Saboteur: The Duel
Saboteur: The Duel Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Pieces
74 cards:
- 36 Path Cards
- 18 Action Cards
- 18 Goal Cards
- 2 Dwarf Cards
Plus:
- 1 Punchboard with 8 Dwarf Counters, 2 Keys, and 2 Dwarves with bases
Saboteur for 2 Players
Preparation
Separate the path cards, action cards, goal cards, and dwarf cards.
Each player picks one dwarf card and puts it in front of him, face up. (You may use the two punch-out dwarves instead of the dwarf cards.)
Among the 36 path cards, you will find 2 start cards (each showing a ladder and a dwarf's hat). Shuffle the 18 goal cards and place 6 of them on the table face down together with the two start cards, as shown in the setup diagram. You won't need the other goal cards until the next round. Over the course of the game, a maze of pathways is created from the start cards to the goal cards. Note that these pathways may extend beyond the card grid shown in the illustration.
The setup diagram places the two start cards a distance of four card widths apart, with the 6 face-down goal cards arranged beyond them.
Quick game setup: use the markings on the right edge of the rulebook to measure the correct distance between the start and goal cards.
Shuffle the remaining 34 path cards and all the action cards together. Without looking at them, deal 6 cards to each player. This is their starting hands. The remaining cards make up the face-down draw pile. Put it within easy reach of both players. A discard pile will form next to the draw pile during the game.
The 8 dwarf counters and the 2 keys should also be in easy reach of both players.
The green dwarf begins, then take turns alternately.
How to Play
On his turn, the active player must choose only one of these four possible actions:
| Action | Cards to Draw |
|---|---|
| A. Add 1 path card to the maze | 1 |
| B. Play 1 action card | 1 |
| C. Discard 2 cards to remove 1 action card in front of them | 1 |
| D. Pass and discard 1 or 2 cards face-down | 1 or 2 |
After the action, the player draws one or two cards (see chart above) to end the turn, then it's the next player's turn.
Note: If the draw pile runs out, players do not draw any more cards. However, they still have to choose one of the four possible actions on their turn. If a player runs out of hand cards, he must sit out the rest of the round.
The round ends when either all 6 goal cards have been revealed or all 8 dwarf tokens have been placed or the draw pile runs out and both players have no cards left in their hands.
A. Playing a Path Card
The path cards create a labyrinth between the start cards and goal cards. A new pathway card must always be placed next to a path card that is already on the table. All paths on a card have to match and connect to the paths on the cards next to it. Pathway cards must not be played horizontally. Both players try to connect their own start card to the goal cards. This can lead to the paths of the two players merging. If that happens, both players can use the merged paths.
Important: When a player plays a new path card, it has to have an unbroken path connecting it to that player's own start card.
Goal Cards
If a player creates an unbroken connection from either of the start cards to one of the face-down goal cards, reveal that goal card and return it, face-up, back to the same place so its paths line up with the path cards next to it. If there are two possible ways to do this, the player who made the connection chooses one.
Note: There is a chance that the goal card won't match up with the path cards already on the table. This is the only case in which players are allowed to place a card without exactly connecting it to all adjacent paths.
Special Path Cards
Bridge (x2) and Double Bend (x2): The paths shown on these cards are not connected to each other. When playing one of these cards, at least one of the two paths on the card must have an unbroken connection to the player's start card.
Path with Gold (x5): Gold nuggets have no effect on the connection of pathways. However, they can be collected by the players (see "Claiming Gold Nuggets").
Path with Door (x6 + x8 on goal cards): A path with a blue or green door can only be used by the dwarf of the matching color. The door is an obstacle for the other dwarf, unless he uses a key to unlock it (see "Playing an Action Card").
Path with Ladder (x2): The path on this card is automatically connected to the start card of the same color. It can be placed next to any other card except goal cards or path cards with gold. Note: A connection to the start card is not necessary for this card.
Path with Troll (x3): The troll blocks the path behind it. If a player wants to pass a troll, he has to bribe it with 1 gold nugget. If a player decides to do this, take one dwarf counter and put it on the troll with that player's color face-up. At the end of the round, that player must pay 1 gold nugget. Note: Once the troll has been bribed, the path is cleared for both players.
Claiming Gold Nuggets
If a player manages to create an unbroken connection between his own start card and a card with gold, he takes a dwarf counter from the supply and places it on the gold with his own color face-up. This is gold he will receive at the end of the round, even if the connection is broken later on.
