Tiny Epic Mechs

Sequence of Play

Six rounds; three phases per round; four turns per phase:

1. Program: Secretly choose 4 of your 8 Program Cards and lay them face-up, left to right, in the order you'll execute them. Immediately cover each with an unused card to keep it hidden.
2. Execution: Starting with the Starting Player, take turns revealing and resolving one Program Card at a time. Move first (per the card's arrow), then resolve its action, if any.
3. Scoring: After Rounds 2, 4, and 6 only, score for zones controlled and for the Mighty Mech.

Movement

• A Program Card's arrow dictates the direction you must move.
• Robot Pilot will not enter a zone with another Robot Pilot.
• Moving into an enemy Pilot's zone starts Combat immediately; you do not perform the card's action.
• Moving into an enemy Mine or Turret's zone deals damage to you; if you aren't KO'd, destroy it, then perform the card's action.
• Moving off the arena (into a wall) leaves you in place, but you still perform the card's action.
• Double Jump: Move 2 zones in the card's direction, jumping over (and ignoring) whatever's in the first zone. If an enemy is in the landing zone, Combat begins and you deal a Power Attack as your first attack.
• Diagonal Jump: Move 1 zone diagonally. If an enemy is there, Combat begins and you deal a Power Attack as your first attack.

Actions

After moving, you may perform your card's action:

• Collect: Gain 1 of each resource shown for every zone you control, with your Pilot and/or your Mines/Turrets. A Base or the Mech Zone gives both 1 Energy and 1 Credit. Only once per zone per action, even if both your Pilot and a Mine/Turret occupy it.
• Purchase Weapon: Pay the listed cost to take one of the 4 face-up Advanced Weapons, or a Basic Weapon you don't already own. Only one purchase per action. Refill the Advanced row from the deck afterward.
• Power Up:
  Heal -- pay Energy for +2 Health per Energy paid (Pilot and Power Armor only)
  Upgrade -- pay 5 Credits to get Power Armor, fully heal, and re-equip your Weapons.
• Deploy Mine or Turret:
  • Mine (pay Credits = zone value): placed secretly numbered 1-4; deals the zone's value plus its number when triggered. Scores the owner 1 VP only if it KO's the intruder. Always returns to supply after triggering.
  • Turret (pay Energy = zone value): deals the zone's value when triggered. Stays deployed and scores 1 VP if it KO's the intruder; otherwise returns to supply.
  • Only one Mine or Turret per zone.
  • Mine resolves before Combat; Turret resolves after Combat.

General Information

Robot Pilot Rules

Robot Pilots execute one Program Card each, in turn — 4 times per round, drawn randomly from their face-down stack.

Movement by card:

• Collect: move forward 1 zone.
• Deploy Turret / Deploy Mine: move to the highest-valued zone.
• Purchase / Power Up: move to the lowest-valued zone.
• Diagonal Jump: jump into a human's zone if it's in a diagonal zone, any distance; otherwise it doesn't move.
• Double Jump: jump into a human's zone if human is in its row or column, any distance; otherwise it doesn't move.

The Robot Pilot turns to face the direction it just moved (unless it jumped into your zone — then it faces toward your Base).

Executing actions (after movement, it Collects instead if the listed action isn't possible):

• Deploy Mine/Turret: deploys if it can afford it, has an unplaced token, and no other Mine/Turret already occupies the zone.
• Purchase Weapon: buys the cheapest affordable Advanced Weapon, left to right, unless it already has 4.
• Power Up: heals to full, unless already at full health.

Combat: gather the Robot Pilot's equipped Weapons face-down and flip the top card to resolve each attack, always paying the maximum it can afford for damage-boosting effects. It reshuffles and reuses its Weapons instead of retreating, and never enters Ad Hoc Mode.

The Mighty Mech: a Robot Pilot entering its empty zone automatically takes control, regardless of health, and scores as normal. It can't Power Up while controlling it.

Getting KO'd: Robot Pilots respawn to their Base (or nearest non-hostile zone) at full health, in Power Armor. If a Robot Pilot KO's you while you control the Mighty Mech, it takes control instead.

Weapon Slots by Status

Status	Capacity
Pilot	2 Basic (hand slots)
Power Armor	2 Basic (hand), 2 Advanced (shoulder)
Mighty Mech	4 Advanced only

Combat

• Moving into an enemy-occupied zone starts Combat; the mover scores 1 VP and attacks first.
• Attacking: Exhaust one equipped Weapon (rotate it 90°), deal its listed damage, and score 1 VP per point of damage dealt (capped at the target's remaining health).
• Power Attack: After being attacked, you may immediately counter with a weapon's stronger second line if its type beats the attacker's type:
  Area beats Ranged
  Ranged beats Melee
  Melee beats Area
• Combat continues until one player retreats (no usable Weapons) or is KO'd. Robot Pilots never retreat -- reshuffle its weapon cards and keep drawing

Retreating & Getting KO'd

• Retreat: Forced when you can't attack. The enemy scores 1 VP; move to the closest non-hostile orthogonal zone, then enter Ad Hoc Mode.
• KO'd (0 Health): The player who KO'd you scores 1 VP. You enter Ad Hoc Mode, then:
  • Human Pilot or Robot Power Armor: Full heal, move to your Base (or the nearest non-hostile zone if it's occupied).
  • Human Power Armor: Strip to Pilot status, full heal, move to the nearest non-hostile zone.
  • Mighty Mech: Surrender it to the player who KO'd you (they immediately score for entering it); you become a Human Pilot or Robot Power Armor and move to the nearest non-hostile zone.
• Weapons are never lost from Combat, even when KO'd — always keep at least 1 equipped.

The Mighty Mech

If unoccupied, a human player in full-health Power Armor entering its zone may take control (scoring bonus VP) and equip up to 4 Advanced Weapons.

Robot Pilots can take control regardless of health.

Downsides: can't Power Up or heal, can't voluntarily leave, and your Pilot ability is replaced by the Mech's Rocket Charge or Force Field ability.

End of Round

1. Advance the Round Token.
2. Pass the Starting Token to the next clockwise player.
3. Everyone picks up their cards and starts the next Program Phase. Ad Hoc Mode ends for anyone who was in it.

Scoring & Winning

• Rounds 2, 4, and 6: score the zone's value for each zone your Pilot controls, the zone's value for each Mine-controlled zone, double the zone's value for each Turret-controlled zone, and bonus VP if you control the Mighty Mech.
• Game end (after Round 6): add the VP printed on every Weapon Card you've purchased, whether equipped or in your stockpile.
• Highest total wins. Ties go to the Mighty Mech's controller; if no one controls it, the player with the most Weapons wins; if still tied, share the victory.