Warp's Edge - Quick Start Guide for Beginners

Reading time: approx. 5 minutes

Game Objective

You are a lone pilot in space, attempting to destroy an alien Mothership.

The game is played solo in multiple "Warps" – you learn and grow stronger with each attempt.

You win if you defeat all sections of the Mothership before you run out of Warps. The game ends immediately when a win or loss condition is met – the current step or turn is not completed.

Game Setup

Number of players: 1 player
Age: 10 years and up
Playing time: approx. 30–45 minutes (first game approx. 60 minutes)

Components (Core Game)

• 2 Fighter Ship Dashboards (double-sided) → 4 different fighter ships to choose from
• 3 Mothership Dashboards (double-sided) → 6 different motherships to choose from
• 27 Enemy Cards: 9× Level 1 🟡 (yellow), 9× Level 2 🟠 (orange), 9× Level 3 🔴 (red)
• 18 Skill Cards
• 10 Starting Tokens (white border) & 99 Standard Tokens (no border)
• 5 Damage Tokens
• 1 Hull Token (blue)
• 1 Shield Token (yellow)
• 1 Mothership Token (red)
• 1 Warp Token (red/white)
• 1 Cloth Bag (for tokens)
• 1 Reference Card
• 2 Token Trays (Original) or Deluxe Insert variant (ReDesign)
• 1 Main Insert (Original) or Deluxe Insert variant (ReDesign)
• 1 Storybook
• 1 Rulebook

Preparation

1. Choose one Fighter Ship Dashboard.
   Each dashboard is double-sided – choose the side that suits your playstyle.
2. Place the Hull Token on the highest number of the Hull track.
3. Place the Shield Token on the highest number of the Shield track.
4. Shuffle the Skill Cards, draw 2 cards and keep 1 of them.
   Place the other face down at the bottom of the deck.
5. Load the Power Token Tray with the 5 Power Token types,
   shown in your fighter ship's Loadout track.
6. Place the 10 Starting Tokens in the bag.
7. Additionally, take your 🟡 yellow Signature Power Token – identifiable as the yellow token in the Loadout track – and also place it in the bag.
8. Shake the bag and then draw 5 tokens as your starting pool.
9. Choose a Mothership and check its associated rules on the dashboard.
10. Place the Warp Token on space 1 of the Warp track.
11. Prepare the required number of Damage Tokens (1 per Mothership section).

Assembling the Enemy Deck

Sort the enemy cards into 3 face-down piles and shuffle them separately:

• Level 1 🟡 (yellow) → draw the number of cards indicated on the Mothership Dashboard, set them aside.
• Level 2 🟠 (orange) → draw the indicated number of cards, set them aside.
• Level 3 🔴 (red) → draw the indicated number of cards, set them aside.

First place the 🟥 red pile face down, then 🟧 orange on top, finally 🟨 yellow on top. Then reveal 4 enemy cards and lay them out as an enemy row from left to right. Unused enemy cards are returned to the box.

Gameplay (one Warp)

Each Warp consists of several turns with 4 phases:

1. ENEMY CONTACT

• Empty spaces in the enemy row are refilled up to 4 enemies.
• New enemy ships appear before you.
• Filling is always from left to right, one space at a time. If there are not enough cards in the enemy pile, as many spaces as possible are filled – the remaining spaces stay empty and cards are not pushed together.

2. PILOT ACTIONS

Use the tokens from your pool. You can perform each action as often as you like, as long as you have the necessary tokens:

• 🔴 Fire Lasers → Assign a Laser Token to an enemy. The enemy is stunned and does not attack. If the total value of assigned Lasers reaches the enemy's Hull value, it is destroyed. You receive the reward – new tokens come from the Supply directly into the bag. If the Supply is empty, there is no reward.
  
  
• 🔵 Perform Maneuvers → Assign a Maneuver Token to an enemy. The enemy is stunned. If the total value reaches the enemy's Speed value, it is evaded. Reward applies the same as for Lasers.
  
  
• 🟢 Repair Shields → Discard an Energy Token. Your shields increase by double the token's value: Value 1 = +2 shields, Value 2 = +4 shields, Value 3 = +6 shields. The discarded Energy Token goes into the discard area – not into the bag.
  
