Official Mind MGMT Rules

Last Updated on August 5, 2025 by The Official Game Rules Team

Mind MGMT: The Psychic Espionage Game offers a unique blend of strategy, deduction, and hidden movement. One player controls Mind MGMT, while others play as rogue agents trying to thwart their plans. A thrilling challenge for all players. Here’s a breakdown of the rules and how to play!

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How to Play Mind MGMT

Introduction: Welcome to Mind MGMT

In Mind MGMT: The Psychic Espionage Game, one player takes on the role of the shadowy Recruiter, attempting to secretly move around a city while gathering psychic Recruits. The other players are Rogue Agents, a team of ex-MIND MGMT operatives attempting to expose and stop the Recruiter before it’s too late.

The Recruiter wins by contacting enough Recruits or surviving long enough. The Rogue Agents win if they can deduce the Recruiter’s location and execute a capture.

Components

  • 1 Game Board (Map of Zanzibar)
  • 1 Mental Screen
  • 1 Secret Map (dry-erase)
  • 4 Agent Miniatures
  • 4 Immortal Miniatures
  • 5 Rogue Agent Action Cards (Move, Ask, Reveal, Shakedown, Capture)
  • 2 Recruiter Role Cards
  • 2 Potential Recruiter Role Cards
  • 4 Agent Cards (Double-sided)
  • 1 Ally Card (Black Ops Dolphin)
  • 2 Recruiter Action Cards (Step, Move Immortal)
  • 2 Mind Slip Tokens
  • 15 Mental Note Tokens (double-sided: Confirmed/Unconfirmed)
  • 5 Mayhem Tokens
  • 12 Recruit Tokens
  • 2 Dry-Erase Markers
  • 8 Step Tokens
  • 1 Time Token
  • 14 SHIFT Packages
  • 1 Double-sided Setup Reminder Card
  • 16 Feature Cards

Game Setup

Step 1: Choose Roles

  • One player becomes the Recruiter.
  • All other players are Rogue Agents.

Step 2: Board & Tokens

  • Lay the board face-up. Recruiter sits with the board’s labeled Recruiter side facing them.
  • Place 5 Mayhem tokens between any two locations. They cannot be adjacent (no L or straight lines). Recruiter places the first, then players go clockwise.
  • Place Time Token on the “01:00–05:00” space of the Time Track.
  • Organize Action cards by side (Rogue/Recruiter) on respective sides of the board.
  • Set aside Mental Note, Step, and Recruit tokens in a shared supply.
  • Cover the “15:00” and “16:00” Time Track spaces with Recruit tokens (for Training Mission only).

Step 3: Recruiter Setup

  • Take: Secret Map, Mental Screen, 1 Dry-Erase Marker.
  • Mark all placed Mayhem tokens on the Secret Map.
  • Choose or draw 1 Recruiter Role card and hide it behind the screen.
  • Mark starting location with a “1” (only on the Secret Map).
  • Reveal this starting point by placing a green Confirmed Mental Note token with a “1” on the board.
  • Draw 3 random Feature Cards and circle any matching Features on the Secret Map.
  • Perform 4 STEP actions (marking locations “2” to “5”), only visiting unvisited spaces and avoiding Mayhem.
  • Count how many circled Features were visited and place that many Recruit tokens beside the “01:00–05:00” space.
  • Place 4 Immortal figures anywhere except edge spaces and not overlapping each other.

Step 4: Rogue Agent Setup

  • Share 1 dry-erase marker.
  • Distribute 4 Agent cards:
    • 2-player: One player controls all.
    • 3-player: Two players control 2 each.
    • 4-player: Three control 1, share the 4th.
    • 5-player: Everyone controls 1 Agent.
  • Use basic (no-ability) side during Training Mission.
  • Place Agent miniatures on any edge space.
  • Place 2 Potential Recruiter cards face-up under POTENTIAL label.
  • Place Ally card (Black Ops Dolphin) under ALLIES.
  • Choose 1 space adjacent (orthogonally or diagonally) to a Temple and place the 2nd Mind Slip Token there.

