Bottom of the 9th
Bottom of the 9th Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Components
- 1 Field Board
- 20 Baseball Cards, plus a card checklist of promotional cards: Burgerhead Manny, Cait Hannah, Hiro Kido, Launius King, Lou Lesley, Louder Wake, Martini Dan, McIver Anvil, Nomah Mully, Patriss Hurricane, Petty K.C., Roberto Ethan, Rumble Kerry, Schmidt Pete R., Staab Verheerend, Straw Southpaw, Truman Robbie, Worldwise Whitney, Dixon Dice, Doc Mullins, Blüdle The Noodle, Bender Pete, Fitz Mike, and Rain Delay
- 1 Hit Reference Card
- 15 Solo Player Cards (see Manager Challenge Rules)
Pitcher Components
- 2 Large Pitch Tokens (Red Direction, White Location)
- 3 Out Tokens
- 2 Small Fatigue Tokens
- 2 Pitcher's Dice (Control Die, Pitch Die)
- 1 'At-Bat' stick of "gum"
Batter Components
- 4 Base Runner Meeples
- 5 Pitch Count Tokens
- 3 Ball Tokens, 2 Strike Tokens
- 1 Swing Die
- 2 Large Pitch Tokens (Red Direction, White Location)
Game Play
Each round of play represents one Pitch of the ball and one opportunity for the Batter to take a swing. The Pitcher will choose a type of pitch using the two Pitch tokens, and the Batter will attempt to guess the Pitch to gain advantages. Once the Pitch is revealed, the Pitcher's Dice are then rolled to determine the pitch and the Batter's Die is rolled for the swing. The dice are compared, and the result — which could be a Ball, Strike, or Contact — is resolved.
Setup
Players choose who will be Batting and who will be Pitching. Place the Field Board between the 2 players, with Home Plate pointing toward the Batting Player.
Batter (Home Team)
If you are Batting, select 6 Batter Cards (denoted by the Batter image in the bottom left corner), of different field positions (first base, left field, catcher, etc.) and set the lineup in the order which you would like the Batters to take turns At-Bat.
Note: A Batter with the position of Infield can be played in any infield position: first base, second base, third base, shortstop, or catcher. A Batter with the position of Outfield can be played as any outfield position: left field, center field, or right field. A batter with the position of Utility can be any position (except pitcher).
You also receive 5 Pitch Count Tokens, 4 Base Runners, 2 Pitch Tokens (1 of each type), and the Red Swing Die.
The 5 Pitch tokens will track the current Batter's pitch count. Place the 4 Base Runners off to the side of the Field Board. Place the 2 Pitch Tokens and Swing Die in front of you.
Pitcher (Visiting Team)
If you are Pitching, choose 2 Pitcher Cards (denoted by the Pitcher image in the bottom left corner) and place one in front of you with the Pitcher Information facing up. Place the other Pitcher Card off to the side; you may use this Pitcher as a substitute during the game. See the Relief Pitchers rules below.
Note: A Pitcher with the designation of Starting Pitcher can only be played as your initial Pitcher and may not be used for relief. A Pitcher with the designation of Relief Pitcher can only be used to replace a Pitcher (can not start a game). If the Pitcher does not designate Starting or Relief, then it can be used as either.
The Pitcher also receives 3 Out Tokens, 2 Fatigue Tokens, 2 Pitch Tokens (1 of each type), and 2 Pitcher's Dice (Pitch and Control). Place the 3 Out Tokens next to the Out Area of the Field Board. Place the 2 Pitch Tokens and 2 Pitcher's Dice in front of you.
The Pitcher Card lists the Pitcher's Ace Pitch in the red box, denoted by 2 differing Pitch Locations (Low & Away, High & Away, etc.). Take the 2 Fatigue Tokens and place them at the top of the Fatigue Track on the Field Board displaying the Ace Pitch, with each token face-up so the Batter can read them.
How to Win!
If you are the Home Team (Batting) you will win by getting 1 Runner around all the bases and back to home plate, scoring 1 Run.
If you are the Visiting Team (Pitching) you will win by gaining 3 Outs versus the Home Team.
Once the Field Board, tokens, and player cards are arranged as described above, the game is fully set up and ready to play!
Phases
- Stare-Down
- The Pitch
- The Swing
- Run!
- Clean Up
Prior to the first Pitch, if there is a new Batter and there is no Runner Meeple on Home Plate, place a Runner Meeple there.
