How to Play

Xia: Legends of a Drift System

3-5 players 60-180 min 7.9 Board Game Geek Rating

In this 3-5 player space sandbox, captains customize starships and explore a randomly-generated galaxy. Players complete missions, engage in combat, trade cargo, and mine resources to earn Fame Points. Victory goes to whoever accumulates the most fame by adapting strategies—whether becoming peaceful traders, aggressive pirates, or opportunistic explorers across the ever-changing board.

Published 2014

Xia: Legends of a Drift System

Get Ready

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

1
Shuffle Sector Tiles
Deal one Sector tile per captain, placing them one at a time face up in the center of the play area, lining up edge symbols with previously laid sectors
2
Place Exploration Tokens
Shuffle the Relic Tokens and Exploration Tokens, then place an Exploration Token face down on any Exploration Spaces on the starting tiles
3
Shuffle Card Decks
Shuffle the Mission Cards, Title Cards, and Event Cards (if using), placing decks face down within reach of all captains
4
Prepare Supply
Place Cargo Cubes, Damage Markers, Ice Damage Markers (if using), Outfits, Mods, Credits, and Dice within reach of all captains
5
Distribute Starting Resources
Give each captain one How to Win Card and 4,000 Credits
6
Distribute NPC Cards
Shuffle the three NPC Cards (Enforcer, Merchant, and Scoundrel) and deal one face up to each captain (in 4 or 5 captain games, not everyone gets one)
7
Place Fame Point Track
Place the Fame Point Track (or Event Fame Point Track if using) in the play area
8
Set Up Economy Board
If using the Economy Board, determine starting cubes for each cube type by rolling d6 and placing that number of cubes on each type's space
9
Choose Ships
Separate the blue Tier 1 Ship Mats and matching Ship Ability Cards and miniatures
10
Distribute Player Components
Each captain takes an Impulse Token, a set of six Markers, and a Color Token
11
Purchase Starting Outfits
In the same order as ship selection, each captain may spend their Credits to purchase Outfits that fit in the Hold
12
Determine First Player
The captain who picked their ship last takes the First Player token and takes the first turn

On Your Turn

What you can do during your turn.

