Fishing 2
Fishing 2 Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- 99 playing cards
- 5 fisher and 5 boat cards
- 1 "This is trump" card
- 3 round cards and 1 tracking card
- 5 overview sheets (English & German)
- 2 rule sheets (English & German)
How to Play
Each round, you play a given number of tricks, after which you build your own draw stack with your caught tricks, then draw a hand of cards from that stack at the start of the subsequent round. If you do not have enough cards in your draw stack to do so, fill up your hand with fresh cards from the ocean stack.
Complete the 1st round before checking the second page of the rules sheet for how the game progresses.
Preparing the 1st Round
Take 1 overview sheet, and place 1 fisher and 1 boat card in front of you. Collect your caught tricks on the fisher during the round, then later add them to the draw stack on your boat (which will be empty initially).
Look for the round card matching the number of players. The backside shows the starting cards needed (as explained below), and the frontside shows the number of cards you take in hand at the start of each round. Place the tracking card on the round card so that the arrows point to the row for the 1st round. Look for the "This is trump" card and place it next to the tracking card. (Ignore the "This is trump" card during the 1st round.)
Sort the playing cards by the 0 to 5 stars depicted on them into 6 stacks. Place the 40 starless starting cards aside for now.
With 3 players: Remove all cards with the "4+" symbol from the 1- to 5-star cards and place them in the game box. You do not need them for a 3-player game.
Shuffle the five stacks of starred cards separately, then use them to create the ocean stack: place the 5-star cards face down, then place the 4-star cards on top of them, and so on until you place the 1-star cards face down on top. Place this ocean stack next to the round card so that you can all reach it easily.
The 40 starting cards have the values "1" to "20" in two colors: blue and yellow. Depending on the number of players, do the following:
With 3 players: Remove the 10 cards with values "1" to "5", then shuffle the remaining 30 cards and deal 10 to each player, who takes them in hand.
With 4 players: Remove the 4 cards with values "1" and "2", then shuffle the remaining 36 cards and deal 9 to each player, who takes them in hand.
With 5 players: Shuffle all 40 cards, then deal 8 to each player, who takes them in hand.
Place the removed cards in the game box. You do not need them for this game.
Take out a pencil and paper to record player scores, then determine who starts the first trick.
Example: All players can easily reach the ocean stack and round card. Place your fisher and boat in front of you, then take your cards in your hand.
The Trick-Taking Rules
To start the first trick, play any 1 card from your hand (that is, lead a color). In clockwise order, the other players also play 1 card from their hand. If they have at least one card in the led color, they must play one of them (that is, follow a color). If they do not have the led color, they play any other card (that is, shed a color).
You "catch" the trick if you play the highest value in the led color. In each color, the cards have different values, so each trick always has a definitive winner. The winner places the caught cards face down on their fisher, then plays a new card from their hand to start the next trick.
Example: Angelika starts the trick with the yellow "7". Sabine follows with the yellow "3", Hedwig follows with the yellow "10", and Nicole sheds a blue "2". Hedwig catches the trick and places the cards face down on her fisher, then she starts the next trick.
End of the 1st Round
The 1st round ends after you have played all tricks.
Count the caught cards on your fisher. Score 1 point for each of these cards.
Afterward, shuffle your caught cards and place them face down as your own draw stack on your boat.
Example: Hedwig caught 8 cards and scores 8 points. Afterward, she shuffles her caught cards and places them as her draw stack on her boat.
Preparing the 2nd to 8th Round
Move the tracking card one row down on the round card. Draw the stated number of cards from your draw stack and take them in hand. If you have more cards on your boat than you must draw, keep the remaining stack on the boat for the next round.
| Players | 2nd round | 3rd-4th round | 5th-6th round | 7th-8th round |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 players | 10 cards | 11 cards | 12 cards | 13 cards |
| 4 players | 9 cards | 10 cards | 11 cards | 12 cards |
| 5 players | 8 cards | 9 cards | 10 cards | 11 cards |
If you do not have enough cards on your boat, draw the missing cards from the ocean stack. The player who needs the most cards draws all of these cards first, then the player who needs the next most cards, and so on. If several players need the same number of cards from the ocean stack, whoever played earlier in the previous round's final trick draws first.
