Version 3.

0 of

The Unofficial
Complete Rulebook for

1
 Live Long and Prosper!

!2 2
 CONTENTS
The Unofficial Complete Rulebook contains the following:

1. ABOUT THESE RULES .................................................6 4. DEFINITIONS AND GLOSSARY ...............................16

1.1 Version and Copyright ..................................................6 5. SETTING UP ................................................................ 19
1.2 The Game and Its Expansions ....................................6 5.1 Select Options .............................................................19
1.3 Using These Rules .........................................................6 5.2 Determine Playing Area ............................................ 19
1.3.1 Rules Changes...............................................................................7 5.2.1 Size of Playing Area.................................................................... 19
1.3.1.1 Variant Factions ...........................................................................7 5.2.2 Limit of Playing Area ..................................................................19
1.3.2 The Rules Problems .....................................................................7 5.3 Set Up the Borg ...........................................................19
1.3.2.1 The Borg Rules Problems..........................................................7 5.3.1 No Borg .......................................................................................19
1.3.2.2 The Vulcan Rules Problems .......................................................7 5.3.2 Some Borg ...................................................................................19
1.3.2.3 Problems With Official Answers..............................................7 5.3.3 Delta Quadrant Probe ..............................................................19
1.3.3 Use of Cases .................................................................................7 5.3.3.1 Minor Delta Quadrant Probe ...............................................19
1.3.4 Use of Specific Words .................................................................8 5.3.3.2 Major Delta Quadrant Probe ...............................................19
1.3.5 Printing the Unofficial Complete Rulebook ...........................8 5.3.4 Delta Quadrant Connection ...................................................19
2. GAME OVERVIEW .........................................................9 5.3.4.1 The Transwarp Hub .................................................................20
2.1 Number of Players........................................................9 5.3.5 Borg Console and Cards .........................................................20
2.1.1 The Solo & Two Player Games ..................................................9 5.4 Set Up System Discs & Exploration Cards .............20
2.2 Playing Time ................................................................10 5.4.1 System Disc Stack ......................................................................20
2.3 Winning the Game ......................................................10 5.4.2 Exploration Deck .......................................................................20
2.3.1 Ascendancy Victory ...................................................................10 5.5 Prepare Cards, Tokens and Dice ..............................20
2.3.2 Supremacy Victory .....................................................................10 5.6 Select Factions ............................................................ 20
2.3.3 Vulcan Agenda Victory ...............................................................10 5.6.1 Placing Home Systems ..............................................................20
2.3.4 Alliance Victory ...........................................................................10 5.6.2 Unused Home Systems ............................................................ 20
2.3.5 Winning and Losing vs. Borg ....................................................10 5.7 Player Set Up ...............................................................21
2.3.6 Tied Victories ..............................................................................10 5.7.1 Command Console ...................................................................21
2.4 Starfleet Ethics ............................................................10 5.7.2 Command Tokens ......................................................................21
3. GAME COMPONENTS ................................................11 5.7.3 Project Area ................................................................................21
3.1 Rulebooks.....................................................................11 5.7.4 Advancements .............................................................................21
3.2 System Discs ................................................................11 5.7.5 Faction Component Supply .....................................................21
3.2.1 System Disc Features ................................................................11 5.7.5.1 Faction Specific Set Up ..........................................................21
3.3 Space Lanes ..................................................................11 5.7.6 Home System .............................................................................21
3.4 Command Consoles ....................................................11 5.7.7 Starting Ships ..............................................................................21
3.4.1 Faction Command Consoles...................................................11 5.8 Starting Level ..............................................................22
3.4.2 Borg Console Card & Cube Card .........................................11 5.8.1 Humble Beginnings .................................................................... 22
3.5 Cards .............................................................................12 5.8.1.1 Starting Resources and Ascendancy ...................................22
3.5.1 Turn Order Cards ......................................................................12 5.8.1.2 Starting Systems ......................................................................22
3.5.2 Fleet Cards ..................................................................................12 5.8.1.3 Starting Advancements and Projects ..................................22
3.5.3 Player Turn Summary Cards ....................................................12 5.8.1.4 Borg Start ..................................................................................22
3.5.4 Trade Agreement Cards ............................................................12 5.8.1.5 Delayed Delta Quadrant Connection .................................22
3.5.5 Advancement Cards ..................................................................12 5.8.1.6 First Round Exploration .........................................................22
3.5.6 Vulcan Agenda Cards .................................................................12 5.8.2 Base Starting Resources ...........................................................22
3.5.7 Exploration Cards .....................................................................12 5.8.2.1 Starting Resources and Ascendancy ...................................22
3.5.8 Borg Tech Cards .........................................................................12 5.8.2.2 Starting Systems ......................................................................22
3.5.9 Borg Command Cards .............................................................13 5.8.2.3 Starting Advancements and Projects ..................................22
3.6 Playing Pieces ..............................................................13 5.8.2.4 Borg Start ..................................................................................22
3.6.1 Ships ..............................................................................................13 5.8.2.5 Delayed Delta Quadrant Connection .................................22
3.6.1.1 Borg Cubes ................................................................................13 5.8.2.6 First Round Exploration .........................................................23
3.6.2 Fleet Markers ..............................................................................13 5.8.3 Extra Starting Resources .........................................................23
3.6.3 Control Nodes ...........................................................................13 5.8.3.1 Starting Resources and Ascendancy ...................................23
3.6.3.1 Borg Spires ................................................................................13 5.8.3.2 Starting Systems ......................................................................23
3.6.4 Starbase Models .........................................................................13 5.8.3.3 Starting Advancements and Projects ..................................23
3.6.5 Vulcan Ambassadors ..................................................................14 5.8.3.4 Borg Start ..................................................................................23
3.6.6 Resource Nodes ........................................................................14 5.8.3.5 Delayed Delta Quadrant Connection .................................23
3.6.6.1 Production Nodes ....................................................................14 5.8.3.6 First Round Exploration .........................................................23
3.6.6.2 Research Nodes ......................................................................14 5.8.4 Medium Game ............................................................................23
3.6.6.3 Culture Nodes .......................................................................... 14 5.8.4.1 Starting Resources and Ascendancy ...................................23
3.6.7 Borg Assimilation Nodes ..........................................................14 5.8.4.2 Starting Systems ......................................................................23
3.7 Tokens ...........................................................................14 5.8.4.3 Starting Advancements and Projects ..................................23
3.7.1 Ascendancy Tokens ....................................................................14 5.8.4.4 Borg Start ..................................................................................23
3.7.2 Warp Tokens ................................................................................14 5.8.4.5 Delayed Delta Quadrant Connection .................................23
3.7.3 Command Tokens ......................................................................14 5.8.4.6 First Round Exploration .........................................................23
3.7.4 Resource Tokens ........................................................................14 5.8.5 Quick Game................................................................................23
3.7.5 Starbase Tokens ..........................................................................14 5.8.5.1 Starting Resources and Ascendancy ...................................23
3.7.6 Andorian Tokens .........................................................................14 5.8.5.2 Starting Systems ......................................................................24
3.7.7 Borg Tokens .................................................................................14 5.8.5.3 Starting Advancements and Projects ..................................24
3.7.8 Variant Tokens .............................................................................15 5.8.5.4 Borg Start ..................................................................................24
3.8 Dice ................................................................................15 5.8.5.5 Delayed Delta Quadrant Connection .................................24
3.9 Other Play Aids ...........................................................15 5.8.5.6 First Round Exploration .........................................................24

3 !3
 6. GAME ROUND SEQUENCE .......................................25 8.8.1 Crisis .............................................................................................34
6.1 Initiative Stage ............................................................25 8.8.1.1 Destroyed Systems ..................................................................34
6.1.1 Spending Resources for Turn Order .....................................25 8.8.2 Discovery ....................................................................................34
6.1.1.1 Types of Resources .................................................................. 25 8.8.3 Allies ..............................................................................................35
6.1.1.2 Spending Sequence .................................................................25 8.8.3.1 Diplomacy Tests .......................................................................35
6.1.2 Prepare the Turn Order Cards ...............................................25 8.8.4 Virgin Worlds...............................................................................35
6.1.3 Choosing Turn Order Cards ...................................................25 8.8.5 Civilization ...................................................................................35
6.1.3.1 Revealing Turn Order .............................................................. 25 8.8.5.1 Pre-Warp Civilizations ............................................................35
6.1.4 Random Turn Order ..................................................................25 8.8.5.2 Warp-Capable Civilizations ...................................................35
6.1.5 Borg Turn Order ........................................................................25 8.9 Discovering Phenomena ............................................ 36
6.1.6 Effects Played During the Initiative Stage .............................26 8.9.1 Hazardous Phenomena .............................................................36
6.2 Execution Stage ...........................................................26 8.10 Further Study of Phenomena .................................36
6.2.1 Building Phase .............................................................................26 9. SPACE BATTLES ..........................................................37
6.2.2 Command Phase ........................................................................26 9.1 Scoring Hits ..................................................................37
6.3 Recharge Stage ............................................................26 9.1.1 Hit Roll .........................................................................................37
6.3.1 Victory Check .............................................................................26 9.1.2 Starbase Support in Space Battles .........................................37
6.3.1.1 Extermination ...........................................................................27 9.1.3 Pointless Battles .........................................................................37
6.3.2 Generate Resources .................................................................27 9.2 Taking Casualties ........................................................ 37
6.3.2.1 Resource Nodes....................................................................... 27 9.3 Retreating from Combat ...........................................38
6.3.2.2 Trade Profits .............................................................................. 27 9.3.1 Retreat Distance ........................................................................38
6.3.2.3 Resources from Advancements ............................................27 9.3.2 Blocked Retreats........................................................................38
6.3.3 Maintenance ................................................................................27 9.4 Combat Continues ......................................................38
6.3.3.1 Refresh Cards & Tokens......................................................... 27 9.5 Winning a Space Battle ..............................................38
6.3.3.2 Refresh Trade Agreements .....................................................27 9.5.1 Tactical Manoeuvres ..................................................................38
6.3.3.3 Add Warp Tokens to Ships at Warp..................................... 27 9.6 Battles in the Same Sector .......................................38
6.3.3.4 Resupply Phenomena ............................................................. 27 9.7 Battles With More Than Two Players ....................38
7. BUILDING..................................................................... 28 9.7.1 Multiple Hostile Rivals ..............................................................38
7.1 Build Ships ....................................................................28 9.7.2 Multiple Hostile and Peaceful Rivals ......................................38
7.1.1 Bonus Fleet Build .......................................................................28 9.7.3 Multiple Defender Retreat ......................................................38
7.2 Colonise Systems ........................................................28 9.8 Borg Cubes in Combat ...............................................39
7.2.1 Taking Control of Warp Capable Civilizations ....................28 9.8.1 Slow and Methodical .................................................................39
7.3 Build Resource Nodes ................................................28 9.8.2 Borg Attack Dice .......................................................................39
7.3.1 System Capacity .........................................................................28 9.8.3 Borg Hit Rolls .............................................................................39
7.3.2 Open Capacity ...........................................................................28 9.8.3.1 Rolling Borg Dice .....................................................................39
7.3.2.1 Replacing Resource Nodes ...................................................28 9.8.3.2 Advanced Weaponry ...............................................................39
7.4 Commit Research ........................................................29 9.8.3.3 Allocating Hits to Different Ships ........................................39
7.5 Upgrading Weapons & Shields .................................29 9.8.3.4 Attacking Multiple Players .....................................................39
7.6 End of Building Phase.................................................29 9.8.3.5 Borg Regeneration ...................................................................39
8. MOVEMENT .................................................................30 9.8.4 Damaging Borg Cubes ..............................................................39
8.1 Impulse Movement .....................................................30 9.8.5 Borg Adaptive Shields ...............................................................39
8.2 Warp Movement .........................................................30 9.8.6 Retreat from the Borg ..............................................................40
8.2.1 Entering Warp .............................................................................30 9.8.7 Destroying a Borg Cube ..........................................................40
8.2.2 Exiting Warp ................................................................................30 10. INVASIONS ..................................................................41
8.2.3 Traveling at Warp ........................................................................30 10.1 Scoring Hits................................................................ 41
8.3 Entering Rival Territory.............................................30 10.2 Taking Casualties ......................................................41
8.4 Hazardous Systems ....................................................31 10.2.1 Successful Invasion ..................................................................41
8.4.1 Braving a Hazard ........................................................................31 10.2.1.1 Capturing Research Nodes ................................................41
8.4.2 Several Hazard Levels ...............................................................31 10.2.1.2 Capturing Starbases ............................................................41
8.4.3 The Borg and Hazards ..............................................................31 10.2.2 Collateral Damage ..................................................................41
8.5 Virtual Adjacencies .....................................................31 10.2.3 Total Annihilation .....................................................................41
8.6 Building the Galaxy ....................................................32 10.2.3.1 Starbases and Total Annihilation .......................................42
8.6.1 Placing New Space Lanes .........................................................32 10.2.4 Repelled Invasions ...................................................................42
8.6.1.1 Maximum Number of Space Lanes................................... 32 10.3 Retreating from Invasion ........................................ 42
8.6.1.2 Space Lane Length .................................................................32 10.3.1 Surrender in Invasions ............................................................ 42
8.6.1.3 Placing a Space Lane ............................................................. 32 10.4 Combat Continues.................................................... 42
8.6.1.4 Crossing Space Lanes............................................................. 32 10.5 Invading Uncontrolled Systems .............................42
8.6.1.5 Testing Connections .................................................................32 10.6 Reclaiming Borg Worlds ..........................................42
8.6.1.6 Abandoned Space Lanes ....................................................... 32 10.6.1 No First Strike .........................................................................42
8.6.2 Placing New System Discs .......................................................32 10.6.2 Borg Planetary Shields............................................................ 42
8.6.2.1 Overlapping Systems.............................................................. 32 10.6.3 Borg and Collateral Damage .................................................43
8.6.2.2 Placing New System Discs at Warp ....................................32 10.6.4 Rolling Borg Dice .................................................................... 43
8.6.2.3 Moving Into a Newly Placed System ..................................32 10.6.5 Allocating Borg Hits ................................................................ 43
8.6.3 Fixed vs Floating Systems .........................................................32 10.6.6 Success .......................................................................................43
8.6.3.1 Fixed Systems ...........................................................................32 11. HEGEMONY .................................................................44
8.6.3.2 Floating Systems ......................................................................33 11.1 Cost of Hegemony .................................................... 44
8.6.3.3 Special Case ............................................................................. 33 11.2 Hegemony Resistance ..............................................44
8.6.4 Swinging Floating Systems ........................................................33 11.2.1 Player Controlled System ......................................................44
8.6.4.1 Rival Ships and Nodes ........................................................... 33 11.2.2 Warp-Capable Civilizations ...................................................44
8.6.4.2 Swinging Space Lanes............................................................ 33 11.3 Making a Hegemony Attempt ................................ 44
8.6.5 Making Connections .................................................................33 11.4 Seizing Starbases and Research Nodes ................45
8.6.6 No Room for Space Lanes or Systems .................................34 12. FLEETS & STARBASES ...............................................46
8.6.7 No More System Discs in Stack .............................................34 12.1 Forming a Fleet .........................................................46
8.7 Discovering Planetary Systems ................................34 12.1.1 Fleet Type & Strength ..............................................................46
8.7.1 Hazardous Planetary Systems .................................................34 12.1.2 Number of Fleets .................................................................... 46
8.7.2 Exploration Cards .....................................................................34 12.1.3 Bonus Fleet Build .....................................................................46
8.8 Exploration Cards .......................................................34 12.1.4 Adding & Removing Ships from Fleets ................................46

!4 4
 12.1.5 Disbanding a Fleet ...................................................................46 15.4.3 Home System Assimilation ....................................................58
12.1.6 Fleets in Space Battles ............................................................46 15.4.3.1 Assimilated Players ...............................................................58
12.2 Starbases ....................................................................46 15.4.3.2 One with the Collective .......................................................58
12.2.1 Commission a Starbase ..........................................................46 15.4.3.3 Borg Turns ...............................................................................59
12.2.1.1 Maximum Number of Starbases ..................................... 46 15.5 Borg Escalation ..........................................................59
12.2.1.2 Placing Starbases .................................................................. 47 15.5.1 Borg Attack - Command - Attack ........................................59
12.2.2 Capturing Starbases ................................................................47 15.5.2 It Takes a Fleet ..........................................................................59
12.2.3 Starbases and Commands .....................................................47 16. OPTIONAL RULES ......................................................60
12.2.4 Starbases in Combat and Hegemony ..................................47 16.1 Hard Game .................................................................60
13. TRADE AGREEMENTS ...............................................48 16.1.1 Instant Delta Quadrant Connection ...................................60
13.1 Giving and Receiving Trade Agreements .............48 16.1.2 Closer Delta Quadrant Connection ...................................60
13.1.1 Giving and Receiving Trade Agreements .............................48 16.1.3 Early Crises ...............................................................................60
13.1.2 Exchanging Trade Agreements ..............................................48 16.1.4 Borg Attack - Command - Attack ........................................60
13.1.3 Maximum Number of Trade Agreements ...........................48 16.1.5 It Takes a Fleet ..........................................................................60
13.2 Peace ...........................................................................48 16.1.6 Three Spires & You’re Out .....................................................60
13.2.1 Unrestricted Trade Routes ....................................................48 16.1.7 Epic Ascendancy .......................................................................60
13.2.2 Ally Cooperation .....................................................................48 16.2 Quick Game ...............................................................60
13.3 Revoking Trade Agreements ..................................49 16.2.1 Simultaneous First Turns ........................................................60
13.4 Betrayal ......................................................................49 16.2.2 Easier Ascension ......................................................................60
13.5 Exhausted Trade Agreements ...............................49 16.2.3 Quicker Ascension ..................................................................60
14. RESEARCH ...................................................................50 16.2.4 Starting Project ........................................................................60
14.1 Launching Projects ...................................................50 16.2.5 Starting Advancements ...........................................................61
14.1.1 Maximum Number of Projects .............................................50 16.2.6 Wild Culture .............................................................................61
14.1.2 Taking Advancement Cards from Other Factions ............50 16.3 Easy Game ..................................................................61
14.1.2.1 Invasion or Hegemony......................................................... 50 16.3.1 Unstable Peace .........................................................................61
14.1.2.2 Special Rules.......................................................................... 50 16.3.2 Revoking Trade Agreements ..................................................61
14.1.3 Discarding Projects .................................................................50 16.3.3 Random Projects .....................................................................61
14.1.3.1 Discarding Projects from Other Factions ........................50 16.3.4 Later Phenomena .................................................................... 61
14.1.3.2 Discarding Borg Tech............................................................ 50 16.3.5 Exploration Mulligan ...............................................................61
14.2 Finishing Projects ......................................................50 16.3.6 Open Turn Order .................................................................... 61
14.3 Effects of Advancements ........................................50 16.3.7 Random Turn Order ...............................................................61
14.3.1 Warp Token Advancements ...................................................50 16.4 Solo and Two Player Games ...................................61
14.3.2 Command Token Advancements ..........................................50 16.4.1 The Solo Game .........................................................................61
14.3.3 Culture Token Advancements ...............................................51 16.4.1.1 Removed Cards .....................................................................62
14.3.4 Ferengi Espionage ....................................................................51 16.4.1.2 Modified Cards ......................................................................62
14.3.5 Advancements and the Borg .................................................51 16.4.1.3 Balancing the Solo Game ...................................................62
14.4 Borg Tech Cards ........................................................51 16.4.2 The Two Player Game .............................................................62
14.4.1 Gaining Borg Tech ....................................................................51 16.5 Other Options ...........................................................62
14.4.1.1 Maximum Number of Borg Tech Projects ......................51 16.5.1 Multi Faction Space Battles ...................................................62
14.4.2 Using Borg Tech .......................................................................51 16.5.2 More Interesting Exploration ...............................................62
14.5 Exhausted Advancements .......................................51 16.5.3 More Space ...............................................................................62
15. BORG TURN ................................................................52 16.5.4 Limited Ships & Control Nodes...........................................62
15.1 Borg Building Phase .................................................52 16.5.4.1 Base Game Limit ..................................................................63
15.1.1 Transwarp Hub .........................................................................52 16.5.4.2 Escalation Limit .....................................................................63
15.1.1.1 Cube Already in Hub ..........................................................52 16.5.4.3 Hoarding .................................................................................63
15.1.1.2 Cube Generation Roll........................................................... 52 16.5.4.4 Borg Building Phase ..............................................................63
15.1.2 Borg Worlds ..............................................................................52 16.5.4.5 Decommissioning Ships .......................................................63
15.2 Borg Command Phase ..............................................52 16.5.4.6 Giving Up Control .................................................................63
15.2.1 Determining Cube Order .....................................................52 CREDITS ................................................................................64
15.2.1.1 No Assimilated Players ........................................................52
15.2.1.2 Assimilated Players ...............................................................52
15.2.2 Activating Cubes ......................................................................53
15.2.3 Engaging Player Ships ..............................................................53
15.2.4 Executing Command Cards ..................................................53
15.2.4.1 Multiple Movement Commands .......................................53
15.2.5 Assimilation ...............................................................................54
15.3 Borg Movement.........................................................54
15.3.1 Executing a Movement Command .....................................54
15.3.1.1 Nearest, Closest and Shortest Path ................................. 54
15.3.1.2 Minimum Amount .................................................................54
15.3.2 Step I: No Target ......................................................................54
15.3.3 Step II: Reachable Target .........................................................54
15.3.4 Step III: Far Away Target .........................................................55
15.3.5 Step IV: Cubes Exploring .......................................................55
15.3.5.1 Placing Space Lane .............................................................. 55
15.3.5.2 Determining a Random Direction ....................................55
15.3.5.3 Making a Connection ..........................................................55
15.3.5.4 Placing New System............................................................. 56
15.3.5.5 The Borg and Exploration Cards .......................................56
15.3.5.6 Swinging Systems and Space Lanes ................................ 56
15.3.6 Step V: Reassign Target ............................................................56
15.3.7 Collective Efficiency ................................................................56
15.4 Borg Assimilation .....................................................57
15.4.1 The Borg in Invasions ..............................................................58
15.4.1.1 Allocating Borg Hits to Structures..................................... 58
15.4.2 Assimilating Starbases .............................................................58

5 !5
 1. ABOUT THESE RULES
”Space: the final frontier. The copyright for each variant Faction in the Appendices belongs
to the individuals who created them. They are credited together
These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its with their variant Faction.
five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to Special thanks to Steve Framarin for his beautiful variant System
seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go discs, to Frank Strauss for his great 3D printable variant Faction
where no man has gone before.” models and to user Mundane on BoardGameGeek for allowing
the use of his excellent collection of System trivia used in the
Star Trek: Ascendancy is a highly thematic and epic 4X (eXplore, Appendices.
eXpand, eXploit, and eXterminate) and negotiation game, but as
with all games with lots of expansions the rules become spread The Unofficial Complete Rulebook, including the variant Factions,
out over several rulebooks and hard to keep track of. In addition was playtested by Anders Andersson, Thomas Averdal, Michael
to this many of the rules in the latest expansions have been Doyle, Jeanette Utell Elfström, Mattias Elfström, Jim Everson,
contradictory or incomplete. Rasmus Karlsson, Lou Lessing, Tuomas Loippo, Nicholas Madison,
Emelie Nordh, Hans Sjögren, Karin Stegmark and Martin
The purpose of the Unofficial Complete Rulebook is to collect all Stegmark.
rules in one place while also adding information from FAQs
and official answers posted to the BoardGameGeek site or 1.2 THE GAME AND ITS EXPANSIONS
received in emails from GaleForce Nine. It also tries to fill in The rules from the following
the blanks where the official rules don’t work or are games, expansions and
incomplete or contradictory, by providing simple and supplements are worked into
community tested, rules specifically designed for the Unofficial the Unofficial Complete
Complete Rulebook. This version of the Unofficial Complete Rulebook:
Rulebook also incorporates the best of the unofficial, fan
created expansions. Star Trek: Ascendancy
(2016)
Cardassian Union
Expansion Set (2017)
Ferengi Alliance Expansion
Set (2017)
Borg Assimilation
Expansion Set (2017)
Andorian Empire
Expansion Set (2019)
Vulcan High Command
Expansion Set (2019)
FAQ and errata from various sources
(including the BoardGameGeek site and
emails from GF9) have also been
incorporated.
In addition to this The Unofficial Complete
Rulebook contains the rules for the most
interesting and well tested community
developed variant Factions.
1.1 VERSION AND COPYRIGHT 1.3 USING THESE RULES
This is version 3.0 of the Unofficial Complete Rulebook for Star The Unofficial Complete Rulebook is intended for experienced
Trek: Ascendancy. players and no attempt has been made to arrange the rules for
The original Star Trek: Ascendancy game was designed by Sean easy learning. The Unofficial Complete Rulebook should however
Sweigart and Aaron Dill and published by GaleForce Nine (GF9). serve as a handy reference for those who are already familiar
This version of the rules was re-written, edited and updated by with how the game works.
Mattias Elfström with help from Marcin Adamczyk, Jim Everson, These rules were written with the assumption that all
Steve Framarin, Lou Lessing and Martin Stegmark based on the expansions are used at the same time (but the game can
original work and no permission to publish them has been certainly be played even if you don't have access to all
obtained. This is not to be seen as a challenge to their copyright, expansions) and that players have played the game several times.
but rather as a service to the players of this great game. For this reason the Advanced Rules Mystery Turn Order, Random
Earlier versions of these rules have also used the talents of Galaxy, Unrestricted Trade Routes, Humble Beginnings, Focused
Davon Collins, Michael Doyle, John Knox, Barry Miller and
C David Ross.

