Clever Cubed
Clever Cubed Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 1 pad of game sheets
- 6 dice
- 4 pencils
Note for players who know "That's Pretty Clever!" (Ganz schön clever): To make it easier to get started, all deviations from the "That's Pretty Clever!" rules are marked in light gray in the margin of this rulebook.
Game Idea
The players try to score as many points as possible on their own game sheet by making clever use of the dice in the five color areas. Choose the dice cleverly so that you still have enough options available for the rolls that follow. It is also important that you do not lose sight of your fellow players' dice. Whoever has the most points after a certain number of rounds wins.
Setup
Each player receives a game sheet and a pencil. The player with the worst luck at dice takes the 6 dice and begins the game.
Game Play
The game is played over 4 rounds (with 4 players), 5 rounds (with 3 players) or 6 rounds (with 1 or 2 players).
At the beginning of each round, all players cross off the number of the current round on their pad. (The round track on the sheet shows the round number, the round bonuses and the player count.)
In rounds 1–4, each player receives the bonus indicated under the current round number. (You can find detailed explanations of the bonuses starting on page 9.)
The active player
The player who currently has the dice in front of them is the active player. They roll all 6 dice once and choose one of them. They place this die — without changing the number it shows — on the topmost of their 3 die fields. Now the player must cross out a field in the matching color area on their game sheet, or enter a number there. Exactly which fields they may enter is described in detail under "The Color Areas" starting on page 4.
Note: The white die is a color joker and can be used for any color.
Afterwards, the player must place all dice that show a lower value than the chosen die onto the silver platter printed inside the box.
Note: Dice showing the same number as the chosen die are not placed on the silver platter. If a player chooses the lowest die, they place no dice on the silver platter for that roll.
Dice that are on the silver platter can no longer be used by the active player during this turn (exception: the Extra Die action on page 11).
The player now rolls the remaining dice a second time. They again choose a die, place it on the second die field, and may again enter a value or a cross in the matching color area on their game sheet. Afterwards, they again place all dice that show a lower value than the die just chosen onto the silver platter.
The player then rolls the remaining dice a third time and carries out the actions described above one last time. After the third roll, they place all remaining dice that are not on their game sheet onto the silver platter.
Attention: If the active player chooses a high die (too) early, it can happen that they have no dice left for a further roll, because they already had to place all the remaining dice on the silver platter. In this case the active player can no longer roll. Of course, it is advisable to avoid this situation.
In addition to their rolls, the active player may also use actions, as described starting on page 10.
Special case: If the active player cannot or does not want to use a die from their roll, they do not set out a die and their roll is forfeited. The die field on the sheet then remains empty.
Example
- Lucia is the active player and starts by rolling all 6 dice.
- She chooses the pink die, places it on the topmost die field and enters the point value in the pink area of her game sheet.
- Lucia places all dice showing fewer than 3 pips on the silver platter.
- On her second roll, Lucia rolls the remaining 4 dice.
- She chooses the white 4 joker, places it on the second die field and decides to enter the point value in the pink area once again.
- She then places all dice with fewer than 4 pips on the silver platter.
- For her third roll, Lucia has only the yellow die left. She rolls a 3, places the die on the last free die field and crosses out a field in the yellow area.
The passive players
After the active player has placed 3 dice on their game sheet (or has no dice available), they "serve" the dice on the silver platter to their fellow players.
Each fellow player may choose one die from the silver platter and enter it as a "passive player" in the matching color area on their game sheet. All passive players choose their dice at the same time. The dice remain on the silver platter while they do so. This means several players can choose the same die.
Once all passive players have chosen a die, entered it and used actions if applicable, the active player takes all the dice and passes them to the next player in clockwise order. That player is now the new active player, and you carry out the steps just described again.
Once every player has been the active player once, the round ends and a new one begins.
Special case: If a passive player has no way of using a die from the silver platter, they may use a die from the active player's die fields. A passive player does have the option of forgoing a die from the silver platter, but if they do so voluntarily, they may not use a die of the active player because of it.
The Color Areas
Whenever you choose a die, you enter a number or a cross in the matching color area.
In the yellow, turquoise and brown areas, the numbers 1–6 are pre-printed. In these areas you cross out fields. In blue and pink you enter numerical values.
For each die you choose, you may always cross out exactly one field or enter exactly one number (exception: turquoise).
- The yellow area (page 5)
- The turquoise area (page 6)
- The blue area (page 7)
- The brown area (page 8)
- The pink area (page 8)
In principle, you may only enter something in each field once. So you may not cross out any field more than once, and you may never overwrite a number once it has been entered.
The Yellow Area
Cross out
If you choose the yellow die, you must cross out one of the 3 fields showing the rolled number in this area.
If you are the active player, on the first roll you may only cross out in the top row, on the second roll only in the middle row and on the third roll only in the bottom row. (As the active player you may cross out both white and gray fields.) To make this clear, the die fields and the rows in the yellow area are marked with the Roman numerals I–III.
Example: On your first roll you chose a yellow 2 and cross out the 2 in the top row.
