Cat Attack

Cat Attack Rulebook

Table of Contents

Object of the Game

To be the first cat to collect six items of food (a bird, a mouse, a bowl of milk, a tin of cat food, a box of vitamins and a tin of fish) and make it safely back home with the correct throw of the die

To be the sole surviving cat when all the others have lost each and every one of their nine lives.

1 game board
6 cats
54 Life Tokens (6 colours, 9 tokens per cat)
63 Mog cards
4 crib cards
39 Curiosity cards
4 closed shop cards
36 items of food (6 mice, 6 birds, 6 tins of fish, 6 bowls of milk, 6 boxes of cat vitamins, and 6 tins of cat food)
1 black car
1 die

The First Time You Play

Remove the four shop picture cards from the Curiosity card deck and fold them as shown on the back of the cards.

Setting Up

Choose which colour house will be yours and take a cat and nine Life Tokens to match.
Put the cat on the door of your house. This is your cat's Home space.
Line up your nine Life Tokens in front of you, next to the game board.
For each player:
- Put one mouse on the roof over the mousehole.
- Put one bird on the bird-house roof.
- Put one pink tin of fish on the Fishmonger's roof.
- Put one white bowl of milk on the Dairy's roof.
- Put one lilac tin of cat food on the Corner shop's roof.
- Put one green box of cat vitamins on the Vet's roof.
Put the black car in the car park.
Place the four folded shops next to the game board, near their matching spaces at each corner of the board.
From the deck of Curiosity cards, remove the card that says, "Shuffle the Curiosity cards". Place it face down on the Curiosity space, then thoroughly shuffle the remaining cards and place these on top, also face down.
From the deck of Mog cards, remove the four quick reference cards. Deal these out to remind players how to play the three types of Mog picture cards.
Shuffle the rest of the Mog cards and deal six to each player. Don't let other players see your cards. Place the remaining cards face down on the Mog cards' space.

You're ready to play!

Playing Cat Attack

Roll the die to decide who will go first.

On Your Turn

Do three things:

Play one of your six Mog cards.
Pick up a new Mog card from the deck to bring your hand back up to six cards.
Roll the die to move your cat.

Playing Mog Cards

Play a card by placing it face up in the centre of the board so that all the players can see what you're doing.

Play a Cat card to move your cat the number of spaces shown on the card. Leaving your Home space, step on the paw-prints and move in any direction through your garden and onto the walls to get around the neighbourhood in search of food. So, for example, if you play a 5 of cats, move five spaces.

Each of the four paw-prints in your garden counts as one space.

Each of the four streets around the board is made up of five spaces. It's the quickest way for cats to get around and the only way into the shops.

If you land on a Curiosity space, pick up a Curiosity card (see page 5).

Play a Mouse card to move one of the mice the number of spaces shown on the card. A mouse's first move is onto the mouse space on the wall.

Play a Bird card to move one of the birds the number of spaces shown on the card. A bird's first move is onto the bird space on the wall.

Once you've played a card from your hand, pick up as many cards as you need to replenish your hand back up to six, then roll the die to move your cat and complete your turn.

NOTE: you can play a Mouse or Bird card, even if there are no more mice or birds left to move. It's a good way of playing the cards in your hand so you can pick up a fresh card from the Mog deck.

There are three special Mog picture cards: SPEEDY CAT, CAT ATTACK and CAT BURGLAR (see page six).

Cats Can't

Back-track when on the move.
Step onto a street occupied by the car.
Step onto the car park, the bird-house or the mouse-hole.
Sit on the same space as a cat, bird or mouse without attacking it.
Jump over other cats. (You must move in a different direction.)

Cats Can

Jump over birds and mice if they have enough moves left. Include the space on which the creature is standing when counting out your move. Remember that jumping over birds and mice is not the same as landing on them (see "Catching Birds and Mice" on page 5).

Mice and Birds Can

Jump over cats, birds and mice.
Move on any street (they are not affected by the car).
Step up to any shop.
Only mice can use the mouse-hole and return to it during the game.
Only birds can use the bird-house and return to it during the game.

Mice and Birds Can't

Back-track when on the move.
Step on a cat's Home space.
Pick up a Curiosity card when they land on a Curiosity space.
Land on the same space as a mouse, bird or cat. (Mice and birds must move in a different direction.)

