Mad Zeppelin
Mad Zeppelin Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
This game contains:
- 14 Traitor cards:
- Karl Steeling - The Captain
- Carlotta Love - The Councillor
- Igor - The Taster
- Henchman III - The Guard
- Jack Hummerock - The Machinist
- Hernan Mirante - The Lookout
- Docteur Ripp - The Doctor
- Satine Rochat - The Geologist
- Hans Walder - The Anarchist
- Ratatine - The Clairvoyant
- Fred Zamfirescu - The Negotiator
- Helen Troy - The Opportunist
- Li'l Tim Sly - The Stowaway
- Mr Shadow - The Shadow
- 100 Cargo cards of different categories:
- 33 First-level cargo cards: 18 crates of wood and 15 crates of lead
- 27 Second-level cargo cards: 10 crates of coal, 9 crates of ore and 8 crates of steel
- 14 Third-level cargo cards: 8 crates of diamonds and 6 crates of gold
- 26 Fourth-level cargo cards: 6 crates of strange materials, 8 small mysterious crates, 6 large mysterious crates and 6 crates of alcohol
- 10 Journey cards, used to time the progress of the flight
- 3 dice
- 30 gold coin tokens
Objective of the Game
During each game turn, all players take control of two Traitors in the service of an enemy nation. Sabotage the convoy by hijacking the cargo and undermine the might of the Great Empire!
The Nostria's airlocks are under the watch of guards whose loyalty is more than questionable. Players must bribe the guards in order to heave some of the cargo overboard.
Each time players manage to relieve the zeppelin of some cargo they score points. The first player to get 20 or 30 points BEFORE the end of the flight is the winner!
Setup
Shuffle the cargo cards and remove the number of them shown below from the top. Then shuffle in the ten journey cards, making a deck known as the "Hold." Put this deck where all players can reach it.
Cargo Cards Removed From the Game
| Number of players | Number of Cargo cards removed |
|---|---|
| 6 | 0 |
| 4-5 | 20 |
| 2-3 | 30 |
Place all the gold coins in the centre of the table. This stash is the "Safe".
Before the start of the game, players must select a game mode: Run mode (20 point game) or Long Haul mode (30 point game). Then each player draws a card and takes 3 gold coins. If a player takes a Journey card at this time, the Journey card must be reinserted at random into the Hold and the player takes an extra gold coin, then another card from the Hold. This is repeated as necessary.
The youngest player shuffles the Traitor cards because she/he will play first as the leader.
Starting a Game Turn
Each game-turn consists of two rounds. The first player to play in a turn is called the leader. The leader changes at the end of each game turn, after each player has played two rounds.
Who Will Be Airsick?
The leader shuffles all the Traitor cards, and then removes, face down, as many Traitor cards as are shown in the table below. These Traitors are airsick and will not be used during the turn. Then the leader deals one Traitor card, face down, to each player, starting with her/himself.
Players may look at their Traitor. The leader then looks through the remaining Traitors and picks one. The Traitor cards are then passed to the next player, who picks one card, and so on...
Traitor cards that are not selected are set aside for the duration of the turn.
Once each player has 2 Traitors in hand, the leader (and only the leader) may look at the Traitor cards that will not be used during the turn (i.e., airsick Traitors and Traitors not selected by players.)
Traitors Suffering From Airsickness
| Number of players | Number of traitors removed |
|---|---|
| 6 | 1 |
| 4-5 | 2 |
| 2-3 | 4 |
Which Way Is the Nostria Heading?
The leader begins by rolling the 3 dice. The faces of the dice represent compass headings that give opportunities for the various Traitors to throw cargo to their henchmen waiting on the ground.
- White die face: The leader chooses another result for this die.
- Black die face: The die is removed for the rest of the turn. It can't be re-rolled or re-set by abilities.
- Yellow: East
- Green: West
- Blue: North
- Red: South
During the flight, Traitors can only throw Cargo overboard if one or more of the dice match the heading color in the spots at the top of their card. A "?" means that the Traitor has no color of his/her own and must copy someone else's.
Example: Karl Steeling has the color Blue. If any of the dice come up Blue, his player may discard Cargo when he is the current Traitor.
If, by bad luck (or good), the Leader rolls three Black results on the dice, no Cargo can be thrown overboard that turn, but Traitors are played as usual.
Game Turn
A game turn is made up of two rounds. In each round, starting with the leader and proceeding to the left, each player in turn carries out the following sequence:
-
You must choose one of your Traitor cards and play it face up, partially covering any previous Traitor you played this turn. This Traitor becomes your "current Traitor." If your only Traitor card cannot be played (because of another Traitor's ability, for example), show it and move on to the next player, without Searching or taking any actions.
