Doggy Bag Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Goal of the Game
• Components
• Set Up
• Gameplay
  • 1 - The Loot
  • 2 - The Role Distribution
    • The Hothead
  • 3 - The Stealing
    • The Gluttony
  • Fagin's Punishment
  • Next Turn
• End of the Game
• The "Role" Tokens
• Beginner Version (6 Years and Up)
• Summary of the Turn

Goal of the Game

Get the best loot by stealing Fagin's bones!

Components

1 Fagin's bag, 8 "Role" tokens, 1 "Fagin's chest" tile, 101 bones, 6 screens, 1 "First player" token, 2 "Fagin" coins

Set Up

• Place the "Fagin's chest" tile in the middle of the table.
• Place the 8 "Role" tokens in the middle of the table as well, organised in an ascending order, on the "Effect" side.
• Place 1 bone of each color in Fagin's bag and put it in the middle of the table.
• Each player takes a screen and places it in front of him or her. They then hide the following things behind their screen:
  • 3 grey bones (Ossicles)
  • 4 white bones (Chicken bones)
  • 5 red bones (Cow bones)
  • 3 black bones (Smoked bones)
  • 1 yellow bone (Marrow bone)
• The unused bones are put back in the box. They will not be used during the game.
• The player who has the best bark takes the "First player" token and 2 "Fagin" coins. They will start the game.

IMPORTANT: Players will place bones behind (A) and in front (B) of their screens during the entire game.

• A: The bones placed behind the screen (hidden) represent the loot that will be brought back to Fagin at the beginning of a turn. Those bones remain hidden at all times during the game.
• B: The bones in front of the screen (visible to everyone) are the bones that each street dog managed to steal back from Fagin's bag. At the end of the game bones award points (except the black ones).

Gameplay

The game takes place over a number of turns. A typical turn is divided into 3 phases: the loot, the role distribution and the stealing.

1 - The Loot

Every day Fagin forces the street dogs to bring back bones for his hoard.

The player who has the "First player" token throws the 2 "Fagin" coins and adds up the two numbers. Each player then secretly takes that same number of bones from behind their screen and discreetly puts them in the bag (without looking in it).

Note: towards the end of the game, if the amount shown by the "Fagin" coins is greater than the number of bones left behind the screens, each player must place all of their remaining bones in Fagin's bag (this will be the last turn of the game).

Example: Artful throws the 2 "Fagin" coins, which fall on their 1 and 2 sides. All players discreetly add 3 bones from behind their screens to the bag.

2 - The Role Distribution

At night the street dogs attempt to get a part of the loot back. They try to get close to Fagin but it takes guts! Fagin sleeps with one eye open.

Starting with the first player and going clockwise, each person takes one of the 8 "Role" tokens still available and places it in front of them (they are numbered 0 to 7). These tokens show how many bones a player thinks he or she can take from the bag without drawing a black bone.

When a player takes a "Role" token they immediately carry out its effect if possible (see The "Role" Tokens below).

We advise you to play the first game without the "Role" token effects, to understand the basic rules of the game (see Beginner Version below).

The Hothead

When a player takes a "Role" token they turn it over and place it in front of them. When they do so they announce a number bigger than 7. The token's effect is not used and they will have to draw a number of bones equal to the number they announced. The "Role" token they turned over is no longer available for that round. Only one player can turn over a Role token every turn. They will always be the first player to take from the bag (see the stealing phase below).

Once each player has taken a "Role" token, the stealing phase can begin.

Example: Artful takes the "Role" 5 token and uses its effect. Then Betty, who prefers to play on the safe side, takes the "Role" 3 token and uses its effect. Finally, Rose, who is feeling confident, takes the "Role" 4 token, turns it over and announces 9 (and therefore doesn't use the token's effect).

3 - The Stealing

Each street dog tries to get close to Fagin, but be careful! The smell of the smoked bones can wake him up. If a dog tries to steal one, Fagin will wake up and punish the thief.

The player who has taken the "Role" token with the highest number (or the Hothead if there is one), starts to pick from the bag.

They draw the bones from the bag (without looking at the colour before picking) until one of two things happen:

They draw a black bone. The smell wakes Fagin up! He collects and hides all the bones away in his chest, except the ossicles the dog had time to hide for themselves. While Fagin punishes the thief the other dogs use the opportunity to get close to the loot.

The player places the black bone (which represents Fagin's punishment), and any grey bones they may have drawn, in front of their screen. They place all the other bones on the "Fagin's chest" tile in the middle of the table in view of everyone. These bones are considered lost and the player's turn is over.

The next player with the highest "Role" token (who has not yet drawn from the bag during this turn) then tries their luck taking bones from Fagin's bag. If they fail it then goes to the person with the next number down, and so on.

The player manages to draw the number of bones written on their "Role" token without drawing a black bone. The dog has managed to steal back the bones and takes them away for themselves. In order to prevent Fagin from getting suspicious the other dogs decide to wait to the following night before attempting to steal back the bones again.

If they wish to, a player can go for the Gluttony (see below). Otherwise they win all the bones they drew and place them in front of their screen. The turn then ends for all players (no one can draw from the bag during this turn).

