Bebop
Bebop Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
In 4 player colors:
- 16 Seat Tiles (11 Basic, 5 Special) — 2x per player
- 1 Double-Sided Game Board
- 2 Score Markers
- 1 Player Screen
- 75 Fan Dice (15 of Each Color)
- 5 Family Banners
- 36 Feature Tokens (12 Keys, 12 Brass, 12 Percussion)
- 3 Feature Rating Markers
- 1 Dice Bag
- 1 Feature Token Bag
- 6 Star Feature Tokens (Star Features Module, see Star Features Module)
Main Game Concepts
Seats
Any use of the term "seats" is referring to the seat tiles.
Hexes
The board contains three types of hexes:
Normal hexes — These are the most common hexes on each board. Each player's 11 basic seats will be placed on these hexes over the course of the game.
VIP hexes — These hexes can only be occupied by a VIP seat (each player has one of these).
Stage spaces — Each stage is made up of one, two, or three connected spaces. The feature tokens are placed on these stage spaces during setup, indicating which kinds of instruments are featured by the band performing on that stage.
Bebop is all about surrounding these stages with the right fans (dice).
After a band performs on a stage, the feature tokens are claimed from the stage and the stage spaces function like empty hexes. These empty stage spaces can only be occupied by a Backstage Pass seat (each player has one of these).
Player count regions
If you are playing with four players, then you will use the entire game board. If you are playing with two or three players, then you will play within a smaller region.
The game board displays icons next to the region borders to remind you of what regions are playable. Throughout the game, any hexes or stage spaces outside of the playable region are ignored for all intents and purposes (note that some stages are functionally made smaller because a region border passes through them).
Dice
Dice represent fans who line up in the booking queue and attend the festival by being placed in seats. The dice come in five colors, and each die shows three unique faces, each occurring twice.
The color of a die represents which family/friend group it is a part of ("family" for short). Dice like to be seated next to their family. Once you have a die of a certain color, you can never change its color.
The face of a die represents which kind of instruments the fan wants to listen to. You will have opportunities to change the face of dice in front of you.
Setup
Central Play Area
- Place the game board of your choosing in the center of the table. (Each board represents a different festival. For your first game, we recommend playing the green board: The Vanillaville Jazz Fest.)
- Return six dice of each color to the box if playing with two players, or three dice of each color if playing with three players. Use all dice when playing with four players. Place all the dice you are using into the dice bag.
- For two/three/four players draw four/five/six dice, roll them, and place them in the booking queue.
- Return five of each feature token to the box if playing with two players, or two of each feature token if playing with three players. Use all feature tokens when playing with four players. The star feature tokens are not used in the basic game. For each triple stage (stages with three spaces), place one feature token of each type on the three spaces. Shuffle the remaining feature tokens in the feature token bag and randomly draw and place one on each stage space within the playable region, ensuring that no stage has duplicate features. Note: The instruments that are illustrated on the stages are purely decorative — you can cover them with any feature token following the above instructions.
- Place the feature rating markers on the feature rating track according to the number of players, as listed above the corresponding space.
- Place each family banner next to the board within easy reach.
Player Setup
- Each player chooses a color and takes the following components of that color:
- 16 seats (11 basic, 5 special)
- 1 player screen
- 2 score markers
- Each player places their score marker on the "0" space of the victory point track. The second score marker will be placed on the 50 and 100 when you cross those point thresholds.
- Each player draws and rolls three dice from the bag, keeping the dice in front of them.
(Players only hide their dice behind their screens in two-player games. With more players, lay the screens flat and use them as a player aid. Expert players may wish to hide their dice even in three- to four-player games.)
Quick Reference
Actions
Claim a seat
- Place one of your seat tiles onto the board.
- Reroll one die (optional). (You may only have three open seats at a time.)
Book a seat
- Place a die.
- Score the symbol in the family (one point per matching symbol in family, including this die).
- Score the stage if it is surrounded (count all adjacent dice and families).
- Take a new die.
Special Seat Tiles
- VIP Seat — May be placed on any VIP hex on the board.
- Backstage Pass — May be placed on any previously scored empty stage hex.
- The Boot — When placed, may remove any normal open seat tile on the board and replace it with this tile. (You cannot remove a Boot tile.)
- Double-Claim Seat — Immediately take another Claim a Seat action.
- Insta-Book Seat — Immediately take a Book a Seat action (place die on this seat).
End-Game Scoring
For the largest family of each color, the player who seated the most percussion/brass/keys fans in that family scores one point per percussion/brass/keys feature token they have earned.
Scoring Points
There are three ways to score points: scoring the symbols in the families and scoring the stages (which happen during the game), and family majority scoring (which happens at the end of the game).
Gameplay
The player who most recently went to a concert is the first player. Play then progresses clockwise.
