Billionaire Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Object
• Equipment
• Preparation
• Action
  • Sealed Bids
  • Sealed Bids on Three Investments
  • Analyze
  • Headquarters
  • Power Play Cards
  • Profit Cards
  • Rules for Bidding
  • Use of the Analyzer
  • Important General Rules
  • Ending the Game

Object

The object of the game is to be the first player to become a billionaire.

Equipment

• Board
• Profit Cards, which represent cash
• Power Play Cards
• Profit & Power Play Card Tray
• Eurasia Investment Cards
• Afro-Europa Investment Cards
• Americas Investment Cards
• Investment Card Tray
• Analyzer
• Movers (orange, yellow, green, blue)
• Die
• Bidding Slates & Stylus

Preparation

Place the board on an appropriate table. Each player selects a marker ($ sign) of the same color as the corner space to his right and places it on this space, which then becomes his "Headquarters."

Next, shuffle the Profit, Power Play and Investment cards separately and place them face down in the compartments of the two trays. These trays can be placed in the center of the board. Place the Analyzer near the board.

Deal 5 Profit cards face down to each player.

Action

Players roll the die to determine who plays first. The player with the highest roll rolls again and moves his marker clockwise the corresponding number of squares on the board. Other players follow in turn.

Sealed Bids

If a player lands on a space marked "SEALED BIDS - EURASIA," "SEALED BIDS - AFRO-EUROPA" or "SEALED BIDS - THE AMERICAS," he takes the top Investment card of the corresponding pack. He may look at the name and value of that Investment, but does not disclose it to other players. This Investment immediately goes up for sealed bids from all players including the player who drew the card. The players use their Profit cards as a basis for bidding. (See rules for bidding.) The highest bidder gives the amount of the high bid to the player who drew and auctioned the Investment card, and places the card face up in front of him. If the highest bidder is the player who drew the Investment card, he returns the amount of the high bid to the Profit deck which he then reshuffles. If all Investment cards of the geographical group specified are owned, a player selects the top card from one of the remaining Investment card decks.

Note that each Investment card has an actual value and a trading value. This is important for bidding. The actual value of each Investment card is ten times its trading value.

Sealed Bids on Three Investments

When a player's marker lands on "Sealed Bids on One Investment from Three Categories," one card from the top of each Investment card deck is drawn and placed face down on the board. No player may look at them. They are then put up for sealed bids, one bid from each player for the three properties as a group. The high bidder gives the appropriate amount of Profit cards to the player who landed on the space. If the player who landed on the space should be the high bidder, his money cards go back into the Profit deck which is reshuffled. If only two decks remain, then only two Investment properties are auctioned, and one Investment property, if only one deck remains.

Analyze

When landing on "Analyze Any Property in Afro-Europa" (or in one of the other two groups) a player may, if he wishes, select an Investment card in the group specified which is owned by another player and "analyze" that Investment. The Investment analyzed must be the least valuable card owned by that player within that Investment group. This is important since a player may own more than one Investment card in a group which allows him to protect his higher value cards from analysis by having other cards in that group of lesser value. (See rules for use of Analyzer.)

Headquarters

A player who lands on another player's Headquarters may analyze any "unprotected" Investment (the card of least value within a group) of that player. When a player passes his own Headquarters he draws one Profit card from the deck on the board. When a player lands on his own Headquarters by exact count, he takes two Profit cards from the board. Sometimes the supply of Profit cards on the board is temporarily depleted, in which case the player does not receive the cards which he would normally get.

Power Play Cards

A player landing on Power Play draws the top card from the Power Play deck. He may play the card at once or hold it for use on a future turn. Security Power Play cards are the only cards which may be played at times other than during a player's own turn. For the purposes of the Security Power Play cards, "Any Action" is defined as all activity which results when a player lands on a space or uses a Power Play card. If a second Security Power Play card is played on top of a first, the two cards cancel each other, and the original action takes place. No Power Play card may be played on any turn after bids have been revealed. Power Play cards are returned to the bottom of the Power Play deck after use.

Profit Cards

A player landing on a Profit space takes one Profit card from the deck on the board (if there are any).

Rules for Bidding

1. When sealed bids are called for, each player who wishes to bid secretly writes his bid on the special slate with the stylus provided.

2. When all players indicate their bids have been written, the player on whose turn the bidding occurs reveals his bid. Other players reveal their bids in turn in a clockwise direction around the board. The highest bidder pays the amount of his bid to the player who landed on the space or to the profit deck and receives the property.

3. If two or more bidders bid a like amount, there is another round of sealed bids until one player bids a higher figure than the others.

4. A player may use not only his Profit cards in payment, but he may also use his Investment cards in the amount indicated under Trading Value. Any Investment card used in payment to the board shall be placed back in its appropriate deck which is then reshuffled.

5. If a winning bidder is unable to make up the exact dollar figure owed, he must give up more than he owes; i.e., if a high bidder has bid $4,000,000 and has only a $5,000,000 and a $2,000,000 Profit card, he must give up the $5,000,000 card. No player may make change. Use of Investment cards in payment is acceptable and can be helpful in a case where they permit exact payment of an obligation.

6. Any player who bids more than he has and wins the bidding, must forfeit his most valuable Investment card to its appropriate deck which is reshuffled. If he has no Investment cards, his highest Profit card is returned to the Profit deck. New sealed bids are then made by the other players, even though the value of the Investment card(s) may have been revealed.

Use of the Analyzer

Whenever a player uses the Analyzer he must first indicate which Investment he is analyzing and must spin both parts of the spinner. (One at a time or both together.) Each spinner is marked with red at one end and green at the other. If the spinner indicates:

1. Red Red - the Investment analyzed becomes the property of the player doing the analyzing.

2. Red Green - the player performing the analyzing takes one of his opponent's Profit cards, sight unseen. His opponent then draws the top Profit card from the board.

3. Green Red - the procedure above is reversed with the Investment owner first drawing a Profit card from the board. Then the player doing the analyzing draws a card from his opponent's hand.

4. Green Green - the Investment owner draws two Profit cards from the board.

Important General Rules

1. Investment cards must be displayed face up by their owners at all times.

2. Whenever Investment or Profit cards are returned to the board, the decks should be reshuffled. Power Play cards are returned to the bottom of the Power Play deck.

3. Whenever a player passes his own Headquarters he draws one Profit card. If he lands on his Headquarters by exact count he draws two Profit cards.

4. From time to time one or more players or the Profit card pile on the board may be without Profit cards. Any player entitled to draw one or more Profit cards where they are not available collects nothing and play proceeds as usual.

Ending the Game

The game is over when one player has accumulated $1,000,000,000 (1 billion) which can be a combination of Investment Values and cash. That player is the winner. The game also ends following the bidding and payment on the last Investment card on the board. In this case, the player having the greatest total of investments and cash is declared the winner.