1. Stare-Down
Both players use the Pitch Tokens to secretly select a Direction (Inside or Away) and a Location (High or Low) of the pitch, then reveal them simultaneously.
The tables on Pitcher and Batter Cards are used to determine which Abilities are awarded to the Batter for correct guesses, and to the Pitcher for incorrect guesses. Place the tokens you obtained this way on your player card to remind you which Abilities you can use. If you obtain both tokens, you do not get to use every Ability. Instead, refer to the (red + white) portion of the chart to determine which you may use.
Example: The Batter correctly guessed INSIDE for the pitch and is awarded the White Token and the Ability. The Pitcher successfully fooled the Batter with HIGH on the Red Token, therefore the Pitcher gains the Ability.
Each Pitcher has an Ace Pitch listed on their card. When thrown, this Ability automatically activates, unless canceled by the Batting Player accurately guessing its Direction AND Location.
Note: This is IN ADDITION to the Stare-Down Abilities described above. If a Pitcher throws an Ace Pitch and fools you, it'll be tough to hit!
Whenever a Pitcher throws any part of their Ace Pitch, they Fatigue the token(s) on the Pitch Track.
Example: Lesley Lou's Ace Pitch is High & Inside. If Lesley throws Low & Inside, she must move the Inside Token down on the Fatigue Track. Alternatively, if Lesley threw High & Inside she would Fatigue BOTH tokens.
Fatiguing happens whether or not any part of the pitch was guessed by the Batting Player. If a Fatigue Token reaches the bottom of the Fatigue Track, the Pitcher can no longer choose that Direction or Location on the Pitch Tokens.
Each Batter has an MVP Ability, denoted in the MVP box. This Ability may be activated once when the Batter guesses the Pitch Tokens exactly. Refer to the (red + white) portion of the chart for your options.
2. The Pitch
The Pitching Player simultaneously rolls the Pitch and Control dice, then uses any Abilities or penalties from their Trait and Stare-Down results. If a number result is modified, rotate the die so the new result is face-up. Players cannot modify a die to be greater than 6, nor less than 1.
Natural Rolls: In the next three phases, players will be rolling dice. If any rule or Ability shows a specific number within a box, that number must be rolled naturally – that is, without the help of any modifiers. You may use a modifier to avoid the Ability, but you cannot use a +1/-1 modifier to gain a "natural roll" Ability.
Possible Pitch Die results:
- B (Ball): Pitch is outside the Strike zone (unable to be hit).
- S (Strike): Pitch is within the Strike zone (able to be hit).
- Corner: Pitch paints the corner of the plate (able to be hit).
Proceed to The Swing!
3. The Swing
The Batter now rolls the Swing die, which can be thought of as swing power, and then may apply any Abilities and/or penalties from their Trait and Stare-Down results. The Batter then compares the Swing Roll (with any Abilities) to the Pitcher's Pitch and Control dice rolls.
| Pitch | Swing < Control | Swing = Control | Swing > Control |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ball | Ball | Ball | Strike |
| Strike | Strike | Foul | Contact (see Run! phase) |
| Corner | Strike | Contact (see Run! phase) | Strike |
Should a single Batter gain 4 Balls within the Pitch Count, they are Walked (advance the Meeple to First Base for free, no Run Phase).
Strike: If a Batter acquires 3 Strikes in the Pitch Count, the Batter is struck Out. The Pitcher records the Out and the next Batter comes up to bat.
Foul: Give the Batter a Strike, unless it would result in a Strikeout (3 Strikes). If the Foul would result in a Strikeout, the Pitch and Swing are ignored, and the At-Bat continues with the next pitch.
4. Run!
When Contact is made, both players race to roll their dice as fast as they can (Home Team Player rolls the Swing die; Visiting Team rolls the Control die), until the Batter reaches base or the Pitcher records an Out. If the Batting Player rolls a 5 or 6 first and yells "SAFE!", any Runner Meeples already on base advance 1 base and the Runner Meeple at home plate is advanced to First Base. If the Pitching Player rolls a 5 or 6 first and yells "OUT!", the Batter (the Runner Meeple on Home Plate) is Out and removed, other base runners remain where they are.
All base-running ties go to the runner.
The Traits SPEED and FIELDING increase the odds of winning this phase.
- SPEED: Adjusts the number needed to be rolled for a runner to be safe.
