Escape from Colditz
Escape from Colditz Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Components
- Game board of Colditz Castle
- 2 dice
- Round marker
- 16 black pawns, representing the German Guards
- 5 sets of 8 pawns, representing the different nationalities of POWs at Colditz: Americans (blue), British (red), Dutch (orange), French (brown) and Polish (green)
- 5 sets of Escape Attempt markers
- 16 Security cards, used by the Security Officer
- 47 Opportunity cards, used by the Escape Officers
- 27 Escape Equipment cards
- 5 Escape Kit cards
- 5 Do or Die cards, which are only used in the classic rules of the game
Outside the Castle: POWs outside the castle are exempt from the Security Officer's 'Appel' card, but may be targeted with a 'Shoot to Kill' card.
Outer Courtyard: POWs arrested here will have a piece of equipment confiscated.
Inner Courtyard: POWs who are arrested in this area will not have equipment confiscated.
Legend
The rules and cards refer to three areas of the board – the inner courtyard, the outer courtyard and outside the castle. These are detailed above, while the different types of spaces in the game are listed below.
Round Countdown
At the end of every turn the Security Officer will move the round marker down one number as you count down to the end of the game.
Targets
A POW must reach one of these to escape.
Guard Posts
Guards may deploy or return to the Commander's office from these spaces. They can be moved through as normal spaces. Any POW who ends their movement on one of these spaces is liable for arrest.
Staff Car
This can only be used with the matching Opportunity card.
Commander's Office
Guards return here after an arrest.
Barracks
Guards are deployed from here.
Drops
POWs may use a rope to move from a space marked '30' (indicating 30ft) to the white space below, or two ropes to move down drops of 60ft.
Doors
POWs must use a key to move into these spaces.
Inspection Points
POWs must use a pass to move into these spaces.
Barbed Wire
POWs may cut through with a wire cutter where there are connected spaces on both sides.
Solitary Cells
This is where POWs are placed after arrest. A POW can only exit solitary if their Escape Officer rolls doubles on a movement roll or plays the relevant Opportunity card. When released they start as close as possible to the space indicated with the arrow.
Safe Areas
POWs on these spaces are exempt from arrest and Security card effects. Guards may not enter these spaces unless they contain an Escape Attempt marker.
Searchlights
POWs may not end their movement on one of these spaces.
Rooms
These are where POWs will assemble Equipment with the matching symbol, or Escape Kits. Guards may not enter rooms unless they are pursuing a POW down a rope, or have discovered the tunnel in that room.
Walkways
Guards may not end their movement on one of these spaces.
Appel
This is where POWs will begin the game. The Appel area also counts as a safe area for most purposes.
Tunnels
POWs may use a tunnel if they have the relevant Opportunity card. All pawns may move over these spaces, even if there is a POW on that space, but only POWs that have entered that tunnel may end their turn on these spaces. The tunnel's entrance is the darker space in each room, while the exit is the darker space in the outer courtyard.
Appel Diagram
At the start of the game, POWs should be aligned in the pattern shown in the rulebook's Appel diagram, depending on the number of players (2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 Players are each illustrated separately). The colours used in the diagram indicate starting positions for sets of POWs, rather than for specific nationalities. These are the same positions POWs will return to when the Appel card is used.
Rules of the Game
Setup
Before you begin, decide together how many rounds you wish to play, and place the round counter on that number. We recommend 50 rounds for new players, and 40 rounds or fewer for more experienced players – the fewer rounds you play, the more unlikely escape will be. At the end of every round the marker will count down towards the eagle space (number 1), until escape is no longer possible.
Next, decide which player will take the role of the German Security Officer. That player's duty will be to prevent the others from escaping. Each other player will play as the Escape Officer of a different nation among the Allied POWs held captive at Colditz. A different number of pawns are used depending on the number of players. Each player should take the number of pawns of their chosen colour listed in the grid below.
| Number of Players | Security Officer | Escape Officers |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 6 | 8 |
| 3 | 12 | 7 |
| 4 | 14 | 6 |
| 5 | 15 | 5 |
| 6 | 16 | 4 |
Separate the Escape Equipment cards into four piles and place them face-up beside the board. Give one Escape Kit to every Escape Officer. Shuffle the Security and Opportunity decks and place them face-down beside the board. Deal one Security card to the Security Officer, and one Opportunity card to each Escape Officer.
