Designer Jacob Fryxelius
Artist Isaac Fryxelius
Publisher FryxGames, Stronghold Games
Boardgamegeek Info:
https://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/167791/terraforming-mars
Welcome to the sixth Terraforming Mars tournament at Euroquest! Congratulations to last year’s champion, Donte Saccenti, for besting Imran Akram, Chad Weaver, and Dalton Versak in last year’s finals.
All Terrans seeking to terraform Mars are welcome to play, as long as they have read the rules or attended a demo.
GameMaster
GM: Bill Crenshaw
Assistant GMs: Eric Wrobel, Chad Weaver
Schedule
Demo: Thurs 11:00 AM
The rules for the various expansions will be covered. The GM will also answer any questions about the base game, but will not teach it.
See schedule for Heat times
Plaques
The top two finishers from the Final will receive a plaque.
Event Description
CHANGES. These are the rule changes for this year’s tournament:
BANNED CORPORATIONS. DO NOT PLAY WITH MANUTECH, VITOR, POINT LUNA OR POSEIDON. When playing with expansions, shuffle the expansion corporations together and deal 2 expansion corporations and 2 base game corporations to each player. When playing with the Base board and Prelude cards, do NOT use Prelude corporations; just deal each player 2 (or if agreed by all, 3) base game corporations.
NEW: VOLUNTARY BANNED CORPORATIONS. Each player, in turn order, has the option to ban a corporation (in addition to the above banned corporations). Remove all banned corporations before dealing them out.
RANDOMIZED MILESTONES AND AWARDS. Randomized milestones and awards (if available) will be used: (1) in all games using the original board; and (2) in elimination rounds. Refer to separate rules regarding use.
REBALANCED CARD. Modify Toll Station so it increases MC production by 1 for each space tag held by any 1 opponent (not all opponents).
TURMOIL AND PROMO CARDS. Turmoil and promo cards may be used only in the semifinals and finals and only if all players agree.
FAST MODE. All players must take 2 actions each turn or pass. You may sell 1 patent as your first action and then sell a second patent as your second action. You may take 1 action and then pass for the generation.
TRADING. When playing the Colonies expansion, no more than one trade per turn is allowed (meaning a player with Space Port Colony, Space Port, or Sky Docks cannot use their first two actions to trade twice; on their second turn, they may trade again once).
Heat Format
All games will use the full corporate version rules, corporations and production starting at 0, the drafting rules described below. Heats will have 4-player games with some 3-player games as needed. Heat 1 will use the original board; heat 2 will use the Hellas board; the semifinals will use the Elysium board; and the finals will use the original board.
Expansions
In heats, we will assign tables based on interest in playing expansions. If you agree to play expansions, you must play at least 2 of the Venus, Prelude and Colony expansions. If you do not, you will play without expansions, except the Prelude expansion if at least 2 players request that. In the semifinals and finals, unless all players agree, at least 2 of the expansions other than Turmoil must be used. If there is no consensus, each player may veto 1 expansion.
Drafting
Corporations. Unless players agree otherwise, deal each player 2 corporations if no expansions are used and otherwise 2 regular corporations and 2 expansion corporations. Beginner corporations may not be used.
Initial draft of Project cards. At the start of the game, deal each player 5 project cards. Each player keeps 1 project card and passes the others to the left. Keep taking one card and passing the rest until each player has 5 cards. Deal each player another 5 project cards, keep 1 and pass the others to the right. Keep taking 1 card and passing the rest until each player has a total of 10 project cards. Choose a corporation and which of the 10 project cards to buy (after the Prelude card draft if applicable).
Turn drafts. At the start of each turn from Turn 2 on, deal 4 project cards to each player. On even turns, keep 1 and pass the rest to the left; on odd turns, keep 1 and pass the rest to the right. Once everyone has 4 cards, decide which cards to buy.
Prelude
Prelude cards are DRAFTED. Deal each player 4 Prelude cards along with the initial set of 5 project cards. After the project card draft is completed, keep 1 Prelude card and pass the rest to the left; repeat passing 1 Prelude card until all players have 4 Prelude cards, then choose 2.
Venus
If Venus is used, include the Venusphile Award and the Hoverlord Milestone. Remember: the starting player must advance one of the global parameters (including the Venus scale) at the end of each turn. Due to time constraints, this rule is mandatory in all games.
Colonies
You CAN build a colony or trade at a colony even if you cannot use their resources (Titan, Miranda or Enceladus). Floaters, microbes and animals received when a colony is built or traded at may not be split between different cards but if received when trading may be placed on a different card than received due to a colony bonus.