- FIELDING: Adjusts the number needed to be rolled for a runner to be out.
5. Clean Up
This Phase only occurs between Batters (i.e. the Batter is out or reaches First Base).
During this phase, the Pitcher gets Relief for their throwing arm and a new Batter (Runner Meeple) steps up to the plate. The Pitcher counts the number of empty bases on the Field Board (excluding Home Plate), then moves a Fatigue Token UP the Fatigue Track that number. The Pitcher may do this in any combination.
Example: Lesley just struck out Mully Nomah. As Mully sulks back into the dugout, Lesley sees 2 empty bases. She opts to move High up 1 space on the Fatigue Track, and then Inside up 1, for a total of 2 Relief.
Then, the next Batter in the lineup starts a new Stare-Down phase.
Player Cards vs. Game Rules
In the event a Player Card conflicts with a Game Rule, the Player Card always takes precedent.
Traits
Some Batters and Pitchers have Traits, which are permanent abilities. Traits are not optional and are always in use.
Relief Pitchers
The Pitching Player can change their Pitcher between At-Bats. To do so, the Pitching Player removes the current Pitcher from the game and replaces it with a new Pitcher Card. The Pitching Player resets the Fatigue Track tokens to match the new Ace Pitch, but sets the new Pitcher's Fatigue Tokens both to 1. This is the highest level of relief a relieving Pitcher can take.
Additional Rules
Crushed / Home Run!
If a Batter successfully makes Contact against a Strike with a Natural 6 (or with any Batter traits, such as Anvil McIver), the ball has been Crushed. The Batter immediately rolls again.
- 1-4 is an automatic single
- 5 is a double
- 6 is a Home Run
Note: With the results of 1-5 there is no run phase.
But there is one last chance for the Pitcher to save the game! If the Batter hits a Home Run, the Pitcher rolls the Control die once as a Fielding check. Should the Fielding check be a natural 6, then the outfielder scaled the wall and caught the ball at the last second! The Batter is out! No base runners advance.
Support Characters
These horizontal cards are designed to be used in one of two ways. During setup, you may put one character into play. Both you and your opponent can use the Abilities described throughout the game. Alternatively, you may assign or draft support characters that may only be used by the player that controls them. We recommend that a player only have one active support character at a time.
Base-path Variant
To play without real-time running, use this alternate version of the Run! Phase.
When Contact is made, players roll their dice (Control/Swing) once then apply any Speed and Fielding Abilities/Traits, and check the result. A 5 or 6 is a success, resulting in either the Pitcher throwing out the lead runner, or all runners reaching base safely. If both players roll a success, the higher number wins; any ties go to the runner. Repeat this until the Run phase is resolved.
Condition Cards
Condition Cards are global effects that can change the feel of a game. The Condition Cards from the solo game may also be used in a two-player game, but it should be noted that these are typically not balanced, providing one player with a handicap that must be overcome!
Extra Innings
If recording three Outs just isn't enough, you may opt to play out the tenth inning. Decide this beforehand, so that you and your opponent pre-assign or draft a team of Batters and Pitchers to use.
Player Draft
Pitcher and Batter Cards may be allocated randomly if you are going to play a multiple-inning game or a series of several games. However, the following procedure may instead be used for a structured draft.
Players roll a single die. The winner may decide whether they would like to be the home team or have the first selection in the draft.
Game Play Variants
Beginning with the Pitchers, select players until each team has an equal number before moving on to the Batters. Optionally, draft an equal number of support cards last.
The base game would result in a team of 3 Pitchers, 6 Batters, and a support character. When playing with expansions, be sure to observe the 1-player per position rule. You may draft multiple players with the same position, but only have 1 of each in your lineup during the game at any given time. A team that includes expansion players can be any size you agree upon before drafting.
If a batting lineup is 9 players, the Pitcher must be included as a Batter. While batting, a Pitcher has no trait or MVP, and may only gain the Abilities from the Stare Down tokens.
Longer Game
For a game of multiple innings, use the following modifications.
Note: Full innings can take up to 30 minutes, so a 3 inning game is the recommended length.
Use the Player Draft rules to assign players and randomly determine the home team. We recommend an 8 Batter lineup (Pitcher being your 9th batter) and 4 Pitchers per team.
Relief Pitchers: The first Pitch Reliever ignores the Relief Pitcher rules of the standard game. Each consecutive Pitcher follows the rule.
