Space Base is a tableau-building, dice-rolling game that combines an exciting mix of strategic planning, tactical maneuvering, and luck. I have really enjoyed playing it on BGA recently, picking up all sorts of different strategies to move up the ranks. I’d like to share everything I’ve learned and hopefully help you improve.
Space Base is a beautifully balanced game that offers many different viable strategies and paths to victory. Some players prefer to take small wins by stocking up on tons of low slot cards (1-6) while others prefer to bet on the larger rewards from higher slots. You can manipulate dice and the results of your rolls, or choose to take a more direct approach by buying your way to victory with Colony cards.
I’ve experimented with all of the major strategies and tried combining them in different ways, and I’ve come to the conclusion that, while every strategy has pros and cons, they all have the potential to win. Most games end up being very close in score and usually come down to critical decision making and tactical play.
Adjust your play style based on the player count
The first and most important factor in formulating a strategy in Space Base is evaluating the player count. How you approach a game with 2 players is very different than if you were playing with 4 or 5 players. The fundamental reason for this is that, as player count increases, the relative value of red rewards increases while that of blue rewards decreases.
In a game with 4 players, there are 3 chances per round (1 for every player but yourself) for your red rewards to trigger, whereas in a game with 2 players, there is only 1 chance. This is a massive difference that requires a significant adjustment to your play. Let’s look at the breakdown for each player count:
| Player Count | Red chances per round | Blue chances per round | Avg # of rounds | Avg red chances per game | Avg blue chances per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 1 | 1 | 21 | 21 | 21 |
| 3 | 2 | 1 | 18 | 36 | 18 |
| 4 | 3 | 1 | 15 | 45 | 15 |
| 5 | 4 | 1 | 12 | 48 | 12 |
As you can see, as you add more players the number of chances you have at triggering red rewards increases dramatically, while your chances at blue rewards steadily decrease. This means that in games with 3 or more players, you must value red rewards and effects more than blue. Red rewards indeed tend to be weaker than blue ones, but this is typically more than offset by the frequency with which they can be triggered in 3+ player games.
Understand the distribution of dice probabilities
Most board game enthusiasts know that when you roll two dice, the probability of rolling each number (1-12) is a normal distribution, with 7 being the most common and 2 and 12 being the least. However, since Space Base allows us to choose between the sum of the dice or each die individually, that skews the probabilities we’re used to seeing. From the Space Base Rules:
“Because players may choose to take the dice separately or as a sum, probabilities of results do not make for a normal distribution. As most experienced gamers know, when two six–sided dice are rolled, one of possible 36 results occurs (shown in the graph below). The result with the most ways to be rolled is 7, which can be rolled 6 different ways out of the 36 possible results. However, it pays to note that in Space Base the dice can be allocated individually, so lower numbers, 1–6, will actually be the most common.”
-Space Base Rules
I have done the math and boiled down the probabilities to the chart below. Numbers 1-6 are by far the most common, with 6 being the most common number. Numbers 7-12 are far less common, which is why the rewards for cards with those numbers are significantly stronger.
| Number | # of Dice Combinations | % Chance to Roll |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | 33.3 |
| 2 | 13 | 36.1 |
| 3 | 14 | 38.9 |
| 4 | 15 | 41.7 |
| 5 | 16 | 44.4 |
| 6 | 17 | 47.2 |
| 7 | 6 | 16.7 |
| 8 | 5 | 13.9 |
| 9 | 4 | 11.1 |
| 10 | 3 | 8.3 |
| 11 | 2 | 5.6 |
| 12 | 1 | 2.8 |
It’s worth noting that, while the strength of cards in Space Base do generally reflect the probability of their number being rolled, they don’t match exactly. For example, there are many cards for low numbers (like 3 and 6) with identical effects and cost but 6 is over 8% more likely to be rolled than 3. If given the choice (and ignoring other factors) you should choose the 6 card. Similarly, you are twice as likely to roll an 11 than you are a 12. However, the rewards for the 12 slot are never worth twice that of the 11 slot. Therefore, you will almost always get more value by buying a card for the 11 slot.
