If Then Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Overview
  • Number Card Anatomy
• Components
• Setup
  • Choose An "All Knowing"
  • First Game Setup
• Gameplay and Rules
  • Code Breaker's Turn
    • 1. Play one Number Card from their hand
    • 2. Discard one Number Card from their hand to the Discard Pile (2a)
  • Inactive Code Breakers
  • All Knowing - A Card is Played
  • All Knowing - A Card is Discarded
  • Penalty Cards
  • Hint Cards
  • End of Round Event
• Game End
• Mastermind All Knowing
  • During Setup
  • All Knowing's Turn
  • Game End (Mastermind)

Overview

Each turn the players will choose a card from their hand to play into the Code Line in an effort to deduce the pattern for the round based on one or more factors:

• Size of Number
• Value of Number
• Color of Number
• Color of the Background

Choose an All Knowing for the game to guide the players through the game by calling out Valid and Invalid placements, drawing Events, giving Hints, and tracking Penalties.

Number Card Anatomy

Each card has two sides and can be rotated in either direction when played. Only the top part of the card is active in the Code Line. Cards may vary in:

• Number value (0-9), even or odd
• Number color: yellow, blue, red
• Number size: 1 small, 2 medium, 3 large
• Background color: yellow, blue, red

These four variables must be examined by the Code Breakers to discover the pattern of a Challenge!

Components

• 60 Number Cards
• 4 Level 0 Challenge Cards
• 120 Challenge Cards (40 each of Levels 1, 2 and 3)
• 20 Event Cards
• 4 Hint Cards
• 3 Penalty Cards
• 2 Mastermind Variant Cards
• Rulebook

Notes About Card Plays: Number Cards are cyclical, so 9 and 0 are next to each other in line when adding or subtracting. For example: 9+1=0 or 0-1=9 same as 8+3=1 or 2-4=8. In this game, zero (0) is an even number.

Setup

Choose An "All Knowing"

Choose one player to be the "All Knowing" for the game. They will know the pattern of the Challenge and guide the remaining players by determining Invalid/Valid plays and revealing Events, Penalties, and Hints.

The remaining players are "Code Breakers." They will collaborate to solve the Challenge Code by determining the pattern, or reasoning, behind why card plays are Valid or Invalid.

First Game Setup

1. Separate all cards by card back, then shuffle each of the following separately: Number Cards, Level 0 Challenge Cards, and Event Cards. In future games, the group chooses the Challenge Level and shuffles those instead of Level 0.
2. Place the Challenge (2a), Hint (2b), and Event (2c) cards in front of the All Knowing.
3. The All Knowing draws the top card of the selected Challenge Level and reads it to themselves. This will be the pattern for the current round.
4. Separate and return the excess Number Cards to the box. The number of cards to return will depend on the Challenge Level chosen:
   • Level 0: 25 cards
   • Level 1: 25 cards
   • Level 2: 15 cards
   • Level 3: 5 cards
5. Deal three Number Cards to each Code Breaker, this is their starting hand.
   • 5a. In a 2-player game, deal six Number Cards to the Code Breaker.
6. Deal three Number Cards face-up to form a Market (6a). Place the remaining Number Cards face-down near the Market to form the Draw Deck (6b).
7. The All Knowing places one Number Card to begin the Code Line.
8. Place the first Penalty Card ("Draw 2 Cards When Incorrect") in the play area, pointing towards the first Number Card in the Code Line.
9. The All Knowing finds the two Hint Cards indicted with the symbols on the Challenge Card, placing them face-down on the table and returns the other Hint Cards to the game box.

Now you are ready to play!

Gameplay and Rules

A round consists of each player taking a turn, and ends with an Event Card being revealed by the All Knowing.

Code Breakers should work together to solve the Challenge Code, freely discussing ideas as the game progresses and more knowledge is obtained. The only thing they cannot discuss is the specific cards in their hands! The All Knowing is part of the team, but must remain impartial and not engage with discussions about the Challenge or give advice!

A game is played over a number of rounds until the players win or lose (see Game End).

Code Breaker's Turn

The starting player is the person to the left of the All Knowing. On a Code Breaker's turn, they may take one of two possible actions:

1. Play one Number Card
2. Discard one Number Card

1. Play one Number Card from their hand

The card can be played in either orientation (1a), with the goal of placing a card that follows the Challenge Rule.

The chosen card is placed vertically (1b) on top of the lower half of the last card played in the Code Line. The lower part of the cards in the Code Line are never relevent to the pattern (1c).

Once the card is played onto the Code Line, it is determined as Valid or Invalid by the All Knowing (see All Knowing - A Card is Played). If Invalid, the active Code Breaker draws a Penalty (see Penalty Cards). If Valid, the next Code Breaker takes their turn.

2. Discard one Number Card from their hand to the Discard Pile (2a)

The goal is to discard a completely Invalid card (Invalid in either orientation).

A discarded card will be announced as Valid or Invalid by the All Knowing (see All Knowing - A Card is Discarded). If either side of the card could have been a Valid play to the Code Line, the active Code Breaker returns the card to their hand (2b) and draws a Penalty (2c) (see Penalty Cards).

The player to the active Code Breaker's left takes the next turn after a single card is played or discarded, regardless of if it was Valid or Invalid.

Inactive Code Breakers

When a Code Breaker empties their hand of cards, they are considered Inactive. An Inactive Code Breaker no longer plays or discards cards. They can (and should!) still actively help other players figure out the pattern of the Challenge!

All Knowing - A Card is Played

The All Knowing determines if the card played by a Code Breaker is Valid by checking if it follows the pattern of the Challenge, and the current Valid Line plays. If correct, the All Knowing will say, "Valid".

