Chimera Rulebook

Table of Contents

Components
Preparation and the Deal
The Bid
Legal Card Combinations
Preparation of the Hand
Play of the Hand
Scoring the Hand
- Examples of Scoring
Winning the Game
Legal Combinations
Credits

Components

The game is played with a 54-card deck:

4 cards each of ranks 1 through 12 (although suits are included, they have no effect on game play)
- 8 of these cards are Treasure cards and provide points to the player who takes them in a trick.
  - 4 Rank 2 "Fortune Toads" worth +10 points each.
  - 4 Rank 11 "Prosperity Cats" worth +5 points each.
4 Heroes, which rank higher than the cards ranked 1 through 12, but have no numerical value and so cannot be used in playing straights, or ranked sequences (except as added cards).
1 Pi Ya card (P), which outranks all other single cards except the Chimera and can optionally be used to substitute for any ranked card 1-12 to assist in making a straight. For example, 8-9-10-Pi Ya-12.
1 Chimera card, which outranks all single cards.

Preparation and the Deal

Any player may deal each hand. The dealer shuffles the cards and presents them to another player to cut near the middle of the deck. After the cut, the dealer takes the top card from the bottom half of the cut and places it face up on the top half of the cut. The dealer then completes the cut by placing the bottom half of the deck on top of face-up card and deals the hand.

Deal the first three cards face down in the middle of the table, this is called the Chimera's Den. Then, deal out the remaining cards to the players (17 cards to each player).

The Bid

The player who receives the face-up card starts the Bid.

In clockwise order, players may pass or bid.
Legal Bids are: Pass, 20, 30 or 40.
- The bidding can start at any of these bid options.
For example, a player may want to preemptively bid 40, the maximum, to shut other players out and automatically win the Bid.
- Each Bid must be higher than the last Bid.
- Players may re-enter the bidding after passing.
Bidding continues until a player bids 40; or, there are two consecutive passes after a Bid.
- If all players pass without any bid, then the hand is thrown in: shuffle and deal again. On the re-deal, if all 3 players pass again, the player with the face-up card automatically bids 20. Other players are free to bid as in a normal bidding.

Legal Card Combinations

See the complete description of each combination at the end of the rules. There are 14 possible card combinations:

Single Card
Pair
Sequence of at least three pairs
Triplet
Sequence of at least two sets of triplets
Triplet with an attached card
Triplet with an attached pair
Sequence of triplets with attached card each
Sequence of triplets with attached pair each
Straight (Five or more cards in sequence)
Quad with two single attached cards
Quad with two attached pairs
Trap (Four of a kind)
Chimera Flight

Preparation of the Hand

The winner of the bid becomes Chimera. The Chimera picks up the Chimera's Den of 3 cards and adds them to his hand, bringing his total card count to 20. The Chimera does not discard or pass any cards!

The other two players will now play as a team, the Hunters, against the Chimera.

Based on the winning bid, the Hunters secretly and simultaneously exchange 0, 1 or 2 cards following this:

If the Bid is 20, the Hunters do not exchange cards.
If the Bid is 30, the Hunters must exchange 1 card.
If the Bid is 40, the Hunters must exchange 2 cards.

Play of the Hand

Players are attempting to play out all of their cards in their hand first.

The Chimera begins the round of play for the hand by playing one or more cards to the table corresponding to one of the 14 possible card combinations described previously. This is called leading the trick.

In clockwise order, players may either play to the trick or pass.

Subsequent plays to the trick must match the combination led and must be higher in rank.

For example if a 3 is led, the only legal play is a single card higher than 3. If pairs are led, the only legal play is higher ranked pairs, and so on.
Players may also choose to play a TRAP or a Chimera Flight instead of the led combination.
- If a Trap is played, now only a Trap of a higher rank or a Chimera Flight can be played.
- A Chimera Flight is the highest possible play in a trick.

Note: Traps and Chimera Flights cannot be played out of turn!

Players may pass even if they have a legal play and players who pass may re-enter play unless the trick is won before their next opportunity.

Play continues until two consecutive players pass.

The player who played the last cards to the trick wins all the played cards and places them into a face-down pile in front of him. This pile is called his Tricks. The player then leads the next trick for the hand. Any Treasure cards (Fortune Toads & Prosperity Cats) taken will be scored at the end of the hand.

The hand is over as soon as one player has played all his cards. This player takes all the cards played to the last trick and the hand is scored. Any cards remaining in other players' hands are not counted and placed aside.

Scoring the Hand

The score is calculated based on the Bid and who played all of their cards first, the Chimera or one of the Hunters.

Then all players score their Tricks. Each player has a separate score.

If the Chimera played out all his cards first:

The Chimera scores double the amount of the Bid (40, 60 or 80).

The Chimera scores an additional 25 points for each Bonus.

Bonuses:

Each of the following instances counts as a Bonus of 25 points:

A Bonus is applied for each Trap played.
- Note: Quad with attached single cards or pairs are NOT Traps!
A Bonus is applied if a Chimera Flight is played.
A Bonus is applied if either one or both of the Hunters did not play any cards.

If either of the Hunters played all of their cards first:

The Chimera loses points equal to the amount of his bid (-20, -30 or -40). It is possible to get below 0.
The Chimera does not score any Bonus.
Each Hunter scores 20 points.

All Players Score:

Treasures:

All players score any Treasures they took in their Tricks.

