NFL Rush Zone
NFL Rush Zone Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 board
- 8 dice (6 white, 2 green)
- 35 ball tokens
- 1 football token (for placing the ball tokens)
- 36 end zone pieces
- 1 scoring pad
- 2 goalposts
- 2 walls (shaped like a football)
- 1 NFL coin
- 4 pylons (to fix the end zones)
- 32 pawns (Rusherz)
- 10 bases
Setup
- Each player chooses a pawn (Rusherz) and an end zone of their favorite team.
- Assemble the ball tokens (of the chosen team) into a football shape on the football token. The ball tokens must be visible. See Fig. 1.
- Assemble the rest of the pieces: place the end zone (of the chosen team) on the board together with the pylons and the goalposts, and the walls. See Figs. 2 and 3.
- On the scoring pad, write which player plays as the offense as Team 1 and which plays as the defense as Team 2.
- Each player uses 3 white dice and 1 green die.
Objective: Win by scoring the most points possible across the four quarters (Qtr., or opportunities) of the game.
Deciding offense and defense: Toss the coin. The youngest player always chooses whether to call heads (the NFL logo) or tails (the shield). The winner of the toss decides whether to kick off (play as the defense) or receive the ball (play as the offense). The other player kicks off at the start of the 2nd half. Place the football token on the 20-yard line (marked with a star), with the side showing the team that is on defense facing up.
Kickoff: Both players roll their green dice. The difference of the roll (offense minus defense) determines how many spaces the ball moves, as explained below.
- TOUCHBACK (dead ball): If the difference is 0, or -2 or lower. The ball lands in the offense's zone. Place the ball token on the offense's 20-yard line.
- Example: offense 2, defense 2 gives 0. Offense 1, defense 4 gives -3.
- DEFENSIVE STOP: If the difference is +1 or -1. Place the ball token on the offense's 10-yard line.
- Example: offense 4, defense 5 gives -1. Offense 3, defense 2 gives +1.
- CATCH AND RUN: If the difference is +2 or more. Move the number of spaces indicated by the result, starting from your end zone.
- Example: offense 6, defense 2 gives +4 (40 yards). Offense 4, defense 2 gives +2 (20 yards).
Based on the result, the offense moves the ball to its starting position and flips the token to the offense's side, aiming toward the defense's end zone.
Special Rolls
These are rolls that can help the offense advance or stop the offense.
THE OFFENSE ROLLS DOUBLES (breaking the tackle): If you roll doubles with the white dice within the first 3 downs, and this is your 1st opportunity, move 20 yards (2 spaces) instead of 10.
- Example: you roll "4" twice.
- Note: you cannot use the green die of the 4th down to get this bonus.
THE OFFENSE ROLLS TRIPLES (long pass): If the offense rolls 3 identical dice (the green die of the 4th down may be included), the quarterback makes a long pass to the receiver. This lets you move the number of spaces you rolled on that roll (if you roll three "3"s, you move 3 spaces). A triple beats any defensive roll, even if the defense's number is higher.
- Example: roll "3" three times, for +30 yards.
- Note: if both players roll triples, the higher number takes priority. If both roll triples of the same number, the bonus goes to the offense.
THE DEFENSE ROLLS TRIPLES (loose ball): If the defense rolls a triple with any of its dice (including the green die of the 4th down), you have lost the ball. You move back, and the opponent begins a counterattack toward your end zone. The defense moves the ball according to the number rolled on the dice (for example, three 4s means you move back 40 yards). If it reaches the end zone, it is a TOUCHDOWN! A triple beats any offensive roll, even if the offense's number is higher.
- Example: roll "4" three times, for -40 yards (loose ball).
- Note: if both players roll triples, the higher number takes priority. If both roll triples of the same number, the bonus goes to the offense.
Winning the Game
The team with the highest score at the end of the 4 quarters wins.
- Overtime: If there is a tie, play 1 extra quarter (OT in the scoring pad). Toss the coin to decide which team plays as the offense first.
- Kickoff: As explained at the beginning of the manual.
- If the offense scores a touchdown, it wins.
- If the offense punts the ball or scores a field goal, the other team gets 1 opportunity to score.
- If the second team scores more points on its turn, that team wins.
- If the tie persists after the second team's turn, the next team to score wins!
Getting to the End Zone
- As the offense, you may advance 10 yards (1 space) at a time, as long as you win the dice roll against the defense.
- Each player uses 3 white dice. Roll the dice against the football-shaped wall, and each white die counts as one down. At the end, the 3 downs are added together. Who has more points?
