Monster's Coffee
Monster's Coffee Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Setup
Setup before each game
Choose the 5 families of Monsters you want to play with. You will find suggestions in the Menu booklet. Put the other Monster families back into the game box, as you won't need them during the game.
- Put the Coffee tokens within easy reach of everyone.
- Certain Monsters need particular tokens. Put these within easy reach of everyone (see the Monsters à la carte booklet).
- Leave the centre of the table empty, as the Monster cards will have to reach it.
Setup before each round
Shuffle the Monster cards and place them in a pile, within easy reach of everyone. Each player draws 10 Monster cards (12 when there are only 2 players). The remaining Monster cards are discarded and won't be needed for the game.
- a. Each player chooses 3 Monster cards that they put, face down, in front of them. This will be their Rear Line. At any time during the game, a player can look at their Monster cards in their own Rear Line.
- b. Then, simultaneously, the players reveal their remaining Monster cards and put them, face up in front of them, above their Rear Line. These form the Front Line.
The First Player is the one who has the fewer Coffee tokens. In the event of a tie, the First Player is the one who saw a Star Wars movie recently. (So it might be a good idea to watch a (good!) Star Wars movie before playing!)
Latte Newbie
The LATTE NEWBIE is the ideal combination to start playing. We advise this combination for the first 2 or 3 games. After that, you will be able to look at the Menu with its 18 coffees, classified by Strength!
The model setup shown for 3 players according to the Latte Newbie has the players prepare the Cookie tokens (Cakosaurus) and the Whipped Cream tokens (Snorkel) for the game.
Goal of the game
A game of Monster Café is played in 2 rounds. Players use the different Monsters to earn as many Coffee tokens as possible. At the end of the 2 rounds, the player who has the most wins!
The rounds
At the start of each round, set up the game as explained in the Setup section.
How to play
Each player takes their turn, starting with the First Player. During their turn, each player must take the following actions:
- They choose a Monster card in a Front Line where there are more than 3 Monster cards. It can be their own Front Line, or any other player's.
- They place that Monster card at the centre of the table.
- They use the power of that Monster card.
Then, it's the turn of the player on their left.
Notes
- NOTE 0: No player can have fewer than 3 Monster cards in their Front Line and fewer than 3 Monster cards in their Rear Line.
- NOTE 1: Some Monster families do not have special powers.
- NOTE 2: Some Monsters require tokens. From time to time (very rarely), as tokens are limited in numbers, you won't have enough. That means that if a power (and its corresponding token) interests you, don't wait.
- NOTE 3: (if you're the only one reading the rules, don't share this tip) There can very well be two different tokens on a Monster card in the Front Line...
- NOTE 4: You could be forced to play a specific Monster card (toward the end of a round, for example) whose power is no longer applicable. It's rare, but it happens, and it's well played on your adversaries' part. In this case, don't apply the power!
Example: Priss's power is shown by the icon on its card (swap).
End of the round
A round ends as soon as every player has only 3 Monster cards left in their Front Line. It's then time to distribute the Coffee tokens. Each player reveals the Monster cards from their Rear Lines (leave them in the rear, separate from the other cards).
NOTE: Certain powers might have revealed some Monster cards from the Rear Lines during the round.
For every family of Monsters at the centre of the table, check which player has the majority in their Front and Rear Lines combined. Don't forget that Monster cards from the Rear Line are worth double!
The player who has the most of any one family wins as many Coffee tokens as there are Monster cards from that family at the centre of the table. In the event of a tie, nobody wins Coffee tokens for that family.
Once all of the Coffee tokens have been distributed, a new round begins.
Example with the REX Monster
PLAYER 2 has 2 REX cards, none in their Front Line and 2 in their Rear Line, and those are worth double. It means they have 4 REX.
PLAYER 3 also has 2 REX cards: 1 in their Front Line and 1 in their Rear Line, which is worth double. It means they have 3 REX.
PLAYER 2 wins the Coffee tokens associated with the 2 REX in the centre of the table.
(In the illustrated example, there is a tie between PLAYER 1 and PLAYER 3 for another family: nobody wins those 4 Coffee tokens.)
