High School Drama! Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Components [Varsity edition]
• Setup [Varsity edition]
• Choose Your Students
• Hookup
• Bond
• Breakup
• Special Events and Yearbook Signatures
• Win Condition
• Pick Your Main Student [Varsity edition]
• Game Structure [Varsity edition]
  • Semester Start
  • Midterm Action and Final Action
• Relationships [Varsity edition]
• Summer Semester: Yearbook Signatures and Student Standouts [Varsity edition]
• Game End
• Expanded Play Options [Varsity edition]

Overview

Number of players: 2-5. Game play: 60-90 minutes. Ages 13 and up (content: teen dating, trash talking, tons of fun).

High School Drama! is a comedic power-structure building game with strong role-playing elements. Players take on the roles of students vying for control of the most powerful clique in school. Each player controls one main student and grows a clique by hooking up with other students and organizations from the quad, strengthening relationships with bonds, and attacking rivals with breakups. [Varsity edition: Score is kept in yearbook signatures.]

Components [Varsity edition]

• 30 Student cards
• 24 Organization cards
• 15 Drama cards (hookup, bond and breakup cards, several copies of each)
• 40 Special Event cards
• 90 Bond markers (in each player's colour)
• 2 Icons: the semester leader icon (blue pawn) and the season tracker icon
• Rules book
• HSD travel case

Setup [Varsity edition]

1. Shuffle the Student cards, then shuffle the Organization cards. Keep the two decks separate.
2. Randomly draw two Students and two Organizations per player. Place all the drawn Student and Organization cards face up in the quad, the communal centre of the playing area. Arrange them neatly.
3. Return the unused Student and Organization cards to the box, keeping them nearby, since cards will be drawn from them again.
4. Deal each player one hookup, one bond and one breakup card from the Drama cards. Keep these face down in front of the player. Any remaining Drama cards are not needed and go back into the box. (The three Drama cards are effectively identical apart from flavour text.)
5. Shuffle the Special Event deck and place it near the quad.
6. Each player takes a colour set of bond markers to show their clique's influence.

The three Drama cards represent the basic actions a player may take: hookup expands a clique, bond strengthens relationships and breakup attacks rivals. The Special Event cards are more powerful versions of these actions and are also the way players earn yearbook signatures. Because they are random, they are best left out of the first games played by younger players.

Choose Your Students

Students come in four basic types: jocks, popular kids, artsy kids and the geeks. Each Student card shows a type (by border colour and pattern), a name, a portrait, a relational arrow pattern, and three attributes, each a number inside a circle:

• Cool (the number under the portrait, left circle): how easily the student can form relationships.
• Cruel: how well the student can attack rivals.
• Heart: how strongly the student can bond with others.

Types:

• Jock (green border): excels at competitive situations such as sports. Jocks typically form the centre of fast-growing cliques, which gives them an advantage early in the game.
• Popular (pink border): excels in social situations. Popular kids often use a high cruel rating to suppress rival cliques before they become strong.
• Artsy (purple border): excels at self-expression. Artsy kids often have high cruel and heart ratings, so their cliques can dish out drama as well as they take it.
• Geek (grey border): excels in academic fields. Geeks typically have very low cool but high heart, so if they survive the early attacks they have great long-term potential.
• Dual type (mixed border): a few students have two types. They make relationships very easily and are usually welcome in any clique.

Each player chooses one student as their main student. Example from the 2006 how-to: Dana plays the top geek, the elite hacker (cool 3, cruel 3, heart 2). Alex chooses to play the goth chick, an artsy student (cool 3, cruel 3, heart 1). Kim plays the popular student, preppy (cool 2, cruel 2, heart 2).

[Varsity edition: The youngest player picks their main student first, followed by the player to their left, continuing clockwise. The last player to select a student receives the semester leader icon.]

Hookup

Use the hookup action to expand your clique. Kim wants to hookup preppy to the tennis star.

The flirt hookup card reads: "Pick one Student or Organization card in play. Any student in your clique can make a new relationship with the card you picked, as long as you are at least as cool as your target's cool rating. Return this card if not played this semester."

Example: preppy (cool 2) hooks up with the tennis star (cool 2), because the new student is at least as cool as the tennis star's cool rating.

[Varsity edition, additional hookup rule: a student may also hook up with a card of the same type. A student can hook up to another student or organization if either (a) they are the same type, or (b) they are at least as cool as the target's cool rating. A dual-type card matches either of its types. A student's cool rating is the number in the attribute circle under the portrait.]

[Varsity edition: The new card must physically fit in your clique. Place it so that its relational arrows line up with the student who performed the hookup. If it does not fit, the hookup fails and the card is discarded without effect. Once a card has joined your clique, it cannot normally be rearranged or moved, so leave room for future expansion. Place one bond marker over the joined arrows to show the new relationship.]

