Meow! The Cult of Cat
Meow! The Cult of Cat Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Setup
- Deal Cards: Shuffle the cards together. Deal each player 2 cards if you have 3-5 players, or 1 card if you have 6+ players.
- Place Draw Pile: Deal 1 card face-down in the center of the table. This is the draw pile.
- Return Unused Cards: Return any remaining cards to the game box. They will not be used in this game.
- Pass Left: Each player looks at their cards, then passes their entire hand to the player on their left. (The hand that is passed to you is now yours, and you may look at it.)
- Start: The player who most recently pet a cat goes first!
If this is your first game, leave out the BEFORE and AFTER cards. These are only used in Advanced Mode!
With younger players, only use cards with a blue pattern behind the title!
Overview
To win Meow, all you have to do is play a card from your hand while successfully following all the rules of the Cult of Cat. Simple enough, right?
Here's the catch: each player only knows a few of the Cult of Cat's rules. You'll have to learn the rest either by breaking them, or by watching what other players do when it's their turn to play a card.
If you're first to learn and remember all the rules, you'll be able to play your card and win!
For example, if your card says "Must pretend to lick hand like a paw," you must pretend to lick your hand after playing the card.
Everything you do should be within view of all players, so they can watch you closely and see whether you've obeyed the rules they're holding.
If a player sees you break one of their rules, they shouldn't say so just yet!
Gameplay
On your turn, take these steps in order:
- Play a card
- Take actions
- Check with each other player to see if you've broken their rules
Accessibility Note: If you discover a rule that any player is unable to follow, immediately replace it with a randomly selected card from the box and continue playing.
I. Play a Card
At the start of your turn, choose 1 card in your hand, read it out loud, and play it face-up in the center of the table.
Each card lists a rule of the Cult of Cat, which is a special action you must take.
II. Take Actions
Next, you may take actions to try and follow the rules on cards that other players are holding.
III. Check with Each Other Player
Starting with the player to your left and proceeding clockwise, point to each other player in turn and ask them whether you've broken any of the rules in their hand. They must answer honestly.
If the player you point to tells you that you have broken a rule:
- They reveal the rule in their hand you broke and read it out.
- Both the card you played and the rule you broke are shuffled into the draw pile.
- You draw 1 card from the draw pile. Then, the player whose rule you broke draws 1 card.
- Your turn ends.
If the player you point to tells you you have not broken a rule: Point to the next player and ask them if you broke any of their rules (and so on).
If every player tells you that you have not broken any rules, you win the game!
Rules About Rules
On Your Turn
- If you broke the rule on the card you just played, any player may point this out at any time on your turn. If this happens, take the card you played back into your hand and end your turn immediately.
- You do not have to obey rules on unplayed cards in your own hand or in the draw pile.
- Once you start checking with other players, you may not take any further actions.
- After a player tells you you've broken a rule, your turn ends. You don't get to keep asking other players. This means you will only ever learn about 1 rule you've broken each turn. (It may be a rule you already knew!)
Example
On the first turn of a 4-player game, Henry chooses to play the card "Croak" from his hand, which says "Must croak like a frog." He croaks like a frog. Then he mimes peeling a banana and coughs twice. He knows these rules because he saw Nicole's hand before passing it to his left at the start of the game.
He asks Nicole if he broke any of her rules, and she says no. Then he asks the next player, Clarence, if he broke any rules. Clarence says yes, and reveals the rule "Nitpick," which says "Must pretend to pick a nit from your hair and eat it." Henry definitely didn't do that!
Both Henry's and Clarence's cards are shuffled with the 1 card in the draw pile, and they each get 1 new card. Unfortunately for Henry, he got "Croak" back, so he doesn't learn any other new rules! His turn is now over.
On Other Players' Turns
- When a player points to you, you may only tell them if they've broken rules that are in your hand. (You may not tell them they've broken other players' rules you know about, or rules in the draw pile.)
- When a player points to you, if they've broken multiple rules in your hand, choose only 1 rule to reveal.
- If you are unsure if a player has broken one of your rules, you may ask the table whether the player performed a certain action without revealing your rule.
