Pentago Triple
Pentago Triple Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Object
Build five-in-a-row shown on pattern cards, using marbles of three colors.
Setup
Triple Pentago is played on a gameboard with four rotating disks, and three colors of marbles: blue, yellow, and red. Place the marbles in the lid where all players can reach them.
Triple Pentago also has a pattern deck. Each card shows a pattern of five marbles using the three colors of marbles. Shuffle the deck, then flip over cards based on the number of players:
- For two players: Flip over one pattern card
- For three players: Flip over two pattern cards
- For four players: Flip over three pattern cards
Place pattern cards face-up in the centre of the table where everyone can see them. Put the remainder of the deck aside as it will not be needed for this game. Choose a player to go first. Play continues clockwise.
Game Play
Your goal in Triple Pentago is to build one of the patterns shown on the pattern cards. The players can freely choose to build any of the patterns on the flipped cards until the pattern is completed. On your turn, select any color marble and place it in an empty space on the board. Once placed, a marble cannot be moved. Then choose one of the four disks to rotate 90 degrees clock- or counterclockwise. Play then passes to the player on your left. If you complete a pattern that matches any one of the face-up cards during your turn, the player who went before you is eliminated.
If all the marbles are already placed on the gameboard, you can move a marble from the gameboard to an empty space on the board. However, you may not move the marble that was last played.
NOTE: If the patterns in play only have two colors, the players can decide to only use those colors.
Rules insert diagram captions (translated from the Russian page 4 illustration): "Pattern card"; "A player's turn consists of 2 steps"; "Victory! Pattern completed".
In a two-player game: If you complete the pattern shown on the card, the other player is eliminated and you win.
In a three- or four-player game: If you complete one of the patterns shown on the cards, the player who played before you and let you complete the pattern is eliminated from the game. Take the card with the pattern you matched and remove it from the game. Players will need to complete one of the remaining patterns to eliminate each other.
Winning
The last player remaining is the winner.
Game Variants
Instead of sharing the cards in play, flip over one card specifically for each player. The player who first completes the pattern on her/his card is the winner.
Bonus Game
Translated from the Russian rules text on page 4 of the rules PDF (box insert, "Игра - бонус").
The task is for the players to build the pattern card of the current round faster than their opponents.
Shuffle the deck and place it face-down. Then take the top card and turn it face-up so that all players can see the combination that needs to be built. Decide who goes first and continue the game clockwise. The first player to build the combination shown on the card takes that card for himself. Then a new card is turned up from the deck and the game continues!
The winner is the player who has more cards at the end of the game.