!6 6
Research 1 and Ally Cooperation 2 have been worked into the text. presented as self contained modules that can be included or
If you desire a simpler game refer to the optional rules [see rule ignored without affecting the rest of the game.
16.], where you can find the base game rules presented as
options, or use the original game rules. 1.3.2 The Rules Problems
This version of the Unofficial Complete Rulebook continues the Some parts of the official rules have rules problems that either
practice of splitting off the Appendices into a separate document. affect game balance or leave mechanical holes that can’t be easily
This allows easier access to the Faction rules and lists of handled during play. These problems have received special
Systems and cards during play. attention in the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. In all instances
throughout these rules where unofficial rules are introduced,
1.3.1 Rules Changes this has been noted in the footnotes.
The Unofficial Complete Rulebook generally plays according to the 1.3.2.1 The Borg Rules Problems
official rules. In some cases official rules clarifications have been
The Borg expansion adds a threatening adversary governed
contradictory, wrong or created unneeded complication. In some
by automated mechanisms that can make all players lose. This
instances there are no official rules to cover certain situations.
complicates the diplomatic situation, but has a lot of rules
Where new rules have been invented this has been noted in the
problems that need clarification before it actually works.
footnotes.
The official Borg rules have severe problems that have never
Generally there are three different types of rules changes:
been completely addressed by official answers. The problems
Clarified rules have been expanded upon to give a clearer mostly concern how the Borg explore and build connections
understanding of how they are to be implemented. on the map (which is both unclear and often will make them
target one player exclusively), but also how various other
Changed rules appear mostly where official answers don’t work rules interact with the Borg. Until these issues have received
with other established rules or where it is clear that official clarification the only way to play a competitive game
implementing them would be detrimental to the game or without rules problems is to use house rules.
provide unnecessary complication.
Invented rules are new rules that were found to be needed or
1.3.2.2 The Vulcan Rules Problems
that improve the game. They mostly cover situations that the The Vulcan expansion introduces a unique victory condition,
official rules don’t. In some cases rules were invented to allow a new way to Colonise planets,Vulcan Ambassadors and
seamless integration of the variant Factions. several unique Advancements. There are a fair number of
rules problems where it is unclear how these new elements
Note the following important, but sometimes subtle, differences work or interact with the game. Contradictory official email
between these rules and the original rules: answers have muddied the waters even more.
When Special Rules can be used [see rule 4.] 1.3.2.3 Problems With Official Answers
How Ships, Control Nodes and Borg Cubes are unlimited
[see rules 3.6.1 and 3.6.3] Several rules questions have received official answers that
How the Transwarp Hub and the Transwarp Conduits create ignore earlier answers or that contradict the rules as
Virtual Adjacencies written. These answers have been noted in the footnotes and
How the game can be started at different levels [see rule 5.8] handled on a case by case basis.
How Battles with multiple Defenders are handled [see
rule 9.7]
How Starbases can defend in Invasions [see rule 12.2.4]
How Hegemony doesn’t count as an Attack [see rule 13.4]
How the Borg select Targets, move and explore when
assigned a Command card [see rule 15.3]
How the Borg threat Escalates [see rule 15.5]
How the Vulcan victory conditions have been changed, how
Ambassadors can be placed and how the majority of the
Vulcan Advancements have been reworded [see the Vulcan
rules in the Appendices]

1.3.1.1 Variant Factions

The variant Factions presented in the Appendices are of
course completely invented and have no connection to the 1.3.3 Use of Cases
official rules sources. Any questions on variant Faction rules In the Unofficial Complete Rulebook the rules are numbered in
should therefore be directed to the authors of this work. rules cases. This allows for cross references throughout the rules
In recognition of players who want their game as close to and should make finding the relevant rules easier. If you are
the official game as possible, the Variant Factions are

1 These are the Advanced Rules from page 26 of the Star Trek: Ascendancy rulebook. The Advanced Rules truly let the game develop into the epic experience it is set up to be.
Mystery Turn Order increases the tactical options players have when selecting Turn Order cards. Random Galaxy allows for a little more variation while exploring and increases
the incentives to research Projects a little. Unrestricted Trade Routes puts a lot more emphasis on diplomacy and may be the Advanced Rule that is hardest for beginners to
handle. Don’t put yourself in a position where you can be betrayed! Humble Beginnings allow the game to develop at a pace that will make researching Projects more important
while at the same time balancing the game through player interaction. This works well together with Random Galaxy. Humble Beginnings may be the most overlooked Advanced
Rule and it is true that it may extend playing time somewhat. Focused Research allows players to customise their Faction abilities to the developing game situation.

2 Ally Cooperation is an official optional rule published on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23454675#23454675).

7 !7
 reading the Unofficial Complete Rulebook on your iPad the cross
references are hyper-linked.
Note that since the Appendices is a separate document
references between the documents will not be hyper-linked.

1.3.4 Use of Specific Words

In the Unofficial Complete Rulebook special care has been taken to
use the defined words [see rule 4.] correctly. This means that the
rules have been rephrased in numerous cases.
The words ”die” and ”dice” are not used the same way
throughout the original rules and on the cards. In the Unofficial
Complete Rulebook the word ”die” denotes a single die (singular)
while the word ”dice” is used when several dice are involved
(plural).
The word ”turn” is used loosely throughout the original rules. In
the Unofficial Complete Rulebook care has been taken to use the
”Game Round”, ”Stage”, ”Phase” and ”player or Borg turn”
words to refer to the respective parts of the game sequence.
The word ”Civilization” is only used to refer to the Independent
Civilizations discovered while exploring. The player controlled
civilizations are instead referred to as ”Factions”.
The defined words ”Occupy” and ”Orbit” are used without
regard to their defined meaning in most of the expansions and in
official answers. In these rules this has been corrected wherever
needed.
In many other cases the use of the defined words in rule 4. has
been expanded, corrected and tightened up.

1.3.5 Printing the Unofficial Complete Rulebook

To facilitate printing the Unofficial Complete Rulebook is available
in two versions; an A4 sized version and an ANSI Letter sized
version.
The A4 version has been designed to be printed on A3 or A4
paper, four pages to a sheet, and then folded to create an A4 or
A5 leaflet.
The Unofficial Complete Rulebook is also a joy to read on an iPad.
A version without the page backgrounds can be supplied to
those wishing to save printer ink.

!8 8
 2. GAME OVERVIEW
Star Trek: Ascendancy is a big, Galaxy-spanning game that follows other civilizations may be open to negotiation, the
the arc of civilizations. Be prepared: this is a long game. Borg are single-mindedly dedicated to assimilating
every civilization they encounter into the
Setting up the game is straightforward. Each player selects a Collective. The Borg are not colonists or
unique Faction from the Star Trek Universe and starts with their explorers. They are solely focused on absorbing
Home System, some Resource producing Nodes and a few Ships. any other civilization’s biological and technological
At the beginning of the game, no Faction has made First Contact distinctiveness.
and the whole of the Galaxy is yet to be discovered. As you play,
you'll discover strange new worlds, explore interstellar The Borg’s weapons and shields are among the
phenomena and uncover unknown civilizations. most advanced known to the Alpha Quadrant.
Because the Borg’s shields improve after each Combat
Round, every battle against a Borg Cube is a race to destroy the
Cube before it becomes invulnerable.

Star Trek: Ascendancy is played in Game Rounds. Each Round is

split into three Stages; the Initiative Stage, the Execution Stage
and the Recharge Stage. During the Execution Stage, which is the
main Stage of the game, each player gets to build Ships, Nodes,
Fleets and Starbases, research Projects and explore the Galaxy ”Resistance is futile...You will be assimilated.”
while conducting hegemony and attacking or defending against The most important activity in the game is the negotiation and
Rivals. deal making taking place between the players. This is also what
provides game balance. While playing Star Trek: Ascendancy you are
primarily playing your opponents, as opposed to playing the
mechanisms of the game.
The game ends when a player fulfils the victory conditions or if
the Borg defeat all players.

2.1 NUMBER OF PLAYERS

Using the Unofficial Complete Rulebook, Star Trek: Ascendancy can
be played by three or more players (a minimum of four is
however a strong recommendation). The maximum number of
players is dependent on how many Factions are available. As of
this writing there are seven official Factions and more may be
released by GF9 at a later date. For the Unofficial Complete
Rulebook there are also a number of fan created variant Factions,
making it possible to play very large games [see the Appendices].
Large games with more than eight players may be unwieldy (but
not impossible) to play face to face, but works quite well played
through email or using other online methods.

The map grows as players discover new Star Systems and connect 2.1.1 The Solo & Two Player Games
them with new Space Lanes Optionally the game can also be played solo or by two players.
To complicate matters the Borg, who are not controlled by any The Star Trek: Ascendancy game is first and foremost a negotiation
player, are a threat to all the denizens of the Galaxy. Where game where many of the interesting decisions points appear in

9 !9
 the interaction with the other players. The game is self balancing 2.3.5 Winning and Losing vs. Borg
in the sense that players have to judge who is in the lead and act
accordingly. In a solo [see rule 16.4.1] or two-player [see rule The Borg are not controlled by a player, but represent a threat
16.4.2] game these aspects are removed and the game is turned to all the players. If, at any point, the Borg have five Spires in play
into a tactical war game where resource growth will be and need to place a sixth, the Borg have defeated the players.
dependent on random factors. In a solo or two player game the The Borg have also conquered the Galaxy and all the players
Borg are always in play from the start and will complicate the have lost if all players are Assimilated [see rule 15.4.3].
tactical situation. Civilization may survive in small pockets of futile resistance, but
the Borg have become too strong to stop.
2.2 PLAYING TIME
To win the game, players need to achieve an Ascendancy,
With experienced players, a game of Star Trek: Ascendancy will Supremacy, Agenda or Alliance victory while holding back the
take about one to two hours per player plus up to another hour Borg threat. If there is only one player left who hasn’t been
if you use the Borg.Your first few games will be longer. Assimilated, they’ll need to win before they are absorbed by the
Playing time can be varied by using the Starting Levels presented Collective!
in rule 5.8. Rule 16.2 also includes options for playing the game
in less time.

2.3 WINNING THE GAME

There are four different paths to winning the game.You can win
the game by becoming the most ascendant civilization in the
Galaxy, by militarily dominating your Rivals, by fulfilling your
Agenda (if you are the Vulcan player) or as a Member of the
Dominion Alliance (if the variant Dominion Faction is in play).
The game can also be lost by all players to the Borg.
A player victory is always determined in the Victory Check
during the Recharge Stage [rule 6.3.1]. Players must always
Control their Home Systems in order to win.3

2.3.1 Ascendancy Victory

At the end of a Game Round, a player who both
Controls their Home System and has five
Ascendancy tokens wins the game 2.3.6 Tied Victories
(Exception: the Vulcans can not win a
standard Ascendancy victory). They At the end of a Game Round, if two or more players have
have established their cultural achieved Victory, through Ascendancy, Supremacy, Agenda or as a
dominance over the Galaxy. Dominion Alliance Member, the player (or group of players in
case of a Dominion Alliance victory) who Controls the most
Ascendancy tokens may be purchased any Systems wins. If it's still a tie, all tying civilizations have risen to
time on your turn, by paying five Culture greatness and the players share the victory.
tokens.
2.4 STARFLEET ETHICS
2.3.2 Supremacy Victory
Star Trek: Ascendancy is a competitive game, with every player
At the end of a Game Round, if a player Controls three Home trying to dominate, destroy and absorb their Rivals. Don't pull
Systems, one of which must be their own, that player has out your bat'leth when someone invades your homeworld - it's
dominated the Galaxy and wins the game. all in the spirit of the game.
Note that Home Systems of Assimilated and Exterminated Similarly, if your Faction is running roughshod over the Galaxy,
players still count as Home Systems for purposes of this rule. try to maintain Picard-level aplomb as you become the
Ascendant power in the Galaxy.
2.3.3 Vulcan Agenda Victory
At the end of a Game Round, if the Vulcan player Controls their
Home System (which may have changed during the game
through Vulcan Exodus) and has achieved their Agenda, they score
an Agenda Victory.

2.3.4 Alliance Victory

At the end of a Game Round, if the Dominion and all current
Members collectively Control a specific number of all Planetary
Systems on the map they win an Alliance Victory as a group [see
the Appendices]. 4

3 Although ruled differently in an official email answer (Email answer from US Customer Service, Battlefront Miniatures, Gale Force Nine, Feb 4. 2020) this was changed for the
Unofficial Complete Rulebook. According to the official answer the Vulcans could win the game without Controlling their Home System. This would unbalance the game, make
the Vulcan Exodus Advancement nearly pointless and be generally inconsistent.

4 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook as part of the variant Dominion Faction rules.

!10 10
 3. GAME COMPONENTS
The following is an overview of the different components
available in the complete game. A list of all components
(including all expansions and supplements) is found in the
Appendices.

3.1 RULEBOOKS
Although there are several rulebooks in the various expansions
the Unofficial Complete Rulebook replaces them all and they
should be ignored when playing with these rules.

3.2 SYSTEM DISCS

The game map is made up of round
System discs Connected to other
Systems via Space Lanes [see rule
3.3] of different lengths. Federation Command Console

All System discs from all The Command Consoles for all Factions are shown in the
expansions are used irrespective Appendices.
of number of players, except
Home Systems of Factions not 3.4.2 Borg Console Card & Cube Card
in play.5 The Borg Console gives the rules for a Borg turn and tracks the
Borg’s Weapon Level. The Cube card is for when Borg Cubes
Each System disc counts as one
engage in Space Battles and Planetary Invasions.
Sector.
Refer to the Appendices for a list of all
Systems.

3.2.1 System Disc Features

There are three types of System discs; Planets, Phenomena and
the Transwarp Hub. All System discs have a maximum number of
Space Lanes that may be Attached to them noted in the lower
part of the discs.
Each Planetary System notes the name of the planet and its
Capacity to hold Resource Nodes, shown as coloured tabs next
to the planet. All Home Systems are Planetary Systems.
Each Phenomenon has a name and a space for a Research token.
Some Phenomena also have unique rules as noted on the disc. Borg Command Console
Both Planets and Phenomena may be Hazardous. If they are, they
have an alert symbol at the top of the disc.

3.3 SPACE LANES

The Space Lanes Attach to the System discs to form the game
map. Each time a new Space Lane is placed, roll the Space Lane
die to determine its length.
Space Lanes contain between two and four Sectors.
3.4 COMMAND CONSOLES
Each Faction has its own unique Command Console.

3.4.1 Faction Command Consoles

The Command Consoles include each Faction’s Special Rules, Borg Cube Card
track Weapon Level and Shield Level and have a place to put the
Reserve of Resource tokens.

5Design note: Generally there should be at least ten System discs (including Home Systems) per Faction available in the game. Since all official Factions come with ten System
discs each, this is most often only a concern if you use unofficial Factions or if you play on a very large area.

11 !11
 3.5 CARDS Advancement cards detail a variety of cultural and technological
achievements which can be completed. Each Faction has a unique
Several different decks of cards are used in the game.
Advancement deck.
3.5.1 Turn Order Cards Discarded Advancement cards go back to the deck of the
Star Trek: Ascendancy comes with Turn Order cards marked ”1” original owner.
through ”10”. Each Game Round players compete for the For a list of all Advancement cards see the Appendices.
initiative. Turn Order cards indicate order of play. 6
Turn Order cards are generally kept secret from Rivals until 3.5.6 Vulcan Agenda Cards
used. They are reused every Game Round and are never Vulcan Agenda cards are used to determine
discarded [see rule 6.1]. how the Vulcans win an Agenda victory [see
the Vulcan rules in the Appendices].
3.5.2 Fleet Cards
Each Faction has three unique Fleet cards, often with Special
Rules. Fleet cards hold groups of three or more Ships.
For a list of all Fleet cards see the Appendices.
Note that some Fleet cards don’t have the highlight to indicate
the minimum Fleet Size of three Ships. This has no bearing on
the rules and should be ignored. 7 3.5.7 Exploration Cards

3.5.3 Player Turn Summary Cards

Each Faction has their own Player Turn
Summary card.
Note that some cards are different
from others to reflect the Special Rules
of that particular Faction.
Also note that all Player Turn Summary
cards refer to Research under the
Commit Research heading, except the
As you explore the Galaxy, you’ll encounter a wide variety of
Vulcan and the variant Faction cards
discoveries, crisis and strange new civilizations. When you
that refer to Resources. Only variant
discover a new Planetary System, draw an Exploration card to
Factions use other types of Resources
see what you’ve found.
than Research for committing research, but all Factions can
research Projects that use alternate Resources. All Exploration cards from all expansions are used at all player
counts (except in a solo game [see rule 16.4.1.1]).
Also note that all official Player Turn Summary cards refer to
Exhausting Commands on the Command Phase side, but that Discarded Exploration cards are placed in a face up discard pile,
they should actually refer to Issuing Commands under these except for Ally cards [see rule 8.8.3], which are returned to the
rules. bottom of the deck, and the Writ of Accountability, which is
reshuffled back into the deck (without reshuffling the discard
3.5.4 Trade Agreement Cards pile).
Each Faction has three Trade Agreement cards they may give to For a list of all Exploration cards see the Appendices.
the other players to represent peaceful commerce between
their Factions. Each Trade Agreement you receive from another 3.5.8 Borg Tech Cards
player increases your Resource generation each Game Round.
See rule 6.3.2.2. Players claim Borg Tech cards when they
defeat the Borg in Combat. The more Borg
3.5.5 Advancement Cards technology you acquire, the better you will
fare against the Borg. When discarding a
Borg Tech card, place it at the bottom of the
Borg Tech deck.
For a list of all Borg Tech cards see the
Appendices.

6 Tip: When playing with a large number of players you may want to use a suit of ordinary playing cards as substitute Turn Order cards.

7 Althoughthis was officially ruled differently in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019), the rule
was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook in order to be consistent with earlier official rulings and the text on many Fleet cards.

!12 12
3.5.9 Borg Command Cards 3.6.1.1 Borg Cubes
Borg Command cards direct the Cubes’ Monolithic, geometric monstrosities
movement during the Borg’s turn and capable of defeating fleets of Ships, Borg
designate the type of System each Cube Cubes are a force to be feared. They
targets. count as Ships.

Discard used Command cards in a There is no limit to how many Cubes can
discard pile. Reshuffle the Borg be in play. Use any convenient substitute if
Command cards when all have been you run out.12
used and the Borg need to draw more.8 Cubes still atop Spires [see rule 15.1.2] count as Structures
When the Command deck is reshuffled but not as Ships.
the Borg will Escalate in accordance
with rule 15.5.9 3.6.2 Fleet Markers
Each Faction has three numbered Fleet markers.
For a list of all Borg Command cards see
the Appendices. When Ships are placed on a Fleet card the Fleet marker shows
the Fleet’s position on the map.

3.6.3 Control Nodes

Control Nodes are placed on a System’s Planet to
mark which Faction Controls the System.
Control Nodes count as both Nodes and
Structures.
Each Faction can build an unlimited amount of Control Nodes
and is not limited by the amount included in the game. Use any
convenient substitute if you run out.13

3.6.3.1 Borg Spires

Borg Spires mark Systems under Borg Control.
Over the course of the game, Borg Spires will build
new Borg Cubes.
Borg Spires count as Control Nodes and
Structures.
3.6 PLAYING PIECES
There is a large number of plastic playing pieces available in the 3.6.4 Starbase Models
complete game. Playing pieces for the variant Factions must be Starbases allow you to build Ships and
obtained separately.10 Commission Fleets. Starbases also fight in
Space Battles and Planetary Invasions 14 and
3.6.1 Ships make it more difficult for a Rival to attempt
Each Faction has their own Starships (Ships for Hegemony. Each Starbase you Control also
short) which explore the Galaxy, attack Rivals and increases your Commands by one.
defend their Systems. Starbases count as Structures.
Each Faction can build an unlimited amount of Ships and is not Each Faction (except the Vulcans and some
limited by the amount included in the game. Use any convenient variant Factions who can’t Commission Starbases) is limited to
substitute if you run out.11 Commissioning three Starbases, and never more than the
number of Ascendancy tokens they have; don’t use both the
models and Starbase tokens [see rule 3.7.5] at the same time.

8 This was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 15. 2019).

9 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

10 Tip: You may find 3D print files for the variant Factions or you may use repainted models from the official Factions.

11 Thisrule was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. Design Note: In almost all cases you will have enough Ships if you have 45 for each Faction. Allowing unlimited
Ship builds simplifies several rules, including the rules surrounding decommissioning Ships and the Andorian Field testing rules.

12 This
rule was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. Design Note: Allowing unlimited Cubes simplifies some rules and allows the Borg threat to grow over the
course of the game.

13 Thisrule was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. Design Note: In almost all cases you will have enough Control Nodes if you have 15 for each Faction. Allowing
unlimited Control Nodes simplifies several rules, including the rules for giving up Control.

14 This rule was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook in order to provide consistency.

13 !13
 Note however that a Faction can Control any number of Tip: Warp tokens can also be used to remind players how many
Starbases that they take over. Attachments are left to be filled on a System disc [see the
footnote to rule 8.6.1.1].
3.6.5 Vulcan Ambassadors
3.7.3 Command Tokens
The Vulcans have unique Ambassadors that can be sent
to planets throughout the quadrant [see the Vulcan Command tokens indicate how many orders
rules in the Appendices]. you may issue on your turn.

3.6.6 Resource Nodes Command tokens are double sided. The

Exhausted side indicates that the Command has
Resource Nodes are built on Planets and are used to generate been used this Game Round and can not be
Resources during the Recharge Stage [see rule 6.3]. The available used until Refreshed during the Recharge Stage.
Resource Node models are not intended as a limit to how many
can be built. Starbases you Control increase your available
Commands by one each. Completing an
All Resource Nodes count as Nodes and Structures. Advancement which pictures a Command token
also increases your available Commands by one.
3.6.6.1 Production Nodes
Production Nodes generate Production Any time you gain a new Command, it starts play
during the Recharge Stage. Exhausted and will be Refreshed at the end of the Game Round.

3.6.6.2 Research Nodes 3.7.4 Resource Tokens

Research Nodes generate Research during the
Recharge Stage.

3.6.6.3 Culture Nodes

Culture Nodes generate Culture during the
Recharge Stage.

