Race for the galaxy

Race for the galaxy is a four player card game published by Rio Grande Games.

The goal of the game is to build a space imperium and the player with most victory points wins.

There's also a computer version of the game, which saves you from packing up the game after playing.

Turn sequence

There are five phases in turn:

• Explore
• Develop
• Settle
• Consume
• Produce

At the beginning of turn, every player selects one of these phases and selections are revealed simultaneously. Only selected phases will be played. Player who selected a phase gets a small bonus.

Explore

• draw two cards and keep one
• bonus: draw five cards and keep one
• bonus: draw one additional card and keep one additional card

Develop

• place development card in play and discard cards from your hand to cover the cost
• bonus: -1 to cost

Settle

• place a planet card in play and discard cards from your hand to cover the cost
• except military planets, which you'll conquer with your military score
• if it's a windfall world, produce on it

Consume:

• use consume powers on cards to turn good into victory points
• you have to keep consuming until you can't anymore
• bonus: trade one goods card for 2-5 cards
• bonus: 2xVPs gain twice the victory points

Produce:

• produce on regular planets
• bonus: produce on windfall planet

repeat until:

• one empire is 12 cards big
• VP tokes run out

score:

• points for cards on the table
• cards in the hand (+1 for each)
• VPs earned

special rules

• cards on the table
• draw extra cards
• trade goods on planets
• add up your military score
• settle planets for cheaper
• have bigger empire limit
• produce on a windfall planet after discarding a card
• etc.

Examples of cards

Star nomad raiders

• military 2 planet, worth 1 vp
• +1 to military
• +2 cards when trading goods

Terraforming robots

• development 3, worth 2 vp
• draw 1 card after placing a world
• discard 1 rare elements good to gain 1 card and 1 vp

Public works

• development 1, worth 1 vp
• draw 1 card after placing a development
• discard 1 good to gain 1 vp

Expansions

All expansions add new cards.

The gathering storm

• goals (first and most)
• extra player

Rebel vs. Imperium

• solo play
• take over (conquer other player's worlds)
• extra player

Brink of War

- prestige

• counts as VP in the end
• can be used to perform actions

• requires two previous expansions

Alien Artifacts

• incompatible with previous expansions
• 49 cards representing alien orb players can explore
• balance between expanding and exploring

Verdict

• fun and quick game
• every player concentrates on their own imperium
• keep an eye what opponent is doing (trading / military)
• cards are dense with information

Example

• I recorded myself playing against computer: [Race for the galaxy - three medium AIs](https://diode.zone/w/rw8z8pqeqAauENSufmgkjV).
• for some reason, you can't follow me outside of the instance

In closing

- questions, comments, feedback?

• Tuula@mastodon.art
• or even better, record your own episode