Unicorn Fever Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Objective
• Components
• Setup
  • The Fever!
  • Additional Rules for 2 Players
  • Additional Rules for 6 Players
• Game Overview
  • Owner Tiles
  • Unicorn Miniatures, Bases, and Ownership
• Types of Bets
• The Odds
• Phase 1: Planning
  • 1.1 Play Magic Cards
  • 1.2 Place a Bet
  • 1.3 Gain Glory
    • Win Bet Example
    • Show Bet Example
  • 1.4 Acquire a Contract
  • 1.5 Gain or Lose Gold
  • 1.6 Become First Player
  • Taking an Elf-Mob Loan Card
• Phase 2: Race
  • 2.1 Move the First Player Token
  • 2.2 Reveal All Magic Cards
  • 2.3 Shuffle the Movement Deck
  • 2.4 Race!
• Phase 3: Results
  • 3.1 Pay Out Bets
  • 3.2 Pay Glory Tax
  • 3.3 Update Odds
  • 3.4 Update Fever Status
  • 3.5 Reveal New Contracts
  • 3.6 Update Race Counter
• End of the Game
• Credits

Objective

Unicorn Fever is a tactical betting game with elements of luck. You will take the roles of wealthy bettors of the magical world, determined to be recognized as the next Great Horn, an honorific title that only the most skillful unicorn connoisseurs have obtained during the history of the millennia-long tradition of the Great Unicorn Racing Championship. For the duration of the Championship, you will try to place successful bets to gain Glory and Gold.

To reach your goal, you will sign Contracts with unscrupulous citizens of the fairy realm to hire their services and turn the odds of the race in your favor, play Magic cards to straight up fix the race, and try to avoid squandering all your hard-earned Gold and be forced to ask the Elf-Mob for Loans.

At the end of the Championship, the player with the most Glory will be the winner! (If they aren't in debt too deep to the Elf-Mob...)

Components

• 1 Game board
• 123 cards:
  • 23 Movement cards
  • 44 Magic cards
  • 40 Contract cards (8 of each Clan: Gnomes, Leprechauns, Goblins, Fairies, and Witches)
  • 6 Unicorn cards
  • 10 Loan cards
• 6 Unicorn miniatures
• 6 Unicorn ring bases, 1 of each color
• 2 Sprint dice
• 1 First player token
• 6 Win Bet tokens, 1 for each color
• 6 Early Show Bet tokens, 1 for each color
• 6 Late Show Bet tokens, 1 for each color
• 11 Action tokens
• 81 Glory tokens (59 with 1 clover, 22 with 3 clovers)
• 6 Odds tokens, 1 for each color
• 6 Owner tiles, 1 for each color
• 1 Race Counter marker
• 124 Gold tokens (80 worth 1, 27 worth 5, 12 worth 20, 5 worth 50)

Setup

NOTE: If you are playing with 2 or 6 players, there are some additional rules. Check the "Additional Rules for 2 Players" and "Additional Rules for 6 Players" sections below!

