Each Galactic Order is represented on the table by a large Galactic Order card that specifies the special power associated with that Order, and each player starts with 20 Faction Tokens that match the Faction symbols on their Starting Decks. Whenever a player deploys a Unit or plays a Tactic with a Galactic Order icon on it, he gets to place his Faction Token onto the corresponding Galactic Order card. Players must choose between leaving their Faction Tokens on the Galactic Order cards to score points at the end of the game, or removing their Faction Tokens in order to use the unique special powers associated with each Order.
• Designer David Ausloos has posted an update on the release status of his cooperative horror game Dark Darker Darkest: "The good news is: a major publishing company has now the game under contract and we have started all the preparations for production and final development. So the game is now definitely heading towards a release."
• In a short news update about its presence at Spiel 2012 in October – booth 12-29, shared with BoardGameGeek! – Jay Tummelson at Rio Grande Games notes, "We will be presenting several new games including: Dominion: Dark Ages, Race for the Galaxy: Alien Artifacts, and Arctic Scavengers as well as new games from our European partners, including 2F-Spiele and Czech Games Edition."
• To follow up on the announcement of the deck-building game 3012, Cryptozoic Entertainment has now released the game's cover and a few cards. In a press release accompanying the game announcement, designer Charles Tyson says, "I have been working on 3012 for years, and I'm really excited that Cryptozoic decided to bring it to life.... [T]hey've been fantastic to work with – great developers, great marketers and great gamers. But the thing I liked best was the artwork they put together. It's creepy and stylish, and it's just what a post–Mayan–end of the world future would look and feel like to me."
Due out in September/October 2012, 3012 retails for $45.