Master Thief Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Cards
  • Thief Cards [70]
  • Museum Cards [36]
  • Calling Cards [6]
• Index
  • Museum Card Face
  • Museum Card Icons
• Setup
  • Shuffle & Deal
• Start
  • Objective
  • Beginning the Game
• Turns
  • 1. Steal from the Museum
  • 2. Play Thief Cards
  • 3. End Your Turn
• Gameplay
  • Stashing Your Carried Items
  • Foiling Your Opponents' Turns
  • Averting Security
  • Running Out of Time
  • Escaping the Museum
  • Ending the Game
  • Calling a Jury of Thieves

Cards

Thief Cards [70]

• Actions: Played on your turn. Follow the instructions then immediately discard it.
• Reactions: Played during opponents' turns. Apply the effects and immediately discard it.
• Utilities: Played on your turn. Place face-up in front of you and apply its effect while it is in play. Discard at the beginning of your next turn.

Examples printed on the sheet:

• Swipe (Action): "You want it, they have it. Swipe it! Take 1 Carried item from any 1 opponent."
• Grip (Reaction): "You have it, they want it. Grip it! Stop the loss of 1 Carried or Stashed item. All items return to being Carried once gripped."
• Smoke Pellet (Utility): "Hide! For 1 round, or until your next turn, prevent the loss of all your Carried or Stashed items."

Museum Cards [36]

• Items: Steal as many items as possible and keep them from your opponents' grasp.
• Charmed Items: Low value, but offer special advantages while Carried.
• Security: Avert Security to avoid ending the game before you can escape.

Examples printed on the sheet: T-Rex Skull (Items), Amber (Charmed Item), Laser Snare (Security).

Calling Cards [6]

Calling Cards give each player a secret goal to drive their gameplay. Keep these away from the prying eyes of your fellow thieves!

Calling Cards are also revealed when a player chooses to escape from the Museum, and help to indicate who is still in play.

Examples printed on the sheet:

• The Cat Burglar: "Reveal this card to escape from the Museum. Add +2 BMC to each Painting and Gem in your possession."
• The Pickpocket: "Reveal this card to escape from the Museum. Add +2 BMC to each Gem and Artifact in your possession."
• The Looter: "Reveal this card to escape from the Museum. Add +2 BMC to each Artifact and Bone in your possession."

Index

Museum Card Face

• A Title of item
• B Description & classification of item
• C Amount of Thief Cards to draw when item is pulled from the Museum
• D Category of item
• E Black Market Credits (BMC) that the item is worth

The sheet's example is "The Scream" (Charmed): "It now takes 4 Security Strikes to end the game." It is worth 1 BMC.

Museum Card Icons

Categories: Artifacts, Bones, Gems, Masks, Paintings, Statues, Security.

Draw amounts: Draw 3, Draw 2, Draw 0.

Black Market Credits (BMC) range from 1 to 5.

Setup

Shuffle & Deal

Shuffle the Museum Cards, Thief Cards, and Calling Cards separately.

Scatter the Museum Cards face-down in a disorderly pile at the center of the table. This pile is referred to as "the Museum." Place the Thief Cards in a face-down deck to draw from next to the Museum.

Deal 4 Thief Cards and 1 Calling Card to each player. You may look at your own Thief and Calling Cards, but be careful not to show these to your sneaky opponents.

Start

Objective

You are thieves in the Museum. Your goal is to steal the most valuable items, but it looks like everyone else has the same scheme. You'll have to work together to beat the Security, but don't be fooled, there can only be one MASTER THIEF.

Press your luck each round by stealing items from the Museum. Everyone's chances of being caught increase with each item stolen, so you'll all have to keep a close eye on the remaining time and the alerted Security to plan the perfect getaway.

Use the Thief Cards to Swipe from your opponents or Stash your items safely away. Of course, even sticky fingers can only carry so much, so keep an eye out, you never know what someone will drop. Escape from the Museum with the most Black Market Credits (BMC) to win the game, and pull off the grandest heist of all time!

Beginning the Game

Gameplay begins with a "Heist"! All players steal 1 card from the Museum simultaneously, then place this card face-up in front of them. During the game, any Museum Card face-up in front of you is a Carried item.

The first Heist is just to get everyone started; do not draw additional Thief Cards indicated on your item. If you have pulled Security from the Museum, immediate action is required. See: AVERTING SECURITY. Follow these steps before gameplay begins.

You may find yourselves beginning the game with 1 or multiple Securities alerted to your presence. If so, either proceed into the Museum with caution, or decide as a group to abandon the heist and start over. See: CALLING A JURY OF THIEVES to reach a consensus. Try to be better thieves next time.

Anyone may now take the first turn. Steal the opportunity.

