Dolce Vita
Dolce Vita Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Object of the Game
In Dolce Vita the players collect high-quality luxury goods plus money to become the richest.
Game Material
- 66 small luxury cards (7 different luxury goods: house, car, boat, horse, jewellery, clock, vacation). Each of the luxury goods cards is valued between 100.000 and 700.000, and the money has the values 100.000 and 200.000.
- 30 number cards (the larger cards, in 5 different colors, valued between 1-6).
Preparation
The luxury cards are shuffled and laid out face up in a grid of 7 rows of 9 cards each. 3 cards remain, which are placed back in the box. Each player takes the 6 number cards of one colour.
The Game
Dolce Vita is played in rounds. During a round the players use their number cards to acquire luxuries and money. A round ends when the players have used all their number cards except one. Play is over after a predetermined number of rounds. (The author appears to be suggesting one round per player with 4 or 5 players but 6 rounds if there are only 3 players.)
The Single Rounds
The youngest player begins. Players, in turn, put one of their number cards under any row of luxuries. Then the next player follows clockwise, etc. All players continue to play cards one at a time and in turn until everyone has only one card left. When placing, players can play their number cards under whichever row they wish, either putting them all under a single row or distributed on different rows. How they place them depends only on which luxury card they would like to receive. When all players have only one card remaining, the placing of cards ends and the distribution of the luxury cards occurs.
Beginning with the left row, each player totals the value of his numbers lying there. The player with the highest value gets the lowest luxury card of this row (i.e. the card at the bottom of the row). They place it in front of themselves. The player with the second-highest number value gets the next luxury card up, etc. If there is a tie of equal numbers then the players take these cards back into their hands - they don't count - then the luxury cards are distributed in the normal manner. If no number cards are placed under a row the bottom card is removed and placed at the top of the row.
Example: Left Row: Red and Yellow have the same total value, having each played cards totalling 3. These cards are immediately returned to the players. Green with his 4 is the highest and gets the lowermost valued luxury: in this case it is Jewellery 200.000. Blue has the second-highest card and thus gets the next lowest luxury: the House at 300.000. Right Row: Red is highest and gets the clock 400.000, Yellow is second-highest and takes the money 100.000, Green is third and gets the next money card which also happens to be 100.000.
Row after row, from left to right, is now handled in the same manner. When all rows have been sorted each player takes all of their number cards back into their hands and the second round can now begin with the start player shifting clockwise. All rounds play out in the same manner as the first, though now there is a special rule when collecting. Players may only ever possess one piece of each luxury property, so if they get another they must exchange the old one and must keep the new.
An example: A player possesses a car with the value of 400.000 and in this round he wins another car with the value of 700.000. He must trade in the old car to get the new one. To do this he puts the card with the 400.000 car into the row from which he has gotten his new car. Then he puts the new car in the place of the old. In our example, he has done a good exchange but that is not always the case. This rule is not valid with the money cards. One may have as much money as one can collect. One keeps every money card that one gets in the course of the game.
Note: Having played this now several times we suggest that the card being exchanged should be placed at the TOP of the row.
End of the Game
After the stated number of rounds the players add up all of their luxury goods as well as their money. The richest player wins.