TABLE OF CONTENTS

NOTE: The following

modules can be mixed and
Components 2 matched with those from
Neutron Stars 3 other expansions or those
Black Holes 4 included in the base game.
Distress Beacons 6 Please see the base game
Objectives 10 rulebook for rules about any
modules mentioned, but not
Module Specific Cards 12
explained.

COMPONENTS
62x D Distress Beacon Cards 36x E Objective Cards

16x D Distress Beacon Tokens 2x Neutron Stars / Black Holes

Mothership, the Energy logo, Control Panel mechanic, all artwork, rules and
concepts are copyright of Peter Sanderson 2020. Any resemblance to other
intellectual properties is purely for the sake of parody and satire.

For more information, please visit mothership-game.com.

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NEUTRON STARS
Similar to asteroids, neutron stars break up the blank spaces on
the board and provide a hazard for players to avoid, or use to their
advantage. In most cases, it is best to avoid neutron stars.

SETUP
When setting up, place as many
neutron star tiles as you like on
the board while maintaining
board balance (see Board
Balance, pg 5 of the main
rulebook).

Tiles should not overlap any

other tiles. You cannot place
W
planets and Colony Stations
inside neutron star tiles.

GAMEPLAY
A neutron star tile is an impassable hazard. No unit can move into its
space or through it, either with normal movement or other abilities. If a
unit is in a space adjacent to a neutron star tile, the following effects
will occur:

HALVE ALL TOTAL DAMAGE: Any unit adjacent to a neutron star

that engages in any dogfight (including planet attack rolls) will
have its total damage halved. This is the roll, plus any buffs from any
sources divided by 2 (round up).

U
NO SHIELDS: Any Mothership that is adjacent to a neutron star
tile cannot use shields. This includes any buffs from any sources. This
G
means the Energy distribution of the shields will always be counted
as 0 for the purpose of any dogfights, D Distress Beacons or any other
G
situation that asks the player to count the Energy in that subsystem.
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 BLACK HOLES
Similar to asteroids, black holes break up the blank spaces on the
board, and provide a hazard for players to avoid or use to their
advantage. In most cases, it is best to avoid black holes.

SETUP
When setting up, place as many
black hole tiles as you like on the
board while maintaining board
balance (see Board Balance, pg
5 of the main rulebook).

Tiles should not overlap any

other tiles. You cannot place
planets inside a black hole. You
W
cannot place Colony Stations
inside or adjacent to black holes.

GAMEPLAY
As soon as a unit enters a black hole, a dogfight is initiated by the
black hole. Black holes always attack with a D12. Unlike when
fighting asteroids, the entering unit cannot fight back against a black
V
hole. The outcome is determined by the number rolled. Guardian
Cannons are automatically destroyed regardless of the dice roll.

IF 1 - 2 IS ROLLED: The player can warp that unit to any space on

the board. A dogfight against a black hole does not use that unit's
attack phase, meaning that the warping unit can now attack if they
wish.

IF 3 - 12 IS ROLLED: The exact number rolled is taken as damage by

S T
the unit. In the case of a Fighter or Bomber that means the unit is
destroyed.

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ESCAPING A BLACK HOLE
If the unit remains inside the black hole for any reason, it will not be
able use engine power next turn or initiate any dogfights. However,
the unit can warp if the player has the ability to do so. If the unit does
not escape in the next turn, the black hole will roll again when the
player declares that unit’s movement phase is resolved or at the end
of their turn.

PULLED IN BY A BLACK HOLE

If a unit ends their movement phase on a space adjacent to a black
hole tile, that ship will move one space into the tile. The player
affected can choose which space to enter.

The aforementioned actions are then initiated by the black hole. This
action will happen when the player declares that the unit’s movement
phase is resolved, but before the unit begins its attack phase.

5
 DISTRESS BEACONS
D Distress Beacons, sometimes referred to only as D Beacons,
add random story events to Mothership. Players can land ships on
spaces with Beacon Tokens and play through a short story with two
outcomes. Most outcomes are positive, usually offering rewards and
abilities not available through any other means.

SETUP
Shuffle theD Distress Beacon
Cards and place them in the
area near the A Action Cards
and supply of resources.

When setting up the board,

randomly select twice as
many D Distress Beacon
Tokens as there are players,
and then place them in
balanced locations around
the board (see the example
on the right). They may be
placed in asteroid fields or
nebula.

Beacon Tokens do not necessarily need to be easy to access.

Sometimes, it is best to put them in out of the way locations or in
places that are going to be contentious. If, after placing Beacons
Tokens, you feel the layout could do with a few more, feel free to
place them where you please. At the same time, try not to clutter the
board, as D Distress Beacons should not be the focus of the game.

Half of the tokens should be face up (showing a unit type) and the
other half should be locked. Locked Beacon Tokens are flipped
over immediately after all of the active Beacons Tokens have been
removed from the board.

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ACTIVATING BEACONS
Each turn, a player may activate 1x D Distress Beacon. To activate,
move the required unit type onto the Beacon Token, resolving that
unit’s movement phase. The unit will still be able to attack, but only
after theD Beacon Card is resolved. Once activated, immediately
pick up aD Beacon Card from the top of the pile and resolve it
before continuing with your turn.

You can also move units onto D Beacons that they cannot activate,
either to block another player from activating it or simply to move
onto that space. If your unit can activate the D Beacon, but you have
already activated a D Beacon that turn, you may still move onto
D
that space. If your unit is on top of that Beacon at the start of your
next turn, it will either need to move from that space or resolve it’s
movement by staying there to activate the D Beacon.

