Alice in Wordland Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Game Overview
• Set Up
• Game Flow
  • A) Preparation
  • B) Discussion
    • Discussion guidelines
  • C) Cleanup
• End of the Game
• The Characters
  • Queen of Hearts
  • White Rabbit
  • Cheshire Cat
  • Tweedle Twins
  • Caterpillar
  • Alice
  • Two of Hearts
  • Mad Hatter
• Variants

Components

• 1 Music Playing Teapot Timer
• 8 Character Cards
• 8 Scoring Cards
• 60 Discussion Cards
• 42 VP Tokens
• 3 Time Tokens
• 1 Caterpillar Token
• 25 Forbidden Letter cards (Blue: Easy, Purple: Medium, Green: Hard, Red: Super Hard)

Game Overview

Alice in Wordland is a word party game for 3-8 players who assume the roles of Wonderland characters. Players take turns saying words relevant to the current discussion topic. When a player says a word containing a forbidden letter or takes too long to speak, they are out for the round. The longer a player stays, the more points they gain. The player with the most points at the end of the game is the winner.

Set Up

1. The youngest player puts the Queen of Hearts Character card face up in front of them. Each other player takes a random Character card and places it face up in front of them. Return all other Character cards to the box.

   Note: in games with three players, the Character cards "Caterpillar" and "Alice" cannot be used and must be returned to the box before the players take their Character cards.

2. Put the timer within reach of all players. Select your preferred time limit (10 or 15 seconds) and your preferred volume (normal or loud) under the base of the teapot.

3. Separate the letter Cards according to their back, shuffle each pile and place them on the table face down.

4. Shuffle the Discussion cards and place them on the table in a face down pile.

5. Place the VP tokens in a pile on the table.

Game Flow

The game is played in as many rounds as there are players. Each round has three phases: A) Preparation, B) Discussion, C) Cleanup.

A) Preparation

1. Stack the Scoring cards by the number on the pocket watch. The "1" card should be on top and the card whose number equals the number of players should be at the bottom. Make sure each card is on the correct side, according to the player count. Return all excess cards to the box. Put the pile of Scoring cards on the table, within reach of all players.
2. If the "Mad Hatter" character card is in the game, the player with that card takes one Time token (see the Characters section).
3. If the "Caterpillar" character card is the game, the player with that card uses their Caterpillar token (see the Characters section).
4. If the "White Rabbit" character card is in the game, the player with that card takes the top card of the purple letter pile (see the Characters section).
5. If the "Tweedle Twins" character is in the game, the player with that card takes 2 Time tokens (see the Characters section).
6. The player with the "Queen of Hearts" Character card takes the top card of the red letter pile, keeping it secret from the other players. They then draw the top two cards of the Discussion pile, return one to the bottom of the pile and place the other on the table, in clear view of all players. This is the Discussion topic for the current round.
7. Draw three letter cards, one from each pile (blue, purple, green), and place them in a row face up on the table, in clear view of all players. These are the Forbidden Letters for the current round.
8. The player with the "Queen of Hearts" Character card presses the timer to start it and takes the first turn. Play continues clockwise.

B) Discussion

When a player takes their turn, they must say something related to the Discussion topic that does not contain any of the Forbidden Letters. They must then press the timer to reset it. The player to their left then takes their turn immediately.

When a player says a word containing any of the Forbidden Letters or does not say a suitable word before their time runs out, they are out of the round and should flip their Character card face down to indicate this. Players who are out of the round skip their turn and can no longer use any abilities of their Character card.

The first player to go out of a round takes the Scoring card pile and places its top card (showing one cup) in front of them. Until the end of the round, whenever another player goes out, they give them the top card of the Scoring pile.

Discussion guidelines

• All words should be people, animals, plants, activities or things that you can see. All words should be closely related to the Discussion topic. For example, if the Discussion topic is "circus", acceptable words can be "clown" (person), "lion" (animal), "tent" (object), or "juggling" (activity). "Happiness" is not acceptable, as it does not belong in any of the categories above. "Teacher" is also not acceptable; while teachers are people that can go to the circus, that's neither what they nor the circus are known for!
• Usually, common sense should be enough to tell whether a word offered by a player is related to the topic. In case of severe doubt, the other players vote. If the majority votes against, the player is out of the round. On a tie, the word is accepted. Then, the next player presses the timer and takes their turn.
• A player may not say a word already offered by another player in the same round, or any of its derivatives. For example, if a player says "paint", no other player can say "paints" or "painter". Compound words containing previously offered words, such as "paintbrush", are allowed.
• No words containing any of the Forbidden Letters in their spelling are allowed, even if those letters are silent (for example, you can't say "sign" if "G" is one of the forbidden letters).
• A player may say more than one word in their turn, as long as they are describing a single concept. For example, you are allowed to say "lion tamer" if the topic is "Circus". Be careful, however: the more you say, the more likely you will make a mistake!
• Foreign (non-English) words are allowed only if they have been incorporated into the English language. For example, "croissant" is acceptable, but "chien" (French for "dog") is not.
• Contracted words, i.e. words with apostrophes, are not allowed.

C) Cleanup

When all players except one are out of the round, the Discussion phase is over. The last player in the round takes the last remaining Scoring card.

1. Each player gains the points indicated on the Scoring card in front of them. Keep track of your points using the point tokens.

