Abetto Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Goal of the Game
• Components
• Setup
• Course of Play
  • Player's Turn
  • Fatigue
  • Movement
  • Duel
  • Burglary
  • Shot
  • Rest
• Additional Rules
  • Tasks
  • Gadgets
• End of the Game

Goal of the Game

The goal of the game is to gain as much renown as possible among elegant burglars and true ladies and gentlemen of the criminal world. To this end, players collect trophies of valour, romance and valuables. After seven rounds, the winner is the player who has gathered the largest number of points in their weakest category of trophies.

Components

The box should contain the following components:

1. Roulette wheel and two metal balls. The roulette wheel is used to determine the results of some actions: duel, shot and burglary. Remember that results 0 and 00 both mean zero!
2. 6 Burglar cards and the corresponding cardboard tokens (pawns), which should be placed in the plastic bases before the game. Each card shows:
   1. Arrows, used to determine the stake of a shot and of a duel.
   2. Starting capital, i.e. the number of tokens of valour, romance and valuables, and the gadgets, with which the burglar begins the game.
3. Board, depicting the Roulette Square, the central point of the district. It has:
   1. Fatigue Track, used to mark the burglar's current fatigue.
   2. Colour Table, used to resolve the results of shots, duels and burglaries. Its fields show:
      • red odd numbers (red diamond);
      • red even numbers (two red diamonds);
      • black odd numbers (black diamond);
      • black even numbers (two black diamonds).
   3. Number Table, needed to determine the results of burglaries. Its fields correspond to the values on the roulette wheel.
   4. Plots, marking the places where houses are placed directly next to the square.

Setup

Place the roulette wheel and the board on the table. Each participant spins the roulette wheel once; the holder of the highest result becomes the first player.

Shuffle the House cards. The player seated to the right of the first player places three face-down cards along the longer side of the Roulette Square board (on the marked plots), two along the shorter side, and one in the corner between the built sides, facing their facades in any direction, but so that no two of them touch each other.

Cards must be placed on the marked plots.

Then, starting with the first player and continuing clockwise, the players each place one face-down card, taking care that house facades never touch. Each card may be placed in one of four ways:

1. In the neighbourhood of the Roulette Square, so that one of its sides touches a plot. A house may border the Square with its facade.

   Note: A house card borders another card or the Square when it lies against it along a side – but not only at a corner.

2. In the neighbourhood of other cards, on condition that their facades do not touch. As a result, the empty space left in front of the facades is called a street. It should be one card wide.

   Note: It is not allowed to place a card so far from the others that it borders neither the Square nor any other card and at the same time forms an avenue.

   Note: While houses are being laid out, a situation may arise in which cards are separated by a space two or more cards wide. This is called an avenue (aleja).

3. Opposite another house – on the other side of the street, that is, at a distance of one card from its facade.

4. On another card on which there is not yet a second card. This creates a two-storey house. The facades of both cards must face the same way. Remember that a house may not be made of more than two cards!

   Note: The game must always contain at least six single-storey houses (made of one card) and at least one street. If there are six or fewer single-storey houses while the houses are being laid out, two-storey houses may not be created.

Players continue adding one card each, in turn, until the stack is exhausted – in this way the district is formed.

Next, the first player shuffles the Task cards, counts off seven of them, and returns the rest to the box without looking at them. The face-down deck of Task cards is placed beside the district. Next to it, place the supplies of trophies and the roulette wheel. Sort the Gadget cards by type and lay them face up in separate stacks.

The first player chooses one of the burglars and takes their card, pawn, the trophies and gadgets listed on the card, and a set of four markers in one chosen colour. They place one of the markers on the Fatigue Track at the Fatigue symbol, and keep the remaining markers in front of them. Then the player seated to the left makes their choice, and so on around the table. Unused burglars are returned to the box.

Finally, the players, in turn, place their burglars' pawns on the House cards bordering the Roulette Square directly. A pawn may not be placed on a card that already holds another player's burglar – although later in the game several characters may end up on the same roof.

Course of Play

The game lasts seven rounds. At the start of each round the first player reveals the top Task card, which applies during that round. Then the first player takes their turn, followed by the player to their left, and so on. Once every player has taken their turn, the first player discards the Task card and the round ends.

Player's Turn

During their turn a player may perform up to three actions, choosing from four possible actions: Movement, Burglary, Shot and Rest. Movement, Burglary and Rest may be chosen repeatedly; a Shot, however, may be chosen only once per turn.

• Movement (Ruch)
• Burglary (Włamanie)
• Shot (Strzał)
• Rest (Odpoczynek)

Fatigue

The Fatigue Track is divided into zones. When a player's marker passes the boundary of a zone (as indicated by the icon at the relevant field), the burglar's options are restricted.

When performing an action, the burglar gains a number of fatigue points (FP), given in that action's description. The marker must be moved along the Fatigue Track before the action is carried out! That is, if the marker crosses into a new zone, the restrictions of that zone already apply during the resolution of the action that caused the fatigue. When the burglar's fatigue falls so that the marker leaves a zone, the penalties of that zone cease to apply.

