Re: Cosmic Encounter

[mjd-perl-pm@plover.com]

Cosmic Encounter is basically a simple abstratct strategy game that is
rendered interesting by the presence of alien powers that alter the
rules in various ways.  The rules go something like this: You have
five planets, and each initially has four tokens, which represent
armies. When it's your turn, you draw a card that tells you whom to
attack.  You select one of the defending player's planets and commit
between one to four tokens to the attack.  You and the defender each
simultaneously reveal a challenge card, which typically has a number
from 1-20 on it.  You add the number of tokens you committed to the
number on your card; the defender does the same, and the high total
wins.  If you win, you land your tokens on the defender's planet;
establish five bases in this way and you win the game.  The loser's
tokens go to the Warp, and are unavailable for future challenges (or
planetary occupation) until they're returned to the game, one per
turn.

The thing that makes Cosmic Encounter a big success iss that each
player plays a special alien who has a power that changes the rules
somehow.  For example, instead of adding the number on the card and
the number of tokens in the challenge, the Virus *multiplies* them.
For most players, a card with an 8 is mediocre; for the virus, it's
excellent.  If you were playing Virus against a bunch of unpowered
opponents, you'd win in a hurry.  But you don't get to play against
unpowered opponents; you have to play against the Void.  When you lose
a challenge to the Void, your tokens don't go to the Warp; they're
removed from the game permanently.  If you lost to the Void more than
a couple of times, you might as well resign, because you won't have
enough tokens left to occupy the five planets you need to win.


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