Impact City Roller Derby

Impact City Roller Derby Rulebook

Table of Contents

Objective of the Game

Impact City Roller Derby (ICRD) is a fast-paced board game based on flat track roller derby. The objective of the game is to score more points than your opponent by passing opposing Rollergirls with your Jammer.

Dice: The game comes with 4 different shapes of dice (a D6, D8, D10, and D12). These are used to roll for actions to determine their success or failure.

Action Cards: These cards are used for offense, defense or to Foul! the opposing team. A penalty box is included with these cards.

Components

Track: Above is a picture of the track. All movement will be counter clockwise. The pink, yellow and green spaces represent starting positions for your Rollergirls. The red spaces denote approaching the end of the curve where you might wipeout. The checkered line and yellow arrow spaces are used for drawing and playing action cards.

Color Tokens: The game includes three colors of tokens. Yellow is used to identify who is Lead Jammer and which Jam/Scoring Pass you are on. The green and pink tokens are used to Mark the Jammers' speeds and Blocker pushing.

Your Team

An ICRD team consists of five Rollergirls, which are represented by the wooden Rollergirl tokens provided with the game (or pewter figurines that can be purchased separately at www.impactminiatures.com). Rollergirls play in one of three positions.

Jammer: The Jammer is the Rollergirl with the star on her helmet. The Jammer is the only one who may score points for the team and is fast and agile. Only one Jammer is placed on the track for each team per Jam.

Blockers: The Blockers' job is to prevent the opposing team's Jammer from passing them and to help their own Jammer go faster through special moves. Blockers are slower than Jammers and are required to move together in a loose group known as the "Pack." Three Blockers are placed on the track for each team per Jam (unless one or more is out due to penalty (see page 9)).

Pivot: The Pivot starts each Jam at the front of the Pack and helps her team coordinate moves and tactics. Pivots are fast skaters and excellent Blockers. The Pivot is identified by the horizontal line on her helmet. Only one Pivot is placed on the track for each team per Jam (unless she is out due to penalty). Pivots have some special rules for ICRD, but unless otherwise stated, the Pivot follows the rules for Blockers.

Setting Up for a Jam

ICRD is broken up into multiple Jams. Each Jam is a race to see which Jammer can score the most points. For the initial Jam, each player rolls the D6 to determine who goes first (re-roll any ties). The highest rolling player places one Rollergirl on the track first. The opponent then places one Rollergirl and then alternate placement according to the placement rules below until all 10 are on the track (or less if some are out for penalty). For subsequent Jams, the player with fewer points sets up first (or the player who did not set up first last Jam in case of a tie score.) Note that you will need to use the yellow Scoring Pass counter (center of the track) to mark the Jam # you are starting.

At no point in the game can two Rollergirls occupy the same space on the track.

Pivot Start: Pivots are placed in the green spaces.

Blocker Start: Blockers are placed anywhere in the two columns of yellow spaces behind the Pivots.

Jammer Start: Jammers are placed in the pink spaces behind the checkered line.

Order of Rollergirl Movement

To approximate the simultaneous movement of live roller derby, both players must move all five of their Rollergirls within three phases of movement. This set of three phases is called a turn. The player that set up first for the Jam goes first in all phases of that Jam.

Players alternate moving one or two Rollergirls during each of the three phases. If a player only moves one Rollergirl in any phase, the player must move two Rollergirls in the other two phases. A phase is not complete until both players have moved.

To aid in keeping track of Rollergirls that have moved, turn the wooden Rollergirl or figurine facing clockwise on the track (backwards) when she completes her movement. This lets you easily identify who is left to move. When all ten Rollergirls have moved, phase 3 is complete. Turn all the Rollergirls forward and begin the next turn.

Special Rules for first turn of a Jam:

Jammers may not move.
Only the Pivots move during phase 1 with the Blockers moving in phases 2 and 3.
No pushes are allowed.
An example of how the board might look after the 1st turn is shown below.

Normal Movement

Movement is the essence of ICRD. Points are scored or prevented based on the successful movement and positioning of your Rollergirls. As such, understanding how the Rollergirls move is critical.

The movement of a Rollergirl: 1) must be to an unoccupied space that touches her current space by at least a corner and 2) must result in forward progress, not backward or simply sideways. A Rollergirl may never deliberately move off the track or through a space occupied by another Rollergirl. (Diagrams of legal movement are below with the arrow representing direction of movement.)

Lane Shifts: To simulate the challenges faced in maneuvering, all Rollergirls can shift no more than three lanes during their movement. See diagram below for an example of shifting three lanes during a movement.

