Monopoly: Deutschland Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Quick Game Rules
• Standard Game
• Goal of the Game
• Contents of the Game
• Setup
• Sequence of Play
  • Doubles (Pasch)
  • Passing "GO"
  • Buying Properties
  • Owning Properties
  • Landing on a Property That Has an Owner
  • Landing on a Utility (Water Works or Electric Company)
  • Landing on a Railroad
  • Landing on an Event or Community Chest Space
  • Landing on a Tax Space
  • Free Parking
  • Jail
  • Houses
• Tips for Players
• End of the Game
• Translation and Source Notes

Quick Game Rules

The short-game rules ("Schnellspiel-Regeln") are for players who already know MONOPOLY and want a shorter round.

The quick game differs from the normal game in three points:

1. Setup: During setup, the banker shuffles the Title Deed cards and deals each player 2 cards (if the banker is also playing, they naturally receive two cards too). The printed price is paid immediately by the players to the bank. Then the game starts as normal.
2. Houses before hotels: In this variant you must build 3 houses on a complete colour group before you may buy a hotel. The rent amounts for houses and hotels stay the same. If a hotel is sold, it is sold only for half price, namely the price that is one house less here.
3. End of the game: The first player to go bankrupt is removed from the game as usual. As soon as the second player is bankrupt, the game ends. The second bankrupt player hands over all of their assets and their property to the person to whom they owe money (that is, the bank or another player).

Standard Game

The text below begins on the page that follows the quick-game rules in the source. The first paragraph continues the end-of-game count, and its heading is not printed on that page.

All players still in the game count their assets:

• their cash;
• their properties, utilities and railroads at the value printed on the board;
• all mortgaged properties at half price;
• houses at their original purchase price; plus
• hotels at their original purchase price (including the value of the 3 houses returned when the hotel was bought).

The richest player has won!

Alternatively, the players may agree in advance on the time at which the game ends. In that case the player who has accumulated the greatest wealth when the agreed time has elapsed wins.

Goal of the Game

To be the only player who avoids bankruptcy, and to end MONOPOLY as the richest player.

Contents of the Game

1 game board, 10 tokens, 28 Title Deed cards, 16 Event cards, 16 Community Chest cards, 1 set of MONOPOLY money, 32 houses, 12 hotels and 2 dice.

Setup

1. Sort the houses, hotels, Title Deed cards and money (by value) into the designated compartments of the chess-style insert tray.

2. Separate the Event cards and the Community Chest cards. Each deck is shuffled separately and placed face down on the matching spaces of the game board.

3. Each player chooses a token and places it on "GO".

4. The banker and the bank: The players choose a banker. With more than five players, the banker may choose whether to play or to act only as banker.

   The banker gives each player €1,500 in game money, in the following mix:

   • 2 × €500
   • 4 × €100
   • 1 × €50
   • 1 × €20
   • 2 × €10
   • 1 × €5
   • 5 × €1

   Besides managing the money, the banker has further duties. The banker manages the Title Deed cards, houses and hotels until they are bought by players. The banker pays salaries and bonuses, and handles all mortgages. The banker acts as auctioneer during auctions and collects the payments that players make to the bank. The bank never goes bankrupt! The banker may create additional money by writing amounts on small slips of paper.

5. Starting with the banker, each player rolls both dice. The player with the highest roll begins the game; the other players follow in clockwise order.

Sequence of Play

The player whose turn it is rolls both dice and moves his or her token clockwise by the sum of the two dice. The space on which the token lands determines what happens next. Two or more tokens may occupy the same space. Depending on the space on which the token lands, the player may carry out the following actions:

• buy the property (streets or other properties);
• pay rent if another player owns the property;
• pay tax;
• draw an Event card or a Community Chest card;
• go to jail;
• rest on the Free Parking space;
• collect the salary of €200;
• be "just visiting" in jail.

Doubles (Pasch)

If a player rolls doubles (both dice show the same number), the player moves the token as usual and then rolls again. If the second roll is doubles again, the player rolls a third time. If the player rolls doubles three times in a row, the player may not make the third move; instead, the token must go directly to jail.

Passing "GO"

Each time a player's token reaches or passes the "GO" space in a clockwise direction, the banker pays that player a salary of €200. It is possible for a player to collect the salary twice in one round; for example, if the token moves past "GO", lands directly on an Event or Community Chest space beyond it, and draws the card "Advance to GO!".

