Game Objective

Prepare for a breathtaking adventure in the heart of the desert! In Forbidden Desert, you and your team of adventurers have been sent to excavate an ancient city and recover a legendary solar-powered flying machine. But fate had other plans: a crash landing in the middle of a relentless sandstorm! Now, your only hope of survival is to work as a team to find the four flying machine parts, rebuild it, and escape before thirst, sand, or the storm consume you.

Victory is for all of you, or defeat is for all. If one of you succumbs to thirst, if the storm becomes uncontrollable, or if you run out of sand markers to place, the game ends in defeat for the entire team. Together, you will unravel the secrets of the desert and fly to freedom!

Setup

Let's set up the table and prepare the ground for this exciting escape!

1. Examine the Tiles: Take a look at the 24 desert/city tiles to familiarize yourself with both sides. Then, flip them with the desert side up. Remember: once flipped, you can't peek at the other side!
2. Create the Desert: Shuffle the desert/city tiles and place them randomly with the desert side up, forming a 5x5 grid, but with one tile missing in the center. This empty space represents the eye of the storm! Make sure all tiles are oriented the same way, with the compass symbol in the upper left corner. Leave a small space between them to facilitate movement.
3. Place the Sand Markers: Add 8 Sand markers to the board in specific positions (the manual shows where!). Place them with the lighter colored side up (the side opposite the "X"). The remaining Sand markers form a supply pile next to the board.
4. Place the Flying Machine Parts: Take the 4 flying machine parts (propeller, engine, solar crystal, and navigation deck) and keep them nearby. They are buried in the desert, waiting to be found!
5. Set the Sandstorm Level: Insert the Sandstorm Meter into the stand and place a meter clip according to the number of players and the difficulty level you want to face (Novice, Normal, Elite, or Legendary).
6. Separate the Cards: Separate the Storm Deck (red back), the Equipment Deck (gear back), and the Adventurer Cards.
   • Shuffle the Storm Deck and place it face down above the board, with the compass symbol pointing up (North).
   • Shuffle the Equipment Deck and place it face down next to the board.
7. The Adventurers Appear: Shuffle the 6 Adventurer Cards and deal 1 to each player. Read aloud their roles and powers so everyone knows the team's strengths! Take a meter clip and attach it to your card's canteen, covering the top mark (usually 4). As you drink water, the marker moves down. Finally, take the pawn that matches the color of your card and place it on the "helicopter crash" tile. Unused pawns go back into the box.

Game Turn

The most experienced player starts, and the game proceeds clockwise. Each turn is divided into two crucial phases:

1. Perform up to 4 actions;
2. Draw Storm cards equal to the Sandstorm level.

1. Perform up to 4 Actions

You can perform up to 4 actions per turn (or fewer, if you prefer!). Your teammates can (and should!) offer advice. The available actions are:

• Move: Spend 1 action to move your pawn to an adjacent unlocked tile (up, down, left, or right, never diagonally). You can also move between unlocked tunnel tiles for 1 action. A tile is considered blocked if it has 2 or more sand markers. You can never pass through the empty space of the Sandstorm.
• Remove Sand: Spend 1 action to remove a Sand marker from your tile or an adjacent tile (up, down, left, or right). Return the marker to the supply pile.
• Excavate: If your pawn is on the desert side of a tile with no sand markers, you can spend 1 action to excavate it. Flip the tile to the "excavated" (city) side, ensuring any icon is in the bottom right corner. Follow the instructions of the revealed symbol. Once excavated, there's no going back!
• Pick up a Part: If a Flying Machine part is revealed on an unlocked and excavated tile, you can spend 1 action to pick it up and place it in front of you. If the part is on an unexcavated tile, you must excavate it first.

Free Actions (Share Water and Pass Equipment)

In addition to the actions above, players on the same tile can share water and pass equipment cards at any time, without spending actions. To share water, one player moves their canteen down and the other moves theirs up by the same amount (without exceeding the canteen's maximum).

