Monster Day
Designed by P.D. Magnus
Players 2
Length 15 minutes
Extra Material 2 dice, monster tokens

a game for 2 mad wizards

You are a mad wizard who wants to collect monsters. You can't just tell the villagers that this is what you want, or they'll be at your door with pitchforks to drive you out of town. So you manipulate forces in the world, subtly enticing monsters to come to you. Unfortunately, the mad wizard in the next county is trying to do the same thing.

Components

You need a Decktet, two ordinary six-sided dice, and the four monster tokens. You can print out the tokens:

monster-tokens.png

Setup

Remove the Aces, Pawns, Courts, and Excuse from the Decktet. The Aces are used to make the game board. The extended deck cards won't be used.

Shuffle the Aces together and deal them out one next to another in a line between you and your opponent. Leave a gap large enough for the monsters between the third and fourth Ace; all the monsters start there. For example:

monsterday-board.png

Each Ace represents part of a village. The three spaces nearest to you are in your village, the three spaces on the other side of the gap belong to your opponent.

Shuffle the remainder of the deck. Deal three cards each to yourself and your opponent, and put the rest in the middle of the table face-down as a draw pile.

Roll a die to determine start player. High roller goes first.

Game play

On your turn, you take each of these steps in order: (a) exert influence, (b) take your chances, and (c) draw a card.

Exert influence: Play one card from your hand next to one of the spaces on the board. You may only place a card next to a space that matches one of its suits. For example: If you play the 8wyrms.pngknots.png, you may play it next to Awyrms.png or Aknots.png.

If there is already a card next to that space, then the new card completely covers the old one. The new card must match the Ace, and an extra suit on the card already there makes no difference. Covered cards have no further effect on play.

You may play cards in your own village or in your opponent's village, as allowed by matching suits. Sometimes good cards will only match your opponent's side of the board or bad cards will only match yours, but that's life.

Take your chances. Roll both dice. Die results of 1-4 make monsters move. If both dice give the same result, just move the indicated monster once. 5s and 6s have no effect; if both dice are 5 or 6, then no monster moves this turn.

  1. The Catoblepas: Each player totals the ranks of odd-numbered cards in their village. If you have no odd-numbered cards, then your total is zero. (Ranks 3, 5, 7, and 9 count; crown.pngs do not.) Move the Catoblepas token one space closer to the player with the higher total.
  2. The Dire Bear: Each player totals the ranks of even-numbered cards next in their village. (Ranks 2, 4, 6, and 8 count; crown.pngs do not.) Move the Dire Bear token one space closer to the player with the higher total.
  3. The Questing Beast: Each player totals the ranks of any personality cards in their village. (Personalities are the cards done up like face cards, with two close ups of a single figure. crown.png personalities count as 10.) Move the Questing Beast token one space closer to the player with the higher total.
  4. The Winged Horse: Each player totals the ranks of all cards in their village. crown.pngs count for 10. Move the Winged Horse token one space closer to the player with the higher total.

Tokens move to a space nearest the gap the first time they move. After that, they skip over the gap and will always be in one of the villages.

If both players have the same total, then the monster does not move.

If a monster is already in the space closest to a player when the result that would move it closer to them, leave it where it is.

Draw a card. If there are any cards left in the draw pile, draw one. If not, gesture as if you were drawing a card. Your turn is over either way.

Play alternates until the end of the turn in which the very last card is played.

Victory

You score points for each monster in your village when the game ends. The Catoblepas, Dire Bear, and Questing Beast are worth one point each. The Winged Horse is worth two points.

For scoring purposes, it does not matter where a monster is in your village. All that matters is that it's yours.

Variants

You can add in some or all of the extended deck cards. Just shuffle them in at the beginning of the game.

The Excuse: The Excuse can be played on any space and counts for zero.

Pawns and Courts: When you need to know the rank of a Pawn or Court, the player whose space has the Pawn or Court on it rolls both dice. The card's rank is counted as the sum of the dice. Roll every time the card's rank is relevant to a monster moving.

Credits

Game design: P.D. Magnus

Playtesting: Cristyn Magnus

This game is a fantasy-world adaptation of Moving Day.

Comments

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