Bond

Strengthen your relationships by playing the bond card. Dana decides to use a bond card to make sure that the elite hacker and the baseball organization never get credited for an I/O error.

The hang out bond card reads: "Add 1 bond to any existing relationship. Return this card if not played this semester."

[Varsity edition, bond strength: an existing relationship is one that already has at least one bond marker over its arrows. Add one bond marker to that relationship. The more bond markers between two cards, the stronger the relationship. Strength matters for two reasons: strong bonds are harder to break, and every bond marker is a potential yearbook signature. The maximum strength of a relationship is the sum of the heart values of the two cards involved. If every relationship in the clique is already at maximum strength, or the player has no bond markers left in their colour, the bond action fails and the card is discarded.]

The example in the Varsity edition: Dumb Blonde (heart 2) and Man Candy (heart 1) have a maximum strength of 3 bonds. Dumb Blonde (heart 2) and Tennis Star (heart 3) have a maximum strength of 5 bonds.

Breakup

Sabotage your rivals by using a breakup card. Alex spreads a vicious rumour to break up Kim's new relationship.

The gossip breakup card reads: "Pick one of your rivals' relationships. If any student in your clique is as least as cruel [sic; printed as 'as least as cruel' on the card, read as 'at least as cruel'] as the strength of your rival's relationship, you may remove one bond point from that relationship. Return this card if not played this semester."

Example: the goth chick (cruel 3) can attack Kim's preppy and tennis star relationship, because her cruel rating is at least the relationship's strength.

[Varsity edition, breakup rules: any student in your clique may play the breakup action, though usually the student with the highest cruel rating performs it. Pick one of a rival's relationships and remove one bond marker from it if you are at least as cruel as the strength of that relationship. Normally one bond marker is removed per breakup. A relationship with zero bonds is broken. If a broken relationship leaves a student or organization with no connection back to the clique's main student, that card is returned to the quad. A returned card can in turn cut off other cards that were attached only through it, creating a chain reaction.]

Special Events and Yearbook Signatures

Earn yearbook signatures by going to special events or earning standout awards like "cutest couple," "most school spirit," and many others.

Special Event cards (as printed in the 2006 how-to):

• Battle of the Bands: The player who controls garage band gains two yearbook signatures when you play this card. All players may exchange bonds on any art organizations for yearbook signatures. You may hold on to this card between semesters.
• Car Wash: The player who controls water polo gains two yearbook signatures when you play this card. All players may exchange bonds on any popular organizations for yearbook signatures. You may hold on to this card between semesters.
• Comic Con: The player who controls anime club gains two yearbook signatures when you play this card. All players may exchange bonds on any geek organizations for yearbook signatures. You may hold on to this card between semesters.
• Playoff Series: The player who controls baseball gains two yearbook signatures when you play this card. All players may exchange bonds on any sports organizations for yearbook signatures. You may hold on to this card between semesters.
• Sadie Hawkins: The player who controls dance team gains two yearbook signatures when you play this card. All players may exchange bonds between one couple for yearbook signatures.

[Varsity edition, exchanging bonds at events: events are colour coded to match relationship types: jock games (green), popular parties (pink), art shows (purple), geek conventions (grey), and bonus cards (blue). Players exchange some, all or none of their bond strength to the indicated organizations for an equal number of yearbook signatures, in turn order. Dual-type organizations count as either type. If a player brings a relationship to zero bonds during an event, that relationship is broken and unattached cards return to the quad, with chain reactions as under the normal breakup rules. Special events can normally add no more bond markers than the maximum strength of the relationship they affect. Bonus cards award yearbook signatures to the player who controls a certain organization or to a player with a certain number of organizations in play.]

Win Condition

The player with the most yearbook signatures at the end of senior graduation wins! (The 2006 card adds: "*It will be me.")

[Varsity edition, tie breaker: if two or more players have the same number of yearbook signatures, the player with the most bond markers left in play after graduation wins.]

Pick Your Main Student [Varsity edition]

Players pick their main student from the selection in the quad. This main student is the nucleus from which the clique expands. Students with high cool expand quickly, students with high heart have long-term potential, and a student's cruel rating is used to attack rivals. Pick the student you think you will have the most fun playing, since role-playing your actions and reactions is much of the game.

Game Structure [Varsity edition]

HSD is played in a series of rounds called school years, each made up of four semesters: fall, winter, spring and summer. Starting with the semester leader, each semester has three phases:

1. Semester Start: all players secretly draw action cards into their hand, up to the hand size for their school year.
2. Midterm Action: players alternate playing their first action from their hand.
3. Final Action: players alternate playing their last action for the semester from their hand.

At the end of each semester, move the season tracker to the next semester and pass the semester leader icon clockwise. Play continues until the students graduate. Summer semester has its own end-of-year steps (see below).

