Zillionaire Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Components
• Set-Up
• Rank of the Cards
• How to Play
  • Sample Round of Play
• The Game Winner and the Status of Other Players
• How to Score
• How to Start the Next Game
  • Where to Sit
• Winning the Match
• The Card Chart

Game Components

• 4 Seating Arrangement Cards
• 6 Status Cards
• 62 Playing Cards
• 1 Gameboard with Plastic Card Tray
• 60 Plastic Scoring Chips

Set-Up

1. THE ASSEMBLY: Place the gameboard in the middle of the table. Slide the card tray into the notch located next to the "Poor" section of the board.

2. HOW MANY GAMES: Decide how many games you will play in the match (no more than 10).

3. HOW MANY GAMES = HOW MANY CHIPS: Give each player the same amount of chips (in one color) as the number of games to be played. Place remaining chips out of play.

4. THE SEATING ARRANGEMENT AND STATUS CARDS: Separate the 4 Seating Arrangement Cards and the 6 Status Cards from the rest of the deck.

Select the Seating Arrangement Card which applies to your playing group (6 Players, 5 Players, 4 Players or 3 Players). See Figure 1 for a 4-Player example.

Figure 1. 4 Players. Seating Arrangement Cards tell players where to sit after each game.

The Seating Arrangement Card also indicates the different Status Cards you will need at the end of each game. In the 4-Player game shown above, RICH, POOR, UPPER CRUST, and THIN ICE Status Cards are needed. (See Figure 1a.) Remove your Status Cards now. Place them and your Seating Arrangement Card in an easy-to-reach area. Place any unused Seating Arrangement and Status Cards out of play.

Figure 1a. Status Cards tell players their "rank" at the end of each game.

5. TIME TO DEAL: Now choose a dealer. The dealer shuffles the deck and deals out the cards FACEDOWN one-at-a-time to each player until there are only 2 cards left. Each player should have the same amount of cards in his hand.

NOTE: The 2 leftover cards are set aside FACEDOWN and then reshuffled with the rest of the deck after each game.

Rank of the Cards

The printed "Rank of the Cards" diagram lists the cards from HIGHEST (top) to LOWEST (bottom):

1. Zillionaire
2. Millionaire
3. Bankroll
4. Bankrupt
5. Bump
6. 8
7. 7
8. 6
9. 5
10. 4
11. 3
12. 2
13. 1 (LOWEST)

IMPORTANT: The higher-ranked card always beats a lower-ranked card EXCEPT in these cases:

• If a Bankroll card is played on a Bankrupt card, the Bankroll becomes the highest-ranked card and can't be beaten by a Millionaire or Zillionaire card.
• If a Bankroll card is NOT played on a Bankrupt card, the Bankrupt card becomes the highest-ranked card and can't be beaten by a Millionaire or Zillionaire card.

See chart on pages 7 and 8 for an explanation of each card and how it is played.

How to Play

The game is played in rounds in which players try to get rid of all their cards. Several rounds make up a game.

1. WHO GOES FIRST: The player to the IMMEDIATE left of the dealer starts the game by playing ANY card or cards of the same rank FACEUP in the tray. When you play your cards, announce what you're putting down and the amount of them. For example, you may play one 4 or three 6's, and say "One four" or "Three sixes".

2. WHO GOES NEXT: Play continues in a clockwise direction. The next player must:

   • A. EITHER: Play the same amount of cards of a HIGHER rank than the last card(s) played. (The Number 5 card is the EXCEPTION. See chart on page 8.)
   • B. OR: Say, "I pass", if you are unable to play a card(s).
   • C. OR: Say, "I pass", if you choose not to play a card(s).

3. ENDING A ROUND: Play continues clockwise until all players either can't play (or choose not to play) a higher-ranked card or cards. When this happens, the round ends.

4. WHO STARTS A NEW ROUND? Whoever played the card or cards that ended the round starts a new round of play with any rank card or cards. Players continue to play rounds trying to get rid of ALL their cards.

IMPORTANT: If you play the last card in your hand, but the player to your left can play a higher-ranked card, the round does not end but play continues.

Sample Round of Play

Player A plays three 4's to start a round. Player B then plays three 6's. Player C passes even though he has four 7's in his hand and could play three of them. "I Pass." (Player C is hoping to play them as a group of 4 cards later in the game.) Player D plays three 8's. Player A then plays three Millionaire cards. Players B, C and D all pass. Player A has then ended the round because no other players have any higher-ranked cards to play. Player A can then begin a new round.

The Game Winner and the Status of Other Players

The first player to get rid of all cards in his hand is the Winner of that game. Play continues with the other players as they try to play all THEIR cards in order to achieve 2nd Place Status, 3rd Place Status, etc. A game ends when there is only ONE PLAYER with a card(s) left in his hand -- that player is the lowest-ranking player, the Poor player.

After you have played all your cards, immediately take the Status Card that corresponds to how you finished in the game (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.). The Status Cards indicate your "rank" and your seating for the next game.

Check the chart below to determine which Status Card you should take.

