Vegas Strip
Vegas Strip Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 Character Aid
- 2 Setup Cards
- 6 Team Markers
- 18 Partner Cards (6 per team)
- 6 Fixer Cards
- 6 Casino Cards
- 10 Character Cards (double-sided)
- 6 +3 tokens
- 98 Poker Chips
- First Player Marker
- 42 Number Tiles (7 per player)
- 6 Player Cards
Credits
- Design: Peter C. Hayward
- Illustration: Vincent Dutrait
- Graphic Design: Anca Gavril & Co.
- Development: Jeff Fraser, AJ Brandon
- Rules Editing: Jeff Fraser
- 3D Artist: Filip Gavril
Setup
- Place the setup card for your player count where everyone can see it. Select the number of casino cards listed on the setup card and lay them out in a row. All casinos are the same except for name and artwork.
- If using 5 casinos, remove the fixer card for the unused casino from the game. Place the fixer and partner cards near the setup card for now.
- Check the starting jackpot on the setup card. Place that amount of poker chips on each casino.
- Shuffle the character cards and deal 1 below each casino. For your first game, use the A side of every card. After your first game, randomly place each card on the A or B side. If using Pro Gambler, pile the +3 tokens nearby.
- Each player chooses a player card and takes the matching team marker and 8 number tiles. If the setup card shows any removed tiles, each player removes those tiles from the game.
- Whoever most recently visited Las Vegas takes the first player marker.
Goal
Each round, you and your assigned partner play number tiles at casinos to try and earn the most poker chips. After 3 rounds, everyone counts up their chips to see who won.
Rigged & Secure Casinos
Sound too easy? The catch is that each team secretly chooses a rigged casino and a secure casino each round.
You only want to win at rigged casinos, since staff there have been paid to overlook cheating. At secure casinos, you want to earn as much as you can without winning – because whoever wins gets kicked out with nothing!
Hand of Tiles
Place your number tiles faceup near your player card. This is your hand. The tiles in your hand are always public and should be visible to everyone.
Game Rounds
Each round has 3 phases:
- Round Setup
- Player Turns
- Collect Payouts
1. Round Setup
A. ASSIGN TEAMS: First, players place their team markers on the setup card to find out which team they're on this round. Going in clockwise turn order, the first player places their marker on "1st," the next player on "2nd," and so on. If a player doesn't have a partner, they play solo this round. In 2-3 player games, everyone plays solo (see Solo Players).
This round, spades and diamonds are on team A. Hearts and clubs are on team B.
B. DEAL: The player on each team who is earlier in turn order (or who is solo) is that team's fixer. Shuffle the fixer cards and deal 2 to each fixer. If there is a leftover fixer card, place it facedown to the right of the setup card.
C. CHOOSE: Each fixer looks at their cards. They secretly place the casino they want to be rigged facedown on the left of their player card and the one they want to be secure facedown on the right.
Spades are Team A's fixer. They decide to rig Santorini and make Sunset Gondola secure.
D. SHOW PARTNER: Each fixer who has a partner takes their team's 6 partner cards. They find the 2 casinos they were dealt and place them facedown on the left and right of their partner's player card, in the correct positions. Each partner then secretly looks at their cards. You can look at your fixer or partner cards at any time during the game, but keep them hidden.
Spades use their partner cards to show diamonds that Santorini is rigged and Sunset Gondola is secure.
2. Player Turns
Players take turns clockwise, starting with the first player. On your turn, place 1 tile from your hand under a casino of your choice.
After placing, add up the total value of your tiles at the casino. If necessary, rearrange the tiles at the casino so players are ranked from highest to lowest total tile value. Always rank yourself and your partner individually.
Placement Rules
You are limited to 2 tiles at each casino. If you have 2 tiles at a casino, you can't place any more there.
You can't place a 7 at your team's rigged casino. Your cheating is too obvious and the dealer won't cover for you! You can play your 7 at an opponent's rigged casino, just not the one your team rigged.