IF THE OFFENSE'S ROLL IS GREATER OR TIED: 1st down! Advance 10 yards (1 space) and you have a new set of downs.
- Example: Offense 6, 2, 4 = 12. Defense 3, 5, 1 = 9. Result: +10 yards.
IF THE DEFENSE'S ROLL IS GREATER: The offense plays the 4th down. Example: Offense 3, 4, 1 = 8. Defense 5, 6, 5 = 16.
For the youngest players in the house: roll the dice one at a time. Whoever has the highest number on that roll wins the down and scores 1 point. Ties are scored as 0 points.
4th Down
On the offense's 4th down you may choose between the 1st down, attempting a field goal, or punting the ball. Both players roll their green dice and add their value to the roll of the white dice.
IF THE OFFENSE'S ROLL IS GREATER OR TIED: 1st down! Advance 10 yards (1 space) and you have a new set of downs.
- Example: Offense 6, 2, 1 + 5 = 14. Defense 3, 5, 3 + 2 = 13. Result: +10 yards.
IF THE DEFENSE'S ROLL IS GREATER: Flip the ball token to its other side. The offense's turn ends, the defense becomes the new offense, and play starts from the current yard line or position of the ball token. The defense obtains the ball.
- Example: Offense 6, 2, 1 + 1 = 10. Defense 3, 5, 3 + 4 = 15.
For the youngest players in the house: both players roll their green dice to increase their score. Add this last roll to the total of the first 2 downs.
Field Goal
A field goal may be attempted when you are on the defense's 50-yard line or closer to their end zone. Roll the green die: you must roll a number higher than your current position.
- If you succeed, you score 3 points, and the opponent takes its kickoff.
- If you fail (you roll a number lower than or equal to your position), the offense's turn ends, the ball token is flipped, and the defense becomes the new offense, starting from the current position of the ball.
- Example: To attempt a field goal from the 30-yard line, you must roll a 4, 5, or 6 on the green die.
Punt (Despejar)
You must announce before making this move. Then the offense rolls its green die and moves the ball according to the result (1 space per yard) before the defense takes possession of the ball.
- Note: If the punt goes into the defense's end zone, it is a touchback, and the other team starts from the 20-yard line.
- Example: If you roll a 3 on the green die, you move the ball token 30 yards (3 spaces) toward the defense.
Touchdown
If the offense moves the ball into the defense's end zone, it is a touchdown and scores 6 points. The offense must then decide whether to automatically receive 1 extra point or attempt a 2-point conversion.
Two-Point Conversion
Both players roll their green dice and compare their rolls.
IF THE OFFENSE'S ROLL IS GREATER OR TIED: You get 2 extra points, for 8 in total. The offense then performs the kickoff so that the defense becomes the offense with its correct kickoff.
- Example: Offense 6 vs. defense 2 = 2 points.
IF THE DEFENSE'S ROLL IS GREATER: You do not get the extra points. The offense performs the kickoff so that the defense becomes the offense with its correct kickoff.
- Example: Offense 3 vs. defense 4 = 0 points.
End of a Quarter, Halftime and Two-Minute Warning
- End of a quarter: Both teams play in turns. After each team has had its turn, that is 1 round. A quarter consists of 3 rounds. 4 quarters are played in total.
- Halftime: When the 2nd quarter ends, halftime begins. The team that started as the offense in the 1st half now becomes the defense. The other team takes the kickoff, performed as usual.
- Two-minute warning: In the last round of the 2nd quarter (2nd) and of the final quarter (4th), the second player to possess the ball has one last chance to score. Then halftime or the end of the game follows, respectively.
Scoring
Record all of your moves on the scoring pad.
- The pad is divided by quarters (Qtr.). Each team has its own scoring area, that is, each team records its points under its own name.
- Each quarter has 3 small boxes for the offense's turns (at the top), marked "OFF.", and at the bottom for the defense's turns, marked "DEF.". The largest box (central) records the total scored in the quarter (Qtr.).
- If you score on your 1st, 2nd or 3rd turn in the respective quarter (Qtr.), write it in the respective box, depending on whether you were the offense or the defense.
- If you fail and do not score any points, write an "X".
- At the end of each quarter (Qtr.), add the scores of both the defense and the offense and write the total in the large box. At the end, add the 4 quarter (Qtr.) results to determine the winner!
- Example: The team made a field goal on the 1st turn as the offense (3 points). Then, on the 2nd turn on defense, it took advantage of a loss of the ball and scored a touchdown with 1 extra point (7 points). The first quarter's total is 10.