Dice Devils
Dice Devils Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
6 dice shakers (1 large, 4 medium and 1 small dice shakers) 6 devil character tokens and stands 6 grab markers 13 dice (3 large golden, 8 medium black and 2 small grey dice) 56 hot objects (of values 1, 2 or 3):
- 6 x beds, radiators, ear muffs, scarves, mugs of tea, hot water bottles, night caps
- 4 x chillis, hot baths
- 3 x irons, grills
Goal
Who'd have thunk it? Hell is starting to freeze over! The devils are in uproar. They all need to scavenge as many hot objects as possible. As is customary for devils, the objects will have to be fought over – using dice!
At the start of every round, a few hot objects will be revealed, which the players will play for. Each player then rolls his dice in secret before choosing an object they would like to have. Should more than one devil want the same object, there's a "dice-off" to decide the winner. The devil with the highest dice roll gets the object, and may also swap his devil rank with the defeated opponent. What for? Every rank has its own special ability. The better the rank, the better the ability!
The player who has collected the most valuable objects by the end is the winner.
Before the First Game
Carefully remove the markers and tokens from their frames. Finally, stick the 6 devil tokens in the plastic stands.
Game Preparation
- There are 6 different devil ranks in total (Oberteufel, Spielteufel, Fehlerteufel, Putzteufel, Springteufel and Satansbraten). For each devil rank there is a devil token, a grap marker, a dice shaker and some dice.
- Only a certain number of devil ranks are required, depending on the number of players:
| No. of players | Devil ranks needed |
|---|---|
| 3 | Oberteufel, Putzteufel, Satansbraten |
| 4 | Oberteufel, Spielteufel, Fehlerteufel, Satansbraten |
| 5 | Oberteufel, Spielteufel, Fehlerteufel, Putzteufel, Satansbraten |
| 6 | all six devils |
The unused devil tokens and grap markers can be put back in the game box.
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Using the grap markers, draw lots to see which devil rank each player will have at the start of the game. To do this, put the grap markers face down on the table and mix them. Each player then takes a grap marker and turns it over.
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Each player then receives the devil token, the dice shaker and the 2 or 3 dice belonging to his devil rank:
- The Oberteufel gets the large dice shaker and the 3 large golden dice.
- The Satansbraten gets the small dice shaker and the 2 small grey dice (Don't be surprised: these dice only have the values 1–4! "It just ain't easy being the Satansbraten.").
- All other devils get a regular dice shaker and 2 regular black dice.
The unused dice shakers and dice can be placed back in the box.
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Mix the 56 hot objects and put them face down in the middle of the table.
Devil Ranks and Special Abilities
Each devil's rank has a special ability. On each token is written what that particular devil rank's ability is. The different abilities are described in this rulebook at the point where they can be used. You can also find an overview and explanation of all of the abilities on the back of this rulebook.
Stages of Play
The game is played over a number of rounds. Each round has the following stages:
- New hot objects
- Roll the dice
- Place grap markers
- Determine dice-offs and collect hot objects
- Next round
1. New Hot Objects
At the beginning of every round the Oberteufel orders the Satansbraten to reveal some hot objects in the middle of the table. The number of hot objects revealed depends on the number of players:
| No. of players | Revealed hot objects |
|---|---|
| 3 | 2 |
| 4 | 3 |
| 5 | 3 |
| 6 | 4 |
There are never enough objects for everyone!
2. Roll the Dice
The players then roll their dice simultaneously, and check the results secretly beneath their dice shakers.
3. Place Grap Markers
Next, the players lay their grap markers in turn, next to a revealed hot object of their choice. The Oberteufel always begins! Then the player with the next highest rank, the the next etc. The seating order is unimportant!
Important: More than one player can choose each hot object.
Example: In a game with three players, the Oberteufel starts and places his grap marker (a), then the Putzteufel (b) and finally the Satansbraten (c).
4. Determine Dice-Offs and Collect Hot Objects
If, after everyone has placed their markers, a hot object has only one grap marker next to it, the owner of that marker wins the object without a fight, and places it in front of them.
Dice-off
If there is more than one grab marker next to a hot object, the players must have a dice-off! This means: the dice rolls of all of the devils interested in this object are revealed.
The winner is the player with the highest dice score (both dice are added together).
Example: 4 + 6 = 10 ☹ versus 4 + 5 = 11 ☺ (the 11 wins).
If two or more devils have the same – highest – dice score, these devils roll again. Only they can win this object. Whoever has the highest dice score of the re-roll wins the object.