If you are the passive player, you may only cross out one of the 6 gray-shaded fields. Of course, the number on the die must still match the number in the field.
Example: You chose the yellow 2 from the silver platter and cross out the gray-shaded 2.
Bonuses
The bonuses in the yellow area always sit between 2 fields. As soon as you have crossed out the field directly above and the field directly below a bonus, you immediately receive the bonus depicted there.
Final scoring
At the end of the game, count how many fields you have crossed out in each single one of the 3 rows of this area. For each row you receive as many points as are indicated in the table in the yellow area.
Example: You have crossed out 3 fields in the top row. You get 12 points for that. In the middle and bottom rows you have 2 crosses each. You get 6 points for each of those. In total, you therefore get 24 points.
The Turquoise Area
Cross out
If you choose the turquoise die, you must cross out one of the 5 fields showing the rolled number in this area.
If you are the active player and other dice showing the same number are already lying on your die fields, then for each of those dice you may cross out one further field in the same column.
Example: On the first roll you set out a yellow 3; on the second roll you chose a turquoise 3. So you may cross out a total of 2 "3" fields.
If you are the passive player, you may cross out one additional field for each further die on the silver platter showing the same number.
Example: On the silver platter there is a turquoise, a pink and a blue 4. If a passive player chooses the turquoise die, they may cross out a total of 3 "4" fields.
In this area, players can therefore cross out up to 3 fields at once (passive players in exceptional cases even more).
Bonuses
As soon as you have crossed out all the turquoise-shaded fields in a column or in a row, you receive the bonus depicted below that column or at the end of that row.
Final scoring
At the end of the game, count how many fields you have crossed out in each single one of the 5 rows of this area. For each row you receive as many points as are indicated in the table in the turquoise area.
Example: You have crossed out 5 fields in the top row. You get 15 points for that. Proceed in the same way for the remaining 4 rows.
The Blue Area
Fill in
In the blue area you do not cross out fields as in the yellow and turquoise areas. On this track you enter numbers into the empty fields. You start from the field with the 7 in the middle and work your way forward from there, field by field, in both directions.
If you choose the blue die, you must always first add the number of pips on the white die to it. The reverse also applies: if you want to use the white die for the blue area, you add the number of pips on the blue die to it. In both cases, it does not matter where the other die happens to be lying.
(blue die plus white die)
Then you must enter the number in the next free field to the left or to the right of the middle. On the left you may only enter numbers that are exactly 1 lower than in the previous field; on the right only numbers that are exactly 1 higher than in the previous field. The number 7 on the middle field represents the starting point.
You may also enter a 7 after any other number and thus "reset" the sequence of numbers. After the 7 you again enter exactly 1 higher or 1 lower than before.
Bonuses
As soon as you enter a number in a field with a bonus, you receive the bonus depicted there.
Final scoring
At the end of the game, look at the two outermost fields into which you have entered a number. You receive the points depicted above those two fields. In addition, you receive 4 bonus points for every number less than or equal to 4 and for every number greater than or equal to 10.
Example: You have reached the final state shown. On the left you have reached 9 points, on the right 13 points. In addition you get +4 points each for the 10 and the 11. In total, you get 30 points (13 + 9 + 4 + 4) for the blue area.
The Brown Area
Cross out
If you choose the brown die, you must cross out a field showing the rolled number. You may only cross out fields that lie further to the right than the last field you crossed out in this row. So you start as far to the left as possible and work your way to the right from there. You do not have to cross out field after field — you may also skip fields. However, fields skipped in this way may not be crossed out later on.
Bonuses
The bonuses in the brown area always sit between 2 fields. You always receive a bonus immediately once you have crossed out both adjacent fields (left and right). So if you skip fields, it may become impossible to obtain certain bonuses.
Final scoring
At the end of the game you receive points according to the number of fields you have crossed out in this area. You receive as many points as are indicated in the table in the brown area. You can therefore only achieve the full score if you do not skip any field.
The Pink Area
Fill in
In the pink area you enter numbers into the fields. You always start at the far left and enter a number in the next free field of the track. So you may not skip any fields here.
If you choose the pink die, you must decide whether you want the depicted bonus or would rather have more points.
Bonuses
If you decide in favor of the bonus, you halve the number the die shows and enter that value (rounded up). You then immediately receive the bonus indicated below that field.
If you would rather have more points, you instead multiply the number on the die by the number indicated in the star above the field, and enter that value. In this case you do not receive the indicated bonus and cross it out immediately.
Note: In the first field you may not yet decide — here you always enter half the number on the die.
Final scoring
At the end of the game, add up all the numbers you have entered. The sum gives the points you receive for the pink area.
The White Die
The white die is a color joker. You may use it as a yellow, turquoise, brown or pink die. Alternatively, you can combine it with the blue die (see: The Blue Area).
Bonuses
Various bonuses are marked on the game sheet.
Exactly how the bonuses are activated in the individual color areas is explained in the description of the respective area.
There are 3 different kinds of bonuses:
- question-mark bonuses
- actions
- foxes
Question-Mark Bonuses
Whenever you activate a question-mark bonus, you must use it immediately.