1. Place the game board in the middle of the table, so that it is clearly visible to all players.
2. Place the Race Counter marker on the first space of the Race Counter Track.
3. Take all of the Gold tokens and Glory tokens and put them in separate piles in a common pool next to the board, in reach of all players. This will be the Bank. Each player then takes 20 Gold.
4. Place all of the Loan cards on the table, next to the Bank.
5. Shuffle the Movement deck and place it, face down, on the space to the top left of the board.
6. In a game with 4-6 players, place all of the Bet tokens on the designated spaces right below the space for the Movement deck, as shown in the picture. In a game with 2-3 players, only place the Win Bet tokens and the Early Show Bet tokens; put the Late Show Bet tokens back into the box, they won't be used during this game.
7. Sort the different kinds of Action tokens by their color, and create a stack for each kind of Action token sorted by size, with the smaller ones (marked with an "A") on top. Then, place each stack on the space of the corresponding color on the board.
8. Separate all the Contract cards by Clan (Fairies, Gnomes, Goblins, Leprechauns, Witches), then choose or randomly determine 2 Clans to play with. Put all of the unused Contract cards back into the box. They won't be used for this game.
9. Shuffle the Contract cards for the 2 selected Clans together to form a Contract deck and place it face down on the table, next to the Contract spaces of the board. Draw 3 cards from the Contract deck and place 1 of them, face up, on each Contract space on the board.
10. Attach a base ring to each Unicorn miniature. Then, place each Unicorn miniature on the Starting space of the lane with the matching color (the Unicorn with the blue base on the blue lane, and so on).
11. Take the Unicorn cards and place each one of them, with the side with the peaceful clouds in the background facing up, on the Unicorn space at the bottom of the lane with the matching Unicorn miniature.
12. Shuffle all the Magic cards. In a game with 2-5 players, deal 5 to each player, in a game with 6 players, only deal 4 cards to each player; then, create a deck with the remaining Magic cards and place it beside the board.
13. Randomly determine the First Player, who receives the First Player token and the 2 Sprint dice.
14. Shuffle the Odds tokens and randomly place 1 on each of the Odds spaces of the Odds Table. This will rank the Unicorns from the "fastest" to the "slowest" from top to bottom, and it will determine the Odds of the corresponding Unicorns (from "x2" to "x7").
15. Flip the Unicorn card for the "slowest" Unicorn face up, to the "Fever" side (see "The Fever!" below). Note that the Odds of the Unicorns will change during the game, so the Unicorn in Fever status may also change!
16. Starting with the First Player and proceeding clockwise, give to each player the Owner tile corresponding to the Unicorn with the worst Odds available: the Unicorn with "x7" Odds to the first player, the one with "x6" Odds to the second, and so on. Put any unused Owner tiles back in the box.

...now you're ready to go!

The Fever!

After the Odds ranking is changed at the end of a Race, during the Results Phase (see "3.4 Update Fever Status"), you will have to check which Unicorn has the lowest (worst) Odds. That Unicorn will go into "Fever" status, and it will gain a special ability! Flip that Unicorn card face up, to the Fever side.

In case of a tie for the Unicorn with the worst Odds, all tied Unicorns go into Fever status!

Example: if the Odds are as depicted in the setup images, the Unicorn that goes into Fever status at the beginning of the game is the purple one; additionally, the purple Owner tile is assigned to the First Player, the blue Owner tile is assigned to the second, the red one to the third, and so on.

Additional Rules for 2 Players

There are a few additional rules when you play a game with only 2 players:

• During setup: the Action token of each color marked with a "B" must be removed from its stack: this means that for the green tokens that come in three variants (A, B, and C) you will only play with the topmost (A) one and the bottom (C) one; for the tokens of the other colors, that only come in two variants (A and B), you will only play with the "A" one.
• Before each round: roll a Sprint die and remove the Win Bet token of the corresponding color from the board; then, roll a Sprint die again, and remove the Early Show Bet token of the corresponding color. Remember: there are no Late Show Bet tokens in a game with 2 players!

Example A: A Sprint die is rolled, and the green face comes up. Remove the green Win Bet token from the board: it won't be available during the next Race. The Sprint die is rolled again, and this time the result is orange, so the orange Early Show Bet token is also discarded.

Example B: If the same color is rolled twice (blue in this example), no one will be able to bet on the Unicorn of that color during the next race!

Additional Rules for 6 Players

There is one additional rule when you play a game with 6 players: for the whole duration of the game, the hand size of all players is reduced to 4 cards instead of the regular 5).

Note that with 6 players the game can last a bit longer than usual. If you prefer a shorter playtime, run 3 races instead of 4!

Game Overview

A game of Unicorn Fever is played over 4 rounds. Each round is composed of 3 Phases:

• Planning: During this Phase, you will perform Actions to Sign Contracts and hire magical beings to take advantage of their abilities, play Magic cards to fix the Race, place Bets, and more.
• Race: During this Phase, you will flip Movement cards and roll the Sprint dice several times: watch the race unfold and root for your favorite unicorns!
• Results: During this Phase, you will check which of your Bets were successful and which weren't, gain the corresponding payoff in Gold and Glory, perform a bit of maintenance, and update the odds of all Unicorns depending on their ranking at the end of the race.

