characters on board who are not hibernating die from g-force. Intruders are unaffected.
- Self-Destruct marker reaches the skull space, OR a 9th Fire marker or 9th Malfunction marker would be placed: The ship explodes. All Characters on board (awake and hibernating) die. All Intruders on board also die.
- The last alive, non-hibernating Character on board dies, hibernates, or uses an Escape Pod: If Self-Destruct is active, move its marker to the final red space (ship explodes). Otherwise, move the Time marker to the final red space (ship jumps).
1) Engines Check: Reveal all top Engine tokens. If 2 or 3 show Damaged status, the ship explodes – all hibernating Characters die. Everything on board (including Intruders) also dies. A Malfunction marker in an Engine Room does NOT make a Working engine count as Damaged.
2) Coordinates Check: Reveal the Coordinates card and check the Destination marker position. If the ship is not headed to Earth, all Characters in the Hibernatorium die. Exception: Characters with the Quarantine Objective survive if the destination is Mars. Intruders are unaffected. The ship is not destroyed.
3) Contamination Check: Each surviving Character (hibernating or in an Escape Pod) checks their Contamination cards:
- A) Scan all Contamination cards in your Action deck, discard pile, and hand.
- B) If at least 1 is “INFECTED,” shuffle all your cards (Action and Contamination) into a new deck, then draw the top 4 cards. If at least 1 Contamination card appears among those 4, your Character dies. If none appear, you survive.
- If there is a Larva on your Character board, skip step A and go directly to step B.
4) Objective Check: Each surviving Character reveals their Objective card. If all requirements are met, that player wins.
Ending the Game Early
If a Character uses an Escape Pod, hibernates, or dies, they can no longer actively participate. At game end, surviving Characters check their Objectives. The first player to die may optionally continue as the Intruder player.
Special Rules & Edge Cases
Critical Gameplay Moments
First Encounter: When the first Intruder miniature (of any type) appears on the board, every player immediately chooses 1 of their 2 Objective cards and removes the other face down from the game. Eggs are not Intruders for this purpose.
First Character Death: When the first Character dies, all Escape Pods are automatically unlocked (flipped to Unlocked side). They may be locked/unlocked normally afterward. The dead player may optionally play as the Intruder.
Hibernation Chambers Open: When the Time Track reaches any blue space, the Hibernation chambers open. Characters cannot enter them before this point.
Self-Destruct Critical: When the Self-Destruct Track reaches any yellow space, all Escape Pods are automatically unlocked and the Self-Destruct sequence can no longer be stopped.
Movement and Exploration
Exploration Tokens: When entering an unexplored Room, flip the Room tile and reveal the Exploration token. The token shows:
- A number indicating Items available in the Room (rotate the tile so the number faces the Item Counter on the board).
- A special effect:
- Silence: Nothing happens. No Noise roll for this movement. (If the Character has a Slime marker, resolve “Danger” instead.)
- Danger: No Noise roll. If any Intruder in a neighboring Room is not in Combat, move it to this Room (all eligible Intruders move). If no eligible Intruders exist, place a Noise marker in every connected Corridor that does not already have one.
- Slime: Place a Slime Status marker on the Character board.
- Fire: Place a Fire marker in this Room.
- Malfunction: Place a Malfunction marker in this Room.
- Doors: Place a Door token (Closed) in the Corridor you entered through.
After resolving, remove the Exploration token from the game.
Noise Roll: Roll a Noise die when entering an empty Room (no Characters or Intruders present):
- Result 1-4: Place a Noise marker in the Corridor with the matching number connected to the Room you entered (including Technical Corridors if there is an Entrance). If that Corridor already has a Noise marker, resolve an Encounter instead.
- Danger symbol: If there is an Intruder in a neighboring Room not in Combat, move it to this Room (all eligible move). Otherwise, place a Noise marker in every connected Corridor without one.
