Hinkel & Stein Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Setup
• The Idea of the Game
• Special Abilities of the Stones
  • Hinkelsteine
  • Pillars (Säulen)
  • Quartz stones (Quarze)
  • Boulders (Findlinge)
• The Game for 4 Players
  • Hinkel & Stein for Four
  • Course of Play
  • End of a Pass and Interim Scoring
  • End of the Game and Scoring
  • Note for All Variants
• The Game for 3 Players
  • Hinkel & Stein for Three
  • Course of Play
  • End of a Pass and Interim Scoring
  • End of the Game and Scoring
• The Game for 2 Players
  • Hinkel & Stein for Two
  • Course of Play
  • End of a Pass and Interim Scoring
  • End of the Game and Scoring
• General Questions and FAQ

Components

• 4 kinds of stones: 5 Hinkelsteine (menhirs), 5 Quartz stones, 5 Boulders (Findlinge), 2 Pillars (Säulen)
• 1 Stone of Fate
• 1 Scale (2 board elements and a wedge)
• 4 Stone cards (describing the special abilities of the depicted kinds of stones)
• 50 wooden discs (in a cloth bag)

The scale has placement spaces (Setzfelder) at each end. All illustrations in the rules are examples; the publisher reserves the right to change the components.

Setup

• The two board elements are plugged together so that on the top side at each end there are two placement spaces, and in the middle of the underside two milled notches. A third notch results from plugging the pieces together.
• The assembled board is now placed with the middle one of these three notches on the wedge. The scale does not have to be balanced. It is intended that one side already touches the ground at the start of the game.
• The Stone of Fate is placed at any point on the scale outside the placement spaces. Here too the scale does not have to be balanced; the imbalance may even be increased. This gives different conditions in every game.
• All wooden discs are set out as the general supply for the stakes.

The Idea of the Game

Whether with two, three or four players, the game is always played in several rounds-of-play ("Durchgänge", called "passes" below) of five rounds each. The aim is to win as many wooden discs as possible by placing the stones on the scale with tactical skill. The chieftain (Häuptling) of the current round determines whether at the end of the round the lighter or the heavier side of the scale wins, and then determines the order in which the players must place their stones. Each round consists of a series of actions carried out one after another:

1. Place the base prize and determine the victory condition
2. Stake wooden discs and place stones
3. Pay out the winnings
4. Appoint the chieftain for the next round, remove played stones from the game

After five rounds all stones have been played and the pass is over. That sounds simple, but it is quite tricky: each kind of stone offers its owner special possibilities to influence the game (see the special abilities below)! Therefore, before each new pass the kinds of stones are exchanged, so that each player can use these different possibilities once. The order of actions and the special abilities of the kinds of stones always remain the same. But whether played with two, three or four, each constellation offers its own appeal and challenges! The variant for four players is the simplest, so we recommend starting with it.

Special Abilities of the Stones

Each kind of stone allows its owner to influence the game in a particular way. These possibilities apply to all variants from two to four players.

Hinkelsteine

• You may place the scale in a notch of your choice. This action may be performed only once during a pass. At the start of the next round the scale is set back to the middle notch. This action must be performed before the current Hinkelstein is placed on the scale. In which round you perform it is up to you.

Pillars (Säulen)

• A pillar placed by you is not removed from the game at the end of the round, but is returned to you. You may therefore use it several times.
• Once during a pass you may place both pillars at the same time. In this case they must be placed on the same space. Afterwards, however, you must give up the large pillar and manage with the small pillar for the rest of the pass. If both pillars are to be placed together, this must be announced before placing the first pillar.

Quartz stones (Quarze)

• Each time it is your turn you may add up to four wooden discs to the victory prize, while your fellow players may add at most two discs. If you do not wish to contribute anything to the prize, you too may only take one disc for yourself.

Boulders (Findlinge)

• At the end of a round, after everyone has placed their stones, you may additionally place the smallest of your boulders. This stone must be placed on the same space on which a boulder already lies. After the scoring you give up one of the two stones and take back the other. You have a free choice here. If you have already played the smallest boulder, this action is no longer possible.
• At the end of a round, when all stones are placed, you may move the "Stone of Fate" as you like. It may not, however, be placed on the normal placement spaces. When the round is over, the "Stone of Fate" is put back in its previous place.