Most question-mark bonuses have a specific color. When you use a question-mark bonus, you choose a number from 1 to 6. Then you cross out a field or enter a number in the corresponding color area. You may use the question-mark bonus exactly as if you had rolled the chosen number. The usual rules of the color areas still apply.
With the black question-mark bonus you may choose not only the number but also the color area.
All players receive a further question-mark bonus at the beginning of the 4th round.
Actions
Actions are activated exactly like the question-mark bonuses. Actions, however, do not have to be used immediately. When you fulfill the condition for an action, you circle a field of the corresponding action track to show that you have unlocked this action. You must unlock the action fields from left to right, without skipping a field.
At the end of each row a further bonus is depicted, which you receive when you circle the last action field on that track.
Each action that you have unlocked in this way may be used once later on. To do so, you cross out the action field.
In your turn you may use any number of your unlocked actions (including identical ones) one after the other. The 3 actions are:
1. Re-Roll
Only the active player may use this action. When you use this action, you must re-roll all of the dice you have just rolled. Dice that are already lying on the die fields or on the silver platter may not be re-rolled.
2. Any Number (Number Joker)
You may use this action as the active player and as the passive player, to use a chosen die as if it were showing a different number. If the action field used shows a specific number, you must use exactly that number. If the action field shows a "?", you may choose the number freely. You do not have to use the unlocked action fields on this track from left to right. So you may use the action field that brings you the greatest benefit at this moment.
Important: You do not turn the die! You merely act as if the die were showing a different number, and enter it that way on your game sheet. For all other matters — for example which dice are placed on the silver platter, or for other players who use this die — the number originally rolled remains valid.
3. Extra Die
You may use this action at the end of your turn to choose an additional die. As the active player you may use the action after your last (usually the third) roll; as the passive player after you have chosen a die from the silver platter. You may choose any of the 6 dice. You may also choose dice that you have already used in your regular turn, or that you would normally have no access to. However, you may choose each die only once as an extra die. You may also apply the Any Number action here.
Attention: When entering it, you must also observe the position of the chosen die. A yellow die on the middle die field may only be entered in the middle row of the yellow area; a yellow die from the silver platter only in the gray-shaded fields of that area.
Foxes
Foxes give you no advantages during the game, but rather extra points in the final scoring. Each activated fox is worth as many points as your color area with the fewest points.
Example: You have activated 3 foxes. In your lowest area (brown) you have 14 points. So you get (3 x 14 =) 42 points for the foxes.
Game End
The game ends after the last active player has finished their turn in the last round and the passive players have entered their die from the silver platter.
All players now still have the opportunity to use their remaining Extra Die actions and, if applicable, their remaining Any Number actions. Remaining Re-Roll actions are forfeited.
Afterwards you determine one player who notes down the points in the individual color areas for all players on the back of their sheet.
In addition, for each player they multiply the number of that player's foxes by the points of that player's color area with the lowest score, and enter the value in the corresponding field. Now the points are added up for each player. Whoever has the most points in total wins. In case of a tie, the winner among those players is the one with the highest point value in a single area. If there is still no clear winner, there are several winners.
Solo Game
If no fellow players are at hand, "CLEVER CUBED" ("CLEVER HOCH DREI") can also be played very well on your own. In the solo game, too, the aim is to collect as many points as possible. The rules of the game remain largely unchanged. You play over 6 rounds.
You begin as the active player. After that you slip into the role of the passive player, and so on. So you are exactly 6 times the active player and 6 times the passive player, always alternating.
When you are in the role of the passive player, you roll all 6 dice and first place the 3 dice with the lowest value on the silver platter. If there is a tie, you place the die on the silver platter that landed closest to the silver platter when rolled. You place the 3 remaining dice on the die fields in the order of their distance from the silver platter (the one lying closest to the silver platter on the topmost die field, and so on).
Attention: As the passive player you cannot — as before — use a Re-Roll action.
Example: You have rolled as the passive player and place these 3 dice on the silver platter: the blue 1 and the pink 2 as the lowest dice, plus the yellow 3, because of all the 3s it lies closest to the silver platter.
How "Clever" Did You Play?
| Level | Points |
|---|---|
| Clever Cubed! | > 450 |
| Beautiful AND clever! | 420–449 |
| Hello Mr. Hawking! | 390–419 |
| On the way to the stars | 360–389 |
| That's pretty clever! | 330–359 |
| Prodigy in training | 300–329 |
| Things are looking up | 270–299 |
| Wouldn't you rather play Yahtzee? | 240–269 |
| There's still room for improvement | 210–239 |
| It was surely just bad luck with the dice | 180–209 |
| Let's talk about something else | < 179 |
Credits
The author and the publisher thank all playtesters and rules readers.
Subject to change.
Author: Wolfgang Warsch Editing: Georg Wild Design: Leon Schiffer Graphics & 3D: designstudio1.de
Schmidt Spiele GmbH, Lahnstr. 21, D-12055 Berlin — www.schmidtspiele.de — www.schmidtspiele-shop.de