Cherry on the Cake
Cherry on the Cake Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Contents and Setup
Components
- (A) 102 Sugar Cubes (18 each in blue, pink, green, purple and orange, plus 12 golden sugar cubes): Place the coloured sugar cubes in the middle of the table and the golden ones next to the scoring board.
- (B) 66 Point Chips (22 each of bronze, silver and gold): Shuffle them face down and place them next to the sugar cubes with the chef's hats facing up.
- (C) 1 Die: Place it next to the point chips.
- (D) 1 Scoring Board: Place it at the edge of the play area.
- (E) 1 Cake Topper: Place it at the edge. You will not need it until the end of the game.
Each Player Takes
- (F) 1 Game Board: Place it in front of you.
- (G) 1 Starting Piece (cake plate): Place it to the left of your game board, making sure there is enough room above your starting piece. During the game you build your cake upwards on the cake plate. Look at the back of your starting piece, take the three sugar cubes shown there, and place one in each blue jar on your game board.
- (H) Scoring Marker: Look at which baking ingredient is shown at the bottom left of your starting piece, take the matching scoring marker, and place it on the start space of the scoring board with the side that does not show a 20 facing up. If necessary, place several chips on top of one another.
- (I) 7 Cake Pieces: Shuffle the 40 cake pieces face down and deal 7 pieces to each player. Place two of your pieces face up above your game board. Place the remaining 5 pieces next to it as your own face-down draw pile.
- (J) 1 Game Figure: Choose a figure and place it in front of you. You can decide which side of your figure you want to play with. Two players may also choose the same figure.
Tip (speech bubble): Before the first game, carefully punch all parts out of the punch sheets.
Game Objective
During the game, you add one cake piece each round and so gradually build a multi-storey cake on the cake plate. The aim is to connect the colour stripes of the cake pieces as skilfully as possible.
And Off We Go
The game lasts 7 rounds, all of which proceed in the same way. A round consists of the following 3 actions:
- Choose a cake piece – all players at the same time.
- Place a cake piece – one after another, clockwise.
- Pass on a cake piece and draw a cake piece – all players at the same time.
1. Choose a Cake Piece – All at Once
Look at your two face-up cake pieces and decide which of the two you want to place on your cake. Note: you may also rotate both cake pieces! As soon as you have decided on a piece, mark it with your game figure. After that, the pieces can no longer be rotated.
It is important that you leave the cake pieces above your game board. You may not lay them against your cake to try them out at any point during the game.
2. Place a Cake Piece – One After Another, Clockwise
The player who last ate a piece of cake begins the first and all following rounds.
When it is your turn, take your chosen cake piece and place it on your cake. In the first round it is placed on the starting piece; in the following rounds it is always placed on the topmost piece of the cake.
When placing it, make sure the markings (liquorice sticks) on the edges line up flush with one another.
Then do the following, one after another:
a.) Check which colour stripes are connected, and take the corresponding sugar cubes.
Check which colour stripes on your cake are connected to one another through the newly placed cake piece, and see how many sugar cubes are depicted in the connected stripes. Take the corresponding sugar cubes from the supply and place them for now next to your game board. Note: The colour stripes are green, purple, orange, pink and blue. The dough-coloured gaps do not count as colour stripes.
When are colour stripes connected? Colour stripes count as connected if stripes of the same colour overlap on the cake pieces. Even a small overlap counts. However, if two colour stripes touch only corner to corner, they are not considered connected. (Diagram: two connected blue colour stripes, and corner-to-corner pink colour stripes, which are not connected.)
Colour stripes can also be connected across several cake pieces. You may always take all the sugar cubes of the connected colour stripes, not only those on the cake piece you have just placed. The only requirement is that the cake piece you have just placed belongs to the colour-stripe connection.
Example: By placing the cake piece, Lena has connected both green and purple colour stripes. She receives 2 green and 1 purple sugar cube.
b.) Distribute the sugar cubes onto your jars, empty jars if applicable, and take the corresponding point chips.
After you have taken all the sugar cubes, distribute them onto the jars on your game board. If applicable, take the point chips you receive from emptying jars. Note: If you receive a golden point chip, you may additionally roll the die and carry out the rolled action.
- The blue jars on the game board show how many sugar cubes must lie in each jar before it is full and can be emptied. Never may more sugar cubes lie in a blue jar than is shown.
- Each blue jar may only hold sugar cubes of different colours.
- If you have more sugar cubes to distribute than there is room for in the blue jars, place the surplus sugar cubes in the green exchange jar.
- You may only place sugar cubes in the exchange jar once they cannot find room in the blue jars, because the corresponding colour already lies in every jar.