Pinch Hitters: In addition to having multiple Pitchers, when playing with expansion players, your team may consist of more than 8 Batters. Between innings or between At-Bats, you may replace a Batter in your lineup with one of your substitutes, removing the original player from the game. The Pinch Hitter does not have to be the same position as the original player, but the new lineup can not violate the 1-player per position rule.
Double Switch: During any appropriate Pinch-Hit or Relief Pitcher situation, a Batter and Pitcher may be substituted simultaneously. The new players may be placed in either substitute position of the hitting lineup.
Fatigue: During each inning, Fatigue Rules remained unchanged. At the start of each Inning, reset the Fatigue Track, then Fatigue the Pitcher 1 for each Run they have allowed in the game. In any game lasting longer than 3 Innings, the first and second Reliever used by each team starts at the top of the Fatigue Track.
Manager Challenge
When the season started, the front office sat you down and told you one thing: "Take the team to the playoffs, or you're fired."
It's all come down to the last week of the season. Your team is a few games back in the Wild Card race, but you have a crucial home stand to try and get the wins you need. Can you lead your team to victory, or will you be looking for a new job in team management for the offseason?
Goal
Win at least 4 of the 6 games in your team's final week, and earn enough Manager Points (MP) to show everyone you are the right person for the job.
Setup
Setup the Field Board and all tokens as usual, but remove the Fatigue Tokens from the game. Then, shuffle all available Pitchers together to form a card pile.
Shuffle the Situation cards and draw one, placing it above the Field Board (if this is your first solo game, select Home Opener). Refer to this card for instructions on selecting a hitting lineup as well as the score, number of runners, and number of outs (if any). For each game, draw a Pitcher from the top of the pile as dictated by the scenario.
Shuffle the Effect cards and draw one, placing it next to the Situation card. Resolve any immediate effects, if applicable.
Shuffle the remaining Situation and Effect cards to form the Pitcher deck, and place it on the Fatigue Track. During the game, "Fatigue" results in discarding from the top of the deck. "Relief" returns a card from the bottom of the discard pile to the deck, and the deck is shuffled. The cards in the discard pile may be viewed at any time. Do not change their order when looking at them.
The Pitcher deck completely replaces the Fatigue process from the base game. Do not discard extra cards when the red Direction or white Location token matches the Pitcher's Ace pitch.
Solo Game Play
Home Opener: Play Ball! Play this as your first Situation for the Manager Challenge. Advanced players may choose a random Situation instead.
Each At-Bat proceeds as in the standard game, with the Pitcher deck providing the Pitch Direction and Location selection. Set your tokens and then reveal the top card of the deck, noting the Pitch Token locations on Situation cards and Stare Down results on Effect cards. Set the Pitcher tokens as indicated on the bottom of the card (if a Situation card is revealed), and place them by the Pitcher deck. This is for tracking Abilities that activate based on Pitch Locations. Award tokens based on correct guesses, as normal.
Roll the Pitcher's dice and use any abilities accessible to the Pitcher to modify the roll. This includes abilities granted by the pitch tokens obtained in the Stare Down, the Pitcher's trait or Ace, and possibly the Situation or Effect cards.
If the Ace Pitch was thrown and not canceled, always activate its effect unless the pitch can be modified into a natural result that avoids it without doing so. Use the Solo Pitch reference chart printed on the card to determine how the Pitcher will modify the roll.
If you correctly guess both Direction and Location, you may choose to Fatigue the Pitcher 1 instead of using your MVP Ability. This must be selected before the Swing phase. Resolve the Swing phase as normal. If Contact is made, first take any unopposed rolls as dictated by available abilities, then roll both the Pitcher and Batter dice according to the Base-path Variant.
Between At-Bats, the Pitcher gains Relief as normal. Any Pitcher with an Ability that mentions Fatigue or Relief receives 1 extra Relief between At-Bats in lieu of using the Abilities during gameplay.
If the Pitcher deck is ever depleted, finish the at-bat as normal, with the Pitcher selecting tokens opposite of the Ace pitch during the Stare Down. Following the at-bat, select another Pitcher randomly (or as dictated by the scenario) to become the new Pitcher. Shuffle the Pitcher discard pile to form the new deck, and then immediately Fatigue the Pitcher 3 (discard 3 cards).
