A game of Helios Expanse places you in control of an interstellar civilization, competing for galactic supremacy against its rivals. You colonize habitable planets, research technologies, and build a military with which to wage war. The civilization that colonizes the most planets emerges victorious and rules the galaxy.
Helios Expanse was inspired by a vision to develop a board game that provided a 4X play experience in under sixty minutes, and the play experience was crafted to be as satisfying for the traditional 4X gamer as it is for the casual gamer. This vision drove a specific set of design goals that would serve as the foundation for the game design. First and foremost, the game was created around the goal of being teachable in less than five minutes. This specific goal drove a streamlined decision tree resulting in simple, but tactical player choices turn to turn. An emphasis was placed on player interaction to preserve the game play tension typically associated with a 4X play experience. Ultimately, this combination of foundational design goals (along with a few others) led to an action/movement programming game mechanism that created just the right amount of tension turn-to-turn. At its core, Helios Expanse is a highly interactive game with simple, but tactical decisions and cohesive, working mechanisms.
Contents:
- 1 Double-sided Board
- 105 Cards
- 50 Cubes
- 1 Rulebook
- 5 Spaceship Standees
- 4 Tokens - Asteroid Hexes
- 17 Tracker Discs
X marks the spot as you and other pirate captains piece together scraps of maps, sending minions stumbling around the island - leading some to traps and others to treasure.
But beware, other captains’ instructions may work against you. Yargh! Are you a clever captain who can turn Bad Maps into Good Fortune?
Gameplay:
Bad Maps is a game of pirate programming and mixed up maps for 3 to 5 players that plays in about 30 minutes.
Over the course of 2 rounds, players lay out pieces of treasure maps, collectively forming instructions for minions to follow.
Each round has some map cards placed face up, and others face down -- hiding the card’s instruction, but showing its type. Minions follow these instructions, stumbling their way along as they collide and fall into pits.
Players score victory points each round based on which minions are closest, or sometimes furthest, from the treasure.
After the first round, Minions dig pits where they ended, pull up their bootstraps, and start all over again. During the second round, the stakes are higher and the island is more treacherous.
In the end, the captain who pieces together the best treasure maps will be victorious in Bad Maps!