There are eight Treasure Cards.
- 4 Rank 2 Cards, Fortune Toads, are worth 10 points each (shown on the Toad's belly).
- 4 Rank 11 Cards, Prosperity Cats, are worth 5 points each (shown on the Cat's collar).

Note: Since the hand is over once one player has played all his cards, any Treasure cards remaining in other players' hands will not count for this hand.

Examples of Scoring

Example 1:

The Bid is 20, the Chimera goes out first,
1 Trap was played,
1 Hunter played no cards.

The Chimera scores 40 (for 2 x his bid of 20) + 25 (for 1 Trap Bonus) + 25 (for the no cards played Bonus) for a total of 90 points.

In addition, each player scores points for any Treasure Cards they won in their Tricks.

Example 2:

The Bid is 40, one of the Hunters goes out first and the Chimera Flight was played.

The Chimera loses 40 points (for his missed Bid) and no Bonus is scored for the Chimera Flight.
The Hunters each score 20 points (for defeating the Chimera).
In addition, each player scores points for any Treasure cards they won in their Tricks.

Winning the Game

Play continues until at least one player has scored 400 or more points. The player with the highest score is the winner. If there is a tie for highest score, play continues until there is a single highest score. (This means the untied third player could still win!)

If desired, players may change the Score Limit for a longer or shorter game. Recommended Score Limits are 300, 500 or 750 points.

Legal Combinations

General Notes

Suits do not matter. They are included to provide variety and to assist in remembering cards played.
The Heroes (H) are regarded as higher than any of the ranked cards 1 – 12. However, since they have no actual rank, they cannot be used in any type of sequence or straight.
The Pi Ya and Chimera together are the Chimera Flight that can be played to win any trick. They can only be played together for this purpose.
Traps and the Chimera Flight cannot be played out of turn (this note is here especially for those trained in the art of Tichu).

Single Card

Cards ranked from low to high: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, Hero, Pi Ya, Chimera.

Pair

Two cards of the same rank from 1 (low) to 12 (high) topped by Heroes. For example, 8-8 is higher than 4-4. H-H is the highest pair.

Sequence of Pairs

Three or more pairs of consecutive ranks from 1 to 12. Heroes, Pi Ya and Chimera cannot be used.

Triplet

Three cards of the same rank from 1 (low) to 12 (high) topped by Heroes. For example, 11-11-11 is higher than 2-2-2. H-H-H is the highest Triplet.

Sequence of Triplets

Two or more triplets of consecutive ranks from 1 up to 12. Heroes, Pi Ya and Chimera cannot be used.

Triplet with an Attached Card

A triplet with any single card added, for example 1-1-1-6. The rank is determined by the rank of the triplet. For example, 7-7-7-5 in higher than 5-5-5-12.

Triplet with an Attached Pair

A triplet with a pair added, for example 8-8-8-H-H. The rank is determined by the rank of the triplet. 9-9-9-11-11 beats 5-5-5-12-12. Pi Ya and Chimera cannot be used as an attached pair.

Sequence of Triplets with an Attached Card Each

An extra card is added to each triplet, for example 1-1-1-6 and 2-2-2-12. The attached cards must be different from the triplets and from each other. Although trips of Heroes cannot be included, a Hero, the Pi Ya or Chimera can be attached, but not both the Pi Ya and Chimera together.

Sequence of Triplets with an Attached Pair Each

An extra pair is attached to each triplet, for example, 6-6-6-10-10 and 7-7-7-H-H. Only the triplets have to be in sequence. The pairs must be different in rank from each other. Heroes can be attached as a pair, but cannot be used as triplets. Pi Ya and Chimera may not be used.

Straight of 5 or More

At least five cards of consecutive rank from 1 up to 12, for example 8-9-10-11-12. You may play straights of 5 to 12 cards. Heroes and Chimera cannot be used in a sequence. The Pi Ya can be used as a Wild card to fill in one rank for a legal straight (1 through 12), for example, 8-9-10-Pi Ya-12.

Quad with Attached Cards

Four of a kind with two single cards of different ranks attached, for example 7-7-7-7-2-10. The four of a kind determines the rank. Heroes may be used as the four of a kind. A Hero, Pi Ya and Chimera can be attached, but you cannot use both the Pi Ya and Chimera as attached cards with the same Quad.

Quad with Attached Pairs

Four of a kind with two pairs of different ranks attached, for example 7-7-7-7-H-H-9-9. The four of a kind determines the rank. Heroes can be used (all four as a quad or two as one of the attached pairs).

NOTE: Quads with attached cards or pairs are not Traps and can be beaten by a Trap or Chimera Flight.

Trap

Four of a kind. Traps can be played on any combination except the Chimera Flight and a higher ranked Trap bests a lower ranked one. The four Heroes are the highest Trap.

Chimera Flight

The Chimera and the Pi Ya played together. A Chimera Flight can be played on any combination and beats everything.

Credits

Special thanks to my game group of over 15 years including Mark Delano, Steve Rugh, Mike Fitzgerald, John Perkins, Alan Stern, Donna McFee, and Andrew Emerick; my many friends at Alan Moon's The Gathering of Friends, and to Zev Shlasinger and the great team at Z-Man Games.

Game Design: Ralph H. Anderson, Flightless Goat Workshop Illustrations: Chris Quilliams & Philippe Guérin Development: Team Z-Man Games