The Legend of the Cherry Tree that Blossoms Every Ten Years
The Legend of the Cherry Tree that Blossoms Every Ten Years Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- 4 screens
- 1 bag
- 3 Mastery cards
- 1 rulebook
- 96 Flower tokens
- 18 pink Flowers
- 18 yellow Flowers
- 18 light blue Flowers
- 18 dark blue Flowers
- 18 white Flowers
- 6 black Flowers
Overview of the game
The flowers on the Cherry Tree have begun their delicate fall and are ready to be collected. Each turn, draw one or more Flowers from the bag and try to gather as many as possible without being too greedy. At the end of your turn, put your flowers:
- In front of your screen to gain victory points based on your sets of Flowers.
- Or behind your screen to gain victory points by having the largest groups of Flowers.
The player who has the most victory points at the end of the game is the winner.
Game Elements
Screens
There are four screens (one per player) that have a reminder of the end-game scoring.
Flower Tokens
Flower tokens represent the Flowers on the Cherry Tree that you are collecting during the game. They come in six colors: pink, yellow, light blue, dark blue, white, and black.
Bag
The bag holds all the Flower tokens waiting to be collected.
Mastery Cards
The cherry tree will reward those who can demonstrate their mastery of Flower collection. These cards show different Flower combinations and the bonus that you receive if you can collect them. There are three double-sided cards: a blue side for a classic game, and a pink side for an advanced game.
Setup
- Choose a screen and put it in front of you so the end-game scoring reminder is facing you.
- Put the three Prowess cards in the middle of the table so everyone can see them, on whichever side (blue or pink) you prefer to play with.
- Put Flower tokens in the bag according to the number of players:
- 3 players: 15 of each color
- 4 players: 18 of each color
- For a 2-player game please refer to the 2-Player Variant.
- The last player who saw a Cherry Tree blossom is the first player and takes the bag.
Gameplay
The game plays over several consecutive turns until all the Flowers on the Cherry Tree are collected.
Turn Overview
Starting with the first player and going clockwise, take these two actions in order: Collect Flowers then Display Flowers.
1. Collect Flowers
You collect Flowers by drawing tokens out of the bag and placing them in the middle of the table. You don't get to keep these Flowers yet, so be careful not to mix them with the Flowers you displayed in previous turns.
When it's your turn to draw Flowers, follow these rules:
- You must draw at least 1 flower each turn.
- You can only draw from the bag a maximum of three times on your turn.
- You can only draw a maximum of 8 Flowers on your turn.
If you mistakenly draw more than 8 Flowers, your turn immediately ends. Put the Flowers you collected back in the bag and pass it to the next player.
Successful or Failed Collection
After each draw, check to see if you successfully collected the Flowers. The collection is a success if neither of these two conditions are met:
- You collected 3 Flowers of the same color.
- You collected 5 Flowers in different colors.
Each time you draw Flowers, add them to any you drew earlier in the turn, then see if the collection is successful or failed. If it has failed, then you cannot draw any more Flowers this turn and you must immediately go to your Display Flowers Phase.
Example: You make your first draw for your turn, pulling 2 Flower tokens from the bag: 1 light blue Flower and 1 white Flower. Then you draw 2 more Flower tokens for your second draw, and you get 2 more white Flowers. Unfortunately, you now have 3 Flowers of the same color, which means that the cherry tree thinks you are too greedy! You must immediately proceed to the Display Flowers step. (1st draw: light blue, white. 2nd draw: white, white — Failed Collection!)
If neither of these conditions is met, your Collection is successful! You can then decide to:
- Announce that you are done collecting and go directly to the Display Flowers step.
- Or, draw again to continue the collection. If this draw is also successful, you must decide once more whether to stop or draw for the last time. You must stop after your third draw, regardless of the outcome, and go to the Display Flowers Phase.
Example: You take your first and required draw, you pull 3 Flower tokens from the bag. You take 1 pink Flower and 2 yellow Flowers. Neither of the two conditions is met, so your Collection is successful. You decide to draw a second time and draw 2 Flower tokens, taking 1 light blue Flower and 1 pink Flower. The Collection is successful. You decide to stop there and go to the Display Flowers Phase. (1st draw: pink, yellow, yellow. 2nd draw: light blue, pink — Stop there, a successful Collection!)
The Black Flowers
There are only 6 black Flowers in the bag (5 for a 3-player game). They function differently than the other Flower tokens. If you draw a black Flower while Collecting, it immediately takes on whichever color would meet one of the failure conditions for your Collection, if possible.
Example: You draw 1 black Flower, 1 dark blue Flower, and 2 pink Flowers. The black Flower automatically becomes pink to meet the "3 Flowers of the same color" condition and your Collection fails.