Step 5: Recruiter Final Setup

  • Draw 2 more Feature Cards and place them face-up under IMMORTAL RECRUITING.

Game Objectives

Recruiter Victory Conditions
  • Win by Recruits: Reveal 12 Recruit tokens.
  • Win by Time: Survive until Time Token reaches 16:00.
Rogue Agents Victory Condition
  • Win by Capture: Capture the Recruiter by being in the same location and taking a CAPTURE action.

Gameplay Structure

Each round consists of:

  1. Recruiter Turn 1:
    • Take 1 action (STEP or Mind Slip)
    • Move 1 Immortal (optional 2nd move via STEP token)
    • Advance Time Token
  2. Rogue Agent Turn 1:
    • Activate 2 Agents
  3. Recruiter Turn 2:
    • Take another action
    • Move Immortal
    • Draw new IMMORTAL RECRUITING cards (if needed)
    • Advance Time Token (resolve Alerts)
  4. Rogue Agent Turn 2:
    • Activate remaining 2 Agents
  5. Reset:
    • Stand all Agent miniatures

Recruiter Turn Details

Movement: STEP Action
  • Move to any orthogonally adjacent, unvisited space (not diagonally unless using a Temple).
  • Mark next sequential number on Secret Map.
  • Cannot pass through Mayhem tokens.
  • Cannot re-enter a location.
  • May move into a space with an Agent (without revealing).
Movement: MIND SLIP
  • Discard Mind Slip token to teleport based on Recruiter card’s unique ability.
  • Skip over locations (no Recruits gathered from skipped spaces).
  • Reveal token by placing it beside Time Track.
  • May pass through visited and Mayhem locations.
Contacting Recruits
  • If a location matches a circled Feature on any of your 3 hidden Feature cards, gain 1 Recruit.
  • Total Recruits gathered this round are revealed only on red Alert Time spaces.
Immortal Use
  • Move 1 Immortal per turn (orthogonally/diagonally).
  • Immortals cannot overlap or pass through Mayhem.
  • Immortals block Agent ASK/REVEAL/CAPTURE in their location.
Immortal Recruiting
  • Immortals contact a Recruit by occupying 2 locations showing a matching Feature card from the IMMORTAL RECRUITING pile.
  • Discard card and place Recruit token.
  • Each card can be used once.
  • Contributes toward Recruiter’s win.

Rogue Agents Turn Details

Movement
  • Up to 2 orthogonal spaces (diagonal if Temple).
  • Cannot pass through Mayhem.
  • May share spaces with other Agents or Immortals.
Actions (choose 1 per activated Agent)
  • ASK: Ask if Recruiter has visited a location with a specific Feature.
  • REVEAL: Reveal a specific location Recruiter visited (adds Confirmed Mental Note).
  • SHAKEDOWN: [Requires expansion/SHIFT rulebook.]
  • CAPTURE: Attempt to catch Recruiter if in the same location.
Mental Notes
  • Track suspected (Unconfirmed) and verified (Confirmed) locations.
  • Max of 15 tokens on board at any time.

Time Track

  • Advance one space after each Recruiter turn.
  • Red Alert icons: Reveal number of Recruits gathered that round.
  • If 12th Recruit revealed, game ends immediately in Recruiter victory.

Edge Cases & Extras

Oops! Recruiter Mistakes

  • Fix immediately if possible. If too much has occurred, Recruiter must reveal past visited locations using Confirmed Mental Notes.

Extra Immortal Move

  • Reveal one visited location using a STEP token to move a second Immortal this turn.
  • May only do this once per turn.

Running Out of Feature Cards

  • If IMMORTAL RECRUITING Feature deck runs out and you have no remaining cards, Immortals can no longer contact Recruits.

Game End

  • Recruiter wins immediately by:
    • Contacting their 12th Recruit
    • Reaching 16:00
  • Rogue Agents win immediately by:
    • Capturing the Recruiter via a successful CAPTURE action

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