How to Play Star Wars: Rebellion

Last Updated on October 10, 2025 by The Official Game Rules Team

Star Wars: Rebellion allows players to relive the legendary conflict between the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Empire. Players command iconic characters from the Star Wars universe, sending them on covert missions and leading troops into battle across the galaxy. Here’s a breakdown of the rules (+ a video tutorial at the bottom of the page!):

download rules pdf

buy now!

This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see our disclosures here.

How to Play Star Wars: Rebellion Board Game

Star Wars: Rebellion Components

Star Wars: Rebellion Setup

Before playing Star Wars: Rebellion for the first time, punch out all the cardboard components and attach each leader to a plastic stand.

1. Choose Factions and Gather Components

Players must decide who will control the Imperials and who will control the Rebels. If they can’t agree, choose randomly. Each player takes their faction’s components, which include:

Plastic miniatures
Leaders
Loyalty markers
Faction sheet
Mission cards
Action cards

2. Place Starting Leaders

Each player selects the four leaders from their faction that do not have a recruit icon and places them in the “Leader Pool” box on their faction sheet. Leaders with recruit icons are placed near the game board and cannot be added to the Leader Pool until later in the game.

3. Prepare Game Board and Time Track

Place both halves of the game board next to each other in the center of the play area. Then, place the time marker on space “1” of the time track and the reputation marker on space “14” of the track.

4. Prepare Objective Deck

Sort the objective cards into three piles based on the number shown on the back of each card (I, II, or III). Shuffle each pile individually and stack them in the following order:

Place pile III on the “Objectives” space of the game board.
Place pile II on top of pile III.
Place pile I on top of pile II to form a single objective deck. Next, the Rebel player draws one card from the objective deck, keeping it secret from the Imperial player.

5. Prepare Action Decks

Each player takes all of their action cards that have a recruit icon and shuffles them to create their action deck. This deck is placed facedown next to their faction sheet on the side labeled “Action Deck.” Action cards that do not have a recruit icon are not used in the first game and should be returned to the game box.

6. Prepare Tactic Decks, Markers, and Dice

Shuffle the space tactic and ground tactic decks separately and place them within easy reach of all players. Then, gather all remaining markers and dice and place them nearby.

7. Prepare Mission Cards

Players organize their mission cards as follows:

I. Starting Missions

Starting mission cards are marked with a curved arrow at the bottom. Each player takes their four starting mission cards and sets them aside.

II. Projects

Project cards are identified by a white star in the bottom-right corner. The Imperial player shuffles the project cards and places the deck on the “Project” space of the game board.

III. Remaining Missions

Each player shuffles their remaining mission cards to form their mission deck and places it facedown next to their faction sheet in the “Mission Deck” area.

8. Place Starting Units and Loyalty Markers

For your first game, place the units and loyalty markers on the game board according to the diagram on page 16. For future games, refer to the “Advanced Setup” on page 18.

9. Choose Base Location

The Rebel player removes all systems containing Imperial units from the probe deck. From the remaining cards, the Rebel player secretly selects one and places it facedown under the Rebel base “Location” space on the game board. Then, shuffle the probe deck and place it on the “Probe Deck” space. For your first game, ensure the Rebel player picks a system that is not adjacent to any Imperial units.

10. Draw Starting Hand

Each player draws their four starting mission cards and two additional cards from their mission deck to form their starting hand. This hand is kept secret from their opponent.

With everything set up, players are now ready to begin the game!

Gameplay

Star Wars: Rebellion is played over a number of game rounds. During each game round, players resolve three phases in the following order:

Assignment Phase: Players assign their leaders to missions.
Command Phase: Players take turns resolving missions or placing leaders on the game board to move units and start combats.
Refresh Phase: Players resolve cleanup steps, such as retrieving leaders, drawing mission cards, launching probe droids, recruiting new leaders, and building new units.

Each of these phases are explained in detail in the following sections.

Players continue resolving game rounds until one faction has won the game as explained later.

1. Assignment Phase

During this phase, players assign their leaders to missions. Missions represent pivotal moments from the Star Wars saga, such as stealing the Death Star plans. Each player has a hand of mission cards that represent the different missions his leaders can attempt.

The Rebel player starts by assigning any of his leaders to missions. When he is finished, the Imperial player assigns any of his leaders to missions.

To assign a leader to a mission, the player takes a mission card from his hand and places it facedown near his faction sheet. Then he chooses one or two leaders from his leader pool and places them on top of that card.