Example: You draw 2 black Flowers, 1 yellow Flower, 1 white Flower, and 1 light blue Flower. One of the black Flowers becomes dark blue, and the other one becomes pink to create 5 different colored Flowers and your collection fails.
2. Display Flowers
When you Display the Flowers you collected during the Collect Flowers Phase, you can put them in front of and/or behind your screen. Displaying Flowers works differently depending on whether your Collection was successful or not.
Failed Collection
If your Collection failed, take the following actions:
a. Put any black Flowers back in the bag. b. Choose 2 Flowers of different colors from the ones you collected. c. Place these 2 Flowers in front of your screen. d. Put the rest of the Flowers back in the bag.
Note: If you only collected one color of Flowers, put only 1 Flower token in front of your screen and put the rest back in the bag.
Successful Collection
If your Collection was successful, take the following actions:
a. Check to see if the Flowers you collected match the combination shown on one of the Mastery cards. If they do, you may use the bonus shown on that card (see Description of Mastery Cards). b. You may choose one color among the Flowers you collected. c. Put all of the Flowers of your chosen color behind your screen. d. Put the rest of the Flowers in front of your screen.
Note: Placing Flowers behind your screen is optional. If you decide to do so, you must choose one color and put all the Flowers of this color behind your screen. If you decide not to do so, put all the Flowers you collected in front of your screen.
In Front of or Behind Your Screen?
In Front of Your Screen
When you display Flowers in front of your screen, sort them by color. Each color will be scored individually at the end of the game. The more Flowers you have in a color, the more victory points this color will award you the end of the game.
Features of black Flowers: black Flowers placed in front of your screen are not treated as their own color, but as "wild" Flowers. At the end of the game, you can choose the color of each black Flower in front of your screen.
Example: At the end of the game, you have 2 black Flowers, 3 pink Flowers, and 1 light blue Flower in front of your screen. You choose to turn one black Flower into a pink Flower and the other black Flower into a light blue Flower. You therefore have 4 pink Flowers and 2 light blue Flowers.
Behind Your Screen
When you display Flowers behind your screen, sort them in the following way:
- Warm Group: pink and yellow Flowers on one side.
- Cool Group: light blue and dark blue Flowers on the other side.
You will gain victory points at the end of the game based on the number of players who have fewer Flowers than you in each group — more players will give you more points.
Features of black and white Flowers: Black and white Flowers behind your screen are not treated as their own colors, but are "wild". At the end of the game, you choose which group to add each of the black and white Flowers behind your screen to.
Example: At the end of the game, you have 3 yellow Flowers and 2 pink Flowers in the Warm Group and 5 light blue Flowers in the Cool Group behind your screen. You also have 2 white Flowers and 1 black Flower. You decide to put 2 white Flowers in the Warm Group and 1 black Flower in the Cool Group. You therefore have 7 Flowers in the Warm Group and 6 Flowers in the Cool Group.
However, you can only add black or white Flowers to a Group if you already have at least one (colored) Flower in that group.
Example: At the end of the game, you have 4 pink Flowers and 3 yellow Flowers in the Warm Group and no light blue or dark blue Flowers behind your screen. You also have 2 black Flowers. Because you have no Flowers in the Cool Group, you must put the 2 black Flowers in the Warm Group.
End of the Turn
After you Collect Flowers and Display Flowers in front of and/or behind your screen, your turn is over. The next player takes the bag and begins their turn.
End of the Game and Final Scoring
The game ends at the end of the player's turn when the last Flower in the bag is collected and displayed. Then everyone counts their victory points for the Flowers in front of and behind their screens.
Scoring Victory Points in Front of Your Screen
If you have any black Flowers in front of your screen, choose a color for each one and add them to the Flowers of that color. Then, count the number of Flowers you collected in each color and score victory points according to this table:
| Number of flowers | Victory points |
|---|---|
| 0 | 0 |
| 1 | -3 |
| 2 | -1 |
| 3 | 1 |
| 4 | 3 |
| 5 | 5 |
| 6 | 8 |
| 7 | 11 |
| 8 | 15 |
| 9 | 19 |
| 10 | 24 |
Scoring Victory Points Behind Your Screen
If you have any black and/or white Flowers behind your screen, add them to the Warm and Cool Groups. When everyone has finished distributing their black and white Flowers, simultaneously raise your screens.
Warm Group: Count the number of Flowers you have in the Warm Group (pink and yellow) and compare it with the other players. The player with the most Flowers in the Warm Group gains 18 victory points. Then, the player with the second-most gains 10 victory points, and, finally, the third-most gains 8 victory points.
| Place | Victory points |
|---|---|
| 1st | 18 |
| 2nd | 10 |
| 3rd | 8 |
Cool Group: Count the number of Flowers you have in the Cool Group (light blue and dark blue) and compare it with the other players. The player with the most Flowers in the Cool Group gains 16 victory points. Then, the player with the second-most gains 12 victory points, and, finally, the third-most gains 8 victory points.
| Place | Victory points |
|---|---|
| 1st | 16 |
| 2nd | 12 |
| 3rd | 8 |
If there is a tie for a Group of Flowers:
If there's a tie for 1st place, add the points for 1st and 2nd place, then divide the total by the number of tied players to obtain their score (rounded down).