- Silence symbol: Nothing happens. (If the Character has a Slime marker, resolve “Danger” instead.)
Noise Markers: A Corridor may never hold more than 1 Noise marker. Noise markers in the Technical Corridors space count as being in every Technical Corridors Entrance on the board. Noise markers are unaffected by Door tokens.
Technical Corridors
- Characters cannot enter Technical Corridors (exceptions: Mechanic’s Technical Corridors Action card, Technical Corridor Plans Item card).
- If a Noise roll result points to a Technical Corridors Entrance, place the marker on the Technical Corridors space.
- If an Intruder moves to a Technical Corridors Entrance, it disappears: discard all its Injury markers, return its token to the bag, remove its miniature. Any Noise marker on the Technical Corridors space remains.
- Door tokens can never be placed in Technical Corridors.
Doors
- Open: No Door token in the Corridor. Default at game start.
- Closed: Standing Door token. Blocks Character and Intruder movement. When an Intruder tries to move through a Closed Door, it does not move but destroys the Door instead. If multiple Intruders move from the same Room simultaneously, they all destroy the Door and stay.
- Destroyed: Lying Door token. Movement allowed. A Destroyed Door can never be Closed again (exception: Plasma Torch Item).
- If a Noise roll causes an Intruder to come from a Corridor with a Closed Door, the Intruder appears regardless.
- If no Door tokens remain in the pool, take any Door token from the board.
Encounters and Combat
Encounter: Triggered when an Intruder token is drawn from the bag and placed in a Room with a Character (from Noise rolls, Events, etc.). An Intruder moving into a Character’s Room is NOT an Encounter.
Encounter resolution:
- Remove all Noise markers from Corridors connected to this Room (including Technical Corridors).
- Draw 1 Intruder token from the bag.
- Place the corresponding Intruder miniature in the Room.
- Compare the number on the Intruder token to the number of cards in the player’s hand (Action + Contamination). If the player has fewer cards, a Surprise Attack occurs (resolve an Intruder Attack). If equal or more, no Surprise Attack.
- Set the drawn token aside.
Blank Token in Encounter: Place a Noise marker in each Corridor connected to the Room. If the Blank was the last token in the bag, add 1 Adult token (if available) and return the Blank. The Encounter ends (no Intruder appears).
Combat: Whenever a Character and an Intruder are in the same Room. Some Actions have “Out of Combat Only” restrictions.
Escape (Cost 1, special Movement): To leave a Room with an Intruder, resolve an Intruder Attack before moving. If multiple Intruders are present, resolve a separate attack for each. If you survive, move to the neighboring Room and resolve movement normally (Exploration, Noise roll). If you die, your Corpse stays in the Room you tried to leave.
Intruder Attacks
Intruder Attacks occur during: Surprise Attacks, Event Phase Step 5, and Character Escapes.
- Target selection: The Character with the fewest cards in hand. Ties go to the Character with (or nearest to) the First Player token. Surprise Attacks target the triggering Character. Escape attacks target the escaping Character.
- Draw 1 Intruder Attack card. If the card displays a symbol matching the attacking Intruder type, resolve the effect. Otherwise, the attack misses. Ignore the “blood” icon during attacks.
- Discard the card. If the deck runs out, reshuffle the discard pile.
Larva Infest: Larva attacks do not draw Intruder Attack cards. Instead: remove the Larva from the board, place it on the target’s Character board, and give the target 1 Contamination card.
Intruder Injuries and Death
When an Intruder suffers Injuries, place Injury markers on its base, then check the Injury Effect:
- Larva/Egg: 1 Injury kills them. Remove the miniature/token.
- Creeper/Adult: Draw 1 Intruder Attack card. Check only the “blood” icon number. If the number is equal to or lower than the current Injury markers, the Intruder is killed – remove the miniature, place an Intruder Carcass token. If higher, the Intruder survives.
