In Twilight Imperium Third Edition, Each faction has access to 3 unique leaders represented by leader counters. Although the leaders are unique in name and appearance, they do not each have unique abilities; instead having abilities depending on their class.
There are 5 different leader classes: Generals, Admirals, Diplomats, Scientist and Agents. Each faction has a combination of 3 of these.
During setup, the relevant leader tokens are placed on each players home system
During gameplay, each leader must be assigned to a ship or planet
- Any ship may carry any number of leaders (no leader counts toward capacity)
- A Leader may not land on a neutral or hostile planet unless accompanied by at least 1 Ground Force unit.
Leader Abilities[]
| Leader | Symbol | Abilites |
|---|---|---|
| General | 
|
Defending a planet:
- Opposing Dreadnoughts and War Suns receive -4 to all Bombardment rolls - Defending Ground Forces (& Shock Troops) receive +1 to all Combat rolls
|
| Admiral | 
|
On a Ship
- That ship rolls 1 extra die in Space Combat - That ship gets +1 movement if it is a Dreadnought - If that ship is part of an Attacking fleet, the defending fleet cannot retreat unless it also contains an admiral |
| Diplomat | 
|
On a planet: Delays an invasion (Ground Forces/Shock Troops returned to carrying ships) for that game round. This may not be used again that round or the following round
|
| Scientist | 
|
On a planet:
- Technology Specialty discount is increased to 2 - Space Dock cost is 2 resources (down from 4) - PDS Units receive +1 on all rolls and can use Planetary Shield to block War Sun Bombardment |
| Agent | 
|
Attacking with Ground Forces:
- Defending PDS cannot fire - Can capture PDS, Space Docks or Facility if Invasion successful May be sacrificed to Sabotage an Action Card |
Defeat[]
A leader is defeated if the ship they are on is destroyed or the planet they are on has no more friendly Ground Units.
If a leader is defeated on a ship: Roll one die
- 1-5: Killed (Removed from Game)
- 6-8: Escaped (Placed on any friendly planet not under blockade)
- 9-10: Captured (Attacker takes leader and places them in their play area)
- Ship destroyed outside of Space Combat: Killed
If a leader is defeated on a Planet : Roll one die
- 1-5: Captured (Attacker takes leader and places them in their play area)
- 6-9: Escaped (Placed on any friendly planet not under blockade)
- 10: Killed (Removed from Game)
- Leader defeated any time outside of Invasion: Leader escapes to Friendly Planet
Capture[]
During the Status Phase, a leader's captor may chose to keep the leader, execute the leader or transfer them to any other player
- If the captured Leader is transferred back to their original player, they are freed and immediately placed on any friendly planet not under Blockade
If a planet is successfully invaded and the holder owns any captive leaders, roll 1 die. On a 9-10 that leader was found by the invader. On a 1-8, that leader is killed
- If more than 1 captured Leader is held by the losing player, the invader may choose which of the captured Leaders to rescue.
- If the leader belonged to another player, the invader is the new captor
- If the leader belonged to the invading player, they may place them on any friendly planet not under blockade
- If the planet that was invaded was the last planet that player owns all captive leaders held by that player are transferred to the invader
Leaders by Faction[]
The Arborec[]
- General
- Admiral
- Diplomat
The Barony of Letnev[]
- General
- Admiral
- Diplomat
The Clan of Saar[]
- General
- Admiral
- Agent
The Embers of Muaat[]
- General
- Scientist
- Diplomat
The Emirates of Hacan[]
- General
- Scientist
- Diplomat
The Federation of Sol[]
- Admiral
- Diplomat
- Agent
The Ghosts of Creuss[]
- Admiral
- Diplomat
- Scientist
The L1Z1X Mindnet[]
- Diplomat
- Scientist
- Agent
The Mentak Coalition[]
- Admiral
- Diplomat
- Agent
The Naalu Collective[]
- Admiral
- Diplomat
- Agent
The Nekro Virus[]
- General
- Admiral
- Agent
The Sardakk N'orr[]
- Admiral
- General (x2)
The Universities of Jol-Nar[]
- Admiral
- Scientist (x2)
The Winnu[]
- Admiral
- Scientist
- Agent
The Xxcha Kingdom[]
- Admiral
- Diplomat (x2)
The Yin Brotherhood[]
- General
- Diplomat
- Agent
The Yssaril Tribes[]
- Admiral
- Agent (x2)
FAQ[]
Q: When using an Admiral, does his ability apply to the Mentak pre-combat Cruiser and Destroyer strikes?
A: No. The Admiral’s ability only applies to the normal Space Battle rolls, not any pre-combat rolls.
Q: Does the Admiral ability also applies to the Naalu retreat race ability?
A: No. The Naalu retreat ability is special and is not prevented by an Admiral.
Q: If an attacker has built all of their PDS or Space Docks, and then wins an Invasion Combat, may they use the Agent’s ability to replace an enemy PDS/Space Dock with one of their own?
A: No. The units are destroyed, but not replaced.
Q: If I receive a Space Dock from the Industrial Society domain token or with an Agent, can I build at the Space Dock this round?
A: No. Whenever you place a new Space Dock on the board, it is treated as if it were built this game round.
Q: If a Diplomat cancels the attack of enemy Ground Forces on one planet in a system, can those forces attack the other planet instead?
A: No. The Ground Forces return to their Carrier.
Q: If a Diplomat stops an invasion, can the planet be invaded later on the same turn?
A: The Diplomat’s ability only cancels a single invasion. Another player can still invade the planet during the same round. The same player could even attempt another invasion if he somehow removes his activation counter from the system.
Q: If two Generals participate in an Invasion Combat, can they reroll four dice, or only two dice? Can they reroll the same die more than once?
A: The player may reroll two dice for each General he has present. However, they may not reroll the same die more than once.
Q: When using a General during invasion combat, can you reroll an opponent’s die?
A: No. You may only reroll your own dice using a General.
Q: Can the Scientist’s ability stop a Dreadnought’s bombard- ment with the Graviton Negator technology?
A: Yes. The ability provided by Graviton Negator should be treated the same as the War Sun's bombardment ability.
Q: If a Diplomat is used to stop an invasion, can a War Sun still bombard the planet?
A: Yes. This is due to the fact that War Suns may bombard a planet even if no friendly ground forces have landed on it.
Q: Do leader abilities stack (for example do two Admirals provide +2 movement)?
A: No. For example, if two Admirals are on a ship, it does not gain +2 movement. The only ability that does stack is the General’s ability (see question above).
Q: With the Leaders option, do Scientists provide a discount on a Space Dock produced in a Home System during the simulated early turns procedure?
A: During simulated early turns, units are not produced at any specific Space Dock. Therefore, any ability that provides a discount to building at a Space Dock cannot be used during simulated early turns.
Q: Can leaders be moved to Trade Stations?
A: No.
Q: If a Scientist is on a planet that has two technology specialties, how much of a discount does the Scientist provide?
A: The Scientist provides 1 additional discount on top of the 2 already provided by the planet.
Q: If a Fighter Ambush domain counter eliminates a ship with a Leader, what happens to the leader?
A: Since this is technically a space battle, you would roll a die. If the leader would be captured, he is instead killed (since domain counters cannot take prisoners).