Example: Two players have a total of 5 Flowers in the Warm Group and share 1st place. Their score is calculated as follows: (18+10) / 2 = 14.
If there's a tie for 2nd place, add the points for 2nd and 3rd place, then divide the total by the number of tied players to obtain their score (rounded down).
Example: Three players have a total of 4 Flowers in the Cool Group and share 2nd place. Their score is calculated as follows: (12+8) / 3 = 6.7. Rounded down, their score is 6.
If there's a tie for 3rd place, divide the victory points for 3rd place by the number of tied players to obtain their score (rounded down).
Example: Two players have a total of 3 Flowers in the Warm Group and share 3rd place. Their score is calculated as follows: 8 / 2 = 4.
Final Scoring
Add up the victory points you gained from Flowers in front of and behind your screen to obtain your final score. The player with the highest score wins the game. If there's a tie, the tied players share the victory.
Description of Mastery Cards
If your collection on your turn is successful, check to see if the Flowers you collected match the combination shown on one of the Mastery cards. If they do, you may use the bonus shown on that card, if you wish. Using Mastery cards is always optional.
Important: If you match more than one Mastery card with your collection, you can only use one of the bonuses you qualify for.
Features of black Flowers: When you check to see if you matched a Mastery card, you can treat black Flowers as if they were any color(s) you wish.
Shin Sumizome (Blue Side)
- Combination: Have two pairs of different colors among the Flowers you collected.
- Bonus: Secretly draw one Flower from the bag and put it behind your screen, without showing it to the other players.
Sakuya Hime (Pink Side)
- Combination: Have two pairs of different colors among the Flowers you collected.
- Bonus: Choose another player. Then choose one Flower from the ones you collected this turn or one in front of your screen. Exchange this Flower with a Flower in front of the chosen player's screen. Put the new Flower in front of your screen.
Important: You choose the Flower you take from the other player, but you cannot take a black Flower.
Somei Yoshino (Blue Side)
- Combination: Have 4 different colored Flowers among the Flowers you collected.
- Bonus: Choose one Flower from the ones you collected this turn or one in front of your screen, and put it behind your screen.
Komatsu Otome (Pink Side)
- Combination: Have 4 different colored Flowers among the Flowers you collected.
- Bonus: Draw 3 Flowers from the bag. Choose one that you put directly in front of your screen and put the rest back in the bag.
Important: You cannot choose to keep a black Flower, and you must keep one Flower, even if none of the Flowers available help you.
Kenrokuen Kumagai (Blue Side)
- Combination: Have 6 Flowers of any colors among the Flowers you collected.
- Bonus: Draw 2 Flowers from the bag and choose, for each flower, whether to put it in front of another player's screen, in front of your screen, or behind your screen.
Important: You can place both Flowers in the same place or in two different places.
Kokonoe (Pink Side)
- Combination: Have 6 Flowers of any colors among the Flowers you collected.
- Bonus: Choose two different players. Take 1 Flower from in front of each of those players' screens and put them in front of your own screen. You must choose Flowers of different colors.
Important: You choose the Flowers you take from the other players, but you cannot take a black Flower.
2-Player Variant
With two players, the game uses the standard rules for a 3- or 4-player game with a few exceptions.
Setup
Put 4 black Flowers and 13 Flowers of each of the other colors in the bag. Then, without looking at them or showing them to the other player, draw 3 Flowers from the bag and put them back in the box. These 3 Flowers are not used this game.
Mastery Cards
All of the Prowess cards work normally except the "Kokonoe" card. If you decide to use this bonus, take 2 Flowers from in front of your opponent's screen and put them in front of your screen. The Flowers you take must be different colors.
Important: You choose which Flowers to take, but you cannot take a black Flower.
Final Scoring Behind Your Screen
For each Group of Flowers (Warm and Cool), the player with the most Flower tokens receives the victory points for 2nd place, while the player with the least Flower tokens receives no points.
Credits
- Designer: Hinata Origushi
- Illustrator: Sylvain Sarrailh
- Project Manager: Ludovic Papaïs
- Proofing: Virginie Gilson
- English Proofing: William Niebling
- Graphic Design: Mélanie Walryck & Fred Derlon
- Translation: Danni Loe
© 2018 IELLO USA LLC. IELLO, Cherry Tree, and their logos are trademarks of IELLO USA LLC. Made in Shanghai, China by Whatz Games.