Both actions may be performed only once during a pass. They may, however, both be performed together in the same round.

The Game for 4 Players

Hinkel & Stein for Four

The four stone cards are shuffled face down. Each player draws a card and receives all stones of the depicted kind. The stones are stood on the corresponding cards. Whoever receives the pillars is the first chieftain. A chieftain determines for one round the victory condition and also the order in which the other players must place their stones on the scale.

Course of Play

The game is played in four passes of five rounds each. Each round consists of the following four actions, carried out one after another:

1. Place the base prize and determine the victory condition: At the start of each round, two wooden discs from the general supply are always placed in the middle of the table as the base amount of the victory prize. Then the current chieftain determines whether the lighter or the heavier side of the scale at the end of this round wins.

2. Place wooden discs and stones: The chieftain names the starting player; this may also be himself. The player called may either add one or two discs from the general supply to the victory prize already lying out, or instead, for example if he sees no chance of winning for himself, take one disc from the supply for himself. Whoever takes a disc for himself, however, will not share in the winnings at the end of this round even in the case of a victory. Then the player named by the chieftain places one* of his stones on any free placement space of the scale. The special abilities of the individual kinds of stones may come into play here (*pillars and boulders also allow the use of two stones). Once a player has placed his stone, his turn is over. The chieftain now calls upon another player of his choice to place wooden discs and stone. This procedure is repeated until all players (including the chieftain himself) have placed stones and all kinds of stones are represented on the scale. The round is then over.

3. Pay out the winnings: At the start of the round the chieftain determined whether the lighter or the heavier side of the scale at the end of the round wins. The two players who have placed their stones on the correspondingly winning side divide the victory prize equally between them. If a remainder is left, it is added to the victory prize of the following round. If one of the winners paid nothing into the victory prize and instead took a wooden disc for himself, his partner receives the entire prize on the table. If both winners paid nothing in, all discs stay in the middle of the table and are added to the victory prize of the next round.

4. Appoint the chieftain for the next round, remove stones from the game: At the end of each round a new chieftain is determined for the following round. To do so, look at the stones of the team on the losing side of the scale. The loser whose stone is on the outer space of the scale becomes the new chieftain. So it can also happen that a player becomes chieftain several times in a row. Then the stones used in this round are removed from the game. For pillars and boulders, special rules apply according to their special abilities (see Special Abilities above).

End of a Pass and Interim Scoring

After five rounds a pass is over and an interim scoring takes place. All players count their won wooden discs. The player with the fewest wooden discs returns all his discs; all other players return the same number to the general supply. Then each player passes his stone card to his left neighbour, who stands the corresponding stones on it. The next pass can begin. The first chieftain is whoever had placed his stone on the outer space of the losing side of the scale in the last round of the previous pass.

End of the Game and Scoring

After four passes every player has played with every kind of stone and the game is over. The winner is whoever now has the most discs.

Note for All Variants

To prevent the scale from being set in motion by the momentum of placing the stones, the side lying down should be held in place until the stone is placed.

The Game for 3 Players

Hinkel & Stein for Three

The Quartz stone card is laid at a free place and the quartz stones are stood on it. They are also used during play, but their special abilities do not come into play. The three other stone cards are shuffled face down and distributed to the players. Each player lays his card face up in front of him and stands the corresponding stones on it. Whoever gets the pillars is the first chieftain. The chieftain of each round always has two options to choose between:

• Chieftain solo: In this case the chieftain plays the round alone against his two fellow players. If at the end of the round his stone is on the winning side of the scale, he wins and receives the entire victory prize. If the chieftain's stone is on the losing side at the end of the round, his two opponents win, no matter where they have placed their stones.
• Chieftain partnership: At the start of each round the chieftain may offer a partnership to one of his fellow players, for example if he thinks he cannot win the current round alone. If a fellow player accepts the offer, the remaining third player plays alone. In this case he must, in addition to his own stones, also place the quartz stones; he is therefore on turn twice in this round. When he must place the quartz stones and when his own stones, however, is still determined by the chieftain. If the offer is not accepted, the chieftain must play a solo (see above).

