Activity 2
Activity 2 Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Contents
- 550 term cards with 6 terms each
- 1 game board
- 1 hourglass
- 4 playing pieces
- 1 rulebook
Object of the Game
To reach the goal space by having your teammates guess the terms you act out.
The Game Board
The game board contains a track with 49 spaces, plus the start space and the goal space. It also has three rectangles for the term cards. Each space is marked with a color and a symbol. The color indicates which term on the card is to be presented, and the symbol indicates the presentation method (drawing, explaining, pantomime).
The Cards
The numbers on the back of the term cards indicate the difficulty level of the terms. In general, 3-cards contain somewhat easier tasks, 4-cards medium-difficulty tasks, and 5-cards rather tricky tasks. The actual difficulty of a task is always subjective, however.
The six terms on the front are marked with colors and symbols. These correspond to the colors and symbols of the spaces on the game board. The color indicates which term is to be presented, and the symbol indicates the required presentation method. So if my team's playing piece is standing on a yellow space with the symbol for drawing, I must choose the term next to the yellow square on the card and draw that term. If the term itself is printed in red, it is an Open Round (see below).
Setup
2, 3, or 4 teams of at least 2 players each may take part (for the rules for 3 players, see below). Each team receives a playing piece and places it on the start space. The term cards are sorted by the numbers on their backs, then shuffled well and placed face down in stacks on the rectangles provided for them on the game board. In addition, paper and a pencil should be set out for the drawing tasks.
The team that opens the game determines one member to be the first "performer" (in subsequent rounds, the players within the team take turns being the performer).
Playing the Game
The first performer of the first team chooses one of the card stacks (3, 4, or 5) and lifts the top card in such a way that the other players cannot read the front of the card. In the normal course of the game, the player must present the term that corresponds to the color of the space on which their team's playing piece is standing. Since all pieces stand on the start space at the beginning of the game, each player may initially choose a term freely, but must convey it using the required presentation method. This applies for as long as the playing piece is standing on the start space.
The performer studies the term for about 10 seconds. If it is not an Open Round, they show the other teams the card and set it aside. Now they must present the term to their own team so that the team can guess it. The following rules apply to the various presentation methods:
Drawing: Here the term must be drawn with a pencil. The performer may neither speak nor gesture, but may nod their head to indicate to their teammates that they have correctly guessed part of the term. The drawing may not contain any letters or numbers.
Explaining: Here the term must be described. The performer describes the term using words. They may use neither the word itself, nor parts of it, nor derived forms of it.
Pantomime: Here the term must be presented through pantomime. The performer may neither speak, nor make any sounds, nor bring in or point at objects in the room. However, they may point at their own body parts.
Caution: If a player breaks these rules, their team may not advance, and the next team takes its turn.
A time limit, determined by the hourglass, applies to each task. This is monitored by the other players, who also watch that the rules are followed. It should also be agreed before the game begins exactly how precisely the terms need to be guessed — for example, whether "animal lover" also allows "animal friend."
If the team succeeds in guessing the term within the given time, they may advance their playing piece the number of spaces corresponding to the card's value. If they do not guess the term, their playing piece stays where it is.
Now the next team takes its turn. The first player chooses a card stack, lifts a card, and so on.
Bumping
When a team has solved a task and advances its playing piece, it can happen that they land on a space already occupied by another team's playing piece. In this case, the piece that occupied the space must move back one space. Bumping is only possible when advancing after solving a task, not when a piece is moved back (in such cases, two pieces may stand on one space). Choosing the card's value allows you to deliberately bump an opponent (see "Tips" below).
Open Round
If a term is printed in red, this task is played as an Open Round. In this case, the performer may not show the drawn card to anyone (compliance with this rule is checked afterward), because everyone taking part in the game may guess along — not just the performer's own team. If a player from another team manages to guess the term, their team may advance 4 spaces. The performer's own team may advance 2 spaces. Should both playing pieces land on the same space in this case, bumping does not apply. If a member of the performer's own team guesses the term, that team advances its piece 6 spaces.
There is an Open Round possibility on every card; the point value printed on the back does not count for Open Rounds.
Rules for 3 Players
Each player chooses a playing piece and places it on the start space. When playing with three people, every round is an Open Round, regardless of whether the term is printed in red or black. Each player tries to present the given term to their two fellow players. If the term is guessed, both the performer and the player who guessed the term may advance their playing pieces by the value shown on the back of the card. If neither of the other two players guesses the presented term, the next player takes their turn.
The same rules apply for presenting the individual terms and moving the playing pieces as for the game with 2 or more teams. Bumping does not apply when playing with 3 people.
Tips
- The terms consist of at least 2 words. As a whole term, they are often difficult to present. But if you present the two parts separately, the task is usually much easier to solve. Example: drawing an "earworm" is very difficult, but "ear" and "worm" can be drawn relatively easily on their own. If you split the word this way, you should show the guessers which part you are presenting at the moment — for instance, by first dividing the sheet into two halves with a dividing line when drawing. When explaining, you can tell your teammates this; in pantomime, you can convey it with one or two fingers.
- The ability to bump an opposing playing piece gives the game an appealing tactical element. In some situations you can influence whether you land on an occupied space (and thereby send an opposing piece back) by choosing a card with the necessary point value.
- Most players have their own strengths and weaknesses. If, for example, I am good at drawing but weak at the other presentation methods, I can play to my strengths by choosing a higher card value for "drawing" and a lower card value for "explaining" and "pantomime."
- The length of the game can be shortened or extended by agreeing before the game to increase or decrease the card values by 1 or 2.
- Playing with three people tends to take considerably less time.