Cards & Components

Cards & Components for 13 Days: The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962.

Boards

The main board holds nine arenas, prestige, three DEFCON columns, the round track, and spaces for secret agendas and the aftermath. See Gameplay.

To be added.

Cards

How to read a strategy card

1. Faction — determines who can use the event.
2. Name — identifies the card.
3. Command value — maximum influence commanded instead of the event.
4. DEFCON symbol — apply normal DEFCON movement to influence changes from the event.
5. Event — the alternative action.
6. Historical note — background, with no game effect.

Read its faction first: USA, USSR or UN. The command symbols give its command value; the event text gives the alternative action. A DEFCON symbol means influence changes from that event use the usual DEFCON rules. Historical flavour text is not a game instruction.

There are 39 strategy cards: 13 per faction. The 13 agendas comprise six arena agendas, two agendas for each of the three DEFCON columns, and the Personal Letter agenda. A separate Personal Letter card passes between players.

For card play see Strategy Cards and DEFCON; for scoring see Agendas.

Strategy cards

Each picture shows the English card face. Command values apply when using a card for command; the event summaries below describe the alternative. A DEFCON label means influence changes from the event use normal DEFCON movement, arena by arena. The symbol does not add another escalation on top of an explicit DEFCON instruction.

Art credit: official VASSAL module v1.1, listed in the VASSAL module library.

UN strategy cards

Picture	Card and effect
	01 · Speech to the Nation · UN · Command 3 When played as an event: Spread up to 3 cubes across world-opinion arenas, at most 2 in each. Event rules.
	02 · The Guns of August · UN · Command 3 When played as an event: Raise or lower one of your DEFCON markers by up to 2 steps, then command 1 cube. DEFCON. Event rules.
	03 · Fifty-Fifty · UN · Command 3 When played as an event: The player dominating Television may raise or lower two of their DEFCON markers by one step each, in either combination. Event rules.
	04 · SOPs · UN · Command 1 When played as an event: Your commands have one additional cube for the rest of this round. Event rules.
	05 · Close Allies · UN · Command 2 When played as an event: Spread up to 2 cubes across political arenas. Event rules.
	06 · Intelligence Reports · UN · Command 2 When played as an event: Take a random strategy card from the opponent. Play it normally or discard it; they draw a replacement. DEFCON. Event rules.
	07 · Summit Meeting · UN · Command 2 When played as an event: Discard any number of strategy cards from your hand and draw the same number of replacements. Event rules.
	08 · To the Brink · UN · Command 2 When played as an event: For this round, reduce the opponent’s command strength by one cube, with a minimum strength of one. Event rules.
	09 · Nuclear Submarines · UN · Command 1 When played as an event: Spread up to 2 cubes across military arenas. Event rules.
	10 · U Thant · UN · Command 1 When played as an event: Lower each of your three DEFCON markers by one step. Event rules.
	11 · Containment · UN · Command 2 When played as an event: For the rest of this round, the opponent cannot use events they play to lower their own DEFCON markers. Event rules.
	12 · A Face-Saver · UN · Command 1 When played as an event: Command 3 cubes, then the opponent may command 1. DEFCON. Event rules.
	13 · Scramble · UN · Command 3 When played as an event: Place 1 cube in each of up to three different arenas. Event rules.

USA strategy cards

Picture	Card and effect
	14 · Mathematical Precision · USA · Command 3 When played as an event: Raise or lower the USA political DEFCON marker by up to 2 steps, then command 1 cube. DEFCON. Event rules.
	15 · EXCOMM · USA · Command 3 When played as an event: Spread up to 4 cubes across arenas containing no USA cubes, at most 2 per arena. DEFCON. Event rules.
	16 · Public Protests · USA · Command 3 When played as an event: Remove any number of USA cubes from one arena. Event rules.
	17 · Lessons of Munich · USA · Command 3 When played as an event: Spread up to 4 cubes across Berlin, Italy and Turkey, at most 2 per arena. Event rules.
	18 · Operation Mongoose · USA · Command 2 When played as an event: The USA gains 1 prestige. The USSR may then raise or lower one USA DEFCON marker by one step. Event rules.
	19 · Air Strike · USA · Command 2 When played as an event: Either remove half the USSR cubes from one Cuba arena, rounding up, or place up to 2 cubes in Alliances. Event rules.
	20 · Non-Invasion Pledge · USA · Command 2 When played as an event: Remove up to 2 USSR cubes from Turkey, then raise or lower the USA political DEFCON marker by up to 2 steps. Event rules.
	21 · Offensive Missiles · USA · Command 2 When played as an event: If the USA political marker is in DEFCON 3, place up to 1 cube in each political arena. Event rules.
	22 · Invasion of Cuba · USA · Command 1 When played as an event: Raise the USA military DEFCON marker by up to 2 steps. You may lower another USA marker by the same number of steps. Event rules.
	23 · Quarantine · USA · Command 1 When played as an event: Place up to 2 cubes in the Atlantic. Event rules.
	24 · U-2 Photographs · USA · Command 1 When played as an event: Command 3 cubes in one military arena. DEFCON. Event rules.
	25 · Wave and Smile · USA · Command 2 When played as an event: Take up to 2 USA cubes from one or more arenas and place them in other arenas. Event rules.
	26 · Eyeball to Eyeball · USA · Command 1 When played as an event: If the USA military marker is higher than the USSR marker, spread up to 3 cubes across the two Cuba arenas. DEFCON. Event rules.