At the end of the fourth round, the game is over, and the player with the most Glory is the winner!

Owner Tiles

Each player received 1 Owner tile during the setup procedure. Your Owner tile makes you, quite unsurprisingly, the owner of the Unicorn of the corresponding color.

When the Unicorn you own ranks either 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in a Race, as its owner you obtain a small bonus prize in Gold:

• if your Unicorn ranks 1st, you gain 6 Gold
• if your Unicorn ranks 2nd, you gain 4 Gold
• if your Unicorn ranks 3rd, you gain 2 Gold

Note: You don't need to place a Bet on your Unicorn to gain this bonus prize. It is gained whenever your Unicorn shows on the podium, no matter if you (or anyone, really) placed a Bet on it or whether it was successful or not!

Unicorn Miniatures, Bases, and Ownership

Each of the 6 Unicorns of this game is represented by a Unicorn miniature, a colored plastic base ring, and an Owner tile of the corresponding color. Even if you are the owner of a Unicorn (i.e., you have its Owner tile), remember that in Unicorn Fever players are not represented by a color or the corresponding Unicorn: they are simply wagerers standing along the racetrack, placing bets to score Glory and obtain Gold. You are not forced to bet on your own Unicorn, and often it won't even be in your interest to do so!

Types of Bets

In Unicorn Fever, you can place two types of Bets: Show Bets and Win Bets.

A Show Bet means that you bet on a Unicorn to finish first, second, or third. While less risky than a Win Bet, it is also less rewarding: successful Show Bets only give you double the amount of Gold you spent on the Bet, no matter the Odds. Depending on the number of players, Show Bets may be available in two variants: Early or Late (see "1.2 Place a Bet"). This only affects the amount of Glory you obtain from your successful bets (3 Glory for Early Show Bets, 2 Glory for Late Show Bets), not the amount of Gold.

A Win Bet means that you bet on a Unicorn to finish first, i.e., to win the Race. It is riskier than a Show Bet, but it can be much more rewarding: the amount of Gold you gain from a successful Win Bet depends on the Odds of the Unicorn on which you placed the Bet (see "1.2 Place a Bet"). You also obtain 5 Glory from each successful Win Bet.

• Win Bet token (5 Gold; depends on the Odds)
• Early Show Bet token (3 Glory; x2 Gold)
• Late Show Bet token (2 Glory; x2 Gold)

The Odds

The Odds represent how fast or slow each Unicorn will be during the Race. A Unicorn whose Odds token is ranked higher on the Odds Table will probably run faster than those in the lower positions.

Each row of the Odds Table matches a row on the Movement cards: the numbers shown on the cards determine the number of spaces each Unicorn moves in that Race Turn, depending on its Odds (see "2.4 Race!"). Higher numbers are more probable for the higher rows than the lower ones.

The position of an Odds token on the Odds Table is always associated with a "gold multiplier" value (which can be x2, x3, x4, x5, x6, or x7). This indicates how much Gold you win if you place a successful Win Bet on that Unicorn (see "1.2 Place a Bet"). For example, if you bet 5 Gold on a Unicorn with "x3" Odds with a Win Bet, and that Unicorn actually wins the Race, you will get 5 x 3 = 15!

During the course of the game, the Odds of the Unicorns will change, and it is possible that more than one Unicorn token will have the same Odds (thus empty spaces on the Odds Table are also possible).

Phase 1: Planning

During the Planning Phase, each player will take 3 "Action Turns," starting with the First Player and going clockwise. You will pick 1 single Action token during each of your Action Turns, and each Action token will allow you to apply 1 or more effects.