Attacking a Cat

It's a jungle out there! Cats can attack other cats if they are within striking distance:

If your cat lands on the same space as another cat by exact count – when you play a Cat card from your hand or when you roll the correct amount on the die – the cat you land on loses a life and goes home.
If you've just played a card to make your attack, pick up a new card from the Mog pile to replenish your hand.
Next, examine the six Mog cards of the cat you've attacked. Help yourself to a card of your choice and swap it with one of your own that you don't want. Make sure none of the other players sneaks a peek.

REMEMBER: you cannot attack a cat on his Home space.

Catching Birds and Mice

It's one of the perks of the job! Move your cat towards any birds or mice you see – or move these towards your cat – and you stand a good chance of making a catch:

If your cat lands on the same space as a bird or mouse by exact count – when you play a Cat card from your hand or when you roll the correct amount on the die – you catch the critter and place it in your larder (on the roof of your house).
You can't catch more than one mouse or more than one bird. If you land on a creature and you already have one like it in your larder, retrace your steps to the space you started your move from and try heading in another direction. Be careful! You might get cornered (see page 7)!

Landing on Curiosity Spaces

When your Cat lands on a Curiosity space, pick up a...

Curiosity Card

Read out the instruction on the card and do as it says. Then, place the card face down at the bottom of the deck.

Some cards will close a shop if it's open, or vice versa. To close a shop, place the folded shop card over the shop's roof (hiding any food that is left there). To open it, place the folded shop card next to the game board.
If you get caught in the garden of a shop as it closes, you lose one Life Token and go home.
If a Curiosity card tells you to play another Mog card, do so right away and don't forget to replenish your hand.
The car always drives clockwise around the board and comes to rest on the middle space of the street shown on the card. If the car meets any cats on its way or if there's a cat anywhere on the street it stops in, those cats all lose one life and go home. If you're told to move the car and it's already in that street, do a full lap and scare a life out of any cats you meet! REMEMBER: cats cannot step onto a street occupied by the car.
When you pick up the "Shuffle" card, you've been right through the deck. Follow the instructions on the card.

If you attack a cat, bird or mouse that is on a Curiosity space, you also get to pick up a Curiosity card!

Shopping

Only cats can shop without a credit card or cash! To get an item of food from a shop and stash it in your larder, your cat must land on one of the three paw-prints in the shop's garden:

You must land on one of the three spaces. Remember, cats cannot back-track, so if you roll a 6, for example, and it's too much, you just have to keep moving through the garden and onto the road (beware of the car!).
You cannot enter the garden of a shop if it is closed. And mind you don't get caught in the garden when the shop closes (see "Landing on Curiosity spaces")!
You cannot have more than one of each item of food in your larder.

Raiding

Cats are cunning when it comes to food! You can steal from other cats if they're not on their Home space or in their garden:

If your cat lands on another cat's Home space by exact count – when you play a Cat card from your hand or when you roll the correct amount on the die – you can steal one item and place it in your own larder.
If the cat whose larder you're raiding happens to be stopped by a shop at the time, you can't take that shop's matching item from his larder.
Beware! If you've just done a raid and you're still in that cat's garden or on his Home space at the end of your turn, you lose two Life Tokens and go home!
A cat cannot be raided if he is on his Home space.
REMEMBER: you cannot have more than one of each item of food in your larder.

Speedy Cat, Cat Attack and Cat Burglar Cards

Play a Speedy Cat card to whiz around the place: roll the die three times and move your cat after each throw. Don't forget your normal roll of the die, making it four in total.

Play a Cat Attack card to surprise the enemy: jump on a cat, bird or mouse that is no more than six spaces away. If you catch a bird or a mouse, it goes to your larder. Any cat you jump on loses a life and goes home. You also get to swap a Mog card with its owner (see "Attacking a cat" on page 4). A cat cannot be attacked if he is on his Home space.

Play a Cat Burglar card to bend the shopping and raiding rules!

If you're no more than six spaces away, use it to land on the Cat Burglar paw-print outside a shop and take an item, whether the shop is open or closed.
If you're no more than six spaces away, use it to land on another cat's Home space and raid one item from his larder, even if that cat is in his garden. Remember: a cat cannot be raided if he is on his Home space.
Beware! If you've just played a Cat Burglar card and you're still in a shop's garden or a cat's garden or Home space at the end of your turn, you lose one Life Token and go home!