3.6.7 Borg Assimilation Nodes

The Resource tokens are used to indicate how much each
Borg Assimilation Nodes are built around Spires. Built Faction has generated of each Resource type; Culture,
Nodes indicate how close the Spire is to completing a Production and Research.
new Borg Cube and track that Borg World’s current
Shield Modifier. The available Assimilation Node Each Faction keeps their Reserve of Resource tokens openly on
models are not intended as a limit to how many can their Command Console.
be built.
Resource tokens are also used to mark Pre-Warp Civilizations
Borg Assimilation Nodes count as Nodes and Structures. on the map [see rule 8.8.5.1].
Borg Assimilation Nodes also have a dual use to track the The counter mix is not intended as a limit to how many
current Shield Modifier on the Borg Cube card during Combat. Resource tokens can be in play at the same time.15

3.7 TOKENS 3.7.5 Starbase Tokens

3.7.1 Ascendancy Tokens The Starbase tokens represent the same
thing as the models in rule 3.6.4.
Ascendancy tokens track how dominant each
Faction is. The first player to achieve five Each Faction capable of Commissioning
Ascendancy wins the game [see rule 2.3]. Starbases is limited to Commissioning
The number of Ascendancy tokens a three Starbases; don’t use both the
player has also limits the number of models and tokens at the same time.
Fleets and Starbases they can have in
play.
It costs five Culture tokens to acquire an 3.7.6 Andorian Tokens
Ascendancy token. Andorian tokens are used to indicate where
the Andorians have placed their deep space
Ascendancy tokens should be placed so that all players can see
surveillance devices using their
how many each player currently has.
Reconnaissance Fleet.
3.7.2 Warp Tokens 3.7.7 Borg Tokens
Warp tokens indicate how far your Ships can travel at
The Borg Activation tokens are used to mark
Warp and indicate where your Ships entered Warp.
Borg Cubes that have been Activated during
They also have a dual use to indicate the level of the Borg turn.
Warp-Capable Civilizations [see rule 8.8.5.2].
The Borg Activation tokens have a secondary
The counter mix is not intended as a limit to how use to indicate the delay before the Transwarp
many Warp tokens can be in play at the same time. Hub starts to generate Borg Cubes [see rule

15 Note that in a full game the Production tokens tend to run out. Use any convenient substitute.

!14 14
5.8.1.5]. When used like this they are referred to as Delay
tokens.16
They also have a tertiary use to keep track of how quickly the
Transwarp Hub generates new Borg Cubes. When used like this
they are referred to as Cube Generation tokens [see rule
15.1.1].
The counter mix is not intended as a limit to how many Borg
tokens can be in play at the same time.

3.7.8 Variant Tokens

The variant Factions make use of several
different types of unique tokens (such as
Wormholes, Hazards, Rifts and Tholian
Webs). These are all detailed in the
appropriate part of the Appendices.

3.8 DICE
A Space Lane die is used to determine the length of a new Space
Lane.17
The standard dice and Faction specific dice are used in Combat,
Hegemony and various other tests.
The Borg dice are used by Borg Cubes in Combat.
3.9 OTHER PLAY AIDS
Other useful play aids include the Faction specific player screens
(downloadable from BoardGameGeek) that have a picture of the
Faction species on one side and reminders about Game Round
sequence and Advancements on the other.

16 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

17 Tip: The Space Lane die can be substituted with a standard die if needed. If so, a roll of 1 or 2 generates a 2-length Space Lane, a roll of 3 or 4 a 3-length and a roll of 5 or 6 a
4-length.

15 !15
 4. DEFINITIONS AND GLOSSARY
Also note the difference between Connected and Attached.
The following words are used throughout the rules and on
the cards to refer to specific game functions. They should be Control: Control Nodes mark who Controls a System.
thoroughly understood since many rules rely on their Control of a System is gained through Colonisation, Invasion or
precise implementation. When they appear in the rules they Hegemony. A Starbase is Controlled if the System the Starbase is
are Capitalised, underscored and hyper-linked to their in is Controlled. Phenomena and Space Lane Sectors are never
definition (except when they appear in titles, lists, examples Controlled.22
or footnotes). Developed: A Planetary System is Developed when it contains
one or more Nodes. A System with no Nodes is considered
Undeveloped. Starbases are not Nodes.
Systems with a Borg Spire do not count as “Developed Systems”
when determining where to move a Borg Cube [see rule 15.3].
Exhausted: Cards or tokens that are face-down are
Exhausted. Exhausted cards and tokens can not be used until
they are Refreshed (flipped face-up). When a card is Exhausted, it
is temporarily out of the game until it is Refreshed in the
Recharge Stage at the end of the Game Round. Exhausted cards
can not be used in any way; Exhausted Advancements don’t
increase the Warp distance of your Ships, Exhausted Trade
Agreements may not be revoked, discarded, traded, etc.You are
also no longer at Peace with someone whose Trade Agreement
you hold while it is Exhausted. 23
Adjacent: Sectors right next to each other and sharing a Faction: A Faction is one of the player controlled civilizations;
common border are Adjacent. Space Battles usually, but not Andorians, Cardassians, Federation, Ferengi, Klingons Romulans,
always, takes place between Adjacent Sectors. Vulcans or one of the variant Factions, Dominion, Orions,
Terrans or Tholians [see the Appendices]. Each Faction is
Attached: Space Lanes and Systems are Attached to each
associated with a Command Console, a deck of Advancements, a
other where the game pieces physically touch.18
set of Fleets, a set of Trade Agreements and a set of coloured
Capacity: The potential of a Planetary System to hold playing pieces. The Borg are not a Faction.24
Resource Nodes. Planetary Systems can generally hold one or
First Contact: A Faction is considered to have made First
more Resource Nodes.19
Contact once their Home System is Connected to another
Combat: Combat refers to both Space Battles between Ships player's Home System via Space Lanes and Systems. Once a
and Planetary Invasions. 20 Faction’s Home System is Connected to any Borg Cube or
World, that Faction is also considered to have made First
Combat Round: Space Battles and Invasions are fought over Contact and may start bidding for turn order.
a number of Combat Rounds where you score Hits and take
Casualties and may surrender (only in Invasions) or Retreat.21 First Strike: Some Advancements or other rules give Ships or
Nodes First Strike. In the first Round of a Combat, when your
Connected: Systems are considered Connected when they Ships have First Strike, your opponent must Take Casualties
are joined by a contiguous series of Adjacent Sectors through before rolling to Hit with their Ships. First Strike is only used in
Systems and Space Lanes. the initial Round of a Combat, unless specifically noted
Note that Transwarp Conduits create Virtual Adjacencies that can otherwise.
be part of a Connection (since they make Sectors Adjacent).

18 This definition was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to clarify the difference between Connected and Attached Systems and Sectors. In the official rules this
difference created many ambiguities. It was not completely clear in the original rules when they referred to a direct connection between Adjacent Sectors and when they
referred to a more general connection between Systems separated by other Systems and Space Lanes.

19 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

20 This
rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. It was not completely clear in the original rules what applied to Space Battles, what applied to Invasions and
what applied to both.

21 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. The original rules used various wordings.

22 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. The original rules didn’t mention what could not be Controlled.

23 Althoughofficially ruled differently in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 17. 2019), this rule was
changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to allow for more interesting use of certain Advancements.

24 The Faction term is used in some expansions and was implemented in the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to have a specific term for the player civilizations.

!16 16
First Strike does not grant an extra Attack before Combat Systems with a Borg Spire do not count as Home Systems when
begins, it forces your opponent to Take Casualties before firing determining where to move a Borg Cube [see rule 15.3]. 30
back, in the first Combat Round. If both sides have First Strike,
neither may use it. Hostile: Rivals and their Ships are considered Hostile when
you don't hold one of their Trade Agreements (or if the Trade
For example, six Romulan Ships with First Strike attack four Agreement you hold is Exhausted). The Borg are always Hostile
Federation Ships.The Romulans score two Hits, destroying two to all Factions. 31
Federation Ships.The remaining two Federation Ships score a Hit. In
the second Combat Round, the remaining five Romulan Ships and two Issue Command: During the Command Phase of your player
Federation Ships will roll to Hit and Take Casualties simultaneously, as Turn you may Issue Commands to perform various actions [see
normal. rule 6.2.2]. When a Command is Issued a Command token is
Exhausted.You may only ever Issue Commands during your
Fleet Limit: Your Fleet Limit is equal to your Ascendancy. Command Phase, but some Special Rules may allow (or force)
When you Commission Fleets [see rule 12.1], you may not you to Exhaust Commands at other times for specific
Commission Fleets beyond your Fleet Limit. If your Fleet Limit is purposes.32
decreased for any reason, you are not obliged to disband Fleets,
but you are prevented from creating new Fleets. Some Special Node: A Structure built on a Planet's surface. This includes
Rules may increase your Fleet Limit.25 Resource Nodes, Control Nodes and Borg Assimilation Nodes.
Starbases and Borg Cubes atop Borg Spires are not Nodes.33
Fleet Size: Maximum Fleet Size is indicated on the Fleet cards
with boxes for each Ship.You may not add Ships beyond the Occupy: A Sector is Occupied by a Faction or the Borg if no
maximum Fleet Size. If the maximum Fleet Size of a Fleet is other Rival has Ships in that Sector. 34
decreased for any reason, you are not obliged to remove Ships Orbit: Any Ship present in a Planetary System is in Orbit;
from that Fleet, but you are prevented from adding more. Some whether or not the System contains other players' Ships. Ships at
Special Rules may change the maximum Fleet Size of different Warp are never in Orbit.35
Fleets.26
Peace/Peaceful: You are at Peace with any Rival whose Trade
Game Round: Star Trek: Ascendancy is played in a series of Agreement you hold (unless the Trade Agreement you hold is
Game Rounds. Each Game Round consists of three Stages: Exhausted) and their Ships are considered Peaceful.
Initiative, Execution and Recharge.
Project: An Advancement card that is not yet completed.
Home System: The System with which a Faction begins the During each player's Building Phase, they may add one Research
game.You may build Ships and Commission Fleets in your own token to each of their Projects. Each Faction has a unique deck
Home System, whether or not there is a Starbase there, of Advancement cards containing a variety of technological and
provided you Control it.27 This is not true of a Rival's Home civil achievements.
System, if you take Control of it.
Refresh: When you Refresh a card or token you flip an
Each Faction usually has one Home System (and never more Exhausted (face-down) game piece face up.
than one)28, but which System that is may change through the
use of Special Rules.29 Reroll: Some rules allow you to roll a die again.You may not
use a rule to Reroll the same die multiple times. If you have
multiple rules that allow you to Reroll dice, you may use

25 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to simplify the game. It also changes the corresponding rule from the Vulcan expansion.

26 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to simplify the game.

27 Thisrule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. The official rules could be interpreted to allow you to Commission Fleets in your Home System even if you
didn’t Control it.

28 Although ruled differently in an official email (Email answer from US Customer Service, Battlefront Miniatures, Gale Force Nine, Feb 4. 2020) this rule was changed for the
Unofficial Complete Rulebook. Allowing more than one Home System per Faction would both reduce the usefulness of Advancements such as Vulcan Exodus, risk unbalancing
the game and be troublesome to keep track of.

29 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

30 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

31 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. The original rules didn’t account for the Borg.

32 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to clarify when Commands can be used. The official rules were contradictory.

33 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. The original rules didn’t account for the Borg.

34 Thisrule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. The original rules didn’t account for the Borg. Also, several official emails have stated that ”Occupy” and ”Orbit”
are the same thing (Email answers from US Customer Service, Battlefront Miniatures, Gale Force Nine, Feb 4. 2020). This is changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to
keep the definitions from the original base game rules in place. Anything else would change the rules for Colonisation, Invasion and Hegemony to an extent that would make for
a completely different game.

35Several official emails have stated that ”Occupy” and ”Orbit” are the same thing (Email answers from US Customer Service, Battlefront Miniatures, Gale Force Nine, Feb 4.
2020). This is changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to keep the definitions from the original base game rules in place. Anything else would change the rules for
Colonisation, Invasion and Hegemony to an extent that would make for a completely different game.

17 !17
 different rules to Reroll the same die multiple times, but only during the Command Phase of the user’s turn. Special Rules
once per rule. requiring a Command to be Exhausted can be used repeatedly
and at any time.
Reserves: The Resources a Faction holds on its Command
Console but have not yet spent. When Special Rules are usable should be obvious from the card.
Unless they need Commands or say otherwise, Special Rules are
Resources: Production, Research and Culture are Resources. generally always in effect.39
Ships, Fleets, Nodes, Starbases, Command tokens, Warp tokens
and Ascendancy tokens are not Resources. Structure: Each physical item built in a System is considered a
Structure. Resource Nodes, Control Nodes, Borg Assimilation
Rival: All Factions and the Borg are all each other’s Rivals.36 Nodes, Borg Cubes atop Borg Spires and Starbases are all
Sector: Any spot on the map in which a Ship can be placed. A Structures.40
System disc counts as a single Sector, Space Lanes are divided Supply: The shared Resource Nodes and tokens in the box
into 2, 3, or 4 separate Sectors. that have not been built or earned by the players. The Supply is
Shield Level: Your Shield Level is tracked on you Command considered to be unlimited.
Console. The higher your Shield Level, the bigger the modifier. Target: A Target is a Sector with a Borg World, Rival Ship or
Special Rules may modify Shield Level up or down, but never Fleet, Developed System, Starbase or Home System as indicated
below a minimum of 0. 37 by a Borg Movement Command card or a Sector with a player
Site: Sites are the circular markings on Planetary Systems Ship or another Borg Cube after Target Reassignment. [see rule
where Resource Nodes are built. Note that each Site is colour 15.3.6].
coded to which Node may be built there and that the colours Undeveloped: A Planetary System with no Nodes is
match the Capacity of the System. 38 considered Undeveloped. Starbases are not Nodes.
Virtual Adjacency: Virtual Adjacencies are created by
various game effects (the Transwarp Conduits for example). A
Sector that is Virtually Adjacent to another is considered
Adjacent to that Sector for all game purposes - any Ship
(including Borg Cubes) can move between Virtually Adjacent
Sectors at Warp or Impulse, Space Battles can be fought across
Virtual Adjacencies, Trade Agreements can be exchanged, etc.
Virtual Adjacencies are not Space Lanes and don’t count against
the maximum number of Space Lanes Attached to a System and
don’t affect which Systems are Floating or Fixed.41
Warp Range: The Warp Range of a Ship is the Warp distance
it could move if it was Issued a Command to exit Warp, taking
Special Rules: Special Rules may appear on Command blocking Hostile Ships and other movement limitations into
Consoles, Fleet cards, Advancement cards and other cards. They consideration. Ships not at Warp are considered to have a Warp
often provide a benefit or limitation that is only useable by the Range equal to the number of Warp icons pictured on the
owning Faction and/or under special circumstances. Special Rules owner's Advancements plus one (but are still limited by Hostile
generally override other game rules when there is a conflict. Ships etc). Borg Cubes have a Warp Range equal to the Warp
Some cards' Special Rules will instruct you to Exhaust the card distance it could move based on its Command card and blocking
itself. To Exhaust a card, flip the card face down. Abilities that Ships. 42
require you to Exhaust the card can only be used once per Weapon Level: Your Weapon Level is tracked on your
Game Round. Exhausted cards are Refreshed at the end of each Command Console. The higher your Weapon Level, the easier to
Game Round, during the Recharge Stage. score a Hit. Special Rules may modify Weapon Level up or down
Some Special Rules may require you to Exhaust or Issue a (”+1 Weapons” means you Hit on a lower die roll). Such
Command to use the Special Rule. Special Rules requiring a modifiers may make it impossible (7+) or certain (1+) that a
Command to be Issued may be used multiple times, but only given roll will Hit - there is no minimum or maximum. 43

36 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. The word Rival was used in the original rules, but never defined.

37 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

38 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

39 This rule has been clarified in conflicting ways in official emails (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019 and
Email answer from Jessica Fauver, Battlefront US Customer Service, Oct 10. 2019) and was both clarified further and changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. Some of
the official clarifications made no sense in combination with many Special Rules.

40 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. The original rules didn’t account for the Borg.

41 This
rule was partly invented and partly changed based on the rules for the Transwarp Conduits to provide clearer and more general instructions for these types of
connections.

42 This rule was invented to provide clearer instructions for how to asses range.

43 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

!18 18
 5. SETTING UP
“It’s not safe out here. It’s wondrous, with treasures 5.3 SET UP THE BORG
to satiate desires both subtle and gross. But it’s not The Borg have a high impact on the game. The Unofficial Complete
Rulebook allows for five different levels of Borg involvement.
for the timid.” –Q
The Unofficial Complete Rulebook uses a flexible set up for Star 5.3.1 No Borg
Trek: Ascendancy. This set up can be further modified by using the Playing the game without any chance of the Borg appearing will
optional rules collected in section 16.. provide a shorter game.
The game is set up according to the following sequence. Remove the Borg Exploration, Command and Tech Cards as well
as the three Borg System discs (the Transwarp Hub and the two
Setup Sequence: Transwarp Conduits) from the game.
1) Select Options [5.1]
2) Determine Playing Area [5.2] 5.3.2 Some Borg
3) Set Up the Borg [5.3] Playing the game with some
4) Set Up System Discs & Exploration Cards [5.4] Borg will make the Borg
5) Prepare Cards, Tokens and Dice [5.5] threat lesser and they may
6) Select Factions [5.6] not appear at all. Depending
7) Player Set Up [5.7] on which cards and Systems
8) Starting Level [5.8] are drawn the game may be
shortened.
5.1 SELECT OPTIONS Remove the 10 red Borg
Star Trek: Ascendancy can be played with various optional rules. Exploration cards and the 5
red Borg Command cards as well as the Transwarp Hub System
When playing with the Unofficial Complete Rulebook all original
disc from the game. Shuffle the two Transwarp Conduits in with
Advanced Rules are in play by default and the rules are written
the main stack of other System discs.
with that assumption. Some of the optional rules may change this
in order to create a simpler or more challenging game or to 5.3.3 Delta Quadrant Probe
adapt the playing time.
Playing the game with the Delta Quadrant Probe will likely provide
Determine which optional rules (if any) will be in play before the a Borg threat. Depending on which cards and Systems are drawn
game starts. 30-60 minutes of game time may be added.
See rule 16. for a collection of optional rules. To further customise the Borg threat the Delta Quadrant Probe
can be played at two different levels:
5.2 DETERMINE PLAYING AREA
Star Trek: Ascendancy uses an organic, growing map that can be 5.3.3.1 Minor Delta Quadrant Probe
played on any shape of table. Shuffle the two Transwarp Conduits in with the main stack of
other System discs, but remove the Transwarp Hub from the
5.2.1 Size of Playing Area game. Use all Borg Command and Exploration cards.
Before the game begins, decide the borders of the playing area. A
40” (about 100 cm) circular or a 36” (about 90 cm) square (the 5.3.3.2 Major Delta Quadrant Probe
size of the official play mat) Playing Area works well for games Shuffle the Transwarp Hub and the two Transwarp Conduits in
with up to four or five players. with the main stack of other System discs. Use all Borg
Command and Exploration cards.
Note: If you don’t have a 36-40” Playing Area available the size of
the Playing Area can be shrunk or adapted, but games with high 5.3.4 Delta Quadrant Connection
player counts may be chaotic.
Playing the game with the Delta Quadrant
If you have more than 40” available you may want to add a little Connection ensures a dangerous Borg
space behind each Home System to allow for a ”safe zone”. threat. This will likely add about 60
Don’t overdo it though - up to about 5” is acceptable. minutes of game time.
The Appendices show suggested layouts for the Playing Area. Place the Transwarp Hub System disc
in the centre of the Playing Area.
5.2.2 Limit of Playing Area Shuffle the two Transwarp Conduits in
During the game no map elements (Systems and Space Lanes) with the main stack of other System
may be placed outside the designated Playing Area. discs. Use all Borg Command and
Exploration cards.
If this means a Space Lane or System can’t be placed, the moving
Ship immediately ends its movement where it is. It may be Issued
another Command to move again. 44

44 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

19 !19
 5.3.4.1 The Transwarp Hub
The Transwarp Hub is considered to be a Fixed System [see
rule 8.6.3.1] when in play from the start of the game.45

5.3.5 Borg Console and Cards

Unless playing with no Borg, thoroughly shuffle the decks of
Borg Command cards and Borg Tech cards and place them
backside up next to the Playing Area.
Place the Borg Command Console and Cube card somewhere
on the table where everyone can see them.

5.4 SET UP SYSTEM DISCS & EXPLORATION CARDS

The stack of System discs and the Exploration card deck are
prepared as outlined below.

5.4.1 System Disc Stack

Put the Home System discs to the side and mix all other System
discs (including any Borg Systems in use), backside up, into a
System disc stack.46 5.6.1 Placing Home Systems
5.4.2 Exploration Deck Place the Home System discs in the Playing Area. Home Systems
should generally be placed 12” to 18”49 away from each other
Mix all Exploration cards (including any Borg Exploration cards (depending on how many players are in the game) and spaced
in use), backside up, into an Exploration deck.47 out as evenly as possible around the perimeter of the Playing
5.5 PREPARE CARDS, TOKENS AND DICE Area.50
Put Turn Order card ”10” to the side but use all other Turn
Order cards as described later [see rule 6.1.2].48 # Players Maximum Distance Between Home Systems
3-5 18”
Place the Space Lane die, all of the general game pieces, tokens
and other counters in piles that everyone can reach near the 6 17”
Playing Area. 7 16”
The Faction specific dice are distributed to the players after 8* 15”
Factions have been selected.
9* 14”
5.6 SELECT FACTIONS
10* 13”
The Factions and their relative starting positions can be selected
in any mutually agreed way. If you want you can use the Turn 11* 12”
Order cards to randomly determine in what order Factions are
selected. * 8-11 player games are possible using the variant Factions in the
Appendices
Each Faction has their own Special Rules. These Special Rules,
together with the unique Fleets and Advancement decks, make If it starts in play, the Transwarp Hub is placed in the centre of the
each Faction play differently from each other. Make sure you Playing Area.
understand how these abilities interact before selecting your
Depending on the size of the Playing Area, the number of players
Faction.
and if the Borg are in play, Home Systems may end up with
Refer to the Appendices for a list of all Factions (including a varying distances between them. Suggestions for System set ups
number of variant Factions) and their abilities. are collected in the Appendices.

5.6.2 Unused Home Systems

Remove all unused Home System discs, they will not be used in
the game.

45 Thiswas officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018). It stops players from swinging the Transwarp Hub away from
their own part of the galaxy in a gamey fashion.

46 This
rule modifies the base game System disc set up together with the rule for Starting Level. This rule is also in accordance with the Random Galaxy Advanced Rule, where
Phenomena may be found from the start.

47 This
rule was changed for this version of the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to simplify set up. The safety net of a modified deck for early draws of previous versions is instead
handled by the Start Level rules.

48 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. Turn Order card ”10” may be activated by the Command: Resurgence Borg Command card.

49 Tip: The base game box is about 18” long.

50 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook, but follows the official rules fairly closely.

!20 20
 1. Command Console with sliders, 2. Command tokens, 3. Project Area with Advancement deck, 4. Advancement Area with Starting Advancement, 5.
Player Turn Summary card, 6. Fleet cards, 7. Supply of Control Nodes, Ships and Starbases

5.7 PLAYER SET UP 5.7.5 Faction Component Supply

Depending on the size and shape of your game table, you may Give each player all the components associated with their
need to layout your player area differently. Make sure your Faction; all Ships and Control Nodes, 3 Fleet Markers, 3 Starbase
Advancement Area and Project Area are distinct from each models (Exception: some Factions don’t have Starbases), 3 Fleet
other. cards, 3 Trade Agreements, 15 Advancement cards (including the
Starting Advancement), and their Faction’s Player Turn Reference
5.7.1 Command Console card.51
Each player takes a Command Console for the Faction they're
playing. Command Consoles track Weapon Level and Shield 5.7.5.1 Faction Specific Set Up
Level.Your Weapons start at a Hit Roll of 5+, your Shield Some Factions may have other Faction specific components
Modifier starts at 0. The Command Console has spaces for your as listed in the Appendices.
Resource token Reserves. Each Command Console also contains
Special Rules that apply to that Faction. 5.7.6 Home System
Each player's Home System starts fully Developed with one of
5.7.2 Command Tokens each Resource Node and one of their Control Nodes.
Each player starts with five Command tokens (plus any from
Starting Advancements). Command tokens should be placed face
up where all players can see them.

5.7.3 Project Area

New Projects are placed face up to the left of the Command
Console and separate from active Advancements. When the
game starts if a Project is available or not will depend on the
Starting Level [see rule 5.8].

5.7.4 Advancements
Each Faction begins with one (or more, depending on Starting
Level [see rule 5.8]) completed Advancement, marked "Starting
Advancement" on the card. Over the course of the game, players
will complete additional Advancements.
The Romulan Home System, set up with Ships & Nodes
Place the Starting Advancement below the Command Console
and apart from your Project Area. 5.7.7 Starting Ships
Each player starts with three Ships on their Home System.

51 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook and assumes you have a set of Starbase models for each Faction as applicable.

