rules | Assault on Luna

The rules will be made availables as a PDF document suitable for printing once they've been thoroughly proofed.

Table of Contents

1 - Components
   1.A - List of Game Components
   1.B - Card Analysis
2 - Set-Up
3 - Gameplay
   3.A - The Turn
      3.A.i - The Draw Phase
      3.A.ii - The Action Phase
      3.A.iii - The End-of-Turn Phase
   3.B - General Rules
   3.C - Combat – Killing, Damaging, Discarding & Suppressing
   3.D - Wounds
   3.E - Ammunition [AMN]
   3.F - Weapon & Vehicle Limits
   3.G - Saving CIVILIANS
   3.H - Difficulty Adjustment & Variants

4 - Changes to the Original Rules

1 - Components

1.A - List of Game Components

1 stat tracking card.

4 character ID cards (light blue frame).

14 enemy cards (purple). These cards represent the forces of the Dark Legion.

40 player cards. Maneuvers are red, weapons are dark yellow, vehicles are green and the rest are teal.

1 black d20 wave die, 1 green d10 saved die and 1 red d10 suppression die.

10 two-sided damage markers. Bashing damage on the left, lethal on the right.

The rules and missions are accessed through this website, as are future expansions and sources for delving deeper into the game.

1.B - Card Analysis

In the rules and missions, individual cards are reffered to by the card name in all caps (e.g. GEHENNA PUKER).

Two of the sections indicated above, the illustration and the flavor text, have no impact on gameplay. Neither does the affiliation symbol, although that might change in a future expansion.

The rules text consists of card type in caps (e.g. WEAPON or MANEUVER) followed by the effect.

Enemy cards have no retrieve cost, instead they have their level printed in the top left corner.

2 - Set-Up

1) Choose a mission and read the briefing. If the missions are played in sequence the difficulty gradually escalates and a story unfolds. If this is your first time, start with the first mission. The set-up instructions below are sometimes modified by the mission-briefings.

2) Chose a character ID card and put the others back in the box. Place the chosen character ID card in the lower left side of the playing surface. Place the stat tracking card below. Set the green save die and the red suppression die to 0 on the respective slots on the stat tracking card. Set the wave die to the number specified in the mission briefing and place it on the stat tracking card as well.

3) Construct your starting draw deck by taking the cards listed on the character ID card. Remember to include a HERETICS from the Dark Legion pile (unless the mission briefing states otherwise). Shuffle your draw deck and place it face down above your character ID card.

4) Arrange the 14 enemy cards in a face-up pile, level 4 cards on the bottom, then 3, then 2 and level 1 on top.. Only pay attention to the level; the names of the different enemy cards are irrelevant to basic gameplay. When playing the game, make sure that the Dark Legion pile is always sorted in this way. Whenever you're instructed to take an enemy card, take it from the top of the Dark Legion pile unless instructed otherwise. Place the Dark legion pile above the draw deck,

5) To the right of the character ID card and draw deck is the play area. This is where your player cards are placed during the game. Each character starts the game with a specific card in play. Check your character ID card and place the indicated card sideways (unprepared) in the play area.

6) The remaining player cards are shuffled and placed face down above the Dark Legion Pile, forming the area deck.

To the left of the draw deck is the discard pile. To the left of the area deck is the destroyed pile. They are both empty at the start of the game.
To the right of the Dark Legion pile is the enemy area.
Above the enemy area is the explored area.
Keep the damage markers within reach. You'll need them!

3 - Gameplay

The game is played in turns until at the end of a turn, you have completed the mission goal and won, or died or failed the mission.

3.A - The Turn

A turn has three phases: the draw phase, the action phase, and the end-of-turn phase.

3.A.i - The Draw Phase

In the draw phase, first draw 5 cards to your hand from the draw deck, then place any enemy cards drawn in the enemy area. The enemies need to be dealt with during the action phase (see 3.A.ii).

If there are less than 5 cards to draw in your deck, draw the cards that are left. Then you need to reshuffle:

Increase the wave number by one on the wave die.
Add enemy cards equal to the new wave number from the top of the Dark Legion pile to the discard pile.
Shuffle the discard pile and place it face down as a new draw deck.
Draw cards until you have 5 cards in hand.

If there aren't enough enemy cards to add during reshuffle, you add as many as you can and destroy any 2 non-enemy cards from the discard pile before reshuffling.

3.A.ii - The Action Phase

Actions can be taken any number of times and in any order (the actions are explained below). The cards in your hand can either be played, or discarded without effect to pay for other actions.

The action phase ends when all enemies remaining in play have attacked, you have no cards left in hand, and you don't wish to take any further actions.

