TV Wars
TV Wars Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
1. Object
Each player assumes the role of a network president and tries to guide his network to success over the course of many simulated television seasons by earning the most money or being the last surviving network.
2. Prepare for Play
2.1 Shuffle the Bulletin cards and place them face down on the Bulletin space of the game board.
2.2 Punch out the die-cut playing pieces and separate them by size and color. Place the Emmy Awards, Viewers' Views, Critics' Choice, Best Network News Bonus and Star tiles face down in piles on their respective sections of the game board. Sort the remaining pieces by size and color and place them face down (white side up) off to the side.
2.3 Elect a Producer to handle the distribution of programming. The Producer separates the Academy Award Movies, places them to one side, and gives each player a Prime Time Line-Up card. Each player in turn announces selection of programs with which he wishes his network to start the game. Each player starts the game owning ten hours of programming in the following time increments:
five 30 minute programs
four 60 minute programs
one 90 minute program
one 120 minute program
Each player may vary the type of programs with which he starts the game provided he selects no more than two programs of the same type and length. Exception: A player may select up to five Situation Comedies. The Producer then deals face-down to each player the Program tiles they've selected and places the rest face down to the side for distribution later during the course of play.
2.4 Elect a Banker to handle the distribution, receipt, and exchange of money. The banker then provides each player with $31,000 in play money in the following denominations:
one $10,000 bill
three $5,000 bills
four $1,000 bills
four $500 bills
2.5 Each player rolls the dice. The player rolling the highest number receives the Best Network News Bonus tile, places it on his Prime Time Line-Up card and selects a token. The other players, in clockwise order around the board, likewise select a token and network. All players place their tokens on the "On the Air" space of the board. The player with the Best Network News Bonus begins the game by rolling the dice, moving his token forward an amount equal to the dice roll, and following the instructions in the space landed on. The turn then passes to the next player in a clockwise rotation around the board.
3. Programming
Program tiles are the player's most important assets. A player who loses all his Program tiles is out of the game—regardless of the extent of his other assets. Conventional Program tiles are one inch long for each 30 minute increment of length and range in basic value from 10 to 90 Rating Points. Program tiles are color-coded into four basic types: Situation Comedy (green), Action/Adventure (red), Drama (blue), and Other (yellow). Special Programs (see 3.3) have no set Rating Point value and range in value from 20 to 120 Rating Points, varying with the roll of the dice. Each player receives ten hours of conventional programing to start play.
3.1 TELEVISION PRODUCTION COMPANY: Whenever a player's token ends its turn on a space marked "Television Production Company," that player has the option of nominating a new specific length and type of Program tile as being up for bid. The Program tile is kept face down during the bidding so its Rating Point value will not be revealed; only the length and type of Program tile is made known.
3.11 VOID: If the desired length/type of programming is not available, the player may select another length/type of programming to nominate. Only the moving player may nominate a Program tile as being up for bid; if he declines the opportunity, play proceeds without a program being obtained. If no conventional programming is left to nominate, the game is over and players immediately count their assets to determine the winner (see 8).
3.2 MOVIE STUDIO: The most common other type of programming is Academy Award Movies, which are each worth 100 Rating Points. A player can obtain an Academy Award Movie only by landing on a Movie Studio space, rolling the dice, and paying $1,000 times the dice roll. A player does not have to purchase an Academy Award Movie, but he has the option to do so after making the dice roll to determine the purchase price. The player making the purchase may choose the Academy Award Movie of his choice from among those remaining. Only the moving player may purchase an Academy Award Movie; if he declines the opportunity, play proceeds without the film being obtained.
3.21 USE: An Academy Award Movie may be used in only one Ratings War and is permanently removed from play thereafter.
3.22 VOID: Once all eight Academy Award Movies have been purchased, the Movie Studio spaces are treated as Television Production Company spaces—but only for the nomination of 90 and 120 minute programs.
3.23 EMMYS: An Emmy may not be played as a bonus with an Academy Award Movie.
3.3 SPECIALS: The basic Rating Point value of a Special Program may vary between Ratings Wars. The Rating Point value of a Special is ten times the roll of the dice (20 to 120) throughout the length of the program. The basic Rating Point value of a Special is never known until the first thirty-minute time slot of that Special is resolved during that Ratings War.
