Take The "A" Chord
Take The "A" Chord Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
In the Box
- This rule sheet
- 35 Feeling Cards (7 notes in 5 colors: Bluesy, Lyrical, Swingy, Soulful, Earthy). Each card shows a Chord (A to G) and its color.
- 1 Key Chord Board (shows the scoring chart and the Improvisation bonus of 15)
- 1 Key Chord Marker
- 1 Spotlight Card
- 1 Leader Marker
Key Chord
The currently strongest Chord. The strongest chord at any given time is indicated by the Key Chord Marker. The Chords are weaker as you move clockwise around the Key Chord Board. When the Key Chord is C then C is the strongest followed by D etc. (C > D > E > F > G > A > B)
Scoring Chart (on the Key Chord Board)
| Tricks | Points | Tricks | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 1 | 10 | 6 | -10 |
| 2 | 20 | 7 | -20 |
| 3 | 30 | 8 | -30 |
| 4 | 10 | 9 | -40 |
IMPROVISATION: 15
Goal of the Game
Each player plays one card, in turn. The cards' strengths are compared, and one player wins all of those cards. This group of cards is referred to as a trick.
The number of tricks each player wins determines that player's score, but taking many tricks is not necessarily good. You must adjust how many tricks you take while keeping an eye on the other players.
Changing the card's strength and changing the key to become the next start player are the keys to taking control of this game. Also gaining bonus points by 'improvising' is important.
Game Flow
- Setup
- Deal Cards
- Determine the Starting Key Chord
- Trick
- Playing Cards
- Winning a trick
- Leader Check
- Curtain Call
- Curtain Call Scoring Points
- Return to Deal Cards
In a 4-player game there are 4 stages (rounds). In a 3-player game there are 3 stages (rounds).
Setup
Place the board and the pieces
Place the Key Chord Board in the middle of the table. Place the Key Chord Marker and the Spotlight Card nearby.
Deal Cards
Shuffle the deck of 35 Feeling Cards then deal 8 cards to each player. (Changes for a 3 player game are listed later.) The 3 extra cards will be placed in a face-down stack nearby.
Determine the Starting Key Chord
From the stack of 3 extra cards flip 1 card face up. The chord shown on the flipped card is the starting Key Chord for this round (the color is ignored). Place the Key Chord Marker on the Key Chord Board's corresponding space.
Setup is now complete.
The player to the left of the dealer will be the start player (referred to as the Lead Player), and the game begins.
Trick
Playing Cards
In each trick each player will play one card. Each player must play in one of the following ways. (The Lead Player can play any card in their hand.)
- Lead Color (color of the card the lead player played): If the player has a card of the Lead Color then they play that card. If they have more than one, then they choose one of them.
OR
-
Same Chord: You can play a card of the same Chord as another card in this trick. (This is optional. It is not necessary.) This triggers a Key Change or Improvisation.
-
Can't Follow: If you don't have any cards of the same color as the Lead Player played then you may choose any card to play.
Example: The Lead Player plays a card. A later player holds an A, B, C and E card of the Lead Color, plus other cards. A 'B' card has already been played, so a 'B' card may be played (Key Change). Likewise a 'C' card may be played, as the Lead Player and the 4th player played the same chord (Improvisation). If you don't want to play either of these cards then you must choose the 'E' card as it's the only card of the Lead Color. The 'A' card cannot be played, since you still have cards in your hand of the lead color.
Determining the Winner
Based on the current Key Chord the player who played the strongest chord wins the trick. If the chord is stronger then the color is ignored.
If there are two or more cards with the strongest chord then the one of them that shares the lead color wins the trick. If none of the strongest cards are the lead color then the one that was played earlier wins the trick.
The winner of the trick takes the 4 cards that formed the trick. Stack the 4 cards together to form piles of tricks in front of you, so they can be easily counted. (Two stacks of 4 cards are counted as 2 tricks.)
Confirming the Leader
After determining the winner of the trick, the next trick's Lead Player must be determined.
- In case of a Key Change/Improvisation: the "Key Changer" (in case of Improvisation the 4th player) will be the Lead Player for the next trick.
- In other cases (No Key Change/Improvisation): the winner of the trick will be the Lead Player for the next trick.
Using the Lead Player Marker
The Lead Player Marker can be used to show the current Lead Player as well as a mark to show who the next lead player will be.
Changing Keys: Key Chord Changes
When Key Changes Happen
The player who causes a Key Change is called the "Key Changer". If the same chord is played 2 or more times in a single trick then a Key Change is triggered. The last player to play a card of that chord is the Key Changer.
Changing the Key Chord
After the winner of the trick has been determined the Key Changer moves the Key Chord Marker to the space corresponding to the chord they just played (the chord that caused the Key Change). This will be the Key Chord starting with the following trick.
Key Changer Becomes Lead Player
The Key Changer is the Lead Player for the next trick.
Special Case 1: 2 Sets of 2 Chords. If 2 of the same chords are played and another set of 2 different chords are played on the same trick then the player who played the same chord as the Lead Player has priority and becomes the Key Changer. (In this decision the chord's strengths are not considered.)
Special Case 2: Playing 2 Key Chords. A Key Change may take place to the same key. It is just like a normal key change, but the Key Chord Marker doesn't move.
If a Key Change happens on the final trick of the Venue, nothing happens. The winner of the trick is determined as usual.