Possible effects are:

1. Play Magic Cards
2. Place a Bet
3. Gain Glory
4. Acquire a Contract
5. Gain or Lose Gold
6. Become First Player

Whenever a player picks an Action token to perform an Action, they must take the top Action token from the corresponding pile (if available), apply its effects, then place it in front of them as a reminder of how many Actions they already performed this round. The detailed rules of each effect will be described in the following sections.

In most cases, when a pile of Action tokens is depleted, the combination of effects linked to that kind of Action tokens becomes unavailable. Two of the Action token spaces, however, show an effect symbol printed directly on the board. These effects are to be considered always available. When you trigger an effect printed on the board as your Action, you must declare it before applying its effect.

Note: Additionally, the topmost tokens always have more and/or stronger effects than those beneath them. This means that it's always an advantage to pick a certain kind of Action token earlier rather than later!

Players continue taking turns performing Actions until every player has had 3 turns. After everyone has performed 3 Actions, the Planning Phase is complete: the Race is ready to start!

1.1 Play Magic Cards

Play the indicated number of Magic cards from your hand to fix the next race! Magic cards influence the performance of the Unicorn you play them on in a positive or negative way, depending on the kind of Magic card you play (white cards are Positive Magic cards, while black cards are Negative Magic cards).

Note: You must always keep your Magic cards secret, before and after you play them. They will only be revealed just before the beginning of the Race, in the early steps of the Race Phase.

Each Magic card you play must be placed, face down, below the card of the Unicorn you want to play it on, aligned with its lane. With each Action, you can play all the cards on the same lane, each card on a different lane, or a mixture of both (some cards on the same lane, others on different lanes).

After you apply a "Play Magic Cards" effect, you must immediately replenish your hand to 5 Magic cards (4 cards in a 6-player game). If there are no more cards available in the deck, shuffle the discarded Magic cards and restore the deck. If the cards are not enough, you can't draw any more this round.

1.2 Place a Bet

Place bets to obtain Gold and Glory! There are two stacks of Action tokens linked to this effect: "Place Any Bet" Action tokens and "Place a Win Bet" Action tokens. Place Any Bet Action tokens show the symbols of both kinds of bets (Win Bets and Show Bets), while Place a Win Bet Action tokens only show the Win Bet symbol. Remember that different Bets give different rewards (see "Types of Bets").

To place a bet, decide which Unicorn you want to place a Bet on first. Then, take the Bet token for the type of Bet you intend to place (Win Bet, Early Show Bet, or Late Show Bet, if available) from the board and place it in front of you. Finally, decide how much Gold you want to bet on the Unicorn and put it on top of the Bet token.

Note: If a specific type of Bet token is not available for a color when you place your Bet, you can't place that type of Bet on the Unicorn of that color.

Since the Place Any Bet symbol is printed on the board, it is always possible to place a Bet.

Example: Choose your Bet token, place it in front of you, then place your Bet money on it! For instance, a player placing an Early Show Bet of 7 Gold on the green Unicorn.

OWNERSHIP OF BET MONEY: The Gold used to place a Bet counts as property of the Bank, not of the player. If you placed 4 Gold on a successful Show Bet, for example, you obtain a total of 8 Gold by getting back the 4 Gold you placed on your Bet and 4 more Gold from the Bank.

1.3 Gain Glory

This effect can only be triggered when you pick a Place a Win Bet Action token. When you trigger this effect, add the indicated amount of Glory tokens from the Bank on top of the Win Bet you are placing thanks to this token. If this Win Bet is successful, you will also gain these additional Glory tokens.

Win Bet Example

Martina wants to place a Win Bet on the Red Unicorn, which has "x4" Odds. Since the "Place a Win Bet" Action token marked with an "A" has already been taken, she takes the one on the top of its pile, marked with a "B" (1.). Then, she takes the Red "Win Bet" token (which was still available), places it in front of her, and places 4 Gold from her pool on top of it (2.). Finally, she takes 1 Glory token from the Bank and places it on the Red Win Bet token, too, to apply the effect of the Action token she chose for this Action turn. She has now bet 4 Gold that the Red Unicorn will win the Race, and if her Bet is successful, she will also gain the additional Glory she placed on the Bet token (3.).

