Doom: The Board Game

Doom: The Board Game (not to be confused with the release of the Doom 3-themed Doom: The Boardgame) is an officially licensed table-top board game released by  on, adapting the themes and settings of Doom (2016). It is a game for two to five players (up to four marines and one invader) and typically lasts for two to three hours per game. It is suggested for players ages fourteen and up. It was designed by Jonathan Ying, and developed by Derrick Fuchs and Andrew Wyshock.

Overview
The game plays much faster than its predecessor, with quick exploration and invasion mechanics. It has been compared favorably to similar board games such as Star Wars: Imperial Assault by critics. Up to four players take on the roles of UAC marines in a fireteam and oppose a single invader player who controls the game's monsters. A significant departure from the earlier game is the lack of ammunition; instead, players can attack based on the cards in their action deck.

It has especially been noted for the quality of its figures for the players and demons, which are large, detailed, and neutrally colored.

Game contents
The following pieces are included:
 * Rules reference
 * Operation guide, containing two prebuilt operations consisting of six missions each
 * 37 figures (4 marines and 33 demons)
 * 6 dice (4 red and 2 black; all six-sided)
 * 8 demon cards
 * 36 event cards
 * 73 action cards
 * 12 invasion cards
 * 3 threat cards
 * 10 initiative cards (4 marine cards, 6 invader cards)
 * 4 marine cards
 * 6 objective cards
 * 24 class cards
 * 12 glory kill cards
 * 4 squad cards
 * 4 stun cards
 * 18 portal tokens
 * 7 stun tokens
 * 55 damage tokens (35x 1-damage, 20x 3-damage)
 * 9 health pack tokens
 * 6 teleporter tokens
 * 6 objective tokens
 * 21 frag tokens
 * 18 Argent power tokens
 * 23 weapon tokens (6 grenades)
 * 16 progress / threat tokens
 * 24 double-sided map tiles
 * 8 doors

Preparation
The game begins by assembling the map for the current mission. Players then choose a role as invader or marine, with marines choosing between one of four characters: Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, or Delta (named for letters of the ). Each begins with a specified loadout consisting of two weapons (additional weapons can be found on the map during play). A player action deck is constructed by each player consisting of ten cards, including UAC Marine cards and two sets of three weapon cards corresponding to the two loadout weapons.

Preparation for the invader includes assembling a deck of 18 event cards, and selecting the proper demon cards for the current mission - cards for demons may be face up or face down, depending on the beginning status of the mission. Though marines are able to see the Operation Guide information for the mission, they are not allowed to see the invader's invasion card, nor the face-down demons.

Rounds
Game play proceeds in two-stage rounds.

Status phase
The invader player constructs an initiative deck which determines the order in which players will move and attack with the pieces under their control. Any demon cards exhausted in a previous turn are returned to the ready position during this phase, and the invader draws event cards until he or she is holding six cards.

Activation phase
In the activation phase, the invader reveals the top card of the initiative deck. If a marine card is revealed, the corresponding player is activated. Otherwise, if an invader card is revealed, the invader chooses one active type of demon and activates each figure of that type in turn. This process continues until the initiative deck is empty.

Marine activation
During a marine's activation, the player can spend movement points and can attack using action cards in their hand. Normally, one main action can be taken during an activation, and any number of bonus actions can be performed. Once all actions are done, the player discards any used action cards and draws until he or she holds three cards in their hand. Movement can be performed at any time except during an attack. Movement points are typically gained from certain action cards.

Demon activation
When the invader player chooses a demon type, he or she changes its demon card to the exhausted orientation by rotating it 90 degrees so that it rests with the longer side horizontal. Each figure of that type is then activated one at a time, in an order the invader player chooses. Demons gain movement points according to their indicated speed value and can attack. Demons also have special abilities for which the instructions are printed on the demon card.

Attacking
Attacks are determined by use of dice. Upon declaring an attack, a marine or invader specifies the target, or defender. In order to be chosen as the defender, the target must be within the attacking range of the attacker, and there must be a line of sight to the target - this exists if a line from any corner of the attacker's grid square on the map can be connected by a straight line to any corner of the defender's grid square without crossing any walls, closed doors, or blocking terrain.

The attacker then rolls the number of red and black dice indicated on the attack action card and tallies up the number of damage icons that were rolled. After the attacker rolls, the defender uses one defense card (for marines, this is the top card of the action deck; for demons, this is the top card of the event deck). The number of defense icons revealed (if any), plus the toughness of the demon if any, are subtracted from the number of damage icons. If a demon has a special defense ability, it can be activated at this time. The resulting amount of damage is then recorded on the card with the use of damage tokens, and if the monster or marine's health is depleted, then it has been fragged.

