The Bird Told Me to Do It

The Bird Told Me to Do It Rulebook

Table of Contents

48 Bird cards, 6 Plumage cards, 1 Trunk card, 1 Pass card

Objective

Make sure your color birds show up the most on the branch and score big. Do what the birds tell you to do and score bigger!

Bird Cards

Each bird shows from one to four birds standing on a section of a tree branch, called a twig. The birds come in types — red firebirds, black nightbirds, blue seabirds, gray silverbirds, white snowbirds, and yellow sunbirds, with eight of each type of card included in the deck. The twig has from one to three exits off of the card, allowing it to connect to the trunk and/or other twigs as a tree branch is build during the game. Each card has a speech bubble along the bottom of the card, instructing the player to do something at certain times during play. Lastly, in the upper left corner there is a color swatch and number of dots to indicate the color and value of the card to the player if the cards are held tightly in hand, or when the cards are in a score pile later in the game.

[Component diagram on the printed page labels: color, value, birds, twig connections, speech bubble.]

Setup

Place the trunk card faceup in the middle of the playing surface. Shuffle the bird cards and deal a card faceup to each player. The player dealt the largest-valued card will go first. If there is a tie, deal each player in the tie another card faceup to break the tie until the tie is broken. Players take the dealt cards into their hands. Continue dealing cards facedown to each player until all players have a hand of six cards (unless they already have six or more). Place the remaing cards facedown in a draw deck to the side. Place the six plumage cards faceup by the draw deck. Place the pass card faceup by the draw deck.

Playing the Game

Play proceeds in turns clockwise around the playing surface. On each turn, a player starts with his Add Phase, and may do one of the following pairs of actions:

Add a card from his hand to the branch, and then claim the plumage card of matching color from beside the draw deck (it must be unclaimed).
Add a card from his hand to the branch, and then draw a card.
Add two cards from his hand to the branch.
Draw two cards. This is considered a pass. If the pass card is unclaimed, claim it. As soon as a player takes a turn without passing after this, the pass card is returned to beside the draw deck.

As long as the player did not pass, the player then moves to his Branch Phase, and follows the instructions on all the cards on the branch leading to his card from the trunk (as explained in BRANCH PHASE).

Adding to the Branch

At the beginning of the game, the card added must connect to one of the two sides of the trunk. Once the branch has been started, further cards added must connect to existing cards on the branch. A card cannot be added to the other side of the trunk once the branch exists.

A card may be added so that a horizontal or vertical connection is made, as long as it does not cover or overlap existing cards. A card cannot be added to connect to a card in a way that forms a loop, or to connect back to top, bottom, or other side of the trunk.

In addition, a card added must have an equal or lower number of birds on it than the card to which it connects.

Adding Example

The player wants to add the card with two nightbirds to the branch. He cannot place it by the trunk, as the branch already exists on the other side. Even if it didn't, the card has no connection facing left. He cannot place it above the two sunbirds, as the card would overlap the three silverbirds. He cannot place it above the lone firebird because in order to place there his card would have to have at most one bird. He can place above the two snowbirds.

Branch Phase

After placing his card on the branch, the player traces a route from the trunk to the card he played, and follows the instructions on each and every card on the branch along the way. He executes the instructions one by one; if a card changes identity before he reaches it along his path out on the branch, he executes the instructions on the new card when he reaches it. If the branch is pruned before he reaches the position of the card he played during Add Phase, he stops. If more cards are added beyond his card during execution of instructions, he continues out from the card he played during Add Phase in any direction he wishes.

If a player adds two cards during Add Phase, he may follow a path to either position on the branch, but he must decide which route he will take before executing any instructions.

After finishing with the branch cards, the player then also discards a bird card faceup from the draw deck into the discard pile beside the draw deck, and does what the instructions in the speech bubble tell the player to do. The player does not get this bonus action if he passed and had no branch phase.

In the previous example, if the player adds his two-nightbird card above the two-snowbird card during Add Phase, during Branch Phase he would execute out from the trunk in order five cards — the three-firebird card, the three-silverbird card, the three-sunbird card, the two-snowbird card, and finally his two-nightbird card. He would then also execute a bonus card from the draw deck.

Branch Award

If at the end of a player's turn, there are no possible places to add cards to the branch, the bird type or types with the largest number of birds on the branch awards its cards as points to the players having the plumage card of the corresponding color. If the player with the pass card is about to take a turn (all players have passed in succession), the branch is likewise awarded.

In the previous example, if all players pass successively, the color with the most birds is yellow (with five sunbirds). The player with the yellow plumage card (if any) would score both sunbird cards, for five points. He would place both cards faceup in his score pile, in either order, on top of any other cards already there.

If there is a tie for largest number of birds, each color awards its cards as points simultaneously. A card covered when the branch is awarded is never taken as points, even if the card covering it is scored.

All unawarded cards on the branch are discarded beside the draw deck. All plumage cards are returned to beside the draw deck. The pass card is returned to beside the draw deck. Play continues with the next player able to start a new branch.

If at anytime the twigs of a branch are all removed and only the trunk remains, return any claimed plumage cards and the pass card to beside the draw deck for the next turn. In this fashion, if a player passes as the first turn of the game, the pass card is immediately returned.

Ending the Game

If any player accumulates thirty or more points in his score pile, the game ends and he wins. If multiple players achieve this simultaneously due to a branch being scored, the player with the most points wins.

The first time the draw deck is depleted, shuffle the discarded cards to form a new draw deck and continue. The second time the draw deck is depleted, the game ends immediately (the current player does not continue his action or take an action from the last card). The branch, as it is, is awarded. The player with the highest score wins.

