Drop Site
Drop Site Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components and Players
DROP SITE COMPONENTS: One deck of Drop Site (52 cards) and this rule booklet.
NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 2-4
RECOMMENDED AGE: 8 and up
Overview
Natural, political and economic crises threaten the livelihood of millions of people each year. You want to help, but it can be challenging to connect people with the supplies they need to survive. Drop Site is a game about delivering and coordinating humanitarian aid shipments. It is your goal to drop parachutes of AID towards drop sites below, and strategically plan ground efforts to receive the aid once it arrives. You will win if you can coordinate deliveries of aid better than anyone else!
Set-Up
Shuffle this deck and deal FIVE cards to each player. Place the deck FACE DOWN in the middle of the table and place ONE card FACE UP next to the deck. This card is the first DROP SITE.
Figure 1 shows the layout: each player's HAND of cards, the DECK, the DEBT pile of each player (a face-down pile in front of that player), and the DROP SITES (face-up piles in the middle of the table).
Figure 2 labels a card: the card value is the small yellow number in the top left corner, used for matching when playing on a drop site or on your debt; the points are the big blue number at the bottom of the card, used for scoring.
To Play
The oldest player goes first. On your turn you MUST EITHER play a card on a drop site OR on your DEBT. DROP SITES are FACE-UP piles in the middle of the table (see Figure 1). Your DEBT is a pile of FACE-DOWN cards that you will create in-front of you. After you play (either on a drop site or on your debt pile), draw a new card from the deck to bring your hand back to FIVE cards. (Refer to the small yellow number on the left-hand side of the card when you play on a drop site or on your debt. The big blue number at the bottom of each card is used for scoring (see Figure 2).)
Drop Sites
Drop sites are face-up piles in the middle of the table. To play a card on a drop site the card you play must be lower in value than the card beneath it! (For example: You cannot play a 12 on a 10, but you may play an 8 on a 10.) You may start a new drop site with a card of ANY number. To START a NEW drop site, just PLAY a card on an empty space next to an existing drop site.
Your Debt
Remember, your debt is a pile of face-down cards in front of you. You may NOT look at your debt pile until the round is over! (Other players may NOT look at your debt either. It is a secret until the end!) There is NO LIMIT to the number of cards that may be in your debt, but remember, you can only hide ONE card there per turn. The cards in your debt will be used for scoring.
Round End
If there are TWO players, the round ends IMMEDIATELY whenever the FIFTH drop site is made. If there are THREE players, the round ends immediately whenever the SIXTH drop site is made. If there are FOUR players, the round ends immediately whenever the SEVENTH drop site is made. After a groan or a sigh of relief, REVEAL ALL the cards in your debt pile and compare them to the drop sites. After scoring, shuffle all the cards and start a new round.
Scoring
Keep score after each round on a separate piece of paper. You score the points shown on each card in your debt that MATCHES a drop site. Points are indicated by the big blue number preceded by a "+" sign (see Figure 2). (For example: Player A has a 12 and a 2 in his debt. There is one drop site that is a 12 and one that is a 2 on the table. Player A scores 7 points for the matched 12 and 4 points for the matched 2, for a total of 11 points (see Figure 3).)
You earn MINUS TWO points for every card in your debt that does NOT match ANY of the drop sites. ADD up all your points for the round and write them down. (For example: Player A also has a 10 in his debt, but there is no 10 drop site on the table. Player A only receives 9 points instead of the 11 as shown in the previous example (see Figure 4).)
Zeros
A ZERO card represents humanitarian aid that has landed on the ground. Whenever you PLAY a zero on a drop site, turn THAT drop site on its side (horizontal relative to the other drop sites). A NEW drop site may be started on TOP of this pile (don't completely cover the zero since it will be used for scoring (see Figure 5)). At the end of a round, both the top card of the NEW drop site AND the zero beneath it can be matched for points. (If you play a zero on the NEW drop site, do NOT turn the pile again. No more cards may be played on a drop site with zeros.)
You Win
You win if you are the first player to 100 points! (For a shorter game, play to 50 points.)
Notes
NOTE 1: IF A CARD IN YOUR DEBT MATCHES TWO OR MORE DROP SITES AT ROUND END, YOU SCORE FOR EACH MATCH. THE SAME IS TRUE IF YOU HAVE TWO OR MORE CARDS IN YOUR DEBT THAT MATCH THE SAME DROP SITE.
NOTE 2: A DROP SITE THAT HAS BEEN TURNED SIDEWAYS STILL COUNTS TOWARD THE NUMBER OF DROP SITES NEEDED TO END A ROUND. (For example: There are two players. Four drop sites have already been made. A fifth drop site is made with a zero and is turned sideways, and the round ends immediately as usual.)
NOTE 3: A ROUND WILL ALSO END IMMEDIATELY WHENEVER THE LAST CARD FROM THE DECK IS DRAWN.
Figure Notes
Figure 3 (drop sites and matching example): A "12" matches for 7 points and a "2" matches for 4 points; 7 + 4 = 11 points.
Figure 4 (no-match example): A "10" has no matches, minus 2 points; 11 - 2 = 9 points.
Figure 5 (zero example): An OLD DROP SITE topped by a zero is turned sideways; a NEW DROP SITE is started on top of it, with the zero beneath the new top card.