- Breeder/Queen: Draw 2 Intruder Attack cards. Add their “blood” icon numbers together. Compare the total to Injury markers. Same kill/survive logic.
Intruder Retreat: If any drawn Intruder Attack card (during Injury Effect check) shows a Retreat arrow in the “blood” icon, the Intruder flees. Draw an Event card and move the Intruder through the Corridor with the matching number, then discard the Event card.
Adult Intruder Overflow: If you need to place an Adult Intruder but all 8 models are on the board, remove all Adults not in Combat (return tokens to bag), then place the new Adult.
Character Wounds and Death
Light Wounds: Tracked on the Character board’s Light Wound Track (2 spaces). First Light Wound places a marker on the upper space. Second moves it to the lower space. A third Light Wound converts to a Serious Wound (discard the Light Wound marker).
Serious Wounds: Draw 1 Serious Wound card and place it next to your Character board. Each type has a unique ongoing effect. Multiple copies of the same Serious Wound do not stack effects but are harder to remove. A Character with 3 Serious Wounds who suffers any additional Wound (Light or Serious) dies instantly.
Character Death: Remove the miniature, place a Character Corpse token in the Room. The Character drops all Heavy Objects in that Room.
Dressing Wounds: Flip a Serious Wound card face down. Its effect is ignored, but it still counts toward the 3-wound death limit.
Healing: Remove a Light Wound marker, or discard a Dressed (face-down) Serious Wound card entirely.
Contamination Cards
- Drawn from the Contamination deck and placed on the player’s Action discard pile.
- Mixed into the Action deck. They count as cards in hand but cannot pay Action costs.
- Each card is either INFECTED or not (hidden by colored patterns; revealed only by Scanning with the red foil Scanner).
- Scanning: Place the Scanner’s red foil over the coded field. The word “INFECTED” may appear.
- If INFECTED: Place a Larva miniature on the Character board (do not remove the card). If a Larva is already on the board, the Character dies and place 1 Creeper in the Room.
- If not INFECTED: Various Actions may allow removal of non-Infected cards.
- Ways to Scan/remove Contamination: Rest Action card, Canteen Room Action, Shower Room Action, Surgery Room Action, Antidote Item.
Intruder Weakness Cards
3 random Weakness cards are placed face down on the Intruder board during setup, corresponding to 3 Object types (Character Corpse, Intruder Egg, Intruder Carcass). To discover a Weakness, bring the corresponding Object to the Laboratory and perform its Room Action. Discovered Weaknesses are flipped face up and modify Intruder rules for all players.
Items and Inventory
Normal Items: Kept secretly in the player’s Inventory (plastic card holder). Other players can see card backs/colors but not the specific items. No limit to Inventory size.
Heavy Items (Hand icon): Cannot go in the Inventory. Must be placed in one of 2 Hand slots on the Character board. A Character can carry at most 2 Heavy Items/Objects. To take a new one when both slots are full, you must Drop one first.
Heavy Objects: Intruder Eggs, Intruder Carcasses, Character Corpses. These are tokens, not cards. They occupy a Hand slot like Heavy Items. Used for Lab research.
Weapons: Each Character starts with 1 Starting Weapon (loaded to capacity). Weapons found by Searching come loaded with 1 Ammo. A Weapon can never exceed its printed Ammo capacity.
Quest Items: Start the game horizontal (inactive/quest side up). When the quest condition is met, flip to vertical (active) and treat as a normal Item.
Drop: A Character may freely Drop any Item or Object during their turn without using an Action. Dropped Objects remain in the Room. Dropped Item cards are discarded.
Duct Tape: Allows combining 2 Heavy Items into 1 Hand slot (does not apply to Objects).
Searching
Three Item decks (Red/Military, Yellow/Technical, Green/Medical) can be searched. The item color found must match the Room color. White Rooms allow drawing from any deck. Each Search reduces the Room’s Item Counter by 1. When the counter reaches 0, the Room cannot be searched further.
