French Toast
French Toast Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Overview
Players: 2-10. Playtime: 15 minutes. Ages: 6+.
In French Toast, a friendly Alien visitor tries to communicate with a group of Earthlings. The Earthlings work together to make guesses, but the Alien can only repeat back guesses they think are "close" to the answer.
The game can be played fully cooperatively or in teams. The basic rules teach co-op play. For team play, see Playing in Teams.
How to Win
The game is split up into 6 rounds, each lasting 30 seconds. If the Earthlings guess the secret word before the end of the 6th round, everyone wins!
Components
- a. 172 Noun Cards (86 Basic, 86 Advanced)
- b. 1 Hint Track (4 pieces)
- c. 36 Hint Cards
- d. 30-Second Sand Timer
Setup
- Choose a player to be the Alien. All other players are Earthlings.
- The Alien draws a random noun card and secretly looks at it. For your first game, use a basic noun card.
- Set up the hint track where the Alien can reach it. Shuffle the hint deck and place it nearby, along with the sand timer. For playing without a timer, see No Timer Variant.
Starting the Game
The Alien starts by drawing 6 hint cards, choosing 1 to reveal to the Earthlings, and discarding the other 5 facedown. They place the chosen hint faceup in 1 of the 6 spaces below the hint track, indicating how well they think the hint applies to the secret word.
When everyone is ready, the Alien says "French Toast!" and starts the timer. The Earthlings immediately begin trying to guess the word.
Example: The Alien places "Fragile" in the 2nd space from the left. This means the secret word is pretty tough, but not quite indestructible.
Making Guesses
Each time the Earthlings make a guess, the Alien must repeat back either the new guess or the current closest guess – whichever they think is closer to the secret word.
"French Toast" is always the closest guess at the start of the game. Each time the Alien repeats back a new guess, it replaces the closest guess they compare things to. The Earthlings keep trying to get closer to the secret word until they guess the word itself.
Example
a. The first guess is "Frog." The Alien thinks frog is NOT closer to the secret word than French Toast, so they say "French Toast."
b. The next guess is "Scissors." The Alien thinks scissors IS closer than French Toast, so they say "Scissors." Scissors replaces French Toast as the closest guess.
c. The third guess is "Wrench." The Alien thinks wrench is NOT closer than scissors, so they say "Scissors" again.
End of Round
When time is up, the Earthlings must stop guessing. To start the next round, the Alien gives a new hint, again drawing 6 hint cards and choosing 1 to place faceup. They may move their previous hints on the hint track to different spaces, but they may only have 1 hint in each space.
When ready, the Alien repeats the closest guess from the end of the previous round and restarts the timer.
Example: The Alien thinks the secret word is less smelly than it is fragile, but it's not totally smell-less.
End of Game
If the Earthlings guess the secret word at any point while the timer is running, the game ends and everyone wins.
When the Alien places a 6th hint on the hint track, it signals the 6th and final round of the game. If the Earthlings don't guess the secret word by the end of the 6th round, everyone loses! Better luck next time!
Rules for Earthlings
The secret word is always a single-word common noun. However, the Earthlings are allowed to make any guess that expresses a single, complete idea, including ones that use multiple words, proper nouns, or informal language. Although these can't be the secret word, they can help you get closer to it!
Allowed: "THE FBI?" / "FOREST?" / "A LAND MAMMAL?" / "MY DOG?" / "THE GREAT LIBRARY OF ALEXANDRIA?"
Not Allowed: "FAST?" / "SLOWLY?" / "ROSES OR DAISIES?" / "ANYBODY IN THE ROOM?" / "SOMETHING GREEN AND SMELLY?"
TIP: If you get stuck, try guessing wildly! This gives the Alien more to work with, and it can help you find a different way to approach the secret word. If you feel like you're doing more discussing than guessing – just blurt something out!
Rules for Aliens
JUDGMENT: When judging whether a guess is "closer," you may use any criteria you think will help the Earthlings guess the secret word. Just make sure to keep your judgments consistent, so they have a chance to figure out how your alien mind works.
Example: The secret word is Airplane. "Doctor" isn't very close, but the Alien figures you're more likely to find one on an airplane than French Toast.
EQUAL GUESSES: If you feel a new guess is just as close as the closest guess, you may say "same." This doesn't change the closest guess.
Example: At first the Alien thinks a truck and a jet ski are both vehicles, but then decides that a truck is bigger, so it's more like an airplane.
CORRECTIONS: If you feel like you made a mistake or change your mind about any previous guess, you may announce you're correcting the closest guess, then say the previous guess you're changing it to.
EMPHASIS: When responding to a guess, you may use facial expressions and tone of voice to try to convey how close the guess is, and you may tap on your hints to try to point the Earthlings in a certain direction. You may not point to other objects in the room, mime actions, or give non-verbal answers to yes/no questions.
No Timer Variant
Instead of starting the timer each round, the Earthlings take turns guessing, starting to the left of the Alien and going clockwise.
Each time an Earthling makes a guess that is closer than the previous closest guess, they may guess again. When they make a guess that is NOT closer, their turn ends, and the next player starts.
When play returns to the Alien, they give a new hint. Play continues clockwise from their left. After the Alien places their 6th hint, each Earthling has 1 last turn to guess; if no one gets the secret word, players lose.
Playing in Teams
During setup, split players into 2 teams of at least 2 players each (they may be uneven sizes). Each team chooses a player to be their Alien. Both Aliens look at the same secret word card. Randomly choose a team to play first.
Each round, only 1 team makes guesses. The active team's Alien gives a hint for the round (visible to both teams) and responds to all guesses their team makes. The opposing team may not discuss or make guesses during the round, but may listen to the active team's discussion and call time when the timer runs out.
When time is up, the opposing team becomes the active team for the next round. The new team's Alien gives the next hint, and may move any hints on the track. They may also change the current closest guess to any previous guess, made by either team.
At the end of the 6th round, if the active team has not guessed the secret word, the opposing team may make one final guess. If they are correct, they win; if not, both teams lose!
Credits
- Design: Peter C. Hayward
- Illustration: Laura Ekblad
- Graphic Design: Matt Paquette & Co., Anca Gavril & Co.
- Rules Editing: Jeff Fraser
- 3D Artist: Filip Gavril