# Terraforming Mars: Automa ## General Info - **Year Published**: 2024 - **BGG Rating**: 8.4 - **BGG Rank**: — - **Players**: 1 (Best with: 1) - **Duration**: — - **Weight**: 3.13 / 5 - **Designers**: Dávid Turczi, Nick Shaw - **Artists**: Isaac Fryxelius, William Bricker - **Publishers**: FryxGames, Ghenos Games, Intrafin Games, Maldito Games, MeepleBR, MINDOK, Rebel Sp. z o.o., Reflexshop, Schwerkraft-Verlag, Stronghold Games - **Categories**: Economic, Environmental, Expansion for Base-game, Industry / Manufacturing, Science Fiction - **Mechanics**: Hand Management, Open Drafting, Tile Placement ## Verdict If you love Terraforming Mars and want a solo mode that truly challenges your skills, Automa is the missing upgrade.Engaging solo gameplayCompetition against AI-controlled corporationsSeamless integration with expansionsPolished and well-balanced mechanicsVariable playtimeRequires expansions for a richer experienceAlgorithm can be unpredictableRECOMMENDED ## Description Terraforming Mars: Automa delivers a fresh solo experience for the beloved Terraforming Mars. Instead of just racing the clock, the Automa pits you against corporações run by algorithms and special cards, creating a more dynamic and unpredictable strategic battle. The game keeps all the beloved mechanics—hand management, open drafting, and tile placement—and adapts them for a solo setting where every choice matters. The experience is even richer when you add expansions, as they integrate with the Automa’s algorithm, letting you tweak the difficulty and resource variety. The Automa design is accessible to those familiar with Terraforming Mars and to newcomers alike. Each session can last from 20 to 45 minutes, depending on expansions, with a complexity level ranging from medium to high—great for players who enjoy planning and optimization. The package includes a detailed rulebook, a set of corporation cards, a space board, 80 terra tiles, 120 resource cards, and a set of dice that run the Automa algorithm. If you love solo challenges that require strategic thinking and want to experience competing against your own AI, Terraforming Mars: Automa is a solid pick. It offers the same depth as the original, but with a solo mode that adapts to your pace and skill level. ## How to Play Game Objective In "Terraforming Mars: Automarte," you compete against the formidable MarsBot for supremacy in terraforming the red planet. The UN, dissatisfied with the current pace, has greenlit an experimental project: the MarsBot, an automated artificial intelligence to direct terraforming efforts. Your corporation must work under the MarsBot's command, but your goal is to surpass it. You must prove to the UN that only a human can truly design this new home for humanity. The victory condition is simple: you must exceed the MarsBot's final score to win. A tie is considered a MarsBot victory. Setup To play "Terraforming Mars: Automarte," you will set up the base game as if it were a two-player game (you can use the Corporate Era cards), with the following changes: Prepare the MarsBot board stand. Slide the Tharsis MarsBot board into the stand. Place the Tharsis reference card and the final score reference card next to the MarsBot board. Place a clear cube on the zero space of each MarsBot track. Choose a color for the MarsBot and place all player markers of that color next to the MarsBot board. Place the MarsBot bonus cards numbered B01 to B08 next to the MarsBot board. Shuffle them face down to form the MarsBot bonus deck. Return all other MarsBot bonus cards to the box. Assemble the MarsBot action deck (4 cards): Instead of a starting hand of 10 cards, give the MarsBot 3 face-down project cards next to the MarsBot deck. Shuffle one MarsBot bonus card into the MarsBot action deck. The MarsBot does not receive a corporation card. For a simpler game, it can be used without a corporation. Place all other MarsBot components back in the box, as they are used with expansion content. You are the starting player! Game Flow The game progresses in generations, with specific phases alternating between you and the MarsBot. PLAYER ORDER PHASE [2ND GENERATION ONWARD] From the 2nd generation onwards, alternate the first player token between you and the MarsBot, as you would in a two-player game. RESEARCH PHASE [2ND GENERATION ONWARD] In this phase, you will have 4 project cards to keep and pay for, as usual. The MarsBot will have an action deck of 4 cards: 3 project cards and 1 MarsBot bonus card. The MarsBot does not need to pay to keep its cards. If the MarsBot bonus deck is empty, shuffle the MarsBot bonus card discard pile face down to form a new MarsBot bonus deck. There are two variants for this phase: No Selection Draw 4 cards for yourself. Assemble the MarsBot action deck by drawing 3 project cards from the project deck and 1 MarsBot bonus card from the bonus deck. Selection Draw two piles of 4 cards from the project deck. Take one pile for yourself and give one to the MarsBot. Choose one card from your pile to keep. Give the MarsBot one card from its pile randomly. Swap piles with the MarsBot. Continue until both have kept 4 cards. Shuffle the cards the MarsBot drew, then discard 1 card to the project discard pile. Shuffle one MarsBot bonus card into the cards the MarsBot