At the end of the race, the Red Unicorn actually places first, so Martina's Bet is successful! The Red Unicorn has "x4" Odds, so Martina takes back the 4 Gold she placed on the Win Bet token, then takes 12 more from the Bank, for a whopping total of 16 Gold! Since she placed a Win bet through the "Place a Win Bet" Action token marked with a "B", Martina also receives 5 Glory from the Bank, plus the additional Glory she placed on her Bet, for a total of 6 Glory (4.).

If the Red Unicorn had placed even just second, Martina would have lost the 4 Gold she had bet and she wouldn't have received any Glory!

Show Bet Example

Laura wants to place a Show Bet on the Blue Unicorn, which has "x5" Odds. Since there are no more Action tokens on the "Place Any Bet" Action space, Laura can only place a Bet without playing any bonus Magic cards by triggering the "Place Any Bet" effect printed directly on the board (which is always available). She takes the Blue "Early Show Bet" token and places it in front of her (A.). Then, she puts 5 Gold from her pool on top of it: she has now bet 5 Gold that the Blue Unicorn will show at the podium (B.).

At the end of the race, the Blue Unicorn places 3rd, so Laura's Bet is successful. Even though the Blue Unicorn has x5 Odds, Laura placed a Show Bet, so the Odds don't matter in this case. Laura takes back the 5 Gold she placed on her Early Show Bet token, then takes 5 more from the Bank, for a total of 10 Gold. Since she used an Early Show Bet token, Laura also receives 3 Glory.

If the Blue Unicorn had placed 1st or 2nd, that wouldn't have made any difference to Laura: she would have still obtained 10 Gold and 3 Glory (C.).

1.4 Acquire a Contract

Sign a Contract with one of the unscrupulous clans of the Magic Realm and hire their services! Acquiring Contract cards has a different cost depending on which Action token is available when you perform this action. When you acquire a Contract card, it comes into play immediately and it will grant you a permanent benefit for the rest of the game.

Note: Only 3 Contract cards will be available each round. Cards should not be replaced when a player takes one – they will be replaced only during the Results Phase.

Note: Some Contracts are also worth Glory at the end of the game, so pay attention to the top right corner of the Contract cards!

Example Contract cards:

• Unconditional Love: Immediately reserve 1 Bet token by placing it on this card. You may reserve 1 Bet token this way at the beginning of each round.
• Clearance Sales: At the end of the game, you gain 3 Glory for each Contract card owned by your opponents.
• You Only Live Once: Once per Round, When you place a Win Bet, you may immediately place another Win Bet.

1.5 Gain or Lose Gold

When this effect is triggered, you must gain or lose the indicated amount of Gold (e.g., "+10" means you must take 10 Gold from the Bank, while "-3" means that you must discard 3 Gold to the Bank).

The Gain money effect may be triggered with the yellow Action tokens, but it may also be triggered through the yellow Action space even if it is empty.

The Losing money effect may be triggered when Acquiring a Contract with the green Action tokens.

1.6 Become First Player

This effect may only be triggered when picking the topmost yellow Action token (the one marked with an "A"). When you trigger this effect, at the end of this Planning Phase you will receive the First Player token (so you will be First Player in the following Race).

Note: Keep the Action token triggering this effect in front of you until you actually receive the First Player token at the beginning of the Race Phase, as a reminder.

Taking an Elf-Mob Loan Card

Whenever you need to, you may ask the Elf-Mob for a Loan of 20 Gold. It's an opportunity to have more Gold right now, but you will have to pay interest later. When you take a Loan, take 20 Gold from the Bank, then place a Loan card in front of you with the side showing 1 bag of money facing up, as a reminder that the Elf-Mob will visit you to claim their money with interest (a total of 25 Gold) at the end of the Game (see "End of the Game"). If you need to take a second Loan, you can just flip the card to the side with 2 gold bags.

Taking an Elf-Mob Loan card doesn't count as an Action, and you can do it anytime during any Action or during the Pay Glory Tax step if you don't have enough money to pay.