On a player's turn, they must either claim a seat or book a seat.
Claim a Seat
To claim a seat, place one of your seats on any empty hex on the board. The 11 basic seats must go on normal hexes. (The special seats are described in the "Special Seats" section on page 6.)
You may only have three open seats (seats without dice on them) on the board at any given time. You may not claim a seat if you have three open seats already. Instead, you must book a seat.
After claiming a seat, you may reroll one of your dice. This is optional and only available after claiming a seat.
Use your persuasive booking agent skills to try and convince a fan that they want to see a show that you have seats for!
Book a Seat
To book a seat, place one of your dice on any open seat you have previously claimed (i.e., place your die on any one of your unoccupied tiles on the game board).
After booking a seat, you must take a new die. This die can be from any space in the booking queue or randomly drawn from the bag. If you take a die from the booking queue, do not roll it. If you draw a die from the bag, roll the die before adding it to your personal area.
Any time a die is taken from the booking queue, immediately replace it by drawing another die from the bag, rolling it, and placing it in the unoccupied space of the booking queue.
(Remember to keep and roll the die behind your screen in two-player games. When taking a die from the bag in a two-player game, your opponent should not see the color of the die.)
Important: If you have no more seats in your supply, do not take a new die after booking a seat.
After placing a die, there are two types of scoring that might be triggered, in this order:
-
Score the symbol in the family: If the die you just placed is now in a family of dice (two or more connected dice of the same color, regardless of whose seats they are on), you score points. Score 1 point for each instrument face in this family matching the die you just placed, including that die.
Louis places a red keys die adjacent to a family of red dice. There are now three red keys in this family (including the die that Louis just placed), so Louis scores three points.
If this family is now the largest family of that color on the board, place the family banner near this family to indicate this. If it is tied for largest, it also gets the family banner. Thus, the family banners track the most recent largest family of each color. These banners are important for end-game scoring and have no effect during the game.
-
Score the stage: If all normal hexes surrounding a stage are now claimed AND booked (i.e., contain seats AND dice), the band on that stage performs. Note that all adjacent normal hexes need to contain seats and dice. The adjacent VIP hexes do not need to have seats or dice on them.
Billie places a blue brass die and scores one point (because it is part of a blue family and there is now one brass die in that family). The adjacent double stage is now completely surrounded, so this triggers the band performance and the stage is scored.
Note: Although Louis (white) has an open VIP seat next to this stage, remember that VIP hexes do not need to have seats or dice on them for a band performance (and stage scoring) to be triggered. Also note that because this is a two-player game, the normal hexes outside of the region border are not considered when determining if the stage is completely surrounded.
If multiple stages are surrounded after placing a die, the active player may choose the order in which their scoring is resolved.
For each feature on the stage, determine which player has the most matching symbols on dice listening to the band. A die is listening to a band if it is adjacent to the stage OR if it is part of a family adjacent to the stage. Remember, a family is two or more connected dice of the same color (regardless of whose seats they are on).
For each feature, distribute points to the winner based on the corresponding rating marker's position on the rating track. In the case of a tie, all tied players divide the points evenly, rounded down. After awarding these points, move each scored feature's rating marker down once on the rating track. The next time that feature is heard, it will be worth fewer points.
The winner of the feature takes the feature token from the stage and places it in front of them. In the case of a tie, the active player takes the feature token. If the active player is not one of the tied players, discard the feature token back to the box. Claimed feature tokens matter for end-game scoring but have no effect during the game.
Game End
Players take turns one at a time in clockwise order. A player stops taking turns when all their seats have been placed on the board and have a die on them. All players will usually finish within a turn or two of each other. Once all players have stopped taking turns, the game is over. Any remaining feature tokens on the board are not awarded — the stages were not fully surrounded, so the bands did not perform. At this point, proceed to family majority scoring.
Family Majority Scoring
Each family with a family banner will score points. For each of these families, determine the player who seated the most fans for each feature (percussion, brass, and keys). The player with the majority of each feature will score one point per matching token they have in front of them. Players tied for the majority of a feature will each score for their own tokens.
After family majority scoring, the player with the most points wins. In the case of a tie, the player who collected the most feature tokens wins.
For the blue family, Louis seated the most keys and percussion, and Billie tied Louis for the most brass. Louis scores one point for each of his feature tokens (nine points total), and Billie scores one point for each of her brass feature tokens (five points total).
For the red family, Billie seated the most brass and percussion. There were no seated keys (note that the red keys die in the image is not part of this family because it is not connected). Billie scores one point for each of her brass and percussion feature tokens (seven points total).
Billie and Louis continue family majority scoring for the other three banner colors …
Special Seats
Each player has five special seats that may be placed during the Claim a Seat action. The back side of each of these special seats shows a basic seat, so a player may forgo the opportunity of placing that special seat and instead treat it as a basic seat by placing it face down on the board.