You can never tie the leader. The highest-ranked player at a casino is called the leader. You can never place a tile that will give you the exact same total as the current leader – you must either beat or play under them. This only applies to the leader. You can tie any player who is not leading.
You must follow all character rules. Each character adds a unique rule at their casino that can get in your way or be used to your advantage. See your character aid for details.
3. Collect Payouts
When everyone has played all tiles in their hand, follow these steps:
A. The fixers reveal their rigged casinos one at a time in turn order. When a rigged casino is revealed, the leader there takes the entire jackpot on it. Everyone else gets nothing.
B. Every player returns their tiles from all rigged casinos to their hand.
C. All casinos with tiles left are secure. At each secure casino, the leader returns their tiles and gets no chips (they are kicked out). Then, each other player takes chips from the supply equal to the total value of their tiles there.
D. Every player returns all their remaining tiles to their hand.
E. Each team with 2 partners counts up their combined winnings for the round and splits them evenly (see Splitting Winnings).
RIGGED EXAMPLE: The Peacock is rigged, so the clubs player wins the jackpot of 15 chips. Hearts and diamonds get nothing!
SECURE EXAMPLE: Sunset Gondola is secure, so the diamonds player gets nothing! Spades gets 7 chips from the supply, and clubs gets 4 chips. The jackpot stays for next round.
Splitting Winnings
When playing with a partner, the two of you must place all chips you collect during the round in a team winnings pile below the setup card. At the end of the round, you split this pile 50/50. If an even split isn't possible, return 1 chip to the supply.
Solo Players
If you are not assigned a partner, you play as a lone fixer and keep all your winnings for the round.
With 2-3 players, all players are solo every round, so team markers and partner cards are not used.
2-Player Rules
With 2 players, each player takes a second full set of tiles to use as blockers.
On your turn, you must place 1 of your tiles and 1 blocker, in either order. Each set of blockers acts like a partnered player, except:
- You never collect poker chips from your blockers, either from casino payouts or characters. If your blockers win a jackpot, return it to the supply.
- You may place your 7 blocker at your rigged casino.
On the first turn of each round, the first player places only 1 blocker. They also take the last turn of the round, placing their last normal tile.
Next Round
After scoring casinos, if the game hasn't ended, refill each casino with 0 chips on it up to the starting jackpot amount on the setup card. Pass the first player marker clockwise and start the next round.
Game End
After 3 rounds, the 2 individual players with the most and second-most chips win together. In a tie, the tied player who earned the most chips in the last round is ranked higher.
Clarifications
- Table talk is not allowed. Until the last tile is played, you can't discuss decisions with your partner, except to clarify rules.
- With 4 players, the setup card has different team positions for the last round only. This avoids repeat partners.
- With 2 or 4 players, the casino that is not dealt to anyone is always secure.
- When you get chips from a character, take them from the supply (not the jackpot). If you have a partner, add the chips to your team's winnings to split at the end of the round.
- When a character adds chips to a casino's jackpot, take them from the supply (unless stated otherwise).
- If a casino's jackpot isn't claimed during scoring, do not reset it to the starting amount. Any chips added by characters stay on the casino, and any chips removed are not replaced (unless there are 0 left).
- Casino Owner B does not activate if there is no previous leader.
- High Roller A activates every round, including the first, after (re)filling all jackpots.
- Adding a +3 token to a tile increases its number by 3 for all purposes (including payouts). If the token is removed, the tile immediately loses the +3. Only check for leader ties after adding and removing +3 tokens.
- In a learning game, if a player realizes during scoring that they mistakenly placed their 7 on their rigged casino, they lose 10 chips from their personal winnings. With experienced players, the offending player loses all their winnings for the round.
- If you can't legally place a tile anywhere on your turn, instead discard a tile from your hand. Return it to your hand at end of round.