Some scenarios allow for extra innings. In those cases, shuffle the Pitcher discard pile into the deck and fatigue the Pitcher 1 for each run they have allowed in the game.
Note: If a natural 1 is rolled with 3 balls in the count and the Pitcher has an available reroll, the Pitcher must reroll the Pitch die.
Game End
Record the name of the scenario, the win or loss and any MP earned. Shuffle the Scenario and Event cards and begin your next game, this time discarding any previously played scenario and drawing again.
Winning
After your 6th game, tabulate your score to see if you've kept your job. Add 5 MP for a win, or 12 MP for winning all 6.
- 3 or fewer wins: You're fired in the locker room before you can remove your uniform!
- 4 wins & <25 MP: The team has made the playoffs, at the expense of your career.
- 4+ wins & 25-40 MP: Bravo! Good luck in the postseason! (true victory)
- 5+ wins & 40+ MP: You are carried off the field on the shoulders of your joyous players.
Advanced Rules
Once you have achieved a true victory on the standard difficulty, try increasing the challenge!
Veteran: Observe the Advanced Effect on the Effect Cards, in addition to the first.
Manager of the Year: The Pitcher discard pile is no longer viewable, and you may not guess the same Direction and Location on consecutive Stare-Downs.
Hall of Fame: There are never any runners placed on base to start a game, regardless of the scenario description.
Example of Pitching in Solo Play
Wake Louder is on the mound. His Ace pitch ability states that a natural roll can become a higher result. He throws the pitch and wins both red and white pitch tokens. Here are a couple of things that could happen:
-
Wake throws his Ace pitch, then rolls a natural 5. Wake would keep the result, and use the red ability to make the pitch a 6.
-
Wake throws his Ace, then rolls a natural 6. According to the Solo Pitch chart Wake would keep the result, but Pitchers will always use their Ace pitch, if able. With this result, Wake would reroll the Control die up to two times, trying to get a favorable result.
Credits
Game Design: Darrell Louder & Mike Mullins Solo Gameplay Design: Richard Launius & Mike Mullins Illustration: Adam McIver Graphic Design: Darrell Louder, Chris Kirkman, & Jennifer Closson
Special Thanks: To all of our Kickstarter backers who made this game possible. We love you all! To Kickstarter for providing the custom dice at PAX East 2014 that provided the inspiration for the core system. To all the players, gamers, and developers who helped us craft the game through the Unpub system, and to Richard Launius, Mike Fitzgerald, Dan Patriss, TC Petty III, Stephanie Straw, Ken Grazier, Steve Tower, Rodney Smith, Lesley Louder, Sarah Mullins, Dustin Schwartz, and so many others who played, offered feedback, and championed this game!
For more information about this and other great Dice Hate Me Games products, visit www.DiceHateMeGames.com or www.GreaterThanGames.com. Or send an email with any questions to [email protected]
The Dice Hate Me Games and Greater Than Games logo and all art within are ©2015 Greater Than Games, LLC.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to decide which abilities I am using before I roll?
No. All abilities are used after the pitch and swing rolls, respectively. These abilities are chosen one at a time, so if you had "choose any two" you could reroll first, and then decide if you needed another reroll, or the +/-1.
If there is a runner on second and first base is empty, what happens during the run phase?
The runner on second will try to go to third, and the batter will try to reach first. If the batter wins the Run phase and yells "Safe," there would be runners on 1st and 3rd. If the pitching player yelled "Out," the lead runner would be thrown out, and the batter reaches first safely.
What does "Choose any 2" mean?
Choose any 2 allows you to pick any combination of the abilities listed on your card. All bonuses, with the exception of the MVP ability, can be stacked. So you could reroll twice, or get +/-2.
Glossary
Bench/Eject: Removes a Player from play for the remainder of the game. Benching is optional, where Ejections are forced.
Hit By Pitch (HBP): If a Batter is Hit by the Pitch, they are awarded First Base for free.
Inning: An inning, consisting of two halves, where a single half is called the "top" or "bottom" of the inning. In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other team playing defense (Pitching).
Runners in Scoring Position (RISP): This term refers to Runners on Second and Third Base.
Strike Out: When a Batter gains 3 Strikes they are Out.
Walk/Walked: When a Batter gains 4 Balls in the Pitch Count they are Walked, moving the Batter to First Base for free.
For additional Baseball terms and overview, visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baseball