Game Objective

Welcome, robot pilots! In RoboRally, you are robot engineers, but with a small detail: your robots have a mind of their own (or at least act like they do!). The objective is simple, but the execution... ah, that's the fun part! You need to be the first to guide your robot through a crazy factory, touching all the checkpoints in a specific order. Sounds easy? Wait until the conveyor belts, lasers, and other robots try to get in your way!

Setup

Let's tidy up the mess before the factory starts running at full speed:

1. Choose the Board: Decide which side of the modular board you want to use. Each side offers a different challenge!
2. Place the Checkpoints: Place the numbered checkpoints (1, 2, 3...) on the board, following the order you want the robots to visit them.
3. Choose Your Robot: Each player chooses a robot and takes the corresponding energy token.
4. Position the Robots: Each player places their robot on one of the designated starting spaces on the board.
5. Shuffle the Program Cards: Thoroughly shuffle the deck of program cards and place it face down in a location accessible to everyone.
6. Life and Damage Tokens: Keep the life tokens and damage tokens in a general pile, ready to be used.

The Game Turn

A turn in RoboRally is a frantic sequence of programming and chaos. It is divided into several phases:

1. Card Dealing Phase:
   • Each player receives 9 program cards from the deck.
   • If a player already has damage tokens, they receive fewer cards: 9 minus the number of damage tokens. For example, if they have 3 damage tokens, they receive 6 cards.
2. Programming Phase:
   • Each player chooses 5 of their program cards and places them face down, in order, in their register slots. These will be their robot's actions for the turn.
   • The remaining cards are discarded.
3. Register Activation Phase (5 Registers):

   This is the phase where the action happens! Each register is activated in sequence:

   1. Reveal and Act: All players reveal the card from their first register slot. The robot with the highest priority card acts first. In case of a tie, the robot closest to the starting checkpoint (or a defined reference point) acts first.
   2. Robot Movement: The robot executes the card's action (move, turn, etc.).
   3. Board Elements Act: After all robots have moved, the board elements (conveyor belts, lasers, etc.) act.
   4. Fire Lasers: All robots fire their lasers in a straight line. If a laser hits another robot, it causes 1 damage token.
   5. Check Checkpoints: If a robot touches a checkpoint in the correct order, it "captures" it.

   This process repeats for all 5 register slots, one at a time, until all 5 cards have been executed.

4. Maintenance Phase:
   • Repair Damage: If a robot is on a repair space, it can remove 1 damage token.
   • Restart Destroyed Robots: If a robot was destroyed (reached 10 damage tokens), it is restarted on the nearest restart space, with 2 damage tokens.
   • Discard Cards: All used program cards are discarded.

End of Game and Scoring

The game ends as soon as a player manages to touch all checkpoints in the correct order. That player is declared the winner and the brightest robot engineer in the factory!

Tips for Winning

• Planning is Key, but Flexibility is Essential: Try to anticipate not only your own movements but also those of your opponents. However, be ready to adapt your strategy, as chaos is a constant in RoboRally!
• Manage Your Damage: Avoiding damage is important, as it limits your programming options. Use the repair spaces strategically and don't hesitate to move away from danger if your hand of cards is weak.
• Utilize the Board: The conveyor belts, pushers, and lasers on the board can be your best friends or your worst enemies. Learn to use them to your advantage to propel your robot or push opponents into traps!