Star Wars: Rebellion what are leaders instruction graphic

Each mission has a skill requirement in the upper left hand corner. These are explained in detail later, in the “What are Skills?” sidebar.

Any leaders who are not assigned to missions remain in the leader pool and can be used during the Command Phase to move units or oppose enemy missions.

After the Imperial player finishes assigning his leaders, players proceed to the Command Phase.

2. Command Phase

In the Command Phase, players have the opportunity to move units and reveal missions. Starting with the Rebel player, players take turns doing one of the following actions:

Activate a System: Use a leader from the leader pool to move units on the game board and potentially initiate combat.
Reveal a Mission: Use a leader assigned to a mission card to activate the card’s ability.

A player may choose to pass at any time. Once a player passes, their turn is skipped for the remainder of the Command Phase. After all players have passed, the game moves on to the Refresh Phase.

Activate a System

To activate a system, players use a leader from their leader pool to move units and possibly initiate combat. To do so, a player selects one leader and places them in any system on the game board. Once a system is activated, the player can move any of their ships from adjacent systems into the activated system.

What Are Systems and Regions?

“Fear will keep the local systems in line. Fear of this battle station.”
—Grand Moff Tarkin, Star Wars: A New Hope

The game board is divided into eight regions, each containing four systems. The regions are separated by large orange borders. Most systems are populated, with shaded areas completely surrounded by an orange line being impassable and inaccessible.

The main game board represents a map of the Star Wars galaxy, featuring 32 key systems. Each system is made up of:

Planet art
The system’s name
Space area surrounding the planet

Star Wars: Rebellion Movement and Combat

When a system is activated, players can move their ships from adjacent systems into the activated system. A player can also move units out of a system that already contains one of their faction’s leaders. Each incoming ship can bring a number of ground units equal to its transport capacity.

If a system contains opposing units, combat is triggered, which is explained later.

Leader Requirements

If a leader does not have any tactic values, they cannot activate a system.

Revealing a Star Wars: Rebellion Mission

To reveal a mission, the player selects a facedown mission card that one of their leaders is assigned to. The player then flips the card faceup and reads its effect aloud.

Most mission cards instruct the player to “attempt” or “resolve” the mission in a specific system. The player must declare which system they are attempting the mission in, but no further decisions are made at this point. The leader is then placed in the declared system. For example, if the card says “Attempt in any system,” the player places the leader from the mission card into any system on the game board.

Important: If the mission is attempted or resolved in the “Rebel Base” space, the leader is placed in the “Rebel Base” space of the game board, not in the system where the Rebel base is hidden.

Mission Terminology

There are two key terms used in missions that determine their outcome:

Resolve: The card’s ability is automatically triggered and cannot be opposed.
Attempt: The card’s ability is only performed if the mission succeeds. The mission will automatically succeed unless it is opposed by an opponent’s leader, as explained later.

Opposing a Mission

After a player declares where they are attempting a Star Wars: Rebellion mission, their opponent has the opportunity to send one leader from their leader pool to oppose the mission. The opposing leader is placed in the system where the mission is being attempted.

Star Wars: Rebellion matching skill icons instruction manual graphic

What Are Skills?

“Secret mission? What plans? What are you talking about?”
—C-3PO, Star Wars: A New Hope

Each mission card has a skill requirement in the top-left corner, indicating the minimum number of skill icons that the assigned leaders must have to attempt the mission.

For example, a mission may require a leader with at least one Intel icon, such as Emperor Palpatine. The more matching icons a leader has, the greater their chances of successfully completing the mission.

There are four Star Wars: Rebellion skill types:

Diplomacy: These missions often provide loyalty in systems or grant players more units.
Intel: Rebel intel missions help acquire objective cards, while Imperial intel missions are used to locate the Rebel base.
Spec Ops: Rebel spec ops missions typically target and destroy Imperial units, while Imperial spec ops missions focus on capturing Rebel leaders and exploiting them in various ways.
Logistics: Rebel logistics missions move units to and from the Rebel base, while Imperial logistics missions focus on building special units or speeding up Imperial unit production.

Other Star Wars: Rebellion Mission Rules

When a Star Wars: Rebellion mission is attempted “against a leader,” it must be performed in that leader’s system. Some mission cards feature a leader’s image below the skill requirement. Any leader can attempt these missions, but if the indicated leader is the one attempting the mission, they add two successes to their dice roll.

If the mission is resolved rather than attempted, the card’s ability will include an additional effect if the specified leader resolves the mission. The color of the leader’s frame is only relevant in team games.