4. Bidding
Bidding starts whenever a player landing on a Television Production Company (or Talent Agency) nominates a Program (or Star) tile to be brought into play. By nominating that tile, the player makes an automatic $1,000 bid (although he has the option to open the bidding at a higher price provided it remains in $500 increments). All players except those whose token is on the Technical Difficulties space may join in the bidding in clockwise rotation—increasing their bids by a minimum increment of $500 until all other players have passed. The high bidder acquires the tile for his network. Tiles may not be bought and sold separately among players, nor may loans be made. Good players will quickly realize that nominating a tile for bid is not an automatic decision. Knowing when it is in your best interest to nominate a tile or bid up the price of one is the basis of a winning strategy in TV WARS. Bidding is also necessitated by several Bulletin cards.
5. Bonus Tiles
There are four types of Bonus tiles: Stars, Emmy Awards, Viewers' Views, and Critics' Choice. Bonus tiles are used in conjunction with Program tiles to increase or decrease the Rating Point value of Program tiles during a Ratings War. Only one Bonus tile may be used in conjunction with each Program tile during a Ratings War, and it applies to the entire length of that Program.
5.1 STARS: Whenever a player's token lands on a Talent Agency space, he has the option to nominate a new, unknown Star tile as being up for bid. Star tiles have a bonus value of 10, 20, or 30 Rating Points when used in conjunction with a Program tile in a Ratings War. The identity of the Star tile is never known until purchased—and then, only by the purchaser.
5.11 USE: Use of a Star in a Ratings War is always optional. Unlike all other Bonus tiles, a Star tile may be kept and reused in subsequent Ratings Wars as long as the Program tile it is teamed with is not cancelled. Stars of cancelled programs or networks without any programming are returned to the bottom of the Star pile for possible future renomination.
5.12 VOID: If all nine Stars are currently owned, there is no effect when landing on a Talent Agency.
5.2 EMMY AWARDS: An Emmy Award cannot be purchased. Any player whose token lands on an Emmy Awards space may make another dice roll solely for the purpose of determining whether he has won an Emmy Award, which is earned on any "Doubles" dice roll. An Emmy Award is a bonus of 50 points which can be added to any Program during a Ratings War except an Academy Award Movie.
5.21 USE: Use of an Emmy in a Ratings War is always optional, but once used in a Prime Time Line-Up, that tile is lost to the player at the end of that Ratings War and returned to the Emmy Awards pile.
5.22 VOID: If all five Emmy Award tiles are already owned, there is no effect when landing on an Emmy Awards space.
5.3 CRITICS' CHOICE & VIEWERS' VIEWS: Whenever a player's token lands on a Critics' Choice space, he must draw a Critics' Choice tile from the top of that pile. The Critics' Choice bonus varies from +36 to -36 Rating Points. Whenever a player's token lands on a Viewers' Views space, he must draw a Viewers' Views tile from the top of the Viewers' Views pile. The Viewers' Views bonus varies from +29 to -28 Rating Points. A player must use all Critics' Choice and Viewers' Views tiles he can possibly play given the number of programs he has selected to use during a Ratings War. This may prevent him from playing a Star or Emmy bonus during that Ratings War. If he has more Critics' Choice/Viewers' Views tiles than the number of programs he will commit to a Ratings War, he may choose which excess Critics' Choice/Viewers' Views tiles he will play in this Ratings War, and which he will hold for use in subsequent Ratings Wars.
5.31 USE: Use of Critics' Choice/Viewers' Views tiles in a Ratings War is always mandatory. Once played on a Prime Time Line-Up card, that tile is permanently removed from play.
5.32 VOID: If a player's token lands on a Critics' Choice/Viewers' Views space and there are no remaining Critics' Choice/Viewers' Views tiles to draw, the game is over. Players immediately count their assets to determine the winner (see 8).
6. Ratings War
Whenever a player's token lands on a Ratings War space, all players must engage in a Ratings War. All players secretly program their Prime Time Line-Up cards with their network's Program and Bonus tiles, and then simultaneously place their Prime Time Line-Up cards in the center of the board for resolution. The Producer then calculates aloud the total Rating Points (after adding bonuses and subtracting penalties) of each program in the half-hour time slot currently being resolved. It is each player's responsibility to check to see that the Producer has correctly assessed his program's total Rating Points and to remember that total until all the programs in that time slot have been assessed and the Lead-In bonus (6.4) and Cancellation (6.8) for that time slot have been determined.