Buying Properties

If a player's token lands on an unowned property (no other player holds the Title Deed card), that player has the first opportunity to buy it. If the player wishes to buy it, the player pays the price printed on the board to the bank and receives the Title Deed card, which the player keeps face up in front of them.

If the player does not buy the property, the banker auctions it. The auction is held for the Title Deed card, and anyone may bid, including the player who declined to buy it at the normal price. The auction starts at any amount a player is willing to pay. The highest bidder pays the last amount named to the bank in cash and receives the Title Deed card.

Owning Properties

The owner of a property may collect rent from every other player who lands on it. It is an advantage for a player to own all properties of one colour, which is called a "Monopoly". The owner of all properties in a colour group may build houses and hotels on those properties.

Landing on a Property That Has an Owner

If a player's token reaches a property space that is already owned, the player must pay rent to the owner for the stay there. The owner must ask for the rent before the next player has rolled the dice. The amount of rent is printed on each Title Deed card and depends on whether and how many buildings stand on the property. The rent on streets doubles if a player owns all streets of one colour. This also applies if other streets of that colour group are mortgaged. If the property has been mortgaged, no rent may be demanded. Building houses or a hotel raises the rent for a street considerably.

Landing on a Utility (Water Works or Electric Company)

Whoever lands on one of these spaces may buy it if it is still unowned. As with ordinary properties, the printed price is paid to the bank. If the utility is already owned, the player who landed on it must pay the owner rent. The amount depends on the number rolled with the dice (the roll with which the token was moved onto the utility). If the owner holds only one of the two utilities, the rent is 4 times the number shown on the dice. If the owner holds both utilities, the rent is 10 times the number shown on the dice. If a player was sent to this space by an Event or Community Chest card, that player must roll both dice to determine the amount of rent.

Landing on a Railroad

The first player to land on an unowned railroad has the chance to buy it. Otherwise the bank auctions it immediately. The same conditions apply as for ordinary properties (streets). If the railroad already belongs to another player, the player whose token landed on it must pay the rent the owner demands. The amount of rent is printed on the card and depends on how many railroads the owner holds.

Landing on an Event or Community Chest Space

If a player's token lands on one of these spaces, the player draws the top card of the corresponding deck. These cards may require that you:

• move your token;
• pay money, for example taxes;
• receive money;
• go to jail; or
• be freed from jail.

You must follow the instructions given. The card is then placed face down at the bottom of its deck.

The player who draws the card "Get Out of Jail Free" keeps it to use when needed, or may sell it at an agreed price to any player during the game.

Printed note (Hinweis): such a card may require that you move your token to another space. If you pass "GO" on the way, you collect your salary. However, you do not receive a salary if you are sent to jail.

Landing on a Tax Space

The amount must be paid immediately in cash to the bank.

Free Parking

"Free Parking" is a resting space. Nothing happens here. You may continue your other business (such as collecting rent, building, etc.).

Jail

A player is sent to jail when that player:

• lands on the space "Go to Jail", or
• draws an Event or Community Chest card "Go to Jail", or
• rolls doubles three times in a row.

If a player passes "GO" on the direct way to jail, the player does not receive a salary. The turn ends there, and rolling doubles does not allow another roll.

A player leaves jail when, in the next or the following turn, the player:

• pays a fine of €50 before rolling the dice; or
• rolls doubles, and immediately moves forward by the sum of the dice. The player may not roll again after that move; or
• uses the card "Get Out of Jail Free"; or
• uses a "Get Out of Jail Free" card bought from another player.

If the player has not rolled doubles by the third roll, the player must pay a fine of €50 and then immediately move forward by the sum of the dice of the third roll.

A player in jail may collect rent, buy and sell properties, and build houses and/or hotels.

If a player visits the jail space in the normal course of play, the player is only "just visiting" and has no disadvantage. In the next turn the player may continue to play normally.

Houses

A player may build houses on streets only when the player owns all the streets of that colour group. Houses greatly increase the rent the owner may demand. The price of each house is printed on the Title Deed card of the street. Houses may be built at any time during the game, during the player's own turn and between the turns of other players, but always only before the next player has rolled the dice. Houses must be built evenly:

When a player buys a house, it may be built on any street of that colour group. When the player buys a second house, it must be built on a street of that group that has no building yet, or on a street of another group that the player owns. A maximum of 4 houses may be built on each street. Just as building must be even, so must demolition: a player who must sell houses back to the bank for lack of money may do so only evenly distributed across the streets of a colour group. If a property of a colour group is mortgaged, no building may take place on the whole colour group.

