Sky Team
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Details
Sourced from: https://jmo.name/games
Player Aid Author: Jarrod Moore
Description
Cooperative 2-player game where the Pilot and Co-Pilot place dice on the Control Panel to land a commercial airliner.
Expansions in Use
- Turbulence
This covers the basic game (YUL Montréal-Trudeau). All other module components stay in the closed compartment.
- Place the Control Panel between the two players, each sitting next to their own colour
- The arrow on the Axis disc should point at the black triangle at the top
- All 10 Switches should cover the green lights
- On the Speed Gauge:
- Place the blue Aerodynamics marker between 4 and 5
- Place the orange Aerodynamics marker between 8 and 9
- Place the red Brake marker to the left of 2 on the Brake track
- Assign roles and dice:
- The player on the blue side plays the Pilot and takes 4 blue dice
- The player on the orange side plays the Co-Pilot and takes 4 orange dice
- Slide the Altitude Track (green/yellow side) into the top right slot until 6000 is visible
- Slide the YUL Montréal-Trudeau Approach Track into the top left slot until the airplane icon is visible in the Current Position screen
- Place a Reroll token on each Reroll icon on the Altitude Track
- Place Airplane tokens on the Approach Track:
- On every space showing a Traffic icon, place as many Airplane tokens as icons shown
- Create a reserve of 3 Coffee tokens next to the board (not on it)
- Give each player a screen and read the reminders inside
The game is played over 7 rounds, where in each round players will work through 3 phases in order:
- Strategy Discussion & Dice Rolls
- Dice Placement
- End of Round
Players will alternate placing dice on the Control Panel during Phase 2, executing the Action on each space as dice are placed. Once all 8 dice have been placed, the round ends and the Altitude Track advances one space. The game continues until the plane lands, crashes, or the final round is triggered.
At the start of the round, players may freely discuss their general strategy for the round:
- You may talk about what Actions to prioritise, which spaces matter most, and how to sequence your plays
- You may not discuss dice in any way — no mentioning what values you hope to roll, what you would do with a given result, or how strong or weak your pool is likely to be
Once players are satisfied with the discussion, both players roll all 4 of their dice behind their screen. From this moment onwards, both players must be completely silent until the end of the round.
- The only exception is to correct a rule error — you may briefly speak up if a placement would violate the rules
Players will now alternate placing dice on the Control Panel, one at a time, until all 8 dice have been placed. Each die placed triggers the Action on its space — see Actions for what each space does, and General Rules for the constraints that govern where each die may go.
Players alternate turns throughout Phase 2. The arrow in the Current Altitude screen indicates which player takes the first turn this round.
- On your turn, place exactly one of your remaining dice on a free space on the Control Panel
- Each space has a colour constraint and usually a number constraint:
- The Pilot places on blue spaces, the Co-Pilot places on orange spaces
- Some spaces are both colours — either player may use them
- Most spaces show a number or range (for example 1/2 or 3/4). The die value must match the number shown
- Radio spaces have a colour constraint but no number constraint — any value works
- Concentration spaces have no constraints at all — any player may place any value
- Two Actions are mandatory each round. By the end of the round:
- There must be 1 die of each colour on Axis
- There must be 1 die of each colour on Engines
- These dice do not have to be played first, but if either mandatory pair is missing at the end of the round, you immediately lose the game
Each Action space produces an effect based on the die placed there. For Actions with two matched spaces (Axis and Engines), the effect resolves only when the second die is placed. For all other Actions, the effect resolves immediately.
The Axis Action keeps the plane level. It is mandatory: each round must end with 1 blue die and 1 orange die on the Axis spaces.
When the second Axis die is placed, compare the two values:
- If the values are equal, the Axis Arrow does not move
- If the values are different, rotate the arrow by the difference in marks, toward the player who played the higher die
- The Axis does not reset at the end of the round — the arrow stays where it is going into the next round
Going into a spin: if the arrow ever reaches or passes an X on either side of the Axis disc, the plane enters an unrecoverable spin and you immediately lose the game.
