Rook Plus: The Wild Bird Game
Rook Plus: The Wild Bird Game Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Equipment and Cards
Equipment: Deck of 57 ROOK cards in tray (remove the 3 cards describing other Parker Brothers games) • 4 WILD BIRD score cards (punch out score cards from cardboard frames) • 50 scoring chips
Note: The four WILD BIRD score cards are punch-out cardboard frames in the game box. They are not included in the rulebook PDF, so this transcription does not reproduce them.
The Cards: The ROOK deck is divided into four colors instead of the traditional four suits. There are 14 cards in each color suit, numbered 1 through 14. And there is the famous Rook Bird wild card, which is always used as the highest trump card (effectively, it's the "15" of trump) and, therefore, the highest card in the deck. The Rook Bird always takes any trick—and has even more power, as you'll find out!
Partnership Game for 4 Players
(For 2 and 3 players, see variations that follow)
Object: To get four scoring chips in a row horizontally, vertically or diagonally by taking tricks and collecting cards that match the spaces on your scoring card. Whichever partner does this first wins the game for the partnership.
Setup: Give each player a score card and a pile of scoring chips. Pick partners. If you wish, you may cut for partners: the two high cards play against the two low cards. Partners should sit opposite each other.
Dealing: Remove all 1's, 2's, 3's, and 4's from the deck, and add the Rook Bird card, to make a deck of 41 cards.
Shuffle. Cut the deck and show the bottom card: The color on the cut card is the trump color for this hand. (If you reveal the Rook Bird card, cut again).
Deal out all the cards face down. The leftover card is placed face down halfway under the dealer's score card to create the "nest." Players arrange their hands by color, then by number within each color suit.
Scoring: Every time you "take a trick," you earn one scoring chip for each card in the trick that matches the color and number of a space on your own score card. Put a scoring chip on the space. If you think your partner will take the trick, help by throwing a card that will fill a space on his/her score card. Remember: The first player to get four in a row on his/her score card wins the game for the partnership.
Playing: The player to the dealer's left begins play by "leading" any card from his/her hand. Each player in turn "follows suit" by playing a card of the same color. You must follow suit if you can—unless you decide to play the Rook Bird card!
If you can't follow suit, play any card. If you play a trump suit card, it automatically takes the trick; if someone else also plays trump, the higher trump card takes the trick. If you play the Rook Bird card, you take the trick.
The player who takes the trick collects all four cards. If any of the cards in the trick match spaces on your score card, cover those spaces with scoring chips. Put the trick face down in front of you. During the hand, players may review only the trick just taken; they may not look back at earlier tricks.
The player who took the trick leads the next card.
The last trick: The player who takes the last trick in the hand also collects the one-card "nest" under the dealer's score card and may score it if it's a card he/she needs.
The Rook Bird Card
- The Rook Bird card automatically wins any trick and
- After the trick is taken, it also allows the trick-taker to remove one scoring chip from any player's score card! Obviously, you'll attack one of the opposing partners!
- While the Rook Bird will win you the trick, you do not score the Rook Bird itself, just the cards it captured for you.
- You may play the Rook Bird card anytime you want—regardless of the color led and regardless of the other cards in your hand. It is the only card that has this privilege.
- If trump is led and you can't follow suit, you must play the Rook Bird if you have it.
- If the Rook Bird is led, all other players must play trump if they have it.
- If the Rook Bird is in the nest, take one chip off any player's card.
Winning: Play continues until one player has collected four chips that cover four spaces in a row on his/her score card, horizontally, vertically or diagonally. That player wins the game for that partnership.
It usually takes more than one hand to have a winner, and the player to the left of the dealer deals the next hand. Until there is a winner, all players leave their chips on their cards.
Tournament Play: Some players may want to play successive rounds and declare as winners the partners who win 3 out of 5 rounds, or 4 out of 7 rounds.
For 3 or 4 Individual Players
The 3- and 4-player games are identical to the partnership game for 4 players except there are no partners and the nest will contain 2 cards or 1 card, respectively. Each player tries to fill his or her own score card in order to win. Obviously, you won't try to help other players!
For 2 Players
The Object, Scoring and Winning are the same.
Dealing: Remove all 1's, 2's, 3's, and 4's from the deck, and add the Rook Bird card, to make a deck of 41 cards. Cut to determine the trump suit. Deal 13 cards to each player. Put the remaining cards face down to form a Draw pile.
Playing: The opponent leads the first card. All WILD BIRD rules apply with this exception: After each trick, both players draw one card each from the Draw pile, with the trick winner going first. Play continues until the Draw pile has only one card left, then until the hands are gone. The winner of the last trick picks up the single remaining Draw card. Note: During the hand, just drawing a card you need for your score card does not let you score it; you must earn the card in a trick, as in the regular game. But if you take the last trick and collect the last Draw card, you may score that card if you can.