How to Play

Race to Kepler: A Deckbuilding Space Adventure

2-4 players 30-60 min 8.6 Board Game Geek Rating

Earth's twenty largest cities flee a dying planet, competing to reach Kepler-452b first. Players command city-states in this interstellar race, recruiting crew members, acquiring powerful Titans through bidding, and generating energy to fuel their spacecraft. Victory goes to whoever successfully reaches and establishes the first colony on humanity's new home.

Published 2026

Race to Kepler: A Deckbuilding Space Adventure

Get Ready

Setup the game with these step-by-step instructions before diving into your turn.

1
Place the boards
Put the Market and Spacetime Boards in the center of the play area
2
Position Titan Encounter tokens
Place one Titan Encounter token on spaces 1, 3, 5, 8, 11, 14, and 17 on the Spacetime board
3
Set the phase tracker
Place the phase tracker on the Launch (Phase I) space on the Spacetime Board
4
Prepare the Titan Deck
Shuffle all Titan cards and place them face-down on the Market Board
5
Set up the Crew Supply
Shuffle all Crew Supply cards (excluding Mafia cards) and place face-down on the Market Board, then lay out the top 5 cards face-up next to the deck
6
Place Gold cards
Put Gold cards face-up in their designated space on the Market Board
7
Organize resource tokens
Place Energy, Money, and Market Action tokens below the Spacetime Board
8
Choose your city
Deal 3 City cards to each player; each player chooses 1 to keep and returns others to the box
9
Take player components
Each player takes a Player-Aid card and places their corresponding Player Token on the 0 space of the Spacetime Board
10
Build your Personal Deck
Each player takes 7 Iron cards, 2 Gold cards, and 1 Mafia card, shuffles them, and places face-down to the left of their city card
11
Draw starting hand
Each player draws 5 cards and takes 1 Market Action token
12
Determine first player
Randomly select which player goes first

On Your Turn

What you can do during your turn.

1
Understand game phases
During Launch Phase, acquired cards go to discard pile; after first Titan Encounter, Race Phase begins and acquired cards go to hand
2
Complete three steps each turn
Perform Actions, then Cleanup, then check for Titan Encounter
3
Play cards from hand
Place cards face-up in your play area, resolve effects, and add any Money, Energy, or Market Actions to your available resources
4
Acquire Gold or Crew cards
Spend money equal to a card's cost and one Market Action token to add it to your discard (Phase I) or hand (Phase II)
5
Activate City Operations
Spend Energy equal to an Operation's cost to trigger its effect
6
Discard all cards
Move all cards in play and hand to your discard pile (this does not trigger "when discarded" effects)
7
Return unused resources
Return unused Energy and Money tokens to the supply; ensure you have one Market Action token for next turn
8
Draw new hand
Draw 5 cards from your deck
9
Trigger encounter
If you moved through a space with an unclaimed Titan Encounter token, remove the token and reveal the top 3 Titan cards
10
Determine bid order
Players choose bids starting with whoever has traveled the most Parsecs, proceeding backward to the player with fewest
11
Place your bid
Select any number of cards from your hand and place face-down in front of you
12
Reveal bids
All players simultaneously reveal their bidded cards
13
Calculate bid values
Add up the cost values in the upper right corner of bidded cards (Titan cards count as 0)
14
Award the Titan
Highest bidder chooses one of the three revealed Titans and adds it to their hand; shuffle unchosen Titans back into the deck
15
Discard bid cards
All players move their bidded cards to their discard piles (no "when discarded" effects trigger)
16
Money
Spend to purchase cards from the Crew Supply; lost at end of turn
17
Market Actions
Required to buy cards; one gained per turn; lost at end of turn
18
Energy
Spend to activate City Operations; lost at end of turn
19
Gain a card
Acquire and add to hand without spending Money or Market Actions
20
Eject a card
Move to the Airlock permanently; resolve any "when ejected" effects
21
Discard a card
Move to discard pile; resolve any "when discarded" effects
22
Jump Parsecs
Move your Player Token that many spaces right on the Spacetime Board

Winning

How to claim victory.

1
Reach Kepler first
The game ends immediately when any player reaches the 20 Parsec space on the Spacetime Board
2
Win during any timing
Victory can occur during the Action step of your turn or as a result of a Titan Encounter
3
Claim victory
The player who reaches the 20 Parsec space first wins the game

watch & Learn

Let the pros teach you with these top videos.

How to Play Race to Kepler | How to Game with Becca Scott

How to Play Race to Kepler | How to Game with Becca Scott

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Race to Kepler Play Through | The Game Haus

Race to Kepler Play Through | The Game Haus

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FULL rules

Looking for the full details? Grab the complete rulebook as a downloadable PDF.

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