Maigo-Neko Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Components
  • Action Cards (38)
  • House Cards (18)
  • Area Tiles (16)
  • Other Components
• Setup
  • Choose Your Pawn
  • Place Area Tiles and Cat Pawns
  • Deal House Cards
  • Deal Action Cards
  • Start Player
• Explanation of the Action Cards
  • Food Cards: Use them when you move in Areas.
  • Lucky Cards: These cards will bring you some luck.
  • Accident Cards: You do a little bad to other cats.
• How to Play the Game
  • What You Do on Your Turn
  • a. Look for your home
  • b. Look for foods
• Fighting Event
• Dumped Cards
• If the Stock Cards Are Gone
• End of the Game
• FAQ
  • Player's Action
  • Fighting Event
  • About Your Home (Goal)
• Game Variations
  • Arrange Area Tiles Differently

Game Components

Action Cards (38)

• Food Cards: Plain x 11, Moderate x 8, Deluxe x 5
• Lucky Cards: Mrs. Cat x 2, Shortcut x 4, Truck x 2
• Accident Cards: Dog x 1, Crow x 1, Mouse x 1, Under Construction x 2, Cat Meeting x 1

House Cards (18)

• Shapes: One-Story x 3, Two-Story x 3
• Roofs: Yellow Roof x 2, Blue Roof x 2, Red Roof x 2
• Gardens: Big-Tree x 2, Small Flowerbed x 2, White Fence x 2

Area Tiles (16)

• 4 Empty Lot tiles
• 12 Area tiles (3 kinds, 4 tiles each)

Other Components

• 4 Cat Pawns
• 1 Under the Construction Piece

Setup

Choose Your Pawn

A player chooses 1 favorite Cat Pawn.

Place Area Tiles and Cat Pawns

• Describe 1 Area Tile "Area".
• Describe Empty Lot Tiles "Start Tile".

Place Area Tiles as shown in the picture. Place Start Tiles face up, and other Area Tiles face down. Place Cat Pawns in the Empty Lot. There should be only one Cat Pawn in one Empty Lot.

(The setup picture shows a 4 x 4 arrangement of 16 tiles, with the four Empty Lot tiles at the four corners and a Cat Pawn placed at each corner Empty Lot.)

Deal House Cards

There are 3 kinds of House Cards: Shape, Roof and Garden. Shuffle cards by each kind, and deal 1 card per each kind to each player, 3 cards in total. No one can take a look at House Cards.

Place your House Cards face down next to you. Your home (your goal) is described by your 3 House Cards.

For example, your home (goal) is a one-story house with a red roof by a big tree.

Deal Action Cards

Deal a starting hand of 2 Plain and 1 Moderate Food cards to each player. Shuffle the remaining deck of Action Cards, and place them face down as a stock.

Start Player

The player who got lost most recently goes first. You play in a clockwise direction.

Explanation of the Action Cards

Food Cards: Use them when you move in Areas.

There are 3 kinds of Food Cards: Plain, Moderate, and Deluxe. You can move your Cat Pawn 1 to 3 steps depending on which card(s) you use. When your Cat Pawn moves to a face down Area Tile, immediately you turn the tile face up. You can use multiple Food Cards at once.

Lucky Cards: These cards will bring you some luck.

• Mrs. Cat: Draw 4 cards from the top of the stock, and keep only 4 cards as a hand. If you draw an Accident Card, it'll be dismissed immediately.
• Shortcut: Move your Cat Pawn to a white spot in the already faced-up Area around you.
• Truck: Move your Cat Pawn to one of Empty Lot tile of your choice.

Accident Cards: You do a little bad to other cats.

• Accident Cards can't be a hand. It produces an effect at the moment it's drawn.

• It produces an effect only when you draw a card to obtain Food Cards. If you draw an accident card by using Mrs. Cat card or when a fighting event is occurred, dismiss the card and place them face up on the table.

• Mouse: Choose 1 player except for yourself, and move his/her Cat Pawn 3 steps freely.

• Crow: Choose 1 player except for yourself, and have him/her remove one of his/her hand randomly.

• Dog: Choose 1 spot where a dog is found, and from which direction it came. Any Cat Pawn in the same Area needs to run 3 steps straight away from a dog.

• Under Construction: Place the under-the-construction piece on a spot where no Cat Pawn is in order to block up a passage. If the under-the-construction piece is already placed on the Area Tiles, move it to other spot.

• Cat Meeting: Move all Cat Pawns in the Areas around your tile to your Area and place them on it. There should be only one Cat Pawn on one spot.