After resolving theDBeacon, remove the Beacon Token from the

board and move the used card to the discard pile.

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 DISTRESS BEACONS CONTINUED

DISTRESS BEACON CARDS

When a D Beacon Card is picked up, hand it to another player to
read. While you are permitted to read your own card, involving other
players allows them to enjoy the stories too.

Every card contains an opening story that is to be read first, followed

by two alternative outcomes for that story. After the story is read,
advise the player who activated the D Beacon of the rewards and /
or requirements of each option and have them choose one. Then, read
the outcome of the story from the option chosen.

An option must be selected. While the majority of cards have positive

outcomes, some may be negative. Either way, the player must resolve
the card before continuing with their turn. Some requirements, such
as dice rolls, are stated in the story and dictate the option to be
chosen. Other requirements ask the player to commit to an option
before knowing what the outcome will be. Read the card carefully to
determine how to proceed.

The requirements and rewards for

D Beacon Cards are written for an
average game of Mothership with
B Artifacts. Some cards may include
elements from modules or expansions
you are not playing with (such as
nebula, C Class Cards, etc). If you
encounter a card you cannot complete
due to a missing module (or part,
such as a planet), just discard the
D Beacon and pick up another. For
module specific cards, see page 12.

Q
Some cards also offer Victory Points.
If playing Deathmatch Mode, simply
Q
ignore any Victory Point rewards.
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 THE ACTIONS YOU OPENING STORY
MUST TAKE

R MEANS YOU
CANNOT ACTIVATE
REQUIREMENTS TO
SELECT THIS OPTION

ANOTHER BEACON
UNTIL THIS CARD IS
RESOLVED

REWARD OR
OUTCOME FOR THIS
OPTION

KEEP CARDS: Some D Beacon Cards ask the player to keep it in

their possession until either a requirement is fulfilled or a reward is
used. No matter the card, if the player keeps the D Beacon Card, no
other D Beacons may be activated by that player until it is discarded.
This icon R will be displayed on the card as a reminder of this rule.

CONTEXT OF 'YOUR' SHIP: If a D Beacon Card refers to ‘your’

ship, it is always referring to the ship that has activated theD Distress
Beacon (unless otherwise specified).

MULTIPLE CHOICE: If a D Beacon Card asks the player to perform

an action that could have two or more choices (example: Warp
your ship to the closest planet and there are 2 planets at the same
distance), then the player who activated the DBeacon is free to
choose whichever they prefer.

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 OBJECTIVES
E Objective Cards reward players for completing specific tasks
throughout the game. Most offer small rewards, but some harder
E Objectives give more valuable rewards.

SETUP
It is required that you play with
B Artifacts (see pg 17 of the main
E
rulebook). Some Objectives also
require other modules. For module
specific cards, see page 12.

At the start of the game, shuffle

the E Objective Card deck and
give each player 2x random
E Objectives. Players keep
these hidden until the tasks are
completed. Players are allowed
to complete both E Objectives in
any order.

A player can replace an unwanted E

Objective Card during their turn
at the cost of any combination of 2x resources. Discard the unwanted
E Objective and take a new one from the top of the pile.

GLOBAL OBJECTIVES
Global E Objectives are a variant on the rules above. Shuffle the
E Objective deck and place as many E
Objective Cards as there
are players near the A Action Card pile. All players should be
aware of these E Objectives. Now, instead of each player having
two hidden tasks, all players race to complete as many of the
displayed EObjectives as they can. Once a player has completed an
E Objective, discard it.

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REWARDS
During your turn, when you have completed an E Objective, reveal
theE Objective to all the other players and choose between one
of the two groups of rewards listed on the card. Rewards must be
collected immediately and before the player continues their turn. See
below for a list of possible rewards. If a player cannot claim a reward
for any reason, that reward is discarded.

If playing Deathmatch mode, ignore all Q Victory Point rewards.

If the player completes theE Objective during another player’s turn

under any circumstance, they must wait until their turn to claim the
reward. A player can also complete more than one E Objective on a
single turn.

MINERALS, GAS, INFLUENCE, ACTION OR

OBJECTIVE CARDS: Take the stated reward from
the general supply.

REPAIR HP: Can be used to immediately repair

H U
the HP on either your Mothership or Colony W
W
Station. If used on your Colony Station, the HP H
reward must be a multiple of 4.

GUARDIAN CANNON: Deploy a Guardian V

adjacent to any ship that has resolved it’s movement
phase, even if your Colony cannot support it.

ARTIFACT CARD: Select any unexplored planet

that you control and explore that planet.

TECH UPGRADE: Select the Tree indicated by the

L
colour of the reward and move your Tech counter
up by one.

DEVELOPMENT CARD: Choose a F

Development
from the Market and build it on an explored planet.
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 MODULE SPECIFIC CARDS
D Distress Beacons and E
Objective Cards were designed to be
played independently of other modules. Some cards, however, do
make use of specific modules. Below is a list of those cards. Some
players may wish to remove these before playing the game if you are
not playing with those specific modules.

Keep in mind, it is recommended that you always play with B

Artifacts
when using the D Distress Beacons and E
Objective Card modules.

DISTRESS BEACONS
NAME REQUIRES
Hidden Power Neutron Star / Black Hole
Pirate Raid C Class Cards
Gas Money Nebula
Particle Pool Wormholes

OBJECTIVES CARDS
NAME REQUIRES
Voyager D Distress Beacons
Hidden Nebula
Traveller Wormholes
Hamper h Influence and F Planetary Development
Established h Influence and F Planetary Development
Fortress h Influence and F Planetary Development
Orbiter Moons
Influencer h Influence and F Planetary Development

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