The Name of the Rose
The Name of the Rose Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Components
8 pawns:
- "William" (large brown pawn, with hood)
- "Adson" (small brown pawn, without hood)
- 6 monks (red, blue, white, grey, black and orange pawns)
2 x 6 scoring markers (one thin and one thick marker in each monk's colour)
1 time marker (beige cube)
1 game board
2 counter sheets with:
- 42 small square "task" tiles (reverse: sundial)
- 5 x 6 medium square colour markers (back: letters A–E)
- 3 large square tiles "revelation"
- 42 event tiles
66 cards:
- 60 action cards (back: rose):
- 28 x "building" (each building 2 x)
- 24 x "monk" (each monk 4 x)
- 8 x "William/Adson"
- 6 identity cards (back: "Monachus" (= the monk)): 1 red, 1 blue, 1 white, 1 grey, 1 black and 1 orange monk
The game board shows the abbey with its 14 buildings (Bibliotheca = library, Scriptorium = scriptorium, Stabulum = stables, Dormitorium = dormitories, Officina = workshops, Refektorium = refectory, Culina = kitchen, Porta = gatehouse, Infirmorum Domus = hospital, Balneatorium = bathhouse, Ecclesia = church, Capitulum = chapter house, Porticus = cloister, Hortus = gardens) as well as a sundial (spaces 0–24), a suspicion track (blue spaces 0–40) and a clue track (brown spaces 0–50). (Note: For ease of play, the abbey's floorplan does not exactly correspond to the novel.)
Game Setup
Before playing for the first time, carefully punch out all tiles and markers.
- Place the game board in the middle of the table.
- Shuffle the 14 event tiles, face down. Then, place six event tiles face down above the game board, side by side. Put the remaining eight tiles back into the box without looking at them.
- Place one "revelation" tile to the right of the first, third and fifth event tiles.
- Place the 6 thin scoring markers on space 10 of the suspicion track (blue), stacking them on top of each other if necessary.
- Place the 6 thick scoring markers on space 5 of the clue track (brown), stacking them on top of each other if necessary.
- Place the time marker (beige) onto the blue space (=0/24) of the sundial.
- Place the 8 pawns (= 6 monks as well as William and Adson) onto random, different buildings on the game board. Note: Always use all eight pawns, regardless of how many players are taking part.
- Shuffle the 42 task tiles, face down. Randomly place two tiles face up onto each building's banner. Keep the remaining 14 tiles face down and arrange them in a long row next to the game board.
- Shuffle the 60 action cards and place them in a face-down draw pile next to the game board.
- Give each player:
- 3 action cards from the draw pile. Players should always ensure that others cannot see their cards.
- 6 colour markers (all with the same letter on the back). To start the game, each player places these on the table in front of himself, letter side up. If there are fewer than 5 players taking part, put any unused markers back into the box.
- 1 identity card. Shuffle all six identity cards face down. Each player receives one, which they look at secretly! It shows the colour of monk that the player represents during the game. Players should keep this monk's identity a secret until the end of the game! Important: Put any remaining identity cards unseen (!) back into the box.
Gameplay
The game consists of seven rounds. Each round corresponds to one day. During the six first days, the following steps are carried out:
- Beginning of the day: Turn over an event tile.
- Daily routine: Play action cards until the time marker reaches the blue space of the sundial again.
- End of the day: Convert suspicion points into clue points and distribute event tile.
On seventh and final day, only a suspicion round takes place.
Beginning of the day
At the beginning of the day, turn the first (leftmost) event tile over. This tile applies to the entire day.
The individual events are described in more detail towards the end of these rules (from "The event tiles" onwards).
Daily routine
Randomly determine the starting player for the first day. Afterwards, play proceeds in clockwise order until the day is over.
On a player's turn, he carries the following actions out in order:
- Play an action card
- Move the time marker
- Move a pawn
- Carry out the action
- Draw a card
1. Play an action card
The player chooses one of his three hand cards and plays it, face up, onto the discard pile (common to all players and located next to the draw pile).
2. Move the time marker
Next, the player moves the time marker forward (clockwise direction) by as many spaces as indicated on the card he played. If he played a William/Adson card, the number of spaces the time marker moves depends on which pawn he plans to move: 5 spaces for William, 0 spaces for Adson.
The time marker's movement can be affected by discarding time tiles (task tiles which, once collected, are placed in front of the player, sundial side up). For each time tile that the player adds to the end of the tile row next to the game board, he moves the time marker forward 1 space less. Note: Tiles cannot be used in this manner on the same turn that they were collected.