The Engines Action drives the plane forward along the Approach Track. It is mandatory: each round must end with 1 blue die and 1 orange die on the Engine spaces.
When the second Engine die is placed, add the two values together — this is your speed for the round. Compare the sum to the two Aerodynamics markers on the Speed Gauge:
- Less than the blue (lower) marker: the plane does not advance
- Between the two markers (inclusive of either): advance the Approach Track 1 space
- Greater than the orange (upper) marker: advance the Approach Track 2 spaces
There are two ways moving forward can immediately lose the game:
- Collision: if Airplane tokens are sitting in a space that you must advance into or through, you collide with the traffic and lose. Airplane tokens already in your Current Position when you first arrive there are fine — the collision only happens if you try to enter or cross a space that still has tokens
- Overshoot: if the airport icon is already in the Current Position screen and the rules require you to advance further, you overshoot the runway and lose
In the final round only, speed is compared to the red Brake marker instead of the Aerodynamics markers — see Final Round & Landing.
The Radio Action is used to clear traffic from the approach path ahead of the plane.
- The Pilot has 1 Radio space; the Co-Pilot has 2 Radio spaces
- Any die value may be placed on a Radio space (the number constraint does not apply here)
- Starting from the Current Position and counting forward along the Approach Track, count a number of spaces equal to the die's value. Remove one Airplane token from that target space
- A die showing 1 removes an Airplane token from the Current Position space itself
- If the target space has no Airplane tokens on it, the Action simply has no effect (the die is still spent)
The Landing Gear Action is Pilot only. Each piece of Landing Gear deployed increases drag and wind resistance on the plane.
- Place a die matching the number constraint on any free Landing Gear space — the order of deployment does not matter
- Slide the Switch below the die to show the green light
- Immediately advance the blue Aerodynamics marker one space forward on the Speed Gauge
- Once all Landing Gear Switches are deployed, the blue marker should sit between 7 and 8
- If a die is placed on a Landing Gear space whose Switch is already showing the green light, the Action has no effect and the die is spent
The Flaps Action is Co-Pilot only. Each Flap extended increases lift and wind resistance on the plane.
- Place a die matching the number constraint on a Flaps space
- Flaps must be deployed in order, from top to bottom — deploy the 1/2 space first, then 2/3, then 3/4, and so on
- Slide the Switch below the die to show the green light
- Immediately advance the orange Aerodynamics marker one space forward on the Speed Gauge
- Once all Flaps are deployed, the orange marker should sit just past 12
The Concentration Action represents the crew fuelling up on caffeine. Either player may place any die on a free Concentration space, and the number constraint does not apply.
- Immediately place a Coffee token on one of the 3 designated Coffee spaces on the Control Panel
- There may be a maximum of 3 Coffee tokens on the Control Panel at any one time
Spending Coffee tokens: at any time during your turn, when you place a die on the Control Panel, you may spend Coffee tokens to modify that die's value.
- Each Coffee token spent adds 1 or subtracts 1 from the die's value
- Spent tokens are returned to the supply beside the board
- Either player may spend Coffee tokens, regardless of which player originally placed them
- Any Coffee tokens left unspent at the end of the round remain on the board for the following round
- Modifiers may only produce values between 1 and 6:
- Subtracting 1 from a 1 does not make it a 6
- Adding 1 to a 6 does not make it a 1
The Brakes Action is Pilot only. Brakes only come into play in the final round — but the more Brakes you have deployed by then, the easier the landing will be.
- Brakes must be deployed in order: 2 first, then 4, then 6
- Place a die matching the number on the Brake space
- Immediately advance the red Brake marker one space along the Brake track
- You do not have to deploy all of the Brakes, but they can never be deployed out of order
If a Reroll token is in the Current Altitude space at the start of a round, remove it from the Altitude Track and add it to the supply at the top-left of the Control Panel.
