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From residue@aol.com Sun Aug 13 01:12:19 1995 New Expansion--Skill Tokens ADDITIONAL EQUIPMENT; None, though some modifications to existing equipment are required. For each of the 6 colors, label 5 tokens with the letter "E", another 5 with "L", 5 "S", and the remaining 5 "W". A token's letter label identifies its "skill"--E for "Escort", L for "Leader", S for "Shield", and W for "Weapon". ADDITIONAL SETUP: Set up is as usual, except players may initially distribute their tokens among home planets however they wish, so long as each planet is occupied by at least one token. PLAY: When playing with Skill Tokens, all existing Cosmic Encounter rules regarding tokens--including the effects of powers, edicts, flares, moons, etc.--still apply, except as noted here. Each token now has a particular "skill," however, which must also be taken into account. Escort Tokens-- In a challenge, after tokens (main players and allies) are committed but before cards are played face down, Escorts are called. Starting with the offensive main player and proceeding clockwise once around the board, players with tokens already in the challenge may add some or all of their Escort tokens to their respective sides. Once called, Escorts are treated as any other tokens in the challenge (e.g., adding to their side's total, sharing in the rewards or other consequences, etc.). Escorts are not subject to the 4-token-per-player limit; one could, for example, ally with up to 4 tokens and still call in 5 Escorts (assuming all 5 are available). Only Escorts on bases can be called into a challenge. Phantom [Mayfair] and Wraith [Mayfair] may also call Escorts from their ghost tokens and reserve tokens, respectively. Escorts already in the challenge, in the warp, removed from the game (e.g., via Void), or held captive by another player (e.g., Assessor [Eon], Fungus, Vampire [Mayfair]) cannot be called. If an ally calls Escorts, Crystal (as main player or ally) may determine how many (up to the number available). Macron cannot call more than 1 Escort (unless the Super Macron flare is played). Magnet is used after Escorts are called; an attracted ally may call Escorts, a repelled ally's Escorts are also repelled. Wraith [Mayfair] must publicly announce a decision to call Escorts, but the actual number is kept secret. You cannot call an Escort token of a different color (e.g., a captive token or Symbiote [Mayfair] second-color token) as one of your own Escorts, even if it is under your control for all other purposes. If you are Fungus, you may call a stack containing different colors if your token (i.e., the one on top) is an Escort. Leader Tokens-- You must have at least 3 "active" Leader tokens to use your Alien Power. If you have fewer, you lose your power until you meet the 3-Leader minimum. (You still need home bases to use your power, too--3 active Leaders AND 3 home bases.) A Leader is considered active if it occupies a base (or, during a challenge, is on the cone). Leaders among Phantom [Mayfair] ghost tokens and Wraith [Mayfair] reserve tokens (including any invisible tokens committed to a challenge in progress) are also active. Leaders in the warp, removed from the game, or held captive by another player are not active. Leaders petrified by Gorgon [Mayfair] are still considered active. Whenever another player explicitly selects one or more of your tokens for any reason (e.g., Assassin, Butler, Flux Moon), he cannot pick a Leader unless there is no other choice. Note this restriction applies only to rules involving specific token selection; your Leaders may be targeted by more general rules (e.g., challenging a base, Force Field, Implosion Moon). You are always free to pick your own Leaders when selecting tokens yourself, of course. You cannot count a Leader token of a different color as one of your own Leaders, even if it is under your control for all other purposes. Shield and Weapon Tokens-- In any challenge, after all tokens (including Escorts) are committed but before cards are played, compare the total number of Weapon tokens on the offensive side (main player plus allies) to the total number of Shield tokens on the defensive side (main player plus allies). If the number of Shields is greater than the number of Weapons, the challenge ends immediately--all tokens in the cone return to bases, there are no winners or losers, and play passes to the next player. Otherwise, the challenge proceeds normally. Only one such comparison is made per challenge; if the offensive player passes muster but the balance changes later (e.g., after Amoeba oozes or Wrack tortures), the challenge still goes on. During the comparison, Wraith [Mayfair] may reveal some or all invisible tokens committed to the challenge that might affect the outcome (i.e., Shields or Weapons). Each Shield (or Weapon) token counts as 1 Shield (or Weapon), even if the token has a value other than 1 (e.g., Fungus stack, Macron, Mini Mac Moon). Tokens adding to but not directly involved in the challenge (e.g., Defense Moon, Phantom [Mayfair]) and tokens of a different color than the player controlling them (e.g., captive tokens, Symbiote [Mayfair] second-color tokens) cannot be counted as Shields or Weapons. Bryan Bowe