21 !21
 5.8 STARTING LEVEL
Star Trek: Ascendancy is an epic game that can take a long time to
finish. For players wanting to have a shorter game, but still allow
a smooth development of the game situation, the following
Starting Levels are offered:52

5.8.1 Humble Beginnings

This is the default Starting Level for games using the Unofficial
Complete Rulebook. The game will run 60-120 minutes per player
plus 0 to 60 minutes depending on Borg involvement.

5.8.1.1 Starting Resources and Ascendancy

Each player starts with no Resources and no Ascendancy
(except the Vulcans who always start with 3 Ascendancy). 53

5.8.1.2 Starting Systems

Players start with only their Home System.

5.8.1.3 Starting Advancements and Projects 5.8.2 Base Starting Resources

Players start with only their Starting Advancement. This Starting Level will affect the balance between Advancements
and Weapons and Shield upgrades, making upgrades more
5.8.1.4 Borg Start beneficial. The game will run 45-100 minutes per player plus 0 to
The Borg start according to rule 5.3. 60 minutes depending on Borg involvement.

5.8.1.5 Delayed Delta Quadrant Connection 5.8.2.1 Starting Resources and Ascendancy
If playing with the Delta Quadrant Connection Each player starts with 3 Production, 3 Research, 3 Culture
[see rule 5.3.4], place three Borg Delay tokens and 1 Ascendancy (except the Vulcans who always start with
on the Transwarp Hub. As long as there is at 3 Ascendancy).57
least one token left on the Hub don’t roll for
the Hub to generate a Borg Cube during the
Borg Building Phase [see rule 15.1.1].
Remove one Borg Delay token from the Transwarp Hub
during each Borg turn.54

5.8.1.6 First Round Exploration

If playing with any Borg involvement and to ensure that the 5.8.2.2 Starting Systems
Borg threat doesn’t increase too quickly, if the Transwarp Hub
Players start with only their Home System.
or any of the two Borg Transwarp Conduit System discs are
drawn during exploration in the first Game Round, replace 5.8.2.3 Starting Advancements and Projects
them with another disc and mix them back into the stack.55
Players start with only their Starting Advancement.
If any of the Borg Crisis, Borg Civilization (but not the three
Borg Discoveries) or any of the general Crisis Exploration 5.8.2.4 Borg Start
cards are drawn during exploration in the first Game Round, The Borg start according to rule 5.3.
they are discarded without effect and a new Exploration
card is drawn (Exception: drawn Exploration cards that 5.8.2.5 Delayed Delta Quadrant Connection
aren’t acted upon in the first Game Round aren’t If the Transwarp Hub is in play, no Delay tokens are placed on
discarded). 56 it.

52 Althoughthe Unofficial Complete Rulebook is set up to play the game using the Humble Beginnings Advanced rule from the original rulebook, and this is highly
recommended, the Starting Level rules acknowledges that many players want to play a shorter game. The Starting Level rules attempt to balance the game better than the
Accelerated rules from the base game manage.

53 This is in accordance with the original Humble Beginnings Advanced Rule.

54 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. It creates a three turn delay of Borg entry into the game. This will allow players to consolidate their positions a
little before they risk assimilation. If you have less than 18” between the Transwarp Hub and the Home Worlds you may want to add more Delay tokens.

55 This
rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. It makes sure the Borg will not immediately find short routes to the players’ Home Systems.. This rule is also in
accordance with the Random Galaxy Advanced Rule, where Phenomena may be found from the start.

56 Thisrule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to balance early exploration. It makes sure no unlucky draws at the start of the game completely eliminates a
player or puts a Borg Cube on their doorstep before they have any means of defending themselves.

57 This is the base game rule for starting Resources and Ascendancy.

!22 22
 5.8.2.6 First Round Exploration
Both the Transwarp Hub and any of the two Borg Transwarp
Conduit System discs may be drawn during first Game Round
exploration (if in play).
Any of the general Crisis, Borg Crisis or Borg Civilization
Exploration cards may be drawn during first Game Round
exploration (if in play).
5.8.4.2 Starting Systems
5.8.3 Extra Starting Resources Give each player three random System discs (but never the
Transwarp Hub or any of the Transwarp Conduits) that they
This Starting Level will affect the balance between Advancements Attach to their Home System, rolling for each Space Lane.
and Weapons and Shield upgrades, making upgrades more
beneficial. The game will run 45-90 minutes per player plus 0 to Systems may be placed downside up until all players have
60 minutes depending on Borg involvement. committed their placements.

5.8.3.1 Starting Resources and Ascendancy Each Planetary System is fully Developed with Nodes that
can be built by that Faction (the Ferengi can’t build Culture
Each player starts with 8 Production, 6 Research, 4 Culture
Nodes for example - see the Faction specific rules in the
and 1 Ascendancy (except the Vulcans who always start with
Appendices) and gets a Control Node. Each Phenomenon
3 Ascendancy).58
comes with a Research token. Place one Ship in each System.

5.8.4.3 Starting Advancements and Projects

Each player may select one additional Advancement that is
placed in the Advancement Area available for use.

5.8.4.4 Borg Start

The Borg start according to rule 5.3.
5.8.3.2 Starting Systems 5.8.4.5 Delayed Delta Quadrant Connection
Players start with only their Home System. If the Transwarp Hub is in play, no Delay tokens are placed on
it.
5.8.3.3 Starting Advancements and Projects
Players start with only their Starting Advancement. 5.8.4.6 First Round Exploration
Both the Transwarp Hub and any of the two Borg Transwarp
5.8.3.4 Borg Start Conduit System discs may be drawn during first Game Round
The Borg start according to rule 5.3. exploration (if in play).
5.8.3.5 Delayed Delta Quadrant Connection Any of the general Crisis, Borg Crisis or Borg Civilization
If the Transwarp Hub is in play, no Delay tokens are placed on Exploration cards may be drawn during first Game Round
it. exploration (if in play).

5.8.3.6 First Round Exploration 5.8.5 Quick Game

Both the Transwarp Hub and any of the two Borg Transwarp The quick game simulates a game that starts several Game
Conduit System discs may be drawn during first Game Round Rounds in. A quick game will run 35-60 minutes per player plus 0
exploration (if in play). to 60 minutes depending on Borg involvement.60
Any of the general Crisis, Borg Crisis or Borg Civilization 5.8.5.1 Starting Resources and Ascendancy
Exploration cards may be drawn during first Game Round
Each player starts with 8 Production, 6 Research, 4 Culture
exploration (if in play).
and 1 Ascendancy (except the Vulcans who always start with
5.8.4 Medium Game 3 Ascendancy).

The medium game simulates a game that starts a few Game

Rounds in. A medium game will run 45-90 minutes per player
plus 0 to 60 minutes depending on Borg involvement. 59

5.8.4.1 Starting Resources and Ascendancy

Each player starts with 3 Production, 3 Research, 3 Culture
and 1 Ascendancy (except the Vulcans who always start with
3 Ascendancy).

58 This is the base game rule for Extra Starting Resources.

59 The Medium Game rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

60 The Quick Game rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

23 !23
 5.8.5.2 Starting Systems 5.8.5.4 Borg Start
Give each player three random System discs (but never the The Borg start according to rule 5.3.
Transwarp Hub or any of the Transwarp Conduits) that they
Attach to their Home System, rolling for each Space Lane. In addition, if the Transwarp Hub is in play, place a Borg Cube
in it and Attach a random System to it using the Space Lane
Then give each player two additional random System discs die.
(but never the Transwarp Hub or any of the Transwarp
Conduits) that they Attach to their Home System or to any of 5.8.5.5 Delayed Delta Quadrant Connection
the other Systems already placed (but not to each other), If the Transwarp Hub is in play, no Delay tokens are placed on
rolling for each Space Lane. it.
Systems may be placed downside up until all players have 5.8.5.6 First Round Exploration
committed their placements.
Both the Transwarp Hub and any of the two Borg Transwarp
Each Planetary System is fully Developed with Nodes that Conduit System discs may be drawn during first Game Round
can be built by that Faction (the Ferengi can’t build Culture exploration (if in play).
Nodes for example - see the Faction specific rules in the
Appendices) and gets a Control Node. Each Phenomenon Any of the general Crisis, Borg Crisis or Borg Civilization
comes with a Research token. Place one Ship in each System. Exploration cards may be drawn during first Game Round
exploration (if in play).
5.8.5.3 Starting Advancements and Projects
Each player may select one additional Advancement that is
placed in the Advancement Area available for use and one
Advancement that is placed in the Project area.

Starting Level Summary

Playing Time Delayed Delta
Starting Starting Starting Starting Starting First Round
Starting Level Per Player Quadrant Borg Start
Resources Ascendancy Systems Advancements Projects Exploration
(sans Borg) Connection
Humble Beginnings 60-120 mins 0 0 Home Start 0 3 Standard Safe
Base Starting Resources 45-100 mins 3P/3R/3C 1 Home Start 0 0 Standard Standard
Extra Starting Resources 45-90 mins 8P/6R/4C 1 Home Start 0 0 Standard Standard
Medium Game 45-90 mins 3P/3R/3C 1 Home+3 Start+1 0 0 Standard Standard
Quick Game 35-60 mins 8P/6R/4C 1 Home+3+2 Start+1 1 0 1 System+1 Cube Standard

The Starting Level Summary gives an overview of how the game is set up at different levels.

!24 24
 6. GAME ROUND SEQUENCE
Each Game Round of Star Trek: Ascendancy is split into three 6.1.1.2 Spending Sequence
Stages, the Initiative Stage, Execution Stage and the Recharge
Players openly commit Resources in the order of the Turn
Stage.
Order cards they hold from the previous Game Round. Place
committed Resources on the Turn Order card used the
Game Round:
previous Game Round. When it's your turn, you may always
I) Initiative Stage [6.1] choose to commit nothing. If you decide to commit
1) Spend Resources Resources, you may not spend the same total number of
2) Choose Turn Order Resources as any other player who has already gone.
3) Distribute random Turn Order 6.1.2 Prepare the Turn Order Cards
II) Execution Stage [6.2] After players have committed Resources, shuffle Turn Order
In Turn Order, each player (and the Borg) carries out: cards ”1” through ”9” together and randomly put a number of
1) Building Phase undisclosed cards to the side so that there is one more card
2) Command Phase than the number of participating players available for use this
III) Recharge Stage [6.3] Game Round (if at least one player has been Assimilated [see
rule 15.4.3] the extra Turn Order card is not needed).61
1) Victory Check
2) Generate Resources 6.1.3 Choosing Turn Order Cards
3) Maintenance
The player who spent the most gets to choose their Turn Order
card first. Players may choose whichever card they'd like, i.e. the
In the Initiative Stage Turn Order is determined. During the player who chooses first doesn't have to choose the Turn Order
Execution Stage both players and the Borg get to build, move, ”1” card. The remaining players who spent Resources choose
explore and attack. At the end of each Game Round is a their Turn Order cards in descending order of how many
Recharge Stage where Resources are generated and Resources they spent. All Resources committed are discarded
maintenance is carried out. The game ends when either the and returned to the Supply.
players are defeated by the Borg or a player fulfils the victory
conditions. 6.1.3.1 Revealing Turn Order
6.1 INITIATIVE STAGE Players don't reveal their choice of Turn Order to their
Rivals until it's their turn during the Execution Stage (or if
Players spend Resources to influence galactic politics and seize they are required to draw a Turn Order Card for the Borg
the initiative each Game Round. The player who spends the most [see rule 6.1.5] or if they are called on to activate Borg
Resources gets their pick of the Turn Order cards for the Cubes during the Borg turn [see rule 15.2.1.1]).
upcoming Game Round. Players may only spend Resources if
they have made First Contact. 6.1.4 Random Turn Order
6.1.1 Spending Resources for Turn Order Players who spent no Resources, including players who have not
made First Contact and the Borg have no ability to influence
Every player who has made First Contact has to decide how other Factions and are therefore assigned their Turn Order card
many Resources they are going to commit to seizing the randomly from the cards remaining.
initiative in galactic politics. Players will then choose their Turn
Order cards in the order of how many Resources they've For the first turn or two, when no one has made First Contact,
devoted. no one is eligible to influence galactic politics so all Turn Order
cards will be passed out randomly.
6.1.1.1 Types of Resources
Example: John, Pete and Sally have all made First Contact and are
Any type of Resource; Production, Research or Culture may eligible to participate. Pete went first the previous Game Round so he
be spent to influence galactic politics. The player who spends decides first and commits two Production. John went second the
the most gets their pick of Turn Order card first. previous Game Round, so he goes second and commits one Research
token. Sally went third the previous Game Round so she decides last
and commits three Resources total (two Production and one
Research). Since Sally spent the most, she gets first pick of the Turn
Order cards, Pete chooses second and John chooses third.The Borg get
the Turn Order card that's left over.

6.1.5 Borg Turn Order

The Borg (or each Assimilated player) receive a Turn Order card,
just like the player Factions.
The Borg (and any Assimilated players) never bid on Turn Order
and always receive a random Turn Order card, after any players
who have made First Contact have bid and selected their cards.

61 This
is a variant of the Mystery Turn Order Advanced Rule from the base game invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. It takes the Borg into account and allows for
games with up to eight players.

25 !25
 Unless there is one or more Assimilated players, the player with
the lowest Turn Order card draws the card for the Borg (and
looks at it). The player may elect to keep the Borg Turn Order
secret until the Borg Turn.62
Give the Borg (or each Assimilated player) a Turn Order card
even if there are no Borg currently in play. If there are
Assimilated players, they each get a random Turn Order card. In
this case no separate card is given to the Borg - the Borg will
take one Borg turn per Assimilated player. 63

6.1.6 Effects Played During the Initiative Stage

Effects played during the Initiative Stage (the Andorian Aenar
Dampening Field Advancement for example) are resolved in the
Turn Order currently held.64 6.2.2 Command Phase
During the Command Phase, there are a number
of things a player can Issue a Command to do in
any order:
Move Ships and Fleets [see rule 8.]
Brave a Hazard [see rule 8.10]
Initiate a Space Battle [see rule 9.]
Invade a Planet [see rule 10.]
Attempt Cultural Hegemony [see rule 11.]
Commission Fleets and Starbases [see
rule 12.]
Launch New Advancement Projects [see
rule 14.]
Activate Special Rules requiring Commands [see rule 4.]

When a Command is Issued, Exhaust a

Command token to show it has been
used. All types of Command Phase
6.2 EXECUTION STAGE actions may be taken multiple times
During the Execution Stage, players (and the Borg) take their per turn, as long as there are
turns in the order decided by the Initiative Stage. Commands remaining.

Each player's turn consists of a Building Phase followed by a When no more Commands are to be
Command Phase. On their turn, players may also spend Culture Issued, the player turn is over. Flip the
to Ascend. Player Turn card to the Building Phase
side.
When it is the Borg’s turn, they follow the same sequence of
Phases as a player: a Building Phase, followed by a Command The player (or the Borg) with the next
Phase, but the Borg actions follow separate rules [see rule 15.]. If Turn Order card now takes their turn.
there are Assimilated players or if the Command: Resurgence
Command card is drawn [see the list of Borg Command cards in 6.3 RECHARGE STAGE
the Appendices], the Borg may take several turns in a Game At the end of each Game Round, there is a Recharge Stage in
Round. which players' Resource Nodes generate Resources and some
game maintenance takes place.
6.2.1 Building Phase
Each Recharge Stage consists of the following Phases, executed
At the start of each player's turn is a Building Phase in which in the order given:
they spend Resources to develop their Faction, Research
Advancements and upgrade their Weapons and Shields. These Victory Check [see rule 6.3.1]
may be done in any order [see rule 7.]. Generate Resources [see rule 6.3.2]
Maintenance [see rule 6.3.3]
When the Building Phase is finished, flip the Player Turn card to After the Recharge Stage, another Game Round begins unless
the Command Phase side. the game ended.

6.3.1 Victory Check

At the very beginning of the Recharge Stage, check if anyone has
achieved their victory conditions.

62 This was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

63 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

64 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to cover a gap.

!2 6 26
For details on winning the game, see rule 2.3. For example, with Orbital Laboratories, the
Federation player gets a Research token for
6.3.1.1 Extermination each Starbase they Control.When they
If a player has no Ships and Controls no Systems, their Commission or take Control of a new
Faction has been exterminated and that player is eliminated Starbase, they'll receive more Research
from the game. during Resource Generation.
All Trade Agreements originally belonging to an exterminated 6.3.3 Maintenance
player are discarded. Advancements the exterminated player
has taken from other Factions are returned to their After all players have finished generating
respective decks, while Advancements taken from the Resources, there are a few things to do
exterminated player by other Factions are kept. 65 before starting the next Game Round.

The player may later reenter the game as an Assimilated 6.3.3.1 Refresh Cards & Tokens
player [see rule 15.4.3]. 66 As part of Maintenance, Refresh all cards and Command
tokens, so they're ready to be used again the following Game
6.3.2 Generate Resources Round. Each player should have five Commands, plus one per
Resources are generated by Resource Nodes, Trade Agreements, Starbase, plus any additional Commands from Advancements.
some Advancements and some Allies. Some Special Rules may
affect Resource generation. 6.3.3.2 Refresh Trade Agreements
Normally, Trade Agreements are face-up when you receive
6.3.2.1 Resource Nodes them and stay that way. However, they may sometimes
Each player takes a Resource for each Resource Node they become Exhausted. During Maintenance, Refresh any
Control. Each Node generates one Resource token of its Exhausted Trade Agreements.
type; Production Nodes generate Production, Research
Nodes generate Research and Culture Nodes generate 6.3.3.3 Add Warp Tokens to Ships at Warp
Culture. Some Advancements may also generate Resources. During Maintenance, add an additional Warp token to any
Ship or Fleet currently traveling at Warp.68
6.3.2.2 Trade Profits
During the Recharge Stage, players take the Resources 6.3.3.4 Resupply Phenomena
pictured on the Trade Agreements they have received.67 During Maintenance, add a Research token to any
Phenomena that don’t already have one. If a Phenomenon
Remember, your Trade Agreements don't do you any good; already has a Research token on it, don't add an additional
only Trade Agreements from other players generate token. The first player to successfully Brave the Hazard [see
Resources. rules 8.4.1 and 8.10] each Game Round claims the Research
For example, the Klingon player currently holds a Federation 1 from the Phenomenon.
Production Agreement and a Romulan 2 Production Agreement.
They still hold their own 3 Production Agreement. During Resource
Generation, the Klingon player doesn't get anything from their
own Trade Agreement (you can't trade with yourself) and gets a
total of 3 Production from the Rival Trade Agreements.

6.3.2.3 Resources from Advancements

Some Advancements generate Resources. These cards will
not picture the Resources being generated, since they often
vary from Game Round to Game Round.

65 This was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019).

66 This
was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 17. 2019). Design note: While it may be
tempting to allow an Exterminated player to immediately become a Borg player, this is not the intention here, since that would disincentivise players from trying for a
Supremacy victory.

67 Tip: Trade Agreements are a powerful source of Resources. The first players to exchange Trade Agreements will find themselves in an advantageous position.

68 Tip: While you can spend Command tokens during your turn to add Warp tokens to Ships, if you are patient, you'll get them for free.

27 !27
 7. BUILDING
During the Building Phase a player may spend Resources and Colonisation is no longer an option. Taking Control of a System
other assets from their Reserves to take various actions as that's inhabited by a Warp-Capable Civilization is more difficult
outlined below. Building may be done in any order. than simply Colonising a System with a Pre-Warp Culture.
Whenever there are Developed Nodes on a planet, Invasion or
Some Special Rules will allow players to do something extra Hegemony are your only options for taking Control [see rules
during their Building Phase. These may be used at any time while 10. and 11.].
you're building.
The Borg follow separate rules during their Building Phase [see 7.3 BUILD RESOURCE NODES
rule 15.1]. Some planets are rich in natural resources, others contain sites
rich in scientific research potential while others have the
7.1 BUILD SHIPS potential to support great cities and cultural touchstones.
Ships cost one Production each.You may build Ships at any You may only build Resource Nodes in Systems you Control. To
Starbase you Control and your Home System (assuming you still build a Resource Node, spend the cost listed for that type of
Control it). Node.
Some Factions may have Special Rules that allow them to build Place newly built Nodes on the corresponding Sites on the
Ships in other locations and at different prices - see the Faction System discs (Exception: Tholians may in some cases place
rules in the Appendices. Resource Nodes outside of Sites).70

Object Build Cost Special Rules may affect how you can build Nodes - see the
Faction rules in the Appendices.
Ship 1 Production
Object Build Cost
7.1.1 Bonus Fleet Build
Production Node 2 Production
If you're building three or more Ships in the same System, you
may immediately group them into a Fleet, without spending a Research Node 1 Production, 2 Research
Command (provided you are building them where you have the Culture Node 1 Production, 2 Culture
capacity to Commission Fleets).69
For full details on Fleets, see rule 12.1. 7.3.1 System Capacity
7.2 COLONISE SYSTEMS Each System has a Capacity marked with coloured tabs around
the edge of the planet that
You may Colonise an Undeveloped Planetary System you shows how many of each type
Occupy by building a Control Node. A System is Undeveloped of Node may be built
when it doesn't contain any Nodes. (Exception: The Ferengi may
Establishing a new Colony is a resource intensive process; never build Culture Nodes).
Starships are often used as the functional core of a new Colony. Sites show where each type
Colonising a new System costs one Culture, plus a Ship in Orbit of Node is placed.
of the System being Colonised. To show that you've established a This System has the Capacity to
Colony in the System, place one of your Control Nodes on the have one Culture Node and two
Planet. Production Nodes.
Some Factions may have Special Rules that allow them to
establish Colonies in other ways - see the Faction rules in the 7.3.2 Open Capacity
Appendices. Sometimes a System will have "Open" Capacity, which means
that it's a versatile enough System that you can choose what
Object Build Cost type of Node to build there.
Colony 1 Ship, 1 Culture 7.3.2.1 Replacing Resource Nodes
Once built, you may not simply destroy your Nodes.
7.2.1 Taking Control of Warp Capable Civilizations
You may, however, replace any Resource Node with another
Warp-Capable Civilizations have discovered sufficient
by paying the full cost of the new Node, provided the new
technology and built up their planet's infrastructure such that

69 This was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

70 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

!28 28
 Node matches the System's Capacity and/or your ability to
build it.71

7.4 COMMIT RESEARCH

In your Building Phase, you may also Commit Resources to your
Projects. The amount of Resources required to finish a Project is
listed in the upper left of each card. 72

You may add a maximum of one Resource token to each

Project during each of your Building Phases.

Once you commit Resource tokens to a Project, you can't move

them around or take them back.
In the first Game Round, players may not have any Projects yet.
In your Command Phase, you may Issue Commands to Launch
new Projects. For full details on Launching new
Projects, see rule 14.1.
Claiming Research from Phenomena can
speed a Project's completion. For full details
on claiming Research from a Phenomenon
see rules 8.9.1 and 8.10.
If you finish a Project it immediately
becomes a useable Advancement [see rule
14.2].
This Project takes four Research to complete

7.5 UPGRADING WEAPONS & SHIELDS

In addition to committing Resource tokens to Projects, you may
also spend Research to improve your Weapons and Shields. The
cost to upgrade your Weapons and Shields is listed on your
Command Console, directly across from your current Weapon
Level and Shield Level. Unlike Projects, upgrading your Weapons
and Shields is a single, one-time cost, not something you commit
Research to over time.

Weapon Level Upgrade Cost Shield Level Upgrade Cost

5+ 4 0 6
4+ 6 1 8
3+ 8 2 10
2+ 10 3 12
1+ - 4 -

7.6 END OF BUILDING PHASE

After you complete your Building Phase, your Command Phase
begins. Once you start your Command Phase, you may not
spend Resources to Build unless a specific Special Rule allows
you to do so. Ascending is the only exception: you may spend
Culture tokens to gain Ascendancy tokens at any time during
your turn.

71 This
rule was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to allow players to replace Nodes built by the Ferengi or other Factions capable of buildingNodes that don't
match the Capacity of a System.

72 This rule was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to be compatible with variant Factions that use different types of Resources for their Projects.

29 !29
 8. MOVEMENT
Movement is carried out on the map. When moving through the next to the Ship, pointing to the Sector from which they Entered
map, each System disc counts as one Sector; Space Lanes contain Warp.
between two and four Sectors.
Ships and Fleets will accumulate additional Warp tokens at the
end of each Game Round or by spending additional Commands.
Ships at Warp don't count as
being ”in” the Sector from
which they left. For all
intents and purposes, Ships
at Warp are not on the map
until they Exit Warp.