6.1 LINE-UP: Each player must attempt to fill the entire Program column of his Prime Time Line-Up card, but if unable to do so must still commit as much programming as possible—starting with the 8:00 time slot and leaving no empty spaces until he runs out of usable programming. A player may not use programming that extends beyond 11:00, but must use any possible combination of program lengths that allows him to use the maximum amount of programming he possesses.
6.2 BONUS TILE APPLICATIONS: No more than one Bonus tile may be used in conjunction with each Program (Exception: Best Network News). At the conclusion of a Ratings War, networks lose all Bonus tiles played except for Stars of non-cancelled Programs and the Best Network News Bonus tile. The Star of an Academy Award Movie which was removed due to being played rather than being cancelled is not lost.
6.3 BEST NETWORK NEWS BONUS: The player in possession of the Best Network News Bonus tile receives an automatic 5 Rating Points bonus for his 8:00 programming. This bonus never extends beyond the 8:00-8:30 time slot—regardless of the length of the program. Possession of the Best Network News Bonus tile passes to the last player whose token landed on the Best Network News space. If the player landing on this space already has the Best Network News tile, he collects the Preemption tile (see 9.9).
6.4 LEAD-IN BONUS: Commencing at the 8:30 time slot and continuing in every 30 minute interval thereafter, the network with the highest rated program in the previous half-hour time slot receives a 5 point bonus for the next half-hour time slot. This bonus is applicable only to the half-hour time slot in question—regardless of the length of the programming.
6.5 COUNTER-PROGRAMMING BONUS: Whenever two networks have the same color programming in the same time slot when resolving a Ratings War, a -10 point bonus (actually a penalty) applies to each of those programs. If three networks have the same color programming in the same time slot when resolving a Ratings War, a -20 point bonus (actually a penalty) applies to each of those programs. These bonuses apply only at the instant of resolution; if a program is cancelled in a previously resolved time slot, it has no bearing on Counter-Programming bonuses for later time slots.
6.6 PROMOTION BONUS: A player may purchase a 10 point bonus for his entire Prime Time Line-Up in a Ratings War by spending $5,000. The $5,000 must be placed on the board in that network's Prime Time Line-Up space before the Prime Time Line-Up cards are simultaneously revealed.
6.7 RESOLVING TIES: Ties for the best/worst ratings in any given time slot are resolved by each involved player making a dice roll; the player with the highest dice roll is considered to have the higher rating among the tied players. Reroll tie dice rolls until the highest/lowest rating is resolved.
6.8 CANCELLATIONS: Ratings Wars are resolved by each player adding the Rating Points of his programming and applicable bonuses for each time slot and comparing the total to that of the other players for the same time slot. The network with the lowest rated program in each time slot must cancel that show—even if it had won or survived an earlier time slot in the same Ratings War (Exception: a program which is unopposed in a time slot is not cancelled due to being the lowest rated program in that time slot). Cancellations are resolved one at a time, starting at 8:00 and working down the Prime Time Line-Up card in half-hour intervals to 11:00. Cancelled shows are removed immediately so that shows cancelled in an earlier time slot are not present to compete with other programming in a later time slot. Assuming a full slate of programming exists, there can be as many as six cancellations in a Ratings War (or as few as one if only the 8:00-8:30 time slot is contested). Cancelled shows are removed permanently from play.
7. Bankruptcy
A player who does not have enough money to pay any debt caused by a Bulletin or movement on the board must declare bankruptcy by selling sufficient programming of his choice to the bank to pay his debt. A player may not declare bankruptcy in order to make a purchase—only to pay a debt already incurred. The programs sold to the bank are removed from play permanently. A program is worth $500 per ten Rating Points per half hour. A dice roll must be made to determine the Rating Points of a Special at the time of sale. Bonus tiles do not apply and cannot be sold. A player receives no change when selling a program—any amount in excess of his debt is forfeited. A player remains in the game until he has no programming.
