The Princess Bride: Miracle Pill
The Princess Bride: Miracle Pill Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents and Setup
Contents: 72 cards (3 decks of 24): 12 Red, 11 Rainbow, 11 Orange, 12 Yellow, 10 Green, 10 Blue, 6 Black.
Setup: Separate and shuffle the three decks of cards. Deal four Round 1 cards to each player and set the rest aside.
Play
Miracle Pill is a card-drafting game played over three rounds, and each round is composed of three turns.
On a turn, players will choose one card to play from their hand. Once all players have chosen a card, players simultaneously play their cards.
Note: A player may choose to play their card face-down. Face-down cards may be substituted for any card needed to make a potion (see Potions below).
Once the cards are played, resolve any effects as stated on the cards, then pass your hand to the player on your left.
Note: Once a card is played, it immediately becomes a part of your work area, even before any effects are resolved.
Repeat this procedure until only two cards remain in your hand. On this turn, all players will choose one card to play and discard the other one. Once the final cards are played and resolved, Round 1 has ended.
Start the next round by dealing four Round 2 cards to each player. Round 2 is played exactly as Round 1, except that hands are passed to the right at turn's end.
Follow Round 2 with Round 3, again passing hands to the left at the end of each turn. When Round 3 is complete, the game is over and a winner is declared (see Scoring and Winning the Game below).
Card Overview
The three decks contain cards in a variety of colors. Each color generally behaves as follows:
- Yellow – These cards have no effect other than to grant your miracle pill potency (points toward winning the game).
- Orange – These cards multiply the points on other cards and sometimes grant immunity from red cards. They never score any points on their own.
- Green – These cards work together to increase potency. The more you have, the more they are worth.
- Blue – These cards make it easier to make potions (see the Potions section for more details).
- Red – These cards are played against other players to decrease their score or destroy their cards. They are always resolved last, according to their rank.
- Rainbow – These are wild cards. They can be counted as any color for potion-making and end-game bonuses. If they are used as green cards, be sure to add their face value to the total also.
- Black (Round 3 only) – These cards give special bonuses at the end of the game.
Potions
Potions are made by sacrificing cards already played during the game. They are usually more powerful than normal cards.
Round 1 does not contain any potions.
Round 2 potions require a sacrifice of one of the two cards pictured (discard the card of the color indicated or a face-down card to play the potion card).
Round 3 potions require two of the three cards pictured. Only the color of the required cards matter—even potion cards can be used to make other potions. You may sacrifice a blue card after using its effect. Discard cards before interaction or resolving effects.
Scoring and Winning the Game
Once the game has ended, players must tally their scores. Players must decide how to count rainbow and orange cards. Figure the worth of green and black cards, add in all other points and subtract (or add) any points from red cards. The player with the highest score has made a miracle pill, revived the Man in Black and won the game.
Scoring Examples
In the first example, the player decides to make the Potion of Wisdom card blue, so that Diamond Dust will apply to it (even though Shrieking Eels will also now apply). The black total is 20 (10 for each yellow card). The yellow total is 40. The blue total is 30x3, 90. The red total is -5. This player's total score is 20+40+90-5, which comes to 145.
In the second example, the player chooses to make the rainbow cards green. The black total is now 40. The green total is 70 (for having four green cards) +15 +25, which equals 110. This player's total score is 150.
Ask Miracle Max (F.A.Q.)
Can I play a red card on a player who has immunity from red cards? Yes, you may play your red card in their work area. However, the red card will have no effect (including immediate effects) so long as the immunity card is present. If the immunity card is discarded, the red card affects the player's score as normal at the end of the game.
If a red card requires me to destroy an orange card, can I destroy a rainbow card instead? Yes.
When are red and blue interaction cards resolved? They are resolved according the rank listed under their icon in the top left of the card. Lowest resolves first.
What if two orange cards multiply the same card? That's fine. Each multiplies individually and then the two totals are added together. For example, a x2, x3 and 50 would be 2x50 + 3x50 = 250, not 2x3x50 = 300.
Can green cards be multiplied by orange cards? No, only cards with a specific value in the upper right corner can be multiplied by orange cards.
How does a blue card like Pond Water help me make potions? Pond Water allows you to make potions without having to give up a green card. So, if you wanted to play Potion of Sight (requiring a yellow or a green), you could play it for free, skipping the green card requirement.