1
Declare Actions
State the Action being taken before spending resources
2
Spend Resources
Spend required Energy or Armed Markers and roll any associated dice
3
Resolve Effects
Apply the results of the action
4
*Minor Actions (can be taken during movement without ending it)
**
5
Blind Jump
When adjacent to an unexplored edge with unspent movement, declare a destination hex, draw a new Sector, place it matching symbols, and move into the declared hex resolving consequences
6
Draw Missions
When on a Mission Point with less Active Missions than the Active Mission Limit, draw three face down Mission Cards as a Minor Action (once per Mission Point per turn)
7
Collect Cargo
Pick up Cargo Cubes on a board space when the ship is in the same space
8
Jettison Cargo/Mission
Transfer cargo cubes from the ship's hold into the hex occupied, or discard an Active Mission Card
9
Collect Exploration Token
Move onto an Exploration Space, flip the token face up, receive the reward, and place the token on the Ship Mat
10
Resolve Border/Path Effect
When crossing a Border requiring a d20 roll, apply and resolve immediately then continue moving
11
Shields Up
Activate a Shield Outfit for defense against an attack or board effect
12
Use Gate
Spend 1 Movement Point on a Gate's green border to travel to any space on another Gate (except Tigris Gate)
13
*Standard Actions (end movement if taken while moving)
**
14
Fire Main Engine
Spend Armed Markers on Engine Outfits to move, rolling the associated die for Movement Points
15
Impulse Movement
Exhaust the Impulse Token (flip yellow side down) to move spaces equal to the ship's Impulse value without spending energy
16
Scan Sector
When adjacent to an unexplored edge, spend 1 energy to draw and place a new Sector Tile
17
Rescue
When adjacent to a Stranded captain's ship and having at least 3 energy, transfer 2 Energy to the Stranded ship and earn 1 Fame Point
18
Reveal Objective
Once a Mission's Start Conditions are met, reveal the Active Mission and complete any required rolls
19
Deliver Mission
With Mission Card Revealed and at the specified Delivery Mission Point, deliver the mission as a Standard Action to earn payment and 1 Fame Point
20
Attack with Blasters
Spend Armed Markers on Blaster Outfits to attack targets at range 1 with Line of Sight
21
Attack with Missiles
Spend Armed Markers on Missile Outfits to attack targets at range 2-6 with Line of Sight
22
Attack with Ramming
When adjacent to target, spend Armed Markers on Engine Outfits to ram, dealing damage to both ships
23
Buy Cargo Cubes
On a planet's Buy Space, spend 1,000 Credits for up to two Cargo Cubes of the specified type
24
Sell Cargo Cubes
On a planet's Sell Space, receive 1,000 Credits per matching Cargo Cube sold
25
Mine Cargo Cubes
On a Mining Space in an Asteroid sector, roll d20 (1-10: take damage equal to roll; 11-20: receive one Cargo Cube)
26
Harvest Cargo Cubes
On a Harvest Space in a Nebula sector, roll d20 (1-10: lose energy equal to roll; 11-20: receive one Cargo Cube)
27
Salvage Cargo Cubes
On a Salvage Space in a Debris sector, roll d20 (1-3: ship destroyed; 4-20: receive one Cargo Cube)
28
Quarry Ember Cubes
On a Quarry Space in an Ice Asteroids sector, roll d20 (1-10: take ice damage equal to roll; 11-20: receive one Ember Cargo Cube)
29
Excavate Relics
On a Dead World's Excavate space with Relic Tokens present, roll d20 (1-10: take ice damage equal to roll; 11-20: receive one Relic Token taking 2 cargo spaces)
30
Sift Relics
While docked with The Kiln with Relic Tokens in hold, remove a Relic to receive either 1 Fame Point OR the rewards shown on the token
31
Use Ship Ability Cards
Activate abilities as specified on the Ship Ability Card, spending required Energy and following card directions
32
*Movement Rules
**
33
Movement Points
Each Movement Point spent moves a ship one space; unspent points are lost when movement ends
34
Other Ships
Ships may move through spaces occupied by other ships but may not end movement in an occupied space
35
Using Occupied Hexes
To take an action on an occupied space, spend two movement points to move to and from the hex, immediately ending movement
36
Planetary Shields
Block adjacency and Line of Sight; passing through requires d20 roll (1-10: damage and blocked; 11-17: pass with bounty; 18-20: pass safely)
37
*Combat Procedure
**
38
Acquire Target
Choose a single target within Range that has Line of Sight (not blocked by Stars, Asteroids, Ice Asteroids, Debris Fields, or Planetary Shields)
39
Declare Attack
Declare target, Outfits and Abilities being used, and spend required Armed Markers/Energy
40
Declare Defense
Defending ship may use Shield Outfits and/or Abilities, spending required Armed Markers/Energy
41
Roll Dice
Attacker rolls first, then Defender rolls dice for declared Outfits/Abilities
42
Resolve Damage
Subtract Defense Value from Attack Value; Defender places that many Damage Markers in their Hold
43
Re-Arm Shields
Defenders may immediately re-arm Markers spent on Shields at a cost of 1 Energy per Marker
44
Buy New Ship
Purchase a ship exactly one tier higher than current ship (Tier 2 costs 5,000 Credits; Tier 3 costs 8,000 Credits) earning 1 Fame Point
45
Buy Outfits
Purchase new Outfits or Mods that fit in the Hold
46
Rearrange Hold
Rearrange undamaged Outfits/Mods and cargo in any legal configuration (damaged items cannot be rearranged)
47
Recharge Energy
Recharge Energy Meter to maximum for free
48
Repair Damage
