Mushroom Cats

from the Mushroom Cats rulebook

52 cards

- 5 Chicken of the Woods, 5 Apricot Jelly, 5 Lobster, 9 Blue Oyster, 8 Veiled Lady, 2 Antidote, 6 Death Cap, 6 Mischievous Cat, 6 Enchanting Cat

+ Instructions

OVERVIEW

Mushroom Cats! is a pick-and-pass style game about collecting sets of mushrooms while some very mischievous cats cause no end of chaos. The player with the most points at the end of three rounds wins.

SETUP

Shuffle the deck and deal each player the following:

2 Players -- 10 cards
3 Players -- 9 cards
4 Players -- 8 cards
5 Players -- 7 cards

Set the rest of the deck in the center of the play area. We recommend keeping score with a pencil and paper.

HOW TO PLAY

To begin, all players select a single card from their starting hand, then place it face-down in their score area. Once all players have selected a card, simultaneously reveal them. If anyone played an Enchanting Cat or Mischievous Cat, resolve them in that order before proceeding! Players then pass their remaining unplayed cards to their left and select a new card from their new hand. The round continues until everyone plays their last card. Record everyone's score from the cards in their score area. To proceed to the next round, shuffle the deck and deal out a new second hand of cards to each player. In the second round, pass your remaining cards to the right each turn. In the third round, return to passing your cards to the left. After the third and final round, total your points and declare a winner! In the case of a tie, the player who most recently ate a mushroom wins.

THE CARDS

In Mushroom Cats!, each card either builds points as part of a set or changes the balance of the game by modifying the way certain cards score, adding new cards from the deck, and moving cards between players. When a vertical slash "/" divides different point values on a card, you may only use one side to score points, not both.

CHICKEN OF THE WOODS, APRICOT JELLY, & LOBSTER:

1 point each. A set of all three is worth 6 points.

BLUE OYSTER

Three of a kind are worth 7 points. Two or fewer are not worth any points.

VEILED LADY

One is worth 3 points, two are worth 1 point, and three are worth 8 points. A fourth Veiled Lady starts a new set, and is worth 3 points (and so on).

ANTIDOTE

1 point each. Or, if you have an Antidote and at least one Death Cap, all your Death Caps are worth 3 points each.

DEATH CAP

-1 point each, or 3 points each if you have an Antidote.

MISCHIEVOUS CAT

1 point each. When revealing cards, announce you are playing a Mischievous Cat. If no one else has revealed a Mischievous Cat as their play this turn (excluding those played through an Enchanting Cat), pick a single card (even one that was just played) in any player's score area (even your own) and move it to another player's score area. Then place the Mischievous Cat in the score area of the player whose card you just moved.

SPECIAL ACTION:
If more than one player reveals a Mischievous Cat in a turn, the card's effects cancel each other out and neither player gets the benefit. Both players still count their Mischievous Cat's 1 point towards their score.

ENCHANTING CAT

-1 point each. When revealing cards, announce you are playing an Enchanting Cat. If no one else has played an Enchanting Cat this turn, draw three cards from the deck. Select one card and immediately play it. This means you can play another Enchanting Cat or even a Mischievous Cat (if you draw one). Playing a Mischievous Cat this way will not cancel out regular Mischievous Cat plays. Once you have played your selected card, discard the remaining two cards you drew plus the Enchanting Cat you used to draw them at the bottom of the deck.

SPECIAL ACTION:
If more than one player reveals a Enchanting Cat in a turn, the card's effects cancel each other out and neither player gets the benefit. Both players still count their Enchanting Cat's -1 point towards their score.