The Academy
The Academy Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Object of the Game
Win tricks and meet your role goals to collect awards. The winner is the player with three awards – and an "ace up their sleeve."
Game Materials
- 36 Trick Cards, numbered from 1 to 9 in blue, green, purple, and orange. The purple 7 is the "ace up your sleeve."
- 4 Character Cards: 1x each of Captain, Mastermind, Teamplayer, and Rebel, with different round goals.
- 12 Awards.
- 1 Exam Display.
Setup
The person who most recently took an exam gets the role card for the Captain (I). Proceeding clockwise, the next player gets the role card for the Mastermind (II), the one after gets the Teamplayer (III), and the fourth person gets the Rebel (IV). Don't change this sequence! If you are the Captain, take all of the trick cards. Put the purple 7 ("the ace up your sleeve") to the side and shuffle the remaining cards. From these, deal the Mastermind four cards face down: these are the exam cards. They will use them to determine the trump color or the round rule. Mix the purple 7 back into the other trick cards and distribute them to the players so that everyone has a hand of eight cards. As the Mastermind, keep your cards separate from the exam cards.
Put the exam display in the middle of the table where everyone can see it, and prepare the awards.
Only three players? Then put the role card for the Rebel and all orange trick cards back into the box. You don't need them in this game. Also, the Mastermind only receives three exam cards.
(Setup diagram: "Setup for 4 players" – see the rulebook image.)
Gameplay
Each round includes the following three steps:
1. Determine the Trump Color and Round Rule
What does trump mean? Every card of the current trump color is trump. A trump wins against any card of another color (regardless of their value).
What is a round rule? At the bottom of every exam card, there is text that changes the rules of the game for the length of a round.
As the Mastermind, begin by looking at your cards. From the exam cards you received earlier, choose one to determine the trump color or the round rule for this round.
When you've made your choice, slide the card you selected behind the exam display so the relevant information is visible:
- If you want to determine the trump color, slide the selected card under the exam display on the left side so that the upper part of the card is visible.
- If you want to determine the round rule, slide the selected card under the exam display on the right side so that the lower part of the card is visible.
Give the remaining exam cards face down to the Teamplayer.
As the Teamplayer, you also begin by looking at your cards. From the remaining exam cards, choose one to determine the trump color or the round rule for this round – whichever one the Mastermind didn't choose. As described above, slide the selected card behind the exam display.
Put the remaining exam cards to the side face down. You will need them again in the next round.
Example: As shown in the picture above, Xavier, as the Mastermind, has received four exam cards. He selects "The red candy and the blue candy," meaning that the round rule is exchange hands. Afterwards, Tyler, as the Teamplayer, can choose the trump color from the remaining three exam cards. He chooses green ("Scarab?").
Note: A round rule only takes effect through the exam display. In a player's hand or when playing the cards, the text has no effect.
2. Playing Tricks
The Captain plays the first card of the first trick. Proceeding clockwise, each player plays one card.
When playing the cards, remember the following rule: if you play the first card of the trick, you can play any card in your hand. This card determines the color that everyone else must play in the trick. A player may only play a card of the trump color or another color if they have no cards that match the color of the first card.
The player who played the highest card of the trump color wins the trick. If there is no card of the trump color in the trick, the highest card of the color played first wins.
The player who has won the trick places it face down in front of themselves and starts the next trick. Put down each trick you win in a separate stack in front of you, so everyone can see how many tricks you have already won.
What is a trick? Each player plays one card in turn. Together, these cards form the trick. Because each player has eight cards in their hand, you play eight tricks in every round.
Example: Bianca begins the first trick. She plays the blue 5. Everyone else must now play a blue card, if possible. Xavier plays the 7, a higher blue card. He hopes that this will mean that he wins the trick. But Tyler doesn't have any blue cards and can therefore play a trump, the green 3. Enid doesn't have any blue cards either, but she also doesn't have a higher trump. She can't win the trick and therefore plays a lower card of her choice, the purple 2. Tyler wins the trick.
