Ken H.
United States
Amherst
Ohio
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I made up this 2-player version many months ago, but never posted it. In light of this thread about another variant, I thought I would post my version even though it’s really nothing new. Like any good CE variant, it is completely untested.
Two Player CE using dummy players
1. Summary:
In this variant, there are two neutral players in the game. The real players will sometimes control one (or even both) of the neutral players, and will make plays for them. The neutral players do not get turns, but they are available to ally, and they can also be the defender in an encounter. The neutral players can technically win the game, but it’s very unlikely since they never get to be the main offensive player.
2. Set up:
Place the two neutral players between the two real players. That is, you will have one neutral player to your right, and one to your left.
Draw random aliens for the neutral players. Do this before the human players choose their own powers. Any power that only works only as offensive main player (such as Will or Spiff) should be redrawn for the neutral players. After the random draw, the real players should choose their powers by whatever method you normally use.
3. Who controls the neutral players:
Choose a physical object to be the control marker. The Prometheus token would make a good marker.
Here is the key rule: The control marker will rotate around the board, moving one system per encounter. When a real player has possession of this marker, that player is the controller of BOTH neutral players. When a neutral player has possession of the marker, then that neutral is under the control of the Offense, and the other neutral is under the control of the real player who is not the Offense. And when your opponent has possession of the marker, you control only your own position.
"Control" means that you decide what cards to play from the neutral player’s hand, and when (or if) to use its alien power. You also determine if the neutral player makes alliance invitations, and how it responds if invited by someone else. You make all other decisions as well, including whether to research Tech (if applicable) and what type of alliance rewards to take, etc.
Your decisions do not have to actually benefit the neutral player in any way, and may actively hurt it. So, you can play a card just to get rid of it, so your opponent can’t use it against you. You must still have a legal target and timing for any plays, though. You can play cards from the neutral hand only if they would be legal plays for that player -- thus, you cannot use the neutral player’s Attack 30 as your own encounter card.
The control marker passes one system to the left at the end of each encounter. It starts the game held by the real player who will not be going first. (Remember, the neutral players don’t get turns, so one of the real players will be going first, and the other will be going second.)
In summary, each real player will control BOTH of the neutrals in one out of every four encounters. And each real player will control ONE of the neutrals in two out of four encounters.
4. Additional rules:
The neutral players follow these rules:
(a) As mentioned, they do not get a turn. They can never be the attacker, and will never initiate an encounter. Ignore any power use or card that would cause a neutral player to become the main player on offense.
(b) A neutral player can be the defender, but only if the Offense is not currently controlling it. You should never be in a position where you are playing a card (or negotiating a deal) as the main player for both sides. When your destiny draw indicates you should encounter a neutral player whom you are currently controlling, then treat it as though you drew your own color. That means you can draw again, or you can challenge a colony in your home system (not in the neutral player’s system).
(c) When making ship movement choices for a neutral player, you may not cause the neutral player to voluntarily abandon a colony. Thus, the neutral player may sometimes be unable to ally or to use certain powers (like Kamikaze). When a neutral player is forced to move ships (as with the Plague artifact, the Cudgel power, etc.), you may abandon a colony only if there are not enough ships elsewhere to avoid abandoning it.
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