The Story

There is Chaos. The Chronomachine lets galaxy leaders manipulate lifeforms and artifacts from different times — and the common folk are fearful and confused.

To restore harmony, and leave the Chronomachine with a single ruler, the intergalactic federation calls for the 24-Hour War.

The last remaining player wins the game.

Card Elements

• Name — who or what it is.
• Bazaar Cost — the Steam required to buy it.
• Type — Steam, Landmark, Creature, Artifact, Spark or Destiny.
• Health Points (HP) — strength and resistance in a single number.
• Ability — what the card does.
• Number — its place in the Bazaar.

The Bazaar

Lay out the FireSteam, GoldSteam and LaserSteam side by side, face up. Sort the remaining Futory Cards by Card Number — this forms the Bazaar, open for all to see.

Below the Steam: a row of Landmarks, a row of Creatures, and a row of Artifacts and Sparks.

Cards removed from the game rest in the Abyss; spent Destiny Cards in the Destiny Abyss.

Your Deck

Every player begins with 5 FireSteam, 2 GoldSteam and 1 Ichor. Shuffled face down, they become your Future Pile.

Draw 3 cards to your Hand, hidden from the other players.

The starting player is determined at random. The game runs clockwise.

Time Points

Each player enters the war with 24 Time Points: a Day Die and a Night Die of 12 each.

Damage strikes the Day Die first. At 12 Time Points the Day Die is removed — that player can never rise above 12 again.

Reach 0, and you are out of time.

Future & History

Draw cards from your Future Pile, face down. Used cards fall to your History Pile, face up.

When the Future runs empty, shuffle your History — it becomes your new Future, and what you built returns to you.

Your Hand holds at most 5 cards.

Buying Cards

To buy a card, pay its Bazaar Cost: place the required Steam from your Hand into your History Pile. The card’s Type decides where it goes:

• Steam→ Hand
• Landmark→ Playing Field
• Creature→ Hand
• Artifact→ History Pile
• Spark→ played, then Abyss

Card Types

• Steam — the currency: FireSteam, GoldSteam, LaserSteam. AllSteam pays as any color.
• Landmarks — permanent, face up, never discarded. No duplicates.
• Artifacts — once drawn, playable whenever their effect applies; then back to History.
• Sparks — ignite instantly on purchase, then to the Abyss.

Creatures & Combat

A Creature may act after a full round in the Creature Zone. Its HP is both its strength and its resistance.

Attack any opposing player — they take the damage in Time Points, or block with a Creature. At 0 HP a Creature is defeated; damage it cannot absorb passes to its owner.

After attacking, a Creature retires to the History Pile — another may take its place at once.

Phases 1 & 2

1. Steam Phase — buy up to 1 Steam Card into your Hand. The free FireSteam counts as that purchase.

2. Construction Phase — buy any number of non-Steam cards and use their effects.

Whoever buys the last card of a pile costs every player 1 Time Point.

Phases 3 & 4

3. Creature Phase — one Creature may enter your Creature Zone from your Hand.

4. End Phase — draw 2 cards, discard down to 5, and pass the turn.

Skip Your Turn: skip phases 1–3 entirely and draw 3 cards instead of 2.

Destiny Cards

If your Future Pile is empty at the start of your turn, reveal the top Destiny Card — and let it happen.

If it touches all players, it resolves clockwise, starting with you. Afterwards it falls to the Destiny Abyss, face up.