The Fatigue Track has the following effects:

• Field 8: Shot ban. From this moment the burglar may not perform a Shot action. They may still shoot thanks to the Pistol card.
• Field 12: Gadget ban. After moving onto this field, the burglar may no longer use gadgets. They may still collect them.
• Field 15: Third-action ban. From now on the burglar may perform only two actions per round. They still may not shoot or use gadgets.
• Field 17: Exhaustion. The burglar is so tired that their next action must be Rest.

Example: Pierre de Ragueur has 6 fatigue points. He performs a Movement action, which causes 3 FP and moves his marker to field 9 of the Fatigue Track. From this moment he may not perform Shot actions. His next action causes 2 FP – the marker lands on field 11. During his third action he receives a further 2 FP and moves the marker to field 13. From this moment he may neither shoot nor use gadgets.

Movement

The Movement action allows the burglar's pawn to be moved from one House card to another. During a single action a burglar may cover any distance, on condition that the whole movement takes place along a straight line. Performing a movement causes 1 fatigue point.

Obstacles: When moving, a burglar may encounter three kinds of obstacle: a house higher than the one it stands on, a street, or an avenue. Climbing onto a higher building and jumping over a street each cause 1 additional fatigue point for each occurrence. An avenue cannot be overcome in any way.

Descending from a two-storey house to a single-storey house causes no additional fatigue.

Example: Miss Mindy O'Shabby moves, which causes 1 FP. She runs across three single-storey houses, then climbs onto a two-storey house (1 additional FP), runs on to a single-storey house (no additional FP), and jumps over a street (1 additional FP), at the same time moving from a single-storey house onto a two-storey house (1 additional FP). In total the action causes 4 fatigue points.

Optional rule: If you feel the burglars should be more mobile, agree that every player must perform at least one Movement action in their turn.

Duel

If a player ends their movement on a roof on which an opponent's pawn stands, the burglars fight a duel. If more than one opponent's pawn is on the roof, the player chooses which opponent they want to duel.

Note: A duel is not an action and causes no fatigue. It takes place only when a burglar ends its movement on a roof occupied by an opponent, not when it merely passes it.

The player taking their turn (the challenger) chooses 1 to 3 trophies of one kind belonging to the opponent, and the opponent places them beside their own card, next to the arrow pointing outwards. The challenger then chooses the same number of trophies of one kind from their own supply and places them beside their own card, next to the arrow pointing inwards.

The challenged player then does the same, analogously: they pick trophies of one kind belonging to the challenger, which the challenger places beside their card next to the outward arrow, and they match them with their own stake of the same number of trophies of one kind, placed next to the inward arrow.

Once the stakes are set, the challenger places their marker on one of the four fields of the Colour Table. The challenged player then places their marker on a field, but may not choose a field occupied by the opponent. Finally, the challenger spins the roulette wheel, and both players independently check their result:

• Full success (the bet colour and the odd/even parity of the number both match): the player takes the trophies lying beside the opponent's card, and keeps their own.
• Partial success (only the colour or only the odd/even parity matches): nothing happens – the players keep their trophies.
• Defeat (neither the colour nor the parity matches): the player gives the opponent the trophies placed beside their own card, next to the arrow pointing inwards.
• Zero: both players give the trophies placed beside their own card, next to the arrow pointing inwards, to the bank. The remaining trophies return to their supplies.

Example: Teodor Cichowlaz ends his move on a house card on which Fifi la Cocotte stands, so a duel takes place between them. Teodor chooses 2 romance trophies from Fifi's supply, which she places beside her card by the outward arrow. Teodor then matches them with 2 valuables from his own supply, placed by the inward arrow. Fifi la Cocotte chooses 3 valour trophies from Teodor's supply, which he places beside his card by the outward arrow, and matches them with 3 romance trophies of her own. Teodor bets on the red even field of the Colour Table, and Fifi on the black even field. Teodor, as the challenger, spins the roulette wheel and gets a red odd number. Teodor thus achieves a partial success: he keeps his own 2 valuables, and Fifi keeps her 2 romance trophies. Fifi suffers a defeat: she gives Teodor the 3 romance trophies she staked, and Teodor keeps his 3 valour trophies.

Burglary

A player may break into the house on whose roof their burglar stands. To do so, they move their marker on the Fatigue Track by 2 points and turn over the house card.

If the house is two-storey, the player must first turn over the upper-floor card. To break into the ground-floor card, they must use their next action, which follows directly after the previous one.

After the card is turned over, the burglar immediately receives gadgets, shown in the card's bottom-right corner. If the gadgets are separated by a "/", the player must choose one of them; if they are separated by a "+", the player receives both.

The player then chooses one of the two loot items shown in the upper-left corner of the card, by placing their pawn on it. Next, they place their marker on one field of the Colour Table, and place their remaining two markers on two different fields of the Number Table. The other players, in turn order, now each place their markers on three fields of the Number Table. Several markers may be on the same field, provided each belongs to a different player (that is, one player may not bet on the same field with two markers).