- The exchange jar may hold any number of sugar cubes of any colours.
After you have distributed all sugar cubes onto the jars, check the following:
- Whether a blue jar is full. You must empty this jar. Return all sugar cubes in it to the supply. Look at which point chip is shown beneath the emptied jar, and take a corresponding chip from the middle. Keep the chips you gain face down next to your game board. You may look at the victory points on the back of a chip at any time, but you do not have to reveal them.
- Whether 3 or more sugar cubes lie in your green exchange jar. If so, you MUST return 3 sugar cubes to the supply. In exchange, you may take 1 other sugar cube (not golden) from the supply and place it in one of your blue jars.
You may choose the order of 1 and 2. However, note the rule that you must first distribute all newly received sugar cubes onto the jars before you can empty full jars.
Golden point chip: If you take a golden point chip, you may additionally roll the die and carry out the rolled action. The possible actions are:
- Take 1 or 2 sugar cubes of any colour (not golden) and place them in one of your jars.
- Take 1 golden sugar cube and place it in one of your jars. It counts as a wild sugar cube (see "Distributing Sugar Cubes", page 4).
- Move your scoring marker forward 1 or 2 stars on the scoring board.
- Take a bronze point chip.
Example 1: Lina receives 2 green and 1 purple sugar cube in her turn and distributes them onto her jars. The small jar now holds 3 sugar cubes of different colours. She can empty the jar and receives 1 bronze point chip for it.
Example 2: Max receives 1 green sugar cube in his turn. Since each of the three blue jars already holds a green sugar cube, he must place it in the exchange jar. He exchanges the 3 sugar cubes in the exchange jar for 1 purple sugar cube from the supply, which he places directly into the middle blue jar. He may now empty the middle blue jar and receives 1 silver point chip for it.
c.) If applicable, count the victory point stars and move your scoring marker. Count the victory point stars in the connected colour areas and advance your scoring marker on the scoring board by the corresponding number of stars.
Example: A star lies in the connected colour area that came about when Benno placed a cake piece. He may advance his scoring marker one space directly.
Small consolation: If you receive neither a sugar cube nor a victory point star in a round, you may take any sugar cube from the supply and place it in your green exchange jar.
3. Pass On a Cake Piece and Draw a Cake Piece – All at Once
Once you have all placed your cake piece one after another, you are again asked, all at the same time:
- Pass your remaining face-up cake piece on to the person on your left.
- Place the piece you have received back down above your game board.
- Additionally draw the top cake piece of your face-down draw pile and place it there too.
You now again have 2 cake pieces lying face up above your game board. The next round can begin!
Only in the last round can you not draw another cake piece, because your draw pile is used up. In that round you have no choice left and place the last cake piece, which you may of course still rotate as you like.
Translator's note: the printed text says that only the last round has no draw. With 5 pieces in the draw pile, however, the pile is empty after the fifth draw, so as printed the sixth round also has no draw. The text is transcribed as printed; the Hungarian edition reads the same.
End of Game
The game ends after all of you have placed your last (seventh) cake piece.
Now comes the scoring, which consists of two parts and is also shown once more on the back of the cake topper.
1. Distribute Golden Sugar Cubes – All One After Another, Clockwise
Look at how many golden sugar cubes are depicted on your finished cake, and take the same number of golden sugar cubes from the supply in the middle of the table.
You may now distribute the golden sugar cubes freely onto your jars. They count as wild sugar cubes. You may also place several golden sugar cubes in one jar. Unlike the other sugar cubes, you do not have to place surplus golden sugar cubes in the exchange jar. After emptying a jar, you may place them straight back into it.
Translator's note: the Hungarian edition differs here. It also allows a die roll for golden chips at this point, and it lets the golden sugar cubes go into any blue jar after a jar is emptied. The German text is followed.
If applicable, you then receive the corresponding point chips for full jars that you can still empty.
Then return all golden sugar cubes to the supply, so that the next person can use them.
2. Determine Victory Points – All One After Another, Clockwise
After everyone has received and placed their golden sugar cubes, the point chips are scored. First, turn all your bronze point chips over to the side showing victory points and total your points. Then, going clockwise, each player in turn advances their scoring marker on the scoring board accordingly.
Then do the same first with the silver chips and then with the golden chips.
If your scoring marker passes the start space (20 points), turn the marker over to its other side.
Whoever's scoring marker is furthest ahead at the end has topped all the cakes, wins the game, and may, as a reward, crown their own cake with the cake topper.
Tip (speech bubble): You can also shorten or lengthen the game by starting with 6 or 8 cake pieces instead of 7.