   Note: Some character cards may give bonus points to the players holding them (see the Characters section).

If all players have used all the characters, the game is now over. Otherwise:

2. Shuffle all letter cards back in their respective piles and put the Discussion topic card at the bottom of the Topic card pile.
3. All players give their Character card to the player on their left.
4. Begin a new round with the Preparation phase.

End of the Game

The game ends when every player has used all the Characters. The player with the most points is the winner! In case of a tie, you are all winners, having played a fun game with your friends. If you really want to have a winner though, it is the player with the highest numbered Scoring card in the final round. But tea time never ends in Wonderland, you are now ready to play again!

The Characters

In each round, every player has a card of a Wonderland character. These Character cards have special abilities that help the players out or make trouble for their opponents.

A player cannot use any abilities of their Character card if they are out of the round or the card is turned to the side.

Queen of Hearts

The irritable party host. As ruler of Wonderland, she can make up new laws...even while drinking her tea!

• You select the Discussion topic from the top two cards of the Discussion pile.

• You take the first turn in the round.

• At the Preparation phase, you draw a random red letter card (do not show it to the other players). During the Discussion phase, immediately after you end your turn, you may place your letter card above the row of Forbidden Letters. That letter is forbidden for all other players. At the beginning of your next turn, discard it.

  If the White Rabbit has placed his letter card when you use your ability, discard it and replace it with yours.

• Yes, you can be forced to leave your own party. The law is the law!

White Rabbit

Messenger for the Queen of Hearts. He announces all new laws, a privilege which he occasionally uses for his own benefit.

• At the Preparation phase, you draw a random purple letter card (do not show it to the other players). During the Discussion phase, immediately after you end your turn, you may place your letter card above the row of Forbidden Letters. That letter is forbidden for all other players. At the beginning of your next turn, discard it.

  If the Queen of Hearts has placed his letter card when you use your ability, discard it and replace it with yours.

Cheshire Cat

A wide smile always graces the face of this mysterious cat. He can turn invisible, which he takes advantage of to pull pranks.

• Once per round, during your turn, you can turn your Character card to the side. If you do, you pass your turn. The player to your left immediately presses the timer to reset it and takes their turn.
• You cannot use your ability after your time has run out.

Tweedle Twins

Always inseparable, Tweedledum and Tweedledee are double the fun and double the trouble!

• At the Preparation phase, you take two Time Tokens.
• During your turn, you may discard a Time token. If you do, press on the timer to reset it and continue with your turn. You may not discard a Time token after your time has run out.
• You may discard both Time tokens in a single turn.

Caterpillar

This serious insect of few words is rumoured to see into the future. No-one knows if it actually has such a power or if it is merely a lucky guesser.

• At the Preparation phase, you take the Caterpillar token. Put that token in front of any other player. At the Cleanup phase, you score bonus points equal to half the points indicated on that player's Scoring card, rounded down. (For example, if that player scores 3 points, you score one bonus point).
• Any bonus points gained by the player with the Caterpillar token do not count for your bonus - only the points indicated on their Scoring card.
• This Character card cannot be used in games with 3 players.

Alice

A polite girl from another world. She looks very ordinary next to the other guests, but that makes her the centre of attention.

• At the Cleanup phase, you gain bonus points equal to half the points indicated on your Scoring card, rounded down. (For example, if your scoring card is worth 3 points, you gain an extra point).
• This Character card cannot be used in games with 3 players

Two of Hearts

Captain of the Royal Guard. He considers being invited to the party a great honour, and would do anything to guarantee its success.

• Once per round, right after another player ends their turn, you may turn your Character card to the side. If you do, that player must immediately press the timer and take another turn.
• The Forbidden Letter placed by the Queen of Hearts' ability is not forbidden for you.

Mad Hatter

Everyone in Wonderland is mad, but the Mad Hatter takes the cake. He can break any law, including those of Time itself!

• At the Preparation phase, you take a Time token.
• During your turn, you may discard the Time token. If you do, press on the timer to reset it and continue with your turn. You may not discard the Time token after your time has run out.
• Once per round, during your turn, you may turn your Character card to the side. If you do, ignore any one of the Forbidden Letters for this turn, including the one placed by the abilities of the Queen of Hearts or the White Rabbit.
• You may use both your abilities on the same turn.

Variants

If you are playing with children, we recommend using only the Discussion cards with the group-of-people icon on the bottom right corner. These are topics carefully selected to be enjoyable with all ages, young and old.

We also recommend using the Easier Game Variant rules, found below.

Easier game: to make the game easier for younger or less experienced players, you can make one or more of the following changes:

• Set the timer to 15 seconds.
• Use two or even one Forbidden Letter per round.
• Only draw Forbidden Letters from the purple and/or blue letter piles.
• Players are out of the round only if they say a word starting with any of the Forbidden Letters, instead of a word containing any of them.
• The Queen of Hearts draws three Discussion cards, returns one to the bottom of the pile, and places the other two on the table. Players can say words related to either of these two Discussion topics.

Harder game: for a more challenging game, you can make one or more of the following changes:

• Set the timer to 10 seconds.
• Play without Character cards.
• Use more than three Forbidden Letters per round.
• Only draw Forbidden Letters from the purple and/or green piles.
• For a truly tense game, players are out of the round if they say a word containing any of the Forbidden Letters at any time during the round. Watch your language!