Population



throughout the game
you will want to build up your population

with 21 pieces required for ASCENSION
you will need to propagate and maintain 
twice as much as the 7 you start out with

a team with less than 7 pieces total
is considered endangered
and may not be attacked
even if they have a piece 
strategically positioned in an opponent's system,
therby preventing another team from mating.

ideally, you will want to have 2 or 3 systems
where mating can occur at any moment.
to replace pieces that have been defeated,
so there is a drawback to being too offensive.

MATING occurs when 2 pieces 
of opposite GENDER spawn another piece
DEUCES and QUEENS are female
the other pieces are all male

with a single SYSTEM all to themselves
and the happy couple on their native ELEMENT
by the next turn, their new offspring piece
appears on the SUN between them

a KING and QUEEN make a JACK
a QUEEN and JACK make an ACE
a QUEEN and ACE make a JOKER
a QUEEN and JOKER make a DEUCE

a DEUCE and JOKER make a KING
a DEUCE and KING make a QUEEN
and 
a DEUCE and ACE make a JACK
a DEUCE and JACK make an ACE

you may not produce more pieces
of a type than is alotted for that type
that is, since each team is only entitled to one KING
if you already have a KING, you cannot make another

again the maximum for each is
1 KING, 2 QUEENS, 3 DEUCES
4 JOKERS, 5 ACES and 6 JACKS

apart from having recently been SPAWNED
JACKS may not exist on a STAR
upon creation, a JACK is immediately moved
to an adjacent WORLD HEX
preferably of NATIVE ELEMENT



MATING may also occur
between opposing teams
with mutual consent
the product of that relationship
being of the other, 3rd team

this can be strategic in preventing a piece 
from being created on the 3rd team's terms

DEUCES and JOKERS
cannot be easily contained, however

a king may STARHOP within a CONSTELLATION
but if all exits are blocked, he remains a CAPTIVE
this KING will not be helping his TEAM ASCEND
any time soon - but a rescue mission is planned



no one starts out with a DEUCE
thus, MATING is the only way to acquire one...

if you have a DEUCE
and at least one JOKER
you may roll your JOKER
to see how many turns
you may take this round
- for a maximum of 4 -
the result of that roll is also
that JOKER'S new face value
you may choose to pass this option
rather than risk a low multiplier



once a TEAM has reached its
FULL POPULATION of 21 pieces
it gains the ability to manifest
a variety of magical effects

- ELEMENTAL KARMA -
- assemble any combination of 14 pieces -
on every HEX of your own NATIVE ELEMENT
in any given CONSTELLATION on the board
- except the CENTER CONSTELLATION -
to completely dispel any currently active
major magical effects of another TEAM 
- and debilitate - potentially seriously -
- any TEAM currently activating such effects -
by reflecting back the full power of the assault on
every piece involved in the offending INTERACTION
- preventing MATING or RESURRECTION next turn -
as there are 14 HEX of any given NATIVE ELEMENT
this will be 2/3 of a TEAM'S FULL POPULATION 
and the remaining 7 pieces may not be on
any STAR anywhere else on the board

- FIGHT FIRE WITH FIRE -
any TEAM may FIGHT FIRE WITH FIRE
by merely occupying every STAR
in its HOME CONSTELLATION
thereby cancelling one or
both opposing TEAM'S
STARFIRE or FIRE MAGIC
and causing 14 points damage 
to every piece involved in the INTERACTION

- BURN OUT - SPACE VACUUMS FIRE -
any TEAM may BURN OUT a FIRE effect
by merely occupying all 12 SPACE HEX
- in any CONSTELLATION on the board -
but the remaining 9 pieces must not be on
any SPACE HEX anywhere else on the board


- SHORELINE - WATER ERODES EARTH -
causing adjacent WATER HEX value damage
to any piece on any LAND HEX, even your own