Cábula
Cábula Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Aim
Without any doubt, the main aim of the game is to have fun with family and friends. If the question is "How do you win?", then you do so by collecting five stars, at which point the game ends. I'm afraid that in the competitive world of arcane witches and wizards there are no prizes for coming second or third. The only thing left for losers is to play a rematch!
Contents
95 Cards:
- 26 star cards
- 6 double star cards
- 12 curse cards
- 20 monster cards
- 25 spell cards
- 6 quick guide cards
Preparation
Put a double star card into the deck for each player (there are six in all). The remaining double star cards should be left in the box as they won't be needed.
Next, shuffle the deck of cards and deal five to each player.
The remaining cards are placed face-down in the centre of the table, within everyone's reach to be drawn from.
At this point, the players should discard any curse cards that they have been dealt. These are marked with a black candle symbol. Don't worry, we will be explaining these and other cards a little later.
Each player then takes a new card for each curse card they had discarded, so that they again have five cards in their hand.
What should I do if I draw curse cards again? As before, they should be discarded and replaced with new ones until you have five cards in your hand but no curse cards.
Now shuffle all the discarded curse cards back into the pack.
Starting Player and the Order of Play
The starting player is the one who has performed magic most recently. If nobody has ever performed magic (you're taking your time in learning if that's the case), the youngest player starts. Play then continues clockwise until the game ends.
When it is their turn, each player takes a card from the pack without showing it to the others. If the card they have drawn is not a curse card (we'll explain this later), it should be kept in the hand.
If it is a curse card, show it to the others and play it immediately, whatever the consequences. You can then play another card, even if you have been cursed.
Card Types
Stars
Star (Fig. 1)
This card represents the essence of magic.
Playing a star is the simplest part of the game. Just place the star card in front of you, alongside any others you might have. If it's the fifth star, you've won the game!
Star cards are always played one at a time.
The number of stars that each player has should always be visible to the other players. Don't try to trick your opponents by piling them up or hiding one beneath another.
Double Star (Fig. 2)
The essence of concentrated magic (spooky!)
Playing this card is like playing a star card, except it counts as two stars. It's as easy as that! In other words, if you have two star cards and one double star card, you have four stars and therefore only need one more to win the game.
Double star cards are always played one at a time.
However, there is one important rule to remember. You can't win the game on the turn that you play the double star card, even though you have five or even six cards on the table in front of you.
This means that if you have three star cards and you play the double star card, you won't have won despite the fact that you now have five stars on the table. You will have to wait until the others have played and it's your turn again. If you still have five stars in front of you, then you will have won.
Nevertheless, if you have two stars and one double star on the table (four in all), and on your turn you play a further star, you will then have five and will have won the game.
Curses
Curse cards have a sinister-looking black border with a black candle symbol in two of the corners. These cards are not laid voluntarily, rather "they play themselves". When you draw a curse card you should show it to the other players, putting it on the discard pile with immediate effect.
The Thieving Witch Card (Fig. 3). When this curse card is drawn, the player who has taken it loses a star or a double star (at their choice) from those in front of them.
The Necromancy Card (Fig. 4). When this curse card is drawn, the player who has taken it has to discard or take cards from the deck until they have five cards in their hand.
As the sharpest among you will have realised, this curse could be a blessing if you don't have many cards in your hand.
The Skull Card (Fig. 5). This is the most powerful curse card. The player that draws it loses all their star and double star cards on the table in front of them.
Remember: receiving a curse does not count as playing your turn. Let's consider an example: Alice takes a card, the Thieving Witch curse card. She therefore loses one of her stars that she has in front of her and may then play a star card or other card, as she would if she hadn't drawn a curse card.
Monsters
Sorcerers need their assistants, servants and henchmen to help them find magic elements and, of course, to make life difficult for their rivals. There are four kinds of monsters: the dragon (Fig. 6), Cyclops (Fig. 7), the minotaur (Fig. 8) and the kraken (Fig. 9).
Monsters are also stronger when they work together as a team. Nevertheless, they are extremely competitive and will never operate alongside another kind of monster.
They work in the following way:
Go for supplies! If you play one monster card: place it on the discard pile and take another card.
Play a prank! Play two monster cards at the same time (they have to be the same kind) - put them on the discard pile and you can force another player to give up a star or double star card from those in front of them.
Commit a robbery! Play three monster cards at the same time (again, they have to be the same kind) - put them on the discard pile and you can force another player to give you a star or double star card which you then place in front of you. If this results in you now having five stars on the table before you, you'll have won the match.
Unleash chaos! If you play four monster cards at the same time, placing them on the discard pile, they are capable of wreaking havoc.
When you play them, another player loses the star card you choose from their hand and gives you one of the stars they have in front of them.