Phase 2: Race

Before you can start the Race itself, there are a few preliminary steps to follow:

1. Move the First Player token (if needed)
2. Reveal all Magic cards
3. Shuffle the Movement deck
4. Race!

2.1 Move the First Player Token

Check which player currently has the yellow Action token marked with an A (if any). This is the only token triggering the "Become First Player" effect. If the First Player token currently belongs to another player, move the First Player token to the player with the 1st "Gain Gold" Action token. This player immediately becomes the new First Player.

Note: The First Player token is only given to the player with the "A" yellow Action token at the beginning of the Race Phase (not immediately).

2.2 Reveal All Magic Cards

It's time to check which magic trickeries were performed by the players! Reveal all of the Magic cards played on each Unicorn. Then, one Unicorn at a time, check if there are conflicting Magic cards, i.e., pairs of 1 Positive and 1 Negative Magic card marked with the same letter in the top left corner. Conflicting cards have effects that cancel each other. Whenever a pair of conflicting cards is found, you must discard both of them.

After this, check the effects of all remaining Magic cards that may need to be applied immediately (for example, cards that change the Odds for a Unicorn).

Note: Even if a Magic card changes the Odds, remember that the Fever status of the Unicorns will only be updated during the Results Phase (see "3.4 Update Fever Status"), not immediately.

Note: Magic cards whose effect has already been applied can be discarded immediately after.

Example: Conflicting cards are marked with the same letter in the top left corner; the effects of these cards cancel each other, so they are removed without applying their effects.

2.3 Shuffle the Movement Deck

Take all of the Movement cards and shuffle them, then place the whole deck, face down, on the leftmost space of the Odds Table.

2.4 Race!

It's time to start the competition! The Race consists of a variable number of consecutive "Race Turns" (usually between 4 and 7). Each Race Turn consists of 3 steps:

1. Reveal a Movement card
2. Roll the Sprint dice
3. Check the Finish Line

You must keep playing Race Turns until all of the Unicorn miniatures have crossed the Finish Line and have been placed in the Race Ranking.

1. Reveal a Movement card

The First Player turns over the top card from the Movement card deck and places it, face up, on the space to the right of the deck on the Odds Table. Then, you must apply its effects. Each Movement card indicates a specific movement value (from 0 to 4) for the different Odds (for example, a Unicorn with x4 Odds will move forward as many spaces as indicated in the "x4" row of the current Movement card).

You can apply the movements of the Unicorns in any order (from top to bottom of the Odds Table or from left to right on the race track are two convenient ways to do it), but for game purposes all movements are considered to be simultaneous.

Example: After a Movement card is revealed, it's time to move the Unicorns again! The green Unicorn moves 2 spaces forward, while the orange Unicorn moves 3. The yellow and blue Unicorns both have x4 Odds, so they both move 2 spaces forward. The x5 Odds row of the card is ignored, as no Unicorn has those Odds. Finally, the purple Unicorn moves 2 spaces forward, while the low-ranked red Unicorn, despite its x7 Odds, moves 3 spaces forward. Too little to redeem a seemingly bad race, at least so far.

2. Roll the Sprint dice

After all Unicorns have been moved, the First Player rolls the 2 Sprint dice. The Unicorns that match the colors rolled (if they are still on the track) each move 1 space forward. Sprints for Unicorns that crossed the Finish Line during the current Race Turn must still be applied (as they may help break ties), but Sprints for Unicorns that were already placed on the Race Ranking in a previous Race Turn are ignored.

Note: A single Unicorn can only perform 1 Sprint each Race Turn, so if the same color shows up on both dice, that Unicorn only moves 1 space forward.

Example: The Sprint dice show the symbols of the red and the purple Unicorns, who move 1 additional space forward on top of what the latest Movement card gave them.

3. Check the Finish Line

After applying the effects of both the Movement card and the Sprint dice, if a Unicorn has reached or crossed the Finish Line, that Unicorn has completed its race. Move its miniature to the highest available space of the Race Ranking, on the right side of the Odds Table.

