Adventure Game: Defeat the Decepticons
From Transformers Wiki
The Transformers Adventure Game: Defeat the Decepticons is a board game that was produced by Warren in 1984. The object of the game is for the players to rescue a given number of Minicar tokens from their cells in a Decepticon hideout. Exactly how this will defeat the Decepticons is not specified.
Ages: 7 to Adult
Number of Players: 2-4
Playing Time: 30 minutes
Equipment: 1 Gameboard, 1 deck of 54 cards, 8 diecut Optimus Prime Autobot pawns (4 truck and 4 robot), 8 plastic pawn bases, 2 dice, 30 minicar tokens (5 each of Bumblebee, Brawn, Cliffjumper, Gears, Huffer, and Windcharger), and instructions.
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Game play
You are OPTIMUS PRIME, Leader of the Autobot forces. MEGATRON, the Decepticon Leader, and his evil companions have captured six of your most trusted allies, the Autobot MINICARS. As OPTIMUS PRIME, your mission is to penetrate deep within the Decepticon's maze-like headquarters and free the MINICARS. Use strategy, courage, and your amazing ability to transform in this TRANSFORMERS adventure to defend the Earth and defeat the Decepticons!
To prepare for the game, all 30 tokens are placed onto the matching color spaces around the edge of the hexagonal field of play, the cards are shuffled and placed onto the "Draw" space, and robot mode Optimus Prime tokens for each player are placed onto the center board space. Players roll the dice to see who goes first, with the high roller receiving the honors.
A player’s turn starts by rolling the dice and moving one space in a direction matching one of the numbers rolled. Then they move one space in the direction of the other number rolled. If doubles are rolled, instead of proceeding normally (which would result in the player moving away from and then back to the space they started on) the player may move one space in any direction. A player may choose to skip their second move if it would cause them to move to a space occupied by a pawn and they do not wish to use their movements in the opposite order.
If a player lands on a 'blast space' they draw a card and follow the directions. Once the directions are followed, the card is put in the discard pile unless it is an Autobot protector card, in which case it is kept until needed to negate one of the corresponding Decepticon cards. If the player is in robot mode and draws a Decepticon card, they must switch their robot mode pawn for a truck mode pawn. The opposite occurs when in truck mode and an Autobot card is drawn. Contrary to conventional Transformer wisdom, in this game, you move slower in truck mode than in robot mode. What this means is that you can only use one die while in truck mode.
After you've made it across the board and landed exactly on a Minicar space with a token, you've rescued the Minicar. At this point, you take and keep the token you landed on and switch to your robot mode pawn if in truck mode. You can then choose to start your next turn on the space you currently occupy or you can transport to the center space and start from there. If you choose the latter, you must draw a card, since the center space is also a blast space. If you land on the token of a Minicar that you've already rescued, the token remains on the space and your next turn resumes from that space.
When one player has rescued the correct amount of different Minicars, they win the game. Four tokens must be collected for a standard four-player game and five tokens if three are playing. Six tokens must be collected for a two-player game or longer three- and four-player games.
Gameboard
The gameboard consists of 91 circular spaces arranged to create a hexagon. Interior spaces have six directions in which a pawn can move, while exterior spaces have only 4 or 3 (corner spaces) directions for the pawn to move. In addition to the playing field, the game board also has spaces to place the "Draw" and "Discard" piles.
Cards
The game includes a deck of 54 cards, each of which depicts the package art of a specific character, a sentence describing the effect of the card, and a stripe along the bottom, which along with the card text, is either red for Autobots or purple for Decepticons. A complete deck will have the following cards in the specified amounts:
Autobot cards
- Bluestreak – Bluestreak moves you 2 spaces. Your choice! – 3 copies
- Hound – Hound moves you 3-2 or 2-3. – 3 copies
- Ironhide – Ironhide protects you from any Decepticon! Save this card! – 4 copies
- Jazz – Jazz moves another player one space. – 3 copies
- Mirage – Mirage makes you trade spaces with another player. – 3 copies
- Prowl – Prowl moves you 4-5 or 5-4. – 3 copies
- Ratchet – Ratchet repairs a breakdown! Save this card! – 2 copies
- Sideswipe – Sideswipe moves you next to another player. – 3 copies
- Sunstreaker – Sunstreaker moves you one space. Your choice! – 3 copies
- Trailbreaker – Trailbreaker moves you two spaces. Your choice! – 3 copies
- Wheeljack – Wheeljack repairs a flat tire! Save this card! – 2 copies
Total: 32 Autobot cards.
Decepticon cards
- Buzzsaw – Buzzsaw gives another player a flat tire – and a lost turn! – 2 copies
- Frenzy – Frenzy makes you crazy! You are broken down for one turn! – 2 copies
- Laserbeak – Laserbeak gives you a flat tire! Lose one turn. – 2 copies
- Megatron – Megatron blasts you with fusion cannons. Lose next turn. – 4 copies
- Ravage – Ravage moves another player two spaces toward the center. – 2 copies
- Rumble – Rumble sends you 1 then 2. – 2 copies
- Skywarp – Skywarp teleports another player back to the center! – 2 copies
- Soundwave – Soundwave sends you 5 then 6. – 2 copies
- Starscream – Starscream moves another player one space toward the center! – 2 copies
- Thundercracker – Thundercracker attacks another player who is broken down for one turn! – 2 copies
Total: 22 Decepticon cards.
Notes
- The instructions are the item most frequently missing from this game.
- You have roughly a 60% chance of drawing an Autobot card with the first draw.
- The cover art is the same as the back of the box art for the first year of Transformers toys.
