Life Traces and Alien Species
The three life traces, discovery and overflow spaces, how a species is discovered, alien cards, and a rules summary of all five base-game species.
Life traces
| Trace | Usually from |
|---|---|
 Yellow | Landing on planets and moons — life in our solar system |
 Purple | Winning sectors — life in other star systems |
 Blue | Analyzing data |
 Any | A wild trace: counts as any of the three |
When you gain a trace, mark an empty space of that colour for either species: a discovery space, a space on a revealed alien board, or an overflow space. You choose freely — there is no order.
Discovery spaces
Below each face-down alien board are 3 discovery spaces, one per colour. Marking one scores
5 points and 1 
, and pays off again when that species is discovered.
Overflow spaces
Below the discovery spaces is each species’ overflow area: you may always put a trace there (even if other spaces are free) for 3 points. Overflow and discovery markers count as traces marked for that species.
Discovering a species
When all three discovery spaces of a species are marked (in 2–3 player games some may hold neutral markers), it is discovered. Resolve it after the turn ends, after any milestones:
- Flip the alien board.
- Read that species’ rule sheet — only now; nobody needs to learn unrevealed species.
- Follow its setup; the players on the discovery spaces get their rewards (usually alien cards).
Alien cards
Each species has its own deck, a little stronger than the main deck. Spaces with 
let you take the face-up alien card or the top of that deck. In your hand they work like any other
card — play, tuck, discard for the corner — except the Exertian cards. Alien cards can’t be taken
from the card row for signals.
Further research
A revealed board offers many new trace spaces with printed rewards: mark any empty space of the matching colour when you gain a trace. Neutral markers never go on the alien boards.
The five species
Two of these five are in every game. Their full rules are on the rule sheets; here is what each adds. Pictures of their boards and pieces are in Cards & Components.
Mascamites
Insect-like creatures on the moons of Jupiter and Saturn. At setup, 3 face-down sample tokens go
on Jupiter and 3 on Saturn; the seventh goes face up on the board. Certain Mascamite cards let you
land and collect a sample: put a marker on it — a capsule that moves like a probe (publicity,
asteroid penalty) but can’t orbit or land and ignores the probe limit. Bring it to the destination
on your Mascamite mission card to deliver it (
): gain the token’s
reward, and the token becomes a new blue space on the alien board.
Anomalies
Three huge reflective objects in the outer ring: one in Earth’s sector and one 3 sectors either side. Each time the solar system rotates and Earth shares a sector with an anomaly, it triggers: the player highest in the matching colour column of the Anomalies board gains the anomaly’s reward. The top space (2 points) can always be marked, and later markers count as higher.
‘Oumuamua
An interstellar asteroid tile placed on disc 3, with 3 data in its own slot. It counts as a planet:
visit it for publicity, orbit and land on it. A signal in its sector (or 
) may
be marked on the tile instead (1 and 2 points for the first and third markers). Completing the
tile gives each player who marked it an exofossil, then it refills with no winner. Some spaces
on the board cost exofossils; leftovers score nothing.
Centaurians
A civilization 4.5 light years away. Each player places a message tile 15 points ahead of their score; reaching it lets you cover one reward on the board. Centaurian cards cost energy: play one, put a marker 15 points ahead, resolve the white part now and the green part when you reach the marker. Some board spaces cost data from your pool.
Exertians
Beacons of a species that mined planets to death. Everyone gets 3 cards (plus one per discovery
marker) and may play one face down per discovery marker; two Exertian milestones
(
) 20 and 40 points ahead of the leader let everyone play another (the
second costs 1 credit). Each card has a condition worth points and danger (
); board
spaces add 1–3 danger. At the end, whoever has the most danger loses a tenth of their points
(rounded down), ties included.
[Agencies] Three more species — Arkhos, Glyphids and Amoeba — join the mix (New alien species).