Fire Markers
- Characters ending their round in a Room with Fire suffer 1 Light Wound (only once per round, even if they pass).
- During Event Phase Fire Damage step, each Intruder in a Room with Fire suffers 1 Injury.
- Only 8 Fire markers exist. If a 9th would be placed, the ship explodes and the game ends.
- A Room can hold at most 1 Fire marker. Duplicate placement has no effect.
- Discarded Fire markers return to the pool.
- Room Actions and Search still function in Rooms on Fire.
Malfunction Markers
- Prevent use of the Room’s Action (Search still works).
- Disable Computers in the Room.
- Cannot be placed in the Nest or Room Covered in Slime.
- Only 8 Malfunction markers exist. If a 9th would be placed, the ship loses hull integrity and the game ends.
- A Room can hold at most 1 Malfunction marker. Duplicate placement has no effect.
- Discarded markers return to the pool.
- A Malfunction in an Engine Room does NOT affect the Engine’s Working/Damaged status.
- A Malfunction in the Hibernatorium does not affect already-hibernating Characters.
Slime Marker
- While a Character has a Slime marker, all “Silence” Noise roll results and “Silence” Exploration tokens are treated as “Danger” instead.
- A Character can have at most 1 Slime marker. Additional Slime has no effect.
- Removed via: Clothes Item card or Shower Room Action.
Attacking Other Players
Characters cannot directly attack other Characters (anti-aggression implants). However, indirect harm is possible: cutting someone off in a burning Room, activating Self-Destruct, throwing grenades at Intruders in Rooms with other crew members, sabotaging Engines, changing Coordinates, etc.
Restrictions on Hibernation, Destination, and Self-Destruct
- You cannot change the Destination or start the Self-Destruct sequence when any Character is already hibernating.
- You may never Set Destination if there is an Intruder in the Cockpit.
- You may never enter a hibernation chamber if there is any Intruder in the Hibernatorium.
- You cannot start the Self-Destruct when Characters are hibernating.
- If a hyperspace jump happens while Self-Destruct is active, the ship is still destroyed.
Room Descriptions
Basic Rooms “1” (all present every game)
| Room |
Action |
| Armory |
Recharge Energy Weapon: Add 2 Ammo to 1 Energy Weapon (not Classic Weapons). Cannot exceed Ammo capacity. |
| Comms Room |
Send a Signal: Place a Status marker on the Signal space of your Character board. Required for some Objectives. |
| Emergency Room |
Treat Wounds: Dress all Serious Wounds OR Heal 1 Dressed Serious Wound OR Heal all Light Wounds. |
| Evacuation Section A |
Enter Escape Pod: Only if a Pod in Section A is Unlocked with free space. Perform a Noise roll first – if an Intruder appears, the attempt fails. Cannot enter if any Intruder is in the Room. Each Pod holds up to 2 Characters. |
| Evacuation Section B |
Same as Section A, but for Section B Pods. |
| Fire Control System |
Choose any 1 Room: discard its Fire marker (if any). All Intruders in that Room flee (draw 1 Event card per Intruder for direction). Can be used even without Fire to make Intruders flee. |
| Generator |
Start/Stop Self-Destruct: Place a marker on the first green space. It advances with the Time marker each turn. Can be stopped (remove marker) unless it has reached a yellow space. Ship explodes when it reaches the skull space. |
| Laboratory |
Analyse 1 Object (Character Corpse, Intruder Carcass, or Egg must be in the Room). Discover the corresponding Intruder Weakness card. The Object is not consumed. |
| Nest |
Take 1 Egg from the Intruder board, then perform a Noise roll. When all Eggs are removed/destroyed, the Nest is destroyed (place 1 Injury marker). Fire in the Nest destroys 1 uncarried Egg per Fire Damage step. Eggs can be attacked with Shoot, Melee (no Contamination/Wound penalty on miss), Grenades (destroy 2), or Molotov Cocktails (destroy 1). Each attempt requires a Noise roll. |
