Treatment: A Psychiatry Card Game
Treatment: A Psychiatry Card Game Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Objective
Treatment is a card game in which players help a number of psychiatric patients, represented by Case cards. To be able to put a patient in treatment you must propose the best possible treatment by secretly playing Treatment cards which are suitable for that case.
A player wins once they have put a certain number of patients (Case cards) in treatment.
Components
28 Case cards, 74 Treatment cards, 15 Symptom cards, 1 First player card.
Setup
Separate the 3 card types (Case, Treatment and Symptom cards). Remove all Case cards and associated Symptom cards from 2 case categories of your choice from the game. E.g. all Psychotic and Depressive disorder cards. Shuffle each deck separately and place them in the middle as indicated below. Reveal the topmost Case card. Each player draws 5 Treatment cards. The youngest player gets the First player card.
(The rulebook shows an example 2 player setup, illustrated in the printed diagram.)
Treatment Cards
Treatment cards represent the different treatments the player can offer their patients. Each card has value representing both it's therapeutic and side effects. (Source typo "it's" for "its" left as printed.)
There are 3 types of treatments:
- Pharmaceutical treatment
- Therapy
- Social Support
Among the Treatment cards there are also Resource cards, see below.
(The printed page shows the type of treatment, with its positive value and negative value, as a card diagram.)
Resource Cards
These cards are a subtype of Treatment cards that can be played at a time specified on the card. A Resource card cannot be put upside down in front of the Case card. Playing Resource cards is not considered an action. After resolving the effect of the Resource card, discard it.
(The printed page shows a sample Resource card; the text on the Resource card states what effect it has and when it can be played.)
Who Wins?
In a 2 player game, the first player with 4 Case cards in treatment wins.
In a 3 player game, the first player with 3 Case cards in treatment wins.
In a 4 to 5 player game, the first player with 2 Case cards in treatment wins.
Hand Limit
The hand limit is 7 Treatment cards. If a player for any reason has more cards on hand, that player must immediately discard cards of their choice down to the hand limit. Put the discarded cards face up in the discard pile.
Gameplay
Each case is played through a number of rounds. At the start of the second round and until the case is ended, reveal one Symptom card from the top of the Symptom deck. Immediately apply the effect (indicated on the Symptom card) on all players having at least one Case card from the same category.
All players that have a Case card with the same category as the drawn Symptom card are affected by the text on that Symptom card.
Then, in clockwise order beginning with the first player, each player takes one of the following three actions:
- Draw a Treatment card.
or
- Discard 2 Treatment cards from your hand. Take 3 new cards from the Treatment deck.
or
- Choose and place one Treatment card face down in front of you. You may look at your facedown cards at any time.
A round is complete once each player has taken an action.
(The printed Case card indicates how each player should multiply the Treatment cards they have played at the end of the case for their final scoring.)
A Case card is resolved at the end of a round, IF:
- One or more players has played the maximum number of Treatment cards for this case. (The maximum number of cards for this case is printed on the Case card.)
and/or
- The Symptom card drawn at the start of the round matches the Case card. For example, the "Catatonia" card is drawn and the Case card is "Substance induced psychosis". (The diagnosis category of the Symptom and Case card must match.)
Scoring
The players then reveal all Treatment cards that they have face down in front of them. Before flipping over the Treatment cards, however, each player may play any Resource cards that may affect the scoring (for example, the "New evidence" card). These are played in a clockwise order starting with the first player. Each player can play any number of New evidence cards.
Each player adds together the number of symbols collected for each of the 3 categories (Pharmaceutical treatment, Therapy and Social Support). Multiply them as indicated by the Case card.
Finally, add together the scores from each category. The player with the highest score delivers the best treatment proposal, takes the Case card and puts it face up in front of them. All players discard the cards they have played in front of the Case card. Treatment is now underway!
Scoring Example
The printed example shows one player's category totals multiplied by the Case card's factors (x2, x0, x1), with a side-effect value of -1 in one category, for a total of 8 + 0 - 1 = 7. The second player's totals (x2 = 6, x0 = 0, x1 = 2) give a total of 6 + 0 + 2 = 8, and is the winner.
Flow chart of a game round
As shown in the printed flow chart:
- Draw a Symptom card (not on the first round). Resolve the effect.
- All players do one action in clockwise order starting with the first player.
- New Symptom and new round, or end case. End the case when the current case matches the Symptom card and/or one or more players have reached the maximum number of cards for this case.
- Play any New evidence cards.
- Players sum their scores (see Scoring). In case of a tie, see Tie breaker.
- The player with the highest score puts the Case card face up in front of them. It is now in treatment.
Tie breaker
If two or more players are tied (for a Case card), compare them in this order:
- A more varied treatment wins. In game terms this means positive scores in more treatment categories after side effects is applied. (The printed example shows positive scores in two categories as better than a positive score in only one.)
- The player with the least amount of cards played in front of the active Case card. Fewer cards signify a more efficient treatment plan.
- The player with the least negative symbols (side effects).
- The player with the least amount of patients in treatment.
If there is still a tie, no one wins the case and the Case card is put in the bottom of the stack.
New Case
To start the next case, transfer the First player card to the next player clockwise. The players keep their Treatment cards from the last case. The new first player:
- Turns a new Case card face up.
- Deals 2 Treatment cards to each player.
The new case can now begin. Repeat this entire process for every new case in the game except the first.
Extra Rules
If you want a bit more random game and more symptoms, let each player draw a Case card and put it face up in front of them before the game begins. Increase the number needed by 1 e.g. free Case cards for a 4–5 player game. (Source wording "free Case cards" is as printed; the printed text does not define it further.)