Robot X Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Game Contents
• Aim of the Game
• Set Up
• Playing the Game
  • 1. Put away a card to the bank
  • 2. Put a card up for an auction
  • Building a robot
  • 3. Buy a bonus card
  • 4. Play an event card
• End of the Game
• Scoring

Game Contents

• Game rules
• 81 basic cards:
  • 64 robot parts cards
  • 6 cards worth 200
  • 3 cards worth 300
  • 8 event cards
• 36 bonus cards:
  • 12 cards giving extra points for indicated robot parts
  • 12 cards giving extra points for indicated number of colourful stars
  • 12 cards giving extra points for the number of stars indicated on particular cards

Aim of the Game

Players compete for being the best robot constructor. Robots are built with the cards won during an auction. The winner is the person who gets the most points at the end of the game.

Set Up

1. Shuffle the basic cards and deal 7 cards to each player. The rest of the cards are placed in a face down draw pile in the middle of the table.
2. Divide the bonus cards into three categories according to their backsides and shuffle them separately. When the cards have been shuffled, place them in three face down piles and turn over the top card of each pile.

Exemplary set up for two players (the diagram shows the space for each player's bank, hand, robot and bonus cards, with the draw pile and the discard pile in the middle).

Playing the Game

The starting player is chosen randomly. The game consists of turns. Each of them consists of two obligatory steps.

A. Draw a card

In the beginning of each turn the player always draws one card from the draw pile. If he does not have any cards in his hand than he draws two cards. There is no limit of cards on the players' hands.

Note: When there are no cards in the draw pile you need to shuffle the discard pile which will make a new draw pile.

B. Perform one of the following actions:

1. Put away a card to the bank
2. Put a card up for an auction
3. Buy a bonus card
4. Play an event card

1. Put away a card to the bank

The player may put any, but only one, card face down from his hand away to the bank (e.g. on his right). From this very moment this card may only be used as a currency while betting or to buy bonus cards. Each card in the bank is worth 100, no matter what is indicated on its face up side (e.g. 200/300). A player may have maximum 8 cards in his bank. The cards should be organised in a neat, face down pile so that the opponents would not be able to see how many cards there are.

2. Put a card up for an auction

The player may put up for an auction one robot part card from his hand. The opening value of such a card is always 100 and at the same time is the opening bid of the player who put this card up for an auction. The rest of the players, in turns (clockwise), may raise the bid declaring sums at least 100 higher than the previous player has declared. The betting continues until all the players fold except for one person. After that the following situations may occur:

• If the player who put a card up for an auction declares the highest amount then he pays 100 less than he has declared. If nobody has raised the opening bid (100) then the player who has put the card up for an auction gets this card for free.
• If any other player wins an auction then he pays minimum half the amount, rounded up (but not less than 200) to the bank of the player who has put the card up for an auction. The rest (if there is any left) is placed on the discard pile.

Note: If a player is paid more cards than there is space left in his bank, the surplus cards are placed on the discard pile.

Note: Players are not allowed to bluff during betting. A declared bid cannot be higher than the player's budget which is the total value of all the cards in the bank (max. 800) and cards in hand – each of them is worth 100 (robot parts cards and event cards), 200 (cards worth 200) and 300 (cards worth 300).

Players pay for the cards that they have won in an auction with the money from the bank. If they do not have enough money then the rest of the sum is paid with the cards from their hands.

Example: Kate has got 4 cards in her hand (3 robot parts cards – each worth 100 – and one more card worth 200). She also has 2 more cards in her bank. She may bid the card which was put up for an auction for maximum 700 (3 x 100 + 200 + 2 x 100 = 700).

Note: The player that has earned money during an auction must get as many cards as he earned. That means, if he earned 300, he must get 3 cards (not one card worth 300). It is allowed to exchange the money (with the cards from the discard pile), but it is not allowed to give the change back.

Building a robot

Having won a card in an auction the player must immediately place it face up in front of himself building a robot in this way. Each robot may have maximum one card with a particular body part. If a player buys another card with the same robot part, he decides which card would be a robot part and which will be set aside to his bank. During the game, each player may build only one robot.

Note: In the bottom right corner of the card there is an icon which indicates which robot part it is.

Example: Martin has won in an auction the same robot part as he had – the head. He decided to keep it as a robot part so he puts the head, he had won earlier, to his bank. During the next rounds he will be able to use it as a card worth 100.

3. Buy a bonus card

The player may buy one of the face up bonus cards or may look through the 3 top cards of any pile, choose one card and put the rest in any order on the top or at the bottom of corresponding bonus cards pile. Players may have maximum 3 cards of each type. The cost (for all players) of the first card is 100, the cost of the second of the same type equals 200, and the third – 300. After a player has bought a face up bonus card, he lays it face up next to his robot, then turns over the top card from a corresponding pile and money (if possible from the bank) is placed in the discard pile.

There are 3 types of bonus cards:

• 12 cards that give additional points at the end of the game for indicated robot parts of a given player (from the top left: left ear, head, right ear, left hand, belly, right hand, left leg, right leg).
• 12 cards that give additional points at the end of the game for cards which indicate number of stars (no matter what their colour is), which make a robot of a given player.
• 12 cards that give additional points at the end of the game for indicated (or higher) number of stars of particular colours, which make a robot of a given player.

4. Play an event card

After placing one of the event cards the player immediately considers its effect:

• The player draws randomly one card from maximum two players who have more cards than he after he had played this card.
• All the cards that players have in their hands are shuffled together and dealt again equally in a clockwise order (starting with the player who has played the event card).
• The player may exchange his bonus card with any bonus card of another player (even if it is of another type but on condition that none of the players exceeds limit cards of the same type in this way).
• The player may look through the discard pile and take one card that he chooses onto his hand.

After having performed an action an event card is placed in the discard pile.

The turn of this player is finished and the next player, in a clockwise order, begins his turn.

End of the Game

The game finishes immediately when one of the players has built a complete robot. The robot is complete when it has two legs, two hands, a belly and a head. Ears are not required for the robot to be completed. At the end of the game the players only get additional points for them.

Scoring

Players count up their points at the end of the game. A person who gets the highest number of points is the winner. If there is a tie players share the victory.

The positive points are given for:

• the number of stars on the cards which make the robot, multiplied by the number of their colours,
• bonus cards that have been fulfilled (the number of points is indicated on each card),
• completing entire robot – the first player to complete the robot gets 10 additional points.

The negative points are given for:

• bonus cards that haven't been fulfilled (the number of points is indicated on each card).

Example: The total of all stars equals 23. It is multiplied by 4 (the robot consists of 4 colours: green, pink, orange and blue). The player was the first to complete the entire robot so he gets 10 additional points. For achieving the objectives from the bonus cards he also gets:

• 4 points – the robot has got a part with four stars in any colour;
• 7 points – the robot has got 9 blue stars (the bonus card requires minimum 8);
• 5 points – the robot has got left ear and left hand.

The player hasn't fulfilled a bonus card so 7 points are subtracted (he has only got one card with three stars).

The player collects 111 points. (23 x 4 + 10 + 4 + 7 + 5 – 7 = 111)