Example: To start the 2nd round in a 4-player game, everybody draws 9 cards. Angelika draws 9 of the 16 cards on her boat. Hedwig and Nicole have only 8 cards on their boats and Sabine only 4 cards, so they each draw all of them. Sabine is short 5 cards, so she draws 5 from the ocean stack, followed by Nicole, then Hedwig each drawing 1 card from that stack.
If you have the fewest points, start the first trick of the new round. If several players have the fewest points, whoever played earlier in the previous round's final trick starts the first trick. Before you play the first card, choose whether light green or dark green cards are trump (as explained below). Place the "This is trump" card with the chosen shade of green next to the trump arrow on the tracking card.
Example: Before Sabine plays the first card, she chooses light green as the trump color.
The Cards in the Ocean Stack
The ocean stack contains fresh cards that gradually come into play. Because of their different effects, always follow this sequence at the end of each trick: 1. Determine the highest and weakest card (see below for "Blowfish"). 2. Use buoy effects. 3. Catch the cards in the trick, first with the weakest card, then with the highest, and place these caught cards on your fisher.
Color cards: Both blue and yellow have a card with a value of "26", and red cards exist with values "1" to "12".
Trump cards: There are light green and dark green cards with values "1" to "15" and two cards with both shades of green with value "16". The "This is trump" card shows which shade of green is the active trump; the other shade of green counts as a fourth color. If you must follow a color but do not have that color, you may play a trump card (that is, trump a color). If you start a trick by leading a trump, the other players must play a trump (that is, follow trump); if they have no trump, then they can shed any color card. If at least one trump card is in a trick, the trump card with the highest value catches the trick. The second "16" beats the first "16".
Change of trump: If a trick contains a light green or dark green card (or both), trump will change to the other shade of green at the end of the trick. Rotate the "This is trump" card 180º as a reminder.
Blowfish: These cards have values from "21" to "25" and "27". You can always play a blowfish, even if you hold cards of the color or trump led. Blowfish always match the color or trump led! If you start a trick with a blowfish, the next played color or trump card determines the color of the blowfish and what the other players must follow.
The player with the weakest card in a trick catches all blowfish from that trick before the player with the highest card catches the remaining cards. The weakest card is the lowest card shed, then the lowest following card, then the lowest trump card. If two or more shed non-trump cards in a trick have the same value, the one played first is weakest.
Buoys: You can always play a buoy, even if you hold cards of the color or trump led. If you start a trick with a buoy, the next played color or trump card determines what the other players must follow. Buoys do not have a value or color. They are neither the highest nor weakest card. If a trick contains only buoy cards, the first played buoy catches the trick.
You use the effect of a buoy before caught cards are placed on one or more fishers. A buoy does not change the winner of a trick. If several buoys are in a trick, their effects take place in the order they were played.
"Catch 1 other card": Catch 1 other card from the trick, then place it face down on your fisher. You can catch blowfish. The ocean stack contains two of these cards.
"+3 points": Immediately score 3 points when you play this card. At the end of the round, this card counts as 1 point like any other card.
"Determine trump": You determine the trump color for the next trick. Even if light green or dark green cards are played in this trick, you decide whether to rotate the "This is trump" card or leave it untouched. If you play this card in the final trick of a round, you forfeit the effect.
"Draw 1 card": All players draw 1 card from their draw stack and add it to their hand. If you have no cards on your boat, instead draw 1 card from the ocean stack. If several players need to draw from the ocean stack, whoever played earlier in this trick draws first. You will play an additional trick this round.
"Catch 1 card": All players catch 1 of their cards in hand and place them on their fisher. You will play one fewer trick in this round. If you play this buoy in the second to last trick, the round ends early.
"Exchange 1 card": Take 1 other card from this trick into your hand, then place 1 card from your hand face down in this trick. At the end of the round, this card counts as 1 point like any other card.
End of the 2nd to 8th Round
Score 1 point for each caught card on your fisher as you did at the end of the 1st round.
Shuffle these freshly caught cards and place them face down on your boat as your draw stack.
If your boat still has a draw stack on it from the previous round, place the freshly caught and shuffled cards BELOW the ones already present. You will draw these cards only after the older ones!
End of the Game
After the 8th round, if you have the most points, you win Fishing 2! If several players have the most points, they share the victory.
Rare exception – Overfishing: If you cannot draw enough fresh cards from the ocean stack to have the proper number of cards in your hand, Fishing 2 ends immediately, and whoever has the most points at this time wins.