Note: if playing with six players, remove the six cards titled 'Escape Kit (part)' from the Opportunity deck and give them to the Security Officer, who must keep them face-down on the table.
Set up the POWs according to their starting positions in the Appel Diagram above. The Security Officer can then choose where to deploy the Guards. One Guard for every Escape Officer must be deployed to guard posts in the inner courtyard, and between two and seven additional Guards must be deployed to guard posts in the outer courtyard. The remaining Guards are placed in the Barracks.
Playing the Game
The goal of Escape Officers is to get as many POWs to escape targets as possible. They will assemble escape equipment, manage their opportunities and plan carefully to achieve a successful escape run. Escape Officers will need to work together to thwart the Guards, but must prioritise the needs of their own nation when the going gets tough. The goal of the Security Officer is to prevent as many escapes as possible.
On every turn, starting with the Escape Officer to the left of the Security Officer and moving clockwise, players will roll their dice and move some or all of their pawns based on the result, playing cards and assembling Equipment as they see fit. Once they've finished, they pass the dice to their left for the next player's turn. The Security Officer will go last, then move the round marker down one space as time runs out for the escapers. The game will end after 50 rounds, or at the end of a round where the second POW of the same nationality has escaped.
Note: the section describing the board contains important clarifications, and should be considered part of the rules.
Movement
At the start of every turn, you will roll both dice. The combined result gives you the total distance you can move your pawns (Guards or POWs) this turn. Movement can be split between as few or as many pawns as the player sees fit. For example a roll of 9 could mean moving a single pawn nine spaces, moving three pawns two spaces each and another pawn three spaces, moving nine pawns a single space each, or any other combination. You do not need to use all of your allowed movement on your turn. A pawn may never move through a space containing another pawn.
Each time an Escape Officer rolls doubles on their movement roll, they may move a POW of their choosing out of solitary, at a cost of one point of movement.
If you roll doubles on any dice roll, be it for movement or due to a card, you may roll again adding the extra dice to your total. You may never roll more than two extra times due to rolling doubles.
If the rules or the cards ever say 'directly', you do not need to use your movement roll to carry out that action.
The Security Officer moves Guards in the same way that Escape Officers move POWs, except that they may also use the guard posts to redeploy their pawns. Guards may be moved to any guard post from the barracks, or sent to the Commander's office from any guard post, at the cost of one point of movement. The Guards in the Commander's office move to the barracks at the end of the Security Officer's turn, meaning the same Guard cannot leave and re-enter the board on the same turn.
Opportunity & Security Cards
Moving slowly grants you more possibility to see where escapes are possible! If your roll for movement is 5 or lower, you may draw a card. The Security Officer draws a Security card, while the Escape Officers draw Opportunity cards. If you roll doubles lower than a 5 you may still re-roll, but you cannot draw more than one card per turn. You can only draw cards on the result of a movement roll, not other types of roll.
The maximum number of Opportunity or Security cards a player can hold is three. Should you draw a fourth, one of your cards must be used or discarded face-down before the end of your turn. Opportunity cards cannot be traded between Escape Officers.
You may use these cards at any point during your turn, unless the card begins with the word 'interrupt'. If it does, follow the instructions on the card. The only exception to this is the Security Officer's 'Appel' card, which must be played before that player's movement roll.
Once a Security or Opportunity card is used or discarded, the card is sent to the bottom of the relevant deck. All card effects happen instantly, unless an interrupt card is played.
The 'Appel' Card
The Security deck contains two copies of the 'Appel' card. This is the only card which must be played at a fixed time, in this case before the Security Officer's movement roll. It is also the only Security card which the Escape Officers may partially ignore, by refusing to move some or all of their POWs. If the Escape Officers do so, the Security Officer can choose to make a general search with their Guards, rather than move them.
For a general search, the Security Officer will roll the dice as usual but will not move the Guards. If any POWs are within the total dice range of any guard, they will be arrested, going directly to solitary and discarding equipment if they are in the outer courtyard. All Guards remain in place, and the Security Officer's turn ends.
Arrest
Guards may arrest a POW by moving into the same space. In the inner courtyard, POWs can only be arrested if their Escape Officer is holding Escape Equipment. Any POWs caught in the outer courtyard, outside the castle, or on a guard post are liable for arrest, whether or not their Escape Officer is holding equipment.
The only exception to this rule are POWs who have been released from the outer solitary cells – if their Escape Officer has no equipment, and uses as much of their movement as possible to move the POWs towards the inner courtyard, those POWs are exempt from arrest.