REMEMBER: after you play a Mog card, replenish your hand to six cards and finish your turn by rolling the die and moving your cat.

If the Mog deck is exhausted, shuffle the discard pile in the centre of the board and place the pack face down on the Mog card space.

Trespassing

Stalking another cat's territory can be costly! It's all a matter of timing:

You can step into another cat's garden and stay there at the end of your turn, so long as you haven't raided the larder. You can even be there when the resident cat is in his garden or at home.
But be warned! If the host cat is away and returns home to find you in his garden, it counts as an attack – even if he doesn't land on the same space as you. You lose a Life Token and go home. Mog cards are exchanged in the normal way.

Mog Picture Cards

In addition to the Cat, Bird and Mouse cards that let you move, there are three special types of picture card in the Mog deck.

(Speedy Cat, Cat Attack and Cat Burglar are described under "Speedy Cat, Cat Attack and Cat Burglar Cards" above.)

Cat Fight

If you want to attack a cat but don't have a Cat Attack card or the right value Cat card to land on a cat, you can have a Cat Fight. Indicate which cat you are fighting which must be no more than six spaces away and cannot be on his home square.

Look at your Mog cards and decide which suit (cat, bird or mouse) you will use to make your attack – normally the suit you have most of.
Place one of your attack cards on the discard pile. The numbers don't matter – only the suit. Note: you can't use Mog picture cards in a cat fight.
The defending cat now tries to fight back by placing any card of the same suit on the discard pile. The fight continues with players taking turns until one cat can no longer play a card of the attacking suit. That cat loses the fight, loses a Life Token and goes home.
Both players replenish their hands and the winning player exchanges a card with his opponent, just as in a conventional attack.
If both players run out of cards during the cat fight, each picks up six new Mog cards, starting with the attacking player, and the fight goes on.

Six Cat

Here's a bit of cat magic! If you have six bird or six mouse cards in your hand, you can make one of these creatures vanish from an opponent's larder:

Lay out all six cards at once (instead of playing just one card) and move a bird or mouse – depending on the card suit played – out six spaces from any larder of your choice.
You can't magic a bird or mouse away from a cat who is at Home or in his garden.

Cornered Cat

Time to arch your back and fluff out your tail! There may be times where you have nowhere to run:

If you've played a cat card or rolled the die and find you cannot complete your move, you're cornered. You lose one Life Token for every reason you're cornered and go home.
For example: you can't move into the street because the car is there; you can't jump over a cat standing in your path; and you can't land on a mouse because you already have one in your larder. All three possible routes are blocked so you lose three Life Tokens and go home.

Retired Cats

If you lose all nine of your lives, you retire to the countryside! You're removed from the game and what you leave behind is up for grabs:

Your Mog cards go face-up on the discard pile.
Other cats can raid your larder without having to be out of your garden or Home space at the end of their turn.
Any bird or mouse in your larder can be moved using bird or mouse cards.
Other cats standing on your Home space can be attacked.

Winning the Game

The first cat to collect six different items of food and land back on his Home space by rolling the correct amount on the die wins the game!

Alternatively, the last cat left in the game when all the others have lost each and every one of their nine lives is declared the winner. It doesn't matter whether the surviving cat has collected all six items of food or not.

Other Ways to Play

For a Shorter Game

Start with less than nine lives each.

OR…

Agree how long you'll play and when time is up, count up the number of lives each player has left. Add these to the number of items in each player's larder. The player with the highest total wins. If there is a tie, the player with the most food wins. If there is still no outright winner, the game is declared a draw.

Opt-Out Claws

For a more challenging game, set up the game with one bird and one mouse less than the number of players. Or go one step further and have one less item in each shop than the number of players. Then the fur will really fly!

Gang Warfare

Play in pairs or play in teams. The winning team is the first one to get all of its players to fill their larders with the six items of food and each return to their Home space by exact count. For a shorter game, all the cats in one team could live in the same house and only need to collect six items of food. Each house has just nine lives.

For Younger Players

Kittens and new cats on the block may prefer a simplified game:

Leave out Raiding, Trespassing, Cat Fight and the Six Cat rules. Introduce these gradually as you get to know the game.