Ratzeputz
Ratzeputz Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 game board "Gemüsegarten" (vegetable garden)
- 1 turntable with 2 sides
- 1 cloth bag with 19 roots (10 orange, 6 yellow, 3 red)
- 6 carrot tops with magnet
- 1 dwarf figure "Tilli"
- 1 die
Each carrot consists of a carrot top and a root. The two parts can be put together and taken apart again.
Labels on the board diagram (as printed): "Briefkasten mit Pfeil" (mailbox with arrow); "Grifflöcher am Eingang zum Hasenbau" (grip holes at the entrance to the rabbit burrow); "Startfeld mit Zwerg Tilli" (start space with dwarf Tilli); "Steinfeld" (stone space); "Hase Ratzeputz" (rabbit Ratzeputz); "Loch" (hole); "Möhrengrün" (carrot top); "Rübe" (root).
Goal of the Game
You all play together. If, at the end of the game, you have harvested more roots together than Ratzeputz was able to steal, you win!
Setup
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Take all the game material out of the box. Carefully break out and dispose of the parts marked with a trash can before the first game. Place the turntable into the box insert with the easy side (Ratzeputz and Mole Blinki) or the tricky side (two Ratzeputz) facing up.
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Place the game board in the box so that it clicks into place and the arrow under the mailbox lies exactly over the arrow in the box insert. Using the grip holes at the entrance to the rabbit burrow, you can move the turntable with your finger. Turn the turntable in the direction of the arrow until five holes and Ratzeputz are visible between the stone spaces.
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Place the carrot tops over the five holes and over Ratzeputz. Put dwarf Tilli on the stone space behind the garden gate. Place the die and the bag with the roots next to the box.
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Now draw a root blind from the bag and take any carrot top from the garden. If you find Ratzeputz under the carrot top, cover him again with the carrot top and take another one. Now put the root and the carrot top together. Then carefully push the whole carrot into the hole. Do this exactly three times. All players should remember well where the three roots were planted.
Turn Order
Play goes clockwise. The youngest player begins.
How to Play
1. Roll the Die and Move Tilli
If you roll pips, move Tilli forward the matching number of stone spaces. You may move Tilli clockwise or counterclockwise, but not forward and then back in the same turn. If you roll the carrot, you may move Tilli to any stone space.
2. Choose a Carrot
Tilli stands between two carrots in his garden. Carefully pull one of the two carrots out of the ground – either the left one or the right one. If you are not sure where roots were planted and harvested, the other players may now give you tips.
3. What Happens Now?
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If you discover a root, you may harvest it: take the root from the carrot top and place it in front of you on the table. If the player before you planted this root, you may still harvest it immediately afterward. Then put the carrot top back over the hole without a root.
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If you discover no root, you must plant a new one: draw a root blind from the bag and put it together with the carrot top. Then push the whole carrot carefully into the hole. Watch out – now Ratzeputz comes! The fresh root smells – like all the other roots – so irresistibly good that Ratzeputz immediately hops over to steal it. Now turn the turntable exactly one grip hole in the direction of the arrow. If you hear a plop while turning, Ratzeputz has indeed stolen a root. It lies now in the rabbit burrow and you can unfortunately no longer harvest it.
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If you discover Ratzeputz under the carrot top, you must unfortunately feed a root to him: draw a root blind from the bag and place it with its flat side on the hole from which Ratzeputz is peeking out with his mouth wide open. Now turn the turntable with a swing exactly one grip hole in the direction of the arrow. In doing so the root plops – and perhaps a second one too, because the rabbit family is very greedy! – into the rabbit burrow. Put the carrot top back over the hole without a root.
Now the next player in clockwise order is up. They roll the die and play as described.
End of the Game
The game ends when you have drawn the last root from the bag and planted it. Do not forget to turn the turntable one more grip hole in the direction of the arrow afterward: after all, Ratzeputz does not want to miss this last root! It may also happen that you have to feed the last root in the bag directly to Ratzeputz.
Now count your harvested roots and check in the rabbit burrow how many roots Ratzeputz was able to steal. To do this, place Tilli next to the box and carefully pull the carrots out of the garden. Roots still on the underside of a carrot top are not counted. Then take the game board and the turntable out of the box insert.
If you have harvested more roots together than Ratzeputz stole, you win! If Ratzeputz has collected more roots than all of you together, he wins! In case of a tie, everyone wins: you together with Tilli and Ratzeputz.
What Happens to Roots That ...
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... fall into the rabbit burrow while being harvested? They belong to Ratzeputz. Instead of harvesting, you must plant a new root and turn the turntable one grip hole further in the direction of the arrow.
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... fall into the rabbit burrow while being planted? They belong to Ratzeputz. Afterward you must turn the turntable one grip hole further in the direction of the arrow.
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... are still on the underside of a carrot top at the end of the game and fall into the rabbit burrow when pulled out? They also belong to Ratzeputz.
Rules for Two Players
If you play with two players, use the turntable with the tricky side.
Rules for Older Children
At the end of the game, the root values, which differ by root color, are added up: orange roots count 1 point, yellow roots 2 points, and red roots 3 points. If you have collected more points in total – that is, the more valuable roots – than Ratzeputz, you win together. If Ratzeputz has more points, he wins.
Remember well where you planted the most valuable and the less valuable roots. Try to harvest the most valuable roots first and leave the less valuable ones to Ratzeputz. For an even more exciting game, use the turntable with the tricky side.