1. Start turn only happens once during your turn (even if you have multiple encounters). 2. You can repopulate a completely empty planet in your system when you draw your own destiny card as a free successful encounter. 3. Defence only draws a new hand after alliances have been invited and you actually need to play an encounter card (and offense only draws a new hand at start turn) 4. Only the defence's ships on a planet are targeted, any other ships on the planet are bystanders and aren't lost even if they were involved in the encounter. 5. During a deal, you can offer your opponent a colony on any planet where you have a colony, even if it isn't of your colour. 6. There is no limit to the number of ships you can have on a planet. 7. Plague needs to be played during the regroup phase (for example you can't use plague on your opponent after they drew your destiny card) and similarly mobius tubes has to be during YOUR regroup phase. 8. Cosmic zap must be used during the "use" or "may use" italic text on an alien card, but the window of opportunity is quite lenient (for example after they hacker decides who they are going to target, or after Judge decides on the additional gains of the encounter). You can't cosmic zap a super flare, although if the flare lets you use your power then that use of the power can still be zapped.
Some great advice here. I think "Start Turn", "Hand Redraw" and "Cosmic Zaps" have been probably the stickiest areas of the game for most players. On Cosmic Zaps, I've found the generally most consistent way to approach zap timing is thus: You zap a power after its use has been declared and any necessary targets are selected or decisions are made but *before* any component changes its state (i.e. position, ownership, etc.) or any player would gain otherwise hidden information. Trader, for example, would be zapped after deciding to trade hands but before either player sees their new hands. Once a power has caused something to change ownership, position or resolution, it's too late to "rewind the game" with a Cosmic Zap. I also agree that the idea of asking players to "come up with their own solutions" is part of the charm of Cosmic. Cheers!
Jack, I really appreciate this video, you've done a wonderful job here. In particular I think your message at the end about rules in Cosmic and answering questions with an air of authority is a sentiment we (we being the more.. shall we say exhuberant fanbase) need to be reminded of. I do have one question: how does the Meek interact with gaining and losing colonies? The idea seems simple - get points when you lose and lose points when you win. However, it's quite confusing to me how it should actually play out when you can gain and lose colonies through other means. Is Meek meant to be able to get closer to winning when it is an ally in a successful offense? Should it lose points when one of its foreign colonies is lost? Is it better to think about the Alien as having a completely separate win condition independent of its foreign colonies? If you designed it, what was your intent with offensive ally wins? Also, is it really meant that if you win as the offense, your points ultimately stay the same (lose a point from winning, but get a point back from gaining the colony)?
The power is used when a Main player. Being an ally doesn't affect it at all. You can gain foreign colonies and advance your score normally as a winning offensive ally.
I thought of another easily-missed rule: when someone tries to use their Super flare, you're allowed to play a Cosmic Zap to prevent them from playing the flare and zap their power. This rule has only been printed in the FAQ but not in any of the rulebooks and isn't even printed on the card, which is why it's so easily missed!
Actually no. You cannot play Cosmic Zap unless the USE is triggered. Playing a super flare does not automatically trigger a use. Sometimes it is used, as I mention in the video, but not always.
Questions 1: If a player "may use" there power but chooses not too. Can another play still zap at that moment? I would assume no. Question 2: are defensive allies considered in the hyperspace gate? I believe this is a yes. In regards to the Cosmic Zap leniency/fuzzy zone: I think a good ruling is it has to be in the same phase and before anything exchange hands or positions.
I knew all of these but I definitely think a new version of Cosmic should pay special attention to these, because I remember having to figure out the specifics of these rules in my own time. Personally I think the separation of start turn and start encounter should just be removed. The two should merge and appropriately fix some aliens to avoid problems. Like just let Hate only use their power once on their turn. Also I think drawing a new hand should change too because I have had to explain that defense has to wait until after allies and offense doesn't get a second encounter if they've lost their hand an unbelievable number of times, because-again-people don't really understand that they aren't starting a new turn after a successful encounter.