Additional Rooms “2” (5 random per game, out of 9 available)
| Room |
Action |
| Airlock Control |
Emergency Airlock: Choose 1 other Yellow Room whose Corridors have no Destroyed Doors. Close all Doors in its Corridors. Place the Airlock Procedure token. If all Doors remain Closed through end of Player Phase, everything in that Room dies (Characters and Intruders). Remove Fire marker if present. If any Door is opened before then, remove the token. |
| Cabins |
Passive: At the start of a new turn, if your Character is here with no Intruders and no Malfunction, draw 1 extra Action card (6 instead of 5). |
| Canteen |
Heal 1 Light Wound. Optionally Scan all Contamination cards in hand and remove all non-Infected cards. If any is Infected, place a Larva on your board (if already present, you die and place 1 Creeper). |
| Command Center |
Choose any 1 Room: Open/Close any Doors in Corridors connected to it (choose individually). |
| Engine Control Room |
Check the status of all 3 Engines. Cannot change Engine status here. Works even with a Malfunction in the Engine Rooms. |
| Hatch Control System |
Lock or Unlock 1 Escape Pod (flip its token). |
| Monitoring Room |
Secretly look at any 1 unexplored Room tile and its Exploration token, then replace them. You do not have to tell the truth. |
| Room Covered with Slime |
Passive: Entering this Room automatically gives a Slime marker. No Room Action. Cannot receive Malfunction markers. |
| Shower Room |
Discard your Slime marker. Optionally Scan all Contamination cards in hand and remove non-Infected. Same Infection rules as Canteen. |
| Storage |
Draw 2 cards from any 1 Item deck (Red, Yellow, or Green). Keep 1, put the other at the bottom of the deck. |
| Surgery |
Scan ALL Contamination cards (deck, hand, discard). Remove all Infected cards. Remove Larva from Character board if present. After Scanning, suffer 1 Light Wound, automatically pass, and shuffle all Action cards into your deck (hand is empty until next turn). |
Special Rooms (fixed positions, always explored)
| Room |
Action |
| Hibernatorium |
Hibernate: Only when Time Track is on a blue space. Perform a Noise roll – if an Intruder appears, the attempt fails. Cannot enter if any Intruder is present. If successful, remove your miniature from the game. Survival determined at End of Game. |
| Cockpit |
Check Coordinates (secretly view the card) OR Set Destination (move the Destination marker). Cannot Set Destination with an Intruder present or with Characters hibernating. |
| Engine #1 / #2 / #3 |
Check Engine (Room Action, Cost 2): Secretly view the top token to see the current status. Repair/Break Engine: Performed via a Repairs Action card or Tools Item card (not a Room Action). Take both tokens, secretly view them, replace in order of your choice. You must announce if you changed the order but not which status is on top. Repair/Break works even with a Malfunction marker. |
Escape Pods
- Start Locked. Can be unlocked via: Hatch Control System Room Action, certain Items, first Character death (auto-unlock all), Self-Destruct reaching yellow space (auto-unlock all).
- To enter: perform the Evacuation Section Room Action. Requires the Pod to be Unlocked, have free space (max 2 Characters per Pod), no Intruders in the Evacuation Section Room, no Malfunction marker in the Room. A Noise roll is required first.
- After entering, choose to launch immediately or wait:
- Launch: Remove your miniature and the Pod token from the game. You are treated as having arrived on Earth.
- Wait: At the start of your round each Player Phase, choose to launch, exit (return to Evacuation Section Room), or stay (automatically pass this turn). If an Intruder appears in the Evacuation Section, all Characters in that Section’s Pods are returned to the Room.
- Another Character entering your Pod can launch it immediately.
- Heavy Objects do not take up Character spaces in a Pod.