A Guard who makes an arrest is sent directly to the Commander's office, while the POW is sent to solitary. If the POW is in the outer courtyard or outside the castle, that POW's Escape Officer must also discard an Equipment card of their choosing. POWs arrested in the inner courtyard are sent to the inner solitary cells, while those arrested outside are sent to the outer solitary cells. If either set of cells is full, the POW is sent to the other.
Escape Officers may also force arrest, whether or not they have any Equipment, by moving a POW into a Guard. Guards removed from the board in this way will only return to the barracks at the end of the Security Officer's turn.
If a POW ends their movement on a guard post, they are liable to arrest whether or not their Escape Officer holds Equipment. A Guard deployed to that guard post immediately arrests the POW, and is sent to the Commander's office.
Equipment Cards
Equipment cards can be gained by an Escape Officer who places two POWs in rooms with the matching symbol. Each symbol is associated with two different rooms – the Escape Officer may place one POW in both rooms, or two POWs in either. Once they meet the criteria, the Escape Officer simply declares that they're making the item, then takes the card and sends both POWs to any spaces in the appel area.
Equipment cards can be traded freely between Escape Officers, except during the Security Officer's turn. If a type of Equipment card runs out, that piece of Equipment cannot be made. You must wait until another Escape Officer uses theirs, or try to barter for it. Make sure not to give too much information away to the Security Officer about what you're holding!
Escape Kits
Escape Kits are gathered similarly to Equipment, but each Escape Officer can only hold one Kit at a time, which can never be confiscated by the Security Officer. They require four different components – food, documents, a compass and a disguise. Each of these elements is found in two different rooms. The Escape Officers have been working towards getting their POWs out for some time before the game begins, and have already assembled an Escape Kit each.
To build a complete kit, an Escape Officer must have one POW in each of the four types of room simultaneously. They then declare that they're making an Escape Kit, take the card and send those four POWs to any spaces in the appel area. Occasionally Escape Officers will have Opportunity cards which count towards an Escape Kit. In this case those Escape Officers can use the card instead of having POWs in those areas when making a Kit. Both types of 'Escape Kit (part)' cards can be combined to form a complete Escape Kit, without the need to place POWs.
Note: if playing with six players, Escape Officers draw a face-down card from the separate pile of 'Escape Kit (part)' cards every time one of their POWs escapes. The Security Officer should keep these to make them distinct from the Opportunity deck, but cannot check them.
Escape Attempts
POWs may attempt escape by using Equipment to get through doors and wire fences, onto inspection points and down steep drops. Every time you use a piece of Equipment, you must return that card to the stack.
POWs may move onto inspection points and doors using a pass or a key respectively, while Guards can move through those spaces freely. If the POWs are returning to the inner courtyard from solitary however, they can freely pass through the door and inspection point at the inner courtyard's entrance. These are the only free entrances to the inner courtyard from outer solitary.
Drops require a rope. If you are on a space marked '30' you can use a rope to move through the window or over the wall to the adjacent space with the white border. Spaces marked '60' require two ropes. Wire fences can be cut through using a wire cutter at any point where two spaces are separated by wire.
Any time a POW uses a rope or wire cutters, they must place an Escape Attempt marker on those spaces. This marker allows access through the wire or down the drop for POWs of that nationality only or for Guards.
Beware though! Guards may enter any room containing an Escape Attempt marker. They may use the Escape Attempt marker to follow escaping POWs – this is the only way Guards can move through wire fences or down drops. Guards may also remove the marker as they move over it. This is at their discretion – removing the Escape Attempt marker prevents more Guards from following via this route. Other Escape Officers may replace an Escape Attempt marker with one of their own colour by using Equipment cards on the same route. Guards may not remain in a room after they remove a marker – they must move down the drop, or go directly to the Commander's office.
Escape Officers may send a POW in the reverse direction through a fence or over a drop if they are rethinking their plans. This requires that the original Escape Attempt marker still be in place, and costs additional equipment (a wire cutter, one rope or two ropes). Guards may not move in the reverse direction.
Tunnels
A tunnel on the board may only be used when an Escape Officer plays the matching tunnel card and moves two POWs into the tunnel. Once open, that tunnel can be used by all Escape Officers. POWs must enter through the marked space in the inner courtyard, and exit through the marked space in the outer courtyard.