Example: The time marker is 2 spaces away from the blue space. However, the active player only has cards with a value of 3 or more in his hand. He plays a 3-value card and then, rather than force the end of the day (by moving onto or beyond the blue space) he adds 2 time tiles (collected in previous rounds) to the end of the row. He therefore only has to move the time marker 1 space forward.
3. Move a pawn
(Note: Where these rules refer to "pawns", all eight pawns are meant. Where "monks" are referred to instead, only the six monk pawns are meant.)
Depending on the type of card that the player chose, the following occurs:
- Monk card: The player must move the corresponding monk to any other building and then carry out an action there (see below).
- Building card: The player must move any piece (i.e. a monk, William or Adson) from a different building to the corresponding building and then carry out an action there (see below).
- William/Adson card: The player must move William or Adson to a different building and then carry out an action there (see below).
4. Carry out the action
After having moved a piece, one of the four following possibilities will exist:
-
A monk was moved to a building which contains at least one task tile of the same colour as the monk. As the monk has a task to accomplish here, no suspicion is aroused. The player must take the task tile and then move that monk's scoring marker backwards on the suspicion track by the number of spaces indicated by the tile (but not beyond 0 on the track). Finally, the player takes the time tile and places it, face down, in front of himself. This tile will be useable on future turns to affect the movement of the time marker.
Example: The orange monk is moved to the church. There are two task tiles located there: a blue 5-value one and an orange 2-value one. The player takes the orange task tile and moves the orange scoring marker 2 spaces backward on the suspicion track.
Note: If there are two task tiles of the same colour in the building, the player may still only take and carry out one of them (of his choice).
Should this action remove the last task tile from a building, then the two empty spaces are refilled with the first two tiles in the row of face-down tiles next to the game board. Those tiles are then turned face-up.
-
A monk was moved to a building which contains no task tiles of the same colour as the monk. As this monk has no business here, he arouses suspicion. The player must move that monk's scoring marker forwards on the suspicion track by a number of spaces equal to the sum of all tiles in the building (but not beyond 40 on the track). The player may not take a task tile.
Example: The orange monk is moved to the church. There are two task tiles located there: a blue 2-value one and a white 2-value one. The player must move the orange scoring marker 4 spaces forward on the suspicion track.
-
William was moved to a building in which one or more monks are present. Each monk present gets either +3 or -3 points on the clue track. The active player gets to decide separately for each monk whether that monk's scoring marker will be moved forwards or backwards.
-
Adson was moved to a building in which one or more monks are present. Each monk present there gets either +5 or -5 on the suspicion track. The active player gets to decide separately for each monk whether that monk's scoring marker will be moved forwards or backwards.
Note: These points are only awarded if William or Adson move to the monks (not the other way around!). If William or Adson move to a building in which no monks are present, nothing happens.
Example: A player moves William to the library. The grey and white monks are already there. The player decides to move the grey scoring marker 3 spaces forward and the white scoring marker 3 spaces backward on the clue track.
It is then the next player's turn. He moves the blue monk to the library. As there is no blue task tile there, he moves the blue scoring marker forwards on the suspicion track by an amount equal to the sum of the task tiles present. William's presence in the library has no effect.
Finally, another player moves Adson to the library as well. He decides to move the grey and white scoring markers 5 spaces forward and the blue scoring marker 5 spaces backward on the suspicion track.
5. Draw a card
The player draws the top card of draw pile and adds it to his hand. Should the draw pile be exhausted, the discarded action cards are reshuffled to form a new draw pile.
End of the Day
Players continue carrying out their turns until one player moves the time marker onto or beyond the blue space on the sundial on his turn. That player finishes his turn as normal, after which the day ends. The following then occurs:
-
The suspicion points (blue track) are converted into clue points (brown track) according to the table below. The more suspicious a monk has become over the course of the day, the more clues now incriminate him.
Marker on the suspicion track: Move forward the marker of the same colour on the clue track: first place 5 spaces second place 4 spaces third place 3 spaces fourth place 2 spaces fifth place 1 space sixth place 0 spaces Note: In the case of a tie on the suspicion track, the full number of points is awarded to all tied colours and the next place is not skipped!
Example: Grey is in first place on the suspicion track. Blue and white follow in second place, red and black in third, and orange in last place. The scoring markers on the clue track are thus moved forward as follows: grey 5 spaces, blue and white 4 spaces each, red and black 3 spaces each, orange 2 spaces.
