Basari: Das Kartenspiel Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Contents
• Setup
• Game for 3 - 4 Players
  • I. Each player receives exactly one bazaar card
  • II. Each player lays down exactly one action card
  • III. Carrying out the actions
  • The gems are out!
• Negotiating
• End of a Stage & Recording the Score
• Game for 5 Players
• Credits

Contents

• 88 gems (22 of each colour)
• 39 bazaar cards
• 20 action cards (5 each of A, B, C and D)
• 1 value card

Setup

Each player receives:

• 12 gems (3 of each colour)
• 3 action cards (A, B, C)

Arrange your gems according to colour as shown on the value card. The red gems are the most valuable, followed by yellow, green and then blue.

Pick up your 3 action cards (A, B, C). These cards stay with you throughout the game. Put any extra action cards back in the box.

Put these in the middle of the table:

• The remaining gems, the value card, and the general stock.
• The 39 bazaar cards, which are shuffled and put into a draw pile face down.

One last thing: choose one player from among you to be the score keeper. Using a pencil and a sheet of paper, he writes down all the players' names in a table. The score keeper takes part in the game just as the other players.

Note: The action cards D are required only for a game with 5 players (see Game for 5 Players).

Game for 3 - 4 Players

A total of three stages are played. After each stage, the score is recorded. One stage consists of several rounds. Each round follows the same sequence:

I. Each player receives exactly one bazaar card

One after the other, each player receives a bazaar card from the draw pile and lays it down on the table in front of him face up. The card stays there until the end of the stage. You can never lose a bazaar card during the entire stage. As the stage progresses, you'll receive more and more bazaar cards.

II. Each player lays down exactly one action card

Each player picks which one of his three action cards he wants to play without revealing his choice to the others. Lay it down in front of you face down. Once each player has laid down his action card, turn them over at the same time.

III. Carrying out the actions

The three actions are performed and negotiated one after the other: first action A, then B, and finally C.

• Action A: For action A, first draw a bazaar card from the draw pile and lay it face up on the bazaar cards that you already have, partially staggered so that everyone can see all the workers (1–4 per card) that you have.

• Action B: For action B, you receive the number of victory points (4–7), as indicated on your current bazaar card that you have received in this round. The score keeper immediately writes down your victory points in the table.

• Action C: For action C, take the corresponding number of gems (2–4) from the middle of the table as indicated on your current bazaar card that you have received in this round. Place them among the gems that you already have, sorting them according to colour.

• If you're the only player to have chosen an action card, perform the action immediately.

• If two players have selected the same action card, they have to bargain with each other to determine who gets to perform the action and who doesn't (see "Negotiating").

• If three or more players have chosen the same action card, the action is forfeited all together without substitution.

Example: Sarah (action A) takes the top card from the draw pile and lays it on her bazaar card. She now has 5 workers. Hanna (action B) receives 5 victory points, which are recorded right away on the score sheet. Max (action C) takes 2 red gems and 1 blue gem from the centre of the table and sorts them among his own gems according to colour.

Once all the actions have been performed (including any necessary bargaining), the next round can begin. Everyone keeps their bazaar cards. The following round is played out as described above.

Note: If you have one or more bazaar cards from previous rounds, the new bazaar card must be placed on top of the others slightly askew, so that each worker is readily visible.

The gems are out!

If a colour of gems runs out, it is not immediately replaced. This colour of gems is temporarily unavailable from the general stock. The gems are replenished only once the stage has ended and the score has been recorded.

Negotiating

If exactly two players choose the same action (A, B, or C), they have to negotiate with one another to see who gets to perform the action. They take turns trying to outbid one another, increasing the stakes of gems, until one of the players accepts the other's offer, conceding the action.

The first offer must be made by the player who has the most red gems. If both players happen to have the same number of red gems, the player with the most yellow gems, then green, then blue gems, then victory points, followed by the number of workers, makes the first offer. If everything is equal, the eldest player goes first. The first offer can contain any number of gems of any colour, but at least one gem of any colour must be offered. If, however, the player has no gems to offer, the other player wins the action for free.

The second player has two options:

• He accepts the offer. He accepts the gems offered and adds them to his gems, sorting them by colour. The player who won the bid now performs the action.
• He raises the offer. The other player now has to decide to either accept the offer, or raise it again. Stakes are continually raised until one of the players accepts the other's offer. The player who wins the bid then performs the action.

There are two ways to raise the bid:

• Number: You can bid more gems than your opponent. In this case, the colour of the gems is irrelevant.
• Value: Or you can bid the same number of gems (never less) as the opposing player, but of a greater value. If the same number of gems is offered, the bid with the most red gems wins; if the number of red gems is the same, the bid with the most yellow gems, then green, and finally blue gems wins.

Example: A bid of 1 red and 3 blue gems is higher than 4 yellow gems.

Note: When raising a bid, you're not bound to your previous bid. That means you can take back your previously offered gems and create an entirely new bid, as long as the bid is higher than what is being offered to you. Always move the gems that you're bidding out from your stock of gems to make it clear what exactly you're bidding.

Example: Max and Hanna have to negotiate. Max offers 1 yellow gem, pushing it out from his stock of gems. Hanna wants more. She raises the stakes to 1 red gem. Max and Hanna keep raising their bids until Hanna offers 3 blue gems. Max accepts the offer. He takes the three blue gems from Hanna along with his own gems that he had offered and places them in his stock of gems sorted by colour. Hanna now performs the action.

End of a Stage & Recording the Score

A stage is over when a player (or multiple players) has 15 workers (or more) after completing all actions. That means the current round must be played out.

• The player with the most red gems receives 14 victory points. After the points have been recorded, he returns half of his red gems (rounding up if necessary) to the general stock in the middle of the table. Points are awarded in the same way for the other coloured gems (yellow: 12 victory points; green: 10; and blue: 8): the majority of one colour scores victory points, then half of those coloured gems are returned, rounding up if necessary.

Note: If more than one player shares the highest total of a colour of gems, the victory points are split up evenly amongst them, rounding down if necessary. They both then have to put back 2 gems of the corresponding colour into the general stock in the middle of the table.

• Each player that has 15 or more workers receives 12 victory points. That is to say, victory points for workers are not split up amongst them.

After recording the score, all 39 bazaar cards are shuffled and put into a new draw pile in the middle of the table. Players keep their current gems. The new stage is played out as described above. A total of three stages are played. Whoever has the most points at the end of the game wins (multiple winners are possible).

Game for 5 Players

Each player receives 4 action cards (A, B, C, D). The game setup and order of play stays the same as described above with the following difference: if you select action D, you can always carry it out. It can't be forfeited, and you don't have to negotiate over it either. Action D cards work as follows:

• If you're the only player to choose action D, put any one of your gems back in the general stock and take two gems of your choice in return, putting them in your own stock of gems, sorting by colour.
• If more than one player chooses action D, they each take exactly one gem from the general stock, placing it in their own stock of gems, sorting by colour. To determine who goes first, the same rule applies as for determining who bids first in negotiations (the player with the most red gems, then yellow gems, etc.).

Credits

About the author: Reinhard Staupe has published over 100 games since 1995, including perennial bestsellers "Privacy", "Speed", "Solche Strolche" ("Barnyard Buddies"), "Der Plumpsack geht um" ("Sherlock") and "Kunterbunt" ("Catch the Match"). Learn more at: www.staupe.com

About the illustrator: Stefan Theurer has worked as an artist, illustrator and cartoonist since 1989. He also freelances at trade fairs and convention centres as a lightning sketcher and cartoonist. Learn more at: www.phantastic-design.de

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