Game Modes
Solo Mode: Use Solo/Coop Objectives (draw 2, choose 1 at First Encounter). Item availability in each Room is halved (round up): 1-2 items become 1, 3-4 items become 2. Win by fulfilling your Objective and surviving.
Fully Cooperative Mode: Use Solo/Coop Objectives (draw 1 per player). ALL Objectives must be fulfilled and at least 1 Character must survive. Includes Revive mechanic: a dead Character’s Corpse can be carried to a working Emergency Room (no Intruder or Malfunction) to revive them at the start of the next turn (Light Wounds removed, Serious Wounds Dressed).
Playing as the Intruder (optional): The first eliminated player controls the Intruders. They draw 3 cards per turn (hand limit 4), take 1 Action per round using Intruder Action cards (Move, Attack, or Effect). During Event Phase, only Time Track and Fire Damage apply (no Event cards, no Intruder Bag Development, no automatic Intruder Attacks – though Surprise Attacks and Escape attacks still occur). The Intruder player’s goal is to ensure no other player wins.
Player Reference
Action Costs
| Action | Cost |
|—|—|
| Movement | 1 Action card |
| Careful Movement | 2 Action cards |
| Shoot | 1 Action card + 1 Ammo |
| Melee Attack | 1 Action card + 1 Contamination card drawn |
| Pick Up Heavy Object | 1 Action card |
| Trade | 1 Action card |
| Craft Item | 1 Action card + 2 matching component Items |
| Room Action | 2 Action cards |
| Action Card Action | Card itself + cost shown on card |
| Item Action | Cost shown on Item card |
Turn Sequence Summary
Player Phase:
- All players draw to 5 cards
- Pass First Player token left (skip on Turn 1)
- Player rounds (2 Actions each, clockwise, repeat until all pass)
Event Phase:
- Advance Time Track (+Self-Destruct if active)
- Intruder Attacks (all Intruders in Combat attack)
- Fire Damage (Intruders in Fire Rooms take 1 Injury each)
- Event Card (Intruder Movement, then Event Effect)
- Intruder Bag Development (draw 1 token, resolve)
- End of Turn
Intruder Toughness
| Intruder Type | Injuries to Kill | Injury Check |
|—|—|—|
| Larva | 1 (automatic kill) | None needed |
| Egg | 1 (automatic kill) | None needed |
| Creeper | Variable | Draw 1 Attack card, compare “blood” icon to Injury markers |
| Adult | Variable | Draw 1 Attack card, compare “blood” icon to Injury markers |
| Breeder | Variable | Draw 2 Attack cards, sum “blood” icons, compare to Injury markers |
| Queen | Variable | Draw 2 Attack cards, sum “blood” icons, compare to Injury markers |
End-of-Game Victory Checklist
- Engines Check: 2+ Working engines required or ship explodes
- Coordinates Check: Ship must be heading to Earth (or Mars for Quarantine Objective)
- Contamination Check: Scan all Contamination cards; if Infected, draw 4 from shuffled deck – any Contamination card means death
- Objective Check: Reveal Objective; if requirements met and Character alive, you win
Key Numbers
- Characters per game: up to 5 (from 6 available)
- Action cards per Character: 10
- Hand size: 5 cards (draw up each turn)
- Actions per round: 2
- Hand slots (Heavy Items/Objects): 2 per Character
- Serious Wounds to die: 3 (any additional Wound after 3 kills)
- Light Wounds before conversion: 3rd Light Wound becomes a Serious Wound
- Fire markers in game: 8 (9th ends the game)
- Malfunction markers in game: 8 (9th ends the game)
- Working Engines needed for ship survival: at least 2 of 3
- Escape Pod capacity: 2 Characters each
- Starting Intruder bag: 1 Blank + 4 Larvae + 1 Creeper + 1 Queen + 3 Adults + 1 Adult per player
- Egg tokens at start: 5 (on Intruder board)
- Weakness cards per game: 3 (from 8 available)
- Adult Intruder miniatures: 8 maximum on board