Last Light

To set up Last Light, first assemble the three-part board, ensuring each section is correctly oriented for the number of players using the rulebook diagram. Then, place the asteroids, stations, planets, and explore tokens on the board according to the diagram. Planets are randomized within their designated positions, but explore tokens must be shuffled well and placed face down, with any remaining tokens removed from the game. Each player then receives a research board, their ships, extractors, a player aid, one white resource, one research card, a graveyard, six action cards, four planetary bonus cards, and two random races. Players choose one of the two random races to play as and one planetary achievement card to be their goal for the game.

The primary objective in Last Light is to accumulate the most light, which represents victory points, by the end of the game. Players will achieve this by exploring planets, gathering resources, researching technologies, building ships and extractors, and engaging in combat to control sectors and complete planetary achievements.

Most of Last Light is played simultaneously. Each player chooses an action card from their hand and places it face down. Once all players have chosen, everyone reveals their card. Turn order only becomes important if someone plays a command card; in this case, all other actions are resolved first, and then command actions are resolved in current turn order. Any cards played remain face up until a player takes the 'Refresh' action.

Players gain light (victory points) primarily through claiming planets and destroying enemy units. When a player takes the 'Refresh' action, they claim light for each planet they control: one light for each planet in the outer ring and two light for each planet in the inner ring. Additionally, when a player destroys four enemy units, those units are returned to their respective owners, and the attacking player gains light as a reward, the amount of which depends on the number of players in the game.

The game concludes at the end of a round when one or more players have accumulated more than 20 light. If multiple players exceed 20 light in the same round, the player with the highest total light wins. If there's a tie, the player who achieved their planetary achievement first wins. If still tied, the player with the most resources wins.