How to Play Star Trek: Frontiers – The Return of Khan

WizKids (I) · Board game · 2018
1–5 · best 1 Solo 60–120 min Weight 4.4/5
9.3 rating Ludopedia
8.3 rating BGG

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Objective of the Game

In Star Trek: Frontiers – The Return of Khan, players take on the role of Captain James T. Kirk, commanding the U.S.S. Enterprise-A. Your primary goal is to restore your scattered crew, who were displaced through a temporal wormhole, and ultimately defeat the tyrannical Khan Noonien Singh. Khan, having been revived and enhanced, now commands a Jem’Hadar battle cruiser, the Pequod, and seeks a mysterious power within a Borg cube to dominate the galaxy. Kirk faces three critical tasks: negotiate with the Federation and Klingon ships of the future, discover the fate of his missing crewmates, and find a way to destroy Khan once and for all.

Preparation (Setup)

The Return of Khan expansion introduces several new components and modifies existing ones for setup:

  • Player Ship and Captain: The U.S.S. Enterprise-A is introduced as a new player ship, represented by its own ship figure and Captain James T. Kirk.
  • Enterprise-A Starting Deck: The Enterprise-A's Starting Deck includes 2 unique cards and 12 Skill Tokens representing Captain Kirk’s abilities.
  • Base Game Captains: Each of the captains from the base set of Star Trek: Frontiers receives 1 new Starting Deck Card (bringing them to 2 unique cards) and 2 new Skill Tokens.
  • Replacing Basic Action Cards: For the original ships (Enterprise-D, Defiant, Negh’Var, and D-12 Bird of Prey), each receives one new Basic Action Card. These are recognized by the ship’s icon in the upper right corner. Replace the Basic Action Card with the same number in that ship’s deck with the new one. Remove the replaced cards from the game permanently.
  • Shuffling Skill Tokens: Shuffle the 2 new Skill Tokens for each base game Captain into their normal stack of Skill Tokens.
  • Advanced Actions and Undiscovered Cards: Add the 6 new Advanced Action Cards and 6 new Undiscovered Cards to their respective decks and shuffle them.
  • Crew Member Cards: Add the 6 Regular Crew Members and 6 Elite Crew Members to their respective decks and shuffle them.
  • Space Map Tiles: Add the 3 new Frontier Tiles and 1 new Core non-Borg Cube Tile to their original piles. The Khan’s Fleet Tile is only added if a scenario specifically calls for it, either in a predefined position or replacing a Borg Cube Tile.
  • Enemy Ship Tokens: Shuffle the 15 new Dominion Enemy Ship Tokens into a single pile and place them face down near the other Encounter Tokens.
  • Khan Components: Place the 1 Pequod miniature with Clix base, 1 large Khan Token, 1 Khan Round Order Token, 1 Khan’s Fleet Tile Reference Card, and 1 double-sided Pequod Tile Reference Card near the play area.
  • Khan Action Deck: The 1 Khan Action Deck is used to determine Khan’s activities during specific scenarios ("Return of Khan" and "Khan’s Quest").
  • Optional Challenge Deck: If desired, players can choose to use the Challenge Deck to increase the game's difficulty.
  • Corrected Cards: If you have the first printing of Star Trek: Frontiers, replace the corresponding 4 Basic Action Cards, 1 Advanced Action Card, 2 Tile Reference Cards, and 1 Skill Token Reference Card with the new ones provided in the expansion, removing the older ones permanently.
  • Extra Components: The game includes 1 Data Die, 6 Data Tokens (one of each color), and 6 Round Tracker Tokens for convenience.

Fluxo do Jogo

Consulte o manual para detalhes sobre esta seção.

Ações e Como Jogar

New Space Map Features

  • Deep Research Station: These stations function like normal Research Stations. However, when taking a Data Crystal at the end of your turn, you can choose any one of the three basic colors (red, blue, or gold). Remember to decide which crystal to take before claiming combat rewards or performing a Level Up.

