Hot-Pota-toH!
Hot-Pota-toH! Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Game Objective and Overview
Hot-Pota-toH is played for 4 rounds or up to a number of points. At the end of each round, players will count how many Phews they have in their cards and play area, and will score them in the scoring track. The game round will end when a player draws the BOOM card and explodes, discarding their hand. The player with the most points at the end of the fourth round, or when someone reaches the goal score, will be the winner.
Game Setup
- Each player places their scoring marker on the scoring track on number 2. (Red number)
- Some cards are returned to the box depending on the level of complexity desired for the game (see cards description). If you decide to play level 2, take out all level 3 cards and above. This can help you to play the first few games with a quicker explanation or to teach new players without overwhelming them.
- Put aside the BOOM card.
- Shuffle the deck and give 1 card to each player. Then add the BOOM card to the deck and shuffle it again.
- The first player, selected by any means, takes the deck of cards.
Note: the printed setup list is numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 3. The final step is transcribed as printed; it is the fifth step in sequence.
Game Turn
The player in turn can do one of the following two actions:
- Take a card from the deck.
- Play a card from their hand and follow its instructions.
Take a card from the deck
The player draws the first card on the deck and checks its effects.
If the player does not draw the BOOM card, the player passes the deck to the next player and adds the card to their hand. The game continues clockwise or counterclockwise depending on the first player's decision for the first time. There is not a limit of cards in the hand.
If the player draws the BOOM card, the player explodes and discards all the cards in their hand; the round ends immediately. In this case, all players count the Phews in their hand and play area on the table and add them to their score on the scoring track. Then the game is set up for a new round. The BOOM card does not destroy the cards played on the table.
Immediate action cards: if a card has the following icon (a red warning triangle), the card must be resolved immediately according to its rules, even if it's not the player's turn. If several immediate actions must be resolved at the same time, always begin with the player closer to the active player.
Play a card
Instead of drawing a card, a player can play a card from her hand. If the card has the table icon (a table symbol), it is played on the player's play area on the table, and the effect will be ongoing. Otherwise, the card is discarded on a discard pile, and the Phews are lost. In any case, the instructions in the card are resolved.
Example: John decides to take a card from the deck and draws the "Evil Potatoh". He is the first player, so he decides to pass the deck to Maria at his right. From now on, the direction of play will be counterclockwise. Maria decides to play the "Calm Potatoh", which means she won't draw a card this turn.
New round
Once a player explodes and the scores are updated, a new round will begin. The setup is the same as in the beginning of the game, but this time the exploding player will choose who starts with the deck (she can choose herself). If you feel comfortable with the current level of complexity and all players agree, you can now increase a level and add more cards to the game.
End of Game
After ending the fourth round, the points are totalized. The player with the highest score will win the game. In case of a tie, a fifth round is played with every player. In this case, every player will still have a chance to win, even if they were not among the tied players. At the end of this round, their score is added to their previous score and a winner is declared. Keep playing additional rounds if the game is still tied, until there is one winner.
Variant: Players can decide to play until a score is reached, in which case the game ends when someone reaches that amount. If several players reach the goal in the same round, the player with the most points wins.
Mixing Decks
If you have more than one deck of "Hot-Pota-toH", you can mix them to admit more players into the game. Each deck allows 6 more players to enter the game, so with 2 decks you can play with up to 12 players. Just remember that it is recommended that you use only one BOOM card at any given time.
The Cards
A card has an effect, a rule on whether it's played immediately or not, and one that states if it is played on the table or the discard pile. Of course, it can have some Phews for scoring at the end of the round.
Level 1
"¡Phew!". "¡Phew!" cards cannot be played and must be kept in the hand.
Calm Potatoh. The player passes the deck to the next player. It is played on the discard pile.
Risky Potatoh. The player takes up to five cards, one by one. After drawing a card, the player can decide whether to draw the next card or pass. If an immediate action card is drawn, it must be resolved first before continuing. It is played on the discard pile.
Thief Potatoh. The player plays it on her play area. She can now steal a card from another player's hand, without seeing it first. If played, it will score -1 Phew at the end of the round.
Jumping Potatoh. It is played on the table. The player passes the deck skipping the next player in turn. In a two-player game, the player has a second turn. In the table it scores -1 Phew at the end of the round.
Short Fuse. It is played as soon as it is drawn or received (immediately) in the player's play area on the table. Draw two more cards from the deck. If other short fuses appear, their effects are chained.
Level 2
Disoriented Potatoh. It is played immediately on the table. The player can decide whether to discard it to draw another card and reverse the turn order, or to leave it on the play area to shuffle the deck and ensure one Phew.
Evil Potatoh. If played on the discard pile, a player can decide whether to give the first card on the deck to another player, without seeing it, or drawing two cards from the deck for herself. The players that receive cards must activate immediate effects if required, as always.
Evilest Potatoh. The player picks the first two random cards from the deck and, without looking at them, decides who takes them. The player can offer them both to the same player or to two different players. She can choose herself. Immediate effects are activated as always.
Patatah Split. When playing this card to the discard pile, the player splits the deck in two decks. The player then takes the first cards on each deck, giving one to the player to her right and another to the player to her left. Then the deck is shuffled again into one deck. At the end of the round, this card on the player's hand scores -1 Phew.
Dud. After playing this card to the table, the player is now safe and will not play anymore in this round. This player will not be counted towards any card effects and will not receive the deck anymore. In the table, this card awards 1 additional Phew at the end of round.
Level 3
Treacherous Potatoh. When played, the player can place this card on the play area of an opponent of her choice. If a player ends a turn without exploding and has the Treacherous Potatoh in her play area, she can decide to pass it to another player's play area. At the end of the round, whoever has this card, on their hand or table, will score -2 Phews.
Fried Potatoh. If a player plays the card to the discard pile, she can pass the deck to the next player. If she keeps it in her hand, at the end of round is scored like this: if only one copy of the card is in play, the owner gets 3 Phews; if more than one copy is in play, each card scores -1 Phew to its owner. If the same player has multiple copies, she loses 1 Phew per copy.
Spinning Potatoh. The player picks the first two random cards from the deck and, looking at them. If there is no Boom card, take one and returned the other one on the deck, finally shuffle the deck of cards.
Note: the printed text of Spinning Potatoh is transcribed as printed, including its wording.
Micro-Boom. The player who draws this card must reveal it immediately and discard her whole hand, including this card. The player is not removed from the game.
Level 4
Super Potatoh. Upon receiving this card, the player needs to decide immediately whether to play it to the table or keep it in her hand. If kept, it can't be played anymore to the table this round, but it may award 5 Phews if the player survives. If played to the table, it protects half of the points, rounded up, in her hand in case she explodes with the Boom card, and it also protects completely against the effects of the Micro-Boom card.
Sexy Potatoh. Upon receiving this card, the player needs to decide immediately whether to play it to the table or keep it in her hand. On the table, it ensures 2 Phews, in the hand it is worth 5 Phews if the player survives.
Level 5
Kitty Potatoh. If this opportunistic card is played on the table, the player first draws 4 cards from the top of the deck and looks at them. If there is no BOOM card, the 4 cards are returned to the deck, which is shuffled again. This card on the table is worth 3 Phews, even if the BOOM card is drawn.
Generous Potatoh. The player draws as many cards as players in the game and places them face down on the table. Beginning with the next player in turn, each player will pick one of the cards, look at it, resolve any immediate effects and take it to her hand. If the BOOM card is revealed, the remaining face down cards are immediately discarded. The player that plays this card goes last and, after picking the last card, the round will now continue as always.