At any time during a round, either player may spend a Reroll token to allow both players to reroll one or more of their dice from behind their screens. Each token spent allows one such reroll.
For example, the Pilot might spend the token to reroll 2 of their 3 remaining dice, while the Co-Pilot uses the same spend to reroll all 4 of their own dice.
Once all 8 dice have been placed, the silence rule ends and players move through the end of round steps in order:
- Advance the Altitude Track one space (the plane descends 1000 feet)
- Take back your dice from the Control Panel, ready for the next round:
- Axis, Engines, Concentration, and Radio spaces all empty out
- Dice on Landing Gear, Flaps, and Brakes spaces also return to their owners, but their Switches and the Brake marker stay deployed
- Check for landing:
- If the Airport image is in the Current Position screen and the Airplane image is in the Current Altitude screen, proceed to Final Round & Landing
- Otherwise, begin a new round back at Strategy Discussion
Reaching the airport too soon
The Airport image appears in the Current Position screen, but the Airplane image has not yet appeared in the Current Altitude screen.
- The plane is in a holding pattern. Play one or more further rounds without advancing the Approach Track, allowing the plane to descend until the Altitude matches
Not reaching the airport in time
The Airplane image has reached the Current Altitude screen, but the Airport image is still not in the Current Position screen.
- The plane has descended below the runway before reaching the airport — you crash-land and lose the game
The final round begins the moment the Airport image appears in the Current Position screen and the Airplane image appears in the Current Altitude screen at the same time.
The final round is played exactly like a normal round, with one key change to the Engines Action:
- When the second Engine die is placed, compare your speed to the position of the red Brake marker — not to the Aerodynamics markers
- Your speed (the sum of both Engine dice) must be less than the position of the Brake marker
You do not need to have deployed all of the Brakes to land safely, but if your speed is greater than or equal to the Brake marker's position, the plane runs off the end of the runway and you lose the game.
At the end of the final round, all four of the following conditions must be met for the crew to win the game:
- A — There are no Airplane tokens remaining on the Approach Track
- B — All Flaps and Landing Gear Switches are showing the green light
- C — The Axis is completely horizontal, with the arrow pointing at the black triangle at the top
- D — Your speed (the sum of both Engine dice) is less than the position of the red Brake marker
Failing any one of these conditions means the landing fails and you lose the game.
There are also several situations which will end the game immediately, mid-round, before the final round is even reached:
- The Axis arrow reaches or passes an X on either side — the plane enters a spin, immediate loss
- Airplane tokens are in a space you must advance into or through — collision, immediate loss
- The Airport image is in the Current Position when you are required to advance — overshoot, immediate loss
- The round ends with fewer than 1 die of each colour on either the Axis or the Engine spaces — immediate loss
In this module, the game begins with the 5000 space in the Current Altitude screen instead of 6000.
- You have one fewer round to complete the landing (6 rounds instead of the usual 7)
- You have one fewer starting Reroll token (the one that would have sat on the 6000 space is skipped)
The Total Trust module is the ultimate test of cockpit coordination: some rounds begin without a briefing.
- If the muted speaker symbol is visible in the Current Position screen at the end of a round, players must skip Strategy Discussion at the start of the following round
- Both players simply roll their dice in silence and proceed directly to Dice Placement
The Alarms module introduces system failures that disable Actions until the crew resets them.
Additional setup
- Place the Alarm board next to the Control Panel
- Shuffle the Alarm tokens and place them face down on the Alarm board
Rules
- If an Alarm symbol is in the Current Position screen at the start of a round, flip one Alarm token face up
- While an Alarm is active, the matching Action on the Control Panel may not be used:
- Any die placed on a space affected by an active Alarm has no effect (the die is still spent)
- If the rules require an Alarm to be flipped but every Alarm has already been flipped or removed, do nothing
Removing Alarm tokens
- If a player places a die of the correct colour and number directly onto a face-up Alarm token, the system resets
- The token is immediately removed from the Alarm board, along with the die that reset it (the die cannot be used again this round)
- Players may place dice on the corresponding Action space starting from the next turn onwards
Important
- Active Alarm tokens do not prevent landing — you may still win with Alarms active, provided all base victory conditions are met
- If the Concentration Alarm is active, no Coffee tokens can be generated until it is reset. Coffee tokens placed before the Alarm became active may still be spent normally
Alarm tokens
The new Altitude Tracks (A, B, C, and D) introduce weather events that trigger during the descent.
Setup
- Place the required Altitude Track (A, B, C, or D) in the Altitude slot in place of the standard Altitude Track
Rules
- When a Bad Visibility or Turbulence symbol appears in the Current Altitude space, apply the rule for that event — see the sub-sections below
The plane is being tossed around in rough air — every Action sends a shudder through the cockpit.
- Every time a die is placed on an Action space, both players reroll all of their remaining dice from behind their screens
Visibility is poor and you can barely see what you are rolling.
- At the start of the round, both players roll only 2 of their 4 dice. The other 2 dice are set aside behind their screens, unrolled
- The next two times you place a die on an Action space, you will cycle a new die into your pool:
- Take 1 of the 2 dice you set aside earlier
- Roll it
- Put it behind your screen with your other remaining die
- Replace it with the die you just played on the Control Panel (do not reroll that one)
- At no point during the round should you have more than 2 dice to choose from on any given turn
A full storm: the plane is being thrown around and the cockpit is half-blind.
- Apply the Bad Visibility rule — each player only has 2 dice to choose from at any time
- Whenever you bring a new die into your pool to replace the one just played, reroll both of your available dice before the next turn
Emergency landing at Lajes: the engines have cut out and the plane is gliding to a military airbase in the Azores.
Setup
- Place 2 Intern tokens face down on each Engine space
- Dice cannot be placed on the Engine spaces, and the Engines Action is no longer mandatory
Rules
- Both players still roll all 4 of their dice at the start of each round, but will only use 3 of them during the round
- The engines are inactive for the whole game. At the end of every round, advance both the Approach Track and the Altitude Track by one space each
Belly landing at Warsaw: the landing gear is jammed in the retracted position.
Setup
- Place 3 Intern tokens face down on the Landing Gear spaces. Dice cannot be placed on these spaces
- Use only 3 Alarm tokens: both of the Alarms that require blue dice to reset, plus the Concentration Alarm. Remove the other 3 Alarm tokens from the game
Gameplay
- Dice cannot be placed on Landing Gear spaces for the whole game. The blue Aerodynamics marker stays at 5 for the entire game
- You do not need the Landing Gear Switches to be engaged in order to land
- The Brakes are used as normal — they represent spoilers, reverse engines, and whatever else the crew can improvise to slow the plane down
Antarctica: landing on an ice runway under heavy headwinds.
Setup
- Place the Wind module the other way around, with the arrows pointing downward instead of up
- Use Penguin tokens on the Approach Track instead of the usual Airplane tokens
The Wind module is from a separate Sky Team expansion and is required for this scenario.
The expansion ships a deck of Scenario cards, each representing a real-world airport with its own specific challenge. Every Scenario card uses some combination of the modules and scenario-specific rules above.
To play a Scenario
- Select a Scenario card
- Check the icons on the card to see which modules and variants apply:
- An Altitude Track letter (A, B, C, or D) — use that Altitude Track for the scenario
- 5000 — use the Altitude 5000 module
- An alarm bell icon — use the Alarms module
- A muted speaker icon — use the Total Trust module
- A book icon — apply the matching scenario-specific rules (Lajes, Warsaw, or Ice Runway)
- Apply all of the indicated modules together, then set up and play the game as normal
Star rating: the number of stars on each card indicates the scenario's overall difficulty. Refer to the card itself for the narrative briefing that sets the scene.
Thumbnail courtesy of BoardGameGeek and the respective publisher.