EXAMPLE: BEERS is a 30 minute program with a rating of 80. It is worth up to $4000 (8 x $500) when sold to the bank. SATURDAY NIGHT DEAD is a 90 minute program with a rating of 70. It is worth up to $10,500 when sold to the bank (7 x $500 x 3). An Academy Award Movie is worth up to $20,000 (10 x $500 x 4).
8. Assets
If the game ends due to insufficient programming or Critics' Choice/Viewers' Views voids (see 3.11/5.32), players convert all of their programming into money as per the Bankruptcy procedure. The player with the most money after determining the full value of all assets is the winner. Bonus tiles have no monetary value.
9. Miscellaneous
9.1 SECRECY: Players must keep the amount and type of programming and bonuses and their cash position in view at all times except during the preparations for a Ratings War. However, a player need not reveal the ratings or name of his programming or the value of his bonus tiles until revealed in a Ratings War. For this reason, most players will choose to display their tiles face down (white side up) until revealed on a Prime Time Line-Up card. When placed on a Prime Time Line-Up card, all tiles must be displayed face up (colored side up), but are shielded from the view of opposing players until all Prime Time Line-Up cards are simultaneously revealed.
9.2 STEAL A PROGRAM: A player whose token lands on a "Steal a Program" space may (but does not have to) demand a Program tile from a player of his choice. The player losing the Program tile may choose which of his programs to give up.
9.3 STEAL A STAR: A player whose token lands on a "Steal a Star" space may (but does not have to) demand a Star from a player of his choice. The player losing the Star may choose which of his Stars to give up. If no other player has a Star to lose, there is no effect.
9.4 SPONSOR: Whenever a player's token lands on a "Sponsor" space, the player is paid $500 for each half hour of programming currently owned by his network. Exception: The Preemption tile is not eligible for sponsor fees.
9.5 ON THE AIR: A player receives $3,000 every time his token passes the "On The Air" space, even as a result of movement caused by a drawn Bulletin card.
9.6 BULLETIN: A player must draw a Bulletin card every time his token lands on a Bulletin space, read it aloud, and follow the directions thereon. Cards are returned to the bottom of the deck after use and cannot be held for later use unless so stated on the card. Any card directing a player to advance his token to the nearest space requires the token to be moved in a clockwise direction around the board to the space—even if the player's token already occupies the space to which it is directed to go. A player who has lost all of his programming may not use any Bulletin card saved for later use—he is already out of the game. His unused Bulletin cards are returned to the bottom of the deck.
9.7 TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES: Any player whose token is on the Technical Difficulties space cannot participate in any bidding.
9.8 SUPER BOWL TILE: The Super Bowl tile is brought into play only by the appropriate Bulletin card. The Super Bowl tile represents that part of Super Bowl coverage which overlaps into prime time. It can be played only during the 8:00-9:00 time slot and only during a February Sweeps Ratings War. The Super Bowl tile automatically wins the 8:00-8:30 and 8:30-9:00 time slots but is lost to its owner at the end of that Ratings War (even if preempted). Thereafter, the Super Bowl tile is automatically up for bid (see rule 4) among all players except its last owner and/or any player currently on the Technical Difficulties space. The Super Bowl tile does not have to be played unless playing it is the only way its owner can fill his Prime Time Line-Up with the most programming during a February Sweeps Ratings War. A player with the Super Bowl tile and no other programming remains in the game until the next Ratings War. If he has not acquired other programming before the next Ratings War he is out of the game (and the Super Bowl tile is removed from play). The Super Bowl tile can be stolen like any other program.
9.9 PREEMPTION TILE: The Preemption tile represents any news event that preempts prime time programming. It can be procured only by a player already owning the Best Network News Bonus tile when his token lands on the Best Network News Program space. The qualifying moving player receives the Preemption tile whether currently owned by another player or not. If the moving player already owns both the Best Network News Bonus and the Preemption tile, he earns a $1,000 bonus instead.
