Pants on Fire!
Pants on Fire! Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Components
- 8 Dial-O-Ramas
- 109 Topic Cards
- 3 Number Cards (1, 2, 3)
- 45 Red Chips (1 point)
- 15 Blue Chips (5 points)
- 10 Green Chips (15 points)
- 5 Black Chips (25 points)
- 8 Pencils
- Paper Pad
Setup
Give each player a Dial-O-Rama, a pencil and some paper. Put the chips on the table as the Chip Supply. In numerical order, place the Number cards (numbered 1, 2 and 3) in a row in the center of the table.
Summary
A game round consists of each player in turn telling an anecdote, fact or story about three Topics. Votes are held after each player tells their three stories. Play a number of rounds depending on the number of players:
- 2-3 players - 4 rounds
- 4-5 players - 3 rounds
- 6-8 players - 2 rounds
To Play
The Beginning of a Round
At the beginning of each round, pick three Topic cards and place one onto each Number card so that the Number shows above the Topic card. The Number Card indicates the first, second and third Topics.
All players now number their paper from 1 to 3 and write one brief fact or incident regarding each Topic. In other words, each player will write something for the first Topic, something for the second Topic and something for the third Topic. The fact or incident must be about the Player writing it or involve them in some way. Most importantly:
- One of these facts or incidents must be TRUE.
- One of these facts or incidents must be FALSE.
- The remaining fact or incident may be TRUE or FALSE.
You don't have to write down a lot for each Topic. Write just enough to remind you of the fact or incident when it is your turn to tell your 'stories'. Or if you prefer, you can write exactly what you want to say. There is no limit to how long you can take to tell your 'story', but it is best to try to keep it reasonably short.
The Storytelling and Voting
Pick one player to start as the first STORYTELLER. This STORYTELLER now secretly marks their Dial-O-Rama with the correct answers of T or F for each of their stories, then places it face down in front of them.
Next, they will read/tell their three stories for the Topics. After doing so, every other player will vote secretly on their Dial-O-Rama to predict which responses they believe are true or false. Remember, one must be true, one must be false and the other may be either.
After all players have finished voting, the players reveal their votes. The STORYTELLER then reveals their Dial-O-Rama showing which stories were true and which ones were false.
Basic Scoring
For each correct vote, each player will earn 1 point chip from the Supply. If all three votes were correct, then they get one bonus chip. Players who choose all three F or all three T score zero for this vote. The STORYTELLER scores nothing.
Example: James predicted—
The first response was indeed true. The second was false. And the third was false. James predicted two correct and earns 2 red chips.
Note - If by some chance the STORYTELLER has goofed and accidentally told three False stories or three True stories, then everybody gets one extra chip. Players who have now received three chips total get a fourth bonus chip.
Completing a Round
The next player to the current STORYTELLER's left becomes the new STORYTELLER and it all happens again. When all players have shared their stories for the three Topics, the round is completed. Flip the Topic cards over for new Topics or put out three new cards.
End of Game
At the conclusion of all rounds, the player with the most points in chips wins! In case of a tie, the player who had the most fun wins.
Advanced Scoring
If you're cool enough ...
For added fun, you may bet on each vote. Give each player 3 red chips to start the game. When the Voting occurs, players may BET from 1 to 4 red chips on each story. So if you don't feel confident you have it right, you might bet 1 red chip, but if you do feel very sure, you might bet 4 red chips. You may bet more chips than you have.
The Scoring changes as follows:
FIRST: For every INCORRECT vote, you must pay the chips bet to the STORYTELLER. If you run out of chips, you only pay what you have.
SECOND: For every CORRECT vote, you take that many red chips from the Supply. If you get all 3 correct, you receive a bonus chip from the Supply.
Example: Valerie predicted—
The first response was indeed true. The second was false. And the third was false. Valerie predicted one incorrectly and pays two red chips to the STORYTELLER. She predicted two correct and earns 7 red chips from the Supply.
Note - If the supply of chips runs out, have each player return an equal amount of the chips to the supply to replenish it.