Gangs of Kyoto
Gangs of Kyoto Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Players and Components
2-5 players, about 15 minutes, age 8+.
110 cards, including:
- 1 First Player card
- 81 Exploration cards (at the top of each of these cards is always a time value, and at the bottom there is often a symbol)
- 28 Special Action cards
About the Game
Most cards have a value from 0 to 5 - the number of hours the kitties spend in the city. The higher this value on the cards you receive, the less time you have left. However, most cards also have a symbol that activates useful (well, mostly) effects! The first player to collect 13 bells (points) wins the game!
Setup
The youngest player takes the First Player card and places it on the table in front of them. They will start the first round and take the first turn.
Shuffle the remaining cards well and place the resulting deck face down in the middle of the table.
Gameplay
On their turn, a player (who is considered the active player) takes from the deck as many cards as there are players in the game and places them face down on the table next to them. (For example, in a 2-player game take 2 cards, in a 5-player game take 5.) Note: these cards must stay face down for now - nobody may look at them or even peek!
The active player then chooses and reveals one of these cards. They must then decide which player will receive this card. They may take it themselves or give it to one of the other players.
The player who receives a card must place it face up in front of them, starting (if they have no cards) or continuing (if they have at least one card) a row. Received cards must always be placed to the right of any cards already in the row. Some cards have symbols that trigger an effect.
Example: On the first turn of the game, this player received a "4", and on the second turn a "1". On the third turn of the game this player is the active player and decides to take a "2" for themselves.
The active player then reveals the next card from the remaining ones and gives it to another player of their choice. Each turn, every player (including the active player whose turn is being played) must receive exactly one card. If a player has already been given a card, they cannot receive another one this turn! This continues until the active player has revealed all the cards drawn from the deck and handed them out, one to each player at the table.
Then the next player (clockwise) takes their turn. They also draw cards from the deck (1 per player) and give one to each player (including themselves), revealing them one at a time and handing them out. Play continues in this way around the table until the following situation occurs...
End of Round: "You Stayed Out Too Late in the City"
Each time a player receives a card, they must check whether the sum of the values of their cards is 13 or more. If the total is less than 13, the game continues. However, if the sum of the values of any player's cards reaches 13 or more, the round ends immediately.
If the active player still has unrevealed cards in front of them, they are returned to the top of the deck. Do not flip or look at these cards!
The player whose row of cards has reached a sum of at least 13 puts their entire row of cards into the discard pile in the middle of the table!
Every other player takes from their row all cards that show bells and puts them into their personal victory point (VP) pile face down next to them. These cards will score VP and must stay hidden from other players until the end of the game. (Players may look at their own VP pile at any time.) All other cards (without bells) go to the discard pile.
Example: This player received a "2" and the sum of their cards became 14. They stayed in the city too long and must discard their entire row of cards (including cards with bells)! All other players put the cards with bells from their rows into their VP piles (they will score points at the end of the game), and the remaining cards (without bells) go to the discard pile.
Starting a New Round
After the players have discarded cards (and put cards with bells into VP piles), the First Player card passes clockwise to the next player. The new holder of the First Player card starts the new round, by the same rules as at the very beginning of the game, even if they were not the next player in turn order. When the deck runs out, all cards from the discard pile are thoroughly shuffled to form a new deck.
End of the Game
As soon as any player has 13 bells in their VP pile, they immediately win the game! If more than one player reaches a total of 13 bells at the same time, the player with the most bells wins. In case of a tie, the winner is the player who is furthest in turn order from the First Player card.
Card Effects
When a player receives a card and places it to the right of the previous card in their row, they must first check whether the sum of the values of their cards has reached 13. If the sum has not reached 13, they must resolve the effect of the symbol on the card (if any). The effects of the various cards in the game are as follows:
Cards without a symbol
Players who receive these cards (values 0 to 4) simply place them in their row. Nothing happens (except when the sum of card values becomes 13 or more).
Cards with a bell symbol (values 1 to 5)
If another player stays out late in the city, these cards go to your VP pile and give 1 or 2 bells (VP).
Cards with a draw symbol (values 0 to 4)
As soon as the player who received this card places it in their row, they take a new card from the top of the deck and place it to the right of the cards in their row! This action may trigger the effect of another card or bring the sum of card values to 13 or more.
Special Action Cards
Meet the kitties of Kyoto, who are always ready to help you on your adventures!
Bell cards
Players who receive one of these cards do not place it in their row, but immediately send it face down to their VP pile! Some cards add 1 bell to the player's total, some add 2 bells.
Discard card
Players who receive this card immediately discard the rightmost card of their row, as well as this card. If the player has no cards in their row yet, this card is discarded without applying its effect.
Stay Late card (18)
Players who receive this card place it to the right of the cards previously placed in their row, as usual. This card allows the player to stay out late in the city! From this moment on, this player will end the round only when the sum of the values of their cards reaches 18 or more, not 13. If a player receives several of these cards, they give no additional benefit.
Refuse card
Players who receive this card place it to the right of the cards previously placed in their row, as usual. This card allows the player to refuse any card given to them later - that card is discarded together with this card. This card can be used to refuse any card, including an additional card drawn from the deck by the effect of some card!
Variant: End of the Game
Do not end the game after any player gets 13 bells in their VP pile. Instead, play through the whole deck. When it runs out, thoroughly shuffle the cards from the discard pile and form a new deck. The game continues until one of the players stays out too late in the city. At that moment the game ends. All players count their victory points. The player with the most wins the game. Ties are resolved by the normal rules.
Variant: Open Game
Instead of placing VP cards face down, each player keeps their VP cards face up next to them.