9.91 USAGE: The player with the Preemption tile may place it on his Prime Time Line-Up card over an already played program or in an empty space on that card in any one-hour time slot of any Ratings War after seeing the revealed Prime Time Line-Ups of all other players (but before rolling the dice for any Specials). The player with the Preemption tile must still place and reveal his other programming simultaneously with the other players. The Preemption tile automatically voids any rating competition in these two half-hour time slots. No programs are cancelled during the preempted hour (except the Preemption tile itself) and no Lead-In bonus is awarded in the immediately following time slot. Unlike other cancelled programs, the Preemption tile can be returned to play as per 9.9. Any multiple-time slot programs whose earlier/later half-hour increments were preempted are still subject to Ratings War resolution for the non-preempted time slots. The Preemption tile does not have to be played. A player with the Preemption tile and no other programming remains in play until the next Ratings War. If he has not acquired other programming before the next Ratings War, he is out of the game. The Preemption tile can be stolen just like any other programming.
EXAMPLE: Refer to the Ratings War example on Page 4. ABS is in possession of the Preemption tile and after seeing everyone's Prime Time Line-Up plays it on the 9:30-10:30 time slots in order to save his MONDAY NIGHT RUGBY from cancellation. This also temporarily saves SUE GRANT from cancellation in the 10:00-10:30 time slot, but it is then cancelled after being "joined in progress" during the 10:30-11:00 time slot. CBA also benefits from this Preemption because SUE GRANT survives until the 10:30-11:00 time slot when it is cancelled instead of CBA's Academy Award Movie. Although CBA will lose the Academy Award Movie anyway, CBA retains the use of Star Carol Burnut because the Academy Award Movie was lost due to being played rather than due to cancellation.
10. Draws
If all of the remaining players lose their last programs in the same Ratings War, the winner is the player with the most money. Should the remaining players also have equal amounts of money at game end, the game is a draw.
Basic Strategy
Although luck plays a major role in TV WARS, it is not the only factor in determining the ultimate winner. As in most multi-player card games, a poor deal of initial programs can be overcome by a combination of strategy and improving luck. Even if one player starts play with far superior programs, he can be brought back to the pack if the others combine to play "against the leader." The player who starts with the best programs should win the opening Ratings Wars, but it is the player who wins the last Ratings War who wins the game.
Playing "against the leader" consists primarily of recognizing when one player has a commanding lead and convincing the other "have-not" players of that fact. The "have-nots" must then put aside their individual needs and play for the common good; i.e., not necessarily what directly benefits them most, but what most harms the leader. Specifically, "Steal A Star" and "Steal A Program" opportunities should be directed at the leader—even though using them against another player may yield better immediate benefits. The "have-nots" should be leery of bidding up prices once the leader has dropped out of the bidding. Let a fellow "have-not" get this one cheap and make it known that you expect the favor returned in the future. Of course, realizing when the leader is no longer necessarily the leader and abandoning this policy to pursue your own best interests is essential to the timing that is the crux of a winning strategy in any good game.
A player who perceives himself as having the best programs may wish to conceal that fact by playing poorer shows in the initial Ratings Wars, but usually he'll play his best shows to protect the weaker ones—hoping for a big payday when landing on the Sponsor space. Our self-avowed leader should try to end the game as quickly as possible before fate can intercede. "Steal A Star/Program" opportunities should be directed at players who have the least of those commodities to choose from . . . both because what they have remaining will likely be of higher value and also because the attrition rate of programs lost to cancellation will increase as the number of players lessens. The leader should decline nominating opportunities because he doesn't want to prolong the game by expanding the amount of available programming. He'll also need to save his money to bid up the prices of programs nominated by the others. The object here is not so much to secure additional programming for oneself, but to ensure that the other players are not getting any bargains.
Different strategies abound and will become readily apparent to the astute player as he becomes more familiar with the game components. The eventual discovery and application of these strategies will ensure that no two games of TV WARS will ever play quite the same.
Inventory
TV WARS game equipment consists of the following parts. Any missing parts can be purchased separately direct from The Avalon Hill Game Company by requesting a current Parts Price List from their 4517 Harford Rd., Baltimore, MD 21214 address.