If more than one Unicorn has crossed the Finish Line during the same Race Turn, a Unicorn that moved more spaces beyond the Finish Line ranks higher than those further behind. Note: The spaces beyond the Finish Line are to be considered infinite.

In case of a tie, apply the following tie-breaker rules, in order, to find out how the tied Unicorns rank against each other:

1. The Unicorn whose Odds are higher on the Odds Table wins the tie.
2. If the tied Unicorns have the same Odds, the First Player decides their order of arrival.

At the end of each Race Turn, any Unicorn that finished the race that turn is moved to the Odds Table, in the space for their Ranking, which is based on the order in which they finished the race.

Example: More than one Unicorn crossed the Finish Line during the latest Race Turn: they all have to be moved to the Race Ranking. The yellow Unicorn moved the most spaces past the Finish Line, so it ranks first. The red Unicorn and the green Unicorn both just crossed the Finish Line, and neither has a Magic card played on them that will help break the tie. But, the green Unicorn has better Odds (x2 Odds, while the red one has x7 Odds), so the green Unicorn ranks second and the red one ranks third. The players now have to reveal another Movement card so the other Unicorns can complete the race, too.

Phase 3: Results

After the Race is over, there are a few steps to follow:

1. Pay Out Bets
2. Pay Glory Tax
3. Update Odds
4. Update Fever Status
5. Reveal New Contracts
6. Update Race Counter

3.1 Pay Out Bets

Time to grab your hard-earned moolah! Starting with the First Player and going clockwise, each player declares which of their Bets were successful, and which were not. Any Gold that was spent on unsuccessful Bets must be immediately discarded to the Bank.

For each successful Bet, you collect Gold depending on its type (Win Bets or Early/Late Show Bets) and the amount of Gold you bet (see "Types of Bets"). Additionally, you must take Glory from the Bank according to the Bet type (5 Glory for Win Bets, 3 Glory for Early Show Bets, and 2 Glory for Late Show Bets). Remember to check for any penalty/bonus effects of Action tokens, Contracts, and/or Unicorn cards that may apply to the amount of Gold and Glory you obtain, and to collect the rewards of your Owner tile (if your Unicorn showed on the podium).

When you are done, put all of the Bet and Action tokens on the appropriate spaces of the board, including any still "reserved" on a Contract card.

3.2 Pay Glory Tax

The Magical Realm is full of envy and pride, so when you have good results, your standard of living must rise together with your success. This is informally called the "Glory Tax."

At the end of each round, after collecting the Glory for the current round, you must pay the Bank an amount of Gold equal to the number of Glory tokens you currently own.

Please note that any Glory reported on your Contract cards don't count towards the Glory Tax!

Note: The next 3 steps are only needed to prepare for the next round. At the end of the 4th and final round of the game, you don't need to perform them: skip them completely.

3.3 Update Odds

Before moving on to the next round, you must update the Odds for all Unicorns. Starting with the Unicorn who ranked first in the latest Race and going downwards, adjust the Odds as follows:

• If the Unicorn ranked higher than their Odds token on the Odds Table, their Odds token moves up 1 row on the table.
• If the Unicorn ranked lower than their Odds token on the Odds Table, their Odds token moves down 1 row on the table.
• If the Unicorn is ranked in the same row as their Odds token on the Odds Table, their Odds token does not move.

Example: The Red Unicorn had "x3" Odds but it won the race, so its Odds go up 1 row to "x2." The Blue Unicorn also had "x3" Odds but it placed 2nd, so its Odds don't change.

The Purple Unicorn placed 3rd, but it had "x6" Odds. Despite the gap of 2 rows, its Odds token still only goes up 1 row: it will have "x5" Odds during the next round.

Bombarded with Negative Magic cards, the Yellow Unicorn placed 4th even though it was favored to win with "x2" Odds. However disastrous the result, its Odds still only go down 1 row to "x3."

3.4 Update Fever Status

After the new Odds are determined, it's time to see which Unicorn(s) will be in Fever status during the next round.

