Fowl Play! Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Components
• Set-up
• The Turn
  • Action 1: Choose a fowl card
  • Action 2: Reveal the fowl cards
  • Action 3: Move the fowl
  • Action 4: Move the foxes
    • Capturing a fowl
  • Action 5: Check whether there are more than eight fowl on the board
  • Action 6: Turn over a light turn card if necessary
  • Action 7: Discard the fowl cards
  • Action 8: Give each player a new fowl card
• End of the game
• Final scoring
  • VP for captured fowl
  • VP for surviving fowl
• The winner

Introduction

At the start of the game each player chooses a fowl card as their target card. At the end of the game, each player scores victory points (VP) for the fowl they have captured and for the fowl they have saved from capture that share one or more characteristics (type, colour and shape) with the fowl on their target card. One extra VP is scored if the fowl actually pictured on the player's target card is saved.

Each turn, each player chooses to play one of their three fowl cards. These cards determine the turn order, the first player being the one who played the card with the lowest number, and the fowl that the player may move. A player may move the fowl that have at least one characteristic in common with the fowl on the card they played. Each player may move fowl for a total of up to three spaces.

Every player then moves their fox, in the same order, up to two spaces to try to capture a fowl. Moving a fox through the tunnels speeds its progress and lets it capture distant fowl.

By moving fowl, each player chooses either to help their own fox capture fowl, or to try to save their secret target fowl and similar fowl likely to be captured by the other players' foxes.

The game ends when eight fowl or fewer are in play at the end of a turn, or after a certain number of turns in which no fowl was captured. The target cards are then revealed, VP are scored (the hardest part of the game *) and the winner is known.

* It is recommended that players do not start the game before every player has understood the VP scoring system.

Components

• 1 game board. The board is made up of 127 hexagonal spaces, including the seven hexagonal spaces that make up the foxes' den in the centre of the board and seven hexagonal spaces (one of them in the foxes' den) that represent the entrances and exits of the foxes' tunnels.
• 36 fowl, nine of each type of fowl: chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys. Each type of fowl is also identified by a different coloured border: chickens have a pink border, ducks a yellow border, geese an orange border and turkeys a blue border.
• 6 light turn cards, numbered 1 to 6.
• 4 foxes, one in each of the four player colours: black, brown, orange and white.
• 2 rulebooks, one in English and one in German.
• 36 fowl cards, numbered 1 to 36, one for each unique type of fowl.
• 4 player identification cards.
• 4 turn order cards, one in each of the four player colours.

Diagram 1 shows the initial set-up for a four-player game. (Note that each of the four types of fowl is used even if there are fewer than four players.)

Set-up

Place the game board in the centre of the playing surface.

Stick the stickers onto one side of each of the fowl so that the colour and shape are matched. Place the fowl on the spaces of the board that contain footprints. The fowl may be placed in any arrangement, but the nine fowl of each type must be placed together (see diagram 1).

Place the light turn cards, in number order, face down in a pile with number one on top and the highest number at the bottom. If there are three or four players, use only the cards numbered one to three. If there are two players, use all six cards.

Shuffle the fowl cards and deal four cards to each player. Place the remaining cards in a pile next to the game board.

Each player looks at their four cards and chooses one of them as their target card. Each player must then place their target card in front of them, half under the edge of the game board, so that the target card cannot be confused with their other cards later in the game. Each player should try to memorise their target card; it is however possible to look at the card at any time to recall its details. A player's target card must not be shown to the other players. At the end of the game, each player will score VP for the fowl their fox has captured, but also for each of the surviving fowl that has one or more characteristics of their target card.

Tip: Look at where the fowl that match the four cards in your hand are. If you choose a card and the corresponding fowl is at the edge of the flock and close to the foxes' den, that fowl will be more vulnerable to being attacked early. If the corresponding fowl is stuck in the middle of the flock, it may remain trapped by other fowl and have difficulty escaping from the foxes.

Starting with the player who most recently ate fowl for dinner, each player chooses a fox and a fox card of the same colour. The fox is placed on one of the spaces of the foxes' den (but not the central space showing the foxes' tunnel). Each player's fox card is placed in front of them so that the other players can easily see which player controls each fox.