End of the game
The game ends after the second round.
The player who has the most Coffee tokens wins! In the event of a tie, the player who won the most Coffee tokens during the second round wins (Cookie tokens and Mummy tokens not included). If there is still a tie, players share the victory... or you can play a round of 421 or of rock-paper-scissors (our favourite) or have a thumb war. If anyone's parent is a law enforcement officer, that player automatically wins in the event of a tie!
Monsters à la Carte
Snorkel
Take 1 Whipped Cream token. In the event of a tie, such as when Coffee tokens are distributed at the end of a round, the player who has the most Whipped Cream tokens wins. The Whipped Cream tokens are discarded at the end of a round.
"More and more of the Snorkels are going upriver to take a selfie with their coffee and post it in Monstergram. You can follow them using the hashtag #WhippedCreamBadass!"
Monsters and their Powers
REX: Swap one Monster card from your Rear Line with a Monster card from your Front Line. Both cards are revealed.
"Closer to a St. Bernard than a T-Rex, they're overweight caffeine-addicted dinosaurs!"
CAKOSAURUS: Take 1 Cookie token. Cookie tokens may be kept from one round to the next. At the end of the game, the player who has the most Cookie tokens gets 5 Coffee tokens. In the event of a tie, the player with the most Whipped Cream tokens at the end of the second round gets the 5 Coffee tokens. If the tie persists, no one gets those tokens.
SKEETER: Take 1 Coffee token.
"Omnipresent in wetlands, the Skeeters suck... your coffee."
Other Monsters and their Powers
GRUNGE: Ask one player if they have, in their Rear Line, another Monster from a specific family, e.g. "Do you have a Rex in your Rear Line?". If they do, they reveal it and you get 2 Coffee tokens. If they don't, they get 2 Coffee tokens.
Note: If a player has, in their Rear Line, more than one Monster from the desired family, they reveal only one.
POOPY: Put 1 Droppings token on a card from any Front Line. This card cannot be moved, even with a special power. No player can have more than 3 Droppings tokens on their Front Line. The Droppings tokens are discarded at the end of the round.
"They fell into it when they were little, the Poopy..." (...do you really need to know the whole story?)
SNOUT: Put 1 Coffee token on any card from any Front Line. When a player moves this Monster card (even through a special power), they will take the Coffee token. If said token is still at the player's Front Line at the end of the round, that player takes the Coffee token.
Note: If a Monster card covered with a Coffee token is moved or revealed through another power, the player whose power it was takes the token.
BLIBLOP: This family is worth 2 Coffee tokens (instead of the usual 1) per Bliblop card at the centre of the table at the end of the round.
Note: This family does not trigger any power when they move.
SKYZO'CLOP: At the end of the round, the player having the majority of these Monsters wins, or loses, the number of Coffee tokens indicated on the Skyzo'clop's cards at the centre of the table. The usual gain of 1 Coffee token per card is not applicable.
Note: This family does not trigger any power when they move.
Hottest Monsters and their Powers
KANDHIII: At the end of the round, the player having the majority of these Monsters wins a number of Coffee tokens depending on the various symbols indicated on the Khandiii cards at the centre of the table. The usual gain of 1 Coffee token per card is not applicable. Instead, the player gets 1/3/6/10 Coffee tokens for 1/2/3/4 different symbols, respectively.
Note: This family does not trigger any power when they move.
PRISS: Swap one card from your Front Line with another one from the centre.
"Be careful! Noblemen seated at the Priss' table have a tendency to disappear."
MUMMY: (Mummy is not complicated, she's just a bit sneaky, chatty... and her handwriting is tiny!)
SETUP: At the beginning of the game, put Mummy tokens, face down, next to Mummy's cup.
Draw 2 Mummy tokens. Pick 1 of the 2, still face down, and place it on any Monster card on any Front Line. Keep the other token, without revealing it. When a player chooses that Monster card, they will obtain the Mummy token without revealing it (but its owner can look at it during the game). The Mummy tokens are kept from one round to the next, face down.
