Willi
Willi Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- 36 number cards (4 colors with values 1-9)
- 24 point cards (8 each with value 1-3)
- monster card
Overview & Goal
The goal of this unusual game is not so unusual: it is to collect most points. There are 8 rounds and in each of these rounds point cards are distributed. There are 8 tricks in each round. The special features of this game are that each player takes exactly 2 tricks per round and a player can secure a trick by calling "Meinz". At the end of a round, it is the sum of the numbers in each player's two tricks that determines the outcome of the round.
Preparation
The players sort the point cards according to their values and place them face up in three separate stacks: 1, 2, and 3. Choose a player to be first dealer. This player shuffles the 36 number cards and deals 9 to each player, face down.
Before the players begin the trick-taking, still each player looks at the cards in his hand and selects one to return face down to the box. These cards are no longer needed this round. The player left of the dealer begins.
The Trick-Taking
The taking of tricks is basically the same as the usual rules. The player who begins plays a card face up on the table. The other players each play a card face up on the table in clockwise order. After all have played a card, the trick is over and the players determine which player gets the trick.
When players play cards they follow the normal rules, but with one variance:
- The player must play the color of the first card played in the trick, but the player may, instead, play a card matching the number of the first card played in the trick.
- If a player cannot follow the above rule, he may play any card.
Example: Alex starts the trick with the red 5. Joe does not have red cards, but he does have the yellow 5. Joe need not play the yellow 5, but may play any card. If Joe had red cards, he would have had to play either a red card or a number 5 card.
Who Wins the Trick?
Basically, the player that played the lowest-valued card (regardless of color) gets the trick. When two or more cards are the lowest, the later played card is the lower (again, regardless of color).
A player can also get a trick (secure it, as it were) simply by calling "Meinz". Here is how it works. The start player plays a card. Before the next player plays a card, the start player can call: "Meinz" = "that is my trick". When a player has called "Meinz", he will get the trick, regardless of who plays the lowest-valued card on the trick. He must take the trick, regardless of what cards are played to it after he made the call. After calling "Meinz", the trick continues with no changes in the rules of playing to a trick.
If the start player does not call, the next player plays his card and can now call "Meinz". If he calls, he gets the trick when it is done. If he does not call, the start player can again call "Meinz", if he wants (he now knows 2 of the cards that will be on the trick). If neither the second nor the first player call, play continues to third player. He plays a card and can call. If he does not call, the first player can call and then the second player can call if the first does not. If neither calls, the last player plays a card, but may not call, and neither can the other players.
What Can the Player Do with the Trick?
The player who won the trick may exchange one of the cards in his hand with a card of the same color from the trick. The player shows the others the cards he is exchanging. Then he puts the trick face down in his play area. Note: this exchange can be a very important tactical move.
The player who won the trick plays the first card of the next trick. Thus, the tricks are played to the end, when the players have no cards.
Special feature: each player must have taken exactly 2 tricks in the round! Once a player has already taken 2 tricks in a round, he must play cards normally, but can take no further trick. He may also not call "Meinz". If he would take a trick because he played the lowest card, his card is not considered in determining who takes the trick. In this case, the player with the second lowest card takes the trick. If the player with the second lowest card already has 2 tricks, the player with the third-lowest card takes the trick, and so on...
Point Distribution
Each player has taken exactly 2 tricks. Each adds the values of the numbers on their cards. Then, points are distributed:
- The player with the highest sum takes a "3" point card.
- The player with the second highest sum takes a "1" point card.
- The player with the third highest sum takes nothing.
- The player with the lowest sum takes a "2" point card.
Example: the players calculated the following sums and, thus, took the following point cards: Alex 51, Joe 38, Gunter 37, Hanna 31. (Alex takes a 3, Joe a 1, Gunter, as third highest, gets nothing, and Hanna, the lowest, takes a 2.)
If several players tie with the same sum, they receive nothing at all.
Example: Alex and Joe each have 40 points, Hanna has 39, and Gunter has 34 points. As Alex and Joe are tied with the highest sum, neither gets a point card. As there is a two-way tie for highest, there is no second highest. Thus, Hanna is third highest and gets no point card. Gunter has the lowest sum and takes a "2" point card.
Game End
In the second round, the left neighbor of the start player of the previous round becomes the new start player. Thus 8 rounds are played, so that everyone was twice the start player.
The winner is the player who has the most points in the form of point cards. If several players tie with the most points, each of those players rejoice in the shared victory.
The Game with 3 Players
When playing with only three players, the card monster plays as the fourth player. The card monster is dealt 9 cards face down (like the other players), but does not discard one. Thus, the card monster will have one card left at the end of the round. 8 rounds are played, so that each player (including the card monster) has two rounds of being the start player.
The card monster plays the first card to the first round. The card monster always plays the topmost card from his card stack to each trick, regardless of the normal rules of play. The card monster gets the trick whenever it played the lowest card and no player called "Meinz". And, once the card monster has 2 tricks, it takes no more!
If the first 6 tricks are taken by players, the card monster gets the last two tricks automatically.
During the point distribution, the card monster adds 12 points to the sum of the numbers on its two tricks.