Special Tiles and Symbols

• WATER (3 tiles): When excavating a tile with this symbol, you reveal a well. Each player who positions their pawn on this tile can add two waters to their canteens (a single time). Beware: one of the water tiles is a mirage!
• GEAR (12 tiles): When excavating a tile with this symbol, you find valuable equipment. Immediately draw the top card from the Equipment Deck, place it face up in front of you, and read its instructions. You can use it at any time (usually doesn't count as an action) and pass it to another player on the same tile for free.
• PART LOCATION CLUES (2 tiles for each part): Hidden beneath the desert are clues to the 4 Flying Machine parts. Each part has two clues: one for the row and one for the column. When the second clue for a part is revealed, immediately place that part on the tile where the row and column intersect.
• TUNNELS (3 tiles): These excavated tiles allow you to move between two tunnel tiles for 1 action, as long as they are not blocked (with 2 or more sand markers). Tunnels also protect against the effects of "Intense Sun" cards.
• LAUNCH PAD (1 tile): This is the final tile! All players must gather here with the 4 Flying Machine parts to assemble it and escape.

2. Draw Sandstorm Cards

After performing your actions, it's time to face the storm! Draw a number of cards from the Storm Deck equal to the current level of the Sandstorm Meter. Reveal one card at a time, apply its effects, and discard it face up. You can look at the discard pile at any time.

• THE WIND BLOWS: These cards move tiles (and everything on them: pawns, Sand markers, Flying Machine parts) towards the board's hole (the eye of the storm). Each moved tile receives a Sand marker. If a tile accumulates 2 or more Sand markers, it becomes blocked (place the markers with the "X" side up). If there is no tile to move in the indicated direction, the team receives a "Storm Respite" for that part of the card.
• BURIED IN SAND: If you need to place a Sand marker and there are none in the supply, your team loses the game!
• STORM PICKS UP: There are 3 of these cards. When drawn, move the Sandstorm Meter 1 mark up. If the meter reaches the skull icon, the storm becomes so intense that everyone loses!
• SUN BEATS DOWN: There are 4 of these cards. When drawn, all players who are not on a tunnel tile or protected by a Solar Shield must drink 1 water (lower the water meter on the canteen by 1 level). If any player reaches the skull symbol on their canteen, they succumb to thirst and the game ends in defeat.
• STORM DECK DRAW PILE RUNS OUT: If the Storm Deck draw pile runs out, shuffle the discard pile (including the cards you just drew and resolved) to form a new pile and continue drawing.

End of Game and Scoring

Winning the Game

To win, your team needs to:

1. Collect all 4 Flying Machine parts.
2. All players must gather on the Launch Pad tile (which must be unlocked).
3. Once gathered, you insert the parts, start the engine, and take off to victory! The game ends immediately, without the need to draw more Storm cards.

Losing the Game

Defeat can come in three ways:

1. Thirst: If any player reaches the skull symbol on their canteen.
2. Buried: If there are no Sand markers left to be added to the game.
3. Swept Away: If the Sandstorm Meter reaches the skull symbol.

Tips for Winning

To increase your chances of escaping the desert, remember these tips:

1. Communication is Key: Forbidden Desert is a cooperative game! Talk about your actions, plan your moves, and use the Adventurers' powers strategically. For example, the Navigator can move other players, and the Climber can take a friend across blocked tiles. Coordinating who excavates which tile and when is vital to finding clues and Flying Machine parts quickly.
2. Manage Water and Sand: Keep an eye on everyone's canteens and the amount of sand markers on the board. The Water Carrier is a hero for keeping everyone hydrated, and removing sand is crucial to keeping tiles unlocked and preventing the team from being buried. Prioritize excavating water tiles and, if possible, gather on them before excavating to maximize the benefit!
3. Use Equipment Wisely: Equipment cards are powerful! A Dune Blaster can clear an entire tile of sand, and a Jet Pack can get you out of a tight spot quickly. Remember that the Solar Shield protects everyone on your tile until your next turn, which can be a lifesaver against "Intense Sun." Don't hesitate to pass equipment to whoever needs it most at the right time.