Afterwards, all scoring markers on the suspicion track are placed on space 10 again – regardless of their previous position. The scoring markers on the clue track remain unchanged, of course.
-
The player who ended the day gets the current event tile and places it in front of him on the table. At the end of the game, each player will have to move his monk 2 spaces forward on the clue track for each event tile he has collected.
The "revelation" tile
After the first, third and fifth days, players must reveal a clue to their identity by placing one of their colour markers face-up on the table – which must not (!) match the colour of their identity card! Thus, by the beginning of the sixth day each player will have three face-up colour markers in front of himself indicating which colours he is definitely not.
In each of the three "revelation rounds", each player chooses one of his colour markers and places it – face-down at first – in front of himself on the table. Once all players have done so, these colour markers are simultaneously turned over. For each turned over colour marker, the corresponding colour's scoring marker on the clue track is moved 2 spaces forward. The turned over colour markers remain face up in front of the players.
The next day ...
... then begins. The next event tile is turned over. The player who ended the previous day starts the new round and plays the first action card. (That player therefore gets two turns in a row.)
End of the Game
After the end of the sixth day, the seventh and final day takes place. During this day, no further action cards are played, moves made, etc.; a final suspicion round is carried out instead. All players may now guess which monks the other players represented during the game.
To accomplish this, all players first take three task tiles from the game board in the same colours that they had previously revealed themselves not to be (during the revelation rounds). Players then exchange these tiles with their previously-used colour markers. As a result, all players should once again have markers in all six colours at their disposal while still making it clear which colours he is definitely not. Finally, each player places one of his colour markers – letter face up – in front of each other player. As soon as all players are finished, these colour markers and all players' identity cards are turned over.
For each opponent's colour marker that matches his own identity card, a player must move his monk's scoring marker forward on the clue track. The number of spaces depends on the number of players taking part:
- 2 players: 12 spaces
- 3 players: 6 spaces
- 4 players: 4 spaces
- 5 players: 3 spaces
Example: Four players are taking part. The following colour markers have been placed in front of the player who played Blue in the game: blue, orange, blue. Two players correctly identified the player and he must therefore move his scoring marker 8 spaces (2x4) forward on the clue track.
Finally, each player must move his monk's scoring marker 2 spaces forward on the clue track for each event tile he has on the table in front of him.
Note: In the extremely rare case that a scoring marker must be moved farther than space 50, start at 0 again and add 50 to that colour's score at the end of the game.
At this point, scoring markers of all colours not represented by a player are removed. The player who was most effective at concealing his tracks – that is, the monk whose scoring marker is last on the clue track – wins the game. In the event of a tie, the tied player with the fewest event tiles is the winner. If there is still a tie, there is more than one winner.
The Event Tiles
Each event tile alters or breaks some of the normal game rules for the day during which the tile is face-up.
Important: Regardless of the text on the current event tile, each player always completes his normal turn first – that is, he plays an action card, moves a pawn and then carries the appropriate action out, as normal. It is after this normal turn that the text on the current event tile is carried out.
You will find some detailed explanations and examples for each tile below.
"Communicative"
If William is placed on the building where Adson stands (or vice versa), suspicion points convert into clue points (Afterwards, place all scoring markers back to space 10 of the suspicion track.)
Should William and Adson meet in a building – that is, one of them is moved to the building where the other is already located – a conversion of suspicion points into clue points takes place, exactly as if the day had ended. Afterwards, all scoring markers are placed on space 10 of the suspicion track again. This event can occur several times in the same day. Should all six scoring markers be on the same space of the suspicion track, no conversion occurs.
A normal conversion still takes place at the end of the day, regardless of how many "special conversions" took place.
"At the Culprit's Heels"
If someone moves William, he allocates additional +2 clue points to one or two monks
When a player moves William, he first adjusts the scoring markers of any monks he meets either 3 spaces forward or backward on the clue track, as normal. He then either moves the scoring marker of any one monk 2 spaces forward on the clue track or the scoring markers of any two monks 1 space each forward on the clue track. The affected monks may be in the same building as William but do not need to be. The player may not use the additional 2 clue points to move backwards.
"In a Hurry"
Nobody may use time tiles (But you may keep on picking up task tiles!)
During the entire day, players may not use time tiles to delay the progress of the time marker. However, players may continue completing tasks and claiming task tiles to use as time tiles later on.
