Hội Phố
Hội Phố Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 12 Merchant cards
- 8 Merchant Ship cards
- 20 Silver coins '1'
- 8 Golden coins '5'
- 6 two-side contracts
- 1 guide book
Card Details
Each Merchant card shows:
- Name — the name of the merchant.
- Reputation — a number ranging from 1 to 12.
- Special Condition — some merchants have a special condition, detailed in the Special Conditions section below.
- Skill — a merchant's skill can only be triggered if that merchant has the lowest reputation.
For example, the merchant card Porco Marques has Reputation 12 and the skill: "Give 1 coin to each player sitting next to you. You lose a total of 2 coins."
Special Conditions
Some merchant cards will have a Special Condition (Card 10, 11 and 12). This shows that if this merchant appears at the same time as its rival (ex: Pig meets Mouse) in a turn, its reputation will turn to 0.
When a card becomes 0, usually it has the lowest reputation, the Merchant then will trigger its Skill.
Setup
Use the table below to determine the number of cards in your game.
| No. of players | 3 | 4 | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Merchant cards | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| M. Ship cards | 3 | 4 | 8 |
- Give every player 1 Merchant Ship and 2 coins (2 silver coins).
- Deal the remaining cards to players. If there are 4-5 players, every player will have exactly 4 cards. If there are 3 players, every player will have 5 cards; each player then discards face up 1 card of their choice (see more in the For 3 Players section).
How to Win
You will gain a contract by being the richest merchant (the one with most money) each round.
By having 3 contracts, you will claim yourself the winner of Fai-Fo.
How to Play
Step 1: Set up the game based on number of players (see Setup).
Step 2: Each player chooses 1 card from their hand (every player has 4 cards), face down to the table. After all players have chosen a card, these cards will be opened simultaneously to rank their reputation (more detail in Ranking).
Step 3: Each player continues to play the 2nd card (every player now has 3 cards), face down to the table. After all players have chosen a card, these cards will be opened simultaneously to rank their reputation (more detail in Ranking).
Step 4: Each player continues to play the 3rd card (every player now has 2 cards), face down to the table. After all players have chosen a card, these cards will be opened simultaneously to rank their reputation (more detail in Ranking).
Step 5: After playing 3 of the 4 cards in your hand, this is the end of one round. The player with the most money wins 1 contract.
After determining the winner, reset the game to Step 1 - every player keeps 1 merchant ship and 2 silver coins.
Ranking
After all players have chosen a card, these cards will be opened simultaneously to rank their reputation, following these steps:
Step 1 — Merchant Ship: If there are any Merchant Ship cards, the Merchant Ship is resolved first following its own rules — the Merchant Ship does not take part in Reputation Ranking, as its Reputation is always 0.
Step 2 — Special Condition: If there are any merchants that meet their Special Condition, the Special Condition is activated.
Step 3 — Reputation: The merchant with the highest Reputation earns 2 coins, the merchant with the 2nd highest reputation earns 1 coin, and then the merchant with the lowest reputation triggers its Skill.
Step 4 — Special rules:
- Monopoly Rule: When there is only 1 Merchant Card and the others are Merchant Ship cards, that Merchant Card becomes Monopoly — the player gains 2 coins (as the Highest) and then triggers its Skill (as the Lowest).
- Solo Rule: When there are only 2 Merchant Cards and the others are Merchant Ship cards, only the highest reputation and lowest reputation are counted.
End of a Round
After each player has played 3 cards, a round is ended. Players will then compare their money. The player with the most money wins 1 contract.
End of a Game
When a round ends and there is a player who has successfully collected 3 contracts, the game is finished.
Tie Situations
Whenever a tie situation happens, resolve it with the 4th card. Each round, a player only plays a maximum of 3 cards and keeps 1 card at the end.
If there are 2 or more players that are both richest in a round, they compare their 4th card — whoever has the highest Reputation wins the tie.
If at the end of a round, there are 2 or more players that both have 3 contracts, they compare their 4th card — whoever has the highest Reputation wins the game.
Round Example
Turn 1: After revealing 4 cards: Merchant Ship - No. Special Condition - Hen (10) meets Dog (11) - Hen turns into Reputation 0. Merchant Card - Dog (11) has the highest Reputation so collects 2 coins, Monkey (9) has the 2nd highest Reputation so collects 1 coin, Buffalo (2) has nothing, Hen (10) - now becomes 0 - can trigger its Skill.
Turn 2: After revealing 4 cards: Merchant Ship - There are 3 Merchant Ship Cards - none of the players collect any coin. Special Condition - No. Merchant Card - No. 8 Goat activates the Monopoly Rule, so the player collects 2 coins and triggers Goat Card's skill.
Turn 3: After revealing 4 cards: Merchant Ship - No. Special Condition - No. Merchant Card: No. 5 Dragon has the lowest Reputation so triggers its Skill, "Preventing Players from collecting coins" - Players who previously collected coins in Round 3 have to return the money.
At the end of a Round, A has 2 coins, B has 3 coins, C and D each have 4 coins. C and D compare the 4th card from their hand. D has a Merchant Card and C has No. 4 Cat; as a result, C wins one contract.
For 3 Players
After Setup (Step 1), each player will be dealt 5 cards. Then players decide to discard simultaneously, face up, 1 card out of 5 cards, so they will begin a round with only 4 cards. The game will then take place as normal from Step 2 of How to Play.
About the Publisher
Ngũ Hành Games (NHG) is a board game creation studio from Vietnam, founded by Man Tran (Plum) and Toan Nguyen (Crane) since 2018. The goal of Ngũ Hành Games (NHG) is to create and develop table games, board games and cards games that carry the spirit and stories of Vietnamese culture.