Rooster Run
Rooster Run Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- 32 Chicken Cards
- 12 Sweetheart Cards
- 6 Rooster rings
- 40 Earthworm Tokens
- 8 Broken Heart Chips
Introduction
The sun is rising and the roosters are crowing! They say the early bird gets the worm, but he also gets the affection of his sweetheart! Get ready to start the hunt for love, as you search for the most worthy earthworms to woo the hearts of the hens on the farm.
Object of the Game
Be the fastest player to find the Earthworm Tokens illustrated on the faceup Chicken Cards to earn as many points as possible at the end of the game.
Set-Up
Randomly distribute a Sweetheart Card to each player. This card indicates which Chicken Card will score that player an additional 5 points at the end of the game. Players secretly look at their Sweetheart Cards then place them facedown in front of them, and may consult them again at will for the rest of the game.
Place the Broken Heart Chips within reach of all players in the center of the table.
Shuffle the Chicken Cards together and place them in a facedown pile on the table.
Shuffle the 40 Earthworm Tokens (including the 8 blank tokens) and place them in a facedown group next to the Broken Heart Chips and Chicken Cards.
Each player gets a chicken ring to be placed on his index finger.
Set-up for 4 Players
Playing the Game
The game is played in 4 rounds, with all players playing simultaneously.
To begin the game, turn 8 Chicken Cards faceup and place them next to the Earthworm Tokens so that everyone can see them. Each Chicken Card shows which Earthworm that chicken is looking for and the number of points that it will earn at the end of the game.
Beginning of a round for 4 Players
Once all players are familiar with the 8 faceup Chicken Cards, the hunt for Earthworms begins!
Using only one hand, while imitating the sound of a chicken pecking, players begin searching for the Earthworm Tokens shown on the faceup Chicken Cards. Players pick up one token at a time using their thumb and index finger and look at the image printed on the other side.
- If a player wants to keep the Earthworm Token, he places it faceup in front of himself and the other players can no longer take it.
- If he is not interested he returns it facedown to the center of the table.
NOTE: You are not allowed to look at more than one Earthworm Token at a time. If you already have one in your hand, you must either put it in front of you, or return it facedown to the middle of the table.
End of a Round
When a player has placed TWO Earthworms faceup in front of himself, he can either end the round by calling out "Cock-a-doodle-do!" or he can choose to continue to look for more valuable Earthworms if he first returns one of his worms back to the table facedown.
After one of the players calls out "Cock-a-doodle-do!" all players must stop playing immediately. Any Earthworms still in hand are placed in front of the players holding them.
The player who called "Cock-a-doodle-do!" scores the Chicken Cards that match his Earthworms (after validation from the other players). He also receives a Broken Heart Chip for each Earthworm in front of him that does not match a faceup Chicken Card in play.
All the other players then take turns validating and scoring their Earthworm Tokens. These players DO NOT need to take any Broken Heart Chips for Earthworms taken in error (only the player who called out "Cock-a-doodle-do!" is penalized for mistakes each round).
Example:
- Player 2 has collected 2 Earthworms. He ends the round by calling out "Cock-a-doodle-do!" and takes the Chicken Cards A and D corresponding to its Earthworms.
- Player 1 takes the Chicken Card H because he has the corresponding Earthworm.
- Player 3 takes the Chicken Card G because he has the corresponding Earthworm, and he will earn an additional 5 points at the end of the game for scoring the Chicken Card that matches his Sweetheart Card.
- Player 4 does not have any matching Earthworms, so he returns his incorrect Earthworm facedown to the center of the table (but does NOT take a Broken Heart Chip for his mistake because he was not the player who called out "Cock-a-doodle-do!").
Earthworms that do not match any Chicken Card in play are returned facedown back to the center of the table, and any successfully matched Earthworms are placed in the game box and will not be used for the rest of this game.
NOTE: If a player has 4 (or more) Broken Heart Chips, he is immediately eliminated from the game.
Any remaining Chicken Cards are discarded and 8 new Chicken Cards are turned faceup. Any remaining Earthworms on the table are shuffled together facedown and a new round begins.
End of the Game
After 4 rounds of play, the game ends and players score their Chicken Cards. Players with Broken Heart Chips must present their scored Chicken Cards facedown to the player on their left, who then randomly chooses and discards one card for each Broken Heart Chip.
The players then count the points on their Chicken Cards:
- Each Chicken Card scores the value printed on it.
- If a player scored the Chicken Card that matches his Sweetheart Card, then he earns an additional 5 points.
Example:
- Player 1 scores 8 points (including 5 points with his Sweetheart Card).
- Player 2 has 1 Broken Heart token and presents its 3 Chicken Cards facedown to the player on its left (Player 1) who chooses and discards one card. He scores 4 points with the two remaining cards.
- Player 3 scores 4 points.
- Player 4 scores 3 points.
The player with the most points after 4 rounds wins the game. In the case of a tie, the player who has managed to score the Chicken Card that matches their Sweetheart Card wins. Otherwise, the player who has the highest scoring Chicken Card wins. If the game is still tied, then both players are considered masters of the farmyard.
Player 1 wins the game!
Variations
To make it easier for younger children, you can play with any or all of the following optional rules:
- Remove the Sweetheart Cards (do not play with them).
- Remove all the Earthworms Tokens of one color along with the corresponding Chicken Cards and Sweetheart Cards. (The game will be played in 3 rounds with 24 Chicken Cards and 9 Sweetheart Cards).
- Older players are forbidden from scoring the highest valued Chicken Cards each round. (Adults playing with children cannot score Chicken Cards with values of 5, 6 or 7).
To make it more challenging for experienced players, each player can keep their Earthworm Tokens facedown in front of them (instead of faceup) after picking them up from the center of the table.