Concise rules for first-time players. If something isn’t covered here, see comprehensive rules at Comprehensive Rules https://youtu.be/z7wJTgo8KJo

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The Main Objective

In Echoes of Astra, you are fighting to control the three combat zones between you and your opponent(s). Move units, play tactics, equip items, and modify the battlefield to assert your influence over others. Victory Conditions

• Reach 20 Victory Points before your opponent(s).

Deck Out Condition

• If you no longer have any cards in your deck and are unable to draw during your Draw Phase, opponents gain 3 Victory Points.

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Setup and Materials

Make sure you have a deck with at least 50 cards for each player, 3 combat zone indicators (any object can be used as combat zone indicators), and a dice or coin.

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Battlefield Layout

Combat zones are where are all the fighting takes place! Each combat zone can contain up to 1 unit. When a unit tries to move into an occupied zone, combat occurs.

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Card Types

• Unit cards enter the staging area exhausted.
• Item - Equipment type cards must be attached to Units in your staging area.
• Territory cards are played directly on a combat zone and remain there.
  • Territories can be played face down at no cost. You may flip it face up on a later turn for its supply cost, either during your main phase or as a counter (see combat phase).
  • Each combat zone can contain only 1 Territory from each player. Playing another will replace your existing Territory card.
• Tactic cards have a one-time effect, and are sent to your graveyard after that effect is resolved.

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Game Setup

1. Place Zones: Arrange the 3 combat zones in a straight line between the players.
2. Determine First Player: Flip a coin or roll a die to randomly choose a player. They choose to go first or second.
3. Shuffle Decks: Each player shuffles their deck and draws a starting hand of 6 cards.
   1. Mulligan: Each player may return their starting hand to the deck, shuffle, and draw 6 cards. Do this only once per game.
4. Starting Supply: Before the game begins, both players start with 1 supply. Place 1 card from your hand into the supply area facedown, then draw 1 replacement card.
5. Begin the Game: Player 1 proceeds with turn one, skipping their first draw phase.

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Turn Structure

Each turn, a player proceeds through the following phases.

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Ready, Start, Draw Phases:

• READY: Turn all unit and supply cards on your side of the board upright to ready them. Sideways cards are exhausted.
• START: Trigger and resolve “start of your turn” effects.
• DRAW: Draw a card. If you play first, skip this on your first turn.

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Main Phase (Perform these in any order):

EXTEND SUPPLY: Place 1 card face-down into your supply area, then draw a replacement card. You may only extend supply once per turn. Newly played supply is always ready. PLAY CARDS: You may play as many cards as you want, as long as you can pay the costs and meet all requirements. TAKE UNIT ACTIONS: Attack a Zone / Activate Ability / Retreat (from combat zone)

• A ready unit can move between the staging area and combat zones during the main phase. Moving into a combat zone is considered “attacking”.
  • When moving into a combat zone, a Combat Phase begins.
  • If a combat zone is unoccupied**, your unit will not deal combat damage and does not exhaust.**
  • A player cannot move a unit into a combat zone they already control.
  • A ready unit can retreat from a combat zone, but they must exhaust.

Exhausted units do not deal damage! So attack them when they are vulnerable.

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Combat Phase

→ Combat begins when a unit attacks any combat zone.

1. Resolve “On Defend” and “On Attack” abilities on involved units (in that order).
2. Before damage is dealt, the defending player may play a counter card or activate a unit ability. This begins a Counter Stack*,* in which both players are allowed to respond to each other with counter cards or activatable unit abilities. What qualifies as a Counter response? Read about the details here.
3. If there is no defender or attacker left in the zone, then skip to Battle result.
4. Ready Units deal damage to each other simultaneously. Note that exhausted units cannot retaliate or deal damage. Keep track of damage on each unit until the end of the turn.
5. A unit is destroyed and sent to graveyard when its health reaches 0.

→ Battle result:

• If only the attacking unit survives, it now controls the zone.
• If there is a defender and both units survive, return the attacking unit to where it came from.
• Exhaust all units that attempted to deal combat damage (from step 4 above).

→ Exit combat and return to Main Phase.

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End Phase:

Enter this phase once you are done with your Main Phase.

• Score Victory Points equal to the combined Influence of each friendly unit occupying a combat zone.
  • Resolve any “On Score” abilities of units that have reached this step.
• Trigger any of your “Turn End” abilities from units on the battlefield.
• Remove all damage from all units.
• Resolve any passive or lingering effects that say “at the end of your turn”.
• Hand Limit: If you have more than 10 cards in your hand, discard down to 10.
• Win Condition: If the player’s total V_ictory Points_ is at least 20, they win the game.

After the End Phase, the next player takes their turn starting from the Ready Phase. *See the Comprehensive Rules if you run into a more specific interaction that isn’t covered here!