Star Wars: Rebellion first mission example instruction manual page

3. Star Wars: Rebellion Refresh Phase

During the Refresh Phase, players prepare for the next round by completing the following steps:

Retrieve Leaders: Each player takes all of their leaders from the game board and returns them to their leader pool. If a leader is still on a mission card, it returns to the leader pool, and the mission card is returned to the player’s hand.
Draw Missions: Each player draws two mission cards. If their hand exceeds 10 cards, they must discard down to 10 cards.
Launch Probe Droids: The Imperial player draws two probe cards, each revealing a system where the Rebel base is not located. These cards are kept secret by the Imperial player.
Draw Objective: The Rebel player draws one objective card and adds it to their hand.
Advance Time Marker: The time marker is advanced one space along the track. Players then recruit and/or build, depending on the icons in the newly revealed space:
- Recruit Icon: Each player draws two cards from their action deck, selects one leader shown on either card, and places that leader in their leader pool. In the first game, the abilities on both cards are ignored, and the cards are returned to the game box.
- Build Icon: Each player builds one unit matching each resource icon in their loyal and subjugated systems. For subjugated systems, only the left-most resource icon is used. The units are taken from the supply and placed in the build queue in the space corresponding to the number to the left of the resource icon.
Deploy Units: Starting with the Rebel player, each player slides all units one space down their build queue, toward their side of the board. Any units that slide off the board from the “1” space are ready to be deployed. These units are placed in systems with the player’s loyalty or subjugation markers. Each player can deploy a maximum of two units per system.

Building Units Example

Rebel Alliance

X-Wing
Rebel Trooper
Y-Wing
Rebel Transport
Corellian Corvette
Mon Calamari Cruiser
Airspeeder
Ion Cannon
Shield Generator

During the Refresh Phase, the time marker advances to a space that has a build icon.
The Rebel player examines each system with Rebel loyalty and checks its resource icons. For example, Ryloth is loyal to the Rebels and has one resource icon. According to the Rebel faction sheet, this icon generates a Rebel Trooper.
The number “1” next to the resource icon indicates that this unit (Rebel Trooper) is placed on space “1” of the build queue, alongside the X-Wing that is already there.
After building units from all loyal systems, the Rebel player slides each unit one space down the build queue toward the Rebel edge of the game board. The Rebel Trooper and X-Wing both slide off the board, making them ready for deployment.
The Rebel player chooses to deploy both units to Ryloth and places them in the system.

The Rebel player can build and deploy units in the “Rebel Base” space as though it were a regular system. Systems that contain an opponent’s unit or a sabotage marker are unable to build units during step 5 or deploy units during step 6. Once all units are deployed, players proceed to the next game round, starting with the Assignment Phase.

Winning the Game

The Imperial player immediately wins if they conquer the Rebel base’s system (e.g., if there is an Imperial unit in the system and no Rebel units are present). This is a devastating blow to the Rebellion, ensuring Imperial control.

The Rebel player immediately wins if the reputation marker and time marker reach the same space on the time track. This signifies that the Rebels have gained enough sympathy and support within the galaxy to trigger the Empire’s decline.

The most common way for the Rebels to gain reputation is through objective cards.

Objective Cards

The Rebel player starts with one objective card and draws one additional card during each Refresh Phase.

The Death Star

“This station is now the ultimate power in the universe. I suggest we use it!”
—Admiral Motti, Star Wars: A New Hope

The Death Star is a formidable unit capable of destroying entire systems. To activate it, the Imperial player must use the “Research and Development” mission to draw a “Superlaser Online” card from the projects deck.

When the Death Star destroys a system, place a destroyed system marker there and eliminate all Rebel ground units in the system. If the Death Star destroys the system containing the Rebel base, the Imperial player wins immediately.

The Rebel player may play an objective card from their hand if they meet the card’s requirements at the designated time. The card is discarded, and the Rebel player gains the reputation indicated in the top-left corner. The reputation marker is then moved that number of spaces toward the time marker. Only one objective card can be played during each combat and Refresh Phase.

The Death Star can only be destroyed by the “Death Star Plans” card found in the objective deck.

Additional Star Wars: Rebellion Rules

This section covers the remaining game rules required to play.

The Rebel Base

At the beginning of the game, the Rebel player secretly selects a system to serve as the location of their Rebel base. The base remains hidden at first but can be revealed later. This section explains the rules for finding, revealing, and moving to and from the Rebel base.

Establishing a New Base

The “Rapid Mobilization” mission card allows the Rebel player to establish a new base. To do so, the player draws the top four cards from the probe deck and chooses one to become the new base location. However, they cannot choose a system that has Imperial loyalty or Imperial units.

