Invader
Alert
Invasion
Resource
Type
Power of Invasion
Ambushes Aliens
Setup: Manifest 3 additional charges of your color in the destiny pool with an “invasion marker.”
During destiny, when your color is manifested, you may use this power to request a free resupply and/or ambush the current invader. If the destiny has an invasion marker, scramble destiny when the original invader continues their invasion.
Legacy: When an alien’s destiny color manifests, that alien may ambush the invader.
This wily race loved invading other planets long before the Cosmic arms race began. Impatient and easily bored, the Invaders assert that they should be the only Invaders due to their name alone.
Not Invader: Destiny
Optional
Wild Flare
At any time, you may discharge this flare to receive a resupply. Burnout.
Any: Any
Super Flare
During launch, after you ambush an alien using your power, you may discharge this flare to revive ships and add them to the gate. You may not exceed gate capacity.
Invader: Launch
Modifications
- Original Invader adds special “Invader!” destiny to the deck to avoid having to add double destiny cards for each color in the physical game and making Invader have twice as many turns as the defender. I modified Invader to distinguish its original destiny from the invasion destiny to produce the same effect.
- Original Super Invader only gets its power from the “Invader” destiny. My version allows it to use the effect whenever using its power.
- Invader’s legacy allows everyone to invade when their destiny is manifested, without being able to receive resupplies or get double destiny. Invader-only alien powers like Mite and Leviathan get the most benefit from this one, since they can use their power more often. Original Cosmic has no legacies.
Tips
- Invader is another flavor of “gains invasions” aliens, similar to Siren and Machine. As with Siren, Invader gets to treat its main campaign less seriously than most aliens.
- Since Invader can gain resupplies so easily, it doesn’t need to worry as much about the strength of its cache. It can keep dumping its pods as many times as it wants until it gets something good.
- Invader can leverage its ambushes to gain more resources via compensation or negotiation. Or it can simply work to gain dominion faster. Since it gets these extra invasions, Invader doesn’t have to concern itself as much with sponsoring other aliens.
Development Notes
- My slightly revised version of Invader works seamlessly with the idea that an invader cannot manifest their own destiny color.
- Unlike Siren or Machine, Invader has a hard limit to the additional number of invasions it gets through its power. Since it can gain a free resupply for each one and doesn’t risk much when ambushing, it doesn’t have to treat its invasions too seriously. If it works up a strong cache, it can still ambush without getting the resupply.
- I considered if I wanted to change Invader’s name to prevent the confusion of Invader vs. invader. I figure since we have an alien named Alien, this isn’t much of an issue. It isn’t a problem in the base game, since “offense” is used instead of “invader.
- One issue I ran into with my attempted streamlined design was that Invader getting double destiny colors means it gets twice as many turns as defender in addition to invader. I concluded that distinguishing the extra destiny from the original by having it scramble destiny afterwards. I needed to specify that it continues when the original invader continues their invasion so that it still activates if Invader does not choose to use either aspect of its power. Otherwise, it would either allow or force Invader to get extra turns as the defender, which doesn’t fit the theme either way.