- one 16" x 22" game board
- four 3" x 7" Prime Time Line-Up cards
- two dice
- four plastic tokens
- Play Money in denominations of $10,000, $5,000, $1,000, and $500
- 30 Bulletin cards
- four die-cut Tile sheets containing:
- 10 Critics' Choice tiles
- 12 120 minute programs
- 12 90 minute programs
- 30 60 minute programs
- 60 30 minute programs
- 15 Viewers' Views tiles
- 8 Academy Award Movies
- 9 Star tiles
- 5 Emmy Award tiles
- 1 Best Network News Bonus tile
- 1 Super Bowl tile
- 1 Preemption tile
Ratings War Example
The printed example shows four networks' completed Prime Time Line-Up cards as diagrams (ABS, CBA, PBC, NBS) and a Preemption tile reference (see 9.91). The diagrams are not reproduced here; the written calculations below are transcribed in full.
8:00-8:30
- ABS: MONDAY NIGHT RUGBY: 85 (80 + 5 [Network News]). Wins Time Slot.
- CBA: DIE-NASTY: 80 (90 - 10 [Counter-Programming]).
- PBC: NUTS LANDING: 60 (60 - 10 [Counter-Programming] + 10 [Promos]).
- NBS: SILVER GIRLS: 51 (30 + 21 [Viewers' Views]). Cancelled.
8:30-9:00
- ABS: MONDAY NIGHT RUGBY: 85 (80 + 5 [Lead-In]). Wins Time Slot.
- CBA: DIE-NASTY: 80 (90 - 10 [Counter-Programming]).
- PBC: NUTS LANDING: 60 (60 - 10 [Counter-Programming] + 10 [Promos]).*
- NBS: TENDER HIDE: 60 (30 + 30 [Star]).*
*PBC and NBS are tied for last place with 60 Rating Points apiece, thus necessitating a tie-breaker dice roll. PBC rolls higher than NBS so TENDER HIDE is cancelled and NBS loses Star Flirt Reynolds as a result.
9:00-9:30
- ABS: MONDAY NIGHT RUGBY: 75 (80 - 10 [Counter-Programming] + 5 [Lead-In]).
- CBA: RAMBOZO: 110 (100 + 10 [Star]). Wins Time Slot.
- PBC: PEOPLE ARE FUNNY LOOKING: 50 (40 + 10 [Promos]). Cancelled.
RAMBOZO is not subject to Counter-Programming penalty in this time slot because TENDER HIDE was cancelled in previous time slot. PEOPLE ARE FUNNY LOOKING is cancelled because it is the lowest rated program still remaining in the 9:00-9:30 time slot.
9:30-10:00
- ABS: MONDAY NIGHT RUGBY: 80. Cancelled.
- CBA: RAMBOZO: 115 (100 + 10 [Star] + 5 [Lead-In]).
- PBC: BEERS: 90 (80 + 10 [Promos]).
- NBS: SPECIAL: 120 (70 [dice roll of 7 x 10] + 50 [Emmy]). Wins Time Slot.
10:00-10:30
- ABS: SUE GRANT: -11 (40 - 31 [Critics' Choice] - 20 [Counter-Programming]). Cancelled.
- CBA: RAMBOZO: 110 (100 + 10 [Star]). Wins Time Slot.
- PBC: DR. KILLJOY: 10 (20 + 10 [Promos] - 20 [Counter-Programming]).
- NBS: SPECIAL: 105 (70 + 50 [Emmy] - 20 [Counter-Programming] + 5 [Lead-In]).
10:30-11:00
- CBA: RAMBOZO: 115 (100 + 10 [Star] + 5 [Lead-In]). Cancelled.*
- NBS: SPECIAL: 120 (70 + 50 [Emmy]).
*Although CBA would have lost RAMBOZO at the end of the Ratings War anyway, because it was an Academy Award Movie, it also lost Star Carol Burnut due to the cancellation for being the lowest rated program in the 10:30-11:00 time slot. PBC had no other programming and therefore voided the 10:30-11:00 time slot and ABS's SUE GRANT had been cancelled during the previous time slot.
Transcriber Notes
- This rulebook is transcribed from a scan with no text layer. Where the scan is smudged, the reading was resolved from context: in the Basic Strategy text, the phrase rendered as "the ' 'her players" in the scan is transcribed as "the other players". In the Basic Strategy text the word rendered as "playe;:" is transcribed as "player".
- The Credits block on page 3 (designer, development, playtesting, art, typesetting, printing) and the publisher's copyright footer on page 4 are omitted as attribution and boilerplate. The Inventory component list is kept.