Blocker Movement: A Blocker may move 1, 2, or 3 spaces during her movement. If a Blocker is selected to be moved but has no available spaces, she can move 0 spaces for that turn. If the moving Blocker starts as the farthest back in the Pack, she must move her full movement (if able) to stay with the Pack. She may choose to move into a space that would block her forward movement even if she has not moved 3 spaces.

In a curve, the Blockers who are the most spaces away from a straightaway without shifting lanes are farthest back. In a tie, both (or more) Blockers are considered farthest back in the Pack.

No Pack Situation: As noted previously, Blockers are required to move in a Pack. A Blocker may not enter a straightaway (leave the last red space of the curve), until all Blockers behind her have moved into the previous straightaway (left the red spaces of the other curve). For example, in the image above showing only the 4 Blockers/Pivot from each team the lead Blocker cannot move into the straightaway heading to the checkered line because the last Blocker in the Pack has not left the red spaces of the opposite curve.

Special Movement

The following rules allow your Jammers to move faster than normal, but they come with risks.

Jammer Movement: A Jammer may move between 5 and 12 spaces normally as determined by the location of a token on the Jammer Movement Dice Track. There are four dice represented on the Jammer Movement Dice Track ranging from a six-sided dice (D6) to the twelve-sided dice (D12). At the beginning of a Jam, the token always starts on the Stop sign which means the Jammer is Stopped (or not moving).

Before moving the Jammer, the player may choose to move down one Movement Dice (if higher than Stopped), stay on the current Movement Dice, or go up one Movement Dice (if lower than D12). Before you move the Jammer, place your Movement Dice token on the picture of the Movement Dice that your Jammer will be using.

Each time a Jammer moves, she MUST move a number of spaces equal to the value of the Movement Dice she is currently using or one space less (i.e. a Rollergirl using the D8 Movement dice normally moves 7-8 spaces, while one using the D12 moves 11-12 spaces). The only exceptions are if the Rollergirl is forced to stop by a Wipeout result, is knocked down, or if all forward squares are blocked, in which case your Rollergirl's movement ends immediately. If a Jammer is unable to move her minimum movement because all the spaces she could move into are occupied, then her movement ends and she must move the Movement Dice token down two dice (i.e. if she was on D8, it would go down to Stopped or from D12 to D8 as another example.) Any other events that affect the Movement Dice are cumulative and applied at end of her movement.

Pouring It On: A Jammer may move one extra space beyond her normal movement (Pouring It On) through a successful roll based upon her current Movement Dice. Before attempting to move the extra space she must roll less than the maximum value of her current Movement Dice (i.e. roll 1-11 for the D12 or 1-9 for the D10). If a Jammer fails a Pouring It On roll, she must remain in her current space and make a Wipeout roll (see next page) with a modifier of +1.

Taking the Curve: Taking a curve at great speed comes with a risk of wiping out. If at any time during your Jammer's movement she moves from the last red space of a curve to a normal wood straightaway space while using a D10 or D12 Movement Dice, she must immediately roll an 8 or less using her current Movement Dice for Taking the Curve. Success means she may continue to move as normal. Failure (rolling a 9 or higher) means your Rollergirl must make an immediate Wipeout roll (see next section). The Wipeout modifier is equal to +(the failed roll minus 8). For example, a Jammer using the D12 Movement Dice and rolling an 11 on her Taking the Curve roll would have a +3 modifier on the Wipeout roll (11 minus 8). A Rollergirl using D6 or D8 Movement Dice automatically succeeds and does not need to roll.

Wipeout Roll

A Wipeout roll is required when a Rollergirl may fall down. This could be the result of the successful use of a card or failing a Pouring It On or Taking the Curve roll. Any time a Rollergirl makes a Wipeout roll, her current movement ends for the turn. For each Wipeout roll, a player rolls a D6 and adds the modifier specified by the event that causes the Wipeout roll. The D6 result plus modifier is the Wipeout roll result.

