ISS Vanguard reference sheet

Overview

• Cooperative campaign game for 1–4 players; 20–60 hours total [p.9 — Campaign]
• Two alternating phases: Planetary Exploration (Away Team on a planet) and Ship Management (upgrade ship, research, travel) [p.6 — Game Structure]
• Goal: solve the mystery of the ancient star map embedded in human DNA [p.6 — Introduction]
• Four Sections: Engineering, Recon, Science, Security — each player controls 1+ Sections [p.8 — Number of Players]
• Progress is saved in the Ship Book between sessions [p.6 — Game Structure]

Setup

• Prepare Card Trays A (Planetary Exploration) and B (Ship Management) with dividers and cards in order [p.6 — Before Your First Game]
• Prepare Ship Book: insert cardholder pages in order; slot starting cards (Objective O01, Tech Level 1, Medium Morale, Research Project R04, Production Projects C01/C02/C03/C06, Space Ranger Lander) [p.7–8 — Prepare the Ship Book]
• Each player takes Crew boards for their Section(s); 1 player = 4 Sections, 2 players = 2 each, 3 players = 1/1/2, 4 players = 1 each [p.8 — Number of Players]
• Draw starting Crewmembers: 3 random from Recruits per Section, pick 2; one on Crew board, one to Resting Crew [p.28 — Draw Initial Crewmembers]
• Place Section dice on Crew boards per the Section images; take exactly the dice shown [p.28 — Prepare Section Dice]
• Choose Away Team (min. 2 Crewmembers from different Sections); non-Away Team Sections go to Resting Crew [p.28 — Choose the Away Team]
• Open Planetopedia to starting planet; place Rank-Up card, Mission card, Unique Discovery face-down, Event deck; place minis in starting Sectors; give Start token to Recon player [p.28 — Set Up the Planet Board]

Turn structure

Each Crewmember's turn (starting with Start token holder, then clockwise):

1. Actions Step — Perform 2 Actions (Special Action limited to once per turn) [p.29 — Planetary Exploration Rules]
2. End of Turn — Flip Turn token to 'Turn Ended'; draw and resolve 1 Event card [p.29 — End of Turn]

When all Turn tokens show 'Turn Ended': round ends. Flip all tokens back to 'Turn Available.' Start token holder passes it to any Crewmember. [p.29 — Planetary Exploration Rules]

Actions

• Using Equipment/Crew board effects does NOT count as an Action unless the card says so [p.29]
• Exertion (Sacrifice 1 die → Refresh 5 dice) is NOT an Action; usable any time [p.31]

Combat

Threats (creatures/phenomena on the Planet board):

• Threat card shows a Time Track; when a Time token progresses onto a space, resolve the effect printed above it [p.40 — Threats]
• Crewmembers in the same Sector as a Threat standee may perform the Special Action on the Threat card to neutralize it [p.40]
• Threats ignore the 'No Movement' icon when moving but only move to connected Sectors [p.40]

Danger Dice (rolled during Travel or Special Actions):

• Roll the Danger die; look up the result on the Danger die Reference card using the letter shown in the icon [p.39]
• Resolved in Step 6 of a Dice Check, after modification steps [p.33]

End of game

Planetary Exploration ends when:

• A Crewmember in the Lander Sector performs Lift-Off (all must agree) → resolve Lift-Off Log [p.41]
• Any Crewmember with 3 Injuries would gain a 4th → Emergency Evac; all non-Unique Discoveries lost; Exploration = failure [p.41]
• A Log or Mission card instructs it [p.41]

Lifting off without all Crewmembers in the Lander Sector kills the abandoned Crewmembers [p.30]

After Planetary Exploration → perform Ship Management via the Ship Book to save progress and continue the campaign [p.41]

Glossary

• Away Team: Crewmembers currently on the Planet board [p.44]
• Charges: Markers on Crew board spent to use a Crewmember's Skill [p.44]
• Convert Ability: Treat Basic results of one die color as another icon when Spending that die [p.44]
• Dice Check: Test using Section dice following the 10-step procedure on the Reference card [p.31, 44]
• Dice Combination: Spend matching dice from Roll Pool during Step 5 to activate a Section card or Global Condition effect [p.32, 44]
• Exertion: Sacrifice 1 die to Refresh 5 dice; if ≤3 dice total, gain 'Exhausted' Injury instead [p.31, 44]
• Lander Sector: The Sector containing the Lander standee; required for Lift-Off [p.44]
• Leads: Tokens (value 0–3) placed on Discovery decks; when total ≥3, gain the top Discovery [p.39, 44]
• Refresh: Move a die from Spent Pool back to an Available dice slot on your Crew board [p.44]
• Sacrifice (die): Return a die permanently to your Section Compartment; if ≤3 dice total, gain 'Exhausted' Injury instead [p.45]
• Sector: Numbered area of the Planet board; may contain a Log, POI, or be empty [p.45]
• Supplies: Primary resource tracked on the Lander board; reduced by Resting and some effects [p.45]
• Vanguard icon: Counts as any other Section dice icon [p.36]

FAQ

• Q: Can the same Action be performed twice in one turn? — A: Yes, except Special Actions which are limited to once per turn [p.29 — Planetary Exploration Rules]
• Q: Can Assisting Crewmembers use their Convert Abilities? — A: No; only the Active Crewmember's Convert Ability applies, but it can be used on Assisting dice too [p.32 — Convert Abilities]
• Q: Can Accident results be used for Dice Combinations? — A: No, Accident results can never trigger Dice Combinations [p.36 — Section Dice]
• Q: What happens if you must Spend a die but have none available? — A: Sacrifice a die instead [p.22 — Not Enough Dice to Spend]
• Q: When do you create a new Section card deck from the discard pile? — A: Only when you need to draw and the deck is empty — not simply when the deck runs out [p.20 — Empty Section Card Deck]
• Q: Can Exertion be used during another player's turn or mid-effect? — A: Yes, Exertion is not an Action and can be used at any time, including in response to an effect [p.31 — Exertion]