Hotels

When a player has built 4 houses on all streets of a colour group, the player may buy a hotel from the bank. A hotel costs 4 houses (which the player immediately returns to the bank) plus the price of one further house; see the Title Deed card. The player may place the hotel on any street of that group. Only one hotel may be built on each street.

Shortage of Buildings

When the bank has no more buildings to sell, the players wishing to build must wait until another player returns or sells buildings to the bank. Likewise, a player may not sell a hotel back to the bank if there are not enough houses available to replace it.

If two or more players want to buy more buildings than the bank has available, the buildings that remain are auctioned individually to the highest bidder. The minimum bid is the lowest printed price on one of the corresponding Title Deed cards.

Selling Title Deeds

Unbuilt streets, the Electric Company, the Water Works and the railroads may be traded between the players at any time for a freely agreed price. That is, trading is allowed at any time, though the normal game should be interrupted while doing so.

No street may be sold to another player while any street of its colour group has buildings on it. These buildings must first be sold back to the bank before the owner may sell a street of that group.

Houses and hotels may be sold at any time, but only to the bank. The bank pays only half the price that was paid when they were bought. All houses and hotels (1 hotel = 5 houses) must be sold back to the bank in exactly the same even distribution in which they were bought: that is, one street may not keep only 1 house while another street of the same colour group still has 4 houses.

If necessary, hotels may be converted back into houses to raise cash. The hotel is returned to the bank, and the player receives in exchange 4 houses plus half the purchase price of the hotel.

Properties that are mortgaged may not be sold to the bank, only to other players.

Mortgages

A player who has no cash left but must pay money may raise money by taking out mortgages. Houses and hotels cannot be mortgaged. All buildings on a property must be sold back to the bank before that property may be mortgaged.

Mortgages may only be granted by the bank. The mortgage value is printed on the back of each Title Deed card. The interest rate is 10% of the mortgage value; it is payable when the mortgage is repaid. If a mortgaged property changes hands, the new owner may repay the mortgage immediately. In that case, the new owner must in addition pay the now-due 10% interest. If the new owner does not repay the mortgage upon receiving the Title Deed cards, the new owner must still pay the due 10% interest. If the mortgage is repaid later, a further 10% is payable in addition to the mortgage sum.

Mortgaged properties remain in the possession of the owner. No other player may take such a property by simply paying off the mortgage.

To build a house again on a mortgaged property, the owner must repay the value of the mortgage and 10% interest to the bank, and then buy the house back from the bank at full price.

No rent may be demanded for a mortgaged property. Rent for other properties of the same colour group may, however, still be demanded.

Bankruptcy

A player who stops paying, that is, a player who owes more than he or she can pay, must hand over everything of value to the creditor and may no longer play. Houses and hotels must in this case also be sold to the bank at half value, and the bank pays that money to the creditor. If a player who is insolvent hands over a mortgaged property, the new owner must immediately pay 10% interest to the bank; the new owner may at the same time repay the mortgage.

If a player does not have enough money to pay taxes and fines, even if the player sells houses and mortgages property, the bank takes over the player's assets and auctions everything to the highest bidder. Houses and hotels may not be included in the auction. Cards "Get Out of Jail Free" are placed back under the corresponding deck.

Tips for Players

If a player must pay more rent than he has cash, he may offer to pay part in cash and part in properties (for example unbuilt streets). The player to whom he owes the sum may choose whether to accept. The player should consider that he receives property (even if it is mortgaged) that is worth far more than its printed price, especially if it gives him new building options or at least lets him prevent other players from acquiring that property. Whoever owns properties must be alert to always collect their rent. Only the bank may lend money against mortgage security. Players are not permitted to lend money or Title Deed cards to one another.

End of the Game

The game ends when only one player remains. That player wins the game as the richest player.

Translation and Source Notes

• This document is a faithful English translation of the German rules sheet ("Das berühmte Gesellschaftsspiel", MONOPOLY Standard, Euro edition) distributed by Hasbro Deutschland / Parker. The source is a scan with no text layer and was read page by page.
• The rules text refers to streets, railroads, utilities and Title Deed cards generically, as the source does; it does not name individual properties. The Deutschland edition's board uses German cities in place of the classic property names, so the rules apply to those cities.
• The copyright and distributor block printed on the last page is omitted as credits boilerplate.