Ad Astra

From the publisher's website:-

Ad Astra takes three to five players into a possible future where five disparate human subraces must take the next step and explore the wider galaxy, searching for new planets to call home. In the search for a New Earth, players will discover uninhabited resource-rich planets and mine them for the building blocks of a new galactic empire, space ships, colonies, and factories.

Description

In the distant future, Homo Sapiens has slowly colonized its solar system and over the course of centuries has evolved and adapted, diverging into five new races, suited to life in different planetary environments.

But danger threatens as the life-giving star for all five Homo Sapiens subspecies, Sol, is dimming, beginning its final descent into oblivion and wiping out humanity with it, unless new worlds can be found in distant galaxies.

Will you lead your people out of darkness and into the bright future of a new galactic empire?

In Ad Astra, three to five players will take on the roles of one of five human subspecies and explore the galaxy in search of new planets to mine for resources or settle on and terraform into habitable worlds. Also hidden in the furthest reaches of unexplored space are the relics of dead alien civilizations - technology which provides massive powers - the reward for those brave humans who dare the depths of the galaxy.

Competition for resources will be fierce and only through a certain amount of cooperation and trade amongst humanity's factions will one player be able to rise above the others and forge a new galactic empire!

3 -5 players

90 minutes

Ages 10+

Guru View  : A little bit of Race for the Galaxy, a splash of Settlers but with its own scoring mechanism. I thoroughly enjoy this game; it requires careful planning combined with a little psychology. Recommended.