8.2.2 Exiting Warp

To have a Ship or Fleet at Warp Exit Warp, Issue a Command.
When a Ship or Fleet Exits Warp, it may move through a number
of Systems equal to the number of Warp tokens it has
accumulated, plus the number of Warp tokens pictured on your
completed Advancements.
Ships can move at Impulse or Warp Speed. Each Movement
Command moves one Ship or Fleet.You may Issue more than
one Command to move the same Ship on a single turn.
For example, you could use one Command to have a Ship Exit Warp,
and then use a second Command to have that Ship move at Impulse
Speed.
As you move your Ships into unexplored space, you'll place new
Space Lanes and System discs, building the galactic map as you
play.

Discovering, placing and entering a new System always ends a

Ship’s or Fleet’s move, even if it has movement remaining. If the Ship or Fleet Entered Warp from a System, don't count the
System in which it started.
Movement of Borg Cubes follows separate rules as described in
rule 15.3. You may choose to move through fewer Systems or Exit Warp
early in a Space Lane. When you come out of Warp in a Space
8.1 IMPULSE MOVEMENT Lane, you may stop in any Sector of the Space Lane. After Exiting
Warp, discard the Ship's or Fleet’s accumulated Warp tokens.
All Ships have a base Impulse Speed of 2. To move a Ship or Fleet
at Impulse, Issue a Command and move one Ship or Fleet up to You may choose to discover and enter a new System as part of
2 Sectors. your Warp movement [see rule 8.6].
You may place new Space Lanes and Systems at Impulse [see rule 8.2.3 Traveling at Warp
8.6].
You may also Issue a Command to give another Warp token to a
Ship or Fleet that has already Entered Warp. Ships at Warp also
receive additional Warp tokens during the Recharge Stage [see
rule 6.3.3.3].

8.3 ENTERING RIVAL TERRITORY

As Ships or Fleets (including Borg Cubes) move through space at
Impulse or Warp, they may not enter or pass through a Sector
they don't Control that contains Hostile Rival Ships.
Borg Cubes block movement, just as player Ships do.
8.2 WARP MOVEMENT
With Warp movement it is possible to cover large distances in a You may always move into and through Systems you Control,
single move. regardless of any Rival presence.

8.2.1 Entering Warp

To Enter Warp, Issue a Command and move a Ship or Fleet just
off the System or Space Lane they are in and place a Warp token

!3 0 30
You may move freely through Sectors with Ships belonging to Sector. For each die roll that is equal to or higher than the Shield
Peaceful Rivals, unless they also contain Hostile Ships [see rule Modified Hazard Level, one Ship is destroyed.
13.2]. 73
If your Ships start your turn on a Phenomenon, you can also
When rule 15.5.2 becomes active, Borg Cubes only stop for Brave the Hazard without actually Moving by Issuing a Command
Rival Fleets. [see 8.10].

8.4 HAZARDOUS SYSTEMS

Some Systems are marked with a Red
Alert Warning.
When your Ships end their movement
in a Hazardous System, all your Ships
in the System must Brave the Hazard
and see if they survive.74

All your Ships in a Hazardous System have to Brave the

Hazard when your Ships end their movement there.

Space is big. If you don't stop in a Hazardous Sector, you don't For example, a Federation Ship ends its Movement in the Stellar
have to make a Hazard roll; you were able to navigate around Nursery, which is a Level 4 Hazard.The Federation has upgraded their
the dangerous System. If you Build Ships in a Hazardous Sector, Shields once, so has a Shield Modifier of 1.The Klingon Player to their
you don't need to make a Hazard roll when you deploy them or right rolls a die. A roll of a 5 or a 6 will destroy the Federation Ship.
when they leave.
8.4.2 Several Hazard Levels
Sometimes a System may have different Hazard Levels from
different sources (such as the Cardassian Gravitic Mine Fields
Advancement for example). In these cases only the highest
Hazard Level is used.75

8.4.3 The Borg and Hazards

Borg Cubes are not affected by Hazardous Systems; do not roll
to see if they take damage.

8.5 VIRTUAL ADJACENCIES

The Transwarp Conduits, Rifts and
Wormholes all create Virtual
Adjacencies. Ships may move and
attack through Virtual Adjacencies.76
Note that Hostile Rival Ships
in the Hub, a Conduit, Rift
or Wormhole will
prevent movement into
that System just like
any other System (see
rule 8.3). 77

8.4.1 Braving a Hazard

Shields protect against Hazards. To Brave a Hazard, add the Ships’
Shield Modifier to the System's Hazard Level. The player to your
right then rolls a die for each Ship that is Braving the Hazardous

73 This is in accordance with the Advanced Unrestricted Trade Routes rule.

74 This was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

75 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to cover a gap.

76In an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018) it was officially clarified that attacks are not allowed between the Hub and the Conduits.
For the Unofficial Complete Rulebook this is changed to allow such attacks. Using the official clarification would create a number of other rules problems. Further testing has
shown that the game needs to allow these attacks if the Borg are going to be able to develop their threat.

77 In an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018) it was officially clarified that moves are allowed between the Hub and the Conduits even
if they contain Hostile Rival Ships. In a follow up email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 15. 2019) it was also
officially ruled that this only applies to the Borg. For the Unofficial Complete Rulebook this is changed not to allow such movement. Using the official clarifications would create
a number of other rules problems and be inconsistent with how movement works in other situations.

31 !3 1
 8.6 BUILDING THE GALAXY Ships or Fleets at Warp do not count as being on the map; if
all the Ships or Fleets in an open-ended Space Lane are at
As you move through the Galaxy, you'll chart new Space Lanes
Warp, remove the Space Lane and point the Ship’s or Fleet’s
and Systems and build a galactic map unique to your game. Every
Warp token at the previously Attached System.
new map presents new challenges and opportunities.
8.6.2 Placing New System Discs
8.6.1 Placing New Space Lanes
When moving at Impulse or Exiting Warp, you may move beyond
As you're moving, you may choose to place and then travel in
the Unattached end of a Space Lane and place a new System
new Space Lanes, if the System you're leaving has unused
disc.
capacity to Attach Space Lanes.You may place a new Space Lane
on the map when moving at Impulse Speed or Exiting Warp. To place a new System on the table, draw a new System disc and
place it face up on the table, Attached to the Space Lane that
8.6.1.1 Maximum Number of Space Lanes contains your Ship. Move your Ship or Fleet into the new System.
Each System disc has a maximum number of Space Lanes
that can Attach to it, listed on the bottom of the System disc. 8.6.2.1 Overlapping Systems
Once this many Space Lanes are Attached, you may not Newly placed Systems may not touch or overlap existing
Attach any new Space Lanes to that System. 78 Space Lanes or System discs.
8.6.1.2 Space Lane Length 8.6.2.2 Placing New System Discs at Warp
Roll the Space Lane die to determine the length of the new When a Ship or Fleet Exits Warp, it can travel through a
Space Lane. number of Systems. As part of this movement, the Ship or
Fleet can place new Space Lanes and/or a System.

8.6.1.3 Placing a Space Lane

Attach the new Space Lane to the System you're leaving and
move the Ship into the new Space Lane. The new Space Lane
may be placed anywhere on the outside edge of the System,
as long as there is room for it. 8.6.2.3 Moving Into a Newly Placed System
If the new Space Lane isn't long enough to make the Moving into a newly placed System always ends a Ship's or
Connection you want and the Ship is moving at Warp, you Fleet’s movement.
can either stop in the new Space Lane or continue on to
discover a new System at the end of the new Space Lane If the new System is Hazardous, you'll have to Brave the
[see rules 8.7 and 8.9]. If the Ship is attempting to make a Hazard immediately. For details on Hazardous Systems see
Connection at Impulse and isn't able to, it can reverse rule 8.4.
course and use it's second Sector of movement to go back 8.6.3 Fixed vs Floating Systems
to the System where it started, abandoning the Lane.
As you head into unexplored space, uncertainty abounds. The
8.6.1.4 Crossing Space Lanes best course to reach one particular star system isn't determined
Space Lanes can not cross each other. immediately upon discovering it. In Star Trek: Ascendancy, System
discs are usually not fixed in place on the map when they are
8.6.1.5 Testing Connections first placed.
You may use any unused Space Lane tile to test if a specific
Space Lane placement is possible at any time, even before
8.6.3.1 Fixed Systems
committing to moving. Home Systems are always considered Fixed in place. The
Transwarp Hub is considered Fixed if it started play on the
8.6.1.6 Abandoned Space Lanes map.79
If a Space Lane contains no Ships or Fleets and is only Other System discs are Fixed when they are Attached to
Attached to one System, remove the Space Lane. For two or more Space Lanes that are in turn Attached to other
example, this can happen when a Ship enters a Space Lane Systems.
but leaves before a System is placed at the other end or if a
Ship in a Space Lane that is only Attached in one end is
destroyed.

78 Tip: This
rule may be fairly hard to keep track of during intense play. To remind players how many Attachments can still be made you may consider using Warp tokens placed
next to the maximum Attachments number. Remove the tokens as Attachments are added.

79 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

!32 32
 Note that Systems that are Adjacent via Virtual Adjacencies
aren’t considered Attached and don't affect the Fixed (or
Floating) status of a System through that Virtual Adjacency.80
Fixed System discs cannot be swung [see rule 8.6.4].

8.6.3.2 Floating Systems

When a System disc is only Connected through one Space
Lane (but note that it can be Attached to any number of
other Space Lanes that are Unattached to Systems at their
opposite end) and that Space Lane is Attached to a Fixed
System, it is Floating.
Floating System discs can be swung [see rule 8.6.4].
8.6.3.3 Special Case
It can happen through some Exploration cards that two
Systems Attached to the same Space Lane become
Unconnected to all other Systems. In this special case both
Systems are considered neither Fixed nor Floating and
cannot be swung until one of them becomes Fixed. 81
8.6.4.1 Rival Ships and Nodes
8.6.4 Swinging Floating Systems The presence of Rival Ships or Nodes in a Floating System
On your turn, you may swing any and all Floating Systems and or Space Lane does not prevent another player from
Space Lanes as long as they remain Attached to the Systems to swinging it or Attaching a Space Lane to it.83
which they are Attached.You may want to swing a Floating
System or Space Lane to make room for a new System or to 8.6.4.2 Swinging Space Lanes
make a Connection between Systems. A Space Lane that isn't Attached to a System at both ends
can be swung around too.84
When swinging a Floating System or Space Lane, you may not
pick it up off the board, it can only swing around the single
System to which it's Attached. As soon as a System is Attached
to at least two Space Lanes that are in turn Attached to other
Systems, it is Fixed in place and can no longer be swung [see rule
8.6.3.1].
You are not allowed to swing Systems or Space Lanes past the
Playing Area border. 82

8.6.5 Making Connections

When leaving a System to place new Space Lanes and Systems
there are generally three things you can accomplish; Attaching to

80 Thisrule was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook partly to avoid the problem of the Transwarp Conduits being immediately Fixed when placed. An official answer
in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019) treats this differently.

81 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to avoid a gamey situation where Systems could travel by themselves.

82 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

83 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/24102930#24102930).

84 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/24102930#24102930).

33 !33
 an existing System, discovering a new System or just placing a
Space Lane that is only Attached at one end.85
You may Connect Fixed Systems to Floating Systems, or vice
versa. In general, when creating a new Connection between two
Systems, you’ll need one of them to be Floating. It’s rare that two
Fixed Systems will be exactly the right distance apart to fit the
size Space Lane you’ve rolled, but if the Space Lane fits, that’s
allowed too.86
If you manage to Attach to existing Systems you may continue
your movement.

8.6.6 No Room for Space Lanes or Systems

If, while you are building the map, a Space Lane or System can’t
be placed because there is no room to place it, the moving Ship
immediately ends its movement where it is (in a System or the
last Sector of a Space Lane, as the case may be). It may be Issued
another Command to move again. 87
8.8 EXPLORATION CARDS
8.6.7 No More System Discs in Stack There are four types of Exploration cards. Most Exploration
If the System disc stack runs out and no more Systems are Cards are resolved immediately. Some Remain in Play; set them
available to be drawn, no more Systems can be placed and the face up on the System until they are resolved. Once the System
map will not expand any further.88 is Colonised [see rule 7.2], discard the card.

8.7 DISCOVERING PLANETARY SYSTEMS A list of Exploration cards and some specific Exploration card
rules can be found in the Appendices.
Most Systems are Planetary Systems, containing potentially
habitable worlds. 8.8.1 Crisis
Planetary Systems feature the most prominent planet along with Crisis cards present some sort
what type of Resource Nodes can be built in the System. of problem or difficulty. Some
Crisis cards will force the Ships
8.7.1 Hazardous Planetary Systems to Brave a Hazard [see
If the System you discover is a Hazardous Planetary System, all rule 8.4.1].
your Ships must Brave the Hazard [see rule 8.4.1].
8.8.1.1 Destroyed Systems
If your Ships do not survive entry into a new Hazardous Through cataclysm or
Planetary System, place an Exploration card face down on the conflict, a whole System may
System. The first player to Brave the Hazard and survive must be destroyed. If there are any empty Space Lanes Attached
resolve the card. to the destroyed System, remove those as well.
8.7.2 Exploration Cards Any time there are Ships in a destroyed System, move them
If any of your Ships do survive entry into a new Hazardous into an Adjacent Space Lane Sector, unless the card states
Planetary System or the discovered System is not Hazardous, otherwise. Later, they could move into another System
draw an Exploration card and resolve the effects [see rule 8.8]. discovered at the end of that Space Lane, even on the same
spot on the table. Keep in mind, the Systems’ exact locations
in the Galaxy aren’t fixed until they’re Attached to at least
two Space Lanes that are in turn Attached to other
Systems.89

8.8.2 Discovery
In addition to Crises, new worlds
hold the promise of never
before seen wonders,
technological revelations and
contact with new species.

85 Tactical
tip: When Systems become Fixed, make sure they are Fixed either at the exact distance of a 2, 3 or 4 Space Lane or at a distance that doesn’t allow for connections,
depending on what your future plans are.

86 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23412244#23412244).

87 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

88 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

89 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23952245#23952245).

!34 34
8.8.3 Allies The first player to Colonise [see rule 7.2] the System takes
the Resource tokens from the System.
When you draw an Ally card, you’ve
discovered a faction or person who may
be open to establishing an agreement.
Each Ally card has a Diplomacy Number
in a green icon in the upper right corner.
In order to claim the Ally, you have to
pass a Diplomacy Test.
Each time a player receives an Ally card,
by drawing it from the Exploration deck
or by being passed the card from
another player, make the test. Many of
the cards that pass around the table have
very easy Diplomacy tests: these are men of business who want
to deal with more customers!90 8.8.5.2 Warp-Capable Civilizations
Each Warp-Capable Civilization card directs you to place a
8.8.3.1 Diplomacy Tests number of Warp tokens on the System equal to the level of
To make a Diplomacy Test, roll a die and add the Civilization, marking it as a Warp-Capable Civilization.
your Ascendancy. If the total is higher than
the Ally’s Diplomacy Number, you’ve Each Warp-Capable Civilization card will also direct you to
passed the test and can claim the Ally card. Develop a number of Nodes in the System. When developing
the Resource Nodes of a Warp-Capable Civilization, develop
If you pass the Diplomacy Test, set the Ally any Production Capacity first, then Research Capacity, and
Card in front of you. Ally cards either count finally any Culture Capacity, up to the number of Nodes the
as Trade Agreements or have a Special Rule you card instructs you to develop.
can use.
If you fail the Diplomacy Test, place the Ally Card at the
bottom of the Exploration deck - not in the discard pile.
Don’t reshuffle, just place the Ally at the bottom of the
Exploration deck.

8.8.4 Virgin Worlds

A number of the cards in the
Exploration deck are "Virgin"
Worlds; planets which are
perfectly suitable for habitation
but devoid of sentient life that
needs to be accommodated or
conquered.
When a player takes Control of a System with a Warp-
8.8.5 Civilization Capable Civilization, discard the Warp tokens.

Some Systems you'll discover are

already inhabited. These
Independent Civilizations range
from primitive, Pre-Warp
societies up to fully Warp-
Capable, advanced cultures.
When you draw a Civilization
Exploration card, the card will
direct you to either place
Resource tokens on the System, marking it as a Pre-Warp
Civilization, or Warp tokens, marking it as a Warp-Capable Example:The Romulans discover a Level 2 Warp-Capable Civilization
Civilization. on Terra Nova, which has a Capacity for 1 Production, 1 Research and
8.8.5.1 Pre-Warp Civilizations 1 Culture.The Civilization card directs you to develop 2 Nodes.The
Production Capacity is Developed first: one Production Node. Next the
Pre-Warp Civilizations have not yet achieved faster than light Research Capacity is Developed: one Research Node.
space travel. These worlds have not developed any
technology or infrastructure that's usable by more advanced
cultures.
Pre-Warp Civilization cards will direct you to place a
number of Resource tokens on the System, representing the
System's raw materials and a population ripe for exploitation.

90 This was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Nov 27. 2017).

35 !35
 During the Recharge Stage, a new Research token will be placed
on each Phenomenon that doesn't still have one [see rule
6.3.3.4]. Only the first player each Game Round to successfully
Brave the Hazard of a Phenomenon gets a Research token.

Example:The Federation player discovers a Level 3 Warp-Capable

Civilization on Ardana. Ardana has 1 Production, 1 Research and 1
Open Capacity. It's possible to develop 2 Production Nodes, since
Ardana has both a Production and an Open site.The Production
Capacity is Developed first, then a Research Node is placed as the
third Node.

8.9 DISCOVERING PHENOMENA

Not all Systems contain habitable planets; there is a wide variety
of Interstellar Phenomena that deserve further study. Science is
dangerous; Phenomena are Hazardous to study and explore.
When the System disc you discover is a Phenomenon, place one
Research token from the Supply on the Phenomenon.

Do not draw an Exploration card when you discover a

Phenomenon.

8.9.1 Hazardous Phenomena

As with discovering any Hazardous System, all your Ships in the
System must Brave the Hazard [see rule 8.4.1]. If at least one
Ship survives, take the Research token from the Phenomenon.
You may place this Research on one of your Projects or in your
Reserves. If all the Ships are destroyed, the Research token
remains on the Phenomenon.
If one of your Ships starts your turn on a Phenomenon, you may
spend a Command to Brave the Hazard without actually Moving
[see rule 8.10].

8.10 FURTHER STUDY OF PHENOMENA

If one or more of your Ships start your turn on a Phenomenon,
you may Issue a Command to Brave the Hazard [see rule 8.4.1]
without actually moving. If at least one Ship survives, you may
take the Research token from the Phenomenon.You may place
this Research on one of your Projects or in your Reserves. If all
the Ships are destroyed, the Research token remains on the
Phenomenon.

!3 6 36
 9. SPACE BATTLES
You can Issue a Command to Initiate a Space Battle with Rival
Ships in a single Adjacent Sector, or in a single Sector in which
you both have Ships.
If you have Ships in more than one Adjacent Sector (or in the
same Sector and Adjacent Sectors), you may use a Command to
have all the Ships in the same and Adjacent Sectors join in the
attack.
Each Space Battle consists of a number of Combat Rounds in
which both players roll to score Hits, take Casualties, then
decide whether to Retreat or keep fighting. The player who
Initiates the Battle is the Attacker.
Above, a Fleet of 5 Klingon Ships have attacked the Romulans (as
Space Battle Sequence: they do).The Klingons have upgraded their Weapons twice, so they
need to roll 3 or better to Hit.The Romulans have upgraded their
1) Scoring Hits [9.1]
Shields once, giving them a Shield Modifier of 1, so the Klingons have
2) Taking Casualties [9.2]
a Hit Roll of 4+.The Klingons roll 5 dice: any rolls of 4, 5 or 6 score a
3) Retreating from Combat [9.3]
Hit.
4) Combat Continues [9.4]
The Romulans haven't upgraded their Weapons nor have the Klingons
The Borg follow separate rules in Combat as described in upgraded their Shields, so the Romulans need a 5 or better to score a
rule 9.8. Hit, since the Klingons Shield Modifier is 0 and the Romulan's Hit Roll
is 5+.

9.1.2 Starbase Support in Space Battles

Starbases provide support for your Ships in Space Battles. When
you have Ships in Orbit of a System you Control with a Starbase,
roll an additional die to Hit. Starbases cannot fight on their own.

9.1 SCORING HITS

Your current Weapons Level determines your "Hit Roll”. To
score a Hit, you need to roll equal to or higher than your Hit
Roll.Your opponent's Shield Modifier is added to your Hit Roll,
making it more difficult to Hit.
Barring Special Rules, both players roll to Hit and then Take
Casualties simultaneously.

9.1.1 Hit Roll

Each Rival rolls a number of Attack Dice equal to the number of 9.1.3 Pointless Battles
Ships they have involved in the Space Battle. All dice have a Attacking an opponent you have no chance of damaging while in
chance to score a Hit and destroy a Rival Ship. turn the opponent has no chance of damaging you is pointless;
the result of the attempt is a wasted Command. Nothing
You may have to roll dice for different Fleets separately, if they
happens, no one moves, no one wins, no one loses.91
have different Special Rules.
9.2 TAKING CASUALTIES
Every Hit destroys a Rival Ship. If there is a choice of where
casualties are going to be taken, the player who inflicted the Hits
chooses how to allocate the Hits.
For example, if you score four Hits against a Rival who has five Ships
in a Fleet and two Individual Ships, you may allocate all the Hits to
the Fleet.

91 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/24112089#24112089).

37 !37
 9.3 RETREATING FROM COMBAT 9.5.1 Tactical Manoeuvres
After Taking Casualties, each player assesses the state of their The winning player may make a Tactical Manoeuvre with some, or
Ships. Starting with the Attacker, players decide whether or not all, of their Ships after the Space Battle is over. Tactical
to Retreat. Manoeuvres are moves made at Impulse Speed and do not need
Commands to be Issued. All the winner's Ships which move must
9.3.1 Retreat Distance use existing Space Lanes and end up in the same Sector (even if
Retreats are made at Impulse Speed. Retreats must be made they started in different Sectors).
through existing Space Lanes; you may not place new Space
Borg do not make a Tactical Manoeuvre move after winning a
Lanes with a Retreat Move.
Space Battle.
When you Retreat, all your Ships attacking from a single Sector
must Move and end their Retreat in the same Sector. In a multi-
pronged attack, the Starships from each Sector need to Retreat
as a group.92

9.6 BATTLES IN THE SAME SECTOR

Normally Space Battles take place between Adjacent Sectors, but
can take place between Rivals in the same Sector. For example,
this can happen if two Factions had a Trade Agreement which
was broken, a Cloaking Device was used or a player built Ships in
a System Orbited by a Rival.

9.7 BATTLES WITH MORE THAN TWO PLAYERS

There will only ever be one Attacker, but it's possible for there
to be more than one Defender. In Space Battles with more than
9.3.2 Blocked Retreats one Defender, the Attacker must decide how they are dividing
Ships unable to Move because Rival Ships are blocking the Space their dice between the Defenders before rolling to Hit. All the
Lanes may not Retreat. Defenders' Hits are directed to the Attacker.

9.7.1 Multiple Hostile Rivals

If a player attacks a Sector containing more than one Hostile
[see rule 13.2] player’s Ships, all Factions present are attacked. All
Ships in the Sector being attacked must roll to Hit the Attacker.
After every Combat Round, all combatants may choose to
Retreat, as normal.

9.7.2 Multiple Hostile and Peaceful Rivals

If you attack a Sector with Ships from both Peaceful and Hostile
Rivals you may choose to only attack the Hostile Rivals or a
combination of Hostile and Peaceful Rivals. All Hostile Rivals in
the same Sector must be attacked. After the Attacker has
declared who is attacked, all unattacked Peaceful Rivals in the
Sector may choose to join the defence or stay out of the Battle;
they may not join the Attack. Any Trade Agreements subject to
Betrayal [see rule 13.4] are returned.93
9.4 COMBAT CONTINUES
9.7.3 Multiple Defender Retreat
If none of the players involved choose to Retreat (or are unable
to Retreat) another Combat Round begins. Without Issuing any The Defenders choose separately (and in Turn Order) whether
additional Command, continue to fight additional Combat or not to Retreat after each Combat Round. The Battle is over
Rounds until either the Attacker or Defender Retreats or a when all the Defenders are eliminated or routed, or the Attacker
player has no more Ships remaining. is eliminated or routed.