Note: At least 1 Unicorn will catch the "Fever" each round. This is indicated by which side of their Unicorn card is showing.

Check the Odds Table. The "slowest" Unicorn(s) (the one(s) with the worst Odds) is the one with the Unicorn Fever! Flip the corresponding Unicorn card(s) to the Fever side (the one with the dazzling disco effects), and make sure all of the other Unicorn cards are placed on the board with the normal side up (the one with the peaceful clouds).

Note: If a Unicorn had the Fever in the past, but now it's no longer the one with the worst Odds, their Unicorn card must be flipped face down during this step of the Results Phase.

If 2 or more Unicorns are tied for the lowest Odds, all of them go into Fever status, and you must flip all of their cards over.

Example: After the Odds have been updated, the Purple Unicorn, which was in Fever status, is no longer the one with the worst Odds, so its Unicorn card must be flipped to the normal side.

The Green Unicorn and the Orange Unicorn, both with "x6" Odds, are now tied for the worst Odds. They both go into Fever status, so their Unicorn cards are flipped to the Fever side.

3.5 Reveal New Contracts

Discard any Contract card that was not purchased and remains on the board. Then, reveal 3 new Contract cards and place them on the 3 Contract spaces of the board. They will be available for purchase during the next round.

At the end of each round, discard all Contract cards left on the board (if any), and refill each Contract space with 1 new card drawn from the deck.

3.6 Update Race Counter

Move the Race Counter to the next space. If it is on the 4th space already, the game is over!

End of the Game

After the 4th Race is over, it's time for players to find out who is the overall winner of the Championship! Follow the steps below, in order:

Pay off your loans

For each Elf-Mob Loan you received (if any), you must pay 25 Gold to the Bank, then discard the Loan card (or flip it to the "1 Loan" side).

If you don't have enough Gold to pay for all of your Loans, keep any unpaid Loan cards in front of you, they will contribute to determine your ranking at the end of the game (see below).

Calculate your total

If you have any Gold left in your pool at the end of the game, you must convert them into Glory: take 1 additional Glory token for each 20 Gold that you pay to the Bank this way (keep any leftovers in your pool). Then, add up all of the Glory tokens that you gained and all of the Glory granted by your Contract cards.

Determine the winner!

In the unruly underworld of Unicorn Races, Glory is all that matters. The most "glorious" player will be the winner of the Championship... unless they got in debt with the Elf-Mob and they could not repay all of their loans, that is! Even honest elves are gossipy and resentful creatures, so imagine how badly the shadiest among them could talk about you behind your back! A single bad word from an elf could ruin the reputation of even the most glorious and skilled Unicorn connoisseur, forever!

At the end of the game, the player with the least amount of unpaid Loan cards is the winner (and the new Great Horn of the Magical Realm)! In case of a (admittedly very likely) tie, the tied player with the most Glory wins! If they are still tied, the one with the most Gold wins. If there is still a tie, they share the victory.

Example: Julia and Simone both have no unpaid Loan cards, but Julia has 17 Glory while Simone only has 15. Julia wins the game, while Simone ranks second!

Martina has 18 Glory (more than Julia!) but she was left with 1 unpaid Loan card at the end of the game, so she only ranks third.

With 2 unpaid Loan cards each, Catherine and Nicholas can only fight for the fourth and fifth places. They both have 14 Glory, but Catherine has 5 Gold left in her pool whereas Nicholas only has 2. Catherine ranks 4th. Nicholas ranks 5th (and last).

Credits

Game Design: Lorenzo Silva, Lorenzo Tucci Sorrentino Artwork: Giulia Ghigini Development: Laura Severino, Renato Sasdelli, Hjalmar Hach Art Direction: Lorenzo Silva Graphic Design: Noa Vassalli, Rita Ottolini Rulebook: Alessandro Pra', Renato Sasdelli Editing: William Niebling, Alessandro Pra' Project Manager: Laura Severino Production Manager: Flavio Mortarino, Renato Sasdelli