Guards or POWs who are not in the tunnel may pass over POWs inside the tunnel, but may never end their turn on a tunnel space. Guards may only arrest POWs in the tunnel if the Security Officer has played a 'Tunnel Discovered' card and nominated that particular tunnel.
Any tunnel will collapse and be unusable if there are fewer that two POWs in it at the end of any player's turn. The remaining POW is sent to solitary, and the tunnel can no longer be used unless that tunnel card is played again.
Successful Escapes
Once a POW reaches any target on the board, he escapes successfully. Escape Officers need two of their POWs to escape successfully to win the game.
An Escape Kit is needed for each successful escape – when a POW escapes the board, he takes the Escape Kit with him to prepare for his journey through enemy territory. An Escape Kit may be shared by two POWs of the same nationality, but only if they both escape on the same turn.
Once a POW escapes, any or all Escape Attempt markers of that POW's colour may be removed from the board at the Security Officer's discretion. If any Guards were pursuing that POW outside the castle, and there are no other POWs in that area, those Guards are sent immediately to the Commander's office.
Note: if playing with six players remember that the Escape Officer takes an 'Escape Kit (part)' card after a successful escape.
Ending a Round
Once all the Escape Officers have taken their turn, the Security Officer takes theirs. At the end of the Security Officer's turn all Guards in the Commander's office are moved to the barracks, and the round marker moves down one space. When the round marker reaches the eagle, the Escape Officers have one final turn to attempt escape.
Winning the Game
Should two POWs of the same nationality escape, the game ends at the end of that round and that Escape Officer wins. If multiple Escape Officers achieve this in the same round, they share victory. Should the Escape Officers fail to achieve this in the allotted number of rounds, the Security Officer wins.
Play Options
Should you wish, the game may be played over a longer or shorter number of rounds, or without starting Escape Kits. This must be agreed on by all players before the game begins.
Players can also agree on a total number of escapes between all nations as a shared victory condition for the Escape Officers. We suggest a number at least equal to the number of Escape Officers.
Quick Reference
- Rolling doubles on any dice roll allows a re-roll, which is added to the total. You can never re-roll more than twice on a given dice roll.
- Rolling 5 or less on a movement roll allows you to draw a Security or Opportunity card. There is a maximum of one card per turn drawn in this way.
- Rolling doubles on a movement roll for Escape Officers also allows one POW to be released from solitary per double rolled. This costs one movement per POW released.
- Equipment cards can be exchanged freely between Escape Officers, except during the Security Officer's turn. Opportunity cards can never be exchanged.
- POWs can only move past drops, wire fences, inspection points and doors by spending an Equipment card. Guards can only move through drops and wire fences where there is an Escape Attempt marker, but can move through doors and inspection points freely.
- POWs cannot end their movement on a searchlight space. Guards cannot end their movement on a walkway space, appel or safe area. Neither can end their movement on a tunnel space unless they are a POW making use of the tunnel card.
- Moving over POWs inside a tunnel is the only time a pawn can move through another pawn.
- A POW can be arrested if:
- Their Escape Officer is holding Escape Equipment, or
- They are outside the inner courtyard, or
- They end their movement on a guard post, or
- They are ignoring an 'Appel' card.
- A POW cannot be arrested in a safe area, on the appel area, in a tunnel which has not been discovered, or if returning promptly from the outer solitary cells without Equipment.
The Classic Rules of the Game
This edition of the rulebook reprints the original rules of the game in full, for players who wish to relive the classic arguments.
Introduction
- Trying your hand at escaping from Colditz Castle, the multi-national, maximum security prison during the Second World War, 1939 to 1945, may reveal aspects of your nature which you did not dream you possessed, as so often it did to the men imprisoned there.
- Reading through the supplementary information supplied in the booklet should help you to recreate the atmosphere of Colditz Castle during the War.
- To play the game successfully requires both ingenuity and patience, as well as experience based on failure, and nerve and dash at the crucial moment. Some knowledge of the cards is essential.
The object of the game
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One player takes the part of the German Security Officer; the other players take the part of an Escape Officer, each representing a different nation's Prisoners of War. Each Escape Officer attempts to achieve more successful escapes than his fellow Escape Officers, whilst the German Officer seeks to prevent, or limit, such escapes.