At the end of the game, reveal your Mummy tokens. Coffees are converted into Coffee tokens. Moreover, you win or lose points according to the number of Bones. With an odd number of Bones, you lose 3 Coffee tokens. With an even number of Bones, you win as many Coffee tokens as the even number of Bones.
Coffee Menu
Level of the game... You'll have to play around 15 games from one to the next! Each coffee has a Strength (shown as cups) and a Size: a small cup is for 2-3 players, a tall cup is for 4-5 players.
The Master Brewers of the legendary Monster Café are proud to present this menu. After numerous tests, we guarantee the perfect taste for every player, from the newly initiated to the more caffeine-addicted (no animals were harmed during testing, but it's a whole other story for the Monsters...). You have everything you need to come up with your own concoctions, but be careful as a bad mix could result in a tepid or a hair-rising harsh brew. We decline all responsibility in case of indigestion.
The Lattes
- Grungy Divinato: For newcomers to the Monster Café wishing to discover something new. Perfect for the first few games.
- Exxxpresso: Served with its Droppings... Limited quantities depending on deliveries.
- Macchiato: Served in a holey cup! This ancient tradition dates back to the barbaric wars opposing Monsters and humans. At that time, the Monster Café would only serve coffee in colander-like cups so that the Monsters would drink up and not tarry.
- Le Chief Special: A coffee that does not smell as fresh as a rose... The taste is light, but the odour... is way too strong, mostly for oversensitive humans...
- Bliblopino: "Blib blib blop blib blop blib blib" would have shouted the Monster from the Bliblop family when he accidentally discovered this coffee. This could be translated as "This is my body, this is my soul, this is my coffee!".
- Snorkcha: With a side of bicoloured Whipped Cream! An insider joke at the Monster Café is to have newcomers close their eyes and guess what kind of whipped cream they taste.
The Specialty Coffees
- My Pressious Black: The legends tell us of a Drink to grind them all and in its darkness brew them. The Priss family drink this French pressed brew all day long, hoping to get the One Drink to rule them all.
- Cappuccino Flavour May Vary: This coffee is attuned to your moods. If you're happy, it's mild in taste and invigorating but, if you're in a foul mood, it becomes slushy and bitter!
- The Penniless King's Coffee: Rooted in the history of the beggar Monsters, this coffee must be offered to another Monster, or the wrongdoer will be caught in a storm of chamomile Tea, if legends are to be believed.
- Rex-presso with water: After a century of scientific research, the Rex family discovered the perfect recipe: Pour some water, add some coffee, mix the two. As you can see, the Rex are not the sharpest tools in the box.
- Double Monstro: Served with a piece of cake. It's the perfect combination. Be warned, if you order this on your birthday, you could become a Cakosaurus. However, it could be useful for unfaithful husbands or fugitives in need of a new identity.
- The Deep One Creamy: The water used to brew it comes from secret subterranean grottos, hidden under the Monster Café. Drinking this will bring back long-forgotten memories, such as your first coffee bottle or your instinctive fear of Tea.
The Darker Brews
For those who prefer intense flavours. The Monster Café does not guarantee the survival of those clients.
- Affogato Candied: The Khandiii Monsters discovered a highly specific candying process. Baristas have to add a precise candy mix at the right time and at a predetermined angle so that the candies will absorb the coffee but still stay afloat.
- Latte 800-year-old
- Apocalypso Vanilla: Originally, this coffee was a liquid of mass destruction used during the wars opposing Monsters and humans. After the peace treaty was signed, Chicory-Hickory-Doc bought the last of it and added a touch of vanilla. It's a rare treat!
- Intense Weedin': It's perfect if you need to weed out your intestinal flora, your garden, or even to get rid of noisy neighbours.
- Prissato: Drinking a Prissato while watching the leaves fall and the grass grow is the pinnacle of chic at the Monster Café, but few Monsters are lucky enough to taste this Divine Coffee.
- Grando Monstro: A cavity-inducing brew. Our mouth can be a perfect breeding ground for Monsters. This coffee will result in cavities and newborn Monsters. Each sip gives you the satisfaction of having created a new life.