Cool am Pool Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Objective
• Components
• Setup
• Playing the Game
  • Rolling the Dice
  • Moving the Lifeguard
  • Occupying a Sun Lounger with a Bather
• Ending the Game
• Scoring

Objective

The goal of the players is to occupy, with their bathers, as many and as coveted sun loungers as possible, located as close to the pool as possible, because they are worth the most points.

Components

• 1 game board
• 6 dice – each with 5 colours plus 1 lifeguard face
• 64 towels – 16 per player colour
• 20 bathers – 5 figures per player colour
• 16 water-ball chips
• 1 lifeguard

Setup

• The game board is placed in the middle of the table. It shows the pool and the sun loungers in front of it. All 16 water-ball chips are placed in the pool, and the lifeguard is placed on the track next to the diving board.
• Each player takes the towels and bathers of their chosen colour.
• Beginning with the youngest player (the starting player), all players in clockwise order take turns placing one of their towels on the sun loungers by the pool, each with the side without a bather facing up. The two 5-value sun loungers may not be occupied at the start.
  • The number of towels to be placed at the start depends on the number of players: 12 towels for 2 players, 8 towels for 3 players, and 6 towels for 4 players.
• The starting player then takes the six dice to begin the game; afterwards the turn order continues clockwise.

Playing the Game

Whoever is on turn must carry out the following three actions in order:

1. Rolling the dice – repeat as needed
2. Moving the lifeguard – if necessary
3. Occupying a sun lounger with a bather – if possible

Rolling the Dice

All six dice are rolled. The player tries to roll as many dice of the same colour as possible, so that they may occupy a sun lounger in the corresponding value row with a bather. They have several rolls to optimise their result.

• Setting aside dice: After each roll the player must set aside at least one die showing a colour symbol. For each lifeguard they roll, they immediately move the lifeguard one space clockwise along its track. Dice showing the lifeguard are also set aside.
• Optimising the result: The player may then roll the remaining dice again, observing the rules above. They may also stop at any time and use their current result.
• Using water-ball chips: A player who receives water-ball chips during the game may spend one chip to make a dice roll invalid and roll again. This applies only to the current roll; dice already set aside earlier remain valid. A player may spend several chips one after another, as long as they still have some. Spent water-ball chips are returned to the pool.

Moving the Lifeguard

The lifeguard is moved clockwise around the area with the sun loungers – one space per lifeguard die. The spaces on its track are marked with colours and numbers. The space on which the lifeguard currently stands marks the area in which players may not occupy sun loungers.

Examples: If the lifeguard stands on a green space, no sun lounger may be occupied with a bather in the area between the two green spaces. If the lifeguard stands on a 2-value space, no sun lounger may be occupied with a bather in the row between the two 2-value spaces. (The examples are shown as board diagrams in the rulebook.)

Occupying a Sun Lounger with a Bather

To occupy a sun lounger with a bather, the player must have the required dice result: the colour determines the vertical area (column), and the number of dice determines the row. At any time a row with a lower number may also be chosen. However, only one sun lounger may be occupied or reconquered per turn.

Example: With three red dice the player may occupy one of these four sun loungers. (The example is shown as a board diagram in the rulebook.)

The following options apply when occupying or reconquering:

• Occupying your own sun lounger: The player turns one of their towels over to the side with the bather. This sun lounger is secure for them and can no longer be snatched away by any other player.
• Occupying a foreign sun lounger: The player uses one of their bather figures and places it on a free, foreign towel. Following the motto "Impudence wins", they also receive two water-ball chips from the pool. Caution: each player may hold at most four chips!
• Reconquering your own sun lounger: If a bather of another player is lying on one of your own sun loungers, you may reconquer it. To do so, the player takes the foreign bather off, returns it to its owner, and turns their towel over to the side with the bather.
• Finally conquering a foreign sun lounger: A player who already has a bather lying on a foreign towel needs the same dice result once more to finally conquer this sun lounger. To do so, the player takes their bather and the foreign towel off the sun lounger and places one of their own towels with a bather, bather side up, on it.
• Occupying a 5-value sun lounger: To occupy one of the two sun loungers right at the front of the pool with the value 5, the player needs five dice of the same colour – any colour. They then place one of their own towels with a bather, bather side up, on the sun lounger. This sun lounger is secure for them and can no longer be snatched away by any other player.

Ending the Game

The game ends as soon as only four towels, i.e. sun loungers, are not yet occupied by bathers. The round is still completed. Then scoring takes place.

Scoring

• Each bather on a player's own towel scores the value of its sun lounger – easily read from the number of the respective row. The two 5-value sun loungers score five points each.
• Each player's own bather on a foreign towel scores one point.
• For every two remaining water-ball chips there is one additional point.

The player who has scored the most points wins. In a tie, the number of bathers of the players concerned decides.