Rules clarification: We will refer to Board Game Geek for any rule clarifications not covered by the tournament rules. https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1705209/official-faq-rules-clarifications.
Elimination Rounds
If there are at least 32 total players: The Top 16 players advance to the semi-finals, as determined by the standard EuroQuest tiebreakers. These players will play four 4-player games, the winner of each advancing to the finals. If there are less than 32 total players: With 4 or fewer unique winners, we will skip directly to a final with those winners. If necessary, the next top ranked player(s) without a win will advance to fill the table to 4. With more than 4 unique winners, we will advance either 8 or 12 (depending on the number of unique winners) to a semi-final. The next top ranked players without a win will be included to fill out the tables. Advancement of non-winners in the semifinal will be determined by placement in the semifinal game and then highest percentage of the semifinal winner’s score.
The top 4 players from the semifinals will advance to the final.
Time Limits
Heats will have a strict 3½-hour time limit. The GM will make an announcement when there are 30-45 minutes left. If all players have taken at least 1 action in the current turn, the players will finish the current turn and play one final turn; otherwise, the current turn will be the final turn. The semifinals and finals will have a 4-hour time limit.
Playing Procedures
Seating and Starting player
Randomly determine seating (with the owner of the game sitting where they want and the other players sitting randomly around in order of clubs, diamonds, hearts, spades based on the card you drew for table assignment) and then randomly determine the starting player and proceed clockwise.
Game Play
For each action you take, state OUT LOUD, what you are doing and do the following: (1) for cards, state the name of the card and what it does; (2) state how you are paying for your action and place the payment in front of your mat so all players can see the payment; (3) adjust production and resources as indicated on the card; (4) place any tile on the board (and receive any placement bonus). Hopefully following this order will reduce mistakes.
Mistakes
Any failure to properly implement a production box adjustment of the player playing a card MUST be corrected as soon as they are noticed. If you have taken too many resources in production, you lose them immediately (if you do not have any, correct the mistake as best possible). If you have not taken enough resources, you do not get the resources missed unless the mistake is noticed before you take an action in the next generation and all other players agree you are entitled to the resources in question. Once you have ended your turn and the next player announces a move, if you failed to remove resources from another player, you may not do so. If you neglect to claim benefits as a result of the action of another player (e.g., Pets, Rover Construction, Arctic Algae, etc.), you must correct the mistake before you take an action in the next generation or you do not get the benefit. If another player took or declined to take an action based on your resources or lack thereof and would have taken a different action, the latter player may take a different action unless it adversely affects a 3rd player. If you run into a problem, try to work it out and if not, ask the GM.
Please be nice and let the players entitled to a bonus know when a city or ocean is built. (It is permissible to place 2 resource markers next to the stack of ocean tiles to serve as a reminder if Arctic Algae is in play and 1-3 markers next to the city stack to serve as a reminder if Pets/Rover Construction is/are in play.)
Production.
To minimize mistakes, do not mark production on your player board until you have a production level other than 0. When you take production, first move your existing resources to the far-right side of the production box. Then place your production on the left side. Before mixing the new resources and the old, have the player next to you audit the resources.
Moving TR/Cards Dealing.
Appoint one player to move all players’ TR and global parameters and another to deal cards. When moving TR, state out loud what the movement is – e.g., I’m moving red from 20 to 21.
Last Turn Greenery Build.
The last turn greenery build is an extension of the current turn, so building takes place in current turn order.
Scoresheet.
Please fill out the scoresheet and start doing so before final scoring to prevent mistakes. If 2 or more players have the same TR and the same amount of mega credits left over at the end of the game, in heats all tied players will be deemed winners; in elimination rounds, whichever tied player moved later on turn 1 will be the winner.
Terraforming Mars Random Milestones and Awards
Randomly draw 5 milestones and 5 awards. Add Hoverlord and Venusphile if playing the Venus expansion.
The following duplicative milestones/awards cannot be used in the same game:
- Gardener and Cultivator
- Landlord and Cultivator
- Builder and Contractor
- Tycoon and Magnate
- Miner and Industrialist
- Energizer and Industrialist
- Terraformer and Benefactor
Most Important Rule: Have fun!
Past Winners
2023
1st – Donte Saccenti
2nd – Imran Akram
3rd – Chad Weaver
4th – Dalton Versak
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Terraforming Mars at EuroQuest 2024 will award Meeple League points