Note: If a player creates a connection between their opponent's start card and the gold instead of a connection to his own start card, his opponent gets to immediately put a dwarf counter on the gold.
B. Playing an Action Card
Action cards can be used to sabotage an opponent, to aid oneself, to remove cards from the tunnel maze, or to gain information about the goal cards:
Sabotage: A sabotage card is placed face-up in front of the other player. A player with any sabotage cards in front of him cannot add path cards to the maze on his turn. All other actions (playing an action card / discarding 2 cards / passing) are still available to him, however. There can only be one card with each symbol in front of each player.
Repair: A repair card allows the player to remove a sabotage card that is currently in front of him. To do so, he must play a card with a green symbol that matches the red symbol on the sabotage card. Then, both the sabotage and repair cards are put on the discard pile. If a player plays a card showing two green symbols, they can still only remove one matching sabotage card, not both.
Key: A key card allows a player to open a door of his opponent's color: he takes one of the key tokens and puts it on the door in question. This door remains open until the end of the round. The key card is discarded. Note: The key card may also help a player reach gold that doesn't have a dwarf counter on it yet. In this case, the player takes a dwarf counter and puts it on the gold piece with their color face-up.
Rockslide: With a rockslide card, a player removes one card of his choice from the tunnel maze. The removed card and the rockslide card are both added to the discard pile. Important: A rockslide cannot remove start cards, goal cards, path cards with gold, or cards with a troll from the maze.
Treasure Map: A treasure map allows the player who played it to look at one of the face-down goal cards. He looks at it secretly, then returns it to its place. The treasure map card is discarded.
C. Discarding 2 Cards
By discarding any 2 cards from his hand, a player may remove and discard any one sabotage card in front of him. Please note that if a player decides to do so, he only draws 1 card at the end of his turn. So, each time a player picks this action, he reduces the number of cards in his hand by 1 until the end of that round.
D. Passing
If a player cannot or does not want to perform Actions A-C (play one card or sacrifice 2 cards to remove a sabotage card), he must pass and discard 1 or 2 cards from his hand, face down. In this case, he draws the same number of cards from the draw pile.
The End of a Round
A round ends as soon as one of the following conditions is met:
- All 6 goal cards have been turned face-up.
- All 8 dwarf counters have been placed.
- The draw pile is exhausted and both players are out of cards.
Each player takes all path cards with gold that have a dwarf counter of their color on them. These cards stay in front of the players—they don't go back into play for the following rounds.
If the players have bribed any trolls this round, they have to pay them now. Each bribed troll costs 1 gold nugget. If a player can't pay the exact price, he has to pay with a more valuable card. Trolls don't give change.
Bribe cards and any uncollected goal cards go back into the box without being revealed.
A New Round Begins
Put the start cards and 6 new goal cards on the table, as before. Shuffle all the action cards and the remaining path cards together to create a new face-down draw pile and deal 6 cards to each player. All dwarf counters and keys are available again for the new round.
The player who has fewer gold nuggets starts the next round. If there is a draw, the blue dwarf goes first.
End of the Game
The game ends after the third round. The player who has collected the most gold nuggets wins the game.
Saboteur for 1 Player
The solo game follows the same rules as the duel, except for the following changes:
Preparation
Pick one dwarf color of your choice and put the other dwarf card and the second start card back in the box. You only use 6 dwarf counters.
The space between the start card and the goal cards is 7 card widths.
At the start of each round, randomly remove 10 cards from the draw pile. They are set aside and not used until the next round.
Playing the Game—Action Cards
When you draw a sabotage card from the draw pile, you must put it in front of you immediately, then draw another card. If you draw a sabotage card that you already have in front of you, the second card goes on the discard pile without any further effect.
If you draw a rockslide, you must play it immediately and remove the last path card played that does not have gold or a troll on it.
Starting a New Round
Return the 10 cards set aside at the start of the round to the deck. Then prepare the next round as described above.
End of the Game
Your goal is to collect as many gold nuggets as possible over three rounds. Depending on how many you collected, you score the following results:
| Gold Collected | Result |
|---|---|
| 0-14 points | Can't win 'em all... |
| 15-19 points | Not too bad. |
| 20-24 points | Looks like you can sniff out gold! |
| 25+ points | You're the boss of the tunnels! |
Publisher Information
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