Desperate Oasis
Desperate Oasis Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 45 Cards
- 6 Palm Tokens
- 1 Rulebook
Set-Up
- Randomly draw and place 5 Oasis Cards face up in a row between the players.
- Shuffle the Animal Cards and deal 4 cards to each player. Randomly remove one card from the deck and set it to the side, face down. This card will remain out of the game for the entire round. Place the remaining Animal Cards as a draw deck accessible to both players.
- Give each player 3 Palm Tokens.
- Determine the first player randomly. In future rounds the player who scored the most points in the previous round will be the first player.
Goal
Players compete to claim as many Oasis cards as possible by playing Animal Cards on their respective side of each Oasis (and sometimes on their opponent's), with a maximum of 3 cards on each side. Oases have different point values, both positive and negative, affecting their desirability.
At the end of each round, the player with the highest combined animal strength on their side of each Oasis Card will claim that card, along with any palm trees on it, adding them to their scoring pile. The player with the most points at the end of 3 rounds of play is declared the winner!
Gameplay
On their turn, players must play cards from their hand onto the play area. After playing each card, players must first resolve any movement effects triggered, and then resolve any animal power effects. Players complete their turn by drawing back up to 4 cards.
Players must choose one of the following actions on their turn:
A. Play 2 Animal Cards face up anywhere on their side of the Oasis Row. They can be in the same or different columns.
B. Play 1 Animal Card face up on their opponent's side of an Oasis Card.
C. Play 1 Animal Card face down on their side of an Oasis Card. Powers and movement effects of face down cards will not be used until the end of the round. (Note: Only one face down card more than an opponent is allowed at a time.)
When playing Animal Cards, the card must be placed as close to the Oasis as possible within its column. You cannot leave an empty hole in the column.
Note: A maximum of 3 cards may be played on each individual Oasis on each player's side. Unless you use your jackal powers.
Rules Of Attraction
Animals attract their own kind. When a card is played into a column, it will pull any same-type cards in adjacent columns into its own (like a magnet) provided there is space. The cards do NOT need to be directly adjacent to the cards they are pulling, just in an adjacent column.
This magnetic effect occurs immediately after each card is played and is mandatory. Holes created from this effect are immediately filled by sliding any remaining cards in that column toward the Oasis Row.
Note: Chameleons can pull other chameleons, but are not pulled based on their mimicked animal.
Example: A Camel is played into a column. Any camels in adjacent columns are pulled into that column.
Note: If cards can be pulled from multiple adjacent columns in excess of the available space in that column, then the person who played the card chooses which card will be pulled.
Portal Oasis Cards
Orange Oasis Cards with portal iconography allow cards to be pulled through the Oasis Row in the same column using the same rules of attraction discussed previously.
There is no limit to the number of times animals can cross the Portal Oases, provided there is space in the column on the other side.
Example: A Camel is played into a Portal Oasis Column. Any camels on the other side of the Portal Oasis are pulled through.
Note: The same type of Animal Card can be pulled through the Portal Oasis and from adjacent columns on the same play.
Special Animal Powers
Some animal cards have a special power that can be used to improve strength at the end of each round.
Deathstalker Scorpion (strength 0) — Destroys the weakest face-up card on both sides of the Oasis it is played on, immediately removing them from their column. A Scorpion can never destroy itself, or a card when it is face-down.
Egyptian Jerboa (strength 1) — Has 1 strength but scares Elephants. Any column on either side of an Oasis with a Jerboa will cause Elephant cards in that Oasis column to be worth 0 strength.
Golden Jackal (strength 2) — If 3 Jackals are in the same column of one player's side of an Oasis, a fourth space is immediately created in that column. The extra space can be occupied by any animal card.
Note: The 3 Jackals do not need to be consecutive in a column for the power to trigger.
Arabian Camel (strength 3) — If 3 Camels are in the same column on one player's side of an Oasis, they provide an extra point of strength to that column (10 instead of 9).
Scimitar Oryx (strength 4) — No special powers.
Desert Elephant (strength 5) — Has 5 strength but scared of mice. Any column on either side of an Oasis with a Jerboa will cause Elephant cards in that Oasis column to be worth 0 strength.
Namaqua Chameleon — The Chameleon mimics the strength value of the card it is directly pointing at, but not its power. You may orient the Chameleon to face left or right when placing it, but not up and down. After placement, the orientation of the Chameleon will stay the same, regardless of future movement.
Note: A Chameleon pointed at a face-down card is considered 0 strength, until the card is flipped.
Palm Tokens
Players may deploy a Palm Token when they create a group of three of the same animals in the same column, on their side of an Oasis card. Think of them like bidding chips. The Palm Token may be placed on any Oasis card in the row, thereby increasing the Oasis card's value by 1 for end-of-round scoring.
Each player may use only one Palm Token per round.
Players are allowed to move their own Palm Token to another location if they create another line of 3 animals on a subsequent turn, but can never move an opponent's Palm Token.
Tip: Place your Palm Token on the Oasis card side nearer to you to help keep track of which is yours.
Note: Palm Tokens are only positive. If they are added to a -1 value Oasis, the value changes to 0.
End Of Round
The round ends when the draw deck is empty and one player runs out of cards. If the player who went first runs out of cards first, the player who went second gets one more turn.
Note: If all available spaces on a player's side of the Oasis Row are full before the round ends, they must play on their opponent's side on their turn.
Order For Resolving Flipped Cards
Flip all face-down cards. New cards revealed are now treated as if they were just played, triggering any applicable pulling effects. Resolve these effects left to right from the first player's perspective, in order of strength from high to low. If both players flip the same animal on a Portal Oasis, the first player resolves their side first. Resolve the power of any flipped scorpions in the same order.
Add up the total strength on each side of the Oasis Cards. The player with the greatest combined strength on each side of an Oasis Card takes that card, and any Palm Tokens on it, into their scoring pile. Any Oasis cards on which players tie in strength are discarded.
Game End
The game ends after 3 rounds. Tally all Oasis cards and Palm Tokens won. Oasis cards are worth the number written on them and each Palm Token is worth one point. The player with the most points wins. In case of a tie, both players share the victory.
Credits
Created by Weast Coast Games — Dan Christofferson, Meg Yahashi, Dan Cassaro
- Game Design: Dan Cassaro
- Graphic Design: Brett Stenson, Young Jerks
- Editing & Production: Meg Yahashi