Wipeout Results

Wipeout Roll	Result
1-2	Minor Stumble. The Rollergirl stumbles but manages to stay on her feet. -1 Movement Dice if she is a Jammer.
3-4	Major Stumble. The Rollergirl stumbles hard but is able to stay on her feet with great effort. -2 Movement Dice if she is a Jammer.
5	Full Stop. The Rollergirl must come to a full stop to keep her balance. If a Jammer, her Movement Dice is reset to Stopped.
6-7	Face Plant. The Rollergirl falls flat on her face and is Down.*
8+	That'll leave a mark! The Rollergirl goes down hard and is Winded.*

Modifier for Wipeout Roll

Situation	Modifier
Jammer on Jammer Action use of a Defensive card	+0
Failing Pouring It On	+1
Successful use of Defensive or Foul cards other than Waterfall Block or Elbow Smash	+2
Successful use of the cards Waterfall Block or Elbow Smash	+3
Wiping Out on a curve	+(Taking the Curve Roll -8)

Wipeout Conditions

Down: Place the wooden Rollergirl on her edge or if using figurines place the model face up. She may stand up for cost of 1 movement at beginning of her movement. Movement Dice reset to Stopped if Rollergirl is a Jammer.

Winded: Place the wooden Rollergirl on her side or if using figurines place the model face down. All she may do the next time she moves is stand up. Movement Dice reset to Stopped if Rollergirl is a Jammer.

Establishing Lead Jammer

One of the most important aspects of Roller Derby is establishing the Lead Jammer. The Lead Jammer has the option to strategically end a Jam early thus denying the opposition points. The Lead Jammer is earned by being the first Jammer from either team to: 1) successfully pass all the opposing Blockers, 2) be standing (not Down or Winded) and still on the track, and 3) be in front of the other Jammer at the end of any Phase.

In a straightaway, the Jammer closest to the beginning of the next curve, by counting the spaces in her lane until the curve begins, is in front. In a curve, the Jammer closest to the end of the curve by counting the spaces in her lane until the straightaway is in front. If this is tied then neither Jammer is consider the Lead Jammer yet.

Once the Lead Jammer is established, mark the Lead Jammer's chair with a yellow token and move the yellow counter from the Jam # text to the Initial Pass box for that Jam #. Once the Lead Jammer is established for a Jam, it cannot change, even if she is passed by the opposing Jammer.

Scoring

As noted above, a Jammer's movement through the Pack at the start of a Jam is called the Initial Pass and no points are scored. Subsequent passes allow the Jammer to earn points and are called Scoring Passes. When your Jammer laps an opposing Rollergirl on a Scoring Pass, immediately mark one point by that Rollergirl's number on a scorecard. Points are marked as soon as your Jammer is in front of an opposing Rollergirl (refer to the Establishing Lead Jammer section previously to determine if a Jammer is in front). You may not mark another point for passing the same Blocker during the same Scoring Pass. This ensures that each opposing Rollergirl is only counted once per Scoring Pass. You may earn points for lapping the opposing Jammer as well, as long as your Jammer is a full lap ahead when passing her.

After the completion of a 4 point Scoring Pass (by the front-most Jammer) advance the Scoring Pass yellow token to the next box (i.e. Initial to 1 or 1 to 2). In other words, every time the front-most jammer passes the entire opposing pack of blockers and pivot, advance the token.

The provided scorecard has columns for each of the following: Jam number, Scoring Pass number, Jammer, Pivot, Blocker 1, Blocker 2, and Blocker 3. Each player should have a scorecard to allow the tracking of his or her own points and number of Scoring Passes per Jam.

NOTE: The Official Scorecard only has 4 rows to show the maximum of 4 Scoring Passes before time runs out for the game.

Calling Off / Ending a Jam / Ending the Game

A Jam lasts two Scoring Passes unless it is called off by the Lead Jammer or the Referee. The Lead Jammer may call off the Jam at the end of any phase in which the Lead Jammer has taken her movement, even if she is Down or Winded. Calling off a Jam is a strategic move to deny the opposing Jammer the opportunity to score points for her team. When the Jam is called off, the turn immediately ends.

To represent time running out, no Jam lasts more than 2 Scoring Passes. (i.e. moving the yellow token to the 2nd Scoring Pass). At the end of the phase in which either Jammer completed a 2nd Scoring Pass the Jam ends.

The game ends normally if you have finished the 3rd Jam or have played four Scoring Passes. The team with the most points wins. The only exception is when the score is tied. If this is the case, the Jam goes into Sudden Death and will continue until a phase ends with one team ahead of the other in points. After the end of the 1st or 2nd Jam, reset the board following the rules for Setting up a Jam on page 1. Remember to move the yellow token to the Jam # text of the next Jam.

Blocker Pushing

During each turn your Pivot and one of your 3 Blockers may attempt a push against an opposing Rollergirl. A push need not be attempted each turn. After you push with one of your 3 Blockers, mark the Blocker Push X with a token. A Blocker or Pivot may not attempt a push against a Down, Winded or off the track Rollergirl. At the end of the turn, clear the token from the Blocker Push X. Note: for the rest of this section both the Pivot and Blocker pushing will be referred to as a Blocker pushing.

