Is it just me, or does anyone find the Invader cards rather powerful?

Yes, i think the Invader cards are a bit too powerful myself so far, and i'll tell you why…

The game is balanced pretty tightly without the invader cards to begin with. So now you give each Invader player 8 cards they can play throughout the game that can really screw the US player. One Invader can play a card that shuts down the US player's reinforcements phase, another can hit the US with the card that shuts down his lasers for a turn and the third Invader can play a card that lets him pull a few bombers from the graveyard card back into his reserves… all on the same turn!

Also, the Invader cards slow down the Invader's deployment rate (and as mentioned above, return destroyed units back to reserves). The Invaders can make it almost all the way through the game without running out of units to deploy!

I think a possible houserule for the invader cards might go something like this… Each invader player rolls the d10 at the beginning of his turn, if the result is "equal to or lower" than the current turn number, the invader player may take the option of drawing a card and placing five units during reinforcements phase. If the result is higher than the current turn number, the invader must place the normal eight units. This way, towards the beginning of the game, the invaders will be mostly placing units. Towards the end of the game, they will start to get chances to draw cards.

Two cards I’ve found to be particularly intense are (I don’t remember which invader gets one, but the blue invader is the other card); one is the cards that allow ‘footholds’. A nifty new invention in the game, but the blue player can not ever loose their foothold after it’s once placed on the board, while the yellow and red player can. But, the truly nasty card is the one that allows one of the invaders to return as reinforcements two destroyed units from the dead pool to the game-and it remains in play for the rest of the game! This means that player will never loose bombers, and at worst will have to sit out a turn (or two if more are killed) between them dying and being retrieved! Still, I’ll play it as it is written-perhaps the US player will be playing on “Hard Mode”.

Since the invaders have a choice between 8 and 5 units per turn, it makes thing flat out worse for America. I can't imagine why the U.S. player would agree to adding the option unless he was a much better player.

So far all of our games have gone with the standard 8 units per turn and no card options for the invader. The US CAN be beaten with good invader play…its just really really hard. We are determiend to excel at that and not depend on the cards. I strongly urge all who play to forgo the invader card option.

Ron

Personally I don't feel they're overpowered, given the requirements on most of the cards are difficult to achieve. In our last game, each of the invaders only ever drew 3 cards, and noone played all 3.

Invaders did win, but it was a knuckle-biter, and it could be attributed in part to some bad dice rolls on America's part, as well as drawing "Clear Skies" as on if his first partisan cards, and "Major Airlift" on turn 3.

That being said, my group played the original a lot, and so far we all enjoy the new game. I think the Invader cards are an additional advantage, but since the game leaned toward America originally I don't believe it to be unbalancing. Besides, if you don't like them, you can always choose not to use them, or only allow their use by a new/handicap player to help them against more experienced opponents.

I would like to see the FAQ come out and confirm what we've decided: If an Invader card is in play, but the invader loses control of a resource/city that is required, what happens to the card?

We've ruled it stays in play, but does not have any effect until the requirements are met again, but perhaps the card should be discarded?

Long story short (too late!): We like the cards and feel that it does not unbalance the game, and are a welcome bit of angst to throw at America.

After my first game i felt the invader cards give the invader a benefit which is not compensated by shifting 3 reinforcement units to a later turn. My first thought was that at least those 3 reinforcement units should go to the destroyed units pile. maybe it should be 4 units…..but i admit that i should play another 10 games before suggesting such changes…ggg