Improvisation: One More Round
When Improvisation Happens
If the 4th player plays the same chord as the Lead Player then Improvisation is triggered. The 4th Player starts the second round of the trick.
Flip the Cards Over
The 4 cards that were played in the earlier part of the trick are all flipped face-down.
The face-down cards from the first round are not used in determining the winner of the trick. The second round of this trick then begins.
Second Round's Trick
The winner of the trick is determined only by the face up cards from the second round. The winner of the Improvisation takes all the cards as tricks (for 2 rounds all 8 cards/2 tricks). The winner also takes a 15-point bonus when it's time to score. The 8 cards are counted as 2 tricks for scoring.
Improvising in Succession
It's possible to Improvise multiple times on the same trick. If on the second round the 4th player plays the same chord as the Lead Player another round of Improvisation is triggered and the players jump into a 3rd round. However the number of bonus points remains 15 regardless of the number of rounds played on an Improvisation.
Improvisation Limit
The maximum times Improvisation can take place in a single trick is set at 3 times in a 4-player game (max 4 rounds/16 cards). More than that, even if the conditions for Improvisation are met, improvisation doesn't happen.
The number of Improvisations won is needed for scoring. Line up the tricks you've taken in a way so you can tell the tricks taken normally and the tricks taken by Improvisation.
On the last trick of each Venue Improvisation never occurs. Even if the conditions for Improvisation are met the trick immediately ends.
Spotlight Card
Counts as a Trick
The Spotlight Card is counted as 1 trick (4 cards). The player with the Spotlight Card at the time of scoring adds one additional trick to the number of tricks that they took.
Receive from Key Chord
When a player wins a trick by playing the current Key Chord the winning player receives the Spotlight Card. The Spotlight Card is placed in front of that player.
Changing Owners
Sometimes the Spotlight Card moves to another player. If on a later trick another player wins the trick with the Key Chord then that player takes the Spotlight Card from the previous owner. (If the player holding the Spotlight Card wins another trick with the Key Chord then the Spotlight Card doesn't move.)
Card Returns
When the Venue is finished and scoring has been completed the Spotlight Card is returned to the center of the table.
Venue Scoring
When all the players' cards have been played Round Scoring takes place. First score is given based on the number of tricks each player took in the Venue. Based on the scoring chart players score points. If anyone is holding the Spotlight Card then that player adds 1 to their trick total. Players who took tricks through Improvisation count each round as 1 trick (1 trick per 4 cards).
Additional points are awarded for Improvisation. Each Improvisation is worth 15 points, regardless of the number of rounds. (If the trick had 3 rounds/12 cards or 4 rounds/16 cards there is a 1 time bonus of 15 points.)
When doing Venue scoring the number of times Improvisation tricks were taken is also written down.
- Ex. 1: 1 trick + the Spotlight Card totalling 2 tricks is 20 points.
- Ex. 2: 3 tricks + 1 Improvisation is 30 + 15 = 45 pts.
- Ex. 3: 6 tricks + 2 Improvisations is -10 + 30 = 20 pts.
Curtain Call
After Venue Scoring shuffle the 35 Feeling Cards including the 3 extra cards, and deal 8 new cards to each player and begin the next Venue. Each player, in turn, will be the start player at a different Venue.
Ending the Game
In a 4-player game 4 Venues are played. After completing all 4 Venues the player with the highest total score is the winner. In case of a tie the player with more Improvisations is the winner. In case of a further tie there are multiple winners.
3-Player Version: Add a Non-Player
Setup for 3 Players
Dealing cards. When playing with 3 players a 4th pseudo-player is included. Deal 4 sets of 8 Feeling Cards.
The non-player's cards. Stack the non-player's 8 cards face down to make the non-player's hand of cards. Place this stack in the center of the table in easy reach.
Determining the Key Chord. Determine the starting Key Chord in the same manner as the 4-player version. This completes the game setup.
Playing Cards
Cards are played identically to the 4-player version.
Playing the Non-Player's Hand
After the lead player plays his card he takes the top card from the non-player's hand and plays it face up to the left of his own. This constitutes the non-player's turn. The non-player ignores the rules for following color. (The lead player flips over the top card from the non-player's hand and places it to the left of his own. The non-player is thus the 2nd player in the trick.)
Key Change in a 3-Player Game
- The non-player never forces a key change. Even if the non-player plays a card that would normally create a key change the Key Change does not happen and the Key Chord is not moved.
- The 3rd and 4th players may use the non-player's (counted as the 2nd player) card to cause a Key Change.
Improvisation in a 3-Player Game
Improvisation can happen a maximum of 2 times (3 rounds/12 cards) in a row. Improvisation in a 3-player game never goes more than 3 consecutive rounds.
Determining the Winner
- The non-player never wins the trick. If the non-player has the strongest card the trick is won by the next strongest card.
- The winner of the trick takes all the cards (including the non-player's card) and places them in front of himself.
Number of Venues
In a 3-player game 3 Venues are played. Score for each Venue is calculated identically to the 4-player game. Add each of the players' scores from the 3 venues together to determine that player's final score. Compare players' scores to determine the winner.
Special Case: 2 Sets of 2 Chords. If the Lead Player and the non-player play identical chords and the other two players play the same chords as each other (but different from the lead player's) then the Key is not changed by the non-player but instead an exception is created and the player who last played the other chord (the 4th player) is the Key Changer.