Note: In actual roller derby, pushing is illegal. The term would normally be block or hit. However, for purposes of ICRD, we will call any attempt to move an opposing Rollergirl a Push.

Any standing Blocker may attempt a push at the beginning of her movement or at the end, unless she had to stand up during her movement. A Blocker may only attempt to push an opposing Rollergirl who is in an adjacent space. An adjacent space is defined as any space that touches the Rollergirl's space along its sides and is not the space directly in front of or behind her. A successful push allows the Blocker to move the opposing Rollergirl one space directly away from her into an adjacent space. If there are two adjacent spaces to the Rollergirl being pushed, always move her into the farther back of the two spaces.

The Blocker pushing and the opposing Rollergirl being pushed both roll dice to determine the outcome. The Blocker pushing rolls a D6 while the opposing Rollergirl rolls a D10. Compare the rolls. As long as the Blocker rolls less than the opposing Rollergirl, it is a successful push. (see Push Results table below. Note: If either Rollergirl rolls a 1, one or both of them will be Down or Winded)

See the diagram on page 7 (image not reproduced). Shown are all four possible scenarios for a Blocker (the green middle lane rollergirl) to push (indicated by the explosion). For each scenario all the possible opposing spaces that an opponent could be legally pushed are shown along with which space the successfully pushed Rollergirl is moved. A push may not be attempted against a Rollergirl if the space she would be pushed into is already occupied.

Push Results

Pushing Blocker Roll (D6)	Opposing Rollergirl Roll (D10)	Result
1	1	Epic Wipeout: Pushing and Opposing Rollergirl are Winded*.
1	Any other roll	Epic Success: Opposing Rollergirl is pushed as per Push diagrams and is Down*.
2-6	1	Epic Fail: Pushing Rollergirl fails and is Winded*.
2-6	Any other roll less than or equal to the Blocker roll	Fail: Nothing happens.
2-6	Any other roll greater than the Blocker roll	Success: Opposing Rollergirl is pushed as per Push diagrams.

Getting Pushed Off the Track

A Rollergirl pushed off the track remains next to the space she left, and her movement ends immediately. If she was Down or Winded, these effects still apply and must be resolved off the track during her next movement. As soon as possible, she must re-enter the space she exited or the one behind it. If both are blocked, she must enter in the first available space behind those spaces. A Jammer who is pushed off the track shifts her Movement Dice to Stopped.

When returning to the track, count the first space she moves into as her first space of movement (this does not count as a lane shift).

Card Zones / ICRD Action Cards

On the track there are 20 spaces with yellow arrows in them. These are the Card Zones. Your Rollergirl must be in a Card Zone to play an Offensive or Defensive card from your hand. Foul! cards may be played from any space. After the card is played it is discarded.

The Action cards add the special maneuvers, hits and fouls seen during a roller derby bout. Before starting the game, shuffle the Action card deck (make sure to remove the penalty box card) and place it off the board. Do not draw any cards yet.

A player may discard their hand and draw up to three new cards at the end of the Jammer's movement (not immediately) in which their Jammer crossed the checkered line. Note that the Jammer's first movement in a new Jam will have her crossing the checkered line and drawing cards at the end of her movement. At the end of a Jam, each player discards their Action cards.

A player may only use one card per phase (i.e. if a player uses an offensive card during their movement of a phase, they could not use a defensive card during the opposing player's movement phase). Cards may not be played by or against Down, Winded, or off the track Rollergirls. There are three types of cards:

Offensive cards: These cards may be used by any Rollergirl. Offensive cards may be played at any point within your Rollergirl's movement in which she starts or enters a Card Zone, provided she meets the conditions outlined on the card. Each of these cards adds between one and three additional spaces of movement to the Rollergirl's current movement. Many of the cards require the assistance of a teammate in a space adjacent to the Card Zone. Typically these are used by Jammers.

Defensive cards: These cards may be used by any Rollergirl. Defensive cards may be played when the Rollergirl ends her movement in a Card Zone adjacent to an opposing Rollergirl. Alternatively, defensive cards may be played during your opponent's phase, whenever an opponent moves into a space adjacent to your Rollergirl's Card Zone. (see Blocker Pushing rules and diagram on page 7 for further clarification of what is an adjacent space). These cards are normally used to prevent an opposing Jammer from getting through the Pack. Defensive cards are successful on a roll of 4 or less using the dice indicated on the card.