USSR strategy cards

Picture	Card and effect
	27 · MRBMs & IRBMs · USSR · Command 3 When played as an event: Raise or lower the USSR military DEFCON marker by up to 2 steps, then command 1 cube. DEFCON. Event rules.
	28 · Moscow Is Our Brain · USSR · Command 3 When played as an event: Spread up to 4 cubes across arenas already containing USSR influence, at most 2 per arena. DEFCON. Event rules.
	29 · Missile Trade · USSR · Command 3 When played as an event: Remove up to 3 USSR cubes in total from any combination of arenas. DEFCON. Event rules.
	30 · Fidel Castro · USSR · Command 3 When played as an event: Spread up to 3 cubes across the two Cuba arenas. Event rules.
	31 · Berlin Blockade · USSR · Command 2 When played as an event: The USSR gains 2 prestige. The USA may then raise or lower one USSR DEFCON marker by up to 2 steps. Event rules.
	32 · Suez-Hungary · USSR · Command 2 When played as an event: Add USSR cubes to Italy until the USSR leads by one cube, reaches five cubes there, or exhausts its reserve. Event rules.
	33 · Maskirovka · USSR · Command 2 When played as an event: If the USSR military marker is in DEFCON 3, place up to 1 cube in each military arena. Event rules.
	34 · Bay of Pigs · USSR · Command 2 When played as an event: The opponent either removes 2 of their cubes from Alliances or cannot use events to lower their DEFCON markers this round. Event rules.
	35 · Turn Back the Ships · USSR · Command 1 When played as an event: Lower the highest USSR DEFCON marker by up to 2 steps; choose one if several are tied. Event rules.
	36 · Strategic Balance · USSR · Command 1 When played as an event: Place up to 3 cubes in the Atlantic. DEFCON. Event rules.
	37 · National Liberation · USSR · Command 1 When played as an event: Command 3 cubes in one political arena. DEFCON. Event rules.
	38 · U-2 Downed · USSR · Command 2 When played as an event: Place up to 2 cubes in Turkey. Remove half the USA cubes from one Cuba arena, rounding up. Event rules.
	39 · Defensive Missiles · USSR · Command 1 When played as an event: Spread up to 2 cubes across Television and United Nations. DEFCON. Event rules.

Agenda cards

The three DEFCON faces below are the Italian corrected cards. There are two of each DEFCON agenda and one of each other agenda: thirteen cards in all. World-opinion arenas give round-end bonuses, rather than having their own arena agendas.

Picture	Agenda
	Military DEFCON — The higher military marker scores the step difference plus 1 after the agenda escalation. Two copies. Scoring.
	Political DEFCON — The higher political marker scores the step difference plus 1 after the agenda escalation. Two copies. Scoring.
	World Opinion DEFCON — The higher world-opinion marker scores the step difference plus 1 after the agenda escalation. Two copies. Scoring.
	Turkey — Influence lead, with no extra bonus. Scoring.
	Berlin — Influence lead plus 1. Scoring.
	Italy — Influence lead plus 1. Scoring.
	Political Cuba — Influence lead plus 1 for each of military Cuba and Atlantic you dominate. Scoring.
	Military Cuba — Influence lead plus 1 for each of political Cuba and Atlantic you dominate. Scoring.
	Atlantic — Influence lead plus 1 for each Cuba arena you dominate. Scoring.
	Personal Letter — The holder of the Personal Letter gains 2 prestige. Scoring.

Personal Letter

The separate Personal Letter card strengthens a command and passes to the opponent when used. United Nations can transfer it at round end; its holder breaks a final prestige tie. See The Personal Letter.

To be added.

Tiles

There are no separate gameplay tiles.

Tokens & pieces

Piece	Purpose
	17 blue and 17 red influence cubes. Arena majorities; command places or removes them.
	3 blue and 3 red DEFCON discs. One per category for each player; DEFCON tracks danger.
	3 flags per faction. Mark the three possible agendas.
	Prestige disc. Shared prestige balance.
	Round disc. Marks the current round, then the aftermath.

Icons

identifies military arenas; identifies political arenas; identifies world-opinion arenas. The DEFCON symbol on an event tells you to apply escalation or de-escalation for influence changes. The yellow prestige markings show agenda bonuses.

To be added.