prepared. These 4 cards become the MarsBot action deck. You choose which of your cards to keep and pay for, as usual. Action Phase Alternate taking turns with the MarsBot until both you and the MarsBot have passed, using the following modified turn actions. YOUR TURN Take your turn normally, with the following exceptions: If an effect asks you to "Remove" any resources from any player, remove those resources from the MarsBot's MC supply (as if they were the corresponding resource type). If an effect asks you to "Steal" resources from any player, you may take resources from the MarsBot's MC supply (as if it were the type of resource you are stealing). If an effect asks you to "Decrease" any player's production value, move the corresponding MarsBot tracker one space backward. Here's how each production type is handled: Steel: Regress the Construction track. Titanium: Regress the Space track. MC: Regress the Event track. Energy: Regress the Energy track. Heat: Regress the City/Terra track. Plants: Regress the Microbe/Animal/Plant track. The MarsBot does not reactivate any previously activated actions after its production value has decreased. To remember this, place one of the MarsBot player markers on the space it was on before regressing. Remove this player marker once the MarsBot returns to that space; ignore all actions on that track until this happens. If an effect requires you to count the amount of something another, or all players have, use the respective tracks on the MarsBot board instead of their played cards. For example, if a card is comparing how many events all players have played, use the space number on the event track where the cube is. Always use the current position of the tracker, even if it has regressed due to its production decreasing. MARSBOT'S TURN If the MarsBot still has any cards in its action deck, it will resolve 1 card on its turn. It flips the top card of the MarsBot action deck and resolves it as follows: Resolving a Project Card The MarsBot ignores all card abilities/effects/restrictions. For each tag in the upper right corner of the card, from left to right and one at a time, match each icon to the respective track on the MarsBot board and advance the corresponding track one space to the right. If the MarsBot is already at the end of the desired track, it performs an Action Failure (gains 5 MC instead of moving the corresponding tracker). If the tracker lands on an action icon while advancing, it immediately performs the action of that icon. If the played card has no tags, the MarsBot performs an Action Failure. When the card is fully resolved, place it on the MarsBot's played cards pile. Resolving a MarsBot Bonus Card: Resolve the card's effect, if possible. If not possible, do not perform an Action Failure (the card will specify if the MarsBot receives any other benefit for failing to perform the card's primary effect). If the card has a list of options by letters, start from the top to see which one is applicable. When one can be resolved, resolve it and skip the rest of the card. Place the card on the bonus card discard pile. If the MarsBot has no cards in its action deck, it passes the round. PRODUCTION PHASE Your production is unaffected. The MarsBot skips this phase. Actions and How to Play In addition to the normal base game actions you perform, the MarsBot has its own actions and ways of interacting with the game. MARSBOT BOARD ACTIONS When the MarsBot advances a track to an icon, it immediately performs the corresponding action. If it cannot resolve the action, it performs an Action Failure. The MarsBot can perform the following actions: Advance Tracker: The MarsBot advances its tracker to the next location. This may cause it to perform an additional tracking action. Advance another track: When the space shows the tag of another track, advance (and resolve) that track. This may cause it to perform an additional tracking action. Gain TR: The MarsBot gains the number of TR shown on this icon. Claim Milestone: The MarsBot claims an unclaimed milestone for which it meets the criteria. The MarsBot does not pay to claim a milestone. If three have already been claimed or if it does not meet the criteria for any milestone, the MarsBot performs an Action Failure. For the Tharsis board, the milestone requirements for the MarsBot are: Terraformer / Mayor / Gardener: Unchanged. (MarsBot meets requirements after reaching 35TR / placing 3 city tiles / placing 3 greenery tiles, respectively). Builder: MarsBot reaches space 8 on the Construction track. Planner: The MarsBot reaches space 4 on all tracks on its board. If the MarsBot meets the criteria for multiple milestones, use the following tie-breaking criteria: The one you also meet the criteria for. The one you are closest to meeting the criteria for. The one furthest to the left. Fund Award: The MarsBot funds the award that is furthest ahead of you in terms of requirements (if multiple are tied: the leftmost one). The MarsBot does not pay to fund an award. If the MarsBot cannot fund an award because three have already been funded, or it is not ahead of you in any requirement, it performs an Action Failure. For the Tharsis board, the award evaluation criteria for the MarsBot are: Landlord: Unchanged. (Number of owned tiles in