Number of Players	Determine Your Rank (when you've played all your cards)	Take This Status Card	Gameboard Status Points
6	1st Place (Winner), 2nd Place, 3rd Place, 4th Place, 5th Place, Last Place	Rich, Money to Burn, Upper Crust, Credit Crazy, Thin Ice, Poor	6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
5	1st Place (Winner), 2nd Place, 3rd Place, 4th Place, Last Place	Rich, Upper Crust, Credit Crazy, Thin Ice, Poor	6, 4, 3, 2, 1
4	1st Place (Winner), 2nd Place, 3rd Place, Last Place	Rich, Upper Crust, Thin Ice, Poor	6, 4, 2, 1
3	1st Place (Winner), 2nd Place, Last Place	Rich, Credit Crazy, Poor	6, 3, 1

How to Score

After every game, when all players have their Status Cards, they each place one scoring chip on the gameboard space that matches their Status Card. The higher your Status, the more gameboard points you receive for that game.

How to Start the Next Game

Here are three directions to follow in exact order when you begin another game:

1. Change your seats.

2. Deal the cards.

3. Exchange your cards.

4. CHANGE YOUR SEATS: To start a new game, players change their seating positions (if they've changed their Status) according to the Seating Arrangement Card. Seating is critical in making sure that the balance of power switches between players. The Poor person should remain in place and then direct the rest of the players to move their positions according to their current Status.

HINT: To make switching seats easier, place the Seating Arrangement Card in front of the Poor player, as positioned below. (See Figures 2 and 2a.)

Where to Sit

These two 4-Player games show how the Status Cards can change the Seating Arrangement from one game to another.

Figure 2. Before Second Game. Player C sits at the top with the RICH Status Card, Player D is on the left, Player B is on the right, and Player A is at the bottom. A 4-Player Seating Arrangement Card is shown beside them.

Figure 2a. After Second Game. Player A sits at the top with the RICH Status Card, Player C is on the left, Player B remains on the right, and Player D is at the bottom. A 4-Player Seating Arrangement Card is shown beside them.

NOTE: As shown in Figure 2a, Player B never moved his position because he remained the Poor player.

2. DEAL THE CARDS: The new Rich person now becomes the dealer, shuffles ALL cards (including the 2 cards left out of the previous game) and then deals out the cards until only 2 are left. The remaining 2 cards are set aside FACEDOWN.

3. EXCHANGE YOUR CARDS: Players must now exchange one or two cards from their hands, according to the Seating Arrangement Card.

• The two players linked by the red line exchange TWO cards. (See Figure 3.) The Rich player gives away his TWO LOWEST cards to the Poor Player and the Poor player gives away his TWO HIGHEST cards to the Rich player.

  NOTE: If either the "two lowest" or the "two highest" cards are a PAIR, that player must give the PAIR away.

• The players linked by the green line exchange ONE CARD. (See Figure 3.) The richer of the two players gives the poorer of the two his LOWEST card. The poorer of the two gives the richer of the two his HIGHEST card. Refer to the chart on page 4 to determine whether you're the richer or poorer of the two players.

  NOTE: If either the low card or the high card breaks up a PAIR in your hand, it must still be given away.

• Players not linked by a color line do not exchange cards. (In a 3-Player, 5-Player and 6-Player game, not all players exchange cards.)

Figure 3. 4 Players. Seating Arrangement Cards tell players how many cards they exchange at the start of a new game.

4. THE POOR PLAYER GOES FIRST: When all players are in their correct seats and all cards have been exchanged, the next game begins. Remember! The player to the immediate left of the dealer, the Poor player, always has the chance to play cards FIRST before the wealthier players. Play then continues in a CLOCKWISE direction.

Winning the Match

When all games have been played and chips placed, the match is over. All players then total up the number of points they have won. The player with the highest total of points wins the match.

The Card Chart

NOTE: The amount of cards that can be played is always determined by the previously played card or cards. The card chart below refers to "a card" or "a group of cards" in the singular ("card") for clarity.

• ZILLIONAIRE (4 in Deck): This is the HIGHEST-RANKING card which automatically ends the round if played on top of any lower-ranking card -- unless a Bankrupt card has been played (see Bankrupt card on page 8).

• MILLIONAIRE (4 in Deck): This is the SECOND-HIGHEST-RANKING card which beats any lower-ranking card unless a Bankrupt card has been played (see Bankrupt card on page 8).

• BANKROLL (3 in Deck): If you play the Bankroll card on top of any lower-ranking card (other than the Bankrupt card), the Bankroll card is the THIRD-HIGHEST-RANKING card and can be beaten by the Millionaire or Zillionaire cards. HOWEVER, if you play a Bankroll card on top of a Bankrupt card, it becomes the HIGHEST-RANKING card and automatically ends the round. No Millionaire or Zillionaire cards can be played on it!

• BANKRUPT (3 in Deck): As the FOURTH-HIGHEST card, the Bankrupt card beats all lower cards (the Bump card and all Number cards, 1-8). HOWEVER, if a Bankroll card is NOT played on top of it, the Bankrupt card becomes the HIGHEST-RANKING card and automatically ends the round. No Millionaire or Zillionaire cards can be played on it.

• BUMP (3 in Deck): Play this card to "bump" the player to your immediate left out of a turn. This is a forced "PASS". It is the FIFTH-HIGHEST-RANKING card and beats all lower-ranking cards (Number cards, 1-8).

  REMEMBER: After you play a Bump card, the player to the left of the "Bumped" player goes next.

• NUMBER CARDS (6 of each Number card in the deck, except the Number 5 card; there are three Number 5 cards): The Number 8 cards beat all lower-ranking number cards (1-7); the Number 7 cards beat all lower-ranking number cards (1-6); etc.