If a new base location is chosen, the Rebel player reveals the old base’s location and places all units from the “Rebel Base” space in the old base’s system. The Rebel player will not have any units at the new base until they either move or deploy units there. The old base’s probe card is given to the Imperial player, and the new base’s probe card is placed facedown under the “Location” space. The remaining unchosen probe cards are shuffled and placed facedown at the bottom of the probe deck.

While the Rebel base is hidden, the Rebel player can deploy units in the “Rebel Base” space on the game board without revealing the actual location of the base. Any reference to the “Rebel Base” space refers to this space, not the system where the base is hidden.

Sabotage Markers

Some Rebel missions place a sabotage marker in a system, which prevents either player from using its resource icons to build new units or deploy units there. Sabotage markers can be removed by certain Imperial missions.

Moving to and from the Rebel Base

While the Rebel base is hidden, Rebel units can move between the “Rebel Base” space and systems adjacent to the system containing the base. This means that any movement to or from the “Rebel Base” space will reveal the location of one system adjacent to the base (or where the base is located).

Some missions allow Rebel units to move between the base and any system without revealing information.

Revealing The Rebel Base

If the Imperial player ever has loyalty or ground units in the same system as the Rebel base, the Rebel base is immediately revealed. When Imperial ground units enter the system, the base is revealed before combat is resolved.

When the base is revealed, the Rebel player flips the probe card in the “Location” space faceup and places it in the “Rebel Base” space. All units and leaders from the “Rebel Base” space are placed in the system shown on the probe card. The probe card remains faceup in the “Rebel Base” space to remind players that the base has been revealed.

While the base is revealed, the resource icons in the “Rebel Base” space can still be used. However, units cannot be deployed or moved to the “Rebel Base” space. Any units that would be placed there are instead placed in the system shown on the revealed probe card.

Loyalty and Subjugation

To win the war, both factions must gain support from the galaxy’s citizens. This support is represented by Loyalty. The Empire can also subjugate systems, compelling their populations to support Imperial rule.

Attachment Rings

Certain card abilities attach rings to leaders, such as the captured leader ring. To attach a ring, fit the leader’s stand snugly into the ring. The effect of the ring is explained on the card that brought it into play. If a leader already has a ring and receives another, the previous ring is removed to make room for the new one.

Capturing Leaders

Some abilities, like the “Capture Rebel Operative” mission card, allow the Imperial player to capture a Rebel leader. When a leader is captured, attach the captured leader ring to them. Captured leaders generally cannot oppose missions and cannot return to the leader pool or be moved by the Rebel player. However, captured leaders do not prevent Rebel units from leaving their system.

Captured leaders can be moved by the Imperial player as ground units. The Imperial player can also attempt missions against captured leaders, such as interrogation missions. When a mission targets a captured leader, they will oppose the mission, even though they are captured.

The Imperial player has only one captured leader ring. If the player captures another leader, the first leader is rescued, and the new leader receives the captured leader ring.

Loyalty

Each system has a loyalty value, representing the support of its population: Rebel, Imperial, or neutral. The loyalty of a system is shown by the loyalty marker in the system. If a system lacks a loyalty marker, it is neutral.

The main way to gain loyalty in a system is by resolving diplomacy missions. The player with loyalty in a system can use that system’s resources to build new units.

When a player “gains 1 loyalty” in a neutral system, they place their loyalty marker in that system, making it loyal to their faction. If a player “gains 1 loyalty” in a system already loyal to the opposing faction, the existing loyalty marker is removed, and the system becomes neutral.

Each system with an Imperial loyalty or subjugation marker is considered an Imperial system. Coruscant always remains loyal to the Imperial player and cannot change its loyalty.

Subjugation

The Imperial player can subjugate systems to force their inhabitants to build Imperial units.

When there is at least one Imperial ground unit in a system without Imperial loyalty, the Empire subjugates the system. A subjugation marker is placed in the system’s loyalty space.

If the system had Rebel loyalty before subjugation, place the marker on top of the Rebel loyalty marker, signifying that the population is now compelled to support the Empire.

If there are no Imperial ground units in a subjugated system, the subjugation marker is discarded, and the system’s loyalty returns to the Rebels (or becomes neutral if no loyalty marker is beneath it).

Rescuing Captured Leaders

Captured leaders can be rescued under certain conditions.

If no Imperial units remain in the system of a captured leader (often after an Imperial defeat in combat), the leader is immediately rescued. Certain mission cards can also rescue captured leaders.