9.5 WINNING A SPACE BATTLE

The player who destroys all their Rival's Ships or forces them
into Retreat wins the Space Battle.

92 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23286320#23286320).

93 This
rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook, but is in the same spirit as the official Ally Cooperation rule. It also simplifies the handling of unintentional
Betrayals.

!3 8 38
 9.8 BORG CUBES IN COMBAT Note: The Borg only Regenerate on Attack rolls of 6 if the
Cube is not destroyed by the player’s Hits.
The Borg have a number of unique rules they follow in Combat:
9.8.4 Damaging Borg Cubes
9.8.1 Slow and Methodical
Each time a Hit is scored against a Borg Cube, place one die on
Players’ Ships and Structures have First Strike against Borg
the Borg Cube card, to track how much damage the Cube has
Cubes, in the first Combat Round, in Space Battles and when
sustained. Dice on the Cube card aren’t used to roll Attacks.
defending against Borg Planetary Invasion. This is true regardless
of who initiates the attack. The Slow and Methodical rule is
suspended for Cubes acting under the Command: Aggression
Command card when the Attack-Command-Attack rule [see rule
15.5.1] has taken effect.

9.8.2 Borg Attack Dice

Borg Cubes start every Combat with 9 Attack Dice. As the Borg
take damage, they lose Attack Dice. When it’s the Borg’s turn to
Attack, they roll all their remaining Attack Dice – but not dice
that have been taken away as damage.

9.8.3 Borg Hit Rolls

The Borg’s Hit Roll depends on how many Spires they have in
play, as shown on the Borg Command Console.

Borg Hit Roll Borg Worlds in Play Having taken four Hits, four Borg dice are placed on the Cube Card,
leaving the Borg 5 Dice for their next Attack.
1+ 4-5
2+ 3 9.8.5 Borg Adaptive Shields
3+ 2 The Borg are able to adapt quickly to enemy weapons. Other
civilizations are constantly searching for new ways to damage the
4+ 1 Borg, coming up with innovative techniques to which the Borg
haven’t adapted.
5+ 0
At the start of each Space Battle and Invasion, the Borg Cube
9.8.3.1 Rolling Borg Dice has a Shield Modifier of 0.
The player who Activated the Cube rolls the Attack Dice for At the end of each Combat Round, the Cube’s Shield Modifier
the Borg. When defending, the Assimilated player with the increases by 1: place a Borg Assimilation Node on the Borg
lowest Turn Order rolls. If there are no Assimilated players, Cube card to track their current Shield Modifier, up to a
the player to the right of the opponent rolls the dice.94 maximum of 4. If, after Taking Casualties, the Borg Shields are
such that a player’s Ships only Hit on a 7 or higher, that player
9.8.3.2 Advanced Weaponry must Retreat [see rule 9.3].
Borg Weapons ignore all Shields, unless you have Tech or an
Advancement that specifically works against the Borg.

9.8.3.3 Allocating Hits to Different Ships

For Hits inflicted by the Borg when there are no Assimilated
players, the player whose Ships were Hit may decide how to
allocate them between their Ships. When the Borg are
controlled by an Assimilated player, that player (or the
Assimilated player with the lowest Turn Order, if there are
several) may pick which Ships were Hit.95

9.8.3.4 Attacking Multiple Players

When attacking more than one player, allocate the Borg Hits
between the players one at a time, in player Turn Order, until
all the Hits have been allocated.

9.8.3.5 Borg Regeneration The Federation has First Strike and upgraded their Weapons once. In
Any Borg Attack rolls of 6 (Borg Symbol) both score a Hit the first Round of the Space Battle, the Borg’s Shield modifier is 0, so
and Regenerate one damage, if the player’s Hits do not the Federation ‘s Hit Roll is 4.They roll six Attacks and score 4 Hits.
destroy the Cube. After scoring Hits, for each 6 the Borg
rolled when attacking, take a die off the Cube card and add it
back to their pool of Attack Dice for the following Combat
Round. A Borg Cube never has more than 9 Attack Dice.

94 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to cover a gap.

95 This was partly officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Dec 14. 2017).

39 !39
 All Factions that were involved in destroying the Cube then
draw a Borg Tech card [see rule 14.4]. All those who were
present at the start of the Space Battle, even if they didn’t Hit
and even if they are all destroyed, count as having been involved
(and observed how their Rival defeated the Borg). 97
Klingons get a bonus Culture token for defeating a Borg Cube.
Klingon Marauder Fleets take a single Production for destroying a
Borg Cube.

For their first Attack, the Borg Roll their 5 Attack Dice, currently
needing 4s or higher to Hit.The Borg roll 3 Hits, one of which is a
Borg Symbol, which allows them to Regenerate one die.

After the first Combat Round, the Federation no longer has First
Strike.The Borg’s Shield Modifier increases to 1.This Round, Attacks
are made simultaneously.The Federation will need 5 or 6 to Hit.The
Borg continue to Hit on 4 or higher,The Borg are rolling six dice this
Combat Round.
9.8.6 Retreat from the Borg
When players Retreat from a Space Battle with the Borg, they
must move so that they are no longer in an Adjacent Sector to
the Cube after the Retreat movement. If they cannot move to
such a Sector for any reason when forced to Retreat, they are
destroyed instead.96
A damaged Cube which wins a Battle will start the next Battle
with a full 9 Attack Dice.
Klingons still may not retreat in Battles versus the Borg.
However, the Klingon’s Starting Advancement allows them to
always Hit on 6s, so they always have a chance to defeat the
Borg.

9.8.7 Destroying a Borg Cube

When a Borg Cube has sustained nine damage and all its dice
are placed on the Cube card, the Cube has been destroyed.

96 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. The original rule made no sense.

97 This was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Dec 12. 2017) and further clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

!4 0 40
 10. INVASIONS
When your Ships Occupy a Developed System you do not In a Planetary Invasion, the goal of the Attacker is to take
Control, you may Issue a Command to Invade the Planet. If there Control of the planet, ideally with minimal damage done to the
are any Rival Ships in the System, you must Attack the Ships in a planet's infrastructure. Hits by the Attacker don't necessarily
Space Battle first before Invading the System (Exception: Ally destroy Nodes. The number of Hits scored by the Attacker
Cooperation - rule 13.2.2). If the Invasion is successful, you will determines the results of the Planetary Invasion.
take Control of the System.
Depending on how many Hits the Attacker scores, there are a
Each Planetary Invasion consists of a number of Combat Rounds few possible results:
in which both players roll to score Hits, take Casualties, then
decide whether to Surrender, Retreat or keep fighting. 10.2.1 Successful Invasion
Surrender [rule 10.3.1] may happen before the Invasion starts. If the Attacker scores more Hits than the Defender has Nodes,
the Attacker has invaded with overwhelming force and has taken
Invasion Sequence: Control of the System and won the Invasion. Place the Attacker's
Control Node on the System, replacing the existing Control
1) Scoring Hits [10.1] Node if the planet was Controlled by a Rival. The Attacker must
2) Taking Casualties [10.2] still take any Casualties caused by the Defender.
3) Retreating from Invasion [10.3]
4) Combat Continues [10.4]

Borg Invasions follow separate rules [see rule 15.4].

Invading Borg Worlds follow separate rules [see rule 10.6].
Invasions are a one-way affair: you may not Issue a Command to
have your Nodes initiate an Attack against Ships Orbiting their
System.

10.1 SCORING HITS

The Attacker rolls a number of dice equal to the number of
Ships they have in the System. The Defender rolls a number of
dice equal to the number of Structures they have built on the For example, in the illustration the Klingons would need to Hit with all
planet, including the Control Node and any Starbase. Every die four of their attacks to seize Control of the Federation System without
rolled has a chance to score a Hit.98 destroying any of the Nodes on the planet.
As in Space Battles, both players' current Weapons Levels 10.2.1.1 Capturing Research Nodes
determines their "Hit Roll”. To score a Hit, you need to roll When you take Control of a Rival's intact Research Node,
equal to or higher than your Hit Roll. Each player adds their the player whose Research Node was captured must choose
opponent's Shield Modifier to their Hit Roll, making it more one of their active Projects and give it to you [for details see
difficult to Hit. rule 14.1.2].
First Strike may apply in Invasions just like in Space Battles.
10.2.1.2 Capturing Starbases
You may need to roll dice for different Fleets separately if they When Control of a System changes hands, Control of the
have different Special Rules. Starbase does too [for details see rule 12.2.2].

10.2.2 Collateral Damage

If the Attacker scores fewer Hits than the Defender has Nodes,
the Attacker must choose a number of Resource Nodes to
destroy equal to the number of Hits scored. The Control Node
is not destroyed. Another Combat Round is then fought, unless
the Attacker chooses to Retreat or the Defender chooses to
Surrender.
For Example, if the Klingons in the illustration above only scored a
single Hit, they could choose to destroy either the Culture Node or the
Research Node. If they scored two Hits, they would have to destroy
10.2 TAKING CASUALTIES both Resource Nodes, leaving only the Federation Control Node.
Casualties inflicted by the Defender are taken from the Attacking
Ships. Even if all the Attacker's Ships are destroyed, the Results of 10.2.3 Total Annihilation
the Invasion are the same, i.e. all the Attacker's Ships could be If the Attacker scores a number of Hits equal to the number of
destroyed and still have a Successful Invasion. Nodes in the System, including the Control Node, the surface

98 This rule was changed to include Starbases in Planetary defence in order to be consistent with how Hegemony and Borg Invasions work.

41 !41
 has been completely razed in the Invasion. Destroy all the Nodes Civilization Weapons Shields Hegemony
on the planet, including the Control Node. The Invasion is over:
the System will need to be Colonised [see rule 7.2] anew in a Level Hit Roll Modifier Resistance
future turn. Neither the Attacker or Defender has won the
Invasion.
Level One 5+ 1 1
Level Two 4+ 2 2
10.2.3.1 Starbases and Total Annihilation
With a Total Annihilation result, the Defender has lost Control
Level Three 3+ 3 3
of the Starbase and loses a Command, but the Attacker does
not Control it either. The first player to take Control of the
Level Four 2+ 4 4
System will Control the Starbase [see rule 12.2.2]. The higher the Level of the Civilization, the better their
Weapons and Shields.100
10.2.4 Repelled Invasions
If the Defender's Control Node survives and all the Attacker's 10.6 RECLAIMING BORG WORLDS
Ships are destroyed, the Invasion is over and the Defender Borg Worlds can be Invaded to eradicate the Borg presence. Any
retains Control of the System. player, including the Federation, may try to Reclaim a Borg
World. To successfully Reclaim a Borg World, they must roll
10.3 RETREATING FROM INVASION enough Hits to result in a Total Annihilation or Successful Invasion
After a Round of Invasion Combat, the Attacker may choose to (Hits equal to or greater than the number of Structures on the
Retreat, ending the Invasion. When Retreating, the Attacker may Borg World). Spires, Nodes and Cubes atop Spires all count as
make an Impulse Speed Retreat movement [see rule 9.3]. Structures.

10.3.1 Surrender in Invasions Player Invasions of Borg Worlds follow the same procedure as
any other Invasion, except as amended here.
In Planetary Invasions, the Defender cannot Retreat but they
may Surrender. The Defender may choose to Surrender
immediately, even before the first Combat Round. If the
Defender Surrenders, the Attacker immediately gains Control of
the Sector and the Invasion is over.
Surrender counts as Successful Invasion for effects such as the
Cardassian Annexation Special Rule. 99

10.4 COMBAT CONTINUES

If the Invasion was not Successful or Repelled, another Combat
Round begins. Without Issuing any additional Commands,
continue to fight additional Combat Rounds until either the
Attacker Retreats, the Defender Surrenders or the Invasion is
resolved.
A Fleet of six Federation Ships attempts to Reclaim a Borg World.The
10.5 INVADING UNCONTROLLED SYSTEMS Borg World has three Structures, so the Borg roll three dice.
Some planets may be Developed but not Controlled.You may
Invade Planets that are not Controlled normally. Planets that are 10.6.1 No First Strike
not Controlled do not have a Control Node to fight. Resource Unlike Combat with a Cube and defence against Borg Invasion,
Nodes (and in rare cases Starbases) on Planets that are not players do not have First Strike when Invading a Borg World.
Controlled each add one die, as normal. Warp-Capable
Civilizations' Weapons Hit Rolls are modified by your Shield 10.6.2 Borg Planetary Shields
Modifier normally. Borg Worlds have a Shield Modifier equal to the number of
The player to the right of the Attacker rolls the System's Attacks, green Borg Assimilation Nodes on the System.
but the Attacker may select which Ships are hit. Add a Borg Assimilation Node to the System after each Combat
Round, increasing the Borg World’s Shields and the number of
dice it will roll in the next Combat Round (and bringing the
System closer to building a new Cube in an upcoming Borg
Building Phase). Borg Worlds may never have more than three
Nodes.101

99 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

100Note: Rather than keeping the Civilization card on the table, you can calculate the Independents' Hit Roll by subtracting the number of tokens from 6. E.g. a Level Two
Civilization is a 4+ to Hit (6-2=4). The number of Warp tokens are equal to their Shield Modifier and is their base Hegemony Resistance. Their Hegemony Resistance is also
increased by the number of Nodes on the System. The values for level four Civilizations were sort of officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards,
Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 17. 2019).

101 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

!42 42
10.6.3 Borg and Collateral Damage
The Borg are able to shrug off Collateral Damage [see rule
10.2.2]; if you roll fewer Hits than there are Structures on the
Planet, the attack has no effect and no Nodes are destroyed. If
you have fewer Ships than there are Borg Structures, you won’t
be able to Reclaim the Borg World.

10.6.4 Rolling Borg Dice

The Assimilated player with the lowest Turn Order rolls the dice
for the defending Borg World. If there are no Assimilated players,
the player to the right of the opponent rolls the dice.102

10.6.5 Allocating Borg Hits

For Hits inflicted by the Borg when there are no Assimilated
players, the player whose Ships were Hit may decide how to
allocate them between their Ships. When the Borg are
controlled by an Assimilated player, that player (or the
Assimilated player with the lowest Turn Order, if there are
several) may pick which Ships were Hit.103

10.6.6 Success
With either successful result (Total Annihilation or Successful
Invasion), the System has been Reclaimed: remove all the Borg
Structures. Do not place a player Control Node on the System.
The World has been too heavily damaged by the Borg; it must be
Colonised [see rule 7.2] anew. The player to Reclaim the System
draws a Borg Tech card.

102 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to cover a gap.

103 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to cover a gap.

43 !4 3
 11. HEGEMONY
When your Ships Occupy a Developed Planetary System you 11.2.2 Warp-Capable Civilizations
don't Control, you may attempt to culturally take over the
System through Hegemony. How resistant a System is to The Warp tokens on an Independent, Warp-Capable System is
Hegemony depends on how developed its infrastructure is and added to the System's Hegemony Resistance. Independent
its culture's Ascendancy. Civilizations won't have Control Nodes; the Hegemony
Resistance of the System is the number of Developed Resource
You may not Hegemony Pre-Warp inhabited Systems [see rule Nodes plus the number of Warp tokens on the System.
8.8.5.1], they must be Colonised [see rule 7.2] during your
Building Phase. If there is a Starbase in the System (which may happen after a
player has been Assimilated) it also adds 1 to the System's
You may not Hegemony Borg Worlds. Hegemony Resistance.106
Hegemony is not an Attack and does not cause Betrayal [see 11.3 MAKING A HEGEMONY ATTEMPT
rule 13.4].104
To attempt Cultural Hegemony, Issue a Command and spend a
11.1 COST OF HEGEMONY Culture. Next, roll a die and add your current Ascendancy. If the
total is higher than the Hegemony Resistance of the System, you
It normally requires spending at least two Culture tokens to take
may pay an additional Culture token to take Control of the
Control of a System via Hegemony; one to make the attempt
System: place your Control Node on the System.107
and another to take Control, if the attempt was successful.
Note: Even if your Ascendancy is high enough relative to the
If you don’t have two Culture, you can’t Hegemony a System,
System's Resistance that Hegemony is going to be automatically
unless you have an Advancement that reduces the cost of
successful, you still need to pay a total of two Culture: one for
Hegemony.You are not allowed to just spend one Culture and
the attempt and one to actually take Control.
remove the opponent’s Control Node. 105

11.2 HEGEMONY RESISTANCE Example:The Romulans (at Ascendancy 2) Occupy a Klingon System.
The System's three Nodes (two Resource Nodes and the Control
Hegemony Resistance is calculated differently depending on if
Node) and the Klingons Ascendancy of 1 gives the System a
you are attempting Hegemony against a player Controlled Planet
Hegemony Resistance of 4.The Romulans use a Command and spend
or a Warp-Capable Civilization.
a Culture to Attempt Hegemony.They roll a 3 and add their
11.2.1 Player Controlled System Ascendancy, getting a total of 5, overcoming the System's Resistance,
so they spend another Culture and take Control!
The Hegemony Resistance of a player Controlled System is
equal to the number of Structures in the System plus the
Ascendancy of the player who Controls it. Starbases and Nodes
count as Structures and each add 1 to a System's Hegemony
Resistance.

104 Although officially ruled differently in emails (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019 and Email answer
from Jessica Fauver, Battlefront US Customer Service, Oct 10. 2019), this rule was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to provide consistency and for thematic
reasons.

105 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23864230#23864230).

106 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook. The original rules didn’t cover this eventuality.

107 Tip: You

can alternately think of your Ascendancy as reducing a System's Resistance, i.e. in the example above, the Romulan's Ascendancy of 2 reduces the Klingon Resistance
from 5 to 3, so the Romulans need to roll higher than a 3 to take Control of the System.

!4 4 44
Example:The Romulans now are going to attempt Hegemony of a
Level 3 Warp-Capable Civilization.The System has three Developed
Nodes, plus the three Warp tokens, giving the System a total
Hegemony Resistance of 6.The Romulans will need to get a total of 7
on their Hegemony attempt:With an Ascendancy of 2, they'll need to
roll a 5 or better to succeed.

11.4 SEIZING STARBASES AND RESEARCH NODES

As in a Planetary Invasion, when you take Control of a System
that contains a Starbase you gain a Command [see rule 12.2.2].
Likewise, if you take Control of a Rival's System with Research
Nodes, you take one of their Projects for each Research Node.
For details, see rule 14.1.2.

45 !45
 12. FLEETS & STARBASES
A Fleet is a group of Ships that moves and fights together. Any You may form the Fleets in any order, i.e. you may Commission
rules that apply to Ships also apply to Fleets. Grouping Ships into your Fleet #3 when you only have one Ascendancy token.
a Fleet allows you to move much more efficiently and may
benefit from Fleet Special Rules. 12.1.3 Bonus Fleet Build
Starbases allow you to build Ships and Commission Fleets away When you're building three or more Ships in the same System
from your Home System. during your Building Phase, you may immediately group them
into a Fleet, without spending a Command (provided you are
12.1 FORMING A FLEET building them where you have the capacity to Commission
To group Ships into a Fleet, the Ships must be in your Controlled Fleets).109
Home System or at one of your Controlled Starbases 12.1.4 Adding & Removing Ships from Fleets
(Exception: some Advancements may allow you to Commission
Fleets in other Sectors). Only these Systems have the facilities On your turn, you may add or remove Ships from Fleets, in the
necessary to equip and retrofit Starships for specialized Fleet same Sector, without Issuing a Command.You cannot add or
configurations. Issue a Command, take the Ships off the map and remove Ships from a Fleet mid-movement.You do not have to be
place them on one of your three Fleet cards. Then place the in your Home System or at a Starbase to add or remove Ships
appropriate Fleet Marker on the map, in the same System.108 to or from a Fleet. 110
Specific Fleet Special Rules are collected in the Appendices. You may add Ships to a Fleet up to the maximum Fleet Size. If
maximum Fleet Size is reduced for any reason, this has no effect
on Ships in Fleets already in play.

12.1.5 Disbanding a Fleet

If a Fleet contains fewer than three Ships it is immediately and

automatically Disbanded

At any time on your turn, including your Building Phase, you may
choose to Disband a Fleet that is not at Warp by taking the Ships
off the Fleet card and putting them back on the map, in the same
Sector.111
You do not need to Issue a Command to Disband a Fleet.

12.1.6 Fleets in Space Battles

When rolling to Hit with both a Fleet and individual Ships (or
12.1.1 Fleet Type & Strength several Fleets), roll the dice for the Fleet separately if the Fleet
Each Faction has three different Fleet cards, each of which is has a Special Rule that affects its Attacks.
double sided. The different sides of Fleet cards have different
Special Rules and allow for different Fleet Sizes. When you 12.2 STARBASES
Commission a Fleet, you must choose which side you're using. To Commissioning a Starbase is a major endeavour, not to be taken
use a different side of a Fleet card, you must Disband the Fleet lightly. Starbases count as Structures.
and re-Commission it at your Home System or Starbase.
12.2.1 Commission a Starbase
12.1.2 Number of Fleets To Commission a Starbase, Issue a Command and place a
The number of Fleets you can form is limited by your Fleet Limit. Starbase model next to a System you Control. There is no
If you have reached or exceeded your Fleet Limit, you may not Resource cost to Commission a Starbase, but each Faction may
Commission any more Fleets. If your Fleet Limit is decreased for only place three of them over the course of the entire game.
any reason, Fleets already in play are not affected.
12.2.1.1 Maximum Number of Starbases
You cannot Commission more Fleets when your Fleet Limit You may only Commission one Starbase per Ascendancy
has been reached. Level you've achieved.

108 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

109 This rule was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

110 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23576497#23576497).

111 This rule was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019).

!4 6 46
 You may Control more than this, if you have taken Starbases Starbases provide one point of Hegemony Resistance [see rule
from Rivals. 11.2.1].
There can only be one Starbase per System. 112

12.2.1.2 Placing Starbases

Once placed, Starbases cannot be moved to other Systems.
They can, however, be swung around the System freely to
make room for new Space Lanes. They can even be picked up
and placed on the other side of an existing Space Lane if
needed. 113

12.2.2 Capturing Starbases

Starbases are too valuable for players to destroy. Once a
Starbase is placed on a System it remains there for the rest of
the game, unless it is destroyed in a Borg Invasion [see rule 15.4].
When Control of a System changes hands, Control of the
Starbase does too. When you take Control of a Starbase from a
Rival, take one of their Command tokens. Place this token with
your other Command tokens.
The first player to take Control of an Uncontrolled Starbase (by
taking Control of the System) gains a Command.
As usual, any new Command tokens come into play Exhausted
and may not be used until the next Game Round.
When a Starbase is captured, only the new owner's Special Rules
which affect Starbases apply.

12.2.3 Starbases and Commands

Each Starbase you Control increases your number of Commands
by one. The additional Command starts Exhausted; you may not
use it this Game Round.

12.2.4 Starbases in Combat and Hegemony

Starbases provide an additional die in Space Battles and
Planetary Invasions, but can not be destroyed by Rival players
[see rules 9.1.2 and 10.1]. 114
During Borg Invasions Starbases may, however, be destroyed if
they fall to the Borg [see rule 15.4.2].

112 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23454590#23454590).

113 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

114 This rule was changed in the Unofficial Complete Rulebook in order to provide consistency.

47 !47
 13. TRADE AGREEMENTS
In Star Trek: Ascendancy, you can't directly give Resources or other player) regardless of the positions of Ships, Control Nodes or
assets to other players. What you can do is establish Trade Ambassadors (or other assets). This may also be done at any
Agreements between your Factions, peacefully allowing time.117
commerce between otherwise hostile Factions.
13.1.3 Maximum Number of Trade Agreements
You may only hold one Trade Agreement at a time from each
Rival. As an exception to the normal rules for Exhausted cards
you may not receive a second Trade Agreement from the same
Rival, even if the first one is Exhausted.118

Each player starts with three of their own Trade Agreements.

Trade Agreements only generate Resources when they're given
to another player.