Before the next trick, Xavier, as the Mastermind, uses the round rule and exchanges his cards with Tyler. Then Tyler begins the next trick.
3. Distributing Awards
After you have played through all eight tricks of the round, you distribute the awards. All players who achieved the round goal for their respective role receive one award each.
The round goals. You get an award when you…
- … are the Captain and, jointly with the Teamplayer, won more tricks than the Mastermind.
- … are the Teamplayer and, jointly with the Captain, won more tricks than the Mastermind.
- … are the Mastermind and won at least as many tricks as the Captain and the Teamplayer put together.
- … are the Rebel and won cards of at least three different colors.
Note: You can receive no more than three awards per game. If you already have three and would get another, you do not take this award.
Example: At the end of the round, Bianca won one trick, Tyler won two, Xavier won three, and Enid won two. Xavier achieved his round goal as the Mastermind because he won exactly as many tricks as Bianca (Captain) and Tyler (Teamplayer) combined. Those two players did not achieve their goals. Enid achieved her round goal as the Rebel because she has three different colors of cards in her two tricks. Xavier and Enid each get one award.
Important: As the Captain and Teamplayer, you have a common goal, but you may not discuss it with each other. You may not discuss your hands and may not consult each other about which exam card the Teamplayer should select at the beginning of the round. Keep the tricks you win separate and only total them up at the end of the round.
Starting with the round in which one of you earned their third award, you check whether someone has won the game at the end of each round (see: End of the Game). If no one has won, play another round.
The Next Round
Give your role card to the player to your left. Other than this, prepare the next round exactly as described under Setup. Carry out each step of the Gameplay according to your new roles.
End of the Game
If you have three awards AND the purple 7 ("the ace up your sleeve") is in one of the tricks you have won at the end of a round, you win the game. This is true even if you won your third award in the current round.
The Round Rules in Detail
1. Before each trick – even before the last one – every player must give a card from their hand of their choice to the player to their left.
2. The Mastermind may play their cards face-down into the trick – unless it is the first card in the trick. Once each player has played a card, turn the cards face up and check who has won the trick.
3. Instead of playing it in the trick, the Mastermind can use a card from their hand of their choice (but not the purple 7) to change the trump color. Cover the previous exam card with the selected card from your hand to determine the trump color. The new trump color takes effect immediately, including for the current trick, which will have one less card than normal.
4. Once during the round, the Mastermind can trade all of the cards in their hand with another person before a trick of their choice.
5. Before each trick, the Mastermind may exchange a card of their choice from their hand for a card chosen at random from another player's hand. As the Mastermind, first put the card from your hand that you would like to exchange aside. Draw one card from another player's hand and add it to your hand. Then give that player the card you put to the side.
6. The Mastermind may change roles with a person of their choice before the first trick. Change the roles back at the end of the round, after distributing the awards. At the beginning of the next round, pass the role cards on as normal.
7 (blue). In this round, there is no trump. If the Mastermind chooses this round rule, the Teamplayer nonetheless puts down a face-up card to determine the trump color. However, place the card face down behind the exam display. It has no effect.
7 (green). Instead of playing it in the trick, the Mastermind can use a card from their hand of their choice (but not the purple 7) to change the round rule once during the round. Use the selected card to cover the previous exam card and set the round rule. The new round rule takes effect immediately, including for the current trick, which will have one less card than normal.
7 (purple). If you have three awards and this card is in the tricks you won at the end of a round, you win the game. This applies even if you won your third award in the current round.
7 (orange). Regardless of whether or not they achieved their respective round goals, the Mastermind and Rebel each receive an (additional) award if they jointly won more tricks than the Captain and Teamplayer combined.
8. After each trick that another player wins, the Mastermind may exchange one card from their hand for a card from the trick; they must show both cards to the other players.
9. Regardless of whether or not they achieved their current round goal, the person who won the last trick wins an (additional) award.
Note: the numbered items above are printed as numbered tokens in the rulebook; the 7s are colour-coded to the trick-card colours (blue, green, purple, orange) as shown in the printed rules.