We played the "learn to play" scenario yesterday and while I'm sure we did countless things wrong, defense tokens was probably the thing we messed up most. After reading and re-reading the rules on them, here's my understanding so far - please correct me if I'm wrong!

• The attacker gets an accuracy result and chooses a defense token that the defender can't use. That defense token does not become exhausted - the defender just can't use it during this attack.
• Once a defender spends an exhausted (red side) defense token, that defense token is discarded and does not come back into play during the status phase. Over the course of a game a ship can end up with no defense tokens because it has spent all of them.

Am I understanding this correctly or am I reading it wrong?

that's correct. just don't spend your red tokens on a whim unless it means you're able to survive to shoot another round

but if you don't spend those red tokens, they turn back over to green at the end of each round (is that what you were confused about?)

You got it right, but here are some finer points Incase you missed them.

When attacked you can spend defence tokens, but only one of each type, so you can't halve damage twice on one attack but you could halve damage and then redirect the remainder.

The first use you flip from green side up to orange side up. At the end of the round if you don't use it again then it flips back to green. If you do use it a second time whilst still orange then it's gone/discarded for the rest of the game.

For each accuracy result rolled on an attack, the attacker can nominate an equal number of defence tokens that you cannot use against that attack, they don't get flipped or anything, you just can't use them. You can of course use them as normal against the next attack if no accuracy results are rolled to prevent you doing so.

Yes you have it exactly right that ships can end up with no defence tokens left all all

Yes Accuracy result prevent a Defense Token from being spent on that attack.

When you spend a defense token you flip it to the exhausted side. If in that same turn, before refreshing, spend that token again it is gone for the game.

Thanks all! I got the other points mentioned but was just a bit unclear on if defense tokens can go away, never to come back!

Remember as well that a ship at spd 0 cannot use any defence tokens. Takes a while to get used to steering the VSD so that could come in useful for a few games...

And the Evade token "effect" is range dependent:

Long Range: Cancel 1 dice

Medium Range: Choose a dice to be rerolled

Close Range: No effect

Yes Accuracy result prevent a Defense Token from being spent on that attack.

When you spend a defense token you flip it to the exhausted side. If in that same turn, before refreshing, spend that token again it is gone for the game.

For each Accuracy result rolled you can choose ONE enemy defense token that cannot be used. So multiple Accuracy results can be beneficial for targets with multiple defense tokens.