Aya

Aya Rulebook

Table of Contents

The Basics of the Game

Game Components

1 Ball track
5 blue and 4 yellow balls
39 playing cards (28 with dark blue, 11 with light blue background)
These game instructions

The Objective

The playing cards show colour patterns. Each colour pattern consists of a combination of five balls (colour dots). Players compete to recreate these colour patterns with the balls in the "play zone" (= middle) of the ball track.

The colour patterns on the playing cards can always be read both from left to right and from right to left, i.e. they also apply "reversed" or "mirrored."

The Ball Track

The ball track consists of a central "play zone" and two side border areas. At the start of the game, five balls lie in the "play zone," and two balls in each border area, all in any (random) colour arrangement.

During the game, each move only changes the colour arrangement of the balls, but never the quantity distribution within the ball track areas.

The Standard Move

The player whose turn it is takes any ball from the "play zone" and pushes it from the outside into one of the two border areas, so that the inner ball from there rolls into the "play zone."

In this way, exactly five balls always lie in the "play zone" before and after each move. The standard move is then immediately finished.

The Exception Move

The exception move is so called because it is only played in the exceptional cases that are explicitly listed at the relevant point in these game rules.

Additionally, the exception move is always played when a player has made a failed standard move (i.e. they could not "solve" a card pattern with their standard move).

The exception move may under no circumstances be played instead of a standard move!

This is how the exception move works: The two outermost balls are taken from the "play zone" and pushed from the outside into the two border areas, so that the inner ball from each rolls into the play zone.

After the exception move as well, there are always, as usual, five balls in the "play zone."

The Playing Cards

There are playing cards with light blue and playing cards with dark blue backgrounds.

If you want to recreate the pattern of a dark blue card, you have one standard move available.
If you want to recreate the pattern of a light blue card, you have two standard moves available, i.e. after completing one standard move you may immediately perform another standard move, provided the pattern was not already successfully recreated on the first move.

Examples

Example 1 (figure in the printed rules, Fig. 3):

A. In this example, the pattern of the second card can be created if the fourth ball is placed on the right outside of the ball track.

B. The second ball placed to the left outside produces card pattern 4.

Example 2 (figure in the printed rules):

A. Card pattern No. 1 can be created in one move.

B. Card pattern No. 5 can be created in two moves.

The Game Variants

AYA can be played according to different rule variants. The basics described above always apply.

Variant 1: AYA OR OYE

Objective

Create as many card patterns of the opponents in the play zone as possible while simultaneously protecting your own card stack from the other players.

Game Preparation

The cards are shuffled. Each player receives cards, which they place face down in a stack in front of them. The number of cards per player depends on the number of players:

2 or 3 players: 10 cards each
4 players: 9 cards each
5 players: 7 cards each
6 players: 6 cards each

The remaining cards are (with 3-6 players) placed as face-down "neutral" stack next to the ball track. If only two players are playing, then two face-down "neutral stacks" (9 + 10 cards) are formed next to the ball track.

As soon as all cards are distributed, all stacks (including the "neutral" ones) are turned face up simultaneously and the game begins immediately.

Gameplay

Players do not take turns in order. The player who first calls "AYA" or "OYE" takes their turn.

Whoever is convinced they can recreate the pattern of any face-up card using a standard move (for light blue cards: using one or two standard moves) in the "play zone" of the ball track, calls: "AYA!"

The first player who called "AYA" now takes their turn (and no one else!). They must execute their move immediately, i.e. without hesitation or further thought.

If they succeed in recreating the pattern shown on one (or more) face-up cards, then:

the relevant cards are removed from the game, provided they belong to other players;
they slide the card (pattern side up) under their own stack, provided it is their own card or a card from the "neutral stack."

The game then continues immediately (with the next caller).

If the "AYA" caller fails to recreate a face-up pattern, their top card is removed from the game. Their left neighbour then performs an EXCEPTION MOVE. Then the game continues with the next ("AYA"/"OYE") caller.

Whoever is convinced that no pattern of face-up cards can be recreated calls "OYE." The other players now have time to disprove the "OYE" caller by successfully recreating a pattern.