Favor income over gold in games with few players
Income can be a very powerful tool to help you win games, but the degree to which you should focus on it depends on the number of players in the game. As previously discussed, games with more players tend to last fewer rounds than 2 player games. Since Income triggers at the end of your turn, this means that the earning potential for Income is significantly reduced as players are added.
The flip side of this is that you should generally place a lot of emphasis on Income in 2-player games. Your Income will trigger for more often and be much more valuable that a few gold early on. In fact, if you can score just 1 or 2 Income in the first few rounds it can be enough to win you the game.
DID YOU KNOW? Space Base has several popular expansions that you can find on Amazon including:
Chain arrow cards for more & better rewards
One of my favorite strategies in Space Base is chaining arrow rewards together to trigger valuable rewards on higher slots. By using one or more arrow cards, you greatly increase your odds of hitting valuable rewards on your higher slots. Consider the game below, where I have chained together arrows in the blue rewards of my 7 and 8 slots. If, at any time, roll a 7, 8, or 9 on my turn then I can score 7 Victory Points (VPs) from the 9 slot. Using the percentages from my table above, that’s a 41.7% chance of instantly scoring 7 VPs on my turn!
Of course, this strategy can be countered by other players if they notice what you’re doing. It can take some luck with card draws and what you & your opponent can afford, but if you can ever manage a situation like this (or even more arrows strung together) it is an absolutely game-breaking strategy that will win almost every time. You can also apply this strategy with your red rewards, which is extremely powerful in games with 3 to 5 players.
Manipulate dice to feed your scoring sectors
Space Base offers a variety of ways to manipulate your dice, either before or after rolling. In general, I like to have at least 2 abilities available from my cards that allow me to exert some control over the dice. This greatly reduces the randomness of the game and lets you trigger your best abilities much more often.
Consider the game I posted above, where I have two green abilities available that allow me to increase the sum of my dice roll by 2 or 3. When combined with the arrows in the 7 and 8 slots, that means that any dice roll totaling 4 or more is guaranteed to score me 7 VPs!
Being able to direct your dice to a specific number is another reason why it’s a good idea to stack a lot of cards in one or two slots. You can manipulate your dice to hit that slot over and over again, triggering massive rewards every time.
Space Base has a lot of luck involved due to all of the dice rolling, but clever planning and execution using green abilities drastically reduces the luck factor. Put them to use and you’ll see your win rate skyrocket (no pun intended).
Remember the opportunity cost of slot swap cards
Many newer players are seduced by the appeal of cards that let you swap the cards in different slots, and it’s easy to see why – you can get very powerful rewards much more frequently when they’re moved to a lower slot. However, it’s important to remember that it takes time and money to accomplish this swap.
This is especially true in games with 3 to 5 players where you are likely to have fewer turns. You probably won’t have enough time to see the swap pay off, considering the opportunity cost. In order for the swap to benefit you, you’d need to buy the swap card, charge its ability, use it to swap the cards, and then roll the number on the new slot. That’s a lot of resources to spend in a game that doesn’t last very long.
In a 2-player game, the math changes a bit. You will likely have more turns to trigger the effects. I particularly like to 9-slot “Swap this card with any other card” card. In order to maximize this one’s usefulness, first swap it with a 6-slot card and then swap it with an 11 or 12-slot card.
Avoid overspending to get maximum value
Looking at the statistics on BGA for the top Space Base players, I was surprised to see that there are very few statistics in which the top players stood out above the average player. One of the very few exceptions was ‘Overspending’, where top players tend to overspend for cards much less than the average player. This means that top players are deliberately trying to get the most value for their gold – often opting to buy more expensive cards even when another, less expensive card might look more appealing in the short term.
| Statistic | Top Player #1 | Top Player #2 | Top Player #3 | Average Player |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold lost from overspending | 19.02 | 15.14 | 18.97 | 25.68 |
The most common time I see this being an issue with average players is early in the game, where most players tend to just buy level 1 cards on every turn. But if you have 6 gold and all the level one cards cost 3 gold or less, you’d be wasting 3 gold to buy a level 1 card! I have started deliberately passing on buying a card and waiting to buy a level 2 card on the next turn. I end up getting a lot more value that way, and these little efficiencies can easily help snowball to a victory.