There are eight different actions to chose from:

Play a maneuver card (red) from your hand: Follow the rules text on the card and place the card in the discard pile.
Play a non-maneuver card (with a prepare-arrow on the bottom left) from your hand: Place the card sideways in your play area. It cannot be used until it has been prepared (action 5).
Explore: Discard 1 card from your hand to place the top card from the area deck face up on the table in the explored area. There can be any number of explored cards in play.
Retrieve: Retrieve a card from the explored area by discarding a number of cards equal to its retrieve cost (the retrieve cost is shown in the upper left corner of the card). Maneuver cards are retrieved directly to the discard pile without effect. Non-maneuver cards (with a prepare-arrow on the bottom left) are retrieved to your play area, unprepared (placed sideways).
Prepare: Prepare one of your unprepared cards (turn a sideways card upright) by discarding the number of cards indicated by the number inside the prepare-arrow. A few cards require you to discard a specific card from your hand (for an example, see the card "FIRST AID FACILITY" below). Once prepared, a card can be used (action 6). Unless you're specifically instructed to, you cannot "un-prepare" a card. Regarding the preparation of weapon cards, see 3.E - Ammunition.
Use: use a prepared card's effect by following the text on it. If a card is not discarded or destroyed by using it, or limited to once/turn, you can use the card several times during the turn (as long as you can pay any costs stated on the card). When using a card, it does not become unprepared.
Note the difference between 'discard to...' (the card itself is discarded to pay for the effect) and 'discard a card to...' (discard any card from your hand to pay for the effect).
Enemy Attack: Enemies attack once per turn. If you haven't gotten rid of them somehow already, for example by using a weapon, you will have to take this action sooner or later. When you take this action, an enemy of your choice in the enemy area attacks you, wounding you while you inflict 1 lethal damage on them. See more under 3.C - Combat – Killing, Damaging, Discarding & Suppressing and 3.D - Wounds.
Suppress: Remove X points from the suppression total to return enemies with a combined level value of X from the discard pile to the Dark Legion pile. See more under 3.C - Combat – Killing, Damaging, Discarding & Suppressing.

Some cards may react to actions during the game. For example: "FIRST AID FACILITY" allows you to heal one wound whenever you play EVACUATION. This is not an action but a reaction to something,.

Example: You retrieve "FIRST AID FACILITY" (action 4) by discarding 2 cards from your hand, and prepare it (action 5) by discarding a CIVILIAN from hand. Then you let an enemy attack you (action 7), taking a wound in the leg and giving the enemy 1 lethal damage. After that, you play EVACUATION (action 1) and save a previously prepared CIVILIAN, triggering the FIRST AID FACILITY (reaction) healing your wounded leg.

3.A.iii - The End-of-Turn Phase

When all enemies still in play have attacked, and you don't wish to take any further actions, discard your hand and enter the end-of-turn phase. In this phase one of two things happen:

Check if you've fullfilled the mission objective. If so, you win the game! If not:
set the suppression total to 0 on the red suppression die and start a new turn.

3.B - General Rules

All numbers in card effects should be understood as "up to" this number, but...
Cards may not be used for no effect.

Example: VIOLATOR SWORD reads "[d]iscard to inflict 6 lethal damage." It may be used to inflict less than 6 lethal damage, but you may not use it if there are no enemies in play, and you can't use it on an enemy without dealing at least 1 lethal damage.

Scenario instructions override rules.
Card rules text overrides rules.
Your character counts as a prepared person, but it does not count as a prepared card in instances when mission goals or card texts do not specify persons. Thus, your character counts towards the damage dealt by CROSSFIRE or towards the goal of Chapter 3, Mission 2, but not towards the goal of Chapter 1, Mission 1.
Damage from one weapon can be distributed however you choose among two or more enemies (as long as the weapon does two or more damage).

3.C - Combat – Killing, Damaging, Discarding & Suppressing

Killing & Damaging

Remember to keep the Dark Legion pile sorted at all times, level 4 cards on the bottom, then 3, then two and level 1 on top.
Each enemy card has a level of 4 or lower.
If the enemy card has been dealt lethal damage equal to or greater than its level, the card is returned to the Dark Legion pile.
If the enemy card has been dealt bashing damage equal to or greater than its level, the card is put in the discard pile.
If the enemy card has been dealt a combination of bashing and lethal damage equal to or greater than its level, the card is put in the discard pile.
Keep track of the damage you have inflicted on your enemies using damage markers. One side represents bashing damage, and one side represents lethal damage.
If a card states that an enemy card is killed, the enemy card is returned to the Dark Legion pile.
To be able to end the turn, all enemies still in play must have attacked you that turn (i.e. you must have taken the enemy attack action once per enemy still in play).

Discarding Enemies

If a card states that an enemy card is discarded, the enemy card is placed in the discard pile.

Suppression

The suppression total represents your current capacity to keep the enemy at bay using cover fire, diversion and other tactical means.
Keep track of the suppression total using the red suppression die.
If there are enemies in the discard pile, it means that you're no longer directly engaged with them. The suppress action (action 6) is used to shake these enemies off completely, returning them to the Dark Legion pile.
Suppression points do not carry over from one turn to the next; during the end-of-turn phase the total is set to 0.

3.D - Wounds

When you are wounded, place a damage marker on an empty wound space on the stat tracking card (there are three spaces for wounds all marked in red – arm, leg and head). All wounds inflicted on you by the Dark Legion are lethal. If you take a wound to the head, you die immediately and the mission is lost.