If it turns out that the "OYE" was justified, then all other players (not the "OYE" caller) must remove their top card from the game. If the "OYE" caller was wrong, they lose their top card.

Afterwards, in any case, the left neighbour of the "OYE" caller performs an exception move.

End of Game

The game ends as soon as (at least) one player has no more cards.

The player with the most cards at the end of the game wins.

Variant 2: AYA Rolling Balls

Game Preparation

The cards are well shuffled and distributed equally face down to all players. Excess cards are removed from the game.

Each player turns 5 of their own cards (with 5 or 6 players: 4 cards) face up in a row in front of them and leaves the remaining cards as a face-down stack beside them.

Gameplay

Players take turns clockwise, starting with the player who first calls "AYA."

The player whose turn it is tries to recreate patterns of their face-up cards in any order using the usual standard move. They remain on their turn as long as they continue to succeed. Each card whose pattern they successfully recreate in such a sequence is placed beside the ball track.

Only when they fail in an attempt to recreate one of their own card patterns do they replenish their face-up cards from their face-down stack back to five (or fewer, if they no longer have five cards available). Then the next player takes their turn.

The player whose turn it is must perform at least one move, even if no own card pattern is recreated by doing so.

End of Game

The game ends as soon as a player has placed their last card at the ball track. The player who is first to place all their own cards at the ball track wins.

The game ends early if a player succeeds in recreating all their face-up card patterns in one sequence of moves. The player who achieves this wins the game.

In exceptional cases, a stalemate situation may arise during gameplay when exception moves create patterns that cannot be realized with the displayed cards. The game then ends after 3 consecutive exception moves. The winner is the player who has the fewest cards.

Variant 3: AYA Turbo

Game Preparation

The well-shuffled cards are laid out face down in 5 stacks (4 x 8 + 1 x 7 cards) and turned face up simultaneously. The game begins immediately.

Gameplay

Players do not take turns in order. The player who first calls "AYA" or "OYE" takes their turn.

The first "AYA" caller is now on their turn (and no one else!). They must execute their standard move immediately, i.e. without hesitation or further thought.

If they succeed in recreating the pattern of one or more face-up cards, they receive those card(s) and place them face down in front of themselves. The game then continues immediately (with the next caller, without an EXCEPTION MOVE).

If the "AYA" caller fails to recreate a face-up pattern, their top card is removed from the game. Their left neighbour then performs an EXCEPTION MOVE. Then the game continues with the next caller.

Whoever is convinced that no pattern of face-up cards can be recreated calls "OYE." The other players of the (first) "OYE" caller now have time to disprove them by successfully recreating a pattern.

If it turns out that the "OYE" was justified, then the OYE caller receives one card from each card stack, which they all place face down in front of themselves. If the "OYE" caller was wrong, they lose their top card, i.e. it is removed from the game.

Afterwards, in any case, the left neighbour of the "OYE" caller performs an exception move.

End of Game

The game ends as soon as all card stacks are empty, i.e. the cards have been distributed to the players. The player with the most cards at the end wins.

Variant 4: Kindergarten AYA

Game Preparation

The cards are well shuffled. Five cards are placed face up side by side in the middle of the table. (A variant with eight or ten cards laid out is also playable.) The remaining cards form a face-down stack.

Gameplay

Players take turns clockwise. The player whose turn it is first performs an EXCEPTION MOVE. Then they try to recreate the patterns of the face-up cards in any order using the usual standard move.

They remain on their turn as long as they continue to succeed. Each card whose pattern they successfully recreate, they take for themselves.

Only when they fail in an attempt to recreate a card pattern do they replenish the face-up cards with cards from the face-down stack back to five (or fewer, if no five cards are available). Then the next player takes their turn.

End of Game

The game ends as soon as the last card from the face-down stack has been revealed.

The player with the most cards at the end wins.

Variant 5: AYA for Puzzlers

It is possible to play AYA solo. You can lay out 10, 20 or all cards to recreate patterns in continuous sequence without interruption. Whoever manages to "work through" all cards this way can rightfully give themselves the title "AYA Master."