The Gluttony

When a dog manages to steal the bones, everyone pushes them to steal more.

When a player tries Gluttony, they draw again from Fagin's bag, since it seems they still have time to find something interesting in it.

• If they draw a black bone then it's a disaster! They lose all the bones they drew this turn and put them on Fagin's chest. They place the black bone in front of their screen and their turn is over. It is then the next player's turn.
• Otherwise they win the bone as well as all the other bones they drew during their turn. Furthermore, as a reward for their bravery they can take a bone from in front of another player's screen, so long as it's the same colour as the bone drawn during the Gluttony. The turn then ends immediately for all players.

Notes:

• If a player must draw a bone and there aren't any more in the bag, they have to stop. They take all the bones they have drawn and put them in front of their screen. The turn ends immediately.
• If all players have drawn a black bone during the turn, it ends immediately.
• A player who has picked the "Role" token 0 can try Gluttony if his turn comes.

Example: Rose is the first to draw from Fagin's bag since she has taken the "Role" token with the greatest value (she has announced 9 by turning her "Role" token over). She draws, one by one, 3 white bones and 1 grey bone before drawing a black bone. She places the black bone and the grey bone in front of her screen and places all of the other bones she drew this turn on the "Fagin's chest" tile in the centre of the table.

It is then Artful's turn to draw since he has the second highest "Role" token ("Role" 5 token). Artful manages to draw 5 bones without drawing a black bone. He tries the Gluttony and draws one more bone from the bag. It's a white bone! His bet has paid off and he can steal a white bone from in front of any player's screen. He picks Rose.

It's the end of the turn. Betty won't get to draw from Fagin's bag because Artful successfully stole bones before her.

Fagin's Punishment

Fagin's patience is limited. If he finds out that a dog has often stolen from him he will throw them out.

As soon as a player draws their 3rd black bone they have lost and are out of the game. All the bones in front of their screen are placed on the "Fagin's chest" tile in the middle of the table. The bones behind their screen are not put in the bag and must be kept hidden until the end of the game. If the player had the "First player" token they give it to the person on their left who is still in the game.

Next Turn

When a player successfully steals, a new turn starts. Each player puts their "Role" token back in the middle of the table (and by putting the Hothead "Role" back on its usual side). The bones they did not draw remain in Fagin's bag and will be added to those the players will put in the bag during this new turn. The first player flips the 2 "Fagin" coins and the game continues.

End of the Game

The game is over when:

• There is only one player left in the game (it can happen during a turn). The player wins instantly!

• At the end of a stealing phase, the remaining players do not have any more bones behind their screens. Players still in the game add up the points from the bones in front of their screens and the person with the highest score is the winner.

  • Grey bone: 1 pt
  • White bone: 1 pt
  • Red bone: 2 pts
  • Yellow bone: 3 pts
  • Black bone: 0 pt

  In the case of a tie, the person who took the bigger "Role" token in the last turn is the winner.

• The game also ends in rare cases when, at the end of a turn, all the black bones have been drawn (with 2 players 7, 3 players 10, 4 players 13, 5 players 16 and 6 players 19). The player still in the game with the most points is the winner.

The "Role" Tokens

Each Role token has an added effect. When a player takes a token they immediately activate it.

• 0 - The Bootlicker: The player takes one black bone in front of their screen and places it on the "Fagin's chest" tile.
• 1 - The Watcher: The player draws a random bone. If it's a black one they put it back in the bag. Otherwise, they place it in front of their screen. Then, he secretly looks inside Fagin's bag.
• 2 - The Leader: The player takes the "First player" token and gives it to any person still in the game they choose, including themselves. (Note: if during a turn no one takes the 2 token, then the "First player" token does not change player.)
• 3 - The Pickpocket: The player draws a random bone. If it's a black one they put it back in Fagin's bag. Otherwise, they place it in front of their screen.
• 4 - The Mole: The player secretly looks inside Fagin's bag.
• 5 - The Scout: The player draws three bones from Fagin's bag and shows them to the other players. They place one bone in the centre of the table on the "Fagin's chest" tile, then put the other two in Fagin's bag.
• 6 - The Intendant: The player takes two bones from the "Fagin's chest" tile and places them in Fagin's bag.
• 7 - The Expert: The player exchanges a bone from behind their screen with a bone from the "Fagin's chest" tile.

Beginner Version (6 Years and Up)

When a player takes a "Role" token they don't use the corresponding effect. At the end of the turn the "First player" token is given to the next person on the left still in play.

Summary of the Turn

1. The loot: the first player flips the "Fagin" coins and each player adds that number of bones from behind their screen to the bag.
2. The role distribution: One by one each player takes a Role token and immediately performs its effect.
3. The stealing: from the highest to the lowest number, each player tries to take back bones from Fagin's bag. As soon as they pick a black bone their turn is over. All of the bones they stole this turn are placed on Fagin's chest except the grey and black ones, which they place in front of their screen. If they manage to steal the same number of bones written on their Role token they place them all in front of their screen and a new turn begins (unless they decide to go for the Gluttony).