Jewel Box
Jewel Box Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- Folding Log Board x1
- 12 Tool Tokens:
- Magnifying Glass x4
- Forceps x4
- "Either" x4
- 75 Beetle Tiles:
- 5 families (indicated by color/icon)
- 15 Beetles per family
- Field Notes Cards x4
- Die x1
Objective
Collect & Place 16 Beetles in a 4x4 grid. Points (leaf) are scored uniquely for each family of Beetles and from any unused Tool Tokens. The player with the most points (leaf) wins!
Setup
Table Setup
- Place Log Board in center
- Shuffle all 75 Beetle Tiles and place face-down around the Log Board
- Randomly select and place 5 Beetle Tiles on the empty Log spaces
To Each Player
- 1 Field Notes card
- 1 of each Tool Token (3 total)
The player that most recently saw a beetle goes first!
Gameplay
On a player's turn, they will Collect & Place Beetle Tiles, after which the die is passed to the next player. This continues until all players' Beetle collections are full, ending the game.
Collect
To collect a Beetle, the player rolls the die and takes the corresponding Beetle from the Log. Rolling a 6 allows them to choose any Beetle from spaces 1-5.
Example: Julie rolls a 2 on her turn, so she must take that Beetle from the Log.
Place
The very first Beetle collected by a player is placed face-up in front of them. Subsequent Beetles must be placed adjacent (sides touching, not diagonally) to at least one existing Beetle, slowly forming a 4x4 grid. This creates a player's Jewel Box!
Example: Julie has 7 spaces where she can place her Beetle and decides where to place it.
After a Beetle is Collected and Placed, a new Beetle Tile is flipped over to replace the one taken from the Log. The die is then passed to the next player in clockwise order.
Tool Tokens
Each player starts the game with 3 Tool Tokens. Players may use their Tokens on their turn, but only one per turn. Once used, the Token is flipped over (grayed-out side). At the end of the game, each unused Tool Token is worth 2 bonus points (leaf).
Once used, flip the Token over to grayed-out side.
Magnifying Glass
Allows the player to choose any face-up OR face-down Beetle instead of rolling the die.
Forceps
Allows the player to swap two Beetle Tiles in their Jewel Box. Can be used before or after collecting a Beetle.
"Either" Token
May be used as either a Magnifying Glass Token or a Forceps Token.
End of Game
Once each player has placed 16 Beetles (in a 4x4 grid), the game ends and points (leaf) are tallied (as explained on pages 6 & 7). Players earn points (leaf) for all of their collected Beetles and any unused Tool Tokens (2 points (leaf) each). The player with the most points (leaf) wins! In the case of a tie, the player with the most unused Tool Tokens prevails; if still tied, the tied players share the victory!
Example — Julie's final score: her 16 placed Beetles are scored family by family (Scarabs 8, Longhorns 5, Ladybugs 6, Weevils 10, Jewel Beetles 4 — see Beetle Families below), plus 2 points (leaf) for her one unused Tool Token, for a TOTAL of 35 points (leaf).
Beetle Families
Each Beetle belongs to one of five included families. Each Beetle family gains points (leaf) in a unique way as described below and also on the player's field notes.
Scarabs (Scarabaeidae)
Gain points (leaf) individually only if each adjacent insect is from a different family. Another Scarab can be one of the adjacent families.
- If a Scarab is placed on an edge/corner and each adjacent insect is from a different family: 2 (leaf)
- If a Scarab is placed on any of the middle spaces and each adjacent insect is from a different family: 3 (leaf)
- If a Scarab has an adjacent insect from the same family, it scores no points.
Weevils (Curculionidae)
Gain points (leaf) as a set and by being adjacent to each other in a vertical or horizontal line. Each Weevil can only be counted in a set once.
Number adjacent vertically/horizontally:
- 2 = 3 (leaf)
- 3 = 6 (leaf)
- 4 = 10 (leaf)
A lone Weevil with no vertical/horizontal Weevil neighbor scores no points.
Ladybugs (Coccinellidae)
Gain points (leaf) as a set being separated from each other. Adjacent ladybugs cancel each other out and don't count toward the ladybug points. If more than 5 are collected, start a new set.
Number of individual ladybugs not adjacent to another ladybug:
- 2 = 1 (leaf)
- 3 = 4 (leaf)
- 4 = 8 (leaf)
- 5 = 15 (leaf)
Longhorns (Cerambycidae)
Gain more points (leaf) when their numbers are even. Their placement doesn't matter, only whether the total number of Longhorns is even or odd.
- Even # of Longhorns: 2 (leaf) per
- Odd # of Longhorns: 1 (leaf) per
Jewels (Buprestidae)
Gain points (leaf) when adjacent in pairs, but lose points in groups of three or more.
- Each Pair (non-adjacent to any other Jewel pair/group): 5 (leaf)
2 Player Variant
For a longer 2-player game, players Collect & Place 25 Beetle Tiles (a 5x5 grid). All other rules are the same.
Solo Variant
For solo play, the player will Collect & Place 25 Beetle Tiles (a 5x5 grid). After each turn, the player will choose a Beetle from the log to discard, putting it off to the side or back in the box. The log is then replenished. Final scores are compared to the scores below to determine the player's entomological mastery!
- Master Entomologist - 63 (leaf)
- Pro Entomologist - 57 (leaf)
- Amateur Entomologist - 50 (leaf)
Happy Hunting!
Victorian Beetlemania
Victorian fashion buzzed with bejeweled beetles! These dazzling creatures adorned dresses, jewelry, and even hair, often kept in a personal Jewel Box. While beautiful, this craze threatened some species, reminding us of the delicate balance between fashion and ethics. Though a passing fad, beetlemania left a shimmering mark on Victorian history.