Overview

RoboRally is a programming and racing board game designed by Richard Garfield (creator of Magic: The Gathering), first published by Wizards of the Coast in 1994. Players program robots to navigate a hazardous factory floor, racing to reach checkpoints in numerical order. Each round, players draw programming cards and secretly arrange them to control their robot’s movement, then all programs execute simultaneously, often with chaotic and hilarious results as robots push each other, fall into pits, and get zapped by lasers.

Components

• 6 double-sided game boards (factory floor configurations)
• 1 double-sided start board
• 6 robot figures with matching reboot tokens
• 6 robot player mats
• Six 20-card programming decks (one per robot) plus 6 special programming cards
• 40 upgrade cards
• 74 damage cards (SPAM, Worm, Virus, Trojan Horse)
• 36 checkpoint tokens
• 1 priority antenna
• 48 plastic energy cubes
• 30-second sand timer

Setup

1. Select a racing course from the rulebook and arrange game boards accordingly.
2. Each player chooses a robot, takes its figure, player mat, and shuffled programming deck.
3. Place special programming cards and damage card piles within reach.
4. Shuffle upgrade cards and display a number equal to the player count.
5. Each player takes 5 energy cubes.
6. Place robots on the start board gears (youngest player chooses first).
7. Place the priority antenna. Priority is determined by proximity to the antenna.

Turn Structure

Each round consists of three phases:

Phase 1 – Upgrade: In priority order, players may purchase upgrade cards using energy cubes. Maximum 3 permanent (yellow border) and 3 temporary (red border) upgrades per robot.

Phase 2 – Programming: All players simultaneously draw 9 cards from their programming deck and select 5 to place face-down in their 5 registers (left to right). Remaining cards are discarded. A sand timer starts after the first player finishes; players who run out of time have remaining registers filled randomly.

Phase 3 – Activation: Registers are resolved one at a time (1 through 5):

1. All players flip the current register card face-up.
2. Players execute their card in priority order (closest to antenna goes first).
3. After all players execute, board elements activate in this order:
   • Blue conveyor belts (move 2 spaces)
   • Green conveyor belts (move 1 space)
   • Push panels
   • Gears (rotate 90 degrees)
   • Board lasers fire
   • Robot lasers fire (each robot shoots forward in a straight line)
   • Energy spaces (robots on them gain 1 energy)
   • Checkpoints (robots on the correct next checkpoint register it)

Actions

Programming Cards: Move Forward 1/2/3, Turn Left, Turn Right, U-Turn, Back Up, Power Up (gain energy).

Damage Types:

• SPAM: Received from lasers. When drawn during programming, execute a random move instead.
• Trojan Horse: When drawn, add 2 SPAM cards to your discard.
• Worm: When drawn, immediately reboot your robot.
• Virus: When drawn, all robots within 6 spaces also receive a Virus card.

Rebooting: Triggered by falling off the board, entering a pit, or drawing a Worm card. Take 2 SPAM cards, cancel remaining programming for the round, and place robot on your reboot token facing any direction.

Upgrades: Purchased with energy cubes. Provide passive or active bonuses (extra damage, shields, movement modifiers, etc.).

Scoring / Victory Conditions

The first player to reach all checkpoints in numerical order wins. The game ends immediately when a robot finishes its register on the final checkpoint.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Priority: Determined by counting spaces from each robot to the antenna (row-then-column). Ties broken clockwise from an imaginary line extending from the antenna.
• Robot pushing: Robots pushed into pits, off the board, or into lasers suffer consequences.
• Board lasers: Fire at the end of each register, not just at the end of the round.
• Conveyor belts: Can chain together. Blue belts move robots 2 spaces; green belts move 1 space. Robots on belts are also rotated if the belt curves.
• Damage deck management: Damage cards are shuffled into your programming deck, diluting it with bad cards. Spend energy to discard damage cards from your hand during programming.
• Lighter variant: Remove upgrade phase and sand timer for a simpler game.
• Advanced variant: Keep unprogrammed cards between rounds instead of discarding.

Player Reference

Round: Upgrade > Program (draw 9, keep 5) > Activate (resolve 5 registers sequentially).

Board element order: Blue belts > Green belts > Push panels > Gears > Board lasers > Robot lasers > Energy > Checkpoints.

Priority: Closest robot to antenna acts first.

Win: First to touch all checkpoints in order.