- You may only declare that one of your rules was broken when you are pointed at by the active player. If they point to you and you forget or don't realize one of your rules has been broken, you cannot bring this up later in their turn. (They may still win if this happens, so watch carefully!)
Advanced Modes
13 Rules
Once you've got a bit of experience with Meow!, try playing with 13 rule cards at any player count.
At setup, randomly select 13 rule cards (without looking at them) and return the rest to the game box. Deal the selected cards out such that each player has the same number of cards (for example, 4 cards each in a 3-player game). The cards that are left over after dealing make up the starting draw pile.
Play normally otherwise.
Good luck remembering all those rules!
Before and After Cards
If your group has mastered Meow!, you can make the rules even more challenging by adding the advanced Before and After rule conditions.
At setup, place the BEFORE card and AFTER card face-up in the middle of the table to use as a reference. Then, randomly select 13 rule cards from the game box and deal them out as in the "13 Rules" variant.
If a rule card's background matches the BEFORE card, you must take this action before you place your card on your turn. If a card's background matches the AFTER card, you must take this action after you place your card. Doing any action at the wrong time counts as breaking the rule!
Example
Henry hisses like a snake both before and after he plays his card. Nicole's card reads "Must hiss like a snake" and has a BEFORE background.
When Henry points to Nicole, she tells him he broke her rule by hissing after he played the card. It doesn't matter that he hissed before playing the card (which was correct), since he still broke the rule by doing the action at the wrong time!
Rule Card List
The rule cards as printed in the v10 Jellybean rulebook (card pages). Each card's title is followed by the rule printed on it.
Meow Meow
Must whisper "Meow" three times.
Meow
Must loudly say "Meow" once.
Love Cats
Must declare they love cats.
Hate Mondays
Must announce they hate Mondays.
Compliment Animal
Must compliment the animal.
Call Animal Best Friend
Must call the animal their best friend.
Sniff Animal
Must sniff the animal.
Cool Nickname
Must give animal a cool nickname.
How Are You?
Must ask the animal how it's feeling.
Sorry
Must apologize to the animal.
I Love You
Must tell the animal you love it.
Thank You For Your Service
Must thank the animal for its service.
Animal's Ears
Must describe the animal's ears.
Animal's Nose
Must describe the animal's nose.
Animal's Favorite Food
Must describe the animal's favorite food.
Animal Noise
Must make the noise of the animal played.
Spooky Ghost
Must make the sound of a spooky ghost.
Car Sounds
Must make car sounds.
Baby Noises
Must make some baby noises.
Robot Noises
Must make robot noises.
Touch Card to Chest
Must touch the card to chest.
Touch Card to Forehead
Must touch the card to forehead.
Touch Card to Left Shoulder
Must touch the card to left shoulder.
Touch Card to Right Ear
Must touch the card to right ear.
Knock Twice
Must knock twice on the table.
Wiggle Fingers
Must wiggle fingers.
Shimmy Shoulders
Must shimmy shoulders.
Tap Forehead
Must tap forehead with one finger.
Card Title
Must read out the card's title.
Robe Color
Must say the color of the animal's robe.
Stare At Card
Must stare at the card intently.
Animal Legs
Must say how many legs the animal has.
New Animal
Must say an animal no one has said yet.
New Color
Must name a color that no one has named yet.
New Country
Must name a country that no one has named yet.
New City
Must name a city that no one has named yet.
New Job
Must name a job that no one has named yet.
New Song
Must sing a song that no one has sung yet.
New Dance
Must do a dance that no one has done yet.
Mime New Instrument
Must mime playing an instrument that no one has mimed yet.
New Noise
Must make a noise that no one has made yet.
New Pose
Must make a pose that no one has made yet.
Well Well Well...
Must say "Well well well..."
Not So Different
Must say "We're not so different, you and I."
It Is Known
Must say "It is known."
And So It Is So
Must say "And so it is so."
Ah Ha!
Must shout "Ah ha!"
Go In Peace
Must say "Go in peace".
For The Trees!
Must say "For the trees!"
Surprise!
Must shout "Surprise!"
Never Give Up!
Must say "Never give up!"
Never Surrender!
Must say "Never surrender!"