AXO Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Setup
• How to Play
  • Selection phase (Active Player only)
  • Filling phase (simultaneous)
  • Bonus fills
  • Verification phase (simultaneous)
• Solo Mode
  • Setup (solo)
  • How to play (solo)
  • Selection phase (solo)
  • Filling phase (solo)
  • Verification phase (solo)
• Effects

Components

• 55 Shape cards
• 4 Player aid cards
• 1 Score tracker card
• 4 erasable markers and 1 cloth

The Shape card diagram labels its parts: Effect, Shape, Cell and Grid. The Player aid card diagram labels: Point summary, Player marker and Bonus reserve.

Setup

Before starting a game of AXO, each person must sit, as far as possible, on a different side of the table.

Note: in a two-player game, the two players must not sit opposite each other but on consecutive sides of the table.

• Shuffle the Shape cards and place them face down in a pile in the centre of the table.
• Place the Score tracker card nearby so that each person can reach it.
• Determine the person who will play first and give them Player aid card no. 1 and a marker. The remaining players then each receive, clockwise, a marker and a Player aid card in ascending order.
• Deal 7 Shape cards to each person. Each person chooses 3 to place face up, side by side, in their Play area (in the order of their choice). The 4 remaining cards form their starting hand.
• Cards in a Play area cannot be moved until a Shape card has been completed.

How to Play

In AXO, everyone plays simultaneously. However, only the Active Player takes part in the Selection phase.

Each turn is played in several phases, in the following order:

1. Selection phase
2. Filling phase
3. Verification phase

The person holding Player aid card no. 1 is the first Active Player. Once all the phases are complete, the next person clockwise becomes the Active Player. Continue in this way until the end of the game.

Selection phase (Active Player only)

During this phase, only the Active Player acts:

1. Choose a Shape card from your hand.
2. Place it face up in the centre of the table, with the Shape side pointing up (from your point of view).
3. Announce a colour out loud from among red, yellow and blue.

Example: Laurie (1) is the Active Player. She chooses one of her cards in hand and plays it in the centre of the table, with the Shape side pointing up from her point of view. She then announces the colour BLUE out loud to the other players.

Filling phase (simultaneous)

During this phase, all players act simultaneously, and only the grids of the 3 Shape cards placed in their Play area are used.

Players must reproduce the shape shown on the card played by the Active Player, from their own point of view. They may then fill (in the marker's colour) all the cells matching the announced colour.

• The Active Player may fill cells on the grids of the 3 Shape cards in their Play area.
• Each other player may fill cells on the grid of only one Shape card in their Play area.

When you fill cells on a grid, you must respect all of the following rules:

• Each person must reproduce the shape as it appears from their own point of view.
• The shape must fit entirely inside the grid of one card.
• Only cells that are the announced colour and that fit inside the shape may be filled.

Example: Laurie (1) is the Active Player. She chooses a Shape card, plays it and announces the colour BLUE. Greg (4) chooses a Shape card from among those in his Play area. He reproduces the shape from his point of view on it, and then fills the blue cells.

If it is impossible for you to reproduce the Shape so as to fill at least 1 available cell of the announced colour on any of the 3 Shape cards in your Play area, you fill no cells during this turn.

If you have no available cell of the colour announced by the Active Player on the Shape cards in your Play area, you may fill 1 cell of the colour of your choice on one of the cards in your Play area.

At the end of the Filling phase, each person may use one or more Bonus fills obtained during previous turns (see the Verification phase).

Bonus fills

You obtain 1 Bonus fill if you completed exactly 1 Shape card on the previous turn.

You may use a Bonus fill to fill a cell of your choice on any of the Shape cards in your Play area (whatever its colour).

To indicate afterwards that a Bonus fill has been used, cross out the bonus you have just used on your Player aid card.

You may use several Bonus fills in the same turn, but you may not use them during the turn in which you obtained them.

Example: 1 – Laurie (1) obtained 1 Bonus fill during a previous turn and decides to use it to complete 1 Shape card. 2 – Once her Bonus fill is used, Laurie crosses it out to show that it is no longer available. 3 – Laurie completed only 1 card during this turn and obtains a new Bonus fill to use during a later turn.

Verification phase (simultaneous)

If, during the Filling phase, you complete all the cells of one or more grids of your Shape cards, follow these steps:

• If possible, apply the effect shown on the completed Shape card. Effects are described at the end of the rules.
• Record on the Score tracker card the points obtained by completing Shape cards, according to the following scale:
  • 1 Shape card → 1 point and 1 Bonus fill
  • 2 Shape cards → 3 points
  • 3 Shape cards → 4 points

Example: Laurie (1) has completed one Shape card. She therefore gains 1 point and 1 Bonus fill.

Note: to indicate that you have obtained 1 Bonus fill, you must fill one cell of your Bonus reserve on your Player aid card. You may not obtain more than 5 Bonus fills during a game.

• Clear the completed cards, then discard them.
• Using the cards in your hand, replace the discarded card(s) so that you again have 3 Shape cards in your Play area. Take this opportunity to change the position of the Shape cards in your Play area if you wish.

Note: if the Active Player completes 3 Shape cards during the same turn, they must place all the remaining cards in their hand into their Play area.

• Refill your hand up to 4 Shape cards by drawing from the face-down pile placed in the centre of the table. Once this pile is exhausted, shuffle the discard pile to form a new face-down draw pile.

At the end of a turn, if one or more people have scored 9 points or more, the game ends immediately. The person with the highest score wins the game.

In case of a tie, the person who has the highest score and who has the most filled cells on the uncompleted Shape cards in their Play area wins the game.

If there is still a tie, the victory is shared.

Solo Mode

In this solo variant, you simulate a two-player game against Louise, your virtual opponent.

To win, you must score at least 9 points before Louise exhausts all her cards and thus ends the game.

Setup (solo)

• Choose whether Louise will play to your right or to your left.
• Shuffle all the Shape cards to form a face-down draw pile. Place this pile in front of you, next to your Play area.
• Place the Score tracker card next to the pile.
• Use the first 8 Shape cards from the pile to form Louise's personal pile, then place it on the side you chose for her.
• Draw 7 Shape cards, then choose 3 to place face up, side by side, in your Play area. The other 4 cards form your starting hand.

How to play (solo)

To play a game of AXO against Louise, follow the usual rules, applying these changes:

• Louise will always be the first Active Player of the game.

Selection phase (solo)

When Louise is the Active Player, turn over and play the first Shape card of her personal pile, placing it so that the Shape side points up from her point of view. The colour announced by Louise is that of the central cell of the grid shown on the card played.

Filling phase (solo)

Louise fills no cells.

Verification phase (solo)

Louise scores no points.

Once the 3 phases of the turn are complete, you become the Active Player. Continue to alternate this role with Louise on subsequent turns.

The game ends immediately when Louise no longer has any Shape cards to play. If you have scored at least 9 points, you win the game. Otherwise, Louise wins it.

Effects

Transcriber's note: the rules state that the effect of each completed Shape card "is described at the end of the rules". The two-page French sheet on which this translation is based does not contain an effects list. Each Shape card carries an effect icon, but the card effects are not written out in the document, so they are not transcribed here. The effect of a completed card cannot be looked up from this rulebook.