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CatastropheDirector

Learn to play

The essentials in five minutes. After that, every section of the guide has all the details.

The game

One Director against everyone

One player is the Director: from above, they unleash catastrophes with their cards: lava, zombies, meteors, fissures, a lava flood… Everyone else is a survivor: they run, climb, help each other and hold out to the end. In the team modes there are two Directors, one per team.

A match

Step by step

  1. 01

    The waiting room

    You choose a mode and a role (Director, survivor or “Any”). The Director picks one of their decks; the survivor, their 3 items.

  2. 02

    The first choice

    At the start, the game freezes for 10 s: the Director picks a mutation and the survivors an upgrade, all at the same time.

  3. 03

    Act I

    The Director starts with 4 cards and draws one every 15 s. Only light and medium cards arrive: heavy ones wait for Act II.

  4. 04

    Acts II and III

    The draw timer speeds up (10 s and 8 s), and heavy cards and level III arrive: fissures, bears, meteors, the flood.

  5. 05

    Going down and reviving

    At 0 HP you go down; a teammate revives you in 4 s. In the void or in space, there's no rescue.

  6. 06

    Winning

    It depends on the mode: 180 points in the zone, 3 rounds still standing, or the best score in the Race.

The cards

Merging cards in 30 seconds

Three levels

Every card is level I, II or III, with a bronze, silver or gold frame. The higher the level, the bigger and stronger it is, and the more creatures it brings.

Fuse

Drag a card onto an identical one of the same level: it goes up one level.

Combine

Drag a card onto a different one: you get one of the 56 reactions, at the level of the higher one. Creature with creature doesn't combine.

Lab

To get started

Tips

The Director

  1. Save something for Act II: heavy cards change the match.
  2. Combine to surprise them: a reaction forces survivors to dodge in a different way.
  3. Don't spend everything at once: if you empty your hand, you're left watching.

The survivor

  1. Watch for the warning: almost every catastrophe warns you before it lands.
  2. With the flood, climb; with meteors, don't stay at the very top.
  3. Bring at least one item to escape with: Grapple, Flash or Boost.

Key terms

Glossary

Act
The three parts of a match (in the Zone: 0:00, 3:30 and 7:00). With each act, the Director draws faster.
Draw timer
How often the Director draws a card: every 15, 10 or 8 seconds depending on the act.
Light, medium, heavy
Each card's class: it's worth 1, 2 or 3 deck points. Heavy cards arrive from Act II.
Fusion
Two identical cards of the same level that merge and go up one level.
Combination
Two different cards that merge into a new reaction. There are 56.
Mutation
What the Director picks at each pause: it makes their catastrophes stronger. There are 37.
Upgrade
What the survivor picks at each pause. There are 20, in four families.
Legendary
The special mutation or upgrade that appears when you collect 3 from the same family.
Downed
A survivor at 0 HP who can still be revived.
Dome
Each base's hologram shield: nothing can be played inside.
Hologram and supply drop
Where extra items come from: the holograms on the map and the supply crates.
Storm
The circle that closes in during Last One Standing: outside it, you lose health.