When a captured leader is rescued, remove the captured leader ring from them and place the leader in the “Rebel Base” space.

The Imperial player can use a subjugated system’s left-most resource icon to build new units. The Rebel player cannot build or deploy units in a subjugated system, even if the system has a Rebel loyalty marker beneath the subjugation marker.

Structures

Structures are immobile units that provide abilities during combat, as explained on the Rebel faction sheet. These units do not provide dice in combat but grant other special effects.

Combat

When a player moves units into a system occupied by the opponent’s units, a combat is triggered. Players resolve the combat by following these steps:

1. Add Leader

If a player has no leader with tactic values in the system, they may select a leader from their leader pool and place it in the system.

2. Draw Tactic Cards

Each player draws tactic cards based on the leaders in the system (if any). The number of space tactic cards drawn is equal to the leader’s space tactic value (blue), and the number of ground tactic cards is equal to the leader’s ground tactic value (orange). If a player has multiple leaders in the system, only the highest tactic value for each type (space and ground) is used.

3. Combat Round

Players resolve a combat round in which each unit performs one attack. The round proceeds as follows:

I. Space Battle:
The current player resolves one attack with all their ships, followed by the opponent resolving one attack with all of theirs. This step is only resolved if both players have ships in the system.

II. Ground Battle:
The current player resolves one attack with all their ground units, followed by the opponent resolving one attack with all of theirs. This step is only resolved if both players have ground units in the system.

III. Retreat:
Starting with the current player, each player has the option to retreat their units from the system.

IV. Next Round:
If both factions still have units in the same theater (space or ground), another combat round is resolved. Otherwise, combat ends.

4. Combat Actions

After rolling dice, players can perform combat actions, one at a time. There are two types of actions:

a. Play a Tactic Card:
The player can play a tactic card from their hand and resolve its ability. Tactic cards target only units in the theater being resolved and are discarded after use. If the card has the hit icon, the player must discard one of their dice to use the ability.

b. Draw a Tactic Card:
The player can discard one of their dice to draw a tactic card from this theater’s tactic deck. Tactic cards drawn can be used either in the same combat round or saved for later in the combat.

5. Assign Damage

After resolving combat actions, the player assigns damage by placing dice or cards next to the affected units. Damage must be assigned to units within the same theater.

The icons on the dice indicate the following:
Hit: Deal one damage to a unit matching the die’s color.
Direct Hit: Deal one damage to a unit with a black or red health value.
Example: TIE Fighters roll black dice. Any 󲅐 rolled on black dice can be assigned to an opponent’s unit in the same theater with a black health value (e.g., X-wings or Y-wings). Black 󲅐 cannot be assigned to units with a red health value, such as a Corellian Corvette.

6. Block Damage

The opponent may play tactic cards to block (remove) damage assigned to their units. Blocked damage is canceled and does not affect the assigned unit.

7. Destroy Units

If a unit accumulates damage equal to or greater than its health value, it is destroyed. The unit is then returned to its faction’s supply. If a unit is destroyed during combat, it remains in the system as a reminder until the end of the combat step.

Resolving an Attack

To resolve an attack, the player rolls dice matching the color and quantity of their participating ships or ground units. Each attack is limited to a maximum of five red and five black dice. The unit’s health is tracked using damage markers. If the damage assigned exceeds the unit’s health value, it is destroyed.

The unit is placed on its faction sheet as a reminder of its destruction at the end of the combat.

RETREAT

When a player retreats from combat, he moves his leader and all of his units from that system to an adjacent system, following normal movement and transport rules.

If a player does not have a leader in the system, he cannot retreat. If the Imperial player has a Death Star in the combat, he cannot retreat any of his units.

When retreating, the player must retreat to a system that either contains his own units or has one of his loyalty markers, if able. He cannot retreat units to a system that contains his opponent’s units nor to a system that his opponent moved units from to initiate the combat.

Star Wars: Rebellion combat example instruction manual

Star Wars: Rebellion first game setup instruction manual

In Star Wars: Rebellion, every decision shapes the fate of the galaxy, from managing loyalty and subjugation to navigating intense combat and strategic missions. The Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Empire each have their own strengths and tactics to claim victory, whether through the destruction of the Rebel base or the rise of the Empire’s dominance. Mastering the rules and understanding the nuances of combat, missions, and leader management are key to outwitting your opponent. May the Force guide your strategy as you embark on this epic struggle for galactic control in Star Wars: Rebellion!