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Because the game is a simulation of conditions in Colditz, it is virtually impossible to prevent a number of successful escapes being achieved. In a typical game between six players, the POWs will spend up to an hour collecting the equipment and escape kit necessary to make escape attempts; thereafter, escape attempts will be made frequently.
For new players we suggest a time limit of 2½ hours for a game. The first Escape Officer to make two successful escapes will be the winner; should this not be achieved, the German Security Officer will be the winner. With experience, players will set their own targets, to suit the time available and number playing. All players must agree the 'success formula' before play starts.
Method
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Players, in turn, throw the dice, and move their men. (Rules 19-21). POW teams aim to obtain Escape Kit (Rules 31-33) and Escape Equipment (Rules 29 & 30), both essential to making an escape attempt. They may also collect Opportunity Cards (Rules 22 & 27). Depending on the types of equipment collected, and Opportunity Cards held, each Escape Officer will then plan routes and execute the escapes of individual men in his team.
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The Security Officer, similarly, moves his men (Rules 19, 20, 34(a) & (b)), collects Security Cards (rule 28), and attempts to prevent escapes by arresting POWs (Rules 34(c), (d) and (e)).
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Escape Officers may combine members of their respective teams if they wish and may employ false trails, distractions and bluffs to confuse and outwit the German Security Forces.
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An Escaper is deemed to have succeeded and to be 'gone away' when he reaches, safely, one of the targets outside the perimeters of the Castle as marked on the Board.
The exact score is not required providing he lands on or passes the target.
The equipment of the game
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The Colditz Game Board is based on a true plan of Colditz Castle, but adapted to provide all the necessary rooms on one level. It consists of the Inner POW Courtyard, coloured grey, and the outer Garrison Courtyard, known as the Kommandantur.
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A Coloured Legend Diagram printed earlier in this booklet focuses on certain areas of the Board and explain their purpose, alongside the Appel (Roll Call) diagram for starting the game, depending on the number of players competing.
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Two Dice – These are used together for all throws.
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Forty Pawns – the POWs; in groups of different colours representing the Escape Teams of various nationalities imprisoned in Colditz as follows.
Team Colour POWs American Team blue 8 POWs British Team red 8 POWs Dutch Team orange 8 POWs French Team brown 8 POWs Polish Team green 8 POWs Sixteen Black pawns – the Guards, representing the German Security Officer's forces.
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Five packs of cards consisting of:
- 5 Personal Civilian Escape Kit cards
- 27 Escape Equipment cards
- 47 Escaper's Opportunity cards
- 16 German Security cards
- 5 Do or Die cards
To prepare for the game
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Place the board on a good sized table, putting the five packs of Cards separately, face downwards, off the Board but conveniently placed for all the players.
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Escape Officers choose their nationalities. The German Security Officer may be elected by agreement or selected by throwing dice.
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Place the German Security Forces in the German Barracks as indicated on the board and the escape teams in the POWs' Courtyard in the following numbers: (See Appel diagram on pages 6–7).
Players Security Officer Escape Team(s) 6 players 16 Guards 4 POWs each 5 Players 15 Guards 5 POWs each 4 Players 14 Guards 6 POWs each 3 Players 12 Guards 7 POWs each 2 Players 6 Guards 8 POWs -
All POWs being lined up in the Inner Courtyard for a general Roll Call (Appel), the German Security Officer now places one Guard for each Escaping team on any of the black circles shown in the Inner Courtyard. He must also place at least 2, but not more than 7, Guards on black circles in the Outer areas of the Castle. His remaining Guards are held in reserve in the German Barracks in the Kommandantur area.
To play the game
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The Escape Officer immediately to the left of the Security Officer is the first to play. He throws his two dice and moves his POWs in any direction from one adjacent circle to another, counting one digit for each circle. The other Escape Officers throw in Turn and then the Security Officer. POWs and German Guards therefore, move about the board on the circles shown in various directions according to the dice throws and the Rules of the Game and intentions of the Escape Officers. There is thus a continual movement of men, of ebbing and flowing, which animates and brings 'life' to the Castle.
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Throwing a double(s) entitles that player to another throw. His score is totalled before he moves.
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Any number of POWs in a team may be moved to the total of the throw: e.g., a throw of eight entitles the Escape Officer to move one of his men eight circles or one three circles and another five circles, or any other combination he wishes.
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A throw of 3, 7 or 11 entitles an Escape Officer to take an Escaper's Opportunity Card or the German Security Officer, to draw a Security Card from the German Security Pack.