play). Banker: The sum of the MarsBot's current positions on the MC and Titanium tracks. Scientist: MarsBot's current position on its Science track. Thermalist: MarsBot's current position on its Heat track plus 5. Miner: MarsBot's current position on its Steel track plus 5. When comparing the potential of any award that requires remaining resources (Thermalist, Miner, etc.), the MarsBot considers its current number of resources plus its Production. Increase Temperature: The MarsBot increases the temperature by one level. Place a Greenery [+ increase Oxygen]: The MarsBot places a greenery tile and increases oxygen by 1 level. Place the greenery tile so that it is adjacent to as many of its own cities as possible, avoiding adjacency with any of your cities. The MarsBot must still obey greenery placement rules (i.e., next to its own tiles when possible, and not on reserved spaces). Place Ocean: The MarsBot places an ocean tile on any reserved ocean space. Place a City: The MarsBot places a city tile adjacent to as much existing greenery as possible. The MarsBot must still comply with city placement rules (i.e., not adjacent to other cities, not on reserved spaces). City / Greenery / Ocean Tile Placement Tie-breakers For city tiles and greenery tiles, these tie-breakers come after their own adjacency conditions. Adjacent to as many oceans as possible. Cover as many reward icons as possible. Determine randomly: Flip a card from the project deck. Use the card's cost to count through the remaining tied spaces, starting from the top-left corner, going right, then down to the leftmost space of the next row, continuing and restarting as needed. Place the tile on the final space, then discard the flipped project card. MarsBot Placement Bonuses If the MarsBot places any tile adjacent to an ocean tile, it gains 2 MC. If the MarsBot places a tile that covers reward icons (plants, steel, titanium, cards, etc.), it gains 1 MC for each icon covered (instead of the printed rewards). MarsBot Terraforming Bonuses If the MarsBot increases the temperature to a bonus level that provides heat production (-24 C and -20 C), the MarsBot gains 2 MC instead of the heat bonus. If the MarsBot increases the temperature or oxygen to a bonus level that provides another terraforming action, it resolves that other terraforming action immediately (performing an Action Failure if it cannot resolve it). Whenever the MarsBot increases any of the terraforming metrics, it increases its TR accordingly. ## FAQ ### How long does a game of Terraforming Mars: Automa take? Playtime ranges from 20 to 45 minutes, depending on which expansions you add. Core game alone is shorter, but expansions extend the duration. ### What is the game's complexity level? The complexity sits between medium and high. You’ll need to plan cards, resources, and terraforming strategy, but the Automa mechanic helps keep the pace. ### What components are included in the set? The set comes with a detailed rulebook, a space board, 80 terra tiles, 120 resource cards, 8 corporation cards, special dice for the Automa algorithm, and production tokens. ### Who is Terraforming Mars: Automa best suited for? Ideal for Terraforming Mars fans craving a deep solo mode, strategy and optimization lovers, and anyone looking to challenge an AI competitor. ### How does the Automa algorithm work? The algorithm reads corporation cards and available resources, then decides which actions to take each turn. It aims to balance competition and ensure the game progresses fairly. ### Can I use existing Terraforming Mars expansions? Yes! You can add any official expansion you already own, such as Colonists, Climate, or others, and the Automa adapts to incorporate those new resources. ### What’s the difference between Automa mode and normal play? In normal play you compete against other human players, whereas Automa pits you against AI-controlled corporations, changing the competition dynamics and strategic planning. ## Price Comparison ### Best Offers in Brazil - **Amazon**: R$ 272,91 (https://www.amazon.com.br/dp/B0DN3D8PYR?tag=bgbot26b-20&linkCode=as2) - **Meca dos Jogos**: R$ 246,33 (https://www.mecadosjogos.com.br/terraforming-mars-automarte-p601?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **Brechó Lúdico**: R$ 248,98 (https://brecholudico.com.br/produto/terraforming-mars-automarte/?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **Caixinha Boardgames**: R$ 250,17 (https://www.caixinhaboardgames.com.br/produtos/automarte-expansao-terraforming-mars/?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **Livtoys**: R$ 250,17 (https://www.livtoys.com.br/boardgames/expansoes/terraforming-mars-automarte?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - **Facil Shopping**: R$ 253,61 (https://www.facilshopping.com.br/produtos/terraforming-mars-automarte-expansao-meeple-br/?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - See all on Compara Jogos: https://www.comparajogos.com.br/item/terraforming-mars-automa ### Best International Offers - **BoardGamePrices.com**: $ 32.43 (https://boardgameprices.com/item/go?source=A&storeitemid=5969893&utm_source=boardgamesbot.com) - See all on BoardGamePrices: https://boardgameprices.com/item/show/72564/terraforming-mars-automa?utm_source=boardgamesbot.com