Cauldron Quest Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Object of the Game
• Components
• Setup
• How to Play
  • Move a Potion Bottle
  • The Wizard Moves
  • Path Blocked
  • Spell-Breaking Token
  • Roll the Magic Dice
• How to Cast Spells
  • Spell of Omniscience (roll all even numbers)
  • Charm of Exchange (roll all odd numbers)
  • Great Sorcery (roll a total of 12 or more on all 3 dice)
  • Example of Rolling the Magic Dice
• End of the Game
• Play Together!

Object of the Game

Collect three necessary ingredients in the cauldron before all 6 paths to the cauldron become impassable.

If you do not manage to collect in the cauldron all 3 potion bottles with the right ingredients before the evil wizard gains power, the kingdom will be destroyed.

Components

• 6 different potions (green bottles). The magic dice are different colours in each box; you may get, for example, green, red or blue.
• 6 alchemical ingredients: rotten egg, poisonous mushroom, horned toad, newt eye, dandelion root and bat wing.
• 6 obstacles.
• Wizard's hat on a stand.
• Spell-breaking token.
• 2 coloured six-sided action dice.
• 3 coloured six-sided magic dice.
• Large round game board.
• The rulebook you are holding.

Setup

1. Place the game board so that everyone can reach it.
2. Turn the potion bottles picture-down and shuffle them. Place one potion bottle, picture-down, on each space of the game board, in random order.
3. Turn the alchemical ingredients picture-down and shuffle them. Without looking, choose 3 of them and place them face up in the cauldron, in the very centre of the game board. These 3 ingredients are the ones you will need to break the evil wizard's spell. Set the remaining ingredients aside; they will not be needed.
4. Shuffle all the obstacles and place them next to the board face down.
5. Place the wizard's hat on the arrow on the purple circle of the game board. This is the wizard's circle. The wizard moves only along this circle and only clockwise.
6. Place the 2 action dice, the 3 magic dice and the spell-breaking token next to the game board so that all players can reach them.

The youngest player goes first.

How to Play

At the start of each turn you roll the action dice. These dice show you what you must do this turn.

Remember: "Cauldron Quest" is a team game. Work as one team and help each other decide how best to act on each turn.

There are 4 possible results of the action dice roll:

• Move a potion bottle
• The wizard moves
• Path blocked
• Roll the magic dice

Roll the dice for the first time, and you can start playing while consulting the rules.

Move a Potion Bottle

Move any potion bottle the number of spaces rolled on the die.

• You may move any potion bottle, even if its ingredient has not yet been revealed. How to reveal an ingredient is explained in the "How to Cast Spells" section (below).
• Potion bottles can be moved down and up along a path, and in either direction around the wizard's circle.
• A potion bottle cannot be moved past the wizard on the wizard's circle or past an obstacle on the game board.
• A potion bottle cannot be moved into the cauldron if the ingredient in the bottle has not yet been revealed.
• You do not have to roll the exact number to move a potion bottle into the cauldron; higher numbers also work.

The Wizard Moves

Move the wizard's hat clockwise around the wizard's circle the number of spaces rolled on the die.

If during his move the wizard passes through or stops on a potion bottle, that potion bottle must be returned to the nearest space on the game board.

Path Blocked

Oh no, the evil wizard has blocked a path! Turn one of the obstacles face up and place it on the corresponding path space on the game board. This path is now blocked (A).

• If a potion bottle is standing on that space, it returns to the nearest space on the game board (B).
• A potion bottle cannot be moved past obstacles on the game board, but it can be moved around the wizard's circle to a path that is not yet blocked (C).
• If a potion bottle is on a space closer to the centre of the board than the obstacle, you can continue moving it toward the cauldron (D).
• To remove one obstacle, use the spell-breaking token.

Spell-Breaking Token

Use this token at any moment of the game to remove one obstacle from the game board. When you remove an obstacle, the path is free again. The spell-breaking token can be used only once per game. After use, turn the token face down. The removed obstacle is turned face down and shuffled with the other obstacle tokens; it may come up again.

The spell-breaking token must be used before all 6 obstacles are on the game board.

Roll the Magic Dice

Use good magic! Roll the 3 magic dice to start casting spells. The magic charms will help you reveal ingredients, swap potion bottles, or get past obstacles and the wizard. If you succeed, use the spell. If not, pass the turn to the next player.

How to Cast Spells

Roll the dice. After that you may re-roll one, two or all three of them, and then, after the second result, choose dice to re-roll again and try once more (that is, up to three rolls in total).

Always say in advance what result you want to get before rolling the dice. Yes, you must choose the desired spell before the first roll of the dice.

Spell of Omniscience (roll all even numbers)

Roll 3 even numbers to reveal the ingredient on a bottle. By the rules, a potion bottle must be standing ingredient-up before you add it to the cauldron. The Spell of Omniscience allows you to turn a bottle so that its ingredient is up. To do this you must roll 3 even numbers on the dice. If you succeed, the potion bottle remains standing ingredient-up until the end of the game.

Hint: reveal ingredients as early as possible, so that you know for certain which potion bottles to move into the cauldron.

Charm of Exchange (roll all odd numbers)

Roll 3 odd numbers to swap any two potion bottles anywhere on the game board. For example, swap a bottle on a blocked path with one that stands on a free path.

Hint: perhaps it is worth revealing a few ingredients first before swapping them.

Great Sorcery (roll a total of 12 or more on all 3 dice)

Great Sorcery allows you to move a potion bottle past the wizard standing on the wizard's circle, or past an obstacle on one of the blocked paths. If the sum of the numbers on the 3 dice is 12 or greater, you may move any potion bottle up to 6 spaces inclusive. At the end of the movement you may move the bottle into the cauldron if its ingredient is revealed.

Example of Rolling the Magic Dice

You announce that you want to use the Spell of Omniscience, because you must choose a specific spell before rolling the dice. You can then roll the dice up to 3 times to roll all even numbers.

For example, on your first roll you rolled 2 even numbers and 1 odd number. You have 2 more rolls to get the last even number on the third die.

On the second roll you leave the dice showing 2 and 4 where they are and roll only the die that shows 5. If the second roll fails, remember that you still have a third roll in reserve.

If an even number comes up and all 3 of your dice show even numbers, you have successfully cast the Spell of Omniscience and can turn any potion bottle ingredient-up.

End of the Game

Collect three potion bottles with the necessary ingredients in the cauldron before the wizard blocks all the paths, and you all win! If the evil wizard blocks all 6 paths before you have placed the potion bottles with the necessary ingredients in the cauldron, the wizard wins.

Play Together!

We believe that children (and adults!) always win when they work and play together, respecting each other. Playing together is good: it means joint work, shared decisions, discussion, trust and emotional health. Share the joy of playing together.