  
• 🔵🟢🔴⚪🟡 Buy Tokens → Discard one or more Energy Tokens (discard area). Buy tokens from the supply whose total cost does not exceed the total value of the discarded Energy. Unspent Energy is lost – you don't get "change". Instead, use it to absorb your shield damage. The discarded Energy Tokens go into the discard area and not back into the bag. The purchased tokens go directly into the bag. The Energy Tokens only return to the bag in the next Warp.
  
  
• ⚪🟡 Use Power Tokens → Use one of your 5 personal Power Token types for their unique effect. Many count as Lasers or Maneuvers and stun enemies.
  
  
• 🟦 Activate Skill Card → Assign the required tokens to the skill card. One-time effects: Discard tokens, apply effect, exhaust card (rotate 90°). Permanent (ongoing effect): To activate once, assign the required tokens and use the card in this Warp. Afterwards, permanently remove the token to the box (main box_bottom). The effect applies for the rest of the game and the card is not exhausted.

And at the end of Step 2 (PILOT ACTIONS), all unused tokens from the pool are placed in the discard area (to the right of your fighter ship dashboard).

3. ENEMY ATTACKS

The attacks and maneuvers may and should even be handled in a flexibly chosen order to achieve the best tactical advantages.

For each enemy:

1. Does the enemy have a token under it? → It is stunned, does not attack.
   
   
2. No token → It deals damage equal to its attack value.
   Damage goes first to your shields (unless otherwise specified), then to the hull.
   
   
3. For each shield damage: Remove 1 token from the discard area permanently (back into the game box / main box bottom).
   If you don't have enough tokens in the discard, remove as many as possible.
   
   
4. All assigned tokens / handled tokens from under the enemy card are moved above the enemy card – the enemy is no longer stunned, but the tokens still count towards its resistance value.

After that, – depending on the Mothership rule – the active Mothership sections also attack. Except for Mothership "THE DREAD"

Attacking the Mothership:

Attacks on Mothership "THE DREAD" are only possible if all enemy cards/escort ships have been defeated in this Warp. Then you can attack as often as your tokens allow. If the bag becomes empty in step 4, the Warp ends immediately. Inflicted damage remains permanently.

The Dread ★ – Protected. First defeat all enemies, then attack. Gets stronger with each defeated section.

The Duo ★★★ – Two Motherships simultaneously, each with its own enemy deck. Rotating activation cycle determines which rules apply.

The Hydra ★★ – Unprotected. Attackable every round. One section can only be defeated by energy. Shield repair only gives +1 instead of +2.

The Array ★★★★ – Unprotected. Five sections with a rotating activation token – only one section active at a time.

The Revenant ★★★ (Front) – Protected. After all 3 sections, the dashboard immediately flips – second phase begins.

The Revenant ★★★★ (Back) – Unprotected. New enemy deck with all cards. Paralysis resistance against lasers.

Link to detailed description of all Motherships

4. PLANNING PHASE

Shake the bag. Draw 5 new tokens from the bag and place them in your pool. All unused tokens from your token pool (except the hold) have already been placed in the discard area (to the right of your fighter ship dashboard) at the end of step 2.

A Warp ends immediately if you can draw fewer than 5 tokens from the bag.
You therefore do not play another turn with these tokens.

End of Warp

Then the following happens in this order:

1. All tokens from the pool, discard area, and from enemies as well as skill cards return to the bag. Important: Damage tokens remain on the Mothership! Tokens in the hold remain there.
   
   
2. All enemy cards from the enemy row and the discard pile are shuffled together and placed face down on the remaining enemy pile.
   
   
3. Exhausted skill cards (rotated 90° horizontally) are reactivated (rotated 90° vertically). You draw 2 new skill cards and keep 1.
   The other goes face down to the bottom of the deck.
   
   
4. The Warp Token moves 1 space further on the Mothership's Warp track.
   
   
5. Shake the bag and immediately draw 5 tokens as the pool for the first turn of the next Warp.

Game End

• You destroy all sections of the Mothership → Victory
  
  
• The last Warp ends → Defeat
  
  
• Your hull reaches 0 → Instant Defeat (except for the fighter ship "ACHILLES" – for him, hull and shields are reset to maximum instead, and the current Warp ends immediately)

Warp's Edge – Tips, Strategies & Common Mistakes

Conclusion

Warp's Edge is a tactical solo game with high replayability. Its special appeal lies in the mix of bag-building, learning curve, and time-loop mechanics, where each attempt makes you stronger.

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These contents serve as unofficial game aids and are based on our own explanations and strategies. They are not affiliated with the publisher or rights holder of the game.

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