Course of Play

The game is played in three passes of five rounds each. Before each round the current chieftain may offer a fellow player the partnership for the round. Each round consists of the following four actions, carried out one after another:

1. Place the base prize and determine the victory condition: At the start of each round, two wooden discs from the general supply are always placed in the middle of the table as the base amount of the victory prize. Then the chieftain determines whether at the end of this round the stones on the then lighter or the heavier side of the scale win.

2. Place wooden discs and stones: The chieftain names the starting player; this may also be himself. If he calls a fellow player, he also determines whether this player must run his own stones or the quartz stones in this turn. The chieftain himself may never place the quartz stones.

• If the fellow player is to place his own stones, he may add one or two discs from the general supply to the victory prize already lying out, or instead take one disc from the supply for himself. Whoever takes a disc for himself will not share in the winnings at the end of this round. Then the player chooses one of his stones and places it on a free placement space of the scale. The special abilities of his kind of stone may come into play here (cf. Special Abilities above).
• If the quartz stones are to be played, the player called places any available quartz on a free placement space of the scale. The prize may not be increased in doing so.

Then the chieftain calls upon another player of his choice to place wooden discs and stone. This is repeated until the spaces of the scale are completely occupied and all kinds of stones, including the quartz stones, are represented on the scale.

3. Pay out the winnings:

• If the chieftain wins the round in a solo, he collects the entire victory prize. An opponent whose stone is also on the winning side of the scale goes away empty-handed. If the chieftain did not increase the victory prize but had himself paid out, he may not collect the victory prize in the case of a win. It stays for the next round.
• If the chieftain loses the round in a solo, his two opponents win, no matter on which side of the scale their stones are placed. They divide the victory prize equally. Any remainder stays for the next round. If one of the two opponents had previously had himself paid out, his partner gets the entire victory prize. If both had themselves paid out, the complete prize stays for the next round.
• If the chieftain wins the round in a partnership, he must share the victory prize with his partner, no matter on which side of the scale his partner has placed his stone. The partner may even be on the losing side of the scale.
• If the chieftain loses the round in a partnership, that is, his stone sits on the losing side of the scale, the third player wins the entire prize. If one of the two partners had previously had himself paid out, the other gets the entire victory prize. If both had themselves paid out, the complete prize stays for the next round.

4. Appoint the chieftain for the next round, remove stones from the game: At the end of each round a new chieftain is determined for the following round. To do so, look at the stones on the losing side of the scale. The player whose stone lies on the outer space here becomes the new chieftain. If the stone in question is a quartz, the player who placed it becomes chieftain. Then all stones placed in this round are removed from the game. For pillars and boulders, special rules apply according to their special abilities (cf. Special Abilities above).

End of a Pass and Interim Scoring

After five rounds a pass is over and an interim scoring takes place. All players count their won wooden discs. The player with the fewest wooden discs returns all his discs; all other players return the same number to the general supply. Each player passes his stone card to his left neighbour, who stands the corresponding stones on it. The next pass can begin. The first chieftain is whoever had placed his stone on the outer space of the losing side of the scale in the last round of the previous pass.

End of the Game and Scoring

After three passes the game ends. The winner is whoever now has the most discs.

The Game for 2 Players

Hinkel & Stein for Two

The four stone cards are shuffled face down and two are dealt to each of the two players. Each player lays his cards face up in front of him, one to the left, the other to the right, and stands the corresponding stones on them. Whoever gets the pillars is the first chieftain. Each player thus runs two kinds of stones, of which one must be used actively and the other passively. A round can only ever be won by an actively played stone. The chieftain must always run actively the kind of stone because of which he became chieftain; at the start this is the pillars.

• Active play: The player may add one or two discs from the general supply to the victory prize already lying out, or instead take one disc from the supply for himself. Whoever takes a disc for himself will not share in the winnings at the end of this round. Then the player places one of his stones on any free placement space on the scale. The special abilities of the individual kinds of stones may come into play here (cf. Special Abilities above).
• Passive play: The special ability of the stones that one runs passively in this round cannot be used. The victory prize cannot be increased, one may not have oneself paid out, and one may not collect any winnings if the passively used stone is on the winning side at the end of the round. A passively played stone can never win the round.