-
Search: Take 1 Gold coin from the Safe, then draw 1 Cargo card from the Hold. (Text on your current Traitor with the heading "Search:" may change this.)
Some of the cards you draw from the Hold may be Journey cards. In this case, you must place any and all of those Journey cards face up in the middle of the table, taking 1 Gold from the Safe for each one.
- Take the following 2 actions. You may take them in either order and may choose to take only one or none of them.
- Activate your current Traitor's ability. The ability is the text on the Traitor card following "Ability:" "Search:" text is not part of the ability. Normally, an ability's effects only last until your next chance to play a Traitor card, or until the turn ends, whichever comes first. Some effects say that they last "Until the turn ends," meaning that they continue even after your next chance to play a Traitor that turn.
- Throw Cargo overboard. If your current Traitor's color has been rolled on the dice, show a Cargo card from your hand. You must then pay Gold to the Safe equal to the number of Gold coins on the card. This represents bribing the ever-present guards on the Nostria. After paying the guards, the Cargo card is "thrown overboard." Keep it face-up in front of you.
- The next player follows this sequence, unless you were the last player (the one to the right of the leader). In that case, if it is the first round, the second round begins, again starting with the leader; and if it is the second round, the turn ends.
The game ends when ten Journey cards have been played.
Ending the Turn and the Game
The game can end with a winner in two ways.
- At the end of each turn, players count their points by adding the value of the Cargo cards placed in front of them. Players add 1 bonus point to their total if they have at least 1 Cargo from each of the four levels. If a player has 20 points or more (Run mode) or 30 points or more (Long Haul mode), the game ends and this player is the winner.
- After the player who takes the tenth Journey card from the Hold puts the card down, takes a gold coin, and plays a Traitor, the game ends. Players add up their points, as is done at the end of a turn. If a player has 20 points or more (Run mode) or 30 points or more (Long Haul mode), this player is the winner.
If two or more players have reached the required number of points, the winner is the one with the most points.
In case of a draw on points, the winner is the player who has the fewest gold coins.
If two or more players have the same number of points and gold coins, the game is a draw.
If the game ends on Journey cards and no player was able to get 20 or 30 points, the game ends without a winner: the Nostria has docked successfully... and Hell will be unleashed on those who tried to cheat the Emperor!
Traitor Cards
Each Traitor card shows a name, a colour (or "?" for none), an "Ability:" text and, on some cards, a "Search:" text. The card's colour is matched against the dice; the Search text changes what happens during the Search step.
- Karl Steeling - The Captain. Colour: Blue.
- Ability: Name a Traitor. Until this turn ends, after a player plays that Traitor, either steal 1 Gold from him, or steal 1 Cargo card from her/his hand.
- Carlotta Love - The Councillor. Colour: Blue.
- Ability: Other players cannot steal your Cargo cards or Gold coins.
- Search: Do not take any Cargo cards, but take 1 extra Gold coin from the Safe.
- Igor - The Taster. Colour: Blue.
- Ability: Other players' actions do not affect you.
- Henchman III - The Guard. Colour: Yellow.
- Ability: It costs you 1 less Gold coin to throw Cargo overboard.
- Jack Hummerock - The Machinist. Colour: Yellow.
- Ability: Level 1 Cargo costs you no Gold coins to throw overboard.
- Hernan Mirante - The Lookout. Colour: Yellow.
- Ability: Up to twice in this game turn, before your opportunity to throw Cargo overboard, you may re-roll one of the dice (including one you already re-rolled).
- Colour: Red.
Cargo Cards
Cargo cards come in four levels. The point value is printed on the card; a card's Gold cost to throw overboard is the number of Gold coins on the card.
First-level Cargo
- Wood: 1 pt (18 cards)
- Lead: 2 pt (15 cards)
Second-level Cargo
- Coal: 3 pt (10 cards)
- Ore: 4 pt (9 cards)
- Steel: 5 pt (8 cards)
Third-level Cargo
- Diamonds: 6 pt (8 cards)
- Gold: 7 pt (6 cards)
Fourth-level Cargo
These cards have special text instead of the standard point values.
- Crate of Alcohol (6 cards). Place this card in front of you. This card is not thrown overboard. It costs you one less gold coin to throw cargo overboard.
- Small mysterious crate (8 cards). Any time you are paying Gold, you may exchange this card for 1 Gold coin.
- Big mysterious crate (6 cards; listed in the component list as "large mysterious crates"). Any time you are paying Gold, you may exchange this card for 2 Gold coins.
- Strange materials (6 cards). The point value of this card is equal to the number of first-level Cargo cards you have thrown overboard.