In either case, on a tie, the current player wins if he is part of the tie, or else the next player that would start a turn among the tying players wins.

Double Deck

Four or five players may play a game if two decks are used. Shuffle all bird cards together to form one deck and deal starting hands as usual. Use only one set of plumage cards, one trunk, and one pass card.

Bird Instructions

If it is clear to all players that a the player taking his turn can execute an instruction on a card, he must do so, as much as possible. A player does not have to execute an instruction if it involves a card or cards in his hand being of a certain type, as these are hidden from the other players.

When following the instruction on a card, the number in brackets is increased by the number of other cards of the same color coming before or after the card along the route the player is tracing during the Branch Phase.

For example, if a twig says "Draw [1] card", and there are two other twigs of the same color along a player's route, he would draw three cards when he executes this instruction.

If an action changes the number of like-color cards along a route, this does not affect the card currently being executed. It may affect following actions.

Some instructions given on bird cards warrant further explanation, as follows.

Boost the next (or last) card

The bonus card executed after the Branch Phase is always the last card. The bonus card is the next card after the most extreme branch card.

Draw (or score) two (or more) twigs of a color

The player may choose a color that has only twig to be drawn, even if another color has enough twigs. If drawing a twig uncovers another twig of appropriate color to be drawn, that twig must be drawn too, if there are cards remaining in the instruction to be drawn.

Draw and add or place a card (or place over a twig)

The drawn card is revealed. If it cannot be added, placed, or placed over another twig, it is kept in hand.

Place a card

A card can be placed by adding it to a branch at an open connection, or by dropping it on top of an existing twig. The twig's connections to other branches must be preserved if it is covered by the placement. The card connecting to it closer to the trunk cannot have fewer birds showing; likewise a card connecting to it farther from the trunk cannot have more birds showing.

Place over a twig

A card to be placed over a twig cannot be added to an extremity. A card to be placed, simply, can be placed over a twig, or added.

Score a card

Scored cards are placed faceup in a score pile in front of a player, spread slightly such that the values of the cards in the corner are all showing, and the total sum can be calculated.

Score a card from deck

If a card cannot be scored from the deck, it is discarded.

Score (or draw, or discard) a card from a score pile

The topmost card is taken from the faceup score pile.

Swap a twig with a card from hand

Like placing over a twig, the new card must preserve the old card's existing connections to other cards on the branch. The old card goes into the player's hand.

Swap plumage

Each swap in the same instruction must involve different plumage cards on both ends of the swap.

Take plumage

A player can take a claimed plumage card from another player with a bird instruction, as long as the instruction does not specify "unclaimed" plumage.

Example Game

Todd and Britney will play a two-player game.

Todd is dealt a four-value card, and Britney a one-value card. Todd will go first. Each player starts with six cards in hand, including these revealed cards.

For his Add Phase, Todd adds a four-nightbird card to the left of the trunk, and then takes the nightbird plumage card.

For his Branch Phase, Todd does what the four nightbirds tell him to do, to "Place [1] card from hand." He adds a three-nightbird card from his hand below the four-nightbird twig.

He then continues out along the branch and does what the three nightbirds tell him to do, to "Draw and add [2] cards." The twig is the same color as the other along his route on the branch, so the card is pumped up once, to "Draw and add [3] cards."

He draws a one-seabird card and adds it above the four-nightbird card. He draws a three-firebird card and adds it to the right of the three-nightbird card. He draws a three-silverbird card and adds it to the right of the three-firebird card.

Continuing out on the branch, Todd chooses his route to go to the three-firebird card next. The birds tell Todd to "Take [2] plumage of color not on the branch." The only two colors not on the branch are yellow and white, so he takes these.

The next card has three silverbirds, which tell him to "Score [1] card from opponents' scores." Britney has no score yet, so he cannot do this.

Finally, Todd draws and discards a bonus card after his Branch Phase. It is a three-silverbird card which tells him to "Score [2] cards from deck of color of opponents' plumage." He draws and discard two cards, scoring neither as Britney has no plumage. Todd's turn ends.

Britney adds a one-snowbird card to the left of the one-seabird card, and draws a card as her Add Phase.

For her Branch Phase, she is told by the four nightbirds to first "Place [1] card from hand." This is boosted to [2] by the other nightbird card along her path. However, she does not want to place any cards, and since they are hidden in hand, she can choose to skip this instruction.

The next instruction by the one seabird is to "Draw and place over two twigs of size [1] or less." She draws two cards, but neither can be placed over the one-seabird card or the one-snowbird card, so she keeps them in her hand.

The final one-snowbird twig tells her to "Draw and reveal a card and perform it with a boost of [1]." She draws a card which tells her to "Place two cards from hand of value [1] or less," which is boosted to [2] per the instructions of the one snowbird. She chooses not to place any of her cards from hand.

As her bonus card, Britney draws and discards a card which tells her to "Return all plumage from all players and take [1] plumage." She returns Todd's three plumage cards, and then takes the black nightbird plumage card for herself.

Todd has a card he can add from his hand, but he does not want to as it is black and it would end up increasing Britney's score should the branch be awarded. As his turn he elects to Pass, drawing two cards and taking the Pass card.

Britney also decides to draw two cards and Pass.

At the start of Todd's next turn, since he still has the Pass card (all players have passed consecutively), the branch is awarded. The largest number of birds of one type is seven, of the nightbirds. Britney has the nightbird plumage card, so she scores the nightbird twigs showing, placing the cards in her score pile. All other twigs are discarded.

The black plumage card is returned. The Pass card is returned. Todd may start a new branch by adding to the trunk on his turn. Britney is currently winning, 7 to 0.