When betting is complete, the active player spins the roulette wheel:

• If one or more players bet on the drawn number, each of those players receives both loot items shown in the upper-left corner of the card, and the burglary ends. The result on the Colour Table then has no effect.
• If nobody correctly bet the number, the result on the Colour Table is checked.

Colour Table results:

• Full success (the bet colour and the odd/even parity both match): the burglar receives the trophy on which their pawn stands.
• Partial success (only the colour or only the odd/even parity matches): the player receives a consolation prize – the booty shown in the card's upper-right corner.
• Defeat: nothing happens.
• Zero: the player must give one trophy of their choice to the bank.

Finally, the house card is turned back over, roof side up.

Example: Sir William Crawley performs a burglary. He receives 2 fatigue points and turns over the house card. In the bottom-right corner of the card are Espresso and Cigar. Because Sir William Crawley has only 2 gadgets, he may receive another, and he chooses the Espresso. He then moves his pawn onto one of the loot fields. He may choose between 3 valuables and 2 romance, and decides on the 2 romance. Time to bet! Sir William Crawley places one marker on the black odd field of the Colour Table, and his two remaining markers on the Number Table fields 3 and 8. His opponents bet on 8, 12 and 15, and on 9, 11 and 12. Sir William Crawley spins the roulette wheel and gets 7. Nobody hit the correct number, and the Colour Table shows a partial success. The player does not receive the 2 romance, but receives the booty shown in the upper-right corner of the house card, that is 1 valour.

Shot

A player may perform only one Shot action per round, and receives 1 fatigue point for it. They then choose another player and indicate 1 to 3 trophies belonging to that opponent which they will try to gain – all of them must be of one kind. The opponent places them beside their card, next to the arrow pointing outwards. The shooting player then places the same number of their own trophies of one kind beside their card, next to the arrow pointing inwards.

Once the stake is set, the shooting player places their marker on one field of the Colour Table and spins the roulette wheel. The result is understood as follows:

• Full success: the player takes the trophies lying beside the opponent's card, next to the arrow pointing outwards, and keeps their own.
• Partial success: nothing happens – the players keep their trophies.
• Defeat: the player gives the trophies placed beside their own card, next to the arrow pointing inwards, to the bank, and the opponent keeps theirs.
• Zero: the player gives the trophies placed beside their own card, next to the arrow pointing inwards, to the bank, and one trophy of their choice from their own supply. The opponent loses nothing.

Example: Cecylia Figielska shoots at an opponent. She chooses 2 valour trophies from his supply, which the opponent places beside his card by the outward arrow. Beside her own card Cecylia places 2 romance trophies from her own resources, on the inward arrow. She then bets on the red even field and rolls 00! This means her opponent does not lose his 2 valour trophies, while Cecylia not only gives her 2 romance trophies to the bank, but additionally gives up 1 trophy of her choice from her own supply.

Rest

When a player decides to devote an action to rest, they reduce their fatigue by 4 points.

Additional Rules

Tasks

At the start of each round the next Task card is revealed. It applies for the whole round, and every player who carries out the instruction written on it receives the reward listed there. Carrying out tasks is voluntary – with the exception of the Guard card (Straż), which all players must comply with.

Gadgets

Each player may hold at most 5 Gadget cards in hand, one of each kind. If during a burglary a player is to obtain a gadget they already hold, they do not receive it. Likewise, if a burglary would take them over the permitted limit, they receive only as many cards as are needed to reach 5.

Gadgets are secret – do not reveal them to opponents.

Most gadget cards may be discarded at any moment to obtain immediately the effect that card produces. A discarded card returns to its stack. The exception is the Pistol, which may be used only during the player's own turn.

End of the Game

The game ends after the seventh round is played. When it is over, each player chooses the trophy supply in which they have collected the fewest markers. The chosen supplies are then compared: the winner is the player who has the most trophies in them.

Tie-break: If players are tied, the tied players compare the supply in which each of them has gathered the second-fewest markers. If that does not settle it, the richest supplies are compared. If the tie still stands, markers are placed on the Colour Table and the roulette wheel is spun repeatedly until one of the players achieves a full success (the players may influence the result with gadgets).

Example: Pierre de Ragueur has 8 romance, 7 valour and 6 valuables. Miss Mindy O'Shabby has 9 romance, 8 valour and 7 valuables. Sir William Crawley has 9 valour, 7 valuables and 7 romance. The weakest supply of Pierre de Ragueur is 6 (valuables), of Miss Mindy O'Shabby 7 (valuables), and of Sir William Crawley 7 (tied between valuables and romance). Miss Mindy O'Shabby and Sir William Crawley therefore have equally many of their weakest trophies, so they must compare their second-weakest supplies. Sir William Crawley's next-weakest trophy is also 7, so Miss Mindy O'Shabby, who holds 8 valour trophies, wins.