Sultan
Sultan Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Materials
- 1 game board - showing the parts of the palace in which the players can buy precious gems. The front side shows three cushions, each with a card deposit space (for 2, 4 and 5 players) while the reverse side has 2 cushion spaces (for 3 players). The jewels are offered for sale on the cushions.
- 24 bonus point cards - with the values 2, 5, 10 and 20. The players are awarded bonus points at the end of the game for jewel collections in one colour.
- 50 jewels - in 5 colours: 12 white, 11 red, 10 yellow, 9 green, 8 blue. The players buy them with their money cards so that they can win with the most valuable jewels.
- 5 screens - one for each player. The players keep their jewels behind the screens. The reverse side contains an overview of the points distribution at the end of the game.
- 75 money cards - in 5 colours, each with the values 1 to 15. The players use these cards to buy jewels.
- 1 fabric pouch - from which the jewels are drawn that are offered in the palace.
- 1 set of instructions
Objective of the Game
The players buy jewels and try to accumulate the most valuable collection in three stages of play. In every stage, jewels are offered for purchase which the players can acquire with concealed money cards. The player who has collected the most points with his or her jewels at the end of the game is the winner.
Preparing the Game
The game board is placed in the middle of the table. Either the front or reverse side of the board is used, depending on the number of players.
Each player is given a screen in the colour of his/her choice along with 15 money cards of the same colour. The players set up the screens in front of them. Each player shuffles his/her money cards thoroughly and places them face down in a deck.
The youngest player begins by filling the fabric pouch with all of the jewels.
Game Sequence
Important! When there are only two players, special rules apply (see Special Rules for Two Players below).
The game is played in three stages. Each stage consists of 5 rounds, all of which follow the same rules.
Sequence of a Stage
At the beginning of every stage, each player removes the top five cards from their deck and takes them into their hand.
Sequence of a Round
The first player draws 4 jewels from the fabric pouch and lays them out open on the table. He/she then selects three of these and places one on each of the three cushion spaces on the board. The remaining jewel is returned to the pouch.
Note: If there are 3 players, the reverse side of the board with only 2 cushion spaces is used. The first player draws 3 jewels from the pouch, selects two and places one on each of the cushion spaces on the board. The remaining jewel is returned to the pouch.
Beginning with the first player, all of the players now place one of the cards from their hand face down on one of the cushion spaces on the board. Each card indicates how much money each player is prepared to pay for the jewel on offer.
If a card has already been placed on the cushion space, the next one is laid on top of it. Once all of the players have placed their cards, they are all turned face up. A separate calculation is then made for each cushion. There are three different possibilities here:
Only one player wants to acquire the jewel. If only one card has been placed on a cushion, the player who placed it is given the jewel immediately.
Example: Anne has placed her violet card on the cushion with the red jewel. Since no other player has placed a card there, she can take the red jewel.
Several players want to acquire the jewel. If several players have placed a card on the same cushion, the player whose money card has the highest value is given the jewel. If two or more cards have the highest value, the player who placed his/her card first gets the jewel.
Example: Peter has placed his golden "9" on the cushion with the green jewel, Olaf his green "8". Peter can take the jewel because he has offered more money for it.
Example: Nadine and Sebastian both placed their "12" on the blue jewel. Because Sebastian's turn is before Nadine's, his red card was played first which means that he can take the jewel.
No player wants to acquire the jewel. If no card has been placed on a cushion, the jewel lying on it is returned to the pouch.
The players place the acquired jewels behind their screens. All played cards are removed from the game and the player to the left of the first player opens the next round as the new starting player.
End of a Stage
A stage is ended when all of the players have played the 5 money cards they held in their hand at the beginning of the stage. If all 15 cards have not been played, a new stage begins.
End of the Game
The game ends when all players have played their 15 cards, which means after 3 stages. The scores are then counted.
The players are awarded points for the jewels they have acquired and bonus points for jewel collections of the same colour.
Points are awarded as follows:
- For each white jewel: 1 point
- For each red jewel: 2 points
- For each yellow jewel: 3 points
- For each green jewel: 4 points
- For each blue jewel: 5 points
Bonus points are also awarded for collections of jewels of the same colour:
- 3 jewels of the same colour: 2 bonus points
- 4 jewels of the same colour: 5 bonus points
- 5 jewels of the same colour: 10 bonus points
- 6 or more jewels of the same colour: 20 bonus points
Note: The distribution of bonus points in games with two players is covered in the Special Rules for Two Players.
Example: Anne has acquired 3 white, 5 red and 1 blue jewel by the end of the game. She is therefore awarded the following points: 3 white jewels x 1 point = 3 points; 5 red jewels x 2 points = 10 points; 1 blue jewel x 5 points = 5 points. She also receives bonus points for jewels of the same colour: 3 white jewels = 2 points; 5 red jewels = 10 points. Anne's points total is therefore increased to 30.
The player with the most points wins and becomes the Sultan's new treasurer. If two or more players have the same amount of points, the one who has collected the most jewels wins. If there is still a tie here, the game ends in a draw.
Special Rules for Two Players
Games played with two players follow the same rules as those played with three, four or five players, with the following exceptions:
Preparing the Game
Both players are given 2 sets of cards with the numbers from 1 to 12. All cards with the values 13, 14 and 15 are taken out of the game. The game board is placed in the middle of the table with the front side face up. Each player shuffles his/her 24 money cards and places them face down in a stack.
Game Sequence
Three stages, each of four rounds, are played. At the beginning of every stage, each player removes the top eight cards from their deck and takes them into their hand.
Sequence of a Round
The drawing and distribution of the jewels are the same as for games with four or five players.
Each player plays two cards in each round, alternating one after the other. Accordingly, 4 cards are laid out per round, starting with the first player. The players must allocate their cards to different cushions.
Once the 4 cards in each round have been placed, all of the cards are turned face up and the jewels distributed in the same manner as described for the game with 3 to 5 players.
Exception: If both players have made an offer for the same jewel and the cards placed have the same value, the first player gets the jewel.
The first player alternates after every game.
End of the Game
The game ends when both players have played their 24 cards, which means after 3 stages.
The points for the individual jewels are awarded in the same manner as in the game for 3 to 5 players. The bonus points for collections of jewels of the same colour are awarded as follows:
- 4 jewels of the same colour: 2 bonus points
- 5 jewels of the same colour: 5 bonus points
- 6 jewels of the same colour: 10 bonus points
- 7 or more jewels of the same colour: 20 bonus points