13.1 GIVING AND RECEIVING TRADE AGREEMENTS

A Trade Agreement may be given out for any reason and does
not require anything in return.
Note that the Romulan Suspicious rule will Exhaust any Trade
Agreement they receive (be it given, exchanged, passed or drawn
from the Exploration deck).
Trade Agreements cannot be given to the Borg. 13.2 PEACE
13.1.1 Giving and Receiving Trade Agreements You are considered to be at Peace with any player whose Trade
Agreement you currently hold (unless it is Exhausted).
To give or receive a Trade Agreement, you must have a Ship,
Control Node or Ambassador [see the Vulcan rules in the Any Rivals whose Trade Agreements you do not hold are
Appendices] (or other asset as indicated by the variant Faction considered Hostile.
rules) Adjacent to or in the same Sector as one of that Rival's
13.2.1 Unrestricted Trade Routes
Ships, Control Nodes or Ambassadors (or other assets).You may
do this at any time.115 You may freely move through Sectors with Rival Ships with
which you're at Peace, unless the Sectors also contain Hostile
Note: A Ship that finds itself suddenly stranded on the other side Ships.119
of the quadrant through the effect of an Exploration card can
establish a Trade Agreement with a Rival Faction, but it does not 13.2.2 Ally Cooperation
count as First Contact. 116
Generally, you are required to Occupy a Planetary System to
13.1.2 Exchanging Trade Agreements Colonise, Invade or attempt Hegemony of it.
Once you have given a Rival a Trade Agreement, you may When Attempting Hegemony, Invading or Colonising a System in
exchange it for one of your other Trade Agreement cards (that which both you and a Peaceful Rival have Ships, you may ask that
you have on hand or that you have already given to another Rival for permission to Hegemony, Invade or Colonise the

115 This rule was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to provide consistency and for thematic reasons.

116 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23952245#23952245).

117 Althoughofficially ruled differently in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019), this rule was
changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook in order to simplify play. In the original rules this is not clearly stated.

118 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

119 This is in accordance with the Advanced Unrestricted Trade Routes rule.

!4 8 48
System. They may give, or deny, permission. If they deny Note: The Romulan's Suspicious Special Rule requires them to
permission, you may not take any action towards the System Exhaust any Trade Agreements when they receive them or have
until you fully Occupy that System (i.e. are the only player to them exchanged. This forces them to wait a turn until they
have Ships in the System). 120 benefit from the Agreement.
If more than one Peaceful Rival is present in the System they all
need to agree to your actions.121
In a similar way, other effects that require you to Occupy a
Sector (the Special Rule of the Romulan Mining Fleet for
example) may also be permitted by Peaceful Rivals.

13.3 REVOKING TRADE AGREEMENTS

On their turn during the Execution Stage, a player may revoke
Trade Agreements they have given out. They may not revoke
Trade Agreements at other times. 122
Revoked Trade Agreements are returned to the original owner
of the card.
If you Betray [see rule 13.4] a Rival whose Trade Agreement you
hold, you'll have to return it to them.

13.4 BETRAYAL
If you Attack a player whose Trade Agreement you hold, you have
broken the peace and must return their Trade Agreement (unless
it is Exhausted) 123. Once a Combat has begun, participants can't
exchange Trade Agreements until the Combat is over.
Hegemony is not an Attack and doesn’t count as Betrayal.124

13.5 EXHAUSTED TRADE AGREEMENTS

Sometimes a Trade Agreement may become Exhausted.You do
not receive any Resources from Exhausted Trade Agreements
during Resource Generation in the Recharge Stage. Exhausted
Trade Agreements may not be revoked or exchanged until they
are Refreshed during Maintenance.You are no longer at Peace
while the Trade Agreement is Exhausted. 125

120 Thiswas officially added as an optional rule on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23454675#23454675). In the Unofficial Complete Rulebook this rule is
always in effect.

121 This clarification was added for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

122 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

123 This is actually important in order not to create a gamey shortcut where you can Refresh Trade Agreements.

124 Although officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019), this rule was changed for
the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to provide a more interesting game. That Hegemony didn’t count as Betrayal was fairly clear in the original rules, but could be
misinterpreted.

125 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

49 !4 9
 14. RESEARCH
Research is used to put Advancements into play. Before an 14.1.3 Discarding Projects
Advancement is complete, it is considered a Project.You may
have a number of ongoing Projects equal to the number of Whenever a Project is discarded, it goes back to its
Research Nodes you Control. Advancement deck and any Resource tokens on the Project are
returned to the Supply.
Each completed Advancement adds Special Rules to your Faction
and may increase the speed of your Ships or give you additional 14.1.3.1 Discarding Projects from Other Factions
Commands. If you discard an Advancement card that came from another
Refer to the Appendices for a list of all Advancements. player's Advancement deck, it goes back to that deck.

14.1 LAUNCHING PROJECTS 14.1.3.2 Discarding Borg Tech

On your turn, you may Issue a Command to look through your Discarded Borg Tech cards go to the bottom of the Borg
Advancement deck and choose one Project to Launch.126 Tech deck.

Add newly Launched Projects to your Project Area. 14.2 FINISHING PROJECTS
When you have committed enough Resource tokens to finish a
14.1.1 Maximum Number of Projects Project, it becomes a usable Advancement. Move it to your
The number of Research Nodes you currently Control is the Advancement Area. If applicable, you may use the completed
maximum number of Active Projects you may have.You may Advancement's Special Rules immediately.
Launch Projects even if doing so would temporarily put you over When you finish a Project, it's a good idea to let your Rivals
your maximum number of Projects, but you have to immediately know what your new Advancement does.
discard enough Projects to keep you within your limit.
14.3 EFFECTS OF ADVANCEMENTS
Any time you have more Projects in your Project Area than Each Advancement has a Type listed on the right hand edge of
you Control Research Nodes, you must discard a number of the card. Some Advancement rules only effect certain Types of
Projects until you're back down to your maximum number Advancements. For example, the Romulans have an
of Projects allowed. Advancement that allows them to Exhaust an "Espionage" card.

14.3.1 Warp Token Advancements

You may discard Projects that were already in your Project Area
or newly Launched Projects. Some Advancements picture Warp tokens in
the lower right hand corner of the card.
Note that some Projects from variant Factions use other When completed, these Advancements
Resources than Research to complete, but are still limited in increase the Warp Speed of your Ships, in
number by the number of Research Nodes you Control. addition to their Special Rules.
14.1.2 Taking Advancement Cards from Other Factions For details on Warp Movement, see rule 8.2.
You may be able to take Advancement cards from other Factions
in Invasions [see rule 10.2.1.1], during Hegemony [see rule 11.4]
or through Special Rules. This Project increases your Ships' Warp Speed
by 1
14.1.2.1 Invasion or Hegemony
When you take Control of a Rival's intact Research Node 14.3.2 Command Token Advancements
through Invasion or Hegemony, the player whose Research Some Advancements picture a Command
Node was captured must choose one of their active Projects token. When you complete an Advancement
and give it to you. Any Resources on the card is discarded. If which pictures a Command, the number of
you capture more than one Research Node, they must give Commands you have immediately increases
you a Project per Node captured. If the Research Node is by one.
destroyed, nothing is captured. If the targeted player does
not have any active Projects, then no Project is seized. Place This new Command starts Exhausted and
captured Projects in your Project Area. will be Refreshed in the following Recharge
Stage.
14.1.2.2 Special Rules This Project increases your Commands by 1 and
Special Rules may sometimes allow you to take an your Ships’Warp Speed by 1
Advancement card from another player. Such cards are
drawn randomly from the Rival's deck.

126 Thiswas officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019)., This rule is in accordance
with the Advanced Focused Research rule.

!50 50
14.3.3 Culture Token Advancements 14.4.1.1 Maximum Number of Borg Tech Projects
There are some Romulan Advancements which picture a Culture The 14.1.1 Maximum Number of Projects rule applies to
token. When a Romulan player completes these, the Romulans Borg Tech Projects in the same way as other Projects.
take a Culture token.
14.4.2 Using Borg Tech
Only the Romulan player may take advantage of this; other
Many Borg Tech cards require a player to discard the card to use
Factions that develop stolen Romulan Advancements do not
the ability.
receive a Culture token when they develop the Advancement
(but they do, in effect, prevent the Romulans from obtaining the
token). 127 When discarding a Borg Tech card, place it at the bottom of
the Borg Tech deck.
14.3.4 Ferengi Espionage
The Ferengi Espionage Advancements Exhaust certain types of 14.5 EXHAUSTED ADVANCEMENTS
cards. Unlike other Espionage cards, the Ferengi may use theirs
When one of your completed Advancements is Exhausted, you
multiple times per turn, as long as they can pay the Production
don’t get the benefits of that card at while it is face-down. If one
cost.
of your Advancements picturing a Warp token is Exhausted, you
14.3.5 Advancements and the Borg don’t get the benefit of that Warp token either, until the card is
Refreshed at the end of the Game Round.128
Advancements that apply to ”Rival Ships” or “Rival” also apply to
the Borg. If the Exhausted card pictures a one-time bonus, such as a
Romulan Culture token, that bonus isn’t revoked.
Advancements, such as Cult of Kahless, that automatically destroy
a Rival Ship do one damage to Borg Cubes.

14.4 BORG TECH CARDS

Borg Tech cards represent a variety of
different data and technology that may be
gained by defeating the Borg. Borg Tech cards
give players new ways to combat the Borg
and defences against them.
The Borg Tech deck is not an “Advancement
deck,” although each drawn card is played as
an Advancement.
Advancements that allow you to draw from
a Rival's Advancement deck do not allow
drawing of Borg Tech cards.

14.4.1 Gaining Borg Tech

Players draw a Borg Tech card when they destroy a Borg Cube
or Reclaim a Borg World.
Many Borg Tech cards have a Research cost of zero and are
placed directly in the player’s Advancement Area.
Some Borg Tech cards have a Research cost and are placed in
the player’s Project Area like other Projects until they have been
completed.

127 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/24191441#24191441).

128 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23460046#23460046).

51 !5 1
 15. BORG TURN
The Borg are never considered a player Faction, even if there are If there is already a Borg Cube in Orbit of a Borg World ready
Assimilated players. The Borg turn(s) during the Execution Stage to launch a Cube, leave the Cube on top of the Spire until the
is therefore never considered a ”player turn”.129 next Borg Building Phase.
The Borg take a Borg turn during the Execution Stage each time
their Turn Order comes up.

15.1 BORG BUILDING PHASE

The Borg don’t use Resource tokens to build as players do.
During the Borg Building Phase they first check to see if the
Transwarp Hub generates a new Cube and then place new Borg
Assimilation Nodes around Spires, which also may generate new
Borg Cubes.
If you run out of Borg Cubes to place , use any convenient
substitute.130
15.1.1 Transwarp Hub
During each Borg Building Phase, if the Borg Transwarp Hub
System disc is in play, either remove one Delay token from it
[see rule 5.8.1.5] or, if there are no Delay tokens to remove, roll
to see if it creates a new Cube.131

15.1.1.1 Cube Already in Hub

If the Transwarp Hub already contains a Borg Cube, do not
roll for an additional Cube. 132 15.2 BORG COMMAND PHASE
15.1.1.2 Cube Generation Roll What drives the Borg is mysterious. Borg Cubes may sometimes
To generate a new Cube, roll a die and add the number of hold position, pass by one System in favour of a different target
Cube Generation tokens to the roll. If the result is greater or return to a Borg Spire to expedite Assimilation.
than the number of Cubes on the map, the 15.2.1 Determining Cube Order
Transwarp Hub generates a new Cube.
After the Borg Building Phase, each Cube is Activated in an
If no Cube is generated (because the order selected by the players:
Transwarp Hub already has a Cube or the
roll is too low), place a Cube Generation 15.2.1.1 No Assimilated Players
token on the Transwarp Hub. Remove all If there are no Assimilated players, but more than one Borg
tokens if a Cube is generated. 133 Cube in play, players take turns choosing a Cube to Activate,
15.1.2 Borg Worlds in Turn Order.

Each Borg World (a System with a Borg Spire) will take an This may mean that some players have to disclose their Turn
Action during the Borg Building Phase, depending on the Order card before they have taken their turn. 134
state of the Spire: In this case the Activated Cube is selected before its
Borg Worlds with fewer than three Assimilation Nodes Command card is drawn.
build an additional Assimilation Node.
15.2.1.2 Assimilated Players
Borg Worlds with three Assimilation Nodes and no
Cube on top of the Spire build a Cube on top of If there are Assimilated players, an Assimilated player draws a
the Spire. number of Command cards equal to the number of Cubes in
Borg Worlds with a Cube built on their Spire play when their Borg turn comes up. The Assimilated player
launch their Cube into Orbit of the System and chooses the order in which to Activate each Cube. When
remove all of that World’s Assimilation Nodes. Activating each Cube, the Assimilated player may choose

129 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

130 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to balance the game.

131 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to balance the game.

132 This rule was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Dec 14. 2017).

133 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to balance the game.

134 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

!52 52
 which of their drawn Command cards to execute with the 15.2.4 Executing Command Cards
Activated Cube.135
The Borg use a Command deck to determine what each Borg
15.2.2 Activating Cubes Cube does during the Borg turn.
When Activated, each Cube does the After engaging any player Ships, execute a Borg Command card
following: for the Cube. Many of the Command cards are movement cards
[see rule 15.3]. Some Command cards will have other directions.
First, the Cube engages any eligible
player Ships in Space Battle [see rule Borg Movement Command cards will
15.2.3]. indicate both a Target and a Warp move.
Second, have the Cube execute its Borg Cubes travel at Warp, like players’
Command card [see rule 15.2.4]. If the Ships. Borg Cubes generally may not
Borg Attack - Command - Attack rule has move through players’ Ships [but see rule
taken effect [see rule 15.5.1], the Cube 15.5.2].
then again engages eligible Ships in Space
Battle. This Command card orders the Cube to
Third, begin Assimilation of a Developed Move at Warp 2 towards the nearest
Planetary System, if possible [see 15.4]. Starbase.
Resolve the Activation of each Cube fully before moving on to Note that some cards may cause a Cube
the next Cube. After completing a Cube’s Activation, place a to move past or away from the Orbit of a
Borg Activation token on the Cube, to track Developed System.
which Cubes have Activated. Note that the
Activation of one Cube may move several
Cubes, but that only the Activated Cube is
marked.
Remove all Activation tokens on Borg Cubes
after the Borg Command Phase is finished.

15.2.3 Engaging Player Ships

Each Borg Cube begins its Activation by initiating a Space Battle
with all player Ships that are in its Sector or, if there are none, it
attacks all Ships in Adjacent Sectors. It engages them all
simultaneously, even Ships from multiple players. In a Space Battle
with multiple players, all players must direct their attacks against With the above Borg Command, the Cube moves at Warp 2 towards
the Borg. 136 the nearest Starbase, through the nearby Developed System.
Refer to the Appendices for a list of all Borg Command cards.
15.2.4.1 Multiple Movement Commands
The Collective: Linkage and Move: Collective Command cards
will direct you to move multiple Cubes. In these cases, move
all the Cubes, whether or not they have already Activated
this turn, then complete the Activation of the Cube which
was Activated with the card.137
The Activated Cube moves first, but the order in which
other Cubes are moved is determined by the player that
Activated the first Cube.
Moving Cubes follow rule 15.3 and may explore.
Movement by itself does not cause a Cube to be marked as
Activated. 138
The Borg turn is not over until all Cubes have been
At the start of this Borg Cube’s Actions, it will engage both the Klingon Activated and marked with Activation tokens (unless the
Fleet and the Federation Ships in a Space Battle. Both players are Command card Polaron Field Disruption is played, immediately
defending against the Cube. ending the Borg turn).

135 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

136 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

137 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

138 Although officially ruled differently in emails (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 15. 2019 and Email answer
from Jessica Fauver, Battlefront US Customer Service, Oct 10. 2019), this rule was changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook in order to increase the Borg threat and
provide consistency.

53 !53
 15.2.5 Assimilation placed instead. Otherwise the nearest Connected Cube is
”teleported” to the System without regard to distance or
After resolving the Borg Command card for the Cube, start blocking Ships.142
Assimilation of an eligible Planetary System [see rule 15.4].
15.3.1.2 Minimum Amount
15.3 BORG MOVEMENT
In all cases where there is a tie for nearest/closest System,
In general, a moving Borg Cube will try to do the following in Target Sector or minimum amount of swinging, the player
the order given:139 Activating the Cube may choose where to move the Cube
Step I: If there is No Target the Cube will Explore; go to Step between the tying Sectors or which Systems and Space
IV Lanes are swung.
Step II: If there is a Reachable Target the Cube will move to
15.3.2 Step I: No Target
the closest such Target and end its move
Step III: If there is a Far Away Target the Cube will complete If the Target indicated by the Command card is not Connected
its entire Warp move towards the closest Target along the to the Cube, the Cube will move to Step IV and Explore [see
shortest path and end its move rule 15.3.5].
Step IV:The Cube will Explore a new Space Lane, make a
Connection and move to a Target or place a new System and Example:The Cube at
end its move B has been Activated
Step V: Reassign Target and start over at Step I with a ”Move:Target
If all movement alternatives fail, the Cube will not move at all Developed System
(3)” Command card.
Sectors may never contain more than one Cube (unless one Since the Cube is not
of them is still atop a Spire). Connected to any
Target Sector, the
Cube will explore.
Note that this doesn’t mean that Borg Cubes can’t fly past each
other. If they have enough movement and their path isn’t blocked
they will fly past any other Cubes.140
Also note that a moving Cube will not be able to reach a Target
Sector already containing another Cube, but it may be able to
reach the closest Adjacent Sector [see rule 15.3.3].

15.3.1 Executing a Movement Command

The Movement Command card will indicate a Target type (Borg
World, Rival Ship or Fleet, Developed System, Starbase or Home
System) and a Warp move (1, 2 or 3 Systems).
When executing a Movement Command card follow the Steps
below, until the Cube ends its move. Also refer to the Borg
Movement flow-chart as a handy reference.
Note that rule 15.5.2 will affect how Rival Ships can block the
movement of a Cube.

15.3.1.1 Nearest, Closest and Shortest Path

When the words ”nearest”, ”closest” or ”shortest” appear 15.3.3 Step II: Reachable Target
on Borg cards or in the Borg movement rules it generally
means nearest as determined by Warp move distance If there is a Target of the type indicated that the Cube can reach
(disregarding blocking Ships). Ties are resolved by fewer (or stay at, if already there) with its current Warp Range, the
Sectors (if that is also a tie, the player who Activated the Cube will move to (or stay at) the closest such Target and end
Cube selects among equidistant Sectors).141 its move.

The Borg travel via Virtual Adjacencies, if that is the shortest If the Target is unreachable only because there is already a Ship
route to their Target. (including another Borg Cube) in the Target Sector, the closest
Adjacent Sector will instead be considered the Target, provided
Note: Some Borg Exploration cards will nominate the the Cube can reach it.
”nearest” Borg Cube to be moved to the System. If there are
Borg Cubes on the map, but not Connected when they are
required to be moved to such a new System, a new Cube is

139 This
rule was completely rewritten in comparison to the official rule. This was done in order to make it clear how the Borg Cubes move and to allow the Borg to explore
more and spread out. Without the ability for the Borg to create new Connections when blocked from their Target, they will almost certainly end up focusing on only one player
and becoming less of a threat to the others.

140 Part of this rule was also officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

141 This rule was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

142 This
rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook in order to avoid confusion. Note that this rule deviates from an official answer given in an email (Email answer
from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

!54 54
Example:The Cube at B 15.3.5.1 Placing Space Lane
has been Activated with a
An exploring Cube will generate (by rolling the Space Lane
”Move:Target Developed
die) and point a new Space Lane as directly as possible
System (3)” Command
(measured by angle) in a Random Direction [see rule 15.3.5.2
card. It will move to Sector
for determination of a Random Direction]. When placing the
A since it is Adjacent to the
new Space Lane, the Borg Cube may swing [see rule
closest Target of the
15.3.5.6] other Floating Systems and Space Lanes (but not
indicated type and within
the System it is in) 143, but only to allow the new Space Lane
the Warp Range of the
to point as directly as possible towards the designated
Cube.
Random Direction.
If the Space Lane can’t be placed (because there is no room)
the Cube ends its move where it is like other Ships [rule
8.6.6].
Note: In the unlikely case where a new Space Lane placed
Example:The Cube at B in a Random Direction fits exactly as a new Connection to a
has been Activated with a previously existing System, that Connection is made and the
”Move:Target Developed movement process starts over from Step I [rule 15.3.2].
System (3)” Command
card. In this case the Cube 15.3.5.2 Determining a Random Direction
will move to Sector D since To randomly determine a direction when the Borg explore,
it is the closest Target that roll a die. The direction towards the original Home System
can be reached (Sector K, of the player with the lowest Turn Order card corresponds
although closer, is blocked to a roll of ”1”, the direction towards the next original
by a Ship). Home System in a clockwise direction corresponds to ”2”
and so on.144
Example: In a
three player game
Earth (white),
Romulus (green)
15.3.4 Step III: Far Away Target and Kronos (red)
If the closest Connected Target of the indicated type is further are arranged in
away along the shortest path than the current full Warp move of that clockwise
the Cube and the entire path is unblocked, the Cube will order. Earth
complete its entire Warp move towards the Target and end its belongs to the
move. player with the
lowest Turn Order
Example:The Cube at B card (1 in this
has been Activated with a case) and a ”5” is
”Move:Target Developed rolled to determine
System (3)” Command a random direction.
card. It will move to Sector This means the
S since the closest direction towards Romulus is randomly determined.
Connected Target of the
indicated type (K) is 15.3.5.3 Making a Connection
further away along the After placing a new Space Lane, a Cube will try to create a
shortest path than the Connection (by swinging [see rule 15.3.5.6] any Systems
current Warp Range of the (including the one it is in) and Space Lanes necessary) that
Cube. will allow it to move to and reach the closest matching
Target (not necessarily the Target that would have been
closest at the start of the move). If a Target is reached, the
move ends.
As in 15.3.3, if the Target is unreachable only because there is
already a Ship (including another Borg Cube) in the Target
15.3.5 Step IV: Cubes Exploring Sector, the closest Adjacent Sector will instead be
If an exploring Cube can place a new Space Lane from its considered the Target, provided the Cube can reach it.
current Sector it will do so. If it cannot, it will instead move to
If that is not possible the Cube will try to place a new
Step V [see rule 15.3.6] and be assigned a new Target.
System [see rule 15.3.5.4].

143 Althoughit may seem inconsistent not to allow the System the Cube is in to be swung, the reason is to limit the possible variations to where the new Lane can be placed.
Allowing more placement options will create a need for even more rules. Also note that the reason for pointing the Lane towards a randomly determined Home System is not
to make that System a Target, but rather just to use the fixed positions of those Systems to generate a random direction.

144Note that the intention here is to generate a random direction for the newly placed Space Lane; the generated Home System does not become the Target for the Cube.
Also note that if you are not playing on a symmetrically arranged map you may want to decide on some other method of generating the random direction. In a solo game the
random direction will always be towards the player’s Home System.