New Enemy Ship Token Abilities

  • Dominion Starship Tokens: These are a new type of Enemy Ship Token. They follow all standard rules for Enemy Ship Tokens, including being placed face up when revealed and being provoked by passing ships. Instead of gaining Reputation for defeating a Dominion Ship Token, you receive 1 random Data Crystal. Roll a Data Die to determine the crystal’s color. If white or purple is rolled, you choose the color (red, blue, or gold). If black is rolled, you gain Experience 1 instead of a Data Crystal.
  • Enemies with Two Attacks: Several Dominion Ships have two attack values, meaning they perform two separate attacks. During the Shields phase, you must handle these attacks one by one, in any order, as if they were from multiple enemies. You cannot group them and deflect them with a single set of Shields. Effects that prevent an enemy from attacking stop all of its attacks. Effects that modify a ship’s attacks affect all of its attacks. An enemy is considered completely blocked (for purposes of cards like “Advanced Shields / Exploding Shields”) only if all its attacks are blocked.
  • Elusive: Elusive enemies are good at avoiding Long Range Attacks. Their Defense Value is increased by the indicated amount against Long Range Attacks during the Long Range Attack Phase. Note that Long Range Attack cards used during the normal Attack Phase do not increase the ship’s Defense Value.
  • Cumbersome: Cumbersome ships have powerful attacks but are large and unwieldy. When defending against a Cumbersome ship’s attack during the Shields Phase, you may play effects that generate Move Points and use those Move Points as normal Shields (in addition to any other Shields you play). You cannot use surplus Move Points from the Move Phase for this effect; you must play the Move effects during combat.
  • Superior Intellect: Khan’s Token features the Superior Intellect Icon. Additionally, three Challenge Cards grant the benefits of Khan’s Superior Intellect to his followers. These enemies are only affected by specific conditions.

Fim de Jogo e Pontuação

Consulte o manual para detalhes sobre esta seção.

Dicas para Vencer

  • The unique cards in the expansion are slightly better than the cards they replaced, making ships start a bit stronger. This is beneficial because the new elements and scenarios are very challenging.
  • When facing Dominion Starship Tokens, remember that defeating them grants a random Data Crystal or Experience 1 instead of Reputation. Plan your engagements accordingly based on your current needs for crystals or experience.
  • Against enemies with two attacks, prioritize how you handle each attack separately during the Shields phase, as you cannot block both with a single set of shields. Effects that prevent attacks will stop all of an enemy's attacks, which can be very useful.

Rules manual

Official PDF file

Prefer the Official PDF? Download the official Star Trek: Frontiers – The Return of Khan rulebook or browse it online with our AI rules assistant.
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Frequently Asked Questions

Quick answers about the rules

5 questions
What is the objective of Star Trek: Frontiers – The Return of Khan?
In Star Trek: Frontiers – The Return of Khan, players take on the role of Captain James T. Kirk, commanding the U.S.S. Enterprise-A. Your primary goal is to restore your scattered crew, who were displaced through a temporal wormhole, and ultimately defeat the tyrannical Khan Noonien Singh. Khan, having been revived and enhanced, now commands a Jem’Hadar battle cruiser, the Pequod, and seeks a mysterious power within a Borg cube to dominate the galaxy. Kirk faces three critical tasks: negotiate…
How do you set up Star Trek: Frontiers – The Return of Khan?
The Return of Khan expansion introduces several new components and modifies existing ones for setup: Player Ship and Captain: The U.S.S. Enterprise-A is introduced as a new player ship, represented by its own ship figure and Captain James T. Kirk. Enterprise-A Starting Deck: The Enterprise-A's Starting Deck includes 2 unique cards and 12 Skill Tokens representing Captain Kirk’s abilities. Base Game Captains: Each of the captains from the base set of Star Trek: Frontiers receives 1 new Starting…
How do you play Star Trek: Frontiers – The Return of Khan?
Consulte o manual para detalhes sobre esta seção. New Space Map Features Deep Research Station: These stations function like normal Research Stations. However, when taking a Data Crystal at the end of your turn, you can choose any one of the three basic colors (red, blue, or gold). Remember to decide which crystal to take before claiming combat rewards or performing a Level Up. New Enemy Ship Token Abilities Dominion Starship Tokens: These are a new type of Enemy Ship Token. They follow all…
How does Star Trek: Frontiers – The Return of Khan end, and how do you score?
Consulte o manual para detalhes sobre esta seção.
What are some tips for winning Star Trek: Frontiers – The Return of Khan?
The unique cards in the expansion are slightly better than the cards they replaced, making ships start a bit stronger. This is beneficial because the new elements and scenarios are very challenging. When facing Dominion Starship Tokens, remember that defeating them grants a random Data Crystal or Experience 1 instead of Reputation. Plan your engagements accordingly based on your current needs for crystals or experience. Against enemies with two attacks, prioritize how you handle each attack…
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