Goldraub in London
Goldraub in London Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 game board. It shows 37 numbered sectors, which depict a schematic street plan of London. Around the sectors runs the city edge, the "Manhunt Route" (Fahndungsweg).
- 37 sector cards. Each card designates one specific sector of the street plan.
- 12 TIP cards (6 × FALSE TRAIL, 6 × GOLD BARS). These cards serve as clues during the investigation.
- 1 investigation pad. The results of the investigation are noted on these sheets.
- 6 detective figures.
- 1 round marker (a marker stone for the round counter).
Setup
Each player takes on the role of a detective. Each player receives:
- 1 investigation sheet
- 1 figure
- 2 TIP cards: 1 × FALSE TRAIL and 1 × GOLD BARS
All players need a pencil.
Each player places his detective figure on one of the corner spaces (Eckfelder) of the Manhunt Route. Each detective must start from a different space.
The 37 sector cards are shuffled thoroughly. Each player then receives three sector cards face down. The remaining cards are set aside face down as well; they are not needed in this game.
Each player now knows three hiding places of the gold thieves. However, each player keeps this information secret from the other players.
Each player lays his three sector cards face down in front of him on the table.
Next it is decided how many rounds the game is to last. Beginners should start with 10 rounds. As players gain experience the number of rounds can be reduced; advanced players will manage with 5 rounds.
The round marker is placed on the corresponding space of the round counter (on "10" if 10 rounds are played, and so on).
A starting player is determined. The other players follow clockwise.
Course of Play
Whoever is next takes his turn. He moves his figure up to six spaces further along the Manhunt Route, clockwise.
- The figure may move 1 to 6 spaces.
- Occupied spaces are skipped and do NOT count. For this reason, two figures can never stand on the same space.
After this move, the player searches the city for gold hiding places from his new position.
- The search can always go in only ONE direction, and always along one straight sector row (see the illustration).
Illustration: "Searching rows." From his position, the player may search ONE of the two sector rows. The illustration shows a horizontal row (sectors 31–36) and a diagonal row (ending at sector 74). Labels in the illustration: Manhunt Route (Fahndungsweg) and corner spaces (Eckfelder).
Margin summary of the turn: Move: any number, 1 to 6 spaces. Search: from the new position, one sector row. Answer: only with a TIP card, and only for the row searched.
After the player has announced which sector row he is searching, the other players must answer, using their TIP cards.
- Each player checks his three sector cards. These sector cards show him that he has already found gold bars in those three sectors.
- If a player has one or more hiding places with gold bars in the row being searched, he must hold ready the GOLD BARS card.
- If a player has no hiding place in this row, he must hold ready the FALSE TRAIL card.
The players answer by a special procedure:
- First, the player to the LEFT of the questioner answers by passing his TIP card face down to his LEFT neighbour.
- That neighbour looks at this card, adds his own TIP card, and passes BOTH cards face down to his LEFT neighbour.
- This is repeated until all TIP cards have arrived at the questioner.
- Important: only TIP cards are passed around. Sector cards are never shown.
Margin diagram, "Example": The questioner sits at the top of a diagram, with player A to his right, player B at the bottom and player C to his left. A answers by giving his TIP card to B. B looks at A's TIP card, adds his own TIP card and passes it on to C. C looks at both cards, adds his own TIP card and gives all three cards to the questioner. The questioner looks at the three cards and announces the number of GOLD BARS cards.
The questioner announces aloud how many GOLD BARS cards he has received (!). Note: the questioner must NOT include his own TIP card.
Note: one GOLD BARS card only states that at least one gold hiding place lies in this row.
Then the questioner passes the TIP cards back, face down, to his RIGHT neighbour. This neighbour takes his own card back and passes the rest, face down, further to the RIGHT, until every player has his own TIP card back.
The next player is then on turn. He moves his figure and searches a sector row.
Once all players have each been on turn (as questioner), the round marker is moved one space down on the round counter. When it reaches the space "0", the game ends.
Each player records all answers and information on his investigation sheet immediately. Because how the information is written down is very important, special hints are given under "Tips for Play" below.