Course of Play

The game is played in four passes of five rounds each. Each round consists of the following actions, carried out one after another:

1. Place the base prize and determine the victory condition: At the start of each round, two wooden discs from the general supply are always placed in the middle of the table as the base amount of the victory prize. Then the current chieftain determines whether at the end of this round the stones on the lighter or the heavier side of the scale win.

2. Place wooden discs and stones: The chieftain names the starting player; this may also be himself. If he calls his opponent, the latter has a free choice which of his kinds of stones he plays in this turn and whether he wants to use it actively or passively. Then the player places any stone of the chosen kind on a free placement space of the scale. If he plays actively, he can bring the special abilities of the played kind of stone into play (see Special Abilities above). In the course of a pass a player can in this way use the special abilities of his two kinds of stones. Then the chieftain determines who must place the next stone; this may also be the same player as before. This is repeated until every kind of stone has been placed and each player has been on turn twice (once actively and once passively).

3. Pay out the winnings:

• If at the end of a round an actively and a passively played stone stand on the winning side, the owner of the actively played stone wins the entire victory prize. If the winner had himself paid out, the complete prize stays for the next round.
• If at the end of a round two actively played stones stand on the winning side, the two players divide the victory prize between them. Any remainder stays for the next round. If one of the two players had previously had himself paid out, the other gets the entire victory prize. If both had themselves paid out, the complete prize stays for the next round.

4. Appoint the chieftain for the next round, remove stones from the game: At the end of each round a new chieftain is determined for the following round. To do so, look at the stones on the losing side of the scale. The player whose stone lies here on the outer space of the scale becomes the new chieftain. Then all stones placed in this round are removed from the game. For pillars and boulders, special rules apply according to their special abilities (cf. Special Abilities above).

End of a Pass and Interim Scoring

After five rounds a pass is over and an interim scoring takes place. The player with the lower number of wooden discs returns all his discs to the general supply. The other gives up the same amount and keeps the rest. All kinds of stones now move clockwise: each player passes his left stone card to his opponent, who places it to his right and shifts the card previously located there to the left. The corresponding stones are stood on the cards again. The next pass can begin. The first chieftain is whoever had placed his stone on the outer space of the losing side of the scale in the last round of the previous pass.

End of the Game and Scoring

After four passes the game is over. Whoever now has the most wooden discs is the winner.

General Questions and FAQ

Must the scale be balanced at the start of the game?

• No, one side of the unoccupied scale may rest on the ground.

How must the stones be placed?

• Stones may only be placed on free spaces of the scale. If several spaces are still unoccupied, the player on turn has a free choice on which one he places his stone.
• As a rule, one stone of each kind is placed per round. Exceptions apply to the pillars and the boulders. Here, once per pass, two stones may also be placed on the same space.
• All stones must be placed so that they do not project beyond the borders of the spaces. If two boulders are placed, they may stick out sideways from the scale.
• The side of the scale that is down at the moment of placing should be held until the new stone is placed. Only then is it let go. This should be done especially with the last stone of a round. Example: The current chieftain has determined that the heavier side of the scale at the end of the round wins. The side that is up at the moment of placing wins only if the last placed stone manages to lift the opposite side when let go.

I contributed nothing to the victory prize, but my stone is on the winning side of the scale at the end of the round. Do I get a share of the prize?

• No. Whether playing with four, three or only two: whoever makes no contribution to the victory prize and instead takes a disc from the supply goes away empty-handed in the distribution of the prize, even if his stone stands on the winning side of the scale at the end.

Who is the first chieftain of a new pass?

• This is handled exactly like determining the chieftain of the next round in the current pass: the first chieftain of a new pass is whoever had placed his stone on the outer space of the losing side of the scale in the last round of the previous pass.

What happens if there are no wooden discs left in the supply?

• If no more discs can be taken from the supply, it is refilled by all players putting back into the general supply as many discs as the "poorest" player owns at that moment. The player with the fewest wooden discs therefore gives up all his discs.

What kind of stones are these?

• The playing stones are made from THETA-stone; they all have the same specific weight.
• Note: The slightly rough underside of the stones can cause scratches on delicate surfaces, so they should always be stood on the cards or other underlays.