When all demons of a specific type have been fragged, the invader player flips that demon type's card face down.

Movement
Movement by most figures can be performed in any of eight directions on the square grid, straight or diagonally. All squares that touch the current square by either a side or a corner are considered "adjacent," excepting any that are on the other side of a door or are blocked by walls or impassable terrain. A move of one square usually costs one movement point, with the following exceptions: Movement can pass through, but cannot end on, a square occupied by another figure.
 * Moving onto the same square as an enemy unit costs one additional movement point.
 * Doors require one additional movement point to open.
 * Movement across difficult terrain costs one additional movement point.

Large figures are affected by several special case rules when moving:
 * They cannot move diagonally.
 * They are not allowed to apply cover mechanics (see below).
 * Figures that cover two or six spaces can rotate 90 degrees by spending one movement point. However, when doing this, they must still contact at least half of the spaces they previously occupied.

If marines move into the same square as a teleporter, they activate it. From that point on, it can be used as a spawn point for marines who have been fragged and are re-entering play. Additionally, moving marines can use active teleporters to move quickly around the map - all active teleporters are considered to be adjacent to one another for marine movement. If a demon is occupying the teleporter's space, that demon is instantly fragged if a player chooses to move onto it, and the normal additional cost of an extra movement point is not required in this case.

Stun
If a marine or demon is stunned, then when attacking, one die is removed. When defending, a card cannot be revealed for defense. This applies once only per instance of becoming stunned, and additional stuns do not stack while one is already in effect.

Sprinting
A marine can choose to sprint during his or her activation by foregoing their main action and discarding one action card. The player is then awarded six additional movement points.

Reaction
Action cards with a reaction icon can be activated during another marine's activation.

Items
Two types of items can be found placed on the map, with positions and amounts varying by mission:
 * Health packs restore two damage points to a marine when taken
 * Weapons can be picked up. When this occurs, the marine adds one copy of each of the weapon's three action cards to his or her action deck.

Doors
Doors are placed on the map initially. While closed, they block line of sight, and spaces on opposite sides are not considered adjacent. A figure can open a door by spending one movement point, and then the door is removed from the map.

Portals
Portals are used by the invader player to place demons into the fray. Portals occur in three different colors (red, yellow, and blue), and each can be used once and is then removed. Portal placement depends on the type of threat in effect for the current mission. When spawning monsters, the invader player can usually choose between two different invasion groups.

The three types of threat are as follows:
 * Infestation - Demons will enter gradually as the marines explore the map.
 * Horde - Demons spawn in a continuous swarm.
 * Assault - The invader receives a steady supply of threat tokens each round.

Class cards
Players receive class cards which determine their special player skills. These remain in effect throughout a mission, but some class cards can be exhausted after activation, which requires them to be rotated 90 degrees for a turn, during which time they cannot be reused.

Argent power
The invader player can make use of Argent power by spending Argent tokens. These can be used to activate special demon abilities. The invader player can discard up to three event cards per turn to gain one Argent power point per card, which can be placed on any living demons or on the player's invasion card. Summoning demons in invasion groups also often earns the invader additional Argent power, which can be distributed between the newly summoned demons. At that time, the player can also move Argent power points from the invasion card to the new demons, and then discards any remaining unspent points from that card.

Cover
When attacks are calculated, cover must be taken into consideration. If a line from the attacker to any corner of the defender's square is blocked, then the defender is considered to have cover. A unit with cover can reveal an additional defense card, ignoring the first card that was drawn.

Glory kills
Once a demon's damage points are greater than or equal to its stagger value, a marine can instantly frag it by moving onto the same space. The marine player also draws a glory kill card and recovers two damage. The effect on the glory kill card is activated.

Toughness
Some demons have a toughness rating, indicated with a special shield icon. These demons receive one additional defense point when defending against attacks.

Play with fewer players
In order to automatically balance the game, special rules apply when there are fewer than four marine players:
 * Three marines: One marine player receives a "Taking Point" squad card
 * Two marines: Each marine receives a "Combat Veteran" squad card
 * One marine: The marine receives the "Solo Operative" card. The invader also shuffles an extra marine initiative card into the deck each round, meaning the marine player will activate twice per round.

Operation Guide
The Operation Guide contains two stock operations, each consisting of six missions.