SPY Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• The Object
• Components
• Player Count
• Setup
• Playing the Game
• Exposure Target Order
• Game Turn
• Spy Base
• Movement
• Spy Outcomes
• Game End
• Example Turn 1
• Example Turn 2

The Object

Reveal your opponent's Top Secret and be the last player remaining in this covert game of deduction and memory.

Components

30 Cards:

• 4 Spies
• 8 Safes
• 8 Top Secrets
• 10 Bombs

Player Count

For a 2-player game, use only the Green and Red color cards, as they include an extra "Bomb 2" card. For a 3 or 4-player game, remove these extra "Bomb 2" cards.

Setup

1. Each player chooses a Spy and takes all cards of that color into their hand. This hand of cards is your "Spy Base".
2. Each player, in secret, organizes their Spy Base into an order of their choosing. All Bomb Cards start rotated so that they are lit fuse side down (bottom half of the card).
3. Players fan out their cards. Only your (double-sided) Spy should be visible to opponents. Cards may not be rearranged from this point onward.
4. The game is now ready to begin, starting with the youngest player.

Playing the Game

SPY is a game of deduction in which players move their Spy around their Spy Base to gain information and expose their opponents' hands, while carefully concealing their own. Players take turns in clockwise order. In order to win, you'll need to be the last remaining player. A player is eliminated from the game as soon as their "Top Secret 2" Card has been exposed OR they spy a "lit Bomb" Card in an opponent's hand.

Exposure Target Order

In order to expose your opponent's "Top Secret 2" Card, you'll first need to expose both their Safes (in ASCENDING NUMERICAL ORDER), followed by their "Top Secret 1" Card. As each card is revealed, the next card in the sequence becomes the new Exposure "Target".

Both Safes in ascending order, THEN both Top Secrets in ascending order: Safe 1, Safe 2, Top Secret 1, Top Secret 2.

Game Turn

On your turn, you MAY perform ONE of these two Actions, BOTH Actions, or NO ACTION at all:

1. MOVE: Declare your movement amount to your opponent, then move your Spy past that amount of cards in your hand. You must declare aloud and move the EXACT amount shown on the Card that your Spy is facing PRIOR TO MOVEMENT (either '1' or '2' - no less). When facing an exposed card in your hand, you may choose to move '1' OR '2'. Note: Declaring the movement number is how you reveal "number" information about your Spy Base, to your opponents. FLIP: You MAY "flip" your Spy (change the direction in which it faces) before AND/OR after movement. (See MOVEMENT)
2. SPY: Choose an opponent and announce that you are spying on them. You must spy (gain information) on their card that is in the SAME location (from a mirror perspective) as the card your Spy is looking at in YOUR hand. Then, they must respond to your inquiry. (See SPY OUTCOMES) For example, the leftmost card in your hand is in the same location as the leftmost card (from your view) in an opponent's hand.

Spy Base

Note: Cards are referred to by letter in the example below for clarity -- this is not necessary when playing the game.

You are the Green Player. The only card in your Base that opponents can see is your Spy, as it is double-sided. Your Spy is facing Card "G" in your hand. You take the Spy Action to gain information about Card "G" in the Purple Player's Base.

The Purple Player is spying on Card "B" in your Base. On a previous turn, you spied her "Safe 1" Card (F), which is now revealed to all players.

Movement

Your Spy Base is a "loop". The 2 cards on the edges are considered next to each other. A Spy facing the outer edge is facing the card on the opposite edge of the Base. (See EXAMPLE TURN 2) You may freely "switch" your Spy from one edge of the Base to the other (on your turn only). This does not count as a Turn Movement, as the Spy remains in between the edge cards regardless. The direction your Spy faces prior to movement dictates which direction he will move in the Base. There is one simple rule to keep in mind when taking the Move Action: The number of cards your Spy crosses over during movement must exactly equal the number on the card your Spy faced prior to that movement. This rule is helpful to keep in mind when making the "loop" and moving from one side of the Base to the other.

Spy Outcomes

Your opponent must respond in one of the following ways:

1. If it is a Safe Card or Top Secret Card (but not the "Exposure Target"), he must declare aloud the TYPE by saying, "It's a Safe" or "It's a Top Secret", but should not reveal the number.
2. If the spied card is the "Exposure Target" (next in the Exposure Order), it is PERMANENTLY REVEALED by turning it around to face opponents.
3. If it is a Bomb Card and it is "unlit", your opponent rotates it so the "lit" side is now on the top half of the card. He must make a "TSSSsss" sound effect to indicate to their opponents that the bomb is now "lit". The "lit" Bomb Card REMAINS SECRET.
4. If it is a Bomb Card and already "lit", your opponent SHOWS the Bomb to ALL players and you are eliminated from the game. It is then placed, "lit" and HIDDEN, back in the same location it came from.

Game End

The game ends immediately when there is only one player remaining in the game. The last remaining player is the winner!

Note: If a player accidentally drops a card(s) from his hand, he is immediately eliminated from the game.

Example Turn 1

1. First, the Green Player announces to opponents that he is moving "2". Next, he takes the MOVE Action and moves his Spy over his "Top Secret 2" Card.
2. Second, (looping around the Base) he crosses over his "Safe 1" Card and lands in between the "Safe 1" and "Safe 2" Cards.
3. Then, he flips his Spy Card to face the "Safe 1" Card.
4. He chooses to take the SPY Action and declares which opponent's hand he will inquire about (Purple - Card "A"). The Purple Player makes the "TSSSsss" sound effect, indicating to her opponents that the spied card is an "unlit" Bomb 1. Finally, she rotates her "Bomb" Card to the "lit" side up, facing her.

Example Turn 2

1. The Purple Player flips her Spy to face the other direction.
2. Next, she announces a movement of "1", then moves her Spy across 1 card.
3. Then, she takes the SPY Action to inquire about the Green Player's Card "A". (The "loop" concept makes this possible.) This happens to be the Green Player's "Exposure Target" Card. It is revealed, FACING OUT to his opponents for the remainder of the game.