Caveman Curling
Caveman Curling Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Components
- 1 board
- 2 slammers (clip these to the ends of the board)
- 12 "rocks" (wooden discs), 6 each in 2 colors
- 12 special objects (4 big hammers, 4 little hammers, 4 totems) split between 2 colors
- 1 set of rules
Frozen Track
The board is the frozen track. From the near end to the far end, its zones are:
- the slammer (the bar at the end of the board)
- the bank line
- the auroch hunter's hut
- the warrior's hut
- the monkey hunter's hut
- the mammoth's line (the black line midway up the board)
- the watercourse
- the washing line
- the fireplace
- the cave (dark circular zone at the far end)
Object of the Game
End the round with your rocks closer to the center of the cave than your opponent. First player/team to score 6 points wins the game.
Preparation
Place the board on a table with the cave (dark circular zone) on the far end. Each player/team takes all the pieces of one color. First player/team is determined by a quick game of "Rock – Fur – Hammer" (the ancient version of "Rock – Paper – Scissors"); or by other random means.
Game
Players/teams take turns. On a turn, take 2 actions, in the following order:
-
Throw a rock. The player places his rock behind the frozen river. The rock must fully lie on the board. With a flick, he "throws" it as close as he can to the center of the cave. If any rock, at any time for any reason, comes in contact with the slammer (the bar at the end of the board) it is removed from play for the remainder of this round.
-
THE NEXT ACTION IS OPTIONAL. Use a special object. The player can use ONE (and only one) special object to affect the rock he just threw. Each object can only be used once per round. Once used, the object is discarded. See "Special Objects" below.
Mammoth's rule
If, after a throw and the use of a special object, a rock has not completely crossed the mammoth's line (the black line midway up the board), it is removed from the board and discarded for the remainder of the round. You throw no better than a mammoth! (That is not a good thing!)
Broken rock
If any rock is turned upside down during the play, it is discarded. The rock is broken! You'll get a brand new one on the next round.
Special Objects
Hammers (big and little)
The player "hits" his rock with a hammer to move the rock. The player places the hammer on the board, with the short side in contact with the rock. He takes his rock and places it on the other side of the hammer (see illustration). This "hammer hit" must not make any other rock move. The player must place the hammer on the board, and the moved rock must be able to lie fully on the board.
Totems
The player protects his rock with an ancient and powerful totem.
The player places the totem token on top of his rock. If, later in the round, this totem touches the board, the owner of the rock can remove the rock from play or he can let it stay in its new position. If the rock is removed from play, the owner gets to replay it at the end of the round. If multiple rocks are replayed in this way, they are played in the order in which they were removed. Totems are discarded from the round if they hit the board.
End of the Round
When all rocks have been thrown the round ends and scoring happens. Scoring is exactly like curling or petanque or bocce. Only 1 player/team scores, and that is the one whose rock(s) are closest to the center of the cave. Score 1 point for each rock(s) closer to the center than the opponent's closest rock. Only the rocks completely inside the cave line score points. If no rock is in the cave, no player/team scores points.
New Round and Game's End
The board is cleared and players take back their rocks and special objects. The player/team who scored points begins the new round. The first player/team to achieve 6 points wins the game!
Clan's War (for 4 or 6 players)
Form 2 clans with an equal numbers of players. Each player takes the same number of rocks. A player cannot give a rock to another player, even of his own clan. Use the huts on the side of the board to store your rocks. Clans take turns throwing rocks. On its turn, a clan chooses which player will throw a rock. If a player has thrown all his rocks, he cannot throw anymore.
To make things harder, split up the special tokens BEFORE the beginning of the round. This way, each player may have a special role.
Mississipi Variant
When a player (or a clan) throws a rock into the cave, the opposing player/clan must throw rocks until he plays a better (closer) rock or he knocks the first rock out. It is possible that a player/clan will throw many rocks in a row. If the second player/clan has no more rocks, then first player/clan throws all his remaining rocks.