The Turn

Each turn consists of the following eight actions:

1. Choose a fowl card.
2. Reveal the fowl cards. The player with the lowest number plays first.
3. Move the fowl.
4. Move the foxes.
5. Check whether there are more than eight fowl on the board. If not, the game is over.
6. Turn over a light turn card if necessary.
7. Discard the fowl cards.
8. Give each player a new fowl card.

Action 1: Choose a fowl card

Each player chooses one of their three fowl cards and places it face down in front of them.

Tip: Keep in hand at least one card that has a characteristic in common with your target card. In later turns you will then have a card that lets you move the fowl of your target card away from danger.

Action 2: Reveal the fowl cards

All players simultaneously reveal the fowl card they have chosen. The player with the lowest numbered card moves fowl first. The other players follow in ascending order of numbers. The player with the highest number plays last.

Tip: If you are trying to save a number of fowl from capture, play a high number. That way you will have the advantage of seeing which fowl have already been moved. This may save you from having to save some of the fowl and you can concentrate on saving the others. If you can move your target fowl you can also save it if another player has placed it next to a tunnel! (See Action 3.)

Tip: If you want to move your fox through the tunnels and you suspect another player of wanting to do the same, play a low number so that you take your turn before the other player. If you do not, you may find that the tunnel you want to use is already blocked. (See Action 4.)

A player may only move fowl that have at least one characteristic (type, shape or colour) identical to one of the characteristics of the fowl on the card they played. For example, if the card shows a brown duck on a square shape, the player may only move fowl that contain a duck, a brown fowl and/or a square shape (see diagram 2).

Diagram 2 (legend: card played / may be moved / may not be moved).

Action 3: Move the fowl

Each player may move fowl for a total of three spaces. Fowl may be moved in any direction. For example, a player may move one fowl three spaces, one fowl two spaces and another one space, or three fowl one space each. A player may choose to move fowl fewer than three spaces in total, or not at all, if they wish.

A player may move a fowl that has already been moved by another player.

Diagram 3. Initial moves for a four-player game. Black and white have moved one fowl. Orange has moved two fowl. Brown has moved three fowl, including the white chicken that was already moved by white.

A fowl may not pass over a tunnel. The fowl realises that it is a dangerous place!

A fowl may not pass through a space already occupied by another fowl.

A fowl that is at least two spaces away from a fox may not be moved to within two spaces of the nearest fox (see diagram 4).

A fowl that is less than two spaces away from a fox may not be moved closer to a fox, but may be moved to another space equidistant from the nearest fox (see diagrams 5, 6 and 7).

Diagram 4. The brown ticks show the spaces the brown turkey can move to. Note that the brown turkey stays two spaces from the orange fox and cannot move any closer. Note also that the brown turkey cannot pass through the tunnel entrance on the right side of the diagram although it is at a sufficient distance.

Diagram 5. The brown turkey is one space from the orange fox and cannot move any closer to the orange fox.

Diagram 6. The brown turkey is next to the orange fox. As the brown turkey cannot move closer, it can move to any marked space (except the tunnel entrances).

Diagram 7. The brown turkey is next to the orange fox. If it moves towards the white fox, the brown turkey will remain next to a fox and so is not limited in its movement (useful if you are the white fox!). However, if the brown turkey moves towards the black fox it passes through one or more spaces further away from the other foxes. From that point it can no longer move closer to the foxes and so cannot be moved next to the black fox.

Tip: You can try to protect your target fowl by placing other fowl between the foxes and your target fowl. You must however still be careful not to let the other players guess which is your target.

Action 4: Move the foxes

In the same order as Action 3, starting with the player who played the lowest numbered card, each player may now move their fox.

A fox may move up to two spaces in any direction. A player may only move their own fox. A player may choose not to move their fox if they wish.

If the first space of a fox's move is a tunnel entrance, the fox may then move to any other tunnel entrance as its second move. If a fox starts its move on a tunnel, it may move to another tunnel entrance as its first move and then move to a second, adjacent space.

During the first turn of the game, a fox may not end its move on the tunnel entrance in the centre of the board (as this would unfairly prevent the other foxes from using this tunnel).

Tip: If you end a turn with your fox on a tunnel entrance, play a low card the following turn. If your card is the lowest, move a fowl to a space next to another tunnel entrance. If no player moves the fowl away, your fox will be the first to move through the tunnels and will be able to capture the fowl. (In this way the rule preventing fowl from moving within two spaces of a fox is circumvented.) The fowl cannot see the fox at the other end of the tunnel and so is not frightened by it!

