CLASSIFIED // OPERATION CONTAGION
Party-Strategy Hybrid · TIER 3

THE
CONTAGION

> A pathogen hides in the network. The world races to find it.

// Every Treatment deployment is a guess. Every Research question burns a turn. The Pathogen wins by being everywhere and nowhere.

PERSONNEL FILE
FORM 7-A

ACTIVE COMBATANTS

2–5★ OPT 4
ETA: 40–60 min
2–5 OPERATIVES
SECTOR 02 // BRIEFING
FILE 02 — THE PREMISE
// PINNED 0700 HRS //

20 cities. 20 flight routes. One Pathogen, hidden by the server. Two-to-five players control the WHO/CDC Containment Team trying to find and cure it. The Pathogen sees its own location; the Team sees only infection counts. The Pathogen earns Evolution Points by infecting cities — spent on resistance, airborne spread, stealth, even mutation into two strains.

CRITICAL TENSION:Every Treatment deployment is a guess. Every Research question burns a turn. The Pathogen wins by being everywhere and nowhere.
SECTOR 03 // PERSONNEL
DECLASSIFIED PERSONNEL DOSSIERS

The Roles

RESTRICTED
ID-001
Pathogen
COVERT

Pathogen

×1

Hidden role (server-only). Moves between cities, spreads infection, spends Evolution Points on upgrades. Wins by reaching 8+ critical-infection cities or surviving 15 rounds.

CLEARED
ID-002
WHO Specialist

WHO Specialist

×2-4

Each runs a pawn across the map. Deploys Treatments, runs Research, Quarantines cities. Public discussion is the team's strongest tool.

SECTOR 04 // OPERATIONAL TEMPO
OPERATIONAL TIMELINE

How a Round Plays

I
PHASE

Pathogen turn (hidden)

Move to a connected city or stay. Spread 1–3 infection tokens to current + adjacent. Optional: spend Evolution Points on upgrades.

STEP 01
II
PHASE

Team turn

Move 3 specialist pawns. Deploy Treatments. Spend resources on Research (yes/no questions to the server).

STEP 02
III
PHASE

Quarantine

Optionally lock down one city — freezes infection growth there for 2 rounds.

STEP 03
IV
PHASE

Evolution mid-game

Pathogen spends EP. Team sees only "Pathogen has evolved" — must deduce what changed by what stops working.

STEP 04
SECTOR 05 // OBJECTIVES
INCOMING DISPATCHES

Win Conditions

TELEGRAMNO. 001
▣OBJECTIVE — Pathogen

8+ cities at critical infection (5+ tokens) simultaneously, OR survive 15 rounds.

// END OF MESSAGE — STOP //
TELEGRAMNO. 002
▣OBJECTIVE — Team

Locate AND eliminate the Pathogen — deploy a Cure in the Pathogen's actual city when infection there equals 0.

// END OF MESSAGE — STOP //
SECTOR 06 // INTELLIGENCE
FIELD MEMO

Designer Notes

The Evolution skill tree turns the Pathogen from a target into an adversary. Treatment A Resistance, Airborne, Stealth, Mutation — the team can see THAT you evolved but not WHAT, and they have to figure it out by watching what stops working. The discussion phase is brutally tense because the Pathogen is silently watching.

BALANCE:Pathogen wins ~45% in playtest at 4-player, slightly favored — but Team wins faster (avg 9 rounds vs Pathogen avg 13). Online-only because hiding the Pathogen's location requires server enforcement.
✎  reviewed & cleared by command — F.O.
FIELD INTEL

Strategy

  • 01.
    Pathogen: bury an apex city
    Build one super-infected stronghold (7-8 tokens). Team must commit massive resources to crack it; meanwhile you spread elsewhere.
  • 02.
    Team: triangulate from infection deltas
    A city that gained 3 infection tokens last round was visited. Track delta patterns to deduce the Pathogen's movement.
  • 03.
    Mutation kills cooperation
    Once the Pathogen mutates into two strains, the Team is now playing two separate searches. Force the Pathogen into corner cities to delay mutation.
  • 04.
    Stealth windows are short
    Stealth lasts 2 rounds. The Pathogen will use it before a major spread — be ready to test cities that look "quiet."
↳ keep this on you, soldier.
SECTOR 07 // DEPLOYMENT
EYES ONLY // DEPLOYMENT ORDERS

Ready to Deploy?

> Pass-and-play with operatives in the same room, or open a remote command channel and brief allies across the globe.