CIRCUS! Viola Volente's Sensational Show
CIRCUS! Viola Volente's Sensational Show Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Content
- 1 rule book
- 2 scoring tables
- 1 ringmaster (with applause symbol)
- 4 super artists (1 with applause symbol)
- 8 tigers (4 with pedestal)
- 15 elephant (7 with pedestal)
- 16 trapeze artists (8 hanging & 8 flying)
- 18 clowns (7 with pedestal)
- 20 jugglers (8 with pedestal)
- 28 monkeys (all without pedestal)
Players
CIRCUS! is a game for 3 to 5 players and is suitable for ages 8 and up.
Duration of the Game
One game will last about 20 minutes.
Object of the Game
The winner of the game is the one who collects the most applause points by putting down circus acts on the table.
Preparation (3-5 Players)
Preparation 3 - 5 players (for 2 players go to the end of the rulebook)
- Find and set aside the ringmaster and the 4 super artists.
- Shuffle the rest of the cards and deal 6 cards to each player.
- Count 10 cards and shuffle the ringmaster in between these cards.
- Set this deck aside.
- Put 4 cards face-up in the middle of the table. This is the staging area.
- Shuffle the 3 super artists cards without the applause symbol into the rest of the main deck.
- Put the main deck on top of the deck with the ringmaster in it.
- Put the super artist card with the applause symbol halfway into the main deck.
- Determine the starting player.
Playing the Game
The starting player begins. Rounds are playes clockwise. After a player finishes the player on the left takes his or her turn and so on.
If it is your turn, choose one of the following actions:
- Take all of the cards of the same color of the face up cards
- Take one card from the drawing deck
- Take one random card from the hand of any of the other players
After taking an action you may put down one (and only one) circus act (face up).
At the end of your turn the staging area is filled from the deck so there are 4 artist to choose from for the next player.
Laying Down a Circus Act
The circus has six different kinds of artists. An act can only consist of one type of artist. The super artist can count as any artist but there can only be one super artist per act.
For all acts except the monkeys and the trapeze artists there are cards with and without pedestals. The trapeze artist consists of hanging and flying cards.
If you lay down an act, do so in the shape of a pyramid.
The trapeze act is a reversed pyramid.
The cards with the pedestals can only be used for the lowest row. It is not allowed to put cards without pedestals in this row (except the monkeys and the trapeze artists).
It is also not allowed to extend a pyramid that is already on the table.
Special Rules
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The trapeze act has a special function. It can be only a trapeze act, but it can also be a part of a combined act. In that case the bottom card of a trapeze act replaces the top card of another act (not a trapeze act). The trapeze act should contain at least 3 cards and the other act at least 5 cards.
The bottom trapeze artist counts for both acts. It is allowed to lay down an act and connect it with an existing trapeze act.
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All acts must contain at least 3 cards. Except for the monkey act which must contain at least 6 cards.
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If a super artist is drawn (face-up or face-down) it will be put in front of the active player and will be auctioned. If the super artist has an applause symbol on it then the applause points will be counted before auctioning.
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Every super artist will be auctioned. All players bid on this card. You can bid up untill four cards from your hand (you can bid zero cards). Keep them face-down in front of you till all players have made their bid. The player with the highest bid puts his bid to the side (those cards are now out of play) and takes the super artist into his hand. The rest keep their bid. The game continues with the player whose turn it was before the bidding started.
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If two or more players have equal points the player with the highest card wins (elephant, trapeze artist, clown, juggler, monkey, tiger). If they are still tied, they may bid one extra card. They will do so until there is a winner. If they both decide not to bid, the super artist is discarded and is out of play.
Card Bidding points elephant 3 trapeze 2 clown
End of the Game
After the last applause card is drawn from the deck the game ends. Everyone may put down one last act (a combined act is also allowed). The player who collected the most applause points is the winner.
Symbols on the Cards
- 4/4 (pedestal icon): Total number of cards with a pedestal / without a pedestal.
- Bidding points icon: value of the cars when bidding on a superartiest.
- Applause icon: Applause: after drawing a card with this symbols: add up the points of the acts.
- Pedestal icon: Card with a pedestal.
| cards in piramide | monkeys | jugglers | clowns | trapeze | elephants | tigress |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | - | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 6 |
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 20 |
| 10 | 15 | 18 | 20 | 21 | 24 | 33 |
| 15 | 27 | 40 |
Game for 2 Players
Preparation
Remove all jugglers from the deck and put them back in the box.
Remove 2 super artists as well. Put them also in the box.
Set aside the ringmaster and the 2 remaining super artists.
- Shuffle the cards
- Give both players 6 cards
- Count 10 cards and shuffle the ringmaster in between these cards. Set this deck aside.
- Put 4 cards face-up in the middle of the table.
- Divide the remaining cards into 3 decks
- Shuffle the 2 super artist into 2 different decks
- Put these decks on top of the deck with the ringmaster.
- Put the deck without a super artist on top of that
- Determine the starting player.
Changes to the Standard Rules
The rest of the game follows the standard rules except for the following:
Besides the 3 standard actions (take cards from the staging area, take from the deck or steal one) there is an extra possibility.
You are allowed to take one card from an act that your opponent already has put into play. You may take any card except tigers and super artists. Your opponent will replace it with the top card of the closed deck. This stand-in artist is put in the act face down. The true identity of the stand-in will only be revealed to the opponent when the show is over and it is time to count points until then it is only known to the owner of the act. An act must consist of at least half of the original artists (face up cards).
The stand-in cannot be a super artist of ringmaster, therefore the owner of the act checks the stand-in before putting the card into play. If the card is a super artist or ringmaster it is put open on the table and the owner of the act draws a new stand-in from the deck. The super artist of ringmaster is handled as usual AFTER the acting player has finished his turn.
At the end of the game the points of the stand-ins (the bidding point at the bottem left) are counted towards your score. A tiger counts as zero points but will double the value of the stand-ins in your acts.
After every super artist points will be counted (so points are counted 3 times in a 2 player game)