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XIA: Hope for a World Reborn - A Custom Ruleset

DISCLAIMER: This version of XIA was made for me and my friends who really enjoy XIA but find its standard rules to be frustratingly underwhelming, full of RNG, and incredibly fiddly. If you wish to play a standard game of XIA, this mod was NOT designed to support that.

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This is an edited version of Darkindica's table for XIA: Embers of a Forsaken Star. I've also carefully ported over the Missions and Powers expansion from Muskrat Steve's mod, including the Errata'd content, integrating them directly into the setup.

This mod features a brand new way to play Xia that breathes new life into its mechanics.
One of the main goals of this ruleset was to remove most of the hidden information that the standard rules of XIA requires you play with.

Instead, opportunities to score are laid out clearly and openly, allowing players to plot their routes and strategize against other players in open and direct conflict. No more wandering aimlessly to "roll and find out" whether your actions were worth any FP, and no more point drought after all the Exploration Tokens have been snatched up.

Significantly Reduced RNG.
Gone are several methods of scoring that relied entirely on luck-based mechanics. No more getting massive rolls of movement to grab every Exploration Token and shoot into the lead, no more convenient Events suddenly offering Victory Points for the single person who just happened to be close enough to make use of it. Powerful Engines with massive movement rolls are NOT the only road to victory anymore.

Every Fame Point you earn is a direct result of your actions.

Missions are always available to everyone.
With the introduction of the Mission Board, players will always be able plot their courses far in advance instead of only finding out where their options are after they fly aimlessly through Mission Points.

Not only does this allow players to take their turns efficiently by giving them the information they need by the time their Turn begins, this also makes Missions far more involved in the overarching gameplay AND takes away one of the main elements that make XIA's Roll-to-Move gameplay so frustrating.

Players can steal opportunities from others, or use the Mission Board to predict their opponents' intentions. A shared experience, unlike the standard ruleset where all players' Missions are hidden away for most of the game.

Turns and Rounds make an appearance. No more waiting.
Players will perform 1-2 Armed Marker actions before ending their turn, allowing the next Player in Turn Order to play before it comes back to them again. Only one of these actions may be spent performing an Engine-type action. When all Players have either "Passed for the Round", or run out of possible actions, a new Round begins.

This allows for Players to weave reactions and decisions in between each others' turns, as well as actually react to changes in board state. Instead of being forced to suffer analysis paralysis in making the most of your 4 Armed Markers, you're given time to breathe and analyse your options.

Always be checking the Mission Board, Titles and Events, as well as the board itself to inform your decisions. By the time your Turn comes back to you, you'll already know what you want to do.

NPCs move after you do.
Each player responsible for an NPC will perform that NPC's actions immediately after their Turn (1-2 Armed Markers) ends.

NPCs are more alive, truly moving around the board like the players do. Both the Scoundrel and the Enforcer become true threats that pursue their marks, and the Merchant will actually be able to complete their Trade Routes with ease.

A refined, true Sandbox RPG experience.
The game now begins slowly, and intensifies gradually. As players become stronger, they'll begin to open new paths to gaining Fame Points more quickly. Your Ship is your most important asset and your ticket to galactic Fame.

Be rewarded for taking the time to strengthen your vessel before expanding your opportunities to score.

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Please check the Rules for this version of XIA using the in-game Notebook.
Feel free to ask any questions you have about this Ruleset in the comments, but please check in-game for more full details.

There is also some minor new lore designed to add a little context/flavour as to why this version of the game should feel very different than the original experience that XIA delivers. This serves to provide some flavour, but also to somewhat contextualize why the rules changes are relevant to the theme of the game as well.

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Within the in-game Notebook is a lengthy overview of all the new rules.
A smaller reference for some of the more prominent rules is written in the bottom-right, but DOES NOT feature all of the rules changes made for this mod.

Some changes include (but are not exclusive to):
- BIG Rules Improvements for Faster/Interactive/Intuitive Play
- Turns and Rounds
- NPCs Move More Often
- New NPC Target Trackers and Miniature Tooltips
- Public "Mission Board"
- Lawful and Outlaw Missions Separated
- Titles at the Beginning of the Game
- FULLY Rewritten Event Deck
- Ship Abilities and Powers Up-to-Date and Organized Neatly
- Larger, Intimidating Sector Tile Portal
- Moody Lighting

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Many images and files were originally hosted through Imgur for Darkindica's mod, and so I have future-proofed this version with files hosted to the Steam Cloud.