Höhlengrölen Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Outfit
• Objective of the game
• Preparation
• The game
  • Casting musicians
  • Forming Bands
  • Counting Success Points
  • Bonus cards
  • Example
  • Crossover-Band
  • Ending a casting
  • Scoring Aid
  • Ending the game

Outfit

• 48 Musician cards (12 musicians each in the four musical genres Folk, Metal, Pop and Rap (in Green, Red, Yellow and Blue, respectively); card values in each genre: 6 x 1 point, 4 x 2 points, 2 x 3 points; half of them male, half female)
• 12 Bonus cards (4 Singing Teachers, 4 Dance Instructors, 4 Stylists)
• one rules sheet

Objective of the game

You work as a producer for a well-known stone disc company (of course, CDs haven't been invented yet). You try to "cast" musicians of different genres during the competition known as Cave Rave. This extravaganza is held in specially constructed casting caves which also give the event its name. Using these musicians, you form Bands, trying to earn as many Success Points as possible.

Of course, your competitors, those stupid rockheads, try to do the same. And in addition to that your management is breathing down your neck to make you achieve ever greater successes.

So, you will have to exert yourself to consolidate your place as a top producer in the field. Yet, only one competitor can earn the title "Producer of the Year", and he or she will be the one to amass the most Success Points.

Preparation

Every player (which from now on we will call Producer) receives 1 Singing Teacher, 1 Dance Instructor and 1 Stylist card which he places face-up on the table in front of himself.

The Musician cards are shuffled. Every Producer receives three concealed cards which he takes into his hand.

The remaining Musician cards are placed between the players as a deck, face down. If there are only two Producers participating, the deck is parted in the middle, forming two equal decks.

One player takes pen and paper or a Scoring Aid (see next page) to record the points.

The most unmusical Producer starts the Cave Rave with the first turn of the first casting.

The game

Casting musicians

The Producer draws two Musician cards from the deck into his hand; at the end of his turn he must discard one card face up beside the deck (this first card starts the discard pile).

After that the next Producer (clockwise) starts his turn. He performs the same action; the only difference is that he can either draw two cards from the deck or draw the uppermost card from the discard pile and one card from the normal deck. The order in which he takes these cards doesn't matter; yet he is not allowed to draw two cards from the discard pile.

Also note that a Producer is not allowed to hold more than 6 cards in hand after discarding at the end of his turn. So, if a Producer has 6 cards in hand, he draws two cards as usual, but must discard two cards at the end of his turn.

Forming Bands

During his turn (after he has drawn new cards and before he discards one or two of his cards) a Producer can form a Band and lay it out on the table. A Band consists of 3 to 5 musicians which all belong to one musical genre (Folk, Pop, Metal, Rap); this Band is laid out face up (note the rules for scoring below).

Important: after a Producer has laid out a Band, he must have at least one card left in hand to discard at the end of his turn.

Counting Success Points

When a Producer lays out a Band the point values of all its musicians are added together; this sum is the Success Value of the Band.

Unfortunately your company's management has decreed that the Bands you cast must always be better and more successful than their predecessors. So, a Producer must always surpass his last Band's final Success Value with his next one (Crossover Bands [see below] and other Producers' Bands don't count in this regard). This restriction is valid over the course of the whole game, not just during one casting.

Moreover, the market demands diversity. If during a casting one Band of any musical genre has been laid out, every other Band of this genre which is formed in this casting must subtract two points from its value. This restriction is lifted with every new casting and does not apply to Crossover Bands.

Bonus cards

There are three top artists in the stone age music industry who devote themselves to the arts of dancing, singing and styling. And they have agreed to help any Producer once during the game.

A Producer can raise the value of one of his Bands by using a bonus card:

• A Dance Instructor or Singing Teacher double the value of a Band.
• A Stylist gives a bonus of 3 Success Points.

Only the Stylist can be used along with a Dance Instructor or Singing Teacher in any one Band. The Dance Instructor and Singing Teacher cannot be used together – a Band can either sing or dance, but not both; this was the same back then as it is now.

Doubling the value of a Band is always done after calculating its value from other factors.

Example

A Producer lays out a Rap Band which is worth seven points. If there is another Rap Band already on the table, the Producer must subtract two points from this value; the Band is now just five points worth. If he uses his Stylist the Band would be worth eight points. And if, in the end, he also uses his Dance Instructor / Singing Teacher, he can double its value, raising it to 16.

Crossover-Band

During a casting Producers may also put together Crossover Bands. These consist of either three or four female (Girl Group) or three or four male (Boy Group) members which must all belong to a different musical genres. A Producer can lay out these cards during his turn just like a normal Band.

The point value of each Band is noted separately for the end of the game (Scoring help, column CO). At the end of a casting (see below) the Producer with the highest Crossover Band value receives five additional Success Points.

A Producer does not have to surpass the points for a Crossover Band; these points are calculated independently. You are not allowed to play Bonus cards with a Crossover Band.

Ending a casting

A Casting ends when the deck is depleted. If the last Producer finds just one card on the deck, he takes it and the uppermost card from the discard pile, takes his turn and discards one or two cards at the end of his turn.

After that all the points from this casting are added for an intermediate result, additional points for the best Crossover Band are added as well, and the result is announced (you have to give The Boss some preliminary reports from time to time).

The discards and all Bands from the table are shuffled together to form a new deck. The Producers keep the Musician cards they have in hand.

After that the Producer to the left of the last starting player begins another casting.

When playing with two Producers the cards are reshuffled after the second casting (every deck counts as one casting) and is again separated into two separate decks.

Scoring Aid

The printed Scoring Aid is a grid, not reproduced as text. Its rows, from top to bottom, are: Casting 1, Stand, Casting 2, Stand, Casting 3, Stand, Casting 4, Stand, Endstand. Its columns are Player 1 through Player 4 (printed as "Spieler 1" to "Spieler 4"), and each player has a CO column for the Crossover Band value.

Ending the game

The game ends when as many castings (or decks) are played as there are players participating. With two Producers the game ends after four castings (two separate decks).

The points of all castings are added. The Producer with the most points from Crossover Bands (all the Band values are added) receives another ten additional points.

The Producer with the highest total wins and receives the title of "Producer of the Year".