Kit & Caboodle
Kit & Caboodle Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Object
The player with the highest score wins.
Game Play Overview
(Follow along on your boodle sheet while you read this.)
There are 14 categories on the boodle sheet: four Kits and ten Caboodles. Play 14 rounds until each player scores all 14 categories on his boodle sheet.
On each turn, you must score one category. Roll the dice up to three times to create sets from the pictures on the Kit & Caboodle dice. Sort your dice and decide which set is worth the most points, then mark your score in one of the 14 categories on your boodle sheet. No matter what you roll, you must score one category on each turn, even if it's only a zero. Keep in mind that each category can only be scored once.
Sets & Categories
On your turn, you can try for either a Kit or a Caboodle category, but you can't mix Kits with Caboodles. The Kit categories are sets made up of traits, such as wings, shells, or color. The Caboodle categories are sets made up of classes, such as space objects, syllables, or types of animals.
Since each picture on the dice can be used in more than one way, you need to think flexibly. How many different sets can you create? Ladybugs, for example, have wings and a shell, so they can be used to create sets of Wings or Shells in the Kits section, or Insects in the Caboodles section. Now consider the fact that they're orange and see what other possibilities exist.
The Gamewright jester is wild — use it any way you want, in any set you create.
Here's how to explore the possibilities — let's say you roll:
3 birds, 1 egg, 1 turtle, 1 ladybug
Kit options:
- Wings (3 birds + 1 ladybug) @ 2 pts. ea. = 8 pts.
- Shells (1 egg + 1 turtle + 1 ladybug) @ 2 pts. ea. = 6 pts.
- Oranges (1 orange ladybug) @ 2 pts. ea. = 2 pts.
- 3 & 3, Shells and Wings (1 egg, 1 turtle, 1 ladybug for Shells) + (3 birds for Wings) = 20 pts.
Caboodle options:
- Birds (3 birds + 1 egg) @ 3 pts. ea. = 12 pts.
- Reptiles (1 egg + 1 turtle) @ 3 pts. ea. = 6 pts.
The 3 & 3, the fourth Kit option, gives you the most points, so you'd fill in a 20 in the 3 & 3 category of your boodle sheet.
Beginning the Game
To begin, give each player a boodle sheet and a pencil. Keep the "Boodle Sheet Guide" below handy while you're playing.
Roll the dice to see who goes first. The player who rolls the most orange pictures begins.
A good way to learn Kit & Caboodle is to play a practice game. Start off by playing just the Kits, then the Caboodles, and finally the Kits and Caboodles together in the standard game play. You don't have to play each section all the way through — just play enough to get the hang of it.
Playing a Turn
On your turn, roll the dice up to three times to create sets and score a category. If you create a set you like on your first or second roll, you can skip your remaining rolls.
First Roll
Roll the dice and sort them by category. Based on the sets created by your roll, decide which category you'll try for. Put aside the dice that fit your category, and don't roll these dice again. If you don't want any of the dice you rolled, don't put any aside.
Second Roll
Roll some or all of the dice again. Sort the dice that fit your category and put them aside. Depending on your roll, you may want to try one more time for your original category, or you may decide to switch to a different category altogether.
Third Roll
Roll some or all of the dice again. Sort the dice and decide which set is worth the most points and which category you can score.
At the end of your turn, mark your boodle sheet — even if it's a zero — and pass the dice to the player on your left. Play continues clockwise.
Taking a Zero
Sometimes, you try for a category and don't get the score you hope for. Other times, you don't create any sets you can use. Rather than take a zero or a low score in one category, you can take a zero in another category that you're less likely to get.
For example, if you're trying for Caboodle 3 & 3 and don't get it, you might want to take a zero in Kit & Caboodle with the Jester, which is harder to roll. Or you can take zero in Oranges, which is worth just two points for each picture. That way, you can try again for Caboodle 3 & 3 on a later turn.
Boodle Sheet Guide
Kits
- Wings: birds, bats, ladybugs, pterosaurs. e.g., 2 bats + 1 bird @ 2 pts. ea. = 6 pts.
- Shells: snails, eggs, turtles, ladybugs.
- Oranges: any number of orange pictures.
- 3 & 3: 3 of one Kit category and 3 of another. e.g., 3 oranges and 3 shells.
Caboodles
- Birds: birds, eggs. e.g., 2 birds + 2 eggs @ 3 pts. ea. = 12 pts.
- Reptiles: pterosaurs, turtles, eggs.
- Space: moons, planets.
- Insects: ants, ladybugs.
- Mammals: apes, bats.
- Snails: (no items listed in the guide; shown only with a snail picture).
- Kit & Caboodle: spell Kit & Caboodle.
- Kit & Caboodle plus the Jester: spell Kit & Caboodle plus the jester.
- 6 of 7: 1 each from 6 of these 7 categories: Birds, Reptiles, Space, Insects, Mammals, Snails, or Kit & Caboodle.
- 3 & 3: 3 of one Caboodle category and 3 of another. e.g., 3 Snails and 3 Kit & Caboodle.
Note: The Boodle Sheet Guide shows the Snails, Kit & Caboodle and Kit & Caboodle plus the Jester entries as pictures. The words above describe those pictures as they appear on the guide.
Notes on the Categories
Over the course of time, totally different classes of animals have developed the same function. For instance, flight has developed in reptiles, birds, mammals, and insects. Hard shells as a protective device have been evolved by many species. Ladybugs, like all beetles, have evolved a hard shell that covers their wings. Because the ant's exoskeleton (hard skin) has not been specialized into a separate shell, it cannot be considered a shell.
We included space as a category to remind ourselves that there is a larger context to everything, and that the mystery of how things are or can be organized is never ending.
Ending the Game
The game continues until each player has scored all 14 categories on his boodle sheet. The player with the highest total score wins.
One-Player Game
The game play is the same whether you play alone or with other players. The only difference is that you compete against yourself, trying to better your score with each game.
Components
The game contains 6 Kit & Caboodle dice, a dice shaker, a boodle pad, and 3 pencils.
Need more boodle pads? Send us a check for $3.00 (US) at the address printed on the rulebook and we'll send you two additional boodle pads. Be sure to include your full name and address. Price includes shipping and handling.