If your arm is wounded, you can only have 1 prepared weapon in play, instead of 2 (see 3.F - Weapon & Vehicle Limits).
If your leg is wounded, you can't play the FALLBACK maneuvre card (you may still discard it as payment, however).
Effects that heal wounds allow you to remove wound markers from the stat tracking card.

3.E - Ammunition [AMN]

On cards ammunition is referred to by the ammunition symbol, a cartridge. In the rules the acronym [AMN] is used.

Some weapons use ammunition. Weapons are loaded by placing any card card(s) from your hand underneath the weapon card. The weapon itself specifies when [AMN] is added and how it is used. When an ammunition card leaves its weapon, it stops being ammunition. If a weapon with ammunition is discarded or destroyed, place its ammunition cards in the discard pile.

If ammunition is part of the prepare cost of a weapon, it means that you need to add ammunition from your hand to prepare it, and it is usually the only time you may add ammunition to that weapon. A prepare cost of X [AMN] means that you place any number of cards (even 0) from your hand underneath the weapon card to prepare the weapon.

Some weapons (like the LMG MK. XXIII "DESTROYER") may become useless once their ammunition is spent, but note that the card AMMO! may be added as ammunition to a prepared firearm via its own effect. The firepower of LMG MK XXIII and AMMO! circumventing its drawback makes this a useful card combo.

3.F - Weapon & Vehicle Limits

At most you can have 2 prepared weapons in play. If your arm is wounded, however, you can only have 1. If you ever have more than allowed (by preparing an additional weapon, or getting your arm wounded when you have 2 prepared weapons in play), you must immediately destroy one of your prepared weapons to get down to the limit, placing it in the destroyed pile.

You can never have more than 1 prepared vehicle in play.

You may have any number of unprepared (sideways) weapons and vehicles in play.

3.G - Saving CIVILIANS

Saving CIVILIANS may help you complete your mission goal, but it may also help you get new resources.

To save a CIVILIAN, you need to play it and then prepare it by discarding another card from your hand. When you have prepared CIVILIANS in play, you can play the EVACUATION maneuver to save 1 or more of your CIVILIANS; the CIVILIANS are discarded (along with the EVACUATION maneuver) and you can now choose for each saved CIVILIAN to either

count it as saved by increasing the number on the save die by 1, or
retrieve 1 card for free from the top of the area deck.

Note that you can only do one of the two, not both.

The option of retrieving a card for free from the area deck means that saving CIVILIANS can be useful even in missions that don't require you to save any CIVILIANS to win. Also, sometimes it can be useful to retrieve a card for free even if you do need to save more CIVILIANS; you might get the gear you need to survive.

3.H - Difficulty Adjustment & Variants

The first three missions (Chapter 1) are a little easier than the rest.

If you want to modify difficulty for any mission, you may decrease or increase the starting wave by one to make the mission easier or harder.

Another way of making it a little harder is to add an extra HERETICS to the draw deck during set-up.

To make it harder still, remove one or more of the HERETICS from the Dark Legion pile while setting up. That means you'll get to the tougher enemies sooner.

4 - Changes to the Original Rules

The majority of the changes made when turning After the Virus (AtV) into Assault on Luna (AoL) concern wording rather than mechanics. The zombie pile has become the Dark Legion pile, Survivors are instead CIVILIANS, striking weapons are melee weapons and Medical Equipment is Cartel Inventory Equipment. When it comes to combat, however, there has been some mechanical changes.

In the original After the Virus rules you can't end the turn with enemies in play. Instead, if you can't get rid of them by other means, you have to keep taking the enemy attack action until you or they are dead. In Assault of Luna this rule has been changed for a number of reasons:

to move focus from challenge to campaign play by improving your odds a little;
to make combat decisions more of a tactical puzzle;
to give combat decisions more of a long term effect;
to make the enemies feel a little more intelligent than hungry zombies;
to make the enemy level the strength of an individual enemy unit rather than the number of enemies represented by the card.

The Pistol card in AtV has the text "kill 1 zombie" while in AoL the equivalent card, P60 "PUNISHER", "inflict[s] 1 lethal damage." Changes like this have been made to all weapons. Enemy cards in AoL sometimes stay in play for a few turns and wound markers have to be used on the enemies and not just to track player wounds.

In the original game zombies are dealt with either by killing them, which has been replaced by inflicting lethal damage in AoL, or by discarding them. In AtV discarding an enemy means to temporarilly get rid of it, for example by running away. To turn discarded zombies into a state that the game remembers for several turns, cards that "discard 1 zombie" instead "inflict 1 bashing damage" and enemies that have been dealt bashing damage equal to their level are discarded, just like you have to discard two zombies in AtV to put a 2-zombie card in the discard pile.

Since "kill 1 zombie" has been replaced by "inflict 1 lethal damage" most cards that kill zombies in the discard pile had to be reworded as well. Keeping track of wounds on cards in the discard pile would be highly impractical. To solve this problem suppression was introduced, another change that contributes to the thematic feel of AoL at the cost of slightly denser rules.

Lastly, AoL forgoes the multiplayer rules of AtV alltogether. AtV is an excellent solo game, and solo gaming is the goal of AoL. But who knows what the future holds?