Turns

1. Steal from the Museum

Begin every turn by stealing 1 item from the Museum and placing it face-up in front of you as a Carried item. Read aloud the title and description (if applicable). Observe the icons across the top and immediately draw the indicated amount of Thief Cards. If you have drawn Security, see: AVERTING SECURITY.

2. Play Thief Cards

On your turn, you may play as many Thief Cards as desired, but you may NOT play more than 1 of the same titled Thief Card in the same turn. (E.g. You may not play "Swipe" twice.)

Remember, you may only play Actions and Utilities on your turn. Reactions will have no effect. Experiment with the order in which you play your Thief Cards to develop your own unique strategies.

3. End Your Turn

At the end of your turn you may only have up to 4 Thief Cards in your hand and 4 Carried (face-up) items in front of you. Discard down to the hand limit and drop items (of your choice) down to the carrying limit. If you have Stashed items, see: STASHING YOUR CARRIED ITEMS.

Carrying limit = 4. Hand limit = 4.

Now you have a decision to make. You may either stay in the Museum and declare that your turn has ended, or attempt to escape the Museum taking all Carried and Stashed items with you. See: ESCAPING THE MUSEUM. Reveal your Calling Card to escape the Museum and remove yourself from the game. Play continues clockwise.

Gameplay

Stashing Your Carried Items

Using the Action "Stash" is a vital element of gameplay. This turns 1 of your Carried items face-down. During the game, any Museum Card face-down in front of you is a Stashed item. Stashed items are better protected from your opponents' Actions and Utilities. Stashed items will lose their special properties (e.g. Charmed items) and also cannot be used to avert Security. Unlike Carried items, there is no limit to the amount of Stashed items you may have in front of you.

Foiling Your Opponents' Turns

Defend yourself against opponents' Actions and Utilities by playing Reactions. Unlike Actions on your own turn, you have no limit to the amount of same titled Thief Cards you may play on an opponents' turn. (E.g. You may play "Grip" as often as needed.) Use this time to foil your opponents' strategies, ruin their escape, or stop the loss of your items.

Some instances will allow you to gain more Carried items on an opponent's turn. If you find yourself with more items than your current carrying limit allows, drop items (of your choice) down to the carrying limit immediately.

The sheet shows the rule "GRIP CANCELS OUT SWIPE, RAID, OR TRIP", illustrated with the Grip card crossing out the Swipe, Raid and Trip cards.

Averting Security

Security is bright red. When Security is stolen from the Museum, the player's turn is immediately ended (unless it is pulled during a Heist). Beginning with the player who pulled the Security and passing counterclockwise, any player may surrender a Carried item of the indicated category to avert the Security. Return both the surrendered item AND the Security back into the Museum.

The sheet illustrates this with Mammoth Tusks and Guard Dog: surrender the right item to avert Security.

If there is no corresponding item, or if players choose not to avert Security, place the Security off to the side. This indicates a Security Strike and affects ALL players. This is permanent, and this Security can no longer be averted. 3 Security Strikes will end the game immediately.

Running Out of Time

Time runs out when the Thief Card deck has been depleted and players cannot successfully draw all the cards indicated on their stolen item. If a player draws the exact amount indicated on their item (e.g. They must draw 3, and there are exactly 3 cards left to draw) they may proceed and the game will immediately end after their turn.

Escaping the Museum

You may escape the Museum at the end of any of your turns by revealing your Calling Card. If you manage to escape successfully, all of your Carried and Stashed items will count towards your final Black Market Credits (BMC) total. Keep a close eye on the remaining Thief Cards and Security Strikes to strategically plan the perfect getaway with the most items.

If your opponents do not stop you from escaping by playing Latch, you are now safely out of play. Discard your Thief Cards, and compile your final BMC total. Keep this total secret until the game has ended.

If you are the last remaining player, you must escape after completing one final turn.

Ending the Game

3 Security Strikes, or a depleted Thief Card deck will end the game immediately. When this occurs, anyone still in play drops ALL Carried items back into the Museum. Because they have failed to successfully escape the Museum, they have been caught, and only their Stashed items will count towards their final BMC total.

Once all players have escaped or been caught, compare final BMC totals. Remember to apply your Calling Card for additional BMC (if applicable). The player with the most BMC is the MASTER THIEF and wins the game!

In the event of a tie, the thieves in question return to the Museum for one last Steal simultaneously. The highest value BMC wins.

Calling a Jury of Thieves

If there is a dispute or misinterpretation of the rules, a suggested house rule, or a broken rule (e.g. a player plays "Swipe" twice), you may call upon a Jury of Thieves. At which point, anyone currently still in play votes to reach a decision. This passes only by majority vote. This is a great way to earn your opponents' trust and an even better way to make enemies.