After drawing a card, the Escape Officer or Security Officer moves his men in accordance with the throw of 3, 7 or 11.
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No POW or German can pass through or over another man; he must go round or move him in accordance with the rules. But see Do or Die, Staff car and Tunnel rules, (No. 51, 52 and 53).
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The total number of dice throw need not be used.
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Safe Areas (See Legend Diagram) may be used by all POWs reaching them by dice thrown in their turn.
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The term move directly means, in all cases, without counting dice throws.
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Opportunity Cards may be played at once or held in the hand. An Escape Officer may only hold a maximum of three Opportunity Cards at any time. If an Escape Officer draws a fourth, he must use one of the four on that turn. He may, however, elect to discard one without using it or he may exchange it with another Escape Officer or even give it away. Opportunity Cards in general may be used only during a turn (for exemptions see Rule 49) after which they should be returned to the bottom of the pack.
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Security Cards are drawn and held likewise by the German Security Officer. Only three may be held at one time and the same rules apply as for Opportunity Cards.
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Escape Equipment Cards are obtained by placing two POWs in each room where the required equipment symbols are shown; alternatively – One POW may be placed in each of two rooms containing the appropriate symbols.
After claiming Equipment, both POWs must move directly to the Appel area. Equipment may also be obtained from Opportunity Cards.
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Any equipment obtained is held by the Escape Officer and not by an individual POW. Also, once a piece of equipment is obtained, all POWs of that nation are liable to arrest irrespective of which POWs obtained the equipment. (See Rule 34C).
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A Personal Civilian Escape Kit Card must be held by an Escape Officer and displayed when one of his POWs reaches an Escape Target. It is a precondition for a successful escape. However, an Escape Officer may collect the Kit at any time during the game at his discretion, according to the following rules.
The Escape Kit consists of Civilian Disguises, Magnetic Compass, Food, false documents, maps and money (Reichmarks). For the purpose of this game, documents, maps and money have been combined together, providing a total of four components to be collected.
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This Kit may be obtained: a) By placing one POW in each of the rooms containing the symbols – Disguise, Compass, Food and Documents. When the POWs are in position simultaneously the Escape Kit Card may be claimed. Alternatively – b) Through Opportunity Cards. These may be held in secret and used when required. They may also be exchanged for an Escape Kit Card if all four components of the Escape Kit are held. The Opportunity Cards are then returned to the bottom of the pack. c) By a combination of method (a) and (b).
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The Escape Kit Card once obtained is held for the duration of the Game and never surrendered. POWs do not return direct to the Appel area after obtaining kit.
The Game in Progress
The Security Officer
- Watching carefully what the POWs are doing, upon his turn and having thrown the dice, moves his men similarly to the Escape Officers, from circle to circle, up to the total dice throw. He may: a) Post more guards but only on the vacant black circles, from his reserve in the Kommandantur: as many as he wishes, up to the total number of this dice score. In a dangerous situation he may also choose to employ all his reserves. (This was known as calling out the 'Riot Squad'.) New Guards must be posted before any arrests are made and not after arrests. (See (c), (d) and (e) below). Guards cannot be reposted in that run after making arrests. b) Remove Guards to the German Barracks if he wishes, but only from Black Guard circles; such guards cannot be recalled to duty on that turn. One point is deducted from the dice score for each guard so returned to barracks. c) Arrest a POW anywhere in the Prisoners' Courtyard (grey) area except inside a tunnel, in a safe area, or in a room, by moving a guard on to his circle (not necessarily the exact throw of the dice) and providing the Escape Officer holds an Equipment Card. The POW is sent directly to a Solitary Confinement Cell chosen by the Security Officer and the guard returned directly to barracks. No equipment card is confiscated. d) Arrest a POW outside the courtyard by moving on to his circle whether or not his Escape Officer holds a piece of equipment; the POW is sent to Solitary and the guard to the barracks as above. The Escape Officer must surrender one piece of any equipment he may hold. The choice of card is his and it is returned to the pack. e) Arrest more than one POW, but he can only arrest one POW per guard in a turn.
Prisoners of War
- POWs cannot be arrested on the White Appel circles.
- POWs can stop on black circles and may be arrested on them, subject to the arrest rules.
- A POW may be removed from Solitary Confinement Cells by throwing a double. The balance of the score – i.e. the score less one – of the double may be used for the movement of any POW of the team. If the cell door is blocked by other POWs he may move directly to the nearest free circle. There are also 5 Opportunity Cards which provide release from Solitary Confinement.