"Without Ostentation"
If a monk is placed in an empty building, he receives - 1 clue point
When a player moves a monk to a completely empty building – that is, a building that contains no pawns at all – that monk's scoring marker is moved 1 space backward on the clue track.
"Mysterious"
If someone places a monk next to William, he allocates additional +2 clue points to one or two monks
When a player moves a monk to the building where William is located, that player either moves the scoring marker of any one monk 2 spaces forward on the clue track or the scoring markers of any two monks 1 space each forward on the clue track. He may choose the monk he just moved but is not required to do so.
"Studious"
Each played action card can be used twice (Only advance the time value once!)
When a player plays a building card, he may move two pawns to the building instead of one and then carry out the corresponding action for each of them in turn – for example, the grey monk first (task tile) and then William (clue points).
When a player plays a monk card, he may move the monk twice – for example, to the church first (task tile) and then to the garden (task tile).
When a player plays a William/Adson card, he may either move William twice (2 x clue points) or Adson twice (2 x suspicion points). He may not move both William and Adson once each. Note: The time marker is still only moved forward once per card.
"Incredulous"
If a player places a monk in the church, all other players have to discard a time tile (if they have any)
When a player moves a monk to the Church, his opponents must return one of their time tiles to the end of the row next to the game board. The active player does not need to return a time tile. Players who do not have any time tiles at the moment do not need to return any tiles.
This event has no effect when William or Adson are moved to the Church.
"Awkward"
Any monk receives the same number of suspicion points as the time value shown on the action card this player uses
At the end of a player's turn, he chooses a monk and moves that monk's scoring marker as many spaces forward on the suspicion track as the time value of the action card he just played.
Example: A player plays a red monk card with time value 4 and moves the red monk (task tile). He then moves the white scoring marker 4 spaces forward on the suspicion track. He could also have chosen any other scoring marker to move (including the red one).
The following player plays a William/Adson card and moves William (clue points). He then moves the black scoring marker 5 spaces forward on the suspicion track. Had he chosen to move Adson (suspicion points) instead, he would not have been able to move a scoring marker afterwards, as Adson's time value is 0.
Note: Time tiles used on a turn do not affect this event; the number of spaces a marker is moved on the suspicion track is always equal to the actual time value of the card.
"Tricky"
William allocates or takes twice as many clue points and Adson twice as many suspicion points (i.e. +/- 6 clue points or +/- 10 suspicion points)
When a player moves William to a building in which one or more monks are present, he moves their scoring markers 6 spaces forward or backward on the clue track, not 3 spaces as usual.
When a player moves Adson to a building in which one or more monks are present, he moves their scoring markers 10 spaces forward or backward on the suspicion track, not 5 spaces as usual.
The player may still decide separately for each monk whether to move that monk's scoring marker forwards or backwards.
"Dubious"
The moved monk receives + 1 clue point
When a player moves a monk – regardless as to where – that monk's scoring marker is moved 1 space forward on the clue track.
"Forbidden"
If a monk is moved to the library, he receives + 2 clue points
When a player moves a monk to the library, that monk's scoring marker is moved 2 spaces forward on the clue track.
"Caught"
When suspicion points are converted into clue points at the end of the day, twice as many clue points are allocated (i.e. 10-8-6-4-2-0)
This card is only in effect at the end of the day, when suspicion points are converted into clue points. Twice as many clue points are awarded as usual.
For the example on "End of the Day", this would mean that the grey scoring marker is moved 10 spaces forward, blue and white 8 spaces each, red and black 6 spaces each and orange 4 spaces.
"Inquiring"
If a monk is placed in a building with other monks, these receive + 1 clue point each
When a player moves a monk to a building in which one or more monks are present, the scoring markers for all monks in the building are moved 1 space forward. The monk the player moved does not receive any clue points, only those monks he met.
Example: A player moves the blue monk to a building in which the red and black monks are already present. The red and black scoring markers are moved 1 space forward each on the clue track.
"Suspicious"
After each turn, the monk with the most suspicion points receives + 1 clue point (all of them in case of a tie)
At the end of each player's turn, players check which scoring marker is farthest ahead on the suspicion track: the corresponding colour's scoring marker is moved 1 space forward on the clue track. Should several scoring markers be tied for first on the suspicion track, the scoring markers for all corresponding colours are moved 1 space forward each on the clue track.
Should all six scoring markers be on the same space of the suspicion track, nothing happens.