Bears in Barrels
Bears in Barrels Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Contents
- 2 Bear barrels
- 24 Honey tokens
Object of the Game
In Bears in Barrels you have to be fast enough to pass the bear and its barrel to your neighbor before the other bear catches up with you. This will allow you to keep your honey, because only the last player who still has honey at the end of the game will win.
Set Up
Players gather around the edge of the table and take 3 Honey tokens each. Choose two players directly across from each other to begin the game and give them each a Bear barrel to start the first round.
How to Play
The game is played over a series of rounds until only one player remains with honey.
1/ Start of Round
When both players with Bear barrels are ready, the round begins and the players race to flip their barrels.
2/ Flipping Barrels
Bear barrels begin with their bear-side pointing face down. In order to pass them on to the next player, barrels must be flipped in one fluid motion so that they land flat on their heavy side with the bear sitting upright.
Pro tip: Use your index finger to flick the rim at the top of the barrel to have the best effect.
If your Bear barrel does not land upright then immediately return it to its starting position (face down) and try again.
Note: The surface you play on may affect the movements of the barrels.
After you successfully flip your Bear barrel, pass it to the player on your left. They should immediately place it bear-side down and start trying to flip it, just like you did. If you pass your barrel to a player who already has one then they will be CAUGHT! (See below)
Single flip bonus: If you successfully flip your Bear barrel on your first attempt, then you get to pass it to any player at the table, except for the player who currently has the other barrel.
Caught!
If you are in the process of trying to flip your Bear barrel and the player immediately behind you successfully flips their barrel before you can flip yours, then you have been CAUGHT!
The round ends and you lose a Honey token. If you still have Honey tokens remaining then begin a new round with one of the Bear barrels in front of you and give the other barrel to the player directly across from you at the table.
If you have run out of Honey tokens, then you are eliminated from the game. Pass the Bear barrels to the player on your left. They will begin the next round with one barrel and give the other barrel to the player directly across from them.
End of the Game
The game ends when only two players remain with Honey tokens. They must now compete in The Final Flip to determine a winner.
The Final Flip
On the count of 3, the last 2 players start racing to be the first to flip their barrel. The first player to succeed wins the round and the loser loses a Honey token. If the players flip their barrel at the same time then no one loses Honey token.
If both players still have Honey tokens, they race again until one player is out of Honey tokens.
The last player with Honey tokens wins the game!