How to Play the Game

What You Do on Your Turn

Choose either [a. Look for your home] or [b. Look for foods] on your turn.

a. Look for your home

There are 18 houses look alike. Which one is yours?

Move

• Pick a card from your hand, and move on Area Tiles according to the effects written on the card. You can't use a Food Card and a Lucky Card together.
• If a Cat Pawn is on the spot you go, Fighting Event occurs. See [Fighting Events] for the details.

Turn an Area Tile

• If an Area Tile you want to go is placed face down, turn it to face up to keep going.
• You can't peek at the tile. Turn it at once!
• After you turn the tile, you can't change the direction of the card.

Walk into the House

• If you move to a House, you can remember how your house was a little.
• Pass your undisclosed House cards to the player on your left. That player compares at your House cards to the House you walked in. If the player found the same feature among them, s/he discloses only one of them, and passes the House cards back to you.

b. Look for foods

Your hand should be no more than 4 cards. If you have 5 or more cards, you need to dump cards to keep only 4 cards as a hand.

Draw a card from the stock

• You can draw card(s) depending on where you are.
• On the white spot: Draw 1 card.
• In the House: Draw 2 cards.
• In the Empty Lot tile: Draw 2 cards if you have no card, and draw 1 card if you have 1 or more cards.

Accident Cards

• An Accident Card is immediately effective when it's drawn. It can't be a hand.
• If you draw 2 or more Accident Cards, only 1 card is effective on your choice. Unused Accident Cards shall be dumped.

Fighting Event

If a Cat Pawn is on the spot you go, Fighting Event occurs.

1. 2 players choose 1 card from their hands, and show the cards at once.
2. Compare the number on the card, on the right up corner. The bigger the number is the stronger.
3. A winner draws a card from the stock as a reward. If an Accident Card is drawn, it's dumped. Then, draw one more card.
4. A loser needs to advance 3 spots straight to the direction a winner orders.

• You can't refuse fighting as long as you have a hand.
• You lose immediately if you don't have a hand. You're too hungry to fight.

Dumped Cards

Any dumped cards according to an action of a player or a fighting event should be kept face up on the table.

If the Stock Cards Are Gone

The stock cards will be gone as a game proceeds. If the stock is gone, mix dumped cards well to use them as a stock.

End of the Game

The game is over when one player reached the goal (home) with 3 House Cards are all disclosed.

FAQ

Player's Action

Q. When I use Food Card(s), can I leave some steps unused?

A. No, you should use up your steps. Also, you can't go back and forth to count your steps. Kittens are always at full power stepping forward.

Q. When I use up my hand, what should I do?

A. Only what you can do is to [look for foods]. You can't walk when you're hungry.

Q. If I draw 4 Accident Cards due to Mrs. Cat card, what will happen?

A. Keep drawing until you got a Food Card or a Lucky Card. Mrs. Cat is always for you.

Q. If I run into the T intersection due to a Dog card, what should I do?

A. Turn right or left on your choice. You can't run through the wall.

Q. If I run into a dead end by 1 or 2 steps due to a Dog card, what should I do?

A. It's OK not to use up 3 steps. In this case,

Q. If my Cat runs into another Cat due to a Mouse or Dog card, what will happen?

A. Fighting Event shall be occurred. You're all upset!

Q. If no other players have a hand when I draw a Crow card, what should I do?

A. Your Crow card shall be dumped. Crow can't find a prize.

Fighting Event

Q. Can I move a loser's Cat pawn to a spot on a face-down Area Tile?

A. Yes, you can. But, don't worry. Even if you accidently placed a loser's Cat pawn on a House, s/he can't remember how his/her home is.

Q. If I lose and my Cat Piece is moved to a spot where another Cat is, what will happen?

A. 2nd Fight starts! What a mess!

About Your Home (Goal)

Q. Is it likely to have a same Goal with other cats?

A. Yes, totally! You two brothers (or sisters?) both got lost!

Q. What if my first stepped in House is my Home?

A. What a petty. It's your Home, but not your Goal. You're too confused to remember it's your Home. Let's walk abound in town to remember your Goal.

Q. What if I was in my Home when my third House Card is disclosed?

A. You win! It's your Goal! How lucky you are.

Game Variations

Arrange Area Tiles Differently

Routes will connect with no problem in any directions you place Area Tiles. As you get used to the game, let's place Area Tiles differently.

You can gather 4 Start Tiles in the center, or alternate Area Tiles.

It's fine to place them in 2x8 rectangle shape, or you can come up with many different shapes.