Night Knight
Night Knight Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- 2 pillows
- 56 character cards, of which:
- 7 sleeping dragons
- 7 Kings of Silence
- 21 attacking knights
- 21 defending knights
The pillows and their covers are machine washable (40°). Not suitable for a tumble dryer. Air drying recommended.
Setup
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Place the following number of pillows in the middle of your play area so that everyone can reach them easily:
- 1 pillow in a 3-player game
- 2 pillows in a game with 4, 5 or 6 players
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Shuffle the 56 character cards into a face-down deck and deal them out to everyone as follows:
- 12 cards each in a game with 3 or 4 players
- 8 cards each in a game with 5 or 6 players
Return all remaining character cards to the box without looking at them.
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Do not look at your character cards. Place them as face-down personal piles in front of you.
You are now ready to play!
Watch out! In this crazy game you throw pillows at each other! So before every game make sure there is nothing fragile around you, because pillows will soon be flying everywhere!
Illustrated: example setup for 4 players.
Gameplay
Each game consists of several rounds. Each round is divided into 2 phases: first the quickly played action phase and then the equally quickly played resolution phase.
1. Action Phase
Everyone simultaneously reveals the top card of their personal pile.
IMPORTANT: Reveal your cards by taking them by the edge that points away from you. As a result the others see them first. If someone tries to look at their own card before revealing it, that person is out for this round and places the card face down under their own pile.
Your revealed cards show which character you play in your dream this round: either an attacking or defending knight, a sleeping dragon or a King of Silence.
Now you must recognize as quickly as possible which characters were revealed and therefore which action you must take:
Attacking Knight: If you reveal an attacking knight and at least 1 defending knight was also revealed, the pillows fly! Grab 1 pillow from the middle as quickly as possible and throw it at a person who revealed a defending knight.
Careful! Don't throw the pillows directly into anyone's eyes!
If no defending knight was revealed, there is no pillow fight. Don't take a pillow, because you can't throw it at anyone.
Defending Knight: If you reveal a defending knight and at least 1 attacking knight was also revealed, the pillows fly! Grab 1 pillow from the middle as quickly as possible and hold it protectively in front of you to fend off pillows thrown at you!
If no attacking knight was revealed, there is no pillow fight. Don't take a pillow, because you don't need to protect yourself from anything.
NOTE: You carry out the actions simultaneously, but it doesn't matter if you are of different speeds. However, each pillow may only be used for exactly 1 action. If an attacking knight throws a pillow at you and the 2nd pillow is still in the middle, you may still grab it and hold it protectively in front of you.
Sleeping Dragon: If you reveal a sleeping dragon, grab a pillow from the middle as quickly as possible and hold it against your ear to show that you are peacefully slumbering.
King of Silence: If you reveal at least 1 King of Silence, nobody may carry out an action this round. So you may not grab a pillow. The King of Silence rules over the knights and dragons, so don't anger him!
IMPORTANT!
- Even if 2 pillows are in play, each person may grab exactly 1 pillow from the middle each round, never both.
- You may never grab pillows that have already been used for an action this round. You must always grab pillows lying unused in the middle of your play area.
- As soon as you touch a pillow with your hand, it counts as carrying out an action. So think well and fast so that you make no mistakes.
2. Resolution Phase
As soon as it's calm again, look together at all the character cards you revealed this round. Check whether you carried out the right action this round or whether you made a mistake in the heat of battle:
If you carried out the right action, return your character card to the box. You are getting ever closer to waking up and thus to victory!
BUT if
- you carried out the wrong action,
- you did not carry out an action correctly,
- you accidentally touched a pillow,
- you were not fast enough to carry out an action,
place your character card face down under your pile.
Example round 1 — Action phase: A grabs 1 of the two pillows and throws it at D. At the same time D grabs the 2nd pillow and throws it at A. B and C react too slowly and carry out no actions. Resolution phase: A had to grab a pillow, since A's character card shows an attacking knight and D has a defending knight. So A carried out the right action and returns their character card to the box. As a defending knight, D also had to grab a pillow, but in the rush got it wrong and threw a pillow instead of protecting themself with it. So D carried out the wrong action and places their character card face down under their own pile. B and C were both too slow for an action. Consequently they both place their character card under their pile.
Example round 2 — Action phase: D grabs 1 pillow and holds it to their ear to peacefully slumber. At the same time C grabs the 2nd pillow and throws it at A. A and B decide to do nothing. Resolution phase: B revealed a King of Silence, so nobody should have carried out an action – that is, grabbed a pillow! C and D made a mistake. Both place their character card under their pile. A and B did nothing and so acted correctly. Both return their character card to the box.
At the end of the resolution phase, after you have all either discarded your character cards or placed them under your pile, put the pillow(s) back in the middle of your play area and then begin the next round.
End of the Game
The game ends as soon as someone discards their last character card and thereby wakes up. That person wins. If 2 or more people wake up at the same time, they share the victory.
Squire Mode
- To make the game easier for younger children, remove the 7 Kings of Silence from the deck before playing and return them to the box.
- Then play with the remaining 49 character cards as usual.