The Borg are driven to assimilate worlds, stripping them of resources and technology to fuel their unending drive for perfection. During a Borg Cube’s activation it will Engage Player Starships in Space Combat, Execute a Command Card, and finally, it will attempt to Assimilate any Developed System the Cube orbits. This counts as a Planetary Invasion, however the Borg are interested in taking control of the planet, they will scour it bare and use those resources to construct a Borg Spire, and in turn a new Borg Cube.
 The Borg Prepare to Assimilate a Romulan Controlled World


The Borg Cube starts the Invasion with nine Attack Dice. Just as in a Space Combat, the defender will get a First Strike attack against the Cube. The System being Assimilated rolls a die for each Structure on the world. Each successful hit will damage the Cube; moving a die to the Borg Cube Card. After the first round of combat, attacks are simultaneous and the Cube’s shields improve as it adapts to the defender’s weaponry. Each successful Borg hit will destroy a Structure, once all Structures are destroyed, place a Borg Spire on the System; this is now a Borg World.

(Remember, the effectiveness of the Borg’s Weapons is tied to the number of Borg Worlds on the game board. The more culture and technology the Borg assimilate, the more effective their weapons are against the inhabitants of the Quadrant. Their weapons also lose potency as they lose Worlds as other civilizations develop new technologies and tactics to combat the Borg.)
A Starbase
Starbases are one of the pinnacles of a civilization’s technological development. When the Borg Assimilate a System that contains a Starbase, remove the Starbase from the game and add a Borg Node to every Borg Spire in play. This is a huge blow to a player, robbing them of a valuable Command Token and permanently removing one of their Starbases from play for the remainder of the game. It also supercharges the Borg, hastening their assimilation of Borg Worlds in the Quadrant.

The Borg cannot be negotiated with. Borg Worlds must be invaded to eradicate the Borg presence. Any civilization, including the Federation, may try to Reclaim a Borg World via Planetary Invasion. To successfully Reclaim a Borg World, the invaders must roll enough Hits to result in a Total Annihilation or Successful Invasion result. All Structures on the world must be destroyed. The Spire, Nodes and Cube atop a Spire all count as Borg Structures.
            
Unlike Combat with a Cube, players do not have First Strike when attacking a Borg World. The Borg are resilient and are able to ignore collateral damage; if a player rolls fewer hits than there are Structures on the world, the attack has no effect and no Nodes are destroyed. If a player has fewer Ships then there are Borg Structures, they will not be able to Reclaim the World.
A Federation Invasion Fleet moves towards a Borg World


Borg Worlds have a Shield Modifier equal to the number of Borg Assimilation Nodes on the planet. As in a Space Combat, the Borg Shields adapt to an attacker’s weapons. Add a Borg Node to the System after each round of Combat, increasing the Borg World’s shields and hastening construction of a new Borg Cube. The addition of these Nodes is permanent; they remain on the World until a Cube is launched. A Borg World may never have more then three Nodes.


With either successful player result, the System has been Reclaimed removing all Borg Structures. Do not place a civilization’s Control Node on the System. The world has been heavily damaged by the Borg and must be colonized anew during a player’s Build Phase. The victorious player draws a Borg Tech Card.


Will you be able to hold off the Borg invasion when the Borg Assimilation game expansion for Star Trek: Ascendancy enters your orbit in Q4 2017?