Transcriber's note: the printed English says the victim loses the chosen star "from their hand". The Spanish original of this card says the victim must "perder la estrella que elijas" (lose the star you choose) and hand over "una de sus estrellas desplegadas" (one of their displayed stars). The printed English is kept as printed; the Spanish supports reading the chosen star as one of the victim's displayed stars.
Who chooses which star card goes on to the stack of discarded cards and which gets stolen?
The player that sends the monsters!
What happens if I have one monster of each type in my hand? Can I play the four together and "unleash chaos"?
I'm afraid not. As said previously, the different kinds of monsters won't work together. These four monsters can only be used to "go for supplies" individually and in successive turns, unless you draw another monster to form a pair, a trio or a quartet of similar monsters.
Spells
The spell cards have a purple background. They can be played individually or in pairs of identical cards.
The Crystal Ball (Fig. 10). If you play this card, it goes onto the discard pile and you can take a card from another player's hand. However, if the card you take is a star or double star card, it has to go into your hand as opposed to onto the table in front of you. If you play one crystal ball card, you have to pick its replacement blind, at random. If you play two crystal ball cards, you can look at your opponent's hand and choose the card you want.
The Cauldron Card (Fig. 11). If you play this card, it goes onto the discard pile. You can then ask another player to pick up a star or double star card from those they have on the table in front of them and return it to the cards in their hand. In other words, the victim of the cauldron card does not lose a star (it is neither discarded nor given to another player). Instead, they will have to lay it on the table in another turn. If you play two cauldron cards at once, the player you choose has to return all the star or double star cards in front of them on the table to their hand.
The +2 Parchment Card (Fig. 12). If you play this card, it goes onto the discard pile. You can then draw two cards from the deck. As is the case with the monster cards, you can play two parchment cards at the same time. In this case you can then draw four cards from the deck.
The +3 Spell Book Card (Fig. 13). If you play this card, it goes onto the discard pile. You can then draw three cards from the deck, one by one.
The Magic Wand Card (Fig. 14). Unlike the others, this card is played outside the normal turn order. It can only be played when you are hit by a curse when you draw a card from the deck. Using a magic wand at such a point allows you to avoid the effect of the curse, after which play continues (you do not take another card from the deck to replace cancelled curse card).
If you play two magic wand cards together, you not only avoid the effect of the curse, but turn it on another player who now receives the curse just as if they had drawn it from the deck themselves. Can I use a magic wand card against a curse that another player has put on me? Of course you can! In fact, if you play two magic wand cards together you can turn the curse on another player, even on the player who has cursed you.
Important Rules
No Cards Left in the Deck
If at any point in the game the deck runs out, the discard pile is shuffled and becomes the new deck.
Drawing Order
As has been said previously, cards are drawn from the deck one by one, with curses applied immediately, each followed by the drawing of the remaining cards.
Let's consider a simple example. Charlie has four stars in front of him on the table and six cards in his hand. He plays a parchment card, meaning that he now has five cards in his hand and has to draw two more from the deck. He takes the first of these and it's a magic wand card. Great! He adds it to his hand. He then draws the second - it's a curse card, the Thieving Witch. If he accepts the curse, he will lose the chance to lay his fifth star on the table on his next turn and win the game. However, as he has the magic wand, he decides to use it to avoid the witch's curse. As long as the other players don't stop him, on his next go, he can lay one of the stars he has in his hand. If Charlie had drawn the cards in the reverse order - in other words, first the curse card, he would have suffered its effects immediately. He would then have drawn the magic wand but would have had to keep it in his hand for a later occasion.
Let's consider a more complicated example... Alicia has four cards in her hand. She plays two parchment cards together. She now holds two cards in her hand and has to draw four cards from the deck. She draws the first card, a necromancy curse card, which means she now has to have five cards in her hand. As the curse card doesn't go to the player's hand but straight to the discard pile, she only holds two cards. She draws three more, one by one: a star card, a minotaur monster card and a magic wand. She now has five cards in her hand. Applying the curse card restarts the card-drawing phase as a result of the two parchment cards.
She still has to draw three of the four cards.
She draws them one by one: a magic wand, a Cyclops monster card, a skull curse card... At this point, the curse of the skull card comes into force and she has to discard the single star card on the table in front of her. However, she also holds two magic wand cards and decides to play them to turn the curse on Charlie, who seemed to be on the point of winning.
Passing
It's possible that at some point you might not want to play a card or be able to (you might not be holding any in your hand, for example). In such a case, you can pass and the turn moves on to the next player.
In general, passing is a very bad idea that makes winning a lot more difficult.
We recommend that you don't pass unless you absolutely have no other alternative.