- POWs in cells, safe areas (marked blue), tunnels, or outside the entire Castle walls or wire are not required to attend Appel.
- A POW, when released from the outer cells (Section 4 of the board) may only re-enter the Prisoners' Courtyard through the 'Pass' circle. A pass is not required. Whilst returning to the Prisoners' Courtyard he is not liable to arrest. He may, however, at any time make an escape attempt. And is liable to arrest once it is apparent that he is not moving directly back to the Prisoners' Courtyard.
- A POW who is escaping down rope or through wire and wants to get back into the Castle must forfeit another appropriate equipment card.
- A POW cannot go round a Key or Pass circle. He must surrender the relevant cards.
- A POW can at no time remain in a Searchlight beam. He may move across it or stop short of it.
- A POW may force arrest upon himself during his turn, by moving onto a circle occupied by a guard. Rules 34 (c) and (d) will then apply as appropriate.
The Guards
- Guards cannot enter rooms, unless the relevant 'Search Card' or 'Appel Card' is played by the security officer, in his turn.
- Guards cannot block entrances to rooms and must not impede the movement of POWs inside the grey prison courtyard area by remaining in doorways or passages between turns.
- When giving chase over walls or through wire a guard must use the same route as the escaping POW. He must return directly to barracks either when the POW reaches his target or when he makes an arrest or shoots to kill.
The Cards
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Cards may be drawn, employed or discarded only during a player's turn except under rule 49. All cards when employed, discarded or confiscated are returned to the bottom of their respective packs. They cannot be held for repeated use.
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The bartering or exchange of cards is permitted between Escape Officers at any time.
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The following cards may be played out of turn: Arrest Key or Pass Holder, Advance Warning of Appel or Search, Talisman, Hideaway.
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An Equipment Card may benefit any number of POWs of a team during the turn in which it is used, provided only that the dice throw and free circles allow their movement and rule 23 is observed.
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DO OR DIE CARDS. Provided his Escape Officer holds an Escape Kit Card a POW can, in his turn, make a 'Do or Die' Escape. The Escape Officer takes the top card from the face downwards 'Do or Die' pack. The Card will say how many throws the POW has to make the attempt. Starting from anywhere within the light grey coloured prisoners area, including rooms, and requiring no equipment, the POW runs out through the Garrison Courtyard and buildings crossing the moat. Guards in his path cannot stop him. Failure to reach a target means the prisoner is shot dead and the whole team is out of the game. Opportunity Cards are not claimed on throws of 3, 7 or 11.
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STAFF CAR CARD. A POW may only use the Staff Car if he holds the relevant Opportunity Card and reaches the car by dice throws in his turn(s) giving up necessary equipment en route. Guards posted on the route of the Staff Car must stand aside. No pass is required at the main gate.
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TUNNEL CARDS. Tunnels can only be occupied when the Escape Officer holds the appropriate Tunnel Card which he must show when challenged. He must return it to the bottom of the pack after either detection or the completion of its escape use. His team may be composed of different nationalities. At least two POWs must occupy the tunnel at all times: Tunnellers are exempt from Appel at all times. The tunnel can only be entered by guards and the tunnellers removed if the Security Officer plays the Tunnel Detected card in his turn and follows its instructions. These are: Two Guards must move to the tunnel by dice count, entering it anywhere. The Tunnellers are removed directly to solitary and both guards return directly to Barracks.
Guards and POWs (not occupying tunnels) may proceed over tunnels but not along them and they may step over or around POWs in Tunnels. They cannot, however, remain over Tunnels. See similar rule for POWs in Searchlight beams. (No. 42).
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DIVERSION AND HIGH COMMAND INSPECTION CARDS. When an Escape Officer plays either of these cards, he may choose which sentries are returned directly to Barracks.
Conclusion
- The German Security Officer, for obvious reasons is in charge of the Board and of discipline, if he discovers any infringement of the rules he can send the POW concerned to solitary. He will either rise to the challenge of controlling the Castle or be manipulated by the POWs.
Credits
Game Design by Major PR Reid & Brian Degas Game Development by Osprey Games Art by Peter Dennis
Osprey Games, part of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc PO Box 883, Oxford, OX1 9PL, UK
This edition © 2016 Brian Degas & Osprey Publishing Ltd. All Rights Reserved.