Catopomp
Catopomp Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 40 x playing cards (four copies for each number: 1-10)
- 4 x Used Dice cards
- 4 x Hell Domain cards
- 8 x D6 dice
- 8 x Soul Gem tokens
Setup
- The game consists of a common playing area. Reserve a space for the discard pile. Every player rolls two dice and places them at the centre of the playing area. E.g. Three players would use six dice.
- Give two Soul Gem tokens to each player.
- Each player places the Used Dice card in front of themselves.
- Each player places the Hell Domain card to the right of the Used Dice card. The space to the right of the Hell Domain card is known as the player's Hell Domain.
- Depending on the number of players, prepare the deck of playing cards and distribute them accordingly. Players should keep these cards a secret from other players. Return the unused dice and cards to the box.
- For the first round, randomly select a player to start. For subsequent rounds, the player who ends last in the previous round will be the starting player.
| Number of Players | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number Cards Included | 1-8 | 1-9 | 1-10 |
| Copies per Number Card | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Total Number of Cards | 24 | 36 | 40 |
| Number of Cards per Player | 11 | 10 | 9 |
| Number of Cards Set Aside at Random | 2 | 6 | 4 |
Round Summary
Players will take turns (clockwise order), 1. playing cards or 2. passing, until only one player is left with unplayed card(s). When that happens, the round is over.
Cards in players' hands are known as Heaven cards, while cards that they place on their hell domain are known as Hell cards. Players need to clear all of their Heaven and Hell cards to be safe for the round!
1. Playing a Set of Cards
During a player's turn, the player may play either a set of Heaven or Hell cards (refer to 1.1 and 1.2).
Players cannot play a set that consists of both Heaven and Hell cards.
The set that you play must be stronger than the one last played. Once a stronger set is played, it becomes the new winning set for the next player to beat. Discard the previous winning set into a discard pile face down and place any used dice onto their user's "Used Dice" card (refer to 1.3).
A set of card(s) can only consist of one to four cards (one to three cards in a two-player game). They can be:
- A single card of any number
- A set of the same number (e.g. 1,1 and 3,3,3 and 7,7,7,7)
- A set of sequential numbers (e.g. 1,2 and 1,2,3 and 5,6,7,8)
Strength of a set
- A set with more cards is stronger than any set (with fewer).
- Assuming both sets have the same number of cards, a set of the same number is stronger than a set of sequential numbers.
- Assuming both have the same number of cards and both are either a "Same Number" set or "Sequential" set, a set with the highest numbers is stronger.
Here are a few more examples:
- Two cards are stronger than one.
- A "same number" set is stronger than a "sequential" set.
- 5 is higher than 1.
- The last number in the sequence, 3, is the highest here.
1.1 Playing Heaven cards
The active player may choose to play card(s) from their hand (i.e. Heaven cards).
After playing any number of Heaven card(s), the active player must always, if possible, place down exactly one card from their hand into their own Hell Domain face up.
Example: Joshua plays a pair of Heaven cards (4,5). Then, he places a (2) into his Hell Domain.
1.2 Playing Hell Cards
Instead of playing Heaven cards, the active player may choose to play Hell cards from their Hell Domain.
(Reminder: Players cannot play a set that has a mixture of Heaven and Hell cards.)
When the active player still has any Heaven cards left in hand, Hell cards can only be played as a set of two or more cards. Once the active player has no more Heaven cards, they can then choose to play Hell cards one by one as a single card.
(Icon on the rule: Heaven card, hand symbol = 1 Hell card.)
It is possible to play one Hell card and add dice to form a set (See 1.3 Dice Boost). This is considered as playing two Hell cards (1 Hell card + 1 Dice substitute).
Do not place down a card into the Hell Domain after playing Hell cards.
1.3 Dice Boost
In addition to Heaven or Hell cards, players may take up to two dice from the centre of the table and add them to their set.
Example: Now this is a set of sequential numbers: 1,2,3.
- Whether a player selects one or two dice, they will only substitute for one card. If two dice are selected, the value of the dice adds up to become a card's number.
- After usage, the dice are placed on the player's Used Dice card. If you have any number of dice on your Used Dice card, you cannot use Dice Boost again for the rest of the round (Reminder: A round ends when a player loses a soul gem).
2. Passing
2.1 Passing (Main game)
Every time a player passes, the owner of the current winning set may choose one of their Hell cards to transfer to the passing player's Hell Domain. However, if the owner of the current winning set has 3 or more Hell cards, they must transfer a Hell card to the player who passes.
If all other players pass, the initiative goes back to the owner of the winning set. This player must then discard their winning set and play a brand-new set of cards. If this player has no more unplayed cards, the next player in turn order gets to play a brand-new set of cards instead.
Example: In a three-player game, Joshua plays a set of (2,3,4,5). The next player, Luke, decides to pass. Joshua, the owner of the current winning set (2,3,4,5), checks his total number of Hell cards. Since Joshua has three Hell cards, he is obligated to transfer a Hell card to Luke. Then, the following player, Gabriel, passes as well.