I second all of this. I personally house rule the new hand happening immediately at the end of the phase where it happened. This give defense the time to know their hand and and avoids the "feels bad" of winning your first encounter on offense to then need to give up the turn. Plus, it is just easier for new players to pick up and I teach this game to younger gamers multiple times a year.
thanks for the video ! - When the offense is regaining a home colony an empty home planet after drawing their own color, do they skip the launch phase also ? So in that case they go directly from destiny to resolution? - If a super flare got prevented by a cosmic zap, can the wild effect of that same flare be used in the same encounter? or is the limit of one flare per encounter per player limit already reached ? Thanks
You truly go from destiny to putting up to 4 ships on the planet. Super flares don’t get prevented. If they are played and then rendered ineffective, they have still been played.
Can someone please clarify: If I'm Red and attack my own home planet and lets say, Green, is on my planet, if I win the Encounter I get to remove their ships?
Yes, a player's second encounter begins with another Regroup phase, and thus they would take another ship from the Warp. So, a player that had two encounters on their turn would have had two Regroup phases and taken back two total ships.
It can only be played when that part of the targeted alien’s sheet is triggered. Once zapped, none of the alien’s power is active unless otherwise stated.
Hi, when negotiating, is there a limit to the amount of colonies you can trade? the rulebook didn't clearly say that the maximum was one, and if there is no max, you can just trade 5 for 5, or 4 for 4... i am new to the game, played for first time the other day, thank you for your videos they are helping a lot!!
1. Start turn only happens once during your turn (even if you have multiple encounters).
2. You can repopulate a completely empty planet in your system when you draw your own destiny card as a free successful encounter.
3. Defence only draws a new hand after alliances have been invited and you actually need to play an encounter card (and offense only draws a new hand at start turn)
4. Only the defence's ships on a planet are targeted, any other ships on the planet are bystanders and aren't lost even if they were involved in the encounter.
5. During a deal, you can offer your opponent a colony on any planet where you have a colony, even if it isn't of your colour.
6. There is no limit to the number of ships you can have on a planet.
7. Plague needs to be played during the regroup phase (for example you can't use plague on your opponent after they drew your destiny card) and similarly mobius tubes has to be during YOUR regroup phase.
8. Cosmic zap must be used during the "use" or "may use" italic text on an alien card, but the window of opportunity is quite lenient (for example after they hacker decides who they are going to target, or after Judge decides on the additional gains of the encounter). You can't cosmic zap a super flare, although if the flare lets you use your power then that use of the power can still be zapped.
Some great advice here. I think "Start Turn", "Hand Redraw" and "Cosmic Zaps" have been probably the stickiest areas of the game for most players.
On Cosmic Zaps, I've found the generally most consistent way to approach zap timing is thus: You zap a power after its use has been declared and any necessary targets are selected or decisions are made but *before* any component changes its state (i.e. position, ownership, etc.) or any player would gain otherwise hidden information. Trader, for example, would be zapped after deciding to trade hands but before either player sees their new hands. Once a power has caused something to change ownership, position or resolution, it's too late to "rewind the game" with a Cosmic Zap.
I also agree that the idea of asking players to "come up with their own solutions" is part of the charm of Cosmic. Cheers!
Jack, I really appreciate this video, you've done a wonderful job here. In particular I think your message at the end about rules in Cosmic and answering questions with an air of authority is a sentiment we (we being the more.. shall we say exhuberant fanbase) need to be reminded of.
I do have one question: how does the Meek interact with gaining and losing colonies?
The idea seems simple - get points when you lose and lose points when you win. However, it's quite confusing to me how it should actually play out when you can gain and lose colonies through other means.
Is Meek meant to be able to get closer to winning when it is an ally in a successful offense? Should it lose points when one of its foreign colonies is lost? Is it better to think about the Alien as having a completely separate win condition independent of its foreign colonies?
If you designed it, what was your intent with offensive ally wins? Also, is it really meant that if you win as the offense, your points ultimately stay the same (lose a point from winning, but get a point back from gaining the colony)?
