The Conflict Phase is one of the phases in Conquest Mode. It works similarly to a Narrative Mode Mission, except that the Mission Map is built by the players.
The setup is slightly different depending on whether the region chosen for the Conflict is vacant, in which case it is a Conquer Mission, or controlled by the opponent, in which case it is a Liberate Mission.
1. MAP SET-UP. Set up the Mission Map. For a Conquer Mission, the active player places one Mission Map tile, then the players take turns placing another tile until a map of four by four tiles have been built. For a Liberate Mission, the player who controls the targeted Region builds a four by four tile map.
2. OVERMIND PLAYER OBJECTIVE. The Overmind Player draws two Hidden Agenda Cards and keeps one of them. Their mission objective is to complete both objective on the card, unless the mission is in the Overmind Player's Fortified Region, in which case only the first objective on the card needs to be completed.
3. HERO PLAYER OBJECTIVE. The Hero Player mission objective depends on the Mission type:
4. The Overmind Player decides what Alien Models to buy for their build points. The Overmind Player gets:
The players now proceed to playing the Mission that has been set up, until one side has completed its objective; or until one side has been defeated, which counts as a the other side completing its objective.
The side that completes its objective wins the Mission, and takes control of the contested region on the World Map. Then, if the current Conflict Phase was the Hero Player Conflict Phase, gameplay proceeds to the Overmind Player Global Operations Phase. Otherwise, gameplay proceeds to the Resolution Phase.