If incorrect, they will say "Invalid" (3a), placing the card horizontally next to the card it was played on and the Code Breaker takes a Penalty.

If there are already Invalid cards on this line (3b), overlap them horizontally, covering the lower part of the previous card.

Always place the Invalid card next to the last correct Number Card (3c) in the Code Line, creating multiple piles as play progresses. This serves as a reminder of previous plays that were Invalid.

All Knowing - A Card is Discarded

The All Knowing determines if either side of a discarded card could have been played as Valid to the Code Line by referencing the Challenge Card and the last card played in the Valid Line (4a). If either side of the card is Valid (4b), the All Knowing says, "This is actually Valid". The Code Breaker places the card back into their hand (see 2b and 2c) and also takes a Penalty (see Penalty Cards).

If the player has discarded correctly (4c), the All Knowing will signify this by saying "Yes, this is Invalid". The card is discarded and play proceeds.

Penalty Cards

If the All Knowing determines that a card was played or discarded incorrectly, the active Code Breaker must draw new cards from either the Draw Deck or Market. The number of cards drawn is determined by the current Penalty Card (5a).

• The First Penalty (Draw 2 Cards) - Active at the start of the game (5b).
• The Second Penalty (Draw 3 Cards) - The All Knowing replaces the First Penalty when there are three total Invalid Number Cards in play along the Code Line (5c).
• The Third Penalty (Draw 4 Cards) - The All Knowing replaces the Second Penalty when there are six total Invalid Number Cards in play along the Code Line.

An Event Card can reduce the active Penalty Card if it removes Invalid Cards.

Hint Cards

Once the Second Penalty is active, Code Breakers may request one of the Hint Cards (6a) relevent to the Challenge. Hint Cards relevent to the Challenge Card share the same symbols (6b). All Code Breakers must agree and this can happen at any time while the Second or Third Penalty is active.

To request a Hint Card the players must discard three Number Cards from the Draw Deck. Once paid, the All Knowing randomly reveals one of the two available Hint Cards.

Once the Third Penalty is active, Code Breakers can discard six Number Cards from the Draw Deck to reveal the second Hint Card.

Penalty	Trigger	Hint
First Penalty	Start of Game	none
Second Penalty	3 Invalid Plays	1st Hint Card
Third Penalty	6 Invalid Plays	2nd Hint Card

End of Round Event

At the end of each round, the All Knowing reveals an Event Card by drawing the top card from the Event Deck and reading it aloud.

In a 2-player game, the Code Breaker takes two turns before an Event is drawn.

The current Event Card is discarded when a new Event Card is drawn, so there may be rounds when no Events are active!

Some Event Cards are passed to the Code Breakers to be saved for later use. Once used, the Event Card is discarded.

If the Event Deck runs out, shuffle the Event Card discard pile and reset the Event Deck. The Code Breakers keep any of their unused cards.

If an Event Card requires drawing cards from the Draw Deck/Market, and there are not enough left, the players immediately lose.

Game End

When there is one remaining Code Breaker with cards in their hand, the Code Breakers may choose to guess the Challenge Code. If they are successful, the players immediately win! If the players are unsuccessful the Code Breakers must discard cards from the Draw Deck equal to the current Penalty. The Penalty is doubled in a 2 player game.

The Game ends in one of two ways:

• Winning Condition: All Code Breakers have emptied their hands, or one Code Breaker remains and the Code was guessed correctly. If the Code is guessed correctly, the players not only win, they may also call themselves Master Code Breakers! Congratulations!
• Losing Condition: There are not enough cards available in the Market and Number Deck when a player or Event needs to draw a card.

Setting up for another game is as simple as repeating the setup and choosing someone new to be the All Knowing!

Mastermind All Knowing

In Mastermind All Knowing, the All Knowing chooses a Loyalty and actively works for or against the Code Breakers. This variant is designed for 3+ players.

During Setup

Do not return the excess Number Cards to the box. Shuffle and place them in front of the All Knowing (1a). (See Excess Number Cards based on Level selected in step 4 of the Setup.) Then, they draw three of these cards to their hand (1b).

After choosing a Challenge Level, the All Knowing draws the top two cards of the selected level (1c), silently chooses one, and discards the other.

Next, draw both Mastermind Cards (1d) and select either True or False in secret. Return the other card to the box. You have chosen your Loyalty!

• False - The All Knowing wins if the Code Breakers lose the game. While always being truthful, the All Knowing should be trying to keep the other players as confused as possible!
• True - The All Knowing wins if the Code Breakers win the game. The All Knowing should actively be assisting the Code Breakers, using their turn to guide Code Breakers to the correct solution.

All Knowing's Turn

First, the All Knowing reveals the Event, then they choose one of two actions:

1. Swap one Number Card from their hand (2a) with a card in the Market. Keep in mind that Code Breakers will read information from the orientation (2b) the All Knowing lays the card in. This play can hint at cards that are Valid if the All Knowing is True, or further confuse players if the All Knowing is False.
2. Draw one Number Card from the top of the All Knowing's Number Card Draw Deck and discard one from their hand to the bottom of the same Deck. This play can help the All Knowing shed cards from their hand that are either Valid or Invalid depending on the All Knowing's Loyalty.

Game End (Mastermind)

After the Code Breaker's have reached the Win or Lose Condition, the All Knowing announces their Loyalty by revealing the chosen Mastermind Card.

• A False All Knowing wins if the Code Breakers lose.
• A True All Knowing wins if the Code Breakers win.