The power is used when a Main player. Being an ally doesn't affect it at all. You can gain foreign colonies and advance your score normally as a winning offensive ally.
I thought of another easily-missed rule: when someone tries to use their Super flare, you're allowed to play a Cosmic Zap to prevent them from playing the flare and zap their power. This rule has only been printed in the FAQ but not in any of the rulebooks and isn't even printed on the card, which is why it's so easily missed!
Actually no. You cannot play Cosmic Zap unless the USE is triggered. Playing a super flare does not automatically trigger a use. Sometimes it is used, as I mention in the video, but not always.
@@jackredathewarp Ah!!! Thank you so much for the clarification!
Questions 1: If a player "may use" there power but chooses not too. Can another play still zap at that moment? I would assume no. Question 2: are defensive allies considered in the hyperspace gate? I believe this is a yes. In regards to the Cosmic Zap leniency/fuzzy zone: I think a good ruling is it has to be in the same phase and before anything exchange hands or positions.
Can’t zap unless used. And defensive allies are not in the gate.
@@jackredathewarp So does the duplicity kicker only affect offensive allies?
@@JTtopcat correct... they don't get to land and form a colony.
I knew all of these but I definitely think a new version of Cosmic should pay special attention to these, because I remember having to figure out the specifics of these rules in my own time.
Personally I think the separation of start turn and start encounter should just be removed. The two should merge and appropriately fix some aliens to avoid problems. Like just let Hate only use their power once on their turn.
Also I think drawing a new hand should change too because I have had to explain that defense has to wait until after allies and offense doesn't get a second encounter if they've lost their hand an unbelievable number of times, because-again-people don't really understand that they aren't starting a new turn after a successful encounter.
I tend to agree
I second all of this. I personally house rule the new hand happening immediately at the end of the phase where it happened. This give defense the time to know their hand and and avoids the "feels bad" of winning your first encounter on offense to then need to give up the turn.
Plus, it is just easier for new players to pick up and I teach this game to younger gamers multiple times a year.
thanks for the video !
- When the offense is regaining a home colony an empty home planet after drawing their own color, do they skip the launch phase also ? So in that case they go directly from destiny to resolution?
- If a super flare got prevented by a cosmic zap, can the wild effect of that same flare be used in the same encounter? or is the limit of one flare per encounter per player limit already reached ? Thanks
You truly go from destiny to putting up to 4 ships on the planet.
Super flares don’t get prevented. If they are played and then rendered ineffective, they have still been played.
@@jackredathewarp thanks !
Wait, does the regroup phase, where you get a ship back from the warp, happen twice if you have a successful first encounter??
It happens at the start of each of your encounters as offense.
If you im playing Human, can I cosmic zap myself to win the encounter?
@@luthfianpramanda7110 yep
Can someone please clarify: If I'm Red and attack my own home planet and lets say, Green, is on my planet, if I win the Encounter I get to remove their ships?
@@CS-pm5bf yes
So on your second encounter, you may do the regroup action twice and gain another ship back from the warp?
You get one ship per encounter.
Yes, a player's second encounter begins with another Regroup phase, and thus they would take another ship from the Warp. So, a player that had two encounters on their turn would have had two Regroup phases and taken back two total ships.
So the Cosmic Zap only stops the bolded italic use of power for the encounter?
It can only be played when that part of the targeted alien’s sheet is triggered. Once zapped, none of the alien’s power is active unless otherwise stated.
Hi, when negotiating, is there a limit to the amount of colonies you can trade? the rulebook didn't clearly say that the maximum was one, and if there is no max, you can just trade 5 for 5, or 4 for 4... i am new to the game, played for first time the other day, thank you for your videos they are helping a lot!!
@@jgsdr1988 it’s one
can you offer colonies on your own planets if you don't have ships there?
No, because you don’t have a colony there.
@@jackredathewarp Thanks Jack! I found 3 rules that we were all missing in this video