Buy Colony Cards early and often
Colony cards are almost always the last few cards to be purchased in a game of Space Base because they’re an easy and efficient way to boost your VPs and put you over the 40 point threshold. I have found that you should usually start buying Colony cards earlier than you might originally think.
It doesn’t take a lot to get your engine working in Space Base, especially at higher player counts. If you can buy some of the cheaper Colony cards in the middle game then you’ll usually be ahead of the game. Colony cards offer sure points at a conversion rate of 3 gold to 1 VP, and they’re usually a better investment in the middle game than ship cards that may or may not ever be triggered before the game ends.
Only play the ‘You Win’ card with support cards
One of the most unique and tempting cards in Space Base is the ‘You Win’ card. Personally, I have only seen this card win once in my games, but it can be very powerful if used in conjunction with other cards. You will almost never be able to charge the card fast enough to win without one (and usually more) helper mechanism.
Some of the best effects to help trigger the immediate win are “place a cube anywhere” and “place one cube, then move one cube”. These cards let you place more cubes directly onto the “You Win” card without having to roll a 12. I would also recommend having one or two green effect cards to help you manipulate the dice, either directly to the “You Win” card or one of your “place a cube” cards.
In general, I would recommend not buying the “You Win” card unless you have a couple of these supplementary cards already in place. In addition, you shouldn’t bother with it when you’re late in the game and you won’t have time to complete it (even with the help of your other cards).
Know how to counter the GORDON 7981-G card
One of the most frequent complaints about Space Base is how ‘overpowered’ the GORDON 7981-G card is. Yes, it’s the card whose ability forces all of your opponents to lose 3 or 4 VPs. This seems extremely powerful and can seem game-breaking if you don’t know how to counter it.
Firstly, the card simply isn’t all that powerful in 2-player games. It has to be charged to be used, and it only affects one opposing player. In games with 3 to 5 players, you get a lot more bang for your buck since more players are affected.
The way to counter it is relatively simple. Accumulate enough income and gold to buy more powerful cards and/or Colony cards and simply score VPs in bursts, keeping ahead of the rate your opponent can burn your VPs away.
Consider saving gold in the Light Speed Variant
I’m a big proponent of the Light Speed Variant of Space Base because it speeds the game up significantly and lets you hop right into the more interesting phase of the game. When I first started playing the variant on BGA I didn’t realize that you get to keep any gold you don’t spend, carrying it over into the first turn.
This can be extremely powerful – especially if there are game-changing cards available to be bought on the board. For example, in a 2-player game, if there is an Income card for a low-numbered slot, I will almost always make sure to save enough gold to buy it on the first turn. Other cards with powerful abilities like arrows are also high on my list. If I don’t especially like the cards I have to choose from from the Light Speed Variant selection, I’ll just save some of my gold and make a better purchase from the board.
Always know what your opponent is up to
Space Base is one of those games where it can be very easy to start playing “multiplayer solitaire”, ignoring what your opponent is doing and focusing only on your own situation. If you want to get better, you have to break out of that habit and pay close attention to what your opponent(s) is doing.
Some of the biggest things to look out for are your opponents trying to chain cards together for big rewards or going for the “You Win” card. Both of these strategies are fairly easy to counter if you see them coming. Hate-drafting an important card away from your opponent is very often enough to cripple their hopes and dreams, leaving you an easy path to victory even if that card wasn’t particularly useful to yourself.
You also always have to be mindful of how much Income/Gold/VPs your opponent(s) have. If their only chance at winning is to luck into some gold and buy a Colony card, buy that Colony card for yourself. By knowing what your opponent is hoping for, you can often snuff that hope out entirely by making that move yourself.
Thanks for reading! If you like dice-throwing strategy games I’d also recommend Can’t Stop which you can play on BGA. I have a full strategy guide for it here.
Did I miss something? Feel free to drop any useful feedback below. Thanks again!
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