Pay to remove normal Damage Markers (Tier 1 or 2 costs 1,000 Credits; Tier 3 costs 2,000 Credits)
49
Sell Outfits/Mods
Sell undamaged Outfits/Mods for half original cost rounded up (Tier 1: 1,000; Tier 2: 1,000; Tier 3: 2,000 Credits)
50
Thaw Ice Damage
Remove all Ice Damage Markers for free
51
Throw Some Credits Around
Spend 5,000 Credits to purchase 1 Fame Point (cannot purchase the final Fame Point needed for victory)
52
Freeze Ships
If using Ice Damage, place 1 Ice Damage Marker in every undamaged space orthogonally adjacent to existing Ice Damage (if this fills the hold, ship is destroyed)
53
Claim Existing Title
Claim any unclaimed Titles earned during the turn for 1-3 Fame Points
54
Draw New Title
When first reaching or passing a purple Title space on the Fame Point Track, draw a Title Card, read it aloud, and place it face up for any captain to claim
55
Refresh
Flip exhausted Ship Ability Cards and Impulse Token face up
56
Arm Markers
Move spent or Disarmed Markers to Armed Spaces on the Ship Mat
57
In Demand Cargo
If using Economy Board and any resource section is empty, place 1,000 Credits on that empty section
58
Select Active Mission
Look at all face down mission cards, select at least 1 Active Mission card, then discard down to Active Mission Limit (default is 1, M-Comp units increase this)
59
*Big Shipment Rules
**
60
Qualify for Big Shipment
Sell at least 2 Cargo Cubes AND all cubes the location can buy to earn 1 Fame Point
61
Partial Sales
Selling fewer cubes than the location can buy earns Credits but no Fame Point
62
*Bounty Rules
**
63
Innocent Ships
All ships start without Bounties and are Innocent
64
Outlaw Ships
Ships that commit illegal acts accrue Bounties and become Outlaws
65
Raiding
Destroying an Innocent ship adds 1,000 Credits Bounty
66
Evading
Crossing a Planetary Shield instead of using the legal Planetary Entrance risks adding 1,000 Credits Bounty
67
Crime
Outlaw Missions specify Bounty amounts for completing or failing (1,000-2,000 Credits)
68
Associating With Outlaws
An Innocent ship passing through the Planetary Entrance of an Outlaw planet receives 1,000 Credits Bounty
69
Claiming a Bounty
Destroying an outlaw ship awards all credits in the outlaw's Bounty to the destroying captain
70
Removing a Bounty
Bounties are removed when the ship is destroyed or when purchasing a new ship
71
*Stranded Rules
**
72
Become Stranded
A captain with no Energy and no Armed Markers is Stranded
73
Stranded Limitations
May only use Impulse Engines for movement, can only take Minor Actions, cannot take Standard Actions
74
End Stranded Status
Gain 1 or more Energy or Armed Markers (through Rescue or Recharging at a Starport)
75
*Damage and Destruction
**
76
Taking Damage
Place Damage Markers in Hold spaces of choice; each marker takes 1 space
77
Damage on Cargo
If damage is placed on a space with Cargo Cube or Relic, that item is immediately Jettisoned
78
Damage on Outfits
Each Damage Marker on an Outfit Section reduces its rolls by 1; Use Spaces with Damage cannot be used
79
Ship Destroyed
When total damage equals or exceeds Hold spaces, or from instant death effects (Debris Field 1-3, Star entry, Blind Jump into star)
80
Respawn
On the turn after destruction, roll d20 and place ship on the unoccupied Spawn Point closest to the number rolled
81
Keep on Death
Retain all Outfits, Mods, Credits, and Fame
82
Lose on Death
Discard all Mission cards, lose all Cargo (Jettisoned in destruction hex; Relics are destroyed), remove Bounty
83
*NPC Rules
**
84
NPC Spawning
NPCs Spawn only when their specific Sector Tile is placed on the board, appearing on that Spawn Point
85
NPC Turns
Captains with NPC Cards take a turn for that NPC directly after their own turn, following the NPC Card directions
86
NPC Movement
NPCs move toward targets via the safest, most direct route; can use Gates; avoid Stars, Asteroids, Ice Asteroids, Debris Fields, and Planetary Shields
87
NPC Combat Defense
NPCs automatically defend using defense specified on their NPC Card and roll shield defense vs board effects
88
NPC Damage
Place Damage Markers on the NPC's Card; when damage equals or exceeds "To Kill" number, NPC is destroyed
89
NPC Destruction Rewards
Collect Credits on the NPC's Card and Fame Points specified in "On Kill" section
90
NPC Respawn
NPCs Respawn on the turn after their destruction at a random, unoccupied spawn point

Winning

How to claim victory.

1
Reach Victory Threshold
When a captain's Marker on the Fame Point Track reaches the space occupied by the Victory Token, the game ends immediately and that captain is declared the winner
2
Variable Game Length
At game start, captains decide the number of Fame Points needed by placing the Victory Token on the Fame Point Track at the desired number
3
Cannot Purchase Final Fame Point
Captains may not use "Throw Some Credits Around" to purchase the final Fame Point required for victory
4
*Ways to Earn Fame Points
**
5
Exploring
Collect Exploration Tokens; some are worth 1 Fame Point (with Embers tokens, accumulating 2 tokens grants choice of 1 Fame Point OR 2,000 Credits)
6
Rescue
Rescue a Stranded captain to earn 1 Fame Point
7
Relics
Sift Relic Tokens at The Kiln for 1 Fame Point or other rewards
8
Missions
Complete each Mission to earn 1 Fame Point
9
Combat
Destroy another ship to earn Fame Points equal to the destroyed ship's tier
10
Trade
Sell a Big Shipment of Cargo Cubes (minimum 2 cubes AND all cubes the location can buy) to earn 1 Fame Point
11
**

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