Scruples: Millennium Edition
Scruples: Millennium Edition Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Here's what you get in the box
252 Dilemma Cards • 36 Reply Cards (YES, NO, DEPENDS) • 12 Fifth Amendment Cards • 12 Voting Chips
Here's what you do to start a game
One player deals the other players 5 Dilemma Cards and one Reply Card. The cards are secret. Don't go showin' everybody. Each player also gets one Voting Chip and one Fifth Amendment Card.
Here's how you win
Get rid of all the Dilemma Cards in your hand. You do this by correctly guessing how other players will answer those dilemmas. That's it.
Here's what you do
The first thing to do is apologize to your friends, family, and all other players for what is about to occur. Another good thing to do is to think of all the dirt you have on these people. Remember embarrassing stories. Recall the moral slips and the moral victories. Store these tidbits away. You'll need them.
One person starts. Let's say it's you. Look at your Reply Card. This reads "YES," "NO," or "DEPENDS." If it reads anything else then you have a card from a different game. Now read your Dilemma Cards. Then look at the other players. Now put them all together. Try to pick a person to ask a dilemma to who will give you the response that you have on your Reply Card.
At this point you ask the question. Feel free to embellish it or change a few details to make it more relevant. Don't change it completely--the dilemma should remain the same.
The person you ask must answer "YES," "NO," or "DEPENDS." "YES" and "NO" can be answered as is, just the word. A "DEPENDS" answer needs a reason, such as "Depends on whether someone saw me" or "Depends on how much money I have." Something like that.
Now look at your Reply Card. Got a match? Slam down that Reply Card, let out a big "HAH!" Point your finger around the room, and show everyone how smart you are. Or, if you wish to be a bit more polite, merely show the Reply Card. You then discard it and the Dilemma Card. You are one card closer to winning. Good work. Draw a new Reply Card for your next turn.
If, by some freak chance, the reply is not what you wanted, then you quietly show people the non-matching card, then discard it and the Dilemma Card. You then draw a new Reply Card AND a new Dilemma Card. You have the same number of cards as when you started. You are no closer to winning. Oops. Either way, it's now the person to your left's turn. And that's pretty much how this game works.
Here's the interesting bit
An important part to SCRUPLES is that people don't have to answer truthfully. Gasp! In fact, they should lie like rugs. Perhaps they don't want to admit the truth. Perhaps they know what response you want. Perhaps they get confused easily and don't even know they're playing a game. Whatever the reason, fibbing makes the game more fun.
If you lie in a response and no one calls you on it, then good job, you got away with it. However, there is something in the game called The Challenge.
Here's how The Challenge works
When someone gives a reply that you want to challenge, you say, "I challenge!" Not very clever but it gets the job done. The person who just asked the question has first dibs on challenging. After that, it goes to the first person to shout "I challenge!" (Note: Violently slamming your hand on the table while screaming "I challenge!" really gets attention and lets people know you're serious.) At this point, the Challenger gets 30 seconds to explain why the person is lying. This is where old stories, personal secrets, and other goodies help. Then, the "defendant" gets 30 seconds to explain why he wasn't lying. There's no timer, just guess what 30 seconds is. After that comes the vote.
The players now take their Voting Chips and choose a side--the HALO means that the defendant was telling the truth all along, the PITCHFORK means the person was lying through their teeth. Everyone picks a side and hides the chip in their hands. On a count of three all the chips are revealed and counted. Whoever wins the challenge gives one of their Dilemma Cards to the loser. Ouch. In the case of a tie, nothing happens except that you got a good show for a minute.
Note-Part I. You cannot challenge or be challenged when you only have one Dilemma Card left. But you can still vote.
Note-Part II. The challenge does not change the outcome of the original dilemma/response transaction. If you wanted someone to answer "yes" and a "no" came out, then you have to draw a new Dilemma Card even if you challenge the answer and win. Winning a challenge does not change the fact that the person gave you an answer that didn't match your Reply Card. It just penalizes them for lying.
Note-Part III. Yes, you can challenge someone even if you got the answer you wanted. If you win the challenge, that means you got rid of two cards in one turn. Very, very daring. If you pull it off, then you've got moxie, my friend.
Here's the dodge--the Fifth Amendment Card
That Fifth Amendment Card is your friend...and enemy. It allows you to avoid answering one question but it also allows others to do the same. There are questions in this game that some people just won't want to answer. That's fine. If you get asked one of those, just sit back and say "I plead the Fifth" and throw your Fifth Amendment Card down. At that point, the person who asked the dilemma must ask that same dilemma to another player. This player has to answer, as only one Fifth Amendment Card can be played per question. Note that you can only play your Fifth Amendment Card once. Use it wisely.
Here's the wrap-up
SCRUPLES is a game, so treat it like one. Do not end marriages, cause family rifts, or destroy friendships by revealing something totally inappropriate. Hurray, you won the game but you lost a friend. The game should provoke conversation, not people.
Finally, please bluff and please challenge--it makes the game fun.
Winning
The first player to get rid of all the Dilemma Cards in his or her hand wins the game.