Joshua now only has two Hell cards left, so he is no longer obligated to transfer a Hell card. Joshua decides not to transfer a Hell card to Gabriel. Since everyone passes, the initiative goes back to Joshua. He discards the current winning set and must play a new set of cards of his choice.
After a new set of cards have been played, discard the previous winning set into a discard pile face down and place any used dice onto their user's "Used Dice" card.
2.2 Passing (Casual mode)
If you want an easier game or play with younger players, you may follow this rule instead:
- Every time an active player passes, the owner of the current winning set may choose one of their Hell cards to discard to the discard pile. There will be no transferring of Hell cards in this mode regardless of the number of Hell cards that the owner of the current winning set has. The rest of the game rules remains the same.
3. Activating Hell power (Optional)
For advance gameplay, when a player manages to play three or more Hell cards (with or without Dice Boost), that player may return one Hell card to its owner's hand (any player's Hell card, including their own).
Example: Luke played a set of 4 Hell cards (2,3,4,5) from his Hell Domain. Since he managed to play three or more Hell cards, he can immediately decide if he wants to return any one Hell card back to its owners hand. He returns his remaining card (2).
4. End of round and End of game
A round ends when only one player is left with unplayed cards. That player will return a soul gem to the box.
If any player loses their last gem, the game is over immediately. Everyone who still has soul gem(s) left wins! Otherwise, shuffle all the cards, distribute them and set up as below (section 5).
5. Additional setup for the new rounds
For subsequent rounds, each player who has only one gem left will get to reserve one die in front of themselves. Each of them will always reserve only one die, regardless of the number of rounds played. Players do not carry over any unused reserve die from the previous round.
Reroll the remaining dice and place them at the centre of the table. There should be one fewer die available at the centre of the table than in the previous round.
Players choose a number for their reserve dice after looking at their cards and available dice at the centre of the table before the new round starts (No changing during the round).
During each new round, the reserve dice can only be used by their owners. These players can use the dice from the centre of the table too. For example, they can combine one die from the centre of the table with their own reserve die to substitute for one card. However, if a player doesn't use their reserve die during dice boosting, they must immediately add their reserve die to the centre of the table (number unchanged).
Example: Jane has a reserved die (3) but decides to only use the available dice from the centre of the table for her Dice Boost: a 1 and a 4 to make a 5. Since she didn't use her reserved die, she placed it at the centre of the table to be used by other players this round.
Competitive Variant (3-4 player)
At the start of each round, after looking at their cards, each player writes down a secret number: 1, 2, 3, or 4. These are the players' prediction # for the round!
When a player has cleared all of their cards, this player must immediately reveal their own prediction # and compares it to the number of cards in their last set.
If the number of cards in the player's last set deviates further than 1 from their prediction #, they earn zero point! Else, score according to the table below:
| Prediction # | The number of cards in the player's last set equals their predicted # | The number of cards in the player's last set is +/- 1 from their prediction # |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | This player earns 4 points | This player earns 1 point |
| 2 | This player earns 2 points | This player earns 1 point |
| 3 | This player earns 2 points | This player earns 1 point |
| 4 | This player earns 4 points | This player earns 1 point |
Note: It is generally riskier to predict 1 or 4, but you will also earn more points if you play the exact number in your last set.
The last player left with unplayed cards will still lose a soul gem and not earn any points that round. Players should record the points they earned after each round.
Once the game ends (a player loses two soul gems), the player with no remaining soul gem will have their total points reduced to zero. Then, the player(s) with the most points wins!
E.g. Keith played three Heaven cards (2,3,4) + a die of 5 to clear all his cards. He revealed his prediction #, 4. This is the exact number of cards in his last set (Dice substitutes counts as a card), so he earned 4 points this round.
Expansion Cards
Cat-leton
Setup: Prepare the deck as per usual and shuffle as many Cat-leton as there are players into the deck. Distribute the cards as per normal setup.
Cat-leton has a value of 0. You may play him as a single card or form a set with him (e.g. 0,1,2). What makes him special is that when you play him from hand (not from hell domain), you may replace him with a hell card from your hell domain. Discard Cat-leton after that.
Example: Luke plays 1, 3 and Cat-leton from hand. He then discards and replaces Cat-leton with 2 from his hell domain. This forms a set of 1,2,3.
Mdm Mitch the cat witch
Setup: Prepare the deck as per usual and shuffle as many Mdm Mitch as there are players into the deck. Distribute the cards as per normal setup.
Mdm Mitch has a value of 0. You may play her as a single card or form a set (e.g. 0,1,2) with her. What makes her special is that she will mirror the value of your dice during dice boosting.
Example: Mdm Mitch mirrors the total value of the dice (4). This forms a set of four of the same number.