STAR CHASE

8 WINNING & LOSING

8.1 ELIMINATION An empire is considered to have been eliminated if it has either no systems or no income and no build points. Note that this means it is possible to be eliminated in positions where you might otherwise be able to recover.

8.2 VICTORY POINTS Every three to five turns there is a census turn, at the end of which you score victory points (VPs) equal to the total industry plus the cultural level of your empire (see 7.1). Census turns are not indicated in advance, and are selected at random (the first will be turn two, three, four or five, and subsequent census turns will be two, three or four turns after the last).
Each time an empire loses a system there is a VP penalty equal to the number of population and colony ships lost.

8.3 VICTORY CONDITIONS To win a game of Star Chase you must achieve one of the three victory conditions listed below. The game ends on the NEXT census turn AFTER one of these is achieved if ANY of the victory conditions is met on THAT turn (it doesn't have to be the same victory condition, or the same player). If no win condition applies then the game continues. A warning is given in the game report when a possible win has been achieved (so you get warning that the game end is approaching, and a few turns to do something about it).
RUNAWAY WIN You have the highest total of victory points, and your total is at least double the next highest.
KNOCKOUT WIN You have the highest total of victory points, and your total is at least 40% of the total victory points of all the surviving players.
POINTS WIN You have the highest total of victory points, and your total is greater than a target set at the start of the game, normally the maximum total population that will fit on the map (which varies from game to game).
Note: Don't rely on the warning system to be sufficient to stop someone winning. By the time the klaxons sound, it might well be too late. Try to get an idea of how the game is going, and see if anyone has a much bigger empire, fleet or economy than everyone else.

8.4 PRIZE DISCOUNTS Winners and survivors (players who are still active and have turns in credit at the end of the game) receive a discount for future games of Star Chase in the form of bonus turns which may be claimed each and every time a player buys ten or more turn credits (in a single payment).
A player that achieves a runaway win or knockout win receives a discount of three turns (ie. each time that player pays for ten turns, he/she is actually credited with thirteen turns). A player that achieves a points win receives a discount of two turns. A player that survives to the end of the game in a points win receives a discount of one turn. Discounts may be accumulated, up to a total of ten (ie. turns become half price).
Dropouts forfeit all accumulated discounts, including those in other games already in progress (resignations may or may not forfeit discounts, at the discretion of the GM).
Discounts available to be carried forward (along with any left over credits) are listed in the end game report. It is your responsibility to ensure that your discount is kept up to date, and to inform the GM of your current discount when you join a new game (it is simple for a GM to check on a discount when you claim it, but would be very time consuming to check on possible discounts by routine).