Nelly
Nelly Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Material and Layout
- 1 puzzle game board, made up of 4 pieces. Join the pieces together and place the board in the middle of the table where all players can reach it.
- 1 heron, which should be mounted on a wooden stick before the first game. Insert the heron into one of the holes on Nelly's back and lay out the dice ready for play.
- 1 dice, with a different symbol sticker on each side.
- 20 turtle counters: 7 red, 7 yellow and 6 orange. The coloured wooden hemispheres must be stuck on to the turtles with the help of the adhesive spots prior to the first game.
- 20 round water plant counters: 14 with a crab on the reverse side and 6 with a rotten water plant.
- 1 hippo, consisting of a cardboard head, a wooden body, a bead and a length of string. Make sure to get someone to help you to put them together properly.
Assembly Instructions for the Hippo Body (before the first game)
- Tie a knot at one end of the string and thread on the bead.
- Turn the hippo body onto its back, place the bead into the round hollow and push the knot into the short groove. Run the long end of the string to the front and thread it through the little hole.
- Carefully remove the hippo head and spacer from the stamped card and turn the body round again. Lay the spacer against the body and tie the head to the body at this length. Simply cut off the end of the string.
Position the hippo in the middle of the board and insert the bead under Nelly's back into the hole in the middle of the board. Turn the hippo's head until it is "above" the water. Nelly has surfaced.
Shuffle all of the water plant counters face-up. Each player now draws a number of turtle and water plant counters that depends on the number of players (see below). You then lay out the water plant counters in front of you at the edge of the board without looking at the symbol on the back.
The turtles are then placed on the water plants.
Game Material and Layout with 2 Players
- 9 turtles per player: 3 red, 3 yellow and 3 orange.
- 9 water plant counters.
This is how the turtles are placed on the water plants.
Game Material and Layout with 3 Players
- 6 turtles per player: 2 red, 2 yellow and 2 orange.
- 6 water plant counters.
This is how the turtles are placed on the water plants.
Game Material and Layout with 4 Players
- 5 turtles per player:
- Player 1: 2 red, 2 orange, 1 yellow
- Player 2: 2 red, 1 orange, 2 yellow
- Player 3: 2 red, 1 orange, 2 yellow
- Player 4: 1 red, 2 orange, 2 yellow
- 5 water plants.
This is how the turtles are placed on the water plants.
N.B.: The colours of the turtles are not the colours of the players. Each player always plays with all colours!
Sequence of Play and Possible Moves
The last of you to have seen a hippopotamus at the zoo starts the game by pulling Nelly towards him/herself by the head.
The dice is thrown at the beginning of each round. The dice has 6 different symbols and you must make a different move depending on the symbol.
‘Turtles and Water Plants’ Dice Symbol
The dice has four "Turtles and Water Plants" faces. They show, respectively: yellow, orange and red turtles together; yellow turtle; orange turtle; and red turtle. Each is shown on a water plant.
If the dice shows one of these four symbols, your move is in two stages: 1st Feeding Nelly and 2nd Positioning a Turtle. You have to be careful though, because the other players have to do something too during these stages.
1. Feeding Nelly (only possible from the second round)
No matter which side of Nelly points head upwards, take one of the water plant counters in front of you which does not have a turtle on it and turn it over. On the back you will see either a small crab or a rotten water plant. The following now happens, depending on the motif:
- Crab: A crab pinched Nelly in the nose while she was eating, so you must now carefully turn the hippo's head to the other side. If any turtles slide into the water here from the hippo's head or back, you must place them on your free water plant counters. If you don't have enough free spaces, put the excess turtles back into the box.
- Rotten water plant: The rotten water plant doesn't agree with Nelly, so she has to pass wind. Even though the smell is terrible, it doesn't bother you. During Stage 2 Positioning a Turtle, you can use your favoured hand to place your turtle! The other players have to hold their nose with their favoured hand, however, and place one of their turtles with the other hand.
Note: If all of your water plant counters have a turtle on them, you can not feed Nelly.
Picture captions: "Turn the head around carefully." "Your favoured hand is the one that you normally use to draw with." "You should use the other hand here."
Water plant counters that have been turned over should be removed from the game and returned to the box.
2. Positioning a Turtle
Take one of your turtles in the colour shown on the dice and place it on the hippo's head or back.
Observe the following here:
- There may be no more than 2 turtles on Nelly's head.
- No turtles can be placed on Nelly's head when she is submerged.
- Turtles can be stacked or propped up against the heron.
- Turtles may not be laid on their shell or be stuck into one of the heron holes.
If you don't have any turtles left that match the colour on the dice, you cannot make this move.
It is now the turn of the other players in your round to position a turtle. The player sitting on your right begins. He or she must place a turtle on the hippo's back in the colour shown on the dice. The others then follow in turn and place a turtle on Nelly's back. The other players may not place a turtle on the hippo's head.
If the other players don't have any turtles left that match the colour on the dice, they cannot make this move.
Placing the turtles leaves the water plant counters vacant. Leave them lying at the edge of the board.
(See "End of a Round" for instructions on how to continue.)
The dice always shows the colours of the turtles that can be positioned during your round. If all of the colours are shown, each player can pick the colour of their choice.
Picture captions: "1 or 2 turtles can be positioned here." "No turtles can be placed here." "Any number of turtles can be placed on Nelly's back, but they must not be laid upside down."
‘Heron’ Dice Symbol
When the dice shows the heron, you must move it to one of the free holes on Nelly's back. If you can't see the holes, you must carefully move the turtles to the side using the heron. Take good care here that no turtles slide into the water.
(See "End of a Round" for instructions on how to continue.)
‘Water Plants’ Dice Symbol
Nelly gets an extra portion of food when you throw the water plants symbol. Take a free water plant counter and put it back in the box. Do not turn over the counter this time and do not complete the move on the back.
(See "End of a Round" for instructions on how to continue.)
Turtles Fall into the Water!
If any turtles fall into the water while you are making a move (turning the hippo's head, positioning a turtle, shifting the heron, passing on the hippo), you must place them immediately onto your unoccupied water plant counters.
If any turtles fall into the water while another player is making a move, he or she must place them immediately onto their unoccupied water plant counters.
Excess turtles should be put back into the box.
End of a Round
Once all possible moves have been made, you turn the hippo by the head to the next player. Keep turning Nelly until her whole body is lying in front of the player sitting on your right. Your round is now finished. The player on your right now begins a new round by throwing the dice.
How to Pass on Nelly when Playing with 2
You do not have to turn the hippo all the way to the other player. Just turn it half way and leave the rest up to your opponent.
End of the Game
The game ends as soon as one player succeeds in placing his or her last turtle. This player is the winner of this wobbly board game.