Jammer on Jammer Action: A moving Jammer ending her movement adjacent to the opposing Jammer may play a Defensive card against the opposing Jammer without being in a card zone (any special conditions on the card being played still apply.) If a Wipeout roll occurs, use a +0 modifier instead of the modifier stated on the Defensive card.

Foul! cards: These cards may only be used by Blockers/Pivots. There are times when a Rollergirl just has to play dirty. Foul! cards are played immediately at any point in your or your opponent's Phase in which your Blocker is adjacent to an opposing Rollergirl and meets the card's requirement. Your Rollergirl does not need to be in a Card Zone. Each time a Foul! card is played there is a chance the referee will spot the infraction and send the offender to the penalty box. If the foul is successful it is more likely is to be spotted by the referee. Fouls are resolved in the same manner as defensive cards. After the foul result is completed, a penalty roll is made by the opposing player. The penalty roll is made with a D6 if the foul was unsuccessful or a D8 if it was successful. On a roll of 6 or more, the foul is spotted and the offending Rollergirl is sent immediately to the 5 Movements Left chair of the Penalty Box (see Penalty Box rules on next page). Once the Foul! card is resolved, finish out the movement of the active Rollergirl as normal.

NOTE: When a moving Rollergirl attempts to push or use a card against a non-moving Rollergirl, the non-moving Rollergirl may attempt to use a card first if she meets the requirements for that card (including being in a card zone for defensive cards) and her team has not used a card yet that phase. If the non-moving Rollergirl is successful with her card, the moving Rollergirl's turn ends and she doesn't get to use her push or card.

Penalty Box

Remove the Penalty Box from the card deck and place it beside the board.

When a Rollergirl is sent to the Penalty Box, place her token (or figurine) on one of the 5 Movements Left chairs. Each turn, when you would normally move this Rollergirl, move her down one chair to the right (to 4 Movements Left, 3 Movements Left, etc.) and turn the wooden Rollergirl or figurine backwards to mark her as moved. When she moves from the 1 Movement chair back to the track, place her in the outermost space behind the last Blocker of the Pack. Make sure to place her as close as possible but still behind that Blocker. She may not move, push, or use a card during that turn. If a Rollergirl is in the Penalty Box at the end of a Jam, she is not automatically released. She must finish out the rest of her movements in the box during the next Jam. If the penalized Rollergirl is the Pivot, that team will not have a Pivot to set up for the next Jam. She will rejoin the pack mid-Jam after serving her time.

While a Rollergirl is in the Penalty Box, the opposing Jammer earns a "ghost point" from the penalized Rollergirl each time that opposing Jammer scores her first point for each Scoring Pass through the Pack. Just mark the point in the penalized Rollergirl's column on your score sheet when you mark your first point for the pass. If a Jammer is in the middle of the Pack and an opposing Blocker that she has not passed gets a penalty, immediately mark a point in her score column as if you had passed her.

Scrimmage Rules

Familiar with the game and looking to play a game of ICRD in about an hour? No problem!

Play the game as normal, but the maximum number of Jams is 2 instead of 3. In addition, the first player to score 5 points or more at the end of a phase and be ahead of their opponent on points wins the game. The player with the Lead Jammer cannot end the second Jam unless she has at least 5 points. If both players reach 5 or more points at the end of the same phase and are tied on points, resolve the game through the normal Sudden Death rules.

Four Player Game

For a four player game, break into two teams of two players. One player on each team controls the Jammer, and the other player controls the Pivots/Blockers. In each new Jam, switch who controls the Jammer and the Pivots/Blockers. Any dice rolls required are performed by the player controlling the Rollergirl making the dice roll.

Each of the players on your team can hold two cards (four total for the team). Each time a team's Jammer crosses the checkered line, each of the players on that team can choose to discard cards from his or her hand and draw more cards to get back to two cards in each hand. If the player controlling the Jammer draws a Foul! card at any time, it should be discarded immediately and a new card drawn to replace it. Players on the same team can show each other their cards, but they cannot trade cards or play cards on behalf of Rollergirls from their team that they are not controlling.

Remember speed of play is important to the feel of the game, so while the team-mates are allowed to briefly talk to each other and show their cards to each other … NO long term strategy discussions slowing down game-play. Play quick and trust your team partner to do the right thing to help your team score. In a normal derby match, there is not a lot of strategy discussion between the Jammer and her team's Blockers. Some hand signals, a couple shouts and a smart, fast survey of the opposing players makes the teamwork work. Try to mirror that with your four player games.

Aside from the above changes, play your game of ICRD as normal.