Example: tied after first roll, then the result after the re-roll decides (illustration not reproduced).
The winner of the dice-off takes the hot object and places it in front of them.
Swapping Devil Ranks
The winner of a dice-off may also swap devil ranks with the loser of the dice-off, including dice shaker, dice and the grab marker. (So even the Oberteufel can quickly fall to the rank of Satansbraten – and vice versa.)
Important: The newly acquired abilities may not be used immediately, but only in the next round.
Example: The Fehlerteufel has won a dice-off against the Oberteufel. The Fehlerteufel player decides that he wants to swap ranks with the Oberteufel player (illustration not reproduced).
Important: The dice-off in which the Oberteufel is involved always happens first! If the Oberteufel wins an object without a fight, their dice must still be revealed so that the Satansbraten player can add the smallest roll to their dice score.
5. New Round
Finally, a new round begins. Revealed hot objects which were not won claimed by any devils (because no player placed their grab markers next to them), remain available for the next round.
End of the Game
When at least one player has collected 10 hot objects, the current round is played to the end. Then the game ends, and the hot objects each player has collected are added up.
Points
The players add up the values of their hot objects. There are 3 bonus points for each triplet of three hot objects of the same kind.
The player with the most points is the winner! (This can also be a player who has less than 10 objects.)
In the event of a tie, the player with the higher devil's rank is the winner. (The Springteufel also wins here automatically.)
Example: Marion has the following objects in front of her by the end of the game (illustration not reproduced). The values of the objects added together equals 15 points. For the triplet of chillis, she gets an extra 3 points. So in total she has collected 15 + 3 = 18 points.
At a Glance
| No. of players | Devil ranks needed | Revealed hot objects |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Oberteufel, Putzteufel, Satansbraten | 2 |
| 4 | Oberteufel, Spielteufel, Fehlerteufel, Satansbraten | 3 |
| 5 | Oberteufel, Spielteufel, Fehlerteufel, Putzteufel, Satansbraten | 3 |
| 6 | all 6 devils | 4 |
Stages of Play: New hot objects; Roll the dice; Place grab markers; Determine dice-offs and collect hot objects; New round.
End of the game: When at least one player has collected 10 hot objects, the current round is played to the end. Then the game ends, and the hot objects each player has collected are added up.
Overview of Devil Ranks and Special Abilities
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Oberteufel – The Oberteufel adds the two highest rolled values of three dice to get the dice score.
- Example 1: The Oberteufel has rolled three dice (illustration not reproduced). The dice score is as follows: 5 + 4 = 9.
- Example 2: The Oberteufel has rolled three dice (illustration not reproduced). The dice score is as follows: 6 + 6 = 12.
- Example 3: The Oberteufel has rolled three dice (illustration not reproduced). The dice score is as follows: 5 + 5 = 10.
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Spielteufel – Once per round, the Spielteufel may force all of the players who have placed their grab markers next to the same hot object as him to re-roll their dice. He may not force players who put their grab markers next to a different hot object to re-roll. He must, however, force all of his opponents to re-roll simultaneously. He may not choose for only some of them to re-roll.
- Example: The Spielteufel has a dice score of "9", the Oberteufel has "10" and the Fehlerteufel has "7". All three devils are after the same hot object. The Spielteufel would lose this dice-off, so he forces the other two devils to roll again. After the re-roll, the Oberteufel has "8" and the Fehlerteufel has "11". Hard luck: the Fehlerteufel has won and gets the object.
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Fehlerteufel – After winning a dice-off, the Fehlerteufel may steal a hot object with a value of 1 from another devil who took part in the dice-off (in addition to the one he won). If none of the defeated devils has a hot object with a value of 1, there's nothing to steal.
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Putzteufel – After winning a dice-off, the Putzteufel may swap a hot object with another devil who took part in the dice-off. The Putzteufel gives the other devil one of his hot objects and takes one of the other devil's. The swapped objects can be of different values! If none of the defeated devils has any hot objects, then sadly there's nothing to swap.
Variations
Variation for More Dice-Offs
If you're playing with four or six players and want even more dice-offs, use the following rule change:
| No. of players | Revealed hot objects |
|---|---|
| 4 | 2 |
| 6 | 3 |
Variation with a Different Selection of Devil Ranks
A certain selection of devil ranks is recommended for different numbers of players. But you can also play the game with your own mix of ranks! Just take note that the Satansbraten should only be used when the Oberteufel is in the game! (The Oberteufel can be played without the Satansbraten, however.)
Have fun experimenting!