Semester Start

Players continue drawing action cards into their hand until they reach the hand size for their school year: freshman 2, sophomore 3, junior 4 and senior 5. Actions come from the three face-down Drama cards in front of each player or from the Special Event deck. Players do not reveal the cards they draw and may keep their hand secret. Keep unused cards separate from the hand.

Example: Alex and Dana each draw one hookup and one bond. Kim draws a hookup and a breakup. Since it is freshman year, the hand size is 2.

[Varsity edition, public draft: the Varsity edition uses a private draft as described above. The Varsity rules note that the original game used a public draft. For a public draft, draw out one hookup, one bond and one breakup card for each player in the game and place them in three face-up stacks near the yearbook. Place the face-down Special Event deck next to them. During Semester Start, players alternate turns drawing action cards, taking any of the Drama stacks or the Special Event deck, and may take the same type of card more than once. Once each player reaches the hand limit, play continues as normal. Played cards are returned to their original stacks.]

Midterm Action and Final Action

Starting with the semester leader, players alternate taking turns playing their first action from any of the action cards in their hand. Play Drama and Special Event cards face up in front of you and resolve the action as described on the card or in the rules. A played Drama card returns to the player's small personal set of Drama cards. A played Special Event is discarded face up beside the Special Event deck.

The second action of the semester plays just like the first. Players must play a card during midterm and final action, even if doing so is to their disadvantage. If a card is played but has no effect, it is simply discarded.

After freshman year, players will have more cards in hand than they can play. The hand size is each player's social calendar for that semester. After freshman year, players may keep unused cards between semesters or discard them. Kept cards count toward the hand limit for the following semester.

Example: Alex plays a hookup to have his emo boy introduce himself to the garage band. Dana has her ping pong champ flirt with the tennis star. Kim plays a breakup to spread a vicious rumour about Dana's ping pong champ, making him break up with the tennis star.

Relationships [Varsity edition]

A relationship is the link between two cards in a clique, shown by a bond marker over their relational arrows. Relationships are created by hookups and strengthened by bonds. When a relationship is broken, the cards are separated as described under Breakup.

Summer Semester: Yearbook Signatures and Student Standouts [Varsity edition]

After the three semesters of fall, winter and spring, the school year is finished. Move the season tracker to summer semester, then go through these steps in order:

1. Flunk Out: remove any students or organizations still in the quad and place them at the bottom of their respective decks. The quad should now be empty.
2. Vote for Student Standouts: the player with each student standout during summer session earns one additional yearbook signature.
3. Summer Lovin': after voting, all players gain a bonus bond marker to place on any existing relationship. This functions as a free bond action.
4. Shuffle Events: return any played and unplayed Special Event cards to the events deck, shuffle it, and place it near the quad.
5. New Year: draw one new student per player and one new organization per player. Place these new cards face up in the quad.

Each player keeps track of their yearbook signatures by placing one of their colour bond markers on the yearbook signature tracker.

Student standouts:

• Most Athletic: most bond markers to jock organizations.
• Most Popular: most bond markers to popular organizations.
• Most Artistic: most bond markers to artsy organizations.
• Biggest Dork: most bond markers to geek organizations.
• Cutest Couple: the clique with the two students with the strongest bond.
• Biggest Flirt: the clique with the largest number of students.
• Most School Spirit: the clique with the largest number of organizations.

If there is ever a tie in determining who wins a student standout, all players in the tie are awarded the bonus for that standout.

Once all year-end tasks are finished, play continues with fall semester in the next school year with the new semester leader. The hand size limit increases by one card.

Game End

The game is normally finished when the season tracker reaches senior graduation. For a shorter game, players may agree to graduate early and finish after junior year's summer semester.

Remember to vote for student standouts, sign your yearbook and check the final score. The player with the most yearbook signatures wins. If two or more players have the same number of yearbook signatures, the tie breaker goes to the player with the most bond markers remaining in play after graduation.

Expanded Play Options [Varsity edition]

The following optional rules are from the Varsity edition.

• Travel HSD: everything needed to play fits inside the HSD travel case. If you play without the yearbook, use a scoring system instead. When a player earns a yearbook signature, whether from a Special Event or from student standouts, add a bond marker of that player's colour to the travel case. At graduation, count the bond markers for each player to determine the final score.
• Transfer Student Bonus: a new player searches the Student deck for a character, then receives one of each Drama card. Because they start with no friends, the transfer student receives a two yearbook signature bonus for every semester missed. For example, a transfer student joining at the beginning of fall semester of sophomore year starts with six yearbook signatures.
• Summer School: players continue play into summer semester, giving 16 semesters of play instead of the normal dozen. Vote for student standouts only after summer semester ends.