Discovering a Hiding Place
When a player believes he knows in which sector a hiding place lies AND which detective holds the corresponding sector card, he may interrupt the game at once and announce his "guess" (Vermutung).
Margin: Whoever believes he knows the location and owner of a hiding place may immediately announce a "guess". Example: "Player C owns a gold hiding place in sector 32!"
- If the guess is correct, the player may note 10 times the round value in points on his investigation sheet. The round value is shown by the round marker on the round counter. Example: the round counter reads "5", so the player may note 50 points.
- The detective who holds the "discovered" sector card must reveal it and leave it lying face up.
- Whoever guessed correctly may immediately make a second guess. A player may make no more than two guesses per round.
- If the guess is wrong, the player must deduct 5 times the round value from his score. Example: the round counter reads "6", so the player must enter −30 points.
- Furthermore, after a wrong guess a player may only guess again in the next round, that is, only after the round marker has been moved. The score may fall below zero if one's tips are often wrong.
Margin: If the guess is correct, the player receives plus points: 10 × the round value. If the guess is wrong, the player receives minus points: 5 × the round value.
End of the Game
As soon as the round counter reaches the space "0", the game ends immediately. The player who has reached the highest score is the best detective: he wins the game.
If only one or more sector cards of a single player still lie face down on the table, the game ends early. In that case too, the player with the highest score wins the game.
Margin: The game ends as soon as the round counter is set to "0". Or: when all gold hiding places have been uncovered. Or: when only 1 player still has undiscovered gold hiding places.
Tips for Play
Length of the Game
On your first game you should use the full round scale, that is, play 10 rounds. Once you know the game better, you will manage with fewer rounds. With five or six players, some master detectives manage to uncover all gold hiding places in only four rounds.
Investigations
When you announce which sector row you are searching for gold hiding places, you may lay a pencil on that row, so that no misunderstandings arise.
Notes
Record all the information you receive on your investigation sheet. Only through systematic notes will you work out where the gold hiding places lie and to whom the corresponding sector cards belong.
The investigation sheet is designed so that at the end of each of the seven sector rows (which lie in three directions) you can briefly note how many hiding places lie in that row and, as far as you know, who holds the corresponding card.
Margin: Find abbreviations for the names of the other players! Keep to fixed abbreviations for the information you receive. Example: 1. Number of hiding places per row: (2). 2. Determined owners: B1. 3. Suspected owners: D/E 1.
Example Game Situation
Anton, Bert, Christl, Doris and Elli are playing. Anton is on turn and searches the row 31–36.
- Bert holds the card with sector number 32, so he gives the TIP card GOLD BARS face down to Christl.
- Christl now knows that there is (at least) one hiding place in this row belonging to Bert. Christl has no hiding place in this row herself, so she lays her TIP card FALSE TRAIL on Bert's card and passes both cards face down to Doris.
- Doris knows that either Bert or Christl has a hiding place in this row. She adds her TIP card and passes it on to Elli.
- Elli adds her TIP card too and finally gives four TIP cards to Anton, the questioner.
- Anton announces aloud how many GOLD BARS cards he has received and gives the TIP cards back, first to Elli, who passes them on to Doris, and so on.
Assume that Anton has received two GOLD BARS cards. Christl's investigation sheet could then look like this after this turn:
Diagram (Christl's sheet): The sector rows 11–14, 21–25, 31–36, 41–47, 52–57, 63–67 and 74–77 are drawn as the seven rows of the city. Row 31–36 is marked "(2), B1, D/E1".
Note: In row 31–36 there are 2 hiding places. One belongs to Bert; the other belongs to either Doris or Elli.
Keep in mind that ONE GOLD BARS card only states that a player has at least one hiding place in that row. You do not know whether he has two or even three hiding places in this row. Furthermore, you must consider that the player whose turn it is only announces how many GOLD BARS cards he has received. You do not know whether that player also has a hiding place himself. Therefore, do not draw the premature conclusion that there is no hiding place in a row just because only FALSE TRAIL cards have been reported.
And now have much fun with your investigations!