A fox may not pass through a space already occupied by another fox. This includes tunnel entrances/exits.

Capturing a fowl

A fox captures a fowl when a player manages to place their fox on the same space as a fowl. The player then removes the fowl from the game board and places it face up in front of them so that it can be seen by all players. If a fox captures a fowl on the first space of its move, it may not move to a second space.

Tip: It is not always beneficial to capture a fowl. For example, if the fowl to be captured has two characteristics in common with the player's target card, that player will score two VP at the end of the game if it is not captured, one point for each matching characteristic (see the scoring table below). This may be worth more VP than would be scored if the same fowl were captured.

Tip: If you are trying to get the majority of fowl of a particular colour or shape, choose shapes and colours that are not identical to those of your target card. If you do not, you reduce the VP you are likely to get for surviving fowl at the end of the game. However, be careful not to make your target card too obvious to the other players. To achieve this you may also wish to capture one or two fowl with some of the same characteristics as your target card, so as not to keep the other foxes (players) in the know!

Action 5: Check whether there are more than eight fowl on the board

At the end of the turn, if there are eight fowl or fewer remaining on the game board, the game is over. See "End of the game" below.

Action 6: Turn over a light turn card if necessary

Except at the end of the first turn (when it is not possible for a fox to capture a fowl), if no fowl is captured by the foxes during the turn, turn face up the top light turn card of the pile to indicate the number of light turns that have already taken place. See also "End of the game" below.

Action 7: Discard the fowl cards

Place the fowl cards used during the turn on the discard pile.

Action 8: Give each player a new fowl card

Each player receives a new card from the top of the draw pile so that each player has three cards in hand. If the draw pile is exhausted, shuffle the discard pile and reuse those cards.

End of the game

The game ends when one of the following two events occurs:

1. At the end of a turn if eight fowl or fewer remain on the game board. (The farmer notes that the foxes have arrived and chases them off.) or
2. At the end of the turn during which the last light turn card was turned face up. In a three or four player game this is the card marked three. In a two player game this is the card marked six.

Final scoring

Scoring is the most complicated part of the game and takes place at the end of the game. The winner is the player whose fox has managed to capture the most balanced food and who has managed to save the most fowl resembling their target as closely as possible.

A blank score sheet, which may be copied, is provided as a guide to help compile the VP. An example of scoring is shown in diagram 8.

Scoring is split into two parts. First, VP are scored for the fowl that were captured by each player's fox. Second, VP are scored for the fowl that managed to survive.

VP for captured fowl

There are two ways of scoring VP from the fowl captured by each player's fox.

First, the player(s) who captured the most fowl having a particular characteristic gain VP. The number of VP is equal to the number of different types of captured fowl having that particular characteristic. For example, if the player whose fox caught the most brown fowl caught four brown fowl, of which three are chickens and one is a duck, they will score two VP because there are two types of fowl represented among their four brown fowl.

VP are scored by the player who has the most fowl of each colour (black, brown, white) and of each shape (circle, hexagon, square).

If two or more players have the most fowl with a particular characteristic, they all score the full VP.

Second, a player scores four VP for each set of the four types of fowl that they captured. The fowl do not need to have characteristics in common. These foxes managed to get a balanced diet!

Tip: Do not waste time trying to capture many fowl of one type, as they will not score many VP at the end of the game. You should try to capture at least one fowl of each type.

VP for surviving fowl

Each player now reveals their target card.

A player scores one VP for each characteristic that each of the surviving fowl has in common with their target card. For example, if a player's target card was the brown chicken on a hexagon, they would score one VP if the white goose on a hexagon survived (the target card and the white goose are on a hexagon) and two VP if the brown chicken on a circle survived (the target card and the fowl contain a chicken of brown colour).

A player scores one extra VP if the fowl on their target card is not captured.

Diagram 8 shows an example of scoring. The score sheet has two parts. Captured fowl: circles, hexagons, squares, black, brown, white, sets, sub-total 1. Then, "Now reveal the target cards". Surviving fowl: circles, hexagons, squares, black, brown, white, chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, target card, sub-total 2. Then total.

The winner

Total all the VP. The winner is the player with the most VP.

In case of a tie, the winner is the tied player whose target fowl survived.

If there is still a tie, the winner is the remaining tied player whose fox captured the fewest fowl.

If there is still a tie, the tied players share the victory.