Star Realms is a deck-building game that throws you headfirst into frantic space combat! Created by Magic legends Darwin Kastle and Rob Dougherty, it blends the fun of building your deck with the speed and interactivity we love in collectible card games. The idea is simple: use your ships and bases to generate 'Trade' to acquire more powerful cards, or to generate 'Combat' to blast your opponent's 'Authority'. Reach zero? You win! Cards come in four different factions. You can mix and match, but many have 'Ally' abilities that give an extra bonus if you play cards from the same faction together. When you buy a card, it goes into your discard pile and will soon be shuffled into your personal deck. Ships are used immediately and go to the discard pile at the end of the turn. Bases, on the other hand, stay in front of you, and you can use their abilities every turn. Oh, and combat isn't just for zeroing out your opponent's Authority; it's also crucial for destroying their bases. Some bases are 'Outposts,' and you need to destroy them before you can directly attack your opponent's Authority. Star Realms is super easy to learn, especially if you're familiar with deck-building, but mastering the strategies takes time. Each game is full of important decisions: do I take the best card for me or deny the best card from my opponent? Do I focus on one faction or take the best available? Do I generate more trade or more combat? Do I attack the base or the authority? These choices add immense depth and ensure the game has incredible replayability. The core box comes with everything for two players, but if you combine it with standalone expansions like Colony Wars or Frontiers, you can play with up to six people in various modes, including free-for-all or team play. This is the starting point of the Star Realms series!