55 !55
 Example:The Cube at B 15.3.6 Step V: Reassign Target
has been Activated with
a ”Move:Target If the Cube has not been able to fulfil its move in any of the
Developed System (3)” previous Steps it will be reassigned a new Target:
Command card. Since Provided it has not already had the nearest player Ship as
no Target Sector can be Target, that will be its new Target. Start the movement
reached the Cube will process over with Step I [rule 15.3.2]
explore. If it has already had the nearest player Ship as Target, the
nearest Borg Cube will instead be its new Target. Start the
movement process over with Step I [rule 15.3.2]. If this
Target is reached, the other Borg Cube will automatically be
Activated under Collective Efficiency [rule 15.3.7]
If it has already had both nearest player Ship and nearest
Borg Cube as Target and is in a Sector where exploration is
impossible (a Space Lane or a System where no more Space
Lanes can be Attached), it will instead be reassigned its
Continued Example: It original Command Card Target, try to move to the nearest
generates a ”4” length System it can reach where exploration is possible and go to
Space Lane (L) and Step IV [rule 15.3.5]
points it in a randomly If the Cube has already failed each of the above alternatives,
determined direction (in it will end its movement where it is
this case it happens to Example:The Cube at B
be towards System K). has been Activated
The new Space Lane is with a ”Move:Target
long enough to create a Developed System (3)”
Connection to K that Command card. Since
enables the Cube to it can’t reach the
reach the Target at K. In Target at K, can’t
order to Connect to K, explore (because it is
the System at S has to in a Space Lane) and
be swung away. failed its first
reassigned Target
15.3.5.4 Placing New System (nearest player Ship) it
If, when placing a new Space Lane, the Cube is unable to is now reassigned the
make a Connection and reach a Target (including if all nearest Borg Cube as
potential Targets would be blocked or out of Warp Range), Target. It will move to
the Cube will try to place a new System (and may swing [see Sector A, end its move
rule 15.3.5.6] any Systems (including the one it is in) and and Activate Cube C under Collective Efficiency.
Space Lanes required to do that), move into it and end its
Example:The Cube at
move (drawing an Exploration card, if applicable [see rule
B has been Activated
15.3.5.5]).
with a ”Move:Target
If the System can’t be placed (because there is no room) the Developed System (3)”
Cube ends its move where it is like other Ships [rule 8.6.6]. Command card. Since
it is Unconnected to
15.3.5.5 The Borg and Exploration Cards any Target and can’t
When the Borg place a new Planetary System, reveal an explore (because it is
Exploration card. If the Borg discover a Civilization, develop in a Space Lane) it will
the System as normal [see rule 8.8.5]. Borg ignore Crisis, be reassigned a new
Discovery and Ally cards. Ally cards are discarded to the Target. It is
bottom of the Exploration deck, other ignored cards to the Unconnected to both
normal discard pile. Place “Remains in Play” Exploration player Ships and Borg
cards on the System.145 Cubes and will
therefore move to
15.3.5.6 Swinging Systems and Space Lanes Sector S in order to be
When a Cube is allowed to swing Systems and Space Lanes able to place a new Space Lane and start exploring.
[see rules 15.3.5.1, 15.3.5.3 and 15.3.5.4], it may only swing
15.3.7 Collective Efficiency
the Systems and Space Lanes necessary for the intended
placement or Connection. It may not swing Systems and Cubes unable to reach any other Target or explore will
Space Lanes further than the minimum amount required. 146 eventually Target the nearest Borg Cube.
In this case, if the moving Cube can reach a Sector Adjacent to
another Cube and after its Activation is complete, Activate the

145 This rule was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

146 Tip: In
order to determine how Space Lanes and Systems can be swung it can be useful to test possible placements and Attachments with unused Space Lanes and System
discs (without revealing the System). If it is hard to determine what constitutes the minimum amount of swinging, the player that Activated the Cube has final say.

!5 6 56
stationary Cube [see rule 15.2.2], even if it has already been “The Borg value efficiency, not redundancy.” - Seven
Activated one or more times this Borg turn. In either case, this
counts as an Activation of the new Cube and it is marked with of Nine
an Activation token (unless already so marked).

The Borg Movement flow-chart covers the rules for how Borg Cubes move. Be sure to check the relevant rule cases for details.

15.4 BORG ASSIMILATION

After resolving its Command, a Borg Cube will attempt to
Assimilate any Developed Planetary System the Cube Occupies.
This counts as a Planetary Invasion. The Borg are not trying to
wrest Control of the System, they are trying to peel apart the
world, stripping it of all technology. There will be no survivors.

After resolving its Command Card, a Borg Cube Occupying a

Developed System will Begin Assimilation.

57 !57
 15.4.1 The Borg in Invasions 15.4.3.1 Assimilated Players
When a Borg Cube Invades, it starts with 9 Attack Dice and Remove all the Assimilated player’s remaining Ships. For each
ignore Shields, just as it does in a Space Battle. The System being System they Control, remove their Control Node and place
Assimilated rolls a die for each of its Structures, as in a standard a number of Warp tokens on the System equal to the
Planetary Invasion. However, the Borg aren’t interested in number of Resource Nodes (up to a maximum of four)152 on
capturing any Structures intact: Hits the Borg score always the System, marking the System as a level 1, 2, 3 or 4
destroy Structures. 147 Independent Civilization. These Systems can be Invaded or
taken via Hegemony by the remaining players, or Assimilated
Borg Cubes use Shields [see rule 9.8.5] and Regenerate [see rule by the Borg.
9.8.3.5] lost dice during Invasion just like they do during Space
Battles. The defender has First Strike [see rule 9.8.1].148
If the Borg destroy all the Structures on a System (including any
Starbase), place a Borg Spire on the System; this is now a Borg
World. The System will gradually be absorbed during future Borg
Building Phases and its resources mined to expand the Borg
Collective.

15.4.1.1 Allocating Borg Hits to Structures

Borg inflicted Hits must first be allocated to Resource
Nodes. When all Resource Nodes have been destroyed, any
Starbase present can be Hit. A Control Node cannot be
destroyed until all other Structures have been destroyed. 149
When there are no Assimilated players, the defending player
(or the player that Activated the Cube in the case of All Trade Agreements originally belonging to an Assimilated
independent Civilizations) may decide how to allocate Hits player are discarded. Advancements the Assimilated player
between the Resource Nodes. When the Borg are controlled has taken from other Factions are returned to their
by an Assimilated player, that player may pick which Resource respective decks, while Advancements taken from the
Nodes were Hit. 150 Assimilated player by other Factions are kept.153
15.4.2 Assimilating Starbases Assimilated players don’t take Borg turns until the next
Game Round after they were Assimilated.154
Starbases are the pinnacle of technological sophistication, full of
exactly the sort of technology the Borg are seeking. When the 15.4.3.2 One with the Collective
Borg Assimilate a World with a Starbase, remove the Starbase
A player whose Home System is Assimilated by the Borg has
from the game and add a Borg Assimilation Node to every Borg
become one with the Collective. They will now contribute
Spire in play. Starbases removed in this way cannot ever be
their knowledge and expertise to the Collective. After a
rebuilt.
player is Assimilated by the Borg, they gain some measure of
15.4.3 Home System Assimilation control over the Borg’s turns [see rules 9.8.3.3, 15.2.1.2 and
15.4.1.1].
If a player’s Home System (even if no longer Controlled by the
original owner and even if the player has been Exterminated) 151 Assimilated players and the automated Borg are never
is Assimilated by the Borg, the associated Faction has been fully counted when determining ”the player to your right” on
absorbed into the Collective. The Borg Collective has Exploration cards (Confrontation, Cardassian Armistice Accords
Assimilated all their technology and tactics. Resistance would, at or Lost Colony for example). When only one unassimilated
this point, be futile. player remains, these cards are discarded when drawn by the
player and replaced by drawing new cards. The Borg just
discard such cards without effect.155

147 This rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

148 This rule was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

149 Although
clarified in an official email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019) the Unofficial Complete
Rulebook handles this partly differently.

150 This rule was partly clarified in an official email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Dec 14. 2017).

151 This rule was was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 17. 2019).

152 The presence of level 4 Independent Civilizations was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ
Ltd, Jul 16. 2019).

153 This rule was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

154 Although this was ruled slightly differently in an official email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018) the method presented here simplifies
the Assimilation process without altering the game significantly.

155 This
rule was partly clarified in an official email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018) and partly adjusted for the Unofficial Complete
Rulebook.

!5 8 58
 When Ally cards are ”passed to your left” (Ferengi Arms
Dealer, Ferengi Researcher and the Grand Nagus for example),
Assimilated players are ignored. If only one unassimilated
player remains he keeps those cards for the rest of the
game.156
Assimilated players remain Assimilated for the rest of the
game, even if their Home System is later reclaimed by
another player.157

15.4.3.3 Borg Turns

If more than one player is absorbed by the Borg, each
Assimilated player receives a different, random Turn Order
card and will take a full Borg turn when it is their go. With
multiple Assimilated players, the Borg will be taking multiple
turns every Game Round.

“You can’t outrun them, you can’t destroy them. If

you damage them, the essence of what they are
remains.They regenerate and keep coming.
Eventually you will weaken.Your reserves will be
gone.They are relentless!” - Q

15.5 BORG ESCALATION

As the game progresses the Borg will become more and more
aggressive. 158

15.5.1 Borg Attack - Command - Attack

After the first reshuffle of the Borg Command deck the
following rule takes effect:
Each Activated Borg Cube engages Adjacent or same Sector
player Ships in Space Battles both before and after executing a
Command card. On top of that, a Borg Cube which is executing
the Command::Aggression card ignores the Borg’s Slow &
Methodical rule [voiding players’ First Strike, see rule 9.8.1].

15.5.2 It Takes a Fleet

After the second reshuffle of the Borg Command deck the
following rule also takes effect:
Only Fleets block Borg Cubes’ movement. Individual Ships no
longer block Borg Cubes moving.

156 This
rule was clarified for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook and is in line with a similar official answer in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC,
Mar 27. 2018).

157 This rule was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019).

158 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook, but uses standard optional rules from the Borg expansion.

59 !59
 16. OPTIONAL RULES
The Unofficial Complete Rulebook is set up to provide an epic 16.1.3 Early Crises
game of Star Trek: Ascendancy. This means that all Advanced Rules
from the base game rulebook are always in play and that the Don’t discard Crisis cards during exploration in the first Game
Borg may have a presence. Most of the base game rules replaced Round in a Humble Beginnings [rule 5.8.1] game.160
by the Advanced Rules are presented below as options for This rule changes rule 5.8.1.6.
players who want a simpler or quicker game.
Generally you may use any, all or none of the optional rules in
16.1.4 Borg Attack - Command - Attack
your games. Some of them are mutually exclusive, however and This is the same as rule 15.5.1, put into play from the start of the
this has been noted where applicable. game.
Select which options are in play before the game starts. 16.1.5 It Takes a Fleet
This is the same as rule 15.5.2, put into play from the start of the
game.

16.1.6 Three Spires & You’re Out

If the Borg have three Spires on the table and need to place a
fourth, all players have lost.
This rule changes rule 2.3.5.
16.1.7 Epic Ascendancy
Play a Humble Beginnings [rule 5.8.1] game from zero to six
Ascendancy (instead of five).161
This rule changes rule 2.3.1.

16.2 QUICK GAME

The following optional rules make the game play a little faster.
These can be useful if you're short on time, but note that they
T’Pol considers the options may lessen the epic feel of the game and make it more random.

16.1 HARD GAME 16.2.1 Simultaneous First Turns

The following rules present an extra challenge. Some of them All players take their first turns simultaneously, building and
may also increase the randomness in the game. spending their Commands at the same time. Players may not
make First Contact during this turn. If everyone agrees, you may
16.1.1 Instant Delta Quadrant Connection also take your second turn simultaneously.
Don’t put any Borg Delay tokens on the Transwarp Hub at game This rule is most useful in a Humble Beginnings [rule 5.8.1] game.
start. The Hub will start generating Cubes on the first turn. 159
This rule changes rule 5.8.1.5. 16.2.2 Easier Ascension
Ascendancy tokens only cost four Culture tokens instead of five.
16.1.2 Closer Delta Quadrant Connection
This rule changes rules 2.3.1 and 3.7.1.
When setting up the game, the closer you place the Transwarp
Hub to players’ Home Systems, the sooner the Borg will make 16.2.3 Quicker Ascension
contact.
Allow victory with just four (or even three) Ascendancy.162
Placing it approximately 18” away from players’ Home Systems is
a good starting point, but this distance can be shortened to This rule changes rule 2.3.1.
increase the Borg threat.
16.2.4 Starting Project
This rule changes rule 5.6.1. During the Game Set Up, each player starts with one additional
Project in their Project Area. If you're a new player, draw the

159 This is the standard rule from the Borg Expansion.

160 This is the base game rule for Exploration cards.

161 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

162 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

!6 0 60
Project randomly. If you're more experienced, you can pick Research tokens on the discarded Projects to the Supply. Do not
which Project you start with. shuffle the Advancement decks again.
This rule changes rules 5.7.3 and 5.8.1.3, 5.8.2.3, 5.8.3.3, 5.8.4.3 This rule changes rule 14.1.
or 5.8.5.3.
16.3.4 Later Phenomena
16.2.5 Starting Advancements At setup, separate the Interstellar
During the Game Set Up, each player starts with one additional Phenomenon System discs from the
completed Advancement. Players can either draw the Planetary System discs. Next, set
Advancement randomly or look through their Advancement aside a stack of random Planetary
Deck and choose which Advancement they'd like. System discs equal to twice the
number of players, i.e. 6 Planetary
This rule changes rules 5.7.4 and 5.8.1.3, 5.8.2.3, 5.8.3.3, 5.8.4.3 Systems for a three-player game.
or 5.8.5.3. These are your starting Planetary
16.2.6 Wild Culture Systems. Shuffle the remaining
Planetary Systems with all the
Culture tokens may also be used as either Production or Phenomenons, then place the starting
Research tokens. Planetary Systems on top, creating a stack of all the System discs
with the starting Planetary Systems on top.166
16.3 EASY GAME
The following optional rules will make the game a little easier. This rule changes rule 5.4.1.
This can be useful with beginning players. 16.3.5 Exploration Mulligan
16.3.1 Unstable Peace Allow each player two mulligans of unwanted Exploration cards
Instead of enjoying Unrestricted Trade Routes [rule 13.2.1], you over the course of the game. When a mulligan is taken, the
must ask for permission to enter or move through a Sector unwanted Exploration card is discarded and another card is
which contains Rivals’ Ships with whom you are at Peace. They drawn to replace it.167
may agree or not, as they wish. If they don't agree, you must end 16.3.6 Open Turn Order
your Movement.163
Only use one Turn Order card per player plus one for the Borg.
Note: If a Rival denies you access to their Sector, you can't
reverse your course and take back the Movement used to get The Turn Order cards remain face-up throughout the Game
there. If you were traveling at Warp Speed, you must end your Round.168
Movement in the Sector previous to theirs.
This rule changes rule 6.1.3.1.
This rule changes rules 8.3 and 13.2.1.
This rule is recommended for large games where it may delay
16.3.2 Revoking Trade Agreements the game unnecessarily if Turn Order is hidden.

Easily made, easily broken: you can revoke any of your Trade 16.3.7 Random Turn Order
Agreements (unless they are Exhausted) at any time, for any
Instead of devoting Resources to choosing Turn Order cards in
reason. 164
the Initiative Stage, pass the Turn Order cards out randomly each
This rule changes rule 13.3. Game Round.169

16.3.3 Random Projects This rule changes rule 6.1.

Shuffle your Advancement deck at the start of the game. 16.4 SOLO AND TWO PLAYER GAMES
Instead of selecting which Projects to Launch, on your turn, you As noted in rule 2.1.1 the solo and two player games change the
may only Issue a Command to randomly draw two cards from main focus of Star Trek: Ascendancy and are therefore presented
your Advancement deck and add them to your Project Area. 165 as optional.

You may still not have more Projects than Research Nodes. 16.4.1 The Solo Game
When discarding Projects, place any discarded cards at the A solo game uses all rules as outlined in the Unofficial Complete
bottom of their respective Advancement decks and return any Rulebook with the following amendments:

163 This is the base game rule for how Peace is handled.

164 This is the base game rule for how Trade Agreements are revoked.

165 This is the base game rule for how to start Projects.

166 This is the base game rule for how to handle Phenomena.

167 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

168 This is the base game rule for Turn Order cards.

169 This
optional rule is really not recommended, since it will lessen the tactical choices available and may affect game balance. It is only included in the Unofficial Complete
Rulebook for completeness.

61 !61
 The game cannot be won through a Supremacy victory [see rule If you instead want to increase the challenge of the solo
2.3.2]. This rule changes rule 2.3. game, any of the Hard Game [rule 16.1] optional rules may
be used or you may remove one or more of the Delay
A solo game is always played with the Delta Quadrant Connection tokens [see rule 5.8.1.5].
[rule 5.3.4]. The No Borg [rule 5.3.1], Some Borg [rule 5.3.2] or
Delta Quadrant Probe [rule 5.3.3] rules are never used. 16.4.2 The Two Player Game
A solo game can be played from any Starting Level. A two player game uses all rules as outlined in the Unofficial
Complete Rulebook with the following amendment:
A solo game uses the Open Turn Order optional rule [rule 16.3.6].
The game cannot be won through a Supremacy victory [see rule
16.4.1.1 Removed Cards 2.3.2]. This rule changes rule 2.3.
Remove all Confrontation, the Cardassian Armistice Accords,
Dark Reflection, Diplomatic Summit, Lost Colony, ”Q”, Sargon A two player game is always played with the Delta Quadrant
Encounter,Talosian Benefactors,Vulcan Encounter and Connection [rule 5.3.4]. The No Borg [rule 5.3.1], Some Borg
[rule 5.3.2] or Delta Quadrant Probe [rule 5.3.3] rules are never
Xenophobic Uprising Exploration cards before the game
used.
starts. 170
A two player game uses the Open Turn Order optional rule [rule
Remove the Vulcan Advancement Agenda card.
16.3.6].
Remove the following Advancements (even from unplayed
A two player game may use any other set of optional rules that
Factions):171
is agreed upon.
Andorian: Aenar Dampening Field, Andorian Ale and Subspace
Intercepts. 16.5 OTHER OPTIONS
The other options change the game in various ways without
Cardassian: The Obsidian Order. affecting difficulty or play time significantly.
Federation: Bureau of Security and Multicultural Collaboration.
16.5.1 Multi Faction Space Battles
Ferengi: The Bigger the Smile,The Sharper The Knife, Hear All.
There will always be multiple defenders whenever a player
Trust Nothing and Whisper Your Way to Success.
attacks a Sector containing more than one other player’s Ships.
Klingon: Covert Saboteurs. All Factions present are Attacked, but the Attacker decides how
to allocate their Hit Rolls. All Ships in the Sector being Attacked
Romulan (unless you play the Romulans): Multi-Spectral must roll to Hit the Attacker (in the confusion of a incoming
Emitter Drones, Tal Shiar and Tal Shiar Monitoring Posts. attack, they're going to react). After every Combat Round, all
Vulcan: - combatants may choose to Retreat, as normal. The Hostile/
Peaceful status [see rule 13.2] doesn’t effect the situation. This
Variant Faction Advancements: The rules for each variant may result in Trade Agreements being cancelled for Betrayal [see
Faction will note which Advancements should be removed. rule 13.4].172
Faction Trade Agreements are not used. This rule changes rule 9.7.
16.4.1.2 Modified Cards 16.5.2 More Interesting Exploration
Any Allies drawn during exploration stay with you Vary the ratios in the Exploration deck by removing one or
throughout the game. more Virgin Worlds. If you want, you can make the deck more or
If you draw the Orion Trader Exploration card, you may draw less dangerous by removing a number of Discovery or Crisis
a random Advancement from any Faction not in play. cards respectively. Note that some Factions may benefit more
than others if you change the ratios dramatically.173
16.4.1.3 Balancing the Solo Game
16.5.3 More Space
Although the solo game will provide an interesting challenge
using any of the Starting Levels in rule 5.8, a player may want If you have a large player count on a limited Play Area you may
to adjust that challenge. wish to remove the 4-Sector Space Lanes to make better use of
the limited space. Roll a standard die - 1-3: place a 2-Sector Lane,
Using the Quick Game [rule 16.2] or Easy Game [rule 16.3] 4-6: place a 3-Sector Lane.174
optional rules may both shorten the game and make it a
little easier. 16.5.4 Limited Ships & Control Nodes
Another simple way of decreasing the Borg threat is to add Each player has a limited number of Ships and Control Nodes
one or more Delay tokens [see rule 5.8.1.5] to the Transwarp they can have on the map at a time. Make sure all players have
Hub. the same amounts.

170 This was partly clarified in an official email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Mar 27. 2018).

171 Thisrule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook and diverts from an official clarification given in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer
Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019).

172 This is the official rule for multiple defenders as outlined in an email (Email answer from Peter Przekop, Gale Force Nine, LLC, Nov 27. 2017).

173 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook, but is a fairly common house rule.

174 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook.

!62 62
The Borg are limited to a maximum of five Borg Cubes. Control of another System or turn the invaded System into
an Independent Civilization.183
This changes rules 3.6.1 and 3.6.3.
16.5.4.1 Base Game Limit
Limit the Ships and Control Nodes available to each Faction
to 30 Ships and 10 Control Nodes.175

16.5.4.2 Escalation Limit

For every set of Escalation packs you add to all Factions, add
15 Ships and 5 Control Nodes to the limit.

16.5.4.3 Hoarding
Andorians and Orions may not hoard Rival Ships. Keep track
of captured Ships on a note pad and return the Ship models
to the Reserves of their owners.176

16.5.4.4 Borg Building Phase

If there are already five Cubes in play, no new Cubes are
built.
If, while adding Cubes to Spires, a Spire is full, with three
Nodes, and there are already five Cubes in play, leave the
Assimilation Nodes in place. Once a Borg Cube is destroyed,
it will then be available to place on the Spire in a future Borg
Building Phase.
If there are not enough Cubes to place on top of all Spires
capable of producing one, the Assimilated player with the
lowest Turn Order card selects which Spires get Cubes (if
there are no Assimilated players, the player with the lowest
Turn Order card gets to select).177

16.5.4.5 Decommissioning Ships

On your turn, if all your Ships are in play, you may choose to
decommission Ships (but you may not decommission Ships in
Fleets at Warp) 178 in order to build new Ships. 179

16.5.4.6 Giving Up Control

On your turn, if all your Control Nodes are in play, you may
choose to give up Control of one of your Systems in order
to Colonise, Invade or Hegemonize a different System. 180 If
you do, place a number of Warp tokens on the System equal
to the number of Resource Nodes (up to a maximum of
four), marking the System as a level 1, 2, 3 or 4 181
Independent Civilization.182
After a Successful Invasion, if all of the Attacker’s Control
Nodes are already in use the Attacker may either give up

175 This is the base game rule for available Ships and Control Nodes.

176 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to balance the game.

177 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to fill a gap.

178 This rule was invented for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook to cover a gap.

179 This was officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23277249#23277249).

180 This was partly officially clarified on BoardGameGeek (https://boardgamegeek.com/article/23277249#23277249).

181 The presence of level 4 Independent Civilizations was officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ
Ltd, Jul 16. 2019).

182 Althoughofficially ruled differently in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019), this rule was
changed for the Unofficial Complete Rulebook in order to provide consistency with earlier official rulings.

183 Although officially clarified in an email (Email answer from Gareth Richards, Customer Services Team, Battlefront Miniatures NZ Ltd, Jul 16. 2019), this rule was changed for
the Unofficial Complete Rulebook in order to provide consistency with earlier official rulings.

63 !63
 CREDITS
The collected credits for the original game and its expansions
and supplements:
Game Design
Sean Sweigart
Aaron Dill
Graphic Design
Katie Dillon
Approvals Coordinator
Peter Przekop
Design Director
John Kovaleski
Producers
Peter Simunovich
John-Paul Brisigotti
3D Design
Charles Woods

Acknowledgements
John Van Citters, Marian Cordry,Yasmin Elachi,Veronica Hart,
Brian Lady, Keith Lowenadler, Ben Stern
Special thanks to all the Battlefront staff who provided feedback
and playtesting.
Playtesters
James Abele, Ralph Boester, Adam Brown, Jason Buyaki, Jenna
Choszczyk, Davon Collins, Jason Delaney, Ben Dussault, Doug
Epperson, Justin Evans, Christopher Field, Patrick Gribble, Mark
Honeycutt, Sally Honeycutt, Noel Honore, Tom Hrabusicky, Jack
Johnson, Alexander Kaps, Cory Kemp, Leonard Landrey, Stuart
Lapwood, Pat “Chopper” Lewis, Kyle Linder, Jeff Lindsay, Greg
Lockton, Stephanie Machado Reggeti, James Midkiff, Matt Moffett,
Greg Morris, Gary Neumann, Phil Petry, Patrick Prominski,
Matthew Rall, Juan Rodriguez Vega, Richard Roe, Gabriel Rosauro,
Rob Sadler, Alex Sasenbury, Rob Seabrook, Steve Shipe, Lucas
Shubert, Conor Sipe, Benjamin Torell, Dean Webb, Joseph Wen,
Lizzie Willick, Les Whittaker, William Yowell
Contact Info / Web Info
STARTREK.GF9GAMES.COM
TM & © 2017-2018 CBS Studios Inc. STAR TREK and related
marks and logos are trademarks of CBS Studios Inc. All Rights
Reserved.

!6 4 64
65 !65
!6 6 66
“A balance of power — the trickiest, most difficult, dirtiest game of them all, but the only one that preserves
both sides.”

67 !67
 The Carina Nebula (catalogued as NGC 3372; also
known as the Grand Nebula, Great Nebula in Carina,
or Eta Carinae Nebula) is a large, complex area of
bright and dark nebulosity in the constellation Carina,
and is located in the Carina–Sagittarius Arm. The
nebula lies at an estimated distance between 6,500
and 10,000 light-years from Earth.
- Wikipedia

!6 8 68