Kismet (1997)
Kismet (1997) Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 88 cards
- 3 dice
- 1 rulebook
Object of the Game
The players try, all at the same time and through quick reactions, to secure the most valuable cards that match the number combinations rolled on the dice.
The winner is the player with the most plus points at the end of the game.
Setup
- Take out as many card sets as there are players. The card sets are easy to tell apart by the colours on their backs. Surplus card sets are not needed for the game and go back into the box.
- Shuffle the card sets together and place them in the middle of the table as a face-down draw pile.
- Turn the top 11 cards of the pile face up and lay them out in a circle.
Playing the Game
The game is played over several rounds. At the start of a round, one player takes the three dice and rolls them in the middle of the table.
The small number on the chip on a card gives the plus points the player will be credited with for that card at the end of the game.
Example: If the dice show 2, 3 and 5, the players look for cards with the numbers 5 (= 2 + 3), 7 (= 2 + 5) or 8 (= 3 + 5).
Now all players simultaneously look for matching cards. Each card always shows two numbers. The large number is the number the players must now search for. To find it, each player mentally adds two of the three dice. He then tries to find a card in the circle that shows exactly this large number.
As soon as a player has spotted a matching card, he places his hand on it. The round ends when every player has covered a card or when no matching cards remain in the circle. Each player who has covered a card with his hand must now reveal that card.
- If the card shows the correct value, the player may place it face down in front of himself. The player builds his own winning pile from these cards. The order of the cards placed in this way may not be changed.
- If a player has covered a wrong card, he must hand back the top card of his laid-down pile. That card is slid back under the face-down pile in the middle. If the player has no cards on his laid-down pile yet, he does not have to hand back any card.
The circle is then refilled to 11 cards, and the next round begins.
Note: If none of the 11 cards could be taken, all 11 cards are collected and removed from the game. Then 11 new cards are turned face up.
(The printed sheet includes a diagram showing the 11 cards laid out in a circle around the dice.)
Tactical Notes and Scoring Hints
Note: The numbers on the chips are plus points. The minus sign in front of the numbers is relevant for the variant.
Tactical hints: With two dice, sums from 2 to 12 are possible. Most dice combinations give the 7. The higher a number is above 7, or the lower it is below 7, the fewer dice combinations there are to form it. That is why the 7 has the lowest point value, and the 2 and the 12 have the highest point values.
It is always possible to form as many values as there are different numbers rolled. If a player rolls three different numbers, he has a choice of three values. From 2, 4 and 5 one can form the values 6, 7 or 9. From 3, 3 and 5 one can only form the values 6 and 8. From 1, 1 and 1 one can only form one value, the 2.
End of Game and Scoring
The game ends as soon as there are no longer enough cards left to refill the circle of cards.
The small number on the chip gives the plus points that the player is credited with at the end of the game for each of his individual cards. The player with the most points wins.
Variant
Variant Setup
- Each player receives a set of 11 cards with the same back colour and the numbers 2 to 12 on the front. He takes these cards into his hand.
- Each player may now lay down one or more cards on his laid-down pile without showing them to the other players. The values on the chips of the laid-down cards may not add up to more than 6 minus points in total.
- When all players have chosen their cards, they lay the remaining cards face up in any order, in plain view in front of themselves.
- The players agree on which player rolls first.
Variant Playing the Game
The player rolls all three dice in the middle of the table. The dice must remain in plain view of all players for the whole time.
Laying down a card: He now tries to form the large number on one of the cards lying in front of him, using two of the three dice. If he manages to form a matching value, he may place the card with that value face down on his laid-down pile. The order of the laid-down cards may not be changed. If the player has several numbers to choose from that he could lay down, he may still lay down only one card.
Joker throw: If a player rolls the same number three times, that is a joker throw. From this throw he can form only one value. If he still has the card with the corresponding value in front of him, he may lay down that card and, in addition, any other card. If he has no card with the corresponding value in front of him, he may not lay down any card either.
Example: The player has rolled 2, 2 and 2. He can only lay down the card with the value 4. If he still has the 4 in front of him, he may lay down the 4 and any other card in addition.
Passing the turn: When the player has laid down a card, or when he believes he has no card with a matching value, he calls the next player to roll. He does not pass the dice on; instead the other player takes the dice himself. The player's turn ends as soon as his neighbour takes the dice into his hand.
Knocking: During a player's turn, and when he passes on his turn, all other players have the opportunity to step into his turn by quick "knocking" (»Klopfen«).
- The other players may knock during the player's turn if they could lay down a card themselves and the player no longer has a matching card in front of him.
Any player who knocks although he himself has no matching card in front of him, or although the rolling player still has a matching card in front of him, must turn his last laid-down card face up again and lay it openly in front of himself.
- The other players may knock when the player passes on his turn and overlooks that he could lay down a card.
If the player who knocked first still has a matching card lying in front of him, he may lay it down. If he no longer has a matching card in front of him, he may instead ask the rolling player to turn his last laid-down card face up again and lay it openly in front of himself.
Any player who knocks although the rolling player has no matching card in front of him must turn his last laid-down card face up again and lay it openly in front of himself.
As soon as the next player has taken up the dice, the other players have missed their chance to knock, and – nothing more can be done!
If it is not clear who knocked first, the players should decide together who receives the right to lay down a card.
Variant Scoring and End of Game
The small numbers on the chips are the minus points. If the game is played over several rounds, the minus points are written down.
Example of a game situation: The players have the following cards in front of them: Andreas: 2 and 6. Britta: 4 and 11. Christian: 7, 8 and 12. Doris: 12. Ernst: 2 and 9.
Andreas is up and rolls 2, 6 and 6. He can combine the dice to an 8 or a 12. Andreas has none of the two cards in front of him any more.
The other four players knock in the following order: Britta (4, 11), Christian (7, 8, 12), Doris (12) and Ernst (2, 9). Britta and Ernst have neither an 8 nor a 12 lying in front of them. They should not have knocked and must therefore turn over their last laid-down card again. Britta turns over a 6 and Ernst turns over a 10. Christian knocked faster than Doris and may therefore lay down his 8 or his 12. Doris was too slow and may not lay down any card.
The game ends as soon as one player has been able to lay down all of his cards. This player has won the round. The placement of the other players is determined by the sum of the minus points of their cards still lying in front of them.