Sssnake
Sssnake Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Contents
- 4 big snake cards with head and tail
- 8 cards with crossed snake parts
- 60 cards with straight snake parts
- 4 cards with two bent snake parts
- 48 cards with bent snake parts
- 1 special dice with showing twice the sides (the die shows the faces 1, 2 and 3)
Aim of the Game
The first player to connect the head to the tail of their snake is the winner.
Preparation
Make sure there is enough space to lay out all the pieces. Each player takes a big snake card.
The smaller cards should be mixed up and laid, face down, in piles on the table.
The youngest player takes the dice and starts the game.
Play continues in a clockwise direction.
How to Play
Each player, in turn, throws the dice and takes the corresponding number of cards from the pile. The players may use the cards to complete their own snake or place them on their opponents snake to prevent them from completing.
The Dice
When throwing a 1 the player takes 1 card from the pile and places it on the snake of the player to his left. The card must be laid in such a way that it enables the player to connect the head and tail of the snake at a later stage. If by laying the card this becomes unachievable then the player must place the card on their own snake. If this is not possible then the card is removed from the game.
When a two is thrown the player takes 2 cards from the pile. He chooses the card he wants to place on his own snake. He then gives the card to the player on the left. The player on the left must lay the card on his snake unless in doing so it prohibits the connection of his snake. In this case the player must pass the card back to the player on the right who must then place the card on his snake. If this is not possible then the card must be removed from the game.
When a 3 is thrown the player takes 3 cards from the pile. He chooses 2 cards for his own snake and passes the 3rd card to the player on the left. The player on the left must lay the card on his snake unless in doing so it prohibits the connection of his snake. In this case the player must pass the card back to the player on the right who must then place the card on his snake. If this is not possible then the card must be removed from the game.
Placing Cards
When laying a card the following basic rules apply:
- Cards may be added to any loose end of the snake.
- The cards must be laid so that it is always possible to connect the head to the tail. All visible parts of the snake must be connected at the end of the game!
- Once a card is placed down it cannot be removed or displaced.
- Cards that cannot be placed must be removed from the game.
The End of the Game
The winner is the first player to connect the head to the tail of his snake without having any cards left.
Note
If all the cards are played before a player is able to connect a snake then all players calculate the minimum number of cards needed to make the connection. The player that requires the lowest number is the winner.
Points
Sssnake can be played as a single game or in a series of rounds. At the end of each round each player calculates the number of cards required to complete the connection. Players receive one point for each card. At the end of the specified number of rounds the winner is the player with the lowest number of points.
The booklet's page 7 also shows a finished example layout of the snake pieces (a diagram, not transcribed).