1000 and One Treasures Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Contents
• Game Idea
• Preparation of the Game
• How to Play
  • How to move a figure?
  • Example
  • How to collect the treasures?
  • Bandit chief! Watch out!
• End of the Game
• Variation for Younger Players

Contents

• 1 game board
• 60 cave cards (19 of them showing a cave entrance on the back)
• 4 wooden figures, Ali Baba and his friends
• 1 bandit chief
• 1 die
• Set of game instructions

Game Idea

Help Ali Baba and his friends steal the treasures that are kept in the cave. However, you must have left the cave before the 40 thieves return. Otherwise they will catch you and rid you of the treasures you have found.

The aim of the game is to bring your game figure back to safety and collect the most treasures.

Preparation of the Game

Place the game board in the center of the table and place the bandit chief on the thieves' tent. Then take the cave cards and sort out the 19 cards showing the entrance of the cave on their backside. Mix them and place them face-down on the 19 cave squares shown on the game board, and then turn them over.

Shuffle the remaining cave cards and pile them face-down (with the rock showing up) next to the game board. Each player chooses a wooden figure and places it on a cave card of his choice on the game board. There can only be one figure on each cave card.

Keep the die in the game box. It is only needed for the variation.

Game board key: cave entrance; cave squares; starting square; bandit chief square for thieves.

Backside of cave cards: showing a rock / showing a cave entrance.

How to Play

Play in a clockwise direction. Whoever knows the most tales of the One Thousand and One Nights may start. If you cannot agree, the youngest player starts and moves his figure.

How to move a figure?

Take a look at the card your figure is standing on and how many treasures are shown. Are there one, two or three treasures?

• 1 treasure
• 2 treasures
• 3 treasures

Now move your figure the corresponding number of cave cards, taking into account the following treasure search rules.

Important treasure search rules:

• You can move your figure only in a horizontal or vertical direction along the cave cards, never diagonally.
• Only one figure is allowed on a cave card at any time during the game.
• Squares with figures on them may be jumped over and as such are counted.
• In one and the same turn a square can be passed only once.
• You may not jump over the walls of the cave.
• If you cannot move your figure because the cave cards you could move to are occupied or your way is barred by a wall, then the bottle spirit of Ali Baba will help you. In this case you can move your figure to any free card of your choice within the cave.
• If you leave the cave through the entrance, any remaining moves are not counted. Place the figure next to you. You may not enter the cave again. The entrance may only be crossed to leave the cave.

Example

Pink, Green and Blue are playing.

1. It's the turn of the pink figure, which may move two squares. Pink can either move to the card showing one treasure (1) or the one showing two treasures (2).
2. Then it's the turn of the green figure, which can move one square. As on one side there is a wall, Green can only move to the adjacent square showing the three (3) treasures.
3. Then it's the turn of Blue. Blue could move two squares. But that is not possible, as Blue would encounter cave walls. So Blue is helped by Ali Baba's bottle spirit and can therefore be moved to any free cave card.

How to collect the treasures?

You take the cave card your figure just left and place it face-up in front of you. Then take a card from the provision pile and place it face-up, in the direction you wish, on the free square left empty in the cave.

Bandit chief! Watch out!

Be aware of the 40 thieves! On some cards there is the head of the bandit chief shown next to the treasures. If you draw such a card from the provision pile, you have to move the bandit chief figure one square forward on his path towards the cave entrance. (The source layout prints the word "play" inside this sentence; it is a stray caption fragment and has been omitted.)

After that, the card is placed on the space left empty in the cave. The head of the bandit chief is of no importance for the rest of the game.

Then it's the turn of the next player, who moves his figure according to the number of the treasures shown.

End of the Game

The game ends as soon as:

• the last player has moved back to the cave entrance, thus bringing his play figure to safety; or
• the bandit chief has reached the entrance of the cave.

Any remaining figures still inside the cave are caught by the bandit chief and lose their treasures, thus losing the game.

The players whose figures have left the cave in time count the total number of treasures on the cards they have collected. The player with the most treasures wins the game. In case of a draw there are various winners.

Variation for Younger Players

Ali Baba and the big luck

The game presents the following changes to the basic version:

• At the beginning of your turn you roll the die and then move your figure according to the number of dots shown.
• You don't have to leave the cave. Your collected treasures cannot be taken away from you.
• The game ends as soon as the chief bandit has reached the cave entrance.

The player with the most treasures wins the game. In the event of a draw there are various winners.