Object of the game

NOT ALONE is an asymmetrical card game, with one player (the Creature) playing against the other players (the Hunted).

If you play as one of the Hunted, you explore Artemia using Place cards. By playing these and your Survival cards, your aim is to avoid being hunted down by the Creature until help arrives.

If you play as the Creature, your aim is to hunt down the shipwrecked survivors and assimilate them into the planet’s ecosystem. By playing your Hunt cards and activating the powers of Artemia, you repeatedly attack the Hunted to wear down their will and inescapably bind them to the planet.

Place cards

The planet Artemia is made up of 10 different Place cards. Each Place card has a number, a name and a power that can be activated by the Hunted. The place cards are horizontally or vertically adjacent.

Each Hunted begins the game with the 5 basic Place cards (Lair, Jungle, River, Beach and Rover) and may explore new places during the game (Swamp, Shelter, Wreck, Source and Artefact).

Hunt cards

Hunt cards increase the chances of the Creature being able to assimilate the Hunted. Each Hunt card shows a power that can be activated by the Creature and the phase in which that power may be played. Some also show a Target or Artemia symbol.

Hunt Cards may be played at any time during the phase shown on the card and are discarded after use. The Creature may only play one Hunt card per turn unless specified otherwise.

If a Hunt card with the Target symbol is played, the Creature assigns its effects by placing the Target token on one of the 10 Place cards that form the planet. If the Creature plays 2 Hunt cards with this symbol during a turn, apply both effects to the targeted place.

If a Hunt card with the Artemia symbol is played, the Creature assigns its effects by placing the Artemia token on one of the 10 Place cards that form the planet. If the Creature plays 2 Hunt cards with this symbol during a turn, apply both effects.

Survival cards

Survival cards increase the chances of the Hunted resisting the Creature’s attacks until the arrival of the Rescue mission. Each Survival card shows a power that can be activated by the Hunted and the phase in which that power may be played.

Survival cards may be played at any time during the phase shown on the card and are discarded after use. Each Hunted may only play one Survival card per turn even if caught by the Creature. There is no limit to the number of Survival cards that a Hunted may hold.

Hunt and Survival cards used during the same phase take effect in the order in which they are played.

The effects of Hunt and Survival cards are limited to the current game turn and they may change the general rules.

Playing the game

Each turn takes place over 4 phases: Exploration, Hunting, Reckoning and End-of-Turn Actions. Proceed as follows:

Phase 1: Exploration

The Hunted simultaneously play one Place card each from their hand by placing it face down in front of them. They may communicate, but only aloud. Players may bluff, but they may not reveal their cards to each other. Playing a Place card is mandatory.

Before playing a Place card, a Hunted may choose to do the following:

- Resist: the player forfeits 1 or 2 Will counters to take back 2 or 4 Place cards of his choice, respectively, from his discard pile. If in doing so a Hunted loses his third Will counter, he must Give Up.

- Give Up: the player regains all of his Will counters and takes back all of his discarded Place cards. Giving up, however, lets the Creature assimilate the Hunted faster. Each time a Hunted gives up during this phase, immediately move forward the Assimilation counter by one space.

Phase 2 : Hunting

The Creature places tokens to try to catch the players. If the token matches the location of a player the effect is applied. In the first round the players can only be in locations 1 through 5. They can only gain the additional locations by visiting the Rover.

The Creature may place the following tokens on the Place cards that make up Artemia:

- The Creature token.

- The Target token if the target symbol is on a Hunt card played.

- The Artemia token if the Artemia Symbol is on a Hunt card played AND/OR on the space under the Rescue counter.

The Hunt tokens can be placed on the same place to stack their effects.

Phase 3 : Reckoning

The Hunted simultaneously reveal their Place card. The phase should then proceed as follows:

- Starting with the player to the left of the Creature, each Hunted who explores a place without a Hunt token may immediately use the place’s power OR take back 1 Place card of his choice from his discard pile. If a place’s power is ineffective as a result of a Hunt card, the Hunted may not take back a discarded Place card.

- Each Hunted who explores the place where the Target token is located is subject to the effect of the Hunt card. He may then use the power on the Place card OR take back 1 Place card of his choice from his discard pile. If a place’s power is ineffective as a result of a Hunt card, the Hunted may not take back a discarded Place card.

- Each Hunted who explores the place where the Artemia token is located discards 1 Place card from his hand. The place’s power may not be used and the Hunted may not take back a discarded Place card.

- Each Hunted who explores the place where the Creature token is located loses 1 Will counter. Immediately move the Assimilation counter forward 1 space regardless of the number of Hunted caught. The place’s power may not be used and the Hunted may not take back a discarded Place card.

During this phase, if at least one of the Hunted loses his third Will counter, move the Assimilation counter forward by 1 space. Then these Hunted take back all of their Place cards, as well as their 3 Will counters.

Phase 4 : End-of-turn actions

Each Hunted discards the Place card played, face up. The Creature must always be able to see the figures on all discarded Place cards. The Creature takes back it's Hunt tokens and draws Hunt cards up to a hand of 3.

Move the Rescue counter forward 1 space and begin again at Phase 1: Exploration.

End of game

The Creature wins immediately if the Assimilation counter reaches the Victory space first. With their will sapped, all of the Hunted have been assimilated. They are now part of the planet.

The Hunted win immediately if the Rescue counter reaches the Victory space first. A rescue mission arrives to extract the survivors from this hostile planet.

FAQ

THE LAIR

If a Hunted chooses to retrieve his discarded Place cards, he does not retrieve the Lair because during the Reckoning phase, the Lair is not yet in the player’s discarded cards.

If a Hunted caught on The Lair only has 1 Will counter, this Hunted loses only one Will counter.

THE BEACH

Use of the Beach is limited to once per turn regardless of the number of Hunted exploring the Beach: either charge the Marker (place the Marker token on the Beach), or activate the Marker (remove the Marker token from the Beach and move the Rescue counter forward by 1 space). If two or more Hunted explore the Beach, one of them may use the power of the Beach and the others may take back 1 Place card of their choice from their discard pile. The power of the Beach may stack with that of the Wreck.

THE WRECK

Use of the Wreck is limited to once per turn regardless of the number of Hunted exploring the Wreck. If two or more Hunted explore the Wreck, one of them may use the power of the Wreck and the others may take back 1 Place card of their choice from their discard pile. The power of the Wreck may stack with that of the Beach.

THE ARTEFACT

The 2 Place cards played are resolved one by one in the order of the player’s choice, following the rules of Phase 3: Reckoning. The power of the Artefact may not be copied by a place’s power, nor by a Survival card.

If you get caught twice by the same Hunt token, the personal effects of the token are applied twice.

DRONE

This Survival card can only be used if the power of you place card could be used. On Board Game Arena, you may only play this card when it is your turn to resolve the power of your place card during Phase 3.

GATE

This Survival card can only be used if the power of you place card could be used. On Board Game Arena, you may only play this card when it is your turn to resolve the power of your place card during Phase 3.

DOUBLE BACK

If you played 2 Place cards using the Artefact, you may only take back one of them.

WRONG TRACK

If the "Clone" Hunt card was played this turn, you may move either the Creature token or the Target token with represents the Clone.

DESPAIR

When this Hunt card is played, all Hunted players who already played a Place card automatically take it back in their hand, and then play again any Place card.

DODGE

This cards effect only applies to the Hunted who plays it. Therefore you must be on the same location than the Creature to play it, and it will not prevent the other Hunted to get caught.

DETECTOR

This cards effect only applies to the Hunted who plays it. Therefore you must be on the same location than the Artemia token to play it, and it will not prevent the other Hunted to get caught.