El Palé

El Palé Rulebook

Table of Contents

Finalidad del Juego (Object of the Game)

The basic idea of the game is to buy Properties in order to collect as much money as possible, to drive the other players into bankruptcy, and ultimately to remain the sole absolute owner of all the money and all the Properties.

Starting from the SALIDA, each player's piece moves around the board's spaces corresponding to the number shown on the dice, rolled by each participant in turn. When a player lands on a Property that does not yet belong to anyone, he may buy it from the Bank; if he does not want it, it is auctioned and goes to whichever bidder pays the most. The purpose of owning Properties is to collect rent from the other players who land on those Properties, which is much higher when there are houses or hotels on the Properties. Where money is needed and not available, Properties may be mortgaged to the Bank.

The Chance and Surprise cards contain the instructions to follow. Sometimes a player ends up in the Cárcel (Jail).

Contenido (Contents)

The game of El Palé consists of the following: a board with spaces representing Solares (building plots), Estaciones (Stations), Cárcel (Jail), Impuestos (Taxes) and Multas (Fines). Two dice and several tokens that are moved around the spaces of the board according to what the dice show; 32 small green houses and 12 red hotels; two decks of Suerte y Sorpresa (Chance and Surprise) cards; Property title deeds; and banknotes of different values.

Preparación del Juego (Preparing the Game)

The table on which the board is placed should be fairly spacious, since each player needs to have in front of him his Property title deeds and his money. Each player chooses a token. There are therefore as many tokens as players. The Suerte y Sorpresa decks are placed in the spot indicated on the board. One of the players acts as Banquero (Banker) and takes charge of the Banca (Bank).

EL PALÉ LUJO — No. 14-3603 — 6 players

Money: each player receives 2,341,000 pesetas, divided into the following banknotes:

2 banknotes of 500,000 pesetas
7 banknotes of 100,000 pesetas
7 banknotes of 50,000 pesetas
20 banknotes of 10,000 pesetas
16 banknotes of 5,000 pesetas
11 banknotes of 1,000 pesetas

The rest of the money is held by the Banca (Bank).

EL PALÉ ECONÓMICO — No. 14-3600 — 4 players

Money: each player receives 1,500,000 pesetas, divided into the following banknotes:

1 banknote of 500,000 pesetas
6 banknotes of 100,000 pesetas
5 banknotes of 50,000 pesetas
11 banknotes of 10,000 pesetas
7 banknotes of 5,000 pesetas
5 banknotes of 1,000 pesetas

The rest of the money is held by the Banca (Bank).

Cómo Jugar (How to Play)

Dice are rolled to see who begins. The player who rolls the highest number starts from the SALIDA (Start). He rolls the dice and places his token on the space corresponding to the number rolled. Then, moving in a leftward direction, the other players roll in turn, and their tokens advance around the board in the same way. Tokens accumulate on the spaces they land on, and more than one token may be on the same space. Depending on the space on which a token lands, the player to whom it belongs may buy a Property, pay rent to its owner, pay fees, collect premiums, draw a Surprise or Chance card, or go to the Cárcel. During the game, tokens may go around the board several times, always in a leftward direction.

If a player rolls a double, that is, the same number on both dice, he moves his token the number rolled and then rolls again. If he rolls a double a second time he rolls again. If he rolls a double a third time he goes to the Cárcel, although the rights acquired in the two previous rolls are retained.

Sueldo (Salary)

Each time a player passes the SALIDA he collects 200,000 pesetas from the Banca, except in the specific cases indicated by certain Suerte o Sorpresa cards.

Cuando se cae en Propiedad Libre (Landing on an Unowned Property)

When a player lands on an unowned Property, he may acquire it by paying the Banca the price indicated. In exchange for the money, the Banca gives the player the corresponding Property title deed. If the player does not wish to buy the Property on which he has landed, it is put up for auction, starting from an amount lower than the price indicated, and it becomes the property of the player who pays the most for it.

Cuando se cae en Propiedad con Dueño (Landing on an Owned Property)

If, by the dice or by carrying out the instructions of a Suerte o Sorpresa card, a player lands on a Property that already has an owner, he must pay that owner the rent indicated on the corresponding Property title deed. If there are already houses or hotels built on this Property, the rent to be paid is higher. If the Property is mortgaged, no rent is payable. The sign that a Property is mortgaged is that its title deed is turned to the side that indicates this.

Note. If the owner does not demand payment of the rent before the next player rolls the dice, he loses his right to it.

Ventaja del Propietario (The Owner's Advantage)

When a player manages to own all the Solares of one color group (for example, Gran Vía and Alcalá, or Serrano, Velázquez and Goya), he collects double the rent of any player who lands on one of these Solares. In order to be able to build houses, it is necessary to own a complete color group. The advantage of having houses or hotels on the Solares is that a much higher rent is collected than on an unbuilt Property.

Cuando se cae en Suerte o Sorpresa (Landing on a Chance or Surprise Space)

When a player lands on a Suerte or Sorpresa space, he takes the card on top of the corresponding deck and carries out to the letter what is written on it. Once read, the card is placed at the bottom of the deck. The card "Para salir libre de la Cárcel" (Get Out of Jail Free) is kept until it is used, and afterwards it is placed at the bottom of the corresponding deck. A player who does not want a card may sell that card to any player he chooses.

Banquero (Banker)

Usually the Banquero is one of the players, but when more than five people are playing it is more convenient for the Banquero not to be a player. The Banquero must keep his money and the Banca's money properly separated. The Banquero pays, collects and, in short, directs the game.