VIP Seat — This seat may be placed on any VIP hex. Note that a VIP seat does not need to be occupied by a die for any adjacent stages to score.
Double Claim (2x) — This seat may only be placed on a normal hex but allows the player to immediately take another Claim a Seat action. (They can only do so if they respect their open seat maximum of three.)
Backstage Pass — This seat may be placed on any empty stage space of a stage that has already been scored (the feature tokens have been claimed/removed).
Insta-Book Seat — This seat may only be placed on a normal hex but allows the player to immediately take a Book a Seat action. (The die must be placed on this seat.)
The Boot — This seat may only be placed on a normal hex but allows the player to replace any other player's open seat on the board, returning that seat to the player. (Another player's Boot may not be booted, and the Boot cannot be used on VIP Seats or Backstage Passes.)
If a Double Claim seat is booted, then its special ability may be used again when it is placed back out.
The Boot does not have to be used to boot another tile out. It can simply be placed boot side up on a normal hex (to guarantee that the player is not booted out of this space).
Because of the Boot, Double Claim, and Insta-Book Seats, not all players will finish taking turns at the same time.
Star Features Module
This is a module best suited for players who have played the game a few times, as it emphasizes end-game scoring.
Setup
During setup for three- to four-player games, simply replace two of each normal feature token with its star counterpart. If playing with two players, only replace one of each normal feature token with its star counterpart. Make these replacements during Step 4 of Central Play Area Setup by removing the designated number of normal feature tokens from the draw bag (returning these to the box) and mixing in the corresponding number of star feature tokens — then continue with Step 4 of setup by filling the stages with feature tokens drawn from the bag. Be sure that the star side is face-up when these tokens are on the board.
Gameplay
Star feature tokens are earned in the same way as normal feature tokens, but they count as one of each feature during family majority scoring. When a player takes a star feature token and places it in front of themselves, they should display the three instruments side face-up for the rest of the game.
For the red family, Billie seated the most brass and percussion. Billie scores one point for each of her regular brass and percussion feature tokens (seven points total). Billie also scores four total points for her two star feature tokens (one point per matching symbol of each majority she has in this family). In total, she received 11 points for the red family banner majority scoring.
Festival Boards
The list below includes all boards from both the base game and the Festivals Expansion. This expansion can be purchased directly from our shop at www.BitewingGames.com.
Base Game
Vanillaville Jazz Fest — This is the basic Bebop board, recommended for your first few games or whenever you want the classic Bebop experience.
Jazzathon in Cramped Valley — This is the board on the backside of the base game board. It features a more cramped map, where players need to make good use of their VIP and Backstage Passes to win. This map is for those who prefer tighter games (like the designer)!
Festivals Expansion
The Longchain Beach Annual — This is a board that allows players to make long chains of families, all hopefully connecting to a central stage that has six features on it. During setup, fill the central stage with exactly two of each feature token.
Point City's Jazz 'n' Juke — Players will earn many more points on this board. There are preprinted dice on the board, meaning players can make families earlier in the game. Treat these dice as though they belong to another player for all purposes. Exception: These dice do not compete with player dice when scoring the stage, but they can help connect families to stages. Notice that the points on the rating track for stage scoring are increased!
Album Recommendations
Enhance your plays of Bebop with background music! We recommend these jazz albums for each map:
- Vanillaville Jazz Fest — "Time Out", The Dave Brubeck Quartet
- The Longchain Beach Annual — "Jazz Samba", Stan Getz/Charlie Byrd
- Jazzathon in the Cramped Valley — "Moanin'", Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers
- Point City's Jazz 'n' Juke — "Midnight Blue", Kenny Burrell
Playtesters & Credits
Thank you to all my playtesters, without whom this game would simply not exist: Alex Hovakimyan, Priscila Hovakimyan, Peter McPherson, Anthony Cholag, Eszter Zimet, Dane Baudoin, Evan Winch, Angelo Cassano, Mark Dale, Danielle Cassano, Steven Lewis, Matthew Bailey, Sahil Hegde, Lucha, Kris Chesney, Maxwell Anderson, Zac Dixon, Austin Harrison.
A special thank you goes out to my wife, Priscila, who has been my number-one fan from the very beginning and knew I would be a published designer before anyone else did. Thank you to Nick and Kyle from Bitewing Games for taking a chance on a new designer.
Game by Robert Hovakimyan
Artwork by Weberson Santiago
Graphic Design by Brandt Brinkerhoff
Edited by Scott Darrington
Published by Nick Murray & Kyle Spackman
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© Robert Hovakimyan, 2024. All rights reserved. © Bitewing Games LLC, 2024. All rights reserved.