Holiday Hijinks #1: The Kringle Caper
Holiday Hijinks #1: The Kringle Caper Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Overview
The Kringle Caper is an 18-card escape-room experience for 1 or more players. As a group, players solve a series of puzzles to unravel a mystery. Puzzles test perception, wordplay, and lateral thinking; English language fluency is required. Knowledge of traditional holiday topics is helpful, but that information is also provided in the companion website if needed.
A typical group takes about an hour to solve the game. The Kringle Caper is rated 2 out of 3 in difficulty.
The system is non-destructible: some groups may choose to write on the cards, but this is not required. A group cannot re-play the same copy of the game, but can pass it on to another group afterward.
Components
- 18 numbered cards.
- Access to the companion website, on a smartphone or computer (one device is enough for the whole group).
The print-and-play edition additionally requires a colour printer, paper, scissors, and glue to assemble the 18 cards before play; print the file single-sided to avoid assembly errors, and avoid looking closely at the printed cards while cutting and folding them.
Setup
- Stack the 18 cards in numerical order, face down, with card 1 on top.
- Open the companion website on a phone or computer and keep the device within easy reach of the whole group.
- Read the instructions on the website, then flip over card 1 to begin.
How to Play
Work together as a group to examine the current card or cards and solve the puzzle they present. When you believe you have found an answer, enter it into the companion website:
- If the answer is correct, the website confirms it, gives a short story update, and tells you which card or cards to take (or reveal) next.
- If the answer is incorrect, the website responds: "No information can be found about this answer. It's incorrect, or it's misspelled, or it's not the right time to enter it." Incorrect answers may affect your final score, so guessing at random is discouraged.
Play continues, card by card, until the group enters the answer that solves the mystery and wins the game.
The Companion Website
The companion website is divided into four panels, selected with buttons at the top of the screen:
- Information — "This section contains facts that you might not have memorized. You may reference this information at any time without penalty." Use this panel to look up background facts relevant to the mystery.
- Enter Answer — "When you have found an answer, enter it here to verify it. Incorrect answers may affect your final score." Type an answer into the text box and submit it to check whether it is correct.
- Hints — A graduated hint system. Hints are organised from a small nudge up to a fuller explanation; opening a broader hint can reveal more specific follow-up hints underneath it. Each hint you open may cost points off your final score (see Scoring, below). If the group is idle for five minutes without checking a hint, the Hints button is highlighted as a prompt.
- Game History — A running log of every answer you have entered and every hint you have taken during the session, each with its result or response.
A running game clock is shown at the top of the screen and can be paused and resumed. Progress autosaves every few seconds; if you close and reopen the website mid-game, you are offered the choice to Resume the game in progress or Start Over.
Scoring
Solving the game earns a rating of up to five stars, shown in half-star increments and made up of three parts:
- Story points (up to 4 of the 10 half-stars): full marks unless the group has taken certain wrong turns along the way, each of which docks a fixed amount from this portion of the score.
- Time points (up to 2 of the 10 half-stars): full marks for finishing within the game's expected ("par") time; points are lost for each extra minute taken beyond that, down to a minimum of zero.
- Hint points (up to 4 of the 10 half-stars): full marks for taking no hints; each hint taken has a point cost that is deducted from this portion of the score, down to a minimum of zero.
The three parts are added together and rounded to the nearest half star for the final rating, shown alongside your total elapsed time and the number of hints taken.
End of Game
Entering the answer that solves the mystery ends the game immediately: the clock stops, the final score is calculated and displayed, and the group may optionally submit their name, time, and rating through a short online form for a chance to win a future Holiday Hijinks game.