Banca (Bank)

When a player lands on spaces where fines must be paid, the payment is made to the Banca. To make the Banca work well, the Banquero should have a small table beside him where he keeps to hand the various components of the game, namely: money, Property title deeds, houses and hotels. The money should be grouped in as many piles as there are kinds of banknotes, to make payment and collection easier.

The Banca also pays the players, in addition to the 200,000 pesetas paid each time a player passes the SALIDA: it supplies the players with the gifts and benefits indicated by the Suerte y Sorpresa cards, by paying the corresponding amount. It also pays for the houses and hotels that players need, by paying the amount indicated to players who mortgage their Properties. On the other hand, it collects the amount of the Properties and the fines and taxes that players pay when landing on the spaces that so indicate, or following the instructions of the Suerte y Sorpresa cards. The Banca also receives money when Properties are mortgaged.

Cárcel (Jail)

A player goes to the Cárcel when:

He lands on the space that says "De aquí a la Cárcel" (Go to Jail).
He draws the Suerte or Sorpresa card that prescribes it.
He rolls a double three times in a row.

Visita a la Cárcel (Just Visiting)

When, through the natural and repeated circuits of the board, a player lands directly on the Cárcel, it is considered simply a visit, and he moves forward on the next roll as if he had landed on any other space.

A player leaves the Cárcel when:

He rolls a double with the dice on his first or second roll after having entered the Cárcel.
He owns, or buys from the player who owns it, the Suerte or Sorpresa card that says "Para salir libre de la Cárcel" (Get Out of Jail Free).
He pays 100,000 pesetas to the Banca. In this case he leaves on the immediately following roll after entering the Cárcel.
If he has not rolled a double with the dice and has not paid the 100,000 pesetas, he is obliged to leave on his third roll.

While a player is in the Cárcel he continues to hold all his rights, that is, he collects rents, builds if he wishes, and mortgages if he needs money.

Casas (Houses)

To be able to build houses it is necessary to own a complete color group. For example: Leganitos and Curtidores, or Arenal, Carretas and Carrera de San Jerónimo. Houses must be built evenly on the Solares of the same color group: to place two houses on a Solar, each of the other Solares of the same group must already have one. Up to 4 houses may be placed on each Solar of a color group. When a player needs money, he may get rid of the houses built by selling them to the Banca, which pays him no more than half of what the player paid for them. When a house is sold back to the Banca, the same uniform procedure applies in reverse: several houses may not be removed from one Solar and none from the other Solares of the same color group; instead, the same number of houses must be removed from each Solar of the group.

Hoteles (Hotels)

When there are already four houses built on each of the Solares of the same color group, the player pays the Banca the price of a fifth house, but it is not placed; instead a Hotel is placed on the Solar, and the four houses that had been on that Solar are returned to the Banca. If, because of lack of money, a player must sell his Hotel back to the Banca, the Banca pays half the price of the Hotel plus half the price of the four houses.

Cuando el Banco no tiene ya Casas (When the Banca Has No More Houses)

When the Banca no longer has houses or hotels, the player who needs them must wait for them to become available. If several players need them, they will contest them by means of auctions when they become available.

Propiedad para Vender (Property for Sale)

Unbuilt Solares, Stations and taxes may be sold by one player to another, in a private transaction, to whichever player pays the most for them. When the Property concerned is a built Solar, it is first necessary to sell the houses or hotels on it to the Banca; once this is done, the Solares may be sold to the player who offers the most for them.

Hipotecas (Mortgages)

Properties may be mortgaged to the Banca. The mortgage value is stated on the corresponding Property title deed. When a player has new money available, he may redeem the mortgaged Properties by returning to the Banca the money it gave for them, increased by ten percent. To mortgage built Properties, it is first necessary to sell the buildings to the Banca.

Bancarrota (Bankruptcy)

When a player must pay more money than he has, he tries to obtain it by selling to the Banca the houses and hotels he owns and by mortgaging his Properties. If, despite this, he does not have enough money to pay the debt to the creditor, he may pay the creditor with his Properties. The minimum price of Properties in these cases is the one indicated on the game board. If, even with the value of the Properties, the debt cannot be covered, the player is declared bankrupt, leaves the game and withdraws his token from the board, but hands over to the creditor all the money and properties he has.

When a player who has mortgaged a Property buys another Property that is mortgaged, he may redeem it at once by paying the amount of the mortgage plus ten percent; but if he does so later, he must pay a further ten percent surcharge.

Nota Importante (Important Note)

This game requires a great deal of attention, and each player must be very alert in order to demand, at the right moment, payment of the rents that are due to him. Under no circumstances should a player signal to another player that the latter should pay, so as to alert him that another player owes him money. Ensuring payment is each player's own responsibility, and one must be very quick: if a payment is not claimed before the next player rolls the dice, the right to it is lost.

Palé Abreviado y Palé a Término Fijo (Abbreviated Palé and Fixed-Time Palé)

As the game of El Palé lasts approximately two hours, there is a shorter way to play it for when little time is available. For this, the Property title deeds are shuffled and, without looking at them, two are dealt to each player. Once the players have paid the Banca the price of the Properties that fell to them by chance, the game continues according to the Rules.

When the time available is so short that it is easily understood that the game cannot be finished either in the normal way or in the abbreviated one, it is agreed that all the players will end it at a fixed hour. The player who at that moment has the most money, including the banknotes and the value of the Properties he owns, wins. The value of the Properties is that indicated in the boxes of the Game board.