The game is for 2-6 players and is played in rounds. There are usually 3-4 rounds in a game. Game play lasts 20-40 minutes. It is a quick paced game involving strategic combat. Outwit and outmuscle your opponents to become the Ultimate Soldier.

To begin each player will start with 1 Soldier card, a Reference card, and eight Common cards. The first player to draw a Common card begins. They can make one of three moves during their turn.
Play a Training Academy card (When the equivalent of four Training Academies is met, they earn another Soldier card).
Mount an assault against another soldier, which can include enhancements from Weapons and Intensity cards (If your soldier dies and you do not have another one trained, you cannot mount an assault).
Discard because they are unable to make another move.

The game is played in rounds; the first player to either earn or have four soldiers alive, or win in three separate combats, wins the round. Players then get to draw Victory cards for winning the round or surviving the round with a Soldier card. The first player to earn seven Victory cards wins. If a player loses three or more battles during a round, they must surrender a Victory card.

The game is designed to keep everyone involved throughout the game even if it is not their turn. For instance, during combat, a player can use a Deflection card to send the assault to someone else. During combat, if a player doesn't have cards to retaliate, but has a Radio for Help card, they get to draw two cards from anyone not in combat. There are also plenty of surprises, so don't leave the table for anything:

The Sniper: a card that can be played at any time even when it is not that player's turn. The sniper takes out a soldier without recourse. However, if the player being shot by the sniper holds a Mirror card, they can use it to reflect the light into the sniper's eyes and survive.

The Bomb: a card that can be played at any time, even when it is not that player's turn. The bomb kills one soldier in every player's hand, unless they hold a Dud or Super Dud card. The Dud card saves